#though I waited to play Violet at the same time as my friends

[owlphaace]

Nintendo should leak Echoes of Wisdom early so I can play it already

[ellswritings]

How To Be A Heartbreaker

Anthony Bridgerton x Reader

TW: Enemies to lovers, lots of tension, Eloise, Daphne, and Benedict teasing, brief sexual encounter at the end. Not full smut, but it is kinda spicy. I think that’s it. Let me know if I missed anything.

·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　✩　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙ 　　.·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　✩　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙ . ·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　✩　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙ 　　.·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　✩　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙ . ·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　✩　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙ 　　.·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　✩　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙ . ·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　✩　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙ 　　.·͙̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩̥͙　✩　̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥̩̩͙‧͙ .

“Kill me now,” Y/N grumbles quietly to Benedict who watches with amused eyes as his best friend glares at his older brother.

“Oh how I love your dramatics,” he replies, placing a bubbly drink in her hands. She gratefully accepts it, taking a generous sip of it as she continues to burn holes in the side of Anthony Bridgerton’s head.

Y/N has been close with the Bridgerton family since her conception really. Violet and Y/N’s mom, Y/M/N, we’re pregnant with Y/N and Eloise at the same time. They went through the pregnancy together, wanting to give their daughters a built in best friend which both girls were extremely grateful for. Y/N and Eloise have been joint at the hip since birth. The only two people they let infiltrate their tight-knit bond is Benedict and Penelope.

For whatever reason, even though the rest of the Bridgerton family absolutely adores her, Anthony Bridgerton is the only one Y/N hasn’t been able to win over. No matter how hard she tries or how often she’s around him, he’s never been able to warm up to her. It’s rather infuriating. The snide remarks, the glares from across the room, the incessant complaining, the way he pushes her buttons, and how disrespectful he is towards women in general. Ever since he’s decided to look for a wife this season, his view on love and marriage has been nothing short of disgusting to the young woman. She pity’s the poor lady who ends up betrothed to that man.

“If you keep glaring at him like that Y/N you’ll get wrinkles,” Colin Bridgerton smoothly joins the conversation. Y/N’s always enjoyed Colin’s company, but she knew to not spend too much time with him as his not so secret admirer wouldn’t be too happy about it.

“Good,” she scoffs. “Maybe then I wouldn’t have to participate in the marriage mart.” She downs the rest of her drink causing the boys to chuckle at her cynicism. Y/N has never been one to conform to societal norms for women. She took up fencing with the Bridgerton boys at a young age, much to Eloise’s dismay. Y/N’s parents allowed her to participate in such things, but Eloise unfortunately had no such luck.

“It really is a wonder why the men of the ton are not knocking down your door,” Benedict responds sarcastically, resting his hand on the small of Y/N’s back.

She smiles when she notices Eloise and Daphne exiting the house to join the rest of the family outside. The Bridgerton family, in addition to Y/N are all at Aubrey Hall for the time being. Violet is always kind enough to invite Y/N whenever they go. The family have been waiting for the older Bridgerton sisters to make their way outside for the friendly game of Pall Mall they always play. Even though friendly isn’t exactly the word most would use when watching this group.

“Perhaps it’s my charming good looks and prize-winning personality,” Y/N smirks sardonically before placing her glass back in Benedict’s hand. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to converse with two individuals who can actually challenge me intellectually.”

Her smooth insult leaves the boys laughing, shaking their head at her words. She saunters directly over to Eloise and Daphne, the three girls immediately getting immersed in whatever hot button topic they’ve decided to bring up. Y/N smirks when she feels Anthony staring daggers into the side of her head before storming over to his brothers.

“I don’t understand how you both can stand her,” Anthony grumbles. “She’s insufferable. I mean, how can they not see how evil she is?” He gestures in the direction where Y/N walked in.

Both Benedict and Colin follow his finger and see Y/N throwing her head back laughing as Hyacinth and Gregory run into her arms at full speed. The sun glows around her creating a beautiful silhouette behind the woman. She looks like an absolute angel which makes Anthony’s statement appear much more ridiculous.

Benedict quirks an eyebrow, “Yes… from the depths of hell that one.”

“I can see the crown of flames on her head,” Colin joins in on the sarcasm train, making Anthony fume in his spot.

“One of these days you all will see her for who she truly is,” swears Anthony. “I will make sure of it.”

“Are we ready to play?” Daphne calls out with a wicked grin. She’s more than ready to destroy her siblings and sibling adjacent. “Or are we going to dilly dally all day to avoid my inevitable win?”

“Ooh, the Duchess is feeling confident,” Eloise taunts. “Let’s see if she truly has the skills to back it up.”

Y/N snickers at the bickering sisters before looping her arm through Eloise’s as they head towards the mallets. Y/N knows how deeply Anthony loves his black mallet. He has ever since they were children. Before their petty rivalry escalated into what it is today, Y/N’s favorite mallet was the lavender one that is currently sitting pretty directly within her grasp. But by the competitive look on the eldest Bridgerton’s face, she’s feeling a darker color will suit her just as nicely.

Eloise is the first to try and grab her mallet but Colin stuck his hand out to stop her. If looks could kill, Colin would be six feet under by now. Eloise looks as if she could bite his head off. Her older brother notices the dangerous look in his sisters eyes before swallowing thickly, “Let us toss a coin.” His suggestion is calm. It’s rather typical of the third eldest brother to try and maintain harmony. Quite futile if you were to ask Y/N. Things tend to get nasty rather quickly.

“Last year, we promised to let the youngest pick first!” She recalls rather passionately. Y/N sticks her finger up in the air in order to second Eloise’s point. She distinctly remembers the conversation from last year when they were in the exact position, but then they allowed the eldest to have their pick first.

“We pick based on alphabetical order,” Anthony states rather harshly.

Y/N tilts her head, “How convenient that is for you,” she chides. “Someone already nervous about their future loss?”

“I don’t recall inviting you into the conversation,” he snaps. “You have no say in how we decide to proceed.”

“She has just as much of a say as all of us,” Daphne scoffs at her brothers behavior. “She’s been playing this with us since we were children.”

“That doesn’t give her any right over our tradition,” he insists with a glare. “We’ve always picked alphabetically and I will not allow her to ruin that.”

“Perhaps we should settle this on the planche,” Y/N suggests challengingly. She and Anthony have always been rather… rough when it comes to fencing. “I would love to show you just how much I can ruin things. Like your ability to produce offspring for example.”

Eloise snorts, slapping her hand over her mouth as Benedict looks away with amusement written on his face. Colin’s jaw falls slack and Daphne gasps loudly, punishing Y/N by slapping her arm. “Proper ladies do not speak that way.”

“When has she ever been a proper lady?” Anthony snarls.

“Okay, enough!” Daphne stops them, getting rather tired of the relentless noise. “The only proper thing to do is allow our guest to choose her mallet and strike and strike first,” she nods towards Y/N.

The H/C woman smiles politely, “Thank you, Daph.” The look she sends Anthony is nothing short of smug, rubbing her first victory in his face.

“What?!” He asks incredulously. “Did you not just get done stating how she’s practically an honorary Bridgerton?”

“And did you not just get done saying how she has no say?” Daphne challenges. “I’m simply abiding by what you said brother. Since I am an actual Bridgerton sibling, I will make the decision so she does not ruin anything for you.” Y/N and Daphne share a knowing look, finding humor in Anthony’s complete and utter shock. He did not realize how his words would bite him back so soon.

The rest of the siblings look more than pleased with this arrangement. Eloise pokes Y/N’s side as she watches the mischief twinkle behind her eyes. Colin gestures towards the container holding the mallets, “Miss Y/N, please, take your pick.”

“Thank you, Colin,” Y/N smiles widely over at the third eldest before sneering just at Anthony. The mischievous young woman leans forward, looking directly at the lavendar mallet. She’s chosen that mallet every time so no one looks surprised. At least until she smirks, leaning over her usual weapon of war and wrapping her fingers around the black mallet. She watches Anthony’s jaw fall to the floor as she pulls it out and there has never been a time where she’s felt more satisfied with a decision.

“Would you look at that?” Daphne chuckles, poking fun at her older brother.

“Oh, is this yours?” Y/N feigns innocence. “I’m so sorry Viscount, it must’ve slipped my mind,” she runs her hand up and down the handle, jutting out her bottom lip to show just how sorry she is.

Fumes. That’s all that is coming out of Anthony’s face. He wishes he could rub the pure expression of her face. “You know that mallet is mine,” he claims angrily. “It has been since we were young. You always play with the purple. You chose mine on purpose.”

“It’s actually lavender,” Y/N replies nonchalantly, not feeding into his anger. “But perhaps I needed a change in pace. I’m sure you’ll do just fine with a different color,” she shrugs. “Unless you need this as some sort of crutch?” She lifts a brow, holding it out towards him. “Like a baby with a bottle.”

Small snickers ensue and Anthony clenches his jaw, the muscles ticking with anger. “I do not need a crutch. I will play just as well with any other mallet.”

“I’m sure you will,” she nods patronizingly.

“Are we to stand here and listen to them bicker like a married couple, or shall we play?” Eloise whines. Anthony and Y/N both look at her like she has three heads, not believing the statement that just came out of her mouth. A small blush appears on Anthony’s face and before he knows it, the rest of his siblings are shooting forward to grab their own mallets. Due to his momentary stun, Anthony is immediately at a disadvantage. All the mallets get swooped up, except the lavender one.

He stares at it with an intense hatred. He clenches his fists causing them to pulse as if he were wrapping his hands around someone’s neck. They all look at him expectantly, waiting for him to take it. A low growl escapes his throat before he begrudgingly reaches forward and yanks it from the container.

“Let’s go then,” he says stiffly before walking to the game field.

The game was off to a relatively good start in Y/N’s eyes as she finds herself doing much better than the Bridgerton siblings. She immediately knocks her ball through the high arch of iron on the first strike, evoking claps from Benedict and a rather annoyed sigh from Eloise. Y/N pokes her friends side and Eloise sways her hand away before getting her own mallet ready to swing.

“I always forget how good you are at this game,” Daphne compliments.

Y/N brushes her off, “You flatter me, Daph. But believe me, I am nothing compared to you. You won’t last year if I recall correctly, no?”

A self-assured smile makes its way onto the Duchess’s face as she lifts her head up slightly higher. “Yes. Yes I did.”

Benedict claps teasingly for Eloise who completely missed her mark. She groans before stomping over the Y/N and Daphne with her arms crossed. “I might just start hitting him instead of the ball,” she huffs, directing her faux anger towards Benedict.

Y/N pats her back, “You’re doing well, El. Just stop focusing so much on beating your brothers and it’ll come much easier.”

“Oh shut it,” she rolls her eyes playfully. “You out of everyone here cannot be spewing that nonsense. You are about as competitive as they come. The only person who might be able to beat you in that area is Anthony.”

“Oh, Anthony can’t beat me at anything,” Y/n shakes her head.

“Wow,” Eloise scoffs. “You really just got competitive over who can be more competitive,” she looks at Daphne with a bewildered expression. “It’s a talent really how you manage to do that.”

Colin’s swing is similar to Y/N’s, going right through the small arch, but stopping just behind her ball. He groans, wanting to have nudged hers out of the way. When Benedict goes he swings a tad bit to hard. It would have gone through the goal and knocked both Colin and Y/N’s ball out of the way, if he knew how to aim properly. He throws his head back with a laugh as Eloise points a finger in his face with a triumphant bellow.

“Anthony, it is your turn,” Colin nods politely at his brother, trying to hide his amusement at the lavender mallet in his hand.

“I can see that,” the older brother grumbles, taking a step behind his ball. He gets in position mumbling quiet profanities at a certain woman for taking his lucky charm. When he swings, his ball goes flying, completely missing the intended target.

“Is someone out of practice there, Viscount?” Y/N calls out teasingly, swinging her mallet as a way to rub in her early lead. She walks over to her own ball and readies herself, “Why don’t I show you how a true professional does it?”

She cocks her arm back and once again hits the ball perfectly through the iron gate. Loud cheers erupt for the girl as she takes a rather obnoxious bow right in front of Anthony. A storm swirls behind his eyes and all he wants to do is yank her by the arm and get rid of the smug look she always seems to wear. It really is a shame she acts in such a way. She vexes him to absolutely no end. Anyone can see that Y/N is a beautiful woman. She always has been. Ever since they were children everyone would always comment on how gorgeous she would be when she got older, and they were right. Her e/c eyes shine constantly, like the stars in the sky. Her hair is always the perfect silky texture. She is extremely well-read and intelligent. She’d make the perfect bride. The only issue is that mouth of hers.

Anthony’s glare remains hard, but he silently scolds himself for thinking such positive things about her. It wasn’t obvious to any of the others, but Y/N could see a small flash behind his brown eyes. Something that was different from the usual hatred he holds for her. When she stands up straight from her bow, her eyes momentarily gaze over his face. She’s never really admired the Viscount in any sort of way. But being this close and fueled with as much tension as they are, it’s hard not to examine his chiseled features. She bites the inside of her cheek to prevent the flush creeping up the back of her neck as she stands under his scrutinizing stare. Y/N exhales before lightly bumping his shoulder and walking past him.

“Beat that,” she challenges.

As the game continues, loud claps, cheers, and bickering is all that is heard. Violet watches from her spot under the gazebo along with Lady Danbury with happy smile’s on their faces. Benedict runs over to Y/N, holding her to his chest as he tickles her for knocking his ball out of the spot it was in. He had the perfect shot and she made sure it wouldn’t last long. She squeals in his grasp until Colin quickly comes to her rescue. She smack Benedict’s chest with an out of breath laugh before moving back over to Eloise.

The younger sister screams happily when she slides her ball directly through the arch, highfiving her best friend for the victory. Everyone seems to be in rather good spirits, despite where they are at in the game. The only thing troubling is that every time Anthony goes, something seems to be on his mind as he barely misses his mark with each swing. Violet and Lady Danbury seem to be the only ones who have noticed his eyes traveling to his supposed “arch nemesis” right before he swings.

“I give it til the end of the trip,” Violet whispers to her friend.

Lady Danbury laughs, “Oh dear, I give it til the end of this match.”

When it reaches Anthony’s turn once again, he hits it and this time, it actually goes through the goal. The only issue is that it lands barely passed Y/N’s ball. The two share a tense glance before Y/N travels over to where her ball is. With one good hit, she could easily win this game and leave Anthony in the dust.

Eloise runs after her friend, “You have the chance to best him! You must take it,” she encourages.

“That would not be very sportsmanlike, now would it?” Colin asks rhetorically.

Y/N looks at him, her eyes meeting his. They both seem to soften for a moment until she smirks. “Since when has sportsmanlike conduct ever been a concern in our games?”

“She has a point, brother,” Benedict points out. “Kindness during a game of Pall Mall has never been a virtue within any of us.”

“What do you say, my lord?” Y/N asks Anthony who has been rather silent since their previous exchange. She lifts a perfectly manicured brow, “Are you in a losing mood?” She jests, trying her hardest to get a rise out of him. How she loves when he gets frustrated with her. Especially when he loses any sense of personal space, getting in her face as they argue. Those are her favorite moments as it is so much sweeter being able to put him in his place.

Anthony tries to remain unfazed, “My mood shall remain unchanged, regardless of your choice,” he replies with a tight lipped smile.

“Oh, is that so?” Y/N turns to fully face him. She tilts her head, analyzing him like a predator would their prey. Anthony swallows thickly, fighting off every urge to take the upcoming squabble elsewhere. “You would bravely bear the crushing shame of defeat? How unlike yourself.”

“Despite my brothers and sisters continuing to egg you on, you have been behaving with much more grace than your usual self Miss L/N,” he says, completely diminishing any attempts at her trying to evoke his anger. “I am pleasantly surprised at your conduct this game. Perhaps someone is finally losing their edge, hm?”

He wins. Y/N feels a rather angry fire burning in the pit of her stomach. She glowers, “Me? Losing my edge? Well, if that is the case, I’m sure you won’t mind me doing this.”

With the strongest swing she’s had yet, she knocks Anthony’s ball clear across the grass and into the trees many feet ahead. Her ball falls only a few inches in front of them and she feels a strong satisfaction when looking back at Anthony. His previous performance trying to diminish her hard work at angering him have not helped him in the slightest.

“Well done!” Eloise claps.

Anthony looks up, narrowing his eyes to the sky to avoid doing it directly at Y/N. He reluctantly brings his hands together in a celebratory clap in order not to appear too unruly. Eloise bumps Y/N’s shoulder, “You are sparing no mercy, and I absolutely love it!”

Suddenly, with the most mischievous smirk Y/N has ever seen him wear, Benedict walks up to his ball which is now the closest to where Y/N’s landed. Y/N’s smile drops as she watches him bring his arm back as far as possible, using his mallet to knock her ball directly into the tree line where she just sent Anthony’s. Her jaw falls slack as Benedict winks in her direction.

“What a shot brother!” Anthony celebrates loudly, feeling avenged by Benedict’s actions.

“Yes, what a shame isn’t it Miss L/N?” He jokes. “Think of this as revenge for sending my ball in the wrong direction earlier.”

Y/N grinds her teeth together but shoots him a fake smile, one that Benedict can easily see through. Her petty behavior causes laughter to erupt from everyone. “You two better go fetch them,” Colin points in that direction. “Unless you would like to quit, here and now?”

