#urgh i’m moody

[moldybits]

man i mention in an addiction group that i’m super suicidal in december cuz of trauma related things and someone asks me

“have you heard of seasonal depression?”

like i’m sorry but actually fuck off

[thyme-in-a-bubble]

can you do the "moody to everyone but you" trope with peter as the readers bf

A/N: I didn't intend to make him this agro, but hey, whatever happened happened (sorry, it is very late for me and I be very sleepy, bro. what is up, what is down, idk) and yes, I did indeed write this while my cat was sleeping in my lap and I didn't have the heart to move her so that I could get up and go to bed, so I just wrote this to kill time...

word count: 630

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“And it must have been a really crazy dream because she was just flailing around in my lap, I mean, she damn nearly fell off,” you gushed about your cat as your frozen fingers never got any further in their mission of unlocking your locker, “oh my god and the cute little snores and the quiet yaps that she did? Urgh, you should have seen it. I should have taken a video and texted it to you as a little good night thing, but my phone was way out of reach and I couldn’t just move when she was sleeping on me like that, you know? I was even trying to stay quiet so as to not wake her.”

Leaning against the lockers beside you, Peter absorbed every adorable word you offered him, rendering him a sappy marshmallow of a fellow, “oh my god, can we just ditch the rest of the school day and go hang out with your cat?” he groaned, joining in on your frivolous ramble, “I swear, she is the most precious creature on this entire planet.” 

Suddenly, in the rush of students wandering from point A to point B, you felt someone carelessly knock into your shoulder, causing your backpack to fling off, the flimsy way you had been carrying it, only half on and ready to crack it open as soon as the contents of your locker became available to you, wasn’t enough for it to survive the crash. Your eyes briefly flickered from your bag, now a puddle on the floor, to the familiar silhouette of Flash disappearing down the hallway. 

Letting the annoyance go as quickly as it had arrived, you turned back to look at your boyfriend, his demeanour flipped completely on its head. You saw it in his eyes, you saw it happen. In a matter of seconds, all he saw was red. 

“Hey,” he roared over the bustle, the soft features he always revealed to you swiftly hardened and exchanged with a look he never dared to aim in your direction, “watch where you’re going, ass hat!” 

“Peter,” you reached out to him before he could get any ideas of running off after the guy, “hey, it’s okay,” his nostrils still flaring, your soft voice managed to cut through his fury, “he’s not worth it.”

Jaw clenched, he glanced back up at the direction Flash had disappeared in, “are you okay?” he asked, forcing his eyes to meet yours as your hand soothingly ran over his forearm. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” eyes still on him, you bent down and plucked your backpack off the floor, “why do you always do that?”

“Do what?”

“Act like a completely different person around other people than you do with me?”

“Y/n, he walked right into you!” he held up in hand to support his point, “nearly knocked you over!”

“I already told you that I’m fine. Flash is always gonna be Flash, sometimes it’s best just to ignore him,” you shrugged, hoping that your breezy demeanour would rub off on him and he would soon return to the teddybear he usually was around you, “and don’t try and act like you don’t know exactly what I’m talking about,” you caught his eye as he stopped searching for the long gone bully, “why are you only nice to me?”

“Why wouldn’t I be nice to you?” he shook his head lightly, bewildered as to why you would even ask him, “you’re you,” he stated earnestly, “of course, I’m nice to you.” Disappearing in your eyes, he exhaled lowly and then found your hand, entangling his fingers in it, “so, back to more important matters,” a soft smile curled upon his lips, “are we ditching to go home and cuddle with your cat or what?”

© 2023 thyme-in-a-bubble 

[alvinmichaelmurphyseville]

“School is kicking my butt today. Surprise surprise.”

“I’m ‘bout to need a root beer if this keeps up.”

“Got a plan tonight to watch Halloween episodes of our favorite shows with my family and friends, but homework might get in the way of that and I’m annoyed.”

“I wish evil Miss. Smith would do what Dr. Wilson and Dr. Hayward do and give me the homework AHEAD of time since I’ve already read the chapters that correspond to the homework.”

“Urgh. I talk about homework too much. I’m letting it control my life and I don’t like that.”

“Anyway, time to listen to Henry Moodie’s song The Old Me while I cram for a surprise Literature pop quiz on the book Great Expectations.”

[rabbitsquib]

rewatching the moody scene with the ferret and just . urgh . he WOULD look out for me, wouldn’t he. urgh. im gonna keel over and die now. /pos

the little wink he gives harry too, like….. that exact gesture of a “don’t worry about this any more, see I’ve taken care of it for you” . a fucking “I’m on your side”

he’s so. he’s so nice. he’s such a team player. he’s such a carer. he’s a freak about it but it gives him more charm. I love him dearly and,, and somehow??? he loves me too!!!!

[distressednoise]

Having read that latest athletic piece, I'm absolutely hung up on the idea of an AU where jonny never became the baby captain of Chicago.

Management took one look at this kid who was brilliant but so moody, so bad at dealing with highs and lows, so quick to complain and berate people, and said nah, give it to hossa. And then give it to Seabs. But don't give it to jonny, he'd be insufferable.

And jonny is quietly crushed about it, because he was supposed to be the captain! Everyone always told him he would be! And maybe the disappointment makes him cagey and he's not as close with the others as he would otherwise be. It pisses him off to seabs walking round their house with a letter. Winning helps, but he can't help but feel a little cheated out of what he was promised, even if noone on the hawks actually promised it.

But now everyone else is gone and jonny is the last man (barely) standing, with his unreliable lungs and his newfound perspective, and management are like hey. We think you'd be good at steering these kids through a rebuild. We like this new 'one day at a time' you, they're gonna need that as the rebuild gets long.

And jonny goes at it with his usual determination. He's absolutely set on being the most positive person with the best advice and 100% percent encouragement and accountability and urgh, Jesus, this is hard.

At some point during the skid he calls seabs (He's maybe a little buzzed) and says, "I was kind of a dick to you."

Seabs laughs. "Welcome to middle management," he says. "And yeah, you fucking were," but he doesn't sound pissy about it. He's actually pretty understanding about the whole thing, and jonny ends up calling him more and more as the season falls apart around him and his good cheer threatens to wear thin.

And then I want a 90s LDR "we fell in love over the phone" romcom about them that ends with jonny flying back to winnipeg in the summer and seabs surprising him at the airport. They go off to jonny's cabin together - jonny was maybe going to have a few days to decompress before his family showed up - but instead he and seabs awkwardly circle each other for a couple of days until seabs is like, "did I misread this?" and jonny is like, "we are not doing this on the boat" but they ARE, because it's the only way he can't DODGE THE QUESTION, that question being ARE WE GOING TO MAKE OUT NOW and the answer being "so vigorously we fall out of the boat NEVER TELL ANYONE"

[sun224]

I think I just need to relax about my manager. It’s his communication style, he’s very sassy and direct. Unfortunately, he’s quite rude and there’s not too much I can do about it. What the fuck is his problem, it makes me so angry. It’s just very petty and insecure of him. He absolutely makes swipes at other colleagues and tries to tear them down. He’s always very anxious and depressed, very moody. He’s always very agitated. He’s obsessed with power and being respected, and is very sensitive to signs of disrespect. He’s just a fucking asshole. I’ll be polite and professional but that’s the extent of it. There’s not much more you can do besides be professional. 

I’ve had so much going on - I can’t believe Joe’s friend hung herself. It’s so fucking sad. A tragedy. Parents getting divorced still. Dead Grandma. It’s just been a lot of “what the fuck” all at once.

Okay I’m getting weird anxiety about my job and I’m annoyed that I’m not hitting milestones. Everyones really happy with me though, I’m doing a great job, especially as I came onto the project 3 weeks late but still had the same deadlines to hit. Bit ridiculous. They probably went oh, she’s senior - she’ll be able to do it. Well I am and it’s fantastic. I should be super proud of myself, I’m working super hard and doing a great job.

Tomorrow plan. I hope she doesn’t reply and we don’t get coffee. It’ll be too rainy for the markets anyway. A little brekky could be nice though - somewhere between our respective houses. Urgh. I feel depressed and headachy. I think it’s all the computer use, it’s frying my brain. I’ll play guitar then go to bed. Maybe watch IWSIP. 

[tinylittleobsessions]

Actual things I told my boyfriend when we first met each character:

*we play together and I frequently explain him things, lol, I’m pretty much a ‘Harry Potter’ nerd, and he is more like a casual reader 😂

*no I didn’t say any one of these things with these exact same words, but you got the idea haha

Fig: “He met like three minutes ago and he is already super cool with taking us in a life-threatening adventure. Also, he doesn’t seem to bothered we just wtinessed somebody die, right? He is more like curious to understand wth is happening. Love him.”

Prof. Weasley: “A WEASLEY! Love her already. Also, she’s giving maternal Weasley woman vibes, but less angry than Molly Weasley. Love her.”

Black: “THAT’S PHINEAS NIGELLUS BLACK, THE ONE FROM THE PORTRAIT, DO YOU REMEMBER IN ‘ORDER OF THE PHOENIX’ WHEN” *explains the whole plot* “Urgh, his voice is annoying, isn’t it? I guess he’s supposed to be annoying. Makes sense.”

Sebastian: “Did you hear what he said about the books and the things he likes to learn and to read about? He’s SO the one that’s gonna take us to the dark side. Amazing, let’s be friends with him.”

Ominis: “HE’S A GAUNT, THAT’S VOLDEMORT’S MOTHER FAMILY, DO YOU REMEMBER” *explains the whole plot* “So he’s gotta be evil, right? He doesn’t sound evil, though. He sounds cute. Why does he sound so sweet??”

