#when he actively avoids attachment to you and refuses to be your friend but he still thinks youre pretty😍

[thehauntingshadows-if]

whats Mc and Jaspers dynamic like? What does Jasper think of mc? Does he have any feelings for them? Sorry for all the questions and feel free to ignore if too spoilerly

dont apologize for the questions i love answering them<3 however i AM sorry for taking a century to answer this lmao

id say the best way to describe their dynamic is theyre kinda like two kids who have spent almost every year of their lives in the same class, but they never became proper friends, just friendly but theyre also so used to each other presence that it feels wrong without the other person being there. idk if that makes sense, but in my head, that's the best way to describe it.

Jasper is very fond of Mc, and if his job wasn't taking care of them, he'd have no problem with befriending them. Jasper is just very hesitant on mixing work with his personal life, so it's stopped him from ever trying to be anything more than Mcs servant no matter how friendly things are between the two.

He doesn't have any feelings for them, but he's not blind to mcs looks and their effect on people. While he may not have or had any romantic feelings for Mc, you are given the option to have had a crush on him in mcs childhood🙃

[yanderegrizzsworld]

Oh my god i literally just a send an sth meme before i read the post about welcome home-

anywAYS-

Since we been talking about unhinged [y/n] for a couple post now... mybe a romantic hcs for wally with a [y/n] who's unhinged?

-𝐣𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐧

Imagine: Romantic Yandere Wally Darling with an unhinged reader

TW/CW: Implied self-destructive behavior/paranoia/self harm, stalking & mentions of isolation

As the friendliest neighbor, Wally is always happy to lend a hand to his friends in any given situation & with you it's no different, if anything, it's a bit more extreme. If he were to spot you literally doing anything, the puppet is immediately by your side asking if he can assist you.

While the yellow puppet grasps that negative emotions such as anger or sadness are normal to experience, he'd much rather see you in a positive mood. No matter how cold or narrow your eyes get or how fidgety you are, Wally will insist on staying by your side until you feel better.

While a part of him is guilty for feeling this way, Wally can't help but feel a bit glad when you either limit your time with others or simply refuse to be around the others. With all the time he spends attached to your hips, he'd probably (unintentionally) isolate you by keeping you at Home with him.

Whether you seek to avoid him or tell him you can't hang out with him, Wally will still follow you about, a few feet away, all with that empty yet intense stare. It never fails to make your shoulders feel heavy & most likely makes you more suspicious of everyone, though the staring does stop momentarily when your cautious behavior extends to him. Don't be like that with him! He wouldn't do anything to you!

Like his last name, Wally keeps up this easygoing yet endearing demeanor that's able to charm anyone he greets. If this behavior were to cause you to distance yourself from him, Wally would rant to Home while striving not to panic, wondering what to do to make you comfortable with him. This usually leads to him either asking you to paint with him or him inserting himself in what you're doing if you're busy with another neighbor.

Wally is quick to suggest painting or some other calm activity if you were to randomly become irritated, keeping a distance if asked. Though the moment you begin to bite your hands or hit your head with your palms, Wally is quick to stop it. He's aware of his lack of physical strength & so relies on distracting you, of when it works, a wide grin displays itself on his face.

It'd come to no surprise he'd paint/sketch you, no matter what you're doing or where you are. You'd grow accustomed to receive one of the painting or sketches while he tells you of this apple sale Howdy has at his store that he wishes for you to accompany him to. He'd very likely already be dragging you by the wrist to the bodega before you give him an answer.

[gay-dorito-dust]

your probably gonna get tired of this fiction but I need a part 3 to the ones where wednesday thinks yn is woth xavier and Enid makes her ask yn out and now they're dating can we get a part 3 where Wednesdays still jealous of xavier

This extension of the story shouldn’t exist, this extension shouldn’t have even been taken into consideration; Following the basic structure of a three part act- much like how most of modern story telling was formatted - Wednesday’s story started with her craving a forbidden fruit just out of her grasp. Then later came to it’s thrilling conclusion when you happily accepted her as your girlfriend. After all no one wants to read about what happens after happily ever after for the harsh realism of not all relationships are built last, no matter how well matched the lovers might be; for it only servers as a great reminder that nothing was meant to last forever.

People tend to actively choose to live in ignorant bliss as to avoid accepting the notoriously worst aspects of humanity. They subconsciously refuse to use the cognitive thinking abilities because it meant to not only to evaluate the way things were but to evaluate their own actions and beliefs also; To some, this would be considered too much work whilst to others, it’s all they’ve been doing their entire existence. So why was it that in this moment did Wednesday wished to become blissfully ignorant to the way you and Xavier walked within unnecessarily close proximity to one another as you both entered the quad.

She has long accepted that you and Xavier were inseparable friends but did he really have to be sat so close to you to the point that his shoulder was permanently attached to yours? It made her skin crawl with the thought of him tainting your skin. To make matters worse for Wednesday, Xavier rested his head against your shoulder with a pout as though exhausted from the walk over to her table; That wasn’t the worst part for her, the worst part for Wednesday was the fact that you laughed at his actions. “I’m sorry babe, doofus over here lost sleep because he was too preoccupied with the projects within his private paradise,” you turned to stare down at his head, “again.”

Xavier whined as he burrowed his head deeper into your shoulder; Wednesday wanted to craft his luscious golden brown hair into a basket of which would serve to carry his severed head should he continue the way that he has. “Where’s the snooze button on this thing.” He joked as he pretended to act as though he was attempting to turn off an alarm, making you laugh which in turn made him smile upon result. You and Wednesday weren’t necessarily open about your relationship, preferring to keep pda to a minimum, unless behind closed doors; The only person aware of your relationship was Enid, so to the rest of Nevermore instead of her being the one you were actively dating it was Xavier.

You never had qualms about not being able to parade your girlfriend around as you respected her wishes; Wednesday on the other hand was internally seething at her own idiocy for not foreseeing the detrimental effects of this predicament. Her black heart only grew darker when you playfully shove Xavier off of your shoulder and act offended of being compared to that of an obnoxious alarm clock. “The next time you wish to fall asleep in class, do so on your bag or sketch book because your shoulder privileges have been revoked.” Xavier gasps, hurt, as he turned to look at Wednesday. “You hearing this?” He asks.

“My ears are fully functional the last time I checked.” Wednesday replied shortly which no one took to heart considering that this was just how she socially interacted. However you could differentiate when she was being hostile and when she was just being her usual self. You were well aware of how your close friendship with Xavier was affecting your girlfriend, hell way before you and Wednesday were dating you would utilise your close friendship in hopes of making her jealous; Which worked they way you intended but fear that it had seemed so far into her that it soon became an insecurity.

An insecurity that only told Wednesday that due to her emotional stump and refusal of partake in grand gestures of PDA outside the dorm room, you would sooner or later search that fulfilment elsewhere; primarily in Xavier. However Wednesday knew of your loyalty to her, to your friends and in her assuming such a thing of you would put her into question of whether or not she actually knew you. “Xavier,” you placed your hand on your friends shoulder, “would you mind giving me and my girlfriend a bit of space for a bit.” You asked of him as he stared into your eyes in gauging your emotions. Xavier and yourself built a method of checking in on one another without the use of words; You’ve known each other long enough to be able to get a good read on what the other was feeling at certain moments.

So afterwards a brief moment of silence Xavier smiled softly, patting you on the shoulder before muttering a small ‘okay’ before leaving you and Wednesday to have the whole table to yourselves. “Why’d you send him away? I thought you were content with having your best friend around all the time.” Wednesday asked, feeling slight relief that she didn’t have to compete for your attention anymore. “You wanna know why?” You laughed as you reached over to grab her colder hands in yours, squeezing them in hopes that a drop of your warmth would bleed into her palms. “I sent Xavier away for his own safety. You were on the precipice of murdering him out of jealously.”

Wednesday almost flinched away at the accusation but your hands held her steady that she found herself squeezing your hands almost out of instinct. “I don’t see why you protect him like you do, can he not protect himself all of a sudden?” She asks bitterly, remembering how you’d go out of your way to have Xavier’s back whenever the normies of Jericho got a little headstrong with their ‘pranks.’ He was in fencing for fucksakes. You found humour in her perception of the artist and decided to let her in on some first hand experience. “Wednesday, Xavier is the equivalent of a damsel in distress. He needs me to protect him from doing stupid shit.”

You felt immense pride when you saw the edges of her lips quirk upward, tightening your grip on her hands, “You on the other hand,” you continued, “can handle yourself quite well and besides I find your verbal beatdowns attractive.” You winked, making your girlfriend scoff at your blatant flirting. Whatever it was that you were doing, it was working it’s magic on her. The jealously and insecurity she had felt prior were now a thing of the past when you smiled lovingly at her. Wednesday knew you didn’t look at Xavier the way you looked at her, you looked at her with love, admiration and caring; Whilst with Xavier, it was purely platonic. Your eyes may shine for him but they glowed for her every. Single. Time.

It reminded her of where your heart truly lied at the end of the day despite it’s sheer size to withhold both her and Xavier in it. However Wednesday had a tendency to be selfish and the inability to share the things she held of priceless value within her bleak life. She may not have trusted Xavier had he said there was nothing between you; but she trusted you indefinitely to go as far as to believe when you say that theres nothing short of platonic feelings between you and Xavier. “As much as i despite to admit but you’re right I can hold my own whilst Xavier on the other hand cannot despite talking big of himself.” Wednesday said as she found the inside of her chest tickling when your lips turned upward into a smile.

“Oh believe me, Xavier is as pathetic as they come.” You mused, finding hilarity whenever the boy would hide himself behind your back whenever he was being a little shit. It was an endearing trait when it was posed against others but when it was used against you, that’s when you found Xavier at his most annoying. “However, I believe we’ve talked enough about that knobhead for one day, how about we head off to garden and prick our fingers on rose thrones just to feel something?” You raised your brows as in a silent invitation. Wednesday didn’t say anything other then stand from her chair with your hands still in hers before effectively dragging you to the school gardens.

[moonsidesong]

ok ive finished puyo chronicle. dont play puyo chronicle. if you want to see puyo chronicle just watch the precise museum video uploads of it and ignore the fact they dont have eyebrows because its in citra. im gonna talk about puyo chronicle now.

absolutely miserable slog of a video game. every single open area is nearly completely empty and full of dead ends. every chest is full of lame rewards that i almost never got use out of and i eventually just stopped opening them so i wouldnt have to fight mimics anymore. you dont want to explore anything because there's hardly any reward for it and your movement speed is so slow there's even less of an incentive to go out of your way to trek to a random corner of the map for 200 coins that you wont use.

the final gauntlet, which is a 15-story tower, comprises of like, three stories where something happens and the rest are completely empty and only occupied by common enemies, which by then you will be tired of fighting and actively be avoiding encountering. the devs made a bunch of maps and said thats enough game design for today<3

and then, at the end of it, you fight a final boss that had literally nothing to do with anything else up until that point. rafisol really had the potential to be an extremely cool antagonist if she had been involved in the plot from the getgo but instead she shows up having not at all been foreshadowed prior, you do the same lame fighting style youve been doing for almost every encounter up until that point, and the only saving grace of it is a really cool battle theme. its pretty bad presentation to just watch this supposedly UBER powerful absorption themed final boss just float there menacingly and occasionally throw a line of nuisance puyo at you. rafisol has a lot of cool animations, i dont know why you'd rob her of the chance to show them off in a dramatic way!!!! aaah!!!! its all really disappointing because she's the only female final boss character besides doppelganger arle and shes stuck attached to this soggy sad nothing burger of a video game. i want my evil women INVOLVED sega

puyo characters have never been the most complicated to figure out but they are NOTICEABLY flatter and more annoying. you can see it the most on sig and ragnus who refuse to talk about literally anything other than "bug!" or "im the hero from videogame world!" respectively. the plot spends all its time being completely aimless other than the vague idea of "if we find these stone pedestals, something will happen questionmark???" up until ally randomly starts getting sick when rafisol starts ready to hatch from her evil egg or whatever. the plot's idea is that satan modified this story because he wanted to go on an adventure with arle. and well chroni writers i have to say you guys arent really doing a good job of conveying that when the only places you see satan are at the very beginning and very end of the game.

hey speaking of characters hanging out with arle. theres. too many. of them. i think they were just trying to make the whole skill battle team thing make sense in universe but i think itd be a lot easier to just focus on like. the A trio and Ally and you only hang out with the other characters in the areas they're actually relevant. and they just go "well arle ill be there to help you if you need me!" but they dont physically come with you and then we just pretend that makes sense.

anyway despite it all i still like ally and i still like rafisol despite both of them having terrible haircuts god bless but i wish they were in a video game that didnt suck absolute egg!!!!!!! like i said earlier rafisol couldve been extremely cool if she was involved early on and wasnt just some unrelated problem girl. ive been playing around with a few re-write(ish??) ideas that ive been sharing with my friends to keep my sanity while trudging through this videogame and i might share some of those some other time.

until then please look at this picture again. my favorite part about this game is when accord holds popoi like this. every time popoi was on screen i briefly forgot how much not fun i was having

[rottingmanifesto]

👪 🎂 🌋 🙊 💧 💗 for canary and calloway mwah

Oooo these are fun! (Mwah to you too my beloved mutual <3)

👪 FAMILY - what is their family like? what is your ocs relationship to them? does your oc have any siblings?

Calloway: he regards his family as insignificant to his current life. He had an older sister but they were never close, and he refuses to talk about his parents outside of “they were assholes” (which.. is not untrue).

Canary: ooohhh boy, it is complicated. So mini-lore dump: their grandfather was somewhat friends with Sal Marcano, and after their grandad passed, Sal essentially accepted his kids as part of his own family (mostly for business reasons). Canary never cared for any of the Marcanos save for Giorgi, who was their favorite cousin and who even attended their high school graduation. Of course, things sour due to the events of the game. As for their siblings, they have 4 (3 living)— two half siblings and one sister, all older than them. They trust their older sister with a lot of things, but some things are better left unsaid following their involvement in everything that happened in 1968.

🎂 BIRTHDAY CAKE - when is their birthday? do they like celebrating it?

Calloway: He’s a Capricorn, but beyond that? No clue.

Canary: December 6th! They don’t really like their birthday, but they occasionally celebrate it with close friends by going to a restaurant or something of the sort.

🌋 VOLCANO - how bad is their temper? is it a slow boil, or a instant explosion?

Calloway: He has a very clear “tell” when he’s pissed off— he typically avoids eye contact, but if he’s pissed, he’ll stare right through someone. It’s very much a slow boil that can be devastating if you’re anywhere in the vicinity.

Canary: They’re more passionate than angry, but they do get annoyed by small little things. If they’re truly pissed off, they’ll explode then hide and go numb (as anger has some.. unsavory memories attached to it). Ultimately, they become ashamed.

🙊 SPEAK-NO-EVIL - what is something your oc will refuse to stay quiet about?

Calloway: even minor infractions will get reprimanded if he sees them.

Canary: injustice and misinformation. They and John get in heated arguments about communism and the red scare as a result (John usually shuts them down once the debate has taken up too much of his time).

💧 DROPLET - random angst headcanon

Calloway: he asks Lincoln to give the last of his cash to his daughter, though it’s the player’s choice if Lincoln does so or not.

Canary: they might die, might not— if they do, it’ll be by their cousin’s hands.

💓 BEATING HEART - what gets their heart racing?

Calloway: he was one of the weirdos that liked active combat. (And I use “weirdo” in a very negative connotation here, just to be clear.)

Canary: doing stupid shit/ doing things they’re not supposed to. There’s always that thrill and fear of getting caught, but sometimes, the kid just needs to be a kid, you know?

[goldenheartgirl1]

Extras of “Contract Query” (+13) TWST Mafia AU

“Jamil, I assure you those treatments are for the stubborn ones, Jackson is more of a quiet man.” Azul stood up, walking directly behind Jamil which caused the man to stop drinking his water, and he whispered calmly to him. “There is another matter I wish to discuss today..”

“Is it about the loans for your construction project?”

“No, it’s about our contract, the file that is coded “Toxic barb” if I remember right.”

Jamil’s eyes widened a fraction as he seethed out between his teeth. “Let me guess, you want to make alterations again?”

“Precisely, but there is another thing..”Jamil instinctively turned and nearly elbowed Azul in the cheek, making the flint colored eyes widen in surprise as the mafia leader stepped back to avoid the swing, a gloved hand quickly shot out and grabbed ahold of Jamil’s arm and pinned it to the wall. “Jamil? What is with the assault?”

“Assault?!” Jamil snapped back and tore Azul’s grip off his arm, but the other man only stepped closer to move his knee between Jamil’s legs. “That’s a lot coming from you Azul..”

“Can you blame me for wanting to touch you?” Azul smirked, moving his arms around Jamil’s waist and whispered against his lips. “It’s been so long since our last meeting Jamil, I even know when to stop working to have fun.”

