#why am I not being treated kindly in return

[apple-grass-and-smiles]

Very cool and not heartbreaking at all for the PJO show to emphasize that Percy is an outsider not only because he's new to the whole demigod thing, but also because he doesn't know the rules of being a traumatized kid with all the daddy/mommy issues possible

[jinkicake]

Stuck in the Middle

You’re stuck between him and a hard place. 

Diluc, Kaeya, Xiao x Reader

A/N: I’m not going to post this weekend so here is a little something that I finished before I got sick heheh I can’t remember where I got this idea from but I wanted to try writing it

SMUT // NSFW 

WC - 1.7k 

~~~

Diluc R.

“My dear, I am begging you to stop squirming.” Diluc’s usual leveled voice sounds desperate to your own ears, you could almost believe he is starting to pant. You ignore him and shift your weight on your feet, unintentionally rubbing up against the bar owner. 

“I can’t help it,” You bite back as Diluc’s hands tightly squeeze your waist. His fingers dig into your sides as he grits his teeth and tries everything to prevent a nightmare from happening in his pants. “it’s just so tight in here.” The proximity of Diluc’s body pressed against your own starts to make your mind spin with possibilities. 

There are so many things you could do with him if you were not stuck in a closet within the Favonius headquarters. 

“Why did we even plan to regroup here anyway?” At your snappy tone, Diluc silently raises a brow. He doesn’t need to remind you that this was your genius plan and he merely went along with it to see you satisfied. “Just grab the key out of my back pocket then we can leave,”

As you glance back at your pocket and slightly lift your hip in Diluc’s direction, the man stalls in his movements. Diluc hesitates with his hand and hovers it right above your lower back. He extends his touch only to draw it away when he gets too close. 

“I can’t,” He murmurs and you would explode with anger if not for the deep blush now covering his face. 

“You can, you can,” You try your best to encourage him by placing your hands against his abdomen and fisting the material of his shirt in your palms. With each tug of the material, you weaken Diluc’s willpower more and more. “look it’s easy!” In contrast to the owner, with little hesitancy, you stick your hand in Diluc’s back pocket and he stiffens immediately under your touch. The poor man meets your sudden boldness with a swift glare. 

“If it is so easy then why don’t you do it yourself?” His irritation makes you tilt your head as you internally question his audacity. 

“Obviously, I would if I could reach! Your hand is right there, Diluc, just grab it!” Your nails dig into his pants, clawing at his backside and the sensation causes Diluc to press more of his weight against you. “Don’t get all chivalrous on me now.”

“I always treat you kindly,” Diluc all but spits through clenched teeth. 

“Not kindly enough if you won’t bail me out of this closet!” Your arguing is going nowhere but that is kind of the point. If you rile Diluc up just enough then you’ll be happy in no time. 

“How did the door lock in the first place?” 

If you had to guess, you could probably answer his question by merely covering your right eye (if you could bring your hands up to your face). 

“None of that matters! Diluc, we can either fuck in here or fuck on our bed at home. You choose and grab the damn key!” It seems you were too eager with your suggestion by the sudden glint in Diluc’s eyes.

It’s the same reason why you’re grinding on him a handful of minutes later, your moans messily muffled by his own mouth all while the key fits snuggly in Diluc’s palm.

Kaeya A.

Never in a million years did you expect to get stuck with Kaeya in the smallest storage closet known to man. Perhaps it was your fault for going along with his snooping of the Dawn Winery but, you didn’t expect Diluc to return early from his nightly shenanigans. 

Having the cavalry captain shove you into a broom closet with him in tow was not on your list of activities for the evening. 

In the small space, Kaeya is pressed up against you with no room to leave between his chest and pelvis with your backside. You can already feel the ache in your poor muscles from being smooshed up against the hard wall. This will be the last time you go along with the captain’s tricks. 

“Do you come here often?” Kaeya teases you as his lips brush against your ear, his hair tickling your cheek as he lowers his head to speak lowly to you. To hide your irritation, you bite the inside of your cheek and return to him with a sickeningly sweet tone. 

“Kaeya, I will bite your tongue off if you keep talking.” Your snappy retort is met with a low chuckle from the man behind you. The captain squeezes your hips with his large hands before lowering his lips to your jaw. 

“Kinky. Is that a promise?” His effortless charism is something you adore and cherish, but sometimes you really want to make the man crumble. 

It’s almost as if a lightbulb flickers above your head at the idea you’ve gained. Maybe being stuck like this isn’t as terrible as you imagined. 

“Make some more noise and you’ll find out,” Your whisper falls on deaf ears the moment you being to subtly shift your hips and place pressure against his core. The gentle roll of your hips, dragging up his hardening cock deliciously is enough to have Kaeya gasping out for air. 

“Oh, so this is what we’re doing?” He bites down on your ear as he braces himself against the wall with one of his elbows beside your head. “You’re making this too easy, honey,” His other hand snakes down from your hip to the front of your pants, and his fingertips sneak past your waistband as two of his fingers reach for your clit. No amount of biting the inside of your cheek or squeezing your eyes shut can hide the feeling of Kaeya’s talented fingers. 

The two of you play this game as if it is a mere push and pull. The more he toys with your cunt, the more your grind back against him. 

“First one to cum loses and has to go distract Diluc while the other escapes,” Kaeya’s heavy pants almost make you imagine that you’re winning if not for the tightening feeling in your belly. “so be a sweet girl and come for me.” 

You stubbornly shake your head and try to hold your breath as your hips falter, Kaeya’s swift strokes are doing numbs on your resolve. 

You refuse to lose this way. 

Needless to say, the game ended in a tie since Kaeya was nearly finishing in his pants the moment he got you into the closet. By the unimpressed look on Diluc’s face when he saw you two scrambling for the exit, he already knew exactly where you both were. 

“What are the two of you doing here?”

Xiao

((stuck between a rock and a hard place... hehe))

“I have an idea of what to do to pass time,” 

It was not on your daily agenda to get stuck between two rocks while working on a commission with Xiao. With how messily you slipped when your foot caught on a crevice within the boulder, you would have plunged down if not for the adeptus who caught you. The only issue is the two of you got stuck in the process. 

“I’ll count how many stars I see and then you’ll count how many stars you see, whoever has more is the winner.” 

Xiao can’t play along with your game, no matter how much he wishes to please you. The only thing he can focus on is the tilt of your chin and the puff of your lips, his eyes are glued to your mouth as you press your lips together in thought. He’s not looking up at the sky, he’s looking in the complete opposite direction. 

As your eyes flicker back and forth as you count your stars, Xiao tightly swallows. This onset of feelings he is now forced to deal with since you are in such close proximity to him is not something he is ready to unbox. Who knew a human could have so much power over an adeptus. 

“Xiao?” Your sweet voice calls his attention away from your lips and instead to your eyes. You expectantly wait for him to respond and the man does so with a slight grunt. “I was thinking about it, can’t you just teleport us out of here?” Your questioning gaze makes Xiao stiffen. The adeptus can only do so much without his focus, in this situation he can’t think about teleporting or anything other than you being right in front of him. You’re pressed so kindly up against his chest, he can feel every hint of warmth your body has to offer and-

He shakes his head out of fear that his voice might fail him. 

“Can we do something while we wait?” You’re looking at him so innocently that Xiao can only respond back with as much enthusiasm. He hopes he doesn’t come off as desperate. 

“Anything.”

“Archons,” The adeptus sucks in a breath as he stares down at your chest, how you got so much of your cleavage exposed he’ll never know. He quietly grunts and almost starts to pant as your thigh presses between his legs harder. 

“This is much more fun than counting the stars, right?” Who knew you could be so devious, so dirty-minded? This new revelation makes the adeptus’ head start to cloud over and through his lust-filled haze, he can only see you. Xiao hears the sweet giggles that leave your lips as you grind your thigh against his aching cock, he watches the sweet way you bash your eyelashes up at him. He can’t stand it, he needs to get out of here and take you somewhere else. “Xiao~”

Under the touch of your palms against his sensitive chest, the man almost starts to squirm. 

“Wait, (Y/N),” His abdomen begins to clench too tightly at this lewd act, he can’t cum like this. With all of his might, the adeptus pictures your bedroom and effortlessly teleports the two of you there as he has down a million times before. 

“Way to go, Xiao!” Your cheers are ignored as he pushes you back against your bed, shoving you down on your mattress before crawling over you.

“Now we are going to do this my way.”

[runicarbiter02]

Helllooo! Request are open and I'm running over here. Can I request hdc for alejandro vargas and ghost, being jealous because there crush is a little bit touching with another men. Thank youu honey.

A/N: This is definitely an interesting one! I'd be happy to write these for you, since you specifically specified them, I'll just do them for this one. :) I hope you enjoy, darling! I'm still learning how to write for Ale, so I apologize if he's a bit OOC! Also, thank you all for over 1,000 notes on my first headcanon request! I am so, so happy you all are liking the post! ~ Hannah

ALEJANDRO VARGAS

I imagine with Alejandro, this would be a slow burn friends to lovers sort of situation. You, Alejandro, and Rudy have all been friends since you all joined up together. Alejandro has always been on the flirtier side with most people, which is why whenever he flirts with you, you don't tend to think much of it. That's just who he is, right?

Los Vaqueros had just gotten a new member, a young, handsome man in his mid-twenties. He's conventionally attractive and funny, which some of the other women definitely admire, but your thoughts are elsewhere. Unfortunately - or fortunately, if you look at it a certain way - you were assigned to show him around the base and get him up to speed.

Cut to the both of you in the mess hall on base, chattering away. Alejandro sees the both of you, and his blood boils. Who does this hijo de puta think that he is?

What really pisses him off is when the young man leans in, saying something that makes you laugh and you playfully shove him away with a coy smile. Alejandro quickly storms out, furious with the young man, but furious with himself for getting so upset.

He doesn't realize you follow him out until he feels your hand on his shoulder.

"Ale? What's wrong, hermano?" If only you knew how much he hated that nickname coming from your lips.

When he turns, one look at how concerned you are, and all his frustrations come spilling from his lips. He's just about to brush it off as him being silly when you don't respond right away before a laugh is erupting from you.

"Ale, he's not into me. He's just friendly. I thought he was flirting with me earlier, but he let me know that he's no even interested in sexual stuff. He's ace," You reassure, and suddenly, Alejandro feels ridiculously stupid. But that falls aside when you stand on your toes and brush a kiss to his cheek. "Now come on, cariño, you need to eat." His eyes follow you as you return to the mess hall, and he's stunned into silence.

Maybe he feels a little less bad about getting jealous.

SIMON "GHOST" RILEY

This man hates his jealousy. Despises it.

But, it's a part of him nonetheless, and it's something he has to live with.

I imagine it as quiet, little things around base that really gets to him: you're a medic, a really good one at that, and the men absolutely love you for how kindly you treat them all. You have patience, but you aren't afraid to bark orders at them if they're acting out of place.

"MacTavish, if you rip your stitches one more time, I'll kick your ass into next fucking week." "Captain, I don't care if you have more paperwork to do, get your ass in bed before I drag you there myself." "Hold still or I will personally strap you to this cot myself, rookie."

Your feisty nature and take-no-shit attitude is absolutely what drew him to you initially. Cue almost a year of pining on his end, and on your end, but not to his knowledge.

The final straw that ultimately cracks his resolve is a young sergeant that is trying to flirt with you while you stitch up a bullet wound on his side. It's obvious you're just being polite as you accept his compliments and hum in response at his attempts at flirting, but it still rubs Simon the wrong way.

Simon's jealousy is quiet, boiling, settling in the center of his chest. Every touch of yours against the sergeant's skin merely stokes the flames, but he does nothing, continuing to brood in the corner. He waits until you're done, shooing the young man off with a half-assed threat of harm if he ruins his stitches. That's when you finally notice him.

"Ghost, what have I told you about lurking in my med bay?" You tease softly before taking note of the hard look in his eyes. Slowly, you put two and two together, chuckling softly. "Ah, I see. C'mere, big guy."

He isn't mad. Not at all. All he can think about is that young man, who has all he doesn't: charm, good looks, youth, and the blessing of a childhood unscarred by a demon of a father. Simon isn't so lucky.

He can't stop himself as he follows your instructions, stepping into your office and taking a seat at your desk as you close the door. You sit on top of your desk and smile down at him before you hold out your hand expectantly. He furrows his brows but gives you his hand anyway, grumbling something about how he "doesn't know where your filthy mitts have been."

As soft kisses are pressed to his knuckles, however, he goes quiet. "Silly, jealous man. Can't even see that I look at you the same way you look at me. Eyes of a hawk, my ass," You tease.

He turns every shade of red beneath his damn balaclava, and you're damn certain to tease him about it as he melts back into the seat.

Hijo de puta - Son of a bitch

Hermano - Brother

Cariño - Honey; dear

TAGLIST

@floral-force

[super-paper]

I feel like Toga and All for One have many similarities, but I am unable to articulate as to why I feel this way.

I think it's safe to say that AFO is an intentional foil to Himiko, Tenko, and Touya at this point! I've discussed how he shares body motifs with all three of them before, but his backstory more or less cemented that he's supposed to be read as "the worst possible extreme and the worst possible conclusion" to each of the trio's respective origins and overall stories.

As for how Himiko and AFO foil each other, specifically:

Cannibalism as a metaphor for Not cannibalism

Let's get the obvious point outta the way first, lol.

AFO and Himiko are both established as children that society wasn't prepared or willing to care for-- AFO was born during the advent of quirks where "paranormal" children like him were treated as diseased and shunned (or worse) by the rest of society, while Himiko was born during an "era of peace" where civilians are expected to maintain said peace through endlessly conformity and complacency-- outside of pro-heroism, civilians are essentially expected to role-play as though they've returned to "normalcy" (i.e. pre-quirk society) and the fear of being labeled as "abnormal" (despite living in a post-paranormal society) drives them to shun those who can't easily conform.

Both AFO and Himiko's "first sin" involves the "consumption of their fellow humans," which they both commit when they are too young to fully understand what they're doing-- and both acts of consumption were initially tied to their attempts to fulfill a basic human "need" that wasn't being provided for. Himiko drank the blood of a friend whose smile she envied after years of having her own smile called "creepy," AFO was a starving newborn whose mother couldn't provide him milk or protection and whose cries were ultimately ignored by everyone else. When Himiko takes someone's blood and "becomes someone else", she finally feels good "about herself". When AFO takes his mom's quirk and uses it to drink her blood, he no longer feels hungry and no longer has any reason to cry out for help/attention. Thus, AFO & Himiko ultimately learn and internalize that in order to fulfill their own neglected needs, they need to take from others.

Something something re: "the catharsis that comes with finally """"embracing your true nature'"""" so you can finally become what your family always feared you'd be (POV: you are 14 years old and utterly doomed by the narrative) (and so is the main object of your ""affection"") (puberty is a bitch ain't it!)" something something

To Himiko, the consumption of others becomes a way to "become somebody else"-- someone the world will treat more kindly than they treat "Toga Himiko." She feels the urge to completely drain the blood of anyone who has the life and relationships that she desperately wants for herself. Before that, drinking blood was simply her way of expressing admiration/affection and fell under the banner of MHA's definition of "pure love" (i.e. love as imitation). Himiko showed no inclination towards completely draining the blood of those she loves until her psychotic break with Saito, and she is notably able to restrain her supposed "urges" around the LOV despite loving them deeply. The "urge to drain those she loves completely" isn't actually tied to her quirk, but to her desire to "become someone else."

