#than again what did i expect. its a bot

[multyshipping]

Continuing to mess around in c.ak & I'm very stuck between "i have to fuck him" and "i have to kill him" type of beat rn

[readychilledwine]

Pieces of You pt 3

Summary - After losing Feyre to childbirth, Rhysand finds himself leaning on one of her friends much more than he'd ever expected.

Warnings - self doubt, slight manipulation, discussion of moving forward after the death of a spouse, hurt people hurting people, HOFAS spoilers *slightly* (a lot of us had this theory to begin with and I just played with it to fit this)

A/n - It can only be uphill from here, right?.. Special thank you to @honeybeefae and @thehighladywrites for helping me think through how quickly I should let reader and Rhys move on, and for convincing me that I should continue writing this. (Ps friends - sorry I can't tag you. I evidently hit the max tag amount with my taglists.)

✨️ Pieces of You Masterlist ✨️

The 3 month milestone had changed your and Morwenna's lives forever. Rhys had finally convinced you to move into one of his homes. He was insistently whispering to you over and over that the small cabin wasn't going to work anymore, that Cassian and Azriel barely fit inside it, that once his Little Mor and sweet Nyx began to move you four would need more space.

It had been also heartbreaking, entering the home Feyre had crafted, each room so individually thought of for who it was intended to belong to. Above all else, though, it had been lonely.

It wasn't your home. It wasn't the finely crafted wooden arches your mate had assembled by hand. It wasn't the rooms you had spent hours picking colors for. It wasn't cozy. That lack of security and warmth was why you were once again up at 3am. Despite the babies now sleeping for longer chunks of time, you never did. Regardless of if it was a night Rhysand spent at your side or one he spent tucked into the room he had shared with Feyre.

You leaned your head back against the exterior of the home, looking up at the glittering sky, and it finally happened.

3 months of mourning in silence. 3 months of screaming into your pillow. 3 months of stress, of anger, of overflowing love, 3 months of feeling like a shell of the female you were, of feeling as though your body was no longer yours, it crashed into you like a tidal wave. And it swept and destroyed everything in its path.

Rhysand shot awake in bed, feeling something was off. His chest ached, begging him to get up, to move, to search. He pulled on pants, glancing at Nyx and Morwenna sleeping peacefully, but you, once again, had not come to the room. He waited for the wraith to appear, feeling her just moments after he called. “Is it y/n,” Nuala nodded to the question, moving to admire the sleeping babes. “What's wrong?”

“Nothing is wrong. She is mourning. That is her right.”

Rhys sighed, moving to your room without hesitation. He had hoped getting you out of that house would help. He had hoped the luxury he could offer you would have helped. He knocked on the door, listening for the broken come in that followed. “Why haven't you come to bed?” You were taken back by the question, taken back by him holding that perfectly tanned hand out. “Come to bed. Let me hold you until those sorrows melt away for the night.”

He knew you didn't feel it. That soft string that had made him scream, made him question all he knew about love and life. Part of him hoped you never did. Part of him hoped he would never have to explain to his family how it had taken him a miniscule 3 month period to fall in love with you and for a Mother given mating bond to snap. Part of him hoped he would never have to experience losing you, to add you to his list of things he would bury too deeply to properly mourn.

“I was unsure if I was wanted there.” That hand reached for yours, clasping it. He was so warm. Always so warm. You could bask in his warmth like he was the sun if given the chance. You shook the feeling mentally, though. “It is-”

“Our room,” he finished softly. “It is our room. Where our children are sleeping. Come to bed.”

Morning came much too soon for Rhysand. It had come much too soon for you as well. You took both of the babes, laughing as they spoke to each other in a language only they knew. They had begun taking more interest in each other, in toys, in the world. They were making life the greatest adventure, even if a lingering pain came from both of you seeing them smile so brightly.

It happened at the worst possible time. You were holding Nyx, forearm under his little tummy and letting “fly” as he worked so very hard to stretch his growing wings. Rhysand was watching you from the doorway, Morwenna on his hip as she looked up at him. Her thoughts were jumbled baby speak, all so happy. Nyx's were elated and fast. When you looked to the doorway, your wide smile fell as that string finished itself and settled deep into your chest.

Rhysand had never watched someone's mental walls fall as quickly as yours did. The silence in the room almost made the giggles of the two unknowing parties fade to background noise. “I was shocked too, darling. It's okay.”

Rhysand had dinner without you that night. He flew to the House of Wind with Nyx to eat with the Inner Circle. He wanted to give you time. He remembered the moment Azriel and Nesta came home, questioning their bonds after exploring those damned caves with the Quinlan girl and learning how the Cauldron had been corrupted. He knew you needed to process. He had too after all.

He took his seat trying to ignore the one that sat empty next to him. Everynight a plate was still sitting there. Even when you came, that chair sat empty, plate untouched. It was a screaming sign that the Inner Circle had not moved in. That they may never move on.

“It just makes the two mates theory make more sense,” Cassian and Amren were deep in a debate again. “If the Daglan, asteri, whatever the fuck we want to call them, did something to the Cauldron to ensure the mating bonds were taken over by it's creation for breeding purposes, then the existence of a Mother Blessed Bond must also be there.”

Amren sighed, “So which do you two have then?” Nesta stiffened at the question. “A Mother Blessed Bond is meant to be true love. It's who we are technically meant to find as a soul mate. A Cauldron made Bond is evidently strictly for breeding. Which do you two share?”

The table hushed. It was a valid question and point. “To continue,” Amren took a drink from her glass before setting it down with a gentle click. “If we come out and tell other courts about this, how many other fae will begin to question their bonds? Kallias and Vivienne? Tamlin and Briar? Helion and Saraya? Lucien and Elain? How do we even begin to prove which bond is which? Does it mean they love that mate less? Rhysand would not have loved Feyre less regardless of the bond type. He will never remarry. Never move on.”

Azriel flicked his eyes to Rhysand. He knew about the bond Rhysand shared with you. He had given Rhysand his blessing to move on and pursue. He had asked his brother to find happiness again. He watched the words land on Rhysand's features, watched his eyes dull.

“If Rhysand did find a new mate,” Azriel spoke softly. “We would all support him moving forward with the bond.”

Nesta scoffed from next to Cassian. “Imagine being that poor female. Living in the shoes of Feyre Cursebreaker. No one could compare.”

But you did, didn't you? Rhysand's grip on his thigh tightened before relaxing. You were just as special, as kind, as loving. You were beautiful. Gods knew you were absolutely beautiful. You were selfless.

“I wouldn't want to try to sit in her place. I would reject the bond,” Mor sipped her wine, leaned back with one arm across her stomach.

Cassian and Azriel both looked to where Rhysand was dead silent. “I need to take Nyx home. He's getting hungry. I'll be right back.”

When Rhysand came back to the House of Wind without his son, he had no intentions of coming back to you that night. So, he never did.

3 awkward weeks passed between you and Rhysand. 3 absolutely strange weeks of either heated kisses and touches or nothing. Not even a good morning. You sighed as you laid Morwenna and Nyx down in the nursery before taking the few strides to Rhysand's office.

He was avoiding you, and it hurt. It hurt knowing your mate, this beautiful unasked for second chance was avoiding you. He was hunched over his desk, reading over some papers and signing a few. “Are we going to talk about why you are avoiding me?”

“I am not avoiding you. I am busy.”

“Yes, busy avoiding me.” You sat across from him, feeling so cold and informal. It was as if you were nothing more than his employee. “Our children are asleep. We should talk about this while we can. I deserve to know if I did something wrong.”

He didn't even look up at you as he replied. “You didn't do anything wrong. As I said, I am busy.” This wasn't the voice of the male who coaxed you to sleep. The one who whispered his dreams to you. “You can go.”

The dismissal made the bond go taunt, and when he felt the first wave of your confusion and hurt, he locked it down more. “Rhys-”

“I think we should sleep in separate rooms again. Our relationship has crossed some lines.”

You blinked at him. Stunned and almost dead silent. “I don't understand where this is coming from?”

“It's the truth. I am your High Lord. You are my subject.” It killed him to say it. His own heart was screaming to stop, but that first brick wall now stood, waiting for the other 3 sides. “We cannot continue blurring that line.”

“You're my mate,” your broken whisper almost made him stop, but he dug in.

“Something we will need to discuss at a later date and time. Surely there will be away for us to reject the bond without causing a downfall and hurting your ability to nanny Nyx.” A second wall stood in place of you and his heart. He knew it was a low blow, and he watched your brows knit and mouth slightly open.

“Rhysand.”

“High Lord,” he corrected.

“Why are you doing this?”

“The bedroom you were in previously is fine.”

“Why are you acting like this?”

“I am establishing a boundary, y/n.” He watched as you began to cry, holding in his own tears as he did. “Our relationship needs to remain appropriate.”

"Do you not want me? We are blessed with this second chance, and you are just turning your back on it. Please, is it me? I know I am not the beauty she was, I know I am not as special as she was. But I'd fight to make you happy, for our children-”

"Nyx isn't yours. Stop acting like he is.”

He watched as you crumbled inside of yourself, that last wall forming around his heart by destroying yours. He didn't mean a single word, but how else was he supposed to save you? All the Mother had ever done to Rhysand was take and take.

You recovered from the blow quickly, nodding as you aggressively wiped the tears from your face. "You have the weekend to find someone else to do what I am. Wen and I are leaving.”

"You can't just take her from me.”

"Yes I can," he knew what was coming, that new bond screaming for him to stop this all. "You aren't her father. Stop acting like it.”

You wanted to slam the door as you walked away before his act fell, before he gripped his chest and warded the room to sob. Little Mor had quickly become his everything. That dark hair, that button nose, those deep blue eyes. She looked like his sister, but you didn't know that when you threatened to take her away. Hadn't known why all three winged males so quickly became attached to her.

And now he was losing her. He was losing you. He was losing everything.

General Taglist:

@hnyclover @glitterypirateduck @slytherinindisguise @mischiefmanagers @bloodicka @starsinyourseyes @the-sweet-psycho @mariahoedt @rinalouu @sarawritestories @starryhiraeth @starswholistenanddreamsanswered @cumuluscranium @loneliestluvr @eternallyelvish @azrielsmate3 @daughterofthemoons-stuff @meritxellao @aria-chikage @hungryforbatboys @lilah-asteria

Pieces of You Taglist:

@dr4g0ngirl @bigcreatorwombatdreamer @blueeclipsepaperstudent @thisblogisaboutabook @mybestfriendmademe @novalovi @rachelnicolee @sleepylunarwolf @sidthedollface2 @acourtofbatboydreams @bunnyredgirl @fandomrejects @bookishbroadwaybish @littlestw01f @la-petite-lapin @juniperberriesaries @anuttellaa @luvmoo @mirandasidefics @soph1644 @hungryforbatboys @awkardnerd @bruxa0007 @eerievixen @youvereachedthenearest-lovergirl @ghostlyrose2 @amygdtjhddzvb @marvelouslovely-barnes @batii-skies @emma-andrea1 @buckystevelove @slut4acotar @cauldronboilmetakemetovelaris @throneofshadows @sevikas-whore @thebeautifulmysteriesoflife @why4anne @miadialila @12358 @blushingfawnsposts

✨️If you are not tagged but your name is listed, Tumblr will not allow me to tag you for some reason!✨️

[midnightanxietytm]

I have a silly idea :3

imagine Mabel recounting the “accident with the leaf blower” to the reader, who then proceeds to make sure Ford isn’t around and tells her about the “kissing practice robot” incident from high school (which they witnessed) if you don’t know what I mean watch the land before swine commentary video

meanwhile Ford is down in the basement and suddenly stops what he’s doing and is like “I feel a disturbance in the force.”

A/N: Oh my god the kissing bot is so iconic, Ford is such a dork for that one lol. Hope I met your expectations with this one , its been a while since I've written something more lighthearted. Thanks for the request!

Contents: Mabel and Reader spilling tea, talks about kissing and romance and other sappy things. Ford x Reader more implied than anything. Short and fun.

Word count: 500

You know something is wrong because Mabel isn't smiling, Mabel is always smiling. She walks through the gift shop door and goes straight to sit on the counter next to you with a big sigh.

“Alright, spill it, sunshine.” You say with a small smile, putting down the book you'd been reading in order to give her your full attention.

She looks up at you with big round eyes. “I dunno… The date went well, he even kissed me!” You gasp in pretend shock and that gets a small giggle out of her. “I know right?! But like… It felt weird! It wasn’t bad! Just weird… maybe I need more practice…”

That makes you laugh as you prop yourself near the checkout; “Mabel, darling, kissing isn't really some equation you can figure out, maybe he just wasn't the right person.”

She lets out another big sigh, but you can tell is more resigned and hopefull this time. “Yeah, I guess… Besides, I really don't want another leaf blower accident.”

You laugh again, Mabel has that charm. “The what accident now?”

“Oh my gosh, I never told you?! It's so embarrassing; I was obsessed with that boy, who turned out to be a bunch of gnomes by the way, and I wanted our first kiss to be perfect, so I stuck a photo of him on a leaf blower on suction made and used it to practice.” When she said that, both of you started to laugh so hard tears formed in your eyes. “I-t left like this huge bruise on my face!”

You lean your head on the table, trying to stop laughing, but the mental image of Mabel with a leaf blower stuck to her face is too much.

“Oh gosh you're just like your grunkle!” You say in-between wheezing.

“Wait which one?” Mabel asked, rubbing the tears off her eyes.

“Okay so…” You began, looking around just to check Ford wasn’t near. “Your Grunkle Ford, back in high school he built this robot…” You look around again, holding back laughter and bringing down your voice. “It was this mannequin head with a rubix cube for a mouth and it had an alarm that wouldn’t stop playing until he…” And you did quotation marks with your hands. “...kissed it right.”

And you both started laughing all over again. “That's so dorky oh my gosh!”.

“Right!? He's such a nerd.” You say, and there's a softness to it that eases Mabel's worries about romance all together. “It fell from his locker once and it started blasting the darn alarm! He couldn’t go anywhere for a week after that without people mimicking kissing noises. It was gross.” You chuckle and sigh, sitting back down on your stool. “Compared to that, a leaf blower is no big deal!”

“Compared to what?” Says a third voice.

You and Mabel snap your heads, seeing Ford standing on the doorway behind the vending machine.

Crap.

[eilaafterhours]

Me Plus You Equals Two [Sylus]

Content: Smut, Biting, Oral Fixation, Oral Sex, Established Relationship, POV Second Person, Reader-Insert

Pronouns: None (AFAB)

Reblogs: Let me know that you enjoy my work and want to see more, so don’t forget to like and reblog (and comment in the tags. I love seeing people’s rambles in the tags)!

Remember: I’ll block you if I catch your ageless or under age (not 18+) ass in my activity! 1800 blocked and counting :)

This work’s concepts, plot and original characters are my own which means I do not allow any sort of creative theft nor do I allow my work to be entered into any sort of A.I. bots. Thank you for respecting my space and boundaries.

Just because you were no longer sick, didn’t mean that you were ready for such a…physical activity. You really couldn’t complain when you did invite him in. 

Your hands had found purchase in his hair, as he attached himself to your neck, slowly working his way down. 

“You know…you’ve got a bad oral fixation—fu-ah…” 

He hummed, kissing the spot he had just marked. “Really? I hadn’t noticed.”

You rolled your eyes, playing into his game. “You bite my hand every chance you get.” 

