#you know nervous loved being a cryptid walking around for a bit

[tallymonster]

Memories of Us

Chapter 18 : Remember Me

AO3 || Master list

A/N: so this is my longest chapter...it's around 6.7k words lol and there's a lot of lore drops going on soooo yeah enjoy lol.

Thanks to @cheesy-cryptid for their blessing on each chapter. Your support means the world to me.

Super special thanks as always to @micropoe10 because this girl has literally been here from day 1 supporting, uplifting, pushing, and helping me with this story. She even wrote the last few bits to save me from myself and I can never thank her enough. Love you so so much Rue.

Tags: @justporo @satanicspinosaurus @sleepy-timaeus @tragedybunny @davenswitcher @wayward-hel @hereliesblackdragon @misscrissfemmefatale

Astarion had begun to realize how much he enjoyed Octavia’s company. She was the eternal sunshine behind the clouds and each bit of affection from her broke them apart and allowed the light to come through.

The thought of someone caring about him was a lost concept, that someone could see something inside him other than what he saw himself.

Octavia was utterly infatuated with Astarion, she wondered if there was more to this routine the two of them found themselves in. The feeling of their bond becoming stronger, drop by drop of her delicious blood.

She was desperate to unearth more of his secrets, all while still hiding her own. Octavia was blinded by her own hypocrisy, the irony of her wanting to dig into his past while denying her own started to eat away at her. As she stared at herself in the mirror by the front door, she felt something tugging at her to be truthful with him.

There was a knock on the door, she took a deep breath as she finished fixing her hair.

You need to be honest with him. He was with you. It's the least you can do.

Astarion waited outside Octavia’s house, she had suggested going to a night market in Rivington she heard of. A friend of hers apparently told her it was a great place to go on a date.

He was somewhat nervous to be out in the open so publicly with someone. It had been so long since he let himself do it, not feeling the same as when he and Tav would walk hand in hand on the same streets.

Astarion leans on the rails of her front steps, he stares up into the starry sky. The stars sparkled as if they were there just for them. He smiles to himself, hearing the door open.

“Hello beautiful. I was afraid you were leaving me to go to the market all by mys-” He turns and the words are taken out of his mind as he takes in Octavia’s appearance.

She was in a mid-thigh length mustard colored pinafore dress, with a black short sleeved shirt, and some black tights with black leather ankle boots. A woven bag hung from her shoulder. This was one of the few times that Octavia could swear he was rendered speechless.

Octavia giggles and gives Astarion a kiss on the cheek, “Oh come on, you've seen me naked, I’m not dressed that seductively right now.” she walks past him and turns to wait for him at the end of her steps. “Ready to go?”

He nods with a grin and follows behind. As he steps down to the sidewalk, he holds his hand out, testing how she will react to his small gesture.

Octavia blushes, her heart fluttering slightly. She swings her shoulders back and forth, in a giddy wiggle. She smiles, biting her lip and takes his hand in hers. It felt cold, but so safe. She felt his fingers slip between hers in a comfortable lattice.

They walk through the street, silent at first. After they cross the road, Astarion wraps his arm around her waist and speaks. “You look wonderful by the way. I know you said you didn't look enticing, but I beg to differ. I think you look absolutely appetizing.” He squeezes her hip, Octavia’s cheeks are flushed a light reddish tone.

Astarion pulls Octavia close, hugging her in a playful embrace. She laughs as he bends down to kiss her. “You're being awfully affectionate. Are you feeling okay?” Octavia asks Astarion.

He lovingly cups her chin with his hand and pulls her in for another kiss. “I’ve just been really happy these last few weeks. I just figured that since we are on a date, I would act like it.” Astarion shrugs, giving Octavia another kiss before releasing her from his arms.

Octavia leads Astarion down the road to where the market was being held and becoming more populated. It had been so long since Astarion came to the street markets. He hated the crowds, the noise, all the different smells of foods he can't enjoy, but with her by his side it's all just background noise.

Astarion looks down at Octavia, a smile creeps into his face as he watches her eyes light up with excitement. Perhaps he could suffer for a bit longer, she did seem pretty eager to go out like this. Who would he be to deny her such simple pleasures?

Octavia can't decide where to go first. To her left was a stall with handmade leather bound books, to the right some flower stands, and not to mention all the food! She took Astarion’s hand and began to walk towards the flower stand. He smirks letting her lead him to wherever she wants.

“I love flowers. My mom and I had a garden at my childhood home where we grew so many. I tried maintaining it after she died, but it was just so hard to keep it up by myself. My dad was never one for being outside in the dirt even though he grew up near the Druid Grove.”

Octavia confesses with a laugh, she turns to Astarion and her smile drops a bit.

“I'm actually going to visit him soon. He's moving back to the Grove and he asked me to come help him empty out the house…feels weird to go back to basically throw away all the memories we made there.”

Astarion notices the change in her smile, the drop of her shoulders, and the way her hands come together. Her fingers twiddled at the variety of flowers carefully laid out with a far off stare. He takes one of her hands and holds it gently.

Octavia turns to him with faint tears on the corner of her eyes. She takes a deep breath and shakes her head. “It's been a long time coming. My mom's been gone about 16 years at this point, so why do I feel so sad?”

Astarion’s grip tightens on her hand. He knows this feeling too well. The feeling of moving on and allowing the grief to come and go as it pleases. Astarion takes in their surroundings. The last time he allowed himself to be in this type of market was the last time he saw Tav.

“You feel sad because you miss her, love. I've been there myself. In this very market no less.” Astarion finishes his sentence with a soft breath.

Octavia looks at him, recognizing the same sadness behind his eyes. The grief of losing someone you love. She remembers one of the things that makes her feel better is to talk about her mom, so maybe he can tell her about his loved one? “What were they like? The person you lost?”

Astarion glances back at Octavia, he hadn't thought about telling Octavia about Tav just yet, or at all. He pays for a bouquet of wildflowers that Octavia’s eyes locked onto. They turn and begin to walk away from the stall.

He hesitates before giving her a sad smile. “I’m not sure if this is the right time for that, I mean, I'd rather focus on you tonight, if you don't mind.” They sit on a bench near the edge of the market. Astarion looks down at the bouquet, taking a small pink rose and placing it in Octavia’s hair.

His hand lingers on her cheek, he leans down and kisses the corner of her eye. As he pulls away, he catches the smile that forms from her lips. He hands her the bouquet, as she leans on his shoulder, perfectly distracted away from her questions.

“No matter how long it is. Know that you will always carry a piece of her with you. As long as you remember her and the love you had, you'll never be without her.” Astarion comforts Octavia as they hold hands.

Astarion's good at the little words that everyone likes. The pleasant platitudes to soothe a broken heart. Meanwhile, he continues to push his own feelings of grief deeper down.

He could still see Tav standing at the opposite side of the market, the bag she carried full of contents hung from her shoulder. He stood about 8 stalls away from her. Her sweet scent hit his nostrils as he traded meat for bottles of blood.

Astarion had turned his head towards the scent, nearly dropping the glass bottle in his hand. He couldn't believe she was still in Baldur’s Gate after 30 years. He didn't know how long he was staring, until the merchant cleared their throat.

Astarion thanks them and turns back towards Tav. She's staring into a mirror that sat on top of the stall. She seems as if she's looking for something inside of it, a dreamy far off look behind her eyes. He hesitates wondering if she would be happy to see in or if she’d punch him. He’s frantically running scenarios in his head when he notices her head lift up.

Astarion shields his face with his cowl, only his bright red eyes shining through. He slings his bag over his shoulder and hesitates to walk closer to her. Tav fully turns to face him, her face the same kind loving light he saw in his trances. She smiles, beaming towards him, a look of recognition and love.

He swallows, the world seems to be closing in.

Instantly, though, that same world comes crashing down when he hears a small voice calling out. “Mama!! There you are! We’ve been looking all over for you!” A little girl runs past him, straight into Tav’s arms. Soon after a man comes up to them both and wraps an arm around Tav's waist.

He watches as the man kisses Tav and leads her away.

The rest of that day the way she looked past him burned in his mind. Could she have already forgotten about him? How long did it take for her to move on?

There's no point in dwelling on it now, he's got a lot of other things to worry about of course.

“Astarion? Are you okay? I didn't mean to pry again, I’m sorry.” Astarion is broken away from his thoughts by Octavia’s soft apology, her hand resting in his. He looks down at their hands intertwined. The flowers sit on the bench between them.

“The last time I saw her, she was standing at a stall like the one we were just at. I'm pretty sure she forgot who I was…or she had this look on her face like she did. I’ll never forget the way she looked into that mirror…This glossed over sort of blank empty look to her eyes. It was so strange, like she didn't remember where she was for a second.

Besides, she had a child and a husband? Partner? I don't know. I didn't hang around too long to ask, and I didn't want to cause any issues so I just stayed out of it.” Astarion confides, his voice mournful and far away.

Octavia feels the grip holding her hand tighten a bit, perhaps she's edging too close to his boundaries again? She rubs her hand on the top of Astarion’s arm. The motion soothes him and replaces the icy shards of sadness that pricked behind his eyes.

Somehow though, as he looks into her dazzling green eyes, he feels that lovely warmth in his chest. That feeling of comfort he’s longed for over a century.

They lock into each other, taking in their collective grief. Their sadness was the thing bringing them closer together. “You know, I’ve never told anyone about her.” Astarion confesses, “It's the first time that I've felt comfortable to feel this grief with someone who can relate. Thank you for giving me that opportunity to share a little with you.” He leans down and kisses her sweetly.

Octavia smiles reluctantly, a small shy blush grows on her cheeks. She must have something on her mind. “Is everything alright, my dear? You seem lost in thought.” Astarion asks.

She nods slowly, turning to look out to the market. “I was hoping that I wouldn't bring up anything sad, but I guess I couldn't make it through one date without ruining the moment.” Octavia huffs in a soft awkward laugh. “Gods, for once I wish I could stop being so melancholic and just enjoy the good things my life has given me lately. Like you.”

Astarion sits up a bit, he could feel a slight warmth at the tip of his ears, was he blushing? He clears his throat and asks, “Really? What about me?”

She smiles and plays with his fingers in her hand. “Where to start? You're kind, well…to me,” a soft giggle follows “you're smart, incredibly handsome. I feel pretty fortunate to have someone like you on my side, you understand me. Whoever let you go is foolish to have done so, but they opened up that path to you for me. So maybe they weren't so foolish after all.” Octavia lifts her hand, kissing the top of his hand.

“She didn't leave me. I left her. I left because I was scared. Scared that I couldn't take care of her how she wanted. Scared that she would figure that out on her own. That she would wake up one day and realize that I ruined her life. So I ran. I didn't even say goodbye. I just picked up my bag and left in the middle of the night. Like a coward.” Astarion spits out, the shame and regret dripping from his lips. His lips purse as he bites the inside of them.

Octavia frowns, she takes the flowers and places them on her lap. She plucks one out and begins to softly spin the flower, opening the petals. “You're not a coward.” She brings the flower up to his ear, tucking it behind.

“I don't think you're a coward for trying to keep someone you loved safe.” Her hand lingers on his cheek, caressing his face. “‘The things we do for love’, as my mom used to say.”

Astarion melts into the warmth of her hand. His heart felt the grief it was used to, but with her here it didn't seem so devastating. To allow himself to be vulnerable with someone felt strange, as most things involving Octavia do.

They sit in silence for a few seconds, before Octavia speaks “Not to change the subject or anything because I feel awkward,” she laughs a bit, “but I've noticed that you haven't been wearing your glasses lately? Did something change?”

Astarion bristles a bit, having to think on his feet. He was a bit hesitant to admit that he was not feeling the need to keep hiding behind the magical lenses any longer. In reality, he began to feel more comfortable to be himself around her.

But instead of giving her that openness, he lies again. “Oh, I…felt like I'd be calling more attention to myself if I were to have them on right now. Besides, wasn't it you that asked me why I wore them indoors right as Gale introduced you to me? I feel like this is the opposite of that.” Astarion ends with a soft tilted giggle.

“Imagine if someone stopped us to ask why I'm wearing sunglasses in the evening? As you so tactfully had that first night? That would have definitely ruined the date. Either way, you didn't do anything wrong. You’re perfect.” Astarion pulls Octavia close, releasing his hand on hers, and drapes his arm on her shoulder.

Octavia melts into his embrace, a bittersweet feeling hung over them. She brings her hand up to her shoulder and interlocks her fingers into his again. Astarion felt her relax a bit.

“How long will you be away?” “Do you want to come with me?” They speak at the same time, interrupting each other. Astarion clears his throat and Octavia laughs quietly. She turns her head to ask again, “Do you want to come with me to Wyvern Hills? I'll be gone for around six days?”

Astarion thinks it over, the idea of meeting her father was intimidating, even more so because he would probably have to explain his particular affliction. “I don't think so, darling. You deserve a break, and I don't think Gale can handle everything by himself again. I had him do that once and he nearly quit. It's too much for one person to handle. It would be unfair to him.”

Octavia feels Astarion’s other hand start to run up and down her arm. It's as if he was soothing her, or himself, maybe both? He was beginning to recognize the same comfort of sitting in silence with a loved one. The reminiscences of a quiet evening under the stars.

The sounds of nature envelop them, an intimate orchestra for two lost souls floating in an everlasting ocean of grief. In the vast darkness, they find the light and come together.

Octavia had lost herself to these feelings like so many times before. Astarion was born in it, used to the push and pull of it. Having lost the will to swim against it and let the waves crash over him, caught in its current thrashed around, but this was different.

To Astarion, Octavia feels like the safety net pulling him from the depths. The warmth of her affections was melting away his fears. His heart wanted to tell her how he felt. To confirm that after all these years, he finally felt the warmth of loving someone again.

“I lo-” Astarion almost confesses when he catches himself and continues, "I'll miss you. A lot. I just realized that we haven't been apart since we met. It'll be strange not having you around.” He leans down and kisses her cheek. “Come back to me, okay?”

Octavia felt her cheeks flush and her heart flutter.

Was he..? No…I’m probably just projecting.

Octavia couldn't deny her feelings for Astarion. The little flashes of lightning whenever he held her, made her laugh, or kissed her were exhilarating.

She couldn't deny that she loved him.

Octavia was terrified to tell him so after hearing him talk about his lost love. Who would she be if she heard all his pain and immediately said “Well, guess what? I love you!”? Her face felt hot, how long had they been sitting here?

She turns to Astarion and kisses him, she lets her feelings pour into their kiss. Octavia could feel tears gathering behind her eyes, “I’ll miss you too.” She smiles and kisses him again, feeling him lean into her, his arms wrapping around her.

Octavia pulls away a bit, “I should go home now, I told my dad I would try to be there as early as I could.” Astarion responds with a whine, Octavia giggles as he plants small kisses all over her cheeks, nose and lips.

“Don't miss me too much, Star.”

“Is that a challenge, darling?”

They laugh as Astarion unwraps himself from her, he stands and holds his hand out. Octavia takes it and they walk off into the night.

They leave the flowers on the bench.

--------------------------

Octavia walks up to the cobblestone cottage she grew up in. The patch of wildflowers she used to run in have turned into a full meadow, their blooms alert and open as if welcoming her back.

She walks up the gravel path to the doorway, noticing a small hummingbird on the hibiscus bush her mom lovingly tended. She smiles watching it flit away. Her trip would be over soon. A ping of sadness runs through her, saying goodbye to the place is going to be hard.

Suddenly the door swings open. Her father, Ralomaer, stands at the doorway with a giant grin on his face. He has a red flannel shirt on with some white powder on the bottom and some dark pants.“Hey kid! Have a nice walk? Are ya hungry? Got some breakfast made up for you!”

“Did you make waffles by any chance?” Octavia asks, with a laugh. Her dad tilts his head, his brows furrowed and he shakes his head, “Yeah, how’d you know??” Octavia laughs harder and points at his shirt. “You're covered in powdered sugar, Dad.”

Ralomaer laughs and waves his hand over the fabric, cleaning it up. Octavia walks up to him and remarks, “That must come in handy, you always used to hate doing laundry.”

Her dad laughs, “Well when you live alone, it's kind of pointless to wash one thing at a time. This is faster and better for the environment. Anyway, go eat. I'll meet you upstairs when you're done, it's attic day!” He waves his hands in a flourish, as Octavia walks past him and into the kitchen. Her dad climbs up the stairs.

Later that morning, Octavia sits cross-legged on the floor of the attic. Her father sits across from her on an old wooden chair. Between them sat an open wooden crate full of letters, drawings, photos, and many memories from her childhood.

“Okay, now I understand why you wanted me to come by and have this visit with you so urgently. This is really nice to go through with you, Dad.” Octavia chirps excitedly.

“Well don't thank me, thank your Auntie Taeladra! She insisted I clean the attic since she bought the house from me. Kept telling me something about ‘Preserving family history’ and ‘can you tell Octavia to come instead, isn't this pretty much her job.’” Ralomear holds up his hands, making finger quotes.

“Gods, she sounds like my coworker, Gale.” Octavia and her father laugh, as she rifles through the crate. Finding medals, trophies, countless books, letters, and pictures.

“You know, I think you’d like Gale. He's pretty funny. He's smart, witty, and so quick! He's been a great mentor, and an amazing friend. I'm really lucky to have him.” Octavia smiles warmly as she keeps rifling through the crate.

Her father stares at her, a puzzled look on his face. “What? What's that look for??” Octavia asks playfully.

“Are you dating this Gale? That was a lot of complimentary language for someone who is just a friend, my darling.” Ralomear gently teased.

“Dad! No! He's not my type! Besides, I'm way too busy with all the research and work and just…everything.” Octavia laughs, hiding her face behind her hair. She quickly looks away, hoping that her answer would squash this conversation.

“Oh my little bookworm! Don't keep your head in the books too long, you'll miss out on writing your own story.” Ralomear pinches Octavia’s cheek adoringly.

She smiles at her father, a little embarrassed laugh leaves her lips. A feeling of dread grows, she knows that her visit might end with her having to possibly define whatever she's got going on with Astarion. A small seed of insecurity plants itself in her stomach. How could she ever find a way to ease her father’s worries when it came to her love life?

“I’m gonna see what else is back there.” Octavia gets up and starts looking through the rest of the crates that occupied the attic. They were all stacked neatly in the corner of the little room. She walks up to the circular window next to the stack and opens the thin curtain.

Small dust spores kick up as she swings the window open, allowing the fresh air and sunlight to flood in. When she turns she notices a dusty tarp in the darkened corner of the attic. Some canvas frames sat on top of the tarp, it was staged as if it was trying to conceal something.

Octavia comes up to the items, carefully moving them aside. What she finds is an old wooden crate. “What the..?” She runs her hand on the edge of it, easily sliding it open. “Woah…hey Dad? I found something?”

Ralomaer looks up quizzically and wanders over. He stands with a hand on his hip, the other scratches at his beard. “Well would you look at that! Didn't even know that old crate was in here! No wonder your auntie wanted you to come through here, you and your museum skills are great for finding old junk!” he laughs.

Octavia began digging through the crate. Inside were old spell scrolls, tomes, stacks of handwritten letters from her great grandmother, the other adventures she traveled with, even highly detailed hand drawn maps!

Octavia could not believe the amazing treasure trove she had just unearthed in her own home. How long has this been here waiting for her to find it?

She finds a book full of sketches of various plants, animals, and locations all over Faerun. Octavia fixates on a fully illustrated image of the inside of what looks like an Illithid colony! She continues to flip through it, mesmerized by the way everything is drawn.

Octavia turns the page and is struck with drawings of eyes that look relatively close to Astarion’s own. She feels a strange sort of recognition from looking at the drawings.

The blood colored irises that were lovingly depicted in charcoal and ink, have a haunting familiarity to them. She knows Astarion is old, but she never asked exactly how old…

Her father pulls her out of her suspicions, “Lookie here, Tavvy! I found a rather interesting letter!” Ralomear recalls as he unfolds the antique parchment, handing it to Octavia. She reads the letter, her mind a little frazzled by yet another strange coincidence.

Darling Tav,

Laurent tells me you've been having nightmares again. It's been about 20 years since everything happened, are you still being plagued by the memories of it all, or just one particular, specific person? I still have some of my contacts from the House of Grief from my days as a Sharran. If you're serious about taking the risk, I could put you in contact with them. Let me know when you two get settled into your cottage. Lae and I can be over as soon as a tenday.

You're always in my thoughts, my dear friend.

Love always,

Shadowheart

“House of Grief? That sounds ominous.” Octavia remarks, remembering the extreme rituals Sharrans would take in order to release painful memories. Octavia could hardly imagine the suffering of those who felt it necessary to forget something, to now know that her own grandmother endured that shakes Octavia to her core.

“Sharrans eh? Good thing you did that whole exhibit on them! Maybe your friend Gale can help you out with this stuff?” Ralomear remarks.

“Yeah…maybe… Do you think Grammy had some PTSD from the whole Netherbrain thing?” Octavia asks quietly, the seriousness weighing heavy on her heart.

“I’m not sure, baby. Your mom always avoided the subject with me. Something about not wanting to dwell on the past and enjoying the time you had in the now. It was the one thing I never understood about your mom. How I wish you could ask her now.” Ralomear solemnly muses. He looks at Octavia, smiling mournfully.

They stay in the silence for a moment, before Octavia breaks. “I miss her. I could really use her brain right now.” She runs her finger along the outside of the crate.

“I miss her too. You definitely took after her, your brilliance is obviously her doing, my heart.” Ralomear takes Octavia’s hand in hers, squeezing it lovingly.

“I am so proud of you, I know your mom would be too. Now, let's keep digging through her stuff!” Ralomear smiles warmly and releases her hand.

Octavia shuffles through a stack of books, most of them run of the mill books, nothing too noteworthy. Until she notices a blue-gray fabric bound book. In silver letters across the front it read ‘Warming the Melancholy Heart’. She cards through it, until a small hand written letter falls out.

Octavia opens it, scanning the page. She gasos and begins to read the letter to her father.

