karasu-calls

[karasu-calls]

sketch log/dump

[karasu-calls]

On The Sublime

Twisted Wonderland

Floyd x Yuu/OC

-<<<<>>>>-

Summary: After switching to a new class, Yuu finds herself becoming the plaything of one of the infamous Leech twins. With each day that she becomes closer to the smile of Floyd, she wonders how close is too close? What is the line between bravery and stupidity? Will getting too close show that she had misunderstood someone innocent, or will she be sucked into the merciless depths of pain?

categories: slow burn, angst, romance, aged up characters, smut, and fluff, cross-posted from A03 & FFnet

Chapter 6: Pianist Hands

(3,289 words)

Chapter index:

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6

It had been hours since the Unbirthday celebration and she was feeling a little hungry and tired, but she still practiced on. Deuce had come with her to the music room to practice his clarinet as they had planned. On Saturdays, some classrooms and places like the gym and library were open for students in case anyone wanted to study or practice. Since Riddle would have a cow if all the dorm residents freely practiced their instruments in their rooms, Deuce needed to come to the music room to practice his clarinet and the piano. It was empty when they arrived and had been empty since, and even emptier when Deuce had left Yuu there to practice alone.

Around an hour ago her friend had left her alone with her thoughts. She had practiced some familiar songs, but she wasn’t sure which one she was going to play for the assignment next week. Maybe it didn’t matter, but she didn’t want to play something too complicated and advanced for Deuce’s sake. He was trying his best and just starting out on piano, so whatever she played she wanted to be simple yet fetch her a good grade. She didn’t want him comparing himself to her and feeling discouraged.

Yet, she still wanted to practice something a bit more complicated for fun, and Gallop Infernal was her choice. She still remembers back in London, for her senior concerto which determined her final grade, she decided to play Gallop Infernal and her friend had cheered her on. She was so nervous and had devoted so much time learning how to play that one song with no mistakes. It was a fast-paced song with a lot of complex variation, yet she had pulled it off then and passed.

As she played in the music room, she found she was a little rusty with it. It was no surprise to her, since it was difficult and she hadn’t played it in a while. It was really a song suited for an orchestral performance, but it could be played on piano with enough dedication. Messing up, she sighed and started again and again until she quit long enough to look at her phone.

It was late.

Taking to her feet, she unruffled the lovely dress she wore, the petticoat bouncing back into shape to flare the dress out. It was more comfortable than she imagined it would be, but after a long day, she wanted to go home and take it off. She was hungry and tired and she pondered what she would make for her dinner when she got home. Maybe something with fish to suit Grimm’s taste since she hadn’t really interacted with him in the past two days.

Before she had time to decide, she stepped out the door and caught the sight of a familiar figure a little way down the hall coming her way.

He stopped for a moment before rushing towards her, the sight of his fast approach was a little scary.

“Shrimpy! I didn’t know you were here!” He gushed as he rushed up and grabbed her arm. He wasn’t in uniform and instead was dressed casually, in a grey windbreaker with a white band around the sleeves and distressed black jeans. She hadn’t seen him wear anything casual, but this suited him.

“Uh, yeah I was just-” she started but he looked her up and down, his duotone eyes curious.

“What are you wearing? Your hair is so bouncy.” He commented, a wide grin spread across his face and flashed those sharp teeth. He gave an experimental pull at one of her ringlets and let go to let it bounce back into place.

“Ah, Floyd, I told you I was going to the Unbirthday party today. This is what was picked out for me.” She explained, but he was already onto the next thing.

“What are you doing here? Were you playing any nice songs?” He quizzed, leaning in to gauge her expression. With his wide grin, she spotted the dimples she had noticed last night.

“Well, I was. I’m heading back to my dorm now so I can start dinner. Are you here to practice?” She asked, aware of his hand still on her arm and how close he stood to her.

“Hmm, yeah but now I wanna hear you play. Come on, I’ll play you a song if you play one for me~” he offered, again proposing some kind of trade. She thought about it and maybe she was softened by his happy-go-lucky voice or his hand placed on her arm, but she decided to go along with it even though she was ready to leave. Besides, she hadn’t heard him play in class yet and she was a little curious.

“Okay, deal.” She agreed and he giggled, pulling her along into the music room. Leading her to the first piano, she sat down and smiled to herself as he sat on the floor next to her, eager for her to start. Maybe she was weird, but she was warming up to this. He felt more like an acquaintance now.

Stretching out her fingers in front of her, she settled in and played a familiar tune, something fun and expressive. Occasionally, she’d look over to the eel, who watched her with a smile, as his face was propped on his hand. It was different, this time. He wasn’t forcing her, there was no threatening or mocking aura, no he just seemed interested. He wasn’t so bad, she again told herself. She couldn’t begin to understand him yet, but he was nice enough, or so she had come to believe.

It wasn’t too long before her song ended and she quickly got up.

“Okay, now you play.” She urged, stepping out of the way.

This is what she was the most eager to see. Was he a good player? Was he awful? Was he a beginner with promise? Any of these answers might help her understand why he insists on hearing her play for him. If he was unskilled, maybe he looked up to her? If he was someone who practiced a lot, maybe he was comparing his playing to hers? She had never seen him practice, she realized.

He smiled and pulled himself up to sit on the chair, still close to her height even while he was sitting.

“Awh, shrimpy wants to hear me play?” He cooed and she tried not to feel embarrassed, instead nodding.

She stepped back and played with the pins on her dress as she waited. He held her gaze for a moment before he turned his attention down to the keys. His long fingers stretched over the keys and he paused for a moment, as if deciding which key to press first.

Once he began, she listened quietly. He began slow and it built up with a steady pace. The melody was fun and energetic, the chord progression was full of soul. He was… good, really good. It was surprising to her, he didn’t seem like he was a beginner at this. Was he like her? Had he studied for years like she had, only to be stuck in beginner music theory class? It was hard to tell, but she knew he wasn’t a beginner at least.

The song was cut off in the middle, no resolution. Why?

“Ah, I’m bored of that. Whadya think, Shrimpy?” He asked, pushing his chair back from the keyboard, looking up at her. It was a strange angle, she thought, as she was always looking up at him.

“You seemed very practiced, how long have you studied music?” She asked and he shrugged and deadpanned.

“I dunno, a while. Hey, what makes your dress poofy? You look like a jellyfish.” He asked, poking at her skirt. She swatted his hand away and frowned.

“Hey, hold on. I don’t want to change the subject yet.” She huffed, taking a step back. “You’re good at piano, did you take classes before you came here?” She tried again and he sucked in his cheeks.

“I played some in high school, mainly for fun. Jade said I’d be good in a band or orchestra, but I couldn’t stand being told how to play.” For once, he gave a straight answer.

She thought about it for a moment and felt a little puzzled. How does music even work underwater, she wondered?

“Did you play… underwater piano? How does that work?” She asked, more to herself than to him. He responded with a sharp laugh.

“No, silly, I didn’t play piano. Piano is the lamest instrument. I played the drums.” He responded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Oh, duh. She guessed there wasn’t underwater tuba, flutes, or such either. He did seem like a percussionist, it suited him.

“Oh, right. They just kinda stick us all with piano in this class.” She resolved, folding her arms over her chest. “I guess you’re kinda like me. I didn’t see any drums in storage so you couldn’t have your choice of secondary instrument either.” She mused aloud. He hummed in response and tilted his head.

“Like you?” He asked simply.

“Well, yeah, kinda. Like, you’re stuck with piano, you played in highschool, and you don’t really like to be restricted.” She explained from all that she had gathered, maybe having overstepped, yet he didn’t seem to be offended.

“You too, Shrimpy? Then why are you in this class?” His question was one that she recalls only Deuce had asked her. She didn’t want to tell him it was because she was flunking out of practical magic, though.

“Ah, well I knew it would be an easy grade and I want to take more advanced music classes. I even thought about doubling up next semester to get the intermediate classes over with. I want to write music someday.” She admitted, sighing at the thought. She remembered the day she decided that’s what she wanted to do. “What about you?”

“Hmm? I don’t know, I just play it because it’s fun and this class is nice because I don’t have to pay much attention.” He laughed to himself. She found herself smiling. Of course, that’s why.

“Yeah, you’ll pass no problem. You even have pianist hands.” She chimed back before wishing she hadn’t. His heterochromatic eyes widened.

“Huh, whadya mean?” He asked, looking down at his hands.

“Well, your fingers are long and they say that longer fingers are best for playing piano. I don’t have long hands so I have to have quick timing to reach some keys.” she explained, holding up her own hand. “See? I bet your hand can stretch a whole octave and I’m lucky to cover a half step.”

“Oh, let’s see.” He said, getting to his feet and then pressing his hand to hers, his fingers long outmeasured hers. His touch was cool, and part of her wondered if he was cold-blooded. More importantly, she wondered what it would look like if anyone were to step into the room now.

“S-see, pianist hands.” Is all she managed as his fingertips curled over the tops of hers. Now she had to look up to see his face, just like always. And like always, he was standing a little close, with hardly any regard for personal bubbles. Maybe she was used to it, but it felt strange if he wasn’t hovering really close.

“And you have tiny shrimp hands, just like your nickname.” He teased, his fingers shifting to interlock between hers. “So tiny.” He cooed.

“Right… the nickname. Hey, do you even know my name?” She asked, pulling her hand away and tucking it into her free hand against her chest.

“See, that’s why I grab your hair.” He ducked the question, “Because I knew you’d pull your hand away.” He frowned, looking down at her, his hand falling to his side.

“What?” She asked before she remembered, “Oh, right. I didn’t even think about it.” She excused, noticing that he was right. She had pulled her hand away.

Why had she pulled her hand away?

Here she was, slowly befriending him only to do what she feared her friends would do? Just hours ago she admitted to her friends that she wanted more affection and now she was pulling away from it. Which made her wonder, was Floyd her friend? Surely he wasn’t the stranger she tolerated anymore, and at some point, she had even forgotten about that weird dream she had. All of his weird actions had been something that she had taken as creepy at first but had gradually accepted as just “Floydisms” and regarded them as friendly and harmless, no matter how strange.  It had only been a week, but here she was, talking with him on a Saturday like they were buddies.

They were buddies, she decided.

“I guess you can’t really mess with my hair today.” She smiled, making her choice. “Here.” She offered her hand out for him to hold.

He smiled and flashed her a mischievous grin.

“Who said I can’t mess with your hair?” He teased, flicking the back of her hand. Uh-oh.

Before she could fully duck away, his hands found her hair and roughly mussed it over, rubbing her locks all over her head. She squealed and backed away as best she could, her hair now pulled over her face and blocking her sight. His maniacal laughter echoed as her hair was now fully a mess, tangled and pulled from their neat curls. With how long this took, she could practically hear Cater’s sobs at his destroyed work. And yet.

She fell to her knees, a little disoriented as she was bent over, and began to giggle as she uselessly tried to pull her long mop of hair away from her face so she could see again. Floyd had just been in front of her, so she expected to see legs but…

Instead, arms wrapped around her middle from behind her and lifted her up to her feet. Again, through her giggling, she let out a surprised squeak and her hands found where his arms were clutched around her.

“You’re fun, Shrimpy.” His words, bouncing with his dying laughter, were close to her ear.

She leaned her head away from his face, feeling the tug of her hair from where he held her to his chest. There was a still moment and she could feel warmth flood to her face. She wasn’t sure what to say, so her words died in her throat and the room was silent for the first time. Was she blushing? Because she was embarrassed? No, she didn’t feel embarrassed.

His chin rested on her shoulder and his arms tightened around her a little.

“You’re gonna come back and visit me at the lounge again, right? You still have many slots to stamp before your voucher is full.” He asked, his chin moving against her shoulder.

“Yeah, I planned to come back and visit on Fridays.” She answered, noting how shy her voice sounded now. He chuckled, and she could feel it in his chest.

