#wait why is the cane on the wrong side

[badvertorial]

Chef Gets Fired After Helping Old Disabled Man, Not Realizing Who He Just Helped

[snowjemmer]

When I recover from whatever flare up is happening rn I'm becoming a dog. Fuck being a puppyboy nah I'm a full puppy. No school. I'm smoking bowls and laying on mt back and wagging my tail and sitting in my bed and nothing else I was not made to exist as a human person

[madschiavelique]

A Crown Of Ink : Chapter 5 - Temperance

summary : viktor and reader work together in the library (so much banter, it's insane), then maybe there's a small fight because a guy called viktor a cripple and that causes some issues

content warnings : mentions of blood but really not that much tbh

word count : 5,4k

author's note : you thought i was gone on this one huh ? WRONG. we're so back babies! i know it's been 2 years since i've touched this baby okay, but i'm back now! hopefully i will get more time to write about this lil guy bc i love this fic.

proofread by the lovely @yaffles-world

masterlist : here ．．discord : here ．．playlist : here

taglist : @doctorho

For the rest of the two long hours, Heimerdinger continued his lesson.

The class had come to an end, you silent, the class teeming with gossip. Professor Heimerdinger had distributed the subjects one by one to the students at the end of the lesson. He was a perfectly reasonable, friendly teacher who tried to make his pupils laugh at the expense of their historical knowledge.

When you had a lesson with him, you knew you were listening to a teacher who was wise enough to turn events and experiences into jokes to lighten the burden of his history lessons.

He was always on the lookout for questions and comments from the students, not hesitating for a moment as he gave the subjects to the groups one by one to point out the difficulties they might find and the pitfalls that might await them.

In short, Heimerdinger wanted his students to succeed, not to see a decline in the Piltover Academy's chances of success, which in the eyes of many seemed to be something to crow about rather than something to be ashamed of.

The very idea of being one of the few students to overcome these difficulties and succeed was, in your eyes, the greatest reward that could ever be given to you.

“Young folks,” he said, pointing to the two of you. “Come this way. I have reserved a subject especially for you.”

Heimerdinger didn't do things haphazardly. He gave students subjects that reflected them, or at least where he knew the results would be most interesting. You couldn't help but fear what he was up to.

When the students had dispersed, the tinkle of Viktor's cane sounded until he arrived at your side. You sighed audibly as you looked at him, crossing your arms over your chest as he gave you a winning smile.

He seemed to enjoy it when you got angry, and took great pleasure in teasing you constantly. Had he been a friend, you wouldn't have held it against him, even though your list of friends consisted mainly of Eris, Sky and Jayce. However, a friend wasn't supposed to be a problem for your success. There's only so much space in the academy for students who come out on top, and you weren't about to give yours away.

“Good,” he said at last as the last student passed through the doorway. “There's no need to point out that you two are the sharpest elements of this class, you're well enough aware of that, as is the rest of the school certainly.”

Your bickering and petty battles almost made the corridors of the school come alive again with the excitement of rumour and gossip partaking in your reputation.

“None of the fellow teachers in this establishment seem to have brought to the table, however, a possibility which seems to me to be the most interesting for both of you: teamwork.”

You arched an eyebrow, finding the reasoning profoundly moronic.

“Sir,” you couldn't help but point out, “this school is eliminatory. Why would you want to associate students who won't necessarily all have the chance to pass the exams?”

Heimerdinger chuckled, “I'm not doing it with the prospect of a pass or a gold medal waiting for you at the finish line, Miss.”

You tilted your chin up in a slight pout of surprise.

“You see, I'm not necessarily trying to prepare you for the exams, but for what will happen once they're over. Having a diploma is all very well on paper, but what counts most in the end will be what you achieve.”

“All right,” you admit, “but why put us in a pair like this?”

“It's quite simple,” he jumped up from his desk, trotting across the floor to stand in front of you, your eyes downcast on him. “In the working environment, you don't always find a shoe to fit. And when you don't have the power to dismiss your colleague just because you don't like them, you have to learn to sacrifice your temperament for the sake of the common good. Now, I'm not asking you to make sacrifices, that word is far too violent, but I am asking you to compromise.”

You exchanged a look with Viktor, your fists clenching until your knuckles were white. You'd already made enough compromises for one lifetime, and now you had to go on? He, for his part, didn't seem too bothered by the situation. How could he be so calm? So serene about the idea of cooperating?

“You don't always work with the person of your choice, and not always on the subjects you'd prefer. Oh, that's just it! Speaking of subjects…”

He stood on tiptoe, grabbing the last sheet of paper from his desk and holding it out to Viktor.

The latter, for once, frowned in pure confusion and even perhaps... irritation?

“The evolution of Zaun's power?”

Your eyes narrowed before shifting from Viktor to Heimerdinger, “Are you joking?”

“I do love to laugh young lady but the shortest jokes are the best. You both seem, for different reasons, to have an excellent knowledge of Zaun. Its political power, its evolution, and even the iconic figures who can make themselves forgotten in the shadows of its depths.”

You exhaled a shaky breath, trying to remain upright and not revolt on the spot. Heimerdinger seemed way too amused and happy of his little scheme.

“Any questions?”

Viktor read the subject and what you had to complete, “Do you have any books to recommend to us Professor?”

Heimerdinger's voice became a blur as your thoughts drifted like the Grey in Zaun. Every corner of this city was out to kill you, and even when you were out of it, it followed you like your shadow.

Were you ever going to get out of such a cycle, out of this city’s grasp ?

“Miss?”

The teacher's voice brought you back down to earth. Distracted, you simply offered a confused hum in question so that he would repeat his last words.

“Your assignment is due in a month. That gives you time to put your differences aside and find a way of working together. If you'll excuse me, my next class is coming up soon.”

He gestured towards the exit, and soon enough you found yourselves in the corridor. The momentary emptiness of the hall almost seemed to bring you back to reality.

You drew in a breath, meeting Viktor's gaze beside you. You couldn't afford to get a bad mark, especially not for a Heimerdinger course. He was one of the most renowned scientists in the country, with his own seat on the Piltover council. To produce mediocre work would be to end your career on the spot, and you were prepared to at least try to cooperate with someone like Viktor.

“Why are you not begging the teacher to put us both in different duos?” you asked while Viktor was still reading the subject content.

“Hm, I think it might be fun.” he said, not even glancing at you.

You scoffed, “You and me?” your trigger finger pointing back and forth between the two of you, “Together? Fun?”

His eyes dropped from the paper, scanning you with a changed interest.

“You'd rather go back in there and ask for a rematch like a loser?”

A muscle near your eye tensed for a moment.

He sighed, his eyes returning to the subject, “Admitting defeat takes strength.”

“So you think I'm weak ?”

But Viktor didn't seem to have the slightest interest in you at the moment.

You relaxed your shoulders, sighing. There was no point in trying to beat him, you weren't - on that subject at least - in competition.

“Can I see the subject?” you asked, reaching for the paper, but he removed it from your reach in an instant.

You frowned, this wasn't going to be easy.

“Do I disgust you?” he asked.

The question caught you off guard, your eyes blinking several times as you almost looked at him with fresh eyes.

If the question was purely physical, no, Viktor didn't disgust you. He was always accompanied at all times and in all places by that same invariable weariness that gave him a particular elegance. He had features common in Zaun, brown hair, amber eyes, and an accent that made some of the girls in your class drop like flies.

When it came to his character and personality though, it was another thing entirely.

“You annoy me,” you replied, managing to snatch the subject of his hand with enough agility that the gesture left him surprised, “but you don't disgust me.”

He remained silent for a moment. You could feel his eyes on you as yours fell on those of the subject.

“The only thing that disgusts me is your taste in pasta,” you confirmed.

He let out a little laugh, the kind that mixes humming and nose blowing, the kind you do when a remark makes you nostalgic.

“Friday, 5pm, library, don't be late.” he said simply, the clink of his cane echoing on the floor as he began to walk away.

As your eyes roamed over the page, you couldn't help but take in nothing of what was written. Your mind was stuck on him, on the trick Heimerdinger had just played on you.

He had just orchestrated a game that the whole school was going to bet on, the teachers were going to look at your situation in a new light, and in the worst case scenario, multiply the group work to put you both in pairs.

Your heart looped as you realised that this was undoubtedly another test. Heimerdinger was going to observe which of you was the best performer, the most pliable, the best at teamwork.

You had to be flawless, you had to.

Friday came earlier than you imagined, and you weren't looking forward to it in the least. You hadn't stopped thinking about it, finding yourself on numerous occasions distracted during your homework.

The card of the day you had drawn was Temperance, and the little booklet told you:

Alchemy. Mixing and harmonising opposing forces and concepts. Maintaining opposing ideas and encouraging complexity in life. Fusion produces evolution.

The archangel Gabriel, the angel messenger, is represented on the card. He wears the sign of the sun on his forehead. This is also the alchemist's symbol for gold. This card reflects the changing of the seasons and the adoption of new ideas. Temper in Latin is the act of repetition to invoke skill or to refine something, to make it sharper like a sword.

What a pain that was, and to think you'd have to endure this for a whole month of deep research and hours spent by his side working, together.

You dragged your feet as you made your way to the academy library.

It was a magnificent place, filled with the smell of varnished wood, old paper and dried ink. The ceiling was arched, the bookshelves forming real walls that separated the room like rows of pews in a church. If it hadn't been reserved for the academy's research students, it would surely have been on Piltover's list of monuments to visit.

There weren't many people there, apart from a small handful of students finishing their homework before basking in the arrival of the weekend. You were a good fifteen minutes early, and didn't see Viktor at all.

You were just about to put your bag and things down by a table and start your research, when a voice you wouldn't have preferred to hear at the time greeted you:

“Ah, there you are,” Viktor approached, coming out of one of the library corridors, “I just needed some help to get to the higher tomes.”

With his free hand, he held up a small stack of tomes, pressing them under his chin before placing them on a table with two or three other books already laid out.

You sighed, moving your things over to his table, “Have you been there for long already?”

“Why, do you care about me?” his cheeky grin made you roll your eyes.

“I think you overestimated my greatness. Which shelf?”

He said nothing, making his way to one of the shelves. You followed him. Fortunately, the women's uniforms at the academy had trousers. You wouldn't have known what to do if it had been otherwise and you'd ended up on a ladder above him.

“You know,” he began as you reached the meagre ladder to the upper shelves, “I've been looking forward to working with you.”

You arched an eyebrow, your hand gripping the ladder as you looked at him in confusion.

“Why?”

The two of you were only picking on each other, you were avoiding him like the plague, and you'd made it clear to him several times that your situation was that of a competition. So obviously you had a right to be surprised as to why he'd want to work with you.

He shrugged. “You were the top student before I came here, surely there must be a reason behind it.”

You expelled an abrupt puff from your lungs, your breath taken away by his insolence. You could only expect it after all.

You climbed a few steps up the ladder, looking for Zaun's historical tomes.

“Is that supposed to be a compliment, or am I to believe my working buddy seeks to diminish me to a fictive second rank?”

“We're in a library, alas, reality catches up to this fiction, miss number two.”

You clutched the volume in your hand, your nostrils flaring for a moment in anger. He knew how to annoy you, and you never seemed to find a single point on which you could reciprocate.

You held out the tomes one by one for him to take. “Guess I could work on a pet name for you too.”

“Be my guess.”

Once his arm was full, you took a few tomes in your hands before climbing down the ladder and walking towards the table. “And make you the honour of thinking of something to be done for you ? I'd rather lick sandpaper.”

He feigned disappointment, “So I do disgust you, this pains me.”

You set the pile of volumes down on the table, reaching into your bag to pull out paper and pens.

“Yeah well, You were supposed to pretend I didn't exist, not try to bother me to death. So I guess we're both disappointed.”

He took a seat, grabbing a volume and placing it in front of him. “So I bother you ?”

You sat down opposite him, imitating his gesture as you searched with interest for a tome to start with.

“What a transcending sense of observation you have.”

He brought both his hands up in front of him, resting his chin on the backs of his fingers.

“How do I bother you?”

You were starting to get annoyed by his questions. You had come here to work, not to chat.

“Your simple existence?” you replied, staring into his eyes.

He sighed, opening his book and noting on the page its title.

“As if yours wasn't proof that failure has a sense of humour.”

You said nothing, letting his comment wander in the air as you started your own research in silence, locating the chapter of interest to you in the table of contents.

“But seriously,” Viktor continued, “why do I bother you?”

You sighed, pinching the page you were on before shifting your eyes from the words on it to Viktor's curious amber gaze.

“You want an honest answer ?”

He nodded. You let go of the page, straightening up.

“You come into my life and wreck everything I've built brick by brick, wouldn't you be the slightest bit frustrated if that happened to you ?”

It was his turn to be silent this time. He seemed to look at you differently, as if, by some miracle perhaps, he'd just realised what was at stake for you in this situation.

He wasn't even touching the tip of the iceberg of why you'd come to the Academy, but for a moment he seemed to understand how important it could be for you.

Your eyes returned to your page, trying to find keywords to write down or information to record.

“You surpassed me in the exam, teachers love you, you make great friends…”

“Almost sounds like you're obsessed with me.”

Your lips parted, eyes wide as you looked at him as if he'd just slapped you, leaving your cheek and your thoughts with a warm tingle. You were so surprised that nothing came from your lips, which was beginning to be enough for a flash of mischief to cross Viktor's eyes and for the corner of his lips to form a sneer.

“I'm not.” You finally reply, trying to remain composed and not to stammer for anything in the world.

“Denial would've worked before the long vacant stare,” he says, advancing slightly on the table.

“Why do you have to be like that?”

“Like what?”

You humph, dropping back in your chair in despair.

“Better than me.”

He recoiled slightly, as if the remark was completely far-fetched and unfounded.

“There are thousands of people better than me, why do you have to focus on my poor self, hm? Did I barge in your territory?”

He had, unconsciously he truly had. It was you who was supposed to be first, otherwise the consequences would've been mentally dire.

“Take it this way,” he continued, “there's surely something you're better at than me.”

You couldn't think of much on the spot, especially not when there was a possibility of you making a list of things he topped you in. There was surely one thing though.

“Running.”

He opened his lips in surprise, a smile stretching across his face which he hid with his hand. You were already regretting what you'd just said.

“Jayce is going to be the first one hearing about this.”

“No it's-”

“So you're participating in a system made against disabilities.”

“I never-”

“Are you going to steal my crutch next in hopes of beating me to a race?”

“You're never going to drop this now are you ?”

“With such a statement ? Never.”

“Whatever let's just- let's just work.” you mumble, your cheeks flushing with embarrassment and shame as you desperately try to move on.

He gave one last chuckle before getting back to work. He seemed to be reading a tome on the history of the masters of Zaun.

“About Tytos, I still think you've got that wrong.” he said as he read another page from the tome.

“I think I'm going to smash your face in.” you replied calmly without looking at him.

“As if you could reach me.”

“You know what-” you began, raising your voice.

However, somebody shushed you in the room, restricting you to remaining calm.

“Raising your voice in a library? You'd have to be a stupid fool.”

“Trying to contradict me when even Heimerdinger considered my answer excellent is not the wisest either.”

“Heimerdinger would tell a snail that goes slightly faster than the norm it's excellent. But maybe your low self esteem is just common sense.”

“Maybe my self esteem will just leave this library right now.” you say, crossing your arms on the table.

“And leave me to pursue this matter on my own? That wouldn't be very serious, miss number two.”

You sighed, getting back to work. Your blood was boiling in your veins just from sitting at this table.

“None of the books mention Tytos.”

“Since when do you trust Piltover books on the accounts of the history of Zaun ?”

Touché. He raised his eyebrows as if it were the only relevant thing you could have said.

“You never said where you were from, in Zaun,” he remarked.

You tensed slightly. “Why do you want to know that ?”

“We're making an exposé on Zaun, we're both from there, might as well just know it,” he said, raising his eyes to yours.

