#(simon) let me make one thing clear. I am not nice

[ministarfruit]

simon blackquill peaking at age 17 is so funny because it's only downhill from here, buddy. enjoy it while it lasts

[barefoothighlander]

could you do ghost being with someone on the team who’s just so innocent and naive it makes him wonder why they chose the job she has, like her callsign is angel, she puts her hair in braids when she’s allowed to, she puts little bows in her hair sometimes, she’s respectful etc

of course :) here's a quick little drabble I hope it fits what you had in mind

warnings: fluff, description of violence, mention of alcohol, mention of blood

The team got called in around midnight, everyone making their way to the base as quickly as possible, Ghost and you got there around 12:13, your appearances as a stark contrast to each other. He's drenched in black, face hidden from prying eyes behind the skull, looming and feared, you, on the other hand, showed up with your hair pulled back into french braids that ended in small buns behind your ears, a tank top covering your chest that had a small bow sitting between your breasts.

The two of you made your way into the conference room, Ghost finding his usual spot on the back wall while you greeted the team.

"G'mornin Angel" Soap greets, purposely avoiding Ghost's glare while he shamelessly eyes your form, "Little frilly for the field no?" He says pointing toward your top, you playfully push at his shoulder as you find your seats.

Price had given your mission assignments, a small hideout in the States was housing illegal weapons and you had to reclaim them.

You changed into your tactical gear and got into the plane, sitting between Ghost and Soap, fortunately, Soap liked to talk so the ride went quickly, the two of you chatting about your home life, Soap had recently gotten a dog and you were completely jealous, Simon designating your home pet free for the time being.

You landed and got started on the mission, following as Ghost took lead, clearing the building without a hitch while you followed behind, shooting down anyone in your sights. There were a few more enemies than you expected, having to use your knife on a few, effectively covering your gear in blood.

You completed the mission, boarding back onto the plane to return home, Ghost stares at you, the spatter of blood covering your soft cheek, it always confused him, why you decided to join the force, you were so soft, delicate when you were with him, he trusted your capability in the field, your skill saving his life a few times, but off the field, you wouldn't hurt a fly.

Touching down on base you decide to take a shower before going home, not wanting the dirt and blood on you to stain or transfer onto anything. You step out a few minutes later noticing Ghost sitting on one of the benches in the locker room.

"You know you can't be in here"

"Wanted to make sure you were okay"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

He shrugs, turning and handing you a bag of clothes, you grab it and begin dressing yourself, brightly coloured sweats tugged onto your body before you cover your chest with a lace-trimmed tank top.

"That's why"

You furrow your brows in question.

"You're just very, innocent"

"Innocent?"

"I've seen you take out a room of men without breaking a sweat yet when we're home, everything is daisies and bows, it confuses me how you can be so kind and warm with a job like this"

You think about his words,

"It confuses me how somehow as nice as you would want to be with someone like me"

"Simon,"

You move forward to hold his face in your hands, a soft smile on your face, "My job is bloody and violent, and that's exactly why I am the way I am, it's nice to be - what'd you call it? Soft - it lets me forget about all the horrible things out in the world"

You reach down to kiss him, "And in regards to you, you aren't a dark person, you're thoughtful, generous, funny" You emphasize each word with a kiss.

"I just don't want them to take advantage of you," He says

"I doubt they'll even try when you're five feet away from me"

He huffs a laugh before the two of you make your way into the hall, greeted by the rest of the 141

"We're all going to the pub, care to join lovebirds"

Ghost grimaces at Soaps term,

"Of course," You say

You spend a few hours in the bar, the men all sipping on variations of whiskey while you sit with some fruity concoction between your hands.

"So what's with the bows," Soap asks, his words slurred

A small huh comes from you,

He gestures his hand in your direction, "Last week, you showed up with wee bows in your hair"

"Oh, um, I just thought they looked nice," You say suddenly feeling a little self-conscious.

"They were cute lass"

A small smile creeps onto your face, "Well thank you"

"Can't have them in the field" Price says

"Of course Captain" You nod at him, trying to be serious but a small fit of giggles overtakes you, your laughter transferring to Soap and Gaz as they start laughing.

"I'm serious, your callsign might be Angel but you can't be skipping around on a mission"

You nod at him, feeling Ghost's hand on the small of your back while he leans into you,

"I think it's time we head home," He says, turning to look at the team now getting tired, you nod at him.

"We're gonna head out, see you all tomorrow" Your words are met with boos from Soap and Gaz,

"C'mon lass we've barely started"

"Johnny you're half asleep"

"Am not LT"

You giggle at the exchange, Ghost's arm snaking around your waist before pulling you out,

"G'night Angel!" Soap yells and Ghost lets a small grunt leave his mouth,

"Be nice Simon"

"I'll knock that stupid haircut off his head if he keeps flirting with you"

You laugh at his words, resting your head against his form while the two of you make your way home.

[midnightdjarin]

imagine training with simon riley😫 (simon riley x female reader)

You fix your form for what seems like the tenth time, letting your fists fly against the punching bag in a way that doesn’t hurt your hands or shoulders.

Simons deep voice rumbles behind you, “Atta girl, love. Much better.”

You take a deep breath and drop your arms, fighting the blush that wants to creep up on your face. Simon loves to mess with you like this. Nothing makes him happier than seeing you all flustered.

You’re still out of breath when you say, “This would be a great time to, ya know,”, you take another deep breath, “sweep me off my feet. Carry me bridal style. All of the gentlemanly things”, you wipe sweat off of your forehead.

He has the nerve to scoff, “Didn’t peg you as the damsel in distress type.”

He hands you a water bottle and you take a long swig, “I am a damsel and I am very distressed, actually.”

“What if I give you something if you go one more round?”

You roll your eyes, “Like what, true loves kiss?”

Simon has the audacity to sound smug, “Is that what you want, love?”

“Shut up, Simon”, you toss the water bottle to the side and get into your starting position.

You’re about to start swinging, but you feel Simon’s presence move behind you. His large hands move to your waist, positioning you differently.

You expect him to let go, but his hands stay firmly placed on your waist, “Simon?”

He sounds unbothered when he responds, “What?”

“What are you doing?”

“Helping you.”

“How is this helping me, exactly?”

Simon leans forward, his voice is heard directly by your ear, “What’s wrong love? Somethin’ distracting you?”

You look down and clear your throat, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

His right hand leaves your waist to grab your chin, forcing you to look over your shoulder at him. You can’t help but notice the way his eyes travel to your lips. They linger there for a second before his thumb gently swipes across your bottom lip.

He leans forward devastatingly slow, his mask nearly making contact with your skin when he whispers, “Your form still needs work.”

Simon then leans back, removing himself completely from you. You feel his warmth escape immediately as you snap out of your daze.

What a tease.

You scoff and shake your head, once again readying yourself to take out all of your frustration on the stupid blue punching bag.

Simons hand stops you once again, “Let me show you.”

You step back, grateful for the break. He moves in front of you, and you can’t help but notice how nice his back muscles look in his black compression shirt. Every part of him is defined and sculpted. It’s ridiculous, really.

He starts to strike the punching bag. Swift, fast punches that you can barely keep up with. The way his muscles move is almost mesmerizing.

“I need to train in here more often”, you thought.

You snap out of your ogling when he finishes and turns towards you. He looks like he didn’t even break a sweat or bat an eye.

Simon looks at you, “You see? That’s how it’s done correctly.”

You shrug, “You did alright. Your form could use some work.”

[chaosandmarigolds]

Among The Bullets

Chapter One, Part 2.

Summary: You're a transfer mechanic for a task force which you know nothing about, and while trying to figure out your standing with each of the members you begin to realize you may be over your head. (Evental romance, bear with me. Simon doesn’t know how to flirt but he’s trying ok??)

On your schedule, which you were fully planning on ditching once you got your footing, you had a meeting with the Captain of the team before dinner. Made sense in your mind, however, what didn’t make sense was how it didn’t tell you where to meet him- you assumed his office? Did he have an office? How would find said office within the labyrinth of rooms?  So, once again you found yourself very awkwardly standing alone within the bustling crowd, head bowed you looked over the tablet for any missing information. 

You still hadn’t eaten, your eyes were pleading for a moment of closure and your muscles ached for something other than a caffeine-dense drink; yet, there were things that needed to get done and once those things were done would be able to go on with your life. So, you ignored the lightheaded feeling, the grumbling of your stomach, and the throbbing headache, and was snapped back into reality by someone nudging your boot- in all fairness you knew it was innocent but you, with the past forty or so hours being a blur, were already high strung so with a spin on the heel you turned to face the person, fully prepared to bite their head off and tell them to watch where they were going. 

“For fucks sake man, can’t you’ fuckin-” Your words died on your tongue as you saw another one of the team members (who you weren’t technically supposed to know who they were, but twenty minutes alone in a military room full of computers and a lot of old guys with generic passwords of their wives names seemed too easy) if you remembered correctly this ones name was John or something, as was the Captains, but you made a mental note because this one had a nickname you found hilarious: Soap. A sergeant, above you nonetheless, only taller than you by two or so inches, but could throw your weight around. 

Well. If this was rock bottom then you would certainly take the chance to start crawling up, so you nod hello and once again hold out for him to take, this time (unlike the very mean Lieutant Riley) he took it. A firm grip as you spoke, introducing yourself, and then you clear your throat as you pull your hand away. He seemed nice, seeming to just read you while you began to ramble, “I’m a consult for the next assignment, from the engineering and mechanics…department or…something, sorry-um, I am looking for a Captain John Price, do you happen-”

“Oi, the Cap’n of’ic is-” 

“Oh my God.” The words just spilled from your mouth and if you had zero self-control you would've slapped your hand over your mouth to shut yourself up, but you did so you then began to explain your sudden interruption as he stared at you, “I- You- your voice-I just-I, I wasn’t expect-” His eyes were wide as you went on and you gulp down your embarrassment and motion to him,  “I’m so sorry, I’m sorry- You, you were saying?”

The soldier seemed to be debating if he wanted to be offended or not but he ultimately let out a laugh, “Funny, ‘er funny, bonnie. Cm’on ‘ll take ya.” 

Funny? Well, you would take funny over having another military man out for your blood, so with a small nod you follow beside him, the silence between you both seemed to be deafening until he then spoke, a small nudge to your arm (it almost sent you to the ground but you’re praying that he didn’t notice that part). 

“Gotta be nice to th’ ol’ man, got-chit?” 

You blink a few times to let the words soak in and with a sharp breath you laugh briefly, “I…he’s thirty 37? I highly doubt that’s old, well if he’s old I’m middle-aged-.” 

John gave you a look and then spoke, “Ho’ you know tha?” 

Oh, again with the information…. “Educated guess?” 

“Off what?” 

“The..” can’t say pictures, definitely can’t see you saw all of their medical files during your twenty-minute deep dive, it would be a lie to see you’ve met the man before so you just motion around vaguely, “Vibes. Mmhm, the vibes, just…I knew. From….” He was just watching you, it made your stomach turn and somehow you couldn’t keep your mouth shut, “The vibes.”

John nodded and then knocked on the door, shoving his hands in his pockets and when the door opened he looked to the Captain, “You foun’ us a witch.”

“No-” You try to correct the sergeant but he turns and begins to walk away from you, leaving you with what was going to be your death because now you have a Lieutenant who just hated your guts for no reason and now you have a sergeant who thinks you're a witch. Oh the stories you would be going home with, so you take a breath and straighten your posture, looking at the captain. 

From what you read up on Captain John Price you knew about two things: one, he got his rank for a good reason, and two: he likes smoking (his medical files said so) However, when you looked up at him and held out your hand for him to shake he looked bit too nice for your liking, he gave the impression of an older brother, someone nice, as nice as any person can be within the military- which would be a staggering change of pace from the other people you’ve met thus far, so with a shining smile and shake of the hand your introduce yourself and follow him into the office. 

“Forgive Johnny,” Price begins and motions for you to sit down in one of the not-so-comfortable-looking chairs across from his desk, “He’s…well, you see. He means well.” 

“Ah,” You fake understanding and nod as you obey and sit down, hands neatly placed in your lap and your eyes quickly scan the area around you,  “No, yeah, Sergeant MacTavish seem-” 

“Mmm?” 

Your gaze snaps back to the Captain, panic rushing your bloodstream as you realize you did it again, the third time in the past two hours. So you choose to play dumb, pulling your lips together in a line and tiling your head, praying that your doe eyes were believable (they were, just not to him, and certainly not at that moment)  “Yes, sir?” 

There seemed to be a moment of silence before Price motioned to the tablet that sat in your grasp, “Basic information you’ll need will be downloaded at 22 hundred, no need to break any laws for names.” 

A small gulp and you look down at the tablet which you had spent the last ten minutes fiddling with, the edges of the leather cover already frayed, “I see, is there-” 

“The mechanic on base was killed a few days back, which is why you were picked up early. You’ll also receive his daily tasks and his reports, work is a bit clogged so I suggest you geta jump onit..”

As much as you tried to keep your expression unfazed by the news that the person who used to have your job is now dead, the way your eyes went slightly wide was a good indicator and you cleared your throat a sound coming from you being more like a nervous laugh, “Th…The head mechanic? How many-” 

“Just you.” 

What. There had to be at least a hundred trucks in that garage and then the planes upon that, the helicopters, all on one person? You had to hold back an audible laugh as you tried to read his expression because that had to be a joke. It had to be a joke. Sure, you were the best of your trade that even the military wanted to trade you for other things to help other world militaries and yeah you were good at what you did but you…a sum of 178 vehicles? That would be a stretch, and that was only if it was basic maintenance- not war-run vehicles that were sure to have a plethora of things wrong with them. 

When you realize he was dead serious your face falls from the polite half-smile you had and into one of mild annoyance, scoffing, “You do realize I’m not a superhero right? Can’t multiply myself?”

Price seemed entertained by your snippy words returning with a stern nod and his words harsher, he knew you didn’t understand ranks or anything along that besides a very basic ‘be polite’ standpoint, after all, you essitantally worked for yourself for the majority of your life and any person who held a higher rank most like respected you so…he might as well go a bit easy on you, yet it didn’t stop his tone being bitter, “Be respectful, and I assumed so.”

Okay, you didn’t mean to be disrespectful, so that was on you You direct your gaze to your lap and let out a huff of air, “I apologize, sir. However, I am just one person there is no earthly way I can complete what I assume to be a list of daily tasks on over seven hundred vehicles within a twenty-four-hour frame, if I had a second pair then perhaps, I am fully aware of my limits and this is beyond them. I can maybe complete a third of what you expect me to do within a twenty-four-hour window, much less if you expect me to keep to a twelve-hour shift…sir.” 

