#thank you anon I do enjoy thinking about it

[formulaonecrumbs]

could you write a Lando x reader where the reader comes from a low-income family and her childhood and teenage years were deeply affected by that? Her life started to improve a little when she began creating content on tiktok and instagram, but it still wasn't anything too surprising or luxurious. Lando came across her profile by accident, got interested in her, and they started talking. After a few weeks of chatting, they planned to meet in person, and Lando picked her up for their date. they went to an extremely fancy restaurant, completely out of the reader’s reality, which made her feel a bit uncomfortable especially because Lando acted like it was just a regular place, even unintentionally being a little rude to the waiter. she felt embarrassed to order food and ended up choosing the cheapest options (which were still very expensive). as the dinner went on, she started realizing that Lando was kind of snobbish, and pretty much everything he talked about involved a lot of money. that made her feel uneasy, especially because of the huge difference between the realities they grew up in

not used to this 🥂

Lando Norris x middle-class!reader

summary: lando takes reader to a restaurant way out of her comfort zone

warnings: rich boy trying his best, writer (me) not doing as the request says 🤗

A/N: thank u anon!!! i wrote this when u sent the request in and reading it back, i’m realising now that i didn’t really make him snobbish 😭 MY BAD. i can rewrite it if u want, all u gotta do is ask. i hope u enjoy it regardless. again it is unedited. love uuuuuu 💋

୨ৎ ୨ৎ ୨ৎ ୨ৎ

she didn’t grow up with much. not in the sad, movie-montage way—just in the real way. money was tight. bills came in stacks. school trips were “maybe next time,” and birthdays were handmade cards and discount cake. she never blamed her parents. they gave her everything they could. love, mostly. and that mattered. but still, it made her grow up early. taught her not to ask for too much.

by the time she turned nineteen, things had started shifting. not drastically. but enough. she’d built something on tiktok—honest, messy, creative little videos that made people laugh or feel less alone. her following wasn’t massive, but it helped. brand deals, a bit of income, enough to finally buy her own clothes, to take her mum out for lunch every now and then. it was progress. not luxury. but she was proud of it.

and then lando norris followed her.

she thought it was a joke at first. but no—it was him. real, verified, f1 superstar lando norris. and he didn’t just follow—he messaged. funny stuff, casual. asking questions. responding to her stories. talking like she was just another person, not some online profile.

weeks passed. they started calling each other. laughing for hours, sending stupid memes, talking about childhood, music, food. he made her feel like she wasn’t just from a different world.

until they met in person.

he picked her up in a sleek car that probably cost more than her entire life. he didn’t flaunt it—he just drove it, casual, like he didn’t even think twice. he wore simple clothes, but she could tell they were expensive. he grinned when he saw her, told her she looked amazing, even held the car door open.

the restaurant was… a whole other planet. chandeliers. glass walls. the kind of place where you feel like whispering. lando smiled like it was nothing. like this was just dinner.

“hope this place’s alright,” he said, pulling out her chair.

“yeah,” she said, heart pounding. “it’s beautiful.”

she meant it, but also… it wasn’t her. not even close.

the menu was in french. she didn’t even recognize half the dishes. she scanned the prices, eyes wide.

“order whatever you want,” lando said. “seriously. they do this wagyu something something that’s unreal.”

she gave a small laugh. “i think i’ll just get the soup.”

he tilted his head. “just soup? you sure?”

she nodded. “yeah, i’m not super hungry.”

he looked at her for a second too long. not questioning her, just… noticing. something in her voice maybe. or the way she kept folding her napkin over and over.

as the waiter came by, he asked, “still or sparkling?”

“sparkling,” lando said easily, then caught her eye. “wait—do you want still?”

she blinked. “yeah, i usually do.”

he gave the waiter a sheepish smile. “sorry—still water, please.”

a small thing. but she noticed. he noticed.

as the meal went on, he talked about racing, about travel, about how weird fame can feel. sometimes money slipped into the conversation—a fancy hotel, a car he tested—but not like he was bragging. just like it was his version of normal.

but even still, she felt it. the space between them. how far apart their worlds had been.

and somehow… he started to feel it too.

he leaned forward after a moment of quiet. “this place might’ve been a bit much, huh?”

she smiled softly. “a little.”

he scratched the back of his neck. “i just wanted tonight to be nice. special. didn’t really think about how… intense it might feel.”

“it’s not bad,” she said quickly. “just… different.”

lando nodded. “you can tell me if you’re uncomfortable. i don’t want you to feel weird around me.”

she looked at him, really looked, and saw the sincerity in his face. not pity. not guilt. just a boy who cared. who was trying.

“i don’t feel weird around you,” she said. “just… here.”

he smiled. “then next time, we’ll go somewhere with chips and ketchup packets.”

she laughed, and the tension in her shoulders finally softened. “perfect.”

“good,” he said, reaching across the table to gently squeeze her hand. “because i really like you. and i want to get this right.”

she squeezed back. “you already are.”

THE END :>

[bunnipuffs]

okay but what about a sorta opposite from your mean!reader nerdy!abby. reader is a total book worm but when it comes to anything outside of a textbook she’s a bimbo. while abby’s set on getting her doctorate and doesn’t have time for anyone but reader wriggles her way dumbly into abby’s heart

- 💐

WAAAA I LOVE THIS ONE OMG … so cute i luv this so bad thank you flower anon !!!!!! i’m kinda obsessed with dumb reader and nerdy abby … but maybe i’m projecting because i’m also quite dumb </3

i made reader more bimbo-y (that is not a word forgive me) and focused on the fact that she’s more interested in books than studies , i hope that’s okay !!!!! <3333

i hope you enjoy !!!!!!!! ^_^ ♡ ♡ ♡

⋆˙⟡ nerdy! abby and bimbo! reader, a match made in heaven.

♡ . — ꒰ 1 ꒱

୨୧ you’re obsessed with reading. your shelves are filled with a wide range of genres, from the most intricate fantasy stories to thriller and horror, and even to the most insane smut you’ve ever come across. when you’re not busy shopping or doing your makeup to take selfies, your head is buried in one of your many books for hours. unfortunately, your passion for reading hasn’t transferred to your academics…

୨୧ exam season is coming up, and you haven’t been studying at all! but one quick glance at abby anderson, the well-known top student of your classes, and you decide you need her help. you haven’t spoken to her at all, never in the two years you’ve been attending college, but after your lecture had ended, you confidently approach her wearing your favorite mini-skirt. you have a big smile on your face when you get to her, a little too big, but this was important. first impressions mattered. but abby simply looked at you from head to toe, packing away her textbooks and making her way out of the room without saying a single word.

୨୧ no biggie… maybe she’s just busy, she probably had a lot of things to do considering she had to keep her place as number one. so the next week you see her, you end up following her out of the lecture hall like a lost puppy — she doesn’t respond back to you, even after you offer to buy her a sweet treat from the campus’ cafe, or when you asked if she wanted a study partner. she kept walking to wherever she needed to go. you ended up following, of course. abby wasn’t pleased at all. you could tell from her face, but that didn’t deter you!

୨୧ abby didn’t budge for a while. she told you off one time, something along the lines of “i don’t need an idiot distracting me,” which you took with a grain of salt. maybe all those calculations and body anatomy memorization made her moody. she was always in the library studying, laptop open with lecture slides, her notebook full of notes that you couldn’t even begin to comprehend, even five different pens for differing information. you were lucky enough that she didn’t say anything when you followed her to the library, but it was like you weren’t even there at all.

୨୧ you’re sitting across from her, a book in hand as always, you’re almost halfway done in the time that abby had been studying. you wonder how she can focus for so long without wanting to do something else. but abby thinks the same about you, taking small curious peeks when you were distracted. she wonders how you’re so goddamn annoying about your college work but can read a bunch of big words for hours. beats her, not her problem.

୨୧ abby had enough one day. she invites you over to her dorm room for a “study date” just to shut you up, and almost immediately tells you to sit down when you prance around, touching almost every medal and trophy she has on display. you sit on her bed, a sheepish smile on your face. now that you’re here with her — alone, it makes you a little nervous. you’ve been begging for this, and yet, it makes you blush a little when abby sits right next to you. your arms are brushing against each other, and she’s flipping through her notes while she explains them to you. you weren’t really listening.

୨୧ for the first time, you’ve gotten the chance to get to know abby. her cologne is strong, but not overpowering, it’s just enough to keep you wanting more. she smells good. her hair is always neatly braided. her notes are also freakishly organized, perfect handwriting with different brightly colored titles for every single chapter. you laugh a little, and it confuses abby. she lets out a “what?” with a glare, and you wrap your arms around her bicep, “nothing, just kinda funny that all your notes are so cute when your personality is the complete opposite!”

♡ . — ꒰ 2 ꒱

୨୧ abby who flushes at your comment — cute? no one had ever called her notes “cute,” that was ridiculous. she didn’t have time for your teasing when you were so adamant about your grades being in jeopardy. you chased her around campus, interrupted her cherished library time by poking around, doing absolutely nothing but cross off another useless book from your list. but for some reason your grasp around her, warm and welcoming, made her feel a little weird. she didn’t like that at all. she had no time to babysit some dumb girl that couldn’t even be bothered to pay attention to her! she was using her precious study time to help you, and you were teasing her. nonetheless your jab at her personality. she knew she was cold, distant even. but she needed to be completely focused if she wanted to get her doctorate. she didn’t want to hear that from someone like you either.

୨୧ abby scoffs, pushing you away. she shuts her notebook and sets it to her side, getting up from her place next to you. she lets out a heavy breath before staring right at you. “look, seriously, i have better things to do. if you aren’t going to try then you need to get out.” you’re pouting almost immediately, your eyes finding hers too. glossy and big. abby’s almost exasperated — you’re a grown woman looking at her like that. but the more she stares at you like this, the more she starts feeling the horrible twist of guilt in her stomach. shit, she thinks. maybe i was a little too harsh.

୨୧ she doesn’t want you to know she feels bad, so after a while of your very unconvincing puppy eyes and finding her will power, she sits back down and opens up her notes again. a smile spreads across your face instantly, and abby does her best to ignore it. you’re a pretty girl, dumb and incredibly annoying yes, but so pretty. she would be an idiot if she said otherwise, but she continues on, grumbling a “pay attention this time, no more talking.” you nod eagerly. she can’t help but take a few glances at you when you’re reading over her notes for yourself.

୨୧ you and abby spent the rest of the afternoon going over concepts you struggled with, and abby hates to admit it, but you weren’t so bad. you were smarter than you acted. yeah, you struggled with the most basic topics, but you eventually got them after a while. (with a lot of re-explaining from abby, a heavy sigh from her when you couldn’t answer her questions) you were funny too, and even made her laugh occasionally, but abby always covered it up with a cough. you both had gone through everything you were struggling with, and abby found it… endearing? to see you try so hard. the way your tongue poked out when you were working through a problem, when you scribbled down little mental notes to keep track. she found herself staring at you a lot, embarrassingly enough, and abby tried to keep herself busy when she caught herself — picking up a random textbook from her pile and flipping through it.

୨୧ over the course of exam season, abby was spending a lot of time with you. it annoyed her still, that her carefully constructed routine was suddenly destroyed by some girl that put her energy into fictional literature rather than actual important reading, but she was getting used to it. she even started waiting for you to pack up your things when the lecture ended, slowly putting away her books and electronics just so you had enough time to walk up to her. abby always greeted you with a blank stare, an eye roll if you were lucky, but you’d never know she purposely slowed herself down for you. she didn’t know why either. it’s like her body did it on autopilot, and now her routine consisted of her studies and you. walking to the library together, her telling you to focus when you got sidetracked, plus the lengthy hours of studying in her dorm room. it was her new routine.

♡ . — ꒰ 3 ꒱

୨୧ when abby finally finishes all her exams, she takes a lot of time relaxing in her dorm. she continues reading up on chapters she wanted to smooth over when she hears a small knock at her door. of course, it’s you, and you let yourself in with your laptop held tightly to your chest. “abs, i think i’m gonna die. this last exam is gonna kill me.” abby groans at your dramatics, “do not call me abs,” but she pulls out her little table anyway and you both sit next to each other. you’re pulling up the exam practice questions like clockwork, and you run her through the ones you didn’t understand.

୨୧ you’re almost an hour into it, and abby can tell you aren’t focusing. you’re constantly spacing out, interrupting her to talk about a new book coming out, and you aren’t grasping anything at all. she made a little quiz just for you, and you hadn’t gotten anything right. abby runs a hand through her hair, breathing out a deep sigh. she closes your laptop and places the pen right back into your hand. you stare at her confused.

