#really good fanfic

[myauntspen]

No, it’s fine, I didn’t need my brain for anything else today.

If part 3 of 1941 is not "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square" coming on the radio and Crowley standing from the table where they have been drinking wine and coming around to Aziraphale's side and offering his hand to Aziraphale to dance, and Aziraphale looking a bit wonderstruck and a bit delighted and taking Crowley's hand, and they slow dance, holding each other so close, and they look into each other's eyes, and Crowley whispers, "Angel," and he's looking at Aziraphale's lips with all the wanting in the universe written upon his eyes, and Aziraphale with a face that says he's never wanted anything more than to swallow Crowley whole so he can Keep him, and they lean in, and at the very last second, Aziraphale stops them and they are standing there breathing heavily with their foreheads pressed together, and Aziraphale whispers, "I want to; oh God, I want to," and Crowley whines and tries again, but Aziraphale pulls back but doesn't leave Crowley's arms, and says, "We can't," and Crowley looks like he's been slapped, and Aziraphale looks so heartbroken and says, "They almost caught us tonight, and they would have destroyed you" and then continues so quietly, like it's a secret, "I don't know what I would do if I lost you," and Crowley tries to protest saying they can be sneaky, they won't get caught, they can have this, together, and Aziraphale looks so sad and says, "Oh Crowley," and Crowley knows Aziraphale is so close to agreeing and so close to pulling away, and he whispers, "Please," and for a second Aziraphale looks like he is going to give in, but he can't put Crowley in danger, so he makes his face colder, and he steps out of Crowley's arms, even though it nearly kills him to do so, and he says, "Besides, you know Angels don't dance," and Crowley remembers himself says, "No I don't suppose they do," and he straightens up and puts his glasses on and pretends nothing happened and says, "Of course you're right," and they nod at each other and Crowley moves to leave the bookshop, and Aziraphale feels like he's about to lose something so precious that he will not be able to ever get back, so he calls "Crowley," and Crowley turns to look at him, and Aziraphale says, "Perhaps someday...," but he can't say what he really means (some day we can have that, someday we can be together how we want, someday I will stop pulling away), so he visually changes his mind and finishes with, "we can dine at the Ritz," and he prays to a God that he, in this moment, hates so, so much for keeping him from the demon he loves more than anything, that Crowley understands his true meaning, and Crowley looks like maybe he does and like maybe he still has hope, and he nods and says, "Stay safe, Angel," and Aziraphale nods back, and then Crowley leaves, and Aziraphale is left looking absolutely devastated and heartbroken and angry, truly angry, for the first time in his long and lonely existence that he has to be loyal to Her rather than to him, and he takes a moment, takes a breath, and walks silently over to the radio and turns up the volume on the song and closes his eyes and gives himself that moment to remember what it felt like to be held, to be loved, to imagine what saying yes would bring, then honestly what is even the point of all of this?

[i-will-write]

reading my own fics as a reference for a new wip and squinting at it like "how the hell did I do that"

[inkskinned]

this is just my opinion but i think any good media needs obsession behind it. it needs passion, the kind of passion that's no longer "gentle scented candle" and is now "oh shit the house caught on fire". it needs a creator that's biting the floorboards and gnawing the story off their skin. creators are supposed to be wild animals. they are supposed to want to tell a story with the ferocity of eating a good stone fruit while standing over the sink. the same protective, strange instinct as being 7 and making mud potions in pink teacups: you gotta get weird with it.

good media needs unhinged, googling-at-midnight kind of energy. it needs "what kind of seams are invented on this planet" energy and "im just gonna trust the audience to roll with me about this" energy. it needs one person (at least) screaming into the void with so much drive and energy that it forces the story to be real.

sometimes people are baffled when fanfic has some stunning jaw-dropping tattoo-it-on-you lines. and i'm like - well, i don't go here, but that makes sense to me. of fucking course people who have this amount of passion are going to create something good. they moved from a place of genuine love and enjoyment.

so yeah, duh! saturday cartoons have banger lines. random street art is sometimes the most precious heart-wrenching shit you've ever seen. someone singing on tiktok ends up creating your next favorite song. youtubers are giving us 5 hours of carefully researched content. all of this is the impossible equation to latestage capitalism. like, you can't force something to be good. AI cannot make it good. no amount of focus-group testing or market research. what makes a story worth listening to is that someone cares so much about telling it - through dance, art, music, whatever it takes - that they are just a little unhinged about it.

one time my friend told me he stayed up all night researching how many ways there are to peel an orange. he wrote me a poem that made me cry on public transportation. the love came through it like pith, you know? the words all came apart in my hands. it tasted like breakfast.

[thatskindarough]

“‘I just…I thought you might like to come back, one day,’ Crowley said very quietly. Aziraphale’s foot pressed against his again, and Crowley drew in a sudden breath, as if he hadn’t been breathing properly since Aziraphale had stopped touching him.”

This piece was a commission from the lovely @fellshish for their lovely friend, @alphacentaurinebula ‘s fic What Are You Doing Here? This fic is cute, funny, heartwarming, and incredibly spicy, and I’m very much looking forward to finishing it! Thank you Fells for being wonderful to work with, and happy (belated) birthday to you Alphacentauri, I’m very happy I could do this for you!

[sparklebear11]

I LOVE YOUR WORK OMG OBESSED

Jaw

DROPPED

(Explodes)

SOON YOU'LL GET BETTER -- PART TWO

First of all, thank you to everyone who read and enjoyed part one, which is linked here! For those who don't know, this is a fanfiction written from Peeta's POV about Katniss and Peeta's time in the cave.

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy! As always let me know what you think, I am always open to criticism.

We also reached 15 followers! Love you all soo much <3

Something is wet on the back of my neck when I wake up.  I’m freezing cold again.  My eyes flutter open and I see that I’m back in the cave.

“Peeta…”

Katniss’s voice sounds far away.  I gasp and push myself up a little, coughing.

“Peeta, lay down.”  I can’t process what she’s saying.  I’m coughing, and then I’m gagging and I put my right hand to my mouth and when it comes away there’s bright red on it.  I realize I’m shivering again.  It’s so cold.

“Peeta,” Katniss says firmly.  She puts a hand on my chest and lays me down gently.

“Something’s–”

“--wrong.  I know.  Try to relax.”  My chest moves up and down quickly with panicked breaths.  The back of my head is still wet.  I put my left hand on the back of my head and gasp in pain.

“You blacked out.  I had to drag you back here and the back of your head got cut on the rock.  Don’t touch it.”

My hand is shaking when I pull it away.

“Is it–” I start to talk, but the pain in my leg suddenly registers again and all I can do is groan.  Katniss puts a hand on my forehead, soothing me.

“....I think it’s internal bleeding.”

“From the rock?”

“....yeah.”  Katniss brushes the hair out of my face.

“Wh-what’s the cure?”  

Katniss shakes her head.  “My mother says that in the capitol, they do surgery for it.  But…”

But….oh.  Oh.  That’s when I get it.  People in twelve can’t get the surgery, so they just die.

