#too much facial hair for a hunk either

[kalluzeb4later]

Quick question: is Kallus an “otter”?

[weebsinstash]

Sitting here watching that clip of Valentino with that demon girl going "you're gorgeous! Do you need a job? 🥰" and started thinking of Val either intentionally or unintentionally making Reader feel massively insecure and ugly and Val using that to manipulate them

I've mentioned "oh what if your job is serving him drinks at his club" but what if he also starts dragging you along when he goes out like some kind of weird PA. Like he's just throwing random bills at you that he clearly isn't counting like it's pocket change in a very "yeah sure whatever just do it bitch" kind of way so you put up with it, it's good income, but it's still... WEIRD. He's going to get his antenna done at the salon, and you're like. Having to STAND THERE beside his chair, you're not even in the lobby waiting room, you've gotta be WITH HIM, and you just get all these windows into his cunty personality where he's spoiled and mean to service workers and is a total fucking diva and it's extremely off-putting I'm sure

He's in a night club hitting on people whose bodies are absolutely insane like I'm talking GYATT city, ass and titties, you've got twunks and you've got hunks, and you're like, in sneakers, off to the side, head down playing games on your phone since you can't even put earbuds in because you unfortunately have to keep an ear open since he'll order YOU to bring drinks, not just for him, but for these complete strangers who don't even work for him too, AND he'll let them be fucking mean to you. You bring some bubble butt twink who's on Val's arm the daiquiri he asked for and he gives you a very clear look up and down before laughing, cuddling up to Val, "yeah I can SEE you need new employees 😋" and they all laugh Including Fucking Valentino

I dunno, I'm on the fence. It really changes with the story. You get the yandere who are obsessive but more abusive-adjacent and then you have the more true-blooded kind that won't accept any slander of you at all. Like can you imagine Valentino's smile just dropping off his face because some chick like, tells you you have cellulite or even something MILD like your mascara is bad or idk what are, male insults.... you have a flat ass??? And Valentino just instantly shoves them away "okay you're done bye, let the door hit you on the way out 🤭"

But today we're talking about angst and feeling fucking miserable so. Over time it just, makes you feel so horrible about yourself to go to these nightclubs. It isn't even about fucking Valentino, it's about how you're sitting here watching everyone EXCEPT YOU receive all this fawning and compliments and attention, even if Val is faking some of it just to lure in more workers. You see a girl who has the perfect skin and you run fingers over an ice pick scar on your cheek, male reader sees a guy who's tall but muscular with nice facial hair and you feel your own baby face and smaller build, there are people thinner than you, curvier than you, stronger than you, smarter than you, and you watch all of them get called gorgeous and beautiful and handsome and sexy and you're just the fucking dweeb who gets teased, mocked, BULLIED

One night Valentino is sitting there talking to another girl, "oh my gosh, honey, I would TOTALLY do body shots off of you. Hey, can we get some shots over here? .... helllooooo, I SAID can we get some shots? ...bitch if you make me repeat myself again--" and he looks over and you're not even there. It's like ice. Suddenly without warning you're not there and he doesn't know what to do because you're ALWAYS there and whenever you're not it's because he LETS YOU leave??? Like??? He's immediately standing up even if it knocks away the people hanging off of him and he's looking around, "you BETTER be in the fucking bathroom--"

And over the crowd of people he sees you on the opposite end of the club, as if you were actively trying to put as much distance between you two as possible, and you're with a guy, some big furry monster boy, and you laugh with a big smile and Valentino GRINDS his teeth as he realizes it's been ages since you laughed around him, let alone at anything HE'S said, and you're actually drinking with this guy where you would always be way too stiff and cautious around Val (although he also really wouldn't let you drink anyways, being more of a waiter when you're 'on the clock')

Obsessed with the idea of Val making Reader carry around combs and brushes to comb his antenna/fur and Val sees you using them on another guy. like I think he'd go absolutely violently fucking crazy honestly because 1. Those are HIS and he is a bougie Gucci material man like those are high quality things being used on some RANDO 2. Those are for HIM, you're using them on someone ELSE 3. The person using them on someone else is YOU, YOU'RE brushing another man, YOU'RE cuddling another man like some kind of UNGRATEFUL WHORE--

When I say you suddenly look up and you're being GRABBED, HAULED UP to your feet by your arm, grip on you so tight it's ready to fucking bruise, and Val just shoots this guy in the head, like cartoonishly powerful gun just splatters the dudes head from what should have been just a single bullet hole I'm sure. You're like vaguely traumatized and trying to tell yourself the man will regenerate and be fine but now Valentino's got a gun in his hand and he's furious and you just start CRYING. He doesn't even CARE about the people he was flirting with anymore, if he has any employees in the club with him he doesn't even call out that it's time to go, he just starts DRAGGING YOU to the limo and will just LEAVE EVERYONE there because he's in such a rage, also, have you guys seen the posts where people point out there are moth squeaking effects when he speaks sometimes. So he's just fucking mad, voice cracking, shouting, squeaking, and i think it'd be funny if he spends like 15 minutes screaming about THE GUY while he has you like all but glued to his lap on the ride home and doesn't say a single thing about what you did. Just manic ranting on his phone as he HAS to call Vox, "oh my god you wouldn't FUCKING BELIEVE what this piece of shit did in front of me, the ugliest fucking guy I've ever seen was--" and you're like trembling wondering when he's going to pivot and realize like, you were also. Intentionally willingly sitting with that guy.

But he doesn't even like. Acknowledge it that way. He just keeps ranting about the guy touching something that doesn't belong to him, he's gotta replace all his fucking combs now, oh my GOD Vox like SERIOUSLY-- and then it's probably Vox that's like, with a disinterested voice, "sooooo.... WHICH whore did this happen to again???" And Valentino without hesitating just straight up says your name, "the nerdy one, you KNOW which one I'm talking about"

And that's when you just start to blubber cause you're tired and you're tipsy and you're mentally worn down, "oh OF COURSE I'm 'the nerdy one'!! You drag me all over the fucking place and I never get any time to myself and I have to WATCH everyone ELSE have fun, and when I finally find someone who calls ME cute, calls ME pretty, you fucking SHOOT HIM!" and you're just, face in your hands crying and you can't see it as Valentino GRINS like some fucking MONSTER because, "Aw, pobrecita, is that what this is about? You're lonely? ❤️w❤️"

And you're just mad and crying and pouting and you're telling him to go fuck himself and actually starting to get a little mouthy and have an attitude with him and he doesn't even care because how upset you're getting is going right to his head. even if you don't want to, you're jealous of him giving other people attention instead of you, and now he's watching you get all upset and sniffly over it and he's so full of himself, this makes him feel so powerful that he's reduced you to this insecure bawling state, and he's rubbing your shoulders, "awwww, don't cry mami, you should've told me you were wanting some 'attention'"

At this point you could be literally slapping his hands away but he's gonna keep pulling you close to him on purpose and NOW, now he's laying on all the fucking compliments, stroking the tops of your thighs. He knows exactly what scent you're using in your hair. Oh, you're wearing the nail polish you bought during one of your first months here; he's always liked this color on you. He's commenting and bringing up things you didn't expect him to notice let alone remember about you and... you're just so weak to it.... you're lonely... and he's here... and maybe it's the smoke or his cologne or what but he smells so good, he's so close, your head feels a little funny--

The rest of your night blurs together after that, but when you wake up, you're not at your place, or the studio, or anywhere you mildly recognize. You're in a bed way too big for someone your size, and you're especially not used to SOMEONE ELSE BEING IN IT WITH YOU. Val just has you caged in all of his arms and is passed out drooling in a post alcohol, post drug, post fuckathon coma, and you can FEEL in your muscles and in your body that you two were up to some wiiiiiild shit together.

IF you may manage to sneak out of V Tower without being stopped or caught, it won't make hin suddenly forget all the things you told him, or him now knowing how it feels to have your hands on his body, or how it looks to have your big sad wet eyes looking up at him and then sparkling with one of his compliments. Usually he WANTS bitches to be gone when he wakes up but, this time? When those eyes open and you're not there? Instantly feeling rejected, mad, irritated, he can't exactly identify why, he's just MAD you ran off without telling him and he's instantly blowing up your line to figure out where you are, and now you have become a recipient of The Voice-mails

"Heeeeeeey, baby, so, it's so funny but I just woke up and I can't find you in the tower? Did you run off to get breakfast somewhere? You KNOW you shouldn't run off without telling me first; I need you to come on back here ❤️"

"-- so answer your phone you fucking SLUT!! You better not be with another fucking guy, or I swear to fucking GOD--"

"--It just stresses me out that there are so many different kinds of people down here, I worry someone might hurt you, amorcito. I can't help protect you if I'm not there, soooooo, why don't you just, tell me where you are--"

"Is this fucking funny for you, you cunt?! You get all worked up about how PATHETIC AND SAD you are and then leave me? Leave ME? ME?! You're LUCKY i even TOUCHED YOU AT ALL--"

"Heeeeeeey, oh my gosh so this is so funny ummmm, Vox just let me know that Velvette borrowed you for something, soooooooooo, please don't listen to any of those other voicemails, ok? You know how CRAZY you make me, right? Don't forget you have a shift tonight, and if you even think about not showing up, I have some hellhounds that know your scent already and they'll drag you back here by your hair, sooooo, see you later love you byeeeeee ❤️"

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

WIBTA if I report to my managers about my co-worker despite him not really doing anything yet?

At my job there’s this one guy (40 something M) who has said some unhinged things, the first thing he ever said to me was telling me masks don’t work the one time I came into work sick. He’s apparently said some shit about the “trans lifestyle”, dislikes the Barbie movie and was looking at the only other guy at the table at the time for like back up and thinks Disney shouldn’t have changed their rules about visible tattoos, facial hair and men having long hair and told me about how one time he fed people deer meat and told them it was steak and tried to justify it by saying it was “healthier then beef” like he was doing them a favor.

I try to avoid him since I’m not a fan of his takes or his vibe

Last night as we were leaving work I (21 afab non-binary) was kind of between two hunks of people but I was pretty ahead of most people, he sped walked to catch up with me and so then it was just me and him in that area, he didn’t say anything as he approached from behind until he literally walked into a spider web and reacted to it but even then he was only like 4 feet from me by then.

Then he walked with me all the way to the parking lot and the entire time alarm bells were going off in my head and it really freaked me out and I’m not usually the type to get creeped out by people easily, i usually give people too much leeway honestly but for him my got was saying something was up with this guy.

Luckily he didn’t follow me to my car as I got away from him once we got to the wardrobe building and I got over to the co-workers who were ahead of us so I wasn’t alone with him

I feel like I should tell people about how my gut was freaking out about him but I don’t even know what I would want to happen if I did report? Plus idk what I’d say since nothing has really happened yet but like I also wanna express these warnings that went off in my head BEFORE something happens??? Like I don’t wanna get him fired but maybe just something to ensure I won’t be left alone with him or maybe have him scheduled a different shift than me or something?

I’m worried I’m just being paranoid but like I’ve never had alarm bells go off to that degree before

TLDR: my co-worker has said some weird shit including stuff about trans people and feeding people deer meat and lying about it and last night he sped walk to get over to me when I was alone and really set off just about every alarm my body has, I’m not sure if I should report this or not since well nothing has really happened yet but I also don’t wanna wait till something happens to make management aware. But I also don’t wanna ruin his career by reporting him for not really doing anything either

[milkyyawns]

one piece headcanons that mean nothing to most people but everything to me

put in no particular order because organizing my brainwaves would take too much energy today

Usopp is the second best cook of the crew, but has 0 gauge for how spicy his food is. he will smile and say its sweet while your mouth is on fire Sanji is very good at braiding hair

Sanji is secretly jealous that Usopp became a hunk over timeskip. He was really huffy over the change for a second before he found out he could lift Usopp with one hand. Sanuso thought on this; Sanji did not mind the view.

Everyone in the crew is funny but Jinbei is declared the funniest due to his ability to always deliver it in the best way possible.

There is a communal baby sling for Chopper, but Robin also made a really pretty one that she doesn't allow anyone else to use. It's not because Chopper WANTS to be in the baby sling(he likes it, tho), its out of convenience sake. Brook is a swinger

Zoro is chronically unable to grow facial hair, in secret he has asked Chopper and Law if there is any remedy. He doesn't have any body hair either. After timeskip Usopp came back with hair all over him, Zoro thought he did SOMETHING to cause this to happen. You can imagine the mortal shame he felt when he asked and Usopp said he shaved every day, and started to like facial hair on him after he got buffer. One time he tried to make a fake beard for himself, it looked terrible so he tried to wipe it off and it wouldn't budge. He went up to Nami and ended up paying 10k berries to keep her silence. Robin makes a habit of picking the other crew mates brains, especially once she opened her shell and whenever a new member joined. When Law appeared it took him avoiding her like the plague to not open up, and after 5 days he had to give in.

Like Luffy, Robin has the ability to figure out what someone needs to hear. Jinbei didn't know this until one day out of nowhere she walks up to him and invites him to relax with her, and she confessed later on in the day he seemed to be having a Rough Time and she wanted to remind him that he can take it easy when his brain is bothering him, and beyond that he can vocalize the thoughts and get them out of his brain. They have weekly self care nights together because of this and slowly the entire crew ends up joining. Luffy is very very creepy, but only to Sanji specifically. Luffy has decided its a game to try to get into the kitchen so he hides on the ceiling and crawls very slowly. Sanji catches him every time but the first few times it scared the shit out of him (he will never admit that, however.)

