#vivi-set-this-on-fire

[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.

[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.

[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?”

[anystalker707]

Promise me

Pairing: Portgas D. Ace x [gender neutral] Reader Words: ~ 2 900 Summary: It almost feels like love at first sight, feelings playing with you while you fall for someone that can't stay Tags: Ace is very soft / Boyfriend content Ace / Fluffy af / Some little angst by the end A/N: he is so gender. if you complain about alabasta ace, you have no soul.

MASTERLIST

          Having the humid and fresh weather of the sea replaced by the dry and immensely hot Alabasta’s climate wasn’t something easy to handle, and it was already showing itself while you still crossed the Sandora River. At least the clothes Sanji had fixed wouldn't get you any sunburn, but it still didn’t stop you from wanting to toss them off to stop the heat, so your mood wasn’t the best at the moment. Only that cup of fresh water that Sanji gave you seemed to make things a little more manageable, sitting in the shadow near a few barrels on Merry’s deck.

“Oh, and who are you? What are you doing all curled up like that?” A new voice caught your attention, and it was the first time you looked at his face since Luffy started talking about him. Something shifted in your chest about the way he smiled at you. “You must be (y/n), hm? Luffy told me about you! Thank you for taking care of him!”

You raised your eyebrows with a hum. “It’s no problem! He’s been helping me as well. We got a nice crew.”

“Yeah?” Ace’s lips parted into a grin and he took a seat next to you. “C’mon, tell me more about yourself, and I’ll tell you about me.”

A trade? “And who said I want to know more about you, Fire Fist?” You raised an eyebrow, watching his cheeks slowly grow red as he looked away before you cracked a chuckle. “Sorry, I’m just joking! Go ahead, tell me your adventures!”

Ace was nice and easy to talk to, like a long lost best friend that walked into your life again and you had a lot to catch up with. Staying quiet was difficult when you were near him, even if you were literally making your way through the desert. In comparison, Nami sometimes exchanged words with Vivi, both supervised by an extra-worried Sanji. while Usopp, Luffy, Chopper and Zoro followed along, panting, with dragged steps. Vivi had a resistance to the weather that easily left all of you jealous.

“What happened to (y/n), hm?” Zoro groaned breathlessly. His heavy steps resulted in small mounds in the sand that were later erased by the wooden piece on which Chopper was being dragged down by him. “Won’t shut the hell up! Almost like Sanji when he sees a woman,” he continued grumbling despite how Sanji gasped and decided to get into yet another fight with him, and you couldn’t help but to chuckle, watching Ace’s eyes widen a little.

“It’s just like that.” You shrugged a little. “Sometimes Luffy gets in it too, y’know? They just never stop bickering. Maybe it’s some sort of love language.”

“That would make some sense.” Ace smiled. “Luffy and I wouldn’t stop sparring when we were younger. He would lose to me every single time, of course!”

“So you’re that strong?” You raise an eyebrow.

“That strong!” He grins, bringing up an arm to flex it, even if it’s covered by the heavy clothing to go through the desert; you mirror his grin, about to comment when Luffy’s complaining has both of you turning to watch him.

“I’m tired and hungryyy!” Luffy drags himself after you with a big pout. “Help me convince Sanji that we should eat!” He tugged on your sleeve then at Ace’s, but it wasn’t like he could do much.

Vivi shook her head. “We just took a pause at Erumalu, Luffy! We should save energy for later!”

Luffy frowned, hunching more. “But I’m sooo hungry! And very, very thirsty!”

She raised an eyebrow at him, slowly softening up according to how dramatic he got—she didn’t have the same resistance as the crew, and apparently Ace. “Well, we can stop as soon as the sun sets, so let’s focus on finding some rocks that we can rest nearby when the time comes. Do you think you can keep an eye out for them?”

“Just find rocks?” Luffy’s mood immediately lightened up as he giggled, quickly moving forward and hooking an arm around Usopp’s neck. “C’mon, help me find the next rocks! Then we can rest!”

“That’s not really what she said, Luffy...” Nami tried fruitlessly.

His antics had you chuckling a little, but just hearing about water somehow made your throat feel dry. Your eyes squinted at the horizon; the ground and the sky seemed to tremble under the immense heat, and the fact that sand extended itself for as far as your eyes could reach didn’t help. The heat was like an itch you couldn’t get rid of. Would this ever end?

A water bottle was suddenly shoved in front of you, making you stumble a little. “Here. Drink some of it.”

You furrowed your eyebrows at Ace, unable to hold back a smile. He was so sympathetic. “No, it is fine! I have my own water bottle with me, don’t worry about it! We just started our way, according to Vivi, so it’s best if I save water!”

“Then drink some of mine, I don’t mind!” Ace took a step forward so he could stop right in front of you.

“Ace...” You sighed, trying to take a step aside just for him to follow you. “Saving water counts for you as well!”

Ace rolled his eyes a little. “Your face is too red, but I am fine. Aside from that, I can handle heat well, y’know.” A proud smile adorned his features as he pushed the bottle your way, and you couldn’t help but just accept it, trying to balance how much you drank between feeling satisfied and not using much of his water. “This will help.” Ace placed his hat on top of your head, and you were about to complain when he pulled his shemagh over his head in a hood sort of way; he chuckled at how you scoffed. “Where is the shemagh you had?”

“Flew away back in Erumalu. Come on.” You handed his bottle back, finally allowed to walk past him without being stopped. “Look, they’ve continued walking without us!”

