#< suppose i'll actually Tag for Once

[townslore]

you tell yourself that this is for the best [pro/ship dni]

[smolghostbot]

Battle Against A Real Threat (Part 1/2)

Part 2 Here

A Non-canon AU where Contralto’s neighbor wasn’t Clay, but the worst possible person it could be. A vent piece/character study of sorts. Part 2 will be posted later today, heads-up that this ends on a low note.

Word Count: 3.8k Content warnings: Whump, tiny whump, kidnapping, injuries, threats, alcoholic whumper, snapping Contralto’s psyche like a glowstick.

======

Chapter 1: Showtime

Finally, Contralto had made her way to the apartment downstairs. The one that would be the start of her heroic journey, to slay all humans so that sprites could rightfully live without fear! She just… needed to get outside the wall. Wait, perfect! An exit! Based on her apartment, this should lead to the kitchen. Not an ideal place for a heroic speech, but she could try to get somewhere higher up once she’s inside.

Messy is the first word that came to mind as Contralto entered the apartment. Several full-to-bursting trash bags were in the corner of the little kitchen, and boxes were all over the counter with a variety of logos that the sprite couldn't read. The floor wasn’t dirty, but clearly hadn’t been swept in a while, and the area under the cabinets that Contralto had found herself in was especially dusty. As Contralto looked around, she shuddered a bit at the sight of a mousetrap, which is thankfully still primed and ready. Humans… more proof that they’re monsters, the sprite thought to herself as she made her way through the apartment. It was dark, as planned, but her night vision made it a trivial trek to the living room, which was equally as disorganized as the kitchen was. Whoever lives here seemed like… not the most proactive person. This could work in her favor, as if all goes to plan they’ll be an easy target.

Finally, with some effort, she climbed up to the top of a bookcase in the corner, using a power cable to assist her. Of course, the top was covered in dust, but she quickly tried to clean up enough of an area to rest and eventually give her big speech without being covered in dust.

This apartment was… very different from her home. No posters of brave heroes, or statues in their honor… just blank walls, some simple furniture, and mess. There was a game system plugged into the TV at least. As Contralto waited, she idly wondered if they played the same games as her human… not that it mattered much, considering they’ll be slain soon.

After a quick nap and a few hours, the apartment started to become lit by morning light. Contralto jumped up, awaiting the human… who didn’t leave their bedroom. She had heard noise in the night coming from there, clearly somebody was home.

Finally, after a few impatient hours, she decided to climb down from the bookcase and make her way into the bedroom itself. Normally, this was taboo for sprites, but what does privacy matter if they were going to die soon anyways?

However, it wasn’t long after she hit the floor that a creaking noise was heard as the door to the bedroom door opened. With nowhere to go, Contralto climbed up the nearest furniture, being the coffee table in the center of the room. Not the height advantage she hoped for, but it would do. She closed her eyes quickly and took a few deep breaths as she rehearsed her speech. Finally, the human walked into the room, and their bleary, deep blue eyes met with the lime eyes of the little hero. It was showtime.

“Human-”, the little sprite started to say, before being instantly interrupted by a very blunt “What the fuck?” as the wide-eyed human stared at her.

“Ahem,” Contralto said, clearing her throat, “I was saying… Human, prepare yourself for a fight! For centuries, sprites have lived in the darkness, fearing your kind. Well no more! Today is when that changes! That's why it is my goal to eliminate all humans, starting with you! Now, draw your weapon, human! And prepare as I, Contralto, Hero of the Sprites, Defender of the Helpless, the Hero Who Never Gives Up, will defeat you and free my people! Prepare to be struck down by the combined hopes and dreams of all of spritekind!”

As Contralto shouted her speech, which she had rehearsed for days, she noticed the human was slowly moving, first to the kitchen and then getting closer to her. She paid it no mind at first, but after she finished, she noticed the human was particularly close to the table, leaning down over it, their hands behind their back. Were they… planning something? She’d have to be on guard for them to draw a weapon.

“Contralto… a sprite, you called yourself?” The human finally said, their voice slightly alluring to the little hero.

“That’s what I said! You stand before Contralto, Hero of the Sprites, Defender of the Helpless, The Hero Who Never Gives Up!”

“Fascinating… so, tell me, little hero, have you come here alone?” The human replied, tilting their head inquisitively. This question seemed to confuse Contralto, who took a second before responding.

“Um… Yes, it is the way of the hero to travel alone… most of the time. If I find a mage or a good enough thief I’ll reconsider…” she started to say, before snapping back into her bold persona. “But that’s of no consequence to you, human!”

“Of course, of course, excuse me for prying, I just… wanted to know what I was up against… a little hero, who thinks she’s going to defeat the big bad humans… breaking into my apartment, alone…” Their sapphire-blue eyes seemed to glimmer for a second, as if they had an idea.

“I don’t just think so, I am! Now, are you ready to fight?” shouted Contralto as she struck a heroic pose.

“Hm…” the human said, before flashing a grin that instantly made Contralto nervous. “No, I don’t think so.”

And with that, the human quickly slammed down the plastic container they were holding behind their hands, trapping Contralto underneath it.

“Wh-hey! This is cheating! Let me go!” cried the muffled voice of the hero, as the human slid the container to the edge of the table, flipping the container over and trapping Contralto inside by putting the lid on three of the sides, leaving just enough of an opening for air.

“H-hey! Stop it! This isn’t how this is supposed to go!” The sprite cried out. “I’m a hero! You’re supposed to fight me!”

“Oh, why would I want to fight something like you? No, I think we’ll have a lot more fun instead, little Connie.”

“That’s not my name! It’s Contralto! Hero of the Sprites! Defender of the Helpless! The Hero Who Never G-” she started to exclaim, before the container was roughly shaken from side to side, throwing Contralto against the walls.

“Sorry, I think I missed that. Care to repeat it?”, said the human with a smile as they stared into the container.

“I… I said I’m Contralto, Hero of the Sprites, Defender of-”, Contralto started, before the container was jostled again, this time with a bit more force.

“Ooh, I think you got cut off there, try one more time?” The human said, still with a smile on their face.

There was a moment of silence and stillness before Contralto began to shout. “You dare mock me?! I’m Contralto, Hero of-”, she started, but this time the container was moved vertically, slamming Contralto against the lid before she was thrown back to the bottom of the container. The human simply smiled at her, blinking blankly as if they had done no wrong, as Contralto felt her nose starting to bleed from one of the impacts.

“I’m Contralto… Hero of-”

Thump.

“I’m… Contralto, Hero of th-”

Thump.

“I… I… y-you heard it before! You know who I am!” cried the sprite, not wanting to repeat this little “game”.

“Of course, Connie. Now, if you’re done trying to fight me, I think we have some things to do. After all, I’m assuming you don’t want to stay in this container.” said the human, with an almost cooing tone to their voice.

Chapter 2: New Home

It had been a few hours since Contralto’s capture. After their little ‘game’, the human had left the container on the counter as they left their apartment. Contralto had struggled to escape for a while, attempting to use her needles to remove the lid to no avail, and then throwing herself into the sides of the container in an attempt to push it off the counter, but after a while she had grown sore, and was now laying on the bottom of the container, tired and defeated. Was this how it ended? No, this was the part of the story where the hero was at their lowest… right?

Eventually, the human returned, holding a suspiciously large box. Contralto eyed it curiously as the human greeted her. “I’m back, Connie. Did you miss me?”

“I promise you my blades won’t miss once I’m let out of here!” spat the indignant borrower.

“Oh, Connie, there’s no need for that. You’ll learn that I’m a friend soon enough,” they said as they opened the boxes to reveal a hamster cage, to Contralto’s growing horror. She knew the rumors… the risks… this was why she became a hero, after all.

“I… you’ll never get away with this, villain!” cried Contralto, as the human put a hand over their heart in mock pain.

“Oh, you know, it hurts to be called a villain, after I bought you this nice new house and everything. Here I am, just wanting to take care of a lost little hero like you…”

“You… you dare try to put me in a cage? I’m a hero, I’m going to defeat you and save the world!” cried Contralto.

“Of course you are, Connie. Now, it’s time for you to get moved into your new home. Are we going to do this the easy way, or the hard way?”

Contralto drew her blades, staring daggers at the human, who only chuckled before replying. “Ah, I see you’re still doing things the hard way. I guess we’ll have to work on that.”

The human approached the container, picking it up and removing the lid, before giving it a little shake to disarm Contralto as she fell to the ground again. The sprite quickly went to reach for her weapons, before the container was tilted over, sending her tumbling into the hamster cage before the door was quickly shut. As the human began to carry the cage into their bedroom, they spoke to their enraged captive, who was trying her best to climb the bars and stab at their hands.

“There we go, see, that wasn’t so hard, was it Connie?” cooed the human, to Contralto’s growing rage.

“I… I swear, when I’m out of here, you’ll pay for this, human!”