Robin is as much of a pervert as Franky, but it's a dialogue you have to unlock with her because she refuses to make people uncomfortable. Once you do, every once in a while a pair of lips appear next to your ear and say the freakiest joke imaginable. Nami will break out laughing in the middle of conversations because of it

Robin says the freakiest shit imaginable. theres no context to this shes just offputting.

every once in a while when Nami is feeling homesick, she intrusts Sanji with a orange based recipe from her mother. Sanji collects all of them and makes them when she thinks shes having a bad day. when she requests it to be made its special and they use HER fresh oranges, which she usually only hands over in small amounts. Nami can only make sweets and fruit based dishes. She usually stole her way into a good meal instead of cooking for herself.

Usopp has gone up to every single member of the crew and made multiple portraits for lost loved ones. It's like an initiations ceremony when he walks up with his sketchbook and sits down a new crew mate and starts asking questions. Everybody was very warmed by this but Brook specifically wrote an entire song because of how moved by this action he was.

Nobody will tell Luffy what vore is. They are scared he will start doing it. Usopp is to blame for him knowing that vore is a thing and nobody will let him live it down. (not sexual, obviously)

instead of what most fics do with Sanji being internally homophobic, my personal opinion is that hes actually terrified of hurting the other person. Its not that he doesnt want to be gay, its that he doesnt know how to show love as a man to another man. (For sanuso fans; Sanji confides in Usopp on this matter, and Usopp says in the most matter of fact way. "I dont know how to date anybody. Isnt the point of dating to figure out how each other love? What does gender have to do with it?" and it absolutely broke his brain, and healed something within himself. i lightly touch this in my sanusoami fic !)

Usopp makes gadgets on any occasion. If he hears you complain about the smallest thing once he will somehow make an item to fix that tiny little issue.

Sanji used to shave his legs until one day he overhears Nami say leghair is sexy, he to this day does not know that the context was her talking about Vivi and her's last night together. turns out the weird irritating feeling he had was him hating bare skin against his pants when fighting, and he never went back "Big Man" is Choppers formal nickname. Zoro calls him little man sometimes too but no one else does. Zoro can't read. (i know im not the only one who thinks this) Robin spies on the crew unless shes asleep when they're on the sunny. only Franky has caught on that she does it. she claims that its for security (which he doesn't deny is part of it) but he's convinced it's to slowly torture everybody in the most passive way possible. exhibit a: if she finds out something embarrassing she will almost talk about it for a week straight

i had an entire mental health thing i wanted to get into but i broke the limit halfway through. will do another post with it soon

[aj-lenoire]

tbh i think the most obvious example of voltron’s terrible, terrible writing (aside from how they massacred allura and shiro’s characters, how pidge and hunk’s stagnated entirely, how keith and lance ‘developed’ in entirely-nonsensical-bordering-actively-contradictory-to-their-narrative-roles ways) is that in eight seasons, we never got the faintest inkling of how shiro got his scar or lost his arm. we never got any sense of how or why it happened beyond ‘he was a galra prisoner for a bit’

was he scarred in a fight? was the scar over his face a punishment from some insubordination? was he restrained in such a way for haggar’s experiments that it cut his face? did he lose his arm in some kind of crash or escape attempt? was it cut off by haggar? sendak? a fight? the same fight he got his facial scar or a different one? does it have anything to do with his previous rank as ‘champion’?

we get plenty of flashbacks to his time as a prisoner and it’s never even touched on. narratively, a massive physical change like that should be emblematic of an internal change, too. we can infer his hair turns white from stress, but what about the rest? are these changes indicating he fought for his or others’ freedom by trying to escape? that he gave in to the role of the galra’s champion, if only temporarily? that he was strong enough to fight sendak but not strong enough to win?

if his time as a galra prisoner was just the inciting incident + a little flavour text, then it would be fine to not to go into details. but shiro becomes their champion, he is the focal point of haggar’s complex and poorly-written nebulous plans, and we see various hints and flashbacks to this time. if this felt like an intentional omission, that would be one thing, a unique take on how these stories are usually written, a moment pointedly left private, but instead it feels very much like they either just forgot to tell us and never remembered, or didn’t care enough about shiro or his character to fill out the story behind his most prominent features and thereby one of the most important moments of his character’s bedrock in the first place

[caliberbook]

Part 1 VINCENT Chapter 2 (Part 2)

“Oh, please! Come on, you could be them.” Marielle gestured to the couple still making out.             Sabine gagged. “Ugh. No one can hold their breath forever.”             Marielle tossed her head back in sincere delight at her comment. “Come on.” She tugged at Sabine’s shirt one final time.              Sabine rolled her eyes but gave Marielle a smirk of agreement, then went to the dance floor with her. The two let themselves go into the music, waves of bodies slamming against them from all sides. Sweat and adrenaline fueled them long enough to be on the floor for at least twenty minutes before needing a break. Dripping, they both went back to the empty seats at the bar.             “Get a room,” Marielle barked at the couple who were still playing tonsil hockey. They didn’t respond in the slightest—not that she had expected them to.              Between the liquor and the bouncing, Sabine was spent. “Need…water…” She coughed.             The bartender was at the other end taking orders from a row of people. “Think you’ll survive?” Marielle asked with a smirk.             Sabine put her head down and waved her away dismissively.             Marielle went to wait in line, throwing Sabine a glance every so often. She was probably asleep, but Marielle wasn’t concerned; that was the safer position to be in. She waited for a few minutes, then was startled to hear a voice addressing her.

“Hey,” it said pleasantly, but loud enough to be heard over the music. 

She turned around abruptly and saw a tall, handsome man with dark hair and eyes, and just enough facial hair to be attractive without giving off a homeless, hick, or creepy vibe. He had one silver hoop earring in his left ear, which Marielle found appealing, and was wearing an emerald-green shirt and tie. The tie seemed misplaced in this setting, but she found it oddly enchanting.              “Hi,” she replied, pushing her matted hair back from her face.             “I’m Morgan.” 

He extended a hand. She took it and shook firmly. He had a nice handshake. “Marielle.”“I noticed you two out there. Is your friend okay?” He gestured to the dance floor briefly with a shot of something in his right hand.             “I think she just had a bit too much to drink, but she’ll be fine. This is a pretty normal Saturday night for us.” Marielle stifled a chuckle, a heavy bass providing the background to her reply.             He took a small sip of whatever hard liquor he was drinking. “Yeah? Are you with E.U.?” He meant the college.             “Yeah, both of us.”                 “I haven’t seen either of you around.”             “Well, I’m in the criminology department, and the hunk of dead flesh over there is in biochemistry.”             “Ah, a field I know well,” he said with a slight smile. “What’s she like?”             “Sabine?” She paused, fanning herself again. “Withdrawn?” He glanced over at her, disappointment flooding his face. Marielle panicked—she hadn’t meant to make Sabine seem uninteresting. “But, uh, she’s deep. There are a lot of layers to her for sure.”             Morgan glanced down at her. There was a brief pause. “What about you?” he asked.  ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Want more? https://www.caliberbook.com/

[bubblyhoney]

buncha kisses

warnings: mature language, Good music mention, slight suggestive content, lotta name calling!, basically just fluff

tags: sapnap x fem!reader (a continuation of [renamed from “a collection of moments at the beginning of your relationship”] win for me, basically, with college!au)

words: 1447

A/N: a very sweet anon requested a continuation of college!au with sappy and had some great ideas for me! i love when you guys interact and talk with me pls continue to do so! been receiving a lot of really encouraging attention from some of my favorite people (ahem, for example @strawberrymilkgeorge [among others] <3) so i just wanted to say thanks for that :)

-

It’s a sticky day in May.

It’s that kind of hot that irritates under the skin and works its way through the hair on your arms. Makes you want to either rip your skin off or sink into a pool full of ice.

May is a month that Florida doesn’t take very well; it’s either raining like it’s the Great Flood, or hot as a mosquito’s ball sack.

And to make matters worse, it’s the due date of a huge calculus project. Like— weighted heavier than the final kind of huge.

You’d gotten up three hours before your final at 9 just to cram. Your desk was littered with folders, chapter notes, and highlighters dull with use. A half-eaten bagel was off to the side, staling by the second.

That was before your AC broke. Yup. Broke. Ka-put. Just full on died—it was almost audible. Your roommate had stumbled into your room, face creased with sleep, and cursed for thirty seconds straight.

Completely understandable, actually.

But you didn’t have time to fret about the damn temperature. You just took your shirt off, kicked the box fan near your bed into the highest gear, and breathed hot anger down into your notes.

The only relief you would find would be lunch with Sapnap after your final. His apartment had air conditioning, and he was surprisingly deft with a knife and cutting board. Dude didn’t know how to figure the mechanics for emailing his film class project to you that one time last semester but could whip up a Greek salad and broiled chicken like no other. Your own little Gordon Ramsey.

He was yours now, officially. As of last month he was yours. A month full of drive-in movies, failed study dates, and an absurd amount of McFlurry’s.

And that’s what is waiting for you in Sapnap’s cup holder when you swing your way into his car with an exasperated look on your face. You just melt, eyes flicking up to his gratefully and silently taking it.

“How was the final?” He lays a hand on the gear shifter and nudges the AC up one more tick. The door closes behind you and you shuffle your legs apart, leg hair tingling in this heat.

“It was fucking brutal. I think I developed an ulcer just looking at the reference page,” you huff and he just shakes his head, laugh hot on his lips. “Absolutely not worth the studying—think I got a good grade, though.”

“Well, that’s cool. I’m proud of you.” The engine chugs to life when he shifts into drive and starts for the side street.

“Thanks.” Your cheeks blush ever so lightly but you pass it off to the heat. A moment passes. “So.” The straw makes a choking noise as it nudges at the bottom of an empty cup. Jesus, you finished that fast. “What’s on the menu for today?” Brandy’s Sunny Day lilts softly into the blasting air as you settle into a comfortable conversation, schoolwork at the back of your mind.

“Thinking of making banana chocolate chip muffins and pigging on those. Thoughts?” Flicking on his left turn signal with his left hand, the right slides onto your knee.

It’s never too hot for that.

“Sounds perfect,” you reply, voice small in a sudden bout of shyness. He double-takes with a smile, squeezing once at your leg.

Pigging is a perfect term for what you two do the second those muffins are out of the oven; it is too easy to shove three of those in a matter of seconds. Bellies full and in a sugar coma, you two lay under the whirring of his living room’s fan and stare up at the ceiling.

“This feels so good,” he mumbles, eyes half-lidded. Reaching a hand out, he pats his way to your hand and takes it, immediately squeezing it. “Wish you were kissing me right now.”

“Oh, yeah?” You taunt and hike a leg up onto his hips, swinging onto his lap and leaning to get your lips near his.

And that’s that.

The night is perfect.

Sapnap ushered you into his car at midnight and within four minutes you were on a US freeway with your head out the window. Like a dog.

A lone bird flies past in the dark air and you watch it swing into a patch of trees. You just close your eyes and breathe.

The stress literally melts. Melts into a puddle and drips out of you, falling onto the black pavement whipping past at a moment’s notice. School is a bitch already, much less an American college education. Grades and tests and professors and GPA’s and all that.

You swear Logan Lerman’s character knew what he was talking about when he said “we were infinite” in The Perks of Being A Wallflower. That’s what this feels like: infinity. Going 70 in a car driven by your hunk of a boyfriend, feeling the wind in your hair and the taste of midnight in between your teeth.

The inside of the car feels sweet when you duck your head back in, smile wide and hair crazy and a content look in your eyes. Sapnap gives you a glance before looking back at the road nonchalantly and lifting to curl and twitch two fingers at you. You instinctively move forward, eyebrows drawn together in curiosity. Three fingers grip your jaw tight, and then his mouth is on yours as the chorus of The King swells through the speakers. You only get two seconds to hum in happiness and slide a hand up his chest before he’s pulling away and has those beautiful eyes back on the road.

“You’re mean to me,” you sigh, and settle back into your seat with a ‘hmph’. He just looks smug. Bastard.

The nights Sapnap plays video games with his friends are—hm. Definitely something. You like to let him have those nights with no distractions most of the time; and you’re categorized as a distraction by the amount of times he “lags” when giving you a kiss or getting you on his lap.

Tonight, he got off work early and on the drive home called and asked if you’d come over and sit with him while he Robloxes with his friends. (“It’s like you can’t go one day without your hands on me,” you’d teased, but he couldn’t say a thing in response. You were right, needless to say.) “You can bring your paints!” he’d even added, knowing you like to watercolor as a hobby. You weren’t necessarily Etsy-worthy but it was fun and a stress-reliever.

And so here you were. Legs crossed, sketch pad in your lap, watching your adult boyfriend yell so loud that his voice cracks and breaks with every change of tone. You really had to remember to apologize to his neighbors…

“Baby—,” Sapnap starts, swinging around in his chair to hit you with a look so pouty his lip was in danger of falling off. “My dear girlfriend. My lovely woman.” His question doesn’t even need to be asked— he wants you to go get him a drink.

“You’re a misogynist. I’m calling NOW on you.” But you’re already heaving yourself off of his mattress and heading into the hallway, faux-annoyed look on your face. It melts into a smile upon seeing that little canvas mounted on the wall next to the door to his bathroom. It was a haphazard portrait of his parent’s dog Bowser that you’d drawn the few days his step-mom forced him to bring you home over spring break.

When you return to his room a few minutes later with a Bang and a couple of snacks for yourself, Sapnap has his headphones off and is swinging his feet in his chair like a child waiting for their parents to pick them up from school. You approach him, apprehensive smile on your face, and hand his drink over.

“Thank you,” he drawls, mid-yawn, and sets it down on the desk. Snaking an arm around your waist, he drags you between his legs and stuffs his face into your shirt. He inhales deeply but pulls away after a pause, hands tight on your abdomen. You press a thumb into his cheek and rub fondly at his facial hair, watching the way his eyes close calmly and relax.

“You’re so cute it causes me physical pain,” is all you get out before leaning and pressing a kiss square on his pink lips. They move against yours like they were meant to, one hand sliding up the material of your shirt and onto your warm skin.