Imelda: “WHAT AN INSUFFERABLE BITCH, I don’t even think John likes quidditch or flying, but he’s GOTTA beat her now, I don’t care” (John’s our MC, he’s a Slytherin, nice to meet you, guys 💚)

Poppy: “John can’t say mean stuff to her. We’ll choose the nice answers. She is so cute. Let’s be friends with her and protect her.” (we always try and choose the less-polite answers, ‘cause we think John would, and choosing the nicest ones makes him sound too much like a goody two-shoes)

Natty: “SHE'S FROM UAGADOU, wow, that means she can make magic without a wand! Cool! I hope she teaches that at some point.” (I’m still kinda disappointed she didn’t, btw)

Garreth: “He’s so cute??? And a Weasley??? I love him already, can we take him with us in our missions? Will we have side missions with him??? Please?”

Leander: “A PREWETT, DO YOU KNOW MOLLY WEASLEY IS A PREWETT? THAT’S HER FAMILY NAME, AND” *explains* *we never talk or think about Leander ever again* (sorry hahaha)

Sharp: “Why did they create another Snape, like, why is he a black-haired kinda moody man, they could get creative and give us a young cute super enthusiastic witch, I don’t know. (.........) He’s kinda hot, though.”

Garlick: “SHE IS SO CUTE, can we be friends with a teacher?? I wanna be friends with her.”

Hecat: “I like this one, she’s badass and super original. Love her.” *later starts theorizing like crazy after learning she used to be an Unspeakable*

Ronen: “He’s crazy, lol. I really like him.”

Amit: “Finally a Ravenclaw friend! He seems a bit nervous, haha. He’s cute.”

Everett: (...) (literally, I don’t think we had anything to say about him, LOL)

HOGWARTS LEGACY CHARACTERS AND MY FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF THEM:

Fig: This dude has got to be evil. That is some straight up villain hair. People who are not villains don’t have that hair.

Prof. Weasley: Mcgonagal vibes. I love her.

Black: That is a shockingly attractive headmaster

Sebastian: If this game has love interests, this is one of them. Look at that hair. Seems kind of cocky and rubs me the wrong way though.

Ominis: Holy hell this is the most beautiful boy I’ve ever seen

Poppy: Aw, she’s cute. Lil cinnamon roll

Natty: Please be my badass best friend

Garreth: Jesus Christ these characters are too damn attractive

Leander: kind of an ass, but a cute one. Also there’s no way he’s NOT related to Garreth, that is some straight up Weasley hair

Sharp: I’m dead I’m deceased holy shit I wanna marry this man the people in this game are TOO DAMN ATTRACTIVE. Wait, why am I extremely attracted to surly potions professors twice my age? That seems like something I should address in therapy

Garlick: please be my best friend

Hecat: this is the most badass woman

Ronen: Absolutely adore him. Professor cinnamon roll

Amit: Am I just going to be attracted to every guy in this game?

Everett: Jesus fucking Christ don’t open your mouth again you rude ass squeaky door hinge my ears are BLEEDING

(Whoops forgot Imelda): bitch calm DOWN I just met you, why are you beefing with me already? I don’t give a shit about beating your flying time, I just wanna pet the cats and steal all the nifflers

Reblog with your first impressions!

[sweetkingdomstarlight-blog]

You’re ready for girl’s night out but Bucky doesn’t approve of your dress. You pretend to change and put something over it and go party but he finds you wearing the same dress he didn’t want you to wear.

Pairings - Bucky Barnes x Reader

Words - 1422

Warnings - spanking, bad language words

A/N - thanks to @syntheticavenger for the prompt and @buckyownsmylife for reading it to make sure it wasn’t rubbish. As usual this is for 18+ so if you’re a minor please shoo

You put the finishing touches to your makeup, swiping on your favourite lipstick before going to find your boyfriend. He was sitting playing Mario Kart with Sam when you wrapped your arms around him from behind. “How is Sam beating you on this? He’s the worst player,” you giggle before stealing the controller and playing for him, easily beating your best friend.

Bucky stands and leans over the sofa to kiss you but stops when he sees the dress you’re wearing. “Baby, c’mon! I hid that dress, it’s meant to just be for me.” You roll your eyes at him, secretly loving how protective he always got when you were having a night out with the girls.

“Buck, it’s my favourite dress, Nat will be ready any minute. I don’t have time to change,” you try and reason with him but he’s giving you the puppy dog eyes, you made him promise not to do that anymore because he knows you can’t resist it. “Urgh, fine. I’ll get changed.” You stomp off back to your room, faintly hearing Sam cracking his imaginary whip at you.

Flipping through your wardrobe, you spot your favourite summer dress, it falls around your knees, covers the girls and Bucky loved it. You are just about to switch when you suddenly get the bright idea to just keep your dress on and cover it with the sundress, Bucky will never find out and you don’t have to waste a perfectly good outfit.

Walking back into the room, you see Sam grabbing some beers and popcorn for the movie they were about to watch, confused when you don’t see your boyfriend you quickly feel him hug you from behind, kissing up the back of your neck and nibbling on your ear. “You’re looking amazing doll, thanks for changing. I don’t want anyone else to see what’s mine”.

You turn and look at him, kissing him softly so you don’t smudge your lipstick. “You’re so silly, have fun with Sam. Don’t kill each other, ok?”

Hopping into the back of the car with your friends, you tell Happy not to watch as you quickly take the dress off, pushing it under the seat. Nat smirks at you. “What will Bucky say? Won’t he get all moody and make everyone miserable with his moping around?”.

You grab the champagne she was holding for you, taking a long drink. “What he doesn’t know can’t hurt him.” You clink your glasses and ring Carol, letting her know you were on your way.

Sometime later, after a few cocktails, you’re in the middle of the dance floor laughing with the girls when you feel a pair of hands wrap around your waist picking you up and flinging you over his shoulder, people part quickly to let him through and you’d be more scared if you didn’t recognise his cute little butt in those jeans you bought him. Deciding the most logical thing to do in this situation is to start slapping his cheeks, you giggle hearing his growl. He sits you on the hood of the car glaring at Happy before running his fingers up and down the front of your dress. “Want to tell me what happened?”

You shake your head, pouting at his adorably grumpy face. “It’s such a cute outfit and I wanted to wear it.” He shakes his head before leaning in and kissing you, you wrap your arms around his neck and kiss down the column of his throat. “You aren’t mad at me, are you baby?”. For a brief moment you think you’ve got away with it but he picks you up again throwing you over his shoulder and carrying you to another car.

Sam sits in the driver's seat and apologises as soon as you get in. “I’m sorry, Carol sent me a photo of you all and he saw it.” You gently slap him across the back of the head before staring out the window watching your night out slip away from you.

Pulling into the compound, you get out before the car has even fully stopped, walking over to the elevator and pressing the button a few times hoping it’ll arrive before your boyfriend can catch up, you get in pressing the button to your floor and feeling relieved when the door starts to close, only to groan a moment later when his metal hand pushes them open. Hearing Sam say he’s going to take the stairs, you get crowded into the corner, caged in with an arm on either side of your body. “Now what are we going to do with you?” You look up at him smirking down at you, your heart already pumping fast with excitement which you know he can hear. He’s about to lean in when the door opens and he drags you to your room.

Pinning you against the inside of your door, he kisses you furiously, gripping at your ass and grinding himself against you, you whimper and moan into his mouth. He pulls back and looks down at you again. “What’s the matter? Are you all frustrated because of me?”. Trying to kiss him again, you run your fingers through his hair, scratching at his scalp, knowing how needy it makes him but he grabs your wrists and stops you, walking away and sitting on the bed facing you.

Patting his thighs, you know what he wants but you’re too stubborn to give in straight away so you go to the bathroom first and remove all your jewellery hearing him from the other room. “You’re making this worse for yourself.” Clenching your thighs together, hoping to relieve some of the pressure, you take a deep breath and walk out of the room and over to him.

He smiles at you before quickly manhandling you over his lap, pushing your dress up and admiring the soft pink panties he slaps your cheek in warning, smirking at the wet patch that’s forming before his eyes. “How about 10? Count with me.” You nod quickly, gasping when he slaps the back of your thigh. “One”.

You squirm in his lap as he lands slap after slap on you, using his cool metal hand to ease the sting, he gets to nine and pauses, pushing his fingers down he chuckles. “Fuck doll, you’re absolutely dripping for me.” You whine and squirm as he draws soft light circles on your clit over the top of your panties, you try to push down and get more friction but he just pulls away from you, chuckling at your needy whine. “You’ve got one more, don’t think I forgot”. Pushing you back down he spreads your legs a little wider and manages to slap your pussy before you can stop him, you moan and grip his thighs at the feel of his cool hand soothing you.

Forcing you to stand, he widens his legs and pulls you closer. “Mmm... I think you enjoyed that a little too much.” Running his hands softly up and down your sides before slowly unzipping your dress. Your whole body feels like it’s on fire as he takes his time, he lightly scratches at the skin exposed as your dress falls to the floor along with your panties. “This dress is just for me,” punctuating each word with a kiss as he travels lower and lower, stopping before he gets to where you need him most.

He smirks at your needy whine before picking you up and laying you on the bed. “You going to be a good girl for me?” You nod desperately, silently begging him to give you what you wanted, trying to pull him closer with your feet as he straddles your lap. “I think I like you like this, all needy for me.” Biting your lip in frustration, you grab his hair and pull him down for a kiss, sliding your tongue into his mouth and grabbing his ass with your other hand.