Laurent,

The Unburdening your wife chose to follow through with should have fully set in by now. I have sent you some recommended reading should you have any questions about the procedure. Your wife has all my gratitude for all she did for me and the others. To give her this blessed relief in this trying time is the least I could do.

As per her concern, she may have some fleeting memories, but those should fade in time. Should she have any aftereffects or complications, do not hesitate to contact me again.

Shar’s blessings be upon you,

Nocturne

“Unburden? What does that mean?” Ralomear asks Octavia, handing her the letter.

Octavia reads through the thin book, the words describing the taking of memories sound as if they're trying to lessen the serious action being taken.

The remedy may seem non-existent, but it is not so. No heart that beats is a stranger to that which gives it joy - you must seek it out however you can.

Octavia flips through the book, most of it is filled with testimonials from people who went through the process. Lines of affirmation for what has been done to forget. Her eyes linger on one of the pages describing the aftereffects, symptoms ticked in red ink, tally marks keeping track of each in black.

✓ Forgetfulness ///

✓ Melancholy ////

✓ Face blindness //

✓ Staring at nothing //

✓ Nightmares of past memories /////////

These shall subside as time passes, you will need to guide your loved one through the process moving past their burdens. Should they seem different, another session may be required.

You may notice your loved one have an empty, far off look to their eyes, that will lift as their healing progresses. If you find they are forgetting more than intended, return to the House of Grief.

Be aware of them looking into mirrors for a long period of time.

"Mirror??? What?” Octavia gasps, covering her mouth quickly after. “Tavvy? Everything alright? Your face looks really sweaty all of a sudden…” Her dad reaches out and places the back of his hand on her forehead. “Oh yeah, you're feeling a little warm, why don't you go lie down? We're almost done for today, so I can finish up and bring some tea to your room?” he gives her a soft pat on the shoulder.

Octavia nods, “Sure, thanks Dad.” she can't wrap her mind around everything she just read and saw. She grabs the sketchbook and the book on Unburdening and walks out of the room. She descends the thin ladder leading up to the attic, then walks into her room, closing the door.

Octavia presses her back against the door, sliding down until she's sitting on the floor. The sketchbook closely held to her chest.

She opens the book back up to the images of the eyes. There's no doubt in her mind that she's looking into the same eyes that she had back on the bench outside the market.

Suddenly, Octavia remembers that she had the enchanted journal at the bottom of her bag. She crawls over to her bag at the foot of the bed, and flips furiously through it.

One entry immediately catches her attention.

Gods, it's been incredibly hard trying to keep these entries as neutral as I can. There's no telling what else could come for A. About two tenday ago, we went through that freaky meadow, A and I ran into a Gur hunter named Gandrel. Said he was looking for a vampire spawn, I noticed A’s whole attitude immediately change. His face looked as if he had been slapped. Those eyes that keep staring at me, turned so fox-like and angular. As soon as we heard A’s name come from the hunter’s lips, it was over. I have never seen him move like that. He swears it’s Cazador, but what would Cazador need him for?

Octavia presses her knees up to her chest. She closes her eyes and tries to push the notion of this being Astarion whom her ancestor is referring to out of her mind. It can't be him, could it?

She reaches over to the foot of her bed and rips through her bag, shaking out its contents, until finding a black velvet bag. She slips the ribbon off, taking out the red leather bound book that Astarion had given her.

She flips through, reading the first few lines. It speaks of people who had been captured, the various ways in which they were beaten, tortured, abused, and finally, bled try and turned.

Each one had an entire 20 page section dedicated to their specific treatment. Near the bottom of one page, she notices a name.

According to Aurelia, the Gur sent someone to find him. I sent Dalarya and Petras to stalk the Gur encampment in Rivington. They are to kill whoever does not give up information.

The boy will be found, I need him to ascend. The Ritual of Profane Ascension will be completed.

I WILL BECOME THE VAMPIRE ASCENDANT.

Ritual of Profane Ascension…where had she seen that phrase before? Octavia goes back to Tav’s journal, flipping through until she sees those words again.

Today, I got a better look at his back.

He's got a circular scar with Infernal written all around. When I saw it the morning after the party with the tieflings, he said it was poetry, but he didn't know that I know Infernal. I was hesitant to tell him what it really was, but something told me to keep being honest.

When I asked him where he got it, he told me it was a gift from his old master, Cazador. I explained to him that I believed it was a binding glyph, Cazador was planning something and whatever it is, it seems he needs the missing piece that I have in my party.

My suspicions were proven correct when we met up with the devil after finishing the Gauntlet of Shar and killing the Orthon.

He told us about this Rite of Profane Ascension. How Cazador needs 7 of his spawn to sacrifice along with many others to make himself into some kind of super vampire that can walk in the sun, go into homes without being invited, all those things that go along with being a vampire….

I'm not so sure about it though. Raphael explained that the soul of the Ascendant would be lost, and he would be a shell of his former self.

I don't know if I could go through with it. Killing all those people? It seems like such a big decision to make, so permanent and serious. We had a group meeting after everyone cleaned up and had dinner. Karlach and Wyll were adamantly against it. They can't justify all that loss for one person to benefit.

Gale and Shadow had more rational arguments, they both had ambitions to be greater than they were through their own rites. A seemed to listen to Shadow over Gale, but ultimately it was Lae’zel that convinced him otherwise.

She told him how all she wanted was to serve her Queen, but after seeing everything we have, she realized that she can't keep chasing the shadow of a lie. Sometimes, we have things we want, and we find that to achieve them, we would lose all of ourselves. If that was the case, what was he chasing after? If he wanted freedom, he's already free.

I think that was what finally opened Star’s eyes.

Star??

“Fuck me.” Octavia can feel the color drain out of her face. She looks around the floor at all the books that were surrounding her. She picks up the sketchbook and keeps looking through.

She noticed that every so often, there are pages ripped out. As if someone tore them up in a fit of rage. When she reaches the page with the eyes, she sees a little doodle of a star beside each one.

Octavia can't help the trembling in her hands, there's been this creeping suspicion inside her for a few weeks now.

The enchantment Gale broke, the log book Astarion gave her, the way he described his lost love seeming like they had been Unburdened and now all this? The clues are becoming glaringly obvious to her, but, it can't be….can it?

Her heart is thundering inside her chest as she keeps going through the pages of the sketchbook, more torn pages, drawings of flowers, and finally near the end of the book, two full pages of the binding glyph that Tav had described.

Three circles, almost like a bullseye, surrounded by Infernal symbols. The scarring looked deep and painful. Octavia’s mind races remembering how Astarion winced and seemed to not want her to touch him there.

Octavia’s eyes survey the page and her breath is ripped out from her lungs when she sees a profile drawing of Astarion looking her right back in the face. She can feel the tears well up behind her eyes, her entire life she had been told about this grand adventure, this amazing thing that her great grandmother had done for the city she loved.

There's almost double the amount of writings speaking all about a seventh spawn. It used a code for their abuses and names but I was one set of entries that surpassed all others in her eyes.

Octavia swallows, she grabs the red leather book one more time, she opens the book towards the end, as soon as she sees his name, it all comes crashing down on her.

I have dispatched the brood. They will find him and bring him home. And when they do, I will make him scream for this.

Their tale was fanciful, but they believe it to be true. Astarion, standing in the sun’s light? Willing and able to disobey me? Inconceivable.

My spawns fail me. Astarion eludes me. I WILL HAVE MY DUE.

Octavia’s blood runs cold.

There it was, hidden in plain sight this whole time. Astarion is everything that she has been searching for. He's the one who was there, the one who was in the paintings, the one who Tav forgot. All the evidence was clear, and now seeing his name in this journal that she barely bothered to look at back home…

Home.

Oh gods, how was she going to be able to look Astarion in the face now?

The only thing that made her doubt all of this was his back. She hadn’t seen it yet. She dreaded having to ask to see it, what would she say? How would he react? She presses her head up against the footboard of her bed, closing her eyes tightly.

Octavia's heart shattered as she sat clutching her knees tightly to her chest. The room grew smaller and the air around her was stifling and thick. Between the sobs, she tried to catch her breath, trying to stop the room from spinning, holding on to her legs, anything to ground her.

But what was left to stand on? Everything she knew up to this moment had been a giant mystery until now, shrouded in a decades-long secret. Locked away behind paintings and books, the things that once gave her comfort, that now sat scattered about her felt tainted.

She shoved them away, call it anger, frustration, fear, it all blurred together now. The floor felt like shifting sand, like it would give way at any moment sucking her down. Hiding her, like the other 7000, like his siblings like him...HIM.

Did he know? Did he know about her relationship to Tav? She had so many questions now and everything felt more and more uncertain. He loved Tav, and she had loved him that was for certain. Was he still in mourning, did he regret leaving Tav? Was she Tav's replacement?

Oh gods the room was spinning as Octavia lay down on the floor curled in on herself. She couldn't think that way, but she couldn't help it anymore. She no longer was thinking with a clear and rational head, instead, she let her emotions control her.

Binding her to the belief that Astarion once upon a time loved a woman so intimately, that she would never be able to fill that void. As sleep took her the last thought that plagued the visions within her mind was one that had read in the journal, something that Tav had penned so long ago.

Would Astarion ever leave Octavia like he had left her? And if he didn't would she ever be good enough for him to convince him to stay?

[frenchfrywrites]

Pregnant Pillow Prince Levi

MINORS DNI

warnings: Soft dom amab gn reader, trans (kinda pillow princess) sub bottom Levi, pregnancy, lactation, soft sex, cockwarming

thank you for the commission!! I hope you can tell how much fun I had writing abt levi being pregnant 🥰

Everyone who knows Levi can agree on how he is a huge shut-in. The man even prides himself on his trait of staying within the confines of his room. Yet no one- not even Levi himself- was prepared for how much more of a shut-in he'd become once he discovered he was pregnant with your baby. 

He’s like a cryptid, native to his (or occasionally your) room; and the reason he seldom leaves his room is more often than not due to you, or one of his brothers coming and delivering his food or his packages or whatever else he could possibly desire. Plus with his belly getting bigger and bigger each day, no one (least of all you, and (endearingly protective) Lucifer) wants to risk him getting hurt somehow. 

Thus, when you get back from doing some errands within the Devildom, you know exactly where to find your man. You drop your things off in your room- checking if there’s an off chance that he’s in your room instead of his- and upon finding your room empty you swiftly head to his. 

You knock on his door, answer his password prompt, and enter the room. Levi is laying on his bean bag, hand sewing the cosplay-inspired maternity outfit he’s been working on.

“Hi,” you join him, taking his hand in yours. 

“Hi,” he looks at you with pleading eyes, and with a huff of a laugh you lean down to give him a kiss. When you pull away he’s smiling brightly. 

“How was your day?” you ask, rubbing his belly gently. 

“Ahhh!” he squeaks at the feel of your hand, “don't just touch me outta the blue like that! You're gonna make me blush!" he says the last bit quietly, though he’s visibly blushing already, “Um, it was okay,” he sighs, “the baby was so active today when I was playing video games, maybe it already wants to try and beat my highscore lol!” he giggles to himself, “jk a baby definitely couldn’t beat me,” he messes with some stray threads, “but maybe I’d go easy on them, and maybe even let them win,” he mumbles. 

You love hearing when Levi rambles about his plans as a father. When he’d found out he was pregnant he’d been so panicked, terrified of his worth as a parent. As the months have passed he’s gotten a lot less scared, and a lot more excited. You’re certain he’s going to be a good dad, and you tell him as much. 

“That’s sweet,” you comment, and Levi smiles timidly, still messing with those stray threads. “How’s your stomach?” you ask, as he’d texted you about it being sore earlier in the day. 

“Ugh, it still kinda hurts,” he grumbles, “but, um, you rubbing it feels good,” he confesses. You smile,

“Good. I got some lotion while I was out, do you want me to use that?” Levi nods enthusiastically.

“Yes please,” he’s quick to add, “but can we go to your room? My bed is, uh, it’s starting to get a bit small for the both of us,” he tells you bashfully, setting aside his sewing. 

“Of course baby,” you hook an arm under his legs, and secure him by wrapping your other arm around his back. With a grunt you hoist him up, and Levi wraps his arms around your neck. You make quick work of carrying him to your room, setting him down gently on your bed. 

You grab the lotion you’d gotten as Levi pulls up his shirt, exposing his round belly that’s littered with stretch marks. 

He used to be a bit insecure over said stretch marks, but you’ve reassured him more than enough so that he now rarely has any negative thoughts over them.

While coating your hands you make yourself comfortable between his spread legs. Levi, who's been watching you with a nervous look, speaks up. “Aren’t I getting kinda heavy now? I mean, I could’ve walked here on my own.” 

“I don’t think you’re that heavy sweetheart,” you tell him with a shrug. The negative thoughts about the changes to his body don’t start and stop with the stretch marks of course, but you’ll always be ready to encourage and support him despite whatever insecurities he may have. You begin rubbing soothing circles around his stomach with a loving smile as you continue, “anyways, I’ll want to carry you until I can’t.” Levi looks like he’s holding back a squeal.

“Kiss me,” he says breathlessly instead. You oblige, leaning in to kiss him as you continue to massage him. Levi wraps his arms around your neck as he kisses you so sweetly and tenderly, sighing quietly against your lips as you ease his pain. 

This continues for a while, soft kisses mixed with belly rubs, until the quiet sighs become little moans. As arousal settles in your loins you pull away to find Levi looking flushed and dazed. 

“Are you sore here too?” you ask, trailing your hand up to cup one of his breasts over his sports bra. Levi knocks his head back with a groan, 

“Yeah,” he mumbles, closing his eyes. His tits have been swelling with milk recently, making them just a tad bigger, though they weren’t very big to start out with. The addition of milk being produced has made his chest sore and tender. Therefore, you’re more than a little gentle as you help him pull his shirt and bra off and then begin playing with his chest.

Levi has moved on from quiet sounds of relief to fully whimpering and moaning as you run your fingers over his perky nipples and squeeze his boobs. He’s moved his hands from where they were around your neck to your shirt, clenching there tightly when you brush your fingers over his nipples.

You’re so captivated by watching his reactions as you massage his breasts that you’re shocked when you feel something wet on one of his nipples. Curious, you look down to find a bit of milk has leaked from his chest.

“Oh my god,” you exclaim as you process it. Levi opens his eyes, shock and panic setting in. “You’ve started leaking milk!” you tell him excitedly, unable to help the thrilled smile you know is present on your face. 

Levi blinks at you for a second before looking down to see the semi-white liquid on his chest. “Omg,” he whispers, then looks at you, “this is seriously crazy!” he cries. You laugh, because it’s not that crazy. At your most recent check-up the doctor had informed you that Levi would likely start leaking milk soon.

“You knew you were going to lactate soon, what do you mean crazy?” Levi stammers, looking down again with wide eyes, 

“I mean- it’s just- it’s crazy! I’m going to have a baby! Your baby!” he looks giddy every time he says that, “and- and I’m making milk for the baby!!! WTF!” His rambling makes you laugh more. 

“Yeah, you’d better get used to it,” you kiss his cheek, and when he whines you kiss him properly. “Hey, can I try tasting it?” you ask as you pull away. It’s not the first time you’ve thought about it. Both you and Levi have been looking forward to the day he starts leaking his milk. Speaking of Levi, he now looks like the textbook definition of flustered. He stammers a bit before weakly nodding.

You peck his lips as a thank you before moving down to his chest. Carefully you take one of his nipples into your mouth. Levi squeaks, then moans loudly as he begins to express the milk his chest has been storing up. You moan too, happily sucking and drinking the sweet milk. It tastes a hell of a lot better than you’d imagined.

You drink until he’s dry, chubbing up in your pants as you do. You give his nipple a few kitten licks before you pop off, “Feel better?” you ask, voice heavy and rough from arousal. 

“Yes,” Levi moans, squirming under you. “I want- can you do my other one too? Please?” you nod, delighted that he’s enjoying it as much as you are. 

While you’re happily drinking the milk from his other breast you feel Levi rest his hands on your head. You look up to see him biting his lip, watching you intently. You imagine if you weren't between his legs keeping them spread, that Levi would be rubbing his thighs together. 

In the spirit of continuing to help out your lover, you run a hand down to his pants. Carefully you sneak your hand under his very loose sweatpants to find that he’s going incognito. You pull off his chest, and Levi whines. 

“No underwear?” you ask, licking your lips in case some milk dribbled down. Levi purses his lips,

“Ah, no, it’s easier without them?” his answer sounds like a question so you quirk a brow, “I mean… okay it’s just been a while since I did laundry.” You laugh, making a mental note to do his laundry asap. 

“You should’ve let me know earlier darling,” you continue moving your hand downwards to find that Levi is practically soaked, “you know I want to help you as much as possible,” you say before leaning back down to continue drinking his milk, even as Levi whines at your words. 

You find that you’re able to stick two fingers in already, so you begin fingering him as you rub his clit with your thumb. Without looking (or paying much attention at all to it), you can already tell how you’re fully erect now. 

Levi wiggles a bit, finding difficulty with trying to jerk his hips into you. To sedate him you enter another finger as you swirl your tongue around his nipples.

It's extremely easy to stretch him open, as his hormones get him nice and open for you. Levi has taken to moaning your name loudly as he clenches and twitches under you.

"Cum-cumming, gonna cum- ah," he warns between ragged breaths, squeezing and tightening around you. You hum, still sucking down his milk and playing with his pussy. 

He does cum, with a squeal of your name that tapers off into whimpers and whines as you finger him through it. You don't come off his chest until the milk is gone, and by then he's definitely come down from his high.

"Feel better?" You ask, slowly removing your fingers. 

Levi sighs dreamily, “yes,” he murmurs, looking dazed and blissed out. 

“Do you think you’re up for a little more?” you ask hopefully, resisting the urge to hump your cock on the bed as you await his answer. Levi nods,

“YES, yeah, I want you- um- I want you inside please,” he confesses excitedly, grinning wildly. You match his smile, 

“Then, can I taste you here too?” you bring your hand back down under his sweats to rub his clit gently. Levi shivers at the slight overstimulation,

“Ah, yeah, but just a little bit,” you can work with that. 

“Just a little bit,” you agree, kissing him quick before shimmying down. You kiss his tummy on your way down, whispering “hello baby,” and causing Levi to giggle. It takes a second to help Levi out of his pants, and when you come face to face with Levi’s pussy you look up to see him looking at you impatiently. 

You kiss his erect clit and suck on it a bit, savoring in the gasp that it pulls from Levi. You then move down to clean up his wet and sticky hole. He lets out a high keen when your tongue enters him, his thighs squeezing around your head and keeping your head buried in his pussy. You eat him out sloppily, licking and tongue fucking him noisily, moaning at the taste of him. Your hands busy themselves with massaging and rubbing Levi’s thighs gently, paying special attention to the areas that make him squirm.

Levi manages just fine for a while, but it doesn’t take long for him to start begging. He whines your name, his hands coming down to your head, trying to pull you away (despite still having his legs smushed against the sides of your head), “okay I- ah- I want you inside now, please, oh please,” he flutters around you, “need your cock inside me, c’mon please fuck me ah-” despite loving his begging, you’re starting to get impatient too, so you pull back. But not before giving his clit a loving kiss before you do. 

“Fuck me,” Levi practically demands, sounding beyond desperate. You love when he gets worked up enough that it makes him confident. 

“I have to get the lube,” you explain as you scurry off the bed. You take this time to remove your clothes, and return quickly to your impatient and horny lover. 

To sedate him a bit you kiss him as you lube up your fingers, and hastily (but still while being gentle and careful) finger him to get his pussy better prepped for your cock. Messily, you then lube up your dick (and have to stop yourself from jerking off as you do). 

“Ready?” you ask breathlessly as you pull away from Levi’s filthy kisses, rubbing the head of your cock against his entrance. 

“Yes, yes please fuck me, I’m ready, I’m so ready oh-” you cut him off as you pop your head inside. 

He’s been a bit tighter now that he’s pregnant, so you slide in slowly and carefully, making sure he’s comfortable the whole time. You check in so much Levi gets a bit fed up with you, 

“Hurry up,” he whines. Huffing out a laugh you thrust the rest of your dick into him until you’re balls deep. Levi sighs contently when you’re fully sheathed into him, fluttering around you and quickly adjusting to your stretch. “Muh- move,” he mumbles, wrapping his arms around your neck and adding a quiet, “please,” just in case. 

Slowly, you thrust your hips, bringing a hand down to his belly in a way that could best be described as lovingly possessive. Levi keens as you start to move, closing his eyes as he starts to ramble,

“Fuck me, ah fuck me, feels s’good, you fill me uh-up so good, harder please, faster,” he begs, his breathing picking up at he gets more and more worked up. You pick up the pace with his permission, fucking him in earnest. Practically drooling, you watch as his breasts bounce with each thrust (and can’t help yourself from imagining what it’d look like with milk leaking from his nipples).

“Thank you, thank you,” he hiccups, and then the tears start pouring down his cheeks. You slow down, despite his broken whines when you do.

“Levi? What’s the matter, are you hurt?” you ask, wiping his tears gently. He shakes his head, leaning into your touch,

“It’s just-” he sobs, “I’m so happy I’m pregnant,” relief washes over you, “and- and it feels so good,” he gets interrupted by another hiccup, “I’ve been sore and, hah, hurting all day, and omg you have no idea how good I feel right now,” he sniffles, bringing a hand up to wipe away some snot. “I just,” he lowers his voice, avoiding eye contact, “I love you so much,” you coo, leaning in to kiss him sweetly. 

“I love you too,” you remind him, picking up the pace again, because if Levi wants to feel good then you’re going to use everything in your power to achieve that. 

Levi clings to you, whimpering and moaning and still crying, but now you know it’s due to pleasure and not discomfort. You lean down to kiss him as you fuck him, showing him how much you love and care for him as best as you can through each kiss. 

Your kisses muffle his noises, but you still feel and hear little sounds escape him as you jerk your hips into him, rubbing your head against his g-spot. His hot and gummy walls squeeze around you, bringing you closer and closer to your climax. 

