#who in my eyes failed me completely and abandoned me without reason

[0v3rachi3v3r]

bpd sucks

when i first went from tumblr to twitter circa 2018 i followed a few folks from tumblr on twitter bc they were friends and i had no idea where to start

since then, shit went down and there were ppl i just. could not absolutely stand to see bc they reminded me of the bad times(tm). 

unfollowed/blocked on twitter made my life so much better

then twitter shit happened so i came back and lo n behold holy moly yikers i forgot they existed on this site too...

and just bc of that my day (at least the next few hours) has been ruined bc i have such heightened emotions and negative feels

like yea blocked the one account i never hope to see, unfollowed the main acct bc even looking at it is :///

hhhhhhhhhh life is difficult with bpd bc literal emotions from 3 years ago will come back and hit you like a truck the same way it did years ago with the same intensity

[mariespen]

The Love in Pain ☾ ﾟ ｡⋆

jj maybank x fem!reader - hurt/comfort ✩°｡ summary: the one and only time JJ wasn't there. warnings: mild description of nausea, description of injury, hurt/comfort, mild swearing

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╮

Your legs intertwined with JJ’s as you relaxed onto his body. The two of you sat together at the chateau, half-listening to what Pope and John B were rambling about. You felt JJ’s soft touch absentmindedly drawing shapes into your thigh while your fingers danced across his own. 

“It belonged to one of Denmark Tanny’s close friends, maybe it’ll connect the dots.” Pope said, looking around the room at you, JJ, John B, Kiara, and Sarah.

“It’s far fetched, Pope.” John B replied.

You perked up at the spark of an argument, starting to listen in more to what they were saying. JJ looked at you, confused, until he listened in too and made the same connection that you did.

“It’s not!” Pope protested, opening his mouth to start reasoning again before John B cut him off.

“It’s an old abandoned house, man. There’s been nothing there for years.” He sighed, still feeling let down from their previously failed attempts to find out more about the legendary gold.

You sat up, squirming out of JJ’s hold on you to listen in, hearing Pope slowly convince John B. Your first reaction was the urge to go with them. JJ hasn’t let you go on any of the adventures yet, but you were ready to fight him on it.

“I’ll go.” You announced and JJ immediately sat up after you, looking at you with immediate denial. 

Pope’s eyes shot up and the rest of the pogues looked at you, waiting for JJ to say something. JJ met your eyes, looking at you like he was looking at a crazy person.

“No, we already talked about this.” He said, grabbing your cheeks with his hand and pinching them softly, turning your face to meet his eyes when he sensed that you weren’t listening, “Baby, look at me. Absolutely not.” 

“Jayj-“ you started trying to give him the most innocent look you could muster up.

“No! Completely not okay.” He repeated, letting you go and sitting back on the couch, arms crossed at his chest.

“C’mon dude.. if she wants to go..” John B said, smiling at you.

“Really not helping my case here, man.” JJ said, rolling his eyes and pulling you back down to his chest, holding you close before you sprung back up.

“JJ come on! I’ll stay out of your way I promise!” You protested, looking at him like your life depended on this.

“Absolutely not,” He said, shifting to pick you off of his lap and standing up, “You’re damned if you think I’m bringing my girl into this.” He finished, walking off.

“He’s happy tonight.” Kiara scoffed, crossing her legs and giving you an apologetic smile, “If it helps, he’s the only one who doesn’t want you to go with.” She said, shrugging it off.

But you clung to it, rolling your eyes and laying back down on the couch, feeling lonely without JJ. While they kept talking, you got up, going to find out just how pissed off your boyfriend really was. You found him in the kitchen, a beer in hand while he zoned out at the wall.

“JJ.” You said, making yourself known and trying to stifle a smile when his eyes lit up at your presence.

“Hi, ma.” He said, setting his beer down and starting towards you with a slim smile.

“C’mon, baby.” You said, meeting him in the middle of the kitchen and draping your arms around his shoulders.

He looked at you with doubt in his eyes, his hands finding your hips as he let his head drop to the crook of your neck. The two of you stayed like that for a while, taking in each other's presence. Eventually he pulled away, his body towering over yours as he kissed you gently, savoring the taste of your chapstick.

“It’s dangerous, I won’t let you get hurt.” He said, sticking to his decision on the outside but slowly being worn down by each second.

You knew how to get what you wanted.

“I’ll stay right by your side, yeah? You can protect me, Jay.” You said quietly into his ear, softly tracing his face with your fingers.

He sighed, letting his head fall to your shoulder as he thought about it. You kissed his hair gently and let him hold you for a while until he emerged again, looking at you with a defeated face. You smiled innocently at him, hope rising in your chest.

“You can’t get hurt, you have to stay with me.” He said and you nodded eagerly, kissing him and smiling with excitement.

“Yes, yes of course. I’ll stay right by you. Thank you!” You squealed, wrapping your arms around him again as you felt him ease up at your excitement.

You walked proudly back out to the rest of the group, dragging JJ behind you as he looked at everyone like he just lost the fight of his life. They all looked back at you, mostly out of amazement that you won over JJ (again). You tried to listen for the remainder of the night, trying not to fall asleep in JJ’s arms as John B and Pope attempted to figure out a plan. He kissed the top of your head, squeezing your hand to reassure you, but mostly to reassure himself.

The next morning you were woken up by JJ making every attempt to be quiet. You opened your eyes, seeing him frozen in his last position, trying not to wake you up.

“Sorry, pretty girl.” He mumbled, a little disappointed that his plan to sneak off and leave you in the safety of the house had failed.

“Jayj..” You groaned, getting up and dressed in the clothes Kiara had let you borrow. 

You put them on, a fairly basic outfit with nothing insufferably tight. The shirts and pants were stained with dirt, like most of their clothes were. You got dressed, the fitting purple t-shirt and jean shorts complimenting your body in an odd way. JJ sat at the edge of the bed in his normal sleeveless tee with cargo shorts. He smiled at you as you walked over to him, straddling his lap and kissing him softly.

“So pretty, m’lady.” He said with a joking grin, standing up and spinning you around.

You headed out, meeting up with the rest of the group in The Twinkie. The drive was rocky and JJ kept a death grip on you, checking to make sure you didn’t want to turn back at least every five seconds.

“Dude, she’s fine.” Kiara said, rolling her eyes when he asked you if you ‘were completely sure’ for the 14th time.

“Didn’t know it was a crime to care.” He mumbled, rolling his eyes and looking away, trying his hardest to seem unbothered.

The six of you eventually got to the site of the old and abandoned house. The walls looked like they were rotting off of the structure and the house itself seemed to be at a permanent tilt. “Jesus..” Sarah sighed, letting John B help her out as JJ held your hand tight, following them. Pope and Kiara came out last, surveying the area with the four of you.

“Not looking too promising.” John B said and Pope sighed, shaking his head and walking forward.

The front door was hidden behind thickets of overgrown plants, but once Pope fought through the guarding vines, the door popped open easily. Everyone began to walk in, wielding a flashlight and the occasional knife. JJ pulled you aside before you could even step foot in the house, looking incredibly nervous.

“You have to tell me when you want to go, m’kay? Stay next to me at all times.” You nodded, smiling and kissing his cheek.

“I got it, JJ.”

You walked into the house behind JJ. He held your hand so tightly that you could almost feel yourself losing circulation. You weren’t in any place to complain, though, so you kept walking next to him.

The house was old and it smelled moldy and wet. You could’ve sworn you felt water droplets on your back at least five times. The walls were clearly rotting and you couldn’t look at them without accumulating a feeling of dread. Slowly, you were regretting your decision. That was, until, Pope spoke up.

“I found something!” He yelled from the opposite direction as you and JJ. You started to turn back with excitement before JJ squeezed your hand tighter and pulled you behind him once again. 

JJ led you back through the hallway, obviously a little skeptical as to how Pope’s plan was going to play out.

“Hey uh.. Pope, buddy.. what the fuck is this place?” JJ asked as the two of you stumbled across a dark hole with steep stairs leading down to another floor. Pope’s voice echoed from below, along with a few comments from John B and Sarah. 

“Come on, man. Be brave for your girl.” John B teased and JJ scrunched his face in frustration.

“Whatever, dude.” JJ said, starting down the steep steps first, helping you down every chance that he could. 

The basement smelled even worse than the first story. You nearly puked the moment that the scent of something rotten hit your nose. It took you aback and you stumbled a bit before JJ caught you, keeping you up with one of his big hands on the small of your back.

“JJ.. I need to sit down.” You said, the nausea returning as you inhaled again. 

You found a pile of old hay bales in the corner of the room, not far from where Pope and Kiara were trying to figure out the map, and took a seat. JJ started to sit down next to you, but Pope called him over for his flashlight. JJ got up, looking back at you quickly before going to Pope with hesitant steps. 

The hay bales didn’t make your sickness any better, and you held your head in your hands, regretting this already. After a bit of listening to them talk, you could’ve sworn that the floor was sinking. Hoping it was simply your stomach getting to your head, you decided to brush it off. However, the sinking feeling persisted and eventually you felt significantly lower than before. You went to move off of the hay bales and to ask JJ to take you back to the van, but you heard a deep crack below you.

The sinking feeling became all too real as you felt yourself plummeting down, the hay bales dropping much faster and leaving you free-falling. You felt minute after minute pass as you fell, your sense of time crumbling with the rise of your fear. In all reality, the fall lasted just around 5 seconds. Your ears rang as you crashed against the broken pounds of hay and hard concrete floor, your head pounding as you laid back, unable to move as hay scattered your body.

You didn’t hear JJ yelling your name or the creaking of the old ladder that John B set up to try and save you. Eventually, you didn’t see the light of your own flashlight anymore or the hay beyond you. Your fingertips started to go numb and you felt frigid with cold until you eventually saw black.

On the surface, JJ watched as you fell with utter horror. He ran to you as the floor gave out, watching you plummet down into an old secret storage room. He yelled and screamed for you, deciding to try and jump down but immediately being stopped by a very panicked John B, eventually getting a ladder and rushing down it. His tears spilled over your body as you flicked in and out of consciousness. He tried to keep himself together, attempting to talk you through it.

“C’mon pretty girl.. let’s get you safe and sound, yeah?” He whispered, wiping his own tears as John B and Pope helped him lift you from the spot you fell at.

You didn’t fully come to yourself until you felt JJ’s arms holding you to his chest like a child as he panicked and brought you back to the Twinkie. 

“Jayj?” You whispered, holding your face in your hands as he sat you on one of the seats, scrambling for anything that could resemble a first aid kit.

“Shh.. shh baby. M’here, JJ’s gonna keep you safe.” He rambled, trying not to look at your injuries. 

“Baby..” You said, voice breaking as the pain hit you.

He looked at you after grabbing a half empty bottle of a wound disinfectant, a slightly stained cloth, and a few bandages. You became more afraid when his gaze lingered on your face as his eyes welled with tears and he winced from simply seeing you in such pain.

“It’s okay, princess. S’okay.” He mumbled, trying to keep his hand still as he poured water on the cloth and padded away some blood from the smaller scratches.

“It hurts, JJ!” You cried out, tears burning the cuts on your face.

“I know princess, I know.” JJ replied, looking up at you and carefully picking you up to set you on the floor of the van instead, becoming level with you, “I got you.” He whispered into you before setting you in his lap.

His cautious touches lingered on your sensitive skin as you relaxed into him, trying to distract yourself from the pain of your own tears. You could feel his short breaths and soft sniffs from above you.

“Scared me, pretty lady. Scared me so bad.” He admitted, holding you a little tighter, grasping onto your scarred body like he wouldn’t ever be able to hold it again.

“S’okay..” You whispered to him, kissing the side of his head.

He gave you a sad smile before letting you relax into the base of a seat, cleaning and bandaging the injuries that he could.

“I love you, JJ” You said, holding his hand for comfort.

“I love you too, princess.” He said, kissing your cheek and brushing hair out of your face.

After a little bit, the rest of the group emerged from the house with boxes of papers and other things with the same moldy smell. JJ held your mouth and nose in his hand as your headache came back during the drive. When you finally got back to the chateau, JJ brought you inside and seeked out help.

He left a kiss on your forehead before whispering sweet nothings into you and promising to always keep you safe. You believed him, holding his shaking hands to your body, trying to let his love heal you.

╰── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──╯

[marvelfanfn2187a113]

Hate You (Kidding)

Crowley & daughter!reader, Sam and Dean & witch!reader, a little Rowena & granddaughter!reader

Requested by Anonymous

Synopsis: your dad abandoned you years ago, but what happens when he finds out you’re still alive?

A/N: just so no one gets confused about this, here’s the background—Crowley found out how powerful demon/human babies can be, so he tried to make one, only it didn’t go the way he planned—the baby (you) were born without powers, and so he abandoned you. (Just because I didn’t want to give this the exact same backstory as Crowley’s son)

The theft was not going well. Your grandmother had made it seem so easy—sneak into the bunker, grab the black spell book, and make it out fast.

She failed to mention the two professional hunters that lived there.

You hadn’t been dumb enough to assume it would be empty—there had to be a reason Rowena wasn’t going herself, after all; she was scared. But you weren’t ready for Sam and Dean Winchester.

They had you in their dungeon basement—which was super creepy—before you’d even managed to find the book, much less grab it.

“What were you looking for, kid? Who sent you here?” The shorter—but no less scary—one had his hands on the sides of your chair, and he was looming over you. You had no doubt that he was willing to hurt you—you did break into his very dangerous house, after all.

You kept quiet, still unsure what the best course of action was. If you told them about the book and Rowena, would they let you go and go after her?

Then again, you didn’t know anything about these guys—maybe once they got their information, they’d just kill you.

You decided to stay quiet.

“Hey!” Dean smacked his hand on the arm of your chair, and you flinched. “I said—“

The man stopped yelling when the lights went out. They flickered back on a moment later, only this time they were red.

“Someone’s here,” the tall one said.

“I’ll go check.” The man in front of you pulled a gun from the waistband of his jeans and turned to leave, saying to the tall one “watch her.”

Then it was just you and the giant—who, surprisingly, seemed a little less scary. He was definitely intimidating, but he also had a sort of “I don’t hurt children” vibe about him.

“This will all be easier if you tell us what you were after,” he broke the silence.

“Right, because you’ll have a reason to keep me alive after I tell you everything,” you scoffed.

“We won’t have a reason to kill you, either,” Sam countered.