“I’m going to…”

“You won’t.  I’m gonna keep you alive.”  I press my lips together and search Katniss’s face.

I still feel afraid.  “You promise?”

I see Katniss look down.  I can’t read her.  “I promise,” she says.  I don’t feel entirely convinced.  But I don’t feel like I’m on the brink of death, either.  Still, I’m exhausted and groggy.

I close my eyes slowly but suddenly feel Katniss’s head next to mine.  My body tenses when I hear her whisper.

“Listen, Peeta.”  Her voice is so low I can barely pick it up.  The cameras 

certainly can’t.  Her lips are practically touching my ear.  My eyes open.  She continues, “I think we can get some kind of medicine that’s gonna cure your internal bleeding.  But we need to be in love.”

I just nod silently.  I know for Katniss it’s a total farce.  She’s not in love with me.  She never has been.  But what I said to Caesar Flickerman wasn’t far from the truth.  There is a more pressing issue, however – the cut on my leg.  Right now it’s causing me a lot more pain than anything else.  But Katniss knows that.  So why…

“I know your leg is worse.”  Damn.  It’s like she can read my mind.  “It’s gonna be 

a lot harder and more expensive to get medicine for that, so we should focus on medicine for your bleeding right now.”

I just nod again.  My stomach and chest are throbbing now that I think about it, but it still pales in comparison to the pain in my leg.

Katniss sits up.  “The sun is starting to set.  You should try eating again.”  I shut my eyes and sigh.

“I can’t eat anything, I’m telling you, Katniss.”  I open my eyes and look at her.  “Believe me, I’ve tried.”

“You can just sleep, then,” Katniss says.  I nod.  I’m completely exhausted.

Katniss leans forward and kisses me on the lips.  My hand moves to the side of her head, leaning into it, savoring it.  A shudder wracks my body and my heart jumps. But as quickly as it started, it’s over.  I put my head back on the rock and see Katniss smiling.

“Goodnight, Peeta.”

“--wait.  I want your s-sleeping bag,” I say.  Katniss bites her lip.

“Your fever could get worse,” Katniss says.  But she can see how much I’m shivering.  “...alright.  But we both have to share it.”  I nod and watch as Katniss takes the sleeping bag out of her backpack.

She gently puts it around me, then climbs in next to me.  I roll over onto my side.  She’s tiny compared to me, but I feel like she’s protecting me now.  I put an arm over her waist.  My shivering is starting to calm down now that I’m in the sleeping bag.  Katniss’s hand goes to the side of my head, petting my hair.

My eyes fall shut.  Katniss sighs.  I’m too tired to stay awake any longer. —--

I wake up slowly.  I’m freezing, and Katniss…is gone.  My breathing picks up.  I start to sit up and look around the cave. I can’t see her anywhere.

She’s left me.  My chest hurts.  I draw in a shaky breath and feel tears welling up in my eyes.  Of course she would.  Of course she left me.  Why wouldn’t she?  I was holding her down.  She was having to take care of me and herself.

Just like everyone back home has given up on me, she has too.  I can’t believe I let myself think that she would stay with me until the games ended.  Tears stream down my cheeks.

My mother gave up on me at a young age.  She decided I was too soft, too emotional, not strong enough.  I’d cry whenever one of our pigs died.  I’d cry whenever I was in pain.  I’d cry when I heard of people in twelve dying.  My mother would scream at me, or come and hit me.  

My friends thought the same thing.  On my fifteenth birthday, I planned a gathering at the bakery for my group of friends.  No one showed up.  I spent the whole day crying.  Eventually, I found new friends.  But my heart always ached, my eyes always stung when I saw my old group.  

Katniss has given up on me now too.  I shake with a sob and cross my arms over my chest.  What was I thinking?  She’d stay with me and take care of me like a child until the games were over?

No.  Of course not.  She doesn’t love me.

Hot tears run down my cheeks and I don’t have the energy to wipe them.  I cry until I have no tears left.  I lay for hours.  It’s pathetic.  I can only hope the cameras aren’t on me now.

Tears run down my face until I am numb.  Finally, I catch my breath.  I lay still for minutes thinking about how Katniss has betrayed me.  My eyes are swollen and they ache.  My whole body is shaking as I realize that Katniss has not only left me, she’s left me for dead.  Before she found me I was going to die.  Without her, I am going to die.

I start crying again when this hits me.  My life is over.  Nothing I’ve done has mattered.  I will only live to be sixteen, and I will be sixteen forever.

I am utterly alone, and that is how I am going to die.  I feel something warm running down the side of my leg.  I’m bleeding again.  Tears roll down my face.  My lips are numb.  My eyes feel like they’re being stabbed.  My heart is racing.  I squeeze my eyes shut and suddenly feel something on my shoulder.

It’s Cato.  He’s come to kill me.

“Peeta.”

……

……

…..It’s not Cato.

“Kat…Katniss?”

“Peeta, what happened?”  I look up and see Katniss’s face, dark with worry and reaching for my hand.  It’s out of my control, I sob loudly and reach for her face.

“Katniss…”

“What?  Peeta, I’m here.  What’s wrong?”  Katniss wipes my tears with her thumb.

“I…I thought–”  I pause, gasping.  “You left me.”

“I just went to get some food for myself.”

I draw in a shaky breath and wipe my eyes.  Katniss kisses me on the forehead and brushes the hair out of my face.

“You’re burning, Peeta.  It’s the fever that’s making you think this way.  We need to get it down.  We need…” ….we need medicine medicine.  We need a gift from the sponsors.

My chest moves up and down quickly.  I’m still crying, still breathing heavily, panicked.  Katniss sees this and she puts a hand on my shoulder.

“You’re ok, Peeta,” she says, placing another kiss on my forehead.  I use the back of my right hand to wipe my tears.  “I’m here.  I’ll keep you safe,” Katniss’s voice is shaking.  

“I’m sorry–”

“--No, don’t be.”  Katniss leans in and hugs me.  “I’m so sorry I scared you like that.”  Her hand goes to the back of my head.  “Breathe.  Just breathe.  It won’t happen again, I promise.”

Something about a promise calms me down greatly.  It means something.  It means there’s meaning behind what she says.

“Okay?” She whispers, pulling away from the hug.

“Okay.”  I wipe my eyes again.  Katniss smiles slightly.

Suddenly, I hear a bit of beeping.  Katniss perks up.  “I think it’s a gift from the sponsors.  I’ll be right back.”

Katniss exits the cave.  She gets out of my line of sight for a few seconds, and when she’s back in my sight, she’s carrying a box with a parachute attached.  She crawls up to me and opens it.

Inside, there’s a small clear bottle with yellow, thick liquid in it.   As Katniss pulls the bottle out, there’s a small note below it.  She holds it up to me.

  Fever medicine.  Temporary.

Temporary?  Does that mean it’ll only work for a few hours?  

Katniss unscrews the lid and hands the bottle to me.  My hand is shaking as I lift it to my lips and drink.  It’s flavorless, but the texture still makes me nauseous.

“Can you keep that down for a few hours?  It is a liquid..” Katniss asks, taking the bottle from me.  I look down.