“We can catch up, don’t worry!” Ace took your hand in his, putting his bottle away with his free one. “There’s no need to rush if they are not out of sight. Do you need me to carry your stuff?”

“You’re already doing more than you should!” You squeezed his hand with a smile.

          The weather got colder according to how the sun went down, slowly making it more bearable; the weight on your head that clouded your thoughts slowly wore out, only leaving behind a tiredness that would certainly have you out like a light at the moment you rested your head.

"Hah, look at you!" Ace smiled, only letting go of your hand when you had to place your things down so you could camp for the night. "Feeling a lot better, aren't you?"

"Yeah!" You let your things fall to the ground and stretched with a soft groan. "And hungry..."

"Sanjiii..." The way Luffy walked past you almost as if summoned at the mention of food startled you; you sweatdrop while observing him.

Sanji clicked his tongue. "Give me a moment and I'll prepare dinner!"

It took a few minutes to put up the tents you needed for the night and, by the time you were done, it didn’t even feel like the same place that almost made you die of heat now had you almost dying of cold. You clung to the same clothes that you wanted to toss off not even a couple of hours ago.

“Why is it s—so cold at n—night?” Usopp trembled as he took a blanket to wrap it around himself, which he ended up sharing as Luffy took a seat next to him.

Vivi smiled a little as she organized her things before she would also sit down near the bonfire Sanji had made to heat up the food, joining everyone else in a circle around it. “There is nothing to absorb the heat of the day, so the nights can even get below 0 degrees celsius! We are going to be fine, though!”

“H—Hey, Chopper!” Usopp and Luffy called over the reindeer, resulting in another fight you weren’t able to follow; a tugging on your clothes had you looking down to see Ace patting the spot next to him on the blanket he had extended on the ground.

Ace smiled as he observed you, holding out his water bottle once again, making you frown a little whilst pushing it back to him. “Save it for yourself!” He rolled his eyes half heartedly at your words, taking a swig of it himself instead before he could put it away. Your eyes averted to the sky, observing how starry it was tonight. Of course you watched the stars often when on the sea, but they seemed a little different there. Sometimes you went so far that even the stars didn’t seem the same. “Are you feeling okay?”

“Yes, yes!” He leaned back on his hands with a soft sigh, following your gaze to the sky. “Thing’s a little harder than I imagined, but it’s alright. I see you liked it, hm?”

You raised an eyebrow and Ace nodded to your head in response, which had your cheeks burning. “Oh, I’m sorry! I ended up forgetting about it!” The hat had a couple of symbols on the front, a smiling and a frowning face that you almost questioned him about, instead preferring to just let it rest on his lap. “It was of great help!” Despite not seeming to feel cold, his cheek felt cold when you pressed a kiss to it, but it seemed to quickly change given how red it turned, worthy of a chuckle; Ace even grabbed his hat to cover his face.

“Food is ready!” Sanji announced, helped out by Chopper to hand out the bowls of food, as usual. Vivi and Nami were the first ones to be served, of course, followed by you and Ace. “Here it is, dearest (y/n)! And some for you as well, Ace!”

“Thank you!” You grinned. The warmth of the food was well welcomed by your cupped hands that held onto it until they were warm enough, and finally started to eat.

Eating Sanji’s warm and delicious food after a long day was so rewarding, to a point the usual talk that happened during the meals was now replaced by a comfortable silence of content. While you still slowly munched on your food, you quietly observed Ace clean his utensils already since he was by then done with his meal. Now that your body wasn’t even heated up due to the constant moving, the cold felt a lot more intense.

Ace raised an eyebrow when you shuffled around, curling up more. “You’re cold,” he pointed out, finishing to clean his fork. Of course; you just shrugged a little, nodding in response. With the fork put aside, Ace moved closer to you, throwing an arm around you. At first it was normal, but soon a comfortable and nice heat irradiated from him. “Does it feel okay?” He was close. His breath fanned against your ear.

“Yes, of course.” You smiled, leaning into his touch, and the way he grinned triggered a funny feeling in your chest that you wished it would never go away.

The silence, after the meal, was replaced by a calm and soft conversation that reflected how tired all of you were. Even Sanji wasn't as scandalous as he usually was, limited to quiet flirting and already discarding his cigarette. Your attention was pulled away from the others at the moment your bowl was removed from your hands, by Ace, who was cleaning it before you could even mutter a word. You clicked your tongue, making him chuckle.

“Do you want to lie down already?”

“Sounds good.” You helped Ace out with gathering your stuff so you could go into the tent, this time being fast enough to get most of the things before he could bother himself. The shoes and extra clothing were discarded aside and you fell to the makeshift bed with a soft sigh, knowing it wouldn’t feel that comfortable if it weren’t for the tiredness. As simple as it was, the tent gave you a sense of comfort that was intensified when Ace joined you, wrapping his arms around your torso as his head rested on your chest. “What are you doing?”

“We need to heat up,” he whispered, pulling himself closer. “Is it alright?”

“‘Feels good,” you admitted quietly. It was as if you were in certain debt with him given everything he was doing, so you brought a hand to hold onto his upper arm while the other played with his hair, running your fingers along his strands until his breathing became softer and deeper, short before you could feel your thoughts slipping from your grasp.