Anthony and Y/N glance at each other, both of them looking rather angry about their current predicament. They send challenging looks to one another, tempting the other to speak up first. Y/N sticks her nose up, “Absolutely not.”

Anthony sneers, “After you.”

Stomping off, Y/N rolls her eyes. “What a gentleman.”

The duo stomps rather over-dramatically into the green brush. Y/N huffs as she pushes a large branch out of her way. An evil grin comes over her face as she continues pushing the branch forward until she’s sure Anthony is close enough behind. As soon as she hears his footsteps drawing nearer, she releases the branch from her hold. She covers her mouth with her hand to prevent the laugh that’s about to escape as Anthony is whacked in the face.

He lets out a loud yelp, putting a hand to his face to make sure no extensive damage was done. He can hear the small snickers leaving Y/N’s lips and that is his final straw. He lunges forward, wrapping his arm around her wrist. She gasps as they’re suddenly face to face, noses practically touching.

“What one earth are you doing?” Y/N seethes, trying to pull herself away from him.

“What am I doing?” He scoffs at her. “What are you doing?” He leans down closer to her. “If I was any less of a gentlemen, I would punish you right here and now for your insolent behavior.”

Y/N laughs in his face, “Punish me? Oh, in your dreams Viscount. You cannot do anything more than take what I do to you. You are not my husband nor my father so you hold no power over me.” She rips her arm out of his hand and continues marching on, her heart still beating rather rapidly from how warm his breath felt on her face.

Anthony’s nostrils flare but the burning sensation on his hand were her supple skin once was keeps his true fury at bay. He frustratedly kicks a rock as some form of an outlet while following after her in search of their balls.

“You best hope your play does not hand victory to my brothers, or we shall never hear the end of it,” Anthony grunts out after the silence between them became too much. At this point it seems he’d rather argue with Y/N than be left with his own thoughts.

“I am not worried about Colin or Benedict,” Y/N smacks another bush out of her path. “I don’t see why it would be a problem if they won anyway considering you seem so hellbent on preventing my victory.”

Anthony goes to respond with a tone just as venomous until Y/N stops in her tracks. He follows her line of vision to see both her black and his lavender ball sitting in a large, almost lake size, puddle of mud. “You’ve have to be joking,” Y/N complains under her breath. “There is no way either of us would be able to hit these out of the mud without coming out looking absolutely dreadful.”

An idea seems to spark in Anthony’s mind as he looks at her with an idealistic smile, “We could always pluck them out,” he suggests. “No one would be any the wiser.”

“Are you suggesting that we cheat, Viscount?” Y/N asks him with an unusual expression on her face. Anthony can’t help the shudder that surges through him at her calling him by his proper title in that tone. She’s done it before, but this time simply feels different.

“Perhaps,” he nods. “The only two people who would know of our situation is us. I see nothing wrong with evening the playing field a bit.”

“Well, contrary to your beliefs, I play fair,” Y/N turns away from him and heads towards the balls. She has no issue getting a little dirty if it means making herself look better than the man behind her.

“I never thought I’d live to see the day where you’d be an honorable person,” Anthony taunts. “Even though it is just for sport.”

“I’ve always been an honorable person, Anthony,” Y/N huffs out as she gets ready to hit her ball. “Just because you refuse to see it, doesn’t mean it is not there. Besides, I would never cheat in your presence as I am more than sure you would advertise it to the rest of the group the moment we got back.”

“You would do the same!” He insists.

“Oh, I never said I wouldn’t,” she admits playfully. “I would absolutely reveal your scandal to anyone who would listen. But I cannot do that if I participate in the same bad behavior, now could I?” Anthony watches in awe as she submerges her shoes and the entire bottom hem of her dress in the messy liquid. She swings, easily knocking her ball out of the mud. She wipes a bead of sweat from her forehead before looking at Anthony, “Your play, my lord. Unless you do not wish to dirty those lovely boots of yours?”

“Do not worry about my boots,” he tells her coldly. Y/N only grins at how tense his shoulders get as he climbs into the mud right next to her. Even with the stink of the earth, she can still manage to smell the scent of mahogany, leather, and a tad bit of cinnamon. Even his natural smell manages to twist her stomach in knots. It’s so innocent, nice, compared to who he actually is.

She stares at him for a moment too long as he goes to whack his ball. His hits Y/N’s, surpassing it just slightly. When he glances back up to be egotistical about it, he sees she’s already looking at him. Time freezes momentarily as they stare at each other. They both try to make their eyes hard, but it seems almost impossible. Y/N’s tongue peeks out, coating her chapped lips and Anthony doesn’t have the strength to stop himself from glancing downward.

“Something you find interesting, my lord?” Y/N queries in an unusual quiet tone that greatly contrasts her boisterous one.

His eyes move back up to hers. He forces himself to snap out of whatever spell he was put in, “No,” he bluntly answers. “I believe it is your turn, is it not?”

Another beat of silence passes between them before Y/N nods, “Yes, you would be correct. I’m surprised you’re able to keep track of such complicated matters,” she affronts him with such ease, bringing back the agitation between them.

One of her shoes stays stuck in the mud, but it matters not to Y/N. She simply shakes it off, continuing on in her now brown-stained socks. Anthony huffs at how easily she switched back to her cold demeanor, “Must you always be so difficult?” He scolds, pulling her shoe out of the mud. He walks over to her and throws her shoes in front of her, “Put these back on before you step on something that hurts you.”

“No,” Y/N refuses as she goes to but her ball. “Besides, why do you care if I hurt myself anyway? You’ve never been one to get invested in my safety.”

Anthony lets out a loud yell of annoyance, “Why must you have this insufferable need to challenge me at every turn. You think you're so clever, so invincible. Why don’t you just listen to me for once rather than engaging in one of your reckless endeavors?”

“I will never listen to you,” Y/N grunts out as she hits her ball into Anthony’s causing it to fly high in the air before colliding with the branch of a large tree. When it lands, both of them notice the familiar wooden bench that sits below it. Y/N’s eyes soften as she watches Anthony’s entire demeanor change. She’s not really sure how to react or what to say to him. What does one say to a person when they’re standing dangerously close their father’s grave.

Y/N’s throat bobs up and down as she gulps. She ventures closer to Anthony, placing a hand on his shoulder, “We do not have to continue the game, my lord,” she whispers. “I do not want you to–”

“I’m fine,” he cuts her off harshly. “Why do you care about my feelings anyway?” He asks, mocking her response from earlier when he tried to return her shoes. Y/N goes to say something, but she’s too late as Anthony is already stalking off to get back to the rest of the group.

Guilt seeps through Y/N’s veins. She sighs, completely forgetting about the balls they’ve left as she chases after him. “Anthony, wait!” She calls out. They might bicker over the smallest things, but the last thing she wants is for him to leave in this state. The older man doesn’t slow for her calls. She hurries after him, ignoring the mud squelching beneath her feet. She frustratedly calls for him again but to no avail. When she finally feels as if he’s in reach, she tries to grab his arm but is stopped by her own foot getting trapped in the root of a tree. She cries out in pain, falling to the floor as her ankle twists in a trap made by Mother Nature.

Anthony halts dead in his tracks when he hears her yell. He turns around and watches as she sits on the floor, nose scrunched up as she tries to remove her foot from the roots. She winces at even the barest of touches. Suddenly the animosity that was just between them vanishes as he rushes to her side.

“What did I tell you about putting your shoes back on!” He scolds, but his voice is much more worried than it is self-righteous.

Y/N gives him an incredulous look, “Pardon me for being more concerned about your well-being than my footwear.” She groans as Anthony manages to lift her foot of its entrapment. “I wasn’t exactly thinking I would get mauled by a tree when I was chasing after you.”

“You should not have been running in the first place! Once again, you are reckless and have no regard for your own safety,” he shakes his head.

“I am not reckless,” Y/N argues. “I can take care of myself just fine, thank you.”

“No you clearly cannot,” he gestures to her foot. “You needed me to come over here and take it out for you or else you would’ve been stuck out here alone.”

“I would’ve done just fine without you!” Her voice cracks from her emotions being on overdrive. “I simply wanted to make sure you were okay. I know how much your father meant to you and yet even when I try to be nice you still act like an insufferable prat!” Her chest heaves up and down, their faces slowly getting closer together as the argument intensifies. “You have hated me since we were children and the one time I try to put that aside, you still belittle me and treat me as if I am beneath you. I am tired of your idiocy. You constantly have to think you are right, but how can one be right when they go about living their own life to please someone else rather than themselves?!”

Anthony is left stunned by her outburst. He doesn’t know whether to yell back or be impressed at how well she’s analyzed him. He does try to live his life in a way that benefits his family over him. He’s never tried to put himself first and clearly Y/N has taken notice. He watches as her face continues to turn bright red from anger. He feels his own red heat filling his lungs as he maintains eye contact. His face droops down to hers, getting impossibly close.

“You do not like me,” Y/N continues, ignoring the proximity. “I have been around you and your family since birth and you are the only one who cannot seem to stand me. My mere presence is a burden to you and you have never bothered to give me an explanation!”

“Of course I do not like you.”

“Then tell me why!” Y/N demands. “You at least owe me that much if we are going to go about the rest of our lives making each other miserable!” Her eyes are narrowed as she tries to fight off the tears threatening to appear at her waterline. “What did I do to you to cause all of this? Because I cannot think for the life of me of an inciting incident that earned your hatred from the beginning. Unless it is my birth that upset you so,” she adds sarcastically. “So tell me, Viscount. Why is it that you dislike me so?”

“Because- because you infuriate me!” He finally lets go of his composure, joining Y/N on the yelling train that seems to have just left the station.

Y/N inches closer to him, “And what is it that you think you do to me, hm?” She asks, poking his chest with her finger.

Anthony laughs at the preposterous idea, “What is it exactly that I do to you? Besides put up with your constant assault on my character?”

Y/N feels her senses getting rather fuzzy as Anthony’s grip on her leg seems to tighten. He’s conscious enough not to put pressure on her hurt ankle, but not enough to realize how deep his fingers are digging into the tissue. The way his eyes are boring into hers makes her tilt her head back, exposing the bare skin of her neck. His scent once again fills her nose and causes her breathing to become bated. “You…” she trails off as he suddenly moves his hand to corner her into the tree she is sitting next to, “you hate me.” Her answer comes out as a whisper as the two sit with a burning flame between them.

Anthony nods his head, “Yes, I do. I hate you.” He leans forward, giving Y/N no room for any kind of escape. Her breath hitches in her throat as she feels his body heat encompassing her. She doesn’t bother trying to move or make any sort of protest. “Every. Single. Part.”

His lips crash onto hers with a ferocious intensity, a clash of wills and pent-up emotions finally unleashed. Anthony’s hands threaded through Y/N’s hair, pushing her backwards to pin her fully to the tree for support. He leans into her body, evoking a small sound from her lips at the sudden sensation. Her arms wrapped around his neck, fingers digging into his shoulders, drawing him nearer still. The kiss was fervent and searing, their breaths mingling in a dance of unspoken desires and long-buried passions. Each movement was deliberate and ravenous, conveying years of unacknowledged tension and unvoiced longing. The world around them ceased to exist as they lost themselves in the incendiary connection, a fusion of fire and fervor that left them both breathless and craving more.

Anthony takes a risk, biting her bottom lip to which he is pleasantly surprised by the soft whimper that escapes her as she allows him access. Their tongues fight in a battle for dominance, one that both work valiantly to win. Anthony grips her hip roughly, shocking her and handing him his inevitable win. When he removes his lips from hers, she throws her head back as he works his way down, kissing her jaw, her neck, the crook between her shoulder and clavicle. He sucks on the smooth skin just below the neckline of her dress, summoning a sinful moan from her.

“I believe this is the only time I’ve enjoyed hearing something come out of your mouth,” he mocks, continuing his artistry across her chest.

Y/N laughs sinisterly before pulling Anthony back up to her by his hair. He winces from the sudden shock of pain, his eyes darkening as he thinks back to when he said he would punish her for her behavior. This would just be added to the list. Y/N doesn’t relent her grip as she grazes her lips over his, “Why don’t you let me show you just how much you will like my mouth, Viscount?”

Anthony chuckles darkly, not expecting that to be the words she utters. He removes himself from his spot that kept her pinned to the tree before standing. He towers over her with a demanding look on his face, “Well don’t just sit there. Come over here and show me.”

[maleyanderecafe]

i haven't seen any news here yet but have u seen the newest update for 14 days with you? ren in day 3 got me blushing and shiiiii 🤪 and his new hairstyles? gahdamn 😮‍💨

It's been a long time coming, but I played the update! I actually had to wait since at the time there was a 3.5 update coming out so I just waited until that came out before deciding to play the entire thing. Lots of new and changed things, the artwork is great as always.

Since in my original recommendation I already gave summary on the first day, I'm going to first note some changes for the first day before summarizing the second day.

In the first day, we can now change the length of Haruko's hair, which in turn changes Ren's hair as well. In addition, we get a conversation from our boss Conan who talks about repairing the library. Depending on options, we also meet up with two friends while walking home, Jay and Leon. As I'm aware, these are the major changes that happen in the first day.

During the second day, Ren accompanies Angel out on a date before the two run into Leon and Teo, Angel's ex (or fling). Teo and Ren get very bitter towards each other, showcasing that Teo is kind of a bad ex, still being rather possessive towards Angel while Leon tries to keep everyone's cool. Afterwards, Angel and Ren go eat out in a cafe (with an easter egg that Angel can actually like an goth look that they see a passerby with, a reference to Redacted's look). Angel and Ren decide to go to a store where a girl named Olivia starts flirting with Ren. Ren is clearly uncomfortable, but Angel sees this as a possibility that Ren might be interested in her, due to how they were treated by Teo in the past. As the two end their date, it starts to rain and Ren goes out to get an umbrella. After taking a long time, Angel starts to believe that Ren has ditched them and can choose to leave or stay. Either way, Ren comes back in the nick of time and offers them to either go to their place or Ren's (though in the end the two go to Ren's). Ren's place is very clean and modern, almost as if it was never really used, fitting considering Ren is a programmer. Ren insists on Angel staying (through glitchy text) and they can either decide to stay in their room or have a good time with Ren in his room.

The next day, Ren makes Angel some breakfast (and cute moments) before Angel heads out back to work. It seems that Elanor has some work to do and one of the shelves fell on her thus causing her to leave early (wonder who could have caused that). Elanor's sister, Kiara comes to visit and hang out as well. Teo comes in as well and immediately goes towards Elanor who gets smitten with him. Angel can decide to join in on Teo and Kiara's "date" to make sure nothing happens to her, but not before Conan pulls them aside to make sure they're safe (in general) because of the accident that Elanor had. If they do they end up all going to a bookstore where Angel finds Ren reading behind some shelves, but not before being interrupted by Moth who calls them and chats them up. Leon then also suggests having a double date at an aquarium the next day (this is also the same thing he asks if you decide to not join in on the date and instead go home). They briefly meet Olivia outside their apartment who asks what their relationship with Ren is before leaving. In the end they go home where they can invite someone over, go to their place or call them. With Elanor, Angel will air out their distaste for Teo and warns her to be careful, with Violet, the two discuss the date and Angel's feelings on it, with Conan, they chat a bit about the discussion, with Jae, they chat a bit before talking about the date, Angel talks to Leon about how worried they are about Teo and Elanor, Angel and Teo snidely talk about each other and Moth chat about the date as well, but all of them either send Angel home because of a phone call or the reception gets busted in some way or another. Ren also ends up coming over at the end of all of these, talking about the murder, the place that Angel is living at before watching a movie and possibly having more sexy times. There are also some easter eggs for certain people as well if you are so inclined.

First of all, I will say that the game really maintains the quality of visuals and coding as everything is as clean and as beautiful as when I first played it. Always something nice that's added. I like that you now have the option to change pronouns when you'd like and that you can change the message on your phone and see other character's messages as well. It's a good way to integrate the world inside of the game and it looks good. Each ending where Angel refuses to date Ren has of course Ren booting them back into the main menu and the addition of adding various glitchy effects that stack up as the game goes on depending on choice is a very nice thing as well. It makes me wonder about what consequences it may have in the future. Having to choose Ren's hair length via Haruka's hair length is fun too and changes the cgs as well which is kind of cool to see. There's more hints of Ren's interference, causing the bookshelf to fall on Elanor, causing any phone calls to be abruptly interrupted to to interference and causing any in person meetings to be interrupted by phone calls. One of the things that I didn't particularly like changed was the event that Olivia dies after her first encounter with Ren, while Angel is waiting for him to get the umbrella. It's shown only through the special screen with the character message stating that she's offline in a very eerie way, something that was a great way to show that Ren had done something to her without explicitly saying it. Of course, in this version, Olivia does not die and instead Angel seems her in the apartment. I can see why it was changed as Ren is shown to be more of a lighter yandere, but I really liked the way that it subtly showed Ren dealing with her in a previous version. Another thing that confused me was the call (video call?) that Angel has with Moth at the bookstore. After seeing Moth's sprite I legitimately thought that they were actually at the store for most of the conversation and I only was able to tell it was a call based on the text box itself. I think a better way to display this is if either Moth's sprite was a bit more transparent or it was changed to be placed in a box to indicate that it was call. The last thing is more of a bug, but if you have skipping on and you hold down the skip key while starting the game, you can actually play the entire game without seeing a single sprite, as you didn't answer the intro questions of name, streamer mode, etc. It also resets when you back to the do answer those questions. Probably can be fixed easily by preventing skipping at least until you actually get to the dialogue.