Charcoal eyes burned in hatred and his cheeks flushed with anger and embarrassment, he took the chance to viciously kiss Azul only to bite his bottom lip until the copper taste of blood overwhelmed their senses taste and smell. Azul carefully but quickly managed to squirm away, releasing Jamil and hastily took out a handkerchief to dab his bottom lip, glaring at Jamil with displeasure. In another act of spitefulness, Jamil spat out the leftover blood into one of the glass cups by the refreshments, taunting the mafia leader with a grin. “Don’t act as if you have me wrapped around your finger Azul, being seductive was never your strong suit or flirting for that matter.”

“Is that so?” Azul grumbled, looking at the bloody white cloth before tossing it into the garbage bin after the bleeding had slowed down. “Because if I remember correctly, you were the one to show up at my door last time after I asked you to.”

“That’s not how I remember it.” Jamil spat back and crossed his arms. “You begged me to come over that night, you wouldn’t stop calling or texting me. All because you were lonely.”

A bitter chuckle left Azul as he began to move closer again, like a predator that didn’t learn to keep away from an equally dangerous predator. “Lonely, that’s a laugh. Remember how you clung onto me and refused to let me breathe? I swear you were very active that night, almost like you wanted to agree to my terms.”

Oh if he wanted to play this way then Jamil was armed with his own memories. “All I remember is you crying beneath me for more, and I gave you more because you refused to let me leave until you were satisfied.”

“Let’s not play around too much Jamil, we wouldn’t want Kalim knowing his best friend is in “personal ties” with its leader~”

Jamil only glared as they were only centimeters apart, neither of them moved a hand forward to touch or leaned in for a kiss, it was just a staring contest and seeing who would break first. “And I’m certain there are many people in Pomefiore that would love to know you’re a masochist.”

Azul grimaced as he replied in a hiss. “Not like you helped there, you sadist.”

Tension was wound up so much that both broke in unison, Jamil yanked Azul back into a bruising kiss while Azul quickly pulled Jamil’s body to his. Their private arrangement has gone on for a year, with rendezvous at each other's homes just for a night of peace, to sate their desires and continue life with no strings attached. At least that was the plan originally, while Jamil still refused to hold anything to Azul, the mafia leader laid a claim to him and dismissed the idea of having anyone take Jamil. This was not the time or place to have their normal activities, but both could at least quench their pent up needs. Without breaking the kiss, Jamil forced Azul to the wall and moved his hands up Azul’s sides before dragging his nails down, even with the shirt in his way he groaned at the gray haired man's moan. In a similar situation, Azul took care to force Jamil’s kiss to be slower and softer as he encouraged their tongues to play, he shuddered feeling the pierced tongue run across his raw bloody lip.

Yes, Jamil had a tongue piercing, nothing fancy, but the small metal ball always made Azul tremble in excitement. Both men closed their eyes to lose themselves into the lustful lip-lock, Azul’s fingers dragging through Jamil’s hair while the darker toned man continued to scratch through the fair skinned man’s clothes. The smell of leftover blood was intoxicating to Jamil, making his mind dizzy and his tongue eagerly licking at Azul’s swollen lip, and Azul moaned as his fair skin started to turn red on his cheeks. Azul’s arms slowly drifted down to feel Jamil’s rear and his lower back, impressed with how toned and yet slim the man was as he continued to caress his body. Jamil however did not share the same fascination, he enjoyed seeing how red the mafia leader could become, he was fascinated with how a composed man could be reduced to tears and begging under his touch. Saliva coated each of their lips and when the demand for oxygen became too great they broke away with a small string connecting them. The two panted gently before Azul smirked at Jamil and commented. “So, that was just throwing caution to the wind?”

Jamil glared and wiped his mouth from the saliva before turning around and walking back to the filing cabinet. “Let’s just take care of the file..”

[parragone]

wip weekend

featuring; Kapkan and his nieces, Alyona and Ludmila

I'm attached to this little family and I might draw them later

note; Kapkan briefly alludes to his experience in the Beslan siege toward the end

She seemed to eye one of the questions on her screen with apprehension before she scrolled up rapidly. “So, this assignment is to talk to a family member who isn’t your parents about their lives,” she said, “And you’re obviously my best uncle with the best stories, so is it okay if I ask you some questions? You don’t have to answer if they get too personal, I can just put ‘no appropriate answer’ in the short section.”

“What sort of class is this?” He asked as he leaned against the back of the couch. 

“Social studies,” Alyona answered with a cheery smile. “Part of the class is to look at our own family history to help us understand ourselves. Class is super boring, but the activities mean I can nag the adults in my family, so…”

“Oh, then you’ve been driving my brother nuts,” he laughed. “Alright, let’s start your questionnaire.”

“Okay, first - what’s your full name and job?” Alyona clicked into something on her screen. “Simple answers work, they don’t expect you to out yourself as James Bond or anything.”

“Ah, the basics. Basuda Maxim Nikitovich, soldier,” he said after a moment of consideration. “Ground Forces, if you must be specific.”

After a moment of typing, she nodded. “Okay, so, what’s your earliest memory?”

He tapped his fingers on the back of the couch as he furrowed his brows. When it came to early memories, he had many, but he struggled to name one as his earliest. “I think, if I am honest, it would be the day they brought Pyotr home and told me that this potato in a blanket was my baby brother. I refused to believe that a baby looked like that until, with all the fury of a newborn who did not know his own volume, Pyotr unleashed this god-awful wail that lasted for nearly an hour.”

“He screamed for an hour?”

“Made your grandfather lose his mind,” Maxim laughed. “And we became best friends from that moment onward. I think I was three, then.”

“Wow, okay,” she said as she typed the story out. “My uncles bonded over being mean to my grandfather as children.”

“It is the sacred duty of every child to ruin their parent’s sleep schedule and break their parent’s things,” Maxim said with a solemn nod. “What’s the next one?”

“The next question is sort of weird,” she responded. “When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?”

“Oh, this is fun. When I was young, I told your grandparents to their faces that I wanted to, and I quote, ‘go live in the woods and never come back’ so I could live as a mountain man. I threatened it in the same way other children threatened to run away to the circus,” he said with a small shrug. “I actually did it for nearly a week when I was fifteen, but a snow storm made me come home early. I suppose it influenced my choice of being a soldier, but really, there was no choice back then. Soldier or factory work, they would tell you. And they were right.”

“Wow,” she said quietly, eyes wide. “Is that why dad works in the factory?”

“Yes. Your father never had the stomach for a military life.” He had a bitter smile as he shook his head. "It's much easier to choose something new now. What are you going to be, again? It was either pancake scientist or unicorn doctor-"

"I want to be a brain surgeon!" She folded her arms and puffed up proudly. Maxim winced inside as he recognized his brother in her pride, but said nothing to deter her. Alyona had chances none of his generation did.

“Alright, alright. Next question, Alenka.”

Alyona looked down and, with some apprehension, bit her cheek. She scrolled down, far enough that he knew she had skipped a question, and nodded as if she had successfully avoided something. “If you had three wishes, what would they be?”

“Oh, a hard one. Hm.” Maxim furrowed his brows as he tilted his head back. “I think… Hm. I don’t think I would use them, really.”

“No wishes?!” 

“None at all. The world is the way it is because that is how it must be,” Maxim confirmed with a small shrug. “If I had to use a wish, I think I would wish to see a dodo bird.”

Alyona scrunched up her face, but typed on her laptop anyway with a self-confident nod. “Weirdo uncle.”

“Definitely. Say, what’s that question you skipped?”

“I didn’t skip a question!” She turned red and straightened up in the way she always did when she was lying. “I swear!”

“Mhm. So if I were to steal your laptop away and look at your assignment…?”

His niece started to protest before she huffed sadly and looked at her screen. “I just don’t want to make you sad.”

“Go on, Alenka. I’m a big boy, I can answer a question.”

After a moment of hesitation, she nodded. “Okay. The question says, ‘When did you decide your child’s name’, but you don’t have any.”

“You’re right,” he said with a nod. 

She stared at her screen for a while as they sat in silence, and Maxim stared at the play pen as he pondered how to proceed. There were a lot of things he tried to shelter Alyona and her sister from, with some easier to hide than others. Alyona had been four when the siege happened, and she had no idea how close she had come to growing up without him. 

“Uncle Maks, why don’t you have children?” She half-closed her laptop as she asked, bright eyes curious and tinged with worry. “Do you not want any?”

“Oh, Alenka, I would love to have children. Tima and I have even discussed it.” Maxim took a deep breath and chose his next words carefully; she wasn’t old enough to understand the worst of the world, and he wanted to keep it from her as long as he could. “When you were very young, I had to do something very, very hard. Part of that was seeing many dead children around your age. I would love to be a father - it is something I have wanted for a very long time - but I haven’t healed from that. So instead, I keep you, your sister, your cousins, and your friends safe from anything I can.”

“So you might have children someday?”

“One day, I hope to.” He nodded quietly as he met her eyes and gave her a small smile. “They would be adopted, but it is something I want. For now, you and Ludmila are the closest thing to daughters I can have.”

“Then I have to stay super, super safe.” She nodded, eyes serious. “I’ll make sure I’m never, ever in danger.”

“No, no. Not at all,” Maxim sighed softly as he reached over to brush her hair from her face and pat her cheek. “No, Alenka, all you must do for me is be happy. If you can find one good thing to write to me about, it makes my work all the easier.”

[kata-sans]

ToTIT 2

Part1

As expected, the following day Tweek became the school's top gossip. Everyone had been present during his near death experience. Wild theories continued to circulate with little to no evidence to explain the phenomenon. Clyde's theory seemed to be the most popular among the student body with many speculating the cause of Tweek's seeming immortality.

As Tweek navigated through the hallways, he was beyond overwhelmed. He is fully aware of the states and whispers that followed him throughout the morning. On multiple occasions he had been stopped in the hallways by strangers asking him questions he had no hope of answering. Even the teachers seemed to keep a closer eye on him in and out of the classroom, some with fear and some with concern. To make matters worst, he had not seen Craig all morning. Even though Craig had played an active role in calming Tweek the previous day, something did not feel right.

His dance with death the previous day had shaken Tweek to the core. By the time he and Craig had reached the Tweak's residence, Tweek had collapsed in hysterics. It took three cups of coffee and an hour of screaming to end his fit. When Tweek became more aware of himself, he noticed Craig was quieter than usual. He hover hesitantly around Tweek, and seemed almost afraid to look away from him. To make it worse, as of that morning Craig seems to be avoiding Tweek for no apparent reason.

Tweek was venturing closer and closer to a panic attack the more he thought about Craig's odd behavior. He quickly decided he needed to go home. He cautiously made his way into the nurse's office with the excuse of having a headache.

The nurse refused to send him home and simply instructed him to lay down until he felt better. The cot was in a smaller room connected to the office. Tweek didn't object as it allowed him to avoid unnecessary attention as well as a quiet place to evaluate his current problems. His therapist would be proud to know that he was using the meditation techniques from their counseling sessions.

Unfortunately the peace did not last long as he suddenly heard the sound of the biggest school gossip.

"Oh, heya Tweek. Watcha doing here?"

Tweek groaned as Butters approached his cot. He didn't personally dislike Butters. In fact he was a decent friend, but Tweek knew that Butters would spread the news of Tweek's whereabouts. Tweek was already picturing the insincere looks of concern this news would garner unless he concealed this information.

"LISTEN MAN. YOU CAN'T TELL ANYONE I'M HERE OR ELSE."

Butters looked concern. Unlike with everyone else in the school, he could see it was genuine.

"Did you get hurt by that car yesterday?"

"No, I'm fine. I'm just hiding from everyone. They are all staring at me like I'm a freak at a circus," Tweek confessed.

"Aww gosh, I don't think your a freak Tweek, why I think what happened yesterday makes you seem just like a superhero."

Tweek was in disbelief. "I didn't save anyone?"

Butters cocked his head, "Well no, but you do have a superpower like one an-and that seems pretty heroic. Why you could do anything with a power like that, maybe go on adventures and stuff."

Tweek froze, he recalled the conversation he had with Craig before the incident. He broke out into a grin.

"BUTTERS I NEED TO GO!"

Butters watched as Tweek ran out of the room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Has anyone seen Tweek?"

Craig asked his friends sitting at the lunch table. Everyone seemed puzzled. Usually Tweek was attached to Craig like a fly on glue paper. To make matters weirder, Craig seemed nervous. Showing emotions is not a Craig-like behavior at all.

"Craig, relax. I'm sure he'll be here soon. Are you okay, man?" Asked Clyde.

"NO! You don't understand. Tweek and I have Spanish together, but he didn't show up. I checked all over the cafeteria and he's not here! Something must have happened to him, I knew he wasn't fine after yesterday, but everytime I looked at him I-i..."

Tolkien jumped up to placate Craig's rambling, "Craig, are you alright? You're shaking. Sit down so we can help you out man."

"I-i need to find him. What if he's hurt. That car could have killed him and I couldn't do a anything about it. I'm a sh**** boyfriend. He must be somewhere panicking about this and here I am like an idiot."

"Dude, don't be so hard on yourself. Tweek loves you. He doesn't blame you for what happened. We'll help you find Tweek."

Craig's gang agreed with Tolkien. Tweek was their friend too, and they were worried about him as well. They quickly left the cafeteria in search of their missing member.

On their way to search for Tweek's locker, they found Butters. Craig wasted no time in confronting the blonde boy. He grabbed his collar and pulled him at eye level. " Where's Tweek!"

Butters was shocked at Craig's unusual anger being directed at him. Luckily Tolkein stepped in between to try to defuse the situation. "Sorry man, what Craig means to ask is if you've seen Tweek by any chance?"

Butters perked up when he heard Tweek's name. "Oh yeah, I did... but I'm not suppose to tell anyone where he was. He made me promise not to tell, but then he ran off towards Mr. Champ's room. I don't know why he would ask me not to say anything if he was going to leave that place I can't mention."

Before Butters could finish his rambling, Craig had already sprinted down the hallway towards the aforementioned teacher. Finding the door locked he ran in the opposite direction towards the only other place a boxing coach could be found.

Craig slammed his whole body against the door. He immediately felt his anxiety lessen at the sight of his boyfriend. Tweek was standing on a corner of the boxing ring with an opponent on the opposite corner. The moment Craig processed the scene in front of him his panic rose, and he cried out, "WHAT THE F***!"

[demigod-shenanigans]

Actual lengthy reply time finally (sorry this took me literally forever)

Yeah I did not want Leo to be alone right after this, and I didn’t want Piper to be alone with it either. Canon may refuse to let them go to Jason’s funeral, but I will let them grieve together, damn it!

The backstory/pre-plot part actually ended up being quite a bit more than just a prologue, it’s the first few chapters, but I hope it’ll still feel well-paced and fitting when we get around to the rest of them! I wanted to take the time to get into all the feelings and set up/resolve some stuff, plus sticking to the ToA timeline I had to get to the point where Apollo is back on Mount Olympus, which takes a minute. Most of it is relevant and will be back to haunt Leo later!

Responding to the bullet points by putting the relevant numbers in front (not sure why it apparently changed all of yours to 1. in this reblog, they’re correct if I look at your post?? Very strange)

2. Yep! Leo not feeling loved/worthy of love was a huge deal in HoO, and all canon did was put a girlfriend on it and pretend we’re good now, but we will not be doing that here! Leo will learn to recognize that he’s loved, and if it’s the last thing he does :)

4. This bugged me so much in HoO you have no idea. I actually kind of prefer HoO to pjo just because I adore all the characters, but plot wise it’s all over the place and we really miss out on a bunch of friendship stuff because it’s so focused on all the love triangles. I need more platonic Argo bonding!! Let them all be buddies!!

5. This is partially me being demiromantic but many if not all my favorite ships are characters that have strong platonic bonds first. Something something marrying your best friend. I also feel like Leo and Jason both took forever to realize they were into each other (Leo grumbling about Jason constantly being hot in his general vicinity being the reason why he doesn’t have a girlfriend will always crack me up, lol, and Jason spent so long doing what he thought he was supposed to/what was expected of him, including his relationship with Piper, that he didn’t really get to stop and properly have a sexuality crisis for ages) so I wanted to re-establish that for the fic, especially since valgrace fics are kind of split on whether they have jiper happen and break up like they did in canon or just never have them date at all

6. I couldn’t resist sneaking that one in. Insert lame Apollo dodgeball Leo Valdez joke LMAO

7. <3

That’s such a smart way to put it!! Leo is dealing with a lottt and we’re going to get into it a bit more in future chapters but yeah he’s definitely avoiding talking about some of it (in both the way that we the audience don’t see all of it and in him and Piper actively coping via distracting themselves and not talking about some of it)

Honest confession: I really struggle with Shel. I’m glad she exists, but she’s basically an OC when you try to work with her in fanon, because she really only exists to confirm Piper is sapphic and canon gives us absolutely no information on her. I know she’s Cherokee, I know she’s sapphic, I know she likes hiking and I think she has a piercing? That’s it. She’s just kind of a nothing character, which is fine in the books but makes it very hard to work with her in fanon content. Can we have at least a little additional input on her please? 🤲

Glad you think that works well!! Especially because I actually don’t find myself that funny? Though I think it probably helps that I’ve got a general tendency to get attached to traumatized joke coping characters, so I’m pretty familiar with it conceptually. The last book series I fixated on also did this a lot (intense explorations of grief briefly interrupted by memes LOL)

The audience knows stuff!! But Leo was not around for that! And he’s processing a lot at the moment but that just really makes it sink in how much he missed, both because he was gone for so long and also when he was there but so caught up in his own problems (and especially in seeing how “happy” Piper and Jason were apparently without him, because again Leo doesn’t feel worthy of love and has spent a lot of time in foster families who weren’t that great and made him feel like they’d eventually decide they didn’t want him anymore) that he didn’t see the cracks that Piper now tells him were there basically for the whole relationship. So yeah it’s a shock. On a lot of levels. But it’s a lot less earthshaking than the shock of Jason being gone, and therefore easier to focus on. The Piper related changes may or may not also hit him sometime in the near future ;)

Quotes section (please just in general know I’m delighted you did this it brings me suchhh joy to see what bits touched my readers the most):

-No spoilers, but I will say there’s a reason the fic starts out with memories of Esperanza. And yeah, the whole Jason situation is tearing open a lot of old wounds, specifically because of how similar it is: a situation Leo was unable to do anything to change that he feels responsible for (even though, realistically speaking, he isn’t). A loved one that got ripped away from him far too soon that he never got the chance to say goodbye to. A kind of desperate ache that nothing is ever going to fix.