“And you need one?” You questioned.

“What makes you think we’d just kill you for no reason?” He asked.

“I mean I did break into your house, and you are hunters.” You shrugged as best you could with your hands cuffed behind you.

“I’m Sam,” the man said, crouching down so he was more on your level—he was trying to look less intimidating, which surprised you. “That other guy is my brother Dean. We are hunters, but we’re not gonna just kill you for no reason. We’re not like that.”

You opened your mouth to respond, but the door opening cut you off.

“Look who came for a visit.” Dean stepped into the room with a man trailing behind him. As soon as the man stepped into the light, every bit of air left your lungs.

“Didn’t know you had a visi—“ Crowley’s sentence froze halfway out of his mouth when he laid eyes on you.

Dean’s suspicious gaze picked up on the awkwardness instantly.

“You two know each other?”

Crowley gained his voice back first. “Used to. Not so much anymore.”

“Oh I don’t know about that.” You found the strength to speak after you heard Crowley’s words. “You still look just as pathetic to me, father.”

“Father?” Dean choked. “Wait, that’s not possible.”

“I thought you were dead.” Crowley was now completely ignoring the Winchesters. “After…after that incident I figured the demons would’ve—“

“Incident?!” You all but screamed. “Incident? Is that what you call you abandoning me? Leaving me for dead? An incident?”

“I had no choice,” Crowley argued. “When the other demons found out you were powerless—“

“The other demons? It wasn’t about the other demons, it was about you! You used my mother to make yourself a half demon, and when I didn’t turn out to have any powers you threw me away. You wanted your demon friends to kill me.”

“No.” Crowley was brushing past Sam and Dean now, coming to stand directly in front of you. You squirmed in your chair, but you couldn’t get further away from him. “No I didn’t. I thought if I got rid of you, they’d have no reason to kill you and—“

“Don’t lie to me!” You cried out. “I’m not stupid! You may not have wanted me dead, but you sure didn’t abandon me to try to save me. You did it because I was useless to you. Pretending otherwise is just…it’s just pathetic.”

Crowley opened his mouth to argue, but he had nothing to say—he knew you were right.

“So you’re half demon with no powers?” Dean cut in. “Because I’ve met a half demon who could do anything he wanted just by thinking it.”

“Why do you think he wanted to make me?” You forced your gaze away from your father to look at Dean. “He wanted an all powerful being that was also fully dependent on him. Too bad for him, not all half demons are the same, and he got stuck with the powerless one.”

“But that doesn’t explain why you’re here now,” Sam cut in.

You bit your lip. You should’ve known it would circle back to this.

“Look, we’re not gonna hurt you if you tell us,” Sam promised.

“Fine.” A sly smirk lifted onto your face as your eyes went back to your father. “I’m here to get a book. For my grandmother.”

Crowley was still choking on air while Sam and Dean shared a meaningful glance before turning back to you.

“Rowena? You’re working for the witch?” Dean’s reaction told you that he both knew Rowena and probably hated her.

“She’s the only reason I’m still alive,” you said. “When he—“ you were inclined your head towards Crowley “—left me behind to get killed by demons, she saved my life.”

“My mother knows you’re still alive and she never told me?” Crowley scoffed. “It’s just like her.”

“She didn’t tell you because I told her how much I hated you.” You glared at Crowley as you spoke. “She understood the feeling, and we had a mutual understanding. Anyway, she told me she would teach me to take out demons the way she can—“

“But let me guess—only if you steal a spell book from us and bring it to her,” Dean interrupted.

“She said it was the only way she’d be able to teach me,” you defended yourself.

“She lied,” Crowley butted in. “She always lies—she was using you to get that book.”

“Oh, right, because you’re so trustworthy,” you shot back. “Why should I trust you?”

“You don’t think it’s a little strange that the first thing she does with you is send you to a place where you could get hurt, just to get something for her?” Sam argued. “You don’t think that that’s using you?”

You were quiet for a moment, and when you spoke again it was more subdued.

“I didn’t have any other choice. There are still demons out there who want me dead, and I’m totally and completely helpless.”

“You don’t have to be,” Crowley said. “I can help you.”

“Rowena may not be a saint, but I already know I can’t trust you,” you snapped. “I’m not looking to get abandoned again.”

“She had to know you’d get caught.” Sam seemed to be talking more to himself than anyone else. “So why…”

The Winchesters seemed to come to a conclusion at the same time, sharing a moment of telepathic connection before they turned and ran out the door.

“Do they do that a lot?” You wondered.

“You have no idea,” Crowley huffed. “I suppose I should find out what’s wrong.”

“You haven’t figured it out yet?” The sudden smirk on your face made Crowley nervous. “Oh come on, don’t tell me you fell for that whole ‘totally and completely helpless” thing.” As you spoke, Crowley saw a faint glow coming from your hands, which were still handcuffed behind you. After a moment, he heard a snapping sound, and suddenly both of your hands were free and you were standing up. “Do you really think Rowena sent me here with no knowledge of magic?”

With a single wave of your hand, you sent Crowley flying against the wall. He landed with a thud, and you stepped over his frame on your way out the door.

“See you soon, father.”

…

Rowena had escaped with the book by the time Sam and Dean got to the library—she had waited until everyone was in the dungeon to make her move—and by the time the boys got back to the dungeon, Crowley was on the floor and you were gone.

“Great,” Dean growled. “She tricked us. I hate witches!”

“For once,” Crowley groaned as he slowly sat up. “I agree with you.”

…

“The Winchesters.” Your nervous gaze met your grandmother’s as you watched her flip through the spell book. “It’s them, they caught up. What now?”

“We need to distract them long enough for me to get through this spell,” Rowena insisted. “I won’t even need the book anymore as long as I can get this spell done.”

“I’ll distract them.” You were halfway to the door when Rowena stopped you.

“No, you’re not strong enough, not like this.” The way your grandmother was staring you down made you nervous.

“Like this?” You asked.

The door blasting open after a swift kick from Dean Winchester seemed to make up Rowena’s mind.

“I’m sorry, dear girl, but it’s the only way,” she said. “Impetus be—“

“Not so fast, mother.” You father appeared out of nowhere just behind Rowena, and he snatched up the spell book she was holding and swung it at her—she went down without another word. “I’m the only one that gets to hurt my brat.”

You didn’t say anything—you were still shaking. “Impetus beastiarum”—that’s what Rowena had been trying to say. Your own grandmother was going to turn you into a rabid monster—and ultimately kill you—just so that she could get away.

“The book.” You flinched out of your daze when Sam Winchester brushed past you and held his hand out to your father.

“Of course, moose,” he answered. “What would I need with a witches book?” He passed it over without argument.

“Why did you save me?” You demanded, sidestepping the taller Winchester to get a good look at your father, who merely shrugged.

“I’m the only one that gets to kill you.”

…

The Winchesters, of course, wanted to grab you after the little incident, but you flung them against the wall with your powers—one of the few tricks your grandmother had managed to teach you, and currently your favorite—and left before they got the chance.

You didn’t see them or your father for several more months. When you saw Crowley again, you were running for your life.

Somehow word had gotten around that a great witch had a granddaughter; or maybe it was that the king of hell had a daughter—you didn’t know, and you didn’t care. All you knew was that an archangel was after you because of it, and you had tried to cut a deal with him.

It hadn’t worked.

Lucifer had wanted you because he thought you’d be useful, and when he found out you weren’t, he of course decided that killing you was proper punishment for wasting his time.

You were in the midst of running for your life when you saw your father.

He was chained to the floor like a dog, watching your exchange with the archangel with peaked interest.

“Conteram hoc cincinno,” you yelled as you ran—it worked, and the chains at Crowley’s wrists snapped; they were warded against demons, not witches.

The freeing of his prisoner was enough of a distraction to get Lucifer off your tail. By the time he remembered you, you were out the door, and when he tried to turn his attention back to Crowley, the demon had already teleported.

…

“What was that?”

You jumped in surprise when your father appeared next to you.

“An escape,” you huffed out.

“You saved me back there.”

“Don’t get used to it,” you demanded. Crowley just grinned at you.

“Maybe witches aren’t so bad.”

Taglist:

@nyotamalfoy @mrvlxgrl @chocorade @aestheticdaisies @inlovewhithafairytale @that-wannabe-vangoghgurl @casmustdiee @987coley @deadlymistletoe @wayward-impala83 @whump-loverz

[running-with-kn1ves]

Need you to write more WLW 😫😫😫😫

It’s the only thing keeping me sane!!!!!

A/N: I wrote this based on a random ass scene I saw in The Boys and now...here lies this creation. (Female fitness trainer is nearing completion)

CW: blackmail, manipulation, toxic relationship type beat, controlling behavior, threats, cigarettes

Synopsis: you attempt to break up with your girlfriend-- she's too much. But she was going to keep you, one way or another.

You knew the rough crowd around town was... intense. But this chick was on another level. Kali liked to scare you; with how little you knew about her friends, leering on their motorcycles as she watched from behind a cigarette, your mind swam with scenarios of being abandoned on bloody asphalt behind a dumpster.

The music she blares in her shitty, one-eyed car and the smoke trail she left in bathrooms-- she liked being revered as nothing but trouble. You were doing your best to stay away from any kind of danger, focused on fixing the pieces of your tarnished education as your grades had not been kind to you. But Kali got to you first, ripping away any thoughts of work and reparations to your tuition debt.

So, despite the foggy kisses, lipstick stains on your jaw, and unexpected clinginess she showed to the idea of moving you in with her, you're making an attempt to break up with her.

"You... want to ditch me?"

"What? No! I'm just, I'm extremely worried about this next semester." You put a hand on her square-cut, polished fingers. "If I fail even one class again, my scholarships will drop me. I'm already on probation with the university."

You hope she can see how worried you are in your eyes, squeezing her hand to ease the news. She was going rigid, stiff as a tree with the strength of a waiting titan.

"School, huh."

Kali watched you beneath wispy bangs, looking straight through you. As if you weren't there, heart-pounding and palm-sweating in front of her.

You were glad she balled her hands in fists before you grabbed them, having one too many instances of your fingers crushed in her grip.

"B-but... we can still see each other.. maybe, sometimes on the weekends. I just can't afford any distractions, I've already spent a fortune getting to where I am."

"Is this because I want you to move in with me?" She blurted, straight faced and tight lipped.

Dark, midnight eyes bore into you for the truth.

Her ears perked at the sound of your jaggy sigh, knowing this would come up. "... No, but I have to say that it is still pretty early in, well, "us", to be considering... that."

"Really?" She asked earnestly, cold fingers finding their way around your forearm. "Because I still feel pretty confident about the idea, baby."

You hated how she could call you "baby" so easily, how every "sweetheart" was patronizing or forceful, or could be the most saccharine thing you heard when you first woke up.

her boot tips pressed against the side of your shoes, trapping you in like a snake wrapped around a rat. One hand held yours in a death grip, the other raking shivery nails against your knee from under the coffee table.

"I've got a perfect place for your stuff, work's only ten minutes away; why would there be any little reason to stay at your dusty old apartment?"

"I, I don't think you're hearing me--"

"No, no baby, I think you forgot who's choice this was to make." Your skin was a deep color under her fingers, her strength far outmatched as your clammy, fragile hand was brought to her cheek. She tutted under her breath, tsk'ing in condescention. "What would you do without me? How are you going to survive alone, no car to get to your classes, or the grocery store, unprotected around your peers... I can't imagine it, especially since your landlord never got his money to re-lease your apartment next month..."

From under the table her swift fingers brought a bulging envelope to the table, previously stuffed in your landlord's mailbox.

It wasn't even opened, the cash and tenant forms sealed without a mark.

Your jaw went slack, coffee cup cold in your hands.

"How did you--"

"Try it again, and I'll find it. You'll keep losing money, keep draining chances to come to me lovingly."

Kali sweetly tiptoed her black nails up to your shirt collar, sending shivers down your neck with each gentle, uncharacteristically slow touch.

Without warning, the woman snatched your shirt in her fist and jerked you forward, pulling you tightly against the coffee table. The seething anger she bore hardly made a sound, leaving the fellow cafe attendants nearby unbothered.

Your wince left her apathetic, bear-like eyes relishing in how unnerved and frantic you were becoming.

"I so rarely give out second chances. You, my love, are very lucky to be the exception. Don't make me regret it," your girlfriend was only inches apart, painted lips plump and teasing only breaths away. "I don't like to play dirty, but I will if you run from me. Is that clear, baby?"

You swallowed thickly, letting your gaze run away from hers as she bore into you with intense malice.

"Say yes," She whispered, on edge of twisting your wrist. "So I don't have to show everyone in here who you belong to."

Your cheeks lit up, terrified of the baristas and groups of students who'd look your way if she carried out that threat. Kali was unpredictable, something you found so endearing when you first met. She was always moving, doing something you couldn't expect. Now, it was scaring you.

You nod your head, regretting the idea of trying to break up with her in public. She wasn't afraid to make a scene, unlike you.

"Of course, Kals. There won't... be any need for that."

You hoped the sweetly familiar nickname with a hint of an anxious smile would make you sound casual, as if you weren't sweating behind your jacket and avoiding her blinkless stare like the plague.

"That's right." She whispered, letting go of your collar to pull at your jaw, this time only with the intent of dragging you closer. She was always so rough with her grip, capable or causing pain with its force, or merely leaving you breathless.

The punk's hand from beneath the table took mercy on your thigh with its painful rakes, moving instead to your cheek. Cold rings nicked your skin, her knuckles brushing against your face in a gentle, longing caress. You were hunched over the table now, uncomfortably risen as she sat like a queen in her cushioned chair, your face in her hands and your breath stolen by her.

Her pierced tongue came to graze the inside of your mouth, all-consuming and grinning through her teeth.

She tasted of stale cigarettes and mint gum, her current oral fixation besides the longterm smoking vice she's had since middle school.

You reluctantly kissed back, feeling wrongness in your gut. This isn't how it was supposed to go, you weren't supposed to be sharing hot breaths or hearing her satisfactory groans for capturing you once again. You were supposed to be leaving teary eyed and frightened of what she'd do now that you were no longer on her good side. But this, was far worse. You were walking on ice that was already breaking, the freezing water below beginning to flood the only surface of land you had left.

Kali pulled away, not without a few last kisses to the corner of your mouth and cheek, leaving wet lipstick stains. Your lips were probably about as red as hers were now. Dark lashes heightened by her thick mascara clouded your view, your girlfriend looking up at you through them with a gentle hardness.