A stiff silence followed by a gruff laugh, nudging a sheet of paper over to you, and by the look on his face he could tell the memory attached to it was less than pleasant, “Good communicator, they had that underlined in your file. Along with that they had your mission from Snezhihnsk. You were able to reverse engineer twenty-four foreign trucks within ten minutes, and from what the General said is true…those things were no more than scrap metal.”  

It would be a lie if you didn’t remember that day, it would be a lie if you wished you could forget it as well. Barely twenty, new to the field, new to everything- you were still in college, yet you had been picked up from your dorm and shipped to Russia, being told that you would go with these soldiers and that your own job was to take a piece of a machine they needed to be demolished. Needless to say, that mission went sideways, found some insane laboratory, and saved the inmates, or that's what you like to believe…After you fixed the trucks there was a bombing and everything else was a blur. You preferred to not think about that day, and you hope he would catch onto that. 

“Adrenaline makes the body do some pretty insane things, sir.”

“Then I suggest you find a way to get a dose of it, the list of tasks and maintenance requests are already on the tablet.” He watched you nod and move to stand up however, he preferred to end the meeting with you note being salty about everything so he chose to speak again, “How do you like the barracks, don’t mind sharin do ya?”

Your breath catches in your throat and you look to the captain, confused by the words, you had been given your own room, well more like an office, but it had a sofa bed. So you tilt your head, “Lieutenant Riley took me to a room, said that’s where I would be staying.” 

Price processed the words for a moment, “37A?”

You falter for a moment as you try and remember the room number as you move to stand facing him, “Yes, sir.” 

“I see, my mistake then,” It wasn’t, he knew what the room used to be and more importantly who it was. “Thought it was still used as office.” 

A small pause and then you nod your head, “I better go get started.” 

“Dismissed.”

; 

“And…why haven’t I seen her? I wanna see her.” Kyle questioned Johnny as he followed him as they walked to the table, nice and tucked away in the corner of the mess hall. Of course, he was the last one who heard of the new consult, and it being a female piqued his interest all the more, it was a rare day when they would see female soldiers on this base, so he was especially interested in seeing how a civilian would fit in. However, Johnny was giving him vague words like ‘she’s nice’ or ‘I like her jus’ fine’ meanwhile Simon seemed to just be staring at the door, waiting for something. 

Johnny flashes Kyle a beaming smile and sits down, looking over the tray of food which he didn’t truly find appealing but it would be alright he supposed, “An’ you will, L.T said she’ gunna join us for dinner.” 

To that news Kyle frowned even more and grabbed his cup, “Ghost met her to? How is that fair?”

“Eh!” Johnny snipped back at his buddy, “I foun’ her lookin loss as a pup, L.T was ‘er welcome, maybe if ya did ‘er job ‘stead of holin up ya woulda gotten ta’ see ‘er.” 

Kyle looked at Simon and then back to Johnny, waiting for one of them to say that was a joke and it was actually the other way around because if Simon welcomed the consult then it would be reasonable to assume they wouldn’t actually have a consult and that the person had run away, he would have. Well…no, he would’ve stayed to spite him, either way, he wouldn’t be shocked if the next morning they would have some other mechanic wandering the halls. So, after a few moments of silence and neither of them broke into laughter over the joke he let his mouth go agape, “You’re fuckin with me, Ghost was the welcome wagon. Scared shitless is what she was!” 

Among other things they were pretending didn’t happen Kyle added that he pretended to not notice Simon’s glare over to him on the remark and then sat up straight. Simon looks down at his watch and then makes a mental note that you must just be late to everything, because it was twenty after what he had told you- or rather your schedule- to be there for dinner, and he wasn’t exactly in the mood to wait around. Well, either you were late for everything or you had aptly passed out as soon as he left you- yet that would go along with Johnny’s claim that he had found you standing in some obscure spot, making fun of his accent, and then following him to Price’s office. So maybe you went to sleep after that? 

Either way, he wanted to be angry with you for that, it was unprofessional and bluntly very rude, but you did loot tried when he saw you get off the carrier, and you seemed worn slick just by the way you held yourself, eyes with dark circles and your body moved with each breath. You needed rest, so a small part of him seemed to be content with that notion, if not pleased- purely because the mission needed your undivided attention and he did not have time to catch you up on briefings and help you in more ways than what he has to do. No other reason. 

Conversation seemed to die down as minutes wore on and after about fifteen more Simon had resigned to his original assumption, you had fallen asleep and so that meant he would have to go to his-your room and wake you up. So without a word being spoken to Johnny or Kyle he stands up and walks to the room, which was only about two or so minutes, and it would’ve been less if some stupid idiot of a rookie had gotten out of his way in a timely manner. So, when he did reach the room he knocked on the door, waited for a few moments, and then tried again, this time being greeted by you peeking out from behind the door and then flashing a smile up at him. 

“Lieutenant Riley! I’m sorry about dinner, I had to come back here after my meeting with the captain and I needed to change into-” Your words falter off as you open the door more and vaguely motion to the ruined pair of cargos and black teeshirt (black so no one would see the mess of stains on it),  in your hand you held a five-hour energy shot and in the other an energy drink you found within a vending machine somewhere, “This. Is…Is there something you need help with?” 

It took him a millionth of a second to realize what you were doing, and he shakes his head, “You ‘ere late.” That wasn’t enough because you just nodded and then picked up a small tote bag, filled with what he assumed to be tools judging by the sound- which raised the question of why you didn’t have toolbox but he was going to leave that be for the moment and he…for some reason, found himself speaking again, stepping aside so you can walk out of the room as he did, “Ya met Johnny.” 

With a bite of the tongue, you look up at the Lieutenant as you walk down the hallway and to the garage, tablet sprayed across your hand and the list pulled up for a refresher, so as you walk you nod, “Yessir, he seems very nice.” Simon narrowed his gaze on the ground for a moment as he thought about what you said, which did align to some degree with what he knew about Johnny but not quite right, so he looked at you, “Is that so?” 

“Oh, no, he’s…very pleasant.” You mutter out, eyes going across the hangar to spot what you assumed to be the mechanic's workbench, tucked away in a neat corner, and an assortment of tools and places for things to be placed, as well as the control panel for the garage doors, so you pick up your speed. Finishing off the remainder of the energy drink and tossing it in the trash can as you set your bag down. Staring at the list that shined up at you the cursed tablet as you ran your hands down your face, stretching the skin with a grumble. 

For the time you started at the list, you seemed to forget the Lieutenant was nearby, and when you did finally remember you spun around, leaning against the bench and crossing your arms, blinking the fatigue away from your eyes and plastering a faux smile on your lips, “Again, Lieutenant Riley, what can I do for you?’ 

“What do ya on ‘yer hands?” 

“Checkups.” You chirp, and then to his eyes narrowing from the hidden holes of the mask you go on, “Routine maintenance, plus some since the last is…dead.” 

“Mm, Rusty, poor fellow.”

A stifled laugh and then you bring your hand to your mouth to keep yourself from laughing, it wasn’t that funny it wasn’t funny at all actually and you felt like a horrible human for even chuckling, but you were exhausted and- “Rusty?” You take a deep breath to keep your laughter at bay and you gulp down, “Your mechanic's name was ‘Rusty’??” 

“It was Robert actually.” 

You did your best to stop laughing and gulp down the remainder of the giggles that threatened to interrupt your words and you cross your arms tightly over your chest again, “Mmmm, poor Robert.” 

“Quite. Well, ‘ll leave ya to it.” 

Odd man, you mentally quipped to yourself and then watched him walk off, not waiting too long before turning back to the workbench, within the next forty-eight hours you had to perform eighty-nine maintenance checkups, seven of which as ‘odd sounds’ coming from them and sixteen others who had ‘severe shell damage which affects the ability to steer’. Then you had to get working on the jets- less of your forte but you knew enough to handle yourself and then the helicopters, which again was less than you commonplace but you were able to get the job done.It was going to be a very long time. 

However, you then spent two hours figuring out where everything was, how to get the trucks there for you to work on and then how on earth this Rusty man had his files and tools organized, it was all like a hen house, everything everywhere. So, at the moment when the sun began to set you were pushing a crate across the garage, it was filled with parts, and for some reason, the idiot thought it was a good idea for it to be where all of the plane tools were when they were car parts but… You were trying to refrain from mentally scolding a dead man. 

The crate has at least two hundred pounds of metal so when you got it to the spot you wanted you slumped to the ground heaving for air and leaning your head against the wooden box, waiting for a long moment before you let yourself close your eyes for a moment, and it was truly only a moment because you opened them when you heard someone stands in front of you. With a small breath you crane your neck up to see the person, another solider, another person on the team, so you push yourself up to stand as you introduce yourself, once again, “Hi, I’m sorry, resting my eyes- can I help you S-” 

No, don’t make the same mistake again so you end up clearing your throat, the man giving you a sweet smile,  as he let your hand,  “Gaz.” 

That’s not his name, his nickname, yes so you had to bite back your urge to correct him on his own name, so with a clear of the throat you straightened your posture, “Nice to meet you, can I do anything for you?”

“No, no, just wanted to make an’ introduction.” Kyle spoke as he took a short step away and then motioned to the newly reorganized space, “Nesting?”

With a glare, you stifle a laugh and shrug your shoulders, “No. Just…if you do a job, do it to the best of your abilities, you know?” 

Kyle nods as if not believing a word you said, “Gotcha. Well, I wanted to say hi and make sure you weren’t too shaken up by Ghost.” 

It took you a moment of dumbly staring at an obscure tool as you tried to figure out who he was talking about when it clicked, you looked to the sergeant, “Liuetant Riley! Uh,” you laugh and run a hand through your hair, leaving it on the nape of your neck for a moment, “He…he’s a little scary sure, but he seems kind.” A lie through the skin of your teeth, the Lieutenant somewhat terrified you, and he did not seem kind if anything he seemed beyond condescending to everything you did thus far.

“Mmm,” Kyle seemed to not believe your words again and then patted your shoulder, “Well, goodnight, girly.” 

That triggered something, and it made you a bit sick that it did but blood ran hot for a second. You quickly bite back by saying your name, full name and everything, not leaving out the middle and making sure the last held a nice dose of venom to it, making the sergeant turn around to face you with a confused look on his expression. So you say your name again, “That’s my name, not ‘girly’ not ‘miss’, not ‘kiddo’ not ‘lass’ not ‘bonnie’ or whatever the fuck he called me, my name.” 

There was a stiff silence and you let out a huff of air, sighing, drooping your shoulders, “Oh god, I’m sorry, I’m sorry- I’m tired, I…shouldn’t have snapped at you, you…you’ve been nothing but kind, I-” 

Kyle says your name to tell you to shush up, “I apologize, you have a name, I’ll be sure to use it.”

A small smile appears on your lips and you nod, “Thank you, sir.” 

“Don’t…no, don’t call me that, Gaz, call me Gaz.” 

You laugh at his return and put your hands in your pockets, “Kay, you call me by my name and I call you by yours, that sounds like a pretty fair deal to me.” With a smile still on your expression you say your goodnights and then stand still for a moment, looking down at your boots as you think, this Gaz character was actually pleasant, he seemed nice to where you wouldn’t have to lie when asked about him. 

After a few minutes you turn around and walk back to the workbench, everything as you put it, tablet turned off but leaning against an out-of-use carburetor and everything seems just so. To the sight you were content, because that meant you could get started on the mountain of tasks you had lined up, and you looked over the scene again, grabbing your gloves but faltering when you saw the flipphone that had been sitting beneath it. 

They had made such a point to take your phone, ensuring no outside contact.

So you look around the hangar again, yet, because of the time there is close to no one there, you even peek out the door into the darkness of the airfield. Yet again, nothing. 

You stare at the piece of technology for a moment and it then begins to buzz, but only twice, indicating you got a message- well not you, but the phone did.

Hesitantly you reach to grab it, flipping it open, being met with a simple message- 

Awaiting orders, prepared to receive? 

Another look around the hangar and you quickly type a response.

Yes.

(Comments and feedback make my day! Thank you for reading!)

[thefloorisbalaclava]

love on the brain [simon 'ghost' riley x f!reader]

▸pairing: simon 'ghost' riley x f!reader ▸words: 3,362 ▸warnings: illness, lovesick ghost, kissing, making out, simon makes up his own little game of hide and seek, the balaclava stays on ▸summary: simon doesn't do feelings... until he does.

▸a/n: i just wanna kiss him.

⋆masterlist⋆

Ghosts had secrets. Plenty of them. Hell, even his face was a secret. But there was one that he considered his deepest.

He was in love.

You would never guess it by looking at him; he had his mask to thank for that. His self-consciousness stopped him from saying many words to anyone outside of a mission. And just being around you made him feel like all the wrong words would come out.

He wasn’t much of a romantic and couldn’t even remember the last time he was in a relationship. What was he even supposed to say to you?

“Hey, Lt.” Your voice was like music to his ears.

“Evenin’,” he said gruffly.

“What are you doing out here in the rain?” you asked.

“I could ask you the same thing.” His palms were sweaty, and he was happy you couldn’t see them.

You shrugged. “I guess I just like the rain.”

“Yeah, so do I. Helps me clear my mind,” he said.

“Am I bothering you, sir?” you asked, worry filling your tone.

“Not at all. I’m actually surprised you found me.” There were all sorts of places he went to be alone, and no one knew about them.

No one except for you.

“I promise I won’t tell anyone else about your hiding place,” you said, and he believed you.

“How did you find me?” he asked.

“I have no idea. Maybe fate brought me here.” You looked out at the view in front of you. He looked at you, heart beating faster.

“Bollocks,” he scoffed. “You actually believe in that?”

“We gotta believe in something, sir.”

He hated that you called him sir. It reminded him that he was your superior and his feelings for you were beyond inappropriate.

“You can call me Simon, you know,” he said.

“Simon,” you said quietly, to hear how it rolled off your tongue. You smiled at him. “It’s a lovely name.”

“It’s not,” he said, “But thank you.”

“Do you ever let anyone compliment you?” you asked.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s just…whenever I say something nice about you, you find a way to downplay it,” you said.

He felt like such an idiot. He was hurting you and didn’t even know it.

“I’m sorry. I’m not used to it,” he confessed. “I’m sorry if I…made you feel bad.”

