#sorry for any typos !!

[sincerelybubbles]

it's a date || spencer reid x reader

part 2

warnings: cannon-typical violence/mentions of murder and kidnapping, slow burn, fluff!, early seasons spencer, not proof read

word count: 6.1k

You sigh and crack your knuckles, staring down at the pot simmering on the stove. You know that the sauce would be okay if you left it for a few minutes, did something else, but you remain standing, uselessly stirring it every few seconds. Truthfully, you’re bored. Your mind shifts from cooking to work tomorrow, itching to pull out your documents and scan through them one more time. But you know you shouldn’t, advise about work-life balance tugging at your attention. 

You’re debating if you should pick up a book and try to read, something light to take your mind off of the day, when a knock sounds from the front door. Your dog, Penny, a lovely golden retriever you rescued a few years ago, lets out a weak woof before slowly standing and trotting to the door. She’s old, more grey than golden, but she never fails to answer the door with you. 

You turn the stove off and move the pot off of the burner, wiping your hands as you walk, when another knock echoes through the hallway. It’s sharp, official, loud. The sound fills you with anxiety. You stand on your toes to look out of the peephole.

“Hello?” You ask through the door, not recognizing the men standing outside and seeing no package in sight. 

“Hello, Jason Gideon, FBI, could we have a word?” The older man says, voice stern but not unkind. 

You open the door without unlatching the chain, peering out through the crack. “FBI?”

Jason Gideon, the one who spoke, pulls out his badge first. The lankier man next to him follows in suit. Your eyes linger on him for a second longer than the other agent, taking in his toussled brown hair. You scan the badges for a second before shutting the door to undo the chain. 

“Sorry, you can’t be too careful, you know?”

“Oh, we know that all too well,” Gideon says good-naturedly, “it’s good to be cautious.”

He asks your name, you give it, and nods sharply, looking to his partner. “Well, like I said, I’m Jason Gideon with the Behavioral Analysis Unit, FBI, and this is my partner Doctor Spencer Reid.”

“Well, come on in, Agent Gideon and Dr. Reid,” you say, waving them both in and shutting the door. 

“Just Gideon is fine.”

Dr. Reid sends you a tight lipped smile as he walks in, adjusting his shirt and otherwise avoiding your gaze. He seems nervous. 

“Would you two like something to drink while you tell me why you’re here? Coffee, tea, water?” You ask, twisting the dishcloth between your hands as you lead them inside.

“I wouldn’t say no to some coffee,” Gideon says. You nod and turn to Dr. Reid, who is staring at you with his mouth slightly agape. 

“Oh, yeah, coffee for me too, please.”

“Of course, have a seat,” you say, waving them to the small table in your kitchen and moving to prepare their drinks. Neither of them sit.

“How well do you know your neighbors?” Gideon asks as you start the coffee. 

You shrug. “As well as anyone does these days, I guess. I wave when I drive past them, smile when they’re out front at the same time. Why, has something happened? I saw the police cars earlier, on my way home from work, but I haven’t heard anything else.”

“Yes ma’am,” Dr. Reid says, even though he looks your age, maybe even a few years older. “Your neighbor across the street was murdered last night, Mrs. Furgison, and her eight-year-old son is missing. Did you hear anything?”

You fall still, facing away from the two officers. Numb, you shake your head, “No, I didn’t. I wasn’t home last night. I was watching my niece for my sister.” You turn around to face them, leaning back against the counter. “But there are cameras outside, I’m assuming that’s why you’re here?” “Yes,” Gideon confirms with a nod. “Would you be okay if we took a look at the last few weeks of footage if you have it?”

“You want to see if he’s been visiting before last night,” you mumble, nodding. “Yes, of course.”

“Do you work in law enforcement?” Dr. Reid asks, the question erupting from him like he couldn’t hold it back. “You’re shockingly calm and seem to know what we’re going to ask before we get to it.”

“Oh, yeah,” you chuckle, waving a hand in the air and turning to pull the pot of coffee out. “BAU, of course, you’d see right through me. I’m a victim liaison. I read through this process hundreds of times a week. Sugar?”

“No, thanks,” Gideon answers as Dr. Reid blurts out, “Yes, please.”

You set the mugs on the kitchen counter along with a container of sugar.

“Help yourself, I’ll grab my laptop to get those files for you.”

When you come back, laptop in tow, Gideon and Dr. Reid are having a hushed conversation, both holding their mugs of coffee. You round the corner slowly but loudly, aware that sometimes agents can be jumpy. Gideon smiles at you while Dr. Reid looks over sharply. 

It fits, given their ages and presumably how long each have been in the field. You try to send him a reassuring smile. He reciprocates but still looks obviously awkward, fixing his hair and taking a sip of coffee.

“Would you like me to put the files on a USB? Email them somewhere? Or just,” you motion with the computer, offering it over. 

“I can take it,” Dr. Reid offers, “send the files to Garcia.”

You let him, passing him the computer easily. With your job, the government is already elbows deep in that laptop, anyway; you have nothing to hide. 

You watch as Dr. Reid begins typing away on your computer, leaning over the table and resting his forearms on the edge. 

Both of the agents are dressed professionally: button-down shirts, slacks, dress shoes. Guns ready at the hip.

“You like to cook?” Gideon asks, nodding toward your forgotten pasta on the stove. 

“Yes and no,” you admit, chuckling and turning your attention to him. “It always tastes better than takeout but it’s hard to get the motivation. Are you hungry? Can I offer you anything else?”

“Oh, that won’t be necessary, but thank you.”

“Of course. I know how overworked you lot can be.” You cross your arms and lean back against your counter. “What about you? Do you cook?”

“Not as often as I should,” he admits, smiling sadly. “Victim liaison, you said?”

“Yes, sir.”

“You seem a little young.” “Could say the same about him.” You nod at Dr. Reid who doesn’t hear you, too focused on his work. “But I guess drive and pretty much no social life can get you anywhere,” you admit with a laugh. 

“Garcia should have the files in a minute,” Dr. Reid interrupts, looking up from your laptop.

“I’ll give her a call.”

He steps out with a nod to you, walking back into the front hallway of your small home and leaving you alone with the doctor. 

He opens his mouth to say something before his eyes focus over your shoulder and his attention is stolen. “Sorry,” he says, moving past you and into your living room, toward your bookshelf. “Is that a Russian copy of Crime and Punishment?” He asks, brushing his finger over the spine of the book. 

“Oh, yeah, it is.” You follow him, staring up at your own bookshelf like you’ve never seen it before. It’s crammed full of books. There are more filling your bedroom down the hall as well. “It’s a slow read, I have to use a lexicon a lot of the time, but I sort of like the work. Translating’s a hobby of mine, I guess. When I have time. Sorry, that might be weird.”

“No, it’s not weird at all! Not to me, at least. Are you using a Dictionary-based lexicon? Can I see it? I have one that I love. I haven’t read much Russian but I have one for Greek. They’re rarely used anymore, falling out of popularity with the creation of the internet where everything is readily available to just search up, but I find them fascinating and I’ve never seen one for Russian before.”

He talks enthusiastically with his hands. His eyes shine, the interest lighting up his face. You think, before you remember the reason why he’s there, that he’s actually quite handsome. You become slightly breathless at the realization. You don’t really notice people like this often. But, towering above you, buttoned shirt pushed up to show his forearms and a self-concious smile stretching across his face, you’re a little flustered.

You take a breath, remembering that your neighbor is dead and a little boy is missing, sending Dr. Reid a small smile and motioning behind you.

“It’s in my office if you want to go look at it. I prefer it to just typing out the stuff I don’t know — mostly because I don’t have a Russian keyboard — and it’s easier to learn when you have to research it.”

“I would actually love –”

“Reid,” Gideon interrupts, ending his call, “Garcia got the files, we have to go.”

“Oh, yes, of course.”

“Thank you so much for your help,” Gideon says, walking toward you and offering his hand. “And for the coffee. So sorry to have interrupted your cooking.”

“Anytime detective,” you say, shaking his hand and smiling up at him, “always happy to help. I can give you my card if you need anything else?”

“That would be great, thank you.”

You rush to your bag to pull out one of your cards and hand it to Gideon before turning to offer Dr. Reid your hand. 

“It was nice to meet you, too, Dr. Reid.”

He takes your hand firmly. “Spencer’s fine,” he says, stumbling over his words slightly but still smiling. “Thank you for your help.”

“Anytime,” you repeat, letting them out and returning to your sad pasta. 

Your mind wonders, not to the murder or kidnapping, but to Spencer Reid. Wide brown eyes, tousled hair pushed out of his face, a sweet smile. Smart, too. Way too smart. 

You’re not exactly experienced when it comes to dating, you hadn’t lied to Gideon when you said you don’t make time for a social life, dating included, but you do know that an interest in a too-smart profiler might spell bad news. 

Still, as you portion out your meal, you can’t help but think that you’re feeling awfully motivated to return to working on Crime and Punishment. You don’t lie to yourself about the origins of this sudden spark of motivation, but you do rationalize it. What’s the harm in a fleeting crush, then? Especially if it gives you the push to finally finish one of the many projects hanging on your ever-growing list?

You suppose you might see them arround the office if they’re working in this jurisdiction, but then he’ll be gone and it’ll fade away. In the meantime, you make yourself a plate of food and settle down in your living room with the book and lexicon.

||||

“Well, that certainly poses an interesting problem,” you hear Cheif Saunders say as you walk into the police department the next morning, arms full of files ready for sorting. 

You round the corner to escape this attention but aren’t fast enough and he calls you over by name. Cringing, you turn on your heel and are faced, once again, with Gideon and Spencer. With them are two more men and two girls, all intimidating and confident. 

All FBI, if you had to wager a bet. 

“Morning,” you say, nodding to Gideon and Spencer respectively. “Nice to see you two again.”

“You’ve met?” The tall man next to Gideon asks, pointing the question to Spencer. He grins, white teeth overtaking his dark, handsome face. He reaches his hand out to shake yours, “Morgan, nice to meet you.”

You introduce yourself, explain your position, and receive introductions from JJ, Elle, and Hotchner as well. 

“Where did you meet our friends?” Chief Saunders asks, folding his hands in front of him and setting an accusatory glare on you. “Still preening for a new job?”

“No sir,” you say, uncomfortable. The chief is often cold with you, refusing to acknowledge your knowledge or work. When he found that you were looking to transfer stations to the one a district over, he’d still thrown a fit, though. You guess he can’t ignore how well your numbers reflect on him as easily as he deflects your accomplishments to your face. 

“We stopped by to get access to her cameras, she lives across the street from the Furgison’s,” Gideon explains, watchful eyes glancing between you and the chief. 

“They proved to be surprisingly useful,” Spencer interrupts. “We now know the make, model, and color of the unsubs car as well as his general height. Garcia is still trying to make out plates, but we are able to confirm at least pieces of our profile with the information.”

“You live across the street?” The chief asks, still staring at you. You shift your weight, holding the files closer to your chest. 

“Yes, sir. In a duplex.”

“Then, fellas, I’ve found the solution to our problem. You’ll set up with our little liaison, then.”

“Sorry?” You ask, startled. 

