#she keeps asking for someone who can organize her schedule but no one really wants that job ( and i kinda understand why dhjfgah )

[lovelyyandereaddictionpoint]

Yandere Cheerleaders + Football Team

The thing about cheerleaders and the infamous football team is that they’re quite accurate to their stereotypes

Now not every cheerleader team is run by a head girl who’s a massive bully 

Or that the football team is filled with dumb jocks that are just as violent if not worse

But they’re nothing to scoff at 

They’re beautiful

They’re athletic

And they're disciplined with confidence that comes with successful games and competitions

Such perks might give them quite a bit of power

Power that’s doubled when they’re working together

If you’d like to be happy you’re better off not figuring out just yet 

Since your arrival to the University, you’ve noticed more of your things have gone missing

Maybe this move made you more frazzled than you thought

Because you’ve found that you haven’t been able to keep friends like you used to

At least not without some help

“So you’re the new student, huh? Welcome to Energi University. As cheer captain, I’m really happy to welcome you finally!”

As she drags you along throughout your schedule, you’re waiting for the punch line

The moment she switches to embarrass you or smile coyly as she says something underhanded about your appearance

But she doesn’t 

Only twirling her hair as she asks you where you learned to glow like you do

You find it odd but you’re not complaining

Movies taught you that she and her team were top of the food chain 

so if they liked you enough maybe it’d trickle to some friends eventually

“Looking for a partner? Me too. How about we uh work together, freshie. If we finish before class ends you can have my varsity jacket and I can have yours.”

It seems it works as the beefy but beautiful captain of the football team partners up during chemistry

Between the two captains, you think you’re making progress

Finally beginning to make friends

But you couldn’t be farther from the truth

Already you were skipping right into the pitfall that was their playground—Energi University

It started with the cheerleader’s captain, gorgeous, rich, and with a serious attitude problem

She was making her daily rounds with her two main girls

‘Putting the worms in their place’ as she’d report to her team

Until she found something interesting 

a glasses-wearing nerd had been holding a file, scrolling through someone’s social page with such dedication they didn’t even realize they were being cornered

And its not just someone—you

while her girls were exploring the use of pins on the human body, she was going through this fairly thick file

A file all about you

Filled with hundreds of pictures of you some with consent some not

Extensive organized lists of your likes and dislikes

And a neat report on your current whereabouts and social circle

By the end of it, she was intrigued

She’s never been one for reading but she just can’t put it down

Having to be brought back into the real world when her girls are done playing 

“Already? Ugh, let’s go find the next one this little report of his might be worth selling to those stupid jocks.”

That’s just an excuse 

she’s combing over your photos again as she re-reads about the mundane drama in your life

“Babe, I thought you said you wanted to spend time with me? Not lose braincells studying!” 

Her boyfriend–captain of the football team is trying to draw her attention with kisses and inviting touches

But she’s just too focused

Eventually, he’s going to snatch it all away, taking a look at it

“Who’s this? Your latest victim?”

“Puhlease they don’t even know me…yet.”

The nights they spend together is searching you on socials as they filter through these words about your world

There’s just something about you that has them enraptured

For them it’s like when they first started dating, running off from their teams to gush about their latest finds about you

Texting all through the night about schemes to meet you

Whispering on the bus on their way to seasonal competitions

It isn’t long before the nosey teams start poking around

All it takes is a whispered mention of your name and they’re stalking your socials 

Some hire private investigators to tell all they can get their hands on

It’s like a virus how the whole team is eventually letting your distant lovely little life take up all of theirs 

At some point words and posts just aren’t enough

“Yo Cap, why don’t we just get them to come here?”

“Yeah! I know I can get my dad to extend a scholarship and dormitory if something happens at their old school.”

“Hmm, I do still have those lighter fluid canisters.”

“Oooh and I can get them out of the dorms for awhile!”

“Then  we can swoop in and be the knight’s of shining armor they’ll need!”

“C’mon, captain! Let’s bring them home, aren’t you tired of looking at them through the screen?”

“Don’t you think it’d boost our morale for the championship?”

“Yeah!!” Pleaassee!?”

What terrible captains they’d be if they let their teams down now

So the plan is set, you conveniently are stood up on a date when your dorm and campus is burnt down killing so many friends you made+

The mysterious fire destroying their security footage and all your belongings too 

Its natural you start looking for a new college, a safer option

“Hey (Y/n) why don’t you come to our next game? Forget about that horrible fire and cheer us on!”

“Wait how did you know–”

“Grapevine cutie! Now what do you say to a sleepover!?”

“Not after we do our victory party!”

“Oh, you’ll have to try our captain’s famous jello shot! It’s going to knock your clothes+ socks off.”

Both Captains will watch happily as the group swarms you 

Your questions about the slug you made plans with prior were drowned out in their shouting and giggling

Their goal wasn’t to make you worry 

After all, they had the power to dissolve all of that 

The Captains and their teams

“Now that we have them I don’t see any reason, why our teams won’t be planned for an all-around victory in the nationals.”

“Of course, though we could do it without them. Money and pure talent are a given for people like us.”

“Still there’s nothing wrong with sharing a good luck charm.”

“You are absolutely right..”

“Aren’t I always? That being said we’ll have to talk about the…hoarding issue.”

“Oh yeah, I wanted to talk to you about that. The next time one of your cheerleaders interrupts me, they’ll be dealing with more than broken legs.”

“And your players should know the next time they take my time with (Y/n) away they won’t just become paralyzed.”

[jamiebluewind]

Warning! Pet illness, xray

A friend of mine a few states away had a pregnant female cat walk onto her porch and decide she lives now. She had 3 kittens. Since my friend/roommate @winterpower98 was looking for her first cat, we (other roommate/bestie, Winter/Gaia, and I) decided to take a trip down to visit and see if one of the kittens would work for her.

The thing is, she did fall in love with one! He's black with white markings, so the 6 year old had been calling him Eclipse. He's, curious, playful, and always trying to get into something. He loves Gaia. I mean LOVES her. And she loves him. Like... emptying her savings loves him.

Right before we arrived, our friend noticed a little lump on his belly. They thought nothing of it. And then, it got bigger. And bigger. And bigger.

After a week, we took him to a local vet to get checked out. He had a umbilical hernia. Luckily it stopped before his diaphragm, but the hernia was severe enough that he would need surgery to close it (a lot of articles talked about smaller ones closing on their own which is why we waited). He would also need special care for IBS symptoms and to keep his hernia from getting injured or obstructed before repair (which couldn't happen until he was big enough to go under anesthesia). He would need to come indoors for his safety and be separated from the others as his sisters pouncing on the hernia was causing issues (a week earlier than the 8 week mark).

I was honestly expecting Gaia to say it was too much for her to handle. Even told her that nobody would judge her for not being ready for that level of responsibility. That we could find an organization that could take him and get him the help he needed and find him a good home. He has two sisters she could consider, there were plenty of shelters back home with cats under a year old, and we could even check the town we were visiting and places on the way back home, so there were options. I knew how much it took to care for a kitten with health issues (my current cat required months of specialized care and there were plenty of scares along the way) and Gaia has no previous experience with cats outside of hanging out with our cats, so that's just starting on hard mode.

After a long serious talk on the responsibilities she was about to take on, she said she knew it would be hard but the thought of giving him up made her sick. That she would do whatever it took to give him a happy life for however long she has him. We aren't rich people, she's going back to college full time, she had only decided on him over one of his sisters that morning, and (again) this would be the first cat she has ever had. She went all in without a second thought.

The original quotes from various vets willing to do the surgery (not all vets can) were pretty insane, but luckily I found a non-profit that did the surgery for about half. My other roommate and I fully support her and chipping in what we can.

Eclipse is 8 week old and his surgery is scheduled in a month, but we are going to call in and check for cancelations since he's reached the minimum weight and age for anesthesia. Winter has been so busy caring for him that she's not had a chance to post about him, so I decided to do it on the drive home. I think the story is important because it raises awareness about an issue most don't know about and shows someone genuinely caring about a pet with special needs. As a disabled person who's went through a lot of ableism and survived abuse, it really hit me to see how much she loves him with her whole chest and doesn't ever approach his issues with anger or blame.

I don't ask for reblogs much, but I wanted to ask you guys to boost this. I linked Gaia's PayPal below if anyone wants to help take some of the financial burden off her, but you can also support her with messages and boosting this and her future post/s about Eclipse (cut her some slack guys, she's currently in tired new mom mode). I don't expect anyone to donate because I know you guys are mostly in the same shape as us, but I think showing Gaia support is just as important.

Now if you'll excuse me, the hyperactive boy got the zoomies and just jumped in the toilet XD

Edit: Late thing to add on, but a few days after posting this my other roommate/bestie Sarah decided to adopt his sister! Her name is Melanite, but her honey eyes have earned her the nickname Miel. Her and Eclipse have always been very close (often laying on top of each other), so it's great that they'll get to stay together.

[apomaro-mellow]

King and Prince 14

Part 13

Steve’s schedule kept him busy, which he was certainly glad for. He didn’t have a lot of time to think about his father, or the kingdom that wouldn’t miss him. Any thoughts of his uselessness or his failure at being a proper prince were pushed out when Dustin asked him a random question, or Lucas needed his help, or he had to go up against Max’s wit.

About every other night, he was visited by his feathered friend. It didn’t come bearing food. And in fact, didn’t really come in. Steve would just catch it sometimes, peering at him from the window for a moment before flying off. Almost like it was checking in on him.

Steve made Lucas stop in his attack and nudged his foot with the tip of his staff, widening his stance. Steve was making Lucas try out different weapons and fighting styles to see what truly fit him.

“I know swords are really popular. But there’s more than one way to defend yourself.”

He’d been watching his movements closely and paying attention to how he reacted to things. Honestly, Lucas seemed more suited to something long range. Perhaps archery. Steve had yet to see a range but any castle would employ some sort of archer garrison. 

Steve saw black wings soar briefly overhead, but of course he didn’t connect it to the ones that flapped by his window most nights. Why would he?

He was given the task of reshelving books in the library. An easy task since the sections were labeled for organization. At the tail end of this task, he noticed Dustin and El pouring over a book, seeming deep in their studies. Interest piqued, he approached them.

“What are you two getting into?”, he asked.

“Animal husbandry”, El answered.

“Eddie said if we’re responsible, we can get a pet”, Dustin said. “So we’re trying to decide what sort of animal to get.”

Steve looked over their shoulders to see what kind of creatures they were looking at. He didn’t know whether to expect a demogorgon or a cat. Either one seemed likely with these people. He honestly wasn’t prepared for the picture of an octopus. Steve was no stranger to the ocean. His kingdom had a shore that he had been too often and he was a talented swimmer. This place was landlocked though. 

“Where are you going to find and octopus?”, Steve asked.

“The ocean”, Dustin said like Steve was a child.

“You think it’s going to be that easy to transport it?”

“It’s funny you think that’s the issue”, Robin said, appearing from one of the shelves. “How are they gonna keep it here?”

“It’d be fine in a bathtub”, Steve reasoned.

The look on Robin’s face could only be described as exasperation as she blew out a breath and shook her head. But Steve was used to it at this point. The kids saw him as just a new fixture to their home, had just about accepted him completely. It was everyone else that continued to treat him for what he was, a prince who had wanted this kingdom’s downfall until just recently.

But sometimes…

Sometimes there were moments where he felt something changing between himself and them. Robin didn’t always look like she was the one babysitting him anymore. It was still obviously a chore to her, but not as bad as it had been at the beginning. She was even beginning to tolerate him.

A week before the festival, the kids were given new clothes, both for the celebration and to look nice for the performance. Steve couldn’t help but be a tad jealous of the colors and patterns. His own meager wardrobe was an assortment of brown, gray, and white. But he kept his feelings off his face, choosing instead to encourage them to appreciate the new outfits.

“Why can’t we just wear what we normally do?”, Dustin asked.

“Because it’s a special occasion”, Steve rolled his eyes. “Do you know how many people would kill to have a royal seamstress make them a custom outfit?”

“I think I’d kill to not have to wear this”, Mike said, holding up something orange.

“Big talk from someone who squealed at a spider the other day”, Eddie said, entering the room. 

Steve noted that the king’s clothing was usually dark, typically blacks and deep reds. Even as others were moving to brighter, more colorful looks for spring. He didn’t know why he expected different. He didn’t like admitting it, but the king’s appearance was striking in its own way. He always cut an impressive figure, despite being about the same height as Steve. It was a combination of the way he carried himself, his silhouette, and having pointed canines didn’t hurt either.

Among them all, Steve felt like a piece of the background which was…new. And he was sure if he liked it. He supposed it was better than wearing a sign that said he was the son of the Harringtons. He already got glares from people in the castle as it was anytime he was alone. Steve wasn’t fearful for his life. He was pretty confident in his ability to defend himself in a fight. It was a question of what would happen to him once he did. Would the king be so welcoming if he snapped the neck of a guard trying to end him?

—----------------------

Robin and Eddie stood and listened as the kids played the song they’d been practicing in the music room. A lilting piece that heralded the end of winter and the beginning of spring. Robin’s expression was pleased at the progress they’d made in such a short time. It wasn’t perfect, but most of them hadn’t ever picked up an instrument seriously before. Eddie was clapping his hands so loud, it sounded like the pop of a firework with the acoustics of the room. Steve was leaning against the wall, prepared to help put things away once they were done.

“You guys were incredible!”, Eddie praised.

And hearing it from someone they admired so much had even the more prickly of them blushing bashfully. Steve still remembered Dustin grumbling for the first couple of practices and Mike complaining when he’d been moved from lute to flute. But Robin knew what she had been doing. Steve was impressed, truly. 

“That’s why we practice”, Robin smiled.