“I’m gonna- ah cum soon,” you pull away to confess between panting breaths. Levi lets out a garbled noise- somewhere between a moan and a whimper- before he gains the ability to speak again,

“Me- me too, ungh, inside, cum inside,” he begs, pulling you closer to him. You groan, your thrusts becoming erratic and frenzied as you chase your high.

Levi cums with a squeal of your name as you pump him full of your cum. You burry your face in his chest as you fuck him through your simultanious climax. 

It takes Levi a bit longer to catch his breath, so you leave kisses along any part of skin that you can reach until he calls your name softly. 

You move to pull out but Levi clutching your arm quickly stops you. 

“Um, can you maybe like, stay inside? Just for a little bit? P-please?” he’s flushed to his ears, like you could possibly say no to such a sweet request. You smile, 

“Of course baby, but can we maybe change positions before cockwarming?” he squeaks at you giving a name to his idea, but he nods at your suggestion. Carefully you readjust so Levi is laying on his side, and you’re spooning him with your cock nestled inside of him. 

Levi looks much more relaxed after your activities. You rub your hand on his belly comfortingly, occasionally moving upwards to squeeze and massage his chest- just enough that it relieves any soreness, and not enough to get him worked up. You kiss his neck and ears too, content with cuddling and holding him close after a long day. 

However, the stickiness from the lube and cum seeping out of Levi’s hole eventually gets to you, making you feel gross. The idea of a shower is becoming increasingly more appealing. 

“Levi?” you murmur, expecting him to respond. Though all you get is silence. 

With a quick peek over his shoulder you find that Levi has fallen asleep. He looks so peaceful and adorable asleep that you wouldn’t even dare to think of waking him. So you suffer through the disgust that comes with drying cum and lube in favor of tugging the covers over the two of you.

Your last thought before drifting off is that you’re going to have a very long, relaxing, and rewarding bath with Levi when morning comes.

[milqueandsugar]

🏵 Your Tea Is Ready 🏵

Warnings: pissesive obsessive behaviour , mentions of violence/injury , slight NSFW

Genre: Fluff

| Possessive!Technoblade PT VIII |

The two of you stared at each other, your hands trembling as you tried to hold the tray still. He didn't remember? Slowly the look of recognition fell on Technoblade as his confused expression morphed into something more akin to horror. "..oh" the sound was barely above a whisper but you caught it. "So.. you do remember" you let out a nervous chuckle. "I do now.. I'm so sorry."

You couldn't tell if it was because of his raspy voice or the genuine apology that caught you way off guard but, the sentence alone broke your heart. Placing the tray down on the night stand you take a seat in front of the man, taking quick notice of how he couldn't even look at you. Taking his face in your hands you gently tilt his face towards you, his eyes finally landing on you and held the same look you'd expect when someone was looking at a gruesome wound. Disgust.

"Tech it wasn't your fault, the voices gained control.. you.. you weren't yourself, and no one got hurt" you reassured, gently running your thumbs across his cheeks. "It wasn't the voices.." Technoblade sighed, leaning his head into the palm of your hand. God he missed the way your skin felt against his, your scent was a mere foggy memory he desperately wanted to remember. "Wha..what do you mean?" You mumble, your brow furrowed. Surely it had to be the voices, there was no way that he would do those things without them to spur him on.. wouldn't he?

' Coward '

'this isn't how this was planned! '

' Dont tell them yet! It's not romantic '

' they smell like honey '

' Don't do it '

' E '

"The voices don't do it, it's always me who gives into them" Technoblade quickly aide stepped the conversation. He couldn't do it. He could slay thousands, he could and has killed a man with nothing but a quarter, he's taken on the whole server. But he can't tell you how he feels. He felt so small in your hands, despite quite literally towering over you, those eyes of yours.. he couldn't bare to see rejection in them. "Oh Tech.." wrapping your hands around the piglins neck you pull him close to you. "No one blames you, okay? Shit happens, especially to good people, and you're a good person Tech" you praise rocking him slightly as you feel strong arms encompassing you.

Your brief heart to heart with the piglin was soon interrupted by a quiet knocking at the door. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything" Philza chimed, for the second time he had walked in on the two of you, hopefully this time it wouldn't end in swords being drawn. Wiping the tears that began to well in your eyes you pulled away from Techno, instead turning your attention to Phil.

"Yes"

"No"

Glancing at the piglin you shake you're head, "no no it's fine, what's up?" You assure either a smile, the grip on your hands tightening a bit. "Good, I need to clean Technoblade's wounds, the withering effect can be a real bitch if left untreated" The winged man explain, pulling out the small basket of medical supplies. "I could do it phil" you offer standing up and gesturing to the basket. "Do you know how to treat gangrene?" He hummed twirling the basket in his hand as he walked past you to Technoblades side.

"Yeah maybe you should handle that"

"Thought so, this might take a while, you sure you want to stay?" Phil added, beginning to pull gauze and salves from the baskets confines. "Actually I should finish my chores, I'll be back in an hour or so" you shrug off the pleading look the piglin shot your way and waved the two good bye before slipping out of the room. As much as you'd like to spend more time with Technoblade you knew Phil wouldn't push you out of a room if it weren't for a reason. Swallowing thickly you make your way down to the basement. Might as well actually get your chores done.

"You two have grown rather close" Phil observes, helping Technoblade out of his sleeping shirt and onto his stomach. "We always have been" Technoblade snapped back, resting his head on the firm pillow beneath him. Your scent still lingering on his tongue. "I've been you're friend for a good time Techno, I don't believe I've ever seen you like this ." Phil dipped his fingers into the healing salve and began to work the solution into the blackened rotting skin. Not a hiss or groan left the man under him, instead he took to digging his claws into the already tattered pillows.

"What are you getting at Phil,"

"I'm trying to get you to admit it"

"Admit what"

"That you're in love with Y/N"

"I already have" the piglin snorted flinching as the salve began to eat at the wound he was happy he couldn't see. "I have for a while, you know that" He spoke between clenched teeth, feeling the wet of blood begin to role down his sides in streams. It was a shame, he liked these bedsheets.

"Believe me I know, but do they? You seem to be doing a lot but not saying much." Phil scolded, Technoblade didn't have to be facing him to know that he was shaking his head. The two sat in silence as Phil plastered another healing paste onto his wound and wrapped it up, smacking the back of his thighs to let him know he could sit up Phil's wrist was quickly caught by the piglin.

"How do I tell them"

♡•♡•♡•♡•♡•♡•♡•♡•♡•♡•♡•♡•♡•♡

@exorcisms-with-elmo @froggerspoggers

@hahabitchboy @that-local-cryptid @why-am-i-here-t-t @bulletpr00fyears2398 @kittiespitz @sl33pyt1r3 @bbpiglinboy @whatislifebutlemons @genzpop @obey-me-mammons-world @0slothful-milksake0 @boobery @wittyrosebush @theunknowinglys @gothdogge @clover-fox @kutozume @the-flowerghost @matronofthevoid @driverpicksthe-music @tails-and-scales @mediocrity-atitsfinest @bi-narystars @soda-pip @sylum @vrinty @fantsyland @owulu @byebyes-world @imasimpfortechno

[kaleidoscopek9]

ALRIGHT-

SO

I've had this list of headcannons just sitting in my notes app of my phone and I wanna put it somewhere so 👀

(These are heavily inspired by what I could gather from the skele boys in @bonelyheartsclub! I just threw in a few of my own.)

-----------*

Sans

- Does a LOT of stargazing and has quite a few space-themed knicknacks and clothes in his room. He's got a telescope too!

- Dad jokes. Any time is prime dad joke time. He's never let an opportunity slip past him.

- He's an absolute prank master. You're considered lucky if you happen to avoid the ones he's planted around the house like bombs waiting to go off.

- He's cryptic as fuck. Always giving half-true answers to every question. Occasionally he may slip up and give you a brutally honest response, but that's only with the people he trusts most, and he finds being open to be very difficult.

- He's constantly referencing memes and vine quotes from days of yore. He practically has a database of every meme ever in his head, and he doesnt let it go to waste.

- Cuddling with him is basically a one way ticket to nap-town, and you constantly find yourself waking up to him smooshed against you on the couch after dozing off. For being a skeleton, he is a surprisingly comfortable snuggler.

-----------*

Papyrus

-So much baking and cooking. It's his favorite past time, and the kitchen never smells the same when he's done making whatever he's making in there (it's 12 times out of 10 pasta) And while his cooking may be sub-par, you never say no when he asks you to try his latest dish.

- He's always up to go shopping with you. It never matters where. Malls are his favorite, especially the big grand ones with fountains and huge windows. He makes it a point to bring spare cash because you KNOW he's going to ride the mini marry-go-round even if he can barely fit in the seats.

- You two love to binge watch cooking channels. Always discussing which foods would be the most fun to make, writing down recipies, and having a hell of a time trying to pause the show at the right points to get all the information down.

- Papyrus is notorious for game nights. He's always pulling out boards and cards that you've never heard of before and never starts a game until he's absolutely certain you know the rules. Winning of course, is always his prime goal when it comes to games, but if he senses you're on a particularly rough losing streak, he MAY slip up. Occasionally. Just enough so you can win a game or two. Or five.

-----------*

Blue

- Hyper as all hell. You give him a reasonable dose of sugar or caffeine and he could power an entire city for a few hours without breaking a sweat.

- If he had been in high school, Blue would have been a theater kid. He's always humming a tune from a Broadway show or Disney movie, and he's got a pretty good collection of songs on his brother's Spotify playlist.

- This guy will blast Steven Universe music at full volume he has no shame.

- If you are ever driving somewhere with him, an aux cord is a MUST. Singing in the car is a very frequent thing with you two, and you'll only get out after the song is over.

- He likes cryptids! Mothman is his favorite and he firmly believes he exists somewhere.

- He's your workout buddy. If he manages to drag you to the gym with him, that is.

- Blue hates seeing you down in the dumps, and is always trying to cheer you up with his quirky puns and jokes to get you smiling again.

- He'd be the best motivational poster ever. Whenever he picks up that you're going through a rough spot and falling behind on self-care, he knows just what to say to put the spark back in you again.

-----------*

Stretch

- Radiates goblin energy.

- A goddamn meme lord.

- He's made two or three widely known viral videos and nobody knows it was him.

- You need someone to go to an anime convention with? Stretch is your guy. He's god awful at planning stuff out, but he'll make sure you both have a good time, no matter what happens.

- He's really big into nerd culture, and he DMs for a dungeons and dragons game every week.

- He'll occasionally smoke, but he doesnt have lungs, so he does it more for shits and giggles than anything else.

- As lazy as he seems, he is very reliable. If he knows it's something important to you, he'll get it done. Chores though, he's a lot more iffy with.

- He really likes bees.

-----------*

Red

- Talks big talk, but he's actually a huge softie.

- He's basically a big pillow with sharp teeth that can curse.

- A nervous wreck.

- His brother shops at Hot Topic. He shops at Spencer's. Very convenient.

- He's a pretty big flirt and throws out little compliments and things to butter you up from time to time.

- If you take Red into a Dave and Busters he will win the most expensive prize at the booth in about 2 hours. (He knows how to cheat at every single game)

- He's a competitive gamer, and has a pretty impressive following on Twitch.

- He can go from loud and brash to quiet and insecure in a matter of moments, depending on the situation.

- He loves to bake, although it's something he will never be caught dead doing.

- Comfort is not his strong suit, but he will defend you without a second thought.

- He can be a little clingy and will text you now and again to ask what you're up to, just to ease his mind.

-----------*

Boss

- Professionalism is his game.

- The walking embodiment of Hot Topic.

- He loves to listen to rock and screamo music. He's also got a thing for Disney villain songs.

- You need some punk biker or vampiric goth fashion advice? Boss got ya.

- Skellator Man.

- Out of all the skeletons, Boss has the biggest ego.

- He hates admitting he's wrong. He would rather DIE than admit he's fucked up something.

- "I am not nice-"

- He could kill a man with his high heels.

- If it's got spikes he'll probably wear it.

- Tsundere. Tsundere. Tsundere. Tsundere. Tsu

- Did I mention he's a cold blooded tsundere.

-----------*

Nox

- Small angery man.

- He listens to a lot of classic and instrumental music. He finds it very sophisticated.

- Wakes up obscenely early in the morning. Always followed by a cup of the most bitter coffee on the planet.

- Comes up with the best insults. He could roast someone so hard that they'd dissolve into a pile of soot. He could glare at you and you'd cease to exist. He's that good.

- WILL step on you without remorse.

- Threatens to kill someone on a daily basis.

- Very rarely has spare time for himself. He's always keeping busy doing something.

- Loves dark, dry humor. A child falling off a swing will have him laughing for a good five minutes.

- Has a stone cold poker face.

- He might have a softer side to him. You may never know because of the walls he's built up around him.

-----------*

Rus

- He absolutely adores animals. He volunteers at the local animal shelter and plans on adopting every single dog there.

- Rus has a massive sweet tooth. Donuts are his favorite, and you can easily bribe him with anything sugar coated.

- A road trip master. You put him in a camper and he knows exactly where he's going and what he's doing.

- "Going off grid, fuck yeah- I pull out my credit cards and shred 'em."

- Hiking, camping and geocaching are some of his favorite things to do. He loves to explore the wilderness and it's like he has a built-in compass for finding his way.

- His ideal date is going to a Wal-Mart and causing absolute chaos by riding bikes around and tossing all of the inflatable balls from their displays.

- Cryptidcore energy.

- Rus loves watching Buzzfeed Unsolved and ghost huntings. He's a big fan of Supernatural and Stranger Things, too.

- Stutters and slurs his words a lot. He's got some speech impediments from the gold canines in his mouth.

- A bit lacking when it comes to social skills, but he can be extremely caring and sweet.

-----------*

Ash

- Very soft-spoken and awkward. He doesn't get much social interaction and is still figuring some things out.

- He's very self-aware of the wound in his head. Whenever he has to leave the house he wears some sort of hat to cover it up.

- Practically lives in his garden. He understands plants more than he does human beings, and he spends time daily tending to whatever he's growing.

- Him and his brother are both vegetarians, and the smell or sight of meat makes them both feel sick to themselves.

- Has trouble sleeping due to his reoccurring nightmares. He will often sit in his garden late at night to help calm himself.

- Radiates soft energy. He would absolutely give the best hugs out of all the skeletons.

- Very touch-starved. Physical affection is something he rarely recieves, and he probably lingers with touches a lot longer than he should.

- Unintentionally makes God-teir jokes without realizing it.

----------*

Poplar

- Very well-educated in a lot of things. He really likes stocking up on useless factoids and making up his own just to mess with people.

- He answers Jeopardy questions with concerning accuracy.

- He enjoys going out to eat, and he's always up to try fancy foods.

- He likes photography and reading. He is well into the Harry Potter series.

- Poplar is prepared for anything at any time. A lot of stuff doesnt phase him at all, and it's difficult to catch him off-guard.

- He's willing to try anything new, once.

- Always willing to help out with schoolwork if he thinks you're seriously struggling with it.

- He's always carrying around small planners and notebooks to write in so he can keep track of things.

[mistoffeless]

Cryptid Misto head cannons

Misto has definitely played with a ouija board on more then one occasion. He quite good at figuring out who is a good spirit and who is a trickster or a demon. Tugger caught him one day using it in their den and was like ‘Baby I love you. You know that, however summoning spirits in our den might not be the best idea. The clearing is bigger, do it out there. Ok have fun I love you.’ And he waved him of like a proud parent on their kids first day of school.

He scared the everlasting cat out of Munkustrap one night when he was on patrol and Misto was playing with his board speaking to whoever he had conjured. He wasn’t speaking any language Munk could understand and was making little demonic noises. His eyes also glow their respective colours when he uses his board.

Spirits often ask him if he can pass on messages to their loved ones in the junkyard but as Misto doesn’t speak all that much to other cats yet, he simply tells them that they will know in due time. He will find another secret way to get the message across. Normally it’s through a item connected to the cat and he will move it into plain sight for the other cat to see and remember their loved one. He never passes on negative messages only positive ones.

Because of his magic Misto is able to morph the way he looks to the spirits. If he needs to appear threatening he can do so, if he needs to appear gentle he can.

Munk isn’t sure about the board, he doesn’t really know what it is but it gives him an uneasy feeling and the protector in him is cautious.

Misto made the board by himself out of wood, fridge magnet letters and numbers that he found around the junkyard, a bottle cap with a crystal in and he used his claws to carve hello and goodbye. He used his magic to change the colours, fonts and overall appearance to make it look like a proper ouija board. He’s proud of his work and guards the board with his life.

Misto keeps the board in a hidden place that even Tugger can’t find. He’s a responsible cryptid and doesn’t want it falling into the paws of the kittens or worse Macavity. He can magic it to the hiding place quickly if he needs to but he always remembers to say goodbye first. And never leaves a session open.

Misto has the ability to tell when another cat in the junkyard is dying and will use his board to call other past Jellicles of the junkyard to walk them into the afterlife when they are ready. He hates the idea of anyone dying alone so he creates a support network for them.

Is he tempted to let all hell break loose on Halloween? Yeah a little bit, nothing dangerous just a bit of fun. He is a cheeky cat after all.

Misto will often sneak out at night especially if it’s a full moon to use his board. Tugger always knows when he’s left and gives him about 20 minutes before he comes to get him to put him back to bed. Misto pulls the biggest eyes he can because he knows Tugger can’t resist them just so he can have 5 more minutes with his board.

Tugger doesn’t understand the board at all, Misto doesn’t so much as let him touch it, but it makes him happy so he doesn’t mind.

Misto is possessive over the board and will growl and hiss at anyone who comes to close. He’s not being mean, the other cats just don’t understand the power it holds. Unfortunately this does make everyone nervous around him. Jenny and Jelly have been on the receiving end of this a few times. They try to scold Misto but he just packs up the board and moves away.

[ryqoshay]

Putting on Hairs: Patronizing Meeting

Primary Pairing? Trio?: MariKana... Dia? Hinted: RinPana, KotoUmi? Words: ~2.1k Rating: G AU: Theater, Werewolf, Werebeast, Monster, Cryptid

----------

Author’s Note: A bit of a detour from NicoMaki. Honestly, I thought the spotlight would first swing to YohaRiko, but this is what came to mind, so here we are.

Summary: The theater’s primary patron pays a visit.

----------

“Oh, park there, Kanan-chan!” A voice cried excitedly from the back seat.

Kanan sighed and shook her head. “We can’t just park anywhere on the street, Mari-chan.”

“Uuu…” Mari pouted. “But I want to have a good view of Dia-chan’s new theater.”

Kanan chuckled. “You can see it just fine from here, and you’ll get to see it close up in a little bit. Let me just find your designated parking slot.” She turned the steering wheel to direct the car into the lot.

“We have a designated spot?”

“Of course, you do. Didn’t you read the email Dia-chan sent the other day?”

“I skimmed it.”

“All of the top tier patrons have designated parking slots.” Kanan explained. “And since your donation was the largest, even managing to edge out the Nishikino family, you get the best spot.”

“Of course mine was the highest, I want to help my Dia-chan however I can.”

Her Dia-chan… Kanan mused silently. If only…

While it was true that the three of them had grown up together, they had lost track of each other back in high school when Mari spent her second and third years over seas in the United States before going to college in Italy. Dia also left to attend college in Tokyo, leaving Kanan alone in Numazu.

It had barely been a year since Mari tried to reestablish contact. She managed to convince Kanan to leave the dive shop in the capable hands of a cousin, move to Tokyo and open a new shop right on Odaiba Beach. However, she ended up spending much of her time driving Mari around and leaving the shop to her employees. Not that she minded this arrangement. She enjoyed the excuse to spend time with Mari, and if she was being completely honest, knowing the blonde’s habits behind the wheel, it let her worry less for her friend’s safety.

Driving was also a way for Kanan to feel like she was contributing to the household. Mari was obviously the primary bread winner, so Kanan liked to do things in return.

Mari had found a huge 3LDK penthouse apartment where she invited Kanan and Dia to live with her. However, thus far, only Kanan had accepted. Dia, unfortunately, had been less responsive to either of their efforts to reconnect. But there was a room was open for her to accept at any time.

“Ah, here we are.” Kanan spotted the slot and pulled in.

“Eh? The best parking is on the second level?” Mari sounded confused.

She really didn’t read the email… “Of course, this is where the skyway entrance is.” Kanan explained.

“Skyway? Booo… I wanna see the main entrance!”

At this Kanan laughed. “Alright, just let me message Dia-chan to tell her where to meet us.”

With that said, Kanan exited the vehicle and was about to open the door for Mari, when the blonde hopped out herself instead.

“<Let’s go!>” Mari cheered in English, offering a brilliant smile and pumping a fist into the air.

Kanan pulled out her phone as she followed her energetic friend toward the stairway.

Krakanan: Mari-chan wants to see the main entrance, so we’re heading there instead

KurosawaDia: Very well. See you two in a few minutes.

KurosawaDia: Umi-san will be joining me.

Krakanan: I figured as such

Krakanan: I look forward to meeting your new business partner

Krakanan: I’ve heard good things about the Sonoda Theater Group

Not expecting a response, Kanan returned her phone to her pocket and continued her way toward the front doors of the theater. She and Mari made their way across the street, around the corner and..

“Dia-cha~n!” Mari cried, running up the handful of steps between the sidewalk and the entry and all but tackle hugging the raven-haired woman at the top.

“Salutations, Mari-san.” Dia greeted. “Thank you for coming today. I look forward to introducing you to the cast and crew.”

“Always so formal, Dia-chan.” Mari pouted. “It’s been for~ever~ since we saw each other, you should be more excited.”

Something changed in Dia’s expression. Just for a second. Had Kanan blinked, she would have missed it. And she had no idea what to make of it.

“Anyway,” Dia said after a moment “please allow me to introduce you to my partner in this endeavor, Sonoda Umi.” She pulled an arm free of Mari’s embrace to indicate the blue-haired girl beside them.

