#there's something that sounds like a whale singing | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

pookietv · 26 days

Text

something sooner | arthurtv

you asked for arthurtv smut and here i am to deliver!!! i am lowkey quite proud of this one soooo :3

cw: smut

arthur had always viewed you as the whirlwind of energy in his life. sure, he wasn't a complete homebody, but when he compared himself to you, he felt like one. you were always somewhere, museums, restaurants, clubbing: if something was on, you were there.

but despite that, you and arthur had remained friends over the years - late night catchups and your constant loop of new stories from strange situations you always seemed to wind up in made his life seem more exciting.

so when he asked to meet up with you, there was no surprise on his end when he got a text back reading

'i'm out right now, but i'd love to see you later if you wanna come by mine for a few drinks or something, maybe around teatime?'

so he had spent the day waiting patiently lumbering around his house. and he didn't mind waiting around for you, he really didn't. you were like some sort of mini celebrity in his eyes, in the way he felt lucky to even be near you, that you constantly made time for him in a way he felt you did for so few others.

he had spent some time trying to wrestle with the fact that these feelings were probably more than friendship, and now had come to accept it. friends didn't feel like this about their friends, he realised, and had accepted the fact that what he felt towards you was far past even a small crush, and could possibly even class as infatuation.

but that was an issue he felt that he could bury down and ignore, thinking it would inevitably ruin your friendship, and he'd rather have some of you then none, he'd tell himself.

as soon as he felt it was socially acceptable to call it 'teatime', he dragged himself over to your apartment as quickly as he could, arriving at your door and giving it three brief knocks, to which he heard your soft, sing-song voice 'come in!', and he did just that.

taking off his jacket and slipping off his shoes as he always did, you wandered towards him from your kitchen, a sweet smile plastered on your face as you spotted him, and embraced him in a hug.

you noticed how good he looked, in his plain black shorts and a white shirt, 'whales of the world', an outfit he must have worn a hundred times in front of you, but yet he never failed to make it look so good.

as soon as his nose buried in your hair for a moment, he recognised that you smelled a little different than you normally did, an overwhelming saccharine smell.

"smells like you've been having a feast," he grinned, hanging up his coat as he looked down at you.

you rolled your eyes a little at his joke, "hm, i've been to the cinema, maybe it's that?"

"you were at the cinema? should have said, i would have come with," he smiled nonchalantly, and your slight smile faulted awkwardly for a moment as you laughed a little.

"oh, i wasn't alone, was with someone," you responded, a slight shrug as you walked into the front room, his padding footsteps an indication he was following not far behind.

"well, i forgot you had other more important friends than me," he said jokingly, sitting himself down on the sofa next to her as you casually sat facing him, back against the armrest of the sofa and your feet resting gently against arthur's lower thigh.

"wasn't a friend, was more of a date type thing," you hummed out slightly, and as the words fell so simply off her tongue, arthur could feel his heart sink slightly.

processing the words felt like a slight knife twist in his gut, the slight twinkle of hoping against hope that you had maybe liked him back felt like a stamped out light. the relaxed way you had said date, like it was no big deal, had cut him slightly deeper than he had expected.

he felt like he had been so foolish, to think he could act like just your friend. his voice sounded slightly more timid, and restrained as he murmured out, "a date?"

you nodded, your eyes slightly avoiding his, and instead picking at your own fingernails. "yeah, it was nice. the movie was cool, actually, quite funny. i laughed so hard at one point i felt like if looks could kill, i would have frozen to death in the cinema seat." you laughed a slight bit.

he could feel the disappointment wash over him. he had always felt like he had a piece of you, in a way - even if that thought was just to pacify his feelings, he felt the way you always made sure he was involved, always checking up on one another, your trust in him, the way you always leaned on him, or were touching in some sort of way, he felt, was some level of intimacy.

thinking of you laughing with someone else was a bitter pill to swallow.

he forced out his voice, "that's great," he managed to say, "i'm glad you had fun,"

you smiled, but it didn't fully reach your eyes - arthur had been more reserved tonight, you had thought. "yeah, it was good. i might see him again, who knows,"

he felt like the burning feeling in his chest was an indication, or a force, that he had to say something.

"um, hey," he started, his voice quietened. you could see the slight red on his cheeks, a nervous tinge, "i think i need to tell you something."

you looked up at him, head tilted slightly, expectant.

"i... i think i might be in love with you." he blurted out, the words hanging heavy in the air for a moment.

your eyes widened in surprise, the blood rushing to your face and gracing your cheeks in the way he felt was so perfectly you, gracing your face like the most modern work of art in history.

"i.. i didn't know," you murmured out, voice shy. "i always thought you just saw me as a friend,"

seeing you shy was something he never thought he'd see - you, his most outgoing friend, the girl that somehow knew everyone, and got invited to everything.

"how could i not like you?" he continued, trying his best to keep his voice steadied, "i've always liked you. just didn't think you liked me,"

the red on your cheeks excited arthur, as you looked away embarrassed, "i did," you admitted softly, "just figured we were friends, so i, uh, pushed my feelings aside,"

arthur felt his heart pounding like a war drum, as the air in the room felt thicker.

he leaned closer to you, the distance between you almost non existant, as you could feel his breath against your skin, almost raising goosebumps.

"if i had known," he murmured out, "i would have done something sooner,"

your own breath hitched slightly, as your head cocked, almost inquisitive, "like what?" you murmured out.

his eyes darkened slightly as he looked down at you, thinking of all the times he had spent pining after you, the slight brushes of your skin against him making him feel hot, and he couldn't believe that all the time he had spent in near agony at the thought of you with someone else, it hadn't ever been something you noticed.

"like this," he murmured, almost feverishly closing the gap between you, the touch of his lips against yours like a crackle of electricity, "would have done this," he continued, before you could even respond, his lips moved slightly, to the line of your jaw, his finger tilting your head upwards slightly as you felt his stubble brush against you, the feeling leaving your mind spinning, "would have touched you, like i've been thinking of doing for so long,"

the need in his voice, longing thick with desire sent a wave of heat through your body, a slight moan leaving you, gentle fingers weaving up to tangle in his hair, tugging slightly.

his other hand quickly moved to lay against your waist, thumb brushing agonisingly slow against your lower stomach, before he pulled back slightly, breaths still heavy, eyes slightly darkened with lust.

"fuck, i... is this okay? i, don't want you to feel any pressure or anything, i just-" he mumbled out, before your hands were quick to reach against the hem of his top, tugging shyly.

"please don't stop, arthur," you said softly, voice almost a whine, but to him it was like a blessing, the sight of you tugging at his shirt and the slight pleading in his voice only stoked the fuel beginning to rage in him, and he eagerly nodded, grinning to himself slightly, his hands moving to his own shirt and pulling it over his head with ease.

"don't think i could stop, even if i wanted to," he panted out slightly, his fingers moving up to the fabric of your own shirt, peeling it from your head in an impatient speed, a slight groan leaving his lips as his eyes fell on your bare chest. "you're so pretty," he murmured against your skin, his teeth gently grazing against your perked nipple.

slight mewls escaped you, one of your hands gently grasping around his upper arm, the heat of his skin comforting as you squeezed slightly, "want you so bad, arthur," you said, almost shy, and you heard a slight chuckle from him.

"the last thing i expected from you was to be so shy," he said, looking at you through his eyelashes with a grin. "can't hear you, lovie," he teased playfully, thumbs tucking into the waistband of your pants, easing them down slowly.

"please, arthur, i want you so bad," you whined out, a little louder now, hips raising slightly as your trousers became discarded onto the floor, leaving you in a pair of lacy panties, still pressed against the armrest of your sofa, arthur pressed above you, head level with your lower stomach.

"i know, sweetheart, soon," he smirked slightly, the pad of his thumb running over the dampened material of your underwear, "just wanna take my time with you, been waiting for this for so long," he murmured, beginning to draw soft circles through the material.

"don't wanna take time, pleas-" you tried to mumble out, but you were met with almost a condesending 'shh' from arthur, as he pulled down your underwear, leaving you bare in front of him, arousal practically drooling from you.

"so wet already?" he murmured out, and before you had anymore time to pathetically plead with him, his forearms moved to clamp around your thighs, lips attaching to you, making an embarrassingly loud moan fall from your lips.

his tongue dragged up from your entrance to your clit, his mouth giving a slight bit of suction, tongue rolling across your sensitive bud as the breath felt sucked from your lungs, it was all you could do to pant out a soft, "oh... fuck," and feel his lips curl into a slight grin against you.

"y'taste so good," he practically groaned against you, almost feeling his pants tighten, it was all too much - the sweet little noises, your hips bucking up and the taste of you almost felt like overstimulation, but the best kind.

the longer he shoved his face into your soaked cunt, the more that it wasn't enough to eat you out until you were whining, he needed to be inside you.

so with a soft final lick against you, he lifted his head up with a grin.

you, on the other hand, denied of the connection, whimpered out almost desperately, breaths shortened and needy, left feeling almost dazed. "arthur..." you pleaded, but as he lifted himself up slightly, tugging down his own shorts and taking himself into his hand, already painfully hard, you could almost feel your mouth water.

you reached your hand out, grasping his length, thumb rubbing slightly over the tip, making him almost buck up into your hand, making you giggle slightly.

it wasn't long before he couldn't take anymore, and lined himself up with you, the tip nudging at your sensitive spot slightly before pressing against your entrance, using your arousal to lubricate himself, one of your hands reaching up to rest on his shoulder, the other tugging gently at his hair as a plea to hurry up.

with a smooth motion, he pushed himself forward, the stretching sensation making your head spin, the controlled movement as he pushed himself deeper, the base of his cock touching you as he bottomed out, pressing warm, slightly haphazard kisses against your shoulder, before gently biting at your collarbone, trying to muffle slightly in his own grunt of pleasure from the noises you were making, and the snug tightness of your walls gripping him. the stretch you felt subsided into a satisfying fullness, and whines escaped you needily.

"arthur, please," you pleaded out, eyes glassed and lidded, practically half shut.

without another moment to breathe, his hips pulled out of you, and thrusted forward, the unexpected force almost winded you as his hips began to move quickly, a fluid motion, jerking your body with each movement, as you allowed your forehead to rest against arthur's shoulder.

"f-fuck, you feel so good, so so good," he practically grunted under his breath, one hand holding himself up and the other tightly squeezing your hip, gently rocking it against his own, creating friction that could only make you mewl out whines louder. you were close to dumb, only noises escaping you being increasingly pathetic moans and the occasional expletive.

arthur taking control wasn't something you had expected, but fuck you weren't complaining, his hand that had been squeezing your plush skin instead working it's way towards your clit, your own thighs opening even wider, eagerly, head thrown back as the circles he rubbed against your sensitive spot matched the rougher thrusts.

his eyes were practically glued to your face, watching each little twist and contortion as your eyes screwed shut and your lips fell beautifully open, and he felt filled with pride, in an odd way.

"taking me so well, fuck," he groaned out, and the way you gripped at his shoulder tighter in response made him chuckle. you liked when he praised you.

each breath was practically a gulp down for air as you felt your orgasm approaching, the familiar tightness clutching at your stomach, your hips rocking slightly in a desperate effort to reach it sooner, the repeated feeling of his cock hitting your cervix enough to leave you tongue-tied and stupid, arthur's concentration almost admirable, in a complete rut as each thrust felt only growing rougher by the second.

"i know you're close, baby," came from under his breath as he straightened himself up slightly, stopping supporting himself and instead using the other hand to grasp at your thigh, allowing him to thrust into you quicker, the increased pace making him look almost drunk, the new harshness practically pushing you over the edge, each touch at the bundle of nerves weakening you.

"fuck, arthur, 'm gonna..." you babbled out, the intense sensation washing over you, thighs shaking around his hips, as frenzied whines were torn from your throat, your lower body going limp as the familiar knot snapped, euphoria dizzying any thoughts in your head, the orgasm only being rode out as he continued to jerk into you.

