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a-little-unsteddie · 1 year

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hello, hello, are you lonely?

WARNING: this is gonna hurt. like, a fuck ton. like i cried a lot while writing it.

loosely based off of the song ‘Mr. Forgettable’ by David Kushner. if you want a hint before reading, listen to that song.

(also tagged: Major Character Death)

—

As all things in old age are, it was slow at first.

Steve would forget where he placed his keys the day before, or he would forget where he put the remote, or something similar. Things that on their own, didn’t really mean anything but a busy, distracted mind. That coupled with forgetting conversations that happened earlier in the day and forgetting important dates that he never would have normally forced the rest of the party to accept that Steve was declining mentally with his age.

At first, it was easy to pretend that nothing was wrong. Steve, outside of those moments of confusion, was still himself. He would play with the grandkids, he would cook, bake, do all of the things he loved doing.

Then, Steve started to forget people. Places. Time.

Eddie and Robin did their best to take care of him, make sure he was comfortable, but it was clear to everyone that Steve was declining. In the end, they had to admit him to the hospital, knowing that neither Eddie nor Robin were getting any younger. The rest of the party had argued, saying that one of them should take care of Steve, but Eddie and Robin knew they had their own lives—and when Steve was lucid, he agreed that he should be in the hospital.

That was three months ago now.

Since then, there had been plenty of rough patches. Days where Eddie and Robin would go in, and Steve would only recognize Robin, or the other way around. Days where Steve would ask for his mother, even though he had been cut off in his early twenties, and had been dead for a decade at least.

They (Eddie, really) had figured out that music helped Steve remember, but there were days where not even Eddie playing guitar would bring any recognition across his face.

It was like any other day, both Robin and Eddie were visiting, the kids—albeit, the kids had their own kids by this point, as mentioned—took turns visiting, and today Dustin was meant to be visiting later. It was an off day, meaning Steve barely recognized Eddie, let alone Robin. Eddie brought his guitar, as he did everyday. He had yet to get it out, testing the waters to see how Steve was doing.

“Hey, Stevie,” Eddie said, sitting next to him. The television in the room was playing softly in the background, some movie Eddie vaguely recognized. Steve’s gaze flickered to him, recognition flashing for a moment before he smiled warmly at Eddie.

“Hey, Ed,” Steve responded, smiling vacantly as he turned his gaze to Robin. “Who ya got with ya?” He asked, which caused the pit in Eddie’s stomach to sink deeper. Robin felt sick to her stomach at the thought of Steve not remembering her, but she knew he had no control over what was forgotten. She knew he was grasping at sand, holding tightly onto what he did have even as more slipped away.

“Hey, dingus,” she whispered, trying not to cry. It never got easier to be around Steve like this, but she would never abandon him to go through this alone. She knew his greatest fear was dying alone, forgotten in a hospital room, left to rot. She would die before she let that fear come true.

“This is Robin, you know her,” Eddie reminded gently, watching Steve’s eyebrows furrow as he tried to place a face to the name, but came up blank.

“I’m sorry,” Steve said to her, feeling it was important to let her know he was. He knew she was important, as he felt happy upon seeing her, but beyond that, there was nothing. He reached out to both of them, wanting to hold their hands. Eddie choked back a cry, putting his hand into Steve’s, who instantly laced their fingers together. Robin gripped Steve’s other hand tightly, smiling even as tears fell down her face. Steve smiled and went back to watching whatever was on the television, rubbing his thumb along their hands.

Robin looked at Eddie, “Where’s Dustin?” She asked softly, not to disturb Steve. The others had managed to visit in the last week or so, but Dustin was finally just able to get a flight in that day, so he would be the last one in this batch of visitors.

Eddie looked away from Steve’s face to look at Robin. “His flight was delayed, he should be arriving around 5.” Robin looked at the time, 2:12. She nodded, settling into the hospital chair next to Steve’s bed, content to watch whatever movie Steve was. Her eyes widened. It was Back to the Future. Her face crumpled, but she quickly schooled her expression into something less devastated. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“This is a good movie,” she said to Steve, who nodded.

“Me and my best friend were really high when I watched it the first time,” Steve said, which was just another stab in Robin’s heart. That was her that Steve was talking about. She let out an unsteady breath, closing her eyes tightly. “It’s still my favorite.”

“It’s my favorite, too,” Robin said in return, smiling softly at her best friend. Steve looked at her and grinned before turning his attention back to the TV.

An hour or so later, Eddie brought out his guitar. Steve lit up at the sight of the acoustic guitar, smiling excitedly.

“I love when you play, Eds,” Steve said excitedly, to which Eddie grinned.

“I know, sweetheart,” Eddie said, playing a few chords. As he played, Steve seemed to become more aware. After a few minutes of playing, Steve looked around with a frown.

“Where are the gremlins?” He asked, looking around the hospital room.

Eddie and Robin paused what they were doing to look at Steve in surprise. It had been several weeks since he asked after the kids using that term. It was something that he had lost early on in his decline. Eddie and Robin looked at each other apprehensively, eyes wide.

“Oh—Dustin, he’s flying, so he’ll be in soon. Lucas is visiting family up state, Max and El are with him. Mike and Will are looking at houses this week,” Eddie informed him, smiling warmly as his husband seemed to come to life.

“Good! I miss them,” Steve said, smiling. “It’ll be nice to have everyone around again. It’s been too long.” He said, leaning back against the bed.

Eddie and Robin made eye contact, smiling grimly at each other. They would take what they could get from Steve, but they knew this moment of clarity would soon pass. They had long since stopped hoping he would retain the clarity, having those hopes squashed early on in the process. The doctors had informed them that as he worsened, these moments of clarity would become less and less, and then would get one big moment of clarity before passing. Every time that Steve would remember, Eddie and Robin held their breath.

“Eds, can you play our song?” He asked, looking at his husband with such fondness, and who was Eddie to deny his husband anything?

“Of course, Stevie,” he said, beginning to strum the correct chords to the song. Steve hummed with it, looking at Robin.

“This was the song we danced at during our wedding,” he said, sighing deeply. “The best damn day of my life,” he said softly, smiling at Eddie.