We get more backstory with Angel and their relationships, especially with Teo. We can see why they are a lot more reserved when it comes to their relationship with Ren, given that they were not treated well when it came to Teo and thus has lingering doubts on whether Angel actually loves them or not. It makes the Olivia and Ren interaction and going home early make more sense (though I am kind of surprised that Angel would want to even talk to Teo given that they probably aren't really on good terms. That and he's a jerk). Most of the conversations after the date talk about Teo as a person and how most of them want to believe that Teo is actually getting better as a person, which seems... weird, given that his behavior does not show otherwise. Personally, I think it's really weird that Angel would even approve Elanor and Teo going on dates in the first place, given that Teo seems to be a terrible person and is the kind that cheats very easily, where Elanor is the type that is more romantic. It is addressed after the various dates and you can actually tell Elanor in person, but I think it's very strange everyone wants these two to actually date given how very different their personalities are and Teo being kind of a huge jerk. I suppose its more like the fact that you can't control if they wanted to date, but I would have thought Angel would have warned Elenor about him considering what Angel and Teo's relationship was like.

Overall, I think the game is making good progression on where it is. Right now it's a little slow though, mostly focusing on dating lives and whatnot, but hopefully we can also get to the mysterious murders that are happening soon enough. Ren is still cute as always and it's fun that you can still tease him in his various scenes.

[sapphire-writes]

Thin Ice (modern!HOTD series)

pairing: Aegon x Reader & Cregan Stark x Reader

summary: Aegon Targaryen is a hockey-playing, party-loving, self-centered player. You've sworn off guys like that. But fate intervenes and suddenly you're thrown into a partnership with him, a quid pro quo of sorts.

word count: 4.0k

warnings: 18+ series (language, mentions of sex, sex toys), college AU, hockey AU

note: here it is my loves! I can't wait to see what you think 😘

series masterlist

Ch. 1: The Deal next chapter >

You swore to yourself you were done hooking up with athletes. You’re doing pretty well so far, a month into the fall semester, and still painfully celibate. And it wasn’t easy, especially when your toxic ex-friend with benefits kept blowing up your phone. 

During your freshman year at King’s Landing University, you had a fling with Jason Lannister, a lacrosse-playing, business major who had you in tears more times than he ever managed to make you come. It was a very long semester.

The asshole still had the nerve to hit you up every now and then via text.

“Look at this,” you say, shoving your phone in Sara’s face. 

The brunette glances up at you, stopping mid-bite of her panini, eyes widening at the messages. You’re sitting at your usual table for lunch at the north campus dining hall with Sara Snow and Helaena Targaryen, two of your best friends. It’s make your own panini day on Tuesdays, something Sara insists can never be missed. 

“Block him,” she says swallowing, as you flip your phone upside down on the table. 

Helaena nods her head, agreeing with Sara, not looking up from the biology notes she’s scrambling to complete before her class. 

“He didn’t even add a question mark,” you continue, “I’m not even worth proper punctuation.”

Sara snickers at that, taking a sip from her drink as you lean forward, head in your hands. Helaena and Sara lock eyes as you do so, sharing a knowing look between them. 

“He’s so annoying,” you groan, rubbing your temples.

“Who is?” Baela asks as she arrives, plopping into the seat to your right.

“Jay Lannister,” Sara tells her, and Baela glares at you. 

“Do not fuck him,” Baela warns fire in her violet eyes, pointing her finger at you to emphasize her words. 

Your mouth drops open in shock. She’s always calling you out, Baela can read you like a book.

“I’m not going to!” you tell her, but Baela shakes her head. 

“You are a horny bitch,” Baela says, still pointing, “get a vibrator, get a dildo please-”

“Baela, oh my god we’re in public,” you tell her, moving to cover her mouth.

She swats your hand away.

“Do you think I care?” she says, smiling.

“You’re the worst and I hate you,” you tell her, “and I love you, please keep reality-checking me.”

“That’s a lot of feelings,” Sara comments.

“What do I do about Jason, seriously?” you ask once more.

“Block him!” is the unanimous response. 

You sigh, but open your phone, deleting the text and blocking his contact. You hold the phone out to your friends, showing your dirty work. 

“There? Happy?” you tell them.

“I am,” Baela says, and Sara and Helaena nod in agreement. 

“You just need someone new to get under,” Sara comments, “and it’s the best time of year to do so.”

You blink at your best friend.

“I don’t follow.”

Sara sighs, as though you should know exactly what she’s talking about.

“Cuffing season?” she says, earning a blank stare.

Her eyes glance behind you, a smirk coming on her lips.

“And more importantly,” she says, head tilting to the side, tongue between her teeth, “hockey season.”

You turn in your seat, watching as the boys' hockey team enters the dining hall. Clearly, they’ve come from practice, all half-dressed, all freshly showered messes of men with shaggy hair framing their faces. They all sit together, like a pack of wolves, at the same table. Team bonding at its finest. 

“Gods do I love a hockey flow,” Sara groans, biting her lip. 

From October to April, the King’s Landing Knights own the ice. They own the entire college campus if you’re being completely honest. Most of the team lives together, throwing exclusive parties throughout the season at the so-called hockey house. 

Sara hums in appreciation, watching as Jace Velaryon brushes some damp hair from his face, t-shirt riding up to expose his midriff. You can’t see her face, but you know Sara looks like she’s ready to sink her teeth into him. You know Jace from class, he’s a nice guy. Sara would be the death of him. 

You turn back toward your friends. 

“Is this why we came to north campus?” you ask and Sara shrugs.

“It’s an added bonus to panini day,” she tells you, earning a laugh from Helaena.

“I told you, I’m done with college athletes,” you tell them, “they’re all the same. No offense, Hel.”

You nod to Helaena who simply shrugs. Her brother Aegon plays hockey after all.

“No, you should speak your truth,” Helaena encourages. 

Sara opens her mouth in shock, eyebrows knitting together as she brings a hand to her throat clutching imaginary pearls. 

“Don’t talk about my Jacaerys that way!”

You laugh, nearly snorting your drink out through your nose.

“Your Jacaerys?” you ask through a laugh.

Though you suppose Jace should be exempt from the athlete slander. 

“Well not mine yet, but soon,” she tells you, causing Helaena to raise an eyebrow.

“You’re going to bang my cousin?” Hel asks and Sara shrugs.

“It’s not my fault your entire family tree goes here,” Sara argues, causing Helaena to laugh.

“They've got a game this week. Come with me!” Sara begs, taking your hand in hers, “We’ll score invites to the afterparty at the hockey house!”

You tilt your head at Sara giving her an incredulous look, before turning to Baela and Helaena.

“It’s like she’s tuning me out on purpose,” you tell them, eliciting laughter.

“I am,” Sara agrees, “you need to get laid. Hard. Bed and bred, if you will.”

You choke on your drink again. A group of your peers at a nearby table glance in your direction and you’re sure they’ve heard Sara. 

“Bred!?”

“Chill, you’re on birth control!”

“Not everyone has a breeding kink, Sara!”

“Don’t you kink shame me in this sacred dining hall-”

As soon as the words leave Sara’s lips, Rhaena arrives at the table, backpack slung over her shoulders, eyebrows knitting together.

“What did I just walk into?” she asks.

You turn in your seat, grabbing her hand. 

“Save yourself,” you tell her dramatically, “it’s too late for us but there’s still hope for you.”

“Why are we talking about kink shaming at lunch?” Rhaena asks, sitting down. 

Sara leans forward as though sharing a secret. 

“Because I should be the one shaming our dear nerdy love here for not exploring her own,” Sara informs her, “Y/N doesn’t know what she’s missing out on.”  

“I don’t need to get laid,” you inform them, pointing at Baela, “as Bae said, I am simply going to use my vibrator more often.”

“You need a human dick,” Sara scolds, “or else you’ll be fantasizing about Jason the whole time you buzz buzz.”

Your friends know you too well. 

“I can’t even fantasize?” you ask pouting.

“I literally can’t with you,” Baela says, rolling her eyes, “Jason is a douche.”

“He once made you throw up from crying so hard,” Sara scolds, trying to bring you back to reality.

“He made you pay for takeout and didn’t order you any,” Helaena adds.

“He told you his-”

“Okay! Okay, I get it!” you tell them.

You know they’re right. But Jason is the friends-with-benefits situation you feel like you can’t let go of. Even though he was such an asshole to you. 

“But if I’m getting a guy, I want someone sweet, someone nice, and loyal,” you tell your friends, setting some ground rules. 

“You’re describing a dog,” Baela tells you, but Sara nods in agreement with you.

She bites her lip in encouragement. The conversation is going in her favor. 

“Someone who can dick you down, degrade you a little, explore some hidden parts of your sexual psyche,” she adds, wiggling her fingers. 

“Someone-”

“Someone like him,” Rhaena says, nodding back toward the hockey players. 

You all turn, watching as someone joins the team. Your eyes widen watching him strut over to where the rest of his teammates sit. He’s big, totally jacked, with shaggy brown hair that matches the color of his closely shaved beard, despite a small patch that appears more auburn than brown. 

His eyes are warm, the color of melted chocolate. He grins wolfishly taking his seat. Even though he’s wearing sweats you can tell his thighs are massive, matching the bulging biceps on display as he stretches. You let your eyes wander to another bulge you’re interested in, thoughts turning to mush in your head.

“Yeah,” you say, watching as he sits with the rest of the team.

“You know why his beard is like that, right?” Sara asks, eyes sparkling.

“Huh?”

“From eating too much pussy.”

“Sara!”

“What?” 

“That’s Cregan Stark,” Baela answers the unspoken question in the room.

Sara claps her hands excitedly.

“I know him, I saw his name on the online roster,” Sara says, “he’s 6’3, plays goalie, loves dogs-”

“You’ve been studying the hockey roster?” Rhaena asks, laughing.

Sara nods enthusiastically. 

“He’s a political science major,” Baela adds, “Cregan’s nice, I’ve had a couple of classes with him. Cool dude. Used to date Aly but I heard they broke up.”

“Which one?” you ask for clarification.

“Aly with a Y, not Ali with an I,” Baela adds, making the clarification between Alysanne Blackwood and Aliandra Martell. 

“This is it,” Sara tells you, her face serious, “he’s the one.”

You look at Cregan again and watch him laugh as Jace says something. You find yourself smiling watching them talk, watching Cregan’s smile light up his whole face.

“And look! They’re besties too, it's perfect,” Sara says, gasping and making a pouty face. 

“When is the game?” you ask, and Sara cheers. 

“I’ll find out the details,” she says, smiling. 

It’s a Tuesday, and you only have one afternoon class, thank the gods. Philosophy. Not the worst, not one of your all-time favorites. Luckily, being one of Helaena’s best friends meant access to her brother’s study guides. Aemond was seriously a philosophical genius. 

You have no friends in this elective, so you sit toward the front and try not to doze off as your professor drones on about Kant and Decarte. Your phone buzzes on your desk and you glance at the text that appears.

“I have your papers from last week,” your professor says, holding a stack of papers in the air, “some of you impressed me,” he says beginning to hand them out, “others may need to stop by the academic resource center.”

Professor Orwylle stops in front of you placing your paper face down before smiling.

“Well done,” he murmurs, continuing around the room.

You turn the paper over revealing your perfect score. A shiver of pride rolls through you. Academic validation always feels so good.

“Fuck,” a deep voice says, causing you to turn. 

Aegon Targaryen sits a few rows behind you, looking very displeased with the grade on his paper. You didn’t realize Aegon was in this class, though it's rather large to be fair, not your fault for not noticing him.

You have only spoken to Aegon a handful of times. Being friends with his sister and acquaintances with his brother, you’d bumped into him once or twice. He’s the eldest of his siblings, though they have an older half-sister they don’t really talk to. 

Aegon is slumped in his seat, silver hair pushed off of his face. He looks like he just rolled out of bed, dressed in a clean white t-shirt and grey sweatpants. His eyes have dark circles underneath them, and two earrings dangle from his left earlobe. 

He’s heartbreakingly handsome, truly the definition of a pretty boy with those pouty lips, dead violet eyes, and cherubic face. But he’s not your type. He’s a heartbreaker too, so you’ve heard, with a solid rotation of gorgeous girls on his arm.

Aegon Targaryen is a player. 

Aegon Targaryen is a party boy. 

Aegon Targaryen is an asshole. And you’ve sworn off guys like that. 

“What’s good bro?” you hear Arryx Cargyll ask him as you turn back to face the front.

“This class is a fucking nightmare,” Aegon groans.

“I did alright,” Arryx tells him, smiling.

“Fuck you,” Aegon tells his friend, “why did I choose this elective.”

“Can’t your grandfather just donate more money? Get you out of it?” Arryx asks him, shoving his papers into his backpack.

“Yeah that’s not going to happen,” Aegon says shaking his head. 

While Aemond and Helaena had no trouble getting into university, Aegon’s transcripts weren’t the best. He had a rough time during his teen years, in and out of programs. The only consistency was hockey, truly the only reason Aegon attended school at all. Even now. His grandfather spent a fortune donating to the school, funding the restoration of the library to have Aegon accepted. 

“Don’t forget, the midterm exam is only 2 weeks away, if you haven’t started studying, you’re already behind,” your professor tells you, dismissing the class. 

You gather your things, eager to leave the classroom. You text Sara as you leave the room, as Aegon remains seated. 

“Mr. Targaryen,” Professor Orwylle says, beckoning him forward.

Aegon stands and makes his way toward the desk.

“I assume your wish is not to fail my class,” he asks as Aegon taps his foot nervously.

“Coach has already threatened to bench me,” Aegon tells him, “I need a good grade on this midterm or it’s fucking over for me-shit sorry- just over.”

Professor Orwyelle smiles tightly at him, a pitying look in his eye. Aegon’s had a lot of stress from home, he knows how hard this semester has been on him. 

“Tell you what,” Orwylle says, “I suggest you reach out to one of your classmates, see if anyone can help you study, maybe do some tutoring. We can meet during my office hours, but I think you’ll need some additional support.”

Aegon nods, running a hand through his platinum hair. 

“My brother took this class,” Aegon tells Orwyelle, who smiles remembering him, “he’ll have to help me.”

“I’m not helping you,” Aemond says, his voice soft, but firm in the library.

Aegon groans, earning several glares from nearby students trying to study. He drops into the seat across from Aemond.

“You’re a twat,” he whispers to his younger brother, “Aem, please, don’t make me beg.”

Aemond closes the book he’s reading, a massive historical textbook, before rubbing the scarred tissue above his eyebrow. Aegon watches him wince, unsure if Aemond’s eye is paining him or simply Aegon’s presence. The injury happened years ago that caused Aemond to lose his eye, their cousin is still in juvenile detention due to the incident. 

“I can’t help you,” he tells Aegon, “I gave away all my study materials already.”

Aegon’s eyebrows furrow.

“To who?”

“One of Helaena’s friends.”

“Baela?”

“No.”

“Rhaena?”

“Nope.”

Helaena has so many friends they’re all blurring together. For an introverted STEM student, she’s quite popular. 

“Who then?”

Aemond sighs at Aegon’s pestering, rubbing his eyes. 

“Y/N,” he tells Aegon.

Aegon pauses for a moment, frowning. All the faces that Helaena surrounds herself with flash in his mind but he struggles to match a face to the name. 

“Which one is that?”

Aemond glares at him.

“Aegon-”

“What? Helaena has a lot of friends,” Aegon argues.

“She came on the ski trip last year,” Aemond reminds him.

Oh.

He did remember you. The annual Targaryen family ski trip, Hel brought you along as her plus-one. Aegon remembered you in a skimpy little bathing suit at the ski lodge spending most of the day cooped up in the hot tub reading a book than actually skiing. Helaena had nearly plucked Aegon’s eyes from his skull. Cruel of her really, to bring along a hot friend and then demand Aegon leave her be. 

“I know her,” Aegon says, “I didn’t realize she’s in my class.” 

“You’re very unobservant,” Aemond comments, beginning to pack his things, “don’t bother her, she’s a nice girl.”

Aegon frowns, motioning to himself.

“And I’m not a nice guy?”

“Aegon.”

“I just need help with studying,” Aegon promises, “that’s all. Seriously, I cannot get benched this season. I can’t ask for another bailout.”

Aemond watches him closely.

“Helaena will kill you if you mess with one of her friends,” Aemond warns him.

“I know,” Aegon agrees, “it’s just for studying, I swear.”

He motions across his chest, crossing his heart. Aemond stares and raises an eyebrow at him. Nothing with Aegon is ever that simple. 

“Hel is at the registrar’s office,” Aemond tells him, “if you want to ask her for Y/N’s number.”

Aegon clasps his hands together in appreciation.

“You’re a good brother,” he tells Aemond, standing.

“Mhmm,” Aemond says, going back to his work.

Aegon hurries across campus, luckily the registrar's office isn’t too far. He bumps into his sister as she’s leaving, frowning at her new schedule.

She looks up, noticing Aegon. 

“I can’t switch to Medieval Archeology,” Helaena complains to her brother, “there’s a waitlist. Now I’m stuck in the History of Valyria. As if Dad didn’t quiz us incessantly as kids on our own culture.” 

“I need a favor,” Aegon says following as Helaena walks down the hallway.

“Don’t you always?” she grumbles, taking out her phone. 

“I need your friend Y/N’s number,” he says and Helaena freezes. 