“Thank you for your generous donation, Ohara-san.” Umi said with a bow.

“Ohara-san?” Mari repeated. “<No, no, no.> You can just call me Mari. Any friend of Dia-chan is a friend of mine, Umi-chan.”

Pink dusted Umi’s cheeks undoubtedly caused by the casual referral. “V-very well, Mari-san it is.”

“Anyway, what a lovely place you two have here.” Mari finally released Dia and stepped down a few stairs to get a better view of the façade above her. “But, Sonoda Kurosawa Theater? Really?”

“We decided it best to put Umi-san’s name first.” Dia explained. “Her family is more renowned here in Tokyo than my own.”

“No, that’s not it.” Mari dismissed. “I meant, why just your names? That’s so boring!”

“How do you mean?”

“You should call it something more exciting, like The Monster Mash!”

“That is a song, and a dance type.”

“Or how about Tales from the Cryptids?”

Dia sighed. “That’s just a play on the title of an old television show.”

“But I mean that’s what this whole place is about, right? Giving our kind a place to be what they are while excusing any slipups as movie magic?”

“Theater magic, but you’re not exactly wrong.”

“I hate to interrupt,” Umi spoke up “but should we really be discussing such things out in the open like this?”

“Oh, you worry too much, Umi-chan.” Mari waved her hand at the other woman.

“No, Umi-san has a point.” Dia conceded. “Let’s head inside, shall we?” She turned and motioned for the others to follow.

“Fine.” Mari crossed her arms before moving back up the steps. “But you guys hired that Yoshiko girl, right? I think we’ve all seen how her claims are reacted to by the general public.”

Kanan couldn’t help enjoying the show as she watched her friends behave pretty much the same as they did back in high school. They really hadn’t changed much… except for whatever that crack in Dia’s demeanor had meant. She decided she could explore that issue later and smiled to herself as she followed the others into the theater.

“<SHINY!!>” Mari proclaimed, throwing the front doors wide as she entered.

“Pigi!” A voice squealed as a head of red hair ducked below a nearby counter.

Ah, of course Dia-chan would bring Ruby-chan here with her. Kanan thought to herself. I wonder if that means Hanamaru-chan is around here somewhere as well.

“You can come out, Ruby.” Dia said, her tone softening immediately as she called her younger sister and moved toward where she was hiding. “It’s just Mari-san being her usual boisterous self.”

“Mari-chan?” Ruby poked her head up. Emerald eyes sparked with recognition. “Mari-chan! Kanan-chan!” She ran to greet the two excitedly.

As Mari happened to be closer, she greeted the blonde first with a warm embrace. However, she was quick to shift to Kanan to welcome her as well.

“Good to see you again, Ruby-chan.” Kanan said as they parted. “We’ll have to catch up sometime soon.”

“Mm.” Ruby agreed with a smile. “Are you two the reason for the meeting?”

“They are.” Dia confirmed. “I want everyone to meet some of our generous patrons. I believe we have the Nishikinos slated for tomorrow?” She turned to Umi who confirmed with a nod. “Anyway, speaking of the meeting, we should head to the stage now for it.” She was about to turn and resume walking when…

“One last thing, Dia-chan.” Kanan spoke up.

“Yes, Kanan-san?”

Kanan spread her arms wide. “Hagu.”

Dia flushed a little but smiled anyway and stepped into the embrace.

“It’s… good to see you again, Kanan-san.” Dia spoke quietly, surprising Kanan. “I’m sorry if I’ve been a little cold as of late.”

Then, all too soon, as far as Kanan was concerned, Dia pulled out of the hug and resumed leading the way through the theater to the stage. Upon arrival, Umi and Dia began their introduction of the theater’s patron, Mari.

It seemed Dia’s penchant for long drawn out speeches hadn’t changed. Kanan considered. And it seemed she had found a business partner with similar tastes.

Ah, there’s Hanamaru-chan. Kanan thought as she scanned the crowd gathered on stage. Next, she picked out Chika and You, remembering their faces from back in Numazu. She made a mental note to greet them all after the meeting.

She recognized Nico and Maki from pictures included in emails sent by Dia about the lead roles for their first production. A few other faces looked familiar from other pictures, but she couldn’t readily place their names.

Still, it was amusing to observe some of the body language of those gathered. There was a young woman with red hair both longer and darker than Ruby’s. She was giving nervous side glances to a shorter girl near her. That girl had some of her blue hair tied up in a bun with a black feather sticking out. Wait, was that the Yoshiko girl Mari had mentioned a few minutes ago?

Next was an ash blonde whose attention seemed focused on Umi. Then, there was another redhead with braided twin tails who looked quite friendly standing next to slightly taller woman whose aura was as cool as the dark blue of her hair. A bespectacled brunette was looking at Nico like a fan waiting for an autograph. A darker brunette with a lovely red ribbon in her hair next to another ash blonde sporting an uneven, though cute haircut. A short pink haired girl with a blank expression stood next to a taller blonde with a brilliant smile. Then a sleepy looking brunette, a raven-haired young woman giving off a fiery aura, another with the tips of her dark twin-tails dyed green and a redhead with a stylish bun surrounded by a braid.

Quite the crew. Kanan found herself wondering what each might be.

“Food’s here, nya!” A voice cried from somewhere in the auditorium before an orange-haired blur scampered down the aisle. “Where do you wanna set up, Umi-chan?” A young woman asked, not seeming to care that Dia was still talking.

“Rin.” Umi scolded. “You’re early.”

“Better than late, right? Oh! Kayo-chin is here!” Rin scampered over to the brunette with glasses.

“R-Rin-chan...” Kayo-chin? said as Rin rubbed their cheeks together. That must be a nickname.

Kanan wondered if the nya had been indicative of her actually being a cat or just a verbal tic. Based on her running speed, Kanan suspected the former, though both wouldn’t surprise her.

“Special delivery!” Another voice rang out.

“Honoka, you’re…” Umi started.

“Ooo, what did you guys order for us?” Mari interrupted.

“We got lots of stuff!” Rin announced proudly. “But I gotta set up the tables and such for Honoka-chan to put things on.”

“Do you need help carrying anything?” The braided redhead spoke up.

“Sure! Lemme show ya, nya!” Rin sped back up the aisle.

“Emma-san…” Umi sighed as the redhead followed.

“It’s alright.” Dia said. “We’ve already lost Mari-san.” She turned back to her staff. “It seems the meeting is adjourned. Please be sure to thank Mari-san for sponsoring this meal, brought to us by Kousaka Catering.”

“I thought she didn’t know what was ordered?” Umi raised an eyebrow.

“I placed the order. Mari paid the bill.”

“I see.”

“There’s plenty of food!” Mari announced loudly. “Don’t hold back! Eat all you want! Take some home if you want. I don’t want to see anything left.”

As Kanan headed up the aisle to see what else needed to be carried in, she mused about the appetites of those she knew. If those were any indications of the others, she wondered just how much had been ordered. She figured it would probably fill an entire…

Box truck.

Sure enough, parked haphazardly on the sidewalk, emblazoned with Kousaka Catering on the side, sat a box truck. And it indeed appeared to be completely packed.

She spotted Emma carrying several catering boxes, stacked past her head.

“The breadsticks are buono!” The young woman said as she passed.

Part of Kanan wanted to break out her other arms in an attempt to carry even more boxes, but as there was no shortage of witnesses on the public street, she settled for a similarly sized stack as Emma. Perhaps some other time. No more than three steps later, and Rin was already slipping past her, carrying only half as many boxes, but speeding along at probably thrice Kanan’s pace.

Again, Kanan found herself wondering what all everyone was. She knew Mari would want to stop by the theater on a regular basis, so perhaps over the next week or so, she could find out.

----------

Author’s Notes Continued in Followup Post

[zims-left-shoe]

Can you do a Dib x Reader that’s into tarot cards and horoscopes? Also can make this AU a college AU? I know you said you write the characters up to high school but I was just wondering if you would. It’s fine you do them in high school.

Yeah! Just a warning, I’m not super experienced with tarot cards and everything, so apologies if a lot of it is inaccurate. I hope it’s still okay!!

The air was warm, and the sweet scents of pastries mingled with the sharp smell of coffee. The surrounding chatter of voices and calm music served as decent white noise. You lifted your drink to your lips, eyes drifting to the window next to you. Shades of grey painted the sky, muted tones growing ever darker as time ticked by. Outside, the air had a nasty nip to it, and you were not looking forward to stepping outside again. Plus, you were enjoying yourself in the moment. Your gaze was drawn back to the man across from you, his large glasses fogging slightly from the heat of his own drink. 

You were more than delighted that he had asked you to come study with him at the coffee shop. Sure, you had wished he had the courage to bite the bullet and ask you on an actual date, but on a chilly winter afternoon a relaxing coffee hangout and study session was still enjoyable. Admittedly, you had developed feelings for the reserved cryptid fanatic who sat next to you in your cell biology class. That being said, you were ecstatic when he had quietly asked that morning if you would like to grab a coffee and study with him. Although you wished for a bit more, the current situation was completely fine by you.

"Have you been doing anything interesting lately?" Both of you had finished your work quite some time ago, spending the rest of the time talking to each other, a silence only settling for a brief minute or two before you continued the conversation. Sure, it was small talk, but the kind of talk that occurs between friends when they can sense their time together is drawing to a close, and that the hangout will end soon. The kind of talk when you aren't ready to leave each other's company, so you attempt to draw out the conversation with simple things.

"Oh, you know, only what every normal college kid does. Party hard, baby." The straight face he was attempting to hold fell apart almost immediately as he broke into a chuckle. "Nah. Just the usual, studying the paranormal. Aliens, ghosts, all that stuff." A smile spread on your face. Of course he was. You found his unique obsession with spooks and cryptids cute, and you were glad he had a passion in life. Even if that passion was restricted while he was away at school, he would still find ways to express himself. He was always scribbling supernatural doodles in the margins of his notes, monitoring the local cryptid stories constantly. "Sorry. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I'm just not that interesting."

"Please. Liking the paranormal is much more interesting than being a party animal whose only hobby is getting wasted." You paused, setting your cup down on the table. "I wouldn't be here otherwise. I'm only attrac-I mean, drawn, to people who are intriguing."

Nice save, stupid... You thought to yourself. At this point, you were unsure if you should just tell him how you felt. You were reasonably confident that he felt the same way, but he was just too damn nervous to ruin your friendship. 

"Okay then, any secrets, or maybe embarrassing stories? Everyone has some. If you tell me one of yours, I'll tell you a story of mine." You bumped your bag that was resting underneath the table with your foot as you stared out at him, trying to pressure him into telling you something good. He always had the best stories. Especially when they were about aliens.

"My whole life is one embarrassing story after the other." He set his cup down as well, finding your eyes once more. "But, I guess one time I had my DNA fused with baloney." You laughed, believing him to be joking. You believed him a majority of the time, but that one was just so outlandish it couldn't possibly be true. "I'm not lying! Remember my stupid alien classmate? Well, he decided to get me back for throwing lunch meat in his face by making me sit on a tack that fused baloney DNA with my own." He was completely serious, so that left only two options: he was either completely insane or it was the truth. For the time you've known and befriended him, he seemed to have a good head on his shoulders, so what the hell. Why not believe him?

"I'm honestly not sure which part to ask for a follow up on, the alien classmate having baloney genetic makeup on the ready or being fused with sandwich meat." Brushing stray strands of hair from your face, you sighed, knowing that your story was in no way going to top that. "Mine isn't that exciting or embarrassing, but in high school, I charged for tarot readings in the bathrooms as a way to make some money. Well, I did until a teacher reported me for 'Satan worshipping'. Which, for starters is complete bullshit, but she was just jealous I made more money a week than she did." You smirked, remembering the look on her face when she confiscated your receipt book that you used to keep track of your profits. 

"Wait, you used to read tarot cards?" Dib offered you his full attention, eyes filled with wonder. "I've always thought it was cool, but I just never really had gotten into it. Too busy saving the Earth from aliens and all that."

"I still do. You have your cryptids and space creatures, I have my tarot cards and horoscopes." To your amazement, Dib appeared to be enchanted by the subject. Then again, you supposed it was more or less something you could see him getting into.

"How did I not know that about you?" You shrugged in response to his words. It had just never came up in conversation. "Maybe we could hang out again soon and you could walk me through it?" He looked to be a bit apprehensive, almost as if you had already rejected the idea in his mind. You didn't even have to consider the idea. Not only did you harbor feelings for him, you would jump at the chance to show off your skills and interests.

"I would love to. My roommate has to work Friday night, maybe you could come to my dorm then?" A dorky grin spread across his face as he reached for his cup to drink the remaining coffee.

"It's a date, then." His face flushed as he realized his wording. "Not like that! As friends! You know what I mean." His fingers drummed on the tabletop, and you were sure he was sweating.

"I mean, unless...?" You made an overexaggerated thinking face, and after a moment, you both busted up laughing. However, you were of course only half joking.

(more under the cut)

-

Pushing open the door, you stepped into the room you had made your own. Kicking aside some shoes your roommate had left piled by the door, you let the man behind you inside.

"Sorry for the mess, I asked my roommate to clean up. They didn't."

"It's fine. You should see my dorm, it's definitely worse." Chuckling, you led him to your side of the room, which was a stark contrast from the other. Everything, for the most part anyway, was organized within bins, your desk nice and tidy despite having many trinkets and various things resting on the desktop. You had made a nice personal space under your bed, it was where you would often sit when you got tired of your desk or bed. Gesturing for him to take a seat on the floor under your bed, you went over to your desk, shuffling through one of your drawers until you felt your fingers close around your tarot deck.

"You have any questions before we start?" You hummed as you closed the drawer.

Dib's eyes were intently focused on you as he sat cross-legged underneath your bed. Finally, he spoke, albeit tentatively. "Just one, but it's kind of stupid."

"There are no stupid questions."

"Okay, in that case...does reading tarot cards like, open up your third eye and let you see ghosts and stuff?" Staring into his face revealed that he wasn't kidding. He was legitimately asking if you could see ghosts when you learned to read tarot cards.

"I changed my mind. There are stupid questions." Laughter slipped out as you sunk down the the floor across from him, tipping the box in your hands until the cards slid out. "Of course it does."

"Woah, really?" His cinnamon eyes sparkled with excitement, and yet again, a flurry of giggles escaped you.

"No, of course not. It doesn't make you see ghosts. It develops greater intuition and understanding." Dib let out a long breath, gaze falling to the floor as he picked at the chipping black polish on his nails, regretting he ever asked that question.

"Can we just forget I ever said that? Please?" You nodded as you separated the deck in your hands, shuffling them together. You did this many times over, the sharp sounds of cards coming together cutting through the stillness that had settled over the room. Dib stared at the cards in your hand, watching as you shuffled them with skill. He had lost track of how many times you had done so by the time you had stacked them together for the final time.

"So, is there anything specific you want to learn? I can't exactly teach you to read, since it takes a lot of practice and a deck you're comfortable with." As you looked to him expectantly, he appeared to be at a total loss for what to even ask for. "I could give you a simple reading just for fun." 

"Sure! But, uh, how do they work?" A smile crept onto your face. You felt a warm glow of happiness at being able to share your interests with someone who was genuinely interested in learning about them.

"Well, if I were to do it by myself, I would shuffle them as I did now. It helps bring your energy to the cards, and therefore you will be more drawn to certain ones. Plus, you can better interpret them." You passed the deck to Dib. "If you can shuffle, shuffle them. Do it several times."

"Okay...what exactly are you reading for?" He began shuffling, although not as cleanly as you. A few times the cards had slipped from his grip, flying out in all directions. Every time that would happen, he gathered the cards and began to shuffle again as he listened to you.

"Well, we're just going to do a simple spread of three, but it can be for almost anything. Your past, present, and future, advice for obstacles, relationships, all of that stuff." 

"Relationships?" Dib stacked the cards for a final time, handing them back to you. You took them, spreading them out in front of you, face down. 

"Yeah, there's all different types of readings for relationships. Is that the simple spread you want?" He thought for a moment, a hint of a smile playing at his lips as he looked to you. 

"I think so. You said there's different types of relationship readings, so just make an executive decision for me."

"That's not how this works." Your sigh was broken by a chuckle. "But fine. I'll do a spread where a card represents you, the other person, and the relationship." You found yourself wishing for a good outcome, thinking that he was most likely asking about the relationship he could possibly have with you, or at least that's what you were hoping for. "Pick three cards that you're drawn to and line them up across from you."

"Alright..." He stared at the arc of cards that was laid out in the space between you, deliberating, eyes carefully calculating. He brushed a finger across the glossy backs of the cards, finally deciding on two close to the middle, and one on the leftmost edge. He laid them out as you had asked, looking back to you expectantly. "Now what?"

"Now I give you your reading. I'll try my best to interpret the cards in the context of your life, but don't hold it against me if I'm not one hundred percent accurate." You flipped over the spread, the three cards facing up.

"Did I do good...?"

"It's not about making the right choices, it's about being drawn to the cards." You chided, looking at his spread. The cards that had been turned over were an upright Nine of Wands, a reversed Hanged Man, and an upright World. "Let's start with you." You pushed the card a little closer to him. It depicted a bandaged man leaning heavily on a wooden wand, surrounded by the other eight. "This is the Nine of Wands."

"Is it bad?" He looked curious, but there were concerned undertones in his expression.

"No, not necessarily. As a card, it represents courage, determination, and resilience. In the context of your part in the relationship, there may be or have been setbacks for you personally, but you have the strength to overcome those things. You might get hurt, or things may be tough and uncertain for you right now, but you will persist and get through it." A light blush dusted his cheeks as he nodded.

"Yeah, that sounds about right...does getting in your own way count as a setback?" Dib chuckled, running a hand through his dark hair.

"Sure. If I had to offer advice...no risk, no reward, right?" You both locked eyes for a moment, a hush falling over the room yet again. Again, this same, infuriating dance. You both were aware of how you felt. Yet neither would make a move. 

"I suppose..." Dib actually seemed to be taking all of this into deep consideration. You couldn't help the hope that you felt rising in your chest.

"Alright, next...the other individual. This is the Hanged Man, but it's reversed." Again, you pushed the card forward. It depicted a man who was supposed to be hanging by the ankle from a tree, but from the direction it was turned, it appeared he was more standing upright.

"Are reversed cards bad?"

"They can be. The reversed Hanged Man for example generally means that the person is ready to go but is being held back. In context of the other person in your case, maybe they're ready to jump into a relationship but you might be holding them back by not taking a chance." Okay, so maybe that wasn't really a reading. You may have been guilty of inserting your own personal feelings into the reading, since you assumed the relationship in question was between yourself and Dib. You recognized the hint of irritation that was edging your words, so you drew in a deep breath, continuing on in a softer tone. "You know, like you said. You said your setback could be getting in your own way. You might be overthinking everything, which is restricting the other person from taking the next step."

"You think so?" Again, that damned knowing tone. When you looked into his eyes, you knew that he was aware of how you felt. And yet he still stopped himself every time from taking that leap. Was he waiting for you to make the first move? You hoped not. Sure, it may have been hypocritical, but you wanted no part in asking for a more romantic end to your friendship.

Clearing your throat, you decided to move to the last card of the spread. "The relationship itself. This card is the World." You held it up this time to show him, wishing to hold onto it. The card illustrated a naked woman in the middle of a wreath, surrounded by various animal heads. "Generally, it represents being in the right place, pausing before the next stage." Admittedly, that was not the reading you had desired. You didn't want to stay as only friends. "In context of the relationship, it could be interpreted as staying put, and just appreciating where the two of you are. There will be lots of options and pathways ahead and all that." You waved your hand dismissively, unable to fight off the exhaustion that was settling in. "So, anyway, that was your very basic reading." You stacked the cards together again, lazily patting the ground around you for the box.

"Is this stuff, like, certain advice?"

"You mean, do you have to take it? No, I suppose not. It's just suggestions and life advice based on interpretations."

Dib crawled his way over to sit by your side as you put your cards safely back in their box. You quirked an eyebrow, yet said nothing. "Okay, because I'm not too into that last one." Without tearing his eyes away from yours, his fingers brushed your own. He kept eyeing your face to confirm that what he was doing was alright. Always cautious, that one. 

"I probably shouldn't give my input, since it's your life advice, but me either." A smile tugged at the corners of your mouth as his fingers finally laced themselves with yours, his free hand drifting up to your face. His touch was light, so much so that you weren't even sure if it was there. In that moment, Dib was a walking contradiction, unsure of himself yet completely secure at the same time.

"But if you're reading the cards, aren't I asking for your input?" Slowly he leaned his face closer to yours, hand still resting on your cheek. Fitting, wasn't it? Everything the both of you had ever done was drug out to the maximum. Whether it was that you both enjoyed the frustration or you wanted to extend every moment you had together, you would never know. Nor did it matter. Especially not then. 

"I suppose you are." You reached out a hand to run it through his hair, intertwining your fingers with the dark strands. "You're sure, then?" Each word that was spoken became progressively fainter. The entire time you spoke, his lips were barely a breath away from your own.

As if your words were the cue he needed to commit, he murmured a quick, "I think so." before finally closing the distance and pressing his lips softly against yours. He didn't need to speak for you to know that was all he had been dreaming of doing for a long while. It was obvious in the magical way he was moving his lips in time with your own, in the way delighted hums and mumbles would rise from his throat. In your opinion, there was something to be said about mouth-to-mouth communication. This was possibly the happiest you had ever seen him, you didn't need to be a master of intuition to interpret that. You felt him smile into the kiss, and you couldn't resist smiling along with him. 

Dib finally pulled away after what felt like both an eternity and hardly any time at all. "You said it yourself. No risk, no reward." His grin was wide, and his eyes shone with joy behind his large glasses. 

"Correct." Your hand fell from his hair to his coat, fingers playing with the fabric of the collar. "I usually charge for tarot readings, but for you, another kiss and consider your tab paid."

