#uh anyway. great moment. i want her as my teacher

[landscaping-your-mind]

manifesting the really cool nonbinary teacher who supports a free palestine to be my english teacher next year

[winxanity-ii]

FIRST, TASTE [1/2]

ship: incubus!gojo x fem!virgin!reader warnings: nsfw 🔞 (oral sex/f. receiving; handjob/m. recieving; coercion/dub-con?) word count: 9.9k (long one babes, y'all know i gosta worldbuild/have a lil plot, lololol) a/n: Y'all, I can't believe I actually wrote this, i just wanted to try my hand at KINKtober😭; anywho, the idea of summoning an incubus just to get experience hit different and I HAD to do it. Anyways, enjoy this sinful lil one-shot. 'Know No Evil' update coming soon, probably on my birthday (Oct. 9) if I stay on schedule 👀…Prt. 2: 𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐃, 𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐈𝐓𝐔𝐃𝐄

★·.·´🇯‌🇺‌🇯‌🇺‌🇹‌🇸‌🇺‌ 🇰‌🇦‌🇮‌🇸‌🇪‌🇳‌ 🇲‌🇦‌🇸‌🇹‌🇪‌🇷‌🇱‌🇮‌🇸‌🇹‌`·.·★

"Stupid. Stupid. Stupid," you muttered, pacing frantically around your small dorm room. "How can you be this stupid?"

For the last half-hour, you'd been running back and forth like you were stuck in a sitcom montage, trying to prepare your space for your tutor session with Fushiguro Megumi.

And now, of course, he was almost here.

Usually, you weren't this disorganized.

The plan had been to clean and review notes way ahead of time, but somewhere between finishing the latest season of Sex Education on Netflix and getting lost in TikTok, the hours had slipped away.

Now, here you were shoving clothes under the bed and tossing old takeout containers into random drawers, hoping to make your room at least look like you had it together.

"Perfect, he'll show up and think I'm living in a trash heap," you grumbled, snatching up a pair of socks from under a pile of textbooks.

But there wasn't time to wallow; you needed to—

A knock echoed from the front door.

"Shit," you whispered, shoving random items under your bed as fast as you could. "I got it!" you called out, bolting towards the door, hoping to beat your roommate.

The last thing you needed was her making things awkward with whatever bizarre commentary she'd throw at the poor guy—

"Who's this?" Kugisaki Nobara's voice rang out from the hallway, her tone curious yet condescending.

You cursed under your breath, knowing what was coming. Great.

You made it down just in time to see Nobara standing by the door, hands on her hips as she sized up the person on the other side. The moment her eyes landed on Megumi, her lips twisted down in obvious distaste.

Megumi was standing on the other end of the door, wearing his usual bored expression, a dark hoodie thrown over his usual lazy attire of jeans and boots. His hair was messier than usual, sticking up in all directions like he hadn't even bothered with it.

"Ew... it's you," she said flatly, shooting him a withering look. "____, your teacher for dummies is here!" she called out, turning on her heel and walking away with an exaggerated flick of her hair.

You groaned under your breath, rubbing your temples in frustration. Why is she like this?

"Megumi! Hi," you said, trying not to sound too flustered as you opened the door wider for him. "Come on in."

"Hi," he muttered, stepping inside as if he were doing you a favor.

You flashed an awkward smile. "Sorry, about Nobara," you muttered, sending Megumi an apologetic look as you opened the door wider for him. "She's, uh... she's like that with everyone."

Megumi didn't seem fazed in the slightest. "I believe you," he replied dryly, stepping inside as if nothing had happened. He slipped off his shoes and tossed his backpack on the floor without so much as a second glance toward Nobara's retreating figure.

You sighed, closing the door behind him. "I swear, she's really not that bad once you get to know her."

He raised an eyebrow, the faintest trace of a smirk tugging at his lips. "Sure."

You couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or if he just genuinely didn't care, but either way, you quickly changed the subject. "Let's get started," you said, leading him into your room, still feeling embarrassed by Nobara's less-than-friendly greeting.

Megumi didn't say much as he followed you, but he didn't have to. You'd known him long enough by now to recognize the tiny shifts in his expression. The raised eyebrow when he took in the state of the living room, the slight tilt of his head as he glanced at the bookshelves.

He was the type to quietly observe everything, and that somehow made you even more nervous.

You'd met Megumi in your first semester—by accident, really. He'd been the quiet guy who sat in the back of your chemistry class, always scribbling in his notebook but never talking to anyone.

When you got paired with him for a group project, you'd been terrified. The guy barely looked up when you introduced yourself, just grunted in response.

But over time, you found out he wasn't actually that bad. He had a sharp mind for chemistry and a dry, blunt sense of humor that caught you off guard.

And in exchange, you helped him navigate through the old math stuff that somehow came up again in your courses.

Now here you both were again—sophomore year, different majors, but stuck in the same required math class.

"Here we are," you said, gesturing to your bedroom door. You pushed it open and stepped aside to let him in first, already regretting the chaos you'd left in the room.

"Sorry about the mess," you muttered, nudging a stray bra under the bed with your foot as you walked in after him.

The faint scent of strawberries hung in the air, thanks to a candle you'd lit earlier in a desperate attempt to make the place feel less like a disaster zone.

Megumi barely glanced at the mess. "It's fine," he said, dropping his backpack onto your bed without a second thought.

You grabbed your notebook and the textbook, settling down at the small desk near the window. "Alright, let's get started."

"—and that's how you factor a quadratic expression," you finished, circling the final answer on the page with a satisfied hum.

Megumi leaned over, his eyes scanning the paper in that same quiet, intense way he always did. He was so focused it was almost intimidating.

You'd never quite gotten used to how he could make silence feel so heavy.

He nodded slightly, jotting down some notes in his notebook, but his eyes flicked back to you. You couldn't tell if he was impressed or just silently judging you.

"You're good at this stuff," he muttered, leaning back slightly.

You laughed a little, shrugging. "Heh. I guess. It's easier to explain than to actually do it myself sometimes."

"You're a better teacher than some of our professors," he added, which you weren't sure if that was praise or another dig at the fact that your school's faculty left a lot to be desired.

You glanced at the clock on your bedside table, noticing there were still about fifteen minutes left in your session. "We've still got a little time left. If you want, we can go over anything you didn't quite get—"

"Can I ask you something?" Megumi cut you off, his tone casual, but there was something behind it that made you pause.

"Uh, sure," you said, expecting a question about math or maybe something random about chemistry.

Instead, he asked, "Are you a virgin?"

The room fell silent. You stared at him, completely thrown off, and nearly choked on your own breath. "I—what?"

He tilted his head, like you hadn't heard him. "Are you a virgin?" he repeated, slower this time, as if asking for clarification.

Your face immediately went hot, and you sputtered, "W-Why the hell would you ask something like that?"

He leaned back slightly, his lips curling into the faintest smirk. "Just curious."

You crossed your arms defensively, feeling your heart race. "That's none of your business."

Megumi's gaze stayed on you, unbothered by your reaction. "Okay."

"Okay?" you repeated, narrowing your eyes. "What the hell does that even mean?"

His smirk widened a bit, and his voice dropped a little lower. "You mentioned Suguru earlier, right?"

Your stomach flipped at the mention of Geto Suguru, the subject of your daydreams; also known as the senior you shared an etymology class with your second semester last year.

He was... a lot.

Tall, handsome, intimidating, and way too charismatic for his own good; he had this effortless air about him that made you wonder why someone like him would even notice someone like you.

He was the kind of guy who made you nervous just by being in the room. But he was always hanging around Megumi, too, which only made things more confusing.

"Yeah, so?" you replied, trying not to sound as flustered as you felt. "What about him?"

Megumi leaned back on his hands, clearly enjoying your discomfort. "He'd probably be interested in your answer."

Your face went red. "What? Why would Suguru care if I'm—wait, did he... ask about me?"

Megumi's smirk turned into a full grin now, and he shrugged. "Maybe."

Your mind was racing. Why the hell would Suguru, of all people, ask anything about you? You were barely on his radar as far as you knew.

He was always surrounded by people—other seniors, girls who were way more confident and put together than you.

You fidgeted with your hands, trying to keep your voice steady. "Why... why would he care? Did he actually say something?"

Megumi chuckled softly, shaking his head. "You'd have to ask him yourself."

You stared at him, completely at a loss for words, but before you could fire back, he was already packing up his stuff, slipping his notes into his backpack with a lazy sort of ease.

"Thanks for the session," he said, standing up and throwing his bag over his shoulder. "Let me know if you need help with chemistry."

And with that, he was gone, leaving you sitting on your bed, still trying to wrap your head around what the hell had just happened. What the hell did Geto want with you? And why did Megumi look so smug about it?

You flopped back onto your bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"What the hell..."

"Fuck my life..." you mumbled under your breath, dragging your feet as you made your way across campus, your body feeling heavier than usual.

It had been a long day—scratch that, a long week—and you were running on fumes after pulling an all-nighter.

You knew better, but The Sims 4 had you in a chokehold last night, and before you knew it, it was 4AM., and your empire of perfectly crafted Sims families was more put together than your real life, and now you were paying the price.

Your last class of the day had been a blur, and you almost skipped it entirely. But the guilt of missing two classes earlier in the week pushed you out of bed at the last possible minute.

Now, with your bag full of heavy textbooks and your brain fried from back-to-back lectures, all you wanted to do was collapse.

You squinted against the afternoon sun as you approached the large fountain in the middle of campus. The sound of rushing water was soothing, but it did little to ease the pounding headache forming behind your eyes.

You weren't even halfway there when you spotted your roommate, Nobara, lounging on the fountain's edge, tapping away at her phone.

Her bright orange hair was styled in its usual sharp bob, and even from a distance, you could see the unmistakable confidence in the way she carried herself.

Nobara was nothing if not bold—always dressed to the nines, even for something as casual as sitting by the fountain; her outfit—ripped skinny jeans, a cropped leather jacket, and combat boots—screamed effortless cool.

By the time you reached her, you were practically dragging your feet.

Nobara glanced up from her phone and raised an eyebrow, her lips curling into a smirk. "You look like shit," she said bluntly, without skipping a beat, holding out her coffee cup.

You didn't even hesitate, reaching for the cup with a grateful nod. "Thanks, I spent all morning on it..." you mumbled, taking a long sip of the lukewarm coffee. The caffeine was probably your only hope of making it through the rest of the evening.

Nobara's eyes flicked over your disheveled appearance—your baggy hoodie with matching swats, the dark circles under your eyes, and the way your hair was barely stuffed inside a silk bonnet. She chuckled, shaking her head. "Late night?"

You nodded, swallowing another sip of coffee. "Pulled an all-nighter... Sims 4."

"Gods," she muttered, rolling her eyes. "You really need to get a life outside of video games."

You shot her a half-hearted glare. "You try building a perfect six-story mansion with an indoor pool and jacuzzi, okay? It's not as easy as it looks."

She snorted. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Anyway, I'm heading out to a party later," she said, flipping her phone in her hand with a casual air. "Frat thing. You coming?"

You groaned at the thought of a loud, crowded frat party. "I don't know; I've got a ton of studying to do," you said, even though you knew that was only half-true. You mostly just wanted to crawl into bed and zone out for a few hours.

Nobara didn't let you off that easy. She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "Suguru going to be there."

You paused, trying not to let your face show too much interest, but the mention of Suguru was enough to make your pulse quicken.

"I—" You waved her off, trying to keep your cool. "I really should study. Plus, it's not like he even knows I exist."

Nobara scoffed. "Please. He totally knows. You've tutored Megumi, right? I'm sure they talk."

You felt a blush creep up your neck. "That's not the same thing," you said, finishing the last sip of her coffee and handing the empty cup back.

"Suit yourself," Nobara said with a shrug brushing invisible dust off her shirt. "But you're missing out. I heard he's single again, you know."

Just as you were about to reply, something—or rather, someone—caught your eye. Like a prairie dog sensing danger, you shot up straight, heart skipping a beat as you spotted a familiar figure in the distance.

It was Suguru.

Your breath hitched as you took in the sight of him. His long dark hair was tied back into a neat man bun, showcasing his sharp jawline and the broad expanse of his shoulders under a fitted black shirt.

He had this effortless cool about him that made you want to stare—but then again, everyone did. He was the kind of guy who turned heads without trying, and right now, he looked annoyingly handsome as usual.

Panicking, you ducked behind a nearby group of walking students, trying to hide your figure as if Suguru could sense you from all the way across campus.

Nobara sucked her teeth, clearly unimpressed with your theatrics. "Seriously?" she muttered, shaking her head. "You are so childish."

Before you could stop her, Nobara stood up, waving her arm in the air like a flag to catch his attention.

"No!" you whispered harshly, nearly choking on the last bit of coffee as you grabbed her arm and tried to drag her back down. "Stop drawing attention!"

Too late.

A shadow fell over you, blocking the sun, and you looked up, heart hammering in your chest. Standing above you was none other than Suguru, his lips curled into a faint smile as he took in the scene.

"Hey, Nobara," he said smoothly, his voice deep and almost teasing. His dark eyes flickered to you, and your entire body went rigid. "____, right?"

Your heart skipped several beats, your breath catching in your throat as you scrambled to respond. "Y-Yes!" you squeaked out, your voice way too high for your liking. Your face felt like it was on fire, and you were sure your face was hot enough to cook an egg on.

Nobara snorted beside you, shaking her head as she muttered under her breath. "Simp," she said, barely loud enough for you to hear, though Suguru didn't seem to catch it.

You glared at her, silently willing her to shut up and stop making things more awkward, but of course, she wasn't about to let you off the hook that easily.

Instead of making small talk or letting the moment pass, Nobara turned to Suguru, crossing her arms with a mischievous grin. "Hey, Suguru. My friend here thinks you're hot and wants to fuck."

Your jaw dropped, and for a second, you were sure your soul left your body. "What?!"

Nobara flashed you a wicked grin before air-kissing you goodbye and casually tossing over her shoulder, "See you at the party later, Suguru!"

And just like that, she strutted off, leaving you sitting there wide-eyed and horrified.

A smooth chuckle broke through your panic, pulling you back to reality. You turned slowly, only to find Suguru standing there, hands tucked into his pockets, looking down at you with an amused tilt of his head.

"So... fuck, huh?" he teased, his voice warm and smooth like honey.

You stammered, trying to form any coherent response, but all that came out were mumbled syllables. Your brain was short-circuiting, your face burning hotter with every passing second.

Finally, you gave up and buried your face in your hands, turning your back to him in pure embarrassment.

Suguru let out another chuckle, taking a few steps closer until his tall frame was towering over you. "You're cute," he said softly, reaching down and gently patting your head. The simple action made your entire brain spiral into chaos, and before you knew it, you were already mentally planning your wedding, picking out baby names, and deciding where you'd honeymoon.

But then Suguru's voice cut through your delusions.

"I'm flattered, really," he said, his tone a little more serious now. "But I've got this rule about not dating freshmen."

You blinked, looking up at him in confusion, the fantasy bubble bursting in an instant. "W-What?"

Suguru shifted awkwardly, running a hand through his hair as he glanced to the side. "I mean, it's not that I'm some international playboy or anything," he said, hesitantly but sure of himself. "I'm just... not really looking to settle down. So I try to keeps things simple by steering clear of freshmen. Because... ya know, it's thier first timers for a lot of things."

You pouted, a bit confused by what he meant. But than, realization dawned and you felt your heart shatter. He thought you were a freshman... and that was why he wouldn't be interested in you.

Even then, your heart leaped for a split second before reality set in again. Though you weren't a freshman, you were still a virgin. So technically his rule applied to you as well.

A soft "Why?" slipped from your lips before you could stop yourself. You were so focused on the fact that you were losing your chance that you didn't even think to correct him.

Suguru sighed, his expression softening. "It's just... I don't want to be the guy who takes that kind of experience from someone, you know? I prefer if the people I'm with have already been through that, so there's no pressure." His voice was calm, almost gentle, as if he was trying to explain something important without hurting your feelings. "It's not fair to put that on someone who's still figuring things out."

Damn, even his explanation was surprisingly sweet.

You couldn't help but appreciate how thoughtful it was. But that didn't stop the disappointment from settling in your chest like a heavy weight. You didn't know what to say—what could you say?

Taking your silence as sadness, Suguru bent down slightly, his face closer to yours, and gave you another light pat on the head, a teasing smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "You know... you're cute enough that I might just break that rule." He winked, and with one last chuckle, he turned on his heel and walked off, leaving you sitting there, completely dazed.

You sat frozen, unable to do anything but replay his words in your head, even as the mortification continued to burn at your core. "What the fuck..."

A few hours later, you found yourself on your phone, mindlessly scrolling through his Instagram profile, looking at his pictures. "He's so handsome," you sighed. You stared at the 'follow' button, your finger hovering over it.

Hyping yourself up, you quickly pressed the follow button before throwing your phone down. "Okay, there, first step down," you muttered to yourself.

Your thoughts kept circling back to Suguru's words. He thought you were a freshman, but even if he knew you weren't, it wouldn't change anything.

You were still inexperienced.

You let out a groan, rubbing your temples as frustration began to mount. Gods, what would Nobara do? you thought to yourself before shaking your head with a scoff.

Nobara wouldn't even be in this mess... still.

Without much thought, you opened laptop, typing into the search bar: 'How can I gain sexual experience without having sex?' Hundreds of articles popped up at once. Your eyes skimmed through the list.

[Self-love] ~ Tips on how masturbating can get you ready for sex

No.

[PornHub] ~ Virgin girl indulges in sex for the first time

No.

[First-Timers] ~ Website for virgins who are looking for companions

No.

[Phone-Sex] ~ Let your wildest fantasies come to life

No. No. NO.

You dropped your head into your hands, groaning, "This is useless."

Just as you went to click off the tab, something caught your eye.

'Want to gain sexual experience without actually having sex? Click here to join a forum that shows exactly how it can be accomplished!'

You leaned forward, interested. "Hello..." you hummed out loud, about to click the link. You narrowed your eyes at the link, not fully sure if you should trust it or not. With pursed lips, you weighed the pros and cons of the situation.

On one hand, if you clicked on it, it could take you somewhere that might actually help with your current predicament.

But on the other hand, if you didn't, you'd be right back to square one, knowing nothing.

Though, if you did click it, there was a chance you'd end up with a virus—something that would be a real pain to get fixed. "Eh, the school's got multiple computer labs," you shrugged.

With your mind made up, you clicked on the link. You crossed your fingers and prayed to whatever gods above that the website wouldn't give you a virus.

As you scrolled through the page, you came across dozens of supernatural-esque things like shifting, astral projection, spells, etc.

One would think you'd scroll past these because they sounded ridiculous, but the truth was...

"Ugghhh, why does all this shit take weeks to accomplish!?"

...you were very impatient.

Now, you could be patient for a lot of things, but this!? You couldn't risk it. Not when the only factor in your way of being with Suguru was your lack of experience—the full kind.

Not shy kisses in the corner, the short relationships that never lasted once they realized you didn't put out so soon, the disastrous first time performing third base—a memory you would shackle to the depths of your soul if you could.

A bright flash of a blue fire gif caught your eye breaking you out of your growing frenzy.

'Welcome to Infernium,' the post read, with a subtitle that said, "Harness the Power of Lust, Control Your Desires." The page description underneath it was almost like an introduction. It began with: "When I first wanted to experience sex, I just summoned a succubus..."

You skimmed down the post, reading about how Infernium was a different plane of the Abyssum—a shadowy, otherworldly realm that resembled Hell. It was a place where demons thrived by feeding on the raw, intangible energy that fueled human desires and emotions. They didn't outright steal your soul or kill you, but every encounter took a piece of your essence—leaving you feeling just a bit emptier each time.

It was subtle, like losing fragments of yourself—small enough to be overlooked but accumulating with every visit, a price that was insidious and ever-present.

Buuuut...

Instead of reading all of that thoroughly, you scrolled down to the comments section.

As expected, there was a mixture of disbelief, trolls, and snarky remarks. But the further you went, the more positive reviews you found. Some were so detailed that they seemed like fanfics or book excerpts, but something in your gut told you this could be real.

You got lost reading those comments, short anecdotes of people describing their experiences with different succubi and incubi.

Honestly, thought this was BS, but turns out it was one of the wildest nights of my life—didn't even need a safe word, 'cause this dude knew exactly what he was doing. - DarkDreamer99

Mine had pink eyes! Super freaky at first but, not gonna lie, 10/10. - PinkObsession

Listen, if you've never experienced this, you're missing out. Seriously. Just follow the steps, and don't skip anything. - LustfulWanderer

And then you found it—the gold mine. A comment by someone named Sinner_69. They detailed a step-by-step guide on how to do everything, from setting up the ritual to what materials were needed.

Now, common sense said not to go blindly trusting internet comments, but even the author of the post had replied, thanking Sinner_69 and reviewing their method with raging approval.

Your eyes widened, and you blinked at the comment, not sure if you should laugh or close the window. Curiosity got the better of you, and you kept reading down the list.

"Okay, let's see... a bowl, sage, needle, candles..." you mumbled to yourself, going over the list out loud.

The door to your room opened, and you slammed your laptop shut, looking up to see Nobara.

She was still in the same outfit from earlier but had changed into a shorter crop top that showed off her midriff. "Are you sure you don't want to come to the party?" she asked, giving you one last chance.

You waved her off, "Nah, I'm good."

"Alright, suit yourself," she said with a shrug, heading out the door.

As soon as she left, you reopened the laptop and gave the post one more glance. You muttered, "What the hell?" when you saw that an blood was needed. "Goddammit ____, why do you put yourself through this?" you mumbled out loud, heaving yourself off of your bed and rushing over to put your boots on. "I'm so gonna regret this," you sighed, grabbing your jacket and keys on the way out.

"Okay, let's see here, it says first I need..." you read to yourself, pushing up your reading glasses when you felt them slipping.

Within an hour, you managed to not only gather all the supplies needed for the 'summoning' but also completed the first half of the directions.

Though it took a total of three stores, and several judgmental looks from the cashier when buying the demon wards from the Halloween store, you could say it was a success.

Now, you sat in the middle of the circle, allowing the smells of the incense to calm you down. The window in your bedroom was cracked open, letting the warm night breeze filter in. It carried with it the gentle rustle of leaves from outside, and the occasional distant hum of passing cars.

The soft movement of air made the candle flames flicker slightly, casting shifting shadows across the walls. The atmosphere was both soothing and unnerving, as if the room itself held its breath, waiting.

With your eyes closed, you began to chant the words found on the post.

"I, L/N  ____, pledge to give myself to the powers of the other side in order to fulfill my desires," you said, your voice loud and steady as you recalled the article stating that the spirits would only listen to those who were willing to give up their all, "my desire is to be presented with an entity that will ensure not only a gain in sexual knowledge as a virgin, but give me confidence to pursue an individual that has currently caught my eye."

After a few seconds of silence, you moved on to the next step. With a deep breath, you began the incantations, "Daemonium de desiderio. Dolores inferni circumdederunt me gratia tua." Your voice remained steady as you repeated this three times. You took another deep breath, trying to keep yourself calm. "It's now or never, ____," you told yourself, remembering the next step of the ritual. "You've come this far to chicken out now."

The candlelight flickered slightly, and you shivered, feeling a chill run through your body. "Just relax, ____, just make a little prick, no biggie," you muttered, gripping the needle tightly between your trembling fingers as you held your hand over the wooden bowl filled with a mixture of herbs and other ingredients. The dim glow of the candles reflected off the small needle in your hand.

Taking a deep breath, you placed the tip of the needle against your thumb, mumbling to yourself, "Just a little prick, just a little prick..." over and over. But the moment the sharp point touched your skin, panic set in.

The thought of pain—no matter how minor—made your stomach twist. You hated unnecessary pain, always had. Even the idea of a small cut was enough to make you wince.

Your hands began to tremble more, and tears of frustration welled up in your eyes. "I can't do it!" you cried, dropping the needle as your voice cracked. You shivered, your entire body tensing up in fear, unable to go through with the procedure. You sighed deeply, slouching forward, rubbing a hand down your face. "Gods, what's wrong with me," you muttered with a strained laugh, staring at the materials and the open laptop in front of you.

With a sigh, you reached over and shut the laptop, leaning back and preparing yourself for a mini-sad pity party. It felt ridiculous—summoning an incubus, just to fail because you couldn't handle a little pain. You shook your head, a self-deprecating smile tugging at your lips.

"Ow!" you suddenly yelped, yanking your hand up. You looked down to find the needle had somehow lodged itself between your thumb and index finger. Your eyes widened, a frown tugging at your lips.

You carefully pulled it out, wincing slightly at the sting before dropping it once more, not noticing as it fell directly into the wooden bowl below.

"Of course," you muttered under your breath, standing up as you sucked on the small wound. You walked towards the bathroom, looking for a band-aid, completely oblivious to what was happening behind you.

Unbeknownst to you, the mixture in the bowl began to bubble slightly, the herbs slowly dissolving as the blood mixed in with the ingredients. The candles flickered again, their flames stretching upwards as if reaching for something.

A strange energy began to fill the room, the air becoming heavy, almost electric. The curtains of your window began to flutter, almost as if someone had crept inside the confines of your room.

"Oh, come on," you groaned as you rummaged through the cabinets, coming up empty-handed. With a sigh, you gave up, shaking your head as you left the bathroom.

As soon as you returned to your room, every single candle surrounding you suddenly went out at once, as if someone had blown them out like birthday candles.

Your eyes snapped open, fear beginning to grow within you as you realized you were suspended in darkness.