I have a couple of grievances with ToA, and the way none of Jason’s loved ones are allowed to stay mad at Apollo is definitely one of them. Like, it’s established Jason died because of Apollo’s broken Styx prophecy! We’re told that’s the reason it happens!! Piper is the only one who gets to be mad at him at all, and even then she’s only upset for a single scene and has forgiven Apollo the next time they meet. Grief can be messy and nasty and people lash out sometimes! Not everyone needed to immediately be totally fine with the fact that Apollo got Jason killed!

-Glad you enjoyed that joke! I’m not super good with machinery so I worried I’d struggle with working that part into his narration but there’s some references to it I’m actually really happen with, and this is one of them :)

-Something something Leo is of the opinion that Piper should hate him how he hates himself! Also in this context, feeling a little evil about the fact that one of the reasons Leo doesn’t go to the Camp Jupiter funeral is that he thinks everyone would blame him for Jason’s death. The reality of it is that they wouldn’t! But when his mom died his aunt did blame him and so he automatically assumes that this time everyone will look at him and see that same blame written all over his face.

-English being my third language (technically second language going off of how well I actually speak it, I learnt French first but my French is shit lol), I’m really glad to hear it haha

-All of their lives are fucking weird, it’s a demigod thing, but Leo’s almost got everyone beat just based on the fact that the Queen of the Gods went out of her way to come babysit him. It’s even funnier because I’m pretty sure none of the others know this except for Piper and Jason. I wish we’d seen him tell Percy and Annabeth, I feel like that would have been a very funny interaction.

-There is something related to Leo in that box, which may or may not be something I’ve mentioned on this blog before ;)

-Unfortunately for Leo, there’s a bit more stuff he has to deal with before the Plot can start. For instance, the fact that he is (theoretically) in a relationship right now.

I’m so so glad you enjoyed this!! I’ve read and reread your comment a whole bunch of times now, and every time I do I get this huge grin on my face. This is the kind of comment i don’t get a lot but that when I do get it I’ll treasure literally forever. You made my whole month with this and it’s made me very excited to get back to the fic (which between exam phase and hospital stuff I haven’t gotten to work on nearly as much as I hoped lately)

The choiceless hope in grief

Summary: Leo Valdez has lived and died for the gods. Their war has shaped his life since he was a baby. With Gaia defeated, he sort of hopes he can finally rest. He has friends and some semblance of home to return to for the first time since he was eight years old. Just this once, he allows himself to hope the good things might stick.

But the gods aren’t done with them just yet, by the time Leo finds his way back, Jason is gone.

This time, Leo decides he’s done just taking the Fates’ bullshit lying down. If getting his best friend back means striking a deal with the gods and venturing into the Underworld… well, it’s probably not even the most reckless thing he’s ever done.

The caveat of said deal? He has to trust Jason will follow him, or his self-doubt will doom them both.

And after the life he’s lived, Leo is so intricately familiar with self-doubt that he could probably trademark the word.

Or: The only possible way for Orpheus to succeed is if he learns to think of himself as a person worth loving.

Word Count for chapter 1: ~5k

Rating: Teen and Up

So! *claps hands together* I’ve been threatening you guys with my Orpheus Eurydice valgrace fic for a while! Technically I wanted to wait to post this until I’m completely done writing the fic, and I mostly intend to stick to that! I’m only posting this now because I have a minor surgery tomorrow and I’d rather be anxious about fic related things than about the surgery in question. So, take this chapter as a preview of sorts, more to come soon-ish but probably not immediately!

A couple of important notes before we start:

-TW for suicidal ideation. It’s less Leo actually wanting to die and more his canon behavior of “I’m doing something extremely reckless that might succeed but if it doesn’t, my death is an acceptable consequence”, paired with general grief related self-loathing, but if you think you’re not in the right headspace to read about that, come back when you are or at least tread carefully. This fic pics up at the end of The Burning Maze, so especially the beginning is pretty heavy on the grief stuff.

-Since ToA is vaguely canon to this fic, Leo and Calypso are technically dating in the beginning, but they don’t really interact positively as a couple (honestly they don’t interact that much in general) and break up pretty early on. Just be aware in advance that they’re still together for a little bit.

-Fic title is from Talk by Hozier which is maybe a painfully obvious pick but it was too perfect for me not to use it.

Chapter 1: Leo and Piper have an extended sleepover

It wasn’t a discussion between Leo and Piper whether or not to go to Jason’s funeral. They came to the decision that they wouldn’t silently—or as silently as one could come to an agreement when all parties involved were sobbing.

Maybe it should have been a discussion. There was a part of Leo that worried he’d regret this later—his refusal to take this chance to say goodbye and let himself grieve.

But Leo remembered his mother’s funeral. Remembered the way his aunt Rosa had looked at him like she knew his mother’s death had been his fault. Leo couldn’t stand the thought of people looking at him like that again.

He also didn’t remember his mother’s funeral bringing him any sense of closure or comfort. He’d stood at her grave, afterwards, just as desperate and afraid and utterly inconsolable as he’d been before the funeral, except it had suddenly felt sickeningly final. The wound it had torn in his soul had kept bleeding for years, and the scars would stay forever. He didn’t need any of Apollo’s shitty oracles to know Jason’s death would be exactly the same.

At this point, Leo was pretty sure his sanity was being held together by a combination of jokes and a truly questionable amount of duct tape.

Beyond all that, though, Camp Jupiter was a battlefield right now. It would continue to be a battlefield for the foreseeable future.

Leo wasn’t a coward. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to go back and help. But one of his best friends was already in a box, and there was no way in hell he’d risk the other.

With how tightly Piper was clinging to him, maybe she was thinking the same thing. 

For all his big talk about dragon escorts, Festus did most of the actual escorting on his own, occasionally torching what Leo hoped were monsters and not random public monuments. Leo, for his part, spent most of the journey crammed into the backseat of the car next to Piper, sandwiched between her and a bunch of moving boxes that seemed determined to flatten him into a Leo-shaped pancake whenever they took a sharp turn.

He’d spent so long thinking about seeing her and Jason again. 

He’d talked Calypso’s ear off about them the whole journey, to the point where it had clearly started to annoy her. He’d thought about various ridiculous entrances he could make, and the fact that he’d probably get yelled at, but he’d also thought about sitting together by the campfire, sharing nachos. He’d thought about Jason hugging him so fiercely that he couldn’t breathe, and Piper cussing him out while she held him, making him promise never to do anything that reckless again.

Now Piper was actually holding him, and Leo couldn’t feel anything. There was a numbness in his chest. He wasn’t sure he had it in him to ever feel happiness again. Hell, even if he did, what was the fucking point? Every time anything even remotely good happened in his life, it got ripped away from him again.

They didn’t talk a whole lot for most of the drive. They cried until it felt like they couldn’t anymore, clinging to each other like desperate children.

Even if they’d wanted to talk about what had happened, Piper’s dad was right there, and despite the Mist usually working overtime for them, having him overhear seemed like a gamble. Or, well, maybe that was what Leo told himself. Maybe he just wasn't sure he was ready to hear it all. He still felt like he couldn’t think. He was overwhelmed to hell and couldn’t stop fidgeting.

Several hours into the trip, his stomach started grumbling. Piper dug through the bag at her feet and offered him one of her PB&J sandwiches, but Leo couldn’t eat. He hadn’t skipped a meal in forever—he’d been homeless and unsure when he’d even get access to the next meal enough times that it had been all but tattooed into his skull that he couldn’t afford to—but he couldn’t even think about eating without feeling sick. He thought about Jason. He thought about the state he’d left Camp Jupiter in and the fact that they hadn’t even been able to give the dead their proper funeral rites.

Had Leo’s help made any difference at all? Had anything he’d done in his life changed things even slightly?

Leo knew the Fates had intended for it to be fire that fell—for him to burn in a bright, hot blaze and turn himself to charcoal. But he’d refused to stay dead like a good little pawn, and now Jason was gone, and it was all his fault.

He wasn’t sure how Piper could even look at him right now, but he was beyond grateful that she was holding onto him as tightly as she did. It was the only reason he didn’t fall to pieces completely. The cog at the heart of Leo’s machine had broken in a way that made it utterly beyond repair, and now it felt like a matter of time before the whole thing came apart. Piper holding him was the only reason his remaining pieces were still functioning. 

It should have been impossible for Leo to fall asleep under these circumstances, but he’d been traveling for hours and fighting before then and he’d cried out his remaining energy, so eventually, the world started to fade around him, reduced to just the sound of Piper’s breaths, until finally, those went, too.

~~~~

It would have been kinder, maybe, if Leo had dreamed up some shitty visions promising violent death and/or the end of the world. That would have been business as usual. 

Instead, he dreamed of his time on the Argo II—of one of those early nights when the different groups were still getting to know each other, having a brief moment to breathe between their ridiculous tasks and saving the world. 

It had seemed reasonable to catch each other up on what had happened on their end. Percy, Hazel and Frank had talked about rescuing Thanatos, and Piper, Jason and Leo had told them what had happened with Hera in turn. 

This would have been a boring intel conversation at best, seeing as Leo had been there for all of their part, but they’d grabbed snacks and sat on cushions on the floor and made it a whole bonding activity. Jason had been wedged between Piper and Leo, and they’d taken turns storytelling. 

And Jason had bragged. So much. But he hadn’t even had the decency to brag about himself like a normal human being. Instead, he’d talked about how capable Piper and Leo had been, somehow managing to make Leo sound like the coolest person he’d ever met. Which was ridiculous, considering he’d met everyone else on their team.

And sure, Leo made it sound like he thought he was amazing all the time, but he was exaggerating, which everyone, himself included, knew. 

Jason didn’t seem to have gotten the memo, though. He had one arm wrapped around Leo the whole evening, and he got all starry-eyed when he talked. 

“Leo took on three Cyclopes by himself. Three!”

“Dude, stop!” Leo had laughed, shaking his head. “I know I’m incredible and you’re blessed to be friends with me and stuff, but you weren’t even conscious for that part.”

“Still happened, though.” Jason had beamed at him. “You’re amazing, dude. I would have died about fifteen times on that mission if it hadn’t been for you. You guys should’ve seen him.”

It would have been easier if Leo had thought Jason was just trying to talk him up to the others to make them more willing to trust him after how badly he’d messed up in New Rome, but Jason wasn’t the type. He’d looked like he honestly believed every single word he was saying.

So, of course, Leo had refused to seriously deal with any of the things that made him feel.

“Sorry, Pipes, but I’m pretty sure your boyfriend is in love with me. It’s the fire powers, I’m afraid. I’m just too hot to resist,” Leo had joked instead, and Piper had untangled herself from Jason’s other side to throw Doritos at Leo, and everything had been right in the universe.

~~~~

Waking up from that, blearily blinking himself awake in the car full of moving boxes and remembering… that was a worse punch in the gut than waking up from most nightmares had been. And Leo should know. He’d had so many of those over the years that he was basically a certified nightmare expert at this point.

Leo wanted to go back in time and spend forever in that one evening, living it over and over and over again until the Fates or a temporal paradox or something eventually killed him. He wanted to hold on to what they’d been back then—the three of them together and happy and whole,back before they’d realized what the prophecy really meant. 

He wanted to stay wrapped in Jason’s arm and hear him laugh at whatever stupid joke Leo came up with while he and Piper threw snacks at each other like ten year olds. He wanted to believe he could actually be the person Jason was bragging about—this invincible hero that could do just about anything and saved people’s lives.

But Leo had never been that hero. Even his sacrifice had been the selfish decision of a coward who wasn’t ready to die just yet. Jason had been their Superman. The guy who could fly and threw lightning and saved people from falling to their deaths. Jason had been the hero. And ultimately, that had been what killed him.

Leo wasn’t exactly sure what he planned to do once they got to Oklahoma. He should have been heading back to the Waystation, to give Calypso the normal life he’d promised. But he wasn’t thinking about Calypso, or the Waystation, and the thought of a normal life had gone out of the window the second he’d seen the coffin. Besides, the Waystation would mean people asking questions, wanting to know about his mission and asking him to talk about his feelings, and he didn’t want that.

The only thing Leo really wanted to do right now was not think. 

By the time they got to the house, it was so late that cross-country dragon flight seemed inadvisable for visibility reasons alone, so Leo agreed to stay the night. Festus nuzzled him for a bit, got a fuel snack from the canister Leo had brought and then folded down into his million pound suitcase form for the night.

It took a little under two hours to carry all the boxes inside, which was an annoying amount of time to be carrying boxes but seemed like an absurdly short amount to move the contents of an entire life.

They spent some time in search of the necessities that needed to be unpacked, but the house was still furnished and also had running water and electricity as of a few days ago, so it wasn’t that bad.

While Piper went in search of some ancient camping gear so Leo wouldn’t have to sleep on the floor—this seemed silly to him, the floor was far from the worst place he’d ever slept—Leo asked Piper’s dad if he could help with dinner. 

Tristan looked relieved at his offer, actually. He’d been staring at the assorted vegetables with a slightly lost expression, trying to hack at one of the zucchinis with a butter knife. It seemed like he was trying to remember how cooking worked and had just discovered he had absolutely no idea. 

Considering how long he’d been an insanely rich guy with a personal cook, Leo guessed that actually might have been a pretty accurate read on the situation. 

“You might want to try a sharper knife,” Leo suggested, which made Piper’s dad look absolutely mortified. “Try not to chop off any of your fingers, though. I think Piper’s been traumatized enough for one week.”

The words were out of his mouth before Leo could think to stop them. Tristan didn’t laugh, but at least it didn’t seem like he’d be tossing Leo out of the house over this. Maybe he realized people sometimes said stupid shit when they were grieving. Maybe Piper had just warned him in advance that Leo was like this sometimes.

Tristan just went to find a different knife, which would have maybe been concerning if he hadn’t gone back to hacking at the vegetables a moment later.

“Well, at least this one is actually cutting through the zucchinis. That’s already an improvement.”

“Yeah, I’m basically a cooking expert,” Leo said with a grin, only half-joking. He went to peel and chop up the carrots, and was done with those and about half the mushrooms by the time the poor zucchini had been hacked to bits.

“You and Piper went to school together, right?” Tristan asked after a while of them quietly chopping vegetables for the casserole, trying to make sense of things with information he didn’t have and that, judging from past evidence, probably would have made his skull crack. “You and her and Jason.”

“Yeah. We went to Wilderness school together.” Leo winced, trying not to think too hard of Jason while also trying to remember the lies they’d already told Piper’s dad. At this rate, he was pretty worried his own skull would crack, too. “Then all three of us switched to a different school. Then I was gone for a while.”

Tristan nodded like this made perfect sense, though he mostly seemed lost in thought. That was a little rude, in Leo’s opinion. If he went through all that effort to remember their elaborate setup of lies, the least Piper’s dad could do was appreciate it!

“I’m glad you’re here now, with everything that’s happened. Piper was really upset when you left,” Tristan said, still with that faraway look in his eyes. “The last few months were hard for her. Between the move and the breakup, she really could have used a friend.”

Leo promptly lost all rights to make fun of Piper’s dad and his vegetable chopping skills because at the word ‘breakup’, the knife slipped and he nearly sliced off two of his fingers.

“Fuck! Ow!” he said eloquently, trying to avoid bleeding all over the cutting board in his attempt to get to the sink. “Jason and Piper broke up?”

The question sounded absurd even to his own ears. Why would Jason and Piper break up? They’d been happy together.

Surely, Piper’s dad had to be talking about something else.

To Leo’s shock, Tristan nodded.

“A while ago, yes,” he said, but he didn’t go into details—possibly because Leo was bleeding all over the sink. “We should bandage that. Do you think you need stitches?”

“No, the cuts aren’t that deep,” Leo decided, turning on the faucet and holding his bleeding hand under the stream of cold water. Maybe he should have been more concerned about the injury, but his mind was still whirring at the thought of his best friends breaking up. Unfortunately, the cold water stung like hell. He hissed with pain. “Sorry for making your kitchen look like a crime scene right after moving in. Usually, I at least have the decency to wait a day or two.”

