#they just started seeing everyone else including each other as nothing more than competition for food medicine and even a space to sleep in

[mwolf0epsilon]

Couldn't leave these tags unanswered, so here ya go @squirrelno2

Heads up, this will definitely suck a bit, but then again this is Krell and his machinations we're talking about.

They started off just as any other clone fresh off Kamino. Bright-eyed, with a million and one expectations of the glory of serving the Republic and the Jedi, and just as many aspirations of being remembered as proud and powerful warriors, etc...

That is to say, they were in way over their heads and naive in a way only a Shiny could be, because anywhere was better than the frigid and wet hellhole that was Kamino, and surely all the good they'd heard of the Jedi thus far had to apply to their own General, right? How terribly wrong they were...

Now, I can't be sure of Krell's character prior to the war. We're never given much context of what he did before he was conscripted into fighting but, since he was likely a knight before he became a Jedi Master and doesn't appear to have had a Padawan, it's safe to assume he did (and preferred) a lot of solo missions before becoming a Jedi General. And I doubt he liked his position at all because it both meant he was being forced out of his comfort zone (the style of approach that worked for him) and being forced to look after several beings he didn't regard as particularly sentient (not many sentients understood the fine details of cloning and not all Jedi trusted the clone army)...

From my perspective, it definitely seems to me like Krell never wanted to lead a battalion of what he came to consider expendable subhumans, so he did everything in his power to get rid of these hindrances that kept slowing him down. And yet, no matter how many casualties, no matter how many expenses, he still got saddled with more and more troopers to replenish the numbers he'd lost while adding a bigger workload onto himself.

All of the logistics and strategy meetings, the unending flimsywork, every minute detail he was forced to tend to and iron out when he probably thought that he could do more on his own, without all of the dead-weight that could most definitely not keep up with him... It made him more and more hostile towards his men as time went on. Made them seem like little more than stubborn cockroaches. And then he started making the best of it.

If he himself couldn't get rid of them in battle, then he'd make it so they did it themselves outside of it. And thus started what the Imperial Scientists might consider and interesting "Social Experiment": How miserable did one have to make the lives of an entire clone battalion before they inevitably turned on each other?

Denial of amenities here, a few excessive punishments there, and maybe some coercion to fight amongst themselves on false pretenses of special treatment/favoritism on occasion ... The more troopers ended up dead by their own hands or via sabotaging each other, the less clones Krell had to deal with while on missions. And he got a bit of a kick watching them act like what he considered them to be: Nothing more than mindless killing machines.

To put it simply, Krell REALLY destroyed his battalion's sense of loyalty and camaraderie, and he enjoyed doing it. Might have done the same with the 501st if he'd had them for longer than just Umbara. But, since he was on a self-appointed mission to join Dooku, he opted with toying with them a little while actively sabotaging them.

Hence why Dogma was pitched against his vode so effectively. Krell already had the practice and he was fairly easy game...

The core members of Krell's Battalion (aka the Anti-501st)

They're... Uh... Something alright!

Lets be real, if they survived long enough under Krell's rule to get names and even ARC Troopers, then of course they're not going to be the most social or trusting of vode. If anything, the fact these 8 lads are considered their battalion's veterans is more than an explanation as to why they have such screwed up personalities/character traits.

I'm sure you can figure out who is which 501st lad's anti/mirror version. A detail not mentioned above however is that they all lack paint and are instead marked by battle damage and carbon-scoring. That's not even taking into account the scarring they all have...

Krell really did a number on them.

[imagining-in-the-margins]

CM Office Party Challenge 🎉

The following are prompts including an Office Party! Reader, Original Character, Character/Character ships, Gen/Platonic fics are allowed!

This event is over (Masterlist of Fics here), but you are welcome to use any of these prompts. If you would like to be added to the existing Masterlist of entries, please check out the Rules below!

🎊 Prompts 🎊

It’s a BAU kid’s birthday!

The BAU throws a ridiculously large/lavish bridal/baby shower.

It’s rare that the BAU gets to celebrate the return of an old team member.

The team hardly believes it when Character A agrees to dance with B.

After sharing sad prom stories (or lack thereof), Penelope throws a BAU prom.

It’s characters first Missed Holiday Meal (MHM). It’s also the first time a holiday meal actually felt like home.

The team discusses holiday traditions. Characters decide to try a few out.

The FBI is throwing a family picnic. The playful competitions get a little… heated.

It’s the anniversary of the BAU. The team throws a party to celebrate the greats.

Penelope planned a Murder Mystery party… with a bunch of criminal profilers. Great. (Bonus if a non-profiler wins)

The BAU has been dealing with a lot of stress. Penelope plans a day at a pottery shop so everyone can make something. It causes even more stress.

The team pairs up to play the newlywed game. Someone starts to notice that, despite not being partners, A knows the answers to every question about B…

Rossi is finally (actually) retiring. The party brings together friends that haven’t seen each other in years.

An anniversary/award brings back old team members. There used to be a time when they couldn’t fathom a week away from one another, but they haven’t spoken in years.

More Prompts Below + Create your own! 🎉

Each team member has to find an obscure holiday to celebrate (pi day, random acts of kindness day, unicorn day, etc.). Character goes above and beyond.

Character has very surprising responses to Never Have I Ever. They have even more shocking admissions.

There is nothing that a bonfire can't fix.

Characters are stuck at a party, but they can't stop thinking about each other (based on "Dinner & Diatribes" by Hozier).

Characters always find each other. Even at a masquerade, when their faces are almost entirely covered.

A party is the perfect place to see a new side to your coworker.

🎄 Holiday Specific Prompts 🦃

Halloween prompts / Winter Holiday prompts

It’s time for Penelope’s Halloween Party! Someone comes in an… unexpected costume.

The single members of the team decide to host a lonely hearts club dinner on Valentine’s Day. Two people leave together.

Characters end up beneath very suspiciously placed mistletoe at the holiday party.

Character accidentally started an ugly Christmas sweater tradition which somehow turned into a contest.

After an awful case, the team comes back on Christmas Eve to find that Penelope has gathered their loved ones and quickly decorated the BAU as a surprise.

Character only wanted to reveal that they are someone's Secret Santa at the BAU Christmas Party but they end up confessing a lot more than that.

🎂 Dialogue Prompts 🍰

"... Surprise?"

"What are adults supposed to do at a kid's birthday party. Does anyone actually know?"

"Whatever you do, be sure to avoid the food. I don't know who made it, but it's awful." "Oh, it uh... it was me."

"If you help me win, I'll owe you one great big giant favor."

"I just never saw you as a... party type of person."

"I think you're bluffing." "Am I?"

"You are the last person I expected to have attended clown school. I figured your clownish nature was inherent in who you are."

"So, if you had to guess, who do you think is going to drunkenly confess their love for someone else at this party?"

"The year is over. Did you accomplish everything you hoped for?"

"I fucking hate balloons."

"What's the point of a fridge on the jet if not for a celebratory drink?"

"If we're stuck here all night, we might as well have fun."

"I love you. I do. But you are a terrible Santa."

"Next time, I'm in charge of the karaoke mic."

🎈Rules 🎁

The fic can be a Reader insert, an Original Character, a character/character ship, a platonic ship, or a Gen fic. It can feature any Criminal Minds character. AUs and crossovers are more than welcome.

Tag me in the fic, or send the link to me in a Direct Message. It can be already written, or you can write it for the challenge - I’m collecting both! You can also tag it “#mentioningmargins” which is a tag I track.

The fic can be any genre, but ONLY send me smut if your bio states you are 18+. I DO NOT WANT smut written by minors. Ever. At all. I will check. Platonic ships and pure, fluffy fics are 100% allowed.

Please include Content Warnings and a one-sentence Summary of the fic in your post.

[simpforfandoms]

to be loved

please send in requests, it’s like the only way I have actual motivation to write. wrote this in an hour after writing a six page essay. sorry I haven’t been active

summary: you want to be lost in him, but not in this way.

pairing: bruce wayne x reader (no pronouns used (at least I don’t think))

genre: angst no comfort because in real life that doesn’t happen.

warnings: no editing

word count: 1.6k

masterlist

“You’re being so much like your father”

“My father was a good man.”

“Oh please, your father was a corrupt business man!”

The conversation is now a full blown argument. It wasn’t about getting your point across. It wasn’t about trying to state your mind. No it was a competition. Who could respond quicker? Who could hurt the other person more? Who would win? No more educated statements, only rash insults.

“Don’t you dare talk about my father that way!” He yells walking toward you, as to challenge you.

You shake your head at his tactics, “Everyone told me you got the worst qualities from your father. The self absorbness, the playboy facade, and the way you can never see when to give up. That you would never make a good husband” You scoff in disbelief. “And I defended you! Never noticing your red flags because you hid them so well!” You cry out

“Oh you want to present yourself as a victim to make yourself feel better? You and I both know you chose this life” He screams at you.

In every argument you have ever had, never once had he screamed at you. In all the rage and frustration, your beloved and devoted husband had never ever been as mad at you as he was now. His eyes were hardened and no matter how deep you looked into them you could find not a once of love. The very realization of this made you sick to your stomach, and you instantly feel tears well. Whether they were from shock, frustration, or sadness, you didn’t know. In truth, you knew you had no right to be upset at his words. You’re the one who started the argument. But some selfish part of you did want to play the victim. Deep down you knew there was truth to his words, not that you’d ever admit it.

“You wanted it until you didn’t.” He states much calmer than before. You assume this is probably because he noticed your tears or maybe it was because he just wanted to stop the yelling.

You shake your head rapidly, as if to stop the tears, “What choice did I have? I wanted you! Not the Batman. And when you told me that you couldn’t- No that you wouldn’t give up the mask, I understood, I really did. And when things started getting tough I was there for you because I love you. And to love you means to love every part of you including Batman. But now it seems you’re consumed by it, him. The man I fell in love with is no longer there. It’s just a shell of a man that once was. I don’t recognize you anymore. I look at you and all I see him”

You look him in the eyes to see anything, anything at all, but you see nothing but a mask. A mask he was putting on. You sigh. Maybe this is the end of it all. You didn’t want it to be. You love him. Hell, you had given your whole life to him. You didn’t go out and explore the world, unlike Bruce who left you for a 7 year journey. But you never once dated anyone else during that time. Remaining faithful. Because you loved him and couldn’t betray him like that even if you were on a break. When he said he had to leave to do something important, you promised him that you would be there when he came back with open arms. You’d know him since you were children, dated since you were teenagers, married since you were adults. Never once have you dared to look at another man. Bruce was the only man for you. You were sure of it. But sometimes you wondered what life would be like if you hadn’t waited for him all those years ago. You often get postcards from your old friends exploring the world. Each and everyone you read with a pinge of envy. Envious that they got to live their life while you’re here in Gotham, still with your Highschool sweet heart. Maybe that’s why you never went to any of the stupid highschool reunions. You knew they would judge you for being in the same spot and relationship you were in all those years ago. They would ask you what have you done? And you wouldn’t know how to respond. Truth is you’ve done nothing with your life but Bruce. He was your whole life. Your whole goddamn universe. But somewhere alone the line you got tired of it. Tired of it all. You felt stuck. And that’s the worse feeling in the whole world. A third wheel in your own relationship. You can’t just leave him because throughout the years it became a kind of codependency. He couldn’t function without you, and you without him. But you can’t do it anymore. It deteriorating you. Can’t he see your sunken eyes from staying up all night waiting for him? Your callused hands from stitching his wounds? Your biten lips from biting them every-time he goes out in fear he might not return? You love him with all your heart but sometimes love just isn’t enough.

He lets out a long breath and closes his eyes. He loves you. He knows that. He knows you better than anyone, but yet he doesn’t know what you want him to do. Perhaps he should do what he wants to do. But what he wants to do is run out and go punch some unsuspecting criminals to blow off steam. What good would that do if when he gets back you might not be there? However this is Bruce Wayne we’re talking about. The Bruce Wayne that is afraid. Afraid that even if he does try to talk it out you’ll admit something that will be harder to swallow than you just leaving unannounced. He wouldn’t know how’d he handle it if you ever blatantly told him you were leaving and why. He can stand you leaving without closure because then at least he can still have hope. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he had to accept the truth. That it’s his fault that you’re leaving. So he did what he does best. Leave to go punch some bad guys.

You scoff through tears in disbelief, he had turned away from you to go on patrol. Typical Bruce. You wanted him to fight. To argue. To reassure you that everything was going to be alright. That he still loved you. That he cared. But he doesn’t. Instead he gets into the Batmobile and drives off. You don’t know why you expected more from him. You had almost yelled after him. But you didn’t. Now no amount of words can fix what’s already broken. It’s time you let go of this broken ship before it takes you down with it.

…

When Bruce gets back he’s not surprised that all of your stuff is gone. He anticipated it. But yet it still hurts. A part of him had hoped that you would be waiting when he got home. Opened armed and ready for his apology, like you had done so many times before. This time was different though. You had pulled your heart and soul out to him and he ignored you. It was the straw that broke the camel’s back. You finally came to your senses that you deserved better. Bruce let’s out a weak smile at the thought of you finally being happy in all the way he couldn’t make you. Your crinkled eyes as you smiled. Your laugh that you thought was the ugliest thing, but the most beautiful thing to him. You deserved to be like that all the time. You deserve it all, he thinks. He is taken back to the harsh reality of the situation by a soft knock. He can’t help the way his heart leaps at the thought that it might be you. But then he opens the door and sees Alfred. His hope instantly fading.

“Master Bruce, I brought you some sleeping tea. As I imagine that it might be hard for you to sleep.” That’s all Alfred says, and places the the tea tray on the bedside table.

Nothing more nothing less. That’s what everyone loves about Alfred. He knows not to bring up you gone because he knows Bruce isn’t ready to talk about it. But he’ll bring him tea to silently let him know that he’s knows and he’s there. Bruce wonders if he had done the same for you. Well comforted you as you were leaving. Reassured you that you’d be okay. He’s glad that Alfred brought him some tea so he can go to sleep where his dreams with you reside. Bruce can’t help but feel the ache in the top of his stomach at the thought of you. Guilt? Sadness? Anger? Perhaps all three. He’s mad at himself for not fighting for you when he had the chance. Guilt for not giving up the stupid Batman. He knew you would do it for him. Had he said the word you would do anything for him. If he had told you to stay you would’ve. Guilt for keeping you in a this relationship for so long when you deserved so much better. His subconscious knew that he couldn’t keep you trapped in a relationship with him forever. So he let you go. He loves you, and you him. But like they always say if you love something you have to let it go. But letting you go it is better than losing the love completely if he continued to drain you. It would grow to become a even more resentful marriage than it already was. At least now there was still love left, and cherished memories not ruined by hate and anguish.

[missameliasmithers]

This is the longest of long shots, but I figured, who else would help a random Internet Stranger with a penchant for the arts but Tumblr.

I need some help.

Like many people on this website, I'm a writer. I love writing. I've loved writing for years. For what seems like forever, I've been plucking away at my keyboard in my free time, writing fan fiction or short stories because it was fun. And it still is. It's my number one passion.

Two years ago, I started writing a book. It began, as all my other writing projects, as a hobby. However, as my health got worse (and I won't open that can of worms), I started to have more and more opportunities to work on it. Sitting around waiting for tests results gives you a lot of downtime. Last June, I put the finishing touches on it, and, guys—it's good.

I don't mean to sound arrogant, but I've worked so hard on this bad boy, and it's my pride and joy. I can so easily see it taking over booktok or being discussed at length on blogs here, and I so badly want to share it with the world. It's my dream to have it published—by a big name if possible—and this is where I've hit a wall.

To get a contract with a big publisher, you need an agent. I have written dozens of query letters—some of which have received positive feedback, only to be politely turned down because there's so much competition flooding the market right now. I knew things would be tough. I just didn't think they would be this tough.

I'm getting very discouraged. To the point where I fear I will never find representation. I know my book is good. I know people will love it. I just don't know if I'll be able to find someone who can help me down the terrifying path to publishing.

That's where you guys come in.

It would mean the absolute world to me if people could spread this around. My hope is that if this post becomes big enough, the right person will stumble across it.

I know it's improbable... maybe even impossible. The better half of me is scolding me for even typing this all out, saying that people aren't going to care. But I have to try.

Of course I wouldn't ask for this blindly. I've included the first chapter so you can judge for yourself if you think the story has potential.

I know everyone has their own preferences, so if it's not your thing, no big deal. But if you fall in love with it as much as I have, I would really really appreciate you spreading this post. A share could change my world.

Anyway, I've taken up enough of your time. If you have any more, please consider reading Chapter One below. Feedback is always encouraged as well.

Thanks for reading. Have a great day!

Chapter One

It’s days like this that make me wish I were an orphan.

Circe smacks me on the calves and I nearly tumble off the tightrope. It’s not a long way down, but a fall would hurt my pride if nothing else.

“Again!” she calls.

I suck in a hiss between my teeth as I regain my composure. It’s a simple matter to find my balance on the rope underfoot. I’ve done this countless times. Sometimes even blindfolded. This type of exercise should be as simple as breathing. But this time the others have been permitted to observe, and the feeling of their eyes on me is impeding my focus. I train alone. Or at least I have for the last few years.

My gaze flickers to Mirette and Elena as they whisper to each other while I once again make my way across the fibre rope strung across the glade. Their eyes are trained on me from below, their judgement weighing on my shoulders. My balance shifts again.

Smack!

“Again!”

This time, I cannot stop the scowl from crawling up my face. I right myself and then gesture to my audience with a flick of the wrist. “It’s hard to concentrate with these fools giggling to themselves like children!”

Circe glowers as she always does when I resist her commands. “You have far more distractions to deal with on a job than a few people gossiping.”

She always acts as if I’ve never been on a job before. I have. Twelve to be exact. Each one had its own distractions—hounds barking, families arguing, guards patrolling—but those were faceless, nameless creatures. These vultures beneath me are my peers. Not that any of us really feel like we’re on the same level, but we’ve seen each other grow over the years. That’s as close to kinship as you get in this village.

“I said again, Sarana!” Circe barks.

My eye twitches, but I push my frustration down. The sooner I cross this meadow, the sooner I can leave the pit of vipers beneath me.

I start again across the rope. When it was first tied up, the rough hemp provided traction for the soles of our boots, but it’s smoothed out over the years, which makes it more difficult to cross. An accumulation of friction, shoe polish, and probably some blood and skin from when the coarse fibre used to scrape our hands raw, has created an almost slick surface. I’ve gotten quite good at making it across despite this, but it does require a moderate amount of concentration.

Shrill laughter cuts my focus.

“Hahaha! Oh my gods, stop! That’s so mean!”

It’s Elena, or maybe Mirette. It doesn’t really matter who. My eyes dart down involuntarily, and then I’m teetering.

Another smack from Circe’s cane has my legs faltering off the rope. I shoot my hands out to grab the hemp to keep me from a humiliating fall. Dangling by my fingertips is less than ideal of course, but it’s far better than landing on my butt.

Circe, of course, isn’t impressed. “Sarana.”

I huff in irritation and haul myself back up and into a starting position. Circe will not relent until I’ve done this properly. Always the perfectionist.

The scavengers, clearly delighted by my near miss, have begun whispering and snickering in excess. Tristan isn’t here to make matters worse, but it’s grating all the same. 

Anger is simmering beneath my skin to where all I want to do is slide down the tree behind me and tackle every single tittering fool into the dirt, but I know it’s foolishness. My temper has gotten me into trouble more than a handful of times. Sometimes I still feel the ghost of Circe’s cane on my back.

Deep breaths, Archer taught me. Inhale, pause, exhale. Center myself. Don’t think about the stares. Don’t think about the whispers. Think about things I can control. Think about what I want in the current moment. About what would bring me joy. Focus on that.