He pulls back and kisses your nose. “Get dressed.” You look up at him confused “I think I need to show the world that you belong to me.” Climbing off the bed and passing you the dress. “Come on, Sam has been desperate to get drunk with you and I want all the city to see how much you want me”. He winks at you before grabbing your shoes and bag. “I’ll wait at the car, don’t take too long and don’t even think about wearing those panties, those are mine now.”

[mythicamagic]

Please write the second-to-last prompt!

*cough* I’ll put this one under a ‘read more’ because it’s a tad too long. And involves nakedness- and we all know how tumblr feels about that. M rated with no actual naughty business.

“it’s because i’m so attractive isn’t it?” “i say this. and i cannot stress this enough. i find you completely repulsive.” 

---

Sesshoumaru arched a brow, torn between amusement, befuddlement, indignation, flattery and satisfaction. 

It was a confusing mix. 

Kagome stared up at him, cheeks stained crimson and hands planted on her hips. It was not the appropriate expression for one asking another for a favour. 

Thin lips parted, before his mouth clicked shut. He blinked once, tipping his head to the side. 

“You wish to…”

“Draw you,” she confirmed stiffly. 

“Naked.”

“It’s called ‘Life Drawing’ and I need it for my college class. You’d...really be helping me out, okay?”

Sesshoumaru hummed, gaze sweeping over her critically. He’d never seen one of her pictures, and wondered if her skills could do him justice. “And you chose this one to be your subject?” he arched a brow, confidence radiating off him in waves. “It is because I am so attractive, is it not?”

Kagome made a noise, bursting into a laugh and waving this off. “I say this, and I cannot stress this enough; I find you completely repulsive.” 

The teasing dance of her eyes told him she was joking. He huffed, finding the mere idea ludicious. None could find him repulsive. 

“Look the reason I’m asking you is because it would be awkward with anyone else. I’m not dating anyone- and Inuyasha is out on account of him being my ex. Miroku is married. You’re the only available person who is kinda, sorta my friend. My last resort is asking a random villager if they’ll strip for me,” she sighed. “I’ve sat in on classes, I’ve tried using books for reference poses- but nothing works! My teacher always says they come off as stiff looking and the uh...the…”

Sesshoumaru watched her steadily turn redder, unblinking.

Kagome glanced around the empty hillside with paranoia, whispering the next part; “the penis…” she blushed, seeming to die inside, “always looks...uh...inaccurate, apparently.”

Mirth coloured his blank, guarded expression. He glanced at her waiting bag beside the tree. “Show me.”

“What?! No! No one will ever see those sketches! Ever! I’m gonna burn them!”

The Daiyoukai glanced away, arranging his features into something haughty and disinterested. “Then you will not sketch my body.”

Kagome gaped, groaning and burying her crimson face in her hands. “Urgh!” 

To be fair to her skills; the men in her sketches held fairly accurate physiques. Nice bone structure; and a softness about their faces and dark shading that portrayed a moody tone, longing for something he couldn’t name. She’d even captured hands and feet remarkably well, something he knew most artists struggled with. 

But then, inevitably, golden eyes strayed downward from their torsos. 

“A-are they bad?” Kagome peered over his shoulder as Sesshoumaru sat, perusing her sketchbook. 

He closed the book with a sharp noise of finality. “This is grave indeed.”

“I knew it,” she whined, wallowing in sadness. 

Sesshoumaru’s nose twitched as he stood, passing the sketchbook back to her. “...You may capture my likeness.”

Her breath hitched, and relief immediately swamped her features. “I- thank you,” Kagome breathed, easing closer to him. “Thank you so much!”

“Hn,” inwardly preening and thinking that all beings should thank him for the generous sight of his naked form, Sesshoumaru set the date for their ‘meeting,’ inviting her to the Western Stronghold in two days' time. 

---

They greeted each other easily enough on the actual day, Kagome being let into his private chambers with many a raised brow from his servants. 

Sesshoumaru slid the door shut to conceal their ‘activity’ away from prying eyes, though he had no shame in his bare form. Merely, he sensed the miko’s nervousness and did not wish her concentration to be broken. 

After stripping easily enough, shedding the finery of his clothes, Sesshoumaru stopped before her seated position at a respectable distance. 

“Where do you want me?”

Kagome made a strangled noise, having looked up from her sketchbook. Blue eyes immediately locked onto the area between his thighs. 

“Uh-! I um-” she stammered, attention flitting around the room like she were following a game of ping pong. “Standing is fine!” Kagome squeaked, turning scarlet as she motioned with her hand, “m-maybe just b-backup a little.”

Nodding primly, Sesshoumaru concealed his smirk, stepping away and waiting as her embarrassment slowly abated. Her bright gaze running over lithe, pale muscles couldn’t quite hide her curiosity; her hunger. Kagome pursed full lips and sketched a standing pose, before instructing him to instead sit down upon his bed of furs and busy himself with something. Sesshoumaru decided to read. 

Keen, pointed ears caught every glide and sharp drag of lead on paper- every indrawn breath and hiss through clenched teeth.

After a little while, she sighed. 

“You keep avoiding it,” Sesshoumaru hazarded a guess. 

“I totally do,” Kagome groaned, staring miserably at the sketches, “right now you’re sexless. There’s a blank space where genitals are supposed to go.” 

Golden eyes flitted up to her. “You are too tense. Come here.”

“W-what?”

“The bed is comfortable,” he clarified, tone becoming flat and business-like as he minded some silver hair back over one broad shoulder. “I refuse to be drawn inaccurately.”

Nodding, she swallowed and gathered her things, awkwardly padding over. A plume of repressed desire followed her like a cloud of smog. Clearly she was trying to remain professional and judging by the guilt mingling with it; felt ashamed by any natural reaction to his person. 

Naked bodies were not inherently sexual things. They were just...bodies. But he felt no annoyance with Kagome for her attraction. Quite the contrary. She’d been acting like this for months with a cycle of repression. This ‘study’ had been a golden opportunity. 

Kagome sat before him and took a long breath, forcing herself to look at his lap. 

His cock twitched. 

Making a thin noise, she blushed and directed her gaze firmly to the paper, scribbling away furiously. 

Sesshoumaru’s fangs caressed his bottom lip in a sensual brush, sighing. A spike of his own arousal had more obvious effects on his person. He couldn’t conceal it like her- and Kagome’s intense attention only had him hardening quicker. 

“Ah-” Kagome gaped, losing her voice. She cleared her throat, staring. Unbidden, she wet her lips, blue eyes flitting up to meet dark, golden hues steadily dyeing passionate red. “We- we can stop...until it goes back to normal?” she suggested thinly.

“Did you not require extensive research on this particular part of me, miko?” he purred silkily. “Perhaps sketching it in various states would be to your advantage.”

“I-I guess that’s true,” Kagome swallowed, shyly glancing at it and then meeting his gaze again. “Maybe…”

“Maybe?”

“I could…”

Sesshoumaru leaned closer, the cool air feeling too keen on his heated skin. Her breathy voice made goosebumps rise over pale flesh. “Yes?” he asked in a hushed tone.

Kagome looked at him again, silently seeking consent. Barely imagining it was possible he could reciprocate. But she did not know; had not come to learn the patience that wild, predatory beasts possessed. He’d bided his time so long his waiting looked like indifference on the outside.

Taking a short, quick drawn breath, Kagome bridged the distance between them. She learned the full scope of Sesshoumaru’s anatomy intimately well that night- and continued her studies for many nights after.

---

The feedback Kagome gained back from her life drawing was ‘good use of shading and muscle definition, an impressive level of detail. Improvement on discussed anatomy - but a tad too unrealistic in size.’

[ask-burke-lapadura]

Hello and good morning mister burke! I have been wondering... with all the new characters coming into the manor on the last week or so, what do you think of them? (Mister Orpheous, The Little girl.... and... Mister Orphepus again?!)

“Urgh, more people in my manor are all just more annoyances...” He grumbled. “But as for each of the newbies specifically...”

“That novelist is annoying, always walking around with some sorta notepad and writing down about everything he sees and finds... Bane’s annoyed with how often he tries to explore the hunter’s wing, if that man doesn’t quit it or get sneakier anytime soon then he’s going to end up with a broken leg!” 

“And I’ve had to stop him from entering the damaged parts of the manor more times than I can be bothered to count! At this point I’m tempted to leave him be. Let him choke on all the dust or injure himself on some broken furniture or something for all I care...”

It didn’t help that the man seemed to be so familiar with the manor, always walking around with this nostalgic look on his face and murmuring to himself about memories and how things have changed and ‘that wall wasn’t there before’ and all that shit... Funny, considering this was the man’s first time being here. 

Then again, Burke hadn’t been the one to build the manor, only the one to restore it to full glory and do some rebuilding work after it faced major damages due to some sort of incident involving the previous family that had lived there. He didn’t care enough to make any bets, but he wouldn’t be surprised if the writer had some sort of connection to those people... It was funny, though... The first family that lived in the manor had suffered a tragic accident, then once the DeRoss family moved in they too found themselves the victim of a horrible event and now the endless matches were being held here... What an unlucky place.

“His abilities certainly are rather interesting, though...” He’d felt such shock and whiplash when finding himself having switched with the younger man for the first time. Feeling so young and without the many scars gifted by his work and experiences had been... Pleasant, almost, if one could ignore the inherent wrongness that came from inhabiting a body that was not your own.

“That brat isn’t favourable either. I’ve never liked children and she’s no exception...” Even Robbie had a bit of a strained relationship with the old man. 