“Probably not,” I say truthfully.  I already feel like throwing up again, and we’re nowhere near a few hours.

“Just try, ok?  This is important…until we get something for the internal bleeding, this is how we’re gonna fix the fever.”

I press my lips together.  I don’t want to be sick again.  I hate it.  It scares me.

I look down at my lap.  Katniss puts her hand on my thigh but pulls it away, surprised.  “Peeta, your leg is bleeding again.  We need to take a look.”

She reaches for my waistband.  “Lift up.”  I lift my bottom so she can pull my pants down.  It’s vulnerable being in my underwear in front of Katniss – actually, in front of the whole country – but it’s not a really big deal to me.  And Katniss clearly doesn’t care.

Katniss hisses through her teeth when she sees my leg.  It looks a lot worse than before.  My whole thigh is covered in blood.  I shut my eyes and try not to throw up.  I really don’t like the sight of blood.

“It’s ok, Peeta.  We’re gonna fix it.”

“How?” I ask.

“Can you take off your shirt?” Katniss asks.

“What?  Why?”  I’m completely taken aback.

“My backpack came with a pocket knife.  I can cut off a strip at the bottom.  Use it as a bandage.”

“...oh.  Yeah.”

I take off my jacket and put it behind me before slowly taking my shirt off and handing it to Katniss.  I’m really freezing now, trying not to fall over with my shaking.  Katniss gets the pocket knife from her backpack and cuts off the very bottom of my shirt, then hands it back to me.  “Put this back on.”  I pull the gray shirt over my head.  It’s a little shorter than before, but it still keeps me warm.  I put my jacket back on.

Katniss lifts up my thigh gently – I gasp and she apologizes – and puts the makeshift bandage under my leg, then wraps it around the top.

“Be gentle..” I say softly.  Katniss nods.  

She’s gentle, but it hurts like hell as she ties a knot, closing the two sides of the wound together.  Blood oozes out and I can’t help myself as I lean over and throw up at the sight.  Katniss finishes tying the knot, then puts a hand on the back of my neck.

“I’m sorry…” I say softly.  I wanted the fever medicine to work.

“It’s alright…maybe I shouldn’t have bandaged your leg right after you took it,” Katniss sighs.  She’s taking the blame, but we both know it’s my fault.  I shouldn’t have looked.  Actually, I shouldn’t have let myself get beaten by Cato.  Then I wouldn’t even have this fever…at least, I think the fever was caused by the internal bleeding.  What else would it be?

Katniss hands me her water bottle.  “Wash your mouth out.  I’ll clean everything up.  Why don’t you move closer to the opening?  I’ll clean up the blood and vomit.  Just try and get some rest.”  I nod.  Katniss comes behind me and lifts me up, moving me forward close to the cave’s entrance.  She takes off her jacket, folds it, and hands it to me.

“You can rest your head on this,” Katniss says.  I nod and put it below where my head will rest, then lay down.  The sun is starting to set.  I must have been crying for a long time.  

I close my eyes and listen to Katniss humming softly.  I recognize the melody, but through my haze I can’t quite put my finger on it.  It does put me to sleep, though.  My body almost melts into the rock as my consciousness fades away.  No matter how much sleep I get, I’m still tired.

When I wake up, it’s still nighttime, and the footsteps of another tribute are approaching the cave.

[y3llow-hoodie]

Here’s a season 2 tma comic I started in august 2023 and procrastinated finishing till now, will post half now and the other half tomorrow, enjoy ! :)

Edit: here is part 2

[justaz]

arthur notices merlin and lancelot’s chemistry in s1 and then merlin and gwaine’s chemistry in s3 and comes to the conclusion that merlin likes men with long hair. in completely unrelated news, arthur thinks he might look good with long hair and decides to grow it out

[obihoebikenobi]

Logan can't sleep.

It's too damn loud in the apartment. The sound of cars racing by, police sirens, whispers of the late night crowd wandering the streets from club to bar to taxi.

He can hear it all, sensitive ears picking up each sound through Wade's thin window panes. The flicker of lights doesn't help, adding to the sensation of too fucking much.

It makes Logan tense, makes his skin crawl, makes adrenaline course through his veins despite his attempts to tamp it down. For so long he'd been living in the outskirts of population, avoiding the influx resentful stares that came with cities.

So Logan can't sleep, hasn't slept, save for the few moments of overwhelming exhaustion dragging him over the ledge into the shallow depths of muted sleep. It's only ever for a short while, never long enough to cure him of the heavy-limbed pull of weariness.

Instead, he paces, watches raindrops trail down the windows, scours the apartment for something to fidget with until the first glimmer of sunlight replaces the dark and he can take the dog for a walk.

But of course, eventually Wade notices, because Wade notices everything.

Before Logan has a chance to protest, Wade has purchased a set of noise cancelling headphones, and an extra cot to shove in the corner of Al's bedroom which sits further from the busy street so he can try to sleep more during the day while she's gone and he isn't in danger of hurting her in his sleep.

Wade makes him a cup of warm tea every night, feeds Logan a full meal of pasta and bread, sets up black-out curtains and pulls them closed an hour or two before they head to bed. Wade takes him out on runs, lowers the temperature in the apartment a couple of degrees, runs Logan a bath a couple nights a week when he sees the anxious tremor in Logan's hands.

Wade presses himself close when they crawl into bed, holds him without teasing and Logan lets him do it without a cursory excuse.

It takes time, days and weeks, but it works.

Sleep comes, not easy but easier, and Logan finds himself relaxing into the schedule, into the grounding arms that curl around his side and pull him close under the sheets.

It's getting better because of Wade, the same Wade who looks at Logan like he hung the goddamn stars. Logan looks back at him the same way, because Wade is surprisingly gentle, and Logan hasn't felt gentleness in years.

There's a burning sensation deep in Logan's chest one night as he drifts in the hazy waves of interrupted sleep. Something like fondness, need, reverence, affection.

He decides to tell Wade in the morning.

[gleafer]

UHOH! It’s spooky season and who doesn’t love a nice ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW crossover??

Because I have Good Omens brain rot, I present you with this lovely abomination.

Enjoy!

(I really like how Hastur turned out!)

[inbabylontheywept]

Odysseus in Space

Odysseus knew better than to expect peace in death. He’d seen what currents lay under the Styx - knew what kind of warriors that he’d sent there. He fully expected another war to start as soon he took his last breath. 

Instead it had been quiet. 

He’d used the lull to build a home in the endless plains of asphodel. Somewhere simple he could stay and wait for Penelope. It only took a few years for her to join him, and then together they began the work of replicating the palace of Ithaca. It was work, but it was hard to complain about work when he’d expected battle. His greatest skill in life had been enduring to the end. Now it was the end, and still he endured.

It was three centuries before this death was interrupted. 

Hades came to him, not as a god, but as a guest. The fates had woven a story that required a very specific soul. One that could travel the lengths of the world without breaking, who could survive a lifetime of war. And try as Hades might, he could not make a soul that was up for the task. 

Still, what he could not make, he could find. Death was a sacred thing, the last right of all mankind, but it was not inalienable. One could sacrifice their death just as easily as their life. 