She wasn't so scary when you were falling to her whims, like putty in her fingers and teeth.

"Kal..." you mumble, upsettingly conflicted between your failure to carry out what you came for, and your fear of what her threats would do. Her history of breaking into your bedroom window and making herself at home wherever she tracked you left you without a doubt of her potential. It made you all the more anxious of what she would be like if you didn't follow through with what she wanted.

"My friend is out of town for the weekend, said I could use his condo by the beach... a getaway, just for us baby." Her cold thumb smoothed over your bruised lips, an inkling of a smile coming to curl her mouth upward. "You'll be there, tonight. Dressed in that cute little number you wore on our first date. Is that right?"

It wasn't a question, it was a challenge. 'Are you going to let go of this once in a lifetime second chance I'm giving you? ' is what she was asking.

You didn't want to say yes. You didn't want to show up, to spend another agonizing second with her knowing that your failing at everything you hold dear. But her hold on your face brings you to fall back into your comfort zone.

"Yeah, Kals. I'll... I'll be there. But--"

She laid a firm hand on your shoulder,  leaning against your ear with wrathful delight.

"Promise you won't bail on me, sweetheart. I don't wanna come looking for you," She let go of your sweet lips to play with a strand of your hair, curling it around her finger. "I really don't enjoy forcing you to obey.."

That was such a lie. She loved it, relished in your mild disobedience at times. But this was a different level of rebellion, one she detested.

You swallowed your protest, frustration bubbling in your stomach in distress and fear.

"I promise, Kal."

[ivy-loves-chocolate]

Texting them “I need you right now”

Note: hi everyone! So sorry for not posting in months, life wasn't easy on me. I managed to sort things out (hopefully they will stay organised this time, or else I'm starting a new life in Spain), and I plan to write more. I'm also taking commissions again (the financial situation it's not good, so every commission would help me a lot!). Anyway, I haven't written anything since January, so please be kind with me.

He won't see your text right away because he's a busy man. After he has some free time, he checks his phone and immediately opens the chat with you, ignoring everyone else.

"What is it, sweetheart?"

"I just don't feel okay. Can you come over?"

The text is demanding, and he knows something is wrong with you, so he tries to finish faster whatever he had planned for that day, which he fails because he is constantly thinking about you. So, he dropped everything and came to you. 

Wesker is a man of his word, so he arrives on time.

"Have you been crying, my love?" he asked as he saw that your eyes were all red and your face was swollen.

"Yeah...petty reason." 

"If it was petty, you wouldn't have called me."

You wasted no time and threw yourself in his arms, sinking into his embrace and burring your face into his chest.

Being busy all the time, you barely see him. Maybe once a month nowadays, and this long wait only contributed to your sadness. You yearned to talk with someone like him because he made you feel safe. You knew he was listening, and you knew he didn't judge. Also, he would comfort you with small kisses and gentle touches and would praise you for being strong.

He moved you to your sofa, made your favourite tea, and listened carefully as you talked about your worries and recent unfortunate events.

During that time, he received a lot of calls and texts, but he turned his phone on silent because his main priority was you.

He hugged you tight, telling you that he'd always be there for you, no matter what. One hand would gently massage your hair, and the other would massage your back. It hurt him so damn much to see you like this and hear you sob in his arms. He wanted to hurt everyone who caused you to end up like this, and he was very vocal about his intentions.

"You can't protect me from the world, Albert. All you can do is be here for me when I need it."

He didn't like your response or agree with your opinion, but for now, he kept you tight to his chest.

He usually stays until you feel better, and then he leaves to do his work. He will be worried all day because you're still on his mind, so he checks on you frequently, promising to take you on a small trip to calm your mind.

The government agent is always busy. He's either stuck in his office completing paperwork, training new recruits, or on a mission on the other side of the globe.

He wasn't away on the field, so when he saw your text, he immediately responded. Even if he was busy doing desk duty or fighting, he would try to respond asap (he will hide in a corner if he had to, if that means he'll get five minutes of peace to text you back because he knows how worried you can get). 

"What's wrong, doll?"

"I don't feel well. Can you come over?"

A pretty demanding text means an urgent need, so he left early, abandoning everything he had scheduled for today. That annoyed some of his superiors, but he got away without much trouble.

Leon tried his best to arrive on time. He was being pressured by time and worry; he drove like a maniac to your place on his motorcycle, but he stopped to buy your favorite sweets.

"I bought you something good," he said, smiling in the doorframe and opening the bag to show the inside. However, his smile dropped. 

"Have you been crying?" he asked, quickly cupping your face and caressing your cheeks with his thumbs. Your face was flushed and very warm to the touch, and your eyes were swollen and teary.

"Yeah...petty reason."

"You don't cry like that for a petty reason," he said as he placed a gentle kiss on your forehead. You quickly hugged him and burried your nose at the crook of his neck. He hugged you back tight, a trail of kisses caressing your skin, starting from your neck to your face.

He guided you to the bed, where he listened to you and held you tight. His fingers kept brushing over your face, and his lips would occasionally press tiny, affectionate kisses over your skin. His body was glued to yours, and the warmth from such an intimate embrace made you feel safe. You felt safe not only to express your emotions, but you also felt sheltered from the rest of the world.

"You are not alone," he whispered as his hand caressed your back in a gentle manner. "I told you, no matter how hard it gets, we'll find a way to get through it together." 

He usually stays until he makes sure you feel better. After that, he texts you the whole day, asking how you feel because he can't ease his own anxiety. He promised to take you on a vacation.

He noticed your text right away, but he's stuck with his research and can't reply instantly. He will text you back as soon as he can.

"What's wrong, mi bella princesa?"

"I just don't feel okay. Can you come over?"

With much difficulty and a lot of excuses, he manages to leave his laboratory and come to your place.

Upon seeing your red and watery eyes, he quickly came inside and cupped your face.

"Have you been crying?" he asked, worried, his fingers brushing over your warm, red cheeks.

"yeah...petty reasons." You tried your best to smile.

"Querida, you don't cry like that because of petty reasons." He gently kissed your forehead.

He pulled closer to him, and you quickly hugged him, buring your face into his chest. Luis kept kissing you and whispering kind words to help you feel better.

"Just talk to me, ok? There isn't anything in this world that we can't get through."

Despite the firm grip around your body, he managed to caress you with tenderness. His strokes were as delicate as a feather, and every soft kiss felt warm and loving. 

He was so kind and gentle, and his attitude only made you more vulnerable, so you started crying again.

"Please, my love, don't cry. It breaks my heart to see you like this." He whispered.

He guided you to the bed and cuddled with you. His arms were wrapped around your body, and his nose was buried in your hair.

"Is there anything I can do to make it all go away?" He said, hand stroking your back. 

"No, just hold me like this."

It breaks his heart to see you like that, so he kept thinking about making you feel better.

"How about you and I go for a walk?" He said this as his fingers ran through your smooth hair. "Or we can stay here and cuddle; watch that movie you like. I can make something to eat, and we can relax."

"It sounds good," you said, your smile making a shy return. "I'm sorry if I freaked you out."

"it's fine." He pressed a lingering kiss on your cheek. "You know I'm always here for you."

"I know, and I appreciate that." You caressed his face, your fingers exploring every inch, going through his fluffly hair over his beard and over his lips. You two were looking at each other with the same enamoured gaze as in the beginning.

"We can spend some time tomorrow if you want," he added, being enchanted by the shared intimate moment, feeling drawn in by your presence, and wanting to spend more time with you.

"What about work?" you asked.

"Don't worry, as much as I hate it, I will find the lab in the same place I left it today."

Your light chuckle made him feel a little better. Whenever you are sad, he feels his heart shatter into tiny pieces. You mean the world to him, and he'd do anything to protect you.

He was training the new recruits when his phone buzzed in his pocket. After a quick glance, he gave the men a five-minute break so he could respond to you. Jack blames himself for not giving you proper attention since he is always on the field, so when he can, he drops everything and focuses on you entirely.

"What's wrong, beautiful?"

"I don't feel well. Can you come over?"

His subordinates were thrilled to find out that they had the rest of the day off.

He is a punctual man, so he arrives on time and not a minute late, holding a bag with your favourite snacks.

He tried to hide his worry behind a comforting smile. He quickly noticed your puffy face and teary eyes.

"Have you been crying?" he asked in a low tone, coming closer to you. He cups your face and brings you closer to him, pressing small, gentle kisses all over your face. His tenderness was endearing, so much so that warm tears began to drip down your cheeks again.

"It's just...petty reasons." You said it with a trembling voice.

"Bullshit."

He pulled you closer to his chest and held you tight. His hands were stroking your back, his head pressed to yours. His much larger frame swallowed you whole, seeming as if you had disappeared completely.

You felt safe in his arms. It was so warm and comforting, and not only his embrace made you feel this way, but also his reassuring words that he'd whisper constantly.

He carried you to the bed, and as he was sitting close to you, he brushed his fingers over your check and listened closely to what you had to say. It broke his heart to see you like this, and he couldn’t stop asking himself if, if he were there more often for you, you would still end up like this. This type of question tormented him, and you could feel that.

“I’m sorry, maybe it’s a lot too dump on you.” You said this as you caressed his face, your fingers trailing over his scars.

“No, not at all, love.” He took your hand and placed a lingering kiss in your palm. “I just wish I was there for you more often.”

“Don’t put so much pressure on yourself. The important thing is that you’re here now, and that means a lot to me."

You felt his lips kissing you softly once your head was pressed against his chest. 

He still feels guilty, but it doesn't press over his shoulder as hard anymore. He promised to spend more time with you.

[hlficlibrary]

HL Fic Library 🌲 Stuck in a Cabin Fics

Remember to leave kudos and a comment on the fics you enjoyed to show your appreciation! You can find the library's other recs here.

🌲 Snow by Septic_Styles {M, 70k}

The snow was packed high, completely covering the doorway. Louis reached out to touch it but Harry pulled his arm back in.

"What are you doing?" he hissed.

"It's snow, Harry, not some creature from Mars." Louis rolled his eyes and pressed his index finger to it. It wasn't soft, it was firm and had an almost crunchy texture like the freezing temperature had turned it into ice as the night passed on. It had been sitting there for some time. "Yeah, just as I suspected," Louis said, closing the front door.

"What?"

"We're fucked."

Louis is set to travel thirteen hours up the country to stay with his family at a holiday rental in Edinburgh for Christmas, but when he makes an overnight stop at his cabin in the woods in the Lake District, an unexpected, unlikely face - which Louis has spent all of his teenager and most of his adult years resenting - comes knocking, seeking for help.

Little did they know that the heaviest snowfall England had ever seen would snow the two foes in for a week...

🌲 To the Ends of the Earth by stylinsoncity / @aliensingucci {M, 68k}

During a yearlong hiatus, Louis visits Harry at his cabin in Idaho, where long-buried feelings ignite like the fire keeping them warm.

🌲Take on Me by @haztobegood {E, 60k}

Actor Harry Styles is preparing for his next leadi ng role as Antonius the Gladiator with the help of Louis Tomlinson, Hollywood’s top stunt coordinator. When the demands of Harry’s career get in the way of their training, the pair head to a secluded cabin to complete their training. Then, Louis begins to share senses with Harry. What is causing this mysterious connection and can Louis and Harry figure out how to stop it before they leave the cabin?

🌲 Warming Up to You by @youreyesonlarry {E, 56k}

“I feel you,” Harry nods along as he zips his bag open, carefully pulling out his fancy looking camera before pressing a button to turn it on. “I love taking pictures for a number of reasons, but I think the best part of the whole thing is that I’m able to go through my older pictures and have all these memories from those moments come back to me.”

He puts the camera against his eye and points at Louis, and before the shorter one can even react, he hears a ‘click’, and Harry’s smiling down at the screen of his camera.

“And I don't think I want to forget about the day I got stranded in a cabin with a pretty stranger,” he finishes off.

Prompt 111: Louis and Harry are strangers that somehow got stranded during a blizzard. They find themselves in an abandoned cabin and have to cuddle for warmth. Cuddling leads to much more.

🌲 Cabin Fever by @germericangirl {E, 46k}

“What the fuck is he doing here?“ He asked still looking at him, before he turned back to look at Niall for an answer.

Niall’s mouth fell open and he looked at him with wide eyes "He um changed his mind?“

Harry stared at Niall for a few seconds in silence, before grabbing a bag and walking towards a bedroom without looking at anyone else, slamming the door shut behind himself.

Liam flinched in front of Louis.

“Well I’m happy to see you too.“ Louis mumbled, some of the tension leaving his body. This wasn’t exactly how he thought their first meeting would go. It was quiet for a moment before Louis finally spoke up “Did you seriously not tell him I was coming?“

Or: One cabin, one bed, two ex-boyfriends. What could possibly go wrong?

🌲 Snow Job by @duchesskitty16 {E, 42k}

Harry is a world famous rock star who is closeted and never gives interviews. Louis is a failed novelist and reporter for a gossip magazine that has fallen on hard times. Louis is promised a promotion if he can get the ultimate get - an interview with Harry Styles. Louis finds out that Harry has a mountain cabin near where his friends Zayn and Niall live and heads up to try and meet him. In a twist of fate, Louis has an accident and Harry saves him. Will Louis get his story, or will the fact that he's falling in love change things? Will Harry forgive him when he finds out Louis is lying to him? Will Harry find the courage to come out of the closet and finally be happy?

🌲 too much, but it’s enough by @ohpleaselarry {E, 40k}

There are about a thousand things Louis wishes he could go back in time and fix. A thousand things, and nearly all of them include Harry.

There are the more simple things, like showing him more support, telling him it’s okay to be himself, gently reminding him that a condom in his pocket is rather obvious in skinny jeans, but if he could just choose one thing, just one to change, he’d probably just have told the lad he loves him.

Always has. And always will.

🌲 Something As Simple As This by frenchkiss {E, 34k}

Trapped in a cabin in the middle of nowhere after a blizzard derails Louis from getting home, he and the attractive stranger who owns the place have nothing to do but... well, each other. It would be a real shame if feelings got in the way, and even more of a shame if a secret about this stranger's identity turned both their lives upside down and inside out.