“You didn’t. I do the same thing. I guess it’s my way of deflecting. Sometimes my self-esteem makes it hard for me to take a compliment.” Your smile began to fade, and Ghost couldn’t have that.

“We should get inside before we both get sick,” he said, and it seemed like he was ready to end the conversation.

“You’re right. You came here to be alone, and here I am bothering you….” you sighed.

“No! I mean…that’s not what I meant. You don’t have to go,” he said.

Please don’t go. Please don’t go. Please don’t go.

The smile was back on your face. “Okay then. What should we talk about?”

Simon was still thinking about that night even as he lay in bed with a fever, runny nose, and cough. He was able to convince himself to stay in bed and rest, which wasn’t easy for him.

He nearly groaned when he heard the knock on his door. He put his balaclava on quickly and walked to the door.

“This better be bloody important,” he said, swinging the door open.

“Hey, sir…I mean, Simon.” You looked up at him and noticed something was wrong right away.

“Y-You…what are you doing here?” he asked in a raspier voice than his usual one.

“You too, huh?” you asked, and he tilted his head. “Sick?”

“Yeah. What brings you here?”

“I…uh…you know what? I don’t even know. It’s like my feet just brought me here on their own.” You gave him a smile that broke through his tough exterior and wrapped around his heart.

“Dunno if you wanna come in here with me bein’ sick and all.”

“I’ll leave you to rest. I need to do the same myself. Lots of fluids, sir,” you told him.

“Simon,” he sighed.

“Sorry. Simon.” You stood there and looked at him for a while. “Feel better soon.”

“You too, love.” He closed his eyes and cursed inwardly at the slip-up. If you heard him, you didn’t make it known.

A few days later, Simon was back to his usual self, and you were trying to be. As he made his way to your room, he rehearsed precisely what he would say.

Isn’t all this supposed to come naturally? He thought. Yeah, when you’re not head over heels in love with the other person.

He knocked on your door and tried to stand as naturally as possible before you opened it.

Your face lit up as soon as you saw him. “Simon! Hey.” You rested your head against the door.

“How’re you feelin’?” he asked.

“Eh, could be better,” you admitted.

“Is there anything I can do?” He put his hands on either side of the doorframe and leaned in.

“You’re sweet, Lt. I’ll be fine, though.” You didn’t need this man doing anything else to make you fall even more in love with him.

“Oh…” He was disappointed, to say the least.

“Actually,” you started, and he stood up straight again. “Would you mind bringing me some tea? You’ve made some for me before, and it was fantastic.”

You like his tea.

You like his tea.

It was a silly thing to gush over, but he felt his face getting warm.

“I can do that for you,” he said. He turned and walked away.

“Hey, Simon!” you called out, and he turned to look at you. “Thanks.”

“What do you need two cups of tea for?” Soap asked. “Still not feelin’ well, Lt?”

“Nah, I’m fine,” he said. “This is for—” He froze, and a knowing smile spread over Johnny’s face.

“Ah, I see.” He smiled smugly.

Simon sighed and walked off. He hoped the tea would still be hot enough by the time he got to you.

You were dozing off when he knocked on your door. You stood excitedly and walked to the door to open it.

“Tea,” he offered, and you took a cup.

“I would ask you to come in, but I’m probably still contagious.”

“I’ll come in if you like. I don’t mind,” he told you, hoping you’d let him stay.

“Okay, come on in.” You closed the door behind him and hugged yourself as you walked over to the sofa and tried tidying it up.

“What are you doin’?” he asked.

“Cleaning up,” you said.

“You don’t have to do that. You’re not feeling well,” he pointed out.

“I know, but….”

“Don’t,” he said, nearly reaching out to touch your hand. “Sit and drink your tea.”

“Sir,” you said playfully before sitting down.

He stood in the middle of the room awkwardly. “How’s the tea?” he asked.

“It’s perfect. You make it?”

“I did, yeah.”

“You can sit down.” You pointed to one of the chairs. You doubted he wanted to sit on the same couch as you.

But he walked over slowly and sat beside you. You looked over at him and smiled.

“What?”

“I wasn’t expecting you to sit so close.”

“Why not?” he asked, turning to you.

“Well, no offense, but you like to be alone…you don’t seem to like getting too close to anyone,” you said. You hoped you hadn’t said too much or overstepped a boundary.

“I don’t,” he started, “But I make exceptions now and again.”

“And I’m an exception? Wow, I feel special,” you said before taking another sip of tea.

“You are special,” he said. He took a sip of his tea casually. “Look, I have to tell you something, and I don’t want you to say anything until I finish. Just listen.”

“Okay, I’m listening.”

“When I say you’re special, I mean it. I…feel something whenever I …look at you. To be honest, I’m not sure how to manage this,” he confessed. “I want to protect you; I don’t want anything or anyone to hurt you…ever.” He looked at you when he said that.

“Simon…”

“Not done. I think I’m in love with you, and I’m not quite sure what to do about it,” he finished. “You can say something now.”

“In love?” you asked, and he nodded.

“Yeah. Is that…bad?” he wondered.

“Why would it be bad, Simon?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know anything about it.”

“You do. I think your mind is so full of a sense of duty that it’s hard to focus on anything else.”

“You may be right,” he admitted.

“I am right,” you said with a smirk.

“You see…when you look at me like that….”

“And when you look at me, Lieutenant...”

“What?” he asked.

“I love your eyes,” you told him. “There’s something in them that makes me feel safe.”

“What are you sayin’, love?”

“I’m saying I’m pretty much in love with you, too. Tea’s getting cold, Lieutenant.”

“Fuck the tea. What did you say?”

“I’m in love with you, Lieutenant. I know it’s wrong, and I know you’ll go on about how wrong it is, but—”

“The rules don’t matter. I’d break every single one if it meant you’d be mine,” he said.

“If I weren’t sick right now, I’d kiss you.”

He looked down at your lips. “Save it for me, hm?”

“I don’t think you understand just how…hot that is.”

“Hot?”

“Yeah, like…sexy,” you said shyly. “Your voice, eyes….” You were leaning in closer to him without even realizing it.

“Anything else?” he asked, ending up in his own daze.

“Um…you…you…Simon…”

“Yeah?”

“I’d like to kiss you, but….”

“You’re sick, I know. I can wait,” he said.

“You can, but I don’t know if I can.”

He chuckled. “You’re impatient.”

You laughed. “You’re always saying that about me.”

He leaned in even closer. “Drink your tea, love.”

“Wow, Lieutenant, you’re a tease, I see.” You took a sip of tea.

“Pardon?”

“A tease, sir. You’re a tease,” you repeated.

“I haven’t done anything…yet,” he said quietly.

You pointed at him. “See? Tease!”

“I ain’t trying to be.”

“You don’t have to try, Lieutenant.” You both sat in silence for a while.

“I want you to call me Simon,” he told you. “I don’t want to be sir or lieutenant around you. I want to be me. I want to be Simon. Just Simon.”

“Okay, Simon.”

“You told her! Yes!” Soap shouted.

“Fuckin’ hell, Johnny…” Ghost murmured. “Any louder, the whole base will hear you.”

“Sorry, just happy for you, mate. It’s about time, Lt.”

“Yeah, but…not much has happened yet. We’ve, uh, we’ve drank some tea together,” he told Soap.

“That’s it?” Soap asked.

“She was sick, Johnny. Besides, I’m a patient man,” he said. Soap cocked an eyebrow. “What?”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“She’s better now, so…I’m thinkin’ about taking her for a proper date, but….” His words trailed off.

“But?”

“I don’t know what…I mean, it’s been a long time since I’ve been out on a date.” He was trying his hardest to avoid what he really wanted to say.

“Are you askin’ for my help, Lt.?”

“Don’t let it get to your head,” he said, rolling his eyes.

“Lt., she’s already head over heels for you. There ain’t much more you have to do. I mean…you do know how to kiss, right?” Soap asked, and Ghost threw him a glare.

“Of course, I know how to kiss….”

“If you need practice….” Soap puckered his lips, and Ghost was about to slap him over the head when you walked in.

“Am I interrupting?” you asked, smiling brightly.

“Yeah, I was about to kick Johnny’s ass,” Ghost said.

“Oh, okay, well, I’ll ask this quickly then. Simon, would you like to see a movie with me?” you asked.

Both men froze. You couldn’t see the look on Simon’s face, but Soap was beaming. He looked at Simon and then nudged him.

“What he means to say is yes, lass.”

“Simon?” You wanted to hear it from him.

“A movie? Yeah. Sure.”

“Okay, great!” you said excitedly. “See you later.”

“Later…tonight?” he asked.

“Yeah. Is that okay?” You looked at him.

“Yeah. Are we going off base or what?”

“Yup, if it’s okay, sir.”

“It’s fine. Time?”

You looked at your watch. “1900 hours?”

“Sounds good to me,” he said. You nodded and walked out.

“Guess it’s time for a crash course,” Soap said.

He walked downstairs, and there you were, waiting for him. You turned to him and smiled.

“Punctual,” you said.

“Always, love.”

You moved closer and wrapped your arms around him. “Thanks for this.”

“What? Did you think I was going to say no?” he asked.

You shrugged. “You could have.”

“Listen, I’ve been through some of the hardest situations, but saying no to you would be the hardest thing I’d ever have to do.”

You looked up at him. “Do you know how badly I want to kiss you right now?”

“Save it for the end of the date, hm?” He tapped your chin gently, and you nearly sighed aloud.

“I’ll try,” you said.

“Are you going to ambush me with kisses or something?” he asked.

“Don’t put it past me, Simon.”

As you got into the car, you could only think about kissing him.

The date went off without a hitch. Simon was a gentleman—you weren’t expecting anything less—and you behaved yourself.

The tension in the car was palpable as he drove back to the base. The tension in the elevator seemed to grow even stronger. You watched the numbers change—2, 3, 4—Simon is on the fourth floor.

The elevator dinged, and the door opened. He walked toward the opened doors, and you thought he was going to step off the elevator without saying a word, but suddenly you felt a firm grip on your wrist, and then he was pulling you along with him.

He moved so quickly for such a big man. You looked up at him as he guided you through the hallways, turning here and there before finally stopping in front of a door.

You were both slightly out of breath as he unlocked and opened the door. The lights were off, but Simon walked through the place as if he knew it by heart.

Of course, he did, you thought.

His room smelled clean as if you’d expect anything less from him. There was also a hint of his scent in the air. It was a scent that you could never quite place. Tea, for sure, but something else was there that was purely him. The man had his own musk.

“Come to me,” he said, voice cutting through the darkness. You went in the direction of his voice. “I’m here, love.” Wait, now it sounded as if it was coming from somewhere else.

“Are you moving?” you asked.

“You tell me,” he said, and you closed your eyes. “Over here…”

You whipped your head around. “Simon…”

“Yes?”

You kept your footsteps light and your ears open like he always told you. You listened for any change in the air. Humans radiated heat. Simon especially.

“Simon,” you whispered.

“Yes, love.” He was directly in front of you. You reached into the darkness and felt his broad chest in front of you.

“Good job, soldier,” he said with a hint of amusement. “Give me your hands.” Your eyes were adjusting now, and you could just see his hands. You placed yours in his.

He held them gently and moved them up until you felt the fabric of his balaclava.

“Go on,” he said. He dropped his hands and allowed you the honor of moving his balaclava. You felt your way, making sure not to lift it any higher than his nose. Even in the dark, he deserved to keep his secrets.

You felt around. He had a strong nose and lovely cheekbones. You felt a long, somewhat smooth line going from his cheek and over his lip, and you gasped.

“It’s all right,” he said, “Don’t hurt anymore.”

You could feel his warm puffs of breath on your hand, and you were tempted. You slowly moved your fingers to his jaw, which was covered in a sprinkling of newly growing hair.

Then you were touching his lips. They were soft and full. You felt them move and noticed that he had kissed your fingers.

“May I kiss you, Simon?”

“Thought you’d never ask,” he said. He met you halfway, and when your lips met, it felt as though the room lit up, but it was still dark. He stumbled back a bit, overcome by the feeling of your lips. Once he had his footing again, he deepened the kiss and walked you backward carefully.

Not once did you bump into anything or stumble until the backs of your knees hit a sofa. He guided you down carefully, putting a protective hand behind your head so that you wouldn’t land too hard.

“Kiss me again, Simon,” you breathed.

“Say it again,” he said lowly. He was right there—his nose touching yours.

“Kiss me again…Simon,” you whispered, and he did with a slight moan. He loved hearing you say his name.

The kiss became a little needier with tongue and teeth and a need to be closer. He pressed his body against yours, and you melded to him, wrapping yourself around him so that he wouldn’t move away.

He began kissing you teasingly—a peck here, a peck there—he wanted you to chase his lips. You whined, and you swear he chuckled.

“Don’t do that,” he said quietly before lowering his head, so his lips were against your neck. “Save those whines for another night.”

Those words were full of promise and a hint of lust that shot right between your legs. It was almost as if he knew because he swirled his hips against you. He was slotted perfectly between your legs, so you felt the friction in the perfect place when he moved his hips.

“You’re such a good kisser,” you moaned before he and his tongue swallowed up your words.

“I could kiss you for the rest of my life,” he admitted. “Give me your tongue.”

You stuck your tongue out, and he swirled his around yours before sucking it.

“Mm!”

He pulled off slowly. “Like that?” He didn’t give you a chance to answer—his lips were on yours in a flash.

You pulled away and kissed along his jaw. When you worked your way down to his neck, he shuddered. You continued along his neck, and he turned to give you access. You latched on just below his ear, and he pushed his hips between your legs hard.

“Like that?” you teased.

He was practically rutting against you now. “Hush,” he said before kissing you again.

You slid your hands down his body, and he pulled away from the kiss to stop you.

“Not tonight,” he breathed. He moved your hand to his face. “I just want to kiss you tonight.”

“Sounds perfect.”

He kissed both of your cheeks before moving to your lips. “I can’t remember the last time I kissed someone…like this,” he said.

“Me neither.”

“Is it okay?” he asked.

“Is what okay?”

“That I just want to kiss you,” he said, his lips brushing against yours.

“It’s more than okay,” you told him, giving him a quick kiss.

“You’re amazing,” he whispered, nuzzling your neck.

“So are you, Simon. Thanks for going out with me tonight.”

“You don’t have to thank me for that, love. It was my pleasure.” You could tell he was needy for more kisses because he kept giving you little kisses here and there.

You initiated the kiss this time, claiming his lips as your own.

Tonight was the night you realized that you never wanted to kiss anyone who wasn’t him.