“You smell like Subway,” he murmurs, and then the moment’s over.

Typical.

-

A/N: ask or send me some stuff!! requests, rants, anything. :D let me know what you think in the comments!

[paperpocalypse]

crackers and jam.

50 Cliché Tropes and Prompts: 41. Overhearing they have feelings for you.

Pairing: Five Hargreeves x Reader

Word Count: 1,703 words

Warnings: Swearing

Some time back, not long after he got stranded in the post-apocalyptic world and perhaps a year and a half before running into you, Five’s only companion was Delores.

It had been a meeting of chance (as everything is) in the middle of a destroyed department store. She had been looking at him. And maybe that’s why he was so drawn in – that stare; it was a lifeless stare, yeah, but it was not by any means a dead stare like the ones he had met too many times before. No life had been lost to create that stare. She was smiling, too.

Five had lifted her carefully out of the chunks of concrete, greeting her because there was no one else. For the first few weeks, he just placed her at the corner of her store and visited every once in a while, then took to occasionally toting her around the City when he needed to talk. He liked to pretend that she answered back – sometimes. After a few months, he named her Delores.

Then he met you.

Unlike Delores, you were human. Breathing. Alive, somehow. And you had thoughts and feelings that weren’t always connected to his and – and it was weird. It was home.

You didn’t question his friendship with Delores. Five had seen the half-burned stuffed frog in your wagon, so you wouldn’t have had anything to hold over him anyway. He knew that you knew that he still went to the department store in the middle of the night. And, shit, deep down Five also knew that Delores was, in the end, just a hunk of plastic with eyes. But after a year and a half of having nobody else, she had become something of a comfort. And a confidant. Burdening you with his issues was not an option, so when things became a little shittier than usual, he would slip out from underneath his blanket, make sure you weren’t having a nightmare, and head downtown to voice his thoughts aloud.

Over time, though, he learned that you were willing to listen. You listened, and you were always kind about it even if you didn’t always understand. His nightly visits decreased. And it was okay for a while.

But then Five began to struggle with a new issue – one that was a little different than the usual mess of stress and anxiety – and one night, he finds himself looking down at Delores again because talking to you about it is definitely off the table.

Unfortunately, Delores’s kindness is different from yours.

Well, here we are. Again.

“I’m just here to think,” he snaps, combing a grubby hand through his tangled mess of hair. The lantern beside him glows weakly as he plops down onto a slab of concrete. “Mind your business.”

Your business is everyone’s business here, Five. And to put my own two cents in, I think that you’re scared of your own feelings.

Blood travels to Five’s cheeks, unwarranted, as he narrows his eyes at Delores. “For the last time, that’s not what this is about. It’s – Jesus Christ, I’m gonna get over it. This isn’t a life-or-death issue.”

Then why have you been ranting about it like it is?

“I’m not.”

Ha! Rich.

He grits his teeth. She stares back at him, unperturbed. Bastard.

You know, maybe you’ll feel better if you say it out loud. Air it out. Test to see if it’s real.

“I’m not doing that.”

Do it.

No.

Say it.

No.

For god’s sake, Number Five, take a goddamn look at yourself –

“Fine!” Five hisses, though it feels more like an explosion. He throws his hands up. “I like [Y/n], alright? We’re the last people on this goddamn planet and I like them, and I shouldn’t care this much but I do. Happy?”

Delores pauses. Five looks away.

Very.

Ugh.

Did it feel real?

He clicks his tongue, crossing his arms, and doesn’t answer. The smile on Delores’s face seems a little smug, and it makes him want to hurl. He shouldn’t have said it out loud. Relieve some of the pressure and everything starts to boil over …

Breathing in deeply, Five forces his shoulders to relax. He bids a soft goodbye to Delores, then heads back to camp.

—

A week later, Five’s visit comes back to bite him in the worst way possible.

You’ve been having a hard time starting the fire for tonight, so he finishes splitting the evening rations to help you out with the bow drill. As he does so, you watch in silence, both of you waiting patiently for the smoke and dust.

“Do you think we have enough wood?” you eventually ask.  

“It’s enough,” he murmurs, only half paying attention. After a while, a few chalky wisps of smoke begin to rise from the charring wood. He leans in to blow the ember carefully once it forms, then puts it into the tinder and coaxes out a flame. “Get the kindling?”

You oblige, and within a few minutes, a healthy fire starts to dance atop the wood, scorching his face and fingers with heat. Five stares intently at the oranges and yellows for a moment, lips pressed together, intrigued in a tired sort of way. Warmth.��Then he backs off and grabs a portion of crumbled up crackers, handing it to you.

You spread the cloth over your knees. “Now all we need is some jam.”

“What kind?”

A soft hum escapes your throat. You contemplate unhurriedly, dabbing up some stray crumbs with a finger. “Blackberry,” you reply after a few moments. “Or strawberry. The kind that’s sort of chunky.”

It’s been a long time since he’s tasted either of those things. The simple thought of whole crackers spread with fresh jam, sweet and dark and sticky, is a luxury in and of itself. Five tries not to think about it too much, munching on his third fragment of stale cracker. It makes his mouth dry. “Hm,” he says, picking up the canteen for a few drops of water.

The fire pops. A few sparks fly out into the air and die just as quickly. You finish your supper and wipe your mouth, stretching your legs out in front of you as you sigh.

Five tilts his head at you. “What?”

“What?” you parrot back, though he sees the way your fingers fidget.

“You have something to say.”

Your facial expression shifts just the smallest bit. “How can you tell?”

(Simple – because he knows you. He knows your ticks; knows how you tick. He knows your smiles and all the subtle ways that your voice rises and falls. He’s memorized you because he fears forgetting, and it’s a problem.)

“Kind of hard not to,” Five replies.

“Oh.” You chew the inside of your cheek, still seeming unsure. “Well, um … I just wanted to talk to you about something. And please don’t be mad.”

He raises an eyebrow. “Why?”

“Um. A couple nights ago, I had a bad dream.”

“I know.”

“Not the one you woke me up from. A different one,” you mutter. “The night after we found the pillows.”

“Oh,” Five says.

“Yeah.” You look down at your hands. They’re dusty and rough, littered with small scars from climbing and falling and holding. “I … um, that night, I woke up and you weren’t there. And I sort of panicked, and went looking –”

The blood drains from Five’s face.

“I went looking for you, and I found you. Talking to her.” You glance at him for a split second. “About me.”

Oh, fuck.

Five stares at you as you fiddle with the scrap of cloth on your lap. You know. You weren’t supposed to know. You weren’t supposed to ever know, and now you do.

“Five?” Your voice is curious and small.

His voice is raspy. “How much did you hear?”

“Almost everything.” You grab the cuff of his coat sleeve as he attempts to stand up. “I’m sorry for eavesdropping. I really didn’t mean to, but –”

“It’s not your fault. Look, I don’t want to talk about it,” he replies tersely. “We need more firewood, anyway.”

“We have enough,” you say, though you relinquish your hold when he tugs a little harder away from you. You sound hurt. “Five, it’s okay to feel like that.”

“It’s not. It makes things more complicated.”

“How?” Standing up, your brow furrows. “I like you too, Five. If that’s what you’re worried about.”

His chest tightens. “That just makes it worse.”

“I like you,” you repeat. Your hand moves down to take his gently. “A lot. And it’s okay.”

(Did it feel real?)

Five meets your gaze solidly despite not quite wishing to, a familiar sense of guilt washing over him when you squeeze his hand.

Sometimes, he wishes he hadn’t met you. Then he would’ve gotten what he deserved for his recklessness – nothing – with nothing to concern himself with other than equations and survival and time. That, he’s fairly sure, would have been easier to manage. He hadn’t been taught to care for someone else. Not like this, at least.

But you. You. Five swallows the lump in his throat.

“I might have to leave you behind,” he murmurs, more hoarsely than he’d like to admit. The words burn like ice on the roof of his mouth. “One day.”

You don’t reply for a few seconds.

Then, for some inexplicable reason, you step a little closer. “But not tonight," you say. "Right?”

For shit’s sake, you’re so optimistic. Five chuckles dryly, hand still engulfed in yours, blinking away the vague stinging in his eyes. “Of course not.”

“Then I forgive you. If you feel like you need it.” With a mild exhale, you smile at him. Your eyes are glossy. “So can we sit back down? I like doing that.”

He quietly agrees.

So you bring him back down to sit before the fire, closer to him than before. No more words are left to be said. A heavy silence settles in their place, neither good nor bad, and almost comfortable. For the first time in a long time, Five tries not to think.

You lean against his shoulder. He welcomes it.

[musicanddancingthroughlife]

Shklance - I Died

I feel like I basically dropped off the face of the planet, and for that I apologize. I have no excuses, except stress and mental health have been a huge problem lately and I’ve just been trying to find balance in my life. I can’t promise anything in the near future, with holidays coming up, and I have finals in like 3 weeks, and then my husband and I are moving at the end of the year, and then my little sister’s wedding is a few weeks after so I’m helping with that, and basically my life is just a mess right now, but I am still working on stuff, comments are always welcome and really do help to get me motivated, and hopefully I can get back into the groove of writing daily and posting weekly!

This story is probs gonna be a part 1 of 2. Hopefully. As is, I wanted it to be a stand alone, but I’ve been drafting it for almost a month now and I just want to throw it at you guys. So know I’m working on a part 2, where they talk about the whole thing and you see everyone’s reactions to what happened. This was actually a request someone made of me on my Ao3 account, but I’ve always loved reading stories dealing with everyone finding out about Lance dying. Just never thought I could do it justice haha. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

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

Lance knew that this was going to be an emotional day for all of them, but seriously, this was a little overkill. He knew he shouldn’t have gotten out of bed today.

Sure, it was the one-year anniversary of the day they all saved the universe, ended the war that had gone on for decades, blah blah blah, but getting up also meant that he was going to have to see everyone again.

Not that he wasn’t thrilled to see them! He and Hunk especially had been waiting for this day for months, and he couldn’t wait to see Pidge and Matt again, either. Last Lance had talked to them, they had been working on some seriously neat stuff. They were sure to be a lot of fun.

Hell, he had even been looking forward to seeing Allura again, even though things had never really been the same between them after Allura broke things off. Though, considering how hurt he was still feeling about their break up, it was probably a good thing she had canceled last minute. She’d said that she needed to focus on helping the universe heal. Lance had wanted to go with her, but she rejected him. He knew she was trying to be kind, telling him that he “deserved the time to rest” and that she “knew how much he’s been missing his home planet.” But really, all it had done was serve to remind him that he wasn’t actually necessary.

Not like Shiro and Keith were.

Allura hadn’t had any problems taking them with her, even though everyone else (even Keith) and agreed that if anyone deserved the down time, it was Shiro. Especially since Shiro had seemed a little weary when he accepted the invitation from Allura. Personally, Lance believed the only reason he agreed to go was because he knew that Keith wouldn’t be happy staying in one place anymore, and of course, there was no way they were going to allow themselves to be separated again, not after everything that had happened…

And Lance was even looking forward to seeing Keith and Shiro, since he had probably missed them the most. But he also knew that it was going to be hard. It was always hard seeing them together, but knowing that they’ve been doing so much good out in the universe, that they’ve gotten to see so much more of those worlds than he had… That was going to be hard.

Not to mention Lance still hadn’t managed to shake the crushes he’d had on them for so long now.

Or the fact that while everyone else was off changing the universe, traveling the galaxies, creating newer and better technology and inventions, Lance had done nothing? Okay, so farming wasn’t nothing. And no one could deny that Earth needed some TLC after the trauma of the war had nearly destroyed it. But as much as he enjoyed the simple hard work involved, that didn’t mean he didn’t understand it was stupid. It was pathetic. His friends were still fighting, in their own ways, and Lance felt as if he had simply given up. He couldn’t figure out what he wanted to spend his time doing, what felt most worthy of his time and attention, and so he had allowed himself to fall back on something easy.

And he wasn’t sure that he could face his friends while knowing the truth about himself, that he was a coward and had no mission or goals in life.

******

So, maybe Lance was a bit of a drama queen, because things had actually been going better than he expected. Everyone looked good, older and more experienced. Hunk had even grown out some facial hair, though it was a little sparse coming in. Lance knew that wouldn’t be the case for very long. The most shocking was Allura’s news about expecting a child (Keith and Shiro had passed it on in her absence). That hurt way more than Lance thought had a right to, but he tried hard to suppress that pain until he could process it in private. Possibly while crying over a tub of ice cream.

And as far as their actual dinner and celebration went, well… it really had been inevitable that their discussion would become heavier. And, as usual, Lance couldn’t keep his own mouth shut.

“We had some good times, though, right?” Lance laughed easily, trying to direct the conversation back to something lighter, something easier (at this point he’d had a couple decades to cement his masks, and he was good at pretending like nothing was wrong). “I mean, we might have been injured, and tortured—”

“Lance,” Hunk warned. He darted a quick, concerned look to Keith and Shiro, but thankfully neither of them looked too worried. Instead, they were staring at Lance with such sappy looks Hunk was irritated Lance wasn’t paying enough attention to notice on his own. A shared glance with Pidge told him that at least he wasn’t alone in his annoyance.

Lance continued thoughtlessly, “and I mean, maybe a couple of us died, but hey! In the end, it all turned out okay, and look at everyone, living their best lives!” (Lance was firmly ignoring the fact that he had spent most of his free time leading up to today pouting in bed. No one else knew, and therefore it didn’t count.)

Pidge opened her mouth, but Shiro spoke first. His brows were furrowed, and his nose had scrunched up a little. Lance wanted to melt at the cuteness of it. “Did someone else die? I thought I was the only one. Who else died?”