𓆟

          The new day already started quite agitated. First of all, you woke up covered in sand, then managed to get all your stuff stolen those weird Warusagi birds, followed by Luffy returning with a camel while chased by two Great Sandora lizards that easily became your meal after Luffy, Sanji and Zoro joined forces to defeat it.

“Sorry for Luffy,” Ace said again as the two of you sat together in the shadow of the rocks Luffy had spotted earlier, now resting after your meal, a little away from the others. Both of you had your legs crossed, leaning back against the rock wall; he had lent you his hat during the walk again, which rested on your lap at the moment, your fingers playing with its cord.

“No need to apologize so much!” You shook your head. “We’ve been with him long enough to notice how he is, and we’re ready to deal with it. Not to mention that he also helps us out, so...” You shrugged.

“Yes, still...” Ace trailed off as he bit on the skin around his thumb, but soon pushed the thoughts away with a groan, and there he was again, wrapping his arms around your torso to rest his head on your shoulder. You couldn’t help but hug him back, though adjusting your position a little until your cheek was pressed to his; he chuckled with it and so did you, nuzzling Ace a little, and... your eyes met his.

A smile continued lingering on your faces, twisting a little as if thrilled because you were doing something wrong, and the visual contact broke. Instead, it was Ace’s eyes traveling from yours to your lips in a silent question that you answered by leaning in to press your lips together. It was a soft kiss that held nothing but a genuine feeling behind it, at the same time demanding something you couldn’t quite place. The kiss wasn’t over so fast, only deepening with how his arms wrapped around you tighter, sending your heart fluttering, and you could bet he felt the same when you cupped the back of his neck to tilt his head so you could guide the kiss.

Pulling away was hard, also. It almost felt like each other would disappear if you kept your lips apart for too long, so it was followed by soft and longing pecks until all that rested were shy smiles and red faces. Your gaze met again, so you both chuckled; you brushed your nose against Ace’s before giving him another kiss.

“Look at you,” you mumbled adoringly, letting a hand fall to around his waist to hold him close as you nuzzled a spot under his ear; Ace didn’t know how to react, clearly, looking away as his cheeks adorned a bright red tone along with his cute freckles.

“Y’know,” Ace mumbled and gulped, taking a long pause, “I am... going to leave soon once I... find this Scorpion guy, y’know?” Ace’s words had too much space between them, spoken slowly as if he pondered each one of them. He cleaned his throat. “And maybe you could join the Whitebeard crew? I—I am not trying to, um, take you away from your friends, but... It would be nice. Maybe.”

Your heart sank a little with it and you sighed deeply, letting your hand fall from your neck to his, intertwining your fingers. “Ah, Ace, I... I really wish I could.” You observed your finger run along his knuckles, tracing them. “But what I want can only be achieved with this crew.”

“I understand, I’m so sorry for asking—”

“I would go with you if I could,” you mumbled, internally hitting yourself—was it too quick? But your life probably wouldn’t be that long, after all, because you surely wouldn’t be as lucky as someone like the pirates that could even retire in calm places far from the marine’s attention after growing too old to explore the sea or content with what they’d already achieved. It wouldn’t be everyday you’d find someone who clicked that well with you like Ace did, and it seemed like he felt the same about himself and regarding you. “Just like I know you’d come with me if you could, but things aren’t that easy.” You gave his hand a squeeze. “Still, I can go after you whenever I can, and you can come after me whenever you can.”

Ace let out a breath, sounding like he had been holding it for a time now. “Alright... Do you promise?”

“I promise.”

.𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟.

[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."

[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.

[queenimmadolla]

hi vivi!

what are the munson family up to this sunday?

They’re all starting the morning off by jumping on your bed to wake you up, and you can’t even be a little annoyed because of how happy you are to be woken up to a chorus of happy Mother’s Day, mommy, surrounded by smiles and laughter as they all bombard you with kisses, declarations of love and present you with their individual (and endearingly shitty) handmade gifts they’ve made you for Mother’s Day.

It also helps that you can smell the breakfast Eddie and the kids made you, the table is all set but you know as soon as they’ve given you ample Mother’s Day greetings, they’ll run to get the plates—and your flowers, of course, Eddie would never forget nor would his spawn allow him to—and you’ll all have breakfast in bed (except for wayne jr, he loves to sit on the floor) before you move to the living room for a movie marathon that’ll last the rest of the blissful day.

Eddie does accidentally set dinner on fire, though, so that ten minutes is spent with everyone screaming and the smoke detector going off lol

Eddie also wrote you a song for your gift and very insistently offers, throughout the entire day, to make you a mom again, which you politely decline. 🩷

[beanghostprincess]

Sabosan Modern AU in which Luffy hosts a party in his house because Ace and Sabo are both out for the night and he thinks it's a great opportunity to turn it into fun (because he hates having the place to himself. It's boring and lonely). It's just the usual six people (East Blue crew + Vivi) but they always have so much fun anyway. So the thing is- They're drunk. Wasted. And they don't even get in trouble anyway, they're just playing silly games in the safety of their home and there's nothing wrong with that, surprisingly. It's impressive how they manage to get in more trouble when they're sober. However, Sanji is going through a rough time. He's been quiet all night and everyone knows something's wrong with him because he has been in a mood for the past week, but he's Sanji, so, he won't talk. Something something, Zoro and Sanji fight like usual but this time Sanji is drunk and honest and everything hurts, so he ends up genuinely feeling like shit and going upstairs to ignore everyone because he can't handle all of that right now. Nobody follows him because again, they're all drunk and they don't even know what to do with that and it'd be surprising if they even noticed the fight because, again, drunk and playing games. And since Sanji has always been and always will be in a romantic teenage coming-of-age movie ever since WCI happened, Sabo just casually, randomly, comes back home because of inexplicable reasons (the reason being he fought with Koala in their college dorm for setting on fire one of their books while saying the educational system is a scam and she kicked him out for the night). So the guy sees all this party they have and just goes "I'm too tired for this. Just don't break anything and God, please, don't go into Ace's room" / Usopp: Wait, why? / Sabo: You don't wanna know.

