#soft spot for monarchs

[driftwoodsix]

happy one year of wisecrack

[batsplat]

do you have any favorite tennis matches? what's your favorite player and rivalry if you have one?

(note, I will be leaving both agassi + sampras out of this post as they have already been discussed in a fair bit of detail on this blog, though I might at some point make a post specifically about their matches. obviously they'd be pretty high up in all three categories with regards to favourite matches, players, and rivalries)

I have a lot of favourite tennis matches!! I'll throw a few of them under the cut, but honestly give me half a chance and I'll go on forever. my all time favourite tennis match is the 2003 us open semifinal between justine henin and jennifer capriati. it is available in full on youtube and I think you should watch it even if you have only the slightest interest in tennis. this is a match you need to experience for yourself and I will not spoil the result, but it features basically everything you could ask for:

very high stakes, both in terms of being a slam semi and for both players involved. it's an interesting stretch of henin's career, plenty of controversies that season and the potential for a rematch with countrywoman clijsters in the final. capriati during her noughties career revival had FINALLY managed to overcome her issues in late stages of slams and had won three of them... but her home slam at the us open was the one she wanted to win most of all. a history of semifinal choking she was attempting to conquer in front of her home crowd - fighting a woman six years her junior who had already tasted slam success that year

two very different personalities, the cold and calculating henin against the ferocious and passionate capriati... both not strangers to a little bit of gamesmanship, and of course you see that on display in this match too. keep an eye on the poor line judges

two contrasting but similarly engaging playstyles, the boisterous force of capriati coming up against henin's lethally elegant all-court game. henin's one handed backhand better than sex question mark. it's a great stylistic match-up, and produces some excellent tennis across the entire span of the match. just SUCH a great watch, like I really cannot speak highly enough of the level on display

a highly involved crowd who want their home favourite to win SO BADLY and are more than happy to do anything to help her cause. gets a bit wild, like the best us open matches tend to do

some truly insane momentum switches, many prompted by psychology and some prompted by physicality. one player's body starts letting her down in the final set in pretty striking fashion. one player's mind plays havoc with her, possibly even more memorably so. a very dramatic finale

the cruelty of tennis on full display. a match where you suffer for both players, who both want it so badly and are visibly fighting demons on the court. truly, truly brutal for the loser

I love this match so so much. I know it's very on-brand to direct you to a match from over two decades ago, but I promise you. it's worth it. sometimes the old stuff is the best

and do I EVER have a favourite player and rivalry!!!!!!

MY GIRLS. okay, look, they're both extremely retired and had their last match in 2010 BUT it is still my favourite rivalry!!!!!!! here, have another bit of my output for them:

wE hAvE aLwaYs ProTEcTEd tHis iMAge oF friENdShip tHat nEVeR eXistEd istgggggggg NOTHING WAS BROKEN BETWEEN US BECAUSE THERE WAS NOTHING TO BREAK

if you've ever heard someone be extremely annoying about federer's game, you probably can imagine what I sound like talking about henin. she's got my favourite backhand of all time, I genuinely think it is a work of art. I love how she moves, the way she unleashes on balls on the run, I love how she gets into the court in such a lithe and precise manner to pick up the next ball. I love how effective the serve is despite her height (number one commentating cliché for her lol, she's short we get it). the slices, the gorgeous drop volleys, the laser straight forehand... and again, the backhand. when she takes a swing at that thing and fucking pummels it past her opponent, stretches her wings to make the ball soar, it's just truly my favourite shot of all time. there's a specific backhand crosscourt on-the-run pass she hits in that aforementioned us open semifinal where... yeah. what can you even say. better than sex full stop

and well... okay, look, I am AWARE a lot of fans still hate her and I do get that she won't be everyone's cup of tea. but y'know. sometimes you just have to support women's rights and wrongs, and I do think some of the criticism of her is also a bit overblown. she's a cheater, yes, I won't argue with that. but I think sometimes cheating is interesting!! she really really really really needed to win, she was cold and ruthless about it - but also, I'm sorry, people would NOT have hated her quite so much if she were a man. and I'm also not saying a sad life story justifies cheating etc etc, but I do wish people were a bit more interested in why she needed to win so badly. she also has the number one athlete attribute that makes my brain go crazy - a deeply conflicted relationship with the sport itself. always caught between running towards and running away from tennis... yeah. god

the single best resource in tennis is a website called tennisabstract, it really is fantastic, I've contributed a bit to their match coding project before and definitely will again when my schedule's freed up a bit. I have a lot of time for the guy who runs it, I really do. there's this series he did, tennis 128, where he listed the top 128 players of all time according to his metric and wrote a piece for each of them... and I think they're all very interesting, it's a great project. but. there's a good chance henin got the most negative write-up of the lot, in a way I have to admit I take issue with. some excerpts:

well, tough luck. I don't care. the lgbt community has forgiven justine henin. look at what a cute tomboy she was as a teenager:

look at her holding a bird trophy:

wifey

the other half of that rivalry is her fellow belgian clijsters. very much a case of two narratives haunting each other!! do not separate!! anyhow, she's another player with a game I absolutely adore, these big scything groundstrokes but ALSO plenty of variety, like we're not talking a dull baseline basher here. and the movement!! sliding on a hard court is STILL pretty rare in the women's game, so it's very much seen as something associated with clijsters and clijsters alone:

life changing thighs is what I'll say

clijsters was everything henin was not - warm, popular in the locker room and with fans, a cheery outgoing personality who always had plenty of people rooting for her. she was also seen as too nice to win. and there are few things on this planet that get me going more than a choker. than somebody who just... freezes in the most important matches of her life. which for a while there had a nasty habit of involving henin, because of course they did

clijster's another one with a really fascinating career arc, one that is inextricably linked with henin's story - and thing is, she did get her happy ending. she's the feel-good story, proof that even chokers might be able to make it in the end. she conquered her demons... one of the very, very, very few to do so. she changed the narrative of her career completely. now I DO hate how this kinda... low key gets implicitly used as another stick to thwack henin with, this kind of, ooh!! look!! you can be a good person and be successful too!! which! idk. god forbid we root for a flawed athlete now and again. but I think this does a disservice to clijsters - not least because she WAS pretty nasty about henin in a way she wasn't about basically anyone else. henin and clijsters are more than just sinner and saint... don't let tennis fans tell you otherwise

and yeah, the two of them obviously had a bit of an emotionally tortured rivalry. belgium cooked up two insanely good tennis players born exactly one year and one week apart, the only two players of that stature the country has ever produced. they made each other better and they made each other worse. friends and enemies and something in between... and in the end, fundamentally inseparable. citadels have been built on less

anyway tbh I'm not going to pretend like anyone is summoning up that kind of narrative juice these days, but obviously I still have my faves. as regular blog readers may be aware, my favourite current player is this washed string bean who mostly just loses to more talented players and throws tantrums these days. I'll support him until his time runs up though. medvedev's got this fantastically unorthodox game that I could dissect all day, he's the smartest top player, he's funny as shit. his game should never have worked and he has no right to be as successful as he is. I could hold a lecture series on his forehand. I'm very much a pusher-inclined fan... I like counterpunchers, I like players who run around a lot and defend, and I also like tacticians. I was a pretty early adopter because I love a quirky playstyle and weird technique, which was then affirmed with the miami 2018 debacle (iykyk). but there was a moment I knew I would be his fan for life, and if you are a tennis fan you can probably guess what's coming:

"so I want all of you to know, when you sleep tonight, I won because of you" I fell in love

never ever has he let me down on the drama front. his "oops I did it again" basel 2018 instagram post, his "I think I killed someone? my apologies" from us open 2020, "if I die, who'll take responsibility" from olympics 2021, the "it's easier to enjoy life when you have no brain" paris 2021 monologue, the yawn at turin 2021, stomping on the ground davis cup 2021, the "his father can talk every point" ao 2022 rant, "I'm gonna pee as slow as this court" from iw 2023, when he got rid of the singles stick monte carlo 2023 plus the "look at yourself in the mirror" press conference comment, "vamo vamo vamo" from uso 2023... I could keep going. "shut your fuck up" has become a part of my vocabulary icl. I love his press conferences and watch a lot of them, just consistently a very interesting guy to listen to. he is unfortunately sort of hellish to follow as a fan, but y'know. sometimes it's not just trophies that make the journey worth it (cope)

women's tennis, my actual faves have basically disappeared from the scene this year so I'm not even gonna dignify them by mentioning their names. I am pretty ride-or-die for dasha kasatkina, a useless pusher who's also the wta's highest ranked lesbian and makes a vlog with her girlfriend I definitely recommend. I like her tennis a lot in all its horrendous pushing, she's very sweet and fun and produces an obscene number of cute photos with her girlfriend. beyond that, I suppose I am basically a swiatek and sabalenka fan this year, I find both of them highly engaging in different ways, I love how they're like... actually very good but are also seemingly constantly fighting demons. basically the two most compelling players in the game currently TO ME. I'm really really enjoying their rivalry, my main complaint is that I wish they played more (praying iga's new coach fixes her during the off-season). they produced by far the best match this year, madrid final, which I'd also absolutely recommend. but yeah, I generally vibe with all the top players of the women's game, if to differing extents!! really strong era at the minute that also promises to keep getting better. we pray

anyhow. a few more favourite matches - I'm going to try and hold myself back, because I really could go on forever. a lot of the old matches I watch are from noughties wta, but I'll limit myself because I'm aware this really is probably of interest to nobody and give just a further two - sharapova/henin wta finals 2007 and venus/davenport wimbledon 2005. both pretty normie picks, but sometimes the normie picks are normie picks for a reason

for my sins, I do have a few big three matches in fairly regular rotation, typically on in the background when I'm working. main ones are djokovic/federer us open 2011, djokovic/federer wimbledon 2019, djokovic/federer wimbledon 2014, and djokovic/nadal roland garros 2021. I also have a bunch of murray matches in rotation but I tend to mix it up for him more... my other go-to run is all of leylah fernandez's pre-final us open 2021 matches, which are just consistently bonkers in the best possible way. there's a few other recent-ish matches I really like to revisit, like iga/sublanko madrid 2023, fernandez/osorio monterrey 2022, kerber/juvan strasbourg 2022...

and then, of the more recent-ish men's matches, pretty obvious where my biases lie. medvedev/djokovic cincy 2019, med/wawrinka uso 2019, med/nadal atp finals 2020, med/thiem atp finals 2020, med/djokovic uso 2021, med/sinner atp finals 2021 (conceptually hilarious match), med/faa ao 2022 (go-to flight match, this one), med/tsi ao 2022, rune/djokovic paris 2022 (and honestly that whole rune run), med/zverev monte carlo 2023 (don't feel great about including this but I'd be lying if I said I didn't love it), rune/sinner monte carlo 2023, rune/foki madrid 2023, med/alcaraz uso 2023 (I promised I'd sing the american national anthem if he won that match so that's a voice note that still exists out there)... and so on

I could keep going, but I'll cut myself off here. and end things with my personal favourite instagram post tennis has produced. from after the aforementioned rune/foki madrid match:

'personally I hold nothing against the Spanish people' dw king I'll do it for you

[hanakihan]

IB AU chulwoo but it’s Sung Jin-Woo (artist), Sung Jin-Woo (aka painting titled ‘Shadow Monarch’) and Sung Jin-Woo (aka even older painting titled ‘Ashborn’) pointing at each other Spider-Man meme style with Jin-Chul losing his fucking mind on background trying to understand who’s the real one and who’s the impostors

[tiercel]

Thinking about snake mimicking caterpillars so much rn

[bennysblabbering]

Bonding with the King

Kinktober: "Double Penetration" || Ryomen Sukuna x reader

contents: heian Sukuna, curseuser!reader, vaginal & anal fingering, vaginal & anal penetration, multiple cocks, large insertion, creampie, excessive cum, slight cum inflation

words: 3k

g/n afab reader

↓ Fic below the cut ↓

The great King of Curses sits atop a lavish and elegant altar, his enormous figure sitting leisurely on one leg and elbow and looking as intimidating as ever. The raised floor was adorned with a soft cotton mat and decorated with a number of gold and red pillows, a scarlet satin sheet lazily draped over his thighs. Upon your entrance into the extravagant room, he beckons you over with one hand, his expression remaining flat. The deep tone of his voice fills the space despite the distance between you.

“Come.”

You nod and bow, slowly making your way to him- the subject of everything you fight for and devote yourself to. You’d never interacted one on one, but you made the choice of your path in life; that being a curse user, making it your life goal to see a world of anarchy ruled by the Disgraced One himself. Standing before him, you choose to look at your feet instead of the man in front of you- testing Ryomen Sukuna was not on your list of things you’d like to try. He huffs, amused at your behavior. Normally, and especially during battle, you were much more assertive and loud-mouthed; the person he saw before him was not the usual one he was used to. 

“Look at me, Y/N.”

Your face raises to observe the face of the monarch. You’d seen your superior many times before, but not this close. He was absolutely breathtaking. Your eyes drink in his appearance; rose-colored locks, four intense ruby eyes, a wide and masculine figure with four muscular arms, and his entire body adorned in intricate black rings and lines that added to his beauty in the way that spices enhance the flavor of a meal. 

The sheet is lifted by a large arm as he smiles, his eyelids lowering flirtily. “Join me.” 

As the lower half of his body is revealed, you take notice of the two distinct bulges protruding from his pants in the spot between his legs. Two…..two.

You gulp and nod, feeling your body weaken at the sight. You were unsure why he’d called for you, but it seemed like he may have had some erotic plans in mind. You hadn’t particularly noticed him taking any interest in you before, but perhaps he had been hiding it well or you had been too oblivious. Or maybe you’re overthinking it.

Sneaking yourself meekly under the blanket, you lay next to him. Your arms and legs tense anxiously as you tenderly place your palms against his chest, almost scared to touch him, as if he were made of eggshells. The warmth radiating off of his body had a simultaneously comforting and arousing affect, making both the inside and outside of your body increase in temperature. His chest was impressive in size, and softer than you’d imagined. You didn’t even realize you’d been squeezing a little until he chuckles. “Enjoying yourself?”

You respond with a soft yelp. His muscles were so plush and warm under your touch, and you can’t believe you let yourself get lost in that feeling. You internally curse at yourself for your lack of awareness as you draw your hands away, clutching them close to your body. “I-I’m sorry, Sukuna-sama. I didn’t realize I’d gotten a bit carried away.” 

“It’s quite alright, Y/N. If I didn’t want you touching me, I wouldn’t have brought you here.” His eyes narrow, looking at you hungrily as two of his hands reach for yours and bring them back to where they used to be. A light blush creeps onto your cheeks as they feel the flesh of the other under their touch once more. 

Now a bit more settled in and comfortable, you sigh and slowly start to release the anxious tension in your body. Being in the presence of a man so much larger, warmer, and stronger  than you was not only oddly comforting, but…it made you crave him. His attention, his touch, his….

Your lower leg brushes against the hard protrusions you’d noticed before, and you quickly remove your limb, mortified, yet incredibly aroused at the sheer size of them. They had to be at least 9 inches if you had to estimate. You hear him hum, and you look back up into his intense eyes as he smirks. 

“I enjoy your company, Y/N. I’ve been wanting to spend more time with you for a while.”

Moving a hand down to your waist, he starts to stroke up and down your body, ghosting over your chest and back down your side, giving your ass a squeeze. “I’m going to be transparent with you, Y/N. I desire you carnally. I’d like to take you right here and now.”

You chew on your bottom lip as your eye contact fails to waver, your heart and body leaping at the thought of being fucked by the king of curses…especially if he really does have two. You nod with a shaky exhale, feeling complete and utter exhilaration. “Y-yes sir. Anything for you.”

The giant man growls in satisfaction, content with your answer. He moves in to place his flushed lips on yours, your faces meeting sensually in a way you’d only ever fantasized about until this moment. His large fingers sneak under your robe, finding their way to your clothed cunt, and you whimper into his mouth as you instinctually buck your hips into his touch. Even his fingers were huge, probably ⅔ of the size of a standard cock; you knew you’d have to start with those and work your way up if you wanted to take him properly. 

You mumble against his lips, your speech coming out shaky and whiny. “W-would you like me to take my clothes off, sir?”

He pulls back just slightly, your faces only millimeters apart as a malicious grin spreads across his face. Your heart skips a beat, a wave of fear and arousal instilled into your core from his intense expression. 

“No need.”

He immediately rolls you onto your back, using the upper two hands to pin your wrists above your head while the lower two effortlessly rip the fabric off of your body. The layers are removed from you without mercy; as to be expected from such a powerful entity, he takes what he wants when he wants it, and will stop at nothing to obtain what he desires. In this case, what he desires is you. 

You gasp as the cool air hits your exposed skin, your entire naked body now presented to the man above you. A low rumble escapes his throat as he shamelessly takes in your figure with his eyes, feeling his cocks twitch at the sight of the subordinate he’s craved for so long finally disrobed before him. The way you were displayed was tantalizing like a well-prepared cut of meat, and he planned to indulge himself just as he would when satiating his gargantuan appetite. 

“My, my, what a sight to behold.” He takes one hand off of one of your wrists, using the other hand to hold them together in one. The fact that both of your wrists could be held together by one huge hand of his made your core clench in excitement. Using his lower two hands, he spreads your thighs apart, the one free hand exploring your body by palming your chest and torso, pinching a nipple and smirking in satisfaction when you yelp. 

Sukuna uses a single fingertip to swipe up and down your folds, humming as he finds how wet you already are so pleasing. You gasp softly at the touch, your back arching off of the mattress from the exhilaration of his touch.

“How eager. Adorable.” 

He strokes your pussy a few more times, gathering slick on his finger before he inserts it into your entrance. You gasp dramatically from the satisfying stretch from his digit and moan as he slides it in all the way to the knuckle. Ever so slowly he slips it in and out of you, twisting his finger just slightly and curling inward on each thrust. You cry out in pleasure as he repeatedly hits that spongy sweet spot, making you dizzy. “Ohhhh my god, Sukuna-sama…you feel so good…”

“Oh, you think that feels good? Just you wait, it’ll only get better from here.”

He pulls his wet finger out of your pussy with a soft ‘pop’, pressing the generously lubricated digit against the hole below while looking up at you to test your reaction. You let out a whimper, nervous at the new sensation- you’d never had anything inside your ass before, and had no clue what it would feel like. You gulp and nod, trusting him with the new experience. 

He starts to push in and it burns, but you can’t deny it feels incredible. It was completely unlike anything you’d experienced before, and it made you all the more excited to feel what would inevitably be coming next. You squeeze your eyes shut and wince, taking in a breath with a hiss as he starts to push deeper, inch by inch, until his entire finger is nestled inside of you. “Fuck…”

He lets out a low chuckle, resting his thick digit for a moment to let your hole accommodate. Letting go of your wrists with his other hand, he drags the fingertips down your torso before rubbing your clit with a thumb and inserting the middle finger into your neglected pussy. Your whole body writhes in pleasure as all of your sensitive spots are being paid attention to by his skillful hands. You squeeze and rub at your own nipples, adding to the stimulation, and your mind starts to slip into an aroused haze as he starts up a quicker pace with both fingers. 

“How do my fingers feel? This is only a fraction of what’s to come. I want to prepare you properly for penetration.”

Your jaw hangs open as whine after whine escapes your throat. Struggling to find words, your response comes out weak and stuttered.

“Feels…so g-good...Su…Suk-kuna-sama. I’m…r-ready…for more…p-please…”

A low groan rumbles from the large man. “I was going to add a second finger to each hole, but since you sound so eager, you’re really making me aroused. And now I can’t wait any longer.” 

He pulls his fingers away and sits back onto his knees, pushing the waistband of his pants down. What’s revealed is exactly what you’d predicted- two absolutely gigantic erections, thicker and longer than any cock you’d ever seen. They each had a ring marking about 4 inches from the base, and were visibly throbbing from his pulse, twitching with each heartbeat. He had one set of balls, though they were just as gigantic in size to match; about as large as one would expect for a body part responsible to create enough testosterone for 3 men.  You want to look him in the eyes to see what his expression looks like, but you can’t pry your gaze away from his perfect and rock hard pair of manhoods. 

Pinning you down by the shoulders this time, he lays on top of you. You didn’t need to look far to see his expression this time- your faces were almost touching, his carmine gaze locking with yours, a pure horniness emanating from the aura. The King of Curses was starving to satiate his cocks, and you were going to be his victim of choice. He presses his lips to yours once again, roughly shoving his tongue into your mouth. You meekly whimper, muffled by the connected orifices, as your faces meet and saliva messily spreads across the bottom half of your face. 

He pulls away from the kiss and sits up slightly to look down and line one cock up with each hole- the top one in your cunt and the bottom one in your ass. With a possessive growl, he holds your hips and pushes in slowly as your eyes widen and jaw opens as far as it can go. In this moment, you could have sworn your eyes would pop out of their sockets. As huge as his cocks looked, they felt even bigger. You were almost literally being split open as both of your holes were stretched further than they ever had been. 