Lance’s jaw snapped shut. He couldn’t remember if it had even been brought up or not… It had to have, right? There’s no way his friends – his team – had just gone on for this long without knowing! He thought they were just ignoring it! Things had been crazy, and they’d never really gotten a chance to slow down and breathe, let alone discuss everything that had happened. And that was fine! That was to be expected! But now he was supposed to believe they just didn’t know??? Did that mean they didn’t care? That they didn’t notice all the nightmares that had become the norm after his death? The way he was jumpier for months after that battle? And if that were the case, then was it even worth bringing up now, so long after it had happened?

Lance’s face was burning, the warm flush traveling up to the tips of his ears, and possibly all the way down his neck. He could feel his eyes welling up, but he brushed it away, pretending his face palm in order to hide the movement. He glanced at his friends, unsurprised to find Hunk staring at him intently. Pidge was muttering to herself, obviously trying to determine what had happened on her own. Lance couldn’t even bear to drag his gaze to Keith or Shiro.

He tried to get out of answering Keith.

“Oops haha, must’ve miscounted, I meant to say that one of us had died,” Lance laughed again but unlike earlier, this one was decidedly uncomfortable. “Because. Obviously. One of us… did. Sorry, Shiro. But like, you died. That happened. And it was weird and we got a weird clone out of the deal, which was weird – did I say that already? – and like he wasn’t a great dude, so I’m glad you didn’t stay dead, you know? You’re much nicer than that clone was, he was kind of a jerk. No offense, Shiro. I mean, not that you’re the clone or anything, cause you’re Shiro, and that was Not-Shiro—”

Oh dear God why wouldn’t they shut him up? Lance was so busy panicking about what he was saying that he didn’t notice Shiro and Keith slowly standing, approaching him from each side. But Hunk and Pidge could almost see the concern rising off them.

“But he was mean, and he yelled at us a lot. Although I guess he really spent most of his time yelling at me, which really, makes sense, but again, not something you would’ve done, Shiro, so I’m glad you didn’t stay dead or anything, because Not-Shiro was a terrible replacement and—”

“Shiro yelled at you?” Keith had come close enough that he could lay a warm, gentle hand on Lance’s shoulder. Lance almost flinched at the contact, it had been so long since someone had touched him like that. Sure, he saw his family way more often than he had while they were fighting in space, but, come on. They were fighting in space. He never saw them back then! Anything was an improvement over that! Anyway, the point was, he knew he was lonely. He ignored it. It didn’t matter. His friends were happy, his family was safe.

“Weren’t you listening when I said it was Not-Shiro?” was all Lance could think to say. Keith rolled his eyes.

“Why did he yell at you?” Shiro asked. Lance shrugged.

“Lance had some good advice to share. Though honestly, I’m thinking that Lance’s plan just wouldn’t have suited the clone’s purposes and he wanted to make sure that Lance would stop pushing. So he yelled, knowing that would be enough to shut Lance down,” Hunk said. He shot Lance an apologetic look as he did so. Smart, because Lance was Not Happy with him. Now wasn’t the time to share petty hurts!

“Personally, I believe it was because if anyone was going to find out he wasn’t really Shiro, it would’ve been you,” Pidge shrugged. And really, et tu, Pidge? This wasn’t fair at all. Not to mention, now Lance could feel the now-familiar guilt from knowing he hadn’t been able to tell.

And that was what finally had Lance speaking up. “Oh come on, guys, that’s not even the worst any of us suffered out there! Lotor joined the team! I died! Shiro died! Keith left! We had bigger things to deal with!”

There was a brief silence following this, long enough for Lance to squeeze his eyes shut and briefly mutter “Fuck” to himself, and then—

“What do you mean, you died?”

Lance’s ability to make things worse every time he opens his mouth really should be considered a wonder of the world.

He opened his eyes hesitantly to find that everyone was watching him intently. Tears were welling in Hunk’s eyes, and Lance knew that if he paid too much attention to his friend, then he would break almost instantly. He avoided looking in that direction, lips pursed shut, determined to stay quiet now. But they were just as determined to make him talk.

“Lance, please, what happened?” and since when the hell does Pidge beg? That’s just wrong. But effective, because that wrongness made Lance jerk his head up, eyes accidentally locking with Shiro.

He looked so sad…

“It really wasn’t a huge deal, I was just saying that there was a lot happening. It was pretty much impossible for all of us to keep up with each other, what with Lotor and Allura, and Keith disappearing then coming back, and the search for Shiro… and Hunk, Pidge, you guys had a great team thing going on there. That was a lot of fun! And then remember Coran had us playing Monsters and Mana? Good times!”

“You played what?” Keith asked, confused. Then he shook his head. “Stop distracting us, Lance. Answer the questions.”

“Um. What questions?”

Keith’s face hardened, eyes doing that dangerous flinty thing that Lance had always loved to see when he got mad. But before he could say anything, Lance’s phone went off. He really did try to hide the relief on his face as he stood, but the way Shiro set his jaw made him think he was not successful.

Before Lance could answer the call, he felt his phone plucked from his fingers. He lunged for it, and Keith slipped it into his own back pocket, out of Lance’s reach. Even worse, his lunge for it brought their faces way too close. Lance jerked back, face flaming a bright red, but he felt himself crash back into Shiro’s firm, solid chest. He started to stammer apologies, but Keith’s hands settled on Lance’s shoulders, pulling him away, and then he and Shiro pushed him back down into his chair. As Shiro moved to kneel next to Lance’s chair, Keith held him there, grounding and sure. He leaned down, putting his mouth close to Lance’s ear and then murmured “Please. We need to know. We’re horrible friends for not already knowing, but we’re asking now and we need you to tell us. Let us help.” And Shiro gripped Lance’s arm, thumb smoothing against his darker skin, making it harder and harder for Lance to want to move.

Lance knew that they were blowing this out of proportion. But he still felt touched. He’d thought they were just ignoring his death because other things were happening at the same time, but maybe that wasn’t really the case. Maybe they truly hadn’t known. Maybe Allura had never said anything, and Lance, expecting Allura to say something, hadn’t said anything either, and so maybe they just didn’t know. Maybe sharing it now would be okay.

[toxictigertonic]

I'm bored so here are some ideas I have about my DJSS and NJ gijinkas, and just them in general

DJ SubSup:

- I'm not sure whether I want to believe the orb is a helmet or a head, but it still exists with human DJ! I either like the idea that he takes off the helmet and it's kinda like smoke that forms into a head, or the glass heats up until is basically explodes into light and glass shards which then reform into a head. He doesn't like people watching him do it so he usually excuses himself if he wants to switch over

-He can change his appearance when he forms the human head, he usually switches around hairstyles and facial hair (because who has time to wait for your hair to grow out?). I have a doodle of him with very long dreads in a half up half down style

- Like a lot of people I believe the orb changes colors to show different emotions, but that color change takes place in his hair when he's got the human head. Most of the colors are pretty easy to guess, pink is embarrassed, red is angry, yellow is happy, simple. The odd ones are black for ill/out of it and white for startled. They don't shift a lot unless the emotions are really strong.

- Freckles. Very sparkly freckles that get brighter/sparkle more intensely when they're excited or embarrassed. The stars in his hair also sparkle more with these emotions, and you bet your ass J points this out to him and makes him even more flustered

- A weird one, but something I thought would be an interesting touch is that their tears float around their head instead of running down their face. They don't cry too often but it cheers them up when a certain dad of 5 k-pop sons tries to catch the floating tears with a tissue

- He's an alien

- His alien species is taller than humans on average. He uses his size changing abilities to be around 6'8" to 6'10" most of the time, but he's naturally 6'1". Not short by any means but he's short for his species and it makes him not feel not so great. He only trusts J to see him at his actual height

- Temp changing abilities too because why not? He runs colder on average but can heat up pretty substantially for a nice warm hug

- Dad bod, no more rock solid abs for Nova he has a tummy

- I whole heartedly believe the massive ego is a front to cover up his insecurities, J helps him work through a lot of these insecurities

- They adopted the Sayu team + Sayu herself, they were just like "How'd these kids get here? Welp they're my children now" *teaches them about astronomy*

Neon J:

- He is also covered in freckles, but his do not sparkle :( (They are still good though, all freckles are good in my books)

- I say it was probably an explosion that forced J to become a cyborg with the amount of full body damage he'd have taken. Instead of being converted into a cyborg, he now has massive scarring on his back due to being farther away from the explosion

- No more thin waist J he was in the navy and the mans a jock. Twink J is OUT Hunk J is IN

- Nova brought J out of his shell when it came to performing in front of people, so he will absolutely dance in public if he's excited about something

- If it's android head J he gets to keep his synthesizer because I love it when funky war vet dad sings

- Also if we're talking android head J the lights all around his body get brighter when hes embarrassed or excited, especially the ones on his cheeks, simply because mans gotta blush somehow. If he didn't, how would Nova tease him about it?

- A lot of energy, he has to have it if he wants to keep up with his kids

- Speaking of 1010, he's absolutely their dad 100%, and a great dad at that. He hugs them all in one big group after every concert and tells them how proud his is of them. Those are his boys and while hes a little strict sometimes, he would do anything for them

- He was very anxious when he invited Nova to function as their second parent, simply because he didn't know how either group would react. Nova was happy to be their second dad, and while it took the boys a little to warm up to the idea they have embraced dadNova into their lives (because I'm a sucker for happy families)

Uhhhh not sure if this even makes much sense or is well put together or hell, is even in character for both of them but my head hurts too much to care, please enjoy my dumb little ideas while I play more Fallout NV

[ziracona]

please bless me with all of your dbd headcanons even just a crumb would satisfy me,,,,, lmao. Fr tho ur hcs are godly pls give me all of them especially for og 4 and wraif

Thank you!! I’m glad you like my hot takes!

Let’s see, og4.

Jake grows facial hair pretty easy (that part is just canon). Usually he either lets it grow and ignores it till it gets long, or stays cleanshaven, but the in-between stage is physically painful for everyone else at the campfire bc you wake up and see rugged 2day scruffy woodsman stretch and he sees you staring and goes, “What?” Looking thoroughly unimpressed and Meg sheds a tear and Claudette pretends to not be looking and stares at her journal and Dwight gets heart palpitations it’s just bad for the whole group. When he shaves he’s an edgy dumbass and does it with a sharpened hunk of metal he made into a knife for himself and Dwight saw him shaving once and had to go sit down.

Jake has a soft spot for many of the survivors he’s known longer (honestly at this point, he’s pretty attached to the lot of them though), but especially the ones who work really hard at protecting other survivors. Double points if you’re younger than him. He would kill for Claudette, and take a bullet meant for Quentin, but would not convey this to them at all. Jake puts almost zero effort into making sure people knows he likes them. The people he has a soft spot for especially are also not always the ones he prefers to spend time with. While they’re survivors he spends less time with personally, Jake respects Feng Min for being the snarky little gremlin she is, and Tapp’s dedication to his job even here. Weirdly, while the people he likes often aren’t aware of affection, the ones he respects but isn’t as close to usually are aware of the respect. Jake also thinks he doesn’t like having friends and spending time not alone, but he does.

If asked point blank his thoughts on a survivor he likes, he’d probably just shrug or say, “They contribute to the team,” or “She works hard,” or “He’s fine,” because Jake just be like that. He had a hard time getting close to anyone initially because of how he grew up. Jake’s very guarded. He’s used to people manipulating and using each other, which makes keeping anything vulnerable close to his chest just necessary as he sees it. Boy doesn’t trust easy. Or open up. Ya need a can opener. Boy also does not like getting pushed around. Least favorite killers (aside from Nightmare) are probably Doctor and Ghostface, because he cannot stand being forced to do things or used. He’d rather take a chainsaw to the back than have someone lord power over him. He’s also got a looong memory, so if you fuck him over, he is not the kind to forget and forgive. He is the kind to resent and remember. Not that he never forgives people, but boy would have to really believe whatever happened was regretted and the person wasn’t like that anymore to let something that made him very angry go. He’s quiet angry though. Bide your time and get vengeance kinda angry. Would never let someone push him around. If a killer tried to fuck with him, he’d do everything in his power to kill them.

While Jake is tough and likes to hike just to be out and moving, and enjoys toughing it out, Meg enjoys being outside more as a fun thing than a wildnerness lifestyle thing. She has a lot of energy, and even in the realm, all that adhd can be a bitch. It would be easy to focus on the shitty stuff happening and drown in that, so she likes to keep moving, like she has since she was a kid and started running. Meg loves hard, and if she cares about you, she’ll make sure you know it. Not good at shutting up or realizing if she’s been going on for too long, girl has passion for everything.

Meg talks a big game, but does not have as much confidence as she pretends to have. She has abandonment issues, but they’re less, ‘my dad abandoned me’ and more ‘everyone but my mom, from him to grade school friends, hasn’t stuck around,’ so she does worry about that and coming on too strong, which she is aware she often does, but she can’t get herself to turn down the power settings on herself even when she tries. She’s never been good at making friends, so all of this in the realm is kinda new to her, since no one can leave. Meg would tell almost no one those things about herself. She cares hard though, and will try to distract other people from realm despair any way she can, because it’s what she needs and she assumes what they must need too. And to be fair, she ain’t wrong. Good at cultivating activities and drinks loving her friends juice.

Big goofball. BIG goofball. Also big gay. Well, bi af, but w a pretty strong preference for the ladies. She is simple of heart. Sees a girl, loses ability to think. Bonded with Nea over this problem. High int, low wisdom, big dumbass. Her weaknesses include girls’ eyes, voices, accents, freckles, scars, stomachs, legs, ass, titties, hair, hair dye, laughs, hands, eye contact, and cute accessories. Not great at expressing her feelings when she catches them, but tries hard. Actually pretty good at romancing once she gets into the groove. It’s just getting there she sucks at. Loyal as hell. Will go to bat for her friends and would rather die than betray them.

