#this is also my way of actively avoiding assignments i have to turn in by the end of the week

[ncwhereman]

john lennon and norm in a hard day's night (1964)

[emdeerm]

Past saves Present

Og fic ig

In some cultures, it is believed that children are able to remember bits of their past lives till the ages of 3-5.

For Danny, the opposite was true. He got his memories at exactly the second he turned 5.

And he had to promptly dodge the blade of the boy in front of him.

His brother, his mind supplied. His twin.

Danny stopped swinging his own sword, focusing on dodging and avoiding the fate of being a slashed pillow. His new/earned skills especially helped with that greatly as his head was seriously trying to re-kill him.

"I yield," he rasped as he jumped away from his brother and looked at their Mother. "My head hurts, Mother," he added pitifully.

His twin looked slightly concerned for a second, before schooling his face in a way Grandfather has been teaching them.

"Tch." But he did put away the blade before their Mother, said a word.

"Dynial, Damian, you are not to stop until you have received permission in the future."

The boys nodded. Mother took their hands and led them out of the private training ground back to their rooms.

Danny spent the rest of the day lying down, slightly feverish and miserable as his brain was processing and acclimating the new set of memories. Clockwork said it wouldn't be too bad. We'll, the clock bustard has been wrong. It fucking sucked.

His brother was hovering. Their Mother was always around, not letting anyone into their space. Ra's is being kept in the dark.

A peaceful rest was all he needed for his brain to finish sorting out new information. And Danny was stuck in a bit of a dilemma.

You see, Damian and Dynial love their Mother, strive to be the best Demon Twins, and see nothing wrong with their life so far.

Their hands are still clean.

Danny, on the other hand, has many MANY choice words for his current situation and one Clock Ghost.

You want to try reincarnation ONE time! No wonder others don't really do that.

-------

Their days continued like they did before he got his memory back. It wasn't hard to be Dynial when he actually was him.

The nights were filled with planning. And a personally assigned mission: get Damian to be interested in normal things.

Stars weren't much of a hit. Uncultured child.

Animals were a little intriguing.

Simple art and craft projects seemed to hit the spot.

Keeping their little meetings and activities hidden wasn't as hard as one would think. Mother still had her missions. The two of them were often left alone in their wing of the place, the supervisors being allowed only till the doors. Ra's was the Head. He didn't check in on them all the time. The two of them weren't slacking in their training either and were considered prodigies.

Danny wanted out of this Cult.

A many months after feeding different information, facts, crafts and so on to his brother, Damian was curious. He was suspicious about the sudden knowledge but he was also 5. He only had to reference the Lazarus Pit (unfiltered and dirty ectoplasm? Seriously? Clockwork, you can't expect him to work on his vocation) once to convince the child.

They snooped around and found out that they had a father out in the world.

Danny got a plan.

It was super stupid. And dangerous as hell. As well as literally (half)suicidal. But he felt it in his chest and knew he'd succeed.

His Core was here. But it was sleeping. And if he wanted to be safe and away from here, he needed to start it up again.

The big pool of Ecto would do just fine. His Core would filter out the impurities.

He didn't want to stay here until his hands no longer protected. He didn't want such life for his brother either.

---

Damian infiltrated the Lazarus Room just in time to see his brother jump into the Pit.

He ran to the edge.

He was sinking.

The green was too bright. The smell around them was too much. His ears rang.

He reached towards the water, eyes unseeing and hands numb. His heartbeat was too loud.

His brother's wasn't loud enough.

"Don't touch the puddles, Dami, you'll get sick," a gentle, cold hand stopped him from diving.

The child looked up. His brother was floating above the water. He looked all wrong. But he was there.

"I didn't want you to see this part..." his brother laughed awkwardly as he landed next to him. A bright ring of light blinded Damian for a second.

And his brother was back.

-----

Getting used to his powers again felt nice but tedious. Soothing his twin was heartbreaking. He didn't think this through hard enough.

Their Mother was none the wiser to the fact that one of her children died and came back. Nore was she privy to the escape being planned by both.

On one moonless night, when Mother wasn't there, the shift was changing and the world was asleep; two boys phased through the walls and flew. Small bags of stuff were strapped onto them as they traveled to their father.

Mother's notes called him Bruce Wayne, Batman, Beloved and Detective.

It wasn't hard to find him when they arrived.

Though, Danny didn't expect a furless furry and a pantless child to be their new family.

Can he ever get a normal Family???

[dustofthedailylife]

The Art Of Desire

→ Masterlist || → Taglist

Pairing: Alhaitham x (gn!) Reader

Summary: You are in need of a model for your anatomy class assignment. However, the last thing you expected was that your crush would volunteer to help you and that he would end up standing in front of you without a shirt.

Tags: Fluff, Suggestive (but still completely SFW)!, shy reader, partial nud*ty I guess? (Alhaitham is shirtless at some point), flirting, kissing

A/N: *throws fic into the room and leaves*

Being an artist while also being a scholar in Sumeru had always been somewhat difficult for you. The arts had never been something most people in Sumeru City appreciated or even actively looked down upon. It was a city of scholars after all, and the arts were too abstract to properly grasp for most of them.

Things had begun to become better after the old Grand Sage had been replaced and the new Archon had been freed but a lot of scholars still didn’t show much interest in the arts.

But due to that an assignment for one of your classes proved difficult. Anatomy.

You had no idea how learning human anatomy would help you as an architect later, but you did what you had to do. And it would surely help you with your personal art projects later on as well.

The only thing you had to find now was someone who could pose for you. Surely Kaveh would be able to help you right? He was your best friend and was once in the same situation.

You sought him out where he hung around the most - the Tavern.

As you walked through the Tavern door, warm air that smelled like wine and spices wafted your way and filled all your senses. You loved how homely it always felt here.

You scanned the tables to find Kaveh. Unfortunately for you though, he wasn’t alone. As you feared, Alhaitham was with him. You already considered turning around to leave again but Kaveh had already spotted you and was enthusiastically waving for you to come over to their table. 

And that was precisely the reason you rarely ever came here nowadays. Kaveh often met up with Alhaitham here for lunch. And your crush on the latter had slowly but surely turned you into a nonsense-blabbering mess during conversations with him. At this point, he probably thought you were stupid.

You hesitantly tiptoed over to their table and greeted them while your heart pounded heavily inside your chest. You sat down on the bench next to Kaveh who was already a bit tipsy. It wasn’t much of a surprise, since he was such a lightweight and practically got drunk as soon as he looked at wine the wrong way.

“Kaveh, I need your help!” You pleaded, trying to avoid eye contact with Alhaitham as much as possible once again.

“And that would be, my dear friend?” Kaveh replied in a singsong voice.

“Alright so… I need someone to pose for me. I need to draw a couple of detailed torso drawings for the anatomy course I’ve been taking, and since you also took that once I thought you could help me. I mean, you could also give me some tips. Right?” 

“Oh.” His smile faltered for a brief moment and his facial expression told you everything you needed to know. There was apparently a reason he couldn’t help but he didn’t outright want to turn you down. You knew how he is, he simply couldn’t say no and would inconvenience himself any time for his friends. And you definitely didn’t want him to do that for you. You’d be able to find someone else somehow.

“It’s okay if you can’t do it. Just say no.” You reassured him.

“I have an appointment in the desert with a client, but I’m sure I could make some ti–”

“I’ll help you.” Alhaitham cut Kaveh off.

Both of you snapped your heads in his direction in disbelief.

“Are you sick?! Why would you volunteer to help anyone but yourself?” Kaveh gasped and looked at the Scribe as if he’d lost his mind.

“It’s not much work, is it? They could just come to my office and draw me while I just sit there doing my work. Isn’t that correct?” Alhaitham inquired, boring his turquoise eyes into you. You simply nodded in reply and could feel your breath hitch in your throat. You were sure that if you would be standing right now your knees would’ve probably given in by now since they felt like jello. On top of that, your nervousness skyrocketed so badly that you were able to feel your heartbeat in your throat. 

The thought of being alone with Alhaitham for a prolonged period of time while ogling him as closely as you never dared before, made your heart flutter. You probably wouldn’t be able to concentrate on drawing properly but if he was already offering it, you couldn’t possibly refuse. Especially since he usually didn’t do anyone any favors to begin with.

“Besides,” Alhaitham continued. “It gives me an excuse to decline every other meeting for the rest of the day.”

“Tch, typical. Of course, there’d be an egoistic reason for your volunteering.” Kaveh scoffed.

“I don’t see any issue with that. I help them with their assignment while also helping myself. It’s a beneficial endeavor for both of us.” Alhaitham reasoned, twirling his own wine cup between his fingers before turning to you again. "Wouldn't you agree, too?"

You slowly nodded before quickly averting your eyes again since you couldn't bear to look at Alhaitham for longer than a few seconds without getting flustered. You had no idea how you were supposed to look at him for a prolonged period of time to draw him if you were already reduced to a flustered mess by talking to him. The thought alone made your heart almost jump out of your chest.

Kaveh shook his head in annoyance and turned to you once more. “Just say the word and I’ll take a day off to help you. Rest assured, it would be no problem for me.”

“No, Kaveh. I couldn’t possibly ask you to neglect your own responsibilities for my projects. Just keep your focus on yourself. If Alhaitham is so kind to offer his help I’ll take him up on that.” You reassured him while trying to hide how nervous you actually were about the situation.

“Well, shall we get going then? My lunch break is almost over.” Alhaitham interrupts, immediately getting up from the table.

You somewhat hesitantly got up as well since you didn’t expect he meant you could draw him right now. You had no time to mentally prepare for it so this would be interesting.

“Oh, so now you suddenly care about getting back to work on time after your lunch break,” was the last thing you heard Kaveh yell before the door of the Tavern fell shut behind both of you.

As you quietly tailed behind Alhaitham back to his office the realization that you’d actually be drawing him now suddenly began to dawn on you.

Oh, just what did you agree to here? And how in the world should you avoid making this awkward now?

Once you arrived at his officeAlhaitham unlocked the door and motioned you inside.

“You can sit down at the table over there. Do you need anything?”

“No. I should be fine.” You replied with a shy smile.

You were in fact everything but that.

While you were trying not to have a meltdown as you unpacked your stuff, Alhaitham was brewing some coffee and handed you a cup as well.

“Do you need me to do anything?” He asked.

“Hm?”

“In terms of posing.”

“Oh. Uh– no actually not. Just sit on your chair and read or whatever?”

“Nothing easier than that.” He replied with a faint smile, grabbing a book from the bookshelf beside you and walking back to his desk.

You busied yourself by scanning the books on the shelves that littered his office while sipping on your coffee before you turned around again and had to stop yourself from immediately spitting your coffee out again. Although as soon as you did you wished you had never done so.

Alhaitham had unclasped his cape and had loosely thrown it over his desk and was just about to pull his shirt over his head. You were trying to process what was happening before your eyes but your mind was racing so fast that you failed to fully grasp the scene before you.

“W-what are you doing?!” You stammered.

“Didn’t you say this was for your anatomy assignment?” He inquired, seeming entirely unbothered before ultimately removing his shirt completely.

Well, yeah you did. And for that bare skin was sort of a requirement. You knew that full well, too. It just sort of slipped your mind that taking Alhaitham up on his offer would actually entail seeing him without a shirt as well.

“Y-yes.” You replied, moving your eyes over his now exposed abdominal muscles. His usual shirt already left little to the imagination, but actually seeing his trained body without the thin piece of fabric covering it was a sight for sore eyes.

He claimed to only be a feeble scholar but that notion couldn’t be any further from the truth.

“Then there you have the answer to your question.” He stated matter-of-factly before sitting down and opening his book to read. His face still looked as unbothered as it did before and he immediately lost himself in his book.

In the meantime, you tried your hardest to get yourself together again. Not only did you need to keep your eyes from wandering but also your mind. 

You traced every well-toned muscle of his upper body. How light and shadow formed their contours and how his pectorals moved whenever he flipped another page. You took note of every detail and etched it into your memory while suppressing the urge to brush over his defined muscles.

