#starting to hit me that she actually won't play again

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

THE HUNDRED LINE: LAST DEFENSE ACADEMY - Journal #6: Route 0 Days 67-80. [MASSIVE SPOILERS]

//Yeah, I wanted to play as much of this game as fucking possible. Pumped as hell because I'm for sure at the home stretch now.

//I distinctly remember some people who read my previous journals didn't give much away, but they were telling me that I was really gonna enjoy this next portion of gameplay.

//And you guys were definitely right about that. The Moko chapter of this route and the horrific imagery we saw of that definitely got my heart racing, but this was an emotional pummeling of its own.

//It interests me that the more we go along and the closer we get to Day 100, the worse things seem to get for us.

//One of my biggest highlights of this section is that it actually reprimanded a lot of the problems I had with the Tsukumo Twins and their initial character arc in the story, even though Ima, for reasons we covered at the end of the last journal, is mostly absent for this one.

//But I digress. We've got some shit to cover, so let's just get into it, and as always...

DO NOT READ THE REST OF THIS POST IF YOU HAVE NOT PLAYED/SEEN THE HUNDRED LINE: LAST DEFENSE ACADEMY. I WILL BE TALKING ABOUT VERY SPECIFIC PLOT POINTS AND MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE GAME.

//So let's get started:

DAY 67:

//To give a quick recap as to where we left off, things have kind of brutally hit the fan.

//The group is reeling after the devastating loss of Moko, only for things to get worse the next morning. The captured Invader escapes under suspicious circumstances.

//The crisis deepens when the Tsukumo Twins go missing. Kako returns alone, injured, revealing that the Invader escaped with Ima, a new team member who had just begun fitting in.

//Worse yet, the group is trapped inside the school by surrounding flames, with broken fire extinguishers and no way to escape or resupply.

//For now, it's up to Tsubasa to prepare the Fire Extinguishers so we can go after Ima and potentially save him, but again, I wasn't holding my breath. This game has clearly shown that it's more than willing to kill off its main characters with reckless abandon. If Ima came out the other side of this as a corpse, I wouldn't even be surprised.

//Leave it to Kodaka to cut character arcs short, hahahaaaa...

//Anyway, today was another day of just Free Time, so not much really happened. However, I was curious whether or not the Report Card had changed now that we had confirmation that Moko was dead. Because she did appear in the file once she joined the group.

//Turns out I was right, because Moko's character sprite in the Report Card is darkened. Which...yeah, she's basically never coming back I guess...

//Interestingly, Hiruko still isn't blacked out, which suggests that MAYBE she could return? But it's been two months now since she went missing. I'm not holding out for a hero.

DAY 68:

//So Darumi gained the ability to read minds and see through the fourth wall!

//In other news, as expected, Kako is depressed over losing her brother, so she won't leave her room. Tsubasa is still trying to fix the extinguishers, but it's pretty challenging work, even for her.

//However, on top of all that crap, we now have another NOTHER problem! As Nozomi comes into the cafeteria and...collapses.

//Now, I kind of saw this coming, because Nozomi has been working herself to death trying to take care of "Moko" and now she should be winding down, but curiously, she mutters that her condition has something to do with "rejection symptoms."

//Takumi, Kyoshika, and Kurara take her to her room, and she's gonna be bedridden for a while. And unfortunately, these two clowns STILL for some reason think Takumi wants to have his way with her, so they're guarding her, and he can't ask her for any follow up questions.

//Nozomi already let her guard down enough to tell Takumi that the circumstances on which she joined this war are a bit different from the rest of us, so of all people, he's the one she's most likely to choose to open up to. But so long as Takumi is being cockblocked by these two, it'll be a while before we get our next Nozomi Lore DumpTM.

//So yeah, more Free Time ensues.

//I actually got a little miffed with this one, because right now, I've been trying to focus on leveling up my social stats/grades so that I could get it to a high enough level and upgrade my equipment. Like my traps and potions and stuff, because I'd like to have some of these in a higher quality.

//However, while getting the stats is simple enough, I don't currently have enough resources to craft/upgrade them. Which means I need to go on another search mission to get what I need.

//But on top of Nozomi being indisposed, meaning I can't as readily go out and get the materials I need, since my healer isn't here to keep the party spick and span like usual, but even if she was here, I can't go out anyway because the EXTINGUISHERS ARE BROKEN!

//The ONE TIME I actually WANT to go on one of these missions, I can't! GREAAAAT!

//It's especially bad when upgrading the thing I REALLY want to boost, which is the Spring Traps.

//No, not THAT ONE!

//Spring Traps, since I haven't brought it up yet, are craftable devices you can use in battles that let your characters bounce to distant areas on the battlefield with no movement cost. Really useful if you need to get someone around, however they are very limited in supply and need to be upgraded to get more, just like every other special equipment.

//But these one's are SO EXPENSIVE! Not only are they resource heavy, but you have to have Level 3 in Social Studies, Gym, AND Linguistics in order to raise them to a level higher than 2!

//WHY!? And why those three stats in particular!?

//Eh whatever...this sucks...I must be turning into Gaku because I have the worst luck in the world.

//Anyway, we end the night with another Karua scene and...this is the last one we have for what feels like a WHILE. The game even points out that this is the last one we see.

//And we actually don't get much from this one. We just see Karua taking care of a stubborn Takumi who is sick in bed. Apparently, so is his mother.

//Most of Karua's scenes in the game tend to hint towards situations that happen to Takumi in subsequent days of the story. For example, the first one was of Takumi finding Karua after she got lost, and then the very next day, needs to employ those same skills to rescue Eito from a difficult predicament.

//And then we have the scene of them at the fast food place, where Karua asks Takumi what he'd do if she woke up one day and didn't know who he was. Subsequently leading to Takumi meeting Nozomi for the first time, who seems to be Karua with amnesia.

//This one's a little different because this time, it's NOZOMI who's sick, not Takumi. So the connection is not too clear this time.

DAY 69:

//THERE IS NO FUCKING WAY YOU MADE A SPECIAL UNIQUE MORNING ANNOUNCEMENT TO CELEBRATE DAY 69!!!??

//This is normally the part where everyone (myself included) would make a really unfunny joke and say "nice" or some bullshit! But these jokes write themselves!

//Sirei's English Voice Actor in these scenes sounds like he's struggling to read these lines with a straight face, and is even laughing in the middle of it. I don't see why else he would let out those sudden breaths like that. But hey, the man does his job right.

//And hilariously, as Sirei says in this clip, for today and TODAY ONLY, the background music that you hear every day in this game is replaced by a rock and roll cover of it.

//AWESOME! lmao!

//At the same time though, is this an implication that the BGM, at least when we're inside the school, is canon? I'm...not sure what to make of that honestly.

//Anyway, today was actually a lot better in terms of the group's mood, largely because Kako made her grand return.

//...much more quickly than I thought she would. I seriously was thinking she might up and vanish for a few days, but no, just the one.

//Kako reveals that after their battle with the Imposter Moko, she and Ima made a promise. Should one of them died during the war, the other wasn't allowed to follow them into death.

//Apparently, it was a reversal of their old vow.Originally, they swore never to be apart, having only ever relied on each other and distrusting outsiders. But their time at the Academy, and the compassion they received despite their past behavior, changed their perspective.

//She also shares that the night before, she had a dream, or rather, a memory, of Ima from their childhood. In it, he told her that isolating herself and crying wouldn’t fix anything, and that nothing would get better unless she took action.

//Remembering this gave her the strength to keep going, and now she's more determined than ever to find and save her brother.

//Takumi even points it out in the scene, but it feels a lot like his own dreams/memories with Karua.

//And in the back of my mind, I'm thinking maybe something is happening to us that is triggering these memories. Maybe it's related to the Hemoanima or something, but it seems convinient that Takumi, Kako, and Shouma all had dreams/memories about their past that have proven to be very relevant to whatever current situation we are in.

//I'm willing to bet the rest of us are having these same dreams, and most are just not talking about them.

//I really like the character progression with Kako here. And it bounces back on Ima in some regard as well. Previously, most of the scenes the twins got, which wasn't that many because they weren't frontline fighters for the longest time, most of their scenes had Ima be the dominant character in them.

//It sucks that he's gone, but at least it gives Kako more space to actually be a character independent of her brother, even if her motivation is still to rescue him.

//And she's very slowly encroaching best girl territory now that she has a chance to flaunt her (not physical) stuff.

//She immediately proves to be a massive G, as she gives Takumi the opportunity he needs to talk to Nozomi, by asking him if he can help her carry some water to her room. Apparently, Kako had a vision that not only was Nozomi in trouble, but that Takumi helped her out of it. So she gives him the chance to get by Kurara and Kyoshika's oppression and talk to her.

//The girl is a legend, but unfortunately...said talk doesn't go too well.

//Takumi earnestly wants to help Nozomi, but Nozomi feels like she's being pitied because she happens to look like Karua. Despite his insistence, and despite her willingness to open up to him, and despite the fact that she's really badly sick, she doesn't cave to him, or tell him about her symptoms.

//During today's Free Time event, I wanted more of Kako, so I spent some time with her. There was this really funny scene where she admits that she's trying to figure out who in the academy she would kill and how if she were to commit serial murder here.

//It's okay though; it's for a novel she's writing.

//I'll be completely honest. I haven't spent all that much time doing hangout events in this game. I probably should, but when it comes to increasing stats, they're pretty nonessential in comparison to just giving gifts that the characters like.

//But the downside is that it means I miss out on awesome conversations like this one, and the one where Kurara threatened to shoot Gaku. Which is a bit disappointing.

DAY 70:

//Day 70, which means we only have one month left, and we're basically done with this school. Feels kinda surreal that we're at the home stretch now.

//And with it comes some good news, and some bad news.

//The good news is Tsubasa successfully managed to repeat the fire extinguisher, which means we should be able to leave the school again.

//The bad news is we can't rescue Ima, because we need to school bus if we're going to catch up with the invaders that took him, we need the school bus. And even though Tsubasa was able to repair the extinguisher on THAT, the bus itself is still currently out of gas.

//Thus, Takumi, Eito, and a very enthusiastic Kako head out with the new pump to get some.

//Standard exploration mission here and we achieve our goal, but THANK GOD my FLAME LEVEL FINALLY WENT UP ONE!

//Does this thing only get stronger every month!? I've seen this shit go up to at least Level 6! Is there any way I can make it better myself, or do I just wait for plot progression?

//Someone please genuinely tell me. I don't want to be playing this game wrong.

DAY 71:

//I got really scared when Sirei's morning announcement got interrupted, but thankfully there was no alarm. Just Kako showing up, super excited to rescue her bro.

//She's adorable~

//But yeah, like Kako says in this dialogue box, we go to hold a strategy meeting in the War Room for what we're going to do about rescuing Ima and recapturing the prisoner. Fortunately, we already had a plan set in motion.

//Apparently, Yugamu had a hunch that Shouma might try something suspicious with the prisoner, like helping her escape, so as a precaution, he secretly planted a transmitter on her.

//He doesn’t reveal exactly WHERE he hid it, which is more than a little unsettling...but it at least gives them a way to track her now that she's gone.

//What's more important though, is he explains that he kept this move to himself because he suspects there might be a traitor among them.

//FUCKING FINALLY someone says it out loud!

//Even if it's just a hunch, it's such a goddamn relief to hear that someone else is starting to realize their group could be under attack from within!

//I should also mention here that interestingly, Eito was the first to dismiss Yugamu’s theory, which is a little too fast and defensive for comfort.

//Now, with Ima in enemy hands, a strike team has been assembled to rescue him. Takumi, Tsubasa, Kako, and Shouma will be the ones heading out to face whatever threat is out there.

//Hi yes, hello, HOW?

//Daddy wants to drive the bus today~ Daddy wants to drive the bus~ Little bit of daddy bus drivin'~ Daddy wants to drive the bus~

//Also, real talk, why does this CG on the bus look like it was drawn by a completely different artist in a completely different style? This looks like a painting!

//So yeah, we get on the bus, and Tsubasa drives us all the way to where the prisoner's signal is being transmitted, BUT-

//It leads us...to an ENEMY BASE.

//We don't have sufficient enough firepower to storm this place and rescue Ima, so we currently have no option but to retreat and inform the others back at the school.

//Which...I kind of call bullshit on? We've fought this many Invaders in WAY fewer numbers. Four people, which is what we HAVE, is typically what we use for scouting parties?

//Eh, plot says no.

//I was really worried at this point that Kako might do something reckless, like storm the base herself, but thankfully, she seems to have more common sense than that. So we table the issue for the next day.

DAY 72:

//I gotta say, I do love it when you get to see the characters talk war strategy. It really makes the situation we're in feel more authentic, especially when we don't have Sirei, Hiruko or Nigou here to instruct us.

//But suffice to say that things have gotten a TAD complicated.

//The problem we face currently is we need as strong a strike force as we can muster to raid the enemy base and potentially rescue Ima if he's there, but at the same time, we can't leave the school defenceless either, which means the team is gonna have to split up for now.

//It takes a bit of discussion, but Takumi, Shouma, Kako, Eito, and Takemaru all agree to go fight the Invaders at the base, leaving Darumi, Tsubasa, Gaku, Kurara, Kyoshika and Yugamu to defend the school.

//However, it's not all doom and gloom, as Kurara sends a message to Takumi revealing that Nozomi is willing to speak to him.

//I do love it when Nozomi gets to be the plot girl. As I've said a few times before, I ADORE the worldbuilding and lore of this game. It's not something Kodaka really does with Danganronpa a lot, and when he does, it's usually in his less-impresssive projects (DR3 and Ultra Despair Girls) but DAMN is he good at it in this game! Tribe Nine too as a matter of fact.

//Takumi goes to meet Nozomi, and kicks off the conversation by telling her that he's no longer comparing Nozomi to Karua, true connection be damned. I know for a fact that this isn't gonna be the end of the mystery though, even if Takumi doesn't keep searching for it.

//Especially because there's an interesting little scene here when Takumi finally namedrops Karua to Nozomi.

//I think there's a little bit more to her reaction here than her just reacting to Takumi bringing it up. I think the name is familiar to her, even if she doesn't quite know why.

//But we don't get any more details on that in this conversation. We DO however, get a pretty hefty lore dump on the truth behind this war! Including Nozomi confirming something that I had GUESSED a long time back!

//Something that, I'll be honest, WAS pretty obvious, but even so, score!

//I'm effectively about to paraphrase what she said, purely because I'm super into this lore. So I hope you guys don't mind.

//Nozomi begins her explanation by finally revealing the truth behind her mysterious illness. The “rejection symptoms” she previously mentioned are actually her body reacting negatively to the Hemoanima within her. Essentially, her own blood is rejecting her.

//Until now, everyone, including Takumi, believed that Hemoanima was simply the result of their blood being altered when they stabbed themselves with their Infusers. They were told that the Infusers themselves were tools that allowed them to access their Class Armor and Weapons.

//But Nozomi explains that this understanding is incomplete. If Hemoanima were just a byproduct of the infusers, then anyone could use it.

//The reality is that the infusers don’t create Hemoanima, they AWAKEN it. They only work on individuals who already possess a rare type of blood that contains dormant Hemoanima.

//Everyone at the academy, including Takumi, was chosen precisely because they carry this special blood. Which is exactly what I predicted when I played the prologue for this game.

//This rare blood type is called "Cryptoglobin." A term coined by Nozomi’s mother, who was a leading researcher on the subject.

//Cryptoglobin is no ordinary blood. It has bizarre, almost supernatural properties that can’t be explained by current medical science. It can shift between liquid and solid states at will and reacts directly to the host’s emotions, especially aggression and willpower. In essence, it’s combat-adapted blood, seemingly designed for warfare.

//HOW CONVINIENT!

//Nozomi’s mother conducted her research at Kamukura General Hospital, which, while appearing to be a normal hospital, was actually a covert Cryptoglobin research facility.

//This ties back to a memory Shouma once shared, where he recalled seeing everyone being treated like test subjects at that very hospital. The experiments aimed to infuse Cryptoglobin into ordinary people, but most attempts failed, with Mrs. Kirifuji's subjects consistently suffering from violent rejection symptoms.

//Now that Nozomi herself is experiencing those same symptoms, which in itself confirms she was one of the experimental subjects in her mother’s trials. Though she did say before that she was one of her mother's experiments, and now we finally have context for that line.

//The very power that lets her fight is also what’s slowly killing her. This is why she’s always been hesitant to use Hemoanima in battle, though the demands of fighting the Invaders eventually forced her to draw upon it, and triggered her condition.

//Worse still, Nozomi admits she doesn’t know whether the rest of the group was born with Cryptoglobin or had it successfully implanted by another, more advanced experimenter. As far as she knew, she was the last surviving subject, meaning Takumi and the others' origins, and the truth of their abilities, are still largely a mystery.

//We get a lot more information about how Nozomi fits into this dychotomy of plot dumps later, but there are other things to cover here.

//Unfortunately, there’s no known medication that can effectively treat Nozomi’s rejection symptoms, or at least, none that’s currently available to us. However, there was one method she and her mother previously experimented with that showed temporary success.

//One of Cryptoglobin’s more disturbing traits is its cannibalistic nature. It has the ability to absorb other Cryptoglobin to increase its own power. Essentially, the blood strengthens itself by consuming more of its kind.

//Takumi quickly connects the dots, as this is basically what we've been doing to the enemy Commanders every time we beat them. We absorb their Hemoanima, or rather their Cryptoglobin, and they end up as blackened mummies as a result.

//So we've been unintentionally harnessing this cannibalistic feature of Cryptoglobin the entire time, absorbing the blood of fallen enemies to enhance our own power.

//However, this also comes with a chilling confirmation that the enemy Invaders ALSO possess Cryptoglobin. Which suggests a direct connection between the Invaders and the experiments that created the Special Defense Unit.

//However, Nozomi can’t shed any light on this connection, since her mother never mentioned anything about Invaders during her research, leaving this piece of the puzzle frustratingly unresolved.

//My personal theory at the moment is that all of us are secretly part of the Invader's species ourselves, or that we're at least a cross-breed between regular humans and Invaders. The latter theory would explain why we transform into uniforms, while the Invaders turn into giant monsters.

//Returning to Nozomi’s treatment, in one of their more desperate trials, her mother injected her with additional Cryptoglobin in an attempt to force-feed her blood with more of its own kind.

//The result caused the rejection to stop, at least temporarily. The theory is that her blood, when given more Cryptoglobin, stabilized by absorbing and integrating it into itself. It wasn’t a cure, but it worked, for a time.

//This is enough for Takumi though, and he comes up with a plan. If absorbing a Commanders Cryptoglobin will stop Nozomi's symptoms, then the only choice is to take her with us to the enemy base when we raid it, hoping to find and fight one of them, then have Nozomi get the killing blow on it.

//As it turns out, Nozomi isn't the only one coming with us either.

//After Nozomi declared she would be joining the vanguard, Kurara had Kyoshika tag along with us to serve as Nozomi's bodyguard and protect her.

//Which I am MORE than happy about because Kyoshika is at least a solid 40% of DPS on this squad. She's constantly heralded as one of the best units in the game when it comes to damage dealing, and I can indeed confirm this to be the case.

//Takumi, Nozomi, Eito, Takemaru, Shouma, Kako, and Kyoshika board the bus and head out toward the enemy fortress, ready for what could be their most critical mission yet. Once we arrive, our next big battle ensues.

//The operation kicks off with a unique challenge that we haven't actually seen yet. The goal is to eliminate all visible enemies in a SINGLE TURN using strategically placed explosives scattered throughout the battlefield.

//Basically the closest we get to a stealth mission in this kind of game.