୨୧ “if you get a question right, i’ll give you something. how about that?” abby proposes, your eyes darting from her own to her lips. abby is a little taken aback, you’re bold, you make it so obvious. but she patiently waits for your answer anyway. “like what?” you reply quietly, and the air is suddenly thick with tension. it’s too quiet.

୨୧ “whatever you want.” abby was done with her own exams. she could afford to be reckless for a little. maybe she’d regret it in a few weeks, but with the way you’re staring at her, the way you’ve been staring at her, she knows exactly what you want. she couldn’t go back now. and abby couldn’t lie to herself either. she was getting distracted — thoughts about what your lips would feel like, what it’d be like if your bodies were so close that she started smelling like your perfume, the stolen glances when you both pretended to be working, she knew. and you knew it too.

୨୧ “then…” you answer, no elaboration, you’re shifting up to tug your shorts down. abby bites the inside of her cheek when she sees how perfectly your panties fit your ass, the material hugging it like it was made for you. she hasn’t taken her eyes off you the moment you moved, and she should be upset at the fact you just discarded your clothes on the floor, messily, but she didn’t care. her hand reached out to touch your hip before she could even realize, caressing you softly. you smile at her, that stupid smile abby insisted was so annoying, before you turn your attention to the makeshift quiz she made for you. abby shuffles closer to see you work, watching as your hand moves to answer.

୨୧ you think long and hard before answering, circling one of the multiple choice answers abby provided. it’s correct. abby doesn’t say it, but her hand moves to slip down the front of your panties. she leaves it there, a hitch in your breath when she’s just over where you needed her the most. the room feels so hot, abby thinks. was it always this hot? you continue on to the second question, your brain working overtime to focus on the right choice — it’s hard when abby’s warm hand is over your cunt, the fact that you’re almost indecent while abby is fully clothed. you throb at the thought.

୨୧ you shakily circle another answer, an approving hum from abby. she shoves her hand in deeper, now moving her fingers up and down your folds. you’re already so wet, and you just barely started. you can feel her watching your every move, peering from right above your shoulder. you go to the third question, one you thought you knew, circling confidently. abby continues her slow pace across your aching pussy, “no, not that one.” you groan, frustrated, she’s going too slow and it’s making you crave for more. your brain is starting to feel fuzzy.

୨୧ you get to question five, and abby had started to move faster, her fingers circling your clit and rubbing at your entrance, teasing, you moan when she rubs over your clit again — “focus,” she mumbles in your ear, continuing her pace. you do your best to. you glance over the answers for the question and circle, abby rubbing at you even quicker. a strangled “abby!” is pulled from your throat, feeling her lips at your neck. “c’mon, next one. you don’t wanna fail, do you?” you shake your head, and with a tighter grip on her pen, you move down to the next one. you’re so wet, and you can hear yourself if you listen close enough.

୨୧ you miraculously answer the next three questions correctly, and when you circle your next answer, it’s like abby was waiting — she pushes a thick finger inside of your waiting cunt immediately, a loud squelch at the contact. you’re gasping, abby pulling you onto her lap so smoothly you don’t even realize, and she’s spreading your legs with ease. she’s thrusting it in deep, slowly, so slowly that you’re squirming at every push. it’s not fast enough, and you know if you don’t get this next one right, she’s going to keep it this way. your head is buzzing, and it takes you four attempts to read question nine properly. you’re circling your best guess, and fuck. abby bites hard into the side of your neck, your hips bucking at the pain. “we went over that, stupid girl..” her mean words should bother you, but you feel yourself clench at the name. stupid, stupid, stupid. maybe you were, but that didn’t matter right now. your neck was stinging with pain and it was making you drip.

୨୧ “guess you don’t wanna come if you’re not taking this seriously?” abby laughs condescendingly, her voice right against your ear. you moan at her tone, and it’s not long before you’re trying to push down on her fingers, wanting to fuck yourself till’ you finish. but abby’s not that nice, never had been, and she completely pulls her fingers out of you. you’re empty suddenly, feeling a glob of slick pour out of your cunt. you’re whimpering, noisy and pathetic. “please, abs i can’t—“

୨୧ abby takes her free hand and grips your chin tightly, turning your focus back to the paper in front of you. it’s blurry, and your grasp on the pen seems to be getting looser. “you have one more, you wanted me to teach you right? so do it. don’t waste my time.” abby lets go of you, shoving two fingers inside of you without warning. it feels like you were shocked, shivers running down your spine. the stretch is painful, so sudden, but you’re clenching so tightly around her that abby can’t help but laugh at you. “it’s just one question, you shouldn’t have been so desperate if you can’t even do this.”

୨୧ tears are pooling in your eyes, your cheeks red from the humiliation. you’re reading over the last question as best as you can, your entire body shaking from the pressure inside of you. abby mutters something along the lines of, “following me around like a dumb puppy, you’re embarrassing” and it makes you wetter. you can’t think straight. you find two words that you recognize and circle the answer you think is right — you can feel abby press a kiss into your hair, “who would’ve thought? maybe you aren’t so fuckin’ dumb after all.”

୨୧ a sigh of relief falls from your lips, feeling abby move inside of you. she’s thrusting into you as roughly as she can now, deep, calling you a stupid mutt in your ear, you’re gripping at her thighs when she continues fucking into your pussy like an animal, digging deep into that spot. you gasp when she brushes over it. “right here, huh? making you feel good here?” she’s curling her fingers up into you, practically bruising it with how hard she’s pressing against it. you choke out her name, moans and whimpers streaming from your lips before you come hard on her fingers. you’re twitching, clenching tightly around her digits, abby’s lips are on yours and she’s licking into your mouth. you can’t feel anything for a few seconds.

୨୧ abby gently fucks you through it, looking over your paper from where you both sat. she smiles down at you, pressing another kiss to the top of your head. “not bad, i think you’ll pass.”

tag list ! ♡

@hyperbabes

[ohburgee]

AAAA!! I need more Two time x reader fantasy stories plz! ^0^ like I just want some silly Shenanigans that Reader and 2Time do around the village :3

like silly odd jobs to literally trying to summon telemon or sum :3

-🌀🍀 anon

an: Sorry for being gone! I just finished all the tasks I had and did a long rest. Also, YEAH, I love the fantasy story of Two Time x Reader! I didn’t expect anyone to enjoy it that much, but I’m so happy you did. I ended up turning this a scenario into some goofy shenanigans, haha. Hope you enjoy it, anon! Thank you for continuing the fantasy story :D

You and Two Time had only planned to entertain the village with a simple magic show, but somehow, everything spiraled into chaos.

While wandering the village square, performing tricks for the townspeople, you both accidentally summoned a dangerous entity known as 1x1x1x1, a being infamous for loving destruction and chaos. Now, fires raged across the village, homes burning to ash, as you and Two Time stood frozen in shock.

“What just happened…?” you muttered.

“We need to summon Telamon,” Two Time said, panicking as they scrambled through their spellbook. “Where’s the page? I can’t see it!”

“C’mon, Two!” you urged, glancing toward the heart of the chaos, 1x1x1x1, laughing maniacally as flames engulfed another house.

“I got it!” Two exclaimed, finally finding the ritual. They quickly began casting the spell.

Moments later, a light burst from the sky, and Telamon appeared, descending like a seraph in flowing robes and radiant wings. He looked down at you both like a tired parent discovering their kids covered in mud.

“Oh. It’s you two again,” he said dryly. “What is it this time?”

You and Two Time pointed to the cackling 1x1x1x1.

Telamon sighed and facepalmed. “Seriously? When did that creature get out?”

You quickly explained the situation, and he facepalmed again, even harder.

“I sealed him inside! How did this happen?” he muttered, then turned to the burning village. “Go save the people. I’ll deal with that thing.”

He walked off toward 1x while you and Two Time dashed to help evacuate the villagers. As you guided a group of people to safety, one of 1x’s goons appeared, but Two Time swiftly used their magic to protect you.

You kept moving, but 1x suddenly shoved Telamon away and stormed toward you both. Thinking quickly, Two Time cast a blinding spell, buying you time to get the villagers to safety. The two of you then launched a spell to blow 1x back.

Just as you were about to run, 1x blocked the path, flames erupting around you. You were trapped.

But then, Telamon returned, slashing through the fire and clashing with 1x. After a fierce battle, he managed to knock the chaotic entity to the ground.

As you and Two Time tried to escape, Telamon extinguished the remaining flames with a wave of his hand. You both smiled in relief.

Turning back to 1x, who was struggling to rise, Telamon sighed. “You are the most annoying thing I’ve ever dealt with,” he said, walking over and casting a spell.

You and Two Time widened your eyes as 1x transformed into... a fluffy chicken.

“Are you for real?!” Two Time cried, staring in disbelief.

Telamon laughed and handed the fluffy creature to you. You held the once-powerful entity in your arms.

“And for waking me up,” Telamon said, wagging his finger like a scolding parent, “your punishment is to take care of this chicken until I return and he’s allowed to regain his form.”

Before you could respond, he vanished into thin air.

“OW!” you hissed as 1x bit your finger. The chicken tilted his head like... well, a chicken. You pouted and booped his head.

Two Time walked up beside you, staring at the fluffy menace. “What now?”

After a brief conversation, you both agreed, like it or not, you’d have to take care of 1x until Telamon returned.

Back at your cozy, humble cabin, you handed the chicken to Two Time while you went to prepare dinner. Two placed 1x on the table, eyeing him with confusion.

“He’s... not even trying to escape or destroy anything,” Two mumbled.

“What do chickens even eat?” they asked.

You grabbed the leftover food from breakfast and offered it to 1x, who promptly began eating. You and Two Time stared, wide-eyed.

“This is the same guy who just set the village on fire, right?” you whispered.

Later, you all ate dinner in silence. When you turned your gaze to 1x, he was already asleep, eyes closed peacefully. Two Time followed your gaze, then looked at you.

“…Do we have to let him sleep next to us?”

n: i imagine 1x as this chicken hahaha

[annarobszombies]

if its not too much, can you make a fic on evil scientist senku? (and maybe the s/o and general should be seperate if thats okay TvT)

(i will send the art which affected me in this way in a separate ask, since i would like to remain anon)

Okay but that art was such a vibe and I'm totally here for Senku being a little crazy.

I did something a little funky here, but I hope you enjoy it anyway

x gn!Reader

Senku Ishigami wasn’t evil.

Evil implied that he was torturing and murdering people for fun, and he had far too many better things to do than all that. Like helping his mentor do calculations, building his rockets, and testing chemicals on rats to see how effective they are. None of that made him evil. Just passionate about science. 

That’s what Xeno told him. And Xeno was always right.

Senku in this world let himself be swept up in Xeno's darkness

Science was so powerful, it could do anything

And Senku wanted to do everything

Even if it meant twisting his morals until they were no longer recognizable

In public, he's actually pretty much the same as he's always been

Bored, a bit distant, and a little eccentric

He's still friends with Taiju and Yuzuriha, though they don't subscribe to his way of thinking

His friends are actually very concerned and have voiced their worries many times to teachers, who have just waved it off

Because to them

He's a perfect student

There's no way he's that far gone

(he is)

The stone world is like a godsend to him

No laws means he doesn't have to worry about what he can and can't do

A master manipulator and still somehow manages to get the Ishigami village on his side

The only time he thanks Byakuya for being so sentimental

He does still want the world back to some state of normal though, and is trying to restore parts of it

When he and Xeno reunite, he jumps on the offer to merge their kingdoms together

Becomes his mentor's left hand (since Stanley is his right)

He narrows his eyes down at you, unamused by your invasion of his privacy.

"What the hell are you doing in here?" He asks.

You have no excuse, you'd just been curious about what he did in his lab all day that no one was allowed to see.

You bulldoze your way into his life

Literally

The first day he meets you, you're in his lab uninvited

And that little habit of yours continues

He can't decide if you're just as twisted as he was

Or just that stupid

Xeno encourages him to take you as a better apprentice, since you seem so curious

He tells Senku it might help with his "research" to have an extra pair of hands that isn't constantly questioning what he's up to

Either way, he can't seem to get rid of you, so he let's you float around him

It was better than you messing something up when he wasn't looking

At least if he was around, he could keep you from getting hurt

Not...that he cared

...

Okay, maybe he cared a little

Refuses to admit he falls in love with you as quickly as he does

But you listen to him, and you're patient with him, and sometimes you really are as crazy as him

Sometimes crazier

You're his version of Stanley

[stellaspectral]

okay i have a request: bayverse!leonardo x fem!reader. the reader has been friends with the turtles for months and during this time she and leonardo have developed a close relationship thanks to their love of reading and the fact that both of them are calm introverts (the reader is much more sweet and in tune with her emotions tough, bay!leo really needs someone like this imo). now leonardo is realizing that what he thought was just friendship is becoming something more, at least on his part, and he doesn't know what to do about it. obviously his brothers notice this change and their way of helping him is to tease him in front of the reader to force either of them to confess (they secretly been shipping them since the beginning and finally their ship is sailing!).