Eddie smiled softly in return, “Best day of my life, too, baby,” he agreed with a nod. Steve laughed brightly, motioning Eddie over, who went closer easily. Steve pressed their lips together in a sweet kiss, causing Robin to pretend to gag even as joy filled her entire being. Moments like these it was easy to pretend that nothing was wrong, that Steve wasn’t sitting on his deathbed, waiting for the inevitable. Like they weren’t waiting for the inevitable.

“Oh, hush, Robbie,” Steve scoffed, which only caused Robin to laugh at him. Steve settled back against the bed, content to listen to the music that Eddie was playing. Robin felt like she was flying, though she knew this clarity wouldn’t last, she would savor it as long as it lasted.

The following hour was filled with Steve, Robin and Eddie talking and laughing about shared memories, reliving their youth through their memories. It was so rare that Eddie was able to see his husband—not literally, he saw him every day, he more meant that he so rarely saw the husband he married, so often he was lost in the fog inside his mind. Eddie was thankful for every moment they shared, knowing they were going to come to an end eventually.

Steve seemed to get more tired, settling down for a nap as Eddie played. He was still holding Robin’s hand and his other hand resting on Eddie’s knee, which was the only part of him he could reach without distracting Eddie’s playing.

“Hey Eds?” He asked, fluttering his eyes open. Eddie hummed, looking at Steve fondly. “Could you play our song again?” He asked, voice weak and quiet. Eddie’s guts twisted, and he pressed his lips together in a thin line as he started strumming the familiar chords.

“Yeah, Stevie. Always for you.” He said softly, trying to control his breathing as he played.

“Mm,” Steve hummed in return, his eyelids fluttering shut. “Love you, Eddie dear,” he breathed, before stilling.

“Love you, too, Stevie darling.”

—

disclaimer: probably unrealistic alzheimers/dementia, sorry! i based some of it off of my grandpa, but he didnt have those, he had a different thing due to agent orange in the war?? i can’t remember—parkinsons?? maybe? either way, so loosely based off of that and what i read about alzheimers/dementia.

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fatherrussia-69 · 2 months

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Major Upload Delayed - Family members caught covid (lll￢ω￢)

Alright, didn’t get the major upload uploaded by the end of July and I don’t have much of an excuse other than two of my family members catching COVID and everyone having to go into quarantine for two weeks. (￣_￣|||)

BUT!!! ╰（‵□′）╯

We only have 1 thing left on the list to do, and it's the KidCelest (It's The Little Things That Matter) chapter. I have it planned out and all I need to do is write the chapter. q(≧▽≦q)

I'm not gonna make another "I'll get it done by this day here" or "You guys can expect this on this here" statement because if it isn't obvious: I Cannot Stick To A Deadline. (┬┬﹏┬┬)

However, what I will say is Better Late Than Never. o(*￣▽￣*)ブ

The Major Upload is coming and I need to get it done before Editor T and Henchman A have to go to school. I'm going to TRY and cram it out within the next few days and it doesn't help that each chapter is like 5,000 words long. Maybe even longer depending on what fic it is. ...( ＿＿)ノ｜

I really want to get this upload out of the way, because I have been ITCHING to get to chapter 60 for SSATW and finally write Noi's entrance (spoiler) along with getting to the other chapters in the Afterdark arc. I have so much planned for it and it's killing me having to wait any longer to write it. ಠ_ಠ

In the meantime, you guys can punch me in the comments for making ya'll wait, I definitely deserve it. ○|￣|_

#ao3 author #fnaf au #fnaf moon #fnaf sun #fnaf daycare au #fnaf sb #fnaf sun x reader #read on ao3 #fnaf moon x reader #ao3 fanfic #major upload #update #sorry for the delay #i can't keep a deadline for shit-#father r

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ask-the-magican-and-the-fool · 2 years

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How long have you known each other?

#ask jevil #ask jevil and seam #deltarune #ask seam #deltarune jevil #jevil #jevil delta rune #man i almost forgot some major details #also sorry for a bit more of a delay than i originally said #im trying to aim to upload on sundays

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thatcrazycrowgirl · 1 year

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Hey Crowie i wanted to ask what you think of the Jacob x maxwell ship

I personally dont like it AT ALL (for probably obvious reasons)

The ship gives me the biggest ick when i see it

I mean i get it when people ship these two i mean they had chemistry im not gonna deny that

But after Maxwell try to take this chemistry and blow children up with it

kinda went down the drain for me

Hey nonnie, sorry for not getting back to you sooner, but there's so much I have to process with this ship, that it took some time to get my thoughts together in a cohesive manner.

(I am also going to warn anyone who chooses to read this; this response will be long, peppered with some likely unpopular opinions, and deal with the subject of mental/emotional manipulation and abuse. So, please read at your own discretion.)

Anyway, to answer your question, I'll get right to the point:

I don't like this ship.

While I can see the appeal of it at the beginning for some people - two charismatic men with a similar style of how to deal with things tearing through London with the claims of how free from society they are - for me, the appeal just never fully clicked.

In truth, Roth struck me as manipulative, controlling, and kind of creepy from the start.

Why, you ask? Let us examine the various situations, so I can explain.

The signs are there, if you look. One of the most obvious examples of this is the baby rook in the cage that Roth fawns over, obviously symbolizing young, impressionable Jacob and how Roth wants to keep a leash on him.

In other words: Roth promises freedom, but on HIS terms.

Which begs the question, were Jacob to continue his partnership with Roth after the incident with the children, and even enter into a romantic relationship with him, what would that mean for the young man?

Take a look at every single mission with have with Roth; he's the one calling all the shots and telling Jacob what to do, and Jacob, barely knowing anything about the man, goes along with it, swept up in Roth's charming persona, flattering words, and freedom dogma like a moth drawn to a bright flame. (So much for learning his lesson after dealing with someone who had a similar appeal; namely one Pearl Attaway, am I right?)

Additionally, just think of what all Roth wants Jacob to do for him:

Destroy explosives in a train station and steal a train engine? Done.