//Also, because she's still suffering from her rejection symptoms, Nozomi enters the battle already slowed and slightly injured. Which is not good for her, because Nozomi has very little health to begin with.

//Also, at this point in time, I was wondering that if Nozomi was having a rough time with her ailments, why she didn't just use her healing abilities to get rid of them, lol? She literally cures every stat condition in the game, including stun!

//Then again, the hemoanima abilities themselves are what's causing it, so I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't work.

//Once the "stealth" section ends, the real battle begins. The team unleashes everything they’ve got.

//What follows is a grueling boss fight against a surprisingly menacing enemy commander. The commander pushes them hard, but thanks to smart team coordination and relentless stacking of damage thanks to Last Yell, we eventually overwhelm him.

//Seriously dude, Last Yell makes this game SO EASY! I sometimes worry about using it because it just means the battles aren't a challenge anymore.

//Nozomi lands the finishing blow—her first time dealing the final strike to a commander. And thankfully, absorbing the Commander's power does the trick, and her rejection symptoms vanish. It’s not a permanent fix, but for now, it buys her more time.

//In more unfortunate news, Ima doesn't appear to be in the base after all; but OF COURSE HE'S NOT! It was stupid to even assume that things were gonna work out and we were just gonna get him back that easily.

DAY 73:

//The search for Ima lasts all night, but there's still no sign of him.

//Fortunately, we don't return empty handed!

//UNfortunately...we don't return empty handed.

//Eito finds a mummified corpse drained of it's Cryptoglobin inside a small room of the base. A very unexpected surprise, but fortunately, it's not Ima's body.

//But it IS apparently the body of the Invader Commander with purple hair that we captured!

//STOP KILLING THE HOT GIRLS!!!!!

//Sorry! I'm a little MAAAD!

//Well, there goes my potential 16th party member. I wonder how this might change on the other routes honestly, because her having a character icon on the map CANNOT have been a coincidence.

//Eito claims that another enemy commader must have done this to her, but is confident that Ima isn't dead yet, otherwise we would have found his corpse here too.

//Everyone seems to agree, but...did they already forget what happened to Moko? Why is nobody coming to the conclusion that they're going to invaderize Ima just like they did with her?

//I mean, later on they say that the ability the Commander used to copy Moko was an ability unique to it, but that doesn't mean they can't do similarly terrible things to him.

//And we do actually see that later, but...spoilers. Anyway, in the meantime, we've got no choice but to hea back to the school, which has been fine in our absence thankfully.

//One other thing I want to mention here is that Shouma goes into a bit more detail about why he felt such a kindred spirit for the enemy Commander, and treated her so nicely.

//Shouma acknowledges that, yes, the enemy commander was technically our...well...ENEMY. But that doesn’t stop him from feeling genuine sympathy for her.

//While she was held captive, he remembers hearing her cry through the night, as if she desperately wanted to return home. It struck a chord with him, and he started to wonder if she had something, or someone, waiting for her, just like all of us do.

//He reflects on how everyone in the group continues to fight because they’re driven by the hope of returning to someone they care about at the TRC. Whether it's family, friends, or the life they had before, they’re all fighting for the same reason. To protect what matters to them. Shouma believed the Invader might have shared that same longing. He dared to hope that beneath her alien nature, she had something relateable.

//Kyoshika, however, coldly dismisses the idea. She insists the Invaders aren’t human in any sense and therefore can’t feel things like longing, grief, or love. Clearly still very hung up over how they treated Moko, which is more than fair.

//But Shouma pushes back. If the Invader was truly devoid of emotion or self-preservation, why did she surrender in the first place? Why cry? Why beg for life?

//That kind of desperation, he argues, doesn’t come from programming. It comes from a WANT to survive, and to return to something meaningful. He had hoped that if he could bridge the gap, learn her language, and understand her thoughts, he could uncover the truth behind her actions and perhaps find common ground.

//But now that she’s gone, that fragile possibility is lost. Her death has left him full of conflicted emotions. He didn’t just want to spare an enemy—he wanted to understand her. And now, he never will.

//Like...I LOVE Shouma in this scene. And there's never been any point more where I've just wanted to give the guy a hug!

//What he's saying is correct, and entirely fair, and yet everyone is coldly dismissing it (or at least Kyoshika is) like a bunch of warmongers. And he seems to be the only one with any genuine empathy or understanding that this war appears different to both sides.

//He understands that we are the bad guys to the Invaders just as much as the Invaders are bad guy's to us. And yet in the end, he himself is so self-loathing that he settles on himself being the one in the wrong.

//It's just painful, man. I feel so much for Shouma in this whole situation, just as much as I do for poor Kako. I know this is an impossibility at this point, but I wish Shouma would find it in him to put himself first for once.

DAY 74:

//MORE LORE YIPPEE!

//Before we get into that, there's a few things to mention.

//First off, is Yugamu the only smart one here? Why is HE of all characters the one bringing up all the points I make?

//A couple days of him missing, and his disappearance literally happened the DAY AFTER we found otu Moko was an Imposter, and yet Yugamu is somehow still the first person to bring up the possibility that they might somehow screw with Ima, or make him an enemy or some shit!

//Granted, he does specify in this scene that they couldn't use Ima the same way they used Moko because he's pretty sure only one Invader, the one we already killed, had the power to copy our abilities. But that doesn't mean none of the other Invaders have abilities that are SIMILAR. Or at least similarly fucked up.

//On a lighter note, I notice that Takemaru has been crying a lot in these scenes recently, and it's funny that every time, he always comes up with a different excuse as to why he's crying.

//But yeah, that aside, Nozomi suddenly asks Takumi if she can come by his room later, and when she does, she finally gives us a lot more context on the story she fed us before about her condition. Not so much on the war itself unfortunately, but more of an explanation as to why she's here and how.

//First of all, as we kind of got hinted at before, unlike the rest of the group, who were recruited or forced into joining Last Defense Academy, Nozomi enrolled willingly. And she had two deeply personal reasons for doing so. First, to carry on the dream she shared with her mother, and also to seek revenge for her mother's tragic fate.

//Her father had died in a car accident when she was very young, and her mother, though loving, was almost never home due to her demanding work (which is the same case for Karua as we know.) But when her mother WAS around, she would confide in young Nozomi, sharing details of her research like they were secret stories meant only for the two of them.

//These intimate talks became the only real connection Nozomi had with her mother. Through them, she learned about the devastation caused by World Death, the truth of the Tokyo Residential Complex being a subterranean shelter, and the grim reality that humanity’s days were numbered unless drastic action was taken.

//Nozomi basically knew all of this stuff even before Nigou told the Second-to-last Defense Academy group, and before they told the rest of us.

//At the time, Nozomi didn’t understand the full implications. She just saw her mother as a hero, someone working tirelessly behind the scenes to save the world. But as she got older, those bedtime stories started to take on a darker tone. She began to grasp the depth of her mother’s desperation and the ethical gray area of her research.

//Her mother devoted everything to the project: her time, her health, and eventually her relationship with her daughter. Her life's mission was to unlock the potential of Cryptoglobin to make humans capable of wielding its power.

//But when her experiments began to repeatedly fail, and management cut off further testing, her mother made a fateful decision. When Nozomi was in the upper grades of elementary school, her mother sat her down and asked Nozomi to become her test subject. Not out of malice or cold ambition, but out of desperation and love twisted by purpose.

//Shockingly, Nozomi agreed. At the time, she felt proud to be useful, proud to help her mother’s dream come true, and above all, glad that this meant they’d get to spend more time together. She admits that she was essentially brainwashed, convinced by her mother’s idealism and her own desire to matter.

//On a day when the hospital staff were off-duty, Nozomi accompanied her mother to the lab, and they attempted a transfusion of Cryptoglobin into Nozomi’s own body. Her mother clearly struggled with the ethics of experimenting on her own daughter, but Nozomi, young and naive, didn’t see the problem at the time. In fact, she remembered those days fondly, not for the pain or danger, but for the rare moments she got to be with her mother.

//However, the procedure didn’t work. As the experiments went on, Nozomi began to show increasingly severe rejection symptoms, and her health started to deteriorate. Despite the setbacks, her mother continued to push forward, until everything came crashing down.

//Just as Nozomi entered high school, her mother took her own life.

//She left behind a note containing fragments of her remaining research and final thoughts. According to the note, Cryptoglobin was meant to be humanity’s salvation, and a tool to fight back against what her mother referred to as "the enemies of mankind".

//Enemies we can now assume are the Invaders.

//She believed that if she could create stable Cryptoglobin carriers, those people could stop World Death and ensure humanity’s survival.

//But despite her years of work and personal sacrifices, the higher-ups abruptly shut down her research. They never explained why. No final review. No closure. Just silence. After pouring everything into her mission, and risking even her daughter’s life to complete it, Nozomi’s mother found herself abandoned and discarded. It BROKE her.

//Nozomi wasn’t just heartbroken when she found out. She was just furious at the cold, uncaring system that chewed up her mother and spat her out.

//After her mother’s suicide, Nozomi couldn’t just move on. Grief gave way to obsession, and she found herself repeatedly sneaking into Kamukura General Hospital, desperate for answers. She wanted to understand why the administration had suddenly cut off her mother’s research, and why the project that had consumed her mother’s life was so abruptly shut down.

//During these covert visits, she discovered files and restricted data revealing the existence of a newly-formed Special Defense Unit composed of teenagers who possessed the power of Cryptoglobin.

//I.e. Takumi and the others.

//Whether they were born with it naturally or someone had succeeded where her mother failed didn’t matter. What mattered to Nozomi was the grim realization that she and her mother were no longer needed. The project had gone forward…just without them.

//Digging deeper, Nozomi learned that the mission of these Cryptoglobin-powered teenagers was to destroy the enemies of humanity and, ultimately, save the human race. Exactly the goal her mother had spoken of with so much passion and hope.

//But then, a thought occurred to her: what if she could continue that dream herself? What if, by joining the Special Defense Unit, she could prove her mother’s work had been worth something after all? Maybe then the people who had shut her down and effectively killed her would be forced to recognize her contributions. Maybe Nozomi could redeem her mother’s legacy.

//On her final trip to the hospital, fate presented an opportunity. While sneaking through a restricted area, Nozomi stumbled upon what we currently believe to be a transport chamber housing Takumi and the others, unconscious and sealed in pods, clearly being prepared for deployment.

//Without hesitating, she climbed into one of the empty pods and hid. The next thing she knew, she had arrived at the Second-to-last Defense Academy, alongside Kurara, Yugamu, Moko, and Kyoshika.

//However, Nozomi chose to keep everything she had learned, and everything she had done, to herself, with Takumi being the first and only person she confided in about this. She felt that the others were angry about being dragged into this war, forced to fight without their consent as humanity’s final defense.

//If they found out that Nozomi had entered this world willingly, knowing what it meant, they might see her as complicit in the system that enslaved them. Worse, if they learned her mother had been one of the researchers responsible for the Cryptoglobin program, they might suspect her of being involved in the conspiracy itself.

//Nozomi didn’t want to risk being ostracized, especially not after everything she had gone through just to be there. But at the same time, the deception weighs heavily on her. Every time she sees how broken, afraid, or angry her friends are, she feels the guilt tighten around her.

//I just really like the way they handled this scene. The dialogue is great, the lore is incredible, and the emotions are real. And I'm really hoping it pays off in these final few days.

//One other interesting thing we find out here is that Nozomi has no recollection of the TRC getting attacked by the Invaders. Which is odd, but at the same time, this is the second time we've seen this phenomenon.

//Hiruko claimed she'd been fighting off the Invaders for a long time before she arrived at the school, which is why her stats were so much higher than ours. Yet Takumi and the others never knew about it.

//But this also made me think about another thing that happened MUCH MUCH earlier on in the story, which I kind of didn't pay much attention too at the time, but with that scene of Hiruko and now this one with Nozomi in mind, it takes on a bit of a different meaning, and it's this one:

//At the time, this really does just feel like a mistake Sirei made, because it's not too out of character to him. But when I watched NicoB play this game, he picked up on it, and thought there was more to it than this.

//At the time, I thought he was reading between the lines a little too much. But now, looking back, I'm not so sure.

//Did the fight at the TRC not happen then? That could have very well been a VR simulation or something, since we know we have the tech for it. But then what do our families think happened to us?

//I really have no clue what this plot is setting us up for. I hope the payoff is great when we get closer to Day 100.

DAY 75:

//Another Free Time day today, but there are a couple things to note.

//First of all, Yugamu has been spending a strange amount of time away from the cafeteria in the morning. Hell, for most of the day, he's locked himself up in the bio lab, and I discovered at some other point that I can't even take him out for exploration missions.

//Same for Nozomi, even though she's doing better, because she's locked up in there with him.

//Good news though. I knew today had to be the day it happened, but we finally got more VR missions.

//Albeit only one, and the BP increase is only slightly higher than before, but hey, I'll take it. Especially since it gives me more of a chance to use Ima now that he's...indisposed.

DAY 76:

//I only have one real highlight for today, and it's not really a good one. The breakfast conversation this morning was honestly really awkward.

//Kurara is feeling uneasy about how close Nozomi and Takumi have gotten recently, and she's both confused and upset that Nozomi would be involved with Takumi, whom she still sees as a creep.

//Eito tries to defend Takumi by reminding everyone that he already has Karua back at the Tokyo Residential Complex. However, this backfires when Kurara recalls that Takumi once said Karua and Nozomi resemble each other, leading Kurara and Kyoshika to accuse him of projecting Karua onto Nozomi.

//Meanwhile, Darumi wants us all dead just because we’re "normies."

//Also, I'm stupid, because I didn't realize until this point that Kako and Ima aren't actually high-schoolers yet. They're still both middle-school age, and it wasn't until Kako said so here that I figured that out.

DAY 77:

//Okay, so first of all, before I say anything else about this day...

//How!? How is that already a thing!? Why do you guys know what sunscreen is!? You HAVE NO SUN!

//Can someone actually explain this to me, because this is fucking with my brain! Takumi didn't even know what the MOON was before coming to Last Defense Academy!

//Like, they must have SOME kind of substitute for the sun in the TRC, because Tsubasa and Takemaru wouldn't be that tanned if there wasn't, but even so, is it ever actually explained anywhere? Like in one of the books? Have I missed it?

//Other things of note. For both today and the previous day, Takumi tells everyone that he and Nozomi have become close friends, but every time he does, Nozomi looks a little downtrodden. I guess she's being friendzoned because she thinks Takumi likes Karua?

//Alsom Gaku and Eito are up to something. Which I don't like, for obvious reasons.

//I'm gonna be honest, this day was SHIT. I did NOT have a nice day today.

//Despite knowing it was probably a bad idea, I decided to go exploring today, even without Nozomi at my side. My flame level had increased, unlocking new areas and giving me access to more content, so I figured I’d take advantage of the opportunity.

//Unfortunately, that meant leaning heavily on save scumming just to keep my party alive, and I had to reload more times than I care to admit.

//In the end, it was all for nothing. I gathered a ton of loot and resources, but none of it was remotely useful. I was specifically looking for tech-related items, and somehow walked away with everything BUT that. It was frustrating, exhausting, and honestly kind of demoralizing.

//I finally threw in the towel and decided I won’t be venturing out again until Nozomi is back and available to join me. Without her, the whole thing was a nightmare, and not one I’m eager to repeat anytime soon.

DAY 78:

//Can someone tell me why 78 is a special number? Or is the game just trolling me? Because I am genuinely curious, and it feels like it could be a number of things, yet none of them feel right.

//So yeah, Eito and Gaku apparently set up a special festival in the gym for Kako to enjoy herself at, since she's been super depressed the whole time since Ima went missing, and has just been putting on a brave face the whole time.

//Kudos to Gaku for being a nice guy thinking about others for a change, even if he did screw up the music. But again, I got really nervous with this scene because it feels like Eito and Gaku forgot what happened the last time we gathered everyone together was.

//I'm talking about when we had a barbecue and we woke up two days later to find out all our food had been burnt. What's stopping that from happening again?

//In fact, why HASN'T that happened again? If we lose this batch of food, we're royally screwed! Whoever did it could easily just do it again, even if it took a while.

//Then again, I guess there's more of us to keep track of now, so it's not gonna be that easy. By coincidence, Shouma is the only one who avoided getting drugged last time.

//Kako is cute in this scene as always.

//Honestly, I really don't have much to say about the festival itself. Nothing really happens, we just get to cheer Kako up a little bit.

//The only other meaningful moment during the festival comes when Nozomi opens up and confesses that part of her feels deeply sad. They’ve created something special here, and the thought that they can’t stay like this when the 100 days are up weighs on her.

//Takumi listens and then admits that, for better or worse, being drafted into this war has become one of the most defining chapters of his life. Even though they’ll eventually return home and go their separate ways, he tells Nozomi he genuinely wants to stay connected, to remain friends with everyone, no matter what the future holds.

//I couldn't really focus on all this though because I was shitting myself, waiting for something to happen. But nothing really did. Some of us slept in the hall because we partied all night, but everything was fine-

DAY 79:

//I SPOKE TOOO SOOOOOOOOON!

//We woke up after spending the night sleeping in the gym, only to discover that the school is under attack! The Invaders have broken in, and the alarm didn't even sound!

//We obviously can't fight them off without our Hemoanima, so we need to get to the War Room and grab our Infusers. As Darumi puts it, the game has now shifted genres: it’s basically a stealth game, and our current objective is to make it to the war room without being spotted.

//I'm not gonna lie, this segment is INTENSE! And it genuinely gave me the heebie-jeebies! You can't pause the game, you can't check the map, and the rising heartbeat sound that signals an enemy is nearby does a great job of cranking up the tension. It’s GENUINELY nerve-wracking.

//Thankfully, I managed to get there in one piece. I first I thought that during the festival, someone had fucked with the alarm system while the rest of us were having fun, which means we now have to keep an eye out for enemy attacks ourselves, making things even MORE difficult for us. But thankfully, the alarm system seems fine.

//Turns out the invaders breached the school by tunneling in from underground. There's a huge swarm of them, and only four of us are on the field to begin with—Takumi, Gaku, Kurara, and Kako. Darumi splits off from us to go clean the Invaders that got into the school building out, and to wake up the others who went back to their rooms.

//Soooooo the odds are not in our favor.

//Good on you, Kyoshika!

//We also get another transformation sequence here, this time from Eito’s perspective, which we've already gotten once before, and I wasn't expecting to see it again honestly.

//This actually made me wonder if there's a possible route or alternate storyline where Eito becomes the main protagonist instead of Takumi. The way the scene plays out definitely plants that seed in my head.

//The good news is the rest of the squad shows up not long after, though I didn’t even realize Yugamu was missing at the beginning of the fight. That tells you how chaotic everything was.

//Also, CHRIST, this battle is NO JOKE! Even spamming the everloving fuck out of Last Yell to persist through the rounds, it’s surprisingly tough and drags on longer than expected, lasting for 5 rounds, which is the longest any of these fights have been so far.

//But when the invader commander shows up, and the situation gets even worse, because...

//WUUUH-OOOOH! Who could have seen THIIIS COMMIIIING!?

//Yeah, it seems to have somehow absorbed Ima into itself, which is… unfortunate. To make things even more difficult, hitting the commander directly causes damage to Ima, so we’re forced to hold back until we can come up with a strategy that doesn’t hurt him.

//Kako is getting absolutely steamrolled by the narrative, just like how Nozomi was. She's been depressed for basically this entire chapter, and everything’s coming at us so hard and fast, and the game isn’t pulling any punches.

