#{ don't exist because he isn't really sure what to do with himself at the moment. }

[queenvhagar]

Initial thoughts on HOTD season 2 episode 1 "A Son for a Son:"

Alicole

Maybe an unpopular opinion but Alicole seemed to appear out of thin air so quickly with not one but two sex scenes in one episode... Like when did this start? Who started it? How did these characters suddenly get to this place of complete sexual liberation in this way based on literally everything we know about these characters and this world up until this point? Alicent is a deeply religious widow of the king who has lived decades in servitude to the realm without much thought to her own desires and Criston is a knight of the Kingsguard sworn to celibacy who broke his vow once with royalty and almost killed himself out of guilt. Somehow they're at the point where he's giving her head in the middle of the day and she's riding him at night in her bed and the build up is just... non existent save one look and line in season 1 episode 9. Like... what's going on here?

For the first scene I was like "ohh cunnilingus is technically not breaking his vow in a way so maybe this is how they get around the whole Kingsguard vow/honor thing" but then she's just full on riding him later and the way the show shows us this is through the perspective of Helaena as she walks in on them with Jahaera as she's coming directly from B+C sawing Jahaerys' head off in his bed. If Alicole was about reclaiming pleasure or connecting in dark times, there's something there. But compare this almost voyeuristic view of Alicole sex to the focus on female sexual pleasure given to Rhaenyra's sex scenes in the first season... it kind of weird of the show to now just have Alicole have sex as some weird "woah what the heck" bit at the end of the B+C sequence, as if the whole end of the episode really needed some extra shock value. It doesn't even really need to be there to explain why Alicent and Criston weren't there to see B+C... It happens far enough away that the two could've been doing anything else and not have known it was happening.

Alicole sex and particularly this second scene really adds nothing narratively. I would have preferred that Alicent witness B+C like in the original or be doing literally anything else, because the point of Alicole sex in the show of course isn't on their pleasure or their relationship or anything it's just some moments we're intruding on.

I'm not sure why they felt the need to add this element. We already know Criston defends Alicent no matter what and we didn't need to add sex for that to hit. We also know they have a weird bond with weird feelings so like the sex doesn't add much. Like good for them but character wise I don't really see how this realistically developed. I also am not sure about the power dynamics given she is his personal guard, but since they didn't devote any thought to this is season 1 when Rhaenyra forced sex on him, I doubt they will stop to consider how he ended up getting into another sexual relationship with a royal and/or his thoughts about the whole thing. Basically the "after the episode" clip explained that they think Cole is the most messed up character in the show who just flaunts his responsibilities and vows left and right... and that's about as far as they're gonna go about it. Basically: look, he's a hypocrite! But we knew this already.

Blood and Cheese

I'm glad that the show at least let Daemon basically instruct B+C to take a son for a son no matter what if they couldn't find Aemond like he and Rhaenyra initially intended... However they did cut before Daemon literally said it so count on TB stans to give him the benefit of the doubt despite it all 🙄

I still think the book B+C is supremely superior without the weird walking in on Alicole voyeuristic thing and with Helena choosing between her two sons instead of the twins, but for some reason they erased Maelor to make TB look better in the long run and not have to deal with the whole "Rhaenyra puts a bounty on a toddler that gets him torn apart by a mob" thing... so I guess they're going with what they've got...

I do appreciate the build to the moment, the anxiety and atmosphere leading to what will happen. Very well done cinematically. Imagine this plus being committed to sticking to the source material... The amazing scene that could have happened. However the realistic sawing off a six year old's head sound as his mother picks up her six year old daughter and walks out of the room was something that really makes you remember the horror element of early seasons Game of Thrones and something I really appreciate that they let us have. Could it have been better? Yes. Is the book version better? Yes. But I am overall ok with what we got (minus the ending because... wtf) and I'm really looking forward to the fallout we'll get next week.

[softmangoes]

one wish | joseph x reader

18+ only | for @lichilly (thank you for being so sweet!)

author's note: if you liked this, please check out my ongoing pre-canon SDJ fic!

_

there was a knock at the door.

"it's open," joseph called as he looked at himself in the mirror, making sure to rub off a stray patch of paint the makeup team managed to miss.

after a moment, you slipped in, closing the door behind you with a click. you had one hand behind your back - a sure sign that you had some kind of surprise in mind.

"don't tell me it's another script revision," he groaned. it had taken him hours to memorize the newest song for the next episode and his fingers were sore from all the strumming. "i don't think i can handle any more."

but you simply smiled in that easy way that always made him want to turn away. it was just so gentle, that smile. it was softer than anything he had ever deserved.

"you didn't tell me it was your birthday today," you said. "i had to find out through dan."

goddamn daniel. his castmate was a good guy, but he had a big mouth.

"i'm not into parties." they were too loud. crowded. he had never been one to want to be the center of attention.

"i didn't say there had to be a party," you replied, taking your hand from behind your back to reveal what you had been hiding.

in your palm was a large cupcake topped with a fluffy white frosting and a smattering of sprinkles. a red candle had been stuck in the middle of it.

you pulled out a lighter and with a few quick flicks of your thumb, lit the short wick.

"it can be just us," you said, eyes glowing as the flame flickered in your palm.

joseph had never had anyone celebrate him for any reason at all, let alone the day he came into existence, but he was aware of what he had to do. "you want me to make a wish?"

"anything you want," you beamed.

"anything i want," he repeated, inhaling to loosen the tightness in his chest.

in truth, there was only one wish he had. it was a wish he would tell himself as he lied awake at night staring at the ceiling of his motel room, it was a wish he'd hum as he learned each new song, it was a wish that he only ever confessed he had in the quiet of his solitude.

and here you were, now. with him. as if all those days and nights had built up to this very moment.

joseph took in a breath. you were so beautiful. ever since he had met you, he never had the courage to tell you that.

tentatively, he placed his hands over yours, craned his neck lower so that his mouth was near the bright flame, and blew.

"what was the wish?" you asked as the smoke curled into the air. after a moment, you set the cupcake onto his desk.

he hesitated. "it's bad luck if i tell you, isn't it?"

"not if it's a secret," you said, a smile curling at the corner of your mouth. "but i really would like to know."

joseph swallowed. what could he say to that?

"do you really want to know?" he asked, his heart threatening to burst out of his chest.

"tell me."

he paused. "close your eyes, then."

you obeyed, clasping your hands behind your back.

thoughts raced through his head, a buzz of static that threatened to overwhelm him. he could stop this. he could turn you away. he could deny himself this moment, as he did with all of the others.

he inhaled, cool air filling his lungs, before he took your face in his hands and kissed you.

it was a soft kiss. a gentle kiss. a kiss that asked if all of this was okay, if he could want you like this.

and it was okay, because you brought your own hands to his face, ran your fingers through his hair as you pulled him towards you.

your lips were so warm, so soft. if he could, he would wish for this moment to never end.

"there," he said, face burning as he pulled away. "i told you."

when you smiled this time, it was full of so much affection that it made his heart swell.

"tell me more," you said, pressing a kiss along his jaw and curling a finger at his collar. "please? it's your birthday, after all."

[chronosbled]

In any case, here: a Crystal slowly coming from behind to bite Dickson.

☣ — CRIMSON-BLUE SPLICED IRISES GAZED DOWNWARD TOWARDS THE VARIOUS ASSORTMENT OF BODIES THAT LAID MOTIONLESS AT HIS FEET, blood still flowing freely from freshly created wounds, forming a rather large puddle that began to stain into the fabric of black boots. Hilt of his sword still held firmly within his grasp meanwhile the blade remained placed against the dirtied ground, not sitting quite upright, but more or less haphazardly tilted — thus making it evident that his mind was elsewhere despite his physical body remaining here, but where his mind was would be a question that goes unanswered if he were ever to be asked — after all, he made it a point in his life to never answer personal questions asked of him. His left hand is slow to rise to his face, moving in a fashion that appeared to be him wiping away sweat, but instead he merely ended up smudging a splatter of blood onto his cheek just below his eye.

☣ — It had been some time since he'd traveled from the Tyr Empire all the way to the Black Rose, LEAVING BEHIND EVERYTHING THAT HE ONCE KNEW AS HIS HOME (OR RATHER IT HAD NEVER BEEN HIS HOME TO BEGIN WITH, perhaps he had only stayed because he had no where else to go) — it wasn't like Randolph would listen to a single thing he had to say after all, instead he encouraged the raven to "behave like the good little heir" he was supposed to be — thus why he had decided to take matters into his own hands. He had grown tired of doing his grandfather's bidding after all, but alas, things weren't much different for him now. He was still using his skills to do another's bidding, but at least this time he could do so with full conviction, especially since he had grown a rather deep soft spoke for one of the leaders of the Black Rose. Though he's pulled from his thoughts the moment he hears someone approaching him from behind. Normally he would turn with the instinct to fight, to protect himself, but this time he did no such thing. Instead he simply allowed the other to draw closer until delicate fingertips gently pulled the back half of his mask down, followed by the sudden sensation of teeth piercing into the soft flesh on the back of his neck, earning a slight grunt to escape from pressed lips hidden behind black fabric, irises moving ever so slowly to the side in attempt to look at the culprit.

☣ — CRYSTAL SLEVANT, leader of the Spring Layer of the Black Rose. The very woman that struck fear into the hearts of many with a simple usher of her name, much like his grandfather. There's silence between the two for what seems like a few moments, almost as if he had to drop the act of a mass murdered and get back into the character of a love-struck fool, "I wasn't expecting you to check on me during my task... let alone bestow such a reward unbefitting of me," that much is evident given how his voice still had yet to shift from it's low tone to a much softer one. "As you can see, I have taken care of the spies just as you have ordered. If you so wish it, I am more than ready to take on another task for you, my queen." With that, he takes a small step forward and away from the female, finally turning around to face her before kneeling down, gaze lowered towards blood soaked boots. Yet despite all his grandstanding, he could seem to hide the slight shade of color that had spread to the tips of his ears.