🌲 Etched in Salt (is a cathedral of the world) by @helloamhere {E, 24k}

Louis asks for very few things in life, and they are: to solve cases, to keep bad people from doing their bad things, to get good coffee, to go home to a spacious apartment with nobody else in it, and to manage his stupid telempathy powers with minimal interference. And now he's stuck in a tiny cabin in a snowstorm in the middle of god-awful-nowhere with Harry Styles. Because of course he is.

🌲 you’re the habit that i can’t break by @ohpleaselarry {NR, 24k}

The boys decide to have a belated band reunion, just the five of them. One week, one cabin in the mountains, five boys.

Harry and Louis haven’t spoken sober in a year.

🌲 An Aurora Grove Christmas by @dandelionfairies {T, 17k}

Harry gets lost on his way to St. Louis. The roads are horrid because of the snow and he ends up spinning into a ditch. Lucky for him, he finds a cabin nearby, as well as a cute blue-eyed man who immediately helps him. Unfortunately, his car is stuck for the night, but at least he has a place to stay with Louis. With the snow continuing to fall and another storm front coming through, will he ever make it out of Aurora Grove? Does he even want to?

🌲 The fic where Harry calls Louis an idiot for ten days straight because he is one. by @mercurial-madhouse {M, 16k}

They’ve found the perfect get away from their busy lives as nationally-famous footie player and well-respected restaurant critic, escaping to the isolation of a cabin in the woods where they can simply be Louis and Harry.

If only both were actually here.

A gift forgotten in London, the untameable force of the weather, and the scent of burnt snickerdoodle biscuits find Harry and Clifford pitifully alone and Louis... Where is Louis?

🌲 Darling, Just Hold My Hand by likelarry {E, 10k}

Louis and Harry decide to spend a week at a skii resort with their families during the Christmas holidays.

On Christmas night, Harry goes into labor but the family gets snowed in which forces him to give birth in the cabin in the middle of nowhere.

Luckily, his husband is a surgeon who can help.

🌲 heaps of blankets by gemma {E, 7k}

You know when you and the one you love go for a not-so-adventurous adventure? And you do everything that's crazy, everything you want and just enjoy each other's company? That's Harry's plan when he rents a cabin at a resort in the mountains for him and Louis.

🌲 Orchids by talasArchivesx / @talasarchive {M, 7k}

“Do you find me sensible yet?” Twenty-two letters and six words, yet it lingers on Louis’ mind like an old song playing from a worn cassette. Such a memory holds so much significance it visits Louis’ mind every unsuspecting moment.

The words are a dreamy reminder of such precious seconds of his life.

A story about losing against the drifting tide, and finally coming home; featuring a cabin, winter blizzard and “one bed”.

🌲 Let It Snow by @jaerie {E, 6k}

With a blizzard approaching, Louis planned to spend his birthday with a drink and a good book. In his self exile at his remote cabin, he never expected a poorly dressed stranger to show up shivering and covered in snow. He also didn’t expect to have one of his best birthdays on record.

🌲 wish i knew how to break this spell by eleadore {E, 6k}

Maybe it should be more of a surprise to open the door and find Harry wrapped up in about a dozen blankets, face pink from the cold and soft from sleep. It isn’t.

Harry, Louis, and a cabin. It's cold outside.

🌲 Strange Trails by bananazine {G, 4k}

After one of Harry Style's third-years lost their favourite hat on a class hike, Harry goes back the next day to retrieve it. To his demise, a downpour of rain strikes, forcing him to search for shelter. He runs without a stop towards the nearest clearing and his prayers get answered when he sees an old hunting cabin. With trepidation slowing his steps, he finally makes it towards the presumably vacant cabin. Though, to be polite, he knocks, only to be faced by the bluest eyes he has ever seen.

🌲 (not) driving home for christmas by BeautifulWisdom / @justanotherghostblr {T, 3k}

Spending the holidays alone at his cabin, driving through a snowstorm Harry hits an animal. He takes the large dog back to his cabin to see if he can keep it alive until the storm breaks and he can get to a vet. Colour him surprised and woefully unprepared when said dog turns into a very bloody and very naked man.

[ryder-writes]

Those Who Play with Fire Get Burnt- Dabi x GN!Reader

Summary: Dabi realizes that you are his weakness. Any of his enemies could easily use you to lure him into a trap. He loves you, but he loves his dream more.

CW: This is pure angst. Warning now. Toxic ending of relationship, manipulation (kinda), kidnapping, ends in death by fire, betrayal of trust. Also Dabi a little ooc (I say that cuz I don’t think he would be in a relationship to begin with lmao)

A/n: I just want to say, THIS IS NOT MEANT TO ROMANTICIZE TOXIC RELATIONSHIPS! Pls stay safe y'all <3

WC: 1.1k

You were scared. Scared, tired, and confused. You didn’t know where you were. You assumed a bag was over your head, as you couldn’t see. Your hands were tied behind the back of the small wooden chair you were sitting on. Your ankles tied to the legs of the chair. The air smelled like rust and mold. It was humid as well, which made you think you were in an old, abandoned building of some kind. You were correct. However, your spirits were not completely broken. You knew that your boyfriend would come and save you. Dabi loved you. You were his world. He would fight for you; he would show up. And, he did.

On the opposite side of the room, Dabi stood in the doorway; leaning against the broken framing of the door. He felt bad. He really did.  It was his fault you were here in the first place. He had stupidly decided to seek refuge in a random apartment after being chased for what felt like hours, and he stupidly chose yours. You had grown closer, and your apartment became a place of refuge for him. A home he never had. But that was his mistake. He hurts everyone he gets close to. Whether the hurt is his doing or not. He didn't want you to get hurt- but it had to be done. Anything that could negatively affect his plan must be taken care of. He stepped forward toward you, his boots enhancing the echo of his footsteps. You perked up. Sweat started to form on your forehead, threatening to fall down your face.

"You do anything to me and my boyfriend will burn you to the ground!" You yelled, trying to sound intimidating (you failed). Dabi laughed internally at your attempt. He stopped in front of you and slipped his right hand under your chin, lifting your head up. Your breath hitched in your throat in fear, and before you could protest or move your head away, he lifted the bag off of your head. Your fear dissipated immediately on seeing your boyfriend. "Dabi! Oh thank god!" You put your weight onto his hand. He smiled.

"Let me help you there, sweetheart." He let go of your face and went to untie your legs. Once he was finsihed, he stood back up. You looked up at him expectedly.

"You gonna untie my arms, or…?" You looked at him confused. He simply shoved his hands in his pockets. You sighed. Of all the times for him to be acting childish. "Dabi-"

"Touya." He interrupted. "My name is Touya."

"Oh- uh, okay. Touya." You were confused as to why he told you now of all times, but your emotions told you that it didn’t matter right now. "Can you untie my hands?" Touya sighed.

"I love you." He locked eyes with you. You were slightly taken aback.

"I- I love you too, Touya." You smiled up at him. "More than life itself." His breath got caught in his throat. Was he really doubting himself? He mentally shook himself off and regained his focus.

"Do you know who my father is?" He asked. You shook your head. You had never pushed Dabi to tell you about his family and he never shared it. "My father is the great hero," He bent down, and inch way from your face; " Endeavor." Your eyes widened in shock. He chuckled as he stood back up. "I know, I know. Crazy, right?"

"But- your fire-"

"It burns my skin. Yeah. A gift from my gracious mother and her ice quirk."

"Oh." You didn't know what to think. "Wait, why are you telling me this?" You snapped back to reality. Dabi wouldn't tell you all of this without reason. He ignored you and kept on talking.

"I have a plan. A plan to get revenge on my dickhead of a father. A plan that cannot have weaknesses." He looked down at you. "You, my love, are a weakness." Tears started to cloud your vision.

"So, you're breaking up with me? Why did you save me then?! Are you even telling the tru-" He put his pointer finger on your lips, making you stop talking.

"Shhhh. Patience." He removed his finger. "I can’t risk my father using you to get to me. To trick me."

"I can leave." You spoke up. "I don’t want either of us to get hurt." He grabbed you under your arms and pulled you up so you were standing against him. He looked down at you. Even through the hurt, suffering, and conflict, you could see the lovesick look in his eyes.

"When I said I would never break up with you, I meant it."

"What do you plan to do then?" You asked. You trusted Dabi, but you were scared. He was still a villain after all. He sighed.

"I led you here for a reason." You choked on your own breath.

"You- you- why?"

"I needed to be someone where no one would find you." He whispered. He leaned down, lips grazing yours. You could feel his grip on your waist tighten and his breath on your lips. You started to feel warmth down by your feet. Your heart started to race even faster as you realized your fate. You locked eyes with him. He hated how the last look he got of your gorgeous eyes was them coated in fear. "I'm sorry." He whispered. He crashed his lips onto yours, giving you as much passion and love as he could muster. You returned his kiss, your shaky lips showing the same amount of love. You felt the heat grow. Your legs started to burn as tears ran down your face. The pain was intense when mixed with Dabi's  powerful kisses. You were overwhelmed. Screams of pain were cut off by his lips and his hands kept you still. You wished you could hold him; grab onto him and never let go. He wished that he could keep making out with you, loving you, for as long as possible. However, he knew that the longer he did that, the more painful it was for you. He opened his eyes one last time to see your beautiful face. Your beautiful, perfect, tear-stricken face. He closed his eyes again and let the fire consume you. You felt overwhelming heat. Then blinding pain. Then, everything went dark.

Touya felt you go limp in his arms. He finally left the fading warmth of your lips and kissed your forehead. He gently led your body down, supporting your head as it hit the concrete floor. He had made it so most of your body was still intact (even if it was scarred beyond belief), unlike most of his victims, who immediately turn into ash. He stood up and dusted himself off, sighing.

Dabi walked away, wishing that he had the ability to cry or at least mourn your death properly.

A/n Pt. 2: Hope u enjoyed reading! I know this is a lot darker than my normal fics, so if u want some fluff/comfort feel free to check out my masterlist :]

[marshmallowprotection]

Have you ever done a post talking about how Ray stopped obsessing about MC on his own route?

I don't believe I've ever done one in depth before but I would LOVE to talk about that to clear up misconceptions. So, we're all well-aware of the fact Ray is completely in love with the idea of you. To talk about it in depth, we need to start at the beginning of Ray's awakening. While talking about his infatuation, it's important to understand the reason why he became so captivated with you in the first place, so that you'll be able to see how his love changes from mere infatuation with some idea to the conceptualizing of true love.

I'll start at the very beginning of Ray's identity in Mint Eye. When he realized who he was and what he had to do for the Savior, this person who has forced him to undergo torture the likes of which we only see brief spurts of and cannot even conceptualize just how horrible it was for him to experience, he understood the rules. He had to obey every order to survive, even if it made him feel sick to his stomach.

Any sort of deviation from the Savior's expectation would have him back into a basement that held nothing but nightmares.

"I have no one left for me. I have been abandoned by everyone but the Savior. I should be grateful that she hasn't given up on me like everybody I've ever known. I should devote my life to hers because that's all I'm good for. If I was good for anything, V and Saeyoung... wouldn't have left me behind. I see nothing but torment in my life, but that's all I've ever known and that's all I will ever know. I need to be grateful that the Savior saved me, because her torment is what can save me... if I can be good enough for her... maybe I'll be good enough to exist."

You have to understand that this is Ray's core foundation. He has been pressured to believe something that goes against who he is. Ray is described best as someone who cannot stop dreaming, and Suit Saeran said it the best, "Ray won't stop dreaming of a day that might bring V and Saeyoung back to his side, even if Rika's forced us to believe they'll hurt us. Unlike Ray, I know we can't go back to what we had, but he won't stop dreaming. If he stops dreaming, we won't have any hope. To dream is to have hope, and Ray is my hope. That's why I want to help him and you escape this place. So, our hope can... survive."

Ray's very existence is defined by his value to Rika. That's what he's been forced to believe and trust me when I say this, Ray doesn't want that. He doesn't want to be defined by what he can do for Rika to give her proof that he shouldn't be tortured anymore. He wants to be able to exist without the fear of a hammer swinging over his head, but he isn't allowed to have that. Rika's controlling him through fear, through the idea that he has to show her he has value so she won't throw him away like "V and Saeyoung threw him away".

She abuses Ray with a blend of verbal abuse and love-bombing on the regular and this back and forth of "you're an airhead and maybe Ray shouldn't exist in the first place because he keeps failing every task I give him," vs "Oh, Ray, no one in this world will care for you the way you need except for me... I didn't abandon you, so you can truly believe me above everyone else."

How would you feel if the only way you could evade being drugged in Mint Eye's basement would be to work your fingers to the bone?

Would you fight the Savior? Would you try to reason with her even though it is futile to argue with someone who refuses to listen to you? Would it take long for you to realize that the only means to your survival will be to obey? What if you fought her and she cast you aside, sending you to fight for yourself on the streets of Seoul? The very streets where one wrong move could have Saejoong Choi kill you?

What's worse, to be tormented in a basement with drugs until you learn your "lesson", or to be killed the minute you step foot into the outside world your Mother always told you would kill you when you did? You don't want to die. You don't want to die, do you? How long will it take before you accept this awful reality... because you don't have another choice? It didn't take Ray very long to accept that he had no other choice. It was Rika's torment and "salvation" or death.

He understands that he'll probably die in Mint Eye, but at least... in Mint Eye, he can tell himself that Rika didn't abandon him. At least, he would die knowing one person didn't "give up" on him. He settles, because what else can he do but settle? This is the greatest good he may ever get. Is it any wonder why he wants to make the "best" of the nightmare he's living in? No, it's really not.

It's not okay, though. He shouldn't have to make the "best" of what he's given because he doesn't deserve any of the suffering he's been forced to experience at the hand of Rika. None of the believers who found themselves trapped in that place deserved what happened to them. What Ray suffered doesn't justify his decision making, though. His suffering doesn't make what he does with the player before he's able to realize the error of his ways right.

Mind you, as I'm writing this post and explaining Ray's perspective, I don't want any of you to get this twisted. Ray's actions aren't justified in any way. He shouldn't have lied to the player, he shouldn't have told you the RFA were characters in a game, he shouldn't have risked your life and safety for his obsession with the idea of you, etc, etc. I know a lot of people are more understanding of Ray and Saeran than they are of other characters in this game, but I'm still going to say this since it has to be said so often.

Understanding a character, enjoying a character, and knowing the rhyme or reason why they do something doesn't mean you justify their actions. It just means you like that character and tried to get more information to understand why they did what they did and it's okay to morally dubious characters. Let's break down our important critical thinking skills and remember that.

