#their approach didn't differ too much from what i'd seen other people do. walking a fine line i suppose

[unproduciblesmackdown]

another win for the (partial) pentiment playthrough i happen to be watching now is they chose rapscallion, cheered when that happened....never before actually seen someone's playthrough involve (a) failing the baron's vibe check (even only by a little) or (b) Achieving martin's approval or (c) actually headbutting werner

[luvfy0dor]

Good day! How are you doing? I'm back with a small request. A reader keeps three kitties at home, but no one knows about it. What would happen if Chuya or Fedor stopped by to visit for the first time and three different big fluffy cats met them on the doorstep? Thank you for your artwork. They really are so awesome.

I hope I've made the right request. Have a great day!

“Guess I'll Just Stumble on Home to my Cats !! ♡” - Chuuya Nakahara x Gn!Reader ੈ✩‧₊˚

Warnings; i like describing really enormous cats, which is made obvious, some swearing, it's pretty silly

Description; Chuuya interacting with cats.

A/n; Bro I love cats sm I was so excited to do this request my bsf and I have matching cats theyre both orange and named garfield, but I'm gonna do a second part with fyodor! I just wrote a whole lot for Chuuya so I thought I'd separate it : ] OH ALSO TYSM FOR THE COMPLIMEBTS FJEJSJDJ ❤️❤️💖💖

• Chuuya is definitely more of a dog person, but that doesn't mean you'll never find him lying on your couch, hat over his face and a cat or two (or three) loafed on his chest.

ೃ⁀➷

You decided to invite Chuuya over for dinner in celebration of receiving a promotion at your job. You liked being able to share such an exciting moment with the people you loved, and Chuuya was absolutely one of them.

Chuuya had yet to venture to your house, not because he didn't want to, but because it was really hard to find time for anything recently. He had been very busy with work, and the distance from your place to his work or his house was rather inconveniencing. But, he wanted to join you for dinner, so that was just what he was gonna do.

So, there he stood, a small flower bouquet in hand and dressed in his usual classy clothing. He almost hesitated to ring the doorbell, but he pushed his pointless worries aside. There was nothing to be nervous about, after all. It was dinner with his lover, how scary could it be?

"It's unlocked!" You shout from the kitchen, cleaning everything up and plating the food. He twists the door nob and pushes it open, walking in before tripping. He caught himself, but he looked down, wondering what you could have possibly left on the floor right next to the door. Instead of finding a shoe or clothing item, he saw a fluffy black mass peeking up at him through it's furry coat. It meowed at him, skittering away into the kitchen. He was very confused as to where you had gotten a cat, you've never told him about this! He chalked it up to cat sitting before following in the cats footsteps and heading into the kitchen. He found you shooing the cat away very politely, waving it off towards to other room; and much to his surprise, it obeyed.

Chuuya had not once seen a cat so obedient, he always thought of cats as careless and independent animals, but apparently they listened just as well as dogs if trained right. Your eyes lit up when they landed on your boyfriend, then on the flowers, making your heart melt. "Aw, Chuuya! You're too sweet to me, you didn't have to bring me flowers!" You say, approaching him, he sighs and puts an arm around you, pulling you into a hug. "I know, but it's the least I could do for you, I mean you're making me dinner." He says, kissing your forehead and handing you the flowers.

"Still though. Thank you, Chuuya." You say excitedly, walking towards the cabinets and grabbing a vase, filling it up about a fourth of the way with water. "Yeah, it's no problem, doll. Hey, uhm, you never told me you had a cat around." He says with a slight laugh. You turned to him, furrowing your eyebrows before a look of realization came over your face. "Oh! I'm sorry, yeah, I have three cats." You gave him a grin, which widened when you saw his surprised face.

"Do you not like cats? I'm sorry, I should have told you." You say, straightening out your shirt. "No! No, it's alright, darlin', it just caught me by surprise, you know? I'm more of a dog guy..." He murmurs, hugging you and looking over your shoulder at the food. "That looks really good though." He compliments, gently cupping your cheek. You thank him and guide him aside with your hand on his waist in order to bring the vase to the dining room table. He jumps upon feeling something furry rub up against his pant leg, looking down to see an entirely different cat. He stares at the furry animal before hesitantly squatting down to pet it.

Running his fingers across the felines head, he smiled a bit, scratching it behind the ears before standing up to wash his hands. The cat, however, did not take no more for an answer. It butted it's head against Chuuyas calf, purring as it did so. Chuuya rolled his eyes and looked at it again, resisting the urge to pet it and have to wash his hands all over again. You return to the kitchen to grab the plates, setting them at the dinner table with a smile. Chuuya follows you out, the cat following him, like a train. Chuuya sits across from your seat and watches you situate yourself, a sort of love struck expression on his face. You notice and blush, a small and breathy laugh escaping your lips.

Chuuya is snapped from his adoring gaze by what feels like a trillion pounds of bricks being dropped into his lap, causing him to let out a loud "oomph." You look at him with confusion and concern and Chuuya looks down at his lap, seeing a massive and utterly colossal, prodigious, party-sized ass cat loafing in his lap. How it even jumped up onto him was entirely out of his scope of knowledge. You peered under the table and saw your largest cat on your boyfriends lap, making you frown.

"I'm sorry about him, he's on a weight loss journey, I promise." You apologetically say, getting up to remove the stupendously sized cat from Chuuyas thighs, gently plopping him down on the floor. He nods in response, putting his hands up defensively. "It's not a big deal, I promise. He looks like he's got the spirit to get to that goal." He says, remote enthusiasm in his voice. You nod with a smile. "He definitely does. I think you'll get along with all three of them well, I think they already really like you, especially (cat #3's name)." He smiles a bit and nods, taking a bite of his food, humming in satisfaction. "You're such a great chef, doll. Did you have the cats pick fresh herbs and spices or somethin'?" He playfully says, making you scoff.

"I wish those cats could help out. They're wonderful for moral support and occasional obstacles, though." You sarcastically reply. He smiles. "Do they actually knock stuff off of tables? I've heard a lot of cats like to do things like that, or sitting on keyboards?" You nod, taking another bite of your food. "Yeah, they've done it a couple times, they knocked pepper all over the place once and when they hopped down on the floor none of them could stop sneezing. I felt so bad for them." You say, reminiscing on all the times your animals inconvenienced both you and themselves with their antics.

Chuuya laughs a little, resting his head against his knuckles. "What poor little things they are, huh?" He laughs, looking at the three cats that were now sprawled out on the couch. You nod. "Maybe they just need another parental figure." You say, glancing at him out of the corner of your eye. He looks over at you, his cheeks slightly red and his lips parted. "What, do you want me to be their second/father?" You nod with a grin. "If you'll accept the offer." You smile, sipping on some water.

Chuuya smirks, leaning back in his chair and adjusting the sleeves of his shirt. "Obviously I'm going to, I would never deny you." He says, his pearly white teeth flashing as he speaks. Everything about him really was perfect to you, especially his willingness to be included in your little cat family. "Great, hopefully they'll learn to be a gentleman just like you." You say, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek and leaning into him.

A/n; dawg I'm posting this from a movie theater this movie is kinda boring and I gotta be here for 2 ½ more hours send help. Also if I flop again I'm crying tbh (Edit) WALKED OUT THAT BITCH LAST NIGHT W OLD ERAS TOUR MOVIE MERCH BECAUSE I WASNT ABLE TO GO SEE IT ORIGINALLY AND GET IT SO ALL IS WELL

[h3rmess]

THE ZENIN GETS ME WETTER

-> fem!reader x cullinggamesarc!maki - suggestive , set post culling games arc, reader has a crush on maki, uni au

notes: I literally have the biggest crush on maki ever known to man. I love her so so much. May be a little inappropriate, so here's your warning now!

Walking into the house, the blaring sound of the music deafened me immediately. It was a Saturday, which meant one thing ; it was time for me to relax and have fun after a long week of hard work and effort ( I attended one class).

My black dress hugged my body perfectly, barely covering the important parts. I felt the click of my heels against the wooden floor, my eyes searching for my friend, Choso. He was my brother's best friend and a family friend in general. My parents had always tasked him with taking care of me when I went out as we attended university at the same campus.

My medical course had been draining the life out of me, so a party is just what I needed to get me feeling alive again.

My eyes landed on him quickly as I extended my arm, waving him over. He wore a white graphic tee with a pair of baggy jeans, the black locks of his hair cascading from two pigtails. His baby hairs sat on his forehead, making the effect of bangs. He gave me a soft smile, which quickly disappeared after he saw what I was wearing.

"What the hell are you wearing?" He shouted over the music, his voice barely audible.

"Oh, come on! It's just a one-time thing. I just felt like being hot today!" I said in reply, smiling widely.

"Yeah, you do look hot, but that's what all the other men are gonna think! Who knows what kind of lewd thoughts they'll be having about you?" He protested, attempting to cover me from being seen by others.

"I'm not interested in what the men think." I told him plainly, my eyes surfing the crowd to see if she was here. Choso rolled his eyes and mumbled at me before I spotted my friend, Yuuta.

I pushed Choso away as he went to join a different group of people, telling him I'd message him later. I walked over to Yuuta, who stood in a corner with a boy who I knew to be Inumaki. He was studying software engineering here. He wore his usual turtle neck, which made me wonder if he would ever come out of his shell a little more.

"Hey, Y/N!" He said, handing me a red cup. I looked at the liquid in it, downing it quickly, the burn in my throat boosting my adrenaline. As I finished up my drink, I looked at the boy who looked pleased to be here.

"Didn't take you as the party type, Yuuta." I teased. "You too, Inumaki. Why are you guys here?" I asked them as they laughed.

"Yeah... we just wanted to try something new, y'know! But I'm not sure we wanted to try something new." Inumaki spoke quietly.

"Fair enough. Parties are always a nice way to let loose." I looked around awkwardly, not wanting to ask the inevitable.

"I know what you're thinking." Yuuta spoke, causing me to look at him promptly.

I hummed at him as my face flushed, causing both him and Inumaki to chuckle.

"She's here, don't worry. Although she didn't seem too happy about it." My face lit up at Yuuta's words, the thought of seeing her making my day.

As if my mind had been read, she strutted toward us within an instant. My heartbeat quickened, seeing her in a pair of tight, black, leather trousers and a black sleevless top to match. My jaw practically dropped as my eyes remained glued to her perfect frame. I almost drooled, my knees giving in, causing me to almost drop down and beg her to hold me. I looked away quickly, trying to mask my pure infatuation. She smiled as she approached us, stopping in her tracks once she was close enough.

"Hey, Y/N. Didn't know you were here." She smirked, swirling her cup slowly.

"Oh! Uh, yeah! I didn't know I would be here either, aha... But here we are!" I stuttered, my embarrassment engulfing me when Inumaki and Yuuta snickered.

"Where'd you get the dress? Looks good." Maki complimented, making me go crazy.

"Thanks! It was a gift, actually." I replied, trying not to sound like the lovestruck girl I was.

"You sure are drawing attention with it." Her eyes dropped to my exposed cleavage, causing me to yelp quietly.

Inumaki and Yuuta looked at each other, muttering something about going to the toilet before scurrying away.

Traitors.

I felt my underwear dampen by the second as the girl inspected me, her eyes tracing every line of my dress.

"Who you looking good for, hmm? Can't be doing all this for no reason." She probed, inching closer towards me.

"Well, uh." I hesitated, the alcohol taking over as I became unfazed by the possible consequences. "You."

Her face became strewn with mischief, her hands slyly groping my waist as we were now flush against each other.

"All this for me? I love being spoiled by pretty girls." I blushed at her words, hanging my head slightly. She placed her hand on the bottom of my chin, lifting my head up so my eyes met hers. She leaned in, her breath lingering on my earlobe as she placed a soft kiss on it and whispered. "If you look so pretty now, I wonder whats underneath."

I was soaked.

Her lips met my neck, placing gentle, sloppy kisses along my skin. I hummed at the contact, a feeling of lust completely taking over my body.

Maki Zenin wants me? I must be dreaming...

-> love pnd over here

-> another chapter of 'where our blue is' is coming! just taking me a lil longer than usual but expect something by Wednesday!!

-> this was just something I wrote quickly don't expect too much pls 😔

-> I wanna write more one shots lmk who you wanna see next!! byeee

[dumbdomb]

Read my pinned BEFORE you interact! 18+ only.

stalker who works in a wholesome lingerie shop and is surprised to see me in their store one day. they keep their distance at first because they've seen me walk away from businesses that are too quick to approach me. i take my time browsing a few different styles before really looking around. the place is charming and comforting to be in. i look their way sheepishly, and they begin in my direction, asking if i need anything. i ask where the fitting room is, holding up a few items. "i'm not sure what i want to get, just trying things on." while i'm in the dressing room, they quickly grab some of the pieces they've always wanted to see me wear. working with so many different people and brands, they actually know my size and fit better than i do. i feel a bit lost outside of my comfort zone and just want to feel pretty in something new. they ask if it's ok to help size me and try on something they think i'd like, and i accept. they seem very professional and their warm touch is so inviting. i was never shy about changing in front of others, but when they put me in a gorgeous mesh and lace outfit- well, i felt almost like i couldn't recognize myself. it was certainly a change of pace from the dainty lingerie i'd typically wear. but i didn't see myself buying something like that, not on this day at least. they helped me out of that set, and i could swear i saw them glancing at my body, but i put that idea out of my mind. they're just doing their job, and maybe i'm a little nervous because i was not expecting to be fitted by someone so close in age. as they helped me into the next outfit, i felt their face brush against my shoulder, and it seemed like they were smelling me... feeling a bit creeped out, i convinced myself i was just imagining things. they probably took a deep breath, tired from working all day. it's not like i was some special customer or anything, they just wanted me to try on more expensive clothes in the hopes i'd spend more money. i shouldn't even be doing this. it's not like i'm going to buy all these items. i feel a warm hand that has been lingering on my waist while i was caught up in my overthinking. i shift my weight to the side, away from their touch, and nervously ask if they think this style suits me? they look at my reflection in the mirror, up and down, with a sort of determined and quizzical gaze, before they answer. they ask if they could get something else for me to try on real quick, they don't want to keep me waiting long but they are feeling inspired and confident in the idea they have to see me in. they step out of the changing room, closing and locking the empty store without me knowing and returning shortly with another outfit. they bring in a gorgeous, pastel pink set, fully aware of how much i love pink. they help dress me, their fingers caressing my body as they adjust the straps and smooth things over. i stare at how amazing i look, not paying any attention to them ogling me. i step forward into the light, and they take a step back, watching as i turn and arch my back, groping my own body and feeling so good in this style. i briefly turn to ask what they think, with a smile on my face and not waiting for an answer. they step closer, telling me i look so pretty and anyone would be lucky to see me wearing this. a small thought about how much this must cost crosses my mind, but i try to ignore it for another moment.

READ MY PINNED before you interact! 18+ only.

[chronically-undertronic]

Sailor man, you really turn me on...

tags: Ciderus Lycaon x GN!Reader, Pirate AU, Lots of headcanon, kidnapping (but it's technically the reader's fault)

So if we all come together, we know what to do

We all come together just to sing we love you

And if we all come together, we know what to do

We all come together just for you

Sailorman, you really turn me on,

Now the guys are gone, come let us get it on

Girls like me are pretty hard to find

So if you go, I'll kick your hiney

Sailing, sailing, jumping off the railing

Drinking, drinking, 'till the ship is sinking

Gambling, stealing, lots of sex-appealing

Come, let us sing the sailor-song

--

They warned me not to go poking around where I didn't belong, the guys. They said just because of my less than ideal upbringing, that didn't mean I had to turn to a life of crime, but I didn't give a shit, really. My last living relative passed and left me all of his belongings, meaning I had just the things to sell to people who had money that wasn't theirs to spend. There were rumors from frightened whispers that one night by the shore, pirates would dock and trade their recent finds with each other. That night, everyone would stay inside with their windows locked and firearms by their bedside. But not me.

It was lights out in the seaside town, not even so much as a front porch lantern was left on. For once, the streets I normally despised seemed peaceful. No bustle, no yelling drunkards, just the steady rhythm of the waves crashing against the shore and the soft whistle of the wind swishing my coat behind me. Truly, it was quite the serene scene to take in. But I wasn't here for a late-night stroll; I had things to do. I walked down the cobblestone streets and down the chiseled stone steps to the beach. The sun had just gone under, so it made sense that the beach was completely barren when I made my way down there. The only indicator of life were the closed-up fish stalls. I never cared for fish, ironically enough, so I wasn't going to steal any of their fishing poles or anything. Instead, I perched myself behind one of the stalls and kept a lookout for any ships approaching. I waited, and I waited... And I waited. Yeah, I realized this was a complete waste of my time when I found myself nodding off. Seriously, what time was it even? I was about to...