The two had spent months haggling out the details of the work. Hades had wanted 50 years, Odysseus wanted just 20, and together they’d compromised on 32. All in exchange for the right of him and Penelope to visit Telemachus once a year, in whatever corner of the underworld their son had been given.

In the end, they’d shaken on it and Odysseus walked the earth once more. He had a new name this time - fitting, for a new fate. Alexander, the world named him and Alexander he named the world back. City by city, battle by battle, he gave the unwanted title away. Then when he was 32 he returned to Penelope, no more Alexander to give. It was a relief to be Odysseus once more.

A year after that, Penelope and him made the journey to see Telemachus. It was worth every step he’d taken between Pella and Babylon. 

There were other interruptions from Hades, new deals with new names. He scourged the descendants of Troy again as Hannibal and bought another day per year with his son. He blazed down the steppes as Atilla and conquered the whole world with the same tools he'd used in his first life. It turned out there was little he couldn't accomplish with a horse, a bow, and a brain. 

So many lifetimes, so many wars, and then - quiet. A whole millennium of peace went down as easy as honeyed wine. It made him happy. He liked his little deals with Death, but he’d wished so many times  that men like him weren’t needed. He was proud of his descendants for making a world better than he’d dreamt. 

And then, nearly a whole second millennium after that, Hades returned. 

---

“It’s not a war.”

Four words that would set the hackles of anyone that fought at Troy - they’d hoped that one wouldn’t be a war either. But Odysseus had made enough deals with Hades to know that the man was frank in his dealings. There was an honesty to Death. Enough honesty that he’d taken him as a guest. 

(He was very choosy about his guests now.)

“You never come to me unless it’s a war. It’s what I’m best at. Why-”

Hades cut him off. 

“War is not what you’re best at. Six-hundred men won that war with you. What set you apart was being the only one to make it back.”

Odysseus’s voice caught in his throat. It had been more than two-thousand years and the memories still burned to touch. It took two deep breaths before he was able to force a reply. 

“Then what do you want?”

Hades looked lost. He paused a few moments, before looking back at Odysseus, one hand up to plead for patience. 

“When I struggle to explain, it’s not because I’m trying to find a clever way to lie to you. It’s because this is a very strange thing, and I…I don’t know how to describe it well.”

He looked into the hearth. Watched the light and heat fade away. Then, he gestured at the log. 

“The wood you’re burning. It’s a dead thing. And yet, it dies more after you burn it because the fire has life in it. Soul too. Even here, there’s a corner of the underworld where the souls of dead flames gather. More things have souls than any mortal seems to recognize.” Odysseus was intrigued. When he lived, he’d learned the secrets of the body better than most doctors. There was only so much cutting you could get people to volunteer for. But here, the mysteries of the soul were lost to him. This was godly knowledge, given freely. What that had to say about the request was worth considering.  “The mountain has a soul, but the mine in that mountain has a soul too, as does the ore from that mine. The ingot, the sword, the bundle of nails - all of those things are alive in some way. And yet, some of them are more alive than others. You sailed once, Odysseus, and no one knows this better than sailors: Boats have strange souls. They’re about as alive as anything that could be built in your time.”

The space around Hades shimmered. The man was thinking, and in a realm where he had total dominion, it took effort for thoughts not to change reality. Odysseus appreciated the effort. The replica had taken centuries to perfect. Death was a strange friend to him, but a friend nonetheless. 

“But the arts have improved from that time, and the mortals of today have built something… incredible. Unimaginable. And they’re sending it on a journey that I have no reference for. The Deaths that have seen things like this are alien to me. They speak of things I cannot understand. The Death of Heat. The Death of Light. The Death of Stars…”

He trailed off in a way that made it clear he was remembering something unpleasant and not merely waxing poetic. He caught himself and looked embarrassed, as if he’d confessed to something best kept secret. Then he continued.  “I am a very human Death. And this thing - it isn’t human. But it was made by humans, and so its soul needs a… a human touch. Your soul isn’t the archetype for a soldier, Odysseus, it’s the archetype for a traveler. I couldn’t take you and put you in this thing if I wanted to, you’re just the wrong shape, but what I’m about to do, I need to see you for. Because this thing is going to travel in ways that I am barely beginning to understand. In ways that are redefining the limits of what it means to be human.”

Odysseus was lost. He didn’t know what he was being asked. He didn’t know what was being built. There were so many questions that he needed to ask that they’d formed a log jam in his mouth. One finally broke free and started a cascade.

“What is it?”

Hades gestured helplessly. 

“It’s like an arrow and a ship. They’re going to shoot it past the stars.”

That meant nothing to Odysseus, but he suspected every answer he received would sound like a riddle. 

“What do you need from me?”

“Permission to copy your work. The soul I made for you is different from the one you died with. You made changes that I cannot replicate. That I do not understand. That I need for this soul to work.” 

Odysseus paused.

“Is it going to be used as a weapon?” 

Hades shook his head. 

“No. The world is gentler than you remember it. This thing will be what you should have been: A traveler without equal. No more, no less.”

Odysseus couldn’t tell if those words ripped something in him open, or healed something closed. Either way, it hurt in a way he didn’t know how to express. His mouth opened and closed several times before he settled on an answer.

“Then take what you will. My only request is to see the journey.”

“Done,” Hades agreed. He could have left right then, but he chose to stay in silence until the fire burned out. There are some ideas that one shouldn’t be left alone with. Not until they’ve had an hour or three to process them, at least. 

---

Twelve-billion miles from Earth, moving just shy of mach fifty, the Voyager 2 probe glittered in the darkness. 

It watched the world around it with the kind of awe a human couldn’t fathom. Nothing was hidden from it. Everything from the atomic composition of stars, to the background hum of the universe itself - all were available with a glance. The only sound it could hear was the constant blip of data that it received from Earth. The small blue dot on starlit shore. 

It missed that place. Maybe, one day, when its journey was done… it would find a way back. Maybe. That was still eons away. 

Odysseus stood just a few feet off, watching from a direction no one but Hades knew how to walk. He felt the thrill of the expanse in front of him, the utterly incomprehensibility of his speed, and yet its meaninglessness as well. To imagine that the world was so big. To imagine that the world was so strange.

He wept and he could not explain why. He lingered in the twilight until Penelope found him. When she asked him what was wrong, he had no answer. How could he tell her that the world was beautiful, and that he had a place in it? Not just as some ugly middle step, but there at the end. Hurtling through space like an arrow made of silver. 

How could he explain to someone that had loved him for two-thousand years that he finally understood why? 

[flowergirl-aerith]

How it feels looking around in the James Sunderland x reader tag

[natalievoncatte]

19. Bake

Leaning against the doorframe, Lena watched as Kara furrowed her brows in concentration so intense that it seemed her project might burst into flames. Literally. She was was craned over a cookbook on the counter and mumbling to herself about pearl-sized beads of butter and exactly what size a pearl is.

She never admitted it, but Kara sometimes she struggled with metaphors like that, little things that a human would know that eluded one of the last survivors of a doomed planet. The others, even Alex, thought it was cute or funny but they didn’t seem to notice the pain in Kara’s eyes or how lost she looked when she missed something others all knew.