You sat down at the table and held onto your pen for dear life as you continued to analyze every little detail of his body. The embedded gem between his collarbones and hot it beautifully shimmered in the light of his office. The sharp V-Line that started right above his hips. The symmetric curve of his collarbones leading up to his shoulders. And his turquoise eyes that were boring into yours once again.

"Is anything the matter?" He inquired, lifting an eyebrow.

"N-no. I'm just trying to find a starting point." You stammered your poor attempt at an excuse.

After all 'Sorry, I was too distracted by staring at your body' wasn't something you could just say either.

“T-tell me if you’re getting too cold and we can take a break.”

“It’s 40 degrees outside, I’ll be fine.” He chuckled seemingly amused about your concern.

“Ri-right. Yeah. Okay.” You awkwardly bit your lip. For Archon's sake, why couldn’t you just behave normally around him?

After overcoming the first awkwardness you eventually started sketching. But the more the shapes on your paper resembled the beautiful man in front of you, the more flustered you became again and the more aware you became of the fact of how closely you were actually looking at him. Your attention to detail for this sketch was even more on point than it had ever been before. Upon realizing that it was because you were enjoying what you were seeing your cheeks started to burn in embarrassment.

You spent about an hour immersed in sketching, carefully studying every contour of his upper body. It felt so intimate that you couldn't help but wonder if anyone had ever looked at him this way before. And even though you kept telling yourself that this was just a regular art study session to avoid getting flustered further, the endeavor proved completely unsuccessful. 

Eventually, you finished your piece and dropped your pen on the table. You lifted your sketchbook up to evaluate the page and the final result.

The once-blank page was now filled with an intricate pencil sketch of the handsome man with a dreamlike physique. You had to admit, he truly was the perfect subject for anatomy studies. And while you wouldn’t mind seeing him shirtless more often you doubt your heart could handle it another time. Because despite sitting the entire time you felt like you had just run a marathon.

“Your talent is quite impressive.” Alhaitham’s voice rang right next to your ear and made you flinch. You didn’t notice how he had approached you. And what made things worse is that he was still shirtless while standing next to you so closely you could feel the heat that emanated from his skin and smell his after-shave.

You gulped and got up from your chair avoiding looking into his eyes as much as possible because you feared that if you did your heart would burst out of your chest. 

“Thank you. That means a lot. I-I mean… it was quite easy to see the muscle definition on you.”

Facepalm. Why did you say that? You internally cringed at your choice of words and continued to avoid looking at him while you hastily started packing your bag again.

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?” He remarked with a smirk and lifted your chin up with your sketchbook, forcing you to look into his eyes.

You opened your mouth in order to say something but everything you could’ve said died in your throat. So instead, you simply continue to stare at him while your heart felt like it was about to combust and you wanted nothing more than to sink into the ground in shame.

He huffed in amusement at your evident flustered state and closed the gap between your bodies, placing his arm next to your head on the wall, towering over you.

“Do you have any idea how obvious you are?” He asked.

“What do you mean?”

“I see the way you look at me, or rather how you always avoid doing so now. And Kaveh happened to slip up and revealed your secret when he got drunk. And that’s why I can tell you that I feel the exact same way about you. And I’ve longed for a moment to tell you. You didn’t make it easy since you kept avoiding me lately.”

You didn’t know whether what was happening was wishful imagination or a fever dream because it felt surreal. 

He put your sketchbook back on the table and lifted your chin with his free hand now. He took hold of one of your hands and placed it on his abs.

“This is what you wanted to do the entire time, am I right?” He whispered while the bud of his thumb brushed past your lower lip. You slowly nodded as your traced along his toned stomach with a featherlight touch, feeling how the muscles moved below your fingertips.

“May I kiss you?” He whispered in a low tone when you looked up into his eyes.

He had barely even finished asking when you leaned into him more and took the initiative to place your lips on his for a shy kiss. But it was so fleeting it had you longing for more and it seems that the feeling was mutual.

He quickly snaked his arms around your waist and pressed you against him with fervor while he hungrily crashed his lips into yours once more. You slung your arms around his neck and entangled your fingers in his soft gray locks while pushing his face even closer to yours than it already was.

You could feel him smiling into the kiss, as you did so. His lips continued to gently caress yours like a tender whisper of affection shared only between you two. It made you feel lightheaded while also leaving you longing for more. It was an intoxicating feeling like no other. One you certainly could get addicted to - and maybe you already were. 

At some point, you had no idea for how long you had been standing there kissing but it felt like an eternity yet not long enough at the same time.

You were sure of one thing though – You needed more of it.

Do not repost, copy, translate or edit - © dustofthedailylife || reblogs, comments, and asks about Genshin or my fics are always greatly appreciated and motivate me! Maple dividers are mine - do not copy.

[novelconcepts]

There’s a line from American Gods I keep coming back to in relation to Yellowjackets, an observation made early on by Shadow in prison: “The kind of behavior that works in a specialized environment, such as prison, can fail to work and in fact become harmful when used outside such an environment.” I keep rotating it in my head in thinking about the six survivors, the roles they occupy in the wilderness, and the way the show depicts them as adults in society.

Because in the wilderness, as in prison, they’re trapped—they’re suffering, they’re traumatized, they’re terrified—but they’re also able to construct very specific boxes to live in. And, in a way, that might make it easier. Cut away the fat, narrow the story down to its base arc. You are no longer the complex young woman who weighs a moral compass before acting. You no longer have the luxury of asking questions. You are a survivor. You have only to get to the next day.

Shauna: the scribe. Lottie: the prophet. Van: the acolyte. Taissa: the skeptic. Misty: the knight. Natalie: the queen. Neat, orderly, the bricks of a new kind of society. And it works in the woods; we know this because these six survive. (Add Travis: the hunter, while you’re at it, because he does make it to adulthood).

But then they’re rescued. And it’s not just lost purpose and PTSD they’re dealing with now, but a loss of that intrinsic identity each built in the woods. How do you go home again? How do you rejoin a so-called civilized world, where all the violence is restricted to a soccer field, to an argument, to your own nightmares?

How does the scribe, the one who wrote it all out in black and white to make sense of the horrors, cope with a world that would actively reject her story? She locks that story away. But she can’t stop turning it over in her head. She can’t forget the details. They’re waiting around every corner. In the husband beside her in bed. In the child she can’t connect with across the table. In the best friend whose parents draw her in, make her the object of their grief, the friend who lives on in every corner of their hometown. She can’t forget, so she tries so hard to write a different kind of story instead, to fool everyone into seeing the soft maternal mask and not the butcher beneath, and she winds up with blood on her hands just the same.

How does the prophet come back from the religion a desperate group made of her, a group that took her tortured visions, her slipping mental health, and built a hungry need around the very things whittling her down? She builds over the bones. She creates a place out of all that well-intended damage, and she tells herself she’s helping, she’s saving them, she has to save them, because the world is greedy and needs a leader, needs a martyr, needs someone to stand up tall and reassure everyone at the end of the day that they know what’s best. The world, any world, needs someone who will take those blows so the innocent don’t have to. She’s haunted by everyone she didn’t save, by the godhood assigned to her out of misplaced damage, and when the darkness comes knocking again, there is nothing else to do but repeat old rhymes until there is blood on her hands just the same.

How does the acolyte return to a world that cares nothing for the faith of the desperate, the faith that did nothing to save most of her friends, that indeed pushed her to destroy? She runs from it. She dives into things that are safe to believe in, things that rescue lonely girls from rough home lives, things that show a young queer kid there’s still sunshine out there somewhere. She delves into fiction, makes a home inside old stories to which she already knows the endings, coaxes herself away from the belief that damned her and into a cinemascope safety net where the real stuff never has to get in. She teaches herself surface-level interests, she avoids anything she might believe in too deeply, and still she’s dragged back to the place where blood winds up on her hands just the same.

How does the skeptic make peace with the things she knows happened, the things that she did even without meaning to, without realizing? She buries them. She leans hard into a refusal to believe those skeletons could ever crawl back out of the graves she stuffed them into, because belief is in some ways the opposite of control. She doesn’t talk to her wife. She doesn’t talk to anyone. It’s not about what’s underneath the surface, because that’s just a mess, so instead she actively discounts the girl she became in the woods. She makes something new, something rational and orderly, someone who can’t fail. She polishes the picture to a shine, and she stands up straight, the model achievement. She goes about her original plan like it was always going to be that way, and she winds up with blood on her hands just the same.

How does the knight exist in a world with no one to serve, no one to protect, no reason propelling the devastating choices she had grown comfortable making? She rechannels it. She convinces herself she’s the smartest person in the room, the most capable, the most observant. She convinces herself other people’s mysteries are hers to solve, that she is helping in every single action she takes. She makes a career out of assisting the most fragile, the most helpless souls she can find, and she makes a hobby out of patrolling for crimes to solve, and when a chance comes to strap her armor back on and ride into battle, she rejoices in the return to normalcy. She craves that station as someone needed, someone to rely upon in the darkest of hours, and she winds up with blood on her hands because, in a way, she never left the wilderness at all.

How does the queen keep going without a queendom, without a pack, without people to lead past the horrors of tomorrow? She doesn’t. She simply does not know how. She scrounges for something, anything, that will make her feel connected to the world the way that team did. She moves in and out of a world that rejects trauma, punishes the traumatized, heckles the grieving as a spectacle. She finds comfort in the cohesive ritual of rehabilitation, this place where she gets so close to finding herself again, only to stumble when she opens her eyes and sees she’s alone. All those months feeding and guiding and gripping fast to the fight of making it to another day, and she no longer knows how to rest. How to let go without falling. She no longer wears a crown, and she never wanted it in the first place, so how on earth does she survive a world that doesn’t understand the guilt and shame of being made the centerpiece of a specialized environment you can never explain to anyone else? How, how, how do you survive without winding up with blood on your hands just the same?

All six of these girls found, for better or worse, a place in the woods. All six of them found, for better or worse, a reason to get up the next day. For each other. And then they go home, and even if they all stayed close, stayed friends, it’d still be like stepping out of chains for the first time in years. Where do you go? How do you make small choices when every decision for months was life or death? How do you keep the part of yourself stitched so innately into your survival in a world that would scream to see it? How do you do away with the survivor and still keep going?

They brought it back with them. Of course they did. It was the only way.

