#unfortunately this is based on how my friend woke me up

[sagethegaywitch]

Dimensions: Diasomnia

Male reader

TW: yandere behavior, memory erasing, implied Grim death

Genre: yandere

Here's the link for my other Dimensions: Twisted Wonderland Overblots.

The story will take place in medieval France, the one from the original “Sleeping Beauty” that the Diasomnia dorm is based on.  As the overblot eats away at the characters, they start to resemble and act more like the Disney characters they are based on.  The reader will be called Y/N and Aurora/Briar Rose.

f/f = favorite food

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The feeling of something prickling your skin forces you awake.  You groan in discomfort, trying to stretch out only to flinch in pain.  You're now wide awake and take in the black thorns piercing your skin.  A whole bush full of the sharp plant seems to surround you and you wince as you slowly move into a standing position, your shoes protecting you from the pointy thorns.  Unfortunately, the clothing you're wearing wasn't as fortunate.  The baby blue suit you're wearing with little baby pink details and a white collar is riddled with puncture holes and a few bleed a bit, staining the fabric.  You look at your surroundings, not seeing much but a foggy green sky and more brambles of black thorns.  You manage to push your way through the thorns, looking for a trail or even a building before you hear muffled voices.

“Silver, we're barely 5 minutes from the castle.  How are you tired already?” a loud voice exclaims, scaring a few crows from the trees.

Another voice mumbles but it's interrupted by a yawn so you don't quite catch what he said.

You lean forward, hoping to catch a glimpse of the two strangers, seeing a head of pastel green and a head of white.  Just your luck, your foot slipped and you stumbled, cutting your leg pretty badly on a particularly sharp thorn.  You let out a sharp cry of pain, and the two boys turn to look in your direction.  You fall to your knee, the plants digging into your skin again as you put pressure on your bleeding wound.

“Halt!  Intruder!” the loud one yells as the sound of metal clinking together and footsteps approach you.

You flinch as a cold metal gets pointed under your chin and a sharp blade threatens to cut your neck.  Just as quickly as the blade is placed there, it is retracted as they both gasp.

“Aurora!  By the Great Seven, I’m so sorry!” the green-haired male kneels beside you and wraps you into a hug.  “What are you doing out here?”

“Who are you?” you ask, trying to put some distance between yourself and the person who almost just beheaded you.

“We need to get you back to the castle, Malleus is so worried,” the green-haired boy continues, not really paying attention to what you’re saying.

“Wait, what is going on?  Who are you people?” you question a bit more loudly, pushing the boy away from you.

“Quit with your games, Aurora.  We need to get you back to safety,” the loud one seems upset now.

“Sebek, I don’t think he’s playing a game,” the white-haired boy named Silver interjects.

Sebek looks back at you, looking at your confused expression and injured body, “Do you not remember us?”

“No, I just woke up here.  I don’t remember how I got here or who you people are,” you respond, trying to determine if these two are friends or enemies.

They said your name is Aurora so they must know you and they seem very overprotective of you, maybe it is safe to go with them.  Plus you don’t really see a better option. Sebek and Silver exchange a look before looking back at you.

“My name is Sebek, and that is Silver.  We’re the royal knights of the Great Malleus Draconia,” Sebek explains to you, offering his hand as he stands up.

You take his hand, whining in pain at your leg wound, “And how do you know me?”

“You’re Malleus’ favorite human,” Silver explains.  “But you’re also one of his closest friends and most trusted advisor.”

“Interesting,” you murmur to yourself before letting out a surprised yelp as Sebek swiftly scoops you up into his arms.  “What are you doing?!”

“You’re injured and in no state to walk back, let me help,” is all Sebek says as he starts marching off with Silver in tow.

As the three of you walk back to the castle, you try to learn more about your situation and only learn that you’re apparently in a fae realm.  You notice that Sebek has pointed ears, but Silver does not, but you do not bring it up.  As you arrive at the castle, you can truly take in the magical architecture.  The structure is perched haphazardly on two mountains and there appears to be a swirling storm threatening to bring rain and thunder.  Although it’s dark and aged, you can tell that the castle used to be white-ish in color with a blue roof and golden details, but now the colors have blended together in a sad dark gray color.  You try not to look down as Sebek carries you up a very narrow staircase bridge over a large and very deep canyon.  As they approach the doors, Silver pushes them open to let the two of you in.

“Silver, Sebek, is that you two?” a voice calls out from the courtyard.

“Yes, Lilia, it is us,” Silver responds as Sebek walks toward the voice.  “And we found Aurora too.”

“Oh, my sweet darling!” the voice exclaims as a short boy flies straight toward you.

He looks young and very feminine, his black and pink hair cropped short, barely hiding his pointed ears.  He floats in the air as he starts to poke at your flesh, which snaps you out of it and flinch out of his touch.

“That’s a nasty looking scratch, but not to worry, Father Lilia is here to help,” Lilia declares as he flies away.

“What was that all about?  Who is he?” you ask as Sebek sits you down on the edge of a fountain, taking a seat beside you as he starts taking off a few pieces of his armor.

“That’s General Lilia.  He helped raise Master Malleus and me,” Silver tells you, sitting on your other side before leaning his head on your shoulder.

“But he looks so young,” you mutter, deep in thought.

“Don’t let his youthful facade fool you, Lilia is over 700 years old,” Silver answers, snuggling into the crook of your neck.

“700!  That’s pretty old,” you blurt out.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk.  How rude.  I’ll let you know that 700 is pretty young in fae years,” Lilia scolds as he reappears with a medical bag.

You quickly apologize, an embarrassed blush dusting your cheeks.  Lilia accepts your apology as he kneels in front of you, propping your leg on his knee.  He hums a catchy tune as he cleans the wound, cooing at you when you wince, before rubbing in a healing ointment and wrapping it in bandages.

“Ta da!  As good as new!” Lilia cheers as he stands back up and helps you to your feet.

Your injury definitely feels better now, the ointment must have some numbing properties because you could walk around with a slight limp with little to no pain.

“Now that your injury is taken care of, it’s time to tell Malleus the good news,” the older fae says before he hooks your arm in his and starts leading you out of the courtyard.

As Lilia walks inside the castle, Sebek and Silver start to take off a few pieces of their heavy armor as they follow behind you, but they keep their swords sheathed at their hips.  Inside the castle is as gloomy as the outside, with dark stone walls, dark purple and green decorations, and black suits of armor lining the hallway.  Sebek and Silver push open the doors and hold them open as Lilia enters with you in tow.

“Malleus~,” Lilia calls out into the dimly lit throne room.  “Look who Sebek and Silver found.”

You scan the room, finding the throne elevated by a few steps shrouded in darkness.  Two gargoyle statues stand next to the throne and you notice that the shadows start to move before a dark blur rushes up from the throne and suddenly you’re being lifted up into the air.  You let out a noise of surprise before looking down to see a horned male staring up at you with a scrutinizing gaze. He’s clad in a black and purple robe, the sleeves very similar to wings, the ends of the cape tinged green with flames (Malleus is in his overblot form).  His hands grip firmly into your waist as he brings you down to eye level, looking you down with his glowing right eye before hugging you tightly.

“My Briar Rose, where did you manage to wander off to?  You had me so worried, dear,” Malleus speaks softly as he holds you securely.

“Um…I got lost?” you respond, but your answer seems more like a question.

Malleus tilts his head like a confused dog before sitting you on his hip, his hand holding you steady as he wraps your legs around his waist.  You blush at the position as the male looks over at his knights for answers.

“We found him in the brambles close to the castle, but he doesn’t remember anything,” Sebek informs Malleus as the two knights come closer but keep a respectful distance.

“Got a case of amnesia, eh?  I might have something for that,” Lilia mentions as he pokes at your temple.  “But first, let’s get some food into you.  I’ll whip up your favorite: f/f.”

You perk up at the mention of your favorite food, but the others seem to deflate and desperately shake their heads.  You only understand what they mean when you watch Lilia waltz around the kitchen, trying to cook.  You can only watch in horror as he puts in the wrong seasonings and burns a few components of it.

“Lilia, I think it would be fun if I could help you,” you tentatively suggest from your seat on the kitchen counter.

Malleus stands protectively next to you while Sebek and Silver watch from the doorway.

“Don’t worry, I know exactly what I’m doing.  Plus it’s best not to put too much pressure on your leg wound,” Lilia disregards you as whatever is in the pot lets out a small poof of colored smoke.

“Wound?  I was not aware you were injured.  Show me where,” Malleus starts as he takes your hands in his and looks at you with a worried expression.

“It’s nothing.  I just cut myself on a thorn,” you tell him, giving him a reassuring smile as he looks down at your leg.

Malleus slowly lifts up the pant leg to inspect the bandages on your leg, “I sincerely apologize for not being there to protect you Briar.”

“Malleus, it’s okay, really.  You didn’t know I would get injur - What are you doing?!” you start but quickly exclaim in surprise as Malleus kneels before you and starts kissing your injury.

“Don’t humans believe that kisses will make any injury better?” Malleus asks you innocently as he presses another kiss onto the bandages.

“No…I mean yes…but you really don’t need to do that.  Lilia already made it all better earlier,” you’re a blushing mess but eventually your words convince Malleus to stand up again.

“Dinner is almost done, boys.  Go set up the table and I’ll bring it over,” Lilia calls out as he starts to plate the food.

You don’t get a good look at it as Malleus picks you up, telling you that you shouldn’t be walking with the leg wound, and carries you to the dining room next door.  Malleus places you in the plush seat next to the one at the head of the table before taking the head seat for himself.  Sebek sits next to you and Silver sits across from him just as Lilia enters with plates piled up in his arms.  He sets a dish in front of everyone before taking the seat next to Malleus and in front of you.  You look down at the food, barely recognizing the f/f.  It looks burnt and is completely the wrong color, but you don’t want to be rude so you take a small bite of it.  Even if it doesn’t look good, it actually doesn't taste too bad.  The flavors may have been way off, but it still brought you comfort and was somewhat plateable.  Silver and Lilia both dug into the meal, but Malleus and Sebek appeared to be having a harder time getting the food down.

“Wonderful as always,” Malleus compliments, a tight and strained smile on his lips.

“I agree, this must be one of my best works yet,” Lilia laughs as he scraps his plate clean.  “Aurora, what do you think?”

“It’s pretty good, tastes exactly like home,” you smile.

Home.  Is this your home?  It feels familiar and you feel safe, but deep down you know that this isn’t your home.  But everyone is so nice to you and treats you so well, how could it not be your home.

“Does anyone have room for dessert?” Lilia asks as he collects the plates.

“No, I think I’m full,” Sebek grimaces as he stands.  “I think I’ll turn in early.”

“I agree.  We’ll save your dessert for another night,” Malleus quickly agrees as he stands as well.

You follow suit and Malleus places his hand on the small of your back as he starts to guide you out of the dining room.  Lilia disappears back into the kitchen to do the dishes and Sebek and Silver follow behind you two.

“Tonight you can sleep with me.  I would feel much better if I knew you were safe beside me,” Malleus informs you, looking down at you for approval.

“Of course, but let me reassure you that I’m not going anywhere,” you tell the taller male.

The dragon gives up a very sweet and sincere smile as he stops in front of a door at the end of the hallway.   Sebek and Silver wish you a good night before disappearing into other doors in the hallway.  Malleus opens the door, allowing you to see the four post king-sized bed resting in the middle of the room.  Curtains drape down from the top of the bed, offering some privacy and protection from the open windows.  Walking into the room you can see a wardrobe and vanity table in one corner and a spinning wheel and bookshelf on the other side of the room.

“Do you like making yarn?” you ask, approaching the spinning wheel and tracing your fingers over the wooden structure.

“Actually, you do,”  Malleus tells you as he takes your hand off the wheel.  “You also enjoy making crafts with the yarn you make.  I have chestfulls of little pieces you have gifted me.”

“I hope I can relearn how to do it all, it sounds like fun,” you smile as you move away from the spinning wheel.

You walk to stand at the window, sitting on the ledge and looking out into the courtyard and past the walls to the thorn forests.

“Is it always this dark here?” you ask, gesturing to the sky that hadn’t changed color since you awoken.

“Not always, but I’ve been in a gloomy mood,” Malleus responds, waving his hand and suddenly the clouds start to part and the sky lightens a little bit.

“Wow, pretty neat,” your smile getting a bit nervous now in front of the powerful male.  “Tell me more about yourself.  Maybe it’ll help trigger some of my memories.”

“Well, I really like gargoyles.  We used to spend hours talking about them,” Malleus speaks as he looks outside into the distance.

“Oh yeah?  Tell me about that one,” you point to one right outside your window.

The two of you spend the next few hours talking about the gargoyles decorating the castle, Malleus even taking you to a few different locations in the castle to show you his favorite ones.  Eventually the two of you find yourselves back in Malleus’ room, you cuddled up sleepily next to him as he continues to ramble on about the history of the stone creatures.  When he realizes you are no longer awake, he smiles and kisses your forehead before snuggling up next to you and falling asleep with you in his arms.

~

“Should we wake him up?” a voice rouses you from your slumber.

You groan and swat away the hand poking your cheek.

“Lilia, let him rest,” Malleus voice scolds while Lilia giggles.

“It’s already early afternoon,” Lilia continues to poke you as you sigh and open your eyes.  “You can’t hog him all day.”

“It’s already past noon?” you ask as you sit up and rub the sleep from your eyes.

“You’re just like Silver, sleeping the day away,” Lilia jokes as he sits on the edge of the bed by your side.

“It’s okay though, you had a long day yesterday,” Malleus defends you as he rubs his nose in your hair, his arms still securely around you.

“Anyways, now’s a perfect time to get the day started.  Sebek and Silver are training right now and wanted to invite you to watch,” Lilia mentions as he stands and makes his way to the wardrobe.

Lilia starts to pull out a similar outfit to the one you were wearing yesterday and you look down to find that you changed into some comfy pajamas at some point last night before passing out.  Malleus helps you out of bed and redresses your leg wound which definitely looks and feels better today.  Lilia helps you get dressed before sitting you down at the vanity, helping to style your hair and apply some light makeup.

“It is with a heavy heart that I will be unable to join you this evening with the others,” Malleus says from behind you, his hands resting on your shoulders as you make eye contact with him through the mirror.  “But as a token of my love for you, please take this.”

You turn around as Malleus kneels beside you, presenting you with a small box that holds a ring nestled on a cushion.  Malleus gently takes your hand and slips the ring onto your finger, the metal cool against your skin.  The head of the ring features a shield shape that has horns growing out of its top and thorns curling up its sides, and in the center of the shield is a feisty looking dragon.

“Thank you so much!  I love it!” you jump out of your chair to embrace Malleus, the taller male falling onto his bottom from the impact.

With your arms wrapped around his neck and you on the ground with him, he lets out a small chuckle before returning the hug.

“I leave you two alone for a few minutes and this is what you’re up to?” Lilia taunts as he returns to the room.

You hadn’t even noticed he left to begin with, but his comment brings a bright red blush onto both of your cheeks as you get off Malleus and help him stand up.

“It was nothing, Lilia,” Malleus gives the other male a pointed glance.  “Brair was simply expressing his enjoyment over my gift to him.”

“Right,” Lilia nods but speaks in such a way that makes it seem he doesn’t believe it.  “Anyways, I’ll take him off your hands for you.  Aurora, come along.”

Malleus unwillingly lets go of your hand as you follow Lilia out of the room and down a hallway.

“I’ve been meaning to ask, but why does Malleus call me Briar Rose and you guys call me Aurora?” you question as you look over at Lilia.

“Well, your name is Aurora, but Malleus first met you when you were using the fake name Briar Rose,” Lilia explains before pausing.

You wait for him to elaborate but he remains silent, “Why was I using a fake name?”

You’re caught off guard by the menacing look Lilia gives you, “It’s best that you don’t ask questions you don’t want the answers to.  Besides, with your memory loss, it’s probably for the best that you forget about your past.”

The answer Lilia gives you is both menacing and confusing, and you, now more than ever, want to know who you were before.  If you can’t get answers out of Lilia, maybe you could get some from Sebek and Silver or maybe even Malleus.  The rest of the journey to the courtyard is enjoyed in awkward silence, neither you nor Lilia attempting to make conversation.  Once you reach the courtyard, the sky is still a gloomy gray, but it seems just a bit brighter than yesterday.  Sebek and Silver seem to be in the middle of a sword fight, but both pause to say hello and offer you a good afternoon.

“So what do you guys train for anyways?” you ask as you take a seat on the fountain again.

“We train to protect Malleus and you,” Sebek exclaims loudly as he looks at you in shock.  “Your safety is our utmost priority.”

“That’s nice, but what are you worried about?  I haven’t seen anything dangerous yet,” you question as Lilia walks around the two and starts fixing their postures and sword positions.

“There are many dangers past the walls, you were lucky that you didn’t bump into anything before we found you,” Silver responds, and you wait for him to elaborate but he never does.

You keep quiet as Sebek and Silver resume their mock battle with Lila floating around them offering criticism and suggestions.  Both males seem to be well trained, matching each other’s strength and passion as they swordfight.  Sebek seems to have a more powerful strike, but he tires easily, while Silver is better at conserving his energy and striking only when he has a clear opportunity.  The fight eventually ends with Sebek knocking Silver down with his last burst of energy, but Silver also manages to hit Sebek’s armored stomach in the process.

“Another stalemate,” Lilia decides.  “That’s a good thing, that means you’re both improving and can match each other’s skills.  Now, let's focus on some of your weaknesses.”

Lilia starts to help each boy individually, but the session is interrupted by a large explosion and a puff of blue flames bursting in the distance.  You can’t really see much because of the palace walls, but the other three seem to be on edge and look nervously at the smoking mess.

“See, I told you the outside world is dangerous,” Silver tells you as he gently grabs your arm and starts leading you back inside.

“What is that?” you inquire, mesmerized by the oddly colored flames before the door gets closed, blocking your view

“We should get inside and notify Malleus,” Sebek offers, ignoring your question.

“Yes, let’s move as a group, we’re stronger in numbers,” Lilia mentions as the trio surround you in a protective circle.