Kidnap a bunch of random people? No problem.

Plant dynamite around a workhouse? Sure thing.

Why?

All in the name of putting a dent into Starrick's empire - the main goal Jacob is obsessed with achieving, and what drives a good chunk of his personal story.

And with that knowledge, Roth has Jacob, hook, line and sinker. The boy is now Roth's to use as he damn well pleases.

And Jacob, finally getting positive attention, for a change, is willing to do as he was asked of Roth. Anything to keep that constantly bruised ego stroked. However, we all also know Jacob doesn't take well to being told what to do or have to follow rules - you only need to look to his interactions with Evie to see that - so how long would he stand for having to follow what Roth says before starting to push back? This is the very thing we see play out when the time comes for the duo to blow up the workhouse with the children inside.

In a moment of newfound maturity, and realizing the weight his previous actions have brought and what his future ones could bring, Jacob finally wakes up, listens to his moral compass ("But not like this!"), and does the one thing that's sure to put him on Roth's bad side: defy him.

And what comes of this daring action?

The partnership is immediately dissolved.

Roth sends Jacob a final letter and his "invitation" to the theatrical performance to be put on later that evening. But while the letter drips with a cordial air and sounds normal and civil, what's enclosed in the accompanying box is anything but; lying in there is the same baby rook Jacob saw Roth fawning over a while back, now dead, its neck snapped. (Could he have been fantasizing about snapping Jacob's neck when he did that? Who knows?)

Now, if that doesn't scream "you're dead to me" from Roth, I don't know what does.

However, that is only the beginning of true show of the cruelty Roth is capable of.

Soon comes the next step: blame.

Lewis tells Jacob after delivering the box with the dead bird, "You should be warned, Mr. Frye, when Roth is angry with one, he generally brings suffering the many."

This is only further re-enforced by Roth's dialogue in the Alhambra theatre that's clearly directed towards Jacob:

"Tonight's performance immortalizes and is for the benefit of a young fellow very near and dear to my heart. Any concerns or complaints may be addressed to him. Jacob, dear boy, tonight is for you!"

"Oh, my! Are your principles drifting, dear?"

"Are you trying to repent, my dear? It is not too late to join me in my grand finale."

"Go on, toast them! Your move, Jacob, my dear! Burn, burn, BURN!"

Address concerns to Jacob? Him needing to repent? As you can see, Roth is blaming Jacob for the theatre burning and all the deaths that could come from it, despite the fact it was Roth who started the fire out of anger towards the young man. In the situation with the children and the workhouse, Jacob did nothing wrong, yet Roth tries to frame the scenario as if the young man did. Why? Because Jacob went against Roth's wishes.

Hmm, Person A doing something terrible and blaming Person B for the action, usually with the claims of "You made me do this. This is your fault"? Sounds an awful lot like an abusive relationship, does it not?

Roth feels betrayed, but in actuality, it was Jacob who was.

And unless you've been in a relationship, romantic or otherwise, where someone appears like they have your best interests in mind at the beginning but then suddenly turn on you when you don't do what they want ("disobey them", if you will), the horrible consequences of that may not be something some (not all) of those who ship Jacob and Roth fully understand. I myself, dealt with exactly this sort of thing ironically around the time I first picked up Syndicate, so being fresh off of my godawful experience and seeing what I dealt with reflected in Jacob and Roth's relationship only turned me off of the idea of them being involved romantically even more.

Speaking of romantically, another unpopular opinion I honestly have is, I never picked up on anything of the sort from Jacob's side. With Roth, the attraction was obvious, but I didn't know there was intended to be some from Jacob's end until I started seeing posts with comments from the game's lead writer about it. (Which, from a technical standpoint, I think is piss poor writing on their end, if you had fans arguing about it. If you wanted it to be clear, make it clear. Don't dance around the subject and then get mad when people don't interpret the piece of media the way you want.)

Even if they were to start a relationship, I believe it would never be equal; Roth is just too narcissistic and self-serving for that. He would want constant control - something we've already seen displayed in the game. So, I imagine that Jacob would quickly begin to feel suffocated by it and want out. Again, if he couldn't stand his sister telling him what he can and can't do, why would he choose to remain with a lover who does the same thing, just in a different manner?

But going back to how I saw their interactions; to me, I always interpreted Jacob as viewing Roth more as a mentor or father figure that he never had, but always wanted. Someone who would not chide or disprove of Jacob's more chaotic and unconventional methods the way his own father and sister did.

And before anyone comes after me, this is not me attempting to erase Jacob's sexual orientation or saying that he can't have a healthy relationship with a man. But that's the key word there: healthy.

What little Jacob and Roth had was not healthy, and at this point, I don't care how much the lead writer tried to spin it into a love story, because there was no love involved. Lust, maybe, but not much more than that. Also, again, if they wanted to up the ante on Jacob's journey in his sexuality, they should've portrayed it in a more positive light, not had his first kiss with a man be a negative experience with a non-empathetic narcissist who only did things because "why not?" (Besides, wouldn't an experience like that actually frighten Jacob away from exploring that side of his orientation for some time, because he is afraid of getting hurt again? Just some food for thought.)

So, to wrap things up, I will never understand why people would want Jacob to be in a relationship where he wouldn't be properly respected and taken care of, when he really deserves that. Now, I'm aware that there are people who are aware of the canon depiction of Jacob's and Roth's relationship and instead place the RothFrye relationship in an AU where Roth isn't a psychopathic asshole, and he and Jacob have a successful partnership, and to each his own. I indulge in AUs all the time, so I will not judge others for doing so. I just cannot, in good conscience, partake in those ones for RothFrye myself. It's just too personal, too legitimately triggering, and just rubs me the wrong way.

My apologies for the lengthiness of this post, but honestly, I have a lot of thoughts on this ship and this vent, if you will, was a long time coming. If you got this far in reading this, thank you for taking the time to do so, and to the anon who asked, I do hope this answered your question on my opinion of this ship. Also, to those who ship it, please do not read this post as a personal attack; that was not the intention of this post. I merely gave my opinion based on what presented in the game, and if yours is different, you do you.