Tonight was the night he realized that after all that time not kissing anyone—he was waiting for you, for the right one to kiss.

[gatorlovebot]

find my king simon masterlist here and read from the beginning. thanks to @ghosts-cyphera @gemmahale and @redzscare for the encouragement <3

it seemed as if your little walk through the park was all that simon needed to get him acting like himself around you again. while he had spent most of the trip quiet and withdrawn, now, on your last night, he was coming back to himself. opening up doors for you, getting your chair for you at dinner, sharing jokes with you just to see you roll your eyes.

you spent a lot of this trip thinking. thinking about your wants and needs and your future. in the past, in only fleeting moments, you had thought about a future beyond the castle, beyond simon. but only just for a moment, before you told yourself you were being silly, before you told yourself you shouldn’t let your unrequited feelings for him get the best of you, lead you to making rash decisions. but maybe making a life for yourself elsewhere wasn’t a rash decision. maybe it’s what you needed. 

when you both retire up to your rooms for one last night’s rest here is when he finally addresses what’s been going on. he’s slipped into the sleep clothes you laid out for him and is sitting on the edge of his bed, watching you fold clothes to put into his luggage in the morning. he offered to help but you shooed him away, knowing that his help would usually cause arguments. 

“dove?” he broke the comfortable silence from his spot on the bed.

you just hum in response, scrutinizing a stain on one of his nice silk shirts. you can’t remember when he wore it on the trip, but you accepted it as a lost cause, knowing that it would be another full 24 hours before you were even back at the castle. no use fretting over it now. you ball it up in your hands, throwing it in a pile with the rest of his dirty clothes. you turn to him as he waits for you.

“come here,” he beckons you over with one of his outstretched hands. you take it, your socked feet coming to rest in the space between his big thighs. his hands are cold as they engulf your’s, the heating situation at the inn you’ve been staying at has been less than ideal. “i just want to thank you.” he says, earnestly, thumb brushing across your knuckles.

you laugh, just a quick breath out through your nose, “for what?”

he averts his gaze from your face back down to your entwined hands, seemingly trying to find the right words to say. he takes a deep breath before speaking again, “for being here, putting up with me. i don’t tell you enough how grateful i am to have you.” he squeezes your hands in his before gazing back up at you, “especially lately.”

it takes you by surprise, honestly, him acknowledging what’s been going on between you two. this back and forth of you trying to express what you want and him in turn, retreating. not knowing what to say, you urged him with your eyes to keep going.

“i’ve taken you for granted since you stepped foot into my quarters for the first time, if i’m being honest.” he lets out a little self-deprecating laugh, and your mouth opens on instinct to rebuff his claim. as much as you hated it when simon would speak unkindly about himself he wasn’t being untrue about himself. you let your mouth fall back shut as he continued. “but not anymore. you’ve really opened my eyes these past weeks. made me see things and feel things.”

his words taper off, voice sounding horse. you feel frozen in that moment, not knowing what to do or say. in the time that he had been reserved and standoffish, had he actually been doing self reflection? had he actually taken your words into account? 

he seems to get a hold of himself and his emotions, clearing his throat before meeting your gaze again. his eyes are glassy but he has a small grin on his face as his volume drops, conspiratorially,  “i have a surprise for you when we get back.”

a smile blooms across your face, matching his excited grin. a surprise? the king wasn’t one for grand gestures or making a spectacle of himself. curiosity got the best of you, different scenarios flipping through your mind one after another. 

“just for us.” he gives you a cheeky wink and even though you roll your eyes you know that your cheeks are heating up under his attention. it felt like old times. but was that enough? the thought popped in out of nowhere, bursting your little bubble of brief happiness and excitement. these moments with simon recently were short and fleeting, you didn’t know how much more you could take of this back and forth with him. 

you excuse yourself for the night, knowing you were both in for an early morning. you walk the short distance down the hall to your room. you undress and pull on layers to combat the winter chill in the air. when you finally rest your head, you dream of blooming flowers and a foreign city. when you wake the next morning you can’t help but remember being alone in your dreams. 

-

even in the face of hours and hours worth of travel in a compact train car, simon is in an agreeable mood in the morning. rousing from his bed with less whining than usual. he slips on the clothes you picked out for him and gracefully grabs his heavy bags from your hands. “none of that now, little bird.” you know not to put up a fight, instead grabbing your small tote and trailing behind him down to the lobby of the inn. 

-

simon makes himself comfortable next to you when you finally settle into your seat on the train car. not much to do to pass the time besides enjoy each other’s company. you two spend most of the morning resting against each other, finally having time to unwind after such a busy week. simon rouses you awake for an early lunch, having not had much for breakfast. for the past few weeks you two had spent many meals in tense silence, but now you make comfortable small talk, chattering on about this and that.

a few more hours go by, simon quietly reading aloud to you from one of his many books. at the end of a chapter he dog ears the page and sets it down on the seat next to him. “gotta stretch the legs, dove.”

you could tell that he was starting to get restless, his hand had been fidgeting with your fingers while the other flipped the pages of the book. he gets up from the seat next to your's, stretches his legs out in the aisle before slipping into a seat a few rows from your’s, next to one of his guards. you don’t mean to eavesdrop but it’s hard not to when the train car is so quiet, everyone else is either sleeping or keeping to themselves. 

before you can fully make out what simon and his guard are conspiring about, simon's secretary takes the empty seat next to you. even though you had been hoping for a moment alone with your thoughts, he’s not an unwelcome presence. “i have some news that i think you’ll be interested in.” he offered, excitement clear on his face.

news? “well out with it.” you cajole him, a smile slipping onto your face at his poorly contained enthusiasm.

“well, i don’t know about you, but i’ve been having a delightful time working closer with you the past few weeks,” when you think of your time spent with the secretary you don’t think about the hours spent with him planning out your trip. no, you think of his proposition for you all those weeks ago. you avert your eyes for a moment, his gaze intense as you try to think of a response to what he said instead what he had offered you all those weeks ago. 

you spot simon’s book, where he had just been sitting. you subconsciously adjust yourself closer to the window, putting just a bit more distance between you two. his smile falters at your minuscule movement, and you rush to find a response, “it’s been worlds better than working with the last secretary.”

there’s humor in your voice, you can laugh about it now knowing your king was sat just a few feet from you, safe. the secretary smiles at your dark joke, “i would never put you through something like that, mostly because i’m afraid of knives.”

his admission has you giggling for a moment before you contain yourself, “so, what’s this news?”

“yes, yes,” the secretary gets himself back on track, “i’ve been brainstorming ways we could work closer together that wouldn’t impede on your time with the king. it’s almost impossible to separate you two for even a few moments.”

he’s not wrong, but it still makes your cheeks heat up in discomfort, usually feeling uneasy whenever anyone pointed out your relationship to simon. “and then something absolutely perfect happened. one of the girls from the kitchen approached me about wanting other duties. if we got someone to take over your duties for the king then you could step into an advisory role.”

his offer has your interests piqued. not the advisory role, simon already listens to you over anyone else, especially his advisors. no, you’re interested in the girl from the kitchen replacing you. a way out. a little voice in your head says. you had never thought you could leave your role because there would never be anyone to replace you. but now there is. 

you lean closer to the secretary and lower your voice, aware of simon’s proximity. “when we get back to the castle you can inform her that my duties can now be her’s. tell her to come to the king’s chambers first thing in the morning, she can shadow me.”

“really?” the secretary questioned, seemingly in disbelief.

“yes, but you have to promise to not say anything to the king about this matter yet.” you plead, dreading the idea of having to talk to him about this.

“i promise, this will be a big change for you and him, you should be the one to tell him about this.” he replied.

you have to blink away the tears that threaten to overwhelm your eyes knowing that you wouldn’t be telling simon anything. 

[multific]

Bliss

Alpha!Simon "Ghost" Riley x Omega!Fem!Reader

Warnings: A/B/O themes, violence, nudity 

Summary: An Alpha find his Omega

Being an Omega in the army was difficult. Thankfully the medicine was enough to keep your second nature at bay. So much so that every member of your team thought you were a Beta.

They even called you a Beta during missions. Even if it wasn't your code name.

And you were okay with that.

Betas didn't have a scent as Omegas or Alphas did, and with your team full of strong Alphas you knew you had to keep your Omega at bay, or you'd get hurt.

But to say that it was hard would be an understatement. Every time they did something nice for you, your Omega kept on yelling at you.

You needed a mate. And you knew that every single one of these men around you would be a perfect candidate.

But of course, you had to get feelings for the one in the mask.

One time, during a mission, he handed you a bowl of food, something the others never did and you felt your insides screaming at you 'Alpha provides, good Alpha.' 

And ever since, anything he did made your insides go wild, let that be simply driving or killing a man, your Omega choose him, and after that, no medicine could keep those feelings at bay.

"Your heat should come soon, thankfully you don't have a mission so what will you do?"

"I'll go to my place and wait it out. Told the Captain I will need some time off."

"I still don't agree that only Price knows about you being an Omega but it is not my decision. Here are your meds for after, stay safe, find a good Alpha to help you through it maybe." you wanted to scoff at her suggestion but you did no such thing. You only thanked her and headed out.

Price already knew you would be going away, he understood because of your nature, so he didn't sign you up for any missions. 

"Hey, Beta Bitch!" oh great, drunk people, just what you needed on your way back to your room. "I know your secret." the man said but you didn't react, at least not on the outside, on the inside you were shivering, you had to calm yourself, he must be lying.

"Let me through." you said as he blocked the hallway, a shit-eating grin on his face.

"Why would I do such a thing... Omega?" you felt a shiver run down your back, fear, something you didn't feel in a long time. 

"Let me through." you said again but he always moved with you, not letting you pass.

"I will never let an Omega tell me what I should do." he was an Alpha, his smell was... awful, and made you want to throw up. "I assume your little dream team doesn't know about this little fact, would you mind if I told them?" 

On the inside you were panicking, thankfully you didn't let that show.

"Why would they care? I do a good job, doesn't matter what I am."

He laughed, a wicked laugh then pulled something out at his back, you noticed it and assumed it was a knife.

You took a step back but he followed.

"You'll learn your place when talking to Alphas, whore." he raised his hand but another stopped it before you could do anything.

It was Ghost, his smell was clear. He didn't speak as he hit the other man in the stomach, making him double over and groan in pain.

"Why are you standing up for this Omega bitch?"

Ghost lifted the man by his collar, looking at him in the eyes as the man struggled against Ghost's power and height.

"Leave her the fuck alone." Ghost threw the man, almost all the way across the room. The man's friend quickly got his friend off the floor and they both left, running.

"Thank you." you said as he turned to you.

"Are hurt?" he asked as he moved your hair out of your face, you looked into his eyes, and shook your head.

Suddenly you felt a lot calmer, it took you a minute to realize that it was him, his scent and as his hand moved along your scent glads, it made you a lot calmer. 

"I'm fine, Alpha." you basically moaned, and this was when you realized just how you were behaving. Suddenly a cold shiver ran down your spine. "Sorry." you said as you quickly pulled away from him and quickly walked away.

You heard him walk behind you, but you only hoped he had to go the same way as you. 

"Omega, Y/N, you are not okay. You smell-" just as he said that you stopped and turn to look at him, making sure no one was there.

"I'm fine, Ghost. Thank you for your help but please just forget what happened." you turned back and looked up at him, he was closer now, way closer. "What do you mean my smell?"

"Your smell is showing... I-I could smell you from across the camp."

"T-Did the others?" when he nodded you wanted to just die right there. "Oh, no."

"Hey, it's okay. All good really, I get it why you didn't tell us. But I just want you to be safe. Now it all makes sense."

"What makes sense?"

"Why my Alpha was yelling at me to keep you safe. To keep my Omega safe."

"I-I don't understand. I'm confused, very confused. I-I have to go back to my room."

As you started to walk, he followed you.

You arrived at your door, opening and closing it behind you two.

"Is your heat near?" he asked and you really wanted to disappear on sight. 

"Yes, why? Can you smell it?"

"I can." he replied as if it was the most obvious thing.

"You must have a magic nose then."

"No, I can only smell you. I always could, but the smell was faint. I assume you took meds. But now I can smell you clearly."

"What do I smell like?" you asked, voice barely above a whisper.

"Like a warm sunny day on a field. Calming, beautiful and warm. What do I smell like to you?"

"Like fire on a cold day. Safe and comfortable." you said as he sat down on your small living area. You followed him and sat next to him, he moved closer, his instinct to keep you safe was clear as his hand moved behind you. "So, that's why you gave me food?"

"My Alpha was screaming at me to feed you, to provide for you. I told myself to stop and that you are not an Omega but I guess I was wrong."

"I'm glad," you said as you looked at him, no point in hiding your true self and feelings any longer. "I'm glad I wasn't the only one who felt this way."

His eyes were shining, even in the small room you could tell. 

You moved closer to him, putting your head on his chest as he held you.

"I won't let anything happen to you."

"I know. Thank you." He looked around your room, seeing you everywhere, you really made this small space into a home. He looked into your room, seeing your bed and a nest on it. He could imagine you cuddled up in it much like you were with him right now, your fist clenched around his sweatshirt as he started to rub your back. 

"Do you need a couple of my shirts for your nest?"

"Can I have you instead?"

"I have a mission from tomorrow. Soap and I are going to Las Almas."

"Hmm. Be careful."

"Of course." 

He ended up leaving two of his sweatshirts for you, one to wear and the other for your nest.

Las Almas became a lot bigger deal. 

Price wanted you on board as well, but he now knew, and understood that you were an Omega going through heat.

So he excused you.

Your heat hit very differently this time. Your doctor said it will happen once you find your Mate.

And you definitely missed him and after a week his scent started to fade.

You locked yourself in your room and didn't let anyone in besides your doctor. 

After a week and a half, your heat was over.

Usually, your heat lasted for a week, and you were glad Ghost wasn't there with you, you wanted to keep things slow, and heat at the start of a relationship is not what you really needed. 

So, while yes, it was hell without an Alpha, it was also something you didn't regret. 

As soon as the plane landed you got a smell of his scent. It was inviting, he smelled like he was missing something. And that something was you.

"Welcome back guys!" you said as they all came over to you. Only one daring to come closer and hug you.

Soon you and Ghost were back in your room.

"Thank you for the shirts, but I'll give them back, I need ones that smell like you now." you stopped and looked at him, something was off. "What's wrong?"

"It's Makarov."

"Oh." 

"We will go after him, but I don't want you to come. It's too dangerous, I don't want to lose you."