[rizsu]

professional guide on how to boyfriend jujutsu kaisen ( men ).

⤹ list ﹢ gojō satoru, sukuna ryōmen, chōsō.

﹙ syn ﹚ having near-to-zero experience with serious romantic relationships, it's time to teach them how to romance. the journey won't be easy, but the results will hopefully be fruitful.

extra. songs: betcha (bbh), seven (jk), very nice (svt).

week one : how to flirt as if you were shakespeare. note. refrain from using big words because they sound ‘cool’.

GOJO SATORU — "you're hating on my vocabulary?"

slowly, but very surely, you can feel your stress-meter rise to its peak. if someone were to animate your current expression, there will be three veins protruding out on your forehead to show your stress. it's almost as if it's second-nature for satoru to be annoying. he isn't doing it on purpose, unfortunately, it's just the way he is.

i should've ignored his call, a voice in your head speaks, i really should've. you were enjoying your own presence, simply lazing around during your off-day when three rings disrupted the peace. groaning, you reluctantly picked it up.

"hello—"

"come to enha's bakery, PLEASE," satoru's rushed voice spoke, immediately ending the call after his request-demand.

annoyance dawned and slowly transitioned into confusion. first, he needs to fix his habit of cutting you off. second, with the tone of his voice, maybe you should go.

big mistake.

not only was he chewing your ears off with talking, he also ate half of your pastry. you weren't able to get a full sentence in, he just kept going. dressed in suit and tie, hair styled and gelled up, satoru looked handsomely professional. according to what you've gathered from his rambling, he's been set up with one of the higher ups' daughter for business purposes. he needs to woo her or he's gonna lose a significant amount of pay. the problem? well, his flirting skills aren't all that. his confidence can help him, but it'll only help for a fraction of the date.

"what's the issue? you're handsome," you started, sliding your pastry back to you. "you should be able to woo her with your face alone."

"you are not wrong—"

"i'm never wrong," you cut him off.

"let me speak. anyway, i was informed that she isn't one for looks alone. i don't care about her, but she's the daughter of some high fucker," his voice reeked of defeat.

you weren't well-knowledged in satoru's field of work, but you knew he had it against the "higher ups." well, you had no choice but to know. satoru often thought of you as someone he can be free with — so, in conclusion, you were the victim of his word-vomit moments.

the two of you fell silent, thinking about solutions to save satoru. eyeing the pastry, you pondered your brain. there has to be a way to help satoru. perhaps some walkie-talkies? no, those are too loud. follow him into the restaurant and monitor his behaviour? no, that's too much work. crash his date and ask him why he's cheating on you? no, that'll probably end in your death.

satoru himself is deep in thought, already annoyed at the date that's going to become the bane of his existence in eight hours from now. should he bring you with him? maybe, but you'll deny his offer. should he ask you to pretend to be his girlfriend? no, he'd rather ask without the "pretend."

oh he's fucked.

i'm so fucked.

"wait," you leaned into the table, sporting an expression that says 'i have an idea'.

"yes?" satoru mirrors you, eyes speaking 'tell me'.

"what if i teach you how to flirt? we should have enough time to teach you how to boyfriend, right?" your idea was good. it turned the gears in both minds.

satoru opens his mouth but presses it into a thin line. there's an obstacle in the way of making this idea perfect.

"sounds good but.. the date's... tonight."

"you are fucked."

he nods at your response, feeling the salt rubbing in his wound. i guess i should just—

"but, if we go now we'll have enough time. it's 11AM, we can do it," you tapped your index finger twice on your phone's screen, showing satoru the time. if you move now, success is evident.

"let's go then," agreeing, he stands up, stuffing his car keys into his pocket and opening his wallet.

—

you've run out of pillows and whiteboard markers. the last two hours were spent either scribbling nonsense on a mini-whiteboard or throwing objects at satoru. the teaching isn't working. every lesson you've gone through ended in satoru's failure. is it on purpose? you hope it isn't.

"satoru, for the last time, that does not sound like a real word!" your hand slapped the table, physically showing your frustration.

groaning, satoru throws his head back, "you said use poetic words!"

"what part of scrumdiddlyumptious sounds poetic to you?!" you deadpanned at him.

he slouches further down the couch, grabbing his phone to search the word on google. it took him only one minute to find the word and its definition. raising up from slouching, he leans over the coffee table, stretching an arm out to show you the word.

"scrumdiddlyumptious — adjective · informal 1. (of food) extremely tasty; delicious. 2. (of a person) very attractive."

reluctant to admit defeat, you weaponized the word being informal against him, "it's not formal! you will not use it."

satoru's high of being right dies down immediately. his mouth twitches, eyes looking at you with disbelief.

"babe, you cannot be serious right now."

"babe, i am so serious right now," you mocked him, not thinking too deep into his nickname. there's no meaning behind it anyway. you, too, use babe as platonic name.

eventually, satoru tuned out your voice. he returned back to his previous slouching position, staring at you blankly as your words go in one ear and out the other.

it didn't take long for you to notice his dejected aura. does he hate it that much? you wondered, feeling a slight pity for him.

"don't worry, satoru. it's just one date."

"i will be worrying," satoru counters you, already sour at the date-to-come.

if he were to be honest, the date isn't the problem, nor is the flirting. he believes his flirting skills to be at a decent level. he also doesn't mind spending money on others. it's just that he doesn't want to entertain her. maybe, just maybe, if it were you, he'd be more excited.

you didn't say anything after him, only shooting him an annoying smile. seriously, you don't know what's worrying him. he's basically every girl's eye candy — not to mention, he looks so much like a boyfriend right now. that doesn't make a lot of sense, but if others can see what you're seeing, they'll understand. his white fitted tee accentuates his upper body's muscles, the black sweatpants do its job, his hair that's still styled, and the silver wristwatch on his hand. simple, yet sexy.

SUKUNA RYOMEN — "i'm too old for this shit."

sukuna, your sweet sukuna. your sukuna who's most likely weighing out which option is the better one to shut you up. he doesn't know why he agreed to listen to your rambles at midnight, but he's too far in to call it quitsies.

according to what you told him, you gained the idea of teaching him how to update his romance. it all came crashing to you when you were in the third-quarter of an episode of some random dating show. you blanked out most of the episode, not paying attention as the main objective of watching it was to not stare into nothing while eating.

the show itself didn't interest you, but the concept did. the participants were blindfolded, being told to use their judgement of character to choose their date. they'd have to rely on their personalities and voices to attract someone — a pretty neat idea. looks aren't everything. unfortunately, they might just be for sukuna if he doesn't work on his attitude.

often does sukuna act like he's a fifty-five-years-old office worker named penelope in the management department: old, easily annoyed, and always has something to complain about. you're probably the only human on earth who can handle sukuna for more than a day. of course, this is due to you being similar to him — if not then exactly like him. your attitudes fit together like jigsaw puzzle pieces.

sukuna's hands are clasped together behind his head, one leg raised on the bed, and torso out in the open for everyone to view. he's actively listening to you, giving his judgement here and there.

you're sitting with your legs criss-crossed, a pillow in the middle of your thighs, and hands speaking their own language. the habit of using your hands expressively when talking will never leave you.

"...so, if you were to find a girl, you neeed to be kind! no one likes a man with a stick up his ass," you warned sukuna, moving your index finger side-to-side.

"you do," sukuna says, raising an eyebrow at you.

unfortunately, he left you speechless — but not for long! you soon regained your speaking skills after realizing you don't have a good comeback.

coughing two times, you started your lesson again, "anyyyway, always tell her she's beautiful, gorgeous, breathless, or whatever. everyone loves a little compliment about their appearance!"

almost as if it's an automatic setting, sukuna replies, "what if she's facially challenged?"

"OH—" your jaw dropped. "sukuna, you can't just say that!"

he re-positions himself, this time laying on his side with his arm supporting his head.

"if someone's visually impaired i'm telling them."

you sighed, feeling disappointed at his brutual honesty, "what do you even mean by visually impaired?"

"they're ugly," he shrugs.

his tone isn't serious, implying that he's joking but you know he isn't. sukuna's a man of his word; the truth is what leaves his mouth every time. you shouldn't worry — you really, really shouldn't, but what if that's what he thinks about you? are you facially challenged in his eyes? you've gone silent, allowing yourself to drown in the thoughts.

sukuna notices your silence, sighs, and jabs your side with his foot.

"if you're thinking that i believe you're ugly, then stop," he begins, continuing the foot-jabbing-at-your-side-movement when you don't respond. "you're beautiful, believe me. you know i don't lie."

that catches your attention. you feel a sudden heat creeping up the back of your neck. keeping your voice low, you questioned him, still unsure of whether he's being truthful or not, "are you lying?"

"i swear," his voice is firm, reaching his free hand out to your thigh. physical contact to him is very important!

you return to the silence, only this time you lock your eyes in sukuna's. it's up to you to believe whether he's lying or not, and honestly, you don't care. you know he never lies, and you rather enjoy your fantasy instead of the harsh reality ( if he's truly lying ).

CHOSO — "man, fuck all that."

throughout your entire life you never expected to meet someone like choso. he is, in your words, a bitch boy. acts like a bitch, very expressive with his facial expressions, sarcastic, a male, and the worst of all, a little thief.

you humbly thought baking with choso would've been a good idea for celebrating the end of your finals. oh you were so wrong. he's messy, ate half the chocolate chips, and has been stealing spoons of cookie batter. when you confronted him, he simply said, "we can always make more," and shrugged. the audacity!

there's only so much choso someone can handle before they explode.

