#that one comic about him unable to stop himself from smiling when he finds out haibara was searching their names tgt in the love test

[mestos]

haibara in m26 offhandedly says "you really love to make women wait, kudo-kun" with the fondest smile on her face which single handedly rewired my brain chemistry.

i have been playing around w the idea so much but i love to imagine if he ever heard that it bothers him way more than it normally should. like its said tenderly which confuses him but also theres a slight backhanded edge to it that bothers him. and i love to imagine that when (the hows are irrelevant) he gets his shit together in CA he does not wait.

like, he does not waste any time waiting for perfection anymore. out of breath, sweat down his jaw and glasses lopsided, confesses immediately. takes her hand if she doesn't believe it. kisses the back, says her name, does it with a gaze both desperate and full of resolve that she can't argue with it.

conan. is done making people wait for him, and he makes sure haibara knows that

[tartarusknight]

Steve had this habit, a habit which most of the party were annoyed by. They understood it, God did they understand. But after everything was over and the Upside Down was gone for good, it kept happening. Months and months of daily calls. Just Steve checking in and asking them about their day.

Mike hadn't understood why he was on the list of names Steve would call, but if he didn't pick up the phone, there would be a knock on the door within the hour. And Steve, sometimes followed by Robin, would stop by like he was that important to them. Once, it had been on their way to work, and Steve had only locked eyes with him and raised an eyebrow. Mike just flipped him off and continued reading his comic.

Dustin had told him it was Steve's way of coping, and Lucas had turned the calls into workouts with the older teen. Will had just gone a little red and nodded along. El smiled and told Mike about the tips for hair care she got. Max just rolled her eyes and said that Steve had taken to stopping by with food most days.

Steve would be there. He was always there. It was annoying, but it was a constant. Maybe that's why Mike laid awake as the clock ticked closer and closer to midnight. Normally, he could fall asleep within minutes, a habit he had inherited from his dad. But he could bring himself to sleep as his phone didn't ring. As the walkie stayed silent. As the door remained untouched, no knock to be heard.

And it was stupid. Because Mike didn't want Steve to call him every day just to ask him if he was okay. It made him feel like a kid. It reminded Mike of his mom, but even his mom wasn't that bad. No, no one really did that for Mike. No one checked in day after day even as he remained uncaring towards them. No one but Steve.

Until now...

Mike watched the clock as it passed midnight, and his stomach twisted into knots. Fear bubbled up, and he pictured Steve getting into a fight he couldn't walk away from. He pictured a car crash so great that Steve was unable to reach for the walkie he carried with him everywhere. He pictured the worst- the Upside Down still around. The demogorgon coming up and dragging Steve into that hellpit.

Mike was up and pulling on a warm sweatshirt before those images were fully formed. He crawled out his window and down the roof, not too unlike the way Steve had done to visit Nancy. It left him already out of breath by the time he climbed on his bike. But that didn't stop him. He pushed off the ground, biking as fast as he could towards Loch Nora.

The cold air hot his face, and the road seemed to go on forever, but Mike didn't stop. He couldn't stop. Not until Steve's place was in view.

Mike tossed his bike uncarringly onto the pavement before slamming his fist into the Harrington's nice door. He didn't let up. He couldn't as an image of Steve dead in his own pool floated in his mind.

However, then the door was opening. Steve stood there, looking like he hadn't been asleep either. A smear of white powder on his cheek and a hollowness in his eyes. But still, something eased in Mike the same time Steve lost some of that weight in his shoulders as well. "You- you didn't-" Mike started, still out of breath. "Call. Why didn't you- call?" He gasped and Steve looked at him with a weird expression.

"You- What?" Steve questioned, sounding lost.

Mike crossed his arms, "I- you can't just stop!" He gasped out, and Steve's brow furrowed.

"But you don't like it when I do? I annoy you," he tries to point out, and Mike huffs.

"God, of course you annoy me! You track our days more intensly than my mom, and you always make dumb jokes, and I hate that I find them funny! You always call when I'm in the middle of something, and you make it easy to stay on the phone! You are always there like some weird older brother that I never asked for!" Mike shouts and Steve's eyes are wide.

"You don't have to stay around or call, but you do! You do, and you actually care. Like when you call and ask me if I'm okay, it feels like you care, and I don't understand why! I don't get you! I didn't ask you to care about me, but even when you were dating Nancy, you cared! You took Holly and me to get ice cream even though Nancy had to study! You give me and my friends rides everywhere! You care!" Mike throws his hands up in the air.

He glares at the older teen, "You care so much that I stupidly care about you! I care enough to come and check on you because when you didn't call, all I could think was that you were like dead or something," Mike snaps and takes a step back. "But you're obviously fine so-" and he wants to run suddenly. To run from the way Steve's eyes are filled with tears or the stupid words he just told the older teen.

Steve runs a hand through his hair, tugging slightly. "Mike, I stopped because I didn't think you wanted me to. You always acted like I was your least favorite person in the world and I guess I just- I didn't feel like it was fair to force you to put up with me just because I can't handle not knowing if you were okay." Steve said, and it didn't sound like the normal Steve. He sounded tired and nervous. He sounded like someone had finally beaten him

Mike bites his lip and tastes salt like he had been crying. Or maybe he still was. He crosses his arms like he can shield himself from this conversation. "But now you don't care enough to keep calling?"

Steve rubbed his face, a sigh shaking his whole body as he did. "I still care, kid."

Mike scoffs, "You didn't call."

Steve drops his hands to his sides. "Just come inside. It's too late for you to bike home. I'll call your place and leave a message." Steve says, his voice sounding close to tears. Mike is stiff when he lets Steve pull him inside.

They are quiet as Steve guides him towards the kitchen. The kitchen that has music playing softly and smelling like a bake sale. He blinks as he steps into the room and spots cookies cooling on a rack and a pie stilling uncooked on the counter. The top crust is sitting on the counter next to it. There's a smell of something in the oven, and Mike states at all of it in confusion.

"I bake when I can't relax," Steve admits, and Mike glances over at him. "I still care, and I was trying to give you space. I was trying not to crowd you, so I just," and he waves his hand around the mess everywhere. The smear of white on his cheek now makes sense.

Mike hugged himself, "I don't- I don't mind the calls." He whispered, and it got a snort from Steve.

He looked over at Mike, "I kinda got that from your speech."

They stood there in silence for another moment before Steve moved to finish putting his pie together. "I know that we aren't close or anything. But I care, it's not just the Upside Down making me anxious, it's just that-" and Steve went quiet. "I went overboard, I get it. But now I just- I can't stop." He admits, and Mike hates how upset Steve sounds. How guilty he sounds.

"I fall asleep easier knowing that if someone wasn't okay, we'd know because of you. It's like you take all the stress from me just by being around." He says, and Steve's eyes are wide. "Maybe we just do a sound off every night so you don't have to play phone tag all day." He shrugs, and Steve wrinkles his nose.

"I don't really get how to use the walkie. Like Dustin tried to show me, but he got distracted and started talking about radio waves and well..." Steve mimed it going over his head.

Mike snorted to hide how much that terrified him. The thought of something bad happening and Steve not being able to respond. But he pushed it away as Steve looked at him as if waiting for Mike to tease him. "That's fair. We did modify them, so they worked better. It's not as simple as your average walkie. I can show you," he offered, and Steve's face split into a grin.

"Cool, want to help me finish this so I can put it in the fridge until tomorrow? Then you can teach me the ways," Steve says, going all dramatic, proving to Mike he'd been spending too much time with Eddie. Mike groaned but came over only for Steve to shove him to the sink to wash his hands.

Steve showed him what to do, and Mike was glad to have Steve around. Because sure Steve's habit was annoying, and sometimes it interfered with Mike's plans, but it was nice too. Steve was nice. And that was something Mike ever believed would happen. But as Steve joked that Mike should not become a baker, he was nice. Like the way Mike was nice to Holly or how Nancy was nice to him. He was part of the family, annoyingly nice habits and all.

[hopepetal]

Masterlist

Read on AO3!

Part Eight!

Reblogs and comments are much appreciated! :)

@applestruda

CW: broken bones and blood

Many thanks to Elle Periwinklemoonlight for giving me several ideas for this chapter, and Mochi for helping me with some of Mumbo's dialogue <3

Mumbo had always liked sunsets. 

He'd never been that big a fan of sunrises. Don't get him wrong, they were pretty and all! But the only times he had been awake to see the sun rise at all was when he had been up all night working on some sort of contraption. The early morning light had forced its way through any crack it could find and pulled Mumbo's attention away from his work, alerting him to the fact that he'd lost track of time and was about to have a very bad day. 

(Look, his stomach was sensitive! If he didn't get enough sleep, he'd get all nauseous and lose his appetite the next day. One would think that would be enough of a reason to not stay up all night, but there was a difference between being smart and making smart decisions.)

Anyway! Where was he? Oh, right. The sun. Fascinating thing, really. Some might even call it essential! Most people would, actually. Mumbo certainly did. 

Sunrises had always been something Mumbo only saw every once in a while, and dreaded every time. The first rays of light peeking over the mountains were a taunting reminder of one's folly. And with the rise of the sun came the song of the birds, declaring in their high pitched tremolo that it was time to wake up and go about one's day. 

Scar had asked Grian what the birds were saying once, over their lovely lunch which was actually just breakfast for the late risers. Grian had given him the most deadpan stare Mumbo had ever witnessed (and that was saying something– he'd known Doc, after all). “Just because I'm an avian doesn't mean I can understand the birds, Scar.”

Scar frowned, giving Grian a confused look. “You can't lie to me! I just heard you talking to the chickens, mister.”

Grian's look became much more pointed. “What chickens, Scar?” he asked sweetly, in the tone that held threats hidden under the surface. 

Scar's eyes widened almost comically as he immediately tried to backtrack. “Oh! No! Nooo, no chickens here. None at all! What chickens? I've never seen a chicken. Ever.” He looked over at Mumbo, before leaning forward and stage-whispering to Grian, “I think I fooled him.”

Mumbo had chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his neck. “Scar, I'm sitting right next to you,” he pointed out. 

Scar blinked. “Oh. Well! Nonexistent chickens aside, Grian, you still haven't told us what the birds are saying.”

Grian had stared at Scar in silence for a full five seconds before sighing deeply. “They're laughing at me for not getting enough sleep to deal with this.”

“See!” Scar smiled triumphantly, looking over at Mumbo. “I told you he could talk to birds!”

“Pretty sure he's just lying, mate.”

Grian lazily waved his spoon in the air. “I don't know what you're talking about, Mumbo. I never lie.”

Scar's eyes shone. “Now, if my time as a businessman has taught me anything, it's to tell when someone is lying. And that, my dear Grian, was a big ol' lie.”

Grian's eyes narrowed, almost imperceptibly. “I'm going to bite you.”

“That's a lie!”

Grian then lunged across the table and tackled Scar to the ground. Mumbo shrieked, nearly falling off the bench with them. “Oh, goodness, don’t break the man, G!”

Grian didn’t even have a chance– Scar pinned him to the ground with a triumphant whoop, laughing as Grian squawked and flapped his wings helplessly. “I win! Haha! You are not immune to the good times!”

“What does that even mean?” Grian shot back, unable to stop himself from laughing. “Scar, get off me!”

Scar stood, brushing the dirt off of his pants. “Aww, G, now I’m all dusty! Dusty and sweaty! Eugh!” He moved to take his shirt off, and Grian shrieked.

“Scar!” Grian shot up and smacked Scar’s hand. “Put your clothes back on!” 

Scar whined, pouting slightly. “C’mon, G! I didn’t even take anything off”

Mumbo groaned, putting his head in his hands. “I miss Impulse and Pearl.”

Sunsets were different. 

Mumbo… didn’t really know how to describe it. In the same kind of way people liked going to bed more than they liked waking up, Mumbo enjoyed sunsets far more than he did sunrises. Sunsets were calm, whereas sunrises were frantic, harried. They were a declaration of the day ending, and that rest would come soon. They were an end to the scorching hot temperatures of the summer and a prelude to the cool kiss of the night’s breeze against his face. Not to get all poetic and everything, but they just were nicer. 

He enjoyed how the sky would be painted in oranges and pinks and purples, and how slowly the knights would gather together on the more clear nights to sit under the stars and talk. He enjoyed how in those moments they were all at peace and happy, and how they cared so deeply for each other it felt less like a group of friends and more like…

Family. 

That’s what it was.

Sunsets reminded him of family.

Not this sunset, though.

As the sun slowly set, and shadows grew to cover the whole land, Mumbo felt… different. As he rode alongside his fellow knights (his friends, his family), he couldn’t shake the feeling of urgency that usually accompanied the rising of the sun, rather than the fall. This sunset was not something of love and rest.

This sunset felt like a warning. 

They were running out of time. As the clock ticked, as the sand fell through the hourglass, a sense of impending doom settled over each one of the knights. Mumbo, in his often anxiety ridden state, was no stranger to the feeling that sat tight in his chest and caused his heart to race, tearing air from his lungs in sharp gasps. 

Scar, riding near him, glanced over and saw the poorly concealed panic on the man’s face. Urging his horse closer, he got Mumbo’s attention with a soft ‘psst!’ 

Mumbo startled, torn from his thoughts as he so often was. He met Scar’s gaze and gave him a nervous, half-hearted smile. Scar could, most likely, see past any pretense he was putting up. The man was good at what he did– good at reading people, good at looking for certain nonverbal clues that cued him into what the person was actually thinking. “Hey, Scar.”

Scar reached out, holding the reins in one hand as he gave Mumbo a pat on the shoulder. “You doin’ good? You’re not looking so hot.” 

Mumbo sighed, looking away. “I’m… I dunno, Scar. I just… goodness. This whole thing is so… it’s overwhelming, Scar. What are we even supposed to do?” He laughed, a tense sound. “It’s– it’s just… it’s not something we can just… it’s not simple, Scar. We can’t just solve it with some redstone, or some crazy invention– this is so big. And I don’t– I don’t know how to fix it.” 

Scar pressed his lips together into a thin line. The setting sun cast long shadows over his face, the little light remaining creating dappled patterns on his skin as it filtered in through the trees. He thought for a moment before speaking. “Mumbo, you don’t have to know how to fix everything. You know that, right?”

Mumbo let out a strained laugh, his grip on the reins tightening slightly. “Well, Scar, mate, isn’t that kind of… my job? You know, brilliant redstone inventor over here, coming up with solutions is my whole thing. It’s not like I could… well, I have to make up for my lack of physical prowess somehow.”

Scar shook his head, chuckling softly. “Oh, Mumbo, Mumbo, Mumbo. I’ve been there! I get you, I really do. You know, back in the day, I had a bit of a job myself. I was a businessman, Mumbo Jumbo! And a very good one at that. And my job was to sell things to customers! And…” he frowned, cutting himself off sharply. “I don’t know where I’m going with this. Man, Cub’s so much better at this than me.”

Mumbo felt himself relaxing slightly, the tension slowly being let out of his body. He smiled, giving Scar a half-shrug. “Cub has a lot of skill, that’s for sure. Plenty of experience to go along with it, as well.” 

Scar nodded, and let silence fall over them for a moment before taking in a deep breath. “So, Mumbo, what I was trying to say… I guess, you don’t need to solve everything? I mean, none of us have any clue what we’re doing. Kinda.” He thought for a moment. “That’s not it. What I’m really trying to say is that we’re all in this together? It’s not your job specifically to figure it out alone. Impulse is our friend, and… we all really care for him.” His voice trembled slightly as he finished, eyes darkening. “I hope he’s safe.” 

Mumbo furrowed his brows, concern shining in his eyes as he looked over at Scar. “You doing alright, mate?” This whole thing had been hard on all of them, but something seemed… off… about Scar. 

Scar blinked, and shook himself out of whatever sort of trance he had been in with a slight jerk of his head. “Oh! Yes, don’t you worry, mister. I’m doin’ just fine over here! Just thinking about the scolding I’m gonna give Impulse when we get back home.” He flashed Mumbo a bright smile, and Mumbo let it rest.

He knew that smile was forced. He knew when the cheerful persona of Scar’s came out to play. He knew, and yet… what could he do? Mumbo wasn’t good with words. He was probably the worst out of the knights when it came to social interaction, and that was saying something given they were practically hermits outside of the occasional job they’d pick up and shopping trips. 

So Mumbo did what he did best.

He let his body go on autopilot, and got lost in his thoughts.

At the front of the group, Grian and Pearl were talking in hushed voices. Grian remained stubbornly in his watcher form, despite Pearl’s insistence on taking a break and letting his eyes rest. He’d given her a look, feathers rustling irritably as she spoke. “Stop nagging me, Pearl. Gosh, you’re starting to sound like Timmy.”

She let out an indignant sound, glaring at him. “I am not! And it’s not nagging, mate, you’re going to give yourself a headache with all that looking!”

Grian scoffed, looking away. “It’s called watching, thank you very much. And you’re the one who’s gonna give me a headache, with all your talking! I know what I’m doing Pearl, I’m not a baby.”

“Well, you’re acting like one,” Pearl shot back. “I’m right here, Griba. You don’t have to be hyper vigilant, or whatever it is you’re doing.”

“And what happens if I don’t?” Grian snapped, his voice dropping slightly. “What happens if I lose sight of the demon and Impulse, what if–?” he cut himself off, taking a deep breath, “Pearl, I need this,” he admitted, voice low. “If I don’t keep my focus on this, I think I’ll go crazy, Pearl. I’ll get all… you know me, Pearl.” Desperation seeped into his voice. “I don’t– it doesn’t matter if I get a headache or strain myself or, anything, really! But I can’t…”

Pearl sighed. “I know. I know, Griba. I’m just worried. About you, about Impulse, about this whole Watcher thing, about… well, everything. It’s just such a big mess, y’know? And we’re all tangled up in this big web and…” She laughed, shaking her head. “It’s pretty overwhelming. Just… we gotta also take care of ourselves, mate. We won’t be able to do anything if we run ourselves ragged before we even get to Impulse.”

Whatever Grian was going to say in response was interrupted by the sound of rattling bones and an arrow flying right by his head, narrowly missing. He shrieked, wings flaring out as the horse beneath him startled. He grabbed the reins and pulled back, stopping the horse from bolting, though it still took a few steps forward.

“Skeleton!” Pearl called out, though the announcement was unneeded. “Stay on your guard!” 

The undead’s bones creaked as it came into view, appearing from under the trees. Normally, along more well-traveled paths, the surrounding areas would be lit up enough to stop the mobs from spawning, and the frequent patrols would be enough to discourage them from wandering too close. Unfortunately for the knights, they were traveling through an uninhabited area with no path in sight. They could handle the mobs just fine, but it certainly made traveling a little more difficult.

Scar drew his crossbow, fingers brushing over the enchantments carved into the material, and nocked a bolt. “I got it!” He drew the bolt back and fired, the skeleton collapsing into a pile of bones with a rattling groan. “Yes! Hotguy strikes again!”

Grian would’ve rolled his eyes if he could. “You and that Hotguy thing, I swear…” His feathers began to settle back down, and he folded his wings behind his back. “Right, then. That’s probably our cue to stop for the night.”

“We’re stopping?” Mumbo asked, slightly confused. “Why?”

Pearl sighed, dismounting. She gently stroked her horse’s neck before answering Mumbo. “As much as we’d love to get to Impulse as soon as possible, we can’t be riding through the night. The horses are tired, and we need time to rest and recuperate as well. I…” She looked over at Grian, watching him dismount as well. “I don’t want to stop. I really don’t. But we have to.”

Scar nodded. “Makes sense! Gotta be our best selves if we’re gonna deal with that demon guy!” He dismounted, Mumbo following a moment later. “Mumbo and I can go light up some of the surrounding area while you two make a fire and deal with the horses?” he suggested.

“Good idea. You have those…” Pearl gestured vaguely with her hand, trying to think of the word. “...magic torches? The fancy ones, so ya don’t burn down the whole forest?”

“I never leave home without them!” Scar grabbed Mumbo’s arm. “Come on, Mumble Jumble, time to light up this forest!”

Mumbo yelped as he got dragged away, casting one last terrified glance at Grian and Pearl before disappearing into the woods with Scar. 

“I swear,” Pearl chuckled as she dealt with the horses, “he never loses energy. I’ve rarely ever seen that man get tired.”

Grian busied himself with clearing a small area for a campfire, using his bird-like feet to help dig up the grass. “Scar’s… definitely something,” he agreed, shaking the dirt off his talons before hopping (not walking– hopping) awkwardly over to a tree, his wings flapping slightly to help balance him. He began to snap some smaller branches and twigs, gathering them in his arms. “Dunno what we’d do without him. Without any of them.”

Pearl smiled sadly, giving one of the horses a soft pat before walking over to help Grian with his task. “Barely feels like any time’s passed at all, yeah? Since we first met in that old town.”