“We have reason to believe that the unsub is returning to the crime scenes after the police have left the area and allowed the family to return. But, if we know our guy, and we think we do,” Elle says, begrudingly, “he’s smart. He’s going to notice if we’re camped out in a car. And, in a residential street, it’s much harder to hide in a building.”

“So, you’ll have the opportunity to make yourself useful,” Chief Saunders chuckles, laying a heavy hand on your shoulder and shaking you.

“Only if you’re comfortable,” Gideon adds, glancing at you with a patient expression. 

“Yes, it would be a complete invasion of your privacy, agents would be there twenty-four-seven monitoring. We would only stay in the front areas of the house, of course, but you needn’t do anything you’re not comfortable with. There are always other ways.” Agent Hotchner fixes you with a level look, voice sincere. 

“Oh, she’s comfortable, aren’t ya?” The chief says, shaking you again with a wide smile. 

“Yes, of course,” you say, nodding at the others. You mean it, you’ll do whatever you can to help out, you just wish you could’ve made the choice yourself.

“This way, you don’t have to worry about confidentiality, either. Little Miss has full access to ongoing investigations, she’ll be there for all of the briefings and such.”

You nod, discretely moving a step back so his hand falls from your shoulder. 

“Yes, I’m meant to be kept up to date with all ongoing, violent investigations where and if possible to act as a bridge between law enforcement and victims and families of victims. Especially those with children involved — I should have mentioned we would cross paths again last night, I just wasn’t thinking.”

“Yes, we’ve worked with our fair share of liaisons,” Gideon chuckles, looking over his shoulder at JJ who gives him a small smile. 

“Then it’s all set. You boys let me know when you have your profile ready.” Elle watches him walk off with a hard stare, obviously just as rubbed wrong by him as you are. 

“Lovely man, isn’t he?” You joke, trying to make the situation lighthearted. 

“We’ve interacted before. Our headquarters isn’t actually far from here, just a twenty-minute drive, we’re up in Quantico. He doesn’t get any better with time, though.” Agent Hotchner shakes his head, turning to grab a file off of the desk behind him. 

“Well, he always forgets to offer his office space to visitors so I usually keep mine available. It’s quieter and there’s a whiteboard, follow me.”

||||

Since you started renting the small duplex by yourself, you’ve never felt awkward in your own home. Now, though, you feel odd taking up your own space. 

The majority of the Quantico team is set up in your front room with laptops, cameras, and microphones. 

“We don’t know exactly how long he usually takes to come back to scenes, only that it typically happens within the week,” Elle explains to you apologetically. 

“No problem — comes with the job, no?” You say, smiling and trying to brush it off. Elle laughs gently, nose wrinkling as she shakes her head. 

“No, not really. I wouldn’t be thrilled if these boys set up shop in my house, you’re taking this with much more grace than I would.”

You shrug, crossing your arms and tilting your head from side to side. “I won’t act like it’s normal, it is pretty weird having you guys here, but if it helps you catch this guy, why would I say no? Better me than some random civilian.” You hesitate, scrunching up your nose, “Better now than waiting for him to kill someone else.”

“Much more compassionate than I am,” Elle jokes, shaking her head and walking away as Gideon calls her name. 

The main problem, you think, is that the duplex isn’t very big. The part of the team that’ll be staying with you — Spencer, Gideon, Elle, and Morgan — have all settled in. They won’t come and go, their car is firmly parked in your garage, and they’ll keep a low profile to prevent the unsub from noticing their presence. You’re meant to come and go as normal to keep suspicion low in case he’s cased the entire neighborhood. But, with only two bedrooms, a baths, and a small office, you’re feeling slightly cramped. Whenever you turn, you feel like you’re coming toe-to-toe with someone. It’s awkward, considering you’re very used to living alone. 

Still, you’re determined to be a good host, so you set to preparing lunch for everyone. They’d insisted that you didn’t need to, but you really don’t know what else to do. You’d been given the day to help them all settle in and provide assistance wherever possible, but there isn’t much to do other than wait. 

You’re pulling out the things for sandwiches when Spencer walks in. 

“Hey, do you have an extra ethernet cable? Garcia thinks that a direct line would be better,” he asks. 

“Maybe, you’re free to check in the office if you want. If you need, you can always pull the one from my desktop,” you say, shutting the fridge and trying to balance everything in your arms in one trip.

“What’re you doing?” Spencer asks, reaching forward to grab the ham and mayo from the top of your stack. 

“Making sandwiches!”

“You really don’t have to. We can have food ordered, it’s okay.”

“I wanna make myself useful, I feel weird just standing around watching you guys work,” you say, dumping the materials on the counter. “I hope you guys like ham or turkey, it’s all I have.”

“You are being useful, though. You’ve let us set up in your home, how much more useful can you be?”

“I could provide food as well,” you say, sending him a smile. “Ham or turkey?”

Spencer looks exasperated, setting the ham and mayo down and shaking his head. Nervously, he uses both of his hands to push his hair back. “Either. Either is fine, thank you.”

You start to prepare the sandwiches, Spencer watching and still looking like he wants to say something. 

“Hey, Reid, I found one, we’re all set,” Morgan says, rounding the corner and waving the white chord in the air. “Oh, what’re you making?” He asks, stepping closer and leaning over your shoulder. 

“Sandwiches. I was asking Spence if you guys like ham and turkey but he wasn’t being helpful.”

“Well, Spence can be like that,” Morgan says, throwing Spencer a smirk over his shoulder. “But we’d appreciate anything.” “I was trying to tell her,” Spencer interrupts, “that it’s entirely unnecessary for her to make us lunch. She’s already done enough for us letting us set up here. The effort is appreciated, of course, obviously, you just shouldn’t have to. Because we’re already intruding.” He trails off as Morgan sends him a look, raising his eyebrow. 

“Well, I, for one, appreciate the offer,” Morgan says, leaning on the counter and smiling down at you. You laugh at him. 

“It’s not that I don’t appreciate it! I do,” he says, turning to you and holding one of his hands up in a placating way, “I just don’t think, it’s very kind of course, I just –”

You cut him off, taking pity, “He’s fucking with you. Relax.”

||||

“I just can’t believe that you’re actually processing any of what you’re reading at that speed!” You say, throwing your arms up. 

“I actually am. Speed reading, when done right, doesn’t take away from comprehension at all. Plus, with my eidetic memory, I can always think back and process later if I need to,” Spencer explains. 

“Fine, you’re understanding what you’re reading in a general sense, but where’s the enjoyment in it? How can you possibly understand all the intricacies of the writing, what the author is doing, and appreciate the characters and their growth if you don’t take your time with it?” “I tend to focus my reading moreso on informational writing, so that’s not often a problem. And when I do read something fictional or with more nuance, I’m never lacking in any way when it comes to my understanding of the content, even when speed reading.”

“So you’re not actually taking the time to have fun reading is what I’m hearing.”

“Reading is inherently fun when you’re learning something, though,” he says, lips quirked in a slight smirk and a line forming between his eyebrows as he looks down at you. The look is so disarming that you find yourself deflating a little. 

You’re in your living room, a few books scattered on the coffee table between you two, debating the merits of each one. 

“I dunno,” you say, argument leaving you as you become distracted. 

“Just say I’m right! You know I am,” Spencer says with a chuckle, shaking his head and leaning toward you slightly, hands spread. 

You thought he was cute when he was shy, bumbling in your house yesterday, but after a few hours to warm up to each other, you can’t deny you really like him. 

The only thing that completely blocks the disappointment that they’ll all soon be leaving is that their UnSub will be caught when they have to leave. Your community and neighborhood will be better off for it. 

“No, I still think you’re wrong. Sure, you understand what you’re reading but I just don’t buy that you could possibly enjoy it in the same way that I am!” You’re trying your damndest to regain your confidence, shaking your head side-to-side with a wide smile to erase the vision of his own smirk, his hands, his rolled up sleeves from your mind. “I mean, nothing beats curling up with a book and taking your time with it.” “Well,” Spencer interrupts, lifting a finger, “how can you say if you’ve never tried my way?”

“Speed reading? I’ve done it, actually.” You shrug at his hesitating look, suddenly feeling vulnerable under the weight of his eyes. 

“Really? What method? What was your fastest time? What —” Morgan cuts off his questioning by walking in and calling for him. 

“Gideon wants you to take a look at something.” “Ah. Breaks over.” Spencer stands from where he was sitting on your armchair, brushing his hands off on his pants. He points at you while he walks away, “We’re not finished, though!”

“Oh?” Morgan asks when he’s gone, raising his eyebrows at you. “Unfinished business?” You scoff, moving to pick up the books you pulled out to talk to Spencer about. 

You like Morgan. He’s an easy one to like and he feels like the bigger brother you don’t have with his easy smiles. The chaos in your house hasn’t been easy, you appreciate his consistent presence to lighten the atmosphere. 

You’ve actually come to like all of them. Elle with her stories, Gideon with his dry smiles, and Spencer. Really, you just like Spencer. You’re an adult, you’re not ashamed to admit it. Just, only to yourself, lest you mess something up and make him uncomfortable. 

“You know, I can’t really say I haven’t seen him this excited before because the kid gets excited about everything but,” Morgan shrugs, pushing himself off of the wall he’s been leaning on and coming to sit next to you, “you do seem to get along well.”

“Oh, yeah, Spencer’s nice,” you say, standing to put the books away. 

“Nice,” Morgan muses, leaning back on the couch and crossing his arms. 

“He is! You all are.” You laugh when Morgan raises his eyebrows again. “I’m being serious, I would kill to work on a team like yours. You all actually work together.”

“We have to.”

“It certainly works out better when you do.”

“Yeah, your boss is a real dick. He usually walk all over you like that?” You wrinkle your nose at him as you sit down, pulling your legs under you. “More or less I guess. My personal opinion is that he’d like more men on the team and … no women,” you joke, giving him a what can you do? look, smiling sadly. 

“And you tried to transfer?”

“Stop profiling me,” you say, eyes narrowing. Morgan smiles, all teeth.

“Not profiling, just remembering him saying something like that when we talked at the station.”

“Oh,” you say, slouching back. “That’s considerably less impressive.” “Ouch.”

“Yeah, yeah, I wound you. But I did look into transferring a while back. I’ve been trying to move up for a while and keep getting blocked. But, no surprise, I got blocked again.” You raise an imaginary glass, cheers-ing with the air, “Go government!”

“That’s fucked,” Morgan says, letting out a low whistle. “So you don’t want to stay a victims liasion?”

“No, I do. But it’s not my only job right now. It’s a little complicated, but our office is too small to have a head liaison. So I really just run around filling gaps wherever I can until I’m needed to do my actual job. I’d love to do just liaison work, I really like working with the public. Feels like I’m actually helping people, you know?”

“Yeah, I know.” “Hey,” you say suddenly, not wanting to keep the mood somber (or ignore the FBI agent in your house with your silly woes while a murder investigation is underway), “you want some tea? Coffee?”

“Sure doll, I’ll take some coffee,” Morgan says, a confused smile taking over his face, “if you’re offering.”

||||

“It’s actually pretty interesting,” Spencer is saying, flipping through files and leaning over to show Elle something. 