With Lila leading the group back to the throne room, Sebek and Silver stand at either of your sides, clutching their swords in their hands as they look down each hallway they pass.  The lighting in the hallway starts to dim as the sky grows dark and stormy and the torches lining the walls blow out.

“Aurora, stay close!” Sebek tells you, but it’s easier said than done with darkness surrounding you.

Through the confusion and the blackness, you run and turn blindly down a few hallways before the torches flicker back to life.  You look around to find yourself in an unfamiliar corridor, your three friends nowhere to be seen.

“Lilia?” you call out, but get no response.  “Sebek!  Silver!”

You can hear them in the distance yelling your name so you continue to call out to them until you get interrupted by the empty suit of armor next to you rattling.  You gasp and create some distance between you and the metal armor as the head falls off and rolls to your feet.

“Human?  That’s you?” a voice comes from the fallen head.

“W-Who are you?  What are y-you?” you ask, bending down to peek into the helmet.

You’re met with glowing blue eyes as a cat-like thing comes out of its hiding spot.  It has flaming blue ears, reminding you of the blue fire in the forest.

“You!  You started the fire out there,” you connect the dots, starting to shuffle away from the creature.

“Of course I did!  I needed a distraction to get inside.  We need to go now!” the cat tells you as he walks towards you and you continue to back away from him.

“Brair!  There you are,” a relieved voice calls out as you turn around to see Malleus standing at the end of the corridor.  “I heard that Lilia lost you in the blackout, let’s get you to safety.”

“Brair?  That ain’t your name,” the creature sounds confused.  “Malleus, what have you done?”

“Brair, come to me slowly, that thing is very dangerous,” Malleus speaks to you softly, like calling out to a cornered animal.

You spare the cat one more glance, pushing away the familiarity you feel when you look into its blue eyes, before walking over to Malleus.

“Y/N, wait!  He’s tricking you, you need to come with me!” the cat exclaims in a last desperate attempt to get your attention.

You pause, halfway to Malleus already.  You momentarily blank out, your old memories flooding your mind as you suddenly remember everything.  There was a mass overblot at Night Raven College and you managed to get stuck in the Diasomnia dorm. You really should get out of here with Grim before something bad happens.  In the moment that it took you to recollect your memories, Lilia, Sebek, and Silver appeared to back up Malleus.

“Briar?  We need to get you to safety, please come to me,” Malleus brings you back to reality as he takes one step closer towards you.

Out of instinct, you take one step away from him and closer to Grim.  Your heart clenches at the hurt expression on the dragon’s face, but it quickly turns blank as you continue to approach Grim.

“So, what’s the plan?” you whisper to your familiar.

“I thought you would have one,” Grim tells you sheepishly, an embarrassed smile on his face.

You sigh and shake your head as the four Diasomnia members start to advance, telling you that you’re making a mistake and that everything will be alright if you come to them.

“I think we should run,” you tell Grim before scooping him up and making a wild dash down the hallway.

You should have paid more attention to the layout of the castle when Malleus took you on that midnight walk, but you turned blindly down the hallways, trying to throw them off your trail.  You yelp as black thorns suddenly block your way, the plants curling up the walls and breaking through the floor.  You quickly run back the way you came and narrowly avoid Silver making grab at you as you turn down another hallway, only to bump into Lilia.

“There you are, Aurora.  Such a silly little game you’re playing,” the older fae giggles as he grabs tightly at your upper arm.

You protest and try to rip your arm out of his grip, even banging on his chest as he starts to roughly drag you somewhere else.  Lilia only lets go of his hold on you when Grim bites at his wrist, causing the fae to gasp in surprise, giving you a chance to break free and bolt down another hallway.  Unfortunately, the next time you get caught, it's by Malleus with Sebek blocking off your only other way of escape.

“Brair, you can’t escape,” Sebek tells you, his sword drawn menacingly.

“Just come to me, dear.  There is nothing to be afraid of.  I can make everything better,” Malleus coaxes you towards him.

“Not a chance, Malleus.  It’s the overblot clouding your mind, I can fix that,” you try to reason with the dragon.

“No, you don’t understand.  You belong here with us,” Malleus growls as he grows impatient and starts stalking towards you.

You nervously look around, trying to find an escape, but you find nothing but an open window.  You groan, but you’re desperate enough to attempt it.  You make a run for the window, but you hadn’t been paying too much attention to where Sebek was and he manages to grab you just as you’re in the middle of throwing yourself out of the window.

“Malleus, now!” Sebek commands as he bear hugs you to his chest, not minding the fact that you’re kicking and screaming with your arms pinned to your sides.

Malleus gives you an apology with his eyes before he taps his finger to your forehead, “Sleep, darling.  Everything will be better when you wake up.”

You try to fight the sleepiness that wash over you, mumbling weak protests as you eventually give in and fall limp in Sebek’s arms, the last thing you hear is Grim screaming your name.

~

The sound of a soft lullaby being sung brings you out of your deep sleep, the beautiful melody almost lulling back to sleep if it wasn’t for the whispered argument also happening in the room.

“It’ll be best if he stays asleep, then he can’t cause any problems,” a voice that seems to have issues with volume control whisper-shouts.

“But he doesn’t deserve that.  I want him to enjoy his life, I want to see him awake and smiling again,” a somber voice murmurs.

“He’ll be waking up soon, so we need to make a choice now,” another objects before he cuts himself off with a yawn.  “Maybe we should keep him asleep for just a bit longer, just to make sure that he doesn’t remember anything.”

“Guys, he’s waking up,” the singing voice stops to tell the others.

You blink your eyes open and are greeted by four males hovering around the bed you're resting on.  A shorter boy sits at your bedside and the other three are near a spinning wheel, having paused their argument to look over at you.

“Aurora, how are you feeling?  What do you remember,” the one by your side asks.

“I’m okay, I think.  Just feeling sleepy, Lilia,” you tell him, his name rolling off your tongue.  “What happened?”

“It’s best if you don’t remember, it was a terrible thing,” the horned male tells you as he moves to sit on your best, reaching out to hold your hands.

His skin is cold against yours as he pulls your hand to his face and nuzzles his cheek into your palm.  You smile, tangling your hand in his hair, the gesture feeling natural.

“We’re still cleaning up the aftermath, so I think it would be best if you went back to sleep,” Sebek offers as he and Silver walk and sit on the other side of your bed.

“Don’t worry, we’ll wake you up when everything is returned to the way it was before,” Silver adds as he leans his head on your shoulder.

“Is it really that bad?” you ask, feeling more awake by the second.

The others exchange a glance, having a silent conversations with their eyes.

“You shouldn’t worry your pretty little head about it,” Lilia pats your head and offers you a sweet smile before giving Malleus a pointed look.

“Let’s get you back to sleep while we finish cleaning up,” Malleus tells you as he kisses the palm of your hand before removing it from your cheek.

Before you can object, Malleus presses a soft kiss to your forehead and you start to feel sleepy again.  Someone helps you lay back down and more kisses are peppered around your face, making you feel all warm and cozy.

“We’ll see you again, once upon a dream,” is what you hear before sleep consumes you once again.

[sundazetales]

I like the idea that Wade talks in his sleep and the first time he does it Logan realises he will never have a moment of peace around him

[sugurugetofavoritemonkey]

Fons vitae caritas - Love is the fountain of life

Summary : What if Ethan Landry survived the theater attack at the shrine ? You didn’t know he was one of the Ghostfaces and when you found him all bloody and whimpering on the floor, of course you helped him. Or in other words, you tend to the wounds of Ethan Landry, a killer but also the boy you always loved… and maybe it wasn’t an unrequited love after all. In all honesty, Ethan was enamored with you and never wanted you to be involved in all of this…

Pairing : Ethan Landry x Gn! Reader.

Word Count : 3.900 words.

Warnings : Hurt/Comfort, fluff, mention of blood, wounds and stitches.

Author’s Note : This was entirely written based on this lovely anon’s request. Tell me if I’ve missed anything and please don’t hesitate to give me feedback, it’s always greatly appreciated to know if I did good ! I also had a blast with this request (and writing for my lovely Ethan) so if you have requests for him, I’ll be excited to hear about your ideas.

You had been separated from the group at the subway station. There were way too many people at this time in the subway and you had been stuck in the middle of people walking in and out of the subway. However, what disconcerted you was the fact that Ethan, your dearest « friend », if you could really call him that with how much the two of you were close, let go of your hand in the middle of running to the subway. Maybe it was just a coincidence, you thought, without really believing it. Ethan always held your hand when you were outside, always, and he never let go of you, especially when there were that many people around, and with a killer on the loose on top of that. Ethan knew that you could get a bit scared outdoors when he wasn’t there to hold your hand and reassure you that everything was okay. He always looked back to see exactly where you were to look after you, but strangely… this time, when Ethan let go of your hand, he didn’t even make an attempt to walk back to get you, as he continued walking straight ahead like nothing happened… and it definitely wasn’t like him to do something like that. 

Everyone was ahead of you as you made your best to catch up on them after you had finally reached your stop. Luckily you knew the city by heart and it was easy for you to quickly arrive at the theater, where everyone had planned to trap the Ghostface killer inside his own shrine. Unfortunately, because you got to the theater way after the others, it was hard for you to find them as you walked inside the giant building. At some time, you heard screams of pain, you believed it was Chad as you started to walk faster in order to help him but when you thought you had finally reached him, you got further separated from your friends as not one but two Ghostfaces cornered you in a small room during the attack.

The hooded killers laughed as they closed the door behind them before removing their masks. You gasped in shock as you realized with widened eyes that the Ghostfaces were Detective Wayne Bailey and his - actually alive - daughter, Quinn. You tried to run past them but that was just futile as they laughed even louder at you, mocking you as Wayne didn’t even bother to make useless moves, barely lifting his arm up to shoot you in the right shoulder as he ordered his daughter to finish you off. Quinn stabbed you in the stomach as you groaned in pain and coughed a bit of blood when she harshly removed the knife from you, making you almost instantly fall to the ground in a silent cry, your vision slowly becoming dark and blurry as they both thought they had you dead and closed the door behind them like nothing happened.

Honestly, you should have been dead with all the blood that you lost but it seemed that fate had been by your side this time. When you woke up from your loss of consciousness, you got up with excruciating pain in your right side and shoulder. When you clenched your hand over your wounds, you could feel the blood staining your clothes and decided to tear a part of your long skirt to make rudimentary bandages that you wrapped around your shoulder and waist in hope that it will stop the bleeding at least until you get home. When you started walking to find the exit where you came from, it almost seemed that everything was over with how silent the theater had become. Moving your body was making your head dizzy as you winced in pain but you kept walking while avoiding the debris that were now obstructing some part of the silent shrine. Among them, two bodies particularly caught your attention… Quinn and her father were laying on the ground with fresh blood surrounding them… they had what they deserved, you thought without remorse as you quickly averted your gaze from them. After a few minutes, you finally found the exit that wasn’t too far away from you, making a smile appear on your face with the promise of safety that you could almost grasp. 

But when you were about to finally escape, you heard silent whimpers of pain coming from a corner. As you got closer, you could see Ethan laying on the ground on his stomach, almost covered in blood as a TV was crushing his right side : the edge of his face and a whole part of his shoulder. You gasped in shock and ran over to him, quickly removing the TV from him by pushing on it with your foot, gathering all the strength you could gather to rescue him. His safety being the only thing on your mind right now. 

Once you could finally see Ethan better, the state he was in was more than alarming : the right side of his face was all bruised, both of his shoulders seemed to have bigger opened wounds as blood was gushing out and he had small cuts all around his mouth as Ethan coughed up blood, making you panic even more as you carefully lifted Ethan in your arms, making his head rest on your lap as you gently caressed his hair. Your eyes watered when you had to imagine the pain he was in at the moment as your heart started to pound violently against your chest, anxiety controlling you as it was almost impossible for you to breathe.

You always had a soft spot for Ethan… or even more than that if you were honest with yourself and it broke your heart to see your poor Ethan that way. You tried ever so gently to caress the left side of his face in a way to reassure Ethan with your presence, miraculously making him stir awake little by little. Ethan only succeeded in fluttering his eyes open as his breath was ragged. When his eyes spotted your face looking down at him as tears rolled down your cheeks just to fall on his eyelashes, Ethan almost thought he was in heaven. He immediately wanted to talk to you but because he was stabbed in the mouth, Ethan struggled to talk and articulate his words at first but after a moment he managed to whisper your name in a silent weep. It was hard for him to even look at you, let alone breathe properly as his eyes watered at the sight of you all bloody in front of him. But what made his heart really flutter was the way you were looking at him, with such gentle eyes as you were holding his broken body in your arms.

Ethan didn’t want all of this to happen that way as his eyes briefly noticed that you were wounded somewhere, anger and frustration submerging him as he realized that his plan didn’t work the way he expected. 

Ethan had made sure you would not come here today. You couldn't be hurt in any way, he had repeated in his head a hundred times after his father had explained his plan to him a few days ago… the slaughter that will happen. 

You had to stay stuck in the subway, Ethan had planned on his own… and that’s exactly what he did earlier as he had let go of your hand on purpose, exactly when a lot of people gathered around, to be sure that you had no chance to go with them, even though it broke his heart to imagine how anxious this situation would be for you. But Ethan had to make sure you were the only one safe, far away from all this violence. Yet, fate had played with him and you apparently were still able to get here anyway…

When you noticed the way Ethan’s eyes started to get foggy with tears, you were half happy to see that his body and mind were reacting, meaning that he had a chance to live. However, you also tried your best to contain your sobs at his distress… even though you actually didn’t know the real reason behind it… Ethan couldn’t care less about his own injuries, his mind was plagued with one thing only… you.

Ethan needed to get his hands on his father and sister to make them pay for what they did to you. They didn’t have the right to touch you, let alone harm you in any shape or form whatsoever, he had been very clear with them, but he also painfully knew that he could never make any decisions in his father’s plan. 

When Ethan bit his bottom lip with a frown on his face, your hand drew more soothing circles on his unharmed cheek as you spoke to him with such a soft and gentle voice, smiling to Ethan to reassure him, though your voice betrayed your emotions.

« It’s a-alright Ethan… the Ghostfaces are all dead… all of them… you’re s-safe now… I promise, no one will ever h-hurt you again… I’m here, w-with y-you… »

When you remembered that Detective Bailey was Ghostface, you didn’t want to stay here any longer in case he had accomplices in the police when they would get here. Who knows ? Maybe they will finish the job he couldn’t and kill the both of you… you and Ethan are currently easy targets, you realize as your heart quickened in fear.

Hurriedly, you helped Ethan on his feet with difficulties as your own shoulder was starting to bleed again with the force you were applying on it. You maneuvered his left arm around your shoulder to support his weight. Ethan whimpered in pain as you helped him walk, due to the pressure applied on his stabbing wounds, even though he tried his hardest to stay strong for you. You blurt out excuses with an anxious voice as you quicken your pace to go back to your place. 

« We c-can’t stay here Ethan… I’m sorry but we’ll have to be quick. I’ll take care of you when we're safe. »

Some tears escaped Ethan’s eyes in silence with all the emotions he was going through. He couldn’t care less that his father died. After all, the man never cared for him nor even loved him as a son. He was just a tool for him. Nevertheless, Ethan could not deny the thrill he always felt when he acted as Ghostface, it was more than true and he accepted it without feeling even an ounce of remorse at those he had killed… but not you. Ethan couldn’t even envision hurting you… never. 

Ethan had tried at the last moment to avert the attention of his father and sister from you, almost begging them to kill someone else in your place… that you were the only one innocent in his eyes, but it didn’t work. Just like his plan to save you from any harm. And now you were the one helping him… a killer… He was right all along, Ethan thought with a smile, as the two of you were almost home… you were definitely an angel. 

When you were finally both safe, you let out a sigh of relief as you made Ethan sit down on the floor of your room with his head resting against the edge of your bed to keep his back straight. You ran over to your bathroom where you had everything you needed to take care of Ethan : disinfectant, needle, thread, bandages…etc. Luckily, you had some notions in medicine and had the right equipment for today’s case. When you come back into your room, you notice how Ethan struggles to keep his eyes open, his mind dizzy from the blood loss as he rests his head on the side of your bed. You hurriedly sit on his lap without fully putting your weight on his legs and set down all your medical tools on the bed beside you. You worriedly look at Ethan’s face as you gently yet firmly hold his cheeks in your palms, rubbing both of your thumbs on his cheekbones as you call his name to make him regain consciousness.

« Hey, Hey, Ethan, look at me… Stay with me please… I’m gonna take care of you, don’t worry. » 

When Ethan’s eyes flutter open to look at you, a sigh of relief comes out of your mouth, smiling at him as your fingers now move in a softer way over his cheekbones, soothing his senses with your loving gestures. After a small tender moment between the two of you where Ethan looked up at you with puppy eyes while your hands were holding his face with so much love, one of his hand coming to cover your right one as Ethan leaned into your touch, you reluctantly removed your hand from him in order to begin taking care of him. When Ethan took note of that, his hand immediately stopped yours by softly grabbing your wrist as his gaze locked with yours. 

« No way you’re taking care of me first. », Ethan stated with difficulty. 

Ethan almost fought against the fact that you would heal him before yourself, your wounds were also gushing too much blood for his liking, as he explained to you with a worried gaze, yet you refused to let Ethan wait for your care. He would be the first one to be treated and that was your final word, you affirmed to him with a kiss on his forehead. 

Perhaps giving Ethan a kiss worked as a magic trick on him because it effectively hushed him, making Ethan’s cheeks turn slightly red at the gesture as he looked the other way and lightly bit the inside of his cheek nervously. 

Still straddling Ethan’s lap, you started taking care of him by firstly removing the black robe that Ethan was wearing, it was easy enough with how loose it had gotten. When you put the black material aside, letting your eyes linger on it for a bit, all the thoughts that you kept buried since you discovered Ethan at the theater came rushing back to you. You had to ignore these thoughts once again as you didn’t have time to think about such things nor didn’t you want to. Yes he was wearing this very particular costume but… Ethan couldn’t be… No he’s not, you convinced yourself even when you perfectly knew that it wasn’t a coincidence. But still, you trusted Ethan more than anyone else and knew that he would never hurt you, ever. And that’s all that mattered to you right now, when taking care of his wounds was the only thing your whole mind was focused on, him and only him. 