 "Who will save your asses then? I can do something that is more... Like not on the front line?"

"He's dangerous, you know that. I don't want you to get hurt." 

"I don't want you to get hurt either. We only just found each other. But I know what you mean. I will help with Makarov, but I will take a step back. I planned on moving to the medic bay to be a nurse."

"Thank you." he said as he moved his head into the crook of your neck. Smelling you, taking you in, he missed you, so much, only the thought of you kept him going faster.

Soap teased him without end, but he didn't care, he just wanted to be with you again. 

"I missed you very much." you said as you moved your hands over his mask and his back. He had a different kind of mask on, not his usual one which covered all of his face, his eyes and this eye area were all exposed. 

"You can take it off." he said suddenly, his deep voice sending shivers down your spine. And you didn't have to be told twice. You moved your hand under the mask , lifting it off of his face, he moved a little back to fully allow the material to fall from his face. He immediately nuzzled back into your neck, now feeling his breath fan over your neck more freely, it felt amazing. 

He could smell you better like this and you could finally run your fingers through his hair. 

He soon pulled back, looking at you as your eyes met him for the first time, dark around his eyes to complete his look but he looked so handsome, you cupped his cheek as you smiled at him.

"There's my Alpha." and he smiled. He was beautiful.

"Can we take a bath?" he asked.

"Oh, already? Didn't even bring me on a date and you already want me naked, Simon?"

"Always." he said with such a serious expression you didn't dare to say anything else. You just guided him to the bath and as you both sat in the warm water, you against his chest, with his fingers running up down your hands as the water consumed both of you. He was so much bigger than you, towering over you like a giant.

And you loved it.

The warmth that radiated off of him was something else. 

Your insides were purring due to this closeness. You were very very happy, and you were sure you smelled happy too. 

He sure did.

There was something about him, something so happy, so warm.

He washed off his face paint now, and he felt bare. He felt vulnerable, he was afraid of rejection. But you would never and you certainly didn't. 

He moved slightly, pulling you closer as the water moved around your bodies, he placed his head on your shoulder after kissing it.

Is this what having a mate felt like? 

This warmth was something Simon never felt. His father would often tell him he would never find a mate. 

And for the longest time, he believed it.

Simon believed he didn't deserve to be a mate to someone, he didn't believe he could ever find someone in the first place. 

He knew he was destined to die alone, and yet here he was, in an Omega's room, bathing with her, all comfortable and warm. 

It felt almost illegal to him. 

But he would be lying if he said he didn't enjoy every second of it. 

The way you smelled mesmerised him, the way your skin felt against his took his breath away and the way your gentle touches felt against his arms, he was sure he died and went to heaven, but it was impossible that he was in heaven, he didn't deserve heaven. 

A man of his job, he could never have a comfortable life after death. 

And he wasn't even dead.

He refused to believe your kind soul ended up with his in Hell.

So, he had to be alive.

After placing another kiss to your skin, he let out a long sigh.

"I will keep you safe, forever." he said, and at first, he didn't even know he said it out loud, only when you turned your head towards him and smiled did he realize, he talked out loud. 

Doesn't mean he didn't mean it. 

"Thank you." you kindly whispered back as he leaned over to place a small kiss to your lips.

Bliss.

Taglist: imreadinggoaway @fleursirvart​​ @v-2bucky ehsebastiancrunch-time-sports  @pxstelrainbow ablogbypeteparker liamssmilersmexylemony @greenarrowhead feelingsareharddd @thisismysecrethappyplace @sincerelyfan @theoneanna @aestheticsandmarvel @rororo06 @castellandiangelo @avengers-r-us @destynelseclipsa   @spilledinkindumpster celebsimagine @capsiclesdoll snoopy3000 @firstangeldragonranch @puknow @crazzyter  @alwayshave-faith @soleil-dor @alex12948 scream-kiwi79  @lxdyred  @imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl​ @liveforkarljacobs @anonymoussherlockandmarvelgeek​​ @paola-carter​​

~Masterlist~

ˇAO3ˇ

[lovrre]

Drunk love~

Ghost/Simon riley x female reader

Summary: while just going to the bar for a drink you meet up with an old ex. Are the feelings just as strong as before?

Word count: 1k

Warnings: smut, cursing, unprotected sex ,oral (male receiving) and probably some other stuff.

You walk into the bar putting your leather jacket on a hook at the entrance. You sit at the bar and order Your usual. The bartender hands you your drink with a smile and you smile back Before taking a sip. you stop in your track at a familiar voice coming from your left. You slowly turn your head to see a masked man laughing with other men . “Simon?” You ask, slightly tilting your head to the side. His head turns in your direction, and he stops in his tracks when his eyes land on you.

“Y/N?” he asks, confusion lacing his voice “Oh my god it is you” you say with a massive smile on your face “I almost couldn’t tell with the mask on.” He looked scary but he still had his same old eyes. You two share a quick side hug before continuing conversation, “How is life, You still in the military?” You ask settling down in your seat

“Yes I am, Life's been decent” Simon says smiling underneath his mask. You understood why he wore it but, You missed his face and wondered how time had aged him underneath the mask. Underneath the mask “Thats good…” you say taking a slow sip of your drink. “It's a good thing you're still in the military I was starting to think you’ve just been avoiding me the past two years” you joke, Simon readjust himself awkwardly  before starting “ I-” before he can really even  start a man behind him cut him off by clearing his throat.

“Ghost, Are you going to introduce us to your friend here?” a man says from behind him “Ghost?” You question quietly “Oh yeah, Y/N this is my team” Simon says gesturing to the men behind him dismissively before turning his attention back on you. “Wow that’s it? hi Y/N I’m soap,” the man says with a chuckle coming forward to shake your hand “nice to meet you” you say giving him a firm handshake with a smile . The others in the group intrudes themselves As well.

~~~~~

Before you knew it, an hour had passed. “Oh, I have a good one, we ditched a week of school once to go see a Yankees game, that was fun.” you state, grabbing a nacho from the large basket everyone decided to share. “I literally can't imagine ghost at a Yankees game” soap says, putting down his glass. “It's true, but I guess from what you guy’s told me we know to different men, when I knew him we would do stuff like going up to the roof and-“

“Ya I think that’s enough” Ghost says interrupting you, you scrunch up your face In confusion for a second before realizing “I was just going to tell them about how we used to drop eggs off the roof – what did you think I was I going to say” you ask the last part raising your eyebrow slightly as if you really wanted to know. but you knew exactly what he thought you were going to say. A part of You liked the thought of him thinking of you two on that roof doing not so holy things. The two of you had fallen into an unplanned stare off andSoap awkwardly cleared his throat. “how about more shots?” he says with the big cheesy grin.  “Great” you reply clapping your hands together  snapping from your trance .

After a couple of shots, you started to feel a little tipsy. At this point, you and Simon were basically alone at the bar, his friends were having their own conversation at a table not too far away while eating the remaining nachos “So what happened between you and that boyfriend of yours?” Simon asked, rolling up the bottom of his mask to take a sip of his drink, exposing his chin stubble . You squeeze your legs close at the memory of that stubble between your legs.

“We broke up…last month time was a big issue, he just couldn’t make any Time for me” you say taking Sip of your third drink of the night. “I think It's better this way though… lets just say I was unsatisfied by more then just his time management skills” you joke. Simon lets a small laugh, and you join him putting your hand over your mouth to hold in you’re drink. during the action his eyes fall to your exposed breast in your low cut shirt. He quickly averts them returning his focus to the drink in front of him. “A real man would have made time” he jokes once you settle down 

“Oh really, do you not remember the reason we broke up ?” You ask, raising your eyebrow in the process. Before answering the question He unknowingly flexes his arm, bringing attention to his sleeve tattoos Making your stomach flutter. You wonder if he got any new ones and if he did where? “I was a boy, then I couldn't see what really mattered” Simon says staring down at you with drunken eyes “so what, you're not a boy anymore?” you ask flirtatiously looking up at him “far from it” Simone says looking down at you his eyes swirling with lust. “How so?” you ask almost breathlessly, taunting him. Simon leans in so close you can’t smell but his sent, it drives you crazy but you keep your composure. he positions  his covered mouth directly over your ear before taking “-because I would never leave you unsatisfied”

You physically recoiled his words “Jesus… Simon” your whole body shivers at the thought. “Damn I've missed you y/n ” he says quietly, the words make your heart flip, but you don’t react. “You're drunk, Simon” you say moving away slightly “dose that make it not true?” Simon asks moving in closer “ Simon… ” you say trailing off “we don't have to” he says put of the blue “huh?”  you say confused.  “We don't have to leave the past behind us, we could try again” Simon says placing his hand over yours

“Oh, so I can be waiting at home to see you once a year… No, thanks” you say before  taking the last swig of your drink “it wouldn't be like that this time”  Ghost says trying to defending is point

“it would” you say giving him a sad smile before removing your hand from under his and placing it ontop. “It was nice seeing you again… Ghost, but I think it's time I go home” you say jumping down from your stool. “Don't” he says, lightly grabbing your arm “don't what?” you asks confused “You call me by my name, ” he asks his voice low and rugged. “Well… Simon it was really nice seeing you again, but I think it’s time I head home.” you step on your tippy-toes giving him a quick kiss on his masked cheek. “hopefully we’ll bump into each other again” Simon watches as you get your jacket and leave the bar.

~~~

You get in the house, desperately trying to calm yourself. All you ever wanted was Simon, but you couldn't put yourself back in that situation only to be hurt. Trying to clear your mind, you get in the shower in hopes of washing away the thought of him.

Getting out of the shower you hear a knock at the door, throwing on your robe You go to open the door Revealing Simon standing on your porch, mask in hand. now you could see his full face, He looked slightly older now, which only made him more attractive. His sleeves rolled up exposing his tattoos “Did you follow me?” you questioned a bit concerned “no, I searched you up” he replies plainly. “I don’t know which one is scarier” you go to close the door, and he stops you keeping it open with his arm. “Let me talk, I need you bad y/n I can't-”

“-you're drunk Simon, go home”

You try to close the door again, and Before you could say anything else, his lips were on yours. You folded instantly, wrapping your arms around his neck and deepening the kiss. He tasted like whiskey, you couldn't help but want more. Kicking the door closed with his foot he grunts out a “Jump” you do as he says wrapping his legs around his waist. “Left!” you shout as he walked down the hallway towards your room. Plopping you down on the bed, your robe opened in the process exposing your breast.

“Are you trying to kill me” he quickly throws off his shirt before his lips connected with yours again. He starts leaving kisses down your torso, completely untying your rob in the process, Kissing lower and lower until he reached your inner thigh “God I have missed You” he sighs looking up at you with Lust filled eyes.

You grab his shoulder, guiding him back to your mouth. “I need you” you whisper tugging at his belt “Fuck” he responded unbuckling his belt, throwing his pants and underwear to the floor. At the sight of the man completely naked in front of you You slip your hand between your legs, slicking your wetness back and forth between your folds. Getting off the bed, you kneel in front of him, Simon gives you a weird look, and you smile.

Grabbing his shaft in your hand, you pump it a couple of times before spitting on your hand and spreading down his dick. You give him a couple small kitten licks before opening  your mouth and taking him all the way in. Simon lets out a low groans as you being establishing a pace. Using your tongue on the underside of his dick In the process. His hand enters your hair, pushing your head down, shoving himself deeper inside your mouth. You pull back for a breath, creating a popping sound. “Take it” he groans out, guiding your head back.

You oblige, sucking harder and faster than before, Simon's thrust become more sporadic before he pulls himself out of your mouth. “I need to cum inside you” with that you stand up laying back on the bed, Simon’s on top of you in seconds pushing back your leg to keep it out of the way. Lining himself up with your entrance and wiping himself through your folds before slowly pushing himself inside.

“FUCKK” he grunts, entering you completely, You let out a string of inconsistent moans as Simon slowly rocked back and forth in hopes of helping you readjust to his size. “God you hug me so fucking tight” he groans, slowly pulling out before plugging back in. “Faster” you cry before burying your face in a nearby pillow. Simon grabs your right leg, throwing it over his shoulder in hopes of a deeper angle. “I'll never leave this again” he groans out while thrusting. You desperately scratch at his back from the overflow of pleasure. Simon slides his free hand between the two of you, rubbing Circles on your clit. “Fuck I'm going to cum” you moan desperately clawing at his back. “I can feel it” he groans, “cum for me” after a couple of thrust you’re cuming around him. Simon quickly follows suit before collapsing next to you.

Everything thing feels right as you listen to his labored breaths. After a minute or two you turn to a now sleeping Simon, you just watch as his sweat covered chest rises and falls, The sweat only emphasizing his abs. You slowly run your hand over his chest, enjoy the feel of his skin under yours. “I love you” you hear a quiet voice say from above you. Looking up, you see Simon watching you with lovingly tired eyes. “You’re just drunk” you say laying your head on his chest listening to his heart, “I’m not leaving you again”

[morallyinept]

A full transcribe of MAX LORD'S dialogue/lines from the film WONDER WOMAN 1984

Includes full dialogue, and dialogue from any deleted/additional scenes available.

I've created this as a point of reference when writing for Pedro's characters, and I hope you find it useful. Even if you just want to read the dialogue. 🖤

FULL MASTERLIST OF PEDRO CHARACTERS DIALOGUE

☝🏻Dialogue has been fully transcribed by myself using reference to original scripts (if available), audio subtitles and using my own two ears. Therefore, mistakes can be made, however I have tried to be as fully accurate as I can. If you spot an obvious mistake, please kindly let me know. Where audio is not clear, I have marked with *inaudible* Scenes are separated for ease of reference.

FULL SCRIPT DIALOGUE:

Welcome to the future. Life is good, but it can be better. And why shouldn’t it be? Everything we’ve ever dreamed about is right at our fingertips. But are you reaping the rewards? Do you… have it all? 

Welcome to Black Gold Cooperative. The first oil company run for the people, by the people. Think about finally having everything you’ve always wished for. 

For a low monthly fee, you can own a piece of the most lucrative industry in the world. And every time we strike gold, you strike gold. 

No matter who you are, no matter what you do, you deserve to have it all. Do you have everything you’ve ever wanted? Aren’t you tired of always wishing you had more? Join me today. Operators are standing by. You don’t need a pile of money or some business degree to get started. You don’t even have to work hard for it. 

At Black Gold Cooperative, all you need is to want it. 

__________________

A pleasure, Ms. Minerva. 

No.

Life is good, but it can be better!

“The oil guy,” I’ll take it. 

