#《 ♘ 》 in another time‚ what could we have been

[arysoakheart]

continuation of this ask with @unbearablyindifferent

laughing, arys takes a seat at the counter, setting his things aside on an empty seat beside him.

" well, it looks like chicken & pasta, " he says. lifting his fork, he takes a bite of the dish set before him. then, after a moment, he hums. " & it tastes like chicken & pasta. i'm gonna go with — chicken & pasta! "

[annoyinglandmagazine]

Celegorm and Curufin

♘: Cuddling in a blanket fort.

♞: Caring for each other while ill.

Please 😇

Absolutely! Thanks for the ask! Sorry it took a while, I’ve been working pretty slowly recently.

Curufin stood rooted to the spot in disbelief at his brother and crossed his arms over his chest in protest. ‘What exactly do you think you’re doing in my room?’ The bed gave another almighty screech as it was dragged again in a way that made it impossible for him to restrain a wince, both at the noise and the scratches carelessly being left on the oaken floor.

‘I’m making a fort. You’re meant to be smart, it’s pretty obvious.’ Celegorm shrugged while tying a quilt around the desk leg as if this was a perfectly normal thing for the lord of Himlad to be doing in his brother’s room. ‘If for some inexplicable reason you felt the need to engage in such a,’ he scrunched his noise in distaste as Celegorm stepped on his bed (he just knew those were his hunting boots, if he even had any others) ‘juvenile activity, surely your own chambers would be a better location? Or better yet your nephew’s?’

This was far from the first time he’d tried to deflect one of his brother’s more chaotic moods on his son. He was an only child so surely it would build character to gain even a bit of exposure to what it was to have siblings through the immaturity of his uncles. Celegorm paused a second and turned to face him holding a pillow in one hand, and by the Valar that was a look. Not a glare, no he could handle those fine and regularly, this was one of those looks, an expression of one who’s sleep and waking thoughts had been troubled for a while now. It would be wishful thinking to imagine this had nothing to do with the letters sent occasionally numerous times a week to the same cousin and never receiving a reply.

‘I love Tyelpe a great deal, it’s simply- it’s been a while since I spent time with you.’ He reached out a hand with a sigh and a long suffering look to the side. ‘Oh, just give me that, you’re making a complete mess of it.’ Celegorm grinned widely and threw it to him.

Several hours later saw them both laying side by side looking up at a ceiling of blankets in a nest of blankets and pillows. Celegorm pulled out a box of candied nuts with a grin and Curufin found himself releasing a chuckle of his own, ‘Well I suppose doing this fully grown certainly has its advantages, we can just take snacks without having to bargain with Amme.’

‘We must just stole them anyways though. In fact I stole these, I kept expecting her to come out of the woodwork and scold me for spoiling my dinner.’ Only Celegorm would steal his own food and feel guilty over it. He truly had an idiot for a brother he thought as he popped an almond in his mouth and laid his head on his chest. Valar, he’d missed this.

Celegorm wrapped an arm around him to secure him against his side as he closed his eyes and let the steady rise and fall of his chest lull him into sleep.

2. (C/W for vomiting and possible eating disorder. Pitya roughly translates to little one) When Curufin slipped himself off his mount and handed the reins off to an attendant to stroll into the trees it was not strictly speaking reason for concern. They’d been covering a large distance and most of their entourage had at some point taken a few minutes to relieve themselves or at least stretch a bit and Curufin certainly had more reason to need a break from the saddle than most, he had not seen the full extent of his burns but the healer had certainly given off the impression that they were severe enough that physical strain would give him some degree of pain, whether he showed signs of it or not.

No, he only truly started to worry when the minutes piled up and his company began to glance askance at each other in confusion at the hold up, even his own seneschal shot him a questioning look. Then the sound of retching carried over to them and Celegorm swung himself down and held up a silencing hand to the entourage. ‘I’ll handle it myself, stay back here.’ Curufin would not appreciate any witnesses to such vulnerability if he were in fact being violently sick and he had to say he preferred to keep personal matters between him and his siblings whenever possible.

He found Curufin with no great effort, kneeling by the side of a bush and losing what looked like the entire contents of his stomach into said bush. ‘Hey, Pitya,’ he murmured softly, kneeling at his side and carefully pulling his hair back from his face, Curvo would be utterly repulsed if he found vomit in his hair later with the amount of care he went to to keep it clean and combed out. He rubbed his back encouragingly with the free hand and received a growl in reply once there was enough of a pause for him to speak, ‘Just go away Tyelko, stop babying me.’

He knew he wasn’t imagining the tears he saw welling up in his brother’s eyes as he fell forward again, whether at the general unpleasantness or his humiliation at someone seeing him like this it was hard to determine, but they were definitely there. When he finally slumped back against him he was trembling and drawn and did not protest further at Celegorm’s arms enveloping him.

‘Did you eat something bad? The only thing I recall recently was my stew, but my cooking isn’t that bad and you didn’t eat as much of it as the rest of us,’ in fact it had been a struggle to get him to eat even that much which, now he thought about it, should have been an indication. ‘I hadn’t eaten in a while beforehand,’ he confessed quietly.

That would explain the rich meat having such an effect and why most of the contents of his stomachs had seemed to be bile, but more pressing concerns began to consume his mind and he felt a cold rush of fear. ‘How long is a while?’ Curufin took a while to reply softly before trailing off entirely, ‘Since he…’

It was not hard for him to understand the meaning behind those words. Since Atya died. Almost two weeks ago. He barely got out a strangled ‘Why?’ as he desperately ran his fingers through his brother’s hair, to calm himself as much as Curufin, to remind himself that he still had him here. ‘ I can still smell it, the burning flesh, I feel too nauseous and dizzy to keep anything down and- and I’m not sure I want to.’ How had he not noticed this, if it had been Maglor suffering he might have missed it but this was Curufin, he was his responsibility and he’d never before missed something this important.

He pulled out his water skin and gently brought it to Curvo’s lips and coaxed him into swallowing a few mouthfuls before lowering it. ‘Well you’re not allowed to do things like this, I hope you know that. I’m not going to let you. So what’s going to happen is that I’m going to give you a minute to catch your breath, finish that water mind you, then you should take a little bit of way bread to settle your stomach and when we get back to camp you are going to lie down in my tent and I’ll make you some broth to get your strength up.’