"you dumb fuck, how can you get a wife with this behaviour?!" you scolded, slapping his hand away from the freshly baked batch of cookies with a whisk.

he immediately retreats his hand, looking at you with an expression that says 'have you gone insane?'

"don't look at me like that," you warned, raising an eyebrow at his very well-hidden annoyance at you.

choso rolls his eyes, this time reaching the uninjured hand for the sprinkles. he sneakily slides the packet to him, intensely watching you to make sure you don't happen to see him committing such a crime. mouthing a little "yes!" at his victory, he empties half the sprinkles in his hand and throws it into his mouth.

"an’ wha’ if i ‘on't care about a wife," his words are muffled due to his mouth being filled with the sprinkles. he tries his best to hide the crunch sound, lowering his head each time he needs to crunch on some.

your back's still turned to him, simply too busy with monitoring sugar-soon-to-be-caramel on the stove.

"you're gonna have to care soon. you don't wanna die alone!" you nagged, making a point to him.

his right eyebrow raises at your words, lips ready to move at your hypocrisy, "you yourself said you don't want a partner!"

"at this point," you stopped, turning around to face choso. "i'm gonna have to teach you how to be a romantic young man."

"what are you implying...?"

"it's time for dating lessons."

"no, thank you."

unfortunately, choso has no say in this household. he had to listen. you sat him down on the chair, making sure he focuses with all his attention and doesn't steal any of the desserts. believe choso when he said he tried to take you seriously. he really did, but your messy apron along with vigorously hand-mixing batter with a serious expression as you talked his ear off caught him off-guard.

"sometimes you even have to get on your knees, choso! i'm telling you."

"i'm not doing all of that," he disagrees.

"oh, trust me. when you're in love you will," you spoke, resting the hand-mixer down to draw an invisible heart in the air.

he doesn't give you a verbal response. instead, he squints his eyes at you. when one's gone, another is born. when one stress is gone, another is born ( your nagging ). he doesn't like it one bit, but at least it's coming from you. he'd rather have you down his ears — whether it's by using your vocals or channeling your inner mother and scolding him.

[nikkotinamide]

my observations and take on some nuances not conveyed in translation

my drawn out summary part 2!

*Disclaimer: I'm not critiquing existing translations, I think the translators have done a phenomenal job! Just wanted to add my 2 cents worth.

Part 1

Language Use in Kiseki

Ep 4 Cont

More tears. This scene hurts so bad. Ai Di actually says "Blind or what? Having followed him for so long, it's not as though unaware of whom he likes..." It's difficult to translate these lines because there are no first person pronouns used. On one hand, it's Ai Di scolding himself for holding on to his unrequited feelings for Chen Yi (seen in the translation above). On the other hand, he is also scolding Chen Yi for the same thing with regards to CDY.

Ep 5

Time for some comedy to soothe the angst. Our boy really went to school punning and naming himself Edison (and I think the intent was with Thomas Edison in mind lmao).

Ep 8

There's so much we don't know about Ai Di. Here Chen Yi actually asks if Ai Di wants to return to school. Coupled with how Ai Di deflected and told him to stop joking around, and how he told Zong Yi he doesn't need to attend school because he's a genius, it suggests that Ai Di has some regrets about not having the normal life peers his age lead.

Ep 9 💔

This was the most heartbreaking scene imo. Here Ai Di says "你再怎么喜欢他，你再怎么努力，他看的永远不会是你。" - "No matter how much you like him, no matter how hard you try, the one he looks at will forever not be you." While it's clear it's directed at Chen Yi, to a degree it's also Ai Di directing it at himself.

He goes on to say "会看着你的他妈只有我。" 他妈 is a vulgarity (essentially meant to insult someone's mother) which the subtitles and translation have censored, and this line translates into "The only fucking person who will look at you is me."

Let's make it angstier. Ai Di says "只有我，从小看到大。我蠢，我猪。", which has been translated into "Only I, for all my life...I'm such a stupid fool". The translation is fine but it doesn't reflect just how vulnerable Ai Di was in this moment, as though he heart was breaking right alongside Chen Yi’s. My translation would be "Only I, since I was young till now when I am old, have been looking at you. I'm naive. I'm foolish."

This is the line that has made me tear every single rewatch. Ai Di isn't stupid but he is aware that he is being foolish, chasing so desperately all his life after someone who doesn't see him as anything more than a brother .

Ai Di regrets and he says "这件事我帮你扛，抵昨天晚上的事情行吧。我说行就行。" which has been translated into "I'll take the blame for you to make up for what I did to you last night. It's a deal." I felt it was more of a resigned question Ai Di poses, "I'll carry the blame for you, to make up for yesterday night's affair, alright? If I say that's fine, then it's fine."

I was surprised to see this! Here, because Ai Di will not follow willingly, Chen Yi picks him up, and he purposely steps over the pot of burning coal on Ai Di's behalf. I'm not too sure if it's a Chinese thing or religion thing, but in my home country, some Chinese (esp the older folks) say that upon returning home after incarceration, one has to step over burning coal to wash away the bad luck. Very neat that they included this custom!

The same thing Ai Di tells Zong Yi not to say "再见" - see you again; they wouldn’t want to see prison again (which has been translated into goodbye).

This is why people think ChenAi switch, also courtesy of Hsu Kai who pointed this line out. Ai Di says "做回来就不欠啦" which translates into "Do it back and I'll no longer owe you". (more context in comments)

Ep 10

Matt Lee's character who was Ai Di's friend at the bar before jail mentions that Ai Di even dyed his hair blonde upon going overseas to further his education. Meaning, Ai Di's friends were told that he was schooling overseas when he was actually in prison 😢

Ai Di tells Chen Yi "应该多培养一些人在你旁边了，被开枪的时候，才有人帮你垫背" which translates into "You should cultivate relationships so more people will be by your side, so that when the gun is fired, there will be someone to take the bullet for you". Ai Di's done it once, he doesn't want to do it again. And Chen Yi smiles weakly after Ai Di says this because Ai Di just confirmed that he went to jail in Chen Yi's stead.

Ep 11

Like Xiao Jie says, Chen Yi really sucks at wooing someone, so much so that even Xiao Jie is better. On receiving the signature, Ai Di asks if Chen Yi thinks he is BTS (bangtan) and that he can sell his autograph 😂

Ep 12

Chen Yi says "我是在你离开之后，我才发现自己真正喜欢的是你" which has been translated into "It's true I realised you are the one with whom I'm in love while you were gone." I would prefer if it had been "It was only after you left that I realised the one whom I actually love is you". Keyword 真正 - really/actually.

Ai Di uses more heart-rending words. Instead of "Don't make me your rebound just because you can't get the one you love", it would be better translated as "Don't randomly use anybody as a substitute just because you couldn't have the person you love."

Cake scene translations

The most heartbreaking line of this scene. 再 - again. Ai Di actually says "Never again will I step aside for anyone." Implicitly, he was previously going to give up on Chen Yi for CDY.

ok this was a longass post but I wanted to keep most of the angst here

[just-j-really]

"I just don't get it," Hob says, for the fifth or sixth or possibly twentieth time that night, glancing over the rim of his cup at Will, who's sitting on the other side of the room, cuddling with his soulmate in an armchair that's really too small for the both of them. "Why everyone's so hung up on soulmates."

It's all anyone's been able to talk about tonight- and sure, that's fair, it is Will and Ann's engagement party, but Hob has overheard the phrases 'oh you're so lucky you found each other so young' and 'why did you wait this long?' far too many times for one night. Will and Ann met as toddlers; they've never had another option and Hob cannot fathom why everyone seems to think that's a good thing.

Case in point, even his little group of Unmatched friends react to his statement with varying degrees of exasperation.

Hob is just sober enough to be aware he should probably shut up, and drunk enough that he keeps talking anyway. "I mean, I've seen 'soulmates'," he says. "My parents were soulmates, both my siblings met theirs, half of my friends are paired off by now. It's not like I don't know how soulmates work. Soulmates are..." he takes a moment, gathers his thoughts, and even though he's not entirely sure what he's about to say, the moment the word leaves his mouth he knows it's exactly right, "Stupid."

His friends laugh uncomfortably. "You're an idiot," Andrew says, not unkindly.

But Hob's on a roll now, an argument that's been simmering in his chest for years spilling out of him, the exhilaration of speaking making the words come easily. "You literally don't have to stay with your soulmate. No one has to! Everyone just goes along with it because everybody else does. But not me. I've made up my mind," he says, setting his cup down and straightening his shoulders. He's been bullshitting a bit but he means this, knows down to his bones that this is something worth staking his life on. "I'm going to meet someone perfect who isn't my soulmate, and I'll marry them instead."

He feels like he should do something solemn to mark this occasion. Stand up on a table, maybe.

Instead, most of his friends laugh at him again. "Hobs, that's the literal definition of your soulmate. Someone who's perfect for you," Gwen points out. The laughter is teasing, and Gwen's tone is more reassuring than anything else, but still, Hob finds himself frustrated.

"But there's so much more out there. So many people to fall in love with," he insists. "Shouldn't I know who's perfect for me better than anyone?"

And his friends tease him for somehow being sappily romantic in his opposition to sappy romance, and he laughs along with them and points out that his perfect person will be more understanding than them, for sure. And he's genuinely a bit hurt, but Gwen bumps his shoulder apologetically and he thinks that destiny has nothing on these friends he's made on purpose, who know him well enough for these unspoken gestures. And there's movement in the corner of his eye.

Hob looks up.