I imagine the disappointment that will darken everyone’s faces when I fly across this rope, the picture filling me with a warm satisfaction. That’s what I want. To see the bitter jealousy of those who scorn me. To know that their derisive words will dry in their throats with the envy and desire to be me. I want to witness the distress they will feel as they remember the crushing reality that I am better.

It’s not a pure thought. But there’s no room for purity in Greenwood, no matter how pleasant the name may sound.

A numbness takes over me. It’s not a gentle calm, more like the silence that follows the snap of an arrow being loosed from a taut bowstring or the ragged exhale that comes from steel piercing flesh. I hear nothing. I see nothing. The other trainees are gone. Circe has vanished. It’s just me. Me and the mission that lies ahead.

I can almost sense the click of the steely determination that sets in. It settles in the shadowy part of me that comes to life on a job. The part that Circe planted and nurtured. The part I sometimes revel in. The part I sometimes resent.

In the span of two breaths, I deftly saunter across the rope to the other side. It’s over before anyone even really registers I started. They blink, and I go from one end of the glade to the other. 

Without waiting for approval, I drop down. If Circe wants to yell, it won’t be at my prowess. I know there’s nothing to critique.

Turning on my heel, I offer the obligatory bow to Circe and take a moment to relish the myriad of bitter expressions from my cohorts before ambling out of the clearing, back to the main village. From the corner of my eyes, I see Circe’s glare, not at all lessened by my flawless—albeit slow—execution of the exercise, and know that I’m in for a lecture tonight over dinner.

I decide to go back to my room and check my stores until the impending harangue. I’ll suffer through it as I’ve suffered through them all. Better to get it over with. It’s not like I can avoid her forever. She is my mother, after all.

Sure enough, Circe bursts through the door as I’m cataloguing my stash of oleander. It’s been running low, and I’ll need to either place an order with Glen, or barter for a day off to collect it myself. I’m trying to decide how much a purchase would run me when Circe’s shadow falls over me. She's livid.

“You dare leave training without being dismissed,” she seethes.

I shoot her a scowl of my own. “You’re the one who put me up on display in front of the firing range.”

She rolls her eyes. “So dramatic.”

“I’m being dramatic?” I hiss. “You haven’t made me train with the others for years, and yet you put me up on a pedestal to see if they could knock me down.”

She narrows her eyes. “They almost did.”

“And for what?” I ask. “To humiliate me? Humble me?”

“To make you remember what I taught you.”

I fold my arms. “You’ll have to be more specific. Which one of your many lessons am I meant to remember, exactly? The ‘trust no one’ speech? The ‘you have no friends’ lecture?”

“Try ‘don’t get comfortable.’ You’ve fallen into a routine, Sarana. Routines lead to complacency. Complacency leads to laziness. Laziness gets you caught. And you know what happens then.”

“I’ve never been caught. I never will.”

Circe scoffs. “Such arrogance. Have you learned nothing?”

Indignant, I shoot to my feet. “I’ve learned everything! I mastered all your precious skills at eighteen. I’ve succeeded in a dozen missions, yet you still make me run drills! I’m the fastest runner, the best climber, the sharpest shot. I don’t need to have the trainees breathing down my neck, waiting for me to mess up so they can kick me while I’m down.”

Circe’s malicious frown turns to one of displeasure. “So, you’ll let your insecurities rule you, then?”

“Any insecurities I have, have stemmed from you,” I sneer. “You expect my every action, every word, every thought to be perfect.”

“Imperfection begets death,” she says. Then, gentler, “You know this.”

The memory of a letter between my fingers, crumpled and damp from tears, resurfaces unbidden. My gaze inadvertently peels off Circe to land on the chest at the foot of my cot where the weathered parchment lies folded neatly amongst my possessions. I sometimes wonder why I keep it. The ink only proves to invoke pain.

“Yes,” I say. “I know this.”

Circe takes my hand and guides me to sit with her next to the warm hearth. 

My mother is like a coin, her two sides diametrically opposed. One, the cold, strict, impersonal taskmaster, and the other the warm, tender, loving mother. Nowadays I see more of the former than the latter, but growing up, my mother was a source of comfort and adoration. We used to cook meals together, go on walks into the woods to pick herbs, have meaningful conversations while sharpening steel. She used to wear her mantle every day. Now she only shakes the dust off it when she sees I need it.

It makes these moments all the more precious. I yearn for them.

“Sarana, you know I care about you,” she says, giving my hand a squeeze. “Any harshness I show derives from the need to see you safe. People like us cannot afford to make mistakes.”

“I know,” I say softly. I know this not only because of the letter, but because of the faces that have never returned to the village. Nial the baker’s son, who was one of the first to play with me when I was a child. Cynthia the herbalist who suffered through my nagging questions as I learned the difference between royal fern and bracken fern. Rion the blacksmith’s apprentice, who gifted me his first set of knives, fresh from the forge. Miles. Fenway. Stella. Sven.

Archer.

Just as I have seen them disappear, so has my mother. The sting may even bite deeper for her. She chose them. She trained them. She sent them out. Only to never see them again. I wonder if she thinks about them as much as I do, but I see the shadows in her face of demons passed and know she’s haunted. I expect it’s a silent guilt she refuses to share.

I squeeze her hand back. “You won’t lose me.”

She gives me a rueful smile. “I better not. You’re all I have, moonbeam.”

The moment of sentiment between us helps give me the courage to request for the morning off to gather the herbs I needed to replenish my supply. I choose to do so over dinner. A frown settles over Circe’s face, but she wipes it away and brushes my cheek. “It is good to be prepared,” she relents, and as the sun rises, I grab my satchel and cloak off the peg by the door and hurry to the woods before my mother can change her mind.

When I was little, I never left Greenwood. I spent the mornings with my mother, played with the other children in the afternoon, and trained in the evening. As I got older, training took up more and more time, leaving less and less for play and socialising. Circe paid me special attention, gave me extra hours, and soon I was outpacing all the others. Well, almost all the others. Archer was always better than me.

Resentment among the other trainees grew with my skill until I slowly became a pariah. I was no longer welcome in their games or conversations. Their eyes regarded me with more bitterness and contempt. Their voices stuttered to a stop when I drew near. Their jabs during training became brutal and cruel.

I was too young to understand the darkness of jealousy then. I thought I had done something wrong. But no matter how hard I tried to force myself back into the fold, to be nice and kind and win back their friendship, I was pushed out with more ferocity.

I found solace in the woods. There were no malicious whispers or hateful glares, just the warm breeze, rustling leaves, and sheltering trees. The forest offered not only a safe haven, but various pastimes. During my time here, I studied the plant life, learned about the local fauna, and honed the skills I actually enjoyed. The trees were perfect for climbing, the bark and small game good targets for my knives, and I promptly learned—through some unfortunate trial and error—which forageables were edible.

At first, my mother was pleased with the improvement the forest visits were making, but eventually, my abilities plateaued. There were other skills I had to master, and she became less inclined to allow me the free time to venture into the woods.

On days like today where she shows more love than stringency, I’m able to escape for an hour or so. A far cry from when I was young, but things change as you grow. It’s a fact of life that I had to come to terms with quickly.

I know these woods like the beat of my heart, and I know exactly where the oleander blooms. I unsheathe a knife from the specialised scabbard at my side and twirl it around my fingers until it rests in the loose hold I use for throwing. The biggest danger in the forest are deer, but you can never be too careful.

It’s quick work to find the delicate pink blossoms. I use my knife to snip off several handfuls from the shrub and place them into my bag. I make sure to get enough for my various applications—some to suffuse in oil, some to dry, some to grind. Cynthia would have been proud.

Since they’re handy, I snag a few other plants while I’m out. It never hurts to have more snakeroot or jequirity beans, and it’s always good to have calendula and chamomile.

Along the way, I spy a branch under some leaves. I fish it out and examine the rough edge where it separated from the trunk. It’s splintered and doesn’t look too dry, meaning it must have broken off fairly recently. Likely by a stag. Maybe two fighting. It’s a bit too big to do anything with, so I half-snap, half-slice the excess off. I’m left with a good hunk of basswood. My favourite.

I set my pack down at my usual tree—a beautiful maple with sprawling roots that offer a perfect earthy seat to nestle into, and I do exactly that. I stick the knife from my hand into the dirt and riffle through my satchel for another. The ones I throw are not made to chisel wood.

The knife I pull out first is a special one. It’s a beautiful dagger that I keep polished to perfection. Smokey curls are etched into the quillons and a black leather grip leads to an obsidian pommel that flashes with dark promise. It’s also not made for whittling, and Archer would have murdered me if I ever tried—would probably come back to haunt me if I did now—but I just like to look at it. My most treasured possession. It never leaves my side.

I let my fingers graze the smooth lines of it before replacing it in the bag and pulling out what I’d originally been searching for: a sturdy sloyd knife. It’s nothing fancy, but it whittles like a dream. I picked it up for two copper pieces after a job seven years ago, and it’s served me well since. It doesn’t get used as much as I would like. Free time is practically non-existent these days.

I spend about an hour in the forest, carving the hunk of wood sliver by sliver. It’s taking a basic shape: the silhouette of a large cat. I haven’t decided which one. The only big cat I’ve seen is a mountain lion, but I’ve already made six.

As the sun sinks below the horizon, I tuck the figurine into my satchel and adjust the strap on my shoulder. If I don’t get back soon, the tentative peace with my mother will probably shatter.

Circe slips back into the taskmaster role with practiced ease as she has me running drills over the next few weeks. 

It's no surprise to me that she so quickly transitions after our tender exchange earlier. What does catch me slightly off guard is her lessened severity. She's usually all sharp commands, harsh critiques, and hissed criticism, but, while the strict orders and expectations are still there, she has also lightened. Her comments aren't as biting and she has allowed me to train alone once more, so something about our conversation must have struck her.

She watches me carefully as I run through the various combat forms one afternoon in the gloomy overcast of one of the training areas. Her eyes are careful, sharp, and dart around to land appraisingly on different parts of my body, checking for proper stance and posture. I can feel the moment she sees something she doesn’t like, but not in the harsh physical way I sometimes have to endure.

“Arms up,” she says. “You’ve allowed them to fall slack.”

I raise my arms higher as indicated and receive a satisfied nod. 

“Better,” she says.

She continues the lessons in this way—firm corrections and unaffected praise. Legs wider. Elbows in. Wrist down. Head up. Good. Better. Well done. 

A few days later, I finally recognize the shift in her tone and the adjustment of her behaviour to be guilt. It’s a rather gratifying realization that my words, however few in the grand scheme of things, had actually taken effect. I come to the understanding that just like I sometimes forget to be a daughter, Circe often forgets to be a mother. 

It’s a sad fact. But such is the reality of our situation. 

A whisper of a thought wonders idly why my mother has chosen now to allow guilt to reshape her actions, but as she hands me a glaive for the next exercise, it slips away.

“I have a job for you,” Circe tells me over breakfast one morning.

I perk up over my bowl. It’s been four months since my last job. “What is it?”

“Simple reconnaissance,” she says. “Hanival has a new governor: Odom Klaus. We need to evaluate his political standings and values.”

Recon is hardly my favourite kind of mission, but things have been so boring lately, I’ll take anything I can get. I feel a thrumming energy pulse in my blood as excitement and anticipation build. “I’ll get it done.”

My mother smiles, a rare expression these days. “I know you will. You leave this afternoon.”

To my chagrin, the job is cut and dry and I’m in and out in two days. 

Odom Klaus is an upstanding citizen: no skeletons in his cellar, no radical views that would dismantle society, no inappropriate actions towards his staff or townspeople. He is likely to be a perfectly respectable governor who will work to improve Hanival in the years to come. 

How boring.

The streets of Greenwood are bustling with activity when I return. People are chatting excitedly as they hurry to and from shops and houses or down the dirt roads. Some notice me, one or two of the older adults giving me nods of acknowledgement, but the others don’t seem to see me. Typically I’d find that preferable to the callous treatment I normally get, but I feel uneasy.

Close to the house, I hear Circe call my name.

She’s waiting by the front door. “Come here,” she says. I can’t tell from her voice if she's impatient or excited.

Her demeanour has certainly changed from her norm. It’s almost like she’s vibrating, an energy under her skin ready to burst free. I’ve never seen her like this. Her perfect façade is still in place, not a stray hair or expressive emotion in sight, but something is building. It’s either really good, or really horrible.

I follow her into the house and hang up my cloak. “What’s happening?”

“A messenger came while you were away,” she says. She’s got a piece of parchment in her hand, and for a moment, I am taken back to two years ago. My heart is in my throat, taking up too much space and making it hard to breathe or swallow, but I catch that gleam in her eye and I know now what it is that I couldn’t place about her. She’s positively thrilled.

It’s a sentiment she’s never worn. Not around me. Content, sure. Happy, sometimes. This is beyond that. She’s practically floating. To the untrained eye, her expression holds a semblance to that of someone who was told that crop yields would be slightly higher this year, but I’ve learned to read her better than anyone.

I slowly let out the panicked breath that I was unintentionally holding, and swing my bag off my shoulder. I set it next to the chest at the end of my cot. “They must have had something important to say. The town is tripping over itself.” And you’re buzzing.

“The king is looking for a wife.”

The world stops and my blood goes cold. We’re a tiny village known to the world as a small farming community. Why would such a message have come to us? The king should have no business here.

“What’s that have to do with us?”

Circe holds out the parchment. “The palace is encouraging all eligible women to travel to the capitol to see if they are suitable. They’re not limiting candidates to nobility.”

“What?” I ask incredulously, snatching the paper. Sure enough, it is as my mother said. Unmarried women over the age of eighteen are being invited to the capitol for some kind of application process. There will be no imposed limitation of house, family, or title. There’s a line that says the women will stay near the palace during the selection process, but there are no additional details besides that, and the whole thing sounds incredibly vague. “Why would he marry outside of the nobility?”

“It’s likely his uncle’s meddling,” Circe says, venom slipping through her words. She always goes ice cold when speaking of the royal family. “But that’s not important. What’s important is that you’re going.”

“Excuse me?”

“This is the opportunity we’ve been waiting for, Sarana. If you make it through the initial screening process, you’ll have access to the king.”

My brain feels as if it’s sputtering like a candle in a windstorm. The sounds from outside are replaced with a ringing that is both shrill and mute at the same time. It feels like someone took the dial of my pulse and cranked it to ninety. 

I stammer. “I won’t make it through any kind of screening. They’ll take one look at me and turn me away.”

“You’re beautiful enough to have attracted Duke Howden’s attention.”

I want to throw up. “Duke Howden was a lecherous swine that preyed on any pretty handmaiden no matter her age. He was a vile man who was dragged down to hell where he belongs.”

Circe nods in agreement, but maintains her previous argument. “You’ve caught the fancy of other, less abhorrent men. You’re as attractive as many noblewomen. Maybe even more so. You will have no problems on that front.”

True, I have had a number of men attempt to court me, but the vast majority—I do not count Vargas, the miller’s second son, for various reasons—had been while on a job. Those men had not fallen for me. They had fallen for Chloe, or Abigale, or Thalia, or whoever I had to become to accomplish my goal. The me on missions is flirty and gentle and dainty—a near complete antithesis to who I really am. Though, to Circe’s credit, I suppose my appearance never really changed much.

“What about the rest of me?” I ask. “I can’t compete with the higher class.”

“Sarana.” Circe’s voice takes a harsh tone. “You are talented. You are skilled. Have I not taught you how to blend in with all manner of crowd? Have I not instructed you in the ways of the court? What your beauty cannot convince, your finesse will supply.” She pauses, and her voice takes an even harder edge. “I would have thought this opportunity would delight you.”

“It does…” I say softly, because it’s the truth. The murky dusk in me is elated. I remember very clearly what the king took from me. Every day I struggle to push down the darkness the loss left me with. “I want nothing more than to take it, but along with everything else, you taught me to be realistic. They will not admit me. I am nobody.”

“You’re not a nobody, Sarana.” Mother takes my face in her hands. “You are my daughter. You were born for this.”

A surge of pride rushes through my veins. Praise has become a scarcer and scarcer commodity through the years, and despite my better judgement, the small girl inside me greedily yearns for it. It's a flaw I have yet to shake—the longing to please the few I care about. To be loved.

I curl my fingers around her wrists. “When do I leave?”

She hands me a bag I’ve never seen before. It looks packed full. “Right now.”

I nod. There’s no need for a sentimental goodbye since there’s no one in the village besides the woman in front of me who will truly miss me.

I peek into the bag to ensure I have the supplies I’ll need for the job. Sure enough, Circe has included various clothes in bright colours for days in court, and pitch black for nights in shadows. Containers of beauty products clink up against my vials of poisonous oils and herbs. Ribbons for my long black hair are wrapped around a cloth bundle that undoubtedly carries a selection of knives and lockpicks from my collection.

Everything a girl needs to assassinate a king.

[thisismeracing]

If they're going to give everyone that is racing a penalty so they have to stay on the positions they started in we might as well call it a parade! I'm all in for penalties when the occasional calls for it especially for causing collisions that HURTS other drivers! But they've been giving them out freely lately and it gets even more frustrating when one gets a penalty and the other gets a pass (not towards any specific driver) for doing the same thing!! The FIA simply just don't don't have anymore credibility and everyone sees that they are reaching so they won't loose respect and control over every situation, only they don't realize that already happened!

they lost control and respect when:

- They banded/changed the rules around to try and give an bad explanation to their mistakes and wrong doings and I'm not only talking about the 2021 fiasco

- When they constantly hunted down (and still is) a driver for wearing a fucking 1 cm nose piercing as if was the same as wearing a watch, or for preceding to do so even after a doctor letter that said he couldn't get it removed for medical reasons. As if they didn't have bigger issues to worry about, as if this was of maximum importance, when we all know it isn't, this is a sport where people can lose their lives for so many factors that won't ever include a less than 1cm piece of metal! Maybe they could use this time to certify if all the teams were all good and inside the rules about things that compromise other safety! Perhaps checking the cost breach of some teams?!? See where that money is going?? I pretty sure you can spend that much on food services?!

The fact that they were surprised when he showed up this year with another piercing on, both sides of his nose made me laugh so hard!!

- When they fell short on punishments for big brakes of rules?? Rules that insure everyone gets a fair chance of have similar cars that are competitive with each other? That do not include someone's cultural references? You know things that actually keeps the sport from turning a shitshow that only cares for money?

- When they disregarded the amount of time off, and limits to their healths, and added sprints for no reason (bc they are boring as fuck) and more races to the calendar, to make perhaps more money? I mean why else would you compromise them by pushing them harder? and this goes for the Mechanics too, since F1 dos not let them have to teams that alternate each other so they can have some rest? Can you imagine how much they work? They get there days before the race weekends, they get there earlier and leave way later than the rest! Are they well paid? Do they agree to it when signing a contract? Yes and that's exactly why rules exist! Otherwise people that need more money become manipulated to extremes for money/opportunities, every one could use a little more of it, even if impacts them badly! Especially now that F1's dilema is "You can always be replaced", "if you won't do it, i'll find someone who will" but not in a search better professionals (lets be real they are already so pre selected), but because that makes them trapped between what they need vs what a human can take. Physically, mentally, emotionally. This is coming from someone who grew up with a professional & high position mechanic dad.

- When they know that SPA is a very dangerous circuit mostly due to the rain. That we all know can't really be changed at anyone's desires. So instead of being responsible and making a hard decision that will likely piss off a lot of people, they waste everyone's time and money by having to cut races short, delay the races for hours, not be able to provide a sense of security and on top of that it just makes everything less entertaining (which is not something they want). All of this on top of the fact of the extreme safety issues. For what? They might as well remove the Belgium Gran Prix from the calendar till further notice, because there is nothing you can do to change the factors. I am pretty sure that more than half of everyone involved wouldn't complain about replacing it for now with a circuit that makes more sense logistically. There's so many unsatisfied with how the last couple SPA races have gone. All that because they refuse to go against the big boys with the money, in a situation that needs and outside intervention from the people that are there to do exactly that!