“I don’t think that accounts for anything…” He finally had made his way down to your breast. “But I suppose I’ll make your assumptions a reality.” 

He wasn’t as nice as he was, your neck to your breast. He attacked it, marked one up nice as well, while giving the other one a good message before its reckoning. All you could do is writhe in his embrace, letting him indulge himself. 

Honestly, having your chest fondled didn’t usually do it for you. Nor did having someone leave trails of their saliva across your skin, but for some reason with Sylus, you’d never fault more aroused. 

And he obviously had noticed because as you were beginning to reach your peak, he pulled away. 

You pouted, huffing at him. “Really?”

“Were you really going to come without me? Sweetie, I’m hurt.” But then he smirked, “But I supposed we’ll just have to work more on your stamina later. For now, I’ll give you exactly what you want.”

You thought foreplay would either be skipped or basically nonexistent, but once you caught sight of that monster that stood at attention between his legs, you knew that you’d need to come at least once before letting him.

But, as per usual, Sylus had other plans. Plans that of course indulged in his oral fixation. He tasted you again, and again, and again, but never once let you come. Once again, letting him all of his fill. As much as you wanted to get back at him right now, you knew that you weren’t up to it just yet. You’d be better lying in wait and striking when his guard is down. 

Oh, you were getting excited just thinking about what you’d do to him.

Sylus grabbed you by your chin, thumb brushing against your lips. “Eyes on me, sweetie. This is going to be a bit…intense.”

He wasn’t exaggerating. You were ready for him, but what you weren’t ready for was the two of your Evols to suddenly tether and amplifying everything. 

Your head flew back into the pillows, as a sharp moan was torn from your throat. Sylus was right there, whispering in your ear, messaging your thighs. However, the moment he bottom out, you yanked him away from your neck, meeting his heated gaze with your own. 

“Don’t toy with me.” 

You knew that Sylus wanted to play with you a bit more, make your orgasm as intense as possible, but that was before your Evols got involved. What was supposed to be slow, methodical pumps became rapid strokes that chase the release the both of you were desperate for. The room echoed with the sound of slapping skin and labored breath, which reached its crescendo when he hit that special spongy spot. Stars blinded you as your entire body tensed up. 

Sylus, despite being in the midst of his own release, was still balanced enough to dote on you. “There you go, sweetie. Just let go…” He leaned down, pulling you into a kiss that was softer than what you were expecting.

Once you both had caught your breath, you had resigned to asking him for a wash cloth before just flopping over, but you, once again, forgot who you were dealing with. No, instead of that, Sylus had picked you up, brought you to the bathroom, and was now running a bath.

You hummed with a smile. “You spoil me.” 

“Spoil? This is the bare minimum.” He deposited you into the tub, “I haven’t shown you true spoiling just yet.”

Once he had settled in behind you, you kissed the underside of his chin. “Oh, really? I can’t wait to see what you have in store for me.”

“Everything and more, sweetie.” 

SFW Prequel

LISTEN, HEAR ME OUT

I LISTENED TO MIDNIGHT WARMTH (at night) AND THIS MFKER PUT ME AT FUCKING ATTENTION

Anyway~

LET'S TALK ABOUT HIS ORAL FIXATION

Masterlist

[in1-nutshell]

Hey, not too long ago. There was a prompt about bot crash landing on to earth and getting adopted by ten year old buddy. If requests are open, might I suggest the same prompt with Rodimus and Drift (separately).

The concept for these two interactions has been stuck in my brain for days.

Rodimus- I'm a dad now, this is my kid.

Magnus- you can barely take care of yourself, how do you expect to take care of a human child.

&

Drift- heeeeyyyyyy Ratchet... how do you feel about kids.

Wow! First request! I haven't put up a message for that yet...BUT consider this the first of many to come. I will be posting when the request will be open and some guidelines as soon after this posted.

Hope you enjoy this and feel free to request!

Rodimus and Drift (separately) accidentally crash lands and is slightly injured on Earth and meets a 10-year-old Human Buddy

SFW, Familial, platonic, mention of injury, Human reader

MTMTE/LL

Rodimus

Rodimus groaned as he sat up feeling slight pain in his struts. He looked around him and nearly did a double take. He was on Earth. It had to be, He recognize those pine trees and fuzzy moss anywhere. Unless he was on some weird simulation, or Swearth again.

He hears a small sneeze and attempts to reach for his blaster before his wrist began to hurt. He prepares for whatever is coming his way.

A small human with a bucket filled with water waddles into his clearing. They take one look at him and waddle their way to his acheing pede and proceed to dump the water on it.

“Cold! That was cold! Why did you do that for?”--Rodimus

“You were overheating. I had to cool you down. The names Buddy by the way Mr. McQueen.”—Buddy

“McQueen? Who—nevermind. My name is Rodimus, rodimus Prime.”--Rodimus

He goes to shake Buddy’s hand but his wrist shot in pain causing him to hiss. Buddy dropped their bucket and reached into their pocket and pulled out 3 Hot Wheel bandaids and with a concentrated face began sticking them all over his servo.

“Uhhh… What are you doing?”--Rodimus

“I’m helping obviously.”--Buddy

“While I appreciate—”--Rodimus

“Shhh! Let the band aids do their thing Mr. Prime.”--Buddy

“Rodimus. Just Rodimus. Anyways where’s your parents? They should be too far.”—Rodimus

“Never met them Rodimus.”--Buddy

“Wait what?”—Rodimus

Rodimus pauses taking in that information in

He tries to lighten the mood a bit and asks Buddy some basic questions he heard that little kids liked answering.

“So, what’s your favorite color?”--Rodimus

“I like orange. Like the one on you, it’s a pretty color.”--Buddy

“It is! I always tell my friends it’s a cool color!”--Rodimus

“Oh! Do you like cheetah’s? They are like, super-duper-fast!”--Buddy

“Don’t know what that is but if its fast then it has to be awsome!”--Rodimus

“Right!”—Buddy

The two eventually fall into a nice conversation until Rodimus notices the sun fall across the horizon. He asks Buddy if they know a place where they could lie low for a bit. Buddy nods and begins walking further into the thick wood.

Rodimus slowly followed in tow.

Buddy eventually comes to an old, abandoned gas station. Good for Rodimus. No other humans to know of his existence. Buddy goes to the back and opens the back garage door. A place for Rodimus, sure a little cramped but still better than sleeping in the thick wood.

Buddy went back in the store and retrieved dozens of trash bags and a sleeping bag for their improv sleepover.

“At a sleep over, you have to tell stories before we go to sleep.”--Buddy

“Any story?”--Rodimus

“Any story.”--Buddy

“Well, I have one. Let me tell you about the time I single handedly wrestled a Sparkeater.”--Rodimus

“I don’t know what that is, but it sounds cool and creepy. Tell me!”--Buddy

To his surprise Buddy was fully interested in his stories. And it was cute to see Buddy fighting to stay awake to hear the rest of the story. They ended up falling asleep, curling next to Rodimus’s leg.

That sound? That’s definitely not Rodimus’s spark screaming at the cuteness before him. Nope, definitely not that.

Rodimus is confident that his team will find him so most of his time is spent with Buddy.

Between telling stories to one another, admitting one to the other of some loneliness before meeting the other. Rodimus defiantly pulls Buddy into a hug after one of those heavy emotion sessions about the past. It’s good for the pair.

It’s now been two weeks since Rodimus had come back to Earth. Buddy decided to take him to their favorite place to look at the stars. A little field not too far from their “home”.

Approaching the clearing, they weren’t expecting Lost Light to appear over the horizon. Rodimus was so happy to see his ship he almost forgot that Buddy was on his shoulder.

“They’re here! They’re here! Oh, I can’t wait to get back to my Captain’s chair!”--Rodimus

“Oh…”--Buddy

“And I can’t wait for you to get a mini chair next to mines!”--Rodimus

“Wait…”

“Yeah, we can have it with orange designs and all. I’m pretty sure Ten won’t have much problem doing the details on the chair.”--Rodimus

Buddy just looks at him in disbelief and in happy tears hugs the side of Rodimus’s helm.

Rodimus finally catching to the reality for Buddy pauses a bit and does his best to hug them back telling them that he wouldn’t leave them even if it made all of his reports disappear.

The Rod Pod touches down and Rodimus wastes no time in running to it with Buddy holding to his chassis.

Magnus was not prepared for Rodimus to show up with a little human.

“Rodimus—”—Ultra Magnus

“Behold the newest addition to the Lost Light!”--Rodimus

“Hi.”--Buddy

“… I’ll get the supplies ready then…”—Ultra Magnus

Rodimus explains the whole story to everyone on the Rod Pod and does the same when he gets back to the ship. Buddy is having the time of their life meeting new friends. Rodimus is glad that he managed to help his friend and hopes to give them a better life than the one they had on Earth.

Drift

Drift wakes up to a cold shudder.

He looks around at his surroundings. It looked like he was in an old barn. A cold old barn with the paint falling off just like the snow outside. He then feels a sharp pain near his pede.

It not his room or the medbay. It wasn’t even a part of the ship. He remembers… the crash… He remembered trying to send one last message to ratchet about his coordinates before he blacked out.

He goes to examine the wound when he hears little footsteps. Drift reaches for one of his swords when a little human came out of one of the barns shadows. They looked like one of the children in Swerve’s human movie night films.

The child had some protective layers on, but clearly not enough for the snow falling. They had a bunch of old miss matched blankets in their hands.

“Hi…My name is Buddy.”--Buddy

“Hello? My name is Drift.”—Drift

Drift ever dumbfounded waved back before clutching his pede in pain again. Buddy carefully puts down the blankets and slowly moves towards his pede. Drift curious slowly releases his pede and watched the human pull out some sort of wrappings and began wrapping his pede the best they could.

“Buddy, as much as I appreciate the help, that isn’t—”--Drift

“Shh!”--Buddy

“Did- did you just shush me?”--Drift

“Yes, and I’ll do it again. Shh!”--Buddy

They then grabbed the blankets and attempted to… tuck him in?

He thanked them shivering a bit feeling the cold seep in.

The human smiled and left him alone in the barn before falling into a much-needed recharge.

The next morning, Buddy returned to check back and pulled a chair to sit right next to him. The two ended up talking about how Drift had gotten to Earth and how to get him back home. Drift was surprised to see Buddy eager to help him get back home.

“C’mon Drift. Let’s help you get home. And don’t worry I won’t let any evil corrupt government spy take you.”--Buddy

“That sounded oddly specific but thanks?”--Drift

Together the two end up borrowing some tech from a nearby scrap yard to help create a distress beacon. Sure, Drift was by no means an engineer, but he hopes that his time with Perceptor will help him now.

During the next 3 weeks it goes by, Drift learns a bit about Buddy’s life. About them being an orphan and finding haven in the old crumbly barn.

Buddy learns a bit about Drift too. They learn about how he used to be a bad guy before turning good, how he made some new friends on the Lost light, and his misadventures with a medic named Ratchet.

“You really chopped the bad guy’s hands?”--Buddy

“Yeah, the were going to hurt Ratchet. I had to protect him.”--Drift

“He sounds like a nice guy. Wish I could meet him.”--Buddy

It was early dawn when Buddy woke up from a nightmare and came to Drift for comfort.

“You- you just left! You didn’t even say goodbye!”--Buddy

“Buddy, it was all a dream. A bad one. Anyways I could never leave you even if I tried to.”--Drift

“What? What about the Lost Light? What about Ratchet?”--Buddy

“… Would you like to come with me? Mean, You can say no and all—”--Drift

“YES!”--Buddy

Buddy attempts to hug Drift nodding furiously. A tearful confirmation that made the pair happy.

A sudden crackle is heard from outside the barn.

Drift is immediately up, holding Buddy close to his spark and sword in the other servo. Buddy is completely dwarfed in his servo and shakes a bit in the suspense in the air. Drift is prepared to fight whatever is outside of the barn.

Multiple footsteps are heard which only makes Drift’s grip on the sword tighten.

Then the door swings open and Drift kicks down the intruder straight in the chassis pointing the sword at them. Rodimus, on the ground groaning at the sudden attack.

“Geez Drift I know we had our differences but that was a bit harsh don’t you think?”--Rodimus

“Rodimus?”--Drift

“Drift!”--Ratchet

“Ratchet!”--Drift

“Oh thank—is that a human?”--Ratchet

“Hi… I’m Buddy. You must be Ratchet. Drift tells some of the best stories about you.”--Buddy

“Does he now?”--Ratchet

“Uh… Buddy—”--Drift

“Shh!”—Buddy and Ratchet

“I like this kid.”--Ratchet

“Are you guys my parents now?”--Buddy

“What?”—Drift and Ratchet

“What?”—Buddy

And that is how Buddy ended up joining the Lost light and how Drift and Ratchet ended up being their guardians. Never leaving Buddy alone in danger and never feeling cold again.

[mamasbakeria]

hey, what's your major again?

summary: my credible expert opinion on what the aot characters would study in university. what are my qualifications? the dozens of hours i’ve spent staring at my school’s program bulletin trying to figure out what i’m majoring in

genre | includes: headcanons, sfw, minor language, uninformed percy jackson reference (pls don't hate me if im wrong)

characters: eren jaeger, mikasa ackerman, armin arlert, sasha braus, jean kirschtein, connie springer, historia reiss, ymir, reiner braun, annie leonhardt

author’s note: had this in my drafts for months now. i just need to post it so it stops haunting me. might do the rest of the marleyans and vets in the future! lmk your thoughts, my only tumblr notifications are from p*rn bots, so i'd love to hear from real people lol. enjoy <3

eren: sociology and public policy, 4+1 program for a social work masters

there’s only so many times you can hear “you’re gonna be a doctor just like your dad” before you start to believe it. that’s why eren started out with biology on the premed track. the thing is, he really didn’t care for it. eren is really passionate about lessening equity gaps and is a firm believer in “if you want something done right, do it yourself”. this is why i see him making the switch to a double major in public policy and sociology. he wants to know about how society got to the point of perpetuating disparities so that he can fix them. but he also knows that the government fucking sucks and thinks its naive to expect policy change to be the only method of change. and like the maniac he is, eren is enrolled in a 4+1 program so he can get his master’s in social work when he’s done with his undergrad. he’s determined to graduate with both degrees in just 4 years though. rip his summers.

armin: international relations and military ethics, minor in communications or smth

everyone always says armin would study marine biology or oceanographic studies, but i honestly think that it’s a passion that he pursues on the side. he takes marine bio courses for his breadth requirements, but knows he’d end up hating the ocean if he spent the rest of his life studying it. he also strikes me as someone who would rather run buck naked into traffic than sit through multiple semesters of organic chemistry. armin was always a good public speaker, though, despite being a bit insecure. that’s why his speech and debate teacher during sophomore year of high school recommended model united nations to him. he was hooked after his first conference and now genuinely sees the path of international diplomacy as his calling. that’s why he’s majoring in international relations. his concentration in military ethics is something he tacks on in his junior year after taking some courses and publishing research with dr. erwin smith. he probably minors in communications because he can.