"Sounds fair enough to me." Leaning in once more, Dib planted yet another kiss on your lips. It was much quicker than the previous one, but after pulling back he proceeded to pepper several little kisses all over your face. Each was very light and brief, leaving your skin feeling tingly. His lips found your own once more, both hands tangling themselves in your hair. A simple tarot reading had somehow morphed into a very physical expression of feelings that had been pushed down for months. You wouldn't complain, though.

"Thank you for your payment." Your words were broke by giggles after you had parted. 

"Of course." Dib's gaze drifted to the box of cards that was sitting off to the side, his smile never wavering. "You know, you should teach me how to read those."

"Only if you take me cryptid hunting."

"Deal." He laughed at the determined smirk on your face, wrapping his arms around you. You let him pull you into a hug, your arms snaking around him as if that was where they were always meant to be. 

"So, can we safely consider ourselves ex-friends now? Because personally, I feel that we're much better off as lovers."

"Like I said before, I trust your input, it's what I asked for." 

"So, lovers it is?"

"Lovers it is." Dib's voice was pleasant as you snickered into his chest, more than pleased with how the day had went. You sensed that he would agree with that notion. 

[shade-romeo]

Part 2/2! I'm feeling very motivated and I wanna write this before that goes away.

@potereregina part 2! :D!!

The sun was almost set as the three arrived at the clearing. Roman had dressed up a bit, having put on a button up shirt paired with some nice pants. He had complained about not having anything nicer, but that was short lived once they got going.

Logan had also put on something nice, though it was more casual then normal. He had put on a long sleeved shirt, paired with a thin jacket, and jeans.

Despite the two of them having two vastly different outfits, Virgil thought they both looked wonderful. And they had both assured him, more than once, that his black sweatshirt and ripped jeans looked great. He didn't exactly believe them, but he didn't really have anything else to wear.

But yes.. It was true, that Virgil had grown.. attached to his roommates as of late, but there was no way he would ever say so. They were already dating! Telling someone who's already in a relationship that you like them is basically asking for rejection.

Anyway, yeah. That was his situation, and he was fine with pining for the rest of his existence. He was fine.

Once they stepped through the thick tree branch archway, Virgil gasped. "Oh my god.."

The clearing was huge, half of it being taken up by a lake, though there was still definitely enough room on land for a huge amount of people. And the whole thing was lit up by a ton of fairies, all flying around and chattering in their little bell-like voices. And there were so many creatures! Werewolves and Vampires hanging out and chatting, Mermaids swimming in the lake with Sirens, Nagas and Avians walking around with a smile. It was..

"Awesome.." Virgil spoke breathlessly.

Roman snickered, "Now, now, don't go all starstruck on us cryptid hunter." He teased with a nudge.

Virgil shook himself out of his amazement and looked over at Roman, "Sorry, I just.. I've never seen this many creatures all at once before, or.. at all.."

Logan smiled, "Well, we should bring you here more often then. The clearing is almost always this bustling, especially at night though."

Roman nodded, "Mhm! Except on the full moon or things like that, this place is pretty sacred so, in the werewolves case at least, they stay away when the full moon comes near."

Virgil rose an eyebrow, "How do you know that?"

Roman was about to answer, when a really tall werewolf bounded over with a huge smile.

"Logan! Roman! Human I don't know! Hi! It's awesome to see you!!" They picked Roman up easily, squeezing him tight enough for him to groan.

"Pat.. I need to breathe." He mumbled.

"Right! Sorry!" Pat (?) quickly sat Roman back down, and went over to Logan, picking him up off the ground as well, though not as high as Roman, considering Logan was much taller than the familiar.

Once they were done hugging Logan they ran towards Virgil, who panicked and put out his arms, "No! Uh- sorry- just.. could I get your name first..?"

Pat blinked, "Oh! I'm sorry! My name is Patton, He/Him Pronouns. I'm a werewolf, obviously. What's your name?"

"Virgil, he/him too. Uh.. I'm human, though you noticed that earlier.. nice to meet you." He held out a hand, silently saying 'Look, you seem nice but please don't hug me..'

Patton seemed to understand, as he grabbed Virgil's hand and shook it enthusiastically. "It's nice to meet you too! Oh! Roman, Remus is over by the lake, he said to send you over if I saw you come in."

Roman nodded and bid his goodbyes to Logan and Virgil, Patton doing the same before they were heading over to the lake.

Virgil turned to Logan to find him smiling at him, and maybe that made him flush a bit.

"So, I'll show you around, and introduce you to some people." Logan smiled, holding out his hand.

Virgil flushed even worse and nodded with a nervous smile, taking his hand and letting him lead him further into the clearing.

The rest of the night went amazingly. Logan did indead show him around the entire clearing, and introduced him to a few creatures he was close with. A vampire named Remy, an avian named Emile, a merman named Thomas, and a siren called Nico. They also passed Roman and Remus, who were hanging out with a shape-shifter named Janus. And Logan did indeed clarify that Janus was the one who helped with his potion.

They were all incredibly nice, aside from Remy, but Logan informed him that was just the way they were.

Virgil sat on the ground next to the lake, Emile sitting next to him as Thomas waded in the water, the three of them having a pleasant conversation with Logan standing behind Virgil, watching fondly. Then suddenly, a witch was calling out to everyone from the edge of the clearing.

"Okay everyone! It's officially midnight! You all know what that means!" Virgil couldn't help but feel a pang of fear, despite himself, "Dancing time!!" Virgil immediately felt a bit silly for being frightened, especially as many of the creatures rushed to the "dance floor" as a large group of fairies flew over said dance floor, and started playing music. Pop music actually. How they did that Virgil had no idea, but he didn't really care much either.

Logan sighed with a smile, and held up three fingers, Emile snickered as Thomas shook his head with a smile.

Virgil rose an eyebrow at them as Logan counted down silently. Once he got to one, Roman was right at Logan's side, grabbing his arm and shaking him, practically begging him to come dance with him.

Oh.. wow they know each other really well.. his heart hurt a bit at that realization, but he ignored it as Logan turned to him once again.

"Will you be okay here by yourself?" He asked.

"He won't be by himself!" Thomas interjected, "Emile and I are right here."

"I appreciate your correct grammar Thomas." Logan smiled.

Roman groaned, pulling on Logan. "Come ooooon!! Virgil's fine with Emile and Thomas! Right?"

Virgil nodded.

"Yeah! So come on!! Just one dance pleeeeeaaaaaassssseeee!!" And then Roman was using his pleading eyes, and even though they were directed at Logan, Virgil couldn't help the way his heart melted.

Logan finally gave in, going over to the dance floor with Roman after a quick goodbye.

Emile and Thomas continued talking, but Virgil didn't, he was preoccupied with something else.

He stared intently as Logan and Roman made it to the dance floor, immediately latching onto each other and dancing to the beat, never separating for very long. It was.. mesmerizing, to say the least. He didn't look away, he couldn't, they were.. they were too stunning to not look at. And then he suddenly realized just how much he cared for both of them, no.. he realized just how much he loved them. Oh god.. he's in love with two people who are already in a relationship.. he's so fucked.

He was so absorbed in his own thoughts, that he didn't realize Thomas was trying to get his attention, at least not until there was water being flicked into his face.

He flinched and turned to the other two, seeing them both with sympathetic faces.

"So.. you've got it bad then?" Emile asked, and Virgil hesitated, glancing back over to the couple before looking down, nodding solemnly.

"I get that. Not to the extent you're feeling right now, but I get the pining." Thomas offered, "I'm in pretty deep for someone in particular as well."

Virgil nodded, "It sucks.. especially when you know you can't have them.." he wasn't sure why he was opening up like this, maybe it was because of how open these two seemed? How sympathetic they were? He doesn't know.. but it doesn't matter much anyway.

Thomas nodded, sighing a bit. "Yeah.." he glanced over to the other side of the lake, directly at Nico, Virgil noted, before back to Virgil and Emile.

Emile hummed, "You should tell them. You too Thomas, but we'll talk about that in a minute."

Virgil blinked, "Are you serious? I can't tell them! They're dating! They'd hate me!"

"They won't hate you. They care for you a lot, I can tell. If anything they're going to let you down gently." Emile spoke softly, placing a hand on Virgil's knee. "Don't you want to get it off your chest, put it out in the open and.. take a chance?"

Virgil was silent for a while, contemplating Emile's words. Apparently he took too long, because before he could respond he was being tugged at by an excited Roman, and he realized the song was now over.

"Hi. Come on Vi! Your turn!" He grinned, as Logan sat down on the grass next to Emile.

Virgil flushed and sputtered for a moment as he stood up, stumbling a bit as Roman continued to pull.

"Wh.. Me?!"

"Yes!! You!! Now come oooonnn!!" He whined and pulled.

But.. but Logan and Roman had been dancing so intimately during the last song! W..would Roman want to dance with him the same way?! No, no way, he probably just didn't wanna be alone up there.. yeah..

And after convincing himself of that, he agreed, letting Roman drag him off.

They made it to the dance floor, which wasn't actually as crowded as it looked. But before he could take in his surroundings, Roman was grabbing both his hands and putting them on his waist, wrapping his own around Virgil's shoulders.

Virgil was surely bright red, and if his eyesight was to be believed, so was Roman. The familiar grinned and started leading the dance, Virgil following along like a lost and incredibly flustered puppy. Though eventually, he got into the flow of things, moving in sync with Roman, comepletely engulfed in the song and dance, so muxh so that he didn't bat an eye when Roman seemed to push himself closer.

Once the song was over though, he realized that was.. really fucking intimate, and Oh God. Roman though, was giggling and bouncing in place, gushing about how much fun that was and how good of a dancet Virgil was. And wow he's so far gone for this cutie.

A few minutes later, Logan finds them, a soft smile on his face.

"You two had fun?"

Roman grinned, "Of course! That was great!"

Virgil couldn't help but smile giddily as well, "I.. yeah. That was.. great."

Logan nodded, "Good to hear, we should probably head home now though."

Roman pouted but nodded, taking Logan's hand, and squeezing Virgil's, before walking with Logan out of the clearing.

As they walked through the forest, Virgil spoke up, shaky and vulnerable.

"What.. was that? I mean, why did you dance with me like that? I mean.. I.. I liked it, it was uhm.. fun, but.. I just.. uh.."

Roman pursed his lips, "Well.. okay. I know we had a rocky start." Understatement of the century, "But.. I've grown to like you. A lot."

..wait.

"As have I. Even while our relationship wasn't strained before, I have taken a certain.. liking to you." Logan spoke, as Virgil noticed both of their faces flushing under the moonlight.

..what.

The two of them shared a look, before Logan nodded and Roman turned back to Virgil. "So, we've been talking.. and.. we wanted to ask you to join our relationship? Like, a polyamorous relationship, where all three of us are dating each other."

..oh my god.

Logan nodded, "Yes, we didn't know the right time to ask you, so we.. haven't, and Roman suggested that he could dance with you tonight and explain while you were on the dance floor."

..no fucking way.

"I chickened out though.. so I'm glad you asked about it." Roman smiled sheepishly, before taking in Virgil's blank expression.

"..Virgil? Are you okay?"

Virgil seemed to let out a large breath, a small smile forming on his face. "You couldn't have picked a better night to ask me this."

Both of them were confused, and so Virgil started explaining, his brain not comepletely catching up with everything he was saying.

"I've been in love with you guys for.. a while now, I just never realized what it was until I saw the two of you dancing before, and I was just.. mesmerized, because you two are stunning separately, but together you're so, so perfect, and I couldn't look away until I was forced to and-" he stopped, his brain finally catching up, "And uh.. I'd love to date you guys, is what I'm saying."

And then Roman was beaming, immediately hugging Virgil tight and celebrating as he did so. And Logan.. Logan was looking at him, with that soft fond look he always gave to Roman, and.. and he couldn't ask for anything more.

(Reblogs > Likes)

[howlingowl-wra]

Ask the Owls "I've been to a few events The Owls have hosted but always feel like a bit of a wall flower. Everyone seems so friendly, but also seem to be constantly engaged with other friends and I'd feel rude to interrupt. Am I being way too nervous?"

Tanner: "You are as nervous as any of us were, and likely still are. I am a security guard for a reason--it is not the most social of jobs at the Owl! Say hello, ask for weapons, step aside, repeat. Interaction over. The hardest part is always the first step into the pool, though, and there are myriad ways to get there. You merely need to find yours. I personally find it easiest to follow someone with whom I am already acquainted, or if that cannot happen, I will settle near an interesting-looking group and see if I cannot find a good opportunity to interrupt. That said, there is also nothing wrong with being a wallflower and simply attending for your own pleasure. If you wish to come alone, be alone, and leave alone, enjoy your solitude and let no one take it from you."

Yainah: "I was much the same way when I first started coming! It's quite daunting, but most folks are happy to wave back at you if you approach and who knows? Maybe they'll invite you to chat too! If you don't have any luck there, you could always try heading in line for drinks and start up conversation with another waiting patron or even one of the baristas, bartenders, or security guards around."

Kav Tari: "Heck I still feel like that!" Kav laughs and shakes her head. "Sometimes I just want to enjoy the vibes, which is cool, but other times you just gotta make the move. Find some outfit piece or accessory that draws your attention to someone, walk or dance on up, mention it, and hang out. Lots of these peeps are as friendly as they seem, sometimes more so, which means - unless they are getting intimate on the floor with a specific person without talking much to others - you'll get pulled into the group quickly."

Skeltyr:  "Lissen, as the resident cryptid, the only reason I started socializing is because Saeil badgered me into it, an' then I got adopted by a slightly more extroverted introver. Now we wallflower togevver. Talkin' to people ain' easy, especially if you're in anyway worried about lookin' foolish or uncool. The fing to remember is; not a single one of us is cool. We're all so much dorkier than we look. Look at Saeil!"

Skeltyr gestures over to the owner of the Howling Owl. "Tall, thin. Nice muscles, cool tattoos. Piercings. Ask 'im about 'is boy and you will swear you've never met a bigger sap. Ophene is addicted to makin' numbers get big, an' if you give 'er a chance, she'll be the first to start self-depracatin'. 'Er fiance, Othiriel, will talk your ear about romance novels, and you'll walk away wif at least five - NO I DON'T NEED MORE."

"Tanner is a walking Dad Joke." Skeltyr shrugs. "That's just the people I like. There's so- so many more, and they're all ridiculous people. All of 'em."

Ophene: "I'm still pretty sure that I'm rudely interrupting most social interactions that I find myself in just by virtue of being in them? Really, if you think about it, talking is just one interruption after another. I can't think of a time I've seen an Owl turn away a new face, and most of us don't bite! Except for Miss Ellaneous. She bit Tanner and, uh, it wasn't great. But she's not an official employee."

Kon: "I will mirror Yainah's reply and say that as one of the baristas there who is always happy to have a stranger approach, I encourage and welcome you to come speak with me or any of us really! If it is me you so choose, I will personally see to it that you are kept in good company and engaging conversation so you can feel more confident to approach those you meet along the way. There is beauty in wallflowers but most of us owls never feel interrupted by a patron or potential new friend who wishes to come to know us better and I for one encourage you to try it as we all like to see all flowers bloom even if they need the warmth and light of others to help make them grow."

Othiriel: "Miss Ellaneous is an outlier and should not be counted—the rest of us have a calming aroma of coffee and she is very sorry about The Incident. It's always hard to walk up to people you don't know very well, but I think the nice thing about Owl events is that there's always something to talk about! The coffee, the performances, the theme nights, even the silly conversations you overhear through the night. We love chatting with patrons, and I completely understand being nervous—taking the plunge is the scariest part, but it's so worth it!"

[ahatintimestorybook]

Coffee Shop AU- Magic Duel Part 1

So this is how this story happened! Me: *working on the next chapter of Humanity in Time and one new story* Brain: What if I wrote a duel between Hat Kid and Queen Vanessa. Me: *goes to my upcoming stories list and writes it down!*

So yeah I was going to be focusing on the OtH!AU fanfics, but my brain wants to write more Coffee Shop AU stuff. I have so many ideas, but some I want to hold off till the creator, @doodledrawsthings confirms them.

This story is also a bit shorter, only two chapters but I hope you like it!

Enjoy!!

‘Coffee Shop’ AU belongs to @doodledrawsthings 

Today was the day. It was finally Summer Vacation and the kids over in Subcon can finally relax and enjoy their break. The teens over in the high school and a few from the junior high were excited as they would be spending their time camping, looking for the legendary Snatcher.

At the elementary school though, many of the kids were leaving town going on vacations or staying by town to help out their families at their jobs. “So are you going to do anything fun this summer, Mu?” Harriet asked.

Mu sighed in disgust. “I gotta help my ma at the local bakery, plus because of my cryptid hunting I’m on a strict sleeping schedule!” She complained.

Bonnie then spoke up. “Well that’s what you get for being up all night looking for the Snatcher and were found ready to crack at the drop of a hat.” She explained. Mu crossed her arms and puffed up her cheeks not wanted to be reminded of that night. Harriet chuckled thinking what happened with Mu was funny.

Mu heard her best friend’s giggles and turned to face her. “What about you Harriet? What are you doing this summer?” She asked.

Harriet thought about that. As much as she wanted to do a lot of summer vacation stuff with her dad, however due to his condition it was hard to do any fun summer stuff with him. Though she was glad MJ and Clover, her father’s co-workers offered to take her and her friends anywhere this summer. At least this would be her first summer where she and her dad are in one place, as usually summer is the time they would move again.

“Honestly just regular summer stuff like hiking, swimming, all that stuff. Can’t do a vacation like everyone else.” Harriet explained.

Mu smiled and put her arm around Harriet. “Well that’s good, we can do more camping and sleepovers at my place.” She suggested. Harriet nodded glad Mu had ideas to help make her summer fun.

Bonnie smiled glad she would be with her friends this summer, hopefully. As they walked she turned behind her and saw a black car following them. Bonnie gulped hoping it was just a car looking for a house or just passing by. She didn’t want to alert her friends because it would end up with Mu shouting at them, and probably would get the person to murder all three of them. With that Bonnie ignored the car and kept following her friends towards the Horizon, the coffee shop in Subcon where Harriet’s father, Luka worked.

Though Bonnie should of been weary of the car, and a sinister smirk appeared on the driver’s face. “I found you.” She sang as she followed the young girls towards their destination.

At the Horizon coffee shop, many of the teens showed up as their hurrah to finishing school, which made business booming at the coffee place. Luka and Clover were rushing orders as MJ was the one taking them. When Harriet and her friends arrived they were shocked with how busy this place was.

“This place is usually quiet, what happened?” Mu asked.

Clover took notice of the girls and waved to them. “Hey girls!” She called out.

“Hey Clover, what’s with the crowd?” Harriet asked.

Clover sighed. “Since its the last day of school many of the high schoolers come here as a celebration.” She explained. “Its the most exhausting day till Pumpkin Spice season.”

“Be grateful this is one day only. I mean isn’t Pumpkin Spice season like three to four months of chaos?” Mu asked. Clover glared at the blonde haired girl, not wanting to handle any sas talk today. Mu nervously chuckled and apologized before the girls sat down at a free table to just talk and hang out.

Harriet smiled and waved to her dad who just got done serving drinks to a few people. Luka smiled and waved to his little girl, which made the latter giggle. To this young girl, her first summer staying in town is going to be great! She has friends, her dad’s friends understand his curse, and she doesn’t have to leave town anymore! “This is going to be a great summer.” She said to herself.

Or so she thought.

Soon the doors swung open and Harriet and Luka felt a cold chill run through them. “Hello my love.” Luka gulped knowing that voice. He turned to see his ex-wife Vanessa entering the coffee shop with a smirk written all over her face.

Luka growled seeing his ex-wife showing up at his work of all places. Harriet got nervous ready to get out of her seat and sprint out the back door to be safe.

Despite their first time seeing her, but also hearing everything about her, Mu and Bonnie felt the cold chill as Vanessa walked through the door. MJ and Clover too glared seeing Vanessa. “Just what is she doing here?” Clover asked.

“I don’t know.” Luka replied. He left the front counter and walked up to his ex-wife. “Vanessa, what are doing here?” He asked trying to keep a calm tone, so he wouldn’t get fired or even his secret to be uncovered.

Vanessa gave a fake gasp. “Why Luke, can I visit my family during the first day of summer break for our little Hattie.” Vanessa cooed walking up to her daughter and her friends. Harriet whimpered and held on to Mu and Bonnie tightly for protection.

Mu glared at the woman as a warning that if she laid a finger on her best friend she wouldn’t be afraid to attack. Bonnie however, was scared like Harriet and hugged her tight too.

“I think we should talk somewhere privately.” Luka suggested.

Vanessa smirked, but it quickly disguised itself as a smile. She gave a clap as she said, “That would be nice Luka. Harriet would you come join us in this conversation?” She asked.

Harriet was about to speak to decline the offer, but the memories of the arguments, as well as knowing what her mother could do if she wasn’t there for her father scared her. With a sigh Harriet got up from her seat as she followed her family to the back of the Horizon Coffee Place to be alone.

MJ, Clover, Mu and Bonnie looked at one another and soon the girls ran to the back of the restaurant to check up on their friend. MJ and Clover looked at the girls and back at each other, “We should listen in on what Luka and his ex are talking about.” Clover suggested.

MJ nodded. “I agree.” He then sighed. “I’m worried for what’s going to happen to him and Harriet, especially Harriet.” MJ and Clover soon followed the girls and listened through the door, and too their surprise there was very little shouting and fighting.

“So.” Luka started. “What are you doing here, Vanessa?” He asked again.

“Plus, how did you know where we are?” Harriet added.

Now that Vanessa got her family alone, she finally showed her true colors to them. “Like what you called me the day we parted ways Luka, I’m a witch. Technically and physically.” She explained. “When I first saw you move away I had to find some eyes to keep watching over you. You guys moved so many times that I couldn’t even catch up.”

Luka glared at his ex-wife. All this time after she cursed him to become a monster, she had been following them around like a ghost to make sure she wasn’t finished with her revenge plot. “I thought turning me into a ghost was enough for you. What more do you want?” Luka asked, getting upset.

