#without having to be treated poorly whilst doing so

[vieoeil-riae]

Could u do Steb having a crush/pre-relationship? Headcannons or fic whichever is easiest for you! Your writing is so good omg

hey babycakes 😘 this one's for you 🫵🫵🫵 *shoots and misses*

anyways, I didn't know if you wanted it SFW or NSFW so I just made it SFW in case but if you want me to write something spicy all u have to do is come back and ask so dw

I see you more, more, and more

steb/gn!reader

warnings: SFW, zaunite!reader for the fic section, selectively mute! steb (HOWEVER he does speak once ☝ and it is treated with appropriate gravity), unintentionally gn!reader so if something isn't gn then gimme a shout and I'll reword, mix of hc and fic, fic is 3.6k words

synopsis: Steb, the romantic

read on ao3 | ao3 profile

this guy is like. old school, kinda. like fairly traditional in the sense he's very much into doing things for you and being someone you can depend on, just without any pressure on you to give him what he wants because of it

additionally, while respectful and not touchy when getting to know you, he tends to hover closer to you the more he comes to like you, he's called the silent guardian for a reason

keenly observant, notices if and when you fluster because of him

HOWEVER he does have insecurities that quietly float around the back of his mind when he's not actively fighting them, and because of that, tends to deny to himself the fact he almost definitely caused that heat on your cheeks

the insecurities aren't major per say, but as you get closer you notice how he tends to avoid your eyes when you're tracing the feature of his face

if you subtly tell him you think he's beautiful, he'll have a bit of an internal freak out, but the most you'll see on his face is a small, wobbly smile

quietly leaves you love letters, not as secretive as a secret admirer, but enough that it keeps a bit of doubt in the back of your mind - he likes the slight mind game as well as the suspicious gaze you give him if you ever read one in front of him, it's cute

will leave you flowers when he's deeper into the crush

that also means he sometimes has a small bouquet of them on his desk at work, waiting to be given to you, and his coworkers have teased him for it before

he doesn't have many friends, something he's honestly okay with, but pre-war he had introduced you to maddie whilst "stumbling across you" while working

he pays for things for you, but respects you so he'll let you split the cost of something if you really want, he just wants to help you

you rolled your ankle once and being medically trained, he wanted to take a look. that involved taking off your shoe and holding your ankle in a way that felt more intimate than he thought it would, all you could see was him worrying his lip, but inside he was having... a moment

if you wanted him to quit his job, you could convince him with a LOT of talking but he has a very strong sense of duty so he'd probably become a paramedic or something similar if you were successful/ post!war he'd likely be more critical of his occupation, he was hopeful policing could be a good thing but he becomes disillusioned after fighting alongside zaunites and seeing how poorly sevika was received by the council

he does have the balls to admit when he's wrong, he just has a stubborn streak that you wouldn't notice immediately because of how quiet he is

speaking of quitting being a cop, he's actually quite open-minded and likes listening to you talk - he's gotten very good at it (he likes the sound of your voice, okay? and definitely not in a weird way! deffffinitely not. totally.)

he likes it when he makes a face at something and you laugh

teaches you sign language, touching your hands so much is just a bonus to the already immense reward of you finally being able to understand all the compliments he gives you

you two end up keeping small notepads on you to talk with as well, you don't particularly need them to talk but you often find yourself writing your responses

steb likes your handwriting, he sees you in everything once he's fallen for you, so seeing something made by your own hand feels like seeing a part of you

You met while he was on duty, minding your own business as you busted dishes at the tiny cafe you worked at in the boundary markets, closer to Zaun's side.

Golden hour sank over the city, glinting off of the bronze trimmings and smooth glass of the market's highest buildings — shadow pooling where the high arches and packed structural webbing hid the flagstone from the sun.

It was just another day in the small cafe you found work in, a popular place for anybody worth anything (though the number was low, only a decent handful of well-known zaunites ever crossed the threshold, maybe a shifty looking piltie now and then but it was rare) to take a shopping break.

The outside seating was understandably unpopular, too many eager hands and too much industrial smog for a drink to really be enjoyed. Still, some thick piltie had managed to have a sit-down without getting shaken down on the table you were clearing.

You muttered under your breath, cussing them out for having left the table in such a mess - seriously, how much coffee could one person spill! They hadn't even tried to leave it orderly like most other people did. That meant you were stuck putting a hell of an amount of elbow grease into scrubbing a ring of dried coffee from the wood.

You never looked up, not even when you slapped the rag you were using down, digging one fist into your hip as your other swept over your hair in an attempt to tame it despite the humid nature of Zaun's air.

That meant you never caught the first time Steb ever saw you, missing the way he seemed to freeze in his tracks at seeing you — ears perked, eyes curious.

He would never be able to tell you what made him stop verbally, but that wasn't a problem. In fact, in hindsight you almost appreciated it since it meant many a carefully crafted love letter being slipped towards you with flushed cheeks and fluttering frills.

Steb had written it out once, for an important occasion you don't remember as well as the letter. He spoke of you, how the light caught on your hair, your skin, the way you looked so... human. Frazzled, pissed off, and alone was his first impression of you — a strike of something beyond reason drew him closer.

You noticed him the second time, however, when he broke up a brawl just starting to form outside of the cafe. It didn't go well per say, the people not taking well to an enforcer trying to get in their business, resulting in a swift punch to the jaw before they dispersed — apparently too pissed about Steb's interference to argue straight away.

You peeked out of your shop door, staring at the way he gently rubbed his jaw, paying attention to the way he traced the two slits just above his jawbone. For an enforcer, he was damn pretty, but you still didn't want anything to do with him. You shut the door.

Another letter detailed the first time he saw your eyes properly, you had blushed horribly, hiding your hot cheeks in the paper once you'd finished reading how, in explicit detail, how beautiful they were. Steb had tugged the paper down with a pleased grin, haloed by the mid afternoon sun soaking through the botanical garden's trees, quite happy with your reaction. A bouquet of carnations sat by your thigh, organised and carefully wrapped by hand.

He’d started coming into the shop during his patrols at some point, ignoring the sharp looks he got from most of your usual customers. At first, he had a ginger girl in tow — Maddie, you later learned — who ordered for the both of them, but eventually, after almost a month of ordering the same drink he started to come alone. 

You’d get him the same thing every time, getting more and more used to finding his face through the market’s crowds. Familiarity begets fondness, you supposed, as you started to appreciate the way Steb managed to look so angular but so soft at the same time while trying not to feel like too much of a class traitor. Nothing wrong with a bit of window shopping, right? 

He never talked, but as a service worker that was something you’d come to appreciate; no awkward small talk or verbal abuse, just a sweet smile and a cursory chin raise to the item board and you already knew what he wanted. Though while making his order, black coffee, you’d find yourself making small talk; eyes shifting back and forth from your work and his face as you looked for his expressions and head tilts. You were a service worker, you were meant to be friendly, nothing wrong there.

His handwriting, neat and sometimes swoopy, layed out how much he enjoyed watching you watch him. The way you managed to carry the conversation without his verbal feedback, the way you cared enough to look for what he was saying with his face — and eventually his hands — where most other people would opt to brush him off. It made his heart beat out of time when you’d laugh at your own jokes; all the furious blushes fought down when your fingers slid over his to give him his drink.

Steb had noticed you outside of work too, running errands. It was his duty, he rationalised, to help people and that totally justified swooping in to help you with your shopping. It was the friendly neighbourhood cop situation of all time, why wouldn’t he? It didn’t mean anything, drinking in your face as it went from confused to surprised when you realised you’d managed to catch him somewhere other than the markets, listening contently as you described your mundane day — surely.

But that was a lie, one he could justify getting closer to you with, and as much as he didn’t like lying, it was worth it. You were brighter than him, naturally, based on the mere fact you talked and he didn’t; it was no surprise that your alien nature drew him in. You were warm too, you gave a damn about things other than yourself.

A Zaunite, you talked, you lived in a completely different world to him; there was no reason for him to like you so much, in fact, by all accounts you should hate each other. That didn’t stop him from flustering immensely when the small talk over the counter started to include small flirts thrown his way.

Compliments, off-handed and usually one word, ‘hey, handsome’ thrown his way when he walked in the door. It caught him off guard the first time. Force policies on public relations clashing with this tumbling wave of lovesickness and pride that spiked his veins leaving his mouth open as he stared at you, faint blush dusting his cheeks.

His frills fluttered out of time, you noticed, enjoying the show as Steb came back to his senses. You’d given him a teasing apology, melodramatic through a smile, telling him that you were sorry about increasing his risk of arrhythmia more than you already were with the coffee.

More bashfully than he would’ve liked, he’d slid an envelope across the counter towards you with the payment. You gave him a weird look when you turned to it, flicking your eyes up at him in question before tucking it in your pocket and giving him his drink.

You turned to clean, and Steb slipped extra cash in the tip jar; more than necessary, but he’d seen you looking a little thin recently.

It was only a minute or two later when you hastily slid into the seat across from him with the envelope in your hands, open this time. Steb watched your mouth open and close as you tried to ask him what the hell he was thinking, amused by the fact he’d finally managed to render you speechless too.

“You… want to take me out on a… date?” You had asked with a deeply confused tone. He liked the way your eyebrows furrowed, a tinge of embarrassment laced in the mix. The way you seemed disbelieving would’ve been cuter if he wasn’t getting antsy himself.

He was in the minority in terms of appearance; fishy, a little amphibian, a lot greener than his peers. The city of progress was a real mix of people, but that didn’t stop a cloying feeling of insecurity following him from childhood to right now. He was odd, he knew that, but he chewed the inside of his cheek as he hoped you wouldn’t outright turn him down.

Steb looked the smallest you’d ever seen him, shoulders hunched and expression troubled in a far cry from his usual neutral expression. Have you said something wrong?

“It’s not a no!” You shot, straightening up from your casual, slumped position to lean towards him, elbows on the table. You rolled the words around in your head and he watched as your expression shifted. “It’s just… Why me?”

A zaunite, no one special, just a barista, what would a piltie want with you of all people? 

Steb made the sign for a pen; you tossed him one quickly alongside your notepad. You watched as he scribbled out a page, and then another, and then another. At this point you were more shocked that he had so much to say.

The pad was promptly slid back to you, and Steb avoided looking at your eyes, forcing you to look at the writing.

It was one hell of an explanation, you could’ve mistaken him for a poet despite the rushed look of the whole thing. Heat prickled at your skin as you kept reading all the internal reasoning you hadn’t been privy to until now. He described almost everything about you in such a rosy way it left your jaw dropped, stumped on just how observant (and into you) one guy could be.

Still looking at the notepad, you began to nod, “yeah… yeah! Yeah! I’ll- yeah.”

You giggled, a hand running over your hair as you looked up at Steb again — who’d been quietly observing your expressions from the moment you started reading. There was a whole world to be found in your face, in his opinion, it felt like watching hundreds of great masterpieces of art work move in front of him in real time when he looked at you. 

Senselessly, in a way he could never phrase right, you were beautiful the same way space was. A vast space full of bright lights that dazzled in a way that was nearly spiritual. Maybe it was a bit much for the crush he had on a barista from the boundary markets that he’d only known for a couple of months, but he was a romantic at heart.

“I’d like that.” You smiled, unable to look him in the eye until you noticed the way he perked up. That was one of the joys of knowing Steb, learning to read him and finally seeing what he wanted to say. Miniscule gestures suddenly carried the weight of the world.

His frills fluttered with a sense of pride and he stood from his seat. You watched him, almost perplexed but ultimately enamoured by the new lens you were seeing him in, as he hesitantly reached for your hand. You gave it to him, curiosity brimming.

Tenderly, gently, barely even a brush, Steb kissed your knuckles. Stooped over just for you, treating you like you were precious; it just about set your face on fire. He tipped his hat to you just before you left, a smuggish look that barely differed from his usual expression passed across his face. Raised eyebrows and a fond, teasing smile made you flush even worse. All that, and he quietly exited the shop, leaving you a mess in his wake.

You weren’t told until a long time after, but the second he was out of sight from the cafe, Steb was fighting a speed-walk all the way to Maddie’s station to tell her about you. The story was shared quietly, written out in a notepad while you were curled up in each other on the sofa. The mood was somber, but his heart was still out for you to see, that meant more than the way his ears were pinned to his skull and the way you could feel him sink just a little deeper into you.

Next Friday had rolled around and you were dressed up more than you ever had been, standing on your doorstep, peering down the street in search of the hot cop you absolutely had a crush on. God, some zaunite you were. 

It was clumsy, you spent the night at a fancy (by your standards) restaurant flirting the best you could — feeling out of place unless you were looking at Steb. But by the time you left, you’d started to relax.

You strolled by a fountain at some point. You didn’t remember, but Steb did. A letter hidden under your pillow after a fight that told you about what it was like to see you start to bare your soul to him. He said he could’ve mistaken you for glowing, street lights painting you in gentle, warm hues as your eyes sparkled at him, telling him something about water pipes at home. The words didn’t matter so much as the joy in your voice.

It had made him feel like he was living life how he was meant to. Just you, Steb, and a night that felt nearly infinite and it made him wonder if love always felt so freeing. Billions before you had shared moments similar, and all of a sudden it felt like he knew every inch of adoration ever felt towards anything. He didn’t tell you then, it would’ve been too much, but he told you in the letter. 

You sought him out the next day, not entirely forgiving him yet, but assuring you’d still be there when he got home.

Outings with Steb became more frequent, but importantly he had invited you over to his home more than once. You’d been so curious but so timid, not wanting to intrude too much, endearing in the contrast to your Zaun-built, confident demeanor.

The only problem was that seeing you eventually get comfortable in his home, around the places he went, was doing something to his heart; much worse than before, it squeezed at the thought of you in his life properly. Imagined mornings of waking up to see you in bed next to him almost did your arrhythmia comment justice.

More strikingly though, was the accompanying acknowledgement that in those fantasies, you tended to be… bereft of clothing. Padding around his room with every inch of your skin there for him to see, not provocatively, just comfortably. It made him needier than he’d ever want to admit (then, at least) and he didn’t invite you over again until you grew comfortable enough to be touchy with him.

Light brushes; hand holding; hugs that lasted too long to be just friendly, to him they meant he was allowed to imagine more with you. He invited you over for dinner the day after you slid your hands under the back of his uniform’s half-jacket while you hugged him.

There were flowers, dances, cute dates he absolutely insisted he paid for — everything gentlemanly he could do, he did. Treating you right was a reward in itself to Steb, loving you wasn’t housekeeping, it was a way of existing; a comfort; a lot of things he didn’t know how to say despite the fact you teased him for having the soul of a poet. It felt right and you smiled genuinely, that’s all that mattered.

The breaking point was a little date he took you on, having swept into the cafe and slipped a note asking (almost pleading) for you to take a trip inland to a large lake with sandy beaches. When you inevitably said yes, he grinned in a way you’d have never guessed was possible about a year ago.

His face was typically stoic, only small shifts and twitches you had to know him to pick up on really gave him away. Over months you’d not only learned them, but had been let in on his feelings too — a facet of himself gifted almost exclusively to you.

It was his own doom he was walking into, he knew that and felt rather guilty about it, but the image of you dripping wet — standing half-submerged in a still lake, maybe in the golden hour he first noticed you in, was enough temptation for him to bend to his own wants.

The actual journey was revealing enough, you hiked and stumbled, laughing the whole way; comfortable with him. It made him realise what he felt towards you wasn’t just a fragile thing to be stoked tenderly like a fire he was worried about going out. Watching you gasp for breath in between laughs as you beat him to a trail marker but fell over once you reached it, he realised what he felt for you was fully formed.

He did get his moment, watching the lake water pool over your skin, ultimately lost in you and the feeling he’d swim with you forever if you just asked. Your background didn’t matter, he was concerned only with the endless possibilities of a future with you, if you wanted that too.

Steb joined you, a feeling of relief flooding him like the water did, sending you a small, but intimate, smile before sinking beneath the surface. 

The water wet his gills properly for the first time in a while, something that always felt satisfying, and he aimed for you. Your feet still touched the ground, semi-hesitant about going much deeper. He surfaced behind you, mindfully pulling you into a hug. You leaned back, enjoying the closeness for a moment before you turned around.

“Thank you for bringing me. It’s beautiful out here.” You spoke softly, tracing the paths of water droplets that slid down his skin in reverse. Your fingers skimmed the very edges of Steb’s gill slits and he shuddered all the way to the frills on his face.

Carefully, not looking away from your face for a second, he traced your lips with a delicate finger. You stayed quiet, questioning, but transfixed on the way he looked at you so reverently; there was a look in his eyes, warm in ways you’d never seen turned to you in full before.

His eyes darted down to your lips, then back to your eyes, a request swirling in his irises. He wanted you, and it was only a matter of if you wanted him back. Somewhere in the back of his mind, a hurt little feeling cooed worries at him. Unable to quash them, he settled into the uneasy feeling — letting the moment continue.

You leaned towards Steb, your nose skimming over his. The feeling quieted, like a held breath.

You met his lips with the same human-ness and soft edge he’d seen in you from the beginning, fireworks weren’t what he felt; he felt like melting wax, fluid and free with relief — wanting to sink into the shape you wanted him to be while also feeling more in control in some way he’d never felt so much before.

