#playing with fire putting this in the main tag but oh well

[transtief]

i really hope that ign article is kinda blowing things outta proportion, at least in terms of romance. to be clear, it is understandable to me that the inquisitor’s relationship with solas is going to matter in the grand scheme of things. solas is the thing tying rook and the inquisitor together, and whether you despise solas, love him, or are painfully indifferent toward him, he is an antagonist bioware has set up for this game. his decisions and actions are going to, and have already had, far-reaching effects on thedas. of course he is going to have a spotlight of his own. i’m not concerned with that.

in terms of solavellan though, like. again, i hope things are being blown out of proportion. bioware is clearly very proud of solavellan and loves their solavellan fans very much, and i’m glad solavellan people can expect a decent endgame after 10 years of waiting. but i will genuinely be so upset if every other inquisitor, every other romance path, gets demonstrably Less in comparison. female lavellan is one inquisitor among eight. solas is only romanceable by one specific type of inquisitor. if the rest of us are left with some throwaway “oh yeah we still write sometimes” lines regarding our romances i will be very disappointed. obviously we can’t know everything until the game comes out, but the fact that, in an article about why only three choices from inquisition are going to matter in veilguard, everything seems to round out into “solavellan fans are going to be pleased,” i’m left with a bad taste in my mouth.

[papaya-twinks]

mauve - l.n - p.2

Warnings: Swearing, angst, crash, sexism, banter, insulting(?)

Pairing: Lando Norris x fem!reader

Taglist: @cheriiepies @jan1on @sagestack @fall-bambi @meglouise00 @eclipsedcherry @suzzie105 @rebelatbay @fly-me-away @cabbyhabs @djoenthusiast @georgeparisole @justcharlotte @cutieln4 @amz824 @coff33andb00ks @yoruse @neferaskingdom @dramaticpiratellamas @leonie404

A/N - I’m so happy y’all like it! Remember, message in the comments if you wanna be on the tag list! Also, remember, at this stage of the fic, Lando has 0 wins!

other parts 💜💜

Thankfully for both you and Lando, he didn’t have to see your face for the next few days, not until pre-season testing anyways. You looked great in your suit, the Williams suited you so well, you drove impeccably, your car nowhere as slow as it had been the year before, and Alex had been a healthy 15th.

Hey, could’ve been worse. As you got into your car, your helmet a sweet purple with oil splashes along the side, your number emblazoned on the top, you readied yourself for your first ever drive as part of the Formula One World Championship. Fuck.

You turned sharply right, ready to warm your tyres, checking your mirror and responding to radio messages. “So, Lando’s done a 28.8 for sector one, that’s a 28.8, Y/N,” your engineer said you responded with a simple ‘copy’.

Once your tyres were up and ready you began your lap, sliding through the corners with just the right amount of balance, your concentration unwavering, the places you put the car just perfect. Yes, it was just practise, but it seemed like you’d been doing it for years.

And then, as you began your next lap, heading down the main straight, you caught a flash of orange in your rear-view mirrors, the almost blindingly neon helmet of Lando Norris shimmering behind you. What the fuck was he doing?

No one ever raced during pre-season testing. It was testing. After all. But you were on a hot lap, and you weren’t one to back down, which greatly surprise Lando, as he saw you continue, not letting off a single second. Two could play at that game.

He dove down the inside, his wheel tapping into the side of yours, sending your car onto the rumble strip, your body bouncing in the car. “What’s he playing at?!” you shrieked into the radio. “We’re on it, Y/N,” your engineer reassured.

“So, uh, Y/N, what do you make of the situation with Lando on track?” one of the reporters asked, as you lifted your microphone. You let out a breath of air, a mix of a scoff and sigh as you shrugged. “I’m not responsible nor do I know what he was thinking,” you said simply.

“Maybe if she can look. She’d have seen me,” Lando said, a harsh, hostile laugh on his lips as he rolled his eyes, “this sport would be better off without people who can’t see others on track,”. You didn’t say anything, blinking for a second.

“If you want a change of scenery, F1 Academy’s always open,” you said, moving the straw of your drink to your lips to hide the smug smirk on your lips as you pulled your Williams cap down low on your forehead, your hair smooth, albeit sweaty.

And Lando? He was taken aback. The new girl had bite, huh? Well, so did he. He was Lando fucking Norris after all, not some push over. But neither were you, it supposed. Lando didn’t say anything, he wasn’t one to stroke the fire when he knew how much of a field day the media would have with it.

But that didn’t mean he’d let you get away with it, oh no. He’d make you pay. And pay for it you would, tenfold for what you had done. How you’d insulted him. To Lando, you’d have been a better grid girl than a driver.

You didn’t say anything as you sat in your motor home, now changing into a comfy pair of sweats and a t-shirt, the cold air of a February in Bahrain filing in through your window. You didn’t understand why Lando was even being such a jerk to you.

You hadn’t done anything wrong, you’d only given him what he’d given you first. But if it was gonna be like that, then fine. You could dish it out and if Lando wasn’t okay to take it, so be it. Anyways, testing? It had gone reasonably well, but almost as if to add salt to the wound, mclaren were looking stronger than usual.

Lando would have a field day with that one.

It was half-refreshing to come out of your second FP1 session to see that there were, fortunately, some people who did think Lando was being mean to you. Whilst at the same time, there were people who shipped you? What the hell? That would never happen. And you only did come 13th, and in a car as slow as Williams? That was an achievement and a half.

[asterythm]

on the ending of in stars and time:

an essay from someone who couldn’t sit with it at first, & a love letter to the fic that brought me here anyway. (…spoiler warning for in stars and time, naturally, but you knew that!)

if siffrin isat has taught me one thing it's that vulnerability is cool, actually, and being forthcoming and generous with love when there is love to be shared is how the coolest kids do it.

so. hello isat nation of tumblr dot com. i'm here because even after cutting out several chunks to shorten this significantly, i busted through the ao3 comment section character limit and still had more to say, so i needed somewhere to put it all that would let me go longer.

i’m pretty sure this post is for, like, three people, one of whom is me. but look, it’s been moved here to the webbed site so if you wanna read it anyway i won’t stop you!

=====

i think what it is, ultimately, is this: the ISAT canon ending was beautiful. it was an objectively well-written ending with so much love and hope and thematic satisfaction.

it also left me, for a period, with a deep and unshakeable sense of dread.

:)!!!!

now enter @faedemon's "None Forward & Two, Two, Two Steps Back" (hiya, fancy seeing you here), a two-chapter alt act 5 in which siffrin finds a New, Worse way to break the loops.

despite being, as mentioned, a notably worse outcome for everyone involved, this alt end managed to cut straight to the heart of that dread and settle it — and not in the sense of "oh, i like this alt ending better", or “oh, the canon ending looks better in comparison against this worse alt ending”, so much as "oh, thanks to this alt ending i am finally able to sit in a place where it no longer feels like the canon ending, as a beautiful outcome which felt impossibly lucky to get, is the only outcome in which life can go on — and my ability to accept it, and the game as a whole, is elevated for it."

which!! i mean!! i don’t know that that’s exactly what you set out to do; None Forward is explicitly a tragedy!! and one, as your tags say, written because the canon ending didn't ring true for you.

but I realized that the thing that was stopping me from enjoying ISAT’s canon ending was that ugly hard core that was still so, so scared after the canon ending of every way we (that is, siffrin + i as the player moving in that incredible ludonarrative lockstep with him, holy moly the harmony in this game) had not yet grown to earn it. 

=====

(I’ll take a sec here under the cut to say that when I played ISAT, and then for much of the month that followed, my main reason for engaging with it and its related content at all was that it was a piece of media that came fervently recommended by my incredibly dear friend @iconocat , who it had massively, violently impacted and whose media recommendations in general I trust more than anything.

so i played ISAT, and it was incredible. but even though it's a piece of media that just about hit on every point on my list of Things That Set My Brain On Fire, it failed somehow to. well. set me on fire — at least to the extent I was expecting it to. I still enjoyed myself in the few weeks afterwards of running through fan content and intentionally plunging myself into media analysis, but I was never convinced that I would be engaging with ISAT to the extent I was if it wasn't for the sake of trying to intentionally hack my brain to the point where I could share with my friend something so important to her at the same level of genuine investment. 

I’m telling you all this because, legitimately the same night I posted “nothing but a dull ache” (ie, if you're not charlie faedemon and are somehow caring to read this anyway, the epilogue oneshot I started feverishly writing the morning after reading None Forward), I realized through my rambling in my friend’s discord dms that reading None Forward was the moment the fire finally caught. I spent a month burying myself in ISAT content and asking myself “Is this natural yet?”. after None Forward, the answer to that question finally became a sure, wholehearted yes.)

=====

so anyway, back to the essay.

don't get me wrong. it's really, really nice, to read a story where the moral is less “you should have asked for help", and more “there are people who will unselfishly give the gift of a love that saves even when you cannot save yourself".

but that whole ending also was only able to happen because 1. they broke in a way no one should ever have to break, and 2. everyone involved got lucky.

which, in media, happens all the time!! it is not inherently dissatisfying for a narrative to wrap by saving you with luck and love in the nick of time!! in fact it should be incredibly satisfying, after the unambiguously-negative downward spiral into Director Siffrin who had begun to learn what to say and do to make his family behave exactly the way he needs them to, for a stroke of unpredictable luck brought about by factors entirely out of his control to finally be what sets him free.

but like... I think it's because the story is set in a situation where it's no longer true that luck and randomness is a factor by which anything significant can change.

we're hammered over the head with it: until and unless you do something to alter the course of events, they will not be altered. when you are the only dynamic element the world is reacting to in an otherwise looping course of events, you don't get to rely, anymore, on the idea that at any moment something could happen to save you. you have to assume that nothing will happen unless you make it.

and siffrin?? siffrin's literal motto was "stick to the script"!! they spend the loops with a mouth that kept closing tighter and tighter and tighter until i got to act 5 and watched them implode. and then I’m saved, and I know I haven't earned this. I get to the end and I'm still not telling them anything!! I wasn't supposed to get the good ending!! but I get away with it anyway with open arms and acceptance and unconditional love, and it's. kind of nauseating?

how am I ever supposed to learn and grow, if I didn't manage to change my behaviour even then under the threat of Eternal Looping Torment, and still got the good ending anyway? how can I prove there was an alternative way I could have broken free if things hadn't turned out so lucky in that one terrible act 5 loop?

I can't. and that's terrifying.

(aside: I’m speaking in the first person here to emphasize that the thing that got in my way is not because I don't believe siffrin is deserving of this love — quite the opposite, I think the driving force behind the good ending is that siffrin went scorched earth and saw he was loved anyway — but because this is a game designed to frequently encourage the player to deeply feel what siffrin is feeling throughout its course and. well. as a thing to happen to a fictional character it's beautiful. as a takeaway for the player, it's... harder.)

and that's where None Forward comes in. (i’ve already written thousands of words in comments and epilogue fic declaring my love by now, but i mean. im hoping you won’t mind just a liiiittle more.)

None Forward shows a devastatingly written, all-too-believable version of what might have happened if siffrin didn't get lucky, and the loops continued, and they kept clinging to the script and refusing to Look At It and successfully stagnating and stagnating and stagnating as they were so determined to do. and it's bad, it's worse, it's way way worse — but there's no reliance on outside factors. it comes completely from within siffrin and loop, the only dynamic pieces in the world, finally breaking out.

it was the terrible, nightmarish unfairness of the loops brought to their natural, just-south-of-inevitable conclusion.

and yes, it's a terrible, unfair conclusion, but the loop still breaks.

in a roundabout way, it... gives me so much hope. if the outside factors were different, if the stars did not align just right to allow siffrin's family to get there on time to save them, if siffrin never learned to open their mouth, which by all means seems like the likeliest course of events... they'd still get out. worse for wear, and separated by a gap unbridgeable, but out.

there is a future. there is freedom.

=====

to speak more specifically on dull ache, if you'll forgive the indulgence, just since this was originally meant to be in a reply to the author in my own comments section:

I think I so desperately needed to write it with a focus on the family siffrin left behind because I wanted to prove, if just for myself, that in that barely-dodged alternative there still could be a future for everyone. (isabeau's just happened to be the voice in which dull ache came to me, but the point was to create an epilogue for all four.)

for the rest of the family, who was not quite so deeply ravaged but was still left in a bad way at the end of None Forward, and for whom randomness is not pretty much unequivocally good just by virtue of being better than the alternative like it is for siffrin and loop (more on that in a sec), I could see it mattering more to set specific pieces up precisely, and I could actually imagine the pieces I could set up that could have a meaningful impact in the immediate future.

so. y’know. I set them, in the way I happened to want to. granted, with some extra... divine indulgence, but siffrin's departure from their family's perspective at the end of None Forward was definitely Wrong but not so obviously wrong that I could believe that without it they wouldn't otherwise either (a) go hunting him down to force out the truth, which felt Worse, or (b) just "accept" that it was as simple as Siffrin not actually caring about them/brushing them off and thus intentionally fade him into the distance in their minds to deal with it. which felt like the WORST POSSIBLE THING.

you'd think it might make more sense to have done this for siffrin and loop, instead. they're arguably the ones who need it most, after all, so why not build them up from rock bottom as a sweeping show of "things get better"?

but... i think it doesn't need to be written to have faith that it will happen: the very fact that Siffrin is about to set out on a new journey in a reality where everything is a dynamic player just. immediately gives me hope all by itself. random lucky things that save you are so much more believable and wonderful when random lucky things in general are happening all the time, and you have all the time in the world for them to happen.

and anyway, I don't think this is the kind of future you’d write satisfyingly as a sequence of events at all. to heal from this is something that will take an incredible amount of time and nonlinear progress. 

until one day, through a series of disconnected small quiet gloriously-random lived experiences, without knowing when it happened or being able to trace it back, you realize, oh —

somewhere along the way, you came to know how to live again.

[ungodly-amounts-of-godly-trauma]

wotw round 1

propaganda under the cut!

will graham:

OMG where do I even start??? A lot of the fandom (not the whole fandom, but a lot of them) are obsessed with Will Graham being traumatized helpless baby boy sub and it's just like… Hello? Did you watch the same show as me?

"Oh no he got his brain caught on fire with encephalitis he needs his big strong psychiatrist Hannibal to take care of him and spoon feed him and protect him from the world"

"Oh he's in love with his friend Alana but she just sees him as a friend and a psychiatric project I just need to wrap him in a blanket and cuddle him and protect him from all these people who hurt him"

Like the list goes on and on but guys, come on. Will Graham lives by himself with his 7 dogs and takes care of all of them. He's an FBI agent. HE'S LITERALLY KILLED PEOPLE BOTH WITH HIS BARE HANDS AND WITH WEAPONS. THIS MAN IS A SCRUFFY OUTDOORSMAN WHO'S LIKE 6'0" AND MAYBE NOT BUILT BUT DEFINITELY NOT SCRAWNY AND IN NEED OF PROTECTING. I think a lot of people get caught up in the fact that Will Graham is played by Hugh Dancy and he was very much a "pretty boy" character in a lot of stuff before he played Will Graham and this is also exacerbated by Hannibal being played by Mads Mikkelsen who is "slightly taller rugged silver fox European man who is going to fix my daddy issues" and since Will and Hannibal are the main couple a lot of people are like "well they can't both be big tough top guys so obviously it's the guy who's slightly bigger and buffer and older"

Will Graham is a 38 year old FBI criminal profiler who has killed dangerous people with his bare hands, went to prison for some time, masterfully manipulated others, also hunts and fishes, and he's like very good at reading people and their motivations. Incredibly smart everyday man.