To AFO, the consumption of others became yet another way to rob them of their autonomy-- by taking away "a part of them" and forcibly turning it into a part himself in the most base, unsettling, and crude way possible. Before that, his consumption of others was simply driven by his instinct to survive. AFO's "urge to take" is tied to the preconception that no one will provide for him or look at him UNLESS he is taking something from them-- like Himiko, his quirk merely makes it easier for him to act on urges that don't actually stem from the quirk itself. AFO's warped perception of other people balloons wildly out of control by the time he reaches his teens, and finally cumulates in him ""eating"" the glowing baby out of jealousy:

*Kills someone over their follower count* Man, AFO is nvr gonna beat the "was a tiktok e-girl in his previous life" allegations

AFO and Himiko both "consume" other people out of jealousy and a desire to make up for what they feel they lack as individuals-- but an important distinction between the two of them, I feel, is that Himiko's consumption of others is ultimately driven by her desire to connect with other people while AFO's consumption is instead based on fear + mistrust of others. It's the difference between "Consumption as wanting to become a part of someone and become a part of the world they live in (+ consumption as a way to become a part of the world by living vicariously through someone else)" and "consumption as forcibly making someone a part of you and forcibly taking away their connection to the world."

Speaking of "consuming someone who has traits you envy in an attempt to make those traits your own" *pointedly looks at AFO's dynamic with Tomura* ...........yearp.

It's only after Himiko's human needs are finally addressed by Ochako, that Himiko learns the desire to "give" rather than take. I feel that this is probably one of the core take aways of the series while more or less being the "end goal" of the OFAFO plot-- "endless giving without ever taking" (All Might becoming the number one hero at the steep price of himself and Izuku almost destroying himself in the process of trying to emulate All Might) and "endless taking without ever giving" (AFO full stop, as well as society itself towards both the heroes and villains) are both extremes that only cause more people to get hurt. There has to be reciprocity. It has to be "One for All -AND- All for One." Give -AND- Take.

Side note: Himiko's favorite food being pomegranates also strikes me as ironic when you remember that Hori is gigantic mythology nerd-- In both art and mythology, it's not uncommon for pomegranates to be used as a visual for "flesh" and for their consumption to be used as a stand in for cannibalism. In greek mythology, pomegranates are known as the "fruit of the dead", and are believed to have originated from the blood of Adonis. There is also the legend of Persephone, who was cursed to remain within the underworld for six months each year as the price for consuming six pomegranate seeds while in hell.

The Buddhist legend of Hairiti/Kishimojin also stands out for framing pomegranates as a "cure" for cannibalism, by offering them to man-eating demons in lieu of flesh:

As for AFO-- it's been pointed out by several different people that he shares several parallels with the greek titan, Cronus, who is most famous for having devoured his own children whole.

With that in mind, I feel like the act of consuming blood has an almost mythological edge to it for these two (outside the obvious reality-based social stigma of it lol)-- the act of "eating" others, regardless of intent, is what condemned both AFO and Himiko to hell. But Himiko is offered a way out of that hell and ultimately finds salvation in allowing herself to be "consumed" in turn, while AFO just doubles down on eating every rando beefcake he can get his hands on while giggling like a school girl (and yet, when the chance to eat Toshi finally presents itself, he totally fails to capitalize on it. mfer can't even "cannibalism as a metaphor freaky gay sex with your dramaturgical foil" right smh 😤).

As an aside, when I say "people generally read into MHA too literally and expect entirely too literal conclusions for what is largely a fantastical story about abuse/trauma/coping mechanisms," how MHA depicts ""cannibalism"" through Himiko is actually one of the examples that comes to mind lol. So many people think that death or jail is the only appropriate conclusion for Himiko's character because it's the "only realistic conclusion" like they aren't reading a story where people have tape dispensers for arms lmfao.

OMNOMNOM-- (On Mouths)

:D

Not much to elaborate on here, mouths (and smiles) are AFO and Himiko's shared body motif in MHA's narrative. AFO's mouth is his only distinguishable facial feature during Parts 1 & 2, Himiko's smile/mouth is her defining feature and how others perceive it is a source of trauma for her. Her villain outfit is notable in how it covers her mouth/hides her smile while also resembling AFO's act 1 mask:

*squish*

During the final war, Himiko puts her mask on and hides her mouth immediately after being rejected by Izuku. This is symbolic of a lot of different things, but mostly, it drives home how she is no longer interested in talking things out and has "fully embraced being a villain." Ochako understands what's at stake and spends the rest of the fight trying to "take the mask back off"-- she understands there is something behind Himiko's villain mask that she needs to save.

Meanwhile, Toshi smashes past AFO's mask during Kamino and finds there is simply nothing underneath it-- reinforcing the idea that AFO has made "being a villain" his entire identity and that there is nothing worth saving behind his mask. However, Toshi was also the one who "smashed" AFO's facial features away in the first place. AFO definitely deserved getting his head popped, but in the context of MHA as a whole, I feel like AFO and Toshi's dynamic only highlights the overall tragedy of the hero/villain system and why it's a good thing that the new generation is starting to challenge it.

It is worth mentioning that mouths are frequently used to mask and dehumanize within the context of MHA's narrative, but this isn't something exclusive to AFO and Himiko ('sup Toshi) (''sup Tomura).

(I don't actually have anything else to add here lol)

Demon Child, Demon Lord

AFO and Himiko also stand out in how they're both framed as having been "born bad"-- Himiko by her parents, AFO by himself and the narration. Discerning readers already know that this is a crock of shit.

Child for One sees the Demon Lord being surrounded by people who provide for him out of fear while he's stuck living in isolation and squalor with Yoichi, and decides the only appropriate reaction to this is to make a children's comic book his entire personality (he's just like me fr)-- He embraces the idea of becoming a demon and shedding off his humanity, and immediately starts self-styling himself off a generic biz-caz corporate shmuck (lmfao).

Unlike AFO, Himiko resists the label of "demon" as much as she can-- she styles herself as "a cute high school girl" despite being a middle school drop out because she realizes the world will treat her a little more kindly this way (but only a little). Himiko longs to be seen as human, but is made to feel like a monster instead.

What I find interesting is that AFO himself outright admits that he lacked the ego/awareness necessary to "consciously" take Yoichi's quirk when they were children-- yet, both he and the narration continuously frame the siphoning of his mother's life, quirk, and Yoichi's nutrients as though they were intentional, malicious acts. AFO leans into this framing and builds his whole identity around it until that framing is finally pulled away from him literal seconds before his death.

Being "human" to Himiko means going back to a time where she was loved and accepted unconditionally. Being "human" to AFO means going back to being that screaming infant who no one would look at.

Like it or not, everyone is human in the end little dude.

Other Miscellaneous Similarities:

This one doesn't require much explanation-- through prioritizing their own needs above all else, AFO and Himiko both dehumanize other people the same way other people dehumanize them. Himiko is still a child, however-- and she is ultimately saved by her desire to be accepted and form genuine connections with others. Her final fight with Ochako is as much about getting Himiko to see Ochako as "human" as it is Ochako acknowledging Himiko's humanity. Once again, it's all about reciprocity/give-and-take.

""join our family and let me raise you! :D *hard cut to a burning orphanage*" AFO being genuinely puzzled that ppl aren't jumping at the chance to raised by him is my favorite running gag in mha.

Both AFO and Himiko also have a habit of being.... inappropriately intimate with other people, often to the point where whatever "relationship" they have with others exists almost entirely in their own head. Himiko calls Tsuyu by her first name and gets told to cut it out because this is a privilege Tsuyu reserves for her friends, and Himiko immediately interprets this as Tsuyu offering to be friends. AFO calls his worshippers his "friends" and his cult "his family" and asks that his young victims call him "uncle" like he's a kindly family friend and not the dude who is blackmailing them into betraying all their friends.

Also, neva 4get.....

To think AFO could have also had fun yuri times if he had just stopped being a dickhead for five seconds. Tragic. 😔

(/j)

[thetombedspirit]

First Playthrough of AFoP: Secret of the Spires! - WARNING! Spoilers Ahead!

The Majority of my thoughts throughout playing the DLC.

Finally, I got the glitching drum quest and the Games Camp community basket done and over with! It was a good way to get back into practice with the controls.

Am I just dumb, or is the game glitching on me?! Why won't the plane blow up- OH COME ON! I'M THROWING EVERYTHING BY THE HOMETREE AT THIS MOFO!! - Really?! You wouldn't blow up because I wasn't shooting you in a very specific spot?! Bird you, dude!

Nor? Oh NOOOOOOR! Where are youuuuuuu? Oh, talk of a stranger Na'vi hanging around the area? About time- wait, Rasi who-? Oh, hello, fellow Sarentu character! Have you seen Nor? He's about this tall, clearly emo (and maybe gay) but we never had the talk.

Oooh, I have more skills for my Ikran and I can actually apply defensive armour and cook treats for her? WHERE WERE THESE OPTIONS IN THE CORE GAME!?

Getting mad at video game mechanics is automatically cured by sneaking around and killing video game fascist mercenaries.

... we don't talk about Bruno, no, no, no.

Oh, random Na'vi identified as a Sarentu saved So'lek from a sniper shot! Is it Rasi and Nor? Nope, just Rasi, that's cool! Love how protective Teylan already is of her once I said she was in the base.

Once I finished speaking to Anufi and Tsu'lo, I go up to find Teylan and Ri'nela and on my way I think, "Wait, what if Rasi is Nor's mum?" . I don't think that's the case, or she would have verbalize as such when we were talking about Nor, but how neat would that be. It'd be like we have a piece of Nor with us until we find him. Anyway, now that Rasi is here, I expect us to be re-educated on the way of the Sarentu. Maybe we'll finally get a Na'vi accent 😆

Cons:

This game needs some SERIOUS fine tuning, because I'm having bad guys be 'alerted' to my presence, when I'm literally half way across the map. One instance, where I'm trying to hunt for some Meer Dear, and this chopper just comes out of nowhere, attacks me, flies off to the horizon, but then summons two more choppers and a squad to my location, and they are already in the red despite being several yards away from me.

Maybe I'm just dumb, but I feel like it should not be so hard to find the objectives of certain quests.

Pros:

New Location!

And it looks gorgeous. The Spires are beautiful, there are new animals, and they freaked me out (the whole bit with the tunnels in the beginning, I thought I was being chased by something much bigger and completely ignored the first appearance of the Chiroptera XD)

2. The New Characters

The story kicks off when Anufi asks us to find another branch of the Kame'tire, who have still yet to return. While it is ultimately disappointing that we're not getting an entirely new clan, just a variation of a familiar clan, we are introduced to a new character: Rasi, a fellow Sarentu Survivor living in self-imposed exile.

Speaking of which, I like the one Na'vi that chided me for using a Sky Person name for a Pandoran creature, and my character correcting herself for it. Yes!

4. The Chrioptera

These guys were so cool, and so annoying at the same time. I thought they were gonna be so much bigger, but thanks Eywa, they were Ikran size!

4. Taylen is as cute as ever.

Just throwing that in there, I love my tall, strange son. I love when he starts geeking out, and we have to kindly reprimand him that we are in the middle of a hostile base and nows not the time!

My poor baby misses Nor so bad and just wants him to come back.

Overall View

While I am a little bit disappointed that we didn't get a brand new clan and that we didn't get Nor back, I do think this DLC was worth the wait.

While tiresome that there weren't that many fast travel points around the map, I actually like that, as it forces us to get to places via Ikran, something that the DLC advertised!

And while the new villain of the DLC was pretty boring compared to our literal kidnappers and abusers, he was a very challenging boss and it felt good to hit him with lightning and watch him crash and burn.

And we have a new veteran Sarentu to add to our family. I love that Ri'nela tries to comfort a homesick Teylan by humming the Sarentu song, only for Rasi to appear out of nowhere, singing the words and painting a Sarentu mural (seriously though, how did she get that done so quickly without anyone noticing? No wonder the RDA couldn't find her.)

And that voice cameo of freaking Quaritch basically putting his foot down on our resistance efforts and demanding we get squashed. Nice! And with how pissed he sounds, I'm guessing that this is right after ATWOW, where not only he lost his entire team of Recoms, but lost Spider too. Cuz yeah, he sounds angee.

Love how tight knit our little family has become and how steadfast they are in their bond (thought Ri'nela was running up to hug So'lek for a second, and my man looked so surprised when Teylan touched his shoulder XD) and now they all agree that it's time to find Nor and bring him back to the clan and prove that the Sarentu has a future.

So, overall, while I felt that this DLC was a bit short and the villain had little meat on his bones, this was a good DLC and with how they ended it with a possible sequel game with the mission to find Nor and the cameo of Quaritch so fingers crossed that AFOP comes back and that whatever sequels pops out pops with a BANG!

And hey! Since this game takes place during the one year absence of the Sullys, maybe if they do make a sequel, it'll take place during Ash and Fire! Maybe, Quaritch's cameo is a hint of him coming in, after aligning with Varang and the Mangkwan Clan! Can you imagine? A small clan that is rising to reclaim what is taken from them, vs a clan that has forsaken Eywa willingly and aligned with the RDA! With Quaritch leading them! That'd be bananas!!

Fingers crossed! C you guys around!!💙

[patrophthia]

idiots to lovers | regulus black

pairing: regulus black x reader

genre: angsty fluff, friends to lovers, confrontations, basically just the idiots to lovers trope oof, not proof read!

wc: 2k

originally posted on wattpad

"i think i can sort who's good for me for myself," i countered, turning to look at regulus with a bored expression.

"are you sure about that?" he asked. there was a distant sound of thunder but neither of us paid heed to it.

"are you implying that i can't take care of myself?" maybe that was a little bit out of pocket but i promise you he deserves it.

"does it seem like i am?"

"c'mon moony it's just a question," sirius groaned as james and lily entered the dorm.

"if it's just a question then why can't you ask her that yourself?" remus retorted, sitting up on his bed. it was clear that he was tired of sirius' nagging.

"because it's me," sirius answered as if it was the most obvious thing, getting onto his feet exaggeratedly. "let's not forget you're the one who shares prefect rounds with her."

"with who?" james asked, curiousity piqued.

"[name]," sirius, remus, and peter answered simultaneously. lily eyes widen in surprise, taking a seat on james' bed. what does a fifth year have anything to do with them?

"what does you being you have anything to do with you asking the question?" remus asked, staring pointedly at sirius.

"because. . ." the ebony haired boy trailed off, glancing at his friends for help. "because . . ." he repeated before sighing defeatedly. "i dunno! because i want to know if it's true and if it is what's she's doing him anyways!"

"who's him?" james asked cluelessly.

"regulus." all the other four presented in the room answered easily.

"what does [name] and regulus have to do with eachother?" the glasses clad boy followed up.

"that's what we're trying to find out," sirius replied, flailing his arms dramatically. "there's been rumors about the two 'dating' and i just- i've known that they've been friends since he was eleven and that he is head over heels for her but what does she want with him? you've all talked to her, she's too nice for a bloody death eater."

"have you thought that maybe she loves him and she wants him to love her back?" lily responded, putting her red hair up into a ponytail. "oh shoot, our rounds starts in ten," she cursed, staring at the clock on the opposite end of the boy's dorm room.

james and remus stood from their respective beds, checking for their wands before looking back at sirius who was pouting with wide puppy eyes; his last attempt at persuading them to ask the questions he needed the answers to.

"just ask her yourself pads," remus muttered, waltzing over to smack the back of the said boy's head.