mikasa: forensic science

mikasa had no idea what she wanted to do when she started uni. she’s good at nearly everything. like never gotten a B in her life and is the student who the curve is based off of. but excelling in every environment you’re put in often means you don’t know what you’re best at. she knew deep down that she wanted to do something justice related like her childhood best friends did, but she’s no public speaker and has no interest in political reform. she was, however, emo in high school and heard a fair share of undertaker jokes at her expense. it wouldn’t hurt to look into right? as cool as the title sounds, morticians don’t make enough money for the job they have. fortunately enough, forensic pathologists do and mikasa looks good in a lab coat. she would never admit it to spare armin and eren’s feelings, but when they, as children, recreated the crime-solving shows mrs. jaeger always had on, mikasa always wanted to be the brains. so criminology and forensic science it is. (side note: she definitely joins the military and they pay for her education)

jean: structural engineering and industrial design with a minor in studio art

more than anything, jean wants to provide for his mom and knows he can’t guarantee a retirement of luxury for her as the freelance artist he wishes he could be. he’s decent at math when he tries and doesn’t hate physics, so he decided he’d give structural engineering a try for at least a semester or two. he wasn’t expecting to get much from it, to be honest. he had a plethora of backup plans waiting for his supposedly inevitable distaste for engineering, but he found that he didn’t hate it at all. someone once told jean that he had the makings of a great leader and he didn’t believe them until he started taking the lead on design projects and producing incredible results. his only qualm is that he just doesn’t get to be as creative as he wanted to be. that was easily rectified by an additional major in industrial design and a minor in studio art. he’s unbelievably busy, busier than he anticipated when he started his post-secondary journey, but he’s content and there’s nothing some extra coffee can’t solve. 

sasha: environmental science and sustainability

sasha spent her childhood ankle-deep in mud and fighting her way through forest thickets without a compass. an upbringing like that doesn’t leave your spirit, no matter how far into the city you go for school. so sasha’s always been passively passionate about the environment. that passiveness became significantly more prominent when part of the woods she grew up in was cleared out to build an industrial complex. it was then that she started researching and writing petitions about preserving wildlife and making environmentally conscious decisions. her work actually got her the scholarship she’s on (because god knows it wasn’t her grades). and she genuinely loves what she does, so why wouldn’t she keep learning about it? the environmental science and sustainability program at the school is small, but tight-knit and known for churning out changemakers. sasha knows she’ll be one of them one day. just hide your plastic straws from her, okay?

connie: computer science and chinese

stick with me here okay? everyone expects connie to be a douchebag marketing major whose hardest assignments are graphing functions and making posters on photoshop, but he’s a lot more invested in his education than he looks. don’t get me wrong, connie has always struggled academically, but that’s because so much of early education is pre-determined. he performed way better when he could choose what courses he took. it’s kind of like percy jackson being dyslexic in english because he was wired to read in greek. connie can’t keep his eyes on a history textbook for shit, but will gladly sit in front of the c++ code on his pc for hours. he doesn’t even get mad when he realizes that he was missing a semicolon. connie loves how versatile of a future he could have with a compsci degree, because, let’s be real, he could never survive in a typical office environment. definitely takes a bunch of chinese classes and doesn’t realize that he has enough credits for it to be a minor until his second to last semester.

historia: political science with a minor in international relations and child development

historia is a lot like eren in the sense that she knows her time is best spent doing hands-on work in the fields she cares about. she realizes this sometime after reconnecting with her estranged father and volunteering at the orphanage she grew up in. but now that she’s publicly associated with a powerful political figure, historia doesn’t get to do what she wants, only what is expected of her. that’s how she ends up on the pre-law political science and public policy route. the nickname “ms. president” that connie and sasha give her only further reminds her that she’s heading down a path she never wanted for herself. after lots of encouragement from ymir, historia decided to take child development courses on the side. even if she doesn’t take on the full minor, she’s taking some classes she cares about. maybe she’ll find use for it someday. at the very least, it’s her first step in becoming the most selfish girl in the world.

ymir: data science and business management

ymir is smart. much smarter than she presents herself to be, almost as a form of protection. nobody expects much of someone who is aloof, so it makes it easy to slip through the cracks to remain safe and comfortable in the shadows. business management is notoriously low commitment and easy to skate by with. guaranteed internships, post-graduate employment, and so on. To anyone who doesn’t know ymir well, it’s perfect. but they have her mistaken, ymir will do as little as possible to go as far as possible. sure, she can live comfortably with a business degree, but it could be better with a little bit of data science in her arsenal. she’s intelligent enough to pick up on it, and determined enough to make it her bitch. yeah, academia is a money-sucking pipeline into the capitalist hellscape, she doesn’t believe in it yada yada, but at the end of the day, ymir’s gonna get the bag. so what if she’s gotta sleep through some stats classes to get it?

reiner: behavioral economics

reiner’s mother had convinced him his whole life that getting a high paying job would fix their lives and bring his father back. believing “perfect grades lead to a perfect life” made high school tough for reiner; gifted kid burnout is no joke. it really messed him up. he wasn’t sure if he could withstand the pressures of university, but here he is. reiner was never allowed a therapist, so he figured pursuing psychology would, at the very least, give him some answers and be a good pathway to a medical degree. he loved getting to understand how people work and why they act the way they do, but something was missing. he found out what it was when a guest lecturer spoke in his economics class. he knew making the switch would be risky, it’s a new field and his current career options are really only research, academia, or government, but the interdisciplinary study of behavioral economics is calling reiner’s name. 

annie: biomedical engineering and kinesiology

annie’s entire life revolved around her father, including the injury he was never able to heal from. the one she gave him. he’s claimed to be over it, she’s forgiven, but annie will never feel like she’s earned that forgiveness until she gets rid of the problem entirely. how is she going to do that exactly? with biomedical engineering. she has years of hell in front of her, especially with her concentration on biomechanics, but she doesn’t care. annie will throw herself into her work to get the results she wants. she takes the highest amount of credits possible every semester so she can graduate early. you’ll most likely find her chained to a study cubicle at the library at all hours of the day and running on 2 hours of sleep, but it doesn’t faze her. she tacks on a minor in kinesiology because it makes sense and she had most of the credits for it anyway. and as if it couldn’t get worse, she probably TAs for a thermodynamics course or something crazy like that.

© mamasbakeria 2023. do not repost, translate (without permission), or modify

[autisticlancemcclain]

prev

———

“Keith Kogane, you magnanimous dumbass, would it kill you to ask me out like a man. Something like that.”

Hunk presses the pause button. He tucks his phone back into his pocket. He turns to Shiro, expectant, prepared.

“So,” he says.

Shiro stares at the space in front of him, fingertips pressed together and in front of his face.

“So.”

“Your brother is kind of an airhead.”

“He is indeed.”

“No offense to Keith. He has his smart moments. Probably.” Hunk’s mouth twitches. “Sorry. I said that to not be mean and then immediately thought of the whole Voltron cheer situation and laughed in my head. I promise I don’t actually think Keith is stupid.”

Shiro’s mouth twitches. He forces his face to remain neutral. It is a challenge.

“Keith refused to name his pet gecko as a child,” he shares. “He insisted the gecko would reveal its name when it was ready.”

Hunk bites his lip very hard. He looks deliberately away from Shiro.

“He was thirteen.”

The yellow paladin presses his hands to his eyes. He tries visibly hard to compose himself. He fails.

“…I see.”

“My fiancé often said he must have been born blond.”

“Boy, do I have news for you.”

Shiro raises his eyebrows. “More news than your recording of Lance processing his love?”

“There was an incident beforehand,” Hunk explains. “You know how Lance does those leg stretches sometimes? When we have agility training?”

Shiro inclines his head.

“Well, apparently last week he did them in front of Keith and Keith was so distracted he walked into a wall and broke his nose. He had to go into a healing pod.”

Truly, Shiro would love to say that he’s surprised. He’d love to say that his brother, known gay, was not so fixated on a cute boy that he walked into a whole ass wall hard enough to break his nose. He would love for that to be true.

But he knows his dumbass brother.

“Oh my God.”

“And he still isn’t picking up Lance’s hints.”

“Oh my God.”

Hunk nods, patting Shiro’s hand sympathetically. “We gotta do something, man. I can’t keep watching this.” He pauses. “Also, I really want to stop hearing about what Lance thinks about Keith’s Galra form. I really can’t hear any more talk about fangs in places fangs should not be placed. It’s not good for my mental health.”

Shiro sighs. Even he has heard Lance’s mutterings about Keith’s fangs, and Lance still gets all shy and star-struck around him. At this point it’s gotta be a human rights violation.

“I’ll see what I can do,” he promises.

———

He finds his brother in the training room, because of course he does, getting absolutely demolished by the training bot.

“You’re getting your ass kicked,” Shiro observes.

Keith grunts.

Shiro makes himself comfortable at the edge of the mat, sticking a straw in a juice pouch and sipping it leaisurely as he watches the twerp get pummelled. It’s amusing, in the way watching those test-dummy car crashes are amusing. Or videos of kids crying in fear of Santa Claus.

“Level failed,” echoes the pleasant voice of Space Siri, as Lance and Pidge have dubbed the disembodied robot voice of the training room. “Try again?”

“Fuck off,” Keith mutters to it.

Shiro stretches out and pokes him with his toe. Keith only half-heartedly tries to slice him about it.

“Somebody’s brooding.”

Evidentially deciding he would rather vent in Shiro’s direction than fall for Shiro’s transparent attempts to goad him into a fight, he flops down dramatically, stealing Shiro’s juice pouch and rudely sucking back the rest of it. Fucker.

“He’s so confusing,” he says, free arm flailing. “Just — all the time.”

Shiro politely refrains from asking him to clarify. He knows who he’s talking about.

“Hm,” he says instead, supportively. “How unfortunate for you.”

“Right!” He throws his hands up in the air, sending his bayard flying in one direction and the empty juice pouch in another. Shiro watches it go with great sadness. “One second it’s — Keith, you suck so bad, ugh, you’re such a weird dweeb. And the next it’s I’m hanging out with Coran and you’re not allowed to come and also I hate you.” He looks at Shiro expectantly. “He’s so!” He gestures vaguely. Shiro assumes it’s meant to mean something.

Shiro stares at him.

“See, to me there’s no dichotomy there,” he says slowly. “You said that as if it was two different sentiments. But in fact that was the same opinion expressed twice.”

“The tone was different,” Keith insists. “The dweeb thing is affectionate. He says it in a friendship way. I’m sure of it.”

“Friendship,” Shiro echoes.

“Exactly,” Keith agrees.

Shiro hums. He’s quite sure, now, that he is not going to explain to Keith in any words of his own how much of an oblivious dumbass he is. There is no sentence or string of sentences that Shiro can use to demonstrate just how obvious Lance is being, and how obtusely Keith is responding. He’s going to have to be clearer than that.

But. For his own amusement.

“Could you maybe explain how Lance shows his friendship to you? So I can better understand, of course.”

“Well, for starters, he says we’re enemies but always wants to pair up,” Keith says. “That’s friendship, right?”

“That’s certainly one way to put it, sure.”

“And the fact that we hang out so often.”

“Of course.”

“And the clothes stealing, of course. Lance says I have gross mullet germs but he’s always stealing my jackets, so that doesn’t add up.”

Shiro purses his lips. That is — whew. Poor Lance is in the trenches.

Keith pouts. “I just don’t get why he flips around it all the time, man. I mean, one second he’s all smiles and nudging my shoulders, and the next he’s bright red and stomping away. He’s so confusing!”

Shiro can take this no longer.

“Keith, I am going to show you something,” he says, digging his phone out of his pocket and pulling up the file Hunk sent him. “Okay?”

“…Okay,” Keith says hesitantly.

Shiro stares at him for a moment longer. Then he sighs, shoves the phone into Keith’s hands, and presses play.

The video starts shaky, audio muddled, and when it clears Lance is lying sprawled on Hunk’s bed, pillow strewn dramatically to the side.

“I just wish I could get it through his fool head that he is loved by me particularly in such a way that I want to hold hands and kiss and generally be nuisances of the affectionate kind. You know, romance,” he is saying.

Keith goes still next to him. With every passing word his jaw drops lower and lower.

“You could also ask him out like a man,” Hunk is explaining.

“Choke and die,” responds video-Lance, and then the audio cuts. Shiro puts his phone away.

“So?”

“I have to go immediately,” Keith says. He’s up and halfway out the door before Shiro can blink.

“Shower first!” he calls. “You just sweated it up with the training hot for God knows how long. Wash off before you do anything romcom-y.” Keith disappears around the corner. “Keith, do you hear me? Shower first! Keith!”

———

next

[cozzzynook]

But what if cybertronians did have another way to reproduce besides hot spots that were far and few in between and cold constructs that often caused disabilities.

What if they had the typical reproduction of housing a spark in their chassis and the sire builds a protoform that the carrier of the spark has to approve. Thats the normal way things happen, all three of those.

But what if there was another one.

One they said didn’t exist and would “take care” of any bot caught with this “abnormality.”

A bot that could get sparked with transfluid from a spike and spark merging.

The spark starts in the chassis but goes down to whats called a forge tank and their frames make the body with the materials they have and outside sources from metals and energon they consume and transfluid from the sire.

If they don’t get sparked their forge tanks sheds and they bleed energon from their valve and even their spike at times.

Its seen as a disgusting and abnormal trait because it’s something organics do even if these bots don’t carry exactly like an organic.

Cybertronians have long lives and so carrying and building one to term is not the standard human nine months but a thousand years.

The bot has time to hide it but the hard part is staying hidden after realizing and leaving.

So maybe Rodimus is one of the unfortunate bots who is an “abnormal carrier,” with a spark condition called spark flutters that he’s had since emergence.

His spark was acting odd and thats why he went to see First aid.

He snuck in, late when bots would be in recharge and he didn’t have to explain why he was grasping at his bulging chassis and tanks.

He expected to hear he needed a new dose of spark medicine and that his forge flush was coming.

Not the screen display to show him a new spark within the dissent tube slowly making its way to his gestation tank.

He stared at the screen for so long he didn’t realize he stoped venting and First aid was trying to snap him out of shock.

He doesn’t know how or when but he woke up in the private room with First aid reading his vitals. He has no memory file of passing out and his processor has such a terrible time trying to think of anything more than getting a cup of energon for his dry cords.

“Please don’t panic again. It’s not good for you..or the new spark, should you choose to keep them.”

He snapped his optics in a daze trying to stabilize himself, his gyros were spinning and his frame was weak.

“I’ll have to excuse you from work today, your spark needs to rest and your frame needs help stabilizing. I don’t expect an answer now but in the mean time until you decide we’ll have to keep the sparkling healthy for your own sake. Okay?”

And he’s nodding even if he doesn’t know because he can’t get his voice box to work nor his helm on straight when its a few hours later Drift and Ratchet are barging through the medbay demanding to see him.

Of course First aid refuses without his consent and he’s told with a gentle tone when its still just the two of them and he’s blinking back tears because he never told them he could abnormally carry and they’ve only recently found out he had spark flutters.

They weren’t even in a relationship, they were just fragging almost daily and sometimes sharing habs when his forge wasn’t flushing.

How could he tell them this?

That he was carrying one of or both their sparklings and would be for the next thousand years?

“Frag,” his voice breaks and he covers his face plate in tears and First aid is telling them to leave which he’s grateful for.

“Frag, frag, frag,” he sobbed, tanks clenching and spark stuttering.

“What am I gonna do?”

[e-vay]

The Sonnet of Domino & Phlox - Ch2

[A/N: Click here to read the previous chapter. This story is also available to read on AO3]

“Aren’t they something?” an older gentleman asked with a sigh, adjusting the glasses on the edge of his long snout.