You watched him for a moment, he didn't seem to want to make a joke of you once your answer was out of your mouth. But in any case, you weren't going to give it to him.

“You wouldn't know,” you replied simply as you jotted down another date.

‘I'm sure that I-”

“You don't want to know.’ you said firmly, the seriousness taking over your face to assure him that this was certainly not territory he wished to venture into.

He frowned, confused. He seemed deeply intrigued by you, and that made you uncomfortable. Never before in your life had anyone asked you so many questions about yourself in such a short space of time. And so here he was, shaking up every one of your pillars like a bowling ball knocking over pins.

This one, however, was not about to give way.

You looked at your watch for a moment, sighing.

“Let's work for one more hour. We'll make a plan and subparts of what we'll talk about at the end of it.”

This time Viktor seemed to get the message: silence. 

You couldn't help glancing at him from time to time. You noticed the way his long fingers flicked across the pages, the way his eyebrows furrowed as he read, the way he rested his cheek on the back of his hand with a sigh as he read a boring piece of writing. 

Or when he would click his pencil for a moment to write something down, and his handwriting would lie gracefully on the paper, scratching the grain of the paper.

It was not without surprise that, once the hour had passed, there was hardly anyone in the library but the two of you. 

When you explained your plan for the presentation to Viktor, he agreed, simply giving a few perfectly critical and serious remarks without condescending to him in any way.

“Good. I think this is a good time to stop for today,” you said as you stood up, taking a stack of books in your arms.

All in all, working with Viktor like this wasn't so bad, when it was done in silence. But as soon as either of you opened your lips to say anything, politeness left the room in great strides.

You put each tome away in its old place, both of you taking your things, and left the library. The academy wasn't closed yet, and some people still had classes or were hanging around in the corridors.

You walked side by side, your pace the same as Viktor's. All the students seemed to turn around as you passed, your duo seeming like a pair of circus animals. 

You glanced at Viktor, who didn't seem in the least affected by this.

However, a trio of students were watching you with evil, mocking eyes. You couldn't help but tense up, however, when the one who seemed as tall as he was stupid remarked: 

“Die already, cripple. You're slowing the traffic.”

Your shoulders tensed as you walked, expecting to do what you'd always had to do here despite the taunts: ignore and move on.

But Viktor wasn't going to listen to you like that.

“Thank you for your advice, I'll try euthanasia once you'll be able to count higher than the number of butterfingers you've got.”

A few chuckles echoed in the corridor at his reply, but the young man seemed to be boiling with hatred. It was as you passed in front of them that, in a cowardly move, he kicked Viktor's cane.

He lost his balance, falling face first to the ground as his cane fell beside him. The air stopped for a moment with the shock of the gesture, your eyes shifting from Viktor on the ground to the idiot who had just knocked him over. Students knelt down beside him immediately to help him.

“Oops, my foot slipped. Sorry.”

But nothing, of course, conveyed any regret at this behaviour.

He turned his back and walked off with his group of friends. Your blood ran cold.

Quickly, you grabbed Viktor's cane, which was still on the ground, and made it whistle through the air before it struck the back of the student's knees. It was his turn to shrivel up on the floor, and he immediately turned to you, his cheeks red with anger.

“Oops, my hand slipped,” you said, glancing at the crutch for a moment before returning to him. “Sorry.”

You turned back to Viktor, handing him his crutch. He looked at you with fried whiting eyes, deeply surprised by your gesture without moving a muscle.

“You fucking slut…” you heard behind you.

But as soon as you turned around, a sharp blow hit you in the cheek. The force of it knocked you back two steps, a metallic taste spreading through your mouth. You brought your fingers to your lips, hissing as you touched them, your bottom lip burning. Bringing your fingers back into line of sight, you found them bloodied.

You turned to the student, his face far too satisfied for your liking.

‘’What a brilliant idea,‘’ you breathed as, in one swift movement, you struck his crotch with the crutch.

He bent over instinctively, gasping for breath, before you punched him right in the nose. He fell, cowering on the ground like a miserable insect.

"What's going on here?" asked a stern voice.

Madame Agrane, one of your teachers, came into the corridor. Her eyes fell on Viktor on the floor, your lip split, the student on the ground surrounded by his two friends.

“Everyone in my office, now.”

You pressed a bag of ice cubes to your cheek, sitting next to Viktor who was clutching his crutch in his hands. As for the idiot, he kept grumbling and giving you nasty looks. You recognised him now, the student from the museum, the one that had called zaunites rats.

"Can someone explain to me what happened for you all to end up in such states?" questioned Agrane.

You were about to start but the idiot beat you to it.

"Madame Agrane, I was just minding my own business in the corridor when these two pupils came up to me! One was hitting me with his crutch while the other was punching me. I don't know what I've done to deserve this.' He exclaimed theatrically, Viktor and you looking at him like the most ridiculous being to ever be.

If there was one thing that helped your reputation, it was that you were known as serious students, who didn't fall into the category of those who would start a fight in the corridors for no particular reason.

"That is far from the truth," Viktor retorted calmly. "He insulted me, then made me fall, and then...’

He seemed to be hesitating over his words, or at least looking for the right term. He turned to you, letting his eyes drift for a moment to your split lip, and then back to Madame Agrane's gaze.

"... My friend protected me."

Friend? the word made you clench your jaw, inhaling. It was just a lie, just a word brought to the front to give your teacher sympathy. No, he certainly didn't mean it.

The teacher looked at you, seeming more convinced by your story than the other. Noticing this, the student couldn't help but plead his own case: 

"Madam, these two students come from Zaun. The blood of violence will always run in their veins."

Agrane seemed to give you a new look, as if you and Viktor were ready to pounce on her like two wolves.

"Is this a joke? You started all this," you said, offended.

"Beating you up would have brought greatness to Piltover." he replied.

"Oh, look at you, attempting greatness! Pity it's just an attempt." you sighed, pressing the ice pack a little closer to your cheek to put out the fire your anger was beginning to spread.

"Madam Agrane," he continued, turning to her, "you know what my patron will think about this. Imagine his reaction when he will hear how you have treated his favoured student?"

You had no idea who his patron could possibly have been, but she didn't hesitate for a second to say: 

"Miss, you'll get an hour's detention for your violent behaviour in the corridors. I hope I don't have to catch you again doing such barbaric acts."

Your eyes widened just as much as Viktor's.

"What?! But he's the one who-" you tried, pointing at the idiot who was smiling victoriously.

"There's no buts about it. The discussion is closed. You'll have your detention period this Monday."

"Madam, I think there's been a mistake." Viktor began.

"Do you want to be given detention too, young man?"

Viktor remained silent, sighing before lowering his eyes to the ground.

"Good, see you on Monday, then."

The fool stood up first, walking past you with a foolish grin on his face.

"Bet it feels just like home to be in prison by monday, hm?"

Your lip hemmed in disgust, your nose scrunching up.

"Try what you've done just once more, and I'll personally make sure you have no offspring."

He looked slightly frightened for a moment, then frowned like a child before leaving the room.

You sighed, standing up. You wanted to get out of here right away, away from the horrible feeling of injustice in your heart, away from the word ‘punishment’ burning into your skin.

Your free hand instinctively came to rest on your shoulder for comfort, and you stood up to get your things.

“You didn’t have to do this earlier, you know.” Viktor said.

You sighed, walking towards the door. “Whatever, what is done is done.”

"Hey," Viktor said, standing up behind you.

You didn't even turn to him.

"Thanks, I wasn't expecting that at all."

You waited for something, for anything that would come after what he had just said, but nothing came. Your turned to him.

"Is that all? No remarks about how I'd have been better off hitting him somewhere else, or stupid sarcasm about my action?"

He seemed surprised by your reaction, his face puzzled and almost saddened.

"We're not friends." you said, your face as cold as the ice pack on your cheek. "We're..."

But what were you apart from rivals? Two rivals working together to do a job that would rely on both of you, that wasn't really rivalry. It was camaraderie in a way, you were classmates, but friends?

You pursed your lips, a slight trickle of blood beading from them.

"See you next week."

Without further ado, you left the room. You walked down the corridors, the students staring at you like an alien. You were suffocating under all those sharp, curious, numerous stares. You pressed on, leaving the academy as quickly as possible.

Once outside, you took the first quiet alley you could find.

“Shit!” you swore, pressing your back against the first wall you could find.

You brought your hand up to your forehead, sighing until you almost felt your body slide down the wall, running your palm over your face in frustration and exhaustion.

You wanted to cry, the weight of everything feeling like it was zipping up on you like a body bag. You'd been stupid, acting on your emotions. You should have kept your head down, let the administration do its job, not invented a life of heroism trying to redress the balance that some fool had tipped.

You didn't even like Viktor, but you'd still jumped at the chance to do him justice. No, you didn't like Viktor any more than that.

But you respected him.

Could you be friends with him?

The question passed through your mind for a moment, but you ended up putting it out of your mind.

You let your head fall back against the wall. The thought of an hour's detention in your perfect record seemed to you like a thread sticking out of a beautiful dress, itching to be pulled on. You tried to console yourself, to come to terms with the fact that it was just another hour of extra study. But you couldn't help feeling heavy with pain.

Eventually you gathered up your things and walked home, hoping that the cool night air would help to quench the fire that was still boiling inside you. Winter was on your doorstep, and ready to complicate things.

✦﹒ previous chapter

✦﹒ next chapter

[chaoticace2005]

List of why the Radio Demon disappeared for 7 years:

1. His fight with Vox ended really badly and he needed to recover.

2. He went somewhere to acquire more power.

3. He had a mission to do because of his deal.

4. Vox confessed his love for Alastor. Alastor had no idea how to respond to this so he ghosted Vox for seven years. But Vox had access to cameras everywhere so the best way to ghost Vox is to ghost the city.

5. Met a wise old man who taught him the secrets to life, he had a training montage.

6. Took a gap year(s) to “find himself”

7. Extended tea party at Rosie’s

8. His shadow got pissed at him and decided to swallow him, sending him to a shadow dimension that he drifted in for seven years.

9. His friends from the other side finally caught up to him and he had to repay his debt

10. His tailor went on sabbatical and he couldn’t leave his place without the proper amount of drip so he had to wait for him to return.

11. There was a shortage of red hair dye, he had to wait for them to restock.

12. Someone took a photo of him with his tail out. He went on a mission to hunt them down and DESTROY them.

13. He went to the Hellmart to cause $50,000 in TV damages (Tomota vid reference)

14. He was busy making diss tracks for everyone he knows and lost track of time.

15. Susan beat him in a bake sale and he had to hide out of shame.

16. Honeymoon with his cane.

17. Fell into a coma

18. Found out about the Alastor-Body Pillow Vox had and then had to ensure they were never manufactured again.

19. He accidentally saw part of one of Angel’s pornos and was traumatized. He had to leave Pentagram City because everyone he went he saw his face.

20. Hung out with Lilith who dished tea about Lucifer.

21. Was told he was “outdated” so he took the time to educate himself on modern slang.

22. Tried to find an obedience trainer for cats.

23. He time traveled seven years into the future and just decided to run with it.

24. Alastor was killed. That’s not Alastor. That’s a shadow acting as him.

25. That’s not Alastor, that’s his twin brother.

26. Walked in on a role play session between a Vox and Valentino-Dressed-Up-Like-Alastor and needed to find a way to erase the memory.

27. Bonked his head. Woke up and thought his name was Bob, he lived a nice, happy life until he bonked his head again.

28. Fell through a portal and woke up in a dimension where his name was a bird named Crane who was a janitor in a world of King Fu and pandas.

29. Got access to the season 1 script so he could mentally prepare. He’s been rehearsing his lines and doing his best to make his performance as disturbing as possible.

30. Went to the dentist. When they tried to help him he ate them, so he had to find another dentist, who he also ate. This went on for a while.

31. Was run out of town by his dentist who got annoyed he kept dodging his appointments

32. Got relationship counseling for him and his shadow.

33. Was just out having a good time, partying, and consuming souls.

34. Went on a seven year long bender.

35. Rosie told him he was an “arrow” so he went to archery classes. Turns out she was wrong and archery really isn’t his forte.

[heliosunny]

Fyodor with a reader that he grows to be a fond of and that turns a little bit into an obsession 👀👀

HOW ABOUT... A LIFETIME SIDEKICK

You had been by Fyodor's side from the very beginning. In his opinion, you were borderline suicidal. There wasn’t a mission he assigned that you didn’t face head-on, no matter how dangerous or reckless it was. Loyal, graceful, and unwavering, you embodied everything he could ask for in a partner.

“Sacrifice yourself for me.” Fyodor’s voice was calm, devoid of emotion.

Without a second thought, you leapt from the 20th floor of the building, clutching the critical document he needed. The wind whipped past you as you plummeted, your only concern ensuring the document remained safe.

It wasn’t for him, not really. You didn’t care about Fyodor as a person. The only reason you stayed by his side was your unwavering desire to see his goals achieved. He had saved your life once, pulling you back from the brink when no one else had cared enough to try. That act had shackled you to him, binding your existence to his whims.

You owed him your life. And for that reason, you would endure anything, no matter how harrowing.

Despite the countless brushes with death, it was nothing short of a miracle that you always survived. Maybe it was luck. Or maybe, deep down, Fyodor’s plans never truly involved losing you.

As your body hurtled toward the ground, you felt the inevitability of death closing in. Yet, at the last moment, a strange sensation enveloped you—a sudden suspension, as if time itself had bent to spare you.

When you opened your eyes, you found yourself lying on the ground, unharmed. A soft, golden glow surrounded you, quickly fading. Standing nearby was Nikolai Gogol, one of Fyodor's closest allies. He twirled his cane, his usual mischievous grin in place.

“Well, that was a close one” Nikolai mused, his tone laced with mockery. “You almost painted the street red. What would our dear Fyodor do without his precious sidekick?”

You sat up, clutching the document tightly, your body trembling from the adrenaline. Before you could say a word, Nikolai tapped his cane against the ground, opening one of his portals.

“Let’s not keep him waiting~” he said, and with a flick of his hand, you were whisked back to Fyodor’s side.

When you arrived, Fyodor was seated in his usual spot, his fingers elegantly poised on the keys of his cello. He stopped playing as soon as he saw you, his dark eyes scanning your form. You handed him the document without a word, expecting a curt acknowledgment or even a reprimand for nearly failing the mission.

But instead, something strange happened. Fyodor’s expression shifted—just for a moment, so quickly you almost missed it. Was that relief? Concern?

“You’re reckless.” he said, his voice colder than usual.

You shrugged, brushing off the comment. “It’s what you asked for. The mission is complete.”

Fyodor stared at you for a long moment before turning away. “No more.”

The words hung in the air, unfamiliar and heavy. You frowned, unsure if you’d heard him correctly. “No more... what?”

He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he stood, his movements as graceful as always, and placed the document on his desk. “No more dangerous missions. I won’t send you out again.”

You blinked, taken aback. This wasn’t like him. “Why? Did I do something wrong?”

He glanced at you, his expression unreadable. “No. You’ve done everything perfectly. That’s precisely why I’m putting an end to it.”

His words only confused you more. “I don’t understand. Isn’t this what you need from me? Someone to carry out your plans without hesitation?”

Fyodor moved closer, his presence suffocating. He reached out, his hand brushing against your cheek. The gesture was almost tender, but his eyes carried the weight of something far darker.

“You’re more than a tool.” he said softly, his voice unnervingly intimate. “You’ve proven your loyalty time and time again. But you’ve also shown me something else, your value. And I won’t risk losing that. Losing you.”

His admission sent a chill down your spine. This wasn’t the cold, calculating man you had followed for so long. This was someone else, someone whose obsession ran far deeper than you had imagined.

“Fyodor...” you began, but he cut you off.

“I saved you once” he murmured, his fingers trailing down to your neck, resting lightly against your pulse. “And I’ll save you again if I must. But you won’t need saving anymore, because I won’t allow you to put yourself in harm’s way.”

