#so this is currently how I deal with life

[dizzydaisychains]

ℭ𝔯𝔢𝔰𝔠𝔢𝔫𝔡𝔬

⋆｡°✩ pairing: sylus x reader

⋆｡°✩ word count: 10k

⋆｡°✩ summary: because sometimes, love grows quietly; thorns and all (or alternatively: eight times sylus falls in love, and one time he actually says it out loud.

⋆｡°✩ ao3 link (if you would like to read it on there instead): https://archiveofourown.org/works/64993741

I.

It starts on a Tuesday. 

And really, Sylus should have seen it coming from a mile away, should have taken note of the flashing neon signs that his brain had been setting up for him ever since he found you again, but like most trivial things, he’s chosen to ignore it for the time being. Ignorance is bliss after all, but now, in this current situation, he’s beginning to wonder if it’s too late to run. 

Because it’s 2am on a Tuesday night, and instead of cleaning up a job gone wrong or dusting his vinyl collection for the nth time, he’s lying in the grass in a field outside Linkon city, your head on his chest as both of you stare up at the glittering constellations spread over the night sky. 

And no matter how hard he tries to concentrate on Cassiopeia or Orion, all he can think about is all the ways he can get you to stay here a little longer. 

It’s like the first sign of sunshine after a particularly long winter, or the feeling of falling into bed after a long day. Being with you has made all those years of solitude worth it, has given his life purpose when he had slowly been sinking into eternal ennui, yet, for some reason, he can’t find the words to tell you this. Words usually come easy to him. Striking a deal, manipulating a soul; he’s mastered the art of conversation in every shape and form, but when it comes to you, he finds that most of his words aren’t enough.

On top of that, there’s also the fact that your current relationship is delicate. His abysmal attempts of getting you to remember him had only ended up earning him your resentment. Since then, he has vowed to never let that happen again, but this slow pace is burning him alive. Are you two even dating? Everything is vague, yet nothing feels as clear as this; him holding you in his arms as you both pick apart the stars, trying to make sense of why they burn and how long it would take to reach one.

“Sylus?”

Your voice lulls Sylus out of his thoughts, his eyes landing on your soft gaze. 

“What are you thinking about?”

Sylus shakes his head. “It’s nothing.”

He tries to ignore the look you give him as you reach out and trace the crinkle between the bridge of his nose and his forehead. 

“Liar. I can see your frown lines. You’re worried about something.”

Sylus scoffs. “I never worry, Kitten. I’m too powerful for that.” 

“Oh really? Then what about that time you thought you scratched your favourite vinyl? Or the time I nearly shrunk your sweater in the dryer?”

“Do you often keep note of my habits like this?” He smiles as he notices a faint blush appear on your cheeks.

“Force of habit. I’m a Hunter. I need to keep a close eye on Linkon’s most wanted.”

“Ah, so you still see me as someone dangerous . I see how it is…”

“You know that’s not true.” 

Sylus huffs as you shift your position to face him properly. He can’t help but love how his hands naturally gravitate towards your waist, gently steadying you as you look down at him with a pout on your lips.

“Do you really still believe I think of you like that?” 

Sylus holds his breath as you hold his face in your hands. Warm. Your hands are always so warm. Sylus craves it. Craves your touch, craves your soft fingertips on his skin as he looks at you wondering if you can tell that he wants nothing more than to kiss you until he runs out of breath. 

“Then what do you think of me?” Sylus asks, voice low. 

“You are whatever a moon has always meant, and whatever a sun will always sing is you,” you sing with a soft smile.

Sylus smirks. “So you went with the words of E.E Cummings. When did you start learning to recite poetry like that?”

“Since you started reading it to me at night when you think I’m asleep.”

“Well aren’t you always full of surprises?”

Sylus smiles as one of your hands moves to his hair, twirling the loose strands between your fingers. It’s all so intimate . He doesn’t know how much longer he can restrain himself, your sweet scent is driving him insane. Would it be so bad to kiss you? To admit that maybe…the feeling is real? Would fate be so cruel as to punish him for confessing to what it has cursed him to do until the end of time? 

But perhaps, it isn’t up to him at all, because it’s you who leans in and kisses him, once, then twice, and then he loses count, his grip on your hips tightening as you hold his face, guiding him as he chases the burning feeling in his stomach.

And he desperately tries to ignore it, the thorns curling around his chest. You know where this ends, his conscience hisses at him. You’ll lose her again if you keep giving in to your desires. The weight of the dragon’s curse will haunt you until your last breath–

“Sylus …”  Your desperate voice breaks through the darkness. 

“Sylus..I…I…”

“It’s okay,” Sylus pants in between kissing you. “It’s okay Kitten, you don’t have to say anything.”

“But–”

He deepens the kiss and you moan, your hips grinding against him. It’s too much. Sylus knows he has to stop. Christ, he doesn’t want to though. You feel amazing in his lap, his hands gliding up your soft thighs. 

“Kitten…” He pulls away and looks at your swollen lips, the desire in your eyes. 

“Why’d you stop?” you whine, grinding in his lap, which makes him laugh a little. The darkness in his heart subsides briefly. 

“Now isn’t the time and place.”

“Why do you always have to be right,” you sigh in response, leaning against his chest as you both catch your breath under the stars. He rests his chin on the crown of your head, trying his best to keep it together. 

Perhaps it is too late to run. 

Sylus shuts his eyes and takes a deep breath, tries to shut out the voices in his head.

There’s no denying it;

He’s falling in love.

And so, it starts on a Tuesday, but really, deep down, Sylus knows it started long before that. 

II.

Admitting that he’s in love is one thing, but accepting it is another predicament that Sylus has been unsuccessfully avoiding over the past week. 

He sighs deeply as he stares out the window of his office, his hand stroking Mephisto’s sleek feathers a few times before heading towards his desk where a pile of paperwork sits waiting to be read through and signed. One of the top ten ‘perks’ of being the leader of a powerful mafia gang; fucking paperwork. 

Taking a seat, he runs a hand through his hair and begins to scan through the documents. It’s a tedious task. It takes him about two hours to even make it halfway through the pile. 

He’s beginning to feel the start of migraine forming in the back of his head when suddenly, the door bursts open and the twins come tumbling in.

“What have I said about knocking before entering?” 

“Sorry, Boss! But it’s urgent,” Kieran waves a phone in his face, Sylus’ own phone to be exact. He must have left it in the dining room after breakfast this morning.

“Whoever it is, tell them I’m occupied,” Sylus scoffs, turning his attention back to the document in front of him. 

“Err…Boss…I think you might want to look at this.” It’s Luke this time, the bolder one of the two. Sylus flicks his gaze upwards, curious to see what exactly is so urgent. 

“It’s…well it’s her. She’s in a bit of trouble. Seems like she’s been kidnapped. They said they won’t harm her if we let them talk to you.”

The twins must feel the chill in the air as the temperature immediately drops. They shiver as Sylus slowly stands up, one hand taking the phone from Luke, the other slowly curling into a fist as his Evol begins to swirl around the room. 

“You have ten seconds to give me your location,” Sylus says into the phone, voice deadly calm, but it’s a voice that the twins know all too well. Luke elbows Kieran before mining a blade sliding across his throat. Whoever is on the other end of the phone might as well start planning their funeral.

“We’re not giving you anything until you agree to our terms,” the voice on the other end of the phone hisses. “We heard your little Hunter here has an Aether Core in her possession. However, she won’t cooperate. We’re not exactly sure where she’s hiding it though, and she’s been quite difficult to extract information from–”

“If you fucking lay a finger on her, you’ll be sorry you were ever even born,” Sylus growls, to which the voice on the other side of the phone laughs in response to.

“Convince her to give us the Aether Core. If you can do that, we’ll let her walk free.”

“Are you asking me to make a deal with you?”

“I heard you love making deals. Tell you what, we’ll throw in an extra batch of enhanced protocores, just because I’m feeling generous.”

“And your location?”

“The abandoned warehouse downtown. You know the N109 Zone well enough to figure out which one.”

Sylus takes a deep breath. 

“I’ll be there in ten minutes. If I see a single mark on her when I get there,” he pauses, fingers tracing over the gun on his desk. 

“Well, it’s already a bit too late for you anyway. You’ll find out soon enough what exactly it means to strike a deal with me.”

He hangs up the phone and looks at Luke and Kieran, his scarlet eyes blazing, but his demeanour as calm as ever. 

“Gather whatever weapons you’ll need and meet me outside in five minutes. Looks like the paperwork will have to wait.”

They salute him. “Yes, sir!” 

Sylus smirks. Good thing he was feeling bored anyway. 

𓅇 ⋆.˚ ☾⭒.˚

It only takes him seven minutes to track down the warehouse, and it takes him even less time to annihilate the ‘security’ that the kidnappers had set up to delay him. By the time he makes it to where they’re holding you hostage, most of the vermin have either fled or have met an untimely end. 

Only half a dozen remain, and they surround you and a tall man in a trench coat like magpies protecting a sacred treasure. Sylus looks at you, tied to a chair, a bored expression on your face. 

Noticing his arrival, you give him a cheerful wave despite an ugly bruise on your cheek. The sight of it makes Sylus want to burn the warehouse to the ground. 

“Took you long enough!” you yell at him, causing one of the thugs to jab at you with the muzzle of a gun.

“Traffic was bad,” Sylus replies, which only makes you smile at him. Oh, he’s going to enjoy this all right. 

Sylus takes a step forward as the gang raise their guns, all six of them aiming at you in the chair.

“Don’t move or we’ll shoot her!”

Sylus rolls his eyes and throws up his hands.

“I come in peace,” he says dryly, a lazy smirk on his face. The thug in the trench coat (who Sylus has already clocked as the asshole leader he had spoken previously with on the phone) walks towards him, clapping his hands like an idiot. 

“Well done! You managed to take out my security. But sadly, we need to shake on our deal before I hand over little Miss Hunter.” He walks towards Sylus, his arm outstretched to reveal a grubby looking hand.

Sylus lowers his arms and lets the man come to him. “Ah, I see. Yes, we made a deal, but it seems you haven’t kept your end of the bargain up. She seems to have a number of marks on her face.” 

“She needed to be disciplined.”

“Do you enjoy picking on your enemies when they’re at their weakest? Binding her hands and her feet while you beat her. Is that really fair?” Sylus tilts his head to the side in mock curiosity.

“She kicked my shin and spat on me. Tying her up was one of my nicer punishments.”

“That’s my feisty little Kitten for you. Rile her up like that and she’ll scratch you.”

Sylus watches as the man comes to a halt in front of him. A pale, sinewy looking man up close. He tuts in disappointment. At least dress like a leader before you start acting like one, he thinks to himself. 

The man motions for Sylus to shake his hand, except, before Sylus can even react, the man whips out a pistol and shoots him in the chest.

“Ouch,” Sylus deadpans, watching as the man’s expression changes from arrogantly confident to extremely concerned. It’s a look that Sylus is used to seeing, and honestly, he should be tired of it by now, but deep down; this is his favourite part of the game.

“H-How…” the man stammers, but it’s already too late, and Sylus can’t stop his smile from spreading as he knocks the pistol out of the man’s hand, his Evol snaking around the man’s body, curling around his arms, his legs, until suddenly it engulfs him fully, squeezing, choking….the man doesn’t even realise it’s too late until poof! He’s gone. 

Sylus turns his attention to the remaining thugs. One look from him and they drop their guns before scattering like rats in a sewer. 

“Luke, Kieran,” Sylus says as the twins seemingly materialise by his side.  “Clean up the rest of this mess. Make sure none of them leave here alive.”

“Yes, Boss!” The twins scamper off, giggling like kids in a playground. 

Sylus makes his way over to you and crouches down, his hands moving swiftly to untie you.

“Are you okay?” he asks, voice gentle.

“What? No smart comments about how the hell did I manage to get kidnapped?” you mumble, feeling embarrassed that he had to save you. 

“I figured your pride was already hurt enough.”

You sigh in annoyance as Sylus finishes freeing your feet and hands. “They managed to inject me with a tranquilizer. Bastards. I would have been able to take them if they hadn't of caught me off guard.”

“Not like you to be caught off guard like that.”

“I was buying ice cream after a long shift.”

Sylus laughs, reaching out to cup your cheek with his palm. You wince a little as his fingers graze your bruise. 

“Does it hurt, Kitten?” His eyebrows furrow in concern. 

You shrug. “Just a little. Nothing an ice pack can’t heal.”

He scans the rest of your body, searching for more injuries, but you reach up and surprise him with a hug, pulling him tightly into your arms.

“Thanks for coming for me. For a second I thought you wouldn’t pick up your phone. You usually sleep during the day.”

Sylus shuts his eyes as he lifts you into his arms, the knot of worry untying in his chest now that you’re safe.

“I had some paperwork to get through. Had to wake up early to sign a few things.”

You laugh, nuzzling into the crook of his neck . “The leader of Onychinus doing paperwork? Surely you have an admin person that can do all that for you.”

“Too many secrets in the paperwork. Can’t trust anyone.”

“How about me? I can help you.”

Sylus pinches your side.

“Hey! That tickles.”

“Hilarious how you think I’d let a Hunter pry into Onychinus’ affairs.”

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever. I already know where your base is. If I didn’t like hanging out with you so much I would have turned you in by now.” 

You let out a small yawn as Sylus’ head spins, your words making him feel like a fireworks display has suddenly erupted in his heart.  

“Can you take me to your place on your motorcycle? I’m too tired to call a taxi back to my apartment after today's events.”

Sylus gets to his feet, still carrying you in his arms as you rest your head against his chest.

“Depends. Are you going to make me watch another bad comedy film to try and make me stay awake during the day again?”

You punch his chest lightly. 

“You pick a movie then. But it can’t be one of the black and white silent films you like to watch. Are you sure you’re not ninety years old?”

Sylus doesn’t say anything to that. Just pinches you again, but he can’t seem to take the stupid grin off his face. 