“They’re always so loud and nosy, messing with your inventions and... She doesn’t do any of that, at least.” She reminded him of the two children who did, though, and he didn’t like that. Never liked being reminded of the past. 

“She just cowers and hides, always seems ready to burst into tears whenever she sees me,” probably because he always scowled at her first, “hides behind that novelist. The survivors and maybe a hunter or two love to fawn over her, but really, she seems to enjoy his presence the most.

“Even so, I try my best to avoid her, don’t want to deal with any brats...” At least if she was afraid of him she wouldn’t bother him much.

A sigh escaped him as he scratched his head. “Regardless of my thoughts on her though, I can’t help but to wonder...” Just why exactly was she here and why did that foolish old baron force even a child into these so-called games? Even he felt discomfort gnawing at him when being asked to chase after and attack her...

“The new hunter is just another bunch of problems, though. Always so moody and gloomy... Bane’s had to stop a few fights already and it’s only been a few days! He’s always grumbling or muttering, always has something to complain about...”

He couldn’t help but to scowl as he continued on. “That only makes my work harder though. Had to find him a room but oh no it couldn’t have a window because he hates hearing the birds sing in the morning but oh he can’t have it be too far from his lab- which, by the way, I had to prepare! Every single damn equipment and he still finds things to complain about! Doesn’t thank me at all for any of my damned work!” He grumbled, curses escaping him. What did it take for an old man to get some appreciation around here?! Maybe one day he should just go on strike.

“Bastard... Doesn’t help that he seems to share the novelist’s damned curiosity and unlike that man he refuses to budge an inch! Not a hint of manners in him, always grumbling, complaining and making orders and demands... Tch, kids these days!”

“Pissed off Bane and Bonbon, too...” Sometimes the new hunter would venture out into the forest to see if there were any good plants he could use for his little chemistry lab. Bane didn’t like having to share the place, but whatever damned magic was going on in the forest seemed to catch on pretty quick and ensured the two rarely ever met. That didn’t stop the bird corpses from being found, though. Bonbon on the other hand was generally on the friendlier side, but wasn’t all too fond when people acted hostile towards them for seemingly no apparent reason.

“Then there’s the whole deal of whatever the fuck is going on with him and that novelist...” Whether they were the same person or two different entities he was unsure. Whatever the case was though, he was pretty sure that he didn’t even want to know! A sigh escaped him as he shook his head gently. There were better things to worry about.

Overall it seemed that he wasn’t very fond of the new players.

[readyplayerhobi]

Flower | 24

; Hoseok x Reader

; Genre: Fluff

; Word Count: 3k

; Synopsis: You finally decide to take a dip into the world of online dating and find the Flower dating app. One of the top matches for you proves to be a guy who looks to be your complete opposite; tattooed, pierced, a metalhead and oh…incredibly handsome. What happens when you throw caution to the wind and reach out to him?

; A/N: This is a shorter one but I swear, you’ll love the next chapter. It’s a certain birthday boy’s night out :P so I hope you enjoy this lead up either way!

; Flower Masterpost

-

“Urgh,” You groan loudly, running your hand over your face as you stare at the display of unusual technology. “Why are men always so hard to buy for?” 

“I’d take offence to that but honestly, you’re right.” Jungkook says, humour in his voice as he plays with a little helicopter that actually flies. You’re in one of those stores full of random things that seem to particularly appeal to guys with odd and bizarre technology things and joke stuff. You like it too but these places always seem to attract guys in particular, which is why you’re currently here with Chungha, Soyeon and Jungkook trying to find something for Hoseok’s birthday.

Buying presents for anyone is always a stress for you as you hate the idea that you’ll end up buying something they hate. Half the time, you explicitly ask them to give you a list and just pick off it because quite frankly, you’re not very creative when it comes to presents.

But this time you’d decided to try properly. It was the first birthday either of you had had since beginning your relationship and you wanted to try. So you’d spent time making sure to listen to his conversations, whether they were with you or his parents or his friends, to find things that he wanted.

It didn’t help that his birthday was only a month and a half after Christmas too. One of the reasons you’d held back on his Christmas presents was because his birthday was so darn close afterwards. You’d finally managed to get a new job in January after many, many months of failed interviews, with a salary that wasn’t pitiful and with work that didn’t make you want to face plant the desk, so you had a bit more money to spend on him.

Twenty-nine wasn’t a big birthday or anything, that would be next year obviously, but you still wanted to make it fun for him. So you were determined to buy interesting presents that weren’t boring and useless. 

“I don’t know about Hoseok but I think I want this lamp.” Soyeon says, picking up and turning around a lamp that reminded you of one of those wire games where you had to avoid touching the wire. It was fluorescent pink right now but faded into yellow soon enough and in the shape of a heart. Perfect for Soyeon.

“Go for it. It’d look good in your room I bet.” You murmur, eyeing the stand of various lights and alarm clocks closely. Maybe Hoseok might like some fancy alarm clock given he was always getting up earlier than you? Though that would mean you’d have to put up with it too and you pulled a face at that thought, moving away to the range of mugs.

He got up way earlier than you for work and you could be a bit moody in the morning. The last thing you needed was to buy him something that would inevitably cause you to snap at him in the early hours. You were pretty sure he’d managed to train himself to wake up as quickly as possible to avoid your grumpiness.

Chungha follows you, picking up a heat activated mug with lightsabers on it and humming in curiosity. You look it over too for a moment and consider before instead grasping a box with a Zelda logo on it, licking your lips before nodding to yourself. 

Hoseok loved Zelda and you’d half contemplated buying him a Switch so he could play the one that came out a few years ago along with the other games that had come out recently. It was way out of your budget though so this would just have to do for the moment. He could take it to work for his coffees and stuff.

“Have you noticed that Soyeon and Jungkook seem to be really hitting it off?” Chungha whispers to you quietly, the both of you glancing over to where they’re both now stood playing around with sword umbrellas. You didn’t know Jungkook too well or anything, well enough to invite him to come help you pick things for Hoseok but you weren’t close.

He was one of Hoseok’s sweeter friends though and shared a lot of interests with you, including being quiet and introverted. Given how beautiful Soyeon was, and her own personality that made her kind, caring and loyal, you weren’t surprised that Jungkook had been instantly caught by her.

And you were kind of glad really. You knew he was a good guy from what Hoseok had told you and Soyeon deserved someone good. Plus, you would openly admit that Jungkook was handsome with the kind of body that game with his sports related degree while still maintaining such an adorable face.

Soyeon’s weakness really.

“Yeah. Don’t say anything though, it’s cute. Let them work things out themselves.” Laughing, you move over to the cashier and give her the mug with a bright smile before also grabbing a LEGO Darth Vader keyring from the range on the counter. This would make him laugh tonight.

“Don’t you feel a little jealous though? I mean, look at them. They look so perfect together.” Chungha sighs, leaning against the counter as you pay and accept the bag from the girl. Narrowing your eyes at your best friend, you lead her out of the store and watch as your remaining friends trail you out, laughing away at whatever conversation they were having.

“Excuse me. Are you saying that Hoseok and I don’t look perfect together? Or you and Dahyun? All lies.” There’s a slight petulant tone to your voice and Chungha immediately backtracks, spluttering almost in her attempts to smoothe over any issues she may have just caused until you laugh at her, pushing her gently.

“I’m joking. You’re right. They do look good. Hey, if they start dating then it’s officially bringing you guys and Hoseok’s friendship circles together!” You pause suddenly, cringing as a thought enters your head. “Though if anything happened with Hoseok and me then that would be very awkward. And heart breaking.”

“Hey, hey. None of that! I don’t want to hear any talk of breaking up or the potential for it when we’re out shopping for your boyfriend’s birthday presents! I’m telling you now, if you two ever break up then romance is dead.” Looking at her, you raise your brow in amusement at the completely serious look on her face.

“Okay. Calm down Nicholas Sparks. We’re fine.” That gets a snort from her as you lead her into a store that sells all kinds of musical instruments and electronic stuff. From your extensive research into trying to find Hoseok the perfect gift, you knew that you should be able to find what you wanted in here.

“Have you even read a Nicholas Sparks book? Or seen one of the films?” She asks incredulously, running her fingers along the strings of a guitar as you both pass by. Shrugging, you stop in front of the vinyl players and eye them with a tongue in your cheek.

“No? I mean, I watched five minutes of The Notebook but it was really boring so I turned it off. Aren’t all his stories meant to be like...depressing and shit?” Leaning forward, you read the little information card on one of the vinyl players and hum to yourself.

Hoseok had been discussing how he wanted to get into collecting vinyl records lately and to do that, he’d need a vinyl player. You’d already discussed it with his parents to make sure they didn’t accidentally get him one as he’d been talking about it to his dad and you’d tried to make sure that you would get a good one for him.

Even if you had zero idea of what constituted a good vinyl player to be honest.

“I mean...yeah, they are pretty depressing. But still. You should watch one, or read it. They’re tragically romantic.” Pausing, you look at her with a carefully blank stare before snorting.

“I don’t like romance films, Chungha you know that. I’m certainly not going to watch one that you’ve described as tragic. How is that even romantic? It’s just fucking sad.” You think you’ll go with the Sony vinyl player that you’d researched. He doesn’t need anything super fancy for a first one and it has Bluetooth, so should be good enough for him?

They’re certainly not cheap and you’re very happy that you’d saved so well to be able to afford this. While you weren’t normally sure about presents, you were pretty sure that this one was going to be a big hit with him.