Because the house was a small, cozy place and Leo had not had the decency to curse quietly, Piper appeared in the doorway a moment later, an alarmed expression on her face.

“What happened?”

“I’ve been bested by a stupid potato,” Leo cursed, holding up his bleeding hand and wiggling his fingers for emphasis. He figured out immediately that this was a mistake. “Ow.”

“Stop that, dumbass!” Piper cursed, moving to stand beside him. “Sink was the right call, but you need to use soap or the cuts could get infected. Dad, any chance we have gauze lying around somewhere?”

Tristan didn’t seem to question why his daughter had immediately jumped into emergency medical treatment mode. He just abandoned the cutting board and headed for the front door.

“Not exactly sure what box our regular medical supplies are in, but I’ll get the first aid kit from the car. I’ll be right back.”

“Do we have to do the soap?” Leo whined, because fuck, that stung, but Piper nodded with a scary expression on her face, so he complied. “How do you even know this stuff? Are we sure you’re not secretly an Apollo kid?”

“I know this stuff because I’m friends with a bunch of morons who have zero sense of self-preservation,” Piper cursed, gritting her teeth. “You shouldn’t be around knives when you’re this distracted.”

“I can usually cook just fine when I’m distracted. Your dad was the one who told me you and Jason broke up in the middle of this stupid potato,” Leo said defensively. “Is that the Mist messing with him?”

That was the only explanation his mind had supplied so far that made any sense to him.

Piper shook her head. “We really did break up. That was a few months ago.”

Leo felt his jaw hit the floor. 

“What the hell happened? You were together for ages. I thought- you always seemed so happy.”

“I know, but-” Piper broke off abruptly when her dad came back inside with the first aid kit. Demigod stuff, then?

Leo’s mind was racing. The breakup was a completely stupid thing to focus on, considering everything that had happened in the last few days. He knew that.

But it was easier to try and make sense of this than it was to try and make sense of the fact that Jason was gone and he’d never get to see him again.

“Is it alright if we do this somewhere else?” Piper asked her dad, taking the first aid kit from him.

“Of course. It might be easier to patch him up when you’re both sitting down, anyway.” He turned towards Leo. “Thank you for your help, but I think I can take it from here.”

Leo sent a silent prayer to whichever deity was responsible for protecting vegetables—Demeter, probably?—and gave what he hoped was an encouraging thumbs up with his uninjured hand before he followed Piper into the hallway to presumably be reprimanded some more.

~~~~ They ended up sitting on an old bed that looked like it had lived a long, miserable life and was excited for retirement, but the wooden frame thankfully didn’t break down under the weight of the new mattress or the additional weight of them sitting on said mattress. Piper explained that this had been her dad’s room when he’d lived here as a child, and that it would probably become her room now. Then she went very quiet and focused on bandaging his hand, clearly avoiding looking at him.

“It wasn’t because of me, was it?” Leo asked. The thought made him feel ill. “Please tell me it wasn’t something like, I don’t know, you two being unable to stand being around each other after what happened to me. I think I’d actually have to blow myself up again if it was.”

He tried to make it sound like a joke, but it didn’t feel like one at all. The thought that he'd managed to ruin his best friends’ relationship on top of everything else made it hard to breathe.

When Piper shook her head, it felt like a whole boulder was lifted off his shoulders.

“I actually think we would have broken up sooner if you hadn’t gone missing. We leaned on each other a lot after you disappeared. It wasn’t until we realized we wouldn’t find you and things started to settle down a little that I had time to think. And when I did…” Her voice went very quiet, and she still didn’t look up at him. “I realized I wasn’t happy in the relationship. I don’t think I ever was.”

“How did I not know that?” Leo wondered quietly. “I just… you two seemed happy to me. What kind of garbage best friend am I?”

Piper shook her head. “It isn’t your fault. I was telling myself I was happy for a long time. It’s almost- sometimes I wonder if I was charmspeaking myself. That maybe I kept saying I was in love with Jason until I convinced myself I actually was. And with Hera and my mom setting it up… I love-” her voice caught in her throat, and Leo felt like maybe he needed to throw up, “-loved Jason, but not like that.”

“Pipes, I’m really sorry.” Leo squeezed her shoulder. “That sounds like it was super hard for both of you.” Leo felt awful about the fact that he hadn’t even been around to comfort either of them, but it wasn’t like he could fix it now. It was just another item on Leo’s unending list of epic screwups he’d never be able to make up for.

“Jason was… well, he took it exactly like I expected him to. He was surprised, but he didn’t get angry or anything. He mostly seemed okay. Part of me wonders if maybe…” But whatever Piper had been thinking about, she seemed to decide it wasn’t important. “It was hard to get a proper read on him, and as nice as he was about it, things were still super awkward after. I'm terrified he died thinking I didn’t care about him.”

And then she was tearing up again, and Leo thought he would shatter if she cried. 

“He knew you cared,” he said as earnestly as he could manage, pulling Piper to his chest again. “You love way too annoyingly for him not to have known. Hell, even I know you love me, and we both know I’m a fucking nightmare when it comes to this stuff.”

“I missed you so much,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around his back like it was the easiest thing in the world.

“Oh, I’m about to make you regret saying that,” Leo said, forcing himself to smile. “I’ll bring it up each and every time you say you find something I do annoying.”

“You’re annoying as hell, but you’re still my best friend.” He could feel her tears dripping onto his shoulder, and he knew that would make him start up again too. “I don’t know how I’d do this without you.”

And well, passing away from dehydration after crying too much would be a really lame way to die the second time, but everything was just too much right now, so if that was how he went, Leo wasn’t sure anyone could blame him.

~~~~

For the next couple of weeks, Leo stayed.

Helping Piper and her dad unpack was the perfect way to keep himself occupied and not have to think. Usually, a mundane task like this probably would have driven Leo nuts. But right now, it was a bit of a godsend—if not literally, at least figuratively. Being productive was always so much easier when it was done in order to avoid something you wanted to do even less. There was a reason his spaces in the foster homes had only ever been tidy when he had exams coming up.

He helped cook, too, and Piper’s dad became increasingly less garbage at it the longer this went on—like muscle memory was finally kicking in after years of disuse.

It was mostly good—listening to Piper reminisce about trips she’d taken with her dad and where she’d gotten the weird variety of items she kept in her room. When they weren’t unpacking, Leo and Piper played video games or watched movies or explored the area. Twice, during the night, they took Festus on a little flight to a nearby fast food place. Finding a parking spot was a bit of a nightmare, unfortunately. Leo would submit a complaint about their inability to accommodate celestial bronze dragons the first chance he got.

The first time they tried hiking—Leo didn’t even like hiking, he’d spent enough time outside for several lifetimes, why did he do this to himself—they got hopelessly lost in the woods, and of course, due to demigod bullshit, neither of them had brought a phone, so Google Maps wasn’t an option. It was probably for the better. The last thing that situation needed on top of them being lost was a monster attack. 

They were already jokingly planning out their new life in the woods when, thankfully, a girl their age came to their rescue.

“A human being! Thank the gods. The squirrels weren’t talking to us,” Leo greeted her, which had Piper shout “Please ignore Leo!” loudly from the branches of the tree she’d been climbing.

The girl lifted her head, spotted Piper and promptly burst out laughing.

“What in the world are you doing up there?” 

“Trying to get a better vantage point,” Piper sighed, making her way back down the tree. “We’re hopelessly lost.”

“Well, nice to meet you, hopelessly lost. I’m Shel,” the girl said, still grinning. Leo decided immediately that he liked her.

Piper had almost made it back down when she somehow missed a branch and fell the rest of the way. In comedic movie fashion, Shel moved before Leo had the chance to and caught her mid-tumble. “That was a bit of a dramatic way to get my attention, but you’re cute, so I’ll allow it.”

“Oh yeah, Piper’s got a bit of a thing with falling for people that way,” Leo commented, and Piper gave him her most murderous look while she got back on her feet.

“You guys need help getting back?”

“Please, yes,” Piper said immediately. “It turns out we’re both garbage with maps.”

“Maybe you just need a tour guide next time,” Shel suggested, winking at Piper, whose face turned scarlet. Leo wasn’t even mad about being the third wheel for once. He’d give her so much shit about this later.

And he did. And then Piper properly came out to him—no label or anything, mostly as extremely confused but sure she liked girls, which also made a few additional pieces click into place regarding her breakup with Jason. She ended her anxiety-riddled explanation by thanking Leo for being so normal and annoying about all this. 

Which was how Leo realized he’d apparently never told Piper he was bi.

Or maybe he had, and it had gotten lost along with their other memories of Wilderness. Stupid memory-stealing babysitters.

