#vivi-set-this-on-fire

[kesadoll]

♡ CWS. MDNI 4k wrds! kinda crazy black! reader, boxer!zoro unprotected, AGAINST THE WINDOW, old friends t lovers, fingering, (almost) oral {z}, fingering, squirting, she throws it back on him :p, zo is very nasty in the mouth, {petnames: baby, mama, ma || reader calls him ♡ zo ♡ || he calls himself daddy like once}, srry if i said "y'all" too much im from the country ♡

♡ sum. your old moss-headed friend from high school has become your most recent obsession, & luckily you received an invite to one of his upcoming matches...

kesa's note did i eat the banner or what ?!?! i think im starting to get the hang of this again yall hold on! this was really smthn fun, smthn easy, smthn for the dolls♡ pt.2? asks & reblogs always welcome!

“where is heeeee~” you huffed, searching for that moss-headed idiot you hadn’t seen for years.

of course, aside from when you would see him on tv. your old friend from high school: roronoa zoro. he still had the same mossy green buzz cut as always, but now he looked like he was carved from the gods themselves, which was only decorated by his tattoos and the scars on his chest and eye. seeing him like that pulled at your chest, tightening it.

you didn’t just want his attention anymore; you needed it. all. of. it.

you would always find yourself in front of your tv on a thursday night, anticipating the handsome man to appear on screen. he’d finally gone pro in boxing, like he used to talk about. you were obsessed, whether you’d like to admit it or not, and that fire was only ignited by your phone buzzing, pulling you out of one of your silent “just scrolling on instagram and so happened to see him on your feed” escapades.

it was robin, one of the girls from your old high school friend group. she wanted to surprise zoro at his last match of the season, knowing he was going to host an afterparty in one of the most notorious clubs in the city. 

after some contemplation and some reassurance from the others (luffy, usopp, nami, robin, jinbe, franky, vivi, sanji, & broooks) you finally set it upon yourself to go. 

as the days grew closer, you got more nervous but oddly excited. you’d finally get to see your latest obsession in the flesh, and you had the craziest dreams just thinking about it. 

you definitely made sure you’d be dolled up: lashes done, your nails done in cute french tips and your toes matched, everything waxed, your silk press on LOCK. not that you didn’t care about your maintenance, but it was reaaaaal important now. 

it was finally match day, and you could hardly wait for it to start. you put on your athlete’s gf best: a skintight black dress that barely covered the very tops of your thighs, poppin out your so-kate's you never took out the box just for today. 

you even brought out your little nameplate chain and watch to match, grabbing your black puffer jacket and your small purse on your way out the door to robin’s deep blue car that the girls waited for you in. 

“cmon pretty girl! they're gonna take our seats!” you heard nami giggle out of the passenger seat, vivi opening the backseat door with a big smile. 

you absolutely adored going anywhere with your girls. there was no doubt that every single time there would be some sort of pregame, and tonight was no different. you, nami, and vivi passed around shots (which looked more like the 3 of you taking big sips of don julio before robin took it away), and a blunt you ended up rolling. 

the stadium finally came into view, the four of you scrambling to make sure your makeup, hair, and perfume were just as good as they were when yall left. 

y’all’s beauty sesh was cut abruptly when a black car blasting music zipped past, luffy’s stupid head sticking out the window, giving yall a dumb smile. you could only imagine how fucked up the guys were. 

after what felt like forever finding a parking spot, the four of you hopped out, the cool air making you shiver as you put on your jacket. you guys walked up to the entrance, doing the usual event procedures. 

the guys weren’t far behind yall, finally walking inside and making your way to your seats, which were closer to the ring than you had thought. you grew impatient, the realization of where you were finally starting to set in. 

luckily for you, it didn’t take much longer; the lights besides the ones above the ring dimmed slightly, your heart pounding in your ears once you heard the announcer come on the speakers. 

you sort of tuned out the first introduction since it wasn’t about the man you came here to see in the first place, but it was for a man you’ve heard before: his name was arlong. everything else about him was drowned out by cheers and boos, fading out once music began to play. 

9 by drake began to play, and you knew what time it was having watched his matches so many times before; zoro was finally here. 

“33 fights, 33 victories, 24 wins by KO, 27 consecutive KOs..” you mumbled with the announcer under your breath, “this champion from los angeles california is your reigning, defending, undefeated, universally recognized middleweight champion, roronoa zoro,” the crowd begins to yell, your friends in shock at how famous their old friend had gotten, “AKA TRIPLEEEEEE FIST!”

just over your left shoulder, you could see a green buzzcut surrounded by men in black come from an entrance, and god was he a sight to see. his broad shoulders complimenting his soft muscles, your favorite tattoo of his crawling up his side from his v-line, along with that deep scar on his chest . . . he looked so fucking good. he had that nonchalant smile on his face, taking pictures and signing posters that kids lined up against the railing flung out towards him. 

you gawking was cut short by luffy and usopp yelling zoro’s name like idiots, which made nami’s hand that you had held for support squeeze. 

“ZORO!! OVER HERE!!” they both yelled, hopping up and down like high school girls. robin facepalmed while nami yelled a motherly “shut the fuck up!” in which the boys sat down, but it didn’t matter since zoro looked over once he was in front of your row, his face going from shock to happiness. 

“oh shit- girl, do you see him???!?!?!” nami leaned over to you, making sure her voice was low. 

“yes, he’s hard to miss, oh my god. .” you couldn’t hide the fascination in your voice, trying to put on your best game face. before you'd only seen him on tv, but in person he looked even better.

“when did he get so hot???” she said, slightly putting her hand over her mouth. you almost responded, giving nami a slight side eye since she was talking about your man like that, but you knew she didn’t know how enamored he had you. 

you didn’t need to respond though, because you watched as his eyes trailed from your heels . . . up your cocoa-buttered legs, eyes dancing as they traveled up to your thighs, which made you cross your legs, and then suddenly the two of you made eye contact. 

his eyelids lowered as he looked from your eyes to your lips, then back to your eyes again, that nonchalant smile turning into an even sexier one. he turned since his security kept pushing him toward the ring, but your eyes never left his body, both nami and robin gripping either of your arms at this point, freaking out that he just looked at you the way he did. 

“did he just-???” you stuttered, your face in awe. 

“ithinkthefuckso!” nami blurted out, shaking your arm. 

“oh he wants you, and bad. he just eye-fucked you in front of my corn dog, bitch.” robin said half seriously, which warranted a cackle from both you and nami. 

the fight didn’t last long, though close, resulting in another win under zoro’s belt. sweat coated his body in a heavenly sheen. he was escorted out of the ring and down into the aisle again, you and your friends in a group on the sides. you were talking to vivi when, out the corner of your eye, you saw the guys dapping up zoro, security slightly on edge, seeing how they practically slapped each other around. you kept your cool, trying not to freak out seeing him make his way to y’all. 

“hey,” zoro’s voice cut through the conversation, his eyes scanning over the four of you, “just invited luffy n' them to my afterparty; y’all coming?” 

you all nodded, smiles big across your faces. zoro looked you up and down, licking his bottom lip. “can’t wait to see you there, mama.” 

your heart felt like it was at the top of your head at this point, having to blink yourself out of your shock. the combination of the way he looked at you and the way his sweat pooled on the waistband of his shorts you needed that BAD. 

“yeah.” was all you could get out, your cheeks burning from how big your smile was. 

zoro hummed, letting his security push him away with a smirk on his face. you couldn’t help yourself anymore and quickly spun yourself around, fangirling. 

at the club…

you were getting antsy, this time a little bit of anger boiling in the pit of your stomach at the fact he had you waiting like you were some kind of whore. which undeniably it was the truth, but you were only a whore for him. the amount of late nights you had just thinking about him alone was a testament to that. 

eventually though, your mind was taken off of him by robin pulling you along with her to dance. you and the girls most definitely were turnt up, the loud music and dancing making your pregame earlier worth it. 

all while you were shaking ass and body rolling your tipsy ass away, zoro made his entrance. the bottle girls followed behind him as him and his entourage + bodyguards made their way over to the V.I.P section you all were in. zoro wore a dark t-shirt that hugged his chest and he wore baggy jeans. to top it all off, you couldn’t help but notice he was decorated in gold jewelry like a present waiting to be unwrapped. his chains, the 3 stacked lobe piercings, the small nose ring you didn’t know he had until now, the watch that decorated the tatted arm that held the drink in his hand..

of course, there were girls trying to get his attention and get handsy. one girl in particular followed him to the couch, putting her hands on his leg like she was the shit. zoro already had a drink in his hand, bringing it to his lips that were curled into a smirk, showing off his blinged out teeth…………oh fuck that. 

you found yourself strutting over, not paying attention to a concerned nami and vivi behind you. zoro’s eyes fixed on you, forgetting for a moment just how good you looked which was part of the whole reason why he invited you here to begin with. 

the girl noticed zoro wasn’t paying much attention to her anymore and when she turned her head to see you sauntering over, her face contorted with jealousy. 

“hey m-“ zoro stood to meet you, but you stopped him from coming closer with your index finger once he was right in front of you. 

“mm mm, you come in here like hot shit ‘n forget you ‘can’t wait’ to see me?” you said to him, trying to ignore the smirk he still had on his face as he looked at you through his eyelashes. 

“mama, you know it ain’t like that.” he tried to step closer but you still held your ground, slightly distracted at how sexy he looked with the lights on him like this, “i’m an athlete you know how some people get.”

you raised an eyebrow, slightly because he was calling you out yourself and he didn’t even know it. “and i’m supposed to to believe you because?”

“cause i ain’t like that, y/n, you know me better than that,” zoro chuckled and brought his drink to his lips, his other hand reaching for your waist and pulling you close, his hand finding solace on your ass which it almost completely covered, the seductive tone in his voice making you feel weak in the knees, “let me make it up to you, i’ll do anything you want n’ take you back to my place.”

you hadn’t heard your name from his mouth in a long time, let alone did you think he’d remember it after all these years. but up this close you were able to see the bling you saw on his teeth were actually gold grillz that spelled out his name: zoro at the top & roronoa on the bottom. you hummed in thought, bringing your hand up to his chin just behind his goatee, “then give me all of your attention tonight.”

“i can do that, no problem.” he leaned his face closer to yours, but you denied him the satisfaction of a kiss, playfully pushing yourself off him. 

“great, but first since you offeredd~..” you motioned over your shoulder to your friends dancing like their lives depended on it, luffy somehow having a girl who looked far out of his league all over him, “make sure our friends have plenty of drinks and food, yeah?” 

your night was everything you could’ve dreamed of. saying zoro was attached to you like velcro would be an understatement. wherever you went he was close behind you, grabbing your hips to push your ass back into him anytime you danced or just stood around. he wasn’t playing about you, and he wanted everyone to know that.

especially when he gripped you by the back of your neck, turning your head to meet your lips with his that were sweet with liquor. his lids were low as he leaned down in your ear, the husk in his voice making your breath hitch, “you ready t’come home with me?”

you nodded again with heart eyes while you stared at his lips, feeling his hands start to travel across your body. it was time to go, and immediately at that. you figured you’d just text your girls in the morning, knowing they’d understand especially since they saw how he looked at you earlier. security escorted the both of you outside and to zoro’s black ferrari, the two of you being met with paparazzi along the way.  zoro opened the passenger door for you, going over to the drivers side and getting in before he sped off, his hand rubbing dangerously close figure 8’s into the fat of your inner thigh.

you leaned over the center console, planting kisses along zoro’s jaw and neck, a small mewl escaping from your lips that was drowned out by the music that was blasting. zoro’s pinky grazed your essence soaked panties, clenching his jaw once he felt how wet you already were.

the two of you made it downtown and to his apartment building, hardly able to keep your hands off of one another. the hallways and elevator had you pushed up on them once or twice, you and zoro’s lips crashing into each other with greed. finally making it to the penthouse floor, you were in awe when you turned around and saw the dark modern aesthetic of the home before you. 

to your right was a staircase illuminated by lights underneath. you were elated to finally be in this man’s home after only seeing glimpses of it off his socials, it being even better in person. you began to walk up the stairs, not knowing where they led, but you still continued nonetheless.

“you already tryin’ to go up to my room?” zoro teased with a raised eyebrow, following upstairs behind you. 

you rolled your eyes, “you act like you haven’t been trying to have me here anyway.”

once you made it to the top, your eyes widened, seeing the vertical windows that took up almost an entire wall. the view through them was beautiful, especially with the downtown lights illuminating the sky. you walked closer to the window, trying not to press up against it since it looked very clean. 