Grian laughed at the memory, shaking his head. “You’d just crashed into the ground. Still had no clue how to use those wings of yours.” He glanced at the colourful moth wings that were folded delicately behind Pearl’s back. 

She was scared, Grian could tell. Wide eyes that were the same blue of a storm-promising sky and filled with barely held back tears. She was scraped up and bruised from her fall, the wings trailing behind her seeming unnatural and unwieldy. 

Grian didn’t ask questions. She needed help, and that was all he needed to know.

Later, he would hear stories of feathered golden wings, carrying Pearl through the sky alongside her flock. He would listen in from behind a door that hadn’t been completely shut as she told Jimmy what it was like to soar high above endless fields of sunflowers and wheat, racing her flockmates at speeds she would never again be able to achieve. 

Grian and Jimmy had lost their flock when they were young. It was no wonder that Jimmy was interested in Pearl’s memories of her flock, who had treated her with kindness and love. Flockless avians were often unable to defend themselves and died without the protection a flock was supposed to provide. 

Jimmy and Grian had been lucky enough to find an old town nearby, with inhabitants who were more than willing to let them in. They’d made a life for themselves there, when Pearl had come crashing into their lives.

“I broke my leg,” Pearl recalled, wincing slightly at the bittersweet memory. “And you and Tim helped patch me back up. And then I just never left.”

“I’ve cursed that day ever since,” Grian joked, yelping when Pearl elbowed him. “Hey! Not cool!” he squawked as Pearl giggled softly. “I wonder how Tim’s doing right now,” he added after a moment. “Do you think he misses us?”

Pearl raised her eyebrows. “Grian, we do visit him. He’s doing just fine, you saw for yourself. Got a whole new bunch of friends and everything!” She examined Grian’s face. “Oh, you’re not upset he didn’t join us, are you?” she teased lightly. “You know Jimmy would hate the outdoorsy life we’ve got going on. He’s perfectly comfortable where he is.”

Grian sighed, turning and hopping back to the area he’d prepared for their fire, beginning to place the sticks down. “Can you grab some rocks?” he asked, “I hate not being able to fly. Walking is so hard.” 

Pearl laughed, setting her sticks down near Grian before starting to search for smaller rocks. “You do look cute though, hopping around like a little birdie. Oh, don’t give me that, you know it’s true!”

“It’s humiliating is what it is,” Grian muttered, “Mumbo and Scar are never gonna let me live it down.” 

“Good!” Pearl chirped, bringing back the stones she had collected to make a circle. “You deserve it, honestly.”

Mumbo’s shriek rang out through the forest, startling the two. Grian nearly fell over from how much he jumped, eyes going wide from shock. What made the shriek more concerning was the explosion that followed soon after, and Pearl was about to charge off into the woods before Scar yelled, “Just a creeper! We’re good!” his voice tiny from the distance. 

Pearl shook her head, sighing softly. “Those two are going to give me gray hairs early,” she murmured fondly.

“You’re not the only one,” Grian muttered, earning a laugh from Pearl. “What?”

“Maybe if you’d stop being such a scaredy cat–” 

“I am not–!” 

Despite their bickering, they were able to get the fire going before Scar and Mumbo came back, looking a tad singed but none the worse for the wear. 

“Area is successfully lit up!” Scar proclaimed. “We should be safe from all the spooky things out there now. Should be.”

“We’ll set up a watch nonetheless. Better be safe than sorry,” Grian decided, as Mumbo and Scar joined him and Pearl at the campfire. “I’ll go first, because there is no way you’re waking me up once I’m out.”

“I’ll go second then,” Mumbo volunteered, “if no one else wants to,” he added after a moment.

Pearl shrugged. “I’ll take the third shift, then, and Scar can go last?”

“Sounds good to me!” Scar agreed, and the knights fell into silence.

As the makeshift campfire crackled softly, spitting sparks into the night sky, the knights lingered for a while around the small source of warmth and light. For a while, there was a somber sort of quiet hanging over the group– silence settling in the empty space that Impulse usually filled. 

Grian, still in his watcher form, leaned forward to gaze into the fire, light reflecting off eyes as black as the night sky. Scar glanced over, and despite everything, had to suppress a giggle.

Clearly, he didn't do that very well, and Grian looked up at him with a slightly confused expression. “Are you alright, Scar?” he asked, and Scar couldn't hold it in anymore.

He giggled, reaching out and patting Grian's face. “You look like a kitty cat!” he exclaimed, “with your big ol' eyes and everything!”

Grian blinked. “I'm sorry, what–” 

Pearl started laughing. “I guess we didn’t have to worry about them being scared by our other forms then, huh!”

Grian’s face flushed a light pink, and he shooed them all away. “Oh, go to bed! I’ll wake you for your shift, Mumbo!”

The other three dispersed, laying out the sleeping bags Pearl had thankfully thought to pack. Better to be over prepared than under, in her opinion. 

Sleep came surprisingly quick, though it seemed like she had just closed her eyes when she felt Mumbo’s gentle hand on her shoulder, waking her for her shift. Pearl blinked away the sleep in her eyes and quietly thanked Mumbo, before taking a seat by the slowly dying campfire. 

There wasn’t much to do during a night watch, other than to sit alone with her thoughts. And that’s exactly what Pearl did, until she thought of something too important to leave floating in her mind.

The plan was for Grian and her to expel the demon from Impulse using their own magic. But where would the demon go after, when it had been forced from its host?

Pearl quietly walked back to her sleeping bag, opening the small pack she had set beside it. She rifled through the contents for a moment before pulling out a small, clear cut crystal. She’d gotten it so long ago she’d forgotten how it came to be in her possession, but it would work just fine for what she was thinking of.

Walking back over to the campfire, Pearl shifted into her watcher form, holding the crystal in her hand. Sitting down, Pearl closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, feeling the magic of the world around her. Another breath, to feel the magic buzzing in her veins. In and out, once more, and she began to imbue the crystal with her magic.

It was a simple enough task. All Pearl needed to do was prepare the crystal to bind the demon to it with her magic. Once the demon was expelled, it would be a simple enough task to pull it into the crystal. And then, as long as she kept checking on it from time to time and strengthening the binding magic, the demon would remain sealed away.

Deep breaths. In, and out.

Pearl let the magic flow through her and into the crystal, caught up in the feeling of casting. She didn’t do it often, not like this. It was nice to finally use her magic again. She didn’t even realize how much time had passed until she felt a hand on her shoulder, and Scar’s quiet voice in her ear. She opened her eyes to look at him, continuing to cast as she did. “Oh! Scar!” She kept her voice down, aware of how close they were to the two who were still asleep. “You good, mate?”

Scar nodded. “I think it’s time for my shift,” he explained, glancing toward the sky, “and also, I felt your magic. Whatcha doin’, Pearl?”

Ah. She had lost track of time, then.

Pearl finished casting, tucking the crystal into her pocket. “Just makin’ a lil magic crystal thing. For later,” she explained. “Sorry for not waking you up. Or… kinda waking you up? Since you sensed my magic and all? I guess?”

Scar shrugged, smiling slightly. “Nah, don’t worry about it. I got plenty of rest. Which you should probably try to do as well. Big day tomorrow.”

Pearl stood, shifting out of her watcher form. “Right, then. Have fun with your watch shift, Scar. And I’ll do my best. G’night, Scar.”

“Good night, Pearl.”

The morning came too quickly, and not quick enough at the same time. There were few attempts at conversation as the knights began to break down camp, kicking dirt over their small fire and packing up what little they had taken out. Grian, who had shifted into his “normal” form to sleep, shifted back into his watcher form and took a minute to relocate Impulse and the demon.

“I can’t see him, exactly,” Grian explained to Scar and Mumbo. “It’s a bit blurry, I guess. I know where he is, I can see the magic around him, but I can’t really make out small details like his face. I don’t really know why, but that’s just how it works.”

“Sooo… like looking through a really bad spyglass, then,” Scar concluded, earning a sigh from Grian. “What? I’m right!”

“I guess,” Grian admitted as they mounted their horses, “but that’s kinda like comparing a bow to Mumbo’s rocket launcher. They do kinda the same thing, but one’s a lot more complicated and powerful.”

Scar hummed thoughtfully. “I see… well, as long as it works!”

Grian remained in his watcher form as he led the tense ride through the forest. The sky above was streaked with clouds that occasionally would cover the sun and cast the land below into shadow. As the knights got closer to their destination, the trees began to thin out, promising open fields up ahead.

“You’d think he wouldn’t have gotten this far,” Grian muttered to Pearl, “but humans have so much endurance. It’s fascinating. And somewhat annoying.”

Pearl hummed softly, her gaze fixed straight ahead. “I’m worried for his health. I’m honestly doubting the demon cares too much for Impulse’s well-being, and I don’t think it has to deal with the negative effects of what it’s putting Impulse’s body through. If that makes sense.”

Grian nodded, his eyes focused not on what was in front of him but on something– someone– far away. “Demons don’t feel exhaustion or hunger, do they?” he asked, speaking mostly to himself. 

“I think some do,” Pearl answered, “but not this one. Since it’s only in the blood, y’know? And it’s only borrowing… Impulse… so that’s not it’s… well. Body, I guess.”

Grian suddenly stopped, causing Pearl’s horse to almost run into his. “We’re dismounting here,” he called back to the other three. “Impulse is just up ahead, in the fields beyond the treeline.” He dismounted carefully, tying the reins to a sturdy branch. “Right. Let’s go over the plan one more time. We’ll find Impulse and confront the demon. Pearl and I will begin casting while Mumbo and Scar keep the demon busy and stop it from running off. Once Pearl and I start casting, we won’t be able to stop until the spell is over. So if something happens– if one or both of you gets injured, let’s say– we won’t be able to help.”

The others dismounted with serious looks on their faces, tension hanging in the air so thick one could almost cut it with a knife. Scar glanced over at Mumbo, who looked several shades paler than usual. “I’m the best at physical combat,” he began slowly, “when I go vex, at least. I’ll do my best to keep it from attacking you or running away, without hurting Impulse too badly.”

“The demon will be attacking to kill though, won’t it?” Mumbo asked, wringing his hands together as he looked between the other knights. “It won’t fight fair just because we are.”

Scar laughed sardonically. “Oh, I’m not gonna be fightin’ fair, mister. I’m just not gonna strike lethally, is all. But you’re right,” he added after a moment, “the demon is gonna try to kill us. And it’s– it’s strong. We know this. But the other option is letting Impulse die, or lettin’ someone else die in his place.”

“Impulse would never forgive us if that happened,” Mumbo pointed out, “and, well, given the other option is his death…” 

“We can’t give up,” Scar finished, earning nods from the rest of the group. “We’ll get Impulse back. We have to.”

Pearl looked over at Grian, shifting into her watcher form as she did so. “Right, then. Time to head out?” 

Grian nodded, clenching his hands into fists. “Time to head out. Let’s go save Impulse, guys.” 

The sun peeked out from behind the clouds as the knights made their way out of the forest and into the wide open field. The wind rustled the grass around them and blew through their hair, and carried with it the promise of a fight. 

Grian had shifted out of his watcher form if only for a moment, just to make travel on foot easier. He was, after all, not suited for walking with those bird feet of his in his watcher form. He carefully ran his hand over his wings and plucked three loose feathers, silently handing one to each of the knights. A promise. No matter which way this went, he’d be with them.

The knights each tucked their feathers away, Pearl reaching out to take Grian’s hand in one of her own and giving it a light squeeze. We’ll be okay, the action said, I’m here. 

The knights continued to walk through the field, walking over a small hill when Grian suddenly stopped, his wings extending slightly so as to stop the knights who were walking behind him. “...I see him.”

And there he was.

Impulse stood in the field, facing away from the knights, slightly below them where the ground evened out after the hill. He seemed unsteady on his feet, the sword in his hand dragging against the ground as if he had unsheathed it only to forget why he had done so, and lacked the strength to fully pick the weapon back up. 

And his hands… even from a distance, Grian could tell that Impulse’s hands were covered in blood– some dried, some freshly spilt. He… couldn’t think about that. They didn’t have the time to. Not now. 

“Impulse!” Pearl called, her voice strong and steady. Grian wished he had the strength to do what she did. “Impulse, we’re here. It’s okay.”

Impulse startled, nearly dropping his sword as he turned around sharply. And finally, after so long of trying to find him, the knights were able to see his face.

He looked gaunt, scared. The bags beneath his eyes were a testament to the exhaustion that plagued his body, and the shake in his hands matched the fear in his eyes. That wasn’t the worst of it– twin horns poked up from his hair, unnatural and out of place. Mumbo sucked in a horrified breath at the sight, paling and covering his mouth with one hand.

“What–” Impulse’s voice sounded strained, raspy– “what are you doing here?” Tears filled his exhausted, scared eyes. “Why did you follow me? I could– I could hurt you!” And suddenly, it wasn’t Impulse anymore, but red eyes and a straightened back and steady hands that belonged to the demon. “Yes… why did you follow him? Don’t you know?” it mocked in Impulse’s voice, smiling. “He can hurt you pitiful little things.” 

Scar’s eyes shone a brilliant blue, the colour fleeing from his hair as he glared at the demon that wore Impulse’s face. “What have you done?!” he yelled, his hands clenching into fists. Sharpened claws pricked into skin, drawing small beads of blood, but Scar didn’t even feel the pain. That was Impulse. Impulse was hurting and it was all because of that demon, the demon that stood in front of him and smiled at Scar with a face that wasn’t its own, that it had no right to use. 

“Oh!” The demon tilted its head to the side. “Oh, nothing he didn’t ask for.” 

Eyes filled with rage, Grian shifted back into his watcher form. “Scar! Mumbo!” he called, and the fight began.

Scar held himself back from going full vex at first, throwing himself at the demon. It hadn’t been expecting the initial attack, stumbling back several steps before pulling itself together. The shock didn’t last long, and the demon was soon fighting back with a fierceness that Scar did his best to match.

Grian looked over at Pearl, meeting her eyes. “Right then. Let’s end this.”

Standing side by side, the two siblings fixed their gaze on the demon in their friend’s body. The magic that swirled around him was wrong, unnatural, evil– and it was their job to fix it. Pearl reached out and took Grian’s hand in one of her own, giving him a nod. They both stretched out their free arms, and called upon their magic.

The clouds darkened as the very magic that flowed through the air began to change, as if even the sky stopped to focus its attention on the two Watchers. The ambient magic flowed around them like a gust of air, rustling through Grian’s feathers and Pearl’s hair. 

Grian's wings extended to their full span, and Pearl's followed suit, snapping open as a glowing purple eye appeared behind them. The wind picked up as the grass around the two began to glow as well, the broken portal symbol of the ancient Evolutionists appearing at their feet. 

Faces set with determination, the two began to cast.

Scar did his best to keep the demon’s attention on him as he fought. It was much different than normal fights– his goal was to keep the demon from running off, all while trying to dodge the blows that were aimed to take his very life. Scar felt the vex magic inside him boiling in his veins, begging to be let free, to run wild and take over his mind. He stubbornly fought it back down– he was in control, not the vex. He wasn’t ready to go full vex again. Not yet.

Unfortunately for him, the universe didn’t care if he wasn’t ready.

The demon, by possessing Impulse, had gained every bit of the man’s strength and skill. And given the strength-enhancing magic it likely held, it was no wonder that Scar was struggling. The demon attacked again, and Scar wasn’t able to get out of the way in time. He took a heavy blow to the side and stumbled back, losing his footing on the uneven terrain and falling to the ground hard. 

Mumbo stumbled back as the demon suddenly turned toward him, fumbling to quickly draw his sword in order to block the sudden attack. He strained under the pressure of the demon bringing Impulse’s full strength to bear, his arms shaking as he tried to push back. “Scar!” he yelped, “Scar, I can’t–”

The demon brought the sword down, and it was only Mumbo’s quick thinking of jumping to the side that kept him from dying instantly. The blade still sliced into his arm, and Mumbo let out a frantic scream that made whatever restraints Scar had holding him back shatter. Mumbo dropped to the ground, blood flowing freely from the wound, and Scar…

Scar snapped. 

Not in the same way he had before, not at all. He was in control, and could feel the power of the vex flowing through his body as natural as the blood in his veins. Power buzzed behind his eyes as shining vex wings appeared behind him, and he shot up, taking a few steps forward before attacking the demon, the overwhelming need to get it away from Mumbo singing in his movements.

The demon turned to attack Scar, and he dug his claws into its chest and pushed it back as hard as he could, almost throwing it with how hard he shoved. He’d clearly underestimated his strength, as the demon flew back and landed hard on its arm, the sickening gunshot snap of a bone breaking making Scar wince.

And for a moment, the scream that tore its way out in response was purely Impulse, his voice unchanged by the timbre of the demon’s. For a moment, it was just Impulse, only Impulse, and guilt swept through him like a torrent. 

But then it was the demon again, pushing itself back up and switching the sword over to its left hand, shining red eyes glaring at Scar as it shifted into a fighting stance once more. “Well? Fight me, then. See how long it takes for your precious friend’s body to break down and give up.” 

Scar’s eyes narrowed. He glanced over to where Mumbo was, clutching his arm close and watching the fight with wide eyes. He’d be alright, and that was what was important. Lifting his gaze once more, Scar met the demon’s gaze. “Impulse is stronger than you’ll ever be. You’ll be long gone before he ever breaks down,” he spat.

The fight didn’t get a chance to continue– with a shout, Grian drew Scar’s attention back to him and Pearl. The magic around the two siblings had become wisps of purple light, swirling around the two as they casted. Scar knew with uncanny certainty that the spell was almost complete.

The demon did as well, judging by its roar of anger. “No! I will not be defeated by pathetic little mortals–!” 

Scar saw it attempt to go for Grian and Pearl and dashed forward, throwing himself at the demon and bringing it and himself crashing to the ground. He winced at the impact, mentally making a note to apologize to Impulse later, when they were all safe. 

“Scar!” Pearl yelled, and Scar took that as his cue to get the heck away from there.

He jumped up and scrambled away, uncaring if he looked a little undignified in the movement. He made it to Mumbo and collapsed by the man, bleeding and gasping, and turned just in time to see the spell hit its mark.

The demon screamed, an awful sound that tore into Scar’s heart, because it was Impulse, it was Impulse’s voice and Impulse’s face and Impulse’s body but it wasn’t Impulse at the same time. It wasn’t Impulse, and the eyes that bore into Scar while it tried to stand and was inevitably forced to its knees were not Impulse’s.

And then they were.

And then it was over.

Pearl pulled out the crystal from her pocket, drawing the demon’s essence toward her and binding it into the crystal. The once clear gem turned a scarlet red, and once she was certain it was sealed away, she slipped the gem back into her pocket.

A weak sob tore its way from Impulse’s lips as he gingerly held his broken arm in his other. He squeezed his eyes shut, shrinking in on himself, and for the first time since Grian had met him, Impulse seemed so small. 

Scar stood shakily, helping Mumbo to his feet as well. “Okay… okay, okay,” he breathed out, making sure Mumbo was really alright before turning back and forcing himself to walk– walk, not run, he’s scared and hurt right now– to Impulse, kneeling by him. “Hey, Impulse.” He could see the other knights approaching in his peripherals, but for now he stayed focused on the injured man in front of him. “Hey.”

Pearl settled in the grass a little bit away, still leaving enough room to give Impulse space as she shifted back into her normal form. Grian followed suit, tucking colourful wings behind his back and sitting next to his sister. “Hey, mate,” Pearl started gently. “Can ya hear us? We’re here.”

Impulse let out a broken sob, shrinking in even further on himself. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, and the words were so quiet they were barely audible. “I’m so, so, sorry.” Hot tears slipped down his cheeks, mixing with blood and dirt. 

Scar shared a look with Mumbo, before turning back to Impulse. He tried to keep his eyes from drifting to the horns that stuck up from the man’s head, and focused more on his face. “Impulse… Impulse, it’s okay. We’re okay. Can I touch you?” he asked, waiting for confirmation before reaching forward and carefully, as though Impulse were made of glass and would shatter at the slightest touch, drew him into a hug.

Impulse began to weep freely then, and Scar felt himself slowly relax out of his vex form, the colour seeping back into his hair and skin. He kept his arms around Impulse, murmuring soft comforts that had once been said to him.

It wasn’t long before Impulse passed out, from the exhaustion and exertion combined with the sheer pain and shock of the day’s events– of the weeks he had been dealing with the demon inside of his head alone. It had been exhausting, overwhelming, and Scar didn’t blame him in the slightest.

The journey home would be a long one, and the road to healing stretched out seemingly for an eternity. But the knights were no stranger to traveling, and this was just another path they would have to walk down.

Together. 

[dross-the-fish]

Note: I got my tablet working briefly and was able to finish the lines before it crapped out again. Testing out a potential comic format to go with the drabbles. Don't know if it's going to be a regular thing but I thought I'd see how everyone feels about it. Adam’s Naming

The Creature sat in a chair that was uncomfortably small for him, his knees bent so that they nearly folded into his stomach. He watched anxiously as Watson pulled out his grooming kit and a pair of scissors.