This wasn't the typical darkness you were used to—it felt heavier, more inky, like it was swallowing up every ounce of light. The only light you were gifted with was from the moon outside your window, its dim rays barely illuminating the layout of your room.

You swallowed hard, your heart pounding in your chest. Timidly, you felt your way over to your bedside table, fingers fumbling as you reached to flick on the lamp.

You pressed the switch—once, twice—but nothing happened. Panic began to build inside you, your mind racing as you desperately tried to make sense of the situation.

Pulling out your phone, you quickly checked for any notifications. A message from the RA popped up in the group chat: "Heads up everyone, the power will be on and off tonight due to maintenance fixing the breaker. Will keep y'all updated." You sighed, your fingers trembling slightly as you lowered your phone. "Great timing," you muttered under your breath.

Determined not to let the eerie atmosphere get the best of you, you reached into your bedside drawer, searching for your lighter to relight the candles for light. Your fingers brushed against the cold metal, and you pulled it out, flicking it on with shaky hands.

The small flame flickered to life, casting a warm glow that provided you with a bit of comfort, even if it wasn't much.

You took a deep breath, trying to calm your nerves as you glanced around the darkened room. Something felt off—the air was thick, charged, and you couldn't shake the feeling that you weren't alone.

Walking back over to one of the candles, you flicked it on, ready to light the candles back up, thinking that the wind from outside might have blown them out. Leaning forward to the first candle, you flinched when you heard a thump from somewhere behind you.

You swiveled your head left and right, trying to see if you could find what caused the noise.

At once, all the hairs on the back of your neck stood up as the temperature of the room dropped. "...____..." A voice suddenly whispered out your name, the sound echoing as if someone was shouting in the distance.

You could feel your heart thrumming dangerously within your chest.

"...____..." It sounded breathless, somewhat taunting as it bounced around the room.

Your breath hitched in your throat as you felt a chill sweep throughout your body. It felt as if someone was sitting before you, blowing air into your face.

You squeezed your right hand, hoping that the pain would help anchor you amidst your whirling emotions, but it did nothing as your fear raged on like a fire scorching away.

With clenched eyes, you began to mumble soft hymns to yourself, "Jesus l-loves me, yes I know, f-for the Bible tells me so..." The tune was shaky as it left your trembling lips.

"Okay, breathe, ____, this is not real, it is only my imagination," you told yourself, repeating the sentence over and over again like a mantra. You felt your breathing calm down with the words, your shoulders relaxing as you began to believe in what you said. "See, it was just all in your head—"

You stopped breathing when you felt warm breath ghost over the side of your face, a pair of soft lips grazing the top of your ear.

"Aww," the voice teased, the tone dripping with mockery. "Did you really think a few little hymns would protect you? How precious..."

A blood-curdling scream exited your mouth just as the lights flickered on. You stumbled back, your heart pounding painfully against your ribcage. The lighter dropped from your hand, clattering to the floor as your wide eyes darted around the room.

Nothing. There was no one there.

The candles remained unlit, the curtains still, and the air seemed to have returned to its normal temperature.

But you knew—you knew—that you hadn't imagined it. Your skin still tingled from the feeling of those lips against your ear, and the echo of that mocking voice still reverberated in your mind.

Your eyes flicked to the bowl on the floor, the once-glowing mixture now dark and still. You backed up, your breath coming in short, shallow gasps as you tried to process what had just happened. "This can't be real," you whispered, your voice shaking. "This isn't happening."

Instead of hitting the wall, your back collided with something else—something firm and warm. Panic surged through you, and before you could react, a familiar voice drawled behind you, "You humans are so weird..."

You felt hands trail down your back, their touch sending a shiver through you as they moved down your arms before wrapping around your waist in a firm grip. The sensation wasn't just hands; it was claws, sharp yet careful, grazing your skin as if savoring every tremble you made. "...You wish for something, yet when it's in front of you, you deny it, run from it... How amusing."

Your breath felt trapped in your throat, your heart pounding wildly. Slowly, against every instinct in your body screaming at you to run, you turned around. The grip on your waist loosened slightly, allowing you to face whatever was behind you.

Your heart skipped a beat, your eyes widening as you took in the sight before you. He was tall—taller than any man you'd ever seen.

His hair was a stark, snowy white, almost glowing in the dim light of your room, and his eyes were an intense, piercing blue that seemed to look right through you. His chest was bare, revealing perfectly sculpted muscles, each defined line standing out under his honey-tan skin.

He was also wearing short silk boxers that stopped mid-thigh, the fabric clinging loosely to his form. The warmth of his skin contrasted with the sharpness of his presence, making him appear almost otherworldly.

But what truly caught your attention were the small, curled horns protruding from his head and the long, winding tail that lazily whipped behind him.

Your mouth opened and closed several times, but no words came out.

The incubus smirked, bending at the waist and bringing up a clawed hand. He used a single finger to gently scratch under your chin, then closed your mouth for you. "What's the matter... devil got your tongue?" he taunted, his voice laced with amusement.

You took a staggering step back, your heart racing. Finally, you managed to find your voice, though it was shaky. "I-It worked," you stammered, unable to keep the surprise from your voice. "You... you actually came."

The incubus grinned, stepping over the wooden bowl and chalk lines as if they meant nothing. He moved with a confidence that was both captivating and terrifying, his gaze never leaving you. "Of course I did. How could I resist such an earnest little summoning?"

You swallowed hard, your mind racing. He was here. An actual incubus was in your room, and the realization hit you like a ton of bricks.

This was real. You had actually done it.

The demon's eyes trailed over your form, taking in the sight of your tank-top and short sleeping shorts. His voice came out low and teasing, his head tilting slightly as he spoke. "So, you're the one who wants to gain some experience, huh?" he said, his voice dripping with amusement as he took a step closer.

You felt your face heat up, your cheeks burning at his words. In that moment, you forgot entirely why you had even done this whole ritual—caught up in the fact that it had actually worked. "I-I mean, I just..." you stammered, your words trailing off as you felt awkward under his intense gaze.

The demon took another step closer, towering over you. He let out a soft, almost mocking coo at your embarrassment. "Aw, don't be shy. You summoned me for a reason, didn't you?"

You nodded, barely able to meet his gaze. Your heart was pounding so loudly in your ears that it drowned out everything else. He reached out, his fingers brushing against your cheek, and you jumped slightly at the contact, your eyes snapping back to his.

"Relax," he murmured, his thumb gently stroking your skin. "I'm not gonna bite... unless you want me to." His smirk widened, his eyes glinting with mischief.

Your breath hitched, and you felt your entire body tense. He was so close, his presence overwhelming, and you could feel the heat radiating off of him. You swallowed, trying to steady your breathing, but it was impossible with him looking at you like that—with those eyes that seemed to see right through you.

The incubus's hand slid from your cheek down to your chin, tilting your head up so that you had no choice but to look at him. "You said you wanted to learn, right?" he whispered, his lips just inches from yours. "I can teach you... everything you want to know."

Just as he leaned down, about to press his lips against yours, you suddenly found your voice, stuttering out, "W-Wait!" You pushed past him, your hands trembling as you put space between the two of you.

You held up a shaky hand, trying to steady your breath. "Just... just give me a second, okay?" you said, your voice still trembling. You needed time to think—to understand what was happening, to process this overwhelming presence.

The incubus sighed, a sound that was almost a groan of frustration. His eyes narrowed slightly, and he crossed his arms over his bare chest. "You don't understand, sweetheart," he said, his voice laced with impatience. "I can't leave until our bargain is complete. You summoned me for a reason—until you lose your virginity, until we complete what you called me here for, I am bound to you."

Your eyes widened, and you swallowed nervously. "I... I know. It's just—" you paused, trying to gather your thoughts. "There's this guy, Suguru. I... I like him, but he doesn't mess with virgins, and I don't know what I'm doing. I thought maybe if I had some experience, I could... I don't know..." You trailed off, your face burning in embarrassment. The words tumbled out in a messy, awkward ramble, and you wished you could just disappear.

The incubus laughed, a low, amused chuckle that made your skin prickle. He slowly began closing the distance between you again, his eyes never leaving yours. "Oh, I see now," he said, a teasing lilt to his voice. "This is all for some boy, huh?"

You took a step back, shaking your head. "It's not like that! I mean, it is, but—" You stumbled over your words, watching as Gojo's smirk grew wider with every stutter.

He took another step forward, and you moved again, trying to keep the space between you. "I—I mean, I don't even know you like that," you stammered, your voice weak as you grasped for any excuse.

He froze, staring down at you as if you had just grown several heads. He raised an eyebrow, his expression caught somewhere between disbelief and amusement. Then, after a moment, he let out an amused scoff. "You don't know me, huh?" He shook his head, his eyes glinting with something wicked. "Fine, you can call me Satoru."

Before you could react, the incubus—Satoru—stalked toward you, his movements smooth and confident. You backed up until you felt the wall press against your back, your heart pounding as he stopped just inches away from you.

His arm came up, his palm resting flat against the wall beside your head, effectively pinning you in place.

"Listen, sweetheart," he murmured, his voice dropping to a sultry whisper. "You wanted to learn, right? Well, you need to learn the basics first. You need to learn how to relax, how to let yourself feel..." His other hand reached out, his fingers brushing against your arm, trailing up to your shoulder. "How to respond to someone's touch."

Your breath caught in your throat, your entire body tensing as his fingers traced along your skin. The heat of his touch was almost too much, your heart racing as his words sank in.

You knew he was right—you had summoned him for this, to learn, to gain experience—but it was so much more overwhelming than you had imagined.

Satoru started speaking again, his voice pulling your attention back to him. He tilted your face up gently, making you meet his eyes as he hummed, "I understand... You're a virgin, after all." He said it softly, almost as if he was comforting you, but there was a teasing edge in his tone that made your cheeks flush even more.

Slowly, he backed away from you, his gaze never leaving yours until he stopped at the edge of your bed. He smirked, a glint of mischief in his eyes as he spoke again. "If you're not ready to start, that's fine. We can start slow... Maybe you could learn the signs of when a man wants you."

You blinked, confusion furrowing your brow. "What do you mean—?" you started to ask, but your tongue went dry in your throat as you watched him. Satoru's blue eyes darkened, his entire presence becoming almost magnetic as he leaned back on your bed, propping himself up on his hands.

His muscles flexed as he settled into the position, his sculpted chest and abs on full display, his honey-tan skin almost glowing in the light. You couldn't help but stare, your eyes following the lines of his body as he showcased himself. Satoru noticed your reaction, his smirk widening, clearly pleased.

"It's not hard to see the signs," he said, his voice smooth as silk as he spread his legs slightly, the movement confident and intentional. His tail whipped behind him lazily, the motion almost hypnotic as he continued speaking. "A man's body will tell you everything you need to know if you pay attention."

Your eyes flicked down, unable to help yourself as Satoru's hands moved slowly over his own skin. He rubbed his chest, his fingers tracing the defined lines of his muscles, before moving down to his thighs. His touch was deliberate, his fingers pressing into the firm muscle, and you could feel your face growing hotter with every passing second.

He let out a soft sigh, his eyes watching you intently as he continued. "The way his body reacts... the way he touches himself... all signs that he wants you." His voice was low, almost a purr, and it made your stomach twist with a mix of nervousness and something else—something that made your skin feel too hot, your breath coming in short, shallow gasps.

Satoru's hand moved lower, and before you could process what was happening, he pulled out his dick, the length thick and impressive as it flopped heavily against his stomach. His eyes never left yours as he did so, watching your every reaction.

Your eyes widened, embarrassment flooding you, but no matter how much you wanted to, you couldn't look away.

Your gaze was fixed on him, your breath catching in your throat as you took in the sight before you—the way it rested against his stomach, the veins prominent along the thick length, pulsing faintly. The pink, flushed tip stood out against the rest, glistening slightly.

The slight sheen of his skin under the dim light made every detail more vivid, and the trail of white hair leading down accentuated his toned muscles.

It was overwhelming, and yet, you were entranced.

He stroked himself slowly, his eyes glinting with amusement as he watched your reaction. "See, sweetheart? It's all about paying attention... learning what a man wants." His voice was a seductive whisper, his gaze holding you captive as he continued.

Satoru's hand moved in steady, deliberate strokes, his eyes never leaving yours. He let out soft groans, each sound making your stomach twist with an unfamiliar mix of nervousness and curiosity. The noise started out as barely audible sighs, but soon turned into deep, breathy pants that filled the room, echoing in your ears.

His gaze was locked on you, his blue eyes darkened with lust as he watched your every reaction—how your eyes widened, how your lips parted slightly, and how you shifted uncomfortably where you stood. His legs were spread out, his body relaxed as he continued to touch himself, his movements growing more purposeful with each passing moment.

He moaned, the sound low and drawn out, and you felt a shiver run down your spine. His hips began to move slightly, rising off the bed in response to his own touch. The veins along his length stood out even more as his hand moved faster, his breaths turning into shallow pants.

Satoru let out a low whimper, his eyes never breaking contact with yours. "____..." he murmured, your name slipping from his lips in a breathy moan that made your entire body tense. You squeezed your thighs together instinctively, trying to ignore the heat that was building inside you.

It was too much—his voice, the way he said your name—it all made you feel things you weren't sure how to handle.

He noticed, of course, his smirk widening as his eyes flicked down to your legs. "Aw, a-are you feeling it too, s-sweetheart?" he teased, his voice barely above a whisper. He let out another groan, his hips stuttering slightly as they lifted off the bed, his hand working faster over himself.

Satoru's movements became more urgent, his body tensing as he continued, his eyes still locked onto yours.

Every noise he made—every groan, every sigh—seemed to echo in your head, making it impossible to think of anything else but him and the way he was looking at you.

Satoru's movements became more urgent, his body tensing as he continued, his eyes still locked onto yours.

Every noise he made—every groan, every sigh—seemed to echo in your head, making it impossible to think of anything else but him and the way he was looking at you.

His eyes flashed a bright electric blue for a split second, and his voice came out husky, filled with need. "Come here," he commanded, and before you could even think, your feet were moving, obeying him.

You found yourself standing right in front of him, close enough that you could see every detail—the way his thighs twitched, the muscles of his stomach flexing, the slick, wet sounds of his hand moving over himself filling the space between you.

You felt yourself growing hotter, the sight of him this close making it impossible to ignore just how affected he was. His breathing was labored, each pant turning into a needy groan. His hips moved steadily, his body following the rhythm of his hand, and then his eyes met yours again. "Touch me," he groaned, the desperation clear in his voice.

You bit your bottom lip, your hands shaking as you slowly reached out. Your fingers brushed against his thigh, and the moment you made contact, Satoru let out a sultry groan, his head falling back, eyes closing briefly.

Encouraged, you let your hands trail up and down his thighs, feeling the strength in the muscles beneath your fingers. His skin was warm, almost hot to the touch, and you couldn't help but be in awe of the power you felt in him.

Satoru let out another groan, his hips stuttering for a moment as if reminding you of what he wanted. Your eyes flicked up, and you saw his head lolled to the side, his right arm tense and trembling as it held him up while his left hand continued to work over himself. He looked undone, his usually confident demeanor replaced with something raw and vulnerable.

You swallowed hard, your eyes flicking down to where your hand rested on his thigh. Slowly, you moved your hand up, caressing his skin until you hesitantly cupped the base of his length. It was hot—almost burning—and you could feel it twitch against your palm, the sensation making your heart pound even harder.

Satoru let out a deep groan, his eyes fluttering open to look at you. "Squeeze," he muttered, his voice rough, and you did as he asked, your fingers wrapping around him. He let out a shaky breath, his hips pushing up into your hand, and he cleared his throat, panting as he looked up at you. "Stroke it... like this," he instructed, guiding your movements. "Every man likes it a bit different, but... just follow my lead."

You nodded, your hand moving awkwardly at first as you tried to mimic his earlier motions. Satoru's gaze never left you, his breaths growing heavier as you found a rhythm.

The heat of him under your touch was almost overwhelming, and you could feel the slickness of his pre-cum as it dribbled down, coating your hand. He let out a low, broken moan, his hips snapping up more frantically, the wet sounds growing louder as you continued.

His entire body seemed to tense, his muscles straining as he came closer to the edge. His abs clenched, his stomach flexing involuntarily with each thrust of his hips. The sounds he made grew louder, more desperate, until finally, with a deep, guttural moan, he came.

His back arched off the bed, his body trembling as his release spilled over, dribbling down his length and hitting your hand. His eyes were squeezed shut, his mouth falling open as he rode out his orgasm, every muscle in his body going taut before slowly relaxing.

The cum dripped down, pooling on his stomach, and you couldn't help but watch, your breath caught in your throat at the sight of him coming apart beneath your touch.

Satoru cracked open an eye, his lips tugging up into a smirk. "Good job," he murmured, his voice still a bit breathless. "You just learned how to give a handjob."

You felt your face flush, a mix of embarrassment and defensiveness bubbling up inside you. "I-I know how one is done," you muttered, trying to hide the awkwardness you felt. "I... I even know what a blowjob is... I've done it before." The words slipped out before you could stop them, and your mind flashed back to your senior prom, shivering in disgust at the memory of your date fumbling and the uncomfortable experience.

It had been horrible—nothing like this.

Satoru's amused hum pulled you back from the terrible memory. He shifted slightly, leaning back comfortably on your bed, his smirk widening as he looked at you. "Is that so?" he asked, clearly intrigued.

Before you could respond, he continued, his tone shifting into something a bit more curious. "Tell me then... Have you ever been eaten out before?"

Your eyes widened, and you let out a startled noise, almost choking on your own breath. "W-What?!" you spluttered, your face heating up even more. "That has nothing to do with learning how to please a man!"

Satoru sat up, his eyes still locked on you. "Of course it does," he said matter-of-factly, his voice dropping to a more serious tone. "Some men get nothing but pleasure from taking care of their partner... Making sure you're enjoying yourself can be the biggest turn-on."

You opened your mouth to disagree, but the words caught in your throat when Satoru reached for your wrist, his fingers wrapping around it gently. He pulled you closer, his touch firm but not forceful, until you were standing directly in front of him. He stared up at you through his lashes, his white hair falling messily across his forehead, and you couldn't help but feel your breath hitch.

"C'mon," he murmured, his eyes never leaving yours. "Ride my face."

You blinked, your mouth opening and closing as you tried to come up with a response. "I-I don't think... I mean, what if I'm too heavy—" you started to say, only for Satoru to cut you off with a scoff.

"Sweetheart, I'm not human," he said, his voice filled with amusement. "You can't hurt me." As if to prove his point, his tail curled around your waist, the firm grip a reminder of his strength and otherworldly nature. "Trust me... I want this."

You looked off to the side, your anxiety bubbling in your chest. After a long moment, you finally gave in, your voice barely above a whisper. "Okay..."

Satoru wasted no time. His hands moved to your shorts, pulling them down swiftly and tossing them somewhere behind him. You swallowed hard, trying to steady your breathing as he guided you over his body, his hands pulling you closer as he lay back down, urging you to crawl over him.

Your knees pressed into the bed on either side of his chest, and you moved awkwardly, your heart pounding as you tried to position yourself above him.

His hands found their place at your waist, the warmth of his touch grounding you as you hovered over his head.

Every inch of your skin felt like it was on fire, and the insecurity you felt only made it worse. You were unsure of what to expect—sure, you'd read smut, you'd watched porn, but it was entirely different when you were actually doing it.

This was real, and you could feel every nerve in your body buzzing with uncertainty.

You avoided looking down, not wanting to meet those electric blue eyes that were staring up at you from between your thighs. You could feel his gaze on you, his intensity almost overwhelming, and it made you feel vulnerable in a way you'd never felt before.

"Are you ready?" Satoru asked, his voice softer now, a hint of something almost reassuring beneath the teasing tone.

You nodded, though your voice betrayed you. "I... I guess," you muttered, your voice shaky and uncertain.

Before you could prepare yourself, Satoru yanked you down onto his mouth, his grip firm as he pulled you against him.

You let out a startled gasp, your hands shooting out to steady yourself as you fell forward slightly, your fingers tangling in his hair. A low groan rumbled from his throat the moment he tasted you, the vibration sending a shiver through your entire body.

His tongue was hot, wet, and the feeling of it against you made your head spin. He traced up and down your slit with a deliberate slowness, each movement of his tongue making your breath hitch.

You could feel the warmth of his mouth, the way his tongue explored every part of you, his lips wrapping around your clit as he sucked gently, then tonguing the sensitive bundle of nerves.

You couldn't help the sounds that slipped from your lips, your entire body trembling as he worked you over. His hands gripped your hips, holding you firmly in place as he continued, the sensation of his tongue moving against you almost too much to handle.

You tried to lift yourself up, to ease the overwhelming pressure building inside of you, but his tail curled around your waist tightened, keeping you exactly where he wanted you.

"S-Satoru." You whined out his name in a broken moan, your hips slowly beginning to grind against his mouth, finding a delicious tempo.

Satoru groaned in response, the sound vibrating against you, sending another wave of pleasure through your body. His tongue moved with a deliberate slowness, almost teasing in the way it licked over you. It felt strange—soft yet firm, the texture unfamiliar but intoxicating.

A stuttered gasp left your lips as his tongue began to press into your entrance, the hot, wet sensation making your thighs tremble.

You couldn't control your movements anymore, your hips rocking against his face, chasing the pleasure that was building inside of you. Each flick of his tongue, each graze of his lips against your sensitive skin made your breath hitch, your fingers gripping tightly onto his hair as you lost yourself in the feeling.

Satoru's grip on your hips tightened, guiding you, encouraging you to keep going, his muffled groans only spurring you on further.

Your legs trembled, your movements growing more frantic as the pressure built higher and higher, the knot in your stomach tightening until it was almost unbearable. You could feel yourself teetering on the edge, your breath coming in short, desperate gasps as you rode his face, your entire body tensing.

And then, finally, it snapped. A wave of pleasure crashed over you, your body shuddering as you came, your head thrown back, eyes squeezing shut as your hips stuttered against his mouth.

You could feel Satoru groaning against you, his tongue still moving, drawing out every last bit of pleasure as your body trembled above him.

Your legs felt like they could barely hold you up as you moved off of Satoru, collapsing next to him on the bed, panting heavily. Your entire body felt boneless, the aftershocks of your release still making your muscles twitch.

You glanced over at Satoru, your cheeks flushing as you took in the sight of him—his face slick with your juices, his eyes half-lidded and satisfied.

Satoru stretched like a cat, his body arching as he let out a contented sigh, looking entirely too pleased with himself. He sat up slowly, his gaze flicking to you as he used his thumb to swipe over his bottom lip before sucking on it, his eyes never leaving yours.

He moved closer, crawling over to you with a lazy grin on his face. "So," he murmured, his voice dripping with satisfaction. "Were you satisfied?"

You nodded, your cheeks still flushed. "Y-Yeah..." you managed to say, your voice barely above a whisper.

Satoru's hand reached up, his fingers brushing against your neck before cupping your face gently. He hummed, his eyes studying your expression. "You know," he said, his tone almost thoughtful, "technically, I've completed our deal." He smirked, his thumb brushing over your bottom lip. "You didn't specify what kind of sex... only that you wanted experience, confidence. And I'd say teaching you this definitely counts."

His eyes darkened slightly, the teasing glint in them replaced with something more intense. His thumb traced along your lip, his gaze locked onto yours. "But I have to say," he murmured, his voice dropping lower, "I really enjoyed this..."

He leaned in closer, his lips just barely brushing against your ear as he whispered, "Don't worry, sweetheart... I'll be back. After all, you're still a virgin."

With that, he pulled away, a wicked smirk playing on his lips. His body seemed to dissolve into black smoke, the dark tendrils swirling around him before disappearing completely, leaving you alone in the dimly lit room, your heart still pounding in your chest.

You flopped back onto your bed, releasing a satisfied sigh. "Well, that escalated quickly..."

Your phone pinged. Reaching for it, you turned it on, eyes widening at the notification.

Geto Suguru now follows you.

"Well, shit..."

A/N: ahhhh, not me getting into the halloween spirit 💀 hope you guys enjoy this just as much as i enjoyed writing it...

[faretheeoscar]

OH MY FREAKKK?!

Little baby Poe has my heart :(

Would you consider writing something for little Poe and little reader meeting when they're young? Maybe in kindergarten, reader is more 'rough-and-tumble' than Poe is, getting dirty, climbing up trees, not bothered by pain. A shy Poe really wants to make friends with her but one day at kindergarten, he finds that her family have moved, which upsets him, but the two meet again when they're fighting in the rebellion?

Anyways, I fucking adored baby Poe, I love absolutely everything you write, have a great rest of your day! Huzzah!

Hey noonie! First of all thank you so much for your support! Your kind words mean a lot to me! I kinda went crazy with your request and ended up writing an almost 4k thing, but baby Poe just kept speaking to me! This AU has a hold on my brain and doesn’t let it rest. Had lots of fun making this request!

Thanks again and Happy Poevember!

Roots of the Resistance

Join the TagList! • Main Masterlist • Fics Masterlist • Buy me a coffee! • Linktree

Pairing: Poe Dameron x gn!reader

--Warnings: none, just fluffy baby Poe!--

A/N: English is not my first language, so I apologize if there’s any mistakes.

Word count: 4k

In the quiet corner of a little kindergarten on Yavin IV, five-year-old Poe Dameron sits cross-legged, watching as you—the new kid—scale the tallest tree on the playground. Your elbows are scraped, and your knees are dirt-streaked, but you don’t seem to mind at all. You’re perched up high, legs swinging as if you’ve done this a hundred times. With bright eyes and a hint of hesitation, Poe clutches his favourite stuffed tooka doll, Captain Fluff, close to his chest, feeling something between awe and curiosity.