His grip tightened slightly, not enough to hurt, but enough to make his point clear.

“Do you see now?” he asked, his voice dropping to a whisper. “You don’t owe me your life. I’ve claimed it.”

Back when Nikolai saved you, you had thought it was just another mission, another brush with death. But later that night, as you tended to your wounds in silence, you overheard Fyodor speaking with Nikolai in a hushed, calculated tone. You were hidden behind the door, listening intently.

Their discussion revolved around a new plan—a dangerously elaborate scheme that would leave Fyodor exposed in its final stages. A specific detail caught your attention: the risks he was willing to take. He was so focused on the end goal that he disregarded the possibility of his own demise.

Your chest tightened. Fyodor’s ruthlessness had always been part of his charm, or his curse—but this time, it felt different. You couldn’t explain why it mattered so much, but the thought of him dying unsettled you in ways you weren’t prepared to face.

So, you made a decision.

Without a word to him or anyone else, you acted on your own. You followed the threads of the plan, inserting yourself at critical points to ensure everything would go smoothly. You intercepted threats, dismantled traps, and rerouted danger away from Fyodor.

But in the end, you couldn’t avoid everything.

The moment came during the final phase. A sniper’s rifle was trained on Fyodor from a hidden vantage point, the assassin waiting for the perfect moment to strike. You didn’t hesitate. Throwing yourself into the line of fire, you shielded him, taking the bullet meant for his heart.

The pain was blinding, and as you collapsed to the ground, you barely registered Fyodor’s voice calling out to you, sharp and filled with something you’d never heard before -panic.

When you woke days later, you were in an unfamiliar room. The stark walls were suffocatingly plain, and the heavy silence was broken only by the faint hum of distant machinery. You tried to move but found yourself too weak, your body weighed down by exhaustion.

It didn’t take long for Fyodor to appear. He entered the room with his usual grace, his piercing eyes locking onto yours. But there was something different about him.

“You’re awake” he said, his voice calm but cold.

You managed a weak smile. “Looks like I ruined your plan.”

Fyodor didn’t respond right away. He stepped closer, his fingers brushing against your cheek. The touch sent a chill down your spine.

“You didn’t ruin anything” he murmured. “But you came dangerously close to ruining yourself. And that, I cannot allow.”

His tone was unsettling. It wasn’t anger or disappointment—it was something darker, something possessive.

“Why did you do it?” he asked, though his expression suggested he already knew the answer.

You struggled to find the words. “I... couldn’t let you die.”

Fyodor’s lips curled into a faint, humorless smile. “So loyal” he mused. “But you should have known better than to act without my permission.”

You opened your mouth to argue, but he silenced you with a single gesture.

“From now on” he said, his tone firm “you won’t be leaving my side. No more missions. No more reckless heroics. You’ve proven you’re incapable of protecting yourself, so I’ll do it for you.”

His words felt like a prison sentence. “You can’t just isolate me” you protested weakly. “I’m not some fragile thing to keep locked away.”

Fyodor leaned closer, his dark eyes boring into yours. “You are mine” he said softly. “And I’ll do whatever it takes to ensure you stay by my side, alive and unharmed. You’ve played the hero for the last time.”

His hand lingered on your face for a moment before he stood. “Rest” he commanded. “This is your new life now.”

As he left the room, you felt the weight of his obsession settle over you. Fyodor Dostoevsky had always been a man of control, but now that control extended to you in ways you never imagined. You had saved him, but in doing so, you had unknowingly sealed your own fate.

-----

You knew it was only a matter of time before Fyodor’s suffocating control became unbearable. His obsession, once subtle, had grown into something oppressive. The isolation he imposed wasn’t protection, it was a cage. You could feel yourself losing pieces of who you were, and you refused to let that happen.

It was with quiet desperation that you turned to an old acquaintance from the team, someone who had always harbored doubts about Fyodor’s methods. They agreed to help you, knowing the risks but willing to defy him for your sake.

The plan was simple yet perilous. Your friend created a diversion, slipping you out of the facility during a chaotic moment. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, you breathed the open air, your heart pounding with a mix of fear and exhilaration.

Freedom was fleeting.

It didn’t take long for Fyodor to discover your escape. His network was too vast, his reach too far. And when he learned of the betrayal, his retribution was swift and merciless.

You were hiding in a safe house when he found you. The door burst open, and Fyodor entered with his usual eerie calm, though the storm raging in his dark eyes was unmistakable. Behind him, two of his men dragged in your friend—bloodied, beaten, and barely conscious.

“You thought you could run from me..” Fyodor said, his voice a chilling whisper. “Did you really believe I wouldn’t find you?”

Your heart sank as he turned to your friend. “And you” he continued, his tone laced with venom. “Betrayal is such an ugly thing.”

Before you could intervene, Fyodor gave a subtle nod to one of his men. A gunshot rang out, and your friend collapsed to the ground, lifeless.

“No!” you screamed, tears streaming down your face.

Fyodor stepped toward you, his expression unreadable. He wiped a stray tear from your cheek with his gloved hand, as if to mock your anguish. “You made me do this” he said softly. “If you had stayed where you belonged, none of this would have happened.”

The next thing you knew, you were back in Fyodor’s domain, locked in a room with no windows and a single door that never opened unless he willed it.

Fyodor visited often, his presence both comforting and menacing. He brought you food, books, even flowers, as though these small gestures could erase what he had done.

“You forced my hand” he told you one evening, sitting beside you with a calmness that belied his actions. “I didn’t want to hurt anyone, but I couldn’t allow such betrayal to go unpunished. And I couldn’t allow you to leave me.”

You glared at him, anger boiling beneath your grief. “You’re a monster...” you spat.

Fyodor tilted his head, his lips curling into a faint smile. “If being a monster is what it takes to keep you, then so be it.”

He reached out, brushing your hair back gently. “Don’t you see? You belong to me. You can try to run, but I’ll always find you. I’ll always bring you back.”

You turned away, the weight of his obsession crushing your spirit. Fyodor had always been meticulous and unyielding, but now you realized the extent of his madness. You were no longer just a part of his plans, you were his plan.

[specialagentlokitty]

House x reader - content

Hi please could I request a House x blind reader ? Where it's just some fluff maybe If not that's okay thank you :) - Anon💜

Sitting on the chair, you had your eyes closed as you listened to everything going on around you.

“Are they sleeping?” Someone whispered.

“I don’t know, wake them up?”

It went quiet for a minute.

“Who is it?” The first person asked.

You didn’t need to be able to see what they were all staring at you, two of them.

You had heard them come in at the same time, their steps slightly different, but there was two of them, a man and a woman.

And if you were right, you would guess it would be Wilson and Cuddy.

House complained a lot, and they were the main two people that he complained to you about, and about you calling him Greg. For some reason he just didn’t want you to say his name he preferred to be called by his last name.

You carried on laying there, listening to them debate whether or not to wake you up, and who you were and why you were there.

You heard the door open and close again, and the familiar sound of his cane on the floor.

“You have a visitor.” Cuddy said.

House looked at you, and he shrugged a little bit, walking over to his desk he grabbed some papers and stood next to you.

“Aren’t you going to wake them up?” Wilson asked.

“Why? They’re not sleeping.”

“Really? They haven’t said a word since we came in.” Cuddy said.

“I heard you.” You replied.

You took your feet of the desk and you opened your eyes, and you reached out, tapping the desk until you found what you were looking for and you grabbed house’s shirt, giving it a small tug.

“You’re sitting in the only chair.”

“Get another chair then idiot.”

He rolled his eyes and dragged another chair and sat down next to you.

“So, why are you here?”

“Because I was bored.”

House hummed a little, leaning back in his chair.

“How’d your appointment go?”

You shrugged a little, leaning back in your chair to stare up at the ceiling.

“Not going to magically regain my sight if that’s what you mean.”

“Right, introductions House?” Wilson asked.

“Right, fine. This is Cuddy and Wilson.”

“I gathered.”

“This is (Y/N).”

“And they are…?” Cuddy asked.

“I don’t know, human?”

You snickered a little and looked in the direction you heard his voice.

“Bold of you to assume I’m that.”

“Oh there’s two of them…” Wilson whispered.

House looking at you, and he titled his head a little bit.

Pulling a small torch out of his pocket, and held your face in his hand and shone it in your eyes and you just sat there waiting for him to finish whatever he was doing.

“How did you appointment go?” He asked.

You sighed a little.

“Well it can’t exactly get any worse can it? I’ve already lost all sight.”

“Right that’s not what I was asking and you know it. What did the doctor say?”

“That I’m blind?”

“We’re really going to do this?”

You grinned a little bit and he shoved your chair to the side and went on his computer.

“What’re you doing house?” Cuddy asked.

“Seeing what (Y/N)s doctor said about their eyes.”

“What’s wrong with their eyes?” Wilson asked.

“I have said numerous times they don’t work, do your ears work?”

“Alright.” Cuddy warned.

Resting back in your chair, you rested your hands on your stomach.

“He says your pupil reflex’s are getting worse.”

“Just as well I don’t need them.”

“Is he running tests?”

“Don’t think so.”

House looked at you.

“He should. God how can people be so incompetent is beyond me, Wilson book a CT for (Y/N).”

“What are you hoping to find?” Wilson asked.

House said nothing and he waved his hand in dismissal.

“We’re talking about this later.” Cuddy said.

“No we’re not, goodbye.”

It went quiet for a moment and you heard the two others leave.

“What is it?” You asked quietly.

“You’re going to need surgery on your left eye.”

“Why?”

“To.. remove it…”

You took a small breath and slowly nodded your head and house sighed.

He stood up and grabbed your hand, so you stood up as well and let him take you to where he wanted to go.

He sat down and tugged you, carefully guiding you down, and you sat on the couch with him, and he pulled your back against his chest.

Wrapped an arm around your waist, he wrapped the around around your collarbone and over your shoulders.

You rested your head under his.

“I had a feeling it would happen.”

“You knew.” He said.

“Yeah. It was a warning I was given years ago, it could happen. I’ve grown to accept it as a possibility.”

House nodded his head, and he kissed your head.

“Greg?”

“That’s weird don’t say that.”

“It’s your name shut up.”

He snickered a little and you slapped his arm.

“I love you.”

“Disgusting.”

You rolled your eyes and slapped his arm again.

House grinned to himself and resting his chin on your head.

“Yeah I guess I love you too.”

“You’re an asshole.”

“I know.”

You rolled your eyes and closed them, placing your hands on his arm, and he took a deep breath, shuffling to get a little more comfortable.

“I’m taking a nap.”

“Alright so am I.”

You sniffled down as well, and you wrapped his arms around properly and the both of you drifted to sleep on the couch happy and content

[nell0-0]

Could you possibly do a fic where the Chain meet Legend's cucco companion, Piyoko? I want to see their reactions to her :D

Sure thing! Sorry for the wait, but here it is ^^

Main characters: Legend, Four, Wild, Wind & Warriors (+Piyoko, of course!)

“Legend, don’t freak out, but don’t you dare move.”

…Not exactly the words one would like to hear first thing in the morning before coeherency made its appearance on his brain, but he would have to deal as usual, Legend figured. What went wrong now?

“…why” Legend said, voice thick with sleep and slightly slurred despite his best attempt.

Turning the other way and sleeping this problem away was so tempting. Problem he wasn’t aware of, mind you, because he could more or less glimpse everyone else around camp. Either sleepy, still snoring or staring at Legend with an intensity only deserved for a dangerous foe or-

“There’s a-“

Legend reached above his head, his hand colliding with something soft, a familiar texture greeting his cautious fingers.

“Wait, stop!”

“Goddesses, he’s doomed.”

“Legend, noooo!”

Grabbing whatever it was, a suspicious squeak as a result, Legend used his elbows to hold his weight while he looked at the cause of alarm for the three dumbasses in front of him.

“Pyo!”

…a cuccoo. Well, at least it wasn’t a tiny monster out for his blood. Even though that description adhered to cuccoos most days. Not to this one, chirping excitedly at seeing Legend’s messy face with dry drool still on the side of his mouth.

The others (just three of them, at least) had jumped back. He had expected the over the top reaction from the champion, who was wieling a soup ladle as if it was a weapon. Not so much from Wind who shouldn’t know what they were since he didn’t have them on his era and he hadn’t yet been attacked by an angry flock on this adventure. Definitely wasn’t expecting Four with a… cane? A magic cane.

A magic cane he hadn’t told Legend about. Darn it.

“Really, guys? First thing on the morning?”

“Why are you so calm about this?” Wind squinted at Legend, taking Wild’s soup ladle and poking at Legend’s face with the round edge. Wild shot Wind a betrayed look, who shrugged in response gesturing at Legend in a baffled manner.

Four’s eyes seemed to shimmer a myriad of colors, his face contorting awkwardly as if he couldn’t decide on whether he should laugh, get concerned or scold them all and go back to sleep.

“Guys, it’s okay, it’s just Piyoko.”

Holding the cuckoo, no longer the little chick she had been while on their adventures with Din’s troupe and the Nayru fiasco, Legend cooed. Wind poked at Legend again, bewildered. The look Piyoko threw the sailor was murderous, the poor kid backing off as if burnt and abandoning the wooden ladle to its uncertain fate. In retaliation, Wild flicked the kid on the forehead, quick to retrieve yet another soup ladle from his seemingly infinite supply on that slate of his.

Why soup ladles? Why not swords. Goddesses knew Wild never had enough of those with the rate he kept breaking them at.

Only Four seemed coherent enough to get them back on track from their usual shenanigans, despite being the less alert of the three.

“Piyoko?”

“Piyoko” Legend smirked. Four’s eyebrow twitched.

“And who’s Piyoko supposed to be? Aside from a cuccoo, I mean.”

“My cuccoo.” At the united front of three unimpressed heroes, Legend relented. “I’ve raised this mayhem bird from before she hatched from the egg.”

“What.”

How eloquent, Wind.

The commotion had seemed to catch Warriors’ attention. Or maybe he had been listening the whole time and Legend had just not noticed. Give him a break, he had just been rudely woken up without a good reason from his power nap after the second shift of the night watch. If he wanted to be grumpy or mad about that fact, he was well within his rights.

Either way, as usual, Legend thought while rolling his eyes out of habit, the war captain butted in the conversation.

“Is that a hero spirit thing, raising cuccoos?”

When Wild and Four shot him bewildered looks, probably questioning if Warriors also had a hidden cuccoo somewhere, Warriors was quick to deny it. Weird.

“If it is, then maybe that’s where Linkle gets it from.”

Legend stared at Wind uncomprehendingly. No way someone had named their daughter that, right? Right?

“Exactly my point.”

Okay, nevermind, apparently Linkle was a thing now, and both the captain and the sailor seemed to know her. How that was possible since, supposedly, none of them had met before this journey of nine heroes, was anyone’s guess. But neither asked about Ravio living in his house earlier that week, despite those two also impossibly knowing the scammer, so Legend wouldn’t ask about this either.

Four sighed, as if incredibly tired of this conversation already — Legend had been the one woken up, not Four, the nerve — he asked “and who’s Linkle?”

“My sister.”

Wild stared. “Your what.”

“You have a sister?”

“Not the point!” Warriors flushed, pointing at Legend. Trying to redirect the dumbass trio’s attention back to him, it seemed. That fucker. “Why are you asking me about my sister when Legend is still holding that cuccoo like nothing!”

Maybe if he was more awake, or if Legend wasn’t secretly elated that Piyoko had sneaked out to join him that day, he wouldn’t have said the next words. As it was, he was way too tired to care.

“To be fair” all eyes snapping in his direction, Legend grinned. “I threw Piyoko at Ganon.”

…

“Why did I never think of that.” Wild stared off at the morning sky, looking as if the world had opened new possibilities he hadn’t been aware of before. It was probably accurate, too.

Four just gaped at Legend, for once at a loss of words.