Anyway.

Those images I stitched above are from his diary and show you a tiny glimpse into his formula for bringing someone to Mint Eye.

Ray starts out as the head of security for Mint Eye and he has to work his way up to the creation process that brings us to the RFA "game" he sells the player. He spends the first few months stalking the RFA as best he can to learn more about their habits and how to either eliminate them or bring them to Mint Eye for the Savior, it's only after he has proven himself worthy of gathering information that Rika tells him that he will be allowed to choose whoever he wants to help him take down the RFA.

This is a "reward" he's given for good behavior, as in, doing his job until his fingers bleed and he has to wear gloves to stop himself from dislocating the joints, chugging caffeine pills and his elixir like a "good boy", and keeping his mouth shut about anything but breathing and Paradise. He gets the "honor" of finding someone to help him do his job, and during the process of hunting down that person to help his mission, he finds... you.

I don't think he set out to find someone who could like him. I think he originally sought out someone who could listen to him and believe his lies about the RFA. He wanted someone who wouldn't question him... after all, how can you get someone to be your eyes and ears when all you hear is: "Why is this so life-like? Why do these characters feel so real? I'm starting to believe what they're telling me and I'm having so much doubt what you've been selling me, Ray."

He was looking for a person who would be incredibly naive, but kind-hearted. It's just that in the process of trying to find someone to fit that bill, he discovered you. It's not entirely clear how he found you or what made him like you, that's always left open to the player so they can decide what he liked about them. All we know is that he watched you visit your favorite cafe now and again. Everything else is really up to the player to decide... meaning however dark or light you want that imagery is up to you.

Regardless, he discovered you, and something about you captivated him so much that he told himself there could be no other person to test his game. It would have to be you. There was something about you that made him feel warm and fuzzy inside... it made him feel so good. Here's the thing about his feelings for you in the beginning. He could learn as much as he wanted by scouring information about you online, but that would never be the same as actually getting to know you.

So, from the get-go, Ray's foundation of who you are is based on what he can find.

Everything he can't find is built on what he creates in his head.

This is why he becomes obsessed with the idea of you, and it's so easy for him to slip into this fantasy. The idea of someone can be better than who they really are sometimes, because a concept can't disappoint you or break your heart. Ray spends most of his time fantasizing about what it would be like to be close to you, what it would be like to get to know you, and as he continues to fill in the pieces with his fantasized version of you, the line between reality and fiction becomes blurred. 

You become the only constant in his life that has a driving force for good, frankly. Whenever he is being tortured for a mistake he made or criticized for not being good enough, he slips into his head to just fantasize about what it would be like to be treated with respect by the object of his obsession. The concept of you, it comforts him, it brings him peace, it brings him joy, and it keeps him ALIVE. If not for those months he spent dreaming of you, he might not have survived as long as he did.

Ray, at his core, needs a reason to have hope.

If you strip away all of his hopes and dreams, there is nothing left but a shell. There is nothing left but a husk... and is it really any wonder in this world why Suit Saeran was angry when he woke up and saw his Ray was tortured for daring to dream the impossible?

When that was all Ray ever wanted? To dream? He wouldn't even allow himself a chance to ask for what he wanted, he would beat it out himself to let the Savior know he wouldn't try to fight her for ANYTHING.

Ray was trained to destroy himself from the inside out because Rika intended for him to disappear someday. For Saeran to "take over and prove that strength is only born from survival of the fittest."

The fantasy of you wasn't the real you by any means but Ray could settle for a fantasy if he couldn't taste reality.

The idea of you gave him strength to survive until tomorrow, and that's important to understand. Why else would Ray consistently say, "I will settle for whatever you give me. I don't deserve anything. Use me as you please, even if it hurts me, because I just want you to be happy."? Ray has to settle for less all the time. He is so desperate to be liked, to never be abandoned again, that he's okay with you doing anything to him as long as he can stay with you.

That's what Bad Ending 1 is all about—if you decide to take his offer to hurt him for your amusement.

When all he can dream of is his fantasy and what he settled for, it should become abundantly clear to players why he is so dead set on wanting you to stay with him. His desperation for you to stay with him stems from the fact that he doesn't want to be abandoned. Ray believes he was left behind by everyone who loved him except for his Savior, so when he begs and pleads for you to stay later on, it's 100% because of this fear.

Is it wrong for him to beg and plead to make you stay with him? YES! It's not okay! But, it's easy to understand WHY he's begging so hard in the first place. Ray wants so badly for his fantasy of you to be real. To be liked by you, not even loved, is all he wants because you have become the only thing that makes a smile stay on his face in this den of torment.

Do you know what you do as the player during Ray Route? During your time with Ray, you are constantly and consistently telling him that he should value himself, that he shouldn't beat himself down, that he shouldn't take Rika's torment and believe the horrible things she tells him, and that he should think for himself instead of what he thinks Rika wants him to think. You are actively working to help Ray understand his value as a person, nudging him to decide for himself what he wants.

Do you owe him that kindness? No, no you don't. You don't owe him this, nobody does, but if you decide to love him and give him the time to grow from his mistakes, this is where Ray Route takes you. Tumblr won't let me post more than 30 images, so I will point you to read just a couple of specific chatrooms I can't post snippets of.

Day 5, 19:23, "Small Coincidence" & Day 6, 03:17, "If I was stronger" & Day 6, 20:49, "Suddenly Afraid". Those chatrooms specifically give a player the option to reassure Ray at every turn, to tell him that he is a person who matters to you, and that he needs to trust your words as you say them, and not assume they come with a stipulation like every word out of Rika's mouth.

You're not telling Ray that you want to stay in Mint Eye with these choices.

You're telling him that you want to stay with him.

MC is actively making the decision once they realize the truth to see what they can do to get Ray out of Mint Eye. You may not trust V at first, you may not even believe him, but you have seen Ray suffer at Rika's hand and you know he doesn't deserve that. You want to get him away from this place, far, far away... and the closer you get to the kiss visual novel, the closer you get to helping Ray overcome what was done to him.

I understand it can be difficult to grasp what's happening during the first two days of the route because realistically this would be playing out throughout a couple of months. But, what you're doing is helping Ray undo the brainwashing. You are working to deprogram the cult manipulation, and I don't know if any of you know how hard it is for someone to do that in real life, but it's not easy.

There is a reason why it is so difficult to remove someone from a cult once they are knee-deep in the trenches. You can't just tell someone to leave, even if it's detrimental to their health and safety because they won't leave the cult. Cults are designed to keep people inside. Even if you present someone with logic and reason, they have been taught not to listen to anyone who tries to tell them anything that goes against the doctrine they have been forced to believe. 

You are more likely to lose a person if you try to force them out of a cult than you are to save them. Obviously, every situation is different and you need to approach this with care if you encounter something like this in real life, but I would pray nobody would have to learn about this information or how to use it.

I don't want anyone to be trapped in a cult. But, hey, look into how folks do help remove people from cults with SAFETY in mind. It's interesting, if a bit dark because there's right and wrong ways to help people.

That's why I advise you to look in those chat rooms if you want more contextual evidence to understand what's happening here since my images are limited and I had to chop this down to what I knew would be most helpful to someone's understanding of the situation. So, I've got two phone calls below that point out what I'm talking about and show what the MC is doing.

Reassuring Ray of his desires by telling him he's allowed to think for himself, and then down below, you're working to tell Ray that he can trust other people, not just the Savior. It is the little things like these choices that build up to what happens when you kiss him and it just about clicks for him that this place isn't sustainable.

This language the player uses is important in those chatrooms and during every phone call where this conversation topic comes up. He needs to hear it. He needs to know that his life is bound by what he can do for Rika. He can have more what he's been given, he doesn't have to settle for torment and torture. He can have whatever he truly desires as long as he's willing to face the facts. Ray's just... so afraid of what will happen when he stands up that it takes a long time to get him to that point.

Case in point, the fake elixir. He became so incredibly paranoid about his decision to have you forgo the elixir that he decided to cultivate a fake bottle that nobody could distinguish from the real thing just to protect you. He lied about you taking the elixir in the first place and that was dangerous in itself, but it was a decision he made that truly began to send him down a path that would lead him to run away from settling for the hell Rika gave him. 

This lie Ray made was huge, and I don't see a lot of people point that out.

He tells you multiple times that he's afraid of what might happen to you if they find out he lied about your initiation ceremony. He knows what's going to happen to you, and he knows what will happen to him because he lied about it. He might never be able to see you again, and he might never exist again after they're through with him, but he still decided to lie about it because he couldn't stand the thought of seeing you in pain.

Decisions like that are ones that help you understand the "generous" organization you're in isn't trying to help you, it's trying to kill you at every corner. Ray’s devotion is based on fear and fear alone. He truly doesn't believe what he's been sold, the only reason why he fights so hard for this paradise is because he believes that he doesn't have any other choice.

Why do you think he wants Paradise to be as good as he can make it? 

When you try to tell him you want to leave, he tells you that he could never survive in the outside world. It has been beaten into him over and over again. He won't be able to survive out there without the help of the savior. He won't be able to survive anywhere without her help.

That's why he tries to fight so hard to survive, to make the best of this nightmare, because one day he'll be able to catch the carrot on the string. Even if he knows that's never going to happen, he doesn't believe there's any other way for him to exist, and if he's going to be happy with you, the only place he can have it is here. Even when you make him want to believe in the impossible dream, it still feels very impossible.

That's by design, Rika's design.

So, when he actively starts to make hard decisions that go against everything she's tried to beat into him, that shows him breaking away from Mint Eye. That is the first step in the process of getting him out of there. It is not easy by any means, but by God were you so close to getting him out of there. Lying to Rika? Huge. Making a fake elixir to protect you? Huge. Owning up to the fact that he's terrified for what he's done by bringing you here? Huge. A process of accountability on his part and the beginning of Ray's journey to do the right thing.

Every conversation you had with Ray up until this point has helped him little by little realize you care about him and it's not something you're going to throw away. Your affection for him isn't something that's going to be yanked away like a carrot on a string, you intend to give him kindness because you believe he deserves it very inherently, meaning that he doesn't have to prove himself to receive it. He is all deserving of love, just as anyone else is, and you want him to know that because seeing him destroy himself is painful.

Even at the moment when you hold him close to your heart and there seems to be nothing in the world that could tell him you didn’t mean what you told him, there’s still some unease in his chest. You can't help somebody overcome years of insecurity and months of torture with a single kiss. But, it's a start, and the decision to start a journey towards self-reflection is what’s hopeful. 

There's still a hint of what he thought was love when you kiss him. It's not hard to miss. But, if you've been paying attention to the way he's been talking, you'll have noticed that the pressure he laid down to stay with him near the beginning of your journey has decreased by a significant margin. He is no longer trying to find ways to manipulate you into staying with him. 

He's trying to find ways to understand your heart and what it means to be close to the real you.

He's less focused on trying to convince you that this place is great, and he starts to reveal what's going on inside his head. He tells you why he’s lost and afraid, he tells you what keeps him awake at night, and he tells you how he’s come to believe this is truly the only place for him to exist.

His desperation is what asks you to stay with him because he wants to be with you if you’ll have him, but he can’t understand why you don’t want to stay in Mint Eye when he's been coerced to believe this is the only place he can exist. It's important to understand the huge difference in language.

But, now as you hold him close to your heart, his fantasy is starting to fade away by the minute. He's less focused on trying to make sense of his dreams and more focused on trying to understand the reality of what you're living in. You know, "If there really is a paradise, I wish you would be there with me." He's not calling Mint Eye a paradise, he said he would want to be in a "paradise" with you.

Little adjustments to his manner of speech stand out. Read between the lines and compare and contrast the way that Ray talks to you at the beginning and more so as you get closer to him. All that work you laid down as you got closer to him mattered so damn much that I can not even begin to explain it in a single sentence. Do you know why it matters so much?

Rika had eyes and ears on Ray. She knew what you were doing, she knew what you were telling Ray, and she knew Ray was on the cusp of leaving her behind. So, what did Rika do when someone told her Ray kissed the Special Missionary? She got rid of him, or she tried to get rid, at least.

She is using him for everything she can get out of him. She intends to use him until he is no longer useful, and your trying to convince him that he has value goes against everything she's been fighting to make him believe. The minute you help him realize that he has more worth than what she's given to him is the minute he decides to leave. Rika can't have him abandon her, she's the only person who can abandon someone, she says. I'm the only one who gets to decide who suffers after V tried to decide everything for me.

The only reason why he is punished is because you were only an inch away from helping him escape Mint Eye. 

You were THAT close.

He manages to call you somewhere amidst the torture because he finds the courage to tell you the truth. He wants to be with you more than anything in the world because he finally realized being with you made him feel like he was worth something, but he isn't allowed to exist in paradise. He was never meant to know what this felt like this, what it felt like to be loved by someone as kind as you to him, and if he doesn't take this torture, you will know this torture. 

"I must be gone for our salvation. I need to be gone for you to stay in paradise."

vs

"No, no! I want to stay! I want to see you so much! Please, I don't want to disappear! I miss you, please... please! Abandon me, save yourself!"

This is Ray trying to fight the programming that was beaten into him, but he ultimately lost his battle in the basement. He was so close to getting out of Mint Eye but Rika knew better than to turn her back on him. She knew she had to snuff out his light if she wanted to use him for what he was worth.

I do not doubt in my heart that he fought as much as he could to survive those hours of suffering and torment, but he was fighting Rika and God knows how many guards as they shoved elixir down his throat and told him he was a failure. I can't blame him for not being able to believe in his dreams when they held a bottle of poison to his throat and told him he needed to obey or you would suffer. 

Your last interaction with Ray as himself is when Saeran shuts down. When you tell Saeran that you won't treat him like Ray to give him the love he deserves, because you know treating Saeran like Ray won't be good or healthy for him. You want to love him as Saeran, not as Ray... and the idea of being loved as himself is torture. He'll die if the Savior finds out you love him (and he, you, in return) because that's literally what happened to Ray.

Pretending to be Ray was his only hope of tasting that adoration for even a moment. Because he understood inherently that love and kindness would always be a weakness in Mint Eye. Showing even a small amount of that weakness would’ve had him destroyed, and if they destroyed him, there would be nothing to protect whatever remained of Ray, and you. If he's gone and incapable of being the sword and shield of "strength", there will be no hope for all three of you.