- When they didn't intervene, regulate or limited teams from disrespecting, disregarding and mistreating their drivers and other crew members. I think putting aside our favorites for a second we can all agree that: The way that Haas departed from Mick was wrong the way Gunther Stainer treated and talked about him even after he left was so disrespectful and uncalled for.

The way McLaren handled Daniel's departure from the team was also disrespectful, unnecessary, mean to a point it almost (to me definitely) humiliating, and it angered everyone, because he's very sweet and no one has EVER complained about him or said he was hard to work with. Zack Brown should of been replaced for being unable to professionally handle something that didn't have to go this way, he should have been held responsible for risking their drivers mental health, for putting all the blame from a bad result on him as if he was the only (or for many wrongly) reason for all their problems which is insane because not even his teammate was doing that much better. That is not what a team's for. You win together, you lose together. Besides everything it was SO disloyal of them, he broke a lot of disbelief that was being held against them, and it's not like he hasn't a good driver bc out of last year's grid he was part of the only few drivers who had actually won a grand prix before. And even IF that was the case, they had held it with decency, it just felt like the whole process was being handled by a child.

I felt really bad for Oscar, because this just made the start of his career badly. This was not his doing. He is a driver looking to get a chance. He's a good driver too. And this shouldn't make him a bad person.

For DeVries it just felt gut recking. This guy is a championship winner, he was waiting his time and opportunity to get a seat. FOR YEARS. Was also a reserve driver (why have him as a reserve if you'd never have him as a driver given the chance?), Last year he had the chance to race for the first in F1, he had to replace a driver that couldn't race that day. You know what he did? He got in that fucking car that honestly wasn't the best and hadn't reach the points the whole year, guess what? Not only got to the finishing line after a beautiful race with brilliant overtakes, he got that damn car into the points!!! Everyone was so impressed, why would keep him as reserve for so long? And he created an opportunity for himself that day. He earned that seat and everyone knows it. Than this guys starts his rookie year, in a new car, again a car that isn't able to compete for the top, is going okay, because no one expects a rookie to get in the top 10 every race of his first season, very few world champs did. All I can say is that they didn't even give him the rest of his first year! They actually didn't give him a chance at all! And again the way it was handle behind his back, from one race to the next was ??? And again no hate to Danny Ric for taking that chance.

Why haven't they been mediating all of this? Are you kidding me? How is all of this allowed? They wouldn't think twice if the drivers were the ones being deceiving. This took a toll on their health and career for no reason other than the fact they could. There's nothing wrong with ending contracts if things aren't working out. But this? And I would like to add that NONE of these drivers were caught saying anything about their situations negatively, they had the right to, the right to defend themselves and to give that disrespect back, but didn't.

I'm pretty sure you guys could add way more to this list. And the fact is that even the teams/people that are benefiting from it are satisfied with they're decisions, and that says a lot. Looking past who we cheer for, every single one of them can list a bunch of decisions that made no sense. This has gone way past favoritism, at this point no one can keep up with the hell they are doing. This sport needs to organize itself, bc this behavior is so self destructive. Every sport need and deserve an independent trustworthy serious organized and professional organization to make sure everything runs fairly, smoothly, safely with basic logic and respect, we know that right now the FIA ain't it.

-🎀

again sorry for the long messages but I think I'm at my limit as someone who has grown up experiencing Formula 1, as someone who is really interested in this sport, and that cares about the rules, just as much I care for the engineering that goes in it, just as much as care watching every single race, knowing that not much exiting and new things are going to happened, or that drivers that I really like don't really have the chance to win!

You were on point with everything in that ask, nonny!

I was getting ready to mention the "catering budget" when you did lol

As someone who experienced something similar with a different sport (hockey), it's frustrating, and, honestly, it just proves what Lewis said about money ruling it all. It's infuriating seeing how they go around blaming pilots for shitty cars or unhealthy workplace conditions (aka danny and mick situation), and it's just as infuriating seeing that some people agree with and think that this is how it should go.

At this point, I would say that they probably need to get the decision board replaced because clearly it's not working as it should, and its obvious that what's in the paper won't always happen in real life, but at least part of it has to, and we're not seeing it happen. I can sympathize with your frustration and agree that F1 has lost a bit of its magic (my dad told me just the same the last two races he saw me watching, he didn't even ask who was leading because it was obvious, and he didn't even mention all the other problematic stuff going around).

[original-character-championship]

Cass Propaganda (sorry it is so long)

I was gonna put a real intro here but my notes (yes i made notes for this) just say “[cass in competition *violent shaking*]” and i think that's funnier

Fun facts

She’s weird. Genuinely just a strange little guy. She’s an only child (derogatory) who grew up with just her and her adoptive mother in a cabin in the woods in the middle of nowhere. She went to public school for like a year and it was the worst so she quit.

She grew up in the 80s. I feel like I should mention this story involves a lot of time travel. She was born in the 1500s, but got out of there when she was a baby and lived in the same place from 1967-1982 (rough estimate, I change my mind on these times a lot).

Her hobbies include reading, watching tv (when the tv works), and fighting. She spends most of her time training with various weapons (especially dual swords). There’s really nothing else to do at her house and she doesn’t get out much.

There’s a big weapons collection in the barn behind her house. It’s partially for safety and partially because her and her mom think weapons are cool.

Speaking of moms I should probably introduce her most important relationships in the story.

The relationship that is probably most important for her is the one with her adoptive mother Calypso (pictured in the middle, holding her on a leash). Calypso grew up in a sci-fi sky city (time travel stuff, i don’t have time to get into it). She had to leave at a very young age, because the government was very corrupt and her adoptive mother (Fawn) was infiltrating it but she got caught. The plan was for them to grab baby Cass (they needed her for Plot Reasons) and go hide in the cabin in the woods. Unfortunately Fawn got shot (rest in peace you were there for like 1 chapter of the plot). So Calypso (who is 13 btw. Did i mention shes 13?) had to raise Cass on her own in hiding (they had some help from a friend but he was also doing government espionage stuff so he mostly just sent money). Because of all the time spent together and the small age gap Cass and Calypso are more like sisters than mother and daughter. They share responsibility equally and neither really had a sufficient parental figure. They both had to take on responsibility at a very young age and are a little fucked up because of it. Calypso’s doing her best I swear, she just never finished maturing herself. They get along really well but they’re also a bit of a wreck. 

The second most important relationship to her is Sammy (bottom right). He’s the adopted (yes basically everyone in this is adopted) son of the friend who helped Calypso out after Fawn died. They met when they were 15 and their relationship started out kind of competitive. Cass wasn’t used to kids her age (or men tbh) so she just kind of didn’t talk to him. Sammy thought she hated him. Things developed from there. Anyway eventually they grow to mutual respect and Sammy develops a giant crush on her. Does she reciprocate? Who knows (yes she definitely does). They have a really great dynamic. He reminds her that she doesn’t always need to be tough and that it’s ok to take breaks. She helps him learn to be more confident in himself and to take on some responsibility in life. Anyway I feel like it’s important to mention that they’re bi for bi and Sammy has that trans boy swag.

This next one is one of her most important relationships from a narrative sense. She doesn’t have that much conflict going on among allies, but her and Diana (top right) are at each other’s throats. They hate each other. They are going to fight to the death. They’re basically the same person. Diana is Calypso’s younger half sister (a biological relation for once). Calypso left her house to live with Fawn when she was 8 years old. Unfortunately she had to leave her two sisters behind. It was not the best family situation. Both sisters hold a reasonable resentment towards her, but Diana’s extends a lot further. She was Calypso’s younger sister and sees Cass as Calypso’s way of replacing her. She is headstrong and confident just like Cass, and also determined to oppose Cass in every single group decision. So they’re always fighting and Cass has no idea why Diana doesn’t like her. She just assumes she’s an asshole. Diana is, in fact, a total sweetheart to everyone who isn’t Cass.

Her other friends are Lina and Ben (top and bottom left). Lina and Cass just get along. Idk what to tell you they’re both absolute menaces. They’ve got that teen angst down. Also Lina is mute so they talk shit in sign language wherever they are because most people don’t know what they’re saying. Ben is like a little brother to her. He loves fashion and kind of helped her embrace more girly things like that. She helped him to get over some of his biggest fears. His dad is actually the worst (he’s the one who killed Fawn and he traumatized them both). Cass is going to kill his dad for him when she gets the chance (for legal reasons this is an exaggeration).

More fun facts™

There’s that shadow guy

He just haunts her a little, don't worry about it (you should, in fact, be very worried about it). But really what's the harm of having some guy that no one else can see constantly whispering promises of power and revenge in your ear anyway? She’s probably fine.

2. She doesn’t have a last name but her adoptive mom is from House Acheron (there’s a whole system of families (called houses) that government officials come from but it’s too complicated to explain) so you could call her Cassandra Acheron (nobody does). The house colors are red and gold, which she would hate because they clash with her hair color.

3. She first met Ben when she was breaking into his house In her defense his dad stole something of hers and she did not know Ben lived there

ok that's all

vote for cass pls

!!!

[caeloservare]

[does this count for the meme? XD]

Send 🍵 lemme be mean bitch (ง •̀_•́)ง

// Perfectly <3

Save to say we're all insecure at times, but it kinda breaks my heart when I see people worry about their portrayal due to canon. I feel you, I have these doubts too. It's like easiest (just right after comparing roleplayers) topics to get upset because of. So let me just-

Nothing we all write is canon.

Canon is the source material and trivia, behind the scenes, such stuff. Even when creators of the original media say something, it's not always canon either. Fanworks are never canon.* They can be canon compliant to greater or smaller extent, but it's never canon. It's not the media after all. So why bother so much about it? We're here for fun. We create fics, roleplays, arts, edits and the rest for fun.

I'm not immune to that doubt, but if I was to stick to canon, I'd drop my muse faster than speed of light. I cannot stomach rwby's canon anymore, so I wouldn't be able to write topics I find ignorant and harmful.

So I believe the main question is: do you have fun creating your stuff?

If yes - awesome! Let's go! Let's write edgy, cringe, silly, and whatever else stuff that sparks joy. There is no competition to win after all. The joy of creating something together with someone is all the reward to gain. There is no more canon vs less canon. It might feel like that, but there's only people's preferences what they prefer to lean into. Want some unpredictable twists? Roleplay! Want some specific thing you control events of? Write fanfic! Want explore looks of your fave? Draw, commission, play with creators like picrew! Have fun! (Don't do illegal stuff, that much goes without saying.)

If not - what can you change? Why is it upseting or hurts your feelings somehow? Or maybe it's not interesting enough? There are many solutions to that problem, but I can't offer any advice. Everyone is different and each experience goes differently. I believe finding your why, what you want and how can you get closer to it is the key to improving the experience. Without aggresion of course. Respect others but respect yourself too and communicate. Maybe someone said something that planted doubts in you, so maybe talking with them to clarify what they ment or talking with someone else would comfort you?

Canon doesn't mean quality. Canon doesn't equal fun. Stop worrying about straying from it and have fun <3 I can't imagine rpc without all the lovely OCs around and they're pretty obviously not canon. Canon is only a base for fanworks to start from. Have roots in canon, but bloom freely, my beautifully creative friends!

*edit: yes, fanworks can be included to canon, but it's usually explicitly stated and a known fact if it occures. I just reminded me Star Wars. there is too much regarding canon / non-canon there. Not the point anyway xD

[lovecolibri]

SaL anon here my friend, saying hi after a long absence!! I don't know why this summer is kicking my ass so much, I've been in a rut of absolute apathy about everything, including putting in the effort to rewatch my comfort shows. But things are getting better and sometimes its the small things that get you back up (for me specifically its the return of Puppet History, an absolute gem I highly recommend).

Anywho hope the summer is going well for you despite the summer and global warming of it all. Don't know about you but I'm still pretty bitter about 911 and really the way so many of the shows we've enjoyed were mishandled so badly. And with the writers and actors (very rightfully) on strike it could be awhile before we get any sort of idea what's going to happen in s7 so I figure we've got time to get some of that bitterness out through some salty competitions. So to start which series finale had the worse ending, RNM or 911 (I know 911 isn't over but its over on fox so it kinda counts)? A lengthy justification of your choice is encouraged!!

Hello friend! I got this while I was out of town at a concert with my mom so I'm just getting around to this today. I also thought this summer was going to be Super Chill and Time To Catch Up On Things but we have been weirdly SO BUSY every weekend and had numerous unexpected Things happen (the fridge went out, thought it was fixed, it went out again, one of the cats had to go to the emergency vet an hour away and is now on new special food forever etc) and it's not slowing down any time soon! Sorry you're in your apathy rut era, I was absolutely there too recently so I know what that's like! I hope you can find some joy again soon! (I know everyone else Hates Summer, but I love not being cold all the time and heat and sunshine are what give me life so I'm currently on a slightly more energized kick which I'm going to try and use to Get Some Shit Done in regards to home improvement and self-care.)

I haven't ever watched Puppet History but it sounds delightful and with the strikes going on (take 'em down WAG/SAG AFTRA!) I'm sure I will be finding time to watch all the things I never got around to. I'm currently nearly finished with Resident Alien which has been a delight, and me and my mom are watching White Collar which has been a lot of fun for us.

Okay, now time for The Salt Mine.

It's funny that you bring up the RNM finale because I JUST saw a post the other day of Malex comparison kisses but the one they used from the finale is a wide shot and LITERALLY the main color focus drawing the eye in the shot is that goddamn fucking red dress under the bright lights of the bar, and only then, second, is the pink light Malex is under while in the darker, shadowed part of the bar. Sooooo I've been feeling salty about that for daaaaays.

It's a tough call to pit these two against each other because 911 literally shoved Buck and Eddie into "endgame" relationships with random characters they have zero chemistry with and that we know next to nothing about (Marisol) or everything we know is Not Great (Natalia). They really thought this was the end of the show and would rather waste time on these side characters and forcing these relationships rather than focus on the firefam and found family of it all and showing the core cast of characters TOGETHER as a FAMILY in the end. They rushed through the emergency and the feels we SHOULD have spent time on with everyone being hurt and seeing the firefam worry about and fight to rescue each other, all so KR could have time to (poorly) wrap up the 7000 plotlines she made for Buck because she apparently doesn't like or care about any of the other characters and only cares about Buck insofar as she can make jokes about his junk and sex life and how she can use his character to insert new ones she wants to have instead of using the characters she already has. However, despite all that mess, there WERE some good moments in the finale for the firefam and the bridge collapse was good, if too short to do what it was intended to do. 911's practical effects have ALWAYS been a highlight of the show and one of the things that makes it great so it was good to see some effort put into that side of the show again.

But, even with all the missteps of the 911 finale, RNM fumbled the ball on literally EVERYTHING in their finale. There was a Malex wedding, but it focused entirely on Michael and we didn't get to see Alex's POV on anything (not even anything about being on death's doorstep and magically being healed which happened entirely off screen and we didn't get to hear from Alex about it at all) except how he was perfectly happy having NONE of his family there for the wedding because god forbid m*ria be uncomfortable for 5 seconds because everything is about HER and how SHE feels 🙄🙄🙄 We got more focus on m*ria than we did Alex at his own goddamn wedding! And aside from that whole mess, the finale also separated Max and Liz, the supposed main couple of the show! The show ended forever with the lead in tears as Max goes to an alien planet for who knows how long! WTF kind of ending is that?! The show really made it hard to root for Max and Liz because the writing for them was just...not what it needed to be, but Jeanine and NDP had great chemistry and when they let them be in love they had some GREAT moments. I just wanted to root for them more but they constantly put them on opposite sides of every little thing they came across so they were never really able to work TOGETHER on anything and it was frustrating. Even so, I wanted a better ending for them after seasons of fighting and being so on again/off again the whole time. Jeanine especially got screwed over in what SHOULD have been Liz's show and I hate that being left behind was her ending. And that's not even going into all the plotholes and storylines the show just half-assed or flat out didn't address, and things that got dropped along the way and never explained. I know I say it A Lot about 911, but good god, the RNM cast, characters, and the base storylines they started the show with deserved SO much better than what they got consistently from the s1 finale through the end of the show.

Despite all of 911s flaws and faults, I still think they can come back from it all if they go back to the formula used in the early seasons for pacing and storyline distribution and focus on the firefam as a unit together, and given that the issues brought up by fans were pretty similar across all platforms and mirrored oftentimes by professional reviews, there's some hope for change moving forward on a new network. If RNM had been given another season I'm sure they still would not have resolved any of the plotholes and would probably have just made them worse while creating new ones 🤷🏻‍♀️

So I have to go with RNM for having the worst finale but damn if 911 didn't give it a run for it's money!

I was good hearing from you my friend! I had high hopes to work on my Countdowns fic this summer but I just have not had a weekend to myself! My niece will be visiting this whole week and my nephew is due to arrive in August but may come earlier, plus I'm working on getting out of town for some shows (and out of state if I can swing it to see Ed Sheeran), and working on some remodel work in my bedroom so we'll see when things start to slow down if I have any brain power left to write, much less do any of the other craft projects I have pending! I am confident I will get the baby blanket I'm working on done in time but everything else is up in the air. Remember when summer was time to relax? Anyway, I am ALWAYS here for your salty thoughts or anything else you wanna talk about. In the meantime, lets all manifest a good outcome for the striking workers!

[tyonfs]

i like me better (when i’m with you)

PAIRING ▸ jeong jaehyun x fem!reader 

GENRES ▸ friends to enemies to lovers, college au, sports, friends with benefits, smut, crack, fluff 

WARNINGS ▸ sexual !! tension !! lots of it, smut (public sex, fingering, hate sex, raw sex, pool sex, oral sex), mark lee cockblocking, also yes, there’s actual fluff

SUMMARY ▸ there was no one else on the planet that made your blood boil like jeong jaehyun did. you never thought your feelings toward him were anything past pure hatred, but when you were lost in the feeling of his lips on yours and his hands on your body, you couldn’t help but think that maybe a part of you didn’t completely hate his guts. 

PLAYLIST ▸ i like me better by lauv • unravel me by sabrina claudio

WORD COUNT ▸ 11896 words

TAG LIST ▸ @gotoartistprofile @chanluster​ @steamyjaehyun

AUTHOR’S NOTE ▸ big shoutout to fia for hyping me up to complete this and i hope you guys enjoy it !! thank you so much for reading ♡ part of the dunk shot! series but can be read separately!

SOMETIMES, THE AMOUNT OF HATRED YOU HAD FOR JEONG JAEHYUN AMAZED YOU.

To the average human being, Jeong Jaehyun was, in a sense, perfect. On the surface, he was everyone’s trademark Golden Boy—good grades, athletic, and a seemingly good personality. The last point, however, was a complete and utter lie. Simply put, Jaehyun was a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and you, unfortunately, wound up becoming his target.

If it weren’t for your love for cheerleading, you probably would never have to see Jaehyun, but your passion came with a price. Competitors were often asked a series of questions, and these questions typically included inquiring about your hardships as an athlete. If someone were to ask you what the hardest part of being a cheerleader was, your answer would not be what they expected.

It wasn’t getting back up after bad falls that left you with bruises and a concussion. It wasn’t dealing with the basketball team’s aftermath of a devastating loss and having to cheer them on through it. It wasn’t waking up extra early for morning practices, or having to push yourself to run miles in the sweltering heat. Hell, it wasn’t even dealing with the horny basketball team members at afterparties.

It was the annual training camp.

Every winter, the team attended a week-long training session along with several other teams in the city. With state-of-the-art facilities and a massive training center, the training camp was an event that the entire team looked forward to. Although the training was brutal, the luxury of the hotel rooms and the gourmet meals had made up for all of that. Yet, despite all of that, the camp itself was still hell for you.

