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skyrigel · 3 days

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Hey Rigel I love ur work like so much 💓 can I request Anthony bridgerton where he is getting married and realises his love his y/n or smth similar with him getting jealous and angry when y/n and Benedict or colin fake date like tht or anything if this doesn't make sense 😭

Enchanted | A.B x you

Pairing: Anthony bridgerton x fem!reader, Benedict x fem!reader x colin ( platonic)

Part 1 of Enchanted, " Sparks fly " | 3.8k

Synopsis: When Aubreyton's CEO strikes a match with Miss Edwina sharma, because she's nice and kind and witty, ofcourse nothing could go wrong, except the bride elopes, except Colin has a plan, except the plan is you.

Warning :CEO! Anthony x assistant! reader, Asshole! Anthony, Benedict x sophie, Polin, bridgerton's chaotic dynamic, reader and Benedict share one brain cell that's mostly with you, alcohol, fake marriage( Anthony and reader), social media au, office au, modern setting, forced proximity, jealousy jealousy, mutual pinning, fluffy fluff, bit angst, arranged marriage, bit Collen Hoover bashing but it's a joke ( maybe not ) no Edwina bashing, scary Kate sharma, yes!!! ( Might add more later )

Rigel's note 🪩 : This makes perfect sense to me anon !!!!!! I hope modern setting au is good, I live and die for jealous! Anthony<3 also Benedict x best friend! Reader, *kisses* i really hope you like it, my silly little series and hit on multiple parts fic, my requests are open and sorry it took so long, bad Rigel :( this series needs a banner but I am so lazy !!! <33333

" Your brother is an idiot." You said, gritting your teeth as your mail blew with applicants, beautiful young ladies with peculiar yet remarkable talents.

" That." Benedict catched the grape midair with his mouth," we know of." He added with a cocky grin.

" Read another ! " Colin peppered, stealing your cookies which you ignored, sighing as you opened another mail.

" Tiana Young, twenty-one, I like to read, write and sing, my favourite author is Collen Hoover—" Benedict snorted, " —I like children and hope to be a mother, I am very soft spoken and good natured, my neighbours call me Ti, because I am a tea kinda person—"

" What's a tea kinda person ? " Colin bited the smuggled cookie, Benedict pulled the remaining to his side hastily, you felt your appetite long gone.

" It's like...they are like tea..." Benedict said, more in doubt as he looked for affirmation.

" Like milk tea or another tea ? " You asked, perhaps tea could takeaway your headache.

" What's an another tea ? " Colin's hand began to pull the tray, Benedict frowned but said nothing, taking one hurriedly and breaking it into two parts, offering you the bigger one.

" No thank-you, let me fix this Tiana's appointment." You exhaled, copy pasting a paragraph how (un) grateful you were to her for reaching out, she would soon have her appointment date and bla bla bla.

" I knew my brother was workholic but this wife hunting thingy is so exhausting." Benedict wiggled his eyebrows, you knew he was being kind but he wasn't helping at all.

" It would have been over if his requirements weren't so high, like he's not looking for a wife but some utopian woman god has yet to create ! " You were ranting, you knew, but this was the only way you could stop yourself from punching Anthony for putting you into this misery.

" Why can't he just fall in love ? " Colin looked at you and Benedict seriously, his mouth covered in crumbs, " Come on, love is like...like a force to be reckoned with ! " He beamed, ofcourse it was a force, didn't Penelope wrote something smiliary in her latest book, you somehow felt your heart shuddering, what would happen if Anthony were to be in love, some intelligent, beautiful woman, some utopian goddess of his, you didn't like the idea one bit, so you laughed it off.

" Brother in love ? " Benedict was in stitches, banging his palm on the table, shaking few very important papers that laid without any significance. They will be probably used as napkin if you weren't there.

" It's not funny." Colin got up, taking his coat, he rolled his eyes when Benedict refused to stop laughing, you shaked your head helplessly as another mail popped up, Jasmine had written a essay about global peace and increasing capatilism, you groaned, damn you Anthony bridgerton!

" Good evening Anthony." You tapped save on your screen as Anthony entered the office, a beak of sweat trickling down his neck line, okay, someone got either fired or roasted down to their very existence, you preferred the former.

" Good evening y/n." He looked up at you, he worried his jaw to say more but decided against it as he settled on his chair, it was very comfy and very big, years of working with him but you couldn't fathom the courage to ever have a taste, perhaps Benedict would help, maybe then.

" There are twelve appointments I have scheduled for tomorrow, Miss Becka—"

" Cancel them."

" What ?! " You almost shouted, you didn't waste your whole day to adjust and fit these pretty woman according to the time and weather and place and Anthony's mood so nothing went wrong, did he just said cancel them like it was nothing, this—

" We are going out Tommorow, it might take all day so cancel them." Anthony ran a hand through his hair as he exhaled sharply, your brain short circuited at the words more and more made some meaning, we ?! Did he, for heaven's sake said we ?