When my eyes fluttered open, my ears caught the sound of distant chatter, and I slowly peeked out from my hiding spot. There they were; on the shore, there were at least twenty different ships. In a fit of excitement, I sprung up and started to dart over when I thought it would be in my best interest to just blend in. I went through all the effort of dressing the part; I might as well act the part as well. It wasn't enough to have the gold chains, tall boots, and a big feather in my hat. With every step I took, I made sure I gave the air of someone who was hardened by years of experience sailing the seven seas. Before I tried to interact with anyone, I looked around, trying to listen in to see if I could catch onto anything I needed to know.

"How about this one?"

The voice that caught my attention was deep, suave, and confident. As sneakily as I could, I shuffled over to watch the trade go down. However, I got a bit distracted from my goal, but it was for a good reason, because God. The guy I was spying on was the finest man I've ever seen in my entire life. He was tall, tan, and had long ombre hair that was kept far too neat for his line of work. It was clear he put a lot of work into his appearance, from his outfit to his nails and his makeup. He had a tail that gently swayed from side to side, and even that was so neatly groomed. I tried not to be caught staring, but how could I not? I'd never seen a man who checked every single one of my boxes so quickly. Ah, but for now, I really had to focus. I had things to sell, and I wasn't going to let this distract me.

"What is that?" His fellow pirate asked, and looking closer, I saw the man holding a black key, though the material was chipped so it was silver at some bits, and it had these gorgeous ruby jewels on it.

"It's a key that opens any chest. Seriously, look at the wear on this thing, I've used it on every expedition I've gone on," the man explained.

"If it opens any chest, why are you just trading it away?" His client asked with skepticism.

"You have something I want." He motioned to the pirate's neck, and he pulled a necklace from beneath his vest.

"This? These are real pearls, it's the most valuable thing I own," he explained.

"And they're so pretty. Come on, it's a good trade," the man insisted. Until he was interrupted by one of his crewmates.

"Cider, get over here," he hissed, peering over the top of his glasses. Cider huffed and dragged himself over to the man with long, ginger locks. "I told you not to trade that."

"But it's guaranteed to get me anything I want!" He whined.

"We need that. I knew I shouldn't have trusted you with it. Give," he commanded, like Cider was his pet. Still though, he seemed to obey and handed it over to his crewmate, and I watched as he pocketed it. That's when I realized I had the perfect excuse to talk to this handsome stranger. I approached with my leather sack in hand, but my footsteps got less confident the closer I got.

"I have something you might be interested in," I announced with my voice deepened and my chest puffed out. This intrigued Cider, but his friend placed a hand on his sword cautiously.

"That so?" He tilted his head.

"I have some stuff," I replied vaguely, pulling out various different pieces of jewelry. There was a glimmer of excitement in his purple and lime eyes as he carefully observed each one, I assume to make sure they were real.

"Those are gorgeous. What do you want for them?" He asked.

"You don't need any of those. We're here to meet someone specific if you recall. We're not here to get distracted," his friend chastised.

"Oh, he's not even here yet. Don't have a stick up your ass, Chronos."

"I don't have a stick up my ass," Chronos retorted. "Why don't you go keep Zephyr company on the ship? I get worried when he's left alone at this hour."

"Fine, fine." Just like that, they both started to walk off like I never even came up to them in the first place. But I wanted to know more about this beautiful stranger, and I kind of had a moment of weakness. So, I did what anyone with less than two brain cells would do, and I slowly crept behind him to follow him aboard.

Their ship was kind of docked far off, like they didn't want to be around the others, which should have been a red flag, but who was I to judge? After all, I was the creep trying to stow away on their ship. Cider began to climb the rope to the deck, while Chronos stood in front of the ship, watching and waiting. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to strike, so once he was aboard, I started to make my way after him. Turns out I'm not much cut out for the pirate life, considering I struggled to get up the first two notches. Not to mention, it seemed I needed to work on being more aware of my surroundings because before I could process anything, I heard a whish and a snap, and I was out like I was when I was waiting for these damn pirates to even show up.

.💚

The floor was moving. It's clear what had happened here. I was cursing myself when I opened my eyes and looked around to see I was tied to a pole below the deck. Even though it's shameful to admit, I screamed. Of course, I screamed, what else was there to do? My friends were right, this was the dumbest idea I've ever had. It didn't take long before Cider and the other one I hadn't seen yet came down. I assumed this was Zephyr, the one Chronos mentioned last night.

"No way, we have an actual stowaway," he gasped. Great, I was a novelty to these amateurs.

"Yeah, Chronos was originally gonna kill them, but... He didn't want that to be our whole thing," Cider explained.

"Hey! I can hear you, you know, so I'd thank you not to talk about me like I'm not here. Let me go!" I protested. Cider just shook his head.

"Well, we're miles away from land, so unless you want to walk the plank, we're just gonna keep you right where you are." He started to walk toward me, and knelt down in front of me. Out of pure instinct, I flinched, which seemed to get him to back off. "What were you doing sneaking on board, anyway?" I couldn't tell him that, no way. He was my captor now, I couldn't think of a worse time to come onto someone. But then again, what was I supposed to do? Lie? If I said I was gonna rob him, then I'd really have to walk the plank. I just sighed.

"I really wanted someone to trade with me." Which technically was the truth. "I'm not a pirate, I just inherited a lot of treasure. I wanted someone to buy my valuables so I could be rich and get out of my stupid town." I ranted for longer than I wanted to, but Cider nodded along in understanding.

"That right? That's kind of a dumb reason to get yourself into so much trouble. And I can tell you're not lying. I know what a real pirate looks like, and you-- no offense-- look like you're wearing a straight-up costume," Cider chuckled. I was over here tied up on a pirate ship, and this was funny to him. Once he was done treating me like free entertainment, he started to join Zephyr on the steps. "I'll see if we can convince Chro to let you go on our next stop."

"There's no way he'd say yes to that. We're going to see Hex, and we can't leave any trace behind. We still have that huge bounty hanging over our heads, you know," Zephyr reminded.

"So, we'll drop them off on the outskirts of Ember Shores. It's basically surrounded by empty land."

"Again with the talking like I'm not right in front of you," I huffed.

"You're the prisoner, why do you think you get a say?" Cider raised an eyebrow, and, well, he was right. I could get executed, or I could be let go. The only trouble would be finding my way home, which is the opposite of what I set out to do. Speaking of, I soon realized that I really didn't have anything but the clothes on my back.

"Hey, where's my stuff? My sack of stuff I inherited?" I inquired.

"Took it." Cider shrugged. "It's ours now."

"But that was my stuff!" I protested.

"Tough. You really aren't a pirate, you seriously thought you'd just get your stuff back? Sheesh." Cider shook his head and followed Zephyr up, but he was not about to leave me here.

"Hey!" I called and he turned around, this time annoyed at the constant interruption. "Are you really gonna leave me tied up here? What if I have to pee or something?"

"Oh, my God, are all prisoners as needy as you are? I'll get you a pee bucket, just... Yell when you need to use it, I guess."

"Fine." So that was that, I let him go, and I just sat there, listening to the waves. The ocean used to calm me, but now all I could feel was panic. If I overstepped, I could be thrown overboard just like that. Not to mention the fact that I had no idea where we were going in the first place. The only thing left to do was wait. Wait until we get there.

.💜

When the sun came out, I had to shield my eyes. It burnt. I didn't even know what hour it was, and the smell of rotting fish and saltwater made me too disgusted to even think. But something else caught my attention-- a whiff of something that didn't smell half bad. It was CIder again, he came down below the deck with a plate in his hands. I wasn't sure what was on it, some kind of meat, potatoes maybe? Whatever it was, I'd take it, my stomach was growling.

"Morning!" Cider approached me like I was a rabid dog, just raring and ready to bite his finger off as he slid the plate in front of me. "I thought it'd be more humane of us to feed you."

"How thoughtful," I scoffed sarcastically, "How am I supposed to eat that? My hands..." I was still tied to a pole in the exact position I was last night.

"Right. Um. Okay, here." Cider positioned himself in a crossed-leg position on the floor, scooting himself and the plate closer to me. At first, I was confused, until he took a scoop off the plate with the fork he'd brought and held it to my lips. I opened my mouth to protest, as I absolutely was not about to let him feed me like a goddamn baby, but it only took a split second for him to take that as a go-ahead. Since the fork was already in my mouth, I decided I might as well just take a bite. It was okay, whatever it was. The mystery mush was food, I'll give it that much. He continued this motion of scooping the food up and into my mouth and watching intently to make sure I was done chewing and swallowing. He looked so focused, his bi-colored eyes moving back and forth, his teeth gritted in concentration. I wanted to deny the fact I was feeling any kind of Stockholm syndrome, but when the tip of his pointer finger touched my lips I almost lost it then and there. He was hot, and to be honest I'd recommend getting kidnapped by him to a friend. Not that it was his fault. Actually...

"So your friend Chronos. He tied me up down here, yeah? What are his thoughts on you feeding his prisoner?" I asked.

"Well, he thought it was okay. He thinks you're probably dangerous, but he already thinks our whole pirate thing is a bad influence on Zephyr, so he doesn't wanna let you starve to death down here."

"What a saint," I huffed.

"Ugh. Do you need to use your pee bucket privileges before I go? You shouldn't hold it the whole journey, we won't be there for another couple of days." Cider stood from his spot in front of me, and it made me realize he really was sitting just centimeters away from me as the smooth material of his pants brushed my cheek.

"Days?? I'm gonna be here for that long?! This is bullshit, just let me go!" It was an embarrassing little outburst, but I needed an excuse for why my face was so red.

"It's either sailing for days, or swimming until either someone comes to find you, or you get eaten. So I'll let you decide." To that, I had nothing to say, so I just let him go, and I was alone again. I just couldn't wait until we actually made it to our destination.

.💚

It had just turned my third night on the ship, and I was ready to get some shut-eye. It's actually surprising how easy it is to get used to sleeping sitting up, and, you know, tied to a pole. But I heard the door open, and a bit of moonlight crept into the room. At first I was scared, until I realized I recognized the sound of clinking chains. Cider was back, and as he stood in front of me I could tell he was trying to see whether or not I was asleep.

"What do you want?" I asked, and instead of answering the question he just sat down in front of me again, in the same cross-legged position, and with the same focused stare as before.

"I bet you get lonely down here," he finally responded.

"What an observation," I huffed. Then I repeated the question, "What do you want?"

"I get lonely too. I mean, I want to meet more people, hear more stories. But that doesn't come often, everything I do is mostly for money. Being a pirate is a cutthroat business, you know."

"Okay?" I tilted my head, staring at him in confusion. Did he really come down here just to talk? No joke, that was it?

"It's not something you should get involved in, trust me. Honestly, instead of just dumping you wherever, I think I should try to convince Chronos to let us bring you home. You didn't know what you were doing, you still don't. Anyone with half a mind would have figured out how to escape by now." There was an air of sympathy in his voice, and he drew his sword, but the sound was the drawn-out sound of metal against fabric, he wasn't doing it to attack. Not like when I heard Chronos draw his before he took me out. No, instead Cider quietly walked around to the other side of the pole and cut off my ropes. "Sorry, I don't know how to untie a knot." I had to laugh. What a strange thing to admit.

"So, wait, are you just trusting me to roam free?"

"As long as you promise to stay down here. I don't wanna get in trouble. Also, do you think you could promise to not try and take over the ship or anything?"

"I guess so. You have been super hospitable," I joked. "Seriously, though, you're right, I don't know the first thing about being a pirate. I couldn't take all three of you."

"Good, good." Then we stood there for a minute, just a captor and his captive not knowing what to do with each other. "Well, goodnight." That was what finally came out of his mouth when he started to head back upstairs.

"Wait, wait," I began, starting to walk toward him before remembering my promise. There wasn't really any place else for me to go, so I just sat back down in my spot with my back against the pole. This time though, I was at least able to position myself more comfortably. "Why don't you tell me a story, um, Cider, right?"

"Me? Sure, uh..." He came to sit next to me this time. "Wow, I never even asked your name. Terrible manners."

"It's Y/N," I smiled.

"Well, Y/N, why don't I tell you about our heist the other night? Crazy stuff, let me tell you." And he did. We spent our first night together with him telling me how they acquired this ship, and me telling him how I was the best haggler in the village. I knew how much everything was worth, what was in season, what was out, the labor costs of things, and he just nodded, saying that seemed like a good skill to have.

.💜

When I woke up, I felt more well-rested than ever. I looked to my left to see the sun filtering in, and when I looked to my right I damn near lept out of my boots, but I managed to stay still. We may have talked for longer than expected because Cider's head was leaning against my shoulder. He was out cold, snoring softly in rhythm with the waves. It was the cutest thing I'd ever seen, and I didn't want to disturb him, but I couldn't risk him getting caught. We'd both probably end up overboard, so I tried to shake him awake as gently as I could.

"Hey. Wake up," I whispered. Once he started to lift his head a bit, he groaned and leaned against the pole behind us.

"You're kidding. I fell asleep? Oh, God, there's no way no one noticed, I'm so screwed."

"It's still early. Just sneak back upstairs, I won't tell," I assured. All I was met with was a simple groggy complaint as he managed to pull himself up and trudge upstairs. He turned around before he shut the door, and looked down at me with excitement in his eyes.

"Hey, Y/N... Thanks for a fun night. See you in a bit when I serve you breakfast, okay?" Then he waved, and he was gone again. I sighed with contentment and waved back even though he couldn't see me.

.💚

The day passed by a little bit quicker with me being able to walk around a bit and have Cider come down to talk to me. In fact, I didn't even realize what day it was, so I was a little worried when I didn't see Cider when it was usually time for breakfast. And when Cider came down with Chronos behind him, I almost completely lost it thinking I was gonna get murdered or something. Instead, Chronos just looked between me and Cider with a disapproving glance and sighed.

"Cider," he began.

"I know, I know, but hear me out. They're still down here, see?" He explained, motioning to me.

"It's one thing that you untied them in the first place, it's another thing you've been getting friendly with them, and it's an entirely other thing that you're asking me to just take them home. I would have expected this from Zephyr, but not from you. Are you forgetting just how wanted we are?" he lectured. Cider put his ears back and pouted as Chronos drilled into him how careless he was being.

"They're not even dangerous, they didn't even have a weapon when we took their stuff, remember?" He reminded. Even I had forgotten that detail, what was my plan here? I was going to an illegal pirate trade. Just shows how much I know, I guess.

"So you're both foolish, your point?" Chronos sighed.

"Chro, pleeeeaaassseee. They're so chill. Right, Y/N, you're chill? You're not gonna tell anyone about us?" They both looked at me, and I started to shuffle in place thinking of my next move.

"Of course I'm chill. If you take me home, I won't bother you anymore, honest," I pleaded. Chronos scrunched up his nose in response.

"Absolutely not. Cider's gonna take you to the outskirts of town, and you're not gonna bother anyone. Actually, no, maybe I'll take you myself. Considering someone can't be trusted with our hostages anymore." Chronos glared at Cider, then back at me. Thankfully, Cider quickly stood between us.

"Now hold on, Chronos. Consider this, Y/N could tell someone either way. In fact, it would be better for us if we took them home. If we left them here, Y/N could tell all the wrong people. People we don't want to know about us. But if we take Y/N home, they'll just tell the village people, and what are they gonna do? They're terrified of pirates, they don't even have anyone to turn us in to." His confidence could have convinced a penguin to live in the desert, swear to God because Chronos listened and started to scowl again, like he knew Cider had a point.

"Just... Just come with me, and we'll talk about it later," he instructed.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming. See you, Y/N." After they left, I heaved a deep sigh of relief. I was going to make it home, and in one piece, too.

As the sky outside went from red to blue, I found myself wondering how much longer I'd have to sit here. Honestly, I was about to formulate a whole new escape plan when Cider bound back down excitedly.

"Y/N! Guess what?" He began, his tail wagging behind him wildly.

"Hmm, what?" I humored him, even though I was pretty sure I could guess.

"You get to go home!" He announced.

"Thank God," I sighed. "Only another four days of feeling seasick."

"Ooh, that's the other good thing! Since I was the best boy I could be today, I convinced Chronos to let you stay upstairs instead of down here."

"Huh, really?" I gasped.

"Yeah! If you want to sleep in my bed--" Holy shit, "-- I'll sleep on the floor." Damn it.

"Hey, I couldn't ask you to do that. I've been sleeping on the floor, I'll be okay," I assured.

"Okay, thank God, because I was only saying that to be polite. I like my bed, I need my beauty sleep. But I'll put down some pillows and blankets for you. I have a lot of spares, I usually sleep with all of them, but I guess you can borrow some. Just for the few nights you're still with us." He seemed oddly excited about this, so who was I to deny him this little moment of his?