after muttering a small ow, sirius focused his attention on lily who was disguising an amused smile. he stared at her wordlessly, intention clear in his gaze. lily kept up a neutral look only to then roll her eyes, giving in to his silent request. "fine, i'll do it."

•••

"hi [name]," lily greeted kindly. i smiled at her, masking my surprise as she waved me over. "remus asked to switch rounds, i hope you don't mind."

"oh it's alright," i waved it off before following up with a question, "is he well?"

"he's fine, just got roped into another one of james' plan," she replied, straightening her posture into a more serious one. one she specifically reserved for when she was viewed as the head girl. "you know how the marauders are."

in truth, i knew little about how the marauders are aside from regulus sharing details of how sirius talked about them and the occasional times i helped them hide from mcgonagall. i only nodded, following after lily as she took the first step for our round.

"so ... how's OWLs treating you?" the older girl asked light-heartedly, trying to make conversation as we went on.

"it's been alright, a bit stressful but it's to be expected. how's your NEWTs?" i asked in return, making our way down the stairs from the Great Hall.

"it's as hard as you can imagine it to be, i can barely catch a break," she let out. she then proceeded to complain about how there was way too many assignments and so little time. she went on and on and i nodded in agreement, listening to every word she was uttering. "and it really doesn't help having a boyfriend who's friends are as smart as he is."

"oh i feel you," i laughed. "they don't see the need to stay up all night and study because they already remember what they needed to right of the bat. it's the worst."

"right?!" lily exclaimed, turning to look at me with enthusiasm. "atleast remus and peter understand the stress of it. sirius and james just writes whatever comes into their mind onto their parchment and boom straight O's without even trying!"

"merlin, regulus is exactly like that. he barely takes his times with assignments and would never get anything less than an E while i spend hours on my work and get an A at best." i joined in, giving her my input on the things we could relate to.

"speaking of regulus. . ." lily dragged out, glad that it was a perfect segway to what she wanted to know. "are you two- you know? together?"

i looked at her timidly, mouth twisting into a sheepish smile, and with a nod of my head lily started grinning. "oh that's just adorable!" she squealed, all the while keeping an eye on the corridors as we talked. "i never thought you'd act on your feelings for him."

"what feelings?" i asked as we rounded hogwarts kitchen. "i didn't realize i liked him until he kissed me," i added, recalling the memory of that very kiss. i was lying and lily knew it. "i mean it!"

"oh you really mean it?" she repeated with a look of disbelief. not waiting for what i had to say, she quickly added, "so that time you learned about quidditch despite not having any interest in quidditch doesn't have anything to do with regulus?"

"no! . . . well yes . . . it's complicated," i mumbled. my cheeks growing warm as lily's eyes shined happily. "i just wanted to have something to talk to him about."

"and you did! it was so adorable!" at this point i was more than convinced that 'adorable' was lily's favorite word. "i remember it so clearly, he was so excited when you asked him if you could watch him at practise. i don't think i've ever seen puppy love until you two happened."

"oh and what you and james have isn't puppy love?" i asked, steering the conversation topic towards her love life instead. but lily was persistent, giving me a smile before answering.

"we're more like the enemies to lovers trope whilst you and regulus are idiots in love."

"and how exactly is me and reg idiots in love?" i asked. the pair of us passing the hufflepuff basement and down the toward the dungeons.

"from what i've heard of how you got together, it's as idiots in love as it comes."

"i just don't think he's good for you."

regulus, barty, rosier, and i had just regrouped from our own respective trips to hogsmeade. making our way up the hill towards the castle in a group of four as we recalled about the things we've done through out the day.

i had went out on a date; a date with whom i had no romantic interest in since the person who held my affections only thought of me as their best friend. it was stupid to try and get over someone i was madly in love with and yet, it didn't make me feel as helpless as realizing that nobody else could make me feel the way i feel for regulus.

"i think i can sort who's good for me for myself," i countered, turning to look at regulus with a bored expression.

"are you sure about that?" he asked. there was a distant sound of thunder but neither of us paid heed to it.

"are you implying that i can't take care of myself?" maybe that was a little bit out of pocket but i promise you he deserves it.

"does it seem like i am?" he replied easily. resulting in a groan from rosier —who was way too tired to be hearing us bicker about the same thing all over again.

"seriously reg?" i asked, staring at him. the thunder grew louder and this time we took a second to acknowledge it before going back to our . . . disagreement? argument? "do you expect me to be alone forever?"

"you wouldn't be alone if you're with me," he responded. we were both facing eachother now, standing in the middle of hogwarts lawn under the darkening sky.

it was supposed to be a sweet statement but i had long grew frustrated with his use of sweet talk. giving me false hope on things that would never happen.

"i would only be lonelier when i'm with you."

i took his expressions into account close enough to catch the brief flicker of surprise that crossed his features. regulus frowned, eyebrows furrowing when he stated, "you're mad at me aren't you."

"why are you mad at me?" i kept quiet, moving away to put distance between us. "are you listening to me?" he added, trailing after each of my steps.

"i am," i snapped. their was a pitter-patter on the surrounding windows followed by shrieks of surprised students running for shelter. i could barely register the rain bucketing down on us as i was too focused on the slytherin before me than anything else. "i'm just trying to see if you're listening to yourself."

there was an incredulous look on regulus face, offended by my words but he was quick to mask it. his dark curls were drenched when he swept them back, boring holes into me with unasked questions before he settled on, "what do you mean you'd be lonelier when you're with me?"

"i dunno reg," i muttered blearily, wiping a hand across my face. "maybe because you wouldn't love me the way i want to be loved?"

regulus stood stunned and i took that as a sign to turn on my heels again, heading towards the grand hall open doors. his hand caught my wrist before i'd gotten far, pulling me flush against him. i had barely a second to compartmentalize his actions up until he pinned his lips onto mine.

regulus wasted no time in pressing the inner of his palm against my cheek, holding me as gently as possible. my arms —as if it were muscle memory— reached up and wrapped themself around his neck. my heart raced as i took in the the smell of him, marveling at his closeness and how i could feel the warmth radiating from him despite the cool rain dripping on us. we pulled away.

the rain clouding our vision as we breathed heavily. wanting more, he leaned down and kisses me one more time, lingering as long as he could. his thumb circled around the apple of my cheek, caressing it as he took in deep breath.

"how could you?" he started, boring his grey eyes into mine. "how could you think i didn't love you that way?"

"you think that's idiots in love?" i asked. lily nodded in respond. "so you repeatedly turning down james even when you realized you had feelings for him just because you thought he was only doing it out of habit isn't idiots in love?"

"well that's not- i don't want to talk about this anymore."

—from bee: happy lunar new years to those who celebrate it!!! notes/ask/feedbacks are always greatly appreciated!!

[fan-fantasies]

Lady in Waiting

A/N: first off I’d like to offer a disclaimer- there are some time jumps and I altered the storyline a bit just to save myself time. We’ve all watched the series and know what really happened so this is just me taking creative liberties. This is one of the longest fics I’ve written and I’m so happy it’s for our sweet boy, Osferth ❤️

Summary: you are Aethelflaed’s lady-in-waiting and are offered protection by Uhtred and his men, specifically Osferth. You’ve fallen for the man but you cannot give yourself to him fully until marriage. However, marrying the man you love is not going to be as easy as you hoped.

Warnings: a shit ton- dry humping, fingering, oral (f receiving, m receiving mentioned), unprotected p in v, violence, swearing

“Thyra!! Thyra!!”

“Lady Aethelflaed!! Find her!”

The screams of the men were what drew you from the safety of the woods. Finan was the first to spot you as you stumbled your way back into camp.

“Lord, it is y/n,” Finan said. Osferth’s head snapped in your direction and his feet were immediately moving. Before he could reach you, however, Aethelred had his hands on you.

“Where is she? Where is the princess?” He didn’t give you a moment to answer before he was shaking you, asking you again.

Behind you, Thrya was in Beocca’s arms sobbing. She explained that you had all split up in the woods and that Aethelflaed was gone.

“She saved me,” you whispered. All eyes turned to you. “She hid me while the Danes, they…they took her.”

“She gave herself up for the likes of you? It should have been the other way around, should it not?” Aethelred was angry as his grip on your tightened.

“You will unhand her, lord,” Osferth snapped at him.

“I would listen to him,” Finan growled. Though you had not known the men all that well, you were Aethelflaed’s lady-in-waiting so you were familiar with them. You enjoyed their company and how respectful they were. The same could not be said for your lady’s new husband who had already made passes at you.

Aethelred let you go and you fell back against Osferth. He steadied you on your feet while staring down the lord of Mercia.

“We must head back to Wessex,” Uhtred said, looking around the destroyed camp. He watched as Aldhelm whispered to Aethelred who glared at you. “Osferth, you will bring lady y/n back to Winchester and keep an eye on things there for me. We will return to Cookham where Alfred wishes me to stay until we have news to share.”

“I will not be returning to Mercia, lord?” You asked softly.

“No, lady. I do not trust that turd to treat you kindly. Osferth here will protect you,” he said with a kind smile.

“I will take care of you,” Osferth said confidently.

“I know you will.” Finan and Sihtric exchanged a knowing glance when the young monk’s face tinged pink.

Once the camp was salvaged as much as possible, everyone hit the road. Uhtred made sure to keep you close to him and his men.

“I do not understand why I am being protected as if I am treasure,” you chuckled sadly.

“You are as good as gold, lady,” Finan told you.

“Better than,” Osferth added. You ducked your head to hide your smile at their flattery.

You could see Aldhelm and Aethelred scheming ahead of you but Uhtred assured you that all would be fine.

Once Uhtred and his men split off from the group, your nerves began to build. You trusted Osferth but you knew he was no match for the conniving lord of Mercia.

Osferth escorted you to the inn where you were informed that there was only one room available. Osferth paid for it and you brought your things to the room.

“I can find somewhere else to stay, lady,” he offered.

“Nonsense. You paid for the room, you should at least use it,” you told him. “We will be fine and now I know I will be safe.”

Osferth nodded and unpacked his bag. He allowed you to freshen up first before escorting you to dinner. The conversation flowed easily and you found yourself at ease for the first time since the camp was raided. You still worried about Aethelflaed but you knew Uhtred would do everything in his power to retrieve her safely.

“I wonder if they have made it to Cookham already. I am sure Lady Gisela will be happy her husband has returned. They are truly blessed,” you said.

“Gisela is a wonderful lady and they are both happy. That is all any could wish for,” he smiled in agreement.

“Yes that is true. It breaks my heart that not all get to marry for love. Should I ever be lucky enough to secure a husband, I hope he is kind.”

Osferth paused for a moment and looked deep in thought, conflicted almost.

“Any man would be lucky to have you and if anyone treats you with anything less than kindness, I will be sure to handle it myself,” he said. His words surprised you but also made your stomach flip.

You were fond of Osferth and knew he was a good man. But he was a warrior and you were not sure where he stood on the matter of taking a wife.

You finished your supper in silence before returning to your room. The two of you stood awkwardly, looking at the one bed.

“I will sleep on the floor.”

“No, we can share. It is big enough for two,” you said quietly.

“Lady, I’m not sure if that is a good idea,” he said. You feared you had offended him in some manner but waited for him to explain. “It’s just… you are… beautiful. And- it would not be appropriate for me to lie with you- sleep with you- sleep next to you!” He stuttered. You tried your best to hold back a laugh.

“So you cannot sleep in the bed because I’m…beautiful?” You tried your best to stay composed as the reddening monk but a small smile slipped through.

“For my own sanity, lady, I think it is best if I sleep on the floor,” he said rather embarrassed.

“As you wish,” you said. The two of you turned around so you could undress. He made a small spot on the floor for himself while you crawled into the bed.

Every time you would fall asleep, you were startled awake by Osferth tossing and turning, groaning in discomfort.

“Please, for my sanity and my sleep, get in the bed!”

“But-“

“Now!” You shrieked. You tended to get cranky when you were tired and you were exhausted.

“Yes, lady,” he mumbled. He laid as far as possible away from you, stiff as a board.

“I will not try and steal your virtue, Osferth. You may relax.”

“It is not you I am worried about stealing virtue, but myself,” he whispered. You turned toward him with wide eyes. He turned toward you as well and you just stared at one another for a moment.

“I must admit, since I met you my thoughts have been at war in my head. I wish my thoughts to remain pure, but- I do enjoy the impure ones as well.”

“And what is the subject of these impure thoughts?” You asked, filled with hope.

“You- Naked usually,” he admitted.

“Just usually?”

“Sometimes there’s not enough time and I just have to lift your skirt and take you right then and there.”

Your breathing was as heavy as the heart beating out of your chest.

“And which do you prefer?” You asked.

“I prefer when I get to have you completely bare before me and I get to take my time worshipping your body.”

Without another word you closed the distance between the two of you and kissed him with such passion you didn’t know you were capable of. He wasted no time allowing his hands to roam your body and claiming your mouth with his tongue. You moved closer to him to allow him on top of you. He was already grinding against your clothed core and you could feel how hard he was.

He began to press kisses down the column of your throat, making you moan in response.

“Osferth, fuck. We can’t,” you whined. As much as you wanted to, and shit did you want to, you couldn’t.

“I’m so sorry,” he said, scrambling off of you.

“No you have nothing to be sorry for! It’s just, I’ve taken a vow of chastity until marriage, which I’m much regretting right now,” you sighed.

“I understand, lady,” he said.

“Please, just call me y/n. And just because we can’t do everything doesn’t mean we can’t do some things,” you hinted. His eyes were as big as saucers when he realized what you meant.

“Are you sure? Because we can stop and that’s completely fine.”

“Always a gentleman,” you chuckled. “Yes, I’m sure. If it is a means to not break my vow completely then I am sure God will overlook.”

He needed no further compelling to resume his position and the heated make out session from before. His hand slid between your legs and cupped your center, making you jolt against him. He continued to rut into your leg as he slipped beneath your night dress and undergarments.

He moaned when he felt how wet you were and all for him. He slid his fingers between your folds and you were already trembling beneath him. He circled your clit slowly, building up the speed until you were moaning loudly.

“Where did you learn to be so good at this?” You asked breathlessly.

“Hanging around Uhtred and the others has its perks,” he smirked. “I hope this will please you without having to even enter you.”

“Oh it is pleasurable, but one finger might not hurt,” you whimpered pathetically. You wanted him so badly you were a hairs-width away from breaking your vow.

“No, y/n, this will have to do for now,” he chuckled.

“Will you make me beg, Osferth?”

“I would, lady, yes. Perhaps another time though.”

He sped up his ministrations on your clit and you threw your head back into the pillow. He took the opportunity to nip at your exposed neck. You encouraged him further and he began to leave love bites along your soft skin.

You felt a knot begin to form in your stomach and you began to thrust your hips to meet his fingers where you needed them most. He could tell you were close so he became focused on pushing you over the edge.

He was still humping your thigh and his moans were becoming louder which was enough to ignite the spark that sent your body ablaze. You screaming out his name triggered his own orgasm, which surprised you both but you found it incredibly attractive.

“Shit, I’m sorry,” he groaned.

“Don’t be,” you said before pulling him into a searing kiss.

“Let’s clean up and then we can sleep,” he said softly. You nodded in agreement and made your way to the water basin.

You slept wonderfully that night and that is how the evenings continued for the next week or so.