"i'm so close, baby, god, you look so pretty when you come, i-" he moaned out as you felt him release, the look on his face showing pure light-headed intoxication, cum painting your insides as the room went quiet for a moment, besides the loud pants from both of you as he gently pulled himself out of you.

"'m sorry, was i too rough?" he spoke out between catching breaths, his fingers quickly carding through your hair in an apologetic manner.

"no, no. was perfect." you murmured out, body completely taken over and exhausted as you lifted your head a little to look at him, eyes lidded and sleepy.

"you look tired," he grinned slightly, taking in the view: you, bare before him, completely ruined by him, and all for him to see. "i must have done a good job if i've worn you out."

"mhm. sorry, i get like this sometimes, always so sleepy after sex," you mumbled, made slightly shy again, cheeks still flush from before.

"s'okay, it's cute." he said back, before standing himself up, pulling on just his boxers, "gonna go get you some clean clothes, something to wipe you up with and some water, okay lovie?" he said gently, and you nodded with a dumb, happy smile on your face.

"arthur?" you said softly, and he stopped at your doorway with a similarly dopey smile.

"uh huh?" he replied, and as you looked at him, hair all a mess and in just his boxers, caringly going to make sure you had everything you needed.

"does this mean i get to be your girlfriend?" you said shyly, and arthur could have sworn his heart melted right there.

#arthur frederick #arthur frederick x reader #arthur tv #arthurtv #arthurtv smut #arthur frederick smut #arthur tv smut #arthur tv x reader #arthurtv x reader #smut

171 notes · View notes

cillianmesoftlyyy · 3 months

Text

Wary Sailor Pt. 2 | Matthew Joy x fem!reader

summary: Second Mate Matthew Joy goes out on a whale hunt and even after a successful chase, he can't seem to feel satisfied. Something's weighing heavily on his mind. While alone in the harpoon boat, trouble comes to call.

warnings: Aiming a gun at someone, talk of violence, smut, oral (F receiving), penetration, dubious consent (weird circumstances), unprotected sex, Matthew's abandonment issues lol.

word count: 2763k+

Tucumcari- Goodnight, Texas 🎶

Lady May- Tyler Childers 🎵

Note: The lyrics that I included are from the old whaling song Maid of Amsterdam.

*Pt. 3 (and maybe 4???) coming soon!

The men were deployed into the smaller whaling boats, each boat armed with a harpoon and dense cord. Matthew stood at the back of his boat to steer it away from the ship, navigating the aggravated water. He forced himself to think about the whales, keeping his mind inside the boat… but the girl’s eyes appeared like stars in the corner of his vision at all times.

“Joy!” One of the rowers was yelling at him, snapping him out of his trance. “Joy, focus! Don’t go soft on us all of a sudden, eh?”

Matthew grimaced as the grisly sailor chuckled. He steered them out to open water, following the Captain's boat as per his orders. While he couldn’t see their bodies in the water, Matthew could hear the loud vibrations of sound the Sperm whales made as they spoke to one another. He could also hear Owen yelling out commands to his men. The harpoonist prepared his weapon. Matthew directed his man to do the same.

“Steady now!” He advised his men as they waited for movement below the surface. Striking the whale was simple compared to the rest of the exhausting process. Matthew just planned on keeping his men alive but whale oil was also a necessity that he was willing to sacrifice for. He wasn’t a greedy man by any means, he’d lived in poverty all his life. His life was whaling and he didn’t spend much time off the ocean, the stillness made him restless.

“There she blows!” A man yelled and Matthew peered over the edge as the side of his boat rose out of the water, stuck on the back of an adolescent whale. As he looked over, the distinct silhouette of a woman wavered beneath the surface. Choosing to ignore it, Matthew swung the boat over to allow the harpooner to cast his weapon.

“Go, go, go!” He barked, spit flying from his mouth as he waved the man on. The harpoon sailed through the sky, landed in the water like a seabird, and missed. The whale diverted away from Matthew’s boat and found itself trapped beside Owen’s. The mother whale broke the surface nearby, distracting the men to the real prize. Matthew steered his boat away as the other men helped reel in the harpoon’s cord. The harpooner aimed and threw.

…

It was evening when the whale was secured by chains to the deck of the ship. The whale was so large she had to rest in two different places, one on the ship’s deck and the other in Matthew’s boat. The men aboard wrapped rags around their noses to cover the smell. Matthew just grimaced and rubbed the sockets of his eyes. The darkening landscape helped relieve some of his headache. The other men were already aboard the Essex, only he was left to watch over the end of the whale, saving it from sharks and other predators. He could hear the men singing as they did their work, scraping the fat from the inside of a giant. He hummed along to the song they were singing together.

A roving, a roving

Since roving's been my ru-i-in

I'll go no more a roving

With you fair maid!

Movement in the water drew his mind away from the song. Ripples expanded across the surface where something had just been. Matthew drew his rifle from the floorboards and checked the chamber for bullets. He watched the surface carefully for the distinct fins of sharks.

I put my hand upon her thigh

Mark well what I do say!

I put my hand upon her thigh

She said young man ‘That’s rather high’

I'll go no more a roving with you fair maid!

Matthew cocked the gun and aimed it at the dark water around his boat. The men’s singing seemed to dissipate with the seriousness of his situation. Sharks could be both dangerous and damaging. The scent of whale blood always drew them in, sending them into a frenzy where they could throw themselves against the side of the boat, risking damage. They were a nuisance to Matthew and he didn’t mind shooting them when necessary. The boat rocked in the waves and he steadied himself.

“Are you going to use that on me, Matthew Joy?” The voice behind him startled a gasp from his lips. He swung the rifle around, aiming it at the same face he’d seen hours before.

“You…” he whispered, keeping his rifle trained on her throat. Her eyes were the same green as before, only this time he could see them more clearly. The sun had fully set but colors remained in the sky above her head, bloody purples and such. He couldn’t see her body below the water but he saw that her shoulders were bare save the scattered pearls stuck to her skin like freckles.

“Are you going to shoot me?” She whispered back, her face inches from the barrel of the rifle. He licked his lips before speaking.

“Where… where did you go? You disappeared…” he muttered darkly, flicking his eyes up to the deck where his crewmates continued to work. He was alone with the girl.

“I had to see what you were like,” she offered a small smile. Matthew adjusted the way he held the gun, still aimed at her.

“You asked me if I believed in Sirens…” Matthew remembered warily, his eyes trailing over the pearls across her chest. Her dark hair rested behind her shoulders, down her back.

“Do you?” She asked and reached up her hands slowly, holding the edge of the small boat. He stared at her, his breath clouding the metal scope on his gun.

“Is that what you are?” He asked finally and the girl smiled once again.

“Is it quite shocking?” She teased and bit her lip timidly.

“Well… yes,” Matthew exhaled and raised his eyebrow, “I thought they were only in stories. They weren’t real… Why didn’t you sing?”

The girl cocked her head to the side. The air felt heavy between them as he waited for her response. His body was confused and frightened, something he’d rarely felt before. His instinct and desire clashed, strengthening the opposing forces within him.

“I don’t want to kill you,” she answered honestly, “we sing to kill.”

Matthew lowered his gun and nodded, breathless.

“You had legs. You didn’t look… ” He ran a shaky hand through his hair and ran his hand over his mouth. He could see the top of her fin break through the water. It was a beautiful silver color and her scales were shiny and iridescent.

“I wanted to see how you would treat me. I disguised myself as a human girl and you treated me gently.”

“What do you want from me? You had to keep me alive for some reason,” Matthew sat down on a plank of seating and rubbed the waterducts of his eyes.

“Nothing more than just to know you. I’ve watched your crew from the sea for weeks. You are a good, kind man.”

Matthew looked up from between his fingers and exhaled slowly, lowering his guard only slightly.

“Then what does this mean? How do you want to… know me?” He furrowed his brow and sat back once again on the plank of wood. Her hands tipped the boat slightly so that she could come a little closer to the sailor.

“Come closer, please…” she whispered and rose onto her elbows, her face a few inches from Matthew’s. Matthew stared at her lips, rosey pink and plump. She smelled like sea salt and clean things. Ever so slowly, Matthew closed the distance between them, his eyes staying on her lips.

“Y/N…” He tried to restrain himself as he whispered but eventually, as she stared up at him with her beautiful curtained eyes, he kissed her. It had been years since he’d actually kissed a woman. Kissing was so different than fucking. He’d forgotten how much he enjoyed it, the softness of it. Her hands inched up his blouse, beneath his overcoat, grabbing at his lapels. His hands found the sharp edges of her jaw, meeting her mouth with a more fervent kiss. She tasted lightly of salt, like seaspray against rocks. He devoured her flavor as though it were precious, forbidden. He twisted his fingers into her hair that felt dry despite being in the water, moaning against her lips.

“In what other ways do you want to know me?” He muttered against her lips, his eyes closed. Her fingers ran over his neck, down to the dip between his collarbones.

“I want to know every part of you,” she smiled and moved away, allowing the light from the deck to illuminate her figure below him in the water. Matthew hid a choked sigh as his eyes trailed over her body below the waves. Her body was decorated with pearls and scraps of white cloth. Instead of a tail, she now had two legs that beat the water to keep her afloat.

“Will you take me into your boat?” She asked softly and Matthew nearly forgot to respond, caught in a state of disbelief. He cleared his throat and scooped his hands beneath her arms, pulling her into the boat in one movement. Standing above him on two legs, she looked even more beautiful than she had hours earlier. He could see the buds of her nipples through the white fabric, surrounded by pearls and strands of seaweed. Her cunt was hidden behind a swath of wet fabric but he could still see the dark shape of pubic hair. He looked back up at her face, his lips having fallen apart in amazement. The Siren laughed softly and carded her fingers through his hair, pulling his head back slightly as she did.

“Lay me down,” she requested and smiled when he immediately wrapped his hands around her waist and flipped her over where she could lie flat on the bottom of the harpoon boat. The planks were far enough away to give him space to kneel above her. He supported himself above her, studying the contours of her body, plump and full. She twisted her fingers through his hair again and pulled him close so she could whisper in his ear.

“Now make love to me, Matthew Joy.”

…

He was already hard when she cupped her hand against his pants. It had been a while since he’d slept with a woman after months at sea. His body ached as badly as if he were a teenage boy again, not an aging man. He was throbbing as he moved the fabric on her cunt aside and lowered his head between her thighs. Looking up at her, he ran his tongue against her, tasting her. She hummed and shook with nerves.

A roving, a roving

Since roving's been my ru-i-in

I'll go no more a roving

With you fair maid!

Feeling emboldened by her reaction, Matthew licked her again and rubbed his nose against her clit. She was wet against his tongue and he licked his lips greedily. His cock started to throb as she whimpered and moaned beneath his mouth. Her hand pulled tightly at his hair but he loved the pain and worked his mouth harder into her cunt.

“Now, please now!” She begged him as she started to shake with pleasure. Taking the hint, Matthew undid his trousers and pushed them down to his knees. His face was still wet with her precum as he pulled out his cock and inserted himself quickly. She spasmed around him, her hands moving to grip the sides of the boat for leverage. His thighs clenched as he thrusted into her, his eyes almost rolling to the back of his head. He leaned closer to her chest and rocked into her neck as he fucked her.

“Oh you don’t know how long it’s been, love,” he sighed against her neck. “Is it ok?”

She nodded emphatically and pulled him closer by the back of his jacket, moving him deeper inside her. They both gasped out. He pulled his face away to watch her, still fucking her.

“Beautiful. Pretty pretty creature you are,” he praised her as he trailed a finger down her cheek. Her thighs bounced against his as he pulled her legs around his waist. The boat shook around them. He slipped his tongue around the mound of her breast beneath the cloth, making more moans escape the girl’s mouth. He slipped the fabric aside with one finger and looking up to watch her face, he pressed his mouth around a nipple and sucked. Immediately, her body pulled into his, her back arching off the curved bottom.

I'll go no more a roving

With you fair maid!

“Matthew…” she gasped as her muscles tightened and her bare feet flexed. He rolled his tongue around her nipple while his hand moved to hold her neck lightly, supporting her head. She cried out silently, her eyes screwed shut as if she were in pain. He dragged his tongue along her sternum to her neck and sucked at the flesh there. Her breathing evened out and she pulled his face to hers once again.