" You and me ? " You blurted and lowered your gaze when his eyes snapped to you, a deep color blazed your nose as you fiddled with your skirt.

" Yes, me and you." He confirmed and you could swore, that was a smile, a small, thin, almost unrecognisable on his always stern face, but that was a smile.

" Why ? " You closed your laptop, tucking the strands of your hair that usually came out after a long day, behind you ear.

Anthony pressed a key and it beeped, he shifted his face to you, thinking that he was almost frowning and finally, he said with a neutral face.

" I have found a match." His face gave nothing away, " Miss Edwina will be most suitable for marriage." He said it like it wasn't his marriage he was talking about, " she's very graceful and witty and would make a amiable wife and a kind loving mot—"

" Right." You snapped mid course, his mouth was hanging open with words lost in void, you knew very well Miss Edwina was a fine young lady, she was beautiful and kind and sharp at wits, ofcourse this ended your torment or perhaps began another, but not now, you needed to think.

" I..I promised Benedict for dinner. " You muttered, feeling your whole body numb as you stumbled out of your seat, Anthony watched, something glazed in his eyes but you couldn't place it, you might if you looked longer but you had no courage left now. You were almost at the glassy door, he was watching you intently and you felt his gaze burn at your back.

" You like my brother quite very much." He startled you, you paused, heart beats echoing through your throat. It was like he was accusing you, almost jabbing his finger on your chest. What does that mean ?

" What could I say ? He's very amiable." You turned to smile at him, it trembled on your lips and Anthony scoffed slightly, mouth curving in disdain but it was gone as soon as it crossed his face. Damn you !

" Have a nice day sir." You closed the door behind you, covering your face as a muffled scream cut through your cartilage.

" Miss Edwina ?! " Benedict almost screamed as you narrowed your eye sternly at him, he lowered his voice in a whisper, ducking his head down towards you, " sorry but Miss Edwina ?! "

" I know, I know." You swigged another gulp of the dizzy bubbling liquid that will give you a terrible headache tommorow but right now, you just wanted this uneasiness feeling to go away.

" Didn't her scary sister vowed to ruin him or something like that ? " Benedict licked his thumb, eye's watering at the spice, you loved this place's Chole bhature very much, last time Benedict cried when he accidentally bited the green masala filled chilly.

" Yeah, she refused to take ahead the Mayfair deal, or something like that, not that it would ruin anything and—" You sighed, leaning back your head as the soft music tickled your senses.

" What ? " You heard his faint murmur.

" Well Anthony was right, as soon as our team announced his engagement, ofcourse not revealing the bride, he's well trending—"

" He's always trending." Benedict groaned, chugging water as his lips were swollen with spiced heat.

" Yes, but not for thirsty things, i meant that Aubreyton is trending and our shares are touching the sky and it's a whole profitable season ahead." You ended breathlessly, you stared at him for full second before both your eye's crinkled with smiles and laughter that came from your hearts, it lightened the air somehow as well as your heart.

" You do remember I am part of the executive board ? " Benedict tilted his head with a warm smile and you shaked your head, feeling tipsy.

" Like you do anything except torment me and poor Colin ! " You pouted, feeling your cheeks flush as Benedict threw his head back and laughed.

" Poor Colin ? " He cooed, " he's probably getting laid tonight." He added with a wink, you slapped his shoulder nervously.

" Penelope replied ? "

" Ofcourse, my dear little brother wrote a whole ass three page message, with a picture of all her books that too hardcover and first editions."

" Wow." You said, impressed, Colin was head over heels, it was only a matter of time since the dazzling author knew.

" And what of Miss Beckett ? " You wiggled your eyebrows like Benedict did when he teased you, he turned a beetroot red as he fumbled with the last contents of his glass.

" She refused for a live in relationship." He said, his face grew sad and you mentally winced for putting him there.

" Oh." You nodded, Sophia lived with her evil mother who liked to see her suffer and she was, afterall, too good of a girl.

" Benedict..." You whispered when he closed his eyes softly, hiding his face behind his palms.

" I am not crying." He was. He sniffed as a few heads turned towards the pair of you, many with sympathy, probably thinking you had refused to marry him or something.

" Hey, hey, hey..." You pulled yourself as you dizzily tripped over to his side, wrapping your arms around him as he melted in your embrace.

" She doesn't understand..." He said it so muffled that it was unable to make out what he said, but you understood it anyway.

" She will, she loves you so much." You kissed his head and he nodded, tears streaking your shirt as he finally emerged with red, sticky face and puppy bright eyes.

" I think i drank too much." He admitted, you nodded, feeling yourself floating too.

" Let's call a cab, we shouldn't drive." You suggested, fiddling with cash as you payed the bill, leaving good tip for the teenager waiter, who smiled kindly at every inner joke Benedict shot.

" Uh huh." He focused hard on his phone, sticking his tongue out like he did when he was really, really drunk and or just really, felt the need to, or he was about to do something stupid, which he did.