“Stupid question Egg,” she tells him, quirking an eyebrow, “No, I’m not giving you her number.”

“Please, I just-”

“Aegon,” Helaena says sharply, “Cassandra Baratheon doesn’t even speak to me anymore.”

Aegon winces dramatically.

“That was years ago,” he argues as Helaena refers to her high school best friend. 

“My friends are off limits,” she tells him, “capiche?”

“I just need some study-”

“CAPICHE?” Helaena says, louder this time, with more authority in her normally soft voice.

“ALRIGHT!” Aegon says sighing, “I get it, seriously. I just need a tutor. That’s it.”

Helaena narrows her eyes. 

“Fine. But I’m not giving you her number. You’re not getting easy access,” she says getting out her phone, “I’ll text her.”

Aegon sighs.

“Thank you,” he says and Helaena hums in response, sounding an awful lot like Aemond.

She says nothing as she texts and Aegon tries to peek over her shoulder causing her to glare at him. He reaches to turn her phone and she slaps his hand away. 

“She’s on the quad,” Hel tells him.

“Perfect, you’re a lifesaver Hel,” he says before leaving.

You sigh dramatically as Helaena leaves you on read. You tilt your head back looking up toward the sky enjoying the feeling of the cool fall air on your face. The sun is still warm, it's early October and summer is just starting to truly slip away. You’re still basking in the sun when Aegon Targaryen sits down in front of you. 

“What do you want, Aegon?” you ask, already annoyed by his presence. 

He leans forward, smiling, cradling his chin in his palms. He bats his lashes at you, looking ever so innocent. You raise an eyebrow at him. 

“The pleasure of your company,” he teases.

“Mhmm,” you answer, looking at him.

“I need a tutor,” he tells you, “I’m failing philosophy, and if I fail this semester I’ll be benched for the rest of the season”

Of course, it all comes back to hockey for Aegon.

“Why don’t you ask Aemond to tutor you?”

“He said no,” Aegon tells you, “I figured you’d be more open to my begging.”

Your cheeks turn red. 

“Well you thought wrong,” you tell him, “I don’t have time for tutoring this semester.”

“C’mon, I know you tutored last semester,” he tells you, pouting, “And midterms are coming up! What’s more important than sharing your knowledge with those less fortunate?”

Getting dicked down by Cregan Stark, you think to yourself but bite your tongue.

Aegon’s brows knit together, noticing the blush on your cheeks, the pause in your train of thought. 

“There has to be something I can do,” he says, “something I can help you with, tell me.”

“There’s nothing,” you insist, shaking your head.

“Come on, don’t be shy,” Aegon says again, “Tell me, what’s a guy got to do to earn your help?”

Sara would kill me if I waste this opportunity.

“Okay,” you say with a sigh, “I want invites to the party at the hockey house on Friday. Guaranteed entrance.”

Aegon raises a brow.

“Tutor girl has a thing for hockey guys now, huh?”

The blush on your cheeks darkens. Aegon smirks, giving you a once-over.

“You know Jace, why don’t you ask him to hook you up?”

“We’re not close.”

Aegon’s eyes narrow.

“Who do you have your eye on?” he asks, curiously.

“No one,” you lie to him, and he sighs, leaning back in his chair.

“Can’t help you if you’re not honest with me, sweetheart.”

“Don’t call me that,” you insist, “and I just want the invite.”

“C’mon give me a hint,” Aegon says, relentlessly, “What’s your type? What position, forward? Center? Left-wing? Goalie?”

Your treacherous body gives you away, breath-catching as he says the word and your lower lip gets caught between your teeth. Aegon grins triumphantly. 

“Goooalie,” he says, elongating the word.

He releases a boyish giggle as you turn red. He’s enjoying this too fucking much.

“Cregan Stark, huh?” Aegon chuckles, “Never took you for a puck bunny.”

You glare at him, snapping your book closed. 

“Are you going to help me, or should I direct you toward the academic resource center?” you snap, feeling all too embarrassed for even admitting to Aegon you have a crush on Cregan.

“Relax, bunny,” he teases, holding his hands up in surrender, “I’ll help you.”

He holds a hand out toward you. You glance at his outstretched hand, at the silver rings on his thumb and index finger. Aegon wiggles his fingers at you, expectantly. You raise an eyebrow at him and he sighs. 

“You want to fuck Stark or not?” Aegon asks, causing your eyes to widen, “cause he’s an enigma, you’ll need my help.”

“Enigma,” you say pursing your lips, “that’s a big word for you, Aegon.”

“Not the only thing that’s big,” Aegon answers, like it’s a preprogrammed response.

Your eyebrows shoot up to your hairline and you give him a disapproving glare.

“Sorry,” Aegon chuckles, “force of habit.”

“This alliance is time-limited,” you tell him, firmly setting a boundary, “I help you pass, you help me talk to Cregan.”

Aegon’s eyebrows raise, an amused smile on his face. You feel as though you’re selling your soul to the devil himself, the way he’s impishly grinning at you. 

“Couldn’t have said it better myself,” he tells you.

You reach across the table, extending your hand for him to shake. With a smirk, Aegon takes your hand in his, the cool metal from his rings pressing against your fingers in juxtaposition to the warmth of his rough palm. A shiver rolls down your spine as he squeezes your hand. 

“It’s a deal.”

note: as always comments, likes, & reblogs are always appreciated, I hope this sets up the story for you and I'm excited to share where it goes! MWAH LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!! 😘

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[syddsatyrn]

Je t'aime Violet

By Sydd Satyrn Chapter 1 ⛧ Chapter 2 ⛧ Chapter 3 Masterlist

⛧Pairing: - Alastor x OC!Reader Violet

⛧Warnings: Drinking, smoking, swearing, fluff, hurt/comfort, angst, eventually smut, adult themes, 18+ not for minors

⛧Words: 1.8k ⛧Fic playlist: Click here!

⛧Summary: Hello ladies, gentleman and nonbinary friends! I present to you, my series Je t'aime Violet. This story is staring my OC, Violet! She is a deer demon containing a lot of personality. With a gifted voice and a bit of jazz, she's got style and class on lock. After 7 years, Violet and Alastor's feelings towards each other never dissolved. Violet reconnects with the man who left with her heart, will she forgive him? Does Alastor have the ability to set his pride aside for love?

⛧Notes: @hellfiremunsonn is a total babe for being my beta reader.

⛧Chapter 1: Rye Whiskey The door slams shut behind you and you let out a sigh of relief, another show is finally over. After taking a seat in front of your vanity, you turn on the small television in your dressing room. You’ve been on tour for the past year and a half, playing at different venues, private events, and more. Today was the final show and you gave it all you had, the crowd seemed pleased. Even though you almost collapsed at the end of the performance, everything worked out in your favor. It's getting late so you pour yourself a glass of whiskey and take a sip. Being a Jazz singer isn't all it's cracked up to be. Sure the fame and free drinks are nice, but the men are pigs. Just because you dance around in skimpy clothes and sing love songs doesn't mean you’re going to go home with whoever flashes a stack of cash your way. Suddenly a familiar voice shakes you from your thoughts. An odd commercial plays on the TV and you almost spit out your drink. Your soft ears perk up and twitch and your tail flicks from side to side. “Do you like blood, violence, and depravity of a sexual nature? Of course, you do! That's why you’re in hell! But what would you say if I told you there was a place to stay that had none of that? Welcome to the Hazbin Hotel, a misguided path to redemption! Founded five days ago by Lucifer’s delusional daughter, Charlotte Morningstar. Come place your fate in her inexperienced hands as she tries to work through her daddy issues by fixing you! Here we offer fun things such as…Somewhat functional staff and 24-hour pest control! Custom rooms and just look at this parlor! Enjoy a Riveting conversation with our singular resident! Wow! All this and more at the Hazbin Hotel! Your last desperate attempt at salvation starts here!” That voice is unmistakable, but part of you can’t believe it’s true. Has Alastor really come back? Is he staying at this strange hotel? So many unanswered questions. You had a history with the infamous Radio Demon. A past you thought would never see the light of day. It was long before you found your passion for music, in a time when you thought nothing would make you happy. 

Alastor used to be your beau once upon a time. You both used to be so undoubtedly in love with each other. He used to sweep you off your feet and make you feel like the most beautiful thing in all of Hell. But that was a long time ago, and Alastor might not be the same guy you used to know, seven years is enough time to change a person. He was the one who broke it off, stating that he had some business to deal with. He was vague and aloof, he said he couldn’t stick around and keep you, that it would be unfair of him to make you wait. You told him it didn't matter to you, that you would wait for his return. He told you that he might not return at all, kissed your hand, and left you there in the rain.

You finished off the last of your drink, there was no way you could stay in the dressing room tonight. If there was even the slightest chance that you could see Alastor again you had to go. So you changed out of your stage clothes into a black dress, one that hugs your curves rather nicely. You put on a pair of knee high boots and your black lapel. After deciding to keep the pearl necklace and earrings on, you check your makeup in the mirror and grab your duffle bag before leaving your dressing room. The streets of Pentagram City were alive with debauchery and sin. Sinners were partying, gambling, and fucking their cares away. With a lit cigarette between your lips you walk for a while, heels clacking against the sidewalk. Your eyes scan the billboards, hoping to find any sign of the hotel. A few ads pop up for a porn studio where your dear friend works. She used to sing with you until she decided to get into the adult entertainment business. You don’t mind, as long as she's happy, then so are you.

Your train of thought is derailed when the image changes on the billboard. It now shows the Hazbin Hotel with a very familiar face standing outside, holding a sign and smiling brightly. Your eyes widen and you feel a tightening sensation in your chest, that smile. You had seen it countless times in the past, that charming, dashing smile.

The billboard changes once again and a phone number flashes on the screen. You reach into your pocket and grab your cell phone. Dialing the number, you take a drag from your cigarette and hold the phone to your ear. After a few rings, a woman picks up and greets you. “Hello! Hazbin Hotel, How can I help you?” She is so cheerful it's almost disgusting. “Hi there. I was wondering if you had rooms available?” There's a short pause and some shuffling on the other line, the woman speaks again. "Oh my goodness! Yes, we have plenty of rooms available!" 

You take another drag from your cigarette and speak again, "Can I check-in tonight? I'm actually in the city and-"

"Oh my, yes of course! Let me get you the address.”

"Great, thank you." You reply. The cheerful woman gives you the address and you end the call. You take one last puff off your cigarette and stomp it out. With the location committed to memory, you make your way to the hotel. 

The hotel is quite large, standing out against the dim and drab streets. A smile spreads across your face and you walk up the steps. The moment you open the door a small woman dressed in a maids uniform greets you.

"Welcome to the Hazbin Hotel! I'm Nifty! And you must be a new guest!" She looks a bit disheveled and her eyes are wide. “Hello there Nifty,” You bend down and get on her level and smile at her. “My name is Violet. It's a pleasure to meet you, dear.” She squeals and grabs your hand, practically dragging you inside. Nifty points to the bar and introduces Husker the bartender as a “grumpy kitty”. You nod your head in agreement and follow her through the lobby. You walk up to the bar and give Husker a big smile. He grunts at you but returns your smile nonetheless. Nifty pulls out a stool and you set your bag down and take a seat.  “I’m going to go find Charlie for you, I’ll be right back!” Nifty exclaims as she runs off towards the elevator. You watch as the elevator doors close behind her. “What'll it be, Miss?” Husker asks in a gruff voice. He notices you have the same kind of features as Alastor, fluffy deer ears, a tail, and a toothy grin. “Rye whiskey, on the rocks if you have it.” You ask and Husker turns around to make it for you. Oddly enough you drink the same kind of Liquor as Alastor too. Just as Husker slides the drink over to you, the sound of heels clicking against the marble floor catches your attention. You glance up and there she is—Charlie. The woman who now owns and runs this peculiar establishment. Her smile is warm and welcoming as she approaches you, her red curls bouncing with every step. “Violet, I presume?” she says, extending a hand towards you. You take it, feeling a sense of relief wash over you. “That's me,” you reply with a soft smile. “It's quite a place you have here.” Charlie's eyes twinkle with pride as she looks around the bustling lobby. “Thank you! We do our best to make everyone feel welcome and offer a chance at redemption.” You can't help but admire her determination and genuine desire to help others. “You mentioned having a room available?” You ask and take a sip of your drink. “Oh yes! Here, take this.” She says and hands you a key. “You’re on the third floor, room 103. We can talk more tomorrow, it's getting late and I’m sure you would like to turn in for the night.” You thank Charlie, Nifty and Husk before making your way to the elevator. The ride up to the third floor is smooth, and as the doors open, you're greeted by a quiet hallway lined with ornate wallpaper and dimly lit lamps. Room 103 is at the end of the hallway, and you feel a mix of nerves and excitement as you approach the door. The key slides in easily, and with a click, the door opens to reveal a cozy room with a large bed, plush armchair, and a window overlooking the city below. Dropping your coat and duffle bag on a nearby chair, you take in the room's atmosphere before sitting down on the edge of the bed.

The events of the evening whirl through your mind - Alastor's unexpected return, the allure of the Hazbin Hotel, and now being here in this room that feels both familiar and new. But for now, all you can think about is going to bed. You put on a pair of small black shorts and a large t-shirt. After you hit the lights and crawl under the covers, it doesn't take long for you to drift off to sleep. 

While you sleep, a shadow appears in the room, a silhouette of a man with a sinister smile spreading across his face. The shadow moves closer to the bed, the figure illuminated by the dim moon light filtering in from the window. A shiver runs down your spine as you sense a presence in the room, causing you to slowly awaken from your slumber. Your eyes flutter open and the shadow flees, you only catch a glimpse of it out of the corner of your eye. You look around the room and you feel like someone is watching you, but there is no one here but you. You let out a sigh and try to go back to sleep, you must be seeing things.

As you try to shake off the eerie feeling, you hear a faint whisper in the darkness. Your heart races as you strain to make out the words being murmured. "Violet..." The voice is deep and sends a chill down your spine. You sit up in bed, your eyes wide with fear. "Who's there?" you manage to croak out, your voice barely above a whisper. There is no response, only the sound of your own ragged breathing filling the room. The voice sounded just like an old radio, you know he is calling you. But you’re not going to chase him, if he wants to talk to you, he knows exactly where to find you. So with that, you roll over and try your best to go back to sleep, despite the fact that you are being watched.

[markantonys]

a few more bridgerton thoughts! i've always been only a casual enjoyer who watches just for a few hours of fun and doesn't get super invested, but even so, i'm still feeling pretty underwhelmed by this season so far. i watched it in one sitting and enjoyed it while it was happening but just immediately forgot about it as soon as i was done. maybe all the memorable moments are going to be in the second half of the season, but for these first four episodes, i feel like it was all just kinda bland and forgettable (granted, of all the romance tropes in the world, m/f childhood-friends-to-lovers is just about the #1 most boring one to me, so this never would've been my favorite season regardless)

i adore romance and romcoms, always have, and am pretty happy to watch The Classic Marriage Plot play out a thousand times, yet i feel like bridgerton is maybe becoming TOO formulaic and repetitive. although, to be fair, i WAS giggling and kicking my feet during all the Classic Romance Scenes, but the problem was maybe just that there weren't enough of them, which brings me to my second point of too many subplots. too much padding and filler and not enough Classic Romance, which is what i'm here for.

8 hours is way more time than is needed to tell 1 love story, so to fill up the time they invent 17 random subplots that are ultimately pointless and have little relevance outside of the current season. i would way rather a season be only 4 episodes but tightly focused on the main love story, or that a season be about two siblings and two main love stories at a time, than have all this extra time they need to fill up with random unimportant shit. why have we had 3 seasons' worth of storylines about benedict having one-off non-endgame girlfriends that don't have a lasting impact on his character development? what's the point? he's been treading water for so long that i'm not even going to care about him anymore by the time he finally comes into the spotlight, and same with eloise. god, the thought of eloise's season potentially not being until like 2027 is insane. it's past time to start picking up the pace and doing 2 siblings per season!

and the kicker is that all these subplots, which were only invented to fill up the time, end up filling too MUCH time and taking away from the main love story, which is left feeling underbaked. this sort of happened last season, but it's way worse this season. penelope is an excellent character, but her back is breaking from trying to carry the season because colin is kinda giving us nothing due to lack of narrative attention given to him as an individual. he's supposed to be the co-lead, yet i couldn't tell you a single personality trait of his besides "vaguely nice" because he's just had no development and exists more as a prop for penelope to love than as a fleshed-out character in his own right. there was that whole scene where violet was talking about how he's a people pleaser who focuses on making others happy at the expense of his own wants and happiness, and i was just sitting there going "he is?" because i didn't feel i'd ever gotten to know him enough as a person to see this trait in him.

i also think the "dropping a season in 2 halves" model is just about the worst possible release model. if you drop 1 episode a week, that's constant engagement and allows for longer time to digest and appreciate each individual episode. if you drop the whole season at once, it's all over too fast but on the flipside you can experience the entire story at once without risking forgetting things or losing interest while waiting for new episodes. but dropping in two halves a month apart is the worst of both models (over too quickly yet also makes you wait too long to finish the story).

i do like some of the subplots, though. cressida getting to be more than just a mean girl caricature has been a particular highlight, the mondrich family going suddenly from working class to noble is interesting to see, and as a mega-introvert myself (and a music lover!) whose ideal partner would be someone who's happy to sit in silence with me, francesca and john's whole vibe is THE definition of romance to me and has me absolutely swooning (and it's a nice change of pace from all the loud dramatic romances on this show). violet potentially finding new love is also very sweet and i'm rooting hard for her! meanwhile i am not a fan of the featherington subplot; after s1 portraying regency girls' lack of sex education as a serious issue, it feels.........odd for the show to now be playing that very same thing for laughs this season and it just kinda makes me uncomfortable.

but otherwise there isn't much i dislike about the season, it's just kinda "meh" to me so far. the second half might turn things around if it's more memorable!