“Do what you want with me. Get what you need from me,” the seriousness of her command sent a spasm of pleasure into his cock, still inside her.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I want you to use me,” she whispered and spread her legs farther. Matthew looked at her for a second before smiling.

“Fuck, love. I think I’ll fall in love with you,” he chuckled softly and brushed his hand across her cheek.

“And so what if you do, sailor? Hasn’t everyone else done the same at some point?”

Matthew raised an eyebrow and kissed her, dragging her hands out above her head. Pressing her hands down into the boat, he began to thrust slowly into her, his hips still rebounding off of her pelvis.

“You’re going to stay right here, Y/N. I don’t want to lose you again.”

The girl smiled and broke into a moan as he shortened his thrusts, keeping himself as far inside her as he could. He went slowly so he could feel the orgasm clearly as it came over him, making his cock feel swollen with seed. Her hips shook wildly as she began to lose control over her orgasms. He watched her orgasm and released a wave of contractions around him. Smiling, he finally began to speed up as she whimpered beneath him.

“Fuck, yes… fuck… yes!” He muttered breathlessly as he felt his cock start to twitch before his orgasm. She tightened around him, pulling him deeper and drawing a guttural groan from his throat. His shoulders shook with effort as he allowed his orgasm to explode, cumming inside the girl and sending waves of relief through his system. He pulled out slowly and kissed down her stomach, savoring the heat of her skin against his lips. She caught her breath as he lapped at her swollen cunt. She was still shaking from her orgasms and whined when his tongue overstimulated her. He cleaned her out and nibbled at the skin on the inside of her thighs.

“It’s time for me to go.”

Matthew looked up at her and furrowed his brow, “so soon?”

The girl nodded and sat up to face him.

“I’ll be back, I promise.” She smiled shyly and rubbed her nose against his.

“Where do you go… I mean where do you go while we’re aboard?” He stumbled over his words, still catching his breath.

“Here,” she offered no further clarification as Matthew gave her a questioning look. She pressed her hand against his cheek and laughed.

“Don’t worry about where I go, sailor. The sea is my home.”

Matthew kissed her hastily as he redid his pants and pulled his suspender straps back over his shoulders. She stood and kissed him once more before she stepped over the edge and dropped into the water. In seconds she was resurfacing with her silver tail.

“Let me ask you one thing,” Matthew stopped her before he could leave, “are you real? Was that real?” He gestured to the bottom of the boat and the girl laughed brightly.

“Be wary, sailor. You might just lose your mind."

Matthew nodded and watched as she backed away and dove into the dark water beyond the reflection of light from the deck. Moments later, a whistle sounded and he was called to return to the ship. Forcing himself to look away from the place where the girl disappeared, he felt the familiar material of his old coat that he had wrapped around the girl earlier on the plank beside him, folded and damp.

...

End of Pt. 2!

161 notes · View notes

avocado-writing · 7 months

Note

hiii your bg3 writing is so *chefs kiss*

I was hoping you'd be able to write the companions' reactions to a bard!tav, giving them a private serenade one night. like they lead them to a clearing away from camp one night and there's a picnic set up and tav sings a song they wrote specifically for their love?

if all the companions is too many, could you please specifically do Halsin, Astarion, Minthara and Wyll?

oh, cute! going to give you a lute, as I think that’s easiest!

Astarion

he makes a comment about how he feels the picnic was a bit unnecessary as he can’t eat it, but you mention you’re his snack later ;)

you sit him down, pour him a glass of wine, and pull out your lute

you ask, suddenly uncharacteristically shy, if you can play him something.

he cocks his head to the side and nods.

your fingers dance across strings, and when you start to sing, he realises it’s a song about him.

you once offered to be his mirror, and tonight you repeat that. your song is about how lovely he is, in every way. how he’s handsome but kinder than he wants to admit. brave. fierce.

its the most sincere celebration of his character he’s ever heard, and by the end of it, he’s left shocked.

“oh…” “did you like it?” chewing your lip, nervous.

“it’s… you’re…” he really doesn’t have the words to convey how you’ve made him feel. so he gently takes your chin in his hand and kisses you.

the kiss gets deeper. the lute is abandoned. so, really, is the picnic. the music the two of you make then is of a different kind.

later, when he has time to come up with a suitable review, he will tell you how much it meant to him. you are his favourite musician, and he has a new favourite song.

Halsin

oh, he’s been around for a long time, but this is the first time someone’s done something like this for him.

he’s just sat in bowled-over silence as you play for him, and it is amazing. an epic ode to his life and kindness, how strong and handsome you think he is.

he comes closer as you sing, sitting right next to you. studying every inch of your face as you perform.

when you’re done, he tells you that it was the loveliest thing he’s ever heard.

“I’ve heard pods of whales singing as they meet up with their lost family… until now, it was the sweetest sound to have graced my ears.”

he gets you to repeat the song and turns into different animals to enjoy it, be it via vibrations or different ways of hearing. either way he wants to be surrounded by your music, and you.

Minthara

absolutely no idea how to respond.

she was brought up in a cutthroat world. this softness is new to her.

she remains quiet for a while as she tries to work out if you’re trying to get anything from her. is this a trick?

”oh, I’m sorry,” you say after a while when she’s just been staring. “did you not like it?”

”no. no, it was… play it again.”

you do, and she really listens to the lyrics. they’re about her beauty. how glad you are to have met her. her strength in battle and soul.

she’s exceptionally moved.

“this is… a priceless gift that you’ve given me. I have no way to repay you.” “I don’t need repayment. it was freely given.”

she kisses you, for she has no way else to thank you. you have moved her more than she thought possible.

Wyll

you play and he listens. his eyes and smile go wide.

absolutely enraptured. claps when you’re done, and cheers your performance. you laugh and bow for him.

he tells you how much you mean to him, what a sweet gift this is. how your love is his most treasured possession.

he reaches into his pocket… and takes out some paper.

“I… I know this is incredible timing but actually… I wrote you something, myself.”

and he starts to read out a poem.

oh, it is lovely. full of flowery verse, and sweet appreciations of you. all the little things which make him love you. you pick up your lute and play along eventually, and he gets into the rhythm too.

the two of you laugh at the fact that you both had the same idea! you’re so alike, so in sync.

he holds you tenderly, kisses you softly.

you end up writing many songs about your Blade. he is your perfect muse.

bonus:

Karlach bursts into tears when she hears it, and scoops you up into a big hug at the end. she’s so emotional. she can’t stop saying she loves you, she loves your song, all of it. lots of wet kisses for you.

Gale is rendered speechless for the first time he can remember. he just stares at you in adoration. he’s never had anyone love him enough to write a song about him before, and he full force of his affection for you hits him in that moment. he is smitten.

#astarion x reader #astarion x you #astarion x tav #gale x tav #gale of waterdeep x tav #gale x reader #gale of waterdeep x reader #wyll x tav #wyll x reader #wyll ravengard x tav #wyll ravenguard x reader #karlach x tav #karlach x reader #halsin x tav #halsin x reader #minthara x reader #minthara x tav

321 notes · View notes

dira333 · 7 months

Text

In every other Universe - Zoro x Reader

Part 1 - Driftwood bodies

1. Driftwood bodies

Our driftwood bodies float against the tide,

twining around each other like we’ve been doing this

for ages, like we’ve been weather kissed, floating upon

and into and onto since the time before seas were first

christened into oceans.

From the moment you opened your eyes and saw the string, its vibrant mossy green tied to your pinky, you’d known the trouble ahead.

It wasn’t even the color of it that scared you, but the implications of it.

The grownups liked to talk about it, with big words that meant nothing in the end, about fate and being made for each other, and soulmates.

But you didn’t need words to understand that the tears your mother tried to hide did not come from happiness and that your father did not smell like booze every day because he was “just made like that”.

What good was a soulmate if it only pulled you down instead of up?

You can’t stop looking at it, no matter how much you try to hate it, to cut it, to forget about it. Its shade of green always comes back to haunt you.

It’s not the green that surrounds your house in the hills, not even when the tall grass moves in the wind like ocean waves.

It’s not the dark green of the woods that lets your eyes rest when you watch them, dark and alluring, on the horizon.

No, this green makes you think of a salty breeze and stormy skies, of a deepness below you and a horizon that you want to touch. This green makes you think of the ocean, long for something you’ve only ever seen in picture books before.

If only you could know that on the other end of the string, stretched and taut, would be the ocean and not some person.

The first time you felt truly happy, was when you heard a whale sing.

Hidden under your bed in case your mother or father came looking for you, ears shielded from their fighting with thick headphones, you press play on the cheap ocean sounds CD you got just hours ago.

The moment you hear the whales, you feel yourself drift off. No longer is the underside of your bed two inches away from your face and the bare wood under your back only cushioned by discarded clothes. Now your nose touches low drifting clouds and the wood underneath you is the smallest of boats, rocking in the waves.

You can hear the whales underneath you, singing to you about their own dreams and hopes and fears.

Something tickles your nose and you try to rub it only to realize that your string, usually stretched out into the distance, is now slack, the other end so close the string touches your nose, and pools next to your arm.

You need a second, even two, to realize what that means and when you do, you try to sit up so abruptly that you ram your head into the bed, pain pulsing in your temple and your nose as you roll out from underneath. Clutching your face you sprint for the window but all you can see is the back end of a funeral procession, everyone dressed in black.

You wonder if your soulmate is the one in the casket or someone following it.

You’ve never lost a relative or a friend. How does that feel? Freeing? Or suffocating?

“Who died, Mom?” You ask and you have been silent for so long that she’s too surprised not to answer.

“Some girl from Shimotsuki village. Fell down the stairs.”

Would you have gotten interested in marine life without the color of your string reminding you of it?

Would you have learned to fight without your awkwardness making you the butt of the joke too often to count? Always the girl that raises her hand to the sky at the weirdest moments, that keeps stumbling, pulled by an invisible string?

Would you have longed to escape this valley without someone pulling you?

You like to think that you’d do it all either way, but you can feel it, the pull of something, as you stumble through your teenage years.

The only thing that makes you think about making peace with it, them, is the thought of the ocean awaiting you. As long as you can be with it, in it, on it, you might be able to endure a soulmate.

There’s a boy in your classes who naps through every lecture and still gets the best marks.

He hardly ever talks, smiles even less and has gotten into more fights this semester than you can count on both of your hands.

You don’t want to think about his hair, that mossy shade of green you know so well, or the way your heart always misses one beat whenever he looks in your general direction, or passes you in the hallways.

You’d known you’d meet him someday. You’d thought moving to the city would make it easier, would leave him behind in the hills. But there he is, just two rows behind you, the weight of his gaze heavy on your shoulders.

He hasn’t tried talking to you. You’re not sure if he knows, or if he cares as little as you do.

But he’s in almost every one of your classes, his paper on sonar systems got a better grade than yours and he kicked the ass of that jerk from the football team before you got around to pepper spray him.

He’s too close for comfort already and you try to pretend that you don’t know his name when your mind keeps whispering it in your ear.

Zoro. Roronoa Zoro. Your soulmate.

There are too many people pushing you to the right, too many people pushing you to the left.

You feel like a piece of driftwood caught in the stream, too tired to push against it, barely holding onto your drink.

Your back hit something warm and strong, someone sturdy enough to keep you upright.

“Thanks.” You mumble, trying to turn your head and get nothing in the flashing lights of the party.

“No problem.”

There’s a lilt in his voice, a tilt to the words that you’re familiar with.

“Didn’t think I’d hear that accent in the city.” You say, fueling yourself with another sip. Liquid courage never hurt nobody.

“Grew up in Shimotsuki village.”

“No way.” You almost choke on your drink. “I grew up, like, two hills over. How’d you get here?”

“The sea.” He says simply and you nod, reveling in the truth of it.

“Yeah. Me too.”

Someone stumbles into you at that, pushing you way off.

You hear someone yell “Dammit, Luffy!” in that accent that warms your heart with familiarity, but the crowd of people pulls you further away, making it unable to tell who it is.