Sweet JESUS sometimes the fandom makes him out to be more of a helpless puppy than he really is. Granted, even if he has his moments of mental vulnerability, it's never treated as weak by the show. He's managed to persist through some of the hardest situations. AND LIKE I GET IT, HE'S REALLY PRETTY WHEN HE'S IN PAIN AND SUFFERING BUT HE'S NOT!!! A BABY!!! Anyway I've seen a lot of fandom takes where he's been twinkified to high hell or portrayed as helpless/submissive and often it entirely diminishes that he's a grown fucking person (who has KILLED AND WILL DO IT AGAIN).

had encephalitis in s1 so everyone calls him sweaty & got framed for murder so when he actually murders people people say it’s not his fault and that he was manipulated into doing so (how do you manipulate someone into putting down a shotgun and beating someone to death with their bare hands when you’re not even there? fuck if i know. also, the manipulator in question (hannibal, his sort of therapist) actively stopped him from killing someone). “someone help will graham” is an actual tag on ao3. people treat him like a child. he is a serial killer and people act like he can’t even feed himself. it’s terrible. will graham is a liar, a murderer, a cannibal, a manipulator, and i love him for it

jason "jd" dean:

shoutout to my lovely friend who knows who they are who talk abt how jd does no wrong and hes so slay when like. he does slay. he did slay. he slayed three whole people. and tried to slay a school. like, jd does a lot of wrong. all he does is wrong. and sometimes the fandom acts like everything he does is super chill and fine and sane, and ignores what he did altogether. like yea christian slater was fit in the movie. yk whats not fit? homocide

hes also treated like an innocent lil baby who can do nothing for himself but im watching the movie rn and he just bashed veronicas head off of an emergency fire hose, and shes apparently the love of his life

[nakylvr]

— CHEER UP, BABY!

hwang intak (p1h) x gn!reader

genre: fluff

summary: how intak comforts you on a rough day

warnings/tags: language, established relationship, non idol!intak

this is super short but im having a hard day so here's this while i work on a req!

p1harmony masterlist | main masterlist

as soon as you texted your boyfriend, intak, that you weren't feeling well, he was sprinting to the convenience store to get snacks, drinks, and medicine for you. all within half an hour. he showed up at your front door panting from running as he rang the doorbell, immediately grinning wide when you opened the door.

"hi, baby!" he said with glee.

"hi," you mumbled in response. you opened the door wider for him to come inside and he did so, shutting and locking the door behind him.

"how are you feeling? have you been throwing up? do you have a fever? are you coughing? i got all sorts of medicine," intak shot questions at you like he was playing a rapid fire game, holding up the bag.

"i think it's just a cold," you told him, sitting down on your couch and curling up.

"good thing i got cold medicine then!" he says, placing the bag on the coffee table and pulling out the snacks, drinks, and medicine. "here!" he handed you your favorite type of drink and some medicine.

"thank you," you said quietly, taking the medicine and swallowing it down with the drink.

"did you wanna watch something?" intak asked you, situating the snacks and drinks for you both, now realizing he probably got too much. oh well. "or whatever you wanna do. i don't mind whatever!"

"i just wanna watch tv and cuddle," you murmured quietly.

"we can do that!" intak nodded quickly.

he reached for the remote and turned on the television, putting it on a show he knew you liked when you were feeling down. he grabbed a few snacks and leaned back against the couch, handing you some and letting you curl up into his side. his arm rested against the back of the couch around your shoulders as he ate his chips with you beside him. it was a comfortable silence that filled the room, and it was nice for you both. intak made sure the volume wasn't too loud in case you would get a headache, and he grabbed a blanket to toss over the two of you as you watched.

"thank you," you said out of nowhere.

"for what?" intak asked, mouth full of chips as he looked at you.

"for helping me," you answered. "i really appreciate it. i've never had a boyfriend who did these kind of things for me. so...thank you."

intak smiled down at you and pressed a gentle kiss on your forehead. "of course, baby! you know i would do anything for you. even if that means possibly getting sick. it means we'll be sick together."

"you act like a baby when you're sick," you chuckled.

"i do not!" intak retorted in defense.

"whatever you say," you patted his chest with a laugh.

"be thankful i got you stuff," he pouted.

"i know, i know."

[yuyu1024]