“And it’s still days before the show”, Eddie said. “For now though, I think you all deserve a reward. So let’s head on down to the kitchen for some tarts.”

The kids all rushed out at that, Robin and Eddie following behind to make sure they didn’t bulldoze anyone over on the way. Only Steve stayed behind, getting started on putting their instruments away. He paused when he passed the clavichord. An instrument no one had picked and wasn’t included in the current arrangement. Steve felt a wave of nostalgia for his own music teacher. She was always so patient and doled out praise whenever he did well.

He let his fingers brush against the keys. He looked to the door, closed, and it sounded like the group was no longer nearby. So Steve sat down and tried out a little melody. It felt like so long since he had played and he couldn’t even blame it on his imprisonment. His parents had never been impressed with music, even when his instructor told them how good he was. He would play from time to time, just never in front of anyone.

“You shouldn’t mess with Robin’s things.”

“Agh! Fuck!”, Steve jolted in the air when the king’s voice sounded from right next to him. “Must you move in shadows?”

Eddie smirked. “It is the best way to travel, but this time I just used the door. I didn’t know you played.” He put a hand against the frame, steading himself as he leaned over, hair falling over his shoulders. 

Steve looked away from him, not understanding why the gaze felt so intense. “I don’t…much.”

“What other hidden talents are you hiding?”

At that, Steve raised a brow, wondering what he was getting at. Did the king still think he was harboring something? Was he of the same mind as Nancy? Steve had nothing up his sleeve and nothing to hide, so he answered.

“I can also play the hurdy gurdy, but that’s not as popular as this.”

And then the king laughed.

At something Steve had said.

“Come on, I promised a sweet for all those who put in good work. That includes you, little prince.”

The king offered his hand to help Steve to his feet. Steve stared for a moment before taking it.

Part 15

Tag team

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[tismtron]

Could i request for the matsunos sextuples to react to obsessive Reader asking them "do You think you'll kill for me one day?" Like lana del rey's song "i want it all" hehehe

“Yes, of course I will my Darling.”

This was giving Mafia au so I was going to make based off them to make it more exciting. And it’s one of my favorite aus.

(Only warning for suggested murder)

Reader-afab she/her pronouns NOT PROOF READ YET

The Don Matsuno was known for being a lot of things. Prideful, Solipsistic, Vulgar, Comical, Egotistical, the list goes on. To sum up how he works in one word would be Direct. Everything about him can be seen as straightforward as he prefers to make orders clear enough to not mess up.

To his lover, His wife, to you, are well familiar with his work and how he can be. One of the reasons why you fell in love with him. Hell you love a lot about him. You catch yourself wearing his signature color red more often to his parties and meetings you are allowed to attend. The smell of his cigars he smokes lingers in his clothes makes you yearn for him when he’s away. One night when you were getting ready for on of his parties celebrating another successful business reap from his families casino and drug trafficking. You sat at your vanity mirror putting on your makeup when Osomatsu leaned on your shared bedroom doorframe. You glanced over at your husband who’s dressed to the nines in a formal black suit and blood red overcoat. You still find it funny how you still obsess over him like a crush even when you two are married.

Your mind began to wonder, does he feel the same way towards you? You were so close to him that you are in close touch with the rest of his family. But a small voice inside you makes you think his love may be superficial. He’s killed people. In the early start of his family business he did with his own hands. Now as the Don he can just send his men and grunts to take care of that for him. Would he kill for you?

“Would you kill for me one day?”

It just slipped out of your red lipstick glossed lips like it was a normal question.

He paused his moments while he lit a cigar, peering at you before putting the said cigar to his tongue.

“Of course.” He now strides to where you sat, making sure to keep eye contact with you through the mirror.

“You would?” Your voice still soft but clear. Searching for earnest truth his voice. Osomatsu puts his arms on either side of yours so hes caging you in his chest. “I would kill someone myself with nothing but my own hands for you. You are my world, my wife.”

Being the right hand man in a mass mafia organization is not a clean nor easy job to have. He’s the second most powerful man in his families business, following out the Dons orders and organizing the workers and grunts to do their respective jobs. You his spouse are allowed to be aware of what he does by the blessing of his mother. He’s very good at his job and goes above and beyond to protect you from any harm that does inevitably come with this business. But what really made you fall head over heels was how he tried his best to make sure you know that you’re loved. Karamatsu will take you on expensive fancy dinner dates when he’s off work. He will always have room for you in his schedule no matter what. You asked him the question when you were finished with patching up his wounds from today’s job. He had to supervise a couple trade transactions with only one getting out of hand.”you would ever Kill for me one day?” You asked while he was staring at his bandaged hand, now shifting up to meet your gaze. “Yes of course would my darling. What would make you think I wouldn’t my turtle dove?” His corny nicknames made you swoon at how he’s such a hopeless romantic. “I’d kill god himself for you my dear.”

The strategist coordinates all the money laundering and heists. Tracking the amount of money that goes in and out of the bank and each trade the family makes and spends. You do wake up at night to see him crunching numbers at three in the morning and have to usher him back to bed. You do see the stress in his eyes when his other brothers don’t take him serious unless it’s about the next mission. You two were at a party hosted by the Don with alliances and family. You were trying to find him in the crowd before spotting him at the balcony on his phone and a cigarette perched to his lips.

“Room for one more?” You joked as you poked you head out the door.

“Always.” He sighs with a smile realizing it’s you. A puff of smoke leaving his lips as you fix his tie.

“You know at a party you’re not supposed to be working.” You eyed his phone that was tracking there opposition that’s currently on the other side of the ocean.

“I guess you’re right.” He gives in before putting his phone away in his pocket.

The both you spent the night dancing and conversing with the other guests at the party. When you two were taking the limo back is when you asked him. “Would you kill for me if you had to?” His eyes go wide for a second. Feeling this question being unprompted. “You’re always worried about your work. I just don’t know if you would put in the same effort for me sometimes.” You look out the window when you say this. Not seeing the hurt in his face.

”Of course I would kill for you. dont ever think that I wouldn’t.” He grabs your hand and interlocks it with his, grabbing you chin with his finger so you’d make eye contact with him.

“I’m sorry for being so busy i promise I’ll do anything for you.”

When your spouse the Executioner of his families mafia business you get used to his suits being stained with blood in the laundry hamper.

He’s cold and rough to everyone, including to some of his family, but you get to see the hidden parts of him most don’t get to see. And you know you’ve worked hard to get to that point with him. And he’s worked hard to trust you, not just with himself but also with his family, his work, his life. You brought up the question you met up with him while he fed his tiger in the cellar. The same cellar he kept hustling tools and supplies. You leaned your head on his shoulder as he gave the last of the human arm to the tiger. His jaws crushing down of the tender bone with a crunch like it was nothing.

“Would you kill for me if you had to?”

Your eyes still at the feasting tiger while ichimatsu pressed a kiss on your scalp.

“I do this everyday.” He’s not mad, you can tell in his gruff tone he’s just tired.

“I know baby.” You hummed taking his arm in yours to drag him upstairs to get ready for bed. As you got under the covers of the bed he sat of the bed in his boxers. His back was covered in elaborate ink markings from the big tattoo he got. All of his brothers including him get a massive and detailed body tattoos to signify their roles and their status. Atop the back tattoo that’s marked his skin are scars and old bullet wounds. Some you remember patching up for him.”I’d kill anyone for even looking at you. you know that right?”his voice is gravely and tone stern. You hummed in response to signal that you do know. You reach out your hand to paw at the empty space of the bed. He huffed and shuffled close to you under the sheets. His big arms wrapped around your waist. His nose softly grazing the nape of your neck. “I love you. You know that right?” He murmured, his breath hitting the back of your ear. “I love you too.” You turn to him and softly kiss his temple. He softly grunts in response,

Falling asleep with you in his arms.

The muscle of the Matsuno Family Mafia jyushimatsu is feared by many. Mainly for his inhuman, unnatural strength and big never changing smile in his face. Usually with the executioner or Second hand man as a body guard. as many others know him for breaking bones with an empty smile on his face accompanied with a thousand yard stare, to you he’s your loving sweet husband. With him you don’t even have to ask. You’ve seen him crush some man’s skull with one hand one night because the skeez slipped a hand up your dress. Jyushimatsu looked to you after and said.”you want ice cream? I know a wonderful place far from here.”

The influence. Like the Strategist, the influence takes care of business with a technological advantage. Todomatsu wipes the social media of there’s identities and crimes. Promotes the family casino and keeps up with events and functions of the family business. While also keeping tabs on rival mafias, mobs, and gangs. Like Osomatsu, ge used to get his own hands dirty when they were starting out. Because of this of this he became well knowledgeable with a gun. You his wife ask him the question when he had the day off. You two spent the whole day spoiling each other in new clothes and window shopping. At nightfall you were both had face masks on and watched brain rotting reality tv. You sometimes still find it hard this guy is a mafia boss when he has a hamster face mask and laughing his ass off at the tv. You felt dumb feeling insecure while comfortable in your lavish blankets and having a cold penguin face mask on. But your just want to know.

“Would you kill for me?”

His eyes that were glued to the television now wide eyed at you, his cackling happy expression immediately gone.

“I’m sorry I ruined the moment-“

You immediately fall back on your words feeling embarrassed.

“No no no you didn’t you just caught me off guard.” He reached for your hand to intertwine your fingers together.

“Did something happened what brought this up?” You love that he cares so much.

“No! Not really. I don’t know really just curious.” You lie like you haven’t thought about this before. Would he get his hands dirty for you? He knows this question was one that was haunting you. Todo moved closer to you and peels your face mask off, the air cold on your face.

“Of course I will my darling.” He says with compassion, though his face mask takes away from the serious moment. You peel off his face mask and kissed him sweetly.

Let’s fucking gooo sorry for taking so long I’m fist fighting a hurricane and college

[caribbean1989]

It's Better Together - A Baby Lasagna fanfiction

Who: Baby Lasagna / Marko Purisic Request: maybe the reader is representing another country (doesn't have to be a singer maybe in the team) and after the behaviour of isreali's team (as many people said they treated them bad) she isn't feeling well and marko helps her and supports her. Requested by: anonymous Word count: 916 Warnings: some implied swearing and rudeness.

A/N: Thank you so much for your request. I have changed it a little bit, so it's not specifically about the Israeli team being the rude one, but it can still be read as such.

If you want me to write more Baby Lasagna fics, you can always make a request through my Ask Box. For more information on my Baby Lasagna fanfics, see this masterpost

It had always been your dream to represent your country at the Eurovision Song Contest. This year, your dream came true true when you were selected as the contestant for your country.

After months of preparations, the moment was finally there. As soon as you'd arrived in Malmö it was everything you had hoped for and more. Your fellow contestants were really nice and supportive, the organization was flawless, and so far you were really enjoying yourself. You weren't the favorite with the bookmakers, but they still tipped you for a top 10 candidate.

The schedule was demanding, though. Each day was filled to the brim with rehearsals, interviews and other press-related obligations. Some of the interviews were fun, others were dull, but today you had had an interview with a journalist who was flat-out rude and even somewhat hostile. During the interview you were able to keep your cool, but it took every ounce of your self-control to do so.

Immediately after you were done, you stalked out of the room and made straight for the contestants' lounge. That area was only accessible to the performers, and strictly off-limits to any kind of media-personnel. Since it was late in the evening and most of the other contestants had already finished their duties for the day, you expected it to be empty. And some alone-time to cool off was just what you needed.

Without even checking if someone else was in the lounge when you stepped in, you angrily slammed the door closed behind you, and loudly released an entire string of curses in your native language.

A startled gasp from further down the room made you realize that you weren't alone after all. You let your eyes roam over the dozens of sofa's and armchairs crammed into the lounge, and indeed found one, halfway down the room, occupied. It was Marko who sat there. Your little outburst had clearly startled him, and he had jumped up from his seat. He now stood looking at you a little wide-eyed.

"I'm so sorry about that." You passed a hand over your face and took a few deep breaths to calm yourself down. "I survived," he chuckled, before a frown crossed over his face. "Are you alright?" "Yeah..." You sighed. It wasn't truthful, but you didn't want to burden him with your troubles.

But Marko wasn't so easily fooled. He cocked his head slightly to the side, and gave you an intense stare for about a second. "No, you're not." He stated quite confidently. You couldn't help but laugh. Of course you had met Marko in the previous days. You liked him, and you had had a few nice chats with him, but you two didn't really know much about each other. So the confidence in his statement surprised you.

"Please, don't take this the wrong way." Marko immediately second-guessed himself. "But I think you still look... upset." He wrung his hands together, clearly uncomfortable by his own words and wondering if you were going to get angry with him now.

"You're right," you finally confessed. You weren't nearly alright yet and still way too upset by how the journalist had treated you. Yet, you were strangely relieved that Marko was here and had seen that you were still distraught.

"Maybe you should sit down." Marko quickly recollected himself. You nodded quietly, before walking over to where Marko had been sitting and throwing yourself down in the armchair opposite him. "Here." Marko handed you a bottle of water and sat down as well. You gratefully accepted the water, taking a few sips of the much needed hydration.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Marko smiled shyly. "It's just... this journalist." You shook your head. "The interview I've just had was awful. So rude and disrespectful." "Ah..." Marko understood immediately. "I know exactly who you mean. If it's any consolation, he's rude to everyone. I had to do an interview with him yesterday, and... let's just say that I was glad when it was over."

Marko's words did make you feel a little better. If someone could be rude to a gentle soul like Marko, they were just mean and heartless.

Suddenly you remembered that tomorrow you had another, even longer interview scheduled with the same journalist. "Oh, no!" You buried your face in your hands. "I totally forgot I've got to do more press with that guy tomorrow." To your surprise, Marko chuckled softly. "You and me both. Quite literally actually." "What do you mean?" You looked up at him. Marko smiled crookedly at you, giving a one-shouldered shrug. "You and I are teamed up for press tomorrow."