“got the best view, don’t i?” zoro came up behind you, hands rubbing up and down your sides, smiling at you.

“you do,  your room is nice as fuck.”

“mmmhmm.” you could tell he wasn’t paying much attention, his nose buried in the crook of your neck to take in your scent.

you tilted your head, granting him more access. he mumbled something akin to “thank you baby” against your neck which sent shivers down your spine. he left you sloppy, intense kisses down your neck and shoulder, his hands pushing your dress up the fat of your hips. 

he lifted his lips off your neck just for a moment, the loss of his touch warranting a whine to escape from your lips. “yeah?” he teased, pushing your dress down your chest to your waist. he pulled your hips back against himself, his dick pressing up against your lower back, straining against his baggy pants, “you’re so needy, baby.”

“shut up-“ you leaned your head back against his shoulder and grabbed one of his hands from off your hip and brought them up to your breasts. since you wore no bra there was nothing to brace yourself for his big, muscular hands fondling them. when he decided to pay attention to your nipples, which he made sure not to do so often because the whines you made to beg him made him even harder, he tugged and rolled them so slow your legs began to tremble off that alone. 

“zo-” you whined, your insides throbbing, aching for something,  “i want you.”

those simple 3 words were like an ‘on’ button for zoro. a grunt escaped his lips before they met yours, his tongue intertwining with your own. his right hand slid down your waist and into your panties, rubbing his fingers in between your folds, coating them in your essence. feeling his touch made you see stars. it was so little, but all the times you touched yourself imagining it was him. and this? this was better than your cunt could’ve ever imagined. 

zoro’s own heart began to thump out of his chest seeing you almost come completely undone once he had his middle finger inside you. just off your moans and the lewd squelching your pussy already started to make, he could tell you wanted this and it made him want you even more. with his left arm draped across your chest, he made sure to hold you up once he put his ring finger, groaning when he felt how you sucked him right up.

“you needed this s’fucking bad, didn’t you?” he said against your lips, chuckling when all you could do was babble ‘pleasepleaseplease’ once he curled his fingers. his rough palm bobbling against your clit making your ears get all hot and fuzzy. “gonna cum for me in front of my window like this, hm? you’re s’fucking nasty, baby.”

“zo~!” you hiccuped, the nastiness of his words sparking a fire in between your legs. you reached your hand up, resting it on the back of zoro’s head, holding on to what little hair his buzzcut left him while your glossy (or at least what was left) lips parted to make way for the moans that bubbled from deep within your tummy. “ngh! fuck fuck fuck zo- i’m gonna- !!” his hand never let up, even as your pussy squeezed around his fingers. even as his fingers became coated in your essence, moving to rub deep circles on your aching bundle of nerves, squirt trickling down your thighs and his hand. 

“fuuuck- you’re such a good girl for me..” he shuddered while he released his tight hold of you with his left arm, finally freeing himself from his pants. he brought his other hand up to you lips and you took them in your mouth to suck and swirl your tongue around them. 

zoro slipped his cock between your folds, just rocking his hips to coat it with your essence. when you felt him your eyes got big. not because it was the biggest (it was maybe a good 7 and some change), but it was thick. like stretch you OUT thick even though this wasn’t your first rodeo either. 

he gave you that sly smile at your reaction, taking his hands from your mouth and kissing you deep, taking a moment to taste you on your tongue which made his dick jump against your pussy. “jus’ relax mama. y’know ‘m gonna take care of you,” he grunted a little, pushing just his tip inside you, your brows furrowing as your breath hitched, “even after this m’gonna.” 

“y-yeah?” you stammered feeling him pull you back onto his cock, bracing yourself while you pushed your hand back to his stomach to try and lessen how deep he was. “z- ah! w-wait s’ too-”

“ah ah ah don’t run from me. stay right there f’me.” he still slowly pushed against your hand until his hips met your ass with a little “plap!” zoro began to give you slow shallow thrusts, still giving you time to adjust to his width. he could tell by the way your shoulders relaxed that you were finally ready, and his thrusts quickened as such.

zoro’s mouth fell open, his own moans sounding like a response to yours. he pushed his shirt up his waist but got irritated once it fell again. he opted for the sexier route though, lifting the end of his shirt up to his teeth and holding it there, still talking to you like some slut while his hand found solace around your neck, his dick pushing deeper and deeper, even until his tip began to leave kisses on your cervix. “god, you feel so good baby y’dont even fuckin’ know..” you a cockdrunk, teary mess against his windows could barely even respond to his filthy words. the way his balls slapped your clit, how blissed he looked there behind you with his shirt between his teeth, how focused he looked once he tilted his hips and heard the pornagraphic moan that left your mouth.”i know you feel m’fuckin’ dick, baby, tell me it feels good i wanna hear you say it.”

 the slew of words made you squeeze around him, rocking your hips against him, wanting more “s’goods’goods’goods’goodpleasezo” you whined feeling his cock twitch against your walls. it was getting harder and harder for him to keep it easy on you especially with the way you left a ring of your essence on the base of his dick. 

“yeah??” he cooed at you, zoro leaning down and putting his weight on you. this new angle made your eyes shoot to the back of your head and your legs almost gave out beneath you.“if it feels so good then cum all over daddy’s dick, ma,” not only did zoro keep going, but his thrusts were a lot more aggressive now. he kept one hand on your hip and one on your neck, his lips painfully close to your ear, “fuckin’ do it.”

the authority in his voice and that dumb nickname absolutely sent you over the edge. “m’gonna hic cum s’hard- s’good zo~” you babbled, your body reaching its high. as your mouth fell open you let out a long string of moans, desperation filling your voice and body while you threw your ass back onto zoro, your puffy lips curling into a greedy smile. “give it t’me.”

“oh shi- fuckkkk- you brat.” he groaned, his shirt slipping from his lips while he threw his head back. zoro’s hips began to stagger all while you were being pumped full of his cum. you ground your hips down on him real good one last time, pouting when he jerked away and pull out of you completely, resting his head against your shoulder with a pant. “fuck you’re good.” 

“mmph- thank you..” you shivered, feeling his hands drag up and down your sides and belly.

“i want you t’come with me to japan. i got a house out there i go to during off season, n’ i don’t wanna be alone. i missed you.” zoro said quite sweetly, kissing your shoulder.

you hummed, leaning away from zoro and getting down onto the floor, down on your knees, looking at him through half lidded eyes, “or do you jus’ wanna fuck.”

“both.”

orignal works by me ♡ reblogs welcome, do not steal/recreate.. shiu&tojixreader next

[brairslair]

golden retriever s/o who follows you around wherever you go, hangs onto every word you say, zones out staring at you because you’re too pretty, will do anything and everything you need, absolutely loves cuddling, love language is physical touch, lives for your praise and compliments, and doesn’t really understand personal space because why would you not want to be as close to them as possible all the time ??

portgas d. ace, monkey d. luffy, sanji, usopp, vivi

black cat s/o who’s reserved, enjoys sitting with you in silence just to be next to you, doesn’t always know how to communicate their feelings, is a massive nerd, puts your needs before their own, takes a while to warm up to your affection, love language is gift giving, is extremely sassy all the time for no reason, and tries to downplay their feelings because the effect you have on them is so strong it’s embarrassing

trafalgar law, nico robin, crocodile, dracule mihawk

golden cat s/o who’s a little shit, loves to make you flustered, love language is acts of service, is your biggest fan, has way too much energy, looks at you with stars in their eyes, wants to be holding your hand all the time, says the corniest shit ever, hates seeing you upset and would set the world on fire if that would make you smile, and sees you as their entire world

sabo, nami, shanks, boa hancock

black lab s/o who is extremely protective of you, loyal to a fault, has absolutely no filter, secretly a huge romantic, has a heart of gold but doesn’t like other people to know that, always laughs at their own jokes, is always honest, chronic rbf, love languages are making fun of you and quality time, and gets extremely flustered at any ounce of affection from you

roronoa zoro, eustass kid, buggy

my friend just made me take one of these quizzes and this was my first thought because of course it was

[etherealstar-writes]

PAINTBALL | ARSENAL WOMEN X READER

pairings: arsenal women x reader

summary: in which you're involved in a chaotic paintball battle with your friends

warnings: none

✦ ——— ✦ ——— ✦

Beth gasped as you shoved Katie down, taking a hit to the chest. 

"I've got her!" Katie yelled, dragging you to safety and checked your pulse. "She's still alive!" 

"Of course she is," Viv mumbled, taking aim and shooting Leah in the leg as she ran into the open. "This isn't a real battle." 

You sat up, giving Katie a thumbs up. "Just paintball, Katie." 

Beth shrieked as a series of paintballs hit the towers behind her and Viv, both of them ducking down. 

"Give it a shot." Katie nudged you with her gun and you nodded. 

Rolling onto your knees, you poked your head above the small fort and spotted Kyra with two paintball handguns. "What! Where did she get those? Not fair." 

You closed one eye and aimed before pulling the trigger as three paintballs shot out and hit Kyra along her shoulders and arms. "Ha!"

"Get down!" Viv chided you three, getting back to her position. "If you stay up too long, you'll-" 

A pink paintball was splattered behind them with paint flying everywhere and added to the array of colours in Viv’s and Beth's hair. 

"AH!" Viv swore under her breath in Dutch.

"Viv, no! Wait!" Beth tried to grab Viv and pull her down, but she was already standing and shooting randomly at where Kyra, Leah, Caitlin, and Lia were hiding. 

Caitlin jumped up and made it one step forward before paintballs were pelted at her everywhere. And while everyone was distracted targeting poor Caitlin, Kyra rolled out, aiming her gun and shot Viv in the chest. 

"Vivi, nooo!" Beth dramatically wailed out. 

She yanked Viv down, half cradling, half strangling her while Viv tried to break free. "Oi! Let me go! I'm fine! I'm not dead!" 

Beth wiped away a fake tear. "In the world of paintball, you are." 

As Viv rolled her eyes at Beth's melodramatic display, the three of you huddled together, plotting your next move. The battlefield was filled with laughter and shouts as paintball pellets whizzed through the air. 

You wiped a streak of paint off your cheek and exchanged determined glances with Katie and Beth.

"We need a strategy," you said, your voice low. "We can't let them take us down one by one."

Katie nodded, her eyes scanning the field. "Let's focus on Lia and Caitlin first. They seem to work well together, and if we eliminate one of them, the other will be easier to handle."

Beth sniffled theatrically, still cradling Viv. "Vivi, my love, we shall avenge you! We will paint the field with the colours of victory! Your sacrifice will not be in vain."

Viv couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. "Just make sure you actually hit them, unlike the sorry attempt you made to save me."

The three of you broke into laughter, and once the giggles subsided, you set your plan into motion. Sneaking through the field, you took cover behind barricades and crates, moving stealthily towards Lia and Caitlin's position.

As you approached, you signalled to Katie and Beth to be ready. With a coordinated attack, you emerged from cover, firing a series of paintballs at Lia and Caitlin. The two opponents fought valiantly, but your combined assault overwhelmed them. 

Lia was the first to go down, her colourful attire now adorned with splatters of paint. Caitlin, still defiant, tried to retaliate, but Beth, channelling her inner warrior, charged forward and unleashed a flurry of paintball fury. Caitlin's resistance crumbled, and she joined Lia in paint-covered defeat.

"Two down!" Katie exclaimed, exchanging triumphant high-fives with you and Beth. "Now, Leah is next."

You regrouped, strategising your approach to take down Leah, who was proving to be a formidable opponent. 

“You can’t get me, losers!” Leah yelled out as she sprinted away from you.

“Don’t be so sure about that!” With a combination of flanking manoeuvres and coordinated attacks, you managed to corner Leah. And with a well-aimed shot, she had no choice but to surrender to the colourful onslaught.

“Hah! Take that, Williamson!” You jumped in joy while Leah playfully glared at you as she was dramatically sprawled out on the floor. “Who’s the loser now?”

Your little victory was cut short when dramatic gasps were heard from Beth and Katie. While you’d been busy with Leah, Kyra had taken the chance to sneak up behind those two and had surprised them with a rapid blast of paintballs.

“Gotcha!” Kyra exclaimed, grinning at her successful ambush as those two went down. “It’s only me and you now, Y/n!”