The droid teacher nudges him gently. “You need to make friends Poe, your father gave us instructions for us to encourage you into socialising with the other younglings, why don’t you go say hi?”

Poe glances down, feeling a bit of nervousness, he is not usually the type of kid that’s quiet, or shy around people, he’s always active at home, bouncing eagerly from place to place talking the ears off all the adults he has around, but ever since his mom had been going on missions, he had been having trouble adjusting and talking especially to the other kids that didn’t get him, being enclosed in his fantasy world on fighting for the cause, and just depending on his favourite buddy, Fluff.

Taking a deep breath, he adjusts his grip on Captain Fluff and walks toward the tree. Shyly, he looks up at you, your hair wild and your hands smudged with playground dirt, as you look down with a big, welcoming grin.

“Hi,” he says, his voice small but warm.

“Hi!” you call down, eyes twinkling. You don’t seem surprised to see him, as if you were expecting him to join you, after all you’ve noticed he’d been staring at you for a while now. “You wanna come up?”

Poe’s eyes widen, his cheeks flushing pink as he fumbles for words, his little foot nervously tapping the ground, shifting back and forth. “Oh, I… um, not really I was just… wondering what you were doing up there.” He points up, his head tilted back to see you better. “Doesn’t it, you know… feel kinda high?”

You laugh, swinging your legs as you peer down at him. “It’s awesome up here! You can see everything. Like the ships outside the fence,” you say, pointing excitedly to the sky. “When they fly by, it’s like you’re right there with them! Makes me feel like I’m up close to them.”

Poe’s eyes light up, his fear of talking to you, forgotten for a moment. Ships! A topic he is familiar with and can talk about them for hours. “You can see the spaceships… up close?”

“Uh-huh!” you reply with a proud grin. “Come on up, I’ll show you. It’s easy,” you say, reaching down and motioning him to grab the branch.

Feeling an excited flutter in his stomach, Poe puts Captain Fluff under one arm, holding on tight as he tentatively grabs the lowest branch. He starts climbing, a little unsteady, and hesitates when the tree starts to feel taller. You notice his pause, lean down, and give his arm a firm yank to help him up the next branch. He nearly laughs at your outburst of strength, and, before he knows it, he’s sitting beside you, feet dangling in the air.

“There, see?” You point beyond the playground fence, where ships take off and land in the nearby port, and Poe’s jaw drops, watching with wide eyes. The ships look like little metal birds in the distance, zooming by against the sky.

“Whoa… you were right!” he whispers, barely able to contain his amazement. “I’ve never seen them from here before. You can even see them getting ready for takeoff!”

As Poe settles into his spot next to you on the branch, he glances over, gathering his courage to introduce himself.

“I’m… I’m Poe. Poe Dameron,” he says shyly, his cheeks already turning pink. He glances away, quickly looking back up at you. “What’s your name?”

When you introduce yourself Poe repeats your name quietly to himself, as if savouring it. He whispers, as if it’s the most beautiful name in the world… (besides his mom’s obviously). He smiles, then blushes even more, his cheeks burning as he realises you’re watching him. “I think… I think it’s a really nice name,” he adds, glancing shyly at the leaves overhead.

“Thanks,” you say with a big smile, two of your front baby teeth missing from having fallen out recently. “I think Poe’s a cool name too.” When you take a closer look at him, you notice he’s holding something safely under his arm— a handmade doll with white ears and an orange body.

“Hey, who’s this?” you ask, leaning over to get a closer look at the stuffed tooka doll.

Poe’s shyness returns briefly, but he grins, holding out the doll for you to see. “This is Captain Fluff,” he says, his voice suddenly a little more confident. “He’s, uh… he’s my copilot! He goes on all the missions with me.”

You grin excitedly, “Really? You go on missions with him?” With a serious nod, you reach out and gently shake Captain Fluff’s little paw. “Nice to meet you, Captain Fluff, I bet you’re a great pilot.”

Poe beams, clearly delighted that you took Captain Fluff so seriously. “He’s the best,” he says, hugging the tooka doll close. “He always makes sure I’m safe.”

The two of you sit together in the tree, feet swinging as you trade stories about space adventures you’d both want to go on. He learns that you are all about exploring and learning about “vantage points” or all those big words your dad uses when he works on reconnaissance. Poe feels a new kind of bravery here, sitting high up with his new friend, talking about adventure and far-off galaxies. It’s the start of something he is sure he will remember forever.

The weeks that follow your first meeting turn into a whirlwind of adventures for Poe and you. Poe, who once hovered quietly at the edge of the playground, now spends every recess chasing after you like an eager shadow, his shy smile lighting up whenever you invite him on your latest scheme. Whether it’s scaling the school’s low fences to chase after a lizard crab or daring each other to swing as high as possible, Poe is always at your side, wide-eyed and ready to be brave.

You show him how to climb trees without slipping, leap across muddy puddles without falling, and you help him to face up his fear of leviathan grubs, by using a stick and practically shoving it up to his face for him to see the little worm, you tell him they seem harmless but they are fearless predators when they grow up, but one that’s little as the one on your stick? Your loth cat devours them for lunch. Together, you also build forts out of fallen branches, Poe declares you as his “official lieutenant” of your own makeshift Alliance. Every day with you feels like a new mission, a new world to explore.

One afternoon after school, you and Poe are out exploring, looking for the perfect place to keep on practising “drills”. As you wander near the edge of the old market, you spot some ruins, crumbling and hidden beneath layers of overgrown vines and moss. The walls rise higher than anything you’ve climbed before, making it the ultimate challenge in your eyes. 

“This is it,” you say, grinning. “This is going to be the hardest climb yet, Commander Poe. We’ve got to face it if we want to be ready for anything.” You point at the jagged edges of the stone wall, feeling the rush of excitement build up inside you. “It’s going to be tough, but that’s what makes it perfect for ‘recon.’”

Poe hesitates, glancing up at the ruins. His eyes widen with both excitement and nerves. “But… are we allowed to be up there?” he asks, looking around as if expecting someone to stop you.

You give him a sly grin. “Who’s going to stop us? Come on, Poe, don’t chicken out now. This is the ultimate challenge! If we can climb this, then we can face anything.” You nudge him with your shoulder. “I’m doing it—are you?”

Poe looks unsure for a moment but then puffs out his chest, trying to look braver. “I’m not a chicken,” he says, his voice a little shaky but determined. 

“Prove it,” you challenge, offering him your hand. “Boost you up first?”

With a deep breath, Poe nodes, taking your hand. You help him up to the first ledge, encouraging him with every step. He climbs higher, using your tips for where to put his hands and feet. When he reaches the top, his eyes widen with pride. “I did it!” he cheers, a bit breathless looking down at you with a grin, lending his hand to you to take, tugging you up towards him, as you did the first time you helped him climb the tree at school. “Told you I was no chicken!”

You both bicker and chuckle for a while, treading dangerously on the ledge of the walls until the path narrows, you both decide to go back, but just as he’s about to climb down first, you both freeze. You hear voices on the other side of the ruins. Slowly, you both peek over the top and spot something unexpected: Kes, Poe’s dad, and your dad, alongside other adults standing together, looking over some papers and talking in hushed voices.

Poe’s face drops as he freezes, realising you’ve stumbled into a place you weren’t supposed to be. The two of you exchange a quick, worried glance, but before you can move, Kes looks up and catches your eye. His expression shifts from surprise to something a little more serious.

“What are you two doing up there?” he calls, crossing his arms.

Caught red-handed, Poe scrambles down, his face flushed with guilt. “We… uh… we were just doing some recon, Dad,” 

Kes gives him a pointed look, his eyes narrowing. “Recon? Is that what you’re calling it?” He sighs, shaking his head. “You’re too high up. If you fell… Poe, you’re not just putting yourself at risk, you’re dragging others into trouble too. You know better than this.”

Poe’s shoulders slump, his stomach twisting as the words sink in. “I’m sorry, Dad,” he mutters, his voice barely audible as he avoids eye contact.

With a defiant grin, you think you can make things better, unbothered by the mild scolding of Poe’s dad, you try to speak for the both of you. “We were just training to look out for Empire spies,” you explain with a serious nod. “Poe and I have been training hard to be ready!”

Your dad steps forward, his arms crossed and his face hard with disapproval.“Enough excuses,” he says firmly. “You two. Climb down. Now.” His tone is firm, making it clear he’s not happy about this either.

The weight of his voice leaves no room for argument, and with a sigh, you carefully follow Poe’s lead, your heart heavy as you descend. Once you’re both on the ground, your dad grips your arm, his gaze stern. “We’ll talk about this at home,you’re in deep trouble.” he says evenly, the promise of consequences hanging in the air.

As you’re led away, you glance back at Poe, who lingers for a moment, his hands stuffed in his pockets and his head hanging low. He manages a small, sad smile, lifting a hand in a subdued wave. You return the gesture, your own heart sinking under the weight of guilt and frustration.

Despite everything, the unspoken understanding between you lingers, a quiet reassurance that, no matter the scolding, you’ll both bounce back from this together.

After the incident, the weekend passes, and even though you were both grounded for what you did, Poe knows that he’d continue following you everywhere, eager to learn from you. Even if he’s a little nervous, he finds himself braver each time, when he’s with you, taking bigger leaps, climbing higher places, and facing every little “danger” you point out. For Poe, every scraped knee and every muddy shoe feels worth it, as long as you’re there beside him, his lieutenant and best friend.

When Poe arrives at kindergarten in the morning with a bright smile, he’s very eager to tell you about the spaceship toy his mom had sent him alongside a cargo that came to the rebel post. But when he reaches the classroom, his smile falters. Your usual seat by the window is empty, your backpack and coat nowhere in sight. His heart pounds as he looks around, waiting to see you run in late, maybe with a story about an adventure you had on the way to school, maybe you also have something to show him and are just  teasing his nerves, making him wait for your arrival at the last minute.

But… you don’t come.

The teacher eventually explains to him that you and your family had to move away suddenly. The words feel heavy, and Poe’s small hands grip the straps of his jacket as his bottom lip wobbles. He doesn’t fully understand why you had to leave or where exactly “away” is, but he knows it’s far enough that you won’t be coming back.

The following days are quiet. He drifts through recess and playtime without his usual spark, his gaze inevitably straying to the tree where you once perched together, where you’d both laughed and schemed like rebels in training.He thinks about the fact that you’re gone, maybe its his fault? Maybe he could’ve stand up for you in front of your dad, maybe that way you would’ve stayed, if you’d both hadn’t gone snooping around, maybe you’d still be with him.

Poe’s little cheeks are stained with tears and he spends more time holding Captain Fluff close, as if the little tooka doll might somehow fill the gap of your absence. At home, he tries to keep up with the “missions” you once led, braving solo ventures to his backyard and recreating your adventures, but the thrill fades faster than he expects.

In time, Poe will come to recognize these memories as something precious, realising how they’ve embedded a spark of adventure within him, a piece of you that remains despite your absence. The small voice you planted in him—an urge to climb higher, to be braver, and to dream bigger—will stay with him, shaping his path forward. He doesn’t know it now, but those days, even the bittersweet ones, will linger within him for years to come, forming a quiet foundation for the hero he’ll one day become.

Years later, Poe stands in the middle of the busy Resistance base, his mind laser-focused on the upcoming mission briefings, the endless tactical updates, and the hum of pilots and soldiers passing by. He’s been on countless missions, and by now, the routine has become second nature—preparing his X-wing, checking the systems, reviewing the intel. His concentration is unwavering as a Resistance officer details the mission ahead, highlighting enemy positions and strategic points of interest. Poe nods along, mentally mapping out the path, fine-tuning his plan. 

But then, across the room, something, no someone,  catches his eye.

Amidst the bustle of soldiers and pilots, talking with another Resistance pilot, is someone he feels he recognizes. His gaze sharpens, as he takes in the details—the shape of their features, the fierce but familiar set of their jaw, the gleam in their eyes that’s both determined and a little mischievous. There’s something about them, something he can’t quite place, but it stirs something in him—like the flicker of an old memory, buried deep. He watches for a moment, distracted from the briefing, trying to piece it all together.

It’s only when the officer calls his name, snapping him back to the present, that he realises he’s been staring. He shakes his head, refocusing on the mission details, but the pull of that familiar presence lingers. His curiosity gnaws at him. After a few more moments, he can’t resist and excuses himself and jogs towards the other side of the hangar.

“Hey,” he says, almost breathless, a soft smile growing as he studies your face more closely. And then, with a look of realisation, he knows it—it’s you. It’s really you. “Tree climber, is that you?”

You blink, momentarily surprised, and then a laugh escapes you. “Wait—tooka doll kid?”

Poe’s face goes crimson, his bravado faltering as he clears his throat. “I, uh—yeah, that’d be me,” he admits, scratching the back of his neck with a sheepish smile. “But, hey, I’ve got a name too, you know. Poe Dameron. Just Poe is fine, though.” he adds, his tone half-proud, half-nervous.

You chuckle softly. “Of course, Poe Dameron, I remember,” you tease, because of course you knew who he was. “Can’t believe you’ve gone from the shy, tooka doll kid that used to follow me everywhere, to being the poster boy for the Resistance.” You raise an eyebrow, a smile tugging at your lips. “Guess you really did become all important.”

Poe grins, his face flushing slightly, though he tries to hide it behind a chuckle. “Well, guess someone’s gotta lead the way, right?” he says, the cocky edge creeping back into his voice.

The two of you laugh quietly together, and Poe’s heart feels like it’s soaring, even within the chaos of the base. His gaze lingers on you as he shakes his head in awe. “Wow... look at you,reconnaissance now, huh?” He recognizes the badge on your arm and chuckles, eyes crinkling. “Just like your dad, and it tracks. You always did love exploring the uncharted.”

You smile, leaning in a little closer, your gaze wandering over him as you take in his strong features, the way his dark curls fall just over his forehead, and that lopsided, boyish grin that’s still the same as it was when you were kids. And those dimples—those same little dimples—are still there, deepening as he smiles at you.

“And you, a squad leader,” you counter back with a teasing smirk. “Not bad, Dameron.” You don’t tell him, but ever since you got assigned that week to move to the Yavin base, you’d hoped you’d bump into him somehow—just to admire him in his element, the confident leader of the Resistance.

Poe’s eyes drop for a moment, a small blush creeping up his neck, getting nervous as your steady gaze studies him, same way it did when you were kids, never faltering. Neither of you speak, taking in the almost surreal reunion.

Suddenly, he’s not sure what to do with himself. His gaze drifts over you as if seeing you for the first time. After all, it is the first time he sees you in your adult life. You're standing there, strong, poised in your uniform, that looks somehow both formidable and very fitting on you. But there’s something else—something about the way you carry yourself, the way the light catches your eyes, the quiet confidence in your stance. He catches his breath, his heart racing just a little as he takes you in, the same person from all those years ago but somehow... different. Gorgeous, even.

For a moment, he forgets how to speak. He’s pulled from his thoughts only when he realises he's been staring too long, he shakes himself back into reality, glancing up at you with a slight cough, trying to act nonchalant. 

“You… you look good,” he says quickly, his voice a little unsteady. He clears his throat again, adding with a nervous laugh, “I mean—uh, well… you know. For someone in the Resistance uniform, I mean– this is not going very well is it?” His words stutter out as his hand rubs the back of his neck, but it only makes you chuckle. 

“Smooth as always.” You shake your head in amusement at his flustered response.

Poe watches you for a moment longer, his heart still racing from the mix of nostalgia and admiration. As you catch his gaze, a warmth spreads across your cheeks, and you quickly look down, suddenly feeling self-conscious. The way he was looking at you made you realise just how much you had missed him—more than you were prepared to admit. But you shake off the fluttering feeling in your chest and decide to change the subject.

"So, uh... are you leaving soon for a mission?" you ask, your voice a little steadier than you feel. You focus on looking at Poe's forehead instead of his eyes, hoping that the lack of eye contact convinces your brain and distracts it enough for you not to make a fool of yourself, and avoid the heat that just started creeping up your cheeks.

Poe, still a little flushed himself, gives you a sheepish grin. "Yeah, actually, in a couple of hours," he says, eyes lingering on your flushed cheeks. "Lots of pre-flight checks and intel stuff to go through before I head out."

You nod, your mind briefly flashing back to the way he used to prepare for missions as a kid, always following your lead, but the first to volunteer for anything daring. "Sounds like you're always on the go," you tease gently.

Poe chuckles, his gaze softening as he looks down, his foot nervously tapping the ground, shifting back and forth, things never change.

"Well, you know me—always got something to do. But hey..." He pauses for a moment, looking at you with a slight hesitation, then asks, “Hey, after the mission and after I’m off patrol… would you want to grab a drink? Maybe catch up?”

You blink in surprise, a smile tugging at your lips, and for a moment, you can’t quite believe this is happening. Poe Dameron, the fearless pilot and Resistance leader, asking you to catch up. You might have been his childhood friend for a hot moment, but this still feels unreal, you shrug off the doubt and look him in the eye. "Actually..." you start, the idea suddenly sparking in your mind, "how about I suggest something a little more fitting?"

You step a little closer to him, eyes gleaming with a playful challenge. You point off into the distance, toward a towering tree at the far end of the base. "You see that tree?" you ask. "Right there, just on the far end of the base. It's pretty tall... you can see it from a long way off."

Poe follows the direction of your finger, his curiosity piqued. "Yeah, I see it. Pretty big for sure. What about it?"

You smile, leaning in just a bit, as if sharing a secret. "Been meaning to climb it," you say. "And I might need help doing it. So, would that be something that interests you?"

Poe grins, the idea instantly catching fire in his mind. "Climbing a tree?" he laughs, "You know, we're not kids anymore. I don't think this is exactly your idea of a good time as an adult, is it?"

You raise an eyebrow, the challenge in your tone still there as you look at him. "Oh, I don't know, what, you’re gonna chicken out on me, Dameron?"

Poe's grin widens, his chest puffing up as he shakes his head. "Not a chance. I’m not a chicken," he says with mock indignation. "I’ll show you just how not a chicken I am."

"Rendezvous by the tallest tree, then?"

Poe’s grin only grows wider as he gives you a mock salute. "Copy that, Lieutenant." He teases and makes you both laugh again. “I gotta go, but I’ll meet you when I get back.” With a quick glance back, he turns to leave, heading off to prepare for the mission ahead.

As he walks away, his heart feels lighter, his steps more purposeful. The collision of his past and present has left him feeling more confident, as if something has shifted in him. He’s reminded of the person he used to be as a kid—the one who faced challenges with a grin and a sense of adventure, rather than the constant tension and weight of responsibility that so often clouded his thoughts.

But now, with you back in his life, that spark of his younger self is rekindled. He finds himself looking forward to returning to base, eager to pick up where you both left off…

Reblogs and comments are kindly appreciated!

tag list friends

@eyelessfaces @howellatme @ierofrnkk @silvernight-m @ingoldthewizard

[mqriuss]

girl crush or crush crush?

content: wlw, yuzuha x fem!reader, high school setting, fluff, one shot

playlist: link

entry 01:

since when did we have a shiba fan club? is hakkai really all that attractive? i mean i guess he looks pretty cool sometimes but come on, a fan club? anyway, i have to meet up with minari and emi for a group project tomorrow.

oh yeah and i have that portrait assignment, i'm really bad at drawing people's faces let alone realistically T^T i'll figure that out later.

update: the shiba fan club was for yuzuha-senpai?! emi told me that i'm "too engrossed" in my doodling... now that i think of it, the girls here talk so loud so how did i never find out about this? oh well, i still don't really see the point in a fan club but i guess it makes more sense for someone like her.

"hakkai!"

you look up from your diary upon hearing someone calling out for your classmate. "crap," you mutter to yourself when it turns out to be none other than his sister. you close your diary in an instant, shoving it into your desk drawer.

you really tried not to look when yuzuha and hakkai were standing by the doorway, chatting about something you couldn't make out from the back of the class. unfortunately, you often have a hard time seeing the board ever since your teacher randomized the seats last week, but this was the perfect spot for when you wanted to doodle in class... or even staring at the senior that everyone has a girl crush on.

each time you averted your gaze from her, it was as if there was some invisible force pulling your head in her direction. you always knew someone as pretty and cool as her existed in school, but you never paid too much attention to her up until now. well, every other girl here is pretty cute. how's yuzuha any different?

you don't know how to answer that either. maybe it was her charisma that was too hard to ignore, or the way her hair drapes and rests gracefully over her shoulders, or maybe it's the way she glares at any guy trying to hit on her, and the way she smiles—hold on, what the hell am i thinking?

thump. your heart drops as if it weighed a hundred something pounds. you think you might have been staring a little too hard because yuzuha notices you and sends a small smile your way with a wave.

your face feels hot much to your dismay, and you didn't really know how to act in the moment. the second you rose your hand to wave back, she was already looking away. yup, this is great.

"yuzuha-senpai waved at you?!" emi's whisper-yelling voice echoes in your ear from beside you out of nowhere, causing you to jump in your seat.

"ack!" you accidentally let out a bit too loud when your knee hits the bottom of your desk, garnering everyone's attention, including yuzuha's. in one swift movement, you put your head down against the table—partly to hide your pained expression but mostly to hide from her. your face contorts and you silently wince upon realizing you had practically smashed your head against the wooden surface.

"uh, y/n?" emi calls out to you hesitantly and she flinches a little when you look up momentarily to glare at her.

entry 02:

there is no way i'm THIS out of touch.

yuzuha-senpai is the head of the kyūdō club??? that's like THE HOTTEST COOLEST thing i know about her (˶°ㅁ°)!!

my art club teacher is absent for today and tomorrow so the assignment's due date has been postponed to next week. maybe i can get minari to come with me and see yuzuha-senpai. is that too creepy? no, right? i'm sure her fans have done worse...

i kinda wish i was more like emi, good at sports like volleyball. i think yuzuha-senpai would be interested in girls like that. haha why does that even matter to me?

"well? what are you waiting for? go say hi!" minari encourages you, nudging your arm. it doesn't really have its intended effect on you as you vigorously shake your head.

"no way! i'm fine with watching from afar."

minari sighs, crossing her arms. you almost feel bad, considering that you couldn't wait till the end of classes to see yuzuha in her club. you just had to drag minari along to run around the whole school, just to get a glimpse of your senior.

"since when were you part of the shiba fan club, y/n?" your friend asks you quizzically.

"what? i'm not a part of any fan club," you deny her claims immediately. "i think the fan club's stupid, but i do think she's pretty..." you trail off, watching her carry a tray of today's lunch to a table with her friends.

"you wouldn't do this with me when i wanted to see shoji-kun at his basketball practice match." she pouts, following your gaze that was glued onto yuzuha.

"shoji's like, the lamest guy ever," you exclaim, rolling your eyes as you proceeded to rant. "i don't know what you see in him, he's so stuck-up and annoying. being athletic is all he's good at, that's not even a redeeming quality!"

"what?"

you and minari freeze, your bodies stiff as if ice travelled from your toes up to your stomachs—the only thing you could move were your heads as you turn to each other before looking over your shoulders.

shoji. of course he's just not-so-conveniently standing right behind you.

"shoji, wow!" you force a grin, laughing out sheepishly. "i did not see you there—hey, you're looking two inches taller today. keep it up, man!" you blurt out random words, lightly punching his arm before grabbing minari (who is absolutely lovestruck) by the arm and dashing off.

in the distance, yuzuha lets out a quiet chuckle at the commotion you were previously making. some of her friends ask what's so funny and some look behind their shoulders.

"ah, are you looking at shoji?" one of her friends tease her, only to be met with an offended yuzuha.

"shoji's like, the lamest guy ever, why would i be looking at him?"

entry 03:

i was (respectfully) watching yuzuha-senpai at the kyūdō club again today and she caught me staring!

this is all minari's fault by the way... while yuzuha-senpai was aiming her shot, minari sneezed so fucking loud. thank god there weren't that many people around, just yuzuha-senpai and a couple of other students. we still had to apologize for disturbing them though.

"you're y/n, right?" yuzuha asked, approaching you with a warm smile.

"how'd you know?" you tilted your head, confused. the both of you have never exchanged words till now.

"hakkai told me—well, more like i asked him," she clarified, chuckling as one of her hands move to settle on her hip. "i saw you that day in your classroom, and yesterday at the cafeteria."

"oh! that explains it," you chuckled, embarrassed as you rubbed the back of your neck. you couldn't believe she asked her brother for your name—you had to snap yourself out of it before you started acting too much like her fangirls.

yuzuha looked behind you then glanced around, "hey, where's your friend?" her question made your eyes widen and search for minari.

'did she seriously just leave me here?' you thought to yourself and sighed. "i... think she ditched me. i did sort of drag her here so she probably has somewhere else to be." you explained as you looked for an opportunity to leave as well.

yuzuha's lips curved into a lopsided grin as a soft chuckle escaped her. 'how could someone be so cool yet warm at the same time?' you thought as you feel heat rushing to your ears. for a moment, you didn't even care that your friend had abandoned you.

you were so lost in the sound of yuzuha's laughter that you didn't even notice she had walked back to her bag to fish out a camera.

"so," yuzuha whipped her head to look up at you, her ponytail swishing with the motion. "what brings you to the kyūdō club, y/n? interested in joining?" she asked jokingly, and wow, your name sounded so nice coming from her mouth.