We still have 15mins

Pairings: Jongho x Y/N

Genre/tags: secret relationship

Warning: 🔞 smut/angst, cursing, pet names, mention of alcohol/drinking, smoking, jealousy

~~~ [lmk if i miss anything]

Words: 1.3k

Disclaimer:

- this story is just made up

- english is not my first language, please be nice 😊

Note: last one for the short one shots/drabbles. This was the last one i posted before the whole 'i deleted my acct issue' 😭 ughh now... thank you for all the likes and reblogs btw.

Will try to post more when inspiration comes and have a break at work and my sideline 😅

***

Your department all went out last night to celebrate one of your team's birthday. Every one had a drink and had a blast doing karaoke, particularly you. You rarely go out to party since you are always in the office doing work. And during your free time its either you are at home sleeping or visiting your sister who just gave birth a few months ago to help.

"There she is!" Your friend, Han says as you approach your desk beside him. "The main event!" He is teasing you from last night. You had quite a drink so you sang your heart out like younare having a solo concert last night.

"Stop!" You cover your face embarassed.

"I didn't know you could last that long..." he adds

"I didn't either." You sit on your chair, still giggling.

"Next time... when we are free again. Let's go another round! I will have to battle you. I just got drunk early so I didn't got the chance to sing more."

"Sure! Why not? Let's see who will last long..." You agree

"Last long... on what?"

Both you and Han stiffens as you both heard his voice.

"Ahm, sir?" Han slowly turns around, smiling.

It's your boss, Jongho. The owner of the company you are working at.

"What are you guys talking about? Is it related to work?"

You roll your eyes, "Sir... it's not yet 8am..."

Han's eyes widens. "Yah... what are you doing?" He mouths

"I see..." Jongho snorts a laugh but it sounded irritated.

"Y/N, come to my office." He turns his back to both of you. "Now." He orders

Han panicks and starts nagging you. "Why did you talk back? Oh my gosh! I hope he does not fire you or what! Omg Y/N!"

You smile at him, "Don't worry... he will not fire me. We are not being lazy at work. We arrived 30mins ahead of time... plus we are only talking about our karaoke last night.nothing suspecious..." you stand up and grab your notebook and pen. "Plus... he'll not survive without me. I sort all his schedule and reports." You wink at your friend. "He needs me."

You bravely walk towards his office at the end of the suit. Pushing the heavy wooden double doors, you see him standing near the window, looking outside.

"Close the door." He says

You did as he says. Then you strut your way towards his desk.

"What can I do for you, sir?" You say with a tone like he didn't just asked you to come in after talking back at him.

He breathe a small smile. "You're a dare devil... talking back to me..." he turns to face you. His arms crossed over his chest.

"Well... you are acting up. Han and I were just ta--"

"Han and I...?" he repeats your words. "You two... are close?"

"We are. He's a nice person. And funny..."

His expression changes. He snarls at your answer. "Y/N... are you trying to make me jealous?"

"No...but... are you?" You ask, smirking.

He inhales and exhales. He's trying to control his senses and thoughts. "Don't mess with me... you know the consequences if you do..."

If he could use his position in your work to taunt you or make you do things with his order, you can too play the same game with him by using your charm and making him jealous.

"And what if... I know..." you say as you put your pen and notebook on his desk, leaning forward a bit making sure he sees you are wearing something sexy under that blazer you are wearing. "And I don't care... what will you do?"

The push up bra that your sister gifted you last christmas came to handy today.

"Come here." He orders

You gladly walked around his desk, to stand in front of your boss who is also your boyfriend, that no one knows.

"You are being so naughty..." he cups your face and then kisses you on the lips.

"Coz I could sense that my CEO has been wanting my attention so bad at work lately..." you move forward, making sure there are no space between you two. "See...he's already hard and wanting me." You add as you palm his hard erection.

"I do want my girl's attention so bad..." he hums as he kisses you on the neck. "But she's busy talking to other guys... and I don't like that..."

You giggle as you find Jongho so cute when he's jealous and needy for your attention. "You know your my only man right..." you caress his erection even more as he trail kisses on your exposed skin. "You're the only man I love..."

"Ugh..." he hisses as your hand continues to tease his bulge, squeezing it lightly even. "Fuck." He hisses, moving his pelvis along your rythm.

"Do you want my help?" You ask watching him close his eyes, feeling every touch and caress you give him.

"I have a meeting at 8am sharp."

"We still have 15mins." You grin then pushing him to his chair. "Spread your legs..." you order as you take your blazer off revealing the v-neckline top you are wearing that shows a very good amount of cleavage.

"Fuck Y/N...." he is already breatheless just by watching you man handle him. He likes it when you take control. "Oh fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!"

He is so sensitive and excited at the same time.

When you unzip his trousers and pull out his thick length, you could see and hear him already moaning under his breathe by just the vision of you holding his dick and pumping him.

"Shall we talk about your schedule for todag while I pump you or... do you want me to..." you pause and run your tongue from the base to the tip of his cock, also licking the pre-cum. "Fuck you with my mouth."

"Fuck the schedule!" He snarls, throwing his head back. "Y/N... I want your mouth..."

You smile, "Okay sir..."

You take his whole thick length in your mouth. You make sure that every inch is wet and tasted. You swirl your tongue around him, feeling every vein and roughness of it. You are getting high just by the fullness his cock is giving you.

"Holy shit.... nggghuuuhhh..." he is on heaven right now. He is sweating bullets everytime you suck him. "Sweetie, your so fucking good."

You like it when he compliments you. It's making you to do well and more.

You bop your head in a rythm that is making him go insane. His tip reaching the back of your throat and the warmness of your mouth is making his length twitch and ready to explose.

"Fuck! Sweetie, I'm.... aaaahh nggguuuuhhhhh..." he's about to come. Although he wants you to swallow, he can't risk it at the office. He moved so quickly and grab the nearest tissue and pulls out and let himself come into his hand.

You are giggling watching him empty himself in his hand, "that's quite a lot." You wipe the corner of your mouth. "Next time... I would love to have all of that be inside me..."

"Don't worry, Sweetie." He grunts cleaning his length. "Tonight... you can have all of me in you..." he smirks.

"I can't wait." You say as you start to fix yourself up. "Or maybe later? Lunch break?"

He frowns. "I thought I have a scheduled meeting at lunch right?"

"Well..." you lean in for another kiss whilst you voluntarily fix his trouser, zipping it as well. "I had your meeting booked at this restaurant... the same hotel that we first...you know..." you trail off

"Perfect." He smiles, grabbing a handful of your ass. "See you later at lunch then."

[s-creations]

Fire & Thunder - Chapter 1

The BeanBean Kingdom, one that has been in self-exile for centuries, has finally broken their silence. Arriving to the Mushroom Kingdom with the plan to help their heroes learn how to use their powers.

Training, unfortunately, was just one hurtle to jump over.

Fandom: Super Mario & Releated Fandoms, Super Mario RPG Rating: Teen and UP Audiences Relationship: Luigi/Prince Peasley, Mario/Princess Peach, Mario & Luigi & Wario & Waluigi Additional Tags: Needed Training, The Main Villain Makes An Appearance, Growing Relationships, Character Lore?, In My Stories?, It's More Likely Than You Think.

‘To the Current Ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom,

Fair Princess Peach.

I, Queen Bean, current ruler of the BeanBean Kingdom, wish to reach out to establish a hopefully peaceful connection. To prove my well meaning, I’m hopeful my Kingdom will be able to help you. 

Mainly with your heroes. 

Words among the leaves and breeze hold whispers that your heroes are capable of magic. I have citizens who hold the same powers, not as powerful as your heroes, but skillful enough to extend their wisdom. 

They will be arriving to your kingdom a week after this letter arrives. Accompanying them will be my son and future heir to the BeanBean Kingdom, Prince Peasley. They wish to remain with you until they feel that your heroes are well trained. 

I do hope this is the beginning of a wonderful and fruitful partnership between our two lands. 

To Your Wellness,

Regal Queen Bean’

The Toad that had been reading from the rolled parchment let out a shaky breath as they finished. Shivering as they allowed the pent up nervousness to be released. Wide eyes going to Princess Peach, who was tense upon her throne. 

The entire hall felt close to a nervous breakdown. 

Mario and Luigi being the only exception to this uncomfortable atmosphere. Worried eyes darting around the room, attempting to find an answer before landing on each other. Sharing a shrug of confusion. 

Peach, on her part, let out a slow breath before standing and offering a smile to the nervous room. “Well, this is wonderful news! We’ll be playing host to such a powerful kingdom. This is what we need in order to put up a strong defense against Bowser. Let’s prepare for them to arrive.”

As Peach continued to delegate tasks, Mario and Luigi were gently pulled towards the hallway. The other pair of brothers looked grim as they led. Toadsworth gestured them all in before closing the door, waiting nervously. 

“Is…anyone going to explain what’s going on?” Mario eventually voiced.

Toadsworth weakly waved his hand while mumbling, “We need to wait for the princess before we discuss this.”

Peach arrived a few moments later. Her warm smile quickly disappeared when the door closed once more. “Oh goodness… Is this really happening?”

“Apparently,” Wario barely whispered.

“But isn’t this what we wanted?” Toadsworth voiced.

“Yes,” Peach gave a small whine, “But I assumed it would be the Jungle or Desert Kingdom first. This plan didn’t start with the BeanBean Kingdom.”

“Would someone be so kind as to explain to us what we’re talking about?” Mario cautiously raised his voice. 

“Oh, of course, I apologize,” Peach said softly, “We’ve talked to you about the war that defeated the last Koopa ruler. But we’ve never gone into details of the kingdoms that helped with that defeat.”

“Is the BeanBean Kingdom some place to worry about?” 

“Well, yes, they are rather powerful.”

“Or they were,” Wario added, “Until it was destroyed.”

Peach quickly shook her head, “They could still have the BeanStar.”

“Don’t you think if they did, they would use it to stop all of this?”

“If the books are as accurate as they are, then you know the use of its ability before nearly destroyed everything. I would be afraid to use it!”

“So, would that really make them that powerful?”

“Guys!” Mario called out, “Still very confused.”

“Right, right, sorry,” Peach let out another sign before continuing, “We’ve told you about the origins of the war with the Koopa Kingdom. It was quite literally them versus every kingdom who had an ability to fight back. One being the BeanBean Kingdom. They hold a very powerful artifact called the BeanStar, an item that can grant the holder any wish they want.”

“I’m going to assume it was used during this war. What happened?”

“It’s unsure of what was asked of it,” Wario continued, “But the BeanStar more or less…it blew up. Knocking out a good chunk of the Koopa Army with it. But the BeanBean Kingdom was hit hard as well. They slunk back to their borders and put up powerful barriers to keep everyone away after that battle.”

Luigi frowned, “So…no one’s conversed with them…for years?”

“Try centuries,” said Toadsworth, “We have no idea what kind of monarch we’re dealing with now.”

“We could be in luck,” Mario argued, “They’re sending someone here with the intent to help us. If anything, we need someone who knows about our abilities. Training lately has become…”

“Stagnant,” Luigi concluded.

“It doesn’t help that all we’ve focused on is ‘suppressing’ instead of using.”

“But we don’t know what their motives are,” Toadsworth said quickly, “While jumping to conclusions isn’t beneficial towards the situation, there may be other motives involved here. Why would now be the time to reach out?”

“Because…of us?” Mario said while pointing towards himself and Luigi.

“Possibly hoping to take our means of protection for themselves.”

“We get that you're paranoid, old man,” Waluigi stepped in, “But you’re not making the situation better. If they’re willing to help, then we need to take it. Especially if this means we have somewhat of an advantage over Bowser.”

“We’ll just have to focus on being gracious hosts. Welcome them and try to make that much needed connection. We need them on our side.” Peach concluded.

Toadsworth turned to Mario and Luigi, “You two are going to have to represent our Kingdom as you are the heroes of this land.”

Well…wasn’t that just terrifying to hear. 

The week went by faster than anyone expected or enjoyed. Toadsworth being the physical reminder of how tense everyone was. Starting every day with double checking on every factor he could think of before running through his caution list. Which was really just a list of his creations that covered the worst case situations they could face. 

The day before, Peach offered (more like begged) that the brothers stay in the castle. 

“That way you’re just here. No worries about…traffic and what not.” She explained with a wobbly smile. 

It was a weak reason, but they understood the request. 

Even with how comfortable the bed was, Mario couldn’t sleep. Resting on his back while staring up at the dark canopy. He couldn’t hear Luigi’s snoring. 

“...You worried too?” Mario whispered into the darkness.

“...Yeah. It was scary enough when we were just heroes. Now we’re representing the kingdom? For another kingdom that’s been secretive for so long? And we’re being trained by people we know nothing of with powers we can barely use? It’s…It’s a lot.” 

“Yeah…it is…”

Cautiously reaching out, Mario gently grabbed onto Luigi’s wrist. Pulling his brother closer until Luigi was tucked under the older twin’s chin. The younger using Mario’s chest as a pillow. Arms wrapped around the other with Mario gently combing his fingers through Luigi’s hair. 

“We’ll be okay,” Mario said softly, “We stick together and it’ll all turn out fine. A new adventure, right?”

“...That meaning is so different from when we were in Brooklyn.”

“Yeah, it does. But I mean it. We’ll be fine.”

Luigi didn’t verbally reply. Instead trying to shuffle closer, tightening his grip around his brother.

“...Let’s try and get some sleep.”

They were both exhausted when morning arrived. Slowly shuffling out of bed and getting dressed, Mario tried to offer Luigi a comforting smile. But his nerves were seeping through and the comfort didn’t appear. 

Wario and Waluigi looked just as exhausted as the twins felt. However, they were far better put together. While Mario and Luigi wore their famous overalls with coordinating red and green shirts and hats. The other brothers were wearing…well…

“Are you in a suit?” Mario asked with a smile growing. This question aimed directly at Wario.

“Unfortunately.”

“Your hair l-looks nice.” Luigi attempted to give some positives to the clearly uncomfortable brother. The normally tangled locks that were hidden by a yellow cap were now brushed and slicked back. 

Waluigi, who looked far more comfortable, placed a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “It’s just for a few hours. You’ll be fine.”

“I’m going to suffocate.” Was the sharp reply back.

Breakfast was a quiet affair. No matter how chipper Peach attempted to be, it was clear she was as stressed, if not more, as everyone else was. So none of her words uplifted their terrified spirits. 

Once the plates were taken, the large group walked outside to the large stairs that lead up to the castle. Toadsworth rushed around, instructing as to where everyone needed to stand. The guard lining everywhere, Peach and Toadsworth at the lower set of the stairs to properly greet the visitors. The brothers were further back. Lined up so that Wario and Waluigi would be introduced first as the current mentors while Mario and Luigi would be saved for last. 

The minutes felt like hours as they waited. Mario swears his heart was beating so loudly that everyone could hear it.

Soon the sound of approaching footsteps filled the air. The first to crest the hill was a few rows of soldiers, three to each. Dressed in silver armor, a green smiling face carved into the chest plate. Carrying spears and large shields. Following the first section of soldiers was a large carriage. Vivid green and bean shaped on golden wheels with similarly colored accents. Pulling along by (as what could only be described as) flying, bean-link creatures. 

It was…strange.

The carriage, flanked from the front and back by the same looking beanish soldiers, stopped before the stairs. Right before Peach and Toadsworth. One soldier broke away from the ranks to open the opulent golden door.

First to emerge were two rather translucent beings. One red, one green, dressed similarity. Or rather held a similar appearance. It was unclear if they were dressed or if it was just ‘thicker’ skin that was a different color than their pale blue skin. Their hair appeared to be that of the Earth’s version of a jellyfish. They gave a small bow to Peach before stepping to the side.

The final traveler stepped out at this time. Vivid green skin complemented well with the fine, golden hair that framed his face. Warm brown eyes crinkled at the corners due to his smile. Fine garments of white and red with accents of gold draped over his form. A stylish rapier resting casually at his hip. 

Peach stepped forward as the new trio reached the foot of the stairway. Offering a small curtsy before announcing, “Welcome, Prince Peasley of the BeanBean Kingdom. It’s wonderful to see you here, I hope your journey went well.”

“Very much so,” Prince Peasley responded with a clear voice, "Thank you for the warm welcome, Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom. Allow me the honor of introducing Merri and Gigi, our own users of Firebrand and Thunderhand abilities.”

“Welcome to you both as well.”

Mario was pulled out of the conversation when Wario tapped his arm. “Fix your face, it’s scrunched up.”

“Is he…a bean?” Mario whispered back.

“The prince? Yeah, kind of in the name of the kingdom he hails from.”

“Peach isn’t a mushroom.”

“But the Toads are. The king was.”

“Oh… Hey Lu, what do you-” Mario faltered when, looking at his brother, he found Luigi with wide eyes. Chest puffed up with shoulders raised as if to make himself seem taller. Cheeks slowly growing a deep shade of red. Eyes practically shining.

Mario’s eyes darted between Luigi and the guests, taking a few moments to understand the situation. Getting his ultimate answer when the prince casually flipped his hair back with a warm laugh and Luigi letting out a choked gasp. 

It was Wario’s turn to have his arm hit.

“What.” He breathed out through the side of his mouth.

“Look! Look at Luigi!” Mario frantically whispered, sounding absolutely thrilled. 