You gasped at his wet hand, cold from the air meeting the remaining water on it, that cradled your waist. The gentle tip of his tongue brushed your bottom lip, asking for permission you gave him almost instantly with a tilt of your head.

It was an electrifying taste, a fraction of the warmth you held that felt like it carried the weight of the world in the way you let him — even wanted him — to explore your mouth. Your hands slipped over his shoulders, trailing over his skin as if trying to memorise them in excruciating detail.

Your hand found his jaw again, swiping gently over the bone before running along his gill slits again. He made a choked sound you swallowed before pulling away, resting your forehead against his. He nuzzled his face into the side of your head soon after, you heard him breathe, catching the soft sound of every inhale. Steb inhaled sharply.

“May I be yours?” He whispered in your ear, his voice raspy with disuse. It was by no means a small act, talking was made difficult by his biology already; a lifelong fight that had at some point turned into an emotional discomfort with talking as well. For his job, his sense of duty could shove the deep-rooted pang of fear down enough, but in any other case his voice disappeared like steam in the wind.

But it was important here, with you, who had taken up residence in his heart — never once making or even asking him to talk, accepting him as he was. The fizzing of his nerves in this moment was down to anticipation, not fear; and with all his need for you, he could bare a whisper.

“Please.” You whispered back before the gravity of it all left you scrambling, “And let me be yours, too.”

Steb captured your lips in a wordless kiss, more passionate than gentle, his fingers digging into your waist like was afraid you’d disappear if he let go even for a moment. The initial shot of relief gave way to a feeling of satisfaction that purred in his chest, the press of your warm body against his made him feel full.

His hand twisted in your hair, dragging you into his lap as he sank into the water’s buoyancy.

A/N: SURPRISEEEEEE ITS NOT SMUT FOR ONCE!! did I getcha????? I'll be honest writing something that wasn't porn for him was harder than expected bc I've got NO practice for him

also perhaps I have outed myself as a league lore knower but that's fine I've been into worse I used to like hetalia

anyways hope u like this anon 💕💕

[maybelacrimosa]

Fastpass spoilers

I think one of the largest issues I have with Lore Olympus is Rachel Smythes tendency to ignore her favourite characters wrong doings or to try 'justify' them with poorly executed retcons. In the latest chapter we get yet another "Zeus bad" retcon that somehow feels worse than the prior "Zeus bad" moments. Im not going to deny Zeus is a very VERY flawed person in LO, I am all for Hera divorcing him. But here she is trying to justify the Metis/Zeus plot point by saying "oh she was protecting her daughter all along by sleeping with someone who she met when he was underage!!!!" That feels really creepy? I dont think she really considers the implications of the things she writes and thats not a good thing. She cant even try argue "oh kronos time shenanigans make it ok" or whatever stupid logic she might use because she has established his time powers had run out from his fight with Ouranos at that point in the story.

Like lets take the catastrophe that was the Dio birth arc, she tries to retroactively justify Persephone being a terrible midwife who steals a baby without letting the father hold him by being like "oh actually he didnt care about the baby he chose to carry in his leg for about 10 years Persephone was in the right!!!" instead of having her ask to take custody or do anything other than demanding she be given the baby like a few minutes after Zeus finished giving birth.

Its not just Zeus either, she tries to justify Persephone invading Leuces home by being like "Oh Leuce never really got any texts shes delusional!!!!" ignoring the fact that Leuce thought the texts were valid enough to show to Persephone when mrs pink tyrant was being a home invader and neglecting the baby she just stole a couple of hours ago. Dio is treated like a purse dog and we get some off hand comment where Persephone blames the neglect (which was so bad the child got into TARTARUS) on the sitter she hired rather than being like "oh I should have made actual arrangements for Dio instead of giving myself a makeover". Theres also the way she tried to claim Thanatos was as much to blame for Hades' terrible parenting as Hades was by being like "well the abandoned child had an attitude can you blame Hades for not being a good dad?" Like yes. Yes we can blame Hades, he was an ADULT and Thanatos was a CHILD.

I guess the point Im making is, if she wants her characters to be morally grey, she needs to stop twisting the narrative into a gordian knot to justify every bad thing her favourites do whilst condemning other characters as being 'the worst' like hold them all to the same standard and actually let them develop instead of making excuses.

[gay-dorito-dust]

Hello! Thank you for your work!🔥

How would Bi Han react in the event of his beloved's fatal illness? 💔

Thank you for reading them! (Even if I like to think half of them are shit.) and thank you for the request! 🦦

Bi-Han would be broken, shattered, lost and so full of anguish and all that was locked away behind a stoic facade upon hearing the news of potentially loosing his beloved forever.

He would try to find a way to combat against it to save his beloved, even despite being told by the best medics possible that there was only so much they could do before it inevitably became out of their power.

You; the reason that he dared to smile, the reason he dared to laugh despite attempting to hide it in his scoffs and grunts. You were even the reason he dared to love in the first place, gifting him the safe space to be open and vulnerable. And yet he was meant to reconcile and to accept the fact that he now had to bear the burden of living a long life without his beloved.

Bi-Han would blame the cause for your unfortunate circumstance on everyone else.

He wanted to point his finger at someone so badly as to not sit in his feelings, for he knew that he would only be crushed beneath the weight of his repressed emotions. Bi-Han didn’t want to feel anything during the hardest moment in his life, especially as he tried so hard to act indifferent towards the whole thing on the outside, whilst on the inside he was breaking.

Everything within him was breaking but the Grandmaster of the Lin Kuei wasn’t allowed to express his grief other then behind closed doors. Bi-Han would sit by your side for long periods of time, refusing to depart from you for a single second for fear that any moment he wasn’t present would be your last. Bi-Han didn’t want to fathom you being alone in your final moments, it was disrespectful in his eyes for you deserved to pass away know that you were extremely loved.

He would eventually grow irritated and temperamental, snapping at everyone at every minor inconvenience made and is more ruthless then before, so much so that Kuai Liang would have to pull his brother aside and make him see reason in that you wouldn’t condone this sort of attitude. Kuai Liang understood that Bi-Han was in a bad state but wasn’t going to stand aside and allow him to treat others poorly.

Bonus: Kuai Liang was also grieving the fact that he was destined to loose a close friend but he wouldn’t resort to taking his frustrations out on others. It wasn’t fair on those who weren’t aware of the current situation. Tomas was also grieving the fact but did so within the privacy of his own room.

Needless to say that Bi-Han would come out of this a much more colder, unfeeling, vengeful, ruthless and dangerous man then ever before. His beloved was going to be unceremoniously taken from him and he was helpless to stop it and so when you do pass on, he would truly have nothing left to lose -outside of the Lin Kuei of course- and that would only make for Bi-Han to become even more of a threat.

His heart would freeze over into a literal block of ice because his heart would only belong to the one person who managed to melt it in the first place.

Never again would he ever entrust his heart to someone else no matter how hard they tried. To Bi-Han, no one could ever take your place and would even kill those who even dared try.

Bi-Han would even try to forget about you but that was proven to be a difficult task as he found himself unwilling to part from the last remaining things he has of you. So he would lay there at night remembering how he failed you, whilst reaching over to your side of the bed that had long since gone cold, a tear silently sliding down his cheek before his face naturally contorted into anger; the only emotion he felt nowadays.

[mdzs-owns-my-ass-i-guess]

Most iconic Ling Wen things according to me

Contains spoilers

Eyebags and always being tired

Having HR department vibes and knowing everything about everyone

Helping Xie Lian with things all the time, as far back as his first ascension

Being appalled at the notion that people might think her and Pei Ming ever had a romantic past together

Mountains upon mountains of paperwork

The Brocade Immortal and how it was responsible for about a quarter of the plot if not more

When Hua Cheng turned her into a daruma doll and she was holding little scrolls

The fact that her claim to fame as a mortal was an essay literally roasting her country so well she won a contest for scholars despite being a shoe-seller (and pissing off the civil god at the time)

When she became a middle court official and the civil god at the time treated her so poorly she orchestrated his downfall and took his place, becoming even more successful than him

When at the end of the book she said she rested more as a prisoner than she ever did as a god

And then they made her pick up all the slack after everything because the heavens cant function without her

The fact that she created the communication array and the heavens fell into chaos when it disappeared

The fact that Jun Wu literally entrusts her with the whole heavenly court whilst hes off doing god knows what

Literally being the backbone of the heavenly court

Not iconic Ling Wen things:

When she decided to be on Jun Wu's side when his true identity was revealed??? Girl why.

Suffering from misogyny

[gosmigenergy]

KINKTOBER 2023 / Day Twelve

( Will ‘Ironhead’ Miller x F!Reader )

ORGASM DENIAL/CONTROL / LINGERIE / ROLE REVERSAL

Summary: After his kindness the other week, you think Will deserves a little treat.

Day twelve of @absurdthirst's Kinktober prompts list.

Rating: Mature 18+

Warnings: Mentions trying on clothes, P in V, unprotected sex (use protection irl please), no use of Y/N

Word Count: 2.4k

You were never one for shopping, everything was easier online.

A Saturday spent going shop to shop, fighting against the flocks of people doing the same with sounded like a weekend you’d rather forget, yet here you were. Your friend had dragged you out, mostly because she wanted to see you, secretly to get the gossip on what was happening with you and those guys from fight night.

Your lips were mostly sealed and what you did give her wasn’t nearly as juicy enough.

She was carrying a few bags whilst you were leaving empty handed, everything you tried on either felt weird or looked weird or both. This is why you preferred trying stuff on at home, without the unflattering mirrors, poorly lit changing rooms or the shop assistant knocking on the door to see if you were alright.

Until you caught something out of the corner of your eye.

She carried on ahead of you, only realising you’d ground to a halt when you didn’t reply.

“I haven’t seen you look at something like that since Santiago.”

“Huh?”

She chortled, “You look so cute when you’re confused.”

Standing next to each other, you gazed at the mannequin in the shop window. You never remembered a lingerie shop being here before though it gave that vibe of not just selling ridiculously pretty under garments.

“Why don’t you try it on?”

“I’ll just get it on—“

“This is not the kind of thing you order online,” she folded her arms, “trust me.”

You bring your attention back, biting the inside of your lip.

She sighed and grabbed your hand with a python like grip.

“Come one,” she hauled you towards the doors.

“Nooooo.”

You immediately gravitated towards the set you admired in the window, fingers flicking to find your size and just as you gave up hope, a shop assistant approached. She was mostly harmless and actually good at her job. When she asked what size you were looking for, you blanked, and she smiled and said she’d measure you up. Now you found yourself stood in a velvet walled changing room with matching furniture, twiddling your thumbs, waiting for her to come back with your size.

The knock made you flinched.

Opening the door, she slipped in and handed you the pieces.

“I didn’t know which bottom you’d like so I brought all three.”

“There’s three different types?”

She hummed, “You’ve got my personal favourite, the high waisted knicker. The thong which you know, always sells well and the crotchless. You wanted the garter too, right?”

You could only nod, the last option had thrown you.

Crotchless?

“Let me know when you’re ready and I’ll fix the bra straps.”

“Ok,” you say softly.

You could hear the conversation outside, your friend and the shop assistant making small talk at first - how was your day, where have you been, the usual until they started talking about you.

‘She’s not much of a shopper.’

‘Who is these days,’ the shop assistant says. ‘I much prefer online but this kind of stuff is risky, if you don’t know your size, it’s a lot of back and forth.’

‘That’s why I dragged her in here.’

‘I hope she likes it, that set will really accentuate her figure, it’ll look great on her.’

‘There’s definitely a few guys who’d love to see her in it.’

You wobble, bumping the door as you try to get a leg through the hole, too busy listening in on what they were saying.

“You ok?” Your friend queries.

“I’m fine, almost there.”

Closing your eyes, you take a few breaths before spinning on your heels, opening one eye. The image reflected had you instantly opening the other and your heart skips. You looked good, real fucking good. You exhale, pushing yourself up on the balls of your feet, imagining how you’d stand in heels. Clinging onto the plush walls, you turn to view the back and are equally as pleased.

All the boys would love this but you had one in mind.

—

You told Will you were going to freshen up about twenty minutes ago and you were surprised he hadn’t come to check on you.

The first five minutes was you, staring at the clean lines of the bag, a neat little bow sealing it shut. The next five was you gazing upon the set laid upon the black tissue it was once wrapped in, the emerald green colour rich. You spent the other ten minutes getting the damn thing on with delicate fingers, afraid that any brisk movement would ripped the mesh. When it was all on, you went to the mirror and adjusted your boobs just like the assistant showed you, it was the correct way apparently.

Back on the bed, you slipped on the stockings and hooked them into the garter before slipping on the pair of heels you hid in your weekend bag.

The nerves were starting to get to you, you wobble on your heels as you head to the mirror again. 

You didn’t get why you were so nervous, this was Will for fuck’s sake. You’re sure if you approached any of the boys in this lingerie, they’d fall to their hands and knees and worship you at your feet. Maybe that’s what it was, new territory, you were used to being the centre of attention but now, you were stepping into the spotlight.

You took a deep breath before checking yourself over one last time.

Heading to the door, you grabbed his robe from the hook and wrapped it around your frame. You step carefully, his robe gathered around your ankles as you go to find him.

He’s busying himself in the kitchen, back towards you.

You knew you could do this.

Treading carefully, you tiptoe to stop the clicking of your heel and hover behind him. You stretch your arms up, rubbing your hands before covering his eyes.

He drops the soapy dish in his hand.

“What have I told you about approaching us from behind?”

Not to do it, which hardly seemed fair because they did it all the time.

“I know, it’s jus—“

His other hand had snuck to your ass and he squeezed, a twitch in his brow as he felt the soft, thick fabric of his dressing gown.

“Keep your eyes closed.”

He gifts you another three squeezes.

You guide him away from the countertop and turned him round, still covering his eyes with your palms.

“Are they definitely closed?”

“Of course, sweetheart.”

You part one set of fingers to make sure, he was never one for lying. Bringing your hands back, you read his features like always he was pokerface except for the slight curl in his lips, you’d peeked his interest.

Grabbing the tea towel, you dry his hand before taking them in his. Yours were always so velvety in comparison to his even after soaking in the water for as long as they had, he knew they were rough.

Leading the way, you tug lightly and walk him out the kitchen.

You thought you had planned this but as you turn your head, looking at the living room, you realise this isn’t going to work. You needed to sit him somewhere where he could see you in full view and where you could stand so he would see you from head to toe. It’s as if he heard your mind working.

“What are you thinking?”

“I want to sit you down but I need the space.”

“Bedroom?”

“Hmm, I wanted somewhere different.”

“How about the office?”

“You have an office?”

“Kind of,” he shrugs, “it’s where I keep all my books, there’s a nice leather chair if that’s what you’re after.”

You make a move.

You’re met with a small room, the walls ladened with books and military paraphernalia, photos that you can’t wait to have a proper look at. You escort him to the leather chair and he makes himself comfortable as you go to close the door.

He can hear the clicks on the wooden floor, feel the nervous energy.

“You ok?”

You hum.

“Can I open my eyes yet?”

“Yeah,” you say in a sigh.

There you were stood in his robe though his eyes did fall on your shoes. He leans forward, resting his forearms on his knees, hands hanging loosely together.

“Now you’re just teasing.”

Your head drops as you giggle, cheeks blushing. You bring your head back up and scoop your hair out of the back, shaking it out of your face.

“I know I am but,” you begin to undo the tie. “I wanted to see your face when I did this.”

Shrugging off his robe, it pools at the bottom of your feet.

You hear his breath as his eyes roam across every part of your body, those piercing blues bringing goosebumps to your skin. His tongue whips over his lips as one of his hands reaches for the back of his neck, he tips his head to one side. Leaning back, he takes another peek, forehead creasing as his eyebrows raised. 

“Fuck.”

His smile buried into his cheeks. He threw his hand to you after he rubbed his neck.

“Is this just for me?”

You bit your lip, “Yeah.”

His reaction was better than you could ever have hoped for.

The goosebumps had dispersed and left a prickly feeling that warmed your skin, the knot you felt in your belly releasing, your arousal burning in your loins.

He beckoned for you to come.

You walk with purpose, exaggerating your hips, stopping when your pointed toes scuff the chair. 

Rocking forward, Will smoothes his palms over your legs and up your ass, sweeping over your hips and waist. He extends his thumbs, brushing over your breasts, nipples growing under their mesh containment. Moving to your back, he edges you closer.

His breath teases your skin, whiskers tickling as he kisses along the band of your knickers.

You sigh, your nails scratching his scalp as the kisses intensified.

The strain in his pants was becoming unbearable, his cock stiffening underneath. With one hand, he undoes his buckle and pops the top button, pulling the zip to alleviate himself. He does nothing else, desperate to touch your skin.

He flattens his tongue and licks from one side of your body to the other.

Your juices dribble, dressing your folds.

When he offers you some relief, you climb onto his lap, knees pressed to his hips. You settle so you’re face to face and bring your lips to his, two swift kisses before you push on his mouth, drawing the air from his lungs. You catch his moan in your mouth as you slip your tongue in and dance with his.

His teeth sink into your bottom lip as he pulls back.

Cupping his hands over your breast, he thumbs at your nipple until it grows puffy. Freeing it from the delicate fabric, he takes it his mouth and suckles, tongue swiping up and down.

