#wow they really do not leave their corpses alone

[bluemorningsoup]

Arcane and JayVik have me fucking apoplectic. (Arcane S2 spoilers below cut.)

At first I was like: oh, so they’re going to parallel Vi + Jinx somewhat, Science Bros instead of Violence Sis, brothers by choice rather than blood. But then there was what I call the Infidelity Sequence, in which Jayce’s love scene with Mel was juxtaposed against a dying Viktor in the most bizarre manner, like Jayce was cheating on Viktor—an absolute fucking choice—and other instances of Mel superimposed against Viktor.

So I thought: SURELY it can’t be a “bros before hoes” storyline in the year of Our Lord Faker 2024??? But then they gave us Sky “Fridged Woman” Young and Jayce said Viktor was like a brother to him, and I was like, WOW, they’re really giving us this storyline in this day and age; this should be illegal.

Then S2 Jayce started going on about how he realised his place was in the lab with Viktor. Which was like. Okay. I’m a scientist. Modern science is, in reality, a very lonely endeavour a lot of the time, even as it demands nearly all of your life. I, too, would kill to have someone who would do experiments alongside me, who would share every project and publication authorship with me. Don’t get me wrong: there are real-life scientists who do it together, but more often than not they can afford to do so because they’re fucking married to each other. So. I get it, but it did feel like Jayce was basically declaring he wanted Viktor as a life partner.

And then Act 3 Jayce and the animation doubled down on it. The shadows in the campfire morphing from Mel into Viktor. Jayce telling Mel that for some time, he had been confused about many things. He had finally decided on what he wanted and apparently it’s to get his “(lab???) partner” back. Man was consumed by it—had discarded all other ambitions and dreams and desires for this singular motivation, even as he blasted a hole in Viktor’s chest and declared his partner “died in this room”, driven by a logic the viewers weren’t initially privy to. Oh yeah, and there’s also the oddly erotic fight scene with an avatar of Viktor.

And then then the narrative tripled, quadrupled, fucking Tsubasa: Reservoir Chronicles-Neon Genesis Evangelion-Puella Magi Madoka Magica-ed on it. Who had been reading CLAMP in the writers’ room? Come the fuck out; I just want to talk. No, that’s not a shotgun in my hand; don’t worry about it. Transcendant Viktor choosing to stay by Jayce’s body after the end of everything. The storyboard placing the shot of Jayce kneeling face to face with his own corpse with Viktor’s voice line: “…fields of dreamless solitude.” Jayce deciding upon the singular defining desire of his life as wanting his partner back and promising to never let Viktor be alone. Jayce fulfilling that promise. Jayce drawing Viktor in even as his own body shook and trembled. Viktor’s gentle hand on Jayce’s arm. The forehead touch.

You sit there and watch as above ambitions, above desires, above suffering, above every other thing this universe has to offer—across all possibilities, across all timelines, two men choose one another.

And then the head writer of Arcane spoke about how they’re “just friends” and how “important” it is to portray platonic male relationship. My brother in Summoner’s Rift, as if any other emotional portrayal of male relationship in media is NOT about platonic male bonding. It’s fucking 2024, Faker won his 5th Worlds, and Jayce and Viktor are brothers who chose one another out of love, contrasting against Vi and Jinx who had to let go of one another out of love. BROS BEFORE HOES.

So I guess all I have to say is: Arcane JayVik are fucking awesome and they’ll leave you breathless like an ambiguous male-male relationship from a 2000 anime, but after all’s said and done, they’re from motherfucking League of motherfucking Legends.

[qrrieterisunnq]

Halloween Movie Marathon

FT. LUKE HUGHES AND SOFT KISSES — WARNINGS: nothing just sweet pure content — SUMMARY: Luke wants to spend some time with his girl while recovering from his injury, so they decide to spend two days together and have a Halloween movie marathon. — WORD COUNT: 1,7K

Sitting in his apartment, which he shares with his brother, is really tiring for Luke, especially when he’s there alone, with his arm in a cast.

He’s bored even though he has a lot of things he can do at the apartment. The only thing he wants right now is his girlfriend, here in his apartment and in his arms.

He lets out a bored sigh as his eyes stay glued on the TV watching Grey’s Anatomy. He doesn’t like the show he only watches it for his girlfriend who is deeply in love with the show.

When the sixth episode, which he saw today, ends, Luke reaches for his phone lying on the table and texts you a desperate message.

Curly Boy🥰🫶🏽 - hey babe, wanna come over after work?

Curly Boy 🥰🫶🏽 - please?

“So desperate, Luke,” he murmured, shaking his head at his desperation. With that, he gets up from the sofa and stretches his limbs.

On his way to the kitchen, he picks up the bag with groceries Jack left there when he came to check up on him. He puts the bag on the counter and slowly unloads it. Even though he’s the younger brother, he loves cooking. And he has to since Jack would be able to overcook water.

When he’s about to look in the fridge if he needs to cook something, his phone dings with incoming messages.

Princess💕🫶🏽 - Yeah, I’ll be there in an hour.

Princess💕🫶🏽 – Aghata is in a great mood, so I’m able to leave earlier.

Luke smiles at her message typing a quick response before walking to the fridge to find out if he must cook or not. He opens the door and lets out a long sigh as he looks at the almost empty fridge.

Curly Boy🥰🫶🏽 – Waiting on ya

He pulls out a chicken breast from the freezer and some vegetables out of the basket and starts cooking, even though it’s a little hard with one arm.

A soft knocking on the door interrupts Luke from finishing the food. He puts down the wooden spoon, washes his hands quickly, and jogs to the doors to open them.

You walk in with a bag full of food, as you were in a nearby restaurant to pick you up for dinner on the way to his place. You knew, or at least thought he’d be cooking, so he won’t have time to eat something.

“Hi baby!” you greet him, leaning into him and kissing his cheeks.

“Hi, beautiful,” he responds, taking the bag from your grip. But you stop him, swatting his hand away with a frown on your lips. “What?” he asks, surprised at your boldness.

“I’m an independent woman; I can do it by myself,” you say with a smirk, walking into the kitchen, where you see the food cooking in the pot.

Luke shakes his head at you and follows you inside the kitchen, where he immediately runs towards the pot and stirs the food.

“How was your day?” he asks you as you walk around him to put the food on the counter. From the fridge, you pull out a lemon to make a lemon water you really love.

“Oh, it was good, I guess. No one pissed off Aghata so, yeah.” you chuckle, reaching for a knife to cut a few slices of lemon.

“That sounds like a good thing,” Luke smiles at you, lowering the heat of the pot. “Wow that looks delicious.” he licks his lips as he looks over at the table where the food is sitting.

You giggle and place the lemon water and two glasses on the counter. Luke moves next to you, pulls you in a quick hug, and kisses your head in appreciation for what you have done for him.

“What are our plans for today?” you ask, resting your head on his chest.

“Uh… I was thinking about a movie marathon. Some Halloween movies?” he cocks his head on a side, pulling slightly away from you so he can see your face.

“Yes, please! Can we watch the Corpse Bride? Please?” you look at him with puppy eyes even though you already know the answer.

“Yeah, we can. But first, let’s eat! I’m hungry.” he slaps your butt urging you to sit down on the chair.

“Yeah, me too,” you giggle digging into your food. “Jack is on training?” you say after you swallow your first bite.

“Yeah, he’ll be back in a few, I guess,” Luke nods, swallowing another bite. “But I can tell him to crash over at Nico’s if you don’t want-” you shush him by stuffing his mouth with the ramen.

“It’s okay! I don’t mind.” you smile caressing his cheek. “So, what did you do today?”

“Eh, nothing. I was just lying on the couch all the and watched something on the TV.”  He shrugs, swallowing the food in his mouth.

“Oh, my poor baby,” you coo him with a teasing smirk on your lips, earning a jab to your ribs from him. “Ow.”

“Stop making fun of me.” He whines with puppy eyes and stuffs his mouth again with the food. You just giggle at him and continue eating.

Half an hour later, you are seated in the living room on the couch watching the first movie, Luke had chosen. Beetlejuice.

You had never seen this film before, so when Luke asked you if you wanted to watch it, you said he was shocked.

So here you are sitting on the couch, tangled in Luke’s chest, laughing at the hilarious scenes.

“Do you like it so far?” his eyes are searching your face for some sort of discomfort.

“I love it!” you laugh when another hilarious scene happens. Luke’s eyes soften as he watches you laugh like you have not in a long while. Not holding himself, he leans down and presses his lips to yours in a slow soft, yet passionate kiss. “Wow, what was that for?” you ask him when you pull away just to look him in the eyes.

“Just wanted to do it,” he shrugs, the tips of his ears and neck turning red.

Just when you are about to kiss him, the doors to the apartment swing open, revealing the figure of the middle Hughes’ brother, with his hockey bag swinging on his right shoulder.

“I’m home!” he yells inside the apartment, not noticing you two sitting there.

“We can hear you, J. No need to yell!” you say loud enough to make it sound like a yell.

“Oh! Y/n I didn’t know you were coming over,” he says as he walks inside the living room.

“Yeah, sorry, it wasn’t planned.” you smile with guilt written all over your face. You love hanging out with the brothers, but you don’t want to bother them when they are after practice.

“Oh no! It’s totally fine!! I can take the food with me in the room, really it’s absolutely fine.” he smiles walking over to the living room to the door on the left, swinging the bag at the ground of his room, before he walks back into the kitchen, serving himself a food.

“No, it’s okay, you can watch with us if Luke doesn’t mind. It’s your apartment after all.” you look at Luke, hoping you didn’t say anything wrong.

“It’s on you, bro. If you want to watch your little bro stuffing his tongue in his girlfriend's mouth, you are free to join.” Luke smirks, earning a shove from you and a gagging sound from Jack.

“Luke!” you whisper-yell at him with horror in your eyes.

“What?” he laughs, holding his belly. “I was just joking.” He defends himself still laughing.

“Sure, you were,” Jack shakes his head with disgust. “Sorry y/n. I’ll pass your offer,” he says on his way into his room.

“You are an asshole.” You shove Luke’s shoulder when Jack closes his door behind him with a soft click.

“But I’m your asshole.” He says with a smirk, leaning down to kiss you. You pull away when he’s about to press his lip to yours. His brows pinch together, and his mile falls down.

“You are my asshole. Only mine.” You whisper and press your lips to his. He moans in the kiss, grabbing your ass and pulling you on his lap. “No, Lu, we can’t. I’m on my period,” you whisper in the kiss when you start feeling his cock growing hard.

“It’s okay, I know you are. We can just lay there and watch the films, okay?” he hums, adjusting himself in his pants, with you still on his lap.

“Okay, that sounds good.” you peck his lips and slide slightly down on his lap so you can rest your head on his chest.

“Wait let me unfold the sofa, so we can lay down,” he whispers in your ear and taps your butt so you can move.

“Baby, you sleeping?” Luke whispers softly in your hair as the sixth film is playing in the background.

When you don’t answer, he smiles in your hair and pulls you closer to him, making sure to not wake you up.

He turns the TV off, moves slightly under you so he can scoop you up, and takes you to his room.

He tucks you under the blanket, caressing away the hair that had fallen down on your face.

“I love you so much, baby. So fucking much,” he whispers in the room, with so much love in his eyes as he watches you stir in the position you are in.

Quietly he walks to his side of the bed opens his nightstand and pulls out the small box he’s been hiding there for a while now.

He opens it, revealing a beautiful diamond ring, he wishes someday will take a place on your ring finger.

“You should do it as soon as possible.” Luke jumps on his bed, as his brother’s voice startles him.

“Shit, Jack, you scared the shit outta me.” he presses his hand to his quickly beating heart.

“I mean it. You should do it soon,” he repeats himself, leaning against the doorframe.

“I will, just don’t know when.” Luke shrugs, his eyes gazing at the ring between his fingers.

Jack just nods his head and leaves his room.

After another few seconds of staring at the ring, he put it back in the box and in the nightstand.

He changes into his pajamas and lays down next to you, pulling you into his chest.

You immediately wrap yourself around him and nuzzle your head in the crock of his head.

“I love you, Lu,” you whisper, kissing him on his weak spot.

“I love you too, y/n.”

[life-is-more-than-just-a-game]

♠️ What a day off of games with the aib males can look like. ♠️

A/N: Sorry, I've been absent for two days now, but for good reason. I wasn't feeling too well mentally and needed some time to myself because something happened that put me in quite a hole ... 🥲

Still, I've been thinking about what I could post here next, so I've prepared a few headcanons that define what I think a day off of games with the male characters might look like. 🙈

I hope that some of you are still around and will read through it. Feel free to let me know what you think about it or if you think any of them might have other interests! ���

Characters: Aguni, Arisu, Chishiya, Karube & Niragi.

POV: gn!reader

Warnings: Not given.

A g u n i

It depends on what time we are in.

If the beach still exists, Aguni is often prevented from doing anything with you outside if he already occupies the number one spot.

You would have to live with the fact that you would hardly have any time just for the two of you, because someone from his troupe would always want something from him.

If he realises that this is bothering you - or he is annoyed by it himself - he will turn his boys away and say that they should leave him alone for the next 2 hours as far as possible because he has better things to do.

In general, no matter what time loop we are in, I would say that Aguni would adjust to your needs.

I have the following typical scenario in mind:

Aguni: "So there are no games waiting for us today. Any ideas what you want to do in our day off?" Y/N: "Uhm ..." Aguni: "Come on, you must have been in the mood for something." Y/N: "Yeah, but I really don't know for what I am in the mood for ..."

Nobody said it would be easy with you, but let's be honest: it's the Borderland, what excited yet relaxing things could you do here so far?

If you really don't know what you want to do, he would give some suggestions.

Aguni: "We could go to the pool." Y/N: "Too cloudy for my taste ..." Aguni: "We can do some sports together." Y/N: "Now your expectations are set far too high!" Aguni: "What about fishing?" Y/N: "Can't we just get some fresh air and go for a walk together?" Aguni: "..." Y/N: "..." Aguni: "You knew very well what you wanted to do, didn't you?" Y/N: "Without my lawyer, I won't say anything."

A r i s u

If you want to do something, then Arisu is definitely the right person.

The boy is always up for a lot of nonsense and fun activities.

This is probably also because he doesn't want to constantly think about the terrible circumstances that are happening here.

He has got used to life here, but living in constant fear doesn't get someone anywhere and only has a negative effect on oneself.

So, if he is being trapped in a world that could take his life sooner or later, he at least wants to live every day as if it were his last.

You will not regret spending time with him.

He comes up with the wildest ideas, starting with taking a closer look into the various broken buildings.

Of course, he would still be cautious of entering any places just like that- not that both of you suddenly find yourself in a game, because that's what you're trying to avoid today.

Y/N: "A-Are you sure we should do this, Arisu?" Arisu: "Nope, but you only live once, so let's check this building out- maybe we'll find some interesting things in here." Y/N: "Would you define 'corpses' as interesting ...?" Arisu: "Wow, you really managed to ruin my fun."

You still wouldn't be able to stop him.

Investigating the building would include lots of laughter and piggybacks when your feet get tired from all the walking over ruins and debris.

Eventually you find out that this building was a former arcade.

You can definitely pass the time well there.

Arisu: "Would you like a game of billiards?" Y/N: "I'm going to rip you off so bad, love."

C h i s h i y a

Listen, this boy is a damn lazy piece of shit.

When there aren't any duties don't expect him to do something special.