“Really? You promise? I’ll squeeze you until you promise.” He joked, giving her a quick squeeze to show his threat. She found herself grinning, where a week ago she might have panicked.

“Really, I promise.” She gave, and his arms fell from her middle and for a moment she felt disappointed. She was just lonesome, she reminded herself, and once her friends showed her more affection like they promised, she wouldn’t be as affected by this as she is now, she reasoned.

“Awesome!” He cheered, stepping around in front of her. “Okay, I’m done practicing now.”

She snapped from her daze and cleared her throat. Right, she needed to go back to the dorm. She was hungry and tired, and now she needed to untangle her hair. The ribbons that adorned her hair were now loosely dangling halfway down its length. She had never really had anyone mess her hair up like this, so she wondered if her inconvenience should make her angry. Oh, and her sock had rolled down under her knee, she noticed.

Deciding to worry about her hair and messy appearance later, she pulled what she could of her hair from her face again and sighed. Grimm might worry if she stayed any longer and she didn’t want to hear his fuss.

“Alright, Floyd, see you Monday.”

-<<<<>>>>-

He was surprised that he hadn’t been noticed yet, his brother was usually much sharper, much more aware of the shadows. Instead, now, his focus was taken, as it had been the night before, and he wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings. In this case, his surroundings were the doorway outside of the music room.

Shrill laughter and squeals echoed out into the empty hall, darkened by the setting sun.

Jade knew that maybe he shouldn’t be lurking, but his brother’s business was his own, just as it always had been. They had to look out for each other. When Floyd snuck out of the dorm, excusing himself to practice for a class, Jade knew something was up. Anyone would, as Floyd never studied. No, he would hardly pay attention in class, get into trouble constantly, play hooky, yet still make decent grades. His brother didn’t need practice, and Jade knew that laziness came with the title of prodigy, yet his dear brother wasn’t viewed that way here on the surface, or back home for that matter. That’s why he always had his back.

So when he said he wanted to practice, it was immediately obvious that he was up to something.

Jade wanted to say he was surprised, but he had watched his twin and knew how his fixation on the new student had grown. When he found that his brother had come to see her, it made sense.

The squealing inside had died down and Jade listened outside the door, noting the first quiet moment in the short visit. At first, Jade was only curious to see what his brother was doing, but he stuck around to ensure that his time with his new interest wasn’t interrupted by any other students that dared approach the music room.

But now, with the silence in the room, Jade found himself peaking inside.

His brother’s arms were wrapped around the small girl’s waist, his head resting on her shoulder. Her face was tinged a deep pink as her eyes were squeezed shut, her hands over his brother's arms. She had not seen him yet but someone else had. His eyes caught his twin’s for a moment, and Floyd flashed a grin at him. So he had been paying attention.

Jade gave a nod and stepped back, out of sight, before the girl had the chance to spot him. He doubted it would be good for Floyd if she saw him lurking outside. Looking down, he smiled to himself.

He had seen what he sought out and found no reason to hang around. Glad for Floyd, who had found a new interest to toy with, he slunk away, as to not get caught. No doubt his brother would be listening to see if he was still there, so it was best to leave now to avoid any interference with that girl.

As he headed silently back to the dorm, he made a little promise to himself. He’d protect his twin from getting his feelings hurt if he had to make that girl’s remaining years at this college a living hell himself. He’d be watching, as much as he could.

Of course, he’d hate for it to come to that, but his vow remained.

<<previous chapter>>

<<next chapter>>(to be continued)

[karasu-calls]

On The Sublime

Twisted Wonderland

Floyd x Yuu/OC

-<<<<>>>>-

Summary: After switching to a new class, Yuu finds herself becoming the plaything of one of the infamous Leech twins. With each day that she becomes closer to the smile of Floyd, she wonders how close is too close? What is the line between bravery and stupidity? Will getting too close show that she had misunderstood someone innocent, or will she be sucked into the merciless depths of pain?

categories: slow burn, angst, romance, aged up characters, smut, and fluff, cross-posted from A03 & FFnet

Chapter 5: Unbirthday Party

(3,408 words)

Chapter index:

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6

The loud roar of mirthful voices filled the sunny clearing, vibrant reds and golds flashed around in a sea of extravagance. Dorm residents bustled around the long mahogany table, so long and full of golden cutlery and porcelain dishes that it had taken nearly all morning to put together. Each person, whether she had seen them involved in the setup or lazily arriving had the same attire, flashy an asymmetric with playing card motifs.

Yuu was no different having arrived early to get dressed with the help of Deuce and Cater, who prevented any breaches of etiquette with her outfit. It was a dress that Riddle had picked himself, gushing about how one of the great seven once had a visitor who wore a dress similar and how delighted he was to have the chance to honor that tradition. Her hair had been curled by Cater, who whined the whole time about how long it would take, and all of the little stripped and checkered bows by fumbled into shape by Deuce.

It made her feel extremely special, but she knew that this was just “proper” for the occasion. She had twirled in the mirror, admiring how poofy and light the petticoat made the skirt, the cookie printed border pattern popping against the sky blue cotton. She even had knitted socks with cookies and spades in the knit. Basically, she felt ridiculously cute and it set the mood for the entirety of the unbirthday celebration.

Now, delightfully overwhelmed by the colors and smells from the long dining table, she waited with everyone else, who seemed just as thrilled. Ever since Riddle had eased up, she caught rumors that these unbirthday parties soon became the life of the dorm, and became more than a looming dread that every resident feared.

Ding ding

The sound of a spoon on a glass. Hurriedly, everyone shut their mouth and the clearing became rife with the shifting sounds of chairs and students taking their seats. For a moment, there was only the sound of the autumn wind rattling the leaves of the rose bushes, still dripping their color.

Having taken her seat, she looked to each of her friends, both of which were seated to either side of her, with an enthusiastic smile. She had gotten the basic rundown of the proper rules to follow and the structure of the party, but she was a tiny bit nervous. Yuu had been so excited to participate that she didn’t want to be left out of the next party because her manners weren’t what was expected of her.

The sound of a throat being cleared ad everyone’s attention pulled to the head of the table, where only one person remained standing.

“Today we gather to celebrate the time-honored tradition of the Heartslabyul Unbirthday Party. It was once a kind and charity queen that wanted to celebrate all of her subjects together in harmony, with no regard of position and status, no concern of know-of or know-not.” The house warden began to prattle on, his grey eyes landing on each of the participants around the table.

“This particular celebration is in honor of the grade average percentile of the entire dorm rising two points since the last exam period. All of you have worked to achieve this and thus those accomplishments are deserving of celebration.” He continued, reaching down to pluck up a solid red porcelain teacup, reserved only for him as she had been informed. He raised the cup up at arm's length by the handle, as if he were giving a toast.

“As is traditional, we will start with tea and dessert before moving onto brunch. And then after that, onto breakfast. I will allow our vice house warden the honors of pouring the tea.” His announcement rung out as final word and he rested his teacup back on the saucer. Trey nodded and took to his feet with practiced grace, waving a hand.

With basic magic, all of the teapots which were perched in their spots on the tablecloth levitated to life and hovered around to each teacup. She watched curiously as her cup was filled with magic, and soon after, the sugar cubes and tiny spoon drifted over to sweeten her tea. Glad that she had been told to wait, she fought the urge to reach out and take a sip of the steaming cup. Riddle remained standing and watching around for each teapot and spoon to complete their journey and return to their position before he nodded in approval.

“You may be seated, Trey.” He affirmed, watching as the sage-haired guy took to his chair. “Then with tea served, next is the Unbirthday cake, to be divided by yours truly.” He spoke and gave a self-satisfied smile as the giant pink box in the center of the table began to unwrap itself, the golden and red ribbons curling away to let the sides of the box fall flat beside it.

Yuu nearly gasped when a pop of confetti shot up from the sides of the box, raining down in glittering flakes. The slices of cake all began their dance around each other, avoiding collision as they drifted weightlessly onto the serving plates. Her piece of cake came down to rest in front of her in perfect condition, a single candle sticking up out of the center of it, just as everyone else had. Transfixed, she watched as the candlewick lit up with a little flame. Who knew magic could be so magical? Once everyone had their slice, Riddle started a countdown.

“And in three! Two! One!” he sounded off, and just as everyone practiced and as she was taught every voice at the table rang out in a cry.

“HAPPY UNBIRTHDAY!” And each candle was extinguished as everyone blew their own candle out. She couldn’t help herself from smiling.

“Everyone may now eat and converse amongst themselves until the next course. Please, help yourself to the platters of cookies and jams in front of you.” He dismissed curtly, taking his seat for the first time.

And like that, the voices picked up again and now was accompanied by the sounds of forks on porcelain.

“So, whatcha think, Yuu? Boring or what?” Ace joked, taking a cookie from the platter in front of him, the icing was decorated with the words “eat me” against a strawberry glaze. She shook her head.

“What? No, this is great! I’ve never seen anything like it! Not even my prom was this fancy.” She admitted, her smile leaked into her voice.

She plunged her fork into the tip of the cake and marveled that the layers were all different. One was vanilla, one was chocolate, and the other looked like children’s confetti cake. The thick fondant roses on the icing were dusted with a gold glitter. Surely it was edible glitter, right? And the taste, surprisingly delicious mixed and very moist. She wondered if Trey had made this too?

“Cake for breakfast, what do you think?” Deuce asked, prodding at his slice with distaste.

“Hmm, it’s okay, especially with tea.” She admitted, reaching out for the tea she had forgotten about. It was perfect for washing down the sugary cake, she decided as she relished the warm liquid. She hadn’t eaten anything all morning since she had been getting ready for the celebration.

“I’m holding out for the quiche, honestly. Sweets for breakfast were something I never had growing up so I’m a little turned off from it.” He admitted, dropping his fork by the plate.

“I’ll take it, give it here!” Ace prompted leaning back to reach around Yuu’s chair. Deuce picked up his plate and held it away.

“No, like hell! I’m pretty sure there’s a rule that you can’t share food.” The raven-haired guy defended, holding his cake out of the swiping hands of the ginger.

“No, the rule is that you have to trade food.” Ace corrected, pausing only for a moment before again trying to reach for the plate, which would remain out of his reach unless he threw himself over Yuu. And if he threw himself over her, she was shoving him off. She didn’t want her fancy dress messed up.

“You’re messing with me.” Deuce deadpanned.

“No, I swear. I don’t wanna get chewed out any more than you do. Besides, you’re not even gonna eat it!” He insisted, pouting as he waited for the verdict.

“Okay, then give me your quiche later.” Deuce agreed, having his own counter offer ready.

“Deal, okay, then quickly!” Ace urged, and the two both tried to sneakily look to make sure they weren’t being watched. In a smooth motion, Deuce’s cake disappeared behind her chair and showed itself again in Ace’s hands.

She just shook her head and hoped for their sake that there wasn’t a rule about it because getting them out of trouble was not what she wanted to get caught up in today. No, she just wanted to enjoy her time and their company, even when their antics might involve her too. How hard was it to follow a few rules for one celebration? Even now when they weren’t as strict? She was doing okay so far, though, and for that she was grateful.

Smiling to herself, she propped her elbow on the table to take another bite, but her fork stopped in its track when she heard the house warden call her name.

“Yuu, it’s your first time, but there are no elbows on the table until breakfast.” He warned, his grey eyes narrowed from across the table.

She yanked her arm off the table so quickly that she didn’t even care that she elbowed Deuce in the process. Ignoring the little “ow” he groaned, she called out a quick apology to the raven-head. Sighing to herself, she kept her arms tucked by her side and enjoyed the rest of the celebration.

So much for not breaking any rules.

-<<<<>>>>-

The Unbirthday Party had come to a close and the setup had been mostly cleared away. The three had done their share of deconstructing the table and chairs and taking them to storage while others were tasked with cleaning dishes and removing the paint from the roses. Once that was finished, they were dismissed to spend the rest of their day as they pleased.