Your head falls back as a cry rises from your chest.

He releases it from his mouth with a pop before doing the same with the other. His fingers run in the middle of your breasts and down your stomach, over your knickers. Sliding over your mound, he expected to be greeted with more material containing you. He chuckles when your juices coat his digits.

Peeling himself away from you, he lifts his hips and yanks his pants and boxer enough to release his heavy cock.

Licking your fingertips, you catch his precum and spread it over his tip, a shiver jolting up his spine as he reclines. You line yourself up and drop your hips, taking him in your opening. Your walls pulse around his bright tip before you sink further into his lap. He gives a satisfied sigh as you take him to the hilt.

You roll your hips in the figure of eight.

“That’s it,” you coo as his head rests to the cushion.

Placing a hand on his chest and the other on his thigh, you lift yourself up before coming back down with a gasp. You revel in his every grunt, every moan as you steadily ride his cock, the wet smack as you bounce from bare skin.

You rode until your legs began to protest.

After another stroke, you collapsed onto his chest, your hand releasing his top.

He’s still inside you, cock twitching as your walls constricted around him. His movements were sluggish but he manages to bring a hand to your back. He strokes you up and down, allowing you to breath.

“Shall I help us finish?”

He looks at you, smiling softly.

You nod in agreement, sweat clinging to your hairline.

Placing his hand under your ass, you lean forward and let him lift your hips up and down. You whimper as your arms wrap tightly around his neck, your chin resting on top of his head.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart, we’ll both be cumming soon.”

With the new angle, his cock nudges that sweet spot over and over and though he promises you’ll finish soon, you don’t know how much more you can take. His breath is hot against your shoulder, lips showering it with kisses. The blood pumping through your veins fast and loud, you can only just hear him whispering praises in your ear.

Then he holds you steady, tip still radiating in your walls.

You know what’s coming, your fingers bury into his shirt and your eyes snap shut.

He thrusts, shoving his cock into you sharply.

You both moan in unison before he slips out before continuing back and forth at a relentless pace. 

Even with your eyes closed, your seeing stars, that burn in your belly heightening as you let out a strangled cry. Your legs are vibrating as he pushes you to the edge and helps carry you through your orgasm. His cock is trapped in your pulsating walls and with a couple more strokes, he coated them.

Your body slack above him and he drops his hip for you to lay.

There’s shockwaves as you try to settle, his strokes on your legs not helping. You feel his heartbeat slow against your chest, his breaths less staggered as you bring your attention back to the room.

There’s a moment of blissful silence before Will speaks.

“Please tell me you’ve got more lingerie.”

[betaboks]

Time to yap since I've been posting abt this without fully elaborating. Little profiles for the siblings here and here

tl;dr I just wanted to do a little swap au where the modded siblings r the normal ones now, but I still wanted to keep the fact they're generally not very good siblings to Sanji (with the exception of Reiju) instead of swapping that dynamic as well.

Reiju's mods never really worked on her, even though they were attempted after birth. The boys all got spared by their mother in the womb at the cost of her dying much earlier than she did in canon, except for Sanji, who came out "right". Quickly it was pretty clear he fulfilled the role of a weapon with flying colors, but his emotional mods left him with very little personality and expressiveness, so he wouldn't be any good for actually running Germa when it came down to that.

So, suddenly the failures are deemed necessary. Judge can't get rid of them, even in a way that helps him save face.

It doesn't stop him from reminding them that they're failures that couldn't hope to live up to his expectations, and it also doesn't stop him from trying to "fix" them, even though it hasn't worked. Even though they're royalty, there's an air about them because of how their father talks about them. None of the staff are ever gonna dare treat them poorly but you can tell there's a neon sign over their heads calling them all disappointments. They end up split up as well so there's less solidarity or space to find comfort in each other between them. Niji ends up as a scientist, Yonji as a soldier, Ichiji as the crown prince with all the education and responsibility that entails, and Reiju is sort of in limbo, though she acts as an advisor. It is a bit miserable, though even with all this they do still try to find time together.

Sanji at some point gets told to not let any of his siblings come to harm, and it quickly becomes an order he prioritizes much more than Judge could've predicted he would. He is their protector above all else, and they are important.

At some point whilst Judge is trying to modify his siblings again later in life (likely whilst Yonji was getting his arm replaced, I have smth specific in mind but I'm not sure about it so that'll be sorted later!) Sanji comes to perceive Germa as physically harming his siblings, one of the things he isn't supposed to let happen. So he gathers them all together during a quiet time, splits off some of their snail ships, and leaves with them. Effectively, they've all run away.

That's the setup.

They gain a reputation over time on the Grand Line as the ship with the vicious guard dog. They don't fly a jolly roger, but they get into enough scuffles and subsist off of stealing from other pirates enough that they get treated similarly to pirates regardless, even though they're not usually the aggressors. Sanji is just thorough like that.

Months after all of that happens and they're settled down after the initial chaos of finally getting out of Germa (though still on the run and sailing, they're definitely still being looked for), Niji ends up suggesting that they euthanize Sanji. It comes from a place of care, he thinks it's unfair and inhumane that he has to live with no feelings and only really having orders to follow as motivation for things, and this starts a chain of infighting and arguing between all of his siblings.

Yonji agrees, though he doesn't really care for Sanji. He sees him to some degree as a weapon, and one they'd do well to get rid of because he could be used against them when their father rears his ugly head again. Reiju disagrees just on principle, and is kind of mortified that Niji's solution to their brother being different from them is to just end his life. She's retained what her mother tried instilling in her. Ichiji disagrees, but for practical reasons. He also doesn't much care, but he knows they're on the Grand Line, and that Yonji being a good fighter isn't going to get them out of scuffles unscathed the way having Sanji around as their guard dog does. It is kind of hard to argue against that, all things considered, but it's not the sort of argument that's going to keep anything at bay for too long either. It keeps bubbling back up and strains all of their relationships.

Sanji, of course, hears all of this. None of them consult him on the issue or tell him about it directly. He remains loyal to them all anyway. He is still their guard dog.

Things happen from there obviously but I hope to write a fic so that'll be for a later date if I ever get around to it. Hoping I do. I still wanna just put this out here in case I never do get around to it LOL. Feel free to ask questions and such :] I like engaging with people

[thejabber-talkey]

I know I'm mad late to the Priory of the Orange tree craze, but I'm about halfway through and I have thoughts. Specifically thoughts on the religion of the western half of the book's world.

I don't super love how religion is handled in terms of overall rhetoric. The religions on a ground level are really well done; they're realistic and believable without being too direct a rip from existing religions. Though, the Saint and the Virtues are more clearly Christianity than the rest of the other religions are anything else. And I think this really effects how the narrative treats that religion in relation to all the others. I find it really cheap and uninteresting when books have two 'opposing' religions where one is obviously wrong and the other is obviously right. That's not how any religion has ever worked, for starters, and it also lacks nuance. You can tell from the get go that the Saint and Virtues are meant to be the bad/wrong religion. Even if Ead wasn't our primary narrator and perspective into Inys culture, the way things are written have an obvious derision for the Saint. Now, I don't hate the idea of a false religion built on lies, but the way it's set up against the vastly superior and narratively favoured woman-led counter religion is just, well, boring. You have the 'bad' religion founded b a man who is a liar, and the good religion founded by a cool woman. The whole, one religion is good and one is bad just lacks any sense of real intrigue, especially when the book flat out tells you which one is bad and which one is good. I would really love for there to be truth in both the Saint's and the Mother's stories, but I can tell that that's not the direction the book is headed and it bums me out, because it makes the religious divide in the west into obvious moralism that plays on what we as readers are apt to agree with. The rest of the world-building bangs, so why cant we have nuance in the two main religions, too?

The narrative and Ead + the rest of the priory are generally unfairly shitty to those who believe in the Saint. Fuck those guys for believing their religious leader, I guess? It's not like they chose to be lied to, and they don't know any other truth, so having all the other characters treating Inys citizens like deliberately ignorant and hateful doesent have the same punch as if they did know their origins. Getting pissed at another culture for not knowing your real history when you deliberately hide it from everyone is petty, esp when you know they've been lied to for the past thousand years. It also makes Ead's perspective vaguely annoying because she has an obvious bias against the Saint and Inys, which isn't inherently wrong because, again, she follows the good/real religion. But it does feel a bit, i dunno, unfair, because Ead knows they don't know their religion is a lie, and she still thinks poorly of them for it. Like, i cannot emphasize how little empathy is spared to these people who do not know their entire religion a lie, they're just treated how we would treat a nation of christian colonizers. Except, the people of Virtudom aren't colonizers and, I cannot stress this enough, do not know that their religion is wrong, as far as they are aware, it is actual history. I can smell from a while away that Ead is going to convince Sabran to convert, and that Sabran in turn is going to forcibly convert her entire queeendom, because she has that power as a monarch. And the book is going to treat this like a 'good ending' and not the massive cultural and life upheaval it actually is.

The whole 'there is only one right sect of this religion, and all others are inherently bad' thing just reeks of christian rhetoric, even though the 'good' religion is supposed to be from a more Arabic leaning culture. It reads a lot like an ex-christian trying to overcompensate for their former religion, whilst still maintaining all of that religious rhetoric about sin and 'true good' and there being only one right way of life and that the people who don't follow this right way are bad and morally inferior by default.

The book is still great (could use more dragons, tbh, I feel like they oversold how many dragons are in this book) I just hate that one specific narrative aspect.

[nebuladreamz]

You ever think about how Moon’s personality is silly and he seems to be Just Like That whereas Sun is passive aggressive towards adults and fighting for his life with kids because broski is trying his best whilst probably (if the Plex books are canon, I’ve said my piece before about them awhile back) not being actually programmed/qualified/washed up theater kid in customer service at this point

And yet. And yet actively trying to keep Moon away, silly goofy but by this point most likely infected by the virus (not as obviously as the other Glamrocks given how if he’s infected or not can be a debate on its own) but there is fucking SOMETHING up with him because of his constant connection to Vanny

You ever think about how poorly these two are treated, most likely worse than the Glamrocks because we all know damn well that Fazco does NOT give an actual fuck about them and how sentient they are. Sentience in robots and real-life like personalities all fabricated by coding and programming, yet they feel more real than maybe some people out there. The only reason why they’re treated more decently than the DCA is because they’re the main stars of the show, the Plex is their kingdom and they’re the entertainers of it with Fazco being its king.

And in a kingdom of falsehoods and pulling strings of its entertainers, there lies the jester, dancing its own tune whilst trying to be in the favor of its eyes.

You ever think about how much the Daycare Attendant needs more attention and an actual decent amount of recharging because I highly doubt they ever get to charge. If not charging like the Glamrocks, then the amount of downtime they have is so staggeringly low it’s a wonder how they’re still functioning.

You ever think about how much these two could use a break. Downtime. To be fixed, maybe depending on perception. Moon getting to be reprogrammed to actually understand that his villainy goofiness is actually Not what you’re supposed to do for naptime with a bunch of toddlers. Or even getting the virus taken out. Sun getting to take a fucking break without feeling like he’ll shutdown or breakdown if he isn’t keeping the lights on or needing everything to be perfect.

Not to mention Eclipse and THOSE implications, if any.

You ever think about the Daycare Attendant and how little we see of them and yet piece the puzzle together, even if we don’t have them all and sometimes instead rearrange the picture to our own image, our own perceptions to make sense of the holes.

[princeanxious]

Hi! I was wondering about your Lost Guardian au from ages ago, do you think you’ll ever plan on updating it and if not, could someone else take up the fic?

So heres the thing. If someone wants to write a fic *inspired* by The Lost Guardian, i’m not gonna stop them, and i’d probably feel super honored so long as the inspiration was correctly credited!

As for ‘taking up the fic,’ the short answer is no.

I have active drafts and the rest of the story already planned out to its finish, notes, even a branch-off fic set post-story that will likely go up on my nsfw blog if i ever get around to editing it. The Lost Guardian hasn’t been abandoned, it’s simply on hiatus. (And yes, i recognize 3 almost 4 years so far is a really fucking long hiatus. The Chapter 9 draft doc was made in december of 2020, and last edited in July 2022)

I started writing that fic whilst still in highschool, a time where I was 17 and didnt have to worry yet about getting my license or maintaining a part time job, i had an over abundance of freetime even partially to my detriment, the fandom was booming and I had plenty of feedback, and this fic was (and still *is*) a story im proud of.

But i’m 22 now, working a full time job to pay rent and account for a number of minor ‘disabilities’(best word i have for them atm) that I cant ignore or push to the side nor treat poorly, from the lasting effects on my body of stunted growth to celiac/glutent intolerance to adhere to that directly determines how easily my body functions for the week, to dealing with glasses i cannot afford to break and taking care of teeth i cannot afford to fix, taking care of my mental health and using the free time i have to do what brings me the most joy at that time.

The sanders sides fandom has heavily quieted down with the season finale hiatus and I’d like to think I did pretty well for going six long years dedicated solely to that without cracking under the silence, because *I knew* when I caved to something else it’d be a long while before I had the drive to come back with any sort of resolution to my active works. Thats just how my hyper fixations work. I cannot focus on multiple at once, it’s too much to process simultaneously and takes away my enjoyment bc I tend to watch/consume things repeatedly to catch every little detail i missed. And it doesn’t help when one loses steam because their content barely breaks 100 notes(80% of which are likes, 15% are reblogs with the occasional comment, and 5% are self-reblogs) when back in the height of it all, a few thousand notes was pretty average interaction. This blog still has about 11.5k followers, almost all of which came from the height of the fandom period. So for now i’ve moved onto the FNAF DCA fandom, bc it is fresh and new to me.

I know you didn’t mean to poke the bear here, I get it, but like.. C’mon. Any other fic of mine likely wouldn’t have gotten the same reaction in full but, still. I’ve had to answer this question a handful of times over the years at the point, which might be why this response feels so charged, and i’m sorry.

I don’t mean to come off as snippy or rude, but it *is* kind of invasive to offer to finish one’s creative work when it’s taking too long and theres very little payback for it. I’ve got adhd, delayed satisfaction isn’t a thing I experience. Just guilt that it wasn’t finished in a way for me to post it in time before I broke and lost all motivation to share it.

In my head, TLG has been long finished and held the ending for years, theres just been no energy to put in the effort of finish writing it for others to read. I’m still trying to get my life together to change that, don’t get me wrong, but the American economy is literally in shambles so who knows how or even if i’ll manage that. Call me selfish for being content with only mentally having my creative story’s ending and a collection of rambles and notes to show for it, but at the end of the day, it’s still my story, and i dont feel comfortable with people trying to ‘take up the mantle’ to finish it, when they don’t know how it ends.

I’m glad you like it enough to want to, though, I really *really* am. I’m just sorry I haven’t been able to finish it for you all. And i just don’t know when that will be, I just know that I *want* to do so, however long it takes.

[fruit-of-infidelity]

♱  DIABOLIK LOVERS: Haunted Dark Bridal ー Sakamaki Laito | Dark 3½  ♱

⌜ Scene: The Limousine ⌟

Yui: ( Phew! The limousine is still there, thank God! )

W-Wait…! Mr. Driver!

Please don’t drive off yet… Can you wait a moment? I left something in there that I desperately need to get out for tomorrow.

― Yui opens the limousine door. ―

( I know I left my homework books in here somewhere, from tonight… )

( I’ve just got to find them! )

― Yui rummages around for a moment more. ―

Could they be… under the seat?

… …

…Huh?

― The door closes behind her. ―

W-Wait…!!

― Suddenly the limousine takes off. ―

I’m still in here! Hold on, please!

???: Oh dear, did you stumble into the wrong car, perhaps?

Yui: Kyaaa!!

― Ryuuto is sitting in one of the seats. ―

( That person… R-Ryuuto-san, he’s just reading to himself in the limousine! Has he been here this whole time!? )

W-Wrong car?

Ryuuto: I was dropping something off to those people just before, and had my own car briefly parked out front their house. However…

By the frantic look you’re giving me, you were too nosy for your own good.

Were you trying to catch a free ride, I wonder? Or… were you trying your hand at escaping from there? It certainly seems to have worked.

Yui: N-No, I just thought this was the other car!

Ryuuto: It would be a shame not to take advantage of this opportunity, though.

Yui: I…

( He has a point. I’ve disappeared without a trace like this, haven’t I? )

Ryuuto: I am heading back to my father’s place, somewhere you are welcome to stay if you so choose to. After all…

With how you have been so poorly treated whilst still settling into that household, would it not be nice to take a breather?

Yui: You mean…

Ryuuto: Laito lacks self-control at the best of times; I’m only taking a stab within the dark at what you have already endured, that is.

I would not be surprised if he had made a series of advances upon you, already.

Yui: That s-sort of stuff… You’re not exactly wrong…

Ryuuto: Tell me, has he sucked from you yet?

No, that is too easy a question to answer; The answer is obvious. Has he, instead, laid claim to you any other way, I wonder…

Laid claim through kisses… through your bodies?

Yui: …!!

━─┉┈◈ Selection ◈┈┉─━

　　❈  That’s my business… Yui: Wh-What gives you the right to ask something like that!? ( There’s no way I’d tell him… tell anyone that! ) Ryuuto: That reaction is all I needed, in response. Yui: ( Whether or not it’s true… ) I-It’s not something I want to discuss with a stranger…!