After all, at the end of the day, it's just fiction.

#sorry again for the delayed and likely messy response #but hope it answers your question #now if y'all excuse me; this was hard to talk about so I've got some MAJOR decompressing to do #ask replies

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zuppizup · 4 months

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In Fuel the Pyre, Rayla's parents have been decoupled, but in A Simple Life,they haven't. So, in your AU, did they get out recently, or are you just going to change that?

if they did just get out, how do you think they would react to the fact their daughter is a fully grown adult now and they have a grandchild?

The issue of Rayla’s parents was actually the main reason I put off finishing Fuel the Pyre for so long. I had the plot bunny for that fic since not long after I decided to explore that Rayllum family dynamic, but I was trying not to add any more long fics to my WIPs. I didn’t want to deal with decoining in the fic (what can I say, I’m lazy) but I had various ideas for how canon was going to tackle the subject and the resulting dynamic as a result.

In the end, I procrastinated long enough that canon got me to a place where I felt like I could just handwave the decoining and kinda deal with things how I predicted they’ll go canon-wise.

This resulted in me retconing some of the prior published stuff in the series, so if you re-read, some of the chapters have been removed/replaced and a disclaimer placed on them.

So, in Fuel the Pyre, though it’s not referred to directly, I’m assuming Moon fam were decoined chronologically in season 6. Callum has a relatively good relationship with Tiadrin, Lain and Ethari, but he’s not exactly close with Runaan (personality wise, as well as their obvious history). They do make nice for Rayla’s sake, but they’re not close.

I think regardless of when Moon fam get out, they’ll likely be shocked to see Rayla in a relationship with Callum (human primal mage, and a prince) but what will win them over will be how devoted they are to each other. Either in canon or in Fuel The Pyre, there are bigger fish to fry and they’ll realise they need to put aside personal issues for the greater good, seeing how much Rayla and Callum love each other in the process.

#more will come to light in today’s up-date #but it’s not a major plot point #mainly because I wanted to focus on the Rayllum family dynamic #and again I am lazy and didn’t want to be working on another long fic 😅#thanks for the ask!#sorry for the delay in answering!#fic: fuel the pyre

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maslows-pyramid-scheme · 1 year

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I think the reason people bully each other within marginalized communities is because they know they can’t actually hurt the people who do have the power to harm them. That resultant feeling of impotence and anger finds an outlet in lateral aggression. Bullies justify their behavior to themselves in all sorts of ways but it always ends with, “Well, they deserve it!” The conclusion is that these people don’t actually hate cruelty: they only hate it when it’s happening to them. As long as they are the ones wielding them, they view cruelty and callousness as useful tools. With this attitude radblr will win hearts and minds? I don’t think so.

But the good news for a lot of women here is that it’s never too late to change.

That's a fair point; hurting others feels like doing something, even if the something doesn't actually help anyone or challenge any social disadvantage at all... I used to be a bit of a cyber-bully and I mostly got mean when I was upset about something else.

(But, like, most of my targets were kind of asking for it - flirting with children, making offensive comments about marginalised groups, asking for freaking f**t pics.)

It probably doesn't help that radblr is an online space infested with abusive personalities and lonely women. If certain groups are deemed acceptable punching bags, then it's not really bullying to bully to send them a few mean messages, right (/s)?

#i get the feeling that the vast majority of radblr bullies come from stable middle-class families #they don't strike me as being hopeless in the way that socially disadvantaged people usually are #i hope they do decide to change #(sorry for the delay in responding; I've got covid again)#anon

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stoicstoryteller · 1 year

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@unyieldingstar

“Hey— if you keep going in that direction, you’ll bump into the pole!”

He had barely caught a glimpse of the woman wandering forward seemingly aimlessly and scrambled forward to grasp her arm in an attempt to pull her back safely before it spirals into an incident that would potentially result in injury for her. Haochen would feel terrible if he didn’t at least try to stop her before then as an obvious witness to it.

#unyieldingstar #unyieldingstar 01 #ic;#keeping this pretty short for the start but it can be expanded in future replies #sorry for the major delay! thanks for having interest in my lad!#hope this works as i kept it a bit vague in order to leave some room for creative liberty

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ffxiv-smackdown · 1 year

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ROUND 1B LIVE

Sorry for the delay, but things are running again! I'll reblog these in the morning/afternoon tomorrow, but I wanted to get them out by tonight at least

#Sorry for the delay a lot happened in a week #my partner went to the ER then had major surgery but everything is fine now!#so thats why i was MIA for so long #but now. we rip and tear #mod talks

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tentacletournament · 2 years

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ok wait so i just realized that even though i edited the official post as submissions officially closed the link to the forms was still on there and i got like... 20 more responses?? the real question now is:

theres arguments on both sides bc technically i did forget to add the last few but there was also the official post and i edited the original with "submissions closed" right after so i leave it to your hands! do you guys want 11 more competitors or keep it as it is right now? keep in mind the polls might be delayed because i might need to remake the polls to be fair for the matchups (unless yall want it faster and are ok with the last few characters submitted + not matched up yet together)

#mars talks #tentacle tournament #im so sorry !!! ill leave it up to ur preferences though #it still doesnt take us to 128 but it does add more people #ill keep this up for 1 day but if theres an overwhelming majority by the poll being up for a few hours ill just keep it that way #im so sorry for the many delays of this tournament but im like more than halfway done i swear

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demonvibez · 1 year

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Hello, I came here to ask you a request: Mc is wearing a pajama (nightgown, little shorts, whatever you want) that shows a little bit too much. So one day, Mc comes down to the kitchen in the middle of the night, taking advantage about the brothers sleeping in their rooms so no one would see her like this, and suddenly, she bump into one of the brothers. How would they react?