“She almost plucked an eye out. It was awesome.”

“Weaponized cuccoos.”

“Terrifying.” Wind may have said that, but the glint on his eye told another story.

Warriors took a step to the side, putting some distance between himself and the sailor, seemingly having an internal crisis.

Huffing, Legend dropped his weight on top of his bedroll again, Piyoko flapping her little wings before gently settling on top of his head. While the others woke up and those four got their shit together, Legend was sure he could manage to sleep another five minutes.

[silentsneezes]

in regards to your essential oils post: i am absolutely interested and i think i can safely say others would be too 👀 if you want to write if you definitely should

i hope this is worth the wait anon! here's 1.7k of j/ayce being helplessly allergic to essential oils

cw for talk about chronic illness/disability and mess! it's mostly just spray, but after the line "There’s a few moments of silence, broken only by Jayce’s desperate gasps" there are some more descriptions of mess

On a good day, there’s little to nothing Viktor can’t manage with a cane and the occasional break to sit down. He’s proven most undercity doctors wrong just by living past 25, and yet both he and Jayce understand the importance of the Hex Core. It’s their biggest breakthrough yet, their closest glimpse of magic aside from Jayce’s rune bracelet. 

Still, it’s not enough. Viktor knows it’s not enough to rely on the half baked mystery of natural runes. So he does what he can. He drinks enough water, he attempts to sleep consistently, he’s even taken up stretching for God’s sake. You may be asking “why now?”, to which he would answer “Jayce.”

Jayce has done everything for him, would do anything for him. So even if Viktor gave up years ago, he refuses to sit back and allow Jayce to watch him bide his time. He’s trying, damnit. 

Today, that effort entails using a new combination of essential oils Jayce purchased— a tasteful mix of eucalyptus, rosemary, and chamomile. Viktor has always denied such simple pain relief techniques, finding it to be more bothersome than it is effective. Except Jayce is nothing if not persuasive and he insists on indulging in buying expensive oils and herbs for his partner– it doesn’t help that Viktor is head over heels in love with him. 

Viktor doesn’t even want to know how much this new batch must’ve cost, but he will admit it seems promising as Jayce begins massaging it over his back. Viktor is laid face down on the cot in the lab, his arms pinned by his sides as Jayce straddles him from behind. Jayce is careful not to put any unwanted weight on Viktor’s hips or bad leg, propping himself up on the edges of the cot cautiously. His legs are bent at the knees, forcing him to rest his ass against Viktor’s– the first few times he’d massaged Viktor, Jayce asked for reassurance that he wasn’t too heavy or causing any pain every few minutes, but by now he’s figured out which position works best. 

Jayce’s hands work over Viktor’s upper shoulders, his thumbs rubbing little circles over the especially tense knots. Viktor emits quiet noises of pleasure as Jayce kneads his fingers into the sore sections of his back, taut and misshapen due to his brace. His spine bends awkwardly at the center, having contorted into an abrasive arch over the years. Still, he looks perfect in Jayce’s eyes. Every notch of his spine, pressing against his skin and accentuating his thin frame. Every mole and freckle gone unnoticed by his previous lovers. Every scar left along his back from the metal brackets of the brace chafing or cutting his porcelain skin. It’s all beautiful. 

Occasionally, Jayce will lean forwards and press a kiss to Viktor’s back, intermixing the massage with a gentle affection. As he does so, Jayce feels a buzzing sensation begin to work its way from the back of his sinuses up to the tip of his nose. He raises a hand, rubbing the bothersome appendage against its backside. Unfortunately, he gets a whiff of the strongly scented oils coating his palms. Fuck. 

Jayce’s breath catches in his throat, a vocal hitch forcing its way out, “hhHH-” Jayce places one hand on the small of Viktor’s back, steading himself so he doesn’t jostle Viktor at all. 

“Are you okay?” Viktor murmurs at the touch, half asleep under Jayce– it isn’t uncommon for him to fall asleep when Jayce massages his back. Jayce nods wordlessly before remembering Viktor can’t see him, “Yeah, f-hhih-fine…”

Jayce’s hands continue working over Viktor’s shoulders, but his mind remains distracted by that tantalizing itch dancing through his nose. It forces his nostrils to flare every so often, his eyes beginning to water with every hitch that catches in his chest. Viktor can feel every minuscule movement Jayce makes, suddenly feeling wide awake as he registers the little hitches. 

Unfortunately for Jayce, the buzzing worsens, and those “little hitches” are quick to turn into full on gasps, “hhHH-uh… hhheh-hhHHngh… hh’uUHH’ hHHHHRSCHHHEw!” 

Jayce barely turns his head to the side in time, the spray of the expulsion narrowly missing Viktor’s exposed back. His body shudders over Viktor’s, his thighs tightening their hold around his partner ever so slightly. 

“Bless you,” Viktor murmurs, feeling his abdomen fill with a swirling heat. Jayce rubs his nose against his shoulder, wrinkling the appendage and sniffling, desperate to subdue the continuous itch, “Shhsorry- did I get you?”

“No,” Viktor answers simply, humming as Jayce’s big hands begin their work again. Viktor waits, listening with rapt attention to every little shift in Jayce’s breathing, hoping the sneeze wasn’t just a single expulsion. 

A minute later, Jayce stupidly leans down to press a light kiss to the mole on Viktor’s upper left shoulder out of habit. As soon as his nose nears Viktor’s oil-covered back, it twitches. He takes in a desperate, “hhHHH-” before snapping forward with no other warning, “hhHGSSXCHHHew!ugh…” Jayce’s head is forced down as he convulses with the expulsion, his nose briefly pressing against Viktor’s shoulder. 

Viktor shivers as he feels the spray cast upon his bare skin, intermixing with the dampness of the oils. He swallows a moan as Jayce’s nose makes contact with his back, only heightening his arousal. He can feel Jayce’s weight shift, a bit more pressure being applied to his ass as Jayce is forced to change positions. 

Jayce’s eyes widen as he realizes the sheen of spray left on Viktor’s skin, blushing crimson and stuttering to apologize as his breath hitches again, “oh god VhhhViktor I’m s-hhH-so hhuHH- so sorrhhhHRRSXCHHh’uh!” 

Never has Jayce been hit by an allergen so intensely, having thought he had no allergies until this very moment. But the itch ravaging his nose is evidence enough to prove him wrong, causing him to hitch and whine. He can’t even raise his hands to cover or attend to the twitching appendage, knowing they’re both coated with the essential oils. 

“hhHhhngh- ehhhhHh- huh’hhHHEH-“ Jayce builds up to yet another sneeze, his hands now holding Viktor’s waist tightly in an attempt to keep some semblance of control, “hhHZZSXCHHuh’hh!”

The sneeze mists Viktor’s skin again, causing arousal to thrum throughout his body. It doesn’t help that he can feel Jayce’s hips buck against his ass with every expulsion. He muffles a moan into the cot’s surface, his body alight with desire. 

Jayce buries his nose against his own shoulder, berating the appendage as best he can without the use of his hands, “hhhuhh-ngh’uh,” Jayce’s breathless hitches are audible despite his efforts to suppress them. 

‘Foolish’ Viktor thinks upon hearing Jayce’s attempts at suppressing the build up. Viktor of all people knows just how loud Jayce’s hitching can get, having toyed with inducing his partner on many occasions. 

“hhHihH- Vik I’mhhh-I’m ghhehHgoing to sn-hhhHPDTSCHhew!” Jayce once again mists Viktor’s skin, his hands holding onto Viktor’s waist in utter desperation as the sneeze tears through him. Jayce stays bent over, not bothering to straighten up as he feels his breath catch haphazardly again. 

There’s a few moments of silence, broken only by Jayce’s desperate gasps before, “hhHHGGDZSCHh’uhh!” Jayce freezes as he feels a string of mess trail down his upper lip. Before he can move to catch it, it falls onto the nape of Viktor’s neck, causing the pinned man to shudder. Viktor doesn’t bother muffling his moan this time, his imagination running wild at the sensation of the mess against his skin. 

Jayce is quick to clean it up, gently swiping his fingers over the wet splotch and cringing at the sensation of the snot against his skin. He wipes it on his pant leg, murmuring a stuttered, broken apology, “sorry, I thinkhhhI’m hhHHallerghhHiHH– HHRRXSCHHeWw’huh! snNDFF- allergic.” 

At this point, Jayce’s thighs are pressing tightly against Viktor’s hips in order to maintain his balance, his big hands cupping Viktor’s bare waist. With every expulsion, Viktor can feel Jayce’s fingers grip his sides as the sneezes rack his body. 

The fact that Viktor can’t even see Jayce just makes him all the more aroused. Of course he enjoys watching Jayce sneeze, finding his expressions utterly enrapturing, but being pinned face down is equally as exciting; it leaves some of the experience up to imagination, allowing Viktor to picture his partner’s appearance while feeling every movement atop him. 

It doesn’t take long for Jayce to recognize that he’s not going to stop sneezing, unable to do anything but blink away allergic tears as sneeze after sneeze tears through his strong frame. After a little, Viktor shifts, signaling for Jayce to move off of him. Obedient as ever, Jayce attempts to do so, nearly stumbling over as he dismounts his partner. 

Once he finds his footing, Jayce looks at Viktor in utter disarray. His eyes and nose are streaming, a sheen of mess trailing down his upper lip, his nostrils flaring, his eyebrows knit together in a constant pre-sneeze expression. He holds his hands out in front of him helplessly, unable to tend to his nose. 

Wordlessly, Viktor stands and pulls Jayce into a kiss, taking his partner by surprise. Jayce melts into the kiss once his initial shock at the affection dissipates, reminding himself that Viktor finds his disheveled mess of a state hot rather than disgusting. Jayce has one arm draped around Viktor’s waist in support, his other hand tangling itself in his partner’s hair. He finds himself momentarily relieved as his and Viktor’s tongues dance along with each other.

Unfortunately for Jayce, the itch’s temporary dormancy is over. He takes in a desperate, quick inhale, his lips still pressed to Viktor’s, “hhHH-” before shuddering with a wet sneeze, “HHGGSXCHHew!” Jayce blushes crimson as he feels the spray of the sneeze intermix with the kiss, but his embarrassment is forgotten as Viktor moans, deepening their embrace. 

By the time Jayce’s allergies finally die down, it’s safe to say Viktor’s pain has been tended to… though not how the couple had initially intended. 

“You know,” Viktor murmurs lazily as he sits beside Jayce on the cot, “I now see the value of those essential oils you insist on purchasing.” He grins coyly at Jayce, watching his cheeks flush in response to the slight taunt.

[frostedclock-writes]

Crimson Magnolias

Part 6

----

Warnings: rated R for mature audience, Hanahaki Disease, one sided romance, Alastor x female reader, not beta read.

----

You glance back. The little egg creatures were following at a very close pace, if you stopped for a moment they would slam right into your heels. You make a small hum and look back ahead as Alastor's long legged pace was slowed for your easement. The chatter from the eggs was like having a gaggle of children following the two of you to an overlord meeting. You were under the impression that he was going to get rid of the small things but you don't know how he planned on ditching the eggs.

" Is that your ears or your hair? I can't tell!"

" Why are you so tall, Mr. Bossman?"

" The lady is pretty! Why do you smell like flowers all the time, Ms. Boss lady?"

" Can I play with the microphone?"

" Are the two of you married? "

" Are we there yet?"

You were almost thankful when Zestial, the oldest sinner that you knew still walked hell, appeared. His slender and tall frame towered over you, making even alastor appear short in comparison. You kinda droned out their conversation about overlord niceties one might call it, you walked quietly on the otherside of Alastor. You forgot what it was like walking with Alastor, or any overlord with a reputation. Sinners and imps alike avoided the pathway the two took and some began to run in the other direction.

Alastor's reputation even carried past his years of absence. It was a bit amazing. You have a feeling if most overlords were to disappear for as long as he did and return, well most sinners would think he would have went soft by now. They would be dead wrong. More than likely in a literal sense.

Even if you did finally tell Alastor how you felt, do you even belong at his side? You aren't anything special, you don't have power or fame. Most would see you as plain perhaps, even an easy target. You weren't exactly a fighter either.

"Y/N? Cher?" Alastor's voice brought you back into the conversation as the group of you arrived outside the Carmine tower.

" Oh! Ahah sorry, must have lost myself in thought." You smile and hope the excuse passes.

Alastor made a small hum in his throat. " Ah, well come now. We shouldn't be tardy." The elevator door slid open as he approached it, Zestial stepped inside and Alastor waited for you at the threshold of the elevator.

You stepped inside before him and he stood in front of you as the doors attempted to close but the egg creatures were in the way. Alastor took his microphone cane and pushed them out of the elevator, he made a tut.

He looked to the egg boiz and smiled a few inches wider. " Stay here and guard the door. "

Salutes and 'yes, Mr. Bossman's sounded off. Okay kinda endearing you suppose. They were like perfect minions in the nickelodeons you used to go to when you were alive, they could occupy Oswald or some such. The elevator door closed soundlessly and the chime sounded as the floors were passed. Alastor's hums filled the space with a soft tone and crackles like a radio station you couldn't quite catch the signal of.

Something shifted by your feet.

Oh.

An egg boi stood confused as he looked out the glass window of the elevator. His little black hands pressed against the glass and he looked down, the buildings shrank as you all reached the top floors. You take your eyes off of him for a moment as a loud chime signaled the elevator had reached the top floor. The solid door opened and the stark white tiles and walls of Carmine's building shined like someone had recently came and waxed the floors. Zestial bent his head a little as he exited first, you looked to Alastor for a moment and saw his elbow extended for you. You felt blood rush to your cheeks as you loop your arm with his.

Your other hand came and rested on top of your own, you glance at the side of Alastor's face. His monocle hid a bit of his eye from this angle, but his smile was soft and his brows relaxed. Not often do you catch this expression, even before. It was always nice to peek and see his mask slip just a little. It reminded you of the man you met one day in a speakeasy.

Other overlords began to spill from the other elevators and made their way into the conference room set up for everyone. You took a small breath as your footsteps fell in line with Alastor's. You felt a few eyes on you but then they quickly left, you spotted Rosie. The cannibal overlord looked over with a bright smile seeing Alastor, and then her pitch black eyes seemed to shift focus to you. Her smile stretched a little wider. You let your arm slip from Alastor's as the two of you approached the table. Alastor's fingers snapped and a chair for you appeared just a tad behind where him and Rosie.

You take the seat and place your hands in your lap. Fuck, why did you agree to this?

Because Alastor asked.

Yeah.

Shit.

Your head spun a little as powerful beings in hell all gathered in the same room and a projection of lost 'assets' on the projected screen. The door from an office in the back opened and three people came out towards the head of the table.

Camilla Carmine. A gorgeous woman who walked in pointed shoes that looked just as deadly as any weapon that hung in the conference room. They glowed faintly like they had an ethereal aura about them, angelic steel of you had to hazard a guess. She began to address the room, then her eyes settled on Alastor. And for a moment darted to your presence near the window.

" Alastor. So you've come back. "

" Ahahh yes, I have been gone for some time now. I'm sure you've all been wondering~" Alastors chipper tone replied.

" Not really. But good to have you back. " Camilla said bluntly and uninterested.

A record scratch told you that it definitely irked Alastor. Seeing as the two things he was hoping to stir up the meeting didn't exactly pan out how he had hoped. Camilla had brought her - daughters? - with her, and they sat like you. They were off to the side and remained quiet. And his own presence was quickly written off as the matriarch of the Carmine family began to spill off jargon that you didn't quite understand in terms of Overlord controls and assets in the upcoming extermination. It kinda made your head spin. Definitely not your wheelhouse of expertise, but it seemed everyone else seemed to be following along just fine.