Yuu was positively stuffed and so they all three sat outdoors in the nice weather, the white iron benches among the hedges were the perfect place for them to relax. As much as she needed to go back to her dorm and study, to make up for Grimm’s latest failed exam, she kicked her feet back and forth as they talked about trivial things.

Yet, there was something on her mind as she sat in the company of two of the first people who took to her here. In all of her time enjoying the party and being social, she realized how much she missed it. Her friends back in her world were so close to her, so reliable, and now she was starting over. Deuce, Ace, Jack, they were all so kind to her and whether they admitted it or not, they all looked out for her. But she wasn’t as close as she liked and she still felt a little lonely, even in their company. Maybe it was because her childhood friends were so affectionate with her. She’d lean against them and hug them and jump up and down in excitement with them. She wasn’t there with Deuce and Ace yet, but she wanted to be.

She wanted their close friendship. She wanted to lean on them and bury her face in their shoulder when she was laughing too hard. She just didn’t want to weird them out or lose the closeness they had already. She didn’t want to admit it, but it had been eating her since yesterday when the eel had been bold enough to remind her of what she was mourning from her past life.

“What’s eating you?” Ace asked, nudging her arm with his.

“Huh?” She asked dumbly, going to grab her braids, but finding only the lockets of ringlet curls. Instead, her hands fell to muss with the pins that decorated the bodice of her dress.

“You’ve been quiet for a minute.” Ace observed, leaning forward on his knees to scan her face.

“Oh, that. I’ve uh… been trying to wake up. I’m so full.” She laughed aloud, hoping that she was fooling them. Ace exchanged a look with Deuce, who sat to her other side. She caught him frowning before she shook her head and smiled. “Seriously, nothing’s wrong. That was the best party I’ve ever been to, really!” Her insistence meant nothing and the two were not convinced.

“You know, Jack told me that you both went to that lounge last night…” Ace thought aloud, and Deuce leaned forward too. Oh, the claustrophobic interrogation, as both sides of her had prying looks.

“That’s right, Ace, and Floyd invited her yesterday.” Deuce threw in. The first time they’re being cooperative and it’s to gang up on her.

“I didn’t go because he invited me, I went because Grimm was being a pain and Jack happened to walk me back to my dorm when he was torching his homework.” She insisted, shrugging as to rightfully downplay it. Instead, Deuce gave her a pointed look.

“Why would you go there of all places? You could have come here and hung out with us.” her raven-haired friend offered but she shot him a flat look.

“But you said you were going to study last night. I didn’t want to interrupt. Besides, hanging out here can be a little hard with how many students are everywhere all the time.” She reasoned aloud. They were in the middle of a hedge maze at the moment to get privacy, as an example.

“That makes sense. I don’t know, Yuu, the idea of you going there alone makes me nervous. We’ve both seen how that creep treats you in music class.” Deuce mumbled, looking down at the grass.

True, each encounter she had with Floyd so far could be considered very creepy and upsetting. True, she hated it at first, but now. Did she still hate it? She didn’t seem to mind it anymore. Hell, last night after three drinks in she was doing strange stuff too, braiding his hair and poking his cheek. She decided that she wouldn’t tell her friends about that, but why? Was she afraid she’d be looked at as weird? Or naive? Certainly, she didn’t want her new friends to be too overprotective. Again, she chalked it up to her loneliness coming to her in the evening, when she was emboldened by her third drink and in the company of a friendly and familiar face, no matter how odd Floyd seemed to be.

Maybe Ace and Deuce were right? Maybe she did just need to come hang out with them more often.

“Awh, big brother Deuce, are you worried about your little Yuu?” Ace laughed aloud, earning a frown from the other before he settled down. “Hmm, but I have to agree, even after everything, I don’t trust those eel brothers and their wack house warden. I mean, there has been some peace, but still. They’re as untrustworthy as ever, if you ask me.”

“Yeah, maybe so.” Yuu mused, placing her cheek on her palm before she interjected, “But it wasn’t that bad, last night. It was like visiting a normal restaurant back in my world. I mean, it is a school lounge so what bad can really happen? Maybe you two can come with me next time.”

“Next time?” Ace perked up, “Why, are you going again?” He asked and she rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, the pina coladas there are delicious, sue me.” She snapped back, “Think about it, the only time we all three hang out is at school or when we study together. Don’t you think it would be fun to have somewhere more casual to go?” She whined a bit.

“I don’t think that’s a bad thought. I’ll go with you.” Deuce chimed in, and Ace frowned for a moment.

“Ugh, I hate that place. I still have dreams about having to work there… but if you two are there, I’ll come along.” Ace gave reluctantly as he leaned back on the iron bench. “Besides, it could be a thing we do every Friday after classes.” he mused aloud, a grin spread on his lips.

“Yeah, it could be our thing. Every week. I think it would help me a lot actually.” She trailed off and her friends took note of the hint of melancholy in her words.

“What do you mean?” Deuce asked, a look of concern on his features.

She sighed and looked down to where her red shoes contrasted against the veridian grass. Maybe she should just let them know how she was feeling. They were her friends after all and they seemed to be understanding enough not to be turned away from her. If they were, she just wouldn’t mention it again, that simple. Even if she did look like a silly little girl, what did it matter anyway?

“Well, I’ve been homesick recently. I miss my old friends and my life there. You guys… you’re both awesome and I Iove hanging out with you both. I want to be around you both more often, but…” She began and both of them bore holes into her with their eyes.

“But?” Ace prompted, a crease formed between his brow as he focused on her words.

“I mean, okay. This is gonna sound weird, and both of you can tell me if you’re uncomfortable. I’ll be okay and I wouldn’t blame you really, I can understand-” she had begun to ramble and Deuce sighed before he stopped her word spiral

“Hey, just say whatever, we’re not gonna be mad. I promise.”

“Okay, I feel like I need affection or else I feel lonely. My old friends would hug me and let me lean against them and grab my hand when they were excited. I know that probably sounds clingy or childish, but it always made me feel closer to the people that I was around. I don’t know, I feel like if you both were to… well, it might make me feel better is all.” She admitted, waiting for disgust or rejection, but instead she got a laugh.

“Stupid, why didn’t you just say so. I didn’t want to do any of that because you’re a girl and I didn’t want it to be weird.” Ace snorted. “What, did you think we’d think you were weird?” He questioned. Yes, that’s exactly what she had thought. Really, hearing him admit that, she did feel a little stupid for being anxious about it.

“Really? You thought I would think you were weird?” She perked up and he nodded, a wide grin creased the heart on his eyelid.

“Yep! I thought you’d think I was a creep for sure if I hugged you out of nowhere.” the redhead laughed.

“Of course not!” Yuu urged, her attention was drawn when her raven-haired friend cleared his throat.

“I never really had many hugs or touchy stuff from my other friends. I’m not sure I’ll be the best at it, but I can try for you.” Deuce promised with a determined nod. Her heart swelled.

“You guys are the best, really.” She cooed and captured both of them in her arms in a side hug. Without argument, they both leaned into her side, their warmth seeping into her and proved their support.

She smiled to herself, feeling at peace for finally getting what she needed. She wondered if it would change when they were at school, if they’d be embarrassed to hug her then? Even so, if she could be close to her two closest friends even in the cover of a hedge maze and spend Friday nights with them like they planned, it would be enough for her. Maybe, if they were embarrassed to be close to her at school, they would warm up over time?

She didn’t know, but someone did come to mind who never seemed embarrassed to be openly affectionate towards her, even though they weren’t close.

She pulled away and faced her friend.

“Hey Deuce, didn’t you want to practice your clarinet with me?”

<<previous chapter>>

<<next chapter>>

[karasu-calls]

Okay. Four chapters, all that I have posted elsewhere is up. Sorry for the bomb but I wanted everything up for the next update.

[karasu-calls]

On The Sublime

Twisted Wonderland

Floyd x Yuu/OC

-<<<<>>>>-

Summary: After switching to a new class, Yuu finds herself becoming the plaything of one of the infamous Leech twins. With each day that she becomes closer to the smile of Floyd, she wonders how close is too close? What is the line between bravery and stupidity? Will getting too close show that she had misunderstood someone innocent, or will she be sucked into the merciless depths of pain?

categories: slow burn, angst, romance, aged up characters, smut, and fluff, cross-posted from A03 & FFnet

Chapter 4: Monstro Lounge (3,140 words)

Chapter index:

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6

He knew work had to be done. He knew that sneaking a glance at the entrance every minute was slowing him down. At this rate, Azul would be nagging him for being so distracted, which was not at all what he needed. If he was already in hot water from being slow, then it would be hard to justify a long-ish break if the girl showed up. Still, he couldn’t help himself. It’s like when you have a sore in your mouth and your tongue goes there without you thinking about it. That’s how he felt as he cleared off a table of all of its dirtied glasses and silverware.

The lounge had a steady flow of customers this evening, but he knew that it would be much busier later on. If Yuu wanted a place to sit, she’d better hurry up. Then again, she probably wouldn’t show up. He’d wasn’t a fool and was well aware of his reputation.

That he was cruel. That he was annoying. That he was unhinged.

These things didn’t bother him. So what he was acting the way he wanted? It would be boring to act any other way. Yet, these strange customs on the surface had interesting people clam up around him and dash from his gaze. Part of that was fun, making it even more satisfying when he made his own entertainment. But working at the lounge, he couldn’t just go make his own fun. He had to hope it would come to him.

“Floyd, do you intend on replacing the salt?” His brother’s voice asked from behind him.

“No, I filled all the shakers yesterday.” He replied nonchalantly. His twin chuckled behind closed lips. Why was he asking silly questions like that?

“Well, then something has you distracted. You just scooped the salt in with the dirty dishes.” Jade pointed out, plucking the shaker up and placing it back on the table. He sighed and propped the dish basket on his hip.

“It’s boring. I wanna be doing something fun right now.” Floyd whined to himself, a brief sympathetic look crossed his brother’s features.

“You’ll have tomorrow. It’s just another…” Jade glanced down at the digital wristwatch tucked under his sleeve, “Four hours.” He confirmed. Floyd frowned. They’d been open that long huh?

“But that’s so lo-ong.” He whined again. Jade looked off past him and smiled to himself.

“That’s true, but it looks like we might have interesting visitors.” He said with a grin, nodding towards the entrance of the lounge. Floyd snapped his attention towards the front, but he could hear her before he saw her.

She was there with that Savanaclaw student, waving her hands around and talking quickly. Her long, waist-length braids swayed behind her with her stride. She had changed from her school uniform and into jeans and a flowy white top. And of course, her voice carried, even through the other customers’ voices and soft music coming through speakers.

At times, she was like a dolphin with her shrieky-shrill voice, and other times like a dying whale with her mournful whining. He meant this affectionately because he found it interesting, although customs on the surface might punish that honesty of his if he were to tell her.

She looked up and caught his gaze, giving him a shrug from afar. He wasn’t sure what it meant, but he was glad to see her queue up at the reception desk.

“Hmm, you invited her didn’t you?” Jade asked, a teasing look accompanying his question. His brother knew him so well.

“Yep, sure did. Though, I didn’t invite him.” He keened on the guy in her company. The Savanaclaw student always did hang around Yuu, didn’t he? And he never showed his face in this lounge before, so she must have invited him.

He wondered when she would invite him places.

Realizing he still had the dishes in his arms, he quickly ran off towards the kitchen to haphazardly dump them off so that he could try to be the server to seat the two. When he had returned, it was too late. Another Octavinelle student had led them to a booth in the corner, but had run off before taking their order. It wasn't his area to cater to, but he was sure Jade would have his back if the other student complained. He paid no mind and went right up to the table, where the two chatted excitedly.