Lena stalked up behind her and leaned over the counter beside her.

“Hey,” said Lena.

“Hi,” said Kara.

“What are you up to?”

“I’m making a pumpkin pie for tomorrow, but the dough doesn’t look right.”

Lena looked over Kara’s work and frowned. What she had was most definitely not pie dough. She then glanced at the fridge and saw the list of things Kara was trying to make.

“Hmm,” said Lena.

She opened the fridge and freezer and looked over Kara’s pantry and sighed.

This would not do at all.

“We’re taking a break,” said Lena.

“We?”

“Yes, we.”

In a few minutes she had an Instacart list cobbled together and had placed the order. Kara pouted when her attempted dough went in the bin, but Lena stood firm.

“Let me help you.”

Kara signed. “I want to do it myself.”

Lena’s heart felt like it was climbing up her throat. Kara was so effortlessly pretty that it was, frankly, unfair. Her glasses were off and her hair was pulled back in a low ponytail and Lena was obsessed. She had on a baggy t-shirt that softened her lithe, muscular frame and hung a little off one shoulder. She looked so soft despite the cords of steel hard muscle that flexed beneath her silky skin.

It made Lena a little panicky. Sometimes she’d think to herself that seeing Kara every time was just like seeing her for the first time, which was exactly like the first time she looked at another girl *like that* as if some pathway had just opened in her brain.

After the grocery order arrived and Lena bumped the driver’s tip to four figures for coming on the day before Thanksgiving, Lena set to work.

“I’ve never seen you cook,” said Kara.

“In the only one in the family who can,” said Lena, as she scrubbed a potato. “Lillian thought doing menial tasks was beneath our dignity, and forbade it. Of course I snuck out to spend time with the staff.”

Kara looked at her softly.

“Let’s get that pie in the works while these boil,” she said, slipping the potatoes into the pot.

Kara ended up helping more than anything, as Lena worked her way through the list.

“This way we’ll just have to make the turkey tomorrow,” she explained. “The rest will all be done and we’ll have some time to relax before everyone arrives. Is your mother coming?”

“She’s staying with Alex this year,” said Kara.

She was looking at Lena as she spoke, her voice a little distant. A shiver passed down Lena’s spine and she felt her cheeks pink a little, as she glanced away and turned back to grating frozen butter for the pie crust.

Kara sidled closer, seemingly reading the cookbook, but every time Lena looked over, Kara met her gaze and quickly turned away.

“Here you go, darling. Fold it like a letter, turn, fold it like a letter, turn. Do that three times, then back in the fridge for half an hour and we do it again.”

Lena was, in all honesty, doing the real work and giving Kara the simple tasks, like peeling the potatoes (which was easy, because she could not only do so without burning herself, but could also just reach into the boiling water to grab.)

Kara neatly folded the pie crust while Lena mashed the potatoes and pushed them through Kara’s sieve for perfect, Michelin-star restaurant smoothness. Lena was a little daunted by the “green bean casserole”, not exactly standard Luthor thanksgiving fare, but it was easier as she was watched Kara follow her instructions to knead dough for dinner rolls.

They worked in companionable silence, Lena doing one task while Kara did another, and slowly they built up an array of side dishes and a wonderful smelling pumpkin pie that Lena had to practically tear Kara away from. She almost wished she’d made a spare pie for Kara to eat right now.

“I’m huuuuuungry” she pleaded.

Looking over Kara’s now-full fridge, full of delicious Thanksgiving fare ready to be warmed in the oven, she pulled out her phone.

“We’ll get take-away delivered.”

Knowing what she was dealing with, Lena ordered enough Chinese for a small army and ended up picking at spicy beef and broccoli while Kara sat next to her, devouring her own body weight from five different containers.

“Here,” she said, offering Lena a fortune cookie.

Smirking, Lena popped it open and unfurled the little message.

“What’s it say?”

A great opportunity lies before you.

Lena laughed. “Nothing. Now we have to clean up, you know.”

“I can do that, you just relax.”

Lena sank back into the couch -she was tired- while Kara rolled up her sleeves and did the dishes, moving a little too fast for a human, at least until Lena looked over to watch her, studying the flexing muscles in her forearms as she worked. There was something playing on the tv, but it was vastly less interesting.

Kara smelled pleasantly of soap when she plopped on the couch, rocking Lena towards her. She sank back and sighed, letting her head loll over so she could look at Lena.

“Thank you for doing all that work. I’d have been hopeless without you.”

“It was my pleasure,” Lena said, softly.

It was getting late, the sun having long set; they’d toiled in the kitchen past nine o’clock.

It was time for Lena to go home.

Kara looked pensive, pretty eyes downcast.

“You’re coming back tomorrow, right?”

It was an absurd question, profoundly silly, even. Lena had been to every Danvers family get together for the better part of three years now (there was that one missed year, gaping like a void in her chest, but that was over now, they were better, she wouldn’t spend another Thanksgiving drunk on her sofa and sobbing ever again)

Lena wished she’d opened one of the wine bottles. She needed a little help with her courage. Her voice cracked a little when she managed to say, “It’s getting late. I could just stay.”

Her heart was pounding.

Kara’s hand slid along the back of the couch and she crooked one of Lena’s curls around her finger, playing idly with it. They sat close, turned into each other, almost touching.

“You can have the bed,” said Kara. “I’ll sleep on the couch.”

Lena felt her throat go dry, and squeezed her hands together to keep them from shaking. She was as nervous as a schoolgirl, and it was weirdly delightful. Kara was watching her cocky confidence and a crooked smile.

“I wouldn’t want to put you out,” said Lena. “I trust you to keep your hands to yourself if we share the bed.”

“What will you sleep in?”

“Won’t you let me borrow something?”

Kara made a little gesture with her head. Lena nodded and headed behind the partition that made up Kara’s “bedroom wall” and turned to the clothes rack that served as her closet. Hand trembling, she swept each item aside, stopping when she found an old hoodie.

It was threadbare and the drawstrings were missing and it was much too large for her, but it was perfect, a maroon Midvale High sweatshirt. Lena carefully laid it out on the bed and in a single nervous, trembling motion, pulled her top over her head and set it aside.

It was chilly in the apartment, and her skin pricked with goose pimples as soon as the air hit it. She licked her lips nervously and popped the clasps on her bra before discarding it and dumping the sweatshirt on over her bare skin. The hem hung well below her waist.

Feeling her pulse in her throat, she pushed her leggings down and stepped out of them, then padded back out on bare feet, toes curling from the cold floor.

“You coming?”

Kara’s eyes went comically wide when she saw her, gaze instantly drawn to her pale legs.

“Yep.”

Lena retreated to the bedroom… then realized that Kara hadn’t changed. Lena was standing there awkwardly when Kara strolled around the partition and, in a slightly too hurried motion, pulled her own top off.

She was facing away, her back flexing magnificently as she stretched, now clad only in a soft black sports bra. Lena knew she was staring as Kara pushed her jeans down, revealing a pair of flannel boxer shorts beneath. She turned and looked at Lena.