The door slammed open and your eyes shot over to a small woman talking on a phone. You recognized her. One of Vox's coconspirators, what was her name? Viola? Victoria?Violet? No, it was something to do with fabric... Ah right Velvette, Vox had mentioned her if you were mistaken. She was a little firey bearcat, she came in like she had better places to be and was even outspoken about it. What does 'come to represent' mean? Like represent the Vees? Wasn't that obvious?

When she chuckled the angel's head on the the table. The overlords all began to murmur to one another about the still bloody head. Was that an actual exterminator? It sure looked like one, the blood was gold like ichor dripping onto the table. You looked up back to Velvette as she strode across the table. Despite her size, she held herself like she was the one who ran hell. Camilla cut her respectless tirade towards her and Zestial. She avoided the question the fashionista had put forward to her. The angel. It was almost obvious that Camilla knew something but clearly wasn't going to reveal it.

" This meeting is over. " Camilla turned and her arms were crossed, her daughters looked at her in worry or perhaps shock it was hard to tell with the pair.

Velvette hopped off the table and tossed her loos strands from her pigtail over her shoulder. She made a scoff of a laugh, " Be safe getting back to the retirement home. "

You blinked. Was overlord meetings always so quick?

" What a productive meeting." Alastor rose to his feet and so did everyone else.

You followed suit and you glanced over towards Camilla and Zestial making their way to the back office again. Alastor stayed where he stood for a moment. He gave a you a gesture to keep going so you turned and went towards the door. You made a surprised squeak as you feels an arm lace through yours andpulled you into a tall side. Rosie, the scent of flowers and rotton meat reminded you of Venus flytraps.

" Y/N! Oh dear it had been too long. You've missed my last two tea parties. I had to make due with Susan for an ear to talk off. " Rosie snorted a laugh and she waved her hand dismissively. " I see you have a lot to catch me up on~" she cooed in a teasing voice.

" I... Uh have no clue what you mean. " You make a small laugh.

" Mmmhmm, word is you are staying with Alastor in that little hotel the Princess of Hell is running. "

"N-Not with HIM per say. I have my own room, I work there for a few dollars is all. "

" Mmmhmm," her pitch black eyes looked right through you. " Well, what sort of things do you do then?" Her smile widened a little.

" Well... Not much so far but.... Oh no don't you look at me with those big eyes like that. Rosie!" You felt the heat rising to your cheeks. " I needed some funds and he offered a job. " You knew what she was thinking and now you wouldn't be able to get out of Tea Time with Rosie. You can already hear her questions now. Hopefully she will take mercy upon you.

She covered her mouth with her hands and made a soft giggle. " I only tease darling. " Her expression softened. " I know how it must be for you right now darling. " Her hand rested on your lower back in a comforting gesture. " You really should get some of it off your chest."

Off your chest. Out of your chest.

" Rosie... " You whispered.

"I apologize, ladies, for my absence. " Alastor manifested behind the two of you in a melt of a shadow. " Hope I didn't miss anything too entertaining." He strode to the elevator door and pushed the button. His hand blocked the door to let you and Rosie through.

" Oh nothing just us clucking like two hens. " Rosie quickly covered and made a laugh. "Alastor, you really should have told me you made it back to town. I would have had a meal or something made for all of us to celebrate. "

Alastor laughed as he stepped inside, the elevator doors closed behind him. " Ahah, no need for that. Though, I might take you up on that meal soon. You do always have the most delectable selection on meat. Besides..."

You had slowly relaxed your shoulders. Then, Alastor had grabbed a hold of them, one on each side. He put his face cheek to cheek with yours. Oh shit. Shit. He felt so warm and his skin was soft against yours. Could he feel your heartbeat? It felt like it was pounding hard to the surface of your skin.

" Y/N here greeted me so warmly that one could forget that they were gone for seven years. " Alastor let go of you as the elevator dinged and signaled it's opening.

Rosie chuckled behind her hand and that sharp tooth grin was mischievous. " Is that so? Well so good you have someone who waited for you like that. " She stepped outside the elevator and glanced towards the massive clock tower. " I should get back to my people. Let's talk soon. "

Alastor waited for you to exit before he did himself. For a moment you realized the little egg that had went up with you and Alastor didn't come back down. But the thought quickly fled as you returned you focus to Rosie. " Oh, yes, and let's catch up.... Next week?" You ask, when you get a nod, you bid your goodbyes.

Rosie walked down, you watched until her large hat became nothing but a dot on the end of the street before she turned. The sound of trash clattering brought you back to the moment, the egg creatures had began to rummage and play around in the filth and garbage of the dumpsters. You crinkled your nose, their little suits already getting stains from the leaking bags and and other viscera found in Hell's garbage. You were glad you weren't in charge of guest laundry.

" Y/N, dear. " Alastor spoke up with a light hum to his voice. " You seem distracted today. Is my company not entertaining enough?" He tilted his head, you could hear a couple of cracks come from his neck.

You make a laugh. " No, nothing of the sort." You look at him for a moment longer. The way his eyes seemed to trace your face and search through your soul. It made your throat tingle.

He snapped his head back into place and made a tut. He seemed like he was about to say something when the elevator sounded another passenger was about to be let out. You look over and see the egg boi waddle over. He placed a hand on your shoulder and his smile widened.

" One moment. Could you be a dear and gather the other ones from their.... playpen?"

" Oh... Sure?"

It was a bit abrupt but you do as he asked and go over to the dumpster. While you told the egg boi to get ready to go, you glanced over and saw Alastor speaking with 'Frank' as the others called him. He seemed to get in a rather good mood after Frank told him something then he spun back to you and the lined up minions.

" Well! Shall we get back to the hotel? " Alastor spoke chipperly as he extended his arm for you to take.

You raise an eyebrow and take his arm. "What was that about?" You ignore the tightness in your throat

" Oooh nothing of your concern right now, cher. " A laugh track played behind his chuckle.

" Well it certainly put a pep in your step. " You chuckled.

" Well the news was quite.... Lovely I suppose. " He flashed you his slightly yellowed teeth in a sharp grin. " Makes one glad to be dead. " He laughed again.

Alastor began to hum a tune you remembered belonged to Duke Ellington. You could close your eyes and for a moment you were back on the streets of the French Quarter, and he was walking you home after a night of libations and dancing. Your palms used to sweat a little and you were always worried he would feel it and not want to hold your hand again.

You open your eyes and Hell returned to your vision. Hazbin Hotel in flashing neon above a rough looking building. You took a breath, your lungs rattled a little and the sulphur in the air mixed with the ginger in an acrid way. Alastor's steps stopped and you looked over at him, his large ears were perked up and he patted the top of your fingers with his hand.

" This weekend we shall celebrate, perhaps cut a rug like we used to. I know I could use a bout of good ol'fun. Saturday Night. I'll even bake us a nice meat pie for the evening. " Alastor told you.

Your heart squeezed hard in your chest. Dancing with Alastor again, you almost couldn't breath. Perhaps just the two of you in his broadcast room with a bottle of whiskey and jazz music. Then your brain clicked. Saturday. Oh no. Oh dear.

"O-Oh I have plans this Saturday. Maybe we could do it on Sunday?"

A record scratch. You saw an eyebrow twitch. He hadn't expected you to have someone else on your dance card, one might say.

" Plans? What sort of plans? "

" I... Have a date. "

Alastor's eyes narrowed a bit and his ears were now pulled back. " A date? " He adjusted his monocle. " You had never seemed interested in such things before. " He seemed to be more speaking to himself than you. " I don't recall you having any suitors when we alive.... And you always refused the riff-raff that came around down here. "

'That's because of you, Alastor. All I ever wanted was you to look at me like I was the only thing around. And I loved for the moments it seemed like it might have been true. ' You thought, keeping the words in your throat with the clump of petals you swallowed down.

You make a small laugh. " Well, I thought a change of pace might be good for me. Give it the ol' college try."

He was quiet for a moment. Alastor then made a hum and opened the front door of the hotel. Feedback from a microphone underlayed his next words. " Then, I suppose we should reschedule. Sunday it is. "

" Alastor...are you... Are you jealous?"

He changed his tone and he moved inside the hotel his arms slipped from yours. " No! Why would I be jealous of that infernal picture box?"

" How do you know that it's Vox? " You ask pointedly. Following close behind his heels. " It could have been anyone. I could have a hot date with Husk." You say and gesture towards the bar as his pathway took you past the addition to the hotel.

Husk looked up from cleaning a glass and furrowed his eyebrows. " Ah no, don't drag me into this shit. " He pointed at you. " I ain't getting in the middle of..." He gestured at the general area of you and Alastor. " Whatever this shit is. "

Alastor made a sharp laugh. " Need I continue? Vox is below someone such as you, Cher. I'm just being a good friend." He looked at you as he puthis red tipped fingers against his chest in a smug stance he took when he didn't wish to be pushed on a subject.

Friend.

Petals were clogging in your throught. You swallowed as hard as you could. It was impossible right? He was just worried that you would stop hanging around here. Stop paying attention to him. He couldn't be jealous in the way that you wanted him to be.

" You.... You .. " Your throat burned. Acrid ginger touched your tongue. " You're such an ass sometimes. " You storm past him and head for the elevator. You needed to get to your room and you didn't care if you got stuck in a metal box at this point.

" Y/N. " Alastor spoke up as you passed him. You felt fingers brushed against your shoulder as you stormed past.

You ignored him and held the coughs down as you got to the elevator. You slammed on the button and pushed it several times to close the door up. The doors slid shut and the box wiggled as it began to move up. You let out your first cough and then it felt like a dam broke at that moment. Petals fell with every little cough or scratch you tried to clear out of your throat. The taste of blood mixed with it and you felt your stomach clench tightly and painfully and you vomited. Red mixed with white petals and whole flowers fell into the ground of the elevator. You dug your nails down the door and leaned your forehead against the cold metal.

The elevator felt like it shook hard as it came to an abrupt stop, halfway between the third and fourth floor. Your eyes shot to the dial above the door.

Shit.

Shit.

Fuck you right?

taglist: @boldlyenchantingfox22 @sirens-and-moonflowers @phoephan-123 @girl-nahh-two @kerosene--lamp @l3rittany @lunamoonbby

[otomiyaa]

Viktor's Secret

Jayce x Viktor

A/N: Playful interrogation won the poll so that's what you're getting 🤭 Love these two.

Summary: Jayce discovers Viktor is hiding something for him and has his ways of making him speak. (Also on AO3)

Word Count: 1.6K

It was quite uncommon and almost felt... wrong. Jayce noted the silence between Viktor and him as they both sat at the dinner table.

They were not working. They were not experimenting. It was the middle of the day and they were not even in their lab. It felt uneasy to not be invested in work for such a while. But they kind of had no choice.

Jayce's mother practically dragged them here for a lunch to celebrate his birthday. Which was actually three days ago. She didn't want just Jayce, she wanted it to be the both of them, and today at last she managed to get them out of the lab for this promised celebration.

"She cooks well," Viktor said. They both stared at their empty plates as they sat next to each other.

Ximena insisted they should wait here while she went out to get their surprise dessert, which resulted in them sitting here quite awkwardly since it would be rude to ignore her request after such a feast.

Even if they wanted, they couldn't leave now, so they were just two workaholic scientists sitting here quietly. It felt unnatural to say the least.

"Yes. It was delicious," Jayce agreed. He felt guilty towards his mother. Despite her hard work to make them 'relax' and have a good meal for once, his mind was still focused too much on their research and the pressure from not only the council but all of Piltover.

It wasn't just his own desire and his own expectations now, but other people relying on them as well. It was an added pressure that had both good and bad effects on their work.

"It really was delicious," Viktor replied again. As chatty as they were in the lab, they didn't have much to say now.

Jayce had actually missed most of the conversations with his mother while they were eating and he had nodded absentmindedly and said "yes" every once in a while. Right now, he also didn't want to bring up anything research-related, because it'd make their skins itch to rush back to the lab to make notes.

However he recalled something he did pick up during his mother's conversation with Viktor, and he remembered he should ask his partner about it. It was a conversation topic at least.

"Viktor, you know my mother quite well by now."

Viktor munched on some leftovers and he nodded. "I do."

"When she spoke about my... uh..." Jayce blushed. "...past inventions," he mumbled.

Viktor hummed in understanding. "What about it?"

"It felt like I was missing out on something. The way you reacted and when she winked at you.... Uh... Is there something I don't know of? Have you been gossiping about me?"

Jayce noted the change in Viktor's expression as soon as he said that. Ha! He knew it, he was hiding something. This already confirmed it.

"What do you mean?" Viktor asked in an innocent tone Jayce didn't buy at all.

"We've spoken about your... childhood aspirations before. They were funny. Sweet. You know I liked hearing those stories," Viktor said.

Jayce couldn't explain it in words if he were to be asked - but he was 100% sure Viktor was lying.

"I think you're not telling me everything. Did you visit my mother behind my back to hear more of my embarrassing stories?"

"Not at all, Jayce. Why would I even do that, I don't have the time- hehey!" Viktor jolted when Jayce reached under the table where he could reach his partner's good leg very well. The perfect angle for a good tickle on his knee!

"JAyce, no!" Viktor warned, but Jayce made a claw of his hand and tickled his knee playfully. It was a tickle spot he was happy to discover not long ago. He hadn't made advantage of it again since his discovery, so now was the perfect chance.

"D-don't!" Viktor squirmed in his chair and hastily reached for his cane, but Jayce grabbed his arm and started to tickle his side instead.

"What were you going to do with that, huh? Hit me with it? If you don't want me to tickle you, maybe you could just tell me the truth? Or should I ask my mother? When I discover you've been lying to me, I'm sure I won't tickle you this nicely," Jayce taunted.

"Nihicely?! Ahhah s-she won't tehell ahanyway- hah!" Viktor giggled adorably as he squirmed and twisted to avoid Jayce's tickly finges, to no avail. He sat in an uncomfortable position between his chair and the table with Jayce attacking his delicate tickle spots from the side, there wasn't that much he could do about it.

"She won't tell, huh? So you agree, there's something you're hiding from me."

Even though it wasn't the full truth yet, Jayce couldn't help but feel a little pride. From the very little signs and information he had figured that Viktor was hiding something. A little secret. Oh Viktor. Jayce knew him all too well.

"Jahayce! You behetter s-stop ihit!" Viktor gasped when Jayce wiggled his fingers from his sides to his stomach.

"Then you better spill it."

"Noho- I prohomised, ahhaha!"

Jayce raised his eyebrows and smiled fondly. Well, whatever little secret promise he had with his mother, he was now determined to tickle it out of him before she'd return, and he poured all of his focus into it, so much that he promptly forgot to think about Hextech for the first time in a long while.

All that mattered now was Viktor and that sweet, jolly laugh he was sharing.

"You're beheing so unfahair!" Viktor whined. When he tried to get up from his chair, Jayce simply grabbed him and together they stumbled to the floor where Jayce towered over him and kept up the playful tickle attack.

"Me? You're being unfair. We shouldn't be hiding secrets from each other, partner. Worse, you're involving my mother. So tell me, what did she say about me? I'm sure it can't be anything I do not know of."

Up until now Jayce had no idea what could be so secretive that Viktor would get tickled to the floor for it, but it didn't matter. Viktor was in fact laughing a lot right now, and that was actually what mattered more. Jayce treasured that laugh. He loved it. It was a sound he could only hear if he tickled Viktor.

And well, in moments like this when Viktor would present him a free excuse to tickle him on a silver platter, Jayce was pleased to accept it with both hands, with all ten fingers!

"Thehere's nohothing to sahay!"

Viktor once again tried to reach for his cane which had fallen during their struggle, and Jayce responded by grabbing his arm and pinning it above his head. With his free hand he tickled Viktor under his arm. Very good, very ticklish. Ten out of ten.

"AHhh Jahahayce! You'll pahay for thihiis!" Viktor cried defiantly. Jayce cocked his head.

"Really now? And how so?"