Afterwards, your hands came back on him as you held the hem of his shirt between your fingers, looking back at Ethan to silently ask for permission to also remove his shirt in order to give you better access to his wounds. Ethan shyly nodded before you slowly removed his shirt, being careful not to be too rough with your movements as to prevent aggravating his injuries. 

Your cold hands started to search for any patch of skin that seemed wounded and needed care as you let your fingers gently slide along his body, making Ethan slightly tremble under your touch as he felt way too exposed in front of you. After checking his body, your gaze saddened when you realized that Ethan had way more injuries than you would have thought, it was even surprising that he was still alive at this point or that he wasn’t complaining about the excruciating pain that he was without a doubt experiencing right now.

Ethan must have been hit on the back of the head as a bit of blood was making his hair stick there, you also noticed that he was stabbed in the mouth and that’s why it was hard for him to talk even though he managed, as small cuts could also be seen around his mouth. But the worst injuries were on his shoulders. Ethan was stabbed in the front left shoulder 5 times as blood was still gushing a bit out of the open wounds, while the TV that you saw earlier had crushed a part of his right shoulder and side of his face, where you could see lots of bruises and cuts covering his poor skin.

You sigh shakily when you feel the stress you’re putting on yourself at the amount of stitches you’re gonna have to do on Ethan, surely more stitches than you ever did in your entire life combined. When Ethan noticed the way your hands started shaking a bit, he instinctively intertwined his fingers with yours, knowing full well how it always appeased your mind. And he’s right, Ethan always is when it’s about you, as your racing mind slows down at the feeling of Ethan’s hand, helping you decide to only treat his most urgent wounds first as you make priorities in your mind.

You’ll disinfect all his wounds but clean even more the cuts around his mouth to prevent any infections, do stitches on all of his open wounds of his left and right shoulder but also on the deeper cuts Ethan got on the right side of his face that worries you a little, and cover his shoulders with bandages to help them heal faster. 

Ethan tried his best to be strong while you took care of him, he wanted to act tough in front of you, to make you feel proud of him that he wasn’t complaining, but he still couldn’t control everything as the little grunts and whimpers of pain Ethan let out were breaking your heart in little pieces. His jaw was tightly clenched as his eyes were filled with tears of pain that rolled over his face from time to time.

You were the only thing that was helping him get through this as Ethan noticed how gentle you were with him, while he tried his best to keep his eyes open in order to engrave all the little details in his memory. Like your face that was focusing on your task, a frown appearing on it when you were putting all your attention on a particular stitch. Or the way your hands controlled themselves from trembling even though it was hard for you at this moment, Ethan noticed with dreamy eyes. He also remarked the way your chest was heaving up and down at a fast pace, as Ethan’s hands were grabbing your thighs during the entire time. His fingers ever so gently danced across your skin as his thumbs occasionally rubbed over your thighs with soothing circles absentmindedly. His hands never left you as your position on his lap was making it easy for him to access your thighs, the comforting and loving caresses soothing you and Ethan at the same time.

When it was your turn to take care of your own wounds in front of Ethan, still in the same comfortable position, he was now the one to bring you the reassurance and love you desperately craved, in order to make this painful moment go by as quickly as he could. Ethan held your hand when he could and when it wasn’t possible with your movements, he gently let his hand rest on the unharmed side of your waist, drawing reassuring and affectionate caresses on your skin as Ethan looked at you with saddened but soft eyes, reminding you that he was here for you even though he couldn’t do much at the moment.

After you were both patched up, your hands naturally returned to cup Ethan’s face lovingly, caressing the bruised and stitched side of his skin softly as you covered his entire face in kisses. Ethan automatically did the exact same thing to you as his bigger hands went to cup your jaw protectively, his thumbs rubbing your cheeks tenderly as he made you bend down a little to press kisses on your nose, forehead, cheeks and corner of your mouth. You were both bringing the other one the reassuring presence you needed from each other and the love that you both should have fully shared much earlier if you two weren’t the most bashful people on earth. 

Now fully sitting on Ethan’s lap as exhaustion took over you, Ethan caressed in a feather light touch your now stitched up wounds, a touch that you almost could not feel with how gentle and careful he was. Ethan looked at your injuries with anger, sadness and frustration that he wasn’t there to protect you and prevent them from happening.

Ethan quietly sobbed at that as he hid his face in the crook of your neck, careful not to touch your stitches as he hoarsely muttered excuses with a muffled and trembling voice, « I’m s-sorry… so s-sorry, baby… »

You didn’t understand why he would say that… well not completely. He didn’t have anything to do with your wounds and he would never hurt you in any shape or form. Seeing your sweet Ethan sob in your arms was shattering your soul as you just wanted to hold him closer to your heart, softly enough as to not aggravate his injuries. 

You both hugged each other during a moment that felt out of time, Ethan firmly clinging to your body, as you calmly caressed his hair while massaging his scalp soothingly. Ethan’s figure being much larger than you, it was like you were hiding in a cocoon where nothing could harm you anymore, as you felt at peace in his protective arms.

Ethan broke the hug at one point to look at you and got closer to your face as he pressed a chaste kiss on your lips that you mirrored almost instantly. Ethan giggled between kisses as you were both eagerly pressing as many kisses as possible to the other’s mouth. 

With your mouth still lingering on his, you reassured him with a beautiful smile that Ethan cherished, as he peacefully listened to the words that you whispered against his lips.

« Together, everything will be okay… I know I’ll be safe with you Ethan. And… you’ll always have me, b-because… I care for you more than you could ever imagine. »

Ethan’s gaze widened with affection at your honest declaration as his eyes looked down at your lips, pressing his mouth to yours as he deepened the kiss by cupping your cheeks, not wanting to let you go too far from him. After breaking the kiss, Ethan bashfully intertwined his fingers with yours as he looked down to observe with attention the way he was fidgeting with your hand.

« Can I say that I love you ? », he asked while looking back into your eyes. Ethan felt awkward while saying that, it was the first time for him after all. Though, the pretty boy quickly changed his mind when he felt your lips whisper close to his ear how much you loved him back, making Ethan smile in the most adorable way possible. 

💗 Ethan Landry Masterlist 💗

[phoward89]

Based on this ask

Your day started as it normally does. You woke up in your boyfriend's arms, trying to wiggle away from him without disturbing his sleep. And like every morning, Coryo woke up, only to hold you closer and press a good morning kiss to your lips.

“Morning, darling.” He greeted you, voice rough with sleep.

“Morning, Coryo “ You replied with a smile.

“Where are you going, baby?” Coryo asked as you tried to get up.

“I need to pee and we have to get ready.” You told the platinum blonde, whose curls were messily resting against his red silk pillowcase like a halo. When Coriolanus made no move to let you get up, you lightly rubbed his chest while reminding him, “We both have classes today and you have that meeting with Dr. Gaul to see if you're qualified to be promoted from an intern to a full time gamemaker position.”

“I think you're more nervous about my meeting than I am.” Your boyfriend sighed, letting his hold on you go.

“It's a very important meeting, Coryo. Of course I'm nervous for you.” You told your boyfriend as he sat on the edge of the bed, slipping on his slippers. Before he could stand up, you wrapped your arms around him from behind. Resting your head against his shoulder, you said, “I know how much you want to become a gamemaker.” The blonde man didn't say a word, just placed his large hand over yours. He ran the calloused pad on his thumb over his knuckles as you continued your thoughts with, “You're always pushing yourself to be the best. And to become the youngest gamemaker in Panem's history while enrolled at the University as a double major's an honor, one that I know you want to have.”

“You know me so well, Y/N.” Coriolanus lightly chuckled. Gently unwrapping your arms from around him and standing up, he sighed, “We better get on with our morning.”

After doing your morning routine of showering, dressing, and eating breakfast, Coryo drove you both to Capitol University, the most esteemed university in all of Panem. Since you were a couple of years younger than him, your classes were mostly pre-recs and were on the other side of the campus then the major focused classes. So, you and your boyfriend parted ways with a kiss shortly after arriving in the parking lot of the University.

Coriolanus took off towards where his classes and friends were while you took off to find your own friends and attend your classes.

Everything was going fine until lunchtime rolled around.

You usually ate lunch with your friends, a small group of girls that you've known since your academy days. Sometimes Coriolanus would join you, bringing Clemensia and Festus to tag along. Other times, which was usually all the time, your boyfriend spent his lunch hour in the library studying, working on projects, and drawing up proposals to hand to Dr. Gaul concerning the games.

Unfortunately for you, this afternoon was one of those days that Coryo was holed up in the University library, doing something productive in his quest for academic supremacy and power.

Usually, it'd be fine and you'd just eat in the University dining hall with your friends, but not today.

No…

Today you got into a fight with your friends. A fight that started over a simple disagreement. It was a silly disagreement really. A disagreement that started over, of all things, dresses for the upcoming Spring Ball.

One of your friends got upset that you simply told her that maybe she shouldn't plan to wear a black dress, but maybe something pastel since she already wore black a few months back for the Yule Ball. She snapped at you and even made a snide remark about how you could afford to buy a thousand dresses and for a thousand balls since you're shacking up with Coriolanus Snow. The remark hurt, but what hurt worse was that your other friends backed her up; attacked you too.

The lunch fight got so heated with all the screaming, yelling, shouting, and crying that the other students eating in the dining hall stopped what they were doing to watch and listen in.

Yea, your fight with your friends was quickly becoming a spectacle for gossip.

Feeling overwhelmed by sadness, you gathered your things and rushed out of the dining hall. Unfortunately, your absence was the perfect opportunity for your friends to start spreading lies about you. To make it seem like you weren't a good friend, that you were greedy, etc.

The girls you've been friends with since your Academy Days were being petty. Ruining years of friendship. And for what?

A simple disagreement. Or was there more to it? Was jealousy over your relationship with Coryo the true cause of it?

Your day went from bad to worse when your phone kept going off left and right with Pangram notifications. As it turns out, your friends weren't your friends anymore and they were posting all kinds of mean things about you. Even tagging you in the posts too. And your best friend, well she was petty enough to post the glittery words of Fuck You on her social media.

Words aimed at you.

And the worst part was that you're dealing with all of this alone since your boyfriend has his own studies to worry about. And, of course, he has a very important meeting with Dr. Gaul about his future career.

Usually you'd catch a ride home with one of your friends if Coryo had work or meeting scheduled at the Citadel, but not today.

Today you had to walk home from the University since you lost your friends. And, of course, your mind kept replaying everything as you walked home.

And when you finally got home, you dropped your books on the glass star shaped coffee table and made a mad dash to your bedroom before Grandma’am could realize that you were home and ask about your day.

You adored Coriolanus' grandmother, you really did, but sometimes she could be a bit much. And after the day you had, well, you just didn't want to deal with her. In fact, you didn't want to deal with anybody at the moment.

All you wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cry.

When Coriolanus walked into the penthouse he had a huge smile on his face. He was on the right track for graduating Summa Cum Laude and being the Valedictorian of his class. He was also given an assistant gamemaker position, which was amazing consider that made him the youngest gamemaker on Dr. Gaul's staff.

Dr. Gaul has told Coriolanus that he had a drive that she hadn't seen since she taught his father. That, in fact, his drive for success surpassed that of the late General Snow’s. That he, Coriolanus Snow, was destined for great things; to be a great contributor to Panem. She even told him that she saw political potential in him.

Coryo couldn't wait to tell both you and Grandma'am about his great news, but when he came home he was only met with the sight of Grandma’am in a sitting chair, watching one of her late afternoon Capitol TV soaps, and your books on the glass coffee table. He instantly knew that something was wrong. You'd never ignore Grandma’am. Not unless you weren't feeling well.

No. You loved his Grandma’am. Adored her, enjoyed her company.

“Is Y/N feeling unwell?” Coriolanus asked his Grandma'am, his icy blue eyes shifting between her and your books.

“I'm not sure, Coryo. I didn't see her come in.” The old woman, dressed in a fine tunic and a matching jeweled turbin, told her grandson.

“I’ll check on her, Grandma'am. Just continue watching your soap.” He told her before walking down the hall towards his room. The room that he's been sharing with you ever since he moved you in.

“Darling, are you unwell?” Coryo asked, opening the door and stepping inside of the bedroom.

The site of you curled up in a ball on the bed, crying, gutted him. He hates to see you cry.

And whoever made you cry was dead. Coriolanus would personally make sure of it. Nobody makes his baby cry and gets away with it

Nobody.

“Baby, what’s wrong? What happened?” Coryo asked, rushing over to the bed.

And when you felt him wrap his arms around you, you broke down. You told him everything that happened. About the fight and how you lost all of your friends. About how they pettily posted shit on Pangram all day and how they've been gossiping about you; talking trash.

Coriolanus just let you spill your guts to him. The more you told him, the more he began to scheme up ideas to make those girls pay for what they did to you.

And they were going to pay.

Their families were going to pay too.

All because they made you cry. When they made the girlfriend of Coriolanus Snow cry, well, they just opened up Pandora's box. And once that bitch’s open, it doesn't close.

As Coryo spooned you, he pressed a kiss to your shoulder and assured you, “You’ll feel better now that you've cried it out, baby” He nuzzled your neck, only to tell you, “I'm sorry those bitches did that to you, Y/N. You're the sweetest girl I know; you didn't deserve that.”

“It hurts, Coryo.” You sniffled. Staring out the window that was by the bed, you sighed, “I thought they were my friends. I've known them for years, just for them to turn on me because of a comment about a dress.”

Everything clicked in Coriolanus mind as soon as he heard you say ‘just for them to turn on me because of a comment about a dress’. Those words were all it took for him to realize that your friends were jealous of you because you belonged to him. They were jealous because he moved you into his house and spoiled you with clothes, jewelry, sweets, and anything else you could possibly want. They're jealous because he's rich, the Plinth heir, and he's showering you (his girl that made him fall in love again, even though he swore he'd never love anyone ever again) in luxury.

“They're jealous, baby.” Your boyfriend told you.

“I know.” You sadly nodded.

Pressing a kiss to your cheek, Coriolanus promised, “Baby, I'll never let anyone hurt you ever again.”

And he kept that promise.

Coriolanus made your former friends pay for what they done to you. For making you cry.

He ruined and bankrupted their families. He also ruined their reputations and had them expelled from the University.

Your Coryo made sure that everyone knew that if they messed with you then they messed with him. Safe to say, everyone kisses your ass out of fear that your boyfriend would make them disappear or make their lives a living hell.

Coriolanus also made sure that you were accepted into his friend circle. Those snotty rich kids at least didn't backstab their friends.

Well, Coriolanus did out of that group, but he wouldn't be backstabbing them til years later when he got deep into his presidential campaigns.

But for now, Coryo was just your supportive boyfriend that held you as you cried, dried your tears, and made everything all better for you.

Tags: @kuroosbby001, @purriteen @poppyflower-22 @meetmeatyourworst, @whipwhoops @bxtchopolis @readingthingsonhere @savagenctzen @ryswritingrecord, @erikasurfer @tulips2715, @universal-s1ut, @thesmutconnoisseur, @squidscottjeans @sudek4l @wearemadeofstardust0 @mashiromochi @gracieroxzy @belcalis9503 @shari-berri @aoi-targaryen, @whiteoakoak, @spear-bearing-bi-witch @gisellesprettylies @loverandqueenofdragons @qoopeeya @mfnqueen1 @permanentlyexhaustedpigeon88 @v-love @swiftieblyth

[smokescreenimusprime]

watched tf one the other night with my best friend and now I've been Re-Mental Illnessed, here's some Rescue Bot Smokescreen Rot I rotated while driving home :]

I think I've finally hammered out some more details of Inside Job and this is what I came up with:

like canon it starts with the Omega Keys. Specifically when Bulkhead gets attacked and knocked unconscious when looking for one

And against direct orders, Smokescreen leaves the base to go get him

there were a bunch of reasons why he did what he did. A desire to prove his capability as an EMT. He wants to be a field medic like Ratchet is, he wants to be able to do more than just wait for them to come back injured when the more time that passes the more dangerous it could be. There was also the fear of losing anyone else, especially so soon after he befriended Bulkhead. It's barely been a few days since they started getting along, and the loss of the entire Rescue Bot Force is still raw

so he goes, and finds Bulkhead unconscious and alone in the woods, with the only injury being some scratches and a blow to the back of the helm. Smokescreen doesn't have a scratch on him as they hobble back to base

it doesn't stop Ratchet's anger

Now, don't get me wrong, Ratchet is angry because he was scared. Smokescreen could've been in very real danger. He didn't know what awaited him on the other side of that portal. For all they knew, the Decepticon soldiers could've still been there, and they could've lost the last Rescue Bot in existence

but unfortunately, he says all this when still angry

and Smokescreen, as thick as his skin is from experiencing years of discrimination, is genuinely hurt by it. This isn't just a fellow medic or instructor yelling at him, this is his idol berating him for what he thought was the right thing to do

this is his idol unknowingly repeating the words that followed him all throughout his training and that he sought to prove wrong, and he has no idea how to respond

so he runs. He drives as fast and far away as he can, shuts off his comm because he just. Can't right now. He can't interact with them right now because frankly he doesn't trust himself to speak and not say something he would regret to his dying days

and unknowingly this puts him right in the Decepticon's claws

some aspects of his capture stay the same. He wakes up in the medbay strapped to a table, the Omega Key is extracted, and he is placed under the cortical psychic patch

but the differences happen in the details

His restraints are barely more than a pair of manacles that he could've probably figured out how to escape if given enough time. The Omega Key was removed before he even woke up, the incisions of surgery fresh on his frame but the work is well done with obvious care. With the patch, the mental prodding and information gathering is... oddly gentle and quick, doing barely more than verifying what the Keys are and Smokescreen's identity as a Rescue Bot before retreating

Smokescreen is not a warrior after all. He is a bot thought to be long since extinct who quite literally dropped out of the sky at their feet without warning. He may have loyalty to the Autobots but... he's not fighting this war. Not really. He's just been doing what Rescue Bots do: helping those who need it.