There are people who are good at making friends and there are people who don’t.

Luffy falls into the first category, slinging an arm around your shoulders every time he’s in your vicinity, just because he can.

The reason you’re friends? You gave him half of your sandwich when he sat next to you at the bus station, his stomach grumbling pathetically.

He had thanked you almost politely, scarved down the food in one bite, and then longingly eyed your half until you gave it up as well.

It’s hard avoiding him, but you try whenever you see a head of green hair walking, sitting, standing next to him.

Then there’s Nami, who’s got more fashion sense drunk than you might have sober. When you thought she was trying to scam you at first, selling self-made jewelry and other trinkets in the bathroom, you soon realized that she was doing just that but also doing some good.

“Don’t call him!” She slapped the phone out of some poor girl's hand and put both her hands onto her shoulders, gazing into her eyes. “I’m telling you! He’s not worth it. Here. Put that lipstick on. Just five pounds a piece, I tell you, it’s a miracle worker. Look at yourself, you’re so pretty! He doesn’t deserve you.”

Even with her words half slurred she’s able to convince anyone to anything.

She might even convince you to talk to Zoro one day.

But not today.

Blood’s oozing from your split lip and your stomach hurts where they got a good kick in, but you’re still standing and they are not.

“Damn. That was a catfight if I’ve ever seen one.” Usopp says somewhere to your side. You blink to focus on his face.

“I’m not even mad that Zoro didn’t show up. But you didn’t have to go so hard on them.”

You huff, urging to get away from the scene. You don’t like getting into fights, but Usopp had seemed to need your help, always getting into trouble with the wrong kind of people.

“I don’t like people picking on others. You good?”

“Yeah. You?”

You shrug. “‘m fine.”

He pulls his phone out of his pocket, eyes the girls leaning against the walls, and points to the other end of the alley. “Wanna get out of here?”

“Sure.” You follow him out, pushing your hands into the pockets of your jacket as the wind picks up and pushes through you, bringing with it the salty tang of the sea and the comfort of the ocean. The longing to get to the shore kicks in again and moves your feet.

“What do you mean you got lost?” Usopp talks into his phone. “You just had to walk down the street, that’s like, a straight line. Yeah, don’t worry, I handled them just fine on my own.”

You listen to him exaggerate his own doings, stopping in your movements when at the end of the street you can catch a glimpse of greenish blue between the buildings.

“You coming?” Usopp asks and you wave him off. “Ocean’s calling me.” You say simply and he shrugs, leaving you to make the short walk.

Next week the semester will end.

Your mother will call and ask if you plan to come home and you’ll politely decline, using non-existing assignments as an excuse.

Nami’s throwing a party on Saturday as an excuse to get people to buy whatever stuff she’s started creating now - you’ve seen her pottery collection and it’s impressive.

Even if you’d avoid that party with a heavy heart, assuming Zoro would be there, declining Sanji’s invitation for lunch tasting on Sunday means buying groceries on Monday, something you can’t really afford.

You huff a breath as you walk up the steps to the pier, slowly coming to terms with the fact that you might be getting okay with being around Zoro. You wish you’d fought harder to avoid him, even if most of his friends are amazing and Usopp has at least managed to rope you into helping him.

You wish that it truly had been the sea that pulled you to it, loving you with all its might while you’re just the driftwood kissing its crown.

Maybe- You can see green hair, ruffled by the wind, strong shoulders, face turned into the wind to gaze at the sea.

It’s a green that’s not the fields and not the forest. A green you know will only fit against the blue of the ocean or the skin of your pinky.

You take the last few steps quietly, calmly, patiently.

“So you got lost.” You say and raise your hand in greeting, the string glinting in the sun.

It’s the first time you’ve addressed him, directly, to his face. The first time you’re alone together. The first time you acknowledge that there’s no more reason to run away.

There’s a flicker of a smile on Zoro’s face as he raises his own hand in response, the string connecting you two a vibrant green against the blue of the ocean.

“What do you mean? I’ve always been close.”

part 2 - cartography

Dedicated to: @revasserium

#my writing #Zoro x Reader #Zoro fluff #Zoro soulmates #Opla Zoro #Opla zoro x reader #One Piece Live action #opla #One Piece #One Piece x Reader #One Piece Fluff #roronoa zoro x reader

111 notes · View notes

daffodilfool · 10 months

Text

Music and Intelligence

i made a followup / correction of this post

go read that instead, please I worked so fucking hard on it and people are STILL flocking to this version

I'm gonna preface this by saying I am by no means a professional biologist, I am just a biology student who nerds out about art and biology sharing an interesting thought I had this morning.

We don't know where music comes from. That is the very disappointing answer I got to a very interesting question I had this morning. The best answer science can come up with is ...eh, it's kind of just an evolutionary hiccup that developed out of nowhere.

I don't buy it.

Hypothesis: Music isn't an evolutionary hiccup but actually an integral aspect to developing sapience.

Think about this: One of the very first things we'll hear as human beings both now as we're born and in the ages past when we first evolved is birdsong. We associate birdsong with two very important things:

Winter has passed.

Dawn has broken.

Both of these give us a lot of valuable information like it is no longer dark, it is no longer cold, it is no longer dangerous, it is safe.

Early hominids with the ability to correctly identify birdsong and associate it with safety would thus be at great evolutionary advantage as they would be much more likely to survive the winter and the night, but that ability requires 3 major steps:

The ability to pick out distinct rhythms and melodies to correctly identify something as birdsong.

The ability to correlate said birdsong to the idea of the sun coming out.

The ability to make said connection through an abstract emotional response.

In other words, it requires pattern recognition, problem solving and complex emotion. Sapience. Music is not a coincidental fluke byproduct of sapience, it is the catalyst for developing sapience.

Granted this is largely speculation on my part; there's nothing I can do to prove that this is why our sapience evolved.

However.

We are not the only sapient life on earth, there are others, some debated, some not. Besides us there are dolphins, whales, corvids, parrots and elephants, and do you know what we all have in common? We deliberately communicate through melodic and rhythmic sounds, and we derive a particular pleasure from doing so. We all enjoy music.

If music was an evolutionary fluke in our development, how come it's a commonality among all sapient life? There are many animals that sing to mate and sing to intimidate and yet they lack any signs of sapience, but the ones that sing just because they can all happen to be the most intelligent creatures on earth.

Food for thought.

#biology #zoology #music #songs #philosophy #animals #anthropology #dolphin #whale #corvid #crow #raven #parrots #elephant #food for thought #shower thoughts

183 notes · View notes

unfortunate17 · 3 months

Note

omg happy birthday!!!!! Hope you had the most fabulous day! 💙💙💙💙 and now I’m wishing Simon had sung dancing queen for Wille…

THANK YOU ANON!!!!! I know you said you wished Simon sang Dancing Queen to Wille, but here’s a cute little something about Simon’s 17th birthday just for you 🫶. Thank you for the little burst of inspiration.

———

Simon turns seventeen on a slow Wednesday morning, the sun already high and bright, light spilling in through the cracks of the curtains. Summer turns the air in his room hot and thick like a furnace, and the way Wilhelm is curled around his back certainly does nothing to help.

Groaning, Simon shoves the too-warm arm off of his waist and shifts forward, closer to the blessedly cool wall. The motion seems to jostle Wille from his sleep, and Simon senses him moving behind him, shifting onto his back and kicking the covers.

“What time is it?”

Blindly, he shoves a hand under his pillow for his phone. A quick glance at the screen confirms his suspicions. “Too early,” he mumbles into the sheets, “go back to sleep.”

Wille kicks at the covers again, this time with an increased sense of frustration. “Why’s it so fucking hot?”

“That’s your fault,” Simon kicks him in the shin, “you’re like a fucking furnace.”

Wilhelm scoffs in reply, turning over once again. His mumbled words, however, get lost in the sound of the rustling covers as Simon tries and fails to get comfortable. Just as he thinks he’s succeeded, Wilhelm moves yet again, his lanky frame jostling the too-small bed and Simon snaps. “Can you stop moving?”

In reply, Wilhelm slides up behind him once more, wrapping a tight arm around his waist and pressing a palm into the skin over his heart. His chest is a warm line of burning heat against Simon’s back, sweat immediately beginning to gather in the crevices between their body.

Simon struggles, but this time, Wilhelm refuses to let him go, effectively trapping him between his body and the wall. He stamps a smile into the skin of Simon’s shoulder, “You’re seventeen,” he murmurs, voice muddled with sleep, “Happy Birthday, Simon.”

Simon tries and fails to achieve his freedom. “Thanks,” he huffs.

“I have a lot of presents for you.”

He gives up then, slumping back into Wilhelm’s sweaty hold. He closes his eyes. “Yeah?”

Wille nods into his neck. “Yeah.”

“Is one of them letting me sleep in?”

“Of course not. I’m supposed to sing to you first thing in the morning, remember?”

“Oh fuck,” Simon groans, “please don’t, Wille. You sound like a humpback whale.”

Wille punches his hips forward, something unmistakably hard pressing into the swell of Simon’s ass. “What’d you just say about humping?”

Simon bursts into laughter, squirming as a plethora of fond kisses are pressed into his cheek. “I love you,” he grins, nuzzling back into Wille’s face, “so fucking much.”

Wilhelm smacks a last loud kiss to the jut of his jaw before he begins, his voice both off-key and off-beat, shaky with laughter, “You are the dancing queen, young and sweet, only seventeen. Dancing queen - ” His words drown out under the force of their shared laughter.

“What the fuck does this have to do with my birthday?” Simon manages to get out between bursts of laughter.

“You said I had to sing! Stop making fun of my singing!”

Simon turns to face him, takes in the warm brown of Wilhelm’s eyes, the sweet fondness that lines his handsome face. In his chest, his heart threatens to take flight. “Having the time of your life,” he sings, voice barely above a whisper, as he leans in close.

Wille smiles into the kiss, squeezing him tight, tight, tight, “Digging the dancing queen.”

#ask #young royals #if I made a typo that’s between you and me and no one else

56 notes · View notes

nevesmose · 6 months

Text

Nostraman Nature Sucks: An Attempted Lore Post

Ave dominus nox Night Lords fans. I thought I'd take some time to go through the various NL stories I have to hand and see what I could find out about the animals that lived on Nostramo. Might come in useful for something, who knows?

Sharks and Whales

As a child, on several coastal journeys with his father, he had witnessed the eyeless barrasal sharks that would group together to hunt the great whales of the open ocean. (Night Lords Trilogy)

His voice filters into something savage and predatory, as hungry as the eyeless white sharks of Nostramo’s blackest depths. (The Long Night)

Not a big surprise since they talk about them fairly often and have the Space Sharks as a successor chapter but Nostramo does have sharks. Pretty gnarly-sounding sharks if I'm honest.

I didn't know what "barrasal" meant, so I looked it up and only found one thread on r/40klore that had the same quote in it as above. Hmm.

Assuming it's not a typo or a more straightforward reference to something I'm just not getting, I'd venture a guess that barrasal, understood here to mean of or relating to "barras" like with "abyssal" could be connected to the French Revolutionary leader Paul Barras who is mostly remembered for supporting Napoleon's rise to power before being overthrown by him.

So maybe the older barrasal sharks will make use of younger ones as temporary hunting partners only to be inevitably betrayed and consumed by them. Sounds about right I think.

As for the whales, where do I even begin? I would imagine they're "whales" in name only like in Dishonored:

This does imply the possible existence of a whaling industry at some stage in Nostramo's history, though.