　　❈  In a way… (♥) Yui: ( “Our bodies”… … ) ( Laito-kun has kissed me, and he’s t-touched me, so… ) In… some sense of the term, y-yes. Ryuuto: …Defiled, so soon. Pity. Yui: …!!

━━─┉┈┈◈◉◈┈┈┉─━━

Ryuuto: Well, regardless of what that person has done to spoil you… At least allow me to make you an offer one final time――

――Allow me to ask you to rethink your selection.

I can scarcely see the benefit in losing your sanity to someone like Laito; It baffles me to think you even thought to consider him.

Yui: You want me to… go with you?

Ryuuto: Bluntly stated, yes.

Yui: ( I’m backed into a corner either way, going along with Ryuuto-san or not. )

( …Aren’t I? )

― Suddenly, the limousine comes to a stop. ―

Ryuuto: Otherwise… do get out, won’t you?

Yui: E-Eh…?

― He shifts very close to her. ―

Ryuuto: I am being overly generous, offering such to you again in the state that person has already left you in…

So if you do not decide now, there is no telling how much farther you will have fallen by our next meeting, Yui.

Yui: ( My name… Ryuuto-san used my name. )

…I…

( …Even still, there is something inside me that give some the creeps about this guy. No matter how “generous” he is being…! )

I can’t…!

― Yui quickly gets out of the limousine. ―

Ryuuto: … …

― She runs off fast, the scene changing to the out front the manor. ―

Yui: ( I can’t trust that person any more than Laito-kun…! )

( There’s just no way… )

( They’re all Vampires in the end, so what difference would it make!? )

Laito: Wo~ah there!

Yui: …!!

― Laito catches her in his arms. ―

Laito: I was wondering where you got to, Bitch-chan. I thought you might have run off in the middle of the night, nfu.

… …

With some other man, at that.

Yui: Wh-What!?

Laito: Fufu, what a cute, worried face you’re pulling.

It makes me want to eat you ri~ght up.

Yui: ( By the sounds of it, he h-has no clue… )

Ph-Phew…

Laito: Say, did you ever find that homework?

If not, we can always study together, you know. They say having a study partner helps you learn much quicker than all on your lonesome.

Let’s put that to the test, ‘kay?

Although, do your best not to distract me too much, Bitch-chan. Or else, I might not be able to keep my hands off you tonight~

✥ TO BE CONTINUED ✥

─────── ≪ °♛° ≫ ───────

←  [ ✥ Dark 03 ✥ ]⎥ [ ✥ Dark 04 ✥ ]  → 　　　　[ ✥ Dark 7½ ✥ ]

[yumyumyuri2]

Hear Me Out (Ep. 1 - Maid Outfits & Character Writing Are Underestimated 2-for-1 Bundles)

Character designing Vs. character writing are both very different skills that go hand-in-hand in making a character memorable, iconic and loved - it can also make them forgettable, generic and hated. One can be better than the other and still have both possibilities be put into play into how the audience views that character - if they're written well but have a somewhat bland character design (like the maid sisters Kohaku and Hisui from Tsukihime/Melty Blood), or written poorly yet still have a memorable character design (like Juju from Lonely Wolf Treat or Eleni from Contract Demon), those characters can still be loved or hated either way.

Maid outfits, however, seem to tell a completely different story.

From my own personal experience of consuming media, talking with my friends and fans of all sorts of franchises, they can make or break how a community sees a character. This is because nowadays maid outfits can be seen as sexual appeal due to the traditionally obedient (and consequently submissive) role of those bound to wear it or as lazy character design (due to the essentially automated fanservice its depiction alone provides). It's overused (particularly in games and media made SPECIFICALLY to sexually appeal to those who wish to spend their me-time in a more lust-driven manner) and can deter fans from liking them, or attract fans purely due to it rather than appreciate the work the creator had put into them and the narrative they crafted. As a result, they visually don't really give the audience any incentive to express further interest into their character initially until later on, in which by then they're only relevant due to affecting the plot in ways that affects other characters the audience IS interested in during the narrative.

(I know it's unfair to assume how each individual viewer/reader would view certain characters but this is merely observations I've made with other franchises, and not definitive fact.)

Maid outfits (and those who wear them), however, can serve SO much more purpose in the narrative.

There are 4 types of maid characters that I've made up in my mind: the dutiful maid, the traitorous maid, the confused maid and the "maid". These types are ones that either enhance or act as a juxtaposition for the personality and narrative purpose these characters have.

The dutiful maid - the loyal servant, one willing to lay their life down fully for those they serve. Their outfits can serve as an explicit symbol for their loyalty to their masters/mistresses and their role in the lives of such, and when done right can look badass, hot and cute at the same time. The reasons for their loyalty and the tests to maintain it could bring depth to their character.

The traitorous maid - the scheming backstabber, one who serves their masters/mistresses with an alternate agenda that may involve in the exploitation or theft of their power for themselves or for another they serve. Whilst such a character themselves can exist without having to be a maid, their traditionally dainty and formal appearance and the loyalty required of such can serve as a juxtaposition to their goals and personality, clearly opposed to that of a normal maid. Whilst I can't name any, it can still serve as a good plot twist if done correctly.

The confused maid - one of whom chose to take on their role due to a lack of vision/insight into who they want to be, dependent on others to discuss/decide for them. They do this and that, but is this what they really feel they were meant for? Do they dedicate their lives for their masters/mistresses, or become a master/mistress of their own life? Loyalty may vary, allowing flexibility in usage in the narrative. Whether they keep the maid outfit on or take it off or how they act whilst wearing (or not wearing) it could represent their growth (or regression) as an individual.

The "maid" - essentially can be any of the three, whilst essentially being a maid mainly out of necessity for their safety (or other) or accompany a friend (or get closer to one who may be a master/mistress). They mainly take not very serious character roles (such as being a comic relief character or a side character for laughs) but their impact on the overarching narrative is limitless.

Essentially, maid outfits are very underrated but both character design AND writing must be put into consideration to properly utilize the elements and symbolism the creator plans to depict via the narrative and the character's role in such. They CAN be WAY more than simple sexual appeal, having untapped amounts of potential

So please, please, PLEASE, try taking more interest into characters in the place of servants/maids.

That's just a hear me out though...

[innerangeltoadlover]

34. When my parents started making a Will there was concern over me having stable housing. My working life has been spasmodic and the family home where I’ve lived all my life was a natural option. In order to appease my sister the house was held in trust and would eventually be inherited by my sister's kids but I could live in it till I die. My sister was agreeable to this and it took quite a bit of doing for my parents who were back and forth with their lawyer. At this time my father had been newly diagnosed with prostate cancer. My sister and her husband had done very well in life and we all assumed that she wouldn’t begrudge me housing. However as soon as my father passed she decided the Will wasn’t to her liking. The following years after my father died were my sister's last and most prolonged shit show. After my father died it was only 2 weeks before my sister began ringing my mother complaining about the distribution of the Will. When my sister speaks to any of our family you can hear her clearly there is no need for a speakerphone . In the past you could actually hear her in the next room especially when she was ‘talking’ to mum. Anyway after Dad died (the only person she had a trace of respect for) it made an opportunity for a tidal wave of repressed anger to be unleashed. Having looked after my parents, as they had looked after me my tolerance for my sister had diminished. I was also in my mid 50s - an age when generalised weariness makes conversations shorter . I was also grieving , just as my mother was who was also suffering from the early stages of dementia and picking up the pieces after a phone call was beyond ridiculous. I emailed my sister saying , “if you can’t be civil with mum don’t ring” . This was translated to her husband as , ‘ I was forbidding my sister contact with her mother’ - She of course used this opportunity to never offer help or talk to her mother again. I was not unhappy to have a break from this obnoxious witch - the following 4 years were quite good - mum's dementia was a gentle variety and medication made her enjoy eating and she enjoyed being taken out for a meal. My sister was rarely mentioned but the reality was that life had for some time been so much easier without her. There was also the realisation that her trip to Hawaii for 12 days whilst dad was in palliative care pretty much demonstrated the kind of person she really was. My sister was also the last person to see my father alive and made the decision for all of us to not ring and tell us to come in - my father died without any family around him. My sister was given medical power of attorney so she would have been informed of my father’s grave condition. We were not rung by the hospital either, however we were assured later that my sister told the nurse who rang her that she would ring us. Could anything be more appalling? What psychiatrists fail to acknowledge is that a schizophrenic will be treated very poorly by a status conscious narcissist. I was not qualified to be upset with my sister - I was in fact such a failure that- as my sister would suggest to my parents - I should be sterilised (I’m not really sure what that was about because I was hardly active in that department) , kicked out of the family home or at best living in a caravan at the end of the block and taken a microwaved meal for dinner. This was mentioned enough times for me to realise she wasn’t joking . I have told my current psychiatrist that in the home I wasn’t the problem that my sister was - her response is an empty stare- no wonder I’m awake at night.

[angstyandromanticwriting]

Harley Quinn X FemWerewolf!Reader Angsty, Cute and Somewhat Fluffy Flashback Prompt with a cute and hopeful ending

• Connected to the previous prompt I posted + and others

• Occurs after (outside of the flashback) the third film (The Suicide Squad 2021)

!TW: Being unconscious, mention of a previous act of violence/fight, mention of previously killing someone/murder, mention of previously being abused (in a relationship), hint(s) of self-contempt, mention of nudity + implied nudity/nudity in general, alcohol/presence of, implied suffering from depression, hint of separation anxiety + anxiety in general, mention of having alcoholic father, implied poor relationship with family/family member + being treated poorly by them (abused), being on the run/hunted down, self-put down(s), wanting to die, mention of nightmares, insult(s), swearing, indirect + implied somewhat direct self-harm, suicidal intentions/consideration/threat, mention of family members passing away, self-doubt, being injured, presence/mention of blood, injury detail (wound) - If I’ve missed any let me know ❤️!

After a little while of having to stay in that overcrowded base for the whole day, Bloodsport had reluctantly managed to get Waller to consider allowing you and Harley more time with Cane and Bruce back at the new Birds of Prey base, and somehow she had found herself in good spirits enough to accept his suggestion, so you both found yourselves - the next day - waking up in the spare room that Renee and Canary had organised for you both. You’d woken up before her, or just managed to, and would frown when you found you could still pick up the man who she’d previously been with’s scent, tainting her sweet one, so you would try and quietly inch even closer to her without waking her up, wincing when she’d moved a little, but you would express relief upon noticing that she’d not fully woken up, despite her previous movement. You would then bury your face into her shoulder, your fangs unfolding whilst you did subconsciously; the wolf within you was dying to come out again, and change her, but you tried to fight it back to the best of your ability, whimpering quietly whilst you did, and were instead leaving little nibble marks on her neck, and shoulder, rather than digging your fangs into her; a temporary marking, because that’s all you believed you could do. Despite the fact that she’d told you before that she wanted you to change her, eventually, you found you couldn’t, not wanting her to have to live like you’d had to live; in fear of constantly being hunted, having to experience forceful and painful transformations on full moon nights, having to struggle to control yourself whenever in moments of overwhelming outbursts of emotion, and having to constantly have been on the run a few times. Also, it meant that she’d have to spend more time stuck on earth with you, and you believed she’d be better off remaining human for that reason, alongside the others ones. Once you’d finished, and had left several little marks along her neck and left shoulder, you forced yourself out of bed to make breakfast and coffee for her, Cane, and yourself, whilst they both began to stir awake.

🜚

Harley had managed to get herself awake before Cane, but wouldn’t get out of bed until she had, upon finding the little marks you’d left on her; they’d been paining her a little, ever since she’d woken up, and she soon found that a couple of them were bleeding a little bit, prompting her to wonder why you’d left them, and had evidently done so hurriedly. As soon as she entered the room, you faltered; you could still pick up the man’s scent tainting her’s, though you’d left the marks on her neck and shoulder, and it was painful for you to have to remember the night you thought you’d lost her; that she’d forgotten about you, and stopped howling because she hadn’t responded. However, once she’d gotten closer to you, and had her arms wrapped around your waist, you could finally pick up that your scent was mixing with her’s again, and it made you feel a little better. “Good morning, Alpha,” she cooed, and you would smile lovingly over at her, before noticing that she was wearing your shirt, and you would smirk, whilst your eyes locked with her stunning icy blue ones in the best way possible.

“Good morning, beautiful,” you returned, “is that my shirt?”

She winced, acting as if she hadn’t realised that she’d accidentally put your’s on, instead of one of her own shirts or t-shirts. “Shit, sorry - I didn’t realise,” she answered, and you would giggle, before shaking your head.

“Don’t apologise,” you replied gently, before turning around to face her, and lifting your right hand up to her left cheek, prompting her to melt into your touch subconsciously, “it looks good on you; a lot better than it looks on me.”

“I doubt that,” she remarked, and you then found yourself subconsciously glancing down at the marks on her neck which had evidently been bleeding, and you would falter, a pained expression on your face; you didn’t realise you’d been so reckless, whilst you had been creating the marks, “hey - what’s wrong, Alpha?”

“I hurt you,” you whispered shakily, your voice barely audible whilst you did, but she still hadn’t heard what you’d mustered, regardless, as Cane had now re-entered the room after briefly visiting the toilet to brush her teeth, “I’m so sorry, Quinzels, I - I didn’t realise-..”

She would then guess that you were talking about the marks, and would quickly shake her head, but you would move away before she could ease you into a hug, wanting to try and provide comfort to you, and reassure you that the marks weren’t bothering her, and hadn’t been paining her. “What’s going on-?” Cane questioned, suspicious, and Harley would wince, before looking over at her, after she’d been trying to look at the marks again, herself, whilst you were stood unnaturally still in the corner of the room, a pained expression on your face; you couldn’t believe you’d hurt her like you evidently had, and hated yourself for it.

“It’s nothing, don’t worry about it,” she answered, as if everything were okay, before she walked up to the nearest mirror to check the marks again, wondering if they’d gotten worse, as you’d reacted as if they had, but they looked almost the same as they did, before, when she’d first noticed them, except the blood which had been previously escaping a couple of them was now dried up.

You couldn’t help, but watch whilst she did, your eyes dimmer than they usually were; the tears within them weren’t even making them glisten like they sometimes did, whenever you found yourself crying for whatever reason. “What are you looking at-?” Cane inquired, and you would briefly look between both her, and Harley, before you stared down at your feet, allowing the smallest of the currently invading tears to escape, and slide slowly down your cheeks.

“Just a spider bite I got a little while ago,” Harley answered, before smiling back over at Cane, and you. “Don’t worry about it - Y/n’s just upset because she feels bad for not stopping it from happening-”

“Harley,” Cane interrupted, “I know when you’re lying to me - what happened?” She would then appear shocked, and disheartened, whilst she looked over at you, before looking back at Harley again. “Did - Did Y/n hurt you?” She questioned, and you would falter again, whilst your heart began to ache even more excruciatingly than it had been, before.

“Of course not,” she replied, “she’d never hurt me-”

“Harley,” you mustered, your voice close to a whisper again, and she would fall quiet, before glancing over at you, a pained expression on her face whilst she did; she hated seeing you upset like you evidently were, now, “there’s.. there’s no point lying; I’m so sorry, I’m a monster, I just-.. I couldn’t stand smelling - him - on you, a-and I hate myself for it.. If - If you could, m-maybe - find it within you to forgive me-”

“Don’t,” Cane hissed, before she reached for the baseball bat Harley had given her a little while ago, and snatched it up off of the table so she could throw it in your direction, but you would manage to quickly dive out of the way before it could hit you, and it - instead - smashed into one of the windows behind you.

“Cassie!” Harley shouted, before grabbing her and gingerly shoving her away from you; she was worried, and didn’t want either one of you to get hurt. “What the hell is wrong with you?” She demanded, before looking over her shoulder at you to make sure that you were okay; you appeared to be unharmed, now sitting up with a guilty, as well as hurt look on your face, though you found you couldn’t blame Cane for her previous action, believing yourself to be a monster. “Go to your room!” She instructed, and Cane would roll her eyes, before dragging herself out of the room, and Harley would then rush over to you, but before she could crouch down beside you, and hold you close to her, you would move away, a pained expression on your face whilst you did; you were terrified that you might end up hurting her again, and couldn’t let that happen; she meant more to you than life itself, and you would never be able to forgive yourself if you hurt her even more than you previously had. She would appear disheartened by your moving away from her, but understood why you possibly might have; she knew you too well, now, and wished you’d stop viewing yourself as the monster you believed yourself to be, and always had, ever since you’d found out about your true nature, a few years ago now. “Y/n-”

“What the hell happened in here?” Renee questioned, upon rushing into the room; she’d heard the commotion. “Seriously? I thought you had the dog under control, Harley-”

“I’m not a dog,” you uttered, “and it was just an accident.”

“A - A minor misunderstanding,” Harley added for you, “Cassie thought that Y/n had hurt me, but - she didn’t, and she then threw her baseball bat at her, but Y/n managed to dodge it, and it went through the window, instead.”