A small glimmer of hope shines through the walls of the castle he has built around himself. Perhaps loving you in this life doesn’t have to end in tragedy. Perhaps fate might grant the two of you mercy if he can protect you properly this time.

𓅇 ⋆.˚ ☾⭒.˚

And as it turns out, there is a way to make paperwork slightly more interesting. He discovers this later that evening, and it involves bending you over his mahogany desk, his hands on your hips, your body spread over the documents as you beg him to fuck you faster.

“Sylus, ” you moan, turning your face to look at him as he holds your wrists in his hands, firmly keeping them behind your back. “Feels so good…I…I don’t know if I can stand much longer.”

He curses as he notices your trembling thighs. Fuck, it makes him feel so fucking hard seeing you like this. But you’re right. You’ve been through a lot today, so he should take it slow and steady with you.

With all the gentleness of the first snowfall of winter, he picks you up and carefully places you on the table, spreading your legs as your back lays against the paperwork. You whine as you feel his cock slip out of you, hating the feeling of being without him for even a second. 

Sylus soothes you with a soft kiss before he puts himself inside of you once more, giving you a few seconds to adjust before he starts thrusting again. 

“Sylus, please. I need you to fuck me like you mean it. I need to feel you in me,” you beg, eyes filled with nothing but lust as you stare at him from behind long lashes.

And who is he to refuse? He fucks you until you scream his name, fucks you until you both come, your arms spread over the paperwork as if you were an angel with wings made of pure divinity. 

III.

“Sylus, look!”

Sylus stares at the matching pair of couple’s pyjamas in your hands. Baby pink and baby blue. The pyjamas also have matching baby chicks printed all over them. They seem to stare menacingly at him with their little cartoon eyes as he examines their ugly faces. 

“We have to buy them!” 

Sylus grimaces as you wave them in his face. He supposes this what he gets for agreeing to shopping with you. 

“They’re not exactly my taste.”

He watches with amusement as you give him your best puppy eyes. 

“But you’d look so cute in them.” You continue to wave them around, as if you’re trying to hypnotize him into liking them. 

“Not a chance.” Sylus walks off, trying to hide his laughter as you continue to pout behind his back. 

“You’re so boring,” you grumble as you put the pyjamas back on the rack, trailing after Sylus through the department store. 

“Oh wow!” 

Sylus watches as you walk excitedly towards a pair of earrings on display in the jewellery section. A simple pair of studs in the shape of little dragons. Their wings have small rubies encrusted in them. 

“Something else caught your eye?” Sylus sidles up next to you, examining the earrings through the glass. 

“Uh…it’s a bit out of my budget,” you mumble, fiddling with your fingers awkwardly. 

“Such a shame,” Sylus laments, folding his arms. “They would suit you.”

You reach up and pinch his cheek. “No need to rub salt in the wound.” 

You walk off, leaving Sylus alone with the earrings glistening up at him. He waits until you’re a few metres away before calling over the store clerk. 

“How can I help you, sir?”

“I’ll take these.” Sylus gestures towards the earrings. “Can you gift wrap them for me?”

“Of course. Just to let you know, these are part of a couple’s set.” She motions towards a necklace with the charm of a dragon’s wing on it. 

Sylus isn’t even surprised. Fate loves tormenting him after all. Always dropping little reminders of his curse. The earrings were one thing, but a matching necklace… he should have known.

But despite it all, he eyes the piece with interest, tapping his chin in thought as the rubies shine up at him. 

“I think your partner would love you to wear it,” the store clerk says, eyes shining. “I know my job is to upsell…but between you and me, the girl who was with you earlier…she looks at you as if you’re the most important person in the world.”

Sylus nearly chokes. He hadn’t really noticed that before. 

“I’ll take the set.”

He supposes this could be a way of saying fuck you! to fate for once. 

𓅇 ⋆.˚ ☾⭒.˚

He gives the earrings to you later that evening, playing it casual as he hands you the box before sitting in his armchair and pulling out a book of sonnets, his eyes peeking over the top of the pages as he secretly tries to gauge your reaction.

“Sylus! You shouldn’t have bought them! They cost a fortune!” You thank him with a kiss that’s sweeter than the spring flowers that grow in the valley of a mountain range.

Sylus shrugs as he watches you run off to admire the jewellery in the mirror above the fireplace. 

“Money isn’t an issue,” he says, nonchalant. 

“I know that, but still! You don’t have to buy me things.”

He gets to his feet and takes the earrings from your hands.

“Allow me.”

He carefully inserts the earrings into your earlobes, loving how they compliment you so well. 

“Beautiful,” he breathes, tilting your chin up.

“Thank you.”

“I was talking about the earrings, not you.”

“Sylus!”

His laughter is loud enough to fill the entire Onychinus base.

Little does Sylus know that you spot the matching necklace peeking out from under his shirt later that night, but you don’t mention it, afraid that he’ll take it off in embarrassment.

Sometimes some secrets are best kept hidden.

IV.

“Mister Sylus?”

Sylus sighs as he twirls a handful of linguine around his fork. 

He is not having a good week. 

The whole love situation has been driving him a little insane recently. After facing the obvious and admitting to himself that, okay, maybe he is falling in love with you again (not that he had ever really stopped being in love with you), he had finally made peace with the whole situation. 

Until of course, the nightmares started, and now he’s lost count of all the ways he’s watched you die in front of him.

Dreams are just dreams , he knows this. But that doesn’t make them less terrifying. He’s the head of Onychinus for Christ’s sake. It’s a known fact that nothing really scares him. But losing you again…no. He’s not letting it happen. And after the kidnapping incident, he’s made sure that something like that won’t ever happen again. He has Mephisto giving him daily updates, making sure that no one suspicious has been tailing you. 

But the darkness still resides in his heart. So instead of letting it get the better of him, he’s been trying to stay awake. In total, he’s probably been getting four hours of sleep every night for the past few days.

And of course, to top it all off, he’s been cleaning up Onychinus related messes all week (none of which were his fault, but all of them required his assistance, apparently). Between dealing with a missing batch of protocores and a shoot-out with a group of idiots that couldn’t hit him no matter bullets they fired, Sylus is on the verge of losing his mind as he sits across another useless mole that Luke and Kieran found for him, and now he has to deal with it on very little sleep. 

“Your lies, they’re boring me,” Sylus says eventually, eyes still on his pasta. “My time is precious, and you’re wasting it.”

His gaze moves slowly to the man opposite him. A sheen of sweat has broken across his forehead. It makes Sylus smirk, the effect he can have on people. 

“I promise Mister Sylus, I would never lie to you. My loyalty to Onychinus is–”

“Unwavering? Infinite? Please, I’ve heard it all before.” Sylus curls his hand into a fist, the familiar feeling of power coursing through his veins as his Evol snakes around his wrist, slowly seeping into his fingertips. 

“Mister Sylus…” the man watches him with bulging eyes. “I-I swear–”

“Swear on your life? Don’t worry. You won’t have to make false promises anymore.”

And really, he’s about to have the most fun he’s had all week, because there’s nothing more satisfying than the feeling of having his energy consume another weak soul. His fingers twitch as his Evol creeps towards the mole’s throat. Three…two…one…

“Wanderer!”

They have got to be fucking joking.

Sylus curses as a Wanderer suddenly crashes through the window of the restaurant, forcing him to take cover as glass shatters all around him. Familiar screams of terror fill the air as the Wanderer begins to destroy everything within a two metre radius, and the mole, God damn it, the mole has somehow managed to slip away in all the chaos. As if his day couldn’t get any worse. 

He thinks he might just call it a day and let someone else deal with this mess. He’s already cleaned up about three incidents today anyway. He sighs as he stands up and dusts off his jacket, tutting as he notices a sizeable stain on his shirt. He’ll have to get Luke and Kieran to send it off for dry cleaning later. 

He glances outside at the chaos on the streets. About six Wanderers are crashing through the square, the protofield already beginning to form. Sirens wail in the near distance and soon enough the Hunters flood the streets, right on cue. It’s enough to give him a very inconvenient headache. He’s about to use his Evol to disappear when he hears something that makes him freeze. 

“Everybody, please remain calm!” 

A stern voice that can be heard above all the chaos. A voice that Sylus would recognise in every universe, in every lifetime. You. 

“Please evacuate the area as quickly as possible! The Unicorns will take it from here!”

And all of a sudden, Sylus is on the street pushing roughly through the crowd, heading towards you, his Evol pulsing in his veins as the familiar sense of power builds in his bones.

“Take cover!”

He barely has time to dodge as a car flies over his head, barely has time to register that the car is flying straight towards you, your back turned as you shield a child in your arms. 

He’s seen this before. So many times. The nightmares always end the same. But this isn’t one of his nightmares.

This is real. 

"Run!” Someone screams, and Sylus watches in slow motion as you turn around too late, your eyes widening as you see the car hurtling towards you at a hundred miles an hour, ready to land right where you stand. 

Shrill screams, a blur of red and black, and suddenly the car freezes, as if caught by an invisible force, only it isn’t quite that. Wisps of scarlet smoke wrap around the car, crushing it until it dissipates into dust, and in front of it all, shielding you and the child, is Sylus. 

“Are you alright?” Sylus pants, slightly out of breath as he turns around and scans your body for any injuries.

Too stunned to speak, you stare at him in awe as the child clings onto your leg. 

“How…where…” you stammer. He pulls you into a brief hug before he takes your face into his hands and gives you a stern look. 

“What exactly are we looking at here?”

“High metaflux fluctuations in this area. There’s about twelve Wanderers, and the protofield is forming quickly. We need to evacuate the citizens and eliminate the Wanderers as fast as we can before they spread the protofield further over Linkon,” you say, scanning through the slides on your Hunter’s watch.

Sylus nods. “You guide the child to safety. I’ll start with the Wanderer that nearly took you out with a car.” He points at the fountain in the centre of the square. 

“I’ll meet you there in ten minutes. You can help me finish the rest of them off.”

You give him a look as you lift the child into your arms. “I only need five.”

“That’s my girl,” Sylus says, watching as you sprint away, his heart warm.

With you by his side, perhaps today won’t be a bad day after all.

𓅇 ⋆.˚ ☾⭒.˚

Two hours later, three close encounters, one scratched forehead and one broken fountain, Sylus finds himself sitting beside you on a piece of rubble, a cap and a pair of sunglasses hiding his face as you frantically look around, triple checking that no one is giving Sylus any strange looks. 

“We just killed a dozen Wanderers, Sweetie. I doubt anyone is worrying about the N109 Zone’s crime lord gracing them with a surprise appearance.” He hands you a mango ice pop. 

“A reward for your performance today.”

Satisfied that Sylus is unrecognisable to the public eye, you take a bow as you accept the ice pop before taking a seat beside Sylus in the rubble. 

“Always a pleasure fighting alongside a crime lord.”

“Yeah, well, you’ve gotten stronger. Our training is paying off.” Sylus can’t help but feel proud of your strength. 

“You need to work on your defence though.” His fingers reach out to gently touch the graze on your forehead. 

You shake him off. “I can handle an injury or two.”

“I know you can,” Sylus sighs, looking at the determination in your eyes. “But sometimes you run recklessly into things. It’s important to think before throwing your punches.”

“Well, I know you’ll always have my back to pull me out of trouble anyway,” you say with a shrug before sneaking a bite of his ice pop. 

Sylus opens his mouth to say something, but is cut off by your Hunter’s watch buzzing. 

You get to your feet and give him a mock salute. “Duty calls, I guess. Maybe I’ll see you later? How about a movie night in my apartment?”

Sylus raises an eyebrow. “And if I say I already have plans?”

“Cancel them.” You lean down and give him a quick peck on the cheek. 

Sylus can only smile as he watches you run off. You blow him goodbye kisses as a group of Hunters throw their arms around your shoulders, congratulating you on another successful mission.

V.

Flowers can’t grow in the N109 Zone, unless of course, you know the right people, or unless you’re the leader of Onychinus, which Sylus just so happens to be, thus, this is how he finds himself in a little corner shop tucked away from the the busy streets of the N109 Zone’s main square. A miracle really, how it has managed to survive in such a desolate place, but the owner has a special kind of Evol that can make flowers bloom even in darkness.  

“So how can I help you today, Mister Sylus?”

A young girl with a green apron and a gentle demeanor blinks up at him with curious eyes. He supposes it’s not everyday that someone like him would be in a shop like this. 

“I need to buy flowers for a friend,” he says, looking around at the bouquets sprawling out from the shelves around him. It feels as if the flowers are responding to his presence, the pretty ones shaking their petals, trying to get him to reach out and touch them so they can have a peek into his desires. 

“And the occasion?” The girl tilts her head to the side, but she’s looking at him as if she’s already figured out the answer. It’s a little unnerving. He wonders if this is how his enemies often feel when he’s picking them apart with the Aether Core in his eye. 

“No occasion,” Sylus hums, turning his attention to a sunflower that has begun to poke him with its leaves. “Do all your flowers greet your customers like this?”

The girl laughs. “The flowers have a mind of their own. I only use my Evol to encourage them. You can’t tame what’s natural, you know.”

“And what are your flowers telling you now?” Sylus reaches out to touch the leaves that are reaching for him. 

The girl folds her arms. “That you’re not buying flowers for a friend.” 

“Perhaps not,” Sylus sighs, feeling the familiar sensation of invisible thorns pressing into his chest. “How do you tell someone they mean the world to you? That you’d search for them in every lifetime? In every dimension…you would choose them over something as precious as life?”

“Zinnia.”

Sylus watches as the girl waves her fingers and summons a small bunch of magenta coloured flowers. “Representing everlasting affection and endurance due to their willingness to grow. They’re tough little guys to grow too. They need a lot of encouragement.”

Sylus smiles, thinking back to a memory of you standing over the little plant you left on his window sill in his bedroom, one hand on a small water can, the other tapping the leaves of the plant with soft affection.

“Make sure you grow big and strong so Sylus won’t have to feel lonely anymore, okay?” 

Sylus watches you from the doorframe, your back facing him, completely unaware that he’s even there. 