It wasn’t all bad, though. In fact, you indulged in the concept of a training camp, delighted with the opportunity to meet cheerleaders from different universities. A handful of your friends from high school had joined teams at different universities, so it was exciting to get to see them all again. All in all, it was the whole package deal: friends, your favorite sport, and fun times. What could possibly ruin that?

Well, a certain someone by the name of Jeong Jaehyun could, and that wonderful individual incensed your fury quite like no other.

“You again,” you spat, clutching your duffel bag strap. You had just gotten off the bus to head into the hotel, but the devil himself was blocking your way.

“Y/N,” the devil cooed, “do you need help carrying that?”

“I’m fine.”

You shrugged Jaehyun off and tried to move past him, but the bane of your existence had other plans. He tossed you a small carton of milk; it was the kind you could buy at a vending machine. Your reflexes kicked in just in time for you to catch it, giving him a questioning look.

“You should be drinking more milk, Y/N. It’s good for you,” Jaehyun said. You were sure he was going to make a snide comment so you opened your mouth to protest, but he continued, “Jaemin likes big tits, you know?”

Ouch.

You and Jaehyun went farther back than you’d like to admit. While you did currently attend different universities, you had the joyous experience of going to the same high school as him. He wasn’t too different now; he had the same dimpled smile, the same godly features, and the same cocky smirk when things were going the way he planned. What was different was that you two were once friends.

And what took the cake? You had a big crush on his friend and fellow teammate. Introducing Na Jaemin, everyone.

It wasn’t like you never got over Jaemin, but you had to admit that your heart still fluttered pitifully whenever you saw him. It didn’t help that he was so breathtakingly beautiful, so undeniably genuine, and such a sweetheart. Unfortunately, Jaehyun knew of your little secret. Being the conniving little snake he was, he used it to his advantage.

Ever since your fallout with him in your senior year of high school, you’ve hated Jeong Jaehyun, and you were sure he hated you right back. It almost felt akin to the competition at this point, and you were a pretty sore loser. Honestly, you were sad initially when he broke off your friendship in senior year and threw crude insults at you. You normally didn’t let things get to you, but it hurt to hear that your best friend didn’t want anything to do with you after you had told him you were going to a different university. You were sure the both of you had grown past that, but now he had changed from a sincere highschooler to a complete low-life piece of shit.

“You’re a douche, Jaehyun,” you sneered.

A grin spread across his face. “Yeah, I know.”

You scoffed. “God, if I could, I would smash that pretty face into—”

“Hey!” a loud voice laced with trepidation interjected. It was your best friend on your school’s basketball team, Mark Lee, coming to your rescue; or, rather, he was trying to prevent you from doing something you’d most probably regret. He shot Jaehyun a warning look and slung an arm around your shoulders. “Y/N, what’re you doing here? We have to check into our hotel rooms.”

You looked back at Jaehyun to see a smug look on his face before he turned to catch up to Taeyong and Jaemin. You looked back up at Mark, who was also keeping an eye out for the demon in disguise.

“Thanks for getting me out of that mess,” you mumbled. “That guy is so infuriating. I can’t believe he still brings up Jaemin when I’m clearly over him!”

Your words were sharp enough that Mark and the people around you flinched, even if they weren’t completely paying attention to your rant. It was common knowledge that Jaehyun’s presence left you in low spirits, and Mark had come to terms that you would always be in a bitter mood during the training camp, and that there was only one person to blame for it.

Mark shot you a sympathetic look that you knew was intended to show his helpfulness, but instead just served to make you appear all the more bitter.

“Why don’t you just ignore him?” he suggested. “He’s just looking for a reaction out of you.”

“If I let him get the last word, then he wins.”

“At least he’d stop bothering you,” Mark reasoned as you both made your way to where your team had gathered by the reception desk.

“Is this about Jaehyun again?” Zhong Chenle chimed in, a devilish grin plastered across his face. “You’re a handful, Y/N.”

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?” you snapped.

Chenle just stared at you, arching a brow as if the answer should have been obvious. “You and Jaehyun,” he said, “there’s some tension there.”

“Wow, Sherlock Holmes. Observant, aren’t you?” you spat, words dripping with sarcasm. “We’ve hated each other for years. Of course there’s tension.”

Johnny Suh snorted, averting his gaze as to not bring attention to himself. Chenle rolled his eyes, a delighted smile on his face as he watched you carefully, digging into his bag of chips in the meantime.

“Y/N, I think he means a different kind of tension,” Mark said.

“What kind of tension?” you asked, shocking the rest of them with your surprisingly innocent response. In retrospect, it was more because you couldn’t imagine the answer being anything past the realm of hatred.

While they all hesitated to respond, Johnny spoke up, “He meant the ‘I wanna beat you up and then have rough sex with you’ kind of tension.”

You immediately froze—long enough for Chenle to take a picture of your reaction—the expression on your face a cross between incredulity and visceral rage. You must have looked like a ticking time bomb because Mark had to take a cautious step back.

“Come again? Rough sex?” You were well aware of how strangled and pitched your voice sounded as soon as it escaped your lips, how guilty it sounded, but you couldn’t focus on that as the weight of Johnny’s words were sinking in. “Jaehyun and I?”

“Yeah, pretty much,” Johnny answered.

“That’s a lie.”

“Yeah? Then why do you two always look at each other so weird?”

You didn’t know how to defend yourself now so you just said, “He’s a bastard and I would never see him in any other way.”

“You say that now but we all know—”

“Alright, let’s drop it,” Mark said, trying to defuse the situation before you blew it up into an argument. “I would rather go rest in my hotel room rather than bear witness to a homicide.”

“Fine, fine,” Johnny relented.

You scoffed and jabbed at his foot with yours before letting the topic go. Your squabbles with them were all in good nature, but this one somehow put you off. It was like Johnny had planted the seeds and were waiting for them to grow. You were starting to mull over every interaction you’ve had with Jeong Jaehyun.

Johnny and Chenle had made a startlingly accurate observation. You and Jaehyun did look at each other for a little too long sometimes, nearly to the point where it seemed like you were basking in the attention of the other—

No fucking way.

You were not going down that path. There was nothing more to your relationship with Jeong Jaehyun than pure hatred and resentment. He was a douchebag who was intent on making you feel like shit. His only motive was to start shit again between you and Jaemin, who you would’ve completely forgotten by now if it weren’t for him.

No way. There was absolutely no undercurrent of desire that was creeping its way to be uncovered.

Or was there? a small, treacherous part of your mind offered.

You were lost in your thoughts as the coaches handed you your room key, as you waited for your roommate who was some girl named Eunha from the other school, as you made your way to your room on the fifth floor.

The only thing you could think about were those long stares, those mesmerizing eyes, and the implication behind them. You always attributed it to Jaehyun being a hormonal teenage boy, but you had to admit that you’ve seen him look at you with some semblance of lust. Perhaps that same feeling was buried far in the depths of your consciousness, too.

Could you possibly be attracted to the devil incarnate, Jeong Jaehyun?

No, you argued with yourself, and shit, even your frontal lobe sounded pretty unconvinced. He’s a petty bastard and that’s all he’ll ever be.

You instilled the mantra of you and Jaehyun being sworn enemies in your head, but you couldn’t help the fact that it was peppered by the memories of an irritatingly familiar smirk. You scowled, willing your head to get rid of all-things-Jeong-Jaehyun, but he was right there.

Literally.

He was standing right in front of you.

“Hey, neighbor,” he teased, all too satisfied with the horrified look on your face. “Guess you can’t get rid of me.”

You were falling when you jolted awake.

A groan tore its way past your lips. You made sure you didn’t disrupt Eunha’s sleep before you recounted your dream. It had been a while since you’ve had one, and realization was morphing into shame when you realized what kind of dream it was. You’ve never had a wet dream before but what made you want to astral project yourself into oblivion was when you realized that Jaehyun caused it.

After tossing and turning for a couple of minutes in a desperate attempt for sleep to overcome you once more, you came to terms with the fact that you were staying awake for now. Staying awake was worse, though, because there was no way you could keep the intruding thoughts at bay. Not with the way Jeong Jaehyun kept flashing behind your eyelids, at least.

You considered how to spend the rest of your night, surveying your options as you stared up at the ceiling:

Watch season three of Riverdale on Netflix so you could make fun of it.

Attempt to sleep, but with little success because there was no way you were going back to bed after that dream.

Count the slacks of the window’s blinds even though it would be pointless because what the fuck were you going to do with that information?

It was truly astounding how interesting your life was.

You couldn’t think clearly with Eunha’s soft snoring, so you grabbed your keys and pushed the door open carefully to keep it from squealing. After your delicate movements to escape your room quietly, you leaned against the wall and let out a sigh of relief. You weren’t too keen on someone scolding you in the middle of the night for being outside, but you needed to clear your head somewhere. You packed for weather that was balmy, but the air conditioner carried a bite to it that made you wish you hadn’t just worn shorts and a tank top to bed.

You could practically hear Mark mocking you if he were here: Are you in the right headspace, Y/N?

You shook your head, getting your provoking best friend out of there, but instead, you found yourself wandering into dangerous territory again.

Johnny and Chenle were parroting the same words over and over again in your head. You wished you could use your metaphysical hands in your head and squeeze the life out of them, but they always flew out of your grasp. You clicked your tongue absentmindedly, your annoyance rehashing itself as your mind gravitated back to Jeong Jaehyun with his stupid smirk and annoyingly persistent cockiness. It was almost pitiful that you hated his guts and yet you couldn’t deny the magnetism he carried, the pull that made your breath hitch when he met your eyes.

His presence was announced by the change in the air more than anything else. You didn’t have to see him to know he was there. You clenched your jaw; you couldn’t catch a break from him even during the ungodly hours of the night.

He was unavoidable.

He hummed with amusement. “Look who’s here.”

“What are you doing up this late? Go to bed.”

You didn’t even bother to look at him because there was one thing you were sure of and it was that you could not look at his sickeningly attractive face right now. Jaehyun didn’t move, blatantly ignoring your order. The tension was so thick that you wanted to storm away, but you knew he would follow you just to piss you off.

“I couldn’t sleep,” he said. “You should be the one resting up. You cheerleaders always train until you’re near death.”

“Can’t sleep,” was your curt response.

He laughed once, a short sound that was pretty much gone the moment it hit your eardrums. “What? You get nightmares or something?”

“So what if I do?” you retaliated, getting oddly defensive. It was a given that you’d lie about getting a nightmare over a wet dream. “It’s none of your business.”

He laughed again but this time it was lower, more dangerous. “It’s my business when it concerns you.”

“I have and will never be your business, Jeong Jaehyun.”

He leaned against the wall. “I beg to differ.”

“Then keep begging.”

“If you say so.”

“Jaehyun,” you interrupted your own banter. “What’s the point of this conversation? Just go back to your room so we can go back to not talking to each other.”

“I’m good, thanks.”

“That’s unfortunate,” you said. “I don’t want to talk to you, so go find someone who does.”

“We don’t have to talk.” Suddenly, his voice sounded closer, and you forced your gaze down at the strangely-patterned hotel carpet.

You swallowed thickly. “I’m here to clear my head. I don’t want you to hover around me for the rest of the night.”

“Actually, I had something else in mind.”

He closed in on you, one of his hands skimming up the soft skin of your arm. A shudder ran down your spine as you felt his fingers travel up to your shoulder, your collarbone, and then the side of your neck. With a swift movement, he caged you in his arms, biceps flexing as he did.

What was going on? You couldn’t quite keep up with the situation but the way Jaehyun was looking down at you made you feel hot. It was exactly like your dream—

“Holy fuck, Jaehyun.”

You couldn’t stop the words from escaping your lips when you felt his hot breath on your neck. Your head went fuzzy and you were pretty sure your knees were ready to buckle under you. The corner of Jaehyun’s lip lifted into a smirk as if he had been planning this. You mustered a scowl at him but one thing was clear: you screwed yourself over by getting into this situation.

Damn it. You knew you should’ve watched season three of Riverdale instead

Also, Chenle and Johnny were right. Not that you’d ever tell them that; put simply, you were a sore loser.

Lust was swimming in Jaehyun’s eyes. The way he caged you felt predatory, a show of dominance rather than passion. That smirk of his carved in deeper, and it only pissed you off. Yet, as much as it pissed you off, all you wanted him to do was just ruin you.

Your pride was too strong, though, and you concluded that you would rather stick a fork in your eye than let Jaehyun do what he wanted. This sparked a dilemma in your head: to fuck or not to fuck Jaehyun, that was the question. One sounded like a pretty uneventful night, while the other sounded appealing save for the self-loathing you’d experience afterward.

“You want me, Y/N,” he cooed. “I know you do.”

“I hate you.”

“Trust me, I know.”

“I mean it, Jaehyun,” you hissed. Your head was screaming at you to just go with it, but denying Jaehyun’s advances and provokes was just natural instinct to you. “I don’t want you. Stop lying to yourself.”

“Is that so? I think you’re the liar here,” he replied easily as you dodged his attempt to kiss you.

You pushed at his muscular arm but he didn’t budge. For a moment, you strongly considered just dropping to the ground and crawling out from under his legs, but you were done for. Seconds later, Jaehyun’s hand flew up, long fingers digging into the soft flesh of your face as he forced your chin upward to look at him directly. The lust in his eyes was so clear, so alluring, and it made you stop struggling for a second.

“I’m not going to ask you again. Let go of me.”

“Good, it’s a waste of breath.”

“Has anyone ever told you how infuriating you are?”

“You did. Many times.”

“Just fuck off already.”

Your words were like poison, but for some odd reason, Jaehyun was immune to it. Any reasonable person would at least flinch, but Jaehyun was so fixated on his one goal. Again, he didn’t budge. He gazed into your eyes with a fierce intensity that threw you off.

“Just let me fucking kiss you, Y/N.”

His smirk was gone. He wasn’t teasing you anymore. Jaehyun’s eyes darkened with his command.

He leaned in and you could feel his hot breath fanning your lips, drinking in your appearance. You were pulled into his trap and you hated yourself for it. You swallowed hard as all of your worries about being with Jaehyun and getting caught had started to fade away. All you could do was yield to him.

“Fine,” you whispered.

“Good girl,” was all he got out before basically smashing your lips together.

It was rushed, messy, and way too rough. Jaehyun grabbed the back of your neck, his other arm still locking you in place. Your hands moved from gripping at the front of his shirt to slowly wrapping around his neck. You weren’t sure how you felt, but there was something that made you want to tangle your fingers in his hair and get lost in him.

The moment Jaehyun’s tongue slid along the crease of your lips, you were conflicted. You weren’t exactly sure what to do so he took the reins. You wondered if he was expressing his pent-up hatred as well. It was clear in the way he was taking prying your mouth open with his tongue, snaking his hot muscle to dance with yours as if he had something to prove. He wanted you to see that he was the dominant one, that he had leverage over the situation.

But when he broke away, he flipped the switch. The both of you were left catching your breath, Jaehyun resting his forehead against yours in a feeling that had a weird sort of intimacy stemming from it. His hand dropped from your neck to brush messy locks of hair behind your shoulders.

Well, that explained why humans were so tempted by the devil.

“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” Jaehyun grinned down at you.

You fought down the shyness that was creeping into your chest. Before you could respond, the both of you turned your heads at the sound of footsteps. A flashlight glimpsed by you when you saw two dark figures at the end of the hall. It didn’t sound like your coach, but you weren’t too keen on sticking around to figure out who it was.

“Son, how in the world did you get locked out of your room this late?” one of them asked.

“I’m telling you, I needed to use the bathroom so I went outside without my key, and then I remembered the bathroom was in the room.”

That voice was most definitely Mark.

“Hey!” the security guard scolded when he saw you two. “What are you kids doing? It’s late!”

“You’re on your own.” You pushed Jaehyun away from you and fumbled for your keys before Mark or the security guard could spot you. “Bye.”

You jammed your key in, not worried about waking up your roommate anymore. All you could hear was Jaehyun growling out a short string of curses before you shut the door behind him and leaned against it. Your head was still reeling in what had just happened, but that kiss had left you in the clouds. You could feel the ghost of his lips on yours. Dazed, you just fell onto your bed, into the entrancing clutches of sleep.

You were exhausted when you woke up, and you blamed Jaehyun for it.

You weren’t in the proper condition for training; you hadn’t gotten enough sleep and your head was a mess (well, you supposed you were the only one to blame for the latter). You forgot to set your alarm so you woke up to Eunha shaking you gently, coaxing you into stirring. She was already dressed, tying her hair up in a ponytail. You all but jumped out of bed when you saw her, thinking you were late.

“What time is it?” you asked groggily, rubbing the sleep from your eyes as you stood up and tried to adjust to the morning light.

“You’ve still got plenty of time,” she assured you. “I just like to get ready early so I can go for a quick run.”

“Ah, okay. Have fun,” you mumbled before she left the room, leaving you to drag yourself around the room to get ready. You heard a knock at the door and went to open it, assuming it was Eunha forgetting her keys. Your eyes narrowed when you saw who it was. “Jaehyun?”

“I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” His voice was somewhere between a pant and a rasp as if he had been working out, which he probably was judging by the sheen of sweat on his biceps.

“Were you waiting for Eunha to leave?” you asked. “You’re disgusting. Why would you think about me?”

“I was thinking about how much of a bitch you are for running away and letting me get in trouble like that.”

“Pity.” You mocked a pout for him. “Now move. I have to get ready.”

“Let me in.”

You made a face at the thought. You knew where he was going with this and you needed to stop it. “No. You’re disgusting.”

“You liked it last night.”

His eyes searched yours in the dim light, looking for something that unfortunately was there: longing. You were never the greatest at hiding your emotions, which was why you couldn’t lie to yourself and refuse Jaehyun. Screw your transparency. Jaehyun grinned at your silence and took a step in your room when you opened your door wider for him.

You closed the door. “I hated every second of it,” you said in a childish attempt to get on his nerves.

You were a terrible liar.

Your back was against the door in a second. You could only let out a soft gasp before he kissed you, hands on your waist, slowing his movements unlike the hurriedness from last night. It was foreign, the way he kissed you like you were the only girl he saw. You pulled away quickly but it just left the both of you staring at each other’s lips.

“You sure about that?” His lips curled into a smirk.

“Don’t get me wrong,” you warned in a low voice, “I still hate your guts.”

“As I’m reminded of every single time I see you,” he returned coolly.

“Fuck off.”

This time, you pulled him down to kiss him again. You fisted your hand into his hair, tugging at his dark locks as your lips moved smoothly against his. Caught off guard, Jaehyun groaned, low and deep against your lips.

The two of you separated again before Jaehyun said, “See? I know you want me. Only I can make you feel this good, Y/N.”

You scoffed. “We’ll see about that.”

Jaehyun’s eyes darkened at the challenge. To prove his point, he pushed his knee up and between your legs, pressing against your clothed cunt. A gasp escaped your lips, the fingers curled in his hair instinctively tightening. You bit your lip but to no avail; a whimper escaped your lips as soon as he started pulsing his knee against you. You grabbed onto his shoulders for leverage, burying your face into his chest while bunching up the thin fabric of his shirt.

You wanted to hold back your moans because you were adamant about not giving Jeong Jaehyun the satisfaction of hearing you moan. Instead, you shifted your hips so that the pressure of his knee became more intense. Sparks flew behind your eyelids as he bounced his knee under you.

He finally released the tight grip he had on your waist in favor of palming one of your breasts, squeezing it firmly through your shirt and bra. All the while, he continued ramming his knee against the apex of your legs. He kept his eyes on yours and you scowled at the thought of him getting off on seeing you crumble in front of him. But you couldn’t stop yourself. He wanted to completely and utterly ruin you, wanted to fuck you in and shut you up.

The worst part was that you wanted to let him.

“You’re so cute when you’re like this,” he mused, slowly rubbing his knee in circles against you. “God, you’re still wearing that fucking tank top.”