“You know, I’m not so sure I’m a fan of being called ‘human’ all the time… but I suppose I’ll have plenty of time to think of a new title for you to call me, hm?”

Contralto’s cage was placed on the human’s dresser as the sprite took in the room. If the rest of the human’s house was messy, this room was downright sloppy. Clothes lay scattered everywhere, and the bed sat unmade with even more clothes on the end of it. Contralto’s eyes turned behind her to the nearby window, which the cage was in front of. She made a note that the window could be a good escape option, although they were pretty high up in this apartment, even to a human. Her thoughts were interrupted by the human, who seemed unusually lost in thought.

“Now then, let me ask you something. What do sprites eat? Since you’re my guest and all. After all, we have to keep a little hero in tip-top shape, right?”

Contralto weighed her options here. On one hand, she doesn’t want to sound like she’s submitting to the human. On the other hand… she will need food eventually. Finally, she spoke, still trying her best to keep up her hero persona.

“I… I’ll have you know that we sprites don’t eat meat, unlike you heartless humans. Not that I’ll accept any food from you, you monster!”

“Hm… that won’t be too difficult… I guess the hamster cage was more fitting than I thought… Okay, Connie, I'll be sure to get a little hero like you plenty of greens so you can grow up big and strong! Well… a bit bigger, I suppose,” the human mused, to Contralto’s growing frustration.

“You… you…” Contralto started to say in rage, her fists clenched and trembling as she stared at the human.

“Yes, me, me. Now, is there anything else I should know about taking care of a little helpless sprite?” The human said, once again using that soft, infantilizing voice that Contralto had grown to loathe.

“You should know that I’m going to destroy you when I get out of here, human!” shouted the sprite.

“My, you really do have quite the temper. We’ll have to work on that, Connie,” they said with another smirk. “But for now, I still have to go to work this afternoon, so let me get you some water before I leave.”

The human walked out, returning with some much-needed water in a bottle cap. “Now then, are you going to be good and let me put this inside your new home? Because otherwise you’ll just have to go without water.”

It was an offer Contralto couldn’t refuse… it had been a day or so since she last had anything to drink. The sprite snarled at the human as she responded, hand on one of her sheathed blades. “Fine. But if you so much as touch me…”

“Why, I wouldn’t dream of it, Connie. After all, we’re still getting to know each other. Now then,” the human said, as they opened the door and placed the bottle cap inside. True to her word, Contralto stood still until the door closed, but she wouldn’t be caught dead drinking out of it while the human was looking over her.

“Why, you’re such a good sprite, not trying to make a run for it!” cooed the human, clearly trying and succeeding in mocking Contralto. “Well, I’ll see you in a few hours. Take care, Connie!” The human cheerfully exclaimed as they walked out of the room, barely catching Contralto’s murmured death wishes.

Chapter 3: Rage Against the Machine

It had been a few days since her capture, and things were beginning to fall into a routine. The human would wake up and banter with Contralto for a bit, always with that same condescending tone. If Contralto behaved, she was given food and water, usually in the form of shredded lettuce, seeds, and other foods that Contralto recognized as feed for something like a pet. Another form of mocking her, she supposed.

Today, though, she had a plan. As the human opened the cage door to put her bottle cap of water in, Contralto lunged forward, stabbing at the human’s finger with her blades. As the human shouted in shock, Contralto made a run for the door, only to get quickly grabbed by the human’s other hand. “You-!” was all the human could shout as they stared at the sprite in their hands.

“Oh… you’re feeling feisty today, aren’t you?”, the human stated, as Contralto began to panic.

“Let go of me! Let go! Put me down! I’ll kill you!”

“You little… you’re lucky that I don’t crush you right now, you little pest! This is how you repay me for giving you food and shelter?!”

“Food and shelter? You trapped me in a cage, you monster!” cried Contralto, still squirming in the human’s grasp. The human adjusted their grip of the sprite, such that her arms were at her sides, barely gripping onto her blades. With their other hand, they grabbed the blades out of her hands, before roughly throwing her back in the cage.

“I should have taken these from you sooner,” said the human, voice free of even the mock kindness they had used previously. “A broken sewing needle… of course you were running around with trash before meeting me.” Contralto, meanwhile, was staring at the blades in the human’s hand in shock.

“No! No, you can’t! Give those back! Th-those are special! You can’t just throw them out! I… please! Please!”

The human’s eyebrows raised as they stared at Contralto, clearly mulling something over. Finally, their face returned to a neutral expression, and they spoke again with a bit more composure.

“Oh, it’s important to you, huh? Well then… maybe I’ll hold onto them after all. You can have them back… once you prove that you won’t redo this little stunt.” said the human as they put the blades into their nightstand drawer, despite Contralto’s pleas.

“Now then, I’m leaving for work. And since you chose to be naughty today, you can just wait until tomorrow for some more food and water, how about that?” the human said, not waiting for a reply as they began to turn and leave with a simple “See you later, Connie.”

-

Contralto was at a new low. Her blades were gone, she was trapped in a cage, she was hungry, thirsty, and weak, and she had been forced to beg her captor.

She almost thought that her situation couldn’t possibly get any worse, until she heard the sounds of the human returning from work. For some reason, they were louder and more aggressive than they had been in the prior days. Finally, the human came into the bedroom, holding a can of something. They seemed to ignore Contralto entirely, until they looked over at her, blue eyes showing pure anger.

“Well, if it isn’t my little sprite. How are we doing with no food and water?”, they said, their calm voice clearly contrasting their expression.

“I’m doing… just fine! No thanks to you, human!” spat Contralto. The human’s face seemed to twist into a snarl for a split second before returning to its prior expression.

“I’d watch your tone, little hero, today isn’t the day for your antics. Unlike you, some of us have actual problems.”

Contralto just rolled her eyes at that, before shouting in response, “Oh, I’m sure that a monster like you has so many problems in their life. The other humans can probably tell that you’re especially evil!”

“All right, that’s it!” shouted the human as they walked over to the cage, placing the can on the dresser nearby. As they jostled the cage, sending Contralto off-balance, they opened the door and quickly grabbed the defiant sprite. “I think it’s high time that little Connie learned a little respect.”

Contralto immediately started to panic again, very much fearing this human’s grasp. “H-hey! Put me down!”

“Oh, I’ll put you down… once you learn to respect me,” the human said, anger in their voice, and as Contralto could now note, a particularly strong smell of what she recognized as alcohol in their breath. She hardly had time to process, however, before the human began to fidget with her in their grip, positioning her such that they were holding one of her arms uncomfortably far backwards with two of their fingers..

“Now… I want to hear a thank you,” they said simply.

“Thank you? For capturing me? I’ll never thank you, you-” Contralto started, before shouting in pain as her arm was moved just a bit too far backwards.

“That wasn’t a thank you.”

“Hah… you think you can get me to give in? I’m… the Hero Who Never Gives Up!” Contralto defiantly shouted, before her arm was once again pushed just a bit too far backwards, causing her to shout in pain.

“That was a lot of words, but still not a thank you. Are you really going to make me be the bad guy here?”

“You are the bad guy, you mons-” Contralto started, before screaming in pain as her arm was moved even farther back.

“That still wasn’t a thank you, little Connie,”

“That’s… not my name! It’s Contralto, Hero of the Sprites, Defender of the-” Contralto started, before the human jerked her arm backwards forcefully, causing her to scream in pain again.

“Oh, little Connie… we’ve been over this. I don’t want your little speeches, what I want is a thank you, for taking care of you. Why do you have to make this so difficult?”

Contralto was struggling to breathe from the pain. She could feel a burning in her shoulder, it was probably close to dislocated, but she was the Hero Who Never Gives Up, after all. “I’ll… never thank you…” she muttered, bracing herself for another surge of pain, which was received as the human pulled her arm forward this time.

“Oh, but I think you will. I’ve got tomorrow off, after all. We have all the time in the world.”

True to their word, the human kept up their little training session for another hour before it finally came to an end.

“Are you finally ready to just say thank you?” they asked, holding the battered and bruised sprite in their hand. Her shoulder was swollen, and something was clearly wrong as even small movements caused the sprite to shriek in pain.

“N-never…”, Contralto said, having lost the will to speak in full sentences a while back. However, despite her pain, and her face streaked with tears, she truly refused to give up.

“A shame. You know, I feel like we’re not getting anywhere here…” they said, before pulling Contralto’s arm far behind her, such that her elbow started to move in an unnatural direction with a painful-sounding noise. Contralto’s vision instantly filled with stars and auras, and the human could tell that she had become unfocused.

“Come on, just say it and this will be all over, Connie. It’s only two words… thank you. Is that so hard?”

Once Contralto was able to return to the consciousness she was barely clinging to, she decided to collect herself to try to speak. “I’ll… say it… if you stop…”

“Of course, Connie. Do you think I’m a liar?”

Contralto didn’t answer, until the human gripped her arm again. “Do you think I’m a liar?”, they repeated. Contralto tried to shake her head, but her neck muscles hurt so badly that she could only speak it instead.