[apollo-ap]

It's been 23 years since he joined the army. For five years, the war has been raging in the eastern Continent. The commander of the Seventh Infantry Division, Lucien Vanserra, or Dragon as he was called by his enemies for his unexpected and extremely powerful raids on enemy troops, enters a deep cave where a message from a general has brought him. "Find the Seer. We need to know our future, Lucien." - the letter reads. Well, of course, he has nothing else to do, does he? Though Ironil was his teacher and loyal friend, his distrust of the others irritated Lucien. His mentor could have sent some private and not him. He has an army standing by, they need to move on, go on the offensive, and their commander has to play bloodhound. But Lucien understood why Ironil had sent him. With anger, spitting, he understood why. Not just because of distrust of the others. By nature, Lucien was a hunter. From a young age, he had learned the art. First in the forests of Autumn's court with his brothers in a warm coat and dogs, later in the cold northern forests in a shirt and bow against the monsters of the Continent, and, now, during the war Lucien had to hunt for enemy heads.

The cave was poorly lit and, strangely, not damp. It looked... inhabited. Lucien could smell someone's scent. A woman's. He would give a lot right now for a woman's sensual embrace. Or a man's. It didn't matter, he wanted to feel the warmth of someone else's body, to taste skin on his tongue. But that's not what this is about. The woman smelled like moss and needles. The whole cave was saturated with her scent, she had been here for quite some time. As he walked deeper into the cave labyrinths, Lucien's ears began to hear scraps of chanting in a language unknown to him. The rough sounds, more like clicks than syllables intensified as he approached. In the right passage, a staircase leading upward appeared before Lucien. The steps were illuminated by purple stalactites. As he climbed the stairs, Lucien took his sword out of its sheath just in case. He had created it himself, forged it out of fire and light with his own hands, and now it shone in the violet light. Prepared means warned - that's what his mentor always told him, well, after several unexpected attacks and wounds after them, Lucien remembered it and always drew his weapon, even without knowing whether there was an enemy nearby or not, and in the last dangerous years he even slept with a naked sword.

Climbing the stairs and turning the corner before the man was a wide hall with high ceilings, painted Signs on the stone walls and the same purple light of stalactites. In the center of the cave, in the middle of three carved wooden pillars, a fragile-looking woman sits with her back to the commander. Seers are helpers, they do not belong to a separate clan or race, when a girl awakens a gift she is immediately expelled from the family and the child has to go to find a secluded shelter. Blind. The Seers are not born blind, but when the Gift awakens, their sight is gone forever, as well as their ability to procreate. They are kind by nature and never take sides. Their help is selfless and very valuable, but to get it, the Seer must be sought out, which is incredibly difficult. But don't be fooled by those slim shoulders and hunched backs, Seers have the Power to render their abuser insane. Mother has done her best to protect women with such an ungrateful gift.

"Hello, Dragon. Hello, Lord of Fire. Hello, master of the sun. I welcome you to my haven, Lord Lucien. I have been waiting for you." - said in a husky, low voice, "My name is Meliss, and I will help you learn what you have come for, but open your eyes to what you do not wish to understand."

Lucien didn't like those words. He didn't plan on lingering here, and judging by the way she was talking, Meliss was going to be talking for a long time. Too bad, he didn't have time. And what's with the stupid riddles? What is it he doesn't want to understand? He's someone who's always wanting to understand something. Someone who's always learning. Lucien walked in silence and sat down opposite the Seer.

"Your campaign against Rusk's invaders will end successfully. You are on the right track, Lucien, and the rightful heir will be able to return to the stolen throne." - The woman began without preamble, taking Lucien's hand. He immediately felt a slight tingling sensation in his palm, as if he had grabbed a fir branch. But then Melisse led her palm higher, to his elbow, his shoulder, and as she unbuttoned his black uniform, her hand froze on his heart.

"You're a rarity Lucien. You went to the school of Fury and you were sure that's what you needed. You thought Fury was your friend, you thought you were full of rage. But you weren't, were you? Your results weren't the same as your comrades, rage didn't give you strength, it only weighed down your heart. Am I right? Lucien, I'll tell you an important thing and you'll remember it forever. You're a child of true love, Lucien. You're full of love, and you feel it. You're compassionate, and killing is no pleasure to you. That's right. You are Love, Lucien. Your name means more than light in the ancient language of the court of Autumn. In the archaon, language of the court of Day, Lucien means True Love. Never forget that. Mother created you to give love. You will be happy, no matter what you think to yourself. You are Mother's favorite, so love yourself as much as the world loves you. This is what I see, so see it, too." - The Seer spoke quickly, and tears flowed from her blind eyes.

Lucien could feel the breath getting stuck in his lungs. Love. No one had ever loved him, that's what he thought, that's what he felt. Beron had bullied him, his brothers had put him down for nothing, the courtiers thought he was worthless, and his mother... his mother didn't even look at him. Didn't protect him. Didn't love him. Only the oldest of his brothers, Eris, treated him with kindness and care. But even that had faded over the years. Love. Lucien would give a lot to have someone love him the way he loved the world.

The Seer wanted to say something else, but the Commander deemed what he heard sufficient. Lucien stood up quickly and strode towards the exit.

"Lucien!" - came a call to him.

He stopped without turning around. He did not want to fall into the trance of those empty eyes.

"You were made for Love, not for Cruelty. Remember that and never, hear, never forget it, Lucien. You are Love."

He ran out of there.

He ran and ran. Seconds, minutes, hours. He allowed himself to stop only when the Seer's cave was far behind him. It was the sea. The mighty waves were rising anxiously, as if echoing the emotions of a man who had been given both welcome and unhappy news.

Lucien continued to look out to sea, as if trying to see the golden roofs of the palace of Day, while the Sun rose over the continent, greeting his prince in the hope that someday he would hear the answer to his caressing words.

The cities awoke, his warriors awoke in confusion as to where their commander might have disappeared to, and the sun continued to rise, illuminating the beautiful features of a man, no longer a boy, who had yet to accomplish great feats and endure unimaginable suffering.

Tears were streaming down his face

-----------

my little sketch. there's nothing canon about it. it's just what I wanted to do. i'm not a native english speaker or a writer, so don't judge me harshly.

reading this and listening to The Sleep Token.

[thoughtfulpaperback]

You know, I've been scrolling through the tags, and I've seen some posts arguing either that Colin never loved Marina or that he did love her and anyone who thinks other ways is being being misogynistic or racist.

And I will say that I agree that we can't overlook the mysogynoir I also think that many people are missing the big picture here: that Colin hasn't been in love at all based on the shows definition of love.

Okay like here me out before everyone jumps down my throat.

I will concede that love is complex. It comes in many forms. While I have never experiences puppy love I don't want to devalue the experience of others who have.

What I am trying to say is that based on how the show defines love in each of its stories. He just hasn't been mature enough to be in love.

Violet tells Daphne that the best match/choice is your best friend. Though each story takes on a different troupe (fake relationship and enemies to lovers) the heart of it is the same. Love is wanting someone who is your friend. Someone who you know well and can share parts of yourself that you don't share with anyone else. Someone who challenges you to grow and you you are willing to be open minded for. Someone you want to stick with even when life is tough. Passion and all that is part of yeah but essentially that is the gist from the main show and Queen Charlotte.

While I personally do think Colin has affection for both Marina and Pen and he knows and liked the idea of love, but He just isn't mature enough to love anyone in that way yet.

He could never have been Marina's best friend not because of the lies but because he hadnt really tried to be. He never seem to actually get to know her. He liked dancing with her and spending time with her but, and forgive me if I'm wrong since it has been a while since I watched it last but Colin didn't seem to ask her her much past the superficial or the rescue attempts.

He had the whole willingness to stick it out with her. And he definitely had the feelings. I don't think its fair to downplay that Colin felt genuine care and infatuation. Maybe it was based on a fantasy more than the reality, but those are still valid feelings.

I do think Colin definitely could have grown to love Marina because if they had gotten married they would have eventually grown to be each other's friends since he cared for her and would be more than eilling to make it work, but that also would depend on whether Marina ever let down her guard and stopped playing the part of wanting to be with him for security reasons (Which I don't think is a crime worth all the hate it gets her).

By the same token, he isn't in love with pen. Again there is genuine care. And Pen for sure loves him. He is one of her best friends, she would do anything for him. She wants to protect him and she sees him in a way no one else does.

Obviously while Colin also matches some of that, he isn't there yet. He cares for Pen, he sees a part of her that no one else does, and he's her friend. But he doesn't actually see all of her yet. And I'm not just taking about the LW thing. But everything that goes with it. She isn't a damsel that needs rescuing or a puppy to coddle. She is capable witty and talented.

He definitely sees some of it, but not enough.

Now again if we are going to talk about the complexities of love and validation of experiences.

Then yes Colin loved Marina and he loves Penelope. Just like Anthony loved Sienna and loves Kate.

Love isn't just one thing or another, and it isn't always equally reciprocated.

But I feel that in the context of the shows idea and presentation of love, Colin has not loved anyone truly and probably won't love Pen right away either because he just hasn't matured enough yet to get it.

I don't think this is a particularly new or insightful thought but hadn't seen yet while i was scrolling.

Also yall who are out here waiting for Marina to die....what the heck. I am someone who likes Phillip x Eloise's story, though I think a lot of that would have to be revamped for the show Eloise if they were going to do it.

I honestly would think that they will move on to Benedict before Eloise. That aside I'm not like out here counting down the moments and anticipating the death of a character...

Jeez. Yall out here posting crap that makes me like not want to admit I liked eloise's book.

But

Liking Phillipe x Eloise is not equal to wanting Marina dead ASAP.

I feel like I shouldn't have to say that but apparently it needs to be said.

That's pretty disgusting, y'all, especially knowing how poorly Ruby Barker has been treated.

Now I know you can feel away about a character and not an actor, but I don't think giving the trolls validation is a good thing.

[midnightsun-if]

Scarlett got me kicking my feet in my air and giggling like a high school girl. Tbh she probably could glare at me and I'd go "hehe oh my god stoooop 🥺😊" and the fact she'll only be nice to the MC when we romance her??? Hand in marriage, can't wait to make my mc oblivious to any of her ice queen act and instead be head over heels like a fool while everyone else is like "ayo?" <3

Scarlett would find that behavior quite puzzling at first, but she’d slowly grow to find it cute. A facet about your MC that’s endlessly charming. As the romance progresses you’d definitely see Scarlett gloating about it too— in her own way. Putting an almost possessive hand on your shoulder when someone makes a comment about it, an icy arch to her brow, as a saccharine smirk tugs her lips upward. It would be the beginning stages of her realizing that you’re hers, and she’d be damned if she didn’t make it official. (Even if it’d take her a bit to get to that stage of actually claiming you.)

She becomes the sweetest of all beans for the MC once romanced though. She’d burn the world to the ground if it meant keeping you by her side, wouldn’t hesitate to kill anyone that’d try to harm you, while, in the same breath, would trace nonsensical patterns on your back as she holds you, whispering sweet nothings in your ear, promising you eternity and then some.

I can already imagine various scenarios of the MC reigning Scarlett back once she’s romanced:

The crowd is bustling within the small café situated in the quaint town of Avalon, a place that had been established upon Aurelian’s founding. It’s a place you’ve visited multiple times, it being the closest town to the school, and the familiar aroma of coffee, cinnamon, and a tinge of smoke, is a welcomed one.

“You know what I think?” Blake remarks, a leftover crumb from the pastry they had just demolished, having shoved the rest of it into their mouth when the rather lively debate, as you’d like to call it, between themself and your girlfriend began to grow a bit more heated, falls from their lip.

“There’s actually a brain between those ears of yours, Herrera?” Scarlett intones, faux shock written across her face, the arm wrapped around your shoulders tightening. “I can’t quite believe it.”

Blake sneers. “Hardy har har, Beauty Queen.” Violet eyes shift towards you, a small pout tugging their lips downward. “Your girlfriend is being mean to me, Anon. Do something.”

“Do not bring my beloved into this insipid debate.”

“I’ll bring whoever I want into this. I’ll even bring Esmé as a character witness.” The aforementioned waitress, who had been headed towards your table with refills, turns around, partially due to not wanting to get involved and because of the glare that Scarlett had leveled towards her, and quickly disappears back into a throng of incoming patrons. Blake’s pout grows even more because of it. “That’s textbook witness intimidation, Voltaire, and I won’t have any more of it!”

Scarlett arches an elegant brow, clearly unimpressed with your best friend. “Do you wish for me to feel sympathetic to your plight?” She leans back, tugging you closer into her side. “I don’t believe I can, I find this all quite amusing in fact.”

“Anon!”

With a soft sigh— both due to your best friend’s pleading gaze and at the situation in general— you turn towards Scarlett and place a delicate kiss to her sharp jawline, nuzzling closer to the familiar scent of roses and something darker, sultry in a way, that you still don’t know the name of. A soft purr rumbles within her chest due to the action, the reaction eliciting a smile in response from yourself.

“If you play nice, Scar,” you murmur, pressing closer to your girlfriend. “I’ll let you do that thing you like when we get back to your room.”

Scarlett turns darkening eyes towards you, a predatory gleam striking a wave of heat straight to your core, but the low growl that’s intertwined within her smooth voice causes a shiver to rush down your spine. “And if I don’t, my heart?”

You pout, taking a page out of Blake’s playbook. “Then I’ll be upset.” Another light kiss is pressed to Scarlett’s jawline. “Please, baby, for me?”

At your genuine request, Scarlett immediately softens and places a chaste kiss to your temple.

“Anything.”

For a moment, as you stare into the luminescent green of your girlfriend’s eyes, you forget about the world; about Blake, about the other inhabitants of the café, about everything. It’s just you and Scarlett.

Until, of course, your moment is interrupted.

“How in the hell do you do that?” Blake whines, crossing their arms over their chest. “That’s totally unfair. Do you think maybe you could get her to foot our bill too?”

You roll your eyes. “Don’t push it, Blake.”

[serenasoutherlyns]

i won't end up anywhere good (without you) chapter two

“Casey’s got a crush?” said Olivia from the driver’s seat.

calex. mature. ao3. playlist.

And the rocks and stones and the vetiver Rat's nest put holes in the rabbit fur Sun's coming up and the moment it feels like a purr And the rocks and stones and the vetiver

Unknown number: Hey, this is Alex. Rita gave me your number. How’s everything?

Casey was very glad to receive the text. It had been about a week, another stop, they were on their way from Rochester up to Toronto. She had, unusually, found herself sad not to get Alex’s number. Alex wasn’t blending into the background like all the rest of them were, like the ones since her were. She would think about Alex’s skilled work at the café, and about the seductive tones in her voice. She must’ve smiled down at her phone, because Amanda felt the need to comment. “Who’s that?”

“Just Alex,” Casey replied.

“Who’s Alex?”

“Blonde girl from Mass,” Casey clarified.

“Oh that girl, nice,” said Amanda.

“Casey’s got a crush?” said Olivia from the driver’s seat.

“Oooooooh,” said Rafael.

“I have a girl sending me texts,” said Casey, “nothing more.”

“Sure,” said Amanda. Casey could tell that was the end of the teasing. She sent back:

Casey: Hey Alex, nice to hear from you. How’s it going? How’s the café? Any good shows lately?

Alex: It’s how it always is, it’s fine. And yeah, some good, some terrible. How it always is.

Casey: Sounds about right.

Alex: What about you? How’s the road?

They were at the Canadian border. Casey snapped a picture and sent it to her.

Alex: How exciting!

Casey: On to Toronto!

The messages were left there for a while. It was nice to hear from Alex. Casey took a nap and then they played twenty questions. Before they knew it, the drive was over. They unloaded at the next house and introduced themselves. They played the show, and it was like every other show. They all started to blend together at a certain point, and they started to annoy each other. The tension between Amanda and Olivia was growing ever thicker, and while Casey didn’t mind, it was clearly pissing off Raf. They had to fill up the weekdays somehow as well, and the boredom got to them. After Toronto it was on to Kitchener, Hamilton, and London. There was an especially cute cat in Hamilton.

Alex: So where next?

Casey: Detroit! Back to the US of A.

Alex: Welcome home.

---

In Detroit, they had some really good burgers on their way in. Their hosts were cool, a little older than usual. Their place was actually quite clean. By the time the show rolled around, everyone was well-rested and ready to perform. A song into the set, Casey saw her.

Alex gave her a smile when she caught her eye from the crowd. It threw Casey off her rhythm for a moment, she recovered, but her fingers felt numb as she felt her heart beat through them. Raf shot her a confused look before she got completely back on track. Had she traveled all this way to see her? Casey almost believed it was another woman, but she would recognize that face anywhere, she realized. The green in her hair had faded slightly, a more pastel tone shone through. She wore a tight black crop top and jeans. She had on the same dark lip color Casey had seen before, it must be her trademark. Casey couldn’t wait to finish out the set, though she enjoyed it as she always did. There was something so magical about playing music with her friends. She always tried to take a moment to enjoy it after the show. After they played their last song, she gave everyone the classic sweaty hugs they always did. Then, she found Alex waiting for her close to them, not dispersing like the rest of the crowd.