The "cell" he's kept in, if it can even be called that, was an old now-dead officer's quarters. The door is locked and there are guards stationed inside watching him at all hours, but they are not cruel. He gets a healthy amount of rations regularly, and has even been given a data terminal to keep himself entertained (of course, no before Soundwave had thoroughly firewalled and restricted anything that could be used against them)

the most stressful part of his capture is when Megatron comes to visit. Every day without fail, he will come check in on how Smokescreen is doing. He will ask how he's doing and they talk. About Cybertron, about the war, about how accepting the Rescue Bots were, allowing any Cybertronian regardless of caste to join, how much of a tragedy it was for them to have been wiped out.

Smokescreen is not blind to how he attempts to sow seeds of doubt into the Autobots into him. About how cruel it was for them to keep him confined to the base, how cruel Trion was for implanting a relic without his knowledge, questions if Smokescreen truly wanted to help them or if that's just what they've pressured him into doing with false promises that crumble like glass

but instead of refuting him... Smokescreen decides to play along

after all, Megatron obviously sees him as a poor, innocent, helpless bot who could be swayed by some sweet words and a cage advertised as protection

and that facade would make it all the easier to escape when the time came :)

[extrovedteen]

WAIT Y/N! Quick Note: For those of you that saw ‘chapter one’ I decided to just break it down into individual parts all based on NEP’s PUP EP because I’m obsessed and it gives me hardcore Colby vibes so for all of us Colby Brock girls, this ones for us!

Warning: SMUT , FLUFF and everything in between. Enjoy my lovelies, if we like this I may do a Kit Connor one afterwards!

PART 1: FENDER (COLBY BROCK x READER)

“I really like it when you scream, I really like when you do not hurt me, I really like the way I look up at you and somehow you look down on me kindly.”

"You're not meant for that side of YouTube!" your manager yelled at you through the phone.

"It's what I want to do, I'm not interested in-" you started, trying to be heard.

"You're not doing it!" Your manager said sternly, you felt your heart break, as you knew you weren't in control of your own carer and if you wanted to continue this life, you had to stay a lifestyle guru.

You woke up in a hot sweat, a squeal escaping your lips before you fully woke up and understood that it was just a dream, your subconscious coming through.

"Hey guys, what's up! It's Y/N!" You spoke into your camera, you had just bought a brand new Cannon EOS R5. You had been with Cannon since your dad had bought you your very own Cannon EOS 5DS for your 16 birthday, when it all began. "And Happy Vlogmas Day 1!" You grinned from ear to ear, you were now 22 and vlogmas was the only thing you still truly loved about being a lifestyle guru. "Today we're hanging out with Adelaine Morin, we're going to go to the gym, our personal trainer is waiting for us, somehow we're always late." You laughed into the camera, you felt so fake.

Kris: we should have a sleep over tonight!

You had become close friends with Kris and Celina in the last few years of your career, they were the only ones that truly knew what you wanted to do on YouTube and about your gift

Ever since you remembered you had the gift of clairsentience (noun. the ability to perceive emotional or psychic energy that is imperceptible to the five standard senses.) and therefore you wanted to explore with this gift as it was only getting stronger as you were getting older, but your fan base was with you for lifestyle content and not paranormal investigations. You were worried about losing your fan base if you had a change, so you never did.

You had met Kris and Celina at a Tik-Tok event and the three of you had become inseparable ever since, and you loved spending time together however they knew that they had to hide you in their videos so you'd always be there, but nobody would know.

Celina: At Y/N's? I'll bring crumble!

You smiled at your phone, but then frowned as you knew it was vlogmas and that you needed that time to create content, during Vlogmas it was hard to keep up the double life, so you replied with

Y/N: I truly wish I could, but it's Vlogmas :( and I really need the time to create content.

Kris: Oh, yeah I forgot. It's understandable, but we'll really miss you this month.

Celina: you should just tell your fans the truth, I'm sure they'd understand and be really excited for the new content.

You had wished that it would be like that, but you knew otherwise, you had seen one person who was truly successful at a whole new brand change which was Taylor Swift, and you were no Taylor Swift. Instead you were Miley Cyrus, living a double life.

Y/N: guys unfortunately I'm no Taylor Swift... instead I'm a Miley Cyrus...

Kris: YOU GET THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS!! 👩‍🎤

Celina: CHILL IT OUT, TAKE IT SLOW!

Y/N: THEN YOU ROCK OUT THE SHOW!

You chuckled as you replied, no matter how much you truly cherished your friendships with the other lifestyle guru's especially Adelaine you knew you only truly fit in with Kris and Celina, they made you feel welcomed, they made you laugh and you could always be your truest self without being judged.

Y/N: I have to go! I have the gym this morning, but I'll talk to you guys later

You added to the chat and headed off to pick up Adelaine in your yellow Tesla, your dream car. You picked up Adelaine and the two of you went to grab something for breakfast from Starbucks before heading to the GYM.

"I just picked up Adelaine and we grabbed some Starbucks for breakfast, I got the egg bites and an iced matcha." You said, shaking your drink as you took a sip, your Tesla driving for you. "So good!" You grinned, Adelaine then shared what she got as well before you both said "and now we're on our way to the gym!"

Cut to the gym, it was leg day for you and so your PT talked you through that and you captured as much footage as possible before the session was over. After the gym, you and Adelaine went shopping to target to do some Christmas shopping and found something you knew that Kris would die for and so you recorded yourself putting into in the trolley, as a part of your footage for the day when your phone pinged.

Celina: Sam and Colby are coming to mine, we're filming a video on my haunted house.

As soon as you saw the names of the boys you wished you could go, Sam and Colby you had met them a handful of times as you were in their friend groups and would go to the same parties, you still remembered the first time you had never met Colby as clear as day. You glanced at him from across the room only to see him already looking down on you kindly, it made your breath hitch and your heart flutter. He walked over to you, it was an open mic tik-tok event and he was going to sing his song ‘Skin’ you also sang every now and again, but what influencer didn’t really. You knew how to play the bass and so when you noticed him holding his bass, you walked over to him confidently.

‘Nice Bass, It looks really expensive. I’m Y/N.” You introduced yourself, holding your hand out. He took your hand and kissed the back of it.

‘Colby.’ He replied before smirking up at you ‘Do you know how to play?’ He asked you.

‘Yeah, a little.’ You replied, feeling cheeky. He took his bass off and placed it over you.

‘Back straight, chest out.’ He instructed, you followed his instructions.

‘You lied bunny, you’re good’ He grinned, his breath on your neck as he stood behind you.

‘I know, I was just messing with you.’ You laughed, feeling the tension in the air of him standing behind you and obviously flirting with you.

‘No, say it.’ He said sternly, he very much had dominate energy and you couldn’t help but blush.

‘Say what?’ You asked, confused.

‘Say that you’re good.’ He continued.

‘Okay, I’m good.’ You admitted, turning around and looking into his eyes trying to make him feel just as intimidated.

‘Good Girl.’ He said looking into your eyes, he definitely wasn’t the littlest bit intimidated and he took his bass back before walking out on stage.

You still remembered everything he ‘taught you that night’ even how surprised he was when you played for him and found out how good you were.

You blushed, thinking about it until Adelaine’s voice bought you out of it. ‘Y/N!’ She spoke loudly before waving her hand in your face. ‘What are you thinking about that’s got your face all red? Wait! Is it a guy? Finally!’ She grinned. ‘WHO? Who is it?’ She asked, excited. She had been waiting for you to get into a relationship since you guys had met seven years ago, you had never had a boyfriend before.

‘Nobody.’ You laughed, your phone pinging again.

‘Is that him?’ She asked, reaching for your phone and you instantly became scared of her seeing who was messaging you so you shoved your phone into your pocket.

‘Don’t.’ You said sternly. She was surprised but that but dropped the conversation not wanting to upset you further.

‘Who is that for anyway?’ She asked you, looking into your trolley. ‘Just a friend from back home’ You lied. You hated lying to your best friend of seven years but your fear was far too strong and you knew you needed to keep the two lives separate, if you ever felt the courage to change your carer she would be the first to know, other then those from that other life.

Kris: Count me in!

You sighed, reading the message that had come through

Y/N: Have fun guys!

was all you could say, knowing your fans were counting on you getting enough footage each day for vlogmas. Instead of counting down to Christmas you were counting down the days until you could finally spend time with your best friends and see the boy that you had a crush on, not a crush- you just thought he was cute- or annoying.

-

Kris: Colby is talking about you!

Celina: He asked where you are AH

Y/N: Guys, he’s probably just used to me being with you guys and helping you paranormal investigate because I have a gift.

Celina: Yeah and because he probably wants to give you a gift ;)

Kris: BOO YEAH! GOOD ONE.

You just laughed at your best friend’s messages, shaking your head as you sighed, stretched and finished editing the thumbnail as you had already sent off the footage to your editor. By the time you were done it was 12:00AM and you knew they could possibly still be filming.

Y/N: I’m finally done! Be proud.

Kris: We’re so proud of you, beautiful. We’re almost done filming, we’re just about to do some rituals to close.

Celina: Get over here RIGHT NOW! Sam and Colby are staying the night.

You read the messages, and although you were tired 5 minutes ago you were wide awake.

Y/N: Lifestyle guru by day, paranormal investigator by night! I’m on my way!

You replied, getting up of the couch grabbing an energy drink out of the fridge and grabbing your car keys as you walked out the door, you got into your Tesla and drove to Celina’s house, your makeup was still done from earlier that day and you were wearing a tight black dress with a cut in the front exposing skin, you paired it with a leather jacket as it was winter and you’d be filming outside but you wanted to show off your brand new dress.

You got there 45 minutes later as Celina lived in a secluded area the time now reading 12:45AM. You took a few seconds to pull yourself together knowing that you truly had a crush on Colby Brock, no matter how hard you tried to deny it.

“Ello, Ello!” You called out, walking up to the door as you automatically felt goosebumps and the hairs on your skin prick up.

“Y/N!” Kris ran to the door and twirled you around before putting you back down.

“Come into my lair!” Celina said in her demon voice making you all laugh as per usual, dragging you inside. As soon as you stepped inside your eyes automatically looked for Colby’s as your heart fluttered.

“Hey Sam” You smiled, before looking back at Colby “Colby” you added.

“Bunny.” Colby replied, Sam walking over to you to give you a hug “Long time no see” Sam said with a grin.

“I can’t believe you guys wanted for me, I can’t even be in any of the footage.” You stated, feeling disappointed in yourself.

“We just enjoy your company, plus we always know we’re on the right path when you’re here because of your gift.” Colby said, looking at you with the kindest eyes.

You just smiled and nodded before you turned out of the frame and let them continue their filming, all of you walking towards the outdoor cabin, them filling you in on what you had missed.

“We’re going to play this game, it’s basically a ritual. It’s called the corner game.’ Sam started explaining. ‘So basically the idea of the game is to use all of our energy to summon said thing we want to talk to into the space that we’re here.’ He finished before adding on that the whole point of the night was to try and get rid of Elias. You instantly felt the negative energy and knew that it was Elias. “He doesn’t like that.” You said, Colby standing next to you out of the frame but recording Sam speaking. He instantly looked at you, and could tell that you were feeling uneasy.

“It’s summoning him right?” Colby asked and Sam replied “Summoning him into our space.” You nodded your head before Colby assured all of you that they had a plan and not to worry, you took their word for it and you all started the ritual.

Whilst you all undertook the summoning ritual, you were the last in, after Colby so that it would be easier to edit your voice out.

“Y/N! Y/N! Y/N!” You chose your corner and instantly felt Elias’ in the cabin with you, the uneasy feeling following you, you chose your corner and then the ritual went on, the energy just getting worse and worse.

“Y/N! Y/N! Y/N!” You said lastly, walking out of the door and closing it behind you, however Colby needing to go back and close the door so you weren’t in the video.

As soon as you were all out, you started to fall over feeling the negative powerful energy consume you, it was a downside of your gift. Colby caught you “You okay, bunny?” He asked you, worried. You sat down and nodded

“He’s definitely here.” You told your friends. Your friends stood up and started to film themselves using the Alice box hearing ‘Here’ come through which only proved your gift further, Colby was so turned on by your gift, he truly thought it was incredible.

You all filmed the last part of the video which was the banishing ritual, and by the end of it you truly didn’t feel his presence anymore, the video was complete and filming wrapped.

“Your gift is incredible” Colby said looking at you, everyone else agreeing.

“The way that you said ‘He’s definitely here’ and then the Alice box said ‘here’ that’s so crazy.” Sam added.

“Thanks guys, well in good news I don’t feel him anymore.” You assured them.

“Thank you.” Celina said thanking everyone. “It’s getting late.” Celina said, looking at her phone as you all walked back into the house, It was now 2AM.

“We should all get the bed, and we’ll hangout tomorrow morning?” Kris asked, everyone agreeing.

“Is there anywhere for me to sleep?” You asked, not really wanting to drive another 45 minutes home.

“Of course! We were thinking maybe You and Colby could share the cabin?” Celina asked, Kris’ eyebrows raising as a small chuckle left her mouth.

“What’s funny?” You asked, obviously knowing what they were implying, everyone could feel the sexual tension between the two of you although you’d both always deny it.

“Nothing.” Kris said, “It’s just probably less scary with you there due to your gift” She said, saving herself.

“Nice save” You laughed.

“I don’t mind, bunny.” Colby said, using that nickname that he knew made you swoon.

“Okay, then neither do I.” You said, daring.

“Well, goodnight.” Kris smiled, giving you a hug and walking inside. Celina and Sam following her inside, after Celina also gave you a hug.

You just looked up at Colby before twirling, showing of your brand new dress. “I guess your stuck with me” You said meeting his eyes that were looking down on you kindly, every time.

“I don’t mind that” He admitted, the two of you walking into the Cabin.

It was now 3:30AM and the two of you still weren’t asleep, you had gotten cold and so he gave you his sweater which was apart of the new XPLR merch, it was the purple ‘busy fighting demons’ sweater, you had been wanting one and now you had one and it smelt like Colby. However it fit you terribly but it was okay because you felt all cute and chic. You hadn’t spoken much to each other, only stealing glances when you’d look up from your phones. You were sleeping head to toe together in bed, and occasionally you could feel his leg touch yours and you weren’t sure if it was on purpose or because of the way you sit in the single bed together.

“I’m starving, I didn’t eat dinner.” You admitted.

“No dinner, bunny?” You asked, again that nickname made your heart flutter, although it was the only thing he called you, it always caught you off guard.

You pouted. “Unfortunately not, I was so busy with my daily footage.” You admitted. “I only had breakfast earlier before the gym.”

“There is a McDonald’s 25 minutes away.” He asked, looking at the maps on his phone. “Come on, my shout” He said and you were too hungry to disagree so you followed him out of the door.

-

25 minutes later you both arrived at the McDonald’s and ordered your food, Colby parked in the parking lot and you both got out and sat in his trunk which had a lot of space in the back. You ate your food and talked about life, just getting to know each other and it was obvious that you both liked each other.

“You have sauce” He said, rubbing his thumb under your lip. You both looked into each other’s eyes “Your eyes are so beautiful.” He admitted, you gulped before the two of you knew it your lips were crashing together as you kissed each other passionately. You bit his bottom lip and giggled. “You’re so beautiful.” He added before you both hid in the trunk, you were pretzeling your legs as you fell back into the trunk, you both had so many tattoos and you couldn’t help but admire his.

You wanted to take things slow, but the sexual tension was so strong that your legs instantly wrapped around his waist, dragging him down on top of you and the two of you started making out again. “Colby” You said, biting his bottom lip again, driving him crazy. “Bunny” he whispered into your ear, as his hands rubbed down your sides “Can I?” He asked, his hand meeting the top of your panties, he was asking for consent to put his hands inside your panties which made you admire him even more, you nodded your head as you nuzzled your head into his neck, biting his neck and leaving little love bites. “You’re driving me crazy” he admitted, but you already knew you were. His hands found your clit through your panties and he started to rub against it, making you wet. You had never been with anyone else so this was your first time, you didn’t want to ruin the moment so you didn’t tell him that.

“What do you want to do?” He asked you, before your hands were also in his pants, rubbing his hard on.

“I want something baby” you replied before whispering “guess” in his ear.

When you assured him that’s what you wanted, he started to undress you, taking off your dress, leaving you in your underwear. His hands making their way inside your panties as his fingers found their way inside, still rubbing your clit. You started to moan softly into his ear.

“Fuck, Bunny you feel so tight.” He spoke dominantly. You instantly knew it was because you were a virgin, you had always dreamed of losing your virginity to your soulmate because you believed in that type of stuff but you wanted him more than you had ever wanted anyone.

Your hands unbuckled his belt and you pulled his pants down, him helping you with this before your hands started to jerk him off. He moved you on top of him, so you were sitting on his face as he fingered you and ate you out moaning while he did so. “You taste so good” He assured you.

You started to suck his cock, jerking him off while your mouth is around him, this making him scream enjoying it so much. He would have never guessed that you were a virgin. Soon your breath was hitched as he started to pump two fingers inside of you, you now understood why everyone enjoyed sex.

You started to experience your first orgasm, feeling his tongue against your clit, rubbing it as fast as he could.

Whilst he did this, you continued to suck him off, licking in between his tip, focusing on the side. “Fuck!” He groaned as you both started cumming together.

You laid down next to him after this, looking up at him. “Good Girl” he whispered, kissing the top of your head. You really like it when he didn’t hurt you.

You started to trace his tattoos, “How many do you have?” You asked him. “11” He told you before the two of you fell asleep in the trunk.

-

Ending Note: AYO that was good, I think? What did you guys think? Next SONG will be PUP!

[onceuponastory]

artistic - bucky barnes x reader

Plot: After embarrassing herself in front of the very attractive artist, Y/N swears her night has gone from bad to worse. In fact, she couldn't be more wrong. Pairing: Artist!Bucky Barnes x Female!Reader Warnings: Some swearing and a mention of alcohol. If I miss any triggers, please let me know! Notes: This is a part two to An Intriguing Stranger, which was based on a gif sent to me by @holacia3. Some people wanted Bucky's POV, so here it is! Read part one here!