Crows

Jago reached into his pockets, offering a handful of breadcrumbs. Come, he said to the crows. Food for tonight. Flesh, flesh, flesh, they called back. He laughed as several of the black birds landed on his shoulders and outstretched arm. (Prince Of Crows)

‘Yes. I’ve seen them in books. Is a crow a type of bird?’ ‘Black of feather and dark of eye. It feeds on the bodies of the dead, and sings in a raw, croaking caw.’ (TLN)

Breaking news - legion that keeps referring to crows in shocking has crows on its homeworld scandal. "This is outrageous," said local Nostraman cutpurse and skin disease enthusiast Verxaglryn Quickstabber, "here we are trying to make a good name for Nostramo as a respectable hellhole, a place you'd be proud to exile your worst enemy to, and yet we're surrounded by some of the most intelligent and curious birds in existence. I was shanking someone in a back alley the other night and suddenly I saw a crow learning how to use rudimentary tools! Not on my watch, I said to the rapidly cooling body, and I threw my shiv at it. But it just flew away." At this point Mr Quickstabber was obliged to end the interview due to having been eviscerated by the Night Haunter.

I know their communication with Sevatar is happening in a dream but I really like the idea of the crows adapting to Nostramo by developing some kind of psychic hive mind that's also able to be understood by human psykers.

Crag Cougars

A beast of my home world. When next you see one of the Atramentar, look to their shoulder guards. The roaring lions on their pauldrons are what we called crag cougars on Nostramo. It was considered a mark of wealth for gang bosses to be able to leave the cities and hunt such creatures. (NLT)

Every single one of them is Scar from the Lion King, isn't it? An interesting hint about Nostramo's geography though, of which more later.

Rats

Groundcars whisked by, headlights brighter than deep-hive rats’ eyes, the occupants snug and safe behind armoured glass. (Konrad Curze: The Night Haunter)

No surprises here either. Where there's people there's rats after all.

Something with tusks?

The older Astartes grinned, wolf-like and keen, as the Atramentar either side of the Exalted’s throne growled through their tusked helms. (NLT)

This isn't that conclusive because a lot of Chaos Terminators have tusks no matter what legion they are, but Nostramo being Nostramo they probably belonged to a species of giant carnivorous mammoth that ate babies and sprayed acid from its trunk.

Cows? On My Sunless World?

‘They are still of standard human stock, and not to be mourned. What does it matter if the cattle fear the herdsman?’ hissed Krukesh the Pale. (KC:TNH)

This one's a real reach on my part as it's very likely just a turn of phrase, but I noticed it because wouldn't it be slightly more typical to use a sheep metaphor here? Plus it supports the existence of Nostraman cowboys/ranchers/vaqueros which is fun.

No bats?

His helmet bore a new, spread batwing crest in blatant imitation of Sevatar’s own. (A Safe and Shadowed Place)

A sole space was neat: a circle around an iron lectern fashioned in the form of a bat’s outflung wings, which carried a heavy book bound in human skin. (KC:TNH)

Although they appear a lot in the VIII legion's iconography and artwork, oddly enough I wasn't actually able to find a direct reference to Nostramo itself having bats. Let's cover my ass by saying this aspect might therefore have been brought in by the legion's Terran component instead.

Some Nostraman geography

The Hill Folk lived away from the cities, eking out an existence in the mountains. (NLT)

What's worse than living in a Nostraman city? Living on a Nostraman hill, apparently. This seems to just be an idea of ADB's that doesn't come up again but I've always found it quite interesting. Were the Hill Folk as scummy as the City Folk, just with more of a down-home Dukes of Hazzard vibe? Seems likely.

This also supports the idea of Nostramo not being completely urbanised like some Hive Worlds are. In my view its continents might have had a geographical layout a bit like Italy or Scotland where the cities are mainly on the flatter coasts with a more sparsely populated hilly/mountainous interior.

What else? (This part is just me making stuff up so feel free to ignore it. I'm not ADB, I'm not even ADB's hat.)

If the rest of Nostramo's marine life is anything like the sharks and whales then it's fucking terrifying. I would imagine, because it's funny, that a lot of Nostraman food features disgusting industrially-processed fish in some way or another. Like the food in Dishonored but even worse.

Is something wrong, dearest offworld husband? You haven't touched your stale bread, whalemeat and jellied eels.

Since all life on Nostramo seems to be comically carnivorous and aggressive, it would make sense in a 40K kind of way for there to be giant predatory penguins living at one or both of its poles. A bit like the monstrous blind albino penguins HP Lovecraft wrote about.

Last known infrared pict-capture of an early Nostraman settler attempting communication with a juvenile specimen of the native penguin species. There were no survivors.

#ended up mentioning Dishonored a lot #fine by me I love Dishonored #shall we gather for whisky and cigars tonight?#warhammer lore #wh40k #warhammer 40000 #warhammer 40k #night lords #nostramo #neves loreposts

73 notes · View notes

hetalia-club · 6 days

Note

Genuine question! I don't mean this rude but does the US have folk songs? I just didn't know since it was such a newer country.

Yes. I'm pretty sure every country has folk music regardless of the newness of their country. You'll notice a lot of them have heavy Irish influences for obvious reasons. But yes this would considered 'cowboy music' songs they would sing whilst around a fire. Think Red Dead. Those are all real songs too. Here are a few but there are honestly hundreds.

youtube

This one has BIIIIIIG Irish Energy. Also It sounds best if you sing it in an Irish accent like these guys are. Because that's honestly most likely what it was like.

youtube

So this song. Not a lot of people know the origins or what the words really mean. This song was original The jig of the British Army and the Brits started calling the Americans Yankees, as we know. Then the Americans stole the song. So the line, "Stuck a feather in his cap and called it Maccaroni" Maccaroni was 1700's slang for 'cool' so if something was Macaroni it was rad as hell. So the Brits were mocking the Americans for putting feathers in their hats saying "You guys thing you look so cool but you actually just look dumb. Also you're always fucking all the time. You're poor. Your guns are old. So ha!"

So when the Americans started to win the war and push the Brits back the Americans started to sing the song back to the Brits giving it a whole new meaning. Which was once a diss track became a double diss track. It turned it into "You're right we do actually look sick as hell with our feathers in our hats thanks for noticing." And so on. Americans are so unserious, always have been.

Prussia & America when the Brits dropped this song. Brittan really popped off with this one not gonna lie. Still slaps unironically.

I would also like to note that Americans Also have Sea Shanties.

youtube

About the American-Mexico war. This song goes so hard.

youtube

First recording was a whaling ship that was leaving New London, Connecticut. Again, it's sang best with an Irish accent because that is most likely as it was preformed. It's also sang to the tune of an existing Irish folk song.

These are two I know off the top of my head. I'm sure there are many more.

#ask #hetalia #hws america #hws prussia #hws england

25 notes · View notes

anticidic · 21 days

Note

*holds microphone up to pookie, do you wanna give me ideas for a mermaid/sea monster dazai / pirate chuuya AU? /nf :33

OOO that sounds fun, i can give you some headcanons that might help!!

i'm lowkey getting Moby Dick vibes, but instead of Chuuya searching for a great, mythical white whale, it's just a Dazai. :3

merman/sea monster Dazai ideas:

Chuuya's out here illegally fishing in uncharted waters because no one can tell him what to do and the waters far out to sea are quite literally a lawless land, but he's racing against time competing against other pirates

Dazai's supposed to be worth a pretty penny back on land, but all the fishing villages Chuuya came upon on land only spoke of some sort of vague creature that may or may not exist, so he's just patiently waiting until his line catches something out of the norm. he throws back all the fish and sharks he accidentally hooks.

Chuuya keeps changing his bait, and eventually he hooks something that says 'OW' and uhh, fish aren't supposed to talk?? when he looks over the railing and sees a tail flopping around above water, he's so confused and turns around and questions the nearby crew if they're messing with him, because it isn't funny

as he's reeling the line in slowly, the hook is caught in Dazai's tail :( Dazai flails around in midair and tells Chuuya, "Unhand me, heathen!" and smacks his tail against the ship

Chuuya's STILL confused, and did he accidentally drink seawater or something because is he hallucinating or seeing this right? a sea creature is speaking to him? he thinks it's a man who went overboard and he's not sure how he feels about saving this guy, Dazai's kinda staring daggers up at him despite being upside down

Dazai's in the bargaining phase and offers to lead Chuuya and his pirate crew to the great undersea treasure lost at the bottom of the ocean if he lets him go, dammit

a crewmember warns Chuuya this guy might actually be a siren trying to lead them all to their deaths. Chuuya thinks he has a good point, and threatens to harpoon Dazai. Dazai continues wriggling around and eventually frees himself and flops back into the water

still irritated by his poor tail getting caught, Dazai seems to retreat for a while and the waters become calm again until he returns with a vengeance and starts throwing things at the ship's hull, springing a leak

now Chuuya's annoyed because he worked hard for a lot of money for this ship and this guy won't leave them alone. he hears some sort of scratching like human fingernails against wood at some point, and when he looks over, he sees Dazai slowly crawling up the side of the ship?? it actually spooks him a lil when Dazai reaches the top

other Dazai/Chuuya hcs:

Dazai has pretty, iridescent scales that get duller if he's sick :(

he'd actually have a really pretty, albeit haunting, singing voice as a siren, but he sings about strange things like his prey's greatest fears. (he sings about loss and the crippling void left by losing everything he holds dear to Chuuya)

Dazai being some kind of underwater shapeshifter who can turn into a basilisk; you know you have the right guy because Dazai has literal snake eyes, forked tongue optional. and the sky turns dark and drizzled. he's just a sleepy, ancient guy and wants to be left alone and Chuuya's Not Wanted

admittedly, pirate!Chuu was in this for the money and/or poaching, but the fact Dazai speaks creeps him out

Dazai was rumored to be some sort of great leviathan who took no prisoners and this caught Chuuya's interest; a crewmember goes 'eek!' when they look overboard and see several glowing pairs of eyes looking up from the dark water

the bounty on Dazai's head turns into something more than just a trophy, people by the shore are legitimately terrified and Chuuya, as a renowned pirate, takes it upon himself to crack the case (probably a bad idea)

merman!Dazai likes sunbathing when he gets the chance, and he's accidentally beached himself a few times. sand does NOT feel good against his skin nor scales

alternatively: Chuuya's line hooks itself into one of Dazai's gills :(

#asks #bungou stray dogs #bungo stray dogs #bsd #bsd dazai #bsd chuuya #soukoku #ideas #also good to see u again!!#i just threw a bunch of different sea monster ideas out there :3

24 notes · View notes

silvereyedzoroark · 8 months

Text

Another Thrithstore Fakemon inspired creature based on the amusing photo from shiftythrifting tumblr post down below

I present to you Whaletomen (Whale-toe-men)

Name: Whaletomen Type: Electric / Psychic Ability: Levitate Hidden Ability: Disguise Classification: Fakémon Dex Entry:

Another strange Fakemon that is believed to be more myth than real, it is said to live in the space between worlds and its haunting songs can sometimes be picked up on certain radio frequencies.

Where ever this creature appears or goes it is always singing a haunting and strange song, that sounds like a mix of whale song and static.

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

Originally when I first saw the photo below I was thinking, 'Hey wouldn't it be amusing if I made a Xatu variant based on this?' and well when working on the design it became its own terrifying creature. This thing probably has conspiracy theories on wither or not its real as people claimed to have heard its song, but when they tune into the radio frequency they heard it on, its no longer their. I guess one would consider it more of an Ultra Beast than Pokemon which I guess suits the creature more.

I also imagine this thing knows the move Teleport and is partly the reason people haven't been able to catch this thing on camera easily. Also it is seems to have an effect on radio frequencies and turning T.V's to static when its near by it is also a very 'wary' creature, seeming to want to avoid human contact, but is clearly looking for something or someone.

Photo below that inspired this fakemon creation.

#pokemon #fakemon #Whaletomen #Ultra Beast #Thrithstore Fakemon

86 notes · View notes

littlethingsinlife · 2 years

Text

i'm sorry (happier part 2)

A/N: I was not expecting the amount of positive feedback for the first part and I was even more surprised to see people asking for a part 2! It was originally created to be a one-shot but a part 2 really fit well with how the first one ended. Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you again for all of the love and support! I hope you all enjoy. I also want to thank my friend, @tummymoth, they really helped me flush out and refine my rusty ass writing (also let me word vomit at them till midnight sometimes).