Curious, Wario leaned over to get a better look at Luigi. Finding the younger twin absolutely love struck, eyes still on Peasley. Realization dawned on Wario’s quickly and a wide smile stretched across his face. 

He was less subtle with getting Waluigi’s attention. Enough so that Toadsworth flashed a warning glare at the duo before facing forward again.

“What?” Waluigi hissed out.

Wario just jerked his head towards Luigi. The other brother’s attention darted over to the younger twin. 

A smirk slowly formed on his face.

Unaware of what was transpiring, Luigi's attention was solely focused on Peasley. The moment the prince had stepped out, the younger twin felt his heart start to race. Electricity surging through him as a blush dusted over his cheeks. The only thought bouncing around the human’s brain was ‘He’s beautiful’. 

The cloud of fascination fell away hearing a few chuckles and small noises of excitement from his side. Luigi turning to find Mario and the other brothers staring right back at him. Each in a varying degree of excitement and knowing smugness.

A new type of terror settled in Luigi’s stomach.

“Mario-”

“You like him!” Mario gleefully whispered.

“Don’t, please don’t-”

“What’s your first move going to be?” Wario leaned over, using Mario as a place to rest his arm, who didn’t seem to mind. “I know a few good ones if you’re stuck.”

“He hasn’t even talked to us yet-”

“I’m taunting you relentlessly about this until you ask him out.” Waluigi stated smugly. 

Luigi frantically gripped onto the sides of his hat. “Please don’t do this. It’s nothing, really, it’s just-”

“And here we have the main four you’ll be working with.” Peach’s voice cut through the whispering argument. Louder than normal, no doubt to inform that brothers they were finally approaching. 

They quickly stood back in their original lineup. Luigi now shaking nervously as Peach introduced the other brother’s first. 

“Wario and Waluigi have been our heroes' acting mentors.” 

“Wonderful to meet you both,” Peasley beamed as he shook their hands, “I’m to assume you’re both well versed in fighting formations.”

“Not at all.” Wario replied. 

“Oh, well, what about battle strategies?”

“None.” Waluigi answered this time.

“...So…how were you two selected for this role then?”

“Opportunity.”

“Harassment.”

Toadsworth buried his face in his hand. Merri rolled her eyes, clearly unimpressed, as Gigi gave a quick but covered snort. 

“Well…either way, I’m sure we’ll have much to share with each other.” Peasley said with a smile. Which faltered hearing Merri and Gigi giggling softly. They fell quiet when their prince flashed them a warning frown.

“Wonderfully said,” Peach quickly interjected and pulled the prince away, “Here are our heroes of the Mushroom Kingdom.”

Peasley’s attention was drawn to Mario fist. Who tilted his hat before shaking hands with the prince. “Mario, at your service. Thank you for arriving to help us.”

“Wonderful to meet you. You’re…human, are you not?”

“Very much so.”

“How interesting. And you are the holder of the…”

“Firebrand.”

“Excellent! I can’t wait to see your strength in action.”

“Well, if strength is what you’re interested in, then you’re going to be super impressed by what my brother can do.” Taking over the introductions, Mario wrapped his arm around Luigi’s shoulders to pull him closer.

Peasley’s regal appearance fell once more as his attention turned towards Luigi. Not of disappointment, but one of…interest. Eyes widening as they take in the sheepishly smiling hero in green. His own mouth parting slightly as a light dusting of blue appeared on his cheeks.

The stunned stupor he was in was broken when Merri gently placed a hand on his shoulder with a whisper of, “Sire?”

“Oh, u-um, yes, wonderful to meet you as well.” Peasley attempted to recover quickly. Smile returned, but not as strong as it had been before. “Uh, if I may ask…is it true that you were able to capture a Boo?”

Before Luigi could answer, Wario entered the conversation. “A Boo? A Boo? Just one? How about a whole army captured along with their big creepy king. That’s what Luigi did.”

The younger brother laughed nervously as his shoulder was shaken vigorously, “Heh, ah, well…”

“He was also able to fend off a pod of Blue Piranha Plants,” Waluigi added, “Using nothing but his Thunderhand and a hammer.”

“Blue variety? Goodness, those are extremely dangerous. We avoid them the best we can back in my kingdom.” Peasley said, sounding very impressed.

Luigi continued to laugh weakly, “Uh…I suppose so.”

“Well, I am very excited to work alongside such powerful heroes.”

The green dressed twin twitched nervously as the prince presented his hand to be shaken once more. Relaxing slightly, Luigi reached out to gently take it in his own. Only for a large bolt of electricity arched from one hand to the other. Causing both of them to let out painful cries and parting quickly.

Luigi’s wide eyes filled with fear focused on Peasley. Who seemed surprised as the sisters and a very frantic Toadsworth worried over the prince’s hand.

“...Well, what a shocking introduction that was,” Waluigi’s smirk was quickly wiped away when Wario elbowed him hard in the gut. The taller brother letting out a pained wheeze. 

_____________________________

“Luigi, please don’t suffocate yourself.” Mario sighed softly as he listened to his brother let out a long whine.

Said brother was stretched fully across one of the many cushioned couches placed in the library. Face smushed into the remaining pillow that had not been thrown off in his self pity state. “Just let me die here. I don’t want to go on.”

“So you embarrassed yourself in front of new royalties that we’re trying to impress to make a strong connection with so we can create a powerful army against Bowser and one that you’re clearly interested in as such that caused your powers to flare up and hurt them. Big deal. It could be worse.” Wario’s smile slipped when Mario and Luigi glared at him.

Waluigi, who was casually leaning on the nearest bookshelf, let out a heavy sigh before saying, “I think what my thick skulled brother’s trying to inform you is that you don’t have to be worried. Prince Peasley knows of your ability, so he shouldn't be too surprised. Besides, he seemed smitten by you.”

“Yeah, before my powers did me dirty.” Luigi groaned softly. Face going back to be buried in his pillow. 

“You didn’t really give him a chance to really say anything to you.”

“More like Toadsworth pulled the royals away before you could even look his way again.” Wario huffed. 

“I think I damaged whatever thin bridge of a connection had started to be built.” Came the muffled groan of Luigi.

Mario heavily sighed at that. Sliding off the arm of the couch to pull his brother to sit up. “Alright, enough of this. You’re just embarrassed, it happens, we’re going to move on from it. We have a job to do.”

Luigi’s brow furrowed, eyes lowering to the floor. “...Maybe I just avoided a huge mistake anyway.”

“Don’t think like that.” The red dressed hero immediately dropped his voice to a whisper. 

“You know it’s true.”

“It’s not.”

Wario and Waluigi side eyes each other. Exchanging worried looks knowing they were clearly missing something. Before Waluigi could silently tell his brother to keep his mouth shut, Wario blurted out,

“What are you two talking about?”

Luigi nervously looked over, clearly unsure of what to say. Only for another noise to pull their focus. A few furiously excited barks sounded down the hall before disappearing. 

“Was that Polterpup?” Waluigi asked.

The younger twin stood quickly, the self-defeating look replaced with one of concern. “Oh no, I haven’t worked with Polterpup on greeting guests! They were supposed to stay home. Oh, this isn’t good.”

Luigi was out of the library before anyone else could comment. 

Wario turned to Mario to ask, “Are you going to explain all of that?”

Giving a gentle shake of his head, Mario replied with, “You’ll have to ask Luigi.”

_____________________________

Cautious footsteps gently padded against the carpeted floor. Luigi slowly made his way down the long hallways. Trying to keep his cool while straining his ears to listen out for a familiar bark.

“Come on Polterpup, where are you?” he whispered fearfully, “I don’t think our guests will be appreciative of a ghost dog just running around.”

Luigi let out a small sigh, “If they weren’t thinking about pulling out before, I’m sure they will if they see you. What a nightmare this is becoming…”

There were a few eager yips coming from around the next corner. Luigi instantly recognized the sound as Polterpup’s playful back. Given a split second to hope that the spectral pup had found some of the Toad guards and not-

“You’re very friendly, aren’t you?”

Luigi halted just before turning the corner. His entire form tensing up hearing the new yet familiar voice of Peasley.

“Of course,” the human whined softly, “Of course he would find Polterpup. Why can’t I catch a break?”

He cautiously peeked around the corner. Finding Polterpup happily laying on their back, resting at the prince’s feet. Peasley smiling softly as he ran his hand over the exposed belly. Laughing at Polterpup’s excitement.

Luigi noted that said hand was wrapped in medical dressings.

Pulling back, Luigi let out a slow sigh. “Okay, he’s not panicking. That’s good…right? How do I approach this? What will he think if he knows Polterpup’s my pet? Wow, the human can’t use his abilities and has a ghost dog that’s barely trained. Ugh, I’ll have to face that reality eventually.”

“Maybe it will be better received with Peach around? If Polterpup’s brought to her, she could soften the blow of…everything. Maybe. Is it really that bad? I should-”

Luigi was broken from his musings when Polterpup phased through the floor. Jumping at the spectral pup barking happily upon finding their owner. Who immediately picked Polterpup up.

“Polterpup, what are you doing? I told you to stay home!”

“Don’t be too upset. They were just eager to make a new friend.” There was another twitch of surprise as Peasley stepped around the corner. Offering a warm smile to the panicked human.

“P-Prince Peasley, I-I was, um,” Luigi wrapped his arms tighter around Polterpup, “H-How are you feeling?”

“Just fine, nothing to worry about. I’ll be right as rain in no time.”

“Oh, well, t-that’s wonderful to hear. Do you need help getting to the Grand Hall? O-Or I’m sure Toadsworth is offering his castle tour. We c-could find them and-”

“Well,” Peasley looked sheepish suddenly, “I’m actually…trying to find the gardens.”

Luigi blinked, “Oh...I…could…take you there?”

“Would you? I would be absolutely grateful for your help.”

“S-Sure, no problem. Just…follow me.”

Polterpup wiggled out of Luigi’s hold. Happily taking the lead as the trio made their way through the wide halls. 

“So, Polterpup is your pet?” Peasley asked.

“Um, y-yeah. How’d you know?”

“I heard your comment about him needing to stay home.”

“Oh…”

“As well as your furious comments to yourself about allowing Princess Peach to inform me. A rather interesting plan.”

Whatever higher powered being was believed in here, please strike him down.

Luigi did his best not to stumble over his feet in embarrassment upon learning how much Peasley had heard. “U-Uh, so-sorry, I didn’t m-mean-”

“You’re fine. I understand your trepidation,” Peasley quickly appeased, “There’s a lot riding on this visit.”

“Suppose so… Oh, I-I need to thank you and your kingdom for your willingness to help.”

“No thanks are necessary. If it means helping you and your brother, as well as the Mushroom Kingdom, then we are more than happy to be here.”

There was a pause in the conversation as Luigi opened the double glass doors that lead to their destination. Peasley unable to hold back a gasp of excitement when he saw the gardens stretched before them. Clearly enamored by the numerous colors and flowers gently swaying in the gentle breeze.

“This is wonderful.” Peasley whispered, leaning over the stone banner as much as he could to take it all in. 

Luigi smiled softly. Heart and stomach doing interesting twists and flips as he cautiously stood next to the prince. 

“You, um, you like plants?”

“A bit more than ‘like’, to be honest. My entire kingdom is based around agriculture. We grow as many kinds of fruit and vegetation that you can think of. I, however, have further fascination with flowers.” 

“Really?”

“Mhm, I have my own garden filled with roses. I’ve been taking care of them since my father’s passing.”

“O-Oh, I’m so sorry, I-I didn’t-” Luigi felt like he almost swallowed his tongue when he stopped talking so quickly hearing Peasley let out a gentle laugh. 

“Please, don’t worry, you couldn’t have known. He’s…been gone for a while.”

“Still…I’m sorry for your loss.”

“...Thank you.”

Luigi smiled weakly, eventually clearing his throat and asking, “Would you like to take a closer look?”

“Mmm…no, I believe I should wait for the princess first before doing so. I’m fine up here…” 

He wasn’t sure if he was imagining things, but Luigi could have sworn there was more that Peasley wanted to say. But nothing else was. Instead, the quiet was comforting as they watched as Polterpup happily chased after a few birds among the foliage. 

“May I ask you something?” Peasley eventually asked, head tilted closer to Luigi with his eyes still trained on the gardens.

“Um…s-sure?”

“Well, I guess it’s more of a clarification?” 

Luigi couldn’t help but laugh softly at Peasley’s smile. “Sure, what can I clarify for you?”

“I guess…I feel so weird asking this. But can you tell me what happened? When the Boos attacked here.”

“Oh…sure.”

“I mean, only if you feel that you want to,” Peasley quickly attempted to backtrack, “I didn’t mean anything, I was just curious so-”

“No, you’re okay, I understand! I-I’ve been told this isn’t a really normal occurrence for this…place. Uh, it’s just, where do you want me to start? There’s a lot to go through.” 

“Any point, really, I don’t mind.” Peasley leaned on his hand, brown eyes now shining as their focus stayed on Luigi. 

So…Luigi talked. Starting with the first time that Mario met the Boos and what that meant. Both with the bite and gaining a mentor with Wario. How Wario and Luigi met, Waluigi’s grand entrance, and how the other pair of brother’s started watching over the twins.

First time they used their abilities.

When E. Gadd entered into their lives. 

How King Boo had captured Mario and turned the Mushroom Castle into a terrifying maze.

When Luigi used the Poltergust the first time. 

How Luigi learned that his ability was able to keep him safe. 

How King Boo called him out for a final showdown.

And finally how Luigi was able to trap King Boo.

“I just…use the Thunderhand to power up the Poltergust and the picture frame and…” Luigi rolled his hands around the other before giving a small shrug, “King Boo was sucked in and trapped in the picture frame. Still there…unless something happened to E. Gadd. I should probably call him. Uh, anyway, that’s pretty much what happened.”

He looked over to see if Peasley was still even awake at this point. Only to find the prince staring at him in absolute fascination. “Um, Prince Peasley?”

“Oh, sorry, I was just so enthralled,” Peasley laughed softly, “I had heard stories from others before arriving here. Honestly, it was nothing more than rumors. I- We’ve been fascinated with what you and your brother have been able to accomplish. With the latest being that of your triumph over King Boo. Hearing you talk about it, talk about everything, it’s so…inspiring.”

“Uh, really? I’m sure as a prince you’ve seen a few things.” Luigi replied weakly. 

Peasley’s smile turned to one of embarrassment. But he was unable to respond when another voice called out the prince’s name.

“Prince Peasley, there you are!”

Luigi tensed when Merri and Gigi came rushing out of the double doors. Toadsworth quickly followed behind with Peach casually bringing up the rear. 

“What are you doing out here? We were so worried when we couldn’t find you in the medical wing.” Merri and Gigi spoke at the same time. Each pulling the prince’s wrapped hand up gently. 

“I’m sorry, that wasn’t my intention,” Peasley attempted to calm them, “I was just-”

“Master Luigi, why would you bring our guest out in the open!” Toadsworth huffed as he stepped forward. Luigi’s already raised shoulders climbed further, ears turning a deep red. 

Peasley quickly responded with, “I was attempting to find the gardens when I left the medical wing. I asked for Luigi’s help when we came across each other in the hallway. Please don’t be upset with him.”

This caused Toadsworth to falter, a little flustered by the confession. Peach taking the chance to step into the conversation. 

“We were just concerned by your absence,” Peach said, “We’re happy to know Luigi was able to keep you company for the time.”

Luigi felt the heat move from his ears to his cheeks as Peasley offered a smile to the human, replying with, “As am I.”

The group flinched as Polterpup appeared once more. Peasley laughing as the new arrival gave a small whine as if upset they had not also received praise. 

“You were wonderful as well.”

“Now that the worries have been had, shall we get you all settled in properly?” Toadsworth gently gestured for the group to head back inside.

Peach remained back, mainly to wait for Peasley. Only to be quietly surprised as she watched said prince gently claim one of Luigi’s hands. Bowing his head to have the back of it to gently touch the prince’s forehead. 

“Thank you for staying with me. I look forward to hearing more stories and seeing your strength tomorrow.”

“I-uh- O-Of course.” Luigi replied weakly with a small smile.

Peasley released the human’s hand with a warm smile, turning to join Peach. Who was pointedly looking away as if not aware of the moment. 

However, as the doors closed behind the royalty, Peach narrowed her attention on the visiting prince. Peasley looked very pleased but flustered as well. As if not believing in his own forwardness. A content smile lay across his face. 

Quickly looking back, Peach found that Luigi had not moved. Staring at his hand in fascination. Unaware of Polterpup pawing at their human’s leg. 

It took everything for Peach to not let out a squeal of joy.

_____________________________

The next day began with the three brothers practically dragging Wario out of his bed. Who was complaining about having to, once again, wear another stupid, stuffy outfit.

“It’s about being presentable,” Waluigi argued back. 

“We’re going to be training!” Wario gruffly argued back.

“Not us! We’re going to be on the sidelines with Peach and the rest!”

“This is torture!”

“Get up you giant baby!”

It took about an hour for the four of them to arrive for breakfast. Toadsworth was not impressed by their tardiness. Their guests, however, seemed unbothered by it. Peasley actually pulled Luigi into a quiet conversation the moment the human sat down. Who was a little sheepish at first but opened up the further their conversation went on.

Waluigi, on his part, turned to the jellyfish sisters. “Don’t suppose you’d be up to telling us what this training day is going to start with?” 

“It’s the same training we were given,” Merri answered, “We mainly want to see what they’re currently capable of doing, as well to make sure they can easily call upon their abilities. We’re not going to go too crazy at this time.”

“Okay…but what exactly does that…mean?”

“It’s rather hard to explain it to a non-holder. The most we can suggest is to just watch.” Gigi replied with a soft giggle.

“Alright…”

After all had their fill, the large group that also consisted of BeanBean soldiers and Toad guards made their way to the outside training grounds. Peach, Toadswroth, and Peasley taking seats under a large umbrella type mushroom. Wario and Waluigi situated nearby with the older gently tugging at the button-up collar. Merri and Gigi lead the way to the center to the flattened ground with the twins following close behind. 