He has no problem putting his feet up for a day and literally doing nothing.

Feel honored if he spends his time with you at all.

No matter where you both would be, he would find ways to just doze off and relax while you - after all - lie in his arms and enjoy his closeness.

It's nice that he can do that, but you can't.

Y/N: "We've been lying around here all day." Chishiya: "Well realised." Y/N: "I'm bored." Chishiya: "Then do something."

He would definitely be a great help to you.

Jokes on you, no, he wouldn't.

Y/N: "But I wanna do something with you today since we have enough time finally." Chishiya: "We do something, darling." Y/N: "Idiot, that's not what I meant!"

Making you pout is one of his favorite things to do.

How could he be bored if you let him get on your nerves so easily?

In contrast to you, he has something to laugh about and something to amuse himself with.

Nevertheless, he would at least agree to a compromise:

Chishiya: "How about this? We'll use the time now to laze around and in the evening we'll take a look at the neighbourhood together and see which places are damned by games this time." Y/N: "We don't take part in any games, our visas count enough days for us." Chishiya: "Who said anything about taking part in a game?" Y/N: "So, if I let you lounge around now, you will promise me to stay up late with me?"

Damn, you love the nightlife.

Chishiya: "That's a deal."

K a r u b e

To me the funniest but most chaotic one.

During the day, at least.

I can well imagine that Karube and you had already planned the day ahead the evening before.

But what would life be like if everything went as planned?

The morning is pleasant. You wake up together and after a intense cuddle-round, you start your routine as usual.

Unfortunately, Karube realizes that he can't find something.

Something very important when it comes to following his routine.

Karube: "Honey, d'you know where my cigarettes are?" Y/N: "I don't know where you put them yesterday after you got ready for bed."

In the end, it all comes down to searching your whole accommodation for his cigarettes.

I mean, when you do smoke yourself, they can be important for you too ...

If not, well, then you are a very nice and good person!

Y/N: "Did you found them?" Karube: "I would have told you when that would be the case." Y/N: "Sure you didn't throw the box away because you smoked you last one yesterday evening?" Karube: "I know my pack of cigarettes inside out, there were at least three more in there."

You can guess where this is going.

You spend the whole forenoon looking for his damn cigarettes.

You turn the whole accommodation upside down.

Both of you look under every stone.

In every room.

Two times- minimum.

Y/N: "Karube, fave it, you don't have any- ... Darling ...? Karube: "What is it?" Y/N: "What's that in your pants pocket ... at the back of your butt?" Karube: "Uh-... Oh!"

Now he remebers ...

Karube: "You found them! That's right, I put them straight in my jeans yesterday so I couldn't forge- hey!" Y/N: "Yeah, I threw your boxer shorts at you!"

N i r a g i

Oh, my dearest reader-chan, please stay close to him no matter where he goes.

When he has nothing to do, he will go through the city streets looking for people to annoy.

He would look for trouble and find it- even if there's no reason for trouble, he'll just make it happen himself and find his reasons.

I don't know how, but at least you managed to stop him from taking his gun.

That's something you should be very proud of.

However, that doesn't stop him from doing anything and we know that.

So please. Stay. With. Him. Thank you!

In any case, you walk around the area together and check it out a little.

You'll talk about pretty trivial things every now and then, but that's still more pleasant than just talking to each other all the time.

When you meet someone, Niragi is ready to provoke them directly for no reason.

Thank god you had a firm hold on his hand or his arm so you could quickly drag him in another direction to avoid the innocent people.

Y/N: "Oh, look!"

Yes, you also like to pretend to see something that you would find interesting.

… In partially empty shop windows.

Niragi: "What the fuck should I look for?" Y/N: "See the rocks there?" Niragi: "You kidding me, right?"

The nice thing is that he would still look to something you tell him to look at.

There could actually be something interesting there.

Well, most of the times at least.

It's nearly impossible but who know?

Y/N: "OH, SEE WHAT I HAVE FOUND TH-" Niragi: "What is it this time? Another boring and ugly stone you think it's fascinating?" Y/N: "No ..." Niragi: "Oh, what is it this time then?" Y/N: "The tree there."

He will touch his nose and look at you angrily- but not without laughing afterwards at your amiable stupidity.

Damn, he loves you so much for what you are, he can't even be bothered.

[covertleathers]

Pulling Cords (Rookanis Fanfiction)

A meditation on tension and yearning.

Title: Pulling Cords (WIP)

Rating: 18+, Explicit, Gradually intensifying sexual tension, nudity, etc etc

Relationships: Lucanis Dellamorte/m!Rook (They/Them pronouns)

Key words: Yearning, teasing, jealousy (eventually)

Chapter 1: Lucanis dutifully doing his 'midnight' meal prep when an insomniac Rook joins him.

AO3 Link

A night at the Lighthouse was never quiet, per se. While day or night didn’t necessarily occur there, the body had its own rhythm that it followed like clockwork; most of the team ended up sleeping similar hours, give or take.

Except Lucanis. Sleep came in minutes, if any at all. Meditation helped at times, but it was a tenuous line to walk.

He kept himself busy in the kitchen when it was at its most empty with prepping the team’s next meals. The smell of a light roast always lingered there at these hours. These were the moments when he needed the most focus. In the absence of company, even without Bellara and Neve casually talking in a far corner, a quiet would grow. It pulled at the edges of his mind like that of a string of yarn until he could feel himself begin to unravel. 

Sounds of an expertly wielded blade hitting the wood countertop as he prepared the onions, carrots and celery. A stew perhaps. Normally, he could start with a bone broth to enhance recovery time when his companions returned from their assignments. However, with two Mourn Watch mages at the lighthouse, it was becoming more pragmatic for him to get creative.

Heavy greens. Bay leaves. Rosemary. Purplish-red Arlathan legumes. They were buttery and savory when soaked then boiled. Beets. It wasn’t Antivan cooking by any means, but it would be restorative to the body.

“Wow, you really don’t sleep.”

His knife paused, hovering above a bleeding beet. His hands were soaked in red.

“Rook.”

How were they able to move so quietly without him realizing? He should have felt their magic approaching with a small sting behind his eyes. Though, he countered mentally, this whole place made his eyes feel that way. Something to resolve later.

A lackadaisy energy seemed to coat the room as the young mage, wrapped tightly in a green linen robe sauntered inside. Lucanis, taking an unnoticeable breath, realized they were not wearing anything else, not even shoes. He resumed cutting, the knife clicking against the wood.

“I hope I’m not disturbing your alone time,” Rook said. They hadn’t seemed to notice his hands going stiff. If they did, they didn’t show it. “It’s hard to sleep in that old office sometimes. I keep having dreams about drowning.”

“You’re not interrupting.”

The Mourn Watch green was a particular color that glowed iridescent against their umber skin. Lucanis caught a glimpse of their cock pressed against the thin material and quickly turned his attention to the sautéing aromatics. Rook floated across the dining room, their plum hair falling in curls down their back like heavy plumes of smoke. “Antivan coffee really is something else. I am so used to white peony tea in Nevarra. It has such a striking boldness.”

This made Lucanis chuckle softly. Striking indeed. He moved to add the main vegetables to the sauté. Rook, knowing that Lucanis would have a ready and hot pot of coffee ready, make themself a cup, adding cream and sugar until it was almost white. Lucanis frowned deeply.

Their gaze caught his face before he could fix it and laughed. Warm and smooth. The contents of the pot started to crackle. Lucanis stirred, making sure they were properly, evenly cooked through.

“It’s better sweet.”

“Oh, I remember. You like drinks for children. I could have made you a pot of chioccolata calda.” Vegetable broth. Salt. Pepper.

From the corner of this eye, Lucanis detected their unwavering look. Rook crossed the dining room; the elf was a head taller than him and moved like lakeside grass in a gentle breeze. He couldn’t imagine someone so beautiful working in those catacombs. Handling corpses or enchanting skeletons. With skin so even. Was it soft? Did it run like silk against your fingers?

In contrast, his shoulders tensed back, right hand clutching a ladle like a dagger behind him. They stopped short of an arm’s distance away. To his surprise, they extended a mug of coffee to him. The contents fresh and dark.

Breath in.

“You do so much for us, you know.” Rook ventured. Their lavender eyes were reflecting an orange glow from the fireplace. “I can’t ask you to do any more.”

Lucanis smirked, taking the mug. His fingers, covered in red, grazed theirs. He sighed, “Nothing like work focuses the mind.” He took a long sip of the bitter, acrid drink. Hm, slightly burnt. The water was too hot. Rook’s presence seemed to throw many things off kilter.

Rook stepped forward with a one-sided smile, as they often did when they were attempting to bite back a smart remark. This usually didn’t work.

“There are other things that can focus the mind.” They said, lowering their voice as they leaned into Lucanis’ space. His heart skipped a beat. His cock stirred in his breeches as he caught the scent of their fragrance. Sweet and flowery. Like HONEY. AND LAVENDER.��Mierda.

At this moment Lucanis noticed the exposed cleft of Rook’s front spilling out of this robe. Not as brawny as Davrin, though not as slim as Emmrich. Soft flesh. A single gold chain bearing the death beetle of the Mourn Watch dangled helplessly at the center of their chest.

“Oh?” Empty, empty, quick. Lucanis turned away, a dish cloth in hand to deftly hold the boiling pot of stew as he churned the contents. He had to remain in control of his face. Keep his mouth a straight line. He clamped the pot back shut and met their gaze cooly.

“I love a good riddle. Your mind will be turning it over for hours.” They laughed tenderly. Mierda, how buttery. “There are secret passageways in the Grand Necropolis that will only open if you answer them correctly. Lots of people die getting stuck that way.”

Lucanis didn’t realize how long he had been holding his breath before he opened the stew pot to let the steam engulf his face and let out a sigh of relief. When he straightened, he realized Rook was peering over his shoulder down at the roiling bubbles.

“That smells amazing,” they crooned. A shiver tickled down Lucanis’ spine and a heat bloomed in his chest. But he didn’t move. Rook seemed to realize they crossed into his personal space and quietly apologized before taking a step back.

“Crows don’t really deal with riddles.” He managed as he grasped his mug again to take a swig.

Rook seemed to mull it over and pursed their lips. “I suppose so, you’re more stab now, talk later type of folk.”

“Precisely.”

Their eyes held for a moment.

Rook nervously looked to the fireplace. Their feelings ripple across their face like ocean waves. It is impossible for them to hide. “Can I stay for a little while? We don’t have to talk—” Lucanis stopped them with a raised hand.

“Tell me more about the door riddles.”

[gallysglader]

I Just Don't Like Him

Summary: Ever since youve met Gally, youve thought him to be obnoxious and rude, and yet...

Pairing: Gally x reader

A/N: I know its not 100% enimies to lovers but I just have zero patience I'm sorry

Request: rivals to loverssssssss. cuz it suits him best to me. maybe he meets em when he first starts workin for the right arm since its something new. Fellow soldier mayhaps?

Honestly, when The Right Arm got word that Group A had finished the Maze Trials, I knew instantly I should volunteer to check the place where they would exit into the W.C.K.D headquarters. I don't really know why, we weren't going to do it at all, but I just had that feeling that we should check, maybe something there could give us a boost. When I went to Lawrence to get the 'OK', he actually welcomed the idea. Said it was a good play. He immediately set me up with a team, obviously I couldn't risk going alone.

We arrived in a van, just in case there were things we could use, we'd have more space in the vehicle. The building was dark and surprisingly cool, and there was blood and broken glass on the floor. We didn't have to look hard to see two bodies lying dead. We all immediately rushed towards them, checking pulses to see if they survived somehow. One of the boys was younger and looked to be 12 or so. He had a bullet wound in his chest.

Donnie, a friend of mine, checks his pulse. He looks at me sadly. "Dead." He drops the boy's arm and stands up, running his fingers through his hair. The rest of the team starts walking around the large room, checking for more. We walked over to the other boy, who looked closer to me in age and had a spear stuck in his chest. This scene is offputting, like there are important details I'm missing.

"What do you think happened here?" I ask, grabbing the boy's wrist

"Dunno, too bad we'd never kn-" Before he can finish is sentence I gasp. There's a pulse. The boy's alive. How?

"He's alive!" I practically shout before everyone else runs back toward us. We waste no time, grabbing him and practically shoving him into the van and driving back to HQ.

It wasn't long until we realized he was immune to the flare, after making that discovery everyone started working harder to fix him back up and get him out of his coma-like state. I got put In charge of possibly the most degrading task, talking to him in his sleep. Not even about anything specific, some of the guys just thought that if he heard a voice talking to him he'd wake up faster, I don't know what sort of logic that is but I really don't feel like disregarding orders, so I agreed.

I mostly just sit in the chair next to him and feel awkward before attempting small talk. Small talk. To practically a corpse. What the heck.

"So...um...it's pretty hot out today right?" I groan and feel like an idiot. Of course, it's freaking hot out we are in the aftermath of the scorch. I try again. "Well, I mean yeah, obviously, um-" I look away and hope nobody watching the security cams right now.

Suddenly I hear a groan and look at the boy. He's waking up. He rolls over and opens his eyes, looking right at me. "You really suck at conversations." Really? Those are the first words he says? Wow.

"Well give me some credit, your not a very talkative person yourself, you certainly didn't make it easy." I cross my arms. He scoffs, and winces.

"Damn, getting shot with a spear sure shucking hurts." He scoffs again. This dude seems very laid back considering everything. I'm curious.

"What happened back there? Do you know how you-" He laughs (wincing again), interrupting me. He seems really rude, and I frown.

"Is that your way of flirting?" He smirks and raises his eyebrows. The fuck? The nerve and ego of this guy is just unbelievable.

"Trust me, if I were flirting you'd know it, not that I'd ever flirt with you." I roll my eyes and get up to leave, to alert someone that he's awake and an asshole.

He laughs and rolls onto his back. "Trust me, the feelings are mutual."

Since he's been awake the rest of the group has been working to completely heal him, and some have even started training him to be a soldier already. I've been avoiding him as much as I can, with the occasional dreadful pass through hallways, but it gets tricky, especially at mealtimes, where we are all packed together and eating for about an hour before going back off in our separate ways. Of course, we always somehow end up sitting at the same table, like today.

"Hey Y/N." He says in that annoying tone as he plops his tray of food down on the table. Today we are eating potatoes, I think. The food here isn't exactly five-star. I roll my eyes and scoot away from him. He knows I dislike him, and he knows I know he dislikes me, and he loves bothering me, more often than not our lunchtimes end with harsh words.

I groan. "Hello, Gally." Even his name is stupid. Gally? What kind of name is Gally? When I first learned his name I burst out laughing, and he glared at me so hard, if looks could kill...he sort of looked away and mumbled after, "Y/N is a stupid name too..." but honestly it was just pathetic.

He just stares at me for a minute or two before eating, still looking at me.

"What do you want?" I ask, my face starting to burn. He's just staring like a doofus and I know there's likely not even a reason for it. He's just doing it to get a reaction, I kind of hate myself for giving him one.

"Did you know that you have a resting bitch face?" He asks, putting on a fake smile and happy tone. I hate when he does that.

"Shut up, eyebrows. You don't get to make fun of appearances." To this, he looks outraged. He's always quick to anger, it's almost funny, he'll be making that chirpy voice when he's teasing me one minute and the next he starts yelling at me.