"That sounds great. Lead the way, I'm already getting sleepy."

"Me too, holy cow, you won't believe the things I had to do today. So many things, first of all--"

Telling stories was just our thing now. Cider told me about his day, and I told him about my life back home. The meaningless chores for my neighbors, and the times I dreamed for a life bigger than the one I had. He led me to his bedroom, which wasn't very big, but I assumed the other two had rooms of about the same size. It was just big enough for a bed, and a little bit of floor space, plus the lighting from the big window was nice. I stood outside while he took great care setting down a few blankets and pillows for me.

"Is this good?" He asked, taking a seat on his bed.

"This is good, thank you." I shut the door behind me and got cozy in my little blanket pile. This was the warmest and safest I felt the whole trip here, it almost made me want to stay, despite the circumstances.

"Good. Now close your eyes, thanks." I was going to ask him why, but when I looked over and saw him taking his shirt off, I didn't have to.

"Cider!" I scolded, slapping my arm over my eyes and trying to shrink into my pillows.

"I'm putting my pajamas on, don't get jealous."

"That's not wh--! Just warn me next time!"

"Why's your face red?" He teased.

"Cider!!"

.💜

The sun was warm on my face, and the salty water was fresh in my lungs. All things considered, things were going well. I hummed patiently while I leaned over the ship's railing and watched the land roll into view.

"There it is. Are you excited?" Cider called down from the wheel.

"Am I? Everyone's gonna think I'm so cool for joining a pirate crew for a week."

"Don't flatter yourself," Chronos huffed, not even bothering to look up from whatever he was scrawling in his journal.

"Well, it'll be a fun story to tell," I muttered. And it will, even though the only battle scar I'll have to show is a bruised ego.

Once we were docked somewhere far off in the rocks, Cider helped me down, and I relished every moment our hands touched. Once we were down, we stood in another awkward silence.

"So. This is it," he sighed.

"Yep." I nodded. The waves were like crickets, just drilling in the fact we were stalling because we didn't want to say goodbye. Instead of goodbye, I hugged him. I was worried I'd made a mistake because he froze for a long time, but he still wrapped his arms around my back. "I'm gonna miss you."

"I'm gonna miss you too. But hey..." He pulled away, keeping his hands on my shoulders so I'd keep looking at him. "If you wanna see me again, you know where to find me. We don't come all the time, but we try to make it."

"Right... Right! The market! Oh, I will see you again!" I got a little overexcited, but he didn't seem to mind. He just gave me a warm smile.

"Yeah. So, don't get too super bummed out about missing me, okay? We'll see each other."

"Cider! Hurry up, we're not staying!" Chronos called, and Cider finally let me go.

"That's my cue. Until next time, Y/N." He grabbed hold of the rope and started to hoist himself up.

"Wait!" I called, a final moment of desperation so he'd stay for just one more second. I reached up just as high as I could to grab his shirt collar and pull him down for a kiss. It was quick, but I felt his soft lips against mine and his well-managed beard on my chin. Now he was the one with the beet red face as I pulled away and took off down the beach. "Promise me you'll come back!"

"I will."

Then he climbed back onboard, only this time I didn't feel alone as I saw him leave. Because I knew he'd be back, and when he was, I'd be waiting.

[spinoff-antithesis]

[@distinguished-turtle-enjoyer ]

i actually have not stopped thinkin bout your bb!edit like,,,, its so good and scratches my brain right

how long have you been doin edits for? do have any tips for someone, who hypothetically, wants to start doin edits too? what programs do you use? how did you do the cool animated bits?

im so sorry for all the qustions 😭😭 i just think youre very talented and inspirational and i hope you have a good day ^_^

hi firstly oh my gosh you're literally so sweet i am gently shaking you i love you so much /p. secondly, i apologize for the long answer! (it's all under the cut. this got away from me. i'm so sorry apparently i have a lot to say.) (also you're so good about the questions i would constantly be asking one of my professors questions during class to the point where she said i didn't have to go "i have a question" every time i approached her)

i've been editing since 2016! around march/april, i think? loved it so much i went into film & video production in college as a major so i could do editing for a living. (i have done more motion graphics for my classmates than i have done edits outside of class assignments, BUT!)

the program i use is after effects - i started learning it when covid first hit the united states because i had nothing better to do with my time (other than music theory but i failed that bc my professor focused more on the history aspects than the actual theory soooo) and my ipad kept giving me the "no more storage" whenever i tried to use videostar lmao. (vs has, apparently, gotten a LOT of good updates, so if you're looking to start editing and have an ios system, i'd look into it! only downside is you have to pay for some of the cool stuff).

also the program i use for masking (i think i explain this later dwdw) is superimpose. i've been using it since 2014 and it's SO nice bc i can use my fingers to erase backgrounds & stuff instead of hoping i can get it to work correctly in ae or photoshop (photoshop my DETESTED i'll use it but i'll complain the entire time).

for people who want to start editing: tutorials on how your program works and how to do specific transitions are gonna be your best friend when you're first figuring things out! i forced a friend to literally walk me through how after effects worked when i was first figuring it out, and when i had swapped to videostar back in 2017/2018(?) i had watched a Lot of tutorials. that and played around a lot and figured things out on my own - which is also always a good way to start!! it's also totally valid to look at other people's edits for inspiration - most editors don't really care, as long as you don't flat-out remake their edit (some people don't like that!). i have a style insp folder on instagram where i save edits that i like so if i need transition ideas or i'm doing a different style, i can look there for inspiration. at the end of the day, as long as you're having fun with it that's all that matters!

also, starting simple is always okay!! my edits for a year were just me slapping gifs & video segments together on a timeline in cute cut pro bc imovie didn't load them lol & it'd crash every time i breathed. ++ it never hurts to ask people for feedback/constructive(!!!) criticism/etc! (also not to sound like everyone else but practice? good. it's so good. if i showed my 14/15y/o self some of the edits i can make now they would've passed out on the spot bc i was still trying to figure out transitions back then. programs can also sometimes make a difference in edits, but usually it's not super noticeable until you start getting to the Complicated Shit.)

a lot of popular programs i've seen are ones like video star (ios only), alight motion (android only), after effects (i recommend 🏴‍☠️ing it tbh, i only use it legally bc i had to use adobe programs for school), capcut, and i think some people still use sony vegas pro & maybe cute cut pro (i've heard it may have actually gotten better since i last used it in 2018)? i have no idea. programs also depend on whatever device you're using to edit on! since i've been using my laptop, i'm able to use after effects (it's computer-only), but when i used my phone/ipad to edit i used ccp & vs.

for the animation - it's a lot of cutting up the image and masking! more complex animations, like the one i had of leo walking down that red 'hallway' have several different layers that have been masked. (i removed the background & filled in the spot where leo originally was in two different apps - superimpose (taking leo out) & photoshop (filling in the bg)) in after effects, the way i've done this was mask out the specific thing i wanted to move (like an eye) and then put that mask on what i've called a "base" (not animated), and then stick a solid behind the base to match the color of the object. (some of my layers are not named appropriately; base 2 is the left arm & the four "SIX_[...]" layers are the mask/bandana tails)

an example of this would be for any of the eye blink animations i did! this (above) is the same shot, with and without the eye - since it's masked out and i have the background solid behind it, it doesn't look too unnatural/have a black outline/mass where his eye should be.

what it looks like without the solid layer behind it ^ (the red lines are from the null layers - ignore that)

this is what my timeline looks like if it's a more simplistic animation - the only five things being animated here are leo & raph's eyes. (there's only this many layers bc it's two characters in one shot & i was also animating their pupils - typically, an eye-blink animation is about 4-6 layers for me (solid, base, mask, & null to animate with, 6 if i'm animating both eyes & 4 if just one))

in after effects, there's this really cool tool called the puppet pin that one of my friends (lovingly) yelled at me for not knowing about - which. yeah fair she wasn't wrong it's SUPER useful in animating, provided you chop up your image first. if you don't it's a mess.

(separated by layer vs i should've really put the mask tails & leo's head on separate layers and didn't bc that was the 2nd to last animation i had to do and i was losing my mind bc i wanted to be done with the edit lmao)

the way people animate depends all on their style (there's two common ways to do blinking animation - having the anchor point at the bottom of the eye, or the middle of it) and the program they use. it's been a while, but i could probably tell you how to do some basic animations on videostar still even though i've been doing them in after effects for about 2-3years now. ALSO the best way to have an animation be noticeable is to over-exaggerate it/make them Big - which, yes, can mean 'breaking bones' and having the limbs be a little wonky at the start. (if you want it to be realistic though go Just to the point where it looks uncomfortable lmao)

uhm. again i am so sorry that this is so long i THINK this is everything? if not: my inbox/dms are always open if you ever want to ask more questions, wanna follow up on something, etc etc!! (also if you ever start editing please send me your edits!!! i'd love to see them <3)

[priestessofspiders]

The Masochist

I'm a sadist. I figured I'd just get that out in the open first. Without going too much into the details, it feels extremely cathartic to hurt people. It's something about being in control, about someone else experiencing pain for my benefit, that just makes me feel very, very happy, like a weight being lifted off my shoulders. Of course, it also just turns me on, but like I said, I don't want to get too much into the details of that side of things.

I'm not a monster of course. I don't go around beating people up in bar brawls to get off or anything like that. I'm only interested in acting out my fantasies with willing participants, and I care a lot about consent. I understand that the experience of being hurt can be just as pleasant for some people as hurting them is for me, and in the end I really am wanting all parties involved to be as happy and safe as possible. It's an unorthodox pastime, sure, but in the end it's all happening between consenting adults.

Fortunately for me, genetics blessed me with just the right balance of facial symmetry, fat distribution, and skeletal structure to be considered fairly attractive by mainstream standards. You'd be surprised how many people out there want to get the shit beaten out of them by a beautiful woman. As a result of this, I'm reasonably well known in my local BDSM scene, which is one of many reasons why I won't be disclosing that much information that could be traced back to where I live. It wouldn't be especially difficult to find me.

Because of my relative popularity, I have gotten a little used to complete strangers knowing who I am. It's why I wasn't too surprised when I was approached at a kink party and greeted by name by someone who I'd never seen before in my life. I'll be the first to admit I was smitten at first sight, she was truly gorgeous. I can't exactly explain what it was about her that made her so attractive to me, it's difficult to put into words. I can easily describe her of course; short, red hair in a pixie cut, slender limbs, expertly applied makeup, but this doesn't really explain the aura of almost divine beauty that emanated out from her. Unlike many of the other attendees of the party, she wasn't wearing any sort of fetish gear or even particularly revealing clothing. Just jeans, a gray t-shirt, and an unzipped gray hoodie.

While I'm inclined to swing both ways, I've always had a certain preference for women, but that predilection towards sapphism doesn't mean I'm likely to fall head over heels at the first sight of just any pretty girl. She was special, there was something different about her.

She introduced herself as Julia, and then immediately asked me a question which, in retrospect, should have raised more red flags. Speaking in a calm, measured voice, she asked, "I've heard you hurt people if they ask you to, is that correct?"

It wasn't an incorrect thing to say. She was right, and I told her so, but the phrasing of the question should have bothered me more than it did. Nobody phrases things like that in those sorts of spaces, they use jargon, community specific terminology, that sort of thing. Someone might ask something like "You're the sadist who's into impact play, yeah?" perhaps, but the phrasing of "you hurt people if they ask you to" is utterly bizarre. Nobody at that party would have said something like that. It's the sort of question an 80 year old who was just introduced to the concept of BDSM would ask.

It only got weirder from there. After my affirmative response, she nodded her head thoughtfully and told me she would meet me at my home, and asked me when I would be free. I told her I wasn't doing anything the next day, and she nodded again and said she'd be there at 2 o clock. Then she just walked away. She didn't even ask me for my address, or a phone number, or anything. The worst part is, at the time, none of this seemed in any way unusual. A complete stranger had just told me she was going to come to my home the next day, which she evidently already knew the location of, and it felt completely natural. I can chalk up some of it to a bit of giddy excitement at the prospect of indulging in my more unusual interests with a willing and beautiful participant, but that just doesn't explain it. I'm not an idiot, I know you can't just trust complete strangers because they're attractive. It's like the part of my brain that should have been warning me something was wrong had been completely turned off.

The remainder of the party went as expected, though I was somewhat distracted from my encounter. I didn't see Julia at all for the rest of the evening. I imagine she just left after informing me she was going to come to my house the next day. I left early and went home giddy with excitement for the day to come.

At the time, part of me was worried she wouldn't show up. It's funny, looking back on it now, that the thought of Julia not showing would have been a source of fear rather than relief. But she did, of course. The knocks on my door were perfectly in sync with the alarm I had set up on my phone to remind me of her impending arrival.

I opened the door as casually as possible, trying my best to hide my excitement, and found Julia standing there, smiling pleasantly. She didn't seem to have changed her outfit at all since the night before, either that or she simply had multiple sets of the same clothes like Einstein. To be honest I was a little embarrassed, part of me worried I had misread her intentions entirely, and that this was meant purely as a social call.

I showed her inside politely and asked if she wanted anything to drink, and she gently declined the offer, looking around my house methodically like the camera of a Mars rover surveying an alien environment. There was a bit of awkward silence that I attempted to fill with one-sided small talk whilst she wandered about the house, seeming to scan every nook and cranny. I followed behind, feeling increasingly awkward. Finally, she turned to look at me and spoke simply, "You will pierce my skin with needles."

I'll admit I'd never been especially fond of needle play. It had always seemed too gentle, too tame for my specific proclivities, but that's not to say I was inexperienced with it, and I was only too eager to indulge Julia if that was what she wanted. In the end, pain is pain after all.

Now of course, I gave my whole spiel about safety and consent, talking about the whole "traffic light" system, soft limits versus hard limits, etc. Julia nodded along, still smiling pleasantly, maintaining eye contact somewhat uncomfortably throughout my entire monologue. It was only when I got to the concept of safe words and asked what would work for her when she opened her mouth.

"There will be no safe word," she said.

Now I'm familiar with newbies to this sort of thing who get cocky and insist that they can take it, that they don't have any limits, but this felt different. This wasn't a statement of confidence, this wasn't bragging, Hell, this wasn't even someone with self-worth issues who thinks that getting hurt beyond their limits is what they deserve. This was a statement of fact. There would be no safe word. I wouldn't need one.

I wanted to argue of course. I wouldn't be a safe sexual partner if I just did away with important safety techniques because someone told me they weren't necessary, but my words just seemed to die on my lips as I looked at her unsettlingly calm smile. This was around when I started to fully realize something was wrong, but it was as if I couldn't do anything about it. The stage was set, and there was no changing the role I was about to play in the proceedings. Torturer, enter stage right.

She lay face down on the couch, removing her hoodie and shirt to reveal a completely unblemished back, skin smooth and pale as cream. Despite my growing anxiety, I was still, at this point, somewhat excited.

In case you aren't familiar with the subject, needle play is exactly what it sounds like; it's essentially a somewhat sexier version of acupuncture. I have a set of acupuncture needles with jeweled tips at the blunt end for this purpose, a gift from a friend of mine. I removed the needles from their case, making sure to clean them with an alcohol soaked cloth before setting them on a sterile tray for further use. Once I had prepared all of the needles, I began to gently pierce them one by one into the flesh of Julia's back, arranging them into a symmetrical pattern.

You don't go deep during needle play, as with all properly done BDSM the end goal isn't to seriously injure one's partner, but to explore different sensory experiences. When done correctly, one doesn't even leave much in the way of marks or bruising. Ultimately you're far more likely to receive a scar from an upset house cat from someone who has the proper experience with needle play.

Now, usually folks tend to have a fairly noticeable reaction to being pierced with dozens of needles, even if said needles are only inserted gently and to a shallow depth. While it's certainly not the most painful form of sadomasochism I've indulged in, it's far from mild. There is usually a hitching of the breath, a faint shudder, even moaning if one gets really into it. Julia, however, remained totally motionless, and the steady rhythm of her breathing continued uninterrupted.

I'll be entirely honest, I was a little concerned that I was doing a bad job. The whole joy of sadism, to me anyway, is to see the reaction someone gets from what I do to them, to know that they are feeling these sensations because of me. It makes me feel powerful, in control. To receive no response whatsoever was, frankly, a little embarrassing.

I'd finished inserting the last of the needles when Julia finally spoke.

"Push them all the way."

I shouldn't have to tell you that's not how this works. These weren't short needles, they were several inches long each. Pushing each one down to the base wouldn't just be agonizing, it would be incredibly dangerous as well; I could easily perforate her lungs at a minimum.

And yet, I found my hands moving to the last needle I had pierced her with. I felt myself grasp the jeweled head and begin gently pressing downwards, slowly burying the entire length of the needle into the flesh of her back.