“And that’s why kids have to be good, because otherwise, Santa will leave garbage in their stocking.” Yuu explained, leaning over the table a bit, a wide smile across her features. The lighting had cast her white blouse in a lavender hue and made her complexion ghostly. The white-haired guy shook his head.

“You were telling Deuce this earlier but you can't fool me. I overheard you laugh with Ace about it.” He scoffed aloud, straightening the menu that was laid in front of him.

“Shhh! Our secret then! Deuce is so scared of Santa, we can't ruin it.” She put her fingers over her mouth.

“I will tell the truth if I am asked.” Again, the wolfish student didn’t comply. It was boring to listen to, but luckily he didn’t have to interrupt because Yuu looked up at him, acknowledging him. The wolfish one followed her gaze and they both looked up to Floyd.

“Oh, hey.” she greeted, grabbing at her own hair. He noticed it was a nervous habit of hers. Was she maybe still nervous around him?

“Hey, Shrimpy. You came!” he exclaimed and she nodded.

“Yeah, guess I did.” she laughed to herself. “Grimm was on a rampage when I got home because he failed a test. I wanted to avoid that tension.” She admitted, her eyes then widened as he opted to take a seat in the booth beside her.  She scooted to make room, moving her menu across the table with her.

Floyd ignored the look that the tan one gave him, watching instead as the girl’s dark eyes scanned over the menu.

“Ooh, what are you going to pick? Today’s special is potato pancakes with smoked salmon and caviar with dill cream! I like just the caviar by itself.” He offered, reciting the day’s dish just as Jade had instructed.

“That sounds pricey though. I can’t afford that!” She jolted at the idea, giving him an astonished look. He liked her expressions. He felt a smile creep across his face.

“Aw, but I’m supposed to promote it. Are you sure? It’s only thirty thaumarks a plate.” He teased, letting himself giggle as her eyebrows pinched upward in dismay. A small pout crossed her features.

“Stop, I can’t do it.” She whined, her eyes returned to the menu, her finger tracing over an item. “This one reminds me of a food back home in a way. Fresh, raw yellowfin with radish. It’s kinda like sushi.” Her reminiscing had both him and the Savanaclaw student blurting out at the same time.

“Raw?”

“Sushi?”

She looked between them as if deciding who to answer.

“Um, yeah. Raw.” She had answered the wolfy one, “Sushi isn’t always raw but a lot of times it’s raw fish wrapped in either seaweed or rice. Sometimes it’s cooked, like unagi, and that's-” she paused and clamped her lips shut as if she has said something wrong.

“What’s unagi?” Floyd asked, leaning in, his interest piqued. A brief look of horror crossed her face before she began sputtering.

“Ah, um er- You know, I have no clue?” Her voice was pitched up and she shrugged dramatically, “I forgot entirely?” Her statement was punctuated with a look towards her friend, who looked puzzled. It was clear she was lying. What for, he wondered?

“Surely you don’t eat things you don’t know? That’d be really dumb, Shrimpy.” He cooed, as he pressed on and let his fingers find her braid. “Hey, come on, tell me.” He gave her hair a light tug, relishing the way she watched him.

“Stop it. Don’t grab her hair like that.” The white hairs on Yuu’s friend bristled as he glared across the table. They exchanged a tense gaze for a moment. Floyd felt the corner of his lips pull upward. He could yank on doggy’s tail, if he’d rather him.

“It’s fine, Jack.” Yuu interjected, gently pulling her braid from his fingers. She spoke back up before he had the chance to frown. “I know what I want to order, what about you Jack?” Her gaze met his.

The wolfy, Jack as Floyd now cared to remember, gave a little nod, pushing his menu to the side. He still cast a less than desirable glance in his direction, Floyd felt his skin prickle. He decided that he didn’t like Wolfy.

“Then, are you ready to take our order?”

Right, he was working now. He reluctantly slid from the booth, trying not to seem deflated as he took to his feet. Back to boring everything, he relented. Back to being distracted and stealing glances over at the table. He already knew. Like a sore spot in is his mouth, he’d return to it.

“Anything for Shrimpy ~”

-<<<<>>>>-

The rush wasn’t as bad as usual, the crowd had come and thinned out over the hour and a half period. He had brought her and Wolfy an appetizer and a few drinks over the course of an hour and had watched the exit just in case he caught them leaving. It was boring. Floyd was busy so he hadn’t really had time to play around, but now that the lively lounge had become still, there was the occasional quiet voices and the clink of glasses on tables and no real consequence for his slack. When he crossed paths with his twin as they helped clean up tables, Jade gave him a knowing nod. He didn’t need to say anything.

Floyd looked around and saw that she was still there, sitting in the same booth. She was alone now, peering down into her nearly empty glass. He made his way over and she looked up and spotted him before he made himself known. Her cheeks looked slightly tinged pink. Like a real shrimp.

“Still here, Shrimpy?” He asked, taking a seat in the booth beside her. Again, she scooted over for him, sliding her drink with her.

“Yeah, I wanted to finish this. I couldn’t let it go to waste since Jack bought it for me.” She explained, the pink that dusted her cheeks told him that maybe it was a tad much.

Floyd had seen much drunker students in the lounge and she wasn’t slurring or swaying yet. No, in fact she looked sleepy. It was a face that he hadn’t seen on her, with all of her liveliness and dramatics.

“He left so early, leaving you here all alone.” Floyd noted, watching as she smiled to herself.

“Yeah, he has an early bedtime, like a grandpa or something. Normally he doesn’t do that, but he was falling asleep sitting up.” She mocked, laughing to herself. He couldn’t help but chuckle along. Sure, he wouldn’t mind joining in with his own mocking of Wolfy.

Before he could say anything, a soft clink sounded behind him. They both looked up to find Jade quietly setting a pair of glasses filled with iced water on the table. It was for Yuu, not so much for him. But he knew how his twin thought, ever the diligent and proper server. There was a reason he was the manager of the lounge.

“May I suggest you both have some iced water. You’ve been working hard this evening, Floyd.” Jade peered down at him, a smirk on his face. He always looked out for him, and now for the student he invited.

“Oh, thank you Jade.” Yuu responded, her demeanor changed a little as she looked more withdrawn and pulled her braids into her hands.

“You always know the best way to help me out, thanks bro.” Floyd piped up.

“Of course, staying hydrated is important.” He chided, taking a step back and away to leave him be.

He took note that when his twin left, his company seemed to relax a bit, her hands falling from her hair and reaching out for the glass. Taking a small sip, she sighed and leaned back against the padded booth, her sleepy expression returned. He also took a sip of the water and relished how cold it was. Its frigidness reminded him of home, cold water never really bothered him. Funny, surface dwellers love to drink cold water but being splashed with it always makes them angry.

“Ah, Floyd. I wanted to ask… Why do you always grab my hair like that?” Her question caught him off guard. Why did he do it? He smiled when his honest answer came up without thought.

“Because you don’t stop me.”

His answer, as short as it was, snapped her from her sleepy look. She looked back in bewilderment before her eyes left his to look at her lap.

“That simple, huh? I thought it was a greeting. Jack said maybe it was because you wanted to be mean, but it’s neither.” She mused in a low voice. Her expression was almost disappointed.

“I don’t want to be mean to you, Shrimpy.” He assured, taking the braid she was referring to into his hand like always. Her eyes followed his hand, but she didn’t protest.

“You know, it’s not uncommon that people want to touch my hair with how long it is. Strangers at bars, people on the subway, fellow classmates that fawn over it. Usually there’s some reason like “I wanted to see if it’s heavy.” or maybe “it looks soft to touch” but I’ve never had this answer before.” She continued and he let his fingers play with the loose hair at the end of the braid that escaped the reach of the silvery hair tie.

“It is, so very soft~ but I grab it because you might struggle if I grab something else, like your arm. You don’t always pull your hair away.” He explained and she studied his face.

“I guess so.” She trailed off, looking back to her untouched pina colada and the iced water. She grabbed the iced water and took a long sip.

“Hey, I know something you could do. Why don’t you braid my hair? I wanna see what it’d look like.” His idea poured from his mouth with a small giggle. She blinked at him and opened her mouth to say something but stopped. She looked away and bit the inside of her cheek before she gave a small nod.

“Okay, why not?” She agreed, placing her hands on the cushion to scoot herself a little closer.

He couldn’t help himself from grinning as wide as he could, leaning forward for her. Her knee pressed into his and she pulled a small band from her little clutch. Hanging the band on her finger, she reached up and began running her fingers through the longer section of his fringe, collecting the black streak. Her hand sometimes brushed against his cheek but he didn’t mind. He was too busy watching how her blank, focused expression followed her own movements. Her lips slightly parted, the blue light of the lounge sparking in her eyes.

It didn’t last long enough.

She pulled the small band around the tail end of his now braided black streak and sat back to admire her work.

“It’s not super impressive since your hair is a little too short.” She stated, pulling her phone out. Was she going to take a photo? “Here, look!” she urged and offered him the front facing camera on her phone as a mirror.

His smile reflected back, the grainy quality of the feedback in the low light wasn’t the best to gauge the quality, but he didn’t care. It was a tight little braid just like hers, a few stray turquoise hairs had made their way into the final work.

“I just noticed, you have dimples.” She spoke up and he looked over the phone screen.

“Dimples?” he asked and she gave a nod, reaching up to poke a finger into his cheek. No one had ever done that before.

“Yeah, right here, when you smile.” she twisted her finger against his skin a little before letting her hand drop.

“Is that a bad thing?” His smile disappeared. Was she making fun of him? She blinked at him and shook her head.

“No, not at all. Some people think they’re super cute.” She insisted and took her phone back gingerly. His smile returned.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in for a hug, just like he had earlier in the day. She made a small squawk in response and he swayed her in his grip.

“Thank you, Shrimpy.” He giggled. She felt so small in his arms.

“A-ah, what for?”

“For braiding my hair. And coming to visit me tonight. It’s never too boring when you’re around.” He continued to sway back and forth. There was a short period of silence and he felt her arm slide up his back. A quick little pat and she was trying to pull away from him.

He relented and let his arms drop from her, her small frame pulling back and scooting back a bit. Her knee no longer pressed against his leg.

“You can keep the hairband. It’s small and just a backup. Don’t worry about returning it.” She offered, picking up her phone to look at it, the blue light casting the hue over her face.

“Aw, thanks. I’m only letting you do my hair, though.” He chided, grinning brightly. Returning a small smile, she grabbed her clutch.

“Floyd, it’s getting kinda late. I think I’m going to head back to my dorm now.” She looked away, off into nothing.

He wished she’d stay a little longer. He could pressure her and try to make her stay. Snatch her phone, pull her hair, anything to keep her around longer. He could do it just like he always did to get his way.

Except, he didn’t

“Okay, Shrimpy. Let me stamp that voucher for you before you go!”

<<Previous chapter>>

<<next chapter>>

[karasu-calls]

On The Sublime

Twisted Wonderland

Floyd x Yuu/OC

-<<<<>>>>-

Summary: After switching to a new class, Yuu finds herself becoming the plaything of one of the infamous Leech twins. With each day that she becomes closer to the smile of Floyd, she wonders how close is too close? What is the line between bravery and stupidity? Will getting too close show that she had misunderstood someone innocent, or will she be sucked into the merciless depths of pain?

categories: slow burn, angst, romance, aged up characters, smut, and fluff, cross-posted from A03 & FFnet

Chapter 3: Cinnamon Gum

(1,982 words)

Chapter index:

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6

“No, no, no. Spongebob is not a real person.” Yuu urged.

The past week went well enough. Just monotonous school stuff really. The fall season was in full swing and after class she’d find herself trying to straighten up the outside appearance of the Ramshackle dorm. She planted some evergreen bushes, painted the shudders, cleared the lawn of dead leaves and branches. There was even a small spot where she had started a fire pit with flat stones she found around outside, hoping to finish it and have bonfires during the warmer nights of autumn.