The battlefield was now eerily quiet, with only the distant sounds of laughter and shouts from other ongoing matches. You and Kyra were the last ones standing, facing off against each other. 

"Ready to surrender, Kyra?" You called out, crouching behind a makeshift barricade.

Kyra's laughter echoed across the field. "Not a chance, Y/n! I've still got a few tricks up my sleeve."

The two of you engaged in a lively exchange of paintball shots, dodging and weaving through the obstacles. Paint splatters filled the air as the vibrant colours painted the battlefield. The tension between you and Kyra was palpable, but there was also a shared sense of enjoyment in the competition.

As the battle raged on, you managed to catch Kyra off guard with a well-timed shot. A burst of laughter erupted from your lips as the paintballs landed on her, covering her shoulders and arms.

"I gotcha, Kyra!" You exclaimed, revelling in the sweet taste of victory.

Kyra dramatically staggered, clutching her chest in mock defeat. "Noooo!"

Theatrically, she collapsed to the ground while your teammates rushed to join you, cheering and celebrating the hard-fought victory. Beth and Katie, still covered in paint, embraced you, and Viv playfully patted you on the back.

"You did it, Y/n!" Beth laughed. "You've avenged us all!"

You then approached Kyra with a playful grin, offering her a hand. "You put up a great fight."

Kyra took your hand, pulling herself up with a grin. "You too, Y/n. You got me this time, but I won’t let you win next time."

The two of you chuckled and joined your friends, huddling together for a group photo that you no doubt would cherish deeply.

[zosa95]

Jude: (stunned) Edward Langford is your father?

Gemma shrugged and blinked back tears.

Jude rubbed his forehead.

Jude: (hesitantly) Ed is as good as they come. He and Vivi are solid. I can't see him stepping out on her.

Gemma: Lydia said they were separated and almost divorced when their daughters were one and four.

Jude: I would have been too young to remember anything about that.

Gemma turned to face Markus.

Gemma: Lydia said that Edward lived in Strangerville during the separation.

Markus looked as stunned as Gemma felt.

Jude: Shit. I feel so stupid.

Gemma: Why?

Jude: You felt familiar from the first time I met you, and it didn't make sense. Now it's so obvious. You and Chessie are very similar; she's also full of fire and sass.

Markus bristled at Jude's words, describing Gemma in intimate terms.

Gemma: (wistfully) Really? I want to meet her.

Jude: Gemma, you've already met her.

Gemma: When?

Jude pointed at the painting of Tartosa.

Jude: Chessie is Francesca Cantone.

Gemma: Markus, we met my sister! And we saw her husband and kids at the beach. Omigawd. I love her. She was fun! We even took a photo together.

Markus: This is a lot. No wonder you got lightheaded.

Gemma: I haven't even revealed what tipped me over the edge. You both will be box-breathing with me. Jude, did you know Ed was adopted.

Markus put two and two together and came up with four immediately.

Markus: No fucking way.

Jude: I think so? It sounds vaguely familiar.

Gemma: Lydia told me that she and her husband, Delaine, adopted Edward when they lived in Brindleton Bay. He was born in Cavalier Cove. His biological mother was seventeen years old, and her name was Edith.

Jude: Edith? The elderly woman who set the senior home on fire during sex?

Gemma: One and the same.

Jude: (laughing) Shit. Chessie's gonna love that.

Markus: (teasing) It explains so much.

Gemma side-eyed a grinning Markus.

[henrioo]

°•*⁀➷ TIMELESS: MONKEY D. LUFFY

꒰ SYNOPSIS ꒱ : "Many things are taken away by time, power, money, life... But pure, genuine and true love is always timeless. Surviving every hardship that may come, and Ace and Sabo could see that clearly between you and Luffy.

꒰ WARNINGS ꒱ : angst! Ace death! Male reader! (Can be trans or not), Pre time skip Luffy! Alabasta arc, Dressrosa arc, SPOILERS!, gay relationship, Luffy and reader are clueless, Sabo still depressed about Ace

꒰ WC ꒱ : 2,5k

꒰ NOTES ꒱ : So this was one of stories I had finished a long time and I now I'm posting them. It's not totally angst because nothing bad happens in the Luffy and reader relationship, but still sad. Fem dni or block and enjoy :))

Everyone quickly starts working on the tents before the terrible cold of the desert makes them freeze. You were finishing helping Nami with the girls' tent while trying to ignore Sanji cursing you for stealing his chance and calling you a pervert.

“Thank you (y/n)-kun” Nami said, satisfied with the end result while Vivi was placing the necessary items so that they would have a makeshift bed.

You just nodded and went after the boys to see what they were doing with their tents. Sanji clearly had a stable tent although it was kind of small, you thought about asking but your theories about his perverted goals made you shudder so you just ignored him and went to the other group.

Usopp was busy trying to make a tent himself and he was determined to show that he knew how to set one up, but he didn't. Zoro was lying on a sheet on the sand and using his backpack as a pillow, while Luffy and Chopper seemed to be having fun listening to the stories of the captain's older brother, Ace. “Usopp, do you want help?” You asked, approaching everyone. Since you still had some energy it wouldn't hurt to help others before going to your own tent to sleep, after all you were the first to set up your shelter which consisted more of a roof and pillow cloths and a sheet, you weren't much demanding and thought it fair that the girls had more fabric to work with.

“Hm… no… I… I'm almost there” he said, too focused to look at you, trying hard to make the poles that were supposed to hold the tent upright… obviously without success.

“Zoro?” You decided to leave the shooter alone, either he would make it or he would give up. The experience of success or failure was worth it then it was no longer your business.

“I'm fine, it's not too cold,” he said calmly. You would doubt if a normal human was truly capable of withstanding that cold, but it was Zoro and you knew he didn't think like a normal human, so you just shrugged it off.

You approached the other three boys who seemed very excited even after a long day of travel. Ace was a good guy, he definitely cared about Luffy and he had been very kind to everyone when they found out that you were his beloved little brother's crew. What bothered you was that he looked at you in a kind of strange way, especially when you interacted with Luffy.

It made you a little nervous and paranoid, but it didn't make you treat him any differently.

“Do any of you need help in the tents before I go to sleep?” You offered everyone, as always being very helpful.

“Oh! No! I’ll stay with Usopp!” Chopper declared happily and looked at his companion, but upon seeing the situation in the tent he was a little… well he was definitely something but you still weren't very good at reading emotions in an animal. He just sighed, getting up from Luffy's lap "I better help him" the reindeer said as he went towards his friend.

“I’m fine, fire advantage” Ace smiled and you had to admit he had a good charm. To prove his point he lit his own hand with his flames and you almost felt envious of the natural heat he was able to provide.

“Okay, then I’m going to get some sleep” you said, yawning, already feeling the tiredness finally catching up with you. As you turned to walk away you felt something grab your wrist and turned to see Luffy with a huge upset pout and his stretchy hand reaching out to hold you back.

"And me?" He asked in such a hurt way that he looked like a puppy abandoned in the rain.

“Huh? What about you Luffy?” You asked a bit confused.

“Aren’t you going to ask where I’m going to sleep?” He said it as if it were his duty to do it, a kind of genuine obligation.

“Oh! I thought you were going to sleep with Ace…” you said confused looking at your older brother. Since it had been a while since they had seen each other and Ace produced heat, you figured the two would just sleep together like brothers usually do.

“I don’t want to sleep with Ace!” Luffy grumbled, letting go of you and crossing his arms, he seemed almost offended by his assumption. “He snores!”

"Hey!" Ace said in protest at the small offense.

“Okay… what do you want to do then?” You looked at the boy with amusement, Luffy was always a bit clingy towards you and little by little you learned to give in to all his requests.

"I want to sleep with you!" He declared with a big smile and with so much confidence that it made your cheeks heat up and you looked away in embarrassment.

“Okay…whatever you want captain” you said shyly and practically ran to your tent to avoid hearing whatever Ace might say about that interaction.

Soon you were lying in the sand under your tent and trying to calm your racing heart, why did Luffy have to be so cute?! It only made it worse that he didn't know the effect he had on you... what an unfair life. When you were almost falling asleep you felt his warmth on your back, he wrapped his rubber limbs around you a few times as he held you tight against him, almost as if he wanted to make sure you wouldn't leave. He moved a few times, adjusting himself and then placed his head on your back, starting to sleep soon after. You sighed, deciding to follow his actions as you yawned one last time and also let sleep overcome you.

Outside, Ace watched as his brother practically skipped over to his tent with a knowing smile on his face. He wasn't an idiot, he knew Luffy very well and had good experience with romance, he knew exactly what was going on between the two of you. The way you smiled at Luffy and seemed to always be around him, the way the boy was also clingy to you and always seemed like your validation… who would know that Ace's whiny little brother would grow up enough to fall in love.

“Huh… those two then?” He laughed knowing that Zoro was the only one who was still awake, it wouldn't hurt to know more about his brother's boyfriend, after all it had been a long time since they had seen each other and Ace wanted to know all the news.

"Actually no." Zoro said quickly turning around to face Ace, he still had his eyes closed but was definitely awake.

“Huh? How not? They are literally sleeping together!” The man said, confused.

"Put two idiots together who are incapable of understanding what it's like to be in love and you get these two" Zoro yawned in his seat but he had an amused smile. “They definitely feel something, everyone knows”

“Let me guess, everyone knows except them?” Ace laughed knowingly, that was just like Luffy.

"Bingo... (y/n) is a little smarter, but I think he just doesn't want to accept that he's in love with the captain himself" that was a good theory, you always showed a lot of respect for Luffy's position and maybe you didn't want to mix things up things.

“He… huh, has problems with men?” Ace didn't know exactly how to ask if you weren't out of the closet without seeming rude, wouldn't it be weird if you didn't want to confess because you didn't feel comfortable liking a boy. Although that seemed a bit unlikely with the way you acted around Luffy.

"No, he's always made it clear that men are his type... Luffy isn't exactly the type of person who cares about gender either." Zoro pondered "I think it's just... They maybe don't think it's really love, the way they are they should just think it's a good friendship and that's it"

“No, (y/n) knows she's in love with Luffy” the third voice was Sanji's who was outside his tent smoking. "He just won't confess because he thinks Luffy is like that with everyone."

Ace sighed feeling empathy for you, Luffy could be very dense and his friendly manner probably confused you. But he knew that his brother definitely loved you, loved you in a very romantic way even if maybe he didn't know exactly what that was or how to express it.

“Well, I worry less,” Ace yawned, adjusting his hat to cover his face. “Luffy will eventually understand that he is in love with him, when that happens he will confess and make his love clear… he just needs a little time” the man laughed. He could already imagine the scene, Luffy would probably be a great boyfriend if he was already extremely loving with you now, as an older brother he felt very happy knowing that his little brother was having his first love and that luckily it was still reciprocated. You would work out, you just needed time until your feelings became clear and you could finally accept and accept them.

Sanji had already retired again, leaving Zoro to be the only one awake, he lay on his back facing the starry desert sky. Yes... You two just needed time, everyone could see how much you both loved each other much more than friends and mainly cared about each other. It would definitely be very interesting to see this unfold, he was just glad that both of his friends were in love with good people who would take good care of them.

You stroked Luffy's black hair, he was lying with his head in your lap recovering after the difficult battle against Doflamingo. You were all at Kyros' house so that Law and Luffy could have more time to recover, soon you would leave for Zou and then for Wano, so all the time to recover was essential now.

The straw hat on your head cast a certain shadow on your eyes, you didn't want to fall asleep, too worried to take your eyes off Luffy. But it was obvious that tiredness was also taking its toll on you, after all you also participated in your own battles to help the entire city from collapsing, now all your body and mind wanted was a little rest.

“Hey! Bro, you should get some sleep, you look like a zombie” Franky laughed as he continued the repairs on his body, you laughed weakly believing his words.

“Don’t worry, this one won’t wake up anytime soon” Zoro said, assuring you that you could take some time for your own rest.

“Okay… wake me up in case anything happens” you yawned, leaning better against the wall and finally resting completely, the straw hat fell against your face giving you greater coverage. You couldn't feel it, but Luffy turned a little, laying on his side and using his elastic arms to wrap himself around you, holding you close to him.

“It seems I came to say goodbye at a bad time” Sabo smiled entering the house, he would really love to spend more time with Luffy to recover everything they lost, but the revolutionary army needed him and it was time to go back. "It seems like some things never change, Luffy was always sleeping as a child."