Viktor couldn't really answer that. Jayce continued tickling him but he also took note of his movements and made sure not to hurt him or be to rough. He quickly let go of his arm and dug his fingers into both his sides again. But despite laughing a lot, Viktor still wouldn't tell him.

In the end, Jayce thought he shouldn't overdo it if Viktor really was this reluctant to talk, so he tickled him until he was reduced to lovely pile of quiet breathless giggles, and then called it quits.

"You're really persistent. Admirable," Jayce complimented when both of them were tired. They lay on the floor, Viktor halfway under the dinner table with his hand on his stomach as he caught his breath. Jayce was panting as well.

Then to his surprise, Viktor suddenly started talking. "Your mother... She gave me some of your notebooks. That's all."

Jayce raised his eyebrows. "Oh?"

"Experiments from when you were very young, Jayce. She thought I would like them. And I do."

The tickling had stopped, and he was spilling it now! What! Blushing at this new information, Jayce poked Viktor's side. "But I don't," he whined.

Viktor chuckled and rubbed his side. "She knows. That's why she said it's our secret. We didn't want to embarrass you. That was not the intention."

Pffft. That was actually adorable. It was such an innocent secret in the end. Did Viktor really accept all that tickling, just for that?

Jayce wanted to ask more about it. What notes? What did he like? Were they good, even though Jayce was still a child? Did he laugh at them? When did his mother share them, and why? Where did Viktor keep those notebooks?

But then the door opened and they were no longer alone. "I'm back!"

Ximena didn't ask what they were doing on the floor. They both got up and made impressed "ah!" sounds when they saw the birthday cake she had brought.

"I wanted it to be as fresh as possible. So, are you ready for dessert?"

Jayce and Viktor exchanged glances and Jayce caught himself blushing a bit.

"Y-yeah, definitely!"

They both took seat again and were given a big piece of cake, and Jayce noticed that during dessert, he could enjoy this family moment a lot more. He was no longer distracted and haunted by thoughts about work, and he actually took part in the conversation.

And besides, now that it wasn't a secret anymore, he thought he should let his mother spill it as well.

"So, mom. I heard you shared my old notebooks with Viktor, hm? I want you to tell me all about it."

[syllvane]

i’ll be the one if you want me to- kaz brekker x reader

“Is he still angry?” Jesper asked and you didn’t have to ask for clarification on who he was talking about, the events of last night still fresh in your mind.

“What do you think?”

Jesper didn’t say anything, taking another sip of the drink he was nursing.

“What is he so angry about anyways? I wasn’t aware that dancing with you was illegal.” Jesper complained and you swiped the drink away from him as soon as he put it down, taking a sip of it for yourself.

Your face scrunched, not expecting the alcohol to be that bitter, before sliding it back over to Jesper.

“I don’t understand how you can drink that shit this early.” 

Jesper shrugged.

“It’s a learned skill. Useful for when you piss off Kaz Brekker.”

“I should just talk to him, he’s being ridiculous.”

“I should just apologize, I shouldn’t drag this out any longer than necessary.”

“You’re not the one dragging it out, Jes. Besides, you did nothing wrong. I’m allowed to dance with who I want without him getting all pissy about it.”

“Yeah, well… you know. He does have a soft spot for you.”

You scoffed, shaking your head.

“He does not.” You said and Jesper gave you a look before the door to outside opened.

He turned around and grinned.

“Nina! True or false, Kaz has a soft spot for our good friend here.”

Nina appeared on Jesper’s side, looking dubiously at the alcoholic beverage he was nursing.

“Saints, you’re starting early today. True, obviously, why?”

“He does not! If you had danced with Jesper last night, Kaz would not have given the both of you the silent treatment for the last twelve hours.”

“Well, that’s because he’s in love with you. He was jealous. I would be jealous if I saw Matthias dancing with another girl.”

You fell silent.

“You and Matthias are dating.”

“And you’re going to tell me you and Kaz aren���t? That all of those longing looks are completely platonic?”

“I’m going to talk to him.”

Nina paused.

“Are you sure you’re in the best space of mind to do so?”

You didn’t respond as you stood up from your chair, heading back to the Slat, determined.

Kaz doesn’t look up as you open the door to his office without knocking, nor as you close the door behind you.

“You don’t get to be jealous, Kaz.”

He stopped working on whatever it was that he was writing, setting the pen down.

“I’ve never been jealous of anything.”

“Then what was last night?”

He didn’t say anything, shifting his jaw.

“It was nothing. It was… misplaced anger.”

You took a deep breathe, shaking your head.

“Don’t lie to me.”

“What do you want me to say?”

“The truth. For once.”

He stayed quiet, unable to meet your eyes.

“Tell me that you want me. Tell me to stay. And I will, and I will never ask you to say so again.”

Finally, he looked up.

“Is it not obvious?”

“It’s really not.” You said, your voice nearly breaking.

“I-” He started, his voice catching in his throat and breaking, unable to continue.

He looked down, his eyes closed.

You felt yourself deflate, tears in your eyes.

“Tell me to stay, Kaz, and I will. But when I exit this door, I’m gone.”

It feels like an eternity that you wait, that you stand there in his office foolishly, asking for something he can never give you, because these are the simple facts of the situation: Kaz Brekker will never ask for you to stay.

He will never pull you closer or grab your wrist while you’re walking out.

He will never ask you to stay because there is vulnerability in asking, in wanting.

He will watch you dance with Jesper, will watch you talk with Inej and giggle with Nina, will watch you look at him with inexplicable fondness and do nothing at all about it. 

You say nothing to him as you turn, speak nothing of the hope you still hold out for him.

The door shuts behind you and safely, behind the cover of wood and walls, his face contorts into anger and sadness and he hits his desk, slams his cane into a bookcase, does everything but rush out after you.

And you let him go.

[heartsforseo]

Strawhats with a Lolita member

Summary: The straw hats just boarded into a new island. But, not like any others. This island was all white and black. Until they met you. The reader also has Daki's demon art technique. This was the request REQUEST are open (IM BEGGING) word count: 1.6k

The straw hats first met you on a gloomy island. Due to the lack of vibrant colors, everyone's in formal and dark clothing. Everyone except you. Your background was a blur. You grew up on the other side of the island and only come to the town when you need something.

Today was always the same. You wore your tall heels and grabbed your ribbon bag. You looked at your mirror one last time to check your makeup and fix your black and pink hair.

You leave your pastel house and start walking to the town. Your frilly dress bounces on every step you make, along with all the little decorations and the big ribbon on your back. Your creamy stockings hug your smooth and perfect thighs. Your parasol, walking beside you, waiting to be opened and used.

The walk to the town was short. All kinds of animals surrounded you. Hostile or not. You were an eye candy on the gloomy island, the only one with colors and a devil fruit.

You looked at the harbor. A ship has arrived. The Jolly Roger is a skull with two crossed bones underneath and a straw hat on top. You looked back at the market, trying to find people standing out.

You opened your parasol and took out your creamy fan, holding it below your eyes. There, you saw a young man with a straw hat, the captain, you presume. Next to him was a girl with tangerine hair and a man with curly eyebrows. Your island doesn't often get visitors. The last time someone came, they never went back to the sea.

There is a saying if you offend the island and do something wrong. At night, sashes will wrap around your body and slowly absorb you.

"Hey! I've been trying to call you for the last 5 minutes." The voice whined. You snapped out of your thoughts--making a little sound, and you looked at the man. He looks like a plank separated by its group.

"What's your name, and why are you the only one glowing?" the tall, lanky man asked.

"Y/n…" you quietly muttered. The fan was a great asset today. Covering your pink blush and trembling mouth.

"Hm…do you know anything about t-" "Luffy! Stop running a- A LADY~"

"Oh, uhm…" You were starting to get uncomfortable. Today was just supposed to be like yesterday and the day before. While the two were busy fighting among themselves, you had run off and went to one of the instrument stores.

There, you saw a tall man's back. He had an afro and, by the neck--an orange scarf. He also had a gold top hat and a cane on his side. The tall man turned around and, to your horror, a skeleton. Before it could open its mouth, your devil fruit accidentally activated, and your sashes were wrapped around the skeleton, ending it with a ribbon.

You gasped and mumbled a quick sorry, then left the store. Today has been unpleasant. You left the town while holding your mirror, making your hair and makeup look good. When you were away from the townsfolk, you used your fruit and made your ribbons carry you.

Various thoughts entered your mind. But the forest was calming you down. You looked around you-- and a woman with sunglasses and a bag stepped out of the shadow.

"That was an interesting ability, miss." The lady said.

You looked at the mysterious woman. Her clothes and accessories fit her. "Oh, uh, thank you!" You answered cheerfully.

"I saw a house on the other side of the island. It was hard to ignore it, especially the color the owner chose. With all the evidence I gathered, you were the legend the people were discussing. Ribbons and sash?"

You tilted your head to the side and asked, "How do you know?"

The woman chuckled and answered, "I saw what you did to my friend Brook. I asked the locals about the ribbons. They said that pirates only left their clothing behind, no bones or skin," she continued, "I must say what you're doing here is heroic. But don't you get ever tired from the lack of color?"

I left my ribbon vehicle and finally spoke, "This place wasn't white and black. It used to be full of color and life. One day, I was exploring the forest all by myself. I never made any friends. They said my style was too childish. My friends were animals, and I was hanging out with them. One of the red pandas gave me a strawberry. Instead of its usual dots, it got replaced with tiny carved ribbons. I ate it since my friend gave it to me. It tasted weird, and I passed out. When I woke up, the island had no color except for me. I want to help my people first."

The woman said, "Have you never thought you were the problem?"

I gasped. Me? What did I ever do?

"I'm not saying that you are. But what if? Me and my crew are going to depart tomorrow. I could show you around the ship. All your belongings are in the Thousand Sunny."

"I- can I at least check the ship first?"

Now, here you are in front of the Thousands Sunny. You entered the big ship, holding your fan just below your eyes. There was no one, and the only light source was on the second floor towards the back of the ship.

"Oh, by the way, my name is Nico Robin. You can call me Robin."

After the tour, you find out the men sleep on the first floor while the girls sleep on the second floor. Speaking of sleep, the crew arranged your corner neatly. You had your vanity and a lot of picture frames. Your bed also had a lot of frilly and curtains, and the wardrobe filled with Lolita and Victorian dresses.

"Let's go to the last room. The dining room." Robin said.

There, you two entered the room. All of the straw hat members except Robin were eating happily.

"I'll introduce you to all of them. The man with the straw hat is our captain, Luffy. The girl with the orange hair is our navigator, Nami. The guy with the long nose is our sniper, Ussop. The guy wearing a suit is the ship's cook, Sanji. The reindeer is the ship's doctor, Chopper. The tall man is a cyborg and is the crew's shipwright, Franky. The skeleton, the guy you packaged neatly, is the musician, and his name is Brook. Lastly, the Fishman is the helmsman, and his name is Jinbei. Let's eat with them."

You walked behind Robin, your fan still in front of your face.

"Oh, it's you!" Nami yelled. "LADY~" Sanji shouted.

You winced from the roaring noise and instinctively opened your umbrella to avoid them. Robin noticed you shifting and held your hand, then closed your umbrella. Sanji served you food, and you sat on the counter.

That night was lovely and fun. The crew, even though it looked chaotic at first, was pleasant. Everybody's different personalities make you fit in like the last puzzle piece. The ship made you feel needed. It made you feel wanted.

You left the dining area and stared outside. In front, you could see the vast ocean. But if you look back, you can see your colorful island. Colorful island?

Was I the problem all along?

"So, do you accept my offer now?" You look beside you to see Robin also staring at the island. You closed your umbrella and shifted your body, staring at her.

"I do."

The next day, you woke up in your bed. Last night was a bit of a blur. Luffy was cheering that someone new joined, and all the crew were doing whatever. You went to the girl's room and immediately passed out.

You stood up and looked at the mirror, observing the heart-shaped beauty mark below your right eye. You took out some new clothes, a white dress stopping at your thighs. You also took a pair of socks that reached your knees and arm warmers, stopping at your shoulders.

You look at the room Nami and Robin, sleeping peacefully.

After showering, you went to the girl's room and put your hair into pigtails, using two large ribbons as hair ties.

You finally left the room and went down to the first floor. There, mostly all of the straw hats were chilling.

"Are we leaving now?" You asked

"Yeah, the log post finally worked, and we're now going to the next island," Franky replied

You stared back at your island, slowly drifting away.

"I hope the animals will be--"

"I saw some marines just east from here," Zoro yelled from the top nest.

The next thing you knew, cannonballs were being launched at you.

Half of the crewmembers were still asleep. The only ones awake were Sanji, Zoro, and Jinbei.

"Don't worry. There are only two ships. I can handle it." You said.

The three looked at each other and nodded. Then, all went back to work.

You used your ribbons and stretched them to make them larger and larger. You wrapped the two ships like a present and ended it with a large bow.

You turn your gaze toward the direction of your island, feeling a sense of loss as it disappears from your view. However, the presence of your friends by your side gives you a glimmer of hope and comfort. It's hard to adjust, but having friends nearby makes it peaceful.

A/n: OMGG I FINISHED IT IN A DAY!! I STARTED ON 11 AM AND FINISHED AT 3 PM I AM SO SO HAPPY!! I LOVE THIS REQUEST SO MUCH SINCE I WANTED TO DRESS LIKE LOLITA BUT NEVER GOT THE CONFIDENCE. ANYWAYS TY ANON!! I LIKE BEING A WORKAHOLIC

[jackmanbj]

happy wife, happy life

summary: your pregnancy mood swings are killing jack, he tried everything to get you happy but everything he tried fails.

requested by a lovely anon!💕

jack had just left the house to go get you some food, you wanted to stay home because this baby was kicking your ass.

jadore went with jack to go get your food so she could get some to.

stinka💕-baby what do you want?

you- i told you, canes.

stinka💕- i know baby, what do you want from canes?

you- oh sorry, can i get a 3 piece please?

stinka💕- of course

you put your phone down and started watching me before you.

not even 10 minutes into the the movie, you in tears, but it was to good to turn off.

jack helped jadore into her seat and placed her food down.

he quickly went to go get you so you can eat.

jack opened the door to seen you crying, eyes still glued to the screen, tissue in one hand and remote in the other.

“baby whats wrong??”

jack made his way over to you and wiped your tears off with his thumb.

“nothing..the movie is so sad though jack..” “baby, lets go eat mmh?” “ok..”

jack helped you up and started helping you make your way down the stairs to jadore and your food.

“whats wrong mommy?”

that made you cry even more, just jadore making sure her mommy was ok made you cry.

jadore noticed you starting to cry once again so she hopped out her set as fast as she could and ran over to hug your leg.

you bet down to pick her up.

“mommys ok sweet girl, lets eat eat?”

“yes!”

you brought jadore back to her seat and your both started eating.

“mm jack this is so good, want some?”

jack walked over a took a huge bit of your food and you just looked at him.

“really jack? i dont even want it anymore.” “baby finish your food!” “no! i dont want it anymore.”

you got up and picked up your phone and started walking back upstairs to watch your movie.

a few minutes later jack walked into the room with the word sorry written on his forehead that looked like it was written by a three year old.

because it was.

“read my forehead babe.”

you looked at his forehead and immediately giggled.

“really? i hope thats washable.”

“it is mamas, now do you forgive me?”

“yes baby boy i forgive you.”

jack had the biggest grin on his face as he walked over to you.

he stood on the side of the bed where you were, arms open.

you quickly got up to hug him.

“jack..”

“yes ma”

“i love you.”

“i love you more baby, more then anything in this fucking world.”

jack leaned down to kiss you and you quickly kissed him back.

jack started rubbing on your stomach, bending down to talk to her and kiss her.

jack planted 3 kisses on you before opening his mouth.

“hi baby, mommy and daddy cant wait to meet you, you’re going to be so spoiled by everybody, i love you so much. you have an amazing mom, sister, and uncles.” jack planted a few more kisses over your stomach before looking up to fine you once again crying.