Pairing(s): Past Lo’ak x Omatikayan!Reader, Ao’nung x Omatikayan!Reader, Slight mentions of Lo’ak x Tsireya

Warnings: Lo'ak's POV, Swearing, Ao'nung saying something sus ONE time

More Info: My vision for this part 2 was to create a reply in Lo'ak's pov. So we'll have a look at what he experienced and thought process (not too sure if any of that made sense) but I was inspired by Joshua Bassett's song "i'm sorry" and it played constantly as I wrote this. Hopefully I was able to do right by my idea haha.

Summary: 7,547

Part 1: Happier

Key:

(Y/N) = Your Name

Lyrics = Bolded Italics

Flashbacks = Italics

Na'vi Words:

Yuey - beautiful (refers to a person)

Skxawng - idiot/moron

Marui - Pods where the Na’vi live

Ilu - sea creature similar to dolphins

Ikran - dragon-like creature

Tulkun - sentient creatures similar to whales

Olo’eyktan - clan leader/ chief

I thought about what I would say

But I’m two years too late

I can’t imagine how you’re doing these days, hmm

Sure, it wasn’t perfect back then

I’ll be first to admit

But it was better than being strangers again, oh

It had been a couple of months since my interactions with (Y/N) dwindled to terse smiles and barely audible greetings. If you asked me to point out the moment our friendship started to change, I couldn’t tell you. When did our bond start to break? When did it even start to crack? We used to talk every day about all the things we did and planned what pranks to pull on everyone, but now? Now, she barely looked in my direction. Now, she wouldn’t even give me the time of day.

I couldn’t remember when it started, but I knew that it was somehow my fault I grew distant once we arrived in Awa'atlu. I guess I was just so fascinated by the new environment and people, I didn’t even realize a rift started to form between us in the first place, much less that it started to grow.

The night before we left to find a new home, I held (Y/N) as she let out sobs filled with fear and anxiety. It broke my heart, but all I could do was hold her and let her cry until she was calm enough to tell me what was on her mind.

“I-I am afraid, what if the sky people come to find us again? I cannot lose any of you; it would break me into a million pieces,” she sobbed.

“If they find us then we will fight and we will win,” I reassured her, gently rocking her back and forth.

“You are an idiot, I was so close to losing you, to losing Kiri, Tuk, how do you think it would make me feel to lose the most important people in my life?” she sniffled. My chest ached at how broken she sounded, but the only thing I could do was assure her and offer her more words of comfort as I held her in my arms.

“I promise that I will be with you throughout the journey as will my family. We love you, and even if you do not believe it, you are a Sully. And you know what my dad always says.”

“Sullys stick together,” we chorused.

That night, I cradled her in my arms until she fell asleep.

Fuck, I completely broke my promise to her, how could I forget? Shaking my head, I tried to reason to myself, “Maybe she just needs time alone. I’m sure she’ll come running back soon once she realizes that it's no fun without me, her best friend.” I felt a small, unfamiliar feeling in the pit of my stomach. “Right?”

I’m drunk too late talking to the moon

Writing songs I can’t sing to you, ‘cause

“Bah! Stop lying, I know you (Y/N). You would have fought alongside me and defended Kiri. You are not the same girl I knew in the forest back home,” I muttered, rolling my eyes and getting up to leave. Honestly, who did she think she was fooling? The skxawng had the balls to insult Kiri, and all she did was sit back and watch. She didn’t even make a move to help until it was to help him by pulling me off. “Talk to me when you’ve come back to your senses,” I called over my shoulder, refusing to look back.

“Lo’ak! Bro—” a hand roughly grabbed my shoulder, jolting me out of my daze, “why’re you just staring off like that?” I whipped my head to see who the hell it was that was bothering me, only to be met with Neteyam.

“Did you have to grab me that hard?” I hissed before my initial anger gave way to a heavy feeling. “It's nothing, just—just lost in thought” I sighed, shrugging his hand off my shoulder.

“Right, sure, nothing.” he crouched down beside me. “Don’t think you can lie to me lil bro, you’ve been spacing out more than you usually do. I didn’t even think it was possible to be more empty-headed than you already are,” he stated.

“Wha—no I haven’t,” I tried to argue, but of course, he wasn’t convinced.

“Can you stop arguing with me for once and just tell me what’s going on with you, you skxawng?”

I scrunched my nose in distaste and inhaled sharply, “(Y/N) and I have been… distant,” I admitted, turning to look at him. “She won’t even look at me. She either only answers me with one word or doesn’t answer at all.”

He nodded, motioning for me to continue.

“I—the last time we talked, I said things I didn’t mean. Things that just came out because I was so frustrated and… and angry. It was the heat of the moment and I—”

“What did you say skxawng, did you hurt her?” Neteyam interrupted, face twisting to show the beginnings of distaste.

“No, no—” I sputtered and raised my hands to calm him before he could go on an hour-long lecture that I absolutely was not in the mood to hear. “At least I don’t think I did… I just wanted to ask her why the hell she was helping fish lips, that’s all—”

“You didn’t answer me Lo’ak, what did you say to (Y/N)? I don’t care why you did it, I want to know what you said to elicit such a reaction from her.” By Eywa, if he would just give me a chance to get to the point—

“I—I told her that she was not the same girl that I knew back in the forest..." my ears lowered as the weight of what I said slowly sunk in. “And that she could talk to me once she came back to her senses,” I whispered, internally cringing at my harsh words..

“You fucking skxawng—”

“Can you stop calling me that? I already know, you don’t need to keep repeating it…” I scoffed, looking out into the ocean. I’m good enough at beating myself up over the hundreds of times I’ve messed up in this lifetime, I didn’t need another disappointed set of eyes on me.

My ears twitched at the deep sigh he let out. “Look, I’m sorry that I keep calling you skxawng but that is exactly what you are for saying something so hurtful to your best friend of all people. The two of you were inseparable the moment you were born. Even if you don’t want to, suck up your dumbass pride,” my ears flattened again. It wasn’t pride, I’m not prideful. It—it was me needing (Y/N) on my side. We used to always be on the same page, and when she said I was wrong for wanting to defend Kiri against those assholes, it felt like she was siding with them instead of me, and—

Okay, so maybe it was pride.

“Admit that you were wrong, and go talk to (Y/N),” Neteyam insisted as he put a reassuring arm around my shoulders, jostling me around to prove a point. “Your friendship is so much stronger and Eywa knows that a heat-of-the-moment argument isn’t going to break that. You should have more faith in her.” His gaze sharpened before he schooled his expression into something calmer. “Just talk to her, yeah?”

“...Yeah,” I mumbled, swallowing down whatever argument was trying to bubble up from my throat and prying his arm off me. “You’re right. I’ll just clear things up with her and apologize. Everything will go back to normal after that, thanks bro—for listening,” I agreed.

Ever since that day

The things I didn’t say They haunt me, oh

And I know that I’m to blame

So, go ahead and

Blame it on me, oh

Our lessons on the ways of the Metkayina were finished, so it was rare for the entire group to be in the same place. But every once in a while, we all finished our chores at the same time and found ourselves near the shore where we first learned to ride the ilu, and sat around a fire hours before eclipse, laughing and exchanging stories.

The rarity of these moments made me cherish them that much more, but two people continued to miss our not-so-scheduled gatherings the past two moon cycles. How was it possible that they were the only two to keep missing our hangouts? Were they together? Fish lips had better not be doing anything to (Y/N) or so hel—

“(Y/N)! Ao’nung! You guys made it!” Rotxo laughed.

“Yeah, yeah, quit shouting will you?” Ao’nung shot back as he sat down next to Rotxo, (Y/N) smiling softly as she followed.

“So, what’ve you guys been up to? We haven’t seen you in what feels like ten moon cycles.” Neteyam questioned.

“Teyam, you saw me earlier today, you literally helped me feed our ikran,” (Y/N) joked. ‘Teyam? When did she start calling him by anything other than his given name?

Ao’nung swatted her side with his stupidly wide tail and swung an arm around her shoulder with a remarkably punchable smile on his face “More like he was trying to make sure you didn’t accidentally give them your fingers for breakfast. They would’ve gotten indigestion.”

“Haha very funny Ao’nung,” she drawled, “I would’ve fed you to Tekay instead, but she would’ve gagged the moment she caught a whiff of you,” she scoffed as she quickly pushed him away by the chest.

“Wait… Do they even have a gag reflex?” Fish lips didn’t budge, he just had a dumb look of confusion on his face.

“No, but they would defy the laws of biology to gag just for you,” she quipped, sticking out her tongue and moving to push him away again, but the skxawng had the nerve to pull her into a headlock.

“Oh, yuey, the ikran won’t be the only ones gagging on me tonight,” he argued with a smirk.

Did I want to punch that smirk off his face? Did I want to gag? Both? Before I could make a decision, (Y/N) grimaced, pushing him away again and smacking him upside the head.

“That’s actually repulsive. You’re disgusting.”

“Dude, keep it in your pants, her family is right there,” Rotxo laughed, doubled over as he struggled to catch his breath.

“Yeah, we’re right here,” I interjected with a smile—wanting to join in on the jokes that were being thrown around—but it was hard to keep my face from falling when I saw (Y/N)’s bright expression falter.

“Anyway, what were you guys talking about before Ao’nung and I arrived?” she asked in a too-bright tone of voice she only used when she desperately wanted to change the subject. As if everyone came to an unspoken agreement to forget about the conversation before, one by one they all started talking about who they thought would win in a fight—Toruk Makto, or our Olo’eyktan, Tonowari.

The sound of laughter and excited chatter faded as I replayed the previous conversation in my head. When did they start joking around like that? Why the hell did fish lips call her yuey like it was the most natural thing in the world? How come she smiled so easily with him but faltered when she sees me? She was probably smiling with him right now—

I looked over at her, a pit in my stomach already forming at the idea of her smiling at him, but she looked so distant, so withdrawn from everything around her. Before I could even blink, she put a delicate hand on Ao’nung’s arm to grab his attention and mumbled something in a hushed tone. After a few beats of silent conversation, Ao’nung nodded and gave her a look of understanding.

Why did he look at her like that? How much time did they spend together to be able to understand each other with just a look? How much time have I wasted breaking my promise to her while she grew closer to someone else?

Standing up, I made up my mind that I would talk to her and clear up any miscommunication. There was no way in hell I was about to let fish lips ruin our childhood friendship. Before I could even get close, Neteyam pulled me aside.

“Bro, why’re you glaring at everyone?” he asked with concern written all over his face.

“Glaring?” I tilted my head in confusion. “I’m not glaring, this is just my face.”

“No, no.” He shook his head. “I’m your brother, I know your face. Whatever look you’ve been throwing at Ao’nung and (Y/N)? You may as well have been throwing knives at them.”

Behind Neteyam, I could see (Y/N) get up to bid everyone good night and slowly walk in our direction. This was my chance, I just needed this overbearing idiot to leave me alone.

“Whatever look you think I’m giving to them, you’re wrong,” I denied. “Can you not act like this right now?” My tail flicked side to side impatiently, an obvious twinge of annoyance clear in my tone. I licked my lips nervously as I could hear footsteps coming closer. Leaning slightly to the side, I looked behind Neteyam to see (Y/N) and—

Ao’nung? What? Why is he there?

“Good night,” (Y/N) muttered, not sparing us a glance as she walked past. I followed her every move and—as if everything slowed down—my eyes narrowed as they found Ao’nung’s hand placed on her lower back, leading her gently in the direction of the marui.

I know that I’m too late

But I’ll say it anyway

I’m sorry

Though it's far too late

“I did it! Did you see that Reya?” I shouted—out of breath—as I showed off the shell Tsireya threw.

“Yes, yes you did it!” She exclaimed, excitedly wrapping her hand around mine. For someone who spent so much time underwater, her hand radiated so much warmth. So easy to hold. My heart swelled with pride as she continued to compliment me. “You’ve improved so much!”

“Yeah? Well, I had a great teacher,” I joked, nudging her softly with my shoulder. It wasn’t just her hands that were warm either, she just seemed to radiate it.