You blinked stupidly at him for a few seconds. You needed a moment to remember that Marko was indeed right. In your fury and frustration that fact had completely slipped your mind. "So sorry," you mumbled, "I forgot about that." Marko smiled another shy smile. "It's fine."

For a few moments there was silence between the two of you. "I'm glad we're teamed up for tomorrow." You broke the silence. "You're a good guy, and I feel really at ease with you." Marko blushed slightly red. "Me, too. And if anyone is rude to us tomorrow, I'm sure we'll be able to get each other through." "Absolutely," you nodded happily, all the anger of just now quickly draining from you.

And suddenly, tomorrow's press day didn't seem so bad anymore, because you knew Marko would be there with you.

[emptystove]

Sparrow - Ch 7

One Piece Fanfic (Drama/Romance/Suspense)

Pairings: E. Kid x Reader, Sabo x Reader, Lucci x Reader (one sided)

Rating: EXPLICIT, 18+ ONLY

Chapter Summary: You are kind of a mess trying to understand these familiar feelings. It's a good thing you have some new friends around to help you out~

CW: trauma, spicy situations

Links to AO3, Wattpad -- Fanfic Master List

Chapter 7: Sensory Memory

Cipher Pol Headquarters, NWC Central District

3 Years and 4 months ago

Lucci crossed one leg over the other as he scanned the room. 

Spandine had called the heads of each Cipher Pol unit to appear in person for a briefing. These types of gatherings were only held when he wanted all units to be aware of the information and when the information was highly sensitive, so much so that they didn't want to risk it being intercepted. 

"Suspect is female. From the state we found the bodies in, she is believed to be skilled in the use of firearms and edged weapons," the suit droned on as Lucci scanned the document detailing the next rising threat under discussion. The whole thing felt so beneath him. He was ready to delegate it to one of the other CP units when the next piece of information gave him pause. 

"There was a witness to the last incident. The bartender couldn't give us much, but he remembered someone fitting the suspect's description asking about some of the gangs who 'allegedly' participate in human trafficking. He apparently hid in a supply closet during the event. He did not see anything of use, but he claims to have heard her use the name Aisa."

Lucci quickly understood why this was a priority case. The person targeting these gangs started with street level thugs but was moving on to higher members of organized crime. They were following a trail of criminals that would inevitably lead to an elite yet elusive group of government officials and politicians who indulged in many illegal activities, one of which being the keeping of slaves. 

"I've seen a woman fitting this description, and I distinctly remember her mentioning that name."

The older man in a white lab coat standing beside Spandine looked up excited at Lucci's statement.

"I was hoping one of you might," his supervisor smirked. "Anyone else know of a potential lead on the suspect?"

The other agents stayed silent.

He nodded to the older man before addressing the room again. "In that case, the rest of you are dismissed."

Lucci remained seated as the remaining CP unit leaders left the room. Before the door closed, two more employees with the same white coats entered, rolling a cart filled with what looked like medical and mechanical equipment.

"Was it recent? Do you remember it well?" the older man had moved to take the seat next to him.

Lucci sent a questioning look to his superior and the man responded with stern indifference. "Lucci, this is Dr. Vegapunk. You are to answer his questions honestly and adhere to any procedures or testing he requests of you. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," Lucci replied coldly before turning to address the doctor. "It was fairly recent, within the last few months. I remember it well."

"Excellent! Excellent!" The doctor excitedly ushered over what were clearly his own subordinates and pulled several items from the cart.

He pulled out a black box, the size a bit bulkier and wider than that of a laptop, and flipped it open. Inside, he used a small keyboard to start inputting something Lucci didn't catch. The other two extended four wires from the small machine. They attached each wire to Lucci's head at various points using what they claimed were electrode pads. 

"Now, this won't hurt a bit, but you may feel foggy for a few minutes after. We'll be monitoring your vitals, so there's really nothing to worry about. It's definitely probably perfectly safe," Dr. Vegapunk instructed happily.

"I'm not worried. Just get whatever this is over with so I can continue my scheduled duties," Lucci's scowl was audible with every word.

"Right... Well, let's get into it then." He pressed a large button on the machine. A red light began blinking on the side, and a faint whirring sound could be heard. "We'll start with something simple. I want you to think about everything that happened from the beginning of the briefing to now."

Lucci didn't let his opinion of the annoyingly upbeat doctor deter him. No matter how pointless this exercise seemed, he would always follow orders.

As he began thinking back to the beginning of the briefing, he felt his eyelids getting heavy. 

The red light stopped blinking and remained on. 

Lucci's Private Residence, NWC East District 

Lucci woke up gasping for breath. 

He slowly sat up in bed, allowing the sheet to fall to his waist as he let out a long exhale. That was one he didn't dream of very often. 

His thoughts were muddled as he lazily stood. He was in nothing but a pair of silk boxers, but he didn't bother to even grab a shirt as he made his way out of his room. His next actions had become a standard morning routine, though it wasn't his intention. 

First, he checked his messages. There were no leads on your whereabouts from Cipher Pol, and there was nothing from Trafalgar. 

How disappointing. 

He then checked each room in the house. Your bedroom, the basement, the dining room, the kitchen, and lastly the den. He sighed softly as he confirmed what he already knew. He was awake. This was all real. And you were not there. 

Finally, he made his way to his home office, pressing a button under his desk to reveal a hidden safe in the wall. He input the code and opened the metal door. He brushed aside the other items and pulled out a black metal box labeled "EMR."

----------

Kid's Body Shop, NWC South District

You were restless.

It was a week after your visit with Law, and the adrenaline and excitement that came with your escape and prospects moving forward were starting to dull. 

Kid was kind enough to give you his room, but you were trapped there each day until the shop closed, unwilling to risk any clients or passersby recognizing you. At least he let you sleep in the bed. He insisted on taking the couch even though you pointed out he was starting to rub his stiff neck on a fairly consistent basis because of it. More than anything though, you appreciated that he seemed not to notice the times that you woke up in the middle of the night startled and wheezing. 

Still, you were grateful. His was twice the size of Killer's room with an en suite to match. You fell into a sort of routine, though you didn't intend to. Each morning, Killer would bring you something different for breakfast along with that day's newspaper. You would then get in a lengthy workout before showering and changing into the least baggy set of clothing they had offered you. The rest of the time you spent waiting for closing proved more difficult for you. You would have loved to keep yourself from overthinking everything, and you did your best to keep busy. Heat gifted you a notebook, which was something, and Wire promised to drop off some books by the end of the week. By now, you were struggling to find things to keep your mind busy. Hell, you even deep cleaned the bathroom. You were questioning whether Kid would be annoyed if you reorganized his closet when you felt something slip out of your pocket. 

You reached for the item and held it carefully between your fingers.

A heaviness filled your chest as your looked down at the picture Sabo gave you. You wanted to see him. You wanted to talk to him, ask him questions, learn things from him. You whined grumpily when the rational side of your brain reminded you that until you meet with Law's friend, it would be too risky. He was one of the more recognizable members of the RA, and anyone noticing a connection between them and Kid's group could put unnecessary attention on them.

You sighed dramatically and sat by the window in Kid's room, looking out at all of the carefree people walking through the streets. As long as Lucci was looking for you, you would never really be free. You wanted your memories back, but you also wanted your freedom. Freedom to live your life and freedom from the man who took it from you.

You wanted to ignore his obsession at the time or write it off as being overprotective after your amnesia, but you couldn't deny it. You knew how he looked at you when he thought you weren't paying attention or how his eyes would roam your body after he had a few drinks. Even looking back at it now, you wanted to believe his tight hold on you was only because he was deceiving you. But the things he said to you before he kissed you the night you ran and the way he begged you rather than killing you at the train station just confirmed what you didn't want to be true.

Even if CP9 stopped looking for you, Lucci wouldn't. And anyone who helped you stay away from him wasn't safe from his wrath. If you were honest with yourself, you weren't sure if you held onto that thought because it was true or because it was a justification for the one thing you wanted almost as much as getting your memories back. 

You wanted to kill him.

As you continued to gaze out the window, certain things started to take your attention. 

A digital billboard in the distance switched to an advertisement for athleticwear, and you found that you couldn't take your eyes off of it. The color was just so damn blue. Your head started to get a bit fuzzy, and you weren't sure what you were feeling. Shortly after, it faded into a different advertisement and your gaze fell back to the street below. You could faintly hear high pitched laughter as your eyes landed on the source. 

You saw a little girl with short brown hair. Instantly, your heart twisted as you were overtaken with fear and grief.

She was facing the other direction, but you could tell she wasn't laughing anymore. She had just been surrounded by a group of similar aged kids, but now she was alone. You felt your heart start beating faster and you parted your lips. 

Was she crying?

You couldn't pull your eyes away. She was looking around franticly for someone. You felt the urge to call out to her, but you also felt like you couldn't breathe. 

You were so lost in the feeling that you didn't notice someone behind you calling out to you until you heard the one word that cut through your trance. 

"Sparrow."

----------

When you finally turned to face him, the look on your face made him pause.

Kid assumed you were so enthralled with your view out the window because you caught a glimpse of what was about to arrive for you. When you finally took notice of him, you weren't excited or even uplifted in the least. No, you looked confused and scared. The way you looked down at yourself, your eyes traveling over your one hand on the glass of the window and the other on your heart, made it look like you didn't realize what you had been doing. Fuck, was that a tear rolling down your cheek?

He stormed toward you in an instant, yanking you away from the window and looking out at the street below. Nothing within view caught his eye. No criminals or police were anywhere in sight, no one suspicious, no one even loitering nearby. No out of place vehicles parked on the street, and by the look of the few pedestrians casually walking about, nothing of significance had happened. 

He swiftly shut the blinds with a yank of the cord before pulling out his phone. No missed calls, and flipping through his messages again confirmed everything was on schedule. 

"What happened? What were you looking at?" Kid asked as he turned back to you.

"Uh...," you faltered a reply. 

At least you seemed to know he was there this time. 

He was frustrated with your slow response, but he forced himself to wait for you to gather your words. You had moved away from the window, arbitrarily standing in the middle of the room. Your brows remained furrowed as your eyes flit between your hands and some random spot on the carpet. You shook your head briefly and swiped the wetness from your face. "It was just some little girl. I- I don't really know what I was looking at... just felt familiar I guess," your words trailed off at the end, and Kid felt his frown deepen.

He shot Killer a quick text to check the perimeter just in case. 

When he glanced back at you again, you were still looking away from him. You look smaller in a way, afraid and unsure of yourself. You probably needed someone to talk you through whatever emotional shit was knocking around in your fucked up brain. He ought to just text Killer to come up and set you straight while Kid did the sweep himself, but he pocketed his phone instead. 

Kid would normally be the last person to try to deal with this type of thing, but seeing you like that was pissing him off. 

He still had a bit before he showed up, and Kid didn't feel like waiting until after you were done to see you stare him down again. It couldn't be that hard to bring you back to your senses, right?

He walked up to you with appraising eyes. As he moved closer, you kept your gaze low, irritating him further. He opened his mouth to speak but found he had no idea what to say. He gaped at you in silence, his own sudden awkwardness in the situation angering him further until he did the only he knew to do and shoved your shoulder with what might have been more force than necessary. 

You stumbled a few steps back upon the impact, catching yourself before you fell into anything. Your eyes shot up to the redhead, widening in surprise before shifting to a more annoyed expression. 

"What the hell was that for?" You snapped. 

"Quick acting weird."

"I'm not," you denied. 

Kid blew a raspberry into the air at your obviously false claim. "Cryin' over seeing a random kid outside is normal for you?"

"Fuck you. I wasn't crying. My eyes were watering from being stuck in your musty room all day."

"You cleaned this room about every damn day since you got here, so if it's musty, it's your fault." Kid bit his cheek as he tried to suppress a smug grin. You were staring him down hard, no longer meek or afraid. 

That was easier than he thought it would be.

"Hey, I can clean up dust and grime, but there isn't much I can do about the mountain of hair products you spray into the air every morning," you replied coolly.

"Oi! That's not- Quit blaming me for your own shit, woman." Kid growled, suppressing a chuckle when he noticed you pursing your lips to hide your cheeky fucking grin. A cheeky fucking grin that seemed to spread after he stayed quiet too long without hitting you with a comeback. 

Exhaling loudly, Kid changed the subject, satisfied that he got what he wanted but not quite ready to leave you yet, "Anyway, you been asking about a way to help us out for letting you crash. Well, we got something coming up, and we're short a few guys." 

It was almost the truth. It was less about needing more guys and more about keeping a close eye on you. He doubted you'd be half as excited once you found out how little you would really be involved. 

"I can do that," you perked up significantly at the suggestion. "Yeah, you need guys. I can be your guy, -er whatever." You nodded and cracked your knuckles. Kid watched the little remaining unease melt off your features at the thought of anything potentially dangerous or exciting, the exact opposite of how any sane person should react. 

Damn, you were kinda cute when you were getting yourself all fired up. 

"Got something else I think you'll like even more than that. Not sure you deserve it after being an ungrateful brat," Kid teased.

"You literally tried to shove me on the ground," you dismissed quickly. "What is it?" 

"Your friend's coming by to see ya."

"Heat or Wire? It isn't even movie night," you mused happily.

"Heat and Wire are my friends," he corrected.

"Yeah, ok," you chuckled sarcastically. "Who is it then?"

"If you ain't figured it out yet, you're more brain damaged than I thought. You've got him for two hours. Don't make me regret it."