“He doesn’t say it in front of me because he thinks it makes him look weak, but I know it upsets him that nothing can grow in the N109 Zone.” He watches as you bend down and kiss the petals of the plant.

“So prove him wrong and make sure you grow big and strong. Make him smile when I’m not here.”

“Mister Sylus?” 

The girl’s voice snaps him out of his thoughts.

“Can I ask you a question?”

Sylus nods. 

“Two months ago, I received a letter from an unknown sender who invited me to open a flower shop at this exact location in the N109 Zone. The letter stated that it would cost me nothing, that my exceptional Evol was enough payment for whatever the cost of the shop would be.”

She looks at him then, really looks at him. He supposes he should have seen this coming. Secrets are one of the top selling items in the N109 Zone. 

“Hasn’t anyone told you that it’s a big risk accepting an invitation to the N109 Zone from a stranger?” Sylus asks.

“I suppose I left out a crucial part of the story.” The girl motions to a letter that hangs on a corkboard over the counter by the cash register. “The letter had the stamp of Onychinus on the bottom of it.”

“Yet you still came and opened your little shop.”

“I know you sent that letter yourself. I know you asked me to come here and open a flower shop in a place where flowers can’t even grow. I just couldn’t figure out why. There’s rumours about you, you know. That you can kill a person with just a flick of your wrist. That you have horns and a tail that only come out when someone is about to die.”

“Are you upset that the rumours were false? Or are you perhaps scared that I’m here today to prove that they might be true?”

“A man that requests someone to open a flower shop in Hell…he doesn’t kill for sport. No, you’re not what people think you are.”

Sylus laughs as he throws up his hands in mock surrender. “Do you interrogate all your customers like this?”

“You’re exactly how I thought you’d be. Arrogant, sarcastic, yet you’re here because there’s one thing you can’t figure out, and you think flowers might be able to do the job for you.” 

The girl gives him a smirk. “You’re in love, Mister Sylus. You’re so in love that you tracked down an Evolver that can make flowers bloom anywhere so you could send flowers to your beloved.”

Sylus sighs, tired of the game now that the exciting part is over. “So you’ve caught me. However, I haven’t had the chance to buy any flowers for her yet.”

“Too busy closing deals and blowing up buildings?”

“Something like that.”

The girl rolls her eyes. “You know the best way to tell someone you love them is actually telling them.”

“And if words aren’t enough?” Sylus sweeps his hand through the air, motioning towards the flowers. 

“I suppose roses would also work. Classic eternal love. Or Chrysanthemums. Faithfulness and longevity.”

“And what about those flowers?” Sylus twirls his fingers as his Evol tickles the petals of flowers that point towards the ceiling. Solitary, beautiful, they stand out like fresh snow on top of a mountain peak.

“Antirrhinums,” the girl says with a soft expression. “Also known as Snapdragons. White represents purity and grace. The purple ones represent love at first sight.”

A thousand memories flash through his mind as he stares at the flowers.

“I’ll take all of the Snapdragons you have.” 

“All of them? Unusual. Nobody really picks the Snapdragons. They’re often overshadowed by their peers.”

“People will often stay away from anything associated with dragons,” Sylus snorts as he walks towards the little flowers. 

“Dragons are solitary creatures. Even catching a glimpse of one can cost you your soul.” He reaches out to touch the delicate petals with his fingers. The girl watches him with interest. Surely the leader of Oncychinus is not as vulnerable as this? 

“But even dragons have a soft spot for beautiful things such as flowers.” Sylus touches his hair, feeling the ghost of a flower tucked between the strands. 

Years come and go. Sylus wonders if he’ll ever be able to save you from the cursed merry-go-round of fate. 

𓅇 ⋆.˚ ☾⭒.˚

He gets a phone call that evening.

“Did you really send me one hundred and nine bouquets of flowers?”

“And how did you get to that exact number?”

“I counted them all of course!”

“Usually people would say thank you by now.”

“I was getting to that. You’re just impatient.”

“I have all the patience in the world, Kitten.”

A beat of silence. 

“I had to look them up online because I’ve never seen them before. They’re called Snapdragons, apparently.”

“Yes, the florist said they're often overlooked.”

“Oh. Well…I’m glad you bought them then. They won’t feel lonely here. I’ll make sure of it.”

He thinks he might say it then and there. 

I love you. 

But the sentence never seems to make it past his lips. 

VI.

Maybe it’s time to address it.

“Oh, fuck, Sylus…” 

A simple late night phone call, whispers of I miss you, and all of a sudden, you’re at his door, your eyes dark as you step inside, throwing off your coat and wrapping your arms around his neck before he can react. 

“Sylus… please…”

Sylus smirks as he sucks at the skin on your inner thigh, using enough pressure to leave a hickey that will last for at least three days, maybe a week. A reminder that he’s been there; been to a place reserved only for him. 

“Does it feel good, Kitten?” he asks, gently stroking the bruise, his scarlet eyes glowing as he looks at you with lust. 

“Yes…please don’t stop…” you trail off as his lips trail kisses down your thighs, your hands sliding to hold his hair between your fingers as he gets closer and closer to the spot where you need him the most.

“You’re so wet, Sweetie,” he breathes, voice low as he stares at your heat. “Such a good girl…tell me…do you want it?”

“Yes…please… fuck Sylus, I need you so bad,” you moan, using your hands to guide him between your thighs, his breath warm

Yeah, maybe now’s not a good time to address it. 

Sylus can sense your neediness, his cock straining against his trousers as his mouth finds your heat, moaning as you squeeze his head gently between your thighs, his tongue working inside you as you slowly begin to unravel. Your body begins to tremble because fuck, Sylus always makes you feel like heaven is a place on earth, tucked away here, on his four-poster bed, in between cool silk sheets. 

And Sylus, well, he’s seeing stars, eating you out as if you might disappear tomorrow. His hands spread your legs wider, trying to find the best angle to make you fall apart. He fucking loves seeing you like this, loves the way you both submit yourselves to each other. A newfound trust that means more to Sylus than any protocore in all of Deepspace.

He continues to fuck you with his mouth, the taste of you like honey on his tongue. 

“Sylus…I think…I’m…ugh …” you trail off again, biting your lip as a familiar feeling builds inside you. 

Sylus smirks, and you can feel it between your legs. You tug on his hair a little harder, urging him to just fuck you more, because, Christ, you’re so fucking close. He seems to get the message, and begins to fuck you faster with his tongue, using his hands to guide your hips so they’re rutting against his hot mouth. 

He’s so fucking hard, he thinks maybe he could come like this, with your hands in his hair and his head between your legs. He knows you’re close, can sense it in the way you’re moving, so he decides to help you a little, his fingers creeping up to your clit before they begin to massage the bundle of nerves slowly, making you cry out in pleasure. 

“Baby…gonna…gonna come soon,” you whine, the world spinning as your head falls against the mattress. 

A growl leaves his lips. “Then come for me, my darling.”

And that’s all it takes for you to fall apart, and Sylus, the angel he is, keeps going until you pull him out, whining at him, tugging at his shirt to bring him closer to you. 

“I need you in me, baby.” 

People think he’s a strong man, yet a single sentence from you can make him fold like a sheet of paper.

“Are you sure?” he asks, shutting his eyes and letting out a quiet sigh of pleasure as your hands find their way to the bulge straining against his trousers. 

“Of course.” 

Sylus flips you over, moving so his back can lie against the headboard. He uses his Evol to place you strategically on his lap as your fingers begin to undo his belt and zipper. 

“You’re so beautiful,” he groans, dizzy with pleasure as you wrap your hand around his aching length. Even with your two hands wrapped around him, his cock is huge. The thought of it inside of you is making you wet again. 

“Lie back,” you order, and Sylus obliges, his eyes glowing through the soft haze of his bedroom. 

He squeezes your ass as you slowly lower yourself onto his cock, a loud cry escaping your lips. Even after doing this a few times, you still get surprised at his size, but his length sliding into you always feels like a home run. Sylus thinks you were made to take him like this; your body moulded just for him. 

“You’re so tight,” Sylus moans, his forehead falling against your chest. He places a soft kiss to your cleavage before bucking his hips up a few times until suddenly he starts pounding into you, your moans drowning out the squeaks from the bed frame.  

Good thing he sent Luke and Kieran out on a few errands. Sylus doesn’t think they’d recover from the noises you two are making.

“Sylus, baby, faster, ” you beg, gripping his shoulders for support, your hips grinding on his cock. “Fuck, you always feel so good.”

“You too, my darling. You’re fucking made for me. Always feels like heaven being inside of you,” Sylus growls, his hips fucking you like there’s no tomorrow. 

Heavy breathing and the sweet scent of sex fills the room as you both rock your hips in harmony, pulling each other closer and closer to the edge. Sylus can feel his orgasm building in his stomach. He needs to feel you more. 

“S-Sylus…” you pant, your legs beginning to ache a bit. “More. Please. I need…I need more .”

Yeah, he thinks he does too. 

Without warning, he pulls out of you, switching positions and pushing you on to the mattress before thrusting back into you with full force. Your hands fly to your mouth as you cry out in pleasure. 

Sylus tuts, removing your hands, interlocking your fingers with his own above your head as he fucks you slow and hard.

“It’s okay. No one’s home. I want to hear your sweet little moans, Kitten,” he coos, leaning down and kissing your neck. 

You shut your eyes, letting your voice echo around the room. 

“I think I’m close, baby,” you breathe. 

Sylus nods into the crook of your neck as his thrusts begin to pick up speed again, the sound of skin slapping skin getting louder and louder. 

“I have you, darling,” he pants, looking into your eyes with sincerity. “So be a good girl and come for me again.”

“You too,” you whine, thrusting your hips up to meet him halfway. 

“Fuck …” Sylus grunts, his hips stuttering as the feeling in his stomach comes to a boil. 

He’s not sure which of you comes first, all he knows is that suddenly everything feels warm, and when it’s all over, the earth seems to stop spinning, and nothing matters but the two of you together like this.

Time slows down after that. A comfortable silence falls between the two of you, a silence that remains as he cleans you, a soft towel wiping over your damp skin before he wraps you in one of his silk robes. He doesn’t bother asking you if you’re staying over tonight. It’s an unspoken agreement that has become a silent habit. 

More time passes. Somewhere in between the post-sex conversations and after-midnight kisses, you fall asleep in Sylus’ bed, the moonlight slicing through the gaps in the curtains, shining on your bare skin, making it look like you’re made of pure starlight. 

As you sleep, Sylus tucks your hair behind your ear and whispers gentle words into the night air.

“You are my sun and my stars. My fate is yours, for eternity. In my past life, in this life, and in every life to come after, I will be yours if you’ll allow it.”

Sylus wonders why vulnerability comes out easier under darkness than in daylight.

VII.

Glittering chandeliers and bubbly champagne. Jewel encrusted cutlery and a grandiose ice sculpture; yet all the riches in the world pale in comparison when placed next to you. 

Or at least, that’s what Sylus thinks, as he takes your hand, your high heels unsteady as you step out of the limousine he had prepared for the evening. It’s not often he accepts invitations to grand events such as Galas and Balls. His time is precious, and these events require a lot of false smiles and forced conversations. 

But as he looks at you – your shimmering ball gown twinkling in the moonlight, the pearl necklace glowing against the soft skin of your neck that he likes to trace when the world is asleep – he thinks it might be worth it this one time.

He leads you towards the entrance, admiring how the crowd parts for the two of you. The feeling of power; it’s addictive. Sylus has lived with it for so long that after a while, it made him a little jaded. But even the heaviest of snowfall melts over time, and as he watches your eyes sparkle as he leads you towards the ballroom, he regrets every second he wasted not searching for you. 

Not that he ever gave up, either. 

The ballroom is as extravagant as the ones described in a child’s fairytale. A roof with a Renaissance style fresco that stretches for miles, long tables with all the food from every corner of the world. Champagne fountains, decadent cakes, and you – having drifted away from his side to admire the scene – standing in the middle of it all. A single snowdrop. His flower.

“Good evening Mister Sylus.” Sylus nods at a couple as they greet him. Friends of Onychinus that would probably stab him in the back if he hadn't of invited them to this event. 

“Good evening,” Sylus replies, still not taking his eyes off you. 

“It’s not often that you grace us with your presence at these events,” the woman says, eyeing him with a look that could turn even the sweetest fruit sour.

“I have to keep an eye on things after the explosion incidents in Linkon.” 

“Ah, I see. Terrible how our own can turn on us just like that.” 

Sylus doesn’t even bother reacting, the conversation already boring him. 

“If you’ll excuse me, there’s somewhere I need to be,” Sylus says, excusing himself and making his way over to you. He stifles a laugh as he spots you helping yourself to the cakes and pastries on the table.

“Hungry, Kitten?”

You turn around and pout at him, your mouth full of cake. Sylus tuts as he wipes away the frosting on your lips. 

“I’m starving,” you groan through a mouthful of cake, to which Sylus laughs. He licks his finger, tasting the frosting he wiped off your lips. It’s a bit sweet for his palette, but if it’s something you enjoy, then he’d eat ten slices of cake just to see your smile. 

“Have you been enjoying yourself?” He reaches out to adjust the ruby crow brooch on your dress. “Collected enough intel to bring back to the Hunters Academy?”

“I’m not here on business,” you huff. 

Sylus lightly flicks your forehead. “But an intelligent Hunter like you never takes a day off.”

He smiles down at you, just as the orchestra begins to play a bright piece of music, making people flood to the floor for a dance.

“May I?” Sylus holds out his hand. 

“Are you asking me to dance?”

“It would be a shame to have all our practice go to waste,” Sylus says, his mind thinking back to a couple of nights ago. 

"One two three, one two three…”

Sylus tries to suppress his laughter as he watches you stumble around, trying to keep your pace in time with the waltz crackling through his vintage gramophone. He tries to guide you carefully in the right direction, one hand on your waist as he elegantly glides across the marble floor, but this only makes you step on his toes again. 

“Are you even trying, kitten?”