The most gorgeous man alive is standing in front of him. He's tall- probably taller than Hob, even- pale and willowy, with a mess of soft-looking black hair. His eyes are a deep blue Hob didn't think existed in real life until this moment. He looks like the slightly magical prince in a fairy tale got loose in the real world and decided to become a goth. He's perfect.

"Did I hear you say," the man asks, his voice soft and deep all at once, resonant in a way that Hob's never heard before, "you have no intention of meeting your soulmate?"

Not if he's you, Hob thinks, I take it all back if he's you.

Despite what many of his friends will argue, he is capable of not voicing every thought that comes into his head, if only under extreme circumstances, so he offers the stranger his best grin and says, "Yeah. Yeah, I do."

"You'll need to tell me how that works out, then," the man replies.

"Don't encourage him!" Andrew calls from the other side of their little cluster.

The man- flinches, just a little. Hob probably wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't been staring at him, but Hob's universe just gained a new center, so he is and he does.

"Hey," he says, catching the man's eyes, "Don't mind him, he's just boring. You really want to know how it goes, finding someone who isn't my soulmate?"

"I do," the man says, seriously, like he genuinely thinks Hob's quest is worth his full attention. It leaves Hob feeling warm, almost giddy.

"Perfect," Hob says, and then, because he's never known when to quit, "Let me give you my number, so I can update you?"

The man nods, a teasing little smirk appearing on his face, as though he and Hob already know each other perfectly, and this is a shared, ancient joke between the two of them. His fingers brush Hob's as he passes over his phone.

Nothing happens. There's no spark, no splash of color on Hob's skin marking where this stranger's fingers first dragged over his.

They are, definitively, not soulmates.

And Hob knows for certain that he's right.

[Part Two]

[auroreliis]

Batfam would have to do research on my special interests if they want to win me over fast but also the thought of super serious Bruce and Damian watching/reading jojos bizarre adventure is really funny to me

Absolutely they would. For you, they would binge every show, play every game and read every paragraph of a book just to have something in common with you. They would all do it for different reasons, but in the end, you would have to listen to them outnerd you.

Bruce's regard for your interests is wholesome. He genuinely wants to know what makes you happy, what you do in your free time, what you could talk about for hours. In order to be able to listen to you talk for hours, he surrounds himself with your interests. You like this artist? He buys a few of their most popular albums. This game is entertaining to you? He either tries it out or watches you play it. There's this film you're excited about? He watches it with you.

Although most of your interests are different, he does actually find himself enjoying anything you enjoy. Perhaps it reminds him of you.

Dick has this one fear. He believes that no matter how persistent he is, if you aren't reciprocating his clinginess, the two of you will grow apart eventually, so he never leaves you alone, even when you beg him to. It isn't really a secret, as he makes it quite obvious, but he hopes you will one day embrace him as he embraces you. You probably get sick of him and tell him how boring he is, which shatters his heart completely.

Now he has to figure out a way to spend time with you, but he needs to make sure you are also enjoying his company, lest you hurt him with your cruelty once more, so he researches every last fact about your interests, be it an activity, a game, a book, a person, he knows everything about it. Dick doesn't want to make it obvious that he only found out this information the night prior, so he cautiously needs to start a conversation.

He most likely waits until you are occupied with your interest before walking up to you, "Hey, is that _____? Wow, I used to be obsessed with it as a kid, I'm suprised you even know it, it isn't that popular and it's quite old." He pats your head and sits down next to you, grinning as you start rambling about it to him. You are actually talking to him. It worked.

Jason is careful when sharing his interests with you. He needs to preserve his reputation as your cool older brother and usually people don't share his interests, so when he finds you reading a classic book, he seats himself nearby, waiting for you to finish reading. Once you're done, he makes sure you enjoyed the book before fanboying about it. You immediately notice how much of a nerd he is. He also recommends similar books or ones he thinks you would enjoy as well. In the end he pulls you into so many fandoms that you stop listening when he recommends books. You've already got like 40 more to read.

Tim does not have this problem. The moment he knew you existed, he educated himself and has kept up with your interests ever since. "Just in case", or ,"Just because", he said, typing a summary of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. "I might as well", he takes notes while binging One Piece. This guy is clinically insane. Fortunately for him, he can now start conversations with you very easily, since he knows everything about your interests (and everything else about you).

Side note: If you refuse to spend time with him even after he did all that for you, the following outcomes are possible:

Either you pity him and spend time with him or Dick tries and fails to guilt trip you, only to end up forcing you to spend time with poor Tim who was awake for a whole week just to impress you (Tim frantically nods along with anything Dick says).

Damian takes great pride in having things in common with you, so as soon as he notices you being fond of something, he surrounds himself with it. You have a favourite colour? He creates a few painting with specifically that colour. You like a certain animal? He will try to adopt one. Damian would, of course, never admit it to you, but he desperately wants you to notice that you two have similar interests (As in, you have an interest and he pretends to also like it just so you maybe talk to him).

If you don't talk to him, he will become more aggressive with his attempts of having you notice him, perhaps randomly coming into your room to paint, claiming that the lighting there is better. Or he asks Bruce to adopt a certain animal during dinner. His attempts are obvious to you, but he doesn't know that.

Cassandra wouldn't really need to share interests with you. She's always close to you anyway. While she does speak to you every now and then, she is perfectly comfortable with sitting in your proximity in silence. However, if you ever asked her to, she would research anything you need her to in order to rant or ramble to her. As long as she has her eyes on you, anything is fine.

Stephanie immediately goes to Tim for help, knowing that he went insane and made a bunch of summaries and notes. First, she makes fun of him, then she apologises, because he threatened to take the notes away, she then complains about how much there is to read before finishing the essays Tim wrote, giving herself about a week. Steph then talks to you as if she didn't go through all that trouble just to have a topic to talk to you about.

Dick told Barbara all about his shenanigans. She even helped him figure out what you're interested in, even researching about it herself. She isn't as intrusive as the others, instead waiting until the moment is right, not wanting to scare you away or overwhelm you. Perhaps if you're alone, she'll come up to you and start with small talk, only really mentioning your special interest if it's involved somehow. Overall, she is the least feral of the bunch (in this situation, at least).

[suzukiblu]

WIP guessing game: help

"I know about Billy, Marvel," Batman says, and Billy . . . blinks.

"You know?!" he sputters. Okay, so apparently his secret identity was just . . . literally never a secret at all, then. Which, well–Batman, so that just figures, really. So actually this is kind of a relief and might even mean that he's fine with–

"Yes," Batman confirms with a nod. "So I understand your current reservations about parenthood."

. . . wait what.

"Huh?" Billy says, blinking stupidly at him.

"I don't know how much of you is still C.C. Batson or what you do or don't remember about being him," Batman says. "But the resemblance is undeniable, if nothing else. Certainly your and your wife's deaths were . . . well, suspicious. And you're hardly the first archeologists to dig up a god or six."

Oh, okay. Well.

This is apparently what Billy gets for his personal mental image of a "hero" being his dad, then, isn't it.

Crap.

"To be honest I've been looking for Billy for a while now, I just didn't want to bring it up before I found him," Batman admits, looking dissatisfied with himself. "My most recent reliable intel puts him in Fawcett City, but I assume you're aware of that, given your evident attachment to the place."

"You're looking for Billy?" Billy asks incredulously. "Why?"

"Because he's your son," Batman says. "And because he's a homeless child who's been abused and neglected and needs help. I honestly don't know where you go when you're not being Captain Marvel–frankly I'm not sure if you even exist when you're not being Captain Marvel, given what little I actually know about your powers and your death and your role as the Champion of Magic and just how damn impossible you are to find when you're off-duty–but I'm assuming that wherever it happens to be is not necessarily conducive to providing a stable home environment and being legally dead certainly can't be helping with that, so my original intention was to find the boy and help you arrange some manner of care for and visitation with him. And given the revelation of your relation to Robin, well . . . I'd like to take Billy in myself, if you'd both be comfortable with that. It seems . . . appropriate, under the circumstances."

"You want to foster Billy because I'm Robin's soulmate?" Billy says, absolutely positive that he's misunderstood literally every single word that just came out of Batman's mouth. There is no possible way that he did not.

"It's not exactly out of my wheelhouse," Batman replies wryly. "Although I'll be keeping this one out of the tights, ideally. Though I make no long-term promises about that because quite frankly at this point I'm spoiled for soulmates who insist on wearing capes and I wouldn't really be surprised to turn up another one, especially given that Robin is yours and your own involvement in the superhero community."

Billy stares at him.

"Wait, are all the Gotham vigilantes your soulkids?" he blurts unthinkingly.

"Not all," Batman says. "But, well . . . probably more of them than you'd expect."

"Oh my god," Billy says in disbelief. "And you're just telling me that?! You don't tell people things, you're Batman!"

"I haven't always been the father I should have been," Batman says, and then he pulls down his cowl. Billy chokes, and then chokes again because apparently Batman is Bruce freaking Wayne and his brain just . . . just needs a moment to process that fact, like there is literally any way whatsoever that he could ever actually process that fact. He would've been less surprised to see a Kardashian under that mask, he's pretty sure. At least they've got athletes in the family, technically! "So I'm not going to make things difficult for you with Robin. Clearly he needs more than I'm capable of providing, and I'm perfectly willing to be transparent and to co-parent with you as much as possible. I want Robin to be safe and content and grow up well, and frankly put, Batson, you've proven yourself to be a good man time and again and I trust you to do what's best by our son."

Okay, well, now Billy just feels like dirt.

"You do know what happened to Billy, don't you?" he asks just a little bit desperately, because there is literally no way that this conversation is a real and actual thing that's really and actually happening. "Like, just–everything that happened there? There's a reason he's not in school or the system or with a relative or anything like that."