“Given how reportedly strong your powers are, we decided that outside training would be best to start,” said Merri, “We would like to begin this by stating that, while we are not trained fighters, we are gifted in using these abilities.”

Gigi continued with, “We are well versed in the knowledge of both abilities. Our current goal for you both is to have complete control of your abilities. So you may use them to their full potential. Whether that’s for everyday occurrences or for fighting.”

“These powers are meant to be an extension of you and should be treated as such.”

At this, Merri moved closer to Mario. Gently lifting the hero’s arm up. She gently had her right hand travel from the crook of Mairo’s elbow up to his wrist, increasing the pressure at that point. Mario couldn’t hold back the wince feeling the tight pressure. A deep burning felt in his chest, a familiar one.

The intense massage ended when Merri’s hand moved the pressure to Mario’s palm. Both flinched back, Merri more than Mario, when the very same hand erupted into flames. The largest stream of flames the majority of that crowd had even seen before. A few even let out ‘Oohs’ and ‘Awws’ at the sight. 

“Very, very impressive!” Merri gleefully stated, “I’ve not seen such power held in many before. Granted, I only know of three holders in recent years. But the point still stands that this is amazing!”

Mario remained quiet as Merri moved to his other hand. Listening with interest as she said, “I’m aware that you’ve used Fire Flowers before. While the Firebrand seems similar, it’s also very different. First obvious being it never runs out. As long as your fire burns, the Firebrand will remain with you.”

“If handled uncaringly, Firebrand can cause a lot of damage. Fire is wild if left unkempt, destroying whatever it can reach. You need to keep your focus. You’ll be able to change its directions, create shapes and forms.”

“Like fireballs?” Mario asked. 

Merri laughed softly and nodded, “Very much so, but even more than that. My focus for you is giving you allowance to control the fire in any form. Whether it’s still in your hands or cut away from you.” 

“You are another story,” Gigi said to Luigi, “Thunderhand is also about control. However, you have a vastly different concern. The energy you release acts like that of lightning. It bounces, arches, and dances in every way it can. Holding it close will do you no good. But releasing it will result in a burst of rampant energy that will destroy everything in its path.”

“O-Oh…o-okay, great.” Luigi’s voice shook. 

“In order to get past this, you have to learn how to use yourself as a conduit. While not every bolt will follow, you will have the maneuver needed in at least somewhat of a direction. Because…”

Just as Merri did, Gigi applied a generous amount of pressure to Luigi’s palm. If Mario’s fire was a show, Luigi’s energy was a spectacle. The area even seemed to darken as the burst illuminated the area. 

Gigi let out a cheerful cry of glee, hands clapping. “Oh, amazing! Absolutely amazing! Your strength seems to hold no limit. Truly a hidden gem.”

Luigi didn’t reply. Eyes still up at the sky where the bolt had hit its peak, swallowing weakly.

“Now, if we’re going to begin, we need to start fresh. Fully fresh,” Marri and Gigi met back up to stand directly in front of the twins, “You both need to remove your gloves.” 

That caused a good portion of the audience to tense.

“Wait, what?” Mario asked weakly.

“We need you to remove your gloves.”

“I-Is that really the smartest choice?” Luigi spoke next, “I-It’s kind of the reason we have…control over these powers.”

“Did you not defeat King Boo by removing your gloves?” Gigi commented.

“S-Sure, but I s-still had to worry of hurting someone or d-damaging something.”

“Understand, this is not to make you uncomfortable,” Merri quickly took over, “You need to get used to how the full extent of that power feels flowing through you. We’re just testing for now. The moment it becomes too much, the gloves can go back on.”

From the corner of his eye, Mario saw Wario waving his arms in the air to get his attention. The older brother, quietly, but with very wide and obvious movements, pointedly gave his ‘comment’. Gesturing to Luigi, then Mario, then grasping onto Waluigi’s hand. Who was very unhappy about being roped into Wario’s…whatever this was. 

Even with the slight confusion at the beginning, Mario eventually understood. Giving a sharp nod. 

If all else fails, Mario and Luigi could cancel each other’s powers out.

“Okay,” said Mario, “Let’s try it.”

“Just be mindful, this is just a test.” Merri attempted to comfort, “We’ll pull back the moment it becomes too much.”

The twin’s both nervously removed the gloves. Both letting out surprised gasps as their powers fully hit them. It had been awhile since they’d felt this. Mario tried to keep himself level as a few flames escaped from his mouth. Luigi unable to hold back his shaking as he felt the energy travel up and down his spine.

“Goodness…” Gigi gasped softly.

“This is much more than what we were expecting.” Merri agreed. 

“W-What-” Mario coughed softly at the smoke he tasted on his tongue, “What do we need to do now?”

“Close your eyes and slow your breathing. You need to find your core, your center, where your power is being stored.”

They did as instructed. Both falling into a contented and calm focus. It was honestly a little awkward at first. As they had no idea what they were supposed to be looking or feeling for. The back of their minds holding a small reminder that they probably looked like idiots just standing there. 

But they did eventually fall into a comfortable rhythm, slowly feeling something heavy resting between their chest and stomach. A steady pulse, not a heartbeat, but something that beats in tandem with it.

“Found it,” They responded at the same time, eyes still closed.

Wario and Waluigi mentally noticed they sounded as if they were in a trance.

“Describe it to us.” Gigi whispered her request.

“A beat…a pulse?” Luigi replied.

“It sounds like another heartbeat.” Mario stated.

“Excellent,” said Merri, “Now, Gig and I are going to step forward to help. Keep your breathing steady. Keep your focus.”

Neither flinched as Merri and Gigi moved their hands. Having them cup together just below their sternum. Keeping their own hands pressed underneath the brother’s.

“Alright, we’re going to help you on this next part,” said Gigi, “You’re going to slowly call upon your power until your hands hold a small portion of it.” 

“We’re going to help you draw it out. To keep in control and so you know what it feels like.” Merri concluded.

“Okay,” the twins calmly replied. 

It was the first time, for a while, that the twin’s neutral faces shifted. Flinching in slight pain before brows furrowed in concentration as their powers were slowly pulled out. Mario’s turning into the familiar form of a fireball. Except it was a vivid red instead of the well known orange. For Luigi, Waluigi mumbled out, “Plasma ball? Interesting.” The sphere of energy held small arches of electricity bouncing around it. If it was held instead of floating, it no doubt would have weighed a ton. 

The growth of both continued until the power formed to the size of a small ball. At that point, Merri and Gigi pulled away. Mario and Luigi finally opened their eyes. Just barely stopping themselves from falling onto their faces.

The orbs fluctuated slightly before calming once more.

“So, how are you two feeling?” Gigi asked. 

“A little strange…but okay.” Mario calmly replied. 

“It’s not as…intense as before,” Luigi added, “I think this is the most collected I’ve felt with this before.”

“That’s wonderful to hear! I will admit, your ability looks far different that what I expected,” This comment was directed towards Mario.

“Uh, yeah, I figured. It’s not like a Fire Flower.” Mario nervously chuckled, eyes on the fire he was holding.

“Well, I’m more comparing it to Bowser’s fire.”

“Wait, what?”

Merri, possibly unaware of the stressful situation, casually continued on with, “Oh, did no one tell you this? Perhaps it wasn’t known in this kingdom. The Firebrand ability comes from the Koopa lineage. Lord Bowser is the other being who holds this ability, and with strength equal to yours. Granted, he expels it through his mouth while yours is controlled by your hands. But, still, the similarities in strength is interesting.”

“I…what?”

Now Merri heard the trepidation in the hero’s voice. “Did…no one tell you of this?”

“No!” The three around Mario jumped back as the fireball erupted. Now engulfing both arms. 

As if responding in kind to Mario’s panic, Luigi’s own ability snapped. The orb of energy gave out a small pop before charging out. Merri and Gigi darting further away at the ground starting to crack and fracture, the energy breaking it apart. 

Wario and Waluigi quickly pulled Peach, Peasley, and Toadsworth back. The rest of the audience scrambled as the cracks crawled further out. 

It happened in a span of a few seconds. The dust settled to reveal the twins in a newly formed crater. Luigi having his arms wrapped around Mario in a death grip. Small bolt of energy arching around Luigi’s form. Smoke pouring out of Mario’s mouth. 

Taking a deep breath, Luigi quietly said, “M-Mario?”

Whatever stupor the red dressed hero was in broke hearing his name. Mario pulled away with a sharp jerk. Doing his best to squash the broken feeling stirring in his stomach at Luigi’s fearful look. Instead, he tugged his gloves back on as he stumbled out of the crater. 

Upon reaching the top, Mario lifted his head. Eyes scanning to find his quickest escape route. Feeling another part of his soul breaking upon seeing the Toads flinching away. 

His breathing became ragged. 

Unable to stop the smoke billowing out of his mouth.

He reached his lowest point when he saw Peach. Who was being held back by a worried looking Wario. The princess’ eyes wide and filled with…fear?

He couldn’t stay there any longer. 

Mario pulled his cap down and rushed out of the training area. Disappearing into the castle proper as Luigi finally climbed his way out. Watching until Mario was gone and then it was his turn to take in the fearful audience. Crossing his arms to hide his hands away, Luigi slowly backed away. Very aware of the eyes following him. Unable to look anywhere but ahead of him, in fear of seeing how everyone was looking at him. 

How Peasley was looking at him.

Was he impressed with the uncontrollable power now?

While he didn’t run, Luigi left as quickly as his shaky legs would carry him. Hiding himself away in the surrounding garden. 

“Go look after Mario, we got this handled,” Wario whispered to Peach. 

Peach gave a short nod and left. Head held high as she passed her citizens and followed Mario’s footsteps. 

Peasley stumbled slightly as he was nudged towards the gardens. Turning back with a raised brow to Waluigi in quiet confusion. 

“You’re not going to believe me now. But your words are going to hold better meaning than from any of us.” The tallest brother explained. 

“...Very well.” Peasley said calmly. Straightening himself out before rushing towards the gardens. 

“You two!” Wario called out. Pointing at Merri and Gigi. Who bristled at being addressed so harshly. “We four need to have a bit of a talk. Now.”

Merri sniffed, but nodded slowly. “Very well.”

“Someone…try and clean this up?” Waluigi weakly suggested. Gesturing to the damaged area as they moved away.

_____________________________

Bubbling lava always held a calming effect for him. Even if it was more often seen as a river of destruction, that’s what he liked about it. Something slow moving that people took little notice of. Until it started a fire, or burned down a forest, or cooked something alive. Then they started paying attention and began cursing for not doing so sooner. 

How they just assumed they were safe…

“Lord Bowser?” 

Fiery red eyes snapped open. Taking in the magma and lava covered land below momentarily before the hulking Koopa form turned away from the arched opening. Turning to find Kamek standing behind the King, holding his wand tightly in his hands. 

“Our spies have returned with a rather interesting report.” said Kamek, answering Bowser’s unsaid question. 

“Interesting, you say? Do tell.” Bowser said, turning his full attention to his right hand Koopa. 

“Representatives of the BeanBean Kingdom have arrived to the Mushroom Kingdom.”

“The self-exiled kingdom? They’ve finally broken their silence, something big must be happening if they’ve chosen now to poke their heads out of the ground.”

“Indeed something is,” Kamek continued with a smirk, “It appears those human heroes have acquired some…special abilities.”

Bowser frowned at that, “I’m aware of their connections to the Power-Ups.”

“Not Power-Up related. An ancient power. One that I have not seen before, only read about. Another that, well, hits rather close to home.”

“Enough of your riddles, warlock, explain.”

“The coward holds the Thunderhand. A rather destructive ability locked in such a weakling.”

“And what of Mario.” Bowser growled.

“Firebrand, my Lord.”

There was a pause.

Then Bowser began to laugh. One that built up until it began to echo loudly in the grand hall.

“Well, what a wonderful surprise! I suppose it would be ill will of me if I didn’t offer my own help. Why don’t we pay the Mushroom Kingdom a long, overdue visit? It would do us all some good, I believe.” 

[cilil]

⸙ Prompt: Thanksgiving | Mafia AU Melkor x Mairon ⸙ Synopsis: The boss has plans for Thanksgiving. Mairon "Maironi" Artano finds himself quite intrigued. ⸙ Warnings: Smoking; also the AU is in itself a warning ⸙ Quintuple drabble

» AN: Based on @fraeuleinfriedhof's autocorrect-inspired idea and @saintstars's wonderful art (here and here), I contribute this little but hopefully entertaining ficlet to the Goncharov/Mafia AU Angbang movement.

"Anything else you need, boss?" Mairon – also lovingly dubbed Maironi by other members of the organisation – asked after placing yet another neat stack of papers on the ever-messy desk of Aman's most infamous criminal. 

"Fire." Melkor's answer came without hesitation. He was lounging in an armchair facing the huge window nearby to oversee the city of Valmar down below and extended his left hand to show an unlit cigar. 

Dutiful as always, Mairon walked over and fished a lighter from his pocket, swiftly producing a tiny flame while Melkor raised the cigar to his lips. The cool fingers of his boss' right hand curled around his wrist just as smoke began to rise between the two, and his breath hitched in his throat. Was it fear that he felt, Mairon questioned himself, but the answer was no... instead he felt strangely excited. 

"Anything planned for Thanksgiving?" Melkor asked conversationally, his thumb caressing his palm. 

"I suppose not," Mairon responded. "I haven't seen my family in years." 

The flame continued to flicker until he finally remembered that he was indeed still holding the lighter. 

Melkor smirked, seemingly pleased. "Neither do I." 

He took a deep drag, then let his hand drop and his head fall backwards to exhale. Mairon caught himself staring at his lips, ashen and beautifully shaped, promising kisses of death and oblivion. 

"Maybe we should celebrate together," Melkor said then, though his expression held a certain mocking irony. 

Nevertheless, Mairon decided to play along, slipping around the back of the chair to sit on its armrest – and put his physique on display, accentuated by the expensive suit he was wearing. 

"I didn't know you cared for such festivities," he said, his voice laced with matching irony; he would play coy, but not pretend to be stupid. 

Melkor's gaze wandered across his thighs appreciatively, then he grinned up at him. "Oh, I don't. But I thought perhaps... I should thank you for all you do for me?" 

And with that, his free hand snaked around his waist and came to rest on his hips. Mairon's face lit up triumphantly; he was finally getting exactly what he wanted and possibly much more still. 

"How flattering, boss. And such a tempting offer," he said, batting his eyelashes. 

"Indeed." Melkor pulled him onto his lap and brought the cigar to his lips. Ever eager to please, Mairon made a show out of closing his lips around it and savouring the smoke, though it was but a paltry imitation of what he truly desired. 

"Good boy," Melkor purred in his ear. "Now look out of the window."

Mairon did. Valmar, everyone who lived in the city, the entirety of Aman that lay beyond... it all either belonged to Melkor already or would do so soon. And then he saw his own reflection in the glass, sitting on his boss' lap and leaning against him like a pretty little pet, and realised with a surge of wild desire that he was Melkor's as well.

Thanks for reading! I'm not sure if I'm good at any sort of modern AU, but I'm trying my best XD

read more? main masterlist get tagged for my writing? tag list form

[crybaby-bkg]

sᴄᴏʀɴᴇᴅ | ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ sᴇᴠᴇɴ

Bakugou x f!reader Warnings/Tags: panic attacks, flashbacks, pro hero training ensues, a teeny tidbit of jealousy from bakugou 👀 Word Count: 5.3k Minors/blank/ageless blogs DNI!

Main Masterlist AO3

“Can you put your gun somewhere that’s not on your body?” Bakugou asks you when you reach outside of the gym doors of the agency. Your head swivels up quickly, eyes darting around him to see if anyone nearby heard, but the space is empty. Oddly so, for an agency bustling with too strong heroes. You wonder if he played a part in clearing the space. 

“You don’t know if I have it, or not.” You frown at him, even though the warmth of the gun rests against your hip. Bakugou fixes you with an unamused face, and you stare back at him, even going as far as crossing your arms. 

“I’m not gonna pat you down.” He tells you, matching your stance when you don’t budge. “And I really don’t need another shot hero in this agency.” He fires at you, eyes glancing to his shirt covered shoulder. You bristle at that, chewing your cheek before you huff loudly, exasperated. 

“Keep bringing that up, why don’t you?” You groan, unholstering your gun from your hip as you hold it tightly in your hands, finger surprisingly away from the trigger. 

“I’ll bring it up until the day I die.” Bakugou spat back pettily, eyeing the gun in your hands before looking up at you and cocking his eyebrow. 

“Well let me bring that day closer to you, then.” You mutter, pointing the gun to the center of his chest. But he doesn’t flinch, only rolls his eyes at you before the gun goes limp in your hands as you hand it off to him. He takes it gently, unloading the clip and pocketing the heavy metal. 

“Get yer ass in there already.” Bakugou grunts to you, holding the door of the gym open to you. You walk in, first sticking your tongue out at him childishly as he narrows his eyes at you. 

On the other side, is a huge fucking gym, one that has absolutely no reason to be that big. It’s filled with racks and weights heavier than ten times the size of you, a couple treadmills, an open space with a hard mat on the floor, and some boxing sandbags that someone is occupying at the moment. He’s the only one in the gym currently, and you definitely think this was set up by Bakugou, because the redhead pauses mid punch to face you, grinning instantly and calling out your real name. 

You falter in your steps, stomach suddenly dropping, haunches rising. Bakugou curses at you for almost making him run into you, but you don’t really hear him at the moment. All you can focus on is the too big man in front of you, with his unnaturally sharp teeth, his bulking frame, and intimidatingly large hands that reach out for you. 