“That mess of hair has to go, I’m amazed you don’t have lice,” the Doctor wrinkled his mustache as he methodically laid out his tools and began to separate the strands of black hair, first with his fingers to break apart the larger tangles without pulling then with a wide toothed comb.

The Creature, unaccustomed to being touched so casually, fought the urge to squirm away, “Parasites seem to find my blood unappetizing, I’ve never had to suffer their infestations on my person. A small mercy, I suppose,” he said.

“Be that as it may, I should hope that now that you are among people, you’ll be diligent with your hygiene,” Watson replied, grimacing as he picked up his scissors and snipped away the first oily lock, watching it pool on the ground in a snaky curl.

“I never anticipated that I would be among people. It is a foreign thing to be concerned with my appearance outside of hiding it from sight.”

“Have you really never had a friend?” Watson asked.

“No, never. The closest thing I had was a mere moment, I spoke once with an old blind man and he treated me kindly before his family drove me away,” the Creature fell silent, drawing up the memory of DeLacy’s smile and the gentle reassurance he’d given him.

“Do not despair. To be friendless is indeed to be unfortunate, but the hearts of men, when unprejudiced by any obvious self-interest, are full of brotherly love and charity”

It had been a lie, of course, but in the fleeting instance he had believed it, it had been so very beautiful to hear. Despite himself, the Creature had been unable to completely give up on wishing it could be true.

“What the old man gave me was no more than a crumb, but it was every sliver of hope I ever carried in my life and even now, after 100 years, I hold it in my breast and let it nourish me for want of richer food,” he confided quietly.

The scissors paused and Watson rested his hand on the Creature’s head, “Well, we’ll have to do better than that, won’t we? Seems to me a man ought to live off of more than crumbs. Let’s start by giving you a proper name, shall we?” he suggested kindly.

The Creature froze, his vision blurred and he could feel himself begin to tremble. This was not real, it couldn’t be real, no one who looked upon him and knew what he had done could offer him true kindness, much less give him a name. Victor had made him, had labored for months to bring him into existence and couldn’t bring himself to give him that! It was impossible! He refused to believe this doctor, a stranger to him, could give him that so easily. It was mockery, or a trick. It had to be. With a roar he shot out of the chair, sending it toppling, and turned to face Watson, incensed further when the old man didn’t flinch.

“Call me demon! Call me monster, or devil, or abomination! You know well that I have worn them all and each title has been fitting,” he hissed, lowering his head so that he was an inch from Watson’s face and the doctor would have no choice but to truly look at him. At his ravaged cheeks and the chunk of skin missing from the end of his nose. His torn, black lips distorted into a hideous snarl as he attempted to goad the doctor into screaming or attacking. I’ll kill you, he thought, show me you’re just like everyone else and I’ll kill you…

“Stop that this instant!” Watson snapped firmly as he righted the toppled chair, “Such carrying on, really. If you’re a monster or a devil now it’s because you choose to be. I’ll not entertain such utter nonsense. Now, you have a choice, you can sit in this chair, let me cut your hair and we’ll pick out a name for you or you can leave. I don’t care where you go but I have no patience for tantrums. If you want to stay with us you had better get a lid on that temper this very minute!” he tapped the back of the chair expectantly, never once breaking the Frankenstein monster’s gaze.

The Creature deflated, caught off guard and chastened like a child scolded by a stern parent. He sank back into the chair and folded his hands in his lap, the very picture of contrition. Watson softened and resumed his cutting.

“As I recall,” he said as he settled into a rhythm, the quiet snip of the scissors soothing his nerves, “You said to Victor that you ought to have been his Adam. Adam is a fine name; a good, strong, name and I think it suits you. How would like to be called Adam?”

Silence. A shuddering gasp, then in a small trembling voice, “I would like that very much…”

Watson leaned forward and gave Adam’s cheek a pat, not flinching at the exposed muscle under the ridge of his cheekbone but moved to pity by the wetness trickling down it, "Whatever you were, whatever you've done, put it behind you now. This is your new start, your second chance. Don't squander it, Adam."

[izzyshandz]

"You hate me, don’t you."

Izzy didn’t know how he felt about Stede anymore, so when he asked the question his mind went blank and his hands curled into fists.

"Well I wouldn’t say I like you."

He replied curtly, attempting to keep any and all formalities out of his gruff voice. Leave it up to Stede to bombard him first thing in the morning, this was common after Blackbeard- Ed. After Ed had begun his recovery of the mutiny; that thought causing a forlorn jab to pierce through his gut almost vicious enough to keel over-- but Izzy didn’t outwardly budge. Stede would approach him and ask him about his sleep, and his leg, oh he hated when Stede asked about his leg. The little squeezing finger movements he would make when he requested to massage it all better, the harsh string of beratement from Izzy’s lips had put a stop to that on day one. They would stand on the deck and Izzy would grunt orders at the crew who dutifully obliged, despite being demoted by Blackbeard the Gentleman pirate practically demanded he help him instead.

At first he profusely refused, until Frenchie made eyes at him; damn Frenchies eyes- claiming to be unable and unfit to really lead (Which Izzy sincerely doubted, but accepted as fact regardless.). His loyalty lies to that crew and no one else, so if directing them beneath the helm of the great Stede Bonnet was helping he would do it. It has roughly been a week with Stede back on the ship and Izzy was restless, he would hear the irritable creak and growl of Ed in the chambers of Stedes room followed by marital-like spatting. He wouldn’t deny when he saw the formerly-disliked pirate leaning over that desk talking about Ed burning everything around him, he saw himself in Stede and over the time he was beginning to realize how alike they were.

Not just their attachment to Blackbeard, the love; as it were past or present but the ability to place unwavering loyalties. Stede stepped up to him in ways that got him shot and Edward listened. Perhaps he was jealous, no he was absolutely jealous. Though the time he spent alone with Stede like this made that ebb away little by little, the sunny training sessions and the almost comical way they carried themselves around each other. Stede was a more well put together version of him, how he managed it he didn’t know but Izzy was determined to find that path on his own; he wasn’t the only teacher on the ship anymore.

"-But hates a strong word, Bonnet."

Izzy spoke up again, earning a wide-eyed stare which he spotted out of his peripheral. There’s that feeling in his stomach again, Stede is smiling. "I seem to recall you liked the word hate last time we saw each other."

"Last time we saw each other I sold you out."

"Oh yes- I remember very well. I still haven’t forgiven you for that, by the way."

Izzy grinned, Stede caught it but didn’t say a word; seeing Izzy smile was a rare occurrence and oddly he didn’t wish to startle it away from his expression.

"Yeah don’t worry you’re not the only one. I’ve not forgiven myself either."

Those words struck the other pirate with a pang of sadness, this poor… small man. He’s got so many issues. To be fair, they all do.

"Well that’s just sad, doubting your own choices like that." He offered unhelpfully, making Izzy steel his expression once more. It was true he had been through a lot this past year, the past ten… no twenty even; he’s had little to no time to stop. The first hand leaned forward and for once, relaxed his upper half against the ledge of the ship- staring out at the waves crashing against its hull. He could feel Stede close beside him, corralling to try and take a look at what Izzy found so interesting.

"I was a scared man, Bonnet." He began truthfully, the other wading into a silence and getting comfortable to listen; an encouraging smile on his face the whole time. "Scared of the future, scared of the ship, scared of you."

"Of me!" The incredulous gasp met his ears, earning a short glare from the shorter male which briskly shut him up.

"I kept running into you." He admitted, "It was stupid, I suppose looking back. The instant Ed heard about you I felt-" Stede held his breath for the words he was about to hear.

"Useless."

The gentleman pirate deflated. "I had no idea you felt that way Izzy. If you had said something-" He began, immediately being cut off by a growl. "-nothing would’ve changed. Ed would still be head over heels flailing at you in a silk dressing gown and you would’ve broken him all the same." The pair stared at each other in unabashed silence for a moment before Izzy looked away briskly. "Maybe if I hadn’t have tried to speak against him I would’ve been fine." He sounded remorseful, that made Stede settle into silence.

"We’ve both fucked up quite a lot, haven’t we?"

Stede asked softly, earning another grin from Izzy. "We have, in some ways. We’ve all done something wrong, Bonnet." He turned to him again, this time a bit less gruff. "At least you haven’t lost a leg, Yet."

The man paled with horror at the thought, "Well at least you look absolutely fantastic with that leg Pete helped whittle for you!" He’d blush at the compliment if he realized it was for him and not Pete, chin coming to rest on his arm.

"Izzy-"

"Israel."

They both stilled, and he almost felt fucking timid. Stomaching that down he stood, attempting to ride off the briefly vulnerable moment shared between them. "You’re my captain, so you get to call me Israel." His chest felt absolutely sick as that cursed smile met him, it was so sickly sweet he feared he would hurl.

"Israel." Stede started fondly, a genuine note of true happiness to his lips as he nudged his hand against the others resting on the ship. "I’m quite honored to have your wisdom and experience aboard my ship. If you ever need to talk more-"

Yep. That’s it. "Say another word and I’ll chop your balls off." He said suddenly, sharply. Staring away with a visible tint to his features that did not go unnoticed by Stede, earning a gentle: "Noted." In his wake as he strode off to make sure Fang wasn’t slacking off. Didn’t matter if he was, he just needed to hide before the embarrassment crept up to his ears.

[forever-fixating]

WIP Wednesday

Happy Hump Day! I was tagged by the lovely, lovely @priincebutt! Pride Month has been very productive for writing so far. Got two teasers for yall again because I'm so super geeked about both of these chatpers. My bestie Kate has been helping me as a beta reader in the best way, and I cannot wait to share what I've got. Enjoy!

living in a new normal

“Fucking shit!” Alex gasped. “Do you even have a gag reflex?”

“Yes,” Henry slurped, lifting his head. “Though the queer and closeted population of Oxford did their level best to rid me of it.”

“Oh my fuck,” Alex choked out, his head jerking up from the pillow to glare down at Henry. “You can’t just say shit like that, Henry!”

“So stop me then,” and back down he went.

Henry loved sucking cock. If the non-existent God of the universe struck him down in that moment, he would sashay up the pearly gates with a smile on his face. He felt shame about many things in his life, but loving men was never one of them. Alex was a picture perfect example of why. The sculpted masculine power of his body. The coarse hair dusting his chest and legs. The burn of his stubble in the morning. Henry knew how lucky he was to live in a time and place where he could lay in the bed of a beautiful man and suck his cock in relative peace.

Alex fucked into his mouth with careful, confident strokes, fingers tight in Henry’s hair. He moaned that he was close, and Henry tapped his hip to signal that it was okay to finish in his mouth. The familiar salty taste lit up his tastebuds as Alex keened from above. Moments passed before Henry swallowed the last of Alex’s release and lifted his mouth. He joined Alex at the head of the bed and gave him a languid kiss. The younger man moaned into it, and Henry greedily swallowed every lovely sound.

“Why don’t I find this gross?” Alex mumbled.

Henry pushed a damp curl from Alex’s forehead. “Because you don’t. No need to psychoanalyze it.”

Alex smiled. “You’re so smart, baby.”

“Nope.” Henry kissed Alex’s chin. “Just a fan of cum-flavored kisses.”

“Changed my mind. You’re fucking ridiculous.”

A Tournament for His Heart

The garden was buzzing with their fellow guests when Alex and Nora arrived. He let Nora take the lead on introductions as she had devoted herself to the task of learning who was invited from which country or region. Declan kept his distance, looking comically out of place. Alex browsed the selection of finger foods and was unimpressed. Still, his stomach rumbled, and he inhaled a few underseasoned chicken sandwiches.

“Prince Alexander, I presume?”

The voice belonged to an older man with a narrow face and sharp eyes. Alex nodded. “And you are, sir?”

“Lord Jeffery Richards,” he replied with a bow. His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. Alex felt as though he were being assessed. The man’s reputation preceded him, and none of it was complimentary. “You’re the first I’ve met of my fellow competitors.”

“Correct me if I’m wrong,” Alex asked, unable to help himself, “but aren’t you using a proxy in the tournament? Is it truly fair to say that you’re competing?”

“As are the majority, if memory serves. Not all of us have delusions of romantic grandeur carrying us through.”

Alex clenched his fist, his smile feeling more brittle with each passing second. “Perhaps it’s because I see Prince Henry as more than a prize to be won.”

“That is a sweet notion, Your Highness,” Richards laughed, giving Alex a condescending smack on the arm. “I had heard rumors that the two of you had an attachment in your youth. I hope you won’t be too disappointed when my man carries the day. He is quite the jousting master and has never been unhorsed.”

“Nor have I.” And with that, Alex excused himself to find Nora.

A/N- Shoutout to my fellow Knight's Tale fans. That Jocelyn moment was one of my favorites, so I had to give it to Alex. I still need to edit these chapters as well as write a couple more so I don't have massive gaps in between posting. Fans of LIANN are not ready for Paris.

Tagging @onthewaytosomewhere @piratefalls @dragonflylady77 and anyone else eager to share!

[the-spooky-alien]

Day 10 of Fictober !

Fandom : X-Files with the prompt "It's my name on the line"

Tagging @today-in-fic and @xffictober2022

-

''Sometimes I think it would be better if you stayed away from me.''

It sounds weak in the air between them. Every words shake under the weight of his guilt. His eyes never leave the road.

She wishes he would look at her.

''Why ?'' she asks, even though she only wants to prove him wrong by telling him how indispensable he became to her. But she isn't sure it's the right thing to say. He's being honest, baring himself in front of her, offering his heart for her hands to craddle and she's terrified to break it. One wrong word, and she will have to mend every shards.

Mulder shrugs, a self-deprecating smile curling his lips. ''Have you been there the past five years ?'' He refuses to look at her, but his head twitches as if he almost turned to face her. ''All you've been through, it's all because of me. If you hadn't met me, if you had left the X-Files, you would never have to suffer through all of it. You would never have to lose-''

''Mulder.'' Her voice comes out strangled. She doesn't want to think of it, of the pain and the losses. There's a hole in her chest, and at night it becomes large enough to swallow her whole. Talking about it only allows the hole to crush her bones and suffocate her lungs.

''See ?'' This time he does turn towards her, his face scrunched in bitterness. ''You can't even dare to think about it. I did this to you. It's my fault.''

''Mulder, stop the car.''

''What ?'' he chokes, clutching the wheel as if he's afraid she will take it from him.

''I said stop the car.''

He does as she says. Before he can open his mouth to ask her why they're stopping in the middle of nowhere, she turns to him and cups his face. His eyes widen comically, though he leans slightly into her touch.

''I want you to listen to my every words carefully. Can you do that ?'' Blinking at her, he nods. She sighs, taking in the warmth of his skin, and the roughness of his shaved cheeks. He's beautiful and pliant underneath her, ready to follow her lead. How can he even think she would be better without him ? ''You have no right to blame yourself for everything that happened to me. I won't allow your self-righteous guilt to take you spiralling. What I went through in our years of partnership wasn't your fault.''

He frowned, already shaking his head, prompt to protest but she shushes him.

''You keep acting like I'm here with you against my will, but you're wrong. Mulder, I may not have chosen to be assigned to the X-Files, but I'm choosing to stay by your side. This is my job, it's my name on the line, as it's yours, and I wouldn't change it for anything. You asked me once, if I knew what was waiting for me in our partnership if I would have changed a day of it, and I said I wouldn't. I was telling the truth.''

Leaning towards him, she lets her forehead rests against his. ''The people I lost-'' Her sister flashes in her mind, shadowed by the image of Emily's lying on a hospital bed, and for a moment, she can't breathe. Mulder's eyes soften, and soon, he enclasps one of her hands in his, rubbing soothing circles in her skin. She relaxes, inhaling deeply. ''The experiences I went through, my abduction, my cancer... None of them were your fault. Neither of us are responsible for what happened to us through the years. Mulder,'' she whispers, unable to keep the reverent tone out of her voice, ''you're the reason I kept going. You're the reason I kept rising out of my bed while I was burdened by the guilt of my sister's death. You're the reason I kept hope even as I was dying from my cancer. The only thing you're guilty of is saving me.''

Her words echo his, from that moment in the hallway, both so far away and so close. If she blinks, will she find herself in this car or in his hallway ?

She smiles softly at him when she sees his eyes shining, sliding one hand from his cheek to cup the back of his neck. A low sound escapes him, something between a whine and a sigh.

''I am incredibly lucky to have you with me,'' she says, prompting another choked sound out of him as he closes his eyes in a last attempt to keep an even composure. Her heart clenches. Did someone ever told him this ? ''I wouldn't want it any other way. I'm standing here with you today, and nothing will prevent me from standing with you tomorrow and the day after until we're both too old to keep chasing aliens and UFOs. I am choosing you.''

''Why ?'' he cries, opening his eyes, confusion and gratefulness swimming in the specks of green in his irises.

It would be easy to answer, to mouth the words gathering in her throat like a lump. But she can't. Because she bared herself to him, almost entirely, and this is the last thing she still has for herself.

If she's being honest, fear is what constricts her throat. If she says it to him, I love you, will the words be tainted by the distance creeping between them since Diana came back ? Since they lost the X-Files ?

If she says it, will he say it back ?

Mulder is her best friend. The only person in this world she trusts to have her back. To hold her when she crumbles. To wipe her cheeks when everything feels too much.

She can't risk this.

She just can't.

Mulder is still watching her, but his face is more tender, softer, and she knows he understands. They don't need words. It's in the silence, nestled between the beats of their hearts.

His grip on her hand tightens.

After a while, they get back on the road, because that's what they always do. They only get a few moments of respite here and there, before hearing the call of the road again.

Through it all, their hands stay clasped between them.

[gale-gentlepenguin]

Ranma 1/2 faux arc: Collar of Envy

Ranma is Mousse? Mousse is Ranma? The great body Switcheroo!

Mousse is tired of seeing Shampoo fawn over Ranma, He finds himself wishing for a way to besting the arrogant fool once and for all. a mysterious man overhears Mousse’s sorrows and offers him an item to help him overcome his problem.

“Fight him again, and if you find yourself about to fail, put the collar on and you will become the victor.”

Mousse thanks the mysterious man and buys it for a comical amount of cash. And sure enough Mousse attacks Ranma when he is alone. Ranma easily overwhelms mousse. And just when Ranma is about to knock mousse out. He puts the collar on. Ranma knocks him out just as the collar glows, a blinding light shines from the collar and everything fades to black.

Akane nudges Ranma awake, Ranma stretches smiling. The Collar of envy had worked.

The real Ranma wakes up in the body of a duck in a cage. Very confused and angry! He was going to make Mousse pay for this!

Ranma loves Shampoo?! Mousse’s greatest chance at romance!

Mousse had realize what that old man meant, he now had Ranma’s body! Of course after he swapped he turned his old body into a duck and sent it in a cage to be cooked. Mousse lamented giving up his old life for a moment but that didn’t matter because now he could finally woo Shampoo!

Shampoo was shocked by Ranma’s sudden arrival and asking her on a date. But this was actually Mousse, and he had perfectly planned for the date.

Ranma now thinking he’s cooked was saved when he managed to use one of Mousse’s hidden weapons to escape. Finally finding hot water and being unable to take the cursed collar off he realized what mousse had done.

Mousse after the date Proposes to Shampoo who is absolutely smitten. And Akane is very suspicious of what’s going on, Ranma arrives and tries to fight to get his body back, but it seems he is unused to fighting with Mousse’s body and Mousse has Ranma’s much stronger body.

Ranma versus Ranma and Mousse versus Mousse! A battle of body and spirit.

Mousse defeats Ranma and tells him to leave so that he can enjoy his happiness with Shampoo, but as a consolation he could keep Akane.

Shampoo was thrilled by the fight and happy for the proposal hurrying to prepare.

Akane learns what happened and wants to help Ranma get his body back, but is also relieved that the Ranma with shampoo wasn’t actually Ranma.

Ranma and Akane learn that the collar on him is the collar of envy and that the only way to get it off is to make Mousse want to be back in his own body again.

So Ranma reasons he needs to beat Mousse so badly he wants his old body back. And he adjusts to mousses body.

Of course the wedding is interrupted by Ranma and the rematch begins, but what Ranma didn’t expect was that Mousse adjusted to His body too. And Ranma was at a major disadvantage, he didn’t want to hurt his own body! And Mousse was ready to kill.

But what surprises Mousse was that before he did the finishing blow, Shampoo stopped him. Not understanding why, Mousse rattled off all the reasons he should (revealing a lot of self hatred) and Shampoo said that he shouldn’t kill him. Showing she cares about mousse. Making him want to be himself again… the collar comes off.

Ranma regains his body again and totally ends the engagement, everyone finds out the truth and Shampoo is furious at mousse for tricking her. Mousse appologizes to Ranma and Ranma forgives him saying he totally understood “you wanted to be me and I can’t blame you, I’m pretty awesome” resulting in Akane beating him up for his ego.