As Y/N tries to think of something to say in response to the stranger's introduction, it's like time slows down. And the more time ticks by, the more Y/N wants the ground to open up and swallow her whole. And when she finally does speak, it's even worse. “Oh, my god. I’m so sorry.” Is what she was supposed to say. What she wanted to say. Instead, however, a mixture of words, of ‘sorry’ and ‘I had no idea who you were’ and ‘please don’t sue me’ comes out. More of a word vomit than a well thought out apology.

When James opens his mouth again, she expects him to curse her out, or even to actually sue her. Instead of a threat, though, she hears the complete opposite. Laughter. She raises a brow, curious about why he finds the situation funny, and what kind of artist would laugh at their work being criticised.

Honestly, Bucky wasn’t expecting to hear such a critique of his art tonight. And he definitely doesn’t mean to find it so funny. Or at least, he knows he probably shouldn’t. But after experiencing the perfectionism and fakeness of the art world, her brutal honesty is incredibly refreshing.

And it helps that she’s very cute too. In fact, he's never seen anyone like her ever before.

“Please, don’t feel the need to apologise. It’s totally fine.” He smiles. “That was my first real laugh of the night.” Y/N blinks in surprise, waiting for the other shoe to drop, the ‘but’ in his sentence to appear. And yet, it never comes, only adding to her confusion.

“What? But I just practically destroyed your life’s work!” To her surprise, he shrugs.

“Well, you were right, actually. My usual work is nothing like this. But unfortunately, it doesn’t pay the bills that well, and ‘isn’t the sort of work the galleries are looking for right now.’” He mocks, and Y/N stifles a laugh of her own. “One night it all reached a head, so I got very drunk on some wine and basically threw some paint at a canvas, like you guessed.” He nods. “And it definitely was a big fuck you to the art world and their standards.” He sighs, running another hand through his hair. “I didn’t even mean to submit it, but somehow I did, so I woke up the next morning to a bunch of emails and calls from a ton of galleries asking for the honour to display it.” He explains, before turning back to the painting. “I know it’s brought me a lot of success, but honestly? I hate this fucking thing.” 

“So… no harm done?” Y/N asks awkwardly, and he smiles.

How does his smile make my stomach flutter so much?

“None at all. In fact, I admire your honesty.” He walks towards another painting, beckoning for her to follow with a move of his head. For a moment, Y/N holds back. Even though there’s no animosity between them both, surely there’s no way he actually wants to spend time with her? 

Yet, he beckons her to follow him again once more, and Y/N’s feet start moving towards him before she can even think about it. 

After all, surely this night can't go any worse.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

For most of the night, Y/N’s new artistic friend gives her a tour of the exhibition, occasionally commenting on the artwork and its creators. He also very quickly told her to call him Bucky instead of James, something which he insists only his close friends do. Despite how relieved she feels to be getting closer and closer to her new, extremely attractive artistic friend (especially since he isn't going to sue her), Y/N would be lying if she said this whole thing didn’t feel absolutely crazy, and that she still isn’t waiting for the rug to be pulled out from under her, her chance at spending time with the attractive artist over before it even began.

But as Bucky leads her upstairs, into the fancy reception that only a few moments ago she was so sure she would not be attending, Y/N realises that she’s not going to complain about spending time with her handsome and charming companion. And with Bucky by her side, she feels more comfortable, less out of place. It feels like this is where she’s meant to be. By his side.

The room is busy, heaving with journalists and other artists. Yet, Bucky moves his hand to the small of her back, sending a shockwave throughout her entire body. He effortlessly guides her through the room, leading her straight to the bar.

After grabbing her a drink, Bucky leans against the bar, taking her all in. Y/N feels heat rising in her cheeks, and she grins. He really is an incredibly handsome man.

“You said you don’t paint like that usually, so what is your usual work, then?” She asks, trying and failing to limit her staring. Bucky chuckles. 

“The usual boring stuff, landscapes, portraits….”

“That doesn’t sound boring. I do like that kind of art, actually.” Bucky looks over at her, smirking.

“You know, I’d like to paint you one day. I think you’d make a wonderful piece.” He muses. Y/N almost drops her glass in shock, her cheeks burning even deeper. Bucky grabs a napkin, scribbling something on it. “I need to go mingle, but here’s my number. If we ever get separated, or if you would like to be a model for me....” He trails off, grinning cheekily. “Just call me.” He places his hand on her shoulder, giving her one last smile and a wink before disappearing into the crowd.

As he fades out of sight, Y/N pulls out her phone, adding Bucky to her contacts.

She might just take him up on his offer.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Please follow @onceuponastory-library and turn on notifications to be notified when I next post!

[bebsibby]

The Top Surgery Log

Hello! I got top surgery yesterday! I want to catalogue my experience so I can remember it and provide some insight for people who want it but haven't gotten it yet. I will continue to update this post as my healing goes on. Everything under the read more!

Leading Up

My insurance is with Kaiser which has been an AWESOME experience so far. They do require a therapist letter, so no informed consent, but the process was very simple and there were a lot of people dedicated to getting me what I needed.

I had about 3 therapist meetings where she just asked me questions about my experience with gender and how my transition has gone so far, my support network, can I afford it, etc. Then she wrote my letter, sent it off to the surgical team, and I was approved within a few days!

After that I had my very first consult with the surgeon. He took pictures, did a breast exam, asked about general health and family health history, then gave me a little presentation of the process. It had post up photos of prior patients, a lot of explanations of the types of surgeries available that he does, and a lot of good information in general. He answered a lot of my questions and made me feel fully confident and prepared for the experience.

Also important to note: I told him the surgery I had been wanting ever since I started doing top surgery research was Inverted-T and I was curious of he knew of it/why that WASN'T an option they offered. He explained everything to me and showed me what he expected my results to look like if I DID want to go to a different surgeon outside of Kaiser. Said surgeon does NOT accept insurance, but would work with the insurance side of things to make sure they would reimburse for the expenses. I really appreciate that because it showed me they wanted to do get exactly what I wanted.

Based on all of that, I decided to just opt for Double Incision both to save me time and get a result that was aesthetically more pleasing to me. Loss of nipple sensation is unfortunate, but apparently IT only has the potential to bring a little sensation back, which wasn't worth all the extra hoop jumping for me.

After this consult, my surgeon told me to think about everything then email him a few days later with my decision. I did and then a few days later got my call to schedule. I got to pick my date but not the time of day, as I would later learn that's decided by the hospital and not me. Once my surgery was scheduled, another pre-op appointment was scheduled about a month before the surgery date. That appointment was very short, as it was just signing consent forms and confirming everything I wanted. He also gave me a packet of supplies I needed to get before the surgery.

After that, I'd occasionally receive emails with more pre-op instructions, like when to stop eating and drinking, showering instructions, when to stop certain medication, and how to care for my drains.

The Surgery

The day before surgery I had initially planned to do all of the last minute housework and leave for the surgery the next morning. HOWEVER, when I got my call to tell me the time, it turns I had to be there by 6 AM! The surgery center is over an hour away from me and the bus my wife and I were going to take didn't run that early, so we had to scramble to make other plans. Luckily the friend who was going to drive us back home was cool with us crashing on his floor for the night, so we were able to do the most important things at home then take the bus down the day before.

Once we were all set up for the night, I did the first cleaning routine that I was required to do, set my alarm, then tried to sleep. I didn't get much due to Hard Floor and also excited but that wasn't a biggie because I'd be sleeping again soon LOL.

Next morning I woke up, did my second skin cleansing, and we headed out! I checked in, waited a little in the waiting room, then got called back to start.

Everyone who was working with me was SUPER funny and kind. I got asked more questions, signed another form, took some pre-med tylenol, them stripped to switch into my gown, bonnet, and grippy socks (Got to keep those btw :>) My IV got put in my wrist which REALLY fucking hurt!!!!!! It never stopped aching. After that, the surgeon popped in to check on me and see if I had any questions, then they wheeled me in to the operating room.

I had gotten another premed via IV that was already making me tired, and I remember the last thing being the surgeon saying what to do with my removed tissue once he was done and I was gone!

The surgery itself lasted around four hours, but all I remember is waking up and seeing my wife and friend sitting at the foot of the bed. I said hi to them and that was apparently third time I had said it. I had been up and talking to them for awhile all loopy but also becoming suddenly very serious when talking with the nurses. I've had a few surgeries but I've NEVER been this way after so that was funny. The nurse had also been giving ME all of the postop discharge info and I don't remember it so thats unfortunate! I only remember her talking about the drains. I had to read it all again when I got home but it was all good.

Once I was awake enough, they wheel-chaired me down to my friends car, packed us all up and we headed back home. I napped about half the time but still kept my eyes closed when i was awake and talking bc my vision was still FUCKED and it was so bright out. We got home, I was lead inside, and that was that pretty much! I napped several more times, nibbled on some roast beef, emptied my drains (which made me very woozy, mostly due to the standing) and went to bed!

After Surgery

Day one! I woke up a few times in the night mainly to go to the bathroom, but slept REAL deep otherwise. It rained all night which was awesome. I woke up feeling very achy but not painful except for my throat. Those ET tubes are NOT easy on your body. Took all my meds, got out of bed eventually, and had cup ramen for breakfast. Now I'm just sitting on the couch with all my computer stuff moved from my desk to where I'm sitting. I got a long hdmi cable so I can just watch stuff on the big TV so I'm pretty set up!

My wife just brought me some cookies and overall I'm just feeling really good. Not really excited or emotional about it. Its just a very warm contented feeling.

I don't know what my chest looks like yet since my post-op binder got put on while i was still out, but everything gets removed next week! I'll probably update again after that appointment.

Feel free to ask specific questions! I'll be resting most of the time so I'll just be around!

[enby-chaos]

I wrote a thing, based off this au of mine :>

Warning: Eye trauma and injury

-

The first thing Neito noticed when he woke up was the incessant beeping of a heart monitor right next to his ear. His eyes scrunched up, and he slowly became aware of himself again. He was alive.

He opened his eyes again. He couldn’t see out of his left eye, and he quickly realised it was because it was covered up with bandages. Memories came to him slowly; Midoriya’s arrival, Shigaraki getting back up again, a warp portal opening behind him, hundreds of clones spilling forth onto the command centre, a knife coming too close to his face.

“Monoma!” Kendo waved from the door, one of her arms was in a sling and there was a gauze patch on her cheek.

“Kendo,” He said, sitting up even as his ribs protested, “What happened?”

“We won. Midoriya managed to get Shigaraki.” She said, moving to sit in one of the chairs, “Most of the class is here, but you were the most injured.”

Before he could ask more, a woman walked into the room. Neito assumed she was the doctor. Blinking a few times, he could read “Dr. Tanaka” on her name tag.

“Good evening, Monoma.” Dr. Tanaka said, “How are you feeling?”

“Like shit.”

Dr. Tanaka gave a short chuckle, “You’re not the only one. Well, you have some bruising on your ribs, nothing Recovery Girl can’t fix once you’ve got some energy back. You did take a nasty blow to the head as well but you should be in the clear soon enough.”

He nodded. Dr. Tanaka shifted nervously for a moment, tapping her clipboard with her pen.

“And, unfortunately, the damage to your left eye was too severe, and we’ve had to remove it.”

His eye widened, and his breath stilled. Distantly, he could hear his friend pleading with the doctor, the explanation that not even Recovery Girl’s quirk could have saved it. His head was filled with cotton, everything felt so far away, the information barely processing in his brain.

“I’ll leave you to talk to your friends, Monoma, don’t hesitate to call if you need anything.”

The room was silent after Dr. Tanaka left. Kendo sat back down in the chair, looking more defeated than Neito has ever seen her before.

“How?”

“I heard from Fukidashi,” Kendo started, “You were still trying to use [Erasure] on the doubles that Toga Himiko created, to stop them from multiplying, but one of the ones out of your sight created a knife and slashed you in the eye.”

Neito’s hand went up to the bandages covering his eyes, or where his eye used to be. He did remember the knife, how he flinched away from the cold metal, the sharp burning pain in his face when it made contact. He vaguely remembered the pain in his throat as he screamed in agony, how his eyes finally shut and [Erasure] was cut off for good.

“What else?” He hated how his voice cracked. His hands gripped the hospital blanket tightly.

“You’ve been knocked out for three days.” Kendo said hesitantly, “Pony’s also here, if you want-”

“No,” He said, too sharply and suddenly, and he saw Kendo’s eyes widen from the corner of his eye, “I don’t want anyone else to see me. Not like this.”

Tears sprung up from his eye, and he brought his knees up to his chest, “I failed.”

Kendo stood up from her chair, “No, no you didn’t Monoma-”

“My one job was to keep Shigaraki from using his quirks, Kendo. I had one job.” he closed his eye, pressing his face into his knees, “I failed.”

Kendo didn’t reply, even thought Neito desperately wanted her to say something. Anything. He tried to keep his crying silent, to try and not let Kendo know that he was crying in the first place. He wasn’t doing a very good job of it.

“Vlad King-sensei is coming,” Her voice was further away now, she was likely at the door, “I think he was more worried about you than us.”

He slowly unfolded himself, opening his eye to see that Kendo had already left. He wiped the tears off his face and put on a small smile. He won’t show any weakness in front of his teacher.

[thornybubbles]

The Cat Came Back

NOTE: This is just a blurb based on an idea that’s been bouncing around in my head for a while. I was debating on whether or not to share this because I don’t really plan on expanding on it. It’s not a yandere story, but I could definitely put it in the “horror scenario” category. 

---------

It didn’t take Josuke long to get to your house after you called him. You woke him up in the middle of an after school nap and told him to come over to your house. You didn’t explain anything and just said that it was urgent. He was already worried about you because you hadn’t been to school for two days, but hearing the dread in your voice had him panicking. Whatever was wrong with you was something serious and he could only hope that it was something that Crazy Diamond could fix. If not, then he would do whatever he needed to to help you. You were one of his dearest friends after all. 

It was only a year ago since the incident with Kira and all the stuff that happened before that. He had never wanted you to be dragged into the madness of Stands and Stand users, but you got involved anyway when Kira targeted you specifically during that final battle. Josuke had no idea what you were doing there. You weren’t a Stand user and you would have no way to defend yourself when things inevitably got crazy. You were supposed to be at home and away from all that mess, but you said that you heard the explosions and got worried. Leave it to you to be the only one that would run towards the sound of explosions instead of away from them (you dummy!). Unfortunately, in your haste to check on what was happening to your friends, you ran right into Yoshikage Kira. 

Kira recognized you instantly as one of Josuke’s friends and planned on using you as a hostage until he was able to flee the scene after the tides of battle had turned against him. There was no doubt that once he managed to escape them, he would kill you, a fact that he gleefully reminded Josuke of during the final showdown. If it hadn’t been for Jotaro and Star Platinum’s ability to stop time… well… it’s not something Josuke wanted to think about. 

Josuke finally reached your front door and rang the bell. Mere seconds after, the door opened and you stood there looking up at him with a haggard, haunted expression. He was shocked at your appearance. It looked like you hadn’t slept in days. One look at you had him asking what seemed like a thousand questions at once. 

“Oh my God! Are you okay? Are you sick? Is that why you weren’t at school? Why didn’t you call someone? You could’ve gotten Koichi or Yukako to take notes for you, you know? Where are your parents? Are you here by yourself? Who’s taking care of you?” 

You only answered one of his questions. 

“My folks are out of town visiting relatives.” you said, voice shaky with fatigue and anxiety. “Get in here. We gotta talk about something serious.” 

Before he could say anything else, you grabbed him by the collar of his uniform jacket and dragged him inside. You had him sit on the sofa in the living room. He waited there, impatient and anxious, as you nervously paced the room in front of him. After another minute of watching you imitate a caged big cat, he couldn’t take it anymore. 

“Come on, don’t leave me hanging like this!” he said, voice cracking as he tried to swallow down his building dread. “Just tell me what’s wrong!” 

You looked at him, eyes both tired and manic at the same time. 

“I’m going to!” you snapped, emotions flaring. “I just… I’m just not sure how to even begin to explain this…” 

You sighed deeply, trying to calm yourself enough to say what you needed to. 

“I-I’ll just start this off by saying that… well… I… I don’t even know how this is possible now, but…It happened after school on Monday. I got home and…” 

You took another deep breath and massaged your temples. Your head was pounding and you hadn’t bothered to take anything for it yet. 

“Look. I don’t really know how to soften the blow with this, so I’m just gonna come out and say it… I have a Stand now.” you said. 

Josuke’s eyes widened and he sat looking at you in shock. There were so many thoughts going through his head at that moment. Having a Stand was a double edged sword. On one hand (depending on what kind of Stand you had) you would be able to defend yourself better as a Stand user than a normal person. On the other hand, it would mean that you would be forever destined to run into other Stand users, not all of which would be friendly. This revelation also filled Josuke’s head with even more questions. How had you obtained your Stand? Was there another arrow for them to worry about? Or did you get your Stand without an arrow? If so, why hadn’t you suffered with the near deadly fever that usually accompanied developing a Stand? Most people who were born Stand users either developed them at birth or at least at a very young age. That’s not to say that a user couldn’t develop their Stand at a later age, but…. 

Josuke opened his mouth, preparing to bombard you with all the questions swimming around in his head, but you held up a hand to silence him. 

“Wait, before you say anything, let me just say that it isn’t what you think. My Stand, well, it isn’t… it isn’t actually mine…” 

Josuke gave you a confused look. 

“W-what? What do you mean by that? How can you have a Stand that isn’t yours?” he asked, unable to hold back his questions any longer. 

You let out a cry of frustration. “I don’t know, Josuke!” you shouted. “I don’t have a damned clue, okay?!” 

Josuke jumped and shied away from you at your harsh tone. Seeing his reaction you closed your eyes trying, once again, to get your emotions under control. 

“Sorry.” you said with a shaky sigh. “Sorry I snapped. This is just… it makes no sense, okay? It really, really makes no sense and I just don’t know how to deal with what’s happening. I always was a little envious of you, Okuyasu, Koichi, and the others because I was the only one that didn’t have a Stand. I thought it would be cool to have one, you know? But… in this case I think I’d rather go back to not having one.” 