A/N: Hello, anon! I loved writing the dynamic between Leo and the reader, how they’re a lot alike but she has that emotional intelligence that he often lacks. And the brothers’ teasing “encouragement” to get them together was also a fun element to incorporate, even if it’s rough-going at first 🫢

I hope you enjoy! ☺️

Between the Lines (angst/fluff)

💙 Bayverse Leonardo/Female Reader 💙

CWs: Mutual pining, sibling teasing and meddling, brief anger/snapping, emotional vulnerability, confessions, first kiss, happy ending. All characters are aged-up.

The familiar, cool air of the lair wraps around you like a well-loved blanket.

You’re curled up on the worn but comfortable cushions of the couch, a thick hardback open in your lap. Across from you, Leo occupies his usual spot in a patched-up armchair. He’s immersed in an old, slightly battered-looking copy of Miyamoto Musashi’s The Book of Five Rings. He furrows his brow in concentration as he tracks the lines of text.

This is your usual routine, which began not long after you—months ago—literally stumbled into Leo and his brothers’ hidden world. And this comfortable silence you now share has become one of your favorite parts of it. You both found kinship in your introversion. A quiet understanding that doesn’t require constant chatter.

And of course, you’ve bonded over books and love to discuss the stories, the characters, the ideas within them. Sometimes the discussions are deep dives into themes and motivation. Other times they’re just comfortable exchanges about a particularly well-turned phrase or a plot twist neither of you saw coming.

While you’ve grown fond of his brothers’ more eccentric dispositions, Leo’s calm presence is something you enjoy. You appreciate the depth you sense beneath his disciplined exterior, the careful way he observes the world. You, in turn, offer a gentler perspective, a willingness to voice the emotions he usually keeps tightly locked down.

You sometimes catch him watching you when he thinks you’re not looking—like right now. For a moment, his brow smooths out, and there’s a flicker of something unreadable in his blue eyes.

Before his gaze snaps back to his book, brow furrowing once again.

A faint warmth spreads through your chest at the intensity you glimpsed, even if it vanished as quickly as it appeared. You keep your eyes dutifully on your page, though the words blur together. You pretend you didn’t notice, respecting the boundary he clearly erected by whipping his gaze back so sharply. And that’s part of the understanding too: knowing when not to push.

You shift slightly on the cushions, the worn fabric sighing softly beneath you. The sound seems amplified in the quiet. You reread the last paragraph on the page, forcing your focus back to the intricate plot unfolding. And for another minute or two, the silence stretches. You find yourself wanting to bridge it. But again, you relent, convincing yourself not to press.

Your cheeks are warm. This isn’t just the comfortable quiet anymore; your skin tingles, and the air feels like it does before a storm. Again, you attempt to focus on the words in front of you, but you can no longer comprehend them. All you can think about is the definite shift you’ve sensed in Leo—and the precarious question mark hanging in the space between you.

Because lately, the way he looks at you—it feels … different.

The words on the page have become meaningless squiggles, drowned out by the roaring silence and the frantic beat of your own heart against your ribs. Just now, you feel that look again. That focused stare. You try to take a slow, steadying breath, but it hitches halfway. Then you risk another look at Leo—

—and this time, he doesn’t look away immediately.

Instead, his eyes meet yours. And for a beat, you swear you feel the air crackle. There’s a tension in his jaw you’ve learned to recognize as him grappling with something internally. He continues to hold your gaze, not looking away. You swallow, rooted to the spot.

Inevitably, something shatters the moment.

“Ooooh, lookie here! Study buddies getting intense?” Mikey’s voice booms as he skateboards into the main room, executing a wobbly turn.

Leo’s posture goes ramrod straight. Every muscle seems to tense. “It’s called reading, Michelangelo.” He speaks in a clipped, overly formal tone—a sure sign of his discomfort.

Donnie wanders in, tapping away at a tablet. Though his eyes flick between you and Leo with keen interest. “Technically, Mikey’s right. Leo’s bio-feedback readings have shown a slight elevation in heart rate and galvanic skin response when you’re in close proximity.”

You press your lips together, trying not to laugh as you bookmark the page and close your book. Oh boy, you think as Raph enters the room. Here we go. The peace is officially over.

Raph glances from a now distinctly uncomfortable Leo to you, a knowing smirk spreading across his face. “Yeah, ‘reading’. Looks more like our fearless leader is trying to figure out how to use his words for something other than barking orders.” He gives Leo a pointed look.

Leo’s shoulders bunch up even further, and he shoots Raph a glare that could curdle milk. “I was contemplating strategy, Raphael. Something you might benefit from trying occasionally, instead of just charging in.” The deflection is immediate, sharp.

You tuck your feet beneath you on the couch, feeling the tension in the room climbing. “He’s right, guys,” you say softly, trying to inject a note of casualness. “We were just enjoying the quiet.”

“Quiet? Dude, the air was buzzing!” Mikey insists, ditching his board and planting his feet firmly on the floor. “Like, zzzzt! Electric eel quiet!” He makes buzzing noises and wiggles his fingers for emphasis.

“My sensors registered a distinct increase in localized atmospheric ions,” Donnie says, “that are consistent with elevated emotional states. Fascinating, really.” He taps his screen again. “Further analysis pending.”

Leo makes a strangled noise in the back of his throat. “Donnie,” he grits out.

Raph folds his arms over his plastron, that knowing smirk still firmly in place. “Aw, relax, Leo. Nobody’s judging.” He pauses, letting the implication hang heavy. “Much.” He winks at you, making you blush. “Just sayin’, Leo. Maybe Musashi ain’t the only thing holdin’ your attention these days.”

“Shut up, Raph,” Leo snaps, his gaze darting towards you, checking your reaction.

“Aw, is Leo getting flustered?” Mikey teases, grinning as he looks at you. “You finally break through that super-serious shell of his?”

Heat floods your face, matching the flush you see creeping up Leo’s neck.

You manage a small, slightly shaky laugh. “You guys are relentless,” you say, aiming for amused rather than mortified. You gesture vaguely towards the books resting nearby. “There’s no ‘shell breaking’ going on. We were just reading.”

Leo pushes himself abruptly out of the chair, his movements stiff and jerky. He places The Book of Five Rings down on the armrest with more force than necessary. “Enough, Mikey,” he bites out, his voice low and tight with warning. He refuses to look directly at you, his gaze fixed somewhere over Mikey’s shoulder, his jaw clenched tight.

“Actually,” Donnie begins, adjusting his glasses, “the ‘shell’ metaphor is interesting. Because psychologically, prolonged exposure to a non-threatening, emotionally open individual can foster increased vulnerability and trust in subjects typically exhibiting guarded behavior. My preliminary data correlates with a significant decrease in Leo’s baseline stress markers when in your presence, contrasted with—”

Raph snorts, cutting Donnie off. “See? Even Donnie agrees you’re gettin’ soft, Leo.” He grins wider, thoroughly enjoying the leader’s discomfort. “Must be all that … quiet reading.”

“Is Leo gonna start writing poetry now?” Mikey says, bouncing slightly on the balls of his feet, completely oblivious to Leo’s darkening expression—or perhaps relishing it far too much. “Ooh! Or maybe singing love songs?” He strikes a dramatic pose, hand over his heart.

“That’s enough!” Leo finally snaps. His voice cracks through the room like a whip, sharp enough to make even Mikey flinch back a step.

The playful teasing evaporates instantly. For a fraction of a second, Leo’s furious gaze lands on you. You see a flash of something raw and conflicted—Panic? Frustration? Regret?—before he wrenches his eyes away and pivots on his heel. “I’m going to train.”

Before he can go far, Raph grabs his arm. “Leo, wait. We didn’t mean—”

“Let me go.” Leo shakes off Raph’s hand, his voice low, strained. His gaze flits momentarily back to you, and the raw emotion you glimpsed earlier—that maelstrom of panic and frustration—is starkly visible before he clamps down on it again, hardening his expression.

Raph lets out a heavy sigh, rubbing the back of his neck. The smirk is long gone, replaced by a frown of genuine concern mixed with self-reproach. “Leo, we’re sorry. Didn’t mean to push ya like that. We got kinda … carried away.” He casts an apologetic glance at you as well.

Mikey looks up, nodding quickly. “Yeah, dude. Sorry. We were just messing around. Because you know, the two of you …” He gestures vaguely between Leo and you, opens his mouth to say something—before wincing slightly, thinking better of finishing that train of thought.

Leo’s about to throw some barbs at his youngest brother when you stand abruptly and go over to him. “It’s okay,” you say, trying to calm him. “They’re just being—”

“Annoying?” Leo bites out. “Intrusive?”

“Accurate,” Donnie supplies, leveling a look directly at Leo.

“Seriously,” Raph says. “We see how you get all quiet and weird—well, quieter and weirder—when she’s around. So just spit it out already.”

He glares at Raph. “There’s nothing to ‘spit out.’ Unlike some people, I don’t feel the need to broadcast every fleeting thought or impulse that crashes through my head.” The insult is sharp, aimed squarely at his hot-headed brother.

Mikey winces again, glancing between his two oldest brothers nervously.

Raph raises his hands in a placating gesture. “Whoa, easy, Leo. Just sayin’—”

“Saying what, exactly?” Leo cuts him off, his control fraying. “That I enjoy quiet companionship? That I value having someone around who … who understands me?” His eyes flicker briefly, almost involuntarily, towards you again.

Your cheeks grow warm once more. But before Leo can say anything else, you quickly move forward, laying a hand gently on his arm. “Please, Leo,” you murmur, your voice soft but clear. “It’s okay. Really.”

He freezes at your touch. His muscles remain rigid beneath your hand, taut as bowstrings. But the furious energy seems to stall, caught short by your intervention. He looks down at your hand resting on his arm, his plastron rising and falling with agitated breaths. Then, slowly, he lifts his gaze to your face.

The anger in his eyes vanishes, momentarily overwhelmed by that conflicted look again. His vulnerability warring fiercely with his ingrained need for composure. And for a fleeting second, he looks utterly lost.

Exposed.

Raph watches the silent exchange between you and Leo, his own expression softening considerably. He nudges Mikey. “C’mon, guys,” Raph says quietly. “Let’s, uh … Let’s give ‘em some space.”

Mikey nods, looking immensely relieved to escape the line of fire. “Yeah! Space! Totally! Good idea, Raph!” He backs away towards the tunnels.

Donnie again looks between the two of you, before following Mikey out of the lair. Raph joins them soon after, leaving the room to fall quiet again.

It’s heavy, thick with everything that was just said.

And everything that wasn’t.

Leo hasn’t moved. He’s still looking at you, your hand still resting on his arm. The tension hasn’t fully left him, but the volatile anger has receded. Slowly, deliberately, he covers your hand with his own for a second—before pulling away. It’s not a rejection so much as a gathering of courage.

He turns away slightly, running a hand over his face, his gaze fixed on the floor. “I … apologize,” he says, the word strained. “For their behavior. And … for my reaction. It was inappropriate.”

“It’s okay,” you say softly. “Brothers tease. It happens.”

He shakes his head. He still won’t look directly at you, focusing instead on the worn pattern of the rug. “No. It’s not just teasing.” He pauses, his shoulders tensing as if bracing for impact. “They weren’t entirely … wrong.”

Your breath catches in your throat. You wait, hardly daring to breathe, as he visibly struggles with himself. His fists clench and unclench at his sides. He takes a deep, unsteady breath, the kind you’ve seen him take before facing a daunting opponent.

Finally, he turns back to face you. His eyes meet yours, and the turbulent emotions beneath shatter his usual discipline. The raw vulnerability you glimpsed earlier is fully present now, unguarded and intense.

“Donnie’s observations,” he begins, his voice rough, stumbling slightly over the words. “And Raph’s … accusations.” He swallows hard, his gaze unwavering now, locked onto yours. “While crudely delivered, they hold a measure of truth.”

He takes another breath, forcing the next words out. “My focus—it has been compromised lately. When you are here.” He gestures vaguely towards the couch, towards the shared space, towards you. “This quiet companionship, as I called it. It’s become … significant. To me.”

He pauses again, the silence stretching, amplifying the frantic beat of your own heart. You can see the effort it’s costing him, the sheer force of will required to push past years of ingrained stoicism and emotional suppression.