"oh no, no, i'm just– uh," you stammered, shaking your head. thank god, the students were too preoccupied with whatever they were doing to notice you being an absolute loser in front of yuzuha. "i'm in the art club! my teacher is absent today though, so... i wandered around and ended up here." you explained, patting yourself in the back mentally for what you believe to be a genius excuse.

"art club? so you're good at drawing?" yuzuha sat on the floor, her back against the wall and she pat the spot beside her.

you nodded while moving to sit next to her. "i mean, i wouldn't say i'm that good at it."

"i think every good artist says that," yuzuha teased, giving your arm a little nudge.

you chuckled, "actually, i might be better at painting. even then, i'm better with backgrounds and animals than people."

"hey, that's still impressive!"

"i know, thank you but..." you paused and found yourself smiling at her compliments. "my current assignment isn't my strong suit at all, so i've been mulling over it for a while now." your chuckles died down as you hugged your knees up to your chest.

"lemme guess, you have to draw people?"

"worse. i have to draw their faces."

yuzuha threw her head back, hearty laughter spilling out—light but unrestrained. she doesn't know much about art and the struggles of an artist, but she found your exasperated tone and expression amusing and endearing.

"why don't you draw my brother? i think his face looks good at a 45 degree angle," she suggested, partly joking.

deep down, you wanted to say no. the words never formed—they would never come out with convincing excuses. maybe because you already knew who you wanted to draw for the assignment.

"hey, why don't you help me out with something?" yuzuha stood on her feet, offering you a hand.

"me?" you echoed, pointing to yourself and glancing at her outstretched arm.

"yes, you!" she affirmed, urging you to get up.

you slowly reached out, grabbing her hand as she pulled you up. "what do you need help with? are you sure i can help?" you asked, walking right behind her and looked around. surely the other club members would be more helpful?

"it's easy, i just need you to get a picture of me aiming for a shot." she gave you the camera, and positioned herself with the bow and arrow. "we're planning to make a poster for the club, you can get one up close and another from afar."

yuzuha's form was no less than perfect, her foot placement and her posture as she draws the bow and aims. it was no surprise coming from the head of the club herself, you were so entranced that you almost forgot to take a photo.

"how's this?" you walked up to her and showed her the photo you took.

"ooh, that's nice! you're a better photographer than hakkai," yuzuha remarked, chuckling as she patted your shoulder. "get one up close this time. stand here, almost in front of me." she instructed.

you positioned the camera to get shot of her from the stomach up. "you know, your face looks good at a 45 degree angle too, yuzuha-senpai," you blurted out, only to accidentally capture the moment yuzuha broke into a flustered grin. "oops, let's take that again." you chuckled, retaking the photo properly this time.

"great! thanks for your help, y/n." she smiled gratefully, as you returned the camera.

you nodded, "it's no problem." you found yourself trailing off, your lips pursed and eyes wandered. yuzuha had a feeling you had something to say. "actually... can i have these photos too?"

yuzuha was expecting you to say anything really, but not this. "oh, why do you want them?" she asked, her tone full of curiosity as she raised an eyebrow.

"well, i just got really inspired all of a sudden. i want to use these photos to practice drawing people and different stances." you explained, hoping that you didn't sound like an absolute creep to her because it's true—you really did want to use these photos as practice.

"you want to draw me for reference?" yuzuha's face lit up, grinning when you nodded. "give me your email—i'll send you the photos when i get home. you have to show me your drawings later!"

entry 04:

i didn't ask for the photos as an excuse to exchange emails with her, i swear that never crossed my mind! but ever since then, i've been itching to send her messages occasionally. i probably shouldn't though... i don't know why i'm overthinking it.

other than that, i am absolutely done with this portrait assignment. why is drawing faces so hard?! i can't get the eyes to look the same, her eyebrows are way too asymmetrical, and i'm pretty sure her nose doesn't look like that. i complained about it to minari (who's a lot better at portraits than i am) and all she told me was to keep practicing like yeah no shit（ ; ; ）but i'm at my wit's end, girl.

"whatcha drawing?"

you jump in your seat, and suddenly you're getting deja vu. you shut your sketchbook immediately, crossing your arms over it.

"nothing!" you exclaim, your ears reddening as yuzuha, who's standing behind you, tries to look over your shoulder.

"i clearly saw you drawing some portraits, lemme see!" she insists, but you shake your head.

"no, no, it's so bad. it's just for practice." you plead, still shaking your head.

"you can't expect yourself to get good overnight," yuzuha chuckles, pulling the empty chair in front of your desk closer to sit before you. "alright fine, it's okay if you don't wanna show me." she lets you off the hook with a smile and you breathed a sigh of relief. "but can i see your other drawings? ones you're more confident about." she requests and normally you'd still be too shy, but it wouldn't hurt show off a little, right?

you open your sketchbook, careful not to open the one filled with portraits of yuzuha. instead, you turn to a page covered in doodles. right beside it is a painting you made a few weeks ago, a sunset adding a splash of pink and orange on a small piece of paper that you taped to the sketchbook.

"aw, these are so cute! i love this sunset painting," yuzuha praises and you couldn't help the proud grin that appeared and shy chuckles escaping your lips.

you watched as she goes over each doodle, most of them drawn during class when you got bored or couldn't focus. every now and then, she'd point to a specific drawing she's fond of—you noticed it was usually a cat or some other cute animal.

unbeknownst to you both, a few members of her fan club gathered by the door frame to get a glimpse of yuzuha sitting with some random girl from class 2-D. whispers of "who is she? how lucky! yuzuha-senpai is so pretty when she smiles" fly around, but they never reach you.

entry 05:

dear diary, i am fucking horrified.

well, it happened a few hours ago but i still can't stop thinking about it. i stopped by the kyūdō club since yuzuha-senpai wanted to show me the poster they made. today, i found out the cool and charismatic girl crush of the school hated bugs with a burning passion.

i'm no different! i'm just a girl, okay? most bugs scare the hell out of me, so when did i gain the confidence to play hero all of a sudden?

one of the students stumbled backwards, pointing a trembling finger to the ground.

"cockroach!"

her yelling interrupted the previously serene backdrop of the club's dojo, and all hell breaks loose as most of the students recoiled in unison. you blinked, barely processing the situation until you followed the finger to the culprit—a glossy, twitching nightmare crawling across the floor.

"oh, hell no," you muttered under your breath, feeling your skin crawl. you caught sight of yuzuha curled up with her friends, backing up with a grimace.

"someone get it!"

'oh diary, i may be a little stupid and scared of bugs, but i didn't regret what i did at all.'

you grabbed a nearby shoe (you apologized to the owner afterwards), your body moving on its own as you approached the bug with stealth.

"i- i've got it!" you shouted, slamming the shoe down, albeit rather shakily. the roach scrambled across the floor, resulting in everyone's shrieks. your breath hitched as you chased after it, hitting the floor a couple times before the shoe finally landed on the target with a resounding smack.

silence fell. you stared at the bug for a second and only snapped back to reality after someone yelled out, "my shoe!"

"you actually did it," one of the club members said in awe.

"my hero!" yuzuha grinned and slung an arm over your shoulders, ruffling your hair, and your cheeks instantly flushed. you weren’t sure if it was from the heat or because your very pretty and cool senior was this close to you.

“it was nothing,” you chuckled sheepishly, flicking your wrist and waving her off.

entry 06:

that's it. i've gone insane.

i think i've been drawing at least 5 portraits of yuzuha-senpai everyday and i know it's just for practice, but now i can't bring myself to use any other person for reference. is this what it's like to have a muse? i feel like a creep! i've been pretty transparent with her about it so i don't feel as bad, but still! thankfully, she doesn't think it's weird.

anyway, i've gotten better at drawing (her) portraits over time and i finally handed in my assignment yesterday. my teacher even noticed my improvement! i'll show it to yuzuha after it's been graded. god, i haven't even talked about today yet. where do i begin?

"y/n, do you have a crush on yuzuha-senpai?"

emi asked you out of the blue, making you cough and choke on your food. you were quite sure a grain of rice or two had travelled up to your nose.

"pft, a crush? what makes you think that?" you questioned and their faces dropped like you were stupid. "everyone's got a little girl crush on yuzuha-senpai. besides, i don't think i'm as bad as her fans." you added in defense, shrugging.

"true, 'cause you're worse."

"what?" your eyes widened at minari who was stifling her laughter. "you don't get to say anything, you literally have a crush on that lame ass shoji!"

"huh?" shoji magically appeared by the doorway, overhearing you—again.

"get outta here, man!" you groaned, showing him the way out with your pointer finger. you don't miss the way he rolled his eyes and shook his head before walking away.

"also, i'm not talking about a girl crush," emi corrected you, pausing to chew her food. "i'm talking about a crush." she emphasized.

"like," you blinked. "a crush crush?"

"yeah?" emi responded like it was common knowledge. you obviously knew what she was talking about, but a part of you didn't want to acknowledge it.

"it's okay, y/n. there's nothing wrong with liking girls, your secret's safe with us," minari chimed in, prompting you to raise an eyebrow at her.

"i didn't even say anything."

"oh, trust me—you don't have to," emi gave you a knowing look while minari snickered.

you sighed, finishing up the last of your bento, making sure not to leave a single grain of rice behind. you weren't completely oblivious. it's clear that you've been gushing over yuzuha the past few days, but you've been brushing it off as platonic admiration. even hakkai—ceo of not knowing how to talk to girls—had started exchanging a few words with you because he thinks his sister has a new best friend. he'll have to get used to your presence eventually, right?

the teachers? oblivious. your classmates? none the wiser. you could stare at her with sparkly puppy eyes and search for her around the school, and no one would suspect a thing. and yet, that one time you asked a guy from the student council a simple question about the school's festival, everyone swore you had a crush on him.

the only people who've caught on to your special admiration for yuzuha are minari, emi, and yuzuha's fan club.

and you're beginning to realize it too.

it's become a habit for you to absentmindedly draw portraits of yuzuha from different angles. for practice? maybe. because she's pretty? definitely. now you'd find chibi versions of you and yuzuha amongst the little critters, hearts and cupcakes on your sketchbook.

no one else knows, but you had a specific page bookmarked that you and yuzuha doodled on together. you remember that day, you were on cleaning duty and yuzuha visited you in class. you hadn't started cleaning when she stopped by though—you were working on a still life assignment instead. she told you that you looked so serious when you draw. as usual, she sat in the vacant seat in front of you, watching you do your thing and asked about your day. well, your days have started to feel like adding splashes of colour to mundane sketches ever since yuzuha came into your life.

"wanna draw something?" you remember offering as you turned to a blank page. the both of you spent thirty minutes doodling random cute things that day. you also recall her giving you ideas for your signature—it was such a simple activity, yet you had a lot of fun. maybe too much fun because you nearly forgot you were on cleaning duty. whenever yuzuha was around, your heart feels a little lighter, your mind a little clearer.

another time you realized your admiration for yuzuha might've been more than platonic was when you saw her interacting with her fan club members. you weren't jealous—not even a little bit, but you found yourself asking, "i wonder if she likes any of her fangirls?" sure, you were just curious, but why did it even matter?

the answer wasn't as complicated as you thought, you didn't want her to like any other girl.

you hoped that she'd admire you the same way you admired her. you hoped that maybe she’d like girls—girls like you. even when you were having a bad hair day and didn't have time to fix it in the morning. even when you didn’t get a good grade on your test. even when you made a fool of yourself getting caught drawing her in class with little stars around her. even when you tried to impress her and just looked lame. you hoped that there's a chance she’d be into you.

"alright, you're dismissed!" your art teacher clapped her hands, cueing your friends to start packing up. you remained in your seat, staring at an unfinished drawing of violets. "not going home yet, y/n?" your teacher called out to you, swinging her bag onto her shoulder.

"in a bit," you responded, nodding.

"i saw a bit of the violets you drew today; they look great. keep up the good work," she praised you and you thanked her bashfully. "don't miss your train!" she added as she walked out of the classroom.

normally, you'd rush to meet yuzuha at her club, but the thought of seeing her now made your heart both flutter and ache. you thought you could use some time to think through this whole crush thing, maybe even try to move on. it might be a little easier to be on your own than yearn for someone you can't be with.

you stayed back a few more minutes, trying to finish the drawing, but your pencil never got too close to the final lines. you took your sweet time packing your things before sauntering out of the nearly empty hallways.

club activities ended a few minutes ago, so yuzuha-senpai has probably gone home already.

"y/n!"

you froze in your tracks, looking up to the voice that pulled you away from your thoughts. standing by the school gates, the wind brushing against her strawberry blonde hair, amber eyes that put the summer sun to shame, and her smile, although small, warm as a fireplace. you've been seeing this same person a lot the past few days, but every single time your eyes meet, it always feels like the first time.

"yuzuha-senpai?" you gaped and for a moment, she gave you a puzzled look. what's got you so surprised?

"you didn't come to see me earlier, so i asked minari where you were and decided to wait for you," she said, meeting you halfway.

"you were expecting me?" you breathed and yuzuha's smile widened into a grin. she reached out to seemingly remove something in your hair.

"of course, i was. i sorta got used to you visiting me after class." she admitted, gripping onto the straps of her school bag. "you know, i wanted to do it more often, but you always beat me to it."

and there it was—an easy demonstration on how to get you flustered and red all over. yuzuha couldn't help chuckling at your baffled expression. was it so odd that she wanted to see you as much as you did?

oh.

"s–sorry...?" you blurted out an apology and yuzuha blinked at you before breaking into another fit of laughter, a bit louder this time.

"why are you apologizing, silly? i don't hate it or anything." yuzuha moved beside you to link your arms together. "anyway, hakkai is going out with his friends today. i didn't feel like joining so, we should hang out."

"really? the two of us?" you echoed, glancing around with slightly widened eyes and raised eyebrows. was this seriously happening? this was way too much for you to process!

"yes, really. so, do you wanna go to an arcade? or are you too tired for that? we can go to a cafe if you'd like."

"sure," you responded quickly, but sounded a little unsure. "i mean, the arcade sounds great." you immediately elaborated, receiving another laugh from her.

"okay, let's go! i'll walk you home after we're done."

yuzuha's hand travelled down to hold yours, intertwining your fingers in a slow, experimental manner. your heart skipped a beat, and you tightened your hold just a little, hoping it was enough to tell her you didn't want to let go. not when this connection beyond friendly admiration finally felt possible.

[gg-neptune]

Three

So uh this is kinda rushed at the end but it was just hard for me to write honestly. And yes this is based off my AP tests score and how I reacted. And yes I am still upset. Yes I know I should be grateful but like. :( I hope you like it. <33

Warnings: academic over achiever, crying, age gap? (possibly I mean he's like a year older than them but he's also her teacher and no I do not care that this is not canons shut up leave me alone)

Waiting eagerly, you refreshed the page once more and it appeared. You could only see the top of it, your hands shook in fear at what you might see. This dumb test meant everything to you and now months after taking it you could finally see your score. It was finally time. You had studied for hours every night for 2 months leading up to it. You had an A in the class the entire year as well and had made a 4 on the mock exam. Countless tears and hours had gone into this and now you could finally see your score.

Some might say you were a bit of an academic overachiever. You had gone from making straight failing grades to A's in the matter of a year. You took your grades rather seriously, always being terrified they would drop back down to failing. Your hard work had landed yourself in an Advanced Placement class at Hogwarts. Now you were finally getting your score and you were terrified. 

With trembling hands you scrolled down a bit, looking at your score with great fear. What if you had failed? All your work for absolutely no profit. You wanted a 5. Now you knew this was asking a lot. However you thought you deserved it in a way. This year had been awful and you had gotten a high A in the class so why could you not at least get a 4? You were confident in your answers as well so why not stretch for a 5 as well?

3

You stare blankly at the screen for a moment. Your score is sinking in. A 3. You passed at least. At least there was that. However you were still thoroughly disappointed. You expected more of yourself.

How would you tell everyone? You knew everyone expected you to get at least a 4 or a 5. To get a 3 was almost humiliating. How would you face Severus? 

You and Severus had been dating for a few years. You were still in school as a seventh year while this was his first year as a professor. He had only graduated the year prior being only one year older than you. You two got some strange looks from the younger years but majority of the older kids knew him and you from when he was at Hogwarts as a student so it was not a big issue. 

He expected a lot from you. He taught you privately on his own time along with his lectures in class. He had also been expecting you to pass with a higher grade and you had only gotten a 3. Most of the universities you had been looking at did not even accept 3’s for credit. Most of them honestly only accepted 5’s. And you had pulled off a 3.

A knock sounded at your door. Somehow you knew automatically who it was. A sense of dread built up inside of you immediately. It seemed like a brick had been placed in your throat burning you from the inside out.

“Hey, can I come in,” his deep voice rang out from outside. You felt frozen in place feeling a panic overtake you. The thought of him knowing your score sends you further into your state of distress. It felt like your chest was collapsing in on you. Like your own body was capsizing and you were trapped inside.

The door opened anyway despite you not giving permission quickly after him looking around for a moment his eyes landed on you.

“What’s wrong?” His voice seemed blunt as he just stared at you confused. Not being very good at comforting others he simply stood there staring at you for a moment before thinking that might not be a good idea and taking a seat on your bed.

You attempt to choke out an answer but your throat does not allow you. The feeling of the brick being there still haunts you as you attempt to communicate with the man in front of you. You hadn’t realized before but tears had begun to roll down your cheeks as you stare at him scared out of your mind of what he will say to you.

“It’s… it’s alright whatever it is. Nothing is unfixable I mean like we can even bring dead people back it can’t be that bad just tell me what’s wrong. I can fix it.” Severus tried his best at comforting you he really does but this does nothing to soothe your distress. You can tell by the worried expression and tone of his voice he is concerned but you can not manage to spit out any words. This in fact can not be fixed. Your score is already set in stone. There is nothing you can do about it at all.

A sob suddenly breaks from your mouth as you break. Loud wailing breaks from you as you crumple in front of him. Your body slouched forward onto your knees, sobs wracking your body taking you down. Quickly Severus is leaning forward and gathering you into his arms. Cradling you like a little baby. Pressing your face into his chest allowing you to sob into him he attempts to soothe you again, “Shhh, I mean really it can’t be worth crying over hun what is it? Hmmm?” Putting on his comforting voice instead of his cold monotonous one. 

You reach over to your computer keeping your face still pressed into him, you drag it over to the both of you showing him your score wailing out, “I’m such a failure,” brokenly.

You can’t see his face as he looks but you can only imagine the rage and anger crossing it right now. All of the hard work he had out into you and passing you had failed him.

“I don’t get it? You did great, what's wrong?”

“I got a 3! How is that great,” your voice breaks multiple times as you cry this out. Still sobbing into his shirt you feel both of his arms wrap around you after he closes your computer putting it aside. One hand runs up and down your back soothingly while the other simply stays firmly wrapped around you keeping you close to him.

“Love, a 3 is passing that’s still good don’t be upset,” he whispers out rocking you back and forth trying to calm.

You don’t respond, instead just opting to cry into his shirt as your misery overtakes you. Now logically you knew that a 3 was not in fact terrible but it was not what you wanted. Or what you felt like was expected. However you weren’t quite thinking logically right now, so instead you let Severus just hold you. Letting him take your tears and soak them up.

Eventually your tears subside, having worn yourself out from sobbing so much. Severus slowly shifts you both into a lying position against your pillows, haphazardly pulling a blanket over you both. He keeps you close to him, not letting you get even an inch away from him as he continues his rubbing on your back.

“I am incredibly proud of you,” he whispered into your ear, “I want nothing more than for you to see yourself the same way I see you.”

He continues to wipe stray tears away as they fall. Neither of you say a word to another, you being too scared to speak and him not being sure what would be right to say.

Instead of breaking the silence you snuggle yourself closer to him seeking his comfort. Sniffling every now and again you use his arm as a pillow to try and make it easier to breathe. He presses gentle kisses to your face still whispering his sweet nothings of how proud he is of you and how good you did as you slip off into sleep.

[starwarsmum]

Day 2 of Daminette December: Forced Proximity

@maribat-calendar-events

How did Marinette get into these situations? Her finger jabbed the ‘door open’ button uselessly, the power completely cut. She growled and mentally cursed her best friend soundly. She should have known he was up to something when he had convinced her to enter the elevator first, but she had been distracted by the absurdly attractive boy who had entered first. 

The boy, Damian, was part of the class that hers was shadowing for their trip to Gotham and he had fascinated her from the moment she had seen him. He had been coldly haughty to everyone she had seen him interact with, even the tall boy he called his friend, but he didn't go out of his way to insult other people.

But what had intrigued her most was something she had seen by accident. During one of their lunch breaks, she had been looking for a quiet place to get away from Lila and stumbled across him. He had been sitting alone, a sketchbook in front of him and a tray of portable watercolours next to him. He was painting something from memory and she was awed by the confident brush strokes and obvious thought going into the painting.

Since that non-interaction, she had been drawn to the enigmatic boy. She had done her best to curb the attraction she felt for him, but it was fighting a losing battle. He had all but refused to interact with her class unless a teacher forced him but it didn't seem to deter her growing crush.

“Tt, this is absurd,” Damian said, his gorgeous green eyes glaring balefully at the number pad on the side of the elevator. He plucked his phone out of his pocket and sent a message to someone before turning towards her. “I have alerted my brother to our predicament but he will likely take some time to arrive.”

“Oh, you're fine- that's fine,” she yelped, correcting herself as fast as she could, mortified at her awkwardness. “I mean, you're fine too, but it's- the situation is what I meant, I've been in worse and- not that this is bad! You seem like a really great guy, from what I've seen and gorge- great, I mean, just great.”

Someone put her out of her misery, she was dead. Her face was burning and his eyebrows rose with every fumble she made. He looked almost amused, leaning nonchalantly against a mirrored wall. She forced herself to stop, swallowing hard and mentally writing her will.

“You are amusing,” was all he said, looking away from her at last. Any hope she had of coming out of this encounter with a positive impression was shredded beyond repair. If she got out of here without combusting, she was going to murder Adrien and frame Chloé for it. She was sure the blonde girl had a hand in this, the childhood friends had been suspicious all day.

“What should we do while we wait?” She blurted out at last, freezing momentarily when he looked back at her. He shrugged elegantly and she forced back a groan at how badly she was doing at this. “I mean, if we're stuck here anyway, maybe we could do something to pass the time?”

“I suppose it would not hurt,” he responded in a cautious voice. He seemed to be debating something before sighing and sitting down. She followed suit immediately, not wanting to be looming over him. Whilst the power seemed to have been cut to the button panel, the lights were still on which meant at least they weren't sitting in the dark. “Perhaps we could play a game? I understand ‘twenty questions’ is often used to alleviate the stress of an uncomfortable situation.”

“Oh, uh, okay,” she said, trying not to visibly deflate at the word ‘uncomfortable’. She knew he wouldn't be thrilled to be trapped in an elevator, but she had hoped he wouldn't have minded being trapped with her in particular. “You should go first since it was your idea.”

“Alright. My first question is about the Parisian heroes, Ladybug and Chat Noir. Have you ever met them?” Marinette stared at him, her confusion at the direction this had taken leaving her speechless for a moment.

“I mean, yeah, most of our class has met them,” she hedged cautiously, trying to think why he would want to know this. “Hell, most of the class were akumatised at least once during Hawkmoth's reign, so it was kind of impossible not to meet them.”

“Hm, interesting,” he said, and she could almost see him cataloguing her answer for later review. He nodded once before gesturing at her. “Alright, you may ask me your first question.”

“Right, sure, okay, um…” she wracked her brain for a question that would make her seem interested but not invasive. She settled on something she assumed was a safe topic as he had already mentioned it himself. “You said you have a brother, what's that like? I'm an only child,” she added as an explanation when he frowned at her.

“Grayson is singularly the most annoying and most supportive person I know,” Damian said after a few moments' consideration. “He is an adopted brother and I did not meet him until I was ten and came to live with my father. You said that most of your class has been akumatised, is there anyone who has not been?”

“Oh, um, just…just me,” she said meekly, blushing as he appraised her again. As he had been thorough with his own answer, she decided to go into more detail. “I mean, there were a couple of close calls but it never actually happened. And, I think Adrien said that he was only akumatised in an alternate timeline? Or that's what Ladybug told him.”

“I see,” he replied, fingers twitching a little as though he were typing something, or would if he had access to a keyboard. “That sounds like it was a stressful time. My understanding of the situation is that akumatisation occurred when negative emotions overtook an individual, making them susceptible to the supervillain.”

“Oh, yeah, that's a pretty good summary,” Marinette said, feeling inordinately pleased by the slightly smug look on his face at her compliment. “Okay, so, my second question is: do you have any pets?”

“I do. Currently, I house a cat, a dog, a cow, and a turkey, although I do some volunteer work with an animal shelter and will occasionally foster an animal.” He said all of this as though it was completely normal to have a cow as a pet. She must have made him a little uncomfortable because he coughed and looked away before continuing. “I find animals to be better company than most people. You mentioned your friend, Adrien Agreste. Is your relationship with him of an intimate nature?”

“What?” Marinette shrieked, clapping her hands to her cheeks in embarrassment. When he remained coolly detached, she forced herself to calm down and swallow the bitter taste of disappointment. For a second there, she thought he was asking because he was interested in her. But if he was, he was very good at hiding it. She sighed slightly before answering, as honestly as she was able without giving up secret identities. “I mean, we're just best friends. Maybe when we were younger it could've happened but it would just be strange now, I think.”