Domino continued affixing a spray nozzle to a hose but shifted her eyes in the direction of the shrew’s gaze. “Uhh…” she hesitated, unsure what to make of the orange, mechanical bipeds that stomped down the street. With each weighty step, the ground trembled and rattled the ladder the hedgehog was standing on. “What exactly are they, Mr. Mayor?”

“Our ticket to the future, that’s what!” The politician boasted. “Two months ago this eccentric human rides into town on a floating caravan! He requests a meeting with me, claiming he’s some kind of genius inventor who wants to help this great city reach its full potential,” He adjusted his vest with pride. “That’s when he showed me the blueprints for these beauties.”

Hedgehog and shrew watched as the two large robots paused in the middle of a large patch of untouched earth. With a metallic groan, the crude “hand” of one of the machines retracted into its arm and was replaced with a long drill head. It stiffly bent forwards and began boring into the ground. The bots were impressive but noticeably rough in their assembly, including large clunky bolts and bright orange paint hastily splashed onto the metal framework. The designs didn’t have the polish and finesse that one would normally find on something like a car, but perhaps that was to be expected from a budding inventor. Domino certainly didn’t know any better. Still, something about the eerie “smiley-face” logo that was stamped on each mech didn’t sit right with her…

“He told us these were cutting edge technology, that they would put us centuries ahead of neighboring towns, and golly was he right. They were only delivered a few days ago but they’ve already streamlined our building processes and made huge improvements to the city.” The mayor’s speech was interrupted by the sound of townspeople cheering as the two robots completed their construction – a well with a hand pump – in record time. Young children ran towards the well, heedless of the metal giants, and used the pump to draw up fresh water that they then splashed at one another. 

“Huh…” Domino mused. She returned her attention to the hose in her hand and sprayed a steady stream of water in the freshly cleared gutter that hung along the roof she was leaning against. She tilted her head either way, making sure no drips escaped from the seams of the gutter, before looking down at the rain spout and assuring that the water ran clear without any blockage. Satisfied with her work, she turned off the hose and descended down the ladder. “Gutter’s clean. You should be set for the winter.”

“They might be a little crude now, but with our investment, he promised the models will only get better,” The shrew said more to himself than the girl next to him. “Soon enough there’ll be smaller models, capable of doing just about anything!” He suddenly turned to the girl with a wide smile. “Just think! You’ll never have to be bothered with odd jobs ever again. It’s like he told me: ‘The Botniks are here for you!’”

Domino did her best to force a smile but couldn’t help but rock on her feet from discomfort. Odd jobs were how she got by. What was she meant to do if these “Botniks” started popping up everywhere? Well, best not to fret about it now.

“Um… Mr. Mayor?” the teal hedgehog hinted awkwardly. “I finished clearing the gutters.”

“Ah! Right, your payment!” The shrew took out his wallet and began counting the contents before hesitating with a pained smile. “Uh… You’ll have to forgive me… The salary posted on the job board is… outdated. We used most of the city’s annual budget investing in our ‘little’ robot helpers here so I can only give you half of what was originally offered.”

Domino’s quills bristled. HALF?! She nearly screamed out loud. Gee, would’ve been nice to know that BEFORE I scaled this blasted roof! She bit her tongue and took a deep breath in. This meant she’d need to take on more gigs than planned, and letting loose some snarky remarks to the mayor of all people would definitely get her kicked out of town before she’d made enough money. She forced a tight smile and politely pocketed the payment handed to her. 

“Nooooooo sweat…  If there’s anything else ya need that your big bots are too bulky for, just holler!” 

She turned on her heel before she said something stupid. 

Glancing up at the town clock, Domino’s grimace was quickly replaced with an excited grin. She sprinted towards the city gate with glee. After all, it was difficult to stay glum when she was promised an adventure with a charming purple hedgehog.

—

“Did those ‘very important duties’ of yours involve drinking 8 cups of coffee?” Phlox teased. He briefly took his attention away from the instructions in his notepad to look up, noticing the teal hedgehog jumping from tree to tree above him. 

Domino seated herself onto a branch and swung backwards into a knee hang so she could lock eyes with Phlox. 

“What makes you say that?” she winked. 

Phlox trepidatiously hopped over several large rocks to meet up with the girl who had gotten far ahead of him. “Oh, I don’t know-” he shrugged as he squeezed his way through some dense bushes. “-all the running and leaping about like a grasshopper could have something to do with it!”

Domino giggled. Phlox may have called himself a nature photographer, but it seemed he had the enthusiasm (or lack thereof) of a city dweller. Escaping the city walls and going on an escapade–however small–always filled Domino with energy. She simply couldn’t keep it in! The lady hedgehog laced her fingers behind her head and closed her eyes, swinging casually from the branch as she waited for her hiking partner to catch up. “I’m just in my element. Besides, I’m itchin’ to see this hidden treasure of yours. You need to keep up!”

If her eyes were open, she’d see a devilish spark light up in Phlox’s eyes. He might have been the quiet type, but he was extremely competitive and loved a challenge. He secured his camera tightly to his side and took off in a sprint. Keep up? Oh, he’d show her. 

“Like this?”

Domino’s eyes jolted open as she felt Phlox’s breath tickle her nose. She let out a high pitched squeak upon realizing the guy she thought was several yards away was nose-to-nose with her. The shock made her loosen her grip on the branch and she was in for a quick plummet to the ground. 

“Whoa!” The indigo male threw his arms out and caught her, holding her securely to his chest. He was strong! Of course, her transient lifestyle and meager diet left her on the smaller side, but Phlox held her as if she were weightless. The muscles in his arms were dense and firm against her slight body.

“I didn’t think you’d startle so easily,” he teased.

“Yyyeah, well-” Domino began to excuse herself, but couldn’t find the words. Geez, what was it about this guy that made her so tongue-tied? Sure he was plenty sweet, certainly nicer than most people she’d ever met. And yeah he was good-looking—she couldn’t deny that. Now she noticed how nice he smelled, too; something woody, earthy, almost sweet, like sandalwood. And his fur, so warm and soft…

Her fingers combed through the shaggy, wheat-colored fur of Phlox’s chest, sending a shiver up his entire being. His heartbeat quickened against her fingertips and she swiftly withdrew her hand realizing what she’d done. Domino looked up to find his muzzle as scarlet as hers surely was. “Uh…”

Phlox felt the urge to say something, but his shyness got the better of him. He instead cleared his throat and set the young woman back on her feet. “Sorry for scaring you…”

“Nah,” Domino replied. She twirled the tuft of fur near her cheek bashfully as she ruminated over what just happened. She shouldn’t be getting close to someone like this. Letting someone in only led to betrayal or disappointment. Besides, what did she have to offer him? She had no home, no money. Relax. She reminded herself. It’s okay to have a little fun…

“Besides, you just gave me an opening.”

Phlox’s eyes went wide. With his voice barely above a whisper, he asked, “To do what?” 

“To do… this!” Domino snatched the notepad from Phlox’s hands and bolted away.

“H-HEY!” The boy shouted before swiftly chasing after her. He was not nearly as graceful navigating the woods as she was, especially with a camera slung over his shoulder, but he managed to stay close on her tail. 

Domino cackled over her shoulder. “I thought you said we needed to see this grotto at a certain time of day! So hurry it up! Or are those cool jeans of yours slowin’ ya down?!”

“These pants provide full mobility!” he shouted. The two laughed as they weaved their way through the forest, Domino skimming the instructions in the notepad and leading them the rest of the way to their destination. 

She abruptly stopped in front of a wall of weeping katsura trees and Phlox had to clumsily skid to a halt to keep from crashing into her. Domino looked back and forth between the green palisades and handwritten notes. “I’m pretty sure this is it,” she confirmed. She returned the booklet to Phlox before presenting an arm to the curtain of emerald leaves. “This was your goal. After you.”

Phlox shook his head with a smile. “Together.”

A little taken aback, Domino simply nodded in agreement and squared herself up beside Phlox. Both hedgehogs drew back the partition of leaves and stepped forth.

The grotto was truly a sight to behold. Dozens of large trees stretched and twisted amongst each other as if embracing in a circular huddle, leaving a medium-sized clearing in the center. Fountains of leaves and vines draped about the branches, painting the enclosure every shade of green. Tiny sprigs of yellow and white wildflowers dotted the forest floor, their blooms diminutive and modest but still serving as a beautiful compliment to the rich viridescence of the grass they sprouted from. Silky, golden rays of sunshine poured through the canopy in beams so crisp, they looked as though one could reach out and touch them. The early autumn breeze glided along the treetops and the soft pitter-patter of the leaves tickling each other echoed down into the grove. The willowing trees all made for a perfect shelter, completely cloaking this little slice of heaven from the rest of the world. It was only the two hedgehogs and a sparse flight of fluttering insects that were privy to this space.

Domino’s breath wavered in awe. She silently stepped deeper into the natural arbor and sat down with her knees pulled to her chest. Even though she spent the entirety of her life out on the road, the planet never ceased to amaze her in new and spectacular ways. She folded her arms over her knees and rested her head on them, sighing with a soft smile.

Phlox took a deep breath, letting his lungs expand entirely with the crisp fresh air before releasing it and setting to work on adjusting his camera. As he delicately fiddled with the device, he couldn’t help but notice Domino’s silent reverie in the corner of his eye. His heart filled with pride knowing the young lady seemed just as touched by the setting as he was. He walked over to her, whispering as not to break her daydream.

“This is why the timing was so crucial,” Phlox said softly. “I’m sure this spot is beautiful all the time, but at this exact moment, at this exact time of day? It’s-”

“Heavenly,” Domino concluded. It was true. The sunbeams filtering through the trees managed to diffuse the light to give the space an ethereal glow. Anything that was lucky enough to catch the direct sunlight appeared to have a soft, colorful halo as the light bounced off its surface. Phlox nodded and headed off to document the scene.

Meanwhile, Domino reached forward and let her arm glow in a sunbeam as she let all the worries that normally plagued her mind dissipate. Here in this cove, she didn’t have to concern herself with the upcoming winter. She didn’t have to think about how–or when–she’d find her next meal. Even the looming threat of “Botnik workers” that would soon replace her managed to escape her mind. Right now, she could just be. Her eyes studied every leaf, every blade of grass, every sway of the branches that hung above her head so that even on the bad days, she could look back at this moment and feel peace.

Eventually, her attention shifted to the indigo photographer at work. He walked so carefully and quietly it was as if his boots weren’t even making contact with the ground. At one point, the boy managed to approach a flutter of blue butterflies that didn’t seem phased by his company, shining and dancing in the late-afternoon sun like fairies. She wondered if it was possible to capture the serenity of this moment in a photo. It would be nice to see if he succeeded, but he likely wouldn’t develop his roll of film any time soon. She’d be long gone before those photos would come to light. The thought caused a strange weight in her chest, a sinking feeling she shouldn’t allow herself to feel. She diverted her attention to some of the wildflowers beside her.

Neither were sure how much time passed as they each quietly enjoyed the space, together but individually in their own ways. Once satisfied, Phlox walked over and took a seat next to Domino. “I didn’t get to ask you earlier...” he broke the silence, but his soft, honey-smooth voice was so reposeful it might as well have been part of the ambient melody of the forest.

“Hm?” Domino hummed, looking over to the boy beside her.

“What’s your dream?”

The girl leaned back with her palms behind her and surveyed the shelter of leaves above them as she pondered. Her dream. Such a big question. What should she make up this time? What would impress this guy the most? ‘To conquer a mighty dragon’? ‘To soar among the stars’?

“I want to make a difference,” she found the truth slipping from her lips. She shook her head and shrugged with defeat as if that goal was too ambitious for someone like herself. “Even if I can do just one good thing.”

Her words were so simple but there was such a bitter heaviness to them. Did she really think she was of such little significance? Phlox hardly knew her, yet he sensed something positively great about her. The brief hours spent in her company were already changing him, encouraging him to become more of the person he was striving to be. What or who made her think so little of herself? He wanted to ask, but wisdom told him if he did, she’d likely withdraw even further.

Instead, he placed his hand on hers and gave it a firm squeeze. 

“You will.”

Domino turned to Phlox with a soft gasp. His words sounded so genuine. Oh, how he looked at her, too. The way those green eyes surveyed her made her feel like she was the only thing in the world. It was intimidating. It was exciting.

Though her heartbeat grew louder in her ears, she still managed to pick up a faint assortment of sounds off in the distance. Chattering? Shrieking? She wasn’t sure but it was quickly growing louder. At the same time, she and Phlox looked towards the barrier of trees and noticed the branches and leaves beginning to tremble. Something was rushing through the forest and rapidly making its way towards the grotto. The tops of the trees shook and the roar of what sounded like a crowd was quickly upon them. Domino only briefly saw a flash of color burst through the curtain of leaves before closing her eyes and throwing herself on top of Phlox to shield him from whatever threat found their hiding spot.

The roaring now completely surrounded them, making its way over their heads and echoing all around them in the grotto. Domino tried to flatten herself and Phlox as close to the ground so they wouldn’t be hit. But despite the overwhelming noise, nothing struck them. She heard Phlox gasp. “Minnie, look!”

Domino opened one eye to see Phlox looking skyward, a wondrous smile on his face. She hesitantly turned just enough to peek over her shoulder and gasped as well. Hundreds–no, thousands of colorful birds were flying in mass above the canopy. Despite their numbers, they all moved together in perfect harmony, creating a magnificent, undulating patchwork of color in the sky. Domino rolled onto her back and the two hedgehogs watched in awe. She knew that birds were likely to migrate before the winter months hit, but she never witnessed something quite like this. The setting sunlight shone through their wings as they fluttered above, painting the entirety of the sky with a brilliant rainbow. Just as quickly as they had approached, the last of the birds flew past and the grotto returned to the peaceful silence once again.

Phlox and Domino both blinked. The moment had come and gone so quickly, it was almost as if it didn’t happen at all. They turned to each other, Domino’s head still resting on Phlox’s arm, and at once they both giggled in breathless bewilderment. 

“What are the odds of that?” Domino grinned, placing a hand on her forehead in disbelief.

Phlox smirked confidently. “Right place, right time.”

“Ah yes, your ‘super power’,” the girl rolled her eyes and began to shove herself away. However, Phlox quickly wrapped his arms around her and pulled her tight to him. She squealed with laughter and fought against him in protest.

“Don’t mock my talent,” he chuckled while Domino squirmed in his grasp.

“Lemme go, you brute!” The teal hedgehog shoved her palm into Phlox’s face, making him laugh even harder. Still, he held her close.

“Naht ‘til you apahlagizsh,” he muttered under the pressure of her hand. 

Domino removed her palm and leaned in with a playful scowl. “Never.”

Phlox met her smug glare. “Then I’ll never let you go.”

Domino stopped struggling and her smile faltered a bit. She knew he was joking; after all, she started this game, but something about those words… Something inside her wanted them to be true. She enjoyed the feel of his embrace. She wanted him to hold onto her endlessly, and the thought made her curse to herself. ‘Wants’ were stupid, frivolous. Her lifestyle only allowed for ‘needs’: shelter and sustenance.

Domino was beginning to realize that Phlox’s presence caused an entirely different kind of hunger within her.