Cologne takes the collar to lock it away as it is way too dangerous to be used.

[we-are-all-of-legend-now]

Fictober Day 31: It's Not Your Fault

Prompt number: Prompt #31

Fandom: American Dragon Jake Long

Pairings/Characters: Jake/Rose; Lao Shi; Susan; Haley

Rating: T

Warnings: character death(s); violence

                Jake stared woodenly forward, watching his grandfather’s casket be lowered into the ground. It wasn’t real. This wasn’t happening. His grandfather wasn’t dead. It was real and it had happened and Jake had seen it and he hadn’t been able to stop it. On one side, his mother clenched his hand, and Jake tried not to let himself think about how much he had let her down. Gramps had been old and now that Jake was in his twenties, it had become his job to protect his grandfather from harm and not the other way around. They hadn’t even been looking for a fight. They had been doing some routine patrolling and Gramps had been putting Jake through some aerial practices that were well out of date but had also saved his life from time to time.

                Jake thought that he’d been humouring the old man. It had been a long time since he had technically been Lao Shi’s pupil but Jake occasionally took the time to let Gramps put his mentoring cap on again. Jake had been in the middle of a loop when Gramps had frozen. It would have been comical, something that would have been on brand for the Looney Tunes, if Gramps hadn’t started gushing blood from his chest and then started falling.

                Jake had chased him, down, down, down, onto the dark streets, reaching his hand out and trying to grab Gramps, but there was nothing left to grab onto. Gramps had been dead by the time that he had hit the pavement and all Jake had seen was the flick of the Huntsgirl’s blonde brain and the laughter of the Clan all around them. Jake had seen red and he had wanted to kill a destroy, except that he hit his knees and bent over his dead grandfather and sobbed until he couldn’t see straight.

                Watching Lao Shi be put into the ground, Jake was reminded of that nighttime spiral again and again. He hadn’t been able to save Lao Shi from the darkness and he should have been. Lao Shi had done a better job than that and was owed more than that.

                Jake turned with the other mourners. Susan had organized a good reception to send her father out in the style that he would have expected and Jake felt sick about it all. How was he supposed to celebrate Gramps’ life when that life shouldn’t have been over yet?

                “Jake, it’s okay.” Rose’s hand was heavy on his shoulder. “It’s not your fault.”

                She hadn’t stopped saying it since Jake had first sobbed into her lap that he hadn’t been able to help and it didn’t make Jake feel any better. He needed to get revenge on the Huntsgirl and then he could mourn. That was the way that things had to be.

                Still, he appreciated the support that Rose was trying to give him and he lopped his arm through hers as they got into the town car for the family and were driven back to the reception hall. Normal, for a funeral, but Jake never wanted to go through any of this again. Not the receiving line of people who meant well but made him feel worse, not the loving smiles of people who didn’t have to carry around this guilt, not the look of his little sister as she sat, staring at her shoes, uncharacteristically quiet for Haley.

                “Kid! Kid!” Jake turned as Fu ran into the reception. “Kid!”

“What?”

                “In private,” Fu said, suddenly side-eyeing all of their closest friend and family. “Come on.”

                The tucked themselves into one of the tiny bathrooms and Fu suddenly became awkward, unable to look Jake in the eye.

                “Did you find her?” Jake asked.

                “Yes.”

                Since the second that Gramps had died, Fu had been working on finding the Huntsgirl’s identity – the one that she used outside of the Clan. It was going to be Jake’s best way to get results.

                “And?”

                “You don’t want to know.”

                Jake wanted to grab Fu by his wrinkly shoulders and shake him. “I need to know. What’s her name?”

                “Rose Hunter,” Fu confessed.

                Jake saw red. His ears filled with static. He turned toward the bathroom door but Fu was in the way.

                “Kid, wait, she probably doesn’t know either –“

                It didn’t matter.

                “It’s my Rose? My Rose Hunter?”

                “Well … yeah.”

                That was all that Jake needed to know. He pushed Fu aside and threw the door open, transforming as he went. He didn’t care about the humans in attendance; he didn’t care about what trauma he might be causing here. His grandfather had died during a sneak attack and Gramps deserved justice. Jake couldn’t give him anything else but justice.

                Rose was shocked but, at the same time, Jake could tell that she knew who he was and why he was doing this.

                “It’s noy my fault?” he roared at her. “Is that because it’s your fault?!”

                “Jake! Oh, Jake, I –”

                Jake swiped a dragon paw at her and she expertly evaded it, diving toward the silverware. She brandished a butter knife like it was a sword.

                “You knew!” Jake accused, even though he couldn’t be completely sure of it. “You knew!”

                Rose didn’t deny it. It put a fury in Jake unlike one that he had ever felt before. He was so intent on killing her, on making Gramps’ death mean something, that he hadn’t made a plan or realized what he was doing. She was the Huntsgirl. She had beaten him every time and this time was going to be no different. In front of all of his family, so many of his loved ones, the Huntsgirl killed him too.

[depressedhatakekakashi]

I'm not sure if this would be an interesting prompt and feel free to take a pass on it, but Anko gifting Kakashi a comically large dildo for him and his partner (ship of your choice). It's a silly headcanon of mine that Anko is a queen of the inappropriate gift.

Operation: Humiliate The Hokage

Anko’s Gift

Note: I tried to go for one of the prompts, but the idea just didn't fit quite right so this is less of a prompt more of just Anko existing to make Kakashi suffer <3

@kakashiweek

Words: 764

Rated M for Mature Content

Everything happened so fast that Kakashi’s head was spinning a little.

One minute he was walking down the streets of Konoha, minding his own business and enjoying his favourite book, and the next second Anko was standing directly in front of him shoving a gift bag into his hands.

He barely had an opportunity to put his book away, let alone say hello.

“Open it,” she grinned so wide that he was certain her face was going to split in two. “Come on. Open it.”

“What is it?” There was a slight urge to open the bag and peer inside, but that little drop of survival instinct left in his brain won the internal argument, keeping him from sticking his nose into a potentially lethal situation.

“It’s a gift,” she rolled her eyes dramatically. “You know, for your birthday.”

“Oh,” glancing down at the bag, he narrowed his eyes. Anything from Anko was to be regarded with suspicion until the moment it proved to be safe. “What kind of gift?”

“The fun kind,” she waved her hands towards him in a rushing motion. “Quickly. I’m going to be late for work and I do not want to listen to Iruka lecture me about tardiness.”

“Maybe it’s a lecture you need.”

“If I was you, maybe,” she huffed. “Come on, Lord Sixth. I worked hard finding that for you and I’m not going to miss the look on your face when you see it.” Those words somehow left him with less confidence that she was not there to murder him somehow.

“I will open it if you promise to stop calling me that.” He bargained.

Somehow her smile grew even wider, but with a more mischievous curl of her lips. “In your dreams.”

A disappointing but unsurprising response.

With no other option, He began to open the gift, only flinching slightly when the bag popped open with a dramatic flare.

Anko, unfortunately, saw that little flinch and began cackling. “The great Sixth Hokage,” she gasped for breath between fits of laughter. “Afraid of a bag.”

Arguing was pointless. He could tell Anko over and over again that it wasn’t the bag that had caused him to flinch, but the thought of what might be inside of the bag, and she simply wouldn’t listen.

The truth was far less entertaining than whatever story she had made up in her head, of which he was certain.

Peering inside of the bag he prepared himself for a long list of possible gifts that Anko might think would be fun to give him.

A tarantula she found in the forest of death, specifically picked out to scare him into an early grave.

A snake curled up in the bottom, ready to pounce out at him as soon as he stuck his face into the bag.

Anko’s cruel imagination could come up with almost anything, and since she was immune to every poison in existence there wasn’t a poisonous animal alive that she was afraid to grab.

To his relief there was none of those dangerous, life ending things in the bag. Unfortunately, that relief only lasted for a second before he realized just what it was laying in the bottom of the bag.

A vibrant purple strap-on.

“I-“ he stared at it, unable to come up with any sort of response while Anko stood in front of him staring at his face.

“Hmm, not quite the reaction I was expecting,” she muttered under her breath. “Maybe I should have given it to Iruka.”

At the mention of his boyfriend, Kakashi felt his face beginning to burn with embarrassment. Not only was his brain now thinking of all the things he could do with his present, but he was stuck thinking about Iruka’s reaction.

How Iruka’s face would twist into a horrified expression. The way his eyes would dart between the gift and Anko’s face, his brain trying desperately to determine if this was all real.

Most importantly, he thought of how Iruka would storm up to him complaining about Anko, before muttering a suggestion to try out the new present under his breath.

Clearing his throat, he snapped the bag shut and grabbed the top so he could keep it closed in his fist. “Thank you,” he muttered, already turning away from Anko. “I’m sure it will come to good use.”

He made it five steps away before Anko burst out laughing.

“Make sure to close the blinds to his office, Lord Sixth!” She called after him, causing him to ditch the effort to walk away smoothly and instead disappear into thin air.

[daedalusdavinci]

❝  you need someone.  let me be that person.  let me be what you need.  ❞ 😳

you didnt send a dealers choice so im (spins wheel) going w damijon. which i wouldnt normally write bc i havent read enuff comics and etc but i got an idea vis a vis aro damian and the incomprehensible yearning of queer platonic attraction and it wont stop scratching at my head so HOPEFULLY THIS DOESNT SUCK also this is probably when theyre older idk im playing it fast and loose w the timeline here

send me a prompt!

Damian had thought he'd read all of the signs right. The answer was plain. Once again, he was the only person capable of thinking rationally about things that were ridiculously simple. After too long of listening to Jon complain, he presented the solution to him after another long night, their backs pressed against the cold concrete wall of a rooftop stairwell, Jon's shoulder like a fire against his own. "You need someone. Then let me be that person. Let me be what you need."

He expected a relieved grin, perhaps. Praise for his brilliance, certainly. Likely a tease to pad Jon's no doubt bruised ego at being unable to come up with something so simple himself.

Instead, Jon stared at him. He looked at Damian like he'd heard gibberish instead of words, and was trying to parse through it. The smile he gave him was hesitant, awkward. "What?"

Damian sighed. "You keep complaining that you feel alone. That you want someone who ties you down. I do not see why that cannot fall under one of my many roles as your best friend."

"Oh." The relief didn't come. Instead, Jon just looked awkward. He rubbed at the back of his neck, his eyes skittering away from Damian's. Not that Damian ever made eye contact, but the way Jon did it made it obvious that he wasn't looking at Damian anymore. His mouth opened, and then closed again.

Damian frowned. "What is it?"

Jon hesitated. Then he shifted, planting his feet more firmly on the ground like he was gearing up for something big, moving his hands between his knees to gesture. "Look, D... I think you might've misunderstood? It's not that I don't appreciate you! I mean, your friendship means the world to me. But I was talking about, like... what my mom means for my dad, you know?"

"No."

Jon blew out a breath, his bangs ruffling in the wind. "A partner."

"We are partners."

"Not that kind."

Slowly, it started to click. Something in Damian's stomach churned. "You mean a romantic partner."

"Yeah."

Damian didn't know why it felt like his heart was sinking. He frowned to himself, turning over his thoughts, trying to examine why he felt upset by this revelation. It wasn't as though he... had something against Jon having a partner, or wanted... something like that, with Jon. But disappointment still nagged at him, burning in the back of his throat. He fought to keep it from turning into something sharp, folding his arms over his knees and swallowing the impulse until he felt like he could talk. "Why?"

Jon gave him a strange look again. "Why?"

"Why does romance feel so essential? What's missing from this? Is it not better to forge friendships, which supposedly last lifetimes?"

"Love can, too."

Damian scoffed. "As if love cannot take platonic forms. As if the platonic is, somehow, worth less, or not as necessary to living a fulfilling life."

"Of course it isn't," said Jon, surprised. "It's just different."

"How. What is the void that platonic affection leaves behind?" Damian's voice was flat. Irritation bubbled under his skin, even despite the way he tried to push it back. In his head, he knew that it wasn't a proportional reaction, but something about it just stung. The idea that he wasn't enough, somehow, that he couldn't provide something, that someone else could become more important to him, maybe? He knew, logically, that Jon would never do any of that to him, but he also had seen enough people do it that it seemed hard to believe that he wouldn't.

Jon was quiet for some time, studying his face like he might find an answer somewhere in it. The way he looked at him, like he didn't understand what had come over Damian, itched at something horrible in the back of Damian's mind. "Damian..." he started.

Damian shook his head. He could feel clearly that he wasn't responding to this correctly. If he continued, he would doubtlessly say something he'd regret- assuming he hadn't already. He got to his feet, unhooking his grappling hook from his belt. "It's late."

Jon sighed. Then he plastered on a smile, grabbing Damian's hand as Damian offered it out. "Yeah. We can talk more later." The threat of it hung. They would talk more later.

Damian felt queasy. He could only hope that, before then, he sorted out whatever was wrong with him.

[katsumatsu4]

@squib-2006 happy holidays! Here’s your secret santa gift :)

It was my first time writing skylor, so I hope it’s not too awkward :’)

Operation "Fire escape"

Lloyd didn't have anything against Skylor.

Really! She was determined, resolute and knew how to stood her ground, loyal, trustworthy – what's not to like?

Which is not to say he's going to regret anything he does tonight.

"Why, exactly, are you doing this?" said Cole, eyes following the various items disappearing inside Lloyd's black backpack.

Lloyd grinned impishly. He didn't worry that Cole would rat him out; his silence was already bought with two weeks worth of desserts.

"Ah, it's their first official date. And, as the youngest sibling,"-his face morphed into the display of seriousness so sincere it had to be fake-"it is my sacred duty to make it unforgettable."

---

Okay, maybe the snakes were a mistake.

Lloyd watched as the panicked crowd tried to get away from the love ride. He barely heard the screams, more focused on two figures at the edge of the mass of people. They were scanning their surroundings and the boy knew he has hidden too slow. Shit, they must have noticed me.

He brought it upon himself, to be honest.

Weird lights in the mirror room? Innocent enough.

Smoke bombs in the haunted house? A little suspicious, but easy to wave off.

Kelp falling from the ceiling? Weird, but not that uncommon, the tunnel was filled with water after all.

But fake snakes in the river? Lloyd wanted to bash his head against the wall. That was his signature move! Of course Kai connected the dots!

They stopped looking around, now talking to themselves. He let himself have a silver of hope. Maybe they didn't notice after all...

And then they bolted to the exit.

Startled, Lloyd reacted too slow and before he knew it he lost sight of either of them.

Ah, damn. He had so much more planned.

Oh well, there was nothing he could do now. As far as he was concerned, today's work was a job well done. He went to collect his things around the amusement park.

Now it's just waiting for Kai to go back home he thought mischievously.

---

When they stopped running, they were almost half a city away. Kai leaned against the brick wall, trying to catch his breath. Beside him Skylor was doing the same.

"Think we lost him?"

He shrugged. "I mean, probably? We went fast but kid's pretty resilient." He looked over the rooftops and along the street. Thankfully there was no suspicious flashes of green and black in sight.

Kai shuffled his feet, unable to look up at Skylor. That... wasn't how he envisioned this evening.

"Sorry it turned out like that. I don't know what he was thinking!" he grunted, eyes locked on the ground.

She laughed heartily at that. "What are you talking about? It was delightful!" She smirked and run her hand over his furrowed brow. "I won't forget this day to the end of my life."

He sighed but smiled and looked up.

"Yeah, I should have expected that; of course you would find this psychological warfare entertaining."

Skylor wiggled her fingers comically: "Ooooo, how evil I am! Truly, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!" she finished in a sinister voice.

It was his turn to laugh.

"Geez, no wonder you and Lloyd get along so nicely. True menaces."

She nudged him in the side.

"Come on tiger, we probably lost the kid already, there should be no more surprises. How about we go and find some cafe? My treat."

He puffed indignantly.

She quirked her eyebrow. "Now, before you try to be a gentleman or whatever, remind me. which one of us is the heir to the incredibly prosperous noodle empire? And which one doesn't know what taxes are?"

He stuck his tongue at her. The brow went higher.

"Okay okay, let it be your way, your highness." He bent into the mocking half-bow. "Lead the way!"

The cafe was surprisingly empty for the hour, only a few customers scattered by the tables. The woman behind the counter flashed a smile when they strolled through the door.

"Welcome! What can I get you?"

Skylor stared at the menu, suddenly uncertain.

"Hmm, maybe... Coffee. No no, not coffee. Tea maybe? Ugh.."

Kai snorted.

"You really hadn't think it through."

"Shut up, I was trying to be smooth." She shifted. "It's not like I was visiting places like that a lot, you know." She turned to him. "How about you order first, smart-ass?"

He looked at the board.

"Well... maybe hot chocolate? With double marshmallows."

"Sweet tooth much?" she chuckled and turned to the counter. "The same for me please. But just normal amount of marshmallows please."

"Double marshmallows is the normal amount of marshmallows!"

"Yeah, sure, whatever you say tiger."

The barista gave them a knowing look. "Two chocolates, got it." She gestured to the tables. "Take a seat, I will bring your order in a moment."

Skylor nodded and lead them to the table for two a little on the left. They sat down and finally relaxed. She run her fingers through her hair, trying to get all the green stuff out. She smelled it and smirked.

"Thank the spirits, it's just some sort of seaweed. I was worried it was going to be paint or some other shit."

Kai rummaged through his hair and pulled out some more plants.

"Yeah that was pretty tame compared to what he could do. He must really like you."

"I guess that's good?"

He scowled.

"For you? Sure. But for me it probably means more pranks back home.

"That bad?"

Kai waved it off.

"Eh, nothing I hadn't faced before." Then a shadow appeared on his face. "Unless he convinced others to help. Then it will be a cataclysm." He rubbed his chin. "Maybe i should sleep outside today, just to be sure."

She snorted.

"Come on, you're exaggerating now."

"Yeah, maybe a little. But can you blame me."

Skylor thought back at the snakes in the love tunnel.

"Hardly."

Kai nodded solemnly at that.

"Here you go! Two chocolates with marshmallows, as ordered." The barista winked, putting the additional tray next to the mugs. "And something extra, on the house."

She walked away and they gazed at the tray. There, on the napkins decorated in hearts, laid ginger cookies. Every one looking like two people holding hands.

Subtle they thought simultaneously.

Kai took a first bite, his face lighting up.

"Man, they are good! We should come here more often."

Skylor took one for herself and find out that they were, in fact, delicious.

The munching filled the air for a while.

"Must be fun, huh? Having so many siblings."

He stopped at the question, gulped down the cookie and answered.

"Well, they're a lot sometimes, but I honestly don't know what I would do without them."

She smiled warmly. It was still amazing, seeing their family so close to each other and how much love they had for each other. Compared to her...

She shunned the thought before it could sour her mood and instead focused on the person in front of her.

"Say, are all younger siblings like this,"-she vaguely gestured at the leftover kelp still in her hair-"or is Lloyd a special case?"

Kai snickered.

"Oh, he definitely is not alone in it. You should have seen what Nya cooked up when I tried dating that one guy in middle school. I was finding glitter everywhere for the next month! As for Lloyd, he had a penchant for chaos for as long as I knew him. Have I ever told you how we first met?"

She furrowed her brow.

"What do you mean 'first met'? Didn't the three of you grow up together?"

He blinked slowly, trying to guess where she got that from.

"What? No? I mean, me and Nya did, but we met Lloyd like, four-five years ago?" His eyes widened. "Wait, did you thought we were related?"

"Maybe?! I didn't thought about it, I just assumed-"

"Us and the literal Son of the Dark Lord-"

"Shutupshutup it just didn't cross my mind-"

"Did you thought Garmadon-"

"No, obviously, well, maybe a little, you seemed close-"

"Oh my." He leaned on the table, choking with laughter. "I can't believe you thought Garmadon was my dad."

Her chicks reddened a little with embarrassment.

"Stop it. What was I supposed to think, I barely knew anything about your relationships."

"There there, I'm stopping, see."

His lips quivered with barely contained giggle. She scoffed but decided to let it slide.

"So, what's the story with Lloyd if that's not the case."

He leaned back, thoughtful.

"Well, he tried to imitate his father a lot when he was younger. The evil part, i mean. When we first met he was trying to scare villagers so they would, and brace yourself for that," He made a melodramatic pause. "give him all their candies." He shook his head. "Can you believe the extent of his dreadful deeds?"

Skylor chuckled.

"You're right, I wasn't expecting that. And what happened next?"

Kai smile faltered.

"Well, next..." He scratched his neck, suddenly uncomfortable. "We, I mean me and the guys, took the all the stuff back and kinda left him on his own there."

She froze. That didn't sound right.