“But you would not have been opposed to a romantic entanglement with him,” Damian said, his tone going slightly flat. She looked at him curiously, because he hadn't asked a question, per se, but he had said something so she needed to respond.

“When we were fifteen and I had a crush on him, sure,” she said, shrugging. She heard him exhale softly and continued tentatively. “But we know each other a lot better now, so I think we're better off as friends.”

Before she could continue, or work out why his eyes were suddenly completely unreadable to her, the lights finally flickered out and plunged them into darkness. She squeaked and moved a little closer to him involuntarily. Even though she wasn't scared of the dark, the surprise made her grab automatically for his hand.

What surprised her was that he didn't pull away at the contact, his hand flipping so that he could hold hers too. Her stomach erupted in butterflies and she was glad he couldn't see the blush that flared to life across her face. 

“It is your turn to ask a question, Marinette,” Damian murmured, leaning closer to her. She could feel how close he was and her brain malfunctioned completely, leaving her trying to discern his features with wide eyes.

“Ah, right,” she said, her voice squeaky from the stress. Quick, think of a question, her mind screamed at her uselessly, trying to function. “Uh, so, are you dating anyone?” She eventually blurted out, cringing at herself and wishing the elevator would just drop suddenly. Honestly, death seemed preferable to the awkward pause that followed.

“I am not currently dating anyone,” he said at last, leaning back and she almost sobbed with disappointment at the cool air that rushed in from his absence. She cursed her stupidity, wishing she could take the words back. “You mentioned Agreste had spoken with Ladybug previously, is he in contact with her?”

“Um, well, his dad was kind of the supervillain, Hawkmoth, so he spoke with her more than anyone else,” she said, again carefully choosing what to tell him without lying. “My turn! What's your favourite art medium and why?”

“I was not aware you knew of my artistic inclinations,” he said, his tone warmer again. “I think I prefer oil paints as I find it relaxing to sit with a canvas and brush. I often try to find time and space on the manor grounds with my pets and paint.”

“Manor, huh?” She said, wondering how she kept meeting rich kids. He tensed slightly and she tried to put him at ease. “I guessed you came from a wealthy family, since you go to Gotham Academy. It's fine, most of my friends come from the upper crust of Paris,” she joked, smiling reassuringly even though he likely couldn't see her.

“Tt, and I suppose you have heard many rumours about my family,” he said grouchily. Marinette was bewildered for a moment, trying to work out how on Earth she could have heard rumours about his family. When the pause spread, he coughed awkwardly and pulled his hand away from hers. “You said you were friends with wealthy individuals, what of your own family?”

“Well, my parents run a pretty successful patisserie,” she replied, curling her arms around her knees to hide how hurt she was by his withdrawal. She decided she wasn't enjoying the game so much any more and tried to think of a question that wouldn't offend him further. “What's your favourite subject at school?”

“...I enjoy mathematics,” he said, a puzzled tone entering his voice. She made a non-committal noise but didn't press for further information. He was prevented from asking another question when his phone lit up. She looked away as his face was illuminated, not wanting him to see that she was upset. “It appears Grayson has arrived and is working to release us.”

“That's great,” she said dully, inspecting the hem of her skirt in the sudden light. She could feel his eyes on her but didn't look back at him. The phone mercifully darkened and they were in darkness once more. “If you still want to play while we wait, it's your question.”

“I do not-” he was cut short when they heard shouting and thudding coming from above them. He glanced up and Marinette decided it was time to stand again, stretching as she did so. The emergency hatch opened above them and light flooded from it.

“Lil D, you okay in there?” A cheerful voice rang out, tinged with a touch of concern. “We're gonna have you out any second, it looks like there's a little corrosion on the elevator wire, so we're being real careful. But if you could get ready to climb up- oh, hi.”

“Hi,” Marinette said awkwardly, waving as the handsome older man looked at her in surprise. So apparently Damian hadn't said there was someone else in the elevator - whatever hope she had that he was just shy or something shriveled into a hard lump. “Thank you for coming to get us.”

“Uh, no problem, sweetheart,” Grayson said, smiling at her bemusedly. She mustered up a smile that vanished as soon as he ducked out of view. She and Damian stood awkwardly, much further apart than they had been five minutes before. He was staring intently at her but she kept her gaze fixed on her hands. 

“Okay, I'm going to pull Damian out first because he's heavier, okay Miss?” Grayson said, dangling further into the elevator with a harness around his torso. She gave a soft okay, cupping her elbows with her hands. Through her peripherals, she saw Damian hesitate before reaching for his brother's hands and allowing himself to be pulled out.

She could hear the vague sounds of whoever was supporting Grayson as they took on the burden of removing Damian. Before too long, Grayson lowered himself back and offered her his hands. She grasped them tightly, pulling herself up with practiced ease, before the crew started pulling them out of the space.

The bright lights of the mall made her squint when she exited the elevator shaft and she was immediately engulfed in Adrien and Chloé’s arms. She glanced at Damian and Grayson, who were standing to the side of everything and speaking in low voices. 

She flushed again when Damian looked over at her, and pointedly looked away, furious that he had caught her watching him. Adrien looked at her curiously, but she could also see a flash of guilt which told her the elevator hadn't been malfunctioning naturally. 

“You are in so much trouble,” she hissed, glaring up at him. He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, muttering sorry as she huffed. “Also, you probably ruined any chance I had of getting to know him normally, so thanks for that.”

“Miss, I hope you're okay, we have paramedics that can check you over if you would like,” Grayson said, having approached them. Damian hung back, still watching her, but she made no move towards either of them. “Damian said you kept really calm in there, so you did a great job.”

“Thank you, but I'm fine,” she answered, offering him a smile again. “There wasn't really anything for me to worry about, and Damian told me he had asked for you to come and rescue us. I'm sorry you had to take time out of your day to help.”

“Anything for Lil D, and his friends,” he responded jovially, and Damian made a strange noise that made Marinette ache again. It shouldn't hurt that he didn't think of her as a friend, because they weren't, but that didn't lessen the sting.

“That's very kind of you, Grayson, but I'm just one of the French exchange class,” she muttered, glaring at the floor. She missed the curious look he sent towards his brother, but carried on regardless. “Thank you for your time, Damian, I hope the rest of your day is pleasant. Adrien, Chloé, we should rejoin our class.”

Damian watched her stalk away, confused and frustrated. Marinette had been one of the few students from the Parisian class that hadn't annoyed him with questions and power-hungry looks. She had intrigued him with her generally pleasant demeanour and the cordial way she spoke to everyone she met. 

So when the elevator malfunctioned he had thought the game would be a good way to get information about Paris’ heroes without generating suspicion. But he had surprised himself when he asked about her relationship with Agreste, slightly unnerved by his own burning curiosity and the anxiety he felt while waiting for her answer. He had also been fascinated by her responses, charmed in spite of himself when she blushed and stammered.

And then she had asked about his own status and he had immediately been wary. Often, young women, and men, expressed an interest in whether he was single and immediately proceeded to ingratiate themselves so that they could work their way into his family.

And when she had tried to backtrack, his heart had sunk, convinced that she had overplayed her hand. But then she had deviated from his experience by giving a short, probably understated view of her family's standing. And she had withdrawn completely from the game, showing no interest in the final question she had been able to ask.

“She was cute, did you get her number?” Grayson asked slyly, a mischievous smirk on his face. Damian gave him an unamused glare, not wanting to admit that he seemed to have offended her. “Oh come on, D, I'm joking. I'm just impressed she came out of there without any broken bones, you hate being stuck with random girls.”

“Tt, she is not random, she is one of the students here for the French exchange trip,” Damian said, annoyed by Grayson's immediate interest. “Regardless, I have not caused injury to any of my peers in quite some time. Additionally, she was able to give me some insight into the Parisian heroes, causing an injury would have been counterproductive.”

“Oh, it was part of the mission then.” Grayson had the gall to sound as disappointed as Damian felt, and it grated on him. “Well, I hope she didn't make you too uncomfortable in the process. Maybe you can ask someone else about anything you didn't get?”

Damian was saved from this excruciating conversation by Kent jogging over to them. He looked far too happy, and it irritated Damian more given his own emotional state. Grayson greeted him warmly but Kent was grinning at Damian in a way that made him wary. He had the sudden suspicion that his conversation with Marinette was not as private as he would have liked.

“So you got stuck in an elevator with Marinette, huh.” Damian’s suspicions were confirmed by the way Kent stressed her name, and he growled a warning to the half-Kryptonian. “You know, you're very grumpy now that you're out of the elevator, what's wrong, did Dick interrupt?”

“Kent, I would advise you to shut your mouth,” he snarled, a blush spreading up his neck when Grayson stared at him. “Tt, there was nothing to interrupt, as I have already explained to Grayson that I was gathering information on the Parisian heroes.”

“Oh? And the relevance of asking about whether she was dating her model friend?” Damian was going to murder him. He hissed as much to his now ex-best friend, acutely aware that Grayson was far too interested in the exchange. “Besides, I don't think I've ever heard you talk about your art with anyone before.”

“I was gaining her trust,” he ground out, before turning to glare at Grayson. “Do you not have somewhere else to be?”

“Oh, I think I can spare a few more minutes,” his traitorous brother said, grinning more widely than Damian had ever seen before. “I can't wait to tell Tim and Jay about this. You sure you didn't get her number, little bro?”

Kent snorted and any hope that Damian had of keeping the disaster the rest of the conversation had been disintegrated. He looked away, glaring into the distance as Kent proceeded. “He offended her; apparently he's allowed to ask her invasive questions about her ‘romantic entanglements’ but she can't ask if he's single.”

“She asked if you were single?” Grayson squealed, whipping around to see if he could see her still. He looked disappointed when it became clear that she was out of sight. “Dames, I can't believe you weren't going to tell me any of this! I could've helped!”

“There is every chance that she was only enquiring to further her own ambitions,” he said grumpily, glaring at Kent when he sighed exasperatedly. “What is the problem, Kent? You are perfectly aware that most everyone who approaches me is interested only in my father's money. It is not as though I have a winning personality that bids them to approach me.”

Neither Kent nor Grayson had anything to say to that, and Damian felt vindicated, if a little hollow. Of course she was only interested in the Wayne fortune, and if even overly optimistic Grayson could not argue the point, it was practically fact. He had hoped, when she had asked about pets and his art, that he could explore the strange attraction he felt for her, but it was a risk he dared not take.

The remainder of Marinette's day was overshadowed by the frustration that she had already blown her chance of getting to know Damian better.

_ _ _

Adrien was nervous. He knew he had taken a risk when he had let Plagg mess with the elevator to force Marinette to spend time with Damian. She had been mooning over the youngest Wayne for the past week and a half and they only had a few days before they returned to Paris.

But apparently it had backfired, and now Marinette was angry and disappointed - not to mention slightly heartbroken. She had locked herself in her room at the hotel they were staying at, courtesy of the Gotham Academy exchange program, only coming out for dinner. Her eyes had been a little puffy and she had made a point of talking to everyone else during the meal.

And when they had gone back to the school the following day, she had made herself small and unobtrusive, barely talking to any of the Parisian students. And whenever she was in the same room as Damian, she had completely shut herself off, buried in her schoolwork or, if she was on break, her sketchbook. 

He wasn't blind, he saw the young billionaire’s son watching his lady, and wondered how true it was that he had ruined any chance she had. It had looked like he was going to approach her several times, but each time she had mysteriously become busy and vanished. A sour look was common on Damian's face, but even his usual glower had nothing on today.

As they approached the last lesson of the day, Damian's tall friend made his way over to her. She looked up at him, a brittle, bright smile fixed on her lips. The smile faded as he spoke, a concerned frown taking its place. She stood, abandoning her work and nodding to the boy before following him out.

Marinette followed Jon to an empty classroom, wondering what he needed to talk to her about. He had said it was urgent, and all but begged her to come with him so she had relented. But she couldn't think what he possibly had to say to her. Was he going to warn her to stay away from Damian? Because, if so, he would likely be surprised by how quickly he'd get her agreement.

“Sorry to drag you away from your work,” he said sincerely, and she nodded confusedly. “I just wanted to talk to you about what happened yesterday. Damian hasn't said much but he's been pretty grumpy ever since.”

“Oh.” Her throat tightened and she felt a hot prickle of tears in her eyes. Even though she had figured this was how it was going, she didn't know what to say. ‘Sorry, I made your friend uncomfortable and he hates me, which is a bummer because I have a crazy crush on him’? Yeah, not likely. “I mean, it was- bad luck, really. It sort of follows me around sometimes, but my best friend was the one who pushed me into the elevator with Damian.”

“Adrien, right? Why'd he do that?” Jon looked earnest, and she felt her will to keep quiet crumble away slightly. She mumbled something incoherent, not wanting him to think she was completely insane. He waited patiently, cocking his head to the side.

“Look, my friend thought that, if I was forced to spend some time with your friend, I'd get over my nerves and tell him I think he's cute,” she said eventually. She was rapidly losing her desire to keep it to herself in the face of telling someone who knew Damian well enough to put her mind at rest. “But I blew it because I have precisely zero chill and rushed into asking him if he was seeing anyone and now he hates me.”

“Whoa, hang on, you think he's cute?” Jon looked like Christmas had just come early, bouncing onto the balls of his feet. “Sorry, sorry, I just- Damian thought you were asking because you wanted to get close to his family, since that's how these things usually go.”

“Why would I be interested in his family?” Marinette was bewildered, her mind turning over their interactions and picking at them. In none of their conversations had he ever mentioned who his family were, and she had been so overwhelmed on the first day that she'd only caught people's first names. “I mean, I get it, I know enough people with money that I've seen the kinds of people that do that sort of thing. But he's the one who mentioned Grayson when we were talking.”

“Kent, you are supposed to be speaking with Mr-” Damian strode into the room and froze when he saw Marinette. She squeaked and turned away, apologising for intruding before racing out of the room. She didn't make it far before someone caught her arm. She pulled out of the hold automatically, turning to face whoever it was. 

“Apologies, I did not want to shout and cause a scene,” Damian said stiffly, arm slowly lowering. She blushed again, trying to look at anything other than him but only succeeding about twenty percent of the time. “I did not mean to interrupt you and Kent, you should go and continue your conversation.”

“No, no, it's fine,” she said breathlessly, trying not to let him see how panicked she felt. She got the impression that she was failing, abysmally. “He just- he wanted to make sure I didn't do anything in the elevator yesterday, I think. But I was rambling and I think I just confused him, so I think it would be better if I-”

“Marinette, calm down,” Damian instructed, stepping closer to her. She stopped breathing as she looked up at him with wide eyes. The only thing she could see was his steady green eyes and she felt dizzy. “Marinette, take a breath for me, I am concerned that you will faint otherwise.”

She gasped suddenly, and something like relief shone in his eyes. “Why do you think I'm only after your family?” She blurted abruptly, flushing when he jerked back from her. “I mean- Jon said you thought I was only interested in you because of your family, but I don't even know who your family are. Obviously I'd like to meet them some time but it's not like we're even dating, so that's kind of a moot point.”

“...you are interested in me?” He said quietly, stepping closer. She blushed harder, stepping back and looking away. He stepped back into her space, and she retreated once more, continuing until she was against the corridor wall. He used a surprisingly gentle hand to turn her face towards him searching for an answer.

“Obviously,” she whispered, her hands somehow gripping his lapels. He didn't seem to care, the hand on her chin moving to brush a loose strand of her hair out of the way. She licked her lips, a quick darting motion that he tracked, which made the butterflies return in force. 

“Then I should probably tell you that I find you attractive,” he murmured, his head lowering towards hers. His breath fanned over her face, but he stopped short of actually kissing her. They stood, suspended in that moment for several seconds before they moved.

Marinette could not swear to what happened next. All she knew was that she felt the pressure of his lips on hers and she thought she had died and gone to heaven. It lasted for the briefest moment before someone else came into the hall, and Damian jerked back again, cheeks adorably flushed.

“Oh, I'm so sorry to interrupt,” came a sickly sweet voice that made Marinette close her eyes in anger. She turned to glare at Lila, hands falling away from Damian’s shirt. “Adrien was just saying that he hadn't seen you for a while, and with class starting soon we should come and find you. I didn't realise you were…busy.”

Before Marinette could retort, she skipped away, flashing a smirk at Marinette over her shoulder. She looked back at Damian, who was eyeing the retreating vixen with suspicion and resentment. He glanced back at Marinette, a warmth coming back to his eyes.

“I apologise for my forwardness, Marinette,” he said, taking her hand and squeezing gently. She grinned at him, flushing as she thought about just how forward they had both been. “But…if it is alright, perhaps we could spend some time together this evening?”

“I'd love to,” she said, practically buzzing with excitement when he gave her a crooked smile. She excused herself to go and get her things from the lunchroom, after giving him her number so they could find each other at the end of the day.

When she got back to her bag, she found Adrien sitting guard over it. He smiled tentatively at her, clearly hoping he had been forgiven for the previous day. She gave him a mock glare, but the heat that had been behind it that morning had dissipated.

She still planned on getting him back for putting her and Damian in danger, just because he thought she needed a push, but she could let him have a false sense of security for now.

As the last class of the day ended, Marinette received a short text from Damian, letting her know where to find him. She said goodbye to Adrien and Chloé excitedly before shooting off to inform the teachers that she would be spending time with one of the Gotham Academy students. 

When she approached their meeting place, she slowed when she spotted Jon practically hovering behind Damian, an excited spark in his eyes. He waved exuberantly at her and she gave a small one back but smiled brightly at Damian.

Damian had been dealing with Kent's smug behaviour for the final hour of the day and he was irritated that the super had decided to stalk him to his meeting with Marinette. He was convinced that his meddling had resulted in the resolution of Damian and Marinette's conflict and it made him unbearable.

When she finally appeared, she seemed reluctant to approach whilst Kent was with him, making him even more annoyed. But she gave him a smile so lovely he forgot his bad mood momentarily, smiling back at her. She stopped within touching distance, gripping the strap of her bag tightly. 

“Apologies, Marinette, Kent insisted on accompanying me to this meeting, but he will leave in a moment,” he said, turning sternly on his friend. Who proceeded to ignore him in favour of the girl he was attempting to woo. Damian seethed quietly, swearing he would find a way to get back at Kent. 

“It's fine, my friends have been trying to butt in since yesterday,” she assured him, giving Kent a stern and disappointed look. Damian smirked at the wounded look on the other boy's face, relieved that Marinette was not deterred by his presence. “But would you like to get going? I have to be back at the hotel by 7pm and I'd like to get to know you better.”

“Of course,” he said immediately, offering her his arm which she took without hesitation. “I'm keen to learn more about this famous patisserie your parents are responsible for.”

“Besides, we can always plan how we're going to get revenge over coffee,” she said sweetly, shooting Kent a wolfish smile. Damian laughed aloud in surprise when Kent squawked. Marinette was certainly far more interesting than anyone else who had approached him and, if she truly did not know who his family were, she could not possibly be angling for the Wayne heir specifically.

(Now with Part 2)

[cal-daisies-and-briars]

🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞 dude I am going absolutely insane over this story (Chris is home!!! family drama!!!! uh oh!!!!!)

THANK YOU!!!! Final chapter writing is IN PROGRESS.

144 or 1k - whatever comes first!

---

The family. The partner. The sense of absolute belonging. Something he built for himself, and something he hopes, and believes, he’ll get to keep. 

Buck was right about him and Eddie. They are great. They slip into the romantic parts of a relationship fairly easily. Like it was a switch they had both been fighting not to turn on anyway. It just seems like a small step from where they already were. Just a new level of a pre-existing affection. 

Well, not entirely.

Sex is tricky. Not because they’re incompatible or anything like that. There’s a hell of an attraction and desire to take things further, even if there’s a bit of a learning curve for Eddie. One Buck is obviously familiar with. No, the problem is actually opportunity. Between work and kids, there’s not actually a lot of open moments. 

They each have a two bedroom house. Their kids are way too different ages to have sleepovers together. So sleepovers for Buck and Eddie are a limited thing. Especially since they live so close together. Eddie does invest in a pullout couch for Dove to crash on, which makes Carla watching both kids easier. And they do have those post-shift, still during the school day moments to themselves. But most of those moments end with a joint nap. 

Whatever. They’re working through it. Maddie has offered to take Dove for a sleepover anytime.That’ll help. 

It’s kind of a busy time for them to get together. Christmas, then New Years, then Dove’s seventh birthday. It all happens in a whirlwind. Like a blur of holiday colors, big meals, and baked goods. Despite all that, they manage to give Dove two birthday parties. One with her friends from school and one with the whole 118 family. Considering she’s never had one before, two feels like the least Buck could do. And he thinks he’s right. It’s the perfect way to kick off the year. 

Half a year ago, he’d met her for the second time as a scared, lonely six year-old. Now, she’s a bright, chatty seven year-old, who knows her place in the world, too. She has a whole family looking out for her, celebrating her. He thinks she doesn’t feel alone anymore, and that the fear of losing what she’s gained is getting less and less potent every day.

ii.

The Wilsons’ adoption of Mara goes through in mid-February. Which, of course, means there’s another big party. One that everyone is overjoyed to attend. Not the least of them, Buck.

“This will be you soon,” he whispers to Dove as Karen cuts Mara’s cake. He kisses her cheek and she grins at him. He has his court date with the judge. He’s confident it’s going to happen. It doesn’t feel like a maybe anymore, or a hopefully. It feels like a soon. 

“What are you most excited for, Mara? Now that you’re adopted?” Athena asks her at one point during the party.

“Hmm,” Mara thinks. “Well, I’m really excited that I can write Mara Wilson on all my school assignments now. And all the teachers will know I’m Denny’s sister!”

“Careful,” Chim says, winking at Denny. “That might get you in trouble.”

“Hey!” Denny laughs. “No way!” 

It’s a sweet moment. A happy one. Buck doesn’t think too much more about it until later, on the drive home, when Dove brings it up again. 

“Dad?” She asks from the backseat, voice adopting that quiet little tone when she gets when she’s curious but nervous of her question. He thinks, at some point, someone must have shot her curiosity down in the past. He understands that feeling and he hates it for her. It’s getting better though.

“Yes?” He replies.

“When you adopt me, will I get to use your last name at school?” She asks. 

Buck smiles, pleased with the question.

“Absolutely,” he answers. “If that’s what you want to do.”

She has no attachment to Florek. He can’t imagine she’d want to keep it. If she wanted to, she could. But he’s absolutely changing Baby Girl Florek to a real name, the second he can. 

“Yes, please,” she says. “I want to.”

“Then you can,” he confirms. “We need to pick a middle name for you, too. You don’t have one.”

“What’s your middle name?” She asks.

“Phillip,” he answers. “It’s just my dad’s name. My parents weren’t feeling, uh, creative…. When I was born.”

“What will my middle name be?” She asks.

“I don’t know yet,” he admits. “We have to choose one that you like. And we’ll get rid of the Baby Girl part, too, okay? No one will ever call you that again.”

“So my whole name will be new?” She asks.

“Kind of, yeah,” he says. “You’ll be Dove Middle Name Buckley.”

She giggles. “My middle name can’t be Middle Name.” 

“I know,” he chuckles. “We’ll find something.” 

Dove thinks for a second. “Is Mara’s whole name going to be new, too?”

“No, honey,” he answers. “They’re just changing her last name to Wilson.”

“Why not?”

“Well, because Mara’s situation is a bit different,” Buck says. “She has a first and middle name that her birth parents picked and I think she wants to keep those.”

“But my birth parents didn’t pick anything for me,” Dove says quietly. 

Buck’s heart twists. 

“No, sweetie,” Buck answers. “But that’s because it was a hard situation, okay? Not because of anything about you.”

“Maybe…” She starts, then trails off. 

“Maybe what?” Buck asks. 

“Maybe you can pick a new one for me,” she says in a very tiny voice.

“A new… A new name?” Buck asks, not sure he’s following. 

“Mhm,” she confirms. 

“Like your middle name?” Buck asks. “You want me to pick it.”

“No,” she whispers. “The other one.”

“You want me to pick a new first name for you?” Buck asks.

“Can you do that?” 

Buck is a little thrown off. He doesn’t know what to think. He’s driving. He can’t exactly turn around and look at her. So he needs to process this without her facial expressions.