----------

You could have cried when Sabo handed you a suitcase filled with clothes and shoes in your own size. As thoughtful as that was, having this time alone with Sabo was a much better gift. You agreed to limit your contact with the RA until the heat died down a little. The only reason he was here now was because he already had a scheduled exchange with Kid. You didn't bother asking what they were buying from him or why. Frankly, you couldn't care less. 

Your plans were stalled on getting back your memories until Law's friend was ready to meet. Although you would have preferred remembering your past on your own, you were happy to hear his own memories of your past. 

"So you walked into the conference room wearing an exact replica of Inazuma's outfit - the custom coat, the sunglasses, everything. He just rolled his eyes and tried to keep everyone focused. When Koala walked in a few minutes later to drop off some documents to Dragon, wearing another exact copy of his outfit and acting like nothing was strange about it, he still somehow kept it together. But not one person in the room could keep a straight face when Hack and Karasu walked in, completely straight faced, wearing the same exact getup," Sabo laughed.

"Sounds like they all have an excellent sense of humor," you giggled with him. 

"Yeah, some of us more than others. Those two are definitely the opposite of pranksters. You never did tell me how you got them to agree to it," he sighed as the last of his chuckling died out. 

"Eh, it probably had more to do with them than me. Any attempts at fun at Cipher Pol were swiftly stamped out," you replied casually. 

"What was it like, working as an agent for them?" He asked almost hesitantly. 

You tilted your head, frowning slightly at a spot on the wall. "I don't know. It's weird to think about how I felt then when I know the truth now. Back then, I thought it was the life I chose, but even then I knew it sucked." You gave a half-hearted chuckle, "Most of the other agents wouldn't even give me the time of day outside of missions or training. I never understood why, though I guess at the time, I figured it was because of Lucci. Seems pretty obvious now that it was because I was really just a brainwashed enemy to them."

You ignored the guilty yet concerned look Sabo was giving you as you tried to turn the conversation a bit in another direction. 

"Oh, right. I almost forgot." You walked to the bed and opened the top drawer to the bedside table. You made your way back to Sabo and perched yourself on the armrest of the opposite end of the couch as you handed him a small notebook. "I thought this was the least I could do for you rescuing me or whatever."

Sabo's brows raised slightly as he thumbed through the pages upon pages of information. You tried to write down what you knew, but once you began, you realized that they withheld a lot from you. Still, there were some roughly hand-drawn maps of the levels within headquarters, notes on the types of missions you were privy to, and finally what you knew about the individual members of CP9. 

"Why would they ignore you because of Lucci?" He was trying his best to seem casual, but you could tell he was listening intently for your answer.

"I guess you could say he kept me on a pretty short leash," you began. Sabo watched you patiently, silently urging you to continue. There wasn't really a point in hiding the truth, but it still made you uncomfortable to talk about for some reason. "He was my sensei, in charge of my rehabilitation after I woke up. He kept me on a strict schedule, slept in the room next to mine, trained me everyday. At first, I would only see him once a day. By the end, leaving me alone in my room for a few hours was considered a gift. He would flip if I got banged up after training with another agent." You rolled your eyes and sighed. "He was always watching me. I woke up everyday with him standing in my room, and the way he looked at me when he would drink... The day you saw me on that train was the first time I had ever been outside headquarters without him with me. And that night, he tried to.. Well, he was drinking then too, and..." 

You were starting to get frustrated with yourself now. Why was it so difficult to say this out loud? It's not like you were the one who did anything wrong. It's not like you had anything to be embarrassed about. You didn't want to think about Lucci or about why something as seemingly small as an unwanted kiss was so upsetting to you. What you wanted to do was beat his face in until he had to eat through a straw. The thought gave you enough courage to steel your nerves and force out the words. 

"He trapped me against a wall, whispered bird facts to me, told me I belonged to him, and kissed me," the words left you all in the same breath. "That's when I ran," you added in a much softer voice.

When your eyes moved back to Sabo, his mouth was drawn out in a thin line. His head hung down slightly, allowing his bangs to cover his eyes. It was tough to read his expression, but you could tell that his jaw clenched as much as his fists by his sides. 

It probably should have made you happy, right? To have someone care enough about you to be upset by how you were treated, but you found it hard to keep your eyes on him. Mixed in with his anger was a clearly painful layer of guilt that you found difficult to bare witness to. 

You turned where you sat on the armrest of the couch so your back was to Sabo, then let yourself fall onto your back, bouncing lightly on the cushions. Your eyes wandered over the ceiling, letting him have whatever moment he needed to while your thoughts drifted elsewhere.

After a few minutes, you finally broke the silence. 

"What were... we... to each other?" You asked carefully as you peeked at him from behind a few strands of your hair. 

You didn't even notice just how tensed he was until his shoulders visibly loosened. He lifted his head and let out a deep breath. A small smile graced his face, and you had to push down the fluttering in your stomach when you noticed how handsome he was when he let himself relax. "It was... complicated," he began slowly. His gaze moved aimlessly around the floor until he finally glanced down to gage your reaction.

Ok, you were kind of hoping for more there. 

You wanted to push him, but you could tell he was just trying to find the right words, so despite your instincts, you kept your mouth shut and waited for him to continue.

"We were...," he swallowed hard. "The way I feel about you...," he trailed off again, furrowing his brows in quiet frustration. He finally shook his head and met you head on with a hard gaze. "Living the kind of life we did, we agreed it would be a bad idea to try to carry on with anything serious."

"Oh," was all you could manage to reply. So, there was something but you both stopped it before it could go too far. That made sense. 

"What made you ask that?" A warm hand lightly brushed a few stray hairs from your face as you resist the urge to lean into his touch.

"Uh," you feigned a nonchalant tone as you reply. "I guess I just get these familiar feelings when I look at you."

Sabo let out of breath and even without speaking you could hear his smile. His fingers moved through your hair again, then fell to trace lightly against your cheek, his touch prompting a nervous fluttering in your stomach. 

You tilted your head slightly to look up and him, and when your eyes connected, something shifted.

All of the sudden, you were starting to feel fuzzy. 

Your muscles relaxed, and you felt your hand glide against his as he caressed your face.

Yes, that felt right. That felt familiar.

You held his gaze as you started to sit up, all the while inching closer to where he was seated. You couldn't look away from him if you wanted to. Those blue orbs connected with yours and you could feel yourself being pulled further into him. Closer to him. A tiny voice in the back of your mind was telling you not to let go.

"Is this..." you asked, not fully understanding your own question but also desperate to hear the answer. 

"Ok? yeah," Sabo offered a breathy reply. 

That wasn't quite right. You had no idea what you expected to hear, but you knew he was supposed to say something different. 

This is your chance. The tiny voice grew a bit louder. 

And then your body was moving on it's own. You shifted toward him, never leaving his eyes as you slowly climbed into his lap. You heard a muffled sound. He was telling you something but you couldn't quite hear him. It almost sounded like he was underwater. He was right in front of you, but he felt so far away. Everything did.

His hands found your hips as you reached out to him. His eyes were shining that brilliant blue and it was all you could see.

You felt your hands move to cup his cheeks, and you heard that tiny voice again telling you that this was your chance, only this time with unsettling urgency. But it was difficult to read into what that might mean when the man between your thighs was so beautiful. 

You hummed as you noted the smooth, soft skin in your left hand while tracing the rougher, darkened skin around his scar under your right.

"Is this real... or is this just a..." you heard yourself whisper.

"This is real," a low voice replied, and Sabo smiled softly before giving your hips a reassuring squeeze.

You smiled. 

Yes, that felt right. That's what he was supposed to say.

You leaned forward slowly, only willing to close your eyes as your lips pressed softly into his. This is real, that little voice in your head emphasized, although you still weren't sure why that was so important to you right now. 

It should have surprised you, when you finally pulled back and opened your eyes. Somewhere deep down, you knew this. But your brain was so cloudy now. Your fingers grazed the sides of his face, smooth olive skin under each one of your fingertips. 

This is what you needed.

Your hands fell gently onto his shoulders as you took in the sight of him, the blue you so blindly gravitated towards fading into a greyish black. 

This is what he wanted.

You leaned back in more quickly this time, capturing his lips with renewed fervor and working hard not to smile against him as you heard him let out a small whine. 

This is real.

You kissed him mercilessly, ignoring the scruff of his facial hair that tickled your chin as you tugged at his wavy black hair. His hands started to roam over you as he pulled you flush against his chest. You let your hips shift against him as you felt him growing harder beneath you. 

You refused to let your mind wander to all of the vile, unforgivable things he did to you. That didn't matter right now. The only thing that mattered now was moving forward, getting out of the cycle you were trapped in. 

You moaned into his lips as you continued grinding. You were ashamed of how wet you were getting from pushing your clit against this monster's clothed cock. You began to undo his belt buckle, but he moved a hand to stop you.

You pouted and heard him chuckle softly into your ear. 

That wasn't what was supposed to happen. 

He leaned his head onto your neck while he tried to collect himself, and you shifted so his face was on your left side. You could hear someone speaking again, but everything still sounded so foggy. You ignored the far away voice, and took a few light nips under his ear. You allowed his hands tightening around you to still the movement of your hips, instead focusing on weaving your left hand through his hair and reaching out as far as you could to the side with your right.

Just a few seconds more and you were sure you could reach it...

The next thing you knew, you were on the floor, looking up at a baffled and disheveled Sabo. He was standing over you panting, belt half-way undone, with a look of confusion and worry on his face that only increased as you brought a hand up to candle your pounding head. 

…What the FUCK just happened!?

He opened his mouth to speak but was cut short by a swift knock and opening of the bedroom door.

----------

No one that knew him would characterize Killer as someone who was easily surprised. Yet somehow, you had been leaving him in such a state on a fairly regular basis since you arrived.  

The blond stopped dead in his tracks upon entering. His eyes darted from you to Sabo and back before shutting the door tightly behind him.

"It's not what it looks like," Sabo began.

Killer crossed his arms over his chest and gave you a long, penetrating look. He watched your expression morph from surprised and confused, to pained and confused, then finally to embarrassed and annoyed. 

"I'm fine. Thanks for dropping that stuff off, Sabo," you finally reassured both men as you hopped up from the floor, a newfound confident and aloof mask covering your features. "He's right. It isn't what it looked like. Just a little misunderstanding. Anyway, I'm gonna go take a shower for totally unrelated reasons."

Sabo called your name pleadingly as you moved toward the bathroom. "Are you sure you're ok?"

"I'm perfectly fine," you assured him again, subtly glancing toward Killer before facing Sabo again. "Can we talk about this later?"

Killer didn't like that. 

They promised to keep you hidden and keep you safe. Ever since Kid filled him in on what you found out from Law, he had been watching you closely. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary until this very moment. You were not fine, and it was painfully obvious. What bothered him more though is that you were trying to hide it from him.

Once you finally left the room, Killer cleared his throat to get Sabo's attention. 

"You gonna tell me what happened?" Killer asked.

"I think it's pretty obvious," Sabo sighed in frustration.

"It really isn't."

"We were... reconnecting I guess, but she was pushing too far. I asked her to stop, and then she..." Sabo swallowed looking down at the floor where she had been when Killer walked in, hesitating slightly before finishing his thought. "She kind of threw herself onto the floor."

It made sense. Well, the part about reconnecting did anyway. Anyone with eyes could tell by the way Sabo looked at you that there had been something between you two. You throwing yourself off of the couch seemingly without reason was less believable, though it was exactly how he had found you. 

Killer knew he was holding something back, but the way the gears seemed to be turning in Sabo's head made him fairly certain that it wasn't out of ill intent. It seemed like Sabo himself wasn't sure what to make of it all. 

"You know, you're lucky it was me coming to get you and not Kid. He probably would have killed you before you could explain what happened."

Sabo furrowed his brows. "I didn't hurt her. I would never hurt her."

"I know," Killer said honestly, moving a bit closer. "That's why I didn't kill you."

Sabo gave Killer a hard look, then tilted his head in amused intrigue.

"I'm the one who asked you to take her in, you've only known her a week, and already you would actually kill me if you thought I hurt her?" he mused.

Killer shrugged, "Yep."

Sabo hummed shortly. "The other two that know about her, Heat and Wire, would they do the same?"

"In a heartbeat."

Sabo seemed to think on Killer's words for a few moments before a genuine smile stretched across his cheeks. "I'm glad."

Killer wasn't sure why that would be surprising. You were under their protection, and they took that seriously. If anyone hurt you while you were with them, retaliation was inevitable. They would do that for anyone in your position. That should have been obvious. Sure, they hadn't actually harbored anyone outside of people they were already close with in the past. And sure, they also rearranged a few appointments to make sure all four of them could be at the next movie night with you. Maybe he even went out of his way to buy puff pastry to cook with after you mentioned it. But nothing about that was unusual, right? 

"I should get going," Sabo sighed. It was the agreed upon time he planned to leave, and waiting would only increase his chances of being spotted there. 

"Right, better fix that first though," Killer stated while motioned to the other man's open belt.

Sabo cursed under his breath as he quickly fumbled to make himself presentable.

"Is that what you were doing on the train?" Killer deadpanned.

"I didn't do anything on the train!" Sabo whisper-shouted, mumbling curses again as Killer led him out of the room. "And stop asking my subordinates about it. I don't even know how you got Koala's number, but quit texting her."

Killer's lips pulled up into a slight smile. He would figure it out eventually. 

----------

Author's Note:

Killer: *sharpens his blades grumpily in the corner.* Author: Killer, you can't be serious. You had your own POV section in this one! Killer: If I'm so important, why haven't you added me to the relationship tags yet? Author: *sinks lower behind computer screen* Sabo: He's not the only one upset, author. Author: Wha- You got your own spicy scene with her though! Sabo: *pulls out a metal pipe.* My own scene? Author: Uhh, well… Sabo: We waited months for this chapter, and you let that overgrown house cat take over half way through? Kid: *adjusts his metal arm menacingly* I'm burning that couch to ash. Author: Ok, wait wait wait. You guys just need to trust me. It's all part of the plan! Lucci: I think it's the best thing you've ever written. Killer/Sabo/Kid: Shut up!