“I find your presence centering,” he continues, the formality of his words contrasting with the emotion in his eyes. “And distracting. Simultaneously.” A faint, self-deprecating grimace touches his lips before vanishing. “My thoughts deviate from strategy. My focus … shifts.”

He looks down briefly, then meets your gaze again, his own filled with a hesitant, almost uncertain intensity. “What I mean to say,” he finally manages, the words quiet but clear in the heavy silence, “is that my feelings for you extend beyond friendship.”

He doesn’t say more. He simply stands there, stiff as a board, his jaw clenched. As if preparing for a blow after having laid his carefully guarded heart bare. His eyes, usually so calm and assessing, are wide, searching yours, filled with a potent mixture of apprehension and hope.

You can only stare, the echo of Leo’s words reverberating in the space between you. It’s the confirmation of the subtle shift you’d sensed, the answer to the unspoken question that had been tightening your own chest for weeks. But hearing it spoken aloud by him causes a warmth to bloom inside you, chasing away the anxiety that has plagued you for so long.

You see the tight set of his shoulders, the way his hands are still loosely fisted at his sides as if he’s bracing for rejection. For the possibility that he’d misread everything, that he’d shattered the comfortable dynamic you share for nothing. You take a hesitant step closer, closing the small distance between you.

Shoving down your own introverted caution. Because he deserves the same honesty he just offered you.

“Leo,” you breathe, your voice barely a whisper.

You lift a hand, not quite touching him yet, letting it hover in the charged air between you. “That quiet companionship …” you begin, echoing his earlier words, your voice gaining a little strength. “It’s … significant for me, too.”

Relief flashes across his face, but he remains still. Waiting.

“I thought … I thought maybe I was imagining things,” you admit, a wobbly laugh escaping you. “The way you looked at me sometimes. The way it felt just sitting here. Reading.” You finally meet his gaze fully, letting him see the emotion swimming in your own eyes. “It wasn’t just comfortable silence anymore, was it?”

He shakes his head mutely, his throat working as he swallows.

“My focus hasn’t exactly been stellar either,” you confess, a small smile touching your lips. “These last few weeks, maybe longer. Trying to read when all I can really think about is …” You trail off, suddenly finding it hard to say the words, your own vulnerability rising to the surface.

You take another step, finally closing the gap. Your hand finds his arm again, resting gently on firm muscle. This time, he doesn’t pull away. Instead, his own hand covers yours almost instantly, his grip surprisingly gentle but firm, anchoring you.

“Leo,” you say again, your voice steadier now. “My feelings for you … they extend beyond friendship, too.” You take a deep breath, the words tumbling out in a rush of relieved honesty. “A lot further. I …” You swallow. “I love you.”

The admission hangs in the air, raw and true.

For a heartbeat, Leo just stares at you, his eyes searching yours as if trying to absorb the reality of your words. Then, the tension visibly drains out of him. His shoulders slump in relief, his posture relaxing. His grip on your hand tightens possessively. A slow, tentative smile—one that reaches his eyes—transforms his face, erasing the lines of worry.

It makes your heart do a ridiculous flip.

“You …” he starts, his voice thick with emotion, almost rough. He clears his throat. “You do?”

You nod, unable to speak past the lump in your throat, your smile mirroring his. Tears prickle at the corners of your eyes. Not from sadness, but from overwhelming relief and happiness.

He raises his other hand, his fingers brushing gently against your cheek. The contact sends shivers down your spine. He seems momentarily lost for words, the disciplined leader grappling with an emotion far more complex than any battle strategy.

“I …” He shakes his head slightly, that small smile lingering. “I hoped. But I wasn’t sure.” He leans closer, gently cupping your face. “I love you too,” he murmurs, his breath warm against your skin.

The world seems to narrow down to just the two of you. Leo’s thumb strokes gently over the back of your hand. His other hand remains cupped against your face, his touch feather-light but possessive. His gaze flickers down to your lips, then back up to meet your eyes. You give the slightest nod, a silent permission that sends another wave of warmth flooding through you.

He leans in slowly, deliberately, giving you every chance to pull away, true to his nature. But you don’t move. You meet him halfway, rising on your toes. The space between you disappears. His lips meet yours, tentative at first. His lips are surprisingly soft against yours, moving with a hesitant tenderness that makes your heart ache in the best possible way.

You sigh softly into the kiss, your free hand coming up to rest against his plastron, feeling the steady, strong beat of his heart beneath your palm. It’s racing almost as fast as your own. He deepens the kiss slightly, his hand tightening its hold on yours. It feels like coming home, like finding a piece of yourself you hadn’t realized was missing.

When he finally pulls back, it’s only by a fraction, his forehead resting against yours. His eyes remain closed for a moment, as if savoring the connection. You keep yours shut for a few moments, too.

“Wow,” you murmur, your eyes fluttering open.

An unguarded smile touches his lips again. “Yeah,” he agrees. “Wow.” He gently brushes a stray strand of hair from your face.

He takes your other hand, holding both securely in his grasp. He looks down at your joined hands, then back up at you, his expression serene, resolute. The vulnerability is still there, but tempered now with confidence, with the quiet joy of reciprocated feeling.

“So,” he says after a few moments, a hint of his usual pragmatic nature returning, though softened around the edges. “Reading might be … slightly more challenging from now on.”

A laugh bubbles up from your chest, light and happy. “Might be,” you agree. “But I think … I think I’m okay with that.”

He smiles—a proper, heart-stopping smile that lights up his face. He leans down and presses a brief, sweet kiss to your forehead.

Your respective stories have taken a turn neither of you fully anticipated. But it is a chapter you were both eager to finally write.

Together.

[thesoulforgeorder]

hello!!! congrats on the chapter 2 part 1 release!!! you've worked very hard and you should be proud of what you've accomplished!

so far I've only played as the Military!MC and god i could just feel how much their family cherishes them. i specifically play as a Military!MC who's not really entirely sure what she wants and is just trying to fulfill their duty so to speak and thus hasn't really voiced any of their doubts, but that little moment made me think, "you know, i don't think they would immediately turn their backs on you like you fear they would." idk it just made me tear up a lil bit ;3; disappointing them would still make me sad, but i was gladdened to see MC loved by their parents and siblings. i will probably defo come back after playing as an Orphan or Wastelander MC (*w*)

that said, i had to mention something funny. so i often use "Nikola", shortened as "Niko" as my preferred name. i also tend to play as a Chinese MC if the setting is conducive for it because well I'M Chinese xD so it was ESPECIALLY funny for me to meet Nico as Niko. like ok buddy, one of us is gonna have to change--especially if we're dating LOL

even funnier is that you said Nico would be a bard in DND...because I, too, am a bard in DND/BG3. when asked the same question about me, all of my friends took one look at my dopey, loves to sing, "but can i kiss the eldritch abomination?", troublemaker gremlin ass and said "yeah that's a bard." and now i am so curious and excited to see what makes Nico a bard >W<

*insert Spiderman pointing meme*

✓Chinese

✓Shared/homophonous nickname/preferred name

✓Bards

✓Military background

✓Rhyming surnames (Zhu VS Wu)

ONE OF US IS GONNA HAVE TO CHANGE, BUDDY!!! nah jk we can just be Nico^2. or to avoid confusion i'm just gonna give him THE most annoying nicknames. and/or petnames if i romance him LOL please wish me luck that i come out of this IF unscathed for i am just as likely to get eaten by an Exillium as i am to get blasted by Nico for calling him "my dumpling" over the comms.

anyhow. once again, congratulations on chapter 2 part 1!!! i look forward to what else you've got cooking up; that said, please take all the time you need! you've worked very hard!!!!

Thank you so much for the kind words, Anon! All the hard work is worth it when I see how much you and others are enjoying the game.

Military!MC has a lot of interesting family moments throughout the game. The battle of wanting to not disappoint your father, live up to the family legacy, fear of isolation and rivalry and tension with siblings will all come into play in later chapters.

But there will be a lot of sweet moments to soften the angst!

Also that is absolutely hilarious, what a coincidence! Not so long ago another anon said the same thing but in regards to being Astrid! So I see I have anon twins. I can't believe it.

I am still new to coding so I'm not sure how to get characters to recognise players as having the same name as them but when I do, I'm writing that as a scene. Nico would 100% insist that he gets to be nico prime and MC will have to go by a nickname.

Perhaps people will get to see his bard side in part two hehe.

Thank you for the ask and you made my night! I love the Niko and Nico duo. Truly iconic

[hoiststowline]

may i please shamefully beg you for more First Aid from IDW MTMTE... im starving there's only 11 fics of him on ao3... (planning to change that as soon as i get more free time.) but yeah... fluff angst suggestive WTV i just want crumbs like a lonely mourning dove pigeon... 😓

-🤸 anon

_first aid x reader

[a/n: hell yeah!! here's somethin' a lil suggestive. thanks 🤸anon, and i am so very sorry it took so long! enjoy!]

a thought momentarily passes you by that in this situation, he was wordlessly trying to prove you wrong, of all things. a servo moves somewhere above your head, grabbing fistfuls of dirt and grass to keep his balance steady. as fast as the notion arrives, it leaves your mind, realizing that your proposition meant concluding the evening. now, the focus veers to the quiet of the moment, the way he holds himself here, rooted in the idea of making you happy. his servo shifts, grasping at the earth to steady himself once more, and briefly you wonder if he's doing it for you, or if it's just the only way to stay in this space between you before it's ceased.

at least until the next time you are reunited.

you now find you can hardly move, first aid expertly straddling your waist but never placing any weight on top of you, more so looming overhead before diving forward. his other hand has enveloped your stomach, thumb making sweeping motions so gentle that they hardly ruffle your shirt. there’s a rosy twinge to your cheeks, teeth sinking into your bottom lip so as to stifle the round of laughter that bubbles upward. 

“Are you sure?” you had asked, looking over his way when he had proposed extending the evening a little longer. 

in return, he sends a perplexed expression, not expecting that as a rejoinder. “Of course I’m sure. Why do you ask?”

“I mean this in the nicest way possible, you look a little…tired.” 

you had tried to deliver it in the utmost sincerest way, looking out for his well being when sometimes he neglected it himself. knowing that first aid had a strenuous and long week, you had prompted some alone time after a short drive to an area you were both well acquainted with.

the area was secluded. an unkept and weeded stretch of dirt, miles off from the main road and ways away from prying eyes. the two of you could finally have some peace and quiet, catching up with each other along the shoreline of a small pond. 

“Tired?” responded with a hint of exaggeration, he bends forward from his position beside you. “Do I look tired to you?” 

teasing, you decided to push his buttons a little more. “A little bit, yeah.” 

it’s amusing, watching as he feigns offence, steadily moving closer until he’s right on top of you. his touch is slightly cold, emitting a squeal of laughter as he runs his digit up your sides, yourself landing gently on your back with a short gasp of surprise. first aid observes your body language, adoring how you begin to reel back your previous goading with some giggles inbetween.

“I didn’t-” but you’re still laughing, unable to gather the right string words. 

“Didn’t what?” he mumbles, servo settling permanently up your thigh as his palm engulfs your torso.

you can’t see his face, but you’re trying to ignore the sound of his mouthplate retracting as he leaves a trail of kisses across your shoulder. the hand holding him up above you retreats lower, now resting against your left arm but still atop the grass. 

a shiver runs the length of your spine, squirming when he ex-vents a puff of hot air against the exposed skin. 

“I’m not tired.” first aid insists, knees sinking to some degree into the dirt as he shifts his weight. “Take it back.”

before you can even think about withdrawing your jests, his mouth moves over and up, awkward somewhat due to the size difference but benign and calculated all the same. 

“I meant-” another kiss, one that moves up the length of your neck. “I thought maybe-” 

thinking he had you distracted, first aid pulls back a bit to readjust himself when you catch his chin in two hands, going rigid at your warm touch. 

“You could use some rest.” you finish, sending him a smile that could melt him right where he was sitting. 

“So maybe I could.” first aid concedes, dipping downward once more as your fingers rise to his cheeks. “But I can push it off for a little while longer.”

his movement slows as your fingers find their place, first aid completely enamored and enraptured by your compassionate nature. he wants this moment to last forever, unable to immediately yield to your desires, subconsciously aware you are likely very correct. sleepy exchanges were more common with him than he’d ever care to admit. 

“I’m not quite ready for this to be over.”

[graytodd]

Hiii! I'm a bit in love with your dickjay tbh it's just sooo goooood!!

I wanted to ask you: what do you think about long haired Dick Grayson? Nightwing with like.. an undercut, waist length pitch black hair that jason likes to pull during fun times braid in different styles. Opinions?

Aww anon thanks for your words, so kind and sweet of you ✨☺️

Oh in my opinion Dick can pull any look, he's too handsome! and with long hair? yes. And an undercut?? yes.yes.