“Oh stop, you flatter me too much,” she denied, fidgeting with her hair. Was that a blush on her face? “C’mon, why don’t we catch up with the others? Private lessons are officially done for the day,” she announced as she led me to shore. Oh Eywa, she looked so pretty like this, with her hair flowing down her back and the way her eyes cast down when she became flustered. And her smile, it was a smile that could knock the air out of my lungs.

While we walked onto shore, we joked around and laughed with each other, talking about anything and everything. The ease of each reply and joke came as smoothly as gliding through the water on an ilu—as easy as breathing. Laughing at another one of Tsireya’s jokes, my eyes scanned the village as we approached it. Families were winding down for the day as they cooked dinner, although I didn’t see mine anywhere nearby aside from Kiri.

My smile slowly dropped when I was able to make out Kiri looking frantically around as if she was searching for someone. Tsireya and I made our way to her, worry filling the pit in my stomach. As we got closer, I could see Ao’nung climb down one of the roots of the Mangrove trees and make a beeline toward her. My eyes stayed on both of them, making sure that fish lips didn’t do anything to Kiri.

Ears twitching I was able to make out the words, “(Y/N)? Did you find her? ” from Kiri as they were carried on the wind toward us.

“Yeah I did, I was able to get her to eat, but she’s not looking too good,” Ao’nung replied with concern lacing his voice.

Brows furrowing, I pulled Ao’nung by the shoulder. “What do you mean she’s not looking good? Where is she? What did you do?”

“What the hell do you mean? I didn’t do shit, freak.” I rolled my eyes at the insult. He couldn’t use that thick head of his to think of anything else to call me? From the pained look on his face, I could tell that my grip on his shoulder had too much pressure. Good. Served him right.

Before Ao’nung and I could continue our argument Kiri groaned, “Will the both of you skxawng shut up! I’ll go talk to her.” My eyes followed her retreating form as she went to talk to (Y/N)—tail lashing back and forth in agitation all the while—before turning back to Ao’nung.

Who the hell did he think he was? I’d beat his skxawng ass if he hurt (Y/N) in any way. He had no right to look so damn worried. They weren’t even close. What even happened? How long had she been missing for Kiri to go to fish lips of all people for help? Should I follow Kiri? Why didn’t (Y/N) come to me? She always came to me, and if she came to me now, I absolutely would have listened. Why—

“Lo’ak? Hey, are you okay? Lo’ak?” a hand softly placed itself on my arm. Closing my eyes in frustration, I sighed.

“Yeah, perfectly fine.”

Damn it, was that when it started? How idiotic and blind have I been that I didn’t even notice that her trust in me started to slip and die when it was right in front of me? Why didn’t I go to her and make sure she was okay? I should’ve punched that idiot’s lights out—

“Ao’nung! Stop pulling me you skxawng, you’re walking too fast, slow down!” a hushed voice chastised.

“C’mon yuey, we only have about an hour before eclipse, we have to hurry!” His voice grated against my ears as he responded.

“That’s plenty of time!” (Y/N) insisted. I could hear the laughter bubbling up in her voice as she chased after him. “Please Ao’nung slow down, I can’t keep up.”

“It can’t be helped, you’re so short—” a whack could be heard. “Ow!”

“I’m as tall as Tsireya, you giant!”

“Both you and my sister are short—Ow! Alright, just because you did that, you leave me no choice,” Ao’nung said, throwing (Y/N) over his shoulder with a laugh.

The bickering voices got closer, and my eyes narrowed at the way he held her. My breath hitched as he whispered something in her ear that made her ears perk up and her eyes widen. What the hell was he saying to her? Before I could spring up from my spot, Ao’nung tossed (Y/N) in the water, her yelp quickly interrupted by the sound of her body hitting the water.

I stayed in my spot as shock zipped through my body. Letting out a breath I didn’t know I held, her head popped out of the water, a playful glare on her face.

“I told you, you left me no choice,” he stated, guffawing at her expression.

“Oh yeah?” she groused, spitting out seawater as she wrung out her hair. “Well fuck you too. Help me out of here?”

“Only if you say the magic word,” he taunted, crossing his arms with a smirk. “Otherwise, I’m afraid my hands are tied.”

“Please, oh great son of our Olo’eyktan, help me out of the ocean,” she beckoned dramatically, sarcasm dripping from every word while she rolled her eyes. “It’s about time you recognized my proud lineage, forest dweller,” he said as his chest puffed out with a hand reaching towards (Y/N). And there was that stupid smile on his face.

(Y/N) rolled her eyes, a mischievous smile spreading across her face as she reached for his hand, making sure to tug with enough force to unceremoniously yank him into the water.

“So much for the son of a great warrior! Your instincts are shit!”

“My instincts are dull you say?” he questioned as his head popped up next to her. “We’ll see about that!”

“Wha—AHHH—'' she wheezed. “No, please Ao’nung stop! That tickles!” Her arms flailed wildly in an attempt to free herself from his grasp.

What the fuck.

My ears flattened at an angle as I tried to process the scene unfolding before me. When did she start laughing with him? That should’ve been me she was laughing with. Not him, not the skxawng who had been nothing but rude to us since we arrived. What… what was I even saying—Fuck I didn’t know anymore. Why did I feel like this every time I saw them together… laughing and making jokes like we used to?

And it was me, it wasn’t you

It’s cliche, but it’s true

I wasn’t thinking how I usually do, oh

And is your momma doing well?

Or does she still hate me?

But it was hard to watch me put you through hell

I’m drunk, too late, talking to the moon, ooh

Writing songs I can’t sing to you, ‘cause

Two weeks had passed since I started noticing the changes in (Y/N)’s relationship—friendship?—with Ao’nung. It was like every time I blinked, I could see her laughing loudly as Ao’nung tickled her with a triumphant smile on his stupid face. Since that day, I had been trying to find a way to talk to (Y/N), but she was never alone. She was always with him and when she wasn’t, she disappeared and I couldn’t find her no matter how hard I looked.

Now here I was, wandering around trying to look for her as I rehearsed what I wanted to tell her.

Where could she be? Dinner was in an hour and she wasn’t anywhere near our marui. I had to find her soon so there would be enough time for us to talk. I had to tell her that I miss her, that I was sorry for being so dumb, that I shouldn’t have let my pride blind me, and that I didn’t mean any of the things I said.

There was only one place I hadn’t looked yet… hopefully she was there.

As I was getting closer to the root Kiri stalked to, I could see two silhouettes beside each other. An all-too-familiar feeling bloomed in my chest once I registered that she was there with him.

Her melodic laughter made my steps falter. I clenched my fists tightly, contemplating if I should go over there and pull her away, force her to talk to me, to listen. But I couldn’t, I couldn’t do that to her, not when she looked so content, so happy.

Ever since that day

The things I didn’t say

They haunt me, oh

I know that I’m to blame

So, go ahead and

Blame it on me, oh

“Lo’ak? You said you were going to look for (Y/N) and never came back. She’s already in the marui helping mom cook,” Kiri stated, a twinge of annoyance lacing her voice. “Hey, are you listening?” She shook my arm slightly, making me jump out of my stupor.

“Yeah, sorry, you said dinner was ready?” I asked as I stared off.

The sand beside me crunched softly as Kiri made a move to sit beside me. “No, I said that (Y/N) is with mom helping her cook. Where is your head at?” she asked as she tilted her head to try and meet my gaze. “Are you alright?” The annoyance in her voice shifted to concern.

“I’m fine, yep—just… fine,” I brushed her off, hoisting myself up to head towards Mom and Dad for dinner before Kiri yanked me back down.

“Lo’ak, don’t pretend you’re okay when you’re not. Tell me what’s going on,” she urged. “Maybe I can help you with whatever it is that’s occupied your mind lately.”

I inhaled sharply, debating if I should tell her what had been muddying my mind, the reason why I had been so spaced out, why I had been glaring daggers at fish lips each time I saw his stupid face next to (Y/N)—how confused I was.

“Stop with the thinking skxawng, you might hurt yourself,” she admonished. “Just tell me. It’s not like I can’t handle it.”

Huffing, I rolled my eyes and turned away from her to look at the sea. I hadn't even said anything yet and Kiri was already making me feel idiotic. How was I supposed to tell her what's been going on like this? Maybe if I kept quiet for long enough, she would get tired of waiting for me to start talking and go on to eat dinner without me.

A couple of minutes of silence passed.

I could still feel her staring at me.

“I’ve—I’ve been conflicted,” I started, tongue feeling heavy in my mouth as I continued to stare at the shoreline. “I don’t know what I’m feeling.”

“What do you mean?” Kiri nudged my shoulder with hers. “Elaborate a little more, I can’t help if you don’t tell me the reason why you’re feeling confused.”

“...Whenever I see (Y/N) with Ao’nung, it’s as if I can feel my heart aching,” I said, motioning toward my chest to prove my point. “There’s always a… a surge of anger that rushes through me. All I want to do is pull her away from him so then everything can go back to the way things used to be—for us to be okay.”

“Lo’ak…” If I was looking at her, I’d probably see Kiri tilt her head with sympathy. But sympathy isn’t what I needed right now.

“I want her to look at me and smile, to laugh with me, hug me—but now, whenever I get close to her, she’s next to him, laughing with him, cracking the jokes we would make to each other… I just—” I rubbed at my face in frustration. It wasn’t as if the words were hard to come by—I had spent so much time bottling them up that it was hard to stop talking. No, I just hated the fact that I felt this way in the first place. “I don’t understand why seeing them makes me feel like my heart is about to explode—why it makes me want to scream. It hurts.”

“Lo’ak” she put a hand on my shoulder. “Are you—are you in love with (Y/N)?”

Love?

I sputtered in surprise and whipped my head toward Kiri to see if she was joking or not. What kind of a sick question was that? I wasn’t in the mood for any games.

“What? No, she’s like my… sister?”

She rolled her eyes and sighed. “If you’re not, then why does seeing her with Ao’nung hurt you so much? Why do you care as much as you do?”

“I shouldn’t!” I wrenched my shoulder away from her hand and stood up. The need to move around and do something—anything—was too much. There was too much energy thrumming right beneath my skin to sit still anymore.

“That’s the problem! After everything I said to her, done to her? I don’t have the right to say I’m in love with her. She’s my childhood friend, Kiri. That’s all our relationship has ever been… I just—” I paused in thought and tried to calm down. “I didn’t realize seeing her have so much fun with someone else would make me feel so, so hollow—”

“Let me ask you something, you have to promise to be completely honest with me, okay?”

I nodded, not even looking in her direction.

“When (Y/N) tried to pull you off from Ao’nung that one fight months ago, what did you feel? Angry? Betrayed? Jealous?”

Jealous? Did she really think I was sulking for months because of such a petty feeling? I’m not a jealous person. I never have been.

“Seeing her jump in to get me off him made me feel like she was siding with him and telling me that I was wrong. Her actions were clear as day to me, Kiri.” I started to pace around. “She was protecting him—caring for him when she should’ve been next to me, helping and supporting me. When she did that—I felt like the only person that’s ever been on my side—” I croaked and turned my head to look at Kiri as tears stung my eyes “The only person who didn’t see everything I did as some sort of disappointment or failure, abandoned me and chose someone else.”

“...”

“I know that I could’ve approached her a different way but how could I when I felt so broken?” I inhaled sharply, eyebrows furrowed. “ It’s all fish lips’ fault. If he wasn’t such an asshole, none of this would have happened, and (Y/N) and I would still be the same, she would still be by my side—supporting me, loving me.”

“Why do you keep blaming it on Ao’nung?”

“Because it is his fault that things have turned out the way it has.” I threw my hands up, exasperated. What wasn’t Kiri getting? “He’s getting in between my relationship—er—friendship with (Y/N)! If he wasn’t there I would be able to talk to her and tell her I’m sorry, but she’s always with him—”

“Stop! Are you hearing yourself?” She nudged at my foot to interrupt and scoffed. “You’re unbelievable, you know that? (Y/N) told me what you said to her, how ‘she wasn’t the same girl’ you knew back in the forest. Do you know what happened when you told her that? Do you know how much pain she was in?”