Previous Chapter | Fanfic Master List | Next Chapter

[watermelonsloth]

Ranking the Akatsuki Based on How Well Liked They Are in the Organization

1 Kisame Hoshigaki - He’s surprisingly friendly for a former Blood Mist Village friend killer. He's honest, even if he follows strict “don’t ask, don’t tell” and “need to know basis” rules, and he seems be both loyal to the organization and it’s members. He’s agreeable, a good listener, and easy to get along with.

2 Konan - She doesn’t interact with the Akatsuki’s members very often, especially outside of missions. Some members regard her as boring, but she’s respectful enough, not antagonistic, and will go out of her way for the members if it benefits the organization. It’s a low bar for normal people, but the Akatsuki aren’t normal.

3 Pein - He’s respected for his strength, drive, and ability to pull something like the Akatsuki off in the first place. The members have an ongoing debate of whether his attempting his goals is courage or arrogance. He has a bad habit of going on philosophical tangents. Sometimes he says things during meetings and no one can tell if he’s teasing them or… Like Konan, no one knows much about him outside of that because he rarely interacts with them.

4 Itachi Uchiha - He usually keeps to himself but occasionally gets really nosy. He thinks he’s subtle. He isn’t. He doesn’t act like someone who would kill their clan and he refuses to talk to anyone about it. He’s sick and he’s tired all of the time, no one has agreed on what he’s like outside of that. Since he’s so unreadable, many members don’t know whether or not he’s trustworthy. Average brought down by Deidara.

5 Zetsu - Everyone is uncomfortable with how he insists on keeping tabs on them. Outside of that, opinions are mixed. Black Zetsu is rude but he makes sure everyone gets their work done on schedule. White Zetsu is an idiot but is the closest thing to good company after Kisame. Hidan and Kisame gave them the nicknames Dokuzetsu and Jozetsu and they just kind of stuck. Everyone has chosen to ignore the cannibalism. Pein and Konan don’t seem concerned, so he’s probably safe, right?

6 Kakuzu - He’s aggressive and short tempered, but he won’t bother anyone unless they’re late on work or go over budget, for the most part. He’s so stingy that most of the Akatsuki prefer paying out of pocket over fighting him about “unnecessary mission expenses” like food or shelter. Most members just ignore him and he ignores them right back.

7 Deidara - He’s good at his job, so everyone understands why he’s there, but he’s also regarded as loud, overconfident, dramatic, short-tempered, only interested in art, and immature. Him being the youngest member of the Akatsuki, even if it is only by three years, doesn’t help the immature allegations. Most members were over him by week 2.

8 Sasori - He’s critical and condescending. He is ready and willing to attack anyone who makes him wait. He is unapologetically nosy and doesn’t even try to hide it like Itachi. If you don’t tell him what he wants to know, he’ll just gather intel on you behind your back. If it weren’t for the skill and knowledge he’s accrued, no one would like him.

9 Hidan - He’s loud, vulgar, and will take any chance to preach about his religion. He has been kicked out of meetings on more than one occasion. If he gets too bored, on missions or not, he will start picking fights. He complains all of the time, even about things he doesn’t actually care about. He’s made it abundantly clear that not only is he neither loyal to the organization nor its members, he’s expressed that he hates both.

[stargazer-sims]

TLC (1)

Nikolai comes home to find Mishka and Alexander asleep on the couch. It's out of character for Mishka to be sleeping at this time of the evening, but Nikolai chalks it up to him probably having a busy day. Nikolai has been out of the house for most of it, after all, leaving Mishka to look after Alexander on his own for much longer than usual.

Nikolai: *to himself* How adorable are they?

Nikolai: Mishka? Wake up, sweetheart. You're going to have the worst kink in your neck if you stay here like this.

Mishka: *mumbling* Mmm... what?

Nikolai: There you are.

Mishka: What? Oh... hello. You're back. How did it go?

Nikolai: It's going good, but please tell me why I agreed to help with an off-season ice show. If I'd known how much work it'd be to help organize one as well as letting myself get talked into skating in it, I might've said no.

Mishka: No, you wouldn't have. You were so excited when Beth-Anne asked you, and I know you love to take every chance you get to skate for an audience.

Nikolai: Okay. You're right. I am excited for it. It's just that I'm used to having a lighter schedule in the off-season.

Mishka: You're not going to be doing this every summer.

Nikolai: No, I won't. The last time we had an ice show at Seaport Place was... I think five years ago? I didn't have to do anything that time, except get myself and a couple of my top students ready. Of course, the good news this time is that Eden, Katie and Brett are helping a lot with the younger kids.

Mishka: Is Beth-Anne going to skate too?

Nikolai: She says she is. Uncle Stan somehow got coaxed out of retirement to coach her, or so he says, but really I think he just showed up at the rink because Ginger did. I don't think he wants to let her out of his sight.

Mishka: Oh! Ginger's well enough to go out now? Did she have Rowan with her?

Nikolai: Yes, and yes. I'm pretty sure it'd take more than giving birth to keep her away from the rink, even if she's only allowed to sit on the bench and watch the rest of us.

Mishka: That reminds me of someone else I know.

Nikolai: Except I didn't give birth.

Mishka: You know what I mean. I'm not sure what would keep you away from the rink.

Nikolai: You could.

Mishka: I'd never ask that from you.

Nikolai: I know, but I would do it if you needed me.

Mishka: I know, and I love knowing you would.

Nikolai: And how about you, little champion? What kind of adventures did you have with Papa today?

Alexander: *happy noises*

Mishka: He's reaching for things on his own now, and I think he's going to be able to roll over by himself soon.

Nikolai: Well done, Sasha! Were you helping with the gardening and housework today too?

Mishka: We didn't do much housecleaning today. I wasn't feeling well, so we decided to relax.

Nikolai: I didn't know you weren't feeling well. Why didn't you tell me when I came home for lunch? I could've taken Sasha to the rink with me so you could rest. There were loads of people there who could've helped to watch him.

Mishka: I didn't think it was that bad.

Nikolai: That sounds like there's a 'but' coming. How are you feeling now?

Mishka: Worse than at lunchtime. I thought maybe I was just tired, but I slept for... I don't even know how long I was asleep, and now I feel more exhausted than I did before. Maybe I'm coming down with something.

Nikolai: Do you want me to take your temperature?

Mishka: Yeah.

Nikolai: And make you something light to eat?

Mishka: I'm sorry! I was supposed to have food ready for you when you got home. I don't know how I forgot. You've been working so hard, and—

Nikolai: Mishka, it's all right. I can make us both something. What would you like?

Mishka: *softly* I'm not hungry.

Nikolai: Are you sure?

Mishka: Yeah.

Nikolai: Why don't you go upstairs and lie down? Maybe I'll call my parents to see if they can come over and take Sasha to their place, so you can have a break.

Mishka: I don't know.

Nikolai: You can think about it. Let me just get the little man settled, and then I'll come upstairs and check on you. Do you think you need an ibuprofen tablet or anything?

Mishka: *sniffling* I... I don't know.

Nikolai: Don't worry. You don't have to figure it out right this second. Go get into bed if you want, and we'll take everything one step at a time after that, okay?

Mishka: *whispering* O-okay.

[kirarafelis]

Character biographies part 1.5 + art!

DUNCAN

Name: Duncan 

Likes: Wild events. 

Dislikes: His given daily schedule and responsibilities. 

Known for: Being the only one not interested in any sort of justice within his family.

Why TDI?: To get something new and different out of life.

Duncan comes from a long line of cops. His dad is a cop. His mom is a cop. His uncle, aunt, grandma, and cousins are cops. Unlike them, however, Duncan isn't that interested in that end of the spectrum; he'd rather get some enjoyment, and he's the type who probably shouldn't be trusted with any sort of authority anyways. So Duncan's parents decided to just throw random hobbies at him to keep him from doing anything too mischievous, such as but not limited to: fashion, knitting, and sewing. He's already gotten some warnings, which his mom had to talk out. He's also been put into boarding school after several school hops and pretty much well indulged by his dad to keep him from screwing up their family line reputation. Duncan doesn't necessarily care enough to get the full learning experience from boarding school, though, in his words, he'd rather do an "innovative, creative" break in to show his artistic skills than go through another art class. He also has street smarts and isn't afraid to use them. Despite his cocky nature, the therapists who have worked with Duncan will say he has potential and wants to do good for the world; it just isn't shown exactly through his exterior. When Duncan isn't being put through excessive work or lectures, he looks for ways to curb his boredom, like signing up for Total Drama Island. Duncan figured it couldn't be much worse than a day at boarding school. and, who knows, it could be fun to mess around there. It's not like he's doing anything else this summer.

GWEN

Name: Gwen

Likes: Hosting mold breaking parties from the norm with her little brother.

Dislikes: Following trends.

Known for: Putting beef bouillon cubes in the Community Pool

Why TDI?: To have a good time and the money would really help her mom.

The daughter of a single mom, Gwen was a latchkey kid who grew up taking care of her brother. That's cool with Gwen, because she likes helping out her mom and has tons of fun with her brother, too.

Like the time they put a bunch of beef bouillon cubes into the community pool. (At least the neighborhood dogs were happy!)

The only other thing that Gwen is REALLY passionate about is organizing parties. She believes they can be a substantial form of self-expression; she's been told plenty of her uniqueness for it, and she herself hopes to make the most norm-breaking party ever gain traction without having to go by a single trend for it. One day after all, the last thing she'd do is follow a trend. Maybe a Trent, but never a trend. (wink wink!) Although she's pretty popular for her parties, she is the loner at school. At the same time, she isn’t seen much with others; she spends most of her time instead watching and generating new ideas. But ask someone, and they will say that for a loner, she is a pretty rad one.

Gwen heard about total drama from her brother, and after looking into it, she decided it's just what she'd be looking for in an island retreat. Activities, fun, and relaxation.

Plus, if she wins the $100,000, it would sure make life easier for her mom. Gwen may seem tough as nails on the outside, but when it comes to her family, she's as soft as... well, a marshmallow.

GEOFF

Name: Geoff

Likes: Art, camping, and hanging out at the beach.

Dislikes: Parties that get too wild and shallow superficial people.

Known for: Always drawing in his free time at school.

Why TDI?: A experience different from the typical partying, if not that there’s camping.

Geoff grew up in a party town on the west coast. Spring break, long weekends, summertime—people came from all around to party in his town. So it's not a surprise due to the fact that Geoff isn’t exactly the biggest partygoer; he ended up coming across as an odd one out, or just quite literally an outcast. Now Geoff has seen, at a young age, how to really party. REALLY. He's the oldest of five brothers, but being the oldest also leads to the most responsibilities. Usually, when a party is over, he takes on the job of cleaning up the mess. (One time, almost the entire floor was flooded with fruit punch!) Now he doesn't hold any grudge against his brothers or parents for this, though; it is his duty as the eldest, but he isn't exactly happy about it either. And he thinks that at times the parties start to become too repetitive and similar. Even if Geoff says he hates the idea of doing parties entirely, thanks to his bohemian parents (who met, married, and conceived Geoff on a beach), Geoff still has chillaxin' party-hearty DNA in his blood, even if not apparent. He's the star quarterback on his high school football team, and they’ve scored plenty of wins, but the thing that truly highlights Geoff is his passion for art. A fair share of the cool kids are pretty interested in his art and hang out with him for it. He couldn’t care less about if they were “cool” or not, though; he’d hang out with anyone regardless of where they lie. Geoff's goal is to take a bit out of life and chew it until there's nothing left but seeds that he can scatter into the wind to start with a canvas all over again. His eventual plan is to become a professional artist who brings emotion and laughs with his works. He thinks that would be the most awesome career ever. He can't even imagine how great that would be, and he would definitely ace it, too. He wants to be able to make people feel together. Geoff also enjoys spending time at the beach or in the woods on weekends and sketching on his pad. Now, being real about it, Geoff wasn't exactly expecting to be on Total Drama Island this year; his brothers just thought he totally should give the show a try, so eventually he gave in and auditioned. He was surprised to actually be picked though he didn't actually expect to be spending his summer on a reality TV show. He doesn't mind too much, though; it might be fun.

BRIDGETTE

Name: Bridgette

Likes: Strummin’ on her ukulele

Dislikes: People who aren't kind to Mother Earth

Known For: Her sense of humor and creativity

Why TDI?: To spread the message of cosmic love through music.

Bridgette grew up in a small west coast town, and it shows. She’s always enjoyed the simple things, from the rhythm of a waterfall down to the melody of a bird. She’s an expert at riding bikes too; she first learned to ride one before she could even walk! When she’s just on a stroll, though, she's kind of klutzy. She's done her fair share of lead-outs. (And they were all on foot!) Luckily, she's also got a healing touch. Bridgette's strongest attributes are her sense of humor and her creativity. She's a pretty laid-back, go-with-the-flow girl, and her best friend is her mom. They both love flowers, crystals, and everything else that is part of Mother Nature's beautiful bounty. Bridgette's mom is proud of her not only because she's a giving person, but also because she's also on the honor roll at school. She’s also considered pretty cool for her ukulele-playing skills. People will say she can play it in a unique way you don’t see every day. Bridgette signed up for Total Drama Island because she always tries to open herself up to new opportunities. She's already biked off a hill in Peru, helped build houses in a third-world country, and spent a summer making rugs in a monastery in Nepal. Bridgette's goal is to keep the vibe flowing in a good way. That's why she always uses her ability to make soothing music to raise money for charities. She can be seen on social media or performing on the street, but no matter what, she makes sure she stores the money to be put to good use for good causes. Bridgette hopes that her time on Total Drama Island will spread the message of music to communicate nature and cosmic love to a larger audience.