Curufin sighed in sheer exhaustion and turned to rest his forehead against his brother’s chest, mumbling a tired ‘thank you’ as Celegorm broke off a little piece of lembas and hoisted him to his feet.

[lune-hime]

Garden of Tulips (Levi/Reader) Tea Time #9

~Click me for more chapters~

“What did it look like?”

“Hmm?” Levi looked up from his place next to your sleeping form.

“The titan that tried to snack on my darling granddaughter.”

“Ugly as fuck.”

“Aren’t they all?”

Levi recounts memories of the reader and their shared life together while she recovers from a serious injury.

!!WARNINGS!! - Violence, gore, smut, wholesome content ;)

Small Talk

↞♞♘↠

“You’re sitting with me.” Petra proclaimed as she hooked her arm into yours. You beamed at your cousin, as any time spent with her was precious to you. You hadn’t regularly seen each other since she was a teenager, as her frequent visits turned into sporadic presences at family gatherings once she joined the corps.

“Oh walls, I’m so glad you were selected too.” You sighed in relief as Petra led you through the lobby of the courthouse. You had been drafted for jury duty for an insubordination case. And of all days it had to be on your day off. The least your higher ups could have done is let you miss your early 3DM training tomorrow. You had looked like a headless chicken wandering through the lobby-as none of the other cadets present were familiar faces-until Petra had found you and guided you towards the courtroom with seasonal expertise.

“Sadly we both are going to be forced to sit here for the next few hours.” Petra sighed as she led you through an empty row of the polished wooden bleachers. You scooched your way to the end of your row and settled into your seat. The room smelled overwhelmingly of varnish and cologne.

Petra had garnered a chuckle out of you with her latest story about her squad’s drunken antics when a figure sat down on the other side of your cousin. She turned from you to see who it was and sent him a sweet smile.

“You were summoned too, Levi? Lucky you.” She chirped in greeting. “So was Y/N.”

“Unfortunately. I’m filling in for Hange.” He answered evenly, nodding towards you in acknowledgement. You nodded back awkwardly. You hadn't talked with him properly since the tea incident and the prospect of coming up with something decent to say was stressing you out more than the court case.

“You’ll now see that the military isn’t as glamorous as it’s made out to be.” Petra turned to you with a playful sarcasm and a gentle pat to your thigh. “Right Captain?”

You sent her a half smile as your eyes nervously wandered beyond her lap to your superior officer. He hummed in agreement, his gaze falling to a newly arrived Olou who was stopped by a military police officer at one of the glazed doors.

“We’re living a desirable life between office work and getting eaten.” He replied dryly. You would have laughed like Petra did if you weren’t drowning in intimidation.

You wish you weren't so set on having him like you. It would have made your seat more comfortable and your muscles less stiff.

“Ugh, what’s his problem?” Petra grumbled as Olou mimed help in your direction. She rolled her eyes and rose to stand, squeezing past Levi’s knees and begrudgingly walking towards her struggling squad mate.

You felt like a kid being left with their new nanny. He didn’t initiate conversation; his gaze was fixed on the people mulling about the room, one leg over the other in reserved recline. He let the silence simmer into a well braised roast while you were afraid of letting it get overcooked. You were itching to find something to say to him.

“How many of these have you had to come to?” You asked. The silver of Levi’s irises flicked to you.

“Enough to know they mostly end the same.”

“Anything I should know? They kinda just threw me in blind.” You could hear the forced cheerfulness in your voice and you mentally cringed.

“Just don’t fall asleep.” He responded, looking away from you once again. You nodded into the incoming absence of active conversation.

“Are you still liking the Foxcatcher tea?” You posed another question to hopefully break the ice that was definitely very one sided on your part.

“My tastes don’t change that rapidly.” He stated, as if that was the natural response to your query. He added a so yes after a pause. You smiled smally, thankful that at least he still drank what you gifted him.

You fiddled with your fingers in your lap as you scanned the gradually filling room. Your eyes ended on Petra looking up at Olou, her features stern as he fumbled through paperwork.

“So…” You began with an inhale. Levi inhaled as well, mentally bracing himself for more small talk. While he didn’t hate talking, he did find trivial small talk annoying at times.

“Why are you and…Oowoo?” You guessed, finding that particular member’s name hard to remember. You nodded to the man in question.

“Olou.” Levi corrected, curiosity written on his face at where you were going to take that question.

“Yeah him. Why are you guys always twinning?” You spoke into the stiff empty space between the two of you.

The way the raven haired man visibly exuded offence gave you chills.

“We aren’t.” He scoffed at your harmless accusation. You pursed your lips at his swift and curt reply. He must have sensed you were going to ask something random again because he cut you off before you could even speak.

“Look, if you’re going to keep rambling, save it for a later time.” He said under steely eyes. His tone was impassive and held no severity to it, but it shut you right up. His bluntness cut right through your friendly exterior and caused you to sink back into your seat.

At least you tried.

Mother

↞♞♘↠

“Will you tell me about your mother?” Levi’s request was just as soft against your skin as the sheets you bundled yourself in. You appreciated the plush lining of his question as opposed to his common brashness. You hadn’t been together that long, but with your affections growing deeper by the day, you felt like it was time to open up. For if you couldn’t, you couldn’t expect him to in return.

You released your face from its cradle of pillows and towards the man entangled against you. You almost didn't want to puncture the dreamy veil that held you two under the stillness of  a midday nap (That took a lot of convincing). You almost couldn't bring yourself to dampen the sweet way Levi's pearly cheeks peeked out from the covers and how his gaze gave you not only his undivided attention, but his entire being.

“Do you want the short or long story?” You asked, propping yourself up on your elbow in preparation.

“Long.” Levi said without a doubt in his mind. His hand fell to the curve of your waist, thumb running along the fabric there. You stared into each other’s eyes for a moment, giving you gentle confidence to inhale.

“As you know, my father died when I was 10.” You began.

“He was a lawyer whose cases were mostly dealing with elites, their scandals, their embezzlements and their tightly sealed crimes. When he was in the process of working against a government official in a particularly taboo case…he was killed by organized crime. His death wasn’t the accident it was made out to be in Mitras. Oma has made sure I’ve always been aware of that.”

You had closure with your father. While it was unbearably hard to navigate life without him, at least you knew some aspects of what had happened. With your mother it was completely different.

“His death was obviously detrimental to my family. We all dealt with it in different ways. Oma overworked herself and became more active in military events. She decided if there was anything she could do, even minorly, to challenge the corruption that took her son from her…she would.”