So Sabo goes upstairs to his room, hoping to get some sleep or work done (work being planning his next riot, not studying. Imagine Sabo studying, pffft) but instead, he finds a blond sitting on his bedroom floor on the verge of a panic attack, drunk, crying and begging Sabo not to kick him out because he doesn't want to go back home. Sabo has no idea why the hell he's saying that because he doesn't want to kick them out, especially Sanji, now that he's saying all of these incoherent things about being afraid to go back home. Sabo recognizes what's going on because he has gone through this himself and they also have to deal with Ace's panic attacks a lot. So he helps Sanji calm down and ends up reassuring him that no, he's not going back home tonight. He can stay all he wants. And Sanji keeps crying and whispering things and names Sabo only knows because of magazines and the news ("Vinsmoke Ichiji, next in line to preside the executive table at Germa Enterprises!" / "Commonly known as a heartbreaker, Vinsmoke Niji was recently seen on a date with one of Charlotte Linlin's daughters!" / "Accused of problematic commentaries, Vinsmoke Yonji addresses the discourse by saying, and I quote 'Who the fuck cares?'"). So, alright, Sabo is not fond of the Vinsmoke family and at first he wasn't fond of Sanji either for the same reason, but he's different from them and he has known ever since two years ago the guy came over with lots, and lots of food only because Luffy wasn't eating properly. But Sabo now knows the rich family isn't just full of shit socially but also inside, and seeing Sanji so anxious and weak about it makes his blood boil. Now is not the time to get angry, though, so he just stays by his side and waits for him to calm down, offering him a shoulder to cry on. The guy is drunk and having the breakdown of his life and the only thing Sabo can do right now is be there for him, even if he wishes he could just go over to their ridiculously huge house and burn it down. The things Sanji talks about aren't pretty. They make him want to throw up.

Sanji ends up falling asleep and Sabo takes him to his bed so he doesn't sleep, well, on the floor. Sabo goes downstairs instead. Besides, he has to clean up the mess the others made anyway.

So Sanji wakes up in a random bed, recognizing the room, and wanting to die from the hangover he's having right now. But he remembers everything, sadly, and he wants to die from embarrassment because he just vented to his friend's brother like it's nothing. They get along, but not that much to do shit like this. He wants to try and sneak out of their house before anybody notices, but of course, Sabo does. It seems the guy has a power for these things. But Sabo is extremely nice, actually, and it isn't that awkward in the end. They're alone because the others got up earlier to go home and Luffy went with them too to spend the rest of the day with Zoro (wow, who could've guessed). Sanji doesn't want to go home but he needs to get the fuck out of here because he feels like he's intruding, especially since Sabo has made breakfast (normal, regular breakfast. Nothing too special but it's way more than what he expected from these siblings). He has to finish eating and then he'll go home! But then Sabo offers him a shower and- Okay. He'll go home after having breakfast and showering! But then Sabo tells him to, please, stay, and be my guest, it's a bit boring here on my own and I want an excuse not to study. And how can Sanji say no to the guy who has helped him so much? So he stays. And one thing leads to another and it's already nighttime because they actually have a lot of things in common and they have fun together- But Sanji needs to go home. Now. Because if the news finds out about him being away for this long it's gonna be a problem and his brothers will be twice as annoying.

Sabo finally lets him go but- But there's something in his eyes when he does. He's worried sick. He's so concerned for him that it's aching inside of Sanji's heart too. Sanji wants to stay the same way Sabo wants him to not go. Almost begs him to. But he can't. But Sanji knows, then, that if he ever needs somebody to talk to, Sabo isn't that far from home anyway.

[blacklegsanjiii]

Based off that ask about ASL+S but also golden, croc and warlord Sanji's growing up and being friends. I had a thought golden!Sanji and Single dad!Mihawk who keep visiting because it's good for Sanji. And after Sabo dies and Sanji is crying and Ace is telling Sanji that's not what he would want. Ace is telling him to toughen up and Luffy is nodding and Mihawk sits them down and explains grief and that there's no time limit for it and like he's talking to them like they're little adults. He also somehow goes back to Kuraigana as a father of three and not just one.

Mihawk suddenly has two absolutely feral children on his island who willingly rile up the humandrills, one of them is rubber, the other is the son of Roger and Rouge, he does not tell Shanks he has them, and his bed has four people sleeping in it regularly. It doesn't start that way every night but that's how he wakes up most mornings. He doesn't mind though, there's something about how the three of them are that makes his heart happy.