“This one just doesn't sleep more than he eats,” Zoro said, making the other members who were there laugh a little.

"That's good, I'm glad he's still like this..." he smiled nostalgically, a part of him was happy that Luffy had managed to recover after Ace. A guilt still lingered in his chest for not being there, but they would have plenty of time in the future to come together again.

The blonde boy was going to say something else before starting his final farewell, but that was when he stopped to pay a little more attention to his brother and the man who slept with him. Luffy's precious straw hat resided on the man's head while his brother was wrapped around him in the same way he was wrapped around Sabo and Ace as children. No, it wasn't the same way, there was something different. The smile on Luffy's face, the way he was snuggled up to the boy Sabo knew was called (y/n)... Oh, he knew what that was.

“So both?” Zoro's eyes widened in surprise, it seemed that the brothers were much more alike than he imagined. He smiled nostalgically thinking that Luffy's two brothers really care about him a lot, it seemed like a great déjà vu from that same night in Alabasta years ago.

“No, not yet” he laughed looking sideways at the two “But they are already better than before.” That wasn't a lie, now that you and Luffy were reunited you were much more open to his displays of love, probably due to being apart for so long. The only thing “missing” was a label, but it wasn’t like you and Luffy seemed to care about that.

“Ah, I see… Luffy is more dense in these things” Sabo smiled happily, looking at his brother so comfortable.

“I'm happy that it's reciprocated, for both of them... I'm sure they'll work out, they just need a little time.” He was sure of it, it was obvious how much you liked each other, a little time would be enough for the two of you to take on whatever was necessary and nothing else would come between you “Well, I need to go, thanks for looking after my little brother, I promise we’ll see you again soon.” Sabo turned to leave but was stopped when he heard Zoro's voice.

“Huh… Ace said the same thing” Sabo's heart stopped for a second. "Not just about taking care of Luffy... About the two of you, you two were pretty confident that with a little time they would work out..."

Sabo had to hold back his tears, taking a deep breath to keep his control. He said happily without looking back "Then that must be a good sign, big brothers are never wrong." That was the small blessing for his brother's future relationship, he knew it would work out, Luffy could be dense in romantic relationships but Sabo knew that the day he fell in love with someone and was reciprocated he would never let that person go.

Leaving the small house he faced the sunny day feeling the wind on his face, wiping his tears and ruffling his golden curls.

“Hey Ace… It looks like our little brother grew up huh?” he said excitedly looking up, could his brother see him now? “I'm glad you had the chance to see them too... (y/n) is a good guy, I'm sure he'll be good for Luffy” he smiled confidently, after all he had seen how you took care of your brother when he passed out after the battle. “Luffy will also be good for him… Ah… I wish you had the chance to be here to see them finally together” he bit his trembling lip, unable to stop himself from crying “But it's okay, I know you can see us there, so please take good care of them… Our little brother deserves to be happy.”

And inside that house Luffy was still hugging you tightly, you yourself were smiling with your hand in the boy's hair, patting him even though you were sleeping. You might not have admitted your feelings, but that didn't matter, you and Luffy both knew that you loved each other and that you would never let anything happen to each other. And everyone around you, especially those two proud older brothers, knew that nothing would stop you two from enjoying a beautiful romance.

[seiya234]

She looked at the stick.

There were very definitely two lines on the stick.

She looked at the box.

The two lines very much meant that she was pregnant.

“Well, fuck,” Willow said out loud.

---

In the aftermath of Huntocon 5, she sat with an empty whisky sour at the bar outside of the airport in Grand Rapids.

“Is anyone sitting here?”

She looked up; short and stocky with muscle, dark black hair and mischievous dancing eyes, tight shirt and tighter jeans and oh, was she doing this? She was doing this.

“As long as you get me another one of these-“ she shook her glass at him “-the seat is yours.”

“Thank you-“

“Willow.”

He extended a hand and she noticed the callouses, the strength of the grip. “Raven. Nice to meet you.”

An hour later they were at his hotel room, and the one condom they were able to scrounge up was expired, but it was fine. Even when it broke it was fine, it was only the one time, and she certainly didn’t go around doing this normally. And then they went for round two and like, there was no actual way anything would happen, it was fine.

She left him sleeping in the morning, called a taxi and caught her plane home.

---

“Girl.”

Willow pinched the bridge of her nose. “’Caci, please don’t start.”

“I’m just saying, Mom drew us diagrams.”

“Graphically detailed ones, yes, I’m aware.”

“You’re twenty six, not sixteen-“

The cell phone creaked precariously in Willow’s hand. This was not the direction she had expected this call to go. “Are you… are you seriously getting after me about this?”

“Um, considering my sister decided have unprotected sex like she’s in high school and not almost thirty, yeah, yeah I am. Seriously Willow, what the hell were you thinking?!”

“I… I didn’t think this would happen.”

In the background she could hear a baby crying, and then Acacia’s heavy, put upon sigh.

“Do you even know anything about babies?”

She thought about how every single second of her life was about keeping everything under control- her fire, her temper, her Sight. She thought about how she let herself do something yes, a little dumb, one time, one time and it blew up in her face. She thought about the fact that it was pretty rich of Acacia to ask if Willow knew anything about having kids considering Acacia had three under three, and was also the same goddamn age as her sister.

She thought about explaining all of this to Acacia’s stupid, sanctimonious face, but instead just snarled “Fuck you,” into the phone and hung up.

Then she lit her phone on fire.

She’d apologize later.

---

"Have you considered-" Hank's voice dropped an octave, "-getting it taken care of?"

"You mean an abortion?"

"I..uh-"

Willow pinched the bridge of her nose. "I swear to god we all three had the same level of sex education from Mom."

"I know! I just didn't know how you felt. About keeping it. Or not."

"Okay, that's fair. Thanks Hank."

A pause.

"So-"

"I haven't decided yet. But I'm leaning towards keeping it."

"Cool. Me and Vivi are excited to be an aunt and uncle again, for what it's worth."

Willow smiled. "Thanks Hank."

"Have you told the father?"

The smile dropped from her face. "I don't have his number. One night stand and all."

"Uncle Dipper could get it for you in a second."

"I don't know what I would have to pay for that, it'd be pretty big."

"Probably an extra big bag of peanut M&M's, it's just a phone number-"

Willow was silent.

"You... you aren't going to tell him?"

"No."

"That's.... wow Willow, that's real cold."

"And that's none of your business," Willow snapped before hanging up.

She didn't set her phone on fire again, but she did chuck it across the room.

---

She didn't speak to either of her siblings for two weeks. It was the longest she had ever gone without talking to them.

But when she went to get her first ultrasound, they were at the doctor's office, waiting for her.

Acacia and Hank didn't say anything, and Willow didn't offer any explanations, and that was that.

---

"Am I doing the wrong thing Mom?"

"I'm not going to tell you that."

"Mom."

Mabel rolled her jam jar of Mabel Juice between her hands. "Look, I'm not an expert in moral relativity-"

"-I'm not entirely sure if you are or are not using that phrase correctly-"

"-but times like these? There's no good decisions or bad decisions. There's just decisions, and consequences. You make a decision, you'll be dealing with the consequences."

"It's not that simple."

"It is. One choice means you have to constantly factor another adult and their wishes into your life and the raising of your daughter. The other choice means you'll have further decisions about what you'll tell your daughter and when, or if anything at all. She will ask you, and it's up to you if you tell her the truth, tell her a lie, or deflect."

"What does Dad think?" Willow asked, knowing she was grasping at straws.

"Willow-bean, this is so completely outside of your Dad's wheelhouse that I think he cannot truly, fully conceptualize it."

"Wait, is he upset?"

"No, he's happy and excited for you. Just... that someone could choose to do this, get pregnant and raise a child this way? Completely outside of the framework he grew up with." She must have looked lost because Mabel patted her hand. "You have to understand, I was the first person your father kissed, much less did the beast of two backs with."

"Mom, I'm begging you, please come up with a better analogy for sex."

"Never."

"So this is okay with you? Really?"

Mabel sighed. "Willow, I cannot make that decision for you. I can't make a value judgement because we don't have the same values although-"

A wicked grin flashed briefly on her face.

"-I have been known to be pro-selfish."

Mom looked down at the table for a minute, thinking, before going on. "I made the decision to keep your uncle in my life, to have him involved in your lives. And for that, my husband grows horns, my son limps, and one daughter is missing an eye-"

"Mom you don't mean that-"

"-but also, my other daughter is alive and here because of him."

She took another drink of Mabel Juice before going on.

"But yeah. Welcome to motherhood. You're going to make decisions. They won't always be good ones. You're going to have to make hard decisions. You'll never have a time again where you don't have to make them. So if you want this? You need to make the decision. I can't hold your hand any more."

Willow suddenly just felt... empty.

"Mommy, I'm scared."

"I know. I'm sorry I can't do this for you. But you know what you're never too old for?"

"What?"

"Mom hugs. Bring it in kid."

Willow fell into her mother's arms, and if she made her mom's sweatshirt a little damp well-

Mabel never would tell.

[headspacedad]

High Society

I've recently gone down the manhwa rabbit hole and I thought I'd share a few that I'm enjoying in case anyone else was looking for something to occupy their brain space. First off is High Society by Gyeonu and Surreuk Comics.

The premise of this story is that Caesar Bounaparte, the highest ranked noble on the island of Santenare, is, though the usual manhwa legal highjinks, engaged to marry Lucrezia Della Valle, a woman that's been obsessed with him for years. He's deeply opposed to the marriage but because its an old contract that someone of House Bounaparte must marry someone from the Della Valle family - and he's his family's only child, there's no way out for him. Enter Adele Vivi, a woman that's disguised herself as a man to survive in the slums of Santenare. Unfortunately for Adele, her secret has recently been discovered and there are people who intend to make a profit selling her to a brothel. What's a problem for Caesar, Adele sees as an opportunity and proposes a solution to benefit them both. She will pretend to be his long lost sister and marry Lucrezia's brother, fulfilling the contract. Its still selling herself but its a solution she's willing to take. And so begins our story of Adele's lessons to become the high society lady worthy to be called Caesar's sister - and Caesar's growing desire to keep her for himself.

So - yeah, it has the delicious premises that most bodice rippers of the 80s did with an updated way of dealing with it and I would eat that stuff with a spoon because the dynamics can be so delicious but what really sets this story apart is how non-route the parts are.

First lets talk world building. Santenare has this wonderful New Orleans feel to it deep in its bones. This is an island where beauty is worshiped, where the glitter is brighter and so the shadows are so much darker in response. The island is beloved by a goddess of the ocean, so the saying goes and there's the faint hint of salt and too deep dark water that threads under just about everything. High society glitters but they're cruel in an almost ravenous way. There's hints of shark's teeth under their smiles and they're much colder - and more accepting of that cold response - than most 'high society' setting are. The ocean, and the hidden goddess, is the flavoring of everything they do from their greetings to the way they punish traitors. Life is cheap, from the highest reach to the lowest and beauty and violence are the only powers that matter. The story doesn't shy away from darker tones, the 'fairy tale in the raw' vibes.

And then you've got the characters themselves.

Caesar is a bastard - but he's a charming bastard that doesn't hide the fact he's a bastard. He's the only one that matters in his world and he's not shy about enforcing that. He'll do what needs to be done to get what he wants and he'll never apologize for it. And yet he's written so well that you end up liking him because its so much fun to watch him dominating the society around him. He gets what he wants because he's both clever and charismatic and its just downright enjoyable to watch him work. And yet you're entirely comfortable disliking him at the same time for being such a jerk. As a matter of fact, its kind of fun to watch him be a jerk because he always gets consequences that hit him in the heart when he does and that's very rewarding to watch. You can watch him getting wound, one twist at a time in deliciously slow pacing. Several chapters back he badly damaged Adele and I have been enjoying watching him suffering with her response to that action for multiple chapters now. I am looking forward to more suffering on his part because his actions always have consequences and he's intelligent enough to recognize what they are when they hit him.