You recalled how Oma would come in every evening from the fields, her body hunched as it tried to cope with her strenuous work. She would serve you hot cocoa with fingertips bloodied from reopened and overstimulated scabs. She would kiss your forehead with lips worn from biting back tears and holding in her grief.

“I think I tried to disassociate myself from it. I left school for months and bounced from childish distraction to distraction. But mom-” You swallowed as you dipped your toes in a particularly lonely part of your life. “I watched as she slowly deteriorated.”

Coming from a relatively well-off family, your mother didn’t have a job to worry about neglecting as she sank into her sadness. The two of you grieved together, her abundant embraces never fading as her mind drifted elsewhere. Her honeyed disposition never souring, just developing a glassy tanginess that you couldn’t quite comprehend.

“She was always affectionate but she became even more so after his death. But it wasn’t her usual affections, she grew clingy in almost a paranoid way. Which I didn’t mind, I needed her at that time and she was always there. That was until she started leaving for Mitras.”

“She would go and be gone for days at a time, leaving me with Oma and Felicia. She would always come back from these trips , apologizing profusely to me for being gone and showering me with expensive gifts. When Oma pressed her for the reason for her disappearances she’d always say she was meeting connections, seeing friends.”

“Her trips got longer as time went on, and I got more confused as to why she kept leaving us. Oma was quick to dispel any thought that I had somehow pushed her away despite our apparent closeness.”

Levi watched intently as your eyes glazed over with re-opened emotion. His hand rubbed delicate strokes along the expanse of your arm.

“Oma would invite Jean or Petra to spend a week at a time at our house to keep me happy.” You smiled sadly at the bittersweet memories.

“One night, I woke up to a heated argument between mom and Oma. I listened from the porch as they screamed at each other in the front yard. Apparently mom had confessed to Oma where she had been going this entire time and what her plan was that night.”

“Turns out during all of those trips to Mitras she had been inducted into the Church of the Walls. While mom thought she was receiving salvation, they were just sapping what was left of her sanity and capitalizing on her grief. She would stay at the monastery for weeks at a time, only coming home to see me and collect bits of her savings.”

“Being a widow, she inherited my parents’ shared wealth. She gave it all to the church to-” You dryly scoffed, a stark contrast to your wet eyes. “What I can only guess is to fund their shady dealings and political agendas.”

Levi continued to listen intently. His gaze was unwavering, yet his fingers threaded through yours when he felt them fidgeting.

“When she would hold me at night, right before bed, she would talk to me about the church. She phrased it in a way that made them sound so idealized, so far away from regular society it almost seemed too good to be true. So, being a kid, I just passed it off as strange bedtime stories. Little did I know she was in so deep.”

“Apparently the argument that night had been sparked by my mom trying to convince Oma to bring me and come with her to live at the monastery. Oma called her reasoning cult nonsense and immediately refused, unsurprisingly. When mom noticed me standing there…she tried to physically take me to the carriage she had already prepared.”

“She’s my baby, not yours! I know what’s best for her!” Your mother cried, roughly bringing you into her feverish embrace. A concoction of anger and hurt knotted along Oma’s brow.

“Mina, you’re not thinking clearly and you haven’t been for a long time. It’s unfair to take her away from her life here. You’re not even giving her a choice!” Oma’s voice started out evenly, but she lost her composure when she locked eyes with your terrified expression.

Levi sensed you were trying to hold out on crying by the way your lip quivered and the way your gaze brushed past him, fixing on the sun rays filtering through the partially drawn curtain. Your scream echoed through your memory as you saw yourself roughly passed between your grandmother and mother as Oma swiftly attempted to yank you from your mother’s grasp. Your mother’s wet tears against your cheek and her crazed, grappling hands were the last fleeting touches she parted on you.

Oma cradled you to her chest, your tear-streaked form too confused to fight back, as she tried to talk your mother down. She couldn’t bear the thought of you losing two parents at once, but she wasn’t about to blindly let you go. Your life was here, not locked away in the interior.

“Oma finally grabbed me and my mother eventually gave up. I remember mom looking so…hurt. Like we were the ones abandoning her, not the other way around. Oma tried reasoning with her, but it didn’t work. She had already made up her mind.”

Oma held onto you like her life depended on it as your mother threw a fit, crying into the night air and then driving away.

“Have you seen her since?” Levi spoke up, his thumb coming to caress the wetness that pooled at the rims of your eyes.

“A couple times at galas where the church was present. The first time-I think I was 13-she again tried to convince me to come live with her, which ended in Oma finding me crying in the palace garden for the rest of the night.” You sniffled, gratefully leaning into Levi’s affectionate touch. “The other times were only from across the room.”

“Oma did her best to steer her away from the path she took, but eventually she gave up trying-I don’t blame her. There’s a lot of questions I’ve never gotten answers for, and I probably never will. I’ve come to terms with that.”

Levi hummed in acknowledgement. When your gaze met his finally, your lip quivered with the utter care that rested on his features. Wordlessly, he gingerly guided your body back down to the bed. He gathered you into his arms, his fingers gliding through your hair and scratching lightly at your scalp.

“Thank you for telling me.” His velvety tone vibrated through your limbs and warmed your chest. “You must have felt so…discarded.”

Your eyes squeezed shut at his statement and you choked out a sob. The silly self consciousness that can come with vulnerability washed over you as Levi’s loving presence worked to replace the band-aid you had just ripped off. You reached your arms around his neck and latched onto his comfort.

“I feel like it shouldn’t bother me anymore, though, you know? It’s been years.” You sighed. Levi hummed again as his hand transitioned from your hair to your back. His palm painted invisible circles along the canvas of your back.

"The past has an annoying tendency to stick around. Just because it happened so long ago doesn't mean its still not upsetting.” He spoke into your hair. "She's missing out on the wonderful woman you've become."

Your heart clenched at Levi's sincere compliment, a rare moment of decadent emotional intimacy. You hugged him tighter, your next words spoken straight into Levi's chest and sending his pulse racing.

"Thank you, Levi. I love you."

He slowly shifted his weight so that you were now lying atop of him; your thigh between his, stomach flush with his own, and his hands tenderly cupping your cheeks. The sweetness of his milky skin on yours forced you to look into the adoration in his eyes.

"I love you too." He whispered in such a way that it made you never want to leave this bed. "Now, sleep. We still have some of our nap time left."