It's surreal, not having control over one's own body, to experience taking actions which you do not want to perform. It's not like watching a movie, you can feel yourself doing it the entire time, all the while you're filled with a dawning horror that you're nothing more than a puppet on a string. To feel your own body betray you is the most viscerally upsetting sensation I've ever had.

One by one, each of the needles were pushed to the base into Julia's back by my trembling, sweaty fingers. I'd like to say there was no blood, that it was as though I were simply pressing sticks into wet clay, but that would be too kind to me, wouldn't it? No, I had to watch as deep rivulets of crimson bubbled up from the dozens of puncture wounds I was inflicting upon my still seemingly uncaring victim. She didn't so much as twitch, just continuing to breath methodically even as I saw bubbles of air form in the blood pouring from those wounds which pierced her lungs. My mind was attempting to retreat into itself, horrified at the loss of control I was experiencing, overwhelmed by the total absence of agency. My face was streaked with tears, ruining the makeup I had put on in the hopes of impressing her. God, to think I once worried about how she would think of me. It took me a moment to notice when she got up from the couch, putting back on her shirt, blood soaking through the fabric.

"Thank you for a very pleasant afternoon. I will be stopping by next week on the same day, at the same time. You will meet me then," she said, sliding her hoodie over the stained t-shirt. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a folded stack of hundred dollar bills, placing it on the coffee table while I sobbed. With that, she left and walked out the door.

Somehow, by the time I managed to pull myself together, I still had the wherewithal to feel self-conscious about the money. I don't do this sort of thing for pay, I've never wanted to do sex work. It isn't that I have any sort of moral qualms with that, but this sort of thing is basically a hobby for me, one that admittedly is a rather an important part of my life, but it's not my job. Being paid for it felt deeply wrong to me. It made me feel dirty, accepting that money, but it was more than enough to keep me financially stable for a week, and there was no way I was going to be able to go to my day job any time soon after what I'd experienced. I called in sick as soon as I was able to speak without crying.

I spent a while processing what happened. It wasn't just traumatic because of the lack of control, though that certainly doesn't help. I've often been self-conscious about my proclivities, worried that I'm somehow predatory, that I'm a bad person. Something that helps is knowing that what I'm doing isn't really that dangerous, that it's just a bit of unusual fun. Even at my most vicious the only lasting damage are a few bruises. To watch someone have needles pierced into their vital organs by my own hands, it's different. It's not just harmless fun anymore.

I came up with all sorts of explanations for what could have happened. Maybe Julia was a master hypnotist, and she had put me into some sort of trance. She could have replaced my regular needles with telescoping ones, like those prop knives they use in theater. Perhaps she was wearing some sort of prosthetic makeup on her back filled with fake blood. Maybe she drugged me. In my heart of hearts though, I knew that none of these rationalizations held any truth.

A week came and went, and I found myself waiting at my home for Julia. I didn't want to, I tried to call up a friend to stay with, but my vocal cords froze up whenever I attempted to ask them. I tried placing a reservation for a hotel room online, but my fingers refused to let me click the mouse. Even when I tried leaving on foot, I found myself steadily walking back to my house as soon as the clock struck noon. My appointment with Julia would be kept.

When she arrived, Julia was still wearing the same outfit as the last week, albeit cleaned of blood. She held a small package wrapped in brown paper and twine in her left hand. She greeted me by name cheerfully enough, and despite the terror I felt at the sight of her, I found my mouth twisting into an involuntary smile as I welcomed her into my home with a tone of similar warmth. Only the tears flowing down my face indicated my true feelings. My mind kept playing back images of me pushing the needles into her back, of the blood bubbling with the rhythm of her breathing.

She got right to the point, informing me that today I would be whipping her. Even now, I'm still not used to the way she phrases her instructions. When you use the proper terminology for these sorts of things, you're reminding yourself that it's not actually harmful, that it's just, in essence, a game. "Impact play" feels so much less cruel than whipping. But Julia doesn't care about what I feel. She just makes me hurt her.

I went to go retrieve one of the various floggers I owned, deciding I would choose whichever one I thought would cause the least damage, when Julia simply said, "Stop."

Instantly I froze in my tracks, not moving a muscle. I heard the rustling of paper from behind me, the sound of her unwrapping the object she had brought with her. "Turn around," she instructed. I did so instantly, without hesitation, despite how strongly I didn't want to see what she would present me with.

It reminded me somewhat of a discipline, a type of scourge used in certain Christian denominations as an instrument of penance, a tool for the mortification of the flesh. It was composed of seven lengths of slightly rusted chain, with three jagged knots of barbed wire sticking out along each one. She held it out to me, and I took it, shaking slightly. I felt like I was going to be sick. Getting a closer look at the discipline, I could tell that the links of the chain were sharpened to a razor's edge.

I must again reiterate; I enjoy hurting people. I like seeing people in pain, I like seeing people submit their bodies to me, to watch them be hurt because they willingly give me the power to inflict suffering upon them for my own pleasure. I know there are probably a lot of people out there like me who would be overjoyed to spend time with Julia, to be with a partner who truly has no limits, for whom you can do whatever you want to her and she'll just take it, wordlessly. They probably wouldn't even need to be controlled in the way that she does to me, or if they were, they may not even notice it. But I'm not one of those people. I enjoy hurting people, not maiming them.

She took off her shirt again, this time kneeling on the floor instead of laying down. By some terrible miracle, her back showed no scars from our last session. I was once again greeted with that same creamy, unblemished skin. She told me to begin, and I did. I felt my hand clench, white knuckled, around the handle of the discipline, and I began to swing it with all my might against her back. The rusted, razor sharp metal tore into her flesh like a knife through butter, leaving terrible gashes from which blood flowed like the tears of weeping saints. I tried to keep track of how many times my body swung that terrible scourge, but I lost count at one hundred lashes. By the time she told me I could stop, her vertebrae and the back of her rib cage were visible, peeking out from the ruined, bloody flesh of her back.

Like before, impossibly calmly given the utter ruination of her body, she stood up, put back on her clothes, and thanked me for my time, informing me once again that I would be seeing her the same time next week. She left me another stack of hundred dollar bills, more than the last time, and left. I curled in the fetal position upon the blood soaked floor and cried until I passed out.

That was months ago. Since then, it's only gotten increasingly worse.

I quit my job. I have long since run out of excuses to explain my continued absence, and the money from Julia more than pays for my expenses, so I just sent in a resignation email and didn't show up for work after that. I wish I could say it was an improvement, not needing to work anymore, but all it means is I have more time to focus on the terrible things I've been made to do against my will.

Every week is different, some new torture she wants me to perform on her. Each time she is completely healed from the previous session, and each time her requests seem to get more extreme, further from anything even vaguely resembling something remotely conventional. I don't want to go into detail as to the specifics, just reliving our first two meetings is traumatic enough, but it has become increasingly rare for me to use any of my own equipment, instead she usually comes in with some new object wrapped in brown paper and string. A potato peeler, a power drill, a nailgun, a branding iron, etc.

Most recently, the package she brought was small, compact. She unwrapped it to reveal a smooth, black, handgun, a Glock I think, with a suppressor already threaded into the end of the barrel. That session was very quick.

Even with the bullet wound clear through her forehead and out the back of her skull, she kept up that polite, gentle smile. I looked through the newly created tunnel of flesh and bone that marred her otherwise beautiful face as she politely thanked me for my hospitality, informing me that she would meet with me again next week at the same time.

[hope-of-virgo]

2024

happy new year!

you can find the post i'll be referencing continually here: https://www.tumblr.com/hope-of-virgo/706484244807024640/im-currently-bedridden-as-a-result-of-hormonal?source=share

so it's a little under a year since I wrote the original, and things have surely made a change.

my (now) wife and i got married less than a month ago, in the eyes of the australian government i'm a girl, and i seem to have stumbled backwards into a management(ish) role at work.

so... about those resolutions.

stop: doomscrolling i had an amount of success on this, partially due to twitter shitting its pants and reddit having the Great Blackout and subsequent degradation of content. a lot of algorithmically sorted internet shit has done this recently, and a lot of it comes down to "we are approaching a fiscal cliff". what i have picked up from this though is that i'm enjoying learning new skills, such as fermenting and learning sql. i don't carry around a handbag project as much anymore due to some joint issues i've been having making me switch to a backpack, and doing an rsi at work.

stop: masking my autism this has definitely gotten better with my hrt progressing; i'm less afraid to be my authentic self. the hard part has been the pronoun switch and managing the mood problems that happen as a result. for those not in the know, i switched from he/they to she/they after someone at the pole studio called me "she" and i was like "huh...didn't hate that". i also generally held the view that if people weren't calling me that without being told, it would feel inauthentic to ask them.

stop: making excuses not to go to the pole studio this hasn't stopped, but it's as much to do with other factors as it is me butting heads with a number of studio members. actually getting there is difficult without driving, and due to my town growing really fast as a result of melbourne being really fucking expensive to live in, there's been a large cop presence flood in too. i'm a medicinal cannabis user for chronic pain, any amount of thc in my system meets the evidentiary burden for drug driving, and good luck getting a social work job with that on my record. i'm moving to an electric scooter this year, which should solve a lot of these issues.

keep: cooking my own meals now that my wife and i are living together, i'd already be cooking for her, so it's an easy routine to keep food in the house for the both of us. it's also getting easier to find reasons to cook my own meals since i now no longer live within walking distance of 3 different pizza shops, the cost of food has basically doubled in the last year, and my wife is getting into the "growing your own food" side of urban homesteading, which gives me lots of options to cook with seasonal produce.

keep: doing gender affirmation my op shopping buddy bounced in and out of rehab a lot this year and we actually haven't seen each other at all as a result. she reached out to me proactively at christmas as well, which is a first, so i have high hopes for that. my hair's getting longer and changing texture, and i'm fitting the form of "women's clothing" a lot better now. i'm still shit at makeup but i always feel better about myself when i do it so while fucking it up feels bad (god knows when i turned up to work having fucked up my eye shadow in like september i looked like i'd been kicked in the face), getting it right feels amazing.

keep: watching new shows and listening to new music i actually went pretty well at this i think. i had the aim of getting to 2000 songs in my spotify library, which is a 25% increase, and i think i ended the calendar year with 1990. i went to a lot more live music this year, i saw betty who, cry club, eilish gilligan, florence and the machine, aleksiah, bella amor, teenage joans, merci mercy, and waterparks. i also went to see lights' headline show in melbourne, which is a top 5 experiences of my life moment. she's been my most listened to artist for the last 10 years. when she was performing "when the summer dies" she got down into the crowd, and there was this moment where she looked at me, then ran her hand through my hair. this sounds like fanfic but i swear on my life that it happened.

start: eating more vegetables i'm doing better at this; i'm a sensory seeker when it comes to food, and vegetables are pretty boring. i also don't really like sweet food (and neither do my teeth, but that's a different story), so getting my fruit intake can be hard. i've solved the problem to an extent with pickles and ferments, and mixing fruit into yogurt as well.

start: actively reducing household waste my state has introduced bottle and can deposit refunds. we don't buy a lot of bottled and canned drinks, but it's nice to have the added incentive. we bought a compost bin with our wedding money, and i'm loving being able to find something to do with the veggie scraps. i'm looking into vertical farming gourmet mushrooms this year. we've moved to household cleaners where you basically get a "forever bottle" and fill them with refills, which you then send the bag back and they reuse it. the plastics they use as part of this scheme are also recycled from reclaimed ocean plastics, which is kind of cool. my bestie made me some beeswax wraps, and i think i've used single-use plastic wrap like 3 times this year maybe. that's not even counting the plastic savings from not buying bread from the shops anymore.

start: more longform journaling got banned from instagram for it, but that's probably not a net negative. doing longform writing when you're already doing a lot for uni can be a challenge, but i've done a bit. i've also joined the fediverse as part of the reddit exodus, and that's been a bit of fun.

start: diversifying my income sources i'm now an accredited life model, though i've actually been too busy to utilise it. i've basically retired from *~spicy accounting~* as well, because i'm having a bunch of problems even having sex in my private life, let alone doing it at work. the economic issues have also cut out a lot of my clientele, so i'm taking it as a sign from the universe that it's time to go do something else. i also decided to quit my job, which people like @tamaaya68000 and @gotouhitori have been trying to convince me to do since that one awesome time in 2021 where i tried to jump in front of a train because it seemed like a better option than going to work the following monday. fortunately there are positions open in other parts of the hospital that i'm applying for later today, and when i get my diploma i'll likely apply at child protection, who are so desperate for workers that they're promising guaranteed promotion to cpp4 within 2 years and hiring people on working holiday visas from other countries to fill the skilled workers gap.

start: interior decorating currently writing this from in the middle of a bunch of still-packed moving boxes from when i moved in like 3 months ago. it's a work in progress. i'm going to ask a friend of mine to paint me some things as some commissioned art, but beyond that i'm actually not sure what i want to do with the space.

2024's resolutions will probably come next week, but overall i'm pretty happy with the year 2023.

[casspurrjoybell-29]

Healing Ties - Chapter 32 - Part 1

*Warning Adult Content*

Yore had just opened the door to his cabin after arriving home, ready to put on some clothes, check in with his mother, and then go and see how Fanner was getting on, when he heard the sound of someone approaching fast from behind him.

They often ran in wolf form just to get around faster and the kids were always dashing about all over the place but this sounded different.

More urgent.

Raya collapsed forward in front of Yore as he turned to face her, shifting with a speed and ease that Yore envied.

She was panting as she pushed herself up onto two feet.

"My sister is here. Sani."

"Ah," Yore said.

He had known she was one of the ones who had been considering challenging him but he hadn't expected her to be the first to make a move.

"Well, that's okay. No need to panic."

Raya shook her head.

"She has Fanner."

Yore grit his teeth around a curse and forced himself to take a couple of breaths in and out.

"She wouldn't hurt him. She's just here to challenge me. Hurting him would start a whole incident. Besides, I've never taken her as the type to do something like that."

Raya shrugged helplessly.

She looked like she might cry.

Yore had never seen her cry before.

"Take me to them."

Fanner kept expecting Sani and the other werewolves to do something to him, to hurt him or to try to take him somewhere else but they seemed to be waiting for something.

They hadn't even touched him yet.

Sani had seemed to have some level of hostility towards him when she'd spoken to Raya but honestly, Fanner had seen worse.

She seemed to have no interest in antagonising him purely for the sake of it.

Fanner dug a little rut in the dirt with the toe of his boot.

He hadn't moved from the log where she'd told him to sit.

"Are you going to let me go?"

Sani barely glanced at him.

"Not yet."

"But..."

"But we will, yes."

Fanner nodded.

"Okay. Thank you."

Sani shot him a baffled look.

"Listen, I don't want to hurt you. None of us do. We just don't all think it's our responsibility to help you like Yore does."

"That's reasonable."

"It is reasonable. Where is he going to lead us if he insists we do everything for everyone without even asking for equal payment?"

"That's true. He's done a lot more for me than I have for him."

Sani let out a frustrated sigh.

"Do you even think you belong out here?"

"I don't know where I belong."

"Not here."

"You're probably right."

Sani was about to say something else when suddenly her head turned and her lips pressed into a flat line.

A few seconds later, Fanner saw two wolves running towards them down the dirt track.

One of them was big and black and heart clenching, familiar.

Fanner stood from the log as Yore started to shift.

It took him three times as long to return to his human form as it did Raya but this time he was deliberately masking what a painful process it was for him.

"Yore, be careful," Fanner warned. "I think it's a trap."

As Yore straightened onto two legs, he was unable to conceal the awful popping sound his back made.

"It's okay, Fanner. I understand what's happening here. Though I have to say, Sani, I'd have preferred if kidnapping my guest weren't a part of it. You didn't have to lure me out here to challenge me."

Sani shrugged.

"I prefer to do things without an audience."

Yore gave the three other werewolves a pointed look.

"Without an audience of my people."

"I know, Sani. You've got too much honour to lure me out here and gang up on me. And too much sense."

"Sani, don't fight him," Raya begged. "I know him. He'll be a good leader."

"And you don't think I would be?" Sani challenged.

Raya pressed her lips together and didn't respond, but she walked over to Fanner and pulled him back down with her as she sat on the log.

"We would be more patient if it wasn't for this thing with the mages," Sani told Yore. "Why are you doing this? Why are you risking war for a group of people who'll just go crawling back to their human masters after the dust settles? This isn't the first time they've had a chance at freedom."

"You talk about them like they're a monolith. Like things that happened before any of us were born mean that this young man right here has already had his chance at freedom and shouldn't get another one. That's ridiculous, Sani."

"He can have whatever he wants but that doesn't mean I should have to fight to give it to him."

"Yet you'll fight to take it from him."

"If that's how you want to see things," Sani said, and then she shifted.