Sukuna gently presses a warm hand to the center of your chest, helping to relax your body and feel more comfortable under his touch. Two other hands massage your shoulders. “Breathe, Y/N. If you tense, it’s only going to hurt more. Undo the tension in your body and the penetration will be much easier.”

You close your eyes and nod, taking a deep breath and trying your best to let go of the tightness in your spine as he slips in a few inches more. The pain of the stretch was starting to subside, turning into pleasure as you let out a soft sigh. He clearly wasn’t as far as he could go yet, but you already were enjoying being fuller than any man had ever made you feel before. 

The huge man leans forward and on top of you- the sheer size of his hips between your legs making them spread wide open; as your bodies become parallel, your ankles are in the air, your body completely helpless underneath the giant. He finally settles in with one last push, now inside you as far as possible. He was at least up to your belly button, if not a bit more. A long, satisfied groan leaves his lips. “Do you feel good being stuffed by my cocks? You like being stretched and filled just right by the one you serve?” 

You can only nod in response- any sense of coherent thought left your body as soon as you felt him inside you. You can still feel his pulse throbbing in his members even when inside you, and the feeling of it makes you whine. Feeling so small underneath him and completely as his mercy felt exhilaratingly thrilling, as if you were his toy made to satiate his needs. 

Growing impatient, he starts to thrust, much quicker than you’d anticipated for him to start at. The unexpected intensity filled you with pure pleasure, rolling your eyes back so far it hurt as you desperately wrap your arms around his neck and claw at his muscular back. In and out his thick cocks mercilessly bullied your insides, claiming you as his own as you could only lay on your back and helplessly take it. 

Tiny, high-pitched whimpers were all your body could manage for vocalizations, feeling such incredible bliss your mind was completely blank. Your pussy had never experienced sex like this before, and your ass had never experienced attention or penetration of any kind previous to this. Your mind and body were lost in the new sensations, completely overtaken by felicity as Sukuna’s lengths pounded into you with a vigor only known to him. 

“You are mine Y/N, understand? From today onward, I will be the only man to bed you. Your holes are for my cocks and my cocks only.”

The large tongue on his abdomen protrudes from its lips, bending downward to flick against your clit as he continues to mercilessly rail into you. You cry out with a loud moan, the obscene sound filling not only the room, but would be sure to pass through the walls and let everyone in the building know what you two were up to. You look down at where your bodies were connected, not only noticing the oral muscle, but your stomach was bulging from the pure size of Sukuna’s cocks. Up and down the flesh of your stomach moved, in tandem with his thrusts. 

“Y…yes, s-sir…o-only….you…”

His stomach tongue presses and flicks against your bud harder, and your climax hits you quickly, crashing over you with a violent wave as your body tenses from the white hot euphoria. Your fingers dig into the skin of his back, which would have drawn blood had it been a normal man you were with. He continues to pound into you, fucking you through your intense orgasm as it overtakes your body. 

As you slowly start to come down, his own hips stutter and he groans, pressing into you as hard as he can as he fills you with his release. His hands grip onto your hips for dear life, his fingers digging into your soft flesh, sure to bruise. The sheer volume of his load is several times that of an average one as he spills his seed into your holes over and over. The hot fluid begins to drip out of you and yet his climax is still going strong, making the bulge in your stomach slightly larger from the voluminous amount of cum. 

“Mine….mine….you’re mine…”

After an unexpectedly long amount of time, he finally comes down from his own high. His hands remain on your hips but release the aggressive claw-like hold as he starts to catch his breath and grins. He slowly pulls his softening cocks out of you, some of his excessive release leaking from your abused holes in a sticky, warm mess as it mixes with your own fluid. 

He moves to lay down next to you, wrapping his arms around you as you can feel your eyelids drooping from exhaustion. He looks down to see your sleepy face, chuckling as he strokes your thigh.

“That was very satisfying, Y/N. I enjoyed that quite a bit. Get as much sleep as you’d like. I will have Uraume fetch you some new clothes and a cup of tea.”

You nod and hum contentedly, snuggling up to his warm chest and sighing. You’d never felt this satisfied before, and you could only think about what it’ll feel like again. Having sex with the man you idolized was going to get used to, but you looked forward to the next time. There was certainly much more with him that you could explore together. 

For now, you would get some much-needed sleep.

[dilftaroooo]

this is kinda soft and sappy but…ghost being your first time…

tags: sum cute sex + loss of virginity + nothing rough :3

ommmg no bc soft ghost with his cute civilian girlfriend would be so romantic. His years spent in the task force has hardened him, inside and out. He’s a seasoned soldier decorated with scars, some new some old, each one being a constant reminder of his past regrets and trauma.

but whenever he sees you, God, you’re like his own angel sent from above. Your heart is filled with fields of the freshest sunflowers and monarch butterflies, Ghost cherishes you — Simon cherishes you.

So when he learned about your inexperience in sex and how your confusion was so potent on said action he did not hesitate to comfort your being:

“It’s ok, luv. Don’t worry too much about it, yeah? Lemme guide ya’…” He would handle you like your skin was made out of fine china, gently removing your soft cardigan and skirt, his touches soothed you. He’s a tender ocean breeze — a breeze so calming you succumb to the cool air nipping away at your skin, running through your supple thighs and the soft spots of your belly.

Simon will wait until the moment is right, until you give him a charming look that murmurs “i’m ready for you”. From there, he’ll take his position, starting from the tip before slowly making his way towards the base, making sure to stop and smother your tear stained cheeks with kisses whenever you felt overwhelmed, “I’m sorry, my dear. We’re almost there. ‘Know you can make it, you’re my strong girl. Here, hold on to me as tight as you can. I got you, i got you.” And you believe him — trust him.

He’ll make you feel so good, anon. He’ll hold onto you, always and forever <3

[sylusjinwoon]

{ 138 }

butterfly kisses.

jinwoo sung x fem.reader

the moment jinwoo came home from his duties as a hunter, you knew that he was upset.

his eyes were still glowing a vibrant purple the moment he unlocks the door to your shared apartment and slams it shut. you greet him as per usual, waiting just a few feet away from the door with a gentle smile on your face like the adoring lover that you were-

yet the moment his harsh gaze met with your eyes, you were taken aback by the sheer coldness in them.

it was during moments like these that you received a harsh reminder of just who your boyfriend was. he was chosen as the next shadow monarch, seeming to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders as he fought for those he wished to protect.

but the rest of the world had yet to realize just how amazing your beloved was, which had to play a part in his stressful expression at this very moment.

momentarily paralyzed by his piercing gaze, you found yourself unable to move, sensing his powers of darkness coursing through your very veins as he kept his icy gaze honed in on you. only when he sees the momentary fear in your eyes does his expression soften just the tiniest bit.

he greets you by saying your name, hands already giving the top of your head gentle pats as he disappears into the restroom. you remain rooted on the spot, not moving until you heard the sounds of the shower running.

letting out a gentle sigh, you run your fingers across your hair before going into the kitchen. you already had jinwoo’s portion of dinner warmed up and ready for him, yet you knew that he wouldn’t have much of an appetite when he was angry like this. with careful movements, you place his dinner in a container, making sure that it was as neat as possible before refrigerating it.

throughout the entire duration of his shower, you spent the time cleaning up the kitchen; doing mundane things like washing the dishes and cleaning the countertops with a wet handkerchief. even when you heard jinwoo stop showering, listening intently as the sounds of his footsteps padded into your shared bedroom, you lingered in the kitchen and waited several minutes.

only when you were confident that jinwoo was already settled in bed did you finally decide to join him. your own footsteps were calm and quiet, not wishing to startle your beloved boyfriend when he already seemed to be so on edge.

with a soft smile, you open the door of your shared bedroom to see jinwoo staring blankly at the ceiling. his eyes no longer glowed against the darkness, its shade returning to its usual, stormy grey hue. he hears your footsteps and trails his eyes over to where you stood, still hiding behind the door.

he chuckles while lifting up his hand, motioning at you to come join him in bed.

“what are you doing, you dork? come over here so i can hold you in my arms. after how shitty and stressful my day was, i could use some cuddles.”

jinwoo’s voice was filled with love and adoration now, and you could tell that he was feeling infinitely better after his shower, taking the time to destress as he allowed his aching muscles to bask in the warmth of the hot waters.

letting out a happy giggle, you give him a nod while entering your shared bedroom. closing the door from behind you, you finally reach the bed-

but avoid laying down on your side of the mattress completely, choosing instead to lay above his broad chest. jinwoo’s eyebrows were raised in a questioning glance, yet he remains utterly still, allowing you to do whatever you wished to do to him.

with a sigh of his name, you allow your fingertips to brush over his damp, ebony locks of hair. you continue to massage his scalp, basking in his grunts of pleasure before peppering his features with sweet, butterfly kisses.

your soft touch was often filled with an unfamiliarity to jinwoo, for most of his time spent as a hunter left him feeling the immense pain that came with fighting. every fist to his face causes the veins to burst as he could taste the coppery blood within his mouth. every tackle felt when monsters and beasts alike lunged at him was enough to break his very bones-

yet your kisses were enough to show him the beauty of a simple touch; he was able to experience a different side of physical touch felt against his skin without the crescendo and promise of pain.

you were treating him as if he were still the weakest hunter in the world, your kisses against his skin being no heavier than dew. instead of ruining this gentle and intimate moment with words, jinwoo remains silent while basking in your butterfly kisses.

as your lips trailed over his skin, the soft touch was nothing short of your absolute worship of him. you treat your beloved with such an aching softness that made jinwoo’s breath hitch in response. from kissing his cheek, to trailing your lips against his temple, to finally pressing a lingering kiss upon his closed eyelids-

you never once stopped treating him with a gentleness that was still so foreign to jinwoo.

if you could, you would have spent the entire night littering your boyfriend’s face with such kisses, yet his annoyed grunt and the way he held your chin in a vice grip was what ultimately made you stop.

when he forces you to look at him, his gaze was a lazy one, grey eyes darkening slightly due to how dilated it had become in response to the pure love he felt for you.

“what gives? you keep on missing my lips like that, then you know i’m gonna get mad.”

jinwoo’s tone was relaxed, and when he gently leans in to kiss your lips, you could do little but sigh in response, basking in the feeling of perfection the moment he slots his lips against yours. he keeps you distracted by the kiss, deepening it ever so slightly when he holds your body close to his chest before laying you back down against the plush mattress.

you continue to kiss him, feeling your hair remain fanned out against the pillows as your arms wrap around his neck, pulling him even closer to you as jinwoo remained in a lip lock with you.

only when the need for air proved to be too much did jinwoo finally pull away from you. he smiles down at you while leaning forward to press a kiss against your forehead.

“thanks for cheering me up, honey. let’s sleep now… i’m exhausted and desperately need you in my arms in order to sleep.”

you nod in agreement with a soft giggle, feeling jinwoo lay back in bed as he took your compliant body within his arms. his embrace was a secure one, and you just knew that he would do everything in his power to keep you in his arms all night long tonight.

the room silent, with only the sounds of your soft breathing permeating at the air. you listen as jinwoo sighs one last time, letting out a yawn while pressing a kiss against your hair.

“goodnight love.”

“goodnight, my beloved monarch.”

you feel his smile against your hair before he lays down against the bed, pressing your back against his chest as he fell into a deep sleep while spooning you. being surrounded by his warmth, you couldn’t stop your eyes from feeling heavy, unable to focus nor stay awake as you fell asleep within the arms of your soulmate.

a.n. - lmaooo at this rate i will never be able to stop writing for jinwoo sung. save meeee, i love him too much to stop 😭🙏🏻

all stories are written by rei; reposts, translations, and plagiarism are not allowed.

[viloxity]

Fluctuating Skies (Part 2 of 2) -- Yandere! Sung Jinwoo x Female Reader

Part 1

Synopsis: The scenario where the Monarchs rule Earth and the Shadow Monarch finds you in the New World A/N: it's finally here! thank you so much for the support on the previous part, i hope this lives up to expectation! reblogs and comments especially motivate me so let me know your thoughts <3 enjoy!

WC: 7.5k (oops)

Waking up to soft rays of light twinkling through cracks in the walls did not feel as invigorating as it should’ve been.

You slowly raised a hand to unwrap the blankets around you, stopping as yesterday’s events flashed through your mind. How could you even describe it? His behavior was becoming progressively uncanny and the foreboding that he would only get worse stuck with you. You felt like you were drowning, suddenly, weary eyes blinking to find yourself underwater in the middle of an endless ocean. You were surrounded by blue, as if you put on filtered sunglasses and now your world was the singularity of a color that reflected the same shade of the sky. Despite your circulatory system’s losing battle as the deep blue engulfed your trachea, you felt a sense of tranquility. Under the sky’s watchful gaze and the water’s gentle hands, you were protected. No longer did you have to suffer from the wars, the loss, the pain; you were free. Free to forget, free to explore, and free to experience.

You spent your time rejoicing under the guise that trepidation was a falsehood and forgetting that nothing was permanent because time waits for no one.

By the time you discerned the forgotten unpleasantry known as angst that did not belong in your Better World, it was too late.

You did not notice the inky black tendrils that were wrapping around your free-floating form.

You tried to swim away, to fight back, but they were relentless in caging you. The shadowy cage was reminiscent of a black tomb that fixated your view behind pole-like structures and entrapped you within something inescapable.

You distantly spotted a single immensely darkened creature as it swirled at the lower depths of the sea. The unknown entity eyed you hungrily from beyond the blackened bars, swimming patiently as you began to register once more the water bursting down your esophagus and into your lungs. You grabbed the bars with all your might and pulled, realizing too late that it only hastened your submerging. You were sinking deeper, closer to the unknown and closer to a fate that you would no longer be in control of. At last—before you buried the last of your desires—you screamed, attempting to curse out that disgusting monstrosity that spectated your descent to darkness; the water engulfed you, then, happy to oblige to your acceptance of asphyxiation.

The moment the light faded, your eyes shot wide open as your hands quickly moved away from clutching your throat. You gasped for breath, uncontrollably coughing as you wildly looked around. Your eyes finally settled on the streams of light pouring from the window, the rush of blood flowing past your ears beginning to fade. You then counted each beat of your heart, the tallying of each thump dissolving your heightened senses as you drifted under the threshold.

You hadn’t realized the moment you fell back asleep.

Gradually, as each night brought misery the second your eyes closed, you found yourself struggling to get a wink of sleep. The crevices of your mind were so desolate, so dolorous, that you shuddered at the mere notion of the night blanketing you. Each dream was similar, with some darkened figure watching over you like a god spectating their worshippers—never forwardly reacting, and never intervening. At the end of every scenario, you eerily felt that the entity delighted in your cycle of despair as previously neutral movements transitioned into fervent, animated motions. If it appeared like a shadowy humanoid, they would lean down and smile as you inevitably drifted towards them. In your most recent dream, it resembled a piranha that eagerly circled you as it waited to devour your impending despondence. Every single time, you remembered the creature, its face, its actions, and your anguish.

It had been a few days since your first meeting with Jinwoo, simultaneously marking the first day you began to fear the dark.

The darkness was another mask the sky used—a different side on the same coin of the marvelous bright blue you woke to. If the bright sky told you it was a beginning, the blackened night represented an end. Every day was unique; the beginning and end were never the same, nor did they repeat. A new day was a new beginning, while a new end was a new conclusion. In a society brimming with devastation, people tended to characterize ‘the end’ in this way—as a sum of its parts. This was a consequence, survivors learned, because it meant you neglected the substantiality of an imperfect world and became the first sacrifice as a method of fidelity to the strongest in the realm. The totality of the ending was the truth, because the whole is always greater than the sum of its parts in the New World.

You stopped looking at the other side of the coin because it was never meant for you. The strongest controlled the night sky and you had an inkling that Jinwoo might be one of them; a being that can write your ending so long as it satisfied him, his face abruptly flashing through your mind was enough to make you retch.

Your head turned towards the sky, somewhat covered by the walls of your home. At the very least, the morning sky was still your oyster—every morning was a fresh start that alleviated the pain of a predetermined ending. You learned to forgive it back then because you could not dream of never relying on it again.

You rose from under your bed covers. It was no longer something you could ignore.

To a degree, you were certain that there was some positive correlation between Jinwoo’s behavior and your nightmares. The more your mind flickered back to yesterday, the more unsalvageable his company looked. He was more a threat to your survivability than someone who you could befriend like the others. If it came down to it, you would possibly have to run the most you’ve ever done in your life. You were willing, but it was a matter of if you would get the chance to in the first place.

Jinwoo’s words from yesterday vividly echoed throughout your mind—in any case, there was no avoiding him today. You moved to the closet, creaky wooden doors opening to reveal you staring at your reflection. The mirror was placed in the middle of the closet, nearly engulfed by what looked to be a storm that passed through your belongings. You patted your face, fingers kneading away knit eyebrows as you tried not to focus on weary eyes and the tight line drawn on your face. Your affliction was proof of your dejection due to your new circumstance—it was unlike you to be in such a state. You survived to live freely and now you placed yourself in a predicament that threatened your state of being.

You ignored the sensation of faint prickling that tickled the corners of your lips.

Jinwoo was unpredictable, and that was a major problem in terms of survivability.

Damn it, how could you get out?

He was slowly beginning to root himself into your life and that was terrifying. Even worse, you were never clued in to his actual intentions—by a stroke of fate he gave you the ‘honor’ of his attention, and now he was feeding you handfuls. Was it a major oversight on your part, to not pay attention to such an action? Would your careless decision during a moment of vulnerability cost you everything? It was easy to envision how your life would eventually center around his, like a satellite orbiting a planet—Jinwoo’s raw strength and unknown capabilities could be enough to bend an individual to his desires. Said individual would no longer maintain the privilege of free choice; any option that was not correct—in his eyes—was a rash decision that betrayed his wishes.

Fuck. All paths that tied in Jinwoo involved a life half-lived.

Unless you were inferring too much. Everything thus far was still speculation, other than a few abnormalities in his usual solemn behavior. It had only been a few days, and yet your mind portrayed him as a villain.

And yet…

And yet it felt like he was hiding. The feeling that he was still lurking within the shadows, just like the first day you met him. That he was not… fully there. He was faded out, but if you cared to look a little closer, you would see that he wasn’t a normal shadow.

Your antsy temperance, driven by countless near-fatal encounters, never quelled itself in the presence of Jinwoo.

Either your mentality was cracking under pressure—his pressure—or the severe amount of devils advocate you played as a paroxysm of coping.

It would not be long until your mind landed itself in the grave, by his hand or yours.

You watched the intense rich shade of red trickle down your lips and onto your chin, its boldness absorbing your attention and trail suctioning color beneath its crimson hue. Perhaps the aching of your sensory receptors was a direct consequence of the peril you put yourself in—an unconscious and remorseful action.

You could not regret—there was no time, for he controlled that too.

Reaching for a towel to wipe the ruby from your face, a flash of purple streaked from the corner of your eye. You quickly turned but all your bulging eyes made contact with was the floor.

The floor and your shadow.

Your shadow was swirling, its outline swaying against the wooden floorboards and darkness crawling as it followed your movements. Within its depths was the image of a battle; the clash of fragments of hazel scattered throughout the pools of ink. Each unconquered piece slowly succumbed to the tide because lone soldiers were weak in the face of an army. As rich brown gradually swirled into deep black, you were reminded of the arachnids; the eight-legged creature that crawled where it pleased and patiently waited for its prey to fall into its carefully crafted web. The flush colored area that unluckily landed itself behind you was now trapped in a web of gloom, an inescapable route that held no other option but to wait for its end.

Akin to how your shadow absorbed the surroundings around it—colors swirling from vivid to black—you too were mesmerized by its outlandish ferocity. The way it continued to entrench on other areas despite your lack of movement gave you the feeling it was more lively than how you remembered it.

You moved a step back. You felt your heart racing as the shadow stormed after you, quickly discarding its entrapped victims and viciously tearing apart others to get to you. Once it reached your side, the shadow began to swirl around in its new area, straying slightly farther than your outline as it dragged other pieces of hazel within its midst.

You took several steps back, fearful eyes following your shadow’s barbaric barreling as its outline shook and swirling hastened. You could make out a small groaning sound, then a wave of sighs once the shadow reached you. Your shadow’s outline and swirling lessened in intensity, resuming its invasion sequence. Near the bottom of your feet, you almost didn’t make out the tiny inky strings that connected you to the shadow. You wanted to say they resembled hands, the way there were several small strings tied to one long string, but the swirling of the ink made it hard to make out.

Even in your own home you were going crazy.

Shortly after, you quickly got dressed and rushed out the door, never once looking back at your shadow.