I'm thinking of dickjay having a movie night, Dick sitting on the floor resting his head against Jason's thigh and brushing lazily his fingers around Jason's calf, meanwhile Jason's playing with Dick's long black strands, somehow as self-soothing behavior especially when Jason's nervous/anxious, maybe it just started like that ~ Jason enjoys buying Dick clips and hair ties, wash his hair when Dick's too tired/injured, and when Dick works out Jason ties Dick's hair in a top-knot with the undercut showing mmm Jason also loves running his fingers through Dick's hair when they kiss, and when they have sex Jason pulls on Dick's hair to give him a better view of his man as Dick does his thing ❤️‍🔥

[rs-hawk]

Less than 100 followers now until I reach 5k 😭

Since I started taking this blog more seriously about two months ago after taking six months off, I’ve gotten over 2,000 followers and I appreciate y’all so much. My writing is super important to me and everyone who likes, reblogs, comments, shares anons, subs to me on Ko-fi or Patreon- y’all are why I want to keep writing.

I get burn out a lot, or feel like my writing doesn’t matter- that no one will miss it. When I took that break, I had deleted the app completely. I only redownloaded it because someone who had followed me for awhile had bought something on Ko-fi and I didn’t want to disappoint them. I’ve only had this blog about two and a half years, and total I’ve probably taken a year off of it. I always end up coming back when I’m reminded someone is thinking about me/my content.

When I redownloaded it and I saw all the anons, likes, reblogs, DMs, etc, it made a huge difference to me. I love my writing because I love to write, but also because knowing my writing makes people happy, or with some of my pieces makes them feel less alone, just warms me in a way that is indescribable. It makes me feel like I’m not just shouting into the void.

I know some people are like “Okay you write monster fucker content. Calm down” and yeah, I do but the thing is that I care about my characters and my readers (why I struggle with one offs. Lol). One reblog that stuck with me and that I reread over and over when I’m having a hard time is on God Husband x Disabled Husband: Part Two where it says “Why is the most poignant piece I’ve read about disability in a long time monster fucker content?” and honestly, that made me feel so good. I took a screenshot of that and added it to my affirmations slideshow for like a year until I got a new phone.

I want people to connect with my content. I want people to enjoy my content. I want people to feel represented, especially if they often don’t.

Just, thank you everyone that interacts with my content in any capacity. I’ve been struggling a lot since COVID with feeling isolated, leaving an abusive relationship, going back to school, rejoining the work force, my chronic illness, becoming a parent, etc and knowing I have a community that’s always waiting for me, and that’s always happy to have me back, means more to me than I can say. Thank you and I can’t wait to get to 5k 🫶

[merseydreams]

Mersey what would John POV in the Flatmates be? Did he date Stuart to make Paul jealous or did he really like him?

Hi anon, thank you for this question, very fun for me.

No, John didn’t date Stu to make Paul jealous bc he really and truly and genuinely believed Paul is straight. He dated Stuart bc Stuart came into the gallery and hit on him and he was hot and artistic and John knew he SHOULD try to date and like someone so that he could move on from the soul-crushing unrequited crush he had on his allegedly straight flatmate. So he tried! but ultimately he didn’t want to go on dates with Stu, he just wanted to hang out with Paul.

So John’s POV is a lot of him pining over Paul but also him being, like, annoyed with himself because he knows it isn’t good for him and he’s afraid at some point the only way he can get over it is to stop being friends with Paul, which he does not want to do.

[kiyomitakada]

How would fem Mello, near, and Matt be ? (Plus l and light?)

holy fuck ive finally gotten the fabled fem MNM ask???? how did you find me did i successorpost too close to the sun???? thank you. i will take this honor with all due seriousness

also near is already a girl to me and L and light could be with [shoves power drill behind back] some work, but i am going to assume you mean cis girls specifically. feel free to send a followup if not i love talking about dn characters as trans girls

anyway this got ridiculously long so under the cut it goes:

mello: since canon-mello is also gender nonconforming i can only assume this mello is butch as fuck. imo part of canon-mello's gender presentation at wammy's is a rebellion against the entire structure he's been trapped in, so fem-mello being a tomboy as a kid makes a lot of sense to me.

also i like to think both of them kind of hate their haircut by the time of the explosion and just cling onto it because they got so much flack for it in the past that it feels like Defeat to alter it now, and that they come to on the pavement barely-alive feeling like a cooked pizza and think to themselves "well i have an excuse to change my hair now." maybe fem-mello grows out her hair a little as experimentation who knows.

for the social aspect, first off it's less expected for girls to physically bully other kids. not that i think mello was a bully exactly but i mean stuff like pulling that one boy's hair while playing soccer ("hey, mello, that hurt!" "ha ha!"). however mello is charismatic and gregarious enough that she could probably get away with it without the usual social consequences.

roger and watari probably wouldn't have expected the two main candidates for successorhood to be girls, but since L is a girl in this reality and roger and watari don't seem to be that in denial, i figure near and mello would still be successors.

re: the mafia, mello would have had to work a thousand times harder to get them to take her seriously. i mean "bringing us the physical head of a mob boss" is pretty impressive already (imagining butch girl mello holding up a bloody dripping head and grinning at her audience like a wolf…) but since women are not historically part of the mafia (and it looks like this is the same case for rod ross's, since the women we see there are clearly entertainers) she would have a damn hard time actually getting a permanent position. she might have to do it from more of a independent contractor angle instead, racking up enough favors that she could have the social capital necessary to ask for their help getting the notebook.

what else… oh. out of the spk she chooses halle to stay with post-explosion because she'd be understandably cautious of staying with rester or gevanni as a girl. near obviously predicts this and so is even less surprised when mello hostage-marches halle back into spk headquarters.

also the kiyomi plan goes exactly the same lmao (stunning display of authorial misogyny but on an individual level i don't think mello was being sexist about it)

from like, a psychological point of view, mello's established need to Prove Herself would be pretty much the same during wammy's but skyrocket during her mafia era on account of the aforementioned mafia sexism. she would be willing to use her perceived gender as a way to get people to underestimate her but she would not be happy about it. (soichiro: "…mello… your name is… mihaela keehl?" mello, mouth pulling to the side: "surprised, yagami?") she would also be somewhat less willing to underestimate misa (who canon-mello calls a stupid girl while tailing her) but not that much less willing because honestly i think she would have a bit of not-like-other-girls internal misogyny in there.

near: speaking of people who have not-like-other-girls internal misogyny! (this is the best justification i have for why she calls kiyomi stupid)

i can't see much about near changing. she's still a loner at wammy's, she still pieces the kira case together by herself, she still gets an audience with the president (which she needed the spk's help for in the first place). i tend to imagine roger and watari with a fair dose of traditional paternalistic sexism so maybe roger would have been a closer mentor to her. then again, maybe not. as per htr, roger doesn't really like kids.

design-wise i think she would grow out her hair, though not to a-kira length. she likes braiding and unbraiding it as a stim but if her hair were too long she would start needing significant time to take care of it and good god she does not have the time for that! she's busy! otherwise i don't think her presentation changes much at all lmao.

i wonder what she'd think of light. would she also call light a stupid woman? would she gloat internally about the notebook swap plan? shrug.

matt: suddenly i understand why everyone makes up so much about matt. oh god. no i have to stay canon compliant fuck fuuuuck

okay yeah, fem-matt puts absolutely no effort into presentation or hygiene. still a gamer. doesn't bother disguising the fact that she's a girl while gaming so while people are saying slurs at her she runs circles around them and wastes them all in expert time. probably tomboyish but not, like, deliberately, her life just shakes out that way.

also she would not be third in wammy's house because her adhd would be undiagnosed. canon-matt says "it's so boring watching something that never changes" and is overconfident to the point where he steps out into a circle of armed guards with no visible fear, the adhd is practically canon and one of the, like, three things we know about him. i figure canon-matt got access to meds in wammy's but his insurance is fucked up so he stopped receiving them after graduation. fem-matt's adhd slips under the radar, as it does for most girls in real life, so she's probably around fifth place just because she doesn't have access to stimulants. sad!

also: matt calls misa "an awfully cute japanese girl" (i tend to think he means this in the way you would say kittens are cute) and says to mello "why don't you change places with me? at least you get to eavesdrop on a cute girl." now you could say that maybe fem-matt would use less objectifying(?) language but actually i choose to believe she'd be just as bad <3

L: looks The Exact Same. acts The Exact Same. i actually can't talk about fem-L for too long, i will explode. uhh. everyone in interpol is under the impression she's a guy because of her voice modulation. watari is more protective of her and more frequently chimes in during discussion over the computer during yotsuba arc, which L does not appreciate (even though she likes watari), she can handle herself fine, thank you.

backstory-wise, watari definitely took longer to catch onto how smart L was. "invest 1 million pounds please" "er… let's start with a thousand, perhaps." L is annoyed by this. possibly this means L as the detective identity was established later than it was in the canon timeline?

does she have internalized misogyny… tilts hand. i like to think she has less of it than the others, because the only indication we have in canon is her comment that naomi worked her way up in the fbi with "surprising speed for a woman" which you could just as easily take as acknowledgment of sexism in society. on a related note she would not put misa into torture bondage. (or would she……… hm. probably not.)

the task force would also take her less seriously, but oddly i think the dynamic shakes out similar to canon, in that soichiro (in this au where light is also a girl) would be the one to convince the others to listen to L (which is already his role in canon). she reminds him of his daughter and his daughter is wicked smart.

light: ahahahahahahahhahaaaaaa

okay. you should read original sin the cis girl light fic of all time. but here are my other thoughts:

light is gender conforming. i like to think she'd put her hair in a ponytail to come across as a Serious Girl™ but she wouldn't cut it short. she's mild. she's polite. she would not be able to get away with the shit canon-light does (like pointing at L or saying all receptionists look the same or, more seriously, pulling the seduction gambit with kiyomi) because she's constantly on the lookout against being perceived as a karen, a snake, a bitch, so on and so forth. i can't imagine her RSD would be any better than canon-light's so she does not cope well with being called any of that. the masking is raised to 1000.

"would fem-light be a misandrist or a pick me" both. she silently hates men like shibuimaru and she still helps with cases (notably Girl Detectives are a whole genre ala nancy drew) and in a deeply light yagami-esque simplification she sees that men are more likely to be registered as criminals and concludes that men are more likely to commit crimes because of socialization and therefore men are terrible. however she also hates girls like the ones in chapter 1 going out to drink alcohol with a burning passion. the world is so against women already, why are you playing into their stereotypes, she wants to scream, while she plays into the stereotypes herself (but that's Different because she knows she is doing it for a Good Reason). she's light yagami and she sucks. what im saying is that she hates everyone

also i think an underrated part of canon-light is the way his first arc sexism often manifests as chivalry. ("this is the first time i've ever seriously wanted to punch a girl…") fem-light, on the other hand, is also fiercely protective of her family but in less of a gendered way. canon-light's conviction that he can decide what's best for the entire world is So reminiscent of "men of the house" deciding what's best for a family (jabs finger at soichiro). i think this is less true of fem-light, who, to make up for not being as motivated by this, is just a ball of sheer rage all the time. how dare the world be like this? why can't anybody see? why is everyone so fucking stupid? like canon-light but even worse. in fact i can see the cis girl version of manga light starting out like anime light, glaring out the window instead of just staring quietly.

much like mello i don't think light would be able to stomach pulling off the "of course i'm not a murderer, i'm just a girl!" shtick. (i'm of the opinion fem-light would feel murderous rage about people who say "i'm just a girl.") however she does invoke it constantly by dressing nonconfrontationally, gender conforming, etc etc — which is all stuff she did before becoming kira, so.

part of why she fixates on L is because L seems to look past the entire good-girl act to be like well yes yagami-kun is probably a murderer. she would feel even more weirdly seen than canon-light already does.

misa, upon meeting light, would be shocked that light's a girl. immediately sizes light up as a potential threat because other girls are less taken in by her whole cute demeanor than men are… i will not go into this i think the first!kira kiyomi post touches on mostly the same points (although unlike with kiyomi i think misa would give fem-light her death note still)

also, light has to work harder to convince the task force to let her take over L's position after she kills L, since the task force is like nooo light-kun this is Dangerous why would you Do This you can go back to a normal life now!! light cannot afford to play "idk if i really should…" the way she can in canon, she will have to be like "I Am Going To Avenge Ryuzaki."

the task force's suspicion of her in the second arc would also be extremely gendered i can't explain how but the vibe would be so different. also matsuda would attempt to flirt with her. and of course the entire kiyomi seduction arc goes off the rails so badly that i'm not sure light would even try it in the first place, she would probably just do it from a "reunion between college friends" point of view?

oh and mikami! hmmm. i wonder if fem-light would want to pick a woman to send the death note to. can we cisswap mikami too i really want girl mikami… i will not clog up your ask with this though. i feel like fem-light would get more high off worship than canon-light does because fem-light doesn't get validation as easily. i also think that phone call they have would make mikami go god is a woman??? and spend 5 seconds having a crisis about this before folding it into his worldview like well of course she is. i knew that.

and uh… her ponytail unravels during the warehouse confrontation, 'cause symbolism

that's all i've got for now i think. thanks for the ask!