I digress, I've talked about Suit Saeran’s desire to be loved before, so I don’t think I need to go too depth about that right here. Just know he craves love too, but he won't let himself have it because he's afraid of being tortured like Ray was for unleashing his desires. He wants to be the strongest so nobody tries to torture him ever again, even when it could cost him a chance at happiness.

I.E. Bad Ending 2, where Suit Saeran goes too far and he breaks the player completely beyond repair and he can't put you back together again even though he realizes he shouldn't have done what he did in the first place.

This moment is the one where everything finally comes to a head and Ray looks you in the eyes and confesses the truth. He apologizes to you for everything he's done, for tricking you, for deceiving you, for putting you in this predicament in the first place all because he was so obsessed with the idea of you.

Even if you decided to give him a chance, even if you decided he was worth fighting for, and even if you decided you wanted to be with him despite everything—Ray understood in that moment you deserved an apology because he shouldn't have deceived you in the first place. He acknowledges that he is guilty, not just Saeran.

They both hurt you and there is no excuse for their actions. Ray is able to conceptualize this need to apologize first, and his ability to own up to everything that's happened so far is what opens the door for Saeran to do the same.  

He tells you that you need to put yourself first, that you need to protect yourself and if it comes down to it, if you need to choose between him or yourself, he would want you to choose yourself. After all this time he spent trying to convince you to abandon everything and stay with him in this false paradise, he realizes that you deserve to decide for yourself what it is you want and after everything that's happened, it's your choice and he can't blame you for whatever you choose. 

He can't force you to stay with him. He can't manipulate you to stay with him. He can't get on his hands and knees and tell you not to abandon him just because he's afraid.

If you want to stay with him, it should be because that's something you want, not because it's something he's tried to make you do for him.

He understands that now, and he began to understand that before, it was hard to see it under all the torture and pain he was experiencing before, unfortunately.

You helped him realize that he's always been a person deserving of love and affection, and if it wasn't for this dire situation, if it wasn't for the fact that he knows if he's not careful you'll be tortured within an inch of your life, his words in this moment would be filled with more gratitude at having the chance to have known you. He's unfortunately still beating himself down because he's not sure if there will ever be a way for him to exist in a world that won't try to destroy him. 

But, he wanted you to know, no matter what, you helped him realize he was worth more than what he thought he was. You made him see meaning in what he imagined was NOTHING. Rika never for Ray to be anything but a tool, and you showed him that Ray mattered.

His existence mattered.

It meant something.

He meant something.

Ray: “Ever since I met you, I thought that I might be able to stay in this world. You made my name mean something when it was never meant to mean anything. You're kind, one of the kindest people I've ever met, and I wish... I wish I could stay with you... but I've hurt you so much.”

Suit Saeran, hours later: "You know, the name Ray wasn't supposed to mean something... but you look a little sad every time I say it. I'm certain that's because you made him feel real... made him feel like he was allowed to be something, more than just an airhead who did all the work they forced down his throat."

Ray realizing that true love sometimes means being willing to let someone go because the environment around the two of you is only going to destroy you in the end is huge for someone who thought his love could only be founded in fantasy. A boy who was ready to cling desperately to you and do anything he could to make you stayed by his side willfully choosing to let you go because he never should have tried to cage you in the first place? 

Character growth!

This here is the pivotal moment when you should understand his love for you has become real, and it is not founded in the obsession it was at the get go. I don't know how else to spell this out any clearer for people to understand, but if I missed anything and you're not sure about something you've come across in the game, please point it out because I would love to talk about it. 

I know that this game is not perfect by any means when it comes to showing his character progression, but the concept is there, and as long as you're looking like you will find it readily. 

[hysel-e]

☀️ A Vacation to Remember ☀️

"Last year, I wanted to invite you to the beach, but you immediately shot me down without even hearing me out,” you said, pretending to wipe away imaginary tears. “You wounded me, you know. Oh, how times have changed.”

“I had better things to do than to spend my summer break with you,” Orter deadpanned, adjusting his glasses as he spoke.

“So you were just shy. I get it. Since you agreed to go this time, I'll take that as a sign we’re growing closer~”

“Do not put words into my mouth.”

You, Orter, and Alex were currently at the beach for summer break. It took a lot of convincing from both you and Alex before Orter finally agreed to be abducted to the beach.

However, while you and Alex were playing in the ocean, a certain four-eyes was seated in the shade, reading a book.

Noticing this transgression, you made your way over to him. "Why are you reading at the beach? Your habit of overreading is precisely the reason why your eyes turn into 3s when you take your glasses off,” you remarked, casting a playful glance at him.

Before Orter could respond to your cheeky remark, Alex approached with something in his hand. “I brought a slaughtermelon!"

"Why would you bring that here?" Orter asked, a trace of revulsion colored his face.

"It's times like these when you gotta smash melons, dummy!" Alex exclaimed enthusiastically.

"'Tis the season," you concurred, eyeing Orter mischievously.

"Speaking of smashing melons... Orter's pretty hard-headed. We could smash the slaughtermelon onto his head,” you suggested, half-jokingly. “I doubt he would sustain any brain damage due to that skull of his.”

Immediately following your words, you were pulled into the sand, finding yourself eye-level with Orter's feet. You had forgotten that you were currently in his natural territory.

“Did I lie, though?”

As night descended, you found Orter by the shore, his nose buried in a book as usual.

Approaching with a playful smile, you asked, “Mind if I join you?”

Without lifting his gaze from the pages, he replied, “What’s the point of asking? You’d do so regardless.”

“You’re so right, Orter. I can’t believe you know me so well,” you chuckled, earning a slight “tsk” from him.

“So, what brings you out here at this hour while Alex is fast asleep?” you inquired, settling down beside him.

Orter, as dry as ever, responded, “I went out to get away from you, but it appears that plan failed."

Without skipping a beat, you flashed a wide grin. “Then I’ll have no choice but to make you enjoy my company~”

At this point, he had completely abandoned any hope of reading in peace.

“What makes you think I want that?” Orter glanced your way, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"I mean, who wouldn't want someone as charming as myself for company?" you remarked confidently, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Knowing that arguing with you was only a waste of time and breath, he let out an exasperated sigh and resigned himself to your presence, listening to your ramblings while gazing at the scenery.

It was a night of the full moon, the sky adorned with countless stars.

They say that the company you keep can enhance moments like these...

Though Orter was not one to appreciate the natural beauty of the night, the scene tonight was particularly alluring.

At some point, you fell silent. Resting your head on your knees, you watched as Orter absorbed the view before him with his usual expressionless face. His presence alone had a way of making your heart skip a beat.

Opportunities to silently enjoy his company like this were rare, so you were savoring every second.

The scene of the ocean and sky illuminated by the full moon was breathtaking, and yet… you found the concentric rings in his eyes far more captivating.

“Quit staring,” his voice interrupted your trance.

“Oh, was I..? Maybe because the person I’m looking at is too mesmerizing to avert my eyes,” you teased.

Your comeback left him momentarily at a loss for words. Never before had he had to deal with anyone this... brazen. “You and your jokes. Your shamelessness knows no bounds, does it?” he said, adjusting his glasses.

"Yep. Since you already know how shameless I am, I'd like to take a picture of you; it'll last longer," you replied with a wink.

"A camera would be required for that," he remarked dryly.

"Don't underestimate me. I come prepared for every situation," you said, producing a camera out of thin air.

"Let's take one together," you suggested, closing the distance between you.

Orter didn't mind the proximity, per se, but it was the sudden closeness that flustered him. “Fine,” he relented, “but just one photo.”

With a click, the picture was captured.

The photo was a success. "It's perfect! I'll make sure to cherish this picture forever," you giggled, filled with genuine delight.

Turning to Orter, you added with a grin, "Oh, and just for the record, I'm only this shameless when it comes to you."

Orter averted his gaze, his ears tinged with red. "Hand me a copy. I need to make sure you didn't make me look foolish."

As you handed him a copy, you noticed a subtle softening in his eyes. “You don't look silly at all. It’s impossible to make you look silly. The camera likes you just as much as I do,��� you teased, nudging him playfully with your elbow.

“I suppose it’s an acceptable photograph,” he reluctantly admitted, as he carefully placed the photo into his book, marking the page he had been reading.

In that moment, you felt grateful for the scenery that lay before your eyes, for the cool ocean breeze that caressed your skin, for his presence that comforted your very soul, and you hoped Orter felt the same way too.

With softened eyes and heartfelt sincerity, you expressed, “I’m truly glad, Orter, that you’re part of this photograph and this precious memory of mine...”

[abitohoney]

Loving your work Honey. Reader crushes on Sev since they frequent the same workout gym? I crave one where Sev workouts frequently. I think its so obvi she takes good care of her body aside from the smoking, drinking, and fighting lolol ^_^ - Kimari

I'm glad you're enjoying my silly little stories. Thank you! 🥰

Clearly, this woman works out. LOOK AT HER BICEP! 🥵

I could totally see Sevika purposefully working out in front of the gym window, hoping to catch the attention of some cute thing that happens to stroll by. I personally have no time for the gym, but if I found out Sevika was frequenting my local gym you better believe I'd be signing up for a membership! Or at least staring at her from the window. I have like zero flirting skills, so I’d probably do something stupid like hold a sign up to said window with my number on it and mouth the words “call me” while holding my fingers to the side of my head like a phone.

Anyway…

Drabble/ficlet (1.4k words) below the cut. (Gonna treat this like a modern AU as I doubt Zaun has gyms. At least not like we are accustomed to. Probably just a creepy abandoned warehouse or basement with a punching bag and a bench, or something like Jinx's cool punching contraption.)

SFW (Gasp! Me? Writing something without smut?)

You had been considering getting yourself a gym membership for some time. You just needed a little extra push before finally biting the bullet. Little did you know, that push would come in the form of a window display. And it wasn’t the equipment.

After having heard about a new promotion at one of your local gyms, you decided to go check the place out. As you strode past the large windows lining the front of the establishment, you curiously peered inside. A long row of treadmills and bikes lined the first half or so, most of them occupied. Nothing surprising about that. But when you continued on, noting a series of benches, something- or rather someone- caught your eye.

You froze in your spot and turned to face said eye-catching person. And, my oh my, did you just find your reason to get that membership. Standing beside one of the benches lifting a single dumbbell was a tall, dark, and incredibly buff woman. Immediately your eyes were drawn to a flexing bicep.

Wow.

Just as the woman's gaze lifted to peer outside in your direction, you quickly resumed your trek towards the entrance, praying she hadn't seen you gaping.

While the girl behind the front desk recited the rules and conditions, you quickly found yourself tuning her out completely. Instead, you scanned the gym, hoping to get another glimpse of the attractive woman. As if the gods heard your wish, you spotted her striding across the room. And not only that, she was staring right at you. Your eyes locked with hers and her dark lips pulled into a small smirk. It only lasted for a fleeting moment before her eyes left yours, but it was enough to make your stomach flutter and your pulse quicken.

Wait- was she… smiling at-

"Excuse me, ma'am," the voice of the clerk pulled you out of your daze.

Reluctantly, you turned back to her and mumbled a quick apology.

"Do you understand the rules and agree to the terms and conditions of the membership?" She repeated.

You failed to take note of her irritated tone, still swooning over that brief moment. So you simply gave her a quick, "Yes, I understand." The sooner you got this over with, the sooner you could get in that gym.

To workout.

That's all.

With a brand new shiny membership card, you started visiting the gym. Frequently. For no other reason than to improve your health. The fact that you happened to notice which days your latest crush visited, and happened to set your schedule to the same days was entirely coincidence. At least that's what you would tell anyone who asked.

Although you always situated yourself far enough from the woman, you still ensured you faced her, observing her as nonchalantly as you could manage. Taking mental notes.

She rarely spoke to anyone. Only mumbled something to herself under her breath occasionally. She normally looked rather perturbed, brows furrowed and lips pulled into a frown. But anytime her eyes met yours, those soft-looking lips of hers pulled into the faintest smirk. Her left arm was actually a prosthetic, mostly metal, and painted to look like a mix of copper and gold, with neon purple accents that resembled tubing.

It wasn't until one day on her way out that you finally learned of her name.

"See you next Monday, Sevika!" You overheard the girl behind the desk call out with a smile. A smile you thought looked a bit suspicious. A little too… flirty. Not that you cared. Nope!

So… Sevika? What a gorgeous name. Fitting.

Several weeks passed without so much as a word to or from Sevika. You simply admired her from a distance. Admired how her workout clothes- a simple pair of shorts and a tank that revealed her midriff- clung to every line and every curve. How the expanse of her exposed rich, brown skin glistened with sweat. How each muscle beneath her arms, across her back, and down her legs- all flexed as she moved. She really gave a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘tall, dark, and handsome’. She was truly stunning.

A goddess among men.

But you would never approach her. You were far too fearful of rejection. After all, what would a goddess want with a mere mortal like you? So you settled for just crushing on her, daydreaming of what it might be like to feel those muscles beneath your hands. To feel those strong arms wrapped around you as she holds you tight.

However, as you would soon find out, she had her eyes on you as well.

One day, as you took a seat on the nearest weight bench, you discovered Sevika situated not more than a few feet from you. She was bent over, back to you, and facing a mirror while she picked up a large weight in her flesh hand.

Momentarily forgetting what you even sat down to do, you let your eyes travel up the backs of her toned calves and over the curve of her ass. And as she straightened up, you were blessed with the expanse of her muscular back. When your gaze reached her broad shoulders you gawked, transfixed on those muscles as they moved like waves behind her smooth skin.

Realization hit all too late that you were openly ogling this woman, and your eyes darted to the mirror to check if you’d been caught. Reflected gray eyes locked onto yours.

Shit!

She caught you. And yet you couldn’t look away from those beautiful gray eyes, caught like a deer in headlights. Oddly enough though, she didn’t appear angry. Instead, out of your periphery you notice a small upward tug at the corner of her mouth.

Ripped from your stupor, you quickly turned away, praying to any deity willing to listen that Sevika somehow hadn’t known you’d been intentionally watching her. Too flustered by that slip-up, you laid back on the bench and just grabbed the barbell previously loaded on the hooks, with no regard for just how heavy it might be.

You somehow managed to lift the damn thing, but then nearly dropped it on your chest. You strained to keep it up, every muscle in your arms screaming and burning.