[demonzoro]

none of this is proofread but here's my ideal modern au for the goth fam. wall of text incoming, sky is blue, etc.

mihawk: World's Most Reluctant College Professor. history/archaeology. reluctantly employed because his place of residence (half-wrecked castle) is owned by the university and one of the terms for him to live there for free is to teach classes. initially hired as a publicity stunt that petered out. actual respected swordsman in the modern age but the reality is "swordsman" is... not very lucrative. really important to me that he is forcibly employed while having gigantic unemployed energy.

his ass is not showing up to a lecture hall unless under extreme duress (shanks showing up to his place unannounced again🙄). fully aware his papers are only taken as a credit filler (robin lectures the papers that are more practically applicable). almost exclusively "teaches" by emailing out reading lists and assignments. actively trying to get his students to drop his paper so he can do fuck-all for the rest of the year.

zoro: phys ed major. he's so serious about his main courses as well as mihawk's stupidly niche paper. probably the first person the "Dracule Mihawk Teaches Here!" publicity stunt has worked on in years. has trouble with the heavy focus of book-smarts this paper requires but powers through it best he can until mihawk sets some indecipherable tome as part of a reading list and zoro is like. okay. you leave me no choice.

he fully shows up on mihawk's doorstep at 9:44PM on a tuesday night brandishing this tome. mihawk answers the door because he is two bottles into his wine.

zoro, furious that this piece of shit tome has no audiobook alternative: this. YOU. explain. NOW. mihawk: a student. at my doorstep. did shanks blab to you. zoro: your address is publicly listed as a minor tourist attraction. mihawk (<- didn't know that): hm. come in.

zoro is treated to a full drunk history session and the supermarket gift wine mihawk has been avoiding but accidentally opened. he wakes up the next morning and zoro is still there in one of the guest rooms. he's like what are you doing here and zoro is like. i don't have a whole day to waste getting back to my dorm i need to do your assignment.

mihawk, fully aware the dorms should only be a max twenty minute walk away: interesting. get out.

safe to say, zoro thinks visiting mihawk's home is easier than emailing him. which is true in some ways since mihawk takes small joys in putting unread emails straight into trash.

perona: fashion major OBVIOUSLY. really interested finding vintage/archival sewing patterns/designs and modernising them. LOVES using essays as outlets for her rants. blase on everything else in life but takes her course so seriously. HATES zoro ever since he almost made her fail an assignment because he had checked out a book she needed and held it for fucking aaages.

similarly zoro hates perona bc she almost made him fail an assignment by hogging the only lightbox on this side of the campus that makes it possible to read some of the archival material mihawk puts on his impossible reading lists.

zoro gets lost in mihawk's castle and meets perona in-person for the first time outside of a name on a booking sheet and they have a huge stupid argument. zoro storms off and accidentally finds mihawk again this way and he's doubly mad because he can't believe mihawk has been chasing him away all this time while letting another student just live in the east wing.

mihawk (<- didn't know that): there's a what.

turns out perona just said "umm dorm fees? rent? in this economy? there's a wrecked castle 20mins away from campus it's free real estate". and she's right. she also finds out mihawk has staff access to archival materials not readily open to students and she immediately whips out a wishlist.

anyways i imagine perona graduates and becomes a fashion designer. zoro decides booksmarts is not for him and drops out to focus fully on a professional athlete career or make his way as a stuntman. models for perona on occasion. mihawk fully quits his job after those two leave bc they were the only ones in years that made it interesting. retires but robin recommends him as a consultant to the museum society and he does some work there. ALWAYS calls zoro or perona if he's restoring smthng cool he thinks they would love.

jfc are you still here. i kiss you on the lips

[orkbutch]

Okay! time to add my accompanying essays with each image from this set of work about why I assigned which types of play to each set of characters, and how Baldur's Gate III supports these in the text of the game. Because I thought about all of this way too much im not joking

First, Context:

All of these are drawings of consensual play happening between these characters after they have put aside any active conflicts between each other. Nonetheless, they utilise the dynamics and emotional conflicts of these characters. Each of these characters are in some way violent people, deeply stressed out by their circumstances, and craving pleasure and connection. Sometimes you need a little pinch and squeal before the end of the world just to get through the night, you know?

Knife play; Shadowheart (D) / Lae'zel (S)

This is definitely the best supported concept in the text of the game because we literally see this happen, though in a significantly different context. I'd say most of us thought it was hot, whether we realised it or not, and I think Shadowheart and Lae'zel probably agreed once they weren't worried about dying! I think its the perfect encapsulation of the tension between SH and LZ both early on and as it resolves. It also expresses both their personalities very succinctly and accurately. SH is absolutely an edgy, paranoid goth, and LZ would love the thrill.

For all the early game SH sees LZ as ruthless and dangerous to her, and resents Gith for the death of her peers. LZ is a threat she wants to neutralize or at least control. At the same time, SH is someone who prefers to avoid conflict and subtly occupy power/advantage in most situations she finds herself in. She has little concern for honour, pride or fairness.

Lae'zel absolutely does. She is a very straight forward and efficient person. For her, SH starts as an inconveniently racist coworker, but at the reveal of the artifact SH becomes more than that; not only has she insulted LZ's people, she's revealed herself to be untrustworthy, very willing to lie and play dirty. Not only does SH seem to hate her, but SH has rules and intentions that are entirely unknown to LZ, and that is obviously frightening.

AND SO I JUST THINK... that potent history would be very hot background for fear based play, which knife play is all about. The heart-racing threat of the point of a dangerous object held at your most tender areas - throats, armpits, mouths, bellies... and the depth of trust and submission to let that occur, to sit in the fear and really enjoy the rush of danger and helplessness, knowing you will be safe. It shows a profound growth in their regard for eachother, a true and total overcoming of old resentments and conflicts.

This is not only a position I think SH would relish - to reduce someone as deadly as LZ to being at her mercy, and to feel deeply trusted with someone's life and pleasure - but also a rare delight for LZ. To take the heart-thumping threat of a battlefield, which she absolutely thrives in, and to toy with and explore that mental space. To be truly stripped back and placed in anothers hands. For that to be an enemy who has become someone she feels so completely safe with.

Beneath this I think there is also a thread of empathy and shared idiosyncratic communication between them. They were both cruelly broken into roles that made it difficult for them to connect to others. Violence is a language both of them understand very well, in different ways, and even after they each turn on their cruel masters, violence retains meaning for them.

For SH, violence is to be enacted and more often endured as a sign of devotion. It's something that carries wisdom, the agony of lessons learned and knowledge that is uncomfortable but ultimately good for you. I don't think this is something she decides is wrong. I think what disillusioned her (beyond the betrayal of being lied to) was how Shar was revealed to have misused her pain. Shar's pain was not a gift, it had no loving measure or purpose. It was a spiteful, excessive control tactic.

I like to imagine SH learning a new way to use her affinity with pain, which I think is a very normal affinity for people to have. To learn how to use pain the way she had wanted it to be used and had come to admire. To make pain bespoke from Shar, her own gift to give and recieve on her own terms.

For LZ, violence is to be mastered for survival and superiority. Pain was only endured to prove you could endure it better than others. Violence is a hammer in a world where all beings are nails, except you and the few other hammers. All else was forsaken for this mastery. Even in sex violence and superiority are key. Vulnerability is terrifying, to make yourself a nail made to be driven by hammers who are certain of their purpose.

What else could be a greater liberating thrill, a more profound sign of trust for LZ? Willing submission to the violence of another. Those she comes to truly love become the source of her bruises. In submission to violence LZ embraces true vulnerability, untethered by tradition, opening herself to another person and trusting them to handle her with care.

In conclusion: These bitches love knife play, it gets them super hot and they feel rly connected after and share wine and cheese and maybe a massage if they have energy as aftercare. LZ will be cuddled but only if SH doesn't ask and just does it. LZ always makes sure to tell SH she admires her skill and had fun. Its very sweet

[winternet-s]

BEGIN,BEGINING - g.satoru

(synopsis): [name] living creature of Frost, a planet where girls have little to no rights decide to leave after hearing the story of a woman who escaped the planet to live on Earth. And this one night [name] also tried.

notes : i've been inspired by xg's storyline/music videos - might see some typos / grammatical errors. pardon my writing skills i'm working on it 🫡

━━━ 𝓓rop by drop, drop by drop, they came one after the other, forming a perfect harmony. The recital continued at a steady pace, but suddenly the wind came and blew the rain with passion, harmonising with each other. That’s what was witnessing the white-haired man while looking through his window, it’s been Satoru was assigned a mission that was without doubt the least usual but also the most abnormal - his eyes had been through a lot but he would never have believed it.

Yet the proof was there laying in his bed, the person was sound asleep it was her most active phase since he took her in. Everything about her was off, if we took off the bruises that were marked on her forehead. It was a truth that fashion was now advanced but not that advanced, plus the place where he found her was strange too. In what kind of mess did I put myself in he thought, his gaze turning on the new figure.

Meanwhile you were still asleep, your consciousness was awake, taking in account the pain you could feel in your arms and the pounding in your head was telling you to stay laid down. Every thoughts was taking steps, leaping and twirling with each other, leading you to wake up physically.

You woke up the way hospital patients do, it hurts you thought while grumbling. Cursed to wake up with waking up with pain, your eyes opening greeted a new place, unfamiliar to you. 

At first sight it was pretty minimalistic. There were not much decorations put into that place, the white color was the master ruling the room with his inseparable sidekick being there at some places. Sitting now on the bed, you finally realized that you were in some new clothes. Clothes that were way bigger than your frame. 

Continuing to scan the room with your curious eyes you mentally captured every new item in your mind. Until your eyes locked with a pair of blue eyes, slate outer rings with teal all the way to black, those blue eyes were beautiful yet intimidating, they were staring at you with amusement.

The man in your sight nonchalantly sat on a chair, but what caught you was the type of beauty he radiated. He was the type of beauty you could witness once and never see again. That beauty he got outside could capture anyone’s attention, so how would it come when we got to know him? 

Messy hair looked good on his head, for it flows upon his face every time he would tilt it, a thing that didn’t tilt you. The strands moving in synchro with his head movement, “Your staring is starting to creep me out,” the man said owly blinking at you, his comment woke you up for the third time usually a woman would say that to a man.

“I’m sorry my intention wasn’t to make you feel uncomfortable!” You quickly apologized, avoiding his eyes to focus on playing with your hands, “But you’re a beautiful being!” You continued, this time you directly looked at him, a shy smile adorning your face. 

“It’s refreshing to see someone acknowledging it,” His overconfident side spoke before realising, “Wait you can speak our language– No actually could explain to me what happened to you? And who are you?”

His childish side quickly turned on something odd, which surprised you. But once again you were in a place where you didn’t know anything you didn’t know what he was capable of - “U-Uh I’m [name] from Frost,” You introduced yourself with your eyes still on his frame, noticing his puzzled expression. That very expression could be a sign that you've actually arrived at your destination, or it could just be a sign of something else. The last few minutes of memories you had of your journey was pretty eventful in the worst possible way. 

“That would explain why I found you in that destroyed spaceship..”

“I guess yeah... Also may I ask who you are?” 

“Gojo Satoru, and may I ask what exactly happenee to you?" The white haired asked curiously his eyes analyzing yours, that were avoiding his.

The wind outside murmured secrets through the night, whispering tales of distant lands and forgotten dreams. Satoru’s gaze softened, taking in the fragile figure before him, her presence a delicate ripple in the fabric of his world.

[name]’s eyes flickered like distant stars, struggling to make sense of the swirling memories that danced just out of reach. Pain and confusion clouded her mind, yet there was a fierce determination in her gaze, a will forged in the cold fires of Frost.

"Gojo Satoru," she repeated, the name tasting foreign yet familiar on her tongue. "I... I was escaping. Our planet, Frost, it’s no place for freedom. Especially not for someone like me."

Satoru leaned forward, his interest piqued. "Tell me more. What drove you to risk everything?"

[name]’s fingers tightened around the edge of the blanket, her voice a fragile thread weaving through the silence. "There was a woman, a legend among us. She spoke of Earth, of possibilities and rights, of a life where a girl could be more than just a shadow. I had to find that life. I had to escape."

Her words hung in the air, delicate as the rain outside, each syllable a testament to her resilience. Satoru watched her, the light in his eyes dancing like the moon on water. "And the ship? What happened?"

"I... I don’t remember everything," [name] admitted, frustration flickering across her features. "There was a storm, not unlike the one outside now. I thought I was lost, that the universe itself was swallowing me whole. Then, nothing but darkness until I woke here.

Satoru nodded slowly, the pieces of her story forming a mosaic in his mind. "You’re safe now," he said, his voice a soothing balm. "But Frost, it’s not just a place, is it? It’s part of who you are."

[name] met his gaze, her eyes reflecting the depth of her journey. "Yes, but it doesn’t define me. Not anymore. I want to learn, to grow, to be free."

A silence settled between them, thick with unspoken promises. Satoru’s lips curved into a rare smile, a hint of admiration in his eyes. "Then you’ve come to the right place. Earth has its own challenges, but it also holds the keys to the freedom you seek."

[name] took a deep breath, the weight of her past slowly lifting. "Thank you," she whispered, her voice trembling with hope and gratitude.

Satoru stood, offering her a hand. "Rest now. Tomorrow, we’ll start anew. The journey you’ve begun is far from over, but you won’t face it alone."