Meg has a real temper, especially when she feels like something being done to her or someone else is unjust/unfair, and will always try to fix those things even when it’s hopeless. Can and will weaponize her anger extremely effectively. Ridiculous memory for pop culture, shit memory for homework and things she was supposed to be doing. Memelord, but with some class.

Idk if this is because I identified with Claudette really strongly when I first started playing dbd or not, but I have always seen her as Asexual & Panromantic. Attracted to kindness. 

She gets overwhelmed fairly easily, but has been improving that by necessity since arriving in the realm, and can tap into the mom-friend override to fix problems for people who aren’t her. Has a hard time telling when people are teasing her/joking, but everyone knows this so they take it easier on her than each other.

Like Meg, had no friends before this, so it’s exciting and new, and a little scary, but mostly really good. She worries about other people a lot, and doesn’t always know how to help, but she tries. Very relieved Dwight volunteered to be team leader.

Enjoys recording things and studying. Would be fascinated by the Entity’s world if she wasn’t always being killed. Seems small and weak and easy to take down, but she has the strength of will to kill God herself if backed into a corner, especially when fighting for someone she loves. Sweet does not mean she will not fight back, and since being in the realm, and getting over her initial freezing up at the sight of horrifying murderers, she has worked extremely hard to be brave and take an active roll protecting people whenever she can. She is still terrified a lot, but has learned to push through that to help her friends and herself.

Loves animals, including ones a lot of people don’t like (bugs, snakes, rats, etc) and would and has definitely tried to snag a scorpion and a cockroach from trials to study before, and tried to befriend the realm rats now that they exist. Tries to get Jake to show her how to get birds to like you but does know how to ask him right.

Nervous about interpersonal relationships and unsure of herself. Really likes everyone but horrible at telling how other people feel. Feels like she always comes off wrong and can’t put words to things well even when she understands them super well. Does her best 24/7. Incredibly smart and talented. Knowledgeable about her passions. Is always thinking 4th dimensionally and has saved the team many a time by pulling off wild bullshit that makes sense kind of just barely but no one else would have thought of.

Dwight was a loser and kind of a douche growing up, kind of selfish and entitled and weak, but is no longer that person after a few years in the realm. He works hard to make good on his promises to look out for everyone, and cares about them very genuinely. Great at thinking on his feet and sounding like he knows more than he does, wonderful at regulating tasks to people efficiently, and not a bad strategist. 

Being the kind of person now who would not have liked the person he was a few years ago causes a little cognitive dissonance and self-doubt, but he’s trying. Genuinely enjoys hearing about people’s days and interests even when he’s completely lost. 

Not a fan of heights. If the fear of heights was not vastly overpowered by fear of sharp object, he would actively avoid the old ironworks in trials, but alas.

Used to play video games a lot. Thought he was good at them. Was not. Was definitely not.

Self-improvement king. Works hard and is a really decent dude. A very good sport. Used to be an asshole, so now that he’s nice he’s pretty damn forgiving if other people put in the work to improve too (my boy’s no hypocrite). Has mellowed out a lot and is pretty chill and nice but the damn fool will break his own heart by taking things people say the wrong way, or things they mean as a joke literally, if it’s something he thinks is true about himself, and will totally miss context and vocal inflection and just be like, “I know but I’m trying TuT.”

Big gay but in denial and confused

Just at this point really does want people to get to go home and be ok. Loves hearing stories and listening to his friends talk at the campfire because it makes him feel like things might be okay. Get the same result just by being near his friends, especially the other og3 who have been with him forever. If they’re all still there, things have to turn out okay someday. :’ ) Has never really told them that, because he’s supposed to be the leader, and thinks they’d feel less secure if they knew he depends on being able to sleep close to them at night to feel like he’ll be okay himself. Not in a they’d judge me way, but in a I really don’t want to let them down way. He wants them to think he’s got a handle on things even when he really doesn’t.

I was gonna do Philip too but I got this this morning and this post is already ridiculously long TuT, so here you go. Plus one mini Philip one.

Philip feels responsible for the young man he saw his boss kill the day the Entity got him. He knows that he killed scores of people unknowingly for Azarov, and those weigh, but he thinks sometimes late at night that if he could have just saved that one, it might have been enough to make him feel absolved someday for all the other deaths on his head. He remembers his face very well, and how terrified he was, and the moment of confusion and relief, and almost gratefulness when Philip let him go. He thinks over and over that if he’d just talked to him–assumed something was up, and gotten him to be quiet. Seen Azarov in time and stopped him. So many little things, and the young man would have lived. Even if the others were things he was completely blind to, he feels like that one is especially his fault, and that he could have stopped it. That one really haunts him.

[dammitadolfnomorecake]

Once Bitten, Twice Stupid prt 135

135

Standing at the terminal for the private airport, Keith was fighting the urges telling him to stay. Curtis was there. Shiro was there. Kosmo was there. Krolia, James, Ryan, Nadia, Ina, Matt, Rieva and Kolivan were all there... but the one person he wanted there the most wasn’t. Lance was with Mami at VOLTRON. His boyfriend opting to stay there for the next few days before he went into hiding with Mami. They were all going ahead. Allura would be coming with Lotor in a day or two with his generals that’d been barely saved in time by a team sent to the airfield, there just some things they needed to wrap up in Platt first. Leaving Lance hurt. Lance hadn’t been too well the night before. His boyfriend tried to reassure him at least a hundred times that they’d be able to talk over the phone and he’d answer all Keith’s calls once he had a second number. Coran would organise that, and Keith wasn’t allowed to know where Lance was going until he’d got there safely. He couldn’t tell the Vatican what he didn’t know.

Hearing a wolf whistle, Keith spun round. Pidge and Hunk coming towards him. Krolia seemed to expect this

“Finally! I thought you two were going to miss the flight!”

Pidge laughed at Krolia, though it was probably more the bewilderment on Keith’s face

“What are you two doing here?!”

“You didn’t think we’d miss this opportunity, did you?”

“But... what?”

“Lance told us to come. Because apparently you can’t tell your two best friends you’re off to Rome. Sheesh, you’re so rude”

“But you were... weren’t you staying in Garrison?”

“Pfft. We still are. We came to say goodbye to you, dummy”

As far as Keith knew the pair of them would be staying in Garrison. They were going to look after Lance’s house and his cow and Blue... and Lance. What about Lance? He’d thrown around the idea of asking them to go with Lance, but Lance didn’t want to interfere. Apparently this didn’t count as interference? He didn’t want to make a scene about leaving

“What about...?”

Pidge snickered at his failure to articulate the questions in his head

“Chillax, dude. It’s all sorted. Blue’s back with Lance now, and we’re gonna check on his house for him”

When did that happen? He hadn’t been able to see them much. Weren’t they mad about that?

“But... why?”

“Because we’re friends, doofus. Plus, have you met my brother? Leave him alone for too long and he gets all stupid in the head. Someone has to remind him he’s not as smart as he thinks he is”

From the group, Matt called out

“Fuck you, Katie! I’m smarter than you!”

“Go lick your balls!”

James and the others snickered. Somehow they managed to get along with Matt rather well. James had been less of dick towards him too. Maybe the mutt was scared of Lance? Because accepting him seemed too far of a stretch. Reaching out, Hunk pulled him into a hug, Keith returning it, still slightly shocked that his friends had made the effort to come see him when he’d tried to sneak away

“You stay safe, man. And let us know what’s going on”

“Thanks. I will. I’ll be back as soon as I can be”

“We know. We’ll take care of Lance the best we can until you come back... when he comes back... it feels like everyone’s leaving”

“Lance said “This isn’t goodbye, it’s see you later””

Pidge wrapped her arms around them both

“He’s right. We’re coming to Rome to get you ourselves if you think you can skip out on us”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way... I’m sorry... that we have to...”

Pidge stomped on his foot, scowling up at him when he looked down at her questioningly

“Stop it. Look. We don’t blame you over what happened with Lance. We don’t blame Lance either. Sendak was a bad man. What we want is both our friends to be okay”

Hunk backing Pidge up, though sounding super nervous

“You are okay, aren’t you? You’re not in some kind of super trouble?”

Maybe a little? For being distracted and letting Sendak get the drop on him...

“Not that I know of. I’ve been trying to stay outside the loop for Lance’s sake. Lance can be pretty forceful when he has to be”

Pidge nodded, dropping her head back down as she replied

“He’ll be okay. He’s going with Mami and he’s got Blue now. Are you going to have the same number?”

“I would pretend you didn’t already have my work number but I know you do”

“And Shiro’s... and Curtis’s... and Krolia’s Don’t think I won’t blow up their phones if you stop answering us”

“What do you expect? Daily reports?”

“Exactly! Hunk’s getting his passport processed. I’ve got mine. Rome isn’t too far to go to kick your arse”

He didn’t deserve his friends. He really fucking loved both of them.

Matt came over to them, lifting Pidge up off of him like she was rag doll, Pidge screeching at the sudden motion

“You put me down, Matthew Holt!”

“Where’s the fun in that?”

“I’ll burn all your stuff while you’re gone if you don’t put me down right now!”

Matt placed the angry gremlin down, ruffling her hair as she tried to straighten it up

“Don’t be mad because mum said you couldn’t come with us”

Pidge crossed her arms

“I didn’t ask her”

“We both know that’s a lie”

Pidge raised an eyebrow, seeming smug that Matt was wrong

“Actually I asked mum if I should go with Lance. She’s the one who said he needed a little time with his own mother instead of us”

Keith wished Pidge and Hunk were going with Lance. Lance only vaguely agreed if that Keith wasn’t going to be back for Christmas they could meet up with him. Keith was totally going to be back for Christmas. Three and a half weeks was plenty of time. He hoped it would go faster than it sounded out loud

“She’d be right. He needs a vacation, not to be babysitting you”

“He doesn’t babysit me”

“Remind me, did he not used to go ahead and check out the places you wanted to go ahead of time to make sure you wouldn’t be hurt”

“No one asked him too”

“All I’m hearing is a grumbling gremlin”

Pidge stomped on Matt’s foot. Rieva giggling at the pair of them. The werewolf seemed happier... and Loturd was to blame for it.

When they’d bumped into Matt and Rieva at VOLTRON, Lance had wound up ignoring his need for sleep in favour of having the pair over to the apartment. Where he went and fell asleep anyway after he and Rieva had made dinner for the four of them. Both Matt and Rieva were worried about Lance, Keith not wanting to talk about his boyfriend behind his back, but instead kind of sort of did, maybe a little jealously. Lance defending Lotor made his head hurt and his heart feel ugly with jealousy. Rieva having a hard time coming to grips with the fact that monster she’d heard so much about had seemed to soften into something almost human. She still hated him. Loathed his family. Wanted him to fuck off back to Europe and stay there with his family forever, all of which making Keith smile at her description. She liked him a tiny bit better now that he’d given her some answers about why her biological parents had to die.

It turned out Lotor was looking into it in his own way.

He couldn’t very well approach his parents and demand a list of everyone they and their underlinings had personally killed. It was disgustingly and shamefully long, Lotor actually admitting that to Rieva, as he hung his head before her. Part of his niceness still seemed like an act. Rieva didn’t trust him. He acknowledged that she had no need to and no need to forgive her. Her parents murders were nearly a footnote in Lotor’s research. Simply murdered because they were the wrong friends of friends of friends who’d lost a child to Honerva’s crazed experiments. Zarkon wiping out the chain of evidence back to them. He’d found a photo, giving Rieva something tangible of her parents. She and Matt were coming with them long enough to give statements, again, then going on to spend some time with Rieva’s adoptive parents, with the plan being to return home for Christmas. Krolia had personally promised them her protection... then Kolivan turned around and did the same. His mum could be scary when she wanted to be. Keith wishing he could have seen her scolding Kolivan who’s facial expression never really seemed to change that much.

Everything had changed since he’d last been standing here. It was only him and Shiro then. No Pidge. No Hunk. No Krolia he thought of as his mother now. No Lance as his boyfriend, just Lance that needed a bullet in his brain. No twins. No... friends... that he believed he’d never have because everyone left him in the end. No Kosmo or Blue. No good thoughts of vampires and werewolves. No Mami and her rebel antics. No apartment filled with memories to come back to. No house filled with love waiting a little further down the road for all this to be over and him to move there to be with his pregnant love. None of that. He was going to miss Lance so much. Pidge and Hunk too... but Lance... he missed him deeply already.

“Sorry, kids. It’s time to go. Keith will let you know when we get there. Take care of yourselves until we’re back”

Krolia hugged Pidge and Hunk, both of them hugging her back. They’d bonded. He used to believe as long as he had Shiro he had all he needed. The two of them. The two Paladins as Shiro would call them. Now there was 5 of them... Him, Lance, Shiro, Pidge and Hunk... and some kind of weird family bond between them all. Lance was right, as he usually was, it was past time putting this Sendak mess to bed. Keith knew at least two Blade agents were staying behind to deal with the spot fires left from Sendak. But Coran had that handled. For a weird old fae, he was kind of very special... He could be flaky, he could be slow, he could be frustrating, and his stories didn’t need to see the light of day again, but he did care. And fuck, he loved Lance so much. Everyone loved Lance so much... He hoped he was doing the right thing here. He hoped his boyfriend wasn’t crying his eyes out. He’d cried enough last night and into the morning. His morning sickness had seemed to almost double with stress. Keith didn’t want to spend their last night in the infirmary, but Lance had been so sick that he’d agreed maybe it was for the best. He and the twins were going to be okay... They were going to be okay and he was going to come back home to where he belonged.