“You’re such a—ah!”

He groped your chest again, thumb pressing down on your nipple. Another whimper escaped you as Jaehyun grazed his lips down your neck, nipping at the supple skin. You only got louder as the kisses turned into bites.

He ignored you and removed his hand. Instead, he tugged the neckline of your tank top down, delighted at the loose straps sliding down your shoulders. He yanked it down to your waist so you were exposed to him, and you swore you heard his breath hitch. Jaehyun pinched your nipple with two fingers, drawing out a moan that drove him crazy. He buried his face into your neck, sucking and making you quiver under him.

“Didn’t you say I had small tits earlier?” you jeered, a teasing lilt to your tone.

“Yeah, I still stand by that,” he replied, resulting in you punching his shoulder.

“Asshole.”

“Hey, I never said it wasn’t cute.”

“You’re such a softie,” you grumbled, but your voice was gentler than before. It was almost like you were warming up to Jeong Jaehyun, and you hated the mere thought of that.

Jaehyun pulled away from your neck. “Y/N, I want you to suck me off,” he demanded.

“I refuse.”

“Be a good girl and do it for me.”

You swore you’d go crazy if he called you ‘good girl’ one more time. You were pretty revolted at the thought of sucking his dick, but the way he looked so fragile under your hold made you want to do it for the power rush. It was like some cheap porno in a way; ‘College Jock Gets Sucked Off By Cheerleader.’ You bet half the members on the team beat their meat to something similar to that.

Your shoulders sagged. “Fine. Get on the bed.”

Jaehyun groaned at your approval. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” he said, letting go of you to pull down his sweats on his way to your bed. He sat at the edge of it, tugging the elastic of his boxers down. You swallowed hard, tugging your tank top back up as you stared at his painfully hard erection springing out.

You got on your knees in front of him, lips parted in anticipation of taking in his length. Your hair fell over your face, which Jaehyun took notice of and held it back in a fist. Taking a deep breath, you wrapped your hand around his cock. It was rock solid to the touch and twitched at your grip. Glancing up at an eager Jaehyun, you pumped the length of it once, inciting a groan from him.

You wrapped your lips around the head of his cock, rousing a strangled noise from his throat. He looked down at you through half-lidded eyes, messy strands of your hair tangling in his fingers while his other hand was gripping the stiff hotel sheets. Then, you took him in fully at his encouragement (which was more of him just grabbing the back of your head and pushing it down on his cock).

“Shit,” he breathed out before slowly moving his hips in and out of your mouth. It was like iron wrapped around velvet, and he was relishing how hot your mouth felt.

He pushed your head down further and right as you gagged on his length, there was a knock at the door.

“Y/N!” Mark’s voice sounded from the other side. “Are you coming for breakfast?”

You pulled off of him with a pop, a string of saliva dripping off your lips. Your eyes were wide as you lunged for your phone, checking the texts. Meanwhile, Jaehyun just frowned down at you, looking up at the ceiling with a frustrated sigh.

“Holy fuck,” you muttered when you looked at the time. You called out to Mark, “Give me a minute!”

“Perfect,” Jaehyun said in a low voice and held the back of your head, attempting to push you down on him. “We can finish up now.”

“Are you an idiot?” you hissed, swatting at his hand. “I have to get out of here before Mark finds out you’re in here.”

Ignoring your state of panic, Jaehyun said, “You look so hot with drool on your chin.”

That was the most disgusting thing you had ever heard, and if it weren’t for Mark being on the other side of the door where you and Jaehyun were screwing around, you would have beat the living daylights out of him. Only a creep like Jeong Jaehyun could find something like drool sexy. You scowled at him and wiped it off with the back of your hand.

“Put your dick away,” you scolded. “Hide in the closet and you can leave when I’m gone.”

He rolled his eyes at you and stood up, making his way to the bathroom. “I need to get rid of the problem you caused.”

You had no time to complain about him jerking off in your bathroom. Mark was not a very patient man, so as soon as Jaehyun closed the door behind him, you stripped off your pajamas and threw on whatever was at the top of your suitcase. You brushed your teeth at the speed of light, using your other hand to brush down your hair. After you laced up your shoes, you opened the door to Mark looking at you suspiciously.

“You’re never late,” he pointed out.

“I couldn’t sleep last night,” you said. In your defense, it wasn’t a complete lie.

“Oh, by the way,” Mark started, “can I use your bathroom real quick?”

“No!” you exclaimed, pushing him away from your room and in the direction of the elevator. “My roommate, um, is… on her period—yeah, you don’t want to see that mess.”

Another reason why you hated Jeong Jaehyun was for giving you reasons to lie when you were a terrible liar.

Training was long and grueling. Your bones were mush and your muscles ached, pins and needles shooting through you every time you moved. As your teammates dragged you to get dinner with them, you couldn’t even resist because you were so drained.

The one thing you loved about training was that you could wear whatever you wanted, whereas you were confined to tight skirts and crop tops at your university. Now, you could rest in whatever position you wanted without worrying about exposing anything, so you didn’t hesitate to manspread as soon as you got to the cafeteria table.

“Did you guys hear about Jaehyun from the other school?” one of the girls gossiped. “Looks like he was fooling around with someone last night.”

You were grounded back into reality from whatever dimension you were floating about in. Your teammates were perplexed as you choked on air, hitting your chest to stop yourself from coughing. You were handed a glass of water, which you gingerly accepted and drank until your body had calmed down.

“Ah, sorry, Y/N,” your teammate apologized. “I forgot you and Jaehyun have bad blood between you.”

“You’re good,” you told her, waving it off. “I was surprised for a second, but I guess it makes sense for a guy like him to go around hooking up.” Then, silence fell. You were confused as they all looked at you with a puzzled look. “What? Am I stereotyping too harshly? My bad.”

“No, it’s not that,” another chimed in. “A lot of girls go around hitting on him, but Jaehyun never lays a hand on them. I thought it was common knowledge that he doesn’t do that sort of stuff, but I guess it makes sense that you don’t care about the details.”

That was news to you.

“Yeah,” you replied distantly. “I don’t care.”

So Jaehyun doesn’t hook up, was what you happened to hear around the grapevine, and he most definitely doesn’t hook up with his enemies.

You stood up in the middle of your dinner. “I gotta go,” you said. “I’ll see you girls tomorrow.”

You actually weren’t very sure where Jaehyun was, but you figured if you walked around enough, you’d run into him or someone from his team. You headed out of the canteen and walked to the basketball courts, expecting to see him dribbling a bar or doing reps. But the first person you saw was Na Jaemin, and he noticed you immediately, eyes sparkling with recognition.

“Y/N!” he greeted cheerfully. “It’s been so long.”

That infectious smile of his was plastered across his face, making a small one creep to your lips. If Jaehyun smiled like that more, then you could understand his charm, but he was always so moody around you. He either did something to get on your nerves or he would just flat-out ignore you. Furthermore, he always riled you up instead of offering you that warm security that Jaemin emanated—

Wait, why were you comparing him to Jaehyun?

“Sorry,” you apologized meekly. “Am I interrupting your practice time?”

“No, it’s cool. We were just messing around in here,” Jaemin replied. “Are you looking for someone?”

You looked into Jaemin’s eyes and your thoughts slowed. He made you feel safe, warm, but that was all; there was no fire, no rage, no heat. It was just a shallow attraction that fizzled out, leaving you neither satisfied nor dissatisfied. And you clawed at your brain as you wondered what you were getting at, but you knew. You knew it was all going back to Jaehyun.

And it pissed you off.

“I was looking for Jaehyun,” you said, “if he happened to be in here.”

“He told me he was going for a swim,” Jaemin said, and that was all you needed.

Before Jaemin could respond, you thanked him and turned on your heel. The pool was in a separate building, and there was no training that even required swimming, so it made no sense for Jaehyun to be there. You let out a frustrated sigh. Even when he wasn’t doing anything in particular to annoy you, it still managed to anger you.

You weren’t going to let Jaehyun do what he wanted this time. This was merely for interrogation—your own personal gain. Then, you thought it over some more, and you reasonably concluded that there was a 97.5% chance that you would not lay a finger on him, but there was a 2.5% chance you’d cave.

When you got to the facility where the pool was, you were entranced by the renovation at first. The pool was massive and the equipment was lined up so neatly along the walls. You peered through the glass to see the pool completely empty save for Jaehyun in the hot tub.

He met your eyes while you opened the door to the pool. His eyebrow arched at your entrance but a smirk settled on his lips as you neared him. You tried to push down your lust; you were not letting him get to you again. You crouched down by the side of the pool and Jaehyun moved so he was facing you, holding onto the edge of the hot tub.

“What brings you here?’ he asked, playfully flicking some water in your direction.

You flinched and scrunched up your nose at his action. “I heard you don’t do hookups.”

“You heard correctly.”

“So what am I?”

“You’re Y/N.”

You were a coward. Admittedly, you had probably always been running away from your own problems, deflecting your feelings with unbridled hate that had no direction, no meaning. Underneath your blunt and fiery front was pure cowardice. Even now, you refused to admit anything to yourself.

You didn’t want to accept that maybe you actually liked Jeong Jaehyun.

Maybe you’ve always liked him.

“Don’t be stupid, Jaehyun,” you grumbled. “You’ve always hated me.”

“I think you just want to believe I hate you. Is that how you suppress your feelings?”

“How long have you liked me for, then? Days?”

“Years.”

You paused for a moment as you recounted your interactions with Jaehyun. It was true that he never explicitly said he hated you and that you always started the arguments, but he was the one who broke off your friendship. Why would he do that if he didn’t hate you?

“You said you wanted nothing to do with me, Jaehyun,” you said in a smaller voice, fist balling at your side.

“You were going to a different university.” He ran a hand through his damp hair, and although you were angry, it was difficult not to enjoy the view. “Plus, you just kept going on and on about Jaemin, and I couldn’t even shut that mouth of yours up back then.”

“So you cut me off?”

“I felt like I was being petty, so I tried to apologize but you blocked my number and wouldn’t let me come near you,” Jaehyun deadpanned. He reached forward and grabbed your wrists, pulling you closer to him. You teetered on the balls of your feet, swallowing hard. “Forgive me?”

“No.”

Jaehyun rose up a little so he was eye-to-eye with you. He smiled at your flustered expression and cupped your cheek with his wet hand. Every muscle in your body was telling you to pull away but you couldn’t. Not when his lips were so close, when his eyes were boring into yours.

“Forgive me,” he repeated in a gentler tone, but it became more of an order than a question.

“Make me,” you whispered and Jaehyun groaned, somewhat helplessly.

“You’re going to be the death of me, I swear.”

You opened your mouth to say something more, but you couldn’t even form your words as Jaehyun yanked you forward and sealed your lips with a kiss. Before, you had the sense to try and push him away, but now you were held captive. He slid his tongue past your lips and you let out an appreciative whimper, hand sliding into his wet hair. You tugged at his hair and this time, Jaehyun was the one to react.

He pulled away for a moment to catch his breath, eyes clouding over with lust. “Get in with me,” he said, voice rumbling. You shivered as he dragged his lips down to your jaw; you could feel his voice reverberate down your spine and to your feet.

“What if someone walks in?” you asked in a daze.

“There’s no use for the swim facility, so no one’s going to walk in on us,” he persuaded. “Come in.”

Water dripped from his neck, landing on your thigh. You took in a sharp breath as his hand tugged at your waist. While the pleading look on his face was priceless, you couldn’t even ridicule him because you were at your limit, too. You let out an irritated sigh when you realized you gave into that 2.5% of you caving.

You responded by pulling off your shirt, tossing it to the side where Jaehyun had left his shoes and towel. Jaehyun watched you as you fiddled with the clamp of your bra. Meanwhile, his hands went to the waistband of your sweats, making you shudder as he tugged them down at the sides. You raised your hips to help him get them off and, after removing your bra, you were only left in your underwear to protect you from his hungry gaze.

You weren’t the type to hook up with guys. Hell, you weren’t the type to even show a guy your ankle if he asked. You thought you’d feel insecure with Jaehyun eyeing you in your full glory, but there was none of that. You wanted to know why it was so different with him but maybe it was the way he looked at you like he just wanted to kiss you. Or maybe a tiny part of your heart always belonged to Jaehyun, and you couldn’t bury it anymore.

“You’re so gorgeous.”

He mumbled the words, barely audible, but they set you on fire. He pulled you down onto his lap like you were his anchor, and you were afraid you’d get swept with the current, but you let him. You’ve only ever kissed a few guys before, so you really had no idea what the fuck you were getting into. All you were sure about was that Jaehyun could make you feel good and you were having your first time in a hot tub. You only prayed that you wouldn’t pass out from the pleasure combined with the heat of the water.

“Is this your first time?” he asked, gliding his hands down your sides. You nodded. “Then I’ll be gentle.” Truly, you did find his gesture rather sweet, but it didn’t stop you from rolling your eyes. Jaheyun saw and narrowed his brows. “I don’t hate you, but you really piss me off sometimes.”

He kissed you again. It was more passionate this time, but also harsher and messier. You let out a sound that was something between a yelp and a moan, making Jaehyun move his hands to run down your bare back. Then, he planted his thumb on your clit and pressed down in a way that made a muscle in your thigh twitch. Your grip on his shoulders tightened; you weren’t expecting that. It felt different in the water, but somehow, you couldn’t get enough of it.

“You’re wet,” he mumbled against your lips as his fingers found purchase on your slit.

“We’re in the water, you idiot.”

Jaehyun scoffed. “You know what, Y/N, you’re right, I did hate you,” he spat, rubbing small circles around your clit now. You wrapped your arms around his shoulders to steady yourself, whimpering as his movements grew more intense. “I fucking hated how you looked at Jaemin with those love-struck eyes.”

There was a shift in his usual cocky expression. He turned focused and, to a degree, angry. It was the kind of look on his face you saw when he was on the basketball court or during a game.

“You’re the one who told me to go after him.”

Wrong choice of words. Jaehyun lifted you up and placed you on the edge of the pool, pushing a finger inside you with no warning. You gasped, your mouth open to ask him why he took you out of the water, but you already knew the answer; he wanted to feel you completely.

“R-right there,” you whimpered out as he pushed his finger deeper inside of you.

He started to curl his finger whenever he passed over your g-spot, and you had to close your eyes. Jaehyun pulled his finger out to marvel at the slick wetness that coated it. Your body tingled as he slid his finger inside you again. This time, he was teasing your slit with a second digit. Jaehyun had no delicacy, though, and he all but shoved in a second finger, causing you to cry out.

He didn’t even care. You opened your mouth to call him a bastard, but all that came out was a pitched moan that seemed to float up to the stars.

“I fucking hated,” he rasped as he pumped two fingers inside of you, “how you treated Jaemin like he was the only one in the world.”

“I don’t… like Jaemin,” you got out, each labored breath of yours fighting off another moan. “I’ve stopped liking Jaemin after high school.”

Jaehyun’s free hand went to your chest, cupping one of your breasts as he rubbed circles around your nipple. You bit down on the inside of your cheek, unable to contain yourself as the fingers on your clit got almost frantic in their place, and the fingers inside of you were pushing against your walls. You felt an unfamiliar cold fire that felt so fucking good, lighting you up and threatening to spill over. Your muscles clenched and spasmed around Jaehyun, and you weren’t even in the hot tub but you felt like you were sinking.

A high-pitched moan left your lips, leaving you hot with embarrassment because you didn’t know you could make a sound like that. You fell from your peak, relaxing in Jaehyun’s hold; it felt like you were floating amongst the clouds in an almost euphoric way.

“I don’t like Jaemin,” you breathed out, still winded from your orgasm, “you fucking idiot.”

“I know.” Jaehyun pulled his fingers out of you, eyes trained on you as he licked them slowly. The look on his face was more gentle now. With his free hand, he brushed loose strands of your hair out of your face. “You like me now.”

“No, I’ve loved you for a while now.” You didn’t know what possessed you to say what was on your mind, but it surprised you more than it surprised Jaehyun. “I didn’t realize it then but… I think I did.”

Love? Love?

You thought you knew what love was. Something that you felt in your bones, that burst within you instantly. Simple glances, thoughts, and daydreams—something gentle and fluffy, but also emotionally shattering. You thought it was tender smiles, kind words, and little gestures.

But maybe that was the kind of love that led to puffy eyes, tear-stained cheeks, and hoarse voices. The kind of love that was left fruitless with an empty gap in your chest.

Maybe this was different.

It was instinctive, the way you fell for him. Like an effortless intake of breath, you were in love before you even knew it. You always thought love was a monster. Ravaging, scraping, foul monsters with jaws so immeasurably large that they would have swallowed you whole. But maybe it wasn’t the tragedy you made it out to be.

With Jaehyun it was fierce and maddening and made you want to rip your hair out. It was a violent hurricane that you tried to brave your way through. But you were blind. You were already at the eye; you had always been at the center without realizing it. And, despite all the pointless arguments and name-calling, it was the most beautiful thing you had experienced.

Yeah, you liked him. You liked how you were around him, despite how much you complained about it to Mark. Part of you refused to admit it, but sometimes the bickering was fun. You realized that you never let go of Jaehyun before because you couldn’t. You simply didn’t want to be without him because Jeong Jaehyun drove a deeper passion within you.

Your rose-tinted loving moment was ruined as soon as a shit-eating grin spread across Jaehyun’s face.

“You love me.”

“I’ll kill you.”

“You love me,” Jaehyun echoed as if he was internalizing the information. “You love me.”

“I take it back,” you said flatly. “I hate you, I hate you, and I’ve always hated you.”

Jaehyun ignored your words, his cockiness morphing into adoration. “You actually love me back.” He cupped your face in his hands, eyes turning into little crescents as he smiled. “Even though I called you a cougar for liking a guy a year younger than you?”

“Yes.”

“Even though I made fun of you wearing a push-up bra in front of him?”

You clenched your jaw. “Yes.”

“Even though I asked Johnny about you and he told me that I still live in your mind, rent-free?”

“What? Johnny said that?” you exclaimed, eyes wide. You grimaced. Johnny would be dealt with later. You placed your hands on Jaehyun’s shoulders and made direct eye contact. “Look, Jaehyun—as much as it hurts me to say this and I’d rather tear out my vocal cords—I like you. I like you so much that I don’t care about the petty shit you pulled when I liked Jaemin because frankly, I don’t care about Jaemin anymore.”

“That was the hottest thing I’ve ever heard.”

You wanted to slap him.

“Are you just constantly horny?” you snapped. “I’m pouring out my feelings to you here!”

“I’m better at expressing my love through actions, not words,” Jaehyun explained. “Can I show you?”

“Is this another ploy to get in my pants?”

“No, I’m asking you out on a date,” he said. “Sneak out with me tonight. I want to explore the city with you.”

The offer was tempting. In fact, you found no reason to be opposed to the idea. After all, you were always down for an adventure in the city. Jaehyun being with you didn’t sound too bad either, especially when Seoul was so lively at night. Part of you wanted it purely to catch up on all the time you missed when you stopped being friends.

“Fine,” you agreed. “An hour after curfew.”

“Great.” Jaehyun flashed a grin that slowly curled into a smirk. “Now let me get in your pants.”

“Are you kidding?”

“Y/N, you see,” Jaehyun started, “I don’t hate you, but you’ve really pissed me off these past two years. We have all of this pent-up rage, so it’s only fair that we let it out on each other.” His grip on your hips tightened.

You loathed yourself for wanting him, and for putting aside the fear of being walked in on for him. You internally cringed at the thought of Mark accidentally bearing witness, and you weren’t sure you were willing to explain the situation to him just yet.

It was the price you paid for carnality, you supposed.

You sighed in a forced way so that you sounded reluctant and bored. Unfortunately, your plan backfired and you ended up feeling bad when a concerned look crossed Jaehyun’s face.