As for Adele, she's a quiet heroine. She's got fire in her but she's also come to a place in her life where she's willing to accept a great deal, things dropped into the deep ocean that simply get swallowed up and fall forever. She will push herself before she pushes others. It makes her a bit more passive than I usually like my Female Leads but it works with her and the story because she is also written so darned intelligent. She recognizes before she even makes a move that each action will have consequences and she carefully weighs whether those are consequences she's willing to suffer to reach wherever the action causing them would take her. She's still a bit naive, she's still a bit vulnerable but she's an observer and while she's in a new life and struggling to adjust, each chapter she gets closer to learning how to survive - and than manipulate - her circumstances. She doesn't have pride to get in the way - she's a survivor and whatever that takes is her priority. She started the story off by weighing being sold to a brothel or being sold in marriage to an aristocrat and she approaches each new situation with that same level mindset. She wears the masks necessary to protect herself and she'll switch to whatever one suits her best to survive. Currently, we're in the 'withdraw who I really am from you because you can't be trusted to protect me' part of her relationship with Caesar and let me tell you it is delicious watching him bleed during every interaction just because her eyes have gone hollow for him.

Also I'm half-rooting for the bodyguard and her. I know the story won't go that route but in another universe I want to read their story (the horse race just got to me, okay?).

She's also got something else going on with her that she doesn't seem aware of but the story is dropping wonderful hints about.

Now lets talk about how pretty this story is drawn

the bodyguard who makes her smile

Lucrezia who is not even trying to hide the obsession she's got going on

and Caesar's current favorite memory of Adele. Yes, she was threatening to cut his throat with a pair of scissors.

Rating: PG13+

Finished: no

warnings: blood, sexual situations threatened/implied, ML is an asshole, physical abuse (people get beat up, the governess is an asshole, talk about dying and the above threatening with scissors, etc), fear of crowds/being touched in crowds, child neglect

dimples?: yes

[french-unknown]

𝖍𝖆𝖑𝖑𝖔𝖜𝖊𝖊𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖒𝖊

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖗𝖆𝖈𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖘: shanks, vivi, ace, law, sabo 𝖈/𝖜: fluff, domestic 𝖜/𝖈: 1.9k +

| m a s t e r l i s t | - | p t . 1 | - | p t . 3 | | e v e n t . s u m m a r y |

𝖘𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖐𝖘

horror stories around campfire

All the crew was gathered on logs around the campfire. Lost in the depths of a new island, you had found a cave to serve as your home and protect you from bad weather among the immensity of the jungle that surrounded you.

The alcohol was thus happily welcomed while waiting for the log to recharge. Fortunately, after a week of waiting, you could finally leave tomorrow during the day.

Tonight was a celebration.

Unfortunately, the lack of rum which had run out due to the boredom of the stay as well as the fatigue linked to the heavy and humid atmosphere of the climate, had pushed you to keep the party reasonable. So you were sitting around the fire, laughing and talking to each other, while you more or less finished your meal. The alcohol was flowing but it was still in appropriate quantities compared to some other evenings.

However, Yasopp stood up and began to speak. With a piece of meat still in one hand and a glass in the other, he told the crew how he had once been chased by a village of cannibalistic men when he was a child.

You stood staring at him, caught up in the frightening story even though you knew it was made up, without flinching.

But you suddenly jumped when, during a tense moment, you felt something suddenly jump on your back. You reacted violently because of the surprise and, at the same time, you spilled some of your beer on your knees and your hand. Shanks' hot laugh rang in your ear a while before that of your other comrades.

You then felt the captain wrap his arms around your waist as he rested his chin on your shoulder. A bit humiliated at being made fun of for spilling your alcohol on yourself, you unceremoniously removed him from you. However, far from being offended, he immediately returned to the charge by taking your hand while miming an exaggerated apology.

Now that the crew's attention was once again diverted to the shooter, you let yourself soften at Shanks' comical behavior.

You even almost smiled at his excessive bowing.

But, as he moved in for the most ridiculous hand kiss, you felt the wetness of his tongue licking a length across the top of your hand. You quickly took it away, disgusted. For his part, he laughed at your pout.

“You would be delicious to eat, too.” he stated, returning to his own glass while throwing you a wink over the top.

𝖛𝖎𝖛𝖎

halloween party

Tonight was the night dedicated to celebration in Alabasta so all the cities across the country had set up open-air markets as well as light decorations all over the streets.

And Alubarna was not to be outdone.

So, when you learned that Vivi couldn't leave the castle that evening because none of her guards were available to take her to the capital, it didn't take much for you to sneak over her room. After some coaxing, she ended up putting on a colorful veil to hide her well-known hair and face from the population before letting herself be guided out of her palace.

You then very quickly reached the scene of the celebrations.

Everywhere in the streets, the shops were decorated with pumpkin-shaped lanterns while the trees and walls were illuminated with several hundred small orange lights that twinkled like stars in the night. Their hue was less vibrant than that of the Alabasta sun but they seemed no less captivating to the princess. In the air, the smells of pumpkins and spices were everywhere along with those of hot alcohol.

The stands sold all kinds of items.

There were drinks, hot meals and biscuits. But there were also spiritual stands with tarot cards or pendulums. Some others instead sold toys such as ghost balloons and fake spiders.

Around you, families were weaving while children were happily rowdying among the passersby.

Around a stand, you felt Vivi take your hand to pull you into a nearby street. She then pinned you against the wall, out of sight, before diving towards your lips to kiss you. As quickly as she had leaned in, she drew back until her face was visible. There, you saw her with a beautiful smile on her lips and her eyes shining with happiness while her face stood half lit by the lights of the festivities.

"Thanks." she whispered before leaning toward your lips again.

𝖆𝖈𝖊

couple costumes

"Please! Please! Please!" Ace begged while kneeling in front of you, head bowed, with his hands raised above his head in prayer. "Let me choose our costumes. I've been thinking about it for months!"

Because of the time he was begging you on the ground, you began to hesitate. In itself, you hadn't planned any particular costumes for the crew's Halloween party tonight but you couldn't help but fear the worst. Especially coming from him who had the habit of walking around shirtless everywhere in just his shorts. You were a little afraid of the amount of fabric he would offer you for tonight.

However, you end up accepting: it was just a party, you weren't going to die for a revealing outfit!

Ace immediately jumped for joy before kissing you right on the lips and running off to his room. You just had time to hear him say to wait for him before he closed the door behind him. You then waited quietly behind the door, afraid to see what costume he was going to show up in. You prayed he wouldn't take anything too sexy or pirates like Boa Hancock.

Finally, the door opened ajar.

"You are ready?" he asked without you being able to see him yet.

Once you had nodded, he opened the door wide and came out like a beautiful devil.

The first thing that caught your eye was the huge purple afro wig he wore on his head. Then came his dark red leotard, which left nothing to the imagination considering how little it covered and how tight it was. And then came his fishnet stockings. At this point, you weren't even surprised that he was wearing stiletto boots, a pearl necklace, and heavy makeup with huge false eyelashes. His fake tattoo on his chest didn't even make you blink anymore, either.

Proud of himself, he spread his arms from his body before turning around to show you the costume completely.

"How do you find me?" he asked you, proud as a peacock. “I am one of the abominable commanders of the Revolutionary Army!”

"You're... original?"

The answer seemed to suit him since he gave you a bright smile before retracing his steps to bring you back your outfit.

When you arrived later at the party, he wore his outfit like a child at the school fair while you stood by his side, still stunned. You were dressed in a long two-tone orange and white fur coat as well as the rest of the paraphernalia. You wore a wig of the same colors with a bow tie and a glass of wine already filled.

You hadn't expected that when he asked you to choose your costumes.

𝖑𝖆𝖜

black cat

As you walked down a dimly lit street with Law, you heard something moving next to you.

Then a meow.

Immediately, a completely black cat came out of the darkness before walking directly towards both of you. He went first to the surgeon and rubbed against his legs while letting out little meows. However, when he saw that the man wasn't even looking down at him, he changed his target and came towards you.

He then started his trick again, this time rubbing against your legs.

“Don’t do that,” Law growled when you reached down to pet him. “it’s not hygienic.”

Yet, that didn't stop you from plunging your hand into his fur. It was soft and warm and the cat immediately began to rub against your palm, begging for more petting. He didn't seem aggressive at all so you bent down completely to take him into your arms.

"No!" the surgeon continued while raising his eyes to the sky when you were at eye level with the feline. “It’s dirty, you don’t even know where it went!”

But you continued to pet the animal, now snuggled comfortably against your chest, while looking at your lover who was desperately trying to avoid looking at the creature.

But said creature suddenly turned its eyes towards him and started meowing again while starting to wriggle in your arms.

When you put him down, he went back to the surgeon and started rubbing against his legs again. He rubbed himself against one, then passed between his feet to rub against the other. He made figure eights between Law's ankles then rubbed his head against the bottom of his calf. All while continuing to make his adorably cute little noises.

Finally, Law sighed under your amused gaze and looked away from the stars. He leaned his eyes toward his feet and met those of the feline.

You knew at that moment that the cat had won.

Sure enough, he crouched down to get closer to the animal but, instead of remaining still so he could run his hand through its fur, the feline instead jumped onto his lap. Unbalanced, Law hugged him so that he didn't fall and he took the opportunity to move up towards his neck to place his paws on his shoulders and his head under his chin.

Law stood up to steady himself with the cat still snuggled against him.

When he saw your mocking look, he opened his mouth to defend himself but was immediately cut off by a purr coming from the little creature. He immediately closed his mouth and, avoiding your gaze, he dipped his hand back into the fur to start stroking it again.

"Shut up." he growled.

𝖘𝖆𝖇𝖔

automn with pumpkin juice

The afternoon was quite cool but you were enjoying the moment thanks to Sabo's company.

After days of rain, you decided to finally go out a little to walk around. There were no bars or anything around, so the walk seemed like a good solution to stretch your legs.

You found yourself walking on the forest paths in your high boots to protect yourself from the puddles, while the red and orange leaves under your feet crunched when you stepped on them. Other leaves of this fiery hue still clung to the branches of the trees around you and gave them the look of flames when they were shaken by the wind. A smell of rain drowned the forest.

When the ride came to an end, you headed home.

You went to take your shower first then Sabo went. He went straight out from the bathroom to the kitchen and heated up two cups of pumpkin juice. As the liquid heated, he lit the fireplace and gathered the soft blankets on the couch in front of your watching eyes.

Finally, he returned to the kitchen to serve the two drinks and returned before placing the cups on the small tables. He sat quietly on the couch by the fireplace and lifted his arm so you could come and snuggle against him.

So you jumped on him to press yourself against his side.

He closed his arms around you and covered you both with the soft blankets. He then collected the two pumpkin juices and handed you your hot cup, which you held pleasantly in your hands, before starting to drink his.

You spent the rest of the afternoon like this: warm in your living room, curled up together, while drinking your juices.

𝖘𝖊𝖊 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖙𝖔𝖒𝖔𝖗𝖗𝖔𝖜!

𝖏𝖔𝖎𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖙𝖆𝖌𝖑𝖎𝖘𝖙 𝖎𝖋 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖉𝖔𝖓'𝖙 𝖜𝖆𝖓𝖙 𝖙𝖔 𝖒𝖎𝖘𝖘 𝖆𝖓𝖞 𝖚𝖕𝖉𝖆𝖙𝖊

𝖙𝖆𝖌𝖑𝖎𝖘𝖙: @iheartamora @bontensh0e @opchara @idsmash717 @lys-ada @xomingyu @parkyrr @dozcan123 @livwritesfics @anotherproblemsos @phsycochan

[strawberriemarswrites]

CHAPTER EIGHT

Chapter Summary: You've made a harrowing discovery, and you can't shake the suspicion that someone you trust is behind everything. Pairing: Bartolomeo x F!Reader Rating: Mature (18+ for the story, referenced NSFW) TW: none in particular this chapter, mentions of the stalking that's going on but that's about it. Ao3 Link: Chapter Eight (4.036 words)

Your heart thundered in your chest. Bartolomeo promised he’d look out for you. He hadn’t mentioned seeing or hearing anything since you asked him to start. How did this get past him? How long could this have been getting past him? You really didn’t want to think that he was failing to keep his promise, so maybe whoever had been getting in stopped for a time, and they were picking back up again now that the weather was warmer. You had to tell Bartolomeo what you found.

The racing in your mind should have ended there. You should have closed the window and just hoped that the fan being on would be enough and wouldn’t blow around stale, hot air. You should have gone back to bed, ready to talk to Bartolomeo in the morning.

Instead, you leaned out the window, peering down the fire escape, wondering how someone could even get up to your floor without anyone noticing. Though it was hard to tell for sure, the ladder at the bottom looked too high off the ground. The average person would need to get a little creative to reach it. Although, on the subway commute you’d seen pretty tall locals, so it wasn’t that it was impossible to reach without having one’s own equipment or by exerting a bit of effort. Just unlikely.