//Yeah, I alrea kind of said it, but this was, without a doubt, the most hectic, chaotic and overwhelming boss battle we’ve faced so far. The first three rounds were tough enough on their own, but things went off the rails in round four when both Takemaru and Kyoshika were suddenly absorbed by the damn thing, just like Ima.

//Then, FINALLY, Yugamu makes his entrance. Turns out, the entire time he was missing, he’d been developing a bioweapon specifically engineered using the commander's DNA. It’s designed to target Commanders only, which means we could potentially use it to neutralize the enemy without harming our absorbed teammates.

//In a shocking twist, Nozomi is the one who ends up delivering the poison. She sacrifices herself, allowing herself to be absorbed by the commander in order to get the bioweapon into its system.

//To be honest though, I was a little confused on first watch of this scene, and I would appreciate some clarification. I actually thought Nozomi had taken the poison HERSELF and used her own body as a vector. I’m still not 100% sure, since that part is kind of ambiguous. Maybe she was just holding the poison when she got grabbed, or maybe it was all part of her plan.

//Also, despite the buildup, the actual climax of the fight was oddly...anticlimactic...

//Mostly because Last Yell is so fucking busted, it ended things quickly once the setup was in place.

//I decided to let Kako land the final blow; after everything she’s been through, it felt right to give her that moment of closure.

//Still, I have to say, the BP reward for this fight was seriously underwhelming. Five full rounds of combat and all the emotional carnage, and we end up getting like...2000 something?

//Unfortunately, the victory is bittersweet. We managed to defend the school and survive a seemingly hopeless battle, but the aftermath is rough. Takemaru and Kyoshika are a little woozy, but ultimately fine after getting free.

//Ima, on the other hand, has been inside the commander too long. His DNA had begun fusing with the creature’s, and while Yugamu’s bioweapon did its job, it worked too well. It targeted Ima as well because of the genetic overlap.

//Ima himself is, SOMEHOW, still alive, but he's indefinitely comatose, and his body is slowly decaying. Because his DNA has been screwed with, we can't bring him back with the Revive-O-Matic either.

//Unfortunately, because none of us are really doctors, nor can we properly heal (WHY DOES NOZOMI NOT USE HER FUCKING HEALING CANNON ON HIM TO FIX HIM OH MY GOD-) our only real option at this point is for Yugamu to do some Robocop shit on him to "Bring him back." in VERY BIG quotation marks.

//Surprisingly, Kako is okay with Yugamu doing this with her brother's corpse.

//Kako makes it clear that as long as there's even the slightest chance to save Ima, she's willing to take it, no matter the cost. She tells Yugamu that she doesn't care what Ima ends up looking like, whether he comes back scarred, altered, or inhuman. If the alternative is letting him die, then it’s worth trying anything. Death, to her, is the only truly irreversible outcome.

//Yugamu, however, to his credit, doesn’t sugarcoat the risks. He warns her that even in the best-case scenario, Ima won’t be able to return to his original form. His body, and possibly his mind, will be permanently changed. And in the worst-case scenario, he could end up as a twisted, mindless creature, unable to speak or recognize anyone.

//But for Kako, even that is preferable to complete loss. A flicker of life, no matter how broken or altered, is still something. It’s still him, in some form. She says she’s willing to take that risk, and shoulder the consequences.

//If, when it’s all over, Ima wakes up and feels horrified by what he’s become, and if he begs for an end, Kako promises she’ll be the one to do it. She won’t let anyone else bear that burden.

//She even adds that, knowing Ima, he’d much rather die by her hand than be killed by the Invaders. And honestly? She’s definitely right about that.

DAY 80:

//Yugamu takes Ima into his "care" and starts modifying him into a new body. We'll have to wait and see exactly how that stuff turns out.

//Nozomi explains during breakfast why she chose to deliver Yugamu’s poison herself, because she mentioned previously that "only she could do it."

//Yugamu mentioned that his poison works by attacking specific cells in the Invader's bodies, but Nozomi suspects that that cell is Cryptoglobin. That means the poison could be deadly to the entire team as well, and we even see it when Takemaru and Kyoshika get out from beign absorbed. They fall sick for a little while.

//Since Nozomi's Cryptoglobin behaves differently in her system, she took the risk, as she figured she had the best chance of surviving long enough to make sure the poison reached the commander without putting the others in danger.

//Free Time came around, and I chose to stop here for today.

Conclusion:

//It was late when I stopped playing. I'd already crammed in hours for this part of the story, and I didn't want it to end! I was so hyped to see what would come next, but I HAD to STOP!

//This game, as I've said before, is so addicting. I loved everything that happened in this part of the story, particularly the fights, which were among the more extreme we've had so far, and the lore dumps surrounding Nozomi, and why we're actually here.

//My takeaways:

Kako has very quickly joined Nozomi and Kurara in the best girl's squad. She was handled really well in this part of the story, and I'm having tons of fun with her. She's so cool and cute.

This arc fixed a few of the problems I had with the twins and their arc earlier on in the story, even though Ima isn't physically present for most of it.

Yugamu got some chances to shine in this part of the story. I love Yugamu, and I think he's really interesting, but the problem is he hasn't been given much of a chance to shine on his own just yet. Not even now. I feel like there's a lot more to him; we just haven't seen it.

The fights are super intense now, and I love it, but at the same time, Last Yell is making them a little too easy in the final parts.

I feel like all the characters are at a point in the story where I like them all a lot, with no real problems with any of them.

This part made me feel bad for both Kako and Shouma; the latter over the loss of the prisoner and his genuine reasons for feeling sympathy for her. I hope in other routes, we have a chance to save her and make him happy.

//Anyway, that's all I've got for now. I love this game. To no surprise. I'm having so much fun as we get closer to the end of this route. Stay tuned for more!

-Mod

[mayasdeluca]

“I want people to remember that I was a good human being, a good player, somebody who cared a lot about the game and wanted to see it improve. I just want to leave the game better than where I found it. Ultimately, I just want to be known as a really good player who showed up and did her job and did it really well and competed until the very last moment.”

UEFA Champions League Winner (2008) Two-Time World Cup Champion (2015, 2019) NWSL Champion (2023)

Four-Time NWSL Best XI (2014, 2017, 2019, 2023) Fifa FifPro World XI (2016)

108 USWNT Appearances 199 NWSL Appearances

Washington Spirit Captain Orlando Pride Captain Gotham FC Captain

Congratulations Ali Krieger on an incredible career!

[bulletbilltime]

Replaying Life is Strange in celebration of this week being Day For Day a match to the original game's 5 episodes. Losing my shit when I see the blorbos on the screen for the first time in forever. All is well with the world

[muqingslover]

Ok, so... this might be a bit of a +18 think piece, but... what do you think the lads men would have as their top 3 kinks? I started thinking about it after I read the Xavier somno one, lol. Maybe I'm crazy but I think Caleb would have blindfolds/rope play in his top 3 (on mc not on him, since he wants to see all of you but is very resultant to show all of himself back due to fear of rejection+ if mc is tied up she can't leave)

[ choosing only three was a lot harder than I thought whew. Also, I'm testing out different layouts rn so don't mind me (⁠^⁠～⁠^⁠;⁠)⁠ゞ]

Predator/Prey Play: This guy is the literal definition of wolf in sheep's clothing. What gets him going is the thrill of the hunt and the turntables (his specialty), which is why he will often let you think you're in control and have your fun teasing him only to then pounce when you least expect. If you run from him then you better pray he won't catch you or not.

Exhibitionism: This might be a hot take but walk with me. Xavier is a very jealous man so he won't ever allow anyone to actually see you, buuuut he is very into letting others know you belong to him. You gotta leave for a mission with someone else? Not to worry, all he needs is 10 minutes in the bathroom stall. The bread guy is back at it again? It can't be helped, he'll just have to fuck against the door while he's knocking to show you're busy. He'd love to see you struggling (and failing) to keep your voice down and looks like a smug cat when others notice the marks he left on you.

Cunnilingus: This man eats pussy like a goddamn champ. He absolutely adores having your thighs wrapped around his head, to the point he finds it comforting, and the feeling of his tongue stretching open your dripping pussy for his cock later. Your taste is something he could have every day, which he will if you let him, and he takes pride when you're left a writhing, whimpering mess that begs for him to fuck you.

Bondage: The joke about him tying MC up with surgical knots was definitely not a joke. In my opinion, rather than the power rush over the control he has over you, what really gets him off is the trust you put in his hands. Bondage is all about having faith in your partner to never truly hurt you and knowing you see him that way makes him feel beyond special. Given the chance he'd love to have you wrapped in dark blue, silky ribbons and the aftercare is top tier with this guy.

Lingerie: For some reason I feel like Zayne is REALLY into seeing you wearing lingerie. Ladies, feel free to tease him by telling him you're wearing one, but not letting him see until he's home much later. He'll spend the entire day imagining what type of lace you have under your clothes and he pretty please asks you to strip for him as a reward for waiting.

Phone Sex: Another one I just have a feeling it's his thing. I mean, he is a busy man and sometimes it can't be helped, people have needs yk. He'd like the feeling of knowing you think of him as much as he does of you when the other is not around. The photos you send and the sounds of your needy whines right next to his ear goes straight to his cock and he is mortified when the post-nut clarity hits him and he realizes what he did in his own office.

Overstimulation: I'm an overly sensitive Caleb truther. The overstimulation has his head spinning so good that he can barely form a coherent thought that isn't your name while he slams into your pussy for the nth time like a desperate man. He doesn't want to simply break you he wants to break together, to the point neither of you can think about anything else besides how good it feels.

Roleplaying: I've lost count of the amount of times we've seen him and MC roleplaying and this man will unironically take it to the bedroom. It starts as a joke where he's only doing it to make you laugh, but then he won't allow you to break character and will edge you until you say your "lines" correctly. Forceful and cold soldier? Check. Teasing and pervy Gege? of course. A loving and gentle husband? Sign him up. Strict teacher? No need to ask twice.

Brat Taming: Now defying Caleb is the equivalent of waving a red flag in front of a bull and you better run because when he catches you you're done for. He needs you to need him as much as he needs you and if he has to break you for you to admit it then he will. The rush of being the one in charge and "taking care" of you in a way no one else will is enough to have his cock throbbing.

Breeding AND Biting: These two go hand in hand every time you have sex with him. He craves to have a family with you but, more than anything, he wants you to be as full of him as his heart is of you. He wants you to be so filled with his cum that he has to keep his cock inside otherwise it'll leak out of you. He absolutely enjoys the slippery mess your warm insides become when he rocks his hips into you, slowly but deep, pushing his cum even further into your womb and hoping you'll get pregnant.

Body Worship: I've said it once and I'll say it again: Sylus is a lover boy! ! ! Each kiss on your skin is an offering, a promise and a worship. He wants to know the parts of your body not even you do and give you the love you deserve. The praises he whispers against your body are similar to a prayer and he could spend years exploring every inch of you without ever getting tired. You're the very reason for his existence and any less is just unacceptable.

Size: This guy is not only big but he's also very large. He is a softie who likes to tease you about how small you are compared to him while he holds your hand and pretends he doesn't hear your complaints about him suffocating you after the draped his heavy body over yours. That feeling of satisfaction extends when he has to gently coo you and kiss your tears away while he's spreading your little hole open. He can't help the fangy grin on his lips when he feels his cock bulge on your tummy and he holds your hand over the spot so you feel how deep he is inside of you as well.

Rough Sex: Another controversial take but I feel like he's a secret sadist just not the extreme type. Man can flip his demeanor from "harmless babyboy" to intimidating sea god in a split second who knows what else he's hiding under that purple wig. He'll keep an almost cold demeanor while he coaxes whimpers out of you in the best way and a wicked smirk spreads across his face at the sight of your tears, spurring him on until he's completely broken you.

Food Play: That's definitely one way to make sure he actually eats. Having you be his meal will make him hungry like never before and oh he absolutely will feast (this may or may not be a reference to this). He makes a point of not using his hands while licking along your skin, tasting the sweet chocolate before he left a purple mark on your thighs. Oh, this goes both ways so please pour wine on him and lick him clean ;)

Body Painting: I forgot if there's an actual English term for this but Rafayel would love to draw on your skin and watch you squirm each time the soft, wet brush went over your perked up nipples. He'd scold you when you move because you're making him smudge the lines and holds you in place with his free hand, warning you to stop or he'll take "extreme measures" to make you keep still. You are the only one he'd ever dare to call a masterpiece.

[thehoneybeestings]

𝐢𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐛𝐨 𝐚 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬?‧₊˚──

(ft. sevika, vi, ambessa, grayson, ellie williams, abby anderson, kassandra of sparta)

Content/Warnings: x reader, no pronouns used but reader is described as wearing a dress and jewelry in ambessa's, some suggestive content for ellie's and kassandra's, mentions of smoking weed for ellie's)

A/N: this will probably flop but as i was driving home with my passenger princess butch beside me, i started thinking about all of my fave characters and what their driving preferences would be... a very important subject to ponder obviously. i'm working super hard to get part two of dancer!vi x dancer!reader and sweet as honey out, but i needed a little break so this brain dump ensued and i thought i'd share with the class. please comment your contributions to my theories, or you fail the socratic seminar! (kidding we don't do those i love you my fellow socially anxious babies)

anyway, here we go, starting off with my arcane sexies:

──˚₊𝐒𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐤𝐚

୨ৎ okay so this may be controversial... but 𝐲𝐞𝐬, i think she is a passenger princess- BUT, only when she's with you. you're the only person she trusts with her life, so you're the only person she lets drive her, but for the longest time, you had no idea she preferred being in the passenger seat. she's a very chivalrous partner, so you got used to her volunteering to drive and assumed it was because she liked being the one driving; until, one day, she slipped up and let out a sigh when you mentioned an errand the two of you needed to run. it had already been a long day at work, friday evening traffic had been terrible on the way home, and frankly, she didn't want to be behind the wheel at all before her commute to work on monday. you ask her what the fuss is about, and she (very bashfully) admits that she actually hates driving. the poor baby is terrified you'll think she's a bad butch, but you assure her that you have no problem at all being her chauffer. she does enough for everyone around her as it is <3 (she still DD's tho that's a non-negotiable)

──˚₊𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐭 

୨ৎ 𝐲𝐞𝐬, she is a passenger princess. no, this was not of her own volition, nor did she get a say. not after she rolled her window down at a red light to tell the jackass who cut her off alllll about himself. her first few trips in the passenger seat are spent with crossed arms and a pout (and when she was particularly annoyed, she'd do that thing where she turned her entire body away from you and faced the window so you knew just how begrudgingly she'd taken the spot), but nowadays, she's fully embraced her role as passenger princess. she likes being on aux, or reaching over to play with your hair- and oh, she takes the best naps in the car. just sleepily reaches over for your arm, wraps both of her own around it like you're a teddy bear (for all intents and purposes, you are vi's teddy bear) and conks the fuck out. it's safe to say she's come to appreciate what the passenger seat has to offer, and every once in a while, you'll even let her flip off the shitty driver that nearly hit you while they were merging because that's love

──˚₊𝐀𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐚

୨ৎ 𝐲𝐞𝐬, ambessa is a passenger princess, but she won't let you touch the wheel either. instead, she hires a chauffeur, and the two of you sit in the back of the BMW together. she always has a possessive hand on your thigh and a proud grin on her face, and when you ask her what she's smiling at, she'll just say you look pretty in that dress you picked out on your trip to milan; that those diamonds look so much better around your neck than they did on the display in new york; that luxury suits you well. her secret, though, is that driving makes her a nervous wreck. she'd hired a chauffeur long before she met you, because she truly cannot stand driving. it's completely overwhelming, but again, ambessa would never admit this; would never admit a weakness. not that it concerns you, anyway. the only thing you should be concerning yourself with is sitting in the back of the BMW and looking pretty like you always do.

──˚₊𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐲𝐬𝐨𝐧

୨ৎ grayson lovesss driving you around, so its safe to say that 𝐧𝐨, she would rather you take on the role of passenger princess in your duo. she loves the way the sun peeks in through the window and catches your eyes during golden hour joyrides, the way that the cabin of her car smells like your perfume as you're on your way to dinner in the city, the way you giggle as you stick your hands out of the sunroof during late-night drives. she loves the mundane, too; opening and closing your door for you every single time you enter or exit the car, dropping you off and picking you up from work, rolling up to a drive-through and resting her hand on the small of your back with a warm smile as you lean over and order your favorite milkshake. you are grayson's princess, through and through, spoiled rotten. essentially, whenever there's a chance for her to keep you from lifting a finger, she's taking it.

now for my TLOU II ladies...

──˚₊𝐄𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐬

୨ৎ hell 𝐧𝐨, she all but gets off on you being in the passenger seat of her truck! and i could leave it at that! but of course i'll elaborate. on a real note, ellie does prefer to drive because she prefers to be one who's focused and in control on the road. if you insist, she'll let you drive, but it has to be in your car. no one drives ellie's truck but ellie. and yes, you tease her about it all of the time, but she lets you, because there's nothing like picking you up from work and smoking you out, watching with an amused smile as you get all loose and giggly in the passenger seat. and if you do the thing where you look up at her through heavy eyes, batting your lashes and asking for another hit in that voice you know makes her melt, she'll just hand the the joint over with a smirk pulling at her lips, knowing damn well her passenger princess is about to find herself laid out in the backseat.

──˚₊𝐀𝐛𝐛𝐲 𝐀𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧

୨ৎ so here's the thing: abby is suchhhh a backseat driver. it's one of the only things you fight about, and when you do, it gets ugly, because you know abby and that damn ego. she thinks she's right about everything. but it isn't one of these fights that lands her in the driver's seat for good; instead, it's the third missed turn in a row on a road trip back to your hometown. she asks you to pull into a gas station, and you assume it's so that she can figure out where the fuck you guys are and reroute the GPS, but then she reaches over to place her hand on your cheek and asks you- in that soft voice she only uses when she's speaking to you- to let her take over. and you realize, she was never trying to give you a hard time for your terrible sense of direction. she just wants to take care of her baby. so, you and abby decide that, 𝐧𝐨, she is not a passenger princess. plus, you've gotta, admit; she looks damn good with one hand on the wheel and the other on your thigh.

and last, but certainly not least, my favorite womanizer on the list:

──˚₊𝐊𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐚 (𝐀𝐂: 𝐎𝐝𝐲𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐲)

୨ৎ gonna try not to make this super thirsty or super long but gods help me she makes it hard. anyway. not sure why, but i headcanon modern!kass as being kind of a car girl. not in an obnoxious douchey way, though. she just likes nice cars. she's got a fancy sports car, manual like she's used to driving back home in greece, still spotless inside and out despite her having had it for years. so, needless to say: 𝐧𝐨, kassandra is not a passenger princess. not with a car that sexy. not when it drives that nice. sexy sports car aside, kass is a gentlewoman, so she prefers to drive you around regardless. the one time you convinced her to let you take the wheel was toward the beginning of your relationship; she'd just gotten back from her annual trip to kefalonia, and you offered to drive her home from the airport, expecting that she'd curl up in the passenger seat and get some much-needed rest. instead- despite the near 24 hours of traveling she'd just endured- she couldn't keep her damn heart-eyes off of you. eventually, she couldn't keep her hands off of you, so she booked a room in a nice hotel for the night. just to break up the trip home. no other reason. (okay that's a lie but can u blame her u hadn't seen each other in a month!) you don't get to drive her back home from the airport again, though, because it only took that one month away from you for her to decide she wouldn't be going back to greece without you.

thank you all for being passenger princesses in the ride that was my 2 am thoughts.

𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞, 𝐁𝐞𝐞 ୨ৎ

[sashayed]

ok now it is time to air my grievances with severance s2, a season of television i thoroughly enjoyed and looked forward to every week. s2 is mr milchick putting on a spectacular drumline Just For Me and what do they get for it. trapped behind a vending machine (readmore cut) while i batter them with a trombone. classic ingratitude.

my umbrella gripe btw is that showrunner dan erickson's figurative innie is actually Ricken and he won't admit it and until he does we are never going to see the show that severance Could Be. like ricken is a pretentious nightmare who is insulated from the consequences of his own actions. he's also got a fascinating way with words (fond, derogatory) and a heart that yearns for love and he is really trying to Say Something. ok well that's what this show is. accept this and reconcile with yourself Dan Erickson (or should I say DAN: SO RICKEN??? boom anagrammed!!) or keep displacing all your sins onto that one character and doom this show to eternal alienation from its own core themes.

i think we can all admit that pacing in this season sucks and they had enough time to do it better. and the thing is imo if you were really committed to storytelling you would have to cut some of the most fun/fanservicey individual scenes of the season. i can see why you might choose not to do that! like for instance the baby goats thing. i get it. it looked soooo fun to film with the baby goats. visually the pasture room is great. gwendoline christie is a gift. it's fun! but it doesn't actually uhhh serve the story to spend all that time on it. it doesn't shed any new light. "they are sacrificing the goats because lumon is a creepy cult." we KNOW they are a creepy cult. "lumon thinks innies are non-people who don't experience love and care, but they DO experience love and care and that motivates them." brother we know that too!! "ok but wasn't it all worth it for that heavyweight christie/olafsson finale fight scene." i will concede this point. that ruled.

pacing problems never worse than in "sweet vitriol," an episode i actually enjoyed more than everyone else, but it didn't need to be a standalone and in fact was badly served by the format!! many in your audience have forgotten to give a shit about ms cobel so the revelation that she invented severance doesn't hit for them. splitting her storyline up and dividing it among episodes starting earlier would have kept her more consistently in play and opened up space for underserved character arcs, like dylan aND IRVING—

—because as much fun as burving demon threesome is it is so underbaked and wastes one of the show's coolest characters. WHO IS IRVING. WHY IS HE SLEEPERAGENTING LUMON. you're gonna put him on a train to the farm for old dogs and be like "all was well because love is more important than revenge :)" ??? like sure but again it DOESN'T HIT because it doesn't require the viewer to struggle with WHAT IRVING'S DRIVING FORCE ACTUALLY WAS. and he doesn't even get to kiss. let him kiss!!!!

I actually think having reintegration move at an unpredictable pace and having its side effects be unclear is not the worst idea, and in fact as an allegory for like, real life healing and becoming a Whole Person i maybe even prefer it. but the pacing problems move it beyond "this process is unfolding gradually and erratically" into "we have forgotten this is happening" and it just didn't have to be that way, man. side note there is something fascinating going on with helly's uncomfortable, unwilling quasi-reintegration from the innie side! from the moment she finds herself in front of that gala to hearing jame say he doesn't love his daughter, she is accepting the fact that SHE IS HELENA. she is thinking about how She as a first-person experiencer of the world could find herself in helena's position (which helena—who is less of a grownup than her innie—is still unable/unwilling to do). i've read some criticism of that final scene (which i loved btw) that was like "helly's goal has always been to dismantle lumon, why would she give that up for A Man? wouldn't she push mark s. out the door and be like BURN THIS PLACE TO THE GROUND?" sure, but i think that doesn't engage with helly's arc either—which is not about revolutionary conviction OR about A Man but about about discovering that SHE wants to live, she doesn't want to hang herself in the elevator out of spite, she wants her half-a-life even if it means a degree of complicity with her evil outie. on the other hand, does the WRITING actually engage with helly's arc? or am i getting all that from britt lower??

speaking of making actors do all the work: we as a show are going to grapple with corporate racism and the Black experience :) no we're not :) or are we? ;) you're welcome :)))

i don't love gemma's backstory boiling down to Woman Want Baby. "Greatest Agony for Woman Is Want Baby and Can't Have Baby" is a storyline that makes me personally grimace. but i accept that that's a personal preference and honestly dichen lachman sells her character/s so beautifully that i didn't even remember to bitch about it when i originally wrote this. i just remembered it and had to edit this post because god forbid i don't complain about something. (although. now that i AM complaining about it: putting someone through three years of torture and then being like "we'll prove this fresh consciousness is unaffected by suffering by going all the way back to the baby thing, because 'no baby,' not years of torture and isolation, is the fundamental pain at the root of this woman's being," is...........a choice!!!!! it's a choice. and if it were a deliberate narrative choice, like if it were about how the lumon ideology fundamentally conceives of women, that would be one thing! but i just don't think it is.)

did i mention i really liked this season and had a great time. i did. i am bitching about it because i have a fun time rotating it in my mind. maybe it's actually very brave and artistic to make a show that is not as well-crafted as it could be because then you are opening up intellectual/creative space for your viewers. what about that. if you think about it maybe a slightly less good show is better than a great show. in a way. checkmate haters

[annewithaneofthegreengable]

Kinktober - Day 16

16th — toys, Lando Norris

The previous day I The next day I Kinktober masterlist I Main list

"What about you honey, how is work going?" Lando's mom asks from the other end of the table.

"It's going great actually, not to jinx it but I might be getting a-" You gasp when you feel the vibrations inside you.

"A what?" His dad questions.

"Go on my love, tell them." You glare at your boyfriend that thinks it's so funny to tease you right now.

"A p-promotion. You clear your throat trying to get yourself together.

As Lando's parents congratulate you in your head you're just thinking that this was such a terrible idea. It seemed so exciting when you first talked about it but not so much in this moment as you rub your thighs together feeling the little egg vibrator deep inside you. To his parents he seems to be just casually playing with his phone, but you knew the app he had open like the back on your hand and every time you see his thumb moving up you press your lips together to hold in a moan.

You try to keep the conversation going but it's getting harder as you can feel your panties get soaked by the second. You sneak some glances at him but he just looks so relaxed and chill like he's not making a mess out of you as he draws random shapes with his finger on the screen.

After some time you're practically dripping on your chair and you don't know how much more you can take before you either give into the pleasure and let yourself cum in the middle of the restaurant or just sneak a hand between your legs and pull the toy out.

"I'll be right back." You politely excuse yourself deciding to go for a third safer option.

You walk to the bathroom, struggling to walk normally with your legs just wanting to give in, but as you're closing the door a hand stops it. Lando steps inside locking the door behind him.

"What are you doing?" He teases. "This is not what we agreed."

"I know, I just." You whimper, legs shaking. "I can't take it anymore."

"C'mon baby, I know you can." He steps closer, phone on his hand making the vibrator hit its highest setting only to drop it down to nothing.

"Lando, please..." You plea letting yourself lean back against the wall.

"What is it?" He smirks. "Do you or do you not want to cum?"

"I do..." You bite your lip as the vibrations go back up.

"Then come back to the table." His voice is dark and full of lust.

"I can't..." You moan taking his free hand under your dress to feel your drenched underwear. "Do you think I can go back like this?"

"Damn baby, I didn't know you were this wet." Pulling your panties to the side he runs a finger between your folds pushing it inside you until he feels the toy vibrate against his fingertip.

You hold his shoulders for support, moaning loudly without caring if everybody can hear you outside this bathroom, all you want is to cum and by the way he moves the vibrator inside you it won't take long.

“Don’t you just love it, darling?” His eyes didn’t leave your swollen core. One huge sweet smile painted on his face, such a contrast from all of the scenarios in his head. “Do you love me doing this to you?”

You could only answer him with a rapid nod. Head unable to make up a word, making your mouth to just let out countless whines and mumbles. Your hips moved slightly, getting closer to the toys in hope for them to get you closer to your high. Again.

“Greedy baby wanted more of my toys, hm?” He pressed the vibrator harder to your clit as he moved the silicone dildo faster.

Your screams echoed through the walls, your back arched to the wall. Your sight blurred as your eyes started to prick with tears. “I– I’m close, Lan. I– Want you please. Want to cum on you.” You’re just spitting every word you can make at this point.”

Lando giggled as he looked at you pleading. He put the toys beside on the sink as he try to undo his belt, “And my princess will get whatever she wants.”

Once his pants is off, he grabbed your waist to flip you against the sink, your face now facing the mirror inthe bathroom. Butterfly kisses were left by him on your shoulder blade as he pushed into you in one push. Moans and groans merged together as your warm walls wrapped him tightly.

“I’ve fucked you with that toy yet you’re still this tight– Fuck.” He bit the skin where your neck and shoulder met, making a mark to bloom there. 

He grunts, thrusting deeper into you, his hands gripping your hips hard enough to leave bruises. He pounds into you relentlessly, the sound of flesh slapping against flesh filling the small bathroom. The mirror fogged up from your combined breaths and exertion.

"You love this, don't you? Love being filled by me, loved by me," he growls, nipping at your earlobe. "Tell me how much you need it, baby. Tell me how much you crave my cock."

His words are filthy, but they only spur you on, making your inner walls clench around him tighter. You're so close, teetering on the edge of oblivion.

"That's it, scream for me," Lando commands, slamming into you with brutal force."

With a loud groan, Lando hilts himself fully inside you, his release pulsing hotly against your cervix. He buries his face in the crook of your neck, panting heavily as aftershocks wrack through his body.

"Fuck...you feel incredible, Honey," he rasps, placing soft kisses along your sweat-slicked skin. "Love you so damn much..."

He slowly pulls out, both of you wincing at the loss. With gentle hands, he turns you around to face him, cupping your face tenderly. His thumbs brush over your cheeks, wiping away the tears that escaped during your intense coupling.

"My beautiful girl," Lando murmurs adoringly, leaning in to capture your lips in a searing kiss.

Taglist:@formula1-motogpfan@iamafootballfanmiasanmia@arian-directioner@annimausi@mythicalmaven @lucycowr @hamilton-mount @Chuxk-leclerk @landosgirl @Kikiaaaay @iluvvmeeee @stars4me @starz4me1 @fxrmuladaydreams @Ashleyo1611 @ln-fours @cloud-55 @neo-stay @mysteriesincorporated @nzygftoji @dinodumbass @qxeenjen @lilmacabe @9fi @sya-skies @toriiez @jud-3 @ryl-xoxo @fandomz-queenie @gracie23x @kr1sblog @b-law @F1fan24 @taylorsdoratheafr @missevrythingg @salma @cherrypopsicle @toasterpiastri @uhhvictoria @01rrdbull @aracelys-stuff @horseymchorse3 @lou-ghoul @unknownmystery22 @thisbitxhs-blog @toxicdreamer296 @maxivstappen @si1ver06 @mendes-bae @bestgirlie @mbioooo0000 @depressedgiftedburnout @lieslostinsilence @chaoticversion @kaydesssssssss @maryelizaart @milkyymelanine @bisrae @carlando4 @mystichandspruneshark @sweetwh0re @larastark3107 @fiveyjustin @moonchildlec @bicrazybabe @maximumflaps @sainzwife @i--sa @liviav @nitonan-blog @moodymoony71 @horrible-decision @verstappenluv111 @Meyla123X @bea-stilinksi24 @Hayley125 @imjustme-n @elizamoe133 @bernelflo @evie-likes-stuff @anne1444444 @celtis--vr @rockytheluver @orlafitz1664 @aliceespector @ricciadosredbull @novelant @briannamh07 @oliveswiftly @hotlapshottakes @sinners-98-world @ramenblutte @fallenlunar @little-nando14 @fore45fore @importantduckhumanoidpatrol @eroselless @strabunny @sydneyhlove @jkdaddy01 @multi-fandom5 @f1-hoff @kittylolly4 @reguluscrystals @uhhvictoria @arian-directioner @forza-dolce @dukeofjjune @vimayxo @ilove-tswizzle @peachapat119

[wordsmeetwbb]

Every Loser Needs an Azzi

Word count: 1.3k

Content: fluff, angst (it’s just hurt/comfort okay)

Pairing: Pazzi

Notes: Short little fluff piece for you on this fine UConn vs South Carolina game eve. If UConn loses in a dramatic fashion tomorrow (which I'm hoping they won't), at least we still have fluffy fanfiction!

________

Paige had played like shit. Worse than it, actually. Sure, everybody had bad games. Paige knows that. But this had been downright embarrassing. She slumps onto a bench in the visitor’s locker room, avoiding the pitying looks from her teammates. Azzi, KK, and Jana had already gone to do media, so no one left in the locker room was brave enough to approach her. Good.

Her mind runs wild as she goes through the motions of showering, changing, and heading out to the bus that’s already waiting outside. She’s moving slowly, too caught up in her thoughts. By the time Paige gets on the bus, trying to ignore the disappointed stares from fans, Azzi is already in a seat, headphones on, looking out the window. Paige plops down in the seat across the aisle, avoiding the look she can feel Azzi giving her. She doesn’t want to see the disappointment coming from her too.

“Paige,” Azzi says. Her voice is soft but somehow still carries the few feet to Paige’s ears, even through the raucous noise of the mostly full bus. Paige slouches further into her seat and pretends not to hear. “Paige,” Azzi tries again, voice more insistent now. Paige can’t help it. She glances up.

Azzi’s staring at her, eyebrows raised but with no judgment on her face. No pity, no disappointment. She pouts a little. “You’re not really gonna make me sit by myself, are you? After a loss?” She complains. Her tone is light but Paige is immediately hit by guilt. A loss that she caused. Paige looks away from the brunette, staring out the window at the fans for only a moment before she can’t bear it, and looks straight ahead at the back of the seat in front of her.

“Paige.” Silence. Paige presses herself into the wall of the bus, pulls her headphones over her ears, tugs her hood up, and tries to hide from Azzi. She’s not proud of it, but she doesn’t want to face reality on this bus.

A body slides into the seat next to her. The scent of vanilla perfume and lavender soap washes over Paige, soothing her just slightly. “You don’t have to talk to me, but you can’t hide from me either,” Azzi says softly, too quiet for the rest of the team in the seats around them to hear. Paige nods, just once, and swallows hard. Azzi gets comfortable in the seat next to her. She’s being careful not to touch Paige, to give her space. All the places where Azzi’s body would usually be pressed into Paige’s are notably cold, but Paige is grateful for the separation.

The bus starts moving. Paige turns her music up as her teammates continue to chatter around her, seemingly unphased by the pathetic loss they had just been handed. She stares out the window and watches fields rush by. Five hours later the sun has set and Paige is finally back in her apartment. Jana and Allie are mercifully quiet, so she escapes to her room quickly, dropping her bag by the door and heading straight for her closet, desperate to just put her pajamas on and go to sleep.

She’s just crawled into bed when there’s a knock at her door. She knows it’s Azzi without asking. She hesitates. Azzi doesn’t open the door, just knocks again.

“Paige? Can I come in?” She calls, voice muffled by the wood between them. Paige wants to say no. Wants to pull the covers over her head and pretend she’s already asleep so she doesn’t have to face her girlfriend. She doesn’t do that though.

“Yeah,” she croaks, voice rough from yelling during the game and not speaking for hours after it. Azzi opens the door slowly, looks at the way Paige is curled up on the bed, and immediately folds the blonde into her arms.

“It’s okay, baby,” Azzi soothes, one hand rubbing up and down Paige’s back as Paige breathes shaky breaths into her neck. A tear slips down Paige’s face, the droplet tracing a hot, wet line down her cheek. She’s thankful Azzi can’t see it.

“One point,” she whispers into Azzi’s skin. “One point, three rebounds, two assists, and five turnovers.” Azzi doesn’t shush her this time, just lets her get the words out. “Five fucking turnovers, Az. Do you know how many points they scored off of my turnovers? Nine. Nine fucking points, and I only scored one to make up for it. I couldn’t get anybody the fucking ball, couldn’t get it through the hoop, couldn’t even keep it in my goddamn hands. I’m supposed to be the best in the nation and look at me. Fucking pathetic.” The words quickly devolve into sobs, tears falling onto Azzi’s shoulder, soaking the fabric of her shirt. Azzi just holds Paige.

At some point, Azzi moves them to lay down, once Paige’s tears have calmed down enough that she isn’t gasping for air. Paige is still wrapped in Azzi’s arms, and she knows that one of them must be falling asleep, prickling painfully where it’s trapped under Paige’s body, but she can’t quite get herself to move.

“That was a bad game,” Azzi says finally. Paige lets out a surprised, wet laugh.

“Gee, thanks for pointing that out, Az. I didn’t notice that I cost us the fucking game until just now when you said that,” she says sarcastically. Paige can hear Azzi’s tentative smile when she replies.

“You cost us the game and you’re still the best player in the nation.” Paige wants to cry again. She turns herself all the way around in Azzi’s embrace so they’re facing each other, scans Azzi’s face, and then lets herself smile a little bit. Not a big smile. Not a particularly happy one. But a small, fragile thing.

“I guess we’ll see when ESPN puts out the next mock draft, right?” She jokes. Relief breaks over Azzi’s face. She reaches a hand up, the one that’s not trapped under Paige’s body, and brushes away the remnants of Paige’s tears.

“It’s okay to have bad games, Paige,” she says gently. “Being Paige Bueckers doesn’t exempt you from that.” Paige swallows around the lump in her throat.

“I know. It's just… knowing that I’m going to have shitty games doesn’t make having one any easier. All those people that come to see us play, see me play- hell, you see those signs, Az! People driving across the fucking country to watch and I just disappointed all of them. They didn’t come to watch that disaster.” Azzi grasps Paige’s face gently but firmly and tilts her so that she has to meet her eyes.

“Honey, you don’t owe anybody a damn thing. Every single person in that arena chose to be there, regardless of how you performed. And yeah, there’s probably somebody who walked out of there feeling disappointed. Who fucking cares? You don’t know them, Paige. They don’t know you. Bad games don’t define your career, and they certainly don’t define you as a person,” Azzi soothes. Paige brings her arms around Azzi and hangs on for dear life.

“How are you so fucking emotionally wise? Who taught you this?” She groans. Azzi laughs.

“I read books and talk about my feelings, Paige. It’s not my fault you can’t read,” she teases. Paige grips Azzi a little harder.

“I can read. Just don’t like it,” she mumbles. Azzi presses a kiss into Paige’s hair.

“Sure, honey. Whatever you say. As long as we can go to sleep now,” Azzi yawns. Paige’s heart stutters as she looks at Azzi.

“Yeah. We can go to sleep now,” she agrees.

As Azzi is drifting off, Paige hugs her tighter. “Thank you,” she whispers. Azzi mumbles something that might be a reply, and although she had just played the worst game of her college career, Paige had never felt more like she had won.

[cxvii666]

“GIRLS”

college au! denki kaminari x reader

wc: 2.5k

mdni

“...girls that's mean just for fun, i like girls who make love, but i like girls that like to fuck, ”

starting track...

↻ ◁ || ▷ ↺

.....

"she doesn't like you, y'know."

denki kaminari gasped semi-sarcastically, like its obvious that you don't like him and anyone with eyes can see that but it still shocking to hear out of his best friend's mouth.

jirou turns to him with barely concealed mirth in her eyes and she looks up from her phone where she'd been texting momo, asking for her whereabouts.

they were at a party, a sleazy rich kid house party, one of momo's friend's sisters' or something like that. the kind that involved lots of expensive alcohol, shitty bass music, and sweaty hot rich kids that did too much coke and no survival instincts or a general sense of humiliation. one guy had already thrown up twice, two girls had passed out, someone's boyfriend had punched someone else and denki was absolutely fucking loving it.

he and jirou had smoked some good shit with hanta after pregaming and had enter the party at its pinnacle, completely crossfaded. the good kind that makes you feel like hot shit, like you're the baddest on the planet, and that you could fuck anyone you wanted if you tried hard enough.

that was about two, maybe three, hours ago.

he hits the vape he stole from jirou and scrunches his face at her.