The trek was fast because you did not bother to stop and look around for people to hand out food to. You were too absorbed in rethinking each encounter that you did not realize the man standing outside the shed.

“Glad to see you’re back.” Jinwoo greeted, body leaning against the shed with arms crossed. He was in a spot that offered him shade from the morning sun, dressed in his normal attire of all-black from head to toe.

You caught yourself from flinching, breaking out of your dazed state and willing yourself to speak to him.

“I, um, don’t see why not,” You meekly replied, the grip on the strap of your bag getting a little tighter. “The earthquake from yesterday did scare me, though.”

“There is no need to be afraid as long as I’m here,” Jinwoo said, pushing off the shed and stopping a shy few inches away from you.

You had not fully realized it, but Jinwoo really was an intimidating character. You never saw him at full height as he would always be sitting on something at some distance away from you and shrouded by shadows. With the way your eyes were nearly shoved into a face full of chest, you were struggling to maintain your fortitude against his domineering posture and terrorizing stare. His hands in his pockets could only do so much to shrink his broad shoulders that boldly shaped his black dress shirt.

Jinwoo leaned down toward you, head slightly tilted. His gray eyes immediately collapsed your own, unable to turn away as your heart beat sporadically. Soon the chirps of birds and the swaying of grass by the wind drowned out as static filled your ears. There was only static, until you made out faint whispering that echoed by your feet—it was incomprehensible, but it was there. You could not look away to confirm or deny your paranoia—to prove you maintained a piece of sanity—but that did not matter in the face of the ferocious beast in front of you. No, what you were more scared of now was if Jinwoo could hear how fast your heart raced—whether he could read your thoughts by glimpsing through your eyes and by the amount of time he’s spent in your head. You were able to push back the trembling, but how long could you hold it for?

A voice was murmuring underneath the ocean of sound, promptly silencing the whispers that plagued your ears.

“Huh?” Your mind was still mushy after the wave of panic passed you, having forgotten who was in front of you. The ringing static faded the harder your nails dug into your palm.

“No charity work today?” Jinwoo repeated, head tilting more at his inquiry. He leaned back, the mist clouding your mind finally settling as he separated from you.

Your fingers fiddling with the bag strap and the shuffling noise it emitted reminded you of the donations you were given today.

Wait—the donations. You sucked in a breath, trying to even out your breathing. It was made a point that you would always hand out food before meeting with him, as you would offer him the last piece you had. It was a consistent act that you performed despite only knowing Jinwoo for a minimal amount of time. How was he aware, that today of all days, was the one irregularity in your schedule?

You quickly cleared your throat. “I planned on going after meeting with you.”

Jinwoo hummed, eyes flashing to the small stream of red that trickled down your palm. His prolonged glare at the crimson liquid and clenched fists was nearly enough for you to voice your concern, but what could you even say? The tension in the air wound your vocal cords like tight knots with a string and you were too scared to unweave them.

The brief flicker of a violet hue immediately stilled your fiddling. The color was as vivid and deep as you remembered, so much so that your body couldn’t help but freeze.

There was no way he didn’t notice.

For a moment, the only sound you heard was the blood rushing through your ears as neither of you spoke a word.

Then, Jinwoo smiled. “I’ll go with you.”

“Ah—wait, um—“ You stuttered out a flood of incomprehensible blabber, quickly muted by the pattering of Jinwoo’s shoes as they trailed off in the direction you just came from.

Jinwoo turned after a few steps, eyelids slightly crinkled due to the corners of his lips being upturned. The way that his eyes were glazed over with a somber shade, the lines of his lips wavering from his strange smile, and his tight, restrained posture snipped the words of rejection off the tip of your tongue.

Oddly, your attention shifted to the floor. The sun was blaring strongly at the current hour, your shadow desperately clinging underneath you seeking respite from its isolation to other shadowy entities. You watched—in a state of shock and awe—as the shadow stretched its outline farther, almost as if extending an open hand, as Jinwoo crept closer to you. His silhouette looked animated as inky black pools excitedly swirled the closer it got. It was drawn to you—desperately trying to stay close to you—as if it was a planet orbiting the sun.

The gravity that must surround you enough to pull in an entity of the likes of possibly Jupiter—did it mean you were significant, someone that finally held power?

…Even then, would that be a good thing?

The sun’s gravity was strong enough to pull in other planets to its orbit, and they would remain there for however long the sun remained. If the sun moved, the planets moved with it.

The sun was significant, so the sun was trapped.

…Could the sun ever defy its fate?

Gray eyes pierced like needles into your skin.

“Shall we?”

“Please use this to take care of yourself.”

You handed a woman a portion of your donations, watching as she carefully grasped the bread before hastily running off in the opposite direction.

You did not blame the woman since the oppressive presence behind you was beginning to give you a headache. You could say he was like a shadow that followed your movement, but that felt obvious.

In any case, he felt more like a parasite. He fed off any and all emotions you had and indulged as if it were a banquet and you were a feast—when you smiled after someone was vigorously thanking you, the atmosphere felt lighter. If you so much as frowned at someone’s words, the inky shadows that trailed his form flickered harshly.

He shared your actions, albeit more ferociously.

It was out of the question telling him to leave, so was it within the realm of possibility to tell Jinwoo to calm down?

Speak of the devil—he suddenly interrupted your thoughts.

“Would you care to enlighten me for a moment?” You perked up at Jinwoo’s words. He was smiling, albeit a bit more widely when your eyes met his.

“What are your thoughts about ‘wielding power’?”

A spontaneous question; something you were never normally asked. Sure, people ask what ability you would have if you awakened but they never asked about the concept. The wording was… off putting to say the least, but….

You pursed your lips. “Power is the gauge of potential. An individual can hold a certain level of power and thus exert that same level of authority over those without it.”

The Hunters Association and all guilds used a similar basis. Individuals had power, but what about combining power? There was a reason why the top guilds all held S-ranks and many A-ranks.

“When it comes to wielding power, I don’t think my opinion matters.”

“Well, I asked specifically for it, no?”

You shook your head. “That’s not what I mean. My opinion is that I have no opinion because it’s something I could never experience.”

Hunters? Awakening? If you had not seen the end of the world you wouldn’t have believed such nonsensical words. Your life was so awfully normal that dropping your phone on the floor was likely a weekly highlight for you.

“Wielding power… is something I’ve merely wished for. More precisely, I wish for the ability to protect.”

“The ability to protect…” Jinwoo echoed, pondering for a moment. Your eyes caught a glimpse of his eyebrow twitching, as if he had decided something. You wanted to inquire, but he looked incredibly deep in thought.

Eventually, you gathered the courage to speak.

“Jinwoo—“

“Excuse me?” A male voice spoke out from your side.

A boyish-looking male came into view and the first thing you noticed was his tattered clothing. His shoes were completely worn while his satchel was tearing apart at the seams. His clothes and face were marred with dirt and you felt your heart tug a little.

He looked exasperated.

You nodded quickly, pulling out bread and a bottle of water. You ignored the annoyed grunt from behind you.

The way the boy’s eyes lit up… it was a reminder of why you pushed so far. The loss of folks you cherished so deeply nearly tipped you over the edge. No matter how many times you begged the wind to guide you to at least a breathing sibling, or knelt down crying in front of the small cemetery that would never hold a single one of your family members—it would not bring them back. But, doing some good for others felt good. It reminded you of the days when they were still there—the small smiles plastered on grateful faces morphed into ones that resembled familiar, joyful expressions.

Familiarity was comforting in a world that was anything but.

What was not familiar, however, was the sudden warmth you felt allocating your entire body. Your wide eyes met his closed ones—he had shaky arms wrapped around you while murmuring multiple thank you’s. It was an uncommon occurrence for passerby’s to show this degree of gratitude, mostly because of fear. It took you a few seconds to realize he was hugging you, but when you did, you hugged back. Maybe it was because his hug felt like your parents were embracing you, or that he distinctly sounded like your younger cousin. Maybe it was out of pity. Nonetheless, you hugged him back and patted his shoulder.

“You’ll be okay,” You mumbled. You weren’t sure if it was to yourself or to the boy.

The boy pulled away, hesitating before saying, “Please thank the man that was with you for me.”

You raised a brow. ‘Was’? You turned around, seeking a figure that was no longer there. Your body shook a bit, hair on your arms standing. Where did he go?

You weren’t paying attention to where he fled, or whether he said anything or not. It wasn’t like him to suddenly walk out, at least, you thought so.

Maybe that was why your chest felt so light.

You waved farewell to the boy after a few more minutes of him bowing, watching him vanish among the cluster of trees. You couldn’t help but take another sweep around to make sure Jinwoo left. The numerous amount of times you’ve experienced him doing something unpredictable still did not quell the insurmountable dread racking over you.

Some time passed during your small scavenge to see where he had gone and you ultimately decided to return home at the sight of the darkening sky. The sounds of the night… on occasion there were the croaks of animals but, really, all that remained were the small insects the strong never worried about. The more you thought about it, you and the people you knew resembled those same insects. You all buzzed around as a population and prayed the predators didn’t bat an eye at the footprints left behind. The moment the noises got loud enough, the population would be wiped in an instant.

You readjusted your bag strap as you stepped over a tree root. The narrow path signaled you were getting closer to home. The familiar twisting of branches and rocks ensnared in crevices eased your spiraling mind. Leaves crunched under your foot with each step and eventually was matched by the sound of your breathing. This, too, was familiar.

You took another step. Crunch.

Then another step. Crunch.

Another step. Cr—

The crunching noise was subsided by a light splash-like sound. You took another step, not quite registering the sudden change, yet felt a sticky substance beneath your feet. You looked down, seeing splatters of a mysterious liquid littered around leaves. It looked like there was a trail, but even when you squinted your eyes you could not make out what the liquid was. You continued to walk, splatters turning into pools and your feet felt like it was moving through mud. The brisk fresh air that felt easy to breathe began to filter out as dread filled your lungs. The trees parted out around this point now, and the village was just in sight. The crimson gleamed grimly under the moonlight and you willed your shaking knees to not give out. You wanted to let out a sob but your throat tightened as the wind picked up. Leaves, some dyed with red, flew past you and all you could do was linger on the familiar flow of hair that sat atop an unmoving body surrounded by waves of blood.

You refused to move outside of the village.

The first few days, you stranded yourself inside your home. After finding the corpse, you immediately ran to the village chief and reported it. You were interrogated for a short while, but upon determining your innocence—the crime scene did not match how clean your clothes were—you were allowed to return home. The tread back did not stop you from listening to the whispers of curious crowds.

“He was stabbed a grand total of 30 times all around his body.”

“Really? I would’ve thought some sort of monster had slaughtered him, the way he was completely torn through…”

“He looks awfully young… This is truly a tragedy.”

“What caused this?”

“Does anyone know who this is?”

You shut the door, leaning your head down and bumping it harshly against the wooden door.

The familiar patch of hair covered in blood, cold amber eyes, and scarred boyish features kept you awake that night.

You did not tell the others that you had met him hours prior—had given him a portion of the donations you always carried with you. Perhaps it was so you could grieve by your lonesome, or so you wouldn’t have to face reality just yet.

You mourned the fact you didn’t even know his name.

For the first time ever, you refused to hand out donations. Instead, you helped around the village. Your guilt was eating away at you and you needed a distraction. You helped repair houses, organize food, and babysat children. Each job wore you down worse than the other, to the point where you would pass out in bed. You took nearly every job in the hopes of being kept away from… thinking.

It worked out for a while. You stopped thinking about the body, and you stopped thinking about Jinwoo.

Jinwoo. It was not difficult to put the pieces together.

He was despair incarnate—an accident waiting to happen.

It was high time you stopped fooling yourself that he would be anything less than ‘normal’.

You refused to fathom the ‘why’ and ‘how’. He was not someone you wanted to concern yourself with anymore. Each event that played out, odd occurrences, and anxiety attacks all linked to him.

To be around him… it was like reliving trauma from the day the world collapsed.

Each day away from him you continued living your past life of normalcy. You didn’t second guess actions of others, less nightmares, and you stopped paying attention to your shadow. There was a slight pull on your heart sometimes, one that resembled fear, and it motivated you go all the way for a fresh new start.

By the end of the week, you would move out. Based on the local nomads that come and go from your village, there was another shelter farther from here. It would be a long journey—not an easy feat—but you welcomed this as a new experience.

You were going to put everything behind you and live free. Your lost family, friends—maybe they would rest more easily knowing you finally stopped clinging to their memories.

You opened the closet door and looked into the mirror. Your face looked brighter and fuller. You smiled to the reflection, happy that for the first time in forever you were proud of yourself.

A heavy knock sounded at your door and you practically bounced over. It could be one of the parent’s wanting you to watch their children again; someone like May would want her daughter to get a proper goodbye.

An unfamiliar face greeted you at the door and you were taken aback by her petrified expression. Your smile dropped near instantaneously.

“T-The c-center… y-you…” The woman was quivering so much you thought she would fall.

You did not need to hear the rest of her words to start sprinting towards the village’s center.

The center had a good amount of space for larger-than-normal gatherings and meetings. Closest to the center housed the village’s chief, so any and all important duties always beelined to the center.

Certainly there was not a special meeting today, otherwise you would’ve heard about it. A surprise occasion, perhaps?

You spotted a giant cluster of people swarming the center. Roughly speaking, nearly the entire village’s population was gathered outside with even the scavengers joining the party based off the number of familiar heads you saw. The large crowd of people made you more suspicious. This was definitely not normal. You could make out numerous terrified whispers beyond the turning heads and mouths behind their hands. It was only when you got closer that you realized this was not a normal gathering.

At the edges of the crowd and covered in a thick, deep black were multiple entities. They varied in form from large bears, elves, ants, and wolves to humanoid figures covered in armor. You would’ve assumed them to be beasts if not for their color and that they were not attacking the unarmed civilians they surrounded.

A gut-wrenching feeling was pooling. All of the village was gathered, there were beasts patrolling thought to be untamable, and you specifically were reached out to. Your house was a bit out of the way—it was the one closest to the edge and furthest from the center. It would make sense why you did not hear the commotion, but it did not make sense for you to be called on out of everyone else.

In a moment you made up your mind. The beasts were busy watching over the crowd so you took quiet steps to back away. It was better to make distance in case you needed a head start—something you wish you did when the portals opened and you were too awestruck to move.

There was growling heard from a wolf as a woman attempted to leave.

You took a few more steps back. If you reached a bit farther back you could block yourself with the bushes.

In any case, the situation looked dire enough for you to debate running to another village for help. The closest one was about a day or two’s worth of walking, it was a risk but what other option did you possibly have? All the people here were in danger, yet again, you were powerless. What a bitter feeling.

You took another step only to stop at the sound of groaning behind you.

You turned, nearly falling to the floor at the sight in front of you.

The figure was tall—tall enough that you had to turn your head up to see its head. Similar to its peers, it was completely encased in an inky black. Now that you could get a closer look, you also noticed dark clouds pooling around the entity, almost like a mist-like substance was protruding from it. It confirmed that whatever these… things were, they were not normal portal creatures. Your eyes trailed slowly from its darkened plates—was that armor?—to two white orbs. Its white eyes were staring holes into you, face hidden behind an armor helmet. You watched in horror as the plume atop its head waved, metal creaking as it bent its top half forward. You were expecting hostility; perhaps the being would usher you forcefully into the crowd or treat you as if you escaped. To your surprise, the head dipped—it went low enough for the white to disappear. The right hand of the knight was placed gently against the center of its chest and it kept its head down for a few moments. Was it… bowing?

You moved to sprint but the knight’s head shot up. It narrowed its eyes in a way that said ‘don’t’. The moment you saw the heavy sheathed sword strapped to its side you stopped. You felt your eye twitch as it waved its hand in the direction of the center, motioning for you to step forward first. You could clearly see, then, the other shadowy entities staring at you and how the armored knight perfectly stood atop your shadow. You were caught in the same trap as the others, the sinking feeling in your chest unyielding.

You reluctantly made your way towards the center. Following your steps behind you was the sound of metal grating and heavy thudding against the clear plain. No matter how many times you pinched yourself, the sight remained the same: large crowd and beasts. It reminded you so vividly of back then that you couldn’t stop the trembling in your legs. As you approached the crowd, their faces reflected your shaking: uneasy and fearful. Some shadows moved to part the crowd, allowing you an easier entryway towards the center. They mimicked what the knight from before did, all bowing in their own way.

You felt everyone staring and never before did you feel so anxious.

The sudden hushes from the crowd that swiftly turned into silence allowed you to hear the booming voices in the distance.

The familiar sinking of your heart stimulated the fully formulated sensation of fear—a new-found source of dread entirely because one of the booming voices you recognized.

“…This offer is beneficial to you, is it not?” A deep voice said, sending a tremor down your spine.

“It is a negotiation, not an offer,” Another voice said, “I am uncertain of your terms so I cannot comply.”

There was a long, drawn-out sigh. You peeked from behind the shoulder of a soldier in front of you, praying you wouldn’t be noticed.

Jinwoo ran a hand through his messy dark hair, eyes practically glowering at the village chief. The leader of the community—the one who allocates and organizes everyone’s resources while ensuring safety—is known as the village chief. For the minor semblance to how past society lived, they were elected periodically by the community. You talked to him recently about the body, but… why was he talking to Jinwoo?

Wait, why was Jinwoo even here?

“Well, it doesn’t matter. I only asked for your permission out of convenience.”

“After all, the person I was waiting for is finally here.”

You cowered behind the soldier, watching as his eyes raked through the entire crowd until stopping on you.

“Isn’t that right, Y/N? Come out now.” He was beckoning you forward with his hand, index finger wagging at you as if trying to cage a scared puppy.

Jinwoo, of the attire you’ve seen him in previously, was wearing something different. Instead of slightly ragged clothes he was wearing a long black coat with silver engravings around the shoulder and wrists. He wore a clean white shirt underneath along with black pants and formal black shoes—the outfit would’ve screamed ‘money’ to you if there was such things as designer still.

He was befitting to be someone of high society, in fact.

Your eyes met with the village chief and it seemed he immediately understood the situation. He was mouthing ‘no’ at you, trying to deter you—this was enough to keep your feet planted.

You remained still. Soon enough, you felt something spike in the air, the shadows beneath his coat tail flicking wildly at your impertinence. The entities surrounding the crowd grew restless, with the shadow-being you were hiding behind shaking. Jinwoo was staring bullets into you, even behind the soldier, and the shadows were as well.

“Move.” Jinwoo flicked his wrist towards the soldier and it immediately crumbled into a dark cloudy mist. The essence then moved back towards Jinwoo’s shadow, becoming absorbed into his outline.

Petrified, you stood still. A lot of things started to click as you began to realize what Jinwoo’s true power was. The way his shadow never stood still or how your own never acted quite right… it made sense.

Now you were staring at him and he was staring at you. Jinwoo gave you a slight wave.

He smiled. “I missed you.”

You were too scared to open your mouth with how tight your throat was.

Jinwoo turned to the tall knight next to you. “Good work, Igris. Now—“

The knight nodded his head, white eyes still watching you.

“—I’d like to discuss our future.” There was a glow emitting from Jinwoo’s eyes, light shining on his violet pupils.

He held out his hand, tapping the right palm of the hand using his left index finger. “From now on, the people living here will act under me.”

What? What did he say?

“I reject!” The village chief roared. “For someone like you to show up like this…”

“Quiet.” Jinwoo held a finger to his lips, purple eyes violently flashing.

“I wasn’t talking to you.”

He turned towards you. “I will protect all that live here.”

Jinwoo licked his lips. “In return, Y/N, you will be my betrothed.”

No. No, no, no, no.

No.

After all that has happened, maybe it was because of him. Just him. He single-handedly ruined the remaining good parts of your life and for what? To be some selfish bastard?

No. No way.

“What the fuck are you talking about, Jinwoo?” You shouted, holding back tears. No wonder his behavior was so goddamn psychotic—he wanted you to be his lover?

“I barely know who the hell you are, and what you’re doing right now is absurd. Just who are you?”

Jinwoo tilted his head. “Do you really not know?” He tapped a finger against his cheek.

“Have you heard of the Monarchs?”

Monarchs? Did he mean the Monarchs of Calamity?

Although you experienced the end of the world, you were unfamiliar concerning its origin. There were multiple theories that were shared with you, such as planned gate-opening or that multiple outbreaks occurred simultaneously due to probability. A leading theory was that there were beings, named Monarchs, who acted as divinity because they possessed power that rivaled gods. Even when the S-rank hunters of other countries joined forces, they were unable to be on equal footing with the Monarchs. These Monarchs, for an unbeknownst reason, released an unnatural calamity upon the world—hence the name ‘Monarchs of Calamity.’ You never pondered this theory—why would you want to reflect on the idea that a disaster was intentionally brought upon you? The fact that it was brought up means…

“…Are you a Monarch?” You asked, eyes flashing towards the darkened knight he called ‘Igris.’