A few minutes of silence passed between you. Josuke fidgeted on the couch in anticipation of whatever else you would have to say. He was torn between asking you things or waiting for you to start talking again. 

“I guess the only way you’ll understand what I mean by the Stand not being mine is to show it to you.” you said finally. 

Another moment or two of uncomfortable silence. 

“Okay… Josuke, I’m going to show you my Stand now, but you have to remain calm, okay? Don’t freak out!” 

You took a step back from him and stared at the floor for a moment. Josuke watched you both curious and anxious over what your Stand would be. 

You didn’t summon your Stand in the usual way. You didn’t call it by name, so Josuke assumed you hadn’t given it a name yet. But once the Stand came into view Josuke understood why you didn’t call it by name. You were right when you said that the Stand wasn’t yours. It belonged to someone else… someone who was supposed to be dead. This Stand already had a name and it was a name you probably didn’t want to say aloud, not after what the user put you through. 

Josuke knew the Stand because he’d actually fought the user, but you knew the Stand by accident. You’d bumped into Rohan while he was at the cafe one afternoon and spotted some of his sketches on the table. They were all sketches of Stands and you were fascinated. Though he pretended to be annoyed in the usual Rohan fashion, he’d been all too happy to show you the sketches and explain everything he knew about Stands and Stand users. You browsed the sketches he’d made of the various Stands and their corresponding users: Josuke’s Crazy Diamond, Okuyasu’s The Hand, Koichi’s Echoes, Jotaro’s Star Platinum, and so on. Being a non-Stand user, this was the only way that you would ever know what everyone’s Stands looked like. 

There was one sketch, however, that Rohan seemed determined to keep you from seeing. He snatched the stack of sketches from you just as you got the final sketch, almost giving you a paper cut in the process. He mumbled something about needing to head home to get back to work, but it was already too late. As he was yanking the stack of sketches out of your hand, you got a glimpse of the final sketch. On the paper was the image of a figure you would never forget as long as you lived. Next to the user was the image of a Stand that would now also be burned into your memory along with its name that was scrawled on the space next to it: 

Killer Queen. 

This was the Stand that you summoned; a Stand that belonged to a dead serial killer. 

It took every ounce of Josuke’s impulse control to keep him from jumping up from the couch, summoning Crazy Diamond, and pummeling Killer Queen back into non-existence. But he knew that if he did that, it would hurt you, too. He could tell by the way Killer Queen hovered behind you, staring at him intensely, that it was waiting for you to give it the mental order to attack. You didn’t though. You were nothing like its previous owner and Josuke was not your opponent. But he could tell by the way the Stand stared directly into his eyes in a challenging manner that the damned thing not only recognized him, but still viewed him as an enemy. You shifted uncomfortably where you stood and Killer Queen mimicked the motion, taking on a different battle pose that somewhat imitated your new position. Oh yes, it was obvious that Killer Queen was your Stand now and anything Crazy Diamond did to it would affect you, too. As if it could sense what Josuke was thinking, the corners of Killer Queen’s mouth turned up slightly. It was mocking him. The wicked thing was actually mocking him!

This couldn’t be possible. It shouldn’t be possible! Reimi told them that both Yoshikage Kira and his Stand had been torn apart by the ghostly mass of arms that haunted the hidden alley beside the grocery store. It made no logical sense for Killer Queen to still exist after both it and its user had been ripped to pieces. It made even less sense for it to be attached to you now. How could someone gain control of a dead person’s Stand? Just how was such a thing possible? 

You felt your whole body quiver with disgust as the unwanted Stand pulled itself from your soul and manifested behind you. You stared at Josuke, watching his reaction. You pointedly refused to even glance at the Stand, afraid that you would retch if you so much as laid eyes on it. The shocked and horrified look on Josuke’s face did nothing to soothe you though. A single glance at the look on your friend’s face had your eyes filling with tears. You knew he wasn’t looking at you like that, but you still felt judged. Just having Kira’s Stand attached to you made you feel as if you had somehow become responsible for all the lives he’d taken. It was as if his sins had been passed on to you and it made you feel repulsed by your own existence. 

Sensing your distress, Killer Queen pulled its attention from Josuke to glance down at you. Wanting to comfort its new user, it knelt down and nudged your face with its forehead in a sick parody of a housecat demanding attention. At the sensation of it touching you, you jumped away, staring up at the Stand in terror. Your stomach churned at the sight of it and you actively had to fight against your gag reflex. Killer Queen cocked its head to the side, confused by your rejection. It reached for you and you threw your hands up in front of you as if to place a barrier between you and your own Stand. 

“Stop!” you shouted. “Don’t touch me!” 

Killer Queen did as it was told but stared at you strangely as if you were behaving unreasonably. 

“Go back!” you commanded. 

Killer Queen tilted its head to the other side, ears going back slightly. It made no move to obey. 

“Go back, Killer Queen!” you commanded again, hating how easily the Stand’s name rolled off your tongue. 

This time the Stand obeyed, but not before turning back to Josuke and staring him down once more before vanishing. 

Josuke glared right back at it until it was no longer in view. 

You could feel it when Killer Queen’s presence rejoined your soul and the sensation caused your knees to buckle. You sank to the floor and started bawling, unable to hold your emotions back anymore. Josuke was by your side in seconds, wrapping his arms around you and doing his best to calm you. You pressed yourself into his hold, soaking his uniform with tears and shaking. 

“Josuke!” you cried. “Please, please, please help me! I don’t know what to do! I don’t understand what’s happening to me! Please help me!” 

You were in utter hysterics and Josuke didn’t know what else to do but hold you and rock you like an infant until your screaming and sobbing quieted. Eventually you tired yourself out enough that you could think somewhat rationally again. 

“I-I don’t want the others to know about this,” you said with a sniff. “Not yet at least. I’m afraid of how they’ll react.” 

“Okay, but I think it’s best that we get in touch with Jotaro.” he told you. “He’s got experience when it comes to Stands and stuff like that, so he may have seen something like this before. He’s got ties to the Speedwagon Foundation and whatever he can’t help us with, I’m sure they can.” 

You went limp in his hold, finally feeling a tiny amount of relief after days of worry and dread. You allowed yourself to relax completely as he held you. 

“Thank you, Josuke,” you said in an exhausted tone. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.” 

He lifted your head to look you in your watery eyes. 

“Hey, you know I’ve always got your back.” he said with a small smile. “You’re going to get through this, okay? You aren’t alone. I’ll be with you every step of the way.” 

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

NOTE 2: Well that ended on an uplifting note which is unusual for me. I just want to take the time to explain where this crazy idea came from. So, I’ve been slowly “JoJo-fying” my Terraria game and I found a mod called “JoJo Stands” which allows you to have Stands in the game while also filling the world with various JoJo references (of course!). With the mod, there are two ways to get Stands. The most common way is to wait for Jotaro (part 4 version) to show up in your game and get a Stand arrow shard from him. You talk to him and choose the option “Stand Help” and he’ll say something about how you “Seem to be reliable” and give you an arrow shard. If you use the arrow shard your character will take a slight amount of damage but get a buff letting you know that you’re under the influence of the arrow. You then just have to wait a few in-game minutes and a random Stand will appear into your inventory. I do have to mention that when you use the arrow shard there is the rare chance that it won’t give you a Stand and instead kill you instantly with a message that the arrow “found you unworthy”, after which you’ll have to go back to Jotaro, get another shard, and start the process over. 

The other way to get a Stand is to simply be “born” with one, meaning that a random Stand can be assigned to you from the moment your character spawns into the game world. It’s rare to get a Stand this way, however. On my first playthrough of the game after downloading the mod, I was lucky enough to be “born” with a Stand. I was really excited but when I checked my inventory to see which Stand I got, my excitement turned into a deep distress. The first Stand I ever got in the mod was, you guessed it, KILLER FREAKIN’ QUEEN! I didn’t know what Stand I would get, but I was not expecting him! 

I got over my initial anxiety at having such a destructive Stand after I used him in the fight with the Desert Scourge (giant worm boss from the Calamity Mod) and Killer Queen blew it to pieces before it was able to do any damage to me at all. That’s not to say that the Stand was overpowered or anything, as later boss fights proved to be a bit more of a challenge, but having him in boss fights was certainly a boon. 

In spite of how helpful he was as a Stand, I came to realize that I’m not a very responsible Stand user and frankly have no business having a Stand that dangerous. For example, there was the time that I went to pet my cat while I had Killer Queen active and I forgot to set him for Auto instead of Manual. So I ended up petting the cat with Killer Queen instead of my character. Anybody remember what happens when Killer Queen touches things while in attack mode? Yeah, I turned my damn cat into a bomb and detonated it seconds later. Fortunately, my cat didn’t die. It was injured but it fully healed after a few minutes. My sister joked that Killer Queen was jealous and wanted to be the only cat in the house. Very funny. 

Then there was the time I nearly blew myself up. I had just upgraded Killer Queen to the level that I could summon Sheer Heart Attack. For some dumb reason, I thought it was an excellent idea to test SHA’s abilities while standing inside of my house instead of taking it outside somewhere. My stupidity resulted in me nearly destroying my whole room. The explosion took out the whole background wall, some of my furniture, and parts of the floor and ceiling. It also took out over half of my health. It left me with only two hearts and a giant mess to clean up. My sister heard the explosion and came running to see what happened. I explained what I’d done and she told me that I needed to have my Stand License revoked. Very funny. 

At some point I started speculating on the idea of a person developing a Stand only to find out that the Stand not only used to belong to someone else, but it used to belong to a really evil villain. So that’s where the idea for this little blurb came from. Like I said before, I don’t really plan on adding anything more to this as I haven’t planned anything beyond this initial premise. So consider this a one shot. Keep an eye out for more stuff in the near future! 

[throneofsapphics]

Poly!manorian or poly!rowaelin where their lover is kidnapped and tortured please. I love how you write manorian and rowaelin!💙

old grudges

Rowaelin x f!Reader

Summary: Aelin and Rowan’s lover is taken. 

Word Count: ~2.4k

Warnings: injuries, blood, implied sa & torture, death, reader is slightly unhinged, not proofread 

A/N: ah you’re so sweet, I love writing them. thank you for the request!

An arm darts out, wrapping around my waist, pinning my arms to my side with bruising strength. An iron collar is snapped around my neck, biting into my skin and I feel my magic shrink away as I’m being dragged back. 

I hear Ella struggling next to me, and I whirl out, punching the closest man in the face, before jumping on the one holding her back, enough she can dislodge herself. I slide the knife out from the sheath on my thigh, quickly jamming it between his ribs. Just as my mates taught me. 

“RUN” I scream at her, and thank the Gods she listens, darting out of the alley. 

Another hand clamps over my mouth, and I’m dragged into an alleyway. I hear curses as my knife slashes out, but a hand manages to lodge around my wrist, twisting until it’s broken and I’m forced to release it. At least five of them. 

I thrash around in whoevers arms but they have a tight hold on me. I bite down on the person's hand - they curse but nothing. A blindfold is strapped over my eyes and iron chains wrap around my arms. 

The hand releases my mouth so I scream, but a gag is quickly shoved in. My focus is derailed as a cloth is shoved under my nose, whatever drug is on it renders me unconscious within seconds. 

Rowan is going to kick my ass, if Aelin doesn’t first. 

-

Ella tries, and manages to get a good distance, but they shoved some kind of cloth under her nose and she’s dragging. Her feet keep moving, keep going. Eventually she collapses - hidden in an alcove, out of sight. 

-

Aedion see’s the female - bloodied and screaming, running for the gates, and recognizes her immediately. One of y/n’s friends. He sends one of the guards to get Aelin and Rowan. Just as she crosses the gate, the King and Queen are already there.

“They,” she pants heavily, “they took her. You have to go, now.” She describes their last location. “They drugged me, I just woke up-” she glances at the sky, reading the time based on the sun, “two hours ago. It happened two hours ago.” 

His face tightens, and he summons one of the guards - telling them to get her to the infirmary. 

Two hours. Y/n’s been gone for two hours. He can feel the rage bubbling from both Rowan and Aelin - magic ready to burst from their skin. Rowan shifts, flying for the last location, and Aelin takes off on foot. Aedion lets out a slow breath, before giving orders to the castle guards. Rowan and Aelin would tear apart the entire world to get her back - and he would gladly assist. 

-

When I come to, it’s dark and damp. I’m still blindfolded, but I can tell I'm underground. I feel the ground beneath my legs - stone, and dirt. My shoes and knife are gone but I’m still wearing my dress and sweater thankfully, although based on the feel of the fabric against my skin, I can tell it’s ripped. Some kind of iron wraps around my arms, binding them tightly against my back - along with my knees and ankles. There’s blood on my temple, and I can feel a small laceration. I likely fell on that side of my body, based on the bruising I feel on my arm as well. I’m still gagged unfortunately, or I’d be screaming at the top of my lungs. I wiggle around and groan, trying to push myself to a sitting position. 

“She’s awake.” 

I focus as footsteps thud down the hall. A key clanks, and iron groans. I’m grabbed roughly by the shoulders and dragged to my feet. I thrash around, protesting but it’s muffled through the gag. I can’t walk, so my body is dragged across the floor, and up a set of stairs. I wince as my feet are dragged against rough and harsh stone, but keep up a slew of curses, all coming out like gibberish I’m sure. 

I’m dropped back on the ground with a thud. Still stone, but slightly more polished. Where the hell am I? I struggle into a sitting position - not giving a shit about modesty at the moment, I’ve got bigger fish to fry. The blindfold is ripped roughly off of my face, and I blink several times at the bright light. 

“Our new guest.” A masculine voice croons. Someone tears the cloth of the gag from behind my head, and it’s ripped away. A male stands in front of me. A few others line the area, all of them dressed like warriors, and heavily armed. I recognize some of them from the alleyway. I’m in a cave. A nice one, but still a cave. What mountain range? Where could I be? I vaguely recognize the accent, but can’t quite put my finger on. 

“More like a hostage.” I croon back. “Who the fuck are you?” I spit as far as I can, but it still falls several feet away. 

A boot connects with my ribs, throwing me back to the ground. “Speak to him with respect.” A voice spins out. 

“Fuck off.” I growl, struggling up to sit again, and spitting at him this time. 

“Stand down.” The man says quickly, and the other one bares his teeth, but backs off. “Feisty, aren’t you?” He chuckles and I switch my attention back to him. “And pretty.” His eyes trail up my body, and nausea swirls in my stomach, bile starting to rise in my throat. I shuffle around, trying to pull my dress back some, and his eyes glint with amusement. 

“Who are you? What do you want?” I say blandly, keeping my tone neutral. He narrows his eyes, face turning into an ugly frown, but I keep eye contact with him - refusing to look away. 

“Who I am, isn’t important. And you, of course, as bait. You’ll lead them right to me.” 

“They’re not stupid.” I hissed at him, but panic started to bubble inside of me. If they get hurt because of me … 

“But when they hear about their precious mate being tortured, they’ll do rash things.”

Cowards, having me trapped in irons. “You don’t need to worry about my mates.” I grinned at him, and spoke in my most pleasant, cheery voice. “I’m going to bring you to the brink of death, and back, over and over again. I’ll rip every single sliver of skin from your body, and attach it back. It’ll last for days, until you beg for death. I’ll make sure you feel every agonizing second of –” 

“Shut her up.” He barks, looking vaguely disturbed. I thrash my body around as another gag is shoved into my mouth. 

A smile crosses my lips - as much as it could with a tight gag wrapped across my mouth. 

The man looked over my shoulder to someone. I tried to whirl around and see them but a hand gripped my hair, forcing me to stay turned forwards, and only tugged further when I fought. 

“Have fun with her. Just leave her in one piece.” He said, before looking back at me, a smirk crossing his lip. I fought as they dragged me back across the tile, thrashed my whole body, bumped into them as much as I could. Eventually a boot connected with my temple, and I fell back unconscious. Maybe I should’ve tried to memorize the route instead. 

-

I gleaned little to no information over the next few days, it’d been nearly a week and my captors … weren’t very kind. For as much as they said ‘bait,’ they still tried nearly every way they could to get information out of me. I shrank back into the small place in my mind, filled with happy memories, disassociating from the reality and pain in front of me. 

-

Rowan was losing his damned mind. One week, and no luck. A good part of the Bane was scouring nearby areas, anywhere within reach - anywhere they might’ve taken her. A small letter delivered, a ransom note, told them that she’s still in Terrasen, apparently. But - she could be absolutely anywhere and Terrasen was one of the largest territories in Erilea. 

However, a little over a week in, they realized whoever took y/n had forgotten one important detail. Aelin is the Faerie Queen of the West, and the little folk still look to her. 

-

In the middle of the night, when the guards were far enough away I had some privacy - at least had them out of earshot, people I never thought I’d encounter again appeared. Little Folk. Aelin’s still their Queen. 

My jaw dropped, but I didn’t dare speak loudly, or make any sounds. Instead, I crouched towards the dirt, and wrote in the old language, as best as I could, “trap. It’s a trap,” before giving as many details as I could - no matter how useless they would be, and a plea - a plea for them not to endanger themselves, not to rush into anything - or to leave me. I’d finally placed the accent - Wendlyn. 

They nodded, before disappearing with a magic I never could understand. I prayed to the Gods that Aelin and Rowan would understand - and stay the hell away. 

-

Glittering eyes appeared as they paced at the base of the Staghorns, where the scent from the letter had trailed off. Aelin knelt, letting them approach her. They spoke in hushed voices, quiet enough Rowan couldn’t understand, but he saw the tears in her eyes as she thanked them. They nodded and disappeared, gone even in the daylight. 

“I know where she is.” Aelin’s face was set in a tight line. “And who.” 

Aelin told him everything, and a fury he hadn’t felt in years filled him again. Some of Cairn’s acolytes, ones who took his death hard, had found their way into Terrasen. Into his home, and took his mate. 

“They spoke to her. She’s alive,” Gods, the fact that that’s all they had to say. “And said it’s a trap, and not to rush into anything.” 