Hugs did the rounds, Keith hugged by Matt who simply shrugged. Matt had the same kind of flare for dramatics as Lance. He loved love. Saying goodbye sucked, so it was “see you later”. Fresh determination in Keith’s steps as he led Kosmo over to the private jet. His doggo an idiot, trying to be part of the wolf pack... who were all in human form... He really was surrounded by idiots.

*

Cuba was hot. Hot and just the right place to be to forget how badly he missed Keith. Cuba was the holiday Lance’d wanted to take Mami and Keith on, but coming back with Mami was worth it to hear the way she lit up at the prospect of an adventure.

He’d cried so hard the day Keith left. Regretting letting him go without him. Mami held his hand, confined to bed thanks to dehydration. Keith had worried so much about leaving that Lance wondered if he would. Coran helped him make a gift for Keith. A small album of ultrasound photos and tummy photos from his phone, and surveillance footage. They’d had to get creative or he’d have had three full blank weeks there. He had another two albums. One for him and one for Mami. Mami getting into this baby thing too much. The knitting needles coming out and him being told to mind his own business. Luis had nearly lost his shit when Coran came to pick her back up. Mami had a few choice words about her overbearing son and the banning of her occasional nightcap, and he didn’t take her to church.

Picking up their rental car, Coran had organised it all. Special clearances, careful of customs, a nice hotel room with ocean views for a month, giving Keith the chance to come down and experience this with them before heading back to America. The only way to get a Cuban passport was to be born there or to marry a Cuban. Mami had hers, Lance her American born grandson... funnily enough named Lance. Amazing. It was also really the only time he could take this holiday with Mami. He could still hide his belly. He was small. He’d googled and seen some of the sizes of normal bellies, worrying his was to small for their twins. Mami called him an idiot for it told him “before too long he’d be wishing he was small again”. Seeing Keith didn’t need all his clothes in Rome, Lance had borrowed some of his... and packed the same body wash his boyfriend used... and Keith’s stinkiest jacket to stench up his luggage so he wouldn’t lose his scent.

Checking in, the hotel was ridiculously nice. Clean. Lots of white and arches, the smell of the beach in the air. Mami pointing out everything that had changed since she’d been there, even trying to send them down roads that no longer existed on the way to the hotel. Thank god for inbuilt GPS. Setting up their room was put on hold. The first thing he did was set up his laptop, using the hotel wifi. He had the phone Coran told him to take which was an encrypted Blade phone, as well as the laptop which he’d personalised a little with pictures of Keith, Blue and Kosmo. His own laptop, normal, and work phones locked away at VOLTRON. None of that mattered. His first port of call was logging into his “what’s app” with his new account just for him and Keith. Rome was 6 hours ahead. Making it 3am. He’d told Keith he’d call him when he’d arrived, like Keith had called him when he’d arrived and was able to.

Keith had been waiting up for him. His boyfriend nursing a cup of coffee, Kosmo trying to butt in over his shoulder. His fur son missed him... being a bad father, Blue was staying at VOLTRON. He couldn’t bring her down to Cuba, and she deserved to run and play, and he was paranoid about leaving her with Pidge

“Hey, babe. Hey, Kosmo!”

Keith pushed Kosmo off him, huffing

“How come he gets a happier hello?”

“Because he is best boy, and you are sleepy boy”

Keith sighed at him

“You know I had to wait until you landed before I could sleep”

“I know. Mami tried to get us lost”

Shooting a glance at his Mami, she was already making tea in the rooms kitchenette area

“Is that Keith? Hello, my mijo!”

Lance sighed, shooting Keith a look

“Hey, Mami!”

“Now who’s getting all the happy welcomes? How was today?”

“Boring. Long. I miss you”

“It’s only been a couple of days”

“Too long. How are my twins?”

Lance stood up, pulling his shirt up for Keith to see his belly

“Still in there”

“Hello, my little macaroons. Daddy loves you”

Lance rolled his eyes as he pulled his shirt down and sat back down

“They know. They have to hear it from me all the time”

Kosmo made another attempt at Keith’s laptop. Keith nearly spilling his coffee

“He’s a menace. Everyone keeps giving him treats and he’s stopped listening to me”

“That sounds about on par for him. Anyway, I only really called to let you know we got here safely”

“I’m glad... I really miss seeing you”

“You see me everyday”

Yeah. He missed Keith. He missed him so fucking much that he had to keep from crying during their calls

“You know it’s not the same”

“Yeah. It really isn’t but it’s not for that long”

“That’s true but it feels like forever”

“You’re not hanging up before I see my handsome son are you?”

Keith snorted at Mami, Lance had to fight for private Keith time

“I’m going to call him later”

“I want to see him”

“He’s still on the call!”

Lance groaned. All he wanted to do is talk to Keith

“Don’t hang up!”

“I’m not hanging up...”

“Good... Come make the tea so I can talk with Keith”

“He’s my boyfriend”

“Pish you”

The perils of your mother loving your boyfriend

“It’s okay, babe. Make the tea and come back”

Swapping place with his mother, Lance grabbed his suitcase of blood bags. Hopefully no one was going to be opening the hotel fridge... or that would be awkward. Coran had booked them a really, really nice suite. That Lance didn’t care about exploring until the following morning. The flight had been fine. Mami giving him a slight headache with her directions. They’d gotten in about 8pm. Perfect time for vampires to be flying. He had his box of grave soil. And he had his photos of Keith and his friends. Packing seemed like too much effort though. Especially with Keith right there on the laptop...

Bringing Mami’s tea over, he had his own blood bag in his teeth. Mami was filling Keith in on how nice the private plane was. She was gushing over how she’d be able to brag when they visited the family. Their holiday pretty much consisted of two weeks of being forced to “meet” everyone. Though he would be able to silently judge how they’d all aged. She was so excited. She’d been too excited really. Totally prepared for code names and assumed identities. She was going to be “Lola. The famous dancer with her younger, handsome, partner”. Coran dashed her hopes. They weren’t doing very many things other than seeing their family, so normal names were fine.

“Anyway, when are you coming down to see us...”

“Mami! We’re not allowed to tell Keith where we are!”

Mami chuckled at him

“You’re such a fuss pot”

“And Keith isn’t allowed to know where we are for his safety too. Sorry, babe...”

He’d love to tell Keith he was back in Cuba, waiting for him there. Coran would tell Keith when Keith was finally allowed to come see them

“It’s alright. I’ll just add to all the secrets Mami and I share”

Great. They were co-conspirators against him. If he wanted to be in danger, he’d still be in Platt

“I can’t win. Mami, go drink your tea. Keith, I’m sorry”

“It’s fine, babe. You look pretty tired...”

“I’ve been sleeping. These two are still keeping me up, but it’s okay”

Keith’s face softened. Lance wished he could reach through the screen and hug him

“I wish I could be there... It’s all grumpy people here”

“Grumpy people with dog treats”

“Yeah. There’s that. Fuck... I have to be up at 6. It’s inhumane”

Idiot. Keith was an idiot. He wasn’t going to be functional at all

“Babe! Go to bed. Put the coffee down and get some sleep!”

“I will now I know you’re okay. Oh, I’m supposed to say hi from the others”

“Tell them hello from us and we’re okay and I’m safe... ish”

His Mami smacked his arm

“He’s perfectly fine. He’s been a big baby without you”

Keith snorted. He was a traitor... a traitor Lance wished was waiting in the bed for him instead of in Rome

“I’m sure that’s not the case. I’m going to go, but I love you, babe. Love you too, Mami, and I’ll try call later”

“I love you too, give Kosmo extra hugs from me”

“He doesn’t need them. He’s a total himbo”

“He is best boy living his best life”

“Right. I’ll remember that the next time he pees on the bed. Anyway, I’m happy you’re safe. I love you”

“I love you, too. See you later”

Lance closed the chat with a sigh. He should have gone to Rome. He should have been there with Keith, and not with his boyfriend stealing mother

“Keith seemed tired”

“It’s 3am there, Mami”

There was a time difference she was forgetting

“What’s he doing awake then?”

Lance sighed again. They were barely in Cuba and he wanted to go home

“Because he wanted to know when landed safely. I know you’re excited, but we really can’t talk about Platt or about him”

“I know. Relax, mijo. I know. Let me be happy to see our Keith”

Ugh. He wanted to be happy to see his Keith. He didn’t want to share... Allura, Lotor, Acxa, Zethrid and Ezor had left on an earlier flight. They thought he was going north to Canada, where he was just a border away from coming back home if he needed to. He hadn’t even told Hunk and Pidge, only that Mami was coming with him and they’d be home for Christmas

“I know you know. I’m just being stupid. I’ll get unpacked and we can go to bed. I know Aunt Sarah’s supposed to see us tomorrow morning”

“You worry too much, mijo. I’m a tough old bird, and I finally get to show off my handsome son again”

“Grandson”

Mami shot him a look. Okay. Let a man worry

“Yes, yes. I know the story. Be a good boy and drink your blood up. We want those twins as health as they can be”

“They’re fine. They’re not doing much but taking up space rent free now”

“You’ve become much bossier. What happened to my sweet little boy?”

“He went and got pregnant. If I leave you alone with my laptop, you’re not going to get into mischief are you?”

“That’s for me to know. Now of you go. I’ll have my tea, then off to bed”

Great. What a great way to start a holiday. Would it really be too soon to call Coran and beg to come back? Why had he thought a family reunion was a great idea?

[loveafterthefact]

Love After the Fact Chapter 7: A Spark of Electricity

Keith makes a new friend and discovers he’s been committing tax fraud his entire life completely unknowing 🤣

First  Previous  Next

Keith stirs. It hadn’t occurred to him that sharing a bed with Lance might be to his benefit, but he finds it better than being alone. He’s spent a few decaphoebs of his childhood alone already.  

Being alone as a kit does a lot of damage. It can make the kit skittish and paranoid. It impedes their ability to express themselves, both verbally and through body language. Especially body language. It leads to depression and antisocial behavior.

And it makes sleeping difficult. Kits are instinctively driven only to sleep when their older littermates or parents are around. It keeps them safe. As such, having a full-grown, larger Altean sleeping only a few dashes away does a lot for him.

It can’t repair what was done to him as a small kit crying on a cliff’s edge for his father to get up and climb back up to find him, but it helps.

Except now he's alone, curled up by himself beneath the warm blankets. Or is he alone? There's a static sound, a flash behind his eyelids, a curse. Keith opens his eyes.

A small girl, an Olkari, is fussing with a panel in the wall. Much like himself, Keith can't imagine that she's an adult. But when she turns around, she wasn’t exactly a child, either. More adolescent. But extremely small.

“Oh, great, you’re awake! Keith, right? That’s what Lance said you like to be called.” Seemingly benign.

“Who are you?” Keith asks, blinking sleep and tangled hair from his eyes.

“Pidge. I’m the resident tech expert around here. I’m modifying the lighting system so that you can adjust it from your datapad. There was a glitch, unfortunately, which Lance picked up earlier when he went to adjust it for you before he left. My fault. Happens to the best of us. I’d fix it the ‘normal’ way, but the Castle isn’t Olkari tech, so old-fashioned way it is! Besides, I don't mind it. I actually like doing it this way.”

Normal way? This is the normal way! Keith sits up. “I don’t have a datapad.”

Pidge holds up a piece of glass with a white border around it. “Now you do.” She tosses it onto the bed. “I’m almost done with this. Just give me a second. Then I’ll help you set it up. Can you read Altean?”

“No.” He can, but the girl doesn’t need to know that. Keith busies himself with tracing the embroidery on the duvet cover.

“You're a terrible liar, but that's your business. That’s fine. I can program the pad to translate everything into Galran for you. We can even go old school and use a handprint scanner to unlock it, if you want. Only you and Lance would be able to get into it.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Lance said that Hunk and I are to make you as happy and welcome as possible and since we’re friends, I’m happy to oblige.”

“We’re friends? Who’s Hunk?”

“Lance, Hunk, and I are friends.” Pidge pressed the sparking tool back to a wire. “You are... a potential friend. Lance says you seem alright.”

“I’m flattered,” Keith deadpans. Pidge laughs. She’s not... so bad. Nothing here, minus the people Lance calls ‘courtiers’, are too terrible. And the Altean food. That’s terrible too. Also the clothes.

There's a lot that's terrible.

“Be nice, and maybe I’ll make you a body modification so you can taste sweet things?”

“You can do that?” Pidge nods, replacing a panel in the wall, work seemingly complete. “But you’re... just a girl? Like, a very young girl.”

“Nonbinary, actually. But yes, I am quite young.” Pidge smiles, removing the magnifying lenses from their eyes.

“Oh. Sorry. I-” Keith had assumed that most species followed the laws of the Alteans. he'd assumed his species was unusual.

“No worries. Just try to remember for the future and we're all good.” Pidge gets up from the floor, coming to sit on the bed like it's their own. “So, you wanna turn that datapad on?” Keith sucks on his lip, ears wilting as he inspects the datapad for a button. “Here. Gimme.”

Keith hands the datapad to Pidge, blushing beneath his short facial fur. The Olkari shows him a small button on the side, turning it on and handing it back to him. They spend the next varga showing him how to use it, how to translate texts, how to access the castle’s documents. They even show him how to tap into video feeds they’ve set up to spy on the kings in Alfor’s laboratory, though they warn him that not everything that happens in there is alchemy. At least not in the traditional sense.

Apparently Coran likes to visit. Also? Gross.

After all of that, Keith finds himself just... chatting with the young Olkari. They poke him and prod him and shine a flashlight in his ears. They ask probing questions about his personal biology and what purpose such trimorphism might serve.

“Well, it used to be that child-bearing and care was more of a... communal thing? We didn’t always form the strong bonds with our mates that we do now. But since our trimorphism doesn’t hold any disadvantage, our biology hasn’t changed.”

“That. Is so cool.” Pidge fiddles with another panel in another wall while Keith makes note of which foods he likes from the sampler he’s just received for breakfast. “Keith?”