“I am the Monarch of Shadows.” Jinwoo sneered at the title, the corner of his lips momentarily quirking upward as he watched despair flash over the village chief’s face.

It seemed Jinwoo did not like your own befallen expression, though.

“It’s of interest to you because that means I am also the leader of Monarchs.” You curled your right fist, squeezing your nails as hard as you could against the palm of your hand.

“In terms of protection, I am the best there is.” Jinwoo continued, waving towards his army—monstrosities that have already conquered countless civilizations within a blink of an eye.

“The people you love now… I can take care of them. All you have to do is say yes.”

You looked back towards the crowd. They were still anxious and afraid. The familiar faces you saw, the children, the families… this was cruel. If you said no, would he—

“Do you remember the conversation we had the other day, about power?” Jinwoo asked suddenly. The way his eyes were watching you so intently, that he was eagerly awaiting your responses frightened you more than anything. You saw him flick his wrists, pulling out something from within his shadow. There was a gleam of red and immediately you let out a scream for him to stop but it was far too late.

There was a loud thud next to you and you nearly vomited.

“Your wish to obtain power… I can grant it, so long as you become my Queen.”

There, lying on the ground next to you, was the unmoving body of the village chief. The one who attempted to protect this little community to the very end, who tried to shield you despite the circumstances, and stood up to a Monarch despite not wielding power himself. There was a large, red dagger driven deep into his chest. As his blood pooled out onto the floor, the screaming began. Men shouted and roared out of fear and anger, some women screamed while others covered the childrens’ eyes. The dagger currently lodged in his chest made you blink once, then twice.

You gasped suddenly, your mind flashing back to the corpse of the boy who was overly cheerful—the image of the deep slash marks, riddled with slashes that tore out skin from bone churned through your head.

“You… the boy—it was you, wasn’t it?” You choked out, reaching for the village chief.

“He overstepped, by touching what is mine,” Jinwoo hissed, expression smoldering and hair bristling. “It’s unforgivable.”

The shadows were shrieking now, trying to tame the crowd while their Monarch was simmering. He was about to burst, but you were already on the edge. You were so overwhelmed, so tired of him and whatever despair he brought with him, that you started letting go.

“You’re a monster. A cruel, unruly, disgusting monster.” You sharply emphasized every word, hoping it stabbed as deep as he did to those innocent people. “I will never agree to your dogshit proposal.”

The yelling of the crowd began turning into shattering shrieks and now everything was unraveling to be a slaughter. There were brave people who fought and those who fled. Those who were caught began to follow the village chief. The sound of constant thudding flooded your mind but all you could simply do was tearfully stare at the corpses.

It was like the end of the world all over again.

Jinwoo held a firm hand against his face, a purple eye peeking through his fingers to peer at you.

“I still have yet to understand you. Death is such an easy thing yet you act like it’s your first time witnessing it everytime…” Jinwoo softly gritted his teeth.

“However, if death is the only issue, then it’s fixable.” Jinwoo raised a hand towards the village chief, the shadowy cloud quickly enveloping the corpse.

“Arise.”

Everything happened so quickly that you were nearly convinced you had blacked out. From the corpse that remained on the now bloody floor rose a new shadowy figure. This time, it was in the very shape of the man who you saw killed just moments ago. In fact, multiple other figures emerged from unmoving bodies that sat on the ground. Each face was a face that you recognized as people you interacted with daily. They were familiar, yet not at the same time—their faces were dull, expressionless, as if they became puppets and were waiting for the master to pull the strings.

“Queen,” The village chief spoke next to you and you stepped back out of alarm. “You are the Queen.”

“Queen,” The crowd repeated in unison. “You are the Queen.”

Stop.

Queen. It was like standing in an echo chamber.

You are the Queen. Was he this heartless?

Queen. You are the Queen.

“Stop,” You whispered.

Queen. Some children were repeating it too.

You. Are. The. Queen.

“Stop it!” You screamed, holding both hands against your ears as you finally let a sob rack over your body.

You heard footsteps approaching you, but you didn’t care. You just wanted it all to stop—everything. All the pain, the suffering, the memories. You were tired. Enough fighting, enough thinking—just, please, stop.

A warmth enveloped your body and you felt a hand gently uncover one side of your ear.

“I have waited so long for you, so accept me.” Jinwoo’s breath tickled your ear and you couldn’t help but shiver.

"Just as you belong to me, I belong to you. Any item you want, I will give. Any person you dislike will vanish within an instant.”

If you want the stars in the sky, I will lay them at your feet. If you want to conquer the entire sky, it will all be yours."

“Just be mine.”

[teojira]

Just a thought! Godzilla who tolerates human and mothera who absolutely adores the human and wants to keep it like a little pet is so funny to me

[I want a baby. We are two titans.] [Headcanons]

Summary: Mothra has a soft spot for you and Gojira takes it upon himself to see you, a human. He will not fall victim to your charms.

Word count: 700+

Pronouns: Gender neutral!

Warnings: None that I can possibly think of! Do lmk if I need to though!

A/N: First Goji and Mothra request!! Thank you so much!! I hope these are okay anon! Kinda made it to where it's the set up lore for this request bc that's where my brain took me lmao.

You're not particularly of note, you're nothing, sorry to say it special. No secret heritage, no secret connection to Monarch before meeting the moth titan, but when you find yourself face to face with her, you feel calm and safe.

She's radiating warmth and comfort and quietly as she can squeaks at you, trying to bid you closer to her.

A bad idea really, extremely bad idea but she just looks so soft and loving, so you walk up to her and gently rest a hand on her head, running your fingers through her fuzz.

It's clear She's very sweet on you, she can't always be by your side, having to do her duties as the queen of monsters but she will visit, she also somehow knows where you are at all times.

After the first encounter, Monarch realized they could use you to help locate her so you now have a decent cushy life as the Mothra whisperer among the two twins, the Ziyis.

Dr. Chen is absolutely fascinated to hear about your connection to Mothra, she's one of your main friends in the company who comes to visit you often.

Mothra never lingers for long, but she comes by to visit and rests with you awhile, allowing you to pet and climb on her if you wish, though she makes panicked noises if you accidental stumble, she doesn't really have alot of arm to catch you so girl is NERVOUS.

You're her little human, she'd hate to see you get hurt, regardless if she knows she can fix it.

Goji knows where Mothra is going, to see a human, and he's very against, trying to growl and grunt his point of view to Mothra, but she will have none of it. He rolls his eyes and thumps his tail, trying to emphasize that it is a bad idea and it'll get her hurt.

Mothra has never listened to a man and will not do so now, so she continues her visits with you, coming to him smelling of human.

At this point, he's gonna come see you himself, Mothra is beautiful, caring and a more peaceful titan.

Goji is not, which is why he has no issues with breaching the water next to the Monarch base and coming to find you.

He does take SOME care to not needlessly destroy everything around him, staying in the water and just standing there menacingly as fuck, everyone freaks the fuck out until Mothra follows him, resting on his back, her appendages wrapped gently on Gojis scales.

That's when they figure to send you out, neither Kaiju are attacking, but they know very clearly of Mothra's soft spot for you, so it's a insurance that she'd step in against her husband if he goes rouge.

So they send you out, you humming a village song that Dr.Chen taught you, alerting Mothra of your presence.

She flaps her wings excitedly, leaving her spot on Goji to get to you, her wings enclose the two of you, her way of giving you a hug.

Goji grumbles but gets closer, moving to lay his chest on the ground so he can get a good look at you.

You're so, squishy looking, kinda stupid looking as well, with your big eyes trained on him in fear.

He brings his snout closer, his breath making your hair blow around your face.

Mothra let's out a noise, probably a warning to her King to not do anything stupid.

You can see his visibly roll his fucking eyes at her and then he trains his eyes on yours, directly making eye contact.

He then exhales, the gust of wind knocking you over from the force, he laughs. He honest to god LAUGHS AT YOU.

You can't help but laugh back, from nerves and the fact that he seems so eerily human in this instant.

Mothra slaps him with one of her arms, shaking her head at him, speaking in a language you're sure only exists between them.

Goji uses the tip of his tail to give you something to prop yourself up against, you didn't scream of fear, he hasn't been shot at yet, he figures you're alright, for a human.

ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ᴠᴇʀʏ ᴍᴜᴄʜ ꜰᴏʀ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ ɪ ʜᴏᴘᴇ ᴛᴏ ʜᴇᴀʀ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ʏᴏᴜ ꜱᴏᴏɴ!

[circeyoru]

Shadow and Void _ Part 3

[Yandere!Sung Jinwoo x Enemy Monarch!Reader]

Part 1 ― Part 2 ― Part 3 (here)

NAME: [REDACTED]

LV. UNMEASURABLE

CLASS: SPACE, MONARCH, HUMAN

TITLE: <MONARCH OF VOID>, <KING OF THE FORGOTTEN>, <THE HIDDEN ONE>, <HERALD OF FAVOUR>, <HARBINGER OF [REDACTED]>, <[REDACTED]>, MORE

HP: UNMEASURABLE

MP: UNMEASURABLE

FATIGUE: UNMEASURABLE

STRENGTH: UNMEASURABLE

AGILITY: UNMEASURABLE

PERCEPTION: UNMEASURABLE

STAMINA: UNMEASURABLE

INTELLIGENCE: UNMEASURABLE

SKILLS: [REDACTED], [REDACTED], DIMENSION VORTEX, SPACE MANIPULATION, POCKET DIMENSION, MIST MANIPULATION, ULTIMATE STEALTH, MANIFESTATION, MORE+

DESCRIPTION: THE MONARCH OF VOID IS A SOUGHT-OUT ALLY WITHIN THE MONARCHS AND A GREATER ENEMY ON THE BATTLEFIELD. WITH THE MERE AID FROM THE MONARCH OF MIST, THE BATTLE COULD BE OVERTURNED EASILY. THE MONARCH IS CAUTIOUS AROUND OTHERS BUT HAS A SOFT SPOT FOR THE MONARCH OF SHADOWS, ASHBORN. THE MONARCH IS LOYAL TO NONE AND HAS NO CARE FOR OTHERS’ WELLBEING, FOR THE MONARCH IS SELF-CENTERED TO THE POINT OF ABANDONING OTHERS FOR SURVIVABILITY.

[REDACTED] INFORMATION CANNOT TO FOUND THROUGH ANY METHODS. IT IS SUGGESTED FOR PLAYER TO BE CLOSER TO THE MONARCH OF VOID TO GAIN MORE RELATED INFORMATION.

“Hey. Hey!” 

Jinwoo’s eyes blinked repeatedly as he turned his chair around to back his desk, away from the floor-to-ceiling glass window of the city buildings around his. Also to stop reading the information window on his newest ally. “Yes?”

“I’ve been calling you for a while, but you keep on staring at the scenery.” You frowned, arms crossed over your chest. “Are you staring at yourself in the glass’s reflection?”

“I zoned out.” Jinwoo partially lied. While reading the window at first, he was quick to zone out after reading your description. Though, your words provided him with the information that you couldn’t see or know about the System like he does. So Ashborn didn’t tell you about anything in technical terms.

You groaned and scratched the back of your head. 

Jinwoo watched with interest. It was a very human thing for you to do. He had expected you to be more indifferent and cold, perhaps even expressionless or doll-like. However, even in the memories of Ashborn, you didn’t even have a form, just a smokey and misty outline or mass. Now, you were solid. Not that he minded, but with you being in a more solid figure, it was advantageous to him.

“Can you tell me why I should be around you?” You glared at him with narrowed eyes and furrowed brows, you quickly pointed a finger at him when he opened his mouth to say something. “And don’t say it’s for supervision. You have your minions in my shadow already, so that’s supervision enough. Besides… You only stay in your office all the time and nothing happens.” You retracted your finger back to your crossed arms. “At least let me enjoy all that your humans have created before it’s all gone.”

“You’re confident the humans would lose?” Jinwoo plopped his cheek in his palm while his elbow was on his desk, his gaze piercing yours. 

You blinked at him, raising a brow, “Isn’t it obvious? Humans don’t stand a chance against the Monarchs, even with the help of the Fragments of Brilliant Light or whatever their names are.” You blinked again, this time your expression turning neutral or mildly surprised, perhaps amused as well. “You don’t think you can fight them all off, right? You can’t manage the Monarch of Frost last time. How can you when they all come at you or Earth?” You took a short few-second pause, before he could even get a word out, you added. “And! They will bring along their armies.”

“I have you with me this time.” Jinwoo leaned back in his chair, his eyes glowed a purple hue that made you flinch involuntarily. “I heard you can turn the tides of war easily like a snap of a finger, in fact, I bet they are wondering where you have gone right now. Maybe they even realized you had stayed by my side. Willingly or forcefully.” He got up from his seat and approached your form, circling you with his hands behind his back. “Either way, they know you’re not on their side now. Won’t they see you as an enemy too? Won’t it be better if we worked together?”

“I am an ally of myself. You’re saying all this, so I’ll be more inclined to be your ally.” You glared up at him, “Well, it’s not working, nor will it. Everyone knows I pick no side and I’ll stay on my own side. You may have me now, but at the slight opportunity I have to escape from you…” Your eyes glowed too, though you had a silver-grey hue. “I’ll take it without a second thought.”

“Go ahead and try. You will have another dagger in your fresh.” Jinwoo warned.

Your eye twitched, “Don’t act all high and mighty. You only have what you have now because of Ashborn. Your skills, your abilities, your army, your allies, your enemies. Even your confidence, pride, and ego. You’re nothing without him. You will never amount to anything.”

Jinwoo grinned, “We’ll see.”

The two of you shared a stare at each other, unmoving as if a competition was declared, though without warning of any kind. 

Knocks on his office door broke the tension in the room and, most importantly, the little competition between you two. You groaned and turned your heel, heading in the direction of the closest seat in the vicinity, which happened to be the very chair he had been sitting in moments ago. As you took a seat, Jinwoo went to the door and opened it, revealing the vice-guildmaster on the other side.

“Hyung! I wasn’t interrupting you, right?” Jinho peeked behind Jinwoo to see you all crossed with a scowl on your face.

Jinwoo looked back at you, making you turn his chair so that the back of it was facing him and blocking his view of you. The man chuckled and turned his attention back to Jinho. “No. Is there something you need help with?”

“Actually, there’s someone for you.” Jinho jabbed a finger at the reception area.

It would have been a point of curiosity for Jinwoo had he not been perceptive or didn’t had his guard up because of you. Still, he easily had his answer as to who it was that visited his guild office and has the guts to request him. Cha Hae-In.

Formerly he would have been interested enough to go to her or indulge her, but now that you were around, he saw no need for another that could cause a misunderstanding. It would be better if she wasn’t here in the first place and he’d have more private time alone with yo—

Wait. What was he thinking just now? No way was he being this tied up when you were around. Just a few days ago, he had you pinned to the wall with his daggers and you two were at odds even just now. There was nothing pleasant between the two of you. No way. Even a blind person can see they were enemies!

Perhaps it was just because he valued your abilities as a Monarch and the memories of Ashborn was having an effect on him. So then, there was no way he’d want to appeal to you in a gentle and kind manner like friends would. Yes, that explains it.

Jinwoo mentally let out a sigh of relief, feeling his head clear up a bit. Now, the correct and ideal course of action was to meet Hunter Cha and see why she was here. But first, he walked over to you and stared down at you, who was already distracted by scrolling through your phone. “Come with me.”

“I’m not staying by your side while you deal with your boring human business. Call me when you’re going to a dungeon or something that requires violence.” You brushed him off and swirled the chair again so that the back faced his face.

Before you could slam the back in his face, his hand gripped onto the arms of the chair and froze you in place. He leaned down, caging you in as he spoke lowly, and his eyes glowed purple. “You’re coming with me whether you like it or not. Or do you prefer being pinned to the wall in my daggers?”

You raised a brow at him, your bored and neutral face unchanged, “Maybe that would be better than seeing that woman flirt with you.”

Jinwoo’s threatening and oppressive atmosphere immediately diminished to nothing. “What?” 

“Yup, why not? Just pin me to the wall.” You shrugged. 

“No, go back to what you said about Hunter Cha.”

“Ha?” Your eyebrows furrowed at him with a look of ‘are you serious right now’. Jinwoo controlled himself so as not to pinch your cheek because of cuteness. You sighed, “It’s obvious what’s happening. That woman is crushing on you. Romantically. You must have done something to her before.”

Jinwoo looked up and off to the side as he tried to recall. Some memories came to mind, and he muttered with some sense of understanding. “Oh. I guess I did save her during an S-Rank Raid and helped her guild out in another dungeon…”

You deadpanned at this vessel of Ashborn. No wonder he was picked to be the vessel. Just as clueless as that former Ruler. What are you going to do? “See? But then you only have fights and monsters and dungeons on your mind, huh.” Your form cringed from the memories of your vessel falling in love with someone and you had to watch it happen as well. “So now you get it, leave me out of your romance story.”

Note: Been quite busy cause of work. So posts would be less for these 2 months. Hope you like this one though~

Circe Y.

My Works: MASTERLIST

Taglist:

@o-qi-shisme @2021animeandwebtoons @mochinon-yah @skylar896 @rai-xxx

[rancidpancakebatter]

Picnics at Sunset - [L Lawliet]

Pairings: L (Death Note) x Female!Reader

Summary: You knew that You cared for Ryusaki very much. You knew you trusted him with your life, and you always felt better when he was around. You knew that you desired his attention and approval more than anyone else’s. You knew that he was beautiful and kind. But you didn’t know if he felt any of those things about you. You didn’t know what those things meant. Or rather, you feared what they could mean, and what that would do to the both of you.

Word Count: 14k words

Content: Swearing, Mentions of death, nudity?, friends to lovers, first kiss, Use of Celcius, touch of angst (it's death Note, come on), Sappy thoughts of love

( Masterlist )

A/N: I have so much to say, but I'll try to keep it brief. I'm sorry this is so long, but so much of this show cuts to long internal dialogues within a conversation, and I tried to capture that. I think I did well, but it is a little long-winded. I don't know if I'll do a lot of writing for this character, but he got stuck in my head recently, and this was the only way I knew to let him go.

You sat at your desk, the computer screen you had been staring at for the past three hours was beginning to hurt your head. You leaned back in your chair, rubbing your eyes; then silently cursing as you felt your mascara smear against the pads of your fingers. You needed a break and something other than a slice of cake in your stomach. You looked to your right out of habit, ready to tell your friend that you were taking a break and he should do the same, but his chair was empty.

You looked around the room.

“He stepped outside,” a voice said.

Behind you was Matsuda. You jumped when he spoke, not realising he was there, and he apologised for startling you.

“Yeah, we should get you a bell,” you suggested.

“Yeah, maybe so.” Matsuda laughed. “You know, if you want to bounce ideas off of someone, you can talk to me. I know I can’t come close to Ryusaki’s intelligence, but I’d like to think I have something to offer.”

“It’s okay,” you reassured. “I didn’t really need anything from him, just wanted to see what he was up to.”

“Well, I think he just needed some space to think. You know how he is.” 

“That I do,” You agreed, “And I know If he wants to be alone, he’ll have no problem telling me himself.” 

Matsuda laughed again, “I’m sure you’re right. But I have a feeling he won’t shoo you away. He has a soft spot for you.”

Just the idea of L turning you away had you put out. You crossed your arms, turning away with a huff. “Not if he knows what’s good for him.”

You heard Matsuda chuckling behind you, wishing you luck. 

You marched up the stairs, down the hall, and got in the elevator, heading for the roof. As you made your way, you couldn’t help but admire the walls around you. The building L designed was quite impressive. You greatly enjoyed the glass elevator, preferring it over any others. Once you passed the tenth floor, the city could be seen. You were usually greeted by blinding sun and clear blue skies, but today, the sky was an enchanting apricot colour, blanketed by thick pink clouds heavy with rain. The sun was peaking from behind the silver buildings as if waiting to see you before finally saying goodbye. You waved to the people below, wishing them well on their oblivious wayfaring. 

Soon you reached the top floor, and you pushed open the door to get to the roof access. The door to the roof was already opened, so you called out.

“Ryusaki! You out there?”

You were greeted by silence and tried again.

“I’m alone!”

Only then did you get a reply, “Did you bring any food?”

You chuckled, stepping out onto the roof. “No, I’m sorry.”

L stood out in the open, basking in the fading light and staring at the sky, unbothered by the cold air blowing. He was slouched over and hands firmly in his pockets. He turned his head to you, and the vibrant sky poured over his pale skin, drenching the soft canvas in the colours of monarchs and sunflowers. The light danced around his prominent eyes, flames in a ring of stone. His lips looked kissed by a dreamsicle. You looked away, finding your way back to reality. 

“Did you want me to go back and get something?” You offered, throwing your thumb back towards the door. 

“No,” He said, turning back to the sun, “Watari should be up soon.”