"HEY!" He stands abruptly and slams his hands down on the table, making me and everyone nearby jump. I can feel everyone's eyes on us. "AT LEAST I'M NOT A LITTLE BITCH WHO GETS AWAY WITH EVERYTHING! AT LEAST I DON'T WALK AROUND ACTING LIKE EVERYBODY LOVES ME!" His face is tomato-red, and he storms off, slamming the door on his way out. The cafeteria is quiet, you could hear a pin drop.

Donnie moves closer to me, his voice low. "What was that about?" He looks at me, waiting to answer. I don't. Gally gets mad very easily, but this was seemingly worse than other times. I don't know why. When I don't say anything Donnie sighs. "Why are you guys so hard on each other? Why don't you like him?"

"I just don't like him." I get up and walk out the door. I need to think. Why was he so much more mad today? I try and think back, we've insulted each other before, although...now that I think of it I don't think I've ever said something about appearances. I've never insulted the way he looks. Why would I? He is pretty good-looking, handsome, strong, with a good build. Not that I'm attracted to him or anything. He's just decent-looking by textbook definition. We may quarrel, but I'm not blind. So, his appearance must be a touchy subject, I must have struck a nerve. I know I don't like him in the slightest way, but I feel obligated to apologize to him. I don't know why, he's said some pretty cruel stuff to me. But still, I end up walking to his room and knocking on his door. He answers it glaring down at me.

"What?" His voice is cold, and his face is still red, presumably from the argument. He crosses his arms and looks away.

"I just wanted to... apologize if I crossed a line back there." He looks back at me in surprise.

"You're...apologising? We never apologize."

"I know, but you just seemed really mad this time and I just felt like I needed to say it. Why did you get so mad anyway?" I look at him waiting for an answer, it feels weird having a normal conversation with him. He doesn't say anything for a long time.

"I dunno." he shrugs. They way he says it, I just know he's lying.

"Be honest." I cross my arms and stare.

"I don't have to explain anything to you!" He goes to slam his door but I put my foot in the way, I'm surprised at how much it hurt.

"Just tell me!"

"No! Just FUCK OFF" He yells, his face burning.

I raise my voice, exasperated "JUST TELL ME WHY YOU GOT SO MAD!"

"BECAUSE I'M IN WITH LOVE YOU!" His eyes widen and he gets more red. I feel my face burn in return.

"What?" I ask, my voice a whisper. His shoulders sag and he looks down and away.

"I'm in love with you."

I stare for a long time. How could he be in love with me? We hate each other, don't we?

"I know you don't like me, but honestly I've always respected you, and I love how fired up I make you. I didn't realize it at first, but I was hopeless. And I guess when you said I was ugly I-"

"Hold on, I never said you were ugly. You're not." He looks up and I look him in the eyes, willing him to believe me.

"Well, when I thought that, I just got...upset. I guess I just hoped you'd like me back but...I mean you hate me, so-" Before he could finish his sentence, I'm not even thinking of it, I grab his shirt and pull his lips down onto mine. I didn't realize it, but I've wanted this. I've wanted him. And this...changes everything.

I slowly pull away, "I love you too..."

He smirks and puts his hands on my waist. "Are you flirting with me?"

[madomens]

Apocalypse mini series pt 2

TW: gore(typical zombie apocalypse gore)

Word count: 1.8k

There isn’t much conversation on the walk to the mall, just the occasional random questions from Nick, or Folio, as he likes to be called. Walking up the road that leads to the mall, trails of dead zombies lead the way towards the back of the large building. 

“Oh wow so you guys have to fight through this crowd every time you leave?” you ask just above a whisper. 

Noah nods his and puts his finger over his mouth telling you to be quiet. You obviously oblige, seeing as though they know their way around here much better than you do. Taking out more zombies than you’ve had to in a long time, you finally made it to the back where they show you the small crawl space they use to get in and out of the mall without making any noise.

The inside of the mall isn’t actually as bad as the outside thankfully so you don’t have to be as quiet. They’ve gotten about 3/4ths of the mall cleared out in the seven months that they have been staying here. You can’t even begin to imagine the amount of bodies they must have had to dispose of, including their own people. You never really had a group so you didn’t ever have to worry about losing anyone close to you. A few people have come and gone but it was never too hurtful, after all, you got pretty used to losing people before the apocalypse. 

“Wow,” you stammer almost struggling to imagine how it must have looked before they took over. 

“Yeah it’s pretty great. The only thing we should warn you about is where we’ve kind of had to push the rest of the dead guys until we can get to killing the rest of them.” Nick stops at a map of the mall which has different markings on it, showing where the danger zone is. “Basically anywhere with a huge “X” over it isn’t safe. We’ve marked maps all over the mall and there are writings on the walls pointing to the danger zones so unless you’re blind, it’s pretty straightforward.”

“You guys have really gotten this planned out. How the hell did you manage to take over the entire mall without other people trying to steal it?” You question. 

Folio and Noah exchange glances before Noah finally speaks up. “They definitely tried but we had more people and we were stronger. This is the first time we’ve had to leave in a while, hence all the corpses on the road.” 

You nod, still taking in the surroundings. They lead you back to the far left side of the mall and for the first time in four years, you see lights. It’s funny the things you take for granted and you never even realize it. 

“Oh my god,” you squeal like a kid on christmas. “Sorry I haven’t seen a light on in years. How did you manage this?”

“There’s a backup generator in the basement that runs on gas so we just make sure they stay full and.. Let there be light,” Folio smiles, showing off a goofy grin. 

As much as you hate to say it, you have missed being around other living people. Especially the ones who aren’t trying to kill you or steal from you. 

They continued showing you around a bit before finally getting back to the furniture store where apparently everyone sleeps. I guess that is a good idea to avoid getting ambushed while being alone. 

Noah whistles a weird tune before two new guys appear from different parts of the mall. They both have hella long hair and once again, are very attractive. It has been a long time since you’ve had any kind of intimacy but you weren’t really that big on it before the end of the world anyway. It is nice to see some attractive faces in the middle of all of this though. 

The one with the longer hair has a blank expression on his face and tattoos covering every inch of his arms and hands and of course,  is wearing all black. The other guy, like Folio and Noah, has long sleeves and pants on but you can clearly see the ink on his hands as well, and he actually has a bit of a smile on his face.

“Who’s this?” The taller one asks. He has a sort of accent you can’t quite figure out but he’s definitely nice to listen to. 

“Y/N.” You give a small smile and extend your hand only to be left in the dark. 

You slowly put your hand down and cross your hands across your chest, a bit embarrassed to say the least. 

“Found her at the gas station a few miles from here. We got caught in a horde and she handled her own so we figured we could use an extra hand around here from someone who knows what they’re doing.” Noah tells the other two men. “Where’s Matt?” 

“Who knows, man? He’s been in a mood today,” the other guy responds finally. “Sorry, I’m Nick, this is Jolly.” 

Oh wow. Two Nicks? I see why he goes by Folio now.

“Who’s the better Nick?” You try to joke, but only get a slight chuckle out of Folio. It’s okay. You haven’t been around people in months, the jokes will come back. 

Jolly and Noah make eye contact and Jolly motions to the right with his head as they walk away, obviously to talk about the situation.

“Well nice to meet you Y/N,” Nick breaks the silence after a minute. “Did they show you around?”

You pick at your fingernails, not able to tell the vibe of the room anymore. “Kind of,” you shrug.

Folio notices the change in your demeanor from just a few minutes ago. “Hey don’t mind Noah and Jolly. They can be grumpy sometimes, it’s not at you.” He gives you another big smile and of course you immediately feel a little better. 

“Well, let me and Folio give you the big tour,” Nick says.

You walk around the safe side of the mall for a while as they show you all the makeshift random shit they’ve made so far. There’s a clothing store next to the furniture store so you take your time trying to find something that hasn’t been worn for weeks without being properly washed. 

After the tour, you go back to the shower/locker room meant for employees and take a much needed HOT shower. Due to the generators, it kicks on the hot water heater in the building so not only is there a working shower, but it gets hot!!!

Letting the hot water run over your face and sore body, you can’t help but thank yourself mentally for saying yes to these two random guys. It’s been a few hours since you met but you already feel safer than staying alone in a beat down cabin in the woods. The showers are actually really nice for them to be inside of a mall; there are four showers, two on either side of the large room and they’re pretty spacious. 

After your shower, who knows how long you were in there, you notice the large mirror on the opposite side of the showers nearest the lockers. You honestly don’t even recognize yourself anymore. Your hair is much longer than it was but also in a weird way, much healthier, probably due to not using shampoo on it every other day. You’ve always been beautiful but after four years in an apocalypse, you definitely aren’t the same. The cuts and bruises on your arms and legs from fighting the dead ones and hiking through the woods are apparent, but they don’t make you any less beautiful. If anything, you look pretty badass right now.

Smiling at yourself, you finally put your new clothes on, you opted for a black cut off tank top and a pair of comfortable pajama shorts. Go big or go home right? You even got a new pair of house slippers because why not?

“Hey finally. So we were talking and since we obviously haven’t had any women staying around in quite some time, we wanted to see where you were comfortable staying. There’s plenty of room in the furniture department and you can have the farthest bed or however you want to do it,” Noah finally gives you a smile.

You glance over at Folio, who can’t take his eyes off of you and a light pink blush travels across your cheeks. 

“Oh um I haven’t really thought that far ahead. Show me where you guys sleep and I can go from there I guess,” you shift awkwardly, not used to the male attention.

Nick and Jolly take you to where everyone sleeps and show you around. They all sleep pretty close together which, you understand its the end of the world and everything, but who doesn’t want privacy?

You end up picking a king size bed not too far from the guys just in case something pops off in the middle of the night, and make it your own. The sage green comforter you find fits perfectly and it’s much better than sleeping on a hardwood floor with nothing but a thin blanket and a shirt for a pillow. 

a few hours later

The best thing about being at a mall in the middle of a pandemic, is the food. After only eating foraged berries and the occasional canned goods, finally having some real food (aka fish that Folio caught earlier that day), is the best way to end the day. 

“So where’s the other guy? What was his name, Matt?” You ask, stuffing your face. 

Jolly takes a break from picking at his fish and is the first to answer. “Sometimes Matt needs to have a bit of a ‘cool down’ from everything. He has quite the temper. No one really knows where he goes but he always comes back eventually.” 

You nod slowly, almost worrying about how he would feel about a random woman showing up out of nowhere. 

“Don’t look so worried princess, he doesn’t bite,” Noah taps his elbow into yours. 

If this man doesn’t stop using the nickname princess… 

You blush again at the way it rolls off of his tongue so perfectly. You almost can’t help but wonder what else he can do with it. 

Nick stands up and walks to the room everyone shares but not without saying, “you know what time it is,” first.

The other three guys let out some cheers and applause, leaving you looking dumbfounded and confused.

It’s very obvious these guys have known each other since the beginning at least with all the chemistry floating around. When Nick comes back, he has a bottle of tequila in one hand and ‘Cards Against Humanity’ in the other. Your eyes light up in an instant; you can’t even remember the last time you got to drink. Or play a card game with friends. Maybe the apocalypse won’t be too bad with these random tattooed guys around. 

lmkkk what you guys think🫶🏼🫶🏼

divider from here

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[angelbroad]

"I saw your eyes light up"

Type: Fanfiction

Fandom: One Piece

Characters: Sir Crocodile/Wani, Monkey D. Dragon

"Honestly, can you even tuck a sail?"

Monkey D. Dragon found himself laughing at his fellow crewmate's comment. In truth, he was not as strong as her. He was working on it, but until then, he'd have to suffer through her comments.

"Hey, I'm working on it, Wani.", he said.

The girl rolled her eyes and offered him a hand. He had fallen trying to tuck the sails.

"I'm surprised Captain even let you on the ship.", Wani commented as she walked off. 

Dragon followed her, "I think it's my charm."

Now that made Wani snort, "Oh please, you're about as charming as a plank of wood adrift in the ocean."

Dragon placed a hand on his chest and feigned hurt, "Ow, Wani. My feelings."

"Stay hurt.", she said.

"Hey...", Dragon realised, which had Wani turn to look at him with curiosity. "I saw your eyes light up."

Wani and Dragon both stopped walking, and after a moment of silence the girl shook her head and continued walking off.

"Y-You just saw the sun reflecting in my eyes!"

"Well, you do have great eyes!", Dragon called out as he speed walked after her.

Despite Wani not appearing very interested in being around the young man, Dragon really liked her. Truth be told, this strong woman from the Grand Line had stolen his heart, but he'd rather bottle his feelings up unless he wanted to go and see Whitebeard about it. That girl's father was a frightening man indeed.

"Is this about the sails?", he asked.

"Try learning that first and then maybe I'll talk to you."

It was Dragon's eyes' turn to light up.

"Hey, I'm gonna be a really strong man someday! You have my word."

"You have weird dreams.", Wani said.

"Oh, yeah? What's yours, Wani?"

"What?"

"Your dream."

By that point, the two had slowed their pace to a halt, their figures bathed in the orange light of the setting sun. The deck of the Moby Dick was mostly empty, leaving the two somewhat alone. Wani looked at the setting sun, her dark hair brushing her face as the wind twirled them around like the hand of a lover.

"I'll get out of here.", Wani said after a while, Dragon listening intently, "I'll be the captain of my own ship."

"Sounds ambitious.", Dragon commented.

"Your dreams are too simple, Dragon.", Wani said.

"Yours are too.", Dragon responded as he sat down to look at the sun, "Shouldn't be too hard to leave."

"You'd be surprised. Not every pirate can leave a crew and become a captain successfully."

"If you manage to do that, would you have to fight your pops in the future?"

Dragon had never seen Wani call Whitebeard 'dad', he was always referred to as 'Captain'. Not just by Wani, but by all his kids. Maybe it was tough love, it's not like Dragon had the best relationship with his own dad either. Look at him, a pirate with a Marine dad. Who would have thought.

"Maybe I will.", Wani responded, "Because being just a captain is not my goal."

"Then what is, Wani?"

Wani looked down at Dragon, hands on her hips. "I am going to be King of the Pirates."

Dragon looked up at her with a sense of awe, "That is...wow-that is really a dream."

"Which I will make a reality.", Wani said, clutching her fist with determination, "Gol D. Roger has only set the bar higher after his execution, and I'll work my damn hardest to achieve that dream."

"You know, a lot of people are after that dream too.", Dragon said. He was not trying to discourage Wani, he was simply a curious man. He'd never wish to have that light in Wani's eyes die out.

"Those people will have to rip that dream from my corpse in order to discourage me.", Wani said, not the least bit discouraged, "And if I can become the King of the Pirates, you can learn to tie a knot."

"Hey! I know knots!"

Wani laughed, "Just the basics."

"Then why not show me yourself, huh?"

Wani looked down at him, "Heh, sure. Knot lessons with Wani."

She walked off, and Dragon got up to follow her.

"Show me your ways, King of the Pirates!"

This could be the start of a truly amazing relationship.

[fanfic-the-wish-your-heart-makes]

Chapter 4 of Revenge Can Hurt More Than the Person It's Aimed at (An Angsty Nygmobblepot x Reader Hurt/Comfort Fix-it Fic)

<-previous chapter

Chapter 4: Not Completely Heartless Plans and the Lack of a Corpse

Additional warnings for this chapter: Ed thinking about the possibility of Oswald killing the reader (he doesn't seriously think Oswald would harm you), mention of canonical alcohol problems (Oswald), self-deprecating thoughts (by Oswald)

Word count: 2784

Author's note: After me being busy and then ill, the new chapter's finally finished. Enter Barbara Kean & Tabitha Galavan 🤗

Thanks go to @gabriella-aesthetic for commenting on the last chapter & making me do the finishing touches on this one sooner. I hope you enjoy this chapter ❤

Wow, a cover for this chapter too? Yes!