“It’s a lot harder than it looks!” you argue, trying your best to avoid stepping on his toes again. “And I’m not used to wearing heels.”

Sylus sighs and stops dancing, causing you to collide into his chest, but he anticipates this and catches you in his arms.

"How about we change tactics?” he asks. He lifts you gently so that you end up standing with your feet on top of his.

“Watch and learn.” 

Sylus uses his Evol to place your hands on his shoulders as his hands find their way onto your hips. He sways you both gently, his eyes focused on you, his heartbeat steady as he sways to the waltz. He picks you up and spins you around, causing you to squeal as you rise high into the air like a dove before he pulls you back into his arms. 

The memory warms him as he thinks about it. Fills his chest with butterflies as he watches you dance once more, except this time, your eyebrows are furrowed in full concentration. You’re trying for him, and he adores you for it. 

As the waltz continues, Sylus finds himself  becoming lost in the music, the room fading away until all he can see is you. Your eyes on his, his eyes on yours. You spin and step together in harmony; two souls in matrimony. 

“Kitten,” Sylus says, leaning down to whisper in your ear. “In case I forget to tell you later…” he trails off as he gently presses a kiss to your neck. 

“Not even the brightest stars could take away from your beauty tonight.”

𓅇 ⋆.˚ ☾⭒.˚

Later on, Sylus takes you out to the garden for some fresh air. Under the stars, your flushed cheeks from the heat of the ballroom glow like cherry wine. You find a private spot in the maze made of hedges and take a seat on a small bench surrounded by roses. 

Sylus kisses the crown of your head as you lay on his shoulder, a comfortable silence surrounding you both. Your skin is still flushed by the alcohol. Sylus suspects you’re a little tipsy from all the champagne. 

“Can I stay at your place tonight?” 

Sylus shifts his gaze to your pouting face. 

“Should I tell Luke and Kieran to get the guest room ready?”

You pinch his side with your fingers. “I think there’s enough room in your custom made, luxury bed for one more person. Plus, you and I both know I’ve only slept in the guest room once.”

Sylus smiles down at you. 

“And if I don’t want to share my bed tonight?”

You yawn, shutting your eyes and nuzzling your face into his jacket.

“You can sleep on the floor then.”

“You know that’s not going to happen.”

“I know.”

“You know.”

𓅇 ⋆.˚ ☾⭒.˚

On the drive home, you end up falling asleep. Not wanting to wake you up, Sylus carries you to his room and tucks you in, gently removing your makeup with the cleanser he keeps on standby when you visit. 

Although he tries his best to make sure you stay asleep, you stir a little at his touch, mumbling something as he wipes away the last of your mascara. 

“WhereamI?” you croak, eyes flickering as you try to sit up. But Sylus shushes you, gently pushing you back onto the mattress, and assures you that everything is fine. That you just fell asleep on the way home. 

Seemingly satisfied with that answer, you shut your eyes and pull Sylus down with you, burying your face into his chest as he falls into bed next to you. 

“Promise me you’ll stay until I fall asleep,” you whisper into his ear. It sends shivers down his spine. A promise is a heavy burden for a dragon. Not that he is one anymore, but that doesn’t mean he’s forgotten about the past, forgotten about what it actually means if he breaks one.

What if one day he makes you another one he can’t keep? 

“Sylus?” A hand reaches out through the dim light and pokes his face. “Are you still here?”

Fuck it. He’s already this deep anyway. Running would be futile at this stage. Maybe it’s time to stop being afraid. He catches your hand in his and presses your fingertips to his lips.

“I’m still here,” he whispers. “And I promise I’m not going anywhere.”

You smile, your eyes still closed. “Goodnight Sylus.”

“Goodnight.”

True to his word, he stays until you fall asleep. In fact, he lays beside you until the sun rises.

And when you wake up and find him asleep next to you, the sunlight creeping in through the curtains making him frown in slumber, you pull the duvet over both of your heads, a smile spreading across your lips as you curl into his chest. 

Sundays are for sleeping in anyways. 

VIII.

As Summer draws to a close, Sylus finally finds a day to take you hiking to a place outside of Linkon where no one will recognise him. He picks you up late in the afternoon, the plan being to reach the summit by sunset. 

Even though he’s become accustomed to cold nights, Sylus has grown to enjoy the feeling of the warm Summer wind in his air, one hand on the steering wheel, the other shifting the gear stick as you sing along to the radio, him occasionally joining in, which only causes you to burst into a fit of laughter every time. 

It’s not often he’s awake during the day, but recently he’s begun to embrace the light. Maybe because it highlights your beauty in all its glory. Loving you has changed a lot of things for Sylus, has made him feel stronger, yet more vulnerable at the same time. 

And he’s been watching you grow too, like a flower that blooms in adversity, slowly, but surely. Through all the pain in your heart, you still have managed to flourish, and it makes him proud, seeing how strong you’ve become since he found you again in this lifetime. 

“Sylus, up ahead, look!” You point excitedly to the mountain in the near distance. Sylus hums as he steps on the gas pedal, not wanting to waste another second in his thoughts.

The sun is already beginning to dip into the horizon as Sylus pulls into the parking lot. He grabs your bags from the trunk as you tie your shoe laces and check your Hunter’s watch, scanning through the exact route that you both had planned together. 

“If we leave now, we should make it to the top by sunset,” you say, eyebrows furrowed in concentration as you examine the route. 

Sylus takes your hand in his. “Lead the way, Miss Hunter.”

𓅇 ⋆.˚ ☾⭒.˚

By the time the two of you reach the summit, most of the crowds from the afternoon have dispersed, leaving behind a tranquil atmosphere. The air is a little crisp, the early signs of Autumn creeping into the dregs of Summer. Sylus notices you shivering slightly as you both look out at the view. Without a word, he takes off his jacket and drapes it over your shoulders. You give him a grateful look. 

“Thank you for bringing me here,” you say, breaking the silence, eyes gazing at the sweeping landscape below. 

“You weren’t kidding about the view. It’s breathtaking. I feel like I can touch the sky.” You reach out into the air, basking in the last rays of light of the day, smiling at Sylus with all the warmth of the sun.

“You’re right,” Sylus says softly, watching how the light casts a golden glow on your skin, as if you’re an angel and all he can do is pray to heaven they’ll let him keep you on earth. 

“It’s beautiful.”

In this exact moment, Sylus knows the time has come. He has to tell you.  

He clears his throat. “Sweetie, I–”

“S’mores for sale! Get your s’mores here!”

Sylus curses as a stall owner starts causing a ruckus a few metres away. 

“Oh my god, I haven’t had s’mores since I was a kid!” you squeal with excitement. Sylus can feel his eye twitch slightly as you grab his hand and pull him in the direction of the food stall, a steady queue already beginning to form. 

“What even is a s’more?” he grumbles, still feeling a little disgruntled that his big speech was rudely interrupted. 

“Wait, you’ve never had a s’more before? I thought you went camping all the time.”

“And what has camping got to do with these so-called s’mores?”

Your jaw drops in disbelief. “S’mores are like…the best campfire treat ever! Warm chocolate and toasted marshmallows all squished between two graham crackers.” You mime squashing the s’more between the palms of your hands. 

“And voilà! The best snack you’ll ever have in your life, all put together in less than a minute.”

“Sounds like a one way trip to diabetes.”

“You’re such an old man sometimes.”

“I suppose I am ninety years old. If you believe the rumours that is.”

You both continue to bicker back and forth until you finally get to the top of the queue. Sylus doesn’t even get a chance to argue before you order two s’mores, slapping a handful of coins onto the counter. 

The smell of sugar fills the air as he allows you to drag him to a secluded spot on the summit with a bench overlooking Linkon. By now, the city’s lights are slowly beginning to flicker on as the sun continues to lower itself deeper and deeper into the horizon. 

A fond smile ghosts his lips as he notices that you're halfway through your s’more, chocolate smeared on the corner of your mouth. 

“This is the best day ever,” you say dreamily, your eyes shining as you once again admire the view. Finishing the last of your s’more, you lean against Sylus’ shoulder, sighing with satisfaction as you pat your stomach dramatically. 

Afraid the chocolate will melt and stain his hands, Sylus begins to eat his own s’more, his nose scrunching at the taste.

“As expected, this is nothing but pure sugar.”

“Aw c’mon, it’s delicious,” you huff, taking the s’more from his hands and waving it in his face.

“What are you doing?” He asks, his eyebrow raised with suspicion. 

“Say aaaah!” You shove the s’more into his mouth, forcing him to take another bite. He coughs as the sickeningly sweet taste of the s'more fills his mouth again, but he finishes it anyway.

Not before he jabs you in the ribs for fun, of course. 

“Okay, okay! I surrender. It tickles too much!” you wheeze as he continues to jab you with his fingertips.

Satisfied, Sylus leans in and wipes the chocolate from your face with his thumb. 

“Are all kittens this messy?” he teases, and before you can complain, he presses his lips briefly against yours, smirking as he pulls away.

Cheeks flushing, you have no idea how to react to that, so instead you bury your face in Sylus’ sweater, trying to hide your blush from him. 

You sit in a comfortable silence after that, Sylus holding you close as you both take in the sunset together. He can feel your heartbeat, can feel the steady rhythm that brought him to you through Deepspace. He thinks if he had to go through all those years of loneliness again just to hold you like this for even a second, well, he’d do it all over again with zero hesitations.

And just like that, like a puzzle sliding into place, like a shooting star finding its way home, the universe whispers for him to bring the crescendo of his unspoken symphony to its climax. 

“I love you.”

Those three words; they’ll never be enough.

But for now, they’ll do. 

“I love you,” he repeats, just as the sun sinks into the horizon and the moon becomes visible. “I’ve loved you for a long time, Kitten. I’m sorry for not telling you sooner.”

“Oh, Sylus, my beautiful, beautiful Sylus.”

Warm hands reach out as you turn to cup his face, tears glistening in your eyes as you laugh with disbelief. 

“I know. I know you love me, even though you’ve never said it to me before. Your actions, they’re enough. You, right next to me…it will always be enough.” 

He stares at you with nothing but pure reverence in his eyes. 

“And for the record, I love you too.”

At your confession, Sylus wraps his arms around your waist as you continue to hold his face firmly in your palms. Under the twilight, you both stare lovingly into each other’s eyes, the darkness in Sylus’ heart finally fading away into something warm, something golden. Something that can only be described as love.

And as you kiss under the magenta sky, Sylus knows that no matter where fate tries to hide you, he’ll always find you.

Because home is wherever you are.

[abi-renirk]

Thinking about Wymack putting up with Neil, alone, during his senior year. None of the other foxes are there to deal with his antics. Kevin isn’t there to talk about everything Exy related. Andrew isn’t there to keep him grounded and sane. Allison and Nicky aren’t pushing him out of his comfort zone with his style, appearance, etc. Matt isn’t there to be a friend. Dan can’t help him captain his team. Aaron isn’t there to annoy him. Renee isn’t there with her gentle, reassuring smile.

I know that some of the freshman from the EC become Neil’s friends, but it isn’t the same as the OG Foxes.

So, he turns to one of the few people he trusts, Dad Wymack™️. Neil joins him in his office for lunch and tells him all about Andrew’s most recent Exy game. “Did you see how many saves Andrew made last night?” 38. It was beautiful.” *heart eyes* Coach returns his attention to the paperwork he was working on when Neil walked in. He half listens as the striker explains a movie that Nicky said he needed to watch to understand current trends.

After a game night, Neil goes home with Wymack, who now lives together with Abby, and stays for dinner with the couple, yapping about everything that plagued him that day. “I talked to Andrew last night and he was telling me about this drill his pro team does at practice. He thinks it’s stupid, of course, but I think it could help us get through the other team’s defense easier.” He goes on to explain the drill between bites of pasta and sauce.

When Neil leaves, Coach looks at Abby, feeling slightly dumbfounded, “I never knew the kid could say so many words in such a short time.” Abby lets out a chuckle.

“I don’t get any paperwork finished anymore with him around so much.” He explains with fake annoyance. She gives him a soft smile, “He just misses Andrew and the rest of our Foxes. I think it’s says a lot that he trusts you with the details of his private life. We all know how hard that is for him.”

Dad Wymack sits in his thought for a quiet minute, thinking back to the locker room in Millport with the brown-haired, brown-eyed boy who was scared to live. To the airport before the new year with the red-haired, blue-eyed boy who was fighting for his family. To a cheap motel in Baltimore with a boy covered in scars who fought to stay and live. Neil has come a long way and Wymack’s chest swells with pride and love for the striker.

Two days later, on Monday, Neil shows up right on time for Wymack’s lunch hour, but the older man doesn’t mind the sound of Neil’s chattering over their shared lunch. “Allison told me my hair is getting too long, but the shampoo she sent me is making my curls look “delicious”. I don’t know what she means by that, how hair can look edible, but Andrew says not to worry about it. Speaking of Andrew, do you know how much he has been bench pressing in the gym? He’s up to—“

Wymack lets out a quiet, exasperated sigh as he leans back in his chair, accepting his fate for the next year as Neil continues talking. He may act annoyed about his new lunch time guest, but it means a lot that Neil feels safe with him, even if that means learning about pop culture and Neil’s distaste for broccoli.

[project-sekai-facts]

What grinds my gears is what when people say that the reason Kana5 is bad due to it trying to make Mafumon sympathetic.