The new class became her new normal and today was the same. She and her friend had arrived early to the music theory classroom, like was pretty routine by now. It was just like every day for the past week…. Except for that Deuce was not getting it. This stupid misunderstanding was caused by a reference that he didn’t get.

“Okay, what do you mean he’s not real? You said he was on the T.V. and his friend Patrick-” Deuce began again and she shook her head and interrupted him before he chased that thought.

“Yes, on the T.V. because he’s a cartoon! Not a person. Sponges don’t talk!” She exclaimed, moving her hands around wildly. Deuce’s arms were crossed and he looked up at the ceiling for a moment.

“But you said umm… what is it, the squid guy, yeah! Squids talk.” Deuce came back. “So I don’t know, maybe he was a celebrity. Squids talk here.” Deuce’s addition made no sense at all.

“No, they don’t. They don’t talk here. Because if they did they’d be a mermaid, not a squid. Squidward doesn’t even have pants, man! He just wears a shirt, which means he’s a cartoon!” She retorted in a cry. A familiar tug on her hair braid punctuated her words, yet she paid it no mind.

This was also normal. And all it meant was that Floyd wanted to say hello.

“Okay, Okay, by that logic, is Dwayne the “Rock” Johnson a cartoon rock? You told me about the  Rock and I assumed he was real, but you tell me about a sponge and he’s not real?” her raven-haired friend continued and she took an exasperated breath.

“Ugh, no, The Rock is totally real. But I said he was a dude. I didn’t say Spongebob was a little guy, did I?” She defended, but the truth was she didn’t recall if she called him a dude or not.

“I don’t know! Your world has weird names, Spongebob could have been the name of some dude.” Deuce responded, and he had a point. But still, this was different right?

“I said his friend is a starfish! What human man is friends with a starfish?” She pressed her palms into her eyes as she whined.

“I don’t know, you tell me!” He lifted his arms up and dropped them, defeated.

Another tug on her hair. An idea. To prove her point!

She spun around and grabbed the turquoise-haired man’s arm. He looked down at her, his face lacked his typical wide grin. She paid no mind to it and instead went on to gush out her nearly incomprehensible mess of words.

“Floyd, listen. Hear me out. Sponges do not talk, right? So if I told you about talking sponge, would you have thought it was real or not?” awaiting his response, she noticed that she was holding his arm and let go when she saw his lackluster expression. Oops, boundaries, she reminded herself.

“I don’t think so…” His response was, well, not normal. Not cheery, but flat and somewhat dismal.

“A-ah… is that so…” Her defeat didn’t last too long, “But admit, Deuce, it was dumb!” She went again and he shook his head.

“No it wasn’t!” he defended. She grinned to herself.

“Yes it was!” she gave back in a sing-song way. “Somehow you thought Spongebob was real, hehe, now I know how gullible you can be!” her loud teasing was caught short.

“Hey, Shrimpy, let me ask you something?” The lurking presence spoke from beside her.

That’s right, she had forgotten about her new acquaintance. Sure, Floyd still got on her nerves… a lot. His lack of understanding boundaries and upsetting and he was almost malicious in both defiance and compliance. But, his transgressions seemed less harsh over the week. Maybe it was her getting good at tuning it out? She didn’t know, but he would float around during the class and so far it wasn’t as terrible as she thought.

So when she looked up to answer the question and saw a lack of typical friendliness, she quietened.

“Huh?” She uttered. He had her hair wrapped around his hand like he likes to do, but his grip was tight.

“Why are you always so loud? You know, it’s kinda annoying sometimes.” He drew out, his voice low. He didn’t look angry, his expression neutral, but everything about the way his words came out screamed that he wasn’t teasing this time.

Shit.

“Er, I um- uh, huh?”

She sputtered over her words. Where was this coming from? Yuu knew that she was kinda infamous for how low and excitable she could get, especially on days when she was in a great mood. Sure, she caught the scoffs and rolling eyes of other students that would get annoyed by her conversing with her friends, but she didn’t think it was bad enough to be addressed… was it? She always did get in trouble at school, both in her high school days and in college for her over-dramatics. But Floyd had never seemed annoyed before. Was she supposed to apologize?

“You scream all the time. It’s just like the birds screeching here on the surface.” He continued, his grip seemed to tighten on her braid, but he wasn’t tugging it so it didn’t hurt.

“Y-yeah? I’ve been told I scream too much… um do you have a headache or something?” She cast a glance at Deuce, who seemed to echo her horror. Except, he wasn’t hiding it very well.

“Headache? Why do you think that?” He asked with narrowed eyes. She clasped her hands together.

“Um, well usually loud sounds irritate headaches. I thought maybe my “screeching” was making it worse. If you had a headache, that is.” She reasoned, her voice shook a bit.

“Are you trying to be considerate? I don’t have headache today.” He again drew out.

Oh, maybe it was just a shitty day? And her yelling didn’t help? If that was the case, why didn’t he go fuck off somewhere else then? Still, she pursed her lips in thought. He wasn’t necessarily being mean, just honest. She’d chosen the peaceful path first.

“Oh uh-huh.” She thought aloud and shoved her hands into her jacket pockets. Either this would work to settle the peace or she could just tell him to take a hike if he kept it up. Out of her pockets, she pulled out two packets, concealed inside her palms. Holding them out with her palms down, she spun around to face him. His heterochromatic eyes widened at the display.

“A token of my apology, pick a hand!” She beamed, unconsciously a little too loud despite her circumstance.

“Yuu, what are you doing? You might set him off.” Deuce whispered through his teeth, his hand hiding his mouth from Floyd.

She turned her head quickly to give him a harsh “shhh” before looking back up at the tall figure. His eyebrows raised a bit, his hand had now let go of her braid. He looked between them and chose her right hand. Watching as she turned her wrist and opened her palm, the grin returned to his face when he saw the cinnamon gum. He plucked it up, and it was like watching a timelapse of spring flowers pop up. He brightened up immediately and giggled as he brought the stick of gum to his nose to give it a whiff. It was quite the mood shift, but as she always said, roll with it.

“Cinnamon, good choice! The other is strawberry hard candy.” She chided, turning her hand to reveal the other sweet in her grasp.

He took no time in unraveling the gum from the paper, carelessly casting aside the paper to the floor. He slid it between his razor like teeth and leaned down, quickly snatching Yuu from the ground into a crushing hug.

“Aw, thanks Shrimpy, you always make things fun.” He crooned beside her ear.

Gosh, she was glad that her face was pointed skyward because she didn’t want to imagine the shades she had turned in her shock. Her brain short-circuited as she realized only her tiptoes touched the floor, and her chin was pressed into his shoulder. He swayed a little in the short-lived hug, dropping her back down unceremoniously. She nearly fell over when she landed, but she managed to stay upright. She caught the faint scent of cinnamon as he moved away. The strawberry candies had made their way to the floor in the commotion.

“Hey, you can’t just go grabbing people!” Deuce jumped to her defense, but the eel heard none of it.

“Glad it helped.” She muttered, running her hand over her skirt to straighten it out.

“Hey, we should do something fun tomorrow!” The now excitable guy suggested, his hand once again finding her long braid, as if he was holding her hand.

Tomorrow? She couldn’t. Deuce went ahead and broke the news.

“No, tomorrow is the unbirthday party that Riddle planned for all the good grades recently. I’m taking Yuu with me.” He folded his arms. Right, he was the one that convinced Riddle to invite her this time since she had some major faux pas at the last one.

“Yeah, I even have an outfit and everything!” Yuu exclaimed when she remembered the cute blue dress with the red and white ribbons that Riddle had brought to her. Apparently, the dress had some kind of important historical impact, but she just thought it was fancy and cute. The sharp grin faded for a moment but returned once the next idea sprung into the guy’s mind.

“Okay, then come by for a drink after school. You need more stamps for your voucher, right?” He smiled, leaning down close to her, well into her space. His earring jingled and the aroma of cinnamon wafted to her with his playful whisper, “I’ll stamp your card twice, shhh, okay?”

“Hmm, I don’t know. It’s Friday and it gets busy at night.” She mused aloud and without missing a beat, Floyd had a solution.

“Just come early!” His solution was simple but she wasn’t sure if she would be up for it this evening. His look made it a little hard to

“No promises, but I’ll think about it.” She offered and that was good enough for him. He flashed her a sharp smile and tugged her hair when the professor walked in.

Deuce gave her an exhausted look as Floyd retreated to his seat a few chairs away.

“So Deuce.” She began, an evil smirk on her face. “Have you heard of the tooth fairy?”

So then Yuu tried her best to convince her friend that the tooth fairy was a real thing back home, making her actions seem as realistic and imposing as possible. Class went on as normal, very easy beginner level lessons proceeded and it was a cinch for her. The professor said that everyone would be performing a small arrangement for the class next week and many students groaned, but she happily cheered herself on. She didn’t even need to practice for this.

Class was over before she knew it and as she walked to the next classroom a thought occurred to her.

Today was the first time she’d been hugged since she got here.

<<previous chapter>>

<<next chapter>>

[karasu-calls]

On The Sublime

Twisted Wonderland

Floyd x Yuu/OC -<<<<>>>>- Summary: After switching to a new class, Yuu finds herself becoming the plaything of one of the infamous Leech twins. With each day that she becomes closer to the smile of Floyd, she wonders how close is too close? What is the line between bravery and stupidity? Will getting too close show that she had misunderstood someone innocent, or will she be sucked into the merciless depths of pain? categories: slow burn, angst, romance, aged up characters, smut, and fluff, cross-posted from A03 & FFnet

Chapter 2: Surprise and Hair Ties (2,266 words)

Chapter index: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6

"Nn-guh!" She choked out in shock.

Not the best reaction, but she yanked her braid from his grip, leaving in his fingers her hair tie. His grin widened as the shimmery silver band lay in his palm. She scooted back to regain her personal space, pinching her hair to keep the braid together. He didn't budge, still remaining leaned down to her height, twirling the band in his grasp.

"H-hey, give that back." she demanded in a shriek, holding out her spare hand. He looked up at her, the grin remained as his gaze pierced her. Ugh, he was frightening. Her dream didn't help, especially with how close he had been moments ago.

"Why?" He asked calmly, his head tilting as his fist curled over the hair tie. She tried to still her shocked heart and steady herself.

"Because my braid will fall out. I need it back," she whined out and shoved her palm to him again. He looked from her to the band in his hand as if thinking about what to do next. "It's my favorite one!" She didn't waver and still held her hand out.

"Hmm… okay, since it's your favorite." He decided and held it out to her. She went to take it but he pulled it away and straightened up showing off his height. "But! You've gotta play that song again, okay shrimpy?" She cringed at the nickname and mulled the arrangement over.

"Ugh, fine, but let me fix my hair first." She agreed, rolling her eyes. He still held the hair tie at his height and shook his head.

"Nuh-uh, play the song and I'll give it back." He didn't move, looking down at her with that smirk. She frowned.

"My hair will untwist and I don't have a hairbrush. If I let go of it, it's gonna ruin it." She reasoned, reaching her hand up to his height as best she could from her seat.

"I'll hold it!" He proclaimed. What?

Before she could argue, he pulled the end of her hair from her own grip and pinched it just as she had. Ugh, this was ridiculous. She clenched her jaw and turned in her seat to play the damn keyboard. It was clear that there was no getting to the dude so it would just be best if she got this over with so she could fix her hair and tell him to get the hell out of the classroom.

She began the same melody, but now she was hyper-aware of her hair being lightly tugged from behind. She didn't look up to see, but she know his freakish eyes were watching her every note. It was fine for a bar or two and then she hit the wrong note. He gave her a little tug.

"Hey, you messed that up." He chided, at some point having leaned down to her level again.

"Maybe I could play better if you backed off." She gestured at him over her shoulder, "Shoo, shoo." Yet, he didn't waver, just as she expected.