Yore started shifting barely a second later but of course she was faster than him.

Fanner half expected her to jump on him right away and take advantage of his vulnerability between forms, but she waited. Not long, though.

The second Yore had fully shifted, she was on him.

Yore jumped back as she lunged for his throat, then reared up and tried to use his greater size and weight to pin her down.

She squirmed away and came back up, teeth gnashing.

The way Yore was being forced to move had to hurt him but he didn't let it show, didn't let it slow him down.

Yore tried to pin her again but this time she avoided him entirely, whipped back around and then her teeth were in his throat.

A hand enclosed Fanner's wrist and he realised he'd stood.

Raya shook her head at him as she pulled him back down.

Yore was bleeding from his throat and everyone was just watching.

And then Yore swung around and slammed his body against Sani's and she went flying into the closet tree.

Before she could get back up, Yore was there, bearing down on her, teeth bared in threat.

There was a moment of stillness between them and then Yore eased off and the fight was over.

The amount Yore was bleeding became clearer when he shifted back.

More than Fanner would have liked but not enough to be dangerous.

Yore clamped a hand over it to stem the flow but otherwise ignored the injury.

"Nothing broken?"

Sani made a face as she stood back up on two legs and tested out her arms and back.

"Hmm."

"Good. If you are hurt, we'll treat your injuries but otherwise I expect you to clear out of our territory. You're no longer welcome here."

Yore turned away from her, indicated for Fanner to follow him with a tilt of his head and then walked away.

Raya was struggling not to cry as she caught up with Yore.

"Am I still allowed to stay here?"

"Yes, of course," Yore said. "You did nothing wrong."

Raya looked back towards where they'd left her sister, though she was too far down the path to be visible now.

"She shouldn't have done this. She's not my sister any more."

"Raya... I know at your age all adults seem so old but she's barely twenty. She has so much time to grow and change. Don't be so quick to throw away the only close family connection you have left."

"Being family doesn't mean anything. You're only my cousin and you're better than her."

"It doesn't have to mean anything if that's what you decide but the two of you have been through a lot together. No matter what I do, I can't be the person who was there with you and protected you when you were younger. That was her. That will always have been her. The past is the one thing nobody can change."

Raya made a quiet, distressed sound in the back of her throat.

"I'm not going to tell you what to do but I do recommend that, for now, you do nothing. You're upset and you're angry and you don't want those emotions making decisions for you."

Raya dropped her head and nodded.

"Do you need me to walk back with you or can I...?"

"I'm sure Fanner can get me back safely."

"Okay," Raya murmured, and then she shifted and ran off down the path ahead of them.

[wraith-caller]

I have felt the same way since my first playthrough, and hoped as I delved deeper into the lore I'd gain a better understanding. But nothing really clicked for me. Many other types of enemy, like demi humans, jars, misbegotten, dragons, and omens has at least one character that gives us an insight into their people and lives. They show us that they're sentient, not mindless cannon fodder for the player to deal with. I've seen people say "but that's the point! They're just trying to exist and because you don't understand them you judge them!" And that'd be a fine rebuttal if not for the fact TWLID are what they are through involuntary exposure to a curse. This is not a foreign culture or other race that we hold some prejudice against because they hold different beliefs or something. They were just dead people, probably from all walks of life, forced to live as rotting corpses against their wills, and we have no one from within that group advocating for or expressing contentment with this kind of existence. Fia may stick up for them, but she isn't one of them, and does not know what it is to live with this curse.

However, it's helped me to see this not as a story trying to tell us that TWLID should be left to live the cursed existence forced on them, but as about Fia. She comes from a country that's got some interesting approaches to death. And we don't know much about what it takes to become a deathbed companion. Is it something she was trained for? Born into as a family practice? Born with as a gift of some kind? Whatever the case, we do know that while she was comfortable with being one, she held some resentment over the lack of choice she was given about who she'd be resurrecting. Then to add insult to injury, she's woken to grace and exiled from her homeland, forced to the lands between which operates largely under the governance of a group at odds with her homelands' culture.

It'd probably be pretty shitty to have the way of life you knew torn from you because of a goddess you don't even worship demanding your aid in a fight you have nothing to do with. It'd also be pretty shitty for your own people to turn their backs on you for something you had no control over and didn't ask for.

This is of course very similar to the plight of the undead. So Fia may see too much of herself in their struggle. As someone already conditioned to be comfortable with corpses, their grotesque and rotting appearance probably wouldn't bother her. She sees these exiles and outcasts, and knows she's just the same as them. She's looking for a place to belong, and she finds it with the undead. And even better, she somehow discovers the source of their curse is a dead noble. She gets to make the choice for herself to become the mother of these wretches, to give them the acceptance she should have had, and she gets to go beyond her duty and make a choice for herself to lay with godwyn and deliver him a new life.

Maybe it's not any more helpful than the traditional reading of the story, since theres still the fact that these undead are forced to live with this curse. Fia doesn't see it as a curse, and is doing what she feels is best for them. It's not rational, but it's human.

okay so maybe im being narrow minded but imo i had a hard time sympathizing with those who live in death purely through Fias questline

like everywhere you see those who live in death they are all nothing more than mindless skeletons, and then you see the Godwyn and god that is such a horrible existence

and like fias questline comes around and its just not convincing because shes a regular human(tarnished sure but its laking) and it makes it hard to sympathize with the undead and even gödwyn, because they are all evidently suffering within this existence forced upon them by a curse

it would honestly be so much better and investing if Fia herself was undead or rotting or skeletal and unable to die but somehow managing to find peace in this state and advocating for others like her who had no choice or say in how they are. but instead she's just... normal :/

[joshslater]

Dionysus

Similar stories and bonus material on my Patreon.

I was very hesitant when he picked me up at the nightclub. I could feel the disappointment and outright hostility from all the women and a lot of the men as the God walked up to me, started to make out, and then asked if I was up for some fun. That's what you get away with when no one ever says "no" I thought. With his incredibly handsome face, black hair, and athletic build that was probably not a word he was used to hearing. It would be impossible for him to know I was into guys, and coming on so strong could land you in hot water or rather knocked cold on the floor. Turns out he could know, and there was more to him than just utter handsomeness and unparalleled confidence. Way more.

It was back at his place he asked me if I could look like someone else, who would I pick? That's a game I've played many times before, so I instantly knew to answer Marco Albieri, the soccer player. He raised an eyebrow, took a step from me, and asked me why. "I don't know what it is about soccer players, but something about the game makes their bodies stunningly handsome. And Marco is just a step above the rest." He smiled a bright smile, made a dramatic gesture, and I was Marco. Looked exactly like him at least. It took me a moment to even realize what had just happened, but I could see myself in the full-length mirror. Or I couldn't, I should say. I saw Marco Albieri in full Paris Saint-Germain F.C. game kit. Mesmerized I took a step closer to the mirror, and Marco on the other side of the glass stepped closer as well. I looked just like him, my wettest, wankiest dream. I'd come so many times to exactly this fantasy. There was even a sheen of post-game sweat making all the skin glistening in his hallway designer lights.

He approached me from behind, still handsome but now by a much narrower margin. "You ready to fuck?" I didn't even answer but just turned around and kissed him. He wasn't shy in grouping me back. What followed was the longest fuck fest I've ever been part of. We went from room to room. It was like this body had limitless stamina, though it was the body of Marco after all, but an insatiable horny lust as well. Perhaps he had that too. It wasn't until early morning I fell asleep next to him, exhausted.

It was almost noon when I woke up, disoriented by everything. It was like it wasn't until now the craziness and impossibility of last night hit me. I could see Marco Albieri in the mirror at the other side of the bedroom, without shirt, and the most unkempt hair I had ever seen him with. I knew for a fact the secret hairstyling trick was body fluids. I suddenly felt very uneasy and exposed. Vulnerable even. I was here on vacation. How could I leave if I didn't look like my passport? How could I leave this building looking like Marco? There would be fans stopping me instantly. What the fuck am I thinking about? I'm erased from the world. No one I know, no one in my family would recognize me. Could I convince them I'm me and not a millionaire soccer player? Perhaps. But my life would be so complicated.

That's when he lazily strolled into the bedroom, completely naked showing off his chiseled body, one mug in each hand.

"You did this! How the fuck did you do this? You can't leave me like this!" "Morning!"

He handed me one of the mugs. On reflex I took a large sip of coffee only to discover it was red wine. It took me by surprise and I almost sprayed his white sheets with red mist of wine, but instead got some down my lungs and started to cough.

"Is this really the best you can think of?" he said. At first I had no idea what he meant. Then, still coughing, I realized it was my body again. The one I used to fly here, check into the hotel, and go out to nightclubs with.

"I... It's awfully inconvenient if I tried to leave with a different body." "That's it? That's the only reason?"

I felt stupid and unsure what to say. I liked my body, so why was it so hard to defend it? He took a large sip from his coffee mug of wine and climbed into bed next to me, but standing on his knees looking down on me.

"When's your flight back?" "Eh, in... On Sunday." "Plenty of time to let loose. How about going to the beach like this?"

This time I noticed the shift. The bed sagged down a bit under the extra load and I didn't even have to look in the mirror to see the freakish muscles. Two huge chest muscles peeked into my field of vision, and moving my arm I could see it was thicker than what my legs used to be.

I felt light-headed as we walked down to the beach. Probably the wine. He was subtle and classy, black Nike sneakers, black boardshorts, and a white T-shirt. I was anything but subtle. Probably twice his mass, annoying flip flops that flipped and flopped every step, white compression shorts that looked blindingly bright against my deep tan, a purple thong that peeked up over the rim of the shorts by the hips, visible because the neon yellow tank top was cropped above the belly button to show off the abs. The stringer waved for every step as my obscene pecs push out the yellow fabric like a hanging flag. It touched my body in surprisingly few places. Top of the traps and the nipples more or less.

After spending a few hours getting everyone passing by on the beach to turn their heads to observe the freak show he asked me to play floatation device for him. We went out in the water and did our best to have sex just outside where the waves broke. I think anyone who paid close attention could tell what we did, but no one could be really sure. He didn't appear to care.

"I made you something," he whispered. "What?" "A surfer," he said and begun walking towards the beach. As I wiped my long hair out of my face I understood he changed me again. No more shaved head, no more enormous meat slab. I still had a six-pack, I was still 6'-something, and my skin was deeply tanned, but that's about where the similarities ended. "Why?" I asked as I lied down on the beach towel next to his. "First dive bar opens soon, and I thought this would play better to the crowd." I was feeling woozy. "We want to play to the crowd?" He reached over and squeezed the pec closest to him. "Well, make them jealous at least."

There was something nagging at the edge of my thoughts. Some question I felt I needed to ask. I just couldn't quite put it into coherent thought.

"Did you drug me?" He made a high-pitched "Mmmm" sound. "Just a bit. To fit with the rest. Just go with it."

I shut my eyes, relaxed, and let his hand stroke me. I don't know how long we lied like that. Not too long, because the sun hadn't moved that much, but I sure did dozed off.

"Come on!" he said, like it was asking me to hurry up for the third time. A bit confused I got up from the beach towel. I wore a pair of eye-popping turquoise board shorts with black pattern and trim. Neon turquoise, if such a color was a thing. I knew it had a real trade name, but somehow it kept slipping my mind. They had a good fit, not loose, not tight, but rode low on my lithe body. Fuzzy pubes peeked out over the waistband, like a little forest edge where the treasure trail from the belly button ended. I looked around for a shirt or something to put on, but there was nothing except for a pair of flip-flops. These didn't look as cheap and fit much better than the previous pair though.

"Is that it?" I asked incredulously. "What more do you need?" he said, and looked at me like he wanted me for dinner. "Come!"

The bar wasn't far away and already busy when we arrived. He almost danced in, basically dragging me in, holding my hand. I was woozy from whatever I was drugged with, but in a way that made everything look amazing to me. In any direction I looked I was delighted by what I saw, no matter how mundane. The bar was not even half full and everyone looked as relaxed as you would expect from a bar half a block from the beach, though no one else was bare-chested. The decor was a random mix of styles, as expected by a dive bar. Tables for two or four were lined up in front of the bar at the back of the room. From a backroom somewhere behind it pumped music. I looked at my watch to see if it was already dance time, but I was only wearing a red nylon cord as a bracelet.

"You must be thirsty after a day in the sun," he said and handed me an Aperol Spritz. I could have sworn he hadn't left me for the bar, but then I didn't really trust my senses. We took a table for four and sat next to each other, facing the rest of the room. "So, tell me about your day," he continued, as if he hadn't been there for all of it.

For whatever reason I found it hard to figure out where to start, like it was all jumbled together despite nothing of consequence had happened. I began to describe how I had woken up in bed and how he surprised me with breakfast. How I had mistaken the red wine for coffee. I could feel his hand moving down my abs and into my board shorts. As he pulled out my erect cock from the shorts my immediate thought was of surprise. I hadn't realized I was hard. I continued to talk about how we went to the beach, while he was jerking me off with one hand under the table. It then hit me that I had no idea what my dick looked like, if it was big or small. I had never seen it. He had transformed me somehow into this surfer. How could I have forgotten something so monumental.

At that point I shot my load under the table. Four or five large pumps. I was suddenly aware again that there were people around us, and looking around tried to figure out if any of them could see I had my dick out. At the same time I was still feeling high or whatever it was. "I'll get a refill," he said, stood up and headed for the bar. I decided to put my dick back into the shorts.

"Hey, dude. Is he like your boyfriend?" someone standing next to me asked. How long had he been there? He was handsome, not quite as tall as I was now, but more muscled. The tight billabong shirt didn't hide much. "Him? No. We just..." I was trying to think of a good word. I wasn't sure what he was, or what was happening at all really. "Wanna check out the dance floor?" "Yeah... Yeah, I would."

I followed him towards the bar, and away to the side into the dance room. It was far from packed, but we were not alone at least. Immediately I regretted following him there, even before he started moving to the music. Once he did I knew I would look silly. I started to mimic his moves best I could. He smiled a crooked smile, though not an unkind one, when he saw what I was doing. He leaned forward and barely audible over the music asked "Are you up for a second round?"

"What do you mean?" I asked back. "I saw what that other dude did to you. I live nearby, if you want to try something that isn't over in minutes."

In the door opening I see him standing with two large drinks in his hands. He looks emotionless, which in itself was a scary contrast to how he looked before. He then drinks one of the drinks in one go, then immediately empties the other one as well. No sooner has he turned away with two empty glasses when I feel a desperate need to take a piss. He's fucking with me.

"Don't go anywhere," I say and dash towards to men's room.

It's empty. I go to the lone urinal and yank my dick out of the white thong. I'm confused, but happy I got there in time to relieve myself. Why am I wearing only a white thong to a bar? As the piss is streaming for longer than I can ever recall I look down my bare smooth legs and find a pair of eye-catching red hightops. When I'm finally done I have a look at myself in the mirror. Cute, young Latino boy with a red baseball cap on his unkempt hair, and a grey shirt. The shirt in a way makes the thong stand out even more and look intentionally inappropriate. Perfect!

I return to the dance floor and find the guy waiting. "There you are. Let's go!" he says, almost demanding. He doesn't say anything on the way to his apartment two blocks away. I keep looking his way, and it feels like my dick is growing bigger every time I look at those muscled arms. His pace is brisk without being conspicuous, he clearly wants us to get to his place as quickly as possible without being seen. In through an unlocked entrance, up two flights of stairs, and in through his apartment door.

As soon as he whisked me in and closed the door behind us he grabs me, shoves me into the wall next to us, and forcefully kisses me on my mouth. "You fucking whore! I'm so fucking horny you better know what you're doing."

He snores loudly again. I had tried to ignore it to spend a few more hours in the bed, but it's getting pointless to try to sleep any more. I carefully get up and get dressed. No need for a shower, now that everything dried. I make a final check I got everything with me that I brought in. There is that nagging feeling that I'm missing something. Well, whatever it was it can't be important. Quietly I exit his apartment and make my way out of the building. I feel restless being so quiet and calm, like it is unnatural for me to be that way. I basically explode in emotions as I exit the building and literally dance down the last few steps.

I try to think what to do next. My mind is like a spinning punch bowl of thoughts and I'm only able to fish out simple verbs. Party! Drink! Dance! Fuck! The sun is barely up, but perhaps I can find some nightclub still open.

[gryffindordaughterofathena]

OK, question time!

Back in med school, it was well known that many students admired Ethan Ramsey’s work (Diana included). Now she attends a medical school alumni reunion at her alma matter. And everybody knows that Diana and Ethan are dating/engaged/married. What’s their former classmates’ reaction when they see her? Do they gossip about it? Do they treat her differently? Does Ethan attend the event as her plus one or does Diana attend by herself because plus ones are not allowed?