Twelve minutes later, Anthony bridgerton was standing outside the restaurant with a heavy frown and it was strange to see him in normal clothes, like that grey t-shirt felt odd yet gorgeous and those sweatpants, you were way too drunk, you realised.

" You'll make a fine gentleman." Anthony curted his mouth, his words dripped with sarcasm that you and Benedict were too drunk to catch on.

" Thankyou, the cab idea was mine." He said smugly, ducking out when you smacked his ass with your purse, Anthony watched with wide eyes.

" Liar." You jabbed at him, he started to giggle and stumbled, taking you along before Anthony grabbed you by the waist and pulled you away from him, Benedict winked at you when Anthony closed his eyes, frustration or whatever that dazed him, his touch was electrifying, like current jostling in water.

Anthony pulled away his arms from you, his eyes strained like it pained him just the same it hurt you.

" You are wasting my time brother, get in the car." He glared, " come." He said to you, his gaze softened but that could be alcohol, you weren't reliable narrator especially when it was Anthony bridgerton.

" Well you could have refused." Benedict ran and sprawled inside like a bear, covering the whole back seat with his wasted body.

" Yes well, I didn't come for y—" he clamped his mouth in a thin line, nerve twitching on his forehead as he breathed hard, eyeing you as you ran after Benedict's seat thievery, you opened the door and his head almost snapped when he looked up you, it was a nauseous enough to make you vomit.

" Move." You pulled his hair, in no hell you will sit in the front seat, not like you haven't, but you were drunk and you were angry and you hated Anthony and you wished so much to just, to just, just once, once just, kiss him hard, that's alcohol, bloody alcohol.

" Leave this idiot." Anthony was suddenly behind you, he touched your elbow with same electric touch, guiding you to the empty front seat as he opened the door, you could feel Benedict wiggling his eye, you will deal with this bastard later.

" I was thinking—" Benedict started, once Anthony started driving, he was shut real quick when Anthony glared with words.

" Stop thinking." Anthony rolled the steering wheel and you looked away, those veins taunted and lured you, it was maddening and the streets were much dull and undistracting.

Benedict giggled at something he probably said in his head, you chuckled when he burped, he did too, only Anthony didn't.

" Don't you have a date tommorow with Mr. Dorset ? " Benedict craned his neck to get a view of you, two Bridgerton's eyes were too much to take as you thought hard, well yes a date, with Mr. Dorset, yes, you did remember.

" Ofcourse." You said, Anthony drifted a turn that jerked your head forward and you would have got a concussion if it wasn't his big palm that came for rescue.

" Are you okay ? " He asked, slowing down the car as his fingers pushed you back until the back of your head was pressed against the seat.

" Yeah." You confirmed, nothing was more threatening than his touch. He should bloody know that.

" Are you okay ? " Benedict mimicked and you realised he was down there, squashed on the car floor, his face hidden somewhere.

Anthony ignored him as his expressions hardened, he was breathing hard as he worried his lips, thinking and thinking.

" You do know it might take all day." Anthony finally said and you cocked your head to his side, you were drunk and well, sleepy too.

" What ? Well, it's a dinner date." You assured, Mr. Dorset wasn't letting go and a Thai curry wouldn't hurt anyway.

" Yes well, it might be very late." He was frowning now, his eyes were on the road but he would glance between nano seconds.

" Really ? " You pouted, you were way too gone now, it didn't matter, Anthony's eyes stopped at your lips and when he looked up, something changed, like it must have changed a long ago but it's colours were only visible now, like moon hiding behind the clouds, beaming but not seen and when it's finally high, hanging at sky, you blinked, expecting it to be gone, like everything, but when you opened your eyes, it was still there, as clear as ever, shimmering at you. That's alcohol, bloody alcohol.

" Yes.." Anthony gulped hard, pulling at Benedict's apartment, how much he wanted sophie to built a home with him, soon, you thought, soon.

" Oi y/n, I think I found your lipstick." Benedict hopped up, his face had lines where because he didn't bother to get up once he had fallen, with a shade that you never used in your whole lifetime, Anthony looked away when you tried to catch his eyes.

" That's not mine." You said, feeling anger creep up your neck, not knowing why, it's not that you were the only one who sat in his car and ofcourse you weren't his girlfriend, you weren't his friend even, he was your boss, you were his assistant, that's it, that's fucking it, you really wanted to punch his face, that's bloody alcohol, you would never drink again.

" Benedict, my brother." Anthony took the lipstick away which Benedict was trying to apply on himself, " get the fuck out."

" Goodbye to you too brother." He leaned to smooch Anthony when he hastily pulled away, growling.

" Bye bye sweetheart." Benedict smooched your cheek then and his lips only touched your warm skin before Anthony pushed him back in the back seat, it was, kinda rough.

" You are drunk." He told Benedict who shrugged, blinking heavily.