As she took his hand, the room seemed to brighten, the first rays of dawn breaking through the darkness. Outside, the rain continued its symphony, a gentle reminder that even the stormiest nights give way to morning light. Together, they would navigate the path ahead, bound by the shared promise of a future filled with endless possibilities.

[name] lay back, her mind a whirlwind of thoughts. Sleep came fitfully, but when morning light spilled into the room, she felt a strange sense of calm. She rose, dressed in the oversized clothes, and stepped out of the room, guided by the sound of voices.

Satoru was in the kitchen, moving with an effortless grace, preparing breakfast. He glanced up as she entered, offering a smile that seemed to light up the room. "Good morning. How are you feeling?"

"A bit better, thank you," she replied, taking in the unfamiliar surroundings. "This place... it’s peaceful."

"It’s home," Satoru said simply, handing her a plate. "Eat. You need your strength."

They sat in companionable silence, the food a comforting contrast to the starkness of her recent memories. After a while, Satoru broke the silence. "You mentioned a woman who inspired you. Tell me more about her."

[name]’s eyes softened, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. "She was a rebel, a beacon of hope. She spoke of Earth as a sanctuary, a place where dreams could flourish. Her words were a lifeline in the darkness."

Satoru listened intently, his expression thoughtful. "And you believed her. Enough to risk everything."

"Yes," [name] said firmly. "I had to. For myself, and for others like me. Frost is a cage, and I refused to let it define my fate."

Satoru nodded, respect shining in his eyes. "You’re brave. Braver than most. But now that you’re here, what will you do?"

[name] looked out the window, the city beyond a maze of possibilities. "I want to learn, to understand this world. To find my place in it."

"You will," Satoru said with conviction. "And I’ll help you. But first, we need to make sure you’re safe. There are people who might not be happy about your arrival."

[name]’s heart skipped a beat, fear mingling with determination. "What do you mean?"

"Frost isn’t the only place with secrets," Satoru explained, his tone serious. "There are those who would see you returned, or worse. But you’re not alone. I’ll teach you, guide you."

A flicker of hope ignited in [name]’s chest. "Thank you, Satoru. I won’t waste this chance."

He smiled, a hint of mischief in his eyes. "I know you won’t. Now, let’s get started. We have a lot to cover."

Together, they stepped into the new day, the world before them a canvas waiting to be painted with the colors of freedom and possibility. For [name], the journey was just beginning, but with Satoru by her side, she felt ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead.

winnie's thoughts : here another one and longer hopefully you'll enjoy it let me know in the comments <33

[gunilslaugh]

(Gu)Nilly

Summary: Goo Gunil, first he was your senior in high school. Now you work at the same company as him. (non-idol au)

WC:~2.3k 

Warning:none

photo not mine credits to owner.

Your footsteps quickened trying your best to avoid a girl that you had ticked off. You and her were assigned to do a project together, but she decided to have you do all the work for it. Saying that she was sorry, but she was simply too busy with her after school activities. It was clear that she was lying which is why you just so happened to forget to add her name to the project. Now she was pissed and had it out for you. Your steps slowed back down as you looked around not seeing the girl anymore. 

“Bold enough to leave my name off the project, but bold enough to face me.” The girl appeared around the corner. You sighed. 

“You were the one who was too lazy to even write your own name on the project. I shared it with you all you had to do was write your name and you could’ve got credit for my work,” you tell her. The girl scoffs. 

“You really have some nerve. Someone should really put you in your place.” The girl raises her hand, beginning to swing arm to slap you. It was too late for you to move, so you braced yourself for impact, but it never came. 

“What’s going on here?” A voice belonging to a guy asked. You looked to your right to see a guy holding the wrist of the girl who was about to slap you. The girl laughs, putting on a fake smile and tugging her wrist out of the guy’s grasp. 

“Oh nothing is going on, we were just playing around. We’re friends,” she lied. 

“No we’re not,” you said right after. The girl shoots you a fiery glare. “She’s mad because I didn’t write her name for her on a project I did all by myself,” you explained. The guy sends the girl a look, clicking his tongue. He also positions himself slightly in front of you. Putting himself between you and the girl.

“You were gonna hit her because you were too lazy to do your own work?” The guy arched his brow.

“I wasn’t lazy. I was busy,” the girl argued. 

“Did you have time in class to work on the project?” The guy turned to look at you. With eyes much softer than the one he was looking at the girl with. 

“Yeah the teacher gave us four days of class work on it,” you told him. 

“Why didn’t you help them during class then?” he questioned. 

“Well I-” 

“Cause she wasn’t there. She ditched,” you interjected. The guy lets out a sigh. He stands up straighter. 

“Listen”–He folds his arms over his chest– “You’re the one who didn’t do the work. Getting mad at someone for you getting what you deserve is really pathetic. If you wanted the grade you should have at least written your own name. Now leave and if I see you bothering them again I’ll be the one to put you in your place,” he said. Revealing that he had heard the conversation between you two before he stepped in. The girl looked down at her feet quickly scurrying away.

“Thank you,” you thanked him.

“No problem. People like her piss me off. I’m Gunil,” he introduced himself. 

“Y/n,” you introduced yourself back. Before you could say anything else the bell rang signaling that it was time for class. “We should get going,” you say. 

“What class do you have?” Gunil asked. He started to walk alongside you. 

“Biology,” you answered.

“I thought freshmen took biology,” he stated. 

“Tis I,” you partly laughed. 

“You’re a freshman?” Gunil questioned surprised. 

“Yeah, do I not look like one?” you responded.

“Not really. Plus I know that girl is a junior so I kinda thought. 

“Our class together is an elective class. It’s mixed grades,” you inform him. Gunil nods. 

“Well if you need any more help from a senior friend let me know,” Gunil smiled at you. 

“Sure thing, thanks.” Gunil and you part ways. You weren’t really expecting to see him around much after that. 

However you actually ended up seeing Gunil quite often. Gunil wasn’t afraid to wave to you in the halls. He would call out your name to get your attention. If he was far away he would send you a bright smile with an excited wave. If he was only a couple feet away you would pause your steps and he would hurry to catch up to you. The two of you started to form a friendship. 

“You’re big and buff, but you are actually a big softie aren’t you Nilly.” You playfully pet Gunil’s head like he did to the stray cat the two of you came across.

“Nilly? Did you just call me Nilly?” Gunil turned his attention away from the cat and onto you. 

“Yeah why? Do you not like it?” you asked. It’s quite the opposite. Gunil’s heart blossomed with warmth upon hearing the nickname leave your mouth. It made him feel giddy, too giddy. 

“It’s silly,” he chuckled. 

“Like you.” A mischievous smile danced across your lips. “Silly Nilly,” you leaned closer and booped his nose. Then you turned your attention to the cat, petting it gently. Gunil kinda hates how you seem to be so nonchalant about everything while he feels like his heart could combust. Nonetheless he can’t help but look at you so endearingly as you pet the cat. Then he remembers that he is graduating in three months and he doesn’t think that he wants to say goodbye to you. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was the first day of your new job. You would now be working at the front desk as a receptionist for a company. You had just received your name tag and your coworker was currently showing you the ropes. As your coworker is explaining things to you about the computer you hear several pairs of footsteps approach the desk.

“You finally don’t have to man the front desk alone anymore Jungsu,” someone said. 

“Yeah, this is my new front desk buddy, y/n,” Jungsu introduced you. You looked away from the computer to properly greet the company employees. That’s when you lock eyes with him. It’s Gunil, he’s standing right in front of you on the other side of the desk. He’s wearing a button up with nice pants and a lanyard hanging around his neck. It was your first time seeing him in five years. Since he graduated high school. 

“Nilly?” The old nickname fell from your lips. Just like it did all those years ago when you first called him the nickname Gunil’s heart blossoms with warmth. 

“Hi y/n. It’s been a while,” he smiles. 

“You two know each other?” His coworker asked surprised. Pointing between the both of you. 

“We briefly knew each other in high school,” you told them. 

“Yeah, they were my favorite underclassmen,” Gunil said. 

“Underclassmen? Oh I feel sorry for you now. Gunil is so annoying with his ‘You should respect your seniors.’” His coworker puffed out his chest, trying to imitate Gunil’s build. 

“He never said anything like-”

“Because you should respect your seniors and as your seniors I say we get to work now. Have a good day y/n. Treat them well, Jungsu.” Gunil nudges his coworkers to walk away with him. 

“So Nilly?” Jungsu looked at you.

“Yeah it was a nickname I gave him,” you said simply, going back to work. 

“It’s too cute for someone as serious as Gunil,” Jungsu says. 

“What do you mean? Gunil isn’t that serious. He’s a big softie,” you tell Jungsu. 

“Big softie? I really want to get to know this Nilly that you know,” Jungsu states. His words make you feel curious. Has Gunil changed that much since you last saw him? Although it has been five years since you last saw Gunil. Five years is plenty of time for someone to change, but the way he smiled at you didn’t seem any different. 

“Nilly?” Gunil’s coworker Jiseok poked at him. “How does an uptight guy like you get a nickname as cute as Nilly?” 

“They were the only one to call me that and I’m not uptight. I just really care about my work.”

“As curious as I am about how he got the nickname Nilly. I’m more curious about why you looked at y/n like they’re the love of your life. Seriously the way you smiled at them. You had lights shining in your eyes. You looked like a completely different person, maybe Nilly.” Seungmin, Gunil’s other coworker, pointed out.

“Ok, first, stop calling me Nilly.” Gunil points at either of them. “Second, my love life doesn’t concern you. Third, get to work.” Gunil settles himself at his desk. He can’t believe that he has run into you again. He misses you so much after graduating high school. Especially when he found himself in a predicament similar to the one he saved you from him. When he first entered the company he now works at. His higher ups/seniors made him do all of their work then submitted it as if it was their own. Gunil found it to be quite ironic. He saved you from a situation that he now couldn't seem to get out of. Then Gunil thought of a way out. He told his seniors to not worry about submitting, that he would do it for them once he finished. Then he proceeded to submit his work with his name on it. He couldn’t keep the smirk off of his face as their department head came into their office asking why they never turned in any work? Questioning why was Gunil running a one man show? His coworkers were pissed, but Gunil kept up his tough act. He told them off, just like he told that girl off for you years ago. Unfortunately Gunil felt like he couldn’t drop the tough act after that. He felt like if he did then people would try to take advantage of him again. So he made himself a little reputation as a serious, uptight guy.

You couldn’t help yourself from asking Jungsu questions about Gunil. It didn’t make sense to you how the sweet guy you knew in high school was supposedly now uptight and cold. Jungsu was just as curious to hear about the Gunil, Nilly, that you knew. Jungsu was also stunned to hear about how Gunil would call out to you and wave in the halls. The smile you always saw him wearing. How he would walk you to class even if he class was in the opposite direction. The stray cats that he couldn’t walk by without giving them a few pets. That he held back his tears as he told you goodbye. It was if you knew two different people. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Nilly?” You asked Gunil as he was walking you back to your place. He was currently crouching down petting a stray kitten. It reminded you very much of your time back in high school. He was just like your old “Silly Nilly”. 

“Yeah?” He turns away from the kitten to look at you. Butterflies filling his stomach at your use of the nickname. 

“Why do people at the company think you're a serious, uptight person?” You had to hear it from him because other people’s words about him were simply unbelievable to you. Gunil looks back down at the kitten giving it one final pat before standing back up. 

“When I first entered the company…” Gunil proceeds to tell you about the story of his higher ups who took advantage of him. 

“Well if they ever bother you again or anyone else I’ll put them in their place,” you tell him. Gunil can’t fight off the smile of you using the words he once used to protect you. You felt better knowing that he was still your Nilly. The people at work just didn’t know the real him like you did. You bend down to pet the stray kitten that was still hanging around you and Gunil. Now Gunil is the one reminded of high school. Staring at you just as endearingly if not more endearingly as he did back then. It hits him. He doesn’t want to have to say goodbye to you ever again. 

“Y/n,” he calls you. 

“Yeah?” You look up at him. He crouches down beside you. 