“No…”

“Well then, you know the deal. Just say thank you for all I’ve done for you, and I’ll let you go.”

There was a tense silence between the two of them, before Contralto finally broke.

“... Thank you…”

“Oh, why, you’re so welcome!” The human replied in a chipper tone, as they immediately went to place the defeated sprite back in her cage. “You know, I loved to hear that. I think you should get in the habit of saying it more often.”

Contralto couldn’t respond, as she simply fell down onto the opposite side of her now-broken shoulder and began to sob.

[starpros-sunshine]

See this is why I like enstars because usually the issue would be done now and I'd return back to my usual state of listless apathetic semi-detachement but now I'm invested in getting this card home and if I don't I will continue to be at least a bit sad about it isn't it fascinating how people work isn't it just marvelous that a mobile game can do that to you

[sga-owns-my-soul]

i really hate it when streaming platforms cut scenes out of shows. those scenes are there for a reason, they give context. stop cutting them out it's fucking infuriating

[ranger-kellyn]

help while in the shower i realized i could write a cheesy hs marching band au where like. juliana is just new to the school from a different part of unova, and like, nemona, penny, and arven are all foreign exchange students or something like that and HELP my brain is on overdrive now

[creamecream]

Neon Lights - Outfit Reference: Beatrice and Ghayth

Beatrice belongs to @abyssnighthawk

[skania]

It's funny how ss shippers are still so upset about sk, I've see ss shippers who have appeared to have read through your whole sk analysis (I love those btw 🥰) and complain on twitter using excuses like *cough* 'came across' or used to 'follow' Yes they hate sk so much they find and read long pro posts 😂. Funny part is they take and hate on small parts of your posts but never post any counter proof, or link directly to your full posts, guess they're scared it would covert others! viva la SK 💞

You'd think that since they're canon, simply saying "Who cares if SK had any moments?/If some people want to ship it? Sasuke still ended up with our Queen" would be enough. All this does is make them look insecure 😭

That said, linking my posts directly could invite their ship-mates into sending me hate while I'm minding my own business, so I'd like to think keeping me anonymous is their way to be decent people 😂

Thanks a lot, anon! I'm happy you enjoyed them 🥰💞

[piningprecussionist]

(ooc)

I want you all to know that if I had the energy for it. There are so many posts stored in my drafts I long to queue... but neglected to preemptively tag, despite knowing I am Like This....

Anyway, there is a slight chance the queue might run out tomorrow unless I can get more responses in there-- I am,, tired,,

[legaciestold]

august 9th, 2001 dc suburbs @everythingheard (leon)

the day is gloomy and gray, storms causing high winds off and on with only little bouts of pause. there's little activity within the gated community, at least outside, and the news playing the television in the background says traffic is heavy going into the main part of the capitol. there's a towel near the door that's got some mud on it and a basket of laundry on the couch where it'd been abandoned as if the plan had originally been to start a load. claire's computer is also on the coffee table with it's screensaver (what looks like a picture of a picture-- polaroid of her, leon, and sherry in front of a little candy shop in france taken a few days before claire had gotten captured by umbrella) bouncing around the screen on full display. there's what looks like some bags from the store not unpacked in the corner of the living room waiting to be sorted, filled with school supplies and a backpack sticking out of a larger bag. it's not exactly on display, kind of situated behind the dining room table but still there if one gave more than a cursory glance. perhaps it'd make sense in the house of a teenager who was going to be going to school when the fall classes started in a few weeks at high schools across the country. however, sherry's had a private tutor for a fair amount of time, a tutor that's helped her play a decent amount of catch up.

as the moment stands, an excited sherry is beaming from ear to ear at leon who's just arrived and barely gotten a quick greeting from claire in the form of a hug that sherry's not even sure her mother realized she gave him in her haste because it'd seemed more like ticking a box as claire made sure she had her keys and bag and hugged sherry too. the scene had been fairly amusing to almost fifteen year-old sherry who'd nearly thought to ask for a puppy again because she might just get a 'yes' out of her mom who's mind was on other things. yet sherry refrains, mostly because her mom's lips part to offer leon a frustrated apology because she has to run off to some kind of emergency meeting with terrasave and that she should only take a few hours and 'thank you now she doesn't have to wait for blake' and then they'll talk about what she'd asked him to come over to talk to him about later. sherry had gotten the feeling leon had no idea what he'd been summoned for but it seemed her mom would tell him when she got back. either way, she's happy he's there now and smiling at him as they look from the now closed door to each other.

"dad--" she begins, a habit sherry's had since that first hiking trip they'd taken. "--guess what! i finally get to go to school! like a real school with other teenagers. and they're supposed to have all this cool stuff. it's this fancy private school. there's a pamphlet around here somewhere..." she scans the room but doesn't move to find it yet.

"mr. simmons said he showed them my test scores with the tutor and they were impressed and offered me a spot! wasn't that awesome of him?" despite the fact that a part of sherry associated with simmons with the tests that she had to go through, because sometimes he was there talking to the people in the lab but always offering her an encouraging smile when it got to be.. to be a lot, sherry's opinion of him had always been positive. perhaps for that very reason.

"oh and he gave me a present for working so hard! both him and mom said i need to keep it with me all the time at school even though there's security there too, i guess. agent blake said so too. he's nice. a lot nicer than the other two guys that sometimes come to moe's with us. well, sort of with us." the agents that sherry's only really begun to notice in the last year that are always there at a distance when claire takes her places that aren't government buildings or to the park inside the neighborhood or when she's not going places with him. she's not entirely sure how she'd been so oblivious to it before, but she also didn't go a lot of places before. now that she was getting older that was changing and she was starting to really realize what government protection meant.

"check this out! it's a cell phone! but it's like a really cool cell phone. there's this button on it that if i press it help comes right away. like security speed dial! mom programed you on speed dial. and her and uncle chris too. though i think it'd take uncle chris a kind of long time to get here from new york.. anyway, isn't it cool?" sherry asks, pulling it out of her pocket and then offering it to him to look at. "oh and mr. simmons said his friend's son goes to the school too and can show me around!"

[neverendingford]

.

[awearywritersworld]

the day of my execution

sukuna x reader summary: gojo, yuuji, and sukuna discuss what happened at the store. sukuna begins to consider your mortality like never before and takes care of you when you're sick. w/c: 2.7k tags/warnings: fluff. mentions of attempted kidnapping. banter. reader has the flu. aged up!yuuji. not canon compliant. fem!reader. no use of y/n. a/n: sorry for disappearing for so long, but here is the long awaited next chapter. i've put a second a/n at the end, so i hope you'll read it. please excuse me talking out of my ass trying to rationalize my application of jujutsu, but if gege does it, so can i. i hope it kind of makes sense though. series masterlist // masterlist

truthfully, yuuji expects his wednesday morning to be as uneventful as any other, but when he stands in front of the bathroom sink to brush his teeth, his eyes are not the only ones staring back at him.

"what d'ya want?" he groans. "it's too early for this."

"we need to talk."

sukuna doesn't give his vessel a chance to respond before he begins recounting the events of the previous night, a story which has yuuji's face cycling between surprise, worry, and dismay. "the man claimed someone sent him?"

"that's what i said," sukuna responds impatiently.

"why would anyone be after her? i don't understand."

"would it kill you to use your brain for once?" sukuna questions, having had the entirety of the night to ponder the situation. "think, idiot. who would be interested in using her in some ploy? against you. against... us."

yuuji's eyes widen. "the higher ups?

"no one else would be so brazen."

it strikes sukuna as ironic that just days after he relayed the cruelness he endured at the hands of jujutsu society's higher ups a millenia ago, you too almost became one of their victims. it's a reality that he despises.

"i should call gojo—"

"that is out of the question."

"do you want to keep her safe or not?"

sukuna scoffs. "this is how we keep her safe. if the higher ups are after her, we can't trust other sorcerers."

yuuji almost seems offended on gojo's behalf. after all, he's known him for the better part of a decade. "i'd trust gojo with my life."

"well this isn't your life we're talking about. this is much more important."

yuuji chuckles. "i know. that's exactly why we need help."

before sukuna can protest, yuuji's dialing his old sensei and asking to meet somewhere they can speak privately.

that's how they end up at a small bakery on the outskirts of tokyo, sukuna relaying the story for the second time that morning.

once he finishes, gojo leans back in his chair and folds his hands behind his head. "well, i don't think you're wrong about the higher ups being involved."

"so what are we supposed to do?" yuuji asks. "they might use her to get to me, but you don't think the higher ups would actually put her life in danger, do you?"

though yuuji's question is directed toward gojo, it isn't him that answers.

"you're as naive as ever," sukuna scoffs. "they'll stop at nothing to achieve their own ends."

gojo grimaces, a silent agreement with the assertion. "i can do some poking around, see who ordered it to be done."

"and what exactly is that going to do? there's no reasoning with them."