"He always kissed me goodbye." You glared at Anthony, this freaking bastard, chew on your lipstick, Idiot. You leaned down to kiss Benedict's cheek and he giggled softly, eyes locked with Anthony, his wide bastard grin flashing, glittering as Anthony eye rolled.

When Benedict was dropped, it was your turn, Anthony stared ahead like a statue, you were suffering in your own head.

The silence became heavy in air as the music was either tragic or too loud for your head and Anthony sensed the discomfort, turning it off altogether.

" What are we going to do actually? Venue deciding or something." You finally spoke, remembering how much you stared and stared when the article popped up, Anthony bridgerton looking for a wife !! You remembered the qualification list, should be well spoken, should be linguistic, should want kids, should be family loving, should be this, should be that, should have good enough hips to bear a child like what ?!

You remembered days and days when he would have his appointments, yes appointments, most of times he was out within five minutes, a frown on his face.

" She doesn't know algebra." He said one time when he came out within two minutes and you shrugged, well algebra was hard afterall.

And now Miss Edwina had ended all your miseries and torture, no lists, no more algebra's and Collen Hoover's, nothing of that anymore, Anthony would be a husband soon and perhaps he would love her, or already love her, he was so determined even when Kate sharma threatened to cut deals with Aubreyton if didn't stop sending flowers, well that was your doing, sending flowers because it was your idea, but well, it didn't matter.

" Well not the venue, but wedding ring and wedding dresses, Mother say we match and cake tasting and flowers—" we.

" When's the wedding ? " You looked at him scornfully, Anthony's eyes lowered at you as he stopped the car.

" Next week." Fuck you Anthony!

" Shouldn't you decide that with Miss Edwina herself ? " You were glad, but you had this feeling that he would be taken away from you, once married, he might not be yours, he was never yours, but still, why not start now ?

He frowned like it wasn't the most sensible and obvious thing.

" I..." He hesitated, " Miss Edwina might not want to go, since the wedding is too near and also, to keep it a private engagement."

" Oh." You didn't get a thing, your mind wasn't working as Anthony leaned down to open your door, you freezed, only your heart thudded loudly, could he hear ? What he did to you, well it wouldn't surprise you if he knew and still chose to torture your poor soul. " Why not state it publicly ? "

" I can't deal with the fanfictions." He said in matter of factly way. " And paparazzi giving Edwina trouble." Don't say her name, don't.

" Fanfictions ?! " You laughed so loud that he actually stopped thinking whatever he was, and just looked at you, as if taking in every detail, savouring them, drinking every bit of you in, he looked like he was mesmerized but that was just alcohol, just your silly heart, just you, who had read all those one shots, about you and him, ofcourse you weren't going to admit it and ofcourse you would be quite dammed if you ever saw Anthony getting shipped with Edwina Sharma, they are getting married in a week idiot, yes, but not today, not now, later, when it was time, please, not now. Later, now he was yours.

" You have a good choice either way." He was, for no reason, walking you to your door, you remembered how Benedict was practically kicked out earlier, he would tease you so much if you were to ever tell him.

" Oh please." You chuckled, rubbing your hands together in the chilly air, " I gifted Benedict onesies on his birthday."

Anthony smiled, it didn't leave his face until he caught you staring and you noticed how different he looked, when those lines were of joy instead of worry, he looked young and his boyishness made your heart do cartwheels.

" That was just a joke." He amused, " wasn't it ? " His smile faltered when you shaked your head in a no, fumbling for you keys.

" It wasn't so bad." Anthony said, somewhat traumatised, " Benedict wore them anyway."

" It had penguins ! " You cringed at the memory, a drunkish Polaroid like, blurred and saturated, it was vivid but just like yesterday, Anthony didn't dance until you were both so drunk, perhaps he smiled back than too, and looked just as dazzling.

" You are good y/n." Anthony said sincerely, " stop being mean to yourself." You opened the door but your hands freezed at the doornob, why Anthony had to cut the right wires, why he had to upside down your whole world ?

" Well, same to you Anthony." You said, he lingered on the doorway more than he should, it was alcohol, it really, really was but no amount of gaslighting could blur the memory away, you always remembered how brave you were that night when you leaned down, one step not much, and placed a small, chaste kiss, just a brush of your lips against his blazing skin. A touch to his soul, it sparkled and rose and busted into a thousand orbs and sprinkled like glitters on you and him.

" Good night." You whispered, Anthony stared, too stunned to say anything, then he smiled, small and enchanting.

" Good night y/n." His smile stayed.