As you leaned back in and closed the window, a tiny voice in the back of your mind piped up: Barto could reach that ladder.

You froze. No. No, that was highly unlikely. Bartolomeo wasn’t the type to do something like that. No way. He was kind to you, protective even, and... and he knocked that guy’s teeth in today!

He showed up with pretty convenient timing.

He could have just been out running errands. It was lucky that he showed up like that.

Your stuff stopped going missing for a little while after you asked him to help. How long was it before things got weird again?

Bartolomeo tricked a creep into drugging himself, he wouldn’t stoop so low as to be a creep!

Unless he was protecting something he thought was already his.

No. No, no, no.

You slowly sank to the floor, your face in your hands. There was no way that all this time, Bartolomeo had been stalking you. You felt nauseous at the thought. He’d been so kind, and supportive — he was your friend for fuck’s sake! No. You just weren’t thinking straight. You were panicking over some fucking debris on the floor, that could have come from anywhere.

Luffy hopped down from the bed and approached, purring and nuzzling your ankles. In his little kitty mind, he was trying to ask why you hadn’t come back to bed, because since you weren’t going to the kitchen to feed him, it was obviously still bed time. Then, when he leaned into your palm as you reached for him, he gradually became aware of your distress. You started making sniffling sounds, like the ones he’d done when he had gotten a little sick. He began to purr louder — purring always helped him, maybe it would help you.

You scooped up Luffy into your arms, petting him against your chest. His purring softened for a moment before picking back up, and you gradually felt the panic leave you. There was no way Bartolomeo was the one who’d been breaking in. It couldn’t have been him.

Right?

...It was too late at night to keep dwelling on the thought. You set the fan against the window — if it opened, surely the fan would be knocked over — and turned it on, carrying yourself and your cat back into bed.

Your paranoia would have to wait until morning to be sorted out. You needed a clear head to do so.

Vivi snapped her fingers in front of your face a few times. “Hello? Anyone home?”

You jumped, shaking your head free of the image of the debris in your bedroom. “Sorry, what were you saying?”

She propped her elbows up on the table and placed her chin in her hands. “I asked if you’re okay. You’ve been extra quiet today.”

You nodded, picking at your takeout lunch. “I’m fine. Just... distracted.”

“Over Bartolomeo again?” Drake asked, sipping at his coffee.

“No,” you said a bit too quickly, turning pink. “Sort of.”

Vivi cocked her head. “What’d he do? I thought you guys were doing the ‘just friends’ thing.”

“We are. He didn’t do anything.” You tapped your fingers on the table. “Or he did... guh, I dunno.”

Vivi stared at you expectantly. Drake eyed you suspiciously over his glasses.

You sighed. “After I moved in, someone started breaking into my apartment.” You scratched the back of your neck, avoiding their surprised gazes. “Barto said he’d keep an eye out, and it seemed to stop for a while. I figured he had it handled. But just last night I noticed something that makes me think the break-ins didn’t stop.”

“Do you think he’s been missing whoever’s doing it?” Vivi asked.

Before you could answer, Drake read your mind. “You think he might be the one doing it, don’t you.”

You shrank back, putting your face in your hands. “I don’t know what to think.”

Drake took another drink of his coffee. “Well let’s start with why you would think that.”

You sighed again, running a hand through your hair. “He seems kinda protective of me, the more I think about it. Like what he did at the bar, and then yesterday...” You again avoided eye contact. “He might’ve. Beaten some guy to a pulp for harassing me.”

Vivi’s brows ticked upward. “Wow, really? I would’ve thought that would be more reason not to suspect him.”

“That’s the thing,” you continued. “It was when I was going home. Bartolomeo and I — we weren’t even hanging out. He just... happened to show up.”

Drake’s frown deepened. “Sounds a little too convenient, if you ask me.”

You nodded. “Exactly. And when I think about it, the times I noticed that something was off in my apartment line up with times when he’s been home.”

“Then that settles it!” Vivi jumped up, her hands splayed out on the table. “It’s gotta be him!”

“Slow down,” Drake said, putting an arm on her shoulder to coax her back into her chair. “What would make you think it’s not him?”

You fidgeted in your seat. “Well, he’s been so nice. He comes across as this tough, scary guy, but you should see how he plays with Luffy. He even calls him ‘Mister Luffy’ in this tiny voice I didn’t even know he could do. He’s been helping me keep him secret from the landlord. And he works at that bar partly because he’s helping out his friend’s grandmother. He’s kind of... tender, y’know?”

Drake cocked an eyebrow, silently prodding with a look that said “That’s the best excuse you have?”

You relented, “He doesn’t seem tall enough to reach the fire escape. I haven’t had a chance yet to look at it from the ground, but it looks pretty high up.”

Drake nodded. “All right. How far off the ground do you think it is?”

You leaned back in your chair and twisted your lip. “Eight feet? Maybe nine?”

He pushed out his chair and stood. “How tall is Bartolomeo compared to me?”

You eyed him up and down, tilting your head. “Almost the same height. Maybe a little shorter.”

“But that’s just from your memory,” Vivi said as he sat back down. “Maybe Drake could come by and see if he can reach it? Just to make sure.”

“It’s probably best that I don’t,” Drake said, though with a tint of reluctance in his tone. “If he’s the one behind the break-ins, and if he was stalking you home yesterday, it’s better not to let on that you’re on to him. Not yet, anyways.” He finished his coffee and added, “We also don’t know how he’ll react to other people in his territory, for lack of better term. You said he beat someone to a pulp yesterday?”

You flushed at the memory of Bartolomeo’s shirt and knuckles splattered with blood, quickly nodding your head to dispel the image.

Vivi piped in, “Didn’t you say Cavendish stood you up?”

You blinked, furrowing your brow. “I did, but what does that have to do with this?”

She leaned forward, glancing around as if anyone aside from the three of you were in the breakroom. “What if Bartolomeo had something to do with that, too?”

After a beat, you shook your head. “That’s too far.”

“No, no, think about it!” Her voice was suddenly hushed. “What if he figured it out somehow? If he’s as protective as you say, then someone going on a date with you would absolutely be a threat to ‘his territory’.” She then sat back, her voice returning to normal volume. “Come on, tell me you don’t see it.”

You turned the thought over in your head for a moment, and it sent a sickening shudder down your spine. You knew if you said “no” that Vivi would call you out on the lie, so instead you moved on. “What should I do? I don’t have enough to prove it’s him to go to someone about it, but I also don’t feel like I have enough to prove to myself that it’s not him.”

The three of you sat in silence for a moment, before a phone alarm chimed. Vivi sighed and stood, silencing her phone with an annoyed grumble. She was stopped from leaving when Drake put his hand on her shoulder again.

“I think for now,” he said, “we should keep this between us. No need to worry anyone else until we know more.”

Vivi’s look of annoyance turned serious, and she gave a short nod. “Right.” She then turned to you, making a zipped-lip motion. “Just keep me posted, okay?”

With that she hurried out of the breakroom, just as an alarm went off on your phone to signal the end of your lunch. As you stood, Drake did as well, though he looked deep in thought.

Finally, as you were both leaving the breakroom, he said, “Test him.”

You frowned. “How?”

He slipped a hand in his pocket, leaning against the threshold. “Get him to say something he shouldn’t know about you. Or get him to do something that needs the fire escape. See how he reacts.”

You thought for another moment then nodded. “Thanks, Drake.”

“Any time.” He pushed off the threshold and gently patted your back. “Keep us in the loop. You know anyone here will come running if you need help.” He then smiled, adding, “That’s what friends are really for.”

Bartolomeo was getting nervous. Something was off about you — you weren’t distant or anything, still making time to chat with him and texting him, but you seemed more... tense. He’d asked a couple of different times if you were okay, and you always answered with a shrug and a smile, saying you were just tired from work. Though he could tell that definitely wasn’t the full story, he didn’t want to push.

His patience seemed to pay off, as one evening you invited him into your apartment again for dinner. You’d said you wanted to repay him for knocking the one jerk’s lights out, and who would he be to resist a chance at dinner with you? Let alone a dinner made by you.

Bartolomeo showed up at your door right on time, again wearing a flannel he’d forgotten about. He wondered if he should invest in some nicer-looking clothes, before shaking the thought away — he never before cared about the way he dressed, and he’d only start caring if you said something.

When you answered the door, his heart melted, seeing you again in the blue sailor dress he liked when you... when that Pretty Boy attempted to go out with you. His heart melted further when you hugged him before leading him inside, his stomach doing backflips at the contact.

“Thanks for coming on short notice,” you said, beaming and heading back into the kitchen.

“No prob,” he said, sitting in the dining chair closest to you. “You don’t have to go through all this effort for me, though.”

“I want to,” you said, again making his heart weak. “I’ve actually been wanting to give you a proper ‘thank you’ for a while. Honestly, probably since I got stood up by...” you paused. Your back was to him as you stirred the pot on the stove, and you tipped your head back in thought. “Shit, what was his name again?”

Bartolomeo’s posture stiffened, and he bit down on his tongue. Pretty Boy. Cavendish. But he wasn’t supposed to know that. “I dunno, you never told me.”

You shrugged before returning your attention to the pot. “Well, either way. You put up with me then, and then you saved my ass the other night. I think that’s more than enough reason to go through the effort.”

He smiled. “Whatever you say, sweetheart.”

Something in the back of his mind, however, began to gnaw at him. He started chatting your ear off to stop thinking about it.

Part way through your conversation about the difficulty of mahjong in Yakuza 0, it started pouring rain. You cussed, taking half a step away from the stove before freezing, then looking over your shoulder. “Can you do me a favor? I don’t wanna leave this alone.”

Bartolomeo jumped up from his seat. “Sure — you need me to watch it?”

“No, no, that’s fine,” your eyes then flicked toward the hallway. “I just left my fan in the fire escape window. Do you think you could pull it in and close it?”

He nodded, turning his body instinctively toward the hall and taking a step toward your bedroom, before freezing. His brow then furrowed — would it be weird that he already knew which room the fire escape was in? By process of elimination it wouldn’t be hard to figure out, but... something felt wrong about immediately going for your bedroom.

“Which room is it in?” he asked, trying to ignore the hairs standing on his neck.

And then he saw it. Your shoulders sank just slightly, and your gaze softened. Like you were relieved that was his response. “It’s in the bedroom. Just down the hall and to the left.” You then pointed accusingly at him with a slotted spoon and grinned. “Don’t go poking your nose where it doesn’t belong.”

Bartolomeo nodded again, heading for the bedroom and being careful not to trip over Luffy on the way there. He opened the door and hesitated, glancing around. It was the first time you’d willingly let him into your bedroom, and he tried not to think too hard on how you’d looked at him — maybe you were just relieved he was doing you a favor.

As he pulled the box fan out of the window frame and slid the pane shut, something falling to the floor caught his eye.

Flakes of chipped paint and bits of rust, littering the floor by the fire escape.

Fuck.

“Everything okay in there?” you called.

“Yeah, just. Distracted.” He quickly set the fan down over top of the debris and hurried back out, looking just a hair paler.

You cocked your head at him. “You feeling okay?”

He nodded, sitting back down. “I’m fine. You’re room’s just... cute.”

You gave him that thousand-sun smile, a faint blush in your cheeks as you continued cooking. “Thank you. Food’s almost done.”

The rest of the evening went surprisingly smooth, especially considering Bartolomeo was now paranoid that you were catching on to something he really didn’t want you catching on to. He didn’t think that you noticed the debris — after all, it could have been something that just happened. But that little gnawing feeling in the back of his mind told him that it may have been happening for a while, and he wasn’t as good at covering his tracks as he thought. Then it hurt him a little, to think that if you did notice it that you didn’t bring it up to him. He pushed that thought aside quickly, deciding that you were far too good to keep something like that secret from him.

Nevermind that the gnawing feeling tried to convince him you were trying to trip him up.

As Bartolomeo laid in bed that night, after jacking off for the umpteenth time since he’d started stalking looking out for you, he worried at his lower lip, his teeth dangerously close to digging in and drawing blood. The solution was easy — just. Back up off the break-ins again.

Far easier said than done.