“Oh, I bet. Nothing better than vicious murder,” you say, dry, rolling a pen between your fingers. 

“I mean the process behind deciphering their reasoning,” Spencer says, shrugging. 

“I just don’t know how you look past it to see anything other than the violence,” you say, shuddering. 

He and Elle have taken the night shift and are giving you a rundown on profiling. You’ve worked with profilers before, but they’re small-town cops, more interested in closing cases than being scientific, or, at times, even correct. 

“How do you look past a crying mother after her daughter has been murdered to get the information you need?” Elle asks. “I’ve worked with hundreds of victims, I think I’m pretty good at it, but your records show that you’re one of the best.”

You heat at the praise, shrugging your shoulders. “I wouldn’t say I look past them. I actually try to get into their shoes to figure out what I can say to get through to them.”

“Often the victims families know more than they think. Every bit of information they can give us or the police about the victim only lead us closer to the unsub. We often rely on your job to get important information out of victims and families that we wouldn’t otherwise have. It requires tact, empathy, and extreme emotional control,” Spencer explains, setting the file down and brushing his hair back. 

“Well, thank you?”

“I think he’s trying to say what we do is similar,” Elle explains, “it’s just the opposite side of it.”

“I’m still not following — but I’m definitely not built to be a profiler, that’s for sure.”

“But you could be. You profile in your own way. We look at the bad guys, the killing patterns, stuff like that,” Spencer leans forward, enthusiastic. “You just profile less intense people. Gather information from them, figure out what they need. Get in their shoes, to use your words. You use their actions, small phrases, and what you can gather from their homes to approach them the best way, no?”

“Looking at their clothes and body language and stuff, sure.”

“We do exactly that with crime scenes. Recognize patterns. Just like you can’t imagine seeing past the violence, some of us can’t imaigne having to see past the emotion of someone dealing with fresh loss.” Elle smiles. “You’d probably make a really good profiler. You’re just a better victims advocate.”

You consider that, weighing their words. “Sure, maybe,” you admit. “I still think it’s kinda like magic, though. Your knowledge, your intuition, your teamwork. It’s cool.”

“Thank you,” Elle says kindly. 

Spencer jumps back into his explanation of the types of murder-kidnappers, musing with Elle again about their profile. Their ability to constantly return to the same evidence over and over without any hesitation is still amazing to you. Despite what Elle said, you’re sure you’d get bored. 

You’re even more sure that it would stick to you in a way that working with the victims never did. You visit crime scenes, sure, but you never do everything in your power to commit every bit of them to memory. 

As they talk, you move toward the window and move the curtains over slightly. It’s the middle of the night, the second the team has spent in your home, and you’re curious how much longer this unsub will take to be caught. 

You’ve done your best to keep to your usual schedule and luckily it’s not unusual for you to be up late. The movement behind the curtains won’t be suspicious, so you stand and peek out curiously at the home across the street. 

Penny sighs from her bed in the living room, snoring softly. She’s taken a liking to your guests who are always willing to give her attention and scraps of food. 

The Furgison house bigger than yours, a family home with a large backyard. It’s a faded blue, lightened by the sun, with a white door. Theres a dim porch light that’s been left on, throwing yellow shaddows across the street. 

You swear you see a curtain move in the window and your entire body freezes, breath stolen from your lungs. 

“Hey guys?” You say, dead quiet, as you see the curtains flutter again. Small, nearly inperceptable movement. Greys and blacks angainst more greys and blacks. 

“Yeah?” Elle asks, still reading over the file with Spencer. 

“You’re sure that nobodys gone in tonight?”

“Certain,” Elle says, moving quickly to stand next to you. “Why?”

“Curtains moved,” you say, nodding toward the house. 

“Maybe the AC was left on?” Elle suggests and you shake your head. 

“No, we would’ve noticed it before now. They have no animals, the house should be empty.”

Your heart is racing as Spencer joins you at the window. 

“You sure you saw it move?” He asks, moving to stand behind you, just out of sight at the window, a hand pressed to your back. Gentle pressure, just his fingertips, that makes you siffen even more. He moves his hand, whispering an apology. 

You wish he hadn’t. 

Your mind spins, distracted for a moment, shaking your head again. 

“Yes, I’m certain.”

“Go get Morgan and Gideon,” Spencer tells you, sharing a look with Elle. 

||||

You follow the team out, despite their insistence that you don’t have to, holding your own handgun out and following the light Morgan casts. 

You live in a relatively sleepy neighborhood. Shared duplexes and little houses line the streets, most with little flowerbeds out front. The Furgison house is no exception: it’s a little blue house with rose bushes out front. It backs the small patch of wood that runs along the length of the highway. 

Heart racing and head light from adrenaline, you stay out front to watch for any movement inside while Morgan and Hotch creep around one side of the house, Spencer and Elle take the other side. 

“Back here,” you faintly hear Morgan say through your earpiece. “The cellar door is open. It was deadlocked last time.”

You sitffen, readjusting your grip on your gun. 

“Wasn’t it cleared, though, when we were here last?” Elle asks. 

“Yeah, but he could’ve snuck in through the woods — there’s no telling.”

“Didn’t we position police cars on the highway?” Elle again. You can imagine them all standing behind the house, guns drawn. It’s intersting to hear them communicate so efficiently, voices low. 

“We’ll worry about it later. Morgan, you take the lead, I’ll take the rear, Elle stay out here.”

For a long few seconds, you hear Morgan, Spencer, and Hotch begin to clear the basement, until you’re jolted out of the repetitive “clear!”s by Hotch yelling, “FBI, put your hands up!”

The next few minutes turn into a whirlwind as police cars arrive and Morgan drags the UnSub out of the house by his handcuffed arms. 

The Furgison boy comes out next, disheveled and passed to the paramedics in the back of an ambulance. Once you see Hotch, Spencer, and Elle are okay as well, you jump into action, going to sit with the boy and comfort him. Morgan is there, too, crouched down to talk to the kid. 

“You’re all good now,” he’s saying, reaching forward to ruffle his hair. “And my friend here is going to make sure that you see your dad as soon as possible.” Morgan gestures to you and you nod at the little boy. 

The sight of him makes your chest ache: he’s scrawny with wide brown eyes and a mop of curls on the top of his head. 

“Agent Morgan is right, your dad is going to meet us at the hospital.”

The boy doesn’t say anything, shaking under his emergency blanket. 

“I’ll ride with you in the ambulance, too, and that’ll be fun, right?” You ask, jumping up to sit next to him. Slowly and sluggish the boy rests his head on your shoulder, still shivering. You wrap an arm around him before mouthing ‘I’ve got him’ to Morgan. He gives you a small sile, waves at the boy, and goes to join his team. 

After being checked over again by the paramedics, the boy falls asleep quickly in the hospital, holding his dads hand. You’re leaving the room, shutting the door with a soft click, when you see Spencer sitting in the hallway. 

“How is he?” Spencer asks, standing up at the sight of you. 

“He’s okay, some minor bruises and scrapes, dehydrated but on an IV. They’re just happy to be back together.”

“That’s good,” Spencer says, falling quiet and looking away. 

“And, hey, you guys caught the bad guy — now you all get to go home!”

“Yeah,” Spencer says, turning to look at you again, chuckling slightly without any heart behind it. 

“Are you not excited?” You ask, raising an eyebrow. 

“It’s always nice coming back home after a trip, even one as close to home as this one is. But it’s a little bittersweet.”

“How so?”

You practically see Spencer gathering his courage, straightening his shoulders and sending you a small but genuine smile. 

“Well, we have some unfinished business, remember? And you never showed me your lexicon.”

“Well,” you say, smiling, “you’ll just have to keep in touch, then. Maybe we can get dinner?”

“Yeah. Yes, of course. Dinner.” Spencer is fully grinning now, eyes squinting with the force of it. You can’t help but mirror him, laughing a little. “Well, I do have a car to catch. I just wanted to check on him and say goodbye.”

“Well, goodbye for now Dr. Reid.”

“Goodbye,” he says, smiling at you for a second longer before turning to walk to the exit. He makes it to the doors before he hesitates, one hand on the handle. He stands there, still, for a moment before turning around and asking, “Dinner, like a date, right?”

Giddy, your smile only widens as you nod. “I would really like that, if you’re asking, yeah.”

“I’m asking.”

“Okay, then it’s a date.”

i wanted more to happen here but then i got this far and still had so much more i could write about these two aahhh

lmk if u want a pt 2 bc i kind of have ideas :) tysm for reading!!

[l3viat8an]

Levi's favorite thing to do while watching anime with MC is fingering and/or fondling MC's boob/boobs. Levi makes comments about the show and asks for MC's opinion. Meanwhile, MC is just a whiny, whimpered, teary-eyed mess sitting on his lap or between in his legs. 🤤💜

Nsfw!

!!! Nonnie!!!- omggshsg that’s so hot 😩 especially the part about boobs

Levi and his obsession with your boobs literally just cuddling watching any anime-

Everything starts out innocent enough with you sitting in Levi’s lap as the show starts and then Levi’s hands start low playing with the hem of your shirt. He’s not trying to tease you, really!!! He’s just needs to keep his hands busy!!- yea, that sounds believable-

His fingers moving up your stomach, then up higher ‘n higher, while you try to focus on the screen and when his hands finally reach your boobs- fully cupping them, squeezing just a little, his thumbs running over your nipples-

Levi’s so engrossed in the anime playing that he doesn’t notice the way you gasp and let out whimpering little moans.

His hands keep squeezing and massaging, his fingernails digging into your soft skin…. building your anticipation…he gives your nipples some feathery light touches, then pinches them which makes your whole body jerk in his lap.

He doesn’t just stick to that tho, he’ll tweak and twist them too. he’s playing around with you. And then Levi says something about….the plot? Maybe. You’re not sure, after all you haven’t really been paying attention, he’s grumbling about how it doesn’t make sense and when you don’t reply Levi finally looks away from the screen and at you-

Your cheeks are bright red, eyes filled with tears from all his unintentional teasing. Levi’s mouth falls open a dry, “…..whoa..” leaving his lips- and that’s not really what you wanted to hear right now, meeting his eyes you beg, “Levi, please don’t stop….n-need more..” and you wiggle your hips against his again trying to get any friction you can down there. Levi’s mouth is still open a little bit and his eyes are still stuck on your face so he simply nods, hands still on your tits- now he wants to watch you, wants to see if you can really cum just from him playing with your boobs….

You’ll both end up coming in your pants before the episodes even over-

[where-does-the-heart-lie]

I love Sabo as a character so much! However something about his introduction into the story has bothered me for a while. Oda is a master story teller but it truly feels a bit like Sabo whole existence was dropped into our laps out of nowhere. What's your opinion on his introduction? And if you could, what would you change?

Thank you so much for all your amazing art! Always sparks joy.

Hello hello! I also love Sabo a lot and as such theres a lot that I’ve had to come to terms with and work out with myself. I’ll let you in on my brain worms and what they’ve concluded with this subject though so hopefully some kind of weight is lifted off your shoulders, cuz right now, i think his introduction was done really well.