“Jesus Christ,” Renee remarked under her breath, “well - I don’t care how, but we need to get this mess cleared before Waller and Bloodsport drag you both back home, otherwise you might not be allowed back, if they see the place like this after you’ve both been here; you’d be in deep shit, I imagine, if they found out.”

“Well they won’t find out,” Harley chimed, as if nothing had happened, “this place’ll be as clean as a whistle by the time they get here, won’t it, Alpha?”

You nodded, forcing a smile up at both her and Renee, before you looked away again, worried that you might break down in front of them both any second now. “Something did happen between you both, didn’t it?” Renee guessed, and both you and Harley would falter, before glancing over at her again. “Y’know what - I’m not even gonna bite,” she decided, “it’s your business.” You all would then force yourselves to clean up the room to the best of your ability, just in time for Waller and Bloodsport’s arrival to take you back to the main camp the others were currently residing within.

🜚

Whilst you and Harley were both walking back toward her and your makeshift room, upon your arrival back into the main camp, you would unfortunately come across Falcon, who would smirk when he noticed you both approaching, before he got up, and slowly walked toward you. “I swear to god - one annoying word out of you, and I’m knocking you on your ass,” Harley warned, whilst subconsciously intertwining the fingers of her right hand with the now trembling fingers of your left, “so you better take some time to think about what you’re gonna do next, wise guy.”

“You think I’m wise? Thank you-”

You would find yourself growling quietly over at him, but before you could do anything, Harley would hold you back, her arms around your waist whilst she did, and you would try not to struggle, afraid of hurting her again, and losing control of yourself whilst you were within her hold; the wolf within you was scratching at the surface, evidently desperate to escape and tear Falcon to shreds. “Did I, or did I not just say that I’d knock you out if you didn’t leave us alone?” She hissed, before encouraging you to continue walking alongside her, which you did, when you felt able, subconsciously sticking to her side; you liked to always be in physical contact with her whenever you could be, as you hated being away from her, and wanted to be close to her at all times so you could protect her, and revel in her presence; you felt safe, and whole whenever you were with her, as if all the bad things that had happened to you in the past hadn’t actually happened, or weren’t bothering you anymore than they had been, before you’d both first met, and you imprinted on her, resulting in your past becoming less painful for you as you had been only focussed on making her happy and devoting your life to her ever since that day.

Harley then, once you’d both gotten into your and her bedroom, eased you closer to her, so she could carefully turn you around, and connect her lips to your’s delicately, prompting you to instantly melt into the kiss subconsciously. The kiss soon began to deepen, but you would falter as soon as you were reminded of what had happened earlier, and of how you’d evidently hurt her, seeing as the marks you’d left had evidently begun to bleed, after you’d administered them to her whilst she had been sleeping peacefully beside you. “Quinzels,” you murmured, your voice close to a shaky whisper, whilst you connected your forehead to her’s affectionately, “we can’t; I hurt you-”

“You didn’t hurt me,” she contradicted gently, before lifting her right hand up to your cheek, and you would melt into her touch whilst she did, “a-and - and I know why you gave me the marks, Y/n; I get it, a-and I’m so sorry; I’ve been trying to be rid of his scent for a while now, a-and I didn’t realise it was still on me, but it’ll be gone soon, I promise; I love you, Alpha, only you, a-and that will never change; he meant nothing to me - nobody could ever mean as much to me as you do.”

“I love you, too,” you returned, before allowing yourself to brush your lips against her’s again lovingly, “just - p-promise me-.. promise me that we’ll never have to be apart again - it was painful, b-being away from you; it always is.. even if.. even if we’re simply just not in the same room together; I can’t live without you.”

“We’ll never have to be apart again, I promise,” she cooed, “I can’t live without you, either - every night, ever since I lost you again, I couldn’t go to sleep without having at least one nightmare or two about that day you’d gone over the cliff, a-and-.. I spent - even more of those nights crying, rather than sleeping, especially after-.. after I couldn’t hear you howling anymore, b-but.. that was my fault, if I’d just responded the day before, after I’d killed him, I would have known that you were alive, and hadn’t forgotten about me-”

“No, Harley,” you whined, between the small kisses you both were exchanging, “it wasn’t your fault; I was just-.. being stupid, like I always am - I should have known t-that - that you were distracted, after you killed him; I shouldn’t have just given up and walked away like I did.. o-or - I could have at least just - continued howling for you; I shouldn’t have made you feel like I’d forgotten about you, because I never could; I love you too much, a-and I always will, no matter what.”

“It wasn’t either of our faults,” she claimed, “all that matters is that you’re here now, and always will be, right?”

You would smirk, before nodding, and picking her up off of the ground, prompting her to giggle whilst she clung to your shoulders. “Always,” you reasserted, before kissing her passionately, and delicately, whilst you carried her over to your and her bed.

🜸🜚🜸

Whenever Waller was in good spirits - a very rare occasion - she allowed you and Harley to sometimes take Cane to the school she was attending, alongside a couple members of the Birds of Prey, of course; she’d never let you both go alone, for fear that you’d try and run away, or go on a trouble spree - a double trouble spree, you liked to call it, whenever you and Harley set about messing around and creating havoc in your college lessons together. “Remember - if anyone gets on your nerves, pick up the closest chair, and hit them over the head with it,” Harley reminded her, and Renee would add quietly for Cane to not do what Harley had just advised her to do, “have a good day!”

Cane would then throw her arms around Harley, before awkwardly looking over at you; she still wasn’t sure if she should trust you, or not, after what had happened a short while ago with the marks you’d given Harley. “Thanks,” Cane replied, before dragging herself away, though she didn’t really want to, as she’d been finding herself getting bullied often recently.

“She hates me,” you murmured, and Harley would glance over at you, a pained expression on her face, before she lovingly intertwined the fingers of her right hand with the fingers of your left to try and provide comfort to you.

“She doesn’t hate you,” she contradicted, “she just needs - time, I guess, after-..”

“After I hurt you,” you uttered through gritted teeth; you still hated yourself for what had previously happened, and Harley would quickly shake her head, before turning to face you, a hurt look on her face; she hated seeing you like this; like you could break down with any passing second; tears had begun to invade your vision, blurring it, but you were trying, and failing, to fight them back.

“You didn’t hurt me,” she claimed, “I couldn’t even feel them, not enough for me to deem them as being painful. Besides..” She then grinned over at you, before wrapping her arms around your waist, so she could ease you closer to her. “I like it when you mark me, Alpha,” she remarked, and you would be surprised, evidently not expecting her to have liked what you had done, “I want people to know that I’m your’s - but - I also want people to know that you are mine, so-.. I was wondering if - maybe - you’d let me mark you, too.”

You would smirk back at her subconsciously, whilst your eyes began to glint. “Of course I will,” you replied, “I’d love for you to mark me; you know I would.”

“Good,” she chimed, “then I will.” She then glanced back judgementally at Renee and Canary, who were currently watching you both, until she looked back at them, and they quickly looked away, prompting her to return her attention to you, before she leaned forward so she could add - in your left ear - a whisper. “Later,” she promised, before surprising you by gently nibbling at the shell of your ear, prompting you to giggle, as well as seem to purr a little, though you weren’t anything like a cat. She then found herself giggling alongside you; she clearly had found your reaction adorable.

“Leave me alone!” You heard a familiar voice cry, and would immediately turn your head in the direction of it to find that someone had shoved Cane down to the ground, angering you instantly as you began to growl quietly, your irises flickering dangerously between a bold orange and their normal colour, whilst your fangs subconsciously unfolded, and your body began to heat up like a furnace; the wolf within you was scratching at the surface to escape, and maul the children who were bullying her.

“Y/n, no!” Canary whisper-shouted, before throwing her arms around you to try and hold you back, whilst Harley looked on at the group in shock; she couldn’t believe they were daring to bully her like they were, with the probably now confirmed rumours going around that you and Harley had adopted her.

You would strain your ears to try and hear more of their very much one-sided confirmation, whilst struggling a little in Canary’s hold; you were desperate to help Cane, as you were sure that you’d never forgive yourself if you let her get hurt, too, and wanted to prove to her that she could trust you, always, like Harley could always trust you, too. “Why were we even asking her to do our homework for us, anyway?” The second girl inquired, whilst sneering down at Cane. “She knows nothing,” she continued, before lowering herself down a little, whilst her hands were resting upon her knees, “isn’t that right? You’re adopted, so you probably aren’t even being helped with your own homework, anyway - not that two freaky convicts could teach anyone anything-”

You couldn’t take it anymore as you broke free of Canary’s hold, gingerly shoving her away, before you rushed over to the group, Harley and the others hot on your heels; they were afraid of what you might do; what might happen to you if you did hurt anyone, specifically, in terms of Harley; she was terrified of losing you again, and knew that Waller wouldn’t even hesitate to put a bullet in your skull if you ever did decide to hurt anyone again, or to go against her very specific instructions to not cause a scene, or draw too much attention to yourselves whilst you were over at the Birds of Prey base, or escorting Cane to school like you had previously been doing, until this moment. “Hey-!” You hissed over at them, and they would each be startled by your sudden interruption. “Leave her alone!” You demanded, but Harley would manage to hold you back, before you could get any closer to the bullies, no matter how much she wanted you to teach them a lesson for messing with Cane; she couldn’t let you get taken away from her again. “Go inside, Cassie,” you commanded gently, and Cane would reluctantly rush off, though she wanted to stay with the group, feeling safer with them, and a little safer with you now, too, “I swear if I ever see you lay a finger on her again-”

“Y/n,” Harley cooed, and you would relax instantly, upon hearing her voice again, a warm shiver running down your spine whilst you did, and everything that had changed returned to the way it had been, before, “it’s okay, now - Cassie’s fine, and these little brats will never hurt her again, I’m sure they won’t - look at me.” You would glance over at her, and couldn’t help, but smile whilst you did; her presence always made you feel warm, fuzzy, and light, somehow, and you found yourself wondering how you’d survived the years you’d spent in a dark place away from her.

Harley then smiled lovingly back at you, until you were both distracted by Renee speaking up after the bell had rung out from within the building Cane had run into a brief moment ago. “Haven’t you both got somewhere to be, now?” She questioned the two girls, who would hesitantly rush off to their classes, and once they were out of sight, Renee turned to face you both. “We gotta get back, before Waller and Bloodsport get there, and wonder why we’re taking so long,” she stated, and you both would begrudgingly agree, before following Renee and Canary back to the base, just in time; the cars to escort you both back were arriving, just as you were all walking up the drive alongside them.

Before you could get into the black car in the middle, Canary caught your left arm, prompting you to look over your left shoulder at her. “I expect, when you come back tomorrow with Harley, that things will be better between you and Cassie,” she expressed, “or, at least, I’m hoping they will; it was nice of you, to stand up for her like you did, and I’m sure she appreciates the gesture.”

“I hope so,” you replied, “but - I wouldn’t be surprised, all the same, if she still hates me; I should never have left those marks-”

“She doesn’t hate you,” Canary interjected, “she just - needs more time to get to know you, like she has with Harley. Trust me, tomorrow is gonna be the start of something new; I can feel it.”

You would scoff, before looking away from her. “Thanks,” you uttered, “but I only ever trust my instincts when they’re linked to Harley; I can’t - feel any of you, yet, n-not even Cassie, but-.. I guess - I’ll just have to wait and see. See you tomorrow.” You then got into the car beside Harley, before closing the door, and smiling lovingly over at her; she appeared to be hopeful, too, that you and Cane would get along more, but would simply smile warmly back at you, before she shuffled closer to you and rested her head on your right shoulder; she didn’t want to upset you by pressuring you about the situation even further. “Get some sleep,” you cooed, and Harley would nod, whilst her eyes locked with your’s in the best way possible, prompting her’s to glint, and your heart to skip a beat, overwhelming you like it usually did, but you would try and hide it from her, embarrassed, “we’ve still got a long day ahead of us.” She would then groan, and nod gravely, upon remembering that you both, and the others would probably have another training session to return to. “It’ll be over soon, don’t worry,” you continued gently, “as soon as we deal with that asshole politician, and it’s army, and then we’ll be able to find someplace to stay with Cassie, and Bruce; somewhere we won’t have to worry about anyone separating us again, and guess what we’ll do after that-?”

She would appear intrigued, before lifting an eyebrow up at you, whilst she tried to think. “W-What will we do?” She inquired, and you would falter; you thought she’d answer immediately, and wondered if she’d forgotten about what you’d promised her a few times now, already. You then found yourself thinking about how you’d overheard her and the man talking, before you’d run away, and about how she’d been considering the fact that she liked how Harley Luna sounded, prompting you to falter, a pained expression on your face whilst you did. She would then appear worried about you, upon noticing that you seemed upset about something. “Y/n?” She cooed, and you would wince, before managing a soft smile down at her, whilst you tried to think of something else to say; you were doubting that she’d want to marry you, now, after everything, and so were worried about how she would react if you brought it up to her. “Are you okay, Alpha? You went all sad on me all of a sudden,” she mused, and you would nod quickly, before affectionately connecting your forehead to her’s, and she would smile back at you, prompting your heart to begin to race alongside her’s, “what are we gonna do, after we find a good place to stay?”

“We’ll-..” You murmured, before wincing again, but this time you managed to hide it from her; you didn’t want to upset her. “I’ll change you,” you stated, and she would be surprised; she didn’t think you’d ever change your mind, or appear so eager to, after you’d been so against the idea, before, “I’ve been - putting it off for too long, now, I know, and I’m sorry-”

Harley then silenced you by delicately connecting her lips to your’s, and you would subconsciously melt into the kiss, your eyelids fluttering shut whilst you did. Once it was over, you found yourself wearing a dazed expression on your face, prompting her to smirk up at you, amused by your reaction, as well as revelling in how it was only her who could make you feel this way. “I love you so much,” she expressed, and would then lift her right up to your left cheek, prompting you to lean into her touch, whilst you found yourself getting lost in her stunning icy blue eyes again, “w-what - what will we do, after that? After you change me?” She was evidently angling for you to bring up a specific part of your and her plan, but you would doubt - again - that there was any possibility of her wanting to marry you, so you thought maybe she was just curious about what else you’d all do together.

“I’m not sure yet,” you answered, whilst staring down at your hands, and she would appear disappointed by your answer, wondering if it meant you didn’t want to get married to her anymore, “I guess we’ll just - h-have to wait and see.” She would then nod gravely, before resting her head on your right shoulder again, and letting her eyes close, whilst you found yourself fighting back tears beside her silently for the remainder of the journey.

🜸🜚🜸

Like you’d been thinking that they would, things did seem to improve between you and Cane, the next day, just not as much as you’d been hoping they would. Whilst you and Harley were cuddled up together in bed, you would be startled to wake up to something quite soft bumping you on the left side of your head. You would protectively hold Harley close to you, whilst you looked in the direction that it had come from, only to find that Cane was stood by the door, and that she was holding what looked like a nerf gun in her hands, prompting you to ease up, and grin over at her, whilst your eyes began to glint. “Did you seriously just shoot me in the head with a nerf bullet?” You questioned, and Cane would shrug, before tilting her head partially.

“I might have,” she answered timidly, before lowering the makeshift gun a little, “I just wanted to wake you up to say thank you, I guess, for standing up for me yesterday.” Harley then found herself beginning to stir beside you, but once she could hear that you both were talking, she would try and act as if she were still asleep in your arms, whilst listening and smiling softly. “A-Anyway, I gotta go to school, so-”

“School-?” Harley spoke up, surprising you both; you’d thought that she had gone back to sleep, but evidently hadn’t as she was suddenly so awake, and energetic, sitting up beside you, whilst appearing startled, as if she’d forgotten something.

“It’s Monday,” Cane reminded you both, and you would wince, whilst Harley couldn’t help, but curse beside you quietly, and you both would instantly get out of bed, “did you guys seriously forget, already? Jeez, that’s what my ex-family used to do, too-”

“Hey,” Harley whined, “we’re nothing like them, we were just - well.. we didn’t get much sleep last night-”

“Gross,” Cane remarked, and you would wince, before looking away; you’d both not done what she had been assuming you had; you had just been struggling because you’d had a nightmare, and found you couldn’t stop thinking about how she had been with that man, after you’d both been separated again. “Anyway, I’ll meet you both down there, whenever you decide to get ready,” she added, before rushing out of the room, and you would glance over at Harley, a pained expression on your face, before dragging yourself into the bathroom to get ready, whilst she wondered what your look had meant; she hated seeing you upset, and wanted to do all she could to try and make you happy again, so she vowed that she would, starting from the moment you had left the bathroom after you’d finished getting ready alongside her.

🜚

Harley would be surprised to find, that night, you crying quietly outside, whilst the others were sleeping; you’d snuck away after you’d heard her snoring quietly beside you, as you didn’t want to disturb her, and knew that she’d not be woken up if you did, like she had been the previous night. “Y/n,” she cooed, and you would falter upon hearing her voice, “what’s wrong? W-Why are you crying?”

“I’m not crying,” you claimed, and she would scoff, before sitting on the step beside you, whilst you tried to wipe all of your tears away, embarrassed; you hated being caught crying, especially by Harley, as you were worried about her perceiving you to be weak, when you were meant to be strong for her; you didn’t want her to think that you couldn’t protect her, being her mate, and were terrified that you might end up losing her, “Alphas don’t cry, e-especially not in front of their mates..”