“If you’re worried about getting caught, I’ll just cover you,” Jaehyun mumbled, the softness of his voice almost putting you at ease.

You rolled your eyes. “How kind of you.” You paused and looked up at him. “Are we really going to have sex for the first time here?”

Jaehyun looked around him. “Well, I guess we could go to the hotel room if—”

“Nope!” you interrupted, wrapping your arms around his neck and drawing him closer to you. “Let’s do it here. I love the pool, love having sex at the pool.”

He rose a brow at you, hands making their way down your body. Suddenly, your realization of being completely exposed had heightened, and you pressed your thighs together. Maybe it was because your vulnerability showed on your face, clear as day, but Jaehyun smirked, further flustering you by tugging down his swim shorts to reveal his hardened cock.

It was heavy and warm against your thigh, but what you were fixed on was the v-line on his pelvis. You traced along the bone, making him shiver under your touch. You were shocked when he grabbed your wrist tightly, holding it away from him.

“You’re playing a dangerous game here,” he growled. Jaehyun leaned closer and nipped at the shell of your earlobe, chuckling as you tensed up under his hold. His hot breath made you squirm under his grip.

Have you ever noticed how insanely attractive he was? Yes, of course. You weren’t an idiot.

Have you ever appreciated his beauty until now? Probably not.

“Just fuck me already, Jae,” you grumbled out as he pushed you down onto the deck of the pool.

In seconds, Jaehyun grabbed your hips and pulled them to his waist. Without any preamble, he rammed himself inside of you. The motion caught you by surprise and you cried out, half out of pleasure and half out of pain. You were definitely wet from being fingered earlier, but two fingers were nothing compared to Jaehyun’s cock.

Seeing his cock disappear in you was enough to make you whimper. Your walls clenched around him, pulsating at the foreign feeling. You were tempted to slap him upside the head for going so fast, but all you could do was tug at his hair and wrap your legs around him.

“You bastard, I’ll fucking—oh.”

Jaehyun laughed cruelly at your reaction, partly to cover up the groan caught in his throat and partly because your attempts at being mad at him were downright pathetic. When you had adjusted to his size, Jaehyun grunted and pounded in you, hitting spots that made your limbs feel like jelly. As if that wasn’t enough, Jaehyun found your clit with the hand that didn’t have a bruising grip on your waist and pressed harshly against it.

“You’re so fucking tight,” Jaehyun gritted out.

“T-then be gentle,” you bargained, drowning in a molten sea.

Jaehyun narrowed his eyes at you. “Have you ever fucking heard of gentle hate sex?” he asked, validating his point with a particularly hard thrust.

Your fingernails dug into his back, leaving hot-white trails down his skin. You were certain you had drawn blood, but knowing Jaehyun, he’d probably feel proud if he saw it. He brought his lips to your neck as you writhed under him, biting around until he found your sweet spot. This wasn’t fair; he was pleasuring you in every way possible and all you could do was cry out as he pummeled in you.

You closed your eyes, sparks flying behind your eyelids as you felt your release rushing to you.

Then, he slowed his strokes down considerably.

“Look at me,” he ordered in a rasp. Your eyes fluttered open, remaining half-lidded as you felt like you were going to spill over. “Look at me when I’m fucking you.”

He slapped his hips against yours again, the sound of skin against skin making you shudder. Jaehyun filled you up to the brim and you were oh-so-close to letting go and falling off the edge. The hardscape was cool but you were on fire, bliss overtaking all of your senses. Your toes curled as you held onto his damp skin for dear life, not sure if it was because he was in the pool or he was sweating due to the heat you both emanated.

“R-right there!”  you wailed. “Fuck, right there!”

Jaehyun angled his hips slightly to pound into you, causing you to see metaphysical stars. It was so hard to keep eye contact with him when your eyes just wanted to roll back. Jaehyun let out a groan by your ear, low and guttural. You didn’t even notice how tight the grip he has on you until he releases your hip for you to see the print he left.

You could tell he was close, but he wanted to hold on for you. Both of your breaths were labored as you stared into each other’s eyes, your body moving up and down against the hardscape as Jaehyun railed you. You tightened your grip on him, a pathetic moan falling from your lips as you were falling over the edge.

Jaehyun understood and fucked you through your orgasm, making sure you made the most of it. Warmth blossomed under your skin as you cried out in pure bliss, your vision blurring and refocusing as it flickered from normal to pure white as you rode out your high. You ground yourself back to reality after nearly sobbing out his name, the pleasure overwhelming you. Jaehyun’s eyes went hazy as he fell apart right after you did, and soon, you felt something warm spill inside of you.

Jaehyun finished inside of you and stuttered out a curse as he pulled out of you. He rolled over and laid on the deck of the pool next to you, the both of you catching your breath like you had just run a marathon.

“I have a cute date idea for tonight,” Jaehyun said after a long pause.

You looked over, watching his chest rise and fall. “Yeah?”

“We go to the store and buy Plan B.”

You couldn’t even disagree.

“Sounds good.”

Jaehyun dragged himself off the floor, muttering something along the lines of “shit, that felt good” to himself as he reached for his swim trunks to pull back on. You grabbed a towel to dry yourself off, but pins and needles shot up your legs when you tried to walk. Jaehyun noticed immediately and a smug look settled on his face again, not the least bit remorseful.

You scowled as you slipped your clothes back on. “Shut up,” you jeered. “You’re so shameless for someone who can’t pull out.”

“Oops,” he replied flatly.

“I hate you, Jaehyun.”

Jaehyun ran a hand through his damp hair, letting out a laugh as he shook his head. He picked up another towel from the chairs by the poolside and wrapped it around so it covered your head. You bit your lip as you watched him attempt to dry your hair. It was times like these when he seemed so gentle and delicate, unlike his usual irritating attitude.

“You liked it, though,” Jaehyun said. “Right?”

You faltered, looking down at your feet as he continued to dry your hair. “Yeah.”

Jaehyun smiled softly and leaned in swiftly to peck your lips, but your moment was interrupted by the sound of a door opening.

Mark was gaping at you two, eyelids fluttering rapidly as if he was trying to blink away what he had just seen.

“Y/N? Jeong Jaehyun?” Mark questioned, his voice an octave higher than usual. Realization crossed his face through a series of facial expressions that morphed far too quickly for you to process. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“Mark!” You and Jaehyun pulled away from each other quickly.

Mark paused to think his words through. “Did I almost walk in on a murder?”

You let out a frustrated groan. “Jesus, Mark, if you’re not going to read the room, at least SparkNote it.”

“Wait, so you were kissing?”

“No, we didn’t kiss,” Jaehyun assured, and you felt tricked for feeling relieved for a split second. “We actually had sex.”

Jaehyun’s words ended with a splutter as you elbowed him in the gut. Mark looked between the two of you, boggled. You nudged Jaehyun again with your foot, signaling for him to leave so you could handle Mark. Thankfully, he took your cue this time and grabbed his towel, mockingly saluting the both of you. You were stupid to think you were safe, though, because Jaehyun had to get another last word in before he walked off.

“See you tonight, Y/N.”

There was a long, awkward pause while Jaehyun opened the door and left the building. You and Mark were staring at each other but neither of you knew what to say or how to approach the subject.

“I just… I just came here to find you, and Jaemin told me you went to the pool. You…” Mark started. He looked absolutely horrified, like a corpse had fallen to his feet—no, rather, he looked like a corpse himself, like someone attempted to do taxidermy on him but did a shit job. “Bitch.”

“Let me explain.”

“Bitch,” Mark enunciated, “you just fucked the hottest guy here, oh my god.”

Definitely not the reaction you were expecting, but you supposed it wasn’t a bad one. You were glad he wasn’t getting into the whole ‘why didn’t you tell me? I’m your best friend’ rant, but this was equally as overwhelming.

Mark continued, “Wait—is that why you were late this morning? Oh my god, this has been a thing. You’ve been hooking up with him in secret, haven’t you?”

“No? Well, yes, but it hasn’t been much until, um”—you gestured awkwardly around you—“you know.”

“So you were the one who was with Jaehyun last night?”

“Yes.”

“And this morning before I picked you up?”

“Yes.”

“Are you two dating now?”

“Honestly, I really don't know,” you admitted. “Mark, please don’t tell anyone about this. Especially not those little shits, Chenle and Johnny.”

Mark gulped. “About that…”

Before you could question him, there was a chorus of loud clapping echoing from the locker rooms which was then followed by a few cheers. You grimaced as the two boys you didn’t want to see walked out: Chenle and Johnny, Tweedledee and Tweedledum themselves. They both wore cocky smirks as they shook their head at you, which made Mark a touch more nervous than he was before.

“Have anything to say for yourself, Y/N?” Chenle teased.

“Go to hell.” You scoffed and turned to Mark, narrowing in on him. “Why’d you bring them along? What are you? The three stooges?”

“We were looking for you so we could invite you to the movie night we were having in Jungwoo’s room!” Mark defended. “I swear, if I knew about you and Jaehyun, I never would’ve brought them along.”

You sighed deeply as Chenle snickered to himself. “Well, I guess Y/N can’t come to movie night since she has a date with—hold on, what did you call him again? The devil?”

“Okay, I get it!” You threw your hands up in defeat, eyes closed to show you were reflecting upon your actions. “I’m a dirty hypocrite and I’ve committed a crime worse than death.” You opened your eyes again. “I’m sorry.” To your surprise, Chenle and Johnny had their right hand up. You stared at it, puzzled. “Do you want me to make an oath or something?”

“In modern society,” Johnny explained, “we call it a high-five.”

It took you a few seconds to process their words before you tentatively gave them each a firm high-five. You blinked up at them before ease washed over you. This was how it always was, anyways. At the end of the day, no matter how much you guys bickered or teased each other, you always made up. That's what friends were for, after all.

“There we go,” you said, oddly satisfied. “For now, I’ll let go of the fact that Johnny snitched on me to Jaehyun behind my back.”

“How dare you!” Johnny gasped. “Chenle was with me.”

Chenle raised his hand to confirm the statement. “Indeed. Please give credit where it's due.”

“Alright, fuck you both.”

What the fuck even was a date?

This was foreign territory to you, but even so, you decided you wouldn’t rely on your annoying friends. First of all, you were sure they wouldn’t really be of any help and just endlessly tease you about it. Secondly, they were simply going to gradually grow more stressed (Mark), lecherous (Johnny), and aggravating (Chenle). Thus, you decided to slay the monster of first dates yourself.

Your first hurdle was looking cute. You packed absolutely nothing that wasn’t for the training camp, so you had already failed. Jaehyun was going to have to deal with you in your gym shorts and a school t-shirt.

Your second hurdle was sneaking away from Eunha, your roommate. That was a piece of cake considering how she didn’t exactly care. When you headed out of the room, wallet and phone in hand, she wished you a kind farewell, which you returned.

Your third hurdle was sneaking out of the hotel. You weren’t quite sure how you and Jaehyun made it outside without being spotted, but you were certain he must have tipped off some of the staff because there was no way the both of you could have walked straight out of the lobby without being reported. When you asked him, though, he said it was probably because you looked like the cleaning lady.

Needless to say, Jaehyun was on thin ice.

You loved Seoul, loved the dirty of it. Even at night, the city was alive and full of vigor, full of young people like you who were chasing cheap thrills. Jaehyun was a dream under the glowing lights, and you almost couldn’t believe that the prince-like boy was head-over-heels for you.

He took you to a wide alley with a night market, full of life and energy. Jaehyun was walking through the crowd and you were following right behind him, like some awkward fish swimming after a cuter, more popular fish upstream. There were several times where you almost lost yourself in the crowd, and Jaehyun noticed this. He reached behind him, still shouldering his way through the crowd, and grabbed your hand. The smell of spicy rice cakes, the numerous pop-up bars lining the alley, and Jeong Jaehyun gripping your hand—it all made a pretty eventful first date.

Jaehyun didn’t kiss you. Not once. He didn’t try to touch you anywhere that would have tempted you both into doing something you definitely shouldn’t do in public. There were times where Jaehyun turned pink or looked away from you shyly, and you indulged in it because this was a side of him you didn’t see often.

Jaehyun stopped at a convenience store before you both decided to head back. You waited outside for him, kicking stones as you thought of him. He was undeniably perfect, which you somewhat despised because you had spent the last two years hating his guts and this was an abrupt change. You were worried if he was buying you something; he had already bought you lamb skewers and rice cakes at the night market. You didn’t want to be the girlfriend to empty his wallet.

Wait—

Were you his girlfriend?

“Y/N,” he called when he walked out of the store, holding something behind his back with a sneaky grin. “Close your eyes.”

You bit back a smile and closed your eyes, holding your hands out. He placed the object in your hands and it felt light, so you were sure it shouldn’t have cost much. Although, your stomach was pitted with guilt at the thought of him spending money on you. You opened your eyes when he directed you to.

Plan B One-Step.

You no longer felt bad for him.

“Very romantic,” you observed, putting the packet in your wallet, “but thank you.”

You were seething. Your face grew unconditionally hot and you had to look down at your feet. It seriously pissed you off that your feelings were so clear right now because Jaehyun had bought you fucking Plan B.

Jaehyun seemed to notice right away and tilted your chin up with two fingers, chuckling. “Is something wrong?”

Your face screwed up when you decided on what you were going to ask him. “Are we dating?” you blurted out.

Jaehyun held your face gently like it would shatter if he applied any more pressure. His fingertips grazed the hinge of your jaw while his thumbs rested on your cheekbones. You were panicking when he leaned in, but it wasn’t what you expected. Jaehyun pressed a chaste kiss to your nose, grinning at your reaction. You reached up to trace his dimple with your finger.

“Do you want to be my girlfriend, Y/N?”

“Yeah,” you admitted, flustered beyond imagination, but you had already gotten this far so you continued, “do you?”

“Do I want to be your girlfriend?”

You wanted to hit yourself. “Fuck. I mean, do you wanna date me?”

“Of course,” he said with a laugh. “I’ve been waiting for this for so long.”

He drew you into his warm embrace and you buried your face into his chest, wondering how you hated this man for so long. Of course, when those cocky smirks and impish looks came back, you were sure you’d remember again. But right now, in his arms, you just knew that you wanted to be with him. You looked up at him, arms slung around him, and got on your toes to press a gentle kiss to his lips.

You were positive you hadn’t ever seen Jeong Jaehyun blush before tonight, but it was a sight you were sure you could never get sick of.

And you never would.

[bard-owl]

I think everyone has heard the term “supply chain crisis” at this point. Manufacturing centers were first hit in late 2019 and most to the global lockdowns were in effect by the second quarter of 2020. It is now third quarter of 2022 and we are into year three of this “interruption”, it is time to discard this outdated and frankly wrong from the start system of manufacturing and distribution. Americans in particular were already caught in a state of duality in which much of the public laments that nothing is made domestically, while also discarding anything made by local shops as “overpriced hipster gear”. I have previously stated that for true domestic production to return to America there would need to be enough demand for the products to cause more competition and drive the prices down as domestic supply increased.

That is the current situation as I see it, so now what do we do about it? In the last decade one particular technology has taken off, once a novelty and hyper expensive tool for industrial prototyping, 3D printers have become affordable, commonplace, and surprisingly capable. While still used by many to produce novelty items and in industrial roles, this technology is akin to the movable-type printing press of the mid-1400s in that it represents an upset to the established order if utilized effectively. Now before this is dismissed I am aware of the limitations of what can be printed at home. More exotic and expensive versions are used to produce high strength items. But this is where it gets interesting, because it isn’t about everyone having a printer. It’s about everyone using home printers to get a head start on skills, hobbies, and trades they couldn’t afford to break into otherwise and then using those skills to work with each other.

Lathes or milling machines are both often said to be machines that make machines. 3D printers should be included in that list. Now there is nothing made on this machine that can’t be done with other tools and methods, but few that allow the low cost of entry and ease within a home settings. Open source software and thousands of free files allow anyone and everyone to make tons of tools, dies, forms, jigs, stencils, etc. as needed. I've seen sheet steel stamped on dies made from common PLA on a cheap press from Harbor Freight, or even just stuck with hammers. My cousin makes brackets for electronics with an entry level printer while his wife makes custom cookie cutters for various events on the same machine.

And that’s the thing about this, the broad range of applications combined with people’s varied and personal interests. With the addition of a chop saw and drill for extruded or tubular metal you can make strong supports for printed pieces to form a much larger machine. If you can make a drill press or milling machine, you can make a lathe, manually operated or CNC. I’ve seen people make large format CNC router tables that can quickly and efficiently cut and trim an entire sheet of plywood for assembly. If within a community most people have the ability to make their own simple plastic or resin tools and utensils, while someone has a garage metal shop, another a carpentry shop, a couple down the road a leather shop and sewing studio, someone else a pottery studio, even a small foundry for smelting and casting, you would have a far more self-reliant community than anything seen in a hundred years in much of the western world.

I was originally going to link a bunch of videos showing the possibilities and I still might add some later on about specific applications. But I really want everyone to give this some serious thought on their own. Is there a hobby or trade you are interested in but you’re concerned about the investment? Look at what the essential components are. Can the more complex ones be found used? The cheaper ones made at home? We, as in all of us, are in a massive web of unsustainable distribution and centralized manufacturing. I don’t believe the key is to change where that center is, but to replace it with local and regional decentralized networks of skilled individuals whom own their own tools and shops.

[jangmi-latte]

oho you bet what this is going to be.

let's just admire the fact that each dorm in night raven college really treats each other like family. there's this importance of being together as one. this is our dorm, we are the residents, and no one is left behind. okay sure, they may be competitive when it comes to other dorms but that's just part of school life. it's not just a "i'm your classmate, we just do stuff for educational purposes." they really created their mutuality in being in the same dorm as something more special.

and in no doubt, the dorm leaders will determine how their pack will be close.

even if they aren't in the same dorm, they really make the effort to be close. in chapter five, vil made the team sleep under one roof since he admired the light music club's closeness. he wanted his teammates to be together, work together, shine together, not just him. he would even go out as to make sure EACH student in his dorm is doing their very best and would ensure that they are fine with what they're doing.

malleus would go all out just to protect those that he loves. may it be an object, a home, or a person, he will do anything just to ensure that no one and nothing gets harmed. he takes pride in the fact that those he are close or acquainted with knows that malleus is someone they can trust. he’s even willing to teach someone what he knows only if they know how to approach him. the four members of this dorm already holds a strong bond, what else can we see during diasomnia’s arc?

leona, despite how he acts, is shown to even CARE for his dorm mates. he appeared in jack and ruggie's birthday cards which shows that he even made effort to make their day special. to even move around and order his dorm mates to do something. to even work for the sake of his dorm in chapter five and assist his classmates. isn't that good character development? savanaclaw may be rough, but hey, they are bonding over sports and competitions that they can strengthen not only themselves but also their bond, yes?

don't get me started with riddle, he's the epitome of a dorm leader. we all know for the fact that he never let his students fail no matter the year level. he WANTS his dorm mates to take pride in the fact that they worked hard and that riddle rosehearts was willing to help them. he would share his knowledge and even celebrate (even if it's part of the rules) with his friends in unbirthday parties. he treats everyone equally and he's respected for that. they’re all close to the point they can even tease with their seniors and juniors. a little form of brotherhood.

look past the fact that azul can be manipulative. give light to his intelligence and want of a good relationship with his peers. he is someone who struggles with communicating with others properly since he was young and uses his power as a dorm leader as a form of a gateway for him to communicate. but his intention was to simply make his dorm do well. he knows that octavinelle aces in academics but he also knows that his students can do better NOT JUST in academics. he will learn from others and apply it to his dorm in a way he knows they can understand while still having the upper hand. look at the effort he’s placing.

for sure idia would want to create some mutualship within his dorm mates. as far as the our knowledge goes with idia’s story, there’s this want to friends with others. he’s the type to even scold someone just with their lack of knowledge (dreams and wishes; he scolded deuce). he will make effort when needed, for the sake of not only him but with others. just with ortho we can already see how dedicated he is to keep something/someone precious to him to remain alive or the fact his relationship with azul is indeed something he would want to have with others. now imagine him as a dorm leader who would really seek help from them for all of them to ace together.

lastly, kalim. do i need to say more than the fact his dorm mates would look up to him or run to him for help? this sunshine made a haven that is safe for his dorm members. including jamil, they literally made a bond that seems like they’re brothers. they eat together, they party together, the study together. okay, they’re stressed but with a dorm leader like kalim, i suppose you’re going to enjoy study sessions with a guy like him.

i honestly want to say more yet this seems pretty obvious enough already. no matter how villanous these characters they be, don’t you see you and your friends like how they are with their peers? it’s admirable to see that a school this big holds something dear to it that not even royal sword academy could pertain. now go back to whatever the hell you’re doing and stop staring at the seven pictures i put up there.

jeez...