_________________

Ed's eyes were fixed on the entrance to Gotham City Hall. Oswald still hadn't stormed out of the building like he'd imagined.

Ed looked away to Mr. Van Dahl's remains as well as Oswald's dead chief of staff in the trunk of the car, then turned to the shapeshifter he had met in Indian Hill, "A very good job."

Basil Karlo, aka Clayface, took off his contacts and removed his wig. "He bought it."

Ed smirked. "Hook, line and sinker."

"The voice wasn't quite right but, uh, you know." He heard stilettos on the paving stone and stepped back.

"Bravo, boys." Barbara Kean approached them with Tabitha Galavan close behind. "Penguin lost his mind on national TV. Just like you said he would."

"It's all about the power of suggestion." Ed was proud of his knowledge about the mayor. "And whispering in the right ears."

Tabitha wasn't as impressed, "Why don't you just leave these bodies for the cops? Have him arrested."

"That's too easy, Tabitha." He had much better plans, "I want this to be a slow, painful death. One of a thousand deep cuts. First we take away his mind-

Barbara interruped him, "Then - the part I like - we destroy his empire and take it for ourselves."

"And then when this bird is broken and alone, we do the humane thing...and put him out of his misery."

The blonde heiress pouted playfully, then giggled, and Ed smiled with her. He had this planned out to the-

"Why hasn't he left the building yet?"

Ed suppressed a glare at Tabitha.

"I don't know," he responded, folding his phone open to dial one of the contacts he still had from being Oswald's chief of staff. "Perhaps it's because-"

Two (2) messages from y/f/n y/l/n.

Oswald really needs me. He hasn't been feeling well since you left. I hope we can talk about it.

Reading your message made Ed ask himself whether his plan was really as fool-proof as he'd assumed it was. "He's late because he wasn't alone", he explained, then continued reading, Hopefully you don't think I'm ditching you for Oswald. I just had to be there for him, this day is extremely important.

He has an interview with Margaret Hearst, can you believe that?

Of course you'd support your friend when he had an interview with a star journalist. A star journalist Ed had secretely nudged towards Oswald.

"Ed?"

He didn't listen, being too focused on your texts:

I hope we can still meet :) When do you have time to spare? Just a quick heads-up: I don't know how the interview will go and if it doesn't Oswald, might need someone to be there for him, and well, we know how much trust he puts in other people, right xD?

Despite the guilt he felt at you worrying about Oswald, your words almost placated him, making him smile ever so slightly and feel transported to when you had all been friends, to that evening when Oswald had laughed so hard that-

"Hello?" Earth to Ed."

Barbara. Barbara was waving her hand in front of his face.

"Are you lost? What did you find out?"

"Y/n", he said, "y/n accompanied Oswald. It must be the reason why he's so late."

"Y/n got in the way, huh?" Barbara stalked towards the brown-haired man and began to circle him. "Do you want us to do something about that?" She halted in front oh him, "A little kidnapping maybe?"

Ed tensed, more than he had when talking about his plans for revenge. "No!" It came out aggressive, as if they were on opposite sides but he didn't care. "No one must hurt y/n!"

Barbara held up her manicured hands in a conciliatory way, "Okay! Geez, Ed, it's alright. Your friend's safe from us. Right, Tabby?"

"Yeah."

"Make sure that Butch, no, everyone, knows not to harm y/n."

Tabitha's scoff was overshadowed by Barbara's confident smile. "Consider it done. As long as your friend doesn't interfere, she thought.

Tabitha stepped towards them, "So you are friends?"

"Of course!" Ed said full of indignation.

She looked to Barbara and raised an eyebrow before he gained her attention back with his irritated tone, "Why wouldn't we be? What are you alluding to?"

After a nod from Barbara, the long-haired woman looked Ed straight in the face and asked, "I mean don't you feel guilty for letting your friend worry about Penguin's misery?"

Ed was taken aback. Of course he did.

"I..."

How could he be at a loss for words after boasting about his schemes seconds ago?

The voice inside his head answered promptly, Easy: You're not as heartless as you pretend to be. Don't lose sight of who you love, Eddie.

While Barbara and Tabitha looked at him expectantly, he gave a quick response, That's what I'm doing! Focusing on Oswald and on y/n! We texted quite often over the past weeks.

"Ed?"

"Yes!" He straightened his jacket, "What is it?"

Barbara patted his arm, "I think you're doing great!" She gave Tabitha a subtle look indicating that she knew he wasn't, "Look at you, protecting your friend from someone as dangerous and selfish as Oswald."

Hearing her put it like that...Perhaps he was protecting you from Oswald. The thought hadn't crossed his mind. While Ed believed that Oswald would never harm you, he hadn't suspected him to be Isabella's murderer either.

The thought of Oswald killing you seemed ridiculous but that didn't mean that Barbara's words had no impact.

He had loved Isabella and he loved you, at least as much as-at least a lot.

What if things had been different and Oswald had been jealous of you?

Ed pictured the scene: your lifeless body in the GCPD, a car accident report, Oswald telling him to move on when he was still mourning!

"You still with us, Ed? Cause you shouldn't-"

His telephone rang. 'Oswald Cobblepot'. "Speaking of the devil, who seems to have called...eight times, wow" he was glad to see they were now looking at him as if he was capable despite the zoning out, "he can suffer for a little longer." He clapped the device shut. "You were saying?"

Barbara was pleased that Ed was ignoring the probably miserable mayor, "I was saying...that you needn't feel bad about getting your revenge on Penguin. Just continue doing what you're doing and our plans will be a piece of cake." She laughed.

_________________

Oswald was anything but laughing. He stood on shaky legs, panting from walking quickly after finally...well, not getting rid of you but assuring you he'd be fine. Oh god, had he made you worry too much? He hoped not.

He looked back as if you might appear at any moment, then moved back to the door. It was best that you didn't disturb him. If his father's skeleton wasn't real, he'd look insane. He closed the door and locked it. Even if his father's remains were in the same place: you didn't need to see a corpse, beleagured enough as you already were.

He hadn't meant to alarm you. You suspected that he had harmed himself, for God's sake! Oswald limped to the place where he had last seen his father's body, determined to wash away the blood and show you how alright he was. At least physically...

The disheveled mayor opened the office cupboard and gasped in shock. It was empty and what was worse, the traces to Elijah's presence were gone.

"No!" Oswald clutched a hand in front of his mouth. "No no no no no, please don't let this be...please let it have been real... I need you, father! I need your advice. Come back to me!"

He closed the cupboard and looked around the room. Not a single trace of his father. Had he vanished...or never been there to begin with, a hallucination? Oswald was sleep-deprived.

Ed! Oswald was spurred into action. He pulled out his phone and called his number.

Ring.

Ring.

Ring.

Ri-

"This is Edward."

It normally didn't take this short for the voice message to start. Ed had declined the call.

"Leave a message. Or don't."

Right. There was the audible reminder of the sadness Oswald had caused the man he loved.

"Doesn't really matter."

Oswald rubbed his temples.

Perhaps Ed was busy. Or still not over it. Over receiving a love confession after making one of the oddest business proposals Oswald had ever witnessed. It was almost as if - he steadied himself on a table... It was a level of dumbness almost completely uncharacteristic for Ed.

Oswald took shaky breaths. Coming to rash conclusions wouldn't serve him well. He needed to approach this calmly, at least as calmly as he could.

He breathed in and made sure to let out enough air as well, as Ed has taught him. Taught me with a hand on my stomach to show my where best to breathe from, he thought puzzled, then remembered that the brown-haired man had done the same with you.

Suddenly Oswald had a thought. Could it be that Ed was in love with you both, that this was his reason for distancing himself from him? It would make sense, wouldn't it: Ed, still grieving Isabella, wouldn't want to confirm being in love with Oswald if it meant making you think he didn't like you, but he wouldn't want to confess to you either in fear of losing his other best friend.

Oswald knew the feeling. Right now he wished he had never said the words to Ed. He would to anything to have him back, even if as nothing more than a friend.

Thinking back brought Oswald's mood further down. Ed had been so shocked, his body averted from Oswald's as if the mere idea of the black-haired man as someone worth having romantic interest in displeased him.

Oh, Oswald wished to have him back, to prove that his affection was nothing to be afraid of, that Ed had no reason to tense up and shield himself.

Oswald would keep his feelings to himself. He could do that, yes, he'd let Ed dictate how close they got, so that things could go back to how they'd been.

Now if he could just solve the mystery of his father!

For a moment he considered calling Ed again, then he debated texting him and gave up on that as well. What would he even write? 'Hey, Ed, first of all: don't be afraid, I'm no danger to you. I know you haven't wanted to hear from me for weeks, but I think I might be hallucinating, so I thought I'd call the next insane person I know.'

No, that would simply be ridiculous. Not only that but there was a safety issue as well: Oswald couldn't afford the public questioning his sanity because of one thoughtless text falling into the wrong hands.

He pocketed his phone to keep from making a mistake, and actually went toward the bathroom, where he'd told you he'd be.

Despite everything, there was still hope. You neither knew about the situation with Ed nor about his possibly damaged psychological state, and as long as you stayed with him, he'd manage. He'd bottle up his emotions over the day and find a way to let them out when you weren't there. After today he couldn't afford to be seen by you in such a miserable state again.

That day in the library, Ed had promised not to speak a word of the love confession to you, telling Oswald that he deserved it, that it was completely rational, no, the best decision even: to keep it a secret. He had almost been eager to assure him. Maybe Oswald's theory was true and Ed was planning on eventually getting together with him and you. Yet he had been so shocked. Oswald gasped for breath. Could it be that...could it be that Ed was only in love with you?

With all that had happened it certainly wasn't implausible: the way Ed acted around you, looked at you, cared for you, all of it was filled with love, of whichever type that may be. In Oswald's dreams, all three of you had been in love with each other, never just with one, but knowing what Ed had told him...it might be true!

Oswald collided with the door to the private bathrooms. "Ow!" Rubbing his face, he turned around to make sure no one had heard him. The way there on his shaky legs had taken him long enough and he lacked the energy to look for a new place.

He hastily locked the door and turned to the big mirror.

"Oh God!"

He looked horrible!

Strands of hair had dropped and clung to his sweaty skin, his dark circles were reinforced by the mascara he thought he'd removed sometime yesterday in between glasses of alcohol, and his expression was utterly pathetic.

How could Ed love someone like this? How could you? Had Oswald only made himself look this bad after finding his father's remains missing?

In any case: you had wanted to know whether he'd self-harmed or worse, tried to kill himself, so he couldn't have looked alright.

God, his whole existence was a mess: losing bis best friend because the thought of Oswald loving him was too much for the tall brown-haired genius, losing the public because his father who might just be a hallucination was asking things of him, and now looking like this! His eyes watered again. Of course Ed wouldn't settle for him!

He approached the sink and poured the first wave of water onto his face.

Whether he was handsome in general or not, he was unsightly today. Possibly this week. Hopefully it didn't go back to since Ed had left.

He poured another handful of water over his face.

Of course Ed doesn't love me.

He attempted to wash the make-up smudges away.

And why would you love him?

He began to rub at the mascara remains on his eyelids.

Why did you still care for him?

The mascara didn't budge.

What was keeping you from going to Ed, genius, tall and handsome Ed?

Maybe you would soon.

What would Oswald do then?!

He wouldn't kill you, that was out of the question. Just thinking about how concerned you already were made him feel guilty.

No, he wouldn't harm you, wouldn't even think about manipulating your relationship with Ed. He'd be your friend, watch as Ed got back the love Oswald had stolen from him, and as your concern for Oswald was washed away by Ed's love.

Finally seeing you happy would have to be compensation enough.

Only that you'd probably still worry about him, wouldn't you? Try and ask what's wrong, then support your friend without ever being entrusted with his secret problem, that's what you'd do, and God, it would make things ten times more heartbreaking for Oswald! He couldn't fall out of love with you! If he still loved Ed, who'd broken off all contact, then how would he be able to let go of much more innocent you, how would he endure seing the two people he loved daily?

Surely Ed would come back to the Van Dahl estate if he became your boyfriend...or would living with his friend be too weird if he was in a relationship? Ed had brought Isabella to the mansion but maybe he'd prefer to settle down in his own house, move in with you and leave Oswald alone?

That would be horrible! Except...maybe he'd need the distraction, the time for himself to cry without making either of you worry.

At the thought a next wave of tears spilled from his eyes.

I'd live with it somehow, he told himself. I love them too much to break off contact, he thought, even as sobs shook his body.

_________________

Ed's phone rang again. He made a show out of ignoring it but as soon as Barbara looked away to "Tabby", he threw a look at it. It was you.

"I need to answer this." His fingers were already itching to press the button.

"You do that," Barbara saw your name on the screen, then lowered her voice, "and don't forget: you need to protect the last person you love. Oswald doesn't care about the people - as he so elegantly told the whole city - or those he loves. But I don't need to tell you that."

She padded his shoulder and tugged Tabitha along, and after Basil Karlo had left the three alone, only Ed remained, who hastily took the call.

____________

Author's note: I'm back again! I've gotta be careful that I don't overwork myself with this fic. These last weeks it was kind of difficult to continue not just because I was busy & then ill but cause I felt like publishing it didn't pay off (both tumblr & A03 formatting takes more time than I'd like & writing for a niche couple in an old fandom doesn't help with getting comments either 🥲 But don't worry, I get that not everyone has the energy to comment :))

Next chapter->

[kremlin]

helicopter hog hunting right next to that guy (in the town i live in lol) is also really expensive but I wanna do it once i get my degree. they let you full auto belts through an m240 from the skies

man i can almost guarantee you the cost is from the helicopter and the machine gun. anything to do with a helicopter is involved as hell and frankly i'm keen to leave them the fuck alone, i would literally fly a small cessna solo with zero instruction solely relying on my Nerd Ass Flight Simulator skills but never a helicopter. they work in direct defiance of gods will

not having to load a whole mag for 4 seconds of fun doesn't rly offset the whole "$60 of ammo gone in a flash" thing for me. esp. these days

right after i got out of school i worked this really shit remediation job and one of the guys in my crew was this Giant Cornfed Redneck motherfucker who had a bunch of land in central texas with a hog problem, he wanted to start a business doing hog hunting trips & i made him a website or some shit and he took me out. i think the conversation actually started with a dick measuring contest about the guns we owned, he was trying to tell me hogs mean business and 9mm won't cut it. "sure ill bring my AK", he told me itd better be an AKM since 5x45 won't cut it. thought he was bullshitting but nooooope

kinda sucked in the end. me and him did not have much in common (natch) and i do not like to traverse terrain by foot because of wet + hot + gross + computer programmer. there could be a disclaimer here for the tumblr crowd saying "ohhh hogz are so bad, they are invasive, they are extremely destructive, they are nasty creatures" which is all true but i was there from blood lust from computer games

the pack we found, we didn't scout, we heard them fucking barreling towards us, which is when it kinda sunk in, in my mind, "oh wow, this is extremely dangerous, this is frightening, those are huge animals, they are very fast, they are certainly trying to kill me, this is actually gay, wtf". i took an embarrassing amount of shots for hits i landed due to Shaky Hands which never heard the end of for the weekend (city slicker).

they are no fucking joke though, i swear, bullets would either bounce off them or they'd shrug them off, they would never ever seem to stop charging unless you shot limbs off or they lost a puzzling amount of blood. my pal wanted to cook them but he cut one open and it was literally pure blue on the inside which is the effect of some kind of poison the state uses to thin their populations safely while conveying message of "DO NOT EAT" to corpse-finders

to be honest i prefer the computer room. it was scary enough but the worst was laying down to go to bed like "i killed a bunch of mammals today", "those things had brains, thoughts" which ive never shaken off.