“I’m just going to point out that not all of his films are sad. Well, I mean...they don’t all end sad. But still. Anyway, it’s not important. I don’t even know what we’re talking about anymore and holy fuck, this is almost a thousand dollars!” Her surprise is incredibly audible and you shush her repeatedly, looking around to make sure no one is looking.

“I’m not buying that one. I’m buying this one. It’s not that expensive.” You point towards the one you want, crouching down to grab one of the boxed ones before heading over to the cashier once more. This birthday present shopping was going surprisingly easy compared to other times. Maybe it’s because the presents you’d decided for Hoseok were just so damn expensive that he didn’t have many.

“Boy, I hope he gives you some good oral for that.” She mutters and you look at her mortified, eyes before glancing around to check that no one is nearby. Your hands are full so you can’t make a shushing gesture to her but your scowl is more than enough and she cringes slightly, whispering sorry.

Thankfully though, you don’t think anyone overheard her as the cashier just gives you the usual, bland customer service smile that you’re used to. The one which you give back while internally chanting ‘please don’t question what she just said’ but he simply rings you up, putting the box into a large bag for you.

As you walk away once you’ve paid, you hiss at her in embarrassment. “Chungha! We’re in public! Please!”

Laughing at you, she wraps an arm around your shoulder and hugs you to her before letting you go. She’s always been the more open minded out of you all and has never felt the need to censor her thoughts or words. Though she did usually tone it down in public as you always wanted to melt into a puddle of embarrassment.

There was no wonder Hoseok and her got along so well. Both of them just said whatever came to their minds with no filters sometimes and it pained you considering you were a prude in comparison. Well, when it came to sexual things anyway. Anything else just came out of your mouth without a second thought.

“Where have they gone?” You ask suddenly, realising you’re both about to leave the store with only half of your group. Frowning, you look around outside and see that they’re not there so you walk back inside, scanning through until you spot them both sitting at one of the pianos that’s been set up. 

Jungkook is playing and it comes to you that the sweet piano music you’d been hearing for the last ten minutes has actually come from him. His hands, so large compared to Soyeon’s, dance across the keys elegantly and produce the kind of music you could only wish you could do. Chungha pauses next to you to watch the show and you laugh softly, leaning into her as you nod towards Soyeon.

“Oh yeah, they’re definitely gonna get together. She’s got literal heart eyes going on right now.” Chungha snorts in amusement, nodding before walking over to them both and breaking up their little music session. Jungkook appears to be oblivious to your best friend’s sudden infatuation with him and gives Chungha a polite smile as he makes small talk with her but you’re not.

Walking alongside Soyeon, you peer at her for a moment and take in the way her eyes are bright with happiness and the gentle smile on her face. Giggling you push her with your shoulder until she’s looking at you in expectation.

“So...Jungkook.” You keep the words quiet in case Jungkook happens to have better hearing than you’d expected but it still causes her cheeks to blush a sweet, rose gold. Grinning, you turn around and walk backwards as you take the rare chance of being able to tease her about a potential relationship. 

Normally, she’s already in a relationship before you even find out anything given how much she enjoys dating. But for the first time since you were in college, you were getting to see her in the midst of a crush.

“He’s nice. Very nice.” She says softly, the smile on her face matching her tone and you want to coo at her. But you can’t because Jungkook and Chungha have paused for you both to catch up to them. So instead, you leave her with one final comment.

“He is. And he’s very handsome. Hoseok says he’s a good guy so you should go for it.” With that, you stride forward to have a talk with the man in question. Looking up at him, he’s taller and broader than you, you give him a bright smile before holding up the bag with the player in it.

“Think he’ll like it? He’s been saying for a while he wants some vinyl records and I told his parents I’d get him the player. They’re getting him some records for it to start him off.” Jungkook peers into the bag, having a closer look at the vinyl player you’d bought before nodding in approval.

“I think he’ll like it. And that’s perfect because now I can buy him some records too. Any idea what his parents are getting him?” He asks curiously and you hum, frowning as you try to recall what his mom had told you on the phone.

“I think...a bunch of Iron Maiden records and one or two Metallica?” Pausing for a moment, you nod firmly. “Yeah, those two.”

“Sweet. There’s a store that sells records near here, are you okay if we go there and I can get him something as well? I know the perfect record for him.” His eyes are wide with excitement and you can’t help but grin at how sparkly they seem to be. Yeah, he would definitely make a good boyfriend with Soyeon.

“You know, I think I’ve realised a flaw in my present plans.” You muse to yourself, linking arms with Chungha when she sidles up next to you. A questioning noise comes from Jungkook and you look at him with a self-deprecating smile.

“I don’t really like a lot of the music he loves so I’m just making a rod for my own back here, aren’t I?” That gets a laugh from them all and you pout in an overly dramatically manner. For a moment, you consider how easily Jungkook seems to fit into your little friend group and how much you actually enjoy interacting with him.

You’ll openly admit to being a little awkward and stilted with some of Hoseok’s friends still, but you imagined that would change with time. The easy camaraderie between you all makes you miss Hoseok though, even though you knew there was no way he could have come with you.

“Well, you can buy records too. I mean, I know it’s his but if it’s in your place...I think they probably do records for the stuff you like.” Jungkook laughs and you can’t help but snort at the evil look in his eyes. Despite how sweet and innocent he often appeared, you knew from Hoseok that Jungkook, along with Jimin, was quite capable of coming up with some of the best pranks.

Best depending on your point of view obviously.

“Okay, no. I’ll be nice. It’s his player so he can play what he wants. Though he’d probably let me. Did you know I managed to get him to sit through an entire Taylor Swift album the other day? He looked comatose by the end.” Giggling, you remember the memory fondly while Soyeon scoffs on your other side.

“You don’t even like Taylor Swift.”

“Wrong. Well, kinda wrong. I like some of her songs. But on the whole, yeah, not a huge fan. That’s why it was funny because his reaction when he figured out I’d just put it on to make him whine.” Now it’s Jungkook’s turn to laugh loudly, the sound amusing on its own while he wrinkles his nose in pure amusement.

“Oh, you are evil. I love it. I definitely approve of you.” Rolling your eyes at how enthused he sounds about your prank on your boyfriend, you smile at Soyeon as she shakes her head in resigned bemusement. She should get used to this if she wants to try anything with the grad student because it’ll probably be a lot worse for her.

Idly, as you all continued to walk to the store Jungkook wanted to visit and made plans for dinner at a local pizzeria, you wondered if Hoseok would be amenable to your matchmaking skills. He obviously knew Jungkook far better than you so you resolved to ask him about it tonight. Maybe you could rope him into helping you get them both together. 

Though he may just do that thing where he sighs at you fondly and just goes along with whatever you say. You’d suggest it to him and see what happens. Either way, you get the feeling that the group of single guys in Hoseok’s friendship circle would be dropping once more soon enough.

[by-kilian]

Just imagine Eren hurting his dominant hand somehow and thus Reader brushes his hair and even shaves his small stubble and moustache (so he doesn’t hurt himself) and he happily lets them do so urgh the i n t i m a c y I'm so weak 😭

This reminds me of the second companion piece to Mikasa’s story that I did, but so much cuter cause it’s a little bit of comfort/tending to wounds. 😭❤️

And I see it going both ways. Eren starts off being moody as shit cause he hurt his hand, and he hates having to ask for help. Hates that he can’t do things by himself and immediately a ton of self-doubt floods through his head about how he’s useless any time he so much as tries to brush his hair--that is, until he remembers, he has you. He can ask you, and you won’t judge, even if he’s judging himself. 

When he finally does ask, his voice is so small like, “Babe...can you...help me shave?” and he finishes with a frustrated groan, pouting in that dumb way he does because he’s so annoyed he hurt his hand, that he can’t do it despite having hurt his hand, etc. But of course, you’re fine with it. In fact, you were silently betting to yourself how long it’d take him to ask you to help him because you know better than to offer by now lest you be subject to one of his little tantrums. 

So you take his hand and drag him to the bathroom, make him sit on the edge of the tub and quietly help him the way you’ve been wanting to for weeks. And at first, he’s still a little grumpy, but not towards you--towards himself. “Sorry, I’m making you do this. You probably have better things to do.” Silly seeds of self-doubt that he almost always feels but spills out when he’s most vulnerable, like how he can get when he’s physically hurt. But you soothe it away, and eventually Eren stops feeling so self-conscious. His thumbs rub small circles over your hips, and every time you ask him if you’re doing a good job or if it’s bothering him when you brush tangles out of his hair, he shyly goes, “no, you’re fine, it’s fine,” while looking up at you with complete reverence. Because you don’t judge him, you love him, and you accept him with all his flaws, and he knows he has many. 

When you’re done, don’t be surprised if he clings to you like a koala bear. He loves being doted on even if he’s scared to ask for it, and he loves being loved at his worst because he truly believes he’s not worthy of it. 

[northernsoulpie]

Louloúdi

This is my @loveinwayhaven gift for @dakotawinchester I hope you like it, I’ve not written fic in a loooong time but I really enjoyed writing this! I loved Arabella and hope I did her character justice.

Pairing: Morgan x F!Detective  Arabella Aveiro

Warnings: some swears. Teen?