[magnoliabloomfield]

Possession

Chapter 1: The Princess Arrives

Structure. Maybe it was because he was a builder that he liked that word so much. He built structures, he knew how make four walls and a roof that wouldn’t come down on anyone’s head, he knew how to build a seat that wouldn’t give out under anyone’s weight, and he knew how to maintain it all and make it last. The small world he lived in demanded order and structure for everyone’s well being. Without it they would be sleeping on the ground, starving, and losing their minds. And if one cog in that machine didn’t turn as it should it affected every other part. Yes, the Glade had to be a well oiled machine functioning everyday as it should.

Thankfully there were no outside forces that tried to thwart that. The doors opened in the morning, they closed at night, and the box came every month. You could tell time by the Glade and its unchanging rhythm. After three years Gally knew it like his own heartbeat. He knew the answer to every problem that could crop up in his bit of the machine. He was good enough to be the Keeper of the builders at least. Maybe that’s why it hit him hardest of all.

Box day came like all the others before it, predictable and precise. But then the heart of the Glade skipped a beat and Gally’s own did too for the first time. Because in that box was something they would never recover from.

A girl.

That was the worst thing that ever could have come up in the box. The boys would lose their minds, they’d become distracted and competitive and the machine of the Glade would come to a rusty, grinding halt. Gally could see the writing on the walls: this was going to be bad.

She wasn’t awake, she was laying there almost peacefully and all the gladers remained eerily and unexpectedly silent, like they were waiting for someone to jump out and say it was all a joke and take her away, or if they stared at her long enough the mirage would fizzle out and it actually would be a boy like it was supposed to be. Alby and Newt carefully lowered themselves into the box so they wouldn’t startle her and Newt hesitantly checked for a pulse, letting out a breath as he nodded to say she was alive. Gally ran a hand over his mouth, feeling anxious but not wanting to look it.

She woke up slowly from a sleep she didn’t know she’d fallen into. Her eyes stared straight up at the sky before they started to focus on things like Newt and Alby and a whole crowd of boys looming above her. Gally waited for the scream, for the crying, shuck, even boys had screamed and cried when they came up. But she didn’t. She tried to sit up and winced, placing her palm over her eye and rubbing like her head hurt.

“You’re okay,” Newt said to her from where he knelt beside her.

“Do you remem-“ Alby started to ask her but was silenced by her holding up one finger.

“Just… give me a minute,” she requested as she pressed both palms to her forehead and brought her knees up toward her chest.

“Sure, no rush,” Newt assured her softly, earning a small glare from Alby who was more impatient and less coddling than him.

“Enough gawking, if you’re not a keeper get back to work,” Alby ordered the boys standing around whispering to each other and stifling giggles behind their fists.

Gally narrowed his eyes and shook his head at them. Weak willed hormonal morons. They were all shucking doomed. Slowly the boys began to shuffle off, the ones catching Gally’s glare wiping the smirks from their faces and moving even faster. He sighed to himself knowing their work was going to suck if it got done at all.

Gally stood around with the other keepers, his arms crossed as they all waited for whatever would happen next. The girls hands came away from her face and she held one out in front of her, seeing the tremors running through it and making it shake before she clutched her knees and took a deep breath.

“Okay… now, what?” she sighed, looking up at Newt and Alby, her eyes squinting in the sun.

She was cute, of course she was cute, she couldn’t ruin their lives if she wasn’t cute, Gally thought to himself as he looked away from her.

“Do you remember anything?” Newt asked her nicely.

She zoned out on the middle ground ahead of her and let a breath out through her lips. “Water is wet, the sky is blue, that kind of stuff. I can’t even remember my name,” She said, her shaking hands pushing her hair back from her face as that realization set in.

“It’s ok, it’s alright,” Newt did a good job of keeping her calm. “That happens to everyone who comes here. Sad to say that’s normal. Most of us eventually remember our names at some point though, so don’t worry too much.”

“So if I were to ask you where we are and why we’re here you wouldn’t even know?” she asked as she turned to him, causing him to rock back on his heels a little bit.

“Unfortunately that is correct,” Alby spoke up, earning her attention. “But we will tell you everything we do know, starting with the fact that… you’re the very first girl to come here in three years. So we kind of have a lot to talk about.”

She squinted up at him for a beat before asking “Am I dreaming?”

“I bet you would think being the only girl in a crowd of boys would be a dream,” one of the other keepers said, drawing those eyes of hers to him.

“Nightmares are dreams too,” she pointed out.

Gally felt the corner of his mouth twitch like he might have chuckled at that.

She got out of the box on her own, climbing onto a drum of drinking water and then the rest of the way. Alby and Newt took a hand to get out and Gally figured the girl wasn’t keen on being touched just yet if ever. They let her have her way. They set off for the gathering room, the girl carefully encircled by the keepers to either keep her from running off or keep anyone from running up to her. Alby yelled for someone to go unload the rest of the box and the girl flinched.

She wasn’t as short as Gally expected a girl would be, but of course she was a lot shorter than him. At least not all the boys were that much taller than her which might tip things in her favor slightly if anything were to happen. Gally would have to pay attention to how intimidating he was now. It was never an issue with the boys, it was quite essential in fact. If they weren’t a little scared of someone then nothing would get done. But just looking at her he could tell that he absolutely could overpower her without breaking a sweat, and she would most definitely put that together too, so he had to make sure he never gave her a reason to think he actually would.

They started the gathering with the basic Greenie intro to the Glade. This was usually handled by one person who took the greenie on a tour around the Glade, but this was not the usual greenie. Gally was actually glad she was out of sight of the boys who were supposed to be working.

He rested his elbows on his knees to keep his leg from jumping nervously as Alby and Newt explained the basics and each keeper explained what they did. Gally kept his eyes down, unintentionally staring through the spot where her feet were. As the builder he was running through all the work he would have to do, he’d have to build a safe place for her to sleep and wash up, how exactly was he going to do that, he’d never had to do that before. When Alby called his name he was almost startled. He looked around and found everyone looking back at him, including the girl. It must be his turn.

“I’m in charge of the builders. Pretty self explanatory,” he stated, holding her gaze for as long as he could manage. It wasn’t long.

“You’ve been surprisingly quiet, Gally,” Newt pointed out, looking at him curiously.

Gally didn’t like the attention. “Well, I am the one who has to do the most about this situation,” he pointed out. “Yes, she needs her introduction to this place, but while you’re telling it to her I’m sitting here thinking of how I’m going to build a safe place for her to sleep and to wash up. I’m thinking up the plans now so I can get to work first light and just maybe she’ll have a place to sleep by sundown tomorrow. So what are we going to do for her tonight?”

Alby pinched the bridge of his nose as his face scrunched up, realizing that they had lot of work ahead of them. When Gally had finished his rant he thought the girl was sitting a little smaller in her seat.

“The gardening shed,” Newt blurted. “Remember the time the rakes fell over? We couldn’t get in, you had to take the door off. There’s no windows either. It’s not the best accommodations but on short notice at least it’s a place where no one can get in.”

Gally had started nodding, remembering exactly what Newt was talking about and it was a good idea, at least for one night. “We’ll move out some of the tools and put a cot in,” Gally thought aloud.

“She can take mine,” Minho volunteered.

“Are you sure? Aren’t you running tomorrow?” Newt pointed out.

“Yeah,” Minho shrugged. “Maybe one of the other runners will let me use his cot, but I can’t volunteer anyone else’s but my own. Besides, it’ll be one night, two tops with Gally working on it.”

Gally was surprised to hear him say something vaguely nice about him. But most of all he was planning, drawing blueprints in his mind of the safest, most anti-boy structure he could possibly make. He was going to put the Princess in the tower.

@poulterholland @anniemylennox @crazysheeplyca @thesuitkovian @Poulterjonas @gladerscake @carp3d1em @neilox

If any of you don't actually want to be tagged in the future just let me know, I was just trying to remember the ones who were really interested in the last short Gally series I wrote.

Possession Masterlist

[lasquadrasfuckhouse]

Hi!

What do you think about la squadra(separately) with s/o that is very childlish? Like, not a little child ofc, they can get serius when it has to be, and they talk ,like, normally (without "owo uwu" shit). They just loooove some cute things, animals etc. They also love watching cartoons, play games, and many other things likke that.

If you don't want to write it that's okay :)))

Bye bye <3

awwww i love it!!!!!

la squadra with a cutesy and playful partner 😚

risotto ✂️

he loves cute things too, he gets it. he adores how excitable and sweet you are and you absolutely count as cute things that he loves

the two of you will fawn over the neighbourhood cats together and every time you run into his office with fun shaped snacks to share cause u both love them (like gummies or cookies or chocolates) his heart goes ❤️❤️❤️❤️💕❤️💕❤️❤️💕💕💕

he appreciates that you're not afraid to get serious when the time calls for it too but seeing you without your normal attitude is so jarring and sad for him, he'll work twice as hard to fix what's wrong to see you smiling again. you're so full of love and wonder despite everything and that's so precious to him, he's protective (he knows and respects that you can handle yourself he just loves u) and would never want you to change for the wrong reasons ya kno

you absolutely balance each other out very well and you're fucking adorable to see because he's so stoic and scary and then ur this energetic sweetheart

he's not really one for cartoons or video games but he'll indulge ur interests!!! if he has the time to watch a cute movie with u (like disney) he will pay attention and give u his honest opinion

prosciutto 🚬

OPPOSITES ATTRACT HUH

honestly when you first joined the team he was an ass about it, thought it was unbecoming of an assassin to behave so childishly (the others already give him a headache) but the fact that you stood your ground actually really impressed him. you're still an adult and you're not unreasonable, you know when to take things seriously, you just have your eccentricities like everyone else in this circus and he came to appreciate your point of view and your seemingly boundless enthusiasm for nice things in life. he later expressed as much to you during his apology for being an ass.

you temper each other. he'll be your grounding force and you'll help him loosen up

he does like how ur sweet and open with your affection. if he grumbles about sharing the bed with plushies that's code for 'cuddle me instead'

he also loves bringing you to cafés that do those fancy or fun shapes in the lattes cause he loves to see your eyes light up and fawn over how 'its almost too pretty to drink!!!' it's really quite adorable how excitable u are and prosciutto is not immune to it

pesci 🎣

he very very much loves and appreciates it, you're a big comfort to him. the instant you chugged milk with him and gave him a silly grin with a milk moustache, he was in love

your sweetness and energy picks him up and when you've dropped your attitude he will take on the WHOLE WORLD to hear you laugh again. he's very protective and he's the first to jump to your defense if the others tease you or otherwise give you a hard time

he could listen to you gush for hours. he will absolutely sit and watch cartoons with u. he's not the greatest at video games but he'll try his best for u

because of his name you'll often lovingly make that cute fishy face at him with the kissy lips and ur eyes crossed and his heart explodes every time

he has somewhat of a sweet tooth, he likes things that have a light sweetness to them rather than anything super sugary. you'll share desserts and it's very cute

formaggio 🧀

he LOVES IT. he's just as fun-loving, there's never a dull moment with you two whether you're playing a dumb game you made up out of boredom, you're dancing and he's twirling you around, or ur in a pillow/tickle fight and play wrestling. you tend to get each other into trouble but you both snicker about it. two peas in a pod.

cats like you more than they like him but he can often get his pets in if the kitty is curled in ur lap and u both get giddy about it

you definitely game together. he's not as into the cartoons but he'll still watch em with you, he thinks they're cute and you're cute, but he may fall asleep during movies

he's a very grounding support when things require you to be serious, you work together hand in hand to solve the issue so u can get back to laughing

and he will do anything to hear u giggle, doesn't matter if he makes a damn fool of himself, he doesn't care. as far as he's concerned your laugh is the best sound in the world

illuso ✨

oh, he will tease you about it. probably in a way that's kind of mean when you first join, but you aren't bothered by him or concerned with his opinion. if you point out that he's the childish one for trying to get a rise out of you when you're just minding your own business, that has EVERYONE appreciating you because it's unbearably fun to see illuso taken down a notch. that has him huffing and retreating for a bit and having a think. when he comes back, he's less of an ass. as you grow closer, he apologizes.

now the only way he teases is gentle and loving and fond, because you really are quite adorable and he wouldn't have it any other way. it honestly kind of freaks him out when you get serious but he doesn't show it, he'll just place a gentle hand on your arm or your waist and work with you to resolve the issue. he's relieved when you smile again

he warms up to your plushies because they're nice cozy additions to his piles of pillows for lounging around on and they make u happy

he may keep up his aloof air when he picks up a controller with u or watches over ur shoulder like he has nothing better to do but he gets REALLY into it and competitive, or intensely supportive and backseat gaming if ur going solo

he honestly loves how sweet u are because that sort of thing doesn't really come easy to him

melone 🍈

he thinks ur absolutely adorable and makes sure u know it. he's playful too in a more relaxed sort of way so he mellows you out while still having fun

he loves to hear you gush and wants to get involved in ur passions. he's pretty good at gaming but he'll get more into admiring/analyzing the design aspect of it and same w/ cartoons, he's concerned for all the babies out there because they deserve good stories that make them think and benefit their growth and he will think out loud about how a show/movie fares in that regard after you've watched it together

he can talk a lot about animals with u too!!!! every time u grin or coo at a cute creature or Stay Very Still so a butterfly will land on u and giggle cause it tickles, his heart is doing backflips and he can't believe someone as wonderful as u exists and loves him as much as he loves you

ADULT COLOURING BOOKS!!!!! he absolutely loves to fill in the pages with u and add onto the designs outside the lines in all sorts of colours

he admires that ur not afraid to get serious when it's called for but still so sweet, he's so drawn to you and you make everyone's day better and just light up the room

ghiaccio ❄️

he also loves cute things. that includes u. but it will take him a while to admit out loud how adorable you are because he's flustered about it

forget normie relationship milestones like moving in together, the moment u both started slowly familiarizing your plushie collections to each other, swapping or gifting ones u saw and HAD to get for them or keeping two of them together because they're friends now Do Not Seperate!!!!, he knew this was Real

one of his favorite pastimes is sharing a big big cozy sweater with u, it doesn't matter if it's a bit tight with two people in it or that ur faces are squished together, he'll wrap his arms around u (if u haven't already put ur hands in the sleeves too) and cuddle u against him like a fluffy, snuggly, grumpy cat. welcome to sweater town, population u and ghiaccio

ur both very into pokemon too. you'll spend hours with ur heads bent together over ur gameboys with each other's companion games for that generation and help each other with trading and version exclusives

he's the first to yell at anyone for teasing you and he honestly gets a little freaked out when you go serious but he won't show it. he'll want to address the problem as quickly as possible tho and discreetly hug u when ur giggling again

sorbet and gelato 🔪🍦

THEY LOVE IT UR ADORABLE. they're both playful in their own ways (sorbet is more chill and dry wit sort of playful, gelato is no impulse control and hyena cackling sort of playful) and they love to have fun with u

it's also like.... the world is fucked up and they're both kinda fucked up (more than kinda), and they know you're not like an innocent baby or at all incompetent (hell, you may be kinda fucked up too, who isn't when ur an assassin) but it's just. nice to see someone else having fun and being sweet and enjoying things about life. so they are very protective of you when things get serious, they never EVER want to see you become embittered and will do absolutely anything to get you laughing again as soon as possible. which, guaranteed, they do

gelato has always had a short attention span so he knows what to do for entertainment and sorbet knows how to entertain, he may be the more patient one but they both like to mix things up and keep the surroundings interesting. they will play all sorts of games with u, video games or card games or stupid shit like beer pong or making a game of how many marshmallows u can each fit in ur mouths. you'll all go for a nice walk in the park and nothing is more relaxing for sorbet than kickin back on a bench while his rowdy babes end up tussling in the dirt. be free

of course, u and gelato also drag him into the dirt and put flowers in his hair and he would want nothing less

they'll both squish ur cheeks and lovingly tease u about how cute u are. blow a raspberry at them and they'll give u a kiss

sorbet will throw u over his shoulder and carry u around (no matter ur body type, he's strong!!!) + gelato will smatter ur face in kisses, just to hear u squeal and giggle

[ketamineharry]

Whenever I’m With You Pt 1- Harry Lewis

Requested: No, this is just inspired by Home, by Edith Whiskers

Tags: None, just my god awful writing x

Harry had been your best friend ever since you could remember. You were joined at the hip; wherever you went, he went and vice versa. Besides your parents, he was the first person you loved, a selfless love, putting his needs before your own every single time. He was everything to you and more.

He was the one to bring you out of your shell, as you were quite shy and reserved. On the other hand, he was mischievous and cheeky — always on the lookout for the next prank. His ‘pranks’ always ended the both of you in trouble, but neither of you minded that much, sure you were grounded but you’d be grounded together. So, you’d just fly paper planes into each other’s gardens, messages scrawled in messy handwriting as you tried to communicate with one another.

So it was only natural, when he moved to London that you followed suit. You packed your suitcase and left without a second thought. Leaving your small island for a big city, was a massive change however. A change that you weren’t quite anticipating. Harry’s work with YouTube only became more and more successful, meaning he had less and less time for you. You didn’t really mind however, as you knew how important it all was to him.

One afternoon, while you were at his flat, he asked you to be in one of his videos with the rest of his friends. You weren’t entirely sure about the idea. Being in the public consciousness wasn’t something that you desired, so you weren’t quite sure if you could prepare yourself for the potential backlash; not only by the fans you recognised in comment sections, but from complete strangers too.

“I’ll think about it.” You told him, as you made yourself a glass of water. Your mind made up on declining the offer, you didn’t want to face criticism and after all, everyone online faced criticism.

“Come on Y/N, it’s a competition based around baking… if you agree to it, we’re sure to win.” He pleaded. “Plus, it means we get to spend more time together and that’s the most important thing.” He continued, trying his very best to convince you.

“Fine.” You said, a sense of exasperation escaping you as you did. At least now that you had agreed, he’d stop annoying you. “So what were you thinking of baking? We can do a few test bakes for it, make sure it’s really good before the real thing.” You continued, rolling your sleeves up.

“Oh… about that… I actually have something I have to film, so why don’t we rearrange for next week?” He responds, a hopeful look crossing his features as he searched your eyes for an answer.

“Sure. I’ll see you next week then.” You responded, slightly deflated. He had seemed so excited to have you on board and then, as soon as you were he had moved onto something else. Perhaps this was something you had to become accustomed to, the YouTube life. The life where your best friend was stripped from you and you just had to accept it because the social media world moved so fast, and he had to always be two steps ahead to make sure he survived.

As you made your way out of the flat, you ordered yourself an Uber. You couldn’t shake the feeling that Harry was using you. Sure, you could bake but his roommate Freezy hosted his own cooking show on YouTube, so it would have been much easier and accessible to ask him, yet he had asked you. Why? Because you were a female, and females in videos always did better than males. Especially when his audience was primarily male teens.