TRENT

Name: Trent

Likes: Collecting seashells as well as everything else the shore has to offer… in pairs of nine.

Dislikes: His dad telling him to become an accountant.

Known For: Being a cool guy.

Why TDI?: It sounded like a good way to spend the summer

Trent is a guy who is very interested in the ocean and he believes it has spiritual secrets if you look deep enough. That’s why since he could barely walk he’s been exploring the shore. In fact He’s proud to call himself the most knowledgeable kid concerning the local beaches. Eventually, Trent's goal is to have his own full fledged rockin’ artifact collection. Trent is also peculiarly good at surfing in edition to that all. Trent has never gone out of his way to "get" people to like him. He'd just rather chill and get a good view of everything going on in the world. He's a straight shooter who tells it like it is. He would never say he's the "cool guy." Trent is the kind of guy who gets girls and has the other guys admiring him. He's just too likable to hate. His surfing and scavenging skills seal his status as one cool compadre. In his junior high graduating class he was voted as "Most Mysterious and Irresistible." (It was later discovered that the Voting Committee was comprised completely of girls, all of whom dated Trent.) Despite his good looks and easy going matter, Trent is smarter than he's given credit for. Though his grades don't reflect it, his IQ is well above anyone's expectations, including his own. His Dad wished he would follow in his footsteps and become an accountant, to which Trent has four words... NOT - IN - THIS - LIFETIME! Trent auditioned for Total Drama Island because it sounded like a cool way to spend the summer...and $100,000 would make a nice funding for that scuba gear and other

Footnote: Wow, this was harder than it should’ve been for me to make… if I had to say out of all of them here, Geoff took the longest to come up with. Even then though I feel like I could do better tried as hard as I could though for right now anyways, anddd I’m hoping to not take as long with future batches. Also I’ll definitely draw very cool shots for Tyler, Courtney, and Lindsay later on the future as well even if I already did their biographies.🤩

[collecting-stories]

King of my Heart - Jay Halstead

Request: Hi! Can i request King Of My Heart with Jay Halstead?❤️ 

A/N: I just really like the idea of Jay with like a firefighter s/o. I think I've written like two other fics with him and a firefighter s/o, pretend they're all interconnected lol.

TS Anthology Series | One Chicago Masterlist

...is this the end of all the endings?...

Dating with your schedule was not easy. Finding time to actually connect with people outside of work was next to impossible, especially since you’d taken on some paramedicine shifts for Sylvie on your days off from the Firehouse.

While you were trying not to rush into things or make any assumptions about whether dating was the correct term, you’d been spending a lot of time with Jay in recent weeks. You’d volunteered to help at a city garden that Trudy helped organize and he’d been there too and you’d both sort of clicked (at least that’s how you described it to Stella later on because you were too hesitant to admit that Jay had pretty much stuck to your side that whole day and asked you for drinks immediately after).  

“I just don’t wanna like...move too fast.” You explained, pulling your shirt over your head and fixing your hair, “like, okay...what if it’s just supposed to be like a casual thing and I make it this big thing in my head that it isn’t? Then I feel stupid and I can never show my face when he’s around.” 

“Listen, if it’s casual, he’s the one who should feel stupid. You’re a total catch,” Stella replied, always ready to be your cheerleader when you were feeling insecure about something. “You are a total badass, you’re on Squad. You don’t need some guy and he’s lucky you’re giving him the time of day.” 

“I wouldn’t go that far.” 

“I would!” Stella insisted, “you don’t need him, don’t feel like you need validation or something.” 

“I don’t. I’ll admit I’m okay single but, it is kinda nice having someone...I don’t know, want to put in the effort after a long shift. I mean, it’s not like we have easy jobs.” You replied, grabbing your duffel from the bench and slinging it over your shoulder. “I guess I just want some clarification. Are we dating? Is he thinking this could be something more serious? Is he even looking for something more serious?” 

“Are you?” She deadpanned as you both made your way out of the locker room. Most of the other third shift had left already but Stella had hung back with you while you showered, mostly to listen to you have a mini-crisis over your budding relationship with Jay.  

“I feel like I could be.” You shrugged, “that sounds stupid but like, sometimes I just look at him and think like, yeah I could do this every day of my life. That’s really fucking scary Stella...like...” 

You trailed off as you made it out onto the driveway and saw Jay’s pickup parked out front. He was standing there on the passenger side, leaning against the truck and when he saw you he smiled. Stella nudged your ribs playfully before giving you a silent wave goodbye and heading to her car.  

“Hey,” you called out as you got closer, “don’t you have work?”  

“Caught a double yesterday, just got off like an hour ago.” Jay replied, “Figured if you don’t have plans this morning you might wanna get breakfast?”  

“Oh my god yes, I’m starving,” you said, letting Jay take the bag off your shoulder and toss it in the back of his truck. “Herrmann has a new candidate and he offered to make dinner last night-” you shuddered and Jay laughed. 

“That bad?” 

“Terrible! And we ended up getting a call anyway so basically...no dinner.” 

Jay shot you a sympathetic look over middle console, “Shit baby, I’m sorry.” 

You felt yourself warm up at the sound of him calling you baby. You weren’t much for pet names but somehow hearing the word out of Jay’s mouth squashed all the worries you’d been keeping close to your chest.  

- 

“Jay!” You whispered, trying not to laugh and draw anyone’s attention, though most everyone in the house was asleep at this hour. Aside from Herrmann who had gotten stuck on night shift and was currently trying to keep his eyes open to reruns of Lets Make a Deal in the common room. He had ears like a hawk though and you knew he’d come snooping if he heard commotion. “We’re gonna get in trouble.” 

Jay smiled against your neck, placing another kiss there before responding, “I don’t work here so technically...” 

“Well don’t get me in trouble then!” You replied, unable to stop a laugh from escaping this time as you bumped into the washing machine.  

It was nearly one in the morning when Jay had shown up at the firehouse, texting you and telling you to let him in the back door. He’d just gotten off work and you still had six more hours on shift but it was officially your six month anniversary and he was surprisingly sentimental. Although you weren’t sure that making out in the laundry room like two horny teenagers was exactly sentimental.  

You didn’t get much time to consider anything at all because the siren went off, the overhead voice alerting the firehouse, “Truck 81, Engine 51, Squad 3, Ambulance 61.” 

“I have to go,” you insisted, pulling away, “Jay, I have to go.”  

“I know, I know.” He let go of you, stepping away so you could head out to the apparatus. He followed behind you, careful to stay out of the way, stopping at the Squad table. 

“I knew I heard something!” Herrmann laughed, walking through the double doors with Ritter, “Sneaking around the firehouse like a couple a kids!”  

You did your best to ignore Herrmann as you geared up, stealing one more kiss from Jay, “I’ll see you after shift?” 

“Yeah, I’ll pick you up.” 

“Get in the rig lovebird!” Tony called out the window and you rolled your eyes before climbing up into the back with him and Capp.  

You couldn’t resist a last glance out the window as you pulled out into the street, Jay standing there with his hands in his pockets, watching you and grinning. By the time you got to the fire, you’d be clear headed and ready to work but until then, you’d let yourself be a little lovestruck.  

[mastermindmiko]

NEWTs

pairing: Remus Lupin + reader

word count: 1004

summary: With NEWTs approaching, you and Remus have taken to spending time in the library to study, more often than not really.

warnings: none, just cute fluff

Hey! if you think this didn't completely suck, feel free to check out my masterlist.

I wrote this at one go, very late at night, so if there's any mistakes please don't mind them and lmk

"Are you actually studying? or are you just ogling at me?" Remus asks, he looks up from his papers to look up at me, and I turn flushed. I have not been studying, but how can I when I just have this gorgeous boy in front of me.

"You should study, NEWTs are in a few short weeks." Remus says, and he dips his quill back into the pot of ink to jot something down on a piece of paper. I shrug my shoulders, and stretch my arms until I'm laying on the table. I tilt my head to look at him from the surface of the table, and say, "It's really your fault. No one should be allowed to look this gorgeous. It's distracting."

It's now his turn to blush. No matter how many times I reassure him that he's the best thing I could ever hope for and how pretty he is, he never seems to believe it. He waves my compliment off with a wave and it makes me smile even harder. I sigh and continue to watch him work.

"At least do some practice papers."

"I'd rather practice looking at you."

"Despite how wonderful that is..." He begins with a chuckle, "You're not going to be graded it."

I huff and begrudgingly sit up straight. I look at my papers with a pout and I hear him chuckle a bit at my expression. Remus has the exam schedule beside us on the table so he knows what to study first. He's had a schedule organized for about two weeks now. I just study with him, but almost all of the sessions are as productive as this one.

I flip open one of the papers where there are many potions questions from chapter ten to fifteen. I don't need to ace my NEWTs really, I'm going to be Hagrid's trainee here at Hogwarts. He's basically guaranteed me a spot, but just in case, I'd rather not fail.

A few questions in, he slips his hand into mine and rests them both on his thigh. I smile, before raising our hands to press a small kiss to the back of his. I lower them back on his thigh, trying not to act like I see the way he turns pink. He clears his throat and we hear someone gag.

"You two are disgusting."

"Don't worry James, I'm sure Lily will give in soon." I reply after James says his words. Sirius is next to him and they take their seats on the table. Madame Pince glares at them and keeps a watchful eye on them. She is most likely the person anticipating their leave the most. Remus asks them, "Are you here to study?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Sirius grumbles as he brings out a book that looks tattered like it's never been taken care of before but as he opens the pages, I notice that this is the first time he's ever opened them. I say, "Being a Auror is hard work Sirius."

"I know, I just wish Prongs here would study with me instead of with his precious lily-flower, he's even worse than the both of you." Sirius mumbles, and I smile, not minding the semi-insult. I say, "Don't be too harsh on him, he's waited a long time for this."

"A very long time." James adds, nodding his head eagerly. Sirius shrugs his shoulders, mumbling something under his breath. He turns to James saying, "You can go with her, I know you want to."

James presses a dramatic kiss to his best friend's cheek that has Sirius groaning and wiping it away. James grabs his things and moves to the other side of the library, but not before shooting Sirius a kiss and saying, "You were always my first love, Padfoot!"

Madame Pince shushes him, and he turns rigid for a second before running towards Lily who beams when she sees him. It's only a matter of time before she realizes how much she likes him. Sirius looks at Remus and huffs, "I guess I'm your study partner, just don't do any stupid couple-y shit, like giving each other a kiss each time you get a question right."

"That's actually not a bad idea." I teases and lean from my chair to press an overexaggerated kiss on Remus' lips. He turns red once he hears Sirius groan loudly. He lifts a hand to cup my face and then he parts away. Remus has never been one for PDA. I giggle as I watch Sirius give us a glare and sink into his chair.

"Let's just get this over with." Sirius says, and he starts flipping through pages, immediately overwhelmed by the amount of material. I return back to my work and so does Remus. The library is more crowded than ever with exams coming up, but still it's quiet, as if madame Pince would ever let anyone disturb her atmosphere.

Remus wraps his long leg around mine and pulls me closer to him, dragging the chair across the marble floor, creating a small screeching sound. Sirius mumbles again. Remus presses a kiss to the side of my head. He whispers, "I'm so proud of you."

"Turns out I wasn't in as bad shape as I thought I was." I say with a smile looking at the ninety two percent that I scored on the potions quiz. Remus teases, "You never are."

He grabs my chin in between his fingers and he tilts my head towards him. He gives me a big sparkling smile, and I return it, feeling those butterflies go haywire inside me. He presses a soft kiss to my lips. I return it in an instant.

He keeps on kissing me until he decides to insert his tongue into my mouth. I kiss him back, pulling myself closer to him. He squeezes my waist and I let out a small whimper. Sirius looks up from his papers and groans loudly, "For Merlin's sack stop snogging and get to working!"

an: sooo, it wasn't a Regulus one, it was a Remus one. Regulus is coming I promise you that.

[brooklynislandgirl]

Dear Nonnymouse... Who sent me this:

it’s only friendly advice, but you’ll never get far in the star trek rpc with some of the people you keep around. {redacted} is fine. it’s the people close to {redacted}. one of them being the biggest issue. even if {redacted} is the only {muse}, i understand wanting to interact with the canon muses. her {muse} isn’t even bad. she is. it’s unsolicited advise, but it’s trying to warn you about someone in the rpc. you don’t need to be apart of her collection when there are a lot of us who would love to write with your oc. {redacted} only wakes up for popular canons. don’t let yourself be disappointed when she won’t give your oc the time of day.

this really is being sent with a true hope this finds you well and to help you in your future rp journey.