A/N: Thank you so much for this request, and sorry for the delay! I started working on it, got writer's blocked, solved the block, then got...inspired, lol. This ended up being like 8 lil narrative one shots. Anyways - This is only part one of two; hope you like! ♡

Characters: [Lucifer / Mammon / Leviathan / Satan] x F! Reader

Word Count: 4.6k+

Rating: Teen [Suggestive Themes]

Tags: suggestive/sexual themes, making out, light petting/groping, reader = she/her pronouns, each demon has a lil backstory

[Part One of Two - Read Part Two Here]

It was late at night in the House of Lamentation, and you had just finished preparing yourself for bed. You had finished your homework for the day, as well as your nighttime routine, and it was time for you to settle down. Just as you sit down on the edge of your bed, you start thinking about how it would be nice to have a quick little snack before you turn in to sleep for the night. Picking up your DDD from the nightstand, you check the time to see just how late it was. You decide that it was probably late enough for everyone to be asleep, and it was safe to venture out into the house alone with what you are wearing - a skimpy spaghetti strap tank top and tiny shorts that leave little to the imagination. You push yourself up off the bed and cross the room, making your way towards the door. Leaving your bedroom door open, you make your way towards the kitchen next door . . .

For the Avatar of Pride, staying up late and overworking himself was a normal part of his daily routine. Usually after dinner, he hides himself away in his study so that he can start working his way through the mountains of paperwork sent to him from his superiors. Usually every night, he has the same routine - he finishes his RAD related paperwork, takes a break to patrol the House, stops by the kitchen for a cup of Hell Coffee and then back up to his study to deal with the paperwork associated with his political duties.

Lucifer starts making his way down the hall for his nightly rounds through the House, as he normally does at this hour. He usually does this in order to make sure his brothers’ mischief was kept at a minimum, but it’s in order to keep you safe as well. He couldn't help but to notice that the chaos in their House had increased quite a bit since you had arrived - some of it from his brothers dragging you into their antics, some of it chaos created all on your own, and some of it external chaos that seeks to consume your beautifully shiny soul. When you first arrived here, you used to be a major source of his headaches. He used to struggle with how to punish you, seeing as you were the fragile little human sent here for Lord Diavolo's exchange mission. But now, the more Lucifer thinks about you, he cannot deny to himself the fondness that has grown for you within his heart. A smile twitches at his lips for a brief moment before he refocuses himself on his task.

Just as he is making his way down the stairs to check the first floor, he hears a noise coming from the kitchen area, a faint glow emitting from its frame and spilling into the hallway. He lets out an exasperated sigh to himself, believing it to be Beelzebub on one of his frivolous late night snack missions. Crossing his arms in front of his chest, he strides towards the kitchen door, scripting the lecture he wants to give in his mind as he walks. How many times must he punish the Sixth Born?

When he reaches the doorway, he halts at the unexpected sight before him, and he can’t help but to stand back and observe. He sees you in the kitchen, illuminated by the light of the refrigerator, looking through what’s left of its contents for a snack. You look so innocent while doing so, completely unaware of your surroundings. He wasn’t used to seeing you like this - hell, he wasn’t even used to seeing you dressed like this. Usually dressed in your RAD uniform, the attire you were currently wearing is much more revealing than what he is used to seeing you in. The way the thin cotton fabric clings to your curves, he couldn't stop his eyes from roaming your entire body. You grab something from the fridge, closing it before making your way over to the kitchen island with the leftover Acidic Hell Fries you found. Sitting down with your back turned to the door, you open up the tray and lean in to take a bite, all the while Lucifer can’t help but notice the way your shirt rides up the arch of your back, the way the waistband of your shorts sit right at your hip, the way your skin just looks so soft. He wasn’t sure how a human could stir up such emotions in him, but he was in fact curious to see where it would take him.

In a rare moment of impulsivity, Lucifer swiftly makes his way towards you. Before you even have time to register the Avatar of Pride's presence, he sets both of his hands on the table on each side of you, effectively trapping you between him and the counter. He leans down closer to your ear, the scent of his cologne filling your senses, as he whispers your name into your ear with a very seductive tone. "What do you think you're doing here," he asks, his tone husky as you can feel the warmth of his breath fanning against your skin. Your pulse accelerates as he presses his lips to your earlobe, his gloved hands now slowly finding their way around your waist as Lucifer trails light kisses down the soft flesh of your neck. You would usually have some sort of snarky comeback for Lucifer, stating how it was obvious why you were in the kitchen shoveling fries into your face at half past midnight. But in this moment you couldn't muster up a retort, your brain beginning to fog up with the haze of pleasure that Lucifer's touch can bring. As he continued to tease your neck, occasionally nipping at it with his fangs, his hands began to drift lower on your body, lightly teasing at your waistband. One of his hands pulls your chin up to him, your eyes fluttering shut as his lips collide with yours in a way that sets your soul ablaze with passion.

He slowly pulls away from the kiss, your eyes slowly opening to see his crimson orbs gazing back at you with lust, love and admiration. He slightly loosens his hold on you, before turning you around on the barstool you sat upon to face him. He brushes the hair out of your eyes, tucking it back behind your ear before leaning down to press one more kiss on your lips. When he pulled away this time, you chased his lips with his own, filling him with a sense of pride at the idea that you're craving more of him - much like he craves more of you. He lets out a small chuckle before suddenly sweeping you up in his arms, your legs dangling over one side while your arms instinctively wrap around his neck for safety. "We're heading straight to my room," he said along with your name in a confident tone, "and I hope you have plenty of energy, because we won't be getting much sleep tonight." He carried you out of the kitchen and up the stairs, taking no time getting you to his room and into his silk sheets.

Mammon had just recently arrived home about an hour ago from one of his many side hustles he did to help earn some extra Grimm and pay back a few of his debts. The witches have been hassling him even more than normal recently, threatening a variety of curses if he doesn't comply with their demands, so he's had to take up multiple side hustles in order to make enough money. He could have sworn he paid them off a while ago - math is one of Mammon's strong suits and he always keeps his debt ledger up to date. He's pretty damn sure the witches are just jealous of you, and take it out on him one of the few ways they know will work. They would never mess with you directly - and risk earning the wrath of all seven Avatars of Sin? And perhaps even the Future King of the Devildom himself? Hell nah. They'll just keep toying with Mammon the way they know best.