Focusing on playing, she halfway forgot her company until the arrangement was through. Once she was done, Yuu looked over her shoulder to glare at the hair tie thief. His face was still very close yet the only place he was touching her was her hair. His sole earring clackered as the decorative plates shifted in their suspension. The dream flashed in her mind again and she felt her face heat.

"Oh, you're done? That's lame." He whined twirling her hair around his fingers.

"Hair tie, please!" She had no patience. Without hesitation, he looped the hair tie over the end of her hair, securing the braid by himself. He dropped the braid back over her shoulder. Absently, she traced over his work, not really expecting it to be snug, yet it was as if she had done it herself.

He giggled and backed off, finally! Still, she felt guarded and didn't take her eyes off him.

"Well, little shrimpy can play~ you're in this class now?" He asked, standing over her. He swayed a bit on his feet.

She hadn't considered it, but maybe he was in this class too? If so, there goes kicking him out of the classroom now. She didn't want this to become an everyday thing. This class was supposed to be fun and relaxing, but if she was going to have to watch over her shoulder, literally, it was going to be hell.

Considering that it would only be for this class, Yuu felt relief there at least. Sure, with the new point system she was a tiny bit more likely to be dragged with her group to Monstro Lounge as the chance for a study guide later on towards midterms, so it wasn't like she saw the twins often. Still, this was her music class and she wanted it to be fun, dammit.

Looking down she pulled both ends of her braids into her hand.

"Yeah, I transferred today. Are you in this class?" She asked cautiously. Please say no, please say no.

"Oh yeah, I love it! Music is my favorite always, when it's not boring." He mused, flashing a carnivorous smile at her. "But Shrimpy can play well so you won't bore me, right?" Again, with the nickname.

Damn!

"Bore you? I'm not here to play for you." She asserted. "But, next time you're thinking about making me play something, don't tug my hair tie out." She grumbled, watched as he shook his head and narrowed his eyes at her.

"But Shrimpy is the one who tugged her own hair tie out, remember?" Ugh, he was right.

"Yeah, yeah." she waved her hand. "And that's another thing. The "shrimpy" thing? Cut it out!" There was a short period of silence when she anticipated either an apology or an irritating defiance where he calls her the nickname again.

He offered nothing but a shrug, not commenting. Somehow, that was more annoying. His smug look never left his face and she wondered if it was a lost cause. Maybe she should just try to ignore his antics for the whole semester, but somehow she could see that not working. From the rumors she had heard, the guy was relentless in his torture of other classmates. Maybe rolling with the punches was the best way to stay on top of it, in some way or another. Yeah, after all, rolling with it had gotten her this far. She would ignore him until she couldn't and not fret when she had to interact with him. It sounded good enough for her. That's what she decided.

Footsteps approached the door, drawing both of their attention to the front.

"Yuu! I talked to the professor and uh… um." Deuce stopped, seeing the second half of the torture twins lingering over her. His concern was undeniable.

Good, a savior.

"Deuce, hey! I saved your seat for you~" she managed to croon out to acknowledge her friend without the hair tugger catching on that she wanted backup. She motioned him over and the raven-haired guy approached, shooting the interloper a cautious look as he ascended up the raised seating. He came around to his seat, ducking around Floyd, who stood in the path

"What were you saying? Did you find anything out?" She brought up, and her friend's face lit up as he took his seat.

"Oh right, Mr. Forte said there weren't any violins here because they're too pricey and students break them." He answered, pulling a sleek case from his bag and into his lap. His clarinet, she guessed.

"Figures, seems other students ruined it for me huh?" She deflated a tad. I mean, this wasn't orchestra class so she understood but not having a violin in the whole school stinks. And hell, she had no clue the price of magic violins or what have you.

"Oh, you can play the violin too?" Floyd inquired, making himself comfortable as he pulled up a chair between the two. He propped his arms upon his knees and rested his chin on his palms. The plan was to ignore him but that was in the dust now.

"Too? What else do you play?" Deuce asked, looking at her with a hint of amazement. Deuce, you're not helping with ignoring scary eel man. She resigned herself to her fate.

Just roll with it.

"Well, piano. I know a lot about music production since it was my major… back home." she admitted. Her friend settled his blue eyes on her as if it clicked.

"So you don't even need this class?" He asked, and she gave a sort of nod.

"Well, yes? No? I need this class for credit so I can go to more advanced classes." She admitted. Deuce let his eyes close, the turquoise-haired student watched on, his duo tone eyes looking between them as they talked.

"Oh no, you're gonna laugh at me when you hear how bad at the clarinet I am so far." he buried his face in his hands and turned away.

"No, don't think that! I already told you, everyone starts somewhere." She corrected, waving her hands around frantically. That was the last thing wanted him to think. He peeked through his fingers, letting his hand slide down and pull his face.

"But you're like… a genius or something." He muttered, mussing over the locks on his case.

"Hardly, I've just studied a little longer!" She denied it, shaking her head and her hands.

"You're right, I just need more time to practice! And maybe we could practice together and-" He was cut off by the cheery voice beside them.

"Yawn, this conversation is kinda boring, not gonna lie. Hey, I've got it Shrimpy, would you play violin for me? Please ~?" He asked and Deuce gave her a look as if to ask if she needed his intervention. She returned a telepathic look, communicating that she'd be handling it herself.

"I don't have a violin, dude. I don't even know where to get one around here." She answered, halfway avoiding the question. It didn't seem like she was going to shuck that horrible nickname anytime soon.

"Wait, hold up!" he urged, holding a finger up as he squirmed around his seat, finding what he was looking for. Out he pulled a voucher card, fully stamped all except for one space. He held it out for her, a big grin on his face. Did he stamp these himself? In hopes of bartering it off when he needed?

"What, aren't you going to get your ass chewed for that?" Deuce asked and Floyd shook his head, waiting for her to take it.

"No, I found it outside on the sidewalk. Some unlucky person dropped it so I snatched it up." He answered brightly, as if proud to show it. He waved it around in front of her. "I was going to bring it back to Azul, but ~ if agree to play for me, I'll give it to you." He drove the bargain and she looked from him to the voucher.

He grinned at her the same as always, but this time maybe it wasn't malicious. He hadn't really done anything to make her any more suspicious than she was of her friends and even her roommate… and now policies with his dorm had changed. If it could get her a violin, then maybe it wouldn't be so bad? Besides, only one stamp remained and she did love the pina coladas the lounge served.

It might have been a bad idea to accept, but when had she really made any good decisions yet? Besides, it didn't mean that she had to take action now, and she could always give it back if she changed her mind.

"Yeah, okay. If I get a violin, I'll play it for you, but only when I have time. And no pulling my hair anymore! And no "shrimpy" anymore too. And uh.. I'll figure it out what else later." She answered and went for the voucher with grabby hands.

And just like with the hair tie, he stood up and held it high. The chair pushed back and made a scratching sound.

"If? You said "if" and that's not enough. Also, tugging your hair is too fun so…" He drew out and gave her a wicked smile as he ripped the voucher in half. "No deal, Shrimpy."

For one, she was kinda stunned. Not really knowing how to react, she looked at Deuce and sputtered out a nervous laugh.

"Wow, okay. Wow." is all she said for the moment. Raising her hands in defeat, she smiled and shrugged. "You got me, you got me there." She pointed up at him as if he was an old friend and a merry prankster.

Whatever, it would have gotten her into trouble anyway. Crisis avoided. She noticed that a handful of people were beginning to trickle into the room, hanging around the doorway.

"Yeah, I got you. You shoulda seen your face." He laughed along with her, but his laugh seemed genuine unlike hers.

A few more people joined the classroom, and following suit, Yuu straightened up in her chair, taking note that the merman… could she call him a merman? Anyway, Floyd took his chair away. It was time for class. She would just have to roll with it, sit through all of the things she already knew, and navigate the unfortunate proximity to the classmate who knew no boundaries.

"Uh-huh. You got me…" she echoed to herself in a whisper.

<<previous chapter>>

<<next chapter>>

[karasu-calls]

On The Sublime

Twisted Wonderland

Floyd x Yuu/OC

-<<<<>>>>-

Summary: After switching to a new class, Yuu finds herself becoming the plaything of one of the infamous Leech twins. With each day that she becomes closer to the smile of Floyd, she wonders how close is too close? What is the line between bravery and stupidity? Will getting too close show that she had misunderstood someone innocent, or will she be sucked into the merciless depths of pain?

categories: slow burn, angst, romance, aged up characters, smut, and fluff, cross-posted from A03 & FFnet

Chapter 1: The Dream

(3,452 words)

Chapter index:

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6

It’s strange how quickly one can turn to desperation, losing all sense of confidence and reservation in an instant. How soon that primal instinct snatches the consciousness and gives way to fear and panic. All it takes is a moment of lost hope, the unmistakable danger of being caught, defenseless and far too weak.

The horrid, creaking feeling of her ribs bending, the pressure that built in her chest, the piercing puncture of a clawed appendage: none of it was as painful as the dizzying panic that thundered behind her ears and culminated in a sharp ache in her head.

“Let… go…” her own voice was foreign to her, muddied in the cool liquid prison that slowed her movements. There was no friction, her hands slipping off the vice that threatened to crush her, the mucus in combination with the water was deadly and yet… she couldn’t slip away.

No matter how she struggled and twisted, the steadily clenching grip remained. She pawed helplessly, her attempts becoming more frantic.

Ever calm and collected, she resorted to pleading.

“Pl...ease… it… hurts.”

And for her plea, she was met with cruel amusement.

Monstrous and sublime, like the unkind vastness of the deep, the hetero-chromatic eyes glowered back at her, accompanied by a mirthless smile. Not even a shudder could pull her from the stark moment of stillness as her heart sunk.

Sharp, carnivorous teeth moved far too close to her ear as the creature drew closer.

“Why would I let you go?” It asked, the sing-song cheerfulness urged her to action.

She braced against its chest, using whatever strength she had to distance herself, but the claws dug in like hooks, keeping her right where it wanted her.

The grip around her chest tightened to a nearly impossible amount, the breath pushed from her. No matter how she leaned, the mouth followed her, coming to murmur against the soft skin below her jaw.

“After you’ve been so hard to catch~?”

…

When her eyes opened, the feeling of being choked out remained. The tightness in her lungs persisted as she gasped and lifted her head from the pillow. The thudding of her heart was pulsing in her ears and she pulled the blanket from her shoulders. She had to fight. She had to run. She had to… calm herself.

It was only a dream.

And yet.

The familiar and warm ticklish feeling fluttered in her nether region. Was she… wet? No, surely not.

Pulling herself up, Yuu, paid special note and came to the conclusion, but how? She hadn’t been dreaming of anything she would find arousing. The dream replayed in her mind and she absently let her fingers drift under her jaw.

She knew who she had dreamt about. She knew the context, as ever since the monstrous form returned to her mind. That’s right, he had caught her before back when, right before the overblot incident. Yet, the scenario in her dream had played differently. She took a stifled breath and glanced out the window. The sky was still dark but the subtle tinges of other warm colors shifted the hues that poured into the room.

Nearly time to get up.

As much as she wanted to sleep more, the tickle between her legs called her attention and her heart still hadn’t slowed. Looking over, she found her feline-esque roommate curled up, softly snoring.

Maybe the dream was just the byproduct of a lack of privacy to take care of her needs mixed with the repression she felt in a school of all male students. Yeah, that’s it. Besides, that incident of being snatched was the only time she had been touched the entire time she had been stuck here.

When he had grabbed her. And that’s all he did, just to scare her during that messed up game of tag. He hadn’t hurt her, he hadn’t said any of those things.

Slowly, she pulled her legs over the side of the bed.

It didn’t matter why she had the dream, but she was going to sneak into the bathroom to take care of her needs. She couldn’t very well start her day with lingering oddly horny tension. No, she would quietly deal with her arousal, like she always had.