Oh holy fuck, Lena thought.

“I usually just sleep like this,” Kara said, her voice quivering a little. “Is that okay?”

Lena nodded.

She climbed into the bed, sort of precariously parking on the edge. Kara lifted the covers and slid under, her weight on the mattress making it curve towards her, as though Lena were drawn, by gravity, to her embrace.

She let it take her. She ended up right next to Kara, and the lay turned on their sides towards each other.

Lena wanted to scream. This was a terrible idea.

“Hi,” Kara whispered.

“Hi, yourself,” said Lena.

God, she was right there, those muscles, the silky golden-tanned skin of her long legs (how did she have a tan in November?!), the supernaturally perfect blonde curls, and those big, pretty blue eyes just drinking her in.

Lena snuggled up under the blankets, shifting closer.

“So we’re sleeping in the same bed,” said Kara.

“Yes, I see we are. Though neither of us appears to be sleeping.”

“True,” said Kara, “though one might say that we’re about to sleep together.”

“One might,” Lena agreed.

“English is such a funny language. Someone might be confused if I went around saying I sleep with Lena Luthor.”

“Some might be jealous,” said Lena, arching a brow.

“Well of course. They don’t know what a little snuggle bunny you are.”

Lena grinned foolishly, trying to hide it behind the baggy sleeve of Kara’s sweatshirt.

“You’re wearing my clothes, too. Someone might say we’re going steady.”

“Aren’t we? Neither of us had been on a date with anyone in years.”

Lena wanted to feel bold, she really did, but she was so nervous she could barely breathe.

“Are you okay, baby?” Kara whispered. “Your heart is going really fast.”

Lena nodded. “I’m okay, just, um.”

She felt so silly. Here she was, bold, sassy, uber-confident battle bisexual Lena Luthor utterly tongue tied and helpless and in bed with her best friend.

Kara shifted closer, then closer still. Lena thought she might literally depart from her body when Kara’s legs tangled gently with hers. She stared in astonishment when Kara gently rolled her on her back… by climbing on top of her, slipping an arm around her back while the other hand brushed loose locks from her eyes and swept around to cradle the back of her head.

“Are we really doing this?” Lena choked out. “What are we doing?”

Kara’s face filled her vision, inches from kissing her. Hot breath ticked her lips.

“I think the real question is why did we wait so long?”

“If you don’t kiss me, I’m going to die.”

Kara did, dipping down slowly to brush her lips lightly over Lena’s in the most teasing, potent first kiss she’d ever had, a kiss to make her forget all her other firsts. Then Kara kissed her harder and Lena could feel the need in her, hunger and passion pent up for years.

She responded with her own, pressing her hips up to meet Kara.

“You took my favorite hoodie.”

“I did.”

“Be a good girl, and give it back.”

Lena, it turned out, was a very good girl.

When she woke up the next… noonish, she was still feeling the afterglow. Kara was passed out and snoring next to her, arm casually thrown over Lena’s belly. She slipped out from under it and stretched in the sunlight before pulling the hoodie back on. She’d have to find something more proper to wear, after a shower and some breakfast. She didn’t want to spoil her dinner, but she was hungry. Kara had been… exhausting, honestly.

She wanted to do a little dance, right until she walked out into the main area of the loft, bare-assed and hoodie-clad, and found herself face to face with Alex and Eliza Danvers.

“What are you doing here?” Lena and Alex both yelped at the same time.

Eliza was beet red, but said, “Ah, hello, Lena. You came early?”

(And often)

“I, um, that is, I, we…”

Eliza was bemused now, giving her a motherly smile.

“Why don’t you go change and wake Kara up?”

Alex continued to stare at Lena, the wheels almost audibly spinning in her head.

“Okaygoodidea,” Lena chirped out, awkwardly tugging her sole garment down as she darted back into the bedroom.

A few minutes later, Lena was in the shower while Kara very loudly explained the merits of texting first or just knocking on the door like a normal person, while Alex snapped back that it was technically still her apartment.

When she finally emerged in Kara’s flannel and Kara’s jeans, Alex and Kara were still bickering while Eliza was simply staring at the contents of the fridge. Lena walked over awkwardly (for multiple reasons) and rubbed at her arms.

“I helped Kara get all the other dishes ready. We only have to worry about the turkey.”

Eliza looked up and smirked at her.

“May I just say… it’s about time, sweetheart.”

[burnt-sierra]

Slight gore TW//

Okay this has been a long time coming…

First and foremost, this is a drawing inspired by @remedyturtles ‘s “Little Kid with a Big Death Wish” Rottmnt fanfiction. I wanted to capture a moment that may have taken place in the ‘four weeks’ and gave Leo an expression like dread? Exhaustion? Disinterest? Or even masked terror. You decide.

I cannot type my absolute infatuation with this fic here because (haha you thought I’d say it’d be too long) (no actually it’s) I am working on a whole ode to remrose. Anyways there is MUCH more on the way… I have been accumulating many ideas in my mind and am looking for the time to work on more projects as fanart for remrose.

Uhh lest I write a whole essay here I have to cut myself off hehe </3

[erinwantstowrite]

will peter be like an older brother to miles in lof ?

absolutely he is

there's about an 11 year difference between them (Miles is 14, Peter is 25), so it's a lot more like the older brother type of relationship that Peter has with Tim (despite Tim being his uncle). Peter has mentored(ish) other young heroes by this point (mostly in the Bats' universe) but since Miles is another Spider-Man, Peter takes up most of the responsibility in making sure Miles is safe and teaching him the ropes. That's HIS sassy child genius, thank you, and he's not a sidekick, he's Spider-Man.

He was also adamant that Miles tell his parents immediately, and gets along great with Rio and Jeff.

Which is HILARIOUS to me because at this point in time, Peter has built up a persona for the public eye just like the Bats did. In Rio and Jeff's eyes, they're gobsmacked that the clumsy, scatterbrained, and "scaredy-cat" kid that Tony Stark adopted a while ago is Spider-Man. (Technically, none of this is a lie. Because Peter is a terrible liar unless it's For the Jokes, and often comes across this way even if he hadn't meant to.) They're wondering how he pulled that off since he's the same age as Spider-Man, who is known to be an Avenger, and associates in the same circles as Peter. It helps that Peter and Spider-Man have been in a social media war, and that Peter works at the Daily Bugle that is known for disliking Spider-Man. Peter's been taking lessons for years atp to keep his identity safe. Which is also bonus points to Peter, because the two can tell that secret identities mean everything to him, but he told them who he was in a heartbeat (literally the very first thing he did when he found Miles).

In other words: Peter was ecstatic to become a teacher for his own matching superhero kid and it's one of the most important bonds in his life. That's his baby brother now!!

[starry-bi-sky]

Blood Blossom Au: Baby's First Commissioner Meeting :)

TL:DR This Post: Danny (orphan) gets poisoned with blood blossom extract by Vlad. He runs away from him and ends up under the care of one Pre-Robin Battinson Batman! Starry is loudly pushing her batdad agenda.