"a fact i am well aware of," the white haired man narrows his eyes at the king of curses. "but there is leverage in power, something i happen to have more of than anybody—"

"almost anybody—"

"so as the strongest, i'll take care of this as soon as i can."

"hey, um, so as productive as all the dick measuring is," yuuji interrupts. "it doesn't keep her safe in the meantime."

"i have an idea in that regard," sukuna says. "it's an ancient practice, and while it doesn't offer any protective measures, it will allow me to find her if they make another attempt like last night."

gojo leans forward, clearly interested to hear more.

"i can imbue a talisman with a part of myself and if she wears it, it will act as a beacon for her location."

"with part of yourself? as in, your cursed energy?" yuuji speculates. "wouldn't that do more harm than good? attract cursed spirits and whatever?"

"no, i'm not a fool. it's not cursed energy."

sukuna is hesitant to clarify further. he'd done something similar when creating his fingers, but it was different then. it was a selfish endeavor to preserve his life long after it was his time to die. it was a dark sort of jujutsu, one meant only to bring destruction.

but intention is important in sorcery. it can change the very essence of the practice.

for the first time in his life, sukuna is acting selflessly, concerned only with your protection. it's a pure sort of jujutsu this time around, one that allows him to impart a piece of himself that isn't tainted by cursed energy.

and because of that, that part of him would be unprotected. it'd leave him uniquely vulnerable. it's a steep and dangerous measure. that's why the practice had been forgotten long before the modern age.

"then what could it possibly be?" it's quiet for a moment as yuuji's question hangs in the air.

"it's your soul, isn't it?" the disbelief lacing gojo's voice is quite plain, but he's heard whispers of such techniques. "you'd give her a piece of your soul."

sukuna's never been one for unfinished business, so it's no surprise when he finds himself on the couch, intent on finishing the stranger. besides, it had become clear he'd been focusing on the wrong aspects of the book when he first began reading it.

he's three chapters from the end when he hears a loud shatter from the kitchen, followed by a sharp gasp. the broken glass hasn't even finished sliding across the floor before he's at your side.

"what happened?" the alarm in his voice doesn't go unnoticed by you.

"nothing, nothing," you assure him. "i just dropped my cup."

crouching down, you reach for one of the bigger pieces before your hand is swiftly smacked away. "don't."

"it's fine. it's only a little glass."

when you reach for it again, he grabs your wrist. "you troublesome little thing. do you ever listen?"

"i don't make a habit of it."

"i know. the question was rhetorical."

sukuna's already noticed the shards of glass surrounding your bare feet, so he wastes no time in picking you up and placing you on the countertop.

"don't move." he says it in such a way that, for once, you don't even think about disobeying him.

he all but stomps out of the room, returning moments later with a broom and dust pan. there's a small smile playing on your lips as you watch him gather the larger pieces before sweeping up the rest.

and you know, it's really not fair. sukuna could even call it a cosmic injustice, the way he has to worry about broken glass and fragile fingertips.

but he likes you and he likes the pads of your fingers, particularly the way they feel against his skin and run through his hair, so he swallows his pride.

it's been consuming him lately— the fact that you are just as easily broken as the glass that littered the kitchen tile. he never considered just how many ways there are for a human to die until you were nearly taken from him.

so once he's done, he rests the broom and dustpan against the wall and stands in front of you, his hips situated between your knees.

reaching into his pocket, he pulls out a necklace and your mouth falls open in shock. a delicate chain is threaded around his fingers, while its ruby pendant dangles in the air. "i want you to have this."

"what.. what is it?"

he snorts. "you don't know what a necklace is?"

you let out a breath of a laugh. "of course i do. i'm just surprised."

you hold up your palm and he places the necklace there gently. inspecting the gem, you notice it bears a striking resemblance to the color of his eyes.

strangely, it's almost as if it's heavier than it should be— like it's weighed down by some importance beyond your comprehension.

"it's beautiful," you tell him honestly. "are you sure?"

"sure of what?"

"that i should have it."

he pauses before responding, taking in the way you're so gingerly holding it. he's scared you've realized what he's actually giving you. that you're repulsed by it.

he's hesitant when he asks, "why would you think otherwise?"

"i didn't do anything to deserve something like this."

sukuna breathes a sigh of relief. "you are ever the fool."

his hands find your hips, pulling you off the counter and onto your feet. he plucks the necklace from your hand, then shifts to stand behind you.

moving your hair to the side, his fingers brush lightly against your skin. "the necklace is undeserving of adorning your neck. not the other way around."

and he knows it's the truth. a piece of him, attached to a creature so lovely she should be out of his reach... well, that's just unseemly, isn't it?

"but promise me something anyway."

"anything," you say without delay.

he situates the chain around your neck, the pendant lying in the space where your collarbones meet, and fastens the clasp. when you turn to face him, you're met with an alarmingly grave expression.

"promise you won't ever take it off."

you fiddle with the ruby somewhat nervously, feeling as if you're missing some important piece of the puzzle.

you nod in response to his request, but it isn't enough for him.

"say it."

"i promise."

he can see that you're biting back questions, so he explains, "if you're wearing that, i'll always know where to find you."

it finally dawns on you, for the first time, how much the incident at the store truly affected him. it's not the way he ended those men that clued you in, nor is it the way he pleaded with you to forgive him.

it happens in this moment. it's the gentleness of his voice, despite his underlying desperation. it's the way he's watching you carefully, as if you're likely to disappear. it's the fact he wouldn't let you clean up a mess of your own making, because he can't stand the thought of seeing you bleed.

"i... i don't know what to say."

"well, that's a first."

"shut up," you punch his shoulder. "you're ruining the moment."

"right, my bad," he chuckles and glances down at the gemstone. "do you like it?"

you let out a breath. "of course. i love it."

he smiles at your words— soft and genuine— truly a rare sight. "good."

you notice that he's looking at you. really looking at you. his eyes shift away from yours and over to each of your temples. then down to your nose. your mouth. even your chin.

he takes in every detail and he feels like he's in your debt simply for gazing at your countenance.

you almost regret it when your hands curl around the collar of his shirt and pull his lips to yours. you should have savored his smile, spent time committing it to memory.

although, that's soon forgotten as you feel the curve of his mouth deepen while his lips move against yours.

it isn't until day three of your ceaseless coughing and sneezing that sukuna adds them to his list— broken glass, fragile fingertips, coughs, and sniffles.

his concern is clear from the way he dotes on you. he brings you cold cloths, makes you tea, massages your neck, runs you baths.

now he's on his way to a twenty four hour pharmacy to pick up more medicine to reduce your fever, and while it's only a block away, he's still doing it alone.

but not even for a moment does he consider running off to burn the world's largest city to the ground. the streets are crawling with people, but he finds himself avoiding them more than anything.

he has to get back to you after all.

the only thought on his mind other than you is the ending of the stranger. the main character, while awaiting his beheading from his prison cell, conveys his final words to readers:

for the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, i opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. finding it so much like myself— so like a brother, really— i felt that i had been happy and that i was happy again. for everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, i had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators on the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate.

in sukuna's first life, perhaps this line would have resonated with him. it was a life where he had resolved himself to the idea that nothing really mattered, because the alternative was too painful. it didn't matter that jujutsu society betrayed him. it didn't matter that he stole people's lives out from under them. it didn't matter that he was alone.

and while he would have never surrendered himself to execution, if that had been his fate, he would have preferred to go out surrounded by living reminders of all he had accomplished. surrounded by all the people he had ruined.

however, when he imagines such an occurrence happening in his present life, there is only one face throughout the entire crowd and it belongs to you.

the very thought makes him sick with grief.

looking up, he realizes that there are no stars in tokyo anymore, that there is no feeling of indifference when it comes to you, and that there is no happiness to be had when you are not by his side.

he knows he'll never shed another drop of innocent blood if it means you'll always have that look of adoration in your eyes when your gaze falls on him.

so his trip to the pharmacy is short and hurried.

opening your apartment door, he's careful to be quiet in case you're sleeping, but he finds you peering at him from the couch.

your hair is disheveled. there's a sheen of sweat across your forehead. your eyes are beyond tired. your shirt is wrinkled.

you're still the most pleasing thing he's ever laid eyes on.

"you're back," you rasp.

"i'm back," he affirms, slipping off his shoes.

you sit up and quickly regret it, your hand coming to rest against your stomach. "god, i feel like i'm gonna puke."

"charming."

you use all your strength to throw a pillow at him, which he easily catches before tossing something small in your direction— a ginger chew to help with the nausea.

you unwrap it and pop it in your mouth. "thanks."

he hums in response, settling down in the spot beside you. once he pulls the medicine from the bag, it's followed by two bottles. "got you these, too."

recognizing them as your favorite drink, your exhausted and delirious brain makes your eyes well up with grateful tears. "you're so sweet."

"yeah, whatever. don't get used to it."