[anoopsiedaisie]

My Fionna and Cake episode 7&8 tangent

Lets start it off with the score. 20/20 it was fantastic. my stupid theory post will happen eventually, and I will ABSOLUTELY TALK ABOUT PETRIGROF

The star - Cake thinking Fionna was upset cause her fling died was silly, Fionna was clearly upset before about the candy people. The fight with the vampires was funny but intense, I love how Cake and Fionna care a lot about eachother. Also why does Simon know what holy water taste like. Pb and "Star" was so cute, and I was so right when I talked about us getting more Bubbline on tiktok (Tiktok account is not linked anywhere btw) The vampire world is super sad though, cause they had really been eating for so long, that a potential thousands of people died. Marshall and Gary really lit up the episode from the sadness once again, Gary's tangents of his candy kingdom are so cute. AND HIS HAMBO THINGY IN HIS CAR. Marten and baby Finn are so cute, I wanna legit cry cause HES MEANT TO BE A GOOD DAD BUT HES SO STUPID IN THE OG UNIVERSE. Also imma say this now, Prismo gets in trouble for breaking the rules once and ignoring a few beeps, BUT Scarab ignores several beeps and his entire job and doesn't get in trouble, that boss better have a good reason. Second date (potentially) and Marshall already introducing his boyfriend to his mom, damn. Marshall's mom matches og Hunson perfectly somehow, duche parent club. And Marshall's little blush of embarrassment from his mom acting all weird infront of Gary. Billy's corpse is messed up, like reall messed up, and the reminder of how tall he is is also crazy. I was also wondering the entire time if Pb was human in this universe until she bit off half her arm basically. The Star's outfit is so good, but I wonder how she turned into a vampire now, maybe she was bit in front of that worlds Simon's body and thats why she screamed at something. Already long section so I'll end it here with, I LOVED THIS ENTIRE EPISODE, Huntress dying was sad though, and Gary Marshall kiss was adorable. Closing thought of this episode, Bubbline but toxic yuri. Jerry - Simon and Betty better get a happy ending or I will legit be so sad, they love each other so much, and Betty just legit became part of a god over her Fiance once celebrity crush. I love how gorgeous everything is in this show, Orbo is also a funny character. I feel like someone could narrow down where things and places they go in this Lich's wish universe it'd seem fun at first then spiral though. Simon does NOT know how to draw though get this man an art class. The tree house being naked though, all its leaves gone. Lich's wish to kill all life, really just unironically killed ALL life, down to plants. Fun little references to old episodes, and including one that revolved around Ice king, hmm. Also I wonder the age gap between Betty and Simon, I like to see it as they're like a year apart but Simon just skipped grades cause hes a smart cookie. Also Simon had slides ready for people to be loud, HE WAS READY. Nerd girls in love. I am also guessing Bmo has been alone for awhile now, at least since season 5ish times since thats when the Lich would have made this wish. All the references in Ice King's junk from the melted ice kingdom. Ninja guide books, kunai, vhs tapes and the camera, the pink diary, his bed has the wishing amulet that Gunter used to break bottles. I was RIGHT

Fionna see's how unhealthy Ice King was, and changes her mind and wants him to not become this sad sad man again. Simon would genuinely be such a sweet and wonderful parent, he loved taking care of the babies in the baby universe, and he sees Fionna get happy when he tells his story with Betty and keeps doing it to keep her happy. Neddy is also guaranteed dead, already obvious but the candy kingdom doesn't have the juices being produced. Bmo has done a lot in his isolation, a lot of stuff is changed or moved, I feel so bad for bmo. But the lines "Help me zip up my bra" and "Ooo, butt stuff" Wow. The Simon and Betty stuff makes me so happy, they're so cute and I love them, they need to have a happy ending or I will be so sad. The lesbians ever, I love these lesbians, let the lesbians be happy. Simon struggling to say he loves her is so CUTE. Poor Bmo, I feel so bad, but he was probably so sad being alone, sad in someway. Petrigrof moment was so cute and adorable please, I want them so happy, they deserve to be happy. Now for the bombshell, Jerry. The Lich's wish monkey paw aspect is that he gets depressed and has nothing to do now that all life is gone. Billy's body decomposing as the Lich parasites it. SO, imma theory my reason for the portal finally opening to GolBetty, either it was because the Lich was used as the battle and influenced it in a way to allow it to finally work, OR Betty's wish to keep Simon safe truly included the crown being worn. Like the crown really did trigger GolBetty like "BITCH, NO" or the third that makes probably the most sense, The Scarab was literally about to kill Simon and go against what Betty wants, meaning she is going to interfere. I saw someone say that GolBetty likely wont remember Simon and this could cause something. BUT I REALLY HOPE THEY DONT DO THAT, I WANT THEM HAPPY SO BADLY

[sinkingquail]

an analysis of taliesin through the lens of astrology

DISCLAIMER: i don't claim to know everything about taliesin (i haven't beaten the game with him yet, oops). or astrology. nor is astrology for everyone. please take everything with a heaping spoonful of salt, thank you /gen. tl;dr at the end.

when you first meet taliesin, he's a cornered animal. he's surrounded by people he killed, about to bleed to death (and is hallucinating lol). then, a stranger comes up and sees a thalmor agent next to a ton of corpses. and what does he do?

he very matter-of-factly states that he did, indeed kill all the people around him and laughs about it. he insults your outfit when you call him a "monster". he tells you that he "carved out the heart" of a man because he insulted his dagger. what the heck, bro??

(this is of course not the most normal of circumstances)

holy fuck, if that doesn't scream deflection i don't know what does. this is a guy that is doing everything in his power to not show weakness, especially in such a dire situation.

for this reason, i believe taliesin is a scorpio rising. scorpio is what we call a "fixed water sign" which is essentially ice, so think cold, calculating, takes a while to warm up. scorpio risings are known for giving off stand-offish, dark, yet magnetic vibes. they're also known for putting up tons of walls when they're feeling vulnerable.

as you travel alongside tally, he opens up. he's still his sarcastic, incredibly straight-forward self (if you're playing an argonian, he will ask you if you're related to... smaller lizards lol). but he'll also make comments on how beautiful the night sky is, he'll tell you about how he wants to visit raven rock and elsweyr after exploring skyrim, he'll likely leave if you weren't adventuring, this mer wants to GO PLACES after being stuck doing lord knows what with the thalmor for who knows how long. i'm not quite sure if this guy has ever had the chance to just be his own person for once. ANYWAYS

i think a sagittarius sun best describes taliesin. they're what we call a "mutable fire sign" which combines the passion of the fire element with the fluidity of the mutable modality (this is basically a fancy way of saying "going with the flow"). these natives are known as "truth-seekers" for their inexplicable desire to understand and do not give a fuck if challenging the status quo is frowned upon (ok, with the thalmor it's a bit harder to do that). they're really philosophical, adventurous, and absolutely detest being tied down.

okay, now we're gonna move to the moon sign which is arguably the side of taliesin we see last: his emotions. i'm going to start byanalyzing this quote from him:

"Ah, a fellow insomniac. Seems you and I might have more in common than anticipated. My nights will be less lonely now."

what a roundabout way of saying "i can't sleep and i'm alone with my thoughts, i would really appreciate companionship". he's blunt about other things (this man does NOT pull punches... especially when it comes to your clothes lol) but when it comes to opening up further about his loneliness? nope nope not happening lol. it's like he's hinting at his emotions instead of flat out saying them. this sort of detachment also comes up in the next quote:

"To think, I could be bleeding to death peacefully in a pristine forest"

except this time, it's less about being emotionally vulnerable and more about thinking about his own death, but like, he's prodding the idea with a six-foot-long pole. regardless, he leaves the "wow, i would have died without you" part unsaid. he's using humor to neatly skirt around the part where without the player's intervention and random luck, he would've died. (he also has a quote about haunting you if he dies, which is a lovely example of his dark humor)

to me, this is indicative of a capricorn moon.

these guys are compartmentalizers. they want to push all their emotions into little boxes and hide them in the attic but forget that everything will break down eventually from the sheer weight. they are PRACTICAL, and they don't really believe that there's room for emotions when it comes to getting shit done. and they do indeed get shit done. they also tend to have incredibly high expectations for themselves and kinda just assume the worst in others? this makes a pretty weird dynamic with his sagittarius sun, which absolutely does want to be optimistic and open-minded. there's (probably) a lot of conflict there on his world outlook.

deep breath

okay, so for taliesin we have sun in sagittarius, moon in capricorn, and scorpio rising. the moon in capricorn + scorpio rising both contribute a lot to his seemingly cold and detached exterior, especially in the beginning. it's hard for him to open up ("well this has been fun, making myself emotionally vulnerable") but at the same time, makes his emotions run deep. once he opens up it's a whole new story.

he also has a self-proclaimed "lust for life", which i believe is the influence of his sagittarius sun. i think that taliesin really does want to go out there, explore the world, ponder life's questions, and grow, which of course he couldn't do with the thalmor.

okay, last one i swear:

we're gonna talk about my favorite, which is the asteroid chiron. it symbolizes what we call the "wounded healer" in astrology, and gives insight on where your "life wounds" are and how to heal from them.

his… less than kind childhood thanks to a shitty father points to chiron in the fourth house, which is essentially indicating some sort of wound that is related to his home life (the fourth house concerns home, family, and security).

but how does this manifest in him?

aside from struggling to find a "true home" or place where he's accepted for who he is, i think taliesin also (especially as an older sibling) feels the need to take responsibility (aka: stop the ldb from doing stupid shit), probably struggles with feelings of inadequacy, and is fiercely protective of the dragonborn ("You want them? You'll have to get through me first!", he also says something along the lines of "don't go too far ahead, i don't want to lose you in the fog". he also latches onto them very quickly which i'd love to talk about, but alas)

as a result of this, i believe his chiron is also in capricorn. people with their capricorn in chiron feel a constant need to prove themselves - when you combine this with chiron in the 4th house, it basically says:

taliesin grew up in an authoritative household that placed incredibly high expectations on him. as a result of this pressure, he struggles with deep-rooted self-esteem issues (i have the feeling his aura of self-confidence is a way to convince himself of his positive traits, fake it til you make it ig) and perhaps, a need for control in his environment. the ldb is so so so important to him. they bring a sense of stability, purpose, companionship, and genuine acceptance of him, which are all things that he hasn't really experienced. brb, crying

i might just be pulling all of this out of my ass, so again, don't take this too seriously lol i barely know what i'm talking about

TL;DR taliesin's scorpio rising gives him a somewhat cooler exterior that hides his emotional vulnerabilities (cough chiron in capricorn) that is further swept aside by his capricorn moon. however, there's a deep passion for adventure and a quest for truth from his sagittarius sun, which helps balance out the more cynical sides of him, especially when you take into account all the trauma this mer has. this has to be the weirdest crossover of my interests i've seen. i know not everyone cares for astrology, but i find it to be a really interesting way to analyze characters and is an excellent tool for introspection. taliesin is doing a great job. he's really respectful about boundaries, i like to think he's gone to therapy at least a little. keep it up, tally <3

[chuckeroo777]

Frieren Liveblog- Chapter 17-20

Welcome back! Demons be demoning. Time to put a stop to it.

Maybe it's just the wording, but is Qual not a demon? Based on the fact that all of them have been screwed up humanoids, I kinda assumed Demon was another blanket term for the monsters, but I guess Aura and her demons are different.

No no. We already killed the guy who leaves people hanging.

On a more serious note, I wonder if Flamme had some secret advantage that gave her magic such strength. She was apparently one of the first humans to use magic. Maybe her rough primal magic is resilient to the more refined modern forms of magic.

Is that how it works? I feel like this would just suggest you killed him, but maybe they have special orders.

I feel like I'm noticing a pattern. These demons are so arrogent, and so used to mimicking normal human behavior, that even simple ruses work wonders.

Good thing Fern can make Stark float too. Right? Right???

Prodigy shmodigy. Frieren is super old, and has clearly earned every bit of her raw power.

I'm curious if fantasy racism is going to be a character flaw of Frieren's, or if she's just really on the money when it comes to demons.

There is something incredibly funny about how cordial Frieren is with the demons, even when she is basically telling them to surrender or die.

Hmm, one of them had the Granat family pendant. Is Frieren just noting their general prestige, or does she personally know some of these corpses?

Oh wow, rude. These corpse warriors had their heads cut off after becoming dominated.

Well, hopefully this means it would be foolish of her to try it on Frieren.

Whelp, she's dead.

Honestly the smart play. Too bad Frieren is busy 20 kilometers away, being a badass.

Ok, first of all, rude.

Second, I would have thought that trying to copy Stark's raw strength would rip your puny body apart, but I guess she is a demon.

Fern has a trick up her sleeves, doesn't she? Her demeanor should obviously tip Lord Umlaut that something is amiss, but as we've established, demons don't understand human emotions.

Ah, the classic trick. She caught him monologuing. Demons are powerful, but so far they all seem like one-trick ponies.

Don't worry about it Frieren. It happens to all of us as we get older.

That being said, I'm curious if this will be a consistent bit of characterization for Fern, or if it's just a one-off detail to win the day.

Geez, at this rate, he's gonna keel over from blood loss. How much blood does this asshole have?

Something, something, natural talent and hard work together make you better than either alone? The point is, she knows her advantage, and she will use it.

Also, why do you care about the ethics of Frieren's training? Is it just because it is personally inconveniencing you?

Okay, now I'm curious about demon lifespans. Here, she looks like a toddler, but in the present, she looks to be in her late teens. This was nearly 80 years ago, so I suppose demons have lifespans similar to elves.

Oh, sure, when Eisen says it, it's sage wisdom, but when I use ridiculous revival chains to stall out opponents, its considered cheese.

Your technique may be impressive, but at the end of the day, you're just a weak little girl with an axe.

Huh. Maybe demons aren't so different after all. Linie's death caused you to panic. Maybe demons can form emotional connections.

Whelp, I don't want to stop there! Stay tuned for the next post shortly!

[pokepasta-fluffcanons]

Sup, Fairy Anon here! 🧚‍♀️ (A.K.A. the person who requested the Steven x Reader about Reader being able to see ghosts LOL, I wanted to identify myself)

First of all, WOW, thank you for doing my request, I loved it so much! >w< ♡

And now, I saw poor Mt. Silver Red didn't have content SO I MUST CHANGE THAT

Red x a Reader who was already trapped in Mt Silver since, well, way before he was trapped

I think he deserves a buddy so he isn't all alone until Gold appears ♡

(U can choose if this is platonic, romantic or both, I just want poor corpse baby to have some nice company)

Do... do you think I could write a oneshot for this? :0

*You've been trapped on Mount SIlver for... way too long, you've unfortunately lost track of time

*You made the terrible mistake of not bringing A) enough pokemon with you, B) a fire type to keep you warm, or C) a flying type to get you off the mountain

*You knew you weren't going to make it very long up there... so you just accepted your and your Pokemon's fates.