All while she tried not to feel the lingering ghost of lips on her neck, curling into a dangerous grin.

-<<<<>>>>-

Tugging absently on her long, dark braids, Yuu shifted nervously in the headmage’s office. Her gaze was affixed on the elaborate rug on the floor, lit by magic sconces around the room. She had been called in, alone, and wondered what could be the explanation this time. True, she had gotten into a lot of trouble in the couple of months that, mainly being swept into nonsensical situations, but this time seemed different. She had always been a trouble maker in high school and in college it was no different. Yet, the university she had been so unkindly ripped from never bothered with one on one discussions on student behavior. No, taking that time to talk to every student would be far too much and instead they would simply expel you.

But here, she was both lucky and so misfortunate to have a headmaster, ahem, headmage who pried into her issues. Almost as if he was a school counselor.

“Yuu, I know with your distinct lack of magical ability, this was a possibility. That a magic class that grades based on performance alone would maybe be too difficult. You’re flunking out.”

His words only echoed what she already knew. Her eyes traced the patterns on the rug and she nodded, not saying a word.

“Besides a few bumps, you are doing well with your other classes. But for your practical magic class, notes and exam grades are not nearly enough. Yuu, there’s no way for you to pass that class without outside magical aid, which is expressly forbidden.”

She took a deep breath, waiting to hear what she had silently been preparing herself for this whole time. Who was she kidding, passing a curriculum based on magical ability? Sorry, Grimm. If she flunked out, he would too.

“So that is why I came up with a solution!” Crowley beamed, his excitement barely contained. She snapped her eyes up to the bright smile of the avian-esque man.

His yellow gaze glowed from the dark shadow of his mask as he brought a giant, leather-bound tome up from the side of his work desk, flipping it around. He was giddy as he pulled the giant pages open to a marked page. Leaning forward, it only took a few seconds for her eyes to scan the long, listed format of the page’s content.

“I’m allowing a substitution! You can drop practical magic and take any class on this page. All of them should be easily done without the aid of magic! Aren’t you amazed at my boundless benevolence?” His glowing eyes pinched up happily from their void, as he awaited her answer.

“Really? You’ll let me do that?” She asked, half believing it. He nodded and swept a metallic glove over the top of the book.

“Absolutely! Any class here. Come on, take a look!” He urged.

She leaned forward and read through the contents, hoping that there would be a class similar to what degree plan she had in her own world. Potion History, no. Fantastical Creature Study, no. Pottery? Nope! And then she found it. A list of several, similar classes.

“Headmage Crowley, I want to take Advanced Musical Composition. In my world, that was my area of study, you see.” She requested. The figure clamped his hands together.

“Oh wonderful, see I knew that my kindness would pay off!” He gave gleefully to himself before his mood shifted. “Only, there’s a small problem.”

Her heart sank.

“Because we have no records of your previous field of study, you have no credits for the prerequisite classes. You’ll have to start at Musical Theory 101, I’m afraid.” He sympathized.

Oh, that's a little bit of a setback. She had been studying and playing music since she was a young teen. That class would be painfully slow and repetitive. She knew she would grow bored of listening to all of the things that she knew by heart and a lot of musical theory classes didn’t even have a curriculum that let the students play and practice in class. Despite that, it was a raw deal. She would ace the class and maybe double up on music classes until she got to a class with more advanced study. And, she would have access to school equipment. She could rent an instrument and play at home. Gosh, she hoped she could find a violin.

How could she decline?

“Okay, Music Theory 101 is okay with me. A refresher course wouldn’t be so bad.” She thought aloud. The headmage shut the tome with a heavy thud.

“Perfect, then it’s settled! You’ll be transferring classes today, if you like!” he began shuffling around the papers scattered across the desk before muttering, “Let’s see, I believe there is a class this evening. My boundless kindness, nothing is better than letting my students choose.” He quietly congratulated himself.

“Aha, here it is!” He held up a piece of paper that looked to be a scheduling list. “Now Yuu, keep this a secret between you and me. I cannot change every student’s classes around at their request. Because you are a special case, I’m allowing this. So please, hush hush.”

She nodded as he handed her the schedule to choose from. Her day seemed to be brightening up after the early morning incident.

“Of course, thank you. No one will hear a word from me. Hush hush.”

-<<<<>>>>-

“Yeah, because I flunked out I got to choose anything I wanted to take, no kidding. He wanted me to keep it quiet because it’s unfair, but hey, it’s about time something looked up for me.” She mouthed off, taking a bite of the chicken parmesan that Ace had snatched her for lunch.

The cafeteria buzzed with energy like always, sounds muddling together in constant cacophony. Grimm slurped messily at his noodles, sitting atop the table so that he could reach his plate. The small group sat together like this nearly every day, everyone silently agreeing to sit together since forming. Along the way, Grimm, Ace, Deuce, and Jack became people she’d look forward to seeing every day.

“Good, then your grades can’t mess up my stride.” Grimm returned, his mouth full. She rolled her eyes and poked at the cheese atop her chicken breast. It had since become stiff.

“No kidding, I wish I was that lucky. I have a few classes I would drop in an instant, how about you Deuce?” Ace asked, elbowing his friend. The dark-haired guy choked a bit on his lunch and cleared his throat, giving an annoyed glance at the redhead for the unwarranted elbow to his ribs.

“Me? Not really, I’m trying to do well with all my classes.” He gave, a tad snide as he poked a floppy vegetable with his fork. Ace leaned back in his chair, arms folded behind his head.

“Yeah yeah, of course you would say that, Mr. Star Student.” Ace mocked, leaning back his chair to a scary angle. She would laugh so hard if he leaned back too far and fell.

“Neither of you are star students.” Jack grumbled from where he sat, his place nearing empty. His ears twitched as he waited for a retort.

“Yeah! Well, I made 87% on the last test, no cheating this time! That’s gotta count for something. Didn’t you fail your pottery examination?” Ace returned, leaning forward to press his hands on the table. He nearly pouted as he watched the white-haired student pinch his eyes closed, ears, drooping a tad.

“I cannot help it if my hands are so big. Every time I try to form the vase, I would crush it.” His words were slow and patient but he was visibly irritated. To be fair, Ace was being particularly testy today. The wolf paused and looked up dramatically before declaring, “But, I will practice and make a great vase someday! And I will use it for pencils!”

The intensity of his voice hardly made what he said sound epic in any capacity, but she found herself nodding in agreement. Yeah, Jack, make a vase for your pencils. He shoved the last bite of his lunch into his mouth, soon ridding it from his path.

“Yuu, I’ll wait up until you’re done. To walk you to your next class.” He offered as he pushed his chair back. He didn’t smile much, but she knew his words were as friendly as he could manage.

“I’d like that… But I transferred my next class… so we won’t have class together anymore.” She admitted, a little saddened by the realization. They’d always have lunch break, right? His ears twitched and he stood there for a moment.

“Oh, I see. Then, is the class close by?” He asked, still fully intending to accompany her, if not just for a portion of the way.

“It’s the opposite way. I’m taking Music Theory 101. Sorry, Jack.” She apologized, prodding her chicken again.

“Sorry? No, it’s fine. Just want to make sure you don’t get into trouble between classes is all.” he played off effortless. He always acted like this, but she knew that he was looking out for her and genuinely wanted to spend time with her. He was a good friend, even if he didn’t admit it.

“Did you say Music Theory 101? I’m taking that this semester!” Deuce spoke up, leaving his lunch forgotten. Oh, then she’ll have at least one friend close by. She found herself smiling.

“Why didn’t you say so earlier? I had no clue there were music classes here.” She asked and her friend flushed.

“Aha, that’s because… well, I’m not any good with my clarinet yet. I’d be too embarrassed to play in front of you guys if you asked.” He admitted, rubbing at the back of his neck.

“Oh, I get that. That’s how I was too.” She admitted, remembering when she first started playing violin. She would only practice when no one was home because she couldn’t bear her parents hearing any mistakes she made. “Everyone starts somewhere.” she added.

As much as she had practiced music, she would be mortified if she had to start learning an instrument that she had no experience with, especially in front of a class. Hell, that’s how she would feel if she were asked to sing in front of people. No matter how well she could play piano and violin, no matter how well she could use a DAW, there were always things that she would lack confidence in. And that was basically the whole curriculum at Night Raven so far. It was very humbling to say the least, but now she was finally going to have a space for her to be in her element. And with her friend there as well.

Deuce smiled at her and nodded to what she said. Scooting his lunch tray aside, he cleared his throat.

“Yeah, that’s true. So Yuu, want to walk with me to class?”

-<<<<>>>>-

The music room was just as she envisioned. A large, open space with an ascending amphitheater-like seating arrangement, each chair a step up until it reached the back of the room. Keyboards rested on stands with each chair, which made sense. Piano was a beginner friendly instrument. There were a bunch of signatures scribbled on the whiteboard along with different chord progressions. She stood and looked around, the familiarity of it washing over her. No magic, no unfamiliar and dangerous cauldrons, just a place to let the music flow. A place for her in this twisted world of magic and unknowns.

She and Deuce had left early so that he could give a tour of the music room before anyone showed up. The room was quiet and peaceful. No sound yet.

“Wow, it’s just as I hoped it would be.” she muttered to herself.

Deuce kindly led her around, showing her where the books were and where he liked to sit so that she could sit next to him. He also showed her the storage room. Sadly, there were no stringed instruments to be found. She looked over each shelf filled with brasses and coppers, but no familiar shine of mahogany wood and delicate bows.

Her friend must have noticed the disappointment on her face when she left the instrument storage.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” He asked, taking a step closer, “Not finding anything you want to play? There’s always time to chose later.” he offered but she shook her head.

“No, that’s not it. I was just hoping to get my hands on a violin but there aren’t any.” She said, tugging at her long braids for comfort. It’s okay, she could settle for piano but she didn’t know if she’d be able to take a keyboard back to her dorm to practice with.

“A violin? Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen anyone here play one yet. Maybe we just don’t have them?” He thought aloud. “You know, wait here, I’m gonna go look for the professor to ask them.” He decided with a determined look. It was unnecessary, but he always did things like that for her.

“Really? Thank you, Deuce!” She called out after him, but got no answer.

He was already out the door. Man, she was lucky that she had nice friends. She shifted around and decided to make use of the quiet room… By shattering the silence. She made her way over to the keyboard closest to where Deuce had set his bag.

Pulling up a chair, she flexed her fingers. It had been so long since she played a piano like this. Warming up would be the only way to go. She pressed at the keys, as if testing the feeling of them. She let her fingers do the work, falling back to her most familiar songs. A few basic ones rang out in the silent classroom. Once she felt properly prepared, she fumbled her way through a song she had learned. That is, the piano arrangement for a song that always brought her peace.

Happily, she recalled the memory of the song and played it, sighing and picking up from where she left off each time she messed up. The song, so special to her, echoed around and drew her attention fully.

It was Merry Go Round of Life that she was playing, a fairly popular song for movie fans where she came from. Where she came from, how odd to think of her home that way, yet that was how she had to talk around the school. She knew references and knowledge of things that here were totally unknown, as though she was an alien or timetraveler. Sure, things weren’t too different, but all of her human experience was shared only by her in this world.

That’s why it felt fitting as her fingers danced over the keys. Yes, a weightlessly gorgeous song from a film that she felt herself relating to. A young girl, cursed, being caught in the world of magic user and being swept into trouble and friendships along the way. The movie’s plot felt relatable in a way she never before felt. She played the song and got lost, daydreaming about the film and its lovely visuals, mesmerizing score, and the feeling of calm it gave her when she heard this melody.

She wondered if she’d ever see the film again. Would she ever go back home?

Feeling that emotion swell in her chest, she sighed and let her fingers drop from the keyboard.

No sooner than she did, something tugged at her braid. She thought maybe it was stuck on the chair but it was tugged again. She didn’t turn around, knowing who it was that was messing with her.