"but you are. you're sweet and kind, except i'm the only one who knows it," you pause before continuing, your head falling onto his shoulder. "why is that?"

he contemplates denying that he possesses any such quality, but decides against it. "you're the only one who's ever cared to know."

he can feel the heat of your temple through his shirt, so he opens the box of fever reducers and pops out two tablets before handing them to you. "take these. you're burning up."

you do as he says without protest. standing up and stretching your arms above your head, sukuna's eyes wander to where your shirt rides up and reveals your stomach.

"c'mon, let's go to bed," you yawn.

he follows after you wordlessly, carelessly pulling off his shirt and climbing into bed beside you. curling up against his side, your head comes to rest on his chest and it's quiet for a few passing moments.

"you can't see the stars from tokyo anymore."

"what?" you ask sleepily.

"the stars. there's too much light to see them from here."

"oh, yeah. we can take a trip to the mountains soon. you can see them pretty well from there."

"i'll hold you to that."

and so with the promise of a beautiful night sky, with the company of someone who means the world to him, and with the feeling of your body pressed against his— sukuna feels that he had been happy and that he was happy again.

a/n 2: hey! so i'm sorry again for stopping updates without really saying anything. i think i just needed to step away from tumblr and writing for a while because i was getting a bit overwhelmed. i was also a little unsure about the direction of this chapter. i was struggling to incorporate the necklace part without it seeming cheesy or weird. that being said, thanks as always to everyone for your support of this series. it's really heartwarming and much appreciated. if you have any feedback, i'd love to hear! i'm not sure when the next update will be, but i'll do my best to keep you guys posted. all my love - m<3

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[as-the-stars-foretold]

.

[peachsayshi]

✧⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄ being wrapped in your arms feels like coming home ⋄⋆⋅⋆⋄✧

wc: 1,820

minors / ageless blogs / blank blogs - do not interact.

notes: here is a little drabble in honor of toji's birthday! this piece was originally titled as "adoration" but I changed it to this instead. I'm taking a small posting break, but I'll be back to my regular schedule within a week! I'm sorry if I haven't been responding to tags or messages, but I will do so soon <3 I hope you're all having a wonderful time and I'm sending all my well wishes out to you! xo

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ tags: widow toji; age gap (reader is 30 while toji is in his early 40s); a little angsty; toji attempting to break up with you but failing because he's oh so in love

toji overstayed his welcome which was only supposed to last the scorching heat of summer, but he found himself lingering through the quiet stillness of fall. winter came in with a brisk chill and gloomy skies, and that's when toji knew it was time for him to end things with you.

he’s lost interest far quicker in previous relationships. they served their purpose of healing over the wound in his heart, of soothing away the ache of loneliness. he oftens forgets that he was once a loyal, loving husband whenever he abandons yet another fling.

the difference, however, is he at least had the guts to verbally cut things off before.

fucking pathetic, he thinks as he scolds himself. he's been a coward, reducing his actions to disappearing before the sunlight peeks through the horizon, and avoiding any chance of waking you up. he ensures that he is never there to see the way your brows furrow with concern when your hand meets the cold pillow, because otherwise he would falter in his attempt to escape.

this has been going on for over two weeks now but last night was the first time you've actually snapped at his cold, detached behavior. he approached the argument with nonchalance to wither you down, shrugging off the gnawing feeling in the pit of his stomach and then walking out halfway through the fight.

he stayed at a motel thinking that maybe you have finally taken the hint that he's done.

he arrives back to his apartment only to be met with unfamiliar silence. the entrance of his home is dark and lifeless, and it's so quiet he can even hear a pin drop. there's a tightness in his chest, followed by a wave of disappointment that runs over him like a feverish shiver.

despite his hard headed decision, he's still anticipating on hearing your lovely voice to greet him as he walks through the door.

he knows it's selfish.

toji expected many things to happen after last night's fight. he figured the reaction to him leaving you (again) would be far bigger. a screaming phone call or a string of cursing text messages to call him out on his shitty behavior.

after all he deserves it for acting like an insufferable asshole.

he tries to swallow his guilt but it remains lodged in his throat when he acknowledges that this might actually be the end. 

the expression on his features falls.

it’s better this way, he consoles, dragging his feet across the floor to approach his kitchenette. he shrugs off his beaten up, oversized coat and tosses it over one of the chairs. he opens one of the cupboards, and grabs a mug to prepare himself a cup of tea.

she’s too young to settle for a guy like me, he continues. widowed with two kids who he barely sees anymore, working paycheck to paycheck just to make ends meet…

a deadbeat.

he exhales, swirling his brew in his ceramic cup. the aroma of sweet leaves dances up the spiral of steam to kiss his nose.

she deserves more than me.

he places the kettle down but stares at the cup mindlessly, losing all train of thought as his hands grip onto the edge of the counter. 

he can acknowledge that his insecurities are clouding his judgement on something truly special, even though this was only ever meant to be purely physical.

except, the sex was growing more intimate. the experience wasn't about pleasure for him anymore. he would find himself losing all focus to the depth of your pretty eyes, stealing kiss after kiss like your mouth was the source of where all his happiness belongs.

belonged.

belonged.

it’s over now, he thinks again. it has to be.

a faint patter of footsteps distracts him, prompting him to ease his hold on the counter as the muscles on his face relax. his heart steadies itself, and he draws in a breath when he feels two arms delicately twine around his waist.

“you’re...still here...” he points out in shock. 

he feels you press your forehead into his back. “of course, where else would I be?” 

he clears his throat to release the guilt then spins on his heel to face you.

"I thought you might have taken off," he bluntly states as he rests his lower back against the counter.

his heart swells, emanates flurries of golden sparks when he meets your gorgeous irises. the will to carry on with his decision crumbles when he catches the corner of your mouth tick into a slight grin.

"I thought about it," you reply casually, loosening your grip to place your palms flat on the side of his stomach. "but the truth is I'm worried about you and I just…want to talk things out…make sure you're okay...”

“I’m the one acting like a jerk and you’re worried about me?” he blurts.

you quirk your brow at the slip of his question. “so, you know you’re acting like a jerk?”

toji’s eyes widen slightly, a hint of pink tainting his cheek. “I asked the question first.”

you purse your lips playfully, aware of the crack that's been revealed and ready to swing once again with another blow.

“it’s because you’re acting like a jerk that I’m worried about you,” you explain, “you’re not yourself when you’re unsettled about something…”

his face warms, the hue of pink deepening into a stronger blush. the familiarity of pointing out his personal traits feels all too homely. seven months shouldn’t feel like a forever but in this bubble with you time ceases to exist.

you trail the pads of your finger tips up his torso, your hands clasping around the back of his neck as you press all your soft and sweet parts right up against the frame of his body.

the brush of your lips on his scar prompts him to flutter his eyes close. he fails to stop himself from holding you then, his firm hands reaching for the outline of your waist

“so,” you murmur with a tempting kiss as you return to your question, “you know you’re acting like a jerk then?”

please don’t make me say it, he thinks, please don’t make me unravel right in front of your eyes.

he squeezes your side, whispering a defeated “listen…”

“did I do something wrong?” you question, a hint of pain laced through every vowel which only makes his heart ache further. “did something happen?”

toji shakes his head.

“it’s not you,” he grumbles. “look, you asked me a couple of weeks ago if this thing between us was serious and…it shouldn’t be.”

you narrow your gaze, tilting your head with adorable confusion that makes toji want to kiss you right there on the spot.

he can feel you pluck at the fabric of his sweater nervously, “why not?”

toji drops his head and sighs.

“c’mon, doll, let’s be real. I’ve got nothing to give you other than a good fuck in this shitty apartment. you're better off finding someone else and I don't want to waste your time”

you press your mouth into a firm line. “your behavior…” you reply, nipping your bottom lip slightly as you gather your thoughts. “are you acting like this because you…want to end things with me?”

toji has never felt smaller. you’ve reduced him into a shriveled pea rolling around his scuffed up boot. “look, it’s better this way, alright?” he admits with a raise of his head, still refusing to outwardly say what you easily deduced. “it's better to move on before things get too complicated…”

the silence hangs heavy in the air, the tension so thick toji feels like he can’t breathe properly. his heart rattles with no restraint, and he finds himself suddenly lightheaded. an apology rests on the tip of his tongue, ready to take back everything he just bombarded you with but his throat simply tightens once more when your hands cradle his strong jaw.

“I like your apartment,” you quietly speak, “your bed sheets always smell so good, and you fixed the water pressure after I complained that it sucked…”

toji blinks back his surprise.

“I also notice that you burn the candle that I got you and that you switched laundry detergents when your old one gave me that weird rash,” you giggle and toji couldn’t help but huff out an embarrassed laugh himself. “the windows let in the best kind of sunlight, and it’s always so cozy in here…”

you press your lips against his mouth to leave a chaste kiss, “as for the company…” you add on, nuzzling the tip of your nose over his, “I consider you more than just a good fuck.”

toji can physically feel himself wilting underneath the heat of your gaze. “I’m just looking out for you, doll.”