Well, what can I say, doctor. Your reputation precedes you. And apparently we share a passion for gemology. 

What? 

I'm right here! Haha! 

Life is good, but it can be better. Hahaha! 

Well, I have a great relationship with Sears. I can get you a brand-new TV by the end of the day. Nineteen inches. No strings attached. 

Okay.

It's going to be an amazing party. I hope you have something nice to wear. 

I agree. Except, I like to party. 

You like Latin dancing? 

Really? No, I doubt that you’re a terrible dancer, the shape that you're in. 

You know, I really should be going. Thank you for the tour. I will have to see you tonight. 

Thank you, John. 

__________________

Ladies. Not now, Raquel. My supplements? 

How? How! Yes, clearly. Alistair. 

It's not done yet, buddy. But it doesn't matter. You just have to be patient. I told you the pool, the helicopter, you’ll have it all. But remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day, was it? No. 

Well, it takes time to become a great, great, number-one man like your dad is going to be. 

Simon. These offices aren’t ready for guests yet. 

Alistair, go wait with Raquel. 

Simon. I know it's hard to see right now, but we are finally at the edge of turning this thing around. 

No! I have a big… there’s something in the works. And it’s no scheme. Simon, we have millions of acres of potentially oil-rich land. 

I am not a con man! I'm a television personality. And a respected businessman with a plan. With… with… a great plan. 

You’re going to regret this. 

Simon, wait. Simon. 

I am not a loser! He’s a loser. And don’t you ever believe a word that man said, he’s a liar and he’s wrong. And he will rue the day he walked away from me. And you. And you are going to be so proud to be my son. You’ll see. Everyone will. 

__________________

Dr. Minerva. You look breathtaking. 

Mmm. 

Biotin. You should try it. Makes you glow like a teenager. Reverses the clock. Never accept limitations of nature. 

Especially not a beautiful woman like you. 

God, it’s so loud in here. 

Can we go somewhere? Just me and you? 

Hmm… your office? 

__________________

Oh, wow! Look at all this stuff. It’s so… It’s so beautiful. Like you. What is that? 

Wow. 

Let me help you. Max is here. No need to be stumped ever again. I have a dear friend in Roman antiquities. Could give it a look, if you like? It is Latin, isn’t it? 

__________________

“One great wish.” I’ve been waiting. I wish to be you, the dream stone itself. 

__________________

Thank you, Belinda. 

I’ll have your money, Simon. Today I’m here for an apology. 

I’m sorry. I messed up. I messed up. I lied. And I'm sorry. You know the truth is, I knew we were going to sink a long time ago, the wells were coming up dry. And no data suggested that was going to change. I should have folded then. But all the people that bought in, that believed in me... I wanted to do right.  

Simon, don’t you understand that I wished for better? That with every ounce of my being, I wished that Black Gold would change the world for all of us. And I know you wished that too. 

Then your wish is granted. And in return I’ll take all of your shares… and full control of Black Gold after you are somehow magically removed from my path… forever.

Ow. 

__________________

My word. Are we in danger? 

Raquel? Raquel?! 

Raquel? 

Which ones? 

I'll get you help. Tell me again. You wish you had more help? 

Emerson. Yes, you’re hired too! 

I’ll take it in my office. And bring me my vitamins. 

__________________

To meet a peer. 

On my journey to self-fulfilment, I lucked into a secret. The secret of the wish. So I wished for it. Or someone wished for it for me. Tell me what you wish for, your highness. And I will show you how it works. 

Like what? 

You wish for that? 

Your wish is granted. And in return I will take your oil. 

Then I will take your security team and leave you here with nothing to defend yourself against the wrath you will most certainly face. 

__________________

You’re looking at it. 

Whoa! 

__________________

So who’s the next closest person with oil? 

Like I want any of these people in the club anyway. Can’t we tell them they’re not invited? 

Oh, the FCC. The BBB, the FBD. It’s a conspiracy against my success. They’re jealous, that’s why. Who’s next? 

Send in Mr Zhong, please. And buy Alistair a pony. No! A race car. Get him a race car. Get him a race car. 

Alistair? Again? How many weekends do I have-

What? What? When? Tonight? 

Let’s get to it, Lai. Tell me, what do you want? What do you wish for? 

Mmm-hmm. Mmm-hmm. 

And you need… what do you wish for? 

__________________

Consider the sex tape gone. And God darn it if I have to keep doing this one by one by one by one… How's your health? Forget that. But I will take your entire congregation and your time slot. Let me ask you, when they pray, is there any way I could get all of them to join hands with me and simply say "I wish" rather than "I pray?" Would that even work? I need to find a way to touch a lot of people at the same time. 

Oh, God! This isn't working. Bring in someone new. And my son. You, beat it. 

No! You don’t use your one wish like that, Alistair. You don't wish for something that you already have. You wish for greatness, for success. That’s why I’m doing all of this. Don’t you see that my greatness is your greatness? Huh? 

Alistair! I’ve missed you, buddy! Come, sit down with daddy. I’m sorry. But your dad is on the absolute precipice of everything. Remember when I told you that I would be number one? Do you remember? Your dad? Well I’m inches away.

Huh? I know it's hard, I know. But listen, I also know what you wish for, and I wish for it, too. Do you hear that? I wish for it, too. 

No. No! 

Thank you. I love you so much and I promise you one day everything is going to make sense and one day you'll thank me. But right now I need you to stay here with Emerson. You stay here. I’ll be right back. 

__________________

You. You! Don’t you wish I had an audience with the President today? 

Wait a minute? Have I asked for your wish before? 

What is it with you aides and Porsches? 

__________________

You! 

How’s traffic? 

Don’t you wish it wasn’t? And that everywhere you went parted like the great Red Sea? 

__________________

Everything okay, Mr President? 

Exactly that, Mr President. These hectic days, hectic times. And you. 

You’re having some troubles? 

Mmm. 

It’s not money I’m offering. You… You are a man of faith and I have been very blessed lately. I want to share my blessing with you. The power of positive thinking. Now… tell me, Mr President. What do you need? And you’re not speaking to me here, but to the universe. What do you wish for? 

A nice thought. And I grant you… ah, oh…oh my… And you’d know what I’d like? I would want all of your power, influence, authority. All the respect you command, and the command everyone must respect. 

Ahahaha! I mean, what else is there? Now, tell your people I would appreciate absolutely no interference whatsoever. No taxes, no rule of law, no limits. Treat me like a foreign nation with absolute autonomy. 

What’s this? 

So what does that mean, you’re taking over everyone’s TV’s? How? 

You said “touches”? As in the particles you are sending are touching everything? 

I need immediate access to this satellite. And a chopper to get me there. 

__________________

Well, aren’t you resourceful? 

No, I don't think so. Remove this woman, please. Permanently. 

__________________

Oh, how sweet, defending your love, huh? What do you wish for? Do you wanna be a real boy? 

__________________

Everyone stand down. Nobody hurts her. 

__________________

You made a wish too, huh? Ahahahaha. They’re a bitch, aren’t they? Make you pay a price, but I’ve never been one for rules. Luckily, I have a way to reverse it. The answer is always more. 

But I, my dear, grant the wishes. So I take what I want in return. There’s nothing in this world someone doesn't have. I’ll rebuild my health wish by wish, organ by organ, if I have to. I'll be invincible. Tell me what do you want? I’m feeling generous. 

I like the way you think. Go on. 

__________________

You heard we were coming, I presume. 

How many broadcasting signals can I take over at once? 

I’ll take all of them. 

And I sure wish this works for me. Don’t you? 

Lights, camera… 

__________________

Citizens of the world, allow me to introduce myself. I am Max Lord, and I'm here to change your life. All you have to do… is make a wish. Anything you want. Anything you dream of, you can have it. If you can dream it, you can achieve it, so just look into my eyes and make a wish. Anything you dream of, have it. Right now. Do you want to be rich? Do you want to be powerful? Say it out loud! Look around you! Make your wish! Take what's yours! Whatever you want, you can have it!

Wish for It. Anything you want. 

Anything you dream of, have it. 

Yes, I hear it, I hear you. Yes, say it. Say it out loud. That’s right, I wish. Take it! Take it! It’s all yours, it’s all yours for the taking! And I… I take your health, and your strength. Give her your rage, and your prowess. And I take your power. I take your life force. Yes. Yes! That's right! You're doing great. 

It’s all yours. All you have to do is wish for it! 

That's right. Just wish for it. It’s yours now. All you have to do is say it out loud. Make a wish. Any wish. Look into my eyes and everything you've been waiting for, it’s all yours. 

You're too late.

Granted. Granted. Granted. Granted! Granted! Why not more, why not wish for more? We want what we want, just like you did. So make a wish. Very good. 

Granted. 

It's too late, Diana. They already heard me. Already wished. And those that haven’t yet… ahahaha! Oh, they will!

Granted. Granted. Granted. Poor Diana. Why be such a hero? You could have kept your pilot, and your powers. If only you'd joined me. Wanna reconsider? Hahahaha! I’m a forgiving man! Hahahah! You want him back? Just say the word. You can have it all! You just have to want it! 

Why would I when it’s finally my turn? The world belongs to me! You can’t stop me, no-one can! 

Stop! Cut the signal, stop! 

Alistair! Alistair! Alistair! 

Wait, my son. I can see my son! I have to save my son. Alistair. My… Alistair. I renounce my wish! 

__________________

Alistair! Alistair! Alistair! 

Alistair! Alistair. 

Oh, Alistair, Alistair. I'm so sorry, baby. 

No. That is not why I'm back. No. I’ve been lying to you. I’m not a great guy. In fact, I’m a pretty messed up, loser guy. And I made terrible mistakes. But you… you don’t ever have to make a wish for me to love you. I’m here because I love you. I just… I just wish and pray that one day, I’ll be able to make you proud enough that you’ll be able to forgive me. And love me. Because I’m nothing to be proud of, Alistair. 

__________________

FULL MASTERLIST OF PEDRO CHARACTERS DIALOGUE

[the-words-we-sung]

The songs of Young Royals - S1E5

Let's go for this 4th installation of the song analysis serie ^^ We're tackling episode 5 this time!! For people who missed them, here are part 1, part 2 and part 3 Sunday, Gina Dirawi

Got what I need I just want peace Catch you on a Sunday When you got the weekend off If I wait til Monday I will never get it

A song that works well for both Wilhelm and Sara: they are spending an evening with people they care deeply about and want to be with. Sara is having her sleepover with Felice and Madison while Wilhelm is spending the evening with Simon. It sounds like a perfect evening for the both of them, they "get what they need": for Sara it's some time with friends and for Wilhelm a moment far from the preying eyes of his peers to just be with the boy he loves. And he does want "peace", he wants a normal life, a normal relationship with Simon. And it's a special moment, a Saturday evening, a break from school and the usual complications that go with it. It makes me sad because it's gonna be the last moment of true peace for Wilhelm and Simon for quite some time after that. The lyrics "if I wait til Monday I will never get it" ring very true: the whole mess with Alexander's suspension and their fight about the drugs is gonna fall on them as soon as they leave Simon's home to get back to school. So it's good that they didn't wait for this little date. So they could at least have this nice evening.

Impatient, Duchvi

'Cause I never felt I needed somebody The way I feel impatient-impatient-impatient for you, oh 'Cause I'm feeling like I'm needing your body Making me impatient-impatient-impatient for you, oh I wanna, wanna know Wanna know your body, body I won't give you up, give you up, give you up

I never really paid attention to these lyrics before doing this serie but they do fit so well with the scene! Wilhelm is so scared of losing Simon over the whole Alexander thing. He's in love, he's scared, he's all over the place truly. But he does need Simon, he's not ready to "give him up" and he's so worried that he messed up things too badly. (And we can't avoid the lyrics "needing your body" because let's be clear, these boys are hot for each other ^^)

Samurai Swords, Highasakite

I am leaving I'm a lesion I unravel to the leeches I'm unpleasant I'm not loving, I'm not loving, I'm not loving

Such a good echo to what Wilhelm is feeling at that moment. He's a mess, he knows he screwed up and he hurt Simon. He's not hiding his flaws. Not hiding the messiness, the unloving parts of himself. And we can appreciate that, to see him unraveling here and being his messy self in front of Simon but still asking for him to stay there with him. He knows he's "unpleasant" in this whole situation, but he doesn't hide. It takes courage to show yourself so vulnerable. And Simon being the absolute gem that he is can see through all of that, can see the boy behind the mess. Can love the boy behind the mess.

I'm not flawless I'm not cautious I am blazing out the houses I am poison

Second part of the song goes to August (and Sara watching him). What better description of August? Not flawless (no need to comment on this one), not cautious (he gets caught so easily for the leaking of the sex tape) and yes, he is "poison". And he's gonna be poison to Sara. He's gonna bring the worst in her... Later on the lyrics go "there's no patience, no salvation": foreshadowing? Will there be any salvation for August next season?

The songs of Young Royals - part 1

The songs of Young Royals - part 2

The songs of Young Royals - part 3

[bobbyseyesmile]

Pride and Passion | 7

Chapter 7

⤝ Previous chapter | Next chapter ⤞ ➻ Pride and Passion masterlist

Negan's head hurt and all he wanted was a hot bath, maybe a glass of scotch and his bed. His day was waaay too long- and believe it or not, he did remain pretty calm throughout the day.

Rick being an asshole? No problemo. Hot Señorita shooting one of his men? Sure, why not. His hot, new wife causing more trouble in a day than the whole apocalypse in years? Absolutely fucking not. Enough was enough.

"Sit." It wasn't a request and by the look on her face she knew it too so she sat down without saying word. He kicked off his boots, stripped of his leather jacket and finally undressed himself from the sweaty white shirt he was wearing all day. A quick side glance told him that her cheeks were all flushed and she quickly looked at the wall next to her. Negan let out a low chuckle and grabbed himself a clean shirt.

He poured himself a glass of his favorite scotch and gulped it down in one go.

"Join me?" he asked. Her eyes wandered from his face to the bottle before she looked down. He could almost hear what she was thinking: Should I decline?

"Yes, please." she whispered and took the glass he handed her over.

"Aaahh..." he sighed, finally sitting down in his heavy leather sofa, eyes closed. What should he do with her? It wasn't the lack of ideas for punishment that was his problem, oh hell no, he had a lot of ideas for that kind of stuff. The problem was that he didn't want to punish her.

When he first saw her, Negan had a funny feeling in his stomach- he either had to shit or he had a crush. He still wasn't sure.