Mihawk lets Ace build his massive fires and lets Luffy rubber band around the island. He's not surprised when Garp shows up demanding to take Ace and Luffy back to Foosha but Mihawk simply says no, he won't let them go. He'll sink Garp's ship before letting him take them. Garp is looking at him and then Ace and Luffy march forward while Sanji is quietly trying to get them to stop and go back, but they tell Garp to go away because they're happy. Garp says he'll be checking in and gives both Luffy and Ace fists of love and looks at Sanji, who is shaking and looking at him in fear. Luffy says he can't hit Sanji hard because he cries a lot and Garp is going on about being his grandson and how he needs to learn but Mihawk and Ace are telling Garp if he touches Sanji he's going to get it. Garp says he'll be checking in and leaves and Luffy whines he's hungry so they go make lunch. Garp starts making multiple visits and stops hitting Ace and Luffy because the second time he visited Mihawk set the humandrills on him.

Mihawk brings home the mera mera no mi from a raid and is making calls to find where best to sell it when he feels the rubber fingers of his youngest son and then his body snap into him and tell him his eldest son is on fire so he hangs up quickly, holds onto Luffy tightly and runs. Sanji is staring at Ace who is indeed on fire. Ace is laughing though and he's not hurt, he is not burning. After checking the three of them over and deeming them all unharmed, surprisingly, he tells Ace he's not mad and just glad he's okay.

Luffy has a hard time adjusting when Sanji goes to work at Baratie full time and when Ace sets off not long after. But Mihawk takes him to visit Sanji a lot and when he has to go on jobs as a Warlord he calls Luffy every day to check on him because Mihawk knows Luffy hates being alone. So when he sets off and starts gathering his crew and they end up at Baratie and Zoro fights his and Sanji's dad basically at what is basically their uncle's restaurant and almost dies and then the ship gets stolen by Nami. Luffy finds Sanji at one point and says they are not telling Ace about any of this and Sanji fucking loses it.

When they see Ace in Alabasta and all catch up. They don't really mention Sanji is their brother but Ace and Luffy show up their brotherly habits. It's good being together again but it's over too soon as Ace continues on and they get Alabasta back for Vivi. Things are pretty normal until Marineford where when Luffy breaks out of Impel Down with his whole team he sees Mihawk waiting with the other Warlords and Ace and Garp on the execution platform.

It all comes to a head when Sengoku is pressuring Ace to claim Roger as his father and Ace claims he has two but Roger is not one of them. Mihawk steps forward and away from the other warlords and joins Luffy in the fight to save Ace which no one fucking expected. After the fight, Ace and Luffy are both severely injured so Law takes Luffy and Marco takes Ace. Shanks looks at Mihawk who simply ignores him and leaves.

When the crew reunites on Sabaody, Zoro is pissed because Mihawk is there with him and keeps guiding him by yanking his shirt. As the rest of the crew and Ace arrive they look at Mihawk in puzzlement because they all know Mihawk helped at Marineford without a reason, except for Ace, Luffy and Sanji. When everyone is on the ship Luffy can't help himself to rubber band himself to Mihawk while yelling 'Dad!' at the top of his fucking lungs which makes everyone but Ace and Sanji stare in shock.

"You can't just yell that, Luffy." Sanji sighs.

"I didn't even say it at my execution, which where you for that?" Ace asks Sanji.

"Running for my life." Sanji shrugs. Mihawk sighs as Luffy laughs. Once things are explained to the crew they set off. Things go as normal just Ace is there, and they run into Sabo in Dressrosa. Ace quickly tells him Mihawk somehow convinced them to go to Kuriagana and raised them there until they set off and he's basically the man Luffy and Ace consider 'dad' as Sabo is like 'yeah, this explains everything at the execution basically and Dragon is going to love hearing this' and Sanji just fired on Big Mom's ship and is on the way to Zou. Sabo gets a double whammy punch from both his brothers though.

When Cross Guild forms, Crocodile asks during a random meeting why Mihawk joined the fight to save Ace. Crocodile understands Buggy, it was his captain's kid but Mihawk? What the Hell was he doing? Mihawk simply gives a small smirk and reminds him Ace said he had two men he considered his fathers but he also knows Ace has three brothers which makes Buggy blink at him and Crocodile yell.

[percyaugod]

MSA: Cottage Ghost AU: Kill Them with Kindness

Lewis may not remember anything, but he is still a vengeful ghost. He has underlying anger but nothing to tie it to and doesn't want to get upset with people who haven't done anything wrong.

After everything he's been through he deserves it. He may not remember what happened, but he's still very upset about it and needs some kind of outlet. Why not use it to bully insist people take care of themselves?

Arthur not taking care of himself and making him a prime target makes a part of Lewis absolutely giddy.

It would make sense to Lewis. Especially considering how thin and tired Arthur looks. Don't even get him started on the missing arm thing. What even caused that!?

Lewis is about to shove the food down Arthur's throat and knock him out himself because the guy looks too thin and way too exhausted. He will punch you with healthy eating and sleeping habits, so help him.

If you're that determined to run yourself into the ground, Lewis can help with that too. He sets his fist on fire.

Vivi: He's just showing he cares Arthur.

Meanwhile, Lewis is standing there motionlessly with a knife, staring while Arthur eats.

Also, they were apparently really close when he was alive, Vivi bringing entire scrapbooks with pictures of them trying to jog his memories. It's weird seeing himself with flesh, he doesn't like it.

The fact he looks so different now probably makes it worse. Nothing quite like seeing yourself in a complete stranger.

At first, Lewis wondered if they even had the right ghost, but didn't know how to bring his concern up to the others.