"you can look out for me by making me breakfast instead of running away from me..."

he looks serious but his eyes are sincere, holding a level of tenderness that he only reserves for you. his palm moves to seek out your lower back, a hint of pressure pulling you back into his warmth.

your lover has stayed tight lipped about his past, but over his period with you he's found himself spilling out a few secrets here and there.

"I haven't done this in a long time," he vulnerably admits.

"I know," you reassure him, "but...the real question is, do you want this?"

he parts his lips ready to seal the last nail in the coffin, ready to give you the chance to walk out of his life for good. but you're gazing up at him from underneath your eyelashes, your determined stare an opening of your own mercy. your plush, supple lips summoning his cowardice into oblivion.

"toji?"

his breath hitches, his apprehension silenced by the urgency of his desire.

you're so lovely, he thinks. you feel like home.

"I want you," he reveals, his deep voice smoky and untethered, releasing enough sentiment in those three words that he can feel you tremble in his arms. "I just don't deserve you. I don't want you getting caught up in my bullshit..."

""you're a lot sweeter than you look, you know?" you run your fingers through the streaks of his black hair, combing it back to reveal his forehead. "you deserve to be happy, toji, and...and I think I can make you happy..."

your aura beams with delight when he flashes you a wolfish grin in return. a smile you've grown to adore so deeply. his apology comes in the form of a kiss, one that's gentle and slow. a stroke of fire burns up the back of your neck, making you quiver in places when he glides his tongue across yours. you hum softly into his lips while he releases a content sigh, the barrier he's been keeping up turns to ashes beneath your feet.

[roosterr]

white flag ✹ ch 2

note: thank you all again for the support on this series im seriously so grateful <3 not sure how to feel abt this part but pls enjoy anyway <3

pairing: ghost x gn!reader

wc: 3.0k

no use of y/n readers callsign is 'stingray'

summary: the gang goes out to the pub, and against your better judgement you decide to tag along. you end up having far too much to drink and ghost has no choice but to look after you.

warnings: ghost is less mean (but it's still ghost), the usual angst, hurt/comfort, arguing, some ambiguous drunken confessions, mentions of throwing up but i kinda skipped over it

ao3

【prev】 || 【next】

the relentless buzzing of your phone next to your head wakes you from your slumber. you groan, squinting at the screen to see soap's name on the caller id. you answer and lift the phone up to your ear, rubbing your eyes with the other hand as you pull yourself up to sit.

"hey! where are you?" soap's voice is almost deafening in your ear as soon as you pick up, you have to hold the phone away from you to save your hearing. "y'are still comin', right?" the faint noise of a crowd can be heard in the background, reminding you of what soap's question means.

you check the clock on your phone and wince at the time; it was almost nine, and you were supposed to meet them at the pub at eight.

"ugh," you clear your throat, your voice croaking from having just woken up, "yeah– yeah, i'm coming. just gimme, like, fifteen minutes."

"awright, l.t. said you was still asleep," soap chuckles, clearly amused by your sleep-addled state. you sit up and throw the blankets off your legs, swinging them over the side of the thin mattress and beginning the search for some clean clothes.

you hadn't gotten out of bed all day, opting to stay in your comfy pyjamas and barely leaving the living room except to briefly eat and use the bathroom. after the the disaster that was yesterday, you felt you deserved to have a lazy day for once.

"oh, so he already left without me? why am i not surprised?" you grumble, balancing your phone between your cheek and your shoulder as you pull on some trousers.

"he said he didn't wanna wake you!" soap is half laughing as he replies. you have to hold back your scoff as you put him on speaker and drop the phone onto the coffee table as you quickly put your shirt on.

"yeah, okay." your voice is dripping with sarcasm, and you can't help but roll your eyes, even though he can't see it, "i'll be there, hanging up now, buh-bye."

you just about hear his muffled 'bye!' before you press the red button and shove your phone into your pocket. 

you really didn't feel like being social right now, but maybe being around your friends and letting go is what you need right now. you could just ignore ghost – it's not like it'd be hard, you were fully expecting him to completely avoid you all night. knowing him, he'd probably make you walk home by yourself again.

the walk to the pub is uneventful, thankfully dry, and it takes you twenty minutes instead of fifteen. you feel a little bad for making them wait, but they've been there over an hour already, an extra five wouldn't hurt.

the noise of the crowd hits you as soon as you walk into the old building, and you hope it isn't noticeable the way you frown at the sight of how packed it was. you were feeling even less like socialising now that you were actually here, but it was too late to turn back now. your eyes scan the room, searching for your teammates in the sea of people. you spot a familiar mohawk fairly quickly, and begin pushing your way through the crowd to the booth he and gaz are occupying.

you glance towards the bar and price and ghost both there, too locked in conversation to notice your arrival. you'd have to find price later to say hello.

"sting, you made it!" soap's cheery voice brings you back to the present. he pats your shoulder as you slump into the seat next to him, and gaz slides your usual order across the table to you.

"ordered for you a minute ago." gaz smiles, leaning forward on his elbows, "figured you could use it."

"you're legend, gaz, honestly." you chuckle in response, taking a drawn out sip and relaxing in your seat. as much as you would rather still be in bed right now, you couldn't deny you needed it.

"you okay? you look a bit worse for wear." gaz asks, his gaze turning serious as he takes in your exhaustion.

did you? you hadn't actually looked at your reflection before you left the house, you simply hoped that you didn't look too dishevelled and didn't think twice about it. you suppose the bags under your eyes must be quite heavy after the nosedive your life seems to have taken lately.

"charming, thanks for that." you mutter, teasingly raising your brows at him as you take another sip of your drink.

"sorry, sorry," he and soap both laugh, before he regards you with a more concerned look, "but seriously, you doin' alright?"

"i'm fine, just tired, you know how it is." you dismiss his question with a wave of your hand, hoping he'll drop the subject and you can get started on forgetting about the events of this week. "sorry for being late, by the way."

"make it up to us with another round?" soap wiggles an eyebrow at you, tilting his empty glass at you and nudging your arm. 

"since you asked so nicely," you say with a lighthearted roll of your eyes. they both give you a triumphant 'thanks!' as you slide out of the booth and begin making your way through the crowds of people to the bar.

as you approach, you see ghost standing by himself at the bar, a black surgical mask cover the lower half of his face, and before you can stop yourself your legs are already leading you to the empty spot next to him. as usual he doesn't acknowledge you, but you can't find it in yourself to care through the buzz of the alcohol in your system.

you flag down the bartender and order the drinks for the three of you while adamantly trying to ignore the large presence next to you; you'd barely started on your first drink, but you were going to need more than that to get through this, especially if you and ghost were going to be dancing around each other all night.

the next couple of hours are filled with you downing drink after drink, steadily becoming less and less intelligible as the night progresses. at some point gaz excused himself to go chat with price at the bar, leaving just you and soap at the table. though you couldn't see ghost when you looked over, you had no doubt he was lurking in some shadowy corner somewhere, just watching.

"he's just so…" you wave your hands around, willing johnny to somehow understand your point as the words escape you, "...y'know?"

"do i know?" he laughs, obviously very amused by your drunken state.

"mean! he's rude and uncooperative, and it pisses me off." you groan, pressing your fingers into your temples. venting to someone about ghost was somewhat cathartic for you, even if that someone was his closest friend.

"aye, that's not how you really feel though, is it?" soap raises his brow, that insufferably teasing smirk on his lips as he gives you a light nudge.

"wha–" you gawk, freezing in the motion of downing your drink – you'd lost count of how many you'd had at this point. you narrow your eyes and glare at him, "garrick… he grassed didn't he?"

"you think i needed him to tell me?" soap laughs again, and you feel your cheeks heat up at the thought that you were really that obvious. "but seriously, you should talk to him."

"i should, right? i mean… we live together, it's not unreasonable to ask him to be civil."

"exactly!" he exclaims, making encouraging gestures at you with his hands. "maybe you two can get a bit more than civil," he grins mischievously and wiggles his eyebrows at you, earning an embarrassed groan from you.

"oh, shut up soap." you hiss, gulping down the rest of your drink in one go. "i'm not drunk enough for this…"

after that conversation, your concept of time truly left the building, along with any reservations you had about moderation. eventually you do find time to say hi to price, though you think he was probably laughing at how out of your mind you were rather than the hilarious joke you told him.

you're not sure what time it is when gaz, soap, and the captain track you down to say goodnight, leaving the pub with much more coherency than you when ghost drags you out with him.

the freezing temperature hits you as soon as you step over the threshold, but thankfully there's more than enough alcohol in you to keep you warm.

you started the night fully intending to give ghost the cold shoulder, but that was hours and however many drinks ago; now you were long past the fun part of being wasted and the depressive nature of it all was hitting you hard.

"i wish you– you didn't hate me…" you mutter, dragging your feet as you follow behind ghost. he's not walking as quickly as he did yesterday, but even in your inebriated state you can tell he's making sure to stay ahead of you.