“babe.”

“im sorry! that was just so sweet!”

jack chuckled and pressed play on your movie.

every once in awhile, sad scenes would come up making you cry but jack would always calm you down.

until the movie ended.

you were right expecting the most happiest ending ever.

but it wasn’t, in fact it was the saddest ending you genuinely ever seen.

and you wouldn’t stop crying, lord knows it was just the baby but jack knew it was hormones and the only way for you to stop crying like this would be for you to go to sleep.

“baby how about you go to sleep.”

you shook your head no then got up and went to the bathroom.

“wheres jadore?”

“taking a nap mamas why?” jack got up and made his way to the doorframe of the bathroom.

“nothing, i was just checking.”

you reached for the shower handle losing your balance but jack was quick to catch you.

“unt unt, mamas go lay down, you can shower later fuck that.”

“jack! i wanna shower now!” “no ‘cause you almost bussed your fucking ass, go to the bedroom.”

jack pointed to the room implying for you to go there.

you simply huffed and rolled your eyes.

at this point, you simply wanted to take your shower and relax, but no.

‘just because i was about to fall doesn’t mean im not capable of taking a fucking shower.’

you thought to yourself as jack finally walked into the bedroom to join you on the bed.

“ma.”

you simply looked at him before pulling out your computer.

jack reached over and took the computer out of your lap and closed it, placing it on his side of the bed.

you quickly pulled on his earlobe.

your nails pressing together slightly as jack whined in pain.

“give me my fucking computer jackman thomas.”

“yes ma’am.”

as soon as you let jack go he reached to grab your computer rubbing his ear in pain.

you took a look at jack to realize he was pouting and rubbing his ear.

“aww come here stinka.”

you pulled jack into your chest as he fake cried.

“jack baby im sorry.”

“you almost killed me!”

“dont you think thats a bit dramatic?”

you moved jack curls out the way exposing that huge forehead and kissed forehead before gently placing them back.

“jack your forehead is huge, i hope sarija doesn’t have a forehead like that, i was so happy when jadore didn’t”

“THATS UNNECESSARY! you know what, i hope they dont have your high. since you know, your 5’5 on a good day.”

jack leaned up to whisper in your ear “its never a good day.”

you push his head off your chest while giggling and jack was full out belly laughing.

“are you finally happy ma? youve been crying all day.”

you quickly pouted.

“im kidding babe.”

jack placed a kiss on your lips and you quickly smiled.

“im going take my shower jack.”

“take it in the morning, lets go to sleep.”

“fine.”

you laid down once again slightly agitated, jack reached over to rub your bump and of course you let him but you let out a angry huff

jack realized you were once again upset but decided to let you sleep and not speak on it.

‘im going to have to deal with this the whole rest of this pregnancy’ jack thought as he kissed your cheek rubbing your belly.

[mothergold]

| I Wanna Make My Murder Look Like A Suicide | 

Pairing: Diluc x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Dark content, Yandere, Yan!Diluc, Fem!Reader, Reader wears a dress, Diluc is your husband, Abuse, Manipulation, Reader is disabled, Reader uses a cane, Reader is referred to as Diluc’s ‘Wife’, Mentions of past forced feeding, Arranged Marriage, It is implied that reader’s family was abusive, Scratching (Reader), Diluc is very cruel in this, Kaeya appears towards the end, Dissociation, Reader has a mental breakdown, Stockholm Syndrome (? I’m unsure about this one ?), 4.6k Words. 

A/n: Reupload because I deleted this foasijfasodi but yeah idk I really just think yandere!Diluc is neat. Also, the title are lyrics from the song Cotard’s Solution by Will Wood and The Tapeworms.

Summary: When your family arranges a marriage with the wealthy owner of Dawn Winery, you jump at the first chance you can to escape your cruel family, but what new hell awaits you on the other side?

“Where do you think you’re going?” He asked in a cold tone. 

It threw you off for a moment but only briefly, because if there’s one thing you could promise yourself it’s that your husband, Diluc, would never harm you. But somehow you couldn’t help but clutch onto the fabric of your dress, the same one he gave you on your first wedding anniversary, hands shaking for some unknown reason.

“I was just going for a walk. Would you like to j-” He cut you off mid sentence, snapping at you in response.

“No, I don’t want to go anywhere and neither should you. It’s”— He checked his pocket watch before quickly tucking it back into his pocket— “Three in the morning and both of us should be heading to bed.” 

“But-” Before you could get another word in he’d grabbed your wrist and pulled you forward.

That was your cue that it was indeed time to end the night, in bed… with your husband. Your beloved husband who would never steer you astray. So, then why did you have this feeling in the pit of your stomach that something was terribly and unmistakably wrong? 

Soon the sun rose and pierced through the window of your bedroom, waking you up with its warm rays and urging you to get ready for the day. You didn’t have anywhere to go or anything to do exactly—to be fair you never did—but that never stopped you from looking your very best. So, you quickly put on a decent looking outfit, brushed your hair, and grabbed your cane. And just as you were about to descend down the stairs you saw the flower embroidered basket out of the corner of your eye. It always tempted you, or maybe taunted is the more appropriate word, and you decided against fighting your desires and instead hooked it over your free arm. 

You checked both ways before tip-toeing downstairs, hoping your walk was closer than it was last night. Closer and closer you came to the front door, you knew it was silly but you really wanted to take a walk and you couldn’t understand your husband’s rejections towards it. Your hand was on the bronze knob and you were just about to turn it when a hand placed itself on your shoulder. You jumped and looked to see who it was and to your surprise and relief, it was Adelinde. It made getting caught a little less scary and a lot more tedious, because you knew there was nothing you could do to keep her watchful eyes off of you. 

She smiled fondly, too fondly, and finally spoke. “You’re supposed to be resting. Come on, let’s get you some breakfast. Master Diluc is expecting you.” She led you into the dining area.

Pulling back an open seat, Adelinde helped you into your seat, pushing your chair closer to the table while the both of you waited for Diluc to arrive. And once he did she did the same for him and walked outside as he dismissed her. Not once did she look back and it made you nervous for reasons you weren’t sure of. The both of you waited in thick silence for the food to arrive, and once it had he took a few bites before he ordered everyone in the house to give you two some privacy.

It was that moment, that moment right then and there that made you question just what exactly your husband would say or do. Maybe an answer to last night’s little event, or something truly dreadful instead. It was the very minute you happened to look at him that he set down his utensils and spoke at last.

“Are you unhappy?” he said casually, as if he hadn’t just questioned the very existence of you in his life. 

You were stunned, but not too much that you couldn’t speak. 

“Of course I am! What kind of question is that?” you replied defensively. 

Your heart began to pound harshly against your chest, and you could feel the sudden drop of your stomach. Clenching the fork in your right hand you tried grounding yourself, controlling your emotions, but the feeling was so strong you started to cry. 

Diluc reached over and gingerly wiped away the stray tear on your cheek. “Please, don’t cry.” You were silent aside from the hurtful whimpers you let out. “I’m not mad.” 

Diluc slowly made his way out of his chair and knelt beside yours in an effort to comfort you, but that did quite the opposite. He gently held onto your left hand and looked at you with softened eyes, except for the fact that they were grey and empty. You tried to stop crying but your tears became uncontrollable, and soon you were sobbing into the crook of your right arm’s elbow. It felt like your world was caving, as if your heart stopped and the air was stripped straight from your lungs. The worst part was how you had no clue what was the real problem, that was until you said that loathsome phrase you always did end up blurting out.

“Are.. Are you leaving me?” you asked timidly.

The fear in your voice was evident but you couldn’t find the strength or courage to pretend otherwise. Sometimes when you blurted it out you hoped he wouldn’t answer, just so that there was no choice for rejection. It was better that way you told yourself, even though he had never rejected you. To be frank, if he hadn’t put that worry in your head in the first place, then you wouldn't have reacted this way. But if there’s one thing you learned from this marriage it was that Diluc would show you only what he wanted you to see. So, to the world he was an honest man, a doting husband, and above all, kind, but that was not the reality you lived. 

Diluc took both of your hands now and gave them a tight grip, looking you deep in your eyes. “I will never leave you. Okay, sweetheart?” 

His words felt less like a promise and more like a threat. You used to have so much more fight in you, but these days you barely had any left. So, you nodded and allowed him to give you a hug before the both of you finished up your breakfast. The remainder of the day was spent watching out the windows of your regal prison, dreaming of the day you could finally feel the sun on your face again. This was the pattern of your every day, from the moment the sun went up and till the very time it fell below the ground; wishing and praying that someday your fate would change. Perhaps that day was closer than you presumed, but you were doubtful. 

The pattern continued for weeks, you had constant flare ups and Diluc would consistently refuse to let you leave the house. Until, one day ,the pain had lessened enough to the point where you didn’t need your cane or wheelchair, and instead could truly stretch your legs for once. It was by no means a permanent thing but you wanted to celebrate this small relief, and with what you might ask? A nice walk through the outside breeze of course. Today was the day you were so sure that Diluc would let you outside, or at the very least walk with you. 

So, you found a comfortable outfit to wear, looked at your aid with a triumphant smile, and carefully descended down the stairs. You were proud to be able to have a day free of your mobility aid, it was liberating, but you knew once you saw Diluc at the bottom of the steps that something was wrong. Something was very wrong, indeed. Slowly you walked down the staircase and once you were face to face with your husband, you could see his face was that of a truly frustrated and fed up man. 

He knows, you thought to yourself. 

“You’re late,” he said in a cold tone as he pulled out a chair at the table for you, and helped you into your seat. 

You kept your sights on your food as much as you could, because you knew damn well that Diluc could sniff out your true feelings with ease. Making sure to hold eye contact with Diluc as much as you could stomach, you took deep breaths as you readied yourself to ask the question you’d been dying to ask. This all depended on how healthy you appeared, if he caught even a whiff of pain or weakness it was all over for you. 

“Sorry,” you said weakly. 

Already your heart was banging hard in your ear drums, causing chaos before the eruption had occurred. You both waited patiently, and you, silently, for the remainder of the food to be served to you. Once you had been served the usual meal you were given, you stared at it for a good moment while Master Diluc began digging in almost immediately. Maybe he was in a better mood today, you thought to yourself. Maybe, or maybe not. He soon noticed you hadn’t touched your food and ushered for you to eat. 

“Eat,” he demanded, a hint of urgency lingering in his voice, but the overall tone was still harsh. 

It was when your teary eyes were long focused on the meal with no urgency to touch it that he raised his brow in suspicion and watched you with an angered expression. It was one thing to try to run away from his hot and cold exterior, but it was another to avoid his good deeds entirely. He set down his utensils with a loud clank and looked straight forward at you, trying his best to contain his rage. 

“I said, eat.” He demanded through grit teeth. 

This was the side of him that many– no, everyone missed completely. Those close to him didn’t see how cruel and unforgiving he was behind closed doors. They didn’t know that if all your food was not eaten how Diluc would sit there to make sure you ate even just a little more than you could stomach, against your begging wishes, of course. No one, and I mean no one except those that resided in the home, knew about his harsh tendencies. And that meant that not a single soul knew just how horribly he treated his sweet angel of a wife, but maybe it was better that way. After all, if someone like you was stupid enough to stay then maybe you really did deserve all the torture he’d constantly put you through. And you’d think that after his hardened voice demanding you to eat that your fear would kick in and force you to shovel down your food, but you’d be wrong. 

“Is there something wrong with the food, my dear?” He asked through grit teeth, again. 

You shook your head and tears fell into your food. 

Diluc stood up from his seat and stared you down. “Then what is wrong?”

You said nothing. Instead, you continued to cry into your food as Diluc stared down at you like a troublesome child. You just couldn’t stop, no matter how hard Diluc told you to calm down, relax, or ease yourself, it was all to no avail. It only furthered your pathetic tears. Diluc wanted to know the truth, just for you to tell him why you refused to eat, but if you told him the truth he’d only become more angry and you weren't sure you could handle that at the moment. You weren’t sure you could handle this life a moment longer, but unfortunately you didn’t and never had a choice. It was tragic really, but that was life for you. 

It wasn’t that you hadn’t tried to leave him before, trust me, you tried, but it was all to no avail. You could hardly make it downstairs without some help, so what made you think you could escape all on your own unscathed. When your family arranged the marriage you blindly accepted, thinking escaping your heartless family must be a better life than if you were to stay, but boy were you wrong. Diluc was sweet at first, kind and gentle just as he is in the public eye, but it wasn’t till the honeymoon that you realized something was terribly wrong. And by time you realized your mistake it was far too late. 

“I-” You started to speak, but were quickly cut off by your choking tears. 

You tried your best to speak up, say something, anything, but each time you were silenced by gut wrenching cries. The one time you attempted to look up to address the situation you were met with cold, unfeeling eyes and averted your gaze with hiccuping sobs. 

“Ugh, will you just spit it out already?” Diluc groaned in frustration. 

That only furthered your sobs and worsened it. Your hands tangled into your hair and began to scratch at your scalp for relief, but you only ended up with a sore scalp and traces of blood underneath your fingernails. Your tears grew bigger, your cries louder, and all sense of rationale left your body. The atmosphere was foggy and unclear, like looking into a cloudy looking glass for reasoning and coming up with absolutely nothing in return. You swore you heard a voice through the thickness of it all, but even as you were dragged from your seat in the dining room and led back into the privacy of your own room, you held no grasp on reality. It must’ve been hours, maybe days, or so it felt like, before you started to come to. A strong grip held you close to something, something warm, and rocked you comfortingly as small shushes could be heard near your ears. 

It was only moments later that you began to recognize the world around you, and the familiar figure holding you close. Too close. It was none other than Master Diluc. Why he was holding you in such a tender and intimate position, you weren’t sure you knew, but you one thing was for sure, it felt extremely uncomfortable. You writhed in his holding, trying your damnedest to squirm out of his hold, but he was much stronger than you. A pins and needles sensation spread from your hips to the tip of your toes, and you could barely move from your position. Your hands were free aside  from the vice grip Diluc had on your arms, almost crushing them as he held you closely. You felt the need to cry all over again, but suppressed it as hard as you could. Thankfully, your attempts worked and this time you remained strong.

You tried to remain quiet and confident, but your confidence was shattered the moment you heard his sweet yet poisonous voice ring through your ears. “You’re awake.”

Unfortunately

“Y-Yes. What happened?” You asked, trying to put the pieces together. 

Diluc shifted into an upright position and prepared to tell you some of the truth. He couldn’t have you trying to run off, again. Unfortunately, what Master DIluc didn’t know was that your determination far outweighed any punishment he could potentially give to you. After he explained it to you in his own version, you nodded in agreement and expressed your exhaustion. You wanted to go to bed and forget all about this day., even though it felt like it had just begun. Sure, Diluc had his suspicions as to why you so suddenly wanted to sleep after such a conversation, but he brushed it off as his own paranoia. After all, he’d curated a life that he made damn sure you could never run away from. At least, not without some help. 

That night was spent with eyes vigilantly open, wide and observant as you rested your head on the pillow, keeping out for when Diluc would come to bed. If he caught you in bed awake right now he was sure to have a few words, but you’d simply lie and say the pain kept you awake, which wouldn’t exactly be far from the truth, but it wasn’t the truth. You watched out the only window you had in your room, gazing at the open sky full of stars and the full moon and wondered what was taking Diluc so long. What was taking him so long? He should’ve long been in bed by now. So, why was he still hard at work in his study? Regardless of the reasoning you calmed yourself down, trying your best to satiate your impatience, because if you weren’t careful it could very well be the thing that led to your downfall. 

It must’ve been about an hour or so later when you heard the heavy footsteps of your husband head up the stairs and then quietly trail into your shared room. You could vividly hear him discard his clothes and climb into what you guessed were more comfortable ones. He kissed you softly on the forehead, foolishly believing you were asleep, and climbed into bed with you. Feeling his hot breath against your neck sent shivers down your spine, you couldn’t remember the last time you slept without him breathing down your neck, literally. It was awful. Although you were thankful that tonight his vice grip wasn’t holding you in place —making it perfect for your little escape plan— there was still a heavy feeling of discomfort floating throughout the bedroom. 