You asked this ages ago, but I wanted to answer this with a fic, I am so sorry for the long wait😭

INVISIBLE STRING

Book : Open Heart

Pairing : Ethan Ramsey x Diana Ramirez

Word Count : 864 words

Rating : General

Category : Fluff

Trope : And that med-school ex

Warning : None

Summary : Ethan and Diana attend a med school reunion and find things that connected them for years.

A/N : Are we surprised that the title is another TS song? Also, E and D were both from JHU, so technically they are each other's plus ones.

In the dim string lights strewn across the campus grounds two lone figures walk, their hands entangled in a practiced ease. "I don't know why I let you talk me into this.", the man says, his feet dragging in feigned reluctance.

"Because I am your wife and the love of your life and you can't say no to me?"

"Who said anything about the love of my life?"

"You take that back right now Ethan Ramsey.", her face scrunches up in a pout, which immediately softens as Ethan bends down to kiss her.

"I promise we'll leave the moment it starts getting weird or boring."

"I'll hold you to that promise Rookie."

………….…….…………..

"Is that Ethan Ramsey?"

"With Diana Ramirez?"

"I heard they were married?"

"Is it though? There was nothing in the tabloids?"

"I heard he is extremely private."

"Have you seen him? I'd be private too."

Whispers followed them as they made their way through the hall, whispers they were quite accustomed to by now.

"They are talking about us. Again." Ethan grumbles for what seems to be the hundredth time.

"Just a few minutes more and Arjun and Caitlin will be here soon. And then we can be around normal people. Till then we can go chat with some of our professors. I heard that Professor Mori will be here, let's go meet her."

………….…….…………..

The older woman's face splits into a dazzling smile the moment she spots Diana tugging along Ethan with her.

"If it isn't my two favorite students together.I didn't think you would come"

"Diana forced me obviously."

"At least one of you is the voice of reason then.", the familiarity of the well practiced gentle admonishment from Professor Mori was enough to put them at ease.

"So how long have you two been married?"

"Since last October actually."

"And in these five months she has already worked her magic on you, didn't believe I'd see the day Ethan Ramsey will bring a date to a reunion, much less a wife."

"It's the other way round actually, I am here as her plus one."

"Hah! How the turntables, Diana's been making news lately, your paper on vestibular ataxia has been garnering a lot of good reviews these days.", she turned to Diana. "Actually I wanted to talk about it with you. If you could spare a few minutes."

………….…….…………..

"I am surprised you actually showed up Ethan.", a voice he hadn't thought of in years, startled him from his reverie.

Isabella White

"Although I had a feeling you would be here this year, what with your fairly unknown wife needing all the introductions in our field."

"You really should broaden your horizons regarding the people you share an alumni matter with Doctor White."

"What do you mean?"

"The fact that Doctor Ramirez, youngest keynote speaker at WHO medical symposium doesn't need introductions at her own med school."

The approaching figure in red, draws his attention in a way that he misses the smug smile on Isabella's face fall.

"Hey sorry, I couldn't get away from Doctor Toussaint and his team faster, got into the bit where he started recounting the day Sienna told you he was asking for you."

"Of course he would say that."

"Oh who's that you're talking with?"

"This is Dr. Isabella White, we were in the same year."

"We dated back in our Med School days."

"Oh Tobias and Ethan told me a lot about you." Her smile, successful enough to hide her steely gaze.

Fighting fire with fire

"Well we should be going, it was nice meeting you." From her tone it was anything but.

………….…….…………..

"So, where are you taking me?"

"The place where I went to think."

"Are you sure it's not the library?"

"No, that's the spot where I went to not think."

Starlight and string lights lead them through the campus, through memories of bygone days.

Diana leads him to a sheltered alcove by the internal medicine building.

"I used to come here alone, with your book."

"This place hasn't changed a bit."

"I didn't think anyone knew about this place."

"Probably not many people do, people hardly come here to the back."

"But you did."

"In my final year after the falling out with Tobias, I found this place, I used to sit here and—"

"brood?", a soft adoring smile plays on her face.

"Yeah probably."

"See this little broken edge? That was me."

"I always thought who would have an agenda against garden decorations"

Sitting in silence was never difficult for them as long as they had their fingers intertwined.

It was Diana who broke the silence, "I just find it odd that we both found this place in our different times here, I know you don't believe in soulmates but—"

He doesn't let her continue, his sudden movement in drawing her to him silencing her mid-speech.

His lips captures hers in the blink of an eye, the wind picking up the little murmured, "no, but I am starting to."

A/N : If you've read this far, thank you ❤ this fic probably doesn't make much sense (I am terribly sleep deprived) but I wanted to write Ethan being starry eyed about how amazing his wife is, so you get this 🤷🏾‍♀

Tags : @openheartfanfics @choicesficwriterscreations

Perma :

@a-crepusculo | @choicesfanaf | @coffeeheartaddict2 | @crazy-loca-blog | @genevievemd | @headoverheelsforramsey | @jamespotterthefirst | @jerzwriter | @maurine07 | @mm2305 | @natureblooms24 | @potionsprefect | @quixoticdreamer16 | @rookiemartin | @rosebudde | @schnitzelbutterfingers | @shreyasrivathsa | @sincerelyscarring | @sweetheartdetectivex | @terrm9 | @zahrachoices

Ethan x Diana :

@detective-rose | @queencarb

[kpostedsum]

daddy issues; D.M

summary: you and draco bond over issues in 6th year

word count: 2.4k

warnings: err angst, comfort, illusions to sex

song: daddy issues (the remix) - the neighbourhood

a/n: i tried not to make it stereotypical bc i didn’t wanna make it seem all “i like older men lol”, probably my fav fic i’ve written, also arent these anime gifs so cute

masterlist | taglist

Take you like a drug

I taste you on my tongue

Tongues battling for dominance, bodies rubbing against each other searching for a feeling. It’s become routine now, a different person in your dorm swallowing a new pill, entangling limbs with someone just to feel something.

You ask me what I'm thinking about

I tell you that I'm thinking about

Whatever you're thinking about

Tell me something that I'll forget

And you might have to tell me again

It's crazy what you'll do for a friend

It was a constant cycle, putting yourself out there seeking the male attention you crave, seeking validation, constant reassurance and trusting too easily. That’s how you ended up with a different guy who always in the end leaves. You trusted too easily and people took advantage of how trusting and naive you are just for a quick shag.

You wished it wasn’t like this but that’s all you knew, wanting to be the best version of yourself for someone just to feel needed, no matter if the person was good or bad for you. You didn’t care, you wanted love from anyone you could get it from even if it just hurt you more.

You’re familiar with the absence, something stable made you feel a bit wary. It wasn’t something you were used to. Your father wasn’t the most present in your life, and even though he's there, he's never really there.

Go ahead and cry, little girl

Nobody does it like you do

I know how much it matters to you

I know that you got daddy issues

And if you were my little girl

I'd do whatever I could do

I'd run away and hide with you

I love that she's got daddy issues, and I do too

You always wondered where you went wrong, he preferred your siblings over you and doesn't pay you a piece of his mind. Constantly going out of your way to get his attention whether it was academically or acting a certain way just to get some sort of reaction. But he was too preoccupied with his other children, even if they were from your mom or his affairs.

That’s how you found yourself right now sitting in the astronomy tower past curfew watching the rain fall, trying to clear your head while humming softly to yourself to keep yourself distracted.

You hear distant chattering from below and quickly get up from where you were sitting and make your way to your dorm unnoticed by anyone.

Except one person, Draco Malfoy.

I tried to write your name in the rain

But the rain never came

So I made with the sun

The shade

Always comes at the worst time

He’s seen you before, you’re known around Hogwarts for how you put yourself out there and how ‘desperate’ you are for some affection. He almost feels bad for you, but he’s in no place to judge. With his dad in Azkaban Draco had so much more to worry about, like his task and how he can succeed. But there was something about you that intrigued him that he couldn't ignore.

He saw you again in transfiguration the next day and noticed a few hickeys littering your neck that you had tried to cover but it didn’t work. He wondered why you gave yourself up to so many people, but once again he was in no place to judge. He noticed the way your tongue would stick out when you focused extra hard, the way your hands would tighten around your quill when you got a question wrong and your face.

The same face that many boys including the older years would fawn over, the face that entranced and attracted many, the face of someone who would do anything for someone for some affection and the face of someone who seeked out all the wrong things.

You ask me what I'm thinking about

I tell you that I'm thinking about

Whatever you're thinking about

Tell me something that I'll forget

And you might have to tell me again

It's crazy what you'll do for a friend

You walk out of transfiguration on your way to the owlery to send a letter to your parents and feel eyes watching you everywhere. You like it, the attention, it’s something that you thrived in, but you couldn’t help but feel a new set of eyes on you.

Once you reached the owlery you realized you weren't the only one there, Draco Malfoy was also there sending a letter to who you assumed was his mother.

“y/n, right?” he asked, trying to spark a conversation.

“Yea, listen i’m sorry about what happened with your father i know you really looked up--”

“Dont worry about it, he wasn’t as good an influence as I made him out to be,” he sighed, looking away.

“My dad isn’t the best either if i’m being honest, i guess we’re in the same boat” you let out a light chuckle.

And that’s how you found yourself hanging out with draco malfoy bonding over your shared issues.

Go ahead and cry, little girl

Nobody does it like you do

I know how much it matters to you

I know that you got daddy issues

And if you were my little girl

I'd do whatever I could do

I'd run away and hide with you

I love that she's got daddy issues

It’s been weeks since you two started hanging out since the interaction in the owlery and have been getting closer ever since. You both sat down together in the astronomy tower, backed against the wall as the cool wind blew against your faces. The aura between you two was calm, a comfortable silence.

“So tell me about your dad, how is it with him in Azkaban?” you asked, tilting your head towards him.

“Mother’s not taking it well” he frowned. “I can’t even say potter’s wrong for getting him locked up because he deserves it. All my life he praised the dark lord and taught me to be selfish and always defend my blood, but he was never there for me when I needed him. I would have done everything just to hear ‘i’m proud of you’ but it never came. It’s worse now because mother’s all alone. I wish I could have stayed with her” he sighed looking out the tower watching the stars twinkle.

“I’ve noticed you’ve been much quieter this year as well, you stopped making fun of people. It’s not that nice on the receiving end huh?” you said with a teasing look on your face.

He shook his head at you scooting closer to you, it’s like the demeanor between you two have changed over the past few weeks. You found yourself pining over him rather than being in someone's bed. But this is how the cycle always goes, you get attached and they leave, you couldn’t help but hope this wasn’t the situation this time.

“Tell me about your father”

Daddy stuck around but he wasn't present

Cheated on your mom but she never left him

First I didn't get it, now I understand

He broke her heart, left money in her hand

So everything got paid for

She made sure you and your brother had way more

Than she ever had growing up

And when you told me the whole story I felt like throwing up

“ I don't know if i’d even call him my father at this point, he doesn't want me.” you sighed. “He's been cheating on my mum for years now and she still won't leave him because she thinks they can work it out. He’s had affairs with different pureblood women and has children with them. But what hurts the most is how he treats them as his own children and treats me as if I don't exist” you said, looking down as tears pooled your eyes.

Draco moved closer to you and brought his arm around your shoulders for a sense of comfort and waited for you to catch your breath so you can continue.

“I just want him to love me” you cried. “I go out my way to try and get his attention with my school work but it never works. That's why I get along with so many guys. I seek the validation, the comfort and the reassurance that I can get from him from others and I am so tired of it. I just want him to want me draco.” tears slipping out your eyes as you looked up at him, you’ve never confessed this to anyone before.

“Everyone always leaves, please don't leave me” you cried

“I’m not going anywhere” he turned his face towards you, leaning forward cautiously as if you were made of glass.

You leaned forward, wanting the exact same thing. Both very hesitant he gently pressed his soft lips against yours and they moved together in sequence, only taking a break to go back to his dorm and to breathe, limbs tangled together for the rest of the night until the sun rose.

I can see it on your face it was rough left a bad taste on your tongue

And she didn't even take any drug

She would rain all day

Couldn't wait for her son to shine

And you made it shine

There when she cried, you saved her life

It's been a week since that night in the astronomy tower and draco had already been avoiding you. It’s humiliating, but you should have known. You thought the ‘bond’ you had with him would last, it felt so genuine this time. So real.

You’d see him around the halls snogging pansy on your way back to the ravenclaw tower, lowering your head down so he wouldn’t be able to see you so you could get by quickly and unnoticed.

But he saw you.

He stared you right down in your teary eyes as he made out with pansy. You couldn’t help but feel a sense of betrayal, for someone who promised he wouldn’t leave you like everyone else, he did the exact same.

You did the only thing you knew of, you ran.

I keep on trying to let you go

I'm dying to let you know

How I'm getting on

I didn't cry when you left at first

But now that you're dead it hurts

This time I gotta know

Where did my daddy go?

I'm not entirely here

Half of me has disappeared

Draco followed you to the girls lavatory, hearing your shallow cries coming from one of the stalls. He approached the stall you were in trying not to make too much noise so he doesn't startle you.

He felt awful.

He promised he would never leave you, after you both poured your hearts out to each other but he still left. He had too, he was putting you in danger just by being with him. If Voldemort ever found out about you and hurt you he wouldn't be able to live with himself, that's why he took it upon himself to hurt you first.

“y/n are you in here?” he called out even though he knew the answer.

You recognized that familiar voice anywhere. “What do you want draco?” you said, trying to make it seem as if you weren’t just crying.

“I want to talk to you, please”

“No,” you said getting up and pushing yourself out of the stall. “You don't get to just throw me away after I told you everything and just come back into my life like nothing ever happened. Just go away, that's all you guys are good for” you spat.

“Just listen to me, it was to keep you safe. I didn;t want to but i couldn't bear seeing you hurt” he tried to explain.

“Safe?” you laughed. “ and what exactly do i need saving from, malfoy.”

“From me” he said as he pulled up his sleeve revealing his dark mark to you. Your body instantly tensed, you knew he was having problems and his family was involved with the dark lord but you never knew it was like this.

“Draco i-” you tried to say something but the words were stuck in your throat. He stood there looking at you desperately like he was waiting for you to tell him everything was okay, you wanted to be there for him but you didn’t know what to do. You trusted him with everything but he couldn't trust you with this? You thought the bond you had made would have made him trust you in the slightest, but clearly it's always you who’s more trusting.

“Why didn't you tell me?” you managed to say, your voice hoarse.

“I thought you’d leave me, you were the only good thing i had. Please don't leave me” he begged, salty tears escaping his eyes and running down his cheeks as he looked at you with desperation.

“So you thought pushing me away by snogging pansy was better?” you yelled, as he continued to look at you slightly taken aback by your lashing out.

“You know what, go ahead and cry little boy. You know that your daddy did too, you know what your mama went through. You gotta let it out soon, just let it out” you taunted walking closer to him looking straight into his teary eyes.

“This time I'll be the one that leaves.” and with that you were gone.

Go ahead and cry, little girl

Nobody does it like you do

I know how much it matters to you

I know that you got daddy issues

And if you were my little girl

I'd do whatever I could do

I'd run away and hide with you

I love that she's got daddy issues, and I do too

It’s been months since that night in the girls lavatory, and you missed him. You wanted to visit him in the hospital wing once you heard what happened with Harry Potter, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do so. He left you, and you were tired of always going back to people who just hurt you.

Now here you were at the battle of Hogwarts, standing with everyone while Voldemort and his death eaters stood across from you all.

“Draco, draco come here” you heard narcissa call from across the scene. He looked hesitant, as if he was waiting for someone to stop him but no one did. So he started walking over to his parents.

But you grabbed his hand.

“Stay please” you whispered looking up into his eyes.

He looked back at his parents and back at you like he was contemplating his answer.

“I’ll stay”

If you were my little girl

I'd do whatever I could do

I'd run away and hide with you

I love that she's got daddy issues, and I do too

—————-

tagging fun ppl nd ppl who interacted (so srry if u don’t wanna be tagged)

@hellohellook @astoria-malfcy @justfangirlthingies @sfdlm @falling-loki @notvasi @gwlvr @malfoytookmyheart

[wolves-in-the-world]

On the basis that I like this bit a lot but it didn't fit the fic I ended up writing, please have a slightly different approach to Parker and Hardison finding Eliot's sealskin, beginning after the con in San Lorenzo.

—

"Any luck so far?" Hardison says, checking out the nearby surveillance cameras on his phone.

"I don't believe in luck." (Why doesn't that surprise him? Aside from the fact that she's so good at what she does she doesn't need it.) "Just some diamonds."

"I feel like you should be more excited about that."

"It's a matching pair of necklaces," Parker says, over the comms, "stolen by a team two years back. One of them got shot doing it."

That makes him pay attention. Not that he was just watching the feed of the stray cat nosing around on the other side of the building before. "Shit. Someone you knew?"