Rowan was seething, so was Aelin, but y/n was right - to rush into anything would endanger her life and theirs. 

They headed back to where they’d set up a small, discreet camp. The entire court had been gathered when she was taken, and not a single one refused to leave. They tasked Elide, who was the most level-headed, with making sure the city didn’t descend into bedlam. Y/n, who’d been a member of their court before involved with them. All of them took it personally, and Aedion, Fenrys, Lorcan, Ren, Lysandra, Aelin, Rowan and a few of the most trusted fae and human warriors from the Bane gathered to make a plan. 

Rowan couldn’t help thinking of how y/n told her friend to run, bought her friend time, how she’d told the little folk to tell them not to come if it would endanger them. As if she didn’t know they’d burn down the entire damned world to get to her. 

-

The males in sight had the air ripped from their sight before they could so much as blink, with one exception. It took Rowan less than a minute to get her location from him. Fenrys disappeared without another word. 

-

The caves went unnaturally silent, and I knew exactly what was happening. Apparently the guard on duty did as well, but as soon as he undid the chains from their latch, I twisted to wrap them around his neck, twisting hard enough to snap it. A second later, Fenrys appeared. 

He looked at the dead man with an edged grin, holding a finger up to his lips. I untangled the chains from him, and he snatched the keys, undoing the manacles quickly. His eyes hardened as he spotted the collar, one I had no idea how to get off. I fought the urge to cough and sputter as he undid the gag they kept - having tired of me bitching them out constantly within the first few days. 

“Later,” I mouthed, and he nodded, tucking the keys into a pocket. He grabbed me carefully, trying to avoid the wounds, and we slipped through time and space, using that strange magic of his, appearing on the outside of the caves, a few feet away from the entrance. 

My limited strength was nearly destroyed, but I managed to lean up against the stone wall, taking deep breaths to try and calm myself, convincing myself this is reality. 

“They might be a little while,” he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper. 

Lysandra, and Ren exited first - all covered in blood. I forced a grin onto my face, but I was barely keeping calm. All I wanted was to rush inside and find Aelin and Rowan, to know they’re safe and alive. Aedion took one step out, spotted me, and darted back in. 

Within the next few minutes, both Rowan and Aelin came out. 

I took a few steps towards them, before collapsing to my knees, a broken sound leaving me. As they rushed towards me, everyone else scattered. 

“Don’t start thanking us,” Aelin murmured, as if she could hear the words on my tongue. I let myself collapse into her, tears finally running down my cheeks. I hadn’t let myself cry - not once over the last ten days.

“We should move,” Rowan said softly, and I struggled up to my feet, wincing at the small ache in my side and leg. He frowned, taking one more look at me before scooping me into his arms. For once, I didn’t protest, and leant into his chest, letting the exhaustion take over. 

-

When Aedion had run back in, telling them to get out, insisting he and Lorcan could take it from here, Aelin had snarled at him. But - he said y/n needed them - both of them, and they exited without another word or complaint. 

The state she was in, the hollow look in her eyes, Aelin hoped Lorcan and Aedion, and whoever else might be in there, were taking their sweet time. 

But, that territorial and protective Fae senses were telling her to y/n as far away from here as possible and she easily gave in to them. 

-

I hardly remembered the trip back, only vaguely being on horseback - on Kasida with Aelin, her arms wrapped carefully around me, Rowan slowly healing some of the wounds, and telling them what I could, mostly that I didn’t tell them anything. They didn’t ask what they’d done, the proof shown on my body. 

The next thing I knew, I was safe - home, and finally felt a bit of peace sink back in. 

[sydneysholylight]

— a ѕιnnerѕ ιndυlgence [ SERIES ]

╰⪼ heed the warnings: MALE PC/LI, Religious themed, coercion, implied switch!Sydney , nsfw, unfortunate grinding, implied harassment, implied corruption kink, implied stalking, groping, public sex (?), slightly proof-read, 2k words.

╰⪼ heed the note: this will be based on my au of my PC but with major changes, headcannons may appear however but I'll keep things that is canon for this one. I can make a female version of this if you kindly ask, let me know if I missed anything.

╰⪼ You were a new student attending a local school in a town with an odd feel in the air, something sinister mixed with a tinge of scarce purity. You couldn't remember anything when you woke up in the hospital, you woke up frantic and ran away. your memories remained a blur and the temple nearby took you in as one of their own, much to their delight as those prying eyes hovered to the halo glowing above your head and their hands brushing against the feathers of your wings, you were what they called and honored, an angel, a holy being, a divine messenger of god and a protector of humankind.

However, you felt far from an angel and how they portrayed an angel should be, strong willed, protective, god-fearing and so on and so on — on another note, you ponder, who exactly is god? What does a god exactly do? And why have they not contacted you since you've woken up? You brought this concern to your peers, Jordan to be specific, he told you in a soft voice “Patience is virtue, holy one,” he took a bow down “They will seek time with you.” He finished his message before apologizing he had to go attend his duties. Your mind was filled with questions that were yet to unfold, you felt lost and started questioning your purpose.

Over the past few days since you've started residing in the temple, Jordan noticed you were having trouble socializing with the initiates, unable to follow up with their social cues and norms, Jordan ought to himself he would help you fit in once more, thus reached out to Sydney to help you — whose reputation precedes himself to be an “innocent” boy, he was the librarians assistant, he was eager to help you out, the thought of helping out someone, especially an angel, he couldn't help but feel honored and nervous to be near such holy presence however he felt tempted to prey around you and capture you, as to lure you in the dark and the joy of living as a sinner. The ecstasy it gives, the pleasure it comes with. Perhaps if he gave you his world, then will the temple realize, the fun temptation and lust have is worth it, you just have to pray and pray, pray and pray, pray and pray — pray.

You sighed, perhaps it's best for time to pass through and enjoy your life as it is in the moment, patience is truly a virtue after all, you have enough time to figure out the rest later on, walking over to your bed, picking up your bad on the soft mattress, you looked up to the right and at the clock ‘ 6:23 pm ‘ you have enough time to walk to the temple, pray for awhile and walk to school with Sydney. You went downstairs, relishing in your surroundings, it made you feel alive. The older orphans were discussing with each other what to do after school as the younger ones played around with one another, the sight of life in such joyous motion was a sight to behold..

Putting the thought aside, you made your way to the temple but without peace, you've always felt a pair of eyes watching every step you take, it was suffocating. It started after saving a poor boy that was being harassed by the other students, of course you don't believe it was him who was watching you, you don't even have proof and it goes against your morality — and your beliefs, perhaps it's the gang of students who were harassing him? You shudder at the thought, as much you'd like to deny it, the possibility is high. Perhaps it's the best time now to make friends and work on your reputation, as you think of who to befriend, you were in front of the temple. You walked inside, bowing and greeting the older and high ranking members of the temple, giving humble blessings before going to the pew of the far left side. You smiled and greeted Sydney “Good morning.” You whispered, he moved to give you space to join him.

You noticed his hair was down as you laid your bag aside and kneeled down on the cushion, you closed your eyes and clasped your hands together, praying for the remaining time.

You felt a tap on your shoulder, startling you slightly as you looked up to Sydney, who was smiling at you “It's time to go, wanna walk together?” He asked before hesitantly holding his hand to you, you nodded and took his hand, as he helped you get up, he blushed, looking at his hand you held for a brief moment, before you could notice, he turned his back away “Thank you Sydney and yes, of course. You make a great companion.” You smiled as the two of you walked to school together, you appreciated how he was a sweet boy who was willing to help you, defending you from the students probing and harassment in the library and kept you company while Robin was gone for a week.

You looked up to his hair “May I ask why you changed your usual look? Not like it looks bad, it looks good just like you with a ponytail.” You said, your hand aching to touch his hair, painted with color that fit him well, you were surprised to learn it was his natural color. Sydney noticed that you wanted to touch his hair, grabbing it with surprising strength, making you gasp in shock “Sydney?” he widened his eyes “Sorry! Sorry! I was startled.” He mumbled and grabbed your hand softly this time, brushing it against his hair “you're one of the few I'd let touch my hair..” he murmured “Do you like my hair down? You mentioned you were curious after I caught you drawing me with my hair down, I think you drew it accurately.” He smiled, a tinge of red on his cheeks, you looked away, embarrassed at the mention of that incident “I.. thank you.” You mumbled “We should hurry up, I need to study and you need to work.” You said as the two of you head to the entrance.

The both of you departed, you head to an exclusive table of the library, far from the entrance as you noticed it's more silent compared to the tables near the entrance, as you sat down, you grabbed your science textbook you rented and dived into the lesson Sirris mentioned yesterday, unaware of a familiar boy with strawberry blonde hair watching you from the very corner of his eyes, hovering over your figure.

After school finished, you decided to stay with Sydney for the remaining time in school, you had an appointment with Harper today, the temple advised you to meet him every appointment to ensure your health is in good condition, they mentioned your body works differently from a human, hence why they insist you go to the hospital however, something about him felt off, you don't know why but the way he looks and talks to you, it feels like he's hiding something. Perhaps you haven't completely adjusted to human society, perhaps it's normal after all, humans are different from one another.

“Hello Sydney, where were you during lunch?” You asked, you were hoping to have lunch together with him as you noticed Robin wasn't here today and you didn't see him in the library either, Sydney looked at you, something in his gaze felt unusual “I decided to have lunch in the library.” A lie, you knew and it is also a sin, you frowned, he was strong in his faith and joined the temple at an early age, did something happen for him to sin like this? You walk towards the counter “Really? Why?” You stared at him, who stared back “Can I ask you a question?” He suddenly asked, you nodded in response “Have you wondered to yourself what it feels to be a sinner?”....... what?

He looked around, seemingly nervous before walking closer “have you?” He whispered, the distance between you and him and the question made you increasingly nervous “Sydney, the temple advises all of us not to think and delve into such iniquitous thoughts!” You said, biting your lip as Sydney stares down “But that's what the temple thinks, how about you? What do you personally think being a sinner feels like?” He said, his response getting you off guard, he held your hand in a gentle manner, seemingly persuasive in getting your answer.

“I.. I.. I don't know Sydney.” You responded, you averted your gaze away from him, your breath hitched as you could feel his breath on your neck, whispering to your ear “It's fun, really.” He whispered, you widen your eyes please don't tell me— “what do you mean..?” You asked in a hushed voice, refusing to meet his gaze “..To tell you the truth, before your arrival, I indulged myself into…things the students talk about,” he said, taking a slight step back before continuing “It felt freeing.” He finished, cupping your face softly “Would it not hurt to try?” He whispered “See things in my perspective?”

“I.. The temple—” “The temple hides nothing but what we can do.” He cut you off “And we will be careful, you just have to trust me, okay?” he said, you nodded nervously as you let Sydney take the lead, taking you and him to the school's changing room, he pushed you gently to the dressing room “Let's hope nobody finds us.” He chuckled before taking your hand together with his, kissing it “Feeling comfortable?” He asked, checking for your consent, you nodded “I..I feel rather nervous, actually, I feel very nervous.” You mumbled. He chuckled in response.

“It's okay, it'll be fine. I was too.” He whispered before kissing you, taking advantage of your surprise as he inserted his tongue inside your mouth, reveling the sight of your reaction before taking a step back, he let go of your hand as he focused on unbuttoning your shirt, he took a good look of your chest, you resisted the urge to cover up as you look at him “Cute.” He smirked, caressing your cheeks “I..” “Don't be ashamed of your body, you're a beauty.” He whispered, earning a chuckle from you “than- ugh-” your breath hitched as he circles his thumbs around your nipples, he pushed you against a wall “Sensitive?” He teased, kissing you on the forehead “how does it feel?”

“It… It feels good.” You responded hesitantly, muffling a moan as he puts his knee against your groan “Sydney…” you panted, he moved on to removing your pants, placing his leg away, you tried not to make it obvious you wanted him to keep going “I forgot I still have my chastity cage on.” He groaned before kneeling down and removing your underwear and sighed at the sight of the familiar device “It's okay, there are other ways to make people orgasm.” He whispered before making you lay on your back, he unzipped his pants, you noticed he wasn't wearing any underwear “Isn't that against the school rules..?” You asked, biting your lip “Who cares if they don't know?” He responded.

He leaned in, kissing you on the neck as he shifted his hips upwards, making sure his chastity cage was above yours — fondling with your balls with his right hand as the other went on circling your nipples “So gorgeous..” he panted, sucking in your neck as he continues grinding against you, making sure to press against you hard as he could, the metal head of the cage could be felt on the visible parts of your penis, sending sparks up your spine due to how cold it felt, Sydney groaned, clearly frustrated “I wanna be inside you so bad..” he whined, pressing you against him harder, putting your legs on his shoulder, aligning his penis against your hole, trying to insert himself in “I swear I'll get the keys for these stupid things..” he mumbled, fastening his pace, you moaned slightly as he build up friction “Have I ever told you I've always admired you?” He panted, resting his head on your shoulder, relishing the warmth of your naked body.

“I'm close..” he panted, kissing your neck as you gripped on his shoulder, his lips felt warm against your skin, you muffled a moan as you felt his hands intruding their way to your balls once more, squeezing and rubbing it — the sensation was unfamiliar, strange but welcome, an unfamiliar wave of pleasure went through your body, your cock spurting out cum as you moaned against his neck, you could feel cum dripping down where your chastity cage was “You already came- oh-” he gasped as you kissed his neck, making him come immediately after “I..” he blushed, you stared at him with reddened cheek “Did I do good..?” You asked meekly, bitting the inside of your mouth as he nodded “Of course! That.. that felt amazing… it's quite the bummer though I wasn't able to be inside of you..and you inside of me.” He blushed, laying his head on your chest “how'd it feel?” He asked, smiling at you “It felt unfamiliar… but at the same time good.” He grinned “I knew you'd like it.” He said before helping you stand up, he insisted on helping you dress up, taking advantage of the opportunity to occasionally grope you. He cupped your cheeks “We should do this more, it's fun right? To see the perspective of a sinner?” He leaned in, and you looked away “The temple..” you said quietly, he sighed, leaning his forehead against yours “They won't find out, we'll try to keep it as a secret. They don't have to find out, we can still continue as we are as normal publicly.” He said “and you mentioned you can't remember anything in the past, right? Perhaps in a way, this might help you.” You couldn't help but feel tempted at the thought, you were getting tired of the same answers from the temple anyways. “Fine… just… be careful, I don't wanna get you hurt.” You said, he chuckled “Of course, of course, welcome to my world.”

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #302

This morning, when I woke up, I received a beautifully written ask from someone in this space who reads these letters I write to you. I want very badly to answer this ask, but the person trusted me with some potentially sensitive information about themselves; I wanted to touch base with them before I answer their ask, and make sure it's okay, because as part of answering an ask, others will surely see it. I don't want to accidentally betray this person's trust.

Still… it moved me to tears this morning, and it was wonderful.

I received a direct message from another person today, too, who also said that they think the letters I write to you are wholesome and nice. I've also received more than a few asks and messages of support in response to the difficulties I'm having with the braces; it's been wonderful!

…Sometimes I wonder whether or not writing to you does any good for anyone other than myself. And sometimes… every once in a while… I get a beautiful reminder that the things I write have the potential to help others get through the difficulties in their lives. And… that's exactly why I write these. Aside from wanting to advocate for your safety, I also want these letters to you to serve as a means to shine a way forward for people who relate strongly to you.

…Sephiroth. There are so many, many people in my world who relate to you. There are lots of people in my world that have been abused and exploited and have experienced horror and loss in ways that are extremely similar to you. The notion that you are alone in this world and the notion that no one will be able to understand or see "eye-to-eye" with you… these notions are complete and utter horse-hockey.

Don't tell yourself mean things like that anymore, okay? It's not true, and whoever led you to that conclusion most likely did it on purpose in order to keep you isolated, and therefore weak and easy to control. The notion that any human being is isolated and incomprehensible is just abuser propaganda, and it's not to be trusted or believed. And, as I keep saying, you are human, no matter what was done to you, or how you've changed as a result.

...Well anyway. Today I felt a little more confident than usual for obvious reasons, haha! So I tried to doodle a picture. It's not finished yet but... it's a start on something maybe kinda neat!

As you can see from all the erased lines, I made a lot of mistakes along the way; I haven't doodled since drawing that eyeball a while back, and I'm more than a little rusty. I can already see so many curves that still need to be corrected. Still, not bad for my rusty, dyspraxic ass, right? Hahaha...

I ended up needing to go back to the orthodontist today at some point. One of the attachments came undone from my very confused right canine tooth as I was pulling the braces off to eat, so that had to be fixed right away. And it was, and it's good now. I have a lot less discomfort in my teeth today than yesterday, though the inside of my mouth is pretty scraped up; I've got a long-ish cut on the right inner side of my lower lip, and that's extremely uncomfortable.

Unfortunately, I guess you're not supposed to eat with orthodontic wax in your mouth. Orthodontic wax is used in order to cover up the sharp, pokey attachments so they don't cut the inside of your face. A friend of mine in this space made the very excellent suggestion to get them! And perhaps I might, if just to smooth out the edge of the plastic of the braces; it sometimes catches on my skin, and it's kind of annoying.

...I gotta keep remembering that I chose this. I chose this discomfort in order to give myself a better outcome in the future. I am worth the pain and effort that fixing the inside of my skull will take. I am worth enduring discomfort for. I can do the thing; it's just new and weird, but I'll adjust. I can do the difficult things.

Incidentally, do you know how braces work? I found a short little video on it; basically, it involves putting gentle pressure on the teeth in order to subtly cut off blood flow to sections of the bone of your skull and jaw. Your body then uses immune cells to get rid of the suffocated bone, which relieves the pressure. Your tooth moves to the empty space, and the body fills in the empty space left behind with new bone. Check it out!!

It basically dissolves, reshapes, and rebuilds your jaw on a cellular level!!! And isn't that METAL as FUCK??? Ahahahaha! 🤩🤣

After I returned home from getting the attachment replaced, I decided to make baked chicken leg quarters; y'know, my usual go-to comfort recipe:

...Want some...?