The first time he used his mouth on you you swore you saw heaven. You returned the favor of course and Osferth decided if it was going to send him to hell then it was worth it.

It wasn’t just sex though, there were feelings there. He was gentle and loving all while making sure to protect you from any angry Mercians.

Aethelred already word that the princess sacrificed herself to save you and that did not sit well with many. Osferth comforted you and told you that not only were you worth saving but that everyone else could be damned for thinking otherwise.

Uhtred and his warriors arrived in Winchester with news of the princess. He went straight to the palace while Finan and Sihtric went to find Osferth.

“Baby monk!!” Finan shouted as soon as he laid eyes on him at the ale house. Osferth immediately stood and welcomed both men with a hug.

“Lady,” Sihtric said, bowing his head.

“Oh come here!” Finan yelled as he pulled you into his arms. “Thank ya for keeping my baby monk safe in our absence.”

“It was no trouble at all,” you laughed. “I will go get you both some ale.”

“So is she your wife yet?” Finan asked. Osferth choked on his spit at his friends words.

“No! Why would you ask that?”

“We know how ya feel for her,” he chuckled.

“It does look like he has some repenting to do though.” Sihtric smirked as he pulled down the collar of his robe, exposing the marks you had left on him the night previous.

Sihtric and Finan howled as Osferth glowed red. You came back over with a jug of ale and two cups, a smile gracing your face.

“What’s so funny?” You asked.

“I see it’ll be a confessional for two,” Finan added, pointing to your neck. Instead of hiding from the teasing, you placed a kiss on Osferth’s cheek.

“We will confess when we’re done doing all that needs repenting,” you told them. Their eyes all went wide and it was your turn to smirk. You sauntered off to your room and left the men to catch up.

“Good thing ya left her in one piece- I don’t think that’s what Uhtred had in mind when he said protect her,” Finan chuckled.

“It’s not what you think,” Osferth rolled his eyes.

“So make her your wife and make it what we think,” Sihtric told him.

“Uhtred would not permit me to marry.”

“Why not? She is a nice girl and we like her. She’s good for ya,” Finan replied.

Osferth considered his friends’ words. He cared for you, loved you even, but would you feel the same?

Uhtred eventually joined and filled them in on the plan. They were to travel north to negotiate for Aethelflaed’s safe return.

“How is your lady holding up?” Uhtred asked Osferth.

“M-my lady, lord?” Uhtred and the others chuckled.

“He wants permission to marry her, lord,” Finan said. Osferth could not believe the audacity of his friend, well, maybe he could.

“So she is well then?” Uhtred laughed.

“She is, lord. And I would like permission for when the time comes.”

“Permission granted, Osferth.”

He couldn’t help the giddy feeling that bubbled up inside of him, but also the nerves.

“Come, let us drink our fill. The ale in the north isn’t nearly as good,” Sihtric said.

The men were fairly drunk by the time Osferth found his way to your room. You had fallen asleep but woke up when you heard him stumble into the room. You watched in amusement as he stumbled around trying to undress himself.

“Well hello there,” he said when he finally laid eyes on you.

“Hello, Osferth,” you replied. You pulled back the sheets for him so he could come to bed.

“Don’t mind if I do.”

He flopped onto the bed and it took some adjusting to try and get him comfortable.

“You will not have a good day tomorrow,” you said.

“Yes I will, because I get to marry you,” he said before drifting off into a heavy slumber. You, however, could not find sleep over the words he just said.

What did he mean he gets to marry you? You never agreed to such a union, although you would not protest. You would also both need your lord and lady’s permission before anything moved forward and your lady was a bit preoccupied at the moment.

The next morning, you waited to see if he would say anything. However, the only sounds emitted from him were groans when the light seeped through the window.

“Good morning, love,” you laughed.

“Is it?” He grumbled.

“Yes, I believe it is.”

“Go on ahead to breakfast, I’ll catch up,” he groaned. You pressed a kiss to his forehead before going to find food.

“Lady! Join us!” Finan smiled as soon as he saw you. You sat at the table happily and picked at some food.

“We leave tomorrow morning for the north,” Uhtred informed you.

“All of you?”

“Yes, all of us,” he said with a sad smile.

“We will all return to you in one piece,” Finan joked.

“You better,” you tried your best to smile.

“You will be going to stay with Thyra until we return. You will be safe with her,” Sihtric said.

“Perhaps you should go spend the day with your man; remind him what he’s fighting to come back to,” Finan said with a smirk.

“I think I’ll do just that,” you sighed, filling a plate to bring back with you.

You spent the day with Osferth, nursing him until the hangover passed.

You wanted to give him all of you, but you simply could not. You wanted to ask what he meant by what he said last night, but could not find the words in case he would regret what he said.

The next morning, you saw him out to the stables where the men were readying their horses.

“Promise you will return to me,” you said softly.

“I swear, my love, if you will make a promise in return.”

“Anything, Osferth.”

“Marry me.”

Your heart was racing as you processed his words.

“I- yes I will marry you,” you said, jumping into his arms. His friends all watched on in amusement and happiness.

“We will discuss it further when I return,” he said, unable to contain his smile. Thyra came and found you to bring you back to her house. You waved the men off and you couldn’t contain your excitement for their return.

All you had to do was get the Lady Aethelflaed’s permission. She was always so kind to you and you cared for her deeply, you were sure she would grant you permission once she was recovered.

The time passed slowly, but you found that Thyra was great company to keep. You waited for word of your lady’s recovery but you could tell there was unrest in the city.

Uhtred had sent a messenger back to the city to explain to Alfred the cost to buy back his daughter.

All of Wessex and Mercia was to help pay the ransom but what they did not know was that the princess had no plans to return south.

Osferth had sent a message of his own, alerting you to your lady’s plan and reassuring you that he was safe. You burned the letter as soon as you read it.

You wanted Aethelflaed to be happy and if this Northman was capable of doing that then blessings to her.

More time passed and men marched from the city. You became anxious and prayed every night that everyone you cared for would be safe.

You found yourself at the secluded lake one day, washing and enjoying the nice weather. You were lost in your thoughts and didn’t hear the person walking along the banking.

“What a sight for sore eyes.”

You whipped around in the water, clutching your chest.

“Osferth!”

You swam to the shore as quick as possible and ran into his arms, not caring you were wet and naked.

“If I’m welcomed back this way every time, perhaps I should leave more often,” he smirked.

“You should not,” you laughed, pulling him in for a kiss.

“As much as I’m enjoying this, perhaps we should get you dressed and back to town.”

“Yes- wait! What of Lady Aethelflaed?”

“She is back safe. The Northman did not make it. I will tell you everything later, I swear.”

He helped you get dressed and you made your way back to town. You greeted your friends who were already drinking the ale house owner out of house and home.

“I’m so glad to see all of you!”

“As we are to see you, lady,” Uhtred smiled.

“Aethelflaed is spending time with her family I’m guessing?”

“She is. I would give her a few days to settle in before going to the palace. Her husband is not in the best mood despite having his wife back,” Uhtred grunted. You rolled your eyes and sighed.

“Yes, he is a bit of an arse,” you mumbled.

“Just a bit?” Sihtric scoffed.

“Perhaps more than,” you laughed.

“Well luckily for you, your husband will be a kind man,” Osferth smiled. You pressed a sweet kiss to his lips while the other men pretended to vomit.

You gave the princess a week to recover with her loved ones before approaching her. She pulled you into a tight embrace and apologized for any terrible things her husband may have said.

“I am used to your husbands sharp tongue, lady. And I’d rather it be directed at me than you,” you said softly.

“You are too kind, y/n,” she replied.

“Speaking of husbands…I wanted to ask you something, lady.”

“Of course. You may ask me anything,” she said.

“I have had a marriage proposal and wanted to seek your permission.”

She grabbed your hand in hers with a huge smile on her face.

“Oh that is wonderful news! Who is it?” She asked.

“Osferth. Uhtred has already given his permission.”

Aethelflaed’s smile slowly fell as she considered your words.

“I am afraid I cannot allow that.” She said sternly. Your heart fell into your stomach.

“May I ask why not?”

“He is my father’s bastard and any children you may bare could lay claim to the throne in the future. I cannot permit such a thing to happen,” she said coolly.

“So you would deny me happiness due to the risk to your family? A risk that would not even occur!”

“You could not ensure that,” she snapped.

“But I could! He will have children of his own some day whether it be with me or another. Wouldn’t you rather it be with someone you are close to and would be on your side in the matter?” You tried reasoning.

“I have given my answer. Besides, I need you now more than ever,” she said in hushed tones, cradling her stomach.

“I did not put that babe in you so why should I have to care for it? And I’m guessing it wasn’t your husband who did either,” you said.

You knew your words would cut deep but you did not care. She had just robbed you of your happiness for her own selfish reasons.

“You will go to my chambers and pack my things. We leave first thing tomorrow. I order you to stay away from Osferth and any of Uhtred’s men.”

You said nothing as you turned on your heel and left the room. You could not believe her. You wanted to run to Osferth but you knew she could have you seized for disobeying her.

You rounded the final corner to the chambers and ran into Father Beocca.

“Child, what’s wrong?” He asked, noticing the tears on your cheeks.

“Lady Aethelflaed will not allow Osferth and I to marry for fear of our children trying to stake a claim to the throne,” you sobbed.

“That is absurd! I will speak to Uhtred and she will be reasoned with,” he reassured you.

You packed the princess’s belongings rather quickly in hopes of sneaking out to find Osferth. As if reading your mind, you heard a knock on the chamber door.

“Y/N?”

“Osferth?” You asked quietly. You met him in the hall and found an empty room where you could speak in private.

“You have heard the news?” You asked sadly.

“I have and I have more,” he sighed. “Uhtred went to speak with your lady but she is not having it. I gave her my word that any children we have would not be a threat to the crown but it was not enough.”

“I am so sorry, my love,” you cried. He pulled you into his arms and held you as you cried. He kissed you like it was his dying wish to feel your lips on his one last time.

“Time to retire,” you heard Aethelflaed call from outside the door. “Say your goodbyes.”

“I will see you again, my love,” he whispered.

You could do nothing but nod sadly, parting from him with one last kiss.

The next day you journeyed back to Mercia with the Lady Aethelflaed and her men. You did not speak to her and she did not speak to you other than what was necessary.

That is how it continued for weeks on end. You were miserable and as much as she tried to reason with you, you refused to listen. The weeks turned into months and slowly life returned to as close to normal as it would.

Your lady swelled with the child and when she was born, you were torn between joy and pain. You were happy for her, for her healthy baby made from love, but you resented her from tearing the same opportunity from you.

4 years later…

“Men! There are men in the kitchen!” One of the nuns shrieked.

“Bar the door!” Aethelflaed yelled.

You hid yourself in a corner while everyone was quiet.

“Is it Danes?” Someone asked.

“What if I am Saxon by birth but Dane by heart?” Uhtred called from above.

“Uhtred? You came!” Aethelflaed sighed in relief. “Open the door.”

The nuns opened the door and the rest of Uhtred’s men, including your beloved Osferth. Your heart nearly stopped in your chest when you laid eyes on him for the first time in years. He hadn’t noticed you yet and you let yourself drink him in.

He looked like your same, sweet Osferth, but more of a man. His jaw was sharper and he looked more muscular than you remembered.

As much as you enjoyed admiring him, you couldn’t help but wonder if he had found another to marry. He was handsome and a fierce warrior, you were sure he caught the attention of many ladies.

“Would you please helps the nuns in the kitchen please, y/n?” Aethelflaed asked you. Osferth’s eyes darted to yours and it looked like he had seen a ghost.

“Yes, lady,” you mumbled as you joined the other women in the kitchen.

Osferth wanted to follow, but he knew he shouldn’t. He had missed you greatly but he knew if he held you in his arms once more that he wouldn’t be able to let go.

Aethelflaed kept you busy while the men were there to keep you distracted from Osferth. It wasn’t an easy task but you managed to avoid him other than at meal times.

One morning, you were all eating breakfast when you heard a scream outside and nuns came running into the hall.

“Danes! Outside and they have hostages!” The abbess shrieked. “They’ve asked for the Lady Aethelflaed.”

“You must go and speak to them, tell them she is not here,” Uhtred told her.

“I cannot!”

“You must, even if it is only to buy us time to make a plan.”

“I will do it,” you offered.

“No!” Osferth argued.

“I will go,” the abbess said, taking your hand in hers. “It is my responsibility.”

The door was barred shut behind her as Uhtred and Aethelflaed watched from the window. You found yourself mindlessly gravitating toward Osferth until your side was pressed to his.

Finan and Uhtred discussed a plan forward when you heard the abbess scream outside. She was dead. And you feared that you were all next.

“Ladies, to the back. We will handle this,” Finan said, ushering you and the nuns to the back of the hall. Osferth gave you a small nod before readying himself with the other men behind the door.

The action broke out before you could even register it. You did your best to remain calm while you watched the battle in the hall before you. Uhtred seemed to have the advantage but a few Danes managed to slip by them.

“Hello, ladies!” They laughed menacingly.

“Leave them!” You yelled, standing in front of the nuns with your sword drawn.

“I like them feisty,” one chuckled. The other easily knocked your sword from your hand and grabbed you. You thrashed against him but it was no use as he overpowered you.

“Come men! Outside!” Haesten yelled. You were dragged toward the door but before the men could get any further, the one that was holding you suddenly released his grip.

He fell to the floor in pain while the other tried to fight his attacker. You watched Osferth fight the larger man but he eventually bested him and drove his sword through the Dane’s heart.

He swept you into his arms and held you tight.

“No one will take you from me again,” he sighed.

Uhtred drove the remaining Danes from the nunnery but you knew that was not the last you’d be seeing of them.

“We must travel to Aegelesburg, to tell my husband and father of what has happened here,” Aethelflaed informed everyone.

“We will accompany you,” Uhtred said. You glanced at Osferth who offered you a shy smile.

The journey was not too long and it was no surprise you were met with resistance at the gates.

“You are welcome, lady. But the outlaws must remain outside the hall,” Steapa told you all.

“Y/N, please secure food and ale for these men in my absence,” she told you. So off you went in search of provisions for the warriors.

“Lady, wait for me!” Osferth called after you.

“I thought I told you not to call me that,” you joked.

“Well those were different times,” he sighed.

“Yes, I suppose they were. Perhaps you should call me lady out of respect for whoever you’ve chosen to take as your wife.”

You entered a storage shed where you knew they always kept an extra supply of food and ale.

“I have no wife, lady. I could never,” he said quietly. You turned to face him and you could see the sadness in his eyes.

“Surely there have been others?”

“I could never,” he repeated.

Against all reason, you flung yourself into his arms and pulled him into a kiss. You tried to pour every ounce of emotion you had been feeling for the last few years into the kiss so he would understand how much you had missed him.

He had you pinned against the counter as he allowed his hands to re-familiarize themselves with your body. His tongue fought for dominance with yours and you could not control the moans of contentment that were spilling from you. Your body was on fire and you wanted nothing more than for him to take you right there.

“Osferth, my love, please. Please, I need more,” you whined.

“We cannot, not here.”

“Then take me elsewhere, anywhere,” you begged.

“As much as I would love to ravage you right now, you know it would not be right.”

His words caused frustration to bubble up inside of you and for a damn to break.