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genericpuff · 2 days

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wait wait wait, regarding that Minthe post, you're telling me that Rachel literally wrote the character as having BPD.....and portrayed her as an abusive mean piece of shit??? WOW. fucking WOW. sorry for being so angry, but even if she "retconned" that - it's still so god damn disrespective. as someone who has BPD it hurts so much to see my mental illness villanised :(

ugh I'm so sorry pal. and I don't blame you for being angry about it, like I don't even have BPD and I'M fucking pissed LOL like I can understand why Rachel might have wanted to backtrack from that knowing fully well that Minthe's story wasn't gonna have a happy ending, but writing her with BPD in the first place and then BACKTRACKING from it as soon as she likely got heat for it (or just realized it wasn't a good look) isn't much better because it means now all she's done is written the stigmatized negative effects of BPD into her character without showing the more positive outlooks of healing and managing. Maybe that was doomed to happen considering Minthe is someone who doesn't get a happy ending in the myths, but it begs the question of why she'd write her with BPD to begin with because in hindsight it really does seem like she just wanted to use it as a way to make her "evil".

But like, when you read the actual episode, you can SEE the potential there for character growth, you can SEE that she's aware of her actions - but doesn't understand why she's "like that" which is a VERY common feeling among people with undiagnosed mental illnesses - but it was never meant to be.

Like jfc not only is it HEAVILY IMPLIED, but again, the episode is literally called "Splitting". And we see exactly that with Minthe, who can't seem to rationalize with herself that she messed up.

But... that leads me to another point that I failed to mention in that first ask response: she DIDN'T mess up. Like, yes, she messed up by escalating it to the point of slapping Hades, but it wasn't her fault that she didn't make it to her date with Hades. Whose fault was it?

Continuously throughout the first season we see Thetis being an awful influence who manipulates and gaslights Minthe. They're "friends", but it's clear Thetis does not have Minthe's best interests in mind. In this very scene we see Thetis manipulate Minthe and even attempt to get her so drunk that she won't be able to show up to her date. And then of course when that plan works and Minthe freaks out, Thetis spins it around on Minthe in a very passive-aggressive way.

But of course, the narrative has to find a way to turn this whole thing on Minthe being the bad guy. Hence we get the slap which shifts the focus entirely away from what led up to it back onto Hades who has, in a lot of ways, put her in a situation that she can't control. And of course, being in those kinds of situations does not help with mental health.

Like, sorry, I'm really going off here now, but... the slap happens in Episode 76.

When is it finally addressed again? Episode 103.

It took Rachel nearly THIRTY EPISODES to finally bring it back to Minthe, and in that time the reader has spent SEVERAL EPISODES reading about how sad and lonely Hades is, and about how cute and lovey he is with Persephone. The reader has not had ANY time to reflect on Minthe's circumstances, because it completely pivots away from her to focus on H x P as a sort of distraction from the fact that Minthe is a victim in her own right.

And when it DOES return to Minthe in 103, we get this harrowing reminder that her entire life is dependent on Hades-

And once again, here comes Thetis to the "rescue", reinforcing the negative feedback loop that Minthe is trapped in where she's put in unhealthy situations. She drags her to a bar and the whole time Minthe is not having fun because she's understandably still reeling from what happened.

Now we DO get some character development here, where Minthe realizes exactly what I've just finished explaining, that Thetis isn't her friend, that she'd rather not have Thetis as a friend than continue being talked down to and manipulated.

But then, as we know, because Rachel still needs Minthe to be the "bad guy", the breakup between Hades and Minthe winds up being all about Persephone from a POV that attempts to villainize Minthe for being "jealous" (rather than focusing on how shitty Hades actually is for having an emotional affair with Persephone to begin with) and then Minthe goes right back to hanging out with Thetis anyways for the sake of having the "evil other girl" who wants to "ruin" H x P's relationship.

It's not until Season 3 that we finally see Minthe tell Thetis to fuck off for good, but by then it's too little too late, and Minthe has lost an entire character arc. Rachel tries to go "see! Minthe's life is so much better now that she's taking care of children!" but that's an entirely different solution to a problem Minthe never had. She never got treatment for her BPD. She just got away from H x P which, while is a good thing, isn't actually analyzed as such. It's treated more as a "good thing" for H x P and the readers, because now they don't have to be subjected to Minthe's evil scheming anymore, something something "the evil is defeated". And don't even get me started on this comic's problem with constantly resolving female characters' story arcs through motherhood.

It bums me out so fucking much. Minthe deserved so much better. She's one of the many characters in LO who make it so painfully ironic when they're done dirty, because despite Rachel's attempts to write a "feminist retelling" that focuses on "moving on from trauma", she's inadvertently done more damage to feminism and the stigmas around mental health and trauma through her assassination of grounded and realistic and relatable characters like Minthe and Demeter who are shown ZERO empathy or understanding for their actions (unless it can be done so by making Persephone and Hades into the heroes). It happens so often throughout the comic it almost feels like how the comic markets itself as a "progressive feminist retelling" is some sick joke that I'm just not getting.

#ask me anything #ama #anon ama #anon ask me anything #lore olympus critical #anti lore olympus #lo critical

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chaoticforever · 3 days

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Misinterpreted Intentions | Lucifer Morningstar x Male! Reader

Summary: When faced with danger, unforeseen complications can always arise. However, not only do unforeseen complications happen in the middle of danger — but also behind closed doors. Y/n and Lucifer learn that the hard way.