Levi vowed to lessen that weight, and any other you picked up in the future, in any way he could.

This is Not an Art Class

↞♞♘↠

Another yawn lazily contorted your features as Erwin’s monotone, yet dangerously soothing voice continued to speak on. It’s one thing to listen to historical titan battle tactics for an hour, but three ? Your brain was starting to churn into butter with all the information being thrown at you. Your gaze floated from the chalkboard, to your fresh-faced fellow cadets in the front row, to the two senior officers sitting on the sidelines. Levi and Mike sat with their arms crossed over their chest, casually listening to their commander. You wondered if they were just as bored as you were.

You felt a poke at your elbow and you looked over to your neighbor. Jean slid you a folded piece of paper while giving you a sly side eye. You glared at him with a mixture of amusement and suspicion. After your fingers had quietly unfolded the crinkled paper, your face shriveled up to stifle the sudden burst of laughter that overcame you. Good thing you were sitting near the back, or you would have definitely caught your seniors’ attention. You glanced back up to Jean only to see two other heads looking your way. Sasha and Connie had stupidly proud grins on their faces as they silently urged you to look at the paper once more.

On the desk in front of you lay a drawing of Captain Levi, his features labeled by each artist that had added them. Connie had laid down the bare bones of the masterpiece; an upside down triangle with stick arms and legs and topped off with angry eyes. Sasha had artistically added a detailed replica of his haircut along with his uniform, paying extra attention to his signature cravat. Jean had crudely placed a mop in one of his hands and a blade in the other. His final touch was his tongue sticking out to match his peeved peepers.

There was only one thing left to add, really.

As you took hold of your pencil, three pairs of eyes eagerly watched your strokes. It took everything in them to not disturb everyone’s learning environment. Now the little vicious man had thick thighs to physically support his rigorous cleaning habits and vicious attitude. Having felt minorly rejuvenated by your little harmless drawing, you slipped it into your pocket as the class was finally nearing its end.

Was it immature? Sure.

Was it damn funny? Absolutely.

Once Erwin had finally gotten his fill of teaching, you eagerly gathered your belongings and left your seat.

“If we had to sit there any longer, I think I would have expired.” You breathed a sigh of relief as you exited the lecture hall. Jean was eager on your heels, stopping in the middle of the hall to give his limbs a languid stretch.

“I’m losing feeling in my ass.” He complained. You huffed and looked at his backside.

“There’s nothing there to lose.” You commented with a sly smile.

“Oh, fuck off. Let’s go get lunch before training.” He groaned, smirking when he easily put you into a playful chokehold. Just as you were about to wiggle from his grip, a call made you and Jean seize up.

“Vogel, Kirsctein.” Levi’s icy tone sent frosty tendrils up your bodies.

You both comically swiveled to meet your accuser; Jean’s elbow still at your neck and your hands on his arm. The captain had his hand held up, your drawing unfolded and held in his grasp.

Well…we’re absolutely fucked.

You gaped like a goldfish, struggling to find any explanation to justify your clearly identifiable portrait. Above you, Jean was visibly sweating.

“Morning cleaning duty for the next week for acting like elementary schoolers. To clarify, morning for me is 6:00 am.” He commanded, flicking his spitting image into the closest trash can.

“Bring your accomplices with you as well.” He added without sparing the two of you another glance as he turned the corner of the hall.

Sasha and Connie waltzed out moments later, almost bumping into the two deflated bodies clogging up the hallway.

“What’d we miss?” Sasha asked when you and Jean audibly groaned in sync.

Sticky, Sweet, Summertime

A glimpse into the future: In which the gangs take a well deserved break at the beginning of the age of industrialization (during the 4 year time skip).

↞♞♘↠

It was so painfully hot.

The kind of hot that if you sat yourself down under the sun too long you would feel your brain melting into a continuous stream of sweat.

That’s why your breath was incredibly humid against your hand as you stifled an unexpectedly loud moan when Levi’s palm dipped underneath the fabric of your exercise shorts. The little drunken demon had separated you from the rest of your friends as you trudged through the forest. Waiting for you on the other side of that tree line was a small lake you all frequented and the promise of cool water against your clammy skin.

The bark of the tree dug into your palm as Levi squeezed the plushness of your hip and peppered lazy open mouth kisses on your shoulder blade. When intoxicated, Levi was a touch starved man. And that was only amplified when he was alone with you and could throw away any restraint for public decency.

“Le-vi…we’re going to miss the game.” You mewled as his nimble fingers drifted dangerously close to your core. You were both drowning in the dizzying afterglow of copious amounts of alcohol.

Your whole group was extremely plastered after celebrating a good work week on the railroad. You decided to spend the blistering afternoon drinking yourselves into oblivion as you all hadn’t had a chance to catch a break recently. Every day brought a new sucker punch of culture shock and information overload about the outside world that Yelena and Onyankapon fed you. Your sheltered existence waned with each new track you laid. I mean, fuck, this morning you had found out that lions weren’t extinct and in fact still existed beyond the pages of your fairytales.

“You’re…” Levi let out an unfiltered, lewd moan, half from the pleasant grogginess and half from the way your backside softly grinded against him. “Being unfair.”

Your scoff morphed into a squeal of pleasure as Levi’s fingers reached their target destination. You were quickly overheating from the combined sweat trapped between your shirt, your back, and his chest, his sloppily sensual movements, and the weightlessness in your head.

“I’m being unfair? You’re the one who started this!” You gasped, gathering your self control and running your grip along his arm to remove his hand from your pants. You swiveled so your back was now pressed into the tree. The sight before you was truly intoxicating, no pun intended.

Sweat clung to Levi’s exposed skin and stuck to his defined musculature beneath his tank top. His gaze was dazed and hungry in a way that both resembled satisfaction and absolute craving. Your breasts were heaving with exasperation, the outline of your bra visible through the thin, moist fabric. Levi’s gaze was a magnet to them as you tried to scold him.

“You were stripping.” He said matter-of-factly, the simple action of exposing any semblance of your heated skin pushing him over the edge of public decency. You, had in fact, stripped for a bit to remove the slick layer of cloth from your torso as you basked in the bath of your liquor and the afternoon sun.

His fingers were wet from your wetness as they snaked up your torso. You took his wandering hands in yours before they could reach your chest. His lashes fluttered upward in a scowl when you intertwined your fingers with his and spun. The action caught him by surprise and in his alcoholic disorientation you successfully pinned him to the tree.