So first off, All Of Luffy’s family members’s whole existences were dropped into our laps out of nowhere, to be fair.

Luffy is not one to talk about his family or his past at all. So i dont blame him for not telling us directly about sabo when he barely told us about ace as he stood in front of us in Alabasta. But even if he doesnt talk about his family, for me, it’s very easy to see what Sabo’s influence on and especially what the loss of him taught Luffy before we even officially see him. We see it especially in water 7/enis lobby/sabaody arcs. During the course of the story up to that point, we don’t really see the world government, but even so, we see Luffy’s complete understanding of the cruelty and heartache it creates. We see his utter determination to not let a single other person he loves be taken away by the world government, too.

Also in Arlong Park! We see him understand what someone’s sacrifice on his behalf looks like. He knows how it ended last time. He’s not going to let it happen again and seeing it happen again in arlong park and water 7 and sabaody and Marineford absolutely kills him. Omg not even to mention Shanks losing his arm, too. This man is completely surrounded by people sacrificing themselves for him wtf. But like Shanks’ situation didnt give him that patented World Government Hatred, babeyyyyyy

And with how he was reintroduced officially in dressrosa, i think it was very artistically done. Like having all those themes and parallels to Luffy’s childhood, even going so far as him pointing them out, himself. That, and the Mera Mera No Mi coming back into the story, it gets you thinking back on Luffy’s backstory and what his brotherhood meant to him. So like Sabo’s already in the back of your mind from that and then youre also thinking “well who the hell is gonna get this fruit once Luffy wins it??” So when Sabo comes back i just feel like “of course. Of course it could be no one else but you.”

Also E S P E C I A L L Y with introducing Sabo, famous Amnesia Patient, back into the story during an arc that explores the absolute horrors of being forgotten and being the one forgetting???? Like truly the most opportune moment to get him back in there. I really love the Dressrosa arc, i think it’s all done very well.

I feel like if it was just Ace and Luffy, it would feel incomplete. Like Sabo’s part in their backstories just adds such a delicious spice to the age old dynamic of “older brother who dies for younger brother who he loves a lot.”

Like tell me Ace’s Death would hit the same if Ace didnt already know what it felt like to lose a brother.

His passing is already beyond tragic but like Sabo’s whole part in it just makes it so much more tragic in a way thats just 😚🤌 mwah~❤️ 𝕷𝖎𝖋𝖊 𝕽𝖚𝖎𝖓𝖎𝖓𝖌.

Sabo’s presence also adds a very personal level to Luffy’s understanding of the world he lived in. Like the big picture. I really think that if sabo wasnt occupying that space, Luffy wouldnt try to even know about the WG or class warfare or bother with any of that shit. Sabo is Luffy’s draw to the world around him me thinks. Like of course he would have to face that stuff when he went pirating, but those lessons would not have been taught to him before he got out there without Sabo.

This is the same in present day, like why would Luffy care at all about the Rev Army if Sabo wasnt in it? He’d be very thankful that they took Robin in, but like he wouldnt be actively asking about how the Rev Army was doing if his big bro wasnt a big part of it.

Also on that note of Sabo being in the Rev Army, I think that before Ace’s death and Sabo regaining his memory, Sabo wouldve been sneaky and largely unseen. Like yeah he barges into marine fortresses to take them down, but usually there isnt any survivors to tell the tales of him doing so. So before the timeskip, Sabo is out of the public eye. Out of any eye, really. But in my mind, when he regains his memory, i think he would do his level best to get his name out there. Thats why we see all those people in the colosseum/dressrosa be like “:O!!!! ITS THE CHIEF OF STAFF OF THE REV ARMY NOOOO” its cuz all his inhibitions left him. So like his face would be in news papers but luffy doesnt read news papers to find that Sabo’s alive and doing shit.

I think that Sabo took so long to let luffy know he was alive because he was scared luffy would hate him. I think he was scared of the potential scorn from his little brother he feels he wouldve been justified in getting. I think that if luffy was not put in a position where he wouldnt be able to fight in the colosseum anymore due to Law Getting Shot And Taken Off circumstances, Sabo wouldve let Luff keep going all the way to the end. But in that moment, Sabo knew that the fruit was no longer in his little brother’s capable hands and had to take matters into his own. Like we see him thinking about this in the episode of Sabo. We see him slowly following luffy around, listening, waiting, understanding the complexities of his situation, and ultimately making the decision to swap places with him.

I could literally talk about this forever i love talking about this forever and ever theres so much to discuss.

I’ve heard criticisms that Sabo’s amnesia story feels like fanfiction, but like,,, I just cant stop thinking about the hilarity of it all. Like why do you care that all this is all convenient, when it’s kinda funny. Like image you’re explaining your tragic backstory to someone and like you have to be like “now i know this sounds really. Really. Convenient. And ironic. But it’s My Life and I’ve had to Live Through It so please dont laugh.” Like idk!! ITS KINDA FUNNY!!!!!!!!!

I dont think i would be able to change anything about Sabo’s presence in the story without someone being out of character if im being honest. Like Luffy doesnt bring up his past, Ace doesnt like bringing up things that cause him pain, and we dont meet anyone else who knew he even existed until we see Luff’s backstory.

There’s a panel in the logue town arc though, that kinda looks like Sabo standing in the crowd. I think that maybe in the reanimated show or even the life action, if we could get a closer visual on him, just to see that he exists there, i think that would be neat.

Thanks for the question and kind words! Hope you enjoyed the long rant, i could rant for 2000000 more paragraphs but I’ll cut it there for now.

[trashscrounger]

I can't wait for art about the new episode so I went through and wrote down all the physical descriptors/backgrounds for our new murder mystery castle guys for references 😘🏰

Barnabus:

• wearing comfortable leather clothing, boots

• Lotta wine, lotta rizz

• 'scraggly beard, unkempt and animalistic'

• sharp eyes that are wild and fiery, 'wicked gaze', perched eyebrows give almost angered expression even when he smiles

• 'twice Arthur's size'

• "astronomer and alchemist, one of the most important people of this day and age, witnessed visions 'the crags'"

Friar Horbrooke (Dr Horribilis):

• loose fitting brown robes meld together as if one piece

• calloused hands

• "polymath, philosopher, scientist, theologian, genius, wizard"

• younger, sheepish man

• thin lips, warm inviting face

• eyes 'docile like a lambs'

• walks with his hands held together at waist as if praying

• shoes are elaborately tied 'quite the knots keeping them on'

Gerard:

• red tunic

• "designs, architecture and art are amongst the most progressive this land has seen" architect of devotee cities

• claims to be part of The Order of the Fallen Star

Langward:

• stern cold expression, stoic

• "physician, accomplished surgeon, ability to distinguish diseases and plagues and their contagious power... esoteric visions of worlds beyond ours"

• part of The Order of the Fallen Star

Lord Evrard:

• well manicured jet black beard that ends in a point at his chin

• mustache large and pointed

• dark hair is 'short, almost modern'

• eyes are light blue/grey, dark circles make them look sunken and tired

[aces-and-angels]

URGENT PSA: DELETED GFMS UPDATE- PLEASE READ

the detective hat is screwed on tight gang- i just remembered that the wayback machine exists and have been able to gather some additional information regarding the deleted gfm campaigns for omar, raina, and iman:

all the info is under the cut

---

see the info on the site yourselves by using the following links:

iman: https://www.gofundme.com/f/jhcjrv-help-imans-family-find-safety omar: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-me-to-evacuate-from-the-genocide ran/raina: https://www.gofundme.com/f/displaced-gaza-family-seeks-help-after-war-destroys-lives

my hunch was correct: these campaigns were not formatted in the way gfm requires in order to stay operational. i detailed the common reasons why gfm's may be terminated in a response post to @rubashabansblog but i will include it again here:

ruba- i have figured out the following info from my own research. there are several issues that can result in a gfm being suspended. the biggest issue comes from how the actual campaign is written. the key is being transparent. that means everyone that is benefiting from the campaign must be listed out by name (there may be a rule about specifying any minors/kids' ages as well) + locations. the issue also may be linked to whoever is organizing these campaigns on behalf of these families. another part that needs to be addressed fully is who will be handling the money. essentially if at any point in the transfer of funds someone is responsible for holding the money raised, they need to be listed on the account plainly and on the actual donation page as well. example: person a is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of person b. the last issue i can think of from everything i've read involves keeping an accurate account of the family's expenses. meaning that you need to write down everything that you are spending the money on. since there's no way to print actual receipts- gfm is asking people to write everything down on their notes app with their phones. these notes count as "receipts" and the total amount must always equal the amount the person/people are trying to raise. example: say i am raising $10K to evacuate, but am planning on putting aside $3K for other future living expenses like rent -> all of that needs to be documented fully. basically- as long as goal amounts match up to your expense report- the campaign should be fine. i understand that some families may need to keep raising their goals in order to cover the cost of living before they are able to evacuate. if that is the case- each time they raise/decrease the goal- i believe they need to update their gfm page to address the new total costs for their fundraiser. please forward this information to the affected families when you get the chance 🖤 perhaps this new info can help them solve the problem on their end *edit: another problem i forgot to mention- the currencies must match between the fundraiser and the bank account it is linked to. this means that if the fundraiser is in euros-- the bank tied to the account must also be in a country that uses euros as their primary currency. a US-based bank account would not work if the fundraiser is in euros.

all three campaigns have the same characteristics: not enough info is being disclosed in the fundraisers. another common theme: they are all recently made (may 2024). the decision to evacuate is a painful choice for families to make as none of want to be displaced yet again- but the situation in gaza has prompted many families to make this decision in an attempt to save themselves + their loved ones. the issue is that many of those who are now choosing to make campaigns are not aware of the ins and outs of how to properly start a gfm (+ i'm most certain there are other factors at play as to why this keeps happening to families in desperate need of aid).

this is bound to happen again and again unless this information is being spread widely. which is why i am also asking for this:

please share this w/ anyone who is fluent in arabic that can translate this in its entirety (DO NOT TRY TO USE GOOGLE TRANSLATE). i have a lot of new followers from 🇵🇸, some of them with newly made gfm pages that may be at risk of being frozen if they do not correct the issues i've addressed above. this information is vital to ensuring they are able to continue fundraising.

i have seen campaigns launched in june formatted similarly to the three that have been abruptly terminated. obtaining a stable internet connection in gaza requires people to put themselves at greater risk as they travel to locations with a working signal. people have been brutally murdered by just trying to activate the e-sims being sent over. so it makes sense that these newer campaigns made by these families would not have all the necessary info required- as these guidelines may be difficult to obtain on their end/may be worded in a way they cannot understand (you try reading the terms and policies of gfm yourself and tell me how fast your brain shuts off- and you're doing so in the comfort of your own homes. imagine what it's like to do so while facing constant bombardment).

a mutual of mine has already tried to contact gfm on behalf of omar- and they have informed me of gfm's response to their question:

Omar has already contacted them and is apparently in contact with the team according to the person i chatted with. they cannot disclose to me *why* the fundraiser was terminated they said they are working with Omar to solve the issue. if the issue cannot be solved, the money will be refunded to everyone... ^ this "contact" is likely using the same chatbox the rest of us need to use in order to even speak to a representative at gfm one-on-one. a very annoying system, but unless someone has a direct line to gfm- it is our only option.