[kenzan-brainrot-mp4]

Adding to the post credits scene a bit. The way Majima kept staring up at the hospital (presumably the floor Kiryu is on) made everything just that much more painful.

And I know this is a reach but I got serious flashbacks to Majima's one-sided attraction to Makoto. It happened again, he fell hard and I don't think he can let go this time. Can they please stop tearing into his feelings like that my god.

OUGH I DIDN'T EVEN THINK OF THAT Of course I guess we can't know for sure, but god. God, Imagine the possibility. *holds head in hands*

Also now that I think about it, you're right, when you put them side-by-side, the shots of Majima walking away from the camera in pirate yakuza is a bit reminiscent of the shot of him in yakuza 0.... Oughh imagine the parallels though, Majima walking away from the viewer and away from Makoto in yakuza 0 (and yk2) with the intent/hope that they never speak to each other or see each other again, vs Majima walking away from viewer but towards Kiryu (y8 gaiden) to spend whatever time he's able to afford left with him.

Obviously there's a lot of factors surrounding why Majima decided to keep Makoto specifically at a distance post-y0, but I think what's killing me with this parallel in particular is the idea that Majima, by the time we get to post-pirate yakuza, doesn't really have anywhere left to run/can't afford to walk away like that with Kiryu in this game.

Like, it's not like with Makoto where he can keep their relationship suspended indefinitely until they forget about each other (or rather Makoto forgets about Majima), it's not like yakuza like. Five-to-infinite wealth where Kiryu was keeping everyone at arm's length, which prevented Majima from really reaching him in general (Majima's own avoidance at being anything but roundabout with Kiryu aside), or all the previous games where Majima could just get away with not voicing his feelings towards Kiryu directly. They're on a very directly stated time limit now (in all fairness rgg has left a window of possibility of Kiryu surviving, but typically you'd probably assume the worst), and now they're in a situation where Kiryu can't push people out anymore, and Majima can't keep this distance going for much longer because he's already spent years and years dancing around this and now he's officially running out of time and he Knows it (basically there's no room left for the possibility of them reaching a point where they can just 'forget about each other and move on', that he was hoping to achieve with Makoto (not that he'd want that atp with Kiryu probably but you get what I mean)). There's nowhere for them to run anymore, so this time when Majima walks away from the viewer, he's actually going to fact the object of his interest, rather than run away from it.

[batbabydamian]

Hey, I started reading Robin son of Batman because of your recommendation (I literally have a print of your post on my phone to not forget lol). Honestly? One of the best things I ever read!!!

Thank you for opening my eyes! Damian has been one of my favorite characters for over a year, but I didn't read/watch much of him because of school, life (and probably an executive dysfunction in the mix).

Maya is incredible. I loved her.

I haven't finished all the issues yet, but do you have any other recommendations?

WAH this makes me so happy, i'm glad you still gave it a shot even with how busy life is!! ;v;

i’d love to give reccs, and i’ll try to go a beginner friendly route! tbh you can pick up whatever here, but since you've read R:SOB i’d immediately follow up with Batman and Robin (2011) #1-8! this first arc is what’s referred to in Maya’s introduction, and it's just. so good.

Main Books

Batman and Robin (2009)

Dick as Batman with Damian as his Robin!

#20-22 Tree of Blood: Dark Knight vs White Knight arc is done by Tomasi and Gleason, the team for the next Batman and Robin series

*Batman and Robin (2011)

Bruce and Damian figuring out their relationship as both Batman & Robin and father & son

imo you can enjoy the ride and read straight through this but i’ll add context to avoid as much confusion as possible since there’s the occasional tie-in or offscreen events, like Damian’s death nbd

Batman Incorporated (2012) #1-10

events leading to Damian's death - affects Batman and Robin (2011) from issue #18

kind of a tough read especially with how Talia's written, but a lot of iconic bits like Batcow, Damian's vegetarian declaration, Alfred the cat, "We Were the Best, Richard."

Robin (2021)

another self-discovery adventure, particularly after Alfred’s death and a fallout with Bruce (and questionable writing choices from his last Teen Titans run)

Batman and Robin (2023)

currently ongoing! after a number of events, Bruce and Damian are back as a duo

Damian Dynamics!

Batman: Streets of Gotham (2009) #7, 10-12

arc where Damian meets one of his first Gotham friends, Colin Wilkes

Batgirl (2009) #5-7, #17

Steph and Damian dynamic! "the bad cop, worse cop" dysfunctional duo

Red Robin (2009) #13-14

early Tim and Damian dynamic that of course includes fighting haha. funny enough, accidentally my first intro to Damian LOL

Teen Titans (2003) #89-92

Dick!Batman has Damian join the Teen Titans. Start of Damian and Rose Wilson dynamic that’s extended in Robin (2021)

Batman: Gates of Gotham (2011)

Damian meets Cass and has a brief team up

Gotham Academy (2015) #7

Damian meets Maps Mizoguchi! they have a few other meetings, but outside of that the series itself is a great read!

Robin War Event (2015)

Robin War (2015) #1, Grayson (2014) #15, Detective Comics (2011) #47, We Are Robin (2015) #7, Robin: Son of Batman (2015) #7, Robin War (2015) #2

Duke and Damian dynamic! not exactly beginner friendly but these are the main issues in order for the event! you can also read the TPB version for everything including Tie-Ins

Nightwing (2016) #16-20, #42, #43

#16-20 Nightwing and Robin arc!

#42 Dick on a mission to save Damian! the one appearance of "Wiggles" the dragon

#43 Dick, Roy, and Damian team-up

New Talent Showcase 2018 "Catwoman: Pedigree"

Selina, Damian, and Alfred the cat

Batman: Prelude to the Wedding - Robin vs. Ra's Al Ghul (2018)

Selina, Damian, and Cheese Viking - Damian's fav game shown in Nightwing: Rebirth (2016)

Monkey Prince (2022) #1-4

Marcus Sun Shugel-Shen's main comic, but Damian features as a fun dynamic here before they're in more serious circumstances in Batman VS Robin (2022)/Lazarus Planet event

Superman (2016) #10 - 11

the beginning of the Super Sons! featuring Maya!

Super Sons (2017)

solitary arcs but there’s a few event tie-in issues later

Adventures of the Super Sons (2018)

literally more Super Sons adventures lol galactic shenanigans yeehaw

Challenge of the Super Sons (2020) 

Super Sons time shenanigans feat. the Justice League

Robin 80th Anniversary (2020)

"Boy Wonders" - brief Damian feature as Tim considers his next step in life

"My Best Friend" - Jon's thoughts on Damian and their dynamic

"Bat and Mouse" - refers to Damian's unfortunate Teen Titans (2016) run at the time of release which follows up with Teen Titans Annual #2 where Damian briefly gives up Robin

Extra Comics!

Superman/Batman (2003) #77

Kara and Damian in a Halloween team-up! also the appearance of "Li'l Matches" lol

DCU Halloween Special '09 "Cavity Search"

Damian out on a solo mission for Halloween night. Immediately after is Tim's Red Robin story "Then and Now: Our Father's Sins" which is more somber in contrast but also a good read!

DCU Halloween Special 2010 "Robin the Vampire Slayer"

a Dick!Batman and Robin story featuring the vampire Andrew Bennett

Cursed Comics Cavalcade (2018) "The Devil You Know"

Halloween themed comic with a sweet short story of Damian alongside Solomon Grundy

DC's Terrors Through Time (2022)

"Trick or Treat" a Super Sons Halloween story

"The Haunting of Wayne Manor" Damian and Deadman story - in the end, Boston kinda refers to Nezha's possession of Damian in Batman VS Robin (2022) which was happening at the time of this release

Batman: Li'l Gotham (2013)

lighthearted series that instantly makes me smile with the silliness and Dustin Nguyen’s art i love this dearly

Secret Origins (2014) #4 "A Boy's Life"

a retelling of Damian's origin story

Detective Comics (2016) #1001-1005

Batman and Robin vs the Arkham Knight (unrelated to the game)

Truth & Justice (2021) #6/#16 - 18 Digital First version

cute story of Damian’s birthday! Juni Ba’s art is so fun!!

DC Festival of Heroes: The Asian Superhero Celebration (2021) “Special Delivery”

short story about Damian! and poisoned pizzas. completely forgot the artist Sami Basri drew Rebirth Damian here before catboy Damian lol Cass’s story “Sounds” is also cute! Marcus makes his first appearance in "The Monkey Prince Hates Superheroes"

DC VS Vampires (2021)

Damian makes appearances throughout this elseworlds book, but the one-shot DC VS Vampires: Hunters (2022) is vampire Damian-centric!

Batman: Black and White (2021) #5

“Father & Son Outing” short story written and drawn by Jorge Jimenez!

Batman: Urban Legends (2021) #20-23

#20 “My Son” Talia and Bruce focus

#20 - 23 “The Murder Club” 4 Parts

Tiny Titans (2008) #33, #39, #45, #47

a few appearances but SO CUTE, LOOK AT HIM

*Batman and Robin (2011) reading guide

i'm mostly trying to avoid the "what did i just walk in on?" kinda feeling when i first started reading comics LOL i'll list the comics where events take place, but you don't necessarily have to read them to go through this book since things are usually explained as quickly as possible in the first page or so

#0 Someday Never Comes

Talia and baby Damian before he grows up to meet Bruce

#1-8 Born to Kill

just an incredibly solid arc for Bruce and Damian!

#9 Court of Owls Tie-In Issue

Damian VS a Court of Owls Talon. While Bruce is occupied with a home invasion of Talons, Alfred makes a call for allies to protect targeted Gotham public figures from Talons. During Batman (2011) #1-11

#10-12 Terminus

Damian challenges the previous Robins sans Steph

Batman Incorporated (2012) is occurring at this time where Talia has placed a bounty on Damian and there's small mentions of that

#13-14 Eclipsed/Devoured

mostly solitary arc! end of it leads into the Death of the Family event

#15-16 Death of the Family Tie-In Issues

Damian and Joker face-off... Alfred's been kidnapped by the Joker, and Damian goes looking for him. During Batman (2011) #13-17

#17 Life is but a Dream - Death of the Family Epilogue

a sort of subconscious check-in through the dreams of Damian, Alfred, and Bruce. Nightwing (2011) #17 features Damian encouraging Dick after Death of the Family events

#18 Undone "Requiem"

Bruce dealing with Damian's death from Batman Incorporated #8

other reactions to Damian's death: Dick in Nightwing (2011) #18, Tim in Teen Titans (2011) #18

#19-23 Denial, Rage, The Bargain, Despair, Acceptance

Bruce through the stages of grief with some batfam appearances in each. also introduces Carrie Kelley into continuity as Damian's acting tutor.

Batman (2011) #19-20 also addresses Bruce's loss

#23.1-23.4

these could be skipped - villain stories, also related to Forever Evil event.

#24-28 The Big Burn

optional Batman and Two-Face/Harvey Dent arc, #23.1 is part of this story!

Damian's resurrection and return

#29-32 The Hunt for Robin

Ras took Talia and Damian's bodies from their graves, and Bruce goes after him.

-> Robin Rises: Omega

continues events from #32. if you don't want to jump to this, basically, Glorious Godfrey and a bunch of parademons from Apokolips are here for a chaos shard which Ra's put in Damian's sarcophagus. at some point, Bruce gets a hold of the shard where he sees a vision that leads him to believe Damian can be resurrected. Godfrey ends up taking the shard, along with Damian's body since it was emitting the same energy.

#33-37 Robin Rises

Bruce hellbent on retrieving Damian from Apokolips and reviving him

-> Robin Rises: Alpha

necessary to read and continues events from #37! Damian's back with a bang lol

#38-40 Superpower

Damian adjusting to having superpowers and being alive again

Annual #1 2013 Batman Impossible

sweet (and funny) one-shot of Damian sending Bruce on a meaningful scavenger hunt around the world while Damian gets to be the cutest Batman for a bit

Annual #2 2014 Batman and Robin: Week One

one-shot takes place during Damian's absence. after Bruce and Alfred find a mystery gift left for Dick, Dick recounts a story he had told Damian from his Robin days.