Well, at least they got to hug about it now. 

~~~~

It was strange how normal some days felt when nothing would ever truly be normal again. When in every moment Leo and Piper spent together, the gaping hole that had been ripped into their trio was so blatantly obvious.

The benefit and problem of this friendship was that Leo and Piper were both experts at not talking about things they were struggling with. 

This wasn’t exactly news. From what little Leo did remember of Wilderness School, they’d spent months not talking about his mom, or about the fact that Piper’s dad kept canceling their weekend plans. They’d both known there were things left unsaid, but as long as they’d been able to cheer each other up, that hadn’t really mattered. It made sense, honestly. Put two people who hadn’t had a shoulder to cry on for ages in a room together and see what happens!

Right now, this meant they were expertly ignoring the box of belongings Piper had picked up from Jason’s school. It had been pushed so far under the bed during that first night that it was no longer visible, and neither of them made any effort to move it out of its new home since. They ignored the topic of Jason, period, until it inevitably hit them in the face again. 

It was mostly dumb shit that set them off. Piper automatically reaching for vanilla ice cream at the grocery store because it was Jason’s favorite—seriously, who in their right mind even liked vanilla ice cream?

Sometimes, Leo would make a joke and burst into tears instead of laughing because he knew it would have cracked Jason up. They found old photos unpacking. One time, Piper’s dad suggested they make tacos and they started simultaneously bawling their eyes out.

Leo had spent a long time exactly like this—pretending everything was normal and okay when it wasn’t either of those things until he inevitably broke down. Then he’d started to actually feel sort of okay whenever he was with Jason and Piper. Now, he was sure he would spend the rest of his life pretending.

His appetite was too used to being stuck in survival mode for him to bow to nausea for long, so he went back to eating properly after a few days. He still cried himself to sleep most nights. He kept dreaming about Jason. The memories wrapped themselves around him like a safety blanket that he knew would get ripped away again in the morning. He always woke up feeling empty. Sometimes, he wished he could just go to sleep and never wake up again.

But other than that, it was mostly good.

Then demigod communications went back up, and everything went to hell.

———

Chapter notes:

Fun fact! I originally planned for this chapter (as well as the next few chapters) to just be backstory in my head and for me to maybe do a flashback or two. Unfortunately for me, Piper McLean waltzed into the room and refused to leave.

I do actually think the fic works better this way, but it will take a second to get to the plot! Hopefully you’ll enjoy the whole journey :)

I may not be able to have Leo and Piper go to Jason’s funeral without seriously messing with the plot of Tyrant’s Tomb, but I could at least pick the most evil reason possible for them not to go!

Side note: I sort of forgot that Hedge and Mellie were supposed to be here according to TBM, but by the time I remembered I already had this chapter written out and, as someone who cannot be bothered to figure out how to write them, I decided to just leave it. ToA is vaguely canon to this universe, but only for the most part. Some details are inaccurate, and I think that’s okay.

Anyway, thank you so much for reading! Comments and reblogs super, super appreciated as always!!

List of people that at some point asked to be tagged when I post this: @poppitron360 @ginnyluna @keefessketchbook (feel free to comment if you want to get taken off or be put on the tag list for future chapters!)

[ladyartemesia]

TEASER: Kim Seokjin and the Mean Omega

Pairing: Nerd Alpha Kim Seokjin x Popular Omega Reader

Genre: A/B/O • Enemies to Lovers • (Sorta) College AU • Best Friend's Brother AU (Who is surprised? No one?)

Teaser Word Count: 3.6K

Teaser Warnings: A/B/O sexual dynamics • suggestive content

Rating: Explicit (18+) (Teaser is PG-13)

Summary: In the modern world, alphas are almost unheard of so why even bother learning about them? After all, as a spoiled (but reasonably kind-hearted) omega who is used to getting whatever she wants, you have better things to do. However, when unexpected circumstances throw you in the path of (extremely) nerdy and (probably?) shy Kim Seokjin, you're shocked to discover that he won't be wrapped around your little finger as easily as all the rest. Bringing that infuriating geek to his knees quickly becomes your personal mission in life... But it turns out that Kim Seokjin is not what he appears to be and the mean omega who eats beta boys for breakfast is about to get way more than she bargained for...

Author’s Note: This story would not be here without the love, support and friendship of my incredible support system. You talk with me, you laugh with me, you listen when I’m crying, and you read my chaotic drafts when I am ready to pull my hair out of my head in frustration. I love you all. @ppersonna @xjoonchildx @untaemedqueen @lemonjoonah. ALSO thank you to each and every one of you who encouraged me to post this story. This fic is dedicated to all of you as a token of my love and appreciation. Your support keeps me writing. Never doubt that for a second.

“...due to discriminatory anti-alpha policies in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, alphas were nearly eliminated from the general population…”

You heaved a weary sigh and rolled your shoulders—stretching the buttons of your high-end Oxford shirt to their limit. The beta sophomore to your right whined audibly and you smirked.

“...despite efforts to restore the genetic balance of designations, alphas currently comprise less than one percent of the population…”

Your back arched slightly as you crossed your legs, letting the absurdly short hem of your skirt ride up even higher. The poor boy you were tormenting shifted miserably in his seat.

How was he supposed to focus on a Human Biology and Designation Studies lecture when the living breathing embodiment of every sweaty undergrad’s fantasies was twisting her fingers in her hair and wrapping her pretty pink tongue around a strawberry lollipop right there in the middle of class?

“...unlike betas and omegas, alphas possess enhanced strength and the ability to compel other designations with their voice. Unmated alphas especially were often baselessly feared and distrusted...”

You knew exactly how you affected boys like him. You were a shameless tease who relished their attention and the power it brought you. Who needed drugs when driving a man mad with desire was a rush more potent than any high?

“...and that’s all for today so please read pages 450-466 in the text over break and remember to turn in your essay on scent and consent in intimacy—”

That poor sophomore looked like he had finally worked up the courage to speak to you, but you were already out the door and tearing down the hall toward your beautiful (and entirely platonic) counterpart, Kim Taehyung.

“Do you think Professor Moore is unaware that class is over at 3:25 or is he just torturing us for science?”

Taehyung shrugged, falling into step beside you with practiced ease.

“I mean I would torture you for free so it’s hard to say.”

The corner of your mouth quirked up at his characteristic dry humor, but the irritation at being held in that sweltering lecture hall for an extra ten minutes had frayed your temper.

“It’s the last class before spring break, I’m sure he was on some sort of twisted power trip.” You dug around in your purse for some chapstick, ignoring Tae’s amused snorting, “Alphas barely exist anymore and none of us are likely to meet one. Why bother learning what they can do?”

Taehyung tilted his head in amusement.

“You might be surprised.”

The final party before the beginning of spring break was always a laid back affair.

Many people had already caught planes to their various destinations, but your flight was scheduled for early tomorrow morning—leaving you with some time to kill.

Taehyung pressed his newest experimental concoction into your hand within minutes of entering the house (a surprisingly neat bachelor pad owned by two seniors, Jung Hoseok and Min Yoongi) and then darted back to the kitchen to craft more questionable alcohol potions like a deranged party warlock.

You had just found a comfortable place on the couch and were contemplating whether sampling your best friend’s mad scientist elixir would be worth the probable damage to your body when—

“H-Hello...”

It was that sophomore from your Designations Studies class. What was his name again? Jungwoo? Jinwook?

“Jungkook,” you smiled, delighted to have remembered before it became awkward. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

You motioned to the empty cushion next to you and the man in question scrambled over like he’d won the lottery.

“I—I know we don’t know each other well, but I noticed you were absent during Professor Moore’s lecture on intimacy and scent consent so I—” he blushed deeply, “I wrote the essay for you—and I brought a copy on my flash drive if-if you want it.”

Your heart melted immediately.

“Oh my gosh Jungkook, that is so sweet of you!”

Your gaze darted over his muscular form and thick brown curls.

Sweet indeed.

“I don’t want to miss out on the learning though,” you pouted, placing a hand on his tattooed bicep. “Can you explain it to me?”

Jungkook nodded vigorously even as his wide eyes fell to where your fingers were sliding slowly over his chest.

Scent consent was a pretty basic and universally known concept, but you really were touched by the handsome sophomore's consideration.

Why not give him (and yourself) a little reward?

“Um so basically if two people are involved in...intimate activities—”

You leaned forward to nip his ear lightly and he whimpered.

“Like this?” you asked innocently.

“Y-Yes. Like that.” He gulped. “In an intimate situation consent or refusal can be smelled. The scent of refusal or reluctance in intimacy is strong, unmistakable, and has a high chemical potency.”

“Is that so?” you drawled, sliding over onto his lap. Jungkook’s eyes rolled back into his head and you bit back a grin.

He was adorable.

“Uh-huh—it—oh my gawd,” (you were nibbling on his ear again) “it can immediately block sexual arousal and performance in the other partner. Meaning, if consent is not present, then it becomes difficult or—ahh” (his voice began to waver under your continued attention) “—or even impossible to continue with intimate acts.”

Your hand slid up to his cheek, bringing him closer till your lips were almost touching.

“Then what does it mean if I’m still so turned on right now?”

“It means,” Jungkook shuddered—nearly delirious with your scent, “that I really really want you.”

Across the room, Park Jimin chuckled as he watched you seduce his enthusiastic friend.

Jeon Jungkook was such a sweet kid.

Hopefully he wouldn’t get too attached.

“Wow... Some people are genuinely born blessed I suppose.”

Jimin turned to see Jung Hoseok eyeing the dimly lit corner where you and the eager young sophomore were exploring each other.

It was a rather...provocative spectacle. Not quite raunchy (you weren’t truly an exhibitionist)—just insanely sexy.

Jimin’s gaze lingered on the smooth curve of your thigh where Jeon Jungkook was currently holding on for dear life.

Lucky bastard.

“Ah you know how she is,” he sighed. “That boy isn’t going to get any farther than anyone else.”

It was relatively common knowledge that you liked to mess around but rarely—if ever— fully hooked up with anyone.

Jimin asked you about it once during a drunken game of truth or dare and you had just shrugged, mumbling something along the lines of avoiding STDs (which—to be fair—was at least part of your motivation), but the truth was a little more complicated than that.

In terms of experience, you weren’t a virgin, but... you hadn’t actually had sex in years.

You loved the chase, the foreplay, the build-up—the game of cat-and-mouse between two people who were attracted to one another.

But the final consummation was always so…

Wildly unfulfilling.

Every encounter left you frustrated. Empty.

Grumpy—even.

So you stopped bothering with it all together. (That was what sex toys were for after all.)

At the end of the day you were perfectly content being labeled a tease—it meant that people tended to know what they were (or rather weren’t) getting into when they rolled the dice with you.

Besides…it hadn’t even put a dent in your throng of admirers.

You were sunny, spoiled, indulgent, almost universally adored—

And you loved every minute of it.

“You know…” Hoseok took a long sip of his drink. “I always thought she would end up with Taehyung, but it’s been three years.”

Like you, Kim Taehyung was a trust fund brat and it was only natural that two beautiful and absurdly privileged people would gravitate to one another. You met at a freshman pledge party and had been an inseparable (and formidable) dynamic duo ever since.

The undisputed king and queen of campus.

Yes—maybe the two of you were a little self-absorbed at times, but it was hardly your fault that people tended to instinctively cater to the force of your combined looks, wealth, and charisma.

And it didn’t hurt that neither of you were ever intentionally cruel or unkind.

Just... habitually thoughtless.

(Though not when it came to each other. If anything your friendship was one area where you were both a little more human.)

Jimin shook his head.

“Nah that’s never gonna happen.” He tapped his nose. “They’re scent-crossed.”

Hoseok’s eyes widened.

“Really?”

Scent-crossed pairs didn’t smell sexually attractive to each other.

Like. At all.

No matter how physically or visually appealing an individual might be, it would be near impossible to form a sexual or romantic attachment to them if you were scent-crossed. Alphas, betas, and omegas were all subject to their noses first and foremost in the realm of attraction.

You and Taehyung smelled like comfort and home to one another...

But you were more turned on by a crisp cup of apple juice than you were his scent and the feeling was quite mutual.

He might as well have been your actual brother.

“That explains so much.” Hoseok snorted as he watched a drunken Taehyung do a flying leap on top of both you and Jungkook.

“Why is sunlight so offensive?” you croaked, dragging yourself and your luggage toward the boarding ramp next to an equally miserable Taehyung.

“The next time I book a flight before 9 AM, please shoot me,” he grunted.

Your parents were celebrating their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary with a month-long European cruise so your best friend had graciously invited you to spend two glorious weeks of spring vacation at his family estate.

The invitation had actually come as somewhat of a surprise because—for all your closeness—Taehyung was uncharacteristically tight-lipped about his family.

Not that he was deliberately withholding information per se… It was just that he never really brought them up beyond an occasional passing comment.

The one time you did ask him about them directly he sighed and said—

“We’re very close, but… I suppose we’ve just gotten used to being very private.”

There was clearly more to the story, but you were confident that Tae would share it if and when he was ready.

“My parents are in Seoul opening a new branch of the company. They took my little sister with them and my older brother has his own house so it will be just us.” He snuggled deeper into the first class seat directly next to yours. “We’ll hang out by the pool and chill during the day, then hit up some of the new clubs or whatever at night.”

“So… No one from your family will be there?”

Perhaps the invitation was not so surprising after all.

“Nope. Just you and me and thirty acres of ocean front property.”

You grinned.

“Perfect.”

“Whose room is that?”

The two of you were lugging your bags down the main hall of Taehyung’s expansive mansion when a strange hint of...something caught you right by the nose.

Your friend turned to find you frozen and staring curiously at a familiar door near the balcony.

His eyes widened, but you were too preoccupied to notice his momentary concern.

“That’s just Jin’s room.”

A firm hand wrapped around your wrist and dragged you away, but your eyes stayed glued to the source of the mysterious scent until you were around the corner and out of sight.

Your suite for the next two weeks was right across the hall from Taehyung’s. There was a whirlpool, a full bath, a balcony, and an ocean view that would rival the cover spread of any travel magazine.

Tae headed for the shower (to ‘wash the airplane off’) immediately after showing you the room and you were thinking of doing the same except…

Your mind kept going back to that door and the hint of scent you detected.

There was something… different about it.

It was faint—and far from fresh (which made sense considering that one of the few things you did know about Kim Seokjin was that he hadn’t lived in this house for years).

But still…

The need to smell it again pressed insistently at the back of your mind.

Suddenly the sound of Taehyung singing raunchy lyrics in the shower carried over through the walls and you found your feet moving almost of their own accord.

What Tae doesn’t know won’t hurt him, you rationalized, making your way down the hall toward Jin’s door. Besides—it’s not as if I’m going to steal anything…

You just needed to find that scent again.

By the time your fingers closed over the knob every one of your nerves was strangely—acutely—alert but nothing could have prepared you for what was waiting behind the door.

Oh. My. Gosh.

“What a colossal nerd.”

The room was covered floor to ceiling in Nintendo memorabilia.

Bright primary colors assaulted your eyes from all directions in the form of action figures, posters, pillows, and every other conceivable merch variety known to man.

In the center of the suite stood a large king-sized bed covered in a custom black couture toile-style Mario-verse bed set (that looked every bit as expensive as it was geeky) and a mountain of high quality Nintendo character plush toys.

Everything was simultaneously luxe and nostalgic—a rare combination of sophisticated aesthetic balance and childlike indulgence.

And the scent was there.

It was faint and covered under layers of cleaner and air fresheners, but still lingering just below the surface—too weak for you to get a really good whiff, yet potent enough to torment you.

You moved forward unconsciously toward the strongest source of the hypnotic smell—the strangely inviting expanse of Kim Seokjin’s mattress.

Suddenly the urge to climb—no crawl—across the bed itself and roll around in it like a kitten in catnip gripped you out of nowhere.

“What the hell?” you muttered, rubbing absently over the mating gland at the base of your neck.

Something very odd was going on with your body.

Your restless gaze zeroed in on one of the stuffed toys piled atop his pillows. It was a cute little mushroom man your brain recognized as a Mario character named ‘Toad’.

Take it.

Your mouth dropped open in shock.

You need it.

“Am I going insane?” you wondered aloud.

You have to take it.

Muscles in your hand began to twitch involuntarily. You bit your lip.

Bring it back with you.

Several minutes later a freshly washed Taehyung wandered over to your room and found you sitting perfectly still on your bed while staring off into space.

His head tilted in curious concern.

“Everything ok?”

You started a bit at the sound of his voice, but recovered quickly.

“Never better!” you chirped—almost too brightly. “Let’s go get some dinner, I’m starving.”

Then you grabbed his hand and pulled him down the hall toward the kitchen—shutting the door before he could catch a glimpse of his brother’s stuffed Toad doll stashed underneath your pillow

“...a critical water main rupture in the city’s New Market district early this morning has forced several residents out of their homes as flood water swelled up to nearly two feet. The governor declared a state of emergency and ordered hotels around the city to accommodate the displaced citizens. Crews are still clearing the water and assessing damages. We expect—

“Hey!” you shouted through a mouthful of cereal, after Your best friend switched off the television, “I was watching that!”

“And what you should be doing is getting ready for the pool.” Tae snatched your cereal bowl and dragged you by your shirt collar toward the stairs. “It is the first morning of our vacation. I’m not trying to waste any time. Now go.” He shoved you forward, smacking your ass for good measure.

You swatted back at him half-heartedly as jogged back up to the room where you enjoyed a surprisingly restful sleep last night.

Kim Seokjin’s door glared at you accusingly as you shuffled past—unable to let you forget that you had kidnapped it’s little mushroom man in an unexplained fit of kleptomania, but that was a problem for your future self.

The you of right now was going to zen out in the Kim family's premium glass-enclosed indoor pool (it was still a little chilly for the outdoor pool) with her best friend and bask in the simple joys of good company and no responsibility.

...Or not.

A few minutes later you bounced into the living room wearing a simple black tankini with a cute floral cover only to find Taehyung on the phone with his head in his hands.

“Yes, sir. I understand… I...I know this is my responsibility...”

That didn’t sound good.

After a few more tense moments, Tae hung up and collapsed backward into the couch with a heavy sigh.

“That water main break you heard about on TV this morning was the last straw between the province and its current contractor. They called an emergency meeting for new bids.”

Your heart dropped as you sank down beside him.

“Your dad wants you to go...doesn’t he.”

Taehyung nodded miserably.

“He can’t leave the Seoul opening on such short notice and managing government construction contracts is part of what I’ve been training for. This could be huge for our company.”

“Well...why doesn’t your brother go?”

“Jin is the brains behind most of our patented gaming and tech innovations. He wouldn’t even know where to begin with this sort of thing. Besides,” his lips quirked up in a rueful grin, “my brother doesn’t have the patience to stroke entitled geriatric egos for hours on end—which is likely what I’m going to have to do.”

The two of you headed back to Taehyung’s room where you helped him pack some suits and toiletries for his trip.

Naturally you were disappointed but...this was a great opportunity for your best friend to prove himself in his chosen field and you both knew it. In fact, he was already starting to brighten a bit.

“The meeting is about a hundred miles north of here. My dad’s secretary already handled the flight and hotel room.” His eyes darted around the suite to see if he was forgetting anything.

It was clear he was nervous, though you were sure he didn’t need to be. Kim Taehyung was a trust fund brat, but he was also talented and deeply passionate about his family’s company.

Someday this would be the norm. The two of you were stealing time in college, determined to live a little before the expectations of your powerful families transferred fully onto your shoulders.

It was becoming more and more clear, however, that your carefree time was slowly running out.