A couple have even gone as far as saying that Kana5 is as bad as Toya5 for the same reason and I-

Look. I deeply understand the idea of abusers being more complicated than simply “evil trash” is hard to comprehend. And I may sound insensitive but,

They need to grow up. They should not let their biases cloud their judgement and assume something is bad just because a piece of media has something they personally don’t like

the difference between harumichi and mafuyumum is their awareness.

harumichi - fully aware of what he is doing, fully aware his son is his own person and does not stop him despite heavy disapproval

mafumum - completely oblivious to what she is doing to mafuyu, projecting an idealised version of mafuyu onto her (and possibly an idealised version of herself)

harumichi working toya to the bone is him applying how he learnt to toya. the intent was not to physically/emotionally harm toya but that is what ended up happening (physical exhaustion is to be expected, he should not have forced toya to keep working but he deals with the same so he probably doesn't think it's a big deal). that said, he is fully aware of the fact he is taking away from toya's childhood, and admits this in concerto that toya's life was not "normal".

mafumum is entirely unaware of her abuse to mafuyu. this is repeatedly made clear in events post sayonara persona. mafudad relays to her what mafuyu tells him and she's incredibly distressed to learn that she'd been hurting mafuyu and she doesn't know what she did wrong. she can be manipulative, but she's not aware that she's being malicious, she thinks she's genuinely doing what's best for her child who she loves. there's also some context clues such as her young age compared to other parents, the fact she doesn't have a job and the fact she's at a lower social standing to her husband that suggest she may also be projecting the life she didn't get onto mafuyu.

harumichi being given the attempted sympathetic backstory doesn't work. he is neglectful towards his son, but is slowly easing out of these ways a little bit. toya has already begun to make ammends without the need for making harumichi sympathetic. he's a bad parent who did a bad thing knowingly.

with mafumum it is justified. in her first appearance, we see her from the biased viewpoint of kanade, who sees her as a cold and neglectful parent towards mafuyu. however from mafuyu's pov, she is a loving mother who is misguided in how she shows this love. this is what unreliable notes is about. mafumum is a bad parent who did a bad thing unknowingly. she is sympathetic because she is a troubled mother coming to terms with the fact she ruined her child's life.

both characters are loved by their children by virtue of them being their parents. the story is going to convey that no matter how bad they are as people. yes, forgiving abusers in fiction is overdone and to some degree unrealistic, however we do not yet know if that is where the story will go. all we know is that there will be a reconciliation. but even if mafumum specifically gets forgiven, it would not be unjustified. i feel like the first impression we get of mafumum from Kanade POV left a strong impact on a lot of people that they can't let go of. the whole point of the current arc is to let that go. the game builds her up as this malicious antagonistic force so that it can deconstruct that when we get to see her from an unbiased POV. she's not a villain like many people make her out to be, she's a human who made a mistake. a very bad and very big mistake, but a mistake nonetheless. she is a loving mother who fucked up really badly because she was too obsessed over perfection to actually see her daughter for who she is.

if the writers try and make us forgive harumichi though fuck them he fucking sucks. like i feel like toya will because he's like that yknow but i don't think the audience should feel sympathetic towards him.

[thewertsearch]

There are still a few characters I haven't killed yet. I almost forgot about them.

Homestuck's an awfully trigger-happy webcomic, it has to be said. Even the damn frog got whacked.

Most of these characters have the status you'd expect them to have, but there's still plenty of interesting information here - some of it rather unexpected.

First of all, it seems as if the introduction of Dad Crocker qualifies as a 'resurrection' of Dad Egbert. As far as the comic is concerned, these two are, in fact, the same person - and thus, they share a symbol.

Next, Sollux is apparently half-dead.

The last time we saw him, he was overexerting his psionics like crazy to accelerate the trolls' meteor towards the Green Sun. My theory is that he tapped into his Doom Aspect to achieve this feat - and that doing so has permanently reduced his lifespan, as if he made a deal for the Shinigami's Eyes.

Sollux isn't dead, but he's less alive than he used to be.

Clover's far too lucky to die, so I'm pretty confident that a question mark indicates that a character is still alive; they just haven't yet been revealed as such.

Therefore, the same is probably true for Spades Slick.

I don't know how he could have survived the destruction of a universe, but I'm not complaining.

Jane's confirmed dead, but there's a question mark appended to that death - so I think she did die, but it's not going to stick. Her Life powers are about to kick in.

And WV is the same!!

Fuck yeah! Give us our Mayor back, Hussie!

I was planning on totally messing with them in the short window of time they're in the same universe as me!

Right, right - because right now, John and Jade are in the weird, pseudocanonical dimension that Hussie's writing the comic in.

I wonder if that'll have any effect on their reality, or their awareness of the Fourth Wall? Are they currently 'non-canonical' versions of themselves? Since they're outside the comic, has everyone inside the comic forgotten that they exist?

Hopefully it isn't too late.

Let's see. They should be traveling near the speed of light across a distance of one yard, giving them about three nanoseconds before they crash through the other wall.

Wait, they're moving relativistically?

In that case, their trip should only last three nanoseconds from an observer's perspective. From their perspective, the trip's length should be different. Potentially very different, although it's impossible to estimate the degree of time dilation in effect without knowing the exact fraction of c that they're travelling at.

Anyway, Jade's powers now apparently include relativistic acceleration - which stretches time, as well as space. These two Aspects are joined at the hip, and to control one is to control the other.

Maybe I'll just level up these kids before they go, and that's it. They've earned it after all, don't you think?

And with some rare generosity from Hussie, it's time for John and Jade to experience Elder God Tier.

[pankowcrumbs]

Spanish Holiday X Will Poulter (Requested)

Plot: You fell for your older brother's best friend Will on a family trip to Spain and it is the best thing you ever did.

5.7K words

🌶️ 18+ spicy smut

MasterList

Will Poulter Masterlist

There are precisely two things you should never do on a family holiday:

Forget to pack bug spray.

Fall for your brother’s best mate.

I’d done both.

Will had arrived two days into our holiday like a bloody movie star aviators on, duffel slung over one shoulder, all sun-touched skin and long legs, grinning like he hadn’t just come to ruin the last shreds of my sanity.

He hugged Mum, shook Dad’s hand, and gave my brother, Ollie, one of those bloke-y half-hugs that included a lot of shoulder patting and subtle insults. Then his eyes landed on me.

I swear the temperature went up by ten degrees.

“Hey, trouble,” he said, voice low, teasing. “Still stealing everyone’s snacks?”

I rolled my eyes. “Still acting like a Greek god for no reason?”

He grinned, that crooked, lopsided one that made something flutter in my stomach. “Only when I know you’ll be around to notice.”

The villa we’d rented in Spain was ridiculous. Whitewashed walls, terracotta roof, a pool out back surrounded by lemon trees and an embarrassing number of inflatable pool toys that Mum insisted were for “decoration.” Sure, Mum.

Will was meant to sleep in the spare room, but after a suspicious ‘plumbing issue’ that no one else seemed able to confirm, he ended up bunking with Ollie. he was always around lounging shirtless by the pool, brushing past me in the narrow hallway, sitting beside me at dinner like it was the most casual thing in the world.

It wasn’t.

It was torture.

Because here’s the thing: Will Poulter had been in my life since I was about ten. He’d been at my birthday parties, brought me chocolate after exams, taught me how to reverse park. He was five years older, absurdly kind, annoyingly clever, and so very off-limits it made my head spin.

But lately… lately, it felt like something had shifted.

On the third night, we played cards after dinner Ollie insisted on it, all competitive and shouty about the rules and I ended up between Will and my dad at the table.

Will leaned in as I shuffled the deck, voice close to my ear. “What do I get if I win?”

“Eternal bragging rights,” I replied, trying not to shiver.

“Boring. How about… a secret?”

I raised an eyebrow. “What kind of secret?”

He grinned. “Your call.”

I shrugged, forcing a smirk. “Fine. But if I win, I get one from you.”

He nodded. “Deal.”

And that was how I found myself playing the most intense round of cards in human history while trying not to look like I was losing my mind. Every time our hands brushed reaching for the pile, every glance across the table it was like a tiny electric current humming beneath my skin.

By some miracle, I won.

Will leaned back, looking smug despite the loss. “Alright, trouble. Ask me anything.”

I tapped my chin thoughtfully. “Alright. Why haven’t you had a proper girlfriend in, like, three years?”

His smile faltered. Just a second. Barely noticeable.

“Because,” he said quietly, “I’ve had my eye on someone else.”

Oh.

I didn’t breathe.

Then Ollie threw a handful of crisps at Will’s face and the moment shattered like glass.

The days rolled on. Sunlight, swimming, barbecues. And Will.

Will, who insisted on sunscreening my shoulders even when I told him I’d done it already.

Will, who offered me the last piece of grilled halloumi every single time.

Will, who pulled me into the pool when no one was looking, only to hold me against him for a second too long, both of us breathless.

It was getting harder to pretend.

Even harder to ignore the way his eyes lingered or the way his tone dipped whenever we were alone.

That evening, after everyone went to bed, I found him on the terrace with a glass of red and that quiet look he sometimes wore like he was thinking too much.

“Couldn’t sleep?” I asked, sliding into the chair beside him.

He shook his head. “Too loud in there. Ollie snores like a lawnmower.”

I laughed. “He really does.”

We sat in silence for a while, the night air warm and buzzing with crickets. Then he said, “You’re not a kid anymore.”

My heart stuttered. “I know.”

“You always were, to me. Ollie’s little sister. Off-limits. Untouchable.”

“And now?”

He looked at me, really looked. “Now I’m struggling.”

I swallowed. “With what?”

He exhaled, setting the glass down. “With pretending I don’t want to kiss you every time you walk into a room.”

The words hung there. Heavy. Charged.

I stared at him. “Then why don’t you?”

He reached out, fingers brushing mine. “Because your brother would kill me. Because I don’t want to be the guy who complicates your life. Because once I do, there’s no going back.”

I turned my hand over, lacing my fingers with his. “Will…”

He looked at our hands, then at me. “Tell me to stop.”

“I don’t want you to.”

Something cracked between us then. Something soft, something real. He leaned in, slowly, giving me every chance to change my mind. I didn’t. Couldn’t.

When his lips touched mine, it was gentle, tentative a promise wrapped in a secret.

The next day, nothing changed. On the surface, anyway.

We still played games, lounged by the pool, helped Mum hang up laundry. But underneath it all was a current. A hum only the two of us could hear.

Will would pass me a drink and let his fingers linger just a second too long. I’d laugh at something he said and see his jaw tighten, his gaze drop to my mouth.

At dinner, Ollie told some embarrassing story about me and Will laughed like he always did, but I could feel his hand on my leg under the table, thumb stroking circles on my knee. It was maddening. Thrilling.

And no one noticed.

Not Mum, not Dad. Not even Ollie, who was usually hyper-aware of anything that moved near me with a Y chromosome.

That night, I found Will in the hallway, just outside the kitchen, drying his hands on a tea towel. He turned when he saw me, something warm and wicked in his smile.

“Hey.”

“Hey.”

I stepped closer. So did he. The world felt like it had narrowed down to this hallway, this moment, the space between us.

“I keep thinking someone’s going to figure it out,” I whispered.

He leaned in, voice low. “Part of me wants them to.”

“That’d be a disaster.”

He shrugged. “Sometimes disasters are worth it.”

Then he kissed me again slow, certain and I kissed him back like I’d been waiting years.

It didn’t matter that it was risky. That the timing was awful. That the whole thing was probably the worst idea we’d ever had.

Because the next morning, when I caught him watching me from across the breakfast table, his lips twitching, and his foot nudging mine under the table… I knew I was already in too deep to care.

He passed me the butter. Our fingers brushed.

Ollie was too busy ranting about scrambled eggs to notice.

And Will? He just smiled.

Like he’d just won something.

Like he knew exactly what he was doing.

It was getting dangerous.

Will had started pushing his luck in small, devastating ways.

A hand on my lower back when he passed behind me in the kitchen. A thumb grazing my wrist as he handed me a drink. His breath at my ear when no one was watching, saying things like,

"You're driving me mental, you know that?"

And every single time I’d pretend I didn’t nearly melt into a puddle at his feet.

He was enjoying it. I could see that. Every blush he drew from me, every stuttered breath, was fuel for him. The bolder he got, the worse it became.

Even now, sat on a beach towel under the late afternoon sun, my family bickering over which restaurant to go to later, Will leaned back on his elbows beside me and whispered,

"You look edible in that bikini, trouble. How am I meant to focus on anything else?"

I nearly choked on my lemonade.

Mum didn’t notice. Neither did Dad. Ollie was too busy arguing with himself about the merits of paella versus pizza.

Will just smiled lazily at the sea, proud of himself.

Later that night, we went out to dinner some cosy little spot on the main street lit with fairy lights and candles stuck into wine bottles.

I wore a sundress. Blue. Flowing. Not because of Will. Definitely not.

He sat opposite me this time, eyes flicking up from the menu now and then to shoot me a look that made my knees knock under the table.

When dessert time came around, Ollie perked up. “Right, we’re getting ice cream. You have to try that pistachio one from the place on the corner.”

“Meh,” Will said, setting his spoon down. “Not really in the mood.”

Ollie blinked. “You love ice cream.”

“Not when churros exist,” Will said, eyes flicking to me. “What do you reckon, trouble?”

I knew that tone. That look.

The air between us tensed like an elastic band.

“I could go for churros,” I said, trying to keep my voice light. “Ice cream’s overrated.”

Dad chuckled. “Kids these days. Alright, we’ll meet you back at the villa?”

Will stood, stretching. “We won’t be long.”

He said it too smoothly.

Too innocently.

We walked down the cobbled streets, past little souvenir shops and gelato stands glowing like lanterns. The scent of sugar and cinnamon followed us the closer we got to the churro stall tucked just off the main stretch.

There were barely any people there. A few locals. A couple kissing near a flower cart. Street musicians playing softly in the distance.

Will brushed his hand against mine.

I let it happen.

He stepped closer.

We got our churros one paper cone between us, still steaming, sugar sticking to our fingers and drifted towards a little nook just around the corner. Not quite hidden, but dimly lit, framed by ivy-covered walls and an old wooden bench.

We sat.

Silence settled.

But the tension didn’t ease. It crackled.

I licked sugar off my thumb and felt his eyes on my mouth.

“Will?” I said, half-breathless.

He leaned in, setting the paper cone aside, crowding into my space.

“Please,” he said, voice hoarse. “I’ll be so good. I’ll be so quiet. I just need it.”

My breath hitched. My thighs clenched.

His hand cupped the side of my face, thumb brushing my jaw like he was memorising me. Then he kissed me.