Those moments when he wasn't sure were when he was the least persistent with Arthur because he knew nothing would hurt Arthur worse than that crushed hope. The thought alone soothed something inside Lewis. He later thinks he must have been happy his friend cared so much.

[eroguron0nsense]

One Piece Hunger Games Simulator Part 6/6

Link to Part 5 (parts 1-4 enclosed therein)

Final 2: Monkey D Luffy, Tony Tony Chopper

Tony Tony Chopper kills Monkey D Luffy with his own weapon. The winner is Tony Tony Chopper from District 9!

Placements:

Tony Tony Chopper (1 kill)

Monkey D Luffy (2 kills)

Trafalgar D Water Law (4 kills)

Nico Robin

Bepo (2 kills)

Portgas D Ace (4 kills)

Basil Hawkins (1 kill)

Mad Monk Urouge

Blackbeard (1 kill)

Eustass Kid

Nefertari Vivi

Scratchmen Apoo

Franky

Capone Bege (1 kill)

X Drake (1 kill)

Mr 2 Bon Clay

Killer (1 kill)

Roronoa Zoro

Usopp

Sanji

Nami

Jewelry Bonney (1 kill)

Jinbe

Brook

Summary:

The Bloodbath Jewelry Bonney strangles Brook after engaging in a fist fight. Capone Bege snaps Jinbe's neck.

Day 1 Blackbeard tracks down and kills Jewelry Bonney.

Night 1 X Drake kills Nami with her own weapon. Sanji is unable to convince Killer to not kill him.

Day 2 No deaths occurred.

Night 2 Usopp dies trying to escape the arena. Portgas D Ace severely injures Roronoa Zoro, but puts him out of his misery. Killer begs for Basil Hawkins to kill him. He reluctantly obliges, killing Killer.

Day 3 Mr 2 Bon Clay poisons Mad Monk Urouge's drink, but mistakes it for his own and dies.

Night 3 Portgas D Ace stabs X Drake while his back is turned.

Day 4 Bepo strangles Capone Bege with a rope. Trafalgar D. Water Law sets Franky on fire with a molotov.

Night 4 Scratchmen Apoo dies trying to escape the arena.

Day 5 Basil Hawkins forces Trafalgar D. Water Law to kill Monkey D. Luffy or Nefertari Vivi. He decides to kill Nefertari Vivi. Portgas D Ace strangles Eustass Kidd after engaging in a fist fight. Blackbeard falls into a frozen lake and drowns.

Night 5 Portgas D Ace stabs Mad Monk Urouge with a tree branch. Nico Robin forces Bepo to kill Basil Hawkins or Trafalgar D. Water Law. He decides to kill Basil Hawkins.

The Feast Monkey D. Luffy and Trafalgar D. Water Law fight Portgas D Ace and Bepo. Monkey D. Luffy and Trafalgar D. Water Law survive. Nico Robin cannot handle the circumstances and commits suicide.

Day 6 Trafalgar D. Water Law dies from an infection.

Night 6 Tony Tony Chopper kills Monkey D. Luffy with his own weapon. The winner is Tony Tony Chopper from District 9!

[basedkikuenjoyer]

Dos Soles

1118 ended up being a very interesting chapter for me. Didn't need to read it too deeply, but it immediately serves as this big "separate the wheat from the chaff" moment for ideas swirling around in my head. Luckily it's the type where the deep core is further enhanced while the little nuts and bolts "how" parts fizzle. There's an idea I had previously, for Chapter 1101 titled Backup Drummer where we said a lot of this idea, but reversed in Kuma's backstory. How Stussy has this oddball moment of butting in while Kuma is shifting gears. Laying groundwork she'll pick back up in very recent chapters.

So that got a lot more literal with 1118. While the broadcast literally crackles over a seemingly big reveal (an idea we already saw in a meta sense with Sabo/Vivi) our side story crackles. We snap back to mostly an update on the Straw Hats and what's going on in Egghead. Noteworthy though that the world's reaction starts to shift against the Straw Hats. If nothing changes, it feels like they might endure Sabo's fate of a government assassination of a popular figure being pinned on them. All while we're at a juncture this "side story" of Vegapunk's broadcast is ready to shift gears. Not unlike Marineford in a way. So let's keep that big picture element in mind looking at the rest.

First off, strike against two nuts and bolts ideas. We see Leo here and York was right about Robonosuke. So like, directly hijacking the broadcast or calling in the Grand Fleet look a lot fuzzier. Though of course there's lots of roads to use Robonosuke and he's still undercooked and we're also finally seeing a Grand Fleet captain once there's a "crackle." That's not meaningless.

For Robonosuke though, one thing that stands out to me is that it vs. Bonney in this chapter sorta play a nice game with the difference between Joy Boy and Nika. Those concepts have gotten a lot fuzzier thanks to Vegapunk's cast and I'm still 100% behind the idea the actual point is all of that prophecy stuff is a distraction. So without further ado...

There seems to be some controversy, not on my end. I've said for a while we're seeing the end of Bonney's journey. You fit this interesting space next to Koby & Yamato with Vivi trending towards it over time. Rebecca's not a bad one either. Someone inspired by Luffy who could easily be the "relatable" protagonist of a series. But together enhance the idea Luffy's a step further. Way I've always put it is One Piece is not a coming of age tale, it's a young man's odyssey.