we need to mobilize right now and put pressure on gfm to give these families the time they need to rework their campaign pages.

through the wayback machine i was able to figure out the organizers for each campaign.

omar is the organizer for his own -> says he is located in vienna but that is in direct conflict w/ the location he says he is in under the fundraiser info (displaced in rafah). i'm unsure if he has a contact in vienna that is actually the one responsible for holding/transferring the money, but this information needs to get to them so they can try to fix the issue ASAP

the other two have beneficiaries listed, but there could be additional problems with how that whole thing is currently set up.

i still do not know the emails for raina/iman's gfm's (and the wayback machine doesn't let you see the contact info on the archived pages 😓) but- we can try to mobilize right now for omar. he is absolutely devastated and has lost hope that he will be able to recuperate the money he has already raised. this is not the time for the rest of us to lose faith in his cause.

for anyone interested in helping out- i have laid out all this information so you can question gfm directly. if you come in knowing your stuff, they may be more receptive in their responses than the first initial attempts. please contact me directly if you wish to email on omar's behalf so i can forward you his email linked to the gfm account.

tagging for more reach: @appsa @palms-upturned @malcriada

[sexilene]

husband!john b little thoughtsss.....

you loved soft moments like these, your husband holding onto your sweet baby girl. her eyes slowly drooping closed, all safe and sleepy in her dad’s arms, her chubby little cheek pressed against his shoulder. he does this while also multitasking and making some “breakfast-dinner” for the both of you, flipping pancakes with one hand, and my goodness, you could not be more in love with him right now.

you sit there on the table, in nothing but panties and john b’s old t-shirt, taking mental polaroids wanting nothing more than to give that boy a bunch of love, kisses, and kids. you don’t even have to talk or make conversation, both of you are completely comfortable in silence, besides the little noises the baby makes every so often.

and as soon as he helps put the baby down and you both are finished eating the sweet n sticky meal, he’s throwing you over his shoulder and carrying his wife to bed. if you think that man would be too tired coming back from a hard-working job to treat you nice n good then you are soooo wrong. he's opened the window to let the night breeze in and you tangle yourselves in eachothers arms in fresh bedsheets you washed earlier. your husband pulls you under him to kiss you slowly and sweetly in the dim light of your room trying your hardest not to giggle or make too much noise that would wake the baby up. usually, you two would engage in…marital activities but on days like these just being close, being in each other's arms is the perfect amount of intimacy.

“missed you so much,” you whisper between kisses, and john b hums, half-asleep and lovesick.

“I missed you more sweetheart, trust me, but i’m all yours this weekend,” he whispers, you can’t exactly see him due to how low the lighting is but you can feel he’s smiling against your lips.

"no work?"

"nmm mm, get to stay home and take care of my girls,"

ᡣ𐭩₊˚.⋆⁺₊

[mr-butter-face]

I've already expressed my adoration of both designs of Telltale's Joker. But I just want to break down why they're so appealing to me.

In the game, John Doe goes through huge changes in his life that are expressed in his wardrobe. But the most dramatic change is at the last episode of the series. When he fully transforms into Joker.

Brian Matyas is a concept designer who had worked on both Batman Telltale games. He had posted some of his works on Artstation and Instagram.

[Brain Matyas Instagram Post]

https://www.instagram.com/p/BhucYx5lGCb/?img_index=1

(I suggest you read the entire post till the end.)

[John Doe]

As the game progresses in the story, players will probably take note of how John's wardrobe goes through the most changes compared to everyone else. But the key thing to note that stayed consistent in each episode was his half-fast way of buttoning/tucking-in his shirt and how progressively colorful his outfit was getting.

[Villain Joker]

There's a lot of things to break down about this outfit. First, Brian Matyas stated that Villain Joker was molded primarily by Bruce Wayne. Not Batman. Joker's business tie and fancy suit's purpose was to emulate Bruce's public persona of being a CEO (or, more simply, a person with power). Interestingly enough, Joker's gloves are basically the same kinds that Harley wears in game, as if it were to say now they're equals in their relationship (but obviously they're not). I've heard from others that gloves are symbolic of secrets, which describes how Joker has kept some information hidden from Harley.

The Villain Joker design is probably the most colorful one. His bright green hair, the 80 carpet patterns in his navy suit, the pop of hot pink, and the most disgusting looking dress-shirt I've ever seen. Jack Nicholas' influence isn't lost on me. This outfit screams bold and confident, and most importantly, free.

There are still elements of John Doe. The poorly done tucking and buttoning of Joker's shirt are there. But strangely enough, the strain of hair in front of his head is flipped. John’s was located on the right side while Joker purposely flipped it to the left. And that's not the only thing that's flipped. John's outfit consisted of a purple vest inside and a green/teal shirt outside. Now the pattern is switched with Joker, green shirt inside and dark navy suit outside. Subtle differences like this are led to believe that Joker wants Bruce Wayne to know that he's completely different from John Doe.

The last thing to talk about is his shaved eyebrow. I have no idea why he would do that. People have said it's because he wanted to express how much damage Bruce did to him. Personally, I thought it was like ‘girls making bad hair decisions after a breakup’ thing.

Although his design encompasses both Bruce Wayne and Harley Quinn's impact on his life. It's more leaning into Bruce.

[Vigilante Joker]

There's something about this design that always makes me feel so heartbroken. Not because it's a bad design but because of how much it reminds me how John had faith that if he lived up to Batman's standards that he would be able to maintain their friendship.

Brian Matyas said that he wanted the Vigilante Joker's silhouette to emulate Batman's. It's shown by how his hair and shoulders are curved to a point. Joker's makeup is a lot more gothic and is a lot more menacing than Villain's makeup. It also almost resembles the mask that typically Robin would wear.

Again, there are still elements of John Doe present here. But they are less noticeable than Villain's. Joker's left arm has stitches, (John has been seen wearing a vest that has a different color button then the rest) his shirt's collar isn't properly folded correctly, (John is practically never seen to maintain his dress-shirt collar properly) and he still keeps his vest unlike Villain route. (Although like Villain, there is a color swap with the green shirt and purple vest)

But one thing that jumps out to me is how dull in vibrate color he is compared to Villain Joker's or even John Doe's fourth episode outfit. I had to brighten up my screen in order to identify the smile patterns in his suit. Vigilante design is flashy, but it feels like he's being held back from fully expressing himself.

Joker never really understood Batman's moral code. For players to unlock the Vigilante route, they had to enable John's more violent tendencies. So his outfit only reflects the darker side of Bruce Wayne because that's what Joker believes to be what Batman wants from him.

Huge thanks to hemfbg. They were able to locate both Joker's concept art from Brian Matyas' Instagram.

[Hemfbg Telltale Community Post]

https://community.telltalegames.com/discussion/121009/concept-art-by-brian-matyas

[ecstarry]

Congrats on your milestone!! That is so exciting and well deserved!! ♥️

I’d love to see a Jegulus love 💌 but it accidentally ends up getting spicy 🫣

To: “Regulus Black” <regulusab@gmail.com>

From: “James Potter”

Subject: FWD: Weekend Plans

—————

Hi my love,

I’ve missed you terribly all week. I hate we’ve barely even had time to call. I don’t think I tell you often enough how much I love your voice and how incredibly needy it makes me to go this long without hearing it.

The only thing getting me through the rest of the day is knowing I’ll see you tomorrow.

I don’t think I understood how much the world changes when you love someone, not a day goes by I don’t think about you. My love, my life, my sky.

The thought of having you in my arms won’t leave my mind. I miss kissing you, and the noises you make when I pull you closer.

I keep replaying our last night. I loved everything about it, especially how needy you get at times. Your pretty pictures have been incredible help when I miss you more.

You should know I have plans for tomorrow. I’ve been having some fun by myself and I have new ideas of ways to get some more pretty noises out of you.

I can’t wait baby.

Forever yours,

James

[iztea]

helloo!! i was wondering how you go about rendering hair because i’ve been staring at your drawings for HOURS and i’m in love. like literally entranced with your art style.

sorry if you’ve already answered this question!!

hii! sorry for the late reply, i wanted to use this ask as a opportunity to drop the little hair "tutorial" that i promised a while back so here it is; this is how I personally draw hair ** side note: i didn't use any references for this one so it's strictly painted off the top of my head

[leahrintarou]

☠︎︎ DAY ONE: TOYS FT. TSUKKISHIMA ☠︎︎

☠︎︎ WARNINGS: soft!dom tsukki, usage of a vibrator, female anatomy, orgasm denial, edging, drabble.

☠︎︎ WORD COUNT: 780+

"y/n, something came in the mail for you"

y/n looked up from the the device that rested on her lap before seeing tsukishima holding a small package in his left hand, his phone in his other, eyes focused on the screen. y/n reached an arm out while tsukishima handed her the boxed item.

"thanks, tsukki" she mumbled before placing it onto the nightstand beside her, almost avoiding her gaze from the box. "you're not going to open it?" tsukishima was able to pick up on her sudden odd behavior before a smirk made it's way to his lips.

"um, i'm doing an assignment that's due in a couple hours, it can wait. I'll open it later."

"hm, okay. i'll be back" y/n's eye's immediately darted up to be met with tsukishima's back, watching as he took lazily steps towards the rooms exit. "where are you going?"

"i have to pick up some volleyball equipment from the gym" he said before finally exiting the room.

y/n let out a sigh when she finally heard the front door close. she turned her attention to the package that was resting on her nightstand and carefully closed her laptop before setting it aside on the space beside her.

taking the box into her hold, y/n saw that the seal was already severed on the opening. she re-read the name on the front of the box before silently cursing herself. she'd accidently ordered the package under tsukishima's name since they shared the same account.

he'd mistaken the package for his own.

y/n felt an uneasy feeling in her gut after remembering tsukishima's smirking expression. she hesitantly opened the box, the purple colored item being the first thing that she saw.

being in a small daze, she didn't pick up on the sound of the front door opening once again, but she was finally snapped out of that daze when she heard tsukishima's voice. "you wanna test it out?".

y/n's heart basically pounded out of her chest when she heard his tone. "i thought you were leaving?" she questioned. "and i thought you had an assignment due in a couple hours?"

but, you seem like you have different priorities," he eyed the item that was being displayed in y/n's hold, an anticipating smirk growing onto his lips. "shut up" y/n mumbled, making quick movements to put away the device.

tsukishima took a couple steps up to y/n's seated figure before stopping her movements by placing a light grip onto her wrist. "you sure you dont wanna try it? you looked pretty curious just now, y/n." she looked up at the blondes figure and a groan erupted through her voice.

"what if it doesn't feel good?"

"you're the one who decide to buy it, but either way; if this toy ends up being shitty, i'll show you why you can alway rely on me if you wanna feel good."

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

that's how the two ended up in their current situation, with tsukishima repeatedly adjusting the frequencies of the toy just to hear y/n whine due to her pleasure being taken away so suddenly.