She would realise, and shake her head in reply; she didn’t want you to think that you couldn’t cry in front of her, like you were evidently trying not to, right now. “Look,” she began gently, before intertwining the fingers of her right hand with the trembling fingers of your left, “just because you think that you’re not allowed to cry, t-that doesn’t mean you have to be alone, when you do - and it doesn’t matter if it’s me you cry in front of, because it will never change how I see you; I will always love you, Y/n, and I’m always gonna be here for you, t-through both the bad times, and the good, always.”

You would falter again, thinking about how you’d always believed that you both would get married, and it pained you to think about how this might never be the case anymore, after she had considered so closely marrying someone else. “For better, for worse,” you murmured, and Harley’s eyes would begin to glint, whilst a smile began to tug at the corners of her lips subconsciously; she was hoping that you were still considering marrying her, like you’d promised you would many times, before. “You would both have.. have said that to each other,” you mused, prompting her to grow confused, and resulting in a puzzled expression finding it’s way onto her face, “and then-.. you would have become Harley Luna.”

She would realise, and begin to feel guilty all over again; you were evidently still hung up over what had happened, before you’d both been reunited. “N-No, I wouldn’t have-”

“Why wouldn’t you? I thought you liked him, a-and the name,” you contradicted, and she would feel overwhelmed all of a sudden, not sure of what she could say to make things better, so she found herself stammering a lot more whilst she tried to think of how she could rectify the situation, “just tell me you forgot about me..”

“If I did, I would be lying, and I don’t wanna lie to you, Alpha,” she replied, a hurt look on her face whilst she did, “I love you, a-and - it wasn’t just the fact that he was planning on killing more kids that made me pick up that gun, it was also because-.. despite everything that had happened between us, before - I felt that you were still alive - in that moment - and so I-.. I thought it would be better if I killed him for that reason, too, because I wanted to find you, Y/n; you’ve never actually betrayed or abandoned me for no good reason, before, a-and even if you had - I was still hung up on you, and our promise - so-..” She then stood up after you had a brief moment ago, prompting you to hesitantly turn around, whilst your eyes began to glisten, and it would pain her to see that they were; she hated seeing you upset. “There’s only one person I wanna marry, Y/n,” she continued, her voice close to a whisper, “a-and-.. it’s you, always you, and I would have brought the ring out here with me, but I didn’t think t-that-.. that I would be proposing like I am, now - just tell me it’s romantic, at least.”

“It’s more than romantic enough, for me,” you reassured her, whilst wrapping your arms around her waist, and she would smile lovingly over at you, before wrapping her arms around you, too, “I love you so much.”

“I love you, too,” she returned, “n-now - would you make me the happiest woman in the world, b-by becoming my wife? I swear I’ll bring the ring out later-”

You would then lean forward to connect your lips to her’s delicately, and she would melt into the kiss subconsciously alongside you. “Of course I will-!” You chimed, before kissing her lovingly again, and she would hold you even closer to her, but you would welcome her action, managing to control yourself a lot better even when your fangs had unfolded. You then picked her up off of the ground, prompting her to giggle, whilst she clung to your shoulders, and connected her forehead to your’s affectionately. “We should continue celebrating inside,” you stated, appearing flustered whilst you did, prompting her to smirk up at you; she evidently knew what you were hinting at, “it - it’s-.. getting cold, a-and - I want my princess to be warm.” She would instantly be flustered by you referring to her as your ‘princess’, and soon found herself blushing, whilst she tried to hide it from you, prompting you to giggle breathlessly alongside her. “What do you say?” You inquired, only wanting to do whatever she wanted to do.

“I’d love to,” she answered, and you would express relief, whilst your eyes seemed to light up a little alongside her’s. You then briefly connected your lips to her’s one more time, before you carried her back inside, and up to your and her room.

🜸🜚🜸

“Seriously-?” Cane remarked, upon finding you both playing a card game on the Kitchen table in the morning; sometimes you both just found it fun to do, especially when you were equally as competitive as one another. “You’re both so old and boring,” she added, “can’t we go and do something else?”

“How does playing cards make us old and boring?” Harley questioned, and Cane would think about it for a moment.

“Because it just does,” she answered, “c’mon, I’m bored.”

“I’ll just take her out,” Huntress spoke up, “since you guys are clearly too busy to even bother.”

You would grimace over at her, and Harley would wince when she noticed, before beginning to pack up the cards. “Why are you such a raging bitch all the time?” You hissed back at her, and she would scowl back at you, before getting up, and forcing herself from the room.

“Y/n,” Harley cooed, and you would instantly relax like you usually did whenever you heard her voice, but would begin to feel guilty - instead - when you noticed the look on Cane’s face.

“How could you say that? You know what she had to go through before,” she retorted, and you would falter, a pained expression on your face, after Cane had rushed off to go and find Huntress and make sure that she was okay.

You would look over at Harley, who appeared to be feeling guilty, too, for not telling you about what had happened to Huntress when she was only a little girl. “What did she have to go through, before?” You inquired, and she would hesitate, before deciding to tell you, though she’d not been sure if she should, last year, whilst you had both been fighting the Omegas alongside the Birds of Prey.

“I guess it just - makes her mad; the fact that you remind her a little of herself; you both had it rough, before, and I guess I did a bit, too,” she mused, after she’d told you everything about the Bertenelli Massacre, “and she doesn’t like to think about how you didn’t end up killing your father after all that stuff he did to you, aside from the fact that she does kinda have some anger issues, sometimes, but not all the time.”

“I can’t believe I never noticed that before,” you mused, feeling awful for how you’d reacted to her remark, earlier, “do you think she hates me, now?”

“I wouldn’t say she hates you,” Harley answered gently, whilst trying to smile reassuringly over at you, and holding both of your hands in her’s to provide as much comfort to you as she possibly could; she didn’t want you to be upset again, “she’s just - getting used to you.”

“I thought she already had, last year,” you admitted, “I saved her life, remember? And Renee’s.”

“I know,” she replied, “but - maybe - maybe it’s just still too early, for her; I think she just needs more time, and then things will be better than they ever were, I promise - I could also try and talk to her for you, if you want me to?”

“No, it’s fine,” you reassured, before shuffling closer to her timidly so you could wrap your arms around her, and she would instantly return the hug, cradling you close to her, “b-but - thank you, Quinzels; I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“I don’t know what I’d do without you, either,” she returned, “oh, and don’t worry about Cassie - she’ll come around, just tell her that you didn’t know about Huntress’ family, and - didn’t mean to say what you said the way she thought you did.” You would nod gravely, evidently nervous about messing up, but you would try to hide that fact from her, for fear of worrying, or upsetting her. “Wanna go and find them with me-?” She inquired, and you would think about it for a moment, but before you could answer her, you heard howling nearby, and faltered, guessing that there were Omegas in the area.

Luckily, Harley hadn’t heard them; you knew you’d have to go out there and hold them off to the best of your ability with the pack you’d arrived with, except they seemed skeptical of you after they’d found out that you were working alongside humans, and had even imprinted on one. “I-.. I have to go and do something first,” you stated, and she would appear surprised; she hadn’t been expecting that response from you, and would immediately begin to wonder what you were planning to do, “the others - they’ll be hungry, and aren’t particularly used to human company; I should help them hunt for a little while.”

“O-Oh, okay,” she replied, and you would frown when you noticed that she appeared disheartened to hear that you’d have to go out for a little while, “I didn’t even know that they had followed us here.”

“They always do,” you explained, “I guess I - am their Alpha, after all, though they think I’m - strange, now.” Harley couldn’t help, but giggle, and shake her head a little whilst she did, prompting you to smile lovingly over at her subconsciously; you evidently thought that her reaction was adorable. “I’ll be back soon, I promise,” you claimed, though you knew that there was a chance that anything could go wrong, but would try not to think about it; you were terrified of being torn away from her again, and returning to her with several scratches and bruises, prompting her to appear shocked, as well as hurt, and worried to find that you had been wounded, so you knew you’d have to be as careful as you possibly could, and would have to wear somewhat baggy clothing if you did end up getting hurt, to hide whatever wounds you might return with, “I love you, Sparkle.”

“I love you too, Nugget,” she returned, before hesitantly releasing you, and allowing you to get up, so you could drag yourself toward the front door of the new Birds of Prey base, “a-and be careful out there - promise me you will.”

“I’ll be careful, I promise - there’s no way I’m not returning to you in one piece,” you cooed, and she would smile to the best of her ability back at you, though she was worried, and found herself even beginning to doubt that you would; something she found herself hating herself for, until you had managed to return to her just about in one piece, “s-see you soon - possibly half-an-hour-ish?”

“It better be half-an-hour,” she agreed, and you would grin feebly, before nodding, and rushing out to the waterfall, where your pack were currently resting together.

|

After things had gone wrong, like you had been hoping they wouldn’t, you found yourself wondering if you might actually die; the Omegas had actually managed to ambush you and the pack, and had evidently been planning this attack, all along; they hadn’t just been passing through, like you thought they had been. Like you usually did during your lowest moments, whilst you were trying to drag yourself away from the pack without them noticing, you found yourself thinking about how they would all, including Harley, Cane, and the Birds of Prey, be better off without you slowing them down - especially Harley, and it didn’t help you to think about how she had been considering actually marrying the man she had briefly been with whilst you were gone, and supposedly dead. Nor did it help to remember everything that had happened, before that: the fight you and Harley had had, before you’d gone over the cliff in an attempt to save her life; the day she’d found out that you’d actually been the one to kill her ex, Max, shocking her, and resulting in her believing you to be the monster you also thought yourself to be, and the day you’d disappeared for a couple of weeks whilst Max had been abusing her, after finding out about what you were, but you could have still helped her, though you were worried about what might happen if she found out about you being a werewolf, before, and you hated yourself for letting him hurt her the way he had been, before she’d managed to break up with him. You would be startled by the sudden ringing of your phone, still laying beneath the willow tree beside your clothes; you’d left them there, before changing, and tracking the area with your pack, which you could hear were now beginning to panic, after you’d muted the bonds between you and each of them, except for Harley, but she still remained to be unaware of what had happened a moment ago; she would soon find out, beginning to panic you even more than you had been, before; you didn’t want her to go out looking for you, and to get herself hurt, too, or to upset her by having her find you in the state that you were currently in, but at the same time, you knew she’d be equally suspicious if you didn’t answer the phone, as you could see that it was her calling you, so you would hesitantly give in, and change back painfully, before accepting the call feebly, and holding your phone up to your right ear with your now shaky and blood-stained right hand. “Y/n-? A-Are you - Are you coming back soon-?” Harley inquired, and you would frown, feeling guilty all over again, before you subconsciously shook your head, whilst your tears began to slowly run down your cheeks. “I miss you so much,” she expressed, and you would feel even worse, wishing, now, that you’d not decided to try and fight the Omegas off, “a-and it’s been longer than half an hour now; you promised me you wouldn’t be any longer.”

“I’m sorry, Quinzels, but,” you murmured, whilst wincing, and leaning heavily against the trunk of the tree behind you, “I’m gonna be a little-.. a little longer.. S-Something came up, a-and-”

“What?” She interrupted, before subconsciously rising from the sofa she had been perched upon. “What happened? Y/n, are you okay? Where are you?” She questioned, and you would hesitate, before deciding you shouldn’t tell her, not wanting her to come looking for you, and you most certainly didn’t want her to find you in the state that you were currently in.

“I’m okay,” you lied, unconvincingly; your voice had managed to crack, and a whimper followed; the pain was gradually becoming more and more excruciating with every passing minute, “just - don’t worry about me - everyone’s fine, a-and - and I’ll see you soon.” You then quickly hung up, and threw your phone away from you, before you whined softly, and let the back of your head rest on the trunk of the tree; you were waiting for death to finally envelope you, so Harley wouldn’t have to be held back, or burdened by you anymore.

🜚

“Y/n!” A familiar voice cried, and your eyelids would slowly open, though they were heavy, and left your eyes appearing half-lidded, as well as dark. “Oh thank god,” the figure whispered shakily, after you’d opened your eyes, and you would squint to try and clear your vision, and once it had cleared just enough, you found your heart beginning to race; Harley was leaning over you, her cheeks tear-stained, and eyes glistening, “s-say something, please.”

You would manage a weak smile up at her, whilst beginning to splutter up and choke on your own blood again, until she carefully lifted you up a little, and cradled you close to her. “I-..” You managed, your voice barely audible, and a strained sob would manage to escape her lips; she was terrified that she might still lose you, if Renee and Huntress didn’t return soon with the medical equipment needed to patch up your scratches and gaping wound on your right side. “I must be in Heaven,” you mustered, and she would tilt her head partially, before shaking it, and lifting her left hand up to your right cheek, so she could use her thumb to delicately brush away the small tears which were managing to escape your eyes.

“Not - Not yet, Alpha,” she replied, her voice trembling whilst she did, and she would then lower her head a little so she could connect her forehead to your’s affectionately, “you aren’t leaving me like this - when you do get to go to Heaven, it’ll be with me, okay? You’re not leaving me again; I won’t let you. We belong together, and we’re meant to do everything together; go everywhere together, and that’s what we’re going to do.” She then looked as if she’d remembered something, and would smile lovingly down at you to the best of her ability, before taking out your ring, and offering it to you. “Now that you’re - in your human form again, I was thinking that you might wanna wear it,” she stated, and you would smile back at her faintly, before nodding, and offering her your left hand so she could slip the ring back onto your finger gently. “Why didn’t you tell me about the Omegas? We could have gone with you-”

“You would have gotten hurt-”

“We would have been fine,” she contradicted, “and you wouldn’t be on the verge of-..” She would falter, and her eyes widened a little, before she looked around, desperate for Renee and Huntress to reappear with the kit.

“Quinzels,” you murmured, and she would glance back down at you, a pained expression on her face, prompting your heart to sink, “d-don’t-.. Even if I.. Even if I do die-”

“Shut up,” she interjected, “you’re not dying; I won’t let you die, n-not without me. If you die, I die-”

“Nobody’s dying today,” another familiar voice sounded out, and you both looked over to find Huntress and Renee rushing toward you, “we’ve got the kit.”

Harley expressed relief, and you would smile lovingly up at her. “You were right,” you mused, “we will die together, a-and go to heaven together, as long as - when the time comes, you still want to.”

“Of course I will,” she responded, “there will never be a time when I don’t want to go to heaven by your side - or wherever we do end up together; I love you so much, a-and that’ll never change, I promise.”

“I love you, too,” you returned, whilst Renee began to treat your wounds, and Harley provided as much comfort to you as she possibly could whilst Renee was doing everything she had to do to try and keep you alive, “and I always will, n-no matter what..” Once Renee had finished treating you, Harley then carefully carried you back to the base, a blanket wrapped around you whilst she did, as you had been naked when the group had found you in the state that you had been in, and you soon found yourself falling asleep in her arms, whilst feeling safe and as if nothing could ever hurt you again, as long as you were in her arms like you were, now.

🜚

“What were you thinking? You have the dumbest Alpha instincts I’ve ever heard of,” Cane ranted at you; she’d, too, been surprisingly shocked and worried after hearing about what had happened to you, “people should be calling you goofy rather than Alpha-”

“Oi,” Harley interjected playfully, whilst she was holding you close to her, her arms around your waist protectively; she was worried that something might try and hurt you again after what had happened to you earlier, “only I’m allowed to tease her about that. Anyway-”

“Would you quit eating my fucking food?” Huntress interrupted, whilst she stormed into your and Harley’s bedroom, and she would wince; she’d evidently unintentionally taken whatever it was that had previously belonged to her.

“W-Wait - was that your burrito in the fridge?” She inquired, and Huntress would scowl over at her; it evidently had been her’s. “Why didn’t you say so? I - I just-.. I don’t know, Y/n was hungry, so-”

“Just - don’t do it again,” she uttered, “I’m gonna have to start writing my names on things now, I guess.”

“Good idea,” Harley chimed, “I should start doing that, too; that was smart-”

“Big whoop,” you murmured, whilst hiding your face from them, “that’s - that’s an easy thing to come up with; I could come up with something like that so much faster.”

Harley would then smirk down at you, whilst Huntress rolled her eyes, before leaving the room. “Aww, is somebody jealous?” She inquired, and you would scoff, before shaking your head, evidently in denial. “Don’t worry,” she cooed, before delicately connecting her lips to your’s, and you would instantly melt into the kiss, whilst butterflies began to flutter around in the lower depths of your stomach, overwhelming you in the best way possible, “you’ll always be my number one, little wolfy, no matter what.”

“G-Good,” you replied, your face instantly a lot brighter than it had been, before, “because you’ll always be my number one, too - always, I promise.”

You then winced, finding yourself feeling tired again, and Harley would smile sadly down at you, after you’d yawned, and your eyes were half-lidded again. “You should get some more sleep, Alpha,” she advised, “you’ve had a long day, and need to rest to get better for me.” You would nod gravely, and Cane would hesitantly stand up, though she’d rather stay to make sure that you were okay, after what had happened not too long ago, now. “You should get to bed now, too, Cassie; you’ve got school tomorrow,” she reminded, and Cane would wince; she’d completely forgotten, “goodnight.”

“Night,” Cane returned, before dragging herself from the room, and leaving you both alone again.