You take a shaky step back when he gets too close, ears filled with cotton as Bakugou’s voice  calls out in the empty gym. But you can’t focus on him, can only focus on the too familiar build, the too sharp teeth, the too unnerving figure. 

Oh, you wanna try to defend yourself? Wanna put up a fight, huh? Go ‘head, its not like you’d ever win. Fuckin’ weak bitch. 

The eery voices that haunt your worse dreams feels like they’re becoming reality again, and it makes your chest tighten as you gasp for breath. This isn’t him, isn’t them, the person in front of you isn’t the one who hurt you, he’s dead, they’re all dead. So why does catching your breath feel so impossible right now?

“Oi,” Bakugou calls out to you, snapping you out of your stupor. You hadn’t even realized that you were shaking all over, that your body had automatically went into your ready stance, your fists up and trembling terribly in front of your face, that your mouth was set in a firm and determined line. You look over to Bakugou who stares at you with his eyebrows furrowed, a hand reached out to you, hesitant, but doesn’t dare to touch. You look back over at the redhead, who’s short brows had turned up in worry, a few steps further back than you had realized, with his hands raised in the air beside his head. 

“Oh,” you mumble, slowly coming back to your senses. Your body creaks, feels numb with how you have to unfold yourself. You shake your head, looking between the two men as you try to catch your breath, before landing on the redhead, who hasn’t moved from his position. 

“Sorry about that,” you whisper slowly, slightly bowing your head to him. But he only nods to you before glancing back to Bakugou, who’s still staring at you. 

“I just,” you swallow thickly as you try to gather your words. “You just remind me of someone. In build. You know?” Your words are choppy, and you feel so fucking stupid when you get a good look at his face and realize who he is. 

Fucking Red Riot, one of the most unproblematic heroes ever. One that even you and Vanity liked to a degree. And you almost drop kicked him because his stature reminded you of a dead man. Fuck your life. 

“It’s totally fine.” Red Riot finally unfolds himself, arms hanging limply at his sides before he places them on his hips, smiling down softly at you, none of his teeth showing. “I usually get those kinds of reactions from kids and babies.” He smiles again before it drops in panic, his hands shooting out in front of him, and making you flinch. 

“Not saying you’re a baby or anything! Just that, you know, being of this size, you kinda get those reactions often.” He starts rambling, and it disarms you more than you expect it to. In minutes, with his rambling and over explaining, you get why he’s loved by so many people. He’s just too big for his own good, you suppose. 

“Shut yer damn trap, Shitty Hair.” Bakugou juts in after enough is enough with a roll of his eyes. “I brought her here so you can aid in training, not run your damn mouth.” 

You expect the hero, who introduced himself as Kirishima mid ramble, to snap back at Bakugou, the same way you would. But he only handles it with grace, nodding as he rubs at his nape with a sheepish grin. 

“Yeah, guess we should get started.” He smiles, looking over at you in confirmation. You can only smile back and agree with him, unaware of the way Bakugou’s eyes narrow at you. 

You follow the redhead to the middle of the gym, where the spacious mat lies, watch how he stretches, directing you to do the same. You inhale deeply, thinking back on the exercises your self defense coach taught you, before you begin. They’re light work, with just a few arm stretches and bending your body until it doesn’t feel as stiff anymore. When you finish, you stand straight, pulling your hoodie off, looking around to where you could place it when Bakugou is suddenly beside you. 

“I can take that,” he mutters, big hand reaching out in front of him. You blink up at him, wonder why he looks so grumpy all of a sudden, but chalk it up to his face always being like that. You hand him your hoodie wordlessly, watching him turn until he crosses the gym to a bench that rests against the wall, head swiveling back when Kirishima calls out to you. 

“Ready to get started?” He asks, boxing gloves stripped from his hands, his own shirt baggy on his form. You match him in your loose sweatpants and a tee that covers your chest and upper arms, hands steadied on your hips as you hear Bakugou walk up a few feet beside you, off the mats. His arms are crossed over his chest, and you can make out the outline of your gun in his pockets. Secretly, you miss the protection of it, but you know that you have to get even stronger if you want to keep saving people. 

“Readier than I’ll ever be.” You shrug, to which Kirishima smiles at you. It’s fucking infectious, and you can’t help but give him the tiniest little grin in return, albeit somewhat feral. You hear Bakugou scoff, but you don’t have time to reflect on it before Kirishima charges at you. 

Your heart drops instantly, but the moment only catapults you back into your training days, days where you fist fought men thrice the size of you in the streets at night. And even if it is just training, you absolutely refuse to lose. 

A few minutes go by, the only sound in the gym you and Kirishima’s grunting and hitting the mat, and Bakugou’s occasional input and instruction, despite repeatedly reminding him that you had your own training. He moves around you guys’ form slowly, eyebrows set deep on his forehead, barking out commands for you to hit him here, use your elbow, to not be afraid of fighting dirty. You wish you could say he did more harm than good with his instructions, but some of what he was saying actually was a little helpful, you guess. 

“Self defense and hero training are similar, but vastly different. Get another go at ‘em, and see.” Bakugou commands you, with a jerk of his chin to Kirishima when you two separate, panting as you stare the other down, waiting for the other to make the next move. After a few seconds, you turn your head to glare at Bakugou with a snarl. 

“Don’t tell me what to do.” You bite at him, before turning back and lunging at the man who’s twice your size. You can tell he doesn’t expect it, neither of them do, and that makes the tussle even more thrilling. 

This goes on for a while, with you sneak attacking Kirishima before he starts getting wind of your moves. After that, he starts pinning you, and the anger that lights within you is only the fuel you need to start matching his own moves. Bakugou hollers at out things for you to do, to be aware of, how to attack without relying on sneakiness, how to throw your body weight around. 

You punch Kirishima in the stomach once, and damn near think you broke your hand. He freezes at your pained moan, and grabs your hand in his, and it pisses you off that he doesn’t even seem affected by the punch at all. 

“I wasn’t even hard that time!” He cries out, to which your head instantly snaps at him. He looks confused for a second before his wording catches up to him, and his face gets as red as his hair. He tries to backpedal his words, but you ignore him in favor of going to punch him again with the other hand, and surprisingly, you get the same results. 

“I think that’s enough training for today.” Kirishima laughs at you, now holding both of your hands in his own as he exams them. You frown at him, then at Bakugou who stares down at your linked hands with the redhead. His gaze lingers, eyeing your proximity, damn near toe to toe, before he turns sharply on his heel. 

“I’ll get some ice.” He mutters, voice barely heard before he’s gone. You send an inquisitive look to Kirishima, but he only pulls his mouth to the side and shrugs. 

“You were good today. Wasn’t expecting that kind of strength on you!” Kirishima praises, his grin big and just a little less frightening than before. “And for you to keep trying, even though you were in pain? That was so amazing to watch.” He sighs in awe, a big grinning lighting up his face as he keeps your hands in his. 

“Usually I have to tell people when training them, to fight like their lives depend on it every single time, but you have such a fire burning in you already. It’s commendable and so manly!” He acclaims, shaking your hands around in his to make you chuckle lowly. 

If that were anyone else calling your strength manly, you think you’d shoot them in both of their kneecaps. But this is his brand, and its not as shitty as you thought it would be in person. If anything, you smile a tiny little smile, nodding to him. 

“Thanks,” you say simply, stepping back when Bakugou returns with a clear bag of ice wrapped in a white hand towel. He doesn’t say anything to you as he hands it off, before awkwardly shoving his hands in his pockets, gaze focused on where you finally disconnect from Kirishima. 

“You ready to go?” Bakugou asks, head cocking to the side as he surveys the damage to your hands. They’re bruising already, but its nothing that you can’t handle. So you nod at him, before turning to Kirishima again. 

“Thanks again. I’ll see you next time, hopefully.” You tell him kindly. He smiles wide at that, pumping a fist into the air excitedly. 

“Hell yeah! You were a great training partner.” He grins, to which Bakugou just scoffs under his breath. He turns quickly on his heel again, and you and the redhead share another look before nodding to each other. He calls out a goodbye to Bakugou, but he wordlessly waves over his shoulder as you jog to follow him, still holding the ice to your knuckles. 

You two walk out of the busy agency into the warm air outside. There’s a few turns you guys make until the streets lessen with people, and Bakugou finally slows his pace to something more manageable. You glance up at him, his downturned brows and frown, and decide to break the ice. 

“Kirishima was nice.” You say softly, and that only seems to make his shoulders hike up even higher to his ears. 

“Oh yeah.” He says more than asks, tone sharp and just a little too on the loud side. 

“Yeah.” You answer, suddenly feeling the need to poke the bear. “Don’t know why he sticks around with your mean ass, though.” You shrug, pocketing the ice so that your hands can rest on it inside of the front pocket of your hoodie. Bakugou side eyes you, before looking ahead again. 

“Shut up.” He mumbles, and it doesn’t carry the same playful bite you’ve gotten accustomed to these past few days. 

“How come you were getting so buddy-buddy with Shitty Hair, but I’m still called shit head every other sentence?” He grunts when your silence stretches on for a little too long. 

“Because you are a shit head.” You answer simply, and wonder if it was the wrong thing to say with the way his mouth pulls tightly before he falls silent. You stare at him for a while, notice how he avoids your eye, and decide to speak up. Uncertainty always makes your chest squeeze a little harder than usual. 

“Is that a problem?” You murmur softly, which makes Bakugou finally look at you again with a confused scrunch of his face. 

“Hah? Why would that be a problem?” He tries to sound convincing and unbothered, but he fails miserably at it. You squint at him in question. 

“Because you’ve been sulking since our training session. Didn’t expect me to be so strong?” You tease him, bumping him with your shoulder softer than you usually do. But he only frowns deeper, and doesn’t even try to bump you back this time. 

“No I expected that.” He answers honestly, before his voice grows quieter in the empty neighborhood you two walk through. “Just didn’t expect you to take an immediate liking to Red.” He confesses, and it suddenly all makes sense. 

“Well, I can’t say it was immediate.” You remind him of your panic attack at just the sight of the hero. But Bakugou merely rolls his eyes at that. 

“You know what I mean.”

“What, are you jealous?” You shoot back, a little amused at the way the supposedly big bad hero pouts, pale bottom lip jutting out. 

“What’s there to be jealous of?” Bakugou snaps, hands curling into fists in his pockets. It startles you, his tone, and suddenly you want to drop the topic. Its a little overwhelming to think about why Bakugou might be so jealous in the first place, why you always feel so warm and comfortable around him recently, why you even handed him your gun earlier with little complaint. So you drop it completely. 

“Okay, Bakugou.” You mutter, kicking up a pebble, before starting up again. “Wanna get some sushi?” You ask to lighten the mood. Bakugou snorts quietly before nodding his head, looking to the street signs as he starts guiding you to the nearest restaurant. 

“As long as you’re paying.” He mumbles, holding a hand out in front of you when you almost step off the sidewalk without looking. He motions you forward when a car passes, as you scoff loudly. 

“I’ll never pay for a man.” You proclaim loudly, earning a few looks from some pedestrians. Bakugou chuckles at that. 

“Damn straight.”

…

“So, when will I be able to start patrolling with you?” You ask Bakugou around a mouthful of food, and he only rolls his eyes up from his plate to look at you, before picking up another bite. He shrugs, chewing slowly, speaking around his own food. 

“I think you’ll need some hero lessons first.” He tips his head and points his chopsticks at you. You try to bat them away, but he’s too quick, making you narrow your eyes at him. 

“Well when is that starting?” You ask him, sipping at your water as you watch him watch you. He’s taking all of you in, the little scar on your forehead, the bags under your eyes, the way your mouth pops off the straw. And you do the same with him—how his jaw works slowly with every chew, his own scar running across his cheek to his hairline, how his eyes scan you, the bob of his Adam’s apple when he swallows. You blink out of your stupor when he begins talking. 

“It’ll start when you agree to become a hero.” Bakugou says simply, as if the solution was the easiest thing to get to. You groan at that with a dramatic roll of your eyes, resting your head on the table beside your plate. 

“You people and your hero business shit.” You complain, reaching a hand up to push your food around on the plate with your chopsticks. You slap his away when they go reaching for a spring roll, and it creates a battle of chopsticks, one that you win surprisingly. 

“Can’t get the secrets of being a hero if you don’t agree to it.” Bakugou grunts at you, waiting until you were caught off guard to snatch your food up. You only do the same to his, even though you didn’t even like the spicy shit. He chuckles at your cough when it slides down your throat. 

“Shitty hero secrets.” You mutter childishly around your water, to which he only snorts under his breath. When the food is gone, do you both sit there in silence for what feels like forever. He keeps looking at you with these weird looks on his face, and you wish you could read his mind. It’s probably filled with dumb shit, like hero politics, and who has the biggest tits in his friend group. That makes you laugh to yourself. 

“The fuck is so funny?” Bakugou asks, leaning back in his chair as he crosses his arms to face you. You only roll your eyes, matching his position, with the tiniest hint of a smile on your face. 

“None of your damn business.” You counter back, watching how he scowls so petulantly. It makes you laugh quietly again, and his face softens, just the tiniest bit, before he’s huffing and rolling his eyes again. You two fall in silence once more, your eyes scanning his scars, and he does the same to you. You can’t ask if this is what you’ll look like if you change career paths, as you already match him. 

What’s the worse that could happen? A lot, you think to yourself, a lot could happen. But maybe, the reward will become so much greater than the risks you’ve already encountered so often in life. 

“I think I wanna become a hero.” You mutter softly into the quiet atmosphere of the restaurant air. Your eyes are focused on your empty plate, suddenly interested in the sauce and tidbits of rice leftover. You can’t meet Bakugou’s eyes, can’t watch the excitement or the hope build, afraid of what you’ll compare it to if it all somehow comes crashing down. 

“I’m glad to hear that.” Bakugou says softly, doesn’t make any big hoopla around you agreeing to anything. So your eyes tilt up, hesitantly, and you take in his neutral face. He doesn’t look ecstatic nor does he looks upset, and something about the calmness of it all settles the churning pit of your stomach. 

“Before I fully agree though, I’m going to talk to my friend first.” You add on quickly, sitting up in your seat as you plaster your hands on the sticky table. Bakugou nods again at that, still unswayed by your conditions. 

“Do whatever you need.” He tells you, tilting his head at you. His voice from this morning rings in your head again, telling you to do whatever makes you comfortable. And he’s sticking by that statement, thankfully, with no pressure. You deflate in your seat, unaware of the breath you had been holding in, stomach untwisting from its previous knots. 

You two sit there in silence for a long while again, looking around the emptying sushi bar as the minutes tick on. You think back on your training with Kirishima today, before a thought pops into your mind. 

“Will I be able to train with some of your other friends? Like Deku and Shouto?” You ask, imagining what training with them might be like. Your thought bubble is popped though, with the ugly scoff that emits from the back of Bakugou’s throat. 

“They’re not my friends.” He rolls his eyes at that, leaning back far into his chair. You hold your hands up in surrender, snickering under your breath. 

“Touchy subject, I get it.” You tease, making Bakugou narrow his eyes at you in mirth. 

“They’d train with you, though, cause they’re fucking nerds. Deku already talked about how much he could teach you.” Bakugou scoffs a little, eyes far away as if in thought. You smile at that, leaning forward to rest your chin on the backs of your hands. 

“Stop holding shitty hero secrets, and tell me all about it.” You say softly, already thinking of ordering another round of sushi, because Bakugou sits up like he’s got a lot to share about his friends-not-friends. And you’re more than willing to listen. 

…

Two days after only half agreeing to becoming a hero, do you finally make that dreaded walk to the warehouse. You know Vanity is in there since there was just news of her kicking some dudes ass for groping a woman on the street. But you hesitate, wonder if you should come back later after she’s cooled down, interrupted by the heavy metal door suddenly swinging open. 

“You just gonna stand there all day or come in?” Vanity asks on the other side of the door, her eyebrows downturned, but you catch a hint of a smile on her face. It instantly calms you, and you sag your body into her welcoming arms with a heavy sigh. She only laughs, dragging you inside, as someone leaving out closes the door behind you. 

“Missed your annoying ass.” She says quietly into your hair when you finally straighten up to hug her back. Her embrace is so warm, so tight, so nurturing as it always is, and you release the tension you hadn’t realized you were carrying the entire way here. 

“Missed you too. And your cheap food.” You murmur back, feeling her whole back shake with laughter, making you laugh too. You both stand there in the entryway to the warehouse hugging for a while, before she’s the first one to pull away. She holds you by your shoulders, glancing around to make sure that the room is empty, before she speaks. 

“I got your letter.” She whispers still, afraid that any looming ears might catch wind of what she says. The tension instantly springs back into your body, but her scarred hands only grip your shoulders tighter when you tense. 