Hard.

Hot.

His mouth was urgent, greedy, and I matched him beat for beat. His hands moved to my waist, fingers digging in, tugging me closer until I was straddling his lap in this barely-hidden little haven.

Every touch was hungry. Hands in hair, on hips, under fabric clutching, gripping, mapping.

His lips trailed down my neck, and I had to bite mine to keep quiet. His teeth grazed my collarbone. My fingers were in his hair, tugging when he got too teasing.

“I can’t stop thinking about you,” he muttered into my skin. “Every time you smile. Every bloody time you touch your hair, or laugh, or walk past me in those tiny little shorts”

“Will,” I gasped, nails digging into his shoulders. “We can’t someone might see”

“Let them,” he said, breathless, voice wicked. “I don’t care. I’d let the whole street see if it meant I could touch you like this.”

He kissed me again, slower now. More controlled. But it still felt like fire.

His hands slipped under the hem of my dress, holding me firmly. Mine found their way under his shirt, mapping the ridges of his stomach, the strength of his back.

I had never felt so alive. So wanted.

So close to completely losing myself.

“Say the word,” he whispered. “I’ll stop.”

“I don’t want you to.”

He groaned. “You’re going to ruin me.”

We were seconds from becoming a scandal when I heard it.

“Will. Y/N”

Ollie.

We sprang apart so fast it was a miracle we didn’t dislocate something.

Will shoved his hands in his pockets. I adjusted my dress like I wasn’t about to combust.

Ollie strolled round the corner with a smug look and a dripping cone of strawberry ice cream.

“Didn’t realise churros took twenty bloody minutes,” he teased.

Will coughed. “Long queue.”

“Sure.”

He didn’t look suspicious. Thank God.

But I caught Will’s eye as we walked back toward the villa, our fingers brushing once.

He smiled.

And I knew this wasn’t over.

Not even close.

I barely slept that night.

Not that I had a reason to. Not with the phantom feel of Will’s hands on my skin and his voice still echoing in my head.

“Please, I’ll be so good, I’ll be so quiet, I just need it.”

He hadn’t been quiet.

And I hadn’t wanted him to be.

Even now, hours later, my skin still tingled where he’d touched me.

I tossed the duvet aside and slipped into a hoodie, padding barefoot into the kitchen. The villa was silent, save for the hum of the old fridge and the occasional creak of wood shifting as the walls cooled from the day's sun.

I stood by the window, sipping water, when I felt him.

That presence.

That heat.

“Couldn’t sleep either?” Will’s voice came from behind me, low and soft, like a secret.

I turned, heart already picking up.

He wore loose joggers and a T-shirt that clung to him in all the right places. His hair was a mess fresh from a shower or maybe from restless fingers. Probably both.

I nodded. “You ruined me.”

He smiled, slow and knowing. “You think I’m sleeping when you’re in the next room, wearing that bloody sundress to dinner and straddling me on a bench like it’s the most normal thing in the world?”

I swallowed. “You started it.”

He stepped closer. “And I’m not done.”

It took seconds for his hands to find my hips. For my back to hit the counter. For his mouth to land on mine.

It was different this time.

Less frantic. More dangerous.

Like we both knew exactly what we wanted, and nothing was going to stop it.

His fingers slid under the hem of my hoodie... just the hoodie and his breath hitched when he realised I wasn’t wearing anything underneath.

“Fuck,” he whispered against my neck. “You’re gonna kill me.”

I gasped as his hands slid lower, cupping my thighs, lifting me onto the counter with ease. His body pressed between my legs and every nerve I had lit up like fireworks.

My fingers tugged at the hem of his shirt, and he helped me pull it over his head. I ran my hands over the hard lines of his chest, the slope of his shoulders, the way he flexed under my touch.

He kissed me again slow and deep and full of promises I wasn’t ready to hear.

But I wanted to.

I wrapped my legs around his waist, pulling him close, and he groaned into my mouth.

“We shouldn’t” I whispered, already breathless.

“But we will,” he said, kissing down my jaw. “And you’re going to remember it every time you look at me over dinner, every time I sit next to your brother.”

That shouldn’t have turned me on.

But it did.

We didn’t make it to my room straight away. Not at first.

But eventually, we stumbled in, hands roaming, clothes lost somewhere along the way. The room was dark, moonlight painting silver across the bed as he laid me down like I was something to worship.

The moment he finally pushed into me, slow and deep, his forehead resting against mine, it felt like everything changed.

Like it had always been meant to be this.

We moved together in a way that made time blur. Every breath, every moan, every whispered curse against my skin was laced with need and heat and something dangerously close to love.

Afterwards, tangled in sheets and limbs, skin slick with sweat and hearts still pounding, I traced lazy circles on his chest.

He looked at me like I was a miracle.

“Do you regret it?” he asked softly.

I shook my head. “Not even a little.”

He smiled, eyes already fluttering closed. “Good. Because I don’t think I can ever stop.”

I was still asleep when the knocking started.

“Oi, Y/N! You up?”

Will and I jolted awake at the same time, limbs still tangled, skin still bare.

Ollie.

The door rattled again. “Have you seen Will? I can't find him.”

Will’s eyes went wide.

“Shit,” I hissed, sitting up. “Hide. Now.”

Will scrambled out of bed, tripping over the sheet. I shoved a pillow into my lap and watched in horror as he yanked on yesterday’s joggers, still half-asleep, and darted towards the terrace doors.

“Go in the pool!” I hissed. “Pretend you’ve been there!”

He gave me a wide-eyed look like seriously? but nodded and disappeared into the warm morning air.

I opened the door in a dressing gown, yawning. “What?”

Ollie stood there, shirtless, hair wet. “Have you seen Will?”

I shrugged. “Not since last night. Why?”

“He’s wasn't in bed.”

“Maybe he’s in the pool?”

Ollie frowned. “Just came from there. Didn’t see him.”

My stomach dropped.

Will, if you’re out there, just dunk your head or something.

Ollie peered past me into the room. “You sure you haven’t...?”

Splash.

We both turned.

A very wet, very guilty-looking Will surfaced from the pool like a dolphin who’d just committed a felony.

Ollie blinked. “How the hell did I miss you?”

Will pushed his hair back. “Was underwater. Long swim.”

“Right.” Ollie squinted. “You alright, mate? You look… weird.”

Will grinned. “Just morning brain. And cold water.”

“Okay then.”

Ollie turned and walked off, mumbling something about coffee.

I shut the door and let out a breath of pure panic.

Will reappeared two minutes later, dripping onto the tiles and laughing silently, towel slung low around his hips.

“That was close.”

“You’re insane,” I said, swatting his arm. “You nearly blew it.”

He smirked. “But I didn’t.”

“You were naked in my bed.”

“Best sleep I’ve had in years.”

I rolled my eyes, but I couldn’t help the grin that pulled at my mouth.

This was getting dangerous.

But it was also getting harder to stop.

And I wasn’t sure either of us wanted to.

The Next night I found myself pinned against the kitchen counter at 2:17 a.m., his hands gripping my thighs like they were the only solid thing keeping him grounded.

It had started with a midnight snack. Or that’s what I told myself. I’d crept into the kitchen in my oversized sleep shirt, thinking I could grab some crisps and sneak back to bed without waking anyone. But he’d already been there. Shirtless. Leaning against the fridge. Hair messy from sleep.

And he’d looked at me like I was his favorite flavour of sin.

“You always wander the house looking like this?” he asked, voice low and wrecked from sleep, eyes dragging down my bare legs.

I shrugged, playing it cool. “Didn’t think anyone would be awake.”

“Lucky me.”

He stepped forward, lazy and deliberate, like a lion who’d just decided he was hungry. I backed up instinctively, the edge of the counter catching me just below the hips. His fingers ghosted up the hem of my shirt, and his eyes burned into mine.

“I’ve been thinking about you all day,” he murmured.

I swallowed. “You’ve seen me all day.”

“Exactly. Torture.”

His lips brushed my jaw, feather-light. “I don’t think I can go another night of my life without you in bed with me.”

When he kissed me, it was greedy like he’d been starved for days and I was the only thing that could satisfy him. He pressed between my thighs, one hand sliding beneath my shirt, the other gripping the back of my neck like he couldn’t stand the idea of me being anywhere but right there.

“God, I love touching you,” he groaned against my skin. “You have no idea.”

“Will…” I whispered, already breathless.

His mouth dropped to my neck, biting lightly, kissing the sting away. “Tell me to stop,” he said, voice wrecked. “Or I swear, I’ll make you mine right here in the kitchen.”

I didn't say a word.

The next morning, I was sure I had “I let Will ruin me on the kitchen counter at 2am” written all over my face.

Mum caught me first. She raised an eyebrow over her cup of tea, gave me one of those slow, knowing smiles that said mother knows best and also knows exactly what you were up to. I avoided eye contact like a coward.

“Sleep well?” she asked, lips twitching at the corners.

“Fine,” I said too quickly.

“Hmm.” She sipped. “You and Will both slept in this morning.”

I nearly choked on my toast.

“He said he had trouble sleeping,” she added, all innocent-like.

I side-eyed her, and she just gave me a mum wink. The kind that says have fun, but not too much fun under my roof.

Later that day, Dad caught on too. Will came in from helping Ollie with the barbecue shirt half-clinging to his chest, hair messy again (not my fault this time) and my dad took one look at the flushed look on Will’s face, then at me, then back to Will.

He just smiled. One of those “I was young once too” smiles, paired with a little shake of the head and a chuckle.

“Everything alright, you two?” he asked casually.

Will, to his credit, didn’t flinch. “Peachy.”

Ollie, still completely in the dark, just shoved a beer into Will’s hand and threw his arm over his shoulder. “My guy. You’re basically part of the family now.”

Will smiled, but the look he gave me over Ollie’s shoulder was feral. Like he was dying to drag me upstairs and prove exactly how not brotherly his feelings were.

That night, I found myself in the hallway again coming back from the bathroom, barefoot in the dark, heart pounding like a drum. My door was cracked open just slightly like he’d left it that way for me.

Inside, he was sprawled on the bed in sweatpants and absolutely nothing else, eyes closing and opening slowly like he’d been waiting.

“Took you long enough,” he said, voice thick with want.

I shut the door behind me. “You’re getting cocky.”

He sat up, eyes glittering. “No, sweetheart. I’m getting desperate.”

And he was. The moment I was within reach, he pulled me into his lap, hands sliding under my shirt like he needed to touch skin or he’d lose his mind. His kisses were messier this time more frantic, more needy.

“Been thinking about you all damn day,” he whispered against my throat. “Nearly lost it when you licked jam off your finger at breakfast.”

I laughed softly. “You’re down bad.”

“You have no idea.” He pulled me closer, grinding up into me, the outline of him hard through those thin grey pants.

“Keep your voice down,” I warned, though I wasn’t doing much better breath ragged, hands shaking from how much I wanted him.

But he didn’t listen.

“You like it when I beg, don’t you?” he whispered, biting softly at my shoulder. “When I tell you how crazy you make me?”

I whimpered, and he smiled like he’d won the lottery. “You do. You love it.”

“Will”

“You wanna make me quiet?” he said, low and wicked. “Then sit on my face and shut me up.”

My jaw dropped.

He grinned, devilish and smug. “Don’t act shocked. I’d keep my mouth ready all night if it meant I got to taste you.”

“Jesus Christ,” I breathed.

He pulled me down into him, whispering every filthy thought he’d had all day into my skin. And when I moaned too loudly when my hand clutched his hair and my thighs shook around him he reached for the edge of the blanket, stuffed a corner into my mouth, and growled:

“Shhh, baby. Gotta keep it down, yeah? Don’t want your dad walking in, do we?”

I thought I’d be able to hold it together.

I thought I could play it cool, make it through another night, and act like things between Will and me weren’t on the verge of turning into something explosive.

But Will? He had other plans.

It was a Wednesday night, and the villa was quiet... too quiet. Mum and Dad were out, Ollie was in his room with his game console (blissfully unaware), and Will… well, Will was in the kitchen, making a snack.

I walked in to grab some water, but my eyes were immediately drawn to him. He was standing by the counter, sleeves pushed up, eyes locked on me like a lion waiting for its prey. And before I could even get the glass from the cupboard, he was already right behind me, his breath hot on my neck.

“Missed me, sweetheart?” he whispered.

The sound of his voice made me shiver, and I swallowed thickly. “You’re pushing your luck.”

Will chuckled darkly, his hands sliding around my waist, pulling me back into him so my back was flush against his chest. He nipped at my ear. “Am I? Or is it you who’s been thinking about me all day?”

I wasn’t sure how, but I ended up against the kitchen counter again, Will’s lips on mine, hands everywhere, and I couldn’t get enough. His mouth was insistent, hungry, like he was starving and I was the only thing that could fill him.

“You’re gonna make me lose it,” I gasped as his hand slipped under my shirt again, his fingers grazing over my skin. He growled low, like he wanted to devour me whole.

“You like that, huh?” His voice was rough, barely hanging on to control. “You like how I can’t stop touching you? How I can’t keep my hands off of you?”

I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. He had me so fucked up that all I could do was let out a strangled moan when his thumb circled over my nipple, the heat between us growing unbearable.

“You think you’re the only one who’s desperate?” Will muttered, his hand sliding down to my jeans, pulling them down just enough to tease. “I need you so bad, Y/N.”

“You’ve always needed me,” I whispered back, my hands sliding down to pull at his belt.

And then, just as I was about to finally lose control. Just as I was ready to tear him apart, finally give in to the chaos that was Will I heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps down the hallway. Slow, deliberate.

Shit.

I froze, eyes wide as panic surged through me.

Will, however, didn’t stop. He pulled me back into him, lips on my throat, hands still roaming, as if he were completely unaware of the potential disaster just outside the kitchen door.

“Will” I gasped, barely able to breathe with his mouth so close.

“Shh, baby. Don’t worry about it,” he said, voice low and filled with danger. “Just… don’t make a sound, alright?”