Meanwhile, your dreams about Bartolomeo ramped up in frequency. Sometimes he came to you as the beast-like creature, his mouth dripping with blood and drool. He always brought gifts, your tired mind’s way of accounting for the weight of a kitten on your chest. He’d so far brought a heart, a hand, and something that shifted between being a head and a liver. 

There was once when he appeared normal, grinning at you like he’d just seen the sun for the first time. It was a smile offset by the broken skin on his knuckles, and the red stains on his shirt and the cuffs of his jeans. It was arguably a more unsettling dream than the monster ones, as he then approached and talked to you like nothing was wrong.

And those were just the dreams where he wasn’t fucking you. Over the kitchen counter, on the couch, in your bed, in what your brain could only imagine as his bedroom. Always moaning “mine” in your ear and leaving bite marks on your shoulders. To your immense frustration, you always woke up before you came.

Apparently, the efforts you had made to try and prove his innocence weren’t enough for your nerves to settle down. You decided to try one more idea.

After much further deliberation, you had a plan. It was pay-day, but you already declined to go out for the usual drinks. You were texting Bartolomeo when he told you that, by some miracle, he didn’t have to work, and you were going to try something a little riskier. That morning you made sure Luffy’s gravity feeder had enough food and his water fountain was still running and full, so you knew he’d be okay by himself for a little longer than usual. Then, during your shift, you pulled Robin aside. After explaining the situation to her, with only the slightest bit of judgment that you didn’t come to her sooner about the part where you worried about a stalker in the first place (though she figured you had your reasons), she listened to your plan.

“I need you to hold on to my apartment keys.”

She nodded, holding her hand out. “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to see if Barto’s tall enough to reach the fire escape.” You shuffled through your purse and handed them over. “If he can reach it and unlock my apartment from within, then that might be enough to prove he’s been breaking in this whole time.”

“What if he says no? Or it turns out he can’t reach it?”

“I’ll text you and ask if you can swing by the archives to get them when you guys are done with drinks.” You shrugged, blushing faintly as you added, “I’ll hang out with him until then.”

Robin considered for a moment, before nodding again and dropping your keys into her purse. “If he does agree to help, what’ll you do then?”

You paused, frowning. You hadn’t thought quite that far ahead.

Robin could sense as much, and gently took one of your hands. “If he does it, still text me. I’ll come get you and you can stay with me for a little while until we figure it out.”

You stared at her with wide eyes, then tears began to prickle in your periphery. Without much warning you hugged her. “Thanks, Robin.”

She laughed, lightly hugging you back. “You don’t have to thank me. If this will bring you peace of mind, I want to help you. Rooster’s been good to you, so I hope he’s not behind all this.” She then held you back by the shoulders and gave you a look that sent chills down your spine. “And if he is, I’ll castrate him.”

Bartolomeo heard loud cursing right after the elevator ding. He looked out the peephole to see you digging through your purse, cussing up a storm and bemoaning, “How the hell did I lose them?!”

He opened his door a crack and leaned out. “You good?”

You huffed, frowning. “No, I’m not. I can’t find my keys.”

“Oh, shit.” He fully stepped out and shut his door, trying to subtly lean over and see into your purse. “Where’d you last see them?”

“I don’t know,” you groaned. “I think I forgot them in my work locker. Fuck.”

He couldn’t see them either, not from the angle he had. “Maybe the landlord can let you in?”

“And risk him finding Luffy?”

“...you got me there.”

“So, short of breaking and entering, I’m not getting in until I find my keys.” You pulled out your phone and started texting, before you paused. “You wouldn’t happen to know how to lockpick, do you?”

He scratched the back of his neck. “I might. But it’ll risk messin’ up your lock and you’ll have to pay for a new key.”

“Damn,” you huffed, then eyed him up and down. “...Do you know where the fire escape is from the outside?”

He froze. “Uh—”

“Maybe you could climb up and get in for me? Open it from the inside?”

Fuck. Shit. Shit shit shit FUCK. Panic slithered through Bartolomeo’s veins, and he tried to look anywhere but your face. You were on to him. You had to be. Why else would you ask him this? No — no, this was innocent enough. You did say short of breaking in, so maybe you had — what was the word? an epiphany? — or whatever. But... if you were on to him, and he did as you asked, how long would he have before you left him high and dry? Or worse?! After all the work he’d put into knowing you — shit, he was taking too long to answer!

“I dunno,” he said. “Those ladders are pretty high off the ground. I’m pretty sure I can’t reach them.”

You deflated. “Well, how tall are you?”

He swallowed. “Seven-three.”

“Come on, that’s plenty tall enough!” You looked up at him with puppy eyes. “Please? Can’t you try?”

Bartolomeo almost cursed you for having such pretty eyes. How dare you use them against him like this? With every ounce of resistance he had, he shook his head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Even if I could, I don’t wanna break the window tryin’ to open it from the outside.”

You stared at him for several long seconds, your eyes searching his face. He really hoped you couldn’t see the sweat forming on his brow. Please stop lookin’ at me with those eyes. Please, please, please I’m beggin’ you.

You sighed, finally looking down. “Okay, fair enough.” You then returned to texting. “I’ll see if Robin can bring them to me. I think she has keys to the archives.”

He let out the breath he’d been holding, passing it off as a sigh of his own. Another few seconds and he would’ve broke. His mind then circled back around — you couldn’t be on to him. You just couldn’t be. And if you were, how was he going to gain back your trust?

“Shit,” you hissed. “That’s right, it’s pay-day. I wanted to skip out on drinks tonight, but Robin’s still going. She doesn’t know when she’ll get to the archives.”

After a moment, Bartolomeo realized the opportunity before him. Not only could he regain your trust, but maybe... just maybe... 

“You wanna hang out at my place for a bit?”

[citrinae]

masterlist.

☁️ - fluff; 🌶 - suggestive/nsfw; 🌂 - bitter/angst

"come on you hermit, you never fight back. why don't you play with bows and arrows? why don't you dance like you're sick in your mind? why don't you set your wings on fire?"

ONE PIECE 𓇼 ⋆｡𓆞˚

sanji

aphrodite | afab!reader ☁️🌶

caramel, salted | afab!fem!reader 🌶

blue, bluer | afab!reader 🌂

of grapevines and godly betting | afab!reader 🌶

alarm clock | afab!reader 🌶

robin

lotus eaters | afab!reader ☁️🌶

zoro

closer | gn!reader ☁️

headcanons & drabbles

stiletto | ft. sanji & afab!fem!reader 🌶

insomniac | ft. sanji & gn!reader ☁️

modern au! sanji whose voice is smooth as silk and clear as a bell | ft. sanji & gn!reader 🌂

college student! ace, popping bubblegum bubbles down the hallways of the faculty | ft. ace & gn!reader ☁️🌶

christmassy things you do with them | ft. luffy, zoro & sanji ☁️

mornings with them | ft. luffy, zoro & sanji ☁️🌶

mornings with them | ft. nami, robin & vivi ☁️🌶

holding hands with them | ft. luffy, zoro, nami, usopp & sanji ☁️

you have trouble sleeping | ft. luffy, zoro & sanji 🌂

dancing with them | ft. luffy, zoro & sanji ☁️

series & events

spooktober special: uncanny tales of love & violence 🎃

thanks a lot for popping by & i really hope you will find something to your liking here. have a good one ♡

[orisretr0]

I've been thinking of so many things that could happen in that Balls with Riri's variants.

They probably stain the walls and ceiling from walking around.

Atrax would be the most affected by eating like crazy, most likely he would end up licking Beau's face because he smells good.

Pyro would start setting things on fire randomly and out of nowhere a wall would explode and he would run away.

Vivi would be recording absolutely everything and talking shit with the guests (also trying to distract people and stuff).

There they will break, mess and steal stuff. Who specifically? We'll never know

You might wanna let go of that glass buddy it's bout to crack

[girlacticrailroad]

the top five GLs of 2024

2024 is maybe the first year in human history you could conceivably have a Top Ten list for GLs. That in itself is momentous. I’m not going to actually do a Top Ten because, although I probably watched ten shows released last year (it is my duty and my curse to consume all things GL-related), I certainly wouldn’t recommend them all. I do however recommend all of these! With caveats of course.

There are a few shows I haven’t seen yet that might deserve a spot on this list. Brazilian GL Xeque-Mate came out last year but I haven’t gotten around to it. Although the first season ran in 2022, the second season of She Loves to Cook, and She Loves to Eat aired in 2024. I’m sure there are others I missed.

The huge wave of GL releases on the horizon makes me hopeful that 2025 will bring us enough quality to do a proper Top Ten. Until then you’ll have to settle for this Top Five...plus a lil extra.

Honorable Mention: Apple My Love

If you’re a gay loser and your friend group isn’t this iconic, what are you doing with your life?

By my count there were six Chao Planoy adaptations released in 2024 (six!!), of which Apple My Love had by far the best opening credits and theme song. Other distinguishing features include the cute friend group and the mind-boggling ten-minute love scene, which I cannot believe was actually filmed and aired. Overall I like Apple My Love for its scrappy underdog “little rom-com that could” energy. It’s like a nice little speedrun of every GL trope. (Except for the aforementioned love scene, which feels like being trapped in lesbian purgatory. Was the editor on holiday perhaps? Were they trying to set some sort of record?)

5. Ayaka Is in Love with Hiroko!

The colors are very good.

Ayaka Is in Love with Hiroko! is by far the best Japanese GL I’ve seen. It’s also short, sweet, and to the point—just eight half-hour episodes. Despite being an over-the-top workplace comedy, it’s refreshingly grounded in actual LGBTQ experience and culture (at least compared to something like Gap). Hiroko has known she’s into women since high school. She frequents a lesbian bar where she rants about oblivious straight girls who act flirty without realizing it. Authentic details like these make the characters feel real. The series addresses the challenges faced by queer women in the workplace while keeping the tone mostly light and sweet.

4. Reverse 4 You

That height difference tho.

I’m sorry but there’s a four in the title. I couldn’t resist. Reverse 4 You is the first Thai GL series to prominently feature time travel. And also murder, probably. And it’s surprisingly not bad! The characters are good, the romance is cute, the tropes are troping, as they say. And the plot, while it’s not the deepest or most original, is a nice change of pace from the typical relationship drama. Oh and Vivi, the little sister, is adorable! The only major problem is the rushed ending, an unfortunate consequence of trying to cram a 700-page novel into 8 episodes. (A sort-of sequel, Reverse With Me, based on another book in the same series, is currently airing, but I haven’t watched it.)

3. Affair

Gals being pals.

Affair requires the longest string of disclaimers of any show on this list. So uhh let’s get this out of the way: If you’re looking for healthy relationship dynamics, Affair is not the show for you. Wan and Pleng share exactly one horny brain cell, and they don’t share it nicely. If you’re looking for thoughtful and nuanced writing...Affair is definitely not for you. The characters are pretty one-note—Wan is jealous and possessive, Pleng is guilty and repressed—and the plot is bizonkos. If you’re looking for something well-made in an aesthetic sense, well, Affair looks pretty good at least, by GL standards, though a bit sterile for my taste. But there is really only one reason to watch Affair, at the end of the day, and that is the mesmerizing set-your-screen-on-fire chemistry of Lookmhee Wangpongsathaporn and Sonya Saranphat Pedersen. They are a force of nature. And while the script might be objectively bad, it is very good at engineering situations where Wan looks at Pleng like she’s a big steamy bowl of noodles while their lips hover two inches apart. The tension is unreal. If you can surrender to the silly sexy fantasy of it all (and ignore the fact that, if this were real life, these characters should be seeking psychological help), Affair is a fun romp.

2. Pluto

I literally just noticed that the blurry thing in the foreground is an armillary sphere. Symbolism...?!?

As I discuss at length in my full review, Pluto is a mess. But the highs are high indeed, and I can’t help but admire its ambition, in spite of everything. Worth watching for the chance to see what everyone’s raving about so you can make up your own mind about it.

1. 23.5

ViewJune...gone but not forgotten.

23.5 is the anime you show to your non-anime-watching friends when you don’t want to scare them off. But the Thai GL version of that. It’s not a masterpiece by any means, but it’s not trying to be one. What it is trying to be is a heartwarming high school slice-of-life rom-com—and it’s a really good one of those, with a well-rounded cast full of charm and personality. The side characters, from the bookish devout Buddhist girl Charoen to our neurodivergent queen Aylin, all leave a lasting impression. And while other GLs might reach greater heights of unintentional hilarity, 23.5 is actually funny on purpose! It’s also one of precious few shows to do right by its trans characters. They’re funny because of their personality quirks, and because they play off each other well, not because ha ha trans people; for once they are allowed to have their own lives and story.