Normally, Mammon would be pretty exhausted after a grueling shift of serving tables at Hell’s Kitchen, but tonight for some reason, he was feeling restless and couldn’t seem to settle down. He had completed his nightly routine and settled into bed, but he found himself feeling restless, scrolling Devilgram instead and finding himself growing bored rather quickly. After tossing and turning in his bed for what felt to him like an eternity, he let out an annoyed groan and pushed himself out of bed. If he couldn’t lull himself to sleep, he might as well go find his favorite human. He crossed the room to pick up his designer underwear and sweatpants off the couch, slipping them both on before making his way to the door. Once his door is closed, he starts briskly but silently making his way across the hall and down the stairs, doing his best to avoid running into any of his brothers - namely, Lucifer.

Making a beeline straight for your room, Mammon notices the door is open and just walks inside as if he owns the place. “Oi, human! I’m bored, why don't ya-” he says, before looking around to see that the room is actually empty. “Where the hell even are ya,” he mumbles to himself with an exasperated huff, turning about-face and exiting your room. As he steps out into the hallway, he finally notices the kitchen light is on. He starts stomping his way over to the kitchen, mumbling something about how much work it is to watch after one stupid little human, when he crosses the threshold of the door and almost bumps into you as he is turning the corner. "Aye, what gives," he says in an almost shouting tone, "ya gotta watch it, human! Ya gotta be more careful! Ya ain't always gonna have the Great Mammon to..." he trailed off as he finally looks down at you, taking in fully just how you look and what you are wearing. His eyes widen and his jaw drops, standing there completely frozen in shock as his eyes scan you up and down repetitively.

Despite the many times the two of you have shared a bed, he has never seen you wear something so small and form fitting as pajamas before. Usually when he was over, you'd just wear an oversized tee shirt and some baggy sweatpants, which was usually cute and endearing in its own way. But tonight, since you assumed you would be spending the night alone, you wore something you thought no one would see you in. And now here you are in the kitchen, the Avatar of Greed stood in front of you, a blushing and stammering mess. The more of his golden eyes took in of you, the more he could feel the greed rise up within him. Every little inch of skin, every little curve of your body has Mammon craving more and more, his avarice knowing no bounds when it comes to you. Typically, in moments like these, the tsundere side of Mammon's brain would kick in, and a flurry of denials would leave his lips before you could even playfully accuse him of anything. Seeing you like this has Mammon forgetting all about those silly habits, his mind focused on wanting only one thing - you.

In this moment, Mammon can't help but succumb to his greed. His hands reach out to pull you into his bare chest, his demon form now on full display and eyes glowing as gold as Grimm. His arms tighten around you in a possessive hold as he buries his face in your hair, your scent as intoxicating to him as the most expensive Demonus on record. You feel his hands roam your body, feeling both his soft skin and his rings' hard metal gliding up and down your back. You melt into his touch, your arms instinctively wrapping around his torso. "I've been lookin' for ya," he mumbles into your hair. Before you can even fathom a response, Mammon's hands find their way under your ass, hoisting you up and setting you on the counter. He leans in and presses his lips to yours with a sense urgency you hadn't seen from the Avatar of Greed previously, his yearning and need for you growing with each kiss. As his tongue brushes your lips, they part and allow him entrance, and the way your two tongues dance with each other sends Mammon over the edge, feeling that same greed start to build within you. Mammon's kisses became hungrier and sloppier the more he could feel his sin in the air, a hint of lust mixing with it as his hands squeeze your ass, your own hands roaming his beautifully brown torso. "Mine," he states simply, as he breaks the kiss momentarily.

He picks you up once again, your legs squeezing his waist as you fling your arms around his neck. He runs off with you to his room to have his way with you - and to hoard you to himself like the Devildom's finest treasure.

It wasn’t at all unusual for Leviathan to stay up all hours of the night. On this night in particular he was counting down the hours until the newest merch drop from his favorite idol group, Sucre Frenzy. He picks up his Bufo Egg Milk Tea to take a sip, only to hear the slurping sound of his cup being empty. Looking at the clock at the bottom right of his monitor, he mentally notes that he still has an hour and a half before the drop, which should be more than enough time to run downstairs and raid the fridge. He presses pause on the song he was listening to on Devilfy, pulling off his headset and making his way out of his bedroom door. He pulls his DDD out of the pocket of his hoodie, swiping it open and pressing on the 'Mononoke Land' app. Checking to see if there were currently any in-game spirits lurking in the House, Levi games as he presses forward towards the kitchen, his own IRL mission falling to the back of his mind as he continued to focus on the side quest on his phone. One hand in his pocket while the other clutches his device, his tail slides along the handrail of the staircase, making sure he doesn't stumble as he tunes out the rest of the world.

He really hopes you can make it to hang out for the drop tonight! When he invited you at dinner you seemed interested, but you told him you weren't sure if you'd be able to stay awake that late or not. He would really love it if you are able to - everything is more enjoyable for the Lord of Shadows when he has his Henry by his side! It makes him excited even thinking about it! Maybe he'll swing by your room on the way back from the kitchen and see if you're awake! Or...that maybe awkward? What if you're asleep and he wakes you up? What if he annoys you? Maybe he'll just send you a text instead. Either way, he loves you more than all of his anime combined, and it would be the highlight of his entire month to spend tonight's event with you.

Refocusing on his game, he turns the corner to cut back towards the kitchen. He doesn't even notice the kitchen light on ahead, nor does he hear the clattering and clanking coming from inside. All he can seem to focus on is Mononoke Land. As he walks past your room, he does a double take, expecting to see you in your bed. On second glance, he notices you missing from your room, and Leviathan couldn't help but be confused as he pauses in your doorway. It's almost one in the morning and you aren't in your room?! Where in the Devildom could you possibly be?! You're probably hanging out with one of his brothers, aren't you?! You're probably in one of their rooms, in one of their beds, doing Dia knows what while he's down here getting some stupid snacks for his stupid merch drop. 'Stupid stupid stupid I'm so stupid! Of COURSE she wouldn't want to waste time her time with a disgusting otaku like me! IT'S NOT FAIR IT'S NOT FUCKING FAIR!!' A wave of envy washes over him so powerful that he fights everything within himself not to summon Lotan and flood the House. His fists clench his DDD, stressing it from the pressure as his knuckles turn white. His eyes blaze a bright orange as jealousy rages within him like a hurricane brewing over the sea.