“Hm?” Keith looks up from a small bowl of deep green beans, licking the corner of his mouth. Pidge turns, absently playing with the end of his tail. They’re a cute little thing, Keith decides. Inquisitive. Benign. A kit, like himself.

“How old are you?”

“Just nineteen decaphobes. Turned nineteen a few movements ago.”

“So you’re just a pup. Like me.” Keith nods, gesturing for them to continue. “Why would Zarkon marry you off, then?”

“Didn’t like my dad. Different perspectives, I guess? My father wanted to focus more on internal growth; Zarkon wanted to focus on expansion. They had a falling out.” Keith twitches his tail, watching the inquisitive Olkari chase it with their honey-colored eyes. “It happens sometimes. Anyway, I think he wanted me gone. Bring back sad memories, I guess.”

“How did you end up with him anyway?”

Keith’s ear wilt, tail stilling. “My father... died. Zarkon sent me to live with a friend, Takashi. He's basically my littermate.”

There was so much more to it than that, but Keith didn’t want to talk about it. Pidge narrowed their eyes at him, and Keith knew they could tell he was hiding things. Finally, they nod.

“Well, at least Zarkon didn’t hold your father against you.”

“No, he didn’t. He hoped I would be happy here, I think. He worries about me.” Keith tucks his legs up to his chest. Pidge hums, reaching out to touch a tangled lock of Keith’s hair. They begin working the knots out of it.

“I’d worry too, if my child nephew was married off to the likes of Crown Prince Lancel. He’s got quite the reputation. Or did. Adam says everyone was astounded when he showed up to hold court today. Especially King Coran. King Alfor's heart probably stopped when he heard about it.”

“What does Lance normally do?” Keith latches onto the change of topic.

“Hm. Runs all over. Flirts. Goofs off. Goes hunting. Flirts some more. The people like him as a person, but they don’t care for him as their crown prince. Y’know, because a crown prince becomes a king, and a king needs to like, do stuff. Other than the local prostitutes.”

Keith grins just in time for the door to open for Lance himself, followed by Adam toting a stack of tablets.

“Okay... question one,” Lance mutters, nose stuck in his own datapad. “What the quiznak are taxes?” Adam sighs, exasperated.

Pidge gives Keith a significant look. “Do you want to laugh or shall I?”

“As his spouse, I claim that right.” Keith dissolves into quiet laughter, the Olkari following suit.

“Oh, great!” Lance vaults over the back of the couch with a comb. “You two are getting along. Pidge, Keith. Keith, Pidge-”

“We’ve already done that,” Pidge informs him.

“Excellent! Anyhoo, Keith, your hair is a mess. Come here.” Lance doesn’t wait for a response, instead taking one lock of Keith’s hair at a time, starting at the ends and working his way up.

"...Thanks. I'll- I'll get it cut. It's inconvenient like this."

"No, don't you dare. I need you to keep it." Adam looks like he might throttle Keith. "Do you have any idea how difficult it will be to endear you to these fops? The cuter and more harmless you look, the better."

"Gee, thanks," Keith grumbles. Pidge snickers, going through the pockets of Lance's... what is it with Altean clothes? Lance has pants, but then a skirt in the back? What's even the point of that? He also had a cape? Nevermind. Pidge searches in the pockets of his pants.

Keith allows Lance to do as he likes since the comb doesn't hurt. He occupies himself chatting amicably with Pidge, taking comfort in the blunt openness and bright enthusiasm that they exude. Lance joins in, braiding a red-and-gold ribbon into Keith’s hair. The seamsmaster has assigned Keith an aesthetic and run with it. But the braid looks pretty, so whatever.

If only the matching wardrobe were more comfortable.

Hair done, Keith climbs up into the loft, watching from above as Adam and Pidge team up to teach Lance about taxes. He likes Pidge. Likes how sweet Lance is with them, giving them bits of junk he’s found lying about, letting them sit in his lap and scan the soft scales on his face with some device. He yelps when they try to stroke them against the grain. Pidge, unaware that it would hurt, apologizes immediately. Lance just waves it off, the same way Pidge waved off Keith's misgendering earlier.

These people. They're so easy-going. Adam is a tight-ass, but he's definitely overworked and probably overtired. Lance and Pidge seem to take offense to little, brushing off accidental hurts like one might brush off a drop of rain. Keith likes them well enough, but he's content to do so from his loft, where he can't be disappointed if they don't like him back.

Instead, he listens. And learns. Apparently, taxes are an allotment of money taken from the citizens to fund the crown. Who knew?

Living in the woods like a wild animal is not taxable. Keith smirks, realizing that he's technically a life-long criminal.

Wait until Lance finds out.

[voyager-into-the-unknown]

Part 6 of my Plance fanfic series is inspired by the song “Lucky” as sung by Lance’s voice actor, Jeremy Shada. Get ready for intimacy, hilarity, and the fluffiest of fluff in Pidge’s room. Lance and Pidge sing in this chapter. Guest starring Bae Bae and the Trash Floofs. (That might be a good name for their band if they decide to start one.)

https://youtu.be/6Sn_O9vDlR0

Part 6: An Intimate Moment in the Bedroom

Lance had been in Pidge’s room before, both on the castleship and onboard the Atlas. It was always a mess of odds and ends from computers, robots, and unidentifiable alien technology. There were clothes strewn about (Paladin gear, Garrison uniform parts, or her brother’s old hand-me-downs), and a couple of fluffy trash nebula creatures floating around. Her pets, she called them, but she wouldn’t ever tell anyone their names. When Pidge opened the door, he wasn’t prepared for the sight before him.

There were books and video games neatly lined up on bookshelves, a tidy desk and chair, many photos in frames and a few posters on the walls. There were model spaceships and robots on display, along with a teddy bear and a mermaid plushie. There were wall decorations of distant stars and planets, matching her bedspread, which was patterned with constellations from Earth’s night sky. There was a television with a gaming console, a computer, various small electronic devices, and a telescope. She also had a little collection of perfume bottles, makeup containers, hair accessories, a jewelry box, and so many other cute girly things that Lance almost thought they might have entered the wrong room. He realized then, that he had only really seen Pidge Gunderson’s room. This was the bedroom of Katie Holt.

Lance stood there for a moment, just taking it all in, while Bae Bae darted in through the open door. There were old photos of the Holt family when Matt and Katie were little, and some from when they were a bit older, including several taken on the launch day of the ill-fated Kerebos mission. There was a newer family photo taken on board the Atlas, and an amusing one of the Holts in costume, taken at the Clear Day celebration. There were many photos of the Paladins as well, some taken onboard the Castle of Lions, others onboard the Atlas, and many from the various planets that they had visited. In nearly every single one of them Lance saw himself standing next to Pidge, often with one arm casually draped around her shoulders. She was always beaming at the camera or laughing in every picture of the two of them together. He smiled at the happy memories that the photos captured. She probably had many other pictures of the Voltron team, but she displayed only those particular photographs for a reason, as if to cherish those particular moments. Lance felt another pang of guilt when he saw those mementos, regretting how he wasted so much time in those days, flirting with strange females he barely even knew, when he should have been paying more attention to the amazing girl who had been by his side the entire time. Hunk’s words came back to haunt him. “She’s had a crush on you since forever,” and “She’s cried herself to sleep over you a thousand times.” Lance hated himself for not noticing her sooner, and thought maybe the Holts should have been even more protective of their daughter. He didn’t deserve her.

“You’re awfully quiet.” Pidge looked at him, concerned.

“You’re room isn’t what I expected. I’m just...overwhelmed. That’s all.”

“You think it’s too girly, right?”

“It is girly, but you’re a girl, so that’s perfectly natural.”

“But you don’t like it,” she said dejectedly.

“No! It’s just the opposite, really. I love this room. It’s really cute. In fact, if I ever have a little girl of my own someday, I would want her to have a room as cute as this one.” He was still staring at everything. He had just picked up a framed photo of himself, Pidge, and Kaltenecker that made him smile fondly. Pidge’s fluffy blue and green trash nebula friends floated over his shoulder, as if to admire the photo with him.

“A little girl? You’re already thinking about starting a family?”

“What?! Oh...” Lance’s face felt warmer than usual. He nervously set the photo back down. “Oh, uh, yeah...I’d like to have a family of my own someday.” He couldn’t believe he had just admitted that out loud. He dared to steal a glance at her, and when their eyes met, he could not look away.

Pidge looked at him with a soft expression, her lips slightly parted and her golden brown eyes wide with surprise. She was small and vulnerable, and at the same time, she was also his Pidge—strong and tough, courageous and brilliant, but still so very young and innocent. For a fleeting moment, in his mind’s eye, she was more beautiful, more radiant, more dazzling than every star in the sky. “I want a family with you,” he admitted. “Someday...I mean, if that’s what you want, too.” It was if his mouth had a mind of its own. The blue and green space pets seemed to be blushing right along with him, as if feeling empathy for his discomfort.

She smiled at him, then looked down at the floor, blushing adorably. “Yes,” she said quietly. She was quivering ever so slightly. “I want a family someday...” Her eyes began to water. She took her glasses off and wiped her eyes, then swallowed. “...with you.”

Lance moved towards her and pulled her close, enveloping her in a warm embrace. She buried her face in Lance’s chest, her shoulders shaking as she wept quietly, grabbing a fistful of his shirt. He hid his smile in her hair, inhaling her sweet scent. He wasn’t crying, there was just a bit of space dust in his eyes...

They stood like that for a long time, saying nothing. The only thing he could hear in the stillness of the room was the sound of her fluffy trash nebula friends softly trilling, and Bae Bae’s tail thumping against the floor. Pidge stopped shaking and her breathing slowed, Lance rubbed her back gently. She slid her arms around him and hugged him. When she finally let him go, he held her by the shoulders and looked at her.

“I love you, Katie,” he said,. “I want to spend the rest of my life loving you. I want to grow old with you. And I am just as terrified by it as you are.”

She grinned. “I love you too, Lance.” She reached up to touch his cheek. He closed his eyes blissfully to savor the gentleness of her touch, then looked at her through eyes that were half closed. “For me, it’s always been you, and I never thought you’d ever feel the same as I do. I am happier and more frightened than I have ever been in my life. Everything is happening so fast...”

His opened his eyes wider. “We need to slow down. I...I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. We have been best friends for years, and we share a Paladin bond. Ever since that last battle, when we fully bonded with our lions...”

“We have been closer than ever before. Which is why I can tell you, with great certainty, and without fear of retribution, that you look like a raccoon right now.”

“What?!”

“Your mascara.” He turned her toward the mirror, laughing a little.

“Ugh! I’m not used to wearing this stuff. This is so embarrassing.” She picked up a makeup wipe and began to dab under her eyes. He grinned at her awkward attempt to maintain her dignity.

“Stop it. This isn’t funny, Lance.”

“Yes, it is.” He couldn’t stop giggling at how silly she looked. Then he saw her hurt expression.

“I’m sorry. Please, allow me. Close your eyes.” Pidge obeyed. She turned her face towards him, and handed him the moist little cloth. He held her chin as he gently wiped the dark smears away. Then he lowered his head and kissed her lips softly. It was intended to be a quick chaste kiss, but Lance couldn’t suppress his joy when she cupped his face and kissed him back. He deepened the kiss, wanting more, and Pidge then began to kiss him with more intensity and passion than ever. Lance began to pull away, afraid that things were indeed moving way too fast. Pidge pushed him down on her bed. “Take off your shirt,” she commanded.

Lance looked at her, both aroused and terrified. “Pidge, I don’t think we should...”

“Take it off,” she said more gently, sitting very close to him on the bed. “Start undoing those buttons.”

“Pidge, I really respect you, and I don’t mind waiting until...”

Pidge shut him up with another kiss. She took adavantage of his surprise to begin unbuttoning his shirt.

“I really don’t think we should do this,” he said breathlessly as she continued to undress him. “Pidge, I’m really trying to be a gentleman about this.” She had undone all of his buttons.

“Take off your shirt,” she insisted.

“I think we should wait. Now isn’t the time for either of us to lose our virginity.” He was blushing so hotly that he nearly radiated steam.

Pidge cracked up, laughing so hard her sides hurt. “I’m not trying to seduce you, goofball. You have mascara all over your shirt. I’m going to put stain remover on that, then put it in the washer. It should be as good as new after that.”

Lance’s facial expression changed from aroused embarrassment to cool shock in an instant. “Pidge!”

Pidge was in giddy hysterics. “That look...on your face...priceless!” She wheezed at him, so overcome with laughter that she nearly fell off the bed.

Lance sighed as he took off his shirt and handed it too her. “I still think that you’re using this as an excuse to tear my clothes off.” He turned on the charm, and said in his deepest, most seductive voice, “I’m just so sexy that you just can’t resist me.”

“In your dreams, Loverboy.” She draped his shirt over one arm, and then made finger guns at him. “Gotcha!”

She exited the room with his shirt in hand, still giggling as she shut the door. The trash floofs made a kind of sandpapery sound, which was probably their equivalent of snickering. Bae Bae, on the other hand, just whined in sympathy as she thumped her tail on the floor.

*******

When Pidge returned to her room, she discovered that Lance had removed his shoes and was sitting cross-legged on top of her comforter, strumming his guitar. He was definitely underdressed, wearing only his gray trousers, white undergarments, and socks.

“Making yourself comfortable on my bed, Lance?”

“Obviously, I am trying to seduce you with my good looks, charm, and talent.” He smirked at her as he played an elaborate riff on the guitar. The fluffy blue and green alien pets trilled in harmony with his last chord.

Pidge laughed. “I think it’s working. But alas, as much as I would like to keep you up here in my bedroom half-dressed and swooning with mad affection for me, I don’t think my parents would approve. I brought you the sweater you left downstairs. You can put that on before we have supper, which should be in about an hour.”