*That is... until someone else had decided to make the climb up the mountain. Red.

*You were rather happy to see someone else here with you, but... you felt a bit sad/nervous about someone sharing your fate

*Red was rather surprised to find you up on Mount Silver, and noticed just how cold and... lonely, you looked

*It was then that he decided that you weren't going to be alone anymore, that he would stay up on this mountain with you, which caught you off guard. Why would he do that for you..?

*There was no convincing Red to leave, so you two end up becoming close friends, the two of you keeping each other company and keeping each other warm

*Red told you about his adventures and you told him yours. You got to know each other very well, as there was nothing else to really do up on the freezing mountain

*After several months of the two of you spending practically every waking moment together, Red had decided that it would be a great idea to confess his feelings for you

*You had to take a moment to process, before you told him that the feelings were mutual

*You may have been freezing to death on this mountain, but at least you had each other, and that's what mattered to you two

[oldeazeroth]

I was hearing a lot about the Hardcore WoW challenge & decided to give it a try. I wanted to share some of my thoughts here because I think some of the people who follow this blog might enjoy the experience as well! The post ended up being kind of long so please feel free to ignore if you’re not interested.

For those who don’t know, Hardcore Classic is a fan-made game mode in the same spirit as an ironman challenge. There are several rules but the main ones are 1) character death is permanent 2) you cannot ask for help or group with others (outside of very specific circumstances), and 3) you cannot trade, mail, or use the AH. Everything you use must be found in the world, crafted by you, or bought from a vendor. There is an addon that can be downloaded to verify your run. It can be played on any server, but many people chose to play on the public WoW servers that fans have adopted for the challenge, because you can only complete dungeons and raids with other HC players under the HC rules. More info can be found here - https://classichc.net/

At first I thought it sounded nuts, but gave it a shot because I had nothing to lose. I created a character with the exact same class/race as my first WoW character (I was even able to snag the same name), and as I spawned into Mulgore I almost immediately understood the appeal. There were so many other players around doing the same challenge. The game felt shockingly alive because of how active the server was. But what was really amazing was how the hardcore restrictions changed the way I experienced the game & took me back to the first time I ever played.

I have a distinct memory from my first character, a Tauren Druid, and leaving Mulgore for the first time to make the trek to Crossroads through Camp Taurajo. That walk felt so intimidating, seeing level ?? thunder lizards standing off the side of the road. I feel like I probably held my breath until I finally made it to Crossroads. Today, if I were to create a new Tauren on a classic era server, though I would have to make that same walk, I would not feel that fear because the game no longer has that same mystery for me . The thunder lizards are only level 20, and if I die, it’s no big deal to corpse run and try again. But under the Hardcore ruleset, that’s not an option. If I die, that’s it. I found myself making that run with the same level of caution that I gave it during my first ever playthrough, keeping my eyes peeled off both sides of the road. And feeling safe when I finally got to Crossroads. That alone was an amazing feeling to experience again!

As I started to level up in the Barrens, I reached a point where the quests were starting to out level me and decided to make the trek to Silverpine to continue. I was level 13, making my way to the Sepulcher. I was nearly there, and went off path to gather some herbs. Out of nowhere, a Son of Arugal, a level ?? elite, appeared. It was over before I could react and I felt so defeated.

A few days later, I got the motivation to delete the character and begin again. Another Tauren Druid. I leveled my way back to the same point where I left off in the Barrens and thought, either I can play it safe here and grind a level or two, or I can head to Silverpine again and be on my guard this time. I opted for Silverpine to prove to myself I could do it. I got there and completed some quests, constantly watching my back the whole time. As I walk towards a cave I saw him in the distance once again, the Son of Arugal. I noped out of there immediately, ran halfway across the zone and grinded out the few bars I had left to level. As soon as I dinged, I hearthed out of Silverpine for good. It left me excited though, that I was able to face Silverpine once again & learn from my mistake the first time. It was not only exciting to navigate around it, but it made the zones themselves feel like unique places once again, each with their own obstacles & traps.

I’m only level 14 now, and I’m realizing every zone from here on out will likely have it’s own Son of Arugal lurking in the shadows. I doubt I will make it to 60 because I don’t have a ton of underlying knowledge about the world, but for the time being the experience so far has been worth the time. It’ll be painful when my character inevitably dies but at that point I’ll feel okay putting away hardcore mode for a bit.

I don’t intend on writing posts like this in the future, but wanted to share because I know there are so many people who feel nostalgic about the game. This game mode really has the potential to bring some of those feelings back into the game, and at least for the time being, the servers are well populated and feel just as alive as they did back then. Anyway, thanks for reading!

[moonlite-drabbles]

Underwater Caves (must be mapped) - Freminet x Mika

cws: cave diving, awkward interactions (to start), earthquakes, non-fatal injury, technically canon compliant.

~

He first met him four hundred feet underwater.

Well, met is the wrong word. Freminet saw the boy—dressed in a deep blue Mondstadt Knight uniform, exploring the very same underwater caves that Freminet was diving in. And so, out of both curiosity and shyness, Freminet decided to neither leave him alone, nor introduce himself.

So, for the past few days, Freminet had been… trailing behind, so to speak.

Aside from his attire, it was obvious he was not native. It was almost endearing, watching him struggle to figure out how to use water spirits to fight beneath water, or watching him stumble into a current and get dragged across the rolling underwater plains.

Freminet knew it was slightly creepy—well, incredibly creepy—but he couldn't find it in himself to care. Lyney and Lynette were the public figures after all. And besides, Freminet had been diving professionally for years, and one of the most common types of job given to him are rescue missions; which commonly turn out to be body recollection missions. Freminet has seen his share of bloating, discolored corpses trapped in diving gear—both expensive and cheap.

Sure, the boy had a vision—cryo, like him—meaning he couldn’t drown within the bounds of Fontaine, but there were other ways to perish.

Still, stalking was… bad. Very bad. Unless Father requested it of him, he didn’t do it.

So, the next time he saw Mika surface in the air pocket of an underwater cave system, he resolved to actually meet the boy, planning to reveal himself and say hello.

He took a breath, steadying himself as he stood—hid, more like—a little ways away. Before either building up the courage or losing the nerve though, the other boy spoke.

“Hello?” The boy called out. “I-I know you’re there.”

Oh. Oh archons. The boy knew Freminet was there. Well—Freminet was going to show up anyway, but still, it was different when he was out on a timer.

Freminet shuffled out into the open where the boy could see him, giving him a small wave. “…hi.”

The blue eyed boy—and wow those eyes were very blue—smiled awkwardly, tilting his head. “Ah—well, I don’t mean to really be blunt, but, I-uh, have noticed you following me while I dive for the past two days.”

“Oh.”

“Ha—yeah. Um, what—may I ask what that’s about?”

“Oh. You… didn’t seem very confident diving. I didn’t want you to get trapped down here. Plus I was in the area... sorry.”

“Oh—well, that’s fine, I guess. My name is Mika.”

“Oh I’m Freminet.” The conversation lulled for a moment, then, with great effort, Freminet spoke again. “You’re a knight, from Mondstadt, right?”

“Yes, I am a frontline surveyor for the Knights of Favonius.” Realizing how that may sound, he quickly amended; “I’m not on duty though! I do a lot of cartography for the knights—and just cause I like it. I’m on vacation right now technically, ha… not making illegal Military maps for Fontaine.”

“This isn’t the best place to map if you were, anyways.” Freminet shrugged. “No use in mapping ruins if you were doing stuff in the military.”

“I suppose not… oh, sorry, you’ve been standing there so long. Feel free to sit! I always pack extra food too—“

“Thank you.” Freminet said, taking a seat beside Mika.

“So uhm, Freminet, right?”

“Yes.”

“You’re a diver.”

“I am.”

“That’s cool.”

“Thanks.”

Silence.

“Um… what do you do?”

Mika looked at Freminet, an almost concerned tilt to his eyebrows. Oh, right, Mika had already told him.

“Knight. Right. Sorry. I’m not good at this.” Freminet looked away, embarrassed. No. Mortified. Ah, of course he was messing this up. He should have never even approached Mika. Why wasn’t Lyney here—

Mika laughed. Freminet snapped out of his spiral, enchanted by the light chime of Mika’s bubbly laughter.

“Ha—sorry! Sorry! I’m not laughing at you I promise.” Mika struggled to restrain his laughter. “Don’t worry—really. I’m terrible at this too.”

Freminet smiled, a bit awkward, a bit strange, no teeth or mirth to it, but still, he smiled. “What are you mapping?”

“I-oh. Like I said, I’m mapping the ruins down here. I’ve not really worked underwater before, but these are all really interesting. The terminology and key signals for underwater mapping are very interesting too, ha.”

“Will the maps be damaged if they get wet?” Freminet asked quietly.

“Not these ones, the ink and the parchment are waterproof, and covered in a waxy layer. Still, I like to do my mapping on dry land, just in case. Writing underwater can be difficult.”

Freminet nodded, not quite feeling the obligation to respond.

“I'm headed in deeper, since I should have the supplies. I found the remnants of a cave-in earlier today. The—um, floor of the cavern up ahead was the ceiling to one under it, so when it shifted the new path was opened.”

Huh. Freminet would have to take note of that. Quietly, he spoke up. “Well, the deeper in, the more common underwater tremors are. If that part of the cave was unstable, others can also

Mika’s shoulders drooped a bit, catching onto what Freminet was saying. “So you think I shouldn’t proceed?”

“I, sorry, I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

Mika smiled a bit. “No—Don’t worry about it! I’d be a fool not to listen to the diving expert on this.”

Still, Freminet felt a small pang. Mika did seem excited…

“I could go with you. I’m good at recognizing the warning signs. Besides, I’ve been here a lot.”

“Oh, no, really, I’ll just head back to the surface, no need to accommodate me—that’s fine, r-really!” Mika rushed to reassure him, and Freminet suddenly felt even more bad. Still, the thought of helping the Mondstadt boy through the ruins and caverns made his heartbeat jump.

“I would like to help, if you’d want me to.”

“I—well. If you like to. But only if I can pay your commission fee. You’re a professional, right?”

“…Yes.” Freminet answered. “But I’m really willing to do this free of charge.”

“No, really, I want to pay! Especially if I’m taking your time.”

“…alright.” Freminet agreed. Then, suddenly, he remembered he was down here for a reason. Right, work. “But, we’d have to do it tomorrow. I have to finish my current job.”

“Is it anything I can help with? Since you're helping me?”

Freminet shook his head. “I already completed it. I just need to surface and turn it in.”

“Alright, then I’m probably going to resurface as well, I’d rather not stay here overnight…”

“We can go together…?” Freminet offered, somewhat nervously, as if he might be rejected. But Mika just smiled.

“Sure!”

~

Mika followed Freminet’s route back through the water to the surface, trusting him to lead them correctly. The thought made Freminet feel sickeningly nervous and a little prideful all at once.

Mika was a sight, gliding through the water. Of course, Freminet knew this when he was watching him, but it was different up close. He was slim, not containing the specific muscle build that a diver like Freminet had, lean, with long legs despite his stature. He was almost doe-like. The wetsuit he was in helped too. Freminet wondered how he’d look against the Fontainian countryside, or bounding through forests, over fallen logs and exposed roots.

He pretended the chill of the water was to blame for his blush. Mika didn’t notice after all.

He probably should have taken the direct path back up to the city, but something in Freminet had him taking Mika through the scenic paths, past the sea otters and the titalgia, the kelp and the spirit creatures.

Mika let out a small laugh as a stingray weaved around him, reaching his hand out to skim over its back. Freminet paused in the water, waiting for him, face carefully blank. Mika apologized sheepishly, flashing a small smile and a scratch to the back of his neck, before swimming to catch up.

Coming to the harbor, the sky had darkened, even if the sun didn’t quite dip over the horizon yet. It must have been late, dinner time. He usually didn’t stay out this late.

Probably why both Lyney and Lynette were waiting by the docks.

“Freminet!” Lyney called out, waving before trotting over to them, Lynnette following slowly.

“Hi.” Freminet responded.

“You’re later than usual.” Lynette said, her eyes catching on Mika. “And you brought… someone.”

“H-hello.” Mika greeted his siblings with a small wave, a bit of a nervous tint to his voice. He turned back to Freminet. “Thank you for your help, Freminet. I’ll see you tomorrow?”

Freminet nodded. “It was of no issue. Have a nice day, Mika.”

“Bye!” Lyney waved after him, Lynette simply watching as he disappeared.

As soon as Mika was out of sight, two, catlike eyes snapped to him.

“Who was that?” Lyney asked, a grin stretched across his face.

“Nobody.” Freminet answered, too quickly. Immediately he regretted it—Mika obviously was somebody. And now he caught the catlike attention of his siblings. He should have just said he was someone who got lost. Freminet mentally steeled himself. “Well—I mean. I met him in the bay. He’s not from around here.”

Lynette, who had at some point summoned a cup of tea, tapped her spoon on the edge of the porcelain cup, “Mondstadter accent. Rented wetsuit. Seems true enough.”

“Meeting up with him tomorrow though? How interesting. Did you accept a commission?” Lyney wondered.

“I—yes. I suppose I did.”

“You don't accept spontaneous commissions though.” Lynette said.

“Not once!” Lyney added, suddenly at Freminet’s side.

“Seems our baby brother made a friend.” Lynette added too casually, before sipping her tea.

“Hm, by the looks Fremi gave him though… maybe not…”

Oh no. Oh nonono. Freminet stood, mortified as his siblings took the situation and sprinted with it, matching catlike mischief on their faces. “Guys…”

“Sooooo…” Lyney’s voice startled Freminet from his trance. His brother practically danced around him, ignoring Freminet’s attempts to bat him away before he flung himself over Freminet’s shoulders. “A Mondstadt boy? How unexpected!—especially from my sweet baby brotherrrr—”

“Lynette.” Freminet said quietly, calling out for his sister to save him. To have mercy.

“It is intriguing.” Lynnette said. “What was his last name again?”

His only savior, betraying him. “It’s—it’s not—we’re—I’m not-!”

“Shh.” Lyney cut him off. He was in front of him now, tutting his finger. “Don’t worry, big brother Lyney is gonna help you get the boy.”

“After a background check.” Lynette reminded him, tapping her spoon against the rim of her teacup.

“Aaand a little bit of reconnaissance.” Lyney agreed.

“Please don’t.” Freminet whispered, head hung low. This was the worst outcome.

“Don’t worry your dear little head, baby brother. Everything will be just fine. Just let your wonderful big siblings work our magic!”

“I’m not interested in him, I’m just helping him out a bit—he’s not an experienced diver.”

“You were staring at him like you wanted to tear open his back panel and look at his components, Freminet.”

“I wasn't—what does that even mean?”

“Bad analogy, brother.” Lynette, finally, decided to have mercy. “And don’t worry about it Freminet, I’ll keep Lyney out of trouble.”

“I’d prefer if you kept out of it entirely. It’s just a commission, you don’t need to stalk him…” Freminet tried one final time.

His siblings both just smiled, and Freminet decided maybe it was time to die.

~

Freminet had woken up early, prepared all his gear, and was out the door before the sun was even over the horizon, the sky that light blue that came before sunrise. Perhaps it was a bit overkill, but without a specified time, Freminet didn’t want to be late.