“I am sick and tired of people telling me what is wrong and what is right! I am tired of people telling me no and controlling my life, denying me happiness and what I want!” You snapped.

Osferth was surprised by your outburst but he understood. He often felt anger whenever he thought on the situation and of how it was unfair.

“It was your wish to remain chaste until marriage and you know we cannot,” he said.

“Well then I take back my oath. I will never marry if it is not to you and therefore give you permission to ravage me,” you said defiantly.

“Are you certain, my love?” He asked.

“Please do not make me beg,” you whined.

“I did tell you perhaps another time,” he chuckled. “Tonight then. Because our first time will not be in a storage shed in the open.”

“Tonight it is.”

You couldn’t help the smile that enveloped your face. The two of you sorted yourselves out and grabbed some food and ale to bring to your friends.

“Jesus! We thought we were gonna starve!” Finan yelled when he finally laid eyes on the two of you.

“Yes, you look as though you’re withering away,” you joked.

“We are!” Sihtric argued.

You set the food down before them and joined them, sitting next to Osferth. He kept a hand on your leg at all times which did not help the growing fire in your belly. Tonight could not come soon enough.

Uhtred was eventually allowed into the hall to speak with Edward and Alfred. The men were finally full and content, allowing you and Osferth time to sneak away.

“You are still certain you wish to do this?” He asked.

“Do you not wish to bed me, Osferth?”

“I do! I do, I just wanted to make sure.”

“Well I am sure, and I thank you for asking,” you said.

You silently led him to your chambers and closed the door securely behind you. Neither of you moved for a moment and all of a sudden you both burst into a fit of giggles.

“It is not like we have not done anything before,” you laughed, finally breaking the tension.

“I know but it has been so long and I get to have all of you now,” he said, stalking toward you.

His nimble fingers unbuttoned your dress, and you allowed him to pull it from your figure. You helped him with your undergarments while he rid himself of his own clothes. You took a moment to drink each other in before your hands were grabbing at anything they could touch, tongues entwined once more.

He guided you to your bed where you landed softly on the furs. Your legs fell open naturally, welcoming him between them. His nose grazed your inner thigh while you waited for him to act.

“I have missed this,” he sighed before diving into your cunt.

He licked a fat strip between your folds before settling on your clit. You had been untouched for so long that every ministration sent shockwaves through your body.

“Fingers, I need your fingers, Osferth,” you moaned.

“No, nothing shall enter you before my cock. After that, my love, I shall give you whatever you want,” he said.

He licked and sucked until you were mere moments away from the edge. You did your best to be quiet but it was difficult with the gorgeous man with his head between your thighs.

“Osferth, I am close!”

He focused on the spot he knew was sure to send you into your bliss. You thought about what was to come next, having him inside of you, and that was enough to throw you over the edge.

Your body writhed on the bed but he held your hips down while he lapped at your soaking cunt.

“I need you, please,” you begged.

He crawled his way up your body and kissed you, allowing you to taste yourself on his tongue. You could feel his cock poking your entrance and it caused your heart to race.

He slid it through your slick folds a few times before slowly sinking into you. He went slowly, trying to allow you time to adjust. He knew he would not last long either so he wanted to savor the feeling for as long as he could.

“You feel amazing,” he grunted, finally fully sheathed inside you.

“I must have died and gone to heaven,” you sighed happily.

He began to pull out gently before rocking back into you. The more you grew accustomed to his size, the faster he began to thrust.

He hid his face in the crook of your neck, trying to hold on as long as possible. Your walls fluttering around him were torture as he didn’t want it to end.

“I am afraid you feel too good wrapped around my cock,” he groaned.

“Cum, Osferth. Let me feel you,” you told him.

A few more thrusts of his hips and he was emptying inside of you. Your name fell from his lips like it was the only prayer he knew.

His hand slid between the two of you and found your clit. He rubbed you slowly, still fully seated within you.

He felt you clench around him and he knew you were close. He sang sweet praises in your ear until your back was arching off the bed and you were cumming for the second time. If he was not already so spent from the first time, he would have begun fucking you again. But to feel your sweet cunt swallowing him up as you came was satisfaction enough for now.

He cleaned you off as best he could before joining you in bed. You pulled the furs over the two of you and laid on his chest.

“What are we to do, Osferth?” You asked sadly.

“Sleep?”

“No, silly. I cannot go years without seeing you again- without touching you.”

“Do you think your lady may be persuaded now that time has passed?”

“I doubt it. Perhaps I could just run off with you…but she would know who to find me with,” you sighed.

“We will find a way. I swear it,” he told you.

Days had passed and the leaders prepared their armies for battle. You did not want to let Osferth go but you knew he would be returned to you safely. Victory always favored Uhtred and his men.

A year or so later…

“Beg me, my love. Beg me to fill you with my seed and you will have it,” Osferth whispered into your ear. He pounded into you as you could barely register what he was saying.

“Please! Please, fill me. I need you, my love,” you cried.

Your vision went white as your orgasm crashed over you, his hips still slamming into you. Your nails dragged down his back, causing him to lose his rhythm and spill into you.

The two of you had spent the better part of the last year speaking behind Aethelflaed’s back. You considered getting married in secret but Osferth said you deserved better than that.

Change was coming, you could feel it. So you tried to enjoy your lover for as long as you could.

“Aye! If you two are done in there, we need to get going!” Finan yelled.

“Be there in a minute!” Osferth yelled, rolling his eyes. “My apologies, my love.”

“I understand you must go. Battle awaits,” you sighed.

The Danes had sacked Mercia while Aethelred played king in East Anglia. The hope was to best them in Tettenhall, luring C’nut there through his sons, who he thought to be slaughtered.

“I will return to you, as I always do,” he smiled.

Waiting to hear word of either victory or defeat was always a challenge. Losing Osferth before you even really had the chance to live a life with him would surely be your undoing.

A weeks time had passed while you busied yourself around Aegelsburg. Your heart dropped into your stomach when you heard the call for the gate to be opened. Men rushed in with a body on a cart. It was not your Osferth, but Aethelred.

The lord had been injured in battle and you wished you could say you felt sorry for him. His treatment of his wife, and any other woman really, did not allow for such kindness.

Aethelflaed and Edward began preparation for a new lord to be chosen should her husband perish.

Aelfywnn was an obvious path but that was not suitable for she was just a child. Many of the young men of prominence in Mercia had been slaughtered by the Danes.

Unbeknownst to Aethelflaed, Edward went behind her back and sought out Uhtred. Uhtred was popular with the people and Edward felt he could be inclined to follow Wessex.

Aethelflaed objected, of course. Her love for Uhtred did not outweigh her duty to her country. He was not the right choice, she felt, but then men could not be dissuaded. Uhtred’s men were over the moon, thankful to finally have some wealth and power.

“Uhtred, do you swear to lead Mercia on a path that is righteous and beneficial to all Mercians?” Ludeca asked.

“I swear.”

“Does the wittan agree to appoint Uhtred the next Lord of Mercia?”

“Aye! Aye! Aye!”

Aethelflaed watched on in discontent.

“Then Uhtred, we hereby proclaim you Lord of Mercia! You may take your throne!”

Uhtred stood before the Wittan with a sly smile on his face.

“I am grateful for this opportunity to rule over Mercia. However, I do not feel like I am the best choice. There is someone who will put this land above all else and that is the leader Mercia deserves! So my first act as Lord of Mercia is to relinquish the throne in favor of the Lady Aethelflaed.”

Gasps erupted around the room and Edward was furious. The princess was as shocked as anyone else.

“A woman cannot sit on the throne! What if she chooses to remarry? That man would be the new lord therefore bypassing the Wittan,” someone argued.

“If it pleases the Wittan, I will swear an oath to remain chaste so long as I sit on the Mercian throne.” Aethelflaed offered.

“You will also swear one thing to me,” Uhtred said.

“What is it?” She asked.

“I will relinquish the throne to you if you swear to allow y/n to marry Osferth. End their suffering and allow them to be wed. There will be no threat,” he whispered.

“That is what you require? Not land nor silver?”

“Everyone deserves happiness and they have been denied long enough. Plus I am tired of them sneaking around,” he chuckled.

“Fine. I swear to you, Uhtred, I shall allow them to marry. And I swear before the Wittan that I will remain chaste as Lady of Mercia!”

“Then it is settled. Lady Aethelflaed, take your throne!”

Meanwhile, the men were celebrating in the ale house unaware of what was occurring. You took the time enjoy everyone’s company, certain you would have to leave with the princess some time soon. You doubted she would stay in Aegelesburg and were certain she would take you with her.

“Men, lady,” Uhtred said as he walked through the door.

“The Lord of Mercia visiting an ale house? How scandalous!” Finan laughed.

“I was lord for all of five minutes,” he chuckled. “I gave up the throne in favor of Lady Aethelflaed.”

“You did?” You gasped.

“I did- but not before some oaths were made.” The smile on his face was cunning, that of a cat who swallowed a canary.

“Care to share those oaths, lord?” Osferth asked.

“Firstly, the Lady of Mercia will remain chaste as long as she sits on the throne,” he said.

You knew how upset that must have made him; his love for your lady was no secret.

“Secondly, a marriage has been arranged.”

“Who is it, lord?” Sihtric asked.

“We have a wedding to plan, boys,” Uhtred chuckled.

“Lord?”

“If y/n still wishes to be married to the baby monk, that is.”

“That is not a funny joke, Lord Uhtred,” you said, the nerves evident in your voice.

For so long you wished to hear those words but now that you had, you couldn’t allow yourself to believe them to be true.

“It is no joke, Lady. I told Aethelflaed that if she wanted the throne, she needed to let the two of you wed. So you have our permissions.”

“This is true, lord?” Osferth asked, standing in excitement.

“Is it true? How many times do I have to repeat myself? It is true!”

“Let us find Father Pyrlig! We shall marry at once!” Osferth pulled you into his arms as you cried in happiness.

“Father Pyrlig may need a few minutes,” you heard someone groan from behind you.

You all turned to see Father Pyrlig laying on the table surrounded by empty cups of ale.

“We shall marry tomorrow then!” Osferth laughed. Your friends cheered for you as you clung to the man you loved most.

God had blessed you at last and you hoped for that favor to continue in your marriage as you hoped to one day have a family with Osferth- in a small home with the safety of your already made family surrounding you.

——————————————————

The Last Kingdom Taglist: @cornervase @camillabrady @mdawgs01 @moldy-khunt @stray-bi-kids @emilyhufflepufftlk @solinarimoon @chainsawsangel

Taglist: @cornervase @camillabrady @moldy-khunt @stray-bi-kids @emilyhufflepufftlk @solinarimoon @chainsawsangel

Taglist: @cornervase @camillabrady @moldy-khunt @stray-bi-kids @emilyhufflepufftlk @solinarimoon @chainsawsangel

Taglist: @cornervase @camillabrady  @moldy-khunt @stray-bi-kids @emilyhufflepufftlk @solinarimoon @chainsawsangel

Taglist:

[imagine-darksiders]

I am on my hands and knees begging for any sort of headcanons of Samael being just, in love, feet over horns, fluttering heart, romanced to the bone, with this weird little human who's obsessed with stuff that doesn't even benefit them and has the bloody stars in their eyes

Samael x human!Reader headcanons:

You're... different from the usual company he keeps. You speak with him, not at him, and certainly not while trying your damndest to appeal to his every whim.

It’s refreshing to be spoken to kindly but without any semblance of an ulterior motive. In his experience, those who are ‘good’ to him, are always after a favour.

You don't know how to engage with him as a demon, having grown up on Earth among humans, so that's how you treat him, as if he were a fellow human. And it's far from the insult he thought it would be.

It’s so, damn, frustratingly charming that his every attempt to court you is met with confusion and reciprocation. He gives you the largest ruby he has in his collection, you give him a leather bound book of poetry you’ve thumbed through for years, adding notes in the margins for him to read.

No. No; you’re not… you’re not supposed to do that. He’s the one in a position of power and elevated status - he’s the one who’s supposed to court you. Now he’s falling in love even harder. Of all the paramours he’s taken, you’re the first and only one who has returned with gifts in kind. And not only that, you put thought into said gifts. You give him things you think he’ll like whereas he merely tries to drape you in beautiful things because he thinks you’re beautiful…. Perhaps he needs to revisit his approach…

Just like that, Samael starts to pay close attention to the things you’re interested in.

It's taken him a long, long time to convince you that you can trust him - you know what he is, after all. Now however, rather than locking yourself in your bathroom and refusing to emerge when he turns up outside your bedroom window, you’re only slightly miffed, poking your head through the open window and ushering him around the back of your home where there are less prying eyes.

It seems you still haven’t figured out why he turns up so frequently. You seem to think it’s because he wants to garner favour with the Horsemen by treating their favourite human cordially.

How sweet.

He doesn’t mind playing the game until you figure it out….

He can - and always will - spend hours in your company, content to bask in your presence as you regale him about your latest ventures and interests. He has to wonder why his heart thumps with longing when he hears about your adventures with the Horsemen. If he had been travelling with you, you’d never have had to lift a finger to protect yourself. He’d have crushed anything that so much as looked in your direction.

And yes, sometimes he watches you from the shadows to ensure that nobody else is trying to encroach upon his claim. He wishes other humans could smell him on you. He only needs to ‘accidentally’ brush his tail against your legs for a fellow demon to catch his scent and get the message that you’re off limits. But humans don’t have the same heightened senses. Even the burning grooves he carved into your front door - much to your chagrin - aren’t enough to deter those would-be suitors who stink of desperation and lust that turn up at your home.

Being the human who helped save your own species has made you particularly… sought-after….

[sleeplesssmoll]

So like how would the team react to smolnetto pre breakaway? And her to them in return?

I was thinking about this for a bit. I think it might be kind of sad...

Smolnetto is very strict and stifles her curiosity compared to Smoltin. I think she might be confused if she sees Vertin leading a bunch of the most dangerous arcanists the Foundation's come across.

While she may be reserved with the others, I do feel like she'd eventually be coaxed into relaxing. However, she has no idea how to deal with Vertin.

The top student is now the assistant to the worst student?? How did she end up in that position?

I have a feeling this might break Vertin's heart, but she's understanding. She and Sonetto had a complicated relationship before the break away event.

Post break-away Sonetto is the opposite of pre-break away where she and Vertin are almost inseparable. Sometimes you realize how important something is to you once you lose it and I hc Sonetto that way. The fear after hearing what happened to her classmates and the relief that Vertin is still alive. She's not going to let her Smoltin go after that.

But pre-break away still doesn't quite understand her feelings toward Vertin. She always puts up with Vertin and never snitches. When they talk she always brings in Vertin's well-being into account, like Vertin being punished or facing the dangers outside. She cares about Vertin a lot but the Foundation wants her hate everything Vertin stood for. She shouldn't like the troublemaker but she can't stop caring about her.

That being said, it's possible Vertin sometimes wonders where Sonetto's affection and admiration comes from. For example, does her protectiveness stem from guilt because Sonetto helped them "escape"? While Sonetto cares about her, maybe it's not actually because she "likes" her but because she feels responsible for her. Since Sonetto herself doesn't quite understand her own feelings, this gives Vertin doubts at times. However, regardless of why Sonetto chose to stick by her, her assistant is reliable and loyal so that doesn't matter (or so she tells herself like she doesn't dwell on it in AS or in her daily life. It's literally a point of trauma for Vertin).