With liquid courage still brewing within you, you boldly raised your connected arms above your heads. He swallowed any complaint he could have uttered when your knee slithered its way between his thighs, adding pressure to the growing tightness of his trousers. You leaned in, your lips mere centimeters from his.

“A little sexual tension won’t hurt.” You purred into his ragged puffs of breath. Your lips dipped down, much to his disappointment, to bestow his jawline with a languid and tender kiss. You pulled away with a devilish smile at his obvious frustration.

“And you call me the evil one.” Levi exhaled steamy wisps of annoyance. You giggled, blood rushing to your head as your knees caressed the pine needles of the forest floor.

“Not evil enough to realize I can’t let you go back to everyone like this.” Your tongue ran over the expanse of your parted lips as you palmed his crotch. “But you owe me for making us late.”

Levi uttered an of course, as his eyes fluttered shut in pleasure.

↞↠↞↠↞↠

Thankfully, everyone wasn’t sober enough to care about your minor absence as you and Levi emerged out of the tree line. Jean, Eren, and Sasha were already swimming about the lake. Armin was wobblily running after Connie who was cackling, holding a poor turtle above his head that he had plucked from a piece of driftwood along the shore. Hange was seated next to Mikasa at the nearest picnic table and was saying something to make the girl question her commander's sanity as she politely listened on.

“Ah, the lovebirds finally decided to join us.” Hange called from her spot sprawled out on the wood with a wry smile. “Hope everything was at most PG-13 because I’m going to have to touch you Levi.”

She turned to acknowledge your hastily smoothed hair and Levi’s splayed hand at the small of your back. The two of you swayed into each other before accompanying your friends at the table. The modest lake was a public space, though you were thankful that no strangers were seated among the few tables and benches to witness your group’s antics.

“Unfortunately.” He grumbled, mimicking Hange’s position next to her, gratefully leaning back into the shade the overhanging trees provided. Mikasa, perched on the table itself, asked sweetly if you wanted your hair braided a bit to be pulled from your face. You gratefully accepted and she began her work.

Hange was eyeing Levi’s ear with mischief as his pupils kissed the inside of his eyelids. She puffed her cheeks to keep herself from letting out a self indulged laugh as she wet her finger in her mouth and inched it slowly towards him. With the slivers of palpable concentration she had left, she slipped it right in. To her delight, she immediately garnered a gravelly yelp from the man.

“You have some nerve touching me with that filthy finger.” Levi seethed in friendly annoyance. His palm engulfed her face, with enough intentional softness to not totally knock her off the table, he roughly pushed her away from him. He was left wallowing in disgust, using his shirt to wipe away the wet willy while Hange and you erupted into a fit of laughter.

As you relished in Mikasa’s delicate tugs, your shin brushed against glass, causing the empty bottle to fall into the plush grass. You averted your eyes from the water down to the ground; vessels depleted of carefree energy were littered about your feet. You realized just how much your friends had continued to drink during your forest excursion.

Earlier at HQ, not even your more reserved friends had been safe from the ever flowing river of intoxication you and Hange had spearheaded. The idiot trio and Eren had unsurprisingly kickstarted the session hard. What did surprise you, though, was how heavily Levi went in as he usually took his time with alcohol. Mikasa and Armin paced themselves well, although Mikasa was able to consume more alcohol at once than her blonde best friend. A few hours in though, Armin was giggling like a lovestruck squirrel and Mikasa was poking her muscles in nonsensical confusion.

Hange and you were on the same wavelength; within three shots you were dancing on each other to Connie’s horrible rendition of a popular song and Sasha’s accompanying violin imitation. Soon Jean joined in, making you the meat of a gyrating sandwich. You tried to get Levi to join, only be dodged swiftly as he poured himself another drink. Your final victim, Armin, screeched in feigned terror as the three of you wiggled over him.  

You had been extremely butthurt that you had lost an arm wrestling match to Eren, only to cackle when Mikasa easily beat him in your stead.

You just wouldn’t give up in a silly heated argument with Armin. He had to grip your shoulders and hold in his garbled laughs as you got worked up over your firm belief that the famed Marleyan iron horses must have little animals running around in their gears to power them.

Levi was alarmingly skilled at beer pong, which was bad news for his opponent, Armin, who was alarmingly bad.

Sasha had boldly taken a body shot off of Jean. And then Connie. And then you. Once you had gotten Levi loose enough to lose his some of his inhibitions you had managed to get him to do one off of you too. The openly sensual experience was one that wouldn’t leave the forefront of your mind for awhile, you reckoned.

You couldn’t have asked for a better day.

Not wanting to fall down from the foggy high you were on, your hand gravitated to one of the half full bottles on the table. As your fingers encircled it, you felt the warmth of another hand. Slowly craning your neck as to not disturb Mikasa, Levi met your eyes with a lazy smile.

“Only a few more sips.” He knowingly instructed, the grays of his eyes sparkling under the sunspots that filtered through the shade. “Promise me.”

You blew a raspberry in his direction but agreed, knowing you wouldn’t be able to handle much more. The way he was propped up on his elbows, his muscles devoid of their usual chronic tension, made you want to drink him instead. Yet you settled for the potent liquid and took a hearty swig as Hange rattled off the teams she had established earlier.

In the early hours of your drinking, Hange had thoughtfully, skillfully, and strategically designated the teams for your game of chicken fight. She argued she was the only one truly fit for such a task. She was commander now after all.

Her designations were as followed:

Jean and Connie, Eren and Mikasa, you and Sasha, and herself and Levi.

Armin was going to tag team with Eren and Mikasa, however, the poor boy designated himself as the referee and score keeper once you all had reached the lake knowing he would puke all over the nearest person if he was forced to roll around in the water.

Once Mikasa had finished putting your hair up, you thanked her and raised yourself from the table and walked into the grass.

“Ready to kick some ass, Y/N?!” Sasha's holler followed a loud splashing as she bolted towards you. She grabbed your torso and haphazardly spun you around happily, the secondhand coolness from her swim feeling heavenly against your form.

“Hell yeah!” You laughed into her soaked cheek, clinging onto her shoulders for dear life. Once you had been returned to the ground you became acutely aware of that you were one of the only ones still fully clothed.