“Alex, hey,” said Casey breathily, worn out from playing.

“Hey yourself,” said Alex. “You were amazing.”

“Thanks, thanks. Wasn’t my best set, I was a little, distracted.” Alex’s eyes were entrancingly blue. Casey’s attention was drawn to the pale skin of her midriff. She noticed a tattoo of a violet on her forearm.

“Sorry about that.”

“Oh no, it’s very, very welcome.” They just looked at each other for a pause.

“What are you doing here?” Casey asked finally.

“Seeing you,” said Alex. “I had the weekend off, my college friend lives out here. I figured I’d make a trip of it.”

“You didn’t drive all the way from Massachusetts to see me, right?”

“No, no, I flew.” Casey’s eyes widened, but before she had a chance to chastise Alex for spending that kind of money, she continued, “Like I said, I’ve got friends here.”

“Is that where you’re staying?”

“Yep, they even have a spare bedroom.”

“Nicer than the couch I’m crashing on.”

“Well,” said Alex, “I might have an alternative for you, then.” Casey stepped into her space and kissed her. Raf whistled at them. Casey flipped him off. Olivia had her hand on the small of Amanda’s back and Amanda had her head on Olivia’s shoulder.

After the band packed up for the night, Casey and Alex skipped out on the post show celebrations in favor of heading over to where Alex was staying. Her friends were long asleep. Alex opened a bottle of wine she’d bought, either to share with Casey or to drink alone in the event of a rejection. Casey laughed at that suggestion.

“So you went to college then,” said Casey.

“Yep,” said Alex, “I have an English degree.”

“Miss fancy over here,” said Casey.

“Miss fancy? Lot of good it’s doing me now.” Alex laughed. Casey returned it.

“I failed a semester of community college and then we started touring,” said Casey, “we’ve been together since we were teenagers.”

“Wow,” said Alex, “that takes some commitment.”

“I guess so,” said Casey, “they’re like my family now.” Alex didn’t press the implications of that statement. “Thanks for coming to the show, Alex. It really is nice to see you.”

“It’s nice to see you too,” said Alex, and set her wine down. She rolled into Casey’s lap and kissed her.

---

Casey woke up well-rested, beside Alex this time. Alex was already awake, scrolling Instagram idly. Casey sat up and stretched.

“Good morning,” said Alex. “Sleep well?”

“Very,” said Casey, “I haven’t spent the night in a real bed since the last time I saw you.”

“I could never,” said Alex. “Do you want breakfast?” Casey checked her phone. No texts, which meant she could. They found a little diner down the street. Casey ordered eggs and hashbrowns, Alex got waffles with whipped cream. Casey found it cute when she got some on her nose.

“I’m so glad you came,” said Casey.

“Of course,” said Alex. “I really like you, Casey.” Casey felt herself blush. She turned her head to the side and took a bite of her hashbrowns.

“I like you, too,” said Casey. She felt her phone buzz.

Olivia: Come back, on road in one hour.

Casey sighed. It wasn’t that she wasn’t excited for Ann Arbor, it was that she didn’t want this moment to end. How unusual, she thought. It was good to be surprised.

[legendofmorons]

To dance and to love.

Pairing: Twilight x reader

Rating- G

Warnings- None

Genre: Fluff

Summary: While at a festival, you and Twilight dance - and then one thing leads to another, and you kiss

------

It's nice to be in a peaceful hyrule, this one is somewhere between Time and Twilight's hyrules. The land is the same, and the culture is fairly the same even.

Today Castle town's central square is hosting a festival. The square is large, the fountain beautiful as ever.

Streamers and small lamps frame the square, music plays while people browse the market and some dance.

You tap your foot along to the music, eyeing the crowd of dancers wistfully. You aren’t great at dancing - but when taught you can usually keep up.

It looks so fun thoigh, the spinning of the dancers and the lilt of the music seems to call you.

You feel someone stops beside you.

You turn your gaze to them- Twilight is looking at you.

"Wanna dance?" Twilight asks, his accent thicker with the exposure to people from his home.

"Oh!" You turn to him, suprised that your crush and close friend is even asking. You smile softly and hope your blush isn't evident. "Yes, please!"

Twilight laughs softly- more of a chuckle really.

He holds his hand out to you, waiting for you to take it.

You set you hand in his gently. Hesitant and excited all in one.

He smiles, "C'mon."

He leads you by the hand through the crowd, stopping just outside the wooden dance floor.

The floor is a few inches of the cobblestone, solid and large. And you are pretty sure you don't understand the dance at all.

"Ready?"

"I don't know many dances."

"You don't have to. I know a few." He says, grinning at you.

He does know a few, and if you asked he'd tell you learned them from watching couples around him. He'd asked one of the elders to reach him as a young teen.

"Good enough." You say, trying not to seem too excited.

Twilight leads you onto the floor, pulling your hand up with his before setting his other hand on your elbow.

You set your hand on his shoulder, a little confused but very much happy.

He leads you in what you're sure is a customary dance, spinning and moving across the floor.

The music is delightful, lively and quick. Fiddle and violet mostly, a little brass.

You start to pick up the steps, a modified box step that turns and moves across space. But it's close enough to understand.

Twilight just smiles at you, warm and brighter than you've seen in a while.

The song stops, and so do all the dancers.

A few people leave, a few more join, waiting on the next song.

"What is this festival about?"

"If this is the one I think?" Twilight hums, trying to remember- his village never held many festivals. "It's about family and love."

"I like that."

"Me too."

The music starts again, a slow song that sounds like a waltz if you listen close enough.

Twilight leads you again- a boxstep again. Though this one is a waltz boxstep, the turning slower and more methodical.

Twilight seems to know the song, spinning you out at the perfect part before bringing you back.

You laugh, giddy ad you spin back into place and continue your dance.

You don't even notice that you two have moved to the center of the floor.

You find yourself staring into his eyes, you just- you're drawn in again.

As he leads the dance he asks, "Do I got somethin' on my face?"

"No."

"Then why are you lookin' at me like that?"

"You're just- really handsome." You say, because it's true.

And he needs to hear it. He never seems to believe that he could be good-looking or a good person. He needs to hear more compliments.

"Flatterer."

"I mean it, Twi."

The music swells around you and of all things you ask something that is mortifying. "Can I kiss you?"

Twilight stumbles over the next step, staring wide-eyed at you. His face colors a light pink.

"What?"

Well, in for a penny in for a pound. Right?

Right.

You should commit.

"Can I kiss you?"

"I thought I misheard. Or was projectin'." He says softer, "but yeah, you can kiss me."

So you smile, putting both arms around his shoulders as he leads you in a dance still.

You kiss him then, gentle and unsure, but it's sweet. And he returns the kiss just as lost but he seems happy.

He isn't running or screaming so you aren't that bad.

Cheering sounds around you- causing you both to pull away from each other. The song ends as you do.

You groan, setting your face into Twilight's shoulder. This is so embarrassing.

Twilight just laughs softly, his own ears red. "C'mon Darlin', let's go get some water."

"That sounds good."

You allow him to lead you off the dance floor and to a refreshment stand, smiling the whole way.

If this is what dancing gets you, you'll have to do it more often.

[blondeboyfriend]

𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 (𝟏𝟖+)

𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐎𝐑𝐒 𝐃𝐍𝐈

[ PAIRING ] Yukako Yamagishi x f!reader [ SYNOPSIS ] You attend a Halloween party hoping to engage in some pleasant normalcy, but your night takes a turn for the worse at the hands of your classmate. [ WORD COUNT ] 3.4k [ CONTENT ] College AU, typical yandere behavior, alcohol, drugs (weed), seriously dubious consent, violence (murder), blood, fingering, oral sex (f receiving), tribbing, social anxiety, English literature references, y/n is implied to be around the same height as Yukako.

“It’s gonna be fine,” you said to yourself, smoothing out your Halloween costume. “Sure. I’m alone. I don’t know any of these people and would rather be back at home with my actual friends. But it’s okay. I’m gonna have a great time… And I’m gonna stop talking to myself because sane people keep that to a minimum.”

Every word sounded pained as they fell from your lips. You adjusted the straps of your dress and took a deep breath.

You were dressed as an angel, inspired by the costume Clare Danes wore in Romeo and Juliet. Your wings were white and delicate, the feathers of the finest quality. And your dress was… alright. Most of your effort went into the wings, leaving the dress an afterthought. You were lucky enough to find something at the thrift store, a gauzy cream-colored shift with thin straps with a hem that rested above your knees.

Skipping the house party did cross your mind. Going all the way to the secluded suburbs miles away from your university sounded nightmarish, but everyone in your program was going and you felt compelled to fit in.

It reminded you of high school, someone throwing a rager at their childhood home while their unsuspecting parents went out of town. You didn’t realize people still did that kind of shit in college.

The front door swung open, ripping you from your thoughts and startling you. A hulking man stood in the doorway wearing a Ghostface costume.

“Look at you! You look great!” 

“AHHH! Th—thanks!”

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” He stepped aside and let you in. “It’s just you were standing out there and I was like, ‘Is she comin’ in? Is she leavin?’” He laughed warmly. “I figured I’d take the leap!”

“Okay. I mean… Cool.” You paused, trying to recognize his voice.

There was a level of familiarity to it that made you feel like you should know him, but you couldn’t place it.

“Do you want a drink?” He asked, leading you inside.

“Maybe. Wait. Yeah. Uh, what are you having?”

“A slutty swashbuckler!”

You immediately regretted asking because now you felt obligated to drink whatever the fuck that was.

He recognized the trepidation on your face. “It’s spiced rum and blood orange soda. You’re goin’ to love it. Everyone does.”

You weren’t convinced. But you felt compelled to trust whoever the hell was under the mask. Passing through the crowd you tried to get a good look at everyone without being too obvious. You didn’t want to come off as desperate or let your anxiety shine through.

Faces looked familiar but you couldn’t place any names. The only named face you gazed upon was Yukako Yamagishi, a girl from your 19th Century English literature class. She was wearing a sweeping white Victorian nightgown with her long black hair cascading down her back. She looked hauntingly gorgeous, distractingly so. Her violet eyes met yours and she smiled warmly before redirecting her attention to a few drunkards trying to impress her.

“Here!”

A glass of repugnant brown-orange liquid was forced into your hand. You tentatively sniffed the glass and said thank you even though not a cell in your body meant it.

“Excuse me. I just… I’m gonna go sip this outside. Get some air.”

“Oh,” the masked man said, frowning. “Alright.”

You turned and headed towards the door, pushing him from your mind.

“Wait up!”

A heavy hand fell upon your shoulder, putting the breaks on your exit. You held your breath, hoping you didn’t spill the putrid liquid on your pristine dress.

“Do you play beer pong?” You couldn’t see the guy’s face but his posture seemed bashful. “I need a partner for the next game and I’d love it if you would, you know… play… with me!”

“Sure. Just find me when your turn is up.”

You slithered out the door, hoping he would get drunk enough to forget you agreed to anything. Once outside you rolled your shoulders, trying to release the tension that had been blooming in your back. You took a sip of your slutty swashbuckler and spit it up back into your cup like a baby.

“Foul. Fucking foul. Ugh.”

It was cloyingly sweet and acrid, and the carbonation made the taste linger on your tongue. You dumped out the rest on the ground and sighed.

“Heathcliff,” you heard a soft voice whisper in your ear. “It’s me.”

You jumped and turned around, seeing a very amused Yukako.

“Oh shit. You scared me.”

“I’m sorry,” she giggled. “I couldn’t help myself.”

She was so beautiful; it was almost disturbing. No human was meant to be so ethereal. She took a step closer to you, her sweet scent filling your nostrils. She smelled like fresh cut wildflowers and amber. It was intoxicating and settled your nerves.

“You look great—I mean—your costume looks great.”

“Do you know who I am?” She asked, leaning forward.

“No,” you answered honestly. “No idea.”

She pouted and leaned back.

“I’m Catherine Earnshaw, silly.”

You cocked an eyebrow.

She narrowed her eyes and flatly replied, “Cathy from Wuthering Heights, the book we just talked about in class. Or were you not paying attention? Did you even read it?”

“I read it! Most of it. Part of it.”

“No wonder you weren’t very active when we were discussing the text.”

You paused. It never occurred to you that Yukako paid that much attention to you. It wasn’t like she acknowledged your presence much outside of benign pleasantries. She was barely an acquaintance.

“I do plan on finishing it for the record,” you said, still feeling the need to paint yourself in a better light.

“Promise? It’s one of my favorites. I really like how—”

She was interrupted by the shrill shouting of your name. You flinched as the voice washed over you.

“The game’s startin’!!”

You saw that the random guy dressed as Ghostface was standing expectantly by the door. Yukako looked like she was going to explode, her knuckles white with rage.

“I gotta go play beer pong, but we can talk after?”

She didn’t utter a single word, instead opting to glare at your beer pong partner.

“Hey, Yukiko,” he said, dumbly waving.

Correcting him crossed your mind, but you stayed silent. The words refused to leave your mouth even though you wanted them to. You couldn’t wrap your tongue around the syllables.

The guy put his hand on the small of your back, directing you inside. You felt as if your body wasn’t yours, like it was something that needed inherently to be guided and acted upon. Your mind was too overwhelmed to exert your agency.

“Woo hoo!!” He shouted upon seeing the wet table.

It was speckled with tiny puddles of piss beer. I should tell them to wipe it down, you thought. But of course, nothing came out. You just grimaced, and tried to look like you were enjoying yourself. The guy removed his Ghostface mask and you realized you had no idea who he was. It only added to your discomfort.

The werewolf you were playing against stared you down; you didn’t recognize him either. His face was a blur. “You played before?”

It was as if he was interrogating you.

“Like once in high school.”

He groaned.

A guy with a stained sheet draped over his head explained the rules, putting an obscene amount of emphasis on the fact that bounces were not allowed. You hated how seriously he was taking everything. It was a drinking game. Wasn’t it supposed to be fun? Weren’t you supposed to crack jokes and grin wildly under the hyper bright, fluorescent lighting of the kitchen while making memories that would last a lifetime?

Apparently not. The experience was anything but fun. The beer was room temperature and you couldn’t steady your aim, your nerves getting the better of you. It didn’t help that Yukako kept her eyes on you the entire time. You felt like you were on display.

Your partner tried to be supportive, offering kind words and remaining hopeful in the face of utter annihilation.

“You got this,” he said as you hesitated to throw the ping pong ball. “I know we’re pretty far behind, but I believe in you.”

His words were vaguely inspiring so you decided to try your best. Sadly your best was complete dog shit and you missed. The other team made their final shot and the two of you were cursed to chug the remaining beer.

“That was awful,” you said, dumping a cup into the sink.

“Hey, don’t waste good beer,” he said, hip checking you.

You smiled and continued dumping it down the drain. There was no way you’d be drinking that shit. If anything you were doing the world a favor by sending it on its merry way.

“I’m serious. At least drink the last one.”

“I don’t know about that.”

“C’mon. Get to drinkin’, angel. It’s a party.”

You stared down at the cup in your hands and held it to your lips. You went to take a sip, but Yukako walked up and snatched it from your hand. She chugged the beer like a professional. You never expected someone as elegant as her would drink watered down, warm beer out of a plastic cup.

“Damn, Yukiko.”

“It’s Yukako, scum.”

He blew her off and put his mask back on. Oddly enough it was more comforting than his actual face. At least Ghostface was familiar.

“Hey, do you, uh… smoke weed?” He asked, effectively cutting Yukako out of the conversation.

You nodded.

“Nice! Let’s go smoke a blunt. I got one in my car.”

“Okay,” you mumbled.

Yukako groaned and walked away muttering expletives to herself. You couldn’t make out what she was saying, though it clearly was dripping with disgust. You watched curiously as she opened a kitchen drawer, stealing something out of it.

Chasing after her crossed your mind, but you wouldn’t know what to say once you caught up with her. It was a compulsion, something about her drew you in. Maybe it was the way she walked, confident with her posture erect. Maybe it was because she skipped wearing a bra, leaving her nipples on display underneath the thin fabric of her costume. Or maybe it was because she seemed to be just as enchanted by you.

You shook the thoughts from your head, desperate to stop imagining yourself burying your face between her breasts. Lucky for you the brisk night air was enough to calm your throbbing cunt.

The guy failed to mention that he parked quite some distance from the house party. You assumed it would be a quick jaunt down the street, but instead you found yourself weaving through the suburb, deeper into its unnerving uniformity. When you finally got to his car you were displeased to see he parked beside a pocket of undeveloped land, a flat wasteland of dry dirt and dead grass.

“Just a sec,” the guy said as he opened his trunk. “It’s an indica, do you mind?”

“Nah. I could use the relaxation.”

You tacked on a laugh to seem personable.

He pulled out a pencil case and fished out a perfectly rolled blunt. It smelled delicious, musky and sweet. He removed his mask much to your chagrin, forcing you to confront his visage.

“Here,” he said, handing the blunt over along with a lighter.

It felt like the weight of the world was in your hands. You hated how dire everything felt. It was just a night out. It didn’t have to be complicated and yet you were befuddled by everything. You lit the blunt and took a deep hit, holding it in your lungs. You passed it to the guy and let the thick smoke seep out of your mouth.