I could feel his desperation through the way he was holding me, the way his body pressed against mine. His breath was hot against my neck, and I could hear the way he was struggling to keep himself in check. But he was teetering on the edge.

Just as I thought I might pass out from the mix of desire and fear, I heard the footsteps retreat.

I exhaled sharply, trying to calm my racing heart. Will, however, didn’t back off. He just smirked.

“See?” he murmured, grinding up into me with a little more pressure. “Told you you’d like it.”

My head spun, and I didn’t even care anymore. I didn’t care about the consequences. I didn’t care about being caught. All I cared about was Will, all that tension, that need, that ache.

I was done playing it safe.

With a grin, I turned around, hands sliding down to pull at his shirt, desperate to feel him skin on skin. But just as I was about to take control, he stopped me, one hand gently holding my wrist. His other hand brushed through my hair, and for a brief moment, he looked almost… gentle.

“You’re mine now, Y/N. And I’m not letting you forget it.” He whispered, lips brushing against mine.

The moment he kissed me I didn’t hold back. My hands slid up to his chest, pulling him closer, pushing him into the counter. The cold surface was a stark contrast to the heat spreading between us. I moaned against his mouth when his hand slid to the back of my neck, keeping me in place as his tongue explored mine with a hunger that only made me want more.

"Y/N," he growled against my lips, like he couldn't get enough of saying my name.

That was the last straw. I wasn’t going to be able to stop.

Will pulled back slightly, his hands leaving mine for a moment, and I thought, no, please don’t stop but he was only moving to the hem of my shirt, pulling it over my head in one swift motion. I barely registered it before his hands were on me again, skin-on-skin, fingers skimming across my breasts, my waist, pulling me into him until the only thing I could feel was him his body, his warmth, his need.

"God, you’re so fucking beautiful," he muttered, lips brushing my collarbone, his hands gripping my hips as he pushed me back against the counter again. His voice was rough, raw with desire, and I could feel the tremors in his touch.

“You’re gonna break me, Will,” I gasped, fingers sliding into his hair as he nipped at my skin. “I'm already losing it."

He let out a dark chuckle, pressing against me harder, making me arch into him. “You think I don’t know that?” His lips were on mine again, bruising, demanding.

My breath hitched as his hand slid lower, fingers dipping past the waistband of my jeans, brushing the sensitive skin just above my underwear. I trembled under his touch, wanting more, needing more.

"You keep driving me crazy," Will admitted, voice shaky. He slid his fingers further, teasing, just enough to make me groan.

"Will, please," I begged, voice barely above a whisper. "I need you."

He grinned, almost cocky, but there was something vulnerable in his eyes. Something that made my heart race even more. “You want me to take you right here in the kitchen where your brother could walk in at any moment and catch his best friend fucking his little sister?”

The words shot straight to my core, and I couldn’t hold back the soft moan that slipped past my lips. “Yes. Yes, I do.”

His grin widened, his lips brushing over mine one more time before he moved down, his hands working at my jeans with a purpose. "You’re gonna beg for me, Y/N," he whispered, his breath hot against my ear as he finally pulled my jeans down just enough to reveal what he already knew.

"God, you’re perfect." He was practically panting, his eyes dark with need as he stared at me. "Don’t you dare think I’m letting you go now."

I couldn’t help the thrill that ran through me when he said that, knowing he was just as lost in this as I was.

But then, as if the universe was testing us both, I heard Ollie's footsteps again walking to the bathroom.

My heart dropped.

We froze. Not a single movement between us.

Will’s hand slid to the back of my neck again, holding me there, his lips pressing softly against my ear. “Keep it down, sweetheart you know the drill."

I swallowed hard, nodding even though my body was screaming for more.

Then, before I knew it, he had his hand over my mouth, muffling the gasp I couldn’t hold back as he slid one finger between my legs, making everything else fade away. I was so close. So close to losing it.

He pulled away for a second, his lips brushing my ear. “You stay quiet for me, and I’ll make it worth your while.”

I nodded again, barely holding on. His fingers worked magic, slow and teasing at first, until I was practically panting under his touch. I clenched my fists into the counter, trying to keep it together while Will’s hands kept working me, pushing me to the edge.

And just as the door creaked open down the hall, I thought I might finally lose control.

But Will always in control pressed his lips to mine again, a kiss that was almost too soft, too tender for what we’d been doing. It was enough to ground me for just a moment before I felt myself explode, wave after wave of pleasure rocking me until I couldn’t tell up from down.

"Shh," Will murmured, his voice low and calming as he pulled me into him, letting me catch my breath.

The flight back from Spain wasn't too long, but the vibe between Will and me kept things... interesting. Ollie, bless him, was next to us, completely oblivious to the little electric sparks flying. Will kept sending me texts trying to be subtle, but I could feel the weight of each one. His latest: "Mile-high club?" It made my stomach flip in a way I definitely didn’t expect.

I rolled my eyes, glancing over at him, then playfully smacked his arm. "You're terrible," I whispered under my breath, not wanting to draw Ollie's attention. But of course, he noticed.

Ollie looked between us, brow raised, but he said nothing. Just shook his head with a knowing smirk and settled back into his seat, plugging in his headphones.

The rest of the flight passed in a blur of shared glances, stolen moments, and an unspoken promise hanging in the air. By the time the plane touched down, I was ready for the next step wherever it might lead.

Once we were off the plane, Will turned to me with that teasing grin he couldn't seem to suppress. "Need a ride home?" he asked, his voice dropping to that warm, suggestive tone I was starting to get used to.

I nodded. "Yeah, thanks."

The drive back was quiet at first, the city lights passing by in a blur. My mind was still racing, but this time with a sense of anticipation I couldn't shake. When we finally arrived at my apartment, Will parked outside, looking over at me.

The moment Will and I were alone in the apartment, the energy between us shifted. The casual banter from earlier was still there, but now it felt like an undercurrent of something far deeper. Something charged.

"You know," he said quietly, "this isn't exactly how I imagined the Spain holiday going"

I tilted my head, feeling that pull, that undeniable connection. "Oh? And how did you imagine it going?"

His lips curled into a half-smile, his eyes dark with something unreadable. "definitely not that I would finally have all of you. I've wanted you for years."

The words sent a shiver down my spine. I found myself stepping closer to him, almost without thinking. My fingers brushed lightly against his chest, the warmth of his body sending a shock of heat through my veins.

"Will," I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper.

He took a slow breath, his hands reaching up, but not quite touching my face. "Yeah?"

It felt right. everything with him felt right.

His lips were on mine in an instant gentle at first, but with a growing urgency that matched my own. His hands found their way to my waist, pulling me closer, as if trying to melt us into one. His body was solid against mine, his chest rising and falling in time with the kisses that deepened with each passing second.

The night stretched out ahead of us, full of promise and starting our new chapter together and now figuring out how on earth we would break the news to Ollie.

[alexanderlightweight]

I hope you are continuing to feel better!

For a prompt, I would love to see something in any verse with Mirai and Magnus. I'm pretty sure she's in more than the honeycomb verse, but I can't place any others specifically. I love Magnus seeing her and Alec interact, whether it's her as a supportive second, getting Magnus access to Alec.

Or really anything with competent Alec supported by 'his' shadow hunters, dealing with incompetency from others. Mirai was just the one I remember the best.

Have an awesome rest of the week!

i'm a bit banged up today but I saw bunnies!!! BUNNIES!!!! sorry I see them quite often tbh but it never gets old. and Nightshade was the BEST boy today. sorry I got distracted.

this verse is to swear upon a curse and that's the first part. this verse is pretty Mirai heavy so I figured it would be a good one to fill for you!

but if you don't like swearing/don't want to consume it/cant I will pick a different verse so feel free to let me know.

i love Mirai and she is my favorite of all OC's tbh. She's also ridiculously competent but she worked hard to be that good.

i hope you enjoy

<3 lumine

-

to swear upon a curse

Magnus is currently experiencing the best time he’s ever spent in an Institute.  Even when he was somewhat friendly with a scant handful of shadowhunters, the delight of being around them and in an Institute has never reached the current level he’s experiencing.

Magnus finds himself leaning against a staircase as he watches comedy in action and beauty covered in horror.

It takes an unholy amount of towels and potions and a little added magic that Magnus slips into the mix for Alec Lightwood to actually become recognizable. 

It turns out that Commander Lightwood truly is unfairly gorgeous and Magnus wants to bruise that ichor raw skin with his own marks.

It’s a thought that lingers, especially because every time he thinks Magnus isn’t looking, Alexander Lightwood looks over at him from under potion damp hair and stares at him from under long, dark eyelashes.

There’s a moment — a pause in the air filled with unspoken tension when a finally clean and unfairly pretty face looks directly at Magnus — and then it breaks.

Lakecastle is obscuring his vision as she grabs a fistful of leather from a shadowhunter that runs past.

Literally runs. Doesn’t stop, doesn’t speak, just hands it over and keeps going.

“Pity, I was enjoying the view.” Magnus murmurs, just loud enough to be overheard and his Commander’s cheeks flush even as Lakecastle sends him an incredulous glance.

—

“You’re either incredibly lucky or he’s been poisoned. Take advantage of it either way. Don’t finish zipping up the vest and go talk to him.”

Mirai pushes Alec towards Bane and really hopes this isn’t going to backfire on both of them spectacularly.

But by Raziel’s wings she is not going to waste the chance of Magnus Bane apparently enjoying the eye-seering sight of ichor splattered muscles and the stench of raw skin or the evidence of Alec’s self-destructive instincts. 

If by chance Bane can get Alec to enjoy parts of life beyond the small, rather scant bits he has now, then she’ll take whatever she can get. 

Because Alec has shown more life and interest in a photograph of Bane than he has in anything since his ridiculous bullshit excuse monstrosity of a multi-arrowed bow.

But despite how foul Alec’s entire being currently is, t’s definitely working, if the way Bane’s eyes zero in on Alec mean anything and fuck Uriel. 

But Alec’s tripped.

Again.

Mirai really wants to look away and pretend that this isn’t happening but she swore to stay by Alec till the end no matter what.

Even if she would have preferred the end being a bloody death rather than one by embarrassment.

Thankfully for Mirai’s sanity and Alec’s continued existence, Bane catches him.

Actually, considering how red the back of Alec’s neck is — and it’s no longer covered in blood, Mirai checked twice — Alec’s continued existence might continue to be at stake.

Mirai hadn’t calculated the damage that would happen just from Alec being in Bane’s vicinity.  If a picture of him led to Alec tripping, how much worse and more dangerous would it be in person?

Before she can reform the half a dozen plans she’s already made, there’s the sound of a portal forming and Alec giving her the signal for — signing out. Which is fair, he’s overdue for downtime but Mirai hadn’t realized that meant he would just leave.

Through a portal.

With Bane.

Who is smirking and even gives her a jaunty little wave and with everyone — even her — ignoring the fact that it took a year to contact him and Bane hasn’t even looked at the wards.

True, she did shove Alec at Bane and tell him to take advantage of the opportunity but that was before she knew it was this big of an opportunity.  Or that she had to factor in the problems of Alec’s health and continued safety.

Well... if Bane likes Alec enough to catch him after seeing just what Mirai scrubbed off of him, then he probably likes him enough to return him in mostly one piece.

Considering that’s far better than what could happen, she will take it as the win it will have to be and hedge her bets for next time.

Because regardless of Bane’s plans, Mirai knows Alec Lightwood.

And he’s her Commander for a reason.

Mirai had her pick of the lot and she picked Alec because he wasn’t stagnate. He wanted to grow and learn and be better and become better, even if it bruised and cut and hurt him along the way.

Alec’s never been someone who gives up lightly and Bane better be prepared.  Because Bane’s just sunk his teeth into something that isn’t going to let him go.

In fact, knowing Alec.

He’ll just bite back.

—

AN:

Magnus is immune to the side-effects being around a shadowhunter pre-decontamination shower. 

Alec is not immune but also has a better tolerance than most from long term exposure. He’s also just really infatuated.  He needs a decontamination shower.

Magnus is going to provide something like that. With the added bonus of scrubbing Alec’s back since the ichor would be hard to reach and he offered

look Alec was taking advantage, Mirai gave him permission and he took it. that's the problem with Alec, you think he wont break any rules and then he'll break or bend the hell out of them and then bounce back and be like 'yes? because it made sense to do so.' or even 'you told me to.'

because Alec in some ways enjoys not necessarily malicious compliance (tho sometimes with the clave) but maliciously taking advantage of others assuming his compliance and the degree of it

aka, Mirai expected Alec to take advantage of the situation. she did not expect that to mean following Magnus to another, un-predetermined location without even going through decontamination. Alec literally playing dumb and going 'you said to take advantage, advantage is what I took?'

meaning he took advantage of the situation, Magnus and Mirai and even the term advantage all at the same time and is very proud of himself because it makes sense in the unwritten rules.

alec is not supposed to use this against Mirai. she is a little betrayed right now at realizing Alec will pull this shit on her as well. but she's also more determined than ever to help him get a life outside of hunting because she realizes he's never had a reason to pull this shit on her.

mirai also has a very high tolerance, its just that the tolerance doesn't mean you can look directly at someone without your eyes watering. like maybe magnus really likes how Alec looks in watercolor?

[sillygoofyqueer]

I love the mad scientist au, i humbly beg for more

OKAY OKAY OKAY!!!! Now, where were we... Okay so Lan Wangji is possibly going through the many stages of both gay realisation and also dealing with pain beyond the average person's comprehension considering that he was just dragged by an already injured leg into what would have been his death. Would have. If not for this impossibly confusing, confirmed psychopath literally prying open the jaw of a huge, man-eating monster to save his life. And then carrying him to safety on his back as though he too was not injury. Now all he can do is stare emptily as Wei Wuxian walks around the cave they have taken refuge in, a fire crackling nearby and the sound of the man of the hour muttering to himself as he sizes up different pieces of wood.