With that thought lingering in your mind, you made a call to Ethan. You had to get to the bottom of this. Despite how close you had once been, using you for the sake of a few extra views, was beyond disheartening. As the phone rang out, your nervousness increased ten fold.

“Y/N! For what do I owe the pleasure?” Although he was on the phone, you could practically feel Ethan’s infectious smile.

“Ethan… it’s so nice to hear your voice, it’s been ages.” You started, as you tucked a piece of loose hair behind your ear. Although you knew this conversation was important, you couldn’t help the anxiety that accompanied it. For the sake of politeness, you decided to indulge in a conversation with him asking him how YouTube was going, if he had any projects coming up soon that he was able to tell you about, all of that good stuff before bringing anything up that could cause potential tension between Harry and his friends.

“Anyway Ethan… the thing is, the reason I decided to drop you a call is because Harry has invited me to film with you guys. I was just wondering what the concept of the video was, he told me it involves baking but that’s about it.” You revealed, a nervous laugh escaped from you as you did.

“Y/N… Harry really should have told you the whole premise before asking you to be on board. The reason he’s asked you is because we’re filming a clickbait video for Valentine’s Day, where we all have ‘girlfriends’ and we’re baking with them. Obviously, there’s Simon and Talia, Josh and Freya, I’m bringing along Elz, as the other boys aren’t comfortable with having their girlfriends on YouTube; we’ve asked our manager to get some girls in. Harry was adamant on asking you though.”

“Oh.” Is all you could manage to say. “Listen Ethan, I’ve gotta talk to Harry. I’ll call you back once I have. Thank you for giving me the full picture.” You continued, as you ended the call.

The anger you felt was far too strong and to actually call Harry. In all the time you had known him, he had never misled you. If there was something going on, you were always in the know. There was nothing that you would keep from each other.

‘Girlfriend clickbait, that you were adamant on asking me to accompany you on… thanks for including that part Harry. We’re supposed to tell each other everything. You can shove your video where the sun doesn’t shine.’

Without a second thought, you hit send. You blocked Harry’s number from your phone, as you locked your phone. You ensured your phone was receiving notifications so that you could check when your Uber would arrive. But as far as you were concerned, Harry was just another stranger in the big city.

[lovethisletters]

Poly MC! hc for the: Demon Brothers!

This is my first time writing anything about poly relationships! So I'm a bit nervous! I took the time to do a bit of research about the subject...however I still have a lot to learn; if you find anything that might be offensive please let me know! Just know I didn't do it with any ill intentions and I'll make sure to correct my mistakes!

Also I didn't knew if you refered to a poly MC who is in a relationship with all of the brothers or how each individual brother would react to MC coming out as poly to them and later starting a poly relationship and how they behave in said relationship...so I did the latter bc I found it to be a bit more easy to write and the first option would have been way too long and I was worried it might come off as boring because of it :c (but maybe I'll try to edit it and then upload it...some day...idk)

so...here it is!

Keys: MC = your main character name

Summary: MC comes out as poly to the Demon Brothers and how they behave in a poly relationship!

Additional notes: MC is gender neutral!

TW: small mentions or implications of jealous/possessive behavior (they're very minimal, but still...just in case)

▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️

Lucifer

Lucifer is probably the one you're the most nervous to talk to.

But when you finally find the courage to do so it goes...to put it mildly, a bit... weird.

He stares blankly at you like you just said to him that water is a liquid or something, he's not very...responsive.

His reaction might come off as rude, considering you spend all this time trying to figure out the "best" way to come out and talk about the possibility of starting a poly relationship.

But the reason why he's not talking much is because he's trying to avoid saying anything he might regret later, you see... he's trying to process his own feelings towards the matter.

Lucifer is someone who has lived for a long, looooooong time, so it's more likely than not that he's already experienced being in a poly relationship.

thing is...such relationship was more experimentation rather than something serious.

And now he has you...someone for who he'll be willing to die for...

He won't say it but deep down he feels like his pride has been bruised.

He just doesn't want to "share" you, you're his and his alone!

But when he looks up at you, and see just how nervous you are, waiting patiently for any kind of reaction from him.

He realizes he's thinking of you as an object and not a person and mentally kicks himself in the face for it.

Lucifer reaches for your hand and offers you a small smile.

After a long conversation where you two express your own desires and worries, you two agree and decide to give it a try.

At first... I'm not gonna lie...it would be quite... difficult...

The man is possessive and struggles to see you giving any kind of affection to any of his brothers.

However I think he genuinely wants this to work, he wants to see you happy and knows that just because you also love his brothers doesn't mean you love him any less.

So he'll sit down and talk to you whenever he feels jealous, he knows communication is key and it honestly makes him feel a bit better.

With time Lucifer comes to accept it; He loves you and he loves his brothers and it makes him happy that they all can share such bond with you.

Mammon

I think he's the one who'll have a harder time adapting to a poly relationship.

I'll even go as far to say Lucifer's jealousy pales in comparison to Mammon's and I think this is due to his low self-esteem.

He won't accept it but he's jealous af when he sees you "getting cozy" with any of his brothers.

He'll even interrupt the moment by placing himself in the middle of whoever you were getting close to or think about some lame excuse to take you away.

This makes things more difficult and tense for everyone, so if Mammon continues his shenanigans expect a LOT more arguing from the brothers...(yes...more than normal...)

You'll have to sit him down and talk to him about his insecurities.

The first times he won't be very open with you, I think he might even get a bit angry if you even imply he's jealous and act all offended and walk out of the room.

Surprisingly the one who makes him understand how toxic he's being and how much this affects you is Asmo!

He'll have a serious talk with him, and just the fact of seeing his often bubbly and cheerful young bro being all serious is enough for Mammon to realize that what he's been doing and how he's been acting hurts you and his brothers.

He'll apologize...the Mammon way...

But ultimately he now makes an effort to respect whenever you're close to one of his brothers.

Just like Lucifer. Mammon will come to accept you love him and his brothers all the same.

He'll sometimes even suggest places you all can go together for a date.

Please, be patient with the avatar of greed with time he will come to accept that love exist in more than one way or form.

Leviathan

Surprisingly, unlike his older brothers, your favorite shut-in-otaku has an easier time adapting to a poly relationship.

Easier, however does not mean problems are inexistent...

He has a low self-esteem and sometimes might get the feeling that you're ""picking favorites""

However he won't tell you anything about it, and he'll just try to pretend like nothing is wrong.

Fortunately for you, Levi is quite easy to read so you immediately notice whenever he's feeling sad.

But all you have to do is have a little gaming session with him, and as the two of you "game" the night away he'll eventually open up to you about whatever is bothering him.

All it takes is a little reassurance and saying "I love you" to the avatar of envy from time to time and he'll be all good with you showing affection to the rest of his brothers.

Satan

Uhhhh...this is a tricky one...

You see...Satan is probably the second brother you came out to and perhaps you didn't even realized that you did because it just happened so natural.

The two of you were talking and it just slipped out of your mouth and he was like "hahaha, right?" And continued the conversation as normal.

He genuinely doesn't care, (don't get me wrong I don't mean that in a bad way) but all he knows is that he loves you and he wants you to be happy, and if expanding the love that the two of you have to his brothers makes you happy, then so be it!

However... remember I said this was tricky?

Satan has no issue with you being affectionate with his brothers...all of them except for Lucifer...

When he sees you getting close to Lucifer he won't say anything, he won't make a scene or a passive-agressive remark, he'll just excuse himself and exit the room. (Neither he will confront you about it later when the two of you are alone)He won't say anything at all; he'll just stay silent and pretend like nothing is wrong.

However you'll be able to notice Satan's true feelings whenever Lucifer has a small present or gesture with you.

Oh? Lucifer gifted you a $300,000 coat? Well, Satan will give you another coat but this one is $600,000.

Lucifer treated you to dinner at ristorante six? Well, darling... guess what? Satan will reserve the entire building just for you!

At some point he will notice how bad this makes you feel, since he's turning a relationship into a competition and that's no good...

He'll eventually take a step back and realize how childish he's being, how his behavior hurts your feelings and might have even made you feel guilty or responsible for his beef with his older brother.

Before you even decide to talk to him about it, he already knows what you're trying to say, so he'll be the one to sit you down and apologize for his wrongdoings.

You're someone who he values dearly and all that he wants is for you to be happy, so he'll be willing to make the effort to get along or at least be a little more tolerant of Lucifer.

There might be times where they still fight and stop talking to each other for long periods of time, but the two of them will take the time to let you know that this has nothing to do with you and that there's no reason for you tu feel guilty.

Because if there's something in wich both, the avatar of pride and wrath agree in... Is in how much they love you.

Asmodeus

Asmodeus (definitely) was the first one to know about you being polyamorous.

He probably knew before you even said anything, let's be honest here...

He's probably the one who you're more comfortable talking about it.

The brothers accept you, yes...but Asmo understands you!

He knows that the world can be quite cruel to people who love differently to what our society stablish as "normal".

Whenever he expressed his liking for more than one person he was shamed or labeled as someone promiscuous who'll never be deserving of "true" love.

It happened in the celestial realm, in the human realm, and even sometimes here in the devildom.

Angels where expected to only focus in the lord and nothing else, some humans are close minded and shame whoever is different from them, and demon's often confuse love with obsession and get easily tangled up in possessive behavior, often viewing their partners as objects rather than individuals with their own goals and desires. (his brothers are the perfect example of that)

So he just knows how difficult it might have been for you to find acceptance.

So he gives it to you; acceptance, reassurance, however many times you need to.

He'll be the one to encourage you to talk with his brothers, he'll be there to support you if you ever feel nervous, and he'll be the one to call his brothers out on their bs whenever they start to show any signs of toxic behavior.

He knows in all relationships communication and trust in your partners is key to a successful relationship, so he reminds this to everyone and even goes as far as to make plans where everyone feels included.

Overall the avatar of lust is the voice of reason in this relationship, because he knows better than anyone else that love is something that can't and should never be limited by what others believe or expect "true love" should look like.

Beelzebub

You weren't sure how Beel would react once you told him.

But still you were pleasantly surprised by Beel's reaction!

He was so accepting from the beginning and even thanked you for trusting him enough to share this with him.

He's happy that you want him to form part of this relationship.

He knows his brothers love you as much as he does and that you love them back, so he sees this as the perfect option for everyone.

He even thinks this relationship has brought everyone closer together.

Over all the avatar of gluttony is more than happy to be with you and share your affection with people he holds equally as dearly.

Belphegor

Belphie, much like Lucifer struggles to understand why would you want such a thing?

Is his love not enough for you?

It takes little more time for him to understand you, and learn that love doesn't just limits to one person.

He can be a bit insensitive some times, so he might accidentally say something hurtful to you about it.

And that's when Asmo has to intervene...

He'll have a talk with his younger brother and make him realize that there's more than one form of love and how his words might have hurt you.

He'll apologize...(much like Mammon) in his own way...

After thinking about it for a while, he realizes he's happy whenever you show affection to Beel, and wonders if it would be the same with the rest of his brothers.

Slowly but surely, Belphie it's more open to this new relationship.

There'll be times where he might try to monopolize your love, but he'll stop once you, Beel or Asmo call him out on it.

His favorite thing of this new relationship is whenever you spend time with him and Beel.

Please be patient with the avatar of sloth.

▪️▫️▪️▫️▪️▫️

If you find any grammatical errors let me know! I'm trying to improve my english and that would help me so so much!

I will forever thank you if you go check out my other profile: @aileysmirnov  where I post things about my OC: edits, one-shots, imagines, art, etc. If you like Greek mythology and the bat family maybe you would get to be as fond of her as much as I am!

Anyway, thank you for reading!

[ohmygoodnessgraciouss]

Reality Check - Chapter 2

Oh my Odin!  I can not thank you all enough for the love you gave Reality Check’s first chapter.  Each and every comment has brought a smile to my face.  Thank you so much.  Seriously.  And I can’t wait for you all to see where this goes.  We’re only going up from here on out, so buckle up. 

Summary: Y/N and Wanda were very close after returning in 2023.  The two bonded over the loss of their partners.  It wasn’t enough to keep Wanda grounded after she found Vision’s body though, and Wanda wants the best for her friend.  Unfortunately for Y/N, this means she’s going to be thrown into a reality she wasn’t expecting.

Taglist (Let me know if you want to be a part of it!): @dpaccione

Missed the first part?  Read it here! 

Running through the eternal palace halls to hide from the God of Mischief seemed like an impossible task.  You had to find a hiding spot soon.  Unfortunately, the halls were open wide.  The golden pillars were large, and wider than three men, so maybe you had a chance behind them.  You could give it a try since you had nothing to lose.  

With the book gripped tightly in your hands you ran behind the pillar, leaning your back against it.  It wouldn’t be much longer until you could hear his footsteps approaching.  As long as you run around the pillar at the right time you should be able to escape him.  

His footsteps came rushing towards you and then stopped suddenly.  You held in a breath, fearful that he could hear even the slightest noise right now.  If there’s one thing you could remember at the palace halls, it’s that a pin dropping could echo through them.  You tried it once.  

You started to look to the left, taking a glance around the pillar.  You didn’t even hear him approaching you from behind.  His hands quickly stole the book from your hands as you jumped, turning around faster than lightning to look at him.  He was smirking at you.  “If you’re going to steal my book, at least don’t get caught walking out the door.” 

“Well maybe I wanted to get caught.  If I hadn’t, perhaps you would never come out of that library.”  You huffed, causing him to laugh.  

“Oh come now, I’ve only been in there for a few days.  It hasn’t been that long at all.” 

“Only a few days?  Loki, you’ve been in there for a week.  There are three hundred thousand books in that library and I guarantee if anyone has read every single one, it’s you.  What are you doing in there?” 

“Reading, isn’t it obvious?” You rolled your eyes at the response.  

“Why are you shutting everyone out and simply reading all day every day?” 

He hesitated before answering you.  You knew him well enough by now, after several decades together being each other’s confidant.  “It’s nothing.” 

“If it were nothing you wouldn’t seem so determined to return to that library as soon as possible.  Is it about the coronation?”

“In a way, yes.” He couldn’t lie about the situation to you.  If anyone deserved to know the truth it would have been you.  “Don’t worry about it, love.  There’s nothing that can be done about it now anyway.”  He said it almost as if he was trying to convince himself that it had no effect either.  

“Do you promise there’s nothing on your mind?” 

“I promise.” 

______

“Are you sure you’re alright, Loki?  I’m worried you’re going to make your fingers bleed at this rate,” You said, watching him practice a song on the guitar for the hundredth time in a row.  

“I’m 100% sure that I will be fine once I’m able to perfect this song.” You raised an eyebrow at his statement as he tried to restart the song again, this time ending up with a broken string.  The canned laughter you heard in the back of your head was (for once) hidden by your own stifled laughter.  Loki glared playfully at you. 

“This is just a talent show, you know.  You don’t have to be incredible.  The fact that you’re willing to do this at all is admirable.” You smiled.  

“If I’m going to do it I may as well be the best one in it, darling.” 

“It’s just a talent show for the children!” You exclaimed, laughing at his ability to make anything a competition.  

“And the children deserve only the best.” 

“Yes, well I doubt the children will care if you mess up a single note.  Your wife, however, will care if you manage to hurt yourself by the end of this.” You walked up to him, slowly taking the guitar out of his hands.  “How about this?  I’ll go down to the store to pick up some new guitar strings for you while you focus on… Anything else.” 

He pretended to contemplate it momentarily while you grew impatient.  “Well considering I can’t exactly play with a missing string I suppose this will have to do.” 

“Alright, Hank Williams, go work on the car or something.  I’ll be back before you know it.” You kissed his cheek and walked out of the house.  You spun around quickly to see Loki smiling softly at you as you closed the door.  Despite the fluttery feeling you had in your chest by his reaction, a sense of dread was quickly replacing it.  

You began to walk across your lawn, taking a glance at the neighborhood.  It seemed slightly different than yesterday.  Newer cars?  New designs for your homes?  You couldn’t tell exactly, but it was just enough for you to wonder.  Maybe you weren’t the most observant person in the world, but you assumed you would be able to take note of someone getting an upgrade on their house.  

As you started making your way down the street and to the store, you spotted Agnes across the street with Wanda.  It looked like the two were politely chit chatting about something before you saw Dottie walking closer to them.  You internally groaned at the idea of having to talk to Dottie.  She always seemed pompous and uptight to you.  You’ve never had to deal with her face-to-face thankfully, but that didn’t mean you couldn’t hear about her from neighbors who knew her.  

You decided to walk past them, waving to both Wanda and Agnes.  Agnes smiled brightly towards you and it almost froze you in place.  Agnes out of everyone here frightened you the most.  She was too nice, too neighborly.  It seemed like all she ever did was try to butt in to everyone’s lives.  There was something off about the look in her eyes.  She looked at Wanda with an almost kind of sadness when she said something.  Wanda seemed to be amused by whatever she had said, so why did Agnes seem so disheartened? 

Perhaps it wasn’t your place to ask.  You had to get to the store.  Talking to Wanda and Agnes could wait.  

--

You walked into the store and were greeted by no one.  At least the world was working in your favor for that one, you didn’t have to dodge people left and right just to grab a few things.  

As you walked down the seemingly endless aisles of the store you could find a couple people every once in a while.  They seemed to be stuck though.  They would just stare at a single item as if it was the most beautiful thing they had ever seen.  It sent chills down your spine as you passed by them, not a single word being spoken.  You don’t even know who these people were.  None of them looked like they wanted to be there. 

Fortunately, there was no one in the music section of the store.  The section had countless musical instruments including guitars, flutes, and drums.  Each one was uniquely designed, with price tags on every single one of them.  When you tried to read them, you couldn’t figure out what they were saying.  The numbers were blurred and blended in with one another.  

Maybe they were removing the tags because there was a sale going on?  You looked around for any indication of that and found nothing.  Maybe water got on to the tags and the ink leaked, but there was no damage or any sign of a leak anywhere around the store.  

That’s when you noticed the bright red guitar pick on a shelf.  It was an electric red, far brighter than anything else in the room.  You walked towards it, confused by the color.  When you picked it up, it slowly lost its color.  The red that seemed to radiate off the pick faded until it was a dull grey.  

“Excuse me, miss-” 

You jumped at the sound of someone’s voice.  You turned towards the man, noticing that he was the one you bumped into only yesterday.  Once again his green eyes were what caught your attention.  He was dressed in a suit, his hair slicked back.  “Oh!  I’m so sorry, you startled me.” You laughed breathlessly.  

He smiled politely.  “No, I apologize.  I didn’t mean to frighten you.  I was just wondering if I could ask you a question or two.” 

“Of course you can!  Although I believe a proper introduction may be needed beforehand, especially after I ran into you.  I’m Y/N,” You held your hand out and smiled. 

“I’m-” He stopped himself for a moment before shaking your hand, “I’m Scott.” 

“A pleasure to meet you Scott!” You smiled.  “It’s nice to know more people around here.  Are you new here?” 

“Well, it seems like it.  I don’t really know if you could call me new to the town though.  I just know that I feel out of place here.  They all seem to cast me out before I can even have a chance to introduce myself,” He chuckled.  

“Yeah, I understand that feeling.  Right now it seems like something’s changing around here.  I can hardly keep up with it!” 

“It’s nice to know I’m not alone then,” He smiled.  

“Agreed.”  A brief moment of silence was shared before you remembered he wanted to ask something.  “So, you said you had a couple questions?” 

“Oh yes, but I would prefer if we talked about it outside.  The walls have ears around here, you know.” He said it with such a serious tone that you were almost afraid to question him.  His eyes held a level of somber that you hadn’t seen in anyone in years.  Whatever he wanted to discuss, it had to be something that you wouldn’t forget.  

“Who’s going to want to listen to our conversations?” You laughed, attempting to lighten the mood a little. 

“You may not want to know.”