~*~ Howdy. First, let me explain. Normally I don't tend to respond to things like this but I feel there's merit in posting this just so that everyone can understand where I am coming from and we can all get on with out day. Also, I redacted the names and muse of the two people you specifically named in this PSA. Why? Because I do not engage in call out culture and I wish to be respectful to all parties involved in this. Secondly, I can only assume that you are both young and/or maybe wrote this on your phone, but I appreciate punctuation, complete sentences, grammar, the Oxford comma, capitalisation where appropriate, and the like. Call me elderly if you wish but as a librarian and a teacher, I can say that this almost hurt to read, though not as much as other anons I have received in the past. Third, you acknowledge that this is, in fact, unsolicited advice, and on that front you are absolutely correct. I did not ask for it. Where your advice fails is such: I. You assume I need a warning label about the people with whom I interact. I am actually quite capable of choosing with whom I wish to write, when and how according to our schedules and availability, the nature of what that writing entails, and other details that should matter only to my writing partner and myself. Whether canon or oc, whether rookie or veteran a mun, I will give anyone a chance on my blogs and with my muses based on their merit and not the gossip of others. II. You assume I want to 'get far' in the Star Trek rpc. Nonny, darling, understand this; I have a multitude of books, television, film and other mediums to which I have great love and respect, and am ever so happy to create a verse for should the opportunity arise. But I. Do. Not. Participate. In. Any. Specific. RPC. Mostly because they are little incestuous and toxic little echo-chambers that breed mostly only contempt and favouritism. Every single one I've come up against reminds me of high-school with cliques, tropes, petty squabbling, and other behaviour I find absolutely appalling. Really, honestly, y'all can miss me with this mess. III. You don’t need to be apart of her collection when there are a lot of us who would love to write with your oc. {These are your words, not mine}. I'm looking around here. I've seen exactly...none of y'all... following me out of the blue, knocking on my metaphorical door, engaging with me in any way to make this a valid point. The friends I make are mostly organic; if I see a blog where I enjoy the writing, I will read the rules and peruse the muse or muses that are available. I will follow and try talking via DM or discord, and work out what we're going to create. I take people who follow me at face value and offer them welcome, support, and my best efforts. Sometimes we are not compatible as people and that's fine. I feel that maybe this could be put under the first section but here we are. IV. Finally, we come to the most important address of this post. The specific Mun you oh-so-cordially needed to warn me about.

Seriously, it took me almost 4 hours to stop laughing about this. This mun has disappointed me. She has enraged me to the point of contemplating murder. She's also consoled me when my heart was broken. She's eaten at my kitchen table and made my husband laugh so hard I think a little beer came out of his nose. She's made me fall in love with things I vowed to hate, and we've given each other untold worlds and lives and loves over the years. There are things we will harbour grudges into the afterlife and beyond with one another. Even when we reach a point that we're contemplating what we would look like in prison orange, we still have each other's backs. We have also been friends for nearly a quarter century. This is no exaggeration.

We have written together, created communities, talked ad nauseam about via text/messages/on the telephone and in person for longer than a lot of people in these rpcs have been alive. We could fill my library with the amount of things we've ever talked and written about. There is nothing anyone can 'warn' me about that I don't already know. That same is true for people telling her things about me that they feel are valid.

So, in conclusion. Nonnymouse, you are swimming up some deep streams that you know nothing about, about people you've formed an opinion about without any substantial information to go on except for maybe some hurt feelings and jealousy, if I've read between the lines, and let's face it... You're not exactly Willy Wonka so the sugar-coating about being concerned for my emotional welfare and stability and wishing me happiness in my rp journey {which I've been doing just fine in for the last 8 years}, comes across as fake as William Shatner's toupee.

TL;DR version: Well aren't you precious. Bless your heart. <3

~Sincerly, Turtlemun.

PS: I promise if I have to do this again, I will decline being so polite.

[renegade-diamonds]

I'm so nervous about sending asks aaaa but I wanted to tell you I LOVED your take on alpha Nancy and Omega Robin, and the idea that they presented when they met is just chef kiss. I wonder if Nancy, being an alpha, has some sort of special protective instinct when it comes to omegas, especially Robin, who has now captured her attention in such a peculiar way. She hates smelling her stress, and there's a point in which she smells it every time she's near her (Robin freaking out around her and being so nervous because she knows Nancy is an alpha and must be able to tell when she's distressed, or aroused, or anything really, and for someone as closed off as Robin that must be extremely upseting and frustrating).

So now Nancy just feels an irresistible urge to protect Robin and keep her always within her sight. It's something she can only explain as weird alpha instincts making her act like that - though being protective is in her nature, and she's always protected those she loves. I wonder if there are any other omegas in Nancy's circle for her to compare the feeling to - maybe Will, or her own mother? Not great comparison points. It just makes her more confused. She's confused as to why she feels so protective of Robin and why it makes her so upset to sense her distress. Omega fear is just something else.

HIIIIII! I've seen your ronance content, and I am a BIG fan!

All alphas have a strong protective instinct for their friends and families, but Nancy's got dialed to a 10 after everything with the Upside Down started. She's honestly worse than Steve at times, but she's way more controlled and nonchalant about it (even though Nancy's always standing on business when it comes to dealing with threats).

She checks on the kids twice a day, and spends every other night in the hospital with Max so that Lucas and the others can get rest at home.

But her emotions are completely fucked when it comes to Robin. Once they start really getting closer, Nancy has to make sure Robin's safe. They talk on the phone every night before bed, and Nancy makes sure Robin has a walkie-talkie on her at all times.

When they start organizing patrols to deal with the open gates in Hawkins, Nancy always makes sure Robin's scheduled either with her or Steve.

One night, Mike gets scheduled with Robin and Nancy for a patrol and realizes his sister is in love again after she absolutely pulverizes a demodog with her shotgun. It knocked Robin to the ground and nearly bit her arm, which sent Nancy straight into a rage. To this day, he still swears he heard Nancy growl at it- something he had never heard her do before.

[hidden-misthios]

Something in the Orange (part 1)

Pairing: Lambert x female!sorceress!reader

Word count: 3 230

Summary: When Geralt of Rivia disappears, Jaskier has no choice but to ask his best friend for help. Although struggling with her own issues, Y/N agrees and they join Vesemir and the others in Kaer Morhen. The search might be difficult but not as difficult as the certain redheaded witcher who keeps challenging her. 

A/n: Just like my last Lambert fic, this one is going to be a mix of games, books and show. Excuse any grammar errors you find.

Find me.

Those were the only words Y/N heard in her dreams for last eight nights. She didn’t even see a person who kept repeating them and it was tiring.

A dark fortress surrounded by a veil of rain and brief flashes of thunder. Not a place she ever visited but Y/N had a feeling she knew the place like a palm of her own hand. As soon as she approached old wooden doors and opened them, the melody of the organ started playing in the distance, filling her ears. No matter how much she wandered around the castle, she could never find the person playing them nor the instrument itself. At some point, she would give up, but each time, the music would become louder and faster. Then, she would suddenly remember why she came here in the first place. She was looking for someone! But as soon as she tried to remember who it was, the world around her started to spin, making Y/N feel like she’s going to fall. She would close her eyes, trying to focus but nothing helped.

And then she would wake up.

In her bed at her own house, in middle of Novigrad.

She didn’t have time or energy to interpret her own dreams. As an oneiromancer, Y/N’s job was to read the future and past using the dreams of others. Her own had to wait for now.

                                                            ***

Corrine Tilly, Y/N’s mentor, was furious again. Y/N was late for fourth time this week and those dreams were the reason why. Y/N didn’t share them with Corrine yet but she owned her mentor explanation. That is, if Corrine doesn’t fire her.

“You know, if you don’t want to work for me anymore, you’re free to go. This is getting ridiculous.” Corrine said, crossing arms on her chests. Y/N closed the doors behind her and approached the brown-haired woman. Corrine was young sorceress who built quite a reputation for interpreting other people's dreams. Her customers were usually wealthy residents of Novigrad but every now and then someone from outside of city walls would show up and ask for her help.

Corrine lived off this money for seven years now and she could afford an apprentice. Y/N was quite lucky to learn from Corrine. She learned how to control the dreams better. Which, for some people proved harder, especially if they weren’t truthful at first.

“I’m sorry Corrine, I really am.” Y/N started. “But it’s not my fault.”

“No?” Corrine raised her eyebrows and starts slowly pacing around the customer room. This was the biggest room of the house and it was fully decorated to look and feel like a bedroom. There was a spacious bed full of pillows, big carpet, lots of candles and clary sage incense for customers to fall asleep easier.

“I-I…” Y/N tried to sort out her thoughts “I have dreams.” she said, fully aware that everyone else would find these words absurd but she knew her mentor. Corrine knew very well what those words meant.

“What kind?” woman asked in serious tone, sitting down on her chair and crossing her legs. That was her spot whenever she would interview the customer and Y/N couldn’t help but feel like one at the moment.

“Recurring.”

“For how long?”

“Eight nights.” Y/N answers.

“And you’re telling me this now?” Corrine asks. Y/N could swear she heard disappointment in her mentor’s voice.

“I didn’t want to bother you. I knew our schedule was full this week-”

“Y/N, you’re not just someone I’d squeeze into schedule. If you have any kind of problem, not just dream related…you can always count on me.” Corrine’s face softened.

Y/N was about to say something when the doorbell rang and they both turned to the doors. No one was supposed to arrive until noon. It was too early.

“I’m sorry, but we are not taking in any new customers right now-” Corrine stood up.

“Good thing I’m not new, then.” Jaskier’s head popped up through the door.

“Viscount. Come in.” Corrine smiles at the bard. Although Jaskier said he doesn’t care about his viscount title, Corrine was still addressing him as one.

Jaskier approaches her with a wide smile, theatrically leans down and kisses Corrine’s hand. Y/N couldn’t help but roll her eyes but still smiled a bit. She had to admit, her best friend knew his way around women.

“It’s nice to see you again, dear Corrine.” Jaskier speaks and then finally turns to Y/N.

“What brings you here?” Y/N asks. Usually, they would meet at Rosemary and Thyme, the cabaret that Jaskier himself owned. Before Y/N found Corrine, she worked there to help him out and in return Jaskier gave her a roof over her head.

“We need to talk.” Jaskier says completely serious this time. Corrine took that as her hint.

“I’m going out. If you need me, I’ll be at Triss’ place.” she says, throwing the dark blue cloak around her shoulders. They said their goodbyes and as soon as sorceress left, Jaskier moved closer to Y/N.

“Look at this.” he hands Y/N folded piece of paper. Y/N opens it. It was a letter, obviously written in distress or hurry.

Bard,

In light of recent events, I have no choice but to ask for your help. I cannot discuss the details in this letter but I assure you, if you still care about the White Wolf, you’re going to want to join us as soon as possible.

He’s missing.

P.S. Oh, and bring a sorceress along. I am aware you know quite a few.

V

Y/N looks back to Jaskier. This sounded odd. Jaskier took the letter back, looking at it like it might tell him more if he asked nicely.

“Who sent this?” Y/N asks. She figured that the White Wolf was Jaskier’s friend Geralt of Rivia, the witcher she had only seen once. But the V on the bottom of the page wasn’t giving any clues.

“It’s probably Vesemir, Geralt’s mentor.” Jaskier said, folding the letter.

“Why does the witcher need your help? What are you going to do? Sing them your latest hits until they figure out where Geralt is?” Y/N asks, raising her eyebrows. Jaskier give her an annoyed look.

“Very funny. Also no, because I happen to be very good at tracking-”

“Jaskier, you got lost on your way from Oxenfurt to Novigrad.”

Jaskier opened his mouth to complain, but Y/N wasn’t having it. “It’s a 15-minute-long horse ride.”

“It was early morning; I was still half asleep.”

“Forget I said anything.” Y/N realizes she should drop it. She turned around and started preparing incense for their first customer that day.

“Are you coming with me?” Jaskier asked.

Y/N turns around to face him again. “To Kaer Morhen? Jaskier, you can’t be serious.”

“Why not? You are a sorceress and Vesemir said I should bring one.” Jaskier shrugged. Y/N gave him a look.

“He didn’t mention me specifically. I’m sure Felicia Cori would love to help you out.” Y/N said. Felicia was practically Geralt’s fan from the moment she heard about him in Aretuza, academy for young ladies who were practising magic. She lived couples of streets further and was a good friend of Corrine.

“But I’m not asking her, I’m asking you, Y/N.” Jaskier said, slowly losing his patience.

“How on earth is my skill of any use to you or them? We don’t even know what happen to your friend!” Y/N says, crossing arms on her chests.

“You could form a dream for Vesemir and see where Geralt is.” Jaskier suggested.

“You know that those don’t always work for missing persons.”

“I know but can you just once believe my judgment?” he asks. Y/N raised her eyebrows. She believed his judgment lots of times and it usually meant nothing but trouble. This sounded like one as well.

“Absolutely not. Jaskier, I’m not horse riding for a week for no reason. I have no clues, no ideas how to handle this. And also, how am I supposed to leave Corrine? She’s already pissed at me for being late-”

“Let me handle everything. And we are not horse riding.” Jaskier says proudly.

“No?” Y/N asks, tilting her head a little.

“I’ll show you.”

                                                           ***

And there they were, the next day, at Rosemary and Thyme’s attic. There was only one candle burning and the air was filled with dust, smell of old books and costumes. Y/N had to jump over a couple of old suitcases before they finally stopped walking.

“What are we doing here?” she asked, dusting herself off.

Jaskier didn’t answer but started looking through the old bags on the floor. Y/N crossed arms on her chests, waiting for the bard’s explanation.

“Ah, here it is!” he finally said. Y/N looked at his hands. He was holding a crystal. Not just any crystal. That was a power crystal and it was used specifically for portals.

Y/N gaped. “Jaskier, how did you get that?” she asked cautiously. Jaskier started moved further into the dark attic, Y/N following him.

“Turns out doing favours for sorceresses has its perks.” he answered merrily.

“Do you even know how it works?” Y/N raised eyebrows.

“Of course! I’ve been to Kaer Morhen on multiple occasions thanks to this portal right there.”

“Fine. Turn it on, then.” Y/N says, her voice suddenly soft. Ironically, she didn’t like portals. Traveling through them was quick but Y/N preferred other methods. Unfortunately for her, this was the only magical way to get into Kaer Morhen.

Jaskier cleaned the crystal with his sleeve and then moved closer to the wooden wall. There, Y/N saw a shelf with nothing but small steel stand in the middle of it. Jaskier slowly approached and placed the crystal on the stand. Nothing happened.

“What’s wrong with it?” he asks, suddenly worried.

“We need to revive it. It’s dead.” Y/N realized.