While I was making this, I happened to catch out the window the sight of a gentleman walking outside. He was under the shade of a tree for a moment, but then he walked under a break in the shadow of the tree, and the sun shone on his black hair, and it was all sparkly and gorgeous. I don't really know why, but I felt the need to tell him so, and so I did. I hope he felt nice about himself afterwards.

So I took out my braces, ate the deliciousness I created, brushed, flossed, and rinsed my teeth, brushed my braces, and popped them back in; it's getting a little easier every time. I discovered though, that at some point, another attachment came undone on one of my upper molars on the left side. I dunno when it happened; I didn't find it anywhere. Oh well. Guess I'm going to have to call them again tomorrow. Sheesh...

I'm not really sure what I'm going to do with the rest of today. It's already almost 8pm. I gotta go to work tomorrow. Friday is the rehearsal for the wedding on Saturday. The next few days are going to be super duper busy. I'll be staying overnight at BB's house from Friday into Saturday morning; I'm going to have to pack up all my CPAP stuff and hygiene supplies as soon as I wake up on Friday morning, because she wants me at her house at 11am.

But!!! Sephiroth!!! Guess what!! She's got a giant huge bathtub at her house!!! And I think I'm gonna ask her if I'm allowed to use it while I'm there!! I'm sure she'll want me freshly washed for her big day in any case!!!

The days are getting chilly (later than they should have, but still...), and so the thought of getting to sit in a tub full of hot, soapy water that's big enough for me to fit in comfortably sounds super amazing to me right now. Of course, if she says no I won't push; I'm not that kind of person. But still... I'll be daydreaming about that all day tomorrow - bet on it!!

...Hey, Sephiroth? You're pretty tall, right? Like 6'5" or something without your boots, no? When is the last time you've got to enjoy sitting in a tub that you actually fit in? When is the last time you got to enjoy soaking in deliciously hot, soapy water? When is the last time you've had an opportunity to get washed with soaps in your favorite scents? I imagine it's been quite a long time, no? I hope you get to do it again soon, in a place where no one's gonna bother ya, unless you wanna be "bothered" by someone you care deeply for.

Sometimes J or M come to visit when I'm getting washed, and that's always nice. We talk about whatever - usually with J, it's airplanes. Or sometimes he'll sing along with me to whatever song is playing on my playlist. With M, he'll usually talk about whatever show he's watching or whatever game he's playing. It's nice to sit in the warm, safe place with people who love me while all kinds of nice scents are wafting around in the air.

...Actually, for a long time, my brain recognized bathrooms as a very unsafe place, thanks to my stepmother. I've got a lot of memories of being hit and screamed at for washing myself "wrong", or for taking too long, or for not taking long enough, or for my hair looking too messy when I come out (because then I must not have brushed it well enough), or for my hair looking not messy enough when I came out (because then I must not have washed it well enough), and... just...

...She hated me, so there wasn't anything I could do to be "clean enough" for her. And so, every time I went in the bathroom for any reason while she was around, I got in trouble unless my father was around - then she'd pretend to be normal about it.

...Sigh. It took me a while to decondition myself away from being scared of bathrooms. But I'm able to recognize them as a safe place now. I like to put on a playlist to sing, and I like to try to focus on how nice it feels to be in a place that's warm and that smells good. I try to focus on how nice and clean I feel afterwards. I try to focus on the fact that I get to choose how long I take now. I get to choose what "clean enough" looks like. I get to choose how much or how little soap and moisturizer I use. I get to choose, and no one is scrutinizing my choices with the intention of finding excuses to hurt me anymore.

...And even if someone did try to do that, I'm a big, strong adult human now. I can just bite their face off!!! 🤪

(...No, I'm only kidding!!! I wouldn't actually bite someone's face off; that's unsanitary in multiple respects, and my braces would get in the way!!! 🤣🤣🤣 In all seriousness, I wouldn't hurt anyone unless failure to do such a thing would lead to someone else being in imminent danger; I'd probably just yell at them until they go away, and then let the door hit their ass on the way out. I can do that now. I'm not an unwanted child trapped in an impossible situation anymore.)

...Suppose maybe I'll stop writing now in favor of getting washed; after all, the chill has settled into my bones, and all this talk about baths makes me wanna enjoy being under hot, running water for a while...

...I hope you'll get to enjoy such a thing again sometime soon, with soaps in scents of vanilla and roses, in a quiet, soothingly lit place, where only the people you'd want to have with you can find you.

I love you. Please keep yourself safe out there, so that one day you can get up out of that damnable crater and start building a wholesome life for yourself.

I'll write again tomorrow. I'll try hard to take some yummy pictures for you while I'm at work.

Your friend, Lumine

[marikosenwrites]

"happy birthday, osamu." - june 19th

a/n: unfortunately no nsfw...also, sorry this came late! i was busy with school, it's almost ending!

all of the agency (not including kunikida) wanted to surprise dazai with a not-so-surprise birthday party. they needed someone to stall him in order to prepare for it. you, his girlfriend, would be the best choice, wouldn't it?

"osamu!" you happily woke him up, although knowing how much he hates being woken up from a good night's sleep. "happy birthday!!"

"bella! oh, yes, it's my birthday today!" he's fairly happy, honestly- being able to spend his birthday with his loved one? for the first time ever? yeah! of course!

"i have a surprise for you- but it's at the end of the day," you smile brightly at the man.

"bella...why can't you tell me now?" he begs, looking up at you with puppy eyes.

you almost fell for it- but knowing dazai, it was mostly just a play to have his way. "nuh-uh," you wag your finger at him, "but let's go out to celebrate your birthday."

"yayy!" his laugh is almost childish, if not just excited. "now i'm happy that you woke me up."

the two of you get ready for the day ahead and leave for the streets of yokohama early. you suggested going to chinatown first for the food and the unique chinese traditions that are performed there, and dazai agrees that you two should go.

"oh, oh, let's go to that restaurant! last time i went with atsushi-kun, and it was delicious!" he mentions the weretiger boy, who's always tortured by the suicidal man.

"oh, how i pity atsushi-kun," you joke. "looks like there's a table already. let's go."

he follows you to the said table and looks at the menu. "ne ne, what's this? french toast? have you heard of it?"

"mhm," you nod as you scan the menu, "it's bread dipped in egg yolk and fried with condensed milk. sometimes, there's peanut butter in the middle." (it's actually one of author-san's favorite dishes!)

"woah...sounds good!" dazai calls over a waiter and orders the french toast and you order an egg sandwich special.

"would you like a drink?" the waiter asks, notebook in hand.

"oh, milk tea please. osamu?" you gesture to the man.

"same with what they're ordering!" he replies. the waiter nods with a content face and leaves, leaving you two alone. "this looks really china-style. where's this based on?"

"i believe it's from some hong kong tea restaurant. it's everywhere!" you exclaim.

"how do you know so much?" you've got dazai fascinated with the facts that are beyond his knowledge. his knowledge belongs on the battlefield, not restaurants. that was your job, to show people which good restaurants to go, and which ones that you should go out of your way to avoid.

"online research exists, you know?" you laugh. "the agency just doesn't make much of it."

"aha." he scratches his head.

the food arrives less than five minutes after ordering. dazai and you finished your breakfast quickly - or should i say brunch - and headed to other shops.

your plan was to bring dazai back to the agency for lunch, and party there for the rest of the day. you had talked with the rest of the members, and they all agreed on it. it didn't matter if everyone got drunk.

soon enough, it was already two in the afternoon and both of you were getting a bit hungry. "osamu," you start, "let's go. the surprise is ready." you had just gotten a call from ranpo saying that the party was ready.

his hand in yours, and you two headed back to the agency's building. before you could go in, you told dazai to close his eyes, checking at least thrice before leading him into the elevator and into the agency's office.

as you told dazai to open his eyes, the agency members shouted,

"happy birthday, dazai!"

dazai looked so happy, he could cry. "bella- is this the surprise?"

"yes! happy birthday, osamu."

and in that moment, he couldn't ask for anything more than to spend his time in the world with his friends.

©marikosenwrites 2023-2024 all rights reserved. please do not repost my work on other platforms, or translate it and repost without credit. likes, reblogs, and comments are welcome! <3

[halfdead-halfskeleton]

Notes:

Lilia x You. Reader knows how to sew clothing(while author does not)

Based off Suitors suit vignette. Technically it's a continuation of the story, so make sure to read the vignette before this fic

A lot of background characters, but I'm not tagging all of them

A bit non-linear storytelling?

The suit was made of magic, meaning it will disappear after a certain amount of time. The fact that such a beautiful sight is not going to stay here for long made your heart ache. And yet, you continued to smile and tried your best to memorize every tiny detail of the tuxedo. You had a plan, after all.

"Feast your eyes while you still can!" said Lilia. The tuxedo Malleus created for him was just marvelous! You and Sebek competed in who's going to complement Lilia more while his face was shining with a smile. Your face did too, it even hurt a bit to smile so much.

The next couple of months casually went by in your room, as you hunched over your secret project. If only your school life wasn't so busy and sometimes downright chaotic, you might have finished it sooner... And if the cruel thing that is perfectionism wouldn't criticize your every move.

After a few not-so-successful, to put it lightly, attempts, you finally finished recreation the suit Malleus made for Lilia back when ghosts that invaded the school for a marriage ceremony left.

Your first attempt failed because you were so obsessed with the idea of recreating the outfit you forgot to take Lilia's measurements. While the final product turned out to be quite nice, it wouldn't fit Lilia at all. Also you didn't have some accessories the original outfit had, which you noticed only at the end.

And so, you began anew, but now without the fabric you intended to use. The end result turned out too different from the tuxedo you remembered. The shade of green? Too vibrant. The pattern on the ribbon? Wrong. The pants? Actually quite nice, but that's the only part of the outfit you liked. And after your sewing machine unexpectedly broke you lost all the crumbs of motivation there were left...

Thankfully, you became a good friends with some students at NRC. While you were earning money for a new sewing machine, Vil and Kalim searched for the fabric and accessories that matched Lilia's suitor suit. Vil didn't get to witness the tuxedo, so you and Kalim had to explain how it looked like. You even showed him all the sketches you made and the first attempt suit as an example.

"Wow, your skill is really shinning here!" Kalim carefully examined the suit from all angles together with Vil. "It's really unfortunate your sewing machine broke... Are you sure you don't want me to get you a new one? It's going to be way faster than working in Mostro Lounge for a whole month."

"That's right, but I'm already asking you for help, you know. It won't be so fair if you do everything for me!" you answered and looked at Vil, who's also visibly impressed by your skills.

"The stitching is quite nice, you clearly took your time to make it the best suit it could be. I'm glad to see you actually listened to the advice I gave you during previous projects. Alright, I'll lend you a hand as well. Just remember that my schedule is tight, so it will take a while to find everything you need."

"Thank you both so, so much!" As you said that, Kalim came closer to give you a big hug. He was super excited to see how it will turn out!

After mountains and mountains of work, you left out a sign. Not out of exhaustion or frustration, but out of relief. You did it. You DID it! Finally, even when it seemed like the whole universe itself didn't want you to complete the suit, you did it!

"Good job." A sudden pat on your back woke you up from all the thoughts. It was Vil who just entered the room. After a minute or so, Kalim came here too.

"Sorry for making you wait!" He panted and leaned on the closest wall. "Oh, I got so scared when I couldn't find the Albert chain I had to call Jamil and a couple of other Scarabia students for help. We found it! It's the same one I gave Lilia that night."

"Wait, if that's the same one... Is it really okay for me to take it? You could get something similar, but..."

"But? I thought you wanted to make 1:1 recreation. Why are you backing up now?" Vil asked with a frown on the face. You pulled him closer and whispered:

"Because it costs 10 million thaumarks!" Such shocking information left Vil speechless for a minute.

"Well, I thought the original one would suit him better! So here it is." As Kalim said that, he placed the Albert chain with a bat on the outfit. You looked at your creation, the exact copy of the tuxedo Malleus has created with magic. Even though some tears appeared on your eyes, your face radiated joy. You finally did it.

It was an after-school evening when you decide to gift Lilia the suit you've been working so hard on. As you roamed around Diasomnia dorm, something poked your back. Strangely, when you looked back there was nothing and no-one. So you turned your head forward and immediately got spooked by upside-down Lilia!

"Ehehe." He smiled mischievously, yet still helped you to get back up. "It's rare to see non-Diasomnia students here at such time. Could it be that you're looking for someone?" Lilia's eyes were set on the box you carried, it was wrapped nicely, like a birthday present.

When your heartbeat calmed down, you remembered the words you prepared in your head. "Yes, there is... But I'm not sure if they'll actually like the present I made. Could you take a look?"

"Oh? A skilled dressmaker like you wishes to hear my opinion? I would be more than glad to assist you." Your heart skipped a beat. Did someone tell him about your secret project? Who could that- oh, probably Kalim, since they're in the same club. And even if Kalim didn't tell it exactly to him, but Cater instead, Lilia would still find out. But maybe Lilia doesn't actually know and said it just because?.. You're kind of known for your great sewing skills. Or... "Let's do it in my room, I was right on my way there." You brushed off the haunting thoughts away and headed to Lilia's room, trying to calm down.

His face beamed with happiness when you let him unwrap the present. Although at first he wondered if it was really okay. "It would be rather troublesome to wrap it back up when you're going to gift it to that person."

"Don't worry, I won't have to do it." A surprised gasp echoed in the room. Lilia carefully picked up the tuxedo, examining every detail. He couldn't believe his eyes. "So, what do you think?"

After a minute of silence, he smiled. "I still remember this tuxedo. I'm really proud of Malleus for coming up with such an elaborate design. And I'm really proud of you for recreating it up to every single detail." As Lilia said that, his eyes began to tear up a bit. "That night I wore a tuxedo for the first time in my life. It's hard to believe I can re-experience that moment again."

"Do you wish to wear it right now?" While you did take Lilia's and some other students'(to make it less suspicious) measurements long time ago, anxiety kept telling you you might have made a mistake at some point.

"I'm eager to wear it!" You smiled unknowingly when Lilia's gentle laugh reached your ears. In a couple of minutes you re-entered the room to see him happily dancing in the suit you made. The moment he saw you he reached for your hand. "Would you mind to dance with me for a moment? Such a delightful gift deserves a special thank-you!"

Blush painted your cheeks red, and heart began to beat faster with joy and excitement. You happily accepted Lilia's offer, taking his hand in yours. And so, you danced around the room. At one point Lilia began to hum a sweet melody. You joined him, and you both hummed in unison while dancing across the room.

You knew this moment, no matter how joyous and bright, would end eventually. So you made sure to enjoy every last bit of it, engraving it in your memory for eternity. And so did he.

[latenightdecaf]

There are just so many things that don't sit right with that ep 14. (And I won't be able to do my work today if I don't write it down.)

Honestly, I've been enjoying this drama because of its fast pacing and the way it resolves things fast and as clean as they can. I didn't mind the inconsistencies to be honest, and some gaps in history

like why the fuck was haraboji's gf, so mad in the first place anyway?? like yes she went to prison, had a son, left that son and worked for haraboji and then??

the 1031 baby miscarriage was fine not to be addressed (unfortunately, I can forgive that - given that I have friend who went through the same thing and honestly did not really confront or grieved that with her husband either - they never moved on, but never talked about it either, so fine - we move forward.)

But honestly, this episode is just different than the rest in an unsettling way.

First, the scenes were cut so weirdly... like honestly, what do they want us all to feel here? They had the most beautiful confrontation about life, yes they walked to the hotel without looking at each other. Yes, Hae In stayed true to her character not wanting other girls to look at Hyun Woo. But honestly, that shit felt shallow and her charcter could've been more. They could've walked into a restaurant after fighting, with Hyun Woo just holding her wrist and her noticing the small ways this unbelievable man takes care of her even when he's mad - opening the door, ordering her food, idk, slicing it for her. It could've been slow, it could've been realizing that he had wrinkles now, that he looked tired, that he was having a hard time too - realizing that she wanted to live and be loved by this man no matter what. That if given a chance, even as stranger she'd still surely fall in love all over again. Her as the stranger, NOT those girls who was just prying. They could've twisted that up in a melo way. (But of course, we needed the romcom so of course.)

I could not even begin to point out how weird that car accident was. As viewer, I already know she's not inside... I know that moment was needed but again for Hae In to somehow magically realize she wanted that surgery but that's just torture by now. After everything they've gone through in Yongduri, she already knows how loved she was. Things could've slowed down a bit. And I'm sure Kim Ji Won would've executed that brilliantly (hello, my liberation notes). Idk, Hae In could've had more stronger reasons to live, or that case could've been built differently. Hae In is not shallow but they made her that way and yes, by the time she'd be regaining or building her connection back to Hyun Woo that script will be back again not wanting anyone else to have him. (ugh, Hae In :( I need more!!)

Third of course, Eunseong - so far his character just became so predictable that it totally put me off. Honestly thought (based on the preview without any actual context, that Hae In would be in the car accident with Eun Seong and then he dies to save her so he can finally be someone who actually saved Hae In) but yeah. He came in so conveniently in the hospital that no one even bother to ask why this stranger is now the legal guardian of Hae In like come on. (I know it's kdrama but come on that was WAY TOO CONVENIENT)

And lastly, that fucking surgery. Every single build up, every single suspense gone. She woke up after 5-10 mins inside the drama not even a bandage to her head!! They've could've dragged that a bit, not make her wake up too soon. Mess with us up some more, have the doctors come in, tell them "these things take time". Make Eunseong nervous! But no, she had to wake up immediately. Like come on!! It could've messed with everyone if that was dragged a bit more to the next episode. They could've deported back Hyun Woo to Seoul while Hae In is still unconscious with the devil by her side. We could've been at the edge of our seats if suspense was all they needed and now it just felt too rushed and too much by now. And then, Hae In will be back in Seoul like nothing happened with her (physically) and then she's with Eun Seong now. Ugh.

But despite it all, I'm thankful for this drama. I'm still going to be there next week to see this through. Honestly, what a world-class acting from Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won.

I'm just wrapping up my thoughts so I can finally go on with my day.

Thank you all for coming to my TED talk.