"where even is momo?"

he's chosen to dodge the topic. the topic of you.

he only knows you as one of momo's ex talking stages. you run in the same social circles mostly and somehow, you're still amicable, friendly infact, its some weird sapphic thing that denki doesn't get. how you're friends with jirou, denki really doesn't get. like how can jirou be friends with her girlfriend's ex-situation?

well that's what he thought.

until he met you.

and wow.

you're across the kitchen from him now, chatting it up with some guy you just met, and he's laughing at something you said because you have this effortless wit and charm about you that everyone in your vicinity can sense. it rolls off you in waves, your aura is so attraction, so is your hair, and your eyes, and your smile, and the dress you're wearing-

and now you're looking at him, or maybe at jirou, yeah never mind, you're looking at jirou, and before he knows it his best friend is whacking the back of his neck.

"you're staring," she teases in a singsong voice, fucking annoying habit that she stole from him and just for that he snatches her drink from her and downs it in one gulp. "hey, what the fuck is wrong with you?"

denki fake gags slightly before smiling all teeth "you never answered my question, when's your girlfriend getting here?" jirou rolls her eyes at his obvious diversion from the topic "i want her to make me that weird drink she makes with the tequila.... and i'm pretty sure i left my lighter in her car."

"momo won't care y'know." she looks at him with full seriousness and nods in your direction. "you should be more worried about how you're gonna talk to her."

denki says nothing in reply, only sighs and send jirou an affirmative hum so that she knows he's not being pissy and ignoring her.

his eyes cut to you again, the guy you were talking to has gone back to the friends he came with and you're pouring yourself a drink.

and jirou was right, by the way. at first you didn't like him, he laughs too loud at his own jokes, bums cigs off of everyone and everytime you've seen him in passing, at parties like this or nights at the club when jirou's band plays, he's always chatting someone up.

girls of all kinds, tall girls, small girls, girls that do drugs, girls with dicks, blondes, brunettes, gingers, white girls, black girls, brown girls.

you wondered about him. there's gotta be something that he's doing right, because from what you've heard from momo his cool guy persona is simply that, a persona, and he's actually a massive loser who spends most of his time playing pokemon go or holed up in his room watching anime. so how he can pull so many baddies, most of whom speak of him fondly, is a mystery to you.

but damn, he is cuteeee.

like, cracked, horny, stoner, twink, that would probably beg for it, cute.

and you're obsessed.

that's the real reason why you've been throwing shade at him all night, making sly biting comments, getting into dumb senseless arguments, you're playing with him, working him up slowly, and he's enjoying it.

but contrary to popular belief, denki is not the sleazebag everyone thinks he is. sure he's had a few flings with a few friends, drunken nights never spoken of again, and there was that one time where a girl he slept with lied to him about having a boyfriend. but like, aside from that, he's not like horrible.

and momo is his friend, and idk, isn't flirting with her ex kinda weird, and won't you think its weird that he's flirting with you, and omg, what if you think its weird??, and you actually don't want anything to do with him, and this highly charged game made of mean banter and heated stares, is actually just that.

a game.

and he's been reading all the signals wrong, and you actually don't want him, and he's gonna have to jerk off so hard tomorrow morning to forget about you, because the look you gave him after you called him a senseless fucking idiot for spilling vodka on the counter early was sooo hot and he-

"you're spiralling."

jirou rolls her shoulder and starts riffling through her jacket pockets, probably looking for the vape denki has concealed in his right hand. she pauses and looks at the blonde before sighing. "momo's here. she's got your lighter." she gets up off the counter and pauses. "and maybe drink something before you smoke, you look like you're about to vomit all over the fuckin' floor."

"you dirty bitch, i am not nervous, i swear you're so-" jirou leaves him in the kitchen with a resounding cackle and goes out into the main house to find her girlfriend.

the sound of jirous laughter calls your attention over to denki, who's attention you already had, he'd been counting the piercings on your right ear, and a smirk creeps onto your face, as you pick up your cup and make your way over to him.

"do you have a staring problem?" straight to the point, your voice so close to his ear it makes him jump. "huh, oh, what?" he splutters "staring? me?? why would i be staring at you, of all people?"

the red on his cheeks makes you snort and you regard his fake non-chalant lean against the kitchen counter.

"well that's what i'm trying to work out," you say as you inch closer practically caging him in, still keeping direct eye contact.

his breath hitches slightly as his eyes lock onto your own, determined to win whatever game it is your playing, despite the twitch in his jeans.

you're so close you practically taste his breath. he smells like bud, expensive foreign perfume and bubblegum. your hands splayed either side of his hips creep closer and closer.

denki can hear the gulp he takes when your hands finally make contact with his body, your thumbs just slightly grazing his outer thighs, he thinks he might actually have a fucking heart attack or something.

he keeps his eyes on yours, but trying to centre himself in your gaze seems to have been the wrong decision to make because the way you tilt your head and smile so innocently, like you don't know what you're doing, is sending him to space. and it's your smile that makes him drop his eyes entirely to the curve of your lips and blink, just for a second.

you notice immediately and let out an obnoxious 'ha!' before reaching up and plucking the joint that he had tucked behind his ear, and yeah it was part of the fit, the pink rolling paper matched his pink shoelaces, before taking a step back from the blonde.

he responds to your laugh with a scoff and a roll of his eyes which makes your smile grow even wider. you hide this as best you can by taking a sip of your drink effectively finishing it. he looks at you, wide amber eyes regarding you curiously, like he's a puppy dog awaiting instruction.

"you wanna go out back?" you smile cheekily brandishing your prize, "go smoke this baby before jirou gets back?"

he sniffs and stands at his full height, stuffing his hands in his back pockets before nodding to the exit. and you lead the way to the garden with a giggle.

↻ ◁ || ▷ ↺

"it's not my fault. you're the poser walking around with a joint and no lighter." as you finally stamp out then end of the joint. you'd just had to beg some snotty marlboro gold smoking guy for the use of his lighter. "honestly it was more of an accessory than a zoot, you didn't even roll it well."

"you're so mean to me," denki flushes, honest to god his voice sounding more like a whimper then anything else.

you scoff at him.

you're not mean, this guys just an idiot, generally easy to make fun of, and has the most adorable reactions whenever you take the piss out of him. you can't help yourself. he's so easy practically throwing himself at you, demanding all of your attention all night and then whining like a kicked puppy and retreating back to hide behind jirou when you don't give him the response he's looking for.

"oh, i'm sorry," you ask soflty and the change in attitude gives him whiplash. "are you alright, denki?" he's growing crossed eyed as he watches your lips getting closer to his.

his knees buckle and he clears his throat with a weak smile, "yeah, just uh, my iron deficiency."

you pull away to raise your eyebrow about to make a sarcastic remark, when he surges forward and captures your lips in his. your hands travel up the back of his neck, and the way you thread your fingers through his hair makes him groan into your mouth. you push him backwards, pining him against the cold stone wall, and he just takes it, lets you control the momentum of the kiss, like he's in the middle of a storm just being thrown around and carried by the waves, and he's fucking loving every second of it.

you swear once you break for air, your lips plump, and wet, and juicy, and soft, and he's already diving back in, he needs more of you. more of your taste, fuck, you taste so good, your lips are so soft and syrupy against his, he feels like he's melting into to your hands.

"careful," you murmur directly into his ear and he keens as you grip his hair tight and tilt his head back to give provide acces to his bare neck.

"please, please, please, please, fuck."

you tug harshly on his blonde locs, his eyes fluttering open at the feeling as you hold his gaze. "what do you want denki? use your words."

he can't think of how to reply, not with your right hand itching at his scalp and your left hand drawing circles on the skin above his waistband. "oh god, i don't- i don't even know- i- fuck."

your left hand has dropped, finger only slightly grazing the front of his jeans but it's enough for him to whine so prettily in your ear and cant his hips upwards into your palm.

"fuck, please-"

you cut him off by mashing your lips into his, he accepts gratefully pouring every inch of his desire into your mouth.

"you're so desperate."

he's nodding, he wants you so bad, your hand feels so good even through the layers of fabric covering his most sensitive parts, but its like his skin is on fire, and the only thing that can put it out is your touch. his hands run along your torso, his finger only just brushing over your nipples, enough to make you gasp into him, as he wraps his arms around your body to deepen the kiss.

as good as this feels, the sounds he's making, the whimpers leaving his lips as he grinds into your hand, are increasing in volume and your entirely conscious of the fact that you are outside, out the open, for anyone to hear or see.

you hiss out his name, but just hearing your voice turns him on more and you have to grip his face with you fingers for him to stop moving and pay attention.

"if you want me to keep going," punctuated by a squeeze to his jaw, "then- look at me when i'm talking to you, then you're gonna have to shut up." your gaze is so intense he's nodding before he's even fully comprehended the words you've said.

his pretty amber eyes roll back into his head as your hand finally slips underneath his boxers and you grasp his hot, sticky, dick with your cold soft hands. "oh wow," you snicker, "you're so messy."

your words make denki whine, silenced by a stern look before he pouts. "what so you can talk but i can't even-, oh fuck-" you squeeze him, the weight heavy in your hands.

"yeah, because you're leaking all over my hand."

he holds in his whine this time cussing under his breath and looking at you. his pretty face obscured by strands of hair all wild and messy sticking up at odd angles. his lips are pink and swollen, drool threatening to spill out of his mouth, cheeks flushed.

"that's not fair," he hisses at you but you remain largely unbothered by his attitude as you thumb his tip. "you're teasing."

"i'm not doing anything, you're the one that can't keep it together."

"i-" he starts but you pick up speed and cover his mouth with your free hand so he's free to buck and whine all he wants.

"look at you, are you gonna finish like this? i've barely even touched you."

its like your words are directly fuelling the grind of his hips, he humps against you furiously, drool spilling all down his face, soiling that hand as well. like he can't help but make a mess in all directions.

you can tell he's close when his eyes start fluttering and his body starts twitching crazily.

your hand drops from his face, quickly wiping the drool onto his tshirt before snaking your way back up and applying light pressure to the base of his neck.

"thank you, thank you, thank you-"

that does it for him as he comes with a whine of your name, followed by jagged breath and the crazy stutter in his hips.

you give him a second to catch his breath before you start tearing into him about the mess he's made and about how he better not have gotten any cum on your dress.

"always complaining about something, i swear," he rolls his eyes and before you can bite back he slips your cum soiled fingers into his mouth and runs his tongue along each individual finger before giving a hard suck. you watch him mouth slightly agape, and the pulsing heat in between your thighs makes itself apparent to you.

"you are such a slut." he grins mouth full and you press down on his tongue. "you wanna get outta here?"

...end of playback

↻ ◁ || ▷ ↺

previous track ◁ || ▷ “teddy picker”

next track ◁ || ▷ “hoe cakes”

[vnfadinglight]

⚠️TOP SECRET ERIS HEADCANONS⚠️

I already wrote it and Tumblr didn't save my draft. Which means it's a classified information. If you won't see me posting again it means he found me. It was a pleasure to meet you guys.

See also PART 1 and PART 2

Eris has freckles that he absolutely hates. When he learned to glamour he started covering them bit after bit until everyone either forgot that he had them or believed they faded with age.

He also covers his scars in similar fashion.

When he was young and reckless he had no problem with climbing trees around The Forest House but with time he acquired fear of heights

He is actually one of very few people who knows the full layout of the Forest House so he can organise it's defenses

He is good with his mouth. Eris can flatter or throw insults in a way it hits his target the most, he plays flute and tin whistle (to Berons absolute dismay)

Speaking of his mouth, he sucks dick like it's his life purpose

Being manhandled is a bit of a foreplay for him so he avoids wrestling when he's training. He had few embarrassing moments before

Conscience is just another thing Eris will sacrifice to protect his court.

Helion believes that Eris told Beron about the affair. Eris didn't but argued with LoA about it, so when Beron found out the assumption was made.

When Lucien was born Eris was there not to welcome his baby brother but to kill him. Beron would kill LoA if she bore a child that obviously wasn't his, so he decided to do unforgivable to save her. He tore little Lucien from midwife's arms and lock himself in adjacent bathroom with a knife to his brother's little heart. He cried a lot and when he decided that Lucien looks enough like a Vanserra he started wailing. He had never forgiven himself. LoA lost any remaining trust in him that day.

[lostintransist]

Fallen Angel | Really? You'll Wear It?

AO3

Sitting at the kitchen table to do your makeup had turned out to be the easiest option. Johnny had popped by earlier in the day while Simon ran some of his errands. He would follow you from room to room as he chatted at you. You could almost bet that his words got trapped when he was on a job and he needed to let them all out.

Johnny had flopped onto your bed, messing with your neatly placed stuffies and made bed, while you changed into the dress hanging on your door. Gary had asked you to dinner and sent a gorgeous velvety dress. They had started doing that, asking you on dates. You wondered, as you stepped into the dress, if they talked about it. No one ever asked you out when you already had a date planned. The dress hit your thighs and stalled. Cursing you stepped out of it and pulled it on over your head.

Johnny had started to toss one of your small stuffies above his head.

"My mam has started to try and set me up with a local girl and won't listen when I tell her that no woman in her right mind would put up with my schedule. When she tries to argue and when I point out that a woman out of her mind would be a worse option than no woman at all she just shakes her finger at me and sends me off to deliver her sweets to whoever she is trying to see me up with."

"Next time tell her you're into men and that might shut her up. Now can you come zip me up?"

He popped up, a body shaped dent in your previously flat blanket. He notices the face you pull at it.

"Ah, sorry bonnie. I'll fix it. Now give us a spin," he spins a finger in a circle. "Though you might be onto something about me mam."

He pulls the zipper with expert ease.

"You might have to bring a man home to truly sell it though," you muse. Matriarch MacTavish had a hankering for all her children to be wed, fed, and steady on in producing her grandchildren.

Dress situation handled, you start gathering your mirror and makeup.

"I could take you home?" He joked as he fixed your bed to look just as good as before.

"I don't dare risk your mam's ire when we "break up" because you found someone you actually want," you roll your eyes and head to the kitchen. "Why not ask Simon? I doubt your mam will question him if you're actually dating."

"You don't know that she won't," he mutters as he follows.

Johnny is uncharacteristically quiet as he settles in next to you at the table. He slumps forward, head resting on his upper arm as he plays with the earring dangling from your ear.

Noticing the silence from your constant motion friend you let it ride. His hand stays where it could reach the earring even as you turn your head to and fro in the mirror.

When his question comes it is quiet, contemplative. "What makes you think I don't want you?"

You study your eyelashes instead of looking at him. "You're one of the most sexual people I know Johnny, I would never be able to satisfy that need for you."

He hums deep in his throat in response, letting the topic die. His eyes scratch lines in your skin. He speaks again when you are adding the final touches to your lips.

"Why do you wear these earrings so often?"

"They were a gift from Gary." The question in his tone clicked in your brain. "If you gifted me jewelry I would wear it too."

He sat up now, eyes bright as a pup who heard the word walk.

"Really? And if I made it?"

You glance at him with a smile, "Even better."

Eyes bright he leans in for a kiss, ruining your lipstick, before bouncing up and out the front door.

You call after him, angry that you need to fix your face again. He simply laughs and shuts the door behind him.

Two weeks later a small package is delivered to the cafe when you are on shift. You sign for it and offer the delivery man a drink at half price. He accepts and waves as he leaves.

Grabbing a pair of scissors you open the small box. Inside is a jewelry box, the velvety texture reminding you of the last time you saw Johnny.

Opening it you let out a gasp as you see a delicate necklace that reminds you of chainmail. Small, interlocking circles form a diamond that hangs from a long chain as you pull it free. Setting the box on the work counter you put it on. Grabbing up your phone you send a picture to Johnny telling him you owe him an extra kiss for such a wonderful gift.

Setting your phone down you see a note in the shipping box you missed before.

Every good heart needs protection from time to time. - Johnny

Fallen Angel Masterlist | Masterlist

[nvrsaidiwasinurcloset]

okay hi just a warning rq my autocorrect is off bc it autocorrected my friend’s name to fuckin malayalam on accident. i dont like autocorrect.

ANYWAY! ive been listening to my lovely olivia rodrigo lately, specifically her new song obsessed. i wanted to know if you could make a fic with Ethan x fem! reader where readers bitchy friend has this ex (Ethan) and she made him out to be a real dick. like, manipulating and everything.

reader eventually meets him and it turns out that she remembers… a lot about him considering her friend is a constant yapper and cant shut up about him. Ethan actually turns out to be a real cutie patootie and could literally never hurt anyone.

a few days later theyd meet again at some club or party maybe where they end up hitting it off… a little too well.. yeah so she ends up in his bed (smut part, very dom ethan plspls 😛😛). they could be talking about something really random and then reader brings up how her friend basically completely lied about him and said he was a piece of shit when he really wasnt. like a realllll fluffy end before a small cliffhanger thats never gonna get finished where her friend ends up finding out and texting her.

so sorry if thats too long or confusing idk but i actually love your work so much im lowkey your #1 fan. 😍😍😍

HELLO! I switched this up a little, I hope that's okay! 💕

Also, I fucking loved the 'leave it on a cliffhanger part that won't get finished' because WHY IS THAT WHAT I DO lmao

Obsessed - Ethan Landry x Fem!Reader - Part 1

This contains SMUT - Minors DNI

Part 2

Summary: Your friend told you horrible lies about her ex-boyfriend, and once you get to know him, you realize he's not the monster she made him out to be.

Contains: Mentions of a toxic relationship, Dom-ish cocky Ethan, rough-ish sex, oral - f receiving, p in v, fluff (If I missed anything, PLEASE let me know. I'm sleep deprived atm)

A/N: This was the one that pulled me out of my writers block, lmao. It's still not where I want it to be, but I'm TRYING. I'll try to post more this week, but I will be busy so bear with me haha.

You didn’t know Ethan Landry, but you knew you didn’t like him. He used to date one of your friends, and after hearing all the horrible things he’d said and done during their relationship, you thought he was really scummy.

They dated in high school and couldn’t get enough of each other, so they wanted to go to the same college. They broke up right before freshman year started, and after almost a year, she still talked about him every chance she got. She’d tell you how controlling he was. The things he’d call her when he was mad. How he cheated on her. You couldn’t believe that she stayed in the relationship for as long as she did, because she never had anything good to say, except that she loved him.

You’d seen pictures of him, and after walking into one of your classes at the start of the new semester, you saw him in person for the first time. He was so shy as he took his seat in the lecture hall, some of the girls making their little comments about the rumors they’d heard about him. He didn’t seem like the type that would do the things your friend said, but maybe he was just really good at playing innocent. All you knew was that you needed to keep your distance from him.

When you met up with your friend later that day for lunch, you didn’t know if you wanted to bring up Ethan being in the same class as you, but once she brought him up, you decided to tell her.

“Speaking of Ethan…I saw him today,” you said, before taking a bite of your food. Her face dropped as she looked at you.

“Where did you see him?” she questioned. You explained that you saw him in one of your new classes, and she rolled her eyes. “Can you believe he still tries to text me?”

“What I can’t believe is that you haven’t blocked him,” you said, “I know I’d hate to see someone that treated me like shit’s name pop up on my phone.”

She started to giggle as you curiously stared at her. “I have him saved in my phone as ‘Tall loser with a small dick’, so I laugh every time he does text me.”

“That’s not toxic at all,” you said, as you started to think about what she’d said. “Wait, he treated you as bad as he did and has a small dick? What the fuck were you thinking?”