A/n: Guess who’s back?

A ripple of tension coursed through his jaw, the muscles flexing with restrained intensity. The man's hands curled into a clenched fist, an outward manifestation of the anger that was stirring inside him.

The air in the precinct was tense as Lucifer Morningstar and Chloe Decker delved into their latest case. They were at Chloe's desk, sifting through piles of evidence and discussing possible leads. As they engaged in their detective work, Lucifer's piercing gaze, however, strayed from the files and landed on a sight that provoked a spark of jealousy inside him.

Across the space, Y/n, his boyfriend and fellow detective was standing at his own desk, immersed in conversation with an Officer. The Devil's eyes trailed over the curve of Y/n's smile and the playful glint in his eye. His eyes narrowed, looking at Y/n's body language and the way he had leaned closer to the man. They’re flirting.

Their laughter echoed through the room, and Lucifer couldn't help but feel a knot tighten in his stomach. He just couldn’t believe that his boyfriend would flirt with someone else when he had Lucifer. His mind raced with doubts and insecurities, clouding his normally razor-sharp focus. Lucifer found it increasingly challenging to concentrate on the case at hand from watching the man who had captured his heart like no other flirt with another man.

And what ignited a primal fire inside him is when Lucifer witnessed Y/n sensually rubbing the officer's well-defined biceps.

Lucifer gritted his teeth.

Chloe shot him a concerned glance, her brows furrowing. "Lucifer, are you okay?"

Without providing an explanation, The Devil strode across the room, his steps filled with an uncharacteristic urgency. Each click of his polished shoes against the floor made the anger inside him boil.

In his haste, he reached into his pocket and retrieved a small silver whistle that he had used for devilish amusement on a previous occasion. Stopping in front of the pair, Lucifer blew the whistle with a sharp, piercing sound that reverberated throughout the room without a thought.

The unexpected interruption caused Y/n and the officer's conversation to cease, their eyes widening in surprise. Lucifer stood before them, a suave smile firmly plastered on his face to hide his feelings.

Y/n's eyes locked onto his. "Oh, hi, Luci."

"Y/n." Lucifer's voice carried a subtle yet unmistakable undercurrent of tension. "I couldn't help but notice your... display of affection towards Officer Biceps. Do you wanna tell me why you were doing that?"

"Oh, I wanted to know where Jason was feeling sore after his intense workout at the gym yesterday," The man in question explained, his e/c eyes scanning Jason's physique appreciatively. "And it appears that the gym has worked wonders since he looks like a God with those muscles; I suppose the pain is a small price to pay."

A rosy hue tainted Jason's cheeks as his friend's words echoed in the station, but he instinctively took a step back when he was met with Lucifer's heated glare. Y/n's gaze drifted between the two men.

"Lucifer, are you alright?" Y/n's voice was filled with genuine concern as he placed a comforting hand on Lucifer's shoulder.

A flicker of annoyance crossed Lucifer's eyes. How could Y/n seriously have the audacity to ask if he was alright while shamelessly flirting with another man right in front of him? Did Y/n not value their relationship? Did he not take their relationship seriously? Lucifer knew he couldn't let these doubts consume him, but he realized that he had to confront the issue head-on, right at that moment.

Before any further conversation could unfold, however, Chloe's voice rang out, cutting through the tension in the room like a sharp blade. "Lucifer, Y/n, we have a situation," she said urgently, holding up her phone to display the breaking news. "There was a murder downtown and the Captain wants us three to head out now."

The weight of the murder investigation hung heavily in the air, extinguishing any opportunity for Lucifer to confront Y/n. now. The pressing urgency of their duty took precedence over personal matters.

Reluctantly, Lucifer tore his gaze away from Y/n, his mind churning with a mix of jealousy and unanswered questions. "Seems the universe has other plans," he said, disappointment evident in his tone.

Lucifer followed Chloe's lead, his steps heavy with a mix of emotions with Y/n, walking beside him. He cast a lingering glance at his lover, who wore a mixture of confusion and concern. He would be sure to address this issue at a later time.

The case demanded their attention now.

XXXXX XXXXX

Lucifer, Chloe, and Y/n finally arrived at the crime scene, greeted by the flashing lights of police cars and the murmur of curious onlookers. The three detectives stepped out of their sleek black car and made their way toward the yellow police tape that marked the perimeter of the crime scene and onlookers before them.

As they entered the dimly lit warehouse, the scent of death hung heavy in the air. The victim, a young man, lay motionless on the ground floor. Ella — the forensics expert — was busily capturing images of the dead guy, so the trio approached her.

"Hi, Ella, can you tell us about what has happened here so far?” Chloe asked, her eyes raking over the deceased individual.

"Someone did a real number on this guy. The victim's name is Samuel Anderson. Thirty-two. There are red marks around his neck to indicate that he was choked before being shot three times — once in the shoulder and twice in the forehead. Oh! And there's another peculiar detail — the number three is carved into the back of his neck... along with some writing on the wall in his own blood," Ella explained, capturing another snapshot of the dead.