But now, with Y/N being a little hurricane in his kingdom and constantly challenging him, he needed to remain calm and strategic. He couldn't let feelings determine his next move, nor could he just forget what happened or let it slide. There had to be consequences, he just didn't know what kind of consequences.

"Negan?" Her soft voice ripped through his train of thoughts and he opened his eyes. Damn. Why did she had to be so... ravishing? "I-I just wanted to apologize..."

He observed her meticulously and it seemed to make her more nervous. Good. "Go on."

"For everything that happened today... I wanted to tell you when you returned from Alexandria but then..."

"Then you and your girlfriend decided to light up a pile of shit and call it a firework."

"Uhm..." she cleared her throat "I guess that describes it pretty well. But you have to understand that I was just worried about her! I wanted to see what the deal was, why she was here and-"

"Stop." Negan leaned forward, face in his hands now. His voice was dangerously low. "So instead of asking me like a normal and grown-up person you did what? Embarrassing the fuck out of Simon, your girlfriend broke the nose of a Savior and literally attracted the attention of all the workers. I can't have that, Y/N. I like keeping things at bay, chaos makes them uneasy, they're harder to control."

"I'm sorry." she whined and he had to hide his amusement because she sounded so damn adorable. "It's hard, okay? You're not really a nice person and..."

"And what? You're scared of me?" Although she shook her head, he knew that she lied. Of course, she was. They all were.

"No! Not scared... intimidated. Maybe a bit."

"Huh." Negan got up from his comfy place on the sofa and walked around till he stood behind her. "You know what I think? I think you're not scared of me for bashing the head of your red-haired friend but because you're attracted to me."

He didn't need an actual answer- her nervously squirming around was answer enough for Negan.

"I think you hate me so much because you actually like me. Because a funny and good-looking guy like me is so evil, and it doesn't fall in line with your imagination of me- how I should be. Am I right, sweetheart?"

She scoffed but didn't disagree with his assumption. "Yeah, that's what I thought. You're giving me a hard time and fight back because you just can't stop. You need to fucking challenge me, huh? Need to annoy the fuck outta me, testing the waters and how far you can go."

She suddenly jumped from her place and turned around to face him. "I just want to go back to my family and friends..."

"Oh honey-" he chuckled and gulped down the rest of his drink "I am your family."

He saw the tears in her eyes and he hated it- if only she knew what fantasies he had in his head to make it up to her... Negan licked his lips and put down the glass. "What about we make a deal?"

Her head shot up. "You show me that you can behave, follow rules, be a good girl and maaaybe I'll let you come along for a future run to Alexandria. How does that sound?"

She nodded, a small smile forming on her lips. "Sounds good..."

"Great! So, what about we start with something easy and you get your cute little ass out of them jeans for me?"

She instantly tried to back down but Negan grabbed her hip, holding her in place. "Don't worry, I didn't mean it in that way..." she closed her eyes when his beard scratched over her cheek. "I promised not to touch you. Unless you changed your mind...?"

"I-I don’t k-know..."

"Hmm" he murmured "No. I don't think we're ready yet, even though it's getting really hard." He smiled against her cheek before letting go of her hip and walked over to his closet, getting a fresh pair of jeans and a shirt for her. "Here."

"T-Thanks..." she took the clothes and pressed it against her chest. "Can I see Rosita?"

"No, honey, you cannot. She caused me a lot of trouble today and I have to figure out what to do with her." She just nodded in defeat. "Maybe tomorrow. Depends on how you'll behave."

"I should go now. You seem tired."

"Oh, babygirl if you only knew... Now go to the others, I don't like my wives wandering around in the hallways."

"Alright."

„Sleep well, darling. Dream of me.“ He gave her one last smirk and watched her leaving his room before undressing completely and finally hopping into the shower. After being alone with her for so long he just needed to rub one out…

Taglist: @toxic-ink @jaywinchestersalvatore @crosshajr @neganswoman @tone-stark @missmiauz (if you want to be added, pls let me know)

[aviscouscurse]

Making a New Friend - Simon 

Start | Prev

You are currently in motion. 

Or are you? 

It’s somewhere in between… 

Time is distorting in an almost nauseating manner. You are already at your destination, yet living through the journey retroactively. 

Something fundamental about the world seems to have changed while you were in captivity. 

“Hey, you’re awake,” cheers a voice from next to you. 

You’re sitting in the back of a cart that is traveling down a dirt road. 

The young girl you met in the box when the ceiling caved in is sitting next to you, looking very happy. 

“Hello,” you say for lack of anything useful. 

“I hope you don’t mind me bringing you along with me. You were out cold even after you respawned and I wasn’t sure what to do,” she says apologetically. 

You shake your head. As long as you’re getting further away from Jade, it doesn’t matter what direction you go. “That is just fine.” 

“Oh, good,” she says. Then she looks away, seeming almost shy. 

Her ears are very long and pointed, and seem to move around according to her mood. How strange. 

“Um. Did you maybe want to join my party? It’s okay if you don’t, but I thought that maybe it would be nice to have someone to travel with since you seem to be just as alone as me right now,” she says, half-mumbling. 

You don’t understand half the things this girl says, regardless of whatever magic her ‘translator’ seems to be doing. 

Honestly, what was the point of studying your languages if such a shortcut is readily available these days? All your hard work…

Then again, what is the point of such a shortcut if it only works in half-measure? 

“Is that a no? Sorry. I can take a hint,” the girl says, her ears dropping low. 

“I was considering it. What does this ‘party’ entail?” you ask. 

The girl’s eyes go wide in surprise. “Seriously? Wow, you really must be new. But even then, a guide is supposed to explain these things to you before you get to a dungeon…” 

Her eyes dart around as she seems to be thinking many thoughts at a rapid pace. “Unless… random encounter? Before they can teach you anything, though? Hm… But if you were cursed… like a sort of hard mode? Even worse than mine…” she mutters to herself, a hand on her chin. 

You decide not to interrupt her. 

There is ground beneath your feet at the end of this half-memory. 

Your mind just isn’t there yet. 

“Okay. Clearly you got the short end of the stick when it came to your introduction to being an adventurer. But your luck has changed! I used to be a guide before, so I can teach you how things work,” the girl says, her dark eyes shining with enthusiasm. 

“Is that so?” 

She nods. “It is. I can even teach you Common, if you want. Not many people speak Kulvish in this area, and I’ve never even heard the other language you seem to have skill in,” she says. 

So people do still have to learn languages, it isn’t all automatic? 

“I will accept your kind offer,” you say. 

“Yes! Okay. We can get started on the way,” the girl says. 

She takes a book out of her bag and opens it. 

Time gets even more distorted once she does. It is a struggle to stay conscious against it. 

The girl doesn’t seem to be causing it herself, so much as the lesson necessitates a distortion in order to work. 

Well. You do want to be able to communicate with other people. You will have to let this happen. 

You let your consciousness drift. 

Now the two of you are standing in a town, ground solid under your feet. 

“Thank you for the lesson…” you say, your headache finally clearing. 

“No problem… Oh! We still haven’t introduced ourselves. I’m Trilline, the eighth of my name. Some people call me eight, since my adventurer name is the same as my true name, but it’s up to you,” she says with a bow. 

“I am…” you hesitate. You’ve had so many names in your time. Which one… 

“My name is… Simon,” you say.  The name falls from your lips like a wish, a desperate prayer to return to the past.  

“Adventurer name or true name?” Trilline asks. 

“...Yes.” 

“Oh, you’re just like me in that respect. That’s nice,” she says with a bright smile. 

You find it surprising that this child can still smile like that after what she’s been through in the span of a day. Though you suppose you can’t be sure how long you were unconscious for. 

“Anyway! Why don’t we stock up on some provisions before I show you what being an adventurer’s all about,” she says with a decisive nod. She takes off running, fast enough that her curly hair moves with the breeze she creates. 

This does not allow you to object, although you would like to. You have no idea what currency is in use these days, to say nothing of having any on your person. 

You follow after her anyway. It would be rude to keep her waiting. 

A few people stare at you as you follow Trilline into what appears to be a market square. 

Trilline darts into a rather sturdy looking building. 

When you enter after her your heart stops for a moment. Or it feels like it does. You don’t have one anymore, though. And that’s not what’s important. 

What’s important is that on the back wall of this establishment is shelf after shelf of stoppered bottles filled with all manners of liquid. 

“Oh, good, you made it. I was so excited I hadn’t realized you weren’t right behind me anymore,” Trilline says, turning away from a person that is presumably the shopkeep. 

You’re standing in the doorway, still staring at the potions on the back wall. 

Surely Jade is not the only thing in this world that can make those. Surely you haven’t just walked right back into the lair of one of their subordinates. 

“Hello? Simon? Has your deity left without freeing you? Is there a connection issue?” Trilline says, coming closer to you. 

She has her hands behind her back and she sways a bit as she looks  over you for signs of… something. 

You need to play this off. Just in case. Even if this shopkeep is in league with Jade, they don’t necessarily know of your escape yet. 

“Yes, sorry.” you say, shaking your head slightly. 

“I hate it when that happens. It’s fine though,” she says with a shrug. Then, she straightens up fully. “Anyway. Let’s get shopping!” she says, swinging a fist in a way that you think is meant to display enthusiasm. 

“I… unfortunately do not have any of the local currency on hand. Do feel free to shop without me,” you say. 

“You don’t? Not any?” Trilline says, tilting her head to the side and looking perplexed. 

You shake your head. 

She frowns. 

“If you’re new, you should definitely have some, even if it’s just a little..” she crosses her arms and frowns. “Unless having your intro interrupted means you missed out on your starting gold…? What bad luck,” she says. 

The shopkeep is standing eerily still behind the counter, seemingly oblivious to this entire exchange. 

Trilline holds her chin and seems to think things over. 

“I’m pretty sure my deity will have me buy stuff for the both of us, so don’t worry about it,” she says after a bit. 

“I…” you start. 

“I at least owe you some new clothes. Yours are full of little burn holes from the spark storm,” she points out. 

You look down. Your clothes are indeed full of tiny little holes. None of them are big enough to be considered exposing, but it is hardly proper to be walking around like this. 

Still… 

You open your mouth to protest again, but she shuts you down. “Nope, no arguments. If me and my deity agree on what to do, we do it. That’s how it all works, you know? Unless your deity doesn’t want to be friends with mine? Nothing we can do about that, but if they already accepted the party request it would be a silly stance to take,” Trilline says, cutting you off with another tirade of half-nonsense. 

All of this talk of a deity… 

In your time, deities did not manage their champions so closely. You certainly didn’t. 

Still. If there is a higher power pulling this girl’s strings… perhaps you could communicate with them? 

The seal on the back of your neck is, of course, still intact. But this wouldn’t be using your own power. It would simply be… touching the power of another. 

And with a bit of focus, there it is. Small threads leading from the girl up through the ceiling and presumably into the heavens. 

You want to follow those threads. 

But… 

You glance back over at the shopkeep, and the wall behind them. 

Maybe that can wait until later. 

You settle back into yourself. Trilline has been speaking for an unknown amount of time. 

“... again? Well I guess that’s fine. I can pick some stuff out while I wait for them to reconnect to you,” she says. She walks back over to the shopkeep. 

You still don’t feel quite right about allowing this child to pay for your expenses, but you suppose you have little choice at this point. You will find a way to repay her when you can.

Next

[feminariddens]

Little Tips about Eclipse Seasons

(May be obvious to many, but as a Scorpio lagna, it took me time to make peace with my weird needs and experiences, so everything is a discover til today)

If you're in doubt about it, don't do it

If it demands a lot - even if it looks simple and everyone is doing it - don't do it. Let it be. You need to save your energy.

Wait a little to start projects

Maybe it's nice to start some energy treatment (I'm back to mine, hopefully before Oct. 25th).

Stick only to your routine obligations.

Dedicate free time to recharge as much as you can - and in ways as silly/simple as can be.

Journaling, Pranayama, prayer, abdominal breathing, mantra chanting/listeing, Abhyanga/massage with oils according to your Ayurveda constitution, etc.

When in doubt, choose the activity that brings you more SILENCE

Relaxing and recharging, clearing your thoughts and vision is more urgent than having fun and socializing. Just for a while, ok?

Again, my experience:

Water placements (specially Scorpio), 8th house and 12th house placements:

If neglected, come back to spiritual practices you used to do.

It's never too late God is always eager to help.

Also, unless you have a very strong Pitta in your constitution, go slow with physical exercise. Priotize calming your mind.

Save energy by not overextending your body

nor your attention to intrusive thoughts and fantasies.

See how it looks like a very famous and feared insect?

"Scorpio is the structure of the nadis and the pran movement in them." - Tejaswini Arvind Patil here, and that's why it was so helpful to learn how to deal with my nervous system/energy (highly associated to Jyeshta, my ascendant nakshatra).

This next one is maybe the most important, and applies to everyone of any placements (not only in ecipse seasons, but mainly during them):

Limit your exposure to the collective mind

News, social media, gossip pretending to be important commentary, etc.

What looks so rational and urgent is a net of emotions unchecked, eager for hosts and sources of energy.

Exercise your faith when you need to look at social events and news

Remember God never fails and exerts control over the most difficult things in life.

Remember God always means well and works by yourside.

Evil is as strong as our minds (our free will) allows it to be.

Avoid enemeshing yourself with the collective...

...by identifying yourself with social events = emotionally reacting to them.

This is your ego masking as organic emotion.

It starts with classifying the event: 'good', 'bad', 'unaceptable', 'disgusting', 'life-changing', 'life-saving'.

The ego demands a position - what it's incredibly arrogant. Who are you to know? Who are any of us to know for sure?

Even specialists admit to know little and refrain from manifesting emotions around historical or social events.

Labels and emotions are not solutions, but displays of virtue that your ego demands from you (and creates them itself) in order to convince you that it IS you and it IS good...

...so you keep being a slave of coping mechanisms and racing thoughts disguised as reason and morality.

Be humble:

Silence you mind when approaching reality

Save energy:

Your attention and emotions are preserved by humbling yourself to reality and refraining from labeling it.

Use this energy to exert your free will:

Use your imagination to conceive concrete things that bring you pleasure/joy

Use your conscious mind to execute these plans relentlessly in the present time.

These are what the mind is for. It should serve your birth right to cocreate reality with God.

Not to deny it or override it, not to defend yourself from it.

And finally:

If no one is doing it, or you feel like no one is doing it,

Remember I'm rooting for you.

Whoever you are - and whomever I am,

I deeply believe you can make all your dreams come true

and overcome anything in your way,

no matter how big it looks (today)

May God bless you all.