“All he had going for him was that he was cute,” she said, “But seriously, if I were you, I’d stay away from him.”

“Oh, please. Like I’d even want to be near him.”

Your morning wasn’t going as expected. You slept through all of your alarms; you didn’t have time to stop for coffee. You didn’t think your day could get any worse, until you walked into class and noticed the only empty seat available was beside Ethan. You took a deep breath before you walked over and sat down. Once you reached into your backpack, you realized that your laptop wasn’t there. You were in such a hurry when you ran out of your dorm and didn’t even think to grab it.

“Shit,” you whispered, “I’m so stupid.”

“Here,” Ethan said, passing you a notebook and a pen. You curiously looked at him as he offered a weak smile. “I always keep an extra notebook, just in case.”

“Thanks,” you said, a half-smile playing on your lips.

Once class started, you were taking your notes, but you kept glancing over to Ethan. He was so focused on typing that he didn’t notice, but you couldn’t help but wonder if everything your friend told you was true. At that moment, he didn’t seem like a jerk. Then again, he had only spoken a handful of words to you.

Ethan was aware of all the things that were said about him. He hoped that after a few weeks it all would’ve blown over, but once you have an angry ex-girlfriend paint you as some horrible, emotionally abusive asshole, it’s hard to come back from that. He knew that it was best for him to just keep his head down until he was able to transfer to a different school, where no one knew who he was. He was miserable at Blackmore, and he really had no reason to stick around, aside from the few friends he’d made.

After class was over, you tore the pages of notes you’d taken from the notebook to give it back to Ethan.

“Thanks again,” you said, as you handed it back to him.

“You’re welcome,” he said, shoving it back in his backpack. “I thought about just emailing you my notes, but I didn’t know if you’d want that.”

“You’re telling me I didn’t have to spend the last hour trying to write that fast?” you asked, as he flashed you a sweet, genuine smile. “Why wouldn’t someone want that?”

“I don’t know, maybe it’s because most people here hate me,” he said, sliding the straps of his backpack over his shoulders. “You’ve probably heard things about me.”

“Yeah…are they true?” you asked, as he shook his head.

“You’re the first person that’s asked me that. Everyone else just assumes everything is true,” he sighed, “But no, I’m not a bad person.”

You started to feel so guilty. You’d said plenty of bad things about him, but you only heard one side of the story. With your friends’ story changing so many times, getting more dramatic each time she told it, you were starting to realize that it was all bullshit. You still didn’t know exactly what happened, but you were curious to know what the truth was.

“You okay?” Ethan asked, noticing that you were lost in thought as you stood in front of him.

“I’m friends with your ex,” you said, as his smile slowly fell. “What’s the real story?”

He sat back down in his seat as the other students piled out of the room. You sat beside him as you waited for him to speak.

“I really loved her…but she was just so controlling. Then she cheated on me when she went to the beach with her family. I didn’t find out about that until right before we started college,” he said, looking over to you. “She was pissed that I broke up with her, then all these horrible things about me started going around.”

“That’s fucked up,” you said, as he nodded.

“Yeah, she’s still been trying to text me. I finally blocked her a few days ago.”

“Wait, she said you’ve been trying to text her,” you said, his eyes growing wide at your words.

“Her number’s been deleted from my phone for months. I have no interest in talking to her,” he said, “I know this must be weird for you since you are her friend, but I think it’s cool that you wanted to hear me out.”

“Well, I feel like I need to apologize…I’ve said some things about you that weren’t true.”

“She’s a good liar. She has almost the entire school hating me so it doesn’t surprise me that her friend does, too,” he said, as he stood back up.

“I don’t hate you,” you said, smiling at him. “I don’t know if you’d want to, and I know she’d kill me, but if you ever want to hang out sometime, let me know.”

“I’d like that.”

Ethan was kicking himself for not asking you for your number, or shit, even your social media so he could DM you. He thought you were beautiful, but he knew that hoping for a chance with you would be a reach. He really just needed more people in his life that believed him to make the time he still had at the university more enjoyable.

Your friend begged you to come to a random frat party that you didn’t feel like going to in the first place. After your talk with Ethan, you weren’t even sure you wanted to be around her. You still went, and after searching for her for almost an hour, you checked your phone to see a message from her that she wasn’t coming, and that she ran into one of the guys she’d been hooking up with on the way to the party.

“Why the fuck am I even here?” you said to yourself as you locked your phone and slid it into the back pocket of your jeans.

“Hopefully to hang out with me, if your offer’s still good,” you heard from behind you, recognizing Ethan’s voice.

“Hey,” you said as you turned to face him. “I didn’t expect to see the most hated man on campus here.”

“My roommate told me that if I stayed in my dorm tonight, he’d throw my Xbox out the window,” he said, glancing over to the muscular guy that was watching Ethan talk to you.

“Ah, so you were threatened into being social,” you said, as he started to laugh.

“I guess you could say that. Do you want a drink?”

“Sure.”

Ethan wasn’t much of a drinker; you could tell by the sour look on his face every time he took a sip. It gave him a little confidence though, as the two of you talked and got to know each other a little better.

“I don’t think I can drink this anymore,” he said, sitting the cup down on a table. You sat yours down too, and as soon as you did, someone bumped into you, shoving you into Ethan.

“Shit, I’m sorry,” you said, looking up at him. Your chest was pressed closely against his, his hands on your hips from catching you.

“Don’t be sorry,” he said, “You can stay this close to me all night, if you want.”

“Are you always this smooth? Or is it the alcohol?” you questioned as he smirked at you.

“I’m only buzzed,” he said, before he leaned down, placing his lips on yours.

Chad was still watching Ethan from afar, cheering and thrusting his fist in the air once he saw Ethan kiss you. He started to laugh against your lips before he pulled away to stare daggers through his roommate for interrupting the moment.

“I can’t take him anywhere,” Ethan said, as you smiled at him.

“We could go somewhere more private,” you suggested, as he took your hand in his.

“Want to go back to my dorm? He’ll be here for a while so I know we can talk without being interrupted.”

“Sure!”

Once you made it back to Ethan’s dorm, you were starting to think that he really did just want to talk. You enjoyed listening to him, though. He was telling you about all his hobbies and interests, and you were telling him yours. You started to glance around his side of the dorm room, noticing the cliché, dorky things you’d expect to see.

“Nice Star Wars poster, nerd,” you joked, as he smirked at you.

“Oh, I’m a nerd?” he said, as he nudged you back on his bed. He was hovering over you, his mouth inches from yours. The sexual tension got so thick as his eyes looked into yours, his hand rubbing your hip.

“Mhm,” you said, the corner of your bottom lip in between your teeth. “A hot nerd.”

He felt his cheeks start to heat up, and he really didn’t want you to notice, so he leaned down to finally connect his lips to yours. It didn’t take long for the kiss to get more intense, his tongue brushing across your bottom lip. You let him deepen the kiss, his tongue moving with yours as his hands started to roam. You whimpered into the kiss once his hand squeezed your thigh, your hips started to squirm underneath him.

He pulled away but still stayed close so the two of you could catch your breath. You were reading each other’s faces, and it was obvious that you both wanted more.

“How far do you want this to go?” he asked, his breathing still heavy as his eyes looked into yours.

“As far as you want,” you said, your sweet tone making him groan.

“That’s not what I asked you,” he said, as he leaned back down to kiss your neck. His curls were tickling you, but the only reaction you had were the soft moans slipping past your lips from how well his mouth moved. His hips were rutting into yours, showing you how hard he was for you.

“I want you to fuck me,” you said, as he pulled away to look at you.

“You sure?”

“Mhm.”

Ethan was a little, well, very eager. He got you undressed in what felt like seconds, leaving you in just your panties. Once he stripped down to just his boxers, you got a little curious. You glanced down to see his hard cock straining against the fabric, and started to laugh to yourself, your gaze going to the ceiling.

“What’s funny?” he asked, as he hovered back over you to take one of your nipples in his mouth. Your laughing stopped, a gasp slipping out when he started to suck. “I asked you a question,” he teased, before moving to the other side.

“She really does lie about everything,” you said, as his tongue swirled. “She said you had a small dick.”

He started to laugh against you, before he pulled back. “That’s funny, because she couldn’t take it.”

“I can,” you said, his smile turning to a smirk as his hand trailed down your body to rub you over your panties.

“We’ll see about that,” he said, as he moved lower down the bed to position himself between your thighs.

He slid your panties down your legs, before running his fingers over your wet pussy. Your eyes stayed on him, your bottom lip in between your teeth as he teased you. Your anticipation just kept building as he moved down the bed, positioning himself in between your thighs. He leaned in, slipping his tongue inside your entrance.

He was sloppily eating you out, his head moving from side to side. His arms hooked under your thighs to pull you as close to his face as he could as your hands went to his hair.

“So good,” you whimpered, your breathing getting faster as he worked you closer to your orgasm.

He slid his tongue out of you to focus on your clit, quickly replacing it with two of his fingers. Your back was arching off the bed as he moved his arm back and forth, applying as much pressure as he could to that spongy spot inside you as he sucked on your swollen bundle of nerves.

“You’re gonna make me cum,” you babbled, as he started to chuckle with your clit in his mouth.

That was all it took for your legs to start shaking and your grip on his hair getting even tighter. Once your pussy started to clench around him, he slowed his fingers to a slow roll, not wanting to overstimulate you. His tongue gently licked your clit as he worked you through it, your whimpers getting softer as you came down from your high.

“That was the best orgasm I’ve ever had,” you admitted through your shaky breathing. Ethan started to laugh a little as you looked at him, your eyes hazy. “What?”

“Just wait until I’m inside you,” he cockily said, “You still confident that you can handle it?”

“I know I can,” you said, your legs instinctively spreading wide for him as his fingertips ran up your thigh.

“What are you going to do when no one else can make you feel as good as I do?” he questioned, as one of his fingers started to rub circles on your clit.

“I guess I’d have to keep you around then,” you said, as he shook his head.

“You’d only have me until summer starts,” he said, his finger moving faster. “I’m transferring to a different school after this year.”

“No, you’re not..fuck. I’ll convince you to stay,” you said, relaxing into the bed as he teased you.

Ethan pulled his hand away from your pussy before he slid his boxers off. He crawled back on top of you and reached over to his bedside table to grab a condom.

“I might let you convince me,” he said, as he lined up with your entrance. You tensed up a little because you knew how big he was. “Relax, baby.”

You did as he said, taking a deep breath as he inched his way inside of you. You were moaning as he stretched you out, and when you thought he was all the way in, he just kept going.

“Oh fuck,” you whimpered, feeling so full as he finally came to a stop, wanting to give you plenty of time to adjust. “Told you..Fuck, I told you I could take it,” you said, already struggling to speak.

“Don’t get cocky,” he said, your mouth falling open as he started to move. “I’m going to ruin this pussy.”

“Ruin it,” you said, challenging him as your lusty, hooded eyes connected with his.

It took everything in Ethan to not immediately start pounding into you, but he didn’t want to hurt you. He started slow, your eyebrows already furrowing together, low moans slipping past your lips. The head of his cock hit that special spot every single time, but you needed more. He sped up a little as your legs wrapped around him, your hands gripped tightly around his biceps.

“Maybe you can take it,” he said, his breathing getting heavier. “Can I go faster?”

“Yes,” you whimpered, as his hips moved quicker.

Your brain was starting to turn to mush, the babbles slipping past your lips making absolutely no sense. The only thing your mind could process in that moment was how good Ethan was making you feel. He thought you were adorable, already so cock drunk, and he wasn’t even close to being done with you yet. He kept his pace, but occasionally thrust a little harder to see if you could take it, the loud moans slipping past your lips as your nails started to dig into his arms letting him know that you could.

He angled your hips to go even deeper. His pace was a little slow as he made sure you were okay. Your eyes were pleading with him to go faster, because you knew the words weren’t going to come out of your mouth. It was getting so hard for him to hold back, so he finally let go. He started to pound into you so hard that your skin was tingling, all the nerves in your body on edge. Your toes were curling as he slammed into your g-spot, your whimpers turning to cries as you felt your orgasm starting to build. It was hard for you to keep your eyes open, and you were sure Ethan was going to have your nail marks on his arms forever with how hard you were squeezing him.

“Fuck,” was the only word you were able to get out, your legs wrapping tightly around him as your body started to involuntarily jolt. Ethan was sure that everyone in the surrounding dorm rooms knew what was happening, because you were being so loud. He wasn’t letting up though. He loved that he was making you feel that good.

It only took a few more deep thrusts before your entire body started to tremble, loud whines flooding out of your mouth as the wave of euphoria washed over you. He chased his own orgasm as he fucked you through it, your pussy clenching him so tight that he was moaning himself.

“I’m almost there, baby,” he said, a slight rasp in his voice from all the panting he’d been doing.

You went limp, your grip on his arms and your legs around his waist relaxing as his hips started to falter, a loud groan slipping past his lips as he released into the condom.

He took a minute to catch his breath before he slid out of you. His abs were burning and his arms were sore from your nails, but he quickly got up to take the condom off so he could take care of you.

He crawled in the bed next to you as you adjusted to lay your head on his chest, still so fucked out that it was hard to process your thoughts. Ethan just held you close, his hands softly rubbing over your bare back as you relaxed into his touches.

“You’re okay, right?” he asked, after a few minutes of you not saying anything. You lazily nodded as your hand moved to rub across his chest.

You laid there in silence as you started to think about what’d just happened. You knew your friend was going to be pissed if she ever found out, but did that even matter? She made almost the entire university hate Ethan for things he never did, and it made you sad that he felt like he needed to switch to a different school so he wouldn’t have to deal with it anymore.

“So…” you finally said, “How can I convince you to stay?”

He let out a nervous laugh, not knowing the best way to respond. “I can’t take people talking about me the way they do anymore.”

“Even if I convince everyone that it was all lies?” you questioned, your tone playful as you angled your head to look at him. “I think it’d be awful for you to leave because of her. You could miss out on someone that would treat you right.”

“Someone like you?” he questioned as he looked down at you. You nodded, before he leaned down to kiss you. “You’re good at this whole convincing thing.”

“Does that mean you’ll stay?” you asked, smiling as you sat up to look at him.

“Yeah, as long as you don’t break my heart,” he said, wrapping his arms around you to pull you back down to his chest.

“I won’t.”

You stayed in Ethan’s bed for a couple hours, making plans for all the dates he wanted to take you on. It felt like you’d known him for way longer than just a few days, the two of you having an instant connection. You hated to pull away from him, but you knew you needed to get dressed before his roommate got home.

“It’s late, can I walk you back to your dorm?” he asked, as he started to put his clothes back on.

“I can’t believe I thought you were this horrible monster. You’re so sweet,” you said, as he smiled at you. “Yeah, you can walk me home.”

Ethan walked you to the front door of your building, pulling you into a gentle kiss before he pulled away.

“I’ll text you,” he said, as he started to back away.

“Yeah, let me know when you make it back to your dorm, please,” you said, as he nodded.

When you made it upstairs and got settled into your bed, you heard your phone vibrate as it charged on your bedside table. You grabbed it and saw a goodnight message from Ethan, a huge smile on your face as you responded to him. You were so exhausted from the time you’d spend with him, and you soon felt yourself start to doze off. You heard your phone buzz again, your eyes lazily opening to see if it was Ethan. You took a deep breath once you read the message that was sent to you.

‘Why the fuck were you kissing Ethan at that party?’

[boredpotate]

Happier Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I do not own Arcane or any links. I only own the concept idea to this story and the story itself.

Concept: Isekai Fem Reader turns back time to fix her timeline, but it has unforeseen consequences.

Reader Pov

"MMMMPPPHHH!!!" I let out a muffled yell of pain. One of my kidnappers stomping on my braced leg; the leg brace being broken a while ago with some of the parts being bent or broken off.

I tried to escape, I really did, but that blow to the head really isn't me doing me any favors. They snuck me back down here to the deep end of the Undercity and once far enough away, they started their "payback" in some fucking dead end alleyway. Taking turns punching, kicking, slapping and just overall beating me to a pulp.

"Hey! Remember not to mess her up too much. We won't get paid if you break the merchandise" The woman who I determined as the boss of the rest of the group.

"Oh c'mon! We did this to get payback didn't we!?" one guy says as he kicks me on the ground as a heave for breathe.

"Yes, we did. We also all want to make an actual pay from this right?," their boss says and I can only guess the others agree, "Then we can't fucking kill her! We fuck her up, let her have what has been coming for a long time and then get paid. After that we can start making big moves down here, especially after this bitch is stuck in recovery." she says as she grabs my hair and lifts my head up to show them my state before throwing me back into the dirty alleyway floor.

"Fine. Still gonna have our fun though." Someone says kicking me in the back, the bruises that were already beginning to form from earlier assaults making the pain much worse.

I feel emotions rising again, but I don't shed tears for them. That would just make them happy. Instead I hold out and hope for this to be over soon; for the pain to just stop already. But a part that I try to bury down still sticks to my mind. A part of me that fears that this won't end, that they won't stop, they'll get carried away or change there minds.

'What if I die here?' the thought runs through my head as someone else decides to join in and get their hits in. The pain not getting any better, and only escalating as I scream out from behind my bindings.

"AAAAMMMMMPPPHHH!!!"

Powder Pov

"So what is it you wanted to talk about?" Ekko asks as we dance together as the music plays and people party and mingle around us.

"Two things. First, Y/n and I talked and she said some things that really touched me and open something up in me. So, I want to present the power cell with you. As partners, like you said you wanted to; before I walked off on you like a bitch. Sorry about that by the way." I say, feeling a little guilty now that I think back on when Ekko first asked me and I got upset at him.

"Really!? That's great! And you don't have to apologize for being upset. You were going through some things. We all do. But are you sure? You really want to do this with me?" he asks which makes me smile.

"Yes. I really do. I-I don't want to be stuck. I was scared of messing it all up and screwing things up for you too. I thought I would fail at it all..... but then Y/n talked to me. I'm still scared, but if I fail, I want to work through it. I wanna push forward and keep trying. I want to do that with you, Ekko." I admit, and he smiles and we lean into each other and have an intimate moment together on the dance floor.

Ignoring a random whistle and comment towards us from someone who is probably drunk as shit, even though the party just started.

We pull apart and continue dancing; holding each other close and I feel a weight be lifted off my shoulders. Finally feeling..... free.

"You don't know just how happy that makes me Powder. I promise you won't regret it," he says with determination in hus voice making me smile at his steeled resolve, "And the second thing?" He asks, making me a little nervouse.

"Right. So y'know how we said we would talk about our "thing" with Y/n tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Why?" he asks as he furrows his brows.

"Well when Y/n talked with me she said some things that were really touching and meaningful and then something inside me was just like 'Oh shit. I love her,' sooooo I may have kiiiiiiisssed heeer" I say as I shrink back slightly, afraid that he will be mad.

"......Okay." he says casually which makes me stunned and we stop dancing.

"Wha?"

"Okay. Surprisingly, I'm not mad."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Usually I would, but this is Y/n we're talking about. We both know we have a "thing" for her, and I honestly don't mind," he explains making me relax more as I hold his hands, "Is that weird?" He asks and I take a moment to genuinely think on it before answering.

"No, at least, I don't think it is. Even if it were the other way around, I don't think I would be mad either. As long as it's her," I say as I think back on those beautiful words that Y/n let spill from her lips. Her soft lips, "She makes me feel a certain way. Just like you. She brings something out of me that I didn't know was there." I say, and I hear Ekko chuckle.

"I know. She's also kind." "Caring too." "Loves Isha." "Always wants to help." "Cute too." "More like hot as fuck."