“Can I be your Nilly?” he asked, earning a laugh out of you. 

“What are you saying? You already are my Nilly,” you booped his nose. 

“No I mean.” He took your hands in his. “I like you y/n. I always want to be your Nilly,” he says. You smile and readjust your hands to hold his back.

“My answer is still the same. You are my Nilly, always will be.” Gunil smiles and leans his forehead against yours. He has never felt more at peace. He reluctantly removes his forehead from yours and stands up. 

“Come on, let’s get you home.” he held out his hand to you. You gladly take it. 

Bonus Scene:

“Oh my gosh are you seeing this!” Jiseok repeatedly tapped Seungmin. From where they stand looking out the window of their office.

“I’m seeing it,” Seungmin replied, his mouth slightly agape. Gunil has you trapped inside his embrace, pressing kisses all over the top of your head. 

“We have to go to work. Let me go,” you laugh trying to escape his embrace. 

“Work can wait. I haven’t seen you for five years. Let me make up for lost time and hold you.” 

“We’re already here though.” You gestured to your company building. 

“Exactly, we’re not going to be late, so let’s just stay like this for a bit.” He holds you closer to him. 

“People will see,” you say shyly. 

“Let them see. Everyone should know that I’m yours and you’re mine.” He kisses you briefly. 

Jiseok and Seungmin’s eyes widened in shock. 

“That’s not the Gunil we know,” Jiseok states. 

“It’s Nilly,” Seungmin says. Jiseok smiles. 

“Where are my kisses Nilly?” Jiseok shouts from the window.

[ahlyasimps]

Treasure Hunter [O.G.]

Pairing: Ominis Gaunt x GN Reader (tried to make it GN and this fic could be read as platonic)

Summary: Ominis always seems to walk near those blasted field guide pages so you’ve taken to using him to help find the rest (by following him around, totally not stalking or anything).

A/N: Inspired by what actually did end up happening in game as I was exploring. Who needs the minimap when Ominis can lead you right to Herodiana’s vault.  Can’t believe the first piece of fanfic I ever write is for a stinking video game 😭

"There goes that new fifth year," the Gryffindor student said as he sighed to his friends. "Genuinely, I do believe they've got a few Wrackspurts flying around in that head of theirs," replied a Slytherin narrowly avoiding the sprinting fashion disaster that was Hogwart's newest enigma.

Dressed in the ugliest green hat, dragonskin cloak, a rather odd skull mask and what appeared to be mermaid regalia, was you. And truly, it wasn't your fault you almost ran into the poor Slytherin, casting revelio every second possible makes it terribly difficult to see. If anyone should be to blame, it would be Professor Weasley for making you collect all these field pages! While this is helping you get more "actual" practice with spells the constant sprinting around Hogwarts for them was exhausting. Never mind your "extracurricular activities" outside the castle's walls, climbing up and down all those flights of stairs was going to be the death of you.

Just when you wanted to catch a break you spotted your new favourite student, Ominis Gaunt. At first you were fascinated with the way his wand helps him to navigate the castle and followed him around to see how it worked, but after he unknowingly helped you find Herodiana's secret vault by walking to the location, you've taken to calling him your treasure hunter. Wherever he goes there always seems to be either a field guide page or chests to steal from! Naturally, this time would be no different so you started trying to follow him.

You followed Ominis as he walked down the dimly lit corridor. His wand was emitting a soft red light that guided his way. You could hear his footsteps echoing through the stone halls as he made his way towards the Great Hall. You trailed behind him, trying to stay out of sight, but also eager to see what he would lead you to next.

As he turned into an empty corridor he suddenly rounded on you. "And just what do you think you're doing?" he asked, eyes staring in your general direction. "You've been following me for awhile now and this isn't the first time. I've let you off because you seem harmless enough but I demand answers."

You froze, caught off guard by his sudden confrontation. "I-I'm sorry," you stammered, trying to think of an excuse but unable to. "I have these extra assignments to do from Professor Weasley where I have to collect these missing pages from a book and somehow, you always end up in the vicinity of these pages" As the words came out of you, you cringed realizing how weird it sounded, but it was the truth.

Ominis raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Is that so?" he said, his tone still sharp. He paused, "I don't have class for the rest of the day, and I've been curious to speak to the person who bested Sebastian in a duel. I suppose I can help out. However, I don't appreciate being following like some sort of animal. Next time if you wanted my help, you could have asked."

You felt your cheeks heat up with embarrassment, but also relief that he didn't seem too angry with you. "Thank you," you said, grateful for his help. "And I'm sorry for following you like that. I'll make sure to ask next time."

With that, Ominis led the way down the corridor, his wand still glowing in the dim light. You followed closely behind him, trying to match his pace. As he began to show you different areas of the castle you had yet to explore, you couldn't help but feel a sense of excitement and gratitude towards him. Maybe this was the start of a beautiful friendship, or even something more. But for now, you were content just to explore Hogwarts with him and enjoy his company.

[eriexplosion]

Replacements time, I didn't need my heart anyway.

The way that Wrecker was fully going to take Omega's food rations, I get it I am also not thinking when I'm hungry. But this combined with his line in Pabu about being full for the first time, they were just NEVER provided enough rations to adequately fuel Wrecker, not even before they had to puzzle through buying them themselves. The kaminoans had to know his calorie intake needs okay and they simply opted NOT to fill them. Justice and a nine course meal for Wrecker.

"It's not affecting life support. We're fine!" Tech is going to come back with like a dozen injuries he simply didn't deal with yet because he was technically able to function with them, so it's basically the same as being healthy.

I do love Echo's grouchy REPAIRS WOULD GO FASTER IF I HAD SOME HELP, but the feels punch of seeing them bickering in the pilot and copilot seats and then flashing forward mentally to Echo gazing sadly at the empty chair. I'm hurting my OWN FEELINGS.

I FEEL LIKE IT WOULD BE REASONABLE TO STRAP GONKY IN? DO YOU WANT A FIFTY SOME POUND (MINIMUM) DROID SLIDING AROUND FREELY IN A CRASH SITUATION?

Another Wrecker head bonk, no wonder his chip activated it's been under percussive maintenance this whole time.

CROSSHAIR WEAPONS KIT MOMENT. Which they have just been steadfastly ignoring because it hurt their feelings to think about it.

Further evidence they simply haven't been thinking about it: Echo like THEY CAN DO THAT? when Tech reminds them that the chip can influence behaviors. Yeah what did you think they did, Echo, just provided a tiny little nudge? But I think it's just very hard to fully grasp the scope of something like that. Yes almost every single clone is under the control of an inhibitor chip, yes it's strong enough to make you turn on your own squad, yes that's in ALL of their heads right now, just not functioning properly.

I just love Wrecker not giving that much of a shit about being shot. That hurt, but he still misses Crosshair.

Anyway this squad contains pure concentrated avoidance juice, if they just don't think about it then Crosshair didn't betray them.

Rampart and Tarkin together creating a solid layer of slime all over the room. I just hate them watching him through a one way mirror talking about him like an interesting object. (Though I do like the moment where he stares at them straight through his own reflection, he knows he's being watched the whole time)

They literally do not address him once and he looks so unimpressed just looking between them like he's waiting for anyone to notice he's there.

Tech looking at giant clawmarks in the siding: well those weren't there when we landed. Treat something like an emergency challenge, impossible.

"I'm part of this squad now too, right?" *Tech and Echo look at Hunter, they're NOT taking a stance on this* Assigned dad by committee

"I'm angry at myself. We don't leave our own behind." "Then we'll find a way to get him back. Somehow." AND THIS IS WHY THEY ALL NEED TO BE TOGETHER, THIS IS WHAT THE SHOW DESPERATELY WANTS US TO WANT, THE TEAM IS NOT COMPLETE UNTIL IT'S ALL OF THEM.

I might have paused just before the start of the attack on Gerrera's camp for an inordinately long time but it's just a genuinely distressing scene.

Does contain a GREAT transition back to Hunter & Omega though.

"See it?" Well Hunter it's both flashing AND beeping, so yeah I think Omega sees it.

The way that Hunter straight up would have died out here if Omega hadn't gone with him okay, just would not have come back. (Omega is going to continue to be the key to making sure everyone survives I think.)

Back to Onderon for more highly uncomfortable war crime scenes. Truly I don't think that the show that has Crosshair shoot a woman at point blank range would have many reservations showing us Tech's body. (Yes I'm going to be like this the whole time I'm SORRY)

But ohhhh my god I need Onderon to come back somehow. I need it to become relevant. I think a lot of the time people do want to pass over it because it's horrific and like it's not one of the several things Crosshair does wrong of his own free will. But it's also still something that he remembers doing, all of it, and I think it's pretty key to why he eventually tries to stay with the Empire. What do you do when you've done something so horrific, when maybe you've been told it wasn't your choice and it wasn't your fault but you still remember giving the order, you remember every sight and sound and smell, and you remember at the time it made so much sense to do it. You can even remember the reasoning you came up with to ease the way. What do you do when you've done something so bad that you think that the only way forward is with the people that forced it onto you in the first place?

Anyway fucked up that they gave that one soldier a flamethrower just so we know completely that those civilians were burned alive, that's great.

Back to Hunter thinking he has had this child for a day and a half and has already lost her on a deserted rock somewhere.

"Soldiers know the risks of battle" what about the risks of Crosshair because like Crosshair is the cause of 100% of his squad's fatalities through this season.

Crosshair in the cleaned out quarters with all of the doodles and marks still on the bunks, going to his own and everything that made it his has been cleared out of it. They even took his walls of boxes. Just completely alone in their old room with nothing but the reality of what he did. I wonder if guilt comes easier when they're not in battle.

AND JUST THE CONTRAST WITH THE ABSOLUTE SWEETNESS OF OMEGA GETTING HER OWN ROOM ON THE MARAUDER. MAKING A BEAUTIFUL AND WARM PLACE FOR HER THAT STANDS OUT FROM EVERYTHING ELSE.

SERIOUSLY MY HEART.

HER PRECIOUS FACE <3 God I do love this episode even though it wounds me in places.

[thesparklingwriter]

𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒏𝒆𝒙𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒆

~ "But maybe somewhere, nestled between the thick haze of hatred, a single light shines through—suggesting that maybe you don’t truly hate Kaeya."

tags: kaeya x reader, gn!reader, Kaeya is slacking off at work again, i made them kiss because why not, fluff

word count: 498

a/n: hi this is a mix of two requests cause i thought they actually fit nicely together also i'm very bad at writing anything toxic it all turns into fluff so i'm very sorry if you hate it <3 this is also quite short for me but i thought i might start doing shorter things with part twos to avoid burnout and keep my account active lol

i've tried to post this three times and i lost my proof edits every time so i will edit this properly tomorrow when i'm not on the verge of tears

masterlist | taglist

“Why are you so grumpy?”

You look at Kaeya, fixing him with a disapproving glare. He knows better than to fall for the malice in your eyes, the faint blush dusted upon your cheeks and ears evidence enough of the fact you might just be enjoying this.

“We’re supposed to be working.”

Getting assigned to work with the most disgustingly charming knight headquarters has was not your plan for this week, and no amount of convincing will change your mind. This is not fun. You hate the guy, the way he brazenly ignores protocol, the way he laughs at his superiors and gets away with it… more than anything, you hate the fact he does the things you wish you could.

“Technically I’m on a break right now.” Kaeya says, fixing you with his piercing gaze. That always intrigued you—his eye patch, that is. You seemed to be the only one fascinated by it, and as you stare back at him, the hatred mounts once more. It’s not fair—the freedom he has to just be.

“We have things to do, Kaeya.” You complain. “Seriously.”

“Would it kill you to relax, treasure?”

You feel your face and ears heat up, and press your hands to your cheeks. Kaeya watches you with an unabashed curiosity, surprised by your physical reaction, waiting to see what your next words will be.

“You can’t go around just calling people pet names, you know. It might make someone uncomfortable.” You swallow thickly, glaring at him. But even you know the glares are a means of hiding how much you liked him calling you that. When’s the last time someone ever took the time to call you anything but your given name?