Anyways, I'm thinking of an interaction where Smolnetto and Vertin are talking because despite the awkwardness, she has questions! Vertin answers calmly and kindly and Sonetto remarks on how different she is.

Vertin has a sad little smile and apologizes to Sonetto. She thanks her for putting up with her when she gave her every reason not too when they were kids.

Sonetto responds with another question. Why did Vertin keep trying to get close to her? Vertin wasn't bothered by bullies or instructors, but she reacted differently to her deskmate. Sonetto seems rather guilty about the whole thing as if reflecting on how she treated Smoltin.

Vertin pats her head and answers easily. "You were special."

Sonetto doesn't seem satisfied with that answer. "Am I not special anymore?" Referring to the fact she supposedly grows up to work under Vertin.

Vertin isn't sure how to answer but settles on "You are, but it's different now."

Now Smolnetto seems upset, which baffles Vertin. However, Sonetto doesn't understand why she's upset either. She admits something to Vertin that the Timekeeper has been waiting to hear for a long time.

"You're special to me too and that's why I don't like it when you do bad things!"

Sonetto hated seeing Vertin getting punished. She was mad not only about the frog, but because Vertin got burned by the electric fence. She felt like she needed to protect Vertin because she was tired of seeing the bruises and scrapes, but Vertin was determined to be a gremlin child.

Simply put, Sonetto only got as frustrated as she did because Vertin was someone important to her. She liked Vertin from the start but Smoltin did not make it easy.

It's almost tragic how much they cared about one another but never seemed to understand each other.

I'm a sucker for an enemies to lovers trope, but this hits different because you want to scream at them since they are so close to overcoming these misunderstandings but never quite make it!

[fadingdaggerr]

all bark, some bite - l.w.

pairing: larissa weems x gn!reader (no pronoun or name use for reader)

summary: parents’ weekend is a time of stress, especially when an addams is now a student, and her mother and the principal have a fun little history behind them

warnings: fully using morticia as a plot device (sorry tish baby i luv u), suggestive ending

note: i have no idea what happened to this fic

the closer parents’ weekend grew, the more antsy larissa became. she typically has gone over every little detail three, four, five times by now. every year she takes great consideration into everything, wanting the parents to see the nevermore in all her glory, down to having every knickknack in every common space dusted and polished to perfection. but this year felt different. the tension in her shoulders was tighter this year, her pacing more pointed, her sleep dwindling by the day, and if none of this was enough, the now eight rechecks of plans was starting to look a little crazy.

when the day arrived, she was somehow more tense than she had been for the last two weeks. usually once the day began, she had been confident and excited, but today, she fiddled with her wedding band nonstop, watching as parents arrived and greeted their children.

walking up beside her, i lean in so my voice only reached her, “everything looks great, baby, relax a little bit. the students look happy, the schedule’s fun, you look stunning as always, everything’s in order.”

“you have got to stay close by me at all times,” is all she says.

“as much as i would love that, i have to be in my classroom to answer parent questions for the first couple hours. but, i would love to sneak in a visit my favorite girl,” i smile to her, pressing my lips to her clothed shoulder, and i can see some tension reduce a little.

“i will be holding you to your word on that,” she grabs my hand, pressing a kiss to my knuckles. i pull her hand to my own lips, returning the favor, not missing the way her eyes light up.

in their mini tours, many of my students brought their parents to my classroom. most got a full report of the class from their children, meaning i was just there to deliver pleasantries, admittedly spruce up the behavior of some students when parents asked, and accept compliments on my book collection.

tall floor to ceiling bookshelves covered the west-facing wall of my room, a rolling ladder allowing me to reach the very top shelves. the top shelves were reserved for only the greatest of my collection, the rare and beautiful ones. books the students enjoy were closer to their reach, the ladder being a no-go for any of them. i always kept books larissa loved at her own eye-level, she had yet to notice it was on purpose, so her little excitement was a special treat whenever she gazed at the shelf.

after two hours of meetings that ended with a lively conversation with eugene’s moms, i thought i would finally be able to retreat back to wherever larissa may be. as i started to head out the door when a familiar, dark presence blocked my path to the hall.

“hello, wednesd-”

“principal’s office, now.”

“i’m doing great, thank you so much for asking wednesday,” i say monotonously, “and why am i so kindly being summoned to the principal’s office?”

“i’m saving her, and by proxy, you, a headache,” and she leaves. a hefty dose of ‘no context’ from wednesday addams, no day is complete without it anymore.

i make my way to larissa’s office, knocking gently before peeking my head in, “riss?”

“darling, what are you doing here?” she asks as she moves from her desk and makes her way over to me, both hands grabbing mine, pulling me closer.

“wednesday addams. she sent me here to ‘save you and myself a headache,’ whatever that means,” i say with a shrug, placing a sweet kiss to her cheek.

“i hope we don’t find out,” her hands moving, arms wrap around my waist, my own going around her neck.

“me neither. a nice, headache free day sounds phenomenal,” i say while adjusting the chain of her necklace, “how has your day been, my angel?”

she lets out a deep breath, “probably about as interesting as yours so far, but i would say it’s much better now,” she finishes her sentence with a short kiss to my lips.

i hum in agreement, and just as i go to pull her back in, there’s a knock as the door. we jump apart before larissa calls for whoever knocked to enter. the door opens, and i see a woman, dressed in a long, black gown enter the room. she’s smiling with adoration at the shorter man next to her, love for the woman evident in his gaze.

larissa’s eyes widen as she freezes in place. this is what she had been dreading, morticia addams.

the woman looks back towards the room, “larissa!”

“morticia! lovely to see you.”

ah, the headache, i think to myself, just as she begins to approach me. wednesday looks more homicidal than usual, and i can’t help but share the feeling.

“why hello there, morticia addams,” she sticks her hand out for me to shake. before i can introduce myself, she speaks again shutting me down, “and this is gomez, my husband,” gomez grabs her hand, kissing up her arm, muttering terms of endearment in spanish, “and my son, pugsley.”

“well, it sure is certainly nice to meet all of you,” my smile is fake, but morticia doesn’t seem to notice the insincerity, so i continue, “wednesday is fantastic in my literature of the macabre class. she has been at top of my class since she started, which has not been unexpected.”

i almost feel as if i’m bragging about how well my own child is doing in class, and i can see as larissa smiles softly at my words.

“that is fantastic to hear, our little viper is a master of the macabre,” gomez praises his daughter, the action making wednesday scowl harder, but making me smile slightly.

the addams’ sat across from larissa, i stood to larissa’s right, offering her support with my presence. discussions of wednesday’s academics and extracurriculars continued for a little bit. i stayed quiet for most of it, happy to be with my wife, also hoping i could be a buffer between her and morticia. i had been filled in, well before we got married, about how cruel morticia was to larissa later in their academy years. i also stayed for wednesday, who wouldn’t admit that she needed someone else in her corner when her parents were around. all conversation came to sudden halt when morticia let out a gasp.

“how could i have not seen that? larissa, you never mentioned you had gotten married,” she grabs larissa’s left hand, pulling it close to look at her ring. a shudder moves down my back at the contact.

“it wasn’t relevant the last we spoke, and before that we hadn’t seen each other since we graduated, so why when would i have said anything?” larissa is calculated in her response, letting me know this interaction had been something of worry to her.

“goodness, when did this happen? must not have been long ago, or else i would’ve heard, i’m sure,” morticia responds, and i almost laugh at her certainty.

“it’s been seven years as of september, as a matter of fact. and we were together for five years before that. it was a very private ceremony, we only had our closest loved ones in attendance,” larissa answers as she pulls her hand back, looking at her ring with a soft smile, a light blush painting her cheeks at the memory. i bite my tongue to hide my own smile.

“private ceremony, private answers, not even a photo in here larissa,” morticia gestures around the office, and the anger in me grows slowly.

“with students, staff, faculty, parents, and even law enforcement regularly in my office, i would rather not have my personal life on display. what’s mine is private,” she says the last part lowly, a warning to morticia that she must tread lightly, but her tone ignites a fire in the pit of my stomach.

this warning is noted by a raised brow, but is violently ignored when she looks larissa in the eye with a pathetic frown and says, “please don’t tell me you settled?”

larissa’s face immediately grows dark, her hands flattening against her desk, she starts to rise out of her seat. to avoid a small war in the middle of the office, i take a step forward and speak in her place, “i believe ‘settling’ is more of a subjective concept,” my eye contact is sharp and unwavering, “in my opinion, she most definitely did settle, outrageously settled. but from her words, at the very least, i would say she does not share the same sentiment as i do,” the emphasis on ‘very’ has larissa’s head whipping my way at the innuendo, “some would say marrying your high school sweetheart is settling, but i’m not one to judge,” pugsley snorts, wednesday’s eyes shoot to him in a playful manor, clearly enjoying this just as much,“well, not one to judge often, as my mother used to say, ‘everyone has a taste, whether or not they should have be pickier is up to the heavens.’ quite the phrase, don’t ya think?”

morticia’s mouth shuts immediately, her eyes shooting to larissa’s to ask for help. she has nothing to offer her former roommate, other than holding back her own laughter.

“anyways, i should be on my way, poetry club meeting starts in 30 minutes, and i have to get the room set up for the parents,” i say with a smile towards the addams. “it was lovely letting you mister and missus addams, you too pugsley. i will see you in class next week, pretty please remind enid to read the chapter, do not give her the gist of it,” i point to wednesday as i speak, “and you,” i turn to larissa, “i will see you at home,” i kiss the top of her forehead to end my goodbye, my left hand on her shoulder, matching wedding band on display.

i pat her shoulder once more before walking towards the door, i turn to look at her, right as i’m about to close the door and blow her a kiss. she smiles softly and rolls her eyes at my antics.

“anything else you would like to discuss?”

— — — — —

my day, thankfully, ended after the poetry club meeting. a side road only a couple miles past the campus gates brought me to a dark green, two story house with brown trim. a wrap porch with vines growing up after years of free roaming, but neat from snipping and reshaping them when they got unruly. this wasn’t just some house, it was the home larissa and i now shared.

getting home, my shoes slid off before i even unlocked the door. keys were on the hook, bag on the seat by the door, jacket on the peg, shoes thrown on the floor. i make my way go our bedroom, purposefully going to her closet for a sweatshirt, grabbing a light grey one, and a pair of my own sleep shorts from my top drawer.

larissa comes home silently while i was a focusing on not burning the vegetables in the pan. she follows a similar pattern to me, only neater and quieter. i don’t notice her presence until i’m adding the vegetables to the sauce, and two long, pale arms wrap around my middle. i continue my task with her draped around me, stirring the vegetables in, spinning the spice rack in search of oregano and red pepper flakes.

“you are trouble” i laugh at her opening line, “at the very least, huh?”

“children were present, and in my defense, those particular ones have definitely heard much worse from those horn-dogs,” i say like it’s nothing, making her laugh this time. “and you’re one to talk. ‘what’s mine is private’? good lord, riss,” i jokingly fan my face, and she laughs harder.

“i stand by my statements,” she pinches my side, “especially the one where i disagree with you on me settling. i don’t settle, if i wanted to i could’ve long ago, but i waited for the right person and found you,” she whispers the end into my ear.

“and look at you now, with a much better last name,” i add the noodles to the sauce, “could’ve been missus larissa antoinette weems-fru- LARISSA!” i squeak as a hand smacks against my ass, laughing immediately.

“don’t even start, gods you even brought the middle name into it,” she laughs with me, her head resting against my shoulder.

i pick up a sauce-drenched noodle on a spoon, raising it to her lips, she gladly takes the bite, groaning happily at the taste. biting back a comment about the noise, i start to prepare dishes to serve on. larissa stays glued to my back, following each of my steps around our kitchen.

“i may need you around for more parent-principal meetings, especially ones involving… particularly difficult cases,” larissa says into my neck, avoiding the use of morticia’s name, as if it would summon her if spoken.

“you name the time and place, i’ll happily be wherever you need me. i can be like your guard dog,” i laugh a little at the notion.

“perhaps a ‘beware of dog’ sign outside my office may be needed,” she jests as she pulls away to set the table.

with dinner finished, and a bottle of wine later, larissa and i lay on the couch together, my fingers weaving through her hair as her head rested on my chest, her hands wandering every now and then from my abdomen, down my legs, and back up. i scratched my fingertips against her scalp, a noise just short of a purr comes from the back of her throat. we stay in this silence for a while, relaxing from the day, knowing tomorrow still had a slim chance to be incident free. loving her and being loved by her was all there was at this moment.

her head raises from my chest, i also pout at the loss of the comforting weight against my chest. tired, larimar eyes find mine, and i feel my heart skip a beat, her beauty has never failed to surprise me. someone like her, someone this beautiful, chose me.

she stares a little longer before sweetly saying, “you’d make a horrible guard dog,” and my jaw drops slightly, i’m utterly gobsmacked. i had been expecting a loving comment, or even a lustful one, not whatever this was.

i look at her for another moment before gathering my thoughts. i piece together the only thing that feels right to say at a time like this, “what the fuck?”

“you’re awfully cute, darling. i don’t think they’d find you scary,” she leans down to kiss the middle of my chest through my (her) sweatshirt, then looking back up at me. she made a point, i was not nearly as intimidating up front as she was.

larissa was intimidating just to look at. she’s gorgeous, tall, and clearly professional. she could talk her way out of anything, and just as easily talk her way in, just with her wit. all of this, this perfectly sculpted image, could be brought down by a little beetle crawling on the wall. a beetle i would be called in to crush, but instead would end up being guided onto a paper towel and released back into nature.

“well, they’d be mistaken then. and apparently so are you. you’d think my own wife would know me better,” i scoff, but the smile on my face betrays the feigned attitude. she laughs, and smile grows wider and wider. “i’ll let this insult on my character slide, only because of the wine, and definitely not because i love you so much,” i continue, and she groans playfully.

she puts her head back down on my chest, arms giving me a squeeze, “i love you more, and seriously though, thank you for being there today. and just so you know, for the rest of this weekend, you are not leaving my side.”

i chuckle, “as if i could even dream of it,” wrapping my arms around her snugly, “you know stuck with me forever, you’re the one who put a ring on it,” i pepper the top of her head in kisses as she tries not to laugh.

her head nudges up, she buries herself in my neck. i hide my own face in her soft hair, inhaling her scent. i feel her lips pressing along the column of my throat, moving upwards. little nips marked the trail to my jaw, kisses as she moves to the side more. one final tug of my earlobe by her teeth brings me back to full attention. her voice lowers, “how about i show you at the very most how much i love you?”

bit of a longer fic to make up for the lack of them in the last week. feedback is, as usual, appreciated greatly :)

[sojuyae]

no return

dazai osamu / reader + ??? / reader

notes: mild yandere themes, u drink alcohol, inspired by the manhwa 'a false confession' (massive rec hehe) drabble..? oneshot..? i don't know what to call this since it's not really fleshed out and not given that much thought so maybe its just a random blurb hahaha not proofread i just click post and never look back thats just how i am

the moment you step into the balcony, your legs almost gave out. your hand having to lean on the vine ornamented pillar as support. stillness draping over despite the festivity just behind the door.

just a few feet beyond you, stood your senior. even with your vision hazy and eyes half lidded, you think you can see his silhouette leaning over the railings, his back turned against you, coat billowing in the wind, tousling the hair of his that you've always wanted to tuck behind his ear.

he looks particularly different, today.

the man of your affections — whose hands that are always resting upon your shoulders, his touch lingering a far too much for someone who is only concerned about his coworker, muttering words of 'good job!' every time he looks over your computer to see the progress of the report he assigned.