Laycott’s Bar & Grill was not the most salubrious bar in Wayhaven, but when it came to cheap drinks and rowdy night out, there was no where else quite like it. Tina had all but dragged Arabella out of her office, with vague threats of them ‘not hanging out anymore, like ever’ and that ‘Arabella, you’re becoming obsessed!  I promise you’ll feel so much better if you come out for a few drinks and take your mind off it!’. All absolute rubbish of course but Tina had been such a good friend over the years that she didn’t have the heart to keep turning turn her offers of spending time together. Plus, truth be told, she was entirely fed up of brooding over case files and photographs of possible evidence. Whenever Arabella went home to sleep for a few short hours, she’d even began to dream of filing cabinets and evidence lockers and blank case reports. Maybe Tina was right, maybe she was becoming obsessed. A few drinks might help her to relax she reckoned, take her mind off work, off the agency -and off her mother - for a while.

“Urgh why do I always end up getting plastered when I’m out with you?” Tina giggled into her beer bottle.

“Don’t blame me sunshine, this was entirely your idea!”

Tina waved the bottle animatedly as she spoke, sloshing beer onto the already sticky carpet, “Whatever, you need me to rescue you from all that paperwork every now and again. Stops you from getting…” She gestured haphazardly at Arabella sat across the booth from her.

“…getting on with my duties as a responsible professional?”

“HA! More like stops you from getting all boring and serious all of the time.”.

Arabella pushes her dark hair behind her ear, “Hey, come on! I’m not that serious all of the time. I’ll still me.”

Even as the words left her mouth, they’d felt like a lie. Tina’s eyebrow quirked as she leaned forward in her seat.

“You do seem different now, something’s definitely changed. Just drop the ‘Detective Aveiro’ mask for a short while and come back to being my best friend Arabella. Just every now and again. It’ll do you good, trust me on this Ari!”

Arabella sighed, trying to hide the flash of annoyance followed by the pang of regret at Tina’s words. Her work as Wayhaven’s only detective and liaison to the agency was now taking up all of her time, even cutting into her precious sleep, most nights. Her apartment looked like something out of a horror movie and her once beloved hobbies were long since neglected. No wonder Tina invited her out so often, she probably wanted to stage an intervention for best friend before she faded away for good.

She looked down at her own beer bottle and began to peel at the label. “It’s just been a tough few months, what with just starting this job and the murders…”

Tina’s smile faded, “Oh crap Ari. I know it has, I’m sorry. I just miss you that’s all.”

“I miss you too. I didn’t think taking on this role would demand so much more of my time, it feels like everything in this backwater little town is all going wrong at once and I’ve just been left to somehow fix it all.”

Tina grimaced but nodded sympathetically. “I can’t imagine how difficult it’s been Arabella, you’ve been left with such a crock. But you’re not on your own, you’ve got me and Verda and the rest of station to help you when work gets crazy. Not only that, we’re your friends – talk to us! I know you, you’ve always been moody and stubborn as hell but don’t lose yourself in all this crazy shit.”

Tina stopped abruptly. Arabella could tell there was more she desperately wanted to say - fumbling hands, tight lips, slight pained expression - the damning confession was coming.

…you do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on…

No! She really was losing herself to the job. This was her best friend damn it.

“Tee? It’s OK, it’s me. What is it?”

“I… really don’t want to upset you Ari, but you’re becoming just like her, just like Rebecca…”

Tina pursed her lips as though already regretting the words she’d just spoken out loud. She looked positively terrified of what Arabella ‘s reaction would be.

Arabella barked a laugh, “I know, I know. I understand what you’re saying Tina. I think you’re right though, maybe I do need to remove the plank from my ass every now and again.”

Tina began to laugh and Arabella joined her, feeling the sudden tension melt away again. It felt like a small resolution of sorts.

  Suddenly Tina stopped mid laugh and seemed to stare at something over Arabella’s shoulder. Arabella brought her beer bottle down from her lips.

“Tina? Is everything okay?”

Tina dragged her eyes back to Arabella and smirked.

“Tina? What on earth..”

“Drinking again Detective?”

Morgan

The vampire emerged at their table from behind her. Arabella’s heart flipped before she could scold it thoroughly and will it back to a normal rhythm. Morgan was wearing her usual style; long dark hair layered so casually around her shoulders, a tight, black long sleeved T-shirt that shows off her curves to perfection, cords of leather around her wrists and neck. It’s an outfit that seems so impossibly nonchalant, like the old glam style rockers of the 80’s and 90’s but much, much cooler. And so damn hot.

Arabella shrugged, “Got to let my hair down every now and again.”

Morgan’s dark eyes flicked to her hair, almost of their own accord, before returning to looking her dead in the eyes. “You should let it down more often Detective.”

Arabella stared. She promised herself she wouldn’t let herself get affected by Morgan’s flirtations but when she used that tone, her defences simply melted away. Morgan glared back, eyebrow arching ever so daringly.

Tina nodded enthusiastically in her seat, gesturing at the vampire stood at their booth, “See that’s what I told her. Too much work and no play makes Detective Arabella a dull lay-day… wait that was awful. I couldn’t think of anything that rhymes with play haha.”

Morgan raises a sardonic eyebrow whilst Arabella rolled her eyes, “Okay Tina, think it’s time to bounce. Come on, grab your stuff and let’s find a taxi.”

“Oh nooo, why don’t you stay Ari? Agent Morgan will see you get home safe, isn’t that right Morgan?” Tina waggled her brow and didn’t bother to hide the obvious smirk whilst she looked between the two of them. Arabella had tempting visions of throwing her jacket over Tina’s face and giving her a few choice jabs to the ribs to shut her up.  Tina’s clumsy attempts at match-making were somehow growing worse as the years went on.

Morgan stepped forward to help Tina as she struggled into her jacket, “Sure, I’ll help Miss Poname to get a taxi outside. You gonna get us a couple of drinks Arabella?”

She blanched from shooting daggers at Tina’s grin. That was… not expected. She watched as Tina finally wrestled into her jacket before allowing Morgan to take her gently by the arm and expertly maneuver her through the busy bar. Once or twice, Tina even turned to reply cheerily or laugh at something the vampire said as they walked. Arabella stared after them. Morgan wasn’t usually this friendly or helpful to anyone, especially not to humans. She had to be playing at something, she was sure of it. After a minute or so, Arabella suddenly remembered she was meant to be getting them drinks and made her way over to the bar. When she returned to their table, she noticed Morgan striding back through the crowd toward her. People seemed to move out of way instinctively, probably something to do with Morgan’s impressive resting bitch face and arrogant stride through the throngs of patrons. Some turned their heads to appraise the gorgeous vampire, she seemed to have that effect whenever she went out in public, in spite of the ever-present scowl. Morgan threw herself down on the sofa next to her, startling her slightly. Arabella passed Morgan her drink, hoping the motion would hide her surprise at the sudden closeness.

“Here. I couldn’t remember what you had to drink last time we were here, so I just got you a rum and coke.”

Morgan wrinkled her nose for a second before accepting the glass, “Not my first choice but whatever, drink’s a drink.”

She took a hearty gulp of the rum and leant back into the sofa. Arabella watched the vampire through the edge of her vision before turning to her.

“Thanks for helping Tina find a taxi, I think she was a little drunk by the end there.”

Morgan shrugged. “Yeah it’s no big deal, I actually kind of like your friend.”

Arabella pursed her lips and gave Morgan a disbelieving look.

Morgan sighed and rolled her eyes, “She can be so giddy and irritating – even for a human- but she looks out for you. Cares for you. You should listen to her advice more often, the job ain’t going anywhere.”

Arabella stiffened, “What advice do you me… you were listening to our conversation? Seriously?!”

Morgan took another sip of her rum and coke, “Only the end of it, I was coming over to see you and Tina was drunkenly broadcasting your conversation to the rest of the bar. So no, I wasn’t listening in. Like I’ve got nothing better to do than spy on your personal drama with your friends.”

It was a convincing lie, Arabella would give her that. It Morgan had tried that on any other person, they probably would’ve believed her. Luckily for her, she had been trained to spot liars, even the very good ones. Even the ones that lied to themselves.

Feeling impulsive, Arabella carefully her drink down on the table and turned her body around to face Morgan. She crossed one leg artfully over the other which Morgan didn’t miss the dangled opportunity to run her eyes over. Playing the ‘good cop’ in interrogations wasn’t something Arabella did often but this time, she could make an exception.

“So, are you going to tell me what you’re really doing here Morgan?”

“I’m on patrol duty tonight. Ava has us all patrolling this little shit hole town every night to keep watch for any unusual activity.”

Arabella leant back, draping one arm over the back of the couch and with her other hand, carefully sweeping her dark hair over her shoulder. Morgan had seemed to like that motion earlier. At this point in time, Arabella couldn’t exactly point out why she now felt such a rush at teasing Morgan. Catching out little lies and discrepancies was something that gratified her but it never seemed to excite her like this. Maybe it just was catching this particular person out that had this effect on her.  It was like her brain and her body had just taken over her conscious mind and now she was just running on pure adrenalin alone.

She tapped her chin, “And Ava instructed you to come inside the bar to have a few drinks as part of the patrol, did she? There’s never been an incident occur inside this bar to date. Not to mention that government agency SOP’s for patrols must be very different to front line agencies.”

Morgan seemed surprised for a brief second, before narrowing her eyes, “If you want me to be honest, here it is Detective. It’s really it’s just to keep an eye on you, to make sure you don’t get yourself kidnapped or attacked AGAIN.”

“Oh.”

“I couldn’t be bothered sitting outside in the freezing cold for hours, so I thought I’d come in.”

Arabella dropped her hands to her lap and looked away feeling quite deflated, “Well, that answers that question then.”

“You thought I had come in here just to see you Detective?”

Arabella felt the blush burn on her cheeks as she stumbled to think of a retort. She reached forward and took a strategic swig of her beer. As she leant back into the sofa, she felt Morgan’s hand on her crossed knee. The warmth of it seemed to burn through the material and electrify her skin. Arabella knew there would be no hiding the redness of her face now.