The male’s chuckles diminished as Domino stared at him quietly. His cheeks and chest grew warm as he suddenly registered just how tightly she was pressed against him. Phlox searched her cyan eyes, wondering what she was thinking. Was she upset? He was inexperienced with flirting; had he gone too far? She wasn’t pulling away, though. Her gaze briefly flickered to his lips and his heart raced faster and his purple fur prickled up. 

“...Do… you realize what that was?” Domino whispered.

Phlox’s eyes widened. Was she asking about his sudden shiver or the display of birds they just witnessed? He hoped it was the latter.

“Uhh… a… murmuration…?” 

“A-K-A…?” she nodded expectantly and a smile began to curl on her lips.

Phlox’s eyelids dropped with realization and he sneered, “Don’t. You. Dare.”

Domino sat up and poked at Phlox’s chest to punctuate her words. “Those were FLOCKS of BIRDS!”

“That’s it!” He went to snatch her again, but Domino was too quick for him this time. She sprinted to the edge of the grotto and giggled while she waited for him. Phlox hurriedly packed up his gear and threw his camera strap over his shoulder. “You’re in for it now!”

The girl squealed and darted away as Phlox chased her all the way back to the village.

—

Domino let out a long yawn after collecting payment from her most recent task. Despite completing her fourth odd-job of the morning, she still found herself struggling to stay awake. Then again, she did have a hard time falling asleep last night…

It wasn’t the cold that kept her awake. No, she was plenty used to sleeping outside in all manner of harsh weather conditions. What kept her up were thoughts about that damn boy. That quiet, dazzling boy. 

She didn’t recognize herself when she was around Phlox. Talking to him either led to embarrassing, truthful slip-ups (she still couldn’t believe she’d told him her “dream.” How stupid!) or left her unable to speak at all! And that stunt she pulled in the grotto to try and save him… What was that?! She’d lived her whole life looking out for herself. Her entire existence was all about self preservation. So why did she throw herself on top of him when she thought they were in danger? Domino was annoyed with how quickly her priorities were shifting. And even more annoyed by how good it felt to care about somebody other than herself for once. 

Tossing and turning over all these thoughts left her with little shut-eye last night. 

An idea came to her suddenly. Perhaps a cold dip would wake her up! Besides, after doing all the dirty jobs that the townspeople didn’t enjoy and the “Botniks” were too clunky to complete, she could use a bath. 

She exited the city and headed downhill. Her years traversing the wilderness trained her to easily find rivers, and after carefully listening for running water and taking note of the ways the trees leaned, she found what she was looking for.

It was a serene creek with blue-green water that was clear enough to see the bottom of the river bed. It would be plenty deep enough for a proper swim. A medium-sized stack of boulders allowed for a steady flow of water to gently trickle down into the larger body of the creek. On days where the weather was more severe, she imagined the waterfall would crash into the river with a thunderous roar. But on this mellow autumn morning, the water was calm and tranquil. 

It made her think of Phlox. 

“Chaos,” she cursed to herself. The Domino she knew would have just shrugged it off and gone about her business. But this new, thoughtful Domino realized this was the exact kind of scene Phlox would love to photograph. The idea of gifting him with this little treasure and seeing the look of excitement on his face was too much to resist. “So much for ‘priorities’ huh?”

She convinced herself that this would be her way of repaying him for the grotto trip yesterday, nothing more. Satisfied with that reasoning, she hurried back to town in hopes to find that photographer that seemed to be making a home in her mind’s eye. It didn’t take long for her to spot him. The young man was sitting under a shade tree, writing in his notepad. Butterflies filled her stomach at the width of his smile upon hearing her call his name. The feeling intensified with how quickly he agreed to go with her. 

“I’m telling ya, you’re gonna make this place THE travel destination once the world sees all your photos. Especially of this spot I found!”

“Had I known you were a location scout, I’d have hired you sooner.”

“You can’t afford me. Heiress, remember?” Domino teased with a wink. “I’m offering you this location on the house.” Phlox laughed his mischievous laugh as he followed the young woman. Once they reached the creek, Domino raised her arms into the air and spun around with a triumphant, “Ta-daaaa~!”

The purple hedgehog placed his hands on his hips and his grin was brighter than the sun. His reaction was even better than she had pictured.

“So, whaddya think?”

“I think,” Phlox chuckled, lowering the camera from his shoulder and placing it on the ground. Domino blinked as he kicked off his boots. “This is going to be so cold!”

“What?” Domino scoffed while Phlox removed his beloved pair of jeans and pried off his gloves. “You’re really gonna jump in there?”

“Like you aren’t?” Phlox raised an eyebrow, a knowing smile plastered on his sandy muzzle. “That’s why you came out here in the first place, right?”

“I-” she scratched her quills and shrugged, “I guess I just took you for the prissy, hot-shower type.”

The boy turned to face the girl while walking backwards and used his fist to make a stabbing motion into his heart. “Minnie, you wound me!” He spun on his heel with a laugh and ran towards the creek before leaping into the air, curling into a spinning ball, and crashing into the water with a mighty splash. 

Just as quickly as he had jumped in, he resurfaced and his voice cracked as he shrieked. “I WAS ᴿᴵGᴴᵀ! SO CₒᴸD!”

“PFFTT!” Domino burst into a fit of laughter, doubling over and holding her stomach. “Gaia! I had no idea your voice could reach that high!”

“Shu-shu-shushhhh up and guh-get in here!” Phlox demanded through chattering teeth. He swam to face the other way so Domino could strip down to her undergarments without him watching. 

Domino shook out her hands to mentally prepare herself for the cold plunge before jumping into the water, wailing. She resurfaced with a gasp. Well, she certainly wasn’t tired anymore. 

“Whu-whu-whyyy duh-duh-did we d-do thissss?!” 

Phlox’s ears were pinned flat to his head. “‘Cuz wuh-we’re young and sssss-stupid!” 

“C-c’mon Young, ssswim with Stupid,” Domino laughed despite her shivering and waved him over to follow her as she began to swim. “The mmmore ya move the w-warmer you’ll be.”

The two hedgehogs made a game of who could swim the fastest from one edge of the creek to the other, and before long they had quickly adjusted to the temperature of the water. It turned out that Phlox was an excellent swimmer, capable of doing laps around Domino. The girl rolled her eyes as he gloated over his many wins.

“Ya know, I think I liked you more when you talked LESS!” She startled him with a tackle and dunked him under water.

He sprang back up and shook off his quills. “You opened this Pandora’s Box, there’s no putting it back now.”

“Oh yeah?” She went for another tackle, but now that he was onto her, he dodged and left her rolling face-first into the water. Domino made several more attempts, but Phlox would either stay so still it was like slamming into a brick wall, or he would use her momentum against her to make her plunge face first into the water. 

Her most recent effort left her clinging to Phlox’s side, trying to push his face into the water with no success. “Grrrrr why won’t you go down?!”

Phlox laughed and pried the girl off him with ease. “I love your enthusiasm. But you won’t beat me in a battle of brawn.” He tapped his temple. “You’ve got to assess the situation and play to your strengths.”

The teal hedgehog let her head fall back and groaned with frustration. “You said it yourself: I’ve got no strength.”

“I meant ‘do what you’re best at,’” Phlox scratched the fluff of his muzzle as he pondered for a moment. His green eyes suddenly lit up and he snapped his fingers. “I know a game we could play!” He swam a distance away to make room between the two hedgehogs. “I’m going to guard this end of the creek. If you get passed me and make it to the bank, you earn a point.”

Domino’s shoulders sank. “You’re the better swimmer and you’re bigger than me. I’m never getting through you.”

Phlox smiled with encouragement. “Assess the situation, Minnie. You’re smaller, but that makes you faster and more slippery. Use that to your advantage to get around me.”

“Hmm,” Domino considered, her pout turning into a genuine smile. “Okay, I’ll give it a shot!”

“But!” Phlox held up a finger. “To prove that I’m not going to just let you win, let’s raise the stakes. If I catch you, you have to answer a question. Truthfully.”

“Pfft,” Domino sputtered. “That’s not much of a reward.”

“It is to me,” Phlox grinned. He stretched his arms out to either side. “Now show me what you’ve got!”

Domino’s eyes twinkled with determination and she rushed forward. She originally tried swimming to the side of Phlox’s reach, but he was able to quickly catch up to her. She panicked at the last minute and tried to charge him, but he caught her and she went limp in his arms in frustration. 

“Next time, don’t give up so fast. There’s still a chance to break free.” Phlox shifted the girl in his arms so he carried her bridal style and swam them back over to Domino’s side of the river. “So, how many siblings do you have?”

“70.” She moped. 

“Hey, I won my prize. The truth. How many do you really have?”

Domino rolled her eyes and shoved herself off him. She muttered quietly, “It’s just me.” Her answer was guarded, but Phlox couldn’t help but pick up the loneliness in her tone. He tried to lighten the mood with his own response as he made his way back to start-position. 

“Wow, the center of attention, huh? We’ve got two litters in my family. 3 brothers and 1 sister. I’m right in the middle.”

“5 guys in one house? I bet the place stinks!” Domino teased, finding her sense of humor again. “Ugh, you have no idea!” Phlox joked and rubbed his nose. “When I first started out on the road, I felt like I could breathe for the first time in my life!” The girl attempted to swim by him again. Phlox grappled for her and though he did briefly get his arms around her, she was able to wiggle through his forearms and kick off his back to propel herself to the creek bank. Domino couldn’t help but dance along the shore at her win. 

“See that’s it!” Phlox threw a fist into the air. “Show me what else you can do. Besides those sick dance moves.”

Domino hurried over to her side again and strategized. She knew he would just keep catching her if she tried to swim around him, and though she could wiggle free, she’d get exhausted in no time. She looked down and noticed how similar the blue-green shade of the water was in comparison to her own fur. 

She squeaked as she was suddenly rushed and held tightly in Phlox’s grip. 

“What the HELL?!” she squirmed. This time he locked her forearms across her chest and she couldn’t wiggle loose. 

“Who said I couldn’t leave my post? You were taking too long and I have questions!” 

Domino slumped against Phlox’s furry chest, defeated. Her voice was monotone, “What is your question, O devilish Phlox?”

“If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?”

Domino giggled before her eyes went wide. “Ohhh, those hash browns from yesterday!”

“That’s it? Hash browns?” Phlox cocked an eyebrow. Domino shoved off him so he could return to his position. 

“I’m not a picky eater and those were good! Why, what would yours be?”

“Chili. The spicier, the better!” Phlox answered before whispering under his breath, “Hmm. I could learn to make hash browns,” Meanwhile, Domino returned to her plan that she was formulating before she was last captured. She took a deep breath and submerged herself completely underwater. 

“Uh-oh,” Phlox panicked. The only patches of Domino’s fur that weren’t teal blue were her cheeks, stomach, and the inside of her ears, and while she was underwater, she was just about invisible. His eyes searched frantically, trying to figure out which side she would attempt to get around him. He yelped when he felt something brush the undersides of his paws. Once he realized it was Domino swimming below him, it was already too late and she was on his side of the river. 

“HaHA!!” She cheered and shimmied her shoulders in a victory dance. 

“Very clever,” Phlox grinned. “I’m onto you now.”

Their game went on for several more rounds, with Domino taking the lead by a substantial amount. Still, Phlox was determined and managed to get a few more answers out of her before their game was through:

“What’s your biggest pet-peeve?”

“When people are snooty. Get outta here with that crap!”

“Morning-bird or night-owl?”

“Of course you’d ask a ‘bird’ question, ‘Flocks.’ I always start the day bright and early.”

“What’s your favorite thing about yourself?”

“Oiiiii… Hmmm. My resourcefulness.”

“Excellent choice. I’ve never seen anyone wield a roll of tape better than you.”

“And you never will~” 

“Would you ever want to have kids one day?”

She had to think about that one for a moment. Logistically, her lifestyle wouldn’t allow for that kind of thing. It wasn’t responsible. But Phlox did ask her to answer honestly. A soft smile formed on her lips. 

“Yeah. I would.”

Phlox bit the inside of his cheek in hopes to suppress his smile and the blush creeping up his neck.

Domino attempted one more round, but at this point she was drained and Phlox caught her without much struggle. 

“Okay, okay,” she panted and the young man released her. “You win. I’ve had enough.” The girl huffed and puffed, struggling to tread water with the amount of energy she’d exerted. 

The boy chuckled and took her hands into his. “Here, catch your breath.” He was surprised that instead of merely holding onto his hands, Domino pulled herself close to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. She rested her chin on his shoulder and closed her eyes as she attempted to regulate her breathing.

Phlox was certain she could feel the pounding of his heartbeat, but surprisingly he wasn’t all that ashamed this time. Domino had a way of making him feel excited and calm all at once. It encouraged him to be bolder, braver, more accepting of his quirks. 

“I can tell you wanna ask me another question,” the girl teased. 

“I do,” Phlox admitted, his voice much softer and reserved, like the first time they met. “But it’s not part of the game.”

“C’mon, you caught me so you earned it,” Domino leaned back enough so she could look Phlox eye-to-eye. Her mouth curved up into a smile at how red his face was. “What?”

Be bold. He told himself. Be like her.

“Can I kiss you?”

Domino’s jaw dropped with a soft gasp. Of all the things he could’ve asked, this was the last thing she expected. Before these last two days, nobody even bothered looking her way. Now not only did she have the undivided attention of this dashing young man, but he wanted to kiss her? Phlox could easily have any girl he wanted, so why would he waste his time with somebody like her?

Well, she thought, probably because he doesn’t actually know me. If he did, he’d leave. 

It would be smart to say no. But when would she ever have this opportunity again? She’d be gone by tomorrow, having never kissed a boy. A beautiful, kind, lovely boy.

“…Yes.”

As soon as the word left her lips, Phlox took her face into his hands and kissed her. She was alarmed at how quickly his mouth was on hers considering how shy he’d been just a moment ago, but it was a welcome surprise. Her arms remained wrapped around his neck and she closed her eyes as she returned his kiss. 

Phlox sighed happily into her lips, his thumbs stroking her cheeks as he cupped her face. He’d never kissed anyone before, but from the moment he first laid eyes on this young lady it was all he could think about. She was so unique and adventurous and funny! Oh, how she made him laugh like he was a little kid again. He was generally in good-spirits most of the time, but he hadn’t felt happiness like this for a long while. Being in her company was like floating in the clouds. The kiss broke just briefly as his mouth subconsciously curved into a smile, but he did his best to force it down and match his lips to hers once more. 

One of Phlox’s hands gently combed down Domino’s long cyan quills and that burning hunger flared up in her lower belly once again. His lips were too lovely, his touch too wonderful. This was dangerous. 

Regrettably, Domino broke away and rested her forehead against his as they both attempted to catch their breath. “I’m not so good at multitasking… We should probably get outta the water now,” the lady hedgehog suggested. 

“Yeah, okay,” Phlox chuckled breathlessly. The two swam to the edge of the creek and Domino pulled a towel out from her backpack. She dried herself off as much as possible before tossing it to Phlox while she got dressed. He pulled on his pants and boots then laid in the grass next to the girl and quietly admired the clouds with a smile on his face. 

Domino was grateful for the silence, trying to make sense of all the weird thoughts and feelings swimming around her mind. She knew it was a bad idea to let somebody in like this. The closer Phlox got, the sooner he’d realize what a joke she was. She knew she would need to leave before that happened. So why, why did she feel this constant urge to let him in? She chewed on her lip but silently cursed to herself as she could still taste him. 