"Yeah, I know, not my best decision there. I guess we just... didn't really think about all the implications of a nine year old with no one to look after him." He fell silent for a second, before resuming. "After that he somehow stumbled upon serpentine tombs." He shot her a look. "Though you probably heard that part already? With your dad and all."

She nodded.

"Okay, cool, uh. So, skipping that. Lloyd got in trouble with the snakes, Wu took him in and told us he's there to stay. We were a little annoyed by that, but we began warming up to him over the time. I think Nya was the first to really befriend him though. They seemed to get along pretty good compared to us."

Skylor watched him get silent, mindlessly stirring his drink with a spoon, and wondered if she should say something. Before she reached any decision he took the floor again.

"To be honest, I considered him a little more than a nuisance." Shame was pouring from his words. "But then I had a moment of, uh, clarity I guess. And I realized that I would give anything just to keep him safe." He let out a puff of air. "And that's the story. He's my brother now, as much as Nya is my sister. I just wish it didn't take me so long to get there."

She didn't say a word at first. It was a lot. She could hardly even image Kai being cold to Lloyd, but on the other hand...

"You know, I'm a little relieved."

He looked at her, confused.

"How do I put it? It maybe a little selfish, but I'm relived that even families like yours have their rough moments. When I first saw you all, it was unbelievable to me how close you were. I don't just mean you and Lloyd, but the whole team. You entered a competition designed to turn people against each other, but you still stood together, no matter the cost." She gazed at the window. "I knew my father and I didn't have the most loving relationship, but seeing you... I guess i was jealous. And ashamed, in a way. I thought I could never achieve a relationship like that, and maybe the fault for that was in me. But getting to know you," She caught glimpse of red in the corner of her eye. "Really getting to know you, and now hearing this story, it gives me hope." She turned to face him head-on. "I had an awful start, but I think there is still a chance for me to have something like that. Thank you."

He fidgeted a while before answering.

"You're an amazing person. I'm glad you're finally noticing it." He beamed at her. "Wait, was that a question if you can be part of our family?"

Skylor grunted some vague non-response. He smiled wider.

With nothing else to do with herself, she sipped her chocolate and winced.

"Aw shit, it got cold already."

Kai let his hand engulf in flames and winked flirtatiously.

"May I?"

"Show-off." She grinned and handed him the mug. They watched in warm silence as the liquid slowly boiled, until the small cloud of steam appeared above it.

"Here you go! Careful – it's still hot, you can burn yourself."

She rolled her eyes and reached for her chocolate. The second it touched her hand, she summoned fire to her palm and gasped in faked fright. "Oh FSM, you were right! It really burns!"

Kai blushed involuntarily.

"Oh, right, that. I forgot."

The air around them got significantly warmer.

What a dork she thought with fondness, gulping down her drink.

She set the mug on a table and looked at Kai.

"So, where were we?" she murmured.

She took his hand and kissed his knuckles. He blushed even harder.

She moved her other hand and caressed his face. The guy sitting a table away swept sweat from his forehead.

She leaned to him, eyes locked, hers playful and determined, his flustered but hopeful. Kai's breath hitched and he shifted, eager to meet her sooner. And then their lips gently touched. Skylor felt her blood rushing through her veins, burning like fire. Her heart jolted with joy when Kai deepened their kiss, as trembling as it was. The heat around them was turning uncomfortable, but she could hardly care at the moment, too focused on feeling him so close to her, touching. I wonder if this is his first kiss too she thought when he awkwardly struggled to move his tongue out of the way while she tried to put hers inside his mouth.

They broke apart when the smell of smoke tickled her nose. Looking down, where the moment ago was an immaculate wooden table top, the black scorch marks in the exact shape of three sweaty palms were adoring the surface. She searched for the missing fourth, still on Kai's face, and felt the laughter bubbe inside her chest.

"Well, we should probably leave the largest tip imaginable for that" she finally choked out.

That made him snap out of his stupor. He looked down too and appropriately snorted.

"Yeah." He fished out his wallet and checked out its contents. And then looked at her with a sheepish smile. "Uh, I think that might be a perfect opportunity to use that kingly funds of yours, I'm afraid."

"Probably." She lowered her voice, only now noticing the stares the other patrons were giving them. "And we should do it quick. Before someone asks for autographs. Or calls the police, whatever comes first."

Kai's eyes sparkled.

"You think they will want autographs? I'm joking, I'm joking" he quickly added when she gave him a disapproving look.

She glanced at the half eaten cookies on the tray, an excellent idea suddenly appearing in her head.

"Do you think they would let us have one more order before kicking us out?"

---

Lloyd sat on the couch, reading a comic, trying to look as innocent as possible when Kai entered the living room.

"Oh, you're back already? How was your date?"

At first the only response he got was a tired look.

I know what you did it said.

Oh? And what are you going to do about it? he responded in turn.

Kai sighed and plopped down next to Lloyd.

"You're lucky Skylor had a good time brat" he grunted, last ditch attempt to sound threatening, "or I would have kicked your ass right here and now."

Lloyd rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, sure you would."

"What, you don't believe me? You think I would be above it? Are you ready to temp fate?" With each question his brother pressed harder on him, until Lloyd was practically laying flat on a couch.

"You're crushing me!" he protested and attempted to shove him off. "I can't breathe!"

"If you have enough strength to wiggle around you have enough strength to breath!" Kai shot back, deeply amused, but pulled away. He then got up, stretched and yawned dramatically.

"I'm going to bed now. Thanks to someone," He threw Lloyd an accusatory glance. "that was a very eventful day. I'm out."

He headed to the door, but stopped halfway.

"Oh, I almost forgot." He pulled out a small package and threw it in Lloyd's general direction. He caught it flawlessly. "Skylor says hi. And that the next time you want to tag along just say it before." He winked and exited the room.

Lloyd glared at the package and tore it open. Inside a dozen of little ginger figures were smiling at him, every head adorned with a pair of horns. They also had tails and, upon closer inspection, little fangs.

Subtle.

[curlysgirl0202]

HEAD CANNON STORY: The Day You Made Johnny Ringo Laugh!

It's no shock to anyone that Johnny Ringo is passionate and intellectual. One thing you notice about him almost immediately is that he tends not to smile much. His smiles aren't forced, but behind that winning smile is a truly broken spirit. Although Johnny may chuckle at one of your jokes or smile lots when you compliment him or do something sexy like flip your hair, he generally doesn't engage in belly laughs like his bestie, Curly Bill.

So one Sunday afternoon when the both of you are off from work, you invite the gunfighter to go for a walk with you. He's delighted and accepts your offer with a nod of his head and a tip of his hat. He smiles and you take his hand.

Ringo loves his horse and he knows his horse will adore you! He brings you close to the large gelding and helps you on. You begin to giggle at your clumsiness and he can't help but giggle a bit too in spite of himself. He loves how so freely laugh off awkward moments like the time Ike Clanton accidentally spilled whiskey on you and Ringo was ready to rip the old cowboy's head off. To Ringo's relief, you were too busy chuckling. "Ike!" Curly Bill howls.

You look at Ringo and Curly Bill and flash them both your beautiful smile.

"It's fine!" You say through your smile. And although Curly and Ringo are upset that their clumsy friend spilled whiskey on you, they're amazed at how well you handle yourself.

Once you're safe on his horse, he gets on. You hold him close and kiss his ear which causes him to flinch and smile as it tickles.

"Oops!" You say. You whisper in his ear and he flinches again this time smiling.

"What?" You innocently ask. This makes the cowboy giggle.

Ringo laughs quietly and he loves how you feel holding him and leaning on his back.

Once you arrive at your destination, your breath is taken away by the large trees with leaves that provide the perfect shade. Beautiful wildflowers burst up through the ground and cover the landscape like a plush carpet of nature. Large rocks and cactus sit lazily in the Arizona sun. He dismounts first and then helps you off. As you take your foot out of the stirrups, you accidentally fall on your back. Ringo's eyes grow wide and he rushes to help you up. To his surprise and relief, you find your awkwardness hysterical and you just start bursting into a laughing fit. Ringo shakes his head and can't help but smile. You help yourself up and hug the cowboy who finds himself unable to control his own laughing for a moment. You take his hands and lead the way to the pond that sparkles with crisp cool water that is almost blinding from the beautiful reflective drops that seem to dance on the surface. It's a wonderful scene and Johnny adores how much you seem to gravitate towards natural beauty.

As you both sit by the edge, you see a man several meters away with a large bucket. He pulls water out of the pond and then takes the bucket and dumps the water out.

You and Ringo look at each other while trying to figure out what the guy is doing.

"What is he doing?" Ringo asks. "He's taking water and dumping it."

You chuckle and answer, "maybe he's dumping the pond out!" You cover your mouth and giggle uncontrollably.

"Or maybe he's just moving the pond!" You continue laughing while Ringo looks at the man and then at you. He starts to give into his laugher too and is surprised at how he can't seem to stop giggling with you

Maybe it's your contagious laughter that is causing him to join you in this delightful moment.

The man greets another guy and begins talking, but is too far for you to hear so you begin improvising what you think they're saying. Through your laughing fit, you say as the man points and talks, "I'm just gonna move this pond!" After that, you're cracking up hysterically, rolling in the grass like a little kid. Johnny starts to laugh again and this time he too cannot control his emotions. He finds your humor not only comical and sophisticated, but amazingly refreshing! He can't help but entertain the idea that this strange man is going to scoop water out of pond and move the pond. The idea was so silly and outrageous that Johnny can't stop laughing himself. He holds his sides and keeps giggling until tears come out of his laughing eyes. The two of share this humorous moment for several more minutes until you both just look at each other, smiling. Ringo looks at you and can't help but take you and hold you tight. He can't believe how good he feels and cannot remember the last time someone made him not only that happy, but forced him out of his dark place and into a sunlit moment he knows he'll never forget. He thanks you for the good laugh and never wants to be away from you.

When he returns to the cowboy camp later that day, he is still smiling about your pond joke and how much fun he had just laughing with you and feeling no guilt or shame. Curly Bill looks over at the giggling Ringo.

"Well, what's so funny, Juanito?" Curly laughs and is so pleased to his best friend who is usually morose, looking so happy.

"Y/N is funny. I can't explain it. She made me laugh until I cried. He shook his head, took out his crumpled journal and a few pencils and begins writing about a day he will always remember.

[cvpiidbiites]

Oc Asks - 2 ໒꒰ྀི ´ ˘ ` ꒱ྀིა

CW; Mentions of blood, violence, brief mention of sex, not proof-read </3 my eyes started to sting and get blurry

⊹ When have they been unable to save someone or something no matter how much they tried?

˖ Fia; In one of Fia's last years at the orphanages they had to watch someone that grew very close to them slowly lose to their sickness, a sickness we end up learning much more about in later years called Loneliness Syndrome. Fia without realizing that everything they were trying to do wasn't helping them. They dressed up as knights, and princes, and even made outfits for both of them but it was only getting worse for them.

˖ Vesper; On one of his many travels through the universe he stopped at a small world forgotten by the others, trade was his plan but he found himself under a tree with a few kids laying in the grass. He was reading them a simple fairy tail he found on his many travels. The joyed calm looks on their face made the troubles of traveling feel rewarding if it meant they could listen to a simple story. He recalls this memory every time he reads in Robin's room, tears dripping onto the pages as he sits there alone, knowing he wasn't there to save her.

˖ Dúlamán; Dúlamán came back from grabbing extra supply from town she and her lover stopped at. The closer the got to where their boat was parked the more smoke from the sky grew heavier in the dark blue night sky, each step was getting faster than the last as they prayed her sweet honey bee was alive. Their fast walked became running, and from running they threw down everything in her arms and started sprinting. Her lover's ship ablaze in front of her. "Cebe!? Cebe where are you?!" Dúlamán screamed out as she looked around for any sign of her being alive.

˖ Eve; When "she" awoke on the floor of a house she didn't know and a diary in "her" hand and a cup a spilled Sbiten all over "her" and the hardwood floor. Their eyes drift to the book in their hand reading the note left there, in cursive lettering it read "My name is Е́ва Морозов, and my husband is going to kill me." Flipping back through the all diaries they could find in the house, reading them front to back for hours on end. The fiend Arachne took on the name Е́ва/Eve, taking on the life this body had. "Eve" now waited in the living room as her husband walked through the door, as his eyes trailed up he was visibly worried as his hands shakingly reach for his hunting rifle. As he lifted it up to aim at her he keeled over, a red hair woman standing behind him with a sickly calm smile as Eve ran over and kneeled down trying to save him.

˖ Ambrose; Eir lost their home to the IPC, something they tried hard to help, something they went door to door collecting money to help fund to keep the world form being destroyed. Ambrose went out of their way to start traveling around the comics to sell things they found. On one unfortunate day in the The Xianzhou Luofu after a rather large business deal, Ambrose relaxed in a small cafe for a few moments figuring out their next planet to visit only to hear from some passerbys that a small planet was blown up, the description bone chillingly close to Ambrose's. Ee stood up too fast and collapse on the floor.

⊹ How much death and/or destruction have they wrought?

˖ Lucrezia; During her younger days as a nurse in training a few prisoners were lost by her hands. It eats at her every now and then, being another reason to why she drinks.

˖ Eternal; I would like to think she would cause a lot more death and destruction if she had more knowledge about the family, however for now the only death and destruction she causes are the monsters that inhabit the dreamscape. Oh, and that one guy that tried to get a little too,, handsy with her after a show.

˖ Silviu; A lot more than they would like to admit, the thought of the number rising makes her sick to his stomach.

˖ Dúlamán; Enough to be wanted in serval cities and kingdoms, anything to be the greatest pirate of the Star Seas.

˖ Passion; None and she would like to keep it that way.

⊹ Do they try to prevent unnecessary suffering?

˖ Meringue; Love likes to see herself as a peaceful Aeon, however she was told by the ones who raised her that she was quite violent in her past life. With this knowledge they go out of her way to make sure love doesn't do anything to cause her people suffering.

˖ Eternal; If you truly matter to her she would go out of her way to prevent unnecessary suffering. If you are someone they hardly know or care about she much rather be a simple bystander and watch what happens, only stepping in to boost her reputation around the hotel or if it caused threat to someone she cared about.

˖ Eve; To her all suffering is unnecessary but they way she goes about "fixing" the problem is much different than what you think. She believes that a suffering person will be reborn in a better situation. No matter how small the suffering is Eve's answer to the problem would be a mercy kill.

⊹ How do they feel about sparing women and children if given the choice? Do they value certain lives over others?

˖ Morix; A true southern man who would lay down his life for children and women to be safe. Truly wishes to save all lives if he could. Values lives of those who need help over others regardless of gender but is more soft towards women from growing up in a household full of them.

˖ Ambrose; Can spare a child easily but had far too many run ins with evil women to cause them to be very hesitant with sparing women based on their gender. Does not value one life over another but will try to make sure those who are less fortunate get to safety first.

˖ Silviu; Believes more in sparing children then adults of any gender. Does not fully value any certain lives over others but leans more towards children since they can still grow and change while adults.

˖ Valentines; Women and children first in her heart, sparing them without a second thought. Values both of their lives over men because the thought of a child or mother dying would eat her up from the inside.

⊹ What's their pain tolerance?

˖ Eternal; Physically high pain tolerance and high emotional.

˖ Vesper; Physically decent pain tolerance but low emotional.

˖ Morix; Physically decent pain tolerance but high emotional.

˖ Ambrose; Physically high pain tolerance but low emotional.

⊹ Do they feel glee at the sight of blood?

˖ Silviu; She hates the idea of how her eyes light up, how they lean closer to the one injured. Silviu doesn't feel glee but more a yearning for it. He hates how hazy her eyes look when there's a pool of blood near her. Hunger pains and a dizzy feeling in their head is all they can manage to feel, but never glee. Despite wanting blood it never truly made her happy, voice in his head of his past love ones screaming "monster" over and over again as they crawl closer to the blood.

˖ Dúlamán; Sees it as a stepping stone towards their goal, the more bodies that pile up the less competition there it.

˖ Eve; A true "The red means I love you" woman. She does feel glee when she sees blood, it fills her with joy watching a mess happen convince this is helping them.

˖ Maple; Is quite squeamish! Hates the sight of blood and only gets through seeing it on herself is knowing bun gets to put a colorful band aid on it.

⊹ What do they regret the most?

˖ Morix; Not taking the chance to leave town when he had it. Morix gave up on a opportunity to play in a big city far out but turned it down to help his mother get better and pay rent. He knows its for the best but it still eats him up at night, thinking how it could of been his big break and how he could've sent money home to help them pay rent and upgrade the barn and house, enough so they didn't have to scrape by to survive.

˖ Fia; Leaving without a final goodbye letter when they die, many things they wished to say but feared they didn't have enough time. Like a cat knowing they aren't getting better they did the only thing they could in their eyes, run and hide like a coward till they passed. They wished was to see everyone one last time but they regretted not having that final goodbye dinner.

˖ Passion; An argument that wedge between her and her sibling's relationship. Raising your younger sibling is no easy job but not having your own shoulder to lean on when you're supposed to keep up the perfect act is what caused her to blow up.

˖ Dra; Never telling Passion that they forgive her for the fight, but instead just staying out even more. Dra would get into more reckless acts like skating down hills that were too steep, running across thin ice with her friends, or even the time he and his friends snuck into the observatory during curfew.

˖ Willo; being reckless with her own body in the fight against the kishin, going out of her way to protect others who could easily defend themselves, even her own Meister who Willo willing came out of her weapon form to push her out of the way for Willo could take the blow.

⊹ Do they have the ability to love?

˖ Dra; The only one on this list who can love easily, a simple happy kid with a big heart to give to everyone.

˖ Eve; She believes she is able to love but it is simply a concept she tricked herself in believing she can do. Eve in her core is still just a fiend trying to survive.

˖ Moonstone; Love is an extremely hard thing for them to learn, they're mentor is Jade of all people. If given the chance they had a new profession and had people surrounded by them willing to teach him the concept of loving someone, they would be able to. Loving Moonstone and being loved by them is a extremely slow process that you have to be willing to put in the work to achieve.

˖ Cebe; Love? No never, its not in her to love someone or something. obsess with? Absolutely. She knowns nothing but devotion to her queen and giving out fake love to a certain sea creature to make it easier to bring things back to her queen.

˖ Yenisei; I truthfully don't think Yenisei would ever have the ability to love. Not for a partner, a friend, family, or even a pet. They are nothing but hunger waiting for the next person to come wandering in their woods.

⊹ Do they have empathy? For whom? For what?

˖ Eternal; For Misha and other young people the family has control over, especially if they don't know it. She knew Misha's grandfather before he passed and now she has to watch Misha grow every day wanting to be just like him and go on adventures despite the pain he will have tot suffer, the fears he will have to face.

˖ Silviu; His fellow coworkers. She holds much emotion towards all of them despite the struggle of expressing it to them.

˖ Meringue; Empathy for her people and the suffering hey went through. Love has heard of the pain and suffering she caused in "her past life" before the reincarnation and she's being as sweet as she can be to their people.

˖ Willo; Her Meister. Willo gets so hyper that she doesn't realize how annoying or extra she is till she's laying down at night replaying everything that happened. Her mind wandering around "do they hate me? why am I like this? Why can't I be normal for once" causing her lack of sleep resulting in her being late to waking up and the cycle continues.

⊹ What's their relationship to their body? Self esteem? Self image?

˖ Lucrezia; Luci's self image body wise is fine, she has had a few moments of comparing herself to other but nothing that truly keeps her up at night. Her self esteem to work, to being compared to her brother who seem to be the more favored growing up, to even her partner is where it really plummets. Luci sees herself as second place, the second choice even. Good but you could do better, she knows she's up there in skill and status but not where she wishes to be. She wishes to be seen as equals and not first and second.

˖ Morix; Simple chubby trans cowboy who a would rather die than be seen with any ounce of skin showing.

˖ Eve; Her and this body are two separate things, Eve does not feel anything towards it was it was simply a gift from their rebirth. No true opinions on it or others. A large disconnect when it comes to their self image.

˖ Dra; Its quite hard since it changes day to day but a good 50/50 with their self image. Some days Dra is fine with how they are and how they decorate themself, while other days he compares himself to her sister and how she is so confident in how she looks and acts. Dra's hands are one of their main self imagine problems due to how scuffed up they look from the countless fail tricked they're done. Not only do they look ugly but its also a reminded of how much they are a failure.

⊹ If they could go back in time for 5/10/15 minutes and change something, what would it be?

˖ Fia; If they were able to go back in time as an adult, as a simple bystander they would do anything just to see their mother. To listen to the conversation as to why she left, to see why everything has happened, hell even if it was just 5 minutes just to see their mother and baby them interact. The lost of a mother figure in their life is something that changed them drastically but unknown to them if they were to ever meet Fia would not be the same person as they were today.

˖ Cebe; She would go back before the night of a big heist her and Dúlamán went on, she would only need those few minuets to see where Dúlamán hid the ring, HER ring, when they left. Maybe then she wouldn't have to chase down this sea dweller across the world and be home at her hive to propose to her queen.