We bounce off of each other as we list the things we have grown to love about Y/n in just a month of knowing her. I smile and think back fondly on all the times we spent with Y/n and Isha. Just living life happily together.

"I love her, Ekko."

"I love her too." He says and we both stand there, two idiots in love with someone and wanting to bring her into our lives.

"You think.... You think she might feel the same way?" I ask him with hope in my voice.

"I don't know. You're the one who kissed her. You tell me." he says with a laugh.

"Well she didn't push me away, but she also didn't kiss back, although I think that's mostly because she was in shock. You should have seen her face."

"I got a glimpse of it when you two came back. Looked like her brain was fried" he says and we both laugh a little at that, "Since we're on the topic; how was it? The kiss?"

"It wa-"

"Hey you two!" I am interrupted by being pulled into a tight hug by none other than my sister Vi.

"Hey sis." I say in a strained voice.

"Happy you made it." Ekko says, his voice also strained and I see Cait shaking her head over Vi's shoulder.

"Of course we made it! This is a big night! Sevika's here too, but she went straight to the bar for a drink." Vi says as she somehow squeezes us tighter.

"Sweetie, you're gonna kill them if you hold them any tighter," Cait says, making Vi let go and take a step back, "You two looked like you were in a good mood. I'm guessing the energy cell was a success?" Cait asks.

"You know it. I already have it on display and ready for Powder and I to present to investors and the judges." Ekko says, making Vi perk up at the mention of my name.

"Together?" Vi asks, and both she and Cait look towards me expectantly so I give them a nod, making them both brighten up more, "That's great! Amazing! So are you two are going into this as partners?" Vi says excitedly making me smile at her encouragement.

"Of course. It's like what Y/n said. We're gonna rattle the stars." I say as I think back on those beautiful words that reached and touched such a deep part of me.

Suddenly I feel something ram into my lower back, almost throwing me off balance, begore quickly turning aroundto see Isha in a new frilly dress. Looking very happy.

"Isha! Look at you! When did you become royalty?" I ask as I kneel down to get a better look at her and she does a twirl to show off her dress to us.

"I didn't know Isha was a princess. Cupcake, why didn't you say anything?" Vi says jokingly and get's a pinch on her arm.

"I'm not a princess, and my family isn't royalty. We just collected a lot of influence over all of the years." Cait defends herself.

"So, basically royalty then." Ekko says, making the rest of us chuckle as I pick up Isha, and Caut sighs in defeat.

"Ekko! Powder! There you guys are, I've been looking for you two," I hear and turn to see Mylo and he does a double take at Vi and Cait, "Oh, hey! Good to see you two made it."

"What did you need?" I ask.

"Just wanted to let you know there's already some high profile looking people eyeing your energy cell, if you wanted to leave some early impressions on some investor's before the competition. Claggor is already showing off our plant. See?." he says as he points in a direction and we see Claggor showing off their invention to some people.

"Shouldn't you be with him?" Ekko asks and Mylo burshes it off and blows a rasberry.

"That's more of Claggor's thing. I'm better off mingling with the ladies." he says smugly and obviously eyeing at Gert on stage.

"You're such an idiot" I say as I shake my head, before feeling Ekko grab my hand as Vi tries to give him some advice on what not to do with women.

"Wanna make an impression?" Ekko asks and I look at Isha who nods her head happily.

"That looks like a yes. But first; hey sis! Cait!," I call to them and grab their attention, "Can you ask Y/n to meet us at Ekko's display? She helped us make it too, so I want her to be there when we show it off. That's fine, right?" I ask Ekko and get a nod.

"No problem! Where is she amyway? You four Are usually always hanging out together." she says with implication in her voice.

"She was sitting at the bar the last time we saw her. She should still be there," I say before adding on more thing, "And if she looks like she's in shock or contemplating something. That's fine. Just send her our way." I say we start walking away to where I would presume Ekko's display is.

"Don't worry, we'll find her." Cait says reassuringly before we start heading to the power cell; it already having people inspecting it.

"You ready?" Ekko asks me and I nod.

"Always."

Caitlyn Pov

"Can you believe it, Cupcake? Powder is gonna present with Ekko! She's finally gonna get out there and show off to the world." Vi says excitedly. Which I understand completely considering all the times I've heard about Powder holding herself back.

"She looked happy. I wonder what made her so confident to try now?"

"I'm willin' to bet it's her and Ekko's latest eye candy," Vi says with a smirk, "Those two are lovesick if you ask me." she says as we look for the girl in question around the bar area.

'Who would've thought an investigation would lead to a new addition of our family and friends.' I think back to just a month ago when we first met Y/n in this bar. I was slightly scared of her then, but afterwards she showed a much mofe gentle side of her. One that cared and laughed.

"Vi! Cait! It's good to see you two made it!" Vander calls out as he finishes serving a handful of people.

"Of course we made it. We wouln't miss such a big night." Vi says as we approach the counter.

"I saw you two lookin' around the bar. Somethin' wrong?" he asks sounding concerned.

"Nothing at all. We were just looking for Y/n. Powder and Ekko want her there with them to present their power cell, and said she should be here. Probably in an unusual state too, but Powder said that's fine." I explain to get rid of his worries.

"Oh, good. Don't need trouble on such a goon night. Last I saw she looked freaked out about somethin' before going out the back door for a breather. Though I don't know where she went afterwards, Silco and I got busy once the party started kickin' up."

"Thank you. We'll go check to see if she's still out there." I say as I glancs at Vi and nod towards the door, before making our way there.

Once outside and in the alleyway that the door leads to, we do a quick scan around to see if she's here.

"Damn. Not here either. You don't think she got drunk and wandered off do you?" Vi asks me with some worry in her voice.

"No. Vander would have told us if she drank. I also don't think he would have let her out here on her own is she was drunk."

"That's true. He wouldn't risk that on any of us." She says as she goes deeper into the alley to see if she might be nearby, and I head the opposite way towards the main street.

As I walk, I suddenly hear a small wet sound when I take a step.

'It didn't rain today.'

I take a step back and look down before kneeling to get a closer look. My eyes widen slightly at what I knew was blood. My shoe making a print of it and some drops of it surrounding the area I stepped

"You got something over there Cupcake?" Vi asks, but I don't respond. Trying not to panic.

'It could be from anything.' I thought before spotting something familiar laying near a trash bin.

"Cupcake? You okay?" Vi asks now behind me, but I get up and quickly walk towards the object and pick it up. My eyes widening.

Y/n's helmet. No doubt about it with the bunny ears Isha drew on it. It's dented in the back and I turn back to Vi, her now leaning down inspecting the blood before looking up at me and her eyes widen in fear just like my own at the helmet before looking into my eyes. We have a wordless conversation through our eyes before rushing back inside.

Y/n was in danger.

Powder Pov

"With this, it should produce a much more effecient power cell. Both for long-term use and energy efficiency. We...." Ekko continues to explain to people that have shown interest in the energy cell. It's been going great. Isha seemed to like the attention when we mentioned how she along with Y/n helped us with putting it together. Speaking of.

'Where is she?'

It shouln't be taking this long for Vi and Cait to find her. Unless Y/n herself didn't want to come, but they would have told us if Y/n refused.

I take a glance around the bar and try to see if I can spot her when I see Vi and Cait rushing in through the back door, not caring to close it. I see them rush over to the bar and immediately grabbing Dad, Silco, Sevika and Benzo's attention, as I see fear on their faces. My heart starts beating faster at their expressions and only get's worse when I see the other three's expressions go from shocked to fear.

I hold Isha closer at that and tighten my hold on Ekko's hand and give it a tug to the side.

"Um, could you give us one second?," Ekko asks them before stepping aside with Isha and I, "Powder, what's wrong?" he asks and I only nod towards the bar and he looks to see what I see. Isha noticing as well.

We move forward to try and get a better look at what's happening through the crowd, and I spot something in Cait's hands. Something I recognize immediately as we get a better angle.

"Y/n's helmet." Ekko says for me with with worry in his voice.

I see a dent in the back of it and look up and see that Cait has spotted us. She doesn't need to say anything for me to know what happened. I can see it in her eyes.

Y/n was attacked, and by her absence took also her.

'Someone kidnapped Y/n.'

Something inside me awakens at that thought. I don't care. Y/n was taken away. We need to get her back.

I need her.

We need her.

Reader Pov

How long has it been? Minutes? Hours? I don't know. All I feel is pain and exhaustion as I lay limp in a dirty alley. I tried to grt away from it all and dissasociate, but the pain is too much. My throat feels strained from all the yelling and screaming.

"Alright! I think that's enough. We gotta move before someone finds us here," Their boss says, but I feel a foot apply weight on my braced leg. I only groan in pain as I am too tired and in too much pain to scream, "I said enough! Anymore and you'll kill her."

"And!? This bitch has had this coming for a long time!" The man from earlier yells out.

"Because then we can't get paid, remember? We got our payback; now we get paid." Their boss says again.

"I say we off her here and now. Bitch deserves it." A different woman says and I hear some murmurs of agreement from the others.

"Are you guys crazy!? We do that and the enforcers will come down on us harder than they already are now!" Their boss says, trying to regain authority, but it doesn't sound like it's going well.

"She's the reason why they're hitting us as hard as they're in the first place! What happens after she recovers and comes for us!?" the other woman says, getting more murmurs of agreement.

"I say we send a message." I hear the guy from earlier say. I start panicking as I see someone hand him my shovel that was taken off of me and start walking towards me.

"Hey! This is not the plan!," Their boss tries to step in front of me to stop him, but is blocked by others and moved aside, "Are you guys serious!? If you do this we're fucked!"

I try to get up to run or fight. To at least do something, but I'm too tired and in too much pain. I can only hardly push myself up with my arms before being stomped on my back.

'This is it? Dead in a fucking alleyway?,' I thought as I am kicked to roll over on my back. The others all cheering the man on as he steps over me, 'Maybe this is the cost? Time letting me face the consequences of my actions,' I barely stare up at the man as he lifts my shovel high over his head. Ready to bring it down onto me, 'As long as they live.' I try to accept, but then the memories come running back to me.

Talking with Vander, Silco and Benzo.

Listening to Heimerdinger play toons on the street.

Messing around with Claggor and Mylo.

Having tea with Cait and Vi.

Sevika showing her tough love.

Going out with Powder, Ekko and Isha.

Talking, laughing, caring and living.

'I want to live.'

I move my head last second and the shovel imapcts the ground next to my head and I use as much strength as I can muster curl up and kick him away. I use the force of the kick to roll over onto my feet and try to run in the confusion, but don't make it far. Someone manages to trip me and I fall down again.

"Damn! She still has some fight left in her! Not enough luck though!" The guy says with a laugh as I try to get up, but I get stomped on my leg.

"Stop! If you do this we're done for!" their boss, or maybe former boss, tries again to stop him but is stopped.

I can only look over my shoulder as the man with my shovel stands over me again and raises it high.

'At least I tri-'

*BANG*

"AAAGH Shit!" The man yells as he drops the shovel and blood spills from his hand. I look forward and see Cait and Vi there.

"Drop your weapons now! Or else!," Cait yells out orders, but no one moves. She shoots near one's head and only barely misses, "I'm not asking again! Drop! Them!," she commands them and they follow orders this time, "Back away from her to the end of the alley! Now!" she says and I glance back to see them continuing to follow orders.

I hear Cait and Vi get closer to me and I can only make brief eye contact with Vi before they move to stand between me any kidnappers. I hear people running from where Cait and Vi arrived and look forward again.

"Cait! Vi! What happ-......" I feel a wave of relief go through me as I hear Powder's voice and see Ekko next to her with Claggor and Mylo behind her.

They rush over and untie my restraints before gently turning me over after seeing my state. Powder gently lifts my head to lay it on her lap instead of the cold floor and brushes some hair from my face. I can't help but let tears fall now and cry. I turn myself into her and she holds me close; not too tight because of my bruised body.

"Someone get her gun." Vi says and Ekko is quick to respond and get's it from the floor and brings it back to Powder and I. Handing it to Powder to hold onto.

"Kids! What's goin' on!?," I hear Vander's voice now, rushing towards us and I peak out from my embrace with Powder to see him, Silco and Sevika. Vander is wearing his old gauntlets. They give me concerned looks before staring down the alley at the thugs on the other end, "What happened." Vander says, sounding more like a command than a question.

"They were going to kill her. We got here right before that guy was about to cave her head in." Vi answers and I feel Powder stiffen at that. I feel her hold on me only tighten a little. Not too much to hurt me, but just to have me closer.

"Ekko." She says and no other words are exchanged. He looks over at the thugs, specifically at the one bleeding from his hand before he picks up my shovel from the floor.

He walks forward and before the guy can step back Ekko swings the shovel at him, knocking him to the ground; the others backing away from the sudden outburst.

"Wait! Wai-" he's cut off as Ekko doesn't stop. He keeps beating on the guy on the ground. No one tries to stop him. Not even Cait; who keeps her rifle aimed at the other thugs.

"Wait, he doesn't ha-" I try to protest through a strained voice, but Powder just cradles my head closer to not see what's happening.

"Shhh. It's okay. Don't worry about it. Everythings okay now." she says as I hear the guy's yells and screams and Ekko beating him senseless. I hear bones break, blood leaking and more screams.

"Stop! He's had enough!," I hear their boss say, but Ekko doesn't stop. He ignores her and keeps going. I feel one of Powder's arm loosen and peak out to see the woman go step forward to grab Ekko, "Sto-" *BANG*

I hear a familiar gunshot. Not from Cait. Powder's arm with my gun in hand is extended out towards the woman. Powder shot her. The woman drops dead and I stare in shock at her corpse, before Powder wraps her arm around me to hold me close again. Ekko continuing to beat a man to death; his screams and yells getting weaker. I hear the breaking of bones and blood being spilled. No one stops him.

"Wh- Why did you....."

"It's fine. They deserve it." she says in a certain tone that sounds too familiar. Too much like Jinx.

I'm overwhelmed by emotions. Too much happening for me to know what to do. Eventually Ekko finally stops and I can hear his labored breathes.

"We-We won't resist arrest. We'll go to Stillwater!" I hear a thug says and getting no protests from the others.

"Vander. Y'know what needs to happen right?" I hear Silco ask, "They hurt one of ours. They were going to kill her." he continues in that cold tone I know all too well.

A few seconds goes by before I hear Vander's heavy footsteps walk forward towards where I know Ekko is.

"You're done here, Ekko. Kids! Take her home."

"What!? Dad, they were going to kill her! If Cait and I di-"

"There might be others who might try something Vi. Take her home," Vander says again as Ekko walks over Powder and I, "We'll handle the rest."

"What!? We'll turn ourselves in! We won't bother he-" the voice is cut off by a loud impact.

'What are they doing!?'

"Come on, let's go home." Ekko says as he picks me up gently and I can only get a peak over his shoulder at what is happening. I see another dead body in front of Vander, there head looking like it was caved in. Powder runs a hand through my hair before gently coaxing my head to lean into Ekko.

"Don't worry about them Y/n. Get rest." she says as if there isn't a massacre about to happen.

As we leave Vander, Slico and Sevika in the alley with the rest of the thugs, I can feel my exhaustion taking over. The screams and yells being left in the distance. My eyelids grow heavy before I have no choice but to sleep. Too tired and hurt to fully process anything that is happening.

"It's okay. You're safe now. Just rest. Isha is waiting for you back home." Powder says softly before I finally drift off into sleep.

Hope you enjoyed. And hopefully 2025 is a good year for everyone. Sorry for any grammar mistakes.

[456x001]

okay huge essay incoming:

and this is based off a post i saw earlier by my awesome mutual @midnight--sadness (her blog is awesome btw) where she talked about gi hun’s ability to forgive in ho. so i’ll start off by prefacing some of the great points she made about gi hun’s trusting nature and his selfless ability to forgive others:

we’ve seen time and time again how trusting gi hun is even if it’s to a fault. it’s simply in his nature to trust and love and to care about other people in the selfless way he does. given that, i think he could forgive in ho. if he sees in ho actually working to make a change and make things right for the betterment of others that have been wronged by the games (and whether or not in ho will or actually even wants to is what we’ll be getting into later), i believe he can forgive him. despite all the horrible things he’s done, despite the unforgivable, irredeemable mistakes he’s made. he’s more than justified in not forgiving him but i’m just saying he might because if anyone could it’s gi hun. he’s made the point time and time again that he isn’t like the masked men and would never become hateful in the ways they are.

now let’s talk a bit about gi hun’s relationship with young-il. gi hun's worry for young-il during the games is so raw and heartfelt. he’s not just strategizing or playing to survive-he genuinely cares about young-il's well-being, even in a scenario where survival often demands selfishness. his willingness to risk everything to make sure young-il was okay shows how deeply gi hun values connection and loyalty. in ho, as the frontman, watches all of this unfold. seeing how much gi-hun cared for his alter ego “young-il" must have left a mark, even if in ho wouldn't openly admit it.

when the truth comes out that young-il and the frontman are the same person it's going to hit gi hun like a ton of bricks. gi hun will have to reconcile the caring, vulnerable young-il with the cold, calculating frontman. it will once again challenge everything he believes about people and their capacity for change. in ho, for all his control and detachment, won't be immune to this confrontation either. gi hun's unwavering belief in him as young-il could be the thing that cracks his carefully built armor.

this dynamic is so layered with unspoken emotions, unacknowledged bonds, and so much potential for heartbreak and redemption. it’s no wonder they gave us at the edge of our seats. now here’s the crux of the discussion. do we think gi hun’s belief in young-il's goodness, his inherent belief in the goodness of people could be enough to pull in ho back toward redemption?

we don’t know the answer to that yet, but i will say this. we’ve seen the final defying act of the villain sacrificing his life at the end for the greater good many times before. however, redemption doesn't always have to end in self-sacrifice. it could mean in ho finding a way to dismantle the system from the inside or choosing to protect gi hun and others while carving out a new path for himself. gi hun's belief in young-il could serve as a bridge for in ho to reconnect with the part of himself that still values humanity, without needing to face total destruction.

in a show like squid game tragedy feels inevitable but in ho's complexity gives him the potential to break free from that cycle of the self-sacrificial villain. if the writers explore his humanity further, there's room for a story where redemption and survival coexist— where he doesn't have to lose his life to find the good within himself.

it’s okay to hope. even in a world as bleak as squid game. personally, to me that feels a lot more compelling than the trope of self sacrifice that we’ve seen in the past. it gives in ho a chance to truly live with his choices, grow from them, and navigate the complexities of redemption, rather than taking the "easy" way out of a grand gesture. it’s a more challenging story to tell for sure but it would also feel satisfying.

i know it may seem like i’m trying to paint a fairy tale but here’s why i think it could work.

squid game thrives on subverting expectations. taking in ho down a path where he survives, changes, and potentially becomes an ally or disruptor within the system could be far more groundbreaking than another shock-value death. it could challenge the audience to grapple with forgiveness and morality in ways that are more impactful than a tragic ending. gi hun's unwavering hope in humanity could become the key to helping in ho see his own worth and capacity for change. in ho is such a layered character, and his survival would be more shocking in a show as grim as squid game. it would challenge the bleakness and give the story a deep emotional payoff. the shock value of how he survives and redeems himself could carry as much weight as a tragic death.

i really value the complexity and emotional depth in this show gives us in within the narrative and i can’t wait to see how hwang dong-hyuk continues to challenge the bounds of storytelling and reach beyond the obvious in season 3 as he’s done with these past two seasons.