Annual #3 2015 Moonshot

one-shot Batman and Robin adventure on the moon!

...and of course after Batman and Robin (2011), Damian's story continues in his first solo Robin: Son of Batman (2015)!

[therentyoupay]

im completely feral over all your jelsa stories!!!!!! do you ever write established relationship jelsa or have any headcanons about what they would be like together in a serious relationship or marriage????

THANK YOU SO MUCH. 😭😭😭😭😭😭💕💕💕💕🙏 thank you thank you nonny for this super sweet ask and this really lovely question and all of your love and support!! 💕💕💕💕💕

i have... never actually written established!relationship (in any fandom), now that i'm thinking about it? that said, i guess i can come up with a quick list of some headcanons, maybe? 😂 i will have to think about this more, but for now, here's a quick drop:

elsa is an early riser; elsa helps jack create more sustainable sleeping patterns and habit formations 😂

when jack gets Impetuous Urges to Do Something Rash and Impractically Spontaneous, elsa will ground jack, reminding him to think before acting. (he occasionally Still Does It, anyway.) elsa knows what she signed up for, lol.

jack loves to play Harmless(!) Pranks, just to watch elsa’s reaction. (he is no longer allowed to sneak up on her after The Incident).

they also quibble over the definition of "harmless" and the specific logistical implications of that; for a while, jack was banned from further pranking, but then he got more creative at showing elsa that pranks could be wholesome and genuine, in which they could both be in on the joke. however, due to elsa's deeply-rooted Need to Excel and her (Not-so)Secret Competitive AF Streak, her retaliation in escalating the Cleverness Prank War quickly resulted in jack's prompt implementation of the Prank-Free Zones and Time Periods. (no, he was not scared.)

elsa, usually reserved, has learned to let her playful side show more often with jack. she might still pretend to be exasperated by his antics, but sometimes it's part of the game (or habit).

elsa sill struggles with opening up emotionally sometimes, but she progressively feels safe enough to share her innermost thoughts and fears. with time, she confides in him more about her worries. she still never likes the idea that jack sees her Imperfect Parts, but at least she can tolerate the discomfort (and, yes, take comfort in it) now

(jack loves elsa's Imperfect Parts, and jack admits that he is Weirdly Proud and Competitively Honored to be one of the only people, even including anna, who gets to see them. he also is strangely Comforted and Validated that elsa is, in fact, not perfect because for a while there, he was pretty freaked out and intimidated by how fancy she is.)

until he realized that no one ever let her actually be a Weirdo before, and once he realizes the Truth of Elsa Also Being a Secret (albeit perhaps more Subdued) Weirdo, the Universe Aligns.

jack listens to elsa's Big Conversations intently, activating varying levels of Serious Mode.

jack is getting better at recognizing the moments when elsa needs him to play and needs him to listen or Give His Opinion or any combination of those things.

jack learns that it's not always about Saying the Right Thing (which he is not very good at, anyway, or so our Serially Unreliable Narrator thinks), but rather being able to read elsa's mood and anticipate what she might need (even if she is not aware of it herself yet).

elsa is meticulous about planning and preparing for special occasions.

elsa likes traditions! jack likes tradition only because elsa likes them, lol, and hey, okay, these are more fun than he thought?? (who knew fun could be organized??!!?)

so he really wants to show (off to) her by pulling off Incredible Planning Feats in her honor, too (they do not go as smoothly, lol).

jack will often go out of his way to spontaneously create something meaningful, a moment or a gift or a gesture, that reminds elsa that he cares. he is big on words of affirmation, gift giving (but like, souvenirs that he collects on adventures like, "i saw this rock and it reminded me of your cousin olaf, we should put it on the window after we paint his face on it"), and acts of service, as well as physical touch and quality time. HE WANTS LOVE. he wants TO BE LOVED. he wants to prove that he is worthy of being loved.

(and elsa has to get him to Chill Out sometimes, remind him that he doesn't have to Do Things For Her/Anyone in order to be deserving of care; he is more than what he provides for other people.)

(jack gets its, and appreciates it, but also, the Urge to Provide and Protect is still strong, even after so much time, and sometimes Old Habits Die Hard.)

i get the sense that he'd be the type to he wake elsa up in the middle of the night to take her on a surprise adventure, or convince her to Do a Fun Thing without any preparation (/warning).

and she would Be Alarmed at the Lack of Plan (especially if/when jack Did Not Think This Through), but he also took precautions to ward off Concerns by pacifying her with tea, or reassurances that yes, he did call ahead to make sure the restaurant was open before they left the house, of course he did, he would never just leave home without double-checking beforehand (and frantically googles it two minutes later when he thinks she's not looking; she is, naturally, and even occasionally pretends not to be).

elsa approaches conflict with a desire to resolve things Calmly and Logically. she tries to understand jack’s perspective, even when she disagrees, and she’s careful with her words, not wanting to escalate the situation.

however, she can sometimes withdraw emotionally, fearing that she might say something hurtful if she’s too overwhelmed.

jack was initially (and, honestly, still is, even though he understands more now) hurt by her tendency to shut down when she Feels Too Much, and understands (although it's still hard) that elsa needs time to process her feelings and organize her thoughts.

jack also helps elsa actually Feel her Feelings, instead of just trying to intellectualize and analyze them. (she hates it, BUT sees the value. jack lives for these moments in which he realizes that he's actually contributing positively to her life and helping her in some way, rather than just being a burden or a nuisance, as was/is his fear.)

his initial reaction might be to push for a resolution quickly, but he’s also deeply afraid of Creating Distance between them, so after the first few fights, he really makes an effort to find the right balance between Pushing Hard Enough and Not Pushing Too hard, so that he doesn't drive a wedge between them as they work things out.

jack FEELS intensely, and can be so stubborn. he does not always have the most precise vocabulary or tools to describe his thoughts and feelings, or identify the root causes of what is actually going on inside him; sometimes elsa asks a lot of insightful and guiding questions that help jack come to the conclusions himself, and other times, she Puts Into Words the very thing that he had been thinking or feeling, but could not name, and it is very reassuring to have someone who understands him well enough to be able to do that.

after conflicts or arguments, they take time to Decompress and reassure one another (especially if at least one of them, if not both, was Overthinking again).

when they argue (and healthy couples do, remember!), it’s a dance of patience and understanding: elsa might need a moment to Collect Herself, and jack learns to give her that Space while also making it clear that he’s ready to talk whenever she is, and that he is going to try very hard to be Rational and Patient About It.

in the end, they both prioritize their relationship over any disagreement, always finding a way back to each other.

[snkyou]

Drabble Prompt: Post-canon Levi, struggling with chronic pain and mourning his dead loved ones, being visited by his still alive loved ones

Anon, you knew how to talk pretty to me <3

hihi requests are still open btw

I feel like I gotta put a disclaimer or something lmao. So, the length of my drabble requests is usually something between 100-400 words. This request is just an incredibly unexpected exception. it just happened to fit into this idea I already had been thinking of, which was how the remaining 104th would ask Levi to be part of important events in their lives because well, they like the dude lmao, so expect that sort of one-shot soon. Additionally, since I kept reminding myself that this was supposed to be a drabble, I might have glossed over the chronic pain and mourning bits so I'm sorry about that ;;

that being said, 2.4k words of Levi and Gabi be upon ye <3

Now on Ao3!

The angry hissing of the kettle makes him flinch. It brings a loud ringing to his right ear. Instinctively, he places his right hand over it, and gives his ear a couple of gentle taps; it's more of a grounding gesture, a distraction from the buzzing. He usually keeps watch over the kettle, so that he can lower the heat just right before it gets a chance to scream at him. 

He realises then that he must have spaced out while waiting. It’s alright, he thinks. It’s been like that a lot, recently. He’s been like that. Lost in thought-- lost in time, if he allowed himself to be precise. The last days, weeks even, as the temperatures started to drop, blended into each other. There’s a little calendar on his bedside table, it had been a birthday gift from Armin – or had that been Mikasa’s? He isn’t sure, he had received an absurd number of presents from the kids last year, it had been hard to keep track of who gave him what and now the fact escaped him. Turning the pages of the little calendar, with its delicate botanical illustrations on each day, quickly became part of his morning routine, and so he was sure that time was passing at all. The stillness of the routine, he guesses, made him like this.

His vision blurs momentarily while he scoops the tea leaves into the teapot. He squints, trying to will his good eye to focus, but all he gets in return is a throb in his right eye. After putting the tea canister away, he presses the inner sides of his wrists to both eyes, placing just enough pressure to relieve the discomfort. When he opens his eyes again, he is pleased to find he can read the small print on the canister an arm’s length away. 

There’s a loud slam coming from the front of the house, followed by footsteps coming further into the house.

He quickly recognizes the heavy stomping as Gabi’s gait. She’s always been so loud.

Gabi crosses the arch into the small kitchen and dining area. 

“Don’t slam my doors,” he says as a greeting, slowly turning his head to his left side, trying to catch a glimpse of her in his periphery.

“Aye, aye,” the kid waves her hand, shoots him a teasing grin, “someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed.”

Levi hums in response but doesn’t say anything else. He busies himself with placing everything they need for their morning tea and coffee on a metal tray on the counter, which Gabi takes from him as soon as it’s ready and sets it on the table.

He grabs his cane from where he had hooked it on one of the kitchen drawers. He has been leaning against the counter, his right leg supporting most of his weight all this time. He braces himself for the sharp pain that will surely surge from his bad knee, through his left hip and up his spine. Cold mornings like this one and being still in one place for long will do that to him. It’s not so bad. It could be worse.

It takes 4 steps to get from the stove to his chair, which Gabi has already pulled out for him. It sits at an angle that allows him to easily slide down on it and rest his right elbow on top of the table, leaning back and against his good side.

“I have something that will cheer you up,” she holds a couple of envelopes in her hand and waves them at him, “You’ve got mail!”

He nods at her in acknowledgement but does not take his attention away from preparing his first batch of tea of the day. There’s a ritual to it, it almost feels like, and he doesn’t want to mess it up. Not when the ringing in his ear is still there, the building pressure in the upper back part of his eyeballs, and the cold air seeping into his bones through his thick jumper. Oh, how he needs a good cup of tea right now.

While Levi waits for it to steep, he grabs the papers that she had shoved in his face, squints his eyes at the first envelope and finds that he is unable to make out much of the handwriting. He brings it closer to his face, squints harder, steals a quick glance across the table and hopes Gabi isn’t paying him any mind, too preoccupied with choosing from the bag of pastries she brought with her. It is with an impassive expression that he hands the stack of envelopes back. 

“Read it for me.” A beat and then he adds, a little reluctant: “Please.”

He knows Gabi prefers coffee in the mornings, and black tea in the evenings, so he makes sure to have a fresh brew of the former whenever he knows she’s coming over; so, with shaky hands, Levi gets to prepare her cup of coffee. While he enjoys the aroma of it, he remains faithful to tea; at first, he thought he didn’t like it because he had butchered his first attempts at brewing it. But even after Onyankopon had taught him how to do it properly and he had enjoyed his cup, it didn’t bring the same comfort as tea. It just never hit the spot.

She shoots him a mischievous grin, “Oh, you sure? What if I read something personal, hm?” 

Levi just shakes his head, scoffing at the idea of Gabi finding his junk mail fascinating.

“Is this how I find out you have a secret lover you’re exchanging raunchy love letters with?” Gabi teases, wiggling her eyebrows at him.

He lets out a tired sigh and rolls his eyes, “just wanna be done with it, ” he stirs the milk into Gabi’s coffee, which now has turned into a cup of milk with coffee. “We have a lot to prepare for tonight.”

She clicks her tongue at him, but still rips the first envelope open, “Mr. Levi, your reading won’t improve if you keep doing that,” she jokingly scolds him.

Although Levi mentally recognises handing her and Falco stuff he couldn’t be bothered reading before, that’s not the case this time. He’ll let her think that for now, though, because he doesn’t want to mention the pressure building in the back of his bad eye, it’s not important and she, a kid, doesn’t need to know his newly found ailment of the week. He can see just fine around him right now. He can see Gabi’s big eyes and playful smile at the other side of the table, and that’s good enough; smaller details, he doesn’t feel he can do them, not without making himself go dizzy with a migraine.

Levi slides the cup of coffee to her and is pleased with himself when she approves of the colour of her drink.

“It’s from Armin,” she announces as she scans the letter. 

From this angle, the soft morning light illuminating her face and thanks to his faulty vision, Gabi’s image stirs his memory. His heart faintly constricts as he is reminded of the many times Hange read their research reports to him during breakfast in the mess hall before presenting them to Erwin. Levi always wondered how they could read so fast, sometimes he even doubted they were actually reading at all, their words barely being able to catch up with her eyes; he never asked about it, maybe reading came easy to them as numbers did to him.