"you can handle it a little longer, can't you?" tsukishima admired y/n's unsteady breathing and her pleasured/annoyed expression. he continued to alternate frequencies by controlling the device through a small remote, ignoring y/n's small pleas.

relaxing himself, back against the headboard while y/n laid back, against his chest, tsukishima had a cocky smirk on his lips. he was able to get y/n worked up so easily and with a click of a button; he was able to take it all away just as fast.

he'd noticed how y/n's moans were slightly different than usual, more impatient, more needy, and less quiet. to be frankly honest he'd never expected it to have such an effect on y/n, but due to the fact that the vibrations were traveling directly to her bud, he couldn't help but let out an amused hum.

"you wanna cum, y/n?" tsukishima turned down the frequency since he actually did want to hear a coherent answer from her. "please" she answered through pants, gripping the fabric of tsukishima's sweatpants.

he placed a small peck to y/n's bare shoulder, turing the frequency of the toy on it's highest setting almost immediately sending y/n over the edge. her legs waverd, feeling every inch of her satisfied pleasure course through her body, erupting paired sounds past her lips.

"I guess this thing wasn't so shitty after all. round two?"

"can you give me a minute?" she rolled her eyes, still trying to steady her breathing after tsukishima finally turned off the toy.

"nope"

and with singular response, the toy was imeedietly turned back on, letting an uncontrollable yelp leave the lips of y/n.

[bxriles]

nesta stans are so annoying. you all complain that she was “abused” by going to the HoW but she would be dead in a ditch somewhere without feyre intervening. get over it feyre was right you just won’t admit it

I am about to be the biggest dick right now because BRUH. I need you to be so for fucking real.

“ShE wOuLd Be DeAd In A dItcH”

My brother in Christ, with all disrespect intended, please shut the fuck up. My GOD. Nesta, a character who has been HORRIFICALLY traumatized, decides to cope by drinking, gambling, and having one night stands, and that means she was going to end up dead in a ditch?? You would be SHOCKED to hear how most people deal with their trauma. You would be SHOCKED to know how uncommon it is to lock a person up because someone else doesn’t like the way that person is coping.

(Disclaimer since you people have the reading comprehension of a fucking goldfish: I know some people do get locked up when they’ve been coping poorly for too long. That is not the majority of people though and you fucking know it. If you got locked up against your will for drinking a bit too much and were happy about it, GREAT. But I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that is the minority of people. And yeah, I am downplaying Nesta’s drinking because it’s not like she was guzzling liquor every second of every day and passing out on streets out in Velaris for everyone to think she’s a homeless drug addict and it’s not like she was having physical withdrawal from lack of alcohol. It’s also not like she was drunk every single time she saw one of her sisters or at family events like Winter Solstice. She was just partying hard. Not saying it’s great behavior. It’s not, but I also don’t care because I AM NOT THE PURITY POLICE.)

Why is it so hard for you people to admit that if you hate Tamlin for locking Feyre up then that means you need to AT LEAST be critical of Feyre for locking Nesta up? And before you say Feyre had her reasons, SO DID TAMLIN. I’m not saying Tamlin was right to lock Feyre up, but he had his reasons just like Feyre did. They both fucked up. I don’t know why that is so fucking hard for you people to grasp.

ALSO. CASSIAN LITERALLY SLAUGHTERED AN ENTIRE VILLAGE AFTER HIS MOTHER DIED. BE SO FOR FUCKING REAL WITH ME WHEN YOU BITCH ABOUT NESTA’S COPING MECHANISMS WHEN CASSIAN DID THAT.

[epithermalwhale]

One detail i love about rises character design is how the turtles masks visualy reprecent their responsability.

Like, Raph has a mask covering half of his head and has long mask tails. His is the biggest because he has the most pressure and responsibility. He looks like the responsible one and he is, even if it goes against his more silly nature.

Mikey is the opposite, a domino-style mask with short tails, he isn't responsible for anyone but himself. He appears carefree and he mostly is.

Donnies mask covers his (massive) head but has short mask tails. He does a lot of very obvious work and is responsible for the maintenence and security of the lair. Don seams like he's should be a voice of reason but he isn't. In their team dynamic he is far more chaotic and impulsive.

Leo has a domino mask with tails as long as Raphs. He's the face man. He acts reckless and overconfidant and unreliable because he's scared of being responsible for the people he cares about. He predends to be carefree but he has the braincell very often, telling his bros to not do dumb stuff and strategizing.

In short: the masks on their faces is how others view them/how they want to appear In terms of responsibility. The mask tails is the truth.

[kiyokostan]

INTRODUCTIONS!

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE

⋆｡°✩⋆｡°✩⋆｡°✩⋆｡°✩⋆｡°✩⋆｡°✩⋆｡°✩⋆｡°✩⋆｡°✩

- the name for this group chat originates from mattsun and oikawa joining together to beg iwaizumi to live with them when they all got accepted into the same college

- mattsun's major: biology w/ a minor in anthropology

- oikawa's major: nutrition

- iwaizumi's major: sports science

- bokuto and akaashi's involvement in the living situation happened when bokuto was hanging out at their place after practice and they talked about how they had a spare room and could use another roommate

- akaashi moved in after bokuto was already established because he already spent most of his free time there and would sleep over all the time, so now he and bokuto share a room "platonically"

- you know that scene in challengers where the guys have separate beds in the hotel room and still pushed them together and made one big bed? yeah

- akaashi is majoring in literature and bokuto is still undecided on what he wants to do, just knows he wants to pursue volleyball after college like oikawa

- whenever oikawa dates around and gets dumped (which is fairly often to his surprise and to the other's amusement) he gets in a matchmaker moods w/ his friends that end up in disaster, but sometimes he does it when he's bored and feels like he knows better than everyone else

- iwaizumi has been the one to fight these lapses the most because 1) doesn't trust oikawa's process and 2) wants to focus on finishing his degree with no interruptions. so he plans on dating seriously after graduation, which oikawa thinks is total bull

- mattsun is the one that's in their house the least because he always has something going on, but somehow always knows when there's drama brewing

- they're all familiar in a way with the tanaka's and yn because of high school and some classes in common during uni, but they don't know they're their annoying neighbours even though they've lived in the same building for a while

taglist!

@juie13 @froyaoya @nnnyxie

[nom-the-noodle]

Curiousity Contains

To kick off the new year with something good, I finally finished a little vore story I've been working on for a couple of months! Featuring Casey and @madmythologist's Kage inspired directly by our collective scheming and RPing with these two. I love them so much and so I wrote a little thing about what happens when the nervous little borrower gets a little too curious about just how it feels to be eaten. Story below! Contains: Soft Vore, Non-fatal Vore, Hesitant Prey, Mouthplay, internals.

There was something on the back of Casey's mind. Granted there was always something behind those big eyes, but this time it wasn't her usual plights. It was something a bit larger, or more someone she was currently lounging on the chest of on this still evening together. 

Kage wasn't doing much, just calmly leaning back in his seat to enjoy the peace and quiet. His chest lifted Casey up and down like smooth clockwork, the borrower herself almost half curled up on her side against the half-elf. It was a rare opportunity of relaxation with nothing better to do for the little that remained of the day—a very nice moment to just exist. 

Still, something didn’t sit right here.

The quiet was the last thing on the little one’s mind, her ears more trained on a muffled rhythm just underneath her. It was a hidden comfort, nestled between just as steady breaths. A beat so slow compared to her own constantly ticking muscle. That’s what made it all so fascinating. Kage was just so… so massive. 

Granted, that was just a simple matter of perspective with Casey herself being the odd one in terms of scale. But from that same perspective, the humanoid seemed as vast as a field. And just as teeming with activity below the surface. It made the little one think; reminisce even of times when she had gotten even more enveloped in the man before. She wondered if-

“Wonder about what?“‌

  Kage felt the borrower flinch the smallest bit against him, her head jerking up like a rabbit to meet his curious gaze. In what he could confidently guess was her internal whirlwind of thoughts, loose lips spilled out a simple question to finally kill the silence. As much as the chance to breathe was appreciated, he was never one to turn down a chance for something interesting to occur. She was fast to figure out her slip up as seen by the hinted hue of crimson on her face. Kage was already preparing to guide her back from any backtracking she was able to do, but to his surprise that wasn’t the case after a signature pause to collect those racing thoughts.

”Just, how does it exactly feel when you swallow someone whole?''‌ Surprise caught both of them at the string of words that escaped Casey’s mouth. The man was silent for a brief moment, simply watching Casey’s body language. It made for a good indicator of if he actually heard that right as this was a subject the borrower rarely wanted to discuss and even rarer brought up on her own accord. It was most unusual, but not unwelcome.

”That is quite the odd question,“‌ Kage voiced with a quirked brow. ”One that doesn’t have that easy of an answer to explain, simply put.“ 

Of course this wasn’t going to be that simple, given both what exactly she was asking and who she was asking. She could already taste the embarrassment in the back of her throat rising like bile, but there was no shying away now from the topic. The canary had caught his curiosity. 

The plains shifted as Kage adjusted his position, straightening up just a hair more in his seat to speak more comfortably. Casey instinctively tightened her hold on his clothing with the movement, huddling back closer against his chest.

”I‌ do have to ask though, why would you be asking about such a thing?‌”

Why was she asking such a thing? Frankly put, Casey didn't have that clear of an answer for him at that moment. The question had just seemed to pop out after being most likely sealed by brambles of her own design. Her eyes shifted away from Kage's gaze for just a second to think up something rather than silence. 

"I, well," she stumbled on her words right into old habits. "I don't really know. It's just been on my mind for a bit. Sorry for bringing it up." 

He watched and more importantly felt her fold against him, a little bundle of worry clinging to his shirt. She wouldn't be allowed to hide from this discussion as a blackened hand came up from below her. Casey felt her grip loosen on the fabric and Kage felt small knees press against his palm. 

"Now now, none of that. If this has been something on your mind, then surely you have more to say than that." The words purred ever so slightly off the lips as he pulled her away from his shirt and more to his level. He was confident that he knew his little friend quite well, from how her eyes were constantly darting to and fro, to the unending hum in her chest that matched all those thoughts she kept to herself. Thoughts Kage was hungry to hear, fitting the subject being discussed that more often than not made the little one squirm at the mere acknowledgment. 

Casey knew that tone. She'd grown very familiar with the charmingly curious dialect of this man. It made the hair on her neck stand on end along with every single nerve in her skin. For better or for worse, she couldn't give a clear answer. She looked up at him and her mind just.... it went blank. Everything just went quiet, all her attention on him as she could just stare for a few seconds. Was there more to say? What answer was the right one, if any? She snapped out of her trance with a small breath, letting herself slide a hair more onto the platform Kage provided in his hand as he took her up. A few more moments of silence...

"Would- would you ever do it again?"

Now that, that was curious indeed. Kage hummed a note in seeming thought, a single raise of the brow showing any change in his expression. Tiny eyes could be felt trying to read his next move, listening for whatever he was going to say next. "Would I ever do it again," He took care in repeating it, now studying how Casey straightened up the smallest amount in his hold. "Do what exactly, hm?" 