“So are you really friends with that bitch?”

You coughed.

“Uh. Who?” You asked, playing dumb.

He passed the blunt to you. “Yukie or whatever.”

“Yukako.”

“Close enough.”

“Not really,” you snarked, exhaling a plume of smoke.

“C’mon, don’t be like that. It’s just hard to imagine someone like you is cool with someone like her.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

The guy took a few steps closer to you, his eyes radiating a hunger they hadn’t previously.

“You’re chill and down for whatever. She’s so fuckin’ uptight.”

“I’m hardly chill.”

“Yeah you are. You go with the flow. Most girls aren’t like that.”

“It’s called social anxiety,” you hissed, taking another hit. “It’s not really a choice.”

He plucked the blunt from your hands and stubbed it out on his car door.

“That’s kind of cute though,” he said, brushing your hair out of your face.

You smacked his hand away.

“Can you not? I think I heard something,” you said, hoping that would make him stop.

He just laughed and palmed his cock.

“Hush. You know you wa—”

Before he could finish his sentence a set of slender fingers laced through his hair and yanked his head back. Another hand appeared in front of his neck, dragging a steak knife across his throat. A spurt of blood splashed against your face. He tried to say something but all he could do was gurgle as the knife sawed through his Adam’s apple. He reached out to you, grabbing ahold of your white dress now stained crimson. Your teeth chattered and your skin felt like it was tightening around you. You pushed past him and broke out into a sprint and ran through the desolate undeveloped land, hoping you’d escape the assailant.

“Wait!”

You turned to see Yukako, the front of her nightgown drenched in blood.

“What the fuck?” You wheezed.

You found yourself frozen in place. It didn’t take long for her to catch up to you, her long legs allowing her to take sizable strides.

“Are you alright?” She asked.

You didn’t bother to answer her question; wasn’t it obvious?

“Why did you do that?! What’s wrong with you?!”

“I saved you.”

“From what?” You cried, tears now streaming down your face.

“From him. He was going to do something awful to you. I could tell.”

“Maybe so, but you di—you didn’t have to do that.”

She took your hands in hers. Her palms were soft, her fingers delicate. Her touch was almost calming.

“Yes I did. He didn’t deserve to bask in your presence.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Someone like you shouldn’t have to suffer being around someone like him. He’s trash with no room to grow. He’s stagnant in his existence.” She tightened her grip on your hands. “Not like you. You’re always changing, always striving. That’s why you came tonight, right? You’re trying to break out of your shell.”

“You sound fucking insane. I… Fuck! Please don’t kill me.”

She looked like she was going to break into tears. “How could I ever kill you? I love you too much. You’re all I think about.”

“We barely know each other!” You shrieked, trying to yank your hands out of hers. Her grip was impressive. “We, like, never talk to each other!”

“That's the thing about us though. We don’t need words. Our love is that strong.”

She pulled your body close to hers, pressing her breasts up against yours. You felt like you were going to have an anxiety attack. You regretted smoking weed with every ounce of your being. 

“Please just let me go.”

“I can’t,” she said sadly. “I’ll have to kill you if I do. I can’t bear the thought of you ever being with someone other than me.”

“What if I promise to never fall in love ever again and we act like none of this ever happened? Like we never even knew each other!” You laughed nervously. “How about that? That sounds nice.”

She slipped her hand up your dress and rubbed your cunt through your underwear. You were ashamed to realize the fabric was soaked with your arousal. Terror coursed through your veins, but it was thrilling.

“That sounds like hell on earth. Besides, you obviously want me too. Don’t deny it. I hate liars.”

She pushed your underwear to the side and slid one of her fingers inside you. The sensation made your knees weak and your body limply rested against hers. She slid another two into your cunt and you mewled her name. You were embarrassed that she managed to break you down so easily. You knew you should have put up more of a fight, but she was right. You did want her.

Yukako brushed down one of the straps of your dress, letting one of your breasts meet the chill night air. She pinched your nipple between her fingers.

“You know I fell for you the moment I saw you. When you walked into class I knew you were the one for me.” She curled her fingers inside you. “I spent so many nights thinking about you and trying to come up with ways to tell you.” Her breath was hot against your ear. “But you never gave me any opportunities. You were so shy, always avoiding everyone. That’s why I was so surprised to see you tonight.” She pinched down harder on your nipple making you moan. “I knew this was my moment.”

She removed her fingers and sucked them clean before letting out a pleased hum.

“Take your costume off,” she cooed.

You gulped and did as you were told, dropping your wings and dress on the ground. You shivered as the cold air enveloped you. Yukako gazed at your naked body, her eyes radiating lust and hunger. You could tell she would do whatever it took to claim you as her own.

She pulled down your underwear and lowered herself so that her face was in front of your glistening cunt. She gazed up at you, her alabaster skin speckled with blood. She placed her hands on your ass and dug her nails into the soft flesh.

“Shit,” you croaked.

She lapped at your clit, giving it slow, languid licks. It didn’t take long for you to start moaning. Again, you hated how easy you were and cursed your inability to show restraint when it came to her.

Her tongue was soft and warm as it swept over your throbbing cunt. She was truly a master; no one had ever managed to make you feel such pleasure. You didn’t even think it was possible. You held onto the back of her head, unable to control yourself. She moaned as she continued to suck on your clit. You looked down and noticed she had started to finger herself. The sight alone was enough to make you come.

“Yu—Yukako, I’m close,” you whined.

“Lay down,” she ordered.

You could have slapped her for leaving you hanging, but you obeyed her command. The dirt was cold and uncomfortable, but you were too focused on the ache between your legs to really care.

She hiked up her dress and positioned herself so that her cunt could grind up against yours. She rutted up against you, your clits rubbing together. You felt like you were seeing stars.

“You feel so good,” she moaned.

You were both panting like dogs as you desperately got each other off. The sweet sounds of your moans filled the air.

“I love you, I love you, I love you,” she babbled.

You watched as her chest bounced under her blood stained nightgown. You quickly tore at the buttons and sucked on her breasts the moment they popped out. You swirled your tongue around her nipple, relishing in her ardor filled gasps.

“Ah!” She cried out. “Don—don’t stop!”

You moaned and held her nipple between your lips as your own orgasm overcame you. You clung to her breast, sucking away as your body gave way to euphoria. Your body sang with pleasure.

Yukako’s moans grew louder as she climaxed, holding your head to her chest while you continued to suck. She collapsed on top of you once her orgasm ended.

“You’ll never leave me, right?” She said in a small voice.

You paused and contemplated. Deep down you knew you should push her off of you and run like hell, but she had bewitched you. There was no way you could deny her, especially not after she let you drool all over her succulent tits.

“Right?” She growled expectantly.

You wrapped your arms around her and stroked her back, letting your hand brush down her spine.

“Never.”

She seemed pleased with your response and nuzzled her face into your neck. You knew there was no escape, that there was no way out. You belonged to her now.

[bunbeeplays]

The Lemon Legacy: Generation 1, Chapter 85 - The Bach Bash Part 1

It's time for Ophelia and Xander's joint bachelor/ette party! The Watcher was too excited to get started to take establishing screenshots of The Lemon Drop, but Xander closed early for the night so they'd have the perfect party spot!

Marcie: Penny? What are you doing in this save?

Penny: …I live here?

Marcie: And where's Kyle?

Penny: I don't know what the hell a "Kyle" is but my wife Miko is like 10 feet away if this is some weird flirting tactic.

Marcie: Oh, no, sorry. You just look a lot like my best friend Penny Pizzazz. And you're also apparently named Penny Pizzazz.

Penny: Understandable mistake. Pizzazz is a pretty common name. Your friend sounds pretty, though.

Summer's always danced to the beat of her own drum!

And she took her heels off so she could dance easier. I definitely didn't delete the CC shoes I put on her and then forget to give her new ones. I'm killing it over here, gang.

Xander tries to tap the keg he hauled in, but the tap ends up flying off.

Drew: You're a bartender, dude! How do you not know how to tap a keg?

Xander: I'm used to mixing and pouring, not tapping! And Ophelia and I pre-gamed a little so maybe I'm already kind of buzzed.

Keg successfully tapped!

Xander: All right, who wants to do a keg stand with the future Mr. Lemon?

Ophelia doesn't hear this declaration because she's too busy demanding to dance battle Joaquin. He's certainly down for it!

Xander somehow convinces Drew to help him with a keg stand, even though they insist they're not strong enough to hold him up that long.

Xander: I trust you!

Drew: I don't think this is a trust issue but whatever, man.

Well, that's about how I imagined it going.

Damn, even the bartender came over to laugh at him. Tough crowd.

From the other side of the room, Marcie and Ophelia are still able to witness that fail.

Ophelia: OMW, what a dork.

Marcie: You must feel like the luckiest girl in the world to be marrying that specimen.

Marcie: What do we owe Hilary and Greta for watching the kids?

Ophelia: Nothing. Jace was so excited to have some boys his age to play with, and Greta's probably having fun with the girls. Just don't be too mad if Violet comes home with black coffin-shaped nails.

Marcie: Deal.

Marcie: So the big day's tomorrow. You nervous?

Ophelia: Yes and no, I guess? I feel all fluttery about it but I'm just excited to get married.

Marcie: Understandable! I felt the same way, but it was a perfect day. Your day will be too, I know it.

Marcie: The kids had so much fun with you guys. Violet kept talking about playing in the splash pad with "O'fia".

Ophelia: She's precious, they all are. The girls especially were giving me baby fever.

Marcie: Just as I planned.

Ophelia: What?

Marcie: Nothing.

Marcie: Do you really think you want kids soon?

Ophelia: I don't know, I think so? I know Xander wants kids and so do I, but he's got the bar, I've got the band. How would we make it work?

Marcie: You find a way. It wasn't always easy for me and Joaquin, but it's been worth it.

Speaking of Joaquin, Xander's going for round two with his new fellow goofball bestie!

Travis: Come on, dude, are you trying to get killed before your wedding?

You're just jealous The Watcher made you and Becca get married off-screen, Travis!

What's that quote about doing the same thing and expecting different results? Xander should probably look it up when he's not so juiced.

Ophelia: Can't wait to tell my future kids about this night, they'll be so proud of their daddy.

Joaquin: BWAHAHA you should have seen your face, man!

As Joaquin doubles over laughing, Xander hobbles back onto his feet.

Xander: I should have given your kids ice cream before sending them back to you.

Joaquin: Those kids are chaotic no matter how much sugar you feed them!

Ophelia: I'm gonna make sure he's okay. And get myself another drink.

Marcie: Be sure you're drinking plenty of water!

Ophelia: Water? I hardly know her!

Ophelia laughs at her dumb joke, then also laughs as she fake applauds Xander.

Ophelia: That was quite the show! Mwah!

After another drink, Ophelia gets back on the dance floor to show off her moves, only to smack herself in the face in the process.

Ophelia: OWWWW

Drew: Party foul!

Ophelia: As my fake dad, aren't you supposed to support me?

Drew: Not when you're doing rookie shit, kiddo.

[fuyuu-chan]

Salty Bit

being besties with mitsuri (ps. it means lots of food trips)

Genre: Fluff

Fuyuu-chan: this is not a ship, its simply a platonic relationship with mitsuri being best friends (first time writing something like this)

✧⁠◝⁠(⁠⁰⁠▿⁠⁰⁠)⁠◜⁠✧

It was one of the days where you would usually spend your time with mitsuri. you came by to her estate and helped her get ready and her helping you style your hair, with her i can imagine she would try different hairstyles with you and decorating it with hair clips.

after doing those you two would go out into the town visiting different food places. like for meals, desserts or just drinks. you two would visit many food places as you two can. of course you two would also buy foods for the other hashiras to share <3

but today, you visited a new pastry shop. you and mitsuri ordered and picked a seat to chat while waiting. when the food was delivered to your table, you thanked the waiter as you and mitsuri dig in. you took a sip of your drink as mitsuri begin to eat her snack. you put the glass down onto the table as you tried the "cookie" you ordered. you're not sure if it was called cookie since it's a bit different from that. the color was violet and on top was what you assumed sugar. but maybe it was a new type of cookie.

you took a bite, it was good until you tasted it was a bit salty (??) you thought that maybe your tongue was playing a trick on you so you looked up to mitsuri. "hey gurl?"

"what's up?" she asked as she looked at you smiling, she really was enjoying her food.

"do you want to try my "cookie"?" you asked as you pushed the tiny plate to her were there was another cookie placed there.

"sure!" mitsuri took the cookie and took a bite. she took a few seconds to taste it in her mouth.

"so?" you asked as you looked at her waiting for her response.

"...it was..salty?...not really salty in a bad way it was okay but..it kinda taste weird since.." she trails off trying to find the right word.

"it's your first time? same here gurl" you continued.

"yeah! yeah! exactly" she says as she placed the cookie back onto the plate and pushed it back to you. "why do you not want it?..not to your taste?" she asked.

"not really..it was good but..y'know first time and im not really used to it" you replied in which she nod. "also do you think it was on purpose? because the first one i tried it, it was sweet, it taste like how a cookie should be, but it kinda have a after taste or something" you explained.

"probably?? or maybe it was accidental? not sure" mitsuri replied as she glanced at your cookie before looking back at you.

"since you let me try yours here.." she pushed her plate of dessert to you. "you could also try mine!" she said so you could have a different taste.

"are you sure?"

"gurl" mitsuri looked at you deadpanned. "we always try each other's food, this is nothing new"

"ah true hehe" you smiled sheepishly as you tried her dessert. your eyes widen a bit. "ayo that taste good"

"right??" she smiles excitedly. "you really have good taste in food mitsuri, give me some" you said in which you two chuckled.

Few moments later you two finished. And you also got to learn that those cookies was not actually meant to be salty bit, the baker said it might have been an accident and they apologized, you dismissed it and said it was fine since not gonna lie it was a bit good.

They took a consideration about your review, mitsuri even added "it was a bit weird and unusual but once people get used to it, i think it will hit" you nod, agreeing to what she had said.

After talking to the baker of that pastry shop, they gave you two a free pastry in a cute decorated box in apology for what happened and giving them a good advice (?) and idea. Even though you two declined it they insisted and so you and misturi accepted it in the end.

You and mitsuri left the shop happy with bags in hands for all the shopping you two made and the foods you both would give to the other Hashiras.

ฅ⁠^⁠•⁠ﻌ⁠•⁠^⁠ฅ

Please do not copy, translate, repost to any other social media, Thank you

[plantsarepeopletoo]

Only Friends Episode 8 music part 1/2

Save Me

Here we go, still doing this, even though I did take a break after episode 12.

Quick recap, music is used in three different ways:

Just background music (Background) - It’s important and creates an atmosphere, like using Disco Frog for Mew and Cheum’s chat at the bar. These I will not use unless I see a theme or something important later.

Playing with Music (Playful) - It’s like body language, the music will pause, start up, move along faster or slower. It's intentionally moving with what is happening on screen.

Verbal/Vocal - Music that is telling us things. It could be songs that have names that seem important or have lyrics that may or may not be in the show. If there are lyrics I will include them, but will specify if they are in OF, and where they start and stop.

Master List here, in my pinned post. These will be long and split into parts, mostly because of lyrics and Music players.

[1/4]

Song: Brings back the feeling by Daniel Gunnarsson Scene: Mew and Ray dance at bar Type: Vocal

Lyrics in show:

I'm turning back time Just to see it all again When I know if I'm alright, ooh It's not easy to find What I'm lookin' for in the end I just wanna know what I'm about It goes up then turns back down We're all lookin' for the moment when Getting used to not knowing when or how All the pieces fall in line, oh I keep searching for signs of my dreams back then And I don't know how to stop 'cause It brings back them feelings That I can reach the top now Even if I don't know how It brings back them feelings That even if it all goes down In the end I'll be alright It brings back them feelings It brings back them feelings This violet sky I have seen it before It turns truth into lies, oh But I won't back down Imma stay on this road I gotta know what I'm about

Starts playing as we see Ray and Mew dancing in the bar. They’re turning back time to see if maybe they should have tried to make it work. Though again, you can’t force love, and Mew is also trying to feel something other than pain and heartache. Ray can’t let this go, this is what he wanted for two years, isn’t it?

This violet sky I have seen it before It turns truth into lies, oh But I won't back down Imma stay on this road I gotta know what I'm about

During this song both Ray and Mew are searching for the feelings they once had. For Mew, he is trying to replicate how Top made him feel, surely it can’t be that different with Ray, Ray who has stood by him all this time? While Ray is trying to get back his feelings for Mew, but he already has begun to let go of those feelings while sitting in a bathtub staring at the poor boy shirt. Both of them are trying to feel what they think they should. Yet it doesn’t feel right, Mew doesn’t feel anything and Ray can’t figure out where Mew is supposed to fit in his world. Ray then leaves Mew and the uncertainty to go searching for his true heart.