When he arrived at the docks though, he mentally berated him for his stupidity. Who would come out at six in the morning? Likelihood was that Freminet would wait upwards of two hours for Mika to arrive. He paces the empty docks. What should he do? What would he say?

Ultimately, Freminet decided that, since Mika had shared his food with him yesterday, he’d go to a nearby cafe and grab something for the both of them. To pay him back, of course. Besides—His client etiquette was something he needed to work on, according to both Lyney and Father.

Somewhat impulsively, he spun around, heading towards a cafe near the docks.

He stared at the pastry displays, would a Mondstadter like coffee? It’s not very popular over there, he thought. Mondstadt was known for wine, and if not wine, grape juice. Eggs were a safe bet—Everywhere eats eggs, right?—maybe a breakfast sandwich. Or would he like something sweet? Fontaine was very good at sweets.

Eventually, Freminet decided on a Fontainian classic. A couple sweet croissants—Fontaine was incredibly good at executing them, and unless Mika disliked sugar, he should like these.

But what if he did? Freminet hesitated, should he also grab something else, maybe something less sweet? Before he could make any changes, the cashier had wrapped up the breakfast and Freminet had no choice but to scuttle out the door.

He trotted back back to the docks, the little to-go bag clutched in his hand. Upon arriving, he nearly jumped seeing Mika, sitting on the pier. Mika heard him apparently, head turning.

“Oh! Hello Freminet, sorry if I’m a bit early. I set out early then realized maybe that wasn’t the best idea, ha.” Mika looked… bashful, maybe. People were difficult.

Freminet froze a moment, taking in the sight of Mika sitting at the dock, legs dangling off the side, tips of his feet skimming the water, making little ripples. He was in the wetsuit from yesterday. It looked good above water as well. Mika was lean and a little on the shorter side, but it helped him. Freminet took a small breath.

A moment of silence, before they both spoke: “I brought us breakfast-”

Another moment of silence, staring at one another. Freminet’s face felt hot—he really hoped he wasn’t blushing.

Mika smiled awkwardly. “Oh—wow. Ha. Seems we both had the same idea. If you like, we can pack one of ours up for a snack later?”

“Sure. Um—We can eat yours now?” Freminet carefully lowered himself to the dock, sitting next to Mika.

“If you want.” Mika said, a bit quieter. He handed Freminet a small, paper wrapped piece of food.

It was a homemade breakfast sandwich. Sunny side up egg, lettuce, ham, and cheese on some sort of bagel like bread. He felt sort of embarrassed, since this was obviously homemade. Freminet wasn’t often one for this type of food, but it tasted really good, and he couldn’t help but finish it in mere minutes—something he quickly felt embarrassed about when he looked back to Mika and realized he was only about halfway through his sandwhich.

Mika just laughed though. “Ha—I suppose it’s not just the other knights who enjoy my cooking.”

“It was good. Thank you.” Freminet used the excuse of wiping his face to turn away.

“I—Well—You’re welcome.” Mika turned away as well. “Uhm—so, I have all the maps written out, leading up to the caves we’ll be going into. I’m not sure if we’ll have access to those little ocean spirits—you know, the blue sea creatures that give you abilities underwater?—I don’t know if there'll be any inside the ruins so I marked off the places where I spotted some yesterday.”

“They’re called aberrants. And that’s good. We should steer clear of the destructive ones… the crab and the jellyfish.”

“Y-yeah. I’d rather not trigger a cave-in. Perhaps you could grab a blab—uhm, sorry; I’m not sure how to pronounce it, ‘blubber beast?’, and I’ll grab the hunter's ray.”

Freminet nodded once. “That’s a good idea.”

Mika smiled, cheerful. “Alright. Ready to dive in?”

~

The plan was this: acquire the aberrants needed, based on Mika’s map, head into the caves and ruins they were in before, and dive as deep as possible while Mika mapped and Freminet kept them safe.

It was an easy job. An easy order—and Freminet was excellent at blocking the world out and following commands.

But he just couldn’t seem to tune the world out when Mika was there. Freminet looked to him often—not unusual, for him to try to gauge the emotions of an employer, but he was looking far to much, and was far to invested in how much Mika was enjoying himself.

So much so, he didn’t heed to warnings the ocean gave him when the shallow fields where hunter rays would roam were strangely empty.

He just shrugged, gesturing for Mika to follow him to the next spot, the trench where blubberbeasts liked to sleep.

No aberrants there either.

The sea was… tranquil. Barren. The way the shallows got when a downpour would scare the fish away. The ocean still as it’s residents hid. It wasn’t the most unusual, but…

They had until dark to get into and out of the ruins—it was a one day trip, and swimming home in the dark wasn’t a good idea—even in the shallows. The two of them were operating on a clock, so to say.

When their search came up empty yet again, Freminet bit his lip, hesitating for a second, before he made the gesture for the two of them to surface.Mika, of course, nodded, following him up until they broke the surface of the water, treading.

Mika’s breaths were a bit heavy. Despite the fact his vision allowed him to breathe in water, swimming was still an exhausting task that strained certain muscles—ones that a foreigner wouldn’t have developed. It was strange to think swimming wasn’t a way of life within Mondstadt. Diving? Sure, it’s dangerous as a baseline and not many in Fontainians even do it. But swimming was basically a part of the people of Fontaine. Some learn to swim before taking their first steps. Mika didn’t have that experience.

Watching Mika’s slightly red face, Freminet suddenly became aware that time wasn’t the only limit they had. Mika could only swim for so long. This was really strenuous for him. “We should take a break on the shore.”

“Hm? Oh—right. We should… probably come up with a plan.” Mika nodded, beginning to swim for the nearest beach.

Freminet moved to grab his forearm, the way he usually did when pulling drowning men to shore, only to realize before he touched Mika. He was fine—just panting. No need to coddle him.

They came to the shore, Mika sitting down in the sand, feet still in the water and Freminet following suit.

It didn’t take long for Mika to catch his breath. Just a minute—Freminet kicked himself for overreacting. He was to busy kicking himself, he didn’t realize Mika was speaking.

“—anyways, really sorry about the aberrants. They were marked down but it seems I didn’t account for everything.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Freminet responded. “Sometimes that happens. Probably just means something big came through, or the currents changed suddenly.”

“Y-yeah. I guess you’d know. Shame though, that we can’t go down today. Suppose this will have to wait until the next time I’m in Fontaine.”

Wait—“You leave soon?”

“No—not quite, but the time up until my departure I’m busy—there are some requests that will take a few days to carry out, and then I’ll leave the night after I finish. Sorry about wasting your time—I-I’ll be sure to pay you in full though!”

Freminet froze, somehow the concept of Mika’s departure hadn’t even crossed his mind. “Oh.”

“S-sorry.” Mika said sheepishly.

“I mean. We still have time—If you’re alright with it, we can go down and try to find an aberrant in the cave. Or we can just go without one. Only if you’re fine with it though.”

“I… I guess I won’t get this chance for a long while.” Mika shot a look towards the tranquil waters of the sea in front of them. The blue curtain of the ocean, with the glare of the sun reflecting off it. It looked so calm, and the feeling of <em>this-will-go-fine</em> was tempting.

Freminet waited.

Mika took in a breath, “Alright. Let’s go.”

~

In retrospect, Freminet should have dragged them back to the surface

The quiet scratch of the quill against Mika’s parchment. The clicking of Pers’ clockwork insides.

The small air pocket they were resting in was silent. But it didn’t feel uncomfortable. Mika was content to map. Freminet was content to tinker.

They’d been in the caverns for nearly an hour, and they’d just recently reached the stretches of the cavern that was unmapped. So far everything was fine—they hadn’t come across any aberrants, but hadn’t met any enemies or obstacles that necessitated them either.

Aberrants were strange creatures—or ‘spirits’, as some people referred to them. They were incredibly in tune with their enviroment, and recided in the same ecosystems as their more physical counterparts.

Still, as a diver, Freminet felt a little… bare, without the power of an aberrant on his shoulder. He had his claymore, but that would be difficult to wield underwater. Oh well.

“One moment. I’m just about done.” Mika said distractedly. His eyes were trained down on the, parchment, quill scratching across the paper quickly. Freminet didn’t know anyone could write that fast, let alone draw.

Mika suddenly stopped, looking over his work with a scrutinizing eye. He set his quill aside for his ruler, carefully measuring each line of his. Making sure they were proportional.

“How often would you say these caves shift in measurements?” Mika asked. “I want to add notes about margins of error in case anyone needs to travel these.”

“… well, the water currents will slowly widen the passages over time by wearing down the walls and carrying off the minerals, but that takes multiple decades. Other than that, it’s only really cave in’s, or thermal vents acting abnormally that will change the layout… or earthquakes.”

Mika nodded, noting that down. “How frequent are earthquakes?”

“The lower you get the more common they are. Usually they’re small, and hardly ever noticed on the surface. Just one won’t affect the caves too much. But unsteady rocks can shift, or weak rock can crack.”

“Alright, what’s the correlation between depth and their frequency? Is there any specific checkpoints where they get more—”

They went silent as the very rock they sat on, shook.

“… uh, F-Freminet?” Mika whispered, staring at the ground, frozen.

The shaking continued for four, long seconds. Neither of them moved, except for Mika turning his head to him, eyes wide, silently asking him what to do.

The shaking stopped, and Freminet could finally breathe.

He, alone, was used to the phenomenon. It wasn’t too common, something he’d only experienced a handful of times, but not something that’d freak him out. Usually.

Still, with Mika next to him, actual fear flooded his veins, icier than his vision.

“Well, I—uh… didn’t expect that. Haha…” Mika joked, but he was obviously uneasy, what with his labored breaths and the way his hands shook as he packed up his mapping equipment.

Freminet didn’t respond, turning to his depthometer.

“W-Well. You said this was pretty normal, right? Are we able to continue or should we surfa—”

Archons damned, the ground shook again.

The second tremor set the entire day into context. The missing aberrants—they’d follow their living counterparts, who could sense the changes in the earth, heading out of the region affected by the tremors. The region they were in.

“We have to surface.” Freminet said immediately, grabbing Mika by the wrist and summoning his helmet.

“Wha—you said this was normal, though?”

“We’re not deep enough for a small earthquake to be this strong, or have multiple tremors. We need to surface.”

“I—alright, let’s go.” Mika, for a moment, seemed… scared. A moment later though, he nodded, schooling his face. He hopped up, securing his extra things—his bag, notebook, etcetera—to his body, “Are we in immediate danger?”

“It’s hard to tell. Let’s go.”

They left the air pocket, returning to the underwater caves, traveling through them, working together to retrace their exit.

With Freminet’s underwater experience, being used to remembering his path and turning tail, as well as Mika’s maps, it wasn’t the most difficult to start on the path back.

The rock around them only trembled once as they started to leave. Five minutes in, everything seemed calm. Seemed.

Then, the ceiling happened.

The ceiling. The damn cavern ceiling.

They were in a smaller corridor, easily fifteen feet tall, with deep sea foliage splattered throughout it. Coral and kelp framing the dark cave. It wasn’t even claustrophobic. It should have been safe. Safe-ish. Until he heard it.

It shifted, once, twice. Tettering, deciding whether to collapse. The creak of stone—

Freminet swam faster, hand tightening around Mika’s upper arm as he got close, pulling him along that little bit faster.

Then, the collapse.

Behind them, luckily. They could feel the rock fall behind them—the muffled slam of it against the cavern floor, the force of it sent ripples through the water, propelling them forward a bit. The real danger was a chain reaction.

Mika made a frightened noise as a shard of rock fell strangely close, but kept up well enough.

More bits fell. Freminet didn’t dare glance behind them, but the sound was enough to convince him they were big enough to kill. He couldn’t hear his labored breaths, and could only feel his pounding heartbeat over the sounds.

He almost didn’t notice it. The rock slammed into his side. Bluntly, he felt himself shoved, as well as heard a crack.

Mika yelled something, and vaguely he realized the crack was his ribs. Definitely. Huh.

He looked down, helmet making it a bit hard, he wasn’t trapped, but there was red swirling in the water. His blood.

He closed his eyes, only for a second. Opening them, the two of them had moved.

Mika must have been pulling him along, as his arm was over the smaller’s shoulder, and the boy’s hand was wrapped around to cradle his ribs. He also must have been healing him as he swam, as it didn’t hurt.

“Frem—”

“Y-yeah?”

“Oh thank Barbatos.” Mika muttered. Distantly, Freminet was a little surprised to hear the gods name. It made sense though, Mika was a Mondstadter after all. “— earthquake is stopped for now, and we’re close to an air pocket. Should we—“

“Y-yeah, l-let’s…” Freminet said, even though talking strained him. Mika got the idea.

He was strangely calm, as Mika pulled him over his shoulder and dragged him. Sure, they were in immediate danger, but his mind couldn’t help but drift.

Growing geothermal pressure must have been building up for some time. Leading to small tremors in the earth below the region, driving away the fauna. In years past, the institute would monitor these things, but with the—oh, was Mika saying something? Between his helmet and heartbeat thumping in his ears, it was a little difficult to make out the words.

Mika must be worried, Freminet thought distantly. In a pathetic attempt of comfort, Freminet grabbed his arm a bit, squeezing once. I’m still here. Don’t worry.

They must have gotten to the pocket, as suddenly, they broke the surface of the water, and Mika heaved him over his shoulder, dragging him up and laying him down on some rock.

The tremors in the earth had been silent for a bit at this point. How long, Freminet didn’t know. It was a little difficult to process stuff.

Mika tore his helmet off him, tossing it to the side. Freminet kind of wished he didn’t, as sometime during the event, a few tears had slipped down his cheeks.

“Freminet?” Hands on his face. “Freminet? Can you count to five.”

“I-yeah. One, two, three, four, five.” He croaked out.

“Good. And where are you?”

“…underwater. With you.” Probably not enough information. “On a commission.”

Mika let out a shaky breath. “Alright. No concussion probably. I healed you a bit while we were still underwater, but I couldn't do too much. I’m going to continue, alright?”

Freminet nodded, closing his eyes.

A cold mist filled the little air pocket. Freminet peaked one eye open. Mika was holding his notebook again. When the healing flooded his body, cold and numbing against his skin, he nearly cried again. Thank the archons. Thank the Tsaritsa. Thank—

“Thank you.” Freminet’s voice was hoarse, dry, despite the wretched, humid air of the air pocket they surfaced in.

The cool rock beneath him soothed his hot body. Thoughts came easier.

“It’s no issue, really. It’s what I’m trained to do.” Mika sounded relieved, snapping his book shut.

“I’m supposed to be the one keeping us safe. That was my job. I’m sorry I failed.”

“No—really. I’m a healer. I’m supposed to keep people alive. I asked you to be my guide and you did that amazingly.” And then Mika smiled, Freminet could tell. Wanting to see it, Freminet gathered himself and forced his eyes open and looked at the other boy.

“You did well.” He mumbled, glancing away.

“No pain?” Mika scooted closer to him. “Abnormal heart rate? Lingering feelings of cold? Numbness? Do you mind if I check your pulse?”

“I—uhm.”

“O-oh, sorry—procedure. I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable, but I do need to make sure everything is working order now that you’re lucid.”

“… alright. Can… Can I wear my helmet while you do it?”

Mika looked confused for a second, but nodded. “That’s fine, so long as you can answer my questions.”

Freminet summoned his helmet, reveling in hiding in the silky velvet inside. But, even hidden behind the glass of the porthole, he couldn’t help the way his breath caught as Mika expertly grabbed his wrist.