He didn't need an answer. Casey knew that and now felt that Kage knew just as well as a chuckle rose up his throat. Not one of malice or mischief, but of knowing. "Well, even if I were to entertain this ah, hypothetical question, that doesn't answer why the sudden curiosity about it." A fair observation. The borrower wasn't being as informative as she could be. As much as she desperately wanted to be, but there just wasn't that simple an answer.

Or... was there?

She had tried to pick her words so carefully, dancing around a subject she brought up. It wasn't supposed to be this hard to just talk! She did with Maddie all the time, hell Maddie would have just blurted out the first thing in her head. That's what worked for her, well most of the time. The borrower shook her head. Stay on track. Just say it!

"I..." she paused one more time, the longest she had made up to this point. "I wanted- Well mostly thinking about- I was wondering what it was like inside-"

"Casey-" That soft call brought her attention back towards Kage's face, his smile softened. His hand gracefully pulled her away from his chest, bringing her now fully to eye level. Closer to that very mouth she had been dodging this entire time, still smiling.  The pause felt infinite, falsely judgmental within her panicking brain. Warm breath drowned all thoughts with his next words.

"Why don't we settle both our curiosities with a refresher?"

Kage could have sworn in that moment he heard something crackle in Casey's head at the suggestion. The suggestion made her entire body stiffen like a statue for just a moment in his palm. It was an honest inquiry, just as everything else he had been saying up to this point. Regardless Casey was a creature of nervous habits, hence her growing tense and stiff.Though it was slightly amusing to see it so closely instead of behind shaded stones and leaves. 

"You're not as good at hiding that curiosity as you think." He wasn't a fool. He'd noticed how she had been keeping a keen ear to his chest as they relaxed, how even now she was avoiding his gaze by watching his mouth. It was exciting, adorable even. "I wouldn't do anything rash, even though this is all rather tantalizing." Some of these words were a bit more punctuated than others, keeping the borrower's attention rather than scaring her off. Now it was just a matter to see if she'd take that invitation.

Tiny fingers curled in hesitation. Her heart jumped several times trying to climb out of her throat. She shouldn't have wanted this. Was she really going to go through with this stupid request? But as she looked past those perfectly white teeth and saw the shadowed purples and blues, there was no going back. Her head lowered for but a tick, slowly becoming a nod before looking back up at the ever looming man. "Please?... Just promise you'll keep it simple?" 

"Naturally." Kage couldn't keep that smile from growing twice as large at that approval. This wasn't something he was going to play with or take even the slightest bit for granted.

With his new permission, the half-elf took some lead as his hand tilted upwards with precise movements. Casey could tell he was slowing them intentionally, an effort that was helping the herculean task of easing her nerves. These hands were in safe hands. Hands she had been starting to learn how to navigate like any branch or platform. But whether it was mishap or intentional, the borrower allowed herself to fall forward towards his face. She caught herself on his upper lip, Kage feeling the slightest tickle at a fumble right under his nose. 

"What was that about keepings things simple?" The little one's breath hitched with the words that barely stretched the skin under her hands. She was close enough to feel the vibrations travel up her arms and down her arching spine. But she didn't back out of this precarious spot, but embraced it. Rather than push back, one of those hands transferred to the bottom jaw with a featherlight brace. All she had to do now was...

Kage waited. Waited for that next move out of Casey's curiosity. He could catch the smallest trance of a scent of her being this close. Earthen, but with a pleasantly light sweetness to it. It only made her all the more enticing to indulge. So when one of those miniscule hands added the faintest pressure, the giant let his lower jaw collapse as she pried the gates open.

Warmth was the first thing to tingle at the senses. It radiated along her exposed arms, swirled around her neck and practically kissed her cheek. Unlike the man's gray complexion covered in black lines, a blue tongue surrounded by purple walls greeted her inside. She'd seen glimpses of the unusual hues whenever he spoke of teases and the occasional taste, but never this intentionally. Never this closely. 

Was it this colorful all the way down?

Casey sucked in a breath, fighting the urge to shiver at the sight before her. Was it too late to turn back? No, she had to commit. Needed to so the thoughts weren't eating at her. Ironic. Carefully the little one shifted and allowed herself to begin leaning past silver lips. Over incisors that nearly glistened along with canines to match. Thin trails of saliva traveled from these pillars and connected to the bottom matching set. Together they could combine to make a devilish smile, but also would have no problem leaving their mark on her fragile body if he ever chose. 

The more she leaned in, the more those teeth drifted apart as Kage's mouth only opened wider. The man remained very still, breathing through his nose as his mouth was occupied with a guest. There was a part of his mind that clicked on, something that was making his mouth water a hair more and his own heart pulse a bit faster. Hunger perhaps. Something primal about having something so small soon pressing a warm albeit shaking hand onto the flat of his tongue making him only want Casey more. And once that contact was made, it was oh so sweet as honey.

He could feel the back of his mouth watering all the bit more, leaving her with a very slick surface to explore. She was hesitating, rocking slightly along his bottom teeth. That hand pulled back slowly away from him, but there was no getting out of this. That tongue followed her out in its own curiosity, lightly pressing into her front. The little squeak she made as she caught herself along it was adorable Kage would have loved to admit.

The feeling still lingered on her palm as she pulled away from that muscle for a moment. Slick, warm, alive. She could only put a few words to it before she got familiar with the feeling again as Kage stuck his tongue out for a proper taste. Now it was all that flashed into her brain as her upper half held onto it. The flesh was warm to the skin with a radiating heat, settling the shivering of her arms and nerves. She didn't fight or push it off in a fit of panic, instead letting herself be taken and tasted with a press. The spit seeped into her sleeves and shirt, no doubt bringing more of her flavor out. Casey ponder for a bit what he could possibly be-

A hum broke the silence as Kage purred, the sound coursing up Casey through him. He slowly pulled back and flicked his tongue back inside, but not before catching a final peck of Casey's red scarlet dusted cheek before it disappeared. 

"Hmmmm, honey." The words flowed off like the food itself, sounding far from displeased with his findings. Casey watched that smile from right in front of her, demanding her full attention in its proximity. She held her breath, waited in both fear and unexpected anticipation. Waited for those jaws to lunge forward and claim her. 

Luckily while that wasn't the predator's style, he wasn't going to delay for much longer. His hands cupped her against those lips again, parting again without her 'assistance.' She nearly fell over, catching herself in her arms and holding onto the bottom row of teeth. Again she was met with that overpowering warmth at her touch, calling to something deep within. A calling to the dark and the shelter it could provide once she crawled inside. 

With a final gathering of  what little courage she had, Casey pushed herself up and pulled herself forward into that lavender den. Not a moment after did Kage finally pull his hand away from his face, leaving her legs to dangle out of his mouth. The urge to regain her center of balance was aided by the impulse to tilt his head back to bring Casey those last centimeters over, sliding past the gums and into his jaws. 

Now, Casey wasn't completely a stranger to this man's maw. She had watched it as he sang and purred out his words, teeth flashed in a knowing smirk. Her sister had gone into detail countless times about this very place when she tested her luck against the giant. Now the difference between story and reality was staring her right in the face to marvel at. 

The space was incredibly dim, only speckles of light caught in the spit-shined interior.  Cool colored flesh was glazed on every surface, making everything slick and slippery to the touch. The air was much warmer, smothering those cold chills with its heat and clinging to her tiny tiny frame. Half of her was already soaked with spit, knees and arms sinking into his tongue. It was so much to take in for one small borrower, too much.

Wide eyes went wild and her heart banged against her ribs begging to get out. 

This was wrong. 

This was so, so wrong.

Casey knew better than to do something this dangerous. It was one thing to think and ponder about what it was like inside, but this?! This was crazy! She had let herself get talked into stepping right into a mouth! A mouth that belonged to a person she had seen eat people like her with expertise! If he wanted he could just bite down and swallow whatever was left of her down into that chasm at the very back of the throat. She could see it, expanding and contracting just waiting to close in on her like a cornered animal.

She needed to leave. She needed to spin around and get out before it was too late. But everything was frozen. Something kept her here at the mercy of Kage's maw. What was going on? How did she let herself get this far? All these questions were buzzing like angry hornets in her head, burning her ears with stinging static.

On the outside, Kage paid very close attention to the mass inside his mouth. He didn't move nor breathe too loudly lest he make the terrified tiny in his mouth jolt. He knew Casey, her tendencies. How easily she was to scare and expected the worst possible outcome. Normally this was just another thing he could use to get under her skin and make her tick, but now it was a reason for worry. Worry proved warranted as he caught the smallest sounds of hyperventilating behind his lips, the salty tang of fear on his palette. On his tongue she grew stiff as a board, her breathing quickening with jumbled words he couldn't translate.

Panic. 

Everything stopped for a brief moment for the dark elven man. As undesired a reaction as it was, it sadly wasn't an out of place one. His first thought was to call her name in reassurance, but that was quickly ruled out as speaking was out of the question at the moment. His words were one of his most valuable tools, but thankfully they weren't his only trick. A flick of the fingers and the smallest twitch of his throat, a simple prestidigitation allowed the breath he had been holding onto chill and lightly wash over. 

Wind softly blew onto her pale face and made the damp tips of her hair sway. It was enough to pause her catastrophizing episode, senses coming back down from the spike of terror. Breathe. She needed to breathe. Once her chest was rising and falling at a regular pace, her vision was starting to adjust all the more. The colors were just a bit brighter, shadows less suffocating. Everything had remained still, Kage hadn't done anything when he had the opportunity. Everything was ok.

The relief washed over Casey, tense muscles unlocking and relaxing. To be honest the warmth may have helped with that as it creeped in the longer she crouched here, but she couldn't stay like this forever. The little spelunker inched around, light touches carefully tapping along Kage's tastebuds. She could see the corners of his lips pulling up and shifting the lights ever so much. At least there was no denying he was enjoying this little adventure.

She didn't go too far in, settling at the center at that tongue before twisting back around. One could only look at the back of a throat for so long before it may start calling. Kage's mouth stayed open, providing a toothy frame for her to look back out into the open world. Everything was still, relaxed. Simple. 

"I'm, I'm ok." Casey's tiny voice finally crept out, earning another cool breath of relief from Kage's throat. The man had been fully ready to spit her out if she wasn't ready, but the little one still was full of ways to surprise him. From her position she couldn't see the gleam of excitement in his eye, but could probably feel the saliva pool a bit more at her feet.

He let her settle for a bit longer, enjoying every tiny movement and way she slid around his tongue. Even with the slight itch of cloth and hair, that natural sweetness still dominated his taste buds. Intoxicating honestly and more than worth the stillness. And this was only the beginning of their little experiment. There was still a question to answer. Kage lifted a hand so it could be seen by his passenger, signaling what he wanted to do by an opening and closing motion with his fingers and thumb. If there were any objections, now was the time to say them. Silence, then a slightly firmer pressure in the crook of his tongue. 

"Ready."

The word was a hard one for Casey to say in full confidence. Kage was giving her every chance to walk away, to abandon this expedition if it was too much. Despite everything, Casey still had the final word in this. There was a comfort in that control, but it was still horrifying to wield. She was still letting herself get preyed upon by a silver tongued man. But, it would be ok. It had to be ok if she was careful enough. 