A high-pitched squeal from Gabi startles him, bringing him back to the here and now.

“Oh… ohh, Mr. Levi,” she starts, her smile widening by the second “This is good news!”

Gabi makes a show of clearing her throat and then starts reading “Dear Captain, I hope this letter finds you well and in good health.” 

Levi can’t help but let a sardonic huff at the irony of the greetings but doesn’t let himself be bothered by it. He has written only a handful of personal letters throughout his life, and by now he knows it’s just something you’re supposed to say because jumping straight to the point isn’t acceptable, or so that’s what he had been told. 

Gabi continues reading Armin’s words to him. For the most part, it’s a standard letter coming from him: he asks Levi how he’s dealing with the changing of the seasons, how Gabi and Falco are faring, if business at the tea shop has been good, if there’s anything Levi needs that he can’t get in town so that Armin or the others can get it for him. He tells him a little about the country he’s writing from, he even includes a photograph. Then, after the expected pleasantries, Gabi can barely hold her excitement and starts reading faster, trying so hard not to trip over her words.

“If I’m being sincere, we would prefer to ask you in person,” Gabi stops for a second to look up at him from the paper, gauging for a reaction and finding nothing, she continues. 

Armin apologises for not being able to visit him before the holidays, Annie included, and so it is implied that he won’t be attending tonight’s reunion. 

Sometime during the last five years, the Alliance brats had decided to make showing up at Levi’s doorstep together once a year a sort of custom; the first time it happened was during an early winter, a blizzard had stopped them from leaving Levi’s until the next morning. It had been a really nice evening despite the awful weather, Levi remembers, after everyone pitched in one way or another, they all shared a simple but hearty meal together. It was Connie who jokingly said they should do it every year. The following year, Onyankopon, Gabi and Falco joined them. 

This year would be their fourth, and the first someone wouldn’t make it. That fact sits heavily in Levi’s chest, stealing the spotlight from his throbbing eye.

“...Annie and I have decided to get married. The both of us would like you to officiate our ceremony!” unable to contain her excitement, she tears her eyes away from the paper and looks at Levi. “Huh?! This is good news! What’s with the constipated face?!”

That doesn’t sound right. It figures that Annie and Armin would be the first to marry; in a way, he is happy for them, they clearly care for each other. No, that part is easy to understand. Their union is logical to anyone who knows the couple. What Levi can’t figure out is why they are asking him such a thing.

He clears his throat, assumes it’s been 3 minutes and his tea is ready to be poured and so he distracts himself with that.

When he doesn’t answer Gabi, she picks up where she left off. 

He isn’t… well, he isn’t that close to either of them. He’s sure Annie must have other relatives that could step in his stead. Maybe a brother, a cousin. Even Jean or Reiner would be better options than Levi. He isn’t good with words or people like they are, he couldn’t possibly give them a speech about something foreign to him as it is that kind of love, that’s what people expect, right? His title of Captain is obsolete in this new world, so it can’t be that either. Hell, he has never been to a fucking wedding. 

Just… why him?

As expected, Armin doesn’t really go into the details of their choice but does let Levi know they do not expect a fast answer and that they do not want him to feel pressured to accept it, despite how much it would mean to them if he did. Armin asks if there’s anything in particular that he would like for his birthday, as it is a month away, and closes the letter by saying he looks forward to seeing him and everyone then.

When the letter is closed and put back into its envelope, silence falls around them. For a moment the only sound that can be heard is the clinking of tableware as Levi places the teacup back on its saucer.

It bothers him, that he knows he will be letting Armin down by refusing something that any other well-adapted person would consider an honour. But the thought of embarrassing him and himself, because he gave an awkward, most likely insensitive, speech, mortifies him. No, he can’t put them and their guests through that. He will find a way to make it up to the couple, maybe he can… he doesn’t know yet, but he will come up with something.

As he finishes his first cup, Levi realises that at some point while he was lost in thought, the ringing in his ear has subsided and now it’s back to that muffled, cotton-in-ear sensation he’s used to and he doesn’t feel his eyeball pulsating anymore. Glancing at Gabi, he notices she is trying really hard not to say something, her brow furrowed as she takes a sip of her own drink, followed by a big bite of her pastry. Flakes stick to the corner of her mouth and for once it doesn’t disgust him. Instead, it makes his lips twitch as if going into a smile.

“I can help you... if you want,” she says eventually, sounding uncharacteristically careful and small of her.

Levi quirks an eyebrow “Help? with what?” 

She shrugs, “How to… tell them you don’t want to,” she avoids looking at him for the first time, finding the flakes on her plate more interesting. She shrugs again and tilts her head to the side, a thin line of a smile appearing on her face. “...or prepare for the ceremony.”

Not unlike many times before, Gabi’s words render him speechless, if only for a moment. He spares his tea a glance and he thinks: it’s bold of her to be so upfront about offering her help to him, and had it been any other morning, one where he couldn’t think past the constant ache in his body, he would’ve chewed her head off for simply trying to help him because he himself doesn’t know how to accept that kindness.

This kid is trying her best and he can’t help but feel somewhat proud of that.

“You have shit on your face. Here,” he points to where the flakes would sit on his own face and picks his refilled teacup back up.

Gabi quickly wipes her mouth with the back of her hand, getting most of the flakes off. Levi gives her a thumbs-up with his free hand.

“I’ll think about it,” he finally concedes and tries to ignore the little happy dance she does in her seat.

This time, when the amber liquid touches his lips, it’s remarkably sweeter than before.

[nebulations]

Fish, 7 (For your prompts! ❤️)

Hi, anon!! Thank you for the prompt, you were the very first one to send one in! 7 was, again, the wildcard, so I randomly generated a different number to land on Yue Qingyuan (from Scum Villain)! I have no choice but to dedicate this to @bytedykes, because I told her about this prompt and she said “yqy pet fish mental health speedrun” and we went, uh, a little insane about it. Enjoy some yuefang, folks!!!!

“Mu-xiong,” Yue Qingyuan says. “I’m sorry to bother you. Are you available?”

“Yue-xiong is never a bother,” Mu Qingfang says warmly. “And I am, actually, yes. Is everything okay, Yue-xiong?”

“I think I need help.” A bit dramatic, perhaps, and Yue Qingyuan hates to trouble Mu Qingfang on a rare day off, but Yue Qingyuan and impulse have never been the best combination, and he would appreciate a second opinion.

Mu Qingfang’s voice turns hard. “Where are you? I'll come right away.”

“What—?” Yue Qingyuan stares at his phone like the blank call screen will tell him why Mu Qingfang suddenly sounds so serious. “I'm at home, but—”

“I'll be right there,” Mu Qingfang says, and hangs up.

Yue Qingyuan stares at his phone for another second, then lifts his gaze to his sparkling new aquarium. His new betta, white and black and resplendent of fin, stares back. Was his crisis of faith about his viability as a fish owner really so deserving of such urgency…?

—

“So,” Mu Qingfang says. “This was your emergency?” He looks about as unimpressed by the betta as it does by the two of them.

Yue Qingyuan feels obscurely like he’s being scolded. Mu Qingfang is one of the nicest men he knows, but that just means that his censure takes the form of a blunt instrument of mass disappointment.

“In my defense,” he points out meekly, “I didn’t say there was an emergency. Mu-xiong just assumed.”

“That’ll teach me,” Mu Qingfang huffs, but at least he looks amused. “Yue-xiong should get used to asking for help more so this gege doesn’t have to panic every time he does ask.”

Yue Qingyuan’s mouth almost drops open. He can only hope his cheeks aren’t as red as they feel. “Er—well, I asked this time, didn’t I?”

“You did,” Mu Qingfang allows, looking something horribly close to fond. Yue Qingyuan swallows and tries to hurry on.

“So—not an emergency, but I do want your opinion,” he coughs out. “I’m having… doubts. About the fish.” Mu Qingfang’s eyebrows contract. Yue Qingyuan rushes it out. “Do you think I should keep it?”

“Yue-xiong…” Mu Qingfang looks politely incredulous. “Why does my opinion matter? The fish is already yours, isn’t it? If you don’t think maintaining its upkeep will be feasible, that’s one thing, but… Surely Yue-xiong did the research before getting it?”

He doesn’t sound judgemental, but Yue Qingyuan feels his cheeks warm. “I did, but I wasn’t planning on getting a fish; I was only admiring the tanks. There was a salesperson who was… very insistent.”

Mu Qingfang regards him doubtfully, which is fair. Yue Qingyuan towers over most people he meets, and his bulk only further adds to the impression of immovability. It’s only when he opens his mouth that it becomes clear how spineless he actually is.

Yue Qingyuan falters. “I had thought… I thought it might be nice.” The bettas had seemed so majestic in their tanks, iridescent monarchs of false grass and plastic coves, and Yue Qingyuan had thought, wildly, that one might be rewarding to keep, might breathe a touch of life into his immaculately sleek living room. The whole affair hadn’t even been expensive by his shiny new standards, forget difficult to physically arrange. It was only when installation and set-up for his new aquarium had finished and he was left to watch that jewel-bright being swim disaffectedly through its new home that doubt had seized him, all-consuming and black. He had, admittedly, panicked a little after that.

(Yue Qingyuan’s apartment is very large, and very clean, and very empty. It holds the barest amount of decoration and muss to qualify as lived-in rather than a snapshot from a magazine ad. The fish may, in fact, be the only thing in the entire place which really qualifies as his. No wonder Yue Qingyuan wanted to jettison it from his life as soon as he got it.)

Mu Qingfang’s expression hovers between concern and simple confusion. “I’m sure Yue-xiong will be a more than adequate caretaker,” he says, more gently than Yue Qingyuan and all his neuroses probably deserve. “What’s this really about, Yue-xiong?”

Ah. There it is. Being the mildest person of Yue Qingyuan’s admittedly sharp-tongued social circle doesn’t preclude Mu Qingfang’s wit from being as keen as the scalpels he works with.

“I don’t…” Yue Qingyuan falters. How to express to Mu Qingfang how manifestly unfit Yue Qingyuan is to care for any living creature at all? He changes tack. “I think he hates me,” he admits dolefully.

Mu Qingfang stares at him for a long time, long enough to imply that he’s reevaluating certain opinions about Yue Qingyuan’s intelligence. “Yue-xiong, with all due respect to your new pet—it’s a fish.”

“Fish have emotions!” Yue Qingyuan argues. He flushes at the volume at which it comes out, and at the way Mu Qingfang’s eyes go wide-eyed in startlement. But the salesperson had been very insistent about that, as well. “Bettas are intelligent animals. They dislike certain colors, apparently, and they’re very sensitive—ah, to environmental disruptions, that is. And—”

Mu Qingfang’s eyebrows are still high, but his face has relaxed into a smile. “It sounds to me like you like it quite a bit already. Isn’t that reason enough to keep it?” His tone curls with sudden mischief. “Have heart, Yue-xiong—you’ve hardly known each other for a day! Give it time to adjust to you, and I’m sure you’ll win it over as surely as you do everyone else.” And he grins, sure and easy in his trust that Yue Qingyuan won’t fumble and shatter something so small and monumental as a life that he could cup in his palms.

While Yue Qingyuan is still dazed by that, Mu Qingfang’s eyes alight with interest. “Ah, Yue-xiong—what have you named it?”

“...”

Mu Qingfang’s face falls as devastatingly as it had lit up. “Yue-xiong…”

“Mu-xiong is aware that I was unsure of whether or not I’d keep him!” Yue Qingyuan is terribly aware that his ears are now heating up to match his cheeks. Mu Qingfang’s ensuing laughter does not help with that matter.

Yue Qingyuan is not very good at holding onto things. More often than not, he makes a mess of whatever he’s set his clumsy hands to, lets it fall right through his scarred fingers. But Mu Qingfang’s words ring through his head: Isn’t that reason enough to keep it? And, well, isn’t it? Surely Yue Qingyuan is adult enough to follow through on this. Maybe happiness can be look like his new betta swimming up to the tank to observe the new colorful form moving in front of it, can come as easy as Mu Qingfang quipping that his knowledge about fish is clearly lacking and vowing casually to read up on bettas to be a better fish uncle.

Yue Qingyuan buries a smile and walks over to let Mu Qingfang know that bettas can be trained to follow fingers around. The betta’s clear preference for Mu Qingfang over Yue Qingyuan is as good a marker of intelligence as any fun fact the pet shop worker could have given him. Yes, Yue Qingyuan thinks with a smile—he thinks he’ll be keeping this after all.