"What happened to Billy wasn't your fault," Batman tells him, meeting his eyes all quiet and intent and sincere. "And I will do everything in my power to help you make it right."

"Oh no, you're actually like . . . just genuinely a really good person, aren't you," Billy says despairingly, staring at him all over again and really, really wishing he could swear right now.

Maybe he'll just go throw himself into the sun. Maybe that's what he'll just go and do.

The corner of Batman's mouth quirks up wryly. His eyes even crinkle a little, which Billy can see on account of his total lack of cowl right now, oh god.

Billy despairs.

"I mean it," Batman says gently. "It wasn't your fault, and it doesn't mean you can't be a good father now."

"I need to talk to Robin," Billy says, because he definitely, definitely needs to talk to Robin. Batman inclines his head in an accepting nod, because Batman is probably under the impression that Billy wants to go give Robin a good ol' traditional "I know I'm not your biodad but I'm here for you, champ!" kind of speech, and Billy just . . . really cannot explain the real situation to him right now. Or ever.

Can he just lie to Batman for the rest of their lives, maybe? He can just pretend to be his own dad for the Justice League and keep dodging whatever Bat-surveillance happens to be in Fawcett and parent his older-than-he-is soulmate, right? That's a thing that he can do?

That's probably not a thing that he can do.

Although he might be willing to try, at this point.

[spdrvyn]

i love my husband — miguel o'hara drabble

fluff. heavy inspo on this video.

sorry for the inactivity and the lazy ass title, exam week came around before i could even start on the next request and i did nothing but relax the entire break (which was only FOUR days) so i'll bring this out and see if i can clear my sched enough to actually do shit. enjoy!

the moonlit sky reflects beautifully onto the shining surface of your mug, filled to the brim of chamomile tea and flooding your nostrils with delight as your body melts into the couch.

work kept you on the edge of your seat for the entire week, it was non-stop meetings and non-stop emergency calls even outside of your working hours that had you so stressed. you were sure you'd picked enough hairs out to make a wig.

the weekend is truly a blessing, you want to stay as far away as humanly possible from your phone and shut yourself out from civilization before you come protector of debra's last minute files.

you missed the soft cotton of your pajamas, not like you haven't worn them in the past couple of days but to actually be able to appreciate what it means to wear them and the greeting of a good night's sleep had you sighing and moaning almost a little too much.

you worked hard, you definitely deserved this. you grab a spare pillow and tuck it under your head turning to the side and looking at the city that surrounded you, your patience and tenacity at the office has now been rewarded with the view you're able to appreciate.

however, the shadow that looms over the carpeted floors of your flat don't go away even after rubbing your eyes. you look up and a faint red glow in the symbol of a very familiar spider catches your eye immediately, you smile lazily through the glass.

miguel slides open the door with no hesitation, cape still drifting in the wind from what you can only assume to be his own previous working activities. you can sense the tension wafting off of him like waves especially as he stomps all the way over to where you are on the couch and looks down at you.

his mask isn't off, he's still fully geared, and all you can do is stare back into those lenses.

that is until he surrenders, body giving up, and his body flops right on top of yours. it doesn't really surprise you, there have been times where miguel has come home after a worse day of saving the multiverse and traps you in a hug before you can protest or move. though you've never really seen him do this before.

he adjusts his position, but still keeps his arms tightly wrapped around you as you move as well so that you're holding him back. his face is buried into the crook of your neck and the feeling of his nose tickling your skin tells you that he unmasked already.

not a single word leaves his mouth, you silently adore the way he's melted into you already, the way the muscles on his back rise only to slowly fall again.

you don't want to break the silence, neither of you do. right now, the only form of communication that matters is touch. your lips burning kisses into his curls, your nose now erasing whatever of your tea was left and making the way for miguel.

he shies away from your touch with a small groan, "i stink."

a giggle threatens to break out from the back of your throat, as many times as he would insist that you'd keep going anyway. "so when you do it, it's fine? i see how it is then."

miguel chuckles, he inches himself into you further. deeper. his breaths become less and less shallow, it's clear that he's taking his fair share of sniffs from you as well. "because you smell good."

"i ran a bath, that's why." one last peck to his head and you opt to just comb his hair instead, running your fingers through the strands and observing as they twist back to curl after brushing it some more.

both of you stay like that for a while, not saying anything, not doing anything, just being here. existing with each other. you always find moments like these beautiful, even when miguel is probably one work call away from shaking hands with the grim reaper.

in miguel, you've found yourself open to so many new experiences and risks you could've never imagined on your own. despite the many amount of times at the start of your relationship that he'd give you space and wouldn't be mad if you left, you kept still by his side anyway. you knew that he was worth it.

in you, miguel found that mundanity that he's never had his whole life. passing out on the sofa on his own never felt the same, most times he'd wake up still in his suit and would have to go to work right after anyway. yet with you, the stress ebbed away over time because he knew that you'd always be waiting for him.

whatever historians had with their relics, miguel had with you. not to keep them confined in a metal case, of course not, but he felt as if you were to be revered. kissed and touched with utmost respect and you'd bring the people their good fortunes and long lives. you certainly did for him and miguel might as well be immortal now.

his hands wander, fingertips delicately grazing over the skin tucked beneath your nightwear. he goes slowly, traveling up to your chest where he—

"miguel?"

his hands freeze, face going red. the guilt of possibly going too far is ready to break free from his heart and consume him until he can feel your body trembling with laughter.

"since you apparently stink so bad, shouldn't you shower first before getting so handsy?" miguel pouts at your comment, he already had the apologies locked and loaded for you.

"just a few more minutes, corazón."

[weird-is-life]

Hello loves! I really enjoy your writing and perhaps if it’s make sense could you please wrote about Aaron x Ex!Reader requited love? If you can’t it’s fine, have a nice day!<3

Hi lovely, ty for the request💕! I don't know if this is what you had in mind, but hopefully it's at least a little good, warnings: fluff, angsty, use of pet name, like one swear word (0.8k)

It was a complete coincidence, that you bumped into Aaron. You literally bumped into him, your face colliding with his chest and by some miracle you didn't spill the tea, you'd just bought all over his expensive suit.

Aaron was just as surprised to see you as you were. And he couldn't understand the weird feeling in his chest at the sight of you.

You had a similar feeling too, a breath catching at your throat as you were looking up at his handsome, slightly older than you could remember, face.

And you don't even know why, maybe it was the shock of the whole situation or maybe it was something else in you, that made you do it, but somehow you invited him out for a coffee.

And that one coffee turns into two, then three, then four, until you loose count of them and until you're spiraling back into those old, forgotten feelings.

The realisation of it takes you by a huge surprise. You weren't expecting it. It scares you, that you're feeling this way again.

You like Aaron, but you know that Jack is his priority and he probably isn't looking for a relationship, he has enough on his shoulders already.

So with every friendly coffee date your feelings grow stronger and you can't help but to worry about it. You like having Aaron back in your life, a lot actually, but you don't think you could survive being just his friend, it feels impossible.

So in your worried state, you stop responding to Aaron's texts. Yes, you know, it's not the best way to cut contact with somebody, but you don't think you'd have the strength to explain the why to him.

Aaron goes completely crazy with worry over you. You suddenly just stop responding and he doesn't know if it's because of something he did or because something's happened to you.

He hopes, it's neither.

He tries not to fret over it, but eventually the feelings get the best of him and he finds himself standing in front of your door. He stands there longer than he should, before he finally knocks.

You appear at the door just a moment later and noticing, that it's Aaron at your door, your eyes widen.

"Aaron? What are you doing here?" you debate whether you should just close the door on him and pretend to not exist.

"I'm sorry to barge in on you like this, but....I had to make sure, you were okay. You weren't responding to any of my texts." Aaron explains, his relief, at seeing that you're okay, is huge.

You don't look as happy as he does, you look like you'd rather be anywhere else, but there.

"I'm sorry," you mumble, you don't know what more to say to him, so you keep quiet and look everywhere but him.

"I'm just glad, that you're okay," he says and you almost wince, you didn't think of how much you must have scared him with the no responding, poor Aaron.

"But what's wrong?" he asks, trying to catch your gaze.

"I-I-I....I just can't do this anymore," you whisper with sorrow.

"Can't do what, huh?" Aaron asks softly, even if he's loosing his mind.

"This. Us. I-I just can't, I'm sorry," you take one look at Aaron's crushed and confused face, before your gaze is back on the ground.

Aaron baffles, he's thought, that you had a good thing going on," Did-Did I do something wrong?"

"No, it's just....," you can't find the courage to tell him the reason why.

"What's wrong?" Aaron takes a small step towards you without thinking, he's desperate to fix whatever it is going on. He likes you and he's finally let himself to feel something like this again with you, so he is super anxious about this whole situation right now.

You sigh and irrationally, you just blurt it out, "I like you, a lot, like too much, Aaron. And-and I'd love for us to be friends again. But I don't think I could survive being just your friend. I know, you're definitely not looking for a relationship right now. And I understand, but I can't just be your friend. I'm sorry."

Aaron lets you say all of your thoughts before he reacts. Halfway through your speech his confused frown turns into a smile. Because he realises, that it's just a huge misunderstanding.

"Good," Aaron's says with a smile and now you're the one being confused. What the hell does Aaron mean 'good'? You start to almost get upset before he continues.

"Good, because I don't think I could be just your friend either," he actually grins at you.

You immediately look up at him,"what?"

"I like you too, honey. And I'm definitely looking for a relationship, if it means I get to be with you," Aaron couldn't be looking at you with more heart eyes and you think, you might melt.

"Really?" you ask shyly, too scared that you're imagining this whole thing.

"Yes, really," Aaron chuckles and reaches out for your hand," so what do you say, will you give me, us a second chance after all these years?"