[jellyfishandry]

Could I request an Toshinori Yagi one shot where he meets a lady who actually prefers him in his "small might" form, mainly because it's easier to give him head pats and cheek/forehead kisses cuz she can reach when he's in that form compared to his muscle form where he's just way too tall for her to reach🤭 also it'd be cute if she's the teacher's assistant so she usually works alongside each of the classes teacher's and Toshi likes spending time with her cuz she gives him good advice on how to improve his teaching skills, and they often have lunch 2gether and go out on "dates" tho they prolly don't see it that way. Something fluffy and platonic possibly even like a slow burn where it takes them time and forming a true emotional connection b4 either starts to feel any sort of romantic type of love, but in the beginning it's all platonic and friendly like. Hope this makes sense😅

Toshinori one-shot

Content: Mentions of food, platonic or romantic, mentions of trash??, gn!reader,

Word count: 0.5k

A/N: I'm so sorry that this is a month late, but hope the way I wrote this is okay, as I'm not great with slow burn :'D (I'll do part two if you'd like)

“Good morning All Might.” You said, entering the staff room. You placed a pod in the coffee machine, and placed a mug under the spout. “Oh uh, good morning.” He was looking through some papers, and he seemed somewhat in a rush. Your eyes scanned his messy desk before you spoke again. “What’re you looking for?”  “I lost my keys again, I swear I set them on my desk…” He replied, looking behind his monitor.  You nodded and picked up your mug and took a sip of coffee. You motioned to his coat that was hanging off the back of his chair. “Have you checked your pockets?”  He nodded, and sat back down in defeat. He looked under a folder, but to no surprise, his keys were not there. He always had a backup house key in his car, but of course that would require finding his car keys.  Then his phone that was sitting on a pile of papers started to buzz with a reminder.  “Why don’t you get to class, I’ll look for your keys while I have prep.” You suggested.  A small smile appeared on his lips. “Thank you.” He stood up and gathered his things before leaving the staff room.  Your eyes scanned the area around his desk, looking for his keys or the little All Might keychain attached to them. But there was no sign of them.  A sigh escaped your mouth, and you sat down in front of your desk.  You stared at the blank screen of the monitor for a moment, not wanting to start working. But you started anyway, going through the papers that were stacked in a neat pile on your desk.  As you were sorting through them, you found a pencil about the size of your pinky. Assuming no one would want to use it, you dropped it in the trash can next to your desk. But when it made contact with the contents of the trash, there were a few quiet clinking sounds. You looked over at the trashcan, confused. You could see a key poking out from behind some trash. Hesitantly you reached down, reluctantly picking the keys out from the trash.  They were indeed All Might’s keys.  A soft chuckle escaped your mouth. He must’ve accidentally pushed them off his desk without noticing.  You gently placed them on the desk and resumed your work. “Oh, you found them; where were they?” You jumped slightly, unaware that All Might had entered the room. “They were in the trash bin.”  He laughed slightly, and sat down at his desk. “I must’ve knocked them off my desk, thank you for finding them.”  You smiled at him. “It’s no problem.” There was a few minutes of silence where you continued working, and he was trying to do the same, but he seemed distracted. “Do you want to eat lunch with me?” He blurted out. You looked over at him, slightly shocked. But your look of surprise soon melted into a smile. “I’d love to.” 

|| Navigation ||

[nfr-girly]

Little Hope - Bradley Bradshaw x reader (Part 2)

Part 1

a/n: if anyone has any writing tips they can give me any is appreciated!! x

Your POV

3:15 had finally come and I was sending off all my students with their parents. One of the things I liked best about being a teacher was to see the kids faces light up whenever they see their parent come to pick them up, always giggling and showing them what they did that day.

As I’m helping a few kids with their colouring, I hear a sudden yell come from someone.

“Daddy!!”

I turn to see Hope almost jumping on her dad. Jesus Christ. He had shown up in what I assumed was a military uniform and sunglasses. His moustache standing out more than ever. I collect Hopes bag from her peg and walk over to the pair.

His eyes look towards me; and I see a sudden change in his eyes. I can’t describe it, but it’s different.

“Hiya Mr Bradshaw, here’s Hopes bag. She had a wonderful first day and she even made her own coasters today , so you and her mum can use them!” I said, smiling at Hopes giddy face.

Bradley’s face had shifted to a frown at the mention of “her mum”. A sudden feeling of worry running through me.

“Oh- um it’s just me” he replied, gulping.

“Oh. Um im really sorry, well you can use them, she can have her own aswell” I giggle, a smirk forming on his face. Thank fuck.

I don’t ask about what he means by ‘just me’, but as much as I hate to admit it I feel a sudden feeling of hope upon hearing there’s no “Mrs Bradshaw” in the picture.

“Well anyway I will see you tomorrow and have a great rest of your day!” I give them both a smile, but before I can properly walk away, Bradley stops me.

“Uh wait!” His hand is gently placed on my wrist, and a rise of warmth grows in my stomach, my cheeks becoming redder by the second.

“Can I quickly talk to you in private?” He asks. A feeling of nerves sprouted. I was never nervous to talk to a parent in private before, so why was I all of a sudden nervous now?

“Yeah of course, Hope if you’d like you can continue playing with Samuel and Tommy over by the sand pit” I say pointing to two of my students.

“Okay!!” She runs off without a second thought.

Me and Bradley turn back to look at each other; his eyes piercing into mine. It feels like we’re stuck in time, unable to take our eyes off the others. I look down at my wrist and realise he’s still holding it. He looks down and realises too before quickly letting go. My wrist feels empty from the sudden loss of contact.

————————————————————————

His POV

Shit. Did I hold on too long? I didn’t want to let go but she would’ve thought I was a weirdo if I didn’t

“I just wanted to quickly mention something about Hope. So uh she can get really nervous sometimes and especially in a new environment like this, she can get quite shy, I just wanted to ask , if she does can you give her this? It’s her favourite and it really helps to calm her down.” I hand her Hopes favourite plushie. Ironically one that her mom originally got her.

“Of course! I promise I’ll give it to her and try to calm her down the best way I can if it comes to it.” She says, the sweetness in her voice acting as a massage for my ears.

“Thank. I didn’t wanna mention it in front of her, I just don’t know if she’d like it.”

“Don’t worry I understand!” She replies, a moment of silence passes between us before she continues.

“So you’re um a Military man?” She asks, pointing to my uniform.

“Yeah. Navy pilot. Take after my dad.” I reply, regret filling me after the last part, hoping she doesn’t ask about my dad.

“That’s amazing, it must be cool having the navy exist through two generations for you. I actually heard aviators have something called call sign names aswell? Is that right?” She asks. Shit. What if she thinks my call sign name is weird. Rooster. Ugh.

“Yeah, we do.. um mine is uh, rooster” I sound like a chicken speaking to her, no wonder that’s my call sign.

“Oh!! THATS where she got it from. Hopes teddy I heard was named rooster, I just assumed she really liked the animal!” She says laughing, I laugh along with her.

After we settle; she asks: “so is flying a plane hard? I heard it’s pretty intense in the navy”

“At first it is, but I’ve been doing this for years, just got used to it”

“That’s really great, I’ve always wanted to see what it was like in an aircraft”

It takes an insane amount of willpower and the total muscle power of everyone on earth to stop me from asking her if she’d like to have a look in my jet.

“It is cramped as hell in there I won’t lie.” I reply, both of us laughing in unison. God her laugh will be the death of me.

“Hey um before I go, can I give you the contact details of someone else who might pick up Hope sometimes?”

“Yeah of course! You can put all the details on here.” She gives me a piece of paper and I write down everything she’d need to know.

“His names maverick, he’s pretty much like an uncle to Hope and he’s a good friend of my dad’s. Kinda like a dad to me too I guess.” We both chuckle and I give her the piece of paper.

“Thank you, and make sure to give him the password for when he does come aswell” she says with a smile

“Yeah don’t worry I will, and also by the way you don’t need to call me Mr Bradshaw, it’s too formal, just Brad.”

We walk over to Hope, where she is now playing on the swings.

“Hey Bunny we gotta go.” I say to her, out of the corner of my eye I see Y/N smile at the nickname.

“Aww why I am having fun” Hope replies

“I’m sorry baby but we have to go.”

“Okay… I will see you tomorrow Miss L/N.” She waves at Y/N.

“Yeah I’ll see you tomorrow as well” I smile and give her a small wink, before heading towards the car. Should I have done that? What if I looked embarrassing? It was too late now. But suddenly preschool wasn’t looking so bad for Hope, or me.

————————————————————————

taglist 👇

@itsdesiree86

[eds6ngel]

another idea: reader going over to robin and vickie’s with steve for dinner one night, robin talks to reader about how good reader is for steve, little bonding moment with robin, and reader starts to feel deeper love, then fluff with steve and maybe a reciprocation of feelings? I think that’s it for now, but you don’t have to do any of them! thank you so much for writing the series, its soooo good and I can’t wait for any spin-offs!

hi my love!! i started off with this one as it goes in the order i'd like to tackle my asks in! i changed it up slightly (not too much), so i hope you enjoy!! ♡

warnings: dad!steve. singledad!steve. 90s!au. fem!reader. use of y/n. swearing. kissing. a lil bit of making out. allusions to sex. pet names. food mentions. r is mentioned as unlabeled (so you can assign the label according to your identity!!) r being an ally. fluff. comfort. love confessions!! [2.3k].

full 'when i kissed the teacher' masterlist.

“Babe?” Steve asks you, currently attending to the dishes piled in the sink from your beautiful handmade soup the two of you had for lunch. Alena was currently staying with Jonathan and Nancy, having a sleepover with her friend Ashley, which meant you had the place to yourselves.

“Uh huh?” you reply, not tearing your eyes away from the very intriguing book about the psychology of the human mind.

“You’re accepting, right?”

The question draws you away from the paperback, looking behind you to where Steve was scrubbing away at a green bowl, placing it neatly on the drying rack. “Yeah, I would say I am. Why?” The question seemed out of the blue, almost unordinary for him. It’s not like you had an issue with said question, it was just the timing that was confusing.

“Just… I really hope she doesn’t kill me for this,” Steve mumbles to himself, just loud enough for you to catch the tail end of, “You know Robin, she’s uh… She’s a lesbian, had a girlfriend for nine years. That’s okay with you… right?”

You smile, “Of course it’s okay. It’s more than okay. People can love whoever they want to love.” You were very passionate about this topic. You hadn’t particularly labeled your own sexuality, but you were striving for the ones that didn’t fit into the heteronormative society to have as many rights as you did. You frankly thought it was stupid that they didn’t already, and that as long as relationships are consensual and healthy, anybody of age should be allowed to love and potentially have sex with whoever they wanted.

Steve sighs out, chuckling lightly, “Oh thank God. I was so scared for a second.”

“Babe, if I didn’t support gay people, I shouldn’t even be deserving of your time. Besides… I’ve been to a few protests in my life,” you smirk, quickly looking back down at your book to leave Steve standing there in shock.

“You’ve been to protests?”

“Mhmm,” you hum, “College is a wild ride babe. You end up doing things you never thought you would ever do.”

“Huh… Anyway,” he shakes his running thoughts off, “I was asking because I was wondering if you’d like to go on a double date with them. You know, me and you, Robin and her girlfriend Vickie, that sort of thing?”

“Of course!” you happily agree, “When were you thinking?”

“Well, I’ll have to check with the girls, but since Alena isn’t back until tomorrow evening, I was thinking we could grab lunch somewhere tomorrow afternoon?”

“That sounds great babe! I’m totally down.”

He puts the final dish on the rack, walking up behind you and placing a tender kiss on the crown of your head, “Great, let me just give them a call, see if they’re down too.”

“There’s nothing good on this menu,” Robin whines, “You couldn’t have chosen a better restaurant, Steve?”

The four of you were squeezed into a booth of a small sandwich shop on the outskirts of Hawkins. Steve had his hand on your thigh as he scanned through the menu to the right of you, Robin and Vickie sat opposite.

Steve scoffs, “Just because you’re an extremely fussy eater, Robin. Everyone else here seems to be fine with the menu. The menu’s good, isn’t it, babe?” His question holds a slight waver of uncertainty, his best friend making his insecurities come out.

You take a quick look up at Robin over the top of your menu, smirking away as you pretend to cringe, “Well…”

Steve’s eyes open wide as he thinks he made the biggest mistake of his life, you having to quickly put a reassuring hand on your shoulder to calm him down, “I’m only kidding babe, it’s wonderful.”

“Well, according to someone it isn’t,” he narrows his eyes at Robin, her sticking her tongue out at him. You and Vickie give each other a look, as if you were both mothers parenting your immature children.

The waiter soon comes, Robin ordering a plain chicken sandwich, as suspected, Steve a ham and cheese toastie, Vickie a cheese and salad sandwich, and you deciding on a pulled pork sandwich.

“So,” you begin to start the conversation back up, “I’ve heard the two of you have been together for nine years. That’s incredible!”

Vickie holds Robin’s hand in hers on top of the table, the other leaning against her cheek, “Yeah. Almost at the nine year anniversary. You know, it took Robin two years to ask me out. She had a crush on me since the start of ‘86, took her until the Spring of ‘88 to make a move. We were both just blubbering messes up until that point. She finally asked me out, we had our first date, and then the rest is history I suppose.”

“So, just like me and Steve,” you giggle, Steve squeezing your thigh as he smiles down at you, Robin noticing how in love her best friend looks. “Always the whole mutual pining game, huh?”

“Apparently so. After the earthquake happened here a decade ago, we had to help out at the school for anyone affected,” Vickie explains, “Well, Robin and I got put on making PB&J’s, and I got so rambly and nervous in her presence that I buttered both pieces of bread with peanut butter.”

“Yeah, I was sorting clothes, watching the two of you be all cutesy and shit from across the room.”

Robin lets her mouth hang open, “You were watching that day?”

Steve nods with a grin on his face, “Uh, yeah? My best friend talking to her crush who she wouldn’t shut up about for months? And the two of you laughing and getting along? Of course I was watching.”

Vickie sighs happily, “I’m trying to think of some questions to ask the two of you, but I think we know every detail of your relationship.”

Robin raises her eyebrows with a smirk next to her girlfriend, “Oh yeah. Every goddamn time we saw him. ‘She called me handsome.’ ‘She’s just so pretty.’ ‘What am I supposed to do?’ Over and over again. It was constant reassurance, trying to encourage him to ask you out.”

“Just to let you know though,” Vickie points at you, “We did not encourage him to kiss you and therefore lose your job. We take absolutely no responsibility in that.”

You brush her off with a wave of your hand, “I mean, it didn’t end up so bad in the end. I mean, no insult to Hawkins or anything—”

“Babe,” Steve interrupts you, “We’ve all grown up here. You can insult this place however you like.”

“I don’t like to be rude though honey, you know that!” you laugh as Steve presses a kiss to your cheek, Robin and Vickie giving each other a knowing look, “Okay, fine. Just to preface, I loved the kids I taught, okay? Nothing wrong on their part. Just… some of the teachers were extremely mean in the staff room, some parents were just absolutely awful and the place itself was just… I dunno, something felt off.”

“Yeah, because it’s a piece of shit,” Robin truthfully states, Vickie jabbing her lightly in the ribs, Robin letting out an “Ow!”

You giggle, “Yeah, it kind of is, I guess. At least in comparison to Ernie Pyle. I suppose parents take their kids education a lot more seriously there. The student population is mostly made up of ethnic minorities from disadvantaged backgrounds, so the parents want to give their kids what they never had growing up. Plus, I think it’s around 90% of the teachers already have at least three years of prior teaching experience. It’s one of the reasons they took me on actually.”

“Well, I’m glad you got your happy ending. Perfect relationship and a perfect job,” Vickie points out, “Seems like a total win.”

“Yeah,” you look up at Steve lovingly, “It was.”

You had all enjoyed your meals, no matter how adventurous your selections were. Before you all got ready to leave, Steve excused himself to the bathroom, Robin sipping the final bits of her strawberry milkshake. “I’ve never seen dingus so in love before. I imagine you must get fed up with how much he says it.”

But, that’s the thing: he’d never said it. You weren’t gonna critique him on that, you were happy to take things as slow as possible, but there was that lingering thought in the back of your mind that maybe he wasn’t as in love as you were. And you didn’t want to scare him off by saying those three words if he didn’t feel that confident in the relationship yet.

“Actually, he hasn’t said it yet…” you let out.

“What?”

“Are you kidding?”

The two girls sit there in shock as you shrug it off. “No, you have to be lying,” Robin says, “Dingus has been in love with you since… well, forever!“

“Yeah, my love’s not kidding,” Vickie adds on, “I’m pretty sure he told us after you two did the Christmas Fayre together.”

“Probably even alluded to it before that.” Robin looks you in the eye, “You do love him, don’t you?”

You nod, “Of course I love him, Robin! I just don’t want to say it, and then he doesn’t feel the same—“

“Y/N, I’m telling you,” Vickie interrupts you, “He is 100% definitely in love with you. I know that for a fact. We both do.���

Robin nods, making you lean back in your chair and pinch the bridge of your nose, “Why won’t he say it then?”

“Y/N,” Robin starts, “The first girl Steve ever said ‘I love you’ to was Nancy Wheeler two weeks into their relationship, and they broke up a year later. The second was Alena’s mother who walked out when her daughter was a few months old, leaving Steve alone with a child to raise by himself. I think he’s just scared to say it in case you leave, since that’s all he knows.”

Vickie nods along, “But, if you say it first… I think that he might calm down a little. Realise that you are the one taking initiative.”

“Just say it…” Robin says softly, “What else have you got left to lose?”

But, you could have a lot to lose. What if he was just saying it to Robin and Vickie and doesn’t properly mean it? What if you tell him and he doesn’t reciprocate? You’d lose your whole relationship.

You have no time to think as Steve re-appears, reaching for his denim jacket the other side of you, “Right, we ready to go?”

Robin and Vickie smile at you, giving you a look as they begin to stand, collecting their belongings as the four of you head out the main entrance of the shop.

After bidding farewell to Robin and Vickie, Steve drove you back home, him having to clean the house for when Alena got home, and you having to prepare resources for your class tomorrow.

He pulls up to your apartment complex, leading you to the entrance as always, like the gentlemen he is.

You grab his hand, Steve noticing that it was slightly shaking wrapped around his, “Um… Steve? I just want to say something before you go.”

He simply stares back, you taking it as a sign to continue talking. You let out a breath. It was now or never.

“I understand that you’ve been wanting to take this entire thing slowly, and I get that. But, I just want to reassure you that I am in this for the long run. I love how you treat me, and care for me. I love the dates you take me on, they are so varied. I love how kind, and caring, and slightly stupid you can be sometimes. And I guess what I’m trying to say is that… I love you.”

You can audibly hear how his breath hitches in his throat, your brain instantly taking that as a mistake, “But, don’t feel as if you need to reciprocate or anything, because I don’t want to pressure you into doing that. I just needed to let it out—”

Your rambling is stopped by Steve’s lips crashing into yours. You can’t help but let the slight moan slip from your mouth as he deepens the kiss, your hands wrapped around his shoulders as he cups your cheeks. Before the kiss can escalate, Steve pulls apart from you, leaning his forehead against yours as he whispers back, “I love you too,” a goofy smile gracing his features. “Shit, I was just so scared to say anything in case it made you leave, as that’s what usually happens whenever I say those words—”

It’s now your time to interrupt him with a giggle, “I know baby, Robin kind of told me everything.”

He shakes his head, “God, I hate her. Always revealing secrets about me.”

“Damn,” you huff, “Maybe I should hang out with her more, get more juicy details about you.”

He leans back, raising his eyebrows at you, “Absolutely not. I’ve revealed way too much of my life to her.”

You both laugh, “You’re an idiot, Steve Harrington.”

“I love you too, Y/N L/N,” he replies, leaning in to kiss you once again. You melt into the kiss, Steve swiping his tongue across your lips, asking for permission to which you accept, opening your mouth and letting his tongue slip in, the lingering taste of his sandwich invading your senses. The two of you moan, you pulling back to catch your breath, realising the two of you were technically stood directly next to a busy road. “Amy’s out with her boyfriend today… So, I have the apartment to myself…”

Steve looks down at his watch, before turning his gaze back to you, smirking and seductively replying, “I think we have time.”

i hope you enjoyed!! i will get to the rest of your asks (and everybody else's) tomorrow and during the course of next week!! ♡

taglist: @livsters @bakugouswh0r3 @nix-rose @ihatepeanutss @cats00089 @suitelif3 @clincallyonline17 @crowssixof @starkeylover @eris-rose-86 @frostandflamesfanfic

[justjensenanddean]

Jensen Ackles and Jeffrey Dean Morgan | New Jersey Convention, Main Panel (April 16, 2023)

(x)

“hey dad! times been good to ya” (x)

when jensen and danneel had crushes on each other but were tied up with other people jensen wrote her a note that said “not now. but someday” and she still has it (x)

jdm was on jensens first date with danneel bc JENSEN INVITED HIM BC HE HAD NO IDEA IT WAS A FIRST DATE (x)

jensen: jdm got off a motorcycle in slomo and i saw hilarie’s jaw on the floor. she had no idea who he was (x)

fan: fav backstage moment from cons jdm: when i told everyone i was having a daughter bc i wasnt supposed to  (x)

jensen: when we announced the end of spn and at SDCC there were 7000 people and i told jared “take this in. this is it”  (x)

*everyone arguing over an answer* jensen; glad we figured that out. great job jdm: im still confused (x)

jensen got in trouble for sharing info abt a project last con so he will not be saying ANYTHING (x)

fan; SOLDIER BOY COMING BACK? jensen: uh…….no comment  (x)

theyre talking about their daughters jdm: mine will be the death of me jensen: one will be the death of me and the other will take care of me jdm; mine will be twerking over my grave jensen: HOW YOU LIKE ME NOW DADDY  (x)

.@JDMorgan : the year I did #Supernatural and Grey's Anatomy changed my life #SPNNJ (x)

.@JensenAckles getting the part of Tony in West Side Story in high school was life changing - after his baseball coach talked him into doing it. (x)

(x)

the drama teacher at Jensen’s school wanted him to be in the spring musical and his baseball coach was like “you’ve played with me for three years. go give this a shot i promise we’ll be in the front row”  (x)  a talent scout was at the play and told jensen that he had it and he should come to LA and he went “lol take a hike” (x)  THE ROLE WAS TONY IN WEST SIDE STORY!!! and his whole baseball team was like “woah ” (x)

jensen: getting into the industry is harder now that it was back then jdm: i dont even know how to get an agent now jensen: yeah dont ask us for advice  (x)

Question: Jensen, what was your favorite thing about soldier boy? JDM: the codpiece. *crowd laughs* JDM: sorry, I thought you were asking me.  (x)

the boots soldier boy wore on the show are the same ones that dean wore on spn. they’re called carolinas  (x)

jensen: jdm texted me when i was getting fitted and he was immediately like “SHOW ME THE COD PIECE” and i was like “perfect timing i have five of them lined up which one” AND JDM SAID “PICK THE BIGGEST ONE” (x)

fan; nash was amazing. is there hope for touring in the future for radio co? jensen: thanks it took a lot of drugs jdm: he’s not lying  (x)

jensen: touring might be aggressive but anything is on the table  (x)

jdm: i watched it online and i remember texting you being like “what the fuck is going on that was amazing” (x)

jensen looked at steve and said “this is a bad idea we should leave” right before going on bc louden swain KILLED and they didnt wanna follow that  (x)

.@JensenAckles : even tho it was a vengeful mission, John set out to right a wrong. In The Winchesters we wanted to show John before that trauma.  (x)

jensen says the pilot of spn “holds up today”  (x)

fan: whats your fav format to play in (movies, tv, voice acting, etc) jdm; whatever has the best writing. we knew supernatural was going to be good by the first ep (x)

jensen turns towards tv bc he doesnt know where it’ll go and where it will end (x)

jensen: ive done soap operas and that was 20-24 pages of dialogue a day (x)

APPARENTLY ONE TIME JENSEN TAPED JEFF’S DIALOGUE TO HIS CHEST AND HE WAS LIKE “WE GOTTA GET THROUGH THE DAY LOOK AT MY TITS”  (x)

JENSEN TALKING ABOUT FRIENDS AND HE YELLS “PIVOT” (x)

jensen: i heard “anyway you want it” in the car and almost got out before the second chorus hit bc i thought i was late for stage (x)

fan: go to karaoke song? jensen: have u ever done karaoke? jdm: never in my life. i think you asked me once and i said “goodnight 👋🏻 ” jensen: right but it was more like “goodnight 🖕🏻  (x)

(x)

[weemsfreak]

Botany...Of Course, Pt 1

Summary: Peyton is the new Botany teacher at Nevermore. They are a telepath. They find themselves on a trip with Principal Weems. They discover what happened the year before they became a teacher at Nevermore, amongst other things. (Multiple parts)

Tw: None?

Note: This is my first fanfic, I don't know if it's any good! Let me know though. PS. I'm in love with Larissa :) ~2300 words

You were the new Botany teacher at Nevermore. You didn’t hear much of what happened last year, but judging by the fact that nobody wanted to talk about it, it wasn’t good. All you knew is that the botany teacher had died, and Larissa almost did too. Around three months ago, your friend Ren who worked at Nevermore told you to apply for the position as you had just graduated from your teaching degree. You were extremely grateful that Principal Weems had decided to give you a chance. Being 25, you felt really young and immature around other teachers, so you always tried to be incredibly professional and helpful.

One Friday you were walking to your room after classes. As you walked through the main doors to outside, Larissa was coming in. “Oh Peyton, I haven’t seen you this week, how are things?” she chirped when she saw you. She was wearing her green dress and matching coat with black gloves. This was your favourite outfit of hers if you’re being honest. “Hi Principal Weems, things are great! I’m learning a lot and the students are so well behaved.” “Well, so far, but that’s great to hear!” she said in a tone that seemed a bit hopeless, but caught herself. She paused for a moment and looked you up and down. You didn’t know if that was the end of the conversation and you should go? It sounded like she was going to continue. She was still staring at you, a slight smile on her face ,like she was pondering something. You stared back at her, eyes drifting to her outfit. You loved her style and how she was so confident and put together all the time. You envied her, for more reasons than just that. "You know, I don't have any plans for tonight, care to join me for some wine? Or just to talk if you're not into that. 8pm?" she asked you so sure, and batted her eyelashes when she did. You stuttered when you answered, surprised she would want to spend any time with you. "Yes, uh- sure Principal Weems, I would love to!"