Sasha, Jean, and Eren were already as bare as common decency would allow. Eren’s growing locks were slick against his neck, droplets falling from the ends of chocolate tresses onto his tanned back. Jean’s shorts clung low on his hips where the lake water tried to drag him back into its refreshing embrace as he waded into the shallows. Sasha was clad in shorts and a sports bra which showcased her lightly freckled arms toned from years of archery.

“Fuck you, I’ve got the tallest bitch.” Connie slandered your team, coughing like he punctured a lung after exercising with his reptilian friend. In a split second, his shirt was discarded and dramatically kicked two feet away. Jean sent him a confident smirk as his teammate waded into the water next to him.

“Yeah but, Jean, you’ll have a gnome on your shoulders.” Eren jested, his eyes wandering from the two boys to Mikasa, her shirt halfway above her head as she discarded it. His dilated pupils lingered on her defined torso for a moment before averting his gaze back to the rest of you nonchalantly.

Disliking the way your own shirt was glued to the expanse of your back, you untangled yourself from Sasha and pulled it off. The damp top hit the picnic table with purpose as your now exposed skin screamed in happiness at its absence. The air hung thick with the planty humidity and if it had just been you and Levi you would have eagerly opted for no clothing at all.

Hange had her arm draped lazily over Levi’s shoulders, her white blouse casually unbuttoned down her chest as the fabric billowed weightlessly on the breeze. Levi stood under her weight as she excitedly began reminding everyone of the rules. You caught the hunger that radiated off of him, still not satisfied from your quick dip in bliss, as he watched your fingers adjust your clothing so you were comfortable for the competition.

The sickeningly innocent smile you threw at him was engulfed by a hard swallow when he removed Hange’s limp arm. His fingers moved with intentional leisure and hooked under the hem of his tank top. The fabric rode up and up and up at the pace of a snail, tantalizingly slowly revealing more and more of his figure in your direction. The way the sweat collected across his shoulders and across the breadth of his abs made him almost glisten against the afternoon sun. While the weather made him feel uncomfortably sticky, his condition made you want to jump him and he knew it.

“Eyes up here.” He said lowly as he noticed you zoning out. Smugness tugged at the corners of his lips as your cheeks heated up against more than just sunburn.  

“Alright; Jean and Connie vs Eren and Mikasa first!” Armin declared with a little hiccup. He pinched the cloth of his shirt to fan his chest as he joined you all at the shaded picnic table. You wrapped an arm over Sasha as you giddily awaited the commencement of the game.

The opening match wasn’t over as quickly as one would presume. Jean had an iron grip on Connie’s thighs despite the way the alcohol made him quiver like a timbering tree. This helped Connie’s slaps to Mikasa’s shoulders be somewhat effective. Despite her clouded state, her reflexes were still as sharp as ever, and after about a minute of flailing, she had punched Connie out of the stratosphere. He flew backwards and caused Jean to keel over, the two of them harmonizing their screams until they were submerged in the lake.

The shore erupted in a shared boisterous amusement that disturbed a few ducks brave enough to venture close to them.

“Second match: Levi and Hange ag-” Armin called, groaning when Eren approached him from behind and leaned all of his weight on the smaller boy. Eren snickered as Armin failed to shake him off. “Ugh-against Sasha and Y/N!”

Your toes sunk into the damp earth as you walked towards the water. You swung your arms limply as you rotated your torso in an attempt to stretch.

Two large stones and a patch of dandelions over, Hange had entered the lake and squatted down in front of Levi expectantly. Her determined gaze was transfixed in the distance as she sent her arms backwards ready to grasp her partner. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion when skin didn’t meet skin.

“Come on, short stacks.” She sang, bouncing her legs and subsequently her butt in his direction. He let out a long sigh.

“Why can’t you get on my shoulders?” He asked, swatting her groping hand away. Hange whipped her head around to see the ghosting of a pout he hid with as stern of a glare he could muster in this state.

“Becauseee , it makes more sense balance wise that the fun sized teammate goes on top.” She teased. Levi looked like he was about to power drill his heel right into her very unprotected ass as you took in their endearing interaction with fondness.

“Come on, Vivi, let someone else carry you for once!” You drawled. Your sweet simper momentarily erased any grumpiness in his system and fertilized his insides with blooming tulips.

“You’re like the icing on top of my cake. The misshapen head of my poorly made snowman. The bright, luminous light to my rusty streetlamp. The-” Hange proclaimed with theatrical love laced in her voice.

“Alright, alright I get it. You’re obsessed with me.” Levi grinned, resigning to loosen up more. The golden halo around your figure and the potency of the drink sinking his usual aloofness down to the lake bed.

“Isn’t everyone?” She retorted, gasping when her shoulder blades flexed against the pressure of his weight. When he was securely seated on her shoulders, she slowly straightened up, slapping his thighs in excitement. Levi wiggled in place to adjust himself and you had to swallow your giddy smile because…dare you said it…

He looked absolutely adorable with his hands resting on her head and the way his neck craned sideways in intoxicated laziness.

“Bitch number 2, come help me up.” You playfully commanded, realizing you still needed to hop on your teammate. The crisp water lapped at your thighs as you waded in. One stern hand was at your hip and the other pointed at the tallest boy in your group. Jean’s head lulled to the side as he reclined back on grassy elbows, relishing in the lack of weight from chaotic Connie.

“Why am I number 2?” He asked, sighing in resignation and sauntering over to you.

“Well-” You began, clearing your throat dramatically. “Levi is number one, for obvious reasons.”

You sent a wink towards the raven haired man, causing his eyes to crinkle in amusement.

“Jean, you’re 2 because we have history and I know all of your weaknesses from decades of skilled observation.” You smirked as he came to stand next to you. The lanky boy didn’t answer, instead opting to lean down and shake his wet hair all over you. You squeaked as droplets torpedoed into your eyes.

“You asshole !” You gasped, your words infinitely harsher than your upbeat tone. You dipped your hands into the water and sent a wave flying upward, giving him a taste of his own tepid medicine. His face morphed with an impish glaze as he counterattacked with much more force. Sasha was caught in the crossfire and she cried out in protest.

“Guys! We can splash each other to our heart’s content later . Right now we need to challenge authority!” She professed over the wall of water and limbs. Settling down, you took Jean’s hands in your own as Sasha bent down to accommodate you.

“Connie-” You began after your first wobbly attempt to get on her shoulders. You ended up crescent kicking right over her head. “You’re number 3 because you’re easily bribed.”