Anyways, you get my point right? Kuma shifts into the next phase of his big segment, Stussy steps up and seeds her inner conflict as an intermission. The broadcast fuzzes out as we've set up Stussy & Drake? Bonney gets an excellent capstone moment. Much like we had a glimpse of her transitioning over into filling in the real version of Sabo at the Reverie.

Now don't skip what's right before this. Luffy going all Nika is framed as reckless. The giants had that kinda creepy SMILE-type mirth going on. Talking about how they need to tend to the fire. If nothing else kinda shows why it's dangerous if the devotee is hanging around, is "Nika" taking over and seeking this kind of influence? Excellent stuff to transition this segment, it'll be fun to watch how the next steps shift things.

Especially if we start playing with the specific idea of Luffy lunging back in after everyone's efforts got him to safety, the purest potential expression of how much Nika's silliness may be making him walk back growth we saw through Wano. It's very fitting a lot of the anger seems centered around the idea Oda's losing the story with all this...because I still think that's the point if Luffy doesn't rein in his awakening.

[trickstarbrave]

azura's shrine scene....

i am half awake so. apologies for any weird typos or if it doesn't sound good. i just really wanted to write this out before i went to bed.

vivi au again... this one where steren and vivi are in love. vivienneis from @mulberrycafe!!

--

Steren had a bad feeling. 

He jolted awake to the sound of the heavy inn door shutting, body screaming at him to move. The bed beside him was empty, a chill settling in and not just from the lack of body heat of his lover keeping him warm.

Vivienne had a strange look on his face when he heard about the shrine of Azura. Had he really gone there? 

He shoved his clothes on, burying himself in the warm furs and enchanted cloak. From the room beside him, Kaidan came out with a yawn, giving him an odd look.

“What are you doing dressed like that…?” It was late, after all. Under normal circumstances he would in fact be dead asleep, but his anxiety only continued to grow.

“Vivienne is missing.” He said simply, putting Trueflame on his belt. He rarely used it, but if there was ever a time for it, it would be now. “I’m going to go bring him back.”

Kaidan had paused for a moment, before turning. “I’ll get Taliesan up and get dressed.”

“I’m heading to the shrine of Azura.” Steren replied, already heading to the door. “I’ll meet you there.” 

How long had it been since he confronted Azura…? For him it had been months. In truth it was closer to two centuries in this world, if daedric princes even perceived time the same way mortals did. If things were fine when he arrived, maybe he would demand an answer as to why she dropped him here. But he couldn’t shake that something very, very wrong was going to happen instead. 

Steren hated the cold too--especially with how dark it was. The only light was from the moons, stars twinkling overhead. Why had his people built the damn thing so far north? Ridiculous. It would have been better near the hotsprings further south… At least then he could keep warm. 

But as he approached, he quickly heard the loud, angry yelling of Azura booming in his head.

“You dare come to my shrine after all you have done?!” Steren moved his feet faster, trying to force himself through the heavy snow despite his exhaustion. “You defile my shrine with the blood of my priestess and you still believe you have a right to speak to me?!”

“Sh-she was trying to kill me you crazy bitch!” Vivienne shouted in reply over the howling wind. “I’ve never once set foot in any shrine to you! I’ve never once said anything against your name! I came here with questions to know why I was forbidden near you and now I can see why!! You’re a fucking sham! You can pretend to be good all you want but no god who attacks those seeking them is worthy of any kind of worship at all!!”

Then there was the sound of Azura laughing, as Steren forced himself to move faster, his breath coming quick, lungs burning from what felt like shards of ice pricking it. “A sham, am I?” More laughter followed as Steren could see Vivienne at the shrine now, his hood blown off. “A sham says the false god!” Winged twilights appeared as well, claws eager and ready to spill more blood on the steps. 

Steren had finally made it in time to pull out Trueflame, the warmth of the fire at least keeping his face warm, as he cleanly sliced one of the daedra’s arms off. The winged twilight screamed in agony, hissing and spitting and cursed at him. He then looked up at the shrine, overlaid with the image of Azura. 

She locked eyes on his, her expression from rage faltering.

“You…” She began. “You are not supposed to be here.” 

“And here I am.” Steren glared. 

“The interference must have been Vivec…” Azura scowled again,the winged twilights ready to rip him apart but being held back by Azura’s hesitance. “You were supposed to be--” 

“I did everything you asked of me.” Steren began. “Set me up to get the divine disease,” He took another step forward, still glaring. “And I did.” It was agonizing, painful, and horrifying. To be plagued with nightmares and fever. To feel like his body was not his own. To wonder if he was doomed, just like the other twisted monsters he had seen. “Then you had me complete the trials, and I did as you asked.” How fucking insufferable some of it was--he had to be complacent in slavery, he had to bend over backwards to appease some nobles. He had to kill and lie and blackmail and even use sex to accomplish it. “I even killed my father as you asked, and said goodbye to my other one!”

Steren had to. He knew if Dagoth Ur wasn’t stopped, it would be the end of everything else. More ruined families. More ruined lives.His ata was long gone in terms of sanity, merely a twisted shell in a reanimated body. And he said goodbye to his dad because he knew it wouldn’t be long until he too joined Nerevar and Voryn in the afterlife. They couldn’t change the past, but they could spend countless years in Moonshadow together, without the fear of death or politics getting in the way.

“And all I fucking asked after every fucking hell you put me through was to be with my parents again!” That was all he had wanted at the time. He wasn’t asking for much; just kill him quick and painless and send him on his way. He didn’t care if he had to wait a bit either in Moonshadow for his parents’ souls to be ready to greet him. He just wanted to be in their arms at last, and finally rest. “All I asked was to see them again… And you sent me to another world so I can never meet them again!” 