You were facing her grand office doors, your phone read 7:50pm. You were trying to pick an outfit and get yourself together all night, you were surprised you weren't late. Confidence and having your crap together wasn't exactly your strong suit. With ten minutes to spare, you went for a walk through the hallway. Looking at some old photos, you noticed Larissa in one, a photo of award winners from 1991. She won a Literary award and a…Botany award? You thought that was the cutest thing ever. Young Larissa, how you would've loved to meet her. You knocked on her door once and when you went to knock again it opened. She stood there, her face lit up. You weren't surprised she was in a good mood, it was a Friday night, "Ah Peyton, come in!" You walked in and stood in the middle of her office as she gestured for you to sit on the sofa in front of the lit fireplace. As you sat, she poured you a glass of wine and took a sip from hers. She passed it to you and sat next to you, crossing her legs, her knee touching yours. She didn't say anything, just looked at you, again. You were usually uncomfortable with people staring at you, but you couldn't say much, you did the same to her. "I really like your dress, it looks stunning on you" you said, sounding nervous but giving her a sincere smile anyway. Ugh, why couldn't you just say 'I like your dress' and leave it at that, she's going to think you're a weirdo. "Why thank you, I did get it made specially for me" she said with a wink. Of course she did you thought, it hugged her perfectly, as it should. You grinned and looked away, trying to hide it. She asked you about your classes and how you felt with this being your first teaching job. Truthfully you loved it. The kids seemed so happy to be here and learn, and you loved teaching. You didn't know if you would when you took your degree, but you're glad you ended up here. "I'm really grateful to you Principal Weems, I think this was the best place for me to start my teaching career" you beamed at her after a couple glasses of wine. "Well good, I'm so glad to hear that."

You wanted to ask her about last year, about what happened and why the botany teacher died. You didn't want to ruin the mood though, or have her thinking about the time she almost died. You could, of course, try to find it in her memories, but only if she would allow you to. "So, do you have anything interesting going on lately?" you asked, genuinely curious. She poured another glass for you and her, and took her time to answer. "I am going to a principals conference in two weeks, it's being held at a very fabulous hotel in Tennessee" she trailed off, looking into the fire. Looking back at you, "I do feel rather lonely going though, usually I wouldn’t mind, but lately I just want someone to share things with, you know?" You did know, you knew all too well. Was this an invitation? Or was she just confiding in a friend? You weren't the best at picking up on hints or social cues. "I'll come with you" you said in a sarcastic tone, looking into the fire. You would go with her, but you didn't know if she wanted that. "What would you do when I go to the conference?" Oh, she was serious. "Well, I've been there before, they have some shops, including coffee and really good pretzels and cinnamon buns, and they have three different conservatories, it's absolutely incredible. I can get some ideas for our conservatory, maybe you can write it off as a work trip." You were surprised with your response, and so was she. You didn't realize how much you would love to go on vacation, especially with Larissa. She thought it adorable how you called it 'our' conservatory. She smirked down into her wine glass for a minute, then at you. "That sounds very convincing Peyton. If you really want to go, I can book your flight. Unfortunately, we would have to share a room. There are no more available, it's always very busy there." Unfortunate, for who you wondered. "Oh, I don’t want to infringe on your trip Principal Weems, I know it would be much more comfortable for you to not have to stay with me." You looked up at her as she moved closer to you, "Nonsense, it will be fun getting to know each other, maybe you can teach me a thing or two…about Botany, of course."

You leave tomorrow. Since Principal Weems proposed you go to Tennessee with her, you have only talked to her about your trip details. You were excited to get away for a few days, but being alone with her for that long scared you. What if she thought you were boring, what if she thought you didn't like having fun, or what if she thought you weren't responsible or professional? You didn't know which was worse. You had a gift, you thought, you had telekinetic abilities. Not very typically though, like feeling emotion or reading peoples thoughts. Yes, you could move things with your mind, but you were more telepathic. You could see a memory in someone's mind if it was a very joyous or very traumatic one. You could erase a memory/knowledge from someone's mind, and you could give someone knowledge as well. If anything went really wrong, Larissa wouldn't remember it, if you had something to do with it. "So, you're going away with the principal. Tsk, tsk Peyton, does she know you're into women?" Ren loved making fun of you over anything you did. You've known each other for so long, you both loved to bat back and forth. "No, she doesn't, and she's not going to Ren...because it's not like that." "Well, I've worked here for years, and she has never asked me on a trip, but whatever you say Peytato." You packed your favorite clothes, some dress pants and nice shirts, a dress and maxi skirt, your favorite penny loafers and platform sandals, and a black two piece in case you went swimming. "Toni, these bras and underwear are frigging old, are you trying to turn her away?" You didn't know how many times you had to say it. "Ren it doesn't matter, nobody is going to see them" you sighed. "Bullshit, we're going shopping so get ready, now!"

As you both arrived to the airport, you were nervous to get on the plane. It had been awhile since you were on one. You thought that it was fun to take off, but the rest of the trip was anxiety ridden and you could never relax, let alone sleep. As you boarded the plane you took your seat and looked out the window. You had booked your ticket after Larissa, so you couldn't get a seat next to her. As a man sat next to you, you became increasingly more nervous. You didn’t like feeling of doing something scary alone, let alone sitting next to a stranger, a man, doing it. Looking around to see where she was sitting, you bit your nails, you couldn't find her. She saw you looking for her with worry on your face and nails in your mouth. She was sat two rows behind you, and would've been so easy to catch if you had just looked back. Putting your head down you fiddled with your ear buds, maybe they would help with the noise. You closed your eyes and leaned your head against the window. A few minutes later you felt someone's hand on yours, and you froze, not wanting to open your eyes. You realized a mans hand wouldn't be this warm, this soft, this- you opened your eyes, red nails. You looked up beside you and Larissa was sitting there, giving you a reassuring smile. "Rissa, this isn't your seat" you beamed at her, being so relieved that you weren't alone. She smiled wider at your use of her nickname, "I know, I asked that man to trade seats. I saw you looking for me. Do you get nervous on planes? Why didn't you tell me?" You didn’t tell her before, you didn't want her to worry about you. "Yes, I just don't like them, they're loud and crammed and I always feel alone. I didn't tell you because I didn't want to bother you, since we didn't have seats together." "Well, we do now love."

You were laid back next to Larissa, chest rising and falling slowly. She watched you sleep, glad that you were no longer nervous. She thought you looked so beautiful and at peace. You later awoke with a jolt and looked around, just turbulence. All of the sudden you were hit with the urge to listen in on peoples conversations, and you found yourself detecting whether they were being truthful with their words. or not. One man sitting behind you, "Yes, I brought the gift for your sister"- lie, a flight attendant, "We don't have any juice left" - lie, a woman in front of you, "My husband is picking me up when we land" - blatant lie. "Ugh, Wednesday Addams will be the death of me" you look to Larissa who is in a huff, totally engrossed in and typing away on her laptop. You didn't know if she was talking to you or if she even meant to say that aloud. You observed her, her nose was scrunched up, her lips were pursed, otherwise she looked perfect. Perfect posture, perfect hair, perfect outfit, perfect jewellery, soft hands with nails painted perfectly -wait. You didn't pay attention to what she really said, you were too caught up in observing her. "Larissa, what did you just say?" Looking at you confused, she tilts her head and tries to recall if she had even said anything. "Oh, I didn't mean to speak aloud, apologies for waking you." You were asleep? "No worries, but what did you say?" Typing away again, you waited for her reply. "I think I said that Wednesday Addams will be the death of me" she said with a chuckle. You stared at her as your heart ached a bit, you didn't detect that as a lie, though you couldn't say it was the truth, you couldn't see into the future. She caught you staring, "Peyton what's wrong?" Nobody knew you could detect lies, as it was something new to you, and it only came on at random. In fact, nobody knew of your telepathic powers, besides the fact that you could control objects with your mind. "Uh, nothing, all good" you said softly with a forced smile. Turning back to the window, Larissa shut her laptop and put her hand back on yours. "You looked so peaceful sleeping, I'm happy you passed some time getting rest." You smiled up at her, her face so sincere, so true were her words. "I never sleep on planes, I guess I must feel safe enough with you that I can relax." She gave your hand a squeeze, "Only 20 more minutes" she said with excitement in her voice. You smiled, relieved to be landing soon. You took a chance and laid your head on her shoulder, hoping to god that she wouldn't reject you. To your surprise, she laid her head on yours and said in a low almost vulnerable tone, "Peyton, thank you for coming with me. This is so much better than being alone."

Link to Pt 2

[jolienjoyswriting]

Purrsuing Pawsibilities (ft. Nane Mau), Ch. I

Chapter 1 of 5 for "Purrsuing Pawsibilities," a Bellville High an I Was a Teenage Monster fan fiction story.

A new sub has come to Bellville High, and with her… a teacher's aide. Lonely werecat Nane Mau is intrigued.

Word count: 3,212 — Character count: 17,930 Drafted: September 14th / 15th / 18th / 25th, 2024 Revised: September 25th / 27th–29th, 2024 —

Hi, I'm back. Miss me~? … hello?

Ladies and gentlemen, meet Nane Mau.  She is the epitome of the "lovable loser" trope. (Or maybe I just relate to her way too hard.)  This girl has captured my heart and possessed me to write a terrible, trashy romance fan fiction story about her. I'm sure Josh is going to be "thrilled" about this.  (,:

Anyway, if you like this story, check out Josh's stuff.  Even if you hate the story, check it out.  I don't even know how I found him, but I'm glad I did! He draws very cute things that I have a great appreciation of. 👍

10/31 Edit: So, the name of the series is "I Was a Teenage Monster", apparently… Well, The More You Know, I guess.

Nane Mau, Renée, Shelly Screwloose, Dimitri Graaf, and "Bellville High" "I Was a Teenage Monster" series and related characters and concepts created by and © joshdamn23

[ ← Prev. Chapter | Next Chapter → ] —

    On an early morning, some rainy day, a lady was lying on her couch, watching old cartoons on a local channel.  She was laughing loudly and really enjoying herself as she relaxed in her favorite dinosaur pajamas, eating nacho-flavored chips.

    "Mau?"

    The lady looked up from her prone position.  Standing at the end of the couch was her roommate and friend, Renée.  She was dressed in a tank top and sweatpants.

    "Heeey, what's uuup, home slice?" the layabout greeted.     "Uh, hey…" Renée answered, a sound of skepticism in her voice.  "Have you been up all night?  You look terrible."     "Mm-hmm!" Mau proudly answered.  "Been watchin' a Flintstones marathon on the local channel!  Oh— look!  This one's a classic!  Fred got into tinkering with cars and wants to win a race for Pebble and Bamm-Bamm's college tuition.  Look at him go!  He's driving on the wall like it's nothing!!"     As Mau burst into uproarious laughter, Renée just kind of cocked her head.     "Okay, well…" she began, "I'm gonna go do my morning workout.  You should probably get cleaned up."     "You're not the boss of me!" Mau playfully countered with a toothy grin.     "No, but the Superintendent of Bellville is, and I don't think they'd like it if you turned up late for work.  Again."     "Pfft.  Silly Renée!  There's no work on Sunday!"     "No— Mau.  Sunday was yesterday," Renée explained.  "You stayed up all night so today is Monday.  It… would be Monday either way, but—"     "T-today is Monday?"     Mau's golden eyes stared, her creamy fur bristling under her lizard onesie.  She looked genuinely spooked by this revelation.     "Uh, yeah," Renée confirmed.  "Today's Monday and you have work in, like, an hour."     Well, that was all Mau needed to hear.  She let loose a loud expletive and leaped from the couch, throwing chips and cheese dip all over the place.     "H-hey!"     "I'll clean that later!" she yelped at her roomie.  "Sorry!"

    As Mau left the room, Renée stood there in silence, examining the mess.     "That girl…" she sighed, pinching the bridge of her muzzle.  "I swear…"     A moment later, her gaze fell upon the television set.  Her ears perked and her eyes widened, a look of surprise coming over her.     "Oh… hey!  This is a good episode!"     As the previous episode of The Flintstones ended, Renée moved the couch and coffee table, deciding to do her morning calisthenics while watching the old cartoon.  She decided that she, too, would clean the couch later.  It was already covered in stains anyway — what was one or two more? —

    Mau was a feline dervish as she made herself presentable.  A quick shower and change of clothes put the cream-colored cat back in her usual outfit: a sandy skirt, blue T-shirt, and comfy letterman jacket.  She accessorized with her segmented belt and collar, put a snake charm earring behind her right ear, then started to apply her makeup — eyeshadow under the eyes with a cute little curly mark at the corner — all the while grumbling at herself for being so careless.

    I can't believe I lost track of time like that! she thought as she drew on her face.  Actually… yes, I can.  I'm always screwin' around when I should be doing things.  But, damn it, I'm a grown-up and I deserve to be able to screw around!     She nodded to herself in affirmation.     Yeah.  Yeah, everyone else takes things too seriously!  They need to lighten up—     Another expletive passed her lips followed by a hiss.  She'd jabbed herself in the eye with the eyeliner pencil.     "Stupid makeup!" she snapped, throwing the marker in a snit.  "No, wait—!"     She reached for the marker, jamming her hand on the sink's smooth surface.  Alas, she was too late.  The thing had gone down the drain and was probably sitting in the bend of the pipe.  Three more expletives came out of her mouth and she kicked the cabinet, screaming as she jammed her toes.  Not long after, she hopped around the bathroom holding her injured foot.     "Why you…!"     Once the pain subsided, she stood on her good foot and started to swing toward the cabinet again!  However… she stopped short before standing up straight.     "No," she told herself with a sigh.  "You can smash the cabinet door later."     With that decision, she retrieved another pencil, finished her makeup, fixed her outfit, and headed back into the living room.

    As Mau re-entered the main area of the apartment, her ears picked up on the sound of Renée giggling about something.     "What's so funny, Née?" she asked.     Mau quickly noted that her roommate was seated on a clean part of the couch, watching The Flintstones with amusement.     "Hee hee hee!  Wow, Fred and Barney can't sing!" she replied, giggling all the more.     "Oh!  I love this episode!"     Mau leaped over the back of the couch, sat down, and… splat!     "What the f—"     She quickly stood back up, raising a leg and looking down.  Renée covered her mouth, staring with surprise.  There was a long strand of cheese dip stretched from the couch cushion to Mau's butt and, though she couldn't see it, a new sizeable stain on the back of her skirt.     "What in the—?!  Who left cheese dip on the freaking couch?!"     Renée's hands slid down to her collarbone.  She was trying not to laugh at this point, but she also felt bad for Mau, who was trying to rub the cheese off her backside.

    The rest of the early morning was spent cleaning the spilled chips and cheese dip off the couch, ensuring that no one would sit in a mess again.  Until next time.

    "Gods…  You'd think today was Friday the 13th or something, given my morning…"

    With the couch cleaned, Renée and Mau headed into the latter's room.  They were looking for a clean pair of pants she could borrow.     "Maybe someone put a curse on you?" Renée offered, still holding back a fit of giggles over the "cheese incident".     "It wouldn't surprise me…"  The black-haired lady sighed.  "Well, anyway… thanks for letting me borrow some pants, roomie."     The roommate nodded before idly commenting, "We should probably do laundry this weekend…  We're both getting low on clean clothes."     "Tell you what…"  Mau smiled, slipping into a pair of black yoga pants.  "I'll pay for the wash cycle, this weekend."     The white cat's face showed strong disbelief.  Her roommate had some nerve…  For better or worse, Mau seemed to misread this as appreciation.     "No, no, it's the least I can do for the best roomie in the world!" she laughed.     "I… thaaanks?" was what Renée decided to say.  Her roommate was trying… in more ways than one.

    Once the clothing issue was sorted, the two returned to the living room.  As Mau got ready, Renée looked at the stains on the couch again.     "You know, you should really stop eating on the couch…" she suggested.     "But, how else am I gonna watch The Flintstones while I eat nacho chips?" was Mau's answer.  "Besides, I've seen the way you rip through sushi while sittin' there!"     Renée blushed a little.  Rather than get angry, though, she tried to be understanding.     "Sorry…" she quietly responded, her ears curling back.  "I—"     "Hey, hey, hey…  It's okay."     Renée blinked a couple of times as she got a pat on the head from her roommate.     "Everyone has their quirks, right?" Mau offered with a chipper smile.  "Yours is sushi, and mine is…"     She paused for a second, her ears flicking and tail twitching.  Her mind was reeling with all the "quirks" she had — many of which she was self-conscious of, thanks to other people.

    "A-anyway!" she started again, "the couch is clean… er.  I'm dressed.  And… what time is it?"     "Oh, it's—"     "Scarabs!!"     Renée's fur bristled as Mau shouted.  She looked stressed again.     "I gotta get the heck outta Dodge, Née!" she said before breaking into a fast jog across the room.  "Have a great day and all that!  'Bye!!"

    Mau ran out the front door, slamming it behind her.  Not a second later, she burst back inside and ran over to Renée.  As expected, she was holding Mau's purse and smirking.     "Stop that," Mau said, wearing her own smirk.  "Thank you."     Renée's eyes rolled upward and her smirk became a grin.  "Mm-hmm."     With that, Mau slung her purse over her shoulder and ran back outside… only to come back in another second after.     "What'd you forget now?" Renée teased.     "This."     The white cat's blue eyes widened as Mau gave her a quick hug.     "Thanks for putting up with me."     Renée softly nodded, a blush barely visible under her fur.  She smiled, though.

    "Alright, 'bye for real now!"     For the third time, Mau ran out the door, shutting it loudly.  She didn't run back inside this time.  However…     "Gah!!"     She wound up garroting herself with her purse strap, the bag getting caught in the door.  Just another typical morning for her…

    Eventually, Mau did manage to get on her way.  She ran to the nearest bus stop and, luckily, managed to catch it just in time.  She flashed her pre-paid bus pass through the scanner and quickly found a seat.  There was an amusing irony about a teacher like her taking a bus to school, just like her students…  Less amusing was the fact that the Bellville High wouldn't spring for bus fair for any of the faculty… not that anyone else actually needed it.  As far as Mau knew, she was the only staff member from Bellville High who used public transport to get around.

    Part of that was because she didn't own a car.  Not since the twelve-car pile-up she was part of, anyway…  She also didn't make enough money to actually buy or even lease another one.  Cars were prohibitively expensive… especially for someone who likes spending a lot of money on junk food and random impulse buys.  She always made sure she could cover her half of the bills, though!  Mostly!  Sometimes.  Usually…     Part of it was also because nobody wanted to carpool with her.  Most of her work friends were pretty set in their ways and no one lived near enough to her to swing by.  She joked about what a "lame excuse" that was, but she knew gas was pretty pricey, too.  She could probably afford to kick in for gas… but did she really want to?  Probably not.     Lastly, and most embarrassingly… Mau had her driver's license suspended due to the aforementioned accident.  She was the cause.  Now, that happened a while back and she could have gotten her licensed reinstated, but naaah.  She figured that if she needed to get anywhere fast, she could always bum a ride from her roomie.  Otherwise, she was in no real hurry… most of the time.  That morning, however, she needed to expedite her travels and get to school.  Unfortunately, something was preventing her from getting there.

    "Road work?!"

    Mau stood at the front of the bus, staring out the windshield with anger.  Laying ahead was a whole heap of cars and trucks all packed into one lane of traffic.  This was because the other lane — the one going toward town — was shut down and being repaired.  And this, of course, meant that she and the other passengers on the bus were going nowhere fast.

    "Siddown, miss," the driver told Mau as she leaned on the token taker.     "No, you don't understand!" she countered, looking distressed.  "I need to get to Bellville High!  I teach history there, and—"     "Lady, I don't care if you teach orphans how to do basic math!" the gruff driver snapped.  "Sitcher ass down whilst the bus is in motion!  Capisce?"     Mau looked at the driver with disbelief, mouth hanging open.  Sure, the engine was running, but the bus was very clearly stuck in traffic.     "Lemme out," she flatly countered.     "Lady, I can't do that," was his response to that.  "The bus is— hey!!"     "Sorry!" she half-heartedly apologized, yanking the door lever and opening the door.     "Get back on the damn bus!!" the driver shouted from his vehicle.  "I could get in trouble!  I'll… I'll have you banned, ya know!!"     Mau wasn't listening.  She had broken into a full sprint, umbrella out as her paws carried her as fast as they could toward the school… which was still a couple of miles away.  Through rain and wind.  Damn it.

    The run from the street corner to the school was quite a trek.  It took Mau about forty minutes' travel time — partly because she wasn't in the best physical condition, and partly because she'd slipped and fallen a couple of times.  When she arrived, she was gasping and heaving for air, her hair disheveled, and her clothes and fur wet in places.

    "Oh.  Hey, teach'."

    As Mau leaned on a bike rack to catch her breath, she heard a familiar voice.  Looking over, she saw the green-skinned, red-headed form of Shelly Screwloose — one of her students — standing there.

    "What happened to you?" Shelly asked with concern.  "You look like death warmed over!  I'd know.  Yesterday, I was workin' on this experiment with—"     "Water!"     "What?  No.  More like melted-down—"     "Water!" Mau repeated in a wheeze.  "Please…!"     "Oh, you want some water!"  Shelly laughed.  "Well, you're just in luck!"     With a grin and a wink, she reached into her long jacket and withdrew a corked tube of some kind of blue liquid.     "I just happen to have my latest experiment with me!" she continued.  "See, I—"     "Gimme!"     The synthoid girl blinked as her teacher snatched the vial out of her hands.  She then watched as Ms. Mau chugged the thing down in a series of loud gulps.

    "Pwah…!"

    Once emptied of its contents, Mau returned the vial and offered a tired smile.     "Th-thanks…  I feel better already!  Kinda tart, though…"     The teacher paused, her fur beginning to bristle.     "Wait, what was in that tube?" she asked tensely.     "Blueberry juice."     "Bl… blueberry juice?"  Mau blinked.  "Wait, just normal blueberry juice?"     "More or less!" Shelly laughed.  "I mean, it had some electrolytes 'n stuff in it.  Coach cut me a deal, see…"     "A… a deal?" the teacher asked, cocking her head.     "Yeah!" Shelly responded with another laugh.  "Coach said if I made something good for the team, I'd get a guaranteed A+ without even doin' Gym Class!  It's a win-win for everyone!"     "I… see."     Mau chuckled a little before she smiled.     "Well, I feel refreshed, so I'd say you're doing a good job!  Thanks, Shelly!"     "Yeah, sure…"     Shelly drew a notepad and a pen from another pocket.     "Any weird aftertaste?" she inquired.  "Do you feel anything weird in your gastrointestinal tract?  Any heart murmurs?"     Mau stiffened up.  "What."     At that, Shelly just offered a mysterious smile, patiently waiting for an answer.

    Mau walked into the school after a short survey about her student's "blueberry juice"  and headed to the teacher's lounge.  Normally, she would have had a coffee with creamer, but after all the weird questions that self-proclaimed "alchemist" student of hers asked, she thought it would be best to just stick with water.  While she was drinking, though, she saw a familiar face wander in.  It was Dimitri Garrf, the school counselor and a good work friend of hers.  He was looking as semi-professional as ever in his gray vest, slacks, and pressed white shirt.

    "Hey, Mau!" the wolfman greeted.     "Hey," she answered with a nod and a smile.     "Good weekend?"     "You know me, I'm always keepin' busy!" she half-lied.     "Hey, that's great to hear!"      The man got himself some coffee.  He liked it black, Mau noted.

    "So, did you get the e-mail about the sub?" he asked before taking a sip.     "The what?" she answered between gulps of water.     "The sub," he patiently repeated.  "The English teacher is out for a couple of weeks, so we're getting a temporary replacement!"     Mau tilted her head.  "Really?  Huh."     "Yeah…"     Mau noted that there was a hint of apprehension in his words.

    "No one knows anything about her," was the next thing Dimitri mentioned.     "What?  Why not?" the cat lady answered.     "Well, she's not from around here, for one," he explained.  "She just kind of arrived on-demand, I've heard…"     "How mysterious!"     The wolfman grinned as Mau made a grand gesture and smiled.  He liked her silly antics.     "That's one way to put it," he offered with a chuckle.  "But, what's really weird is that she brought her own assistant."     "A teacher's aide?" she asked as she worked on her tenth paper cone of water.  "That is pretty odd.  I've never heard of a substitute teacher having a teacher's aide…"     "I know, right?"  He chuckled again.  "I asked around and I think they're a sister-brother team.  Not sure.  But, I guess we'll see later today!"     "A sister-brother team…?"     Mau paused to ponder that possibility.  Specifically, she pondered the possibility of asking the sub's aide out.     If this new sub has a brother… and the brother isn't ugly or smelly… she thought, maybe I can make this work.  It'd be nice to date a guy who doesn't have any expectations of me.     The lady quietly sipped her eleventh cup of water, a cat-like grin forming on her lips.

    "Anyway," the counselor continued after finishing his coffee, "I just figured I'd ask and see if you knew anything.  See you at lunch, Mau!"     "Not if I see you, first!"     He laughed.  "Right!"     As he left, Mau took a twelfth cup of water, her tail swaying as she continued to think about the sub's aide.  Excitement built inside her at the thought of some handsome guy from far away arriving at the school.  Something else swelled inside, too.     "Crap, I gotta pee!"     With that declaration, she escaped the teacher's lounge, eager to start her day properly… among other things.