God, if you died right here, like an idiot, in front of the most gorgeous woman you’ve ever seen-

“Need a spotter?” a delightfully deep voice called.

Fuck, you really were dying. You could hear the voice of an angel.

Wait- a spotter? Why the hell would an angel say that?

You tilted your head back against the bench to find a pair of familiar gray eyes peering down at you, and just below those was a pair of dark lips curled into a lopsided grin.

Just let me die now.

Suddenly being caught gaping earlier didn’t feel nearly as embarrassing.

“Please,” you gasped.

With no effort, Sevika grasped the barbell and lifted it back onto the hooks.

“Thanks,” you panted as you sat up. You watched her from your periphery, too ashamed to meet her gaze. You expected her to leave. To return to her routine now that she’d saved the dumbass who tried to lift more than they could handle. To your surprise, she remained at your side, her large frame casting a shadow over you with how close she stood.

"Can't help but notice the way you've been watching me," she finally said after an excruciating stretch of silence.

Damn, her voice was just as smooth and rich as her body.

Her words replayed in your head, finally sinking in. Heat rushed up your neck and flooded your cheeks. Had you really been that obvious- besides just today?

"Oh I- I'm sorry I-" you stammered.

"Maybe you'd like to do more than watch?" she asked, not allowing you to finish your pathetic attempt at an apology.

"What? I- You mean…" Why were words suddenly so fucking hard?

"Let me take you out to dinner tonight."

Oh, that's not what you thought she meant. Of course she didn't mean anything like that.

"I'd really like that,” you replied sheepishly and finally looked up at her with a small smile.

Yeah? Hmm," she hummed. Then she leaned over and brought her mouth to your ear. "Then maybe afterward we can go to your place for dessert?"

AN: I feel like a lot of what I write is incredibly cheesy/corny. I'm such a dork. I'm sorry. 😭 Sevika would like a dorky gf though. At least that's what I tell myself. Lol

[balanceoflightanddark]

Monsters We Create Chapter 20 Update

Apologies for the delay. Again. I...broke my foot and it took me a while to get myself together. That and I'm going on vacation to Alaska next weekend so...yeah.

But I do have Chapter 20, which is roughly about 50% done. Maybe. So to hold everyone in the meantime, here's a little snippet of the chapter as a sort of appetizer. Forgive me if it's a little rough.

They walked a good distance away from the war tent. Yet not once did Kori let her guard down. Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee. Three names she had a lot of good reason to be wary of. One was the Fire Lord, obviously. It wasn’t too long ago when he nearly got Yu Dao destroyed out of his own stupidity. The other two? She could understand Azula being difficult, yet to turn their backs so suddenly and completely was beyond her.

When they came to an abandoned training ground, Zuko turned around. “Alright. We’re here.”

“If you think you can get me to stab a knife in Azula’s back-”

“Listen! I’m not here to talk about Azula. At all. I meant it when I said she’s going around unbound. It’s just…well, you know how she is! I can’t trust her with all these rogue armies running around. Somebody’s got to keep tabs on her,” Zuko explained.

“Besides, we’ve got Mai here if Azula needs some knives thrown at - OW!” Ty Lee rubbed her arm after Mai gave her a swift and rather hard elbow.

Zuko simply sighed from their little spat. “The point is, if you can keep Azula in check, that’s great. I only have the guards there so it can keep those generals off my back. And hers. They wanted her thrown back into that asylum.”

“You could’ve just told her that, but whatever,” Kori muttered. It amazed her. He says that he wants to do good, but then has some secret or leaves some lasting remark that invalidates it. No wonder he and Azula were so dysfunctional. Seemed like the only way they could even interact was through backstabbing, betrayals, and fighting. If this was what they were like when they were allies, she didn’t want to see how they were when the pleasantries failed and fire was being thrown.

Agni help her no fire was thrown today yet. She certainly didn’t see it in the Fire Lord’s eyes right now. They were…well, dull. His shoulders were a bit slumped. It was as if he aged a few years in the span of a few days.

“Can we forget Azula for a few minutes? It’s not why I called you out here.” Zuko swallowed as he collected himself. “I know you’re part of that movement the assassination attempt came from. Your father talked quite a bit about what you’ve been up to.”

“I assure you, our movement was to protest and prevent innocents from being harassed by Fire Nation guards! None of us had any intention of murdering anybody!” Kori still couldn’t believe it. Who’d be stupid enough to make an attempt on the Fire Lord’s life? She wasn’t a fan of his either, but nothing he did indicated he was personally overseeing what was going on in Yu Dao. A bit ignorant and heavy handed, but not responsible. It’s one thing if he stepped in personally and started threatening people.

Yet an attempt at his life without any solid reason for? That was inviting for the army to come in and stomp on their movement. Who knew how many civilians would be caught in such an escalation?

“I know. It’s why I want you to look into it.”

Kori, out of surprise or bafflement, let Zuko continue. “I get it. The Fire Nation hasn’t done Yu Dao much good. I’d even wager you and your people have done more for the benefit of this city in a few months than my country has for over a hundred years.” His eyes went downward for a moment, as he swallowed a lump in his throat.

Yet it only lasted for a moment before he took another breath. “Figure out what’s going on and who sent that kill order. I’ll do things on my end with the assassin. Maybe together we can bring whoever did this to justice.”

The rebel wasn’t sure what to say. It sounded too good to be true. Indeed, after running his proposal through her head, she saw the problem. “I appreciate the offer, Fire Lord. But as long as that captain and his thugs roam the streets, there’s only going to be more violence. Whoever’s doing this wouldn’t be able to get away with it if the guards didn’t build this pyre of theirs.”

“They will be brought to justice,” Zuko responded. “I’m going to try and override this curfew and get a tighter leash on the officers. If you can work on your end and help me bring this mastermind down, that’ll give them less incentive to crack down on your people.”

When he ended, he once again remained silent and waited for her response. Mai and Ty Lee stood on the sidelines watching the whole thing, giving Kori more eyes that were on her. Truth be told, she still couldn’t trust him. Who could? Everyone said he had the hallmarks of his father right down to how he ascended to the throne. And who could say they bring peace when they wear a crown drenched in blood.

Yet he didn’t wear the crown now. No grandeur. Nothing. He was baring his true intentions out to her. If nothing else, she could trust that. “Alright. All I can say is there might be some Fiery Raptors within their ranks.”

Ty Lee snorted. “Of course, Azula would pull something like that.”

“It’s not what you think,” Kori interrupted, making sure they all had her attention. “I wanted some people to back us up in the protests in case things got violent. She offered to have some of her men to back us up and I said yes.”

“Can’t say I blame you there. You go up against soldiers, you’re going to need some muscle.”

“Who’s side are you on?!” Ty Lee yelled at Mai, her frustration with her reaching a boiling point.

The emotionless girl just gave a noncommittal shrug. “I’m just saying it as it is. From what I’ve heard, the Mayor hasn’t exactly done a good job of keeping the peace on his end. Can’t blame Azula for taking advantage of something that was already there. We certainly did.” Ty Lee promptly shut up from Mai’s assessment, looking a bit downcast herself.

Kori also had a harsh truth slapped in her face. Her father. Mayor Morishita, the one most responsible for Yu Dao’s woes. He’s the one who ultimately had control of the garrison and determined who was in charge. If it weren’t for him, that captain and his goons probably wouldn’t be able to run rampant and bully the citizens into submission.

Still, it was a hard truth to swallow. Needless to say, his actions were part of the reason her mother left a long time ago. True, she made her peace with it when she saw what her father’s cronies were willing to do. Yet it still hurt too much to ignore.

Something that Zuko noticed. “You know your father’s going to have to go on trial for what he’s done. Right?”

Forcing down her queasiness, Kori crossed her arms and tried not to look like she was hugging herself. “I understand.”

“Good.” Then, the Fire Lord did something rather unexpected. He walked up and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. It was…surprisingly warm. Kori wasn’t sure what to make of it before she saw the scar on his face. Seemed as though she wasn’t the only one who had issues with her parents.

A similar story was told with Mai and Ty Lee, who gazed at her with soft eyes. Kori wondered: what was it about the Fire Nation that equaled parental issues? She had her father. The girls had their parents. Agni help Azula and Zuko for getting stuck with Ozai as a father.

Azula.

“Before I agree to this, there’s something you need to promise me,” Kori declared.

Zuko looked a bit surprised but then gave an uneasy nod. Having got his attention, the rebel dropped the ultimatum. “Give Azula a chance. Stop treating her like she’s the worst thing in the world. And stop treating her like a bomb about to go off.”

“...you know I can’t do that,” he admitted with pain in his voice.

Yet Kori stood her ground. “Nobody’s asking you to forget. I’m simply stating that if you want this thing to work out, you need to uphold your end. That means no threats. No harassments. No lies. And no dangling her over a cliff. Got it?”

He shuddered when she threw out that last demand, but that didn’t soften her glare. Especially when she saw Mai and Ty Lee paralyzed in shock. Oh yeah. Azula told her about his little stunt that almost got him killed. She didn’t care if it was a low blow or not. If it meant he wouldn’t pull the same garbage twice, then so much is the better.

As for Zuko, he didn’t say anything for white seemed like an eternity. Then he gave a defeated nod and said, “Alright. As long as she isn’t a problem.”

Satisfied, Kori turned to rejoin her friends. Since that’s what friends do after all. Though not before she said one last thing. “I do mean it. You try anything without any incentive…just remember what happened with Godzilla. It won’t end well.”

And so she left, leaving the trio behind. Truth be told, she didn’t enjoy having to lay out the cold truth. Yet Zuko struck her as somebody who needed to be slapped in the face and have a rock hammering into his skull in order to get the point across. Agni knows how many of those blockheads she had to put up with growing up.

Mentally she kicked herself for having to go from one blockhead to ANOTHER blockhead. If there was one thing Azula and her brother had in common, it was digging in and covering their ears when they didn’t want whatever ideas they had in their head to be challenged. Sort of made things a bit depressing that it took a kaiju of all things to get them to cooperate.

Let’s just hope they haven’t killed each other by the end of this, Kori prayed.

[sleepsonclouds]

Clouds tropespots: The Spirealm, E07

Episode 7 (Birthday party, 2nd door)

Most important thing in the episode: Nanzhu and Chestnut blackmail Qiushi into moving house! Was there a door? Right.

Competence kink: Lin Qiushi figures out all the time travel nonsense. He's got a chalkboard and everything, and gets mad when his nerdery is interrupted! Hot. They're both so appreciative of each other's cleverness.

Bop: Nanzhu pokes Qiushi, and not for the last time. Cute. Qiushi's inner geek is triggered.

Arming your partner (matching set): While apprehending the door god, Nanzhu sneakily hands Qiushi a metal book end and keeps one for himself.

Synchronized action: Plans have been planned. Nanzhu snaps his fingers, and Qiushi follows the plan flawlessly… To the point of catching Nanzhu when the door god hits him. Unfortunately, the plan fails.

Never has anyone apologised to me (so romantically): Time's running out. Qiushi apologises to Nanzhu for the fact that they're about to die. Nanzhu: "Why?" Qiushi: "This is my door. It has nothing to do with you. You came because of me." I'm so proud of Qiushi for Getting A Clue! Nanzhu: "Not entirely because of you." Why are you so bashful then, sir? Nanzhu will never recover from this.

Giving your partner a ring (cont.): Qiushi puts his ring on again! Nanzhu: "It looks good on you." Subtle, he is not. He looks incredibly soft when handing Qiushi the key.

Breaking into partner's home: The door opens to Qiushi's flat. Nanzhu is already chilling on his couch, petting his cat (!). They both ended up there for Reasons.

Asking partner to move in (coersion): Qiushi agrees to join Obsidian. "Move to Obsidian", corrects Nanzhu. As one does. Nanzhu uses underhanded tactics, including bedroom eyes and holding Qiushi's cat hostage. Look, doesn't petting him look nice… Nanzhu and the cat are even colour-coded. Can't have one without the other: "When you move to Obsidian, Chestnut might let you get closer to him." Nanzhu's completely sure this will work and tells Qiushi to pack up. He's right.

Who's the wife?: Cheng Qianli to Qiushi, still cat-related: "You look like a wife who's been abandoned by his husband." Sure, Qianli means nothing by it. The writers, on the other hand… They'll play around with family/gender quite a bit, quite soon.

What's yours is mine: Qiushi: "My cat is quite close to you." Nanzhu: "What's yours is mine. What's mine is still mine." So perfect. So Nanzhu. No one is at all possessive.

Taking care of hurt partner: Qiushi finds Nanzhu when he's come out of a door, about to collapse. He's just overexerted himself, which doesn't stop Qiushi from worrying and waiting at his bedside. When he does wake up, Qiushi chills on his bed, offers him water etc. Looking at the positioning, Qiushi is starting to take up more space. You get the impression of two people who are comfortable with each other.

Holding onto hurt partner (unnecessary): Qiushi helps Nanzhu downstairs. He's not even supporting Nanzhu, just holding his arm and wrist, more like escorting him… Nanzhu is certainly not protesting.

Next up: -> Episode 8, new door, sickly-since-childhood Nanzhu, new beds (plural)

[jadevalentine-writes]

WIP - Chapter 1 - Good Omens Fanfic

Woops I fell into the Good Omens fandom and am in my second era of being obsessed with David Tennant, please send help. Wanted to get Chapter 1 finished tonight but they WILL NOT. Stop. TALKING. Have this preview instead! <3 Much love - Jade

That night started like many others. 

It was half-past six and they were leaving the bookshop for dinner. Aziraphale was excitedly pitching a new restaurant as they weaved between pedestrians and the few automobiles that decided to snail down the street. 

“Apparently they have the most lovely oysters!”

That nearly stopped Crowley in his tracks. 

“Oysters?” he asked as they approached the Bentley. “Well, I haven’t had good oysters since-”

“Rome,” they both said. 

Aziraphale let the small smile that tugged on his lips blossom when he saw the crooked one on Crowley’s face. 

“Now those were oysters! We can always go to Rome, you know,” Crowley added as he opened the driver door and folded himself inside the old car.

“I know,” Aziraphale said, a bit wistfully as he slowly opened the other door - the Bentley preferred his gentle touch, he thought. “For tonight, however, I’ll make due with these oyst-ow!” 

Aziraphale felt something jab him in the back of the head after he pulled his legs in and shut the door (gently). When he turned to inspect what had intruded upon his skull, he was met with a face full of green foliage. 