"Looks like someone wanted to exercise their creative side." The Devil remarked, eyes peering closely at the lifeless body. Despite his feelings regarding Y/n at the time, Lucifer maintained his composure, his sharp wit and dry humor fully intact.

Chloe rolled her eyes at Lucifer's flippant remarks. "Are there any witnesses?" The blonde detective asked, hoping for leads.

Ella pointed to the left, where a man, tall and muscular, stood. "That guy standing over there, Benjamin Young, was the one to call the police and discover the body."

Y/n's gaze lifted from the lifeless body after hearing that name, a name he was familiar with. A friend from his past. The male followed Ella's pointing finger and, without a doubt, saw his old friend there.

The h/c haired male walked over to him.

"Well, if it isn't Benny Young himself," Y/n remarked, shooing the officer away but keeping his gaze fixed on his old friend. Once alone, he added, "It seems trouble has a knack for finding you, doesn't it?"

Benny chuckled, giving Y/n a once-over. "Looks like you've fulfilled your dream of becoming the hottest male detective in Los Angeles, Y/n L/n," he noted before addressing Y/n's remark. "And spot on, trouble has a way of gravitating towards me. But you know what they say, trouble loves good company, and I can’t help but notice that you're always nearby. Maybe, just maybe, you've got a taste for it too."

Y/n hummed in contemplation, stroking his chin in fake seriousness. "You might be onto something there. We should talk about your little fetish over drinks later?"

Benny smirked. "Sounds like a plan."

Chloe, watching the two friends interact, couldn't help but roll her eyes. She was used to Y/n’s flirtatious nature, but at a crime scene, it was highly inappropriate.

Lucifer could not contain his discomfort either. The devil crossed his arms, a hint of jealousy creeping into his expression. He discreetly moved closer, pretending to examine a piece of evidence nearby.

Clearing his throat, Lucifer interrupted Benny and Y/n’s conversation. "Ahem," Lucifer coughed, drawing their attention. "Y/n, I see you have found yourself quite the captivating conversation partner, but you need to focus on the investigation, not engaging in personal conversations."

Y/n turned towards Lucifer, momentarily taken aback by his reprimand. Normally, they were the ones cracking jokes and goofing off, but now Lucifer was calling him out. He opened his mouth to speak but caught Chloe's disapproving glance. He nodded in acknowledgment instead.

"Right, sorry," Y/n apologized, expression turning serious, "Benny, this is Detective Decker and Lucifer Morningstar. Do you mind if they ask you certain questions?"

"Ask away."

Chloe took charge, probing Benny about how he stumbled upon the body. Benny explained he was heading to the coffee shop nearby when he heard gunshots from this nearby warehouse. Spotting a figure fleeing, he entered the warehouse and found the victim dead on the ground.

While Chloe questioned Benny further, Lucifer scrutinized him. Though tall, well-built, and somewhat charismatic — three qualities that would attract Y/n — Benny paled in comparison to Lucifer. And this thought brought a smirk to Lucifer's lips.

As Chloe listened to Benny's statement, Benny eventually asked if he could leave and Lucifer noticed his fidgety behavior.

The Devil's eyes narrowed again.

"What's the hurry, Mr. Young?" He asked, accusation present in his tone of voice. "Maybe you were the one who killed this guy or knows someone who could have."

"Lucifer, Benny just said that he has no connection to the victim," Y/n reminded him, but Lucifer disregarded his words. Instead, he leaned in real close to Benny, maintaining strong eye contact with him.

"Tell me, Benjamin, what is it you desire?"

Y/n sighed as he and Chloe watched as Lucifer's mojo took effect on Benny fast. "I... I want to spend time alone with Y/n."

Upon hearing Benny utter his true desire, a frown etched itself onto Lucifer's face. Y/n, on the other hand, grinned brightly at his old friend. "Oh, Benny, you always know how to tug at my heartstrings," Y/n draped his arm around Benny's shoulder. "How about you and I spend some time together now that doesn't involve a dead body lying in the middle of the ground?"

"Y/n, we have a case to do," the blonde added in, giving the man a pointed look.

"Don't worry, Detective. I'm sure you and Lucifer can handle the case without me," Y/n reassured Chloe. "Besides, Benny is our only witness, so he'll need someone to keep him safe. It's the right job for me."

"I'm not sure that's a good idea." Don't go anywhere with this man. Stay here and help me solve this case, Lucifer thought.

"Well, I think it's a perfect idea," the h/c haired male countered, gently squeezing Benny's arm. "Let's catch up, old friend." Then, Y/n and Benny left the warehouse.