Before you could question, you heard the door open and close and the clinking sound of plates as they made their way up the stairs. 

“Hello, dear,” The old man greeted with a smile. 

He carried a tray with a full tea set in one hand and a wicker basket in the other, with a blanket draped across his arm. You watched as he laid it out on the ground, pulling plates and silverware from the basket along with a candelabra. Ryuga settled himself as Watari lit the candles, then gestured for you to do the same. The only clear spot to sit was right beside him, and you took it as gracefully as possible. 

“I have brought sandwiches and various tea cakes,” Watari explained, “along with Keemun Mao Feng tea and honey. I hope you enjoy.”

You both thanked him and he left, closing the roof exit behind him. L sat, perching next to you, watching as you admired the display. 

“It’s all my favourites,” You observed. “Why did you ask him to bring this?”

His thumb came to rest on his lip, gauging your reaction. 

“I knew you would be getting hungry soon. I told Watari to bring some acceptable food if you didn’t grab any on your way up.”

You furrowed your brows in innocent confusion, “How did you know I’d come?”

His head turned away and you notice his feet shuffling, a tell for his anxiety. 

“You always do.” He said with a shrug. 

Your heart thumped affectionately as he turned his head, and your gaze fell back onto the band of sterling silver in his eyes. You smiled fondly at the man, and he had to look away. He busied himself with the basket, pulling out nicely wrapped sandwiches in brown butcher paper. He read the options out for you and passed you your selections. He then reached in and pulled out a white box with a blue bow. He began to tug at it, then stopped, offering it to you. 

You giggled, unravelling the satin ribbon. When he pulled off the lid, a tiered display stand stood with ten layers of tiny cakes with an array of colours, creams, and toppings. L looked over the selection with a careful eye, then chose a spongy square with a raspberry on top. He pinched it between his fingers and brought it to his lips. You watched his selection process as you braided the ribbon into a piece of your hair, presenting it to your friend with a smile. He nodded in approval, and then you finally took a bite of your sandwich, moaning as the myriad of flavours filled your senses. 

“Oh my god, this is delicious,” you said, pushing it towards Ryusaki, “You’ve gotta try it.”

His chewing stops as he eyes the sandwich in front of him like it were a loaded gun. 

“I’m okay.” He said politely. 

You accepted his dismissal, taking another bite from your sandwich, but still curious about it. 

“Why don’t you eat anything but sugar?” You asked through a mouthful of sourdough. 

“Well,” Ryusaki began, “Desserts tend to be more homogeneous in texture and taste. I find most ‘real’ food reduces my deductive skills by approximately twenty-five percent.”

You looked up at the beauty of the ending day around you and breathed in the air of the city. 

“Do you need your deductive skills right now?” You asked softly, eyes still trained on the sky. 

Moments passed in peaceful silence. You could hear a dog barking and the mummer of the life teeming below you. People going about their everyday lives, despite the horror of this new world. You tried to join them now and then, encouraging Ryusaki to do the same– to have a life outside of, despite of Kira. From your peripherals, you saw him spread his knees apart, sitting in a cross-legged position. You watched as he continued adjusting, trying to find a comfortable position. When he settled, you turned your eyes to his. 

“Would you like some tea?” You asked. 

He nodded his head, and you poured him half a cup from the teapot, filling the rest with cream and sugar, just the way he liked it. He thanked you when you passed it to him, fingers brushing briefly. You could tell he was a little uncomfortable, probably much more in tune with the “loss of thought” he was experiencing than any other person would be. He held his cup in both hands, elbows resting on his knees as he looked into the wheat-coloured drink. You left L to his thoughts, knowing he would share them if he deemed them important. You instead focused on tucking the rest of your sandwich away, opening another to try. You were happy Watari cared enough to cut them into little triangles. 

“What are your plans after the Kira case?”

You nearly choked on your sandwich, not expecting the question. You wiped at your mouth with a napkin, trying to grab your composure. 

“I haven’t given much thought to it,” you said, “but I know it will be a bittersweet moment when we catch him.”

Ryuga sat up a little, his interest piqued as he took another sip of his tea. “What do you mean by that?”

“Well,” you began, “I’ve met a lot of great people by working on this investigation. I don’t imagine our paths will cross much once this is all resolved, even if we do survive. But it makes me happy to think that one day they’ll get to walk into their front doors and hug their families without the fear of them being ripped away as collateral damage.”

“Not to mention,” You continued, “at the risk of sounding selfish, this job has some really nice perks. I’m compensated well, I get free room and board, I haven’t done my own laundry in four months, and I can even get company-provided gourmet picnics on the rooftop. There’s a lot to miss.”

“I must admit, I will miss the camaraderie,” L said softly. “But I fear the fallout from Kira’s arrest more.”

You knew what he meant. If he was right, and Light and Misa were Kira and The Second Kira, then it would destroy the task force. Matsuda’s heart would shatter, as would Mogi’s, though he’d hide it better than the former. Chief Yagami would likely suffer another heart attack, or perhaps snap entirely. And while you yourself didn’t want to believe it, you couldn’t deny what you knew was true. With the proof of shinigami's existence and an otherworldly murder weapon disguised as a harmless notebook downstairs, nothing could be ruled out. You questioned what other powers came with the notebook, and how those powers transferred. 

Bribing Ryuke into answering all your questions was easy enough. It turns out he had never known the taste of a Fuji apple, only enjoying the common red delicious. One was enough to get him hooked. You presented everything you had learned about ownership of the notebook, how it can be passed, and how it affects the user. You and L had come to the same conclusion: sometime in Light’s confinement, he transferred ownership, as did Misa. You knew for sure when Misa visited Light the other day in the lobby. 

At the beginning of the investigation, he refused to toy with her emotions, as it went against his code. And you found it comforting, knowing Kira would have no problem doing that, and Light was immediately opposed. For months, he made no effort to show affection to Misa, rebuffing any advance or innuendo she made, but you watched as he brought her into a hug. You watched as she melted into it, savouring the sparring touch and every word he whispered into her ear. You knew he hadn’t magically fallen in love with the girl, but was using the love she had for him. 

Yes, Light had changed, and the repercussions were terrifying.

Ryusaki was silent. By now, the sun had set, and the moon began climbing up a ladder of stars. The candlelight flickered, making shadows jump and jive across your friend’s face. The shifts were jarring, but the gentle lighting softened his hardened edges. Your eyes traced the slope of his nose, down his plush lips, and his long neck. You wished to stretch out a curious finger to replace your itinerant eyes. 

“Would you like a cake?” Ryusaki asked, changing the subject. You allowed the distraction, deciding you would bring it up again later, but not know. 

You selected one with orange filling and chocolate drizzle. It was delicious, falling apart in your fingers as you ate it. You heard a soft chuckle leave your friend's mouth and you looked up at him confused. He said nothing, instead motioning towards his face. You tilted your head, not understanding what he meant. Before you could ask, L brought a napkin to the corner of your mouth, gently rubbing it across your bottom lip. 

Your heart stopped beating and your lungs stopped breathing. His touch was like the flames of the flickering candles, igniting the skin he polished. His eyes flicked up to yours and you were lost in a pool of obsidian, his pupils vast in the stary night. 

“There,” he said softly, “all gone.”

You searched for your voice, and it came out in a breathy whisper, “Thanks.”

He continued, unbothered by the unprecedented physical contact while you took a sip of your tea, in hopes that would help your unsteady heart. Before you had much time to recover, He spoke again. 

“My favourite colour is blue.”

You blinked dumbly, at the man as he readjusted uncomfortably. 

“My favourite cake is Strawberry Vanilla Sponge Cake,” He continued, “and I sing in the shower.”

You laughed out of shock, and words continued to spill from his mouth like he couldn’t stop them. 

“If I could have a superpower, I would want invisibility. I think four-leaf clovers are ridiculously overblown, but I admire their inherent whimsy. I really like The Beatles, which is very embarrassing as I am British. But even more so because I listen to ‘We Can Work It Out’ when I get frustrated. They bring me a sort of comfort. I’ve always wanted a cat. I think it’s funny when they’re given people names, or named after ridiculous things. If I had one, I’d get a tuxedo cat and name it 3,4,4,5-tetramethylcyclohexa-2,5-dien-1-one.” You open your mouth to ask what that was, but he answered it before you could, “It’s a cyclic dienone, more commonly known as penguinone, and though it has no applicable uses, it’s funny.”

You shake your head, trying to make sense of his sudden urge to tell you all of these things. In his unblinking eyes, you saw something close to desperation and it confused you, forcing you to look away. You missed the way Ryusaki’s face fell. 

“Are you…upset?” he asked cautiously. “I’m sorry if I overshared.”

“No, no,” You reassured, trying to alleviate some of the guilt that filled your chest at his apprehension. “I’m just confused”

“I was trying to establish trust,” he explained cooly. 

Your brows furrowed, “Do you think I don’t trust you?”

“No, I-” he paused, releasing a sigh that moved his shoulders. 

“Ignore me,” he said sadly, “Nothing I say lately seems to make much sense.”

Your heart shattered at the uncertainty in his voice. He usually spoke with such conviction. To hear him unsure, insecure in sensibility– his intelligence, really –it made you nauseous. 

“Ryusaki,” you began, but he looked away. 

“Ryusaki,” you tried again, this time resting a hand on his shoulder, “your sense is still very intact. You’re not the crazy one.”

He looked at your hand, where it rested without hesitancy. 

“Look,” you continued, “Someone is trying to kill you. And it could very likely be your best friend. You’re making more sense than anyone else would in your situation.”

Suddenly his eyes shot to yours. There was a small fire burning there, and you worried that you had upset him. You began to remove your hand, but he rested his on yours, keeping it pressed against his shoulder. Your heart leapt at the contact, and you prayed he didn’t notice. Though, if you knew anything about Ryusaki, he did and already tucked it away as useful information. 

“Light Yagami is not my best friend.” He said simply, “You are.” 

You couldn’t fight the smile that sprouted from the sentiment. 

“Really?” You asked in disbelief.

“Of course, I wouldn’t lie about that.”

Your smile grew more teasing, “But you didn’t even chain yourself to me.”

L smiled too, “I didn’t have to.”

Time passed in silence. It was a bit awkward, your hand remained on his shoulder as the candles burned. You were getting chilly, the night air nipping at you through your t-shirt. L’s hand kept yours still, you were much too nervous to move it away. Especially when you could see your friend thinking very hard. 

He suddenly turned toward you, removing his hand and jostling yours. His thumb came to his lip, running it across and moving the muscle. 

“There are a lot of social customs that I haven’t gotten to participate in, due to my isolated childhood, and even more so because of my dangerous career,” he said, “for instance, I had never had friends until this investigation, and now I have three. But that also means I haven’t experienced a lot of the common experiences that come with friendship.”

He looked you over, trying to gauge your reaction thus far. You seemed at ease but attentive. His eyes darted to the blue streak in your hair, and felt a warmth blossoming in his chest. He was amazed by how light-hearted you could be, despite the heavy burdens you carried. You shone so brightly, he was almost embarrassed to ask you to share.

“I was wondering if you would be willing to help me with that. I think it’s important to my development, and general understanding of the human condition.”

You were delighted to hear that he was thinking about such “trivial” things. As you became closer to L, you quickly realised that he lived a very lonely life. You could tell he had convinced himself that was what he wanted, but you knew a life of work wasn’t enough, and he deserved more. You always encouraged him to take care of more than his brain; to value his body and his spirit as well. 

“Of course L,” you nearly cheered, “what did you have in mind?”

You waited patiently for his response, trying your best not to shrink under his gaze. You were sure that his eyes were a large reason as to why he made such a great detective. When he focused his eyes on someone, it made them feel see-through; like he could see everything that made up that person. Like he could read your thoughts. 

“Can I-“ he began, then stopped. It was rare to see him trip over his words. “I would like- would it be okay if we hugged?”

Lightning struck across the sky, and you flinched, startled by the sound. You looked up into the dark, trying to find the flash of light you knew was long gone. You spotted the thick, rolling clouds hovering above you, and you hadn’t noticed before. Then the thunder rumbled, and the cry was resonant, penetrating your bones as it rolled through you. Then slowly, rain began falling from the sky. A few drops landed on your face, and you could feel them beginning to stick to your clothes. 

When your shock faded away, you looked back at your friend. He was looking at you intently, hunched over like always. You opened your mouth to respond, but L spoke before you. 

“Let’s step inside,” he said, resting his hand on your shoulder like you had before, “you’re shivering.”

You hadn’t realised that you were, but as you looked down at your hands, you couldn’t deny the tremble. He stood and began packing up everything on the blanket, refusing your help when you offered even though the rain had picked up. It was steady now, easily soaking through your clothes and his in turn. Once everything was tucked away, he guided you inside, opening the door for you. 

As you walked down the steps, your mind spun around his words. He had asked to hug you, someone who you thought would be pretty averse to physical touch. You were surprised he let you lay a hand on him at all, and even more surprised when he reciprocated the action. It could’ve just been an experiment, a test to see how it made him feel, but you found yourself reviewing your own results. 

You hadn’t really touched L before. There was no reason to. Even when he fell out of his chair over the whole “Shinigami” thing, you let the others crowd him. Your hands had maybe brushed here and there when passing sweets or documents, but intentional, prolonged contact was never made until today. You couldn’t deny his behaviour had been odd lately, though that was to be expected with the stress he was under. You wondered if he was indulging out of curiosity or a fear of missing out on life. 

You jumped again as another bolt of lightning struck across the sky, followed by the soft beginnings of rain, now slowly collecting on the glass walls around you. You began walking down the hall and jerked your head to beckon Ryusaki, who seemed deep in thought. You watched the rain grow, drops colliding and running down the glass. You stopped to trace the tracks left, your body shuttering against the cold.

“I’m sorry,” your friend spoke quietly, as there was no one but you here, and no reason to raise a voice. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

You looked at him with shock, but he refused to look at you. 

“Ryusaki, I haven’t felt uncomfortable around you since we started this investigation. Why would that change now?” When he didn’t respond, you bumped his shoulder with yours, “Seriously though, if you ever do make me uncomfortable, I won’t let you live it down.”

“Good,” he said, nodding his head. “I’ll hold you to that.”

You both continued to stare off into the distance in silence. You began breathing out hot puffs of air and drawing in the condensation. Meaningless shapes littered the space as you got lost in your thoughts. 

You felt stuck between knowing and knowing nothing. You knew that You cared for Ryusaki very much. You knew you trusted him with your life, and you always felt better when he was around. You knew that you desired his attention and approval more than anyone else’s. You knew that he was beautiful and kind. But you didn’t know if he felt any of those things about you. You didn’t know what those things meant. Or rather, you feared what they could mean, and what that would do to the both of you.

Your thoughts were interrupted once again when you felt a weight on your shoulders, and you looked down to see pale, slender hands embellished with tendons and glistening in the light. Your jaw dropped slightly, seeing him appear so close behind you in your shared reflection. 

“You’re still shivering.” He didn’t look at you, his eyes obscured by his shaggy hair, “A blanket should help.” 

You offered a kind, timid smile in thanks, turning to face him. Your cheeks filled with blood though you couldn’t quite pin down why. Maybe it was just because he was touching you again when he’s never really done that before. Or maybe it was the fact that he was concerned about you. Or maybe it was the intimacy of it all, how close he was and how gentle his touch was. 

His hallowed, all-seeing eyes met yours and you lost your breath. You wanted to look away, feeling pierced by his gaze, but you couldn’t– you wouldn’t. “If this isn’t sufficient, let me know. It’s my fault you’re cold.”

“No, it’s not,” You chuckled as he adjusted the material on your shoulder, “I walked out willingly. Yeah, you baited me into staying with food and tea, but I saw your plan, and I decided to go along with it.”

L smiled shyly, “I never could fool you.”

Your brows furrowed, and your heart sank. 

“Can.” You corrected sternly. “You never can fool me.”

“Ah, Of course.” L said, removing his hands from you and tucking them back into his pockets, “You’re too observant for me to keep a secret. You’re always the first in the room to know what I’m thinking.”

He didn’t directly address his slip-up– referring to himself in the past tense as if he had died –so you didn’t either, instead filing that away under “more things to bring up later”. 

“What can I say?” You teased. “Great minds think alike.”

“That they do,” he muttered, though you could tell his mind had taken him far away again. 

You turned back to the window, and he joined you there. The rain had picked up, the heavy clouds drawing nearer. Your body buzzed with the electricity in the air. You could feel the winds of change surging through the city, and it filled you with determination.

“You should change,” Ryusaki whispered, “you’ll catch a cold.”

“Please,” You said, rolling your eyes and landing on his. “We were out there for less than an hour, and it never dropped below four degrees.”

“That’s still rather cold,” He hid his eyes from you, and you missed the sparks he carried there. “Not to mention the addition of rain.”

“If you’re so worried about my immune system,” you quipped, “studies show that hugs can actually help fight illness.”

That got a reaction out of the man, whipping his head to look at you. 

“Is that so?” He asked, amusement teeming in his thin, grey irises. “Is it the exposure to more germs?”

“Possibly,” You admitted, “But it’s mostly the stress relief. Hugs reduce your cortisol and noradrenaline levels, improving blood pressure and general heart health. Also, with both of our body heats working together, it might help warm me up.”

L brought his thumb to his lip again, pondering your words. 

“Maybe you have a point.” He muttered, “Perhaps we should test this theory.”

You agreed but neither of you moved, both too afraid to make the first move. You had hugged people before. You had hugged your family and many friends, so hugging Ryusaki shouldn’t be that nerve-racking, and yet, your body was buzzing just at the concept. 

Suddenly, L Spread his arms, his figure drowning in his baggy sweater. It happened in slow motion, or at least it felt like it did. He dove towards you, wrapping his arms tightly around you, unintentionally pinning yours to your side, and his chin landed on the crown of your head gently. 

You tensed, not expecting him to just go for it. Your face was pressed into his chest, your nose brushing his collarbone because of how his sweater had shifted. You were suddenly self-conscious breathing on him, trying your best to make sure your lungs were expanding and contracting naturally, but you could feel the awkwardness in your muscles. 

“I don’t think this is working,” He said, his jaw moving against your head, “Your heart rate has only elevated. This seems to be…bothersome to you.”

He slowly removed himself but remained close, focusing his trying eyes on you, hands back in his pockets. “Please, tell me how you feel.”

“Well, firstly, you surprised me.” You couldn’t help but chuckle. Laughter bubbled up due to his unwavering gaze that affected you, though you didn’t want to concede to that. “And second, I’m not sure that counted as a hug. You trapped my arms, so I couldn’t reciprocate it properly.”

“I see,” He said, not showing any emotion you could detect (And you had gotten pretty good at reading L at this point). “What can I do better?”

His determination was…adorable. He was adamant about this, about hugging you better. You wouldn’t have thought this was something he ranked so highly in importance, and you felt flattered. 

“Open your arms again,” You instructed, scooting closer. 

He followed your orders, his head tilting to the side in curiosity. You took a quick breath, then brought your arms around his waist, then rested your ear between his pecs. There you heard his heart. You expected a steady thrum, but instead, the muscle beat like a kick drum without cause. But you supposed if you only fed your body sugar and caffeine, your heart would go crazy too.

He was also much comfier than you expected his skin and bones to be. His frame felt right in your arms, and a word flitted through your mind: safe. He was safe here in your arms, and you felt safe here too. 

You remembered then that he was still standing there with his arms fully extended, like an owl stretching their wings. 

“You can wrap your arms around me like before now,” You said into his chest. 

He did as you said, and you felt an instant relief. Your blanket was wrapped around him, and you were surrounded by L. He was soft, like the petals of a Gardinia– like the ones your mother used to grow. He smelled like chocolate and strawberries, though with his diet, you were sure he sweated out sugar. In the refracted light the droplets cast, it looked just like that, like sugar crystals dancing across his skin.

Your nose picked up hints of lavender you recognised as the fabric softener Watari swore by. You wanted to bottle the sents and wear them yourself. You found yourself snuggling in closer, drawn in by the comforts of L.

You sighed in contentment, closing your eyes. His heartbeat stabilized, beating slower but strong. Slowly, he adjusted himself, bringing his arms tighter around you and turning so his ear rested against you and not his hewn jaw. Many moments went by like that, with nothing but the instrumental played by the rain, steady breathing, and hearts beating. As time went on, your heartbeats began to sync, beating together. You felt warmth spread throughout you at the thought. You liked this. You liked being close to Ryusaki. 

“How long do these usually last?” He whispered into the rich silence. 

“It depends on the friends, everyone’s comfort levels.” You replied thoughtfully. “Some people only hug for a few seconds; others hold each other like this. But it’s recommended that you get at least four hugs a day.”

He hummed, considering your answer. “I definitely haven’t been fulfilling that quota.”

“It’s okay,” You said through a laugh, “Me either.”