Lets go back to EP1 for a second:

Song: Cry My Heart Out by Suffer City Scene: EP1 Ray and Sand outside the bar Type: Vocal

No lyrics in show:

Smoking rooms Wherever you are It’s just about closing time Didn’t we Just wanna go Putting the world on the line Help me go back Nobody waits I just wanna cry My heart out This one last time Misery Is taking me home Ever since the day you left Didn’t we Almost find out What this life was all about Just help me go back Cuz nobody waits Days floating by It all feels the same I just wanna cry My heart out This one last time Didn’t we Just wanna go And put the world on the line Help me go back Nobody waits Days floating by It all feels the same I just wanna cry My heart out This one last time One last time

This song is from Episode 1, but there are parallels between the scene with Sand and Ray outside YOLO in Ep1 and Ep8. In Ep1, Ray asks for a lighter, and is refused because Sand was mad about Ray accusing him of stealing. Ray retorts, “Why are you upset, you’re sulking like we’re boyfies.” Ray grabs Sand’s arm to stop him from going, and sincerely apologies again. The song starts as Sand lights Ray’s cigarette.

Episode 1, Cry my heart out

Episode 8

In contrast, the EP8 scene has a different song, but Cry out My Heart seems to reflect where Sand and Ray’s relationship is in Ep8. Visually it’s similar to EP1, but the camera is pointed towards the bar, and Ray is in front of the no drinks sign. Sand’s wearing the same coat, but with a shirt that says “war” under it. Ray has traded his loud shirt for one that looks like the one Sand picked out for him. The marks of their relationship are on them. Ray stands there awkwardly holding Sand’s lighter. In Ep8, Sand looks like he’s been crying, or at least, is about to cry. Ray’s with Mew, and everything that has brought them to this point seems to “be a waste of time.” 

Just help me go back Cuz nobody waits Days floating by It all feels the same I just wanna cry My heart out This one last time

When Ray grabs Sand to keep him from leaving, Sand says “Let me go, already” Sand wants to cry one last time and move on. He knows he wouldn’t be able to be around Ray and “just be friends.” 

And now back to EP8:

Song: Hollywood nights by Courses Scene: Ep8 Sand and Ray talk outside bar Type: Vocal

Lyrics in show:

Livin’ on the far side of town Sharing the dream with anyone She’s made it through heaven She’s made it through hell It’s just another story to tell Have you ever felt You’re missing the dream Have you ever wished your life Was like the movie on the screen Filled with heartbreaks and fights Through Hollywood nights Makin’ up a bar queen On the phone

Lyrics continue, not in the show:

In the great big boulevard The place she belongs It’s just another story she tells Have you ever felt You’re missing the dream Have you ever wished your life Was like the movie on the screen Filled with heartbreaks and fights Through Hollywood nights

Back in episode 8, the song starts as Ray comes out to see Sand outside the bar and asks for a lighter. Ray attempts to talk to Sand and like nothing is wrong, trying to bridge the gap between them. Sand’s feeling like he’s going through hell, broken, but unable to fully tell Ray to back off. He tries to scold Ray, but Ray brushes it off quickly.

From cry my heart out, the song from Ep1:

Misery Is taking me home Ever since the day you left Didn’t we Almost find out What this life was all about

And here, from Hollywood Nights:

She’s made it through heaven She’s made it through hell It’s just another story to tell

They’ve both gone through heaven and hell, their relationship might as well be just a story, a thing of the past. They almost had it all figured out, but as Sand says, it all seems like a waste of time.

Song: Vast lands by Enigmatic Scene: Sand talks about Mew Type: Vocal

Plays as Ray says he feels happy when he's with Sand, Sand says Ray will be happy with Mew. Ray asks if they can still be friends, Sand says he has no reason to be friends. "This whole relations ship is a waste of time."

Vast Lands and a crushing sadness, trapped and paralyzed by Ray. After Ray grabs Sand's arm to stop him from leaving, Sand asks him to physically and metaphorically to “let me go.”

Song: Ray of Hope by Magnus Ringblom Scene: Yo and Plug break up Type: Vocal, Background

Last time this was played was in EP2, when Mew comes to see Ray by the hostel’s pool and they talk about Mew and his feelings towards Top. It was the beginning of Ray letting go of the hope he had for Mew. Here, In EP8, Sand and Ray follow Yo’s voice and find Yo and Plug arguing, Plug wants to move in with Yo, to take their relationship seriously. But it’s made Yo step back, She isn’t ready to move forward, she’s been hurt too many times in the past. Sand and Ray are both in the same situation, they both are scared. “If you think nobody in this world wants to get serious with you, then you better stay alone.”

Or, it could be that Mew in Ep2 was brave, ready to try to follow his feelings, without the experience to be cautious. Yo has been hurt many times before Plug, and is now too scared to move forward. And as a result, Yo is losing what she has.

Song: Twisted Metal by Jon Bjork Scene: Top sees Ray giving Mew cigarettes Type: Background

Song starts as Top sees Ray giving Mew cigarettes and decides to try to talk to Mew. It might feel like a knife twisting into Top’s side seeing Mew be self destructive. Song is used again later with Boston and Nick, who are also in pain.

Song: Is This Serenity by Ambientalism Scene: Top confronts Mew in the bathroom Type: Vocal

The transition from twisted metal to Serenity seems to reflect Top’s change of tactics with Mew, he stops focusing on his own pain and focuses on Mew. Top asks if Ray is what Mew really wants, if Mew being with Ray is making him happy. Has Mew found serenity in his relationship with Ray?

[2/4]

Song: Move ไปไหน (Unmovable) by BRIGHT VACHIRAWIT Scene: Sand practicing a song in the school's music room Type: Vocal

Lyrics Sand sings:

Where could I move on to, my heart is set on you How many times I try to move forward…

Full Lyrics(translated):

I don’t know how long it has been since the time stopped in my heart I don’t know what I should do to make it restart I know that I should forget but my brain persists to remember Although I know what I should do but I’m just not able to Move on That’s what everybody’s telling me Move on I’ve heard it all before Simple words that are so difficult Where could I move on to, my heart is set on you How many times I try to move forward, I end up going backward I’ve tried to move on but no matter how hard I try I move in circles because my heart can’t be moved even a little I’ll keep on moving on I know I have to keep going, life has many more things to offer But forgetting someone may not be as simple as you’d imagine To get you off my mind is not the same as just hitting delete I need some time for the wound to heal a bit

Sand’s trying to move on, but can’t. He’s stuck, running in circles. Sand’s playing is unsteady, and maybe is practicing this song for the first time. He stumbles over the line “How many times I..” as Ray walks in. How can he move on when Ray is here, asking for help. He doesn’t know how to play the song or how to forget Ray. So a circle is all he has until their relationship gives him a way to move forward.

Song: Lords of the land by Xavy Rusan Scene: Sand and Ray in the music room Type: Vocal

Last time this played was when Nick dragged Boston into Sand’s apartment in Ep5. Boston had decided to stay with Nick, and it gave Nick confidence that their relationship was moving. Here it starts tentatively, quietly as Ray asks why Sand won’t respond to his messages. It pauses while Ray lists the options he has for community service, and starts again as he leans forward, giving Sand puppy eyes. “Wanna go with me?” Sand pauses for a moment before saying “No, I wasn’t part of your crime.” It’s not a hard no, so Ray gains more confidence, and touches Sands shoulder, poking him in the knee, pleading.

Song: If and When Eric Feinberg Scene: Sand and Ray in the music room Type: Vocal

It’s a light, happy song that starts as Ray leans forward, telling Sand that “I will tell those kids that you are the hottest singer at our University.” The camera switches and we see Ray hanging off the guitar, staring at Sand. “If and When” Sand’s defenses crumble. If and when is an interesting phrase of potential, hinting at repairing their relationship.

Song: Out of the woods by Gavin Luke Scene: Cheum and Top talk about Mew Type: Playful

Top says that he’s worried about Mew changing, and the song starts after Cheum yells at Top, “who’s fault is that?” and sits down. She knows that Ray and Mew are not good for each other, and agrees with Top. Piano chords play behind Cheum as they talk, Top is finally out of the woods and finding his way back to Mew.

Song: Look at me closely by Blue Topaz Scene: Nick and Dan talk about internship Type: Vocal

Last time this song was used was in episode 2, when Top asks Mew if he can stay over after putting together the table. Here, it plays after Nick says he doesn’t have a boyfriend. It seems like Dan is asking Nick to consider him as a possible boyfriend, to consider him. With the reflection of Nick in the laptop screen, we’ve got two versions of Nick. The one Dan wants to see, and the real Nick. During the interview, Nick seems to be the person we assume he is at first, all sweetness and flirty, bright eyed like the poster above him. He wants the job, and Dan is flirting with him, at this moment, it’s a win for Nick.

Continue to EP8 part 2

Master List

Thank you @rocketturtle4!

[theteltales]

The Letters That Move Us - Chapter 14: Kindred Spirits.

Isabella

Isabella sat on a stool outside the bathtub, the sleeves of her nightgown rolled up well past her elbows to avoid getting them wet. She held a cup with one hand and used her other to hold Violet's blonde hair as she poured water over it repeatedly. Her own hair was still damp from the bath she’d taken a few minutes ago after failing to convince her friend to go first. A wholly unsurprising outcome. Isabella had tried to wash fast enough to preserve as much of the water’s heat as she could but ultimately, the water had lost much of its warmth. Not that Violet would ever complain.

She spent her time waiting for Violet to call her back in by sitting at the table with a book open in front of her. However, she couldn’t really focus well enough to read. She probably skimmed the same paragraph at least a dozen times without actually comprehending the words. Every time her thoughts drifted by the end, landing on Violet and her earlier gloom. It played over and over again in her mind beside a single question. What did that mean for the pair? Mercifully, Violet eventually beckoned her to join. Probably once she was done washing her body. At least the opportunity to help would distract Isabella from too much pondering. 

Once she finished wetting the hair, Isabella silently worked the soap in like she had done that first time. “Isabella…” Hearing her first name come from Violet’s lips caught her somewhat off guard, even though she'd asked for it. It was exciting but would certainly take some getting used to.

“Yes?” Isabella answered without stopping her work.

“I wanted to apologize for earlier. I should not have lost my composure like that.”

And now an apology? "Please don't worry about it. That's what friends do, right? Tell each other what they're feeling." Though Violet had been upset, Isabella couldn't help but feel a tiny amount of joy that the doll’s concerns affected her that much. So much that Violet "lost her composure." If anyone could really describe what happened as such. Isabella knew it was a little cruel to feel that way, but it spoke to how much Violet's opinion came to mean to her over these past few weeks. For good or for bad.

"I suppose they do," Violet sat with her legs extended out in front and didn't move much. Her arms remained raised out of the water, lying along the top edge of the tub while she was attended to. Isabella had managed to hold herself to one peek at the slender form in front of her but didn't see much from where she was sitting. Only the partially obscured legs and the long, pale back were readily in view. Still, even that was enough to increase her heart rate by a noticeable amount. 

"I have a question for you,” Isabella announced. As much to steer her thoughts in a different direction as to sate her actual curiosity.  

"You may ask." 

With permission given, she stopped what she was doing for a moment to formulate her thoughts. As if this question needed more of her attention than another might. "Do you have friends waiting for you at home? Or maybe, someone special?" Isabella wasn't exactly spoiled for companions herself. Besides Taylor, she didn't have anyone she was close with in her life. A part of her did hope Violet might become someone special to her but in what way, she wasn't quite sure yet.

"Yes, I have a few friends back in Leiden. Those I work with mostly but there are a few others. And..." Violet paused, seemingly hung up on the answer. In the meantime, Isabella waited for her to gather her thoughts and started working on her hair once more to try and fill the gap. "There is someone special to me," Violet continued, voice lowered and head hung a bit further. "But I can't ever see them again." Why exactly that was the case was unclear and left unsaid. Even though Isabella had a burning desire for her to elaborate, she let it be for the moment. It had already been an emotionally charged day and there was no reason to dig at old wounds.

Instead, she began to rinse the blonde tresses, choosing to focus on the first part of the answer. "I'm sure they miss you, are you excited to see them when you return?" After the follow-up question, Isabella couldn't help but wonder if Taylor missed her right now. If the girl thought she would ever see her big sister again. Isabella tried her best to explain the situation, but there was only so much you could get through to a child that young. Especially once the tears and the heartache set in. All she could do was hope Taylor didn't hate her now. But, even if that came to pass, knowing the little girl was being taken care of was worth that price, no matter the pain.

"I will be happy to see them when I return, yes. However, I won't let that distract me from my work here." Violet's answer pulled Isabella back from the familiar spiral of self-loathing that came too often when she thought of Taylor. So much so that she even let slip the tiniest giggle at the answer. A perfectly Violet answer.

"I bet they will be happy to see you too." Another few cups of water and the blonde hair contained no more traces of soap. Satisfied with her work, Isabella put everything away and then clapped her hands before standing tall and casting her eyes toward the chair that held fresh towels.

"Are you finished?" Before receiving an answer, she turned and began to walk to retrieve one for Violet. A "Yes," followed in her wake and Isabella returned a moment later with a soft cloth stretched between her arms. Just like Violet did every time Isabella finished washing. She even averted her gaze by turning her head to the side, though she didn't close them. "Here you go, nice and clean." Of course, they were. What else would they be? A second later, she could see the vague outline of Violet's body rising out of the water. Even in her peripheral vision, it was easy to tell where the prosthetics ended and where the rest of her body began.

"Thank you, Isabella. You didn't have to." This time, instead of shock at hearing her name, a small smile broke out on her face. Isabella's hands dropped away once Violet took proper hold of the towel and began to wrap it around her body. Which signaled that she was free to head back into the room to give the handmaiden a little privacy.

“It’s no problem, I'm happy to help.” Subsequently, she turned with a small nod and made her way out of the bathroom to collect her book and hop into bed. However, even tucked comfortably under the blankets, she couldn’t manage to quiet her mind enough to do much of anything. It seemed she would make no progress on her story tonight. After a few minutes, she sighed, placed the book on the nightstand, and settled further down with her stuffed bear pressed to her chest. She waited silently, eyes open, for Violet to emerge dressed in her slip and ready for bed. Once she did, and made her way over, Isabella lifted the blankets and waited for her to slip beneath.

“Isabella, are you feeling alright? Do you need some water?" Seeing her already lying in bed without her book must've looked odd to Violet. At least enough to prompt a question. She didn't answer right away and chose to lay still while the handmaiden adjusted the comforter to better wrap them in its warmth. She was always so considerate. Always looking out for the slightest bit of trouble.

"No, I'm fine..." Isabella breathed in and closed her eyes, hugging the bear tighter against her chest. "I'm just wondering why you are so kind to me. Especially when I can be so troublesome. With my behavior and the illness. I'm such a pain, aren't I?" It had been comforting earlier to hear that Violet worried about their friendship. However, there was a nagging feeling in her mind that questioned whether or not she was deserving of such a thing. She was trying to do better every day, but what if that wasn't enough? 

"You think I'm kind?" Violet asked and then paused while she too settled further into bed. "I guess I'm just doing what I was taught." That response didn't exactly fill Isabella with the same reassurance that came from their earlier interaction. It made the arrangement seem somewhat...forced.

"So, it's because it's your job?" Was this only a fulfillment of her obligation? Was Violet concerned only ensuring her task was complete? Was a friendship only a means to an end? To make sure Isabella behaved and did what she was required?

"No," Violet quickly interjected before pausing to think. "It is not required for this role. Being kind is something I’ve learned about and chose to extend to you. Being your friend is something I want to do." 

Mercifully the cascading thoughts were brought to a halt with Violet's explanation. Eliciting a barely perceptible sigh of relief. However, if this wasn't required, Isabella couldn’t help but wonder. "Why?" She shifted then, casting her eyes down towards the sheets where Violet sat. "Why do that for me?"

"Because I know what it feels like to be alone in a world I don’t fully understand or am comfortable in." Following her answer, Violet finally lay down in the bed. With her blonde hair free of any braids, it fanned out around her head and down the sides of the pillow. The movement caused Isabella to look up and then she reached out for a few strands to gently play with while she thought. That was definitely an understatement. Still, were their situations so similar? A wounded soldier and a peasant girl thrust into a life of luxury? Isabella's wounds were only in her mind, in her heart really, but Violets were very physical. Well, besides the student’s sickness. Or was there more than met the eye? A deeper sadness hidden out of view? Violet mentioned not being able to see her special person anymore...did they die in the war? 

A feeling of jealousy swept over Isabella as her thoughts drifted to the person Violet cared about. A feeling she was immediately ashamed of considering the circumstances, but one she couldn't help nonetheless. If they were still around, would Violet even be doing this work? Would she have ever met the doll? The natural conclusion of that line of thinking was not a place Isabella's mind wanted to go. So, she forced the thought aside and kept idly twirling the soft, damp hair. Something that Violet didn't seem to mind at all. 

"Thank you, for doing that. I'm very happy you decided to take the job. To come here and help me. I'm not sure I could've done it without you." If someone had told Isabella that she would've said such a thing at the start of this, she might've called them crazy. Doubly so if they also told her she'd want Violet to stay longer than the three months of her assignment.

“I think you could have.” Violet’s head turned on the pillow, allowing the light green eyes to hold her own. Even in the dim light of the candle, it was easy to make out her features. Yet again, Isabella found herself admiring how beautiful Violet was. She just hoped the low light would conceal the tint blooming on her cheeks. At least the thump of her heart would remain hidden away while she held her gaze. "You're stronger than you think, Isabella. And you aren't a pain either. I'm happy I took this assignment and that I got to meet you."

Those words, as much as the small smile on Violet’s lips, had the warmth on her cheeks spreading through her body. Violet didn't seem the type to lie, so the sentiment must have been genuine. Maybe Isabella could do this after all. With Violet at her side, of course. Thoughts of them together were at the forefront of Isabella’s mind until sleep took hold.