he, who is always eager to bring you trinkets of all kinds after being assigned in a case, and if you had the ability similar to his, you would've caught on the fact that the trinkets are always given by him personally, rather than your unfortunate coworkers whose gifts are left in their desks.

yet frown would replace your previous smile once he pulls away with a pat; when you remember that everyone got the same gift as you did.

(oh, how you lamented every second that passes without him knowing how you felt.)

but that will change tonight — your intoxicated self decided to confess your long time admiration for your senior. 'and if he rejects your love, then you can just say that you were too drunk! it's easy!' tanizaki said so, as he handed you an alcoholic drink, and you shouldn't have trusted any words that comes out of the orange haired mans mouth.

even if the others knew how bad you felt about him, you prefer to believe that you could keep your feelings to yourself.

with a determination only a drunken one can have, you step further away from the loud music of the party and towards the man.

a heavy breath escapes your lips as you stand just a few feet behind him.

"sir," you first regard him with his title you've always used during work, and a part of you wonders if you'll be able to call him endearments you've always wanted to say after he accepts your confession.

you don't think you can look at him right now.

"i've been thinking about this a lot," you begin, hushed but nonetheless made for him to hear. "i, don't know if, i should really say this…" your eyes drift down to your feet, deliberating whether you should beat around the bush.

but you know you can't, this feelings of yours is too much; if you don't get to say it now, what will become of your sentiments? locked behind a glass heart that threatened to burst every time he's near?

"i really, really like you, sir." you finally say, your hands harshly gripping the sides of your clothes, scrunching them, wrinkles beginning to form on the flimsy fabric.

you refuse to meet his gaze.

silence ensues, the only sound heard; the loud rustling of the leaves against themselves.

"..."

ah, to think that you get rejected without even him saying anything.

"why?" he asks, then a hope ignites deep inside you.

"i just, really like it when you treat us kindly, you always go out your way to make sure i'm okay, your dedication to the agency is admirable, and i... just really like everything about you…"

"that's what any superior would do..." he replies coldly.

his words does not even travel first to your ears — it travels straight to your heart, so harshly that if it traveled to your ears first, you're certain you'd go deaf.

you stagger, the adrenaline the alcohol provided leaving your system.

then, he grabs your arm just in time, his bandaged hand surprisingly holding you delicately, as if he expects you to be gone once he pulls away.

"osamu. call me osamu, not sir." he says tenderly as he rests his hand on your shoulder, his arms coiling around you like a snake to a branch.

you smile gently as you bury your head in his chest. you can smell the faint scent of alcohol on his shirt, how strange, you've always thought he smell more like the sweets he'd always insist on eating. "osa—" the remaining syllables does not leave your tongue.

he rests his head on your shoulders, his curly coffee-like locks of hair tickling your neck.

osamu?

your eyes drift to his neck — are those bandages?

coffee-like?

dread fills your veins. dazai pulls back, your drunken haze along with it, finally able to look at him properly. his warm palm rests on your jaw. the dull brown eyes you’ve grown fearful of seems to reflect the stars, looking at you so, lovingly.

you don’t know what you’re supposed to be surprised of, the fact that a coworker whom you are scared of is looking at you softly, or the fact that he just accepted a confession that wasn’t meant to be his.

"should we keep our relationship a secret?" he asks with deceptive bashfulness.

--

"sir..?" you stammer as you try to look in ranpo's viridescent eyes for an answer to why he's holding your hand tightly.

"i've always thought that you…" his brows are knitted, refusing to meet your eyes, his own narrowed as he looks at the bracelet that adorns your wrist, an item begrudgingly accepted from dazai.

(he wonders if you would be mad if he forcibly ripped its beads out of you.)

he clicked his tongue at his own thoughts, shuffling to get a comfortable spot where he rested appropriately on his office chair.

"since when were you both close?"

[thelazyhermits]

Found myself wanting to talk about my Yuu's friendship with Trey, so I'll do that underneath the cut.

For the record, I honestly can't remember what all I have and haven't said about the Yuu & Trey relationship, so I'm just gonna make this is a post that provides the most up-to-date info on them since I am prone to changing my mind about little things here and there on occasion lol

One thing I do know that I've said in the past is that Trey acts like a big brother figure to Yuu and treats her kindly as a result. He really dotes on her, much like how he does with Riddle.

His favoritism is really obvious to everyone except Yuu who just thinks Trey is being nice cause she gets along well with Riddle and is one of the few people that tries to help Trey out and never adds onto his always busy workload.

While Yuu isn't exactly wrong, there's a lot more to Trey's favorable treatment of her, which I can't remember if I've discussed in detail in the past, so I'll just do that here.

At the beginning of the school year, Trey had every intention to treat Yuu like he does all the other first years, although he, of course, wanted to a gentleman to the best of his ability since that's just how he was raised, even though, according to his 2024 Halloween SR vignette, the poor guy is actually awkward around girls, at least older ones anyway, cause he has zero experience with them 😂

As a result, there is some awkwardness between these two at times, but thankfully, Trey is never as bad as Deuce used to be. That's because he mentally just started treating Yuu like he does his little sister in order to avoid that awkwardness and cause being a big bro just comes naturally to him.

Despite this, Trey still wanted to avoid treating Yuu too differently from everyone else back when he hadn't been particularly attached to her, but all his efforts were for naught.

Because she just reminded him too much of Riddle - to the point he couldn't ignore her.

As shown in this drabble, Trey learns early on that Yuu had a past that was similar to Riddle's, but he still intended to not give her any special treatment since Trey doesn't strike me as the type who gets easily attached/friendly with people.

(Despite how my writing may imply otherwise, I don't consider Trey to be the dad/mom/big bro of Heartslabyul who's always willingly looking out for people cause he's a genuinely nice guy, like how he's often portrayed in fanon.

Because Trey is just as sly as all the other NRC boys. He can be as petty/vindictive as the others if he gets irritated enough.

And he doesn't do all the work around the dorm simply cause he wants to. He does it to keep the peace cause the dude just wants a calm, normal school life and keeping Riddle happy is crucial to ensure that happens lol

However, that said, I do think, once you've earned Trey's respect/friendship, he would look after you like he does Riddle since their relationship tells us that Trey takes care of the people who truly matter to him.

That's why Trey is always warm/friendly toward Yuu in my fics cause, by that point in the timeline, they're friends, and he genuinely cares about her well-being.)

However, Trey's plans go out the window when the events of Book 2 happen cause Yuu prevents his canon injury and takes his pain as a result, which Trey really didn't take well cause he did not like the idea of Yuu suffering pain meant for him. It made him feel really guilty even though he did nothing wrong.

As a result, Trey really fussed over Yuu when she came to stay at his dorm following her injury cause Riddle had refused to allow her to return to her dorm cause he felt it was his dorm's responsibility to take care of her since she was in pain cause of him/Trey.

Trey volunteered his room for Yuu to use since there weren't any free ones available due to Heartslabyul dorm being the one dorm that's at full capacity, and Riddle was willing to share his room with Trey.

Anyway, Trey spent a lot of time with Yuu during this period of time since he felt it was his responsibility to look after her, and because of this, things really started to change because Trey started learning more about Yuu.

During this time, Trey realizes how difficult it is for Yuu to rely on others, and that it's not cause she's prideful or anything like that. She's just so accustomed to not having someone to rely on - someone she can trust - that it's just her nature to try to do everything on her own regardless of the kind of condition she's in.

That's why living at Heartslabyul is a rough adjustment for Yuu at first since Trey and the others are willing to do everything for her so she won't have to move her "injured" ankle.

Plus, Riddle has completely taken over the investigation that Crowley assigned to Yuu, so she won't have to do anything but focus on her recovery, which also takes some time for her to accept since she feels that's her job to do and it makes her feel guilty/useless that she can't complete the job assigned to her and has to be helped.

The more Trey observes Yuu and sees how hard it is for her to rely on others/how hard she is on herself/how prone she is to apologizing even when she hasn’t done anything wrong, the more uncomfortable he feels because all he can think about is what he knows about her past.

And he's really not liking the mental image that's forming as the puzzle pieces slowly come together.

However, what really hits him like a sucker punch is the one time when he had reached out to her to ruffle her hair, and Yuu, who hadn't realized what he was doing and wasn't paying attention at the time, flinched.

It was an unconcsious action on Yuu's part since, at that point in time, her body was just so accustomed to bad things happening whenever people reached out to her.

In that moment, the breath left Trey's lungs in an instant, and his blood turned to ice.

Because he knew exactly what that kind of unconscious action implied.

Even though Riddle was never physically abused, I still can see Trey being able to recognize those signs. I feel like what happened with Riddle when they were kids would lead to Trey doing some research on the subject of child abuse, perhaps because he thought it would in some way help.

Or perhaps a documentary or something along those lines about that topic came on TV one day and Trey, filled with thoughts of Riddle, couldn't bring himself to turn the channel.

This is how Trey Clover became one of he first people to realize Yuu had an abusive upbringing.

Fortunately for Yuu, Trey isn't the type to stick his nose where it doesn't belong, so he never tries to question her about her past. He never brings up the topic at all, so Yuu doesn't even know that Trey has figured out she was physically abused back in her world.

Because Yuu is from another world, meaning there's no one to report to the authorities cause her abuser is obviously back in her world, Trey knows that she's no longer in danger, which is why he doesn't try to tell anyone about this discovery or try to get Yuu to talk to him about her past.

Even though Trey feels that he shouldn't get involved since he doesn't want to risk causing trouble for Yuu by doing/saying something he shouldn't, Trey just can't ignore her now that he knows what kind of past she has.

But it's not out of pity. I just think that, after he "failed" Riddle when they were kids, Trey has the kind of mentality where, if he were to find himself in another similar situation, he'd be unable to ignore it cause he'd want to succeed and help the person, like he couldn't do in the past, especially if that person is someone he has begun to care about.

Trey just can't leave Yuu alone; his inner demons won't let him.

As a result, from that point on, Trey does his best to look out for Yuu, and he tries to be subtle about it and mostly fails since Trey really isn't good at being subtle when it comes to doting lol

It's because of Trey's decision to look out for Yuu that this relationship eventually turns into a close friendship cause, as time passed, Trey steadily grew fonder of Yuu the more time he spent with her, resulting in him becoming the big bro figure he is in my fics.

It was never Trey's intention for things to turn out like this, but Yuu completely won him over with all the compliments she gave his baking/cooking, her efforts to help him around his dorm, her growing friendship with Riddle, etc.

Amusingly enough, what also was a big factor in this development is that Yuu is one of the few people who doesn't try to ask Trey for help/favors or put work on his shoulders. On the contrary, she always tries to avoid doing anything that she thinks would be a bother to him.

The more Yuu would resist Trey's attempts to dote on her, which were essentially Trey's way of thanking her for her efforts, the more Trey wanted to dote on her and get her to willingly accept it lol

I just think it'd be funny if Trey's the type who would take this sorta thing as a challenge since normally he always gets his way when he implements his doting techniques, so he can't just allow himself to continue to be rebuffed.

Also, Trey just can't ignore the voice in his head that wonders if Yuu has anyone to rely on. Does she really think she needs to handle everything alone - that she doesn't deserve to be helped or receive positive attention?

It becomes like a personal mission of sorts for Trey, and because he's very good at what he does, he's able to eventually bring Yuu's walls down and get her to rely on him. It takes time, of course, but Trey is nothing if not patient.

That's how Trey becomes one of the upperclassmen whom Yuu feels the most comfortable relying on and why Yuu doesn't mind being doted on by him.

Because of his efforts, Yuu has a high opinion of Trey and a lot of respect for him since he's always working so hard to keep the peace at his dorm and does so much to keep everything working smoothly.

She also thinks he's very kind since he's always looking out for her and is always soft toward her during their interactions.

Now, that's not to say that Yuu doesn't know there's more to Trey than the sweet big bro persona he adopted when dealing with her since she knows full well that he's not someone to mess with.

That's why she considers him to be the dark horse of Heartslabyul - the most dangerous guy and someone she never wants to piss off cause she knows how cunning he can be and that he's a force to be reckoned with if you get on his bad side.

It's something she has learned from observation since he has never gotten mad at her, like he has at the members of his dorm lol

Yuu is completely oblivious to the fact that it would take a lot for Trey to ever get that mad at her cause he's developed a soft spot for her. She really has no idea about the kind of power she holds by being someone both Trey and Riddle are fond of, which Cater points out a lot haha

Anyway, Yuu & Trey end up developing a good, strong friendship during the course of the school year. It's why they both become so comfortable around each other and why it's easy for them to relax when they're alone together.

And they both really need that kind of relationship in their lives since those two are always hard at work & have busy/stressful schedules, so it's good for them to have those moments, such as when they bake together, when they can de-stress.

I just really love this relationship since Yuu & Trey are pretty similar in that they're good at keeping the peace, they always end up with a lot on their plates, and the fact that the way they act can lead to people incorrectly assuming they're too kind for their own good/are pushovers.

They're both also similar in that they're both really scary when they're pissed lol 😂

I just think this dynamic is a lot of fun cause of those similarities and cause I'm just a sucker for doting big bro figures 💕

[fujii-draws]

Hello hi it’s asimplearchivist again (I mixed up my main when I created my account just fyi) and I am having more thoughts about Dusknoir

Do you think that when he first came to the past from the future that he had a hard time measuring his strength? Having to rely on his strength and abilities to protect himself and to do Dialga’s bidding would mean he wouldn’t have ever had any reason to practice being gentle, right?

So what if the first few months of having to play the part of the gentleman and kindly explorer, shaking hands and interacting with others (picking them up when saving them, etc), he realizes how brusquely he touches them? Enough times if someone saying his grip is a little tight or he jostled them too much and such makes him realize he can’t just go full throttle because he’s a fully evolved and experienced and powerful Pokémon, these civilians don’t know what it means to survive in a wasteland where virtually everything is out to get you

…so, to conclude, how much gentleness does he learn by dealing with the hero and partner? I’m thinking of your riding on the shoulder and him carrying them around examples specifically but does he ever catch himself being harsh and they don’t even realize why (“haha, you’re crushing me! you don’t have to hold me so tight, you know, it won’t hurt me if I fall just from here!”) and he stops in dawning horror realizing that one day he’s going to have to hurt them in the end?

then he has to learn to be gentle all over again when he and the others return from the future—even more gentle and slow and careful this time—because now they’re afraid of him, knowing just how strong he is and exactly what he’s capable of doing to them?

now if you’ll excuse me I’m going to go sob in the corner, goodbye👋🏻🥹

(this was mainly inspired by the comic of aimilios trying to trust him again when he’s hurt but still being terrified and dusknoir just h u r t i n g bc he knows it’s fully justified…crying in the club rn)

also I was curious how Dusknoir reacts when they evolve? is he bursting at the seems with pride at watching them “grow up” or is it more of a somber affair with him feeling relief that they’ll be able to defend themselves better against bigger, stronger pokemon (like himself) who would try to hurt them?

Sorry for the rambling, I just have a lot of feels about this big softy and I wanted to share them!😊

Op… your mind… is SO POWERFUL.

THE IDEA?? OF DUSKNOIR KNOWING NOTHING BUT DO-OR-DIE SITUATIONS IN THE FUTURE; ONLY SERVING AS A WEAPON FOR PRIMAL DIALGA TO USE… To then having to learn how to be gentle..? Of course, to fulfill the “humble and kind explorer” facade… but mainly achieving it because of Hero and Partner.