Aaron doesn't have to wait for an answer for too long, because your lips are on his in a matter of seconds, answering his question clearly.

[dalliancekay]

"There is no 'our side', Crowley!"

I was looking for this gif and every post I came across was some variation on how poorly was Crowley treated here. Poor boy. How utterly cruel of Aziraphale. How heartless. How he just dropped Crowley like a hot potato. Cos Heaven was coming. And Aziraphale decided that they were over. And he was going back to them. Or something. If you know any that look into how Aziraphale is feeling, please tag me. What do I think Aziraphale is feeling?

Well. Was he happy to have Armageddon coming? No. But he did think it was inevitable.* However. They tried to influence the Antichrist. But had the wrong boy. Then they tried to think of how to find the real one and in that short time - what? Kill him? Talk to him? They had no idea what the kid is like. What powers he has. None.

The Great Plan. It is coming to its fulfilment. It is written. The War is about to begin. Heaven and Hell. The big one. They both know this. And this is not something Aziraphale or Crowley can avoid. It's not something they can just stop believing in. They had their Arrangement, their side (sort of), and they managed not to get caught. But now? Now Aziraphale is right. There is no OUR SIDE. There never really was. There might have been a moment in their existence on Earth (about 12 hundred years?) when they could feel like/pretend they are having their own side. But now the full reality of their existence is back. There are Heaven and Hell and they are preparing for War. They have no interest in Earth. Aziraphale and Crowley are tiny pawns in a very big picture. They both belong to their respective sides. They always have. Even when they found ways to work together. (Mostly cos their sides are conceited idiots both.)

And so Aziraphale decided for one more desperate attempt to get God to see how the whole thing can be avoided. Does he think She might understand? We don't know. Does he look full of hope as he walks back to his shop? He doesn't. He gets broken up with again by Crowley who nonsensically (and yes, romantically, sure) wants to go to another star - to do what? Wait till the end of universe reaches them? (Why is everybody always defending Crowley? And act like he's being reasonable there?) And then Aziraphale gets punched in the stomach. By a fellow angel. And told by Metatron to not be a bloody fool and report for service as the good angel he surely is.

And he gets discorporated. Which looks like it really sucks.

And then he DESERTS the War AND Heaven (that he apparently still has faith in...) and goes on a limb to find the boy and just see if he can come up with something. Anything. Thinking Crowley is gone. Packed his stuff and left. Possibly with the friend he was talking to when he tried to call his flat earlier.

Because Aziraphale feels the War and ending of the world is such injustice. Written or not. Great Plan or not. Maybe he didn't think at first he could make any difference but Crowley showed him it's worth considering it. *Crowley is always showing Aziraphale that things can be questioned. It didn't take Aziraphale long at all to reconsider letting things just play out and instead fight to the last breath he doesn't need, for Earth instead. The conditioning he needs to fight isn't that Heaven is good and right. The conditioning he needs to fight is that things can't be changed. That it is all written out. That he is a nobody and can't influence anything. Aziraphale's biggest fight and learning curve is in having faith in himself. So. Much like he felt it was unfair to leave the first humans unprotected and how he felt killing Job's kids was cruel, he disobeys and does his own thing again. He learns he can. But all this comes at a cost. To himself (thinking he will Fall for these things) but also to his beloved - and THAT is much harder for him. He would never want to put Crowley in danger. And he does. Every time they meet. The guilt he must feel for this.

Aziraphale lives between two sides. And they are both awful. And he is often misunderstood for just acknowledging this as reality he and everything else exists in.

I think his view of his reality is pretty accurate. There is no our side. They wanted one. But they can't leave their sides. Even after S1 they couldn't. Not really. And they both knew it. And no, he is not in clutches of Heaven or sometimes reverts to their indoctrination or anything like that. He goes along with Heaven as far as he MUST. And his life alongside his demon, however tentative, was always precious to him. And when it got threatened.

And got threatened again.

Aziraphale had to do the best he could and just do something. Anything. He could not just do nothing. He could not try and run. Crowley shows him that things can be different and Aziraphale has to do all to try and make it better.

Is Aziraphale always right? No. Does he make mistakes? Yes. I am never saying Aziraphale is faultless - but I think many things he is blamed for are not right. And I also think Crowley is often seen as can do no wrong. Everything he says is right. 100% correct. The right things to do. He knows more. Understands more. If he disagrees with Aziraphale than it follows that Aziraphale is wrong. That's not true. They are both beautifully rounded, full, flawed characters I love. They complement each other in ways I bet I have not even noticed yet. And they are their own beings too. They don't only exist for one another.

[strawberry-cowmilk]

Reaction to mc saying she's pregnant? Like they had NO idea. It's their child, maybe she hide it with magic or something and they generally couldn't tell, if that is okay! It's okay if not,

I just think it's a cute conecpt, like just pretend barbs doesn't look into the future,

Again it's okay is not! No pressure,

Wolf !

Hi, wolf! Of course it's okay! I hope you like it

they find out mc is pregnant after hiding it

-> brothers and side characters x mc (no luke)

mc's gender is not mentioned, but is pregnant, not proof read (somebody lmk if the tag is wrong)

content warnings: pregnancy, mild angst

-----

Lucifer

he's a little offended (??) hurt (??) that you hid it from him, were you afraid of his reaction or was he scary?

regardless, lucifer loves both you and the child to death from the moment he finds out they exist

he's going to take great care of you (though he might come off as a little overprotective)

if you are standing up for a minute too long he will let you sit down

Mammon

oh no, you were play fighting just yesterday, did he accidentally hurt you or the baby?

when those worries ebb away, mammon is so happy he's telling everyone at rad about it

yes he's sad you hid it for a long time but the happiness is way stronger than the hurt

'mc I'm gonna go to the mall to get baby's first gold bar' 'mammon the baby isn't even born yet-'

Leviathan

of course you hid it for a long time, imagine you're the child and you find out your dad is a gross otaku

you're gonna have to calm him down

it takes levi a while to warm up to the idea, but when he does he's really excited for his baby

he's going to want to read tsl to your stomach as a bedtime story (if the baby is a boy he wants to name him henry too)

Satan

satan is kind of in denial, if you were pregnant he would have known right? why didn't you say something?

he's never thought about being a father, he needs a moment to let it sink and do research on babies

but he warms up to the idea eventually, and he'll be the softest you've ever seen

satan got little children's books and those cute music boxes for when the baby comes

Asmodeus

out of everyone, asmo would me the most upset you tried to hide it

but he loves you and the baby so he forgives you soon

asmo might not know how to be a father at first, but he's willing to learn and raise the baby with you

plus he's going to want one of those maternity photoshoots, but if you don't it's okay

Beelzebub

yes he's not happy you kept it from him but baby :))

beel would do anything to make you and them happy

he's really worried you're going to get hurt though, if you're cooking together beel does not let you pick up a spatula or get close to the stove

also beel loves to hug your stomach, it's basically what he does every night now

Belphegor

he's not happy about it at first because he honestly did not want a child

but seeing you pregnant, realising you'd make a great parent, it changed his mind

belphie gets the best pillows and blankets so you can be comfortable while sleeping

if the baby is keeping you awake belphie will try to calm them down

Diavolo

he understands why you hid it from him, imagine getting pregnant with the demon prince's child- oh no are you scared?

it doesn't matter whether you are actually scared or not, diavolo will take his time to show you all is well, he's really happy to welcome his child

he took a picture of you and your cute baby bump, made it his ddd wallpaper and stares at it when he doesn't want to work

Barbatos

it took him by surprise, but barbatos can adapt quickly

he's really happy to be having a baby with you, he's ready to give you anything you need to make the pregnancy easier

do you want tea, a massage or something else? barbatos has got you

he can't wait to meet his baby, he doesn't want to use his powers and spoil it for himself

Simeon

...so that's why you could eat solomon's soup last week without getting sick

he forgives you for hiding it, surely you had a good reason

simeon loves the baby so much he sings lullabies he used to sing to luke for them already, this man's face physically softens every time he sees the baby bump

but really, maybe you should stay away from food that randomly appears in the fridge that simeon didn't make

Solomon

he's a little upset but that's okay, in all his years he's never felt this happy

he can't wait to hold his little baby for the first time

being a human too, solomon knows plenty of stuff about human pregnancy so that's great

'simeon why are you stopping me I'm just going to offer mc a sandwich I made'

[waldau]

first kiss — jeon wonwoo | 1,584 words | fluff

absolutely self indulgent; wonwoo is whipped for reader.

gender neutral reader. college!au. warnings: none.

wonwoo knows he's dragging his feet enough that you're going to notice. he should be the one walking faster, given his height. yet he finds himself just a step behind you, close enough that your elbows bump into each other's every now and then as you walk together.

tonight was supposed to be a quiet night celebrating your birthday with only your close friends, but dino threw you a surprise party that involved more people than wonwoo even knew existed in the same year as you.

you'd taken it in your stride, but you'd reached your limit two hours later, clinging to wonwoo and asking him to help you come up with excuses to leave your own party.

you're wearing his jacket, too. he hadn't expected you to take it with close to no resistance, but he supposes the night's worn you out more than you let on. he likes how you look in it.

he likes you, and that's the main thing that's been swimming around in his head for the past few weeks. more so, he likes the feeling he gets when he's around you.

wonwoo isn't someone who feels things like butterflies, but he supposes it's what happens when he sees you from across the library with all your stuff in one hand and a smile on your face when you spot him.

it's the feeling he gets when you move to make space for him to sit next to you even if the little space you have left might not be comfortable.

it's the feeling he gets when you offer him a sip of your drink whenever you get one, just because you don't want him to miss out.