Vanessa glared. “I was supposed to make your suffer, Luka Princeston.” She scowled. “How can you be so happy with your life after what I did to you?” She asked.

“I have Harriet to take care of!” Luka shouted back. “And my friends know about the secret! Thank you very much, but they never pushed me away! Unlike what you did to Harriet!”

Not even once, did Vanessa flinch at Luka’s outburst. “Your right.” She replied in a whisper.

“What?” Luka asked, confused over his ex-wife’s reply.

“Your right. I wasn’t there for our daughter.” She answered. Vanessa turned towards her daughter, who jumped back seeing the evil sinister look on her. “But what if I was there for her now.”

Luka growled, his eyes glowing yellow for a split second as he put his arm in front of Harriet to protect her. “Don’t your dare touch her!” He growled.

Vanessa laughed. “Oh Luka, protective over a child then your first true love, your childhood friend for life.” She growled back.

“I’m protective of her because I love her. You’ll never learn to love her. All you’ll ever do is treat her horribly like the evil step-mother from Cinderella.” Luka shouted back. As he got angry his hand started to turn black showing that he was about to transform back to his monster form.

Vanessa chuckled seeing this, she just needed to push Luka a little more further. “What if I did learn to love her, care for her, treat her as you treat her.” She said walking closer. “What if I trained her to use magic make her turn into a witch like me?”

“Like HELL you would!” Luka snapped, at hell his voice echoed like usual when he was in his monster form. “My daughter will NEVER EVER TOUCH MAGIC! NOT WHEN YOUR AROUND!” He shouted.

Harriet felt tensed. If only her father knew what she had been doing behind her father’s back then this would be as bad as it is now. As she was in her thoughts, Luka was halfway into transforming till MJ and Clover came barging in.

“Alright that’s enough!” Clover shouted. She and MJ were armed spoons to protect Luka and Harriet from their former family member. “Take one more step towards the child and our friend and we’ll pummel you!” The girl threatened.

Vanessa stared at the two friends of her ex-husband before she snapped her fingers causing the spoons to wrap around Clover and MJ’s hands. Clover and MJ yelped at what Vanessa was capable of doing and feel to the ground tied up by spoons.

“Van let them go!” Luka shouted.

Vanessa chuckled. “Why Luka how rude of you.” She mocked. “I just want to meet your dear sweet friends.” She gave an evil snicker as she walked up to MJ. “You must be the Moone boy.” She said looking down at MJ. MJ just glared at his best friend’s ex-wife. Vanessa then turned to Clover. “And you must be dear sweet Clover. I’m so touched my dear Luka choose you over me.”

Clover glared wishing she could just punch Vanessa in the face, but with her hands tied up with her spoon she couldn’t. “We made it our choice to stay with him.” Clover growled back.

“Yeah after how you treated him and what you done, he’s lucky he has friends like us!” MJ shouted back.

Vanessa chuckled, and then it turned into laughter. Soon enough ice started to form around the group. “Vanessa! S-stop!” Luka shouted, now fully into his Snatcher form. Vanessa ignored her ex-husbands pleas and soon the ice surrounded the group almost trapping them in. Vanessa smirked she just needed Luka to give up and hand over Harriet to her.

However, it was Vanessa turn to be surprised.

“Mom stop!”Harriet shouted and soon a beam of white light came towards Vanessa, who blocked it with a ice shield. Vanessa, Luka, CJ and Clover turned to look at Harriet in a purple and yellow top hat with a button attached to it and an umbrella.

“H-Harriet w-what did you do?” Luka asked.

Harriet turned to her father. “I’m sorry dad.” She apologized in a whisper.

Vanessa then spoke up. “So,” she started. “You learned magic yourself too, Hattie.” Vanessa now was smiling impressed over her daughter’s skills. “I’m proud of you! Now come towards your dear sweet mommy and I can teach you mor-” She was cut off when Harriet pointed her umbrella towards her mother with a glare.

“How about a deal.” Harriet suggested.

Vanessa smirked, and soon started to loosen the ice from her ex-husband and his friends. “I’m listening.”

“We both used to be family, and we both know magic. Correct?” Harriet asked. Vanessa nodded. “Alright, then let’s duel.”

“W-What?” Luka asked surprised hearing his daughter’s deal for her mother. Vanessa smirked at this seeing Luka’s expression.

“So,” Harriet continued. “Let’s have a magic duel. You and me in the Subcon Woods, tomorrow early in the morning. If I win, I stay with dad, but if you win I’ll be with you during the summer.” She finished.

“Harriet! No!” Luka shouted.

Harriet ignored her father as her mom walked over to her. “Its deal Harriet. Tomorrow morning it be you vs me.” Vanessa said holding her hand out. Harriet looked at her mother’s hand, before reaching over to grab it and shake it.

Soon a blue aura went around their hands giving Harriet some pain. Soon the pain stopped and Vanessa let go of her daughter’s hands. Then Vanessa untied MJ and Clover and removed all of the ice from the area. Vanessa was just about to walk away, but stopped. “By the way Luka, if you stop her then I win by default.” She warned before walking away.

Luka growled at his ex-wife as she walked away leaving the group alone. Luka then turned to face his daughter upset at the fact that Harriet literally made a deal with the devil. “What were you thinking?” Luka growled.

Harriet turned to her father, frightened over his attitude. “D-dad let me explain!” She shouted.

Luka ignored his daughter’s pleas. “A-and now y-your learning magic! Like your mother!” He shouted.

“Dad please let me explain!” Harriet repeated. Rasing her voice a little.

Soon MJ defended her. “Luka please calm down and listen to what Harriet has to say.” He begged.

“Oh I sure hope Harriet has A LOT to explain to me.” Luka yelled. Harriet flinched as her father yelled. During her entire life with him she had never heard him yell at her like this before. Harriet rubbed her arm and looked down feeling like she disappointed her father somehow.

When Luka, who had to temporarily transform back into human in order to get home, MJ, Clover and Harriet were walking home after a long crazy day it was quiet. No one said a word to each other, and Harriet kept her head down not looking at anyone.

Once they made it back to the apartment, Harriet sat down on the couch and Clover came to join her to comfort her. “Your father will understand. I promise.” She whispered in a soothing tone. Harriet didn’t respond and just kept her head down.

“Alright.” Luka spoke up getting the girl’s attention. Luka faced Harriet who didn’t bat an eye towards her father. Luka sighed starting to feel calmer now. “Harriet. Look at me.” Harriet lifted her head slowly and looked up at her father. “When and how long did you know you can control magic?” He asked.

Harriet didn’t want to answer, but she knew it had to come out sometime. With a sigh she was able to tell her father everything. “A month after we moved here, I-I discovered I’m able to use magic, and sense magic as well.” Harriet started. “I’ve been training to learn and control my magic so I won’t end up like mom.” She explained. Luka soon made his way towards his daughter, which made her talk more of her training. “I-I never said anything because I know you’ll be mad, and will be scared I’ll be like mom, but this is for the good of everything!” Harriet sighed knowing nothing was convince her father. “I-If you want me to stop I’ll let Tim know.”

Luka put one hand on his daughter’s shoulder, which suprised her. “Harriet.” He started. “I’m disappointed you kept this from me for so long,” Harriet looked down giving a longer sigh then before, “but if you were doing this for good you could of told me.” He explained.

“I just didn’t want to mention magic in front of you.” Harriet revealed. “Magic causes nothing but trouble for you.”

Luka frowned knowing his daughter was right magic did cause him a lot of trouble even before him and Vanessa got married and divorced. “I know magic did cause a lot of trouble for me, but your not Vanessa.” He reassured.

Harriet smiled and hugged her father. Luka smiled and hugged her father back. She was glad Luka was understanding and didn’t disagree with this. “Now.” He started. “Your battling your mother, someone who is dangerous with magic.” He warned.

MJ then stepped up and put his hand on Harriet’s shoulder. “But, we believe in you! Kick your mom’s butt tomorrow!” He cheered.

“Yeah!” Harriet cheered. The four then shared a laugh, but Harriet stopped and looked down. “B-but what if I loose?” She asked. MJ, Clover, and Luka looked at each other. They knew the risk if Harriet looses the battle she’d have to live with her mother.

This scared Luka as Vanessa would be able to teach Harriet everything, or worse. He couldn’t show fear, he had to be brave for Harriet no matter what happens. “Will find a way to rescue you.” Luka reassured his daughter. Harriet smiled and hugged her father tight. “Now get some rest, you need it for your fight agonist your mom.”

Harriet nodded and ran to her room for some rest for her battle.

Tomorrow will be the day.

Tomorrow is the battle.

Tomorrow this battle will decide if Harriet stays or goes

[king-finnigan]

Beyond The Treeline - part 4

Cryptid Geralt is back, babes!

Masterlist!

***

He arrives at work a few minutes late, the previous shift already gone – which, yes, isn’t exactly company policy, but then again, they get about three costumers a day, give or take, so leaving the diner unattended for a short while isn’t such a big deal.

He sits in his car in the parking lot for a while, staring through the windshield at the treeline. He’s tired, so incredibly tired. He slept like shit, not able to keep his eyes and mind off the quartz that was sitting on his bedside table, spending all his time wondering if Geralt had actually heard him when he had been shouting at the treeline, if the Witcher had even cared, if he was gonna show up tonight, and where the hell he got that quartz from.

Though, Jaskier knows there are quite some gem mines in Pennsylvania, but they are highly guarded by now. Maybe the Witcher visited those mines years – decades, even – earlier. Which really raises a lot more questions than it answers.

Like: How old is he? How many people know about Geralt? Did the first settlers know about the Witcher? Did the Native Americans before them know? Did they have a symbiotic relationship with Geralt? How long has he even been here? Where did he come from? Why is he hiding in the woods? Why does it seem like only locals are aware of the monsters and the Witcher? Surely, word must’ve spread at some point, right? If not, why? Do – or did – other towns have their own Witchers? What about other continents?

He sighs, leaning forward, hitting his forehead against the steering wheel. So many questions, that either don’t have any answers, or none that Jaskier will ever find out about, if Geralt really stops showing up. And even if he does, he’s probably not gonna answer any of those questions, not in a satisfactory way that involves more than a clipped ‘hmm,’ at least.

He sighs again, pressing the heels of his hands against his eyes, before he leans back in his seat again. He takes the key out of the ignition, not even bothering to lock the car as he walks to the Denny’s. Another shift of nothing, he thinks, as he puts on his apron.

Clearly, it’s been quiet for the day shifts as well, since the entire diner is spotless, almost sterile, even. They were obviously bored with how few customers there were.

Of course, he doesn’t blame them – after all, his original plan had been to clean the diner, as well. Though that now means he doesn’t have shit to do tonight. Except make two plates of food and a pitcher of iced tea a little before 3 AM, and throw them out at 4.

So he plays around on his phone a bit, forever mourning the lack of signal out here, he cleans the already spotless glasses, arranges them neatly on the shelves, wipes the clean tables, mops the floor – almost slipping in the soapy water the only interesting thing that’s happened so far during this shift.

And when he’s finally done, it’s midnight. Two hours of his nine-hour shift. Well, shit. What do I do now?

It’s still gonna be at least a few hours until 3 AM, and he’s probably not gonna get any costumers until then, so he’ll have to think of something to pass the time.

Fuck it. The bell tinkles merrily as he opens the door, again when he closes it. Once again, he forgot to put on a thicker jacket, and he’s already shivering by the time he reaches the middle of the parking lot. By now, he’s actually not sure if he even owns a thicker jacket, though – maybe he threw away the one he had last spring because it had holes in it? He doesn’t remember, he’ll have to check at home.

He turns around in a small circle in the middle of the parking lot. The treeline is once again still and quiet, the only sound and movement the gentle rustling of whatever leaves are still left on the branches in the wind.

He sighs, sitting down on the asphalt, casting one last look at the trees before lying down. It’s a clear night, and even with the lights of the Denny’s, he can still see the stars fairly well. He sighs again, now in content. He’s fucking freezing, and the ground is uncomfortable beneath him, yes, but he also feels at peace – it’s been so long since he had the opportunity to stargaze. He remembers doing it with his mama, so very long ago, on the clear summer nights, laying on the grass just outside their back door, as she pointed out all the constellations that he could never bring himself to remember.

It’s quiet, oh so very quiet, as he looks up at the stars, arms spread out on the asphalt, one foot on the ground, the other pointing at the treeline. His eyes start to drift close, his lack of sleep catching up to him, finally.

He’s halfway unconscious when he hears something in the woods, hears something break through the treeline, hears the soft rolling of bits of gravel on the asphalt as something approaches him, slowly stalking ever closer.

He doesn’t open his eyes, but takes a deep breath, smiling lazily. “Here to kill me?” Silence. “I’ll have you know that I’m an expert fighter, and can beat you any day.” He lifts his right hand up a bit, into a half-hearted fist, before dropping it to the ground again. “So don’t try it, demon.”

Silence for two or three heartbeats, before: “Wouldn’t dare.”

He cracks one eye open, smiling up at the Witcher that’s looming over him, blocking out a part of the stars above him. He closes his eyes again, sighing contentedly. “’s what I thought.”

It’s quiet for a few more heartbeats, though he can hear Geralt shuffling his feet a bit next to him. He moves his arm around until he finds leather, his hand closing around the Witcher’s ankle. “Why are you so nervous?”

Silence for a second or two. “I’m not.”

Jaskier scoffs lightly, giving Geralt’s ankle a friendly pat before he lays his hand on the asphalt again. “What’s the time?”

“One.”

“Hmm.” He sighs, rolling onto his side, pushing himself up until he’s sitting. “You’re early. Got hungry?” He looks up at Geralt, who’s glaring at him. Jaskier smiles. “Got lonely?”

Geralt looks away.

Jaskier laughs softly, extending his hand. “Come on, help me up.”

Watching Geralt roll his amber eyes is absolutely delightful, feeling a warm hand in his even more so. He lets himself be hoisted to his feet, trying not to think about how incredibly strong the Witcher is. He shivers, rubbing his hands together, when Geralt lets go. “Fuck, it’s cold out here. Let’s get inside.”

He stalks across the parking lot, Geralt following closely behind. The bell rings happily as he dashes into the Denny’s, holding the door open for the Witcher, who once again glares at him.

“Do you not have a jacket?” Geralt asks, as Jaskier busies himself with getting all the things he needs.

He shrugs. “Not sure. Might’ve tossed it out, might’ve lost it. Doesn’t matter.”

“Matters if you put yourself in danger.”

Jaskier looks over his shoulder as he fills a pitcher with iced tea. Geralt’s standing on the other side of the bar that separates the dining part of the Denny’s with the foodprep part. He’s never heard the Witcher speak so many words in the whole year he’s known him, though he decides not to mention it, doesn’t want Geralt to snap shut again.

“It’s just some cold, it’s not exactly life-threatening.”

He turns back, scooping some ice cubes into the pitcher. It’s silent for a few seconds as he works. Then: “Going out at night is.”

He laughs. “Oh, so that’s what this is about – me lying in the parking lot. I see.” He turns back, setting the pitcher on the bar heavily, as he grabs a glass. “Well, you see, my dear Witcher. I did that on purpose.”

Geralt’s jaw clenches as Jaskier puts some slices of bread in the toaster, pushing them down. “What?”

Jaskier shrugs again, as he cracks two eggs over a frying pan. “Like I said yesterday, I missed you. So, I did what I knew would summon a certain Witcher, and put myself in the slightest bit of danger.”

The eggs are done soon enough, and he puts them on a plate, before slapping five pieces of bacon into the pan. He looks up, sees fury and annoyance in those amber eyes, sees Geralt gritting his teeth.

He’s already started on the pancakes when Geralt finally says something. “Witchers are not summoned.”

Jaskier smiles at Geralt. “But you’re here now, aren’t you?”

“You don’t have to put yourself in danger to see me.”

Jaskier flips the pancakes over, purses his lips. “Oh, really? Say, my dear Witcher, what do I have to do then? Stand at the edge of the forest and scream at you? Chase after you when you try to run away from me after leaving a rock on my windshield? Already tried that, didn’t work. Do you maybe have a number I can text whenever I want to talk to you? Is that it?”

He takes the pancakes out of the pan, dropping them – admittedly, a bit too harshly – on a plate, pouring a bit of maple syrup over them. He sets the plate down in front of Geralt, along with the plate with the eggs, bacon and toast. He clenches his jaw, hands flat on the worktop, looking into those amber eyes.

It’s quiet for a few moments, before: “You didn’t like the quartz?”

He blinks. He hadn’t expected that. Guess I was right about him being self-conscious, though. He stores away the fact that Geralt had left him the quartz cause he thought he might like it at the back of his mind, to be re-examined later.

He frowns, shakes his head. “I loved the quartz. But I’d much rather have you.”

“Why?”

Because you’re funny and kind, in your own way, even if you don’t dare show it. Because I feel safe around you. Because seeing you makes me happy. Because I want to hear every story you’ve gathered over the years and more. Because I want to get to know you. Because you’re more beautiful than any gem you could ever give me.

He shrugs. “Just cause,” he says.

Geralt stares at him for a few seconds, something flashing across those amber eyes that he can’t quite identify.

He sighs. “Are you gonna eat those pancakes or not? Cause I kinda forgot to eat dinner, and I can’t bear to see them just sitting there.”

The Witcher rolls his eyes at him, and Jaskier can’t help but smile. “Do you not have any sense of self-preservation?”

Jaskier shrugs again, wiping a cloth over the worktop absentmindedly. “Not really, no.”

Geralt shakes his head slightly, but takes the bottle of maple syrup on the counter nonetheless, pouring a generous amount over the pancakes before sliding the plate towards Jaskier.

He blinks. “Wait, how did you know-“

“You always look like you wanna dump the entire bottle on the plate when you make pancakes for me.”

He smiles at that, and takes the plate. “Fair enough.” He reaches into the cupboard, taking a fork for himself, handing another one to Geralt. “Wait.” He looks up, the wheels in his brain turning. “I always look like I wanna dump the entire bottle on the plate?”

The Witcher freezes, fork hanging in the air aimlessly, as he stares daggers into it. “Hmm.”

Jaskier narrows his eyes, smiling slightly. “Have you been spying on me, you sly dog?”

Geralt clenches his jaw, shovelling bacon and eggs into his mouth, decidedly looking at anything but Jaskier.

“Well.” Jaskier shrugs, taking a bite of the pancakes. “Can’t say I blame you. I am quite beautiful, after all.”

Geralt snorts, rolling his eyes at Jaskier again, the corners of his lips twitching a bit.

“I am! I’m certainly more beautiful than the monsters you see in the woods every day, at the very least.”

“Hmm.”

“I’m gonna assume that means ‘you’re right, but you’re also the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen and I love you’.”

“Hmm.”

“I’m gonna take that as a ‘yes’. But enough about me and my unearthly beauty, what about you, big boy? What’s your story?”

Geralt frowns, eyes zeroing in on Jaskier’s hand, on his fingers holding the fork. “Your skin.”

Jaskier looks down, shrugs. “I’m allergic to iron, irritates my skin.” He shrugs again, rubbing at the red splotches that have appeared under the metal of the fork.

“Hmm.”

He narrows his eyes. “What? What are you thinking about?”

Geralt shakes his head slightly, avoiding Jaskier’s eyes. “Nothing.”

“Right.” He draws the word out, lets Geralt know he’s absolutely not convinced. “If you say so.”

They eat in silence for a while, Jaskier’s eyes plastered to the Witcher, only looking away when Geralt catches him staring. His question still hasn’t been answered – he still doesn’t know what Geralt’s story is, still doesn’t know anything about him except for the fact that he’s tall, he has white hair and amber eyes, and Jaskier feels butterflies in his stomach every time he sees him.

But he wants to know more – needs to know more. He just doesn’t have the guts to ask.

They both look up and out the windows as an inhuman shriek rings from beyond the treeline, and Geralt stands up, slinging his swords onto his back. “I have to go.”

Jaskier smiles, feeling a pang of disappointment in the pit of his stomach. “Go get ‘em, tiger. Or, well… wolf. Go get ‘em, white wolf.”

Geralt shakes his head slightly, amusement tugging at his lips, before he turns around, stalking out of the door, the bell tinkling merrily in his wake.

Jaskier sighs, watching the Witcher walk across the parking lot, watching him disappear beyond the treeline, without as much as a glance back.

He waits, waits for Geralt to come out of the treeline again, waits for a sign that the Witcher is there, or at least close by, waits for something, anything, whatever.

He waits the rest of his shift. He waits, even as Triss throws open the door at 7, waits as she asks him if something is wrong, waits as Yennefer frowns at him, as if a question is sticking to her tongue but she doesn’t want to ask. Waits as he walks to his car, waits as he sits in the driver’s seat for a few minutes, eyes trained on the treeline, waits as he starts the car, waits as he leaves the parking lot, waits as he starts driving down the road to Dewbury.

He doesn’t stop waiting until he closes the front door of his house behind him. Then, he gives up.