“Deuce, stop. I’ve told you that’s not cute.” she snapped, folding her arms over her chest. It was tugged again, harder this time. Hey, that actually hurt. In dramatic fashion, she gasped a shrill “ow!” as she twisted around in her chair to gripe but her words were forgotten.

Not a hand’s length from her face was a toothy grin. He was leaned down over her, the braid wrapped around his fingers. The dream she had that night flashed back to her and she gasped, an icy feeling piercing her heart.

“Hey, Shrimpy~ why’d you stop playing?”

It was Floyd fucking Leech.

<<next chapter>>

[karasu-calls]

I've been super into Twisted Wonderland this past week and over the weekend I've been writing something for it so I might just share that here later this evening.

[karasu-calls]

Idk if this has been done yet.

[karasu-calls]

Whose side are you on?

honestly speaking, im with asmodeus

[karasu-calls]

[karasu-calls]

[karasu-calls]

Stretched

Warnings: female reader, size kink, oral (f receiving), vaginal penetration, pet names (baby), creampie, unprotected sex, needy!reader, yandere!Beel-ish, licking, kissing, hickies, biting,

Beelzebub was scared.

Terrified, even.

You were a human, someone mortal who could get injured.

His human.

The one who would get full eating out with him, who got a bruise on their butt falling off the bed the other day and managed to, somehow, injure themselves almost on a weekly basis.

The same human who was currently writhing on his lap begging to be filled and fucked full of his cum.

"Beel, please?"

"I could hurt you."

A whine, hips canting against his clothed dick as you palmed his chest and ran your hand through his hair. Your mouth sucking marks onto his skin, peppering hickies on his throat and bare chest. He could feel your bra clad breasts pressed against him, the points of your nipples teasing him as your hands trailed up and down his body. A low growl when you started to rub his erection through his jeans.

"You won't. I trust you. Please?"

Trusted him? A demon? Sometimes, Beel barely trusted himself.

Picking you up and laying you gently on the bed, his mouth leaving behind heated skin as he began tugging down your underwear. Neck, chest and stomach bitten and licked, hands holding your hips in place as he nosed your mound and kissed your wet pussy. Your own hands threading through his hair, fingers tugging him closer as your legs widened to accommodate his shoulders. Hips tilting as he moved your underwear to the side and began feasting on your wet folds, no prelude or slow start. No. Beelzebub ate you out like you were his favourite meal, tongue lapping at your juices as it dripped down his chin, pressing his tongue into you and humming when he felt the walls contract around him.

The sound of fabric ripped as he threw your underwear to the floor, palms cupping your ass and tugging you even closer as you squealed, giggles quickly turning into loud moans as he moved to your clit. Sucking the sensitive nub until you were gasping his name, chest heaving as a thin sheen of sweat covered your body. Moving across it side to side, Beel worked your clit until you were whimpering and calling his name, gushing over his face as you came with a shudder.

"One more for me. Yes, baby. One more."

Holding you in place when you tried to move away, Beel pressed one finger inside your still-fluttering walls and hooked it to keep you in immobile. The position had him right against your g-spot, a small smile on his face when you tried to growl as him instead letting out a moan when he added another quickly. The feeling of being stretched like this made you clamp down even tighter, your hand holding his wrist as he started moving his fingers slowly.

"B-beel. Oh, fuck. Beel... don't... please."

"One more, then I'll fill you up ok? I don't wanna hurt you."

Hand moving to tug your bra down, nipples exposed as he fondled and pinched them, teasing them until you were crying out hi name again for the second time. Walls spasming around his thick digits, wetness gushing down his wrist until your body shook from the aftershocks. He held his fingers in place even as he moved up your body, a gentle kiss on your lips turning heated as you began stroking his skin. Hands running down his stomach towards his belt, fly undone as you tugged out his thick length. The tip red and flushed, leaking precum which you licked off with a hum until he was growling above you. You could barely fit your hand around the thickness, failing to take the whole thing in your mouth or even suck on his his balls at the same time. The idea of this filling you up moulding your body around this huge dick made your pussy throb in excitement.

"You sure?"

His gaze boring into you as you licked his abs, mouth moving to suck his nipples as you hummed in agreement. You barely had enough warning before he pulled you down, fingers leaving you empty as he pushed your legs wide open. His knees keeping you open when you propped yourself on your elbows, wiping the tip against your clit, tapping it a few times and smiling when you whimpered, you tried and failed to pull him closer. His strong body immobile as he teased you until you flopped back with a huff, using the chance to push in slowly before pulling back out again.

"Be-el!"

His name ending on a sob when he kept going, your walls stretching to accommodate this thick cock inside you. Looking back down to see him disappearing into you, widening your legs and canting your hips to take him even deeper. He felt huge, bigger than he had felt in your hand and mouth and you had never felt so full, so good until now. The way his body filled you, owned you was like nothing you had ever had before and you wanted more.

Moving your hands to his hips, you tried to pull him into you further. His eyes meeting yours as you pouted at him, taking his mouth in a kiss and whimpering when he moved in and out in shallow thrusts. He wasn't even fully seated yet, his fingers still holding the base of his dick as he fucked you slowly, letting you feel every ridge as he opened hou up. Wanting more, you used this moment to push your hips closer to him, your waiting pussy swallowing more of him until his hips were pressed against yours. You couldn't stop the low moan that left your mouth, head dropping onto his shoulder as he rolled his hips and made you feel every exquisite inch inside you. His warm breath against your shoulder as he kissed and licked the sweat off your skin, tongue lapping at your shoulder and sucking until it felt sore and abused.

"Still OK?"

"Y-yeah. Oh God."

His hand holding your neck as he started moving, small at first just a small roll and thrust until you moaned his name so pretty and it was game over for him. He wanted to hear that noise again, louder and louder until you were squirming and crying under him. His free hand holding your knee against the bed and he pulled back until the tip was left and slammed all the way back in, the motion moving you up the bed and making you scream.

He was addicted.

Both hands now pressing your knees against the bed, he watched in rapt fascination as your pussy swallowed him up. The wet folds glistening with your arousal, clear ring of want and lust coating the base of his dick as he fucked you earnestly now. Your earlier words now reduced moans and his name as he filled you up again and again, the sounds of your wet pussy squelching filled the room and skin on skin as his balls met the curve of your ass. Beel almost forgot why he hadn't done this sooner, why had he waited so long to have you like this? Why hadn't he listened to you the multiple times you had whined and moaned his name while riding his thighs?

"B-beel. Close... I'm so close."

Thumb reaching down to rub your clit, he groaned when he felt your body respond and clamp around him tighter. Your hand coming down to hold it in place as he rutted into you, the pace harsh but shallow as he pushed you over the precipice for the third time, grunting when your walls spasm around him. He watched enraptured as you covered your mouth, hands muffling your screams as your eyes fluttered closed, leaning over to cover your mouth with his as he swallowed your screams.

"Want you to fill me up, Beel. Please. Want your cum."

As if you could be anymore perfect for him, you had to go and say something like that. Now, even if the fate of the world depended on it, he was never letting you go. Hands pressed against the bed, Beel used the momentum to slam himself inside of you with a low grunt each time, his mouth millimetres from yours as your arms wrapped around his neck, holding him in place. Breaths mingling, warm and wet against you as he held himself inside you and filled you up, pubic bone grinding against your clit as he groaned low against your lips. His chest heaving, small beads of sweat dripping onto you as his hips twitched as he coated your walls in thick ropes.

Dropping a small kiss on the bow of his lips, you tucked his hair back before moaning at the feeling of him filling you up, he was still hard and pressed against the most sensitive parts of you. His arms wrapping around your as he buried his face into your neck and sighed, you could feel his heart thumping against your chest in a staccato motion.

"You OK, Beel?"

A huff of laughter, rising up to look at you and caress your face. "I should be asking you that." He hissed when you moved your hips a little, sensitive from cumming mere minutes ago. "S-stop." He tried to glare at you, face turning stern when you giggled but failing when you bit your lip in that cute way he loved so much.

"Wanna go again?"

His human.

Who would be the absolute death of him, apparently.

[karasu-calls]

Things that make me pine for Diavolo

❤️ His blush

❤️ That weird laugh of his

❤️ His smile

❤️ Those fleeting looks of sadness and conflict he lets slip

❤️ His loneliness (I relate so hard to that)

❤️ His warmth

❤️ Dia is an only child like me

❤️ How Diavolo delights over the stickers the brothers made and how he uses them unironically

❤️ Diavolo wanting to be approachable

❤️ How secure and open-minded he is

❤️ He's totally okay with wearing a dress and being called a Princess

❤️ He loves cat just like Satan and that is honestly the most wholesome thing

❤️ The constant shenanigans he pulls - I'm all up for a little fun and mischief

❤️ The hugs that man must give - just let me be swallowed by his tiddies

❤️ His tiddies

❤️ How he is open to criticism and working on his shortcomings

❤️ His curiosity about the other realms

❤️ His willingness to try new things and go on adventures

❤️ The fact that Dia made RAD to make the Devildom a better place

❤️ The fact that Dia wants to mend the relationships between the three realms

❤️ His determination

❤️ The compassion and kindness shown by him - it's something one wouldn't expect from the literal Prince of Hell

❤️ The recent lessons where he has character growth and realizes how he was manipulative in the past and is evolving into a better form of himself going forwards (again, I relate hard to this, I've made similar mistakes)

❤️ How he has made it a rule to never lie

❤️ Also how Diavolo has the ability to tell when someone is lying

❤️ Just the lengths he's willing to go make his friends happy and to help them

❤️ His patience

❤️ How hard he tries with the brothers to understand them and improve his relationship with them

❤️ How badass he can be when he needs to get serious

❤️ The fact that Dia loves cute things and flowers

❤️ How he handled MC standing up to him in that one lesson (probably where he started falling for them too lol)

❤️ When he lets his guard down around MC

❤️ The fact that you can refer to him as, "a five-year-old in an adult's body"

❤️ He likes poetry (one of the latest Devilgrams)

❤️ His ability to think independently and follow his passion (RAD/uniting the realms)

....and I'm sure I can think of more hehe 😅

[karasu-calls]

i would like to be Perfectly Clear™️ about something:

IF YOU SEXUALIZE LUKE, YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE.

that is all. thank you for your time.

[karasu-calls]

THINGS BEST BOY (MAM) WOULD DO BECAUSE I SAY SO

-Cry when he gets frustrated with something

-only know 3 chords on the guitar but say he can play it

-swear in languages other than English (spainish, dominican, philipino)

-sleep with a stuffed animal that you n him won at an arcade

-dance like he's in a music video while having songs blasting in his headphones- given no one's around

-makes a huge list of demands for his green room everytime he has a photo shoot

-one of those said demands is that MC have their own chair with thier named embroaded put next to his

-steal anything over $10 from shops

-when he zones out in class he grabs your hand, interlocks it with his, and holds them against his lips as he hums and continues his work

-stands behind your chair with his hands on the back of it while slightly leaning over you

-if you're sitting next to him his hand is on your thigh, nothing can stop this.

-he makes his brothers and you in sims. He traps everyone else but you and him in a pool and then makes your two sims elope

-carries around birdseed so he can give his crows 'on the go' snacks

-he 'buys' you both matching everything. Rings, necklaces, mugs, slippers, posters, key chains, t shirts, you name it, he got it

-he expects you to wear your matching t shirt under your RAD uniform like he does

-he's the type to get genuinely upset if someone uses the matching mug he has with you

-he would tell a man to "stop talkin ya fuckwit" if said man cuts you off

-he would also fight to have your grades rounded

-he is sooooo the type of person to get the teacher to talk about themselves to waste class time

Ahhhhhh this is wayy too long fjidiaormf. I love this man so much I just wanna SMOOCH. Srsly tho looking at him gives me cute aggression it's stupid af. N e ways have a good day/night <3