(he'd jokingly asked for the last bite of your meal when you'd gone out for a date last week. he hadn't expected you to spare it a glance before feeding it to him with your fork. he still swears it tasted way better just because of that.)

this thing between you and wonwoo is new, in the sense that even though you've known each other almost ever since your first semester began, you're both learning how to navigate this aspect of your relationship.

he's enjoying it so far. you do deserve having someone get butterflies in their stomach when they so much as see you.

but the plan he'd had for tonight is somewhat dampened. sure, he doesn't mind being by your side in the least, looking at the half moon that's out tonight while he's walking you to your dorm, but his idea for your birthday gift was giving you his first ever kiss.

which is incredibly romantic and maybe too cheesy, especially for him, but it just so happens to be that you've already had your first kiss. courtesy of a truth or dare challenge, he saw you exchange a look with joshua before you announced you did, in fact, have your first kiss.

wonwoo kicks a tiny stone and watches it skitter along. it's not like he expected you not to have had your first kiss. but he's been imagining his first kiss with you with a terrifying frequency— always searching for the right moment, despite the fact that there's no single right moment with you — every moment he spends with you is good.

and then he always ends up on the same train of thought — giving you a quick kiss before you go back to your dorm, pretending like it's the doorstep of your house he's dropped you back to after a date. nothing over the top, nothing boring; just a memorable ending to a good night with you.

and now he's not even sure his idea of a birthday gift counts as a passable one. a kiss? really?

"hey," you say, stopping in your tracks and putting a hand out. wonwoo lets out a little oof when your hand meets his chest, causing him to stop suddenly.

"something wrong?" he asks.

you shrug. "you looked like you were zoning out."

ah. "no. just thinking."

"about?"

"you."

you suck in a breath and punch his arm lightly. "since when have you been so cheesy?"

"it's the truth." since you, he wants to say.

"fine. what exactly about me?"

"your birthday. did you have a good time tonight?"

you seem to hesitate before you answer. "yeah."

wonwoo chuckles. "you don't have to lie. i won't tell dino."

"no! i did like tonight. but i was hoping we'd...hang out alone. just us, you know?"

"you have me now," he says, and you roll your eyes, a smile on your face.

"i see you haven't gotten me a gift yet," you say, trying to bump his shoulder with yours but ending up knocking arms together, because for all your virtues, you're just not as tall as him. he likes that.

wonwoo finds himself liking almost anything, when it's with you.

"i had some trouble at first," he says, putting his hands in his pockets. "but i think i have something you might like."

"oh? what's that?"

"i'll give it to you when we reach your place."

you groan and move to push him lightly, but this time, he's prepared. he catches your hand halfway through and presses a kiss to your knuckles. you laugh and press yourself to his side, letting his arm fall around your shoulders.

it's easy being like this, when it's with you. wonwoo never feels like it's an act; he just wants to be like this with you.

he's been working up the courage to be bolder in showing his affection for you, and you've been responding enthusiastically. he can only hope what he's going to do soon isn't going to backfire, because he'd hate if something he did would burst the bubble you're both in.

he can almost hear mingyu's voice in his head, threatening to stop cooking for a week if he chickens out right now. wonwoo feels a stupid smile on his lips.

"we're here," you say, stopping outside your dorm.

"the gift," wonwoo says.

you frown up at him. "i wasn't actually serious, you know. you don't have to get me anything."

"but i already have it with me."

you look up at him, no doubt trying to work out what he's gotten you, but when you seem to have no ideas, you shrug and begin taking off his jacket.

now wonwoo isn't going to let that happen, and he really can't hold back any longer. he steps forward and holds your face in his hands, gently tipping it up so your eyes meet. your eyes widen, and before he can think of backing out, he leans down and closes his eyes, hoping all of dokyeom's romance novels and tutorials about kissing a person are going to help him today.

you're staring at him like a goldfish when he lets go. a very adorable goldfish. wonwoo resists touching his lips to stop them from tingling, but he can't stop the giddy feeling coursing through his body.

he didn't know what he expected from his first ever kiss, but this was perfect. your lips are slightly chapped but warm, warmer than his, and he thinks he can go for it again. he wants to go for it again.

"wonwoo?"

"happy birthday, baby," he says, voice soft with shyness. he hasn't yet become good at putting what he feels for you into words, but he wants to. for you. "i know we've never kissed— actually kissed, even though we've been dating for a few weeks."

"wonwoo—"

"and i know a kiss isn't the most creative gift, but it was my first kiss, so i hope it's special enough."

"won—"

"because i really, really like you. you know that?" he stops rambling when you grab two fistfuls of his sweatshirt, tugging him closer to you. you've never done that before. his heart is pounding noticeably harder.

"wonwoo," you say. "do it again."

and so he does, letting you pull him down for another kiss. and another. he could actually get used to this, if it weren't for the fact that you're standing in a rather public place where anyone can see you.

"do you have any idea how long i've been wanting to kiss you?"

wonwoo's heart jumps. "then why didn't you?"

"because i was waiting for some perfect moment! like, maybe...i don't know! i was kind of hoping you'd do something first," you say sheepishly.

"yeah?" he asks, feeling bolder with every passing second. "you liked it?"

you look at him for a moment more before you bury your face in his chest and mumble something.

"what was that?" he asks gently, pulling you back to face him.

"that was my first kiss, too," you say, voice small.

wonwoo feels like someone's pulled the ground from under his feet. "but you said—"

"i said it because i didn't want everyone to think i'm...inexperienced or something, you know?"

"how about i help make you less inexperienced?"

you gasp, pushing him slightly. "that's pretty bold coming from a guy who just had his own first kiss now."

wonwoo chuckles, pulling you closer and pressing a kiss to your head. you don't let go.

"something on your mind?"

"i don't want you to go," you murmur.

wonwoo knows he has to, if you both want to get to class on time tomorrow. but for now, he doesn't mind holding you in his arms while you sway to some tune in your head he wishes he could hear.

[esamastation]

Part thirty-four of Shizuroth, aka, the SOLDIER General's Self Saving Shizun.

Ao3 link.

Previous parts: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one, thirty-two, thirty-three

-

Sephiroth feels a little better after an evening of meditation and a full night of sleep. Things look a little better in the light of day, and though the question of what the fuck he'd going to do about the war is still there, it has been put off. In favour of monster hunting!

"You seem… excited?" Angeal comments as they prepare to go.

He is! "Mn," Sephiroth answers, and carefully doesn't bounce with eagerness.

Even if the monsters of Final Fantasy can't hold a candle to the convoluted, messy and lazily put together nature of the monsters in PIDW, they're still interesting! Especially since he isn't sure what they actually are and how they work. Advent Children and Crisis Core really make it so unclear, because, like, everything turned into energy sparkles when it died? And he thinks in the movie one of the Sephiroth copies - weird to think about them now - summoned some monsters with magic? And then there was Zack in Crisis Core. Who turned into sparkles when he died!

Not everything can just disappear into energy, right, you need living things dying and rotting and composting to make up soil and stuff! If plants just disappear when they die, what do people eat, what were all these buildings made from? Plus he distinctly remembers coal being a thing in this setting, there was a whole town that got shafted because of it and everything, so fossil fuels exist, therefore stuff must leave behind physical remains! Except when it doesn't?

So! Is death like instant ascending here? Or like it descending, since all energy returns to the Planet? Sephiroth is pretty sure that Aerith left behind a body, and there were definitely corpses in the original game - but again, in the prequel it was really unclear. Enemies in combat disappeared, but cutscene death left a body. Except when it didn't!

Ah, the limitations of technology.

Still, he's interested in seeing how the creatures would look and feel and compare them to those he knows from PIDW. Final Fantasy VII had some really weird monsters, and he has a bet going with himself about how much they resemble awakened beasts or yaoguai. 

Angeal looks at him and then smiles, hoisting the Buster Sword to his back. "Ready to go, then?"

"Ready," Sephiroth agrees.

"We're going to have to talk to the Colonel first, but don't worry - I'll handle the talking," Angeal says. "He's an… old-fashioned soldier." 

Sephiroth arches a brow. It sounds like a warning. "Which means…?"

"He doesn't like SOLDIER, he thinks we're stuck up and get our abilities handed to us, we don't deserve our reputation, the usual stuff," Angeal shrugs. "Just ignore it and let me handle it."

"... If you say so."

They head outside together, and Sephiroth takes a moment to look around and try to be an objective observer. This place isn't really anything like the towns back home, in PIDW - the aesthetics are mixed, and though they're more like home than Midgar was, it's as if the place was squeezed through a funhouse mirror. It's just a little off.

And of course, there are no locals anywhere to be seen for a full comparison - just Shinra troops, infantry men and SOLDIERs. Who, the moment they notice him and Angeal, stop to stare and point and whisper.

Has the… incident in Midgar already spread this far, or is this really what it's like being Sephiroth all the time?

Depressing.

"Here," Angeal says and leads him to another house, apparently being used by the Colonel. "Remember, let me do the talking. You just stand there and look imposing, okay?"

Sephiroth snorts. "I think I can manage that."

The Colonel didn't look happy to see them, but then, he doesn't look like a man that's ever really happy. He sizes Sephiroth up and then scoffs. "It's about time. I don't know what kind of discipline you SOLDIER Firsts enjoy in Midgar, but this is a war front, sir, there are rules here."

Does that mean Sephiroth isn't a General then? 

"Right, you're right, of course, sir," Angeal says placatingly. "Well, we're here now, and we already have missions lined up, so -"

The Colonel ignores him and comes around his desk and to Sephiroth's face. "You've been in and out of Wutai for most of this war, isn't that correct, SOLDIER?"

Sephiroth blinks at the man, slowly. "I suppose so." Behind the Colonel Angeal looks panicked.