˖ Ambrose; Maybe if Ambrose had a few more minuets their planet would still be alive, maybe if they had 15 more minuets they would of been able to scrape more money together and contact the IPC. Too many maybes and no answers, no one to ask and no one to know.

⊹ Are they codependent? Do they have abandonment issues?

˖ Lucrezia; Grew up never leaving her brother's hip but now as an adult she slowly got used to being alone in her office besides the occasionally patients visits and maybe a surprise visit from a special someone. She craves to have someone around her but has gotten too used to being alone so she doesn't see the purpose of asking.

˖ Eve; Codependent on her team/coworkers. Not allowed to be alone or you will hear her sobs and screams haunting you throughout the buildings. After watching "her" husband die in front of her she has extreme abandonment issues. In the most un funny way her scream and sobs sound like ghasts from minecraft but more bone chilling.

˖ Morix; Not codependent at all, not even big abandonment issues. He enjoys his alone time and can deal with being by himself, sure he might get lonely after awhile but he can deal with it till the next time he opens his show at the bar.

˖ Meringue; Extremely codependent, she was raised around many people and continues to live around many people always being watched. If there is a chance she's alone with no eyes on her does she even exist?

⊹ What's their relationship to sex? Modesty?

˖ Cebe; Views it as a sacred act to show you devotion and obedience to someone.

˖ Lumi; Views it as a way to show love to someone in another form.

˖ Moonstone; Views it as a way to gain information.

˖ Passion; Views it as a way of creating a family.

⊹ Do they enjoy the taste of blood?

˖ Vesper; Find the metal taste interesting but would never go out of his way to taste it. Doesn't really like the taste but since he doesn't get to taste it often Vesper just finds it interesting.

˖ Silviu; Do they enjoy the taste? Yes. Are they fine with the fact she enjoys it? Absolutely not. It take Silviu a long time, a deep relationship before they ask if they can feed off of you. Someone who will crave it but rather take himself out than ask someone for help in fear she will lose control.

˖ Willo; Hates hates it! Had a bloody nose dripped into their mouth once and gagged so much you thought they were dying on the floor. Sounded like a cat with the worlds worst hairball.

˖ Moonstone; Not so much but the type to use it as lipstick. A hand caressing the person's face before catching some on his finger and slowly pull out their phone, applying it like lipstick before leaving them to bleed out on the floor.

˖ Dra; Does not know what real blood taste like, only the syrup that runs in the bodies of everyone who lives in the world. Enjoys the cherry tasting syrup.

⊹ Do they enjoy the feel of hot blood on their skin?

˖ Lucrezia; Grew to ignore the feeling, after operating on so many bodies she learned to ignore it. It wasn't until she held her dying lover in her arms, blood soaking her shirt and hands as Lucrezia tried to defibrillate her lover with nothing but her vision and her hands. Ever since that night she refused to work again as the head nurse, no longer able to work in the same place let alone stand in there after what happened.

˖ Willo; Hates it so much, when the she had to deal with black and red blood covering her she broke down screaming and sobbing. She's a kid. She's a kid being trained and taught how to be a weapon, do you really think she would enjoy this?

˖ Lumi; Lumi is very conflicted about it. On one hand she finds the idea gross and horrifying, the fear of how it got there is another story. Though the warmth is quite,, soothing? Patching up her lover too and having her blood on them feel very intimate in a way she doesn't know how to explain.

˖ Moonstone; Yes, a lot in fact. Or really that's what they would tell you if they were asked. Moonstone is quite disturbed by the thought of it, rather destroying worlds with a push of a button than by hand.

⊹ Have they tore someone to shreds with their bare hands? With their teeth?

˖ Fia; Never but if they had to they would not hesitate.

˖ Eternal; No but almost once.

˖ Cebe; Often, in fact she has plans who's the next person will be. Dúlamán being the only person that comes to mind when she thinks of tearing someone up to shred along with anyone who will get in the way of her and what she wants.

˖ Guidance; Would if asked by Guidance's god, anything Guidance's god wants they will get.

˖ Silviu; A few times, in fact it was something the protocol tried to train out of her. A secrete criminal record from when they were a teen was found, it started a week after the First Light happened. Someone close to Silviu found out about her being a radiant and they became quite hostile toward him and her grandmother for hiding Silviu. One thing lead to another and Grandma Vivian is holding Silviu in her chest, gently wiping away his tears and the blood soaked mouth. Soft pleads of forgiveness and promises of never doing it again.

[corporalswhore]

dark side • satoru gojo x reader

pairing; satoru gojo x student!reader

summary: satoru should’ve held himself back, but you just knew how to make him sin in so many ways.

warnings: SMUT (terribly written). curses. age gap. fingering, eating out, blowjobs, penetration. everyone included in this fic is 18+ and legal! enjoy loves <33

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Satoru Gojo was a menace to society. He’s heard the phrase so many times, yet never believed it. 

Until now.

The way his eyes rake up your form, your hips gyrating against Nobara as you both laugh over the music. Something felt so right when you locked eyes with him for just a split second, the upturn of your lips had him spinning in his seat.

He’s never looked at you like this, like a predator to its prey. To him, you were always the baby of the group, a daughter he’d protect with his life. Yet, your outfit makes it difficult for him to have any pure thoughts. The skirt, similar to that of your uniform, yet shorter, had him taking deep breaths with every movement you made.

He felt disgusting as his eyes trailed over the exposed skin when the material rode up with every thrust of your hips. He hadn’t seen too high up your thighs from his distance at the booth but he prayed you had on tights under there, he felt oddly territorial- as if only he was allowed to see those parts of you.

Your top didn’t help his growing lust either, he’s not sure he’d call it a top when all it does is cover your breasts but it does help to cheekily accentuate them due to its tight nature, much to his delight and as well, dismay.

The glass in his hand almost shatters when Megumi takes you from Nobara’s embrace, spinning you so your back rests flush against his chest. The two of you sway slowly, almost seductively, to the beat of the song. Satoru eyes the way Megumi’s hands travel up and down your sides, but he’s unable to make out your expression due to his son’s back facing him. Satoru is thankful he’s not capable of harming others with one stare as he finds himself glaring at his son’s head.

Your dance is cut short when the song changes along with the tempo, the strobe lights blink to the beat of the music, it almost looks like people are moving in slow motion. It’s a huge hit Satoru figures as the dance floor erupts in screams, including you. The hands encircling you release as you turn around to face Megumi, your smile reaching your eyes in the dimly lit room.

Although the beat has changed, Gojo notes the way the lyrics are as raunchy as ever and he’d be totally fine with that, until he realizes you’re lip-syncing it to Megumi. A hazy smile splays across your face as you intertwine your hands in his. Your recitation of the lyrics is almost comical and Gojo realizes it must be on purpose when Megumi tips his head back in laughter.

At that sight, Satoru noticeably calms down. He knows you’re all close. His four students are best friends, and he’s grateful they get along so well. But he can’t help but feel jealousy at the sight before him.

He’s disgusting, he’s come to realize. 

In his deranged mind, all he can think about is wanting to be in Megumi’s position- to feel your hot cunt grinding against him. He suddenly wanted to know what it was like to sink his cock into that tight little cunt of yours. He wanted to hear your sinful moans as he fucked you senselessly, to hear you scr- he has to stop himself, you’re his student. Barely legal, ripe age of 18. 

Coming out of his entranced state, he bears witness to the way Megumi leans down to your ear, palm cupping your left cheek as he whispers something that leaves you nodding. He walks past you, and Satoru can only assume he’s heading in the direction of the bathroom. 

He notices you looking around, most likely for the others. When you do spot them, you see Itadori and Nobara are at the bar chatting away with shot glasses in their hands and you can’t help but chuckle when you witness Itadori leaning against Nobara as if he’s wasted. Satoru follows your train of sight, eyes landing on his students. He really should monitor them, he thinks, they only just turned legal. 

He’s about to leave his seat at the booth and play the grown-up when he sees a man in his early twenties, Satoru assumes, advancing towards you from your behind. 

Satoru’s long legs are up in an instant, drink tossed aside as he races towards you. He’d be damned if he let a man he didn’t know put his hand on you. He’s there in the nick of time, arms wrapped around your waist from behind. Satoru ignores the way you tense from in front of him but relishes the fact that you relax when you realize it’s him. Satoru sends the drunken man a death-glare, shooing him away before he makes himself known to you. 

“Gojo-sensei,” you stammer out. Your position is similar to the one you were in with Megumi. His large palms encircle your waist as he hums, but he keeps a small distance between you two.

That warm, wiggling thing that had been in your chest for years makes its presence known again and you inhaled unsteadily. All wrapped in one, Satoru Gojo was so many sins.

Maybe it’s the way your head felt a little detached from the rest of you, it was a pleasant buzz, not unnerving. You could still think mostly straight when you hear the opening beat of one of your favorite songs blasting through the club. Your hands grip the fingers splayed on your stomach and grinned widely. If this was the inebriation you got from the booze, it was a good one. 

The liquid courage was incredibly needed. It’s a sensual RnB song, which makes the floor look as if you’re in an orgy- too much grinding. You glimpse at the man behind you, his glasses reflect the strobe lights and you wonder if he can see the way your head quietly motions to him. 

“Oh-” He takes a step closer, closing the gap between you. Heat floods between your thighs and your head spins at his proximity. His large palms are now pressing against your hips, fingers splayed across the waist-line of your skirt. 

You tense once again, unsure how to go about this ordeal. This was not Megumi nor Nobara. This was Gojo-sensei, your teacher.

“I think you have a little crush on me.” He teases almost as if he can sense your predicament. His fingers flex against the skin of your hips, digging in, massaging the tender flesh. It’s taking everything in you to not whine and push back against him, to feel him- flush.

“You’re too cocky for your own good, Gojo-sensei.” You say through the loud music. The thought of pulling away from his grip and leaving him stunned enters your mind but you know he’s too fucking quick.

A smirk appears on his face, despite the dark club you can make out the smugness attached to it.

“It’s Satoru.” He murmurs in your ear, his cool breath fanning against your neck but proves to be adding to your heated state when you let out a shaky breath. His long, tapered fingers now trail down your spine. 

They come to rest on your ass, but he stops when he notices the way you slightly push back against him. Your hips flush against his growing erection. The sight of your ass caressing his cock through his pants has him hissing and digging his fingers deeper into the flesh of your waist.

You don’t mind it, it’s like you’re on a fucking high now. The sound of him struggling to contain himself around you, his student, has you on cloud nine. The rhythm of the song goes in tandem with the way you sway your hips, and you can feel him slightly bucking his hips behind you. The man you’ve fantasized about since you’ve met, a god, is now putty in your hands. 

Or so you thought.

Your teasing is cut short when he slides his hand up your back to twist it in your hair, yanking your head back to lean against his shoulder. “You’re adorable.” He says, almost condescendingly. His grip on your hair loosens and his palm finds its way back to your ass, grabbing the flesh there. 

You refrain from whimpering, eyes locked on his lips as you unconsciously licked yours. Satoru notices, whisking you out of your trance when his mouth quirks up. “Can’t keep looking at me like that babe. If you do I won’t be able to hold myself back, I don’t want to taint my favorite student.” he informed, grinning like an asshole.

Maybe it’s the way he viewed you as a child- as if you couldn’t please him. As if you couldn’t have him coming back to you for more. That really bothered you. In a swift move, you turn yourself towards him, his hands now encircling the small of your back as you rest yours on his chest. He raises his eyebrows at you, and all you can do is bite your lip as your fingers trace down the abs protruding through his shirt. Feeling the warmth of his skin through the cotton.

Your hand travels downward until it’s resting on his trousers over his rapidly swelling cock. There’s absolutely no distance between you two, so thankfully it’s difficult for people to see where exactly your hand is, especially in the dark too. 

You look up at him, he looks almost proud, a shit-eating grin resting on his lips. His hands meet yours in the dim club, resting right on top of it.  “Is this what you’re thinking about during training, hmm?” His voice has become low and even rougher than normal. “My cock? I bet you think of all the ways I can make you scream my name. Is that what you want?” He simpers.

You gasp at his words, the intense arousal that has just washed over you making it difficult to form words. His head tilts down, his mouth right next to your ear.

“Is that what you dream about, little girl?” 

Satoru’s left-hand slips under the tight, stretchy fabric of your skirt. You gasp when a finger presses against your clit through your panties, a firm, sure pressure that makes you tremble against him. Your hand latches onto his, a death grip as he begins circling it, the friction of the fabric amplifying the sensation. You feel yourself becoming heated and wet as Satoru observes your face, smiling at your expression.

“Don’t be a p-pervert.” you manage to bite out, trying to keep your moans at bay although no one would hear it. He lets out a throaty laugh, pushing your panties aside and sliding a long finger into your cunt. “If I'm a pervert, why are you so wet hm?

Your face burns at your too-obvious arousal at his hands. You can’t help but moan when he adds another finger, crooking them both forward and thrusting them in and out rapidly. He knows exactly where to hit with each thrust, digging against the bundle of nerves inside of you that brings you the most pleasure. Against your thigh you feel his erection, bumping against you in time with his hand.

You’re about to reach to his cock when you groan, the tingling of your building orgasm spreading through your limbs. You see bruises forming on his hand you held on tightly too. “Fuck, Gojo-Sensei.”

God, the way his name, his title- sounded like honey in your voice has him leaking through his pants. “You’re doing so good for me baby, come on.” He coos, voice low and gravelly. His expression is rapt as he watches you, his fingers picking up speed.

You shut your eyes, letting your release wash over you, a shuddering, blinding heat. “Satoru!” you shout over the music. Your face falls into his chest, gripping at his shirt as you feel his hands slip out of your cunt. His fingers glisten with your juices as he pops one in his mouth, leaving you breathless at the sight. 

“That’s my good little slut.” 

Before you can even regain your thoughts, you’re being pulled once again. Satoru makes way to the exit of the club, your thoughts finally catching up to you. “Wa- What about the rest of them?!” You shout incredulously. 

Satoru shakes his head, his impish nature making you gulp. “They’ll be fine!” 

They would in fact not be fine, you thought. Itadori is wasted along with Nobara and you still have no clue where Megumi disappeared to. Satoru notices your reluctance but only grins, “C’mon, I’m not that irresponsible! I called Nanami-kun to collect them!” He says as if that was supposed to make you stress-free. If anything, you were scared Nanami would berate all four of you tomorrow, alongside Satoru.

The outside air of the early morning hits you with a force, it’s chilly compared to the sweaty establishment you came out of. Satoru never releases your hand as you both cross the road. Everything’s moving too quickly, you hadn’t even gotten the chance to process the fact that your teacher just made you cum. The man you were foolishly infatuated with. 

Ijichi’s car comes into view and Satoru is swift to open the door for you. You slide into the backseat, him following suit. “Hello, Ijichi-kun!” You say as you feel your feet aching in your shoes. You’re sure you look like a mess, its 2am and you’ve been dancing for hours. 

You unzip your shoes as Ijichi greets you with a warm smile. He doesn’t get to say anything else as Satoru orders him to roll up the partition. Partition? There’s a fucking partition in this car? You’re appalled when the cloudy-white glass pops up and separates you from Ijichi’s view. 

Satoru is quick with his movements, you hear a chink and click as he undoes his belt. Before you even realize what’s happening, your right hand is grabbed and repositioned so that you can feel his erection, thick and hot and throbbing through his pants.

“I’ve been waiting all night to have my cock wrapped around your pretty little lips, babygirl.” He reveals, “Come here.” 

You slide closer to him, thighs touching and he beams, “So obedient.” He pushes your body down with his hands on your shoulders, your ass hitting the floor and you peer up at him, all puppy-eyed.

“You’re all talk, huh? What happened to you grinding on me just now, hm?” He uses his hands as a hair-tie for your ponytail, his palm gripping tightly. 

“Sensei-“ You breathed out.

“Not my name.” He replied sternly, removing his hands from your hair and unbuckles his belt, dropping his pants to pool around his feet. You subconsciously fixed your composure, propping yourself up on your knees. 

What if Ijichi hears?

He pulls his tented boxers down and his dick springs out. All your worries are gone, you throw caution to the wind. He’s huge. You don’t know what else you were expecting from someone as powerful as him but you’re pleasantly surprised.

You don't waste time, you dive right in. It's already dripping precum, so you lightly press your tongue on his cock and lick. Satoru hisses. "Y/N..." His voice is gravelly and he instantly reaches for your head to fully push it down on his cock. You're gagging but you don't care and frankly, neither does Satoru. He grabs a fistful of your hair and bops you up and down his dick. "Fuck, baby girl."

His cock was too thick for you to comfortably take him in full, but you tried. Holding your breath and relaxing your jaw, you swallowed as much as you could. When you couldn’t go any further you held still until you were almost out of air, then released him. Keeping your lips around him just to hear the pitch of his moan change. 

“Fuck, you’re doing so good baby.”

His whimpers and gasps filled your ears as you ran your tongue on the underside of his cock. You captured it with light suction between your lips, and gave an upward stroke with your hand, slowly pumping him.

Satoru bucked at the stimulation, giving a loud, open-mouthed moan. His hand caught the side of your head and you stopped only for a second to glimpse up at him. 

Sweat had broken out on his forehead, and his chest heaved with his panting. His lips were shiny where he’d licked them, and his gorgeous eyes were dark with arousal. You felt his thighs shake, and with the way he tensed, you knew he was close.

Satoru pushes you straight down to his nutsack once and you grip his thigh. "Fuck." He releases you and you gasp for air. 

“Why didn't you let me-" Satoru cuts you off by pulling you on top of him. Your clothed cunt coming directly against the tip of his cock. “I want to feel you first.” He murmurs, placing his thumb on your bottom lip and then sinks it into your mouth.

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Before you knew it, he was gripping you tightly and throwing you onto the bed, hips rolling into yours as his lips pressed along the column of your throat. You gasped loudly when his teeth pulled your skin and sucked, the sensation throbbing and pulsing through your belly.

Whimpering, you bucked into him, desperate already for more. “Sensei-please,” you gasped. He chuckled against your breastbone and shook his head, “That’s not my name angel.” He repeated once more, you couldn’t help it- force of habit.

Before you could reply, his mouth latches onto your breast, lips brushing along the soft skin and teasing you. Teeth marking the tender skin of your breast, he carefully licked over your nipple. Chuckling when you whined and rolled your head against the mattress, arching your body up for more.

“Fuck, you’re so needy sweetheart,” he breathed, thumb ghosting over your nipple. Pleasure ached under his touch and you nodded, gasping out another please. He complied and continued lightly grazing your nipples until you were shaking, writhing, and begging for more.

Satoru thought he was in heaven, knowing those sounds that escaped from your lips were because of him had him reeling inside.

He quickly pulled off his pants, tossing them aside. Before you could even take him in, Satoru was leaning down and pulling off your underwear, tossing those aside too. When you meet his gaze, it’s dark and hungry. “You’re so wet little one. Is that all for me?” he asked as his fingers trailed your sides. You nodded eagerly, arching your hips towards him in invitation.

He grinned slowly and you didn’t know how, but even more heat curled in your belly. There was something so fucking dark and dirty about that possessive look on his face that just had you aching for him. 

His large hands pushed your thighs apart and one of his fingers trailed through your soaked folds, a soft wet sound coming from them at the touch. “Oh baby,” he moaned, “I’m gonna eat this pussy up,” he told you before he leaned down, going onto his toned stomach and drawing your legs up over his shoulders.

“Oh fuck,” you moaned, watching as he kissed your thigh, and then whimpered loudly as his tongue swept over your folds and your clit. His fingers dug into the flesh of your thighs as he sucked your soaked lips into his mouth, tongue sliding between them.

Your own whimpers and moans were nothing compared to the hungry groans coming from him as he fucked his tongue into you, his strong hands holding you down when your hips shivered in delight.

You gasped at the sight before you. Satoru Gojo was between your thighs, eating you out as if you were his last meal. Your teacher- there’s no fucking way this is happening right now.

As he continued to fuck his tongue into you his thumb stroked over your clit, rubbing firm circles until you were gasping and clutching at the sheets. Your heart thundering in your chest as your fingers dug into his hair- barely hanging on. He pulled his mouth away and you whined at the loss, his thumb slowing so it wasn’t enough to get you there.

“Focus on me baby,” He takes your hand from the top of his head and intertwines his fingers with yours. “Cum on my tongue,” A devilish grin on his lips as he ordered and then delved back in, tongue replacing his thumb and two fingers thrusting into you. Your wail of pleasure seemed to please him as you gripped his other hand tightly and he quickly found the rough little spot that sent you over the edge. 

Within moments you were incoherent, sobbing out his name, your voice one long wavering wail. Satoru groaned and lapped at your pussy, eagerly licking until you were shaking and weak. 