“Perhaps,” L said, putting on his detective voice, “If you have found this as enjoyable as I, we could do this more often– try to reach that benchmark more. The act of hugging seems to increase my oxytocin levels, which feels different than the dopamine confections give me. If it affects you the same way, I think that could be good for us both.”

Your laughter danced across this skin. “I can’t believe you can feel the difference between happy hormones.”

“Of course I can.” He said, completely unphased by your disbelief. “Dopamine feels more like I’m doing a good job, and Oxytocin is…”

You waited patiently while he found the words. 

“Oxytocin makes me more…sentimental,” He landed on. 

“I guess that makes sense,” You mumbled into his chest. “Weirdo.”

He chuckled at the title that would have hurt coming from anyone else. 

“I would be okay with that,” You said, addressing his proposal, “If we hugged more often.”

“Great,” He said, and you could hear his smile. L could feel how the cold continued to cling to your skin. Although hugs were supposed to help fight illness, he doubted it was a cure. “We should finish up then so you can change.”

He released his hold on you and began to pull away, but without thinking, you held on tighter, your brows furrowing. 

“What’s wrong?” He asked.

“I’m not sure,” you said honestly. “I just don’t want to leave this.” L brought a hand to his chin, cradling it and trying his best not to jostle you. “Is it the hug that you want, or is it me?”

Your eyes bugged at his question. Immediately, you let go, creating distance as you jumped back. You reacted as if he had struck you instead of asking a straightforward question to better understand the situation. 

Your mouth opened and closed a few times, not unlike a fish plucked from the water.

“Well, I- It’s uh…I mean- heh -what?” You stumbled. Again, L’s shark skin eyes bore into yours, dissecting every stutter and stammer.

“I believe the question was fairly easy to comprehend.” He said plainly, “I asked if it was the hug you wanted or me.”

You felt blood rush to your cheeks. 

“I understood the question,” You weakly defended. 

L’s head dropped once again to the side, his hair flopping loosely as he moved but still weighing down over his face. 

“Then answer it.”

You swallowed. He had cornered you, baiting you by insinuating you weren’t as intelligent as he thought and getting you to confess that you in fact were not confused. But in truth, you were. Because it was true that you were extremely touched-starved. You had dedicated the better half of the last year to catching Kira. You hadn’t had time for much else. You weren’t exactly popular before either. 

You were a criminal, a cyber-robinhood. You had stolen from several pharmaceutical companies and redistributed their funds to families in need. You thought it absolutely abhorrent that the companies could make money off of cancer and diabetes, depriving people of medicine they needed, not wanted. You had done it with your best friend, who was killed by Kira.

She had taught you the ropes and how to hide yourself from the authorities. She, however, had crossed the line. She began targeting government officials, leaking their private messages and phone records to the public. You would have thought that would align with Kira’s morals, but you guess not because she died of a heart attack in your arms. You hadn’t made a friend since, not until Ryusaki. 

You didn’t want him to leave you too. You were terrified that he would be ripped away from you, much like your friend before. But it was more than that. You wanted Ryusaki to live. You wanted him to have a full life, one of joy and contentment. One where his intelligence wasn’t weaponised. One where he could let his guard down and not break his back with his posture. You wanted him to drown in hugs, to never be deprived of comfort again. And you wanted to be by his side to see it.

You had become very attached to the man before you. You admired him, respected him. You found yourself trying to be more like him in many ways. And you felt pride every time he mimicked you. 

“I don’t know.”

L was unconvinced, leaning in closer, “Yes, you do. But you won’t say.”

You stared into his eyes, words eluding you. What could you say? You weren’t even sure what you wanted, what your answer would be. He looked at you curiously, awaiting your response. When you had none, he sighed. 

“Fine then,” He said, turning his investigative gaze away from you. “I will escort you to your room. Hopefully, that will satisfy you.”

You had requested a room here at headquarters and were unsurprised when L told you that he had already built one for everyone on the task force. You had all but moved in during the Kira case. You hadn’t meant to, but it was just easier than taking the train alone after a late night of investigating. With no one to stop you, you would stay up until three ante merīdiem, studying and analysing trends. Sometimes you would crash at your desk, but usually, you would drag yourself away when you noticed your eyes becoming heavy. But now, your apartment was more of a formality than anything else. L knew this and made no comments on the matter. He was happy you stayed here instead, and that the rooms weren’t a complete waste of time and effort. 

As you travelled through the silent halls, you brought your blanket tighter around your shoulders, tensing your jaw so your teeth didn’t chatter. Ryusaki seemed unbothered by the cold. He showed no signs of discomfort other than the way his shoulders folded forward more than they usually did. You wondered if he was just suppressing them or if he truly wasn’t cold. But then you saw a small shiver travel down his spine. 

“You never told me,” you said softly, “what you were doing out there?”

His steady pace was unwavering, his bare feet gently padding across the tiled floors of the hall. 

“Thinking,” He replied but offered nothing more. 

“Of course you were thinking, that’s all you know to do. ” You joked, “What were you thinking about?”

He took a few more steps, then stopped. You continued forward until you were standing side by side. He stared ahead, but you turned to face him. You watched as his face remained flat, unchanged. 

“I was thinking about my death,” he said plainly, continuing his previous pace. “I reviewed my mental record of my will, noting necessary amendments. Due to recent events, I felt it something I reconsider.”

Your stomach twisted at his casualness, and you looked away. How could he say that and have no feeling about it? Or rather, rationalize whatever feelings he had about the situation away?

“You-” You began, your words tripping over the lump in your throat, “you shouldn’t talk like that. You’re not going to die.”

You said it with finality, though your friend heard the subtle desperation, the fear beneath your bravado. 

He stopped again, and when you turned to him, he turned as well. His eyes seemed almost hollow as he spoke. 

“We all die. And I happen to find myself in a position in which I am taunting the reaper.”

L did a lot of staring, and this one you took as a personal challenge. He knew what you meant, and he was purposefully not addressing it. You weren’t backing down; you weren’t folding for him. The other members of the task force often forgot that he was human; you refused to forget. While he was smarter than anyone you had ever met, he wasn’t a supercomputer. He had hopes and dreams; he had fears. 

“We’re here,” he said, interrupting this game of blink.

You hadn’t realised you had arrived at your room and hesitated at the door. 

“Would you like me to step inside?” He offered. 

You nodded. 

“Very well then.”

He opened the door and you stepped in. He closed the door behind him, then stood a few feet into the room, scratching at his leg with his foot. You made your way to your closet, selecting a new shirt and some sweatpants, then went to your dresser, selecting new undergarments.

L looked to the wall after catching a glimpse of the lacey bra you balanced from your finger. You looked to your friend, ready to ask him to turn around, when you noticed his head already turned and a slight rosy hue crawling up his exposed neck. He was usually so devoid of colour; the splash of pink was a nice touch. You wondered what had flustered him and if it had anything to do with you. The thought made you excited, but you chose not to acknowledge that. 

“I’m changing now,” You said, turning away from him. 

L tried his best to keep his eyes off of you, but soon, your hands were in the air as you peeled off your shirt, and his curiosity won. His eyes traced over the exposed skin, counting the vertebrae up your back. His breath hitched slightly as you reached behind you and unlatched your bra. He caught himself imagining what it would look like if you were turned around and ripped his eyes away again. After all, you were his friend, and it was inappropriate to think such things about a friend. Especially one that trusted him enough to change in front of him. He would rather die than abuse your trust. 

Soon, you were wiggling out of your pants, and his eyes betrayed him, following the movement of your hands. The cotton panties you wore were nothing special, plain and purple and a bit cheeky. It clung to the shape of your ass beautifully. His eyes bugged involuntarily, and he decided he could no longer trust himself to be facing you and turned his body. 

As he faced the wall, he considered your interactions today. You had sought him out and then joined him outside despite knowing the discomfort the cold would bring you. Meaning you valued his amusement more than your comfort. You entertained his tangents and encouraged him to try new things, which meant that his general well-being must be something of importance to you. Why else would you go out of your way to protect it?

Yes, you wanted him to be happy and made that a responsibility of your own. You coached him through a new experience and reassured his insecurities about it. He had hugged you for two minutes and thirty seconds, but you had held him for two minutes and thirty-nine seconds. So you enjoyed the physical comfort, and obviously desired more, as you only stopped when he shocked you. 

That’s right, you pulled away when he asked if you "wanted him." So enjoying his company was fine, but once "wanting" became a part of the equation, you rejected it. Or tried your best to. But you didn’t deny that you still desired his presence, allowing him to escort you to your room, where you took off your clothes in front of him. 

When he looked at the incidents individually, it could all be chalked up to you being a good friend– one who trusted and respected him –but he was a better detective than that. He also knew to look at the big picture. In his mind, he replaced himself with other people, like puppets in a play, and saw how your reactions changed.

He found it hard to believe that you would allow someone else on the team to hold you for two minutes, lure you into the rain, or risk them seeing you in your underwear. Which begged the question, why do you treat him differently? How does your perception of him differ from the others?

Then it became abundantly clear, and he was shocked. The conclusion he came to seemed ludicrous, and yet, it was the only one that made sense-- the only one that stood with the evidence. How could this be? There was only one way to know. 

He called your name and you hummed in response, putting on a new shirt and turning to face him. 

“You evaded my question.” He remarked, still looking at the wall. “However, I think your evasion– and the several events surrounding it –has given me a more clear understanding of the answer you were guarding.”

You felt a general unease, not sure you liked the direction his inquisitive mind was heading. You wrung your hands anxiously in front of you, looking at the back of his head. You should have known L wouldn’t let that go. 

“I told you I didn’t know.”

He turned quickly, catching you off guard. He was once again very close to you, his eyes dancing with curiosity and a bit of pride. It was a look you saw when he presented a theory based on new evidence he had finally made sense of that had previously baffled the team. You knew he was confident in whatever he had deduced and was more amused by your responses, watching carefully with a thumb pressed to his lip just a few inches away from your face. 

“But I don’t think it was the complete truth,” he pressed, “which makes it a lie of omission.”

“I didn’t lie,” You quickly defended. 

“But I saw it: a realisation flitting across your face. You looked at the evidence and came to a conclusion. You have some idea as to why you reacted to my question the way you did, and you have an answer. Does the answer put you in a position of vulnerability perhaps?”

You gaped at him, unsure how to respond. However, he continued to think aloud, answering your question for you with his own ramblings. 

“Yes, that must be it. In answering whether you merely wanted more affection or me, it would force you to admit that you had a need that wasn’t being met. And since we had already discussed our general lack of affection in day-to-day life, revealing that you felt you wanted more hugs would not make you uncomfortable… no, it has to be me that you want. That’s the only reason you would react that way. Which makes me wonder, in what way do you want me?

“My phrasing may have impacted your response, as ‘want’ can mean different things in certain contexts. However, if you thought of me in a strictly platonic sense, you would not have assumed I meant anything more than my company. There is, of course, the possibility that previous interactions in male friendships lead you to believe I meant something else, but I think it is more likely that you interpreted it romantically because you have– on some level –romantic feelings for me. And by answering the question honestly, you would have revealed that.”

He paused for a moment before asking, “Am I right?”

Your brain was spinning, repeating every word he had said. He waited patiently as you mulled it over. You tried to disprove his theory, picking each line and defending the opposite, but it became harder and harder the longer you went on. You weren’t sure how you saw the man in front of you. He was your friend, someone you respected and cared for. You valued his opinion and you listened to his advice. But you couldn’t deny that you found him attractive. You had since you first met him. 

After your friend had died, it didn’t take you long to piece together that it was Kira who killed her. You brought your theory to the police, but they didn’t take you seriously. Apparently, there had been many false reports of Kira's murders, and yours was the fifteenth report that day. You continued to argue, but you didn’t even get past the front desk. That night, when you got back home, you decided you would do everything you could to catch the killer. You broke into the police database– which was entirely too easy –then followed up with everyone they suspected. You used your skills to hack into the suspects' computers, scouring through their histories and files, but didn’t find anything incriminating. Except for one man. 

He was too innocent, not even a record of porn on his computer. Most of his search results were quiz questions with brief breaks spent streaming funny videos. He was a studious pupil and the son of a cop. You consulted the police’s notes often and were surprised when they claimed it could be a student. Then soon after, the pattern of killings changed, further proving the theory.

You were convinced it was Light Yagami, but you needed more. So you tried to hack into L’s computer. You knew from the police notes of the meetings that L called in using a computer, meaning he had to have a Wi-Fi connection to talk to them in real time. It took you a while to hack the secure connection, and even longer to get into the computer. You felt defeated– outsmarted –when you realised the only thing on the device was whatever system he used for the calls and whatever connection he used for that was heavily encrypted. 

You thought nothing more of the event until you were picked up off the street a few weeks later. You were grabbed and bound, the assailant immediately gagging and blindfolding you. The drive was long, and you were taken somewhere with winding hallways and cold rooms. You were restrained to a table, straps keeping you upright, and then your gag was removed. 

You yelled in anger, cursing your capture and illustrating all the ways in which you would make them suffer for treating you this way. You only stopped when a robotic voice filled the room. It asked who you were, but you ignored its question, connecting the dots. 

“You’re L,” You said plainly, “The renowned detective. You’ve solved every case you’ve ever taken on. And you apprehended me– confining me and taking away my vision –meaning you must think I’m Kira. You know who I am, that’s why you’ve taken me in.”

He confirmed your suspicions and listed out the crimes you had committed, and your behaviours that made him suspect you. You couldn’t deny his deductions, and instead of trying to prove your innocence, you told him about your own mission to catch Kira. You even apologised for trying to hack him as well, “but you understand, I had to try.”

He kept you tied up for a few, very long days, then let you walk around the room, giving you access to a bed and a few books. Now and then he would check in on you and offered to make amends for the misunderstanding. You only requested that he hear you out. 

You told him about your theories and how you were disregarded by the police. He was the first person to tell you that he believed your friend was murdered and that it had more to do with them talking out against Kira online than the crimes they had committed. And that only angered you more.

Soon, he began to trust you. He showed you his face. He was nothing like you imagined, but everything you expected. He was odd; he looked almost sickly and was very deadpan. But he had a sense of humour, one that was just as odd as him. He was straightforward forward, and you didn’t have to wonder what he was thinking, as he often shared his thoughts. He was kind, having an obvious affinity for sweets, but always willing to share with you. He asked about you and your life, and you could tell he was cataloguing everything you had to say. He listened so intently when you spoke. 

You only grew closer, looking forward to your meetings in the following weeks, and were elated when he told you about the new headquarters and how he wanted to introduce you to the rest of the team. He was impressed by your resourcefulness and intellect, but more importantly your passion. You were driven by revenge, but soon that changed. L believed in you, and you wanted to honour that. 

Despite his quarks, you saw his soft underside, and it drew you in more. He was fascinating to you, alluring. 

Was that normal for a friend? To simply see them and feel better, to seek out their company? Yeah, you guess it was, but you didn’t think it was as normal to think your friend is pretty. Friends don’t trace jaw lines or let their eyes linger on outstretched fingers and moving lips. Is that what you were feeling? Was your confusion and nervousness a result of an unrealised crush on your friend?

“Oh, I see,” Ryusaki mumbled, “It wasn’t an intentional lie; you only just now realised.”

You hated that he could read you as well as he could, and suddenly his proximity was suffocating. You stepped back, hiding from his gaze in your hands. It was bad enough that you had feelings for your best and only friend, but to come to that realisation in front of them –when they have the uncanny ability to practically read minds –was mortifying. You were cornered and unsure what to say. You didn’t even have time to consider what you wanted to do about your feelings before they were made known. 

You could try to deny it, but you didn’t think that would work. Not against L. So you decided to look deeper. You had pieced together how your interactions proved you liked him, but how did L fare? You compared his behaviour towards you to the others. He was kinder with you, often wording things gentler to you than he would care to for anyone else. He provided confections to everyone, but he only offered you bites from his plate. He was more candid about his feelings with you, as well as his thoughts. 

While he often toyed with the investigators, constantly testing their deductive reasoning and loyalty, L only asked what you thought to question his own conclusions. He valued your input more than others on the team, and you knew the task force was aware of that. if you were in the room, Ryusaki was always within arms reach. He never strayed far. He asked about your personal life, and he encouraged you to take breaks. He smiled and laughed around you, something you didn’t see in front of the others. You had seen L’s soft side, but only because he had shown it to you. He was vulnerable with you. But was that just friendship?

No, no there was more. Today, he cared for you, feeding you and treating you to a picnic. He apologised for your condition, completely disregarding his own. He did his best to atone for the wrong he felt he had done, going as far as to wrap you in his own warmth. He didn’t need to. He sought out the contact. Contact he didn’t look for elsewhere. Contacted he requested and asked for more of, in a less than graceful way. Tripping over words was out of character for the normally articulate detective. 

He then stayed by your side, escorting you to your room, again, disregarding the fact that he too was cold and rained on. Furthermore, any other friend would have turned away from you while you changed, but he faced you. You remembered the blush on his face before you changed. Either the idea of you undressing or something he saw you were changing into caused that response. You had difficulty believing this came from a general lack of experience with women. 

If Misa changed in front of him (which is an unavoidable event which has already happened with her room being monitored the way it is), you doubted he would have much of a reaction. Yes, you were sure. His flustered state was a result of you. 

You removed your hands from your face and looked at the man of your affection. He wore a curious look, and you smiled. 

“You’re not upset,” he observed, “Usually, people respond badly to my blunt deductions about their emotions. I expected you to yell or deny, but you’ve done neither.”

You chuckled lightly, “I don’t think there’s a way I could have denied that without further confirming your conclusion.”

“Well, your initial response of hiding from me was sufficient.” he said with a bit of smugness, “But I’m curious as to why you no longer feel the need to.”

“I don’t need to hide my feelings if you already know they exist,” you stated calmly, “And I’m sixty-seven percent sure you share my feelings, making them much less frightening.”

Rysuaki’s hidden eyebrows raised, and his eyes widened. You watched smugly as he said nothing, revelling in the pride of shocking even the great L.

You explained how you reached that conclusion, knowing that would be his first question. When you finished, he looked up to the ceiling, reevaluating the evidence. You watched as his careful mind picked apart your deduction and this time you allowed yourself to appreciate his unique beauty.

You traced the slope of his nose, following it down to the tendons in his neck and where his collar bones poked out from his baggy sweater. You greedily observed the way his clothes hung from his body, nearly swallowing him whole. 

“It is true, I am rather fond of you. I made that more obvious than I intended, however, there’s nothing to be done about it now.” He admitted, “I can’t say I’ve ever had much of a love life or much experience with romantic feelings. I’m not sure how to proceed.”

You patted the spot next to you on the bed, and he crossed the room to join you. To your surprise, he sat with his feet on the floor, hands on his thighs. 

“I think this a good place to start,” you said warmly. “We don’t have to do anything about it yet.”

He nodded but didn’t look at you. You could see the gears churning in his head, then you noticed his hands. There were impressions left in his thighs from his strong grip. Was it possible he was nervous? You couldn’t hide the delight the sight brought you. You thought it was adorable that you were something that could cause him so much grief. But you hated it too. 

You placed your hand on his and he tensed slightly, but didn’t push it away. 

“Hey,” you said softly, “Take a breath. Really, I don’t want you to stress over this. You have enough on your plate.”

He looked at your hand, his face level, silently assessing, and you allowed him the space to do so. His hand twitched a bit under yours before he turned it over, his palm meeting yours and his slender fingers weaving between your digits. 

“What if-” he paused, as if not sure he should say what he was thinking. He took a breath as you instructed, then continued. “What if I want to do something about it?”

You couldn’t contain the smile that spread across your face, and you didn’t feel a need to. 

“Then I would ask what you wanted to do.”

"It's not about what I want." He looked at you, eyes wide and panicked. “What if doing something is stupid and puts you in danger?”

You had never seen L so worked up before, and you were stunned for a moment. You realised he was letting you in, even more than before. He was letting you see his fear, something you're not sure he’s shown anyone willingly. And in this moment, you were reminded that he was just a young man. That his life had barely begun. Yet he had seen horrors you couldn’t imagine. 

“If Light is Kira,” he continued, through gritted teeth. “then you are already endangered enough. But if our relationship is now romantic, he may use you to get to me. He would have no problem killing you if it brought him closer to his goal, and we both know that.”

“Ryusaki…” you tried, rubbing your thumb against the back of his cold, clammy hand. “He already knows I care for you. The others have been teasing me about my favouritism for months now. If he thought I knew anything, or that you would tell me anything, he would have already done it. If he could, he'd probably force me to write your name in the book somehow, so he didn’t have to do it himself.” 

The fire in his eyes fizzled, and now he looked deflated again as if his anger was the only thing giving him the energy to fight. 

“Then, I can’t tell you anything,” he concluded, “and that doesn’t make for a very strong relationship. One of secrecy where I’m forced to keep you at a distance…no that won’t do.”