“Crowley?” he asked as the demon in question started the engine and the Bentley started to pull away from the curb. 

“M’yeah?”

“Why are your plants in the backseat?”

“Mm?” Crowley turned his head completely around to look into the backseat, ignoring the road in front of him. Aziraphale gripped the edges of his seat as the Bentley miraculously swerved around a parked car and half-dozen pedestrians without Crowley’s notice. 

“Oh yeah,” Crowley mumbled as he turned back around, attention once again lazily on the road. “Just thought they needed some fresh air is all.”

Aziraphale furrowed his brows. Sarcasm, but just a dash. Meaning whatever the real reason was, Crowley was sore about it. Aziraphale decided to press his luck. 

“Is there something wrong with your flat?”

“What? Ah, no, no, uh, flat’s good.” And then, quieter, “I think.”

“You think?” Aziraphale asked gently. 

Crowley shrugged, unaffected by the questioning or the other vehicles he tore past at three times the speed limit. 

“Yes, I think. Haven’t exactly been there in a few months myself.”

“A few months?” Aziraphale turned to Crowley, no longer worried about the road. “Crowley, what happened to your flat?” 

Aziraphale fought and failed to keep an image of Crowley’s pristine flat in flames from his mind. Then again, Crowley would be quite at home in fire. Suddenly the image warped and the flat in his mind became flooded with a complicated sprinkler system of holy water. He shuddered and shook his head to banish the thought. 

“Nothing happened to it!” Crowley groused. “At least, I hope not. Rather, it’s a bit occupied at the moment. And not by me! Hence the plants. I couldn’t abandon them, now could I?” 

Although Aziraphale smiled at Crowley’s affection for his chlorophyll companions, he would not let his…fondness for the demon distract him from the matter at hand. 

“And just what is occupying your flat so that the plants can’t be there?” Or, Aziraphale dared to think, who?

Crowley growled and Aziraphale could feel his lovely golden eyes glare at him beyond the dark shades. Crowley wrung his hands on the steering wheel and Aziraphale soothed the Bentley with a delicate pat on the dashboard. 

“My…replacement,” the demon spat. “You know, since-” here Crowley waved his left hand which, though somewhat distracting - Aziraphale always did think he had lovely hands - did well to encompass everything that has transpired since Armageddon-that-never-was. “Anyway turns out that my flat, er, the flat, was part of the job in the fineprint.” He sighed and sagged into his seat slightly. “You think I would have known. I invented the concept of fineprint in contracts. Guess I never thought it would be used against me.” 

Aziraphale was silent as he pondered Crowley’s words. They had both been left well enough alone after saving the world. A small price to pay, he supposed, considering neither of them were discorporated. Who would have guessed that their ruse would frighten each other’s sides so much they would have a semblance of worry-free existence for several months? 

At the end of the day, though, both sides still needed to get things done. Tax fraud would not commit itself, you know? Aziraphale supposed it made sense that Hell would replace Crowley since he was no longer truly aligned with their side. Though if that were the true reasoning, he supposed Hell should have sent a replacement a long time ago. 

“Just so I understand, your replacement is living in your, eh, the flat because it comes with the job?”

“Mmhm.” The noise was small, but Aziraphale could almost hear Crowley’s teeth grind together as he spit it out. 

“And they could not be trusted to care for your plants?”

“Oh, absolutely not!” 

“I see…and…does that mean you’ve been living in the car as well?”

Crowley opened his mouth to answer, but no sound came out. He tilted his head side-to-side, his jaw flexing as though trying our words to fit, but ultimately settling on nothing. His jaw clicked close and Aziraphale felt the Bentley speed up in response.

“Crowley, you could have-”

“Oh, look, we’re here!”

The Bentley jerked to a halt, though neither passenger moved forward an inch. Aziraphale narrowed his eyes while Crowley’s mouth stretched in a wide grin. 

“Why don’t you miracle us up a table while I find parking, eh angel?”

[bardinthezone]

Watching Making myself sit through Moffat's Who, trying to give it a decent chance and I can't stand it already. Y'know why?

The stupid fucking love triangle.

Because not only is it just generally annoying as a trope, but it is so poorly written here. It takes over the show in a really obnoxious way and completely flanderizes characters who, in the first episode, were decent people.

Rory is portrayed as a fool for being... concerned that his fiance is cheating on him with the not-actually-imaginary friend she's been obsessed with since childhood, who she ran off with and kissed (A normal thing to be concerned about!!). And just generally, he's portrayed as a bumbling idiot. As the one who just gets confused and makes one-liners about being insecure. And both Amy and the Doctor just brush him off, leave him behind! Mocked by the woman who's supposed to be there for him and abandoned by the Doctor who's meant to keep him safe. He's being reduced to basically just comic relief here, and it sucks.

The Doctor is so.. aloof. More so than 10 and DEFINTELY moreso than 9. He's a silly, childish man who often fails to recognize the emotional consequences of his actions. He has his emotional moments, yes, but a lot of his writing falls victim to what I call "Sherlock Syndrome." When Moffat just writes an aloof super genius and expects the audience to fawn over him because he has good outfits and witty one-liners. Matt Smith is a fantastic actor and he carries a lot of his run, but putting glitter on a turd doesn't stop it being a turd.

Amy is yet another victim of the "every woman falls madly in love with the Doctor" pitfall. Worked with Rose, got old with Martha and after that almost every one-off woman who flirted with him just made me roll my eyes. Her obsession and anger with the Doctor didn't have to be romantic, but Moffat just couldn't resist writing a "strong female protagonist" who's sexy and she knows it, who loves having all the boys fawn over her and flirts without a care in the world. Who's a brash girlboss in charge of her boys, but who also turns into a sobbing damsel in distress at the slightest sign of danger.

All three of these characters are so blatantly characatures of themselves right now that it takes me out of it. They're all just quippy one-liners of their smartness or their brashness or their insecure foolishness. Can these types of people exist in real life? Yeah. But the way they're written about here is just obnoxious. I'm willing to accept that later Moffat seasons might be better than this (at least on the interpersonal conflict side of things), but it's season 1 and he's already dropping the ball so hard.

We could've gotten something truly marvelous, with a PLATONIC conflict based on the Raggedy Man from her childhood finally coming back and offering her freedom from a boring adult life. She's enamored with him, but doesn't entirely trust him because hey, he massively fucked up once already. Maybe Rory is concerned about his place in Amy's life, and Amy tries to be comforting. Maybe she messes up, maybe she says the wrong thing. Maybe she says the wrong thing right before losing Rory to the crack in space and time. But she has to try, because why should I care about a relationship where one person doesn't care about the other's happiness, at least a little? And right now it just feels like she doesn't.

I'm not saying shows shouldn't have interpersonal conflicts and flawed protagonists. They should! But to pull that off well, you have to make us want to see these characters grow. You have to give us a reason to enjoy watching these characters interact, even at their low points. And revisting Moffat's run as an adult, I don't feel enjoyment. I just feel annoyed.

[https-lawrenceslittleone]

PJO YANDERE ALPHABET PART 2

Includes: My OCs (Floraline Sampson, Theodosia Collymor, and Zaria Asghar)

Warnings: Dark content, kidnapping, manipulation, and mentions of attempted suicide as a method of manipulation.

Floraline-

D - Darling (Aside from abduction, would they do anything against their darlings will?):

Honestly, this question makes me kind of uncomfortable, so I’m not gonna go into too much detail. But I feel like she wouldn’t really do…much?? Like she’d get upset when he says no to cuddles or general physical affection, she’ll pout and cross her arms and try to guilt him, but nothing too severe.

E - Exposed (How much of their heart do they bare to their darling? How vulnerable are they when it comes to their darling):

She is VERY vulnerable and emotional with Leo. She gets upset very easily and she’s extremely sensitive, and she’s quick to weaponize that. She loves him so much, she wants him to know everything about her, just like she wants to know everything about him.

F - Fight (How would they feel if their darling fought back?):

She would be heartbroken. Her first response would be to try and calm him down and talk about it, but if that doesn’t work, she’ll start crying and trying to guilt trip him. If that fails too, and she thinks he might leave her, she’ll have to go with the emergency option: abduction. She doesn’t want to, but if it means Leo will stay with her, she will. She treats him as nicely as possible, though. And she blames it on him, telling him that he “should’ve just listened”. He has to earn his freedom back.

Theodosia-

D - Darling:

She’d be a HARDCORE stalker. Like, hiding in public and snapping pictures of him, sneaking into his cabin and stealing various items of his and taking pictures without his permission. Has a little box under her bed filled with various items she’s taken from him.

E - Exposed:

At first, she isn’t very open. She takes a while to really let herself be vulnerable. But, when she does, she takes advantage of it. If she does something that upsets Jason, she’ll start crying and she’ll apologize and blame it on her traumatic childhood. She promises she’ll get better, but she never does.

F - Fight:

She is PISSED. But she tries to remain calm. She’ll try reasoning with him and calming him down, and she’ll try her best to manipulate him in the process. If that doesn’t work, and he walks out on her, she’s devastated. But that’s fine. She goes around her friend group, slowly making up lies about Jason and spreading them. She’ll spread a bunch of horrible rumors and get her friends to help her, to the point where Jason is almost completely isolated, to make him more vulnerable. It doesn’t take long for him to come back to her, for him to apologize and tell her that she was right; she’s the only person who will ever truly love and understand him. He doesn’t try leaving again after that.

Zaria-

D - Darling:

Probably wouldn’t do anything against their wills, honestly. She wants them to love her, not resent her. Everything she does that’s toxic or manipulative (besides the murder), is unintentional. She doesn’t realize it’s manipulation.

E - Exposed:

Very vulnerable, but in a bad way most of the time!! Uses her trauma as leverage too, but doesn’t really understand how it’s bad. If Percy or Annabeth get upset with her, she’ll cling to them with watery eyes and beg them not to be mad at her or leave her, and she’ll tell them she can’t handle more people abandoning her.

F - Fight:

Angry and heartbroken. She knows she doesn’t really stand a chance against them, especially if they try to fight back physically. She’ll completely breakdown, right in front of them. She’ll be sobbing, vomiting, not able to talk. If they left her, she’d be so devastated and just wouldn’t be able to function for weeks. But after a couple months, they all get back together when Zaria “attempts” suicide, purposefully failing. She writes in her “suicide note” that she couldn’t live without Percy and Annabeth, and when they find out, they’re guilted into getting back with her.

[springbons]

ASGORE ISN’T A BAD GUY AND I’M TIRED OF PRETENDING HE IS! (Note: I am wrong. I change my view.)

(Everything below this is Conjecture and my failed opinion, but I refuse to delete it for archival reasons. Consider it a tagline of my failure. Do not take me seriously, cause after review of what others have told me, the whole POINT of the storyline is both of them were being stupid. But then again, this post is mostly “She’s not perfect either, and people need to not hate asgore and give him the love he deserves, and to be able to look past what he did because what she did was just as bad.” That’s the TL;DR.)

That’s it. I’ve had it. I’ve had it for too long. I’m not even mad at the people, I’m more mad at Toriel. Toriel is a selfish woman who caused a million problems, blamed her husband for it, pushed it all onto him to solve, and he’s just trying to do what he can to SLEEP AT NIGHT. Let’s get into it!

WHAT ELSE WAS THERE TO DO?

Let’s start with a line that Toriel says at the end of the run, because this is the hardest to account for IMO, and has pissed me off the most; "If you really wanted to free our kind, you could have gone through the barrier after you got ONE SOUL, taken six SOULs from the humans, then come back and freed everyone peacefully."

Now put yourself in Asgores shoes. You’re a big, fluffy, push-over who has barely enough strength to fight a single human without feeling like scum of the earth. Do you think he would be able to go out and just slaughter 6 innocent lives and live with himself? Do you think he could sleep when every time he closes his eyes he sees one of their faces? No. He made a choice, a difficult one: He found a solace in compromise, the people of the Underground would go free eventually, but he would not hunt those merely living their lives. Let them fall into the mountain, be their own foolishness that lets them get killed.

IT’S HER FAULT TOO!

But Toriel here thinks that’s not good enough. Like his choices were all wrong, as if he had a right one. Well, Ms. Know-It-All, let’s count every single choice you’ve made and see how many fuck-ups we can rack up, hm?

She let a human (Considered Enemies of War at the time) into their home, child or not.

She was so bad at supervising them at she didn’t catch on when they started stuffing Buttercups in their mouth

Ontop of that, had their plan succeeded, ALL humans could’ve ended up dead in some ungodly reign of terror, who knows what would’ve happened then.

Then when his husband declares War on humans for killing their Children despite the fact they were completely peaceful while on the surface, instead of being his only voice of reason and beacon of light remaining, she runs off and secludes herself in the ruins to make him feel bad.

She then spent years manipulating every human child that ever fell into the underground into staying with her, forcing them to stay in her home against their wishes until they finally had to fight her just to leave

And then she doesn’t help them when they DO leave, instead deciding to let them go into this “Harsh and Cruel” world completely unprepared and alone, not even answering their calls.

And she never leaves because why? Because she just couldn’t abandon the grave of her first child. This child, that she brought in, which caused so many problems. Her son is dead, Frisk is haunted by Chara, and all the blame was put onto her Husband, who’s just doing his best.

I even got some extras!

CAUSE WHY NOT?

You could technically say she causes the Genocide Route. Her negligence to watch over The Player, (or Frisk,) as they slaughter countless monsters is humiliating to say the least. She lets a child run rampant, completely on their own, in a dangerous place, and not only do they get hurt in Pacifist, they could level an entire town in Genocide before they get to her home. And then? She reads them a story, and bakes them some pie. How. Lovely. You blind-ass goat.

Another thing that pisses me off is did she ever stop to think how her husband felt after all of that? His children, dead. His wife, gone. A man with no strength and will, left with the toughest possible decision in the worst situation. Do you think that if Asgore didn’t have hundreds-of-thousands counting on him to run the Underground, (Oh yeah, she left him with that responsibility alone too btw,) that he may not have been able to take it? He had to stay strong for so many, he had no other option, but if it was just him? If all that happened while they were above-ground, while he wasn’t king? ...Do you think he would’ve killed himself from the stress alone? Cause I certainly do. Asgore is a very, very hurt soul who didn’t deserve any of what he had to face or do, and Toriel is a fool. I rest my case.