“And I wanted to tell you that I’m not mad at you.” She establishes first and foremost. You can feel the tears instantly spring to your eyes, your head suddenly becoming heavy as it hangs between your shoulders. 

“Would I have gone the same route? No, but I’m not you.” Vanity lifts your face up with a single finger by your wobbling chin, her eyes kind where she takes you in. 

“I don’t have your experiences in life, I don’t have your brain. I’m not you to dictate and create these decisions for you. You have to do that yourself, and if you believe that this is what suits you best, then I’m going to support you all the way.” She finishes with the kindest smile you think you’ve ever seen, her eye akin to the golden hues of sunlight peeking over the horizon. 

It warms you, makes the tears spill over the apples of your cheeks, and you think that maybe she’s the only one in this world who can make you cry this hard and not feel ashamed about it. You pull her in for another hug, your face smushed into her neck, before you murmur into her skin, 

“Will you still have that same sentiment when I tell you that I think I might become a hero?” Your voice is barely a whisper, and you can feel the way she tenses all over. But you press your palms into her shoulder blades, pull her in close to you, feel the weight of your words slowly melt off of her skin. She takes a deep sigh in before releasing it all, squeezing you back when the seconds tick on much too slowly for you. 

“I will.” She states, voice sure and steady. “Not because I agree with your decision, but because I love and respect you too much to try to guide your life and shield you from everything. You did that for me when I needed it, when I came to you broken, and needing that guidance.” Her voice shakes on the last sentence, and it makes the tears roll around again, as you try to force them back down by blinking quickly. 

You think back on Vanity when she first came to you, in quite literal pieces, how terrified she was, how relieved she looked when you told her that you’d take her under your wing. And to see her flourish like this, to mature like this, to support you and guide you and love you, even when you grew into someone that she hadn’t originally sought out? It makes your heart burst with so much love, it pains you. 

“But I can’t force it on you, if you only need my support right now.” She murmurs into your hair, rubbing a soothing hand down your back. You take in a shaking breath, swallowing another sob that tries to inch its way up your throat. 

“Thank you so much, Vanity.” You croak out, biting at your bottom lip to quiet your sniffles. She squeezes you tight into her chest before she lets go, holding you back by the shoulders again. 

“And stop looking for my approval, damnit. You were gonna do anything you’ve ever wanted in life, even if I said not to.” She narrows her eye at your playfully, wiping a stray tear with her thumb as you laugh. 

“I mean, yeah, but its nice having some kind of support.” You grin at her, holding her shoulders back as you grin at each other. 

“Thank you, again.” You mutter after a long while, grin softening into something sweet that she matches. “You know if you ever need something, I can just take it from him. Well, except for his stove.” You shrug at that, before you both break out into giggles, still holding each other close. 

“Damn, that’s the thing I need most!” She rolls her eyes playfully, making you laugh even harder, before it dies out slowly. You two stand there staring at each other, as she tucks a stray hair behind your ear, and you smooth out the wrinkles in her shirt. You can see the gears in her mind turning, and it scares you, just a little. 

“Why a hero, though?” She asks after a while, smile lessening as she tilts her head at you. “I support you, but—why? Looking at their justice system, how corrupt so many of them are? Why would you want to be apart of that?” Her voice diminishes into a tiny whisper, her eye shining something that makes your heart clench. 

You think about your answer for a long while, turning it all over in your head. Why did you agree? Was it mainly Bakugou, who has shown you more kindness, compassion, and patience than any man has ever given you? He offered his home to you, even though you had shot him only months beforehand. And yet—he still gifted you shelter without looking for anything in return, not even a yes to becoming a hero. 

Was it the benefits? Of being able to be free? To put your name on the capture of a villain, a bad man? The ability to walk outside and inspire so many young kids to fight for what’s right, and push back against anything that’s wrong? Was it the status, the stability that comes with being a hero? 

Was it all of that? Was it nothing at all? 

“I won’t have to hide anymore.” You shrug softly, mouth quirking up weakly at the corners. “And I wanna make a change in the world, and being a vigilante can limits that at times.

“Obviously, there are limits to being a hero, too, but my reach would spread so much farther. I would be respected, more than I am now, because I’m choosing to show my face and fight for what I believe in.” You squeeze Vanity’s hands in yours, her attention undivided on you and you only. 

“Also, I really need the fuckin’ money.” You tack on, making her laugh loudly in the echoing openness of the warehouse. 

“Don’t we all,” she smiles at you, eyes casting down to the floor as the silence blankets the two of you for a while again. “I still don’t get it, but I know you’ll make the right decision. I have faith in you.” She whispers, looking at you again with the teeniest hint of a smile. You match hers, squeezing her hands once more as you bite the bullet. 

“Do you have enough faith to let me drag you with me?” You ask hopefully, shoulders hiking up in nervousness. Vanity fixes you with a look, and it makes your shoulders drop as you nod at her, already understanding what that face means. 

“Your journey is not my own.” She states simply, holding your hands tight in hers all the while. “I support you from my position in life. Just keep me in the loop when you can’t do something, so I can clean it up for ya.” She lets go to hold your face in her hands, squeezing it gently. You smile at her, leaning into her palm, before you pull her into another hug, embracing her tighter than you think you ever have before. 

“What are best friends for?” You whisper, and she agrees with the quietest hum. 

chapter eight

please do not repost or rec on tik tok!

tag list: @endlessfreaky @iamaconfusedpan

[madbadash]

🎵🎵🎵 Album tag game 🎵🎵🎵

rules: share the albums that you can listen to nonstop. those lightning in a bottle-albums that scratch ur brain just right. every single track, an absolute banger. u could not skip one if u tried. no notes. stunning, show-stopping, immaculate. ur no-skip albums.

🔎 bonus & optional (but imo, v fun) rules: 1) add a track rec for us to listen to! AND 2) share ur favorite line(s) from that track! 👀

Now lowkey I'm cheating here because I don't really listen to albums in full and I would probably would skip at max like one song on each of these albums but I wanna participate in the game so I make the rules.

ANYWAYS thank you @bluecoolr for the tag

I will Tag @probably-a-plant-thing @bobeatspie300 @thelemoncoffee @boxtyphoon @toborusk and a cover all if you wanna do it do it!! Also these are all very low no pressure tags.

Billie Ellish- When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We All Do?

Penelope Scott-Public Void

Mother Mother-Inside

Chonny Jash-The Will Wood Power Hour

Eliza Anastasic-The Grand Relics

Billie was my number one artist on Spotify for like 2 or 3 years in a row and she hasn't left my top 5 since I started listening to her. I fucking LOVE ilomilo

Lyrics: So, where did you go? I should know, but it's cold And I don't wanna be lonely So tell me you'll come home Even if it's just a lie

The fact I get all my music from Tiktok is showing ANYWAYS Penelope Scott has some bangin ass music. I actually associate this song with Steven, and if Bob is down and people are interested I can totally go into why.

Lyrics:You fuckers know it's all built on lies But the beast refuses to die And so I guess well neither can I

Mother Mother is the most basic gay people music but DO I CARE??? NOOOOO!!!!! I can and will add both Haylofts into Oc Playlists! Anyways this bitch got a funky rhythm and I like the way they sing. Also this is probably the album with the most skips but I make the rules I don't care I'mma put it anyways

Lyrics: I'm thinking, "Oh, my God, what a chatty creature" It just kept talking and talking and talking all around in a circle I said, "Hey, little guy, I think it's time to go now"

CHONNY I AM GONNA KISS YOU SO HARD OH MY GOD. YOU, ONE OF MY FAVORITE ARTISTS, COVERING WILL WOOD??? MY OTHER TOP ARTIST. I AM CRAZY AND DERANGED

Now I do think you should listen to both versions of Thermodynamic Lawyer but I really like the lyric changes Chonny does so do whatever you want.

Lyrics:He'll rationalize rhymes 'til the T's and the I's Are re-crossed and re-dotted to a blur Blacks out his eyes, hides the lines, flays his thighs 'Til the-, they think that "he" is their "her"

Ok ok now hear me out. Hear me out here I know it's fucking weird but listen to me. Hear me the fuck out.

This is a fan-Album based on the Podcast The Adventure Zone Balance. Everyone should listen to Balance. It's a funny DND podcast. It is earnest, and stupid and funny and it has made me cry and if you don't have 69 hours to throw to this podcast (with the first 6 episodes being a bit rough as it's their first time playing) I HIGHLY recommend listening to their Current Arc: Vs Dracula. They all know what they're doing and they're doing it hilariously

Rant over. These songs are based on 7 magical objects that are collected by our main characters. These songs also include some clips from the podcast. I'm gonna rec the first one because its the least spoiler-y.

Lyrics: I'm a weapon of mass destruction That can literally fit on your hand So what are you waiting for? I'm thralling as hard as I can Go ahead and put me on- Gloves do not have long attention spans!

[ominous-feychild]

✦ Musical OC Tag 2 ✦

Following this open tag from @mysticstarlightduck! I did a few more on SaS's characters on this post, but am creating another to put more songs for the tAR main characters!!

Rules: Share 1-3 songs you feel best embody a character from your WIP/s, either in general or at this moment in the plot.

Characters from the Arcane Rifts: Gene, Tazin, and Mislav

Using generalized songs! Though some of them are definitely better placed at various points in the characters' lives, but... oh, well!

GENE

1. Fire - The Score

In my head I hear a million conversations I'm spinning out, don't wake me up until the end The rivers flowing in denial I can't fake it I'm paranoid that all my thoughts are all my friends (...) All these thoughts I battle creeping up my skin, creeping up my skin Fears they try to rattle who I am within, where do I begin It's one of those days, my world is crashing everything looks on fire It's one of those nights, I'm dreaming but I'm walking on a wire All these thoughts I battle creepin' up my skin, burn 'em from within like

(but pretty much the entire song tbh--)

2. Hopeless - Picturesque

Am I the only one that sees the problem In a room with no doors, no clock Time's flying Don't remember how I got here Think I'm lost, now I'm stuck Warped vision, feeling dizzy hit the ground and wake up I've been here before Bodies on the floor Cold shit Burning up my throat Staring at the door Focused I think I should go

(once again pretty much the entire song tho)

3. Paradise - RIELL, M.I.M.E

I'd run and I'd run and I'd Hide in a secret place They'd never, they'd never Find it, not for the weak minded, show me all your scars (...) I've heard time heals everything That broken down house got a new coat of paint I still feel it everywhere The walls closing in, that unbreathable air Are they so different, your house and mine? Both have their secrets buried inside When we grow up, we all fight to survive 'Cause everybody wants something

TAZIN

1. Apologize - Grandson

I lose a bit of myself with every selfie Lose sleep over wealth, it's not healthy Finding a new religion on Yelp to come help me Praying to the label itself, "Do not shelf me" In the middle with the beggars and rejects Reading between text with weed, liquor, and sex She say she love me at dusk, but at dawn I pack up my things and I'm gone And I don't know where I'm gonna go But I don't care, I'm on the road Never been a perfect soul But I will not apologize Been a lot of places in this life And I did a lot wrong I can't make right Never been a perfect soul But I will not apologize (Said I will not apologize)

2. Rockstar - Call Me Karizma

And I don't care about anything Play me hard, baby break my heart I don't need ya, I got a Visa Swipe three times, it'll take you far Okay okay, I guess I'm a mess No one told me fame would be like this I used to be called a fuckin' bitch Now every night I can fuck your bitch (...) Get a check, make it four Takin' meds, take some more Sick of sex, but I'm bored Okay okay, I guess I'm a dick No one told me fame would be like this I used to be called a fuckin' bitch Now every night I can fuck your bitch

(obviously this is for an older version of Tazin, not the smol babi child you see in books 1 and 2--) (oh, and yeah, this stuff is a good part of why I give him a hard time. Because he grows into this.)

3. Enemies - The Score

Fight til the end of me, til the end of me Did you think that it would be that easy? This ain't a tragedy, a tr-tr-tragedy I'm not going six feet in the ground It's not a fever dream, it's reality Cut me open and my heart's still beating Healed from my injuries, now I'm on my feet I'm not going six feet in the ground Cause I believe underneath I won't ever lose composure No defeat, won't retreat

MISLAV

1. Past the Past - New Medicine

I try to move on but every time I do I can't get past the past My therapist thinks I'm a wreck Why do I spiral and obsess Over heartbreak and regret? Things I said I can't take back I can't get past the past All I've learned growing up Is everyone lies and people suck I try to see the good but I can't find it Must be something broke in my mind

2. If It's Vengeance You Want - Unlike Pluto

Eye for an eye Never made sense to me, payback till everyone's blind Sacrifice Morals, integrity, everything comes with a price Oh, why Stand by You'd rather rage and take it out on me It's fine Don't lie You are lost so you just make up enemies Eye for an eye Everybody tells themself a lie To justify If it's vengeance you want, don't be shy Lie for a lie Trading in angry delusions you hold in your mind Buried under The floorboards of your Cold War, foundational agony, oh

(and literally the whole song ngl)

3. Blood // Water - Grandson

Beg me for mercy Admit you were toxic You poisoned me just for Another dollar in your pocket Now I am the violence I am the sickness Won't accept your silence Beg me for forgiveness We'll never get free Lamb to the slaughter What you gon' do when there's blood in the water? (...) I am the people I am the storm I am the riot I am the swarm When the last tree's fallen the animal can't hide Money won't solve it What's your alibi?

These songs were simultaneously so easy and yet so difficult to pick. Like, I've had such a large selection of songs for Gene and Tazin (some of my longest-existing characters!!!) for a while, so there was a huge pool to pick from... and Tazin's were the top of his playlist, of course, haha. Meanwhile, Gene surprisingly had two newer songs in there! Congrats on the growth, Gene!... oh wait it was just more depression nvm, sorry bud.

Tag List!!!: @honeybewrites (I feel like this counts, but if you think otherwise I can not include this kinda thing in "story stuff", haha)

Divider by @cafekitsune

[crows-home]

Nobody asked but here are my thoughts about Infinite and the president’s sonadow fanclub because i haven’t stopped thinking about it for WEEKS and if I don’t get it out there I will implode.

More of a lighthearted, crack treated seriously type of thing.

So if we’re sticking with the main Sonic Forces timeline, i think that the jackal squad didn’t die or anything. They just got real beat up by Shadow and fired by Eggman as a result. the loss stings everyone’s pride, but none more than infinite.

He sees his team sulking for days and thinks “how can i embarrass Shadow the same way?” and Sonic is doing the whole Twitter Takeover with Eggman and Shadow and he’s like. Oh yeah. I’m gonna embarrass you all in front of so many people.

So the whole “a file called Sonadow.” thing plays out and it’s funny!! Infinite spent a few days searching for sonadow fanart and fanfiction around the web and compiled a folder and sends it to Eggman live. (and it’s surprisingly hard to find any sonadow content. apparantly its a rare thing.) He and his crew get a laugh out of it.

And then:

It’s like one of those things where you start doing something ironically. saying a phrase or doing a mannerism in the day as a joke. He’ll see a pepsi can and a coca cola can together and laugh and point and say “haha. sonadow.” and his crew will laugh too. He’ll find fanart and tag Shadow in it to annoy him.

Then I think this leads down a pipeline to him actually reading fanfiction and theories. “For fun,” he says.

“Look at this,” he says to Vanish, gesturing to his tablet screen. They’ve just collected a bounty in a snowy mountain and are taking a rest in their tent.

Vanish squints and reads over his shoulder. “What...”

“There’s a small community of people that genuinely believe Sonic and Shadow have a secret relationship and go out on cheesy dates.”

Vanish laughs in disbelief. “That’s crazy.”

Infinite nods, absently rubbing his knee because the cold makes his joint ache. “I know. I mean, if they were actually in a relationship they wouldn’t meet at a restaurant for a date. Obviously. These people don’t know anything.”

Vanish stares at him for a moment, but Infinite has continued scrolling.

“Whatever you say, boss...”

Anyway. Time passes and it’s. Not a joke anymore.

the more he reads, the deeper he gets, until one day he’s fully onboard like. “Woah, hang on. This actually makes a lot of sense. Are they really together? They have to be!”

I like to think he saw fics and art and scoffed like. “The characterization is so off.” and “He would never say that.” and “I bet I could do better.” so he starts creating his own stuff and putting it online. maybe he started with crack fics and his team just smiled awkwardly when anything was brought up because. well, Infinite is still a damn good leader and his hobbies aren’t really hurting anyone.

but infinite is really miffed because no one will take him seriously!! like, his crew is not as invested in this as he is and whenever he gets a good conversation going with someone online, they either move on from “sonadow” really quickly or they have a different view on their relationship than he does.

until he’s browsing forums and notices a single user that has been posting continuously since like. almost 2001???

so he hits up the user “Sonadowfan1″ and they talk EXTENSIVELY and holy shit. It’s like he and this person are on the same wavelength. this person GETS IT.

Sonadowfan1: I’ve believed in their relationship almost since day 1

User69420: Wow, you were there since the beginning?

Sonadwofan1: I was. And let me tell you, the way they worked together, the way their chemistry works, I have never met another pair of beings so closely intertwined. But they love to dance around each other.

User69420: Exactly! Did you see the clips of their time at the Olympics?