"Not really." He hears a low scrape, like boxes being moved. "I'll take them, of course-" of course "-but I'd like to find something a bit more..."

"Interesting?" Hardison supplies.

"I guess."

She doesn't sound enthused. Hardison frowns at that, wondering if this trip had been a mistake. Eliot's walks are long at the best of times, but they could have gone with him - except he'd seemed to really need that time alone. If they headed back now, they could be there to greet him when he gets back.

On a whim, he checks the time. Winces. Yeah, no, he's heading to bed the moment he gets back. He didn't exactly get much sleep what with preparing to send all those emails last night. Shit, is this what getting old feels like?

He realises, suddenly, he hasn't heard any noise over the comms for a little while. "Parker?"

"...He has a sealskin."

"That's messed up." Hardison feels a stirring of unease in his stomach. "Still, I mean, he seemed like the type. Rich people and their exotic curiosities." He raises his free hand for the air quotes.

"I don't think it's that." She sounds firm. Urgent, even. Hardison automatically straightens in his seat, checking the camera feeds for company. None.

Parker goes on, "I've seen the ones people have in private collections. They're old, I mean they're kept in good condition, but you can tell. This one doesn't look like that."

"What does it look like?" It shouldn't matter. Some poor schmuck lost a part of themself to Moreau, is all. Most likely they're dead already. It doesn't feel right to be curious about it.

Parker's voice comes through after another short pause. "Grey. Pretty beat up. Scars."

So they're looking for someone with scars. That doesn't narrow it down much. Doesn't even mean it can't be one of Moreau's victims.

He thinks, unbidden, of Eliot. Nevermind that he just needs to think of the pool for his stomach to twist, that the talk he and Eliot had about that was not nearly enough to put it all to rest, it's pretty clear to him that Moreau wasn't exactly good to Eliot either.

He pushes the thought away again. Today is for celebrating, he reminds himself. They had all been together for that, him and Parker, Sophie and Nate, Eliot so bright and so light and willing to laugh with them, even to dance a bit. Then Eliot had said he needed a walk to clear his head, and it had felt like the right thing to do to let him go alone. When Hardison got back to the hotel bar Sophie and Nate had disappeared, and Parker had gotten itchy.

Ribera wouldn't be checking out his new villa until the morning. There was time enough for a brilliant thief and a top-tier hacker to take a look around.

It had been easy to find someone willing to lend them their car - there are a lot of people out celebrating today. It's no Lucille, drab and beige and at least twenty years old, but he paid them well for it anyway. He'd like to leave them something extra, when he returns it, depending on what Parker finds.

He leans back in the chair again, frowning down at the screen of his phone. It's gone blank, undisturbed for too long.

"I think there are organisations," Hardison says, putting confidence into his voice he doesn't quite feel, "that deal with this sort of thing. You know. Sea burials and the like."

"Hardison." The uncertainty in her voice makes him go still, eyes on the dashboard, listening intently. "I think you should see this."

What? He gentles his voice. "Parker?"

"What if they're still alive? The person it belongs to?"

"O- okay, good point, we can't be sure-" 

"You need to see this, Hardison."

"Parker-"

"You need to see this."

[lepusrufus]

Wrong victim

Pure comedic self indulgence because we all need a funny break before shit starts to really go down in To bargain for immortality. Set quite a few years after the game events, around 2025, and is pure ridiculousness so enjoy.

////

Her response to being unceremoniously shoved in the back seat of a car that looked like it's seen far better days was merely an annoyed grunt. It turned into an eye roll when the man that climbed in after her pulled everything out of her pockets. 

"Wouldn't want you calling anyone," he said with a toothy grin while waving her phone in front of her. 

"Trust me, that won't be necessary," she replied in a deadpan voice. It's not like she would call the police, she wanted them involved even less than her kidnappers probably did. As for other people she could reach out to, a phone call would be redundant really. "Do be careful with it, I'd hate to lose the photos of Daniela sleeping upside down." 

After maybe ten minutes of driving down the barely illuminated outskirts of the city, and having her pockets emptied, dagger included, the burly man driving pulled up inside a parking lot. It was large and overgrown with weeds and vines reclaiming spaces that had been left without human activity for who knows how long. The lamp posts were nothing more than useless concrete pillars as they provided no illumination, resulting in her pitiful captors having to use flashlights as they made their way into the dilapidated factory. 

Nicole sneered at the sight of collapsed walls and rusty metal walkways, reminding her of the one particular Lord she couldn't stand the sight of. She decided a distraction was needed from unpleasant memories. 

"Abandoned factory?" She whistled. "How many cliche movies have you guys watched?" 

She let out a chuckle when the man that had previously taken her phone shoved her ahead. Hopefully they wouldn't tape her mouth shut, there was so much fun to be had by mockery alone. 

It didn't take long before all three of them entered a dimly lit room, numerous candles placed all around, either on desks or candle supports nailed to the walls. The three more people inside were wearing long black robes and white masks covering their faces. Nicole had to laugh. 

"Oh so you're that kinda crazy." 

"Shut the fuck up and stay put," the man holding her hands behind her back said while pushing her into a chair. 

He then moved to a table and Nicole couldn't help but scowl at how unceremoniously her beloved dagger had been thrown on the wooden surface. Afterwards, he put on a mask not unlike the others, except with red streaks going down from the eye holes, and started to prepare something in the middle of the room. The others joined in on the task, all but the one man that had been put in charge of making sure Nicole stayed put. Because of course she could easily escape five people much bigger than her at any given moment. 

She decided to take a look around, at the various dusty books opened on pages she couldn't quite make out from where she was sitting. A few pages were laying around, either with diagrams or with scribbled notes. Had she really stumbled upon a cult? She couldn't wait to have a laugh about it with her family. 

"So," she started, craning her neck a little so she could see her captor's face. "Who you gonna sacrifice me to huh? I wanna know before you slice up my throat or whatever you're planning on." 

A confused and suspicious look was thrown her way, surely due to the complete nonchalance she spoke with about what would surely be her untimely death. "The… the devil," was his unsure reply. 

Nicole let out a small laugh. "Oh trust me, you do not want to meet her. Though devil is not quite the word," she continued despite a few other pairs of eyes landing on her. "Maybe a pissy fungal overlord with an unhealthy obsession for crows. Yes that's more like it," she finished with another chuckle. 

The man with a slightly different mask, who seemed to be their self appointed leader, got up from where he was nailing something to the floor and walked up to her in a few long strides. His eyes were barely visible, but anger was clearly distinguishable. 

He pulled out a knife, old, rusty and with a black worn out handle so typical of a kitchen utensil, and so incredibly ugly compared to the beautifully ornate daggers that decorated her home. She had to laugh when the dull blade got pressed to her throat. 

"Will you shut up for one minute?!" He raised his voice slightly, as much as someone who was doing something they didn't wish to be caught doing would dare to. It didn't deter her though. 

"Oh sweetie this is just what foreplay looks to me," she started with a grin that made her wish she had fangs like the better part of her relatives. "But please do me a favor and stay quiet, there's no fun in hunting if my darling finds you within five seconds due to you screeching like a broken squeaky toy." 

The man blinked for a few seconds, taken aback both by the words and by the apparent passivity towards having a knife at her throat. He stayed like that until one person that was working with some ropes behind interjected. 

"Of all the people you could've taken, how did you find this unhinged bitch?!" 

"I'll take that as a compliment," Nicole said, bending slightly to the side so the person that had spoken up would have a clear view of her sickly sweet smile. 

After that exchange, her captors seemed happy to move things along quicker, working in silence and begrudgingly ignoring any remarks she would throw their way, including an observation on the downright dreadful quality of the rope they had. Quality that she regrettably got to experience when her wrist and ankles got tied to the nails in the floor, having her lay down in a starfish position. It kind of reminded her of sprawling on the bed she shared with Cassandra simply to annoy the brunette. 

After loudly reciting something in latin, the leader bent down, same rusty knife in hand, and tipped her chin upwards to expose the neck. She did let out a wince when the blade sunk deep in her flesh and got dragged downward, towards her chest, leaving behind a choking sensation and the taste of copper in her mouth. The knife however only made it to the base of her neck, before the sound of metal crashing caught everyone's attention. 

"What the fuck," the man whispered, thankfully pulling the blade out so her skin had the time to begin stitching itself back together. She still had to turn her head around and spit some blood that made its way into her mouth. 

Before anyone else had a chance to speak up, the door was kicked open, one of the rusty hinges breaking completely, to reveal a rather angry Cassandra with her sickle in hand, ready for bloodshed. 

There were a few seconds of stunned silence before the blade was unceremoniously thrown into the first person's skull, spinning through the air for only a few meters before getting embedded into the bone with a sloshing sound. Anyone else trying to escape through the one door was met with a similar fate. One person had their knees kicked inwards before a knife held at the same belt as the sickle came down to slash their throat. Another had their head smashed to bits against the nearest wall in the blink of an eye. And last, the burly man that had driven and kept an eye on Nicole, had his heart ripped through the bottom of his ribcage when Cassandra shoved him against one of the tables, scattering the books and papers that were by then stained crimson. 

The remaining man, the leader, got grabbed by the shoulders and forcefully shoved into the same chair she had been sitting in not too long ago. 

"Stay put and I'll let you live," Cassandra spoke, all the cruelty polished over decades upon decades of sporting the title of the family's most sadistic coming through those few words. 

He gulped and nodded, eyes glossed over by the pure human terror now so unfamiliar to both of them. 

She then turned around, expression softening like a switch had been turned behind golden eyes. "Nicole," she started, barely an edge of concern and irritation at the sight of her wife's bloody skin. 

"Hi babe." The self satisfied grin almost had the brunette chuckling while she retrieved her sickle and Nicole's things. 

The weapon was used to cut her free, a grimace pulling the corners of her black lips downward at the same quality observation her wife had priorly made, no doubt. A hand was offered to Nicole to pull herself up, while the other presented the familiar dagger that was gifted to her so many years ago. 

"Will you do the honors love," Cassandra asked, with that beautifully sadistic smile. 

"Of course," came Nicole's reply as her hand wrapped around the leather covered handle. 

With some of the wretched ropes gathered from the ground, Cassandra made quick work of the man's hands and legs, securely tied to the chair and voice frantic. 

"You said you would let me live!" 

Cassandra laughed, a low ominous sound, while grabbing the mask and throwing it on the floor. She did love to see the terror in her victims' faces after all. 

"Unfortunately my wife made no such promises," she finished with a forceful pull of hair that kept his head in one place as she moved to the back of the chair. 

Nicole approached with the dagger already out of its holster and tapped the blade's point against her lips in thought for a few moments. She could simply slice his throat and be done with it, or stab him and leave him to bleed out, choking on his own blood. A hum made its way past her lips. No, no that would not do. 

She grabbed a fistful of the man's shirt, pulling it up almost to the neck. After a few mental measurements and approximations were made, the tip of the blade finally found its way into muscle, drawing thin trails of blood and pained screams. It took a good five minutes to carve all the intricate details she wanted to, the swirling patterns cutting cleanly through skin, courtesy of her wife keeping the blade sharp and in top condition. 

After she was content with the level of detail, and screams subsided to pathetic sobs, she took a step back and, with a hum, looked at Cassandra for a reaction. 

"Oh dearest," the brunette said, looking over the man's shoulder and down at the bloody cuts on his abdomen and chest, forming a crude yet not unfitting replica of the Dimitrescu crest. 

At the adoration that made its way past the cruelty in her wife's eyes, Nicole smiled and gingerly took a hold of her unoccupied hand, bringing it close to her lips and leaving a small kiss and a barely visible blood imprint on each knuckle. 

"I take it that you approve of my… design choice," she asked with another glance down at the jagged lines that formed their family's symbol. 

"It's wonderful," Cassandra replied, fangs shimmering slightly in the low light, exposed from the proud smile that tugged at her lips. 

A gorgeous smile, really, that made something swell inside Nicole's chest no matter how many times she saw it. Truth be told, her rendition of the crest was quite lacking, never having had the artistic skills to quite capture the intricate details that formed it. Nevertheless, if it brought a smile to her wife's lips, she was more than content with it. How unfortunate that it had to be ruined. 

She let out a sigh, still holding Cassandra's hand. "Too bad those pigs at the BSAA would quite disapprove of us leaving such things behind. Oh well," she shrugged, bringing the hand she was holding over to the man's abdomen. "Better it be ruined at your hands." 

The next second, claws dug deep into flesh, slicing the muscle and everything underneath all the way up to the throat. It left five deep gashes over the fine cuts of her dagger, but the satisfaction did not dwindle. On the contrary, when the gurgling sounds finally stopped and the body went limp, her smile was still there, turning into light laughter when Cassandra licked her fingers only to visibly cringe. 

"Say what you will about the dungeons, but at least we feed our livestock well," she spat, taking out a napkin from a pocket and wiping her fingers clean. "But with that disgusting thing out of the way, let me help you with that," she continued, grimace morphing into a sly smile when her eyes landed on Nicole's still bloody neck. 

She gave her no time to disagree, not that she would, before she pushed her backwards slightly into the edge of a table. Nicole wasted no time in lifting herself up on the wooden surface, bringing their faces just a tad closer to being on the same level. 

Cassandra dipped her head down, lips leaving teasing feather-like kisses on her jaw before lowering even further so she could drag her tongue up the length of her neck. It made a shiver run down Nicole's spine, that turned into an impatient tug of her wife's hair when the motion was repeated again and again, until no traces of blood could be seen on her neck, save for the crimson stains that made their way to the hem of her shirt. 

Their lips met in a hungry kiss, full of fangs and smeared lipstick and the taste of copper so familiar to the both of them, albeit for different reasons. When Nicole's hands went to the first buttons of Cassandra's blouse, their kiss was broken with a sly smirk. 

"This is such a dreadful place for such things, don't you think," the brunette said, all too amused by her wife's exasperated sigh. 

"You started it," Nicole complained, but before the words were fully out of her mouth, she was tugged off the table and on the way out, ready to get back home and have a laugh about the irony of her capture. They would have to pick up where they left off at a later time. 

[anystalker707]

Pleasantly Surprising

Pairing: Gerard x Reader Word count: ~ 4 000 Genre: Fluff / Enemies to lovers Summary: (Y/n) meets a nice group of guys in a concert. Warning: Blood, but no violence or wounds description.

Requested on Wattpad

a/n: This one if for you blood kink bastards </3

(Y/p) = Your pronouns

Feeling the cold night air filling my lungs with a faint smell of grass is much better than the smoky and sweaty, heavy air present among the public that gets worse near the mosh pit. I lean back against the brick wall, feeling the cold surface through the thick jeans of my jacket, digging into my shoulder blades as I try to control my breathing, quietly watching the band leaving the stage to give place to another.

My throat feels dry, aching the slightest after I swallow around the sharp and cold breaths, so I look around for a stand to buy at least a soda, ankling over to the nearest one. The line isn't actually that long – thank hell –, but that doesn't prevent a random bastard from trying to cut in line.

"Hey, what in the fuck you think you're doing?" I raise an eyebrow, pulling them back by their collar and they just look at me with this sulky face, bottom lip sticking out and lip ring glowing lightly under the reduced lighting. "No cutting in!"

"Says who?" they retort bitterly. "What you gonna do about it?"

"Aw, bold, aren't we?" I raise an eyebrow, glancing down and... the motherfucker is wearing school clothes, lacking the tie and shirt untucked. Private school. "What are you? Not like the other kids? The line isn't even that long, stupid."

"Fuck off," they sigh, shrugging out of my grip and harshly fixing their clothes.

"Frank– Fuck, Frank, the hell, can't we leave you alone for a single second?" A random voice suddenly interrupts our interaction before a tall person approaches, a motherly and worried air lacing their gaze. They look from me to Frank before exhaling, raising an eyebrow, at which Frank shrugs. "I'm sorry for whatever Frank did, he–"

"Fuck, no, Ray!" Frank cuts them off, "you're not playing the good guy here! I was just trying to–"

"Trying to cut in the line, yeah, very nice of you, isn't it?" I roll my eyes, twisting my mouth. At least he isn't lying, but is he stupid or something? Why would he try to convince us what he was trying to do was alright?

It looks like Frank is going to argue for a second, but ends up just groaning through gritted teeth and looking away with a sigh and tense shoulders.

Ray doesn't look any amused, only observing Frank like who looks at a puzzle after having tried to solve it for weeks without success. They shake their head, turning to me instead. "I'm Ray, he/him, nice to meet you. Sorry for Frank, what he did is... unfortunately usual."

I observe him looking at him from head to toes. School uniform just like Frank's, tucked shirt, loose tie. "Hi. I'm (y/n), (y/p). And don't worry, I would've done the same," I breathe, looking away from the two to hand the person behind the counter the money after pointing to the drink I want.