Lan Wangji would ask what the hell happened back there, but he's currently trying not to think too much both because he cannot breathe from the agony. (Also because every time he closes his eyes, all he can see is Wei Wuxian looking down at him with those strangely mesmerising eyes, muscles straining and the light from a nearby fire falling over his face-) Next thing he knows, Wei Wuxian is kneeling beside him and nattering on about how his leg is "really fucked up, actually!" while reaching out to pull Lan Wangji's pant leg up. Of course, his natural reaction is to grab the man's hand because seeing each others' calves is something that only happens at least three months into courting surely!

There's a pretty similar interaction to canon with Lan Wangji actually losing his fucking mind with everything that Wei Wuxian is doing to him, times ten because he can't be gay about medically treated by a Wen!! It's Not Allowed. Then Wei Wuxian makes a joke like "but of course you're scandalised by my bare chest, I bet anyone who shows off even their wrists get cut down by the Lan, don't they?" This is of course not the first comment he's made in this fashion, and Lan Wangji is too tired to care about propriety as he's like "why do you keep saying things like that?" Wei Wuxian looks at him weird and goes "because the Lans are overly traditional lunatics who suppress other ideologies and kill anyone who disagree with them???"

Cue a moment of silence where they're both just staring at each other as each and every time Jin Zixuan was like 'I swear they're like brainwashed or something' only to be met with scepticism flashes in his mind. He, very calmly, is like "what about the other sects?" and sits there as this man describes twisted versions of the sects (all of them seemingly carrying an aspect of the Wen within them, intriguingly). He's drafting an apology to Jin Zixuan for not believing him. "And the Wen told you this?" "Uhh, duh? Who else would tell me the truth??" It could almost be regarded as a joke if it weren't for how sincere Wei Wuxian sounds, how sincere he looks as he stares right back at him.

Lan Wangji doesn't really want to unpack all of this right now - a secret, bitter part of him is telling him that it doesn't matter if the man (teenager, just like him) didn't know, because he still killed all those people for his experiments - but he needs to talk about the Lan Sect to someone. His home has just been burned to the ground. He's grasping for any sense of comfort he can find trapped in a cave with a Wen and a monster. He tells Wei Wuxian that his home isn't like that and ignores the boy's scoffs of "sure it isn't" as he starts (in short, succinct phrases) describing what his home is like. What his life is - was like, before the fire. He doesn't even know if Wei Wuxian is listening to him.

Meanwhile, Wei Wuxian is listening to this Lan speak of his home like it is this peaceful place built upon serenity and rules, organisation that exists only as a form of comfort for those within the sect. A romantic backstory of a monk falling in love and creating his own sect because of it. It's nothing like the picture he had had painted for him, one of a sect thick with suppression and fear, control gained through threat of death, no chance to change and grow with shackles pulling one down. The Lan is surely, surely lying to him, but he speaks with such conviction that it is hard not to believe even just a little. It's not real of course, it can't be real. What would it mean if it was?

It's nothing for Wei Wuxian to dwell on. He stands up, frowning to himself at the sight of the other boy looking so sickly and pale - the food that the disciples were given wasn't conductive for health according to Wen Qing, and it shows. Lan Wangji doesn't ask where he's going, opening one of his eyes to watch him leave after closing them at some point in the silence of the cave. Wei Wuxian needs to go - he needs to think, and find some logic in Lan Wangji's words (after all, there is truth in every good lie). Or, better yet, he needs to plan for Xue Yang (and perhaps the other Wen) eventually coming back for him. It would do no good to have him come face to face with a monster in his attempts to save him, and Wei Wuxian needs to take his mind off things.

The only logical thing to do is to kill the monster!

[bartimaeus]

Guess who just watched season nine of Doctor Who I'm deeply unwell.

[bacchuschucklefuck]

space sweepers but they're delivery people and are at no point on screen through the entire movie

[whimzycle]

First meetings, awkward greetings.

[madegeeky]

Organized Mars room!

The second pic is her lego corner. I realized when starting this task that we'd need to do something about it because the table we were using was just covered with stuff and never used. So, we got two large bins, no lids (taking them off and putting them on are 2 unnecessary steps to tidying). The left bin is pieces and the right bin is for finished projects she doesn't want to destroy yet. In the middle is her paper box for anything paper related she wants to keep but it's the only paper box she gets so she needs to be picky about what goes into it.

One of the things the books recommends is letting the kid only have a few big toys but Mars actually plays with all her large dinos on a somewhat regular basis I didn't feel the need to push her toward giving any away. (I did ask about her remote control spider and alligator but she said no and she's been really good about it a lot of stuff so, y'know, fair enough.)

The middle of the bookcase, the top of the dresser, and the foot of her bed are way too many stuffies, imo, but she had a ton more and she was so about giving so many away I didn't have the heart to force her to give away more. Hilariously, though, she did end up giving three more away because I was looking at her dresser going "I don't know how we're going to fit all these stuffies up here" and she went "I'll just pick my most favorite".

Anyway, I'm so proud of her. She's been so good through this whole thing and I don't think we had any breakdowns. (Granted, this was all done over a period of, like, 6 months, which I think helped a lot.) She complained a bit today, because it took about, hm, 2-3 hours to finish it all, but it was mild complaining and it only really started when we were almost done because she could see the end in sight and was getting impatient to get there already.

[aceredshirt13]

gang i have to share this P. G. Wodehouse quote with you all because ever since I found it I can't stop thinking about it. it's from a letter he wrote when he was 78 years old to his friend Guy Bolton (many thanks to P. G. Wodehouse: A Life in Letters)

I have been on the sick list myself, but am better now. Inflamed bladder or chill on the bladder or something, the symptoms being agony when I passed water, as the expression is. It brought back the brave old days when I used to get clap.

he really said "yeah the pain from my bladder issue reminds of the days when I used to have so much sex I repeatedly got venereal disease"

[cementcornfield]

the way i know it's taking everything in him not to say some ridiculous comment to the press rn 😭

[kalosian-woods]

This may be treading into spoiler territory, but I want to ask, do you have anything planned for Shauna, Trevor, and Tierno?

Heyo and thanks for the question heh :D Dw, there's plenty I can talk about without treading on some secrets (espeically since I love the Rival Trio pls they're so good)

It's actually kind of weird how I have some crystal clear ideas for some of them and just ~vibes~ with other moments of their journeys lol. I can tell you (well, not exactly, but you get the gist) the team that I've assigned to Trevor and at least one mon that I really want to give to Shauna but Tierno is just 'please get something other than 3 Water Types'. Okay, but seriously, they're so full of potential and fun stuff all around!! They're (presumably) childhood friends that started their journeys on the same day and split paths, but still have contact with each other!! They all have different dreams and are finding their own way in the world and yet they still make time to support each other whole-heartedly!! It's such a fun spin on the usual dichotomy where people either travel together or not at all and I love that for them. The amount of mental essays and potential fic docs I get thinking about them is incredible in and of itself ngl.

For starters, I'm definitely thinking of putting the Summer Camp Arc way earlier, a little after the second Gym this time. It always confounded me whenever I think about the actual timing of that arc, like why did Ash think about getting ready for his battle with Korrina and 4 eps after he's already at camp (where he learns and then unlearns something), Serena finally commits to something without too much thought (the whole finding herself is cool on paper but there wasn't much focus on it with the actual eps beforehand pls) and lord knows what Clemont was doing. And right after that they teleport to Shalour, no joke. Going back to the Rival Trio, meeting them earlier on gives us more time with them, which everyone can benefit from lol. I have this whole thing with the camp but some points are:

More interactions overall with all of them, and I don't just mean Ash and Tierno + Serena (and Bonnie??) and Shauna + Trevor and Clemont (don't get me started on these two). I want Trevor asking Ash about all of the Pokemon that he's seen. I want Tierno dragging Clemont out of the corner because he's already had experience with Trevor doing the same. I want Serena taking up the dancing style of Tierno for funsies and Trevor trying to stop his Charmander from provoking Chespin (who knows he can't win but will battle anyone who messes with him). I want more stuff overall, more of them mixing and talking around and actually doing camp stuff together and against each other in friendly competition-y ways (edit: and also what was wrong with me why didn't I finish this lol)

Actual activities please, the one thing that always gets me with the Kalos Summer Camp vs the Sinnoh one is that A) the teams aren't that much fun, and maybe it's because they're way too small?? And no one really gets to interact with others outside of already established friend groups, even the npcs B) the activities were less, idk, interactive?? We got warm-up battle with our own mons, Pokevision, that one off-screen fishing competition, orienteering and then group battles at the end. Compare that with Sinnoh's Day 1 (getting used to a new mon and then battling with it the next day), observing Pokemon in the lake and writing up a report (and you can team up if you want), a night time race and then a triathlon.

Continuing from the last point, I enjoy the way that Sinnoh allowed everyone's own mons to shine in their own ways, while showing how people influence other Pokemon and each other as well. Angie's introduction and subsequent on-screen time was impeccable in this arc, Conway in his own team was great (even with his moments) and Jessie in the last team actually made me appreciate her a tiny bit more. They're actually going through Pokemon stuff in this camp and learning new things in fun ways, while also having the catastrophic problems that is bound to happen.

I feel like for the Kalosian variant to have that same impact that the Sinnoh one did, it would need its own standing out points. Maybe this one is more fun-orientated and based on interactions with your own Pokemon as well as the Pokemon that your team members have (and obviously people as well). Maybe we can have activities where they can swap a pokemon with a friend for the day, or go through an obstacle course, or have to find a prize with only one piece of a map. Have slightly bigger teams and have more fun team names! Why couldn't we get a Team Lugia or a Team Porygon and Porygon2, huh?

Team Rocket overall. I'm not elaborating.

There's more stuff but yeah, I feel like having a really good first arc with them would go such a long way in actually establishing credibility for the Rival Trio as a whole. We remember Tierno as the rhymthic battling style guy, and we sort of remember Shauna for introducing Showcases to Serena. But I think it says something when I couldn't tell that both Tierno and especially Trevor were gunning for the league from this arc, and ngl it felt like Shauna wasn't fully sold on Showcases until after the camp, as she was researching at the time of the camp and Serena asked if she registered in the Pancham ep (which could've been a cool plot point if we talked about it, pokeani).

I want to see Trevor learn to connect with Charmander and both of them going beyond with the merging of both their dreams (to be strong and to see all kinds of Pokemon) with both of them balancing courage with sense. I want to see the other side of this with Tierno, of a determined dream with his buddy Squirtle but not so much of a direction or an idea of where to take his dancing skills (and maybe Ash being interested in it along with Serena taking it to heart will inspire him at the camp). I want to see Showcases from Shauna's side, to see how she got into it, the highs and lows, rivals and Pokemon and the climb upwards (instead of being perfect one ep and then okay in the rest). I want the camp to change them just as much as it changed the main gang. And as time goes by they get stronger and more wiser for it, we see their teams grow alongside them, the finals with the Master Class and the League.

And speaking of the camp affecting them as much as our main group, I also want them to have their own wacky adverntures and death-defying feats. Meeting with Legendaries and Mythicals. Getting losts in forests. Trading Pokemon and joining each others side quests. Training montages and new rivals and other friends and so many accidents (and evil teams wait who said that). Ash and co are not the only main characters around here and I hope I get to play around with these goofers as much as everyone else in the really (really) big Kalos and XY overall. So do I have a concrete plan? Not exactly, but I've got some big plot points in my mind and the rest should fill itself out. Hopefully that makes sense?? I've been pooped these last few weeks so that's why it took a while with this response and the more I look at it, the more confused I am with my own response lol. But yah, seriously dw anon, you've been great!!!!!!!!! Loving these questions fr <33 Hopefully you're having a good day sans my late reply :'D

[chuchayucca]

Tbh I'm surprised nobody else has brought up the idea of Richard being abused too

It feels like a lot of potential for it and an explanation (aside from their status) as to why Roy never got help for it either -- Richard thought it was normal.

Now this is just making me imagine a scene where Carmen remarks that Roy will "grow out of it" (it being his behavior) like Richard did in front of the other Hatz and Ross and Robert just share a Look

Anddd now I'm wondering how much Carmen knows

TW for discussions of fictional CSA/SA and mentions of alcoholism

Me too, I thought it would be an obvious assumption but I guess not.

Exactly, I’ve seen the fandom explore Carmen and Roy’s relationship regarding his CSA but never with Richard. I think it’s ashamed because there’s a lot you can write for the relationship, even outside of their CSA.

Omg that’s a good scene idea. The Hatzgang are realized there is a deeper issue, and Roy has to unfortunately unpack that generational trauma. I can see how learning his dad is a possible CSA victim, like him, starts pushing Roy to tell his parents but also discourages him because basically Richard unknowingly knew Roy was SA but never recognized it because he doesn’t know he was SA too. I also believe Richard normalized his brother’s actions too. It’s truly devastating how Richard indirectly contributed to the normalization of Roy’s abuse but he doesn’t know it’s SA. He believes those fun “games” him and his brother played were normal family bonding activities and is happy to hear his son is getting along with his brother, a brother he admired when growing up.

These headcanons might change as the series continues and the deeper I get into research.

I headcanon Carmen doesn’t know anything but has suspected something was off a few times. She never thought anything of Richard’s behavior at first because he alway been this way. When they became adults, she started questioning as Richard still had issues with intimacy at that point in their relationship and his alcoholism was at its worst. (Short ver: Richard started drinking at a young age to cope with trauma of his SA and the Uncle encouraged this, buying him alcohol for various reasons. Modern day, Richard is a functional alcoholic but has gotten better with his drinking)

As of the moment, Roy’s parents are unaware of Roy’s CSA. The day the Uncle died, Roy did get in trouble but for separate reasons. Carmen and Richard were mad at Roy for hanging out with “plebeians” and sending them to one of his uncle’s private properties. Roy doesn’t feel comfortable telling them yet because they’re snobby, judgmental people, so he assumes they won’t react well.

[gumm1defloor]

Am *this close* to venturing into the ValVel tags on AO3 just so I can consume content of them interacting. I swear they better have at least one scene together in S2 or so help me God I will actively start to ship them on main instead of VoxVal.