“I did as was promised--” Azura began, her brow furrowed, but Steren wasn’t finished, all the rage inside him bubbling up. 

“And then when I finally make something for myself here, finally decided to build a life here and be happy,” He grit his teeth, “Mephala ordered my lover to kill me!” What had he done that was so objectionable to the Good Three? He followed his orders and played his part. He was clever. He killed when he had to. He overthrew authority as promised. He slayed the sharmat and became hortator. He completed every trial even when he wanted nothing more than to fucking give up--and they still wanted him dead and alone from everything he had ever known! “And now here you are, trying to kill my lover yourself!” 

“Vivec has tricked you!” Azura hissed. “I gave you everything as promised, and yet you listen to the lies and manipulations of a false god!”  The ground trembled from her rage now. “He is the one who separated you from your parents! He is the one who wants you dead!” 

“Don’t you dare lie to my fucking face.” Steren hissed. “Vivienne is not Vivec, and he loves me. He saved me.” 

Steren knew that at least. He knew Vivienne was not Vivec. He knew Vivienne was kind--too kind, in fact. He would give nearly anything to save someone else, nearly died saving this gods forsaken world to kill the World Eater himself. And at the end of the day he continued to lay awake feeling guilty and horrible for things he had no control over. He continued to feel like he was dirty, unworthy of love, and unworthy of praise. He feared one day everyone would leave him, and justifiably so--even Steren who had nowhere else to go home to. 

Vivienne saved his life nearly countless times, but more than that, he gave Steren a reason to live. Before he got his memories of his first lifetime, he was going through the motions, terrified and confused. Then when he got them back, he was on a mission to save both of his parents from the tragedy they were trapped in. With that done, after lifetimes of being left alone and confused, wondering what his place was in the world, he had… Nothing. No reason to go on. No one to love him. No where he wanted to be. Nothing he wanted to do. 

But Vivienne gave him a reason to live. Not just survive, but truly live. They sang. They danced. They played music together and broke bread together. They complained together and stargazed together. Vivienne kept him warm for no other reason than to try and make Steren comfortable. He found himself wanting to be there--to be by Vivienne’s side just a bit longer. To watch him fail to lie and covering for him with the moon-and-star ring’s enchantment. To listen to his sweet laughter. To hold him in his arms every night. 

For once, Steren felt like a full, complete person. He stopped missing his parents and bemoaning his lot in life. He would forever miss and grieve them, but here, like this, he could build a life even knowing he would never see them again. He was healing. He was loved. 

And he wasn’t going to let anyone take that from him, daedric prince or not. 

“Kill the false god,” Azura hissed as the winged twilights readied themselves, “And bring this disobedient, misguided child to Mournhold to be punished accordingly.” He didn’t care what threats she made; Steren wasn’t going anywhere--

“No!” Vivienne suddenly shouted, storm clouds rolling in suddenly. There was something off about his voice… Not like the dragon tongue, but something deeper, rawer trembling in it. 

A massive bolt of lightning struck the statue and the daedra. Steren had to close his eyes from the light, groaning as he was near blinded by the intensity, being blasted back into the snow. 

When his eyes finally readjusted he quickly pulled himself out of the snow he was knocked into, sprinting and tripping his way back up the shrine. “Vivienne!?” He shouted, terrified. 

He couldn’t lose Vivi--he had already lost everything else. He couldn’t lose another person he loved. 

Back up at the shrine, Steren could hear Kaidan and Taliesan shouting, not far behind. The statue was reduced to nothing but rubble, the daedra laying dead--mostly bloodied gore, if he was being honest. 

And floating above it was Vivienne, gently floating down as though he were nothing more than a weightless snowflake, before his body went limp the moment it touched the ground.

“Vivienne?!” Steren grabbed him quickly, ripping off his own glove to check for a pulse. Vivienne was alive--but he was freezing, cold as ice. “Vivienne, it’s alright--wake up--”

“Steren,” Kaidan came in quickly, also checking his pulse with a furrowed brow, before taking Vivienne from his arms. Steren growled, teeth bared, only to be pulled back by Taliesan.

“Kaidan brought his horse.” Taliesan explained. “And it’s fucking frigid out here--the both of you will freeze to death if we let you carry him back.” Steren hated that he had a point, watching Kaidan climb up on the horse with Vivienne in his arms. Steren couldn’t handle the cold and was already trembling this far up north, even with Trueflame and his enchanted cloak. He couldn’t keep Vivienne warm, and instead he would quickly become dead weight. “Let’s get you back as well so you can both warm up--” 

Steren allowed it, letting Taliesan help him up on his own horse, before riding back to the inn. But the whole ride he watched Vivienne’s silvery hair sway in the wind outside the hooded cloak Kaidan pulled over him, feeling nothing more than helpless. 

He couldn’t save his parents. He couldn’t protect Vivienne. What could he do? Was he destined to lose everything he loved? Was that the cruel fate decided for him since birth…? 

No. No, even if that was what the god’s decided, Steren refused to be a plaything to fate of all things. 

Let the gods curse him. Let the daedra brand him for death or order him to be dragged back to their temples to be tortured for his disobedience. Let them try to take one more fucking thing away from him. 

Steren had killed gods before, and he would do it again if he had to.