Slowly after the affirmation was said, the lights dimmed steadily as Kage closed his maw. Soon all of her sight was forfeit, hearing the softest click of teeth and leaving her in the damp darkness. Casey remained frozen, taking everything in to fill in the new gaps in the old scenery. Her heart banged against the muscle beneath her, even more so as it came to life and lifted her forward. A yelp sounded from the girl, squeezing that same platform as it adjusted. A soft chuckle echoed around her, feeling the very sound travel up into her body and to her ears.

It couldn't be helped. Everything about this was just so, was precious the right word? Feeling how the borrower had nestled in the center of his mouth? Hearing the little squeaks and whines even through closed lips? All while that natural sweetness translated all along his taste buds? It was all so delectable, delightful. A true treat for them both to indulge in. A playful nature crept more into Kage's movements, a smile creeping along with a hum. Much like how he was with his hands, his tongue played gracefully with his prey. He felt her grip tighten along the ridges, arms squeezing to keep from getting knocked about. Not that there were any complaints to be shared.

Inside his mouth that main muscle swayed and flexed around, cradling Casey about. Within the dark confines she felt every slick movement and curl that effortlessly glided her about. tastebuds pressed against her chin, face scrunching at the moisture left behind in its wake. Her grip didn't release off his tongue, squeezing the firm yet soft muscle in her arms and fingers. It acted as a guide, something to ground and navigate her through this little adventure.

Warmth.

Warmth was the first thing to cross the barrier. A heat radiated every surface that embraced her, cutting through spittle and clothing to her very core and sticking to her skin. It seeped deep within Casey, melting muscles of their tension. Visions of a burrow crossed her mind in comparison, somewhere just as dark and secluded intentionally. It was pleasant, for a moment drifting away from the reality that so startled her.

The floor rose and met with the roof of his mouth, her chest skipping a beat as a new element was introduced just as she almost settled. Any shove or shift to create space was only met with a deep pressure pinning her in place, squeezing a small noise out of her chest. It threatened to squeeze the air out of her as well as that sweet taste Kage seemed so keen on. 

With one action, Kage could feel the shape trapped atop his tongue. The small, alive shape huddled inside his mouth with a heartbeat that hummed at her core. He was half expecting to feel her starting to fight back, not unlike what her sister tended to do when in the same predicament. But to his pleasant surprise, there was no struggle from Casey even when he licked and tossed her about a touch more. As much as he pushed and prodded and explored her presence, she wasn't fighting him. Nothing more than a few wiggles and pushback to seemingly get in a better position, always clinging onto the very muscle assaulting her senses and indulging his.

This little game continued for a few more minutes. The elf's mouth was coated with a sweet flavor and Casey was coated in the saliva that pooled around. She was pressed once more as the giant swallowed down the collection, seeping the last of her resistance with it. As fast as it took her breath away it released it back, leaving the borrower sprawling on the 'floor'. Her heart raced, this time out of exhaustion rather than blind fear. She was hyper aware of so much. From the drool still clinging like thin sap to that warmth that has seeped and nestled deep inside her muscles. 

This had been so wrong before, so why did it now feel so easy? Easy to drift into the heat. Easy to sink into the slick surface. Easy to just... let Kage take her in. 

A sound of content slipped into the damp air as the mouth finally stilled, the worn-out borrower practically flopping along the tongue. Her eyes grew a touch heavier, the environment wanting to ease her to settle alongside it. But they weren't done. The question wasn't what it was like inside his mouth. It was...

"Kage?" 

Her voice was so small, even when it was technically coming from his own mouth. The air had gone calm as he felt Casey's settling, drinking the moment in. Out of all the places she could find herself calm, it was almost laughable. He gave a simple hmm in question, glancing down habitually. In the silence he could imagine her face flushed in red, trying to find the words she wanted to say on the tip of his tongue. 

"I can't do it alone." 

Kage felt Casey dig her face into the crook of his tongue, cheeks hot to the touch as she squeaked the words out. The corners of Kage's lips softened. They both knew what needed to be done. Casey just seemed to know that she needed a little push to continue, something they both knew he was more than trusted enough to encourage. He dared to speak, cooing the words out to glide over his passenger. 

"You're ok, just relax." 

Casey kept her head down as she felt the room vibrate with every letter, the words floating across the way to the cracks of light. She couldn't do it. She couldn't make herself go any deeper, latched onto his tongue like lichen to a log. She couldn't.... not without help. All she had to do was relax and let Kage take the lead once again. 

With the space faded again to black, Casey allowed herself to shudder and settle in for the ride. How was this going to go? What happened once she was taken deeper into his body? What if something went wrong? Paranoid thoughts that all wanted to spiral, only to skip like a record once everything resumed. 

Her heart jumped into her throat as the tongue rose then dropped into her stomach once Kage started to tilt his head back. Even as her arms wanted to grab onto her safety net, it would have proved worthless against the slippery and slick surfaces all around. There was little time to process and even less time to let anything other than flesh grab a hold on her. The pressure threatened to pop her head, but all that was released was a final cry out of Casey's mouth as she disappeared out of Kage's.

Well that was certainly a sensation. After licking his lips of the lingering sweetness Kage focused his attention on the lump in his throat. The borrower went down smooth as well, you know how the saying goes. To say he wasn't enjoying any of this would be just a plain lie. 

"There, simple." He hummed, easing back slowly into his chair. After many a thought of swallowing the little lady down, now it had just become a reality. He already knew she was delicious from previous antics, but it never went this far. A silent agreement between them until today, confirmed as she had slipped past his collarbone. It felt good. He felt good. 

Contently his attention drifted inwardly just as there was a minor disturbance in his abdomen. Again, he wasn't a stranger to the motions of having something alive inside his stomach. It proved to be quite the effective place to keep little things out of sight and out of trouble. Maddie had most certainly given him many a reason to exercise the role of predator. But this instance was quite different. It always was with Casey's involvement thanks to one key detail...

The trip down was as quick as it was overpowering. The walls forced and squeezed unrelentingly all around the swallowed borrower. She couldn't see, couldn't move, could barely breathe in this ravenous chute. Everything overpowered even the pounding of her chest again as it all pushed her one direction and one direction only. Down. 

As sudden as the pressure had a hold of her it released, finally slipping into her final destination. She landed with a squish underneath, this space much more spacious than either of her previous lodgings. 

Even in the dark her eyes stayed closed shut within the bundle of nerves. She could feel it now, folds of flesh even more slimy and slippery smooth. She could hear every groan and squelch of the alien landscape, louder than her dampened breathing as she worked to pull herself together. 

This was it. This was what Casey has been so curious about, she was in a stomach of all things. Every instinct should have been scolding her for getting herself trapped down here, even willingly to boot! She could have just been content with Maddie's regaling, but oh no, she had to see for herself. The hell was she thinking?

"You're ok. Take a look." 

His low voice hummed from somewhere above, presenting a shift with it. A sense of reassurance and calm, a promise to ease her into something new with something familiar. A familiar feeling that kissed her eyelids and wanted her to peek into the darkness.

 To her surprise, a single blue bead of light bled softly. It was no bigger than her own palm as it floated before her very eyes. Casey had seen this very light many times, each with their own story behind them. Of secret serenades and dancing in the moonlight, of warm hands sheltering her from the cold. 

"Did you..?" Casey pondered aloud, hushing as she noted another light coming into reality. And another, followed by two than three twinkling all over. Each one brought a little more vision into the confined space, black giving way to plush blues and purple innards. The damp walls shone among twisting folds and bends, strands of clear fluid stretching between and pooling at the bases. Casey stared and twisted around to take it all it, forgetting that she was supposedly mortified by this place a few seconds ago. 

As Casey undoubtedly was taking in the scenery, her host was paying close attention to every little movement he could feel. Nothing like a little bit of magic to help keep his special guest comfortable. He could feel her start to move a bit more, unfurling from a lump at the bottom of his guts to situate. 

"Glad you seem to be warming up to the scenery." Kage chuckled, taking a hand to his abdomen in response to the sensation of smaller ones gliding all around. One could only imagine the slight surprise when he could have sworn he felt her pressing back into his hand, even through a natural border.

Something pressing back from the other side lulled Casey out of the slight trance the light had her been under. Her hands had wandered to trace along the winding surfaces, fingers pressing into the plush flesh ever so lightly. Thank god he couldn't feel the heat off her face in here.... could he? 

"I- I didn't realize." She admitted, though her hands still stayed along his stomach lining. Just another thing she hadn't realized about Kage to add to her accounts she supposed. "But um- How's it feel? From your side, I mean." As undyingly curious as she was about what was going on under his skin, she was just as concerned about what was going on in that head of his." 

Kage paused, a thumb casually brushing as he considered answering. She couldn't see the stupid smile across his face, absolutely delighted and smitten about this turn of events. Being able to hold Casey this close, allowed to keep her in a way that was originally seen as a nightmare by her kind. Little by little, day by day, years in the making, he had earned it. Willingly she allowed this, and so much more. But, that was a little hard to explain to someone you couldn't technically see at the moment. 

"Comforting I believe is the right word for it. He simply stated. "Tell me though, does this sate that curiosity of yours?"

The borrower grew quiet, looking back and fully taking everything in. It was much warmer here, easing her to lay back against him like she was doing not too long ago. Yes she was still damp to the touch, but that wasn't as noticeable with everything glazed in a thin coat that still shimmer under the now starry display of lights. Those ears trained back on the steady beats that drew her here, now much more clear as it lightly pulsed into the surfaces around. 

It felt... steady, secure. Safe. 

He felt safe.

"It... it does." She finally vocalized, pausing only to let a squeak of a yawn snake out. Fidgeting in an active mouth and fear really does wear a borrower out, combining with the alluring heat and plush dimly lit room. Those eyes felt heavy, fluttering and struggling to stay open now. "Um, Kage.... would it be weird if.."

A chuckle answered her before his words, rocking the room ever so slightly. "I'll let you out of your den after you get some rest, little rabbit. You're alright." 

And with that reassurance, both settled in for a spell, Casey drifting back off against Kage, and Kage more than comfortable in the silence with full feeling within. He could ask about her thoughts on the situation once she was all cleaned up. For now, both were more than content.

[ashighcave]

Meronia headcanons (These were made for tiktok and I preffer to read from images like these)

[rozeliyawashereyall]

The modern bugs watch a random show in the middle of time and space :3

The rest of the bugs in the second drawing are choosing snacks!!

I also wanted to add the writers or at least the boys, but no more space :(

But anyways, we should make it so there's this gap in the middle of the multiverse where the bugs just go to hang out in /hj

@willowve01 @asmrbrainrot @iistxrmyskyii @astralbulldragon13 @kaiamtt @insignificant-anarchy @stxph-artist @aspenm00n @fangsshadow @keyaartz @rustycopper4use @piffany666 @dreamyshape @idontevenknow7878 @lunaritychuwolf @littlesiren79 @castbracelet240 @strayharmony943 @proxdragon @tiefling-chaos @wilderrorcard @threeweekinsomnia @diamondzoey @fennaboysenberry

The names for all the bugs if you can't tell-

Hopefully, I got all of the details right!