“You - You don’t need to stay here all night, if you’re mad at me for lying, earlier,” you reassured her, but she would shake her head quickly, before resting her head on top of your’s affectionately, and stroking your hair with her left hand.

“I’m not mad at you,” she claimed, “I’m just glad you’re okay, Nugget, but - just - promise me you won’t ever lie again, because - I could have lost you, today, and-.. I-.. I don’t ever want something like that to happen, ever again.”

“I won’t, I promise,” you responded, “and you won’t ever come even close to losing me again, like-.. like you did, today.”

“Good,” she replied, “now - get some sleep, Alpha, and hopefully you’ll feel a little better, tomorrow.” You would then nod, before briefly connecting your lips to her’s again affectionately, and once it was sadly over, you buried your face into the crook of her neck, after letting your eyelids flutter shut.

🜸🜚🜸

“No fair,” Cane whined, after the Christmas party you’d all set up gradually came to a close, “I should be able to stay, too, and to have access to all those drinks you guys have been having - not just the soft stuff-”

Harley would snort alongside you, amused by Cane’s reaction. “I knew it!” She chimed, and Cane would grunt, before looking away from you both. “You’re just jealous that we can drink, and you can’t,” she pieced together, and the Birds of Prey, including even Huntress, would burst out laughing with you both, “don’t worry, Cassie, you’ll get there eventually, and just think - tomorrow morning, you’ll have all your presents to open - exciting, right?”

“Sure,” she uttered, before begrudgingly dragging herself up the stairs, “night!”

“I guess we should be heading off to bed, too,” Renee mused, “got a few thugs to catch tomorrow, after you’ve both returned to the other side with Waller and Bloodsport.”

Harley would appear disheartened by the reminder, but would try to hide it from them; she liked being away from the mission you both were currently on, and it only made you want to try and fight even harder than you already were to end it; to kill the Omega Prime Minister, and his army of both Omegas beneath him and hunters. “I suppose it would probably be sensible,” she remarked, though she’d rather stay up, “gotta-.. be prepared - for training, tomorrow - and pushing the next bout of hunters and stinky Omegas back. What do you say, Alpha?”

“You’re right,” you corroborated, before standing up after her, and smiling over at the others, “we’ll see you all in the morning to do the presents - c’mon, Quinzels.”

“Night, guys,” she concluded, before following you up the stairs to your and her bedroom, but it wouldn’t be long before you’d both be woken up again by more howling close by, except it wasn’t the Omegas this time, it was your pack calling for your assistance; they’d devised a plan to try and infiltrate the hidden base the Omega Prime Minister had been currently residing in recently to try and trick the group, and ensure his own ‘safety’ whilst building his army up even more.

🜚

You would tense up immediately after hearing your pack howling for you, and Harley would wake up shortly after you had, upon hearing them. “Y/n-? What’s going on?” She inquired sleepily, before sitting up, after you’d gotten out of bed to look out the window, finding each of them stood below, and some weaving between the trees behind those stood at the edge of Apocalypse Forest. “Is it the Omegas again?” She pried, and you would hesitate, before glancing back at her; they’d phased to you their plan through their pack bond which was connecting them to you, and you were afraid of how she might react if you told her about it, whilst at the same time feeling bad for considering lying to her again, after you’d promised her before that you wouldn’t.

“No,” you claimed, before turning to face her fully, and she would shyly walk up to you, before wrapping her arms around your waist, and you would smile softly over at her, whilst you returned the embrace, and she buried her face into the crook of your neck; she was worried about what their sudden outburst might mean for you both, and was terrified that she might lose you, if whatever they were planning on doing resulted in them being ambushed again, and you almost being killed, “they’re just - bombing me with all the: ‘I really wish you were here right now with us’ kind of things, as it’s basically-” You would quickly look up at the clock, to make sure that it was past Midnight, now, “well, Christmas day, now - we’re just past midnight.”

“Oh,” she replied, whilst expressing relief, and smiling lovingly over at you, “w-well, if you want, we could - go down there and spend some time with them?”

You would hesitate, before shaking your head. “Tomorrow,” you answered, whilst lifting your right hand up to her left cheek, and she would subconsciously lean into your touch, before leading you slowly back toward your and her bed.

🜚

The next morning, you’d made sure to get up earlier than the others and Harley to talk to your pack, and to try and negotiate a time for you all to try and infiltrate the Omega Prime Minister’s base, but you would also request for them, before concluding the secret meeting, to not say a word about the plan, at least until Christmas and Boxing day had passed, so you could all have a couple of somewhat more peaceful days, before the approaching - supposed - final battle, and once the secret meeting had been concluded, you snuck back up to your and Harley’s bedroom to rejoin her in bed, until she and the others began to stir.

“What? It’s not my fault that I look better in your clothes than you do,” Harley remarked playfully, after you’d found yourself staring longingly over at her; you’d offered her the jacket that Canary had bought for you so she could try it on, and you would smirk, amused by her response to your subconscious action.

“Damn right you do,” you corroborated, before leaning forward to kiss her lovingly, and she would melt into the kiss, whilst smiling warmly against your lips, but you would both try not to deepen it, no matter how much you wanted to, as the others were in the room, and neither of you wanted to make things awkward. “I love you so much,” you expressed, your voice close to a whisper whilst you did, and she would grin over at you, her eyes glinting whilst she did, before she connected her forehead to your’s, wishing you could both stay there for longer, with Cane, Bruce, and the Birds of Prey, “M-Merry Christmas, Quinzels.”

“Merry Christmas, Alpha,” she returned, before you both returned your attention to Cane, who was in the process of opening her gifts from the both of you.

🜚

After Christmas, and Boxing day, you still found you couldn’t tell them about the plan; you were terrified of how they might react to it, and even more so whenever you found yourself thinking about what could happen to Harley, if it was carried out; it was extremely risky, and could potentially lead to many more deaths than you’d been expecting, or hoping it would. However, your hiding it began to frustrate your pack, and Cane soon overheard you fighting with them about it, but she wouldn’t say anything to Harley or the others, after you’d - a few days before - found out that she’d been going out, in secret, with one of the boys from her school. “I won’t tell, if you don’t,” she stated, after you’d realised that she’d had to have been listening, upon you finding her waiting for you inside the base, and you would nod gravely, before you both awkwardly returned to the living room, where Harley, Bruce, and the Birds of Prey currently were, watching tv together.

🜚

“Got anything to say to us, before we go to bed?” Harley inquired, and Cane would wince, before shaking her head. “Oh c’mon,” she whined, “it’s only a simple, yet meaningful three words, Cassie.”

You couldn’t help, but giggle softly, amused by her attempts to try and get Cane to say the three words you both loved to hear. “Fine,” she gave in, “I - love you both - ugh, that’s disgusting, now get out; I’m tired.”

“Good,” she chimed, “we love you, too - we’ll get out of your hair, now. Goodnight!”

“Night,” Cane returned, and Harley would then get up off of the edge of her bed, before leaving the room, and waiting for you by the door of your and her’s.

“Night, kiddo,” you replied, before hesitantly pushing yourself off of the doorframe, and toward Harley. She would smile lovingly over at you, glad to see that you and Cane were getting along much better, now, before opening the door for you, and you would smile your thanks back at her, before slipping into the room, and she would follow immediately after, closing the door whilst she went.

🜚

The next morning, you had been called by your pack again - well, you thought you had been, but it had been two members in particular who had summoned you, and it worried you to find that it had been them - Caesar and Michael - the two members you found yourself having the least amount of trust in, after they’d almost gotten you killed by abandoning you after the ambush which had come before you being reunited with Harley again. It didn’t take you long, to deem your decision to answer their call a bad one; you soon found them beating you; they evidently - and had made it exceptionally clear - that they didn’t like the fact that you’d been holding back their plan, and hadn’t even told anyone about it yet, aside from the fact that they disapproved of the fact that you’d imprinted on a human, and hadn’t changed her yet - they also just didn’t like you, and hated the fact that they had to follow you. Once they were done, you found yourself limping back toward the base, and would falter as soon as you noticed Harley stood by the back door, hugging herself whilst she did; it was currently quite cold out - 9 or so degrees, you recalled, after you’d checked a little earlier upon waking up to them howling for you.

Her heart would sink, upon noticing all the cuts and bruises you’d returned with, and the small blood trail you were leaving behind you, evidently from your right leg. “Y/n,” she mustered feebly, before rushing over to you, and throwing her arms around you. “Are you okay? W-What happened? Who the fuck hurt you?” She questioned, after holding you at arm’s length, and you found you couldn’t even respond, feeling much too weak to, and you found you even couldn’t hold yourself up for much longer, and began to lean heavily against her, prompting her to protectively wrap her arms around your waist, whilst she looked around, after hearing chuckling nearby; Michael and Caesar had evidently been following you. “Show yourselves, I dare you!” She demanded, and they would step out, like the fools they were. She then brandished her spear, and lugged it in their direction, prompting them to swiftly retreat with their tails between their legs; they’d changed back to make a faster getaway. “Don’t you ever come near her again, because I will kill you next time!” She threatened after them, before returning her attention to you, her eyes again full of the concern she was currently holding for you.

“You’re-.. gonna be in deep shit, w-when-.. when their mama finds out you threatened them like that,” you managed in a shaky whisper, and Harley would shrug; she didn’t care, evidently, as she was only focussed on protecting and treating you, in this moment.

“I don’t care what she tries to do to me,” she replied, whilst slowly leading you back toward the base, “you are all that matters to me, Alpha; without you, I have nothing-”

“That’s not true,” you contradicted, a hurt look on your face whilst you glanced over at her, “you’ll always be everything, e-even without me, and you should care about what she might try and do, because when werewolves want revenge, it gets-.. very - bloody.”

“I hope you’re right about that, because I like a messy battle,” she remarked, “but don’t worry, I’ll try not to - well, kill her, if you’ll permit me to try and defend myself if she does decide to try and take action against me?”

“Only if I’m not there to try and defend you, myself,” you hesitantly corroborated quietly, and she would beam over at you, finding how you always being so protective and willing to defend her flattering, and the thought seem to even fluster her a little, “o-or if I get knocked out, or something, b-but - that won’t happen, I promise; I won’t let it.”

“You don’t always have to be so quick to try and risk your life for me, you know that, right?” She inquired, and you would falter, a look of disbelief on your face, whilst you were looking over at her again.

“Are you kidding me?” You responded, and she would simply shake her head, whilst intertwining the fingers of her free left hand with the trembling fingers of your pale right one. “I do have to,” you claimed, “not just because I want to, but because I can’t let you die; I can’t live without you, Quinzels, you-.. you mean-.. everything to me; more than life itself, a-and-.. if I lost you, I’d lose everything, including everything within me keeping me the way I am; I exist only for you, a-and that’s all I want, hence why I gave you my stone wolf, remember?”

She couldn’t help, but smile lovingly over at you, whilst tears threatened to escape her stunning icy blue eyes. “I love you so much,” she expressed, and you would try to return the significant three words to her, but before you could, you found yourself on the verge of collapsing again, and would whimper quietly whilst you did, but she would manage to catch you and hold you up again before you could hit the ground. “It’s okay, Nugget,” she cooed, “I’ve got you; I’ll never let you fall, ever, I promise, and I swear I will do everything I can to try and stop you from losing me, as long as you promise me that I’ll never lose you.”

You would smile softly up at her, wondering why - especially when she was still human, and had more free will - she still cared about you the way that she did, and still wanted to be by your side: to be your mate, after everything you’d both been through together. “You’ll never lose me, I promise,” you returned, “I love you, m-more than anything, and I will always fight just to be able to stay by your side, even when you decide you don’t want to be my mate anymore.”

“Y/n,” she whined, a hurt look on her face, and you would wince, “you - you know that that will never happen; I love you, and I could never love anyone else as much as I do you, you know that, right?”

“I know,” you replied, trying not to appear doubtful, though you were; you would always worry that she might find someone better than you, and leave you to rot and become an omega, or even to just die, but at the same time, you hated yourself for thinking that she would do that to you, when you knew, or rather hoped, that she wouldn’t consider hurting you like that, “you-.. still want me to change you, right? Once - Once this is all over?”

“Of course I do,” she answered, “I wanna be a big scary wolf, like you; you’re awesome!”

“Then you will be,” you chimed, glad to hear that she hadn’t had a change of heart, “but if you ever do decide you don’t-”

“I’ll always want to be like you,” she reassured, “now c’mon - I gotta get you patched up, before the big scary mom comes looking for me.” You would wince, before nodding in agreement, and nervously looking over your shoulder to check that she wasn’t already stalking you both, which she didn’t appear to be; she still had yet to hear about how Harley had threatened them, but little did you both know that she would be in agreement with you both that Harley had done nothing wrong; she’d only been defending you - her mate - and that was natural. You would both also be glad to hear that she’d punished Michael and Caesar for attacking you like they had, and that they wouldn’t be bothering you as much as they had been, anymore.

🜚

“I was wondering - why would they even attack you like that?” Harley inquired, after Renee had patched you up again, like she’d had to, before, not too long ago, now.

You would falter, and try to quickly think of an answer, afraid of how she might react if you told her about the plan you’d been recently hiding from them. “T-They just, er-.. well, I suppose they’ve never really liked me very much, a-and - probably wouldn’t mind being alpha, themselves,” you stammered out, and she would appear disappointed; she’d actually found out, after briefly leaving the room, and coming across your diary, that you had been hiding the plan your pack had come up with for a little while now - she couldn’t believe you were lying to her again, after you’d promised her that you wouldn’t.

“Really?” She questioned, and you would nod quickly, suddenly appearing frightened of something; you were worried that she already knew, and would begin to curse yourself when you found out that she did. “Because - that’s not what your diary said, in it’s most recent entry,” she contradicted, and you would fall quiet, a pained expression on your face whilst you did; you couldn’t believe you’d left it out like you had, and had now evidently upset her again, like you’d vowed that you wouldn’t anymore.

“Harley,” you whined, but she would cut you off by dropping your diary down onto your and her bed beside you.

“When are you gonna start keeping your promises?” She pried, her voice briefly trembling whilst she did, before she stormed out of the room, and you couldn’t help, but break down a brief moment after she’d left you alone in the room; you were sick of hurting her by trying to do things that you thought would protect her, and wished she’d just give up on you, and find someone better than you. You even found yourself subconsciously slipping the ring off of your finger, and setting it down on the bedside table, before you forced yourself out of your and her bed, and limped toward the window, intending to give her some more space, though you weren’t currently in the same room anymore; you didn’t want her to feel as if she had to do anything else for you, after you’d upset her again, so you hurriedly removed your clothing, before leaping out of the window, and tearing into your wolf form mid-air whilst you did, so you could stagger toward Apocalypse Forest, and the waterfall you’d grown up, and found yourself changing with.

🜸🜚🜸

The next day, Harley wouldn’t know that you’d gone, until the morning came, and you were all, excluding you, of course, sat around the kitchen table eating breakfast together. Things seemed to be okay, until Harley had noticed that Cane had been trying to hide the left side of her neck, prompting her to grow suspicious of her, and to, when she was least expecting it, lean over suddenly and move her hair out of the way, revealing a few dark marks which shocked Harley, and Renee alongside her, after Renee had managed to get a not-so-good look at them, too. “Cassandra Cane, are those hickeys on your neck?” Harley questioned, and Cane would then wince, before rushing up to her room, but before Harley could follow her, Renee would stop her, worried about her possibly going about things the wrong way, in response to Cane’s evident actions behind each of their backs.

You would then burst through the back door, upon sensing that Harley had been distressed by something, worrying you; you’d thought that she was in trouble, evidently, and was terrified of the possibility of her getting either hurt, or killed. ‘What happened?’ You phased, and had forgotten that they’d thought that you were still upstairs in bed, after you’d had to be treated.

You then rushed up to Harley’s right side to examine her, and try to find any wounds she might have somehow been given, whilst you had been away from her. She would then shove you away gently, after she’d regained composure, and you would falter, whilst beginning to feel guilty all over again for lying to her, and upsetting her the day before. She would feel bad for pushing you away upon noticing the hurt look on your face, before standing up, whilst her eyes began to glisten. “You’re sneaking out now?” She hissed shakily, but before you could answer, she would rush forward, and crouch down in front of you so she could throw her arms around you; she was just glad that you were okay, and hadn’t returned in a worse state than you had been in, before. “I’m so sorry,” she whined, before pressing her face into the crook of your neck, whilst she began to cry, making you feel even worse; you hated seeing her upset, and wished you’d not lied to her, and the others about the plan, “I shouldn’t have stormed out like that, I know; I should have given you a chance to explain-”

‘No, Quinzels,’ you interjected gently, whilst tears began to cloud your vision, too, ‘you were right for reacting the way you did; I shouldn’t have lied like that, I was just scared of telling you and the others about their plan; it’s - it’s incredibly risky, a-and.. and - I could lose you; I can’t let that happen-’

“Every plan we come up with to end this is gonna be risky, Alpha,” she reminded you, “there’s nothing we can do to try and make it any safer, and.. there’s equally nothing we can do to try and prevent anything happening to any of us; to prevent any-.. casualties.. we’ve just gotta try and - avoid them, and think positively; we can end this, Nugget, I know we can, and I can’t promise that we’ll get out of it completely unharmed, or alive, but - I believe - if we try hard enough; if we fight hard enough, and stick together - we can.” She would then delicately brush away a stray tear from your left cheek with her right thumb, as her right hand was now resting upon it, prompting you to subconsciously lean into her touch, whilst you locked eyes with her in the best way possible. “Can’t we?” She inquired, hoping you believed that you all could, too.