[daesungfmd]

hello! i’m peyton, but you can call me pey for short if you’d like; either is fine by me. i’ve only recently returned to tumblr rp, so i’m still getting back into the swing of things! please....... be patient with me in the meantime. anyway, i’m going to be writing for impulse’s lead vocal  &  rapper, hwang daesung! go ahead and leave a  ♡  if you’re interested in plotting with us and i’ll send you an im asap!

private profile  /  idol profile  /  plots  /  pinterest

daesung is originally from the neighborhood of samcheong in seoul. his mom owns a small salon there, which is where he spent the majority of his time while he was growing up (and where he still spends a lot of his free time nowadays, tbh). 

he doesn’t have any siblings  &  his dad passed away when he was twelve, so it was just him, his mom and the stray cats that they fed. they struggled quite a bit in these times and daesung’s mom often considered selling the salon, but daesung refused to let that happen. he didn’t ask for a whole lot because he didn’t want to make her feel bad.

but! he’s always been very deeply interested in music  —  stems a little from memories of just sitting in the family car with his dad and sharing music as well as listening to a busker who frequently performed near his school.

wanted to be a rockstar, which definitely irritated his mom. she wanted to be supportive, but she also wanted him to succeed in life  &  knew how hard it would be for him to make something like that come true.

regardless, she kept buying him the cds, record players, records, guitars, etc that he asked for around his birthday and the holidays because he never wanted anything else.

a series of strong-willed fights resulted in daesung’s mom finally allowing him to audition for companies. after many rejections, he found his home at gold star entertainment.

he became a trainee in early 2012—so when he was 15—and two years later, he debuted with impulse. during this time, he became estranged from his mother, but after debuting, he began to get closer to her again.

he stayed outwardly optimistic during his time as a trainee, but he didn’t exactly love it and his health was on a steady decline, both physically and mentally. there were times when he wanted to back out because he didn’t want to be an idol, he wanted to be a rock musician, but... he had too much pride to go back home. so he stayed.

during next: origin story, daesung’s poor dancing skills  &  unfaltering confidence had him framed as an arrogant boy with no shame; furthermore, he was said to be dumb because of how many times certain things had to be explained to him. towards the end of the show, he was able to redeem himself a bit, though.

to be fair............... he is kind of dumb. promoted as the ~4d type~, but it’s not like that image was pulled out of thin air --- he’s more or less the same on and off camera, can’t really differentiate between his work persona and his actual self. the best way i can describe it is that it’s really obvious that he isn’t book/traditionally smart, but he’s intelligent in other ways: emotionally, first and foremost. 

anyway! in impulse, the shameless and dense aspects of his personality that the public had already met were molded into a new, more likeable persona... although more likeable is still up for debate. during the debut era, he was very loud, a little too honest, always trying to crack a joke  &  steal the show.

in his most ridiculous shenanigan so far... he has a nervous habit of scratching his head (also does this when he’s embarrassed  —  i.e, when someone’s making fun of him) and fans made a compilation of the clips. he took it much further than he should have and made a statement without running it past management about how he’d been scratching because he had lice. never actually had lice, but fans began gifting him with copious amounts of lice shampoo, hair trimmers, plastic gloves, hairnets, etc. management was definitely fed up with him over this... but he found it hilarious.

impulse debuted nearly  7  years ago, so he has toned down his behavior a bit... or maybe the public’s just gotten more used to it? it’s hard to be shocked by him now ‘cause the public’s already seen it all. seen as the kind of idol who has no shame whatsoever.

i intend to push him towards variety whether he likes it or not. he really, really wants to act, but the company’s quite adamant about not letting him do that (for one good reason: he sucks at acting)... so maybe variety’s the next best thing? he certainly doesn’t want to be reduced to the few osts he’s done, anyway. </3

he doesn’t hate being an idol. it isn’t what he wanted, but all things considered, he doesn’t think it’s that bad, either. impulse’s music is a lot better now than it was when they debuted, he’s made a lot of friends who he never would’ve otherwise met  &  he likes to be known/liked. kinda indifferent about the idol status ig.

for more general facts about daesung... he’s quite the social butterfly. he has many friends, but i imagine that he doesn’t have very many close ones. partially because he doesn’t tend to spend too much time with individuals  &  partially because it’s hard to break past the superficial layer with him. his fans will claim that he’s the most genuine guy around, but when you actually know him, the constant grin and jokes become a bit unnerving. especially when it’s obvious that he’s not doing well, but refuses to speak about his feelings.

but once he deems someone trustworthy, he’s the king of oversharing. he’s a very open book, will tell you anything you wanna know if he knows that you actually care.

he’s a very affectionate guy, whether he’s close to someone or not. he thinks the world could definitely use some more love (and he’s seen first-hand that idols tend to be the angstiest mfs around), so he’s always looking for a way to brighten someone’s day or at least get the tiniest smile out of ‘em. with people he is close to, he’s usually pretty touchy; likes to hug his friends, rub their backs, ruffle their hair, etc, but his affection is also shown through words of affirmation! if you need an ego boost, he’s here to provide it. thinks his friends are the absolute coolest. with people he’s not close to, he tends to crack jokes to break the ice, try to talk about their interests, pay attention to whatever they have to say. gives spontaneous gifts to friends and acquaintances. likes to spend time with people, too, whether he knows them well or he’s just starting to.

he says “i love you” like it’s his life’s motto. calls up his friends when he’s drunk like, “you know that i love you, right? i really love you. so much... damn. i miss you!!! i love you and i miss you! please come back to me!!!” aka it starts out innocent enough but then he starts sounding like a crazy ex. no worries, though, it’s just your good ol’ friend daesung acting like a fool because it’s been a week since he last saw you. <3

makes spontaneous phonecalls. if he has your number in his phone, he’s definitely called you a handful of times — even if you’re a virtual stranger. i imagine there are plenty of people who’ve probably blocked his number at this point.

he’s interested in fashion, but if he said this aloud, it would be treated as a shocking statement. nothing that he wears is ever in trend. most of his outfits are inspired by ‘90′s fashion, but even taking that into consideration, hardly anyone ever thinks he looks good other than himself. his neon-toned bucket hats, excessively tie-dyed clothes  &  gaudy accessories result in him getting clowned a lot. it’s very obvious when he dresses himself....... probably not even allowed to pick his own airport clothes.

mcs have joked that he even manages to make expensive brands look cheap with how he styles them. kind of hurts his feelings but it’s okay. <3

he’s super into skateboarding. he didn’t start until after impulse debuted, but he’s gotten pretty good at it with how much he practices in his spare time. has a collection of unique boards  &  even has his apartment decorated with some furniture made from decks. some fans have definitely met him at skateparks before.

believes in the most outrageous conspiracies  —  say what you want, but you can’t change his mind about anything. he thinks that aliens are indeed real (and already walking the earth), he thinks that the government consists of people who are not entirely human, he thinks that there’s a huge chance that this world is only a simulation, he thinks that all cryptids are Definitely real (mothman, bigfoot, nightcrawlers, etc) and so on. i suggest not letting him get going about this because he can def sound a little crazy.

specialties: reciting quotes but always getting one word Terribly wrong, misusing and mispronouncing words, getting under everyone’s skin without even really having to try, slapstick humor and making 30 second stories feel 3 hours long.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #324

“i'll sharpen my knife upon the stone made from the ruin of a dead god's throne  /  listen to these words as my seeds are sown: it's time to amputate the infected zone”

What is the last game you played on your phone? Pokemon GO. Do you give people personalized ringtones? No. Does your phone screen have any cracks? No. What makeup products are you wearing, if any? None. How would you describe your skin tone? Very pale. Do you have your full birth name on Facebook? Yes. What is your least favorite fruit? Probably cherries. How often do you walk around barefoot? Whenever I'm in my house or another person's who prefers shoes off inside. Would you need to sleep with someone before considering marrying them? Nah. Do you think people look up to you? No. How often do you have trouble sleeping at night? Every night. Do you ever rehearse conversations before you have them? YEP. In my head, at least. Can you name five current world leaders? No, haha... When taking a cab, do you talk to the driver? Cabs aren't really a thing here. I've never been in one. Do you always read the book before you see a movie based on a book? No. What is your favorite urban legend? The Jersey Devil. Mothman is dope and super creepy, too. I love cryptids, period. Are you an elitist (even a little bit) when it comes to anything? What? No, because I hate people like that so much. What type of fabric is most comfortable for clothing? I dunno, I don't pay attention to this. If you wear one – bras with or without a wire? With, so long as they're not poking out and stabbing you... If you wear one – are you able to find cute bras in your size? Definitely not. What length do you like your shorts to be? You'd have to pay me some big bucks to see me in shorts, period. Have you ever cut off jeans or other pants and made them into shorts? No. Have you cut the sleeves out of T-shirts to make tank tops? I don't think so, no. What was the last disappointing movie you saw? *shrug* What was the last disappointing book you read? Even bigger *shrug*. Do you ever watch compilation videos? Of what? Rarely, but if I do, they're generally old Vines and stuff. What was the last thing you rolled your eyes about? Probably something stupid on Facebook. Do you like Hellboy? If so, do you prefer the old movies or the new one? I have no thoughts on this. Favorite Disney character who isn’t royalty? Dory! Do you have a lot of people whom you don’t talk to all the time or see all the time, but still consider to be your friends? Yeah, like friends from high school and online childhood ones. Do you typically do your make up the same each time? Or do you like to change it up often? It's just about always the same. Do you enjoy making surveys as well as taking them or do you just prefer to copy, paste, fill out, post? The latter. I don't make surveys. Have you got a significant other? How are things between the two of you? If not, what was your most meaningful/long term relationship and how did that come to an end? I don't. My longest and deepest relationship was with Jason, and he ended it when my depression became too much for him to handle. Have you spent much time in a vehicle lately? What for and where have you gone most this past month? No. I've barely left the house lately for obvious reasons. Has it rained yet this year where you live? How about hailed? It's been raining like crazy lately. A few mornings ago, it also hailed very heavily for a few minutes. What is your favorite thing about Mac computers? I like the sleek, clean look of them. What is your favorite thing about PCs? They have more power for playing games. What are some errands you need to run soon? None. Well, we have a Wal-Mart order to pick up I think tomorrow, and I'll probably ride with Mom. What color was your high school graduation gown? Red. It was between that and navy, and I was really hoping for the latter, but it lost the vote. The red was so obnoxious. How many graduation gowns have you worn? One. Are your parents’ dreams for your life different than your own? I don't think they have their own specific "dreams" for my life. They both want me to create my own future that makes me happy. Have your dreams for your life changed? Definitely, over all the years. Would you ever want to learn sign language? Not especially, but it'd be cool I suppose. What’s the last thing you had for dinner? Chicken tenders, I think? Or was that the night before? Have you ever performed a solo dance in front of a crowd? No, but I almost did. At my old dance studio, the high school seniors had the option to a solo, and I was working on one to "Coma White" by Marilyn Manson, because it was and still is a song I really feel in regards to my mental health and many medications I "have" to be on. I was doing fine, but I stopped when I realized I just really was too nervous as a dance competition approached. Have you ever sung a solo? No. What was the last job you had? Deli worker. For two hours. What was your first job? Sales associate at GameStop. Who was/were your favorite coworker(s)? I never really had one. At what age did you start experiencing sexual attraction, if any? I don't know. Probably my freshman year of high school is when my levels of attraction to people reached a sexual and not just romantic level. Have you ever split open a rock with a hammer, to see a geode inside? UGH no, but I so wanna find one of those one day. What states have you lived in? Only North Carolina. S.O.S., get me outta here. What is your favorite thing about the month in which it is now? You start to see some flowers blooming. Who were your best friends in high school? I had a decent group of close friends, but I was closest to Hannia. I wish I still had contact with her. ^Are they still your best friends now? No. She deleted me off Facebook at some point. Do you live near the mountains? No; they're on the western end of the state, and I live on the opposite side. Do you live near a beach? It's about two hours away. What is your favorite beach that you’ve been to? I don't have a fave. Do you collect seashells? Nah, but I like picking them up and looking at them. My sisters and I used to collect them, though. We have a plastic container of them somewhere. If you were to start a new collection, what would it be? I desperately want a cornucopia of Markiplier merch, sobs. Is there a certain place or store you especially hate going to? I don't like going to most stores, really. I'm an online shopper. When was the last time you made plans with someone? October of last year. How long do leftovers usually sit in your fridge? Depends on the food. They tend to stay in there a bit too long, though. What is something you do for other people that shows you care for them? Offer to listen to them and always be a source of support and love. What was the last animal/pet that you met? Kinda recently, someone in our neighborhood was walking their German shepherd, and Mom chatted with the lady for a bit while I listened. Is there anyone in your life with whom your opinion changes on frequently? No. Have you ever kept a journal? Do you currently keep one? Yes, on-and-off during multiple periods of my life. These surveys are like my journals now. Is there a certain song or band who remind you of specific people? Yep. Motionless In White and Black Veil Brides, Jason. Pink Floyd and Evanescence, Sara. Metallica, Mom. Van Halen, Dad. Etc., etc. How often do you style your hair differently from how you normally style it? Never. Have you ever found out that you have been sleep walking? No, I never have. What’s the last thing you promised yourself? I don't know about promised. I take those so seriously, even to myself, that I hesitate to make them. Have you ever tried making something from one of those short cooking videos? How did it turn out? No, but my friend once tried making that "muffin in a cup" thing and it was absolutely horrid. Very eggy. When was the last time you had to wait in line for longer than a few minutes? Good question. Going into places is so rare nowadays, so it's hard to encounter this issue. Well wait, maybe at a fast food place? Idr. Have you ever written a review for a product you bought online? No, but I should do that once I actually use my own money to buy from small businesses in particular... if I had something good to say, anyway. I'd feel bad trash-talking a product. Do you ever interact with any brands/companies online? No. Is there anything you seem especially sensitive to, such as sounds, smells, etc? Smells, yes. What was the last thing you had the urge to do? Read, even though I didn't do it. .-. Is there anyone you feel that takes you for granted? No. Do you ever read the comments on social media posts? Sometimes, particularly if I have strong feelings about something. What was the last “good” thing to happen to you? My PHP therapist felt confident enough in my progress to step me down to three sessions a week versus every weekday. Last awkward situation you were in? Thankfully it was a one-on-one session, but the same aforementioned therapist was asking me questions that really stumped me, so I kept going very quiet as I thought and felt awkward and dumb. He's brilliant at his job. Think of the last time you were sick – what were you sick with? I think the last issue I had that qualifies as "sick" was a double ear infection from Hell itself. That was like two years ago. How do you think your life would change without social media? I'd be incredibly bored, but I, among I think most others, would be more positive and have a more realistic outlook on life. Social media highlights the best times in our life, and I do feel that that has had a negative effect on pretty much everyone. I don't at all believe social media is bad in essence, though. It's a wonderful way to stay connected. What was the last thing you wanted to buy, but couldn’t afford? I can't afford a new terrarium for Venus for probably a while, being without a job and all... How do you get your news? Facebook, haha. How often do you drive? Never, right now. My permit is long expired, and my vision isn't up to par to renew it. If you had to go (back) to school and completely change your career path, what would you choose to study/pursue? I guess biology? Are there any TV shows you constantly quote or know almost every line to? No. What do you think about lizards? I adore lizards; they're all so cute, big or small, and truly little dinosaurs. They're beautiful and so vast in appearances and behavior. Is there anything that people assume about you that isn’t true, and that you find very irritating? Not that I find irritating, no. How would you rate your “detective” skills? Uh, what am I "detecting?" I'm pretty good at digging online if I'm really hunting something down, I guess. Have you ever done consumer testing (testing products before they come out on the market)? If not, would you ever want to? No; I wouldn't be opposed, depending on the product. Have you ever received anesthesia or morphine? Both. The one time (I'm aware of) where I had morphine oddly enough did jack-all, though. If you had to choose which video game to be in, which would it be? Hmmm. Maybe like, Shadow of the Colossus, living in the beautiful garden on the top of the shrine? With the deer, the birds, fruit, just its general beauty... That would be awesome, especially with one other person, especially an s/o. Just the two of us in a gorgeous land. Between the two, would you rather live in a place where it’s only night or where it’s only day? Only day, I suppose. Vitamin D is very important, for one thing, and it always being dark would definitely affect my depression. And what about the flowers blooming and being able to take pictures? :( Sleep would still be possible by just closing your shades and stuff. Is there anyone that makes your skin crawl? Maggots, bot flies, parasites, patterns of small holes, etc. Do you like it when people are affectionate with you? Yes. If we're at least friends, anyway. I'm a very affectionate person. Have the past few days been bad, good, or neutral? They've been pretty all right. If you had to be an actor/actress in a movie, what genre of the movie would you be best at? Probably as an insane villain in a superhero movie or something. Are people more likely to tell you to tone it down or to speak up? Speak up. I'm a mumbler. I can be too loud sometimes too, though, particularly when I'm excited. What’s the last thing that you procrastinated? Now. Emerson's birthday was last month and I still haven't touched her pictures... Out of fire, earth, water, wind, light, and dark, which element appeals the most to you? Dark. What’s your favorite color on a vehicle? Burnt orange, pink. The last pain that you experienced, was it physical or emotional? Physical. What was one of your favorite songs as kid? I liked lots of pop songs. When’s the last time you tried to get revenge, if ever? Never. It's not something I chase after. Do you like Taylor Swift? No. What’s your favorite Disney Channel movie? The Haunted Mansion, I think. That's a Disney movie, isn't it? If you met your favorite celebrity, would you be calm or star struck? I'd be a deer in headlights, stuttering and stammering over ways to thank him and crying like a bitch. I'd be super embarrassed, but I absolutely hope I get to meet him one day. Do you ever have to do yard work? No. Is your school close to your house? I'm no longer in school. Do you have any live versions of songs in your music software? Yes. Did/do you listen to Britney Spears songs? Yeah, I like her. What shorthand do you use the most? Probably "lmao." What album is the current song you’re listening to off of? METAWAR. In your opinion, what song is the most overplayed right now? I wouldn't know; I don't listen to the radio. Are you in a band? No. When I started high school though, I wished I could be a guitarist in one. That's one reason I started taking lessons, haha. Does your favorite band have a male or female lead singer? Male. Have you ever been to a Broadway show? No. Do you prefer group or individual work? Individual, by a long shot. I work much better alone. Could you ever complete a 500-piece puzzle? I think I have before. I used to love puzzles. When was the last time you rode in a limo? Damn son, never; what could possibly give you the idea I could afford to ever do THAT????? Do you take naps daily? Almost every day, yes. Do you still make Christmas lists? Yeah, because I'm asked to. Do you watch the show Dexter? Never seen it, no. Are you currently using a blanket? Yes. My feet are cold. How long is the song you’re listening to? 4:06. Is your mom or dad the older parent? Mom, but only by a year. Did you ever listen to Avril Lavigne when you were younger? Who didn't? I still listen to a couple songs. When was the last time you changed a light bulb? Not all that long ago when Venus' lamp bulb died. How often do you clean your car out? I don't have my own car. Did you ever buy NOW ("Now That’s What I Call Music") CDs? My older sister did, yes. What color (mainly) is your computer? It's black. What is in the back seat of your car right now? In Mom's car, idk. But there's usually some stuff back there. What is your favorite episode of F.R.I.E.N.D.S.? Never watched it. Last person’s house you were in? Besides my own, my older sister's. Who is the last person you sent a message to on Facebook? My friend Chelsea. We were catching up. Were you an honor roll student in school? Yes. Do you have a tan? HA. Are you someone’s best friend? Yes. <3 What do you think of when you think of Australia? Huntsmen spiders. *shudders* Favorite gemstone? Of the basic ones, rubies. If we're talking of all of them, even the obscure, then dragon's breath opal. I'd LOVE to have a ring of one of those. Do you go in at a fast food place or just hit the drive thru? Almost always the drive-thru. What color is your mom’s hair? It's all gray now. Does your first memory involve your dad? No. Biggest annoyance in your life right this minute? My social anxiety. Do you like watching a bonfire? Yeah. Fire is mesmerizing. Do you ever get flu shots? No, but I really should. Once the Covid vaccine is accessible to all though, I'm getting it for the protection of my immunocompromised mother.

[the32ndbeat]

about me tag;

tagged by: @passionfruithyuck ( thank you so much for the tag love ❤️ this was super fun to do ^^ )

1. It’s your birthday! What did you ask for and did you receive it?

I don’t really have a lot of things I want or need tbh... I didn’t get any physical gifts for my birthday but I did get to go eat at a restaurant I liked so that was cool.

2. What was the last song or album you listened to?

Hmm, the last song I listened to was Kick It by NCT 127!

3. What is your go to snack when you’re hungry or bored?

I don’t snack a lot but when I do, I like to get bread >< and just slather it with peanut butter, kaya or jam! toasting it sometimes makes it SO MUCH better

4. What is your morning routine?

Ok right now, i’m living like a bum since uni doesn't start until early august so i wake up at 8am ( my phone is my alarm ) but i rarely REALLY wake up at 8am so i either go back to sleep until 10am latest or lounge in bed with my phone for a bit ( and by a bit i mean an hour or so ). I go to brush my teeth and wash my face then i’ll go get breakfast! I must drink a glass of water every morning before i eat, it’s a routine by now. I usually don’t eat breakfast if i wake up too late ( like maybe 9:45am ) or i’d just eat one slice of bread as compared to two. I like to walk around and just keep standing for about an hour to aid digestion ( i’m weird i know ) and then i’ll settle down in the living room with my laptop and do whatever I want for the day! 

5. What mythical/cryptid creature would you be?

A dragon for sure.

6. How do you interact with someone that you don’t like?

i usually ignore them, just simply don’t talk to them. I rarely find ppl i don’t like though and i usually try my best to like people or give them a chance so if i don’t like you then... I guess i REALLY don’t like you. 

7. How do you define a toxic person?

hmm to me, it’s someone who’s just fake. someone who acts all nice and friendly in front of you but actually hates or someone who only talks to you when you’ve got something they want and will ignore you in a heartbeat once they’ve taken advantage of you.

8. Have you ever been to a concert or fanmeet type of event? If not, would you want to?

I have! But it’s not a kpop concert, it’s a taiwanese singer’s concert. Show Luo, has anyone heard of him? I’d love love love to go to a tbz or nct concert and fanmeet!! it’d mean the world to me to be able to see them in real life.

9. Do you believe in astrology? Why or why not?

Yes, to a certain extent. I believe in the personality description part but not when it comes to predicting events because i think ultimately what happens is caused by your own actions rather than astrological events.

10. If you had only one sense (hearing, touch, sight, etc.), which would you want?

Sight. For sure sight. I want to be able to see. I’m a very avid reader ( although i could learn braille but idk ) and i’m a visual learner so yes, sight.