“That’s my good girl,” he declared, slowly kissing up your body, nipping and sucking at your skin, leaving marks as he went. 

His lips closed over yours and you met his kiss eagerly, not caring that he tasted like your cum. Wrapping your legs around his hips you rocked into him, moaning when you finally felt his cock against you.

“Please,” you begged against his lips, “I need you.”

“Mhm? Want me in your tight little cunt?” You nodded instantly as he rocked back a little, taking your hand from his bicep to where his cock rested between your thighs. Your fingers tangled together as he guided you to grip him, letting out a groan.

His gaze met yours and he grinned, “This your first princess?” he inquired gruffly.

Leaning up, you pecked his lips and shook your head. “Nope,” you revealed breathlessly.

And it’s that sets him off. 

“Oh yeah? So I don’t have to go all gentle on you?” His brows raise as he grabs you by the back of the neck, his body hovering over yours.

“Who was it?” he growled, sucking a spot onto your neck. He gets no response, only soft whimpers so he stops his ministrations. A disgruntled sound leaves your lips. “Use your words baby.” There’s a stern look in his eyes that has you squirming under him, knowing he would not like the answer.

But you tell him anyway.

“Megumi.”

He’s taken off-guard for a milli-second, but you spot the way he tenses. 

In an instant you fall back to your elbows, moaning at the sight of his thick head slipping in and his cock spreading you open.

His large hand circles your throat loosely. “You want me to fuck you hard?” he asked and you whimpered, nodding.

“Show you how a man fucks?” he growls out as he rolled his hips, grinding them into you so he was deep, and you saw fucking stars.

“Yes, please,” you begged, clinging to his broad back, nails digging into his skin.

Satoru groaned loudly and snapped his hips into yours, his thrust hard. Your answering moan seemed to give him what he was looking for because he adjusted your thighs around his hips and picked up the pace, fucking into you so hard you could distantly feel yourself sliding down the mattress.

“Are you gonna take it all in like a good slut, hm?” Nothing in your brain seemed to work and all you could do was moan.

“Gonna mark my fucking territory on you.” Satoru thrusts into you hard and stops, eliciting a loud groan from both of you as he wraps his arm around your waist and pulls you upright. He slips out of you momentarily when he turns you around, your back against his chest and his cock fills you again. 

Nudging your thighs apart, you could feel him nod against your shoulder, “There you go princess, just like that,” he encouraged, using his other hand to spread you wider.

Whimpering at the stretch–it burned so well–you rolled your head back onto his shoulder as you sank further down onto his cock. Satoru slid his hand up your slick belly, his forearm resting against your breastbone as his large hand circled your throat loosely.

“Come on now, I want you to come all over my cock,” he growled in your ear and you moaned. Nodding in agreement, you rolled your hips eagerly. A moment later you were crying out as he thrust harder than he had before. His arm holding you down at the waist, keeping you in place as he slammed his cock into you.

The pleasure was so all-consuming you felt drunk, unable to move, only hold on desperately to the arm around your waist as he plowed into you.

“That’s it, sweetheart, just take it. I’ve got you,” Satoru cooed. His hand at your throat reached up to turn your head so he could kiss you and you lazily returned the gesture, drunk on the taste of him, the feel of him surrounding you.

Pressing his forehead against your temple, he grunted as he thrust, groaning loudly. “Fuck, I’m gonna cum,” he rasped and you moaned, digging your fingers into his forearm.

His grip changed and he slid his hand at your waist down to where you were joined and began rubbing on your clit, his groan loud in your ear as your pussy clenched around his cock.

You didn’t even have the energy to cry out anymore, each breath felt like fire. “You’re doing so good for me baby,” His fingers at your throat tightened until your breath was just a little harder to draw and the tension in your body snapped. Spine arching, the sound of his cock slamming into you grew wetter with the sound of your release, and you could feel it coating your thighs, dripping down over his.

“Good girl.” He praises as you tremble in his arms. He groans loudly, slipping out of you as he came, thick hot ropes of cum coating the outside of your pussy and stomach. The sight before you was lewd and you trembled, the aftershocks of your release still hitting you.

His arms were still around you as you collapsed together onto the mattress. The sound of your mutual heavy breathing filled the room. Your thoughts are going a mile a minute as you try to wrap your head around what just happened. 

Your teacher, the strongest Jujutsu Sorcerer, just fucked you senselessly. There’s no way you’re getting over this. 

“You okay, princess?” He asked, face soft with concern.

Princess? God the gravity of those names he called you just mere moments ago dawned on you and you felt your face grow redder.

Satoru runs his fingers over your jaw and pushes the sweaty strands of hair out of your face. Pleasure warmed that spot in your chest and you nodded, turning your cheek into his touch, “Perfect,” you replied honestly. 

He gives you a toothy grin and slides closer, wrapping you in his arms. You tucked your head under his chin, sighing in contentment. His large hands spread over your back, rubbing soothing circles as he made a soft humming sound. Exhausted, you’re so close to falling into a deep slumber when Satoru shifts in the bed. 

He’s about to get up- wants to clean you off before you fall asleep but he halts his movements.

The sound of commotion outside your room shoots you upright immediately. 

“I-I CAN’T B-BELIEVE THEY LEFT EARLY!” you hear Itadori’s bellowing voice in the hallway, almost as if he’s crying. You tense, hearing Nobara’s voice follow, “STOP S-SHOUTING YOU DUMBASS!” 

“WHERE ARE THEY?” Megumi shouting as well has you stunned, you get the two of them being wasted but him too? They must’ve been going at it with the shots. 

You hear footsteps approaching your door and time freezes for you. You glimpse back at Satoru and it’s as if he’s waiting patiently for the events to play out.

You give him an incredulous look as he just shrugs. That bastard.

“Y/N?”

Yeah, Satoru Gojo really was a menace to society. 

[helpimhyperfixating]

Captive Together - Mer!Jotaro x Mer!Reader P1

Okay, fair warning, this oneshot is LONG. Like, really really long. I divided it into 4 parts but still every chapter is a monster. I edited it best I could, but when it takes a whole day to do so, you can get tired and unattentive, lol. This whole thing got out of hand and it is weird, but I like it. With that out of the way, enjoy some Mer!Joot 😌

Part 1  |  Part 2  |  Part 3  |  Part 4

Word Count: 8531

Opening your eyes, you winced a little at the stinging jab of pain that shot through your abdomen. With sluggish movements, you drifted forward until you could feel your hand hit glass. 

Right. You were in that human facility...

How did you end up in this mess again?

- - - -

“Quick! Go! Go!!” Your voice was urgent and a little panicked, scaring the two pups in front of you to do as you asked. They didn’t know who you were, where you came from, and if you were even able to be truly trusted, but the looming shadow closing in on your location and the terrifying rumble and roar of - what they thought was - a shark was enough to spur them into doing whatever you said.

You had just been swimming by, travelling from place to place looking for a place to live, maybe even a pod who’d accept you. And that was when you spotted the two pups, all by themselves and playing with the sand on the ocean floor, no adults in sight.

Seeing how big and mischievous their grins were, you quickly realised they had most likely snuck away from their pod; bringing back some memories from when you had done that yourself. 

With a good-natured sigh, you started to swim over, deciding to take them back to their pod before something would happen.

“Hey, you two.” You clicked out as you approached them calmly, a warm smile on your face. Upon the sound of a voice, the two - they couldn’t have been older than 1,5 years - shot their heads up, eyes comically widening. “What’re you playing?” You asked as you bridged the remaining gap, letting yourself float down to sit on the seabed close to them about two meters away; giving them a little bit of space yet also sitting close enough, to show them you meant no harm.

“We’ve never seen this kind of sand before.” The pup with a pretty, dark blue tail and impressive hairdo spoke up a little meekly and your smile widened just a little bit more at the sweet answer, making both kids relax a bit.

“So you decided to come out here and play in it?”

“Mhm!” The other pup, with a darker grey tail and two markings running crossed down his face, hummed happily, his voice sounding gruff as if he had spent a week in the Red Sea, even at his young age.

“Soo, you didn’t sneakily sneak away from your pod and parents to go exploring the big blue and happened to stumble across this seabed with sand you hadn’t seen before, right?” You questioned cheekily, leaning your chin in your hand as you raised a teasing eyebrow.

Both their eyes widened a bit and you chuckled while the pup with the hairdo curled in a bit on himself. “Are we in trouble?” 

“Not with me, no.” You smiled, making him come out of his shell a bit again. “With your parents however? I can’t say.” Now they were both making themselves small, guilty looks on their faces. “C’mon, I’m sure it will be fine.” You reassured them as you pushed yourself off the seabed, swimming over to the two pups until you were in right by them and placing a hand on either of their backs. “It’s best to get you back to your pod now though.”

“O-Okay.”

You hummed a little and pushed them gently to start swimming, one on either side of you. You looked between them both, seeing the anxious looks on their faces and decided to try and distract them a bit as you chaperoned them back. You happened to have noticed a pod took up residence in this area and these two smelled like they came from it, so you knew where to go. You also knew that pod was quite a ways away so you had to find a way to fill the time anyways.

“So, what are your names?”

“I-I’m Josuke, that’s Okuyasu.”

You hummed a little, giving them both another smile. “So, how long ago did you sneak out?”

“Uh, the sun was about there.” Josuke pointed up to where the sun had stood in the sky when they left, filtering through the surface of the water at an angle that told you they snuck out about an hour ago.

“Hm, well, maybe no one in your pod has noticed your absence yet and I can help you two sneak back in!” You started in a secretive voice, making both pups perk up. Okuyasu drifted a little closer to you and grabbed your hand, Josuke seeing and doing the same on your other side, nodding happily at you.

To be honest, you highly doubted no one had noticed their absence, but swimming with two anxious pups was something you would rather avoid. Not only because you feared your lack of experience would make you unable to handle it, but also because anxious pups meant slow pups, and matching their pace when they were anxiously swimming in dread for what was to come was about the most nail biting experience one could have.

“So, why did you swim out so far th-“ whatever you were going to ask was interrupted when your ears picked up on the distant sounds of a motorboat. 

Your eyes widening in alarm, the two pups noticed the warning signals you automatically gave off and soon picked up on the noise as well, seeing as the boat was speeding closer very fast. 

Now, humans were aware of the existence of Mer, but this was supposed to be a protected area. So if there were humans here, especially those with the loud motors? That could only mean bad news.

“Quick! Go! Go!!” You wrenched your hands from their grips before starting to push on their backs, trying to urge them to go.

Okuyasu let a feared whine escape from his throat while Josuke immediately employed the tactic he had been taught to use whenever in danger: call out.

“Shark! Shark!” He trilled out in a panic, the trills and clicks of his voice carrying a lot further through the water than at his normal pitch and volume, soon joined by Okuyasu in the same fashion as he remembered what he was supposed to do.

While you were glad they had their security systems in order, you knew how clever humans were, especially those who went against the rules set in place, and you feared that they might hear the two pups.

“Ssh, ssh, I’ll keep you safe from the shark! Let’s hide between those rocks, come on!!” You managed to grab both their little hands again and frantically dragged them along with you as you swam full speed towards the rocks that sat about forty meters away, both Josuke and Okuyasu too shocked by the sudden speed they were being pulled along with to keep shouting warnings in panic.

It was dangerous to get to the rocks. The boat was almost right above you by now and to get to safety, you had to swim with the pups underneath the belly of the thing. The water was crystal clear today and the chances of being seen were high.

Safety for the pups was your one and only priority though and so you gunned it.

With an incredible speed, you shot through the water, making full use of your tail as you dragged the poor kids with you, them trying their best to flap their tails and help swim - although it was mainly for decoration and show by now.

Forty meters,

Thirty five,

Thirty,

You were now swimming directly underneath the boat and you tilted your head, keeping a wary eye on the thing as you saw it suddenly stop and rock, presumably from movement from the humans on top.

Twenty five,

A shape on the boat, barely able to be made out through the distortion of the water, tipped you off to the incoming danger and you immediately pulled Josuke and Okuyasu in, pushing them forward with all your might right before a sharp and searing pain shot past your left side.

From the boat, someone had thrown a harpoon down, the speed and angle serving to graze your side, creating a nasty cut on your waist that ran from there, diagonally over part of your stomach before the thing embedded itself in the sea floor.

A sharp and searing pain came in waves but you refrained from calling out, only hissing through your teeth with a small grunt before you shook your head, ignoring it for now as you saw a rope was attached to the end of the sharp stick. It was slowly wrenched free from the sand and you wasted no time in shooting past it, scooping Okuyasu and Josuke up in your arms as you rushed past them, seeing as they were clinging onto each other in shock as they saw you being hit.

“You’re bleeding!” 

“It’s okay!” You chirped back over the rush of water coming past as you tried to swim as fast as possible with the pain, leaving a trail of blood behind as you went.

Fifteen,

Ten,

Five,

“Okay, hide behind those rocks and stay there no matter what happens okay? Don’t come out until someone from your pod comes and gets you, do you understand?!” You shook them both a little, maybe not being the best course of action but you had to make your point clear.

“O-Okay!”

“Don’t make a sound either!” You called back over your shoulder as you started swimming away, secretly looking to see if they were well hidden and stayed put as you asked them to. You saw the both of them look at you with fear and anxiousness, peeking from behind the rocks, and sent them the last best reassuring smile you could muster before turning to look forward again and booking it. You were gonna save those pups if it cost you your damn life.

- - - -

Your fuzzy memory finally began to clear up a bit and you remembered how another boat came and chased the hunter’s one away. You had led the hunter’s boat away from the pups but got trapped in a cove, only for the new boat with science humans to come to your aid.

Upon seeing your injury, they got very concerned and offered to take you with them so they could treat you and help you.

Despite their honeyed words and friendly appearance though, there was one blaring warning signal. These humans that were claiming to trying to ‘help you’, smelled exactly like the ones from the boat that had injured you. Which meant these people had interacted; and not just in passing or a small falling out, no they spent a while with each other to have the scent rub off that heavily. 

In other words, these were no friends to you.

Despite knowing this, you had agreed to their offer. Those pups were still nearby, what could you have done? Maybe if they took you along they’d be satisfied, and never realise there were more Mer nearby. And so you allowed them to take you.

-

“Good news! Today the bandages come off and we are planning to transport you to a bigger tank while you further recover!” One of the humans you had come to see a little more often in your past two days in this tiny tank approached, that easily recognisable false smile on his face. Whenever he approached like that, there was something else behind it. Yet, you pretended to not notice, perking up in happiness and sloshing around in your tank like an excited puppy despite the pain that brought.

“For me?” You asked. Your human English was a little rusty and sounded somewhat garbled, which was no surprise given how you had to use completely different parts of your vocal cords to speak it, but at least it was understandable.

“Yes!” He grinned before stepping even closer. “And! Inside there is a surprise! Around the same time as we found you, we found another Mer, stuck in a fishing net. They’re in the tank you will be transferred to today!” He sounded genuinely happy this time and you realised with a bit of horror he probably saw it all as a big experiment. Most likely wanting to see how two of the same species reacted upon meeting. “It’s that one over there!” He pointed behind himself to a large tank on the opposite end of the large room.

You had noticed this tank almost immediately when you first got to this facility. After all, why were you stuffed into a tiny tank that was more fitted to fit an octopus rather than the large tank that was available right there? But if it housed another Mer then that was logical. Probably a bigger Mer than you as well.

You had seen the scientists hover around it but you never saw any creature inside when you looked at it.

Would it be a male or female waiting for you in there? Given the man’s excitement however, you had a hunch. All you could say was you hoped they hadn’t been injured by the humans to bring in like you were.

- - - -

You spent the rest of the day just trying everything in your power to annoy the ever living fuck out of the scientists around.

You were in a small glass tank, barely big enough to let you stretch your tail out fully and with an open top, allowing you to communicate.

Sloshing around and making water spill over the tank was one of your favourite things to do, your goal to make the papers in the hands of the scientists wet or to make them slip and slam a few teeth out on the floor. If they glare at you, you just acted like it was completely involuntary, having pain in your injury, or the need to move being the cause of you sloshing and splashing so much.

Your next method of annoying scientists was: throwing the small ball they had given you directly to their heads. It was a small yellow thing, apparently filled with air so that it would float on the water. And just the perfect size to lob at someone’s head.

Of course, if they turned around angry, ball in hand, you’d act as if it was all a game. All a game your dumb and simple mind could come up with. And so the scientists just let it happen, picking up the ball and begrudgingly returning it to you every time so you wouldn’t start sadly whining like some puppy.

And that was exactly what your goal was; to convince them you were no smarter than a seal.

Of course, you had the ability of speech, but you intentionally kept your vocabulary in the low. Talking a bit like a pup, with missing or incorrectly pronounced words while the rest of your behaviour mirrored it.

You smiled a lot, indulging the scientists in questions about Mer life that you answered ‘as best you could’ while in reality you were stringing lie after lie after lie. You pretended to be their friend, just like they did to you. What comes around, gets around, after all.

Sometimes though, when you were talking to the humans, you felt as if there were eyes on you. And not the scientist eyes or the camera eyes, but angrier ones.

-

As the morning bled into noon, you noticed how warily the scientists were being around the big tank. It was open at the top same as yours and reached until about the human’s midriff, but the rest of the tank disappeared into the floor for it was probably a lot deeper than it seemed to you if there was another Mer in there that you’d never even seen before.

But, noticing how hesitant the humans were to stick their head over the glass and look down, you figured you’d test them a little. 

No one was really paying attention to- or around you, so you picked up your little yellow ball - the only entertainment you had - and tested its weight a few times before chucking it so hard and so far that it soared over everyone’s heads and plopped right in the bigger tank.

As it landed, you cheered as if it had been your childish goal all along before expectantly looking at the humans. They were, after all, expected to bring it back to you.

Much to your internal delight, you watched how the humans looked back at you in horror and disbelief. It all but confirmed your suspicions that whoever was in there, was very much not happy. And different from you, they decided to go the aggressive route.

When none of the scientists made a move to retrieve your ball for you, you started to make a little whining noise in the back of your throat, making puppy eyes and starting to look all sad.

If the Mer in there indeed went the aggressive route, that meant that your plan was still in full swing. For, if they only exuded aggression, the scientists wouldn’t necessarily see many signs of higher intelligence. They would most likely chock it up to animal instinct instead of genuine anger. Which meant you could continue playing as dumb as you liked without them getting suspicious.

“It’s okay! I’ll, uh... go get it for you!” One of the scientists spoke up towards you and you perked up a little, gripping the edge of your tank and pushing up a bit to mock excitement.

Curiously, you watched as he went to grab a long net on a stick. Was it not within arms reach? 

You watched as he walked back over to the tank and warily started inching the pole towards the ball. The entire thing shook with nervousness and you watched in awe as suddenly, out of nowhere, a large Mer shot up, slashing through the invading item and breaking it clean in half before disappearing below the floor again in a flash.

The scientist screamed in fear as the pole got cut clean through, the net falling down into the water before sinking, while one of the other humans went to comfort the scared one.

That was the best thing you had seen in all your time being here.

“What has been said about unauthorised interactment with the large tank?!” A large booming voice suddenly sounded from the door the humans constantly walked in and out of and you, together with all the scientists, turned your heads towards it.

“S-She threw her ball in there, I was just trying to get it back like protocol says!”

“She can go get it herself. We’re transferring her right now.”

All eyes turned to you with that and you shrunk a little, lowering yourself into the water until only your eyes shyly peeked out. Somehow you had a bad feeling about this.

- - - - 

Bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad! BAD!

You were dangling in mid air on a crane or contraption, some sort of harness put around you and painfully rubbing against your wound. Mers healed faster than humans but your wound was still very much present and open and painful. Did they completely forget you had that or something?? They were even supposed to take off the bandaging today and they didn’t! Although right now it was your only protection from excruciating pain.

Your tail barely had any support and was basically dangling in mid-air, held up only by the fact and grace of being attached to you and your attempt of using your abdominal muscles to keep it steady. Unfortunately for you, that was where your wound was as well, so WAHEY!

You were cursing up a storm as the crane moved you across the room, hovering over the floor as if you were flying. To the scientists, it just sounded like a bunch of panicked clicks and trills, but for you, you were using language so colourful, it would make anyone blush.

Water dripped from you like stalactites in a wet cave and the only satisfaction you had in this moment was that it would make the floor a little slippery for the scientists, hopefully with at least one falling on their face. After what seemed like an excruciatingly long time but was only a few minutes, you were dangling over the larger tank. 

Your knuckles were white as you gripped onto the harness holding you up. You looked down and noticed how big it actually was. As you tried to gauge the depth from above the water however, the support holding you up clicked loose and you fell down into the tank, harness and all.

Thankfully, you managed to angle yourself to dive in at least a little gracefully instead of just belly flop in - which would be very bad from that height and with your injury.

As you fell into the water you had your arms protectively shielded over your head and your eyes screwed shut, but now you hesitantly blinked them open, bringing your arms down as you sunk down a tiny bit more before stopping.