Nina Simone, Uttara Ashada ("Former Victorious One", in approximate translation from sanskrit) Moon.

Tomorrow is my turn No more doubts no more fears Tomorrow is my turn When my luck is returning All these years I've been learning to save fingers from burning Tomorrow is my turn No more doubts no more fears Tomorrow is my turn to receive without giving Make life worth living Now it's my life I'm living My only concern for tomorrow is my turn

[mejomonster]

Okay, Young Royals ep 3, things so far:

I love that Simon is willing to stand up to August. YES, we the audience know August is broke, is hiding it, and unwilling to sell his dead dads stuff to get money (which while I think that means he Has money, I get that sentimentality that's a fairly good reason to not want to part with those things). And Simon's friends are SO right to be mad at him for losing it a bit, for telling him "you're like these people." Because like. While I feel like I mightve lost it More than Simon were I in his shoes, he did make his point and at a certain point you have to draw a line of what's okay or not okay to do. As an adult I realize yeah, the line is don't hit someone to the point your friends stop you. But as a teenagers perspective, I get Simon losing it a little. August isn't Even always doing it on purpose, but he is playing with Simon's life. Making light of it, causing huge issues for Simon that August doesn't even consider big or realize is big or Care if it's big and intensely destructive to Simon. Like... even just with power imbalances, Simon never really could say no to getting August alchohol. Simon never really could demand: pay me FIRST or you get nothing. Simon couldn't really avoid trying to get August drugs, cause he didn't want August harassing his sister and making her life more difficult too. And by then August could've blackmailed Simon for the alcohol thing. Anyway my point is: Simon is a brave dude for standing up for himself in an environment where there literally is a red line you don't cross, people aren't even Supposed to be nice to you or your friend, people can't even refer to you positively or neutrally (they have to Insult Simon to avoid being ostracized), and Simon is intensely aware at any point these people Could destroy his life. Or worse, also his sisters. I think he probably was angry at way more than just August. But August participated in these breaking of the rules by taking what he wanted Simon to give him, which gave Simon just enough leverage to feel he could even call August out. Still, Simon's the one in less power

I love Simon in general? What a brave dude?? Dude crushes on a prince, a prince who's constantly (in front of him) controlled and threatened to be a Certain way, who's constantly monitored (to the point willhelm is afraid to be on social media and afraid to be seen by his "friends" simply speaking his mind), and Simon's like: well I AM crushing. I'd never say it out loud cause I have an iota (a tiny one) of self preservation. But if I'm alone and I feel the spark? I am KISSING that boy. And he does!!!

Not just one kiss! Simon, absolute valiant sweetie that he his, goes for a peck. When there's no response, goes for another peck! When there's confusions and "I'm not"? Still let's Willhelm pull him back toward him. Waits and wants to kiss him and when Wille does? He seizes the moment. Absolute star, Simon. He is The Moment. He is Incredible. The nerve of that guy. Simon's like: I won't SAY I have a crush (absolute nightmare scenario to actually have one on HIM I Know) but I am SMOOCHING that CUTE BOY and SHOOTING MY SHOT. In fact I'm going to shoot my shot until I get a clear response, even! He is sunshine he is brave he is just phenomenal. I love him. I also love the whole brave awkward drawn out power balancing act that was that scene.

I love Sara and Felice and in my perfect world they're the secondary relationship but idk if I'll get what I want. I like though that Felice NEEDS that level of honesty: both acknowledging what she wants to hide about herself, and Sara really genuinely admiring her and MEANING it in a way Felice can be more certain is True than when other people compliment her.

[wowbright]

I've gone to make this post a couple times this year and never posted it because most of my top posts were loooong. But this morning, I remembered, and just in time: This is Tumblr! I can edit a post before posting it! So I deleted the bulk of those long posts, and if you want to read them, you can click through on the little links.

Also, I wrote this little introduction!

Interesting and very relevant to post #2 that none of these are related to my fanfic or Glee, the two main reasons I am on Tumblr.

Without any more to-do:

I posted 3,369 times in 2022

That's 2,354 more posts than 2021!

516 posts created (15%)

2,853 posts reblogged (85%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@coffeegleek

@lucy8675309

@thnxforknowingme

@1908jmd

I tagged 3,294 of my posts in 2022

Only 2% of my posts had no tags

#fanart not mine - 223 posts

#klaine - 223 posts

#signal boost - 212 posts

#gpoy - 205 posts

#ofmd - 198 posts

#to read - 194 posts

#fandom - 190 posts

#kurt hummel - 160 posts

#fic rec - 140 posts

#us politics - 136 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#this story isn't just about falling in love—it's also about trauma & grief and the role beliefs play both in creating & healing those things

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Controversial take: AO3 is an archive, not a social media site. If you have no intention of keeping your fics up after you leave a fandom and are just going to delete them, maybe you should post them only to social media and not use up bandwidth on AO3.

You've already put your words out into the world. Other people have already read them, and likely downloaded them. They are no longer only your own. You cannot make them disappear from the world, so why are you trying?

Orphan your works, don't delete them.

283 notes - Posted April 8, 2022

#4

You know those straight guys who seem really nice and awesome, but then complain about their female friends "friendzoning" them? As if being nice to a woman entitles you to her affection and her body? As if her agency, her own desires, ultimately don't matter that much?

So they're "nice" guys, but they're not actually kind or generous?

Marcus in Young Royals is the gay version of that.

He seems great at first. Just the kind of guy that Simon needs around him. Someone who's easygoing, who likes him, who supports him, who's uncomplicated and open and doesn't require much work.

Read the rest at:

387 notes - Posted November 18, 2022

#3

Since I'm seeing anti-voting posts on my dash again, and Tumblr is even *recommending* them to me, let's be clear about this--

Voting is one of the most basic tools for participating in American government and policy. It is not perfect, but it is there.

The people who say that change is possible without voting, that protecting minority interests is possible without voting, rarely lay out a course for how those things could be accomplished.

Sometimes, they make vague promises that "activism" and "pushing for change" is what is needed instead of voting. This makes no sense. Engaging with elected officials is an inherent part of activism. Voting is a way of engaging with elected officials. Voting is activism.

No, some say. Not that kind of activism.

Okay, then what kind of activism?

Historically, the only way to accomplish change without voting is through physical force, i.e. warfare.

That's right. Warfare. Like the Civil War, or I guess what we will soon be calling Civil War I.

Read the rest at:

556 notes - Posted July 1, 2022

#2

I was thinking about a conversation I had with a fellow writer a while back and I think it might also apply to fandom.

He was upset because his partner did not read much of his fiction. His partner was supportive of his writing in every other way--supporting his need to have space to write, asking questions about it, being a listening ear during brainstorming, encouraging him to make friends with other writers, etc. He (the partner) had never said anything belittling, discouraging, or negative about my colleague's writing.

But he didn't read much of it. The writer I was talking to wrote sci-fi, and his partner didn't read sci-fi. In fact, he (the partner) was not a big reader of fiction at all.

I told this colleague of mine something that I had decided about my own relationships: my friends, lovers, acquaintances, relatives, etc., have no obligation to be my fans. I met almost all of them outside of the context of writing. Our relationships are built on those things: common history, common non-writing interests, common social circles, common humanity. They didn't decide they liked me or wanted to hang out with me because of what I wrote. And I didn't decide to hang out with them because I thought they would read my stuff.

Read the rest at:

685 notes - Posted June 12, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

I wish there was a way to block "cute animal videos" that are actually depicting mistreatment of animals. People physically manipulating pets to do things that they clearly do not want to be doing is not cute. People provoking irritation so that their cat or dog makes the funny sound they make when they are irritated is not cute. People making pets of wild animals is not cute.

1,538 notes - Posted April 14, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[noreasonjustbored]

For A Wedding That Never Happened

Hey y’all. I really liked Jimone on All American/ All American: Homecoming and I think that the writers did them a disservice by having them break up in the way that they did. Also, some of the things they’ve had Jordan say after seems VERY out of character for him or at least the him that he was when dating Simone. (That was a sentence) Anyway, here’s a little something that I wrote about it. Hope you enjoy.

~~~~~

For a wedding that never happened.

For a wedding that never happened.

For a wedding that never happened.

That phrase echoes in Jordan’s head as he walks out of the beach house. Closing the front door behind him he sags against it and lets out a huge exhale.

From the corner of his eye he sees the hot tub. He fully turns his head to the right and stares blankly at it for what feels like eternity.

What if she would’ve said yes to getting in the hot tub that night? Where would I be right now?

For a wedding that never happened.

For a wedding that never happened.

I would’ve married Simone in a heartbeat. If she hadn’t called the whole thing off she would be Simone Baker right now.

“What am I doing?” he asks himself under his breath.

I told Simone that nothing was going on between Layla and I but I just told Layla that I like her. How did nothing become something? Was something brewing between us this whole time?

For a wedding that never happened.

She was here and Simone was there. But does that mean that I want to date her or was she just a fill in when I couldn’t have the real thing?

For a wedding that never happened.

Do I actually have feelings for Layla? Or do I just think I do because we’ve gotten so close?

For a wedding that never happened.

Jordan started to pace up and down the pathway to the house.

Ok, let’s really break this down.

Were you in love with Simone? 100%.

Did you want to break up with Simone? No.

Do you want to date Layla? I don’t know.

“Ugh” Jordan groans in frustration and puts his palms over his eyes.

At that moment, Spencer is walking to the door and sees him. “Aye man, you alright?”

Startled, Jordan puts his hands down and sees his friend. “Huh? What? Oh. Yeah I’m OK.”

“You sure?“

For a wedding that never happened.

For a wedding that never happened.

“No. Can we like go for a walk or something?”

“Yeah man, I’m free” Spence says and goes to open the door.

Jordan places his hand on Spencer’s arm. “Um…let’s go around.”

“Why? We can cut through the house and get to the beach.”

“Yeah but Layla is in there.”

“Okay…and?”

“And it’s a whole thing. Kinda why I wanna take that walk.”

“Uh uh.” Spencer says while turning to walk to the side of the house. “Are we just gonna leave her alone? Like is she waiting on you to come back?”

“I don’t know man she was in there when I got home.”

Spencer looks at him with an eyebrow raised.

“She’ll be fine. She can let herself out.”

“Alright then.”

They walk to the beach in silence and start making their way down the shore. After a few minutes Jordan blurts out, “I kissed Layla.”

“Hmmm.”

“Hm? That’s all you have to say?”

“I mean, what do you want me to say bro?”

“Actual words would be nice.”

“So… you kissed Layla. How do you feel?”

“Confused.”

“About what?”

“Everything.” Jordan responds dejectedly while wiping a hand down his face.

For a wedding that never happened.

Jordan gives Spencer the entire rundown of what just happened in the kitchen.

“Ok ok. Let’s be more clear. Do you like Layla?”

“Of course, she’s one of my best friends now.”

“Aight. Are you attracted to Layla?”

“Yeah she’s pretty” Jordan shrugs.

“Do you want to be her boyfriend?”

For a wedding that never happened.

For a wedding that never happened.

“I’m not sure.”

“Hm.”

“Dude!”

Spencer shrugs, “I mean, I’m just sayin.”

“Saying what though?”

“It don’t even matter. Let’s switch it up. When you saw how close Damon and Simone were, how did that make you feel?”

“Angry. A little terrified.”

“Terrified of what?”

“Losing my future.”

“Your future?”

“Yeah.” Jordan stops and sits in a random spot on the beach facing the waves. Spencer follows suit.

“After I really got to know her, Simone and I felt…inevitable or something. When we got together I could invision our entire lives so clearly. But that’s all gone now, I guess.”

“You guess?”

“I mean who knows…maybe one day…”

“So you just kissed Layla and told her that ‘she can’t resist you’ but are still holding out hope for Simone?”

“Yeah? I mean no. I mean… I don’t know man, I told you I was confused.”

“Are you confused or do you not want to face the truth?”

For a wedding that never happened.

For a wedding that never happened.

For a wedding that never happened.

“The truth?”

“That you might not actually like Layla in a romantic way. That you might just want to force yourself to move on so you don’t feel the pain of your breakup?”

Jordan was at a loss for words.

“Bro, take it from me as someone who did have feelings for Layla before. I really liked her, she’s a great girl. But I wasn’t in love with her. I was just trying to feel better after your sister rejected me.”

“Huh.”

“And that wasn’t fair to Layla. Me and Olivia? We really hurt her. Now that she’s in a better place I would hate to see that happen again.”

For a wedding that never happened.

“The last thing I want to do is hurt Layla.”

“I didn’t want to hurt her either. But I did. By not thinking before I acted. A lot of heartbreak could’ve been avoided had I taken a moment to process my emotions.”

“Ok sensei. That yoga and meditation really has you all thoughtful and shit.” Jordan jokes while pushing Spencer’s shoulder.

“Yeah yeah. You laugh but I’ve really become better with sitting in my feelings and determining why I feel a certain way. It’s always deeper than I think it is. You know?”

“I get what you’re saying it’s just hard.”

“True. But it’s worth it. You should give it a try.”

“Maybe.” Jordan says absentmindedly.

“Rapid fire.”

“What?”

“Rapid fire questions. I want you think about the first thing that comes to mind. Ok?”

For a wedding that never happened.

“Spence…”

“Just indulge me.”

“Fine.”

“Do you think men and women can just be friends?”

“What? Yes.”

“Do you and Layla have a connection?”

“Uh, yeah.”

“Do you think you have to date everyone you have a connection with?”

Jordan looks over at Spencer with an annoyed look. “Really?”

“Rapid fire.”

He sighs, “No.”

“Are you hurt that Simone broke up with you?”

“Yes.”

“Are you ready to move on?”

“I want to be.”

“Do you think Simone and Damon are attracted to each other?”

Reluctantly Jordan answers, “Yeah.”

“Do you think Simone would have ever cheated on you?”

“No, I don’t think so.”

“Would you have cheated on Simone?“

“Never.”

“Do you think Simone went back to Atlanta and asked Damon out?”

“Maybe.”

“Is it possible that your trying to force this thing with Layla because you’re afraid that Simone has moved on with Damon?”

“It’s…possible.”

“Are you still in love with Simone?”

Yes.

Jordan just stared ahead and watched the waves crash against the shore.

Spencer gets up from the ground and brushes the sand from his pants. He pats Jordan on the shoulder and leaves him to his thoughts.

For a wedding that never happened.

Yeah but I wanted it to happen. And if I’m being really honest with myself, I still do…someday.