You would then smile softly over at her, whilst your eyes began to glint, prompting her heart to skip a beat, and a smile to tug at the corners of her lips again, before you nodded. ‘Damn right we can,’ you answered, and she would beam victoriously over at you, until Cane re-entered the room, appearing worried again.

“Y/n’s not-..” She would fall quiet, upon noticing you with Harley. “Upstairs anymore,” she concluded quietly, before warily stepping back, and you would wonder why the atmosphere in the room had suddenly grown to be so intense, prompting you to look between Harley and Cane for a moment, a puzzled expression on your face whilst you did.

‘What’s-’

“Someone’s been giving Cassie hickeys,” Harley answered, and you would suddenly falter again, before grimacing, and subconsciously rising, whilst your irises began to flicker dangerously between their bold orange colour and a bright red.

‘I’ll kill them,’ you growled quietly, and Harley would wrap her arms around your neck to try and provide comfort to you, and calm you down; she was worried about you possibly getting into trouble with Waller if she found out that you had tried to maul a child.

“Nobody’s dying today, Nugget,” she cooed, before returning her attention to Cane, who was shifting uncomfortably in place, “just - tell us - what’s their name? Are they in your year?”

She would suddenly appear fearful, worried about what Harley might be planning to do to her boyfriend, Noah. “W-Why?” She questioned, and Harley would wince, before thinking for a moment, and shrugging a little whilst she did.

“Oh, nothing,” she answered, but Cane wouldn’t believe that, at all, “I just wanna talk to them, nothing particularly serious.”

“You can’t-”

“I think I can, and I will-”

“Harley,” Renee warned, but Canary would find herself amused by the situation, as well as concerned about what Noah might end up doing to Cane.

“I think we should, Renee,” Canary corroborated, “just to make sure he’s suitable enough for her, and to set some boundaries.”

Renee would think about it for a moment, before begrudgingly giving in, and nodding. “Fine,” she replied, before turning to face Cane, “where do they live?”

🜚

“Oh c’mon,” Cane whined, “please let me go with you-”

“No,” Harley interjected, and she would groan, evidently frustrated, as well as worried about what might happen to Noah.

“Why not-?” She retorted, and you would smile reassuringly over at Harley, noticing she seemed a little annoyed, still, after what has happened, with her finding the hickeys on Cane’s neck.

“Because I’m pretty sure I told you to stay in the car,” Harley answered, and Cane would grunt, before turning away from her, and you would shuffle toward the car door after she’d gotten out next to you, “make sure she doesn’t try to escape, Alpha, I’ll be back soon.”

She would then lean down to briefly connect her lips to your’s lovingly, and you would instantly melt into the kiss, before smiling warmly back at her after the kiss had sadly ended, whilst your heart began to race. “Good luck trying to get through to them,” you offered, and Harley would wince, before smiling her thanks back at you, and rushing off to catch up to the others who were waiting at the gate of Noah’s parent’s house.

You would then turn to face the centre of the car, and could feel that Cane was glaring over at you. “You promised they wouldn’t find out,” she reminded you, and you would falter, “where were you?”

“Out,” you answered simply, “I had to-”

“No, you didn’t,” she contradicted, “you probably just rushed out for some other selfish reason; you’re pathetic.”

You would sigh, before nodding your head gravely; you knew she was right; you’d felt as if you had to be away from them for a little while, to try and protect them, and to take your anger and sadness out on the tres and boulders you came across. “Yeah,” you murmured, “you’re probably right about that, kiddo; I could have stayed, and this wouldn’t have happened-”

“Do you know what I’m gonna have to do, now?” Cane inquired, and you would nod again.

“Tell them about the plan I’ve been trying to hide from them,” you answered, “but - it’s too late.. they already know about it, now.”

Cane would fall quiet for a moment, shocked, as well as irritated to hear that she now had nothing to mentally burden you with, for letting them find out about her and Noah. “How?” She hissed, and you would bow your head a little, whilst you thought about how there was a chance you could lose Harley, if the plan was carried out, soon finding yourself fighting back tears again; you were terrified, and found you couldn’t prompt yourself to be positive about the plan, at all, after a few nights of considering every single possibility. “For god’s sake,” she continued, and you would try to swallow the lump in your throat, before nodding again timidly.

“I could still be hurt, y’know, even if you don’t have anything else to tell them about me,” you replied, “even though it wasn’t you who told them - If I lost Harley, I don’t-..” A strained sob would manage to escape your lips, but you would try and cover it up with a shaky and unconvincing cough. “I don’t know what I’d do,” you expressed, your voice barely audible, “I’d lose.. I’d lose everything, a-and.. I could become an Omega; like one of those monsters. I could - hurt - so many people.. She’s the only one keeping me tethered to this world; I exist, and was made only for her, and if she dies, I would rather die, too, alongside her.”

“So you’d kill yourself, and leave me to fend for myself?” She guessed, and you would glance over at her, whilst the tears streamed down your cheeks.

“You’d be fine,” you claimed, and she would scoff, before looking away from you, “you have the Birds of Prey-”

“But you aren’t them; you and Harley are supposed to be my parents,” she interrupted, and you found you couldn’t respond; you weren’t sure how to, “screw you.” She would then swiftly take off one of her sneakers, before hitting you across the face with it, shocking you, and allowing her to quickly lean over you and snatch the car keys from you so she could unlock it, and sprint away from it.

“Cassie!” You called, and would stagger out of your side of the car, but you found she had disappeared from your vision by the time you’d managed to get out, and recover yourself. “Shit,” you spat, whilst Canary and Huntress attempted to run after her, and Harley and Renee had decided to return to you, “I’m so sorry, Quinzels..”

Harley would falter when she noticed the red mark on your right cheek, and you would bow your head again after she’d released your chin. “She hit you-?” She mused, but you wouldn’t respond, finding you couldn’t; you were trying not to cry again, feeling guilty for letting her run away like that. “Y/n,” she cooed, “look at me.. Does it hurt? D-Do you want me to get you anything?”

“I don’t need anything,” you tried to reassure her, before anxiously looking toward Apocalypse Forest, “but Cassie might; she’s heading into Omega territory.”

“We’re gonna get her out,” she promised, “and they won’t even touch her, I’m sure they won’t.” She would then turn to face Renee, who was evidently worried, and anxious to go after Cane, before the Omegas could get to her. “C’mon, I wanna have stern words with her, before the Omegas can,” she encouraged, and Renee would nod, before rushing toward Apocalypse Forest alongside you both, “I’ll make sure she won’t hit you again like that, and I’ll get that mark to fade and the pain to go away before the sun’s gone down, I promise.”

“Don’t bother,” you responded, “it was my fault, Quinzels..”

She would appear puzzled, glancing over at you, whilst she began to slow down a little after you had. “What do you mean?” She inquired, and you would wince, before looking away from her. “Y/n-”

You would both be cut off by a roar nearby, and you would falter, noticing the Omega running toward you both. “Look out-!” You cried, but she would be - despite her attempt to jab at the omega with her spear - knocked down, and would fall unconscious as soon as the back of her head had hit the ground.

~~~~~

Hope you enjoyed it! ❤️

[fleurcareil]

BC Rockies: Yoho, Golden and Revelstoke

My first stop in Yoho National Park was at a viewpoint of the Spiral Tunnels, which were built in the form of a figure 8 to allow trains to go down the steep slopes without losing control and getting wrecked. When I was here in 2010, we saw both the head and the tail of the tremendously long trains (we counted one with 220 wagons!) come out of the mountain, however without a train going through it's just two small holes among a sea of trees 😉. When hearing the trains come by at night, it seems there's a train every 2 hours or so but didn't feel like waiting it out. Some 5 minutes after driving off however, I saw a train approach... Murphy's law! 😝

Next, I drove up a curvy road to the Takakkaw waterfall, which thunders from the hanging valley & glacier above. Takakkaw means "it is magnificent" in Cree and at 254 meters high it's certainly magnificent! 🤩 I first walked along the fast-flowing silty river and then got soaked by the spraying water... stunning & refreshing! 😉

A bit further west, I stayed for a while at a natural rock bridge, talking to a friend on the phone by climbing up a rock pile for better reception 😅.

There was also an interpretative sign again on the WW1 (mostly Ukrainian) internment camp here, and ended up having an interesting conversation with an American couple about similar actions in the US and more in general about how poorly governments sometimes treat their own people whilst they're supposed to serve & protect us!

At the end of that road lay mesmerizing Emerald Lake of which the water colour was incredibly special... a true gem!! 😍 Lake Louise & Moraine Lake have their own charm but this one is my favourite! ❤ I considered going out for a paddle but at 5pm I was already tired from a long day (having done two hikes that morning!) so instead just sat by the water with an iced coffee from the fancy lodge ☺ I would try to come back in the morning!

Another hour west (as usual with construction 😐), I arrived at my campsite in Golden, which was really just a patch of dry dirt so that within no time everything was coated with dust... on the bright side, the tent was completely dry in the morning. After a refreshing shower, I found a great patio on the river downtown with Tuesday Tacos, craft beer and a "golden" sunset 😁.

Next morning, I was out of the campground before 8am to head back to Emerald Lake and immediately it was clear that the smoke had moved in... the pretty mountain backdrop from the previous night had disappeared 😕. Worse, after the hour drive & having found perfect parking at the lake, the SUP hose connector broke off so that I couldn't pump it up! $%#@!!

Everyone else was already on the water so no one to ask if I could borrow their pump hence could do nothing else than to return upset to Golden 😭... the stores had opened by now; the sports one didn't carry electric pumps and snob as I may be, I won't go back to manual pumping... luckily someone suggested the hardware store and this man fixed the hose with some duct tape! 🎉 I must admit that I haven't had the chance to try it yet due to all the smoke mess but I'm hopeful I'll be back on the water soon 🤞.

I also discovered a wasp in my car while driving on the highway which rattled me, so this was really not my day! 😫 Continuing westward towards Revelstoke, I hoped that the smoke would improve but instead it was only getting worse (got an extra hour time change as a bonus though). By the time I was at Rogers Pass in Glacier Park it was unbearable to be outside (the 30 degree humidity didn't help), let alone go for a hike, so I had a good time in the visitor centre, even dropping in at a video on headbanging bighorn sheep for a Dutch tourbus 😂

In Revelstoke, I spent a few more hours indoor at a lovely café and then headed to my campground where the smoke seemed somewhat better (or so I made myself believe 😉).

At check-in, I had asked if it was safe to swim in the lake but then I realized there was really not much water left apart from some isolated bands, so no paddling here (I did meet a girl that had already inflated her SUP before she realized there was not enough water & now used it as her beach towel to sit on 😅). There was a manmade watering hole though, so I had a cold swim under a disappearing sun at 7pm, and then woke up with the same sorrow sun at 7am 😔

Not sure what to do, I decided to drive up the Mount Revelstoke Meadows in the Sky Parkway after all with the slim chance I might get above the smoke?? 🥴 That was clearly wishful thinking but am glad that I went as there were some nice, easy hikes including one called "First Footsteps" celebrating Indigenous knowledge and art. The alpine meadows no longer had wildflowers due to the hot weather but were pretty nevertheless.

At the top, there was also the original fire watchtower which until 1985 served to warn the wardens of new fires. It's sad that these posters are as valid today as they were then!

On my way down to the car, two park staff gave me tips on what to do in West Kootenay where I was heading next, which was perfect as I had no clue! 🙃

Wildlife: none

SUPs: none :(

Hikes: one at Yoho, two at Revelstoke

[neim-batteries-not-included]

random thought i had whilst working on my magic system

this may or may not make sense considering ive said jack shit about my magic system so far but anyway so i didn't want magic to be relied upon heavily for things like medicine- it's used in every day life, but major injuries likely would be treated without it in hospitals (etc etc) and after some thinking about what would work with how this bitch functions i figured that memories would be one of the best options for a cost- and without going on a rant, because thats nOt the point of this hahah, in cases of life saving care being needed nurses performing healing magic run the risk of losing the memory of their education and again without going into details because ill do that later, yknow education is really important to some folks im explaining this poorly but essentially that risk isnt worth it when you're trying to heal a whole bunch of people- its much more likely that you'd just resort to other methods and also this means that things like life saving healing, and other powerful forms of magic, become a massive gesture of love (platonic or romantic) which is pretty cool from a story telling perspective but the point ive taken way too long to make here is if you don't want your magic system to be able to be a sorta "get out of jail free card" (which can actually be interesting in some places because personally i love seeing what people do with that kind of power) have the cost cause the most powerful forms of magic to be a last ditch resort- only to be used in the most dire situations. this is probably common knowledge/really obvious and this post is pARTIALLY TO REMIND MYSELF but yeah have a rant

[tetras-stuff]

oh boy I've pissed people off with this one huh. I'm not gonna get too much into it but here we go:

1) using the "it was supposed to be a b movie thing!" argument for the Barry thing is....also bad. dont get me wrong, i agree that it is supposed to be shlocky horror and i like re1 and its atmosphere, i just dont agree that this is an excuse for how poorly jill is written. like no, Chris was nowhere near as stupid as Jill. I didn't mention Rebecca but whilst we're on it, I firmly believe she is also written in a really sexist way because pretty much all the women in RE are badly written, its a sexist series and I don't think it's a bad thing to say that. I don't really get why this is controversial. Jill isn't supposed to be a rookie, they tell us all the time that she's legit the best at a lot of what she does (e.g. personally picked by wesker because of her disarming skills etc etc) and then show her not being able to shoot properly, having to be saved every 3 seconds by a man, and wandering around like a lost puppy waiting for men to tell her what to do. Like come on. It's ridiculous. you can criticise things you love. I love re1. I don't love how she's portrayed. being critical of media you consume is a good thing.

2) I'm not saying she was perfectly written in RE3R because she wasn't. Yeah, the stuff with the enemies is very sexualising and I never said it wasn't? Jill acts more like an actual adult with actual competence in RE3R, but that by no means takes away from the sexist parts of her writing. Im not a RE3R apologist, I just prefer the way she's written and portrayed in RE3R because she has more agency. is it perfect? no, but it's arguably better in some ways (and worse in others, sure).

3) the RE games can be campy and fun without being sexist???? like sure the stuff with Chris pushing boulders and whatnot is stupid, but Chris is treated VERY differently to Jill in all media. I mean for fucks sake, RE5 is a great example of that. She is brainwashed, sexualised, and treated like an object by Wesker and the writers themselves, and then just stands back letting Chris be the big hero???? why?? The women in RE5 are treated JUST AS poorly as RE1 (do NOT get me started on excella and sheva). The older games (yes including RE5) are sexist. Chris is treated as a campy silly guy, sure, but he isn't sexualised or treated as incompetent because of it. Weird comparison to make when it is so clear how differently these two OG characters are treated. You didn't cook with this, as you say

4) final point for this one, "you're just making stuff up" literally when??? I didn't say anything untrue lmao, I gave my interpretation of the games and the fandom. opinion can't be "made up"????

okay next reply omg I'm already tired

1) you can love re1 jill if you want lmao I literally didn't say you can't. fandom is what you make it and if you like re1 jill, cool!! this post was aimed at sexist men hating re3r jill just because she has more agency and is treated like an actual adult. I don't like re1 jill but that's a personal opinion, you are free to like her as much as you like.

2) I don't like re5 in general but I don't like how she's portrayed especially, when I mentioned re5 in the post I meant a potential remake. I agree with you on this point!!

3) I really don't agree about the Barry thing. It's not "I don't want to believe this", he literally pulls a gun on her and she immediately forgives him and moves on. she is written as being so desperate for a male authority figure that she just believes anything and everyone (which can be well written and has great writing potential! they just don't deliver on it in any way imo)

okay final take:

everyone is entitled to their own thoughts, obviously. A lot of people are very quick to defend Jill as a character in every capacity and that's chill. my og post was out of frustration for how she is portrayed in re1 and frustration at how the fandom interprets it, because I've seen a lot of dudebros getting really mad about how "masculine" remake jill is and it pisses me off. if you disagree with my take, you do you. that's fine. I'm sure there are lots of things we disagree on, it isn't world shattering and I wasn't trying to "cook" anything with my post, just expressing an opinion.

I love jill valentine and there is so much potential in her character. I hate that RE doesn't always capitalise on that potential and its sad what they do to her character just to gain male attention. There was so much good in RE3R which makes me excited to see where they go with her in future games such as a potential RE5 remake. I just don't fully trust them to do it since there has been such a huge backlash to her character because now she's "too angry". I stand by my original point.

okay omg I'm done now bye

I hate when people criticise the newer jill (remake jill) because it's just dudebros who are annoyed that she has agency now. they want re1 jill who was really stupid, naive, and behaved like a child instead of a full grown military woman because innocent childlike female character with boobs = hot. let jill have her agency. let her say fuck. let her be the one to take wesker down in re5 instead of sitting back letting chris do everything. don't be cowards.