Kaeya’s smile drops imperceptibly. “Are you that someone?”

“Uh, no.”

“I see.” He chuckles. “You’re looking out for other people. Very kind of you.”

He reaches out, as if he means to cup your cheek in his hand, but he seems to think better of it. “Would this make someone uncomfortable?” he asks, raising his eyebrow slightly.

“Maybe,” you grin, and Kaeya begins to retract his hand. “But I won’t know unless I get to try.”

You hate him, you remind yourself, as you press your lips against his, savouring the way he tastes on your tongue. You really, really hate him.

But maybe somewhere, nestled between the thick haze of hatred, a single light shines through—suggesting that maybe you don’t truly hate him. Perhaps it’s the opposite.

Kaeya pulls away from you, smiling softly. It’s unlike the usual smiles you see him give people—it’s gentle and shamelessly joy-filled.

“We’re going to have to work on the way you kiss.”

he whispers, and you gasp in shock, the faint heat from earlier returning to your face as you turn away from him. You hate him.

“Ah, come on, treasure.” he teases, turning your face back to his. “No one ever got better at anything without practice.”

[penig]

So, and so. September 29th, and the worst is upon the Daily Dracula reader; we have hit rock bottom and can now push off from despair and start the ascent.

For most people, I suppose, That Scene is Arthur staking Lucy, but for me it’s a tiny bit earlier. When I hear the word “Dracula” the image that leaps into my mind is not the evil count himself in any of his canon guises or film portrayals, but the thing using Lucy’s body, on the cemetery path, clutching an unconscious child with its blood on her mouth.

At that point, the worst thing is undeniable, it cannot be avoided anymore; but the mere fact of seeing the worst means that the uncertainty and nameless dread are past. It will not get worse than this; it cannot get worse than this; now even those who never heard of the undead before tonight are over the hump of incredulity, know what they’re up against, and have access to van Helsing’s knowledge of how to defeat it.

Now also comes Mina, keeping her head even when it’s in a whirl, with her organizational skills and her clear focus on getting the ducks in a row and clearing the decks for action; and in her wake Jonathan, able at last to acknowledge what happened to him and do his bit to turn the tables on his tormentor. We have a team now. We have the information in hand to form and carry out a plan. We can now go on the attack and take that bastard down.

And ultimately, it is Lucy who makes it possible. She could not fight him off herself, though she fought gamely; but she is the one who assembled the team around her, by being Lucy. Her attachment to Mina is the only link between Jonathan and the rest, and she is the one who attracted the men we call the polycule and retained them all even after singling out one. We joke about it, but even within the modern framework of polyamory this is not an easy thing to do. She inspired in them, in van Helsing, and in Mina a rare and selfless love that survives the horror and makes it possible to look at it, to face it, in order first to save and then to avenge her.

Mina, of course, also has a husband to avenge, and is a rare lover herself. Mina is an extraordinary woman even in her ordinary life. We have seen Jonathan rise to the extraordinary in dire circumstances, and I do not think he and Mina could pair so well if he had not always had that extraordinary strain latent within him. The polycule and van Helsing - excuse me - are in most ways fairly ordinary Victorian men.

Yes, even van Helsing. Their quirks make some of them unusual, certainly, but those are only quirks and contain as much weakness as strength. Lucy has drawn out of them a degree and depth of love that raises them above their normal level and makes the team possible. Their weaknesses and the limitations of their Victorian training will still hinder them - you will still want to choke them more than once before the end - but the love Lucy gave them bestowed on them a strength they could not have achieved on their own.

To a modern reader this seems a distastefully passive, Victorian, hidebound strength. We want strength that is active, direct, and overt and seldom recognize any other kind. But the Victorian mistake was not in valuing this sort of strength, but in assigning it to women and allowing us no other kind of strength; labeling the strength to endure and to inspire “feminine” and the strength to attack and to triumph “masculine” and to build a wall between the two spheres. It is our mistake to ditch the “feminine” strength altogether, to mistake it for weakness and scorn those who have it instead of the other. Yet you need them both to defeat evil.

It is the person who achieves both kinds - Jonathan - who survived the Count and brought the key strategic information out of Transylvania, after all.

[awholelottayeehaw]

KINKTOBER DAY 5: Fucking Machine -Part 2 (Preview)

I'm so sorry everyone for being late on posting The Middle Part 1, between a doctor's appointment, having to go to the local courthouse to explain YET AGAIN why I can't participate in jury duty as a disabled person on welfare due to a low paying career, and my oven breaking on top of some of my students needing a tutoring session on Saturday, I've been exhausted but I plan on posting The Middle Part 1 by tonight and here's a sneak preview of another fic coming out this upcoming Friday as an apology and to give you something to look forward to!

You had many problems, and delayed responses were definitely a few of them.

You weren’t sure if too much time had passed, but the moment you decided to reciprocate Din’s touches and stares, the man pulled back. He stopped touching you and started to actively avoid any room you were in. It was as if that month of pining never happened, and the sudden isolation left your head and heart empty wondering if maybe you had done something wrong. It was so bad, some days when you came back from work you were genuinely surprised that The Mandalorian and Grogu hadn’t packed their things and left. But regardless, the rejection stung with a touch of humiliation that you’d never admit out loud but held close to your heart.

That isolation is what guided you to punch in the coordinates for the nearest planet with the lie on your lips of having a job there that would require your time for a few hours. You noticed that had made Din’s shoulders slump a little in relief, and that only added salt to the rejection and hurt. But the warrior's touches and stares had also left you horny and your fingers and the vibrator you had on your nightstand just weren't doing the trick. That’s how you found yourself at the only brothel on the planet, taken aback by the fact that it was run by droids with the only prostitutes available being the robotic kind, and embarrassingly staring at the droid before you that had the most realistic pussy you had ever seen on something that hadn’t been assigned female at birth.

After turning down another droid with a similar physique but with a, quite frankly, impressive erection instead of a vagina; the female droid led you to a section of the brothel where a private room was waiting for you. You couldn't help the heat that crept to your cheeks and ears at the sounds of sentient species coupling with droids or whatever they paid to be with as you passed rooms by. You also couldn't help the way it made your pussy pulse with need and grow wetter with each step, or how the clench of your thighs did very little to relieve the feeling growing within your groin.

To be released on Friday, February 17th.

Tag List:

@avatarkanemi @yourcoolauntie (MJ babe I couldn't remember if you wanted to be tagged or not so I'm including you just let me know if you want to be removed)

[huanglong-diyidou]

some football player prevents you from studying (itto x reader)

If only… if only that stupid jock didn’t come into your life. 

Here you were, in your dorm, with an extremely loud 6’6 behemoth and an extremely unfinished literature assignment. “What didja think of my football match, huh? Didn’t I play like a CHAMP? Did you SEE that touchdown I made? Huh? Did you? Did you? I was so cool, did you see me at all?!” Itto pesters you. You’d just come back from spectating his football match. “Itto, if you don’t shut up right this instant I will throw you out the window.” you reply, annoyed. You could not care less how much that idiot weighed. God, couldn’t he take a hint and leave you alone?

To be fair, this was partly your fault. You decided to cave in after he asked you a million times to hang out right after the game. You agreed on the condition that he’d let you work on your assignment. Condition quickly forgotten when Itto started pointing out all the decorations on your walls. “HEY, is that a band? Ooh, is that figurine from a video game? Is that- IS THAT A DILDO?” He shouts, as he lifts up a karaoke microphone. You just shot him a death stare. Is he this stupid or is he doing it on purpose? “Itto. Put the microphone down. Also, you can either stay quiet, or leave! I gotta finish this!” you said. “All right, all right… I’ll leave you and your precious assignment be…” he said, pouting a little and rolling his eyes.

And now here we are, twenty minutes later and hardly a few sentences typed out. Itto’s voice is still blasting in your ears. You shot a look at the time. You still had until midnight to submit it, and it was 5pm. You had the time, but didn’t feel like waiting till the last moment to turn it in. It’s not a good idea, and you learned it the hard way. You are proud of yourself for actively avoiding this mistake. Now, if only there was some peace and quiet. “Hey, Itto. What’ll it take for you to stay quiet until I finish this, huh? Name anything. Anything at all.” You were desperate. “Huh? Really? Anything at all? For realsies?” He smiles, fangs out. “Are you suuuuure?” Something about his tone makes you think you’re gonna regret this. “Yes. Anything.” you reply. “Alright! Then… you gotta let me take you out on a date!”

…

…Did you hear that right?

The Arataki Itto wanted to go out with you? Is this some sort of prank?

 Knowing him, it probably was. But… he’s not the type to hurt people’s emotions like that. Did he really mean it?

“Uh… are you gonna just stare at me the whole time or are ya gonna say something?” His voice snaps you back to reality. You hadn’t realized you were spacing out.

“Ah… I mean… HEY! You can’t just.. ask me out like that?! What is wrong with you? I mean… yeah! I’ll go out with you!” you say. 

“SWEET! I’ll pick you up at eight!” and with that, he vanishes. Just rushed right out, not even letting you say another word. God, you’ll never understand what goes on in his brain.

Still, you couldn’t help but slightly blush at the notion of going out on a date. You mentally refused to have a crush on anyone, but… He isn’t horrible to look at. And he’s very sweet. And so goofy. And nice. And good with children… and… and… you have a crush on him. Darn. Yeah, there’s no way you can focus on your lit assignment now. 

[lovesick-panmess]

The Sun Lives Forever (Until it Dies)

Raphael looks out to the demolition in front of him, wondering how long he can trick himself into thinking that the monstrous pink tentacles are actually the green pines in the forest way back then. When the worst monster they had to face was made out of ancient armor, all he needed to do was have faith in his brothers to catch him, active the ninpo that rested deep inside that reassured him that he wasn’t alone.

He was falling and his brothers were nowhere around to catch him.

-------

‘I don’t want to die.’ A childlike cry comes from inside himself, the tears blur his vision back to reality where he is, in fact about to die.

As kids, Donnie enjoyed assigning them roles that correlated with whatever topic of interest he was studying that week. 

It started with the four elements of matter, in which Raph was Earth, Donnie was Fire, Leo was Water, and Mikey was Air (this sparked a lengthy debate between the brothers as well as a TV marathon of ‘Avatar the Last Airbender’ whenever their dad wasn't hogging the TV), and even the parts of a cell (Raph will never understand Donnie's cried insistence that he was the mitochondria but wore it as a badge of honor anyways).

Then came the solar system. 

It had been exceptional for one topic to entirely hold their attention, and Mikey's delicate touch in artistry always complemented Donnie's narrative of a vast and fascinating space. Raph was content to simply listen to the cosmic realm that lay far beyond the swearing, while Leo enjoyed examining and reading the interesting factoids.

"Keeping it within the Milky Way, Raphie would definitely be the Sun in my brilliant mind. I don't mind being specifically the moon of the Earth, albeit I might hop a little. Given that his ego provides more than enough fuel to keep him blazing, Nardo is the stars, and Angelo is the comets since he would be responsible for destroying the dinosaurs just as he is for destroying my technology."

Mikey attempts to kick away the scrap metal he was currently painting on. 

The slider leaped up and down in excitement despite the soft-shell’s jabs at him, shaking Mikey fiercely as he did so and saying, "Whatever Don-Bon. Be a dull moon; I'll be a star! I am the stars’ ruler; Michael, you gotta draw me-“  When Raph turns to Donnie, who is still reading intently, the two youngest brothers' chatter fades to the background. "Dee, why is it so obvious that I'm the Sun? Raph thinks Mikey fits it better, he shines so brightly with that smile of his.”

As any rational thought would be quickly swept away and the victim (yes, you heard that correctly) would become a mindless slave for the time being, the box turtle's smile was a sight to be avoided and adored. Despite that, Raph would be more like the Sun than Mikey because of his shining, gentle demeanor, which held an ineffable warmth to their days. "You have to be", Donnie begins to shake his head while waving his palm in the air and looking away from the eldest. "Because you are the center of our universe, it only makes sense for us to revolve around you. And you, Raph, are like sunshine personified. You shine sufficiently bright.”