"i don't." he replies dismissively, evoking an exasperated, albeit rather dramatic sigh from you. of course he was going to argue about it, owning up and apologising would be far too mature.

"y–" you hiccup, "yeah you do," frustration lacing your voice. you slow your pace until you completely stop walking, staring at the back of his head with narrowed eyes.

"i don't hate you, sting." he sighs, half turning his body to look at you. "come on, keep walkin'." he gestures with his head.

"ugh…" you groan, but comply and stumble forward catch up to him again "then why're you such a fuckin' prick all the time?" you glare at the side of his masked face now that you're walking next to him.

he says nothing, doesn't even look at you. if you didn't know any better, you would doubt he even heard your question.

"i don't hate you, y'know…" you mumble,  crossing your arms over your chest. "even though you're so– so horrible to me all the time." the urge to cry overwhelms you, your eyes falling to your boots as you shuffle along.

"i'm n–"

"you are!" you interrupt, throwing your arms out to the side and stopping in your tracks again. "every day you say shit to me, i don't– i don't get it! i don't know what to do…" you sniffle, dragging a hand over your face and taking a wobbly step backwards, away from ghost. "why can't you just be nice? like everyone else?"

the night air is cold, and so tense you can almost feel it. ghost's hands curl into tight fists by his sides as he stares you down. 

"i'm your lieutenant, sting, not your mate." he states it like a common fact as he reaches an arm out to you, stepping towards you. "you're drunk, come here."

you don't let him get close, however, and take another few steps backwards. "but you're friends with soap, and gaz, and even the captain!" your eyes well up with tears, and despite your best efforts to stop them, you feel the hot sting of them rolling down your cheeks. "what did i do wrong? why can't you like me too?"

again, he does nothing but stare at you. he blinks once, then twice, in what you might call shock – if you could see his face through the way the world spins around you.

"i like you!" you cry. "i always have, and you– you don't have to like me back, but please," you close your eyes in an attempt to alleviate your sudden dizziness, "just stop being such a dickhead to me! you make my life so difficult, and– and miserable!"

"sting…" ghost mutters, watching as you crouch down on the pavement with your head in your hands. he steps closer again, reaching a hand out to awkwardly pat your shoulder. "is that why you got yourself hammered tonight?"

"yes!" you whine through your tears, your head still swimming and causing you to sway slightly. "like you care!"

"listen," he begins, but you quickly cut him off by lurching forward onto your hands and knees on the harsh pavement.

"i'm gonna throw up–"

✹✹✹

"i'm sorry," you blubber, feeling rather pathetic where you're slumped next to the toilet, "please don't kick me out," tears still fall into your lap, but you gave up wiping them away a while ago.

"what?" ghost mutters from next to you. his calloused hands were keeping you upright from where he's crouched beside you on the bathroom tile. "why the fuck would i kick you out?"

"be– because i'm annoying, a– and you hate me…"

he sighs, "do you really think that lowly of me? how many times have i gotta say it before it gets through your thick skull?" he gently raps his knuckles against your forehead, "i. don't. hate you."

when you only sniffle in response, he sighs again before shifting to sit with his back against the bath next to you.

"well you could've fooled me…" you mutter, letting yourself lean against his side when the effort of keeping yourself up gets too much. you feel him flinch slightly and tense underneath you, but he doesn't move.

"i'm not good with…" he pinches the bridge of his nose, his head tilted downwards and his eyes squeezed shut. "i'm not kickin' you out, alright? no matter how much you piss me off." he pauses, and all you can do is watch him with your mouth slightly agape; this is the most he's ever said to you in one go since you met all those months ago. "and i shouldn't have run off last night. i just… i didn't realise you actually wanted to be friends… with me."

"bu…" your voice trails off, train of thought completely abandoned when he looks over and meets your gaze with his rich brown eyes.

"you're… you– i, er…" his eyes dart away from yours, finding a spot on the wall behind you to stare intently at. a sudden wave of exhaustion floods your senses, dropping your head onto his shoulder and allowing your eyes to fall closed, interrupting whatever thought he was trying to articulate. "fuckin' hell, alright… you're drunk, let's just get you to bed, eh?" his voice is just about audible as he manoeuvres your arm over his shoulders and lifts you to stand with practically no input from you.

he all but drags you out of the bathroom, and if you had any shred of coherency left within you you'd be mortified that he had to take care of you like this, but that's something for you to deal with in the morning.

you're pulled into the the living room where ghost drops you rather unceremoniously onto the sofa-bed, tugging the blankets from underneath you and settling them on top of your already half asleep form.

"night ghosty…" your sigh is muffled with your face buried into the pillow, but he pauses in the doorway when he hears it.

"goodnight, sting." he mumbles, before quietly shutting the door and letting you drift to sleep.

you wake up the next morning – or rather afternoon, since it was already one o'clock – with an absolutely splitting headache. it was expected, obviously, but it didn't stop you whining in pain as you sat up and clutched your head. how much did you end up drinking last night?

last night. right. it was all coming back to you now. you'd cried at ghost again, for the second night running, and even though he said he wasn't kicking you out, you would seriously prefer living on the streets to facing him right now.

you reluctantly emerge from the living room and squint at the bright daylight, groaning pitifully when your head pulses. maybe you should save yourself the trouble and just go back to sleep.

"so, you survived the night." ghost's voice calls from the kitchen, sounding incredibly unimpressed. you cringe at his words, naively hoping that he'd pretend the night before didn't happen like you so desperately wanted to.

"did i?" you grumble, walking through the doorway to find him sitting at the kitchen table, clad in his usual balaclava. you lean against the counter and massage your temples, "feel like i've been shot…"

"maybe you'll keep your head on straight next time. i don't want a repeat of that."

you purse your lips. "right…" you mutter, no energy left in you to come up with a retort.

"i had to drag you home, cryin' your eyes out." he gets up as he speaks, grabbing his cup and skirting around you to place it in the sink. he keeps his distance, but you see him watching you from the corner of your eye. "anyone would'a thought i was kidnappin' you."

"oh god…" you bury your face in your hands, your face heating up with the humiliation of the memory, "i'm sorry,"

"s'alright." he mumbles, still opting to gaze out of the window rather than meet your eyes. you blink in surprise at his short dismissal, but before you can formulate a response, he speaks again. "have a shower, sting. you stink."

you open your mouth to argue, but quickly forget about that idea. he was right, of course. without another word, you scurry out of the kitchen and lock yourself in the bathroom. you drag your hand over your face, willing the floor to just swallow you whole already.

you might as well have just died in your sleep, because you can't see ghost letting you live any of this down for as long as you live; though, as you stand there contemplating fleeing the country, you notice that he hadn't been nearly as pissed as you'd expected him to be this morning. you'd anticipated him grilling you about how careless you'd been and how irresponsible it was to drink that much, but the light teasing you'd endured just now felt more like the kind of banter you witnessed between him and soap, or gaz.

you can't help the giddy smile that overtakes you, your killer hangover nearly forgotten in favour of the thought of him finally letting you get close to him.

taglist: @sofasoap , @siilvan , @mockerycrow , @i-love-ghost , @projectdreamwalker , @achelois-is-here , @adamsloverboy , @thatchickwiththecamera , @chickensandwich69 , @batmanunicorns523 , @tiny-kasper , @dezibou , @pampeop , @cumbermovels , @goth-boi-atlas , @berryjuicyy , @guiltgoreglory , @postmodernrevolutionist , @ghostlythots , @untoldshortsofthefandoms , @isseisslvt , @prodyng , @neteyamsb1tch , @delilah-grimes , @sunflowerqueen1416 , @luvssemma , @ghostslittlegf , @imonmykneessir , @dimitriene , @kenz-ee , @eistro-phobia , @rzmarona , @alanalanalanalanalanna , @dommmymommy , @carolelacroix , @1234ilikecowsthanyoumore , @cathnoneofyourbusiness , @madsothree , @geisterfvhrer , @lazyninjaphilosopher , @aliilium , @koi-feish , @chaoticgoblindev

if your name is crossed out, i can't tag you for whatever reason, sorry!

[wongyuuu]

red | csc

pairing: seungcheol x f!reader genre: smut word count: 1.6k warnings: minors do not interact, kissing, a little bit of dirty talking, swearing, oral (male), masturbation (female), unprotected sex (please wrap it up kids), sort ot public sex, car sex a/n: not entirely sure how this one happened but here we are i guess. this was not how the story was supposed to go, i had different plans and maybe i'll write them later. if you filled the form to be tagged in my fics but was not tagged for this one, it means that you are either a minor or i didn't find your age anywhere in your blog.

this is part of my series, seventeen as songs from red (ts)

Seungcheol ➝ Red Faster than the wind, passionate as sin, ending so suddenly ↳ the sight of seungcheol driving had always been your favorite but when both of you were trying to escape while being chased down by the police, you couldn't help but make things a little more… interesting

“Baby, no, you can’t be serious” Seungcheol complained, his voice a weird mixture of moan and groan as he looked between the road and your hand that was dangerously close to the waist of his jeans. 