Wanting nothing more than to barricade himself in his room and never come out, Leviathan angrily marched onward towards the kitchen, determined to get his snacks and get the hell back to his room so he can wallow in his feelings. Hastily making his way through the kitchen's threshold, he doesn't see you as he barrels straight into you, knocking you backwards. Before his mind can fully process what's going on, his tail grabs ahold of you, wrapping around your waist and preventing you from hitting the floor. His eyes finally connect with yours, and he realizes that it's you he has run into. A quick scan of the room tells him you had been in here alone, and suddenly he feels foolish for the jealous tantrum he was throwing in his mind.

"I-I'm s-s-sorry...I didn't see y-you th-" he stammers, now looking down at you to see exactly what you were dressed in. Is this what you normally wear to bed? Levi hadn't ever seen anything like it in real life. The way the fabric highlights all of your best features, putting just the right amount of emphasis on how perfect your curves were...he could have sworn you were drawn by his favorite manga artist. His eyes roamed your body up and down, his face heating up as rapidly as his heart rate is rising. 'OH FUCK, I'm staring aren't I?! She probably hates me, I'm so gross, such a worthless perv, I need to stop staring WHATTHEFUCKDOIDO?!?' he panics internally, his hands starting to tremble. He tilts his head down to focus on the floor, when he finally processes that his tail has been autonomously wrapped around your waist the entire time. "I'M SO SORRY," he half shouts at you, as he starts to unravel his tail.

Suddenly, Levi takes pause, as he hears you gently call out his name, one of your hands resting on his tail while the other reaches out to stroke his cheek. "Levi...whatever you're thinking right now...stop," you reassured him. Before he could hide his face from you, you leaned in to press your lips to his in a soft but loving kiss. At first, Levi just stands there frozen in shock but after a moment he kisses you back. He's still unsure of what to do with himself - he doesn't want to ruin this moment - but he doesn't want it to end either, so he stands with his hands awkwardly at his sides and pours every ounce of love of passion he can into the kiss. While he may not know what to do with his hands, his tail seemed to enjoy exploring your body, causing you to let out a tiny soft moan when it makes its way around the top of your thigh. You wrap your arms around his neck, continuing the kiss as you press your body against his.

After a few more moments, the two of you pull away from each other, both trying to catch your breaths. Before Leviathan could even muster a response, you grab his hand, the sweetest of smiles plastered across your face. "Come on, let's go to your room, Levia-chan. I can think of a few ways for us to kill time until your merch drop launches," you said as you start pulling him towards the door. Suddenly you weren't tired, and Levi didn't care about the snacks - with you, he may even end up forgetting about the merch drop.

Before you had even thought of grabbing a snack from the kitchen, Satan had already made his way down there and was rifling his way through the fridge looking for something suitable to feed his secret kitten friend out in the garden. Earlier in the night, Satan came outside to the garden in order to calm down and let his inner rage subside. He had wanted to spend the remainder of his evening with you curled up in his lap as he reads to you, a warm fire crackling in the fireplace nearby, as the two of you ignore the world for each other and a great plotline - there was no other way he'd rather spend his evening. But of course, his insufferable eldest brother had to stick his prideful nose in where it didn't belong and drag you away, just as he was asking you to join him after dinner. It was almost as if the Avatar of Pride has an extra sense for when Satan wanted alone time with you, always interfering and coming up with some smug excuse as to why you need to be stolen away right when Satan needs you. That pompous ass was always going out of his way to stoke the flames of Satan's wrath on purpose! 'One day he'll get back at that bastard, he'll put him right in his place!'

Satan continued pacing in circles in the garden, his demon form on full display as rage flows through him like an ice river through one of the lower pits of hell. He wasn't doing the best job at calming himself down at first, you not being there to help ground him, so it was taking a bit longer than normal. It was always so much easier to calm himself with you there - just a few simple words or a quick hug usually doing the trick. But for now he was alone, and he was drawing a blank on what he else should do. He completed one more pace around the garden before, before letting out an annoyed huff and sat himself down on the nearest bench. As he was about to pull out his DDD to text you to see where you were, he hears a rustling in the bushes. His emerald eyes scan the area, no signs of life immediately apparently, before he sees a pair of glowing eyes peer out at him from underneath one of the bushes. A small smile tugs at his lips as it dawns on him who the eyes belong to - one of his stray feline friends that likes to wander through every now and then. He pushes himself up off the bench and slowly crosses over towards the cat, holding out his hand as he tries to coax it out of the bush. The cat immediately starts to back into the bush, shaking it's head at Satan, causing him to take pause. He chuckles to himself as he comes to the realization of what she is asking for - the cat wants a treat.

Satan straightens himself up, making his way back into the House to find some cat friendly snacks in the kitchen. When he arrives there, he is alone, and makes a beeline straight for the fridge. It was usually wishful thinking for anyone in the House of Lamentation to try to hide food in the kitchen, but sometimes Satan was able to get away with it for the sake of his kitten buddies. Crouching down to open the bottom drawer, Satan reaches in to pull out some of the Devildom cat treats he had stashed back behind the drawer. Setting the pouch of treats on the counter, he opens up one of the cupboards and pours what is left of the treats onto a saucer, before tossing the empty wrapper in the trash and making his way towards the kitchen door. Little did he expect in all of this, you came walking through the door at the same time, neither of you really paying attention. Before either of you can stop yourselves, you quite literally run into each other, the saucer of meaty cat treats smooshing against Satan's chest and then dropping to the floor. Satan can feel his wrath rising inside him once again, drenching him like an ice cold shower, his aura turning dark as his demon form makes an appearance once again. He hasn't even looked up to see who caused the collision, assuming one of his brothers is to blame yet again, his jaw clenching as his mind races to formulate it's retaliation.