Overall, in a banner year for the GL industry, its modest aims and unassuming confidence help 23.5 rise above the rest. If what you want is some damn good comfort food, Ongsa and Sun and crew have got you covered.

Less Honorable Mentions

I’m putting these shows here to say that I have watched them, I just didn’t enjoy them as much as others did, so they didn’t make the cut.

Blank: I’m Blank-neutral. I don’t think anyone is evil for liking the age gap thing (it’s fiction, people!), but the character dynamics weren’t my fave.

The Loyal Pin: I’m sorry, it’s bad. Read my full review here.

Chaser Game W: I haven’t seen Season 2, but Season 1 was bad and racist, so I’m not eager to continue.

Mate: I am slightly ashamed of myself for watching this to the end. It was very bad.

My Marvellous Dream Is You: Okay I lied I haven’t actually watched this one. Everyone seems to agree it was not great though.

Petrichor: Okay I haven’t seen this one either (I don’t have the right streaming service), but ACAB includes the gays, sadly.

The Secret of Us: “It’s cute” is the highest praise I can muster for this series. It’s far from the worst show out there but I don’t get the hype. Recommended if Dr. Wanviva wasn’t enough hot doctor for you.

Unlock Your Love: Unlock Your Love is almost worth watching for Pat. I would protect Pat with my life. Girl pretty brain go vroonm

[alumirp]

Model Law x Firefighter Luffy x Police Zoro in an au where one of Luffy's co-workers is seriously injured in a fire that later turns out to be linked to another incident from a few months ago and then another and another. Zoro, Luffy's partner whos a cop, tells him to stay out of this, that everything is much deeper than it seems and that it could end very badly for them, Luffy and those around him. But of course Luffy is NOT about to just let it be.

Serial fires that have so far killed more than thirty people and injured hundreds, mainly because one of these fires happened in a factory that exploded and injured and killed not only the workers, but also many passers-by and neighbors, are not something Luffy can just let be. Zoro has little to do but accept that his boyfriend just won't let this go, so the next thing he knows he's sharing with Luffy all the evidence that has been collected so far that points to the Donquixote Group as the biggest suspect of th incidents of 'industrial sabotage'.

Luffy unfortunately can't keep his mouth shut to save his life, so suddenly the whole 'gang' knows about it and, through Nami, they discover a very good chance to collect evidence. Annually the Donquixote Group hosts a charity ball that invites 'the whole' city and by whole city, she means the entire upper class of the city. Luckily for them, her girlfriend, Vivi, can definitely help them get into the ball without a hitch. Then, all they have to do is go through security and get to the president's office and look for possible evidence. Which, in Zoro's opinion, is a terrible plan, but Luffy's terrible ideas usually work out, so they go with it. And it definitely works. Vivi easily takes them to the ball and, in the confusion of Straw Hats causing chaos among the big shots of GrandLine City

Luffy and Zoro slip through security and find their way to the Donquixote group CEO's office and that's where their luck ends. Or not. Not even five minutes after they begin to search the room, the door is opened and a pair of golden eyes stare unimpressed at them. The door is instantly closed, and before long, they hear voices outside, one of them being undoubtedly those of the owner of the room in question, Donquixote Doflamingo. Luffy and Zoro, practically frozen, simply look at the closed door in anxious anticipation as if at any moment Doflamingo would break down the door and set them on fire. He doesn't and soon the voices drift away. After that Luffy and Zoro are quick to continue the search, despite the scare, and unfortunately, they do not find anything of value to the investigation.

They are quick to leave after that, taking with them the straw hats that served as incredible distractions. Back at square one, they meet again at Luffy's house trying to plan their next step. But their little evil-combating meeeting is interrupted by a surprise visitor. Outside the house, standing at the top of the stairs, dressed in expensive clothes and looking fabulous, Trafalgar Law, the super model who is the face of the Donquixote Group all around the globe, the owner of impassive golden eyes, offers a deal.

[sharksscripting]

Eris Vanserra x F!Reader

Wax Play — Kinktober

Word Count: 1.2k

Includes: Wax Play, Rough Sex, Oral Sex, Jealously, Light Bondage, Bath/Shower Sex, Spanking, Sexual Punishment, Fingering.

On Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/50770960

On Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/1389413230-𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫-𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑-𝐖𝐚𝐱-𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲-𝐄𝐫𝐢𝐬-𝐕𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐚-𝐱-𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

After a long and difficult training with some of your fellow Autumn Court faeries what you needed was a nice bath and rest, you enter the room you shared with you mate but when you open the door you're instantly pinned to the back of it, Eris' hand flies to the lock—quickly making sure it was fully shut before bringing his head by your throat—inhaling your scent.

"Eris? Is something wrong?" You ask concerned, he has never shown this side of himself, at least not with you.

"You're scent." He growls. "You smell like those rats you were training with." Eris' eyes meet yours, both lust and rage showing in the fire of them.

"They are not rats, my love." You chuckle and peck his cheek. "They are our guards and soldiers."

He rolls his eyes before tossing you over his shoulder—forcing a small gasp out of you—before you're thrown onto the bed, he quickly straddles you, pinning your hands above your head.

"I hate when you smell like others, I think I need to change that, darling." Eris purrs before biting on that soft spot between your shoulder and neck, your breath hitches.

"Do you think so too?"

You nod. "But I am filthy."

"So? You are my mate, do you think I care?" Eris smirks.

You hesitate before shaking your head no, his smirk only grows.

“May I try something new, sweetling?” Eris grabs something from the drawer, you nod.

When his hand comes back into your line of vision you see a long orange-red candle in his hand, without a second thought he summons his flames, lighting the candle—the wax quickly begins to melt. He sets it down on the nightstand for a slim second before ripping your training outfit into two.

You shiver from the sudden cold but it is short lived as Eris picks up the candle and holds it over your breasts, the wax slowly drips down, leaving a small sting as it hardens on your chest.

Your whimper only excites him more.

The orange-red candle continues to drip onto your tits before he moves it down, the wax staining your stomach then thighs. Marking you. Claiming you again.

“My sweet thing…” Eris brings his free hand to your wet core. “Already so slick…” He uses his magic to finish melting the candle on you—the scent of it was a masculine thing, it smelled like your mate. “All for me?”

“Eris…” You whine as his two fingers tease your entrance.

“Yes?” He chimes, an innocent smile plastered along his face as he slides two fingers into your cunt.

“I- oh!” You moan, getting cut off by the sudden insertion.

“What were you saying, dearest?” Eris doesn’t stop his fingers as he toys with your pussy, thrusting and curling them deep within you.

“You… are the most jealous… man I know.” You state in between whimpers and pants.

“And?” His fingers speed increases.

“I love you.”

Eris’ cheeks flush a light red, he rolls his eyes before kissing you passionately, his lips melding into your own in an intoxicating manner.

“I love you too, sweetling. Now, strip me.” He demands as he motions to his pants.

You instantly sit up, the wax that was once a liquid cracks as you move. Your hands move to the tie of his pants, quickly undoing the leather before shucking down the cloth. His cock springs out, erect and leaking pre, needing to be within you.

“Hands.”

Nodding, you give his member a few experimental strokes—Eris groaning in between each—before you slowly kiss the tip, sliding the start of him into your mouth before taking him in further. By the time he is halfway in he pushes you back onto your spine. Eris spreads your thighs by using his flames—they don’t hurt, you know they don’t but the thought of a little masochism never made you scared.

Eris’ cock is now slick with both his pre and your saliva, he aligns the head with your dripping core—looking up at you once more—before gently thrusting the tip in. You moan softly, your hands find his nape and you tug him down for a kiss—his cock slides in halfway from the sudden movement.

“I love you so much, My High Lord.” You tease.

“And I love you, My High Lady.” Eris smirks.

Your eyes widen in shock. “High Lady?”

“The Night Court has one, why can’t we follow in suit?” His lips find your neck as he bottoms out.

“O-Our…” You moan as he begins to slowly pound. “Court is much less accepting!”

“You think Illyrians are accepting?” Eris groans as his hands find your hips.

“Well no…” You whimper. “But.. they-“

“They are as hot-headed as we are, Rhys has control…” His own moan passes his lips. “Over his people better is all.” Eris kisses you again. “You will make a wonderful High Lady.”

You hesitate once more before kissing him again. “Yes… I will.” You smile.

Eris chuckles before thrusting harder. “I am still pissed.”

“Oh are you?” You smirk. “Then punish me, little fox.” You tease your mate with the nickname. In a second he slides out and flips you over before instantly bottoming out deep inside of you, once the tip of his cock finds that softer spot inside of you his thrusts become more powerful than they ever have been before.

“You want me to punish you, darling? I will.” His hand connects with your rear before it does for a second time. You feel your wrists close together, you look up to see a chain of his fire around them—the same flames that held your ankles.

“You will only train with me from now on, or with the other females there.” Eris smacks your ass again. “I will not have those guards scents all over you, they smell like shit.”

If you could laugh in this moment you would, but the mix of pain and pleasure was too much.

Eris continues to smack your behind until he feels satisfied, he then moves his hands to your hips—pulling them back to match his now sloppy thrusts. You can tell he is close by the rhythm.

“Touch.. touch my clit.” You plea. “Please, my love!”

His right hand moves from your waist to your clit, rubbing it in a circular motion.

“Cum with me, My High Lady.”

The knot in your stomach builds and before you know it the two of you both moan as your climaxes release, Eris doesn’t stop pounding until his load is deeply buried inside of you, slowly pulling out of your cunt he releases the flames binding you to the bed.

He flips you again before tugging you close to him, he holsters you up with one arm, throwing you over his shoulder before leading you to the bathroom. Once inside he flicks on the tub and places you in it.

“You want a bath still? Get clean. But right now I am not done with you.” Eris purrs before connecting his lips with your neck, he leaves dark red and purple bruises littering your throat.

“I love you.” He mutters.

“I love you too.” You smile at him, your lips kissing his hairline. “So much, Eris.”

He returns a smile before it fades into a mischievous smrik. “I am still not done with you, High Lady.”

You giggle before connecting your lips with your mates. What a beautiful way to become High Lady of the Autumn Court. And… to fuck your mate.

[sobakensyn]

I did a thing!

Translating this work was a challenge (cos I'm in no way a native speaker), but a pleasant one.

Fun fact: this fic was inspired by a dumpster fire that was the last season of Killing Eve. We were so pissed we wrote our own disFUNctional road movie love story with assassins, childhood traumas and food of questionable quality.

Please enjoy!

Gautama left the palace (4092 words) by Herzkollaps Chapters: 1/5 Fandom: One Piece (Anime & Manga) Rating: Mature Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Sanji/Trafalgar D. Water Law Characters: Sanji (One Piece), Trafalgar D. Water Law, Aka Ashi no Zeff | Red-Leg Zeff, Nami (One Piece), Nefertari Vivi, Shachi (One Piece), The Vinsmoke Siblings Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Child Abuse, Dealing With Trauma, Mentally unstable characters, Both of them, Assassins & Hitmen, Blood and Gore Summary:

"Looks like you don’t get it. This isn't some extreme adventure with a happy ending. I'm going to kill you, seriously." "Not every adventure is bound to have a happy ending."

[the-inkwell-variable]

seven sentence sunday

thank you for the tags, @space-writes and @the-golden-comet!

this snippet is from why should i be careful? i'm going to die anyway!

Aura forced herself to unwrap the chalupa - steak, her favorite, but it tasted like cement.  Her hope soured like milk in her gut.  Fuck.  She hadn't counted on Chris evacuating with his family.  He was the one with the guns, the iodine tablets, the MREs he'd bought 'just to try them'.  Hell, he was the one who carried a fire-starter tinder card in his wallet so he could set shit on fire without needing a cheap plastic lighter!  They needed him!  Every apocalypse plan she and Vivi had ever discussed included Chris, because they couldn't imagine him not being part of the group. But apparently, he thought they were capable of taking care of themselves.  He was going to do the noble thing and escort his underage siblings to the safest place they could be.  She should be proud of him - Chris wasn't exactly the noble type.  But her stomach felt like rocks and she could barely keep her food down.

TAGGING @leahpardo-pa-potato - @paeliae-occasionally - @winterandwords - OPEN TAG!