…AND HIM SEEING HOW THEY GET SLIGHTLY HURT BY HIM WHEN HE’S NOT EVEN TRYING. A SMALL PART OF HIM JUST DREADS HOW THEY’LL FARE AGAINST HIM AT HIS BEST.

AND ON TOP OF THAT?? HIM HAVING TO RELEARN IT ALL *OVER AGAIN??* AND HAVING TO ACTUALLY WORK TWICE AS HARD BECAUSE HE BROKE THEIR TRUST ONCE ALREADY????? I KNOW IM PARROTING YOUR WORDS BUT OHHHH MY GOD. IM INSANE. IM INSANE.

———

[For me, I’ve personally headcannoned it as Dusknoir being aware of his own strength. He always calculates how gentle he should treat a certain Pokémon. So he ends up having to hold back a LOT. And no one notices.]

[…Expect for Ribbon’s and Aimilios, that is.]

[They always see the slight worry mixed with concentration in Dusknoir’s expression as he gauges just how much pressure he can use when handling them. And the two always thank him for doing so.]

[In which, Dusknoir assures them that it’s nothing. It’s not like he actually cares. He’s just doing it to gain their trust more. Nevermind the fact he reminds those two to be careful. Or come to him if they sustain any really bad injuries. Or how he’s extra gentle with them specifically. It’s nothing.]

(…Is this setup for them recognizing him holding back during his fight? Is it angst potential for when those two realize just how easily Dusknoir could’ve offed them all those times they were alone with him..? >:3 maybe.)

[januaryembrs]

THE LION'S SHARE OF WARMTH | Jaime Lannister x reader

Request: ay!! heres to 1k!! :DD can I please have a Jaime Lannister x reader, where the nights too cold to sleep alone even in front of a fire, forcing them to cuddle to keep warm?

Description: A cold night between two enemies leads to an embarrassing wake up call.

word count: 1.1k

trigger warnings: none, swearing? Mention of the war going on ?

main masterlist

For a girl born into the North, there was nothing you hated more than the cold. Your mother said you had just never grown accustomed to the climate, always insisting on the thickest pelts to cover your bed despite the fact your family had lived through the thickest Winters spanning back generations. 

Which is why you swore all twenty of your fingers and toes were damn near ready to fall off when you were forced to sleep outside on the road to King’s Landing. Call it being spoiled by coming from a respectable lord’s family, but had you not had a good reason to be here, you would be long gone and in front of a roaring fire by now on a night like this. 

That respectable lord just so happened to be Wyman Manderly. Your house had fallen to near mania the moment the war of the five kings began, and you had fled to Robb and Catelyn Stark with your twin brothers Wylis and Wendel. The Starks and the Manderlys had always been closely allied, and as all Northern houses you had grown closely knit with the great Wolf house. 

Which was why when Jaime Lannister appeared in a cage on the Stark encampment, bloodied and dirtier than you’d ever seen the once proud lion, you knew Catelyn Stark was fighting with every tooth and nail to get Sansa and Arya back from the capital.

And who better to send to bargain for the two girls than Brienne of Tarth, the strongest swords woman in Westeros, and Y/N Manderly, daughter of the richest Northern family. Since you already had money of your own and your family was incredibly loyal to the Starks, Catelyn and Robb agreed you were unlikely to be swayed by anything Cersei could offer you and could discuss an offer with the Lannisters like the astute and academic woman you were.

Which is how you got here, on a narrow and freezing road to the capital with Brienne and Jaime Lannister.

“My legs tire, we need to rest soon,” Jaime whinged for the umpteenth time that day as you and Brienne carted him in chains through the rough terrain. Well Brienne held the irons, seeing as she could overpower the man if needs be, while you had little more than a dagger to fend him off. 

You shot a look at the tall woman, the two of you mirroring each other with a glare of annoyance at his theatrics. You ignored him, continuing your steady pace onwards. The Lannister man seemed to be unused to people, especially women, not pouring over him with affection and lavishing him with whatever he requested since he began digging his heels into the earth like a lame mule.

“I said we need rest. Do you really think my sister will take kindly to me being returned to her as a cripple?” Jaime complained, yanking against the bonds to get your attention. You wished to disregard him some more until he said: “If I am to be exchanged for the girls and I come home bruised and deformed, what do you think she’ll do to Sansa and Arya?” 

You and Brienne halted. You hadn’t quite thought about treating him kindly since it was his forsaken family that had started this war in the first place. 

You looked to Brienne for assurance, the Tarth woman giving you a small nod in response. The two of you spun to advance on the man who wore an annoyingly winning smile at the fact he had gotten you both to listen. 

“We are stopping until the moment the day breaks, do you hear?” You growled at him, only making his cracked lips draw wider. “And wipe that smirk of your face, there will be no fire tonight,”

Gods be known you were so stupid to have said that. In punishing him you had punished yourself. Brienne didn’t seem to mind the frosty night air as she bundled up under her furs, sleeping soundly as if it were another night in a bed. 

“A Northern woman who feels the cold, that’s new,” Jaime snickered from his place behind you. Your body must have been shaking more than you’d hoped. You felt the night air kiss every inch of your skin as the wind whipped even the slightest bit and it sent a vicious shiver through your body.

“Shut up or I’ll maim you, Lannister,” You both knew it was an empty threat, one you’d barely made through without your teeth chattering loudly. It only served to make him chuckle, and you heard him shuffle closer to you. 

Drawing your blade, you were quick to raise the sharp tip to prod against the soft of his stomach. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” You seethed.

“Relax. You’re clearly cold, and Cersei would have both your heads if I returned to King’s Landing with the shivering sickness,” Jaime said, attempting to slip an arm around your waist that you swiftly batted away with your arm.

“I’d rather risk your bitch of a sister than be anywhere near you,” You spat, raising the dagger up to his chin, “If you dare touch me in my sleep I’ll send you back to her in pieces, do you understand?” 

He raised his hands in defence, rolling back away from you and muttering something foul under his breath. You could tell his confidence was knocked that the Jaime Lannister couldn’t have his way with every woman he came across. Any other woman in Westeros would give an arm and leg to cuddle with him for warmth, any woman but you. 

You closed your eyes, the flame of anger enough to ward off the chill for just long enough that you were able to get to sleep on wrath alone. 

Your face blazed with similar heat when you awoke to the feeling of strong laughter humming through a set of ribs. You realised very quickly that your face was not pressed into the dirt like it was when you fell asleep last night but instead against someone's clothed spine. 

“I thought you said I’d be in pieces by now?” Came a raspy voice, and you shoved yourself upright aghast. Not only were you spooning the damn king’s guard whose very soul you loathed, but in no way could you blame him for it happening seeing as it was him facing away from you.

Your cold body had sought him out for warmth in your sleep.

“Embarrass-”

“That’s ENOUGH, Lannister,”

[lesbianoms]

(Mrs. Doubtfire voice) Comfort is on the way, dear!

You seem like somebody who would love a dignified older lady pred. Someone with the air of Jessica Rabbit but the aged-like-blood wine grace of Lady Dimitrescu. Perhaps a “sugar mama” situation something-or-other.

Regardless, imagine if you were to come under the loving care of such a noble and elegant creature. Rubies on each finger and pearls dangling from the neck as she bends over you, turning over your pitiable, worried state. Yet, despite her care, there’s always the trace of a knowing smirk on her painted lips and the sense that she knows best.

“Why, my little dear. Whatever could be the matter with you, hm?” She takes your face in her hands and tilts your head from side to side, examining you.

You explain that things are stressful. The WORLD is stressful! And so very upsetting.

“Oh, but, my little love, you are confused.”

What could she mean by that?

“Why, there’s nothing wrong with the world at all. Do you know why?”

You shake your head. Things are pretty awful.

“My dear, I am your world. And, the last time I checked, there was nothing wrong with me at all.”

Before you can protest, she chuckles deeply and brushes a salt-and-pepper strand of hair from her face.

“Oh, I don’t mean to belittle your problems, darling. You just have more important things to worry about, you see?”

You don’t see.

“No? Let me give you a reminder, then, my dear…”

She smirks as she presses both of her palms to the back of your head, pushing you into a plushy ball belly wrapped in the fine, red satin of her dress. A belly you knew that you padded several times over…

“I think, when we are stressed with the troubles of life, it’s never a bad idea to return to our roots… to go home.”

A coaxing gurgle sounded below your ear, the fat quivering against you.

“And, would you listen to that, darling? Your home misses you.”

She bent down and gave you a teasing lick across the cheek, a sign of love to you more familiar than a kiss. Another deep chuckle bubbled up her long throat as you shivered.

“I think that you only need a different perspective on things… don’t you?”

You could always say “no,” of course, and she would respect it—but why would you? The welcome mat was already unrolling just for you, pink and beckoning…

———————————————

The madame of the house yawned luxuriously as she waddled off to bed. Her step was modified to a lopsided sway, what with the weight of one silly snack misaligning her center of gravity. Her bloated, engorged belly jutted out of a gap in her minky robe, wobbling freely. She smirked to herself as each step sent its contents sloshing thickly from side to side, its bubbler—you—in a state of dreamlike nirvana, fuzzy ecstasy, your mind as malleable as your body as your being rocked back and forth in a gooey wave. You moaned with each contact with the walls, each splash earning an involuntary moan.

“Thank you for being so cooperative in the bath, little love. I trust your stay is treating you kindly?”

She received a response—more of a bubbling than a word.

Bllluuurbbllblubb…

She smirked and gave her well-fed belly a firm rub.

“I thought so. And perhaps it would do you well to take a bit of a vacation, hm? Perhaps a few days? Your beloved home needs a bit more insulation, you know. I’m much too delicate for the cold, at my age…”

The chyme within churned, and her gut purred. More than happy to, of course.

“You will? What a generous little dear you are.” She grabbed her hanging underbelly and shook it playfully. “Unnnngh, and how generous I’ll be when I’m through with you!”

The satisfied lady ambled leisurely to her favorite chaise, falling backwards into it and sending her immense ball belly bouncing and sloshing. If you were whole before she flopped to the cushions, that jostling made short work of you. She yawned again and absently patted her incessantly jiggling gut. It would be a long weekend of digesting, and once you’d reconstituted, she was sure you would be singing a much cheerier tune…

All the better. Happier food was yummier food.

Hhhh I need this to happen to me right now

Thank you for the story! That does sound like a relaxing break… just being able to turn my brain off and focus on making my pred’s gut all noisy and full~

Also the line about the bath is pretty tantalizing and actually gives me an idea for something… hehe, I would love to just relax in that grumbly spa as I slowly become fat on her tummy 🥵

“Your new home” is a vore trope that drives me bananas. Uuuggh god I love it it’s so hot, and the line about the pink carpet rolling out <3

It’s so fitting that I can’t talk to her as I’m melting and I can only really communicate in sounds… plus, I’m probably too, uh, “distracted”, if you know what I mean

[sirthisisa-wendys]

your works literally make me so happy 😭 10/10 would lose sleep again to binge read 🫶

Kindly requesting an ot3 fluffy situation (if you do write it, otherwise don’t mind me!) with rindou and ran haitani 🙏 having this peak brain rot of why not just have one, but have both of them call you their sweet princess 👸 no arguing for who’s better, just the brothers being absolute darlings and smitten with you 💖

For the record, when people binge like and read my masterlist, two things happen 1. I fucking *notice*. I have a few people on my list of "voracious readers," and I am so so SO grateful you would take the time to read my works. Like, it's the biggest compliment right next to sending asks.

And 2. It brightens the corner of my life I keep pretty much to myself day in and day out. You all make the writing worth it. Writing for you is worth it. Reclaim your sleep tonight, lovely nonnie. 🥰

Sun and Moon: Ran Haitani x Fem!Reader x Rindou Haitani

wc: 743

tw: fluff

masterlist

Ran Haitani is the sun in your life. He's up early, hitting the snooze button a few times before dragging himself out of bed and shuffling to the kitchen to turn on the coffee maker.

The brew is always medium roast. He stands by the coffee pot, grabbing three cups from the cabinet before allowing himself the small mercy of sugar, creamer, and a dash of whipped cream. Ran will pour the coffee just how you and Rin like it.

Without hesitation, he'll carry your mugs into the bedroom and sit them on the nightstands with care before Rindou peeks his head out from underneath eh cover, reaches for his mug, and sits up slowly. You're usually the last to wake, but Ran does his best to keep the peaceful mood of the morning.

"Morning, sleepyhead," Ran says, his eyes drooping while he adjusts his short hair.

"Morning," you mumble, reaching for your mug. "You're up early..."

"Wanted to make sure you two were covered before I went to the headquarters today," Ran begins softly, stroking your hair as you smell the coffee and attempt to wake up fully. Rindou inhales his coffee beside you, fully immersed in whatever is on his phone.

"More inventory?" Rindou mutters, glancing at Ran.

"Yeah, unfortunately."

"Be safe," you croak. "Don't get into any trouble."

"I won't get into trouble," Ran chuckles. "Have to come home to my baby and my brother." He gives you a quick kiss on your forehead, then leaves the both of you alone in the morning air.

Rindou is silent for a moment, but it's not uncomfortable. When he finishes his coffee, he kisses your lips quickly. "I'm going to get ready, but I'm not leaving until Ran returns," he tells you, running his fingers through his mullet. "You hungry, baby?"

"A little," you admit, shifting in the bed.

"You want some bacon and waffles? I think we have some fruit, too."

"That sounds good." Rindou smiles at you and winks, then disappears into the kitchen. The rest of the morning goes smoothly, but that's nothing unusual. Life with the Haitani brothers is bliss. You're never lonely or afraid of being left behind. The brothers do "shifts"; Rindou is with you during the day, and Ran is with you in the evening.

If Ran is the sun, then Rindou is the moon. Rindou loves to take you out for late-night drives or parties at the club. You're treated as a human - not an accessory, like other girls - and Rindou shows you off affectionately in front of his associates.

"Do you want more champagne, baby girl?" Rindou wonders, his eyes focused on your expression.

"I'm tipsy already," you joke, but Rindou just smiles and waves a bartender over for another glass. Rindou is a gentleman through and through, seeing to your comfort before his own and ensuring you're cared for throughout the night.

When you return home, Ran is waiting for you. His eyes droop low as he tries to remain awake to see you before nodding off. "You look so beautiful," Ran coos, holding you close while fiddling with your necklace and dress. "Do you want to take a shower?"

"Mmm-hmm..."

Ran and Rindou seem to need one too, and they join you, taking turns holding and kissing you while the warm water cascades down on your bodies. Four hands attend to your cleanliness, scrubbing your back, your legs, the soles of your feet, your arms... You don't have to lift a single finger unless you want to.

Ran and Rin wash separately, though, and you help them where they need it. Once you exit the shower, you're wrapped in a towel and urged to get ready for bed. Ran dries your hair while Rindou picks out your nightclothes and brings them to you.

"Thank you," you whisper to the younger brother, who answers your thanks with a kiss. Once Ran is finished, he gets his goodnight kiss as well. You crawl under the sheets and watch Ran do the same, leaving Rindou to mosey about the house during the night.

"Don't stay up too late," you call out to him, and he replies with a "yes, ma'am" before shuffling off to the living room to watch TV. Ran cuddles up with you under the sheets, wasting no time falling asleep. You do the same, eager to start the next day with the sweetest lovers you've ever known.