“How? I’m no medic nor-”

“Move.” Y/N tells him and Jaskier obeys. Y/N takes the crystal in her hands and clears her mind. Using a simple, yet powerful spell, Y/N starts off the crystal. Its core started glowing and she places it back on the stand. Loud sound of wind filled their ears. The wall in front of them vanished and dark twirling circle appeared instead.

The portal was open.

“Let’s go.”

 The welcoming party is not really welcoming, Y/N thought as soon as she saw the unfamiliar faces. Jaskier didn’t seem like he was bothered by it. They walked across the long hall and approached the table occupied by two armed men who didn’t exactly smile at their presence.

“Eskel, Coen. Nice to see you again.” he slightly lowered his head.

“Who’s this, bard?” the taller one, Eskel, Y/N presumed, asks as he crossed his arms on chests. He looked like he wasn’t happy to see newcomers. Or oldcomers. Or anyone at this point.

“Ah, yes, right, manners. This is Y/N. Very powerful sorceress. Vesemir told me to bring one. So, I did.” Jaskier explained.

“Pleasure.” Y/N said, trying to sound more delighted than she truly was.

“Oh, I’m sure it is.” Eskel said.

“What is that supposed-”

“Enough.” a deep voice echoed through the hall. “Jaskier. Sorceress. Please join me.”

Y/N and Jaskier both turned around towards the exit. There, was an older man standing, his face scarred and old but still Y/N felt like his presence required utter respect.

That must be Vesemir, Y/N realized.

Jaskier and Y/N both joined him. Jaskier briefly introduced them and Y/N nodded at the old witcher. Vesemir then led them down the hall without word. They walked for a while in silence, passing by several closed doors, until they finally reached the right one.

Vesemir opened the door and let them into the big round room with high celling. There, in the middle of it, stood one large table. The walls were filled with books, bottles and various herbs. Old chandelier in the middle of room was the only source of light.

They approached the table and Vesemir unfolded three papers in front of them.

“This is all we got.” he said, suddenly sounding tired.

Jaskier took the first paper and stood next to Y/N. There, in the middle of the page, were three words written in black ink.

“That could be Elder speech. Really old one.” Y/N said. She learned basics at the academy, but these writings were definitely old. She wasn’t even sure if she saw them in their school books.

“Do you know what does it say?” Jaskier asks quietly.

“I’m not sure. Let me see.” Y/N says, taking the letter from Jaskier’s hands.

“It’s not in any of our books. I tried everything but couldn’t make a sense of it. The last letter that arrived is the only one that’s written in Common.” Vesemir said, handling the smallest piece of paper to Y/N. She frowned.

This one was indeed written in Common speech but this time ink was dark red. Y/N sincerely hoped it wasn't blood.

“Wolf got taken. “She read the first sentence and then noticed another one on bottom of the page. “Will pay for his sins.”

Their Common is not perfect. Who could this be? Elves?

Y/N noticed how Jaskier’s jaw clenched. She never saw him this quiet and serious.

Vesemir then hands her the last paper. This one had a drawing. It was a simple one, but Y/N immediately figured what it was - an open palm of hand, with drops of blood on each finger. In the middle of the palm was a much bigger drop of blood, shaped like a tear.

“When did you get these?” Y/N asks, looking at all those letters in her hands.

Vesemir opened his mouth to answer but the loud squealing of door hinges interrupted him. The door opened and stranger walked in. With wolf medallion hanging around his neck and long red curls framing his face, he walked towards them.

“Stop wasting time, Vesemir.” he looked at his mentor, completely ignoring Jaskier and Y/N.

Y/N raised her eyebrows slightly.

Would it kill them to show some politeness?

“Lambert, this is Y/N. She’s going to help us decode these letters. And you’re going-”

“We should be out there looking for him! Not wasting time with these stupid letters.” he raises his voice. Vesemir gave him look of complete disapproval.

“You don’t get to decide what is a waste of time or isn’t. Now, show Y/N the library and get her whatever will be needed.”

For a second, Y/N thought Lambert would just storm out but then he finally looked at Y/N.

“Follow me, witch.” he muttered quietly, the anger still present in his tone.

Y/N squinted her eyes. “Sorceress.” she corrected him. Lambert just stared at her, his eyes also squinting. Jaskier, still standing on Y/N’s right side, stepped forward and cleaned his throat.

“Term ‘witch’ is mostly used by those who call themselves witch hunters, you know, it’s usually a derogatory term-”

“I know. Now, follow me.” Lambert interrupted him, still not looking away from Y/N. Y/N didn’t want to give him the pleasure of seeing her in discomfort so she stepped forward and joined him.

“Find me if you need anything.” she told Jaskier before leaving, giving him a comforting look.

Jaskier nodded, but she could see concern in his eyes.

Finally, she turns to red headed witcher and joins him down the hall. They walked in silence, Lambert clearly keeping his distance. Unfortunately for Y/N, the library was located at the other end of the Kaer Morhen and their awkward, silent walk took a while.

“Does your library have any books of First elves?” she asks when they finally made it. Lambert sat on top of the table and shrugged.

“Do I look like librarian? I have idea. I haven’t been in this part of castle for 5 years. You’re on your own, witch.”

Y/N approached the table so quickly she even surprised herself. Lifting her hand, with a small orb of red light in it, she pushes it towards his face. Lambert face was stone cold, no fear.

“Call me witch one more time, I dare you.” she hissed. She lowered the orb a little. He didn’t seem fazed at all.

“Don’t challenge me if you can’t keep up, sweetheart.” he suddenly grins. Y/N was about to protest but then she feels a soft pressure just above the bellybutton. She lowers her eyes and sees short but sharp blade, resting on her corset.

Y/N frowns.

“Seems like you’re forgetting why I’m here, witcher.” she warns him, ignoring the blade. Lambert raises his eyebrows a little then finally drops the blade. Y/N still stepped aside just in case.

“To decode some stupid letters, which are-”

“Yes, yes, waste of time. Now let me work if you don’t plan on helping me.” she says and walks away towards the shelves.

She heard Lambert mummering something but this time she decides to ignore him, switching focus on those old books in front of her. It was clear that someone organized them alphabetically long time ago but every now and then she would find some who obviously wouldn’t fit into that order. There was lots of books about herbs, survival skills and potion making but those weren’t helping at all. So, she moved to another bookshelf. There, Y/N found some historical books about Continent.

Beatrix of Kovir.

The Elder Blood.

The Conjunction of the Spheres.

And then, Y/N saw it. The old, yellow copy of Elder Speech Dictionary. She grabbed the book and started flipping pages. Few minutes passed by and…

Nothing.

All the symbols, words and phrases were something she was already familiar with. She sighed and put the book back in its place. She knew this wouldn’t be easy. Y/N took another look at those letters. That hand symbol bothered her. She felt like she saw it somewhere.

*Few hours later*

It was dark outside when Y/N finally looked through the library window. Some time ago, Jaskier showed up with a glass of wine and dinner which Y/N barely tasted. She couldn’t eat until she figured out the hand symbol. Lambert was long gone, with no explanation or excuse, but Y/N certainly didn’t mind.

Just some time after midnight, the doors of the library opened again.

“You’re still here?” Vesemir asked, entering the room and then closing the doors behind him.

“I can’t sleep until I figure this out.” Y/N answered, flipping through the Book of Urban Myths. Truth is, she was not looking forward to her dreams. She knew she would have to relive that dream all over again.

Vesemir chuckled, but it sounded miserable. “I appreciate the optimism but I’m afraid the books won’t do much of help.”

Y/N stopped flipping through the book and looked at Vesemir.

“You’re right. We should try my method.”

“Which is?” he raises eyebrows.

“Jaskier didn’t tell you? I’m oneiromancer.” Y/N said, closing the book in her hands.

Vesemir thought about it for a second and then slowly nodded. “We should give your method a chance then.” he said, crossing arms on his chests.” But not with me since I haven’t seen Geralt for a while now and therefor won’t be much of use to you. You should do it with the one who last saw him.”

“And who was that?” Y/N asks, glad he agreed with her.

“Lambert.”

[hollow-l1es]

i wanna clarify that when I talk about ghoulia g1 being autistic coded i mostly take it from this official bio thingy that was on the monster high website!! (Idk if that site still exists but i was obsessed with it as a kid fkdksksk) A couple things I want to highlight here:

-ghoulia states that she needs a proper schedule to function. similarly many autistic ppl struggle with things such as organizing and planning (ie executive dysfunction) and sticking to a specific schedule or routine is very helpful and reduces stress a lot!!

-"[does] not process last minute change very well": this is actually mentioned twice, in the freaky flaws and in the pet peeve section! It’s a common thing in autistic folks to struggle with last minute changes. Neurotypicals often see this as "rigid thinking" or stubbornness but it’s really often (at least in my case and other ppl i know) a case of needing time to adjust to changes of plan or unexpected events

-"trouble making facial expressions": i think this one is self explanatory, a lot of us autistics tend to have little to no facial expressions or or will force facial expressions to appear "normal" to neurotypical

-can only speak zombie: okay someone pointed this one out in one of my recent posts because in my memories i believed she was actually non-verbal! It was my mistake, but i still made some research to try to understand where my confusion came from and it turns out that certain ppl actually interpret ghoulia as being non-verbal, and her zombie talk being a parallel for the way autistic ppl will sometimes communicate with grunts and sounds instead of words when they go non-verbal. I don’t necessarily believe this is what was intended with ghoulia since in the monster high world zombie is just another language that ppl speak and understand easily. there’s much more we could say about this topic but regardless, i still think ghoulia literally communicating differently from the other characters is a good parallel with how autistic ppl often struggle to connect or keep up with neurotypicals’ way of communicating!!

-ok that one is obviously a stereotype but if my hypothesis that she was purposely coded as autistic by her creators is true, her being a nerd who loves books and studying (also activities that are often done alone, since many autistics are also introverts) is definitely worth mentioning

-at the "favorite subject" question, she replies that she can’t choose just one, which is a common reply for autistic ppl when asked their favorite x or y!! A lot of us struggle with decision making, even when it comes to small and innocent things like picking your favorite subject at school!

There’s more that could be added obviously but I really wanted to just dissect this bio since it’s what made me realize that she was autistic-coded! As a child when i got into monster high i never really got any of that (and tbh i didn’t watch the webseries that much so i definitely can’t say much about how she acts in it) but now reading this i think it’s not a stretch to think that this was intentional. With all the basic/widely known autistic traits that are explicitly stated in her bio, i think it’s reasonable to say that this is not a coincidence. Ofc everyone is allowed to have their opinion on this but this is mine!:))

Tl;dr: Ghoulia from monster high g1 is definitely coded as autistic and i wish i had noticed earlier!!!

[brighteststar707]

Family

I’m running sort of late in my timezone, but here is a little something for day 3 of @rfaromance‘s Holiday Event!

How do you describe the relationship that has grown between these five strangers, all initially brought together just to throw parties? From the outside, it’s easy to write off their relationships as superficial, but look a little deeper and you’ll find that the RFA has formed a family of its own in the years they’ve been together. 

Over her years of working as his assistant, Jaehee has come to know Jumin very well. Yes, he is the cause of much irritation, and doesn’t seem to understand standard work hours, but she wouldn’t consider him a bad boss. She, more than anyone else, can tell when he is distracted or distressed and has learned the best workarounds.

Zen keeps an eye on Yoosung, offers an escape and his support when everything in life becomes too much. He does his best to be the brother he never had (and secretly relishes having someone to take care of). In return, Yoosung cooks them meals that are better than what Zen has eaten in a week. They keep each other balanced.

Seven goes missing for days at a time, and despite whatever they might tell him, they’re not sure how to fill the uncomfortable silence he leaves behind in the chat. They can’t do anything but hope he’ll return to them sooner rather than later. When inevitably he does, they pretend to tolerate his dramatic stories recounting his adventures (and all the while breathe a sigh of relief). 

They don’t see each other often enough. Jumin organizes meetings so he can see them in person and make sure that everything is alright and that nobody has gotten lost along the way (though it’s been getting worryingly close once or twice). He isn’t sure how to reach them all and tell them how much he worries about them, so instead he tells them to make sure they sleep and eat enough.

Yoosung visits Seven’s house often. His excuse is that he wants to play games, but he really just wants to see Seven’s face. It’s easy to pretend to be energetic and happy behind a screen, but in real life, Seven has deep dark circles and smiles without much conviction. He cooks for him too, and takes note of how his fridge is almost always empty. He leaves only when he’s sure that Seven is looking somewhat better. In return, Seven helps him with difficult coursework, and always offers a place to run when his little dorm room gets too suffocating.

Jumin and Zen have a difficult time understanding each other, but don’t mistake it for hate (no matter what Zen says). They don’t see eye to eye, but they try to bridge the gap in their own ways. When Jumin isn’t offering money or opportunities to Zen, he’s asking questions about he industry and listening intently. Zen’s world is so different to his own, and it fascinates him. He admires Zen for being able to navigate a place like that. He can relate to being pursued for what he has to offer people and not for the person he is. Zen would hate to admit it, but he’s impressed by everything Jumin has on his plate. He knows that if something goes wrong, he can rely on him for support.

Zen and Jaehee compare schedules every week to try and find a slot to meet up for coffee. It doesn’t often happen, but when it does, they can easily spend a whole afternoon catching up. He encourages her to vent about working under Jumin, and she enjoys geeking out about the latest show he’s starring in. He reserves whatever merch he can for her and makes sure the family tickets he’s allowed are given to her. Seeing her face smiling up at him from the audience makes him feel proud. If he can make someone as put-together and professional as her so happy, he must be doing something right.

Sure, they all started off as strangers. Sure, they have their differences (they’d be the first ones to tell you that). But they are now so much more than that. They are a family who will always be rooting for each other.