Pain? I snorted, turning towards Kiri. “Now I know what you’re saying is bullshit. You know how (Y/N) is—if she really was pissed at me she would’ve come to me instead of running to someone else.”

“She wasn’t pissed. She cried because of you, Lo’ak. Because of what you said.” I stopped dead in my tracks to look at her. Kiri's eyes didn’t waver. Another heavy feeling settled on my chest and clawed its way up my throat. If you had asked me what it was, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you. Was I sad? Guilty? Angry? Was I jealous like she said?

I settled on anger.

“If you’re saying what I think you’re saying—”

“The person that found her that night, the one who comforted her? That was Ao’nung. He held her in his arms as she sobbed when I found them.” She stood up too, forcing me to stop pacing.

“The last thing I want to hear about right now is him, Kiri. What the fuck—”

“Did you ever think about why she’s so comfortable with him now? Why they’re so close? While you ignored her for weeks, he made sure she was okay—made sure she ate every day. He didn’t leave her side until she finished,” Kiri pointed out, and before I could even think to open my mouth to remind her how shitty he was to her especially, she cut me off. “Yes, he was an asshole at the beginning, and yes he has a screwed-up way to show he cares, but he stepped up when you fucked up.” She poked my chest with a glare before she continued.

“Oh, so I’m a fuck-up now?” I asked wryly.

“You can’t put all the blame on someone that took care of your best friend. Stop being so blinded by your pride and hatred and see that you’re the real reason why your relationship with (Y/N) isn’t the same as it used to be.”

My heart sank a little more as I scrambled for something to say. “How could you say that—”

“No, you do not get to interrupt me right now, Lo’ak.” Her eyes flashed with something closer to anger than annoyance. When was the last time I saw her angry? “Listen and listen well. When we couldn’t find (Y/N) and we were looking for her everywhere—he was the one that found her spot, the one she isolated herself to so she could cry alone, and no one would see how much pain she was in. And what were you doing in the meantime?”

My ears flattened at her rising tone, and I was finally beginning to understand the weight stuck in my throat and chest. Not anger, not even jealousy.

“You were out there with Tsireya, stuck in your own little world.”

It was my fault.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m really happy that you found her but you can’t have both of them. You can’t be that selfish. From (Y/N)’s perspective, you’ve already chosen the one you want.”

“It’s not like I’ve actually chosen anyone yet,” I tried to interject, but all the fight had left my voice as Kiri’s words dug into my skin and sunk in.

“Don’t you dare play with either of their feelings. (Y/N) held so much love for you in her heart, she allowed herself to break to the point of no repair because she didn’t want to show you how much it hurt her to see you at your happiest with Tsireya.” She paused before continuing, her voice losing its edge. “Let her move on, brother. And if it’s Ao’nung that makes her light up the way she used to, then you suck it up and let him. He was there when your pride wouldn’t even let you apologize or even look in her direction. Actually think about how she feels for once.”

I hated the fact that there wasn’t anything I could say to prove her wrong.

“It’s all I’ve been thinking about nowadays,” I muttered.

I know that I’m too late

But I’ll say it anyway

I’m sorry

I’m sorry, hmm

I’m sorry

Though it’s far too late

“I thought I was already doing that,” a faint voice huffed in annoyance. Turning the corner, I saw Ao’nung and (Y/N) standing on the beach together— far too close for my liking.

“You were, but you got sloppy. Here, you have to move your hips like this,” he said as he corrected her posture. My ears flattened against my head as he put a hand on her hip and gently directed her movement.

Why did he look so gentle with her?

“Ao’nung,” (Y/N)’s voice rang out, clear as crystal despite her uncertain tone. “Are you sure you should be teaching me this? This is a traditional Metkayina dance, right? I’m…” she hesitated, her voice becoming smaller. “I’m not Metkayina—”

“Yet.” He interrupted, holding her face in his hands. “You are not Metkayina yet. Once you become one of us, you will have to learn the dance to celebrate the return of our spirit brothers and sisters, so why not learn that now?” I hated how reassuring his voice was. The thought of how either of their eyes looked as they held contact made my stomach turn.

“Yeah… you’re right,” she mumbled with an unsure look on her face.

“Woah, hey pretty girl, look at me,” he insisted, laying his hands on her shoulders and bending his neck so they were at eye level. “I’m serious when I say you will become Metkayina one day, so don’t worry yourself over it right now. Okay?” Ao’nung tilted his head to the side, an unbelievably soft expression on his face. “You have me here to help you.”

“Alright…” (Y/N) mumbled, not convinced.

“If you don’t get rid of that look on your face I’ll throw you into the water,” he said as his face shifted from sincerity to something mischievous. “Or worse… I’ll tickle you,” he threatened.

“You better not Ao’nung, or I swear to the Great Mother herself I will hu—AHH—get away, you skxawng!'' She laughed as she tried to run away, but Ao’nung grabbed hold of her waist and pulled her into his arms. And despite her words of protest, it was clear as day that she was leaning into him while they scuffled on the sand.

“No!” she shrieked with glee. “You can’t make me go in there again!”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that, forest dweller!”

A thought occurred. Should I go up to them? We never got the chance to talk, after all. I took a few steps in their direction before freezing. When was the last time I heard her laugh like that? She had the biggest smile on her face, and the one who made that happen wasn’t me—it was him.

And if you ever hear this

I hope you know that

I’m not proud of who I’ve been, ooh

And if I see you again

I hope you know that

I wish you nothing but the best

And my biggest regret

The afternoon was quiet, relative silence only interrupted by the crashing of waves. Without much to do, I just sat in our marui and lazed around with Tuk until a horn blew.

“The tulkun have returned! Everybody—our brothers and sisters have returned!” Tsireya’s voice rang out, and when I poked my head out to see what the fuss was about, I saw the megawatt smile on her face, as she swam by on her ilu.

The village came to life as everyone mounted either ilu or canoe to make their way to the tulkun. From here, I could see little more than a large group of dark shapes making their way through the water. Payakan himself was dauntingly huge, but to see a whole pod of them show up like this? It was spectacular. I watched the commotion unfold from one of the walkways, lost in thought before I felt water splashing at my feet.

“Come on Lo’ak! Don’t just stand there, let’s go see the tulkun together!” Tsireya urged, still smiling. Shaken out of my stupor, I grinned widely—diving into the water and clambering onto her ilu. lu may be lithe animals, but I could still feel sinuous muscle under velvety skin as it made adjustments in the water to keep balance.

“I’ll come, but only if you’re offering a ride,” I joked, gently holding her waist and playfully leaning onto her. The cool water around us made her skin feel that much warmer. It was nice.

Before I could see her reaction—I would’ve bet anything at that moment that her cheeks had become flushed—we began to quickly make our way toward the rest of the clan and the giant tulkun.

The air around me vibrated with the excitement and happiness of loved ones returning, and Tsireya was no exception—the speed of the ilu gave away her eagerness to be with her spirit sister. As we leaped into and out of the water, Tsireya’s laughter was carried by the wind and reached my ears. That, and the answering whoops and bellows of Metkayina and tulkun alike, was almost contagious enough to get carried away by the energy surrounding us.

“My spirit sister is down there,” she said as she dismounted, sliding off her ilu and into the water. “Wait here, yeah?” she smiled at me before diving down.

I was more than happy to watch the Na’vi around me. Looking around, I was in awe of the sheer amount of tulkun gathered in one area, and how each Metkayina was able to identify their spirit sisters or brothers so easily. Looking down into the shifting waters, I saw Tsireya catching up with her spirit sister, waving her hands around and swimming through the water alongside her.

All around, I could hear people telling stories and the deep, booming calls of the tulkun as they responded with tales of their own. New parents were showing their babies and calves, and as my eyes scanned the horizon, I could see small children holding onto the tulkun’s fins as they were lifted to the glittering ocean surface.

Not too far away, I heard the sound of a body hitting the water and the sound of grating, but familiar laughter along with an indignant (Y/N) sputtering.

“Ao’nung, what the fu—”

“Hey, hey, relax! It’s just some water. There are children here, yuey,” Ao’nung chided with a shit-eating grin on his face.

“The parents of those children are going to have to explain what it means to return to Eywa once I’m through with you,” she retorted, treading water and becoming even more unamused when he raised his hands in mock surrender.

“Woah there pretty girl, you’re talking to the son of the mightiest warrior in all of Pandora—”

“That’s funny, I don’t see Neteyam here,” she interjected, pretending to search the waters around them before turning back to Ao’nung and tilting her head, “do you?”

“Just because you said that you can have fun finding your own way back to shore,” he said as he turned his ilu around.

“Oh, c’mon Ao’nung, don’t be like that,” she rolled her eyes and reached a hand towards him. “You’d really leave me here to fend for myself?”

He turned and wagged a disapproving finger at her, “I’ll consider forgiving you if you say word-for-word that I’m the son of the mightiest warrior in all of Pandora. I can’t have you slandering my father’s name, yuey.” She groaned and leaned back into the water.

“You couldn’t pay me enough to say that load of bull—”

“Nope!” he didn’t give her a chance to defile the ears of any nearby children and crossed his arms. “I wanna hear you say it.”

“...”

“I’m still waiting.”

With a sardonic smile, she finally caved. “Why don’t I do you one better? You’re the mightiest warrior to exist since the time of the First Songs,” she declared, sarcasm dripping from every word as she slapped at the water for emphasis.

“That’s what I thought, was that so hard?” Even if I wasn’t able to see them, I still would have been able to hear the stupidly wide smile that made its way across his face.

“Don’t be such a big baby and let me meet your spirit brother!”

“Just because he’s here to visit today, I’ll let that one slide for now.” Ao’nung rolled his eyes, dismounting his ilu to join (Y/N). “Now hold on tight and hold your breath like how we practiced.”

We? Who the fuck was we? Why was he allowing her to meet his spirit brother? Why were they looking at each other like that?

I watched both of their silhouettes submerge and breathed deeply, forcing my thundering heart to calm as I slowly sank my head into the water. At first, all I could see were blobs floating around in the water, but once my eyes adjusted, I could see the fluid movement of Ao’nung talking to his spirit brother. Eyebrows furrowing, I swam a little closer and hoped that I would be able to see what was being signed. With each movement made, it was clear that Ao’nung was translating the clicks and bellows of the tulkun to (Y/N), and whatever was being said made her smile widen by the second.

I couldn’t watch anymore as my chest burned from the lack of air and I resurfaced to catch my breath. For once, I was thankful for the lack of lung capacity I had. I climbed back onto Tsireya’s ilu. Seeing as she wasn’t back yet, I sat back and leaned on its neck to face the sky.

Did she always glow like that when she smiled? Whenever she was with him—she always looked so happy, so vibrant. Would she have looked like that with me by her side if I didn’t push her away? If I was there for her like I had promised? I wanted to tell her sorry—that I was sorry for taking our friendship for granted, for making her go through it alone. I wish that it didn’t take seeing her smile and laugh with someone else to make me realize how I felt.

I willed my tears to go away.

Is this how she felt? Seeing me with Tsireya? Great Mother… I was truly horrible, wasn’t I? I wished things turned out differently. Maybe in another universe, I did talk to her—realized sooner, made her happier—but now? Right now, my heart was torn in two, watching as someone else picked up the pieces of the heart I crushed. No amount of words could fix what we used to have, and even though I wanted to whisk her away, tell her I love her—that I see her—that seeing her with him made my skin crawl, I knew I couldn’t. I was no longer worthy to be part of her life, because of me and my actions alone.

I had become nothing but a stranger.

Ever since that day

The things I didn’t say

They haunt me

I know that I’m to blame

So go ahead and

Blame it on me, ooh

I know that I’m too late

But I’ll say it anyway

I’m sorry

Hmm, I’m sorry

Oh-oh-oh-oh, I’m sorry

Taglist: @midnightliacr @immortalbloodhuntress @arminsfloll @whenercolorfulrainbowlol @dakotali @lexilander27 @zatarias-pandora @vanillawhale @kazupop @owaowaowawa @sopiasleeps @siabhshjsjsjsjshznzn @jimfiqs @ihave500hubbiez

488 notes · View notes