Mother had already spoken to you about potential marriage alliances and your father expected you to intern with his Vice President this summer just as your elder sister had...

Taehyung’s voice suddenly interrupted your bittersweet introspection and you couldn’t help but smile at how grown-up he looked in his suit and briefcase ensemble.

Everything was going to change, but not quite yet.

“They estimate negotiations should take around a week or so…” He walked over and pulled you into a tight hug. “There should still be some vacation left for us when I get back.”

“Hurry back then,” you mumbled grumpily into his chest and he chuckled.

“I will.”

Taehyung had been gone for less than twenty minutes when you decided that the best use of your time would be to eat more snacks.

The last thing you expected when you skipped merrily into the kitchen was to find it occupied by a shaggy-haired homeless man in glasses.

Your first instinct was to scream which caused the homeless man to drop the apple he was biting right onto the floor where it rolled around for a small eternity before coming to rest at his ankles.

Your second instinct was to grab a butcher’s cleaver from the nearby knife block and wave it chaotically at the intruder while shouting something along the lines of—

“You’ve made a huge mistake! My boyfriend is the biggest, meanest mafia boss in Seoul! Leave now and he might let you live!”

The homeless man continued to stare at you with a mixture of confusion and shock, but made no move to run away in terror like you were hoping.

So you tried again.

“Didn’t you hear what I said?! The last man who touched me drinks his steak through a straw now! Do the smart thing and leave before my boyfriend comes down those stairs and it’s too late!”

Infuriatingly, the homeless man was still not fleeing for his life and frankly you were starting to get frustrated. You drew in a deep cleansing breath and were prepared to issue another grandiose threat when he finally spoke.

“I’m sorry, miss. I... think there’s been some sort of mistake. Who is your boyfriend?”

There was no rational explanation for what came out of your mouth next, but it rolled off your tongue so smoothly and you didn’t even flinch.

“Kim Seokjin.”

For the first time in your entire exchange, the intruder looked truly alarmed.

Now that’s more like it.

“You’ve heard of him I see. He’s a dangerous man and my body belongs to him.” You slammed the cleaver down onto the countertop with a (hopefully) menacing slash. “Kim Seokjin doesn’t like when other men put their hands on what belongs to him.”

There was a long, unpardonably tense moment of silence…Then the stranger slowly reached forward and picked up a mobile phone from the table in front of him.

His eyes remained locked with yours as he pressed a quick series of buttons, brought the phone to his ear, waited a few seconds and said—

“Taehyung… Would you mind telling me why there is a half-naked, knife-wielding omega in our kitchen claiming to be my girlfriend?”

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[please-return-to-villanelle]

S4E2 Don’t Get Eaten: Recap and Analysis

Alternate title: What in the Lesbian Jesus is going on?

Eve

The story picks back up with Eve is in disguise watching Hélène, her daughter, and nanny/mother/ice cream enthusiast at a medieval torture reenactment happening on the streets of London. Eve is there to place a tracking device in the form of an applicator tampon onto Hélène’s person, but she doesn’t quite get the chance.

Torture is a theme this season, apparently for the characters (and the viewers WAITING for Villaneve to FINALLY together). This opening scene is a heavy hint that the mysterious someone responsible for torturing the members of the Twelve is Hélène.

“Does it hurt?” – Hélène’s daughter

“Only if you let it.” – Hélène

From the first time we met Hélène back in series 3, she gave off this powerful energy that continues into series 4. She is not someone to be messed with and someone who does not shy away from inflicting brutality on others.

What’s interesting about this scene is Hélène holds onto her daughter the entire time. Places an iron grip on her shoulders and never let’s go. Perhaps that is a cue to the audience that Hélène is the type of person that sinks her claws into others, and once she does, she doesn’t let go. It’s a type of ruthlessness and determination shared by a certain spectator in this scene wearing a blonde wig and tan trench coat.

After the torture exhibition, Eve trails Hélène to a bar, waiting to strike where she overhears a conversation between Hélène and a blonde woman.

“I’ve never met a woman in my life that really challenges me.” – Hélène

While Hélène directs this comment to the unnamed blonde woman, I think the sentiment also applies to Eve. Eve also likes to be challenged. It’s why she was so eager to blow up her mundane life as an MI5 desk jockey married to the mustache. It’s only when she met Villanelle, the first woman to come into her life and challenge her, that Eve really came alive.

“I feel… Wide awake.” – Eve

So far, it seems there are a number of similarities being established between Hélène and Eve. They both like to live dangerously and don’t mind masquerading as normal people (kids, house, spouse, etc.). They thrive when challenged, don’t shy away from causing pain (and seem to enjoy when pain is inflicted on them), and both really seem to get off on playing the cat and mouse game.

I would be remisce if I didn’t note the queerness in this scene (finally) that Eve witnessed as Hélène had her fun with the challenging blonde. This is confirmation to Eve that women can get with other women, and I for one hope she took notes.

In the end, Eve manages to slip the tracker seamlessly into Hélène’s bag in the same smooth manner Villanelle slipped the Love in the Elevator lipstick into Eve’s bag what feels like a lifetime ago.

“I know you said this was a casual arrangement, but I’m really starting to feel-” – Yusuf

“You know I told you before this started, no overnight stays, no presents, no mini-breaks, no.” – Eve

Eve seems to be making it clear that she is not looking to form a romantic attachment with anyone. I hope this has something to do with the fact that she still has a very deep attachment with Villanelle and that attachment was so intense and consuming, she doesn’t have space for anything else (and hopefully she doesn’t want another romantic attachment because those Villanelle feels are very much still there and she is actively avoiding them).

But, this lack of romantic attachment doesn’t mean she isn’t attached in some form to Yusuf (much to my displeasure). They seem very comfortable with each other. Engaging in inside jokes and playful banter about bowel movements (gross), and most egregiously Yusuf knows a lot about Eve’s past. Way more than any other friend we’ve seen. He knows about Villanelle (WHY?), and Carolyn (WHY?) and the Twelve (WHY?) and…

“The Twelve probably has your mug shot on the wall. Axe murder, refuse entry.” – Yusuf

Raymond.

Yusuf KNOWS about Raymond. He knows all about Eve’s first kill, the one that was ignored all of season 3. The one we have never heard Eve talk about, but apparently, she told Yusuf all about it. I for one am personally offended by the fact that Eve confided in Yusuf to this deep of a level. She told all her darkest secrets to someone she’s knows less than a year who isn’t her therapist (honestly, her telling Martin about Raymond would have made way more sense to me) and someone who isn’t the person she shared that murder with.

Speaking of Martin.

“How do you get what you want out of them?” – Eve

“You mean my patients?” – Martin

Eve has truly descended into the land of zero empathy. Seeing people as things (sounds like psychopathic behavior, does it not?). But is this genuine? Or is Eve playing up her darkness to the highest degree possible in an attempt to reinvent herself as a new person?

“Is that possible?” – Eve

“Human beings like to believe in change.” Martin

Eve asks Martin if he thinks Villanelle can really change into being a better person. Eve doesn’t seem to believe Villanelle can change her nature, and deep down, I think Eve knows she can’t change who she is either.

“We can spend a couple of days doing reconnaissance, tracking her movements...” - Yusuf

“Or I can just knock on the front door.” – Eve

Eve does indeed enact her own plan and stop by Hélène’s to make Shepard’s pie with a bag of vegetables without minced meat or Worchester sauce. Clearly, she never listened to Niko long enough to get the recipe.

“I never understood women that can’t insert their own fingers into themselves.” – Hélène

Eve cuts herself when Hélène delivers this line because… Eve is 100% one of these women. That’s why she’s always using men when she’s in her horney, Villanelle feels rather than get the job done herself. Not only is this line amusing, but it highlights that Hélène knows a lot more about Eve than Eve does about her.

“Oh, so this is what you’re into. Torturing your way through the Twelve.” - Eve

After this there is sapphic finger sucking and then torture flirting, during which Eve discovers Hélène’s also working towards taking down the Twelve and by the end of this, it seems these two just might be off to an uneasy alliance.

“What exactly is it you want to do? - Hélène

“I’ll tell you after dessert some time.” - Eve

Villanelle

Meanwhile, in Hemel Hempstead, Villanelle is going camping with the parish.

“Question number 46: Who killed Sisera by stabbing him in the head with a tent peg?” – Vicar (Major foreshadowing much?)

Despite her setbacks last episode, Villanelle still sees herself as someone capable of transforming into something completely different in the same way a caterpillar changes into a butterfly.

“There shall be more joy in heaven over one sinner that repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons that need no repentance.” - Villanelle

She is still on her quest to be perceived as a good person by the people of the church, even more so since Eve rejected her. That painful slap, woke up Villanelle’s dormant murder urges, the ones she has spent so much time trying to repress repent. Apparently, the hit to the head also dislodged something in her psyche causing Villanelle to hallucinate her version of a deity: Villanelle in Jesus drag which, for better or worse, keeps popping up during this episode.

Regardless, May triggered Eve related trauma in the last episode. It seems Villanelle is desperate to be forgiven by May and almost substitutes May’s opinion of her for Eve’s, or what she wishes Eve would think of her. I think she is clinging to the hope that one day Eve will actually forgive her and no longer see her as an evil monster. Why Villanelle thinks this is a complete mystery. What we know of Eve up until now (and especially in season 4) is Eve loves darkness. Eve was obsessed with Villanelle’s artful murders before she even knew who Villanelle was. So why all of a sudden does Villanelle think Eve wants her to be good and Holy? No clue, but knowing these two, I assume the root cause is a major lack of communication.

“He wants you gone.” – Villanelle in Jesus drag

Villanelle views the Vicar as an obstacle to getting what she wants. She proceeds to treat him much like she used to treat Niko Polastri, her former obstacle to getting Eve.

“He doesn’t believe in me.” – Villanelle

“He’s just threatened by you.” - Villanelle in Jesus drag

Villanelle’s subconscious manifested as a deity in drag is ‘guiding her to salvation’ by telling her exactly what she wants to hear. Often downplaying or outright brushing past any and all of Villanelle’s bad behavior. Most notably the types of actions people actively try to repent for, but repenting isn’t what Villanelle wants to do which is why her deity never guides her into actions that would meet the definition of repenting.

“Make things right with the daughter and the Vicar will follow.” - Villanelle in Jesus drag

Instead drag Jesus gives her advice to charm over her adversaries, starting first with May. It’s the type of behavior Villanelle knows well. Let us all recall her epic repentance when she tried to win over Konstantin with a room full of balloons and a big birthday cake. This is the same behavior. All glamour and no real substance.

“The point is I didn’t kill you.” – Villanelle

“What does that matter?” – May

Not killing May when she could have MEANS something to Villanelle. To her this was a big change and proof she isn’t all bad. Proof she could be good if just given more time. The tragedy is Villanelle fails to realize her initial instinct was to kill May and she indulged in that instinct so easily.

“You know, when one person thinks your evil, everyone starts to think it and after a while, you start to believe it yourself.” – Villanelle

I think this is an honest moment from Villanelle. It’s the root of all this sad, spiraling energy we’re seeing with her that really took off running in series 3. Perhaps she is still blaming her mother and the mistreatment from her childhood. In her mind, the root of her badness is the person that first labeled her as evil when she was a little girl and that perception spread like wildfire in her home town. Somewhere down the road, Villanelle must have started to believe this about herself too and instead of changing her behavior to prove her mother and everyone else wrong, young, angry Villanelle tried to burn it all down and eventually killed the person who, in her mind, was the root of her evil.

Villanelle doesn’t seem to take ownership of her own actions. She deflects or blames the wrongdoing on other people. If she had a better guide that gave her proper advice, maybe she could make peace with all of this instead of running away all the time and avoiding the truth by pretending to be another person.

“There’s something coiled up in here, stopping you from being the person you want to be.” – May

What exactly is holding Villanelle back? I ‘m not entirely sure, and I’d bet, Villanelle doesn’t have a clue either.

“But what about the woman I am now?” – Villanelle

What Villanelle does know is she is losing her patience with people comparing her to monsters like Hitler and claiming she is not someone capable of love. In the end, those comparisons are enough to unleash her murder urges which leads to her brutally bashing the Vicar and his daughter to death. People who should be good people, but casted her aside as evil when she is trying (in her mind) to be better.

Carolyn

“Indeed. An ass on her ass.” – Carolyn

Carolyn is still at the mercy of Vlad’s black mail as punishment for double crossing him to smoke out the Twelve. She gives him a bit of information about three British intelligence officers so Vlad can gain the upper hand in blackmailing them for his own purposes. By the end of the episode, Vlad reveals the ass on her ass woman hanged herself. Carolyn excuses herself and looks completely shook.

I wonder if this is confirmation to Carolyn that the Twelve are getting close to killing her and perhaps that’s why she reacted this way. Because Carolyn isn’t someone who is easily rattled. So whatever this death means, this must be very serious and something that personally impacts Carolyn.

Villaneve

“I think re-invention is a form of avoidance.” – Martin

Both Villanelle and Eve are trying so desperately to live openly as someone else. Villanelle is Nelle the good church girl and Eve is trying to drown herself in this weird obsession with the Twelve to avoid literally everything that has gone on in her life since Carolyn recruited her to MI6.

But have either of them really changed?

Villanelle can’t seem to suppress her murder instincts forever and Eve is still keeping regular tabs on Villanelle despite pushing her away.

It seems they are both pretending, but neither is capable of pretending forever. At some point, they are going to have to come face to face with who they really are.

--

KE Season 4 recaps and Analysis:

Episode 1: Just Dunk Me

[i-did-not-mean-to]

You got an angst request 👀

Can I interest you with some fluff then What about Celegorm, but actually it's bonding time with Huan?

Play date with Huan as Celegorm and reader hunts, but Huan accidentally hurts (scratches) the reader. Celegorm panicked; forcing him away from the reader and cradling her in his arms before rushing to the infirmary. After a few days reader wants to see Huan again to Celegorm's dismay. Huan is sad and upset, but reader says it's alright and Huan licks them? You know like Toothless licks Hiccup? Covered in saliva? Like that 🤣

Yes, I've gotten an angst request lol -> Russingon angst nonetheless!!!

I love dogs, so this was a special treat for me 🙈 because Huan is the best boy!!!

Words: 1,4k

Characters: Reader & Huan (and Tyelko)

Warnings: Blood and injury

“Ouch,” you cried out when the sharp claws of the huge hound dug into the soft flesh of your thigh; you stumbled backwards into your horse, startling the poor beast into side-stepping and throwing off the carcass of the big game you had brought back from your hunt.

“HUAN,” Tyelko cried out reproachfully and – grabbing his loyal friend by the scruff of his neck – wrenched him back in a hard jerk.

Between your cry and the anger radiating in waves from his master, the mammoth canine slunk back hastily, a low whine resounding as he was propelled down the path leading up to the family’s estate.

“He didn’t mean to hurt me,” you chided your friend and companion gently; you had known both of them for a very long time and were much attached to their wild but affectionate nature.

“You are bleeding,” Tyelko exclaimed as if he had never seen you bloody and dirty before; when he simply picked you up – completely forgetting about the prized catch of the day – and carried you towards the infirmary as if you were truly on death’s doorstep, you could but roll your eyes and sling your arms around his neck to avoid being jostled overmuch.

It had taken a lot of flattery and passionate speeches to convince him to let you join his hunts in the first place and now, you were afraid that a mere accident – a stupid one at that – that had not even taken place during the seemingly so dangerous activity would see you excluded once more.

The accomplished hunter and marvellous beauty holding you gingerly in his strong arms was as brave as he was obtuse sometimes; he could not fathom that you enjoyed the thrill just as much as him, and he refused to get it into his thick skull that you embraced the danger of it willingly.

As he set you down carefully though, you had to admit that your own initial assessment might have been a bit too lax; it seemed that you would have to have your wound sewn shut – you refused the offered soothing draughts and medicinal herbs to dull the pain stubbornly – to stop the bleeding and avoid infection. 

“So be it,” you declared haughtily and tossed your head back in an unmistakeable expression of pride and petulance that made Tyelko – the little hypocrite – suck his teeth in judgemental disapproval; you knew that – were the roles reversed – he would not even have let himself be dragged to the infirmary by his luscious hair that looked like spun light and felt like liquid silk. That was a particularly unfortunate thought to have in this very moment, you noticed, as the needle was pushed through your shredded skin, and you winced unnoticeably.

He would indeed have kicked and dug in his heels before he let anyone tend to his wounds, a touchiness that was well documented and backed-up by numerous scars running like silver rivers across his fair skin.

“Damn hound,” he cursed under his breath and – remembering that you had two legs and that only one of them was injured – you gave his shin a generous kick; he loved that dog more than most people of your common acquaintance and so did you. Huan would never have hurt you on purpose and – compared to the cold and hostile looks and gestures of your own kind – you much preferred his overzealous enthusiasm, even if it led to the most unfortunate incidents sometimes.

The healer started cutting your leggings off and – to your astonishment – Tyelko turned away as if he had never seen your bare legs before; you knew for a fact that it was not the gaping wound that put him off – such a reaction would have been most ill-fated for a skilled hunter such as him – and hence you could only surmise that it was the act of undressing you that made him so uncomfortable.

“I’ll look in on you later,” he grumbled quickly and – without turning around – left the room hurriedly; he had ever been odd, but lately, he seemed downright bizarre to you, but that was a worry for another day.

After a few days of bedrest – which were entirely superfluous in your opinion – you were finally allowed to leave the infirmary; to his credit, Tyelko had come every evening, bringing you strengthening broth and sweet treats as if you were a sick child rather than an injured comrade, and his clumsy attentions – paired with the burgeoning and buzzing frustration making your flesh crawl – put you in a rather morose and aggressive mood.

Limping down corridors forcefully, you finally arrived at his chambers and let your fist fall sonorously against the door, laying all your penned-up emotions of restlessness and vague discontentment into the sharp impact.

“Hey…” 

Before your strange friend could proceed any further in his greeting or reprimand, you shouldered him out of the way and strode into the room with the same confidence you’d have displayed if it had been your own; Huan lay curled up in front of the fire and – seeing your strained approach – he whined softly, his ears drooping low.

“Hello, my pretty boy,” you cooed, sitting down awkwardly and stretching out a tentative hand to the hound; it was nuzzled carefully and for a moment, you thought that he truly understood that he had hurt you and felt bad for it.

“It’s okay,” you promised, scratching him behind the ears while extending your injured leg that he sniffed gently; another low, plaintive sound escaped him, and he made to turn away from the wound he had caused by his boundless and careless eagerness.

“He knows what he’s done,” Tyelko commented darkly, “we’ve had words about it.” You did not put it past him to lecture a dog about his shortcomings when – truth be told – he had injured you more than once despite his fortunate lack of claws and fangs; they were both beasts made for the open wilderness whose overbrimming energy and impressive power could be lethal if contained in too small a space. You had always been entirely aware of that and yet, you loved them dearly and would accept many a scratch and bruise in exchange for the marvellous adventures they took you on.

“Let it go,” you commanded, pressing a soft kiss onto the furry head of the repentant dog, “I certainly have. I’ve missed him so much!”

As if understanding that he was forgiven – you were sure that Huan caught every shift in meaning and mood no matter how negligible – the hound sprang to his feet and – placing both his paws gently on your shoulders – proceeded to lick your face with meticulous attention.

Giggling and spluttering, you welcomed the tender affection that sealed your renewed friendship, carding your fingers through the rough fur in a playful scratching motion which only encouraged Huan to lavish more slobbering, wet kisses onto every bit of exposed skin he could reach.

“You are the best boy,” you kept praising him, “and I am not mad at you. I wish mean, wicked Tyelko had brought you to visit me.”