He let go of your hand, looking away and rising to his feet. You felt that familiar tug in your heart, the one you felt at your desk when you realised he wasn’t beside you, the same feeling when he tried to end the hug. It felt like he was leaving you, and this time, it made you angry.

“Fuck that!” you said a little harsher than you intended. L turned to look at you in surprise; you had never raised your voice to him before (Aside from that time he arrested you and you didn’t know it was him you were cursing). “I refuse to let Kira make any decisions for me. That bastard doesn’t get to stop me from doing anything I want. And I want this, I’ll fight for it.”

You spoke with a vicious resolve, and L had to admit, it was intriguing. 

“I’m done letting him ruin my life. I’m taking charge. I know there’s a way to prove it, to get him to confess. We can do it. We’ll catch that monster and frame his head on the wall.”

L was studying you; you could see it in his analytical eyes. 

“‘Monster’ you say…” he wonders aloud, “There are many types of monsters; the one we face now... he’s a lying monster: He’s cunning, posing as a human, though having no understanding of the human heart. He works hard, but only to appease his own hubris. He seeks friendship even though he does not truly know how to love. I had once said, If I were to encounter such a monster, I would likely be eaten by them... because, in truth, I am that monster.”

He locks eyes with you, his gaze resolute.

“Tell me, honestly, how can you hate Kira and care for me? We are the same beast.” His body towered over yours, the shadows of the light obscuring his face under his hair. He was almost intimidating. “I do not fight for justice but my own amusement. How many lives have I disregarded all because I didn’t find the case challenging enough? How many people have I endangered solving this one? I allowed who I believed to be Kira intimate knowledge of the case, all because I thought it made the game more fun. I view people as disposable, just as Kira does, and manipulate them just as freely. Kira and I are cut from the very same cloth. Yet, you despise him and respect me.”

Your stare was hard and unforgiving. Rage shook your body, and L was sure that you had changed your mind. You hated him now, just as you should. 

“No,” You said sternly, “You can lie to yourself all you want, but I won’t allow you to lie to me.”

You carefully lifted his chin, forcing him to hear you. 

“You are flawed, yes. You certainly have an ego, but that doesn’t make you a monster. If you were presented with the power of the death note, you wouldn’t use it to make yourself a god. You don’t always fight fair, but the criminals you chase don’t either, and it would be silly to try for the high road. That is what makes you such a great detective. You do what needs to be done. But that’s not why I care about you.”

You saw a flicker of surprise on his face before he buried it once again. 

“I care for you. Not L, the world’s greatest detective. I care for the man who treats me kindly and listens to my woes. I care for the man who checks in to make sure I’ve eaten and taken breaks. I care for the man who is so terrified of himself, he hides away from the world. I care for the man who was cursed with a brilliant mind and raised in a world of evil. I don’t care that you’re a genius, I’d love you dumb. I’m not interested in what you can do for me. I just want you.”

You watched as the man closed his eyes, unable to face your reverent judgment. 

“You could step away right now, and I’d never think less of you. You could imprison Light, right or wrong, and I would stand by you. You could tell me that you don’t want this, and I wouldn’t fight you.” You moved your hand from his chin to rest against his cheek. “But if you bow down to Kira– admit defeat when your heart is still beating –I’ll never forgive you.”

His eyes snapped open, and he scanned your face, looking for a lie, but found one. 

“We live in a world where gods of death are real,” you continued, “And that knowledge has made me realise even more that nothing in life is guaranteed. Nothing other than your own resolve. I chose life, and I wish you would choose the same.”

“You speak as if I am trying to kill myself.” he scrutinised. 

“Since the arrest of Higuchi, you’ve stopped investigating," You pressed, "but we both know it’s not because you think we’ve stopped Kira. There’s still a second notebook- a second Kira. And I’m sure you’ve noticed the change in Yagami, almost as if coming in contact with the book has turned him back into Kira. I see the way he looks at you, the way he studies you. Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed.”

“I have,” he confirmed.

“Then why? Why have you stopped trying to catch him? If he is actively trying to catch you– to kill you –and you do nothing to stop it, you are killing yourself. You’re allowing him to win. And I can’t– no, I won’t catch him without you.”

“You wouldn’t avenge me?” He asked curiously. 

“I’m here for my own selfish reasons,” you reminded him, “If you die, then everyone I have left will have been taken by Kira. What motivation would I have left to stop him?”

“I see…” he said flatly, “so if Kira is to be caught, we must both live to see it happen.” 

“Yes, but more so, I would blame you for your death. Avenging you wouldn’t be possible, as you and your killer would be one and the same. I would hate you.”

His hand joined yours, guiding it away from his face and holding it at his side.

“I’m not sure I could rest knowing you hated me. Not when you’re the only person I trust and the only person I can say I’ve ever cared for– besides Watari, of course,” He said softly, “But in all honesty, I’m not sure what to make of it. I can’t control you, and I have no desire to, but allowing you to grow any closer to me is dangerous. And I would hate myself if anything happened to you.”

His fingers traced over the creases in your hand as he spoke, memorising the fate lines. 

“But I can’t deny the attachment I have for you.” he continued, “It clouds my judgement, and I spend valuable time constantly correcting it. I’ve been indulging in delusions of running away with you. Taking you far away from the danger, placing you in a secure palace where you want for nothing, allowing you to lose yourself in all the simple pleasures your poetic mind can conjure. I would rather collect a list of books for your library than face Kira at the moment.”

You felt like crying, his words striking your heart. While it was easy to deduce that he favoured you over the others, such a blatant confession wasn’t something you expected. You knew this fantasy was built in his mind as something to make you happy, but you knew that this was something he wanted as well. To live a life of ease, not as a pawn to world governments. To be free to have intelligence and not be weaponised. You realised then, he was tired. He was exhausted from chasing Kira, exhausted from comparing himself to the enemy. 

“Let’s get out of here then.”

He looked at you curiously. 

“You can afford a break, a real one. Your mind is scattered, and you can’t possibly expect to outsmart Kira if you’re worrying about everything else.” You explained, “I’ll talk to Watari about planning a secure getaway for you but for now…”

You softly grabbed his hand and led him towards the door, “We’re going to your room so you can change. Then we’ll discuss what we’re doing for the night.”

He allowed you to lead him down the hall, saying nothing while you travelled. He only spoke again after you stepped into his room. 

“I am not often surprised,” he marveled “But you continue to amaze me. I can’t predict you. You’re courageous and strong-willed, but always kind. You’re extremely brilliant, but you’re humble about it. But most amazingly, you believe in me– not because of what I’ve done, but because of who I am –and I’ve never met someone who could separate the two.”

You flush under his praise, “You say you can’t predict me, but I swear, you see right through me.”

“I’m sorry,” he said with panic in his eyes, “I didn’t mean to upset you.”

You laughed, the sound affecting L more than he expected. He loved it, loved making you laugh. He wanted to do it as much as possible, but that was something to figure out later. 

“You didn’t,” you reassured, “but I do have something you can do to make it up to me,”

L smirked, knowing you were teasing him. 

“I don’t understand. I didn’t offend, but you claim I need to make amends.”

“You don’t have to. It’s completely up to you.”

“What is it you would have me do?”

You didn’t answer with words, instead spreading your arms and then making a grabby motion towards him. Your smile was soft, gently pulling at your lips. 

“Yes,” he said sweetly, “I suppose we could both use a boost of oxytocin.”

He took slow steps towards you, and then all at once, his arms were around your waist. He pulled you into him, lifting you slightly off the ground, bringing your neck to his hung head. You felt goosebumps where his nose nuzzled into your skin and your heart grew wings, soaring. You held L just as tightly, indulging in his desperate touch and burying your nose into his silky hair. 

“I think we should revise our previous agreement about hugs.” He said after a moment, speaking into your throat. 

“What amendments would you like to make?”

“I think four hugs a day is fine, but I don’t think we should limit ourselves to that. We do need to make up for our lack of hugs in the past after all. Furthermore,” he lifted his head slowly, so as not to knock you in the nose. He would feel horrible for that. “I think we could add or substitute hugs for other forms of affection as well.”

You hummed, and he continued. 

“For instance, you have held my hand twice today, and both times, I felt a similar sort of comfort from the action. In fact, I’ve noticed any skin-to-skin contact with you eases me. Your hand on my face proved that. I tested this theory twice. Once, before our confessions, on the blanket. I placed my hand on the one you had placed on my shoulder. Then again, in your room, by simply touching your hand, tracing your palm instead of holding it. Both yielded similar results.”

You smiled at him fondly, your hands reaching up to play with his hair. As your nails skated across his scalp in lazy circles, his eyes fluttered a bit, his lids resting heavier. 

“So you would like to add hand-holding? I’m fine with that.”

Your sweet voice flooded his mind, and your hands liberated his composure. 

“Either you’re completely clueless to the effect you have on me,” he whispered, “Or you revel in it. And I’m not sure which is more terrifying.”

Your heart skipped a beat, which startled L for a moment, but then he realised it was because of an emotional response and not an attack from Kira. 

“I wonder the same about you.”

L was unfamiliar with the look in your eyes. Your pupils were dilated, and your irises sparkled in the light. He’s never been looked at like that before. Your face looked brighter, and your body language (while restricted in your current position in his arms) was relaxed; open. And suddenly, he was entranced by your lips. You were talking, and he studied the muscles as they moved, unable to focus on anything else. He felt the urge to kiss you, and this shocked him. He forced himself to pay attention to your words. 

“...besides you have all the power really. I know what I want, but if you don’t want me there’s nothing I can do about it. I could never kill you, but even if Kira forced my hand, I don’t know your name. And you’re the only one on the team who knows mine. Whether I like it or not, my heart is in your hands.”

“I would never hurt you,” he quickly defended, almost offended. 

“I know,” you said simply, “That’s why I trust your hands.”

Your gaze was unwavering, your stance absolute. The emotions L tried to contain began stirring restlessly. He no longer felt like he had a hold on them. A hurricane of feelings he couldn’t quite name tore through his chest, and he didn’t know what else to do but act. He surged forward, pressing his lips to yours. It was awkward and brief, as neither of you puckered your lips, just touched them together. He kept his watchful eyes wide as he did so, gauging your response. 

“Was that a kiss?” You finally asked once your silent shock was replaced by a highly amused smile. 

A small frown overtook L’s face. “I fear if you had to ask…” 

His sentence trailed off as he sat you back down on the ground. Then turned to walk to his closet. His was much larger than yours (which was ironic given he wore the same clothes for days straight), and you assumed he elected to change there when he closed the door. Now that he was out of sight, you allowed your excitement to show, jumping up and down and shaking your hands. 

He had kissed you, almost. It was obvious that he didn't have the experience, but your heart swelled at the thought that he wanted those experiences with you. And he did kiss you, he held you in his arms, for no other reason than to hold you close.

You tried your best to calm down, but your bright smile would fool no one. Instead, you tried to focus your attention elsewhere, calling Watari. He had given you his number (or a number) months ago. He told you it was because he saw that you cared for his son and that his son trusted you. He also confessed that he was rather fond of you too. He wanted to see you make it out of this investigation. 

He answered almost immediately. 

“Hello, Ms Ogawa,” He was always careful to use your alias, even if he knew you were alone. “I notice that you’re calling from within headquarters, are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine. I was calling because I convinced Ryusaki to take some time off. I need you to plan a trip for him, no shorter than a week but something that’s easily extendable.”

The old man chuckled on the other end of the line. 

“You convinced him to take a break? I didn’t think anyone was capable; I wonder how you managed.” He seemed amused, implying he knew something through his old man wisdom. 

“I’m not entirely certain I did,” L emerged from the closet, looking nearly identical, just less soggy. You smiled at him as he made his way towards you. “But I’ll be very cross with him if he doesn’t. I think he knows that.”

The man you spoke of raised a single eyebrow as if to say, “Oh really?”

You made a similar face that left no room for argument. 

“I see,” Watari continued, “Shall I book this trip for one or two?”

You couldn’t hide your surprise at the question. You didn’t know how to answer. You didn’t have to though as L decided then to grab the phone from your hand, pinching it awkwardly between his fingers. 

“Two,” he replied on your behalf. “We’ll also need a cover so that the others don’t know we’re together.”

“Understood. How soon would you like to leave?”

L returned the phone to you, trusting your decision. 

“We’ll leave tomorrow. We have plans for tonight, and I’d like to rest beforehand.”

“That’s very wise, Ms Ogawa. I’ll send over the itinerary soon.”

“Thank you, Watari.”

You hung up, placing your phone back in your pocket. When you looked up, L’s hand was extended, offering you a sweater. 

“If you intend to go out,” he explained, “You’ll need a sweater.”

You took it gratefully, and he turned his head again, giving you space to change. When you finished pulling the shirt over your head, he looked up and felt like he had swallowed his tongue. He never anticipated that seeing you in his clothes would affect him this way. He was truly smitten by you, and that was something he could no longer deny. 

“Ready?” You asked, disrupting his train of thought. 

He nodded, and you offered him your hand. A small smile spread across his face as he took it. He trusted your hands too, he realised. 

You reached the garage, selecting an inconspicuous sedan for your ventures. L moved to open the door when you stopped him. 

“Wait!” Your heart was in your throat, but you closed your eyes and forced out the words. “My favourite flowers are poppies. I think it’s cool how versatile they are. The moon absolutely amazes me. I understand how its gravitational pull affects our tides, but I still can’t wrap my mind around it. I also really like The Smiths, which raises conflicting feelings in me because I hate Morrison as a person, but man, if he isn’t great as crying into a microphone.”

You heard a soft chuckle and felt a hand reach out to hold your bicep. You took a deep breath, continuing with Ryusaki’s encouragement. 

“I prefer a good milkshake over any other dessert. I think time travel is probably the coolest superpower, but I think it’s too great a power that I wouldn’t trust myself with it. I like cats, but I’ve always wanted a pet raccoon. I don’t think I could get one, morally, but they just look so cute. If I had one, I would love that little guy so much. I would give him a really pretentious name; find a way to grant him Lordship.”

You opened your eyes slowly to see Ryusaki smiling, his thumb tracing circles on your arm. His eyes darted around your face, twinkling in city lights. His heart pounded harder with every word you uttered. Romance was never something he prioritised in his life, it wasn’t something he ever saw happening. Most people were put off by him, and it wasn’t often that he actually met people in his work. He could have lived the rest of his life hiding behind a computer screen, an imperceivable entity known only to one man. But now, he would give anything to stand in the sun with you while you look at him the way you do now. Affection and amnesty dripping from your gaze. 

“I’d like to try and kiss you again,” he said timidly. “If you’d show me how.”

Your smile split your face, feeling overjoyed by his words. Each move you made, he mirrored, hands on cheeks and bodies touching as he matched your steps forward. You jumped up on your tiptoes, pressing a quick kiss to his lips. Ryusaki’s eyes widened comically, and a hand rose to his lips as if he’d find your kiss there. But soon, his shock dissipated, replaced by a look of hunger. 

This time, he led, dropping a hand to your waist to hold you close and using his other to lift your chin. He moved in so slowly, and your body thrummed with the anticipation of contact. He stopped, his lips barely grazing yours, and you couldn’t hide your desperate tremble when you felt his soft breath against your own. He pressed his puckered lips against yours, and you took no time reciprocating. 

You brought a hand to the back of his neck, guiding him and pulling him closer. You felt like you were flying, your heart beating its feathered wings against your ribcage. You pulled your lips away just to bring them back, and you could feel his confidence growing as he tilted his head and his grip on your waist grew tighter. You began moving your lips against his, testing the waters. The rhythm was awkward at first, but he caught it soon enough. 

His chest was rising and falling quickly against you, and he brought his hands up to hold your face. You lost yourself in his touch, in the way he clung to you. You were being consumed and felt no dire to run from it. He caught your bottom lip between his teeth, and you gasped. 

Your eyelids flutter as your brain caught up to what was happening around you. Ryusaki was no longer kissing you but carefully cataloguing the look on your face in his mind. He was reviewing everything he did and how you reacted to it. He had decided that he loved kissing you, and he wanted you to love it too. He wanted love to be something you associated with him, especially now that he knew his brain was making a similar connection. He knew it was probably too soon to say something like that, but he could wait. He would wait forever if he had to. He had the brightest star in the sky in his palms, and he didn’t intend to let this shooting star fall from his grasp. 

You were seeing sides of L that you never thought you would, ones you never thought to look for. He held you like a precious stone, something sacred. He looked at you like you were a wonder to behold, the eighth wonder of the world. It made it hard to breathe, suffocated by his silent adoration. 

“So, where are we going this evening?” He asked from high above. 

“I don’t know,” you said breathlessly, “but we have all of Tokyo, I’m sure we’ll find something.”

He loved this look on you. The joy in your eyes, the lack of stress in your muscles. Your glee was infectious, and he didn’t mind it. 

“As long as you’re by my side, I think anything would do.”

He testingly laid a kiss on your forehead as he said it, and you felt like you would melt to the floor in a pile of goo. You removed a hand from his neck, resting it on his, and were delighted when he instantly intertwined your fingers. 

“Well, I’m not going anywhere, Ryu-”

“Lawliet,” He interjected. You tilt your head, confused, and L does his best not to swoon as you rest your head in his hand on your cheek. “My name is Lawliet.”

You break out into a blinding grin, and Lawiet knows then that smile was the sunlight he was meant to bask in. Those were the rays that would light his darkest nights. The beams that would guide him through the intricate maze of life. 

He had found all he needed. A friend who listens to his grief and grievances. One who cares enough to try and understand his mind and soothe it at the same time. Not for her own convenience, but for his betterment; never pushing the boundary of discomfort but bringing thrill to the change. He found a fresh pair of eyes, for when his get dull and tired, to show him the artistry outside of the ghastly monstrosities he and the world bathed in. A person brave enough to show up, even on the bad days. The whole world could fit in his palms when he held you like this. 

“I’m not going anywhere, Lawliet.” you corrected.

L smiled, squeezing your hands three times. You returned the sentiment with a kiss to the hand you held in your own. 

Tag List: @barbecuetiddy, @Isshecrazyorissheclever, @purple-amaranthe, @rudy-the-winged-wolf, @scorpiolystoned, @supernerdycookietrashblrr, @tayswiftlovebot, @wannapizzamymindposts, @whoreforklitz

I hope you enjoyed the read! Like I said, I don't think I'll do much writing for L, but I really enjoyed this. I hope even if you don't have as much love for this character as I do, you can still get something out of it :))

[fallenclan]

sunnycotton has got me thinking about the "asking someone out with an insect" fallenclan tradition, and so i've decided to compile a little list of what insects i think have been used in the past... there are so many cool insects i WANTED to add but i'm going to try and be at least. semi-realistic. about what types of insects these mountain cats could plausibly have found.

antbite/lionsong = asian longhorned beetle

moorthistle/littleleaf = monarch butterfly caterpillar (specifically a caterpillar because of its soft texture - neither of them killed it. moor gave it to little for him to inspect and once he realized what she meant he instantly accepted. she later returned the caterpillar to the milkweed plant it had been on)

russetflare/cinderstone = eastern-eyed click beetle (russet was SO proud of catching one, cinder was reluctantly impressed)

willowsplash/bub = boll weevil

blizzardfang/crowflame = pill bug (roly-poly)

nettlestem/scorchstar = indigo duskywing skipper butterfly

newtscar/bluefern = spotted orbweaver (BEFORE evie joined the polycule)

newtscar/bluefern/evie = silver arigiope (after learning of the tradition, evie found one of these guys for his wives)

goldenstar/morningbloom = yellow garden spider

beefreckle/jaycall = praying mantis

cloudtuft/pondshine = green lynx spider (pond was like "cool thx!" at first and then cloud had to explain the tradition)

mossfrog/rustbee = green lacewing

ashblink/sleepydawn = checkered skipper butterfly

sleepycloud/ivybounce = two-striped grasshopper

yewberry/brambletuft = common scorpionfly

flyspots/wormshade = the spongy moth (wormshade didn't know about the tradition, being the kit of an ex-kittypet, and reluctantly accepted, confused. hence why flyspots thought they were mates)

pebblefreeze/human = brown centipede (these two aren't mates, and i see them as more of a QPR situation, but i feel like pebble would've given human a brown centipede anyway. he was horrified)

-🐉(i am in no way an insect expert, esp in regards to location so these still might be wildly impossbile. that's ok tho, fallenclan can exist in a pocket dimension with all the insects)

CUTE!!!!!!!!! all around very good choices (canonizing littlemoor monarch caterpillar & blizzardcrow pill bug bc AUGHHHH <3), i love the way your mind works... also pebble giving human a centipede really makes me giggle

also a few of these do have canon bugs here!

[sweet-as-an-angel]

Seraphim [Ghost x Reader]

Summary: You help Ghost relax after an arduous and stressful mission away.