[honnelander]

busgirl

once again i got carried away and wrote way more than i planned too lol thank you to the lovely anon who requested this and i hope i did your prompt justice request: what if the reader’s a merchant’s daughter who was supposed to marry a suitor but she runs away and ends up meeting sanji

WARNINGS: none

word count: 3.4k

pairing: opla!sanji x fem!reader

summary: reader is arranged to be married but she won't stand for it. so what does she do? she runs away and meets one particular chef, begging him for help

masterlist

taglist: @smol-book-nerd @shuujin @smolracoon25 @mischiefmanaged71 @amanda08319

You never imagined your life turning out like this: still living with your father at this grown age, never having gone beyond your small island town ever in your life, and waking up every day just to relive the same day over and over again. It was torture.

Every single day of your life has been the same since you left school: you woke up before the sun rose, made breakfast for you and your father, helped prepare the wagon for its daily trip into town, then spend all day yelling in the town's square trying to sell any shoes you could (your father was a shoe merchant), pack up the unsold product at the end of the day, head home, make dinner, then go to bed soon after cleaning up just so you could wake up and do the same things all over again. You hated it.

But what could you really do to change anything? You were born to a poor shoe merchant and ever since your mother had died, things had become even tighter for your small family, of now, two.

Your father never had much, barely a penny to his name, so that meant you also had no money to your name either. Sure, you could've started a side hustle of scams and cons, maybe trying your luck at playing poker at the docks whenever pirates showed up, but how could you just leave your father like that? Just leave him all alone once you scraped together enough berry to buy a one-way ticket out of this town? As much as you were tempted, you couldn't. It didn't feel right. And besides, you were always too exhausted at the end of the day to do anything else anyway.

But then one day, your father said something that would change your life forever.

The day started out like any other. You had cooked a quick meal of toast and eggs for yourselves and once you finished your plate, you moved to get up to put the dishes in the sink for later.

But before you could get out of your seat, your dad grabbed your wrist gently, telling you to stay seated. "Actually, y/n, no need to rush this morning. We're not going into town today."

"What?" You were taken aback. You couldn't remember a day where you both didn't do this daily routine. "Why?"

Your father couldn't look at you in the eye. Instead, he kept his focus on his half-eaten breakfast, which was also weird. He normally finished eating before you. "Y/n...you know I wouldn't do this unless I had no other choice," he started.

You felt your heart drop to the bottom of your stomach. What was happening?

"But business has been really slow lately, and I tried to hold this off for as long as I could," he continued.

"Hold what off?"

He kept talking like you hadn't said anything. "But there really was no other choice." He swallowed and finally looked up and the look in his eyes scared you. You've never seen your father look that upset before...the only other time he had looked like that had been when mom died.

You tried to swallow but your mouth was dry. "Dad, what's going on?"

"And you know I always will love you, right?"

"Dad," you said a little more sternly, your heart beating a thousand miles a minute. "What is happening?" After a moment of silence, you repeated yourself. "Dad, answer me."

His next sentence hit you like a ton of bricks. "Y/n, I arranged for you to be married."

You couldn't move. "What?" you breathed.

Like always, your father continued on like you hadn't said a word. "He's a nice man, a decent man. His name is Olaf and he's from the North Blue, comes from money..."

You felt your dad tighten his grip on your wrist and suddenly you felt like you were being suffocated. You ripped your hand away from your dad's grip, the sting of betrayal hurting more than any cut or wound ever could. Tears pricked at the corners of your eyes as you fought your hardest not to let them fall. "You sold me?" your voice quivered.

Those three words finally got your dad's attention. He looked into your eyes again, hurt evident in his gaze, but you realized you didn't care. Not anymore. "No," he replied firmly. "You know I would never sell you to anyone. I would never do that."

A humorous laugh escaped your lips. "Oh? But you'd put me in an arranged marriage instead? For money?" When you blinked, tears fell down your cheeks. "Are we really that poor dad?" you spat.

"Y/n-"

"Why didn't you tell me how bad off we were before? Before-" you stuttered and waved your arms around, "before all of this? I could've- I could've done something, anything." You ran a hand through your hair as you exhaled, a sardonic smile appearing on your face as you looked up to the ceiling, up to whatever God had subjected you to this cruel fate.

"There's nothing you could've done, y/n."

"You don't know that!" you exclaimed. Pure hot red rage adorning your features as your furious eyes snapped down to look at your dad. "I could've hustled, I could've conned the guys down at the dock for some money. I could've done something instead of nothing!"

"And then what? End up dead in a dark alley once those men found out you stole money from them? End up raped?" Your dad's anger matched yours, his voice growing louder with each sentence. "Maybe become a pirate? There is no way I would ever let that happen to you y/n."

Your dad hated pirates and you knew he would rather die before he ever let you become one.

You flung your arms up in exasperation. rolling your eyes as you let out a frustrated groan. "Oh I don't know dad," you yelled, "maybe I could've joined the Marines or something!"

But your dad didn't like the Marines either. He believed pirates and Marines were the same person, just in different clothes.

"I wouldn't let you do that either, you know that y/n."

Suddenly, a thought stuck you: you were an adult, so why was your father still making all of these major life decisions for you? It didn't make sense.

But you knew one thing: you certainly weren't going to marry some rich guy you didn't know from the North Blue. Not if you were still living and breathing.

You glanced at the open window behind your dad, seeing the early morning tinges of a sunrise lighting up the sky. Perfect, you thought. Docked ships normally didn't leave port until the sun broke the horizon, so you had a chance to hop aboard any ship that would take you far far away from here. Away from your miserable life and a father you were realizing you hated.

The sky started becoming brighter by the minute and your heart rate started to spike. You estimated you had around 20 minutes or so until the sunrise broke and if you were serious about running away, it was now or never.

Suddenly, you stood up from the kitchen table and realized that your father had stopped whatever he was saying to look at you with a curious expression.

"Y/n?"

"Y-you know what dad?" your voice shook and you swallowed your nerves. "I...I think you're right? This Olaf guy probably isn't that bad and would probably give me a better life than I ever could," you ground out and forced a smile that you were sure looked more like a grimace. "I'll do it."

If today had been a normal day, your dad would've been tipped off that something was up but he was just so relieved that you were actually agreeing to all this.

Your dad had a relieved smile on his face as he said, "That makes me so happy to hear that y/n. You have no idea."

"Y-yeah, me too," you agreed with a small nod. You reached down to pick up your plates but your hands were shaking.

Your father placed a hand on your arm. "I understand you're nervous sweetheart. Why don't you go lie down in your room? There's some time until Olaf gets here. I can handle the dishes for today."

Perfect. You agreed and nodded quickly. Thanking your dad and giving him one last look before you went up to your room and never saw him again.

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

Your lungs were burning as you ran towards the docks. You could feel sweat running down your back as you pushed yourself to run as fast as you could, arms pumping and feet kicking out dirt behind you.

The sky was beginning to turn a lighter shade of orange and a ping of fear gripped your heart.

What if you didn't make it? What if all the ships were all boarded up and ready to set sail by the time you got there? It wasn't uncommon for ships to leave a tad early since most of them had a full day at sea before them but you were so close, you just had to make it. There were probably around five minutes or so until you reached the docks and you just had to get over this ridiculous hill.

But your legs were tired and your sides were cramping and you could feel yourself slowing down due to exhaustion. You weren't a huge runner to begin with but you were literally running for your life- so what choice did you have?

If you made it through all this, you vowed to yourself that you would get better at running. Who knew the next time your life would depend on it?

As you reached the top of the hill, you took a quick second to breathe and survey the docks before you but what you saw nearly stopped your heart. There were normally a dozen or so ships that littered these docks but it looked like most of them had headed out early with only a few ships remaining, and the ones that were left? They looked like they were nearly ready to leave port as well.

With newfound urgency, you sprinted down the hill, yelling out to any sailor who would listen to your plea.

"WAIT!" you screamed. "Wait for me!"

But no one acknowledged you. You started to wave your arms around, your travel bag bouncing around as you continued to sprint.

"PLEASE! I beg you!"

As you got closer, you could start to make out the names of the few ships that were there. There was one ship called "The Happy Farewell" and you figured since they were closest you would try them first.

"Get lost girl," the ship's captain sneered. "I got no use for a girl like you."

"But please, I need to leave. You don't understand," you begged.

The captain clicked his tongue as he shook his head. "Don't we all?" he muttered. But he spared you one last glance before boarding his ship and something in your expression must've been wildly desperate because he sighed before nodding towards the ship two docks down. "Zeff's."

"What?"

"Go to Zeff's ship, girl. The Baratie. He doesn't have the heart to turn away desperate souls like yourself."

Your head whipped towards the direction the captain was looking and you saw the decent-sized Baratie standing there.

"But you better hurry," he warned. "They're setting sail as soon as we leave."

You quickly looked back at the captain to thank him but he was already walking up the plank to board his ship, barking out orders to let down the sails and hoist up the anchor.

Shit. You had to hurry.

You sprinted two docks over and once you reached the dock The Baratie was tied to, you saw a couple of men in white coats loading up the last of the crates of food onboard. You had just made it.

It was weird to you that these pirates were dressed up in matching white coats and blue bandanas around their collar but, hey, it could always be worse and you weren't in a position to be picky. You would even join a circus crew at this point.

You made your way over to the closest "pirate", a tall blonde guy that had hair almost covering his left eye. He was inspecting one of the crates, clipboard in hand and checked things off as he examined it.

"Excuse me," you huffed, trying to get this man's attention. "But I need your help. I need to speak to the ship's captain."

"Don't we all," the guy replied with a good-humored laugh and crooked smile, not looking up from his clipboard.

"Please," you urged. "It's important."

The man looked up from his clipboard and did a double-take, clearly not expecting a young woman like yourself, who looked like they just ran away from demons, asking to speak to the captain this early in the morning.

His eyebrows rose as he looked you over, his smile disappearing. "Are you alright Madam? Is something the matter?"

As his eyes scanned you over, you noticed how good-looking this guy was. And here you were, all sweaty and disheveled, your hair probably sticking out in all different directions. You prayed to whatever God was out there that you didn't have sweat stains on your shirt.

What a day this was turning out to be.

You ran your hands over your hair, trying to smooth down your flyaways and hoping you looked a bit more presentable. "I will be alright, when I speak to the captain."

"Anything I can help you with?"

What the- was this guy hitting on you? Your wandering eyes snapped back to look at this man when he asked that, looking to see if he really had the audacity to hit on you while you were begging for help, but you saw no trace of flirtation whatsoever, just concern.

"Ah- no. Unless you have the power to give me a spot on this crew."

The man's eyes lit up (you noticed they were blue). "Ah, so you want to join the Baratie? Become a chef yourself?"

You looked at him in utter confusion, blinking a couple times to make sure you heard him right. "Huh? A chef?" You looked at his outfit a little more closely and turned to examine the other men who were dressed similarly. You didn't notice it before, but they weren't just wearing any white coat, they were wearing a chef's white coat. "You guys are chefs?" you asked dumbly.

The chef, as you now noticed, rubbed his jaw as he tried to hide his smile at your obvious question. "Yes, Madam. We're chefs."

"So you're a pirate chef?"

The blonde cook couldn't hide his laugh at your series of questions, his blue eyes sparkling and white teeth showing like he had just heard the funniest joke. "No, Madam. We're just chefs. Not pirates or pirate chefs."

You felt stupid and felt your cheeks heat up in embarrassment. "Oh." But if they were all chefs on this boat, did that mean... "Wait- do I have to be a chef in order to get on this boat?"

"Ah well, if it were up to me," he sighed, "I would give you a spot on the ship regardless if you could cook or not." He twirled the pencil between his fingers as he crossed his arm in thought. "Although, we do need some new waiters. The dining room always seems to be short-staffed..."

You opened your mouth to quickly volunteer yourself even though you never waited tables a day in your life but the blonde chef kept talking.

"Or," he thought out loud," if you really wanted to be a chef with no experience, there are ways you could get into the kitchen. We do need a new busboy. Or girl," he quickly corrected. "Move your way up and learn..."

The sun broke the horizon, the morning orange light now fading into yellow. You swallowed. You were out of time. If you couldn't get a spot on this ship then your life was over.

"I'll do it," you quickly interrupted and nodded. "I'll- I'll do anything. A chef, a waiter, a busboy or busgirl- anything. I'll even clean toilets if I have to. I just- I need to get on this ship."

Your desperate plea silenced the chef, pulling him out of his musings and you could see concern wash over his features. But before he could say anything else, a voice called out from the top of the ship's plank.

"Oi! Sanji! What the hell are you doing down there, son?" the man with a tall chef's hat and braided mustache called out. As he made his way down to the dock, you noticed one of his legs was a wooden peg instead. "The sun's broken the horizon. I don't know how many times I need to tell you this, but next time we pull out of port late, I'm shoving my leg up your ass and you're off the line for a week."

Sanji shook his head, for once not caring about the threat of not cooking, and looked at his father figure, nodding to you. "Zeff, you need to speak to this girl. You have to let her join our crew."

You watched as Zeff followed Sanji's nod and looked down at you with raised eyebrows. It was like he just noticed you were there. "Her? For the last time Sanji, I'm not letting one of your one-night stands join the crew," he said with an exasperated sigh and turned back towards the ship. "Pretty or not."

"Wait!" you called out, grabbing Zeff's arm and immediately dropping it when he turned to look at you in disbelief. "I, I don't know him," you quickly said, pointing at Sanji and taking a big step away from him to prove your point, "My name is y/n and I desperately need a spot on your ship, Sir. Please."

Zeff studied you for a moment, eyes scanning your face. "People like you normally aren't 'desperate' to join my crew."

"But I am, Sir. I," you inhaled a shaky breath at the thought that this man could also turn you away. "I can't stay here. I need to leave. I'll do anything. I can even scrub the toilets."

Zeff regarded you with a short sigh. "Lass, there's no way I would have you scrubbing toilets. I'd make him do that way before asking you," he said and jabbed a thumb at Sanji, silencing Sanji's scoff of disbelief with a look. His face became serious as he asked, "You're serious aren't you?"

You nodded. "As serious as I can be sir."

The head chef became quiet, looking at you like he was trying to figure out what you were running away from, but it wasn't any of his business. At the end of the day, everyone had a past and he wasn't there to judge.

"Alright, lass, you want a position at my restaurant that badly? You got it. Your first service as a busboy- girl, whatever- starts tonight." He pointed a finger at you and with a stern voice asked, "Everyone on this ship earns their keep, alright? And no talking back. Understood?"

Relief flooded your veins at his words, you couldn't control the smile that stretched your cheeks as you nodded. "Yes, chef."

The corner of Zeff's mouth twitched upwards in amusement and he nodded once. "Good." As he turned around to head back onto the ship, he glanced at Sanji. "I like this girl. Wherever you found her...good job, son." He started walking back up the plank onto the ship and called out, "Get those last few crates up on here, boy. We got to leave, we have a dinner service tonight!"

You frowned as you watched Zeff walk away, a little annoyed at the thought that 'Sanji found you' instead of you finding him. When you looked over at Sanji, you saw him still watching Zeff make his way up the plank, beaming slightly at the head chef's praise.

"You didn't find me. I found you," you said to your newest crewmember.

Sanji looked over at you, a small mischievous smile on his face. "And aren't you glad you did?"

Before you could correct him or slap him, you heard Zeff calling out to you from the ship's deck. "Oi! Y/n! What are you doing down there? I'm not paying you to just stand there all day with Sanji! There's a pile of dirty dishes with your name on them in the sink."

"What? Already?" you grumbled as made your way up the plank to board the ship.

From behind you, you could hear Sanji's laughter and you could hear it until you made your way inside.

[writingoddess1125]

You get high with them- 🍃 🚬

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Luffy

You of course bought some edibles the last time you were on land. Now chilling jn bed you ate some and Luffy came in- Assuming the gummies were just normal candies he partook in some before you could give the warning.

He ate a easy 400mg and now is laying next to you as high as a kite. His gum gum abilities also being messed with by the edibles as he is quite literally dropping over the sides of the bed.

"My face feels heavy and fuzzy" He hums, blinking at you slowly.

You smile at him and giggled at his reactions.

"You're absolutely fucked up-"

He nods at this and just giggles as he lays there. Clearly a giggly high.

Sanji

You offer Sanji a bit from your joint while sitting in the kitchens. He accepts figuring it won't be that bad-

Sanji and you will talk with you for a while as you two shared the joint. When it hits him however- it hits him hard.

"This feels weird" He smirks at this and passes the joint back to you with a smirk. The man shows a whole new side of himself- were where he is just so chill and open! Super cool too.

"Yeah I do see Chef Zeff as my father. I'll never let him know since that would boost the old man's ego way to much- But I love the old guy"

Will come up with amazing cooking ideas and actually prepare them, often having music playing as he does so.

"(Y/N) I just got an amazing idea- what if I cake the creamy cheese sauce from the pasta and add it to ramen instead and top it with spicy seafood, a soft boiled egg and green onions. A cheesy spicy ramen"

Zoro

When you first offer to zoro he absolutely refuses- It isn't until a few weeks later when he sees you at it again does he agree. You make him a small joint to start out with and the two of you sit on the main deck under the stars and pass it back and forth.

He will start to get a bit chattier. Talking to you a bit more about random things- He smiles and giggles a bit more.

"This is a new experience for me- I usually don't want to dull my senses"

You take another kit and cough a bit, Waving the smoke.

"But you drink a fuck ton" You pass him back the joint and he nods.

"Touché"

Eventually however he gets sleepy, immediately turning into the sleepy high. Just laying on the deck half asleep and joining in humming a song with you.

Usopp

Truth be told- Usopp is the most open to the experience. He lies saying he does it before despite being fairly clean. However is interested in the opportunity!

Will be the one wanting to try a pipe- Which you will happily provide and the two of you will sit in the bottom haul of the ship and pass the pipe back and forth-

Usopp will actually start to yet honest with you- really really honest. It turning almost into a therapy session between the two of you.

"Man I really miss my Mum... she was just an amazing person and it makes me upset to think she only heard about how her son was a lying mess up instead lf someone great"

He admits, sadly looking at the pipe before taking another rip of the pipe.

"I'm sure she's proud of the man you are Usopp. You are a good guy and an amazing pirate" You praise, patting his shoulder.

He nods at this and smiles. Defiently a honest high Ironically.

Nami

Nami is no beginner- In her time away from Arlong she used to smoke to feel a bit of stress relief. So when you offer she comes prepared with her favorite bong.

Sitting together the two of you will talk for hours while taking massive hits of the bong. Eating snacks stolen from the kitchen as you play records.

"So- You think that Buggy can take off his dick?" You question watching Nami take another massive rip from the bong, holding it in for a good second as she nodded and releases the cloud of smoke.

"Abso-fucking-lutely he can. He said he would take every thing apart and I saw how small he had himself flying- There is no way he hasn't sent his cock through the air"

"Wait- so if every part... do you think Luffy can stretch his?"

You both burst out in hysterical laughter and continue to talk mindlessly. Nami is Defiently the social butterfly of highs, just laying out the best of conversations.

Buggy

You get caught by Buggy smoking at first- however he is fine with it and interested in what you could possibly be doing.

Buggy is more then willing to smoke with you, thinking this will be a fun experience for you all. It's an experience all right-

Let's say in stupid thoughts you guys get hotboxed in his bedroom. Buggy has his hair down and will be talking about random philosophy and sounding intelligent unlike his normal Goofy self.

"You know, I've always wondered how the system of devil fruits work?- if one can exist at a time say I die. Does that mean another Chop Chop fruit will appear? Who controls this?.. Does that mean a plant knows when I died?"

You nod at this, also curious of this question.

"You know, I never thought of that... wait wait- so Does that mean a plant is closer to a God then anything else if it knows when you die?"

You two will talk for hours about random questions, before stumbling to get some snacks in the middle of the night.