Huan gave his master a surprisingly cocky side-glance that seemed to say “Told you so” and which made you laugh until your sides hurt; happy to find himself back in your good graces, the huge dog finally curled up at your side peacefully and – within a minute – started snoring.

“Oh,” Tyelko – almost forgotten in the tempestuous reunion with your furry friend – snarled, “the dog gets to slash open your leg and then is allowed to kiss you, but when I knock you off your horse by accident, I am banished from your side for days?”

“I was bed-ridden,” you chuckled, “and you’re just as welcome to kiss me, you know?”

He flinched in visible surprise, but – catching himself with a huntsman’s precision, speed, and grace – he merely smirked: “Maybe after you’ve washed your face.”

Shrugging, you went on petting Huan and staring into the flames, wondering if your other friend would make good on this brazen affirmation once you had complied with his puny stipulation; before you could muse about it more in detail though, a wet washcloth hit you square in the jaw.

When you looked up in shock and indignation, Tyelko was leaning against the bedpost, sniggering gleefully.

So, there it is...Huan being the best boy, Tyelko being kind of a jealous bitch, and reader being perfectly fine!!!

I hope you liked this 🙈 I truly love dogs <3

Lots of love from me ❤️❤️❤️

[babymilkawa]

I’m not sure if you’re still looking for hxh requests, but if you are, could you do soulmate au headcanons for hisoka, illumi, and chrollo finding out their soulmate is weak/can’t use nen? I understand if you don’t like doing AUs! Also, is it ok if I send in more than one request?

I’m always open to requests and aus!! Especially hxh cos I’ve got 0 ideas :P

And of course you can send more than one requests! Gimme all u got 😤

soulmate au headcanons with:

hisoka morow, illumi zoldyck, & chrollo lucilfer

gn!reader :)

hisoka morow

when I say that I’d do anything for him

so for a long time now, Hisoka has felt a tug whenever he uses bungee gum

it’s been confusing him for a while but he’s started to get used to it

it doesn’t interfere with his fighting at all but he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t curious about what it meant

if he's got it attached to someone, and they’re not moving, his aura in that is like throbbing

it’s almost like a heartbeat

one day he was just getting himself a drink and when he walked in, his heart started pounding

like bungee gum wasn’t even activated

this must’ve been confusing as hell cos when does Hisoka get nervous

so he’s sitting there, hearing his heartbeat drumming in his ears

then you sit down next to him, also looking for a drink

and the pounding his ears just gets louder and more intense

he turns to you and you look at him

the same sensation is happening to you

the room isn’t hot or anything, and you’re normally a calm person

“can I help you?” you ask

Hisoka notices that he’s been staring at you for too long

but he's got like this gut feeling that you’re someone important

so you strike up a conversation and realize that the two of you didn’t just meet here by coincidence

however, it doesn’t take Hisoka long to realize that there’s something very different about you

he can’t sense you, like at all

then where did the heartbeating come from? 

so he brings it up and you admit that you can’t use nen, you’re not a hunter

*blink blink* 

but Hisoka doesn’t pry on it too much

surprisingly, he doesn’t ditch you and it’s been years since you two met at the bar

he sees you as someone he needs to protect, someone fragile but precious to him

your kind of fragile doesn’t mean weak in his eyes

you’ve got a headstrong personality, that’s important too

sometimes you bring it up and ask him if he’d rather find someone stronger

he’s gently reassuring you that you’re more than enough for him and that he’s glad you’re his soulmate

you’re the calm to his storm when he’s out of control sometimes, trust me this man really appreciates you

illumi zoldyck

just like Hisoka, there was a consistent pulsing inside of him that left him confused for weeks

you were a con artist that was planning to stain the reputation of the Zoldyck leaders

Illumi was assigned to end your life

it wasn’t until he was stalking behind you did he feel the same rhythm in him

he saw you clutch at your chest, then sway a little, rubbing your fingers on your temple

you were about to collapse when he caught you

wait, what was he doing?

but Illumi couldn’t fight the feeling in his gut that you had heard the same beating

with you still in his arms, he just stared down at you, not saying anything

you looked up at him with hazy eyes 

then everything just clicked

the beating in him bursted and you gasped, he knew that meant the same happened to you

slowly, Illumi helps you back up, still staring deeply into your eyes

the two of you can’t seem to draw your attention away from each other

then without warning, he pulls you to his chest

“run” he says

you look up at him in shock and he tells you to run again before Zeno comes

your eyes widen, instantly realizing who he was

“run to the river, I’ll find you there” he says before pushing you in that direction

once you were gone, Illumi was conflicted

he was still trying to figure out what you meant to him

the two of you had never even met before

but Illumi felt like he had to take up the responsibility to protect you

he could sense no aura after all

over the years you spend together, Illumi has learned that he doesn’t need a physically strong partner

your nature covers that

he enjoys the talks you have and for once, Illumi feels comfortable with someone to open up a little more

he has been questioned by Hisoka on why he keeps you by his side, but illumi just goes off 

“what did you say about them?” he says in a calm voice but Hisoka felt a chill down his spine

chrollo lucilfer

chrollo knows youre his soulmate when he’s trying to get an artifact that has caused the beating in his heart to go feral

you refuse to sell it to him though

so normally you’d be dead on the spot lol, not knowing who you’re messing with, but chrollo lets it slide cos everything in the universe is telling him to not kill you

after that, he comes back every day, using the artifact as an excuse to come, but he’s really not interested in it anymore

he wants to know more about you

he learns that the first day he came, you were scared out of your mind, the constant beating had gotten you nervous, as well as his presence

chrollo pulls a face and assures you that he only has good intentions

he knows the secret you’ve been trying to avoid from all your talks together, your weakness

he doesn’t mention it though until months later

you want to accompany him with his “friends”, not knowing the true crimes of the phantom troupe, and brings it up

this also makes him have to explain to you what he does

deep down he’s terrified though that you’ll leave him and think that the two of you aren’t compatible

but you’re understanding

you say that you know not being able to use nen is dangerous in this world

and he,,,he sympathizes with you

he promises you that nothing will happen if you have him, you’re safe with him

he offers for you meet the troupe but you’re hesitant

you don’t want them to look down on you and just see you as easy prey

before you arrive though, chrollo gives them a big talk down

“you even think a single thought about them that’s demeaning and you're out”

soon, they see you as part of them

none of them even think that you’re unworthy

because youre like a good luck charm to them on their missions

chrollo would never even let you stay near the site but you’re watching them nevertheless

them just knowing you’re there makes them 2874x more confident

a/n: aaah this was my first time doing a soulmate au,,, idk if I did it right but I hope you enjoyed it! 

hunter x hunter masterlist

[slasherboyos]

Different World | Chapter Four

Word count: 2400+

Date posted: July 7th, 2021

Warning: Cursing, tickles I guess

“Different World” masterlist: Link

Fanfic Playlist: Link

Previous chapter | Next chapter

Note: This chapter is a little bit of filler, but it’s needed filler to move the story forward to the good stuff in future chapters and get the main plot of the story really rolling. Still hope you enjoy!

Almost two weeks had passed since your initial arrival to Santa Carla and your first night at Hudson’s Bluff. You had been staying with the boys, not that you had any other options. You had no where near enough money for a hotel room and no one to go to; you were thankful to the universe for the roof over your head, food, and not killing you off immediately by the hands of the reasons for why this town was nicknamed, “murder capital of the world.”

Surprisingly, to you, they had yet to kill and drain you for every drop of your blood. You would ask them why that was to satisfy your curiosity, but you did not want to end up a dead cat.

Much to your vocalized dismay, you had become friendly with the boys. Maybe, even friends. They were quick to break down your stony walls with their generally charming demeanors. If you did not know that they were vampires in a fictional movie, you could see yourself finding them attractive—which you refuse to admit to avoid feeding their already large egos out of pure spite—and crushing on them, naive to their true nature.

You were always around Paul and Marko, though it was not because you sought them out. They found messing with you entertaining and their eyes filled with pride when they got you to smile or laugh, the brightening of your expression being another small victory in the war to get you to loosen up. Regardless of their more carefree attitudes, which were so different from your own, you found their presence refreshing. You had a habit of being stiff and closed off with those who you were not close with—not that anyone could blame you—and they were so good at breaking that down.

Dwayne was the easiest to talk to, you found. He was the boyish type, but he was a good listener. Not that you told him much about yourself. Most of your conversations were you two exchanging light-hearted banter with a shove or flipped bird every once in a while. He was good at making you smile, whether you noticed it or not. 

David was the rudest of the four, but you already knew that. He liked making fun of you, feeding his sense of superiority. You could brush most of it off with a scoff or a rolling of your eyes, but you knew that he meant no actual harm by what he said. Or maybe he did, but you could not bring yourself to care enough about what he, the leader of a fictional vampire biker gang, said to put himself on a pedestal. 

Star had become your close friend in all of this, considering the similarities in your situations. Well, there were not many similarities, but you both could relate to being kidnapped by four punk vampires. Laddie adored you and you adored him; he quickly saw you as an older-sibling and you treated him as a younger sibling. You were good with kids, as you displayed during your first night, and he quickly became attached to you because of it. Marko had told you that Dwayne was a little jealous of your connection with Laddie, even a little threatened by it, but Dwayne was quick to deny it. That did not stop you from heckling him about it, though. 

All in all, they were a fun bunch for some murderous, blood-sucking vampires, but this also meant you were never alone. If any of them saw you by your lonesome, one or more would decide to bother you as if you were a toy only meant to entertain them. While you sometimes enjoyed their company, you also wanted your privacy, even if it was merely leaving you alone on the old red couch while they did different activities in the cave. That desire for alone time did not deter them, however; you never had to lay around and wonder what to do, even if their presence could get mentally taxing. 

Always being in the presence of someone also meant that you were unable to check your phone very often. The only time you were able to look at it was when the sun was rising and the vampires in the cave had fallen asleep. Given the lack of service, there was not much to check, so you made a habit of not checking it as often as you may have while in the modern world. It would be better to save the battery for when you may need it in the future than wasting it now with small glimpses at the screen. Sure, you had a portable battery, but better safe than sorry. You did not know what you expected to appear when you checked your phone; there was no way anyone could get messages to you and vice versa.

You leaned back on the couch, legs crossed, reading through a magazine you found lying around. You flipped through it, mindlessly scanning through the pages. The sun had set a bit ago and everyone else in the cave was wide awake. David used his gloved finger to push your magazine down, making you look up at him.

“Up and at ‘em, sunshine,” he called. “Time to take a trip.” Once again, you were headed to the boardwalk.

They went to the boardwalk often. Sometimes, they would take you, Star, and Laddie; other times, they would take none of you or some of you. You were not entirely sure of their criteria for who to bring and when. Hell, you did not think they had criteria; they just did what they wanted. You stood up and stretched, dropping the magazine on one of the couch cushions.

“Why do you need me to come,” you questioned with a lazy drawl, a little irritated and tired from both your daily activities and from not being able to sleep well during the day. “Can’t I just stay here tonight?”

“It’s not like you have anything better to do,” Marko commented, jumping down from who-knows-where and almost making you jump out of your skin.

“Okay.” You scanned through the four of them. “Who am I riding with today, fellas?”

“You’re choice!” Paul stepped forward and jokingly bowed with a hand on his chest. They had never let you choose before. “But I am the superior choice.”

You looked at Dwayne, eyebrows raised, silently choosing him and he nodded, smiling at Paul's whining. Dwayne playfully shoved Paul towards the mouth of the cave. David glanced back at you and used his finger to gesture forward.

“Let’s go,” he instructed. You turned at Star and Laddie, giving them a smile and waving at them, which they returned. You did not know why they were left behind, but it was not as if they could leave. 

You observed the looks you and the boys got as they parked their bikes, though they were mostly towards the boys. You had gotten used to the stares, having visited the boardwalk with them so many times, but you noticed them every time. If only they knew what they really were. You thought. Then, they would be really scared. You climbed off the bike, using Dwayne’s shoulders as leverage, and examined the boardwalk. It was safe to say that this was their usual hunting grounds, given how often they decided to spend their nights here. 

Just like in the cave, there was always at least one boy with you while you were out. And when you were alone, they were always able to find you with ease. They trusted you enough to explore alone, but they, namely David, always made it clear that you were never truly alone. You did not think they actually trusted you; they were just confident in knowing that you were unable to escape, even if you wanted to. 

While you made jokes and nonetheless looked like a group of friends attending a boardwalk at night, David was always scanning the crowd and you noticed that habit of his in your earlier visits. He was never focused on you or his kin, but he was always aware of what was going on and what was being said. Needless to say, he had gotten good at this hunting thing. 

Your stomach growled as you passed the carousel, not having eaten anything in a good while, acutely aware of how that was where you originally appeared. You could use some food right about now. Usually, you would have bought a small snack earlier in the night from one of the vendors, as some junk food was usually brought to the cave when you returned. However, you were too absorbed in the conversation that had changed topics multiple times; the boys were very entertaining.

“Aww, are you hungry,” David asked before poking you in the stomach and you yelled, 

“Son of a—” 

Personal boundaries aside, it was enough to make you jump back and go into a defensive pose, holding your middle for a moment. You straightened up, giving David the stink-eye.

“What do we have here,” Paul mocked, leaning forwards towards you as if he was talking to a child. “Is she ticklish?” Dwayne entered with,

“(Y/N) is ticklish?”  

“I think she is,” finished Marko. He made a move to grasp your stomach, but you were quick enough to back up. You felt cornered by these boys once again.

“Do not,” you threatened, already on the brink of letting out explosive laughter and with your hand up at them. When you saw Dwayne step forward, you took a step back, carefully watching them. As soon as they tried to get much closer, intentionally making sudden movements, you made a run for it. You heard a couple of chuckles behind you before they began to follow you. 

You entered the canopy where the carousel was being operated. Knowing that the boys were very close behind you, you lifted your knee to the running carousel and hauled yourself up with a hand on one of the poles, hoping that the current attendee did not notice you hopping on for a free ride. As the boys climbed on, you sped up once again as you made your way around, weaving through the horses and the occasional out-of-place animal. 

“Get away from me,” you giggled. You turned to face your opponents and came face-to-face with David, who gave you a teasing, almost mocking, gaze. “Touch me and I will gouge your eyes out with a spoon!” As they chased you, David continued to scan through the crowd who was innocently trying to enjoy the ride. The boys were there for food, after all. 

The next time you looked behind you, it was because you heard a commotion. You quickly slowed down, treading back around to see what was going on and slowly dropping your smile. Your eyes widened when you saw what was happening.

You recognized the man they had gotten in the fight with. You also recognized the blonde woman who was sitting next to the man. These were the same people who were involved in the introductory scene of the movie and the only scene you were able to experience in the theater.

David, seeing Dwayne get attacked, stepped towards the man with a very serious face and held him back with a firm hand to his jaw. It scared you a little bit with just how deadly serious David had become at that moment. It was as if a switch was flipped; one minute, he was playing cat and mouse with you, and the next, he was prepared to kill a man for touching his vampire brother. 

A security guard climbed in front of you and onto the rotating platform, coming up behind David and holding a baton to his neck. It was your turn to defensively step forward, breath hitched. You do not know why the guard pinning David back into a chokehold affected you so much, but you did not like where this was going. For a moment, you forgot that the boys were vampires and not a group of plain human friends. Everything came to a pause.

“I told you to stay off of the boardwalk,” the guard scolded. A bell rang, signaling the slowing down of the ride. David stayed quiet for a moment as you and the boys watched intently to see David’s next move.

“Alright, boys,” he breathed out, breaking the silence. “Let’s go.” The guard let David go and the other boys hopped off. Dwayne offered his hand out to you and helped you off. He gave you a quick jab to the stomach and you were barely able to contain your shout behind pursed lips. 

“Got you,” he mumbled to you quietly before catching up to Paul and Marko, who were also smiling at your misery. You peeked over at David, who was still on the ride, before following them. David seemed to think for a moment before stepping off himself. You exited the area, back into the night air.

You stopped in your tracks for a moment, letting David pass you, to allow yourself to think. Licking your lips, you averted your eyes to your shoes. They were chasing me. I had some play in the plot. You were lucky this time, given that this game of yours allowed for the story to flow as usual, but how lucky can you really get? Sure, this all led to exactly what the plot called for, but me being involved seems wrong. I don’t even know the outcome of this movie. Santa Carla had begun to feel so real to you regardless of its fictional properties, having been there for so long now; you felt as if you were messing with time and that felt dangerous. That was a line that you felt weary about crossing.

“The babe’s all serious again,” you heard Paul call out, taking you out of your thoughts. “Thought we were making progress!” Your expression remained serious, furrowed eyebrows and all, noticing how they were not taking what just happened earnestly at all. You took a deep breath, relaxing your face, before catching up to them.

“Let me guess, you found your next meal,” you asked, your arms now crossed, though your question was more of a statement. You knew the answer you were going to get. David stopped, allowing you to catch up to his side. He turned his head to face you and expressed,

“You’re catching on, (Y/N).”​

➳ ➳ ➳

Taglist: @lililolli @iloveslasher​ @lostbetweenvampiresandmusic​ @bazingadotbizoff​ @motionlessgirl12​ @petrelsrose​ @dwight-y0u-sunflower-slut @takemetotheweirdness

If your tag is crossed out, I was unable to tag you.

(Also, I’m not sure if I got everyone who asked to be tagged, so if you asked already and haven’t been tagged, just shoot me a message)

[stuckybarton]

Manifestation of Happy Endings

SUMMARY: "Everyone deserves a happy ending, even you." CHARACTERS: Stephen Strange x Reader; Wong. Cloakie [Cloak of Levitation], Wong. Asshole Tony Stark. WARNINGS: Slight Angst. Brief Description of A Kiss. Toxic Way of Moving on from An Ex(for Tony, not the reader) WORDS: 2,704 MASTERLIST || Join the Taglist

~

Part 4 STREETLIGHT

One of the things Stephen Strange had never thought he would ever have in his life again was a woman he loved--loving so much that he was willing to endure what he was in this very moment.

Nothing scared him more than having to think of the perfect way to propose to his girlfriend. Nothing scared him shitless than the idea of you rejecting his proposal and the crack begins to form in your stable relationship.

You were doing alright, for the past few months since you started dating Stephen--or at least that was what Stephen had gotten out of Wong whenever the two of you would be deep in conversation in either the library or the kitchen.

With his responsibility as the Sorcerer Supreme and helping saving the Universe on a daily basis, he never had a perfect opportunity to propose. And when he did found the momentary courage, you would be pulled into a book tour all around the country, leaving him to device a plan with Wong on how to actually propose.

"Maybe a candlelit dinner?" Wong had offered, attention still focused on the new book you had given him--the very reason as to why you were gone for well over a month now.

"Too predictable." Stephen snorted.

Candlelit dinner was already a common occurrence between the two of you, with the rare free time, you'd often find yourself just making a hearty meal for the two of you while Stephen was in charge of setting the mood in the dinner table. It was better than heading to a restaurant, getting recognized, and having to deal with the news still circulating about you and your separation from Tony Stark all those months ago.