Wordcount: 817 words

Warnings: Fluff, Vague Implications/Mentions of Smut (Nothing Explicit or Shown), just two people in Love :-(((, No Pronouns used for Reader except for 'You'.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -✄

Much like the rest of him, even Simon's hair had seemed to have grown hard - rigid - while he was away. That much was apparent to you as you raked your fingers through it, stitching shampoo through the strands.

"You're too good to me," he sighed, sinking a little deeper into the lavender water, soap suds keeping him modest. His eyes would squeeze shut whenever you found his sweet spot - behind the ears, the reason you called him your "Big Puppy", your "Guard dog."

"You deserve the world, Simon." Your words caught on the steam, sang a soft tune to the man who, like many times before, was rebuilding himself beneath your touch. "And if this is all I can do to bring it closer to your hands, then I'd do it for all the eternities the Universe will allow."

Simon's eyes cracked open, and, sensing the shift in his tone, you lowered your hands to the water, shampoo slipping from your fingers into the cauldron of aroma, and placed them upon his shoulders. His muscles were still tense, his senses tender, his mind raw.

You smiled.

"You've done more than I can ever reward you for," Simon said, and, with a sea serpent hand, he placed his palm atop your fingers, collected them like bird bones, and brought them to his lips. He kissed your knuckles, the chap of his lips disguised behind water, much like the water that gathered in his eyes.

"I don't want recompense, Simon," you said, softly. Your eyes grew doleful. Empathic. "All I want," you leaned down, pressing a kiss to the suds in his hair, "and all I'll ever want," and another to the shell of his ear. Shivers broke out across his back, fledgling wings - Seraphim. "Is your love."

Simon's shoulders raised, and for a moment, your heart squeaked, wondering if he'd jump out the water. He did not, but he was damned close. Instead, his other hand came around your waist, wetting your shirt beneath his aqualine touch. He urged you closer, and you came closer, both thighs sat on the bath edge, the water's edge.

His eyes searched yours, for any trace of fallacy, of falsity, though he knew it was a wasted venture. For now, after having your love palpable in his hands, to have felt your beating heart beneath his fingers during long evenings of just the two of you, he knew he had it. He possessed it, just as you did his. And yet, he searched for it in your gaze, every time he returned; to see if your love faltered when you saw him, to see if your pupils still blew wide whenever they fell upon him.

They did.

Just as they always had. Always would.

"You'll always have me." he said, pressing his face into your shirt, your stomach. He placed a muffled kiss there, and withdrew, looking up into your eyes. A puppy indeed. “Forever.” Simon's words were true. As was the glimmer in his eyes.

"Mind," he pulled you closer, his hand dropping to your hip, "body," he squeezed it, near making you squeal. He pulled you closer still, emerging from the waters, a Prince of the Sea meeting a Monarch of the Sun.

"And soul."

His lips found yours, a light in the dark, and you accepted him unto you. A Holy Spirit, a waiting disciple.

His lips were warm, all-encompassing, the condition of his skin becoming more apparent, rougher, as the water washed off him and onto you. You could taste how much he needed you, feel it in how tightly he pulled you to him, never letting go. 

A fragment of eternity passed between you, cutting you loose. And as you pulled away, you pressed your forehead to his, desperately trying to show him the love and life you held for him there, a projector to display all that you could neither say, nor do, to compensate for all that you felt for him.

You smiled, eyes crinkling, half-moons.

"I think I prefer just the body," you said.

Ghost's cheeks lifted, his teeth showing as a laugh rumbled through his chest. He slipped another arm around you and, before you could comprehend, pulled you into the bath, making you squeal and water and suds to spill over the sides as he settled you beneath him.

"Well, then," he said, his consideration, his musings, utterly false, pre-determined. His hands held your wrists, bracelets of blood, bone and muscle. Of Man.

"I'll just have to show you how much this body loves yours."

And with a string of kisses from your ear to your throat, the bath became a mermaid's bed, the scent of lavender curating a scene from pure fantasy, of a love which permeated the very atmosphere, turned it sweet and reduced all hope that anything as pure could ever grasp it in its shaking, gripping, spectral fingers.

Reblog for more content like this! It helps creators like myself tremendously and it is greatly appreciated :-)

Masterlist Masterlist [Continued] Masterpost Modern Warfare AI Masterlist

AO3 Wattpad

[faustiantales]

𝖆 𝖕𝖑𝖊𝖆𝖘𝖆𝖓𝖙 𝖘𝖚𝖗𝖕𝖗𝖎𝖘𝖊

Dark Descent: Johan Talede X fem/afab!Reader

Twisted Truths: incest, fellatio, vaginal penetration, slight female-led relationship/femdom, creampie

Synopsis: As Johan's younger sister, she is responsible for preparing a special surprise for her older brother on his birthday. Although the blonde knight received a lot of gifts and affection from the Monarch and his fellow knights, she knew what he wanted to have deep inside.

Shadows Lengthen: 3.1K words

        "It's about time big brother returns from the citadel..." a certain girl murmured, glancing at her stopwatch.

        [Y/n] made a final adjustment to her outfit and checked the set-up of her surprise. Once she deemed that everything was perfect, she nodded to herself, proud of her work. A smile erupted on her lips and she turned off the lights in the house. She carefully tiptoed around the house and made her way to the couch, positioning herself properly.

        It didn't take long for the doorknob to rattle and the door to creak open. [Y/n] held her breath, her heart thumping like a drum in her chest. The hallway was cast in shadows, the moon's soft glow peeking through the thin curtain, painting spots across the floor. She heard the familiar thud of her brother's boots and the rustle of him removing it. The anticipation grew with every step he took, and she waited.

        "[Y/n]? Are you home?" Johan's voice echoed through the darkness, a hint of exhaustion in his tone.

        She remained silent, her heart racing even faster. The thud of his footsteps grew closer until he stepped into the living room, the moonlight casting his silhouette against the wall. Her heart felt like it was going to burst out of her chest. She had planned this moment meticulously. It was her way of saying 'welcome home' after his long day at the citadel. The room was filled with the sweet scent of her homemade apple pie and the warm glow of candles she had strategically placed around the room. Each one was a symbol of her love and longing for the brother she adored.

        As soon as the blonde knight entered the living room, his eyes widened at the sight before him — there, situated on the couch amidst the candlelit room was his beloved younger sister. The girl was wearing nothing else but a thin, see-through nightgown. She was positioned seductively on the couch ��� her legs slightly apart with her womanhood peeking through the short nightgown, her chest heaving with excitement, nipples perked up and visible against the fabric.

        The flickering candlelight danced across her skin, making her look like a heavenly creature. Johan froze in his tracks, redness spreading across his fair cheeks. The room was silent except for the crackling of the candles and his ragged breaths. The sight of his sister in such a state was unexpected, yet his body's response was undeniable. He felt his blood rushing to his groin, his cock thickening with desire. He swallowed hard, trying to form words, but his mouth was dry.

        "Welcome home, big brother~" the girl cooed, dropping from the couch to crawl seductively towards him on the floor.

        Johan's throat constricted, his eyes unable to leave the tantalizing view of her supple body moving with such an alluring grace. The thin fabric of her nightgown clung to her curves, revealing more of her soft skin with every motion. She stopped right in front of him, her eyes gleaming with mischief and a hint of desperation. The man's gray orbs stared down at her [e/c] ones, observing her every movement as she remained 

        "Happy birthday, Big Brother Johan!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around his waist, and pressing her naked body against his. The fabric of her nightgown was so thin that it barely provided any barrier between them. Furthermore, her face was pressed against his growing erection, the warmth of her breathing making him drive mad.

        "Is this your surprise for me this year?" regaining his composure, Johan's voice was hoarse, his eyes dark with a mix of shock and arousal. He strained a chuckle, excitement, and incredulity warring within him.

         [Y/n] looked up at him, her eyes shimmering with excitement. Despite his initial surprise, the girl immediately noticed the affection and lust within his pools. "Do you like it?"

        "How could I not?" Johan replied, his voice thick with emotion. "You've always had a knack for surprising me, but this..."

        He trailed off, his hands hovering over her bare shoulders, unsure of what to do next. The atmosphere grew even more tense as his body responded to her closeness, his cock straining against his pants.

        [Y/n] giggled, a sweet sound that seemed to resonate through the room. She reached up and began to unbuckle Johan's belt, her eyes never leaving his. He watched in amazement as she unbuttoned his pants, revealing the impressive erection she had inspired. She took him in her hand, stroking him gently, feeling the warmth and power of his desire.

        "I'm sure Highness and the rest of the Avillon knights already threw a grand party for you at the citadel," she started, her voice low and sultry. "But I wanted to give you something... a little more personal."

        Johan's cock pulsed in her grasp, the heat of it palpable, and he felt his resolve wavering. This was his sister, his baby sister, yet here she was, offering herself to him in a way that no one else ever had.

        "Ah~ [Y/n]..." he moaned, gently caressing her locks while he threw his head back, eyes fluttering close.

        "You're already providing for both of us right from the start. And that didn't stop even when you've become one of Highness' knights. This year, I want to give you something special," the girl whispered, her voice barely audible above the crackling of the candles. Her hand tightened around Johan's cock, stroking him with an innocent yet skilled touch that sent shockwaves of pleasure through his body. "Let me take care of you this time, big brother. Even when we're making love, you're always the one protecting and providing."

        "But—Ah~ You don't have to—Ngh! It's only natural for me to do everything for you..." he reasoned through the mewls of pleasure. "I'm your big brother, after all."

        [Y/n]'s lips puckered in a pout as she looked up at Johan, her eyes shimmering with determination. "But I'm not a little girl anymore. Besides, I know you're fairly exhausted from the party today. Let me do this for you, please?"

        Her soft voice was like a siren's call, and Johan found himself nodding despite his initial reservations. "Alright. But you have to let me know when it's too much, alright? I don't mind if I take over for you."

        [Y/n]'s heart raced upon hearing her brother's words. Johan is indeed a kind and caring older brother, and she was lucky to have him. Despite their harsh childhood as orphans, despite the blonde's ruthless and distrustful nature when they were younger, the things that remained constant were his protectiveness and love for her.

        And now, she was going to show him that she's not just the one to be protected, but also the one who can give him comfort and pleasure. With a smile that could melt the coldest of hearts, she leaned in and kissed Johan's cheek.

        "Thank you," she murmured before sinking down to her knees. Her grip tightened around his cock, and she began to stroke him in earnest. Her movements were slow and deliberate, a silent declaration of her intentions. Johan's eyes rolled back, and he leaned against the wall for support, his breathing becoming more ragged.

        The room was bathed in the warm light of the candles, casting a gentle glow on their intimate moment. The crackling of the fireplace filled the air, mingling with the sound of their breaths and the occasional whimpers that escaped Johan's lips. [Y/n] felt a sense of power and excitement that she had never felt before, the realization that she could bring her brother such pleasure was exhilarating.

        Her hand slid down to cup his balls, her thumb teasing the sensitive skin beneath. Johan gasped, his knees buckling slightly. She could feel the tension in his body, the desire building up like a storm within him. His eyes were still closed, his jaw clenched as he tried to hold back the moans that threatened to spill out.

        [Y/n] leaned in closer, her hot breath ghosting over his cock. She licked the tip, tasting the salty precum that had gathered there. Johan's whole body shuddered, and he gripped the back of her head, his hands trembling. She took it as an invitation and wrapped her lips around him, sucking gently. His grip tightened, his hips jerking forward involuntarily.

        The feeling of her mouth on him was heavenly. Johan had never felt anything like this before. The sensation was overwhelming, a mix of pleasure and guilt. But the guilt was quickly being drowned out by the pleasure. He looked down at her, his vision blurred by lust. Her eyes were closed, her cheeks hollowed out as she took him deeper into her mouth.

        "So beautiful..." Johan murmured, his voice strained with desire. He watched as [Y/n] took him deeper, her cheeks hollowing with each bob of her head. The sight of her doing this for him was too much to handle. He couldn't believe this was happening, but the feeling was too intense to ignore.

        [Y/n] felt his grip tighten in her hair as she increased her pace, her tongue swirling around his shaft. She was careful not to go too fast, remembering her brother's gentle nature. She didn't want to overwhelm him, but she wanted him to feel good, to know how much she appreciated him. The sound of his breathing grew louder, his moans grew deeper.

        Her own arousal grew as she heard his pleasure, her pussy growing wetter with every stroke of her hand. She released his cock with a pop, looking up at him with a mischievous smile. "Do you like it, big brother?"

        "Ah, [Y/n]... You're too much," Johan groaned, his eyes half-lidded with desire. "But I can't let you do this alone."

        With surprising agility, Johan scooped his sister up into his arms and carried her back to the couch. He laid her down gently, his hands exploring her curves through the delicate fabric of her nightgown. His kisses grew more urgent, claiming her mouth as his own. She moaned into his mouth, arching her back to press her breasts against his chest.

        "I never expected you to pull this kind of trick," he whispered against her skin, trailing sloppy kisses down her neck and cleavage. "Especially on my birthday."

        The [h/c]ette giggled, enjoying the warmth on his lips on her body. "Well, during the last few years, you were always the one taking the initiative. I thought that this time, we could have sex without you moving a muscle. I guess I'm wrong, though."

        "Do you really want to take the rein this time?" he stared at her, pausing his kisses. His eyes searched hers, seeking confirmation, his voice thick with desire.

        [Y/n] nodded, her cheeks flushing. "More than anything."

        "Alright," he smiled.

        Assoon as he lowered his guard, the younger Talede took this chance to push her older brother down. The blonde let out a surprised 'oof' when his back landed on the plush cushion of the couch. Amidst the brief vertigo, [Y/n] caged Johan beneath her. Her legs straddled his waist, and she leaned in, pressing her breasts against his chest. The warmth and softness of her flesh made Johan's cock throb painfully, and he swallowed hard, his eyes locked onto hers, which gleamed with excitement.

        "I wanna take things slow," she purred, slowly undoing his knight uniform. "We have the entire night ahead, right~?"

        Her wet pussy rubbed against her lower abdomen, just above his erect cock. Johan could feel the heat from her core, and it was driving him wild. He nodded, his hands resting on her hips, giving her full control over what was to come.

        [Y/n] slid her nightgown off, revealing her naked body to the candlelight. Her breasts bounced slightly with the movement, and Johan couldn't help but stare. They were a perfect handful, with pink nipples that were already hard from anticipation. She leaned in, her breasts brushing against his chest, and he could feel her hot breath on his skin. She kissed him deeply, her tongue exploring his mouth as her hands began to wander.

        Her fingers danced over his chest, tracing the lines of his muscles. He moaned into the kiss as she teased his nipples, sending bolts of pleasure down to his cock. He felt his body responding, his cock growing even harder against her stomach. The girl giggled, a sound that was both innocent and seductive, and ground her hips against him.

        "We haven't done this position yet," she commented, pulling back from the kiss to stare at her leaking cunt. She raised her hips, watching as the wetness connected to Johan's skin. Then, she glanced behind her, witnessing his cock throb against her ass. "Do you mind if I ride you tonight?"

        "Not at all," he rasped, his voice thick with need and his cheeks flushing a deeper shade of red.

        [Y/n]'s smile grew wider as she positioned herself over Johan's erect cock. She reached down, guiding him to her entrance, and with a slow, deliberate motion, she began to lower herself onto him. Johan's eyes widened as he felt the heat of her envelops him, the tightness of her pussy making him gasp. He had never felt anything so incredible, so overwhelming.

        Her movements were tentative at first, her walls stretching to accommodate his size. Johan's hands tightened on her hips, encouraging her to take her time. He didn't want to rush this, not when it was her first time truly being in control. The candlelight cast a warm glow over her body, making her skin glisten with sweat. The sound of their bodies joining filled the room, a sweet symphony of pleasure.

        With a final push, she took him fully inside, her pussy enveloping his cock in a warm, wet embrace. Johan couldn't help but let out a guttural groan, his eyes squeezed shut as he felt himself hit the deepest part of her. [Y/n] paused for a moment, savoring the feeling of fullness, before she began to rock her hips, setting a rhythm that had them both moaning in unison.

        The room was filled with the sounds of their lovemaking — the slap of skin on skin, the wet sounds of her pussy taking him in and out, and their mingled gasps and moans. Johan's hands roamed over her body, exploring every inch of her soft, supple flesh. He cupped her breasts, playing with her nipples, and she leaned back, arching her back to give him better access.

        Her movements grew more confident with each passing moment, her hips moving in a sinuous dance that had Johan's eyes rolling back in his head. He could feel his orgasm building, his balls tightening with every stroke.

        "Ngh, [Y/n]..." he groaned, his voice strained. "You're so tight... so perfect..."

        The girl's cheeks grew redder with each compliment, her own pleasure spiking at the sound of his voice. She leaned forward, her hands on his chest for balance, and began to ride him in earnest. The sight of her naked body moving above him, her breasts bouncing with every thrust, was almost too much to bear. Johan felt his control slipping, the tension in his body coiling tighter with every passing second.

        Her pussy clenched around him, the sensation sending waves of pleasure through his body. He could feel her getting closer, her movements growing more erratic as she chased her own release. He wanted to hold out, to let her come first, but the feel of her wet heat was too much to resist. He bucked his hips up to meet hers, his strokes growing deeper, harder.

        Their bodies moved in perfect sync, their breaths mingling in the candlelit air. Johan watched as [Y/n]'s eyes fluttered closed, her mouth forming a perfect 'O' of pleasure. Her cheeks were flushed, and her skin glistened with a sheen of sweat. She was so beautiful, so passionate, and she was all his. The thought sent a bolt of desire straight to his cock, making him throb even more inside her.

        Their pace grew frenzied, their moans echoing through the quiet house. Johan's hands gripped her hips tightly, guiding her movements as he thrust up to meet her. The friction between them was exquisite, each stroke sending jolts of pleasure through their bodies. [Y/n]'s breasts bounced with every movement, her nipples hard and sensitive against his chest. The sensation was driving him wild, pushing him closer and closer to the edge.

        "Ngh! I'm close, [Y/n]," the man panted, his eyes never leaving hers. She could see the struggle in his gaze, the effort it took for him to hold back his climax. She felt a thrill of power, knowing that she could do this to him, that she could make him feel so good.

        "Me too," she gasped, her voice trembling with the effort of keeping her own pleasure in check. She leaned down, her breasts brushing against his chest, and whispered in his ear, "Cum for me, big brother. I want to feel you inside me."

        The words were like a spark in dry kindling. Johan couldn't hold back any longer. With a roar, he bucked his hips up, driving himself deep inside her. [Y/n] screamed as she felt him fill her, the warmth of his seed spreading through her as she came apart around him. Her pussy clenched down on his cock, her body shaking with the force of her orgasm. Johan groaned, his eyes rolling back in his head as he emptied himself into her, the pleasure so intense it was almost painful.

        They stayed like that for a moment, their bodies entwined, their breaths mingling in the stillness of the room. The candles flickered, casting shadows across their sweat-slicked skin. The scent of their passion filled the air, a heady mix of lust and love. [Y/n] leaned down, her breasts pressing against Johan's chest as she kissed him softly.

        "I love you," she whispered against his lips, her voice filled with emotion. "Happy birthday again, big brother~"

        Johan smiled as he returned the kiss. "I love you too. Thank you for the gift."

📜— Return to the Shadowed Archive

[geekgirles]

I've been thinking about it, and now I headcanon that the reason Armand suddenly pulled a 180 after being rude and dismissive towards Amalia in season 3 and the wake of their father's passing is because Master Joris encouraged him to see past his own feelings and bitterness and bury the hatchet with his sister.

No, I don't have solid proof, but I have speculations rooted in canon.

Right after Armand comforted Amalia, he revealed he'd been invited to an assembly as King of the Sadidas and how he'd hoped his sister would accompany him, effectively treating her as his second-in-command instead of the spoiled brat he'd been seeing her as until then.

And who's there, all but acting as the official mediator between the rulers?

That's right. Master Joris.

Given he's always played a pivotal role in the World of Twelve and his position as Bonta's ambassador means he has close ties with the world's monarchs (as evidenced by his presence during every single meeting Yugo and Nora had with the other rulers, except maybe Brakmar), then it wouldn't be far-fetched to believe he was the one in charge of summoning Armand to the assembly.

And given his own ties with Amalia by virtue of working together as allies since she was 13, then he could've noticed her absence in the palace. Which would then prompt Armand to probably make some sort of derisive comment about how she had yet to leave their father's tomb-tree's side despite not being there during his actual passing.

Because I have a soft spot for Joris, as he is legitimately one of the most trustworthy and level-headed characters around, I want to believe he probably said just the right thing to get Armand to realise the role he played in their relationship going sour and make him question if he really wishes to be on bad terms with the only family member he has left.

After all, Amalia is constantly away, fighting with everything she has just to survive. Does he really want for his sister to die thinking her own brother doesn't love her?