Sasha cackled as Connie let out a whiney hey . But he beamed nonetheless. Finally safely on her shoulders, Sasha held onto your thighs tightly as she lined up with your opponents.

“And that’s it. Sasha and Armin are too precious.” You cooed, smoothing stray hairs out of the brunette’s forehead. She hummed at your touch and Armin blushed from shore.

“Hange is my queen-” You locked eyes with her and bowed your head as evenly as you could muster. Hange laughed, taking her hand off of Levi’s leg to blow you an overly staged kiss.

“And Mika and Eren are too worthy of opponents to insult.” You saluted the two, Eren returning the gesture with a broad grin and Mikasa giving you a smile as gentle as the clovers that peppered the grass she sat upon.

“Ready to lose, ladies?” Hange confidently asked, the rich sienna of her eyes dancing with the bright speckles of daylight.

“Never! I’ve gone against plenty of your commands.” You quipped back, frivolously dividing Sasha’s hair into two makeshift reins.

“And where does that usually get you?” Levi almost purred with a sloppy grin, the grays of his eyes all but devoured by charcoal. His outward innuendo sent a wave of ooooooos through the audience and your partners. You narrowed your eyes, visually poking at his taunt as you tried to not let his forward comment cloud your judgement.

Back and forth you went, catching each other’s wrists and fiery looks that no lake water could douse. It was all going swimmingly until Levi’s palm hit your shoulder in such a way that it rotated your torso, throwing you off balance. Your thighs tightened instinctively around Sasha’s neck as your body anticipated your impending fall. She let out a croak as you held her in an accidental chokehold that brought her staggering down with you. The two of you pancaked into the water in a heap of limbs and shrieks.

Levi immediately dismounted Hange in a swiftly executed backwards slide once he saw the two of you emerge from the lake. Sasha whined in disappointment as Hange displayed her victory through intense flexes of her biceps.

You floated to the surface on your back, the cool liquid enveloping you in a divine protection from the clamminess of the air. You kept your eyes closed in bliss until you felt who you assumed was Levi touch your arm and gather you into his hold.

“Are you alrigh-” He started but was interrupted by your drunken dramatics. Your loud sigh drowned out the rest of his sentence.

“Ack! I have been mortally wounded by the love of my life~” You roared in despair; squinting your eyes as invisible tears rolled down your cheeks. Levi scoffed at your claim. With your eyes closed, you missed the mischievous glint in his eyes. You did, however, feel the playful bounce he gave you before dropping you back into the water.

“Y/N noooooo~” Connie cried, voice cracking in overly acted anguish.

“She was so young and full of life!” Sasha sobbed, egging your drama on.

You cracked one of your eyes open to peep at the man still hovering over you. The electricity that normally flowed between the two of you was charged with unequivocable happiness as your friends drunkenly jeered.

“I can’t believe we lost her this way.” Jean choked out, his fist coming to his mouth.

“The ultimate betrayal~” Eren booed, clasping his hands over his mouth for added effect.

“Perhaps…a passionate kiss…could…” You generated an overtly fake cough. “Could save me from the underworld…”

You puckered your lips expectantly and Levi couldn’t help the affection that creeped up his features at your cute antics.

“If you don’t try to save her, I’ll never forgive you shorty!” Hange screeched in distress, grabbing onto Armin and shaking his shoulders.

The way you regarded him dazed and blissed out and how the water delicately lapped at the swell of your breasts had him gravitating downwards. For he was always in your orbit, no matter if you were in the presence of others or under the influence.

His lips met yours in a cocktail of whiskey and ale that kickstarted your heart with the vigor you had held under the canopy earlier. Levi pulled away slowly, whisps of obsidian tickling your forehead as he wrapped his arms around you and lifted you from your so called watery grave. You would have willingly let the lake dissolve the two of you if Armin hadn’t declared the final match.

“Go annihilate those two in my honor.” You whispered, cradling his cheek and giving his parted lips a wet caress with your thumb. Your touch left a sweet smile in its wake that didn’t fade even after he reluctantly let you waddle back to shore.

Eren has incessantly asked Mikasa if he could be on her shoulders for this round. She happily agreed and regarded Levi with sly anticipation as they lined up for the last time.

“Come on old man.” Eren teased smugly, rolling his broad shoulders and assuming his ready position. “You’ve taught us a lot of what we know, but have you gotten stale yet?”

“Maybe my fist will slip and land where my boot did back then.” Levi countered darkly, his smirk betraying the presence of any malice.

You watched from under Jean’s arm as the two exchanged blows and balmy puffs of breathy laughter until a resounding splash revealed the winners. Hange stood shocked at how unexpectedly Levi had slipped from her shoulders, her hands hovering in the air where his legs had filled the space.

Eren was whooping about redeeming his dignity after all these years and beaming so feriously his cheeks looked ready to burst. Miksasa was caught in his elated aura, giggling as he picked her up into a crushing hug. When they separated, a lingering rosy dusting was left on both of their faces.

Levi regarded his loss with anything but bitterness as he pleasantly glided through the water. If this next chapter of his life was gilded with sloppy smiles, the freedom to submerge yourselves in nothing but each other’s presences and the simple relief of a swim on a hot afternoon-Levi thought he could finally, truly, look forward to living.

[demetrius-sinclair]

𝐃𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐑𝐈𝐔𝐒 𝐑𝐀𝐅𝐀𝐄𝐋 𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐈𝐑 “We must live together as brothers or perish together as fools.”

♘ 𝙱𝙰𝚂𝙸𝙲𝚂

Name: Demetrius Rafael Heroux Sinclair Nickname: Dem Date of Birth: 07 October 1990 [33] Place of Birth: Clamart, France [French-American] Hometown: Sacramento, CA, USA Current Residence: Los Angeles, CA, USA Occupation: Founder & Owner of “Club 916”

♘ 𝙵𝙰𝙼𝙸𝙻𝚈

Status: Married to Valencia Sinclair (née Cavallero) — June 29, 2019; m. October 28, 2019 Children: ⋆ Noelle Rose Sinclair (b. May 05, 2020) ⋆ Daniel Gregory Sinclair (b. March 28, 2023) Father: Daniel Bryant Mother: Amelie Heroux Adoptive Father: Gregory Sinclair Adoptive Mother: Caroline Sinclair (née Johnson) Sibling(s): Ezra & Christian Bryant (half-brothers)