“Hey, so…” she started, despite her better judgment. Phlox turned his full attention to her. “I’m no chef, but… I make a pretty good stew. And you said you like chili, so, uh… I was wondering if you’d…” she clapped a hand over her face and sighed. “-If you’d let me make you something. You know, to pay you back for… everything.”

“Pay me back?” Phlox asked, his brows furrowed.

“For breakfast, and the grotto,” she threw her hands into the air, “and all the tactical combat lessons you just gave me!”

“Hey, I did those things because I wanted to. You don’t owe me anything,” he did his best to reassure the girl. He propped his head up with his hand and gave a mischievous smirk. “But if it’s a date you’re suggesting…”

“Chaos,” Domino muttered. Still, she couldn’t help but smile. 

“You have to ask me proper. I’m old-fashioned like that.”

“Ugh,” she rolled her eyes before turning to face the boy who was all but wiggling with anticipation. “Phlox. May I make you dinner? As a date.”

“Yes.” He gave her a quick peck on the cheek before rolling over to grab his camera. His face was bright red, but his smile was confident as he removed the lens and adjusted the settings. “Now, to capture this little gem you found me!”

Domino packed up her bag before swinging it over her shoulder. “I’ll meet you at the inn you’re staying at, yeah?”

“Okay!” He snapped a few photos. “What’re you up to today?”

Oh, just buying a cheap jacket and a bunch of nonperishables so I don’t starve this winter. Impressive, right?

“More business meetings. I heard the mayor’s a big-time investor. I’m gonna see if he will fund the latest board game I’m developing.”

Phlox slowly lowered the viewfinder from his eyes. Why was she telling stories again? He thought after what just happened… Why couldn’t she just tell him the truth? He closed his eyes and sighed. Who was he to tell her what to do? Besides, it was like he told her: she didn’t owe him anything. All he could do was hope that she’d learn to trust him eventually. 

“Knock ‘em dead, Minnie. I believe in you.”

The girl gave him a playful salute before heading back into town, leaving the boy alone to his thoughts. 

Domino hadn’t even made it to the market before hearing a thunderous crash and the screams of several townspeople. People sprinted away from the townsquare in a panic. The old Domino might have followed their lead and scampered away as well. But over these last couple of days, she found herself evolving. Even more important than self-preservation, she felt a stronger urge growing in her heart: the need to protect. Without hesitation, she raced towards the sound of the commotion.

[CHAPTER 3: Coming Soon]

[A/N: I used the art of Nathan Fowkes as visual inspiration for many of the scenes in this chapter. If you aren't familiar with his work, I highly recommend checking it out!]

[spreadwardiard]

More than Affection

Death had a single mission in the living realm: to find a Champion worthy of bearing the Matrix of Leadership so that they may restore the proper balance of their world. He did not understand mortals, nor their emotions, despite how much he cared for them, and so was left awed and confused when his spark began to react unusually to the one he had chosen as his champion.

Based off my friend @lets-try-some-writing's fantastic AU: Death's Embrace: Part 1 and Part 2. Please read these first as they give so much context to what is going on in this AU.

Orion Pax, the Thirteenth Prime, the walker of the void between the living and the dead, the ferry of sparks to their Father's loving embrace, the manifestation of all that death was, was a wise mech in many ways, but there were so many things about the children of Primus he had yet to understand. Just when he thought he had it all figured out, that he understood the living children as well as he needed to; his chosen champion of change flipped his understanding entirely on its helm.  He had missed the exact moment that Megatronus of Kaon ceased to find him unnerving, but he had not missed when his champion's affections turned to something… foreign and unidentifiable. 

This new feeling that radiated from Megatronus’ very spark whenever he was near came upon him without warning one evening when he had come to the Champion with notice of an imminent raid. He had, in his usual fashion, emerged from the void in the shadows behind the champion, who had been hunched over his desk, composing what Orion assumed was his next speech. Orion had thought nothing of it when he leaned over with his palm braced upon Megatronus’s shoulder and whispered in his audial, “Prepare yourself, my Champion. The enemies of our order have come to destroy us. Their wrath knows no bounds, and carried by command, they shall have no mercy. Flee while you can champion, take your followers, for they are coming."

Megatronus had not reacted the way he had expected him to at the news. His chosen Champion was prone to act with haste and righteous fury, yet the emotions that came from his spark were unknown to the walker of the voids. Affection, he understood, and there was a strong undercurrent of that familiar emotion underneath this strange feeling that Megatronus was refusing to allow through his EMs. Another oddity, Megatronus was not one to shield others from the truths of his emotions unless it somehow benefited him to do so, and Orion could think of no benefit to obscuring any form of affection for one’s companions.

Megatronus had then asked him a question he had never asked before; “When will I see you again?” 

Megatronus had acted so entirely out of character throughout the encounter that Orion almost feared something catastrophic had already happened. There had been a strange melancholy tinting that question that he could not quite interpret, but knew that it was directed towards himself. It made no sense to him why, when Megatronus’ main concern should have been to alert Soundwave of this new information and flee. 

His chosen champion’s odd behaviors around him only seemed to increase from that point forward. Those who had taken heed of his warning and fled alongside the Champion had sought refuge deep in the abandoned mines of Kaon, where no light from the nearest star could reach. He had paused after he had stepped from the void. Lingering in the shadows, he observed the forlorn look upon Megatronus’ face and a strange, twisting unease in his spark that he covered with a veil of false confidence. 

Glancing around all the bots collected in this shaft, Orion could not understand why. Everyone of note had been present, and even many of those Orion had yet to acquaint himself with were there. Soundwave had been at ease with the situation, and none of the others appeared to be nearly as concerned as their leader. It was… odd… 

What was even odder was how Megatronus had responded to him when he finally stepped out of the shadows to stand at his side. Instead of his usual greeting, Megatronus had taken him by the wrists and examined his frame as if he were expecting him to be damaged, and only after he was satisfied that Orion was perfectly intact did that strange unease in him die down, to be replaced by such a strong wave of relief that it had stunned the walker of the void.

His chosen champion had never examined him in such a manner before, nor had he ever embraced him in the manner he had afterwards. He had been pulled flush against the champion and held tightly against his warm chassis. Megatronus had held him there until his relief shifted into that same, mysterious emotion from before, only this time, a bit more open in its presentation. Megatronus did not seek to hide nearly as much of this strange… ‘more-than-affection’ feeling from him as he had their previous encounter. 

Orion did not understand any of it, but the warmth he experienced while being embraced lingered far longer than he had expected it to, and he found himself often recalling how pleasant it had felt to be enveloped in his Champion’s arms. However, Megatronus did not embrace him upon his next visit, and Orion had been disappointed in that fact, though he did not recognize his disappointment until he had returned to the void, feeling colder than normal.

The odd behaviors and feelings continued. It became quite common for the Champion of Kaon to rest his servo upon Orion’s shoulder; a gesture that Orion reciprocated eagerly, often accompanied by a gentle smile or curious tilt of his helm. Though foreign to him, the progression of his champion’s strange, shifting affections felt natural and satisfying in a way he could not describe.

It did not feel especially strange when Megatronus took his servo for the first time, one evening, as they sat together in the dark, speaking of nothing of consequence; though it was strange to him why Megatronus had been so nervous before he had done so. But his champion had eased as soon as Orion had shifted his digits, to allow them to intertwine with those of his champion. Megatronus had held his servo until Orion had felt drawn to return to the void, where he swore the warmth of Megatronus’ touch had lingered even as he ushered the latest wave of Primus’ children back to his loving embrace. 

For reasons he did not entirely understand, he had found himself visiting his champion more frequently, and staying late into the recharge cycle. Some cycles, they discussed their revolution and their various plans regarding their upcoming moves. Such conversations were not especially noteworthy. 

But there was one night that Orion still could not shake out of his helm; where Megatronus had looked directly into his optics and recited a piece of poetry about a captivating Archivist from Iacon, who’s optics were so enchanting that he wished he could peer into them forever and who’s derma he’s dreamed of feeling against his own. It was the most emotionally raw and vulnerable he had ever seen the champion, or anyone for that matter, at least in person, and it had left him forgetting to vent entirely until Megatronus had finished the piece. By the time he had remembered he needed to vent to appear living, something strange was churning in his own spark, bubbling up along with his already present affections in a confusing jumble of feelings he did not comprehend. He had been rendered speechless by the poem, and had resorted to reaching out to take Megatronus’ servo into his own and squeezing it tightly to show his approval. 

It was not long after that, that Megatronus had begun to sense his presence, even before he materialized from the void. He was uncertain by which mechanism Megatronus employed to detect him, but it became noteworthy when he arrived one evening to find the champion and his most trusted mechs seated around a table, upon which was a map, discussing their upcoming plans. Orion heard the voice of his champion even before he had begun to materialize his frame in the shadows.

“You need to move.” Megatronus had interrupted whoever was speaking with a firm order, and the room had gone eerily silent at the sudden shift in tone. 

“What? Why?” The confusion had been as evident in the mech’s voice as his disappointment had been. Clearly he had been excited to have a seat beside the Champion of Kaon. 

“That seat is taken. Get up, or I’ll make you get up.” It had been that moment that Orion had stepped out of the shadows and every set of optics in the room rested upon him. He had regarded them all curiously, unsure of what exactly it was he had been sensing from them as he had silently made his way to Megatronus’ side. It had been then that Megatronus had shoved the mech beside him forcefully from his seat and offered it to Orion.

When he took the mech’s place at Megatronus’ right, his Champion saw fit to lace together their digits, and place their joined servos on the table for all to see. Orion saw no reason to withdraw, and so had simply enjoyed the warmth seeping in from his champion’s palm and the strange sensations that very warmth sent to his spark. It mattered little to him that so many stared at them in silent recognition of some unspoken declaration that only Orion seemed unaware of. Megatronus had flawlessly picked up the conversation where he had interrupted it as the mech he had removed from his side took a seat at the opposite end of the table. 

Truthfully, Orion could not recall any of the specific details of that particular meeting. He had been too focused on trying to interpret the jumbled emotions welling up in his spark, that same “more-than-affection” that he sensed from his champion, though he still could not decipher the meaning of it. He knew that he found the sensations agreeable, pleasurable, even, and he knew that he wished to seek out more of this strange feeling that he could not call by name that only Megatronus seemed capable of making him feel. 

When Megatronus first placed his servo upon his waist, the warmth that radiated from his touch had seeped so deeply into him that his very spark could feel its comfort; and when his champion tugged him gently against his side, Orion eagerly leaned into the warmth that spilled into him at each point their frames touched. 

None of it made sense to him; the feelings, the newfound desire for warmth, the strange behaviors that had now become anticipated and comforting... He enjoyed when Megatronus touched him, though he did not know why it felt so different from the touch of any other mech. He found himself, somewhere along the way, almost craving the warmth that Megatronus provided him with his touches, and actively began seeking it out, sometimes even finding himself tucked against the champion’s side before being prompted. 

Megatronus stopped attempting to hide this strange feeling with his EMs entirely after Orion had materialized at the foot of his berth late one recharge cycle after leading home the latest batch of sparks, waking the champion with just a single request on his glossa. “I wish to bask in the warmth of my champion’s embrace.” 

Megatronus wordlessly invited him into his berth by lifting his arm and once Orion had climbed in beside him, he was pulled snugly to the champion's chassis, held firm, back struts flush against the champion's frame where the most wonderful warmth emanating from Megatronus seeped into him, soothing in him discomforts he had not even been aware he had felt at all. Megatronus’ mighty arm held him firmly in place, and similarly, Orion’s grip on his champion's servo, where he had intertwined their digits, only further served to anchor the two of them together. 

Orion spent many recharge cycles lying in the champion’s berth, secure in a warm embrace. It gave him joors upon joors to think and attempt to dissect the strange ways that Megatronus had affected him since he had detected that shift in the champion’s emotions. Never before had he been content to simply lie in place when there were so many things he should be observing and tending to with his free time. But this new emotion in his spark grew heavy and manifested as a persistent desire that gnawed at him to return to the comfort of his champion’s side the longer he stayed away, and he had found that these periods of rest somehow eased that strange… almost pain he came to expect from separation. 

And when they were together… It mattered not whether they were lying in berth or standing side by side, Orion found his artificial venting matching that of his champion’s vent for vent, and it was becoming more and more common for the entire universe to melt away in his awareness when the champion addressed him, and when Megatronus drew him close and looked into his optics his spark would pulse so strongly that he feared it would break free of the frame he had constructed around himself.  He would have been frightened by the intensity of the feeling had he not been aware that his champion felt exactly the same way, and was not concerned. 

For all the eons that he had walked the void, he had never felt anything remotely close to this. It was unfathomable to him. He could pick out individual aspects of this larger emotion; such as affection, anticipation, fondness, security and excitement; however these were only small facets of the massive new emotion that had taken root in his spark. When he tried to analyze them all together it simply became a too large and confusing to comprehend, especially if he attempted to factor in how not just his own behaviors had been altered so drastically due to this emotion, but his champion’s as well

He understood that Megatronus had become important to him, more so than any other who walked the living realm, but it had nothing to do with the quest he had sent his champion on and everything to do with how the champion made him feel. Like he was… wanted; like his presence was enjoyed. Something he had never cared about before.

 His last encounter with Megatronus had resulted in the most tempestuous reaction in his spark yet. The bulk of the visit was relatively unnoteworthy. Mechs were packing up their camp in the mine shaft to relocate to a safe house in Tarn. Once again, Megatronus covered his anxieties with false confidence as he directed his flock and collected his own belongings. Orion assisted him in packing and when he had felt the call to return to the void, Megatronus stopped him from stepping into the shadows with a quick, desperate grasp to his wrist.

Megatronus pulled Orion gently back towards him and drew him into a tender embrace. Orion leaned into the warmth provided by his champion, his optics shuddering offline almost on instinct as he rested helm upon his shoulder, his face nuzzled into the crook of Megatronus’ neck, content to feel his claws drawing soothing circles on the plating of his lower back. He could spare a few more kliks…. 

He was just about to regretfully pull away from the embrace when he felt Megatronus lightly touch the side of his digit to his chin, in a gentle, unspoken, request. He allowed Megatronus to guide his helm, and when their optics met, Orion’s spark twisted in a strange anticipation at the look he was receiving. His champion looked… nervous, unsure, like he wanted to say something, but underneath it, he felt a strange yearning emanating from the him that Orion couldn’t interpret. Megatronus’ shifted his touch, from Orion’s chin to cup the side of his helm and Orion instinctively nuzzled into the warmth of his champion’s palm and let his optics fall closed as that confusing, yet pleasant jumble of emotions swirled around in his spark. 

And then, without warning, time entirely stopped as he felt Megatronus’  hesitantly press together their derma. He froze stiff as that feeling in his spark suddenly detonated with what felt like the power of a super nova. It surged through him like lightning, and each gentle movement of his champion’s warm derma against his own only sent more fuel to power the fire burning in his spark.  It was nearly overwhelming. He didn’t know what to do, how to respond, or what he was feeling. The only thing even remotely comparable had been the overwhelming understanding that had struck him when his purpose had become known to him. Only this… this was new, it was wonderful; exciting! He’d never felt so…. Alive. He wished it would never end. 