“Won’t your parents suspect something? They might wonder what happened to my shirt.”

“If they notice, just tell them you spilled something on it, so I washed it for you. Now, about that song you wrote for me...”

Lance played his most recent version of the the song, which he entitled “Lucky.” Pidge was delighted with it, and kissed his cheek when he was done. She sat barefooted on the other end of the bed, facing him, and he taught her to sing her part in the song. They spent several minutes revising the lyrics. The final result was this:

"Lucky"

Lance: Do you hear me, I'm talking to you

Across the stars, across the galaxies

Under the open sky, oh my, baby I'm trying

Pidge: Boy, I hear you in my dreams

I feel your whisper across the stars

I keep you with me in my heart

You make it easier when life gets hard

[Both:]. Lucky I'm in love with my best friend

Lucky to have been where I have been

Lucky to be coming home again

Ooooh ooooh oooh oooh ooh ooh ooh ooh

Lance: They don't know how long it takes

Waiting for a love like this

Every time we say goodbye

I wish we had one more kiss

I'll wait for you, I promise you, I will

[Both:] Lucky I'm in love with my best friend

Lucky to have been where I have been

Lucky to be coming home again

Lucky we're in love in every way

Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed

Lucky to be coming home someday

Lance: And so I'm flying through the stars

To a planet where we'll meet

You'll hear the music fill the air

I'll put a flower in your hair

Pidge: Though the breezes through the trees

Move so pretty you're all I see

As the world keeps spinning round

You hold me right here right now

[Both:] Lucky I'm in love with my best friend

Lucky to have been where I have been

Lucky to be coming home again

I'm lucky we're in love in every way

Lucky to have stayed where we have stayed

Lucky to be coming home someday

They were so caught up in the music that they didn’t notice that Sam and Colleen were standing in the open doorway. Sam had his arm around his wife and a faraway expression in his eyes, smiling at some distant memory. Colleen was visibly moved by the song and looked on the young couple with admiration. When the song ended, the Holts applauded. Lance and Pidge blushed.

“Mom, isn’t he amazing?” Pidge gushed.

“Lance, you have a voice like an angel, dear.”

“I thought the song was wonderful. Well done, both of you!” Sam exclaimed.

“You two had better get ready for supper. Matt will be here soon, with takeout from Pizza Shack. And there’s plenty of leftovers from lunch today.”

When Sam and Colleen went back downstairs, Lance and Pidge put their shoes on, and Lance put his guitar back in its case. Pidge handed him his sweater.

“Well, that went well. What’s the plan for after supper?” Lance asked as he pulled his blue sweater on over his T-shirt.

“I was thinking we can get Matt to teach us how he finally got to level 36 of Killbot Phantasm.”

Lance beamed at her. “That is a great idea! Then I’ll give you the surprise that I brought over for you. It’s in the white bag on the sideboard downstairs.”

“That bag smelled suspiciously like peanut butter cookies,” Pidge said.

“Of course!”

[mizu-writes-kumo]

For your dark shance au, think you could write the first time dark shance met. Like maybe evil lance tells canon lance about in a flashback or something please?

Yes, I very much can.  I did mention a bit how the meet in the first fic I ever did for this...but I did like diving into it more.  Because honestly Honvera and Zarakon’s first meeting is adorable, and like I love it for Shance too...so yeah.

You can read it on AO3: Chapter 4: Save Me from Myself

Here you go, I hope you like it...

----

“So…like you and…”  The alternate human version of himself started out.  Using his chatter to distract from the fact that he is testing the tight bonds that strap him down to the table.  “The...glowy-eyed....version of Shiro....are like a thing?”

Lance raised an eyebrow slightly at the question.

Well more the wording of the question.

Such dated human slang.

But that it the most he does in terms of a reaction.  

Not even sparing the other version of himself a glance beyond what he can see in his peripheral vision.  It’s more than enough to see the other test at the bonds that give nothing to him, as Lance continued to look at the readouts of his datapad.  Recording the base levels the other gives off before he does his experiment so he can compare later.

“You know...a thing...together...a couple.”

“Emperor Shirogane is my husband, yes.”  Lance answered flatly.

The other version of him made a strangled sound.

Looking a bit taken by surprise by the fact when Lance looked up from his readings.  As well as uncertain of how to take the fact. Sort of like he figured it, but the confirmation still slapped him hard in the face.

“Oh…”  He started again as Lance placed his datapad down.  “Well...um...that’s…How did you two meet then?”

“My sister introduced us to each other.”  Lance answered flatly as he approached the table.  Tapping at the bonds on the other’s wrists just to check.  “Many decapheebs ago.”

Though the memory of it doesn’t really feel like it.

--

Lance let out a breath of frustration.

Ancients, why did he let Allura talk him into doing this.  

He was content and happy with his work back on Altea.  Theorizing and exploring the bonds of Alchemy, working out how to better develop technology and life, teaching a few classes here and there. It wasn’t the most exciting some days, but Lance didn’t mind.  He felt like he had something of purpose there, than well...anywhere else.

It was a good thing he had going.  

But Allura had to come to talk him into helping researching the rift a comet tore into...reality on their good ally’s planet, Earth.  

Well it was more like complimented and begged him to join.

Because Lance, at first really didn’t want to at first.  

Allura had persisted though, claiming he was by far the best qualified for the job.  The top Alchemist on Altea, who better than that for the job, really. And this was like nothing they had ever seen before. There was so much he could possibly learn from it, both in observation and trying to close it.  He would be right at the forefront of great discoveries. And how she wasn’t asking at his Queen but as his sister, and she will just persist until he said yes.

Though she conveniently left out the part about dealing with humans.

Most specifically, humans that have little to no regard for sensitive instruments and don’t listen to him.  Especially when he tells them to be careful.

Honestly they created twice as much work for Lance.

As if he didn’t already have a ton of data to shift through and organize.  

It was just…

…

A lot.

Part of him wished he had asked Allura if he could help her research the comet.  But there was something in her eyes that Lance knew not to get in the way of. He can only hope it doesn’t over take her.

Though the rift was far more interesting.

So…

There he was.

“And you are totally sure it is safe, Allura?”  An unfamiliar male voice asked behind Lance.

“Yes, the rift is well and fully contained.”  Allura’s voice returned easily. “And all our readings indicate things are at normal human levels.”

Lance turned to the sound of his sister’s voice.  She was just in front of the central containment unit for the rift. She was dressed a lightly armored dress that was expected of her, as the Altean Queen, when she visits foreign planets.  Especially to such places like the military base they were on currently.

Beside her was a man Lance had never seen before.  He was taller than her, with broad shoulders, dark hair, and structured facial features.  He’s dressed in the gray uniforms everyone on around the base wore...save the younger cadets still in training that would run around.  His uniform was decorated with all times of things that indicate rank and achievements.

Lance was too far away to see what they were.  Not that he would really know what any of them meant if he could see.

As an Altean Prince, he should know probably know them.

But as a researcher, Lance just doesn’t have the time.

“Your people should be able to start staying longer than a varga at a time, and start to join our team full time by the end of the next movement.”  Allura continued pleasantly to the man. Making a board gesture to the room and equipment around them. “Everything should be in order by then, everyone should be settled in by then.  And it should be a smoother transition for those involved.

Lance watched as the man nodded at his sister’s words, before he reached down to piece out a digital read out sheet.

The man looked at them for a moment.  A clear look of confusion on his face, as he can’t seem to make out what it means.  Or maybe even what it’s for. Tilting he has a bit from side to side some as he looked at it. Though he did look like he was trying to desperately understand what it was as Allura turned to ask someone a question as they past by.  He just can’t seem to work it out for the life of him, looking more out of his depths with each passing second.

Possibly because he had he read out sheet upside down.

Lance couldn’t help the smile that came to his lips.

The man look rather...cute.

And he found himself walking over towards the two after a tick of watching the man some more.

“Here,”  Lance started warmly as he grabbed the bottom of the sheet gently.  Easily pulling it from the man’s grasp to flip it over the right way. “It was upside down.”  He added as he held it back for the man to grab.

The man blinked at him in surprise.

Before his cheeks changed color slightly.

“Oh, thank you…”  He muttered out softly, before he turned back to the read out...and continued to look lost.

Which caused Lance to smile more.

Yet before Lance could give him some guidance as to what it all meant, Allura noticed his presence.  

Beaming brightly at Lance like she hadn’t seen him in movements.  Despite seeing him that morning for breakfast, because she had to see how he was settling in, and tell him she was introducing the human liaison, the officials has appointed to oversee everything.  The one he would report to and likely work closely with among the others.

“Lance, there you are!”  She exclaimed, before turning towards the man beside her.  “This is Commander Takashi Shirogane. He’s been appointed to oversee this operation.”  Allura introduced the man with a grin. “Shiro, this is my brother, Prince Lance. He's one of the top alchemists Altea has to offer, and the best person for this job.”

Lance resisted the urge to rule his eyes at Allura’s words.

Instead settling for offering his hand out, as per Earthen custom, to the Commander with a smile.  “So, are you the Shiro I’ve heard so much about from Allura, but always seem to miss?”

It was an educated guess that the man was the same Shiro that was Allura had befriended, along with three other humans, some decapheebs back.  Lance had never really had met the man. Unlike the other three, Lance always seemed to just miss Shiro, either arriving after he left, or vise versa. And Allura never really shared anything beyond verbal stories about the ventures she had with her allied friends.

Not that Lance minded.

Allura and him both lived separate lives after their father died and Allura ascended to the throne.  The only really friends they truly shared was Coran. Well...okay maybe Hunk as well, but that was still a budding sort of relationship of Lance’s side.

And that was totally fine with the two.

But still, the brief informal behavior Lance had observed between the two.  It didn’t seem like too much of a leap to assume.

The Commander smiled in return as he took Lance’s hand and gave it a solid shake.  “Does Allura know many Shiros?” He asked as he turned to give Allura a bit of a look as she huffed at him slightly.

“I am aware of only one, Commander Shirogane.”  Lance returned as he pulled his hand away.

“Then I must be the one, Prince Lance.”  Commander Shirogane stated easily.

“Lance is find, Commander.”  Lance corrected warmly. “I’m afraid my young nephew holds the prince title more than I do now. Nor are formalities really needed if we are going to be working together on a day to day basis.”

“Or course.”  Commander Shirogane said with a nod.  “Then you can call me Shiro. Everyone pretty much does it.  It’s less of a mouthful.”

Lance can’t help the small bark of laughter that left his lips.

And Allura smiled on at the two.

--

“Are you and your version of Shiro a...thing?”  Lance asked in a bored hum as he doubled checked one last time that the bonds were secure.  He peered down at his human counterpart with something of a curious expression.

A version of Shiro had not been on the little group they had been delivered.  But the group clearly knew Shiro by his appearance. So they likely know him in some capacity they just haven’t disclosed yet.  Lance wonders what Shiro might be, but not to much. It isn’t relevant to the experiments he has planned, or anything else really.  And frankly it probably never really would.

It was just a curiosity.

The human version of himself glares back at him for a tick or two.

“No.”  He finally admits in a harsh tone.

“Shame.”  Lance stated, before he gamed his fingers into the other’s chest and let the energy of his alchemy flow.

The experiments had begun.

----

AN: Another cliff hanger.

Though spoiler alert, Lance doesn't actually get hurt from the experiments exactly. 

This takes place before the previous chapter.  By like a day or two.  Because I imagine the Paladins being stuck there for a while.  Though between the two dimensions time works differently.  It flows the same way in each, but a few vargas in one, could mean a whole like half day in another.  

Sorry for the weird pacing, that is all me.  I tried to rush writing this...

Any way, I hope you all enjoyed it.

[twitchesandstitches]

Hunk OC, final thoughts for now; some appearance and general ideas

Hunk OC’s general appearance is, again, hunky; he’s fairly built and muscular, but in a very graceful way. He’s not skinny or slender by any means, but he’s not terribly bulky. Think a romance novel protagonist; that’s the kind of visual you should have in mind.

Facially he’s very pretty; large lips, soft featuers, and gentle eyes. He might grow an analogue to facial hair, but it tends to be fairly mild.

He CAN get beefier or skinnier if desired, but tends to prefer extremes; either’s he’s a looming giant of a vaguely snake boy, or he’s a foot tall and his gal can swallow him whole. All of his body types are extreme; he’s not just buff, he’s absolutely massive bulbous mass of muscles. (Due to how his powers work, it’s hard for him to stop expanding when he changes form.)

His hips are usually very wide, at least enough to give him a notable feminine look. He’s not a femboy-type, though.

His butt is quite big, too, swelling out and merging with his trunk!

Finally, his snake half... isn’t really that similar to a snake. His trunk and tail are quite thick and taper only slightly, remaining rounded and soft. It’s more similar to a slug, honestly.

His insides might be... kind of weird. I’m imagining that while he does have muscles and bones and stuff, it’s hard to tell the difference between them; its more like a great mass of tissue that graduates from rigid understructure, to a pliable muscle-like substance. Bearing in mind that he designed his own body and he doesn’t really have an idea of what most of that stuff is for so he tends to include whatever seems neat.

His body is not elastic, but it is pliable and produces a lubrication. Normally it just makes him a bit slippery and nice to huge, but it also means that once he’s in someone’s mouth, he WILL start to slide in. Since his sexual fluids CAN impregnate someone even its in their stomach, this doesn’t bother him much, and he actively enjoys being digested and feeding girls! He’s the kind of ‘please eat me NOW!’ kind of aggressive prey.

When digested, he tends to respawn inside their wombs and will eventually compel them to give birth, and out he comes at a convenient size (though given his slipperiness, at full size he can emerge without difficulty.) Otherwise, he’s set up a number of spare bodies his consciousness darts to when needed.