"What was that?" The Colonel asks dangerously, narrowing his eyes. "You suppose so?"

Sephiroth narrows his eyes back.

The Colonel continues. "When talking to an officer of superior rank, you answer yes sir, or no sir. You do not suppose! Now, do you have experience in the war or not, SOLDIER?!"

Oh, someone is feeling very insecure in their boots, aren't they?

Now, Sephiroth could handle this with all the tact and delicacy of Shen Qingqiu… but even Shen Qingqiu wouldn't have swallowed that kind of spiel without biting. The original definitely wouldn't have! And Sephiroth is supposed to be a villain… well.

Sephiroth smiles - the Colonel recoils.

Last night he'd reread everything there was on his phone about Wutai, going through all his missions again, trying to get as much intelligence as he could. Funny, the things the tutorial left out. 

"I'm sorry," Sephiroth says sweetly. "Who are you?"

The Colonel goes a little red. "Excuse me, SOLDIER?"

"You're barking at me as though at a private, expecting me to go yes sir and no sir," Sephiroth says mockingly. "And yet I have no clue as to who you even are."

Behind the Colonel Angeal gapes and then lifts a pleading look to the ceiling.

The Colonel sputters. "You, you - How dare -"

Ah, you gotta love zero IQ bullies.

"I was given a whole slew of missions and orders," Sephiroth says softly. "All are very vital and high priority. I'm to slay monsters that have killed your men, I'm to hunt down spies you've clearly failed to find, I'm to clear a guard station you haven't been able to get near, I'm to weaken a fortress you cannot even touch, and ten other things besides. All my mission files are very clear. And you know what they all have in common?"

He leans a little closer to the Colonel - right in his purple face. "Not a single one of them mentions you."

Then, before the Colonel can recover, Sephiroth turns on his heel with an imaginary mike drop and saunters out, feeling a whole lot better about everything. The sun is shining, the troopers are scattering at the mere sight of him, and the air is fresh and sweet with natural Qi.

Already this day is looking up.

Angeal, clearly deciding that evasion was the better part of valour, hurries after him. "We're going to pay for that later, you know," he says, sounding defeated.

Of that Sephiroth doesn't have any doubts. What good is a one-time bully? There'd either be a horrifying scene of comeuppance to bring home the realities of war, or a heartfelt discovery and understanding about how they're not so different after all, or whatever else. 

"We'll burn that bridge when we get to it," Sephiroth says cheerfully. "Now. I was promised monsters."

Angeal sighs, glancing back at the house commandeered by the Colonel. "... I guess we better clear out anyway. Alright," he motions. "Right this way to the monsters."

Sephiroth grins at his bitchy tone, and together they head out.

-

SY can have a petty bully scene, as a treat.

[stupidfuckingwindow]

Eyes // Ken

Summary: Ken's fears about you possibly leaving him finally boil over.

Word count: 822

Tw: Hurt w/ some comfort.

Ken loves you. He'd do anything for you, so long as you continue to give him attention and care about him. So long as you don't leave him alone.

He doesn't know what he'd do without you. Ken is frightened by just the thought of it, the thought that he just isn't worth the effort- That you will go, and he'll have no one anymore. He'd have to go back to Barbieland, where everything and everyone is perfect, and he'd have to be, too.

But he doesn't.. Ken doesn't want to go back. Surely, if Barbie- no, Barbara, he reminds himself- managed to make a life for herself in the real world and is thriving, then, he, in theory, should be able to do that too.

So why isn't he thriving like she is? Does Barbara secretly feel the way he does? And, if not, why does he have to feel this way? Is he just not good enough to feel adequate and in place here, too?

Why am I not good enough to feel happy, but she is?

Before he knows it, there are tears blotting out his vision, and Ken has to sit up from the bed you two share in order to rub at them. A whimper is choked out of him, and he presses his palms to his eyes, trying to bury his face in his hands.

Ken knows that it's okay to cry, but he hates it. Sometimes he hates not always being perfect and having all these complicated new thoughts and emotions that he didn't even know existed before this. You're always telling him you love him- that you'd never leave him alone. He knows that you won't. But.. But what if you do? There are just so many possibilities. What if he's just another annoying problem for you?

He sits there for a moment, crying in silence from within his lone company. Ken's breathing is shaky, and he mumbles out an incoherent string of words, attempting to comfort himself and failing. The more the tries, the worse it makes him feel.

Ken knows that he can't really do much of anything to help you out. He barely knows how to drive a car, much less pay bills. And you're always so far away all the time. He can't visit you at work because he doesn't know where you work, and that scares him, too. How can he make sure you're always safe if he can't always be with you?

Sure, you're always back home at the end of the day, but what if you don't come back? What if you're hurt, or scared, or..

Ken's tears pour faster at the thought, and his shoulders shake. By now, he's bawling his eyes out, breathing picking up as he silently panics. "Help," he whispers, to himself, voice breaking. It's a cry that sounds defeated, desperate and begging someone, anything just to hold and comfort him.

The jingling of keys at the front door makes his head snap upwards, towards the direction of the noise. Ken leaps up, already bolting out of your room to get to you. He's so quick in his hasty scramble towards the living room that he forgets to wipe his tears from his cheeks.

Ken nearly trips over himself and then some, fumbling over his own two feet.

Once he does get to you, his arms are wrapped tightly around your torso, face buried into your neck. "I was so scared," Ken admits, as another sob wracks his body. He pulls you closer to his chest, pressing you firmly to him. "So, so scared."

"I thought you were going to leave me! Please don't. Please. Please don't leave me. I don't want to go, I'll- I'm- I.. I'm terrified. I don't want you to go. I don't want to disappoint you. I can't drive a car, or work, and I can't even beach here, either. I don't.. I don't have anything to offer, and-" He interrupts himself with a loud, choked out cry.

His fingers dig into your clothes, balling the material up in his hands. "I'm such a mess. How can you want me?"

Ken slowly pulls away to look at you, his pretty, big blue eyes watering- Irritated and puffy. He sniffles, tears still pouring down his cheeks, and his lip wobbles. You reach out, cupping his warm face in your hands and wiping them away.

He leans into your touch, a heavy sigh leaving him. His eyes flutter shut, and Ken's breathing slows. A soft sniffle leaves him. He takes a minute to regain his breath, leaning forward to rest his forehead against yours. When he does speak again, his voice is quiet and it breaks.

His eyes open again, pretty blues landing on your face to just.. Look at you, remind himself that, yes, you are still here and that you came back to see him. "I missed you."

[imagine-silk]

I hope you are doing okay. I would really like a rather simple Idea of the Yan Fallout 4 boys whose obsession confesses that they have a crush... on someone else. But that someone else has no Idea.

》Ah, I see you crave violence.

【Codsworth】 "You can do so much better."

As much as he has no desire to date you he sees how great you are and you deserve someone just as lovely, maybe even more than you if someone like that existed. Who you've picked is subpar. Oh, they can make you laugh? Do higher your standards, please. For his non-existent heart.

【Danse】 "What do they have that I don't?"

In his heart he gets it; he is a broken man who isn't even human. But this was the last bit of sanity he could take. You try to explain yourself, whether it be the other person never spat at a ghoul or simply has their life together. He knows he can't change the past and he doesn't want you to leave him. Against his better judgement he goes to that person and fights them. He wins too.

【Deacon】 "How could that happen?!"

Deacon would consider himself lucky man, and he was very lucky you told him while you were on an investigation. This person lived quite comfortably and had a very stable life. Imagine everyone's surprise when someone found a letter on him saying he was going to let the raiders into Diamond City because no one would suspect him to be up to no good. Who told the guard? Don't worry about it.

【Hancock】 "Here's how this is going to go."

The second they set foot in Good Neighbor they are dragged into his office. He talks to them with thinly veiled threats and tells them to back off. When they say 'no' and stand their ground he says, "Whoa, you see that Glory?" with his hands up. She then proceeds to say she did, that they had a gun pointed at him. When they still don't back down and try to deescalate he has her shoot him. Even though everyone in Good Neighbor knows what happens the official story is that they pulled a weapon on the mayor and Glory had to save him. No one betrays that story.

【MacCready】 "Who?"

He plays dumb and asks you to tell him who they are. And you had no reason to think he had any ill intentions. Afterwards he brushes it off with a, 'good luck with that' kind of dismissal. However, now that he knows their name, where they live, and where they work, he kills them from long distance. No one can point the finger his way because he never knew the person.

【Nick】

♤If Platonic "When do I get to meet them?"

He's gonna do an impromptu 'If you want to date my daughter' kind of dinner with them. The entire time he's watching them with great interest, making threats in just the right way to be completely permissible. If and when you excuse yourself for a moment he fully tells them they have one shot to play this out and if they get it wrong no one will find their body. Don't be surprised if they dump you the next day.

♡If Romantic "Stay away from them."

He didn't mean to say it but after he did he had to roll with it. His silver tongue got him in and out of a lot of places so it's not hard to craft a story about how the person in question exhibits strange behaviors, enough that he needed to look into it. Just to make sure his story goes unchecked he pays them a little 'visit' and tells them to never speak to you. Ever.

【Preston】 "Really? That's great!"

He immediately supports you in your endeavor but later when you go to sleep he finds that person. He takes them out of earshot of the town and kills them, throwing their body into the river after. In the morning they are nowhere to be found and you're heartbroken. It's okay, Preston will help you look for them. He'll be right next to you.

【X6-88】 "I see."

He wants to tell you you're too good for them but that would be a waste of time. No, he needs to be smarter than that. Excusing himself and then finding them dead would be too suspicious. He was by your side the entire day and they suddenly collapsed. They died in your arms. Say what you will about that strange tragedy, you can never say you suspected him.