Two fingers pressed to the vein there—caulloused slightly from wielding a polearm—Mika lips twitched as he silently counted.

“I-It’s a little fast…” Mika said, face twisting into slight concern. “I’m going to have you lay down on your back. Focus on your breathing, it could just be shock, or an issue with the cryo I healed you with.”

Or it was a product of Freminet’s sudden flustered-ness.

Probably that, because when he laid back down, counting his breaths, and caught sight of Mika sitting above him, his breathing stuttered.

Mika heard it immediately, but didn’t connect the dots, eyes immediately snapping to him. “Any pain or strain with exhaling and inhaling?”

“… no.”

Mika nodded. “Alright. Just keep calming down. Cryo healing has a small chance of connecting with the blood in the veins and freezing it. This usually never happens without the wielder realizing—the freeze reaction is very tangible—but being surrounded by water may have made me miss it. With your heartbeat being fast your body may be heating up to try and melt it. I—it’s a bit awkward, but I’m going to have to feel around your limbs. Just your fingers, for arms, and calves—! I’ll be quick, tell me if you feel anything.”

“I… I think I’ll be alright.”

“This is just standard, to ensure your safety. Rushed healing jobs can really hurt people. Especially with the cryo element, and more so underwater.”

And what was Freminet going to do? Tell Mika that he was probably the reason for his high heart rate? Absolutely not.

Deft fingers trailed up down his forearm, pressing lightly into the soft skin.

“—well, It’s a highly valued heating element for its ability to numb and painkill, but blood being a liquid makes it dangerous. D-don’t worry though! I haven't killed anyone with healing! Not yet!”

Freminet barely tuned in, trying to keep his breathing even and calm down so this could <em>stop</em>. He was definitely going to keep his helmet on for a while after this—his face was hot, and no doubt red.

Fingers pressed against the pads of his own, one by one, before moving to the next one. Mika was soft, softer than him, but his hands were calloused from wielding a polearm and being a cartographer.

Freminet closed his eyes when Mika moved to his calves, these were quicker, Mika using his palms to feel down the tendons. He pulled away soon after.

“T-there we go! All good. I didn’t find any blockages or cryo constructs, so you should be all good.”

Freminet opened his eyes, looking at Mika through the protection of his helmet. Mika…

His own face was painted with a blush.

“If you’re all good, we should head up. Healing is great, but you should always get looked at by a doctor. Also, I’m not sure how bad that earthquake was, but if it was heard on the surface then your siblings must be worried.”

“Right.” Ah. His siblings. Freminet was not mentally ready to deal with them. Today was… rough. But his body was fine. Tip top shape actually—he’s pretty sure Mika fixed that crick in his neck he’s had for years.

He took Mika’s hand, letting him help him to his feet.

~

As soon as they were on shore, Mika was herding him towards a doctor, no matter what Freminet said. Which was why he ended up laying on the white sheets of a hospital bed, arm hooked up to the IV bag. It was a little uncomfortable, under his skin, but he dealt. Tearing it out would only make everyone upset. The doctors, Mika, his siblings if they were here. He sighed, laying still as a soldier on the bed.

“A-Alright, tell them what happened, I’ll inform your siblings you’re here. Do you know where they might be?”

“…If practice ended on time, they’ll be at our house. Here—I’ll write down the address.” He forced himself up on shaky arms, only for Mika to protest, softly easing him back down and promising to remember it.

Which was also why both Lyney and Lynette burst through the door nearly ten minutes later—the walk would be twenty, did Mika run to get them? Did they also run to arrive?—immediately at his side over him, Lyney’s voice overlapping with the doctor as question after question after concern was fired off. Honestly, it was too much for Freminet, who wished he had his helmet.

“You’re alright—right?” Lynette said through the chaos, the only person who’s voice made sense. Thank god. His savior.

He turned his head, grabbing her hand and squeezing once before nodding. She nodded once in response.

“I figured. Ignore Lyney’s loudness, he’s just concerned.”

“Concerned?” Lyney whipped around from where he was facing the doctor, a look of indignation on his face. “Of course I am! An earthquake with my little brother trapped underground—it’s a miracle he’s even—”

“Indeed. He’s quite lucky he was swimming with a healer when the incident occurred. Any prolonged injury would have made it especially easy for him to become disoriented and trapped underwater.” The doctor agreed. “With the healing—which was quite potent—your brother should be discharged in just a few hours.”

“Oh… right.” Freminet said distantly. Mika. Where’d he go? He glanced around, hoping to find him in the room, except for the fact it was void of the other boy. “Mika… where’d he go? I need to thank him.”

“Mika stepped out after he brought us here, I believe.” Lynette said, looking to Lyney who nodded in agreement.

“He did seem to slip away—oh right! We also need to thank him for taking care of our brother, Lynette!” Lyney hopped up, spinning around and heading for the door, sticking his head out. Only, a moment later, he stuck it back in the room, turning to the rest of them. “Huh. He’s not in the waiting chairs outside. It seems he left.”

“Oh.” Freminet said, masking his disappointment. Alas, nothing could be kept away from his siblings cat-sharp eyes and ears.

“You really did make a new friend, huh?” Lyney smiled.

Lynette shot him a glare. “Knock it off.”

He huffed. “Whatever. I’ll talk to the doctors, see if we can’t get you discharged sooner rather than later.”

They needed to tell Father, of course. And they’d probably tell Father about Mika. Depending on how they think Father will react, they may even tell her about his dumb stupid dumb crush.

Freminet sighed, laying his head back against the scratchy hospital pillow.

He closed his eyes, listening to the ambient noises of the hospital. The chatter of Lyney speaking to the doctors on the other side of the hospital room. The muffled beeps of pagers. The rhythm of a heart monitor. He sighed, body abnormally heavy.

“I’m sorry.” Lynette said. The unprompted apology made Freminet open his eyes again, looking at her questioningly.

“…for what?”

“Your day with Mika is ruined. You seemed to like him a great deal. And you’re injured, so you will have to refrain from diving for a time. Which you enjoy.. I'm sorry about that.”

“Not badly. And… yeah. I think I liked him.” Freminet looked to the ceiling, blankly. “He was… nice.”

“It’s alright, Freminet. I’ll make this all better.”

Once again, Freminet opened his eyes, turning to his sister, and… oh no.

Sometimes, it is hard to remember that Lynette and Lyney are, in fact, twins. Near identical in many ways. Many of their physical features are close, but there were other things they shared.

Lynette met his eyes, and Freminet’s heart stopped when he saw a small smile and a spark of mischief in her eyes.

“Whatever you’re planning, please don’t.” Freminet quietly begged.

“Big sister will take care of it.” She stood slowly, walking to join their brother by the doctors.

~

A couple days later, after Freminet had gone home, and resolved himself to never seeing Mika again, there was a knock on the door.

Lyney answered, aware of the other sibling’s general hatred for small talk, and Freminet hadn’t paid it any mind, continuing to tinker with Pers at the dining room table. That was, until he heard Lyney’s frankly too loud voice.

“Oh, Mika! How nice to see you, yes, Freminet is home—”

Freminet was up from the table in seconds, darting over to the door. He ignored Lynette’s snort, coming up right behind his brother to greet Mika. “Hi.”

“H-hi! I—well, I didn’t get to pay you for the commission, and I’m about to head back to Mondstadt. I—well, sorry for showing up at your house unannounced.”

“It’s fine.” Freminet said quickly, before catching his wording. “I—it’s good. It’s nice to see you again.”

“It’s nice to see you too! I’m happy you’re alright!” Mika chirped, taking a small step forward. At some point Lyney had slipped back into the house, leaving them alone, face to face at the door.

They were quiet for a moment, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. At least, Freminet didn’t find it so. They just kinda… stood, looking at each other.

“Oh!” Mika broke the silence first, turning to ruffle through his satchel. “Right, payment!”

Payment? Oh—“…you don’t have to.” Freminet did fail after all. Both of them almost got hurt.

“No no, I got much deeper than I ever thought I would with your help, plus you risked your life for me. I-It’s only fair.” Mika pulled out a pouch, heavy with mora. “H-here.”

Freminet opened his palms, letting Mika drop the pouch into them. “…thanks…”

Mika just smiled, nodding once before waving, and turning tail to run off, probably to catch the aquabus.

Alone now, Freminet stood in the doorway, mora heavy in his hands, and Mika was gone.

He took a deep breath. It was at least nice to see him one last time. He’d shake off his dumb crush soon enough, forgetting about their fairly short time together. A few days at most. They hardly knew each other.

He sighed, turning into his house and shutting the door behind him.

Lynette and Lyney sat at the dining room table, Lyney with a smug grin, and Lynette with a cup of tea.

“I like him.” Lyney commented as Freminet tossed the mora on the counter.

“I like him as well.” Lynette agreed. “Everything turned up well about him.”

Freminet sighed. Of course, leave it to his siblings to find out anything they could—probably everything—about his dumb crash. Quietly, he responded, voice flat. “Doesn’t matter. He’s going home.”

“Oh? Really? How tragic!—my own dearest brother, his first dalliance into love, left heartbroken as the subject of his affections must return home—” Lyney’s concern was exaggerated. Faked. He had something up his magician’s sleeve. Freminet narrowed his eyes.

“Just say it Lyney.” Lynnette scolded.

“We’ve put a request in to travel to Mondstadt and perform there—with the intention of bolstering international camaraderie… and doing some intelligence gathering, of course! If The Knave agrees we’ll be going next month.”

“N-next month?” So soon? What the hell, Lyney!” He turned to his brother, shellshocked.

He was going to see Mika again. In a month. Lyney said something else, but Freminet didn’t register it. He would get to see Mika again.

[1st-lil-poet]

{𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲'𝐬 𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬}

[TW: Cursing, Mentioned loss of limbs, Death Threats and Implied death.]

[𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨 belongs to @00lari00 , 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐲 & 𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐳 belongs to @capturecharlesau ,𝐂𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫 belongs to @jaytoons7 , 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐇𝐮𝐬𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 & 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐩𝐬𝐨 belongs to @bluetorchsky , and 𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲 and 𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞 belongs to me!]

—{🪀🩷💜}—————————————

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Hiya! Nice lounge, Italy boi! X3

𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐲: Oh, you must be one of Maddie‘s friends!

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Yep! But, I have one small question..!

𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐲: Of course! Ask away, Mio amico!

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: So, I heard Maddie that your husband was brought back to life, meaning that he was dead, right..?

[While Danny nodded in agreement, he didn’t notice that his lover, Crusher had already been in the room to intentionally ears drop on their conversation with a mug of coffee in his hands.]

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: So, that means you make out with a corpse, right? \:<

𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐲: Well, ye- EXCUSE ME?!

[Crusher face burned red as he chokes on his drink, Danny just stood there with his eyes wide open, his face steaming red.]

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Am I wrong?

𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐲: W-well… You see… It’s DEFINITELY not like that!

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Oh, Really? But, he used to be dead… Why are your faces re-

𝐂𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫: WOW, LOOK AT THE TIME!!! WE NEED TO DO IMPORTANT WORK STUFF, RIGHT NOW!!! BYE FOREVER!

[He immediately grabbed his husband and booked it out the room, leaving Riley alone. Riley responded by flopped on to the couch, to search for some crumbs to eat. But before she even got a chance to, Maddie stormed in with a bitten chain leash.]

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: I WAS RUNNING AROUND THIS DAMN SPACE STATION FOR 40 MINUTES!!

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: You'll never take me alive, sucker! >:3

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: Oh, really because *Yawns* I got you where I want yo-

[As soon as she opened her eyes, Riley was gone without a trace… Maddie whines as she stares at the empty space, before she starts running away to the moth once again.]

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: How does she keep doing that?!

——————{🪀❤️💙}————————-

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Hi! :3

𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐧: Oh, hi there! How can I help you?

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: I just wanted to say a little cute idea, want to hear about it?

𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐧: Sure! What is your idea?

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: If you lose your arms, then you would a matching couple!

𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐧: Sorry for asking but…HOW is that… cute?

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: So, you can grab some pretty charms and stickers for your new prosthetics! Like one of those peanut butter and jelly stickers! Pretty cute idea, huh? :D

𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐧: That’s sweet of you… but I don’t losing my arms is a good idea…

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Boo. |:<

𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐧: Excuse me?

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Nothing… :|

[Violin raises his eyebrow in confusion, until his husband strolls into the room, grabbing his attention, but before he even had a chance to speak… Riley was already chewing on his prosthetic.]

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: *Mouth-full* Your arm taste like rocks! :3

𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐧: Thank you…? Now, can you… let go of my prosthetic?

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU?! WHEN I FIND YOU, I’LL CHAIN YOU TO A TREE AND BEAT YOU LIKE A FUCKING BIRTHDAY PIÑATA!!!

[Riley's atenas shot up in heartbeat as she released her fangs from his mostly metal arm and crawled into the air vents.]

𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐧: What did you even do?!

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: I may have drank her milkshake and spat some at her to get away. >:3

𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐧: Why did you-

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Gotta go, bye!

[She crawls away before he could request a answer. Accordion sighs in defeat, but glances at the small but visible bites on his arm.]

𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐧: How do I explain this to the chief?

𝐕𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐧: You could hide them with cute stickers.

————————{🪀💚🩵}——————

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: *Hanging upside down* Hello, person! :]

𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐨: Gah, who are you?!

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: I'm Riley! Green goggles, cool gloves… You must be Polo! :D

𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐨: How do you know my name..?

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Maddie told me about you, saying that you’re a nerdy weirdo like me! :D

𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐨: NERDY?!

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Who's the cute boi under your desk? :>

[Benz was napping delightfully under his desk, Polo’s entire face was covered in heavy blush.]

𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐨: W-well, he was tired a-and I wanted to-

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: You didn’t answer my question, you simp! >:[

𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐨: I'M NOT A-

𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐳: Den Mund halten! I'm trying to sleep… Who’s she and how did she get in here?

𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐨: Benz, I am so sorry for waking you up! I didn’t realize that I was-

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Guys, look!

[Polo spins around to his horror as he stares at a violently, bubbling chemical was in her hands.]

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: All I did was pour some pop rocks in it, isn’t that awesome! :D

𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐨: Yeah, awesome…! If you could just-

𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐳: Give it to him, he can make it 100 times awesome…!

𝐑𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐲: Wait a minute, what if I add ALL of my pop rocks?! >:D

𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐇: WAIT, NO STOP!!!

—————————————{🩷😈}——-

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: My legs hurt… Mom, can I get a milkshake?

[Calypso ignore the question and continue to clean her bar, Maddie responds by softly growls at her.]

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: Mom, may I PLEASE have a milkshake…?

𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐩𝐬𝐨: There it is, now was that so hard?

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: No…

𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐩𝐬𝐨: Now, what do you say?

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: Thank you…

𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐩𝐬𝐨: What was that, sugar?

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: Thank you… Mom.

[Calypso rewarded Maddie with a milkshake and a grin. As she was about to take a sip, a thundering bang came from just below the floor they were on. The two stared at each other until Calypso was the first to say something.]

𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐩𝐬𝐨: Should we check on them…?

𝐌𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐞: Nope, if it has nothing to do with us, then walk away… And, it’s probably safer if we stay up here… Trust me.

[Maddie exhaustingly drinks her milkshake as Calypso just stares in confusion and worry, but she chose not to ask for her own sanity…]

_________ _____________ ___________

I hope you liked it! A little fun fact, Maddie is now adopted by Calypso! :D