His glowing green eyes finally lift to see exactly who the guilty party is, only for his eyes to meet yours instead. You begin to stammer out a stream of apologies, but seeing you immediately calms the inner turmoil of his mind, the storm suddenly calm within him.

His gazes roams over you for a moment, Satan suddenly finding himself speechless as he takes in exactly how breathtaking you look in such casual attire. The way straps of your tank top accentuate your collar bones, giving way to how the fabric hugs your perfect chest...Satan suddenly couldn't remember what he was mad about in any point in the day. He couldn't even bother to care why he was in the kitchen in the first place. He gently takes one of your hands with both of his, raising it to his lips to press a kiss into your knuckles. A warm smile spreads across his face as his hands find your hips, pulling you closer into him. One of his hands moves to rub the small of your back as the other tilts your chin upwards to him. He holds your gaze for a moment, adoration apparent in his eyes, before he leans in to share a passionate kiss with you.

The moment his lips caress your own, your heartbeat goes through the roof, and you can't help but to lean into him and melt into his touch. His hand on your chin moves to hold the back of your neck, his tongue brushing your bottom lip, asking for more. Your hands find themselves on his chest as your lips back, your tongues clashing together in a desperate bid to feel more of each other. Your hands slide down his chest and abs, lightly tugging at his belt when you get to his waist. He chuckles into the kiss before nipping at your bottom lip with one of his fangs, grabbing your hips with both hands as he slows the pace of the kiss.

Eventually he breaks the kiss, resting his forehead on yours. "You always know how to make me feel better, kitten," he said as you slide your hands up his front and lace them behind his neck. "What do you say we retreat to my room to continue this encounter?" he leans in to steal one more kiss from you lips before taking you by the hand and pulling you up to his room.

· demonvibez ♡ 2023 · do not copy, repost or modify ·

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writers-potion · 4 months

Text

Writing Mad Characters

Okay this is a bit awkward because I had this question copypasted into Google Docs I use to draft my answers, and I realized I've lost the question in my inbox (which is being flooded).

So...I'm so sorry for whoever asked this question. Sorry for the delay because I was struggling with life in general for the past month and definitely SORRY for losing your question (－‸ლ)

Q: I'm writing a story where a major character is slowly spiraling into madness where small details kinda hint into the downfall right before the bigger details appear and then it the floodgates open. Is there anything I should avoid? Anything that I should keep in mind? Anything that I should research?

Things to Avoid

“Mad” or “Insane” is too general. Writing a cliched ‘crazy’ character who randomly talks to imaginary people and lashes out at strangers, you’ll offend a whole bunch of people who've gone through/have mental illnesses. Read up on existing mental conditions (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic disorder and borderline personality disorder, etc.) to see what your character might have.

Words like “mad” “crazy” or “insane” aren’t enough when you’re describing their status. As mentioned, these words hardly mean much when it comes to providing a clear description.

Contradicting yourself. Throwing random unhinged symptoms here and there wouldn’t work. In fact, you must have a clear arc on which they’re traveling and ensure that your “hints” are all getting at something.

Making the character overly destructive or harmful to others (when nothing really justifies it)

Justifying damaging behavior with this “madness”. Mad or not, your character will still have motives and goals that drive them forward.

Making them look incompetent just the fact that they have a mental condition that makes them appear “mad” to others shouldn’t prevent them from achieving success. In fact, they may be even more cool-hearted and logical when it comes to their obsessions/goals.

Research Tips

Narrow down the mental conditions your character experiences. Even if it’s a fictional condition, try basing it on existing ones and building on top of them.

Take some time to study characters and/or real clinical cases that resemble the kind of madness you’re going for.

- Anxiety Disorders: excessive fear and dread (ex. phobias) - Mood Disorders: persistent swings in mood or persistent feelings that interfere with daily life (ex. Depression, bipolar) - Psychotic Disorders: disordered thinking (ex. schizophrenia) - Eating Disorders: extreme emotional attitudes toward food (ex. Bulimia, anorexia) - Impulse Disorders: unable to resist urges (ex. Kleptomania, pyromania, gambling) - Personality Disorders: extreme inflexible personality traits (ex. Anti-social disorder, OCPD) - Past Traumatic Stress: persistent, frightening memories leading to emotional numbness

Does your character have empathy?

A sociopathic kind of madness is different.

General Writing Tips for Spiraling into Madness

Establish a Baseline

A lot of factors (stress, family history, innate personality, trauma, etc.) can contribute to madness, but it is not going to happen in a week. Define the existing mental and physical conditions your character has, and start from there.

If you’re aiming for suicidal tendencies at the end, you want to start with symptoms of depression (a condition that may lead to suicide) - growing apathetic, erratic sleeping patterns, irritability, etc.

This is also the stage where you want to plant some triggers that’ll go off later.

Trigger Events

A perfectly sound character suddenly spiraling down the madness route due to a single accident or traumatizing event isn’t convincing.

A madness “snap” denies the reader the experience of watching the character’s journey into madness and how they feel about it.

Internal Conflict (antagonist in himself)

You must remember that madness is incurable. If someone could “cure” themselves by eating healthy, exercising and taking a few pills, it wouldn’t be much of a madness, would it? This means that the worst antagonist is going to be the character themselves, or the part of them that’s been taken away.

Show how they are frustrated with themselves, scared of themselves, angry at their “alternative self”. The experience of not knowing yourself is a whole journey of its own.

Physical Manifestations/Quirks

If your character has a routine, show how they break down.

They might develop habits that they otherwise would never allow themselves to have, perhaps as an effort to “keep this madness out”

Deteriorating Relationships

Depict how the character’s madness impacts his closed/loved ones. In the earlier stages, those close to him might be faster to notice and accept the signs of madness, even if the character denies it him/herself.

The first signs of madness might show when the character is trying to deal with difficult relationships - like losing patience and being unable to pick up subtle social clues.

Choosing Obsessions Over Primal Urges

For these characters, obsession can take over a person’s normal urge to eat, sleep or even live. This can lead to, more or less, suicide.

Example: In Black Swan, Nina’s obsession with becoming the perfect ballerina drive her to insanity, to the point where she doesn't mind dying on stage for the show.

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