Raph now has to look away before he ensnares Donnie in a bear hug for the remainder of the day as the genius's face twists and he carefully looks up, obviously questioning whether he said the correct thing but the goofy grin on his brother's face gives him all the answer he needs. As Leo and Mikey's disagreement intensifies, Raph turns around and hastily holds out his arms to keep the two of them apart before they collide.

“The stars are prettier!”

"Comets are stronger!"

“Well the Sun is pretty and powerful, it can also never die. So Raph wins and you two bozos can stop arguing.” He responds with a triumphant grin, shrinking slightly in the face of the death glares he receives. He turns over his shoulder for Donnie to support him, but the genius had already left the premises.

Donnie returns with a presentation that is tilted ‘The Moon is superior, now bask in my glory..” He doesn’t make it past the first slide before getting tackled.

——-

Raphael feels the sensation of a falling star.

Most likely as a result of him actually falling. (Obviously)

Raph wonders how long he can fool himself into thinking that the pink monstrous tentacles are truly the green trees in the forest from back then as he looks out at the devastation in front of him. The ninpo that lay inactive inside him now, when it once reassured him that he wasn't alone and activated when the scariest creature they had to battle was made of ancient armor and all he had to do was trust his brothers to catch him.

His brothers aren’t here. 

The tears start flowing immediately, and yet the regret does not. Leo's portals weren't working, Mikey was unresponsive, they were encircled, and Donnie was on the verge of shutting down, which wouldn't help them any. He recognized what being the bait could cost him. Leo's expression of panic and futility could be seen from far away, and the slider was unable to come up with a solution.

But that was okay, Raph is the big brother, he picks up after his baby brothers. (They’re little, they don’t know any better)

‘I don’t want to die. I don’t wanna go.’ A childlike cry comes from inside himself and he swears that he has been falling forever, his heart clenches in terror as his mind flashes through remembrances of Leo's laughter and jibes, Donnie's ramblings of various scientific findings, and Mikey's experiments with different dishes, and the cold, horrifying realization that he will never experience those again.

“But you saved them. They are safe in the turtle tank by now.” Mind Raph replies, images of taking Brother Kraang with him but, of course, the monster was forced to use one last resort. Raph tries to ignite his ninpo once more, but the red flicker that envelopes his wrists quickly fades and serves as final proof that fighting is hopeless.

As he sobs and wails in the face of death, he tries in vain to console himself by wrapping his arms around himself. Mind Raph can be heard softly humming, "A memory then. A distraction.” 

Since the sight in front of him is already transitioning, Raphael is unable to reply.

——-

It was Leo’s pick for movie night and he has grown a love for horror movies at the ripe age of 10. Raph catches himself blinking in surprise and quickly moves to remove his brother from sight before frowning in frustration and responding, "I don't know Leo. Are you sure that Donnie and Mikey can handle it as well?” The cover art wasn't particularly horrifying, but the pool of blood at the bottom was realistic enough to give him a slight uneasiness. 

“Disregarding the fact that I am being discussed as if I am not even present. I have done significant research on the movie, certainly not sufficient to be spoiled, but other than three possible sequences I should be able to watch this film without concern.” Donnie says, citing the lists of highlights and drawbacks for the eldest to see on the screen. Mikey pips up, “Pluss, my favorite actors Jackie Duff and Ashton Canon are in lead roles! So there is no way I am missing this masterpiece.” 

From a great height, Leo could be seen grinning and encircling Raph, remarking, "And I know losing 3 to 1 is a defeating loss, bro. But, ask Dad like you always do; after all, you are his favorite.”

Even trying to fight against his brother's puppy eyes was pointless (Raph loathes being such a pushover, but their happiness was truly contagious and he just can not say no). He nods simply before heading to their father's room from the living room.

The fact that their father was even engaged in their activities was one of the many illusions that Raph worked so hard to maintain. Most of the time, the 12-year-old had to check in twice a day to make sure that their father is even still alive.

Because one day he’ll forget, he’ll forget to check and Dad would be dead for hours. 

Holding the poster, he shakes the notion from his head while gazing into the rat's lifeless eyes and paying attention to the rat's ears as they occasionally twitch. “Pops?” He speaks quietly, but he is fully aware that there will be no reaction. Instead, he makes an effort to time himself; if Raph could do it, their "chat" would go no longer than three minutes.

There had been times were Raph used to talk, hoping it would be encouraging enough to get some kind of response but hope had been sucked out of him as all he could look at was his dad’s empty shell. The room felt suffocating and he had already woken up more anxious than usual today, he can not stop himself with the instinct to run out so run out he does. 

Splinter doesn’t even blink when the door slams.

“Well? Well? What did Dad say?” Mikey asks with Raph’s return, bouncing off the couch eagerly and into his arms, giggling when he gets twirled. “Pops says we can watch, but we still need to go to bed at 9 like always.” That earns him cheers and a light kiss on his cheek from Leo, it suppresses all the bad feelings, even for a little bit. 

“Let’s go make dinner so we have plenty of time to watch.” 

The film wasn't as bad as his imagination had made it out to be; some scenes had him burying his face in the cushions as the protagonists ran through the haunted mansion. Mikey was enjoying the sarcastic quips as well as pointing out the symbolic meanings tied into the monster's backstory, while Donnie and Leo were both loudly commenting on how moronic it was for the heroines to lock themselves inside the residence to hold back the monster. Overall, it was an exciting night that put them all to sleep easily.

Raph, on the other hand, couldn't sleep.

His mind replayed the scene in which each family member was picked up and dragged away, the grief-stricken wails echoing loudly. He hugs Captain Snuggles even tighter, his gaze fixed on the door at the slightest sound. 

Footsteps can be heard down the hall, and his heart quickens as he listens intently, his brain quickly registering the steps as Donnie, who always tried to be quick and quiet, but the creeks of the floor gave him away. He opens the door, beating Donnie to it, but is stopped by the sight of stray tears.

The soft-shell turned away, wiping away tears of embarrassment, and gently tugged on Donnie's sweater sleeve, Raph pulls him into a hug but decided to leave space in case it became too much. “You wanna talk about it, Dee?” The silence between them lasts until Donnie pulls himself away slightly in favor of signing. 'My brain is exacerbating the dinner scene. It's as if I can hear the blood, it's so disgusting- Leo picking on me before I came to you wasn't helping.'

If Raph had to guess, Leo is probably scared to, but the need to act as if he isn't causing the slider to deflect with jokes. ‘ You know how he is, always gotta be the brave one. Sleep with me? If you want. You’re always welcome too.’ He suggests, pushing the door open with a small grin in response to Donnie's nod. He was completely right about the movie being too much, but it wasn't the time to point fingers. They’re little, they don’t know any better.

Raph turns as Donnie climbs into his bed, hearing sniffles and Mikey's loud footsteps, which sounded identical to his own. The box turtle was by the doorway, and all it took was for the youngest to jump into the comfort was to leave his arms outstretched and open. “Aw the movie was scary, wasn’t it? Don't worry baby…Raphie’s here." Despite the youngest's recent claim to independence, it was good to be able to hold him tight like this. Raph places a kiss on Mikey's temple, becoming a little overwhelmed with emotion.

Mikey was the quickest to fall asleep, now basking in the presence of his brothers and Donnie's sleepy expression proves he is not that far behind. Still, Raph is alert and tries to ignore his own fatigue for Leo who hasn’t made his way towards his room, and no footsteps to be heard. He gets up, deciding to simply retrieve the slider himself, and makes his way down the hall quickly turning at the sound of the door creaking open. 

They make brief eye contact before Leo quickly closes the door, "Go away Raph! I’m all right." The lie feels natural, but the tremors in his brother's voice upset him. Raph leans against the door, putting light pressure on the wood. “Leoo..” He softly hums his name, just like he used to when he was trying to convince Leo out of bed when they were little.

It works, just a little bit because he's able to see the red markings peeking through the crack in the door. Raph smiles wide enough that his snaggletooth appears and does it again for good luck, “Leoo..ruler of the stars.” He can hear the defeated giggle and pushes the door away in favor of scooping his brother up in his arms.

"I didn't mean to tease Don, just—I don't know... It made sense in my head," Leo confesses after a while. "I didn't want to be scared.” What Leo really implied was that he didn't want Donnie to be scared, which goes unsaid "It's okay if you're scared, Lee; I was too." The look of disbelief on his face causes laughter to bubble up in his throat, "It's true! Big brothers get terrified as well. Every time. But you know what really helps?" He starts walking back to his room, Leo by his side.

"I know that I got the moon, the stars, and the comets looking out for me.”

When they return, Donnie is still awake despite his exhaustion, and it's clear that the genius was awaiting them both. He easily slips out of Mikey's grasp, and Leo shuffles awkwardly but lets himself be dragged to bed by his twin, who fondly flicks his brow. Raph is mystified by the sight but decides to chalk it up to twin telepathy, despite Donnie's adamant denial.

The snapping turtle settles in last, the weight of his own anxiety keeping him from rest; he feels everything, and the hammering of his heart is certain to set him off. ‘My babies’ His heart cries out in fear, clinging to his sleeping brothers with a ferocity that, surprisingly, does not wake them. He’ll protect them, he will he swears it.

Fragments of emotion bind him, but it's as if the puzzle is damaged. The pieces don't quite fit, as well as tides of emotion that threaten to whisk him away squeeze at his heart. The love of a father inside the body of a brother.

The sensation evaporates almost as quickly as it emerged, and an unsteady inhale grounds him as his heart speaks again.

‘ My babies.’ Soft and fond this time, with a gentleness.

‘ My boys.’ His mind responds with a fuzzy warm feeling in his chest, and he unconsciously hugs his brothers tighter.

In the bliss of a memory, Raphael doesn’t even feel when his body hits the ground.

———

Donatello detests it when they separated, even though he sees the advantages; after all, one Kraang wouldn't be capable of pursuing them all in various directions. He knows Raph, they all do, and his altruistic brother always does something unsafe for their benefit, never his own. He'd just yelled at Leo for pulling the same stunt during one of their expeditions.

He supposes it was the pot calling the kettle black.

Still, their older brother hadn't arrived at the rendezvous point, causing Leo to worry, and Mikey's hopeful smile didn't last the walk back to the disintegrating building. The soft-shell is glad to have updated trackers on his brothers now more than ever (the apocalypse providing all sorts of technological advancement), but he tries not to focus on the fact that Raphael's tracker isn't moving.

Mikey is the first to notice him, tears streaming down his cheeks at the state of the snapping turtle, and he does his best not to rattle him awake, "Raph! Guys, he's not waking up-" Leo blanches with one look at his brother, quickly turning around and clutching the handles of his swords, his voice wavering, "Donnie, scan and do what you can, I'm going to teleport us back to base."

Protest feels ineffective because he knows Leo will have trouble opening the portal from the distance they were from the base, and they are all exhausted from the battle just moments before. Raph, on the other hand, doesn't have time for doubts, and a quick scan of his body tells Donnie what his heart already knows: 'Raph won't make it.’ Mikey covers his mouth and shakes his head in disbelief, implying that he said it aloud. The box turtle focuses his hands on his brother's plastron. "I'm going to heal him, I know I can do it!"

Even if stubbornness is an Hamato trait, Donnie is grateful for it right now.

Raph's eyes open slightly and turn to gaze at him while he watches Mikey's mystic energy surround their brother, and Donnie swears he will never insult the realm of mystic abilities again. He could see the strain on his hands and knows that Mikey is only buying them more time.

That is a terrifying thought.

'Keep him awake, keep him awake until Leo makes a portal,’. His brain prompts him to speak, but the words die on his tongue as Raph's gaze softens. "Hey, Dee... It's fine to cry, you know... You are always welcome to sleep with me." Donnie doesn't understand, clutching the snapping turtle's hand tightly and trying to keep the sobs from raging through his body, seeing how distant Raph's eyes appeared.