Megatronus pulled away suddenly his field felt off, and instantly Orion felt nearly frantic as awareness snapped back into place abruptly. His servos shot up with urgency and caught the champion by his helm to keep him from retreating any further. It was too soon. He wasn’t ready for it to be over, and Megatronus was upset by something he must have done incorrectly.  When Megatronus’ confusion seeped into his field atop the dejection he was trying to cover up, Orion gently guided his champion back to him, where he clumsily pressed their derma together once more. 

As if he had flipped a switch, his champion surged with confidence as he crushed Orion tightly to his frame, and Orion’s spark soared. The first kiss had been a gentle, almost innocent  brushing of derma, but the second… Megatronus kissed him as if he were starving; hot and passionate, with dentae and glossa. Orion did his best to keep up, tried to mimic and match Megatronus’ technique but he could barely focus over the way his champion had him entirely enveloped in his field, drowning him in the intensity of their combined sentiments. Megatronus seemed to care little that Orion was inexperienced and clumsy, merely chuckling when Orion accidentally clanged their dentae together. He simply had taken charge and kissed Orion until his processors were nearly scrambled with how fiercely it had his spark pulsing with that emotion he could not name. 

When Megatronus pulled away the second time, he was venting heavily, as if he had just come from battle.  He pressed the crests of their helms together gently and this time, Orion was at peace with their separation, his spark thrumming with contentment at their closeness.

“Orion… I-” But the champion cut himself off, though Orion did not know why. It caused him to tilt his helm, in curiosity, as he could tell that whatever Megatronus had wanted to say was of great importance to him. But he had simply smiled, in a melancholy sort of way as he loosened his grip, allowing Orion the space to pull away from him, if he chose to do so. and asked, in a forlorn tone, “When will I see you again?” 

Orion finally understood that Megatronus must have suffered that same… almost painful sensation that he did when they were separated; the one that gnawed at him with memories of warmth and touch and that… feeling in his spark that made him ache to return to his side. He let one of his servos fall from his champion’s helm, to lace together their digits, in the manner he had grown to find comforting.  “I shall return to your side once I have restored those lost and wandering to their eternal sanctum of rest.”

Megatronus’ seemed to find reassurance in his answer, and he smiled, the lazy one that Orion usually only saw when they were lying in berth, and Megatronus just a groon or so from falling into recharge. “How is it that you always know where to find me, my archivist?” 

Orion had smiled at the question and tightened his grip on the champion’s servo as he spoke his response; “The void is but a veil upon which you are always visible to me, my Champion. There is nowhere in the vastness of all that exists you could hide where I could not find you.”

Orion left soon after, with another gentle kiss from his champion graced upon his derma just before the void and strengthened its call to him. Though he noted with some concern that he… did not want to. He wanted to stay with Megatronus, to convince the champion to put off his relocation efforts for just one more cycle, so that they could hold each other in berth and kiss until Megatronus was forced into recharge. 

 The void felt colder than it had during his last retreat, though he knew that that was an impossibility. Something had changed in him to make it feel this way. He did not know if it was something he should be concerned with or not. At its worst, it seemed a mild side effect of… what that kiss had done to him. 

Orion knew, theoretically, what a kiss was, but he did not fully understand what they meant. He knew it was something mortals engaged in with those they felt a great deal of affection for, but he did not understand exactly what had changed between Megatronus and himself to suddenly warrant such an act. They had been feeling these emotions for nearly a vorn now. Something had to have changed. Right?

Somewhere along the way, a great many things had changed, including himself. He was feeling things he knew he was not programmed to feel, even if he could not name those feelings. He knew that now, suddenly, a living being was more important to him than the rest, though he still did not know why. And suddenly he found himself understanding those sparks that lingered near to those they were close to in life, for when he now came to the void, he longed for the warmth of the one he had left behind as well. 

He found that this newfound understanding helped him to ease some of the Precious sparks back to Primus’ embrace with greater ease, though he was not certain what exactly he was doing differently. He sometimes wished he could seek their wisdom as he guided them along the path home, for he knew what he felt was experienced by the living, and perhaps they would be able to at lease identify for him what he was experiencing. But such a thing was not possible. The living, once passed into the void, could not speak. 

He was left with more questions than answers by the time he sensed none left who needed to be guided, and he felt so much colder than he remembered being. The warmth he had soaked up from Megatronus was just a memory, and he felt that strange almost pain biting at him to return to the champion, as he had said he would, once his duties were seen to. But these questions needed to be answered. He needed to know what was happening to him, what strange, mortal influence had taken refuge in his spark. 

He could not ask his brother. Alpha Trion was unlikely to understand and certain to pass judgements upon him for engaging so deeply with Primus’ children. It felt… wrong to ask Megatronus directly, even though logically he knew Megatronus would likely have the answer. He did not even know where to begin to search the archives for the information he sought. 

There was one mech, however, that had made it a point to teach Orion more and more about how to appear… ‘normal’ and alive. The first mortal that had paid him any attention at all. He would go to Ratchet for the answers he sought. If anyone would be able to explain to him what this feeling was, it would be him.

[h-didanart]

Don’t mind me, just uh, felt like writing in a fancy way I guess? Idk, I kinda just made this so yeah :P

———

“I would die for you” thinks the former killer, the little fox that’s now their little sibling yelling over some game he lost.

The cub is fierce but not yet trained in the ways of the world, he’d be ripped to shreds were he left alone. They have to make sure he won’t be thrown to the wolves, won’t spend days in hunger or long for comfort over the freezing nights, won’t run to the arms of a monster, that he won’t follow in their path.

He’s their brother, whom they may not have met before but will love as if they did, they’ll watch over him and strike any menace down, they’ll be the best older brother there ever was.

“I would kill with you” say the runaways, the smarter of their group not amused despite the compliment.

Realistically in a fight it would not be able to do much, having such injuries that limit its movement, not like it’d like to join in, death being that thing that’s better away than up close. They may annoy it by poking fun at its work, or its art, or its style, yet a better bud they couldn’t have, it understands the snide remarks, the accusations and infantilization, of others deeming you the crazy one, telling you your life is a lie.

It’s their friend, their sole source of support during all these years, and they’ll help complete its research as silly to them as it seems, just as they’ll come back at the end of the day and annoy it to no end.

“I will die with you” grumbles the warrior, the actor’s core still beating in spite of their broken chassis.

Such delicate machinery, a survivor of those ashen remains, it must be careful if it doesn’t want to lose its leg again. It’s that care he has such trust on, even through their first impressions, he knows it does what it must, they both do what they can, never exactly at peace in the world lest within the other’s arms.

They are his friend, the one who brought him back alive, who may not understand his way of feeling but will still be there to pat his back, he’ll do his best to keep it alive, and if he can’t then better to stick together, neither has anyone else as it stands.

“I will die for you” feel the twins at once, firmly entwined amongst their family.

It was a miracle they had stuck together, original three as compatible as identical magnets, the now five or six as united as a fly in a deadly glue trap. To have heard as life passed while they remained frozen had been a sweet agony, once the stasis traded with separation a new horror dawning, yet they managed to all hold together through the lies and manipulations and disappearances and pains.

They are their family just as much as they are to each other, they’ll keep them safe, they’ll keep them happy, to show they too can change and to truly join the whole family.

“I will kill for you” the demon tells the virus, holding her arm as they bounce towards the unknowing victims.

Calling themselves their Father and taking them in, they hadn’t expected to get much out of this, a pleasant surprise it was when they did. The only person who gets it he was, having been the core program they were based off, the insatiable hunger, an itchy need, what they had to do to live, not even the Morning Star could look so deeply.

She is their Father, not a creator or whatnot, the one who teaches them efficiency, cares about the means more than the results, they‘ll stand by him as long as they live, one does not just betray their kin.

“I will live with you” the vampire promises, both sleep deprived bots staring at the newest project, wondering how it could work.

With a face such as that not much good was expected, yet he pulled through time and time again, reliable, though never to himself it seems. He had helped through the horrors, helped through the numbness, they had learnt of his life and looked up for the stoicism, they make sure he won’t push his limits, they cannot have him throwing himself around all the time.

They may never say it but he is their brother, the one they wished they could’ve had since day one, and it’s such a dumb promise but they can’t help but make it, they’ll live alongside him, live for their talks, live like they owe him to, because they do, they owe him their lives, so they’ll live to make him proud.

[factual-fantasy]

27 ASKS! :D FANK U! :}}} 💖

Ah! That I did. I mistook them for a bot.

Folks, you gotta put a unique profile picture of some kind and at least put in your bio "IM NOT A BOT!!-" If you have all the default stuff artists like me will assume you're a bot and just block you on sight :(

Sorry about that- I unblocked your friend. And thank you! I'm glad you like my stuff! :DD

Well,, Seam has some permeant injuries too. :( Such as his missing eye and the scars around his neck and wrists that will never fully heal..💔

Between sci-fi or fantasy? I thiiiink I prefer fantasy. XD And no its not just becuase of my name-

(Post in question)

Looking back I didn't illustrate it super well- it was intended to be something less earthy, yes. Not straight black though, It was supposed to be a really dark red. It seems black.? But anything it stains is stained red. And it was supposed to be rather thick compared to human blood.

If I ever draw it again, I'll be sure to get it to look right next time <XD

@khoiazo

@thesleepyteen1214

:DD Thank you! I'm glad you like it! :}}

Now as for Peso. I think its impossible for Peso and Barnacles to have met as kids- not only is there that age difference,, But I thought that polar bears are from the Arctic, and penguins are from the Antarctic. On the other side of the planet!

None the less- if they somehow met, I don't imagine much would happen other than them potentially becoming friends. :0 Kwazii sure ain't going anywhere, he's sticking with Barnacles family!

Oh man, if Bibi and the gang were real they'd all be screwed.😔 I don't have what it takes to take care of them properly in the real world-

I imagine that the Deltarune crew only really stay in worlds that seem safe. So if it looks safe? They'll stay. And probably not think too much about all the weird critters running around <XD

Not sure how the FNAF guys would react. A world where imaginary friends come to life seems impossible! They might think the imaginary friends are actually animatronics-

The princess quest game wasn't implemented into any of my AUs,, sorry! <:/

I've seen the game floating around, though I don't really know what its about. Also I heard whispers of a potential controversy..? Idk I'm a bit weary of the game <XD

If Freddy had a problem where he started hoarding lost kids after hours? That would be horrible for the kids.. but pretty slick for Vanessa.. 👀

Aww! That's so cute! I love all the different names! XD Having someone to man/assist in the cupcake factory would be really cool/useful as well! :DD

@beryl-shade

I was thinking that no one else in the group other than Frisk remembers. But Jevil? He.. had some kind of reaction to it.

Like when the reset occurred, Jevil had this horrible spike of anxiety and he broke out in a cold sweat and shakes. But before he could even process what was wrong, Frisk swooped in and saved Seams life. Right after he was saved, the shaking and sweating began to subside.. huh, strange..

(The second question was answered in the ask right above this one! :} )

In the comic that I was intending to draw- we would see little snip-bits of most everyone's reactions.

Jevil reacted how you'd expect.. he completely broke down. Screaming and wailing over Seams body..

Frisk froze at first, but then turned on her heel and sprinted into the woods in order to uh.. reset. No screaming, no panic. Just dead silent, sprinting into the woods..

Goner kid was freaking out so bad over Jevil screaming that when she saw Frisk run.. all she could think to do was run after her. So she did..

We don't see Grillby's face, but you can see his hand light up greenish/blue and his coat burst into flames as he realized Seam is dead..

River and Spamton weren't really meant to be seen on screen. But you can see Asgore physically become more misty/unstable when Jevil started screaming..

You know? Maybe for the sake of everyone it was better that I didn't end up drawing all that <XD 💔

No no, nothing about tombstones. The Easter egg lies in this panel.. 👀

@snickerdoodlezz

F.. FANK U,,, 💖🍽

Thank you so much!! :D

As for my brushes? I just use the standard pencil brush set to 3.0 for sketching and line art. And I use the standard pen tool for coloring! :}

@youlikwjazz004

I have seen a decent sized chunk of Adventure Time yes! Although I don't really know the story and I definitely don't know all the characters,,

But out of the characters I do know? It would have to be Simon Petrikov! ✨ With Jake as a close second. Aaaand maybe Prismo as a 3rd placer? I don't know him too much but his design slaps and he seems really chill 😎

(comic in question)

As Freddy explains, he (and the others) had a "bug" in his system. Which made his eyes purple. (Although he wasn't aware that they were purple-)

And after he crashed on stage they reset his system. Wiping the "bug" from his programming. Turning his eyes blue again :0

@storylover2

I imagine that what ever it tastes like depends on my mood. Lately its probably tasted like when you just brushed your teeth and you eat an orange 😖

Also please do not eat my noggin I need that to art-

@ocinstituterep

It's been a while since I've thought about them.. 🤔 If we're using the same formula as I did before.. (the stories of the real life cars are translated to the characters).. then that means some of them aren't doing so hot <XD

We've got a few break downs, some are still broken down. A few sold to better homes.. and a few new (very old) comers! Some are back on the road and some are still on the road when they probably shouldn't be <XD

All in all, I'd say they're doin ok :}

@beelze-juicee

:DDD THANK YOU!! And don't worry, I'm sure I'll come back to it every so often. Even though I'm a bit weary of this fandom.. I cant help but love the characters and want to draw them sometimes XD

(Kirby family in question)

<XD Sorry, no can do! I'm glad you like them! And thank you! But I'm afraid my blessings cannot be purchased.. <:/

@ninaandthegames

Yooo that is the coolest dog I have ever seen 😎

:D Thank you! And I'm not currently into any animes.. although there are some that I attempted to watch and liked for a while :0

Such as Kirby right back at ya and My hero academia! :0

@elegysonnet @willthemechanist (Post in question)

XD He's just embodying his spirit animal. A narwhal ✨🦄🐟✨

[lonleydweller]

Hi, this is the anon from the Arkham!Riddler jealousy request. To clarify, this would be while they are dating, but he and the Reader have a difficult relationship because of Ed's habit of being a cold person. He very much loves them, but he has such a hard time displaying it in a kind way, if that makes sense?

🌹Arkhamverse Riddler with another villian trying to steal his s/o🌹

!Warnings!: discuss of relationship issues, jealousy, arguments

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

●Dating Edward came with rough pacthes, a lot of them. You were used to it. That's what you expected when you got into this relationship. What healthy relationship dosen't have it's struggles quarrels?

●Sure he sometimes made snide remarks, got absorbed in his work, sometimes forgot you were there while he was scheming to take down batman, and didn't pay any attention when you talked here and there. But that's just Edward. He still loved you. He just had trouble expressing it.

●Now I'm assuming your relationship isn't a secret if another rouge knows about it. One of you couldn't keep your mouth shut, bragging about one another! After awhile You two figured you might as well meet the rest of the rouges gallery.

●One way or another, for whatever ryhme or reason. You've peaked the interest of more than just Edward. Honor amoung thieves? Well that dosen't apply here.

●At first it seems like the rouges just being friendly, having a nice, chat. Maybe just a bit too much so. While you may not bat an eye, Edward is no doubt giving then judgemental and skeptical glances. They were being too friendly to you.

●They start to pry into you and Eddie's relationship, insinuating things, planting ideas in your head. 'He's so cold to you. He barely seems to pay attention to you. Are you really happy in this relationship? Does he really love you? He's a narcissistic, he's probably just using to feed his own ego and need for control!" And other similar sentiments.