He looked at you again, but your eyes were focused on the rear windscreen, a small smile playing on your lips as the cops struggled to follow along. Clearly, the police academy should provide driving lessons, because there was no way those men were actually that bad at driving. 

“It’s going to be fun” you whispered against his skin. 

You pressed your lips over his jawline, right where it connected with his ear, going down his neck, lightly biting into his skin. Your kisses trailed down his neck until his collarbone, where you pressed them over his sweet spot, sucking his skin hard enough to leave a mark. 

You enjoyed knowing that his skin was marked by you.  It was only fair that he too carried marks after leaving a few of them himself all over your body. It had been hard to explain to your sister, ever so naive, how you had gotten those bruises. She saw you as sincere enough, pure enough, to believe that some of it had been due to your clumsy nature. Good thing she never saw the ones right above your panties and the two on your inner thighs. 

“We're going to get caught” 

Seungcheol had always been the first one to throw any sort of caution out the window and he was never one to tell you no. If you wanted something, it was yours. If he didn't have what you wanted, he was sure to get it for you. So when you undid the button of his jeans and slid your hand in, pushing his underwear and pants down just enough to set his semi-hard cock free, Seungcheol didn't complain. 

His words of caution had been a lot more for you than for him. You had been his quiet and shy girl, who sometimes got scared when the cars were too loud. He wasn't certain when that new version of you had come out, but he knew he liked it a lot.

Truth be told, it wasn't really a new version of you, but a you that was only his to see and know about.

“Do you really want Kyle back there to see me choke on your dick?” you pressed your lips to the corner of his mouth “Imagine the view he's going to get… my ass in this tiny skirt in the air, you dick in my mouth, my eyes filled with tears because you're too big to fit into my mouth but I want to take you all way”

God, he loved it when your mouth got a little dirty. 

Seungcheol grabbed your hair, pushing your head down into his cock. You smiled, finally happy that he had given it. You loved that he was willing to pull back but also loved that he didn't hesitate to say yes to you sucking him off.

You licked him, from the base to tip. Your hand pumped him once, twice, three times. A fourth one just for good measure, to be certain that he was almost fully hard before you took him into your mouth.

The moan that left Seungcheol's lips caused a wave of tingles to dance through your body, all the way to your core and you couldn’t help but moan too. 

The sounds he made while you sucked him had always turned you on. So to have him driving — probably your favorite thing about him — and moaning for you, while his hand was tangled in your hair, forcing your head down until his dick touched the back of your throat turned you on in ways that you didn't think were possible.

You had never been one for public sex. Not just public, but anywhere near someone else, or where someone else could hear the faintest sound. But with Seungcheol all of your inhibitions had been left behind and he was all that you could see and feel and want.

He went from the hot driver who helped you escape an illegal race, to the hot driver/boyfriend you were sucking off while being chased down by the cops. 

“Balls too” you managed to pull back long enough to say.

You pushed Seuncheol's jeans a little further down, glad he was willing to help by raising him hips just enough. Once all of him was out for you, you leaned over him again. Your hand was on his cock while your mouth was busy a little more down.

He let out a grunt when you grazed him with your teeth, moaning again when you took him again. His hand was back in your hair, maybe it had never even left, guiding you up and down, at the pace he liked the most. As if you didn't know it already, as if you hadn't memorized it.

“I love your mouth, so much,” he said, holding your head down “You take me so well, baby” 

Tears started to form in the corner of your eyes, spit Dripping out and coating all of him. You snaked your free hand into your soaked panties, needing some sort of pressure too. You moaned when the tip of your middle finger grazed your clit, the tiniest bit of stimulation enough to make your head almost spin.

“Are you touching yourself, baby?” whichever incoherent sound left your mouth was enough of confirmation to Seungcheol “I bet you're pulsing around nothing, begging to be filled.  Ready for me”

You moaned again, rubbing your clit a little more desperately than before. If you were going to get Seungcheol to his release, it was only fair that you got some sort of your own too.

Seungcheol looked at the rearview mirror for a second, when he reached the exit he was looking for, opting to get away from the main road. Those cops weren't aware of the alternative road, so you were almost out of any danger — if such a thing had even existed, for a moment at least.

He pulled you up, his hand on your jaw. He loved to turn you into a mess, with tear-stained cheeks and spit all over you. Your hand never left your pussy when he pulled you to him. He kissed you for a second, doing his best to keep the car moving, still on the road.

“Come ride me” he whispered against your lips.

Your eyes gleamed and you moved, pulling your skirt up and shoving your panties to the side. Seungcheol pushed his seat back, as far as he could go, to make room for you.

The position was a little awkward but it didn't matter as you angled his tip with your entrance, slowly coming down on him.

A long moan left your lips, until he was all the way inside you. You loved the burning sensation he always gave you, almost as if he was too much, like he wasn't going to fit in you. But he always did.

“How are you even tighter?” he moaned, his mind going blank for a second at the overwhelming feeling of taking you in public, of you riding him, of how your pussy sucked him in in desperation, of taking you bare.

Slowly, like torture, to started to move up and down, as much as you could. You moved your hips up, until he almost completely out and then let yourself fall into him. 

“Cheol” you begged, for what it was uncertain.

You wanted, needed, all of him, all over you.

“Take it, baby, it's yours”

Your moves became frantic, a mixture of bouncing on him, while grinding on him, searching for as much friction as you possibly could. 

Seuncheol moved your hand from his neck to your pussy, pressing your own fingers to open yourself up even further, giving you more room for friction.

“Cheol…” you moaned again, your voice louder as you moved over him “You're so so deep like this”

He no longer could take it. He pulled the car to the side of the road. The police had long been left behind and he had gotten to the point of not caring anymore. You were over him, almost on breaking point. He cared about getting you off, about seeing your eyes roll as your orgasm took over. 

“I got you, baby,” he said while kissing you “I've got you”

Seungcheol held your hips and started to pound into you at a relentless pace. He wanted to chase his high while giving you yours.

You moaned into his shoulder when he pressed a hand to your groin at the same time you started to rub your clit again, matching his pace.

“Cum with me, baby”

His words sent your body into a frenzy, your orgasm taking over as your entire body shook. Seungcheol swallowed all of your incoherent moans and words, his high following yours. He only stopped moving when all that was left was the small spams on your legs.

You leaned your head back when Seunchheol tugged at your hair. He loved that expression on you, when you were completely fucked out and pleased. He liked knowing that he had made it happen.

“Hi” he whispered

You laughed a little, your eyes still closed.

“So sex while the cops chase us turns you on, huh?” he said kissing your neck, enjoying the small goosebumps erupting on your skin “Fully noted”

taglist: @wonwooz1, @mirtaspace, @feat-sun, @belladaises, @immabecreepin, @miriamxsworld, @aaniag, @byunparklimchoi, @k-drama-adict, @maiamorrrrrrrrrrrr, @roguesthetic, @sofix-hc7, @moonlightgrleric, @mixling-blog, @haowonbins, @valgracia, @slut4donghyuck

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[dreadlock-detective]

Hyrule Hulligans Harrass Dilf Dining Establishment

I'm playing around with figuring out tweaks to my cartoony art style for a project I'm working on and decided to test it out more by trying it on these four doofuses. I have to say, I'm really proud of how it came out. Look at how it came out! Look at the shape of Yunobo's doofy head!

That said, I need to actually go back and beat Tears of the Kingdom some time. Sadly I've heard that the Ganondorf Diner shenanigans have been patched out? Not that I'd end up doing that anyway but damn was that funny!

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

Since this post will likely have more reach than most, I want to keep testing out this style on more characters and to that end I'd like to announce a limited time special for December 2-10th 2023!

More info (and a few drawings I haven't posted) under the cut!

STYLE COMMISSION INFO

So yeah I want to practice this style and other folks always seem to have neat ideas I wouldn't think of and I'm trying to raise some money to help send my wife on a trip next summer! Let's make cool stuff happen!

Details:

Please email zeratanus AT gmail DOT com with the subject Style Commission

Cost is $25 USD, paid upfront via paypal. I'll send an invoice out for you once we've agreed on the commission

1 full body character, colored and cell shaded, no background

Please provide an image reference of the character, preferably in color and full body

Either OCs or Fanart is fine

Safe for Work Only

Unlike my usual commissions, these are supposed to be quick so no approval process. Once the commission is confirmed I'll get to work and post the finished product here on Tumblr when it's done

if you want to be tagged when its posted, please include your tumblr username in the email. Sometimes Tumblr refuses to tag certain accounts so I can't promise this hellsite will work but I'll certainly try!

I'm down to hear a bit about the the character's personality and try to incorporate that but the pose itself is up to me.

I think that's everything! If that sounds good to you, drop me a line!

Guess I'll end off with a few more unposted test images for the project this is actually for!