♘ 𝙱𝙰𝙲𝙺𝚂𝚃𝙾𝚁𝚈

Adopted shortly after his birth, Demetrius — or "Dem" as he's more commonly known — is his family's only child. But his childhood wasn't one he experienced alone. For as long as he could remember, there wasn't a moment in his life where he didn't share it with his best friend, Ezra Bryant. From the moment their mothers placed them in the same playpen at age one, in the hopes that they'd play together, they've been inseparable ever since. But despite their close bond, they were as different as night and day. Dem was, and still is, the quieter of the two. Often described as being cool, calm and collected regardless of any situation, he always much preferred to be in the shadows as opposed to the glaring spotlight. But it didn't mean he didn't have any fun of his own.  If anything, high school and college were nothing but fun. It had to be, what with the amount of time the two of them pored over their studies. Parties were a great stress reliever, and the beautiful ladies were a great perk. But eventually, there came a time when the two were finally separated; Dem went to Paris to further his studies while Ezra went his own way. But naturally, it didn't take long before they were reunited, though this time they had grown from being boys to men. With their education and specific skill sets deep in their pockets, they grew their very own empires. "Club 916" — aptly named after the area code of his hometown — was established first. A few years later, another of the same name was built in Seattle, then one in Los Angeles. Geared up to open three more in the East Coast whilst still overseeing his current three in the West, it's kept him plenty busy.  However, as of the past year or so, Dem's had to make strategic changes to his plans in order to accommodate his new life with his wife, Valencia, and their infant daughter, Noelle. With much more to look forward to, Dem can't help but look back on everything that's happened that has made him the man that he is now. For his entire life, it's always been him and Ezra: ride or die. But with the times changing, and the circumstances changing with it, more often than not, he's caught himself wondering just how much of it would, and could, impact him, his family and their future together. At what great lengths would he go to keep his family safe from his own shadows? And more importantly, can he do it on his own this time?

♘ 𝚃𝙴𝙼𝙿𝙴𝚁𝙰𝙼𝙴𝙽𝚃

✓ family-oriented, good-natured, patient ✗ calculating, resentful, unforgiving

♘ 𝙰𝚁𝙲𝙷𝙸𝚅𝙴

N01

DISCLAIMER This account is for roleplaying purposes only and is not associated with any individuals depicted herein. All written content are original works of fiction; any resemblance to existing works and/or characters should be considered coincidental and free of malicious intent. Please do not reproduce/redistribute. Thank you.

[arysoakheart]

" good, " he says, laughing. " it just wouldn't be ' sarah's spot ' without sarah. " he takes another bite of his food before humming thoughtfully. " y'know, i don't think this place would survive without you. people come here for the food, yeah, but they come here for YOU too. i know i do. "

The hopefulness doesn't go unnoticed by Sarah who immediately starts laughing into her hand--- only for a few seconds, though, and each giggle is filled with love. "Yes, Arys: I said no-- I said it super aggressively, too! This restaurant's my baby! Could you even imagine someone else running it?! I certainly couldn't, even if they were also named Sarah!" A LOUD tap of the counter! For emphasis! "Preposterous!"

[arysoakheart]

one day when arys is heading into work, he finds this friendly cat wandering around a few blocks away from the hospital, and he stops to pet it for a little, but when he continues walking, it follows him to work, & BOOM that's how arys gets a cat 🥹

[arysoakheart]

tag drop.

[arysoakheart]

her sudden enthusiasm catches his attention, and he raises his brow as he listens. " that's amazing! " he says, grinning at her. " but you said he tried, so does that mean you said no? "

maybe it's foolish to hope she said no, but he does. he likes things the way they are. he likes that sarah's spot is sarah's. it just wouldn't be the same if it belonged to someone else.

"Pretty much the same boat, only difference being I work with sandwiches." There was also the fact that she almost got killed by a werewolf last week but, again, she couldn't tell him that. She wanted Arys to remain the innocent surgeon man. "Oh, oh! One thing happened that was out of the ordinary!" She gave the counter two excited little taps. "It happened last week, right where we're standing! Some dude tried to get me to sell the place. He swore he'd take good care of it." Surprisingly, Sarah looked proud of herself. "Gave me quite the ego boost. I'm officially a popular restaurant."

[arysoakheart]

in response to the question, he can only offer something between a grimace & a smile. " it's how it always is, " he chuckles. " busy, hard work, long days. " then he lifts his shoulders in a small shrug. " but i love what i do, so i can't complain too much. "

it's true, even on his WORST days, he loves being a physician. having the ability to help people through tough times & make a real, tangible difference is something he will never take for granted. he only wishes sometimes that he did a better job of helping himself through hard times too.

" what about you? how are things at sarah's spot today? "

There's quite a shift in the environment whenever Arys enters the Spot. He comes from the world Sarah lived in once upon a time, where the supernatural's nothing more than a favorite in the Horror genre, and she needs that perspective. She needs someone who doesn't know what she does. With him, the laughs are never forced. She doesn't have to worry about him coming in here just to drop some terrible case on her. It's... nice to get that break. Even if it's just for an hour a day.

Her shoulders aren't tense anymore and that light in her eyes that's only reserved for friends and family is back. Normalcy. She fucking misses it. "Quality's the least I can do for someone who's saving lives every day." Because that's what he does: he actually saves lives. Unlike Sarah who's got quite a body count due to running out of thinking energy at the wrong fucking moments. Mindlessly stabbing demon-inhabited bodies instead of exorcising them. "Speaking of what we do for a living." Let's get the light off her for a bit. "How's the hospital treating you? You're not so stressed that you wanna rip out your hair, right?"

[arysoakheart]

another burst of laughter, & arys shakes his head. " it's very good, " he assures her. " i'm seconds away from inhaling this entire plate. "

he had a long day at the hospital, yet again. it seemed like EVERYBODY needed surgery. in addition to the three he had scheduled for today, another three had come through the emergency department. he'd hardly had a moment to breathe all day. but at least it's keeping him employed, he supposes.

he takes another bite of the food on his plate & gives sarah a nod of approval. " fantastic, " he says. " seriously, so good. "

GASP!!!! If you don't think Sarah's being cheesy enough already, don't worry about it too much! A second later she slaps her hands to her cheeks and opens her mouth wide in a classic I'm So Fucking Shocked By This Outcome expression! "How does he do it?!" Here, she gives the counter an enthusiastic double tap to emphasize her next words: "You might be a super genius!"