Sonadowfan1: I was there in the audience! It was quite something to see in person.

So Infinite has a new internet friend that he can share his ideas with. Sonadowfan1 recommends fanfiction and sends their favorite clips and they have some damn good taste since they’ve been around for a while.

Meanwhile Infinite’s crew is just happy he’s not coming to them every time he needs to vent his frustrations. They hear his phone ding and see him grinning a minute later, typing away like a kid.

Months pass and he and Sonadowfan1 decide to meet up. It’s the middle of the night, and Infinite is hesitant. But Sonadowfan1 insists that it’s the only time that he’s able to step away from his job. But he makes Infinite agree to come alone.

User69420: Why? What are you playing at?

Sonadowfan1: I have a very recognizable face. I trust that you won’t reveal my identity, but only you.

Infinite frowns. It’s a dumb statement, really. Infinite thinks he would sell this guy’s information for a price in a heartbeat. But, whatever gets him the meeting with the only other person that believes in this as much as he does- maybe even more.

“Should we...?”

Eclipse points to Infinite, who is getting ready to head out and meet with his online friend.

Rumble blinks. “You want me to stop him? He can handle himself. Let him get this out of his system or enjoy himself. At least it’s not affecting his work.”

And just. Long story short that’s how Infinite comes face to face with the fucking President of the United States. They agree to have monthly meetings. The pres shows Infinite his own Sonadow files and the picture he keeps on his desk. They go over their interactions and break them down, frame by frame.

[hepatosaurus]

2023 AO3 Wrapped!

I had a lot of fun tracking my fic reading in 2022, so... I did it again in 2023! Still fun, still both completely unsurprising and a little illuminating at the same time. I definitely read less fic this past year—only 77 across 12 fandoms, compared to last year's 110—but that's OK. Life happens, and I'm very aware that I'm never going to be a person who reads a million words per month (or 100 books a year). Stats-wise, I can't guarantee that these numbers are completely accurate, but they feel right and that's what counts.

Word Count

971,646 words! Numbers fluctuated throughout the year with one real dead zone (lol @ June - I was busy! sibling got married! played a lot of Zelda!), and I kind of petered out by the end of the year. On the plus side, my brain can handle reading actual books again, which was fun. On the minus side: less fic. Oh well. (Also: May's number isn't entirely accurate, but I had to put rubicon's final word count somewhere. No, I haven't finished reading the complete edited fic yet, but that's when the last chapter draft hit my inbox, soooo there.) Most fics were on the shorter side, unsurprisingly (average length was ~12k); I think rubicon was the only one over 100k. I did read more 50–100k fic compared to last year though, which was nice.

(Putting the rest behind a cut. Obligatory warning that this is mostly about Fire Emblem, but what else is new?)

Top Fandoms

My FE3H reading took a HUGE hit this year, falling from 87.3% to... 83.1%. Ouch, how will my faves recover. Really though, this was yet another reminder that although I certainly watched and loved a lot of new movies and tv shows, read new books, played new video games (ok, it was mostly BOTW/TOTK), all things that could conceivably lead me to check out greener pastures, I am still in an extremely monofandom phase in terms of actual fic reading/fandom participation (four years now!). And honestly, I'm fine with that! I'm having fun, blorbos are still my blorbos, there's still a ton of fic I haven't read yet (new and old), and I'm in a nice/quiet/drama-free corner of fandom. Besides, the average fandom lifespan is too short these days anyway. I'm doing my part to break the cycle. :P

I do wish I had the brain space to read a little more widely, though. I was so close to going on a zelink bender after I finished BOTW, but life got busy and it just... didn't happen. Maybe in 2024. Severance and fandom juggernaut SoftBank Next 30-Year Vision tried their best—two fics each! impressive, lol—but the heart wants what it wants, and what it wants is anime chess pieces kissing (and/or killing) each other.

Top Authors

56 individual authors, with the top spot going to...desmodus! which does not surprise me tbh; they write such good fic. Looking at these particular results was an interesting reminder that I'm really not someone who methodically/voraciously reads through an author's entire back catalogue, at least not currently. Like, besides the named authors, there were four more with two fics each and the rest had only one each. Next time, I'm almost tempted to see if I can factor in word count to get a better idea of how much time I really spent reading each author, especially since I might (hypothetically) read multiple forgettable 1–5k fics by Author A, and then a single memorable/meaty 95k fic by Author B that sticks with me for years. Is Author A really more of a "top" author? Not really. That's more work on my part though, so we'll see what happens. (All of this waffling could be solved by making an actual rec list for once, but shhhhh.)

Top Pairings

Surprising absolutely no one, I'm still in sylvix hell. Congrats to None for jumping a couple spots in the rankings, though! A solid showing. I need to get better at tracking platonic relationships, but to be fair, those tags are underutilized on AO3 to begin with (or not used consistently), and I typically—but not always—stick with the main tags chosen by the author.

Also, please note that the ship in sixth place was entirely thanks to alphabetical sorting (it was a six-way tie), but I'm keeping it as is because it makes me laugh/implies some sort of character growth on my part that may or may not exist.

Top Characters

Lol. In my defense(?), Sylvain did drop almost three whole points this year; he couldn't even hit 60%! What kind of blorbo...?! Jokes aside, it's an entirely expected list. My Blue Lions/Golden Deer bias persists, but I'm not sure what determined when I logged "Blue Lions Students" vs. their actual names—probably half laziness, half just following what the author picked. I did love seeing Ask A Manager's Allison Green chilling at the bottom of this list with Bakugo, though. I'm sure she'll be fine. (And god knows Mr. King Explosion Murder and the rest of my top 20 could stand to follow her advice.)

(Also: apologies to Lorenz Hellman Gloucester, as I see his illustrious surname was cut off accidentally. Forgive me.)

Ratings, Categories, etc.

Also pretty unsurprising! I considered cutting my NSFW tracker at the beginning of last year since it's a little redundant, but that never happened. It might come in handy one day, especially if I'm looking through my spreadsheet for individualized recs. I was surprised that the Multi category was so low, but that could be due to inconsistencies in how people tag their fic? And/or how I logged them. Sometimes it means poly, but sometimes it just means that there are multiple kinds of ships in a fic. Either way, it's something to consider for 2024's tracker. Consistency! Let's strive for it! ✨

Tags & Tropes

Also about what I expected, though I was honestly shocked to see Established Relationship ranking so high? And Friends to Lovers so low? What is going ON here. (The former is probably partially due to mikey desmodus's excellent married sylvix fics.) Sorry to Horse Feelings, though; I made a dedicated tag on my google form and everything, but there was only the one fic in the end :(

Etc: Commenting, Rereading, Reccing, and Bookmarks

Commenting: My only real fic-reading "goal" in 2023 was to get my commenting percentage up to at least 50% and...I did that! Just barely, but 51.9% is 51.9%. Obsessive media tracking works!

Rereads: As expected, and pretty in line with last year (with a tiny increase). I'm just not a big rereader in general, though I did do a fair bit of rereading WIPs to prepare for new chapters. (Not sure how I classified those, come to think of it...)

Bookmarks: Also pretty similar to last year (with a tiny decrease).

Reccing: Now this DID surprise me. That "Yes" percentage seems almost absurdly high, jumping from 46.4% to 61%, and my "No"s dropped a ton too (22.7% to 5.2%). Either I got nicer or I just read better fic. :P Leaning towards the former, but probably a bit of both tbh. My one DNF was a longfic WIP that didn't spark joy and was becoming a hateread, which is rare for me - byeeeee.

Takeaways

By now my tracking form has become part of my fic-reading routine (read - track - comment/etc), and I can't see that changing any time soon. Obviously not everyone wants to (or should!) engage with fic this way, and I can definitely see how it might suck the joy out of reading for some people, but for me, it's been a good mental exercise and a really helpful commenting aid. Also, it's just fun. I like thinking critically about media! I like having a place to record my silly little thoughts about the silly little fanfics I read! All in all, I highly recommend doing something similar if you, like me, get a rush from making lists and compiling data, and if you like complimenting people but sometimes need that extra push to actually tell them and post a comment.

Goals-wise... I don't really do those lol. Probably to continue commenting and maybe try to read more widely, but honestly I'm probably not going to change my habits intentionally. Besides, looking at what I've read so far, yes, it's already half Fire Emblem, but also half gen and half F/F with nary a Sylvain in sight*! We got History Boys, we got Haikyuu filk, we got Ingrid and a MILF! Who knows what's around the corner?

(*This is quite literally only because I haven't logged rubicon yet. Don't worry, he's coming.)

[the-kr8tor]

Yk what fine- since this blog is a year old tomorrow (for me), and I'm about to hit you all with a shit ton of angst I've been saving, feel free to put me as a main character of a trope with my friend>:) I dare you...hehehe.. Daily Hobie HC! Ever since you got in trouble with a highly experienced witch, you've been on a journey to find something that could cure your curse. However, nothing's been easy, ever since you are only able to turn to a human the moment the sun dips from the horizon...which is unhelpful. Most of daytime, you're wandering around as a fox, the feeling of leaves crunching beneath your padded paws almost always an exhilarating feeling as you run across the moor, your cinnamon fur fluffing against the wind. However, you're no longer alone as you venture into a widely known town. You're accompanied with your newfound friends, Gwen, Pavitr, and Miles. Miles is a normal human, currently practicing the art of archery...he's not great with moving targets yet. Gwen is a herbalist, specializing in medicine and poisons. She's quite knowledgeable with most common herbs of her town, but tagging along this adventure has definitely benefitted her. And Pavitr? A young pyromancer who's still learning how to conjure fire from the gold marks of his palms. Although inexperienced, you couldn't have asked for a better group of friends such as them. You're currently being carried by Miles, who's craftsmanship came in handy while making you a little carrier backpack so you didn't get hunted down. Although you felt your dignity die every time you were put in the carrier, no doubt it was helpful at indicating that you weren't some rogue fox. The townsfolk welcomed you all greatly, probably since Pavitr originated from that town. Pavitr shows you all around, eventually going up to one of the inns and managing to get you all a place to stay for a few nights to rejuvenate after the journey. As night fell, causing you to turn back into a witch once more, you all went up to an extravagant, treehouse bar, ordering a couple of non-alcoholic drinks and just enjoying the music played. However, someone had caught your eye. A bard, playing in the middle of the floor, with people laughing and listening and enjoying his music. His eyes settled on yours, and no doubt the eye contact was prolonged until Hobie had to look away. You smirked, priding yourself in finally being able to maintain eye contact with someone hot. Hobie watched as you turned and walked back to your group of friends, immediately recognizing Pavitr amongst the group.

He saunters over with a smirk, having to stop himself from laughing at your exaggeratedly concerned expression Pavitr is stoked to see him again, bumping shoulders with the bard, who you've picked up his name as Hobie. He greets Miles and Gwen, teasing about how he's quickly noticed Gwen admiring a necklace around Miles' neck, before turning to you. His brown eyes focus on yours, reminding you of the churning earth beneath your feet as you ran like the fox you are in daylit skies. After a solid moment of getting lost in the way your eyes seemed to sparkle in the dim lighting of the bar, he steps closer, his calloused fingers gentle as he tilted your head up with a smirk. Hobie smirk fades into a smile, greeting you with a velvety voice, taking your hand and peppering your knuckles in soft kisses, before taking notice of the coloured marks swirling graciously all over your arms and hands. He bows towards you, winking, before sliding away to play and speak for the crowd once more. You're obviously flustered, but you simply mirror his smirk and roll your eyes fondly at his charms, although your heart was screaming at the way his fingers oh so gently touched you. As the bar gets louder with song, everyone else had decided to go join the dancefloor. You're walking up to them as well, intent to join, when Hobie stops you again, hand outstretched for you as he asks for a dance. As you agree, you could've sworn his eyes lit up. Hobie takes you away, setting his instrument down as he danced with you, leading the way of the night, his hand brushed against your hip with care. He didn't want to make you uncomfortable in any way, yet he was marveled by you, and was all the willing to make this night an experience to never forget, making it the most fun for you. -🐦‍⬛ (I might actually continue with this I rlly like the idea LMAO..)

NOOO NOT THE ANGST! (Hit me with your best shot!)

Ttn but make it 🐦‍⬛ anon and their bestie hehehhehehehhehehehhe

Daily Hobie HC!!!! 🎉

OH I LOVE THIS OMG IT'S HIGH FANTASY!!! At the same time I imagined their little group as a dnd team! Where miguel is their disgruntled dm lol

The way you described his eyes 😍 *chef's kiss* yes please! Im fully invested in this story!

[cuprohastes]

Starfield!

OK I've been playing the heck out of this and I have some thoughts. Under the cut.

TL:DR - I'm enjoying it a whole lot.

OK, this is a very Bethesda game. I mean you can see the Fallout 4 DNA, and it's distant ancestor, Skyrim.

And there's some classic bugs: Putting your super rare and cool looking space suit on the Armoury Mannekin is great. And if you change the least amount of your ship it will vanish forever.

Not all your very cool, upgraded weapons will stick around. They'll just show up missing. The tutorials on navigation or ship building appear to be 100% missing. The speech challenge is... hilariously crap and badly explained

But... but...

Out of days of play that's pretty much the only issues I've had, apart from 'Oh dear god I'm over encumbered AGAIN?!' Because for some reason, Bethesda thought that an upper limit of 150KG before buffs or perks or suit mods was acceptable. I mean... OK. It probably is, but given most of your income is hauling gently used equipment and other goodies back to your ship and flogging it off for space bottlecaps septims dollars, it can get really annoying that while carrying the equivalent of two adult humans, you can only sprint for a little bit.

Unless you get your robot butler to pick up the load, but say goodbye to stealth play because at the merest hint of Bad Guy activity, it'll sprint into the thick of things yelling about how it's not programmed for combat, DIE SQUISHY HUMAN RARG RARG PUNCH KICK TWIRL... yes dude, please back off so I can fire this proton canon into that bad person's kneecaps.

I mean you can just park it and say 'wait here'. You even get a quest and marker to find it again if you forget.

But it's a very mellow game. Yes it is super easy to make the game spawn a couple of loot dungeons. But have you tried going to Mars where the horrible grimy mine is... staffed by fairly happy and content miners who are not being exploited, and where you can pick up a mission to put up posters so that people will feel happier? OR that fetch quest designed to get you visiting other locations on behalf of the comic book fan? What about the first faction you meet who won a war but who's citizens were so horrified by it that they formed a working peace with their erstwhile opponents, and admit, yeah, the enetire thing was their fault: Let's rebuild and be better people.

They have a museum where they have a display explaining 'We won but when we asked AITA, the answer was Yes.'

And then you can go sit in the park and eat meatloaf. Maybe build your own colony and put up Space Frog, the Frog from Space posters. Start a garden. Get eaten by a Terrormorph

But you want to be a pirate, a smuggler, a Space Cop, A Ranger, a spy, a bounty hunter, a collections agent or a freelance bad-guy murderer? Oh yeah that for SURE is a bunch of things that you are basically offered right away, and that's not even the main plot. These are fun sub plots. This is a way to rack up XP and bank the hilariously small amount of money it takes to re-build your ship into the space Winnebago of your dreams.

How's that work?

OK you have a space winnebago. Cockpit at the front, mobile home in the middle, then a bunch of engines and pew-pew sticks. Porch on the belly and buncha legs to stand on.

You can swap the middle part - Bed n' kitchen, science room, workshop, infirmary, armoury, captains quarters, living quarters, a couple of other options.

Want more? Well... click a second unit on. Or a long version. Or some passages. Hell, make a star destroyer with every type of room and cover it with engines and lasers and storage units.

You just need to be able to train up to get the reactor to power it all. The good news is that you can absolutely hire staff to run all your systems and have ship with a crew, and a companion who'll happily tag along and provide banter. Or solo it all.

And so far there's no Preston Garvey.

[the-down-upside-finch]

9 Lines, 9 People (Tag Game)

Thank you for the tag (in this post), @pb-dot! Don't worry it was my main blog that was tagged

For this one, I’ll drop a snippet from Stained Integrity:

“Oh?” Laurie raised an eyebrow. “Is that the mysterious backstory I was sensing?” “Maybe.” “...I’m getting the feeling that you aren’t going to elaborate.” “Nope.” “Well, I tried.” Laurie went back to examining the daggers. “I’ve never seen a dagger with such clean lines. Though, it makes sense for the skyland with the hottest fires to make the sharpest weapons.” He tossed a dagger into the air, neatly catching it by the handle. “Be careful!” Clover gasped. “Hm?” Laurie twirled the dagger around his fingers. “Put it down!” Clover hissed. “You’ll hurt yourself!” Laurie smugly grinned, but he did set down the dagger.

Gonna gently tag @athenswrites, @lordcatwich, @harleyacoincidence, @k-v-briarwood, @dancinginsepia, @planets-and-prose, @the-grim-and-sanguine, @my-cursed-prince, and @worldsfromhoney as my nine people, and leave it open for anyone else that wants to play!

By the way, my definition of "line" for these is just the paragraph breaks because the counting gets weird on desktop vs. mobile haha (and also I get to post longer snippets)