The magic comes to a halt with the youngest appearing to be on the verge of passing out and new cracks running from his fingertips and down his arms; Mikey cries against Raph's plastron, completely overcome with grief, but Raph remains reassuring. “Aw that movie was scary..wasn’t it? It's all right, Raphie is here." The crying intensifies, yet Mikey covers his mouth to quiet his sobs to no avail. Donnie activates his ninpo creating a shield to cover them as well as muffle their sounds; they deserve this moment without fear of being heard.

Raph’s expression becomes troubled, unable to see the slider next to him despite looking as far as he can, Donnie watches Leo’s ninpo barely flicker but he keeps trying, swinging his weapon in different directions and bitter determination in his gaze. His brother will not die. He can’t. 

“Leo.”

“Look if Raph is trying to lecture me, tell him to save it for the base-“

“Leo,” Donnie repeated himself, burning rage in his gut because it's a waste of time to keep trying, Leo is wasting time, and Raph doesn't have much left. He has to lean in to hear whatever whispers his dying brother is uttering, but he tries regardless. "You know how he is...always the brave one." It rips his wrath apart, staring down at Raph and then back at Leo, taking in his twin's trembling stance with his tears soaking the ground underneath him. “Spirits, Donnie, why isn’t it working?! Why can’t I do this?”

Silence replied, mocking them for their failure, and Leo bristles in fury until Raph speaks, obviously, the lingering feeling of death is not enough to stop him from consoling his brothers. “Leo..” The snapping turtle hums in a familiar tone of childhood, coaxing and gentle, breaking Leo's heart even more as he shakes his head. "Leo…ruler of the stars.” Raph smiles, and all of his determination evaporates as the slider races to the eldest side, apologies and loving affirmations spilling through his lips. “Raphie...Raphie..” He calls out his brother's name fervently.

“It’s okay if you’re scared Lee. I am too..”Raph’s voice wavers, his eyes becoming less distant and far more clear than before, Donnie can feel the way he stiffens and feels his own heart drop. 

“I don’t wanna go..” 

Donnie clenches his teeth, knowing that his brother does not deserve this. Raph deserves life, the longest possible life with his brothers, and endless bliss that not even the spirits could bring. His mind rattles on and on, spiraling in his thought because for all his genius and intellect he can not give his brother the life he deserves.

‘You could give him rest?’ His heart suggests, his gaze now fixed on Raph's tears as the notion of dying dawned on him, the soft-shell recalling the distant look in his eyes just moments before. Donnie nods determined that he will be the one to provide his brother the rest he deserves rather than death.

"It's okay, Raph." Words start to freeze in his throat, but he presses on, even attempting to be reassuring as he smiles through the agony, cupping Raph's cheek, and trying not to shatter at the undivided attention. "It's fine if you want to sleep."

Mikey's eyes widen as he realizes what he's doing, but it doesn't quite register with Leo as he takes in Raph's look. The snapping turtle's brown eyes fluctuate as he walks the border between reality and the memory provided to him, but he lacks the strength to fight for awareness and slips back with ease. Donnie breathes a sigh of relief, ignoring Leo's intense glare but still grabs his twin's hand, "Need to make sure Leo and Mikey don't have any nightmares, plus Raph isn't exhausted."

It's difficult to determine which memory Raph is in because he's been caught so many times for warmth after a nightmare, but the argument was there on the tip of his tongue, childish and full of errors but it had worked between the two all the same. "Well, since you're half asleep and I'm wide awake, I'm the most awake older brother by default, so you have to listen to me."

He laughs and for a brief moment Donnie feels so much relief in the rumble of the snapping turtle’s chest, “That doesn’t make sense Dee…” He laughs wetly, even in memories, Raph’s fondness never fades. Donnie squeezes Leo’s hand tighter and rubs his thumb against the scars that decorated the eldest’s cheek, his own heart begs for some sort of release from the anguish still he persists for Raph.

“It makes perfect sense, Raphael! Who is the genius here? Me or you?” The way Raph’s eyes threaten to close makes his blood freeze, he watches his own hands tremble and feels how faint his brother’s heartbeat is. “You are..” Another laugh more quieter than the last, “Just a small nap, okay?”

“The smallest.”

“Wake me up later?”

Donnie's source of strength? He didn't have an answer, but he allowed the last words his brother ever hear to be a lie. "Of course, Raphie...I'll wake you up later," he says, even as he sobs, ignoring the way his skin is burning. He watches the lights of life leave Raph’s eyes, death claiming the snapping turtle and taking his last breath. 

Their Sun dies right in his arms. 

The world around them grew darker, time passed, and all Donnie could hear were Mikey's muffled screams. Comets collided with the Earth whenever the youngest smashed the surface below them in rage. Leo, spirits, appeared dead himself, expression blank despite the flood of tears and his fist over his chest as if grief was about to destroy him before collapsing into himself like a dying star. Donnie dreads leaving Raph's side, but he needs to because he cannot lose another brother in the span of seconds-

After all, it’s his job as the eldest now.

———

“Raph? Why are you still up?”

The soft-shell returned much later in the night with a glass of water; his glasses were off, so the time stamp was blurred, but he could make out the 2 in front as well as his brother's guilty grimace. “Hehe..just wanted to stay up. Make sure Leo and Mikey don’t have any nightmares, plus Raph isn’t tired.” The snapping turtle shrunk back as Donnie squinted, seeing how hard the eldest was fighting to keep his eyes open. 

This would be the start of a very long road for the eldest, successfully creating an Atlas that would carry the world and let himself be crushed underneath it. It will eventually lead to his death. 

But 10-year-old Donnie is unaware of this; all he knows is that his brother is growing as fast as they are and that he deserves to rest. He shuffles back on the bed, careful not to the others and crossing his arms, “Well theoretically speaking since you’re half asleep and I’m fully awake, I am the most awake older brother so. You have to listen to me.” Raph’s yawn gets interrupted by his own snort, his tired gaze filled with amused fondness.

“That doesn’t make sense, Dee.”

“It makes perfect sense, Raphael! Who is the genius here? Me or You?”

“You are..” The eldest retorts, sleep taking him by the minute, and he eventually gives in, "Just a small nap, okay?" The genius beams triumphantly at the praise and success, adjusting slightly to allow the other to lean against him, "The smallest. I'll wake you up later, okay?” With no response, he glances down, Raph already asleep and snoring, making Donnie quietly laugh.

The soft-shell whispers into his ear in a moment of intimacy soaked in moonlight.

“I may be the genius but you’ll always be our big brother.” 

--------

UMMM I've had this idea for the longest time and writing this was horrible 3 days one trying to put my dreams into words. I've seen soo many different ways that Donnie and Raph have died in the bad future and I think the concepts are so interesting so I wanted to throw my own hat into the ring, a parallel I had yet to see in a Future Raph death is when he falls in the forest during the Shredder arc! It's such a pinnacle moment for Raph and I wanted to twist it on its head but also to focus a little on the eldest pipeline. Instead of Raph to Leo (because you know the whole leader stuff), I wanted a Donnie and Raph focus especially after seeing so much evidence that Donnie is in fact the oldest twin (though I don't think it's been declared canon). The burden of the eldest hehehe hoped you liked it!

[fruiteggsaladit]

Crucial part of Shizubo (Botan/Shizuru) to me

are the headcanons/fan concepts that--

1) Shizuru is equally as cutegirlcrazy as Kuwa, she's just had time & experience to temper it by actually scoring and having relationships w them and also been burned by the occassional Femme Fatale and appears/is more reserved so it takes an Experienced Lesbian to recognise what she's putting down,

2) Botan is not an Experienced Lesbian, thinks she's straight, and unless Shizuru tells her she (Shizuru) is a lesbian, she will also think Shizuru is straight (obliviously crushing, "this is normal admiration for a fellow woman, right??"), in other words Shizuru is playing poker and Botan thinks these are oddly-shaped cookies that don't taste very good, but she'll eat them to be polite.

3) in combination with

3. a) me, myself, and I wanting Shizuru to be more involved with the narrative and thinking that means she has to have an Objection to Kuwa involving himself with the Spirit Office once she knows more of what the deal w it is (Idt she's opposed to him helping his friends, I think she's opposed to this toddler-god and Co believing they have the right to involve themselves this much w humans by "hiring" child soldiers and have a gag order to top it all off, here), 3. b) me wanting Botan to face some consequences of her actions by aiding that mission (some people like to put characters in a box and shake them, I like to put them in court apparently), some of her actions including: ... ... 3. b. i) Botan not actively opposing Kuwa's involvement with not one, but two assignments where he wasn't actually hired for that (Yusuke being forcibly hired by the office is bad, but until Shizuru has reason to ask, she won't know abt the details), the second of which leads Kuwa to be forcibly invited to DT, ... ... 3. b. ii) Botan having actively discouraged Kuwa and Yusuke from telling the truth abt the Spirit Office, even to their own families and friends, even when Yusuke wanted to tell Keiko and thought she deserved to know for having been a target and could become a target again by association to Yusuke, 3. c) Keiko and Shizuru (and Atsuko, in the manga) needing to force (guilt-trip & menace) Botan to spill the beans, 3. d) another way of making Shizuru more relevant and also... make DT more interesting? Not the arc, the actual tournament, the premise and the in-universe mythology around it, to have Shizuru investigate it in pursuit of stopping the tournament. ... ... 3. d. i) She fails, but she tried very well and hard in my mind, and that's what matters to me.

I think that @ first, Shizuru thought this was a cute girl working at a dubious firm (big deal, "we can't judge them when we live under capitalism" (the cutegirlcrazy talking, Shizuru is not as immunised as she thinks she is, comparing herself to her brother)), but the more she learns abt Botan's involvement w Kuwa and Yusuke and it turns out, 2 other kids (at worst forced labour for minors, at best community sentence for minors that involve murder, harm to self, and potential death) too, the less fondness she has for the woman. (Shizuru could also be as love-dumb as Kuwa could be, but I personally can only handle this many idiot characters I can't predict very well and also I want bloodhound!Shizuru.) Botan has the additional debuffs of A) not knowing lesbians exist in non-abstract ways including herself (see point 2) earlier in the post), and B) though she does feel deeply guilty about her actions and involvement, she has no idea how to dissolve the deal realistically based on everything (what little) she's been told, and so is extremely avoidant/dismissive of anyone who challenges that narrative.

In a world where instead of Shizuru having a weird arc w Sakyo (and was even aged up for it... in one post discussing Botan being a grown woman, I very naively wrote that they aged up Shizuru for the drinking scene, I genuinely forgot abt the forced het romance, sorry), and the girls being more involved than "what is going here!! yes we do exist. but only as reminders of the mundane world the boys are leaving behind. also these are men's battles, we can't/shouldn't interfere bc we can't understand", Botan and Shizuru have an arc in which Shizuru realises that Botan is not irredeemable, she's just stupid (I say this lovingly, I'm saying this lovingly--, not from Shizu's perspective but from mine own she's stupid (lovingly!!!)), and Botan realises that Shizuru wasn't on-and-off her ass to be mean or remind Botan of how helpless she feels if she just so happened to find Yusuke and Co by the Spirit Office unfair or anything (which she doesn't haha she'd have to hate her job or think she's a bad friend to her friends which she isn't right haha or hate how your work & the rhetoric you developed in relation to it is poisoning the community and solidarity you could have with your friends haha you're not a bad person if you think you're good right hahaha), she was sussing her out while trying to stop the Tournament. Anyway, idk, them entering something of a peace treaty after that.

They do not get together or if they do, it's post-canon/king tournament epilogue/bonus story arc material! To me!

[ID: A white cat being fed salad, with yellow, white, and green text: "Me:" (the white cat); "My hyper-specific salad (specified to My needs specifically". The latter "my" is intentionally mispelled. /END ID.]