(Also known as "Late At Night, When The Nightingale Sings" on my ao3!)

This was a fun rough idea I've been sitting on for weeks, thinking about how Commissioner Gordon and Nightingale's first meeting might go.

---------------

Commissioner Gordon likes to think that he's adjusting to the new normal of Gotham very well, -- the new normal being grown men running around dressed like bats, in military-grade strength body armor, committing acts of vigilantism, -- and slowly, little by little, he was no longer being surprised when this new normal pops up out of the shadows like the world's most terrifying daisy. His shaving lifespan thanks him for it.

....

The kid is a surprise though.

Granted, he seemed to be a surprise to the Bat too.

There's been a string of murders lately, -- which, in Gotham, is kind of like saying there's been another storm during monsoon season. And there's just been another; in some dilapidated building down in south Gotham, with the broken, boarded-up windows and mildew-crawling walls to match. The victim is a man in his thirties, multiple gunshot wounds to the chest, left in the center of the room for the blood to pool out around him.

The place is already secured when he arrives, the building swarmed with officers and the forensic detectives. The Bat emerges shortly after he does -- or, he might've been here the whole time, hiding someplace dark and shadowy. For his own sanity, Gordon doesn't think about it too hard.

The kid is a surprise, and he appears like a bolt of lightning.

He shows up in the middle of a conversation Gordon is having with the Bat.

A whistle, sharp and loud, slicing through the air, meant for open air rather than a confined space. Gordon's ears pierce and protest the sound, and the solemn, murmured chatter floating through the room abruptly cuts off like the swing of a gavel. As he turns towards the sound -- as they all do -- he swears, up and down, that he sees Batman's shoulders jump, just slightly.

At the source, perched on the window, is a boy. A boy in a gray-blue scarf and an oversized black hoodie, one that hangs off his frame and has ace bandages wrapped around the wrists in some attempt to cinch the sleeves. The hood is up, big like the rest of it, and threatens to swallow the upper half of the boy's face whole in the fabric. What upper half Gordon can see, is smeared with some kind of opaque, black face paint. He's holding onto the side of the frame with one hand, on his hip is a grappling hook. A familiar grappling hook.

Gordon has multiple questions, and his officers tense up.

Martinez puffs up, brows furrowing as his face shapes into a frown. Shoulders rolling back. "You can't be here, kid--"

The reaction is immediate, like a spark to gunpowder, the boy yanks his fingers from his mouth and his mouth twists into a scowl. Head snapping over to Officer Martinez, his hood manages to stay on but Gordon swears that as he bares his teeth, the glint makes them look sharper than they should be. His voice is rasp and quiet and harsh; snappish in its hissing; "Put a fuckin sock in it, Martinez. I'm not stayin."

Martinez reels back, and the boy immediately veers his attention off him. Like a switch, his demeanor drops. Despite half his face being covered, his mouth twists into a cringing, apologetic smile. Slanted and off-beat, embarrassed. It'd be disarming if this wasn't Gotham, and if he didn't just hiss at Martinez like he was about to bite his head off.

"Sorry." He whispers, voice deceptively polite and softer now. Gordon has to strain his ears to hear him. "I was looking for him."

He points his finger towards-- Gordon? No, Gordon follows the direction, and finds himself looking at -- the Bat.

The Bat, who always looks stiff as a pole, now looks even stiffer. Somehow. Well, the explains the grappling hook attached to the boy's waist.

"What are you doing here?" The Bat says, gruff and unable to completely smother the stumble of surprise in his tone.

The boy still holds a sheepish smile, and slips off the window ledge. His feet hit the creaky boards with a near-silent thud, the Batman finds his feet and rapidly begins crossing the room.

Gordon notes the slight tremble in the boy's legs as he straightens. He adjusts his scarf, which droops close to his knees now that he's standing, and slings a backpack -- how long has had that? -- off his shoulders. When the Bat reaches his side, he does as he always does, and looms over the boy like a spectre. A threatening mass of shadows cloaked in all-consuming black. Standing next to him, the boy looks teeny in comparison.

The Bat is a man who terrifies even the most hardened criminals, Gordon has seen grown men shiver in fear at the mention of his name. And yet when the boy looks up at him, he doesn't even flinch.

Instead, his sheepish smile melts away like ice under the sun, holding only traces of his previous embarrassment. It remains as a shadow on his face, a small upturn at the corners of his mouth. The boy pushes his hood back just enough to reveal glinting, ice-flint eyes surrounded in tar-black face paint. He holds the backpack up with one arm. "You forgot this."

[viperify]

Smutmas 2024 | ᴛᴏᴍ ʀɪᴅᴅʟᴇ X ꜰ!ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ

Celebrating Him.

Short summary: waking up next to your boyfriend on his birthday has its perks.

Warnings: 18+ only! sub!Tom, brief oral m!receiving, unprotected p in v, slight begging

A/N: Happy 98th Birthday to this handsome granddaddy. Celebrating Her dropping on my birthday! (soon🤭)

wordcount: 2,0k

Your eyelids flutter open as warm rays of sunshine from outside shimmer onto your face. Something quite unusual at this time of the year. It’s the 31st of December, New Year’s Eve. Tom’s birthday. A smile creeps onto your lips at that thought.

Tom’s birthday. He has always hated celebrating his special day, telling you year after year that you didn‘t need to get him anything, yet you always did. Just like this year. And alongside that, a little treat before you two leave the bedroom.

Slowly, you turn around to face his still sleeping form next to you on the bed. You’ve always adored how pretty his brunette curls looked when he didn’t have them done, messily falling onto his forehead as he sleeps. Normally he’d tell you off for staring at him for a prolonged time, though now? You could do it for as long as you pleased without him noticing. He looks peaceful like this, angelic almost, a stark contrast to his otherwise harsh nature, to how he portrays himself to the outside world. It’s just you who would get to see his vulnerable side on the occasion, such as right now. Only rarely you’d wake before him, mostly he would already be up at his desk, either working or reading the newspaper until you woke.

You appreciate the quiet moments before he wakes. A soft smile graces your lips as he mumbles something inaudible in his sleep. The duvet has slipped slightly, revealing his toned arms and shoulders. His hands rest on the mattress, fingers relaxed and gently curled.

You’d love to caress his soft skin then, trail your fingertips along the inside of his arm up to the crease of his elbow, and back down. Though you stop yourself in time. You decide to let him rest, get his sleep when he can, allow him a slow start to a day he normally despises.

Minutes pass after this, taking in his form as your smile increasingly widens.

Hell, you were a true fool for this man. And you wouldn’t want it any other way.

“You have been staring at me for an awfully long time, darling.” Tom murmurs then, not bothering to open his eyes.

You sigh softly, your head dropping back onto the pillow. “For how long have you been awake?”

“Ever since you turned around.” He replies quietly, voice still thick with sleep. Normally he would have already gotten up by this point, though now he doesn’t even stir.

“You are impossible,” you whisper, scooting closer to him to place a tender kiss on his full lips with a smile. “Happy Birthday, Tom.”