    While her morning had been full of excitement and typical bad luck, the day proceeded pretty calmly.  She taught one of her classes about Ancient Egypt — specifically about the pharaohs and other royalty.  When she made note of how cats were basically gods in that culture, one student smartly asked, "And what are you the god of?  Being lame?"  Laughter filled the classroom as she sent that student — a regular troublemaker — out.     The next class was a little more interested in what she had to say about Iceland and Greenland, asking a lot of questions she didn't know the answer to.  She did her best to try and act like she did, though no one was fooled as she "subtly" asked her phone for answers.  Still, they were a lot more respectful than the previous class, which made her happy.     One last class went by in a flash with Mau resuming a lesson about United States presidents.  There was a disagreement between two groups about the way some presidents ran the country, but luckily, a particular student moderated the impromptu debate.  She was kind of a "teacher's pet" and didn't care if anyone knew it, but Mau tried not to give her special treatment.  She did thank her student, however.  Shortly after, the bell rang; it was lunchtime.

[weemssapphic]

Patrón (Songfic)

Larissa Weems x fem!reader

Warnings: alcohol consumption

Words: ~1.5k

ao3 link in title

‘Cause now you’re hittin’ up my phone and you’re lookin’ way too good

I’m bored of being alone and I know for sure you would

You hadn’t wanted to go to the staff Christmas party. Parties weren’t really your thing, and especially being the new normie teacher that year, knowing the events that had transpired at the end of the previous school year, many of your new colleagues still harbored a not-so-secret animosity towards you. Spending an entire evening cooped up in a room full of people who were hell-bent on avoiding you like the plague? No, thanks. You were content to settle into your quarters for the night with a bottle of wine and a good book when your phone began to ring, the screen reading Larissa Weems.

Curious as to what your boss would want of you, after all, classes had ended for the semester, you picked up.

“Principal Weems?”

“Please, Y/N, outside of school hours it’s perfectly fine to call me Larissa.” You could hear the smile in her voice and couldn’t hold back a smile of your own.

“Larissa,” you conceded. “Is something wrong?”

“You tell me. I heard from Coach Vlad that you won’t be attending the Christmas party tonight?”

“Uh, no,” you sucked your bottom lip between your teeth. “Parties aren’t really my thing. And it’s not like anyone wants me there anyway.”

There was a moment of silence, then Larissa’s voice came through much softer and quieter than before; “well I would love to have you there.”

Your ears perked up at that, heart fluttering hopefully. Larissa Weems wanted you at her Christmas party? You’d had a crush on the statuesque blonde since the moment you’d first laid eyes on her, but she was your boss - you hadn’t dared hope she harbored any feelings towards you other than a distant professional kindness. In fact, with how much everyone else seemed to hate you, it always surprised you when Larissa showed you any kindness at all.

“Are you still there?”

“Sorry, yes,” you managed to choke out, trying not to sound flustered. “I guess I could come.”

“Excellent,” you could hear her radiant smile through the phone. “It begins in an hour, try not to be late, darling.”

You hung up the phone, feeling exhilarated - then the anxiety hit, as you looked up and met your own eyes in the mirror across from your bed. Your hair was a disheveled mess, you looked like you hadn’t slept in days, and you were wearing old, baggy sweats. You had exactly an hour to go from this to at least semi-presentable.

You managed just in time, opting to slick back your hair, do some light makeup, and slip into a classic black dress that would have to make do for the occasion. It was just in time that you slipped down the corridor and towards the double doors of the main hall where the party had just gotten started.

After 1,2,3,4 shots of Patrón, you could be my baby

Heads turned when you slipped inside the main hall, and not in a good way. The other teachers mostly avoided your gaze, some nodded at you politely, one or two forced a strained smile your way. Great. This is exactly why you didn’t want to come. You were going to need alcohol to get through this night, and lots of it. A quick sweep of the room confirmed that Larissa was nowhere to be seen yet, so you made a beeline for the open bar that had been organized for the event and ordered a shot of tequila, then another one. The bartender raised an eyebrow at you but obliged, a slight smirk on his lips.

You turned from the bar to admire the room - you had to admit, Larissa had outdone herself. It was as if Santa had vomited over the main hall - there were Christmas lights strung along every pillar, every surface covered in wreaths and decorations. Christmas music played softly over the speakers. Even the catering was Christmas themed. It was almost cozy, save for the hostile atmosphere. 

A flash of blonde in the corner of the room caused you to whip your head around. There she was, beautiful as ever. Her silvery dress was encrusted with jewels at one hip, red as the lipstick on her lips. Her hair was in its usual updo, she wore white gloves with red and green embroidery. Festive, you thought with a smirk. Your eyes raked up her bare calves, over her hips, her chest, finally her face. She turned and made eye contact with you, a bright smile tugging at the corners of her lips, and made her way towards you, hips swaying deliciously.

Like the Christmas lights you’re turnin’ me on, spin me ‘round and play me

“You made it,” Larissa sounded breathless, placing a gloved hand onto your shoulder. Your skin burned at the contact and your face turned red - you couldn’t tell if it was from attraction or the tequila. Your blush wasn’t lost on her. Her smile only widened and she leaned in to you. The scent of her perfume overwhelmed you, floral and clean. Your eyes fluttered closed involuntarily, a heat spreading between your legs. You clamped your thighs together as you felt Larissa’s thumb brush against your cheek.

“Are you alright, darling?” Your eyes snapped open to see Larissa smirking down at you - she knew exactly the effect she was having on you. “What are you drinking?”

“Uh, tequila,” you muttered, trying to compose yourself. She quirked her eyebrow, amused at your choice of drink, turning to the bartender, “two shots of tequila, please.” It was your turn to be amused.

“Cheers, darling,” you clinked your shot glasses together and she downed hers in an instant, her cerulean eyes meeting yours again.

Tequila burned in your throat, warming your insides, doing nothing to assuage the hammering of your heart in your chest as Larissa’s eyes landed upon your lips, her own lips parting as the tension between you two became palpable.

“Dance with me?” you hoped you sounded hot and sultry, not desperate and drunk. To her credit, if you did sound desperate and drunk, Larissa ignored it, taking your hand and leading you to the middle of the room. You could hear some whispers carry above the music as you passed; if you had cared to look around you would have seen the gazes of your colleagues, some confused, some rather murderous.  “Do not pay them any attention, darling,” Larissa’s warm breath ghosted over the shell of your ear, sending a shiver down your spine. She had to bend her neck down to reach your cheek and placed a chaste kiss there. “I will deal with them in the morning.”

You leaned in, laying your cheek on Larissa’s chest and wrapping your arms around her neck, allowing her hands to rest on your hips and swaying with her to the music, acutely aware of how her fingers crept closer and closer to the small of your back, how her thumbs ran smooth, rather comforting circles around the area around your waist.

Now I’m feelin’ a little bit tipsy, I wish you would kiss me all night long

Right under the mistletoe, so what are you waiting for?

Your heart was pounding in your chest, you were sure Larissa could hear it. You noticed as you were dancing how close you were getting to the mistletoe at one side of the room, surely she had noticed as well. 

Panic was setting in. Hours before, you had been so sure you were in for a quiet evening. Your crush on Larissa Weems had been just that - a silly little crush on your boss, who definitely did not like you back. And now? Now you were wrapped in Larissa’s arms, the mistletoe coming closer and closer, so tipsy that you weren’t sure if you were imaging the way that Larissa was looking at you with bedroom eyes, or if this was all one great big practical joke. 

The two of you stopped under the mistletoe. You looked up, cheeks flushed, breathing shallow. Your eyes met Larissa’s. Her pupils were blown, her face otherwise unreadable.

“Well,” you were breathless, your voice barely audible over the music. “What are you waiting for?”

Bright red lips crashed hungrily into yours, devouring you. At once, her tongue begged for entry into your mouth as she asserted her dominance. You moaned into her mouth, which only spurred her on as her hands came to cup your cheeks in her palms.

Suddenly you turn around and we’re standin’ face to face

Santa, can I unwrap one gift and take her to my place?

You pulled away, reluctant, breathing ragged. “Larissa?” Your core was heating up with desire.

“Yes?” her lips were swollen, lipstick smeared, her own desire written plain as day on her face.

“Get me out of here.”

[fluttering-lillies]

Afterparty Chapter 4: Sunset

Words: 3,226

Pairing: SunDash

Rating: T

Warnings: Talk of excessive drinking, mentions of sex

--

With twenty minutes to work with, Sunset had just enough time to grab milkshakes from Sugar Cube Corner and make it in time to watch Twilight step out of the statue’s base. They didn’t say anything at first, didn’t even greet each other. Sunset just handed Twilight her vanilla shake and they both sat on the stairs leading up to Canterlot High, each of them sipping silently.

Sunset got through half of her shake before Twilight finally spoke. “So, Rainbow Dash huh?”

“Yep.” Sunset had a million questions running through her head, but could only manage that one word. This was already so awkward and she was sure that anything she said would only make it worse.

Twilight seemed to be stuck in her head too. She had that scrunched up look she’d often get when she’d been trying to write the musical counter-spell during the whole battle of the bands fiasco. Sunset couldn’t help but smile at it. She’d missed the princess, and more than that, was grateful she was taking this so seriously.

She rose out of her thinking haze suddenly, back straightening and voice taking on a strict, teacher-like tone. The voice she usually used when lecturing someone. Sunset remembered it vividly from her first encounter with Twilight. “So!” She raised a hand and a finger along with it. What was this? Super lecture mode? “I do have some experience with friendships… uh developing like this. Into romantic relationships. You’d still do better talking to Cadance of course but I’ll-“

“Wait, you do?” Sunset cringed into herself. One of her most insistently poking questions burst out of her. “Please tell me you aren’t dating your Rainbow Dash and this isn’t… super awkward.”

Twilight gaped for a second, rapid blinking completing the dumbfounded look. “Rainbow Dash and me?” She recoiled a little where she sat. “Inconceivable really. We’re great friends but I think our way of communicating wouldn’t work in a romantic context.” She finally seemed to relax a little and Sunset watched a blush creep up her face. “No uh… Rarity and I haven’t told many ponies but… we’ve been together for about a month now? Really only you and Fluttershy know. She… noticed before anyone else did and I’m only telling you because well, it’s rather pertinent to this situation.”

“You haven‘t told any of your other friends?”

Twilight shrunk into herself, looking guilty now, suddenly finding the straw of her milkshake very interesting. “I want to, of course. Rarity told me she wants to as well. It’s just... complicated.”

Sunset‘s face twisted up in confusion. “I haven’t been to Equestria in a bit, but last time I checked ponies were pretty comfortable with the whole same sex relationship idea. More than here anyway.”

“It’s nothing like that.” Twilight leaned back on the stair behind her, propping herself up with both her elbows, and tilting her head toward the blue early summer sky. “If I were still just Celestia’s student it wouldn’t matter. Maybe I’d get a few questions, but Rarity and I would just be two mares who happen to be in a relationship. Nopony would bat an eye. But now that I’m a princess…” She lifted her shake to her mouth and drank for a moment, then two, before letting it drop from her lips.

“Well, there are some ponies, I won’t name names, who already question how much preferential treatment I should be giving my friends. Rainbow got into the Wonderbolts a little while ago and there were stories made up about me using my influence to get her in faster. Somepony even said she would have never had the flight skills to get in by herself if I hadn’t ‘helped’ her! Which is just! Rainbow became a Wonderbolt entirely on her own merits. I helped her study I guess, but all of the recruitment tests are either skill based or involve publicly available information. More than that, you know who taught me how to fly when I became an alicorn?” She waved her drink around as she spoke, using it to emphasize certain exclamations.

“Rainbow Dash?” Sunset said mildly. The answer was a little obvious but she wasn’t about to interrupt a ranting Twilight.

“That’s right. Rainbow Dash. And she’s just a friend. I don’t know what ponies will say when they find out about Rarity and me. She doesn’t either. All her sewing skills, networking, and business sense have gotten her so far. I don’t want to steal credit from her like that.” She seemed to relax a little after getting that off her chest. “And while I know my friends wouldn’t run to the papers or anything, everypony makes mistakes. Says something to the wrong pony. Or just can’t keep a secret when asked directly. What kind of friend would I be if I asked them to lie for me anyway?”

Sunset frowned. She couldn’t really imagine dealing with all that pressure, all those eyes on her, and having that spread to her closest friends too. She didn’t envy Twilight’s crown.

That thought made her freeze, then let out a weird sort of half snort.

“Huh?” Twilight looked over at her. “Are you… laughing?” She sounded shocked and maybe even a little hurt.

“Sorry! Sorry!” Sunset half said, half giggled. “Not at you. It’s just. Just…” She covered up another chuckle, and stuffed down the amusement until she could explain. “I… when I was Celestia’s student all I wanted was to be a princess. I yearned for it, strived for it. The six or so months before I stumbled into this world it was all I could think about. I was obsessed. But now… sorry, but it kind of sounds like it sucks?”

Twilight looked aghast at first, like she couldn’t believe Sunset would even say that, then she relaxed and smiled. “It’s not all bad, but yeah, this one part? Does suck.”

Sunset smiled back, looking hopefully more sympathetic than amused now. “I’m sorry Twi. But hey you’ve still got great friends to support you. And… a marefriend now too, right?” Sunset nudged her a bit with an elbow.

Twilight blushed, but her laughter made it clear she didn’t mind the ribbing. “Yeah, Rarity’s been amazing. She always knows how to say the right thing and pull me back down when I start to spiral. I don’t really know where I’d be without her. She definitely makes what might come in the future worth it, even if it’s bad or invasive.”

“Well, I know this world’s Rarity, and if they're as alike as you say then you’re a lucky mare Twilight.” Sunset nudged her gently again, and this time when Twilight smiled back there was no hint of blush, no hint of embarrassment.

“Yeah. I really am.”

Sunset was caught off guard by that smile, by the shimmering brightness of it. There was something that throbbed in her chest, some twitch of something old finally being let go. Twilight was happy, beautifully so, and that was amazing.

“So, Rainbow Dash.” Twilight said with a bit of her princessly authority. Whatever part of Sunset’s heart that had just collapsed into defeated relief shifted, revealing a new, strange, flickering ember.

“Rainbow Dash.” Sunset sighed.

“How… was she?” Twilight ventured cautiously.

“A-Are you curious?” Sunset stuttered out, cheeks heating up. She hadn’t expected such forwardness. Not from Twilight.

“N-no! I mean yes? Not like that though! I’m very happy with Rarity, she really knows what— Well… I mean… ugh! My point was, how…” Twlight grasped at the air in front of her like it would magically produce the word she was looking for. “How were… how did she make you feel? Did you have fun? Did you feel good? Or were you bored? Was there… anything… there?” Twilight had lost all of her authoritative tone and just looked frazzled now.

“Oh. Right.” Sunset said simply. “I don’t remember.”

“You don’t… remember?”

“I was drunk. She was too.”

Twilight stared at her for several moments. “I thought humans weren’t allowed to drink here until they’d turned twenty-one.”

Sunset didn’t say anything, just gave her a look.

“I see.” Twilight steepled her hands together. “And you got so drunk while drinking illegally that you do not remember what you did last night?”

“Correct. Before Pinkie said anything we weren’t even sure we uh… did… that.” Sunset answered lamely.

Twilight rubbed the bridge of her nose. “Honestly I think what we should do first is have a conversation about responsibility but considering we’re past that…”

“And that I didn’t ask you here to tell me to drink responsibly?” Sunset said with a smirk.

Twilight glared at her for a moment.

“You drank at this little get together too. Well not you. The other you.”

Twilight looked absolutely horrified, eyes wide and mouth agape. “She did not!”

Sunset nodded through a fit of giggles, then her hands as she tried to stifle the laughter.

Apparently sensing a losing battle, Twilight shook her head, sighed, and asked, “So you don’t remember, but how about now? What are your thoughts on last night? Not actual events but the fact that it happened at all.”

Sunset’s smirk dropped into a confused frown. “I mean… does that even matter?”

Twilight’s eyes widened. She blinked once, then twice. “What do you mean does that even matter? Of course it matters!” She spluttered. “Your feelings and thoughts are what will determine how you proceed and how you want your relationship with Rainbow Dash to change or stay the same. That and the key to any relationship, friendship or otherwise, is communication. If you don’t care to know how you feel, how can you communicate with Rainbow?”

“I…” Sunset slumped, resting her chin on her knees and hugging her legs with both arms. “I understand that, I do but… I don’t know the first thing about relationships Twilight. The only guy I’ve ever dated was a tool to me. A means to an end. The last person I loved sent me away because I ruined our relationship so much it couldn’t be repaired. I want… I called you here to get advice on how not to let this ruin everything. Again. I just…” Sunset gripped the sleeves of her leather biker jacket. “I don’t need her to love me. I just want her to not hate me. How do I do that?”

Twilight slumped too. “Sunset…”

That sad, cloying voice made Sunset want to huddle up even more. She didn’t want Twilight’s pity, Twilight’s care, especially now that she knew it wasn’t really hers to take. She wanted to hide inside her spiky impenetrable walls long enough so she could calculate how badly she’d fucked up and fix it logically.

Twilight didn’t say anything. She just reached over and touched Sunset’s shoulder. Sunset turned slowly and saw carefully measured comfort in the princess’ eyes. She watched Twilight’s small smile, felt her sure grip.

She wanted so badly to clamp shut, cut the tether, the hand gripping her, off. But she knew that was how she’d ended up bitter and angry before. She’d stubbornly gone it alone, trudging forward no matter how much she needed a shoulder to cry on or an ear to listen. So she let her shoulders drop, let her crossed arms open. “I’m… I’m scared. I’m scared I’ll hurt her. Scared I already have.”

Twilight sighed heavily again and shook her head. “You know you’re not that person anymore.”

“I know but— But sometimes it feels so easy to slip back. Someone says something that makes me angry and my first response is lash out. To yell. To hurt. I have to step back and… rewire myself to not just blow up.” She gripped the concrete stairs, doing her best to not just close in and up again. “It’s easier with the girls, they’re so nice, forgiving, but even they snap sometimes and I have to try so hard to not snap back.”

“And that’s the difference, Sunset. That’s what changed. Do you think you would have hesitated before? Do you think you would have cared?” Twilight grabbed her other shoulder, applying light pressure until they were staring each other in the eyes. “Friends fight. AJ and Rarity bicker all the time. Sometimes Dash doesn’t take Fluttershy’s feelings into account. Pinkie is too much for me every once in a while. It happens. It doesn’t make us bad friends or bad ponies.”

“And… marefriends?”

Twilight grinned and nodded, amusement dancing in her eyes. Then she pulled her hands away before launching into a story, switching her princessly lecture voice back on as she did. “Years ago, before I became a princess, Rarity made us all dresses for the grand galloping gala.”

Sunset hadn’t heard about the gala in years, but remembered it vaguely from the time she was Celestia’s student. She always thought it was too stuffy, full of ponies who only cared about money and social status. Not important things. Like magic and power.

“They were all gorgeous of course. Rarity’s only gotten better over time but she’s always been a fashion genius. All of us had our… own ideas about what made a good dress though. I wanted an accurate star map on the skirt because back then I was… very persnickety about accuracy, about how important that was. I still enjoy when things are perfectly in place, perfectly correct, but I know now that a friend’s happiness is more important than things being just so. Rarity was different back then too, not as confident in her design sense and desperate to make us all happy. So she followed our crazy instructions, making change after change to our gowns and when it was all said and done… she almost got booted from the fashion scene when she showed our designs off.” Twilight said the last part in a rush, cringing slightly.

Sunset gasped. She didn’t know pony Rarity, but her world’s Rarity was always looking for opportunities to get her foot in the door as a fashion designer. Apprenticeships, projects, even small boutique jobs. If Rarity was black booked or something, Sunset couldn’t even imagine how much that would hurt her.

“It was a long time ago and it all worked out in the end.” Twilight continued quickly when she saw Sunset’s wide eyes. “She never held it against us either, but… well… having an accurate, portable star map is really useful.” Twilight was playing with her straw again.

“You kept it?” Sunset exclaimed.

“Yes, I kept it! Do you know how much getting a perfectly accurate star map costs? Let alone doing it in fabric? I couldn’t just throw it away, especially when my friend turned marefriend made it for me. I get it now of course, but at the time it seemed harmless. Honestly, the obvious choice to me was to keep it.”

Sunset slowly absorbed that, lips pursed. “Soooo… she found out… when exactly?” Twilight wasn’t avoiding her marefriend as they spoke, was she?

“Last week. She was pretty upset, asked me to throw it away, said she had never wanted to see it again. Gave me the silent treatment when I explained how much getting something like it would cost, how valuable it was. After that I took the time to think it through and I gained the understanding I’d been lacking. I’m not an artist, but I can understand not wanting to look at your previous work. I thought I was so magically astute when I was younger. I didn’t boast but I knew I was good. Now those spells seem like foal’s play.” Twilight smiled a little at some unknown memory. “I almost got rid of it. It was worth a lot of bits, but not her being angry and hurt. Before I could, Rarity… decided to stop sulking? No, that sounds mean. She’d thought it over too. Was still… grumpy, but she realized something I didn’t even see.”

“And that was?”

“It was the first thing she ever made for me.” Twilight smiled softly, her eyes looked a little wet. “More than that it was, well… me. A completely accurate star map skirt with a royal flowing train? She said there was nothing in existence that was more Twilight Sparkle. It became… sentimental because of our love. A little piece of our history. We compromised on it too. I could keep it, could use it, could even display it in the castle’s astronomy tower, so long as no one ever knew she’d made it.”

Sunset burst out laughing, then quickly covered her mouth. “Sorry sorry!”

“No, you're fine. I thought it was kind of funny too. I mean I agreed! Of course. Because why wouldn’t I? But she was so insistent, so grumbly about it. It was cute. We ended up putting it up together in the tower and I showed her the stars that night. She loved that, the hopeless romantic.”

“Awww that’s… tooth rotting kinds of sweet.” Sunset smiled at the image Twilight’s words and smile conjured in her mind. Then she frowned a little. “But that… was just a dress right? I mean it can’t all be that easy.”

Twilight shrugged. “I guess so, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t hurt her feelings, Sunset. She was so mortified, so upset when she first found the thing. But in the end we talked, we compromised, and came out the other end better for it. Stronger for it, both individually and together.”

Sunset rubbed at her leather sleeves, played with the little strings that were fraying at the stitched shoulder seams. Twilight didn’t touch her this time. Just asked gently, “Sunset. Look at me?”

She did, staring into the deep amethyst of Twilight’s eyes. “You are going to hurt Rainbow Dash. Whether you stay friends or start dating. It’s inevitable. Friendship and love means being vulnerable, means opening yourself up to disappointment and hurt and even betrayal. That’s the magic of it. That’s what makes it special. The fact that we can give ourselves to another person, that we can rely on them, that we can be that close. That trust is what makes a bond like that strong, and repairing it, linking all those threads back together through communication and understanding after they’ve frayed or broken. That just makes them stronger.”

Sunset felt warm wetness in her eyes and Twilight blurred a little. “And if she doesn’t want to repair them with me?” She was still so scared, still so prepared for the day Celestia had, Rainbow would, they all would realize she was too fucked up to salvage, and cut her loose.

Twilight took her hands. “Sunset Shimmer.” She said the words with a steady, heavy, sure rhythm. “You are preparing for a catastrophe, a future, that doesn’t exist. Rainbow Dash is the element of loyalty. She won’t abandon you. Not unless you ask her to go away. And even then she might be too stubborn to listen. So long as you meet her half way and work with her, she will always be willing to fix things, okay?”

“Okay.” The word came out choked, but laced with a smile.

“Now, how do you feel? What do you think about last night?”

“I think…” Sunset sniffled. Then reached into her pocket, and pulled out her phone. “I think I want to talk to her.”

[hopepunkhealer]

Hey hey hey!! Ghostflower!!

On the topic of physical media, for that debate, if it ever comes up again, tell your teacher that when they get married (or imagine the wedding they already had). The DJ they hired shows up. Their entire system is built on streaming because it’s accessible and the easiest way to get into DJing anymore.

But uh oh. The service isnt great. Or they forgot to download something to play offline. Or the wifi is being weird. Or they were planning on using spotify and suddenly spotify changed their terms of service and wont function as a third party service for DJ equipment (cause that actually happened). So now the DJ you hired doesnt have access to many songs, let alone the ones that you requested for specific moments. So now what? Without physical media, your wedding is out of luck.

The point is, just because the majority of people dont use it regularly, doesnt mean its not something that other people dont need. DJs *need* to be able to make and use physical media. Im sure there are more professions that need it too. But if you want your wedding to go smoothly (music wise) you should 100% have a DJ that has physical media at least as a back up.

(Using weddings as an example cause that tends to be the end all be all event for a lot of people that they always want to go perfect - same could be applied to any event you hire a dj for)

- @safety-pin-punk

my teacher was on my side of the argument, it was my classmates who were against it.

it started because we brought up music streaming, and I mentioned if you lose the account you bought music through or streamed through, you lose that music, and one particular classmate told me I was wrong (her favourite thing to do, mind you), and that streaming services are a perfectly fine way to do music. and yes, spotify is quick, its convenient, etc. but the example I had was ITunes, specifically the fact that my mum lost hundreds of dollars of music when apple switched from Itunes to apple music, because she doesn't use apple anymore and couldn't sign anything in.

classmate and i then went back and forth for another 10 minutes and classmate finding some kind of counter for every single (what I thought were good) argument I made.

but either way, my general statement in most things, is that physical media is so important, not only because of the "it means you own it" argument, but also for media preservation. so many streaming services just take down shows or movies or music just to clear server space, and it means there is more and more lost media.

like think ahead in your life if you have young kids in your life (be that students, friends kids, family, etc) and you want to show them what you were like as a kid/teenager/young adult/etc, one of the best ways to do that would be pictures in a photo album where yes, something could happen to that photo album, so its a good idea to keep back up copies online anyway, but having that solid tangible picture is so special.