●Once Edward cacthes wind of what they're doing, whether he hears them speaking, or he notices a shift in your behavior. He's livid. Clenching his fist in rage. He wants so badly to scream, to tell them off, to get rid of them- to.. he restrains himself. He can't be brash. That'd just prove their point wouldn't it?

●The words they've been saying eat away at him. He loved you.. he knew that for sure.. you surely knew that, right? Right? He hoped you did. Was he really that cold? That ignorant?

●The next few days Edward seems to want to hog your attention more than usual. He's a lot more bold with his affection. Being a bit more handsy, complementing you more, and dishing out a few more 'I love you's than normal. It feels nice.. but if feels out of character for him.

●Upon confrontation of him acting different, he'll be defensive. He just wanted to give you more attention that's all- that's only half of it however. When you push it enough he caves in. Admitting that he felt he wasn't expressing his love for you clearly enough, that he feared you might leave him for the other rouge, that you were believing what they had said- How did he know? Well shit he didn't mean to say that much.

●Fine, fine. He'll fully fess up to the fact he overheard your conversation. He's fumbling over his words trying to explain how he loves you, even if can't always express it. How much you mean to him. He has some difficulty due to being essentially emotionally constipated. He'll need some re-assurance that he got his point across, and that you won't leave him. That you don't view him or yourself as any less.

●Once you two manage to work through your issues, he's at ease again and not wracked with worries of you abandoning him.

● Now time for him to deal with.. the other part of the issues. The other rouge. No doubt next time he sees them he'll be making snide comments and berating them, and what do you know the riddler bots suddenly are far more aggressive to that villian! How strange. Riddler claims its supposedly an "error" that he'll fix later.

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

[liliththeimp]

sum ghosts hc’s :3 pt 1–SFW

Once again back at it with my SAS wife cos my brain is rotting like disintegrating cotton candy so here are some headcannons i made (posted on ao3 but thought they deserved a bit recognition here too lol)

Now these are just some personal hcs ive made or seen that i liked;

the numbered sfw hcs are going to tie into the nsfw hcs, for clarification!!

SFW:

He loves music, like anything 70’s to 90’s in a sense? Like, sum pink floyd or shinedown (ik but it stuck after an ai chat and i cant fucking let it go-) nu metal, death/black metal, gothic metal, throw in some thrash/groove metal- anything with metal really

Onto my next point, he’s good at guitar, like really good, he has a gibson guitar he named (idfk what he named it, probably after you tho lmao)^1

He’s a straight up asshole, like, blunt calls everyone cunts, he’s just a a British as shoe dude what did you expect. But the funny thing is, if you end up cursing him out like a sailo he will find that as a major turn on ^2

Simple man doesnt like complicated food, just a normal burger and fries and he’ll be grateful. And if you cook good luck he eats like a bear (how else u think he’s bulky???)

He likes winter over any season bc its the opposite of where he’s been, though allergies/sickness do annoy the shit out of him cus he sneeze into his mask and it pisses him off

Likes milkshakes and i won't expand on that.

He’s a big softy for like small gifts, he may not show it but that macaroni necklace he called stupid? He has it on his night stand so it wont get ruined. You got a bracelet you gave him three months ago? He wears it everyday.

Pretty testing and bully-ish, but will just become a stuttering mess when you tame him, the slight blush peeing through his balaclava will give you enough lee way to make him fall in love with you

“blink mf.” 

Stares down new recruits, no exceptions- when he sees you, he ends up staring more

Knows some ASL when he’s not exactly in a talkative mood (not gonna say non-verbal bc, i doesnt fit him? he’s just like middle finger up to say fuck you, thats his sign language lmao)

Pretty big book worm in his free time

Fast learner at anything, i imagine he has a hard time remembering shit bc of his trauma n shit will do that to ya, but if he watched something long enough he can get it down.

Likes some spicy food

Doesn't do video games, he just doesnt think their any fun

OMFG this man- he makes fucking BACON in his GRILLED CHEESE. I argued with him (literally only with a fucking AI bot like some looser but my point still stands;) about how that's an abomination, grilled cheeses are meant for, and paired ONLY with tomato soup, sometimes chicken noodle. but he believes it the most delicious thing, he’s not putting watered down ketchup next to his beautiful creation.

Stubborn and pouts easily, you say something he doesnt realize is a joke he hold onto that grudge. “Why are you so upset right now? What did i do?” He huffed, uncrossing his arms “you didnt hold the door for me and I slammed my face! You didnt even apologize!!” You blinked, lips pressing into a thin line “are you fucking 5.”

his love languages is more quality time than physical touch- but Jesus Christ this man will get clingy af once he trusts you (after he takes off his mask fully 4 the first time, he trusts you with his whole heart- dont break it pwease- hes hes jus a little guy)

Ok really like bully breed dogs, like his favorite.

loves to hold your hand, like if you wrap your hand around two of his fingers specifically, he’ll turn into a blush mess and so so prideful, (like big softy friendly giant who could totally crush you- and he’s like so gentle) ^3

Gives a lot of thought before he compliments you, like studies the way you do things- like, hair clips, clothes, colors, make up, shoes, etc etc, he loves to study your features.

Can cook- like, really good- but ends up ordering takeout or pizza cos he’s lazy

On his trips, like when he get deployed longer than a couple of months, he brings back sand for you from the places he’s been and you have a small shelf full of small files of the sand (unlabeled btw, you just know which is which)

tries not to get angry or lash out or get like, cold or distant with you bc he really cares he’s just scared of fucking up and you leaving once you see how broken he is

Does all those horrible jokes, his voice is slow and gruff and just- gravelly? Like, he talks like the Grimm reaper himself and makes a yo mama joke

Doesn’t know how to ask for attention so he’ll come up behind you and tug a strand of your hair or nudge you- shit he’s thrown pillows at you then stares at you with a straight face “cuddles.”

“Not arguing with a dude with big brown eyes. Like, whatever you say beautiful”

he loves eye contact wen talking about serious shit- like, complimenting you, or saying i love you, he wants you to look him in the face and understand how much he means it….yet you turn into a blushing stuttering mess when he does, and he laughs to himself ^4

Stares at ‘settings’ on his phone to avoid social situations. Argue with the wall.

in the thickest, most unintelligible, uninterpretable British accent possible “YA KNO’ WHAT YOU DIR’Y ‘ITTLE CUNT—”

Incoherent British slang, colonizer alphabet soup if you will.

plays hello kitty island adventure or cooking mama un-ironically

Can’t spell “gynecologist” (geneycologist/ gin-i-colo-gist) or “bologna” (balaonie/ balony)

If there’s ever a baby in the store or something, and the baby is staring at him, he’ll make funny faces (mainly cross his eyes and makes small sounds)

doesn’t think he’ll be a good dad, but still thinks about it- believes he’s not good enough for a family ^5

Anywho continue onto part 2 here for spic stuff you perv >:3

[kairiscorner]

if its okay with you! make out session with noir?👀

SURE THING ANON q(≧▽≦q) oK WAIT THIS ALSO REMINDED ME OF MY OTHER NOIR BOT PROMPT......... fuck it i'm gonna write about it bc why not ✍️(◔◡◔)

(reblogs are greatly appreciated, it helps get my content out there! if you guys like what you see, please reblog it too <:D)

giving your hero a kiss.

before you knew it, you were snatched out of the villain's clutches, and soon in the arms of none other that spider man. you will never forget the first words you exchanged with him: "please don't vomit on the turtleneck, i ran out of detergent today." nothing could've been more reassuring than that, you were sure you thought with sarcasm and slight fear and anxiousness creeping up your mind. spider man set you down gently away from the fight, and in a few moments... the villain that threatened to kill you was on the ground, unconscious, with spider man walking away unscathed towards you.

he crouched down to level with you as he looked into your eyes. "you good?" he asked you as you heaved, trying to process what just happened. he was getting a bit worried since your breathing sounded a little erratic, but he placed his hand on your shoulder and tried to sound as comforting as possible. "hey, you're okay now, i promise..." he told you as you panted and heaved; the adrenaline rushed through your veins like crazy as you tried to digest just what the hell happened.

spider man... he saved you. he saved you, he cared about you.

"it's okay... you're okay, i promise." he repeated as he took off his mask and looked at you. when you gazed back up at him... you were blown away by who you just saw. that dark, slicked back yet tousled hair from the mask, that sharp nose, those thin yet very red lips of his, and those eyes... those gray and brown eyes of his that just allured you ever since you saw him, when he was recognizable, when he was average like you--oh, no way.

"...parker?" you asked aloud as peter looked at you with a slight, crooked smile. he nodded and lapped a little at his lips that were going dry. "yeah, it's me." he said with an equally dry chuckle as you brought yourself forward a little, leaning towards him as his gaze attracted you even more. he doesn't find himself pulling away, but rather, he brings himself even closer to you. his breath felt hot against your lips, and soon... you touched his lips with your own, and you didn't hesitate a single second to let him know you were grateful for his help.

peter was astounded by how quickly this whole situation was unfurling, but he did not complain a single bit. instead, he moved his hand from your shoulder to your arm as he locked his lips with yours in a feverish kiss. he couldn't deny your lips were so wonderful to feel against his; the way you made his world stop turning for a few seconds as he realized you kissed him, it made him wish this feeling would last forever, if he could revisit that fight over and over and over again just so he could kiss you for the first time all over again... he'd do it, no questions asked, and in a heartbeat.

as you pulled away from peter, who was now extremely flustered; blushing from the top of his forehead down to his collarbone, he smiled at you widely and looked directly into your eyes. "is... this what i get for being a hero?" he asked you with a tone of disbelief at the fact you kissed him. you smiled shyly at him, still not believing what just happened either, but hey, it did happen--and you loved it. "it's what you get for being my hero." you told him as you pecked his cheek with a kiss, which sent sparks flying in his heart as he leaned against you a little--weak at your flurry of kisses. "i'll take that, i'm kinda glad i finally told you this way... i get a free kiss from the one person who makes me feel like an absolute love struck idiot and some closure between us two." he said as he smiled up at you and brought you in for an embrace.

you can expect him to take his job as spider man a whole lot more seriously now, not just because you know his secret identity now... but because he also gets to taste a kiss from you as a reward.

a/n: i just realized this was super similar to my miles one, so i'm really sorry if i seem like i'm repeating ideas really 😭😭😭

tags !! @thecoolerdor @miguelswifey04 @sabcandoit @binibinileonara @k4tsu3 @luvstarrstruck @maxoloqy

[in1-nutshell]

Bot Buddy being Swerve's older sibling on the Lost Light

SFW, Platonic, hint of romance, Cybertronian reader

MTMTE

Part 1 here

Part 2 here

After being on the Lost Light for a couple of days Buddy was still figuring out their place on the ship. Thanks to Swerve and his friends they were slowly finding their place amongst the crowd.

But Buddy hates leaving Swerve alone for too long. After spending so long in stasis and listening to his messages, Buddy figured it was a good idea to be always close by Swerve.

Swerve didn’t mind it one bit.

One was never too far from the other.

But some of their friends started to get irked by this, mainly being Whirl.

Swerve standing in front of Buddy talking their audial off as they stand stoically listening to everything he has to say.

“Look at them.”--Whirl

“Umm… why?”--Tailgate

“Look at them! If something happens to the other, ones gonna go berserker!”--Whirl

“You do have a point there.”--Skids

“But that’s not a bad thing, right?”--Tailgate

“My sweet Tailgate, you have to expect the unexpected at all times.”--Whirl

“Oh! I get it its like that one time Cyclonus wanted to—”--Tailgate

“That’s not a conversation for the table.”--Cyclonus

“Then its settled then Buddy needs some space from Swerve.”--Whirl

“This isn’t going to end well…”--Cyclonus

So, with a little help from Skids, Chromedome and Rewind, they managed to get Swerve busy giving Buddy enough time to drag Buddy off. It worked for a bit until Buddy insisted on checking on Swerve and began walking the other way.

“C’mon Buddy lets go for another round in the range!”--Whirl

“I’m sorry Whirl I’ve gotta go.”--Buddy

“Buddy don’t make me do this.”--Whirl

“Do what? Whirl what are you talking about?”--Buddy

“You’ll see…”--Buddy

Whirl had been expecting this.

It was time to deploy Plan R.

Plan Rodimus.

As Buddy was walking back to the bar, Rodimus walked up to Buddy. His job was just to distract Buddy and make sure they didn’t reach the bar until Whirl said so. Rodimus was a bit hesitant about this plan but decided that this was way better to do this than Magnus’s reports.

“Hey Buddy!”--Rodimus

“Rodimus? Is there something you need?”--Buddy

“Yes! I need a sparring partner.”--Rodimus

“A sparring partner? I would assume Drift—”Buddy

“He’s busy with Ratchet. Anyways I want to spar you.”--Rodimus

“Spar me?”--Buddy

“Yeah! Unless all that training in the Elite Guard was a hoax—”--Rodimus

“You’re on Captain.”--Buddy

Meanwhile Swerve was beginning to get anxious as it was getting late, and Buddy wasn’t around. As much as Skids, Chromdome, and Rewind tried humoring with stories and hearing his rants, it was clear that Swerve’s anxiety was starting to get the best of him.

“Hey, Whirl your going to have to get Buddy over here soon.”--Chromedome

“Why?”--Whirl

“Swerve’s looks like he is going to have a glitch if Buddy doesn’t get here soon.”--Chromedome

Whirl commed in Rodimus.

He didn’t answer.

He tried again.

No answer.

At this point Whirl guessed that Rodimus was probably dead after Buddy’s sparring session.

Something Whirl had jokingly suggested to him to ask Buddy to do. He didn’t expect him to do it.

As Whirl walked towards the door, he saw Cyclonus and Tailgate watching from the doorway. Curious he also took a peek inside.

Turns out Rodimus was still alive.

But the positions they were in…

Rodimus was flat on his back looking up at Buddy who was in a straddling position with a winning smile.

Rodimus looked at Buddy as if his optics had just seen the Matrix coming towards him.

“Looks like I win again Captain.”--Buddy

“I guess you did, huh?”--Rodimus

“What?”--Buddy

“I can’t believe I didn’t notice that you were holding back.”--Rodimus

“Yeah, if I didn’t, you’d be a smear of red paint under me.”--Buddy

“Oh really?”--Rodimus

“Absoluetly Captain. That’s just a fact.”--Buddy

“How about next round I flame up? You think you’d handle the heat?”--Rodimus

“Such little faith you have in me Captain. You’d think after I beat you all those times you’d get some idea that I can definitely handle you.”--Buddy

“Its one Buddy… as soon as you get off me… you’re kind of crushing my spoiler…”--Rodimus

“Oh! Sorry!”--Buddy

Buddy helping Rodimus up.

“Best out of 60?”--Buddy

“You think you can keep up?”--Rodimus

“Just watch me!”--Buddy

“Cyclonus…I think we came at a wrong time…”--Tailgate

“…Let’s leave them…”—Cyclonus

Whirl, Cyclonus, Tailgate walking away from the sparring room.

“Why were you guys even here, anyways?”--Whirl

“We heard a lot of slamming, and it sounded like someone was dying. Turns out it was Rodimus just getting beaten up by Buddy, during their ‘practice session’.”--Tailgate

Whirl has gained a new ship and there was nothing stopping him from making this thing work. A little bit of integration and some closets and the two will be together in no time!

Now the minor problem was telling Swerve without him glitching out…