“Well maybe I did come in here just to see you, maybe I timed my patrol route carefully so I could see you in here. Guess you’ll never find out the truth of it Detective.”

“I always find out the truth of it Agent, that’s my job.”

“You want to find out the truth of me, don’t you Detective? I’d certainly like to find out a few things regarding you, have done since the first time I walked into your office.”

Morgan carefully plucked the bottle of beer from Arabella’s hand, placed it on the table in front of them. Almost imperceptibly as she leant back from the table, she had somehow inched closer to Arabella, no longer having to stretch her hand out to rest on her knee. Arabella could feel Morgan’s breath caress her face and she felt her blood start to rush as Morgan’s lips came closer. Her breath caught as she considered closing the gap between them and kissing Morgan first. The agent always seemed like having the upper hand in their flirtations and surprising Morgan really would be so immensely satisfying. The fantasy quickly slipped away though as Arabella lost her nerve, caught in the moment of just aching to see what Morgan would do next.

Arabella sighed. She didn’t know what on earth Morgan was doing to her, one minute Arabella could be so causal and smooth but in the next she would feel so timid and inexperienced. Arabella had dated plenty in her college years, some were just as flirty and promiscuous as Morgan and she’d had no problem then. None of those women had ever sent her into a tailspin like this. She knew Morgan would probably want just a casual thing between them and that was fine, she’d learnt long ago not to let feelings get in the way when dating women like her. Anyway, right now she was just letting her hair down. Forgetting all about the last few months and the station, just as she had promised Tina. No matter what this woman did to her, she reassured herself, Arabella knew how to take what she needed and not get attached. She had been practicing her whole life.

Morgan shifted her hand over hers on the back on the sofa and shifted toward her until they were sat only centimeters apart. The feeling of skin touching skin was like a burning brand as the hand on her knee slid smoothly up to rest on her thigh. As Morgan’s lips grew closer, Arabella almost stopped breathing. As her eyes fluttered closed, she was vaguely aware of her previous statement about not becoming attached ringing hollow as the lust and the something else just there burned brightly in her chest.

  The shrill ring tone cut through silence, making both of them jump and freeze. Arabella opened her eyes to see Morgan scowling worse than she had ever seen the woman scowl before. She pitied the poor person on the other end of the phone.

Morgan sat back, snatching her mobile from her back packet at almost superhuman speed.

“What is it?”

Arabella winced.

“No. Fine. Whatever, just don’t tell her. Yes. Done, get here quickly Farrah.”

Arabella heard the plastic crack as Morgan punched the call end button and jammed the phone unceremoniously back into her back pocket.

“Farrah’s almost here, my shift is over.”

She nodded back, “At least your patrol was uneventful in the bar tonight.”

Morgan titled her head as she glared back at her, “Hmmm, uneventful?” She purred.

At that sultry tone Arabella jumped up, grateful to have a chance to clear her head before she did something incredibly stupid. They were colleagues of sort, after all. Fraternising with colleagues was always a terrible idea, no matter how good things had been getting only minutes earlier.

Arabella cleared her throat pointedly, “Anyway, it’s getting late. I better be getting back to my apartment.”

“Come on, I’ll see you outside and find you a taxi back.”

Morgan watched quietly with dark eyes as Arabella felt her way into her leather jacket and patted herself down to check her belongings. When finished, she turned to Morgan. Morgan dutifully put her arm out which she took gratefully.

“Thank you, Agent and thanks for the drink.”

“Any time Detective.”

[footballerimaginess]

Multiple Babies

5. Multiple Babies - Trent Alexander Arnold  Word Count: 729  Taglist: @footballffbarbiex​ @lawsandother​ @virgilvandick​ @chilly-me-softly​ @scottmctominbae​ @footballdaydream​ @travellvogue​ @evie-pr​ @luc-57x​ @englandntposts​ @waytoobsessedwithfootballers​ @alexajanecollins​ @ericedgar94​ @comfortablechaox​  “KIDS” Trent shouted through the house to his crazy family. You had three children and Trent absolutely loved having so many children and often told you he wanted so many more kids. 

“You okay sweetie?” Trent came behind you, wrapping his arms around your body as you made dinner for everyone. “I’m okay, not feeling too good” you pouted “what’s up?” Trent asked as you faced him. “I I I’m pregnant” you whispered to him. “What? Really?” Trent gasped excitedly. You nodded. “Yes, I took the test this afternoon” you told him. “Oh my baby, wow” Trent couldn’t wipe the smile off of his face. “I am so happy and shocked. I guess having sex every night is something to be expected” you smirked as you cuddled him as the kids all come running to the kitchen. “No kissing” your oldest child, Tristan 8 shouted as you and Trent both pulled away quickly. “Okay boss” Trent laughed. “Dinner is ready my lovelies” you plated the food up onto the plates and handed them to the children. “Thank you mum” you smiled. “This smells yummy” Olivia, your 5 year old grinned. “I’m glad you like it sweetie” you smiled as you cut up your youngest daughter Maisie’s food. “Here we go darling, eat up now” you told her as she stuffed her face with food. “Are you not eating mum?” Tristan asked. “Not feeling hungry sweetie, I will have something later” you smiled as Trent squeezed your leg under the table. “Can I have some water?” Maisie mumbled with a mouthful of food. You filled up some water for yourself as well as Maisie. “Thank you Mumma” you smiled placing it in front of her.”You alright babe?” Trent asked you. “I am okay, thank you” You smiled at him. Trent hated that you weren’t feeling well, he could tell how sick you were feeling.  “Mummy and I have something to tell you” Trent told the children. “We are having another baby” You exclaimed as Tristan sighed. “Hey none of that mr” you laughed as you knew he didn’t mean anything by it.  “Wow mummy, I am so happy for you and daddy” Olivia gave you the biggest cuddle before heading over to Trent. “Thank you, so this explains the whole feeling sick constantly the last few weeks. So I hope you are happy another baby coming into the house” you laughed.  “Let’s hope it doesn’t cry as much as Maisie did” Tristan moaned. “You cried too Tris, don’t make out like you didn’t” you smirked. “Do you want a boy or girl?” You asked them. “BOY BOY BOY” Tristan shouted as the girls booed him. “No a baby girl. Girls are the absolute best” Trent laughed. “What has happened to you all? Maybe we shall keep it a surprise until mummy gives birth” Trent laughed. “No daddy” “Well I am glad you are happy about this kids, it makes me happy. Who knew multiple babies would be so exhausting right” you heavily sighed as Trent cleared the table as the children all run off upstairs. “Go in the living room darling, I will do this. You go and relax” Trent reassured you as he ran his hands up and down your arms. “Thank you” you smiled as you did as he was told and sat in the living room. “I made you something” Trent come in and handed you a mug of something. “Thank you, what’s this?” You smiled as you smelt it. “Ginger tea” you smiled. “You are cute, thank you babe” you sipped it. “I remembered last time that it helped your tummy, hopefully it will be okay” Trent told you. “It did. Urgh remind me why am I doing this again? My fourth pregnancy, this is just so mad. But I shouldn’t moan”. You smiled at him as you cuddled up with him. “You wanted loads of babies, remember” Trent smirked. “Hmm, please remind me our last one right. This lady cannot push anymore” you rolled your eyes.  “Well it will be worth it, trust me” Trent smiled as you agreed. “It will be, now just cuddle me. I am tired, moody and feel sick. Nobody needs to be shouted out okay” you mumbled into his chest.  “I have got you” He mumbled as you snuggled up into his chest, feeling like everything was fitting in perfectly. 

[sorin-sunchild]

I’ve certainly talked to death about the flattening of Eddie in the movies and how it makes him out to be a rather unpleasant character most of the time (not entirely, he does have some genuinely nice actions) but I need to talk about the flattening of the entire Losers Club as a unit. By ‘flattening’ I mean that if you view a character and their relationships as a cake, it’s like someone opened a cake box and inside there were just crumbs and a tiny slither of cake. Sure, you got a mouthful of cake, but it’s barely even enough to taste and it’s your birthday, man. Now this could just be me, but in the movies, aside from the few tender and lovely moments that we get where they’re just playing there...seems to be very little chemistry between any of them. Instead of a group of close friends fighting a trouble they’re all connected with because of both morality AND their love for each other, they seem to be just a bunch of people that have to work together and some happen to have been ‘friends’. I’m going mostly based on chapter 1 as well, because chapter 2 really tries to retcon this and give them more time but at this point it feels...weird to think of those things happening ‘when we didn’t see’ because they don’t fit chapter 1′s flow or timeline properly. 

Ben and Bev have the best connection out of everyone in the group. They actually have moments together, romantically inclined but sweet. You can see why the two of them would be friends, how they fit together. This version of Bev is also more active in the ‘liking’ and soft bantering with Ben so it works better. I wish everyone else had such connections. Even the Richie and Eddie hammock scene, although it ends sweet, has the flaw of it being the result of uncharacteristic genuine fighting and frustration. Like all those two do is fight fight fight which is NOT sweet or romantic so I can fully see why people don’t ship this Reddie if they’ve only seen the movies. Plus it’s chapter 2 so... Bill is supposed to be the leader of the group that has a natural magnetism. Everyone likes him and he likes everyone and deeply cares for them to the point of being guilty that they’d follow him so willingly. We get a tiny bit of that but a lot of the time it kind of seems like they only want to help because of their own trauma or that he made them feel guilty. I mean, they actually had him and Richie get into a physical fight when these two are so close. Richie really didn’t have any reason to come back, It or no It, because he never even had his own encounter with It, he only did around them, that’s a good incentive to stay away. They literally have no connection with Bill other than ‘we know him and we feel sorry for him, I guess’. 