Looking to your right, you were surprised to see several scientists looking through the glass. Apparently there was a room a floor lower which gave them perfect view of the big tank and the happenings inside it. They all had clipboards and notes and whatever, ready to record and write down everything that was about to happen.

That was the last thought you could really give it, for you suddenly saw something large and fast move from the bottom of the tank, all the way up to you.

Curling in on yourself on instinct, you looked up only to be met by one of the biggest and most intimidating Mer you had ever seen. His torso was in proportion to you but his tail was absolutely massive, almost twice the size of yours. It was strong and powerful looking, sleek black and probably about four or four and a half meters in length while his torso himself was impressive as well, muscle and raw power screaming from every inch of him.

How in the fuck were those scientists ever able to capture him?

His face was set in a glare and you instantly averted your eyes, displaying submissiveness as you turned your head and bowed it a little.

Now, you had wanted to display submissive behaviour from the beginning, just to keep your act up, no matter what kind of Mer was in here, but when you opened your mouth to try and talk and he growled in warning, you immediately slammed it shut. This shark Mer made it very easy. 

After a few more seconds of him glowering at you, you opted for safety and abruptly turned around, swimming down as fast as you could to the bottom of this 20-meter deep tank and shooting into the massive skull that sat there. You had to struggle to fit through the eye, the harness still on you hooking against it and hindering you even more, but with some squeezing and manoeuvring, you managed to get inside.

Looking out of one of the eyes, you saw he hadn’t really moved but was still glaring at you before letting out a ‘Tch’ and casually turning to the side, languidly swimming away and down to the corner opposite of the one you were in. 

There was a thick, white, concrete column in the middle of the tank, impeding your vision of him as he disappeared behind it.

Letting out the breath you were holding, you closed your eyes for a second before inhaling the water around you. It felt much cleaner and more crisp than the stuffy tank you had been forced to sit in, though the scent of the other Mer was very present as well. 

Looking down at yourself, you hissed a little and cursed out the humans as you grabbed hold of the harness and lifted it as far away from the wound on your side and stomach as possible. 

The skull you were in provided cover yes, but it was also half buried in sand and you barely had any room to move or even breathe, let alone try to get that damn harness off. Going out while the shark Mer was around and wary of you seemed like a bad idea however so you just stayed put, opting to wait until night before getting out and trying to get the damn thing off.

So, in the time you were waiting, you decided to try and figure out what the fuck kind of skull you were in. It was slanted and half buried in sand, elongated jaw with big round eye sockets. It sure as hell wasn’t any animal you knew of. You even started doubting if it was a real animal at all. When you touched it it definitely didn’t feel like bone at least.

Several hours passed like that and you finally peeked your head out the eyehole again. 

The tank itself was not too bad. The bottom was filled with sand and rocks, water plants and seaweed and such sticking out and growing from it, making it look rather natural. 

With some effort, you squeezed yourself out of the eyehole again, hissing as you scraped your wound before settling on the sand right in front of the skull and starting to wriggle and tug at the harness.

Why did the humans do it like this? Weren’t they supposed to take it off? Or were they so afraid of your new tank-mate that they just decided ‘fuck it, you’re on your own’?

Aggravated, you attempted to pull it over your head. Unsuccessful. 

You tried to unclasp it. The clasps are at the back where you can’t reach. Unsuccessful.

You attempted to pull it apart. You are not strong enough. Unsuccessful. 

By now you were running out of options and just violently tugging at the constricting thing. It sat over your gills on your neck, making it hard to breathe - though that didn’t stop you from spitting every curse in the book at the scientists who were undoubtedly still watching, even if the glass where they stood earlier was as dark as the night. 

A flutter of the water suddenly reached your ears and you snapped your head up to see the shark Mer quickly swimming towards you, angry and with a murderous look in his eye. 

Under optimal circumstances you would have hidden somewhere he couldn’t fit, like the skull. Unfortunately for you, you were wearing a harness and also wouldn’t be able to get inside fast enough. 

With not many options left, you darted to the left, quickly swimming away. Taking a glance back, you gasped when you saw he was in hot pursuit. With his larger tail he was quickly gaining but you shot to the side, cutting the corner around the concrete pillar in the middle as much as possible.

Looking to the left briefly, you spotted a corner where the sand was more tailored than everywhere else, a large indent where a body had been resting. 

That was all the time you got to look at it however, since you were already rounding the pillar again to show the skull you had been hiding in. 

Right now, you cursed yourself for darting. There was no way you could outswim him. You should have just rushed into the skull back there or stayed still, hoping he wouldn’t tear you apart. Now, all you could do was try to get back in the skull.

That was a vain hope however, as he had already caught up with you. 

Your blood froze as his right arm curled around your waist, ready to grab. Yet before he did, he hesitated. Instead, he allowed you to slip away a bit further before clamping his arm around your tail, tightly grabbing hold there as he forcefully stopped your momentum and yanked you back, grabbing your shoulders with both hands once in range.

In one smooth motion, he slammed you shoulders first into the concrete pillar before removing one hand and using the claws on it to rip straight through the harness still stuck on you. 

“Stop disturbing the water with your thrashing and sleep!” He growled out, a threatening undertone in his voice while his face was so close to yours.

You were breathing fast and staring back with wide eyes but it seemed he wanted an answer before he backed off so you nodded. 

Seemingly content with that, he rudely shoved you aside before lazily swimming away, flicking his hand to get rid of some excess fabric of the harness, his tail swishing side to side as he disappeared behind the pillar again to the corner he seemed to have taken up residence in, not looking back once.

You blinked a few times, looking at where he disappeared for some seconds before you swam up, swimming out of the harness with as little tail motion as possible.

Your breathing finally levelled and you turned back around, grabbing the remains of the harness and swimming over to the skull, draping the destroyed thing over a lip on the outside before squeezing into the eye. 

- - - -

Waking from your slumber, you got to work digging. 

You had a hunch this skull was going to be your home for the time being, so you decided to make a better way of entering and exiting. Digging through the sand laying in the mouth of the skull, you followed the elongated jaw and dug until you made a nice little opening that you wouldn’t have to squeeze through.

While you were digging, you noticed the other Mer swimming around. He avoided your little hovel but otherwise would not sit still. Making laps, checking the corners, running his hand along the wall of the tank as if testing it. 

Everything pointed to him wanting to get out of here, just as much as you did.

For now, you decided to keep staying out of his way though.

Right as you exited your skull, you were met with the powerful and intimidating form of the merman. There goes your plan. “What’re you doing?” He snapped at you almost, his tone curt and to the point.

You were still half inside but decided to just stay there like that, looking up at him. “I’m making an easier and less painful entrance.” You explained, motioning to the blood stained bandage on your side. It was designed to be worn under water but even so you doubted it was doing much good.

“Well, be more quiet, you’re making too much noise.” He growled before turning around, nearly hitting you with his tail fin as he went.

You were about one second away from giving him a well earned tap on said tail fin, but managed to refrain yourself at the last second.

“Wait.” You called out after him and he surprisingly enough stopped, looking back at you over his shoulder while you got out of the skull fully. “What’s your name?”

“...” 

He didn’t say anything for a second, just looking intently at you for a second, almost as if he was searching for something. Whatever he found he must have been satisfied with though.

“Jotaro.” 

A smile appeared on your face at his answer and that piqued his interest. For, when he had been watching you in the small tank opposite the room, you had smiled so much whenever the scientists interacted with you, and it had annoyed him to the point of making his blood boil. But now? Up close? He could see this was the first genuine smile you had given since arriving in this facility, even if it was timid.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Y/N. Let’s get the fuck outta here soon, okay?”

Before anything else could be said, you heard your name being called from above. You had given it to the humans but that didn’t stop the pit of disgust when you heard it. Your face contorted for just a second before you steeled yourself and twisted it into the sweet innocent look the humans were used to.

Unknown to you, Jotaro warily watched you as you did that, sharp eyes following your form as you went to the skull and grabbed the harness laying on top before swimming up to the surface.

Shyly poking your head out of the water, you darted your eyes back and forth a bit before landing on the man standing right next to the edge of the tank who had called you.

“Good morning.” He smiled and you bobbed your head a bit in greeting. “Where is the harness?” He then asked and you let your hand drift to the surface, the broken harness in hand.

The man tutted a little but then stuck out his hand, taking it from you before moving it to his other hand and using the one in the water to motion you closer, pointing at the bandaging around your waist. “We didn’t have time to take a look at that yesterday. How about now, Hm?”

God how you wanted to bite his hand. Leave that damned harness on all night and then act like nothing happened? Claiming to just want to look at and take care of your wound again? It almost made you regret trying to trick them by acting dumb and nice.

Someone else didn’t have the gripe of trying to keep up the act of being friendly however.

Out of nowhere, Jotaro breached right in front of you, immediately diving back down and pushing you down with him while he violently smashed his tail against the scientists outstretched hand.

Said scientist screamed in pain as several of the bones snapped at the powerful strike, others rushing towards him while Jotaro just left the chaos behind and pushed you further down before abruptly letting go about halfway to the bottom.

“The fuck are you doing.” He snarled and you backed up a bit.

“What do you mean?”

“Interacting with them. What is your plan to get out of here that makes you need to get all friendly with them?” 

As he said that, you tried to steady your breathing. No matter his looks or his seeming temper, his mind was clearly not to be underestimated and already proved to be very sharp. He knew you were putting up an act.

“I’m trying to make them think I am no more intelligent than like, what? A four or three year old human?” You spoke, getting a little lost in thought thinking about human ages and their behaviours during it.

“Why.”

Jotaro’s voice snapped you out of it and you focused again.

“If they expect this level of intelligence from me-“ You kept your hand flat and stationary at the level of your bellybutton. “-they will tailor security measures and such around that level of intelligence. Humans like to cut corners. If they think I don’t know how to open a door, they won’t lock it.” You continued and Jotaro had his eyes narrowed at you. “So, when I suddenly show this level of intelligence-“ You moved your hand up and hovered it at the level of your neck. “-they won’t expect it and I’ll be able to get out of here while they try to figure out what happened.

Despite seemingly getting your explanation, Jotaro seemed truly revolted by the idea of buttering up the scientists.

Without another word, a frustrated rumble tumbled from his chest and he turned to the right, starting to swim away, back to his corner. But not before stopping once more and looking back at you. “Don’t let them touch you.” With that, he continued on his way.

Bringing your arm in, you held it to your chest as you watched him swim away.

- - - - 

About two days passed and during that, your communication with Jotaro had been minimal. You two more or less avoided each other - though there wasn’t any bad blood between you two.

Just now, a big slab of tuna had been lowered and - while you had planned to just wait until Jotaro was done - he seemed to have other plans. He sliced off a chunk, letting it drift down as if he didn’t notice it falling while he himself continued with what he had. Yet subtly, you could see him look at you, releasing one low click sound from deep within his chest. A non-verbal go-ahead that many leaders of a pod used; to show that it was for you.

Sending him a quick smile, you darted over and scooped up the meat from below him right before it could touch the floor. With that, you then turned around and went to the corner opposite of him. For once, Jotaro was not in his usual corner. And you were going to make full use of it by doing what you had been meaning to for the last few days.

Putting the tuna in your mouth and just holding it there, you started plucking the gigantic seaweed that grew from the bottom, slicing it at the soil with your claws until your arms were practically completely full.

Peeking your head around the pillar, you saw Jotaro still eating and thus silently yet quickly swam over to his corner.

The sand was bunched up in a small hill on one end, a deeper and bigger indent right in front of it, showing it was where Jotaro slept every night. There were some plants growing around it, but not many. None close enough that they would be able to bend in the current and annoy him as he tried to sleep at least. That was good.

Now, you knew sleeping on the sand was fine. You had been doing it yourself, even insulated and kept a little more warm because of your protective surrounding skull. And, while the heap of sand behind the dent was meant for the same purpose - to retain some body heat - you knew from experience that plants were way better at that.

So, you started placing the seaweed leaves on the sand indentation. One by one you placed them down, layering them over comfortably until it padded the entire space.

You were happy you picked a lot because you had underestimated how big Jotaro’s bedding would be, seeing he was quite massive as well.

Next came the tricky part. Getting the leaves to stick together and stay on the sand, paired with getting rid of all the prickly edges.

Opting to make sure it stayed in place first, you curled the edges of the leaves around the edge of the sand indent and buried it firmly in the grain, making sure to tuck it in well and good so that it would not let go. With that out of the way, you began chipping away at the sharp edges. 

You worked as fast as you could, wanting to be finished before Jotaro was done eating and would return here. 

Finally done with the snipping, you ran your hand across it, satisfied that there was no uncomfortable plant membrane sticking out anymore.

Onto the last step, you started with the hardest part: weaving the plants together. Cutting small incisions in the leaves with your nails, you started interlocking those cut sections, fitting them together like a puzzle until every leaf on the entire bed was interwoven.

You were almost done when you spotted movement out of the corner of your eye. Turning your head, you saw Jotaro swimming closer, a confused yet wary look on his face. 

In the blink of an eye you were already swimming away, booking it towards your skull and shooting inside with practiced ease. You were pretty sure Jotaro couldn’t fit through the mouth, so you felt relatively safe in case he got mad about you messing with his sleeping spot.

No angry sounds came however. 

- - - -

Several more days passed just like that. You had made a seaweed bed for yourself as well, stuffing it in the skull and spending quite some time digging a little further into the sand so that you would have a true little hovel. Because of this you realised the skull had no lower jaw, which allowed you to dig down into the sand, causing for even more insulation to keep yourself warm at night. Was it necessary? No. Did it feel great to sleep in a warm environment? You bet it did.

Your interaction with Jotaro was still bar to none. Although he did seem more accepting of you, no longer letting out a dangerous or angry rumble when you moved too much or splashed around a bit.

You had gone back to playing with your yellow ball, throwing it at the scientists heads - though they dodged it more easily now that their attention wasn’t divided between two tanks. Still, whenever you did hit one of them, it felt like a huge accomplishment. 

While pretending to play however, you took the opportunity to gather information. Pick up on what the scientists were saying, checking the tank walls while you were pretending to swim around as fast as you could - while in actuality you went only about half as fast. In particular, hopping up on top of the concrete column rewarded you with figuring out there were cameras in the thing. They were small, built in and probably very expensive.

So the scientists were watching your every move even if they weren’t watching.

You honestly felt terrible when you figured that out and had retreated back to your skull, not coming out for 28 hours, not even for food.

About thirteen days had passed since you first came here, and you still had no idea how to get out...

- - - -

To say the scientists of the research facility were in excited chaos and confusion that morning was an understatement. 

After nearly two weeks of no process at all with the Mer they captured - the two of them only avoiding each other as much as possible - they come in for work, only to see the two of them curled up in the male’s nest and sleeping together!?

“What the hell happened?! John! Get the footage of last night!”

“Right!” Said man immediately sprinted away to get it while the rest stayed glued to the glass, watching the two Mer as best as they could with how far away from the glass they had set up camp.

A few minutes later, John returned and they all watched with baited breath to see what happened. 

Operating the four cameras, they switched between them and fast forwarded the footage from last night until there was motion, pressing play.

“What happened that gave them a change of heart?” 

- - - -

Disturbance in the water had roused Jotaro from his sleep. 

There was absolutely nothing in this tank except for a feeble artificial water current that helped with filtering. So, to suddenly feel such jerking motions in the water could only mean that it was the other occupant of the tank.

Jotaro tried to ignore it for a bit and go back to sleep but the irregularity and violence in which you were moving meant there was no chance of that.

A little annoyed, Jotaro got up and started swimming over to the skull you had taken residence in. 

Unlike the last time you had woken him up during the night, you were not in front of it. Furrowing his brows, Jotaro turned up and swam to one of the eye sockets. Gripping the edge of it, he pulled himself closer and peered inside.

It was hard to make anything out in the dark but with the limited night vision he had, Jotaro could see your form, completely curled in on yourself on top of a bed similar to what you had made for him. 

Only, then you twitched.

Your whole body jolted for a bit, a barely audible squeak leaving you before you settled again, only for you to jolt again a few seconds later. Your face was screwed up in pain and discomfort and Jotaro let his gaze drift to your waist, seeing if you could be in pain from that, even if it should have healed for the majority of it.

It wasn’t that though. You didn’t clutch at it in pain or explicitly tried to avoid touching it. You seemed to just be having a nightmare.

For a moment Jotaro considered just leaving. You’d wake up from it eventually and would then just go back to sleep. But that thought was quickly chased away.

Not ever had he seen you so... vulnerable. And as he looked at you, something in him screamed at him to protect you. To protect you, to hold you, to keep you close and safe. Only after a few seconds of feeling his stomach twist did Jotaro realise. Wait, shit- did he just imprint on you?

Just like pups would imprint on parents, so could future mates imprint on each other. It didn’t always happen or all that often actually, but something in Jotaro told him that that was exactly what just happened. Fuck.

Stunned for a few seconds longer, it was another small whimper from you that snapped him out of it. Pushing forward, Jotaro got closer to the eye but he could soon see that he wouldn’t be able to reach you through there with his arm, you were too far to the back and he definitely wouldn’t be able to fit. Hell, he wouldn’t even be able to put both his shoulders through there, let alone his tail.

So, with no other option, Jotaro would have to fully go inside another way.

He didn’t want to invade your personal space, but what other choice did he have? With a bit of hesitation, he swam towards the entrance you had dug and looked down into it. While it was big enough for you to be a comfortable and easy fit, Jotaro would either not fit at all, or have to really squeeze.

He got up for a second and sighed. He could hardly believe he was actually gonna do this. With a little stretch of his back and tail in anticipation, he grabbed hold of the roof of the mouth of the skull. 

Lifting it out of the sand was less heavy than he had thought, most likely because of the light material of the skull, but that didn’t mean it was easy. The sand was suctioning it quite strongly but he only had to lift it a little bit to accommodate himself, not pull it out completely. 

After a few seconds of lifting it up, Jotaro released it, content to see it stayed at the same height he had put it in before he almost immediately ducked down and made his way inside.

Swimming slowly to not scare you awake even more than you probably would be, Jotaro reached where you were tucked in the corner.

“Y/N.” He softly called out your name but it didn’t do shit. With a lack of social skills or experience, and the need to do at least something, Jotaro instead just opted to grab your shoulder. “Wake up.”

In an instant, you came to life. Seeing nothing but a large form hovering over you caused an immediate fight or flight response and you grabbed at the hand on your shoulder, using your other to swipe at your attacker, only for them to grab both your wrists.

“It’s just me, calm down.” The voice of Jotaro spoke and your breath hitched in your throat. Jotaro? What? How?

Any logic was cast out of your mind as your instincts kicked in. Right as Jotaro let go of your wrists, you shot forward and clung to him. The safety that him being larger and stronger provided and the body heat he emitted the only thing playing in your barely awake mind, still half stuck in the nightmare.

Jotaro was taken aback as you wrapped around him, yet, for what felt like the first time in forever, he welcomed the contact. As he raised one arm to attempt to wrap it around you and provide more safety, he instead painfully slammed his elbow against the skull, making you squeak and cling tighter to him before realising it was not a threat and letting up a bit.

As much as Jotaro wanted to, he couldn’t stay here. This skull could barely fit him as is, let alone with another person there. 

Patting your shoulder twice, you looked up at him and Jotaro felt his heart seize at the look you gave him. You also understood what he meant however and let go of him, floating back a bit.

Placing his hand on your head, Jotaro turned with a bit of effort and swam out of the skull.

As his tail disappeared from sight, you cast your eyes down. You were so tired and barely conscious enough to keep your eyes open, yet still, going back to sleep sounded like the last thing you wanted to do.

Suddenly however, you felt your wrist being grabbed and Jotaro yanked you with him out of that skull.

Confusion riddled your sleep heavy mind and you barely had enough thought to move your tail, attempting to help swim but mostly being dragged along by Jotaro.

Before long, you two reached Jotaro’s nest and he sat down on it, pulling you a bit closer since you were practically as far away as you could be, stretched out arms and confused. When you still didn’t seem to get it, Jotaro pulled you down with him until you were pressed against him, your back to his chest as he had his arm around you from behind. His tail started curling around you until it fully encased your form, pushing under your head until you were laying it on top, as if using his tail as a pillow. 

“Sleep.” Jotaro spoke softly from right behind you, almost whispering it into your ear, making your heart skip a beat. Almost immediately after saying that, a faint and low rumble began coming from his chest, almost as if he were purring, and you could instantly feel yourself becoming less anxious.

The soft vibrations on your back together with the protective arm wrapped over you and the strong, thick tail curled around and in front of your entire body made you feel safer than you had in a long time - maybe ever. 

By now, you could barely remember your nightmare, only that it scared you to death. But even then, all those fears were slowly driven away by the comfort of Jotaro’s warmth and the protection he brought.

Part 1  |  Part 2  |  Part 3  |  Part 4