You were patient, and all that patience of yours finally paid off when you heard the light to heavy snores of Diluc behind you. It was time, time to make your escape. It would be tricky getting out of the bed with him in it, but thankfully Diluc was a heavy sleeper. Slowly and very very carefully you removed the blankets from your body and started to slide down to the edge of the bed. Closer.. Closer.. Closer.. Until finally, your legs hung off the edge of the bed. Diluc shifted in his sleep and let out a loud snore which caused you to jump in your own skin, but looking back you saw he was still fast asleep. Letting out a silent sigh of relief you steadied yourself with both hands as you placed both of your wobbly feet to the ground. Now, the next part would prove one of the most difficult tasks, getting your cane. It currently sat in a cage with other canes and umbrellas you owned (not that you ever actually left the house) and could potentially make a lot of noise if you weren’t careful. 

Cautiously you tiptoed to the cage and took a slow, deep breath before reaching inside and slowly pulled it out. It was a wooden cane so if hit at just the right amount of speed it could make quite enough noise, not as much as it would if it were metal, but it would be just enough to awaken the young master. With extreme caution you began to pull it out, further and further, until it was almost fully out, but in an unfortunate turn of events your hand began to grow weak and numb and you dropped it. Thankfully, you were able to grab it with your other hand before it could wake up Diluc, but not before it banged against the cage in a painfully loud manner. You froze in place, not moving a single muscle until you heard the light snores of Diluc once again. Carefully pulling out the entire cane you then positioned it as you usually would for the day and used it to help you hold your weight upright, as you gradually turned the doorknob and opened the bedroom door. 

Peeking out the door you could so no one and nothing except for the moonlight illuminating the hallway. Now was as good a chance as any to make a run for it, and so you quickly tiptoed down the stairs with the help of your cane to steady you, eagerly walking towards the door the moment your feet touched the first floor. Your hand hovered above the knob as you stopped in shock. Was this it? Were you finally going to leave this miserable and pitiful life to live one full of joy and freedom? It is what you deserved after all, you thought. It’s what you had always wanted and needed. Without wasting a moment sooner you turned the knob and braced yourself for whatever waited for you outside those doors, and stepped outside for the first time in a long time. 

It must’ve been summertime because the heat was thick and the air was muggy. If you had been out on a daily or constant basis you were sure you would’ve hated it, but in that moment you loved nothing more than to feel the heat and thick, muggy air. You never realized how beautiful the Dawn Winery was from the outside until just now. Crystalflies flew through the air and around the grape vines. The moon was full and the stars shone brightly in the nighttime sky. It was beautiful, everything you’d always dreamt of and more. The flowers were even more beautiful than you had remembered and they smelt even better than you could’ve ever dreamt of. Everything was perfect, absolutely perfect. That is until you saw the mansion lit up with lights and realized that he and possibly everyone else was awake. 

You tried to make a run for it as best as you could but you were stopped by a hand on your wrist pulling you backwards and down onto the ground. You fell into a puddle of mudd, soaking your nightgown as you looked up in horror at the man that was supposed to be your husband. His face was cold and full of fury, you’d never seen him look like this before. This wasn’t like those other times when you tried to take walks, because this time you had actually tried to leave him. Leave him all alone with only his wounded pride and broken heart for comfort. He was seething with rage and all you could do in reply was cry, cry like a child that had been caught with their hands in a cookie jar. You didn’t know what exactly prompted you to cry so much, so hard, and so pathetically, but you continued to do so anyway. 

“Come inside, now.” Diluc demanded.

But now that you had a taste of the outside world after such a long time of being deprived of it you wanted more, so you shook your head and rejected his commands. This only further angered Diluc, because he then pulled you up by your forearms and dragged you back inside. You clawed at the door frame trying to stay outside, but he was much stronger than you. He threw you onto the floor and slammed the door shut, proceeding to lock it tightly with a key you’d never seen before. Immediately Diluc started cursing at you, a bright fire in his eyes that consumed his very being began to spread as you realized you had royally fucked up. You couldn’t even focus on a word he was saying because all you could imagine was whatever hell he was about to put you through.

One Week Later…

“Come on, let’s get you all nice and pretty.” Adelinde said, tightening your brand new dress that Diluc had bought you.

It was an apology, a present, but you knew the true nature of the young master, and nothing could fix this marriage, not even your own freedom. You stood there and looked in the mirror as Adelinde fixed your hair with a smile. You too would’ve smiled if it weren’t for the grim reality you faced. Especially on days where Diluc invited over his brother for dinner. Kaeya had no clue of anything that went on in the mansion, not a damn idea, but that didn’t mean he had no suspicions. Kaeya was smart like that, could catch onto things quickly especially being the cavalry captain, and this sort of thing was no different. 

After Adelinde had gotten you all nice and ready the two of you descended down the staircase where you ran into Diluc and his brother, Kaeya. Kaeya looked towards you and smiled, helping you down the rest of the way. Kaeya always was a helpful and kind man like that, constantly helping those in need. Sometimes, just sometimes, you wished he’d help you escape this place, but that was a childish dream. The two of you exchanged pleasantries as you all sat at the dining room table and awaited your food. Everything was going well until the events of a week ago started to come flooding in. You tried your best to hide it but with how brightly the sun started to shine through the windows you couldn’t help but miss the heat and the thick air you once touched. 

“Are you alright?” Kaeya asked, but you playfully brushed off your odd behavior with laughter and a joke, but he was not convinced.

No, Kaeya was not so easily swayed by the same type of joking behavior he too would use to cover his own emotions. So, he watched you the entire dinner all the way till the end. He noticed how flinched against his brother’s touch and noticed how your gaze always seemed to find itself lined up with the open windows. Something was wrong, something was not right about this and he was determined to get to the bottom of it. He would not let you suffer a moment longer, no matter how impossible the mission seemed. Kaeya wanted to tell you this, he wanted to reassure you that he was going to help you escape, but he could never find the right time with Diluc and Adelinde breathing down his neck as he was sure they did the same, and much worse to  you. 

It soon came time to say his goodbyes and as he did he locked eyes with you, saying things with them that he would never dare to say out loud in front of the young master. Even though it was just a dinner, and a revealing one at that, he planned to have many more dinners with Diluc in the future, warm up to you, get closer to you, and hopefully gain your trust enough to help you escape this awful, awful place. That is if he didn’t get killed in the process of it all… 

[dana-chan-the-control-brain]

What are your favourite TSAMS AUs?

I love @emhm It really takes advantage of the Multiverse in a way I haven't seen done in many tsams fics before. Mainly because it's not restricted by the limitations of VRchat. So they cane get really wild with dimensional travel.

Like... Cringe Moon is an Alicorn and Cringe Solar is a transformer car and they are dating? .....Sure! why not!

Solar's Moon dies and his body is repurposed as a factory default Moon and is given as a gift to the Lonely Sun who was built without a Moon?

Ruin in EMHM is an entirely different character then Tsams Ruin and he's just......... Insane? He just wants to put on a show and torture and harm everyone in the process for complete control... maybe due to the lack of control he felt in his home dimension when his control was taken from him? ......Sure, why not!

Servant Sun and Lord Eclipse in EMHM are an iconic duo. Realizing their feelings really recently and are in a committed relationship. But overall live in a utopia with little problems. The Lord struggling with his own mental health and slowly starting to realize the pull and help he can be for Suns and Eclipses that suffer in the multiverse. Also discovering that in Lord Eclipse's Dimension, the Original Sun and Moon were FAR more hostile to him then even the Prime Dimension... which is why Lord is the way he is.

It takes advantage of Dimensions not being One for one copies of eachother that I just really appreciate.

Just be sure of the ratings. Because there is one chapter that is very non-consensual oral, but every other nsfw parts are consensual. And the tag "poorly justified robot sex" is there for a reason lol.

I just like all the different takes on different Suns and Eclipses through the multiverse.

It has a very large ensemble cast and it never feels too big to me. It puts the focus on exactly what they want to, and when the plot points converge it's very satisfying.

I also really love @kuuchaos Backstage Au. It is definitely a "four main characters" fic, but it keeps it very condensed and focused on the inner thoughts of the characters.

Because it REALLY picks apart Nexus's trauma and the hypocrisy of the family in a way that is lacking for me in canon tsams. (Just due to the nature of VR and having things explained to you rather then them actually happening. NMoon was imprisoned, treated like a criminal, shocked and violated before he actually did anything wrong and I will never that that go. I still like tsams as it is, but this will be something I will scream and yell at clouds for years to come to anyone who listens lol)

Also I am damn weak for SolarMoon you know me.

While "SolarNexus" is nice. I often miss the softness that came with New Moon.

Chill says "Why not both" XD

Nexus has his trauma and his family definitely left their scars. As well as the NSP that got extracted from him. Nexus is a changed person, but he still has that venerable soft side that I loved about NMoon as a character so much. If anything, Nexus is far softer because of his trauma and experiences and the personality disorders that developed due to how everything happened.

I absolutely love their softer take on Nexus.

I also like their take on Sunset. (darksun. I swear I prefer the name Sunset and I wish it was the default, because that's what a Dark Sun IS... the Sun setting. It's perfect)

Sunset is written as a canonical sociopath, but you can tell he has a weird fondness for Nexus. As his plans around him keep changing. He used him and manipulated him, obviously. But he keeps Nexus around just as a curiosity. Nexus is like a Moon he let in his home. He almost sees having Nexus around the same novelty as being an Exotic Pet owner and it's fascinating to me and I can't wait to see how Sunset develops throughout this thing.

I also read other fics. But I'm way behind but those are like the main two I am the most confident about.

[edosianorchids901]

Forget How To Feel

Ace Omens Hugfest 2024 prompt - "a silent hug"

St. James’s Park, 1860

“Ooh, and I thought perhaps we might go to the theatre soon! That would be lovely, wouldn’t it? We could go see Hamlet again.”

Crowley grunted in response to the enthusiastic chatter. His only audible contribution to their meeting so far, aside from grunts of agreement, was the tap of his new cane. The silver snake head handle wasn’t exactly comfortable to hold, and definitely not practical, but it looked cool. Very fashionable.

“Or-or-or perhaps something a bit more cheerful,” Aziraphale said with a sideways glance at Crowley. Crowley averted his gaze, studying the ducks instead. They seemed a lot happier than he was. “I know Hamlet isn’t precisely your favorite thing. I do adore it, especially because it reminds me so much of your kindness.”

Crowley hissed softly.

“Well, it was kind. And don’t argue with me, Crowley.” Aziraphale stopped, and Crowley jammed the cane down to slow himself without toppling over at the sudden change. His legs hadn’t been very reliable this week. “Actually, I would feel somewhat better if you argued with me. You haven’t said a single actual word, and I’m not sure whether it’s because something’s wrong or if I’ve simply been babbling too rapidly for you to sneak in a response.”

Aziraphale waited for him to reply. Crowley stared at the ducks and didn’t reply.

When Aziraphale just kept standing there, waiting, Crowley finally caved. “S’ not you. But nothing’s wrong.”

“Something certainly seems wrong. I-I am aware that I’m often chattier than you, but you usually at least, well. Chat.” With a little sigh, Aziraphale searched his face. Crowley found himself grateful for the new sunglasses that shielded his eyes from the side, too. “Quite frankly, I’m starting to worry.”

There it was. The phrase that would always get him to reply at least a bit, even if he masked the worst of the trouble. “You don’t need to worry, angel. I’m just… kinda down. S’ not a big deal.”

Ducks splashed in the water, totally absorbed in their own lives. It looked peaceful.

“Yes, well. You’ve been ‘kinda down’ since that whole incident in Edinburgh.” Aziraphale swallowed hard, twisting his gloved hands together. “Of course, it’s not that I can blame you, considering the trouble you were in. I merely wonder if I could be of assistance.”

After a minute, Crowley shrugged. Then he looked around nervously for observers. No one seemed to be paying any attention at all to them. “D’ya think ducks ever have a bad day? Or are they just, y’know… happy as a duck, as the saying goes?”

Aziraphale gave him a baffled look. “I’m not entirely sure that is a saying, my dear. Although I’m not always entirely on top of slang…”

That was an understatement. Normally, Crowley would have teased Aziraphale a little about that. Right now, it seemed like too much work.

When he didn’t answer, Aziraphale gave a little huff. “Well, would you rather we met up another time? If you’re having a bad day?”

“I didn’t say I was having a bad day. I was just asking about ducks,” Crowley protested despite knowing that Aziraphale would never buy it. Aziraphale gave him a look. “Okay, okay. Yes, I’m having a bad day. But I just want to…”

He snarled in annoyance, unable to admit it. He just wanted to be with Aziraphale. Not doing anything, not talking. Just together, where the world didn’t feel so bleak.

“Oh,” Aziraphale said softly. “Well, in that case, I’d be more than happy to stay together. We don’t have to talk, if you’d rather not. Why don’t we go sit on the bench for a bit? It’s actually quite a nice day, sun and everything.”

“Nnnh.” Crowley glanced towards their usual bench. It was usually comfortable. “My legs are killing me today. Sitting on wood doesn’t sound terrific. But I don’t really wanna walk back to the shop, either.”

“I could carry you.”

“I am not letting you carry me. That would definitely make people look at us.”

“No, I mean…” Aziraphale snuck a quick look around. “Not in this form. You could turn into a serpent. We could even sit on the bench like that, if I’d be a more comfortable place to rest.”

Biting his lip, Crowley regarded the angel beside him. Aziraphale was definitely the most comfortable place around, no question about that. “People would still look at us.”

“And then they would assume that I’m merely an eccentric, taking my pet snake out for a walk on a nice, sunny day.” Aziraphale held out his arms. “Shall we?”

Crowley snorted. “You’re not even gonna let me sit down first?”

“We can, if you feel like walking.”

Oh. He really, really didn’t feel like walking.

With a soft hiss, Crowley leaned his cane against the fence and laid his hands on Aziraphale’s forearm. “Okay. Okay. But I swear, if you let any humans pet me…”

Aziraphale beamed. “No humans petting you. I promise.”

Reassured, Crowley shifted into his rarely used snake form, coiling around Aziraphale’s arm as he did. The pain in his legs morphed too, distributing to most of his body. But at least it was different, and less intense.

He opted for a pretty big snake, big enough that he would probably scare most observers away. Aziraphale cooed and hugged him close, supporting him carefully. “Oh, my dear. You’re so adorable in this form.”

Crowley hissed his disapproval.

“My apologies. You’re… very striking. Handsome. Stunning. Also quite large.” Chuckling, Aziraphale shifted Crowley’s weight to one arm, then picked up his cane. “Shall we?”

That didn’t mandate a reply, so Crowley didn’t bother getting one. He was too busy being a snake, enjoying the way it sanded the sharp edges off his mood.

It shifted his priorities. Sure, he was still depressed and exhausted and in pain, not to mention constantly worrying about everything going wrong again. But all of that receded. All the snakey side of himself cared about was warm angel, and he definitely had warm angel.

“Here we are.” Aziraphale sank down onto the bench. He leaned the cane nearby, then wrapped both arms around Crowley’s coils. “Would you like me to talk at all, or be silent?”

Right now, talking was too much to process. Crowley hid his face under Aziraphale’s fluffy cravat thingy.

Aziraphale gave a soft chuckle and stroked his coils, then simply wrapped his arms around Crowley and lapsed into silence. Crowley emerged from under the cravat, resting his chin on Aziraphale’s arm.

The previous pileup of anxious worry faded, retreating deeper into the background as he sank into the comfortable lack of conscious thought. Right now, none of that seemed to matter much. He was with Aziraphale, being hugged to incredible warmth. Nothing could be more important than that.