Richie, despite being ‘the funny one’, never/hardly ever gets a laugh from his friends. Go back, have a look. Most of the time they just look disgusted or frustrated. You can argue that this is the reaction Richie wants, but he doesn’t look happy about the result either. The Losers are supposed to find him actually funny most of the time and weirdly charming. The ‘beep, beep Richie’ joke that is almost completely omitted and in ch1 I can’t remember anyone but Pennywise saying it...was because they did sometimes think he went too far. But not all of the time. If you see Richie as having ADHD and even if you don’t, having his ‘friends’ react this way all the time to his best efforts would destroy him. He might still hang around so as to not be alone, but he’d be deeply unhappy. He’d feel like an outcast in his group. I don’t blame them for reacting this way in the movies because in context most of Richie’s ‘jokes’ are bad taste and/or sexual in nature which is super awkward. But it still seems like Richie is an outsider that isn’t genuinely liked and that’s awful. Eddie, despite his passion and his willingness to take care of Ben, is always high strung. He talks about nothing but illness and what people are doing wrong. He’s angry and grumpy a lot. When he’s being playful, he’s also being annoying. The clubhouse scene where we see him break the toy he’s literally being told not to mess with just to have another Richie and Eddie fight scene is just...urgh. Again, it seems like most of the time they’re actually annoyed by him so it’s weird that they wax poetic like they saw him as ‘just looking out for them’ when really they acted more like he was nagging or not even there most of the time. Bev is seen as cool by everyone it seems, which is pretty much on point. Even those who don’t crush on her seem to think she’s pretty special. It’s almost weird giving everything else that this is something that was gotten right. She’s sweet, she’s feisty, intelligent and pragmatic as well as emotional. It makes sense that they’d trust her and want to be friends with her. Hell, this Bev should have been the leader.  Mike and Stan...ha, why are they here? They really come off as extra pieces, barely drawn in by having It experiences or being bullied. They so much look like they don’t even want to be there. Especially Stan who is part of the original group of friends, so it’s weird that he’s so stale around them. It’s so awkward and nasty seeing them have basically no connection with anyone else aside from just kind of being there. No wonder I see fanart that interpret one or both as moody and not actually wanting to be there, this is how they come off.  Ben seems to just be there for Bev and because they showed interest in him. I’d like to have seen him having more actual fun with them as well, because again they all are supposed to genuinely like him...not just see him as some poor fat kid they had to save who kind of knew some cool stuff about It. Like Ben does some genuinely incredible things we never got to see. And no, the shoehorned in ‘he built them a clubhouse’ in ch2 came too little too late. Since their relationships are so flat, it’s not surprising then (though it is maddening) that they move on so quickly from Stan and Eddie’s deaths and don’t really seem to mourn. Why would they? They’re just a group of people bound together by It and that’s all, where a few of them had romantic feelings for one another so liked that other person a lot.  Once more, I’m aware not everyone can read the book but I do implore people to at least like...read the wiki of the events? See if people have posted bits of their actual actions and feelings for each other? Ask people about it? We deserve more than these flat relationships which don’t make sense. We deserve the actual loving and deep bond they all have. 

[silenthillmutual]

Could I request a prompt with non-binary dankovsky coming out/being outed? With any character being loving and accepting of them? I love ur writing!

I’m sorry this is so late, I’ve had terrible writer’s block recently. I just...wanted to write Sticky & Daniil interacting more, I hope that’s okay!! ----------

Of all the people he expects to encounter on his way out of the house on this horrible Tuesday in the pouring rain, Burakh’s would-be assistant is not exactly high up on the list. He sees him from time to time, it’s true, usually in the shack where the rest of the kids play or hauling some stolen goods to the tailor’s in hopes of better payment. What he’s doing standing just outside the door instead of in is anyone’s guess, but Dankovsky doesn’t need the boy dying of hypothermia. “Good lord, child. Come in.”

She’s about half-ready for there to be some sort of argument, but perhaps because the boy is already shaking from the cold, he doesn’t offer one. His shoes are loud against the wood of the floor, feet stomping as he enters. Daniil wonders if he was sent down here on some sort of errand gone awry, but it doesn’t exactly explain what he was doing out in the rain.

And he doesn’t look at Dankovsky, either. In one of those moody phases, if Daniil had to guess.

“What brings you to my door, young Matchstick?” they ask, and they’re hoping the ridiculousness of the tone or at least the usage of his full name will drag something out of him, but Sticky just keeps glowering at the wall. Daniil waits, but there’s only so much waiting they can do while the boy is making puddles of the floor. Eva’s not in at the moment, but Daniil can’t just leave the mess for her to clean when she gets back.

By now, he knows where the linens are kept. He’s always been too anxious at spills, about messes, took to cleaning his room when he couldn’t get to sleep. It’s not too much of a bother to find some clean towels and throw them at Sticky’s head, but the youth still doesn’t have much of a reaction to the motion, just taking it and rubbing at his hair in a daze.

Which is a problem all its own. Daniil’s not a damn mind reader. “All right,” she sighs, “What’s got you in such a foul mood? More gang warfare I should know about?” Sticky shakes his head, eyes on the ground. “Well? Don’t tell me Burakh’s kicked you out -”

Sitcky throws the towel to the floor.

Daniil is startled, to say the least. And more than a little angry. “I can’t believe that. What happened?”

“I didn’t get kicked out,” Sticky clarifies, kicking at the towel. “I ran off.”

“You ‘ran off’?” they parrot. “That won’t do. You are his ward, he must be looking for you -”

“I don’t care!” Sticky snaps. “I heard him - urgh!” he throws his hands up, and back down, smacking against the wall. “I heard him call you Dankovskaya.” He turns on Daniil, eyes wide. “Dankovskaya! And then I think he wanted to say something else, but - Ah!”  he slaps the wall, frustrated. “I didn’t expect that from him, of all people!”

“Ah.” Daniil says. He picks at his gloves, trying to think of the best way to go about this conversation. He wasn’t planning on it so soon. Or, really, at all. Should’ve seen this coming, he thinks; but then, it hadn’t occurred to him that someone might take it the wrong way. That someone would even care. “We should have a talk about that, then.”

“You don’t need to. I gave him an earful.” He sounds awfully proud of himself, through the anger in his face. “I told him that just because you’re - you. You know, you can be difficult sometimes - that he couldn’t just. Get your name wrong, and stuff!”

“Not Burakh and I, Sticky. I meant you and I.”

He frowns at Daniil, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I know, doctor. About the testerone. I didn’t mean to look! I was just going through your stuff -” he puts his hands out. “Not to steal anything! I just think medical equipment is cool. And I saw it -”

Daniil snorts. “Is that why my beg is such a disorganized wreck?”

“It was like that before I got there,” he defends. Daniil rolls her eyes. “Anyway. I’ve met other people like that before. I mean, not yet, but some of the kids around town wanna be like that when they get older. So I already know about not ungendering and stuff.”

“Misgendering,” Daniil corrects. “But, ah...” He clears his throat. “He wasn’t.”

“I heard him, doctor. He definitely said -”

“I asked him to,” Daniil interrupts. Sticky blinks back at them, owlish. Daniil sighs, running a gloved hand through their hair. “I asked him to alternate between Dankovsky and Dankovskaya, between pronouns. I like all of them.” He still doesn’t seem to be getting it, or at least not digesting it. “I don’t have a gender, Sticky. I take hormones to feel more comfortable in my body, but my gender is...” they wave their hand. “Not really existent.”

There’s a soft sound of confusion as Sticky opens his mouth, then closes it again. Bewildered, he asks, “You can do that?”

Daniil smirks. “My dear child, you can do anything you want.”

“But I thought you had to choose one or the other,” Sticky says, perplexed. “Like, you had to be a boy or a girl. That’s what they keep saying in class -”

“And this town is horribly backwards! Oh, but I can’t say the Capital is much better,” he admits. “Colleagues at my lab are aware, and many of them are the same. But you really needn’t choose, if indeed you feel it is a choice for you. Which, may I remind you - for many, it isn’t.”

“Right, right, sorry.” Sticky scratches his head. “So what are you if you’re...neither? Can you be both?”

“Absolutely you can,” Daniil says. “And somedays you can be one, or the other. It’s not dichotomy. It’s...more of a spectrum. Or a mess.”

“Like your bag,” Sticky says. Daniil glowers. “Wait, can your bag be your gender? Serious question!”

“If you feel so inclined, yes. Any thing or abstract concept that gives you euphoria in that direction, sure. But It’s not mine,” they emphasize.

Sticky nods, and shuffles his feet around. “That’s a lot to think about, honestly. Now I’m gonna...” he ruffles his hair. “Is it normal to have to think about it a lot?”

“What, your gender?” he nods. “Damned if I know what normal is. For me, it’s always been a question, though I doubt that that answer helps you very much.”

“Uh-huh. No. It kinda does,” he says. “But it’s.” He looks up, and very earnestly. “You’re really cool, you know that?” Daniil laughs. “I’m serious! You know all this cool stuff I wouldn’t have learned if you hadn’t come here. I hope you stay, when it’s all over.”

Daniil blinks. It’s the first time the idea has been brought up to her. Not even Eva has asked. She doesn’t have to ask if the question is serious. She can tell just from the look on his face that it is. “I’ll consider it,” she says softly.