"What?" Frank gasps. "You would've done the same and still acted all like that towards me?"

I roll my eyes, sighing. "Me doing it doesn't mean I like being affected by it." I grab the change, shoving it in my pocket then step aside for Frank and Ray, cracking the can open.

"Y'know–" Frank crosses his arms over his chest, throwing his nose in the air, "–my momma says that you should treat the others as you want to be–"

"Aw, honey, so you'd like me cutting in the line right in front of you? Shamelessly?" I raise an eyebrow at him, unable to hold back a grin when his face gets bright red, hands balling into fists. Not gonna lie, it's kinda cute how he twists his mouth. Frank is about to curse when Ray is shoving a couple of cans into his hands – a sigh leaves his lips instead. "Two for each?" I question and sip on my drink.

Frank smirks, looking at me with humor. "Yeah, wanna watch me drink them at once?"

Ray rolls his eyes at Frank, shoving him out of the way after noticing there were people behind them. "We're actually with two other friends. Are you alone here? Do you wanna come along?" He smiles, ignoring Frank's complaints, so I opt for doing the same.

"I guess that'd be nice," I hum, shrugging. Otherwise, I'd be going home right now and Ray actually seems nice... I mean, Frank does too, but I'm not feeding his ego.

The other two stand against a brick wall when we find them, both quietly chatting to each other until seeing us approaching. The first one doesn't exactly react, more interested in the can Ray hands him, but the second, greasy punk, hums questioningly, straightening their posture as taking a good look at me almost like I did to Frank earlier. "And who are you?"

"(Y/n), (y/p)," I mutter, looking at them from over the rim of the can, taking a sip of my drink.

"Found lying in the trash when I approached," Frank adds, but doesn't seem so confident after I playfully shove him aside.

"Gerard, he/they," Gerard replies, eyes never averting away from mine. What is he, kind of a gang leader? Got a hell of an ego, though a bit differently from Frank – I'm noticing a pattern here, huh. "Mikey, he/him," he continues, nodding to the other guy.

I throw my empty can in a trashcan before leaning in towards Gerard. He tries to escape the touch, but he's against a wall, there's nowhere to go. How cute. "Belleville High," I say, finally able to make out what the small black letters embroidered on the chest area says, and step away, allowing Gerard to breathe. "Isn't it that private school? Catholic one? Wow, who'd know I'd find BH students here!"

"Stereotyping, are we?" Frank raises an eyebrow. It's impossible holding back a smile at him.

"No, never," I chuckle. "It's just a... rare occurrence. You came here right after school?"

"Not really." Ray shakes his head. "Just didn't have the opportunity to change. Good thing it's Friday, tho," he chuckles humorlessly and I nod in a silent agreement.

"And where do you study?" Frank takes a better look at my face. "If you study, that is."

I scoff, but don't reply just yet. Mikey is the most tidied up out of the four whereas Gerard has his tie loose around his neck, shirt untucked, blazer all wrinkled. "Of course I study, dumbass!" I glare. "But I'm in the public school near the park. But I've seen you before." I nod towards Gerard. "Just don't know where."

Gerard's eyes narrow. "Are you sure?"

"It's not always that I see a greasy vampire looking around, so yeah."

A silence hovers between us for a moment, both of us staring at each other until he feigns unamusement, looking away – I smile with a stupid pride swelling in my chest.

The night ends with us exchanging numbers after a solid hour of joking around and throwing sarcastic insults at each other. Teasing Gerard was particularly fun because he often ran away from the whole joking or at least tried to and even Mikey laughed when it failed, though sometimes succeeding when Frank finally managed to get the spotlight on himself. Ray is sweet, despite being the perfect example for 'looks like a cinnamon roll, but can actually kill you.'

Gerard got my attention, to be honest.

Saturday and Sunday go by quite slowly and thankfully texting the guys every five minutes doesn't make it as depressing as usual. Texting Gerard isn't the same as texting Frank – who replies a text to each word I send him –, however. Gerard often replies with a word or a vague comment and guess what? I'm only more interested.

No Gerard manages to slip between my thoughts during school, but it ends up happening as soon as I step past the gates. Belleville high, isn't it? Shitty elite, but they don't really seem to be like that... let's see if that wasn't just great acting. That's not even a mile away from here. I look down the street, the direction opposite to where I would usually go. It won't hurt to say hi, right? Not to mention I've got nothing to do for the rest of the day.

Belleville High's classes finish about ten minutes later compared to my school's, so I don't bother walking too fast, but not slow enough to let my palms get clammy or overthink anything. Amazing how I can feel like this about people I only met once. Okay, whatever, take a deep breath because I guess I know these curls.

"Look at who we have here!" I throw an arm around Frank's neck, interrupting whatever they were doing and attracting wide eyes towards me. Turns out I found them earlier than expected, hanging out in the park.

"Damn, are you everywhere?" Frank raises an eyebrow at me and presses his lips together, though never stepping away. Blood?

"Who knows?" I joke. "Also..." I trail off, only now taking a good look at them. "Man, what in the hell fucking happened to you guys? Seriously–" I yank a paper off Frank's back, sighing at the 'kick me' written across it and hand it to him, shaking my head. What fucking idiot did this? How the hell did they even get into a fight? It doesn't seem like they were fighting each other.

Frank groans poorly, wadding the paper into a ball and tossing it at the nearby trash can. He's got a few scratches above his eyebrows and blood trailing down the corner of his lips. Mikey and Gerard are probably in the best state out of the four – Gerard got blood trailing down his nose and same for Mikey, though on opposite sides and Mikey's cheek is smeared with blood. I can't say the same about Ray... I don't know how he's not even wincing with all that blood trailing down his face.

"Well," Mikey breathes, bringing a hand to the back of his head, "you can say that–"

"Why do you even want to know?" Gerard steps forward, hands clenched into fists by his sides. "You got nothing to do with it, okay?"

"Aw," I breathe a chuckle. So he wants things to happen like this? But does he have the nerve to keep it? I may not have known him for long, but the attitude is clearly foreign, unmatching. "And what, baby? You lost, didn't you? And you're a fucking sore loser!"

"I just don't see why you should know." He twists his mouth, looking at me uninterested, but it doesn't take long until he's looking at me with these eyes, irises barely seen, eyebrows scrunched close. "And don't talk to me like that! Maybe it would even be better if you fucked off and left us alone, don't you think?"

Man, he talks a lot. Too much. No wonder why he's in such a state. Maybe he'll shut up if I...

"Holy..." Frank trails off with a quiet chuckle and I'm certain Gerard would have glared at him if he wasn't processing what just happened.

Meanwhile, Mikey and Ray stare at me with wide eyes – as wide as Gerard's, but they're not as petrified as Gerard is, for sure, only with hesitant, unsure grins on their faces. I suppress the urge to laugh at Gerard, instead more focused on rubbing my tongue against the roof of my mouth, trying to get rid of the salty and metallic taste.

A quiet sound comes from Gerard as he finally moves, maybe a groan, not sounding really comfortable. He brings a hand up to his lips. The perfect trail of almost dry blood is now smudged, following the direction I licket it to, having the blood smeared across his chin and bottom lip. "Ugh, ugh, ugh," he groans, frantically cleaning his lips and chin with the back of his wrist, against the sleeve of his blazer. "What the fuck? You're gross!"

I roll my eyes with a sigh. "Man, I wonder why I thought being an asshole could be solved."

"Eh, trust me, he isn't normally like this," Ray says with a shrug, looking at Gerard like if he was a chained angry dog even after receiving a glare.

No one gives Gerard's tantrum much attention as we soon sit down on the grass and change the subject before we can notice. Surprisingly, Gerard sits down next to me. Even more surprisingly, he leans closer at some point and whispers, "well, look at who's the vampire now."

Saying Gerard's words got stuck in my head would be an understatement. Maybe it's a nightmare, maybe it's not, but it does get me randomly blushing or stupidly grinning during random times of the day. Nonetheless, school the following day does help a bit with cleaning my head a little.

After a few hours of staring at blackboards, the setting changes to staring at records hanging on the walls and it's honestly better. Incoherent, loud chatter being changed to music of my choice is a lot better, even if I need to talk to a customer now and then.

"This is the place I told you about. I've only been here once, but it seems good," a voice says from the outside, but I don't look up from my homework.

"Never been here," someone else says. A pause follows then their footsteps sound clearer and I sigh, shoving my things on the space under the counter.

"Hello, good afternoon," I say automatically, holding back a groan at how my eraser insists on falling and grabbing it fast. "How can I help you?" I finally look up just to freeze. And the four have the same reaction, to be honest. "I knew I had seen you before," I say to Gerard.

"What a small world!" Frank approaches, immediately narrowing his eyes and throwing his nose in the air as looking over to me. "So you're not a rebel who only wanders around and goes to free concerts during the night and stalks us?" He raises an eyebrow, looking around the place, inspecting the shelves full of records and CDs.

"So you only got one set of clothes?" I mock, staring at his school uniform.

Frank exhales, shoulders dropping. "We just got here from school." He motions vaguely to his messenger bag and I nod, humming, not like it matters a lot.

While we talk, Ray and Mikey wander around, talking quietly to each other and sometimes taking a record in hand, but Gerard... he stands there awkwardly, observing Frank and I with a lost gaze. What is he doing? Trying to act all cool like last time? Or doesn't know how to react?

"Hello," I greet, which sounds more like a question. Frank turns around to look at him, apparently understanding Gerard as much as I do.

Gerard presses his lips together and steps forward, also leaning against the counter. "You didn't mention you work here."

"Didn't have a reason to." I shrug.

The corner of his lips twitch and he's holding eye contact until sighing. "Okay, whatever. Got anything new on Misfits or Pumpkins? Also, Bauhaus." He glances at me, black strands falling over his eyes for a moment before he's pulling them away. Cute.

"Of course." I grin, moving to the cabinets behind the counter.

Frank eventually darts off as I show Gerard the records and cassettes like he wanted. I glance around to make sure Frank is paying attention to whatever Mikey is telling him and Ray before I turn to Gerard again, grinning lightly. "Y'know," I mutter, leaning forward with my elbows over the counter. "I've got passes for a bar concert tonight. Wanna come?"

"What do you mean by passes?" His eyes never avert from the records – he runs his fingers over them delicately, examining each of them closely.

"Each ticket was about ten dollars and they're sold out, but the store is sponsoring the event and I got free passes." I smirk, watching his eyebrows raise lightly. "I usually can get one person in with me. What do you say?"

He pauses. "Why me?"

"Because you're the one I know the least." And also the one I'm interested in. "Pick you up at seven, what do you say?"

He sighs. "I'll text you my address."

.

"Wow, you're..." Gerard stares at me with a blank face, standing there and letting all the cold air get in. He rushes into the car, closing the door carefully.

"I'm...?" I raise an eyebrow, sinking my foot down on the gas, pulling away from the sidewalk.

"I don't know." Silence. "Not what I expected."

"Glad to know." I grin. "You're also not what I expected. You're never what I expect, to be honest..." He wasn't all open in the beginning, but also wasn't the asshole he was in the park – in his defence, at least, he had just gotten out of a fight, nerves still on edge. At the store, however, he seemed more like himself. "Also, you're looking good."

Gerard's eyes are surrounded by eyeliner and a red eyeshadow – definitely nothing I would see him in, but also nothing I'm disappointed about –, bringing out his paleness. And for the first time, he isn't wearing that stupid school uniform and fancy shoes are replaced by platform boots. A leather jacket clutches his shoulders, decorated with a few studs and patches, and covering a nice Slipknot shirt. And there are his jeans, fucking tight and I swear I hadn't noticed this guy got such a nice ass and, fucking hell, it's difficult not staring at his thighs flat on the seat, with a chain falling over one of them.

"Thank you," he mutters quietly. Even in the reduced lighting, I can see his cheeks gaining a red tone before he looks away.

The place is crowded, but not overly – which is why the tickets were even sold, at first place – and it's fun seeing Gerard's chin drop when he looks at the sign of the place. To simplify, everyone is either always wanting to play in this bar or come watch someone play and the tickets are not only always sold in small quantities, but also expensive.

"Let's go," I chuckle after having spent a good moment observing Gerard.

We jog across the street, towards the entrance, just straight away skipping the whole line. The guy in charge of letting people in looks at us indifferently, in a silent question, muscles clear under the tight staff shirt. Even if there's no visible difference in his expression, he does relax a bit after I show him my pass and steps aside to let us in.

"Wow," Gerard mutters, almost inaudibly.

"You like it?" I ask as we walk through the people. No answer comes. He stayed back, of course; the boy is kinda shy and hesitant, after all. "C'mon!" I take a hold of his hand to pull him with me until we're in the bar area, which's much calmer. He stands there for a moment, looking around, until I point at one of the stools, sitting down on the one beside it.

Gerard shifts on his seat, hands resting on his lap and clenched into fists. He observes everything with wide eyes and I can't bring myself to avert my attention away from him. He's beautiful.

When the band starts playing, however, the atmosphere starts changing. It's a classic punk band – the kind of people you'd see around in skate lanes, spraying anarchist messages on a building's wall or behind a McDonald's counter – and the music is good, nonetheless, raw and emotional and demanding. Great to dance to.

Gerard is shy, as already stated – what makes me wonder how he even agreed on coming –, taking a good time to actually stand up from the stool and join me.

His hand is warm under mine, maybe not as warm as his cheeks seem to be. I had taken it in mine to pull him up from the stool, only, but he didn't let go and... oh well. Aren't you interesting, Gerard? I grin to myself and take his other hand to pull him to dance with me; that if you consider moving around to the rhythm of the song some kind of dance, but Gerard doesn't complain.

I'm not sure how much time goes by – I only question myself about that once the band is saying good night, breathing audibly as they get off the stage. The live music is replaced by a momentary incoherent chatter when loud music fills the place again, this time coming from the speakers. Gerard and I are out of breath when averting our attention from the stage to each other. My arms feel a bit sore after all of that, almost the opposite to my numb legs.

"Wanna grab a drink?" I nod towards the bar. "We can go to the alley to take a breath, then."

"Sounds good."

The non-alcoholic drinks are as cold as the night air, suddenly making it even more obvious how much we jumped around to the band's sound. We lean against the wall opposite to the side of the bar and I look at Gerard, watching his chest rise and fall fast, only coming to a longer pause when he brings the glass to his lips. He observes something above us, maybe the sky, but I don't care.

"Your nose is bleeding again." I suddenly note, seeing the dark red trail now almost reaching his upper lip. Not a surprise. He hurt his nose not much over a day ago and all the jumping must have opened the wound.

"Fuck." Gerard brings a hand to his nose and sighs when seeing the red stain on his fingers; I chuckle softly, halfheartedly. "What? You wanna lick it again?" he teases, raising an eyebrow at me. He apparently opts for not ruining the sleeve of his leather jacket, regarding it more than his school blazer.

I roll my eyes, smiling helplessly. "Well, if you'd like me to," I decide to tease back, looking at him through half lidded eyes.

"Ah, you wouldn't dare!" He chuckles, blood staining his lips according to how he talks.

"You think so, honey?" I raise an eyebrow. A few stutters come from him, but I just grab his glass and set it aside with mine, on the ground, before stepping towards him. "Tell me, why are you always so... bold around me? It's clear it's not part of you, as Ray even said." I suppress a humorous chuckle at how he frantically backs away against the wall, having nowhere to go. This brings me memories. "Maybe it has a specific reason?"

Gerard's eyes are wide, lips twitching, though no word ever comes through and his expression changes instantly once I get a hold of his hips and pin him to the wall. Feeling the heat coming from his cheeks is almost possible and all that resistance is gone, tendering into compliance and shyness.

"Look at you, Gerard," I mutter, rubbing circles into his hips as leaning in. "How surprising can you be?"

Having Gerard only letting out a quiet whine in response as his hands rest hesitantly over my shoulders make my heart flutter in my chest. I finally lean in, pressing my lips to Gerard's; he returns the kiss right away, lips sliding against mine easily.

And there it is; the rich metallic taste of Gerard's blood. I run my tongue over his bottom lip, snatching a hum from him, which turns into a whining-gasp once my teeth sink into it slightly.

His hands tighten around my shoulders, I grip harder onto his hips in consequence and he's sent relaxing back against the wall. He never had control over the kiss, but he's suddenly just giving up on the power at once with a quiet sound, slowly wrapping his arm around my neck to pull me closer and I gladly deepen the kiss.

"Wow, love," I breathe as soon as we part the kiss, lungs screaming for air. Gerard doesn't reply verbally, with his lips brushing lightly against mine and, by now, the blood is starting to get sticky, on its way to drying, also on my lips.

"I hope we can go out more often," he mutters shyly, not long before burying his face in the crook of my neck.