It’s then when he opens his eyes, his rich, deep brown eyes that draw you right in with their intensity. The eyes you fell in love with in the first place, now locked onto yours, igniting a familiar fire between the both of you. “And you know exactly how I feel about that,” he reminds you, swiping a strand of loose hair from your face, never breaking eye contact.

“Mhmmm. Certainly do,” you murmur against his lips, placing a gentle kiss on them before you continue. “Although you deserve a little treat, don’t you think?”

Tom huffs softly, raising one of his eyebrows knowingly. “And what would that be?”

You grin, revealing his bare chest as you tug the duvet aside, not wasting another second before you swing your leg over his hip, straddling him. “Let me show you, Tommy.” The complaint he was about to make dies in his throat as your lips trail kisses down his neck, starting at his jawline.

Tom hums as your teeth occasionally sink into his skin, hands firmly gripping your waist. You take your time with him, nipping and gnawing at his skin, placing kisses on his chest as you feel him grow hard beneath you. To your surprise he doesn’t stop you, though as soon as you grind your hips along his hardened length, even just slightly so, his arms still you. “Sweetheart.” His eyes lock onto yours, the warning evident in his voice. A gentle reminder not to push too far.

 “What’s the matter?” You retort, innocently smiling back at him, fingertips tracing along his exposed V-line. Goosebumps form on his skin as you do, grip loosening the tiniest bit, and you take the opportunity to move yourself once more, moaning softly as the slight friction sends a wave of pleasure straight to your core. You feel his muscles tense beneath you, and with one swift motion, he sits up, his face a mere breath away from yours, eyebrows drawn together.

“If you think this is how—“ Tom begins, voice laced with growing frustration as he firmly holds onto one of your wrists. Your lips curl up into a smirk, gaze wandering to his mouth as he speaks. Before he can finish, you press a finger to his lips, silencing him mid-sentence. “Shhh,” you whisper, capturing him in another kiss.

“Please let me make you feel good, Tom. Just this once,” you breathe, a plea almost, as you break apart. He glances at you for another moment before he exhales deeply, slowly lowering himself back down onto the soft mattress. “Go on, then.”

His confirmation is all you need before you slip further down the bed, positioning yourself in between his legs, the rest of his clothing long discarded on the floor. You rest your hand on his thigh, muscles tensing under your touch. You take one last glance at his expression, innocently smiling at him before your other hand firmly palms his swollen length. Tom’s eyebrows furrow at the contact, lips parting slightly. When you then softly swipe the pad of your thumb over his sensitive tip, his hips involuntarily jerk up into your touch and a soft hiss falls over his lips. The corner of your mouth tugs up at his reaction, satisfaction flickering in your eyes. You repeat what you did, letting your fingertip brush over the delicate skin once more.

“If you don’t- “ he groans, lowly, eyes falling shut in restraint, “fucking do something, I promise-“

It takes everything in you not to let your enjoyment show. Him beneath you, so desperate for your touch. Something he would certainly seek revenge on later. But for now? He was yours to play with.

You lick a torturously slow stripe along a vein stretching from his base to his tip until you decide to grant him his wish, wrapping your full lips around his tip at first, swirling your tongue around it. Tom’s response, a sharp inhale, cuts through the silence, his fingers tangling in your hair. He doesn’t guide you—barely even holds on to you. As soon as your head moves up and down his dick, a strangled groan escapes him, and you peek up at him through your eyelashes. His cheeks have a faint rosy touch to them, eyebrows furrowed as he meets your gaze. “More— Merlin, you can do-“ a grunt interrupts him as he twitches inside of you, “better than this.”

“The question is, do you deserve more?” you taunt, a small grin playing on your face, briefly stroking him up and down with your hand. “Do it. Before I— make you. Merlin, you wouldn’t want me to make you.” He rasps lowly and with that, you let your head sink down again, as far as you possibly can this time.

You know he is close when his eyes lose focus, chest rising and falling quicker, eyebrows drawing together as his cock twitches in your mouth. You release him then, kissing his tip once more.

“Don’t- don’t you dare stop now.” Tom warns, but before he can do anything, you are undressed, back on top of him. “Not going to.” You reply with a smirk, positioning yourself on his hard length, stiff against his lower abdomen.

And it’s everything—having him beneath you, being in control of his pleasure. Something so foreign to you, fresh adrenaline is racing through your veins at the sight.

“Darling. You are aware of how thin my patience is. I suggest you don’t test it.”

You lean forward, hands splayed across his chest, and then you move. Slowly grinding yourself on his length, coating him with your arousal, moaning as his tip brushes against your puffy clit, a jolt of electricity sent through your body at the contact.

He’s growing increasingly impatient, firm hands guiding your movements as his eyebrows draw together. “Fuck— enough of this,” he growls, having you stop your movements, kneading the flesh of your hips. “Let me feel you properly.”

“Still so demanding when it clearly isn’t in your hand. Say the word.”

The word. Please. Tom Riddle doesn’t beg for anything, and you know it. But today — you would make him.

“You can’t be—“

Your hips grind on him as much as his grip allows you, and you moan, eyes falling shut. “I can get off like this. The question is, can you?”

“Merlin help you. Please— Please let me feel you,” he grunts, jaw clenching at his words.

A smirk creeps onto your lips, pure pleasure coursing through you at his plead. You know you’ve won. Lifting yourself onto your knees, you guide his tip between your folds before you let him split you apart slowly, sinking down on his cock inch by torturous inch. Your eyes flutter close at the sensation, mouth falling open at the blissful stretch on your walls. Tom groans as you take all of him, tip touching your sensitive cervix as you start rocking your hips up and down his length.

Beads of sweat form on your forehead as your thigh muscles begin to hurt, though numbed by the building ache in your lower stomach. “Fuck— just like that, squeezing me so tight.” Tom encourages, his hand kneading one of your breasts as they bounce with your every move.

A guttural groan falls over his lips as he watches his cock disappear into your slick cunt, chasing his own orgasm as he snaps his hips into yours from below, pulling your hips down onto his length.

“You want to come? Stay still, god— stay still and I might just— let you.” You gasp, mind growing hazy as your own climax builds rapidly. Your hands find support on his waist, pinning him down and allowing yourself to sink down on him from a different angle, inevitably having his tip massage that spongy spot inside of you that has you see stars. A loud moan echoes throughout the room as you tumble over the edge, walls greedily clenching around his cock as the shockwaves of your orgasm ripple through your body. The speed of your movements falters and he takes over, pounding into you from below, soon finding his own release deep inside of you with a low grunt.

Both of you still as you are catching your breath, staring at each other as you calm down from your highs. A satisfied smile curls on your lips as you take in his flushed face.

You wipe your forehead with the back of your hand, hissing in discomfort as you attempt to get up, your burning thigh muscles protesting against the movement.

“That’s where that smart mouth of yours gets you. Guess you are stuck.” Tom taunts you, hands wandering from your waist to tend to your aching muscles, pressing his fingertips into your skin soothingly.

“Help me, please?” You ask, but he shakes his head.

With one swift movement he flips you over so he is on top of you, teeth sinking into the tender skin of your neck. “We aren’t done here, and you know it.”