"Then do something you won't usually do." Wong continued on turning the page to your book.

You loved going on walks. Even with the daily chaos of New York Streets could offer, you always loved being able to go outside, look around and get as much inspiration as you could for any upcoming books you were writing. Outside to some fresh air and sunlight you often tease Stephen of not having enough of because of his duties.

Maybe taking you out on a hike somewhere could be good. A good change of pace, then he could find a perfect spot to just bend on one knee and asked you to be his wife.  Easier said than done when he comes to think more through with the plan. He doesn't know any good hiking trails in New York and it looked more taxing for either of you.

"She says she always wanted to go on road trips across the country." Wong finally made a suggestion. "Why don't the two of you drive to Vegas or something else hedonistic for once."

The suggestion doesn't sound too bad. You did enjoy car rides, Stephen had come to realize. Since his accident years ago, he tried his best to avoid car rides, mostly not needing to since he could create portals to travel to different location his mind can conjure. The first time he had actually enjoyed being inside a car that wasn't his own was with you, as you two made your way to lunch.

He could still remember the way you would allow him to pick the song for the quick ride and how you would jam to whatever was on the radio. It brought a smile on his face now, remembering the patience of a saint you had whenever he would act like a backseat driver if you turn into a different route.

A thirty hour drive would be a nightmare for him, but if he had you, it doesn't sound as bad.

Before he could conjure up the plan, the simple ding of his phone brought his attention away from his plan. A text from you, from a phone you had hesitantly brought under your agent and manager's insistence.  It also meant Stephen had more use of his own and Wong somehow found himself with one as well thanks to you--not wanting him to be left out.

Stark is here. I don't know what to do.

"I'll be right back." Stephen told his friend before conjuring a portal with his sling ring to bring him to California where you were currently having your Open forum.

~

In an audience capacity of a thousand, Alex Theatre was full pack. But among the faces in the crowd. A handful had stood out the most. Tony Stark, Happy Hogan, and one Peter Parker. It was hell and sending Stephen a quick text about it was the only solution you could think of at the moment.

You were to be talking to the audience for a good hour and a half and be open for a few questions, but just the fact that the people you wanted nothing to do with anymore was in the room had you scared.

You no longer had the feelings you once had for Tony, but you were simply scared of the repercussions that would come with Stephen knowing about it.

You knew that Stephen would try confronting Tony, but that would complicate the situation more than it should. Knowing you refused to let any of them know your whereabouts or the fact that you were closer than any of them had actually thought you would be.

"Y/N?"

At the familiar voice of your boyfriend, you were momentarily felt at ease as you tried your best to calm down and stop the possible mental breakdown you were having knowing your ex was in the building. The backstage looked smaller than it really was.

Wrapped in his arms, the fear was placed at ease. You rested your cheeks on his chest, arms sliding around his waist as he pulled you closer to him. Hands cradling the back of your head.

"You okay?" He asked.

You didn't respond, instead pulling him closer to you. Fearing that if you let him go now the man would make his way to the audience and talk some sense to Tony.

"I'm nervous about this, even if he wasn't here." You muttered.

This was the first tour you had done in years. Having lost inspiration in writing because of the stagnation in your relationship, you were still worried about what the world would react to your new book, how they would think of you now that you were no longer the woman constantly attached to Tony Stark's side in public events.

As much as your team had constantly hyped you up, with colorful reviews on your latest book, it was still different from the last one you had done, the difference was caused by this man in front of you, holding you into him like you were made of fine porcelain.

It was difference you always needed in your life, but you fear the reception of it wouldn't be well received by your supporters and your fanbase.

"Let's drive to Vegas after your tour." Stephen's suggestion had surprised you.

You were expecting his usual dry humor, but you were welcomed with something entirely different from the man. Driving across country was something you always wanted to experience, but knowing Stephen's accident, you never suggested the activity.

"I'm driving." You were quick to volunteer.

"I expecting nothing less." He smirked looking down at you. For a moment, you couldn't help but just look down at him. How his blue eyes could look at you like they did, adoration and love. "Want to get married in Vegas?" He offered.

The last question had you shoving him away and glaring at him. The hell was he talking about.

"That's not funny, Strange." You warned.

"It's not a joke." Stephen assured with a smile.

And just like that, the man had fallen to this knees in front of you. The people backstage were witnessing and squealing on your behalf as you stood stock still in front of the man.

"I was planning on proposing on our drive to Vegas, but now is a good time as any to do so. Y/N Y/L/N, you had turned my world upside down the moment you fall face first in the café all those months ago, how you had repaid me with coffee and a deli sandwich when it was my cloak that saved you. How you made the sanctum a home, how you became a part of the team in your own special way. I love you and I wish to be able to spend the rest of my days with you. "

You were left dumbfounded and before you could do anything, you fell to your knees in front of the man even before he could ask you the question, you had said yes. Over and over you had accepted his proposal even without hearing the question. You were happy with Stephen, more than you had ever thought you would ever be since.

"Yes. A million times yes." You muttered wrapping your arms around him and kissing him square on the lips. After a moment of clapping from the people backstage, the momentary embarrassment had settled you but Stephen was quick to make the situation better.  Standing the two of you back up to your feet, he had finally opened the velvet box to a sight that took your breath away.

A vintage, emerald cut diamond ring. Plucking the ring with his shaky hand he had slid it onto your ring finger before kissing your hand. An affection you were so used to seeing from Stephen at the privacy of the sanctum or your apartment.

"I can't be like Tony and give you the world, but I'll be me and give you my life and the time I left when I'm not saving the world to you."

You smiled at his promise. It was reasonable, a part of him that you will never make him choose between.  Knowing he was going to be making an effort was enough for you as you nodded and kissed him once again before you were finally announced to head out.

"I'll be waiting here, break a leg!" Stephen smiled breathless as you finally stepped out to the crowd, a quick round of applause had sounded as you made your way to the podium. Hugging the MC for the event before turning to face everyone, including the likes of Tony Stark in the crowd.

"Sounds like something important happened backstage." The MC smiled knowing how he had to drag the introductions longer than needed because of what Stephen had done.

"My boyfriend proposed to me." You beamed showcasing the ring that now wrapped around your finger to the crowd.

"Congratulations. Who's the lucky guy?" The MC inquired and for a moment your eyes turned towards Tony, and for once you finally saw something you had never thought you'd see in his eyes. Regret. It wasn't satisfaction that you felt, more like this closure you never thought you could have left after all was said and done with him.

"He's a private guy. But I'm happy, the happiest I had ever been in my life." You responded before turning your eyes back towards the curtains where you saw Stephen was watching, a beaming smile was on his face. "He's actually watching backstage," you turned back to the crowd. "So if by any chance I stop mid sentence throughout, it's still the adrenaline from his proposal manifesting, so blame him okay?" You teased earning a laugh from the crowd.

"So I don't need to ask it then, who is your muse for your new book?"

You blushed hesitantly turning to Stephen as the humor lingered on his features. It was an open secret that he was but it's weird having to say it with him in attendance. Easier when he was miles away from you.

"If you're happy, you become inspired." You shrugged hoping that is enough explanation for it. "And from the reviews I've gotten since the book's launch, everyone could see that." You beamed.

"So before we get started in the plotline and the theme of the story, can you tell us about the process of this book from your head to the printing press?"

You cleared your throat knowing that this question would be coming. It wasn't long before you needed to address it and knowing now would be the best time to do so before you finally close the chapter in your life for good.

"I've been in a slump for over a year and a half, my agent and my editors couldn't bring me into writing anything substantial, I blame myself and what my previous relationship had done to me." You spoke honestly, eyes momentarily focusing towards Tony before lingering back to the listening crowd. "It's one thing to be in a relationship filled with arguments and resentment; it was another when you're the only one trying in the relationship that everything else in your life seems--meaningless."

You could still remember the life you had wasted for the years of being with your ex. How you had loved finally gaining your independence and being able to be happy again without needing to think about him and his well being most of the time.

"I found myself out of that environment and found myself in a much different one. I met this man in the café, saved before I face planted onto the floor in front of the bustling crowd. And the rest as they say is history." You added. "Because of this said man, I've found myself writing more than I thought I'd actually do since moving on from my ex. I'd be in his library for hours on until I could see the moonlight glowing below the two of us. And I just found myself writing a love story instead of a story about moving on."

You somehow found yourself chuckling at the last bit as you had come to realize something about your relationship with Stephen.

"I'm actually going to marry my rebound." You had announced somehow far too proudly earning a laugh from the crowd in the process. "So ladies and gentlemen, if you think the most serious relationship you have right now had failed, there is always someone out there meant for you. You just need to get out of your comfort zone."

~

"You two look ridiculous." Wong was quick to point out as the beaming smile on both of your faces lingered.

An hours previously, you had been officially married to Dr. Stephen Vincent Strange. Wearing the same dress you had on during your talk and only now adorned in a small veil you've purchased in the Vegas strip as you and Stephen had looked for a semi-decent individual to officiate your wedding.

You made it evident that Wong should also be joining, not just as a witness but as part of the family. The man had been there throughout the start of your relationship and it was only fitting to have him in this new chapter as well. Married and whatever the universe would throw the two of them from this day forward.

"We can always go to a strip club to celebrate." Stephen had teased, arm wrapped around your shoulder as the three of you had walked around the strip, caring less at this point if anyone would recognize any of you.

You smiled agreeing playful just to see Wong stutter and try his best to change the subject.

"We promise that the bigger wedding would be more tame than this." You had assured your friend. "And Stephen will make you his Best man." You had pointed out to your--husband.

The word felt still as foreign in your tongue but a welcome change it seems. Holding onto Stephen's free hand, the rings you've picked from the nearby jewelry store was perfect in it's own special way. The streetlight glowing all throughout made the rings sparkle and the smile on your face growing bigger than ever.

"Why do I think he will go more bridezilla than you?" Wong teased earning a glare from Stephen but the lack of a genuine retort made it evident between the three of you how right Wong's word were.

[stubbornjerk]

Why people keep telling you to block them if you support Pholo (Penumbra Edition)

Or: why jitterbug-juno really deactivated

I love when people categorize this as fandom wank. Really makes you feel like you’re putting the onus on either side of the conversation.

I’m making this post not because I want to stir up spoiled milk, but because I want it out there that this wasn’t a purity culture war.

The TL;DR version of this is that fans of color tried to tell Rab (prev. jitterbug-juno) not to post her Omegaverse (or A/B/O) fic. And instead of taking the L, she posted it on Ao3 and deactivated.

But, if you want context, well, buckle in. CW for mentions of racism and transphobia.

What did jitterbug-juno do?

Before I get into this I do want it out there that I will not be linking Rab’s fic, but I will show you this screenshot of the summary of it.

[ID: It is a screenshot of a fic, “As You Are” by Pholo.

Summary: Peter can hide his scent glands behind cologne; makeup; concealer pads. He can quash his heats with suppressants. He can divert the urge to nest and fawn.

But he can’t feign another gender’s subvocals. He lacks the anatomical capacity. Mag taught him to distract from his silence with fast, flashy words. For longer heists he relies on social convention. Traumatic mutism is uncommon, but remarked upon by enough war vets and soap operas to be widely recognized. Peter’s marks assume he’s been harmed long before they assume he’s a closeted omega. It would take quite the backwater brute to ask why he doesn’t murmur or chuff or growl.

On the 'Blanche there are the usual furtive glances. Juno makes clear to Peter that should he ever want “to talk about what happened,” he’ll be there to listen. The gesture annoys Peter more than comforts him.

‘Nothing happened,’ he wants to scream. ‘There’s nothing to talk about!’

There are 14 comments, 85 kudos, and 11 bookmarks /end]

You decide what you’re doing with that information, but honestly, I’d rather you don’t give it anymore engagement than it deserves.

There was a period earlier this June (yes, even though it’s only the 10th, at time of writing) when Rab was posting snippets of the aforementioned fic on her blog and tagging it appropriately, putting it in the attention of pretty much the entire Penumbra fandom.

What’s Omegaverse or a/b/o and why is everyone so against Rab for it

If you know what Omegaverse is, I don’t have to tell you why it’s controversial. If you don’t know what Omegaverse is, well, Fanlore said it best:

a kink trope wherein some or all people have defined biological roles based on a hierarchical system, with the terms originating from animal behaviour research. There may be werewolf, knotting, or other animalistic elements involved, or the characters may be otherwise purely human.

The term is generally written with slashes (a/b/o). Many fans, particularly ones from Australia and New Zealand, are uncomfortable seeing the term without slashes because it is also an Australian slur for aboriginal people.

I won’t get into the history or the heaps and tons of other discourses (mostly about fictional male pregnancy, homophobia, transphobia, sexual assault, etc.)  that go on within that. We’re here specifically on Rab v. Penumbra fans of color and we’re staying there.

Anyone who’s been in Penumbra enough to realize that everyone draws the Junoverse characters in a certain way knows that a) Juno is black, b) Nureyev is Asian, and c) as a fan you have to be aware of what you’re subjecting or saying about either of them because of the political repercussions that come with it.

And despite that, Rab proceeded to write Peter Nureyev, a gender nonconforming gay Asian male character that is widely headcanon’d as trans, into a fic using a kink trope that relies heavily on animal behavior.

Unlike most people new to fandom, Rab is aware of what Omegaverse is and is very much white. She is (and if she isn’t, should be) aware of the racist undertones that writing him in would get.

I couldn’t get a screenshot of what snippets Rab was sending out into the ether, seeing as a majority of my friends would rather not have seen any at all (I have all of the usual tags blocked so I wouldn’t have seen it either way), but needless to say, Rab got attention for it. Both positive and negative.

Anne (@hopeless-eccentric) even posted a satirical fic, in the odds that Rab was just writing this thing to be “the first” to write Omegaverse fic in the Penumbra tags.

But, I’m assuming more than one fan of color came into Rab’s inbox and messaged her about it, but someone I know (who would like to remain anonymous) was gracious enough to take a screenshot before he sent his in and let me use it for this post:

[ID: A message to jitterbug-juno about to be sent by a sender whose name is censored with a black bar. His messages says:

“as someone who is a person of color i think the nature of the fic you are writing right now is extremely racist and attributing animal characteristics to lgbt people of color is not at all appropriate, especially when you are someone who is white. i have to ask you to not publish this fic and to reflect as to why you would want to write this in the first place, these tropes are extremely harmful and”

There are 33 characters left to write into the message. /end]

I can’t speak for whoever else sent asks about the fic she was writing. If anyone was actually not-so-gentle with her, well, minorities don’t really owe it to you to be gentle about what they can tell is bigotry-tinged behavior.

But, the message was clear: this is different from your garden variety, lily white straight male character m/m kink fantasy. This is an actual queer Asian character that a lot of queer Asian people feel attached do. Do not post the fic.

What happened next: the beginning of the end

The next morning, I woke up to most of my friends being frustrated by this post on Rab’s account:

[ID: Dated 5 June, a post by jitterbug-juno:

“Gonna leave the fandom for a while. Wishing you all well.”

The tags say the following: not sure if i’ll be back, thank you so much to everybody who’s read my fics, and who’s sent asks or engaged with my art or any of that, you’re amazing and I’m sending love /end]

That... was not what fans of color wanted, but it was definitely an action they took. Some celebrated, as they were very much wary of Rab for having caused much of the same category of drama in fandoms like Voltron: Legendary Defenders and Warrior Cats. This also meant that she was probably not going to post the fic either.

Some, myself included, were relatively pissed, as they’d wanted even just the measly bit of accountability. An apology or an acknowledgement of having been called out in private and that they’ll take time to consider why. But instead we got Rab leaving in the face of fans of color telling her not to post her Omegaverse fic.

Well. The next day...

[ID: Dated 6 June. A post by jitterbug-juno titled, “Well... that was short-lived”

“I gave the situation a lot of thought yesterday. The reaction to my omegaverse previews made me figure I should leave the fandom. It seemed like the safest option.

But you know what?

Hell.

I don’t want to leave. The fic discusses the tropes of omegaverse and I spoke to several POC on Twitter, and I’m going to post it with plenty of tags so people can avoid it if they wish. I’m not going to be chased out of this space.

Thank you to everyone who sent messages yesterday. I shouldn’t have made that post about leaving. It was really reactionary. I’m okay and I appreciate your support so much.

(bolded on the post) To those who are angry and uncomfortable with me: Please block me. If you’re going to talk about this fic on Tumblr and Twitter– and this may sound odd– PLEASE NAME ME as Jitterbug-juno or Pholo. Don’t vague me. That way people who don’t want to see this discourse can add my name to their block lists.“ /end]

That certainly was short-lived, she wasn’t kidding.

This got a lot of outrage. Again, the fic is up on Ao3 and she has not taken it down. A lot of POC were pissed and I didn’t see a single fan of color actively support what she was doing, at least, not in my friend group. Everyone started making those posts to block them if you liked the fic or Rab’s content in general, in accordance to what Rab wanted.

Perseus (@mraudiodrama) noticed/pointed out that Rab deleted the part where she said she spoke to several POC about releasing her fic, as well as the part where she said she refused to be chased out of the fandom. This was an incredibly pointed detail to edit out, according to some.

[ID: A screenshot of jitterbug-juno's last post taken 11:00PM. Much of it is the same except the following bolded words are removed: "The fic discusses the tropes of omegaverse and I spoke to several POC on Twitter, and I’m going to post it with plenty of tags so people can avoid it if they wish. I’m not going to be chased out of this space." /end]

That same day, Rab deleted her blog. I actually caught this one on tape, believe it or not.

[ID: A screen recording taken at 12:01 PM of someone scrolling down jitterbug-juno's account. The posts and asks about Omegaverse and her post about leaving and coming back are conspicuously absent. /end]

Initially, I thought she deleted all mentions of it. I wanted to see firsthand if the rumors about her deleting portions of it were true. If she added things where she was saying that she wanted to write it because she was autistic and wanted Nureyev to be autistic too, regardless of the numerous QPOC telling her not to do it.

Instead, it turned out, she deleted her blog.

And now, we're here. The fic is still up. Her blog is down. Rab's public Twitter account @nataclinn is quiet about this. Her @cushfuddled Twitter account is on private after her run-in with the Warrior Cats fandom, according to a friend. And her Tumblr @cushfuddled account has nothing but memes.

Again, I didn't make this post to stir up drama. I wasn't even obsessively making this post as a call-out because she isn't in the fandom anymore. I just want it out there that this isn't a purity culture thing that got out of hand in a fandom as niche as Penumbra. This was a case of someone being called out and failing to acknowledge it before running away. And I want all that out of the way before I say:

If you are on Rab's side of this debacle, I, a queer person of color, want nothing to do with you either.