11. Who is your favourite celebrity or idol?

um i’d have to say the boyz’s juyeon... he’s so incredibly talented and his blankness and clueless/innocent personality just makes me love him more if that’s still possible ><

12. If you could talk to your favourite celebrity(s) for a limited time, what would you tell them?

I probably wouldn’t even be able to get a single word out because of how nervous i am but i’d tell juyeon to keep working hard, never give up and that deobis will always have tbz’s back. we can see that they’re working very hard and we are extremely proud and grateful for them for that. i would also say that he’s super inspiring to me and i greatly admire his dancing, being a dancer myself. he’s not just an idol i may have a gigantic crush on but also a role model to me ^^

13. I’m taking you out on a date and it’s your choice. Where are we going and what are we going to do?

i’m a boring person so we’d go watch movies because i love movies and then we’d go get food and maybe bubble tea after, just walking around the city and talking ^^ either that or we’ll go to an amusement park!

14. Do you like sweet or savory foods?

normally savoury but these days i’ve been feeling sweet more often, not sure why

15. Do you have any band merchandise or merchandise from any of your favorite artists? If so, what?

I actually don’t lmao... I really want to buy a tbz album eventually though!

tagging: @ihearttbz @minfuwa @fluffytbz @renjunwrites @hyuckgasm @in-my-neofeelings @badwithten @jopping-to-my-kpop @moondustaeil @neo-cult-ure @127vevo @nzeeten @mae-gi-writes @tbzhours @atbzkingdom @chaoticdeobi @jenocakes  @sankyeom @byunbaekby + anyone who wants to do this ^^ just say i tagged you! 

( i just realised i tagged so many ppl omo but i rly wanna know how y'all will answer this questions! don’t feel pressured to do it though ^^ )

[chibi-pix]

VLD AU - Wishes

Another lovely installation of the mermaid Pidge AU! And with an illustration a little ways into the tale. Well! Enjoy the 2,350+ ficlet in the “keep reading” below. 

Pidge looked up at the stars. She knew she couldn’t always have Lance around, he had to return home so people didn’t go looking for him and accidentally find her, it was understandable, but she couldn’t help but miss him when he wasn’t with her. She wondered if this was how others felt when they were in love and couldn’t spend time together.

Love. Weren’t they just friends, though? She was friends with Hunk and Keith, too. But Lance, she felt something different with him. Sure, it was nice listening to Hunk and Keith when they spoke about their interests, but when Lance did, she just listened completely, her attention solely on him; when she would talk about what she liked, he did the same. She liked how he would go out of his way to explain something and she loved the gifts he brought and would put together for her. She loved the different models he had set up in her cave, finding those to be her favourite ones.

She loved the way that Lance was so relaxed around her, able to fall asleep in her hand or on her chest. She never minded, she even thought he was cute when he did that, and she often would find herself singing to him, letting the music give him good dreams. And he even met Matt! Sure, he was understandably nervous about the much larger mer, but he handled the situation fairly well.

Is it… because he likes me, too? Is that why? She thought, thinking of how her parents had told her before that sometimes others will put up with things that they may not like or that frighten them because of someone they love. Can we even be together? I’ve heard stories about others having once been with humans before our ancestors hid themselves, but… they’re all smaller… I’m… She looked herself over. Large. She was enormous. Sure, she wasn’t nearly as big as her parents or brother, but she was still massive, especially compared to humans. To Lance. He was so small compared to her, she could easily hold him in the palm of one hand.

Pidge looked up, watching as a star… no, it was a piece of debris, a meteoroid she recalled Lance informing her, that fell. She then closed her eyes. “I wish I could be closer to Lance… if anything can grant my wish… please… please… I just want to be with him more. Hold him in my arms, not my hands…” she whispered. She opened her eyes again before sighing. She then dove back down, returning to the ship she had her collection and home in. She went to one of the emptier areas and snuggled down in the bottom, looking to the wing from Shiro’s plane.

It may have been Shiro’s plane, but it was because of that plane and Shiro that Lance went looking for her. Alongside the models Lance had gifted her, this was her favourite in her collection. It may have been simple, but it was this simple thing that helped to start their friendship that she hoped was blooming into love.

I wish… I wish… to be with… Lance… she thought as she drifted off to sleep, smiling for she knew Lance was coming back to visit her.

-+-+-+-

“Quit grinning like that. It’s creeping me out.” Keith commented as he sailed out with Lance. “What’s got you so excited anyway?”

“Probably because he’s gonna see his girlfriend?” Hunk smirked, clearly teasing Lance.

“What?” Lance exclaimed. “She’s… she’s not my girlfriend. Just… you know… a girl… and a friend… and...” He was blushing and did his best to hide it. Seeing that, both Hunk and Keith grinned. Yup. Their friend definitely had a crush on the curious mermaid.

“Oh yeah, he likes her.” Hunk sang a bit.

“Falling in love with a cryptid… actually sounds nice.” Keith hummed.

Lance scowled. He did want to make a comment about this being different than Keith’s obsession with Mothman, but if Pidge could exist, why not Mothman? “Anyway! A crush is… tricky right now.”

“A big issue, you might say?” Hunk inquired. Okay, if Lance was sometimes annoyed by Keith’s obsession with cryptids and conspiracy theories, then Hunk’s puns took the cake.

“Really?” Lance inquired, though Keith was snickering a bit.

“Hey, you opened the door to that one, I just walked through.” Hunk defended himself. “Anyway, so what if she’s bigger than you. Much… much bigger. You can still like her, right?”

“Well… yeah…” Lance nodded. He then looked out to the ocean. “Hmm… odd… Isn’t Pidge supposed to be here by now?” He wondered if her brother stopped her. He was definitely the protective sort. Well, that was to be expected, it just meant he cared for his little sister. Mermaids and humans alike, it was nice seeing siblings look out for each other; it showed that their species weren’t too different from one another.

“Maybe she got held up?” Keith suggested.

“Lance? Lance!” The three humans looked. They heard Pidge, but they didn’t see her. They then checked over the side of the boat where Pidge’s voice was. And there she was… but much, much smaller. She did her best to smile when she saw Lance look over the edge, but she looked so panicked. “Lance… I… I don’t...”

“Holy crow… Pidge is… smaller...” Hunk whispered.

“Hold on, I’m coming down.” Lance assured, getting up on the railing and diving off and near Pidge. When he came up, she was quickly against him, hugging him and crying. “It’s okay, Pidge, I’m here. I’ve got you.” he assured, putting his arms around her. Wow. She was actually small enough for him to do that. It was both amazing… and frightening. What happened? How did she get so small? “Do you know how this happened?”

“No.” Pidge shook her head. “All I know is I went to sleep last night, but when I woke this morning, I was all… tiny. Everything is so much bigger than me...”

And that scared her. Pidge was probably used to being one of the biggest creatures out there, suddenly being so small terrified her. He couldn’t blame her for her emotions. Creatures she probably hunted and ate probably saw her as prey now. The ocean was much larger, she probably couldn’t get from one spot to another as quickly as she used to.

“What about Matt? Did you talk to him about this?” he asked softly.

“No… I… I didn’t go look for him… he goes to deeper waters usually...” Pidge mumbled. Deeper waters. It was probably more dangerous to a mermaid who was so small. “I’m so scared… I don’t know what to do...”

And the ocean was dangerous. “Okay, we’ll think of something… we’ve got to.” Lance said. “I mean, you can probably stay close to my place.”

“Um… voice of reason here.” Hunk got their attention. He missed the part about Matt, the two spoke too softly for that, but Lance’s tone was normal again when he made his suggestion. “But the odds of someone noticing Pidge there are very likely. I mean, I get she’s somehow stayed hidden all this long, but...”

“Quiznak… you’re right!” Lance groaned.

Keith was watching them before he spoke up. “Why not the villa?” he suggested. Lance and Hunk gave him questioning and are you serious looks. “Okay, hear me out. She’s small enough, she should fit in the bathtub, right? And it’s just us who lives there.” Sure, they had family near, but the three were given the chance to live alone and pay rent from their part-time work with AARC and the tasks they do there. It was seen as great training for when they may take off to live alone. Or continue to live there, have their own private place on the islands and close to family and friends at AARC. “She can use your room’s bathtub, Lance; it’s upstairs and out of the way, the odds of even Allura stumbling upon her would be low.”

“What about Matt?” Pidge whispered.

“I’ll find him and explain, but you don’t have to go to the villa if you don’t want to.” Lance responded just as softly. He then nodded. “If you want to go to the villa, we can help you there, help find out what happened, and help keep you safe. If you don’t, we’ll still find a way to help you.”

Go with Lance? To his home? Sure, he shared it with Keith and Hunk, but… Lance lived there. Lance may not have noticed, but her cheeks took on an even darker green as she blushed, the webbing of her ears getting stiffer. “You’ll… you’ll look for Matt at times? And let him know?”

“If he doesn’t find and eat me first.” Lance teased, getting Pidge to giggle. Oh good, he could still make her laugh in her tense situation. “But yes, I will. I’ll try to go out a few times a week at least, just to find him. He’ll probably be looking for you, too, so it shouldn’t be too hard.”

Pidge nodded. “Okay… because this is… scary.” she admitted.

“We can get the boat to the small dock near the villa.” Lance nodded. “I dock there all the time, no one will think anything of it.”

“I can go in and check, make sure Allura’s not visiting, then let you know if it’s clear, then you guys can bring Pidge up.” Keith added.

“Sounds like a plan.” Lance nodded. “Right, Pidge?” Pidge nodded in agreement, trusting Lance and his friends to keep her safe. “Well, let’s get you on board and get back to the island then; if you need back in the water, just let us know, okay?” he asked, swimming around the boat to the gap in the railing so they could get on board. Hunk met them there and helped get Pidge on board, being careful of her fins so he didn’t get hit or hurt her.

“Um… question, can she even be in a fresh water tub?” Hunk asked.

“Fresh water?” Pidge asked. “Isn’t water water?”

“Oh boy...” Lance blinked. He really hoped they wouldn’t need to find a way to get the bathtub’s water to have the right salinity levels for Pidge. Well, they would find out soon enough. He captained his boat to the small dock, typically used to jump off of and swim in the water, but sometimes Lance used it if he decided to not dock at one of the main AARC buildings.

When Keith gave them the all clear, Hunk and Lance worked together, picking Pidge up and carrying her together. It wasn’t that she was heavy, but rather she was still fairly long and they didn’t want her dragging and getting hurt. When they entered the house, Pidge looked around curiously.

A house. A villa, as they called it, but it was still a home. And it was definitely different from caves used by others in the sea. It was really… peaceful. And she liked seeing the photos lining the wall the stairs went up. She soon found herself being brought through Lance’s room.

Blue. Of course it was blue. It looked nice. And it was a bit cluttered, too, though he managed to keep it as tidy as possible. Video games and plush toys alike, the toys were cute, depicting sea life. He really does love the ocean. She thought, her ears twitching happily. And then came the bathroom, blue definitely being a theme for Lance.

“I got the water started.” Keith said. “Pidge, is it fine? Too warm? Too cold?”

Pidge reached. A little cool but very comfortable. “It’s perfect.” she said. Carefully, Hunk and Lance lowered her into the tub and Keith put in a stopper, letting it fill up. Once it was full enough with Pidge in it, the water was turned off. “It’s comfy. And it feels safe here.” Pidge hummed, making herself comfortable. “It feels different from the ocean, but nice. My skin feels smoother in here. And my gills do just fine.”

“So the freshwater isn’t bad?” Lance asked, sitting on the edge of the tub.

“Not bad.” Pidge assured with a nod before putting her head under the surface. Yup. This was nice.

Lance smiled. “Well, you can stay as long as you need to.” he assured, the mermaid nodding, clearly hearing him. “I’m going to step out for a bit, okay? Want me to go to the market and get some fish? Or go fishing?” Another nod, this time more eager. Ah, she must have skipped eating in her panic. “Okay, we’ll do that.” He stood back up before lowering the shower curtain. “So you can close it more easily if you want privacy. We won’t be gone long.”

Pidge lifted her head back up. “Be safe. Come back soon.” she said.

Lance blushed deeply. “Yeah. Will do.” He nodded before leaving the bathroom, letting Pidge pull the curtain shut. “Holy crow...”

“Your girlfriend is living in your bathtub… have fun sleeping at night, buddy.” Keith patted Lance’s back.

“Good luck.” Hunk chuckled.

“Anyway… let’s go get some food for Pidge, she’s probably hungry.” Lance sighed, nudging his friends away. He couldn’t help but smile, even with their teasing. Maybe… maybe it is possible for us to really be together. He thought to himself. But I need to also help her find out what happened… and find Matt to let him know what’s going on; he’d be worried about her.

Inside the bathroom, happily in the tub, Pidge hummed to herself. Her situation was frightening, but she had good friends. Hunk and Keith were very helpful. As was Lance. Lance was amazing, kind… perfect. I’m his size now, too. She added as a thought. It’s not so bad when I think about that part. And I can be close to him. Maybe… maybe my wish came true? She shrugged before shutting her eyes, letting herself doze off in the safe, cool waters and the room that she realized smelled like Lance. It made her feel even safer.

Just as he trust me to keep him safe in the ocean, I trust him to keep me safe here.

Well, here you guys go. And it’s official that Pidge is small! Though how and why, we’ll find out another time. 😉 But now we know that her fitting in the bathtub is official and it’s not just me making people happy with the same size for Plance moments. 

Also, as a reminder, installations most likely will be out of order (as they have been before). I write what comes to mind, so I don’t have a full/actual timeline, though it can be relatively easy to guess. 

Anyway! Until the next part! 

[taehyungsgrowl]

13 with outpost michael

Thank you so much for sending this in anon! I know the prompt was fluffy but it got away from me and turned smutty oops

Anyway! This is the first non fluffy piece I’ve posted and while I’m really happy with how it came out I’m still kinda weary because I’m not used to writing smut lol I would love love love to hear what you think/how I can improve. Hope you see this anon, sorry I took so long! I rewatched the morning after for help w characterization lol

The bundle of nerves that swell in Y/N’s tummy were unbearable. She fiddled with the cuff of her sleeve, twisting the delicate buttons in between her fingers. Y/N had her interview with Langdon and she wasn’t sure which thought made her more nervous; not getting let into the sanctuary or being alone with him in a room.

She looked up from her idle pass time when she heard the door slide open, allowing Mr. Langdon to stride inside and take a seat across from her. Amber flames wicking furiously in the fireplace, illuminated his long blonde waves and casted a beautiful glow on his pale skin. She often found herself thinking of his skin and how porcelain it was. She wanted to run her fingers over it, the thought alone raised goosebumps to her arm.

“Y/N” he spoke her name out slowly. She hated that she loved how it dripped from his lips. “No need to be so nervous,” he shot her a wicked grin. “All I expect is the truth. And I have no reason to believe you’ll disappoint. Or I am I wrong?” he tested her. “No, sir. I understand.” she chewed on the inside of her lip, keeping focused on what he said.

He crossed his legs, resting his hands in his lap, “Very well, then. Tell me about your chastity.” he leered, eyeing the silver band adorning her delicate finger. Her mouth gaped at the question. She knew humanity was on the brink of extinction and procreation would be expected, but she could not find the answer he was looking for. As if he could read her thoughts, he sighed heavily, “Don’t tell me what you think I want to hear.” his annoyance evident in his voice. “Tell me about the promise you made to your god,” he chuckled. Y/N could tell how much he was enjoying this with the way his remarks weighed heavily in ridicule. Quite frankly it angered Y/N to not be taken seriously by this man. The flash of anger did not go unnoticed by Michael; if anything it only edged him to press her further.

“I’m not playing any games Y/N,” he paused for a moment before standing and walking to the desk. He casually leaned back against it, crossing one foot behind the other. “Did you honor your promise?” he fought a smile poorly. “No.” her cheeks burned hotter than the fire besides her.

He hummed, running his hands over the smooth wooden surface, “Not as pure as you let others believe,” he stated, his eyes wandering up and down her frame.

“I have no control over what others think of me,” she quipped, the cool silver metal of the ring feeling heavier than she remembered. He rolled his eyes, “What did I say about lying?” he was having fun with her. He wanted to see just how far he could push her boundaries. “You prance around the outpost with a holier than thou attitude,” he scoffed, “when we both know how aggressively you work your pretty little fingers on your clit behind closed doors.” The air felt heavy with the tension between the two. Michael kept his composure nonchalant, but the girl felt her heart beating out of her chest.

“Tell me, Y/N” his voice echoed around the room, “do you miss the feeling of having someone’s cock buried in your pussy?” Before she can say anything, he lifts a finger in the air, “I won’t remind you again - honesty.” he licked his lips.

She nodded her head yes, keeping hold of his steel gaze. With the dim lighting of the room and the candles flickering around him, she couldn’t settle on the color of his eyes, but depths of them engulfed her.

A smug smile made its way to his chiseled face as he stood of up straight. He motioned her to him with his pointed finger,  “Come here,” he commanded. “Why?” she furrowed her brows, questioning him. Another sigh came from Langdon, “Just come here,” he fought the innate urge to roll his eyes.

She rose from here seat and didn’t hesitate to make her way to him. He walked around her until she was the one pressed against the desk. He placed his hands at her waist and lifted her off her feet, perching her up on the desk. Standing in between her legs, he got close enough to rub the tip of his nose against hers. Y/N’s heartbeat was increasing and he could sense it. “Relax,” he muttered, another devilish grin flashed across his face. He dragged his finger down your neck and ran it over your exposed collarbone. “Take off your dress.” he instructed easily. Y/N couldn’t keep up with the thoughts racing through her head; all she knew in that moment was the feeling of her panties dampening beneath her gown as her desire for him grew. Hesitation out the window she began riding herself of the dated gown, he held her steady as they watched it fall to the ground, leaving her in silky white panties.

Langdon stepped back to take in the sight of her sitting almost completely exposed to him. Her skin appeared to be glowing with sheen as the shadows danced along it. Her legs were slightly parted and watching her wet her lips with the tip of her tongue made the bulge in his pants twitch.

“Beautiful,” he mummered, closing the gap between them again. She tilted her head up, wanting to meet her lips to his. Langdon blossomed by seeing the desperation in her eyes. Knowing he had the power to watch her come undone was almost enough for him.

Ghosting his lips over her neck, her jawline, and her lips caused a shiver to run down her spine. “Please,” she drawled out, closing her eyes, allowing the sensation of his breath against her skin to tickle her senses.

“Please what?” smugness evident in his tone. “Touch me please.” Y/N’s eyes reopened to hold his gaze. Having her right were he wanted her, he trailed his fingers down the valley between her breasts, past her tummy, and to the waistband of her panties. Dropping to his knees, he came eye level with her pussy. He looked up at her through his lashes, red eyeshadow much more prominent from her new point of view and he looked like he dripped of sin and Y/N was insatiable for him.

Michael could smell her arousal and he knew he couldn’t his charade much longer; he needed to taste her. He needed to see her become his. He began by sponging a wet kiss to her cloth covered core, earning him the most delicate gasp he’s ever heard. He smirked against her, “Did you like that, princess?” he rubbed the tip of his nose back and forth a bit, making her squirm. His hands gripped at her knees, stopping her movements, “Uh - uh,” he shook his head, “Need you to stay still for me.” he said as he slid her underwear down her legs. “Yes, sir.” she bit down on her lip, the nerves she felt before the interview began now placed someone else. With that, he brought his index and middle finger up to her pout, “Get them nice and wet for me.” he chuckled, his free hand roaming up and down her thigh. Y/N opened her lips and began sucking on his digits, she swirled her tongue around them in an obscene manner, causing him to groan and pull his hand back. It was her turn to smirk now.

After what Y/N felt like an eternity of foreplay and teasing, Michael finally touched where she so longed for him. Langdon ran his spit covered fingers down her wet folds before leaning in and licking a stripe down her center. He licked her once more, her sweet taste drugging him into an animalistic state. He attached his lips to her clit, sucking on the bud whilst he entered his fingers in her. Crescent shaped moons began forming on her thighs from the grip he had on her. Above him was a whimpering mess. She could feel her wetness and his saliva spill down her thighs as he continued his attack of pleasure. Her panting increased as her thoughts clouded over with bliss. Michael kept his right hand on her thigh, but his left reached for hers. He laced his fingers with hers as he brought her closer to her orgasm; never breaking his mouth from her pussy, he slid her chastity ring off of her finger and managed to place it around his pinky. He smirked against her and sucked harshly, and brought his hand down to her pussy. “Fuck,” she choked out, “Please, oh god” she begged. Curling his fingers deep inside caused her to unravel for him. Michael continued licking the mess she made until she rode out her orgasm.

Rising from his knees, he took her hands and pulled her off the desk, and crashed his lips to hers. They tangled their tongues together, exploring each others mouths. Michael was the first to pull away, tugging her bottom lip with his teeth as he did. “It appears that we’ll have to extend this interview..” he mused, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear. “I’d like that.” she blushed. She bent down to pick her panties up, but he was quicker. He snatched them and tucked them into his back pocket. “You can get these during phase two.” a playful glint in his eyes, “Tonight. In my room. I won’t tolerate tardiness, Ms. Y/L/N” She shook her head, giggling a bit. “Yes, sir.”

“It’s Michael.” he corrected her. “Okay then, Michael’ she tested the name, “do I get my ring back during phase two?”

“No,” he let out against her mouth, kissing her again, “that’s mine now.” he looked down to admire the little silver band around his pinky. “You’re mine now.”

TAGS FOR PEOPLE WHO ASKED TO BE TAGGED/SOME OF MY FAVE BLOGS: @wickedlangdon @nolixxx @petersfern-fics @ritualmichael @weareallevilmotherfuckers @duncans-donuts @duncvn @sweetlangdon @cryptid-coalition @xtheinevitableprophecyx @xlangdons-evilbabygirlx @michael-lngdon @sinnerfrank @et-tu-bitch @yourkingcodyfern @maso-xchrist @avesatanormalpeoplescareme @langdonsrapture @sacredlangdon @langdonsdemon @lvngdvns @lvngdonscurse @wroteclassicaly @supremewltch @mrperth @michaellangdonn @michael-langdon-appreciation @michaellangyum @spawnmichael @ave–michael @kylossren @litenbaby @cloudyrabbits @confettucini @langdonsoceaneyes