A fist formed in Lucifer's hands. He had the burning desire to bring Y/n back to his side to keep him away from that guy. Watching his lover flirt with his friends was already bad enough, but seeing Y/n leave with one of them? It didn't sit well with him. He hated that. Lucifer moved forward, attempting to follow after Y/n and remind him who he belongs to, who he'll always belong to when the blonde's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"You know, jealousy isn't a good color on you. Y/n is just reconnecting with an old friend, so there's no need to be jealous. You know he loves and cares about you."

The Devil was uncertain about whether to believe the detective's words. He had witnessed much today that contradicted the statement, and actions spoke louder than words. Nevertheless, he had a duty to fulfill. He planned to address Y/n's behavior later that night. Straightening himself up, he forced a smile at Chloe, temporarily setting aside his emotions.

"On with the case, Detective!"

XXXXX XXXXX

Later in the night, once the sun retreated and the moon took its place in the dark sky, casting a soft, gentle glow upon the city, Lucifer stood inside his penthouse, drink in hand, phone in the other, looking out the window. The night sky, adorned with twinkling stars, stretched endlessly across the horizon. All comforting vibes.

Finishing the last sip of his drink, Lucifer acknowledged the beauty and solace of the outside view, yet couldn't extend the same sentiment to inside the penthouse.

Because Y/n was conspicuously absent.

Lucifer had been calling and texting him ever since he returned to the penthouse, but every single call went to voicemail, and his messages were left on delivered.

He forced himself to inhale and exhale so he wouldn't unleash hell on Earth, but the thought grew increasingly tempting. The man who had promised to be his is out with another man somewhere, doing who knows what with that muscular guy.

Lucifer's frustration peaked as he dialed Y/n's number again — only to be greeted by the unwelcome voice of voicemail. In a surge of anger, he clenched that phone tightly, feeling its fragile frame give way in his hand. With a resounding crack, the device shattered, its pieces crumbling in his grasp before tumbling to the ground.

And then, Lucifer's clenched fist collided with the windows, shattering the pristine glass into many shimmering fragments. The shards of broken glass mirrored the shattered pieces of his own uncertainty.

The dark-haired devil headed over to the mini-bar, pouring himself another drink and downing it in one swift motion. The doors to the elevator suddenly slid open and out stepped Y/n L/n, a radiant smile gracing his features. He was oblivious to the storm brewing beneath the surface.

"Hey, Luci," Y/n walked over to Lucifer. and placed a hand on his shoulder, but Lucifer quickly shrugged off the gesture, rejecting the touch and Y/n's expression twisted in confusion at the unexpected coldness. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

Darkness clouded Lucifer's gaze. "Am I okay? Really? After your behavior today, how can you even ask me that question?"

Y/n's confusion deepened. "What do—"

"So, tell me Y/n, how was your date with your old friend? Did you enjoy your time bonding over shared memories, holding hands like some love-struck teenagers?"

Y/n blinked twice, his gaze lingering on his boyfriend. "Uh, yeah, Benny and I had a good time, and he shared information that could help with the case," he shared, his words punctuated by a pause before he broached a delicate question. "Um, is everything okay?" Y/n's words carried an undertone of both concern and curiosity.

"No, everything is not okay, Y/n."

"What's wrong?" Y/n inquired worriedly.

"What's wrong," the devil's voice crackled throughout the room, his tone carrying a sinister edge as he clenched the glass in his hand until it shattered. "is that you're out there, flirting with other guys in front of me, touching them, staring at them as if you want to be with them and not me. What do you have to say for yourself?"

Y/n shrugged, failing to grasp the gravity of the situation and Lucifer's feelings. "I love to playfully flirt with my friends. It's all harmless fun. It's really not a big deal."

"The big deal is that you should not be flirting with anyone on this earth but me."

"Well, as I said, it's all just harmless fun. You, of all people, can understand that."

Lucifer tilted his head, stepping closer to Y/n. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

Y/n stood his ground, mirroring Lucifer's steps and closing the distance between them. "You know what I mean. You used to flirt with others all the time, but when I do it with my dear friends, it's an issue?"

"Yes, it's an issue because you're flirting with others when you're in a committed relationship. Since we've been together, I haven't flirted with anyone else and you need to stop flirting with people as well."

"No," Y/n shook his head, dismissing the brown-haired man's explanation, despite acknowledging a kernel of truth within it. "I'm not changing how I interact with my friends just to meet your expectations."

Lucifer couldn't believe what Y/n said. How could he justify flirting with others, even in a friendship context, while being in a relationship with him? It seemed like Y/n lacked genuine commitment to their relationship and failed to recognize how this particular problem affected Lucifer.

"Well, then maybe you should go be with Benny Young or Officer Biceps since you clearly want to be with them and not me."

"You know what? Maybe I will."

Y/n didn't even hesitate for a moment as he pivoted and stepped into the awaiting elevator, leaving Lucifer there — all alone.

The Devil released a heavy sigh, feeling disheartened by the turn of events. This was not the resolution he had hoped for. He wanted to address the issue with Y/n, to find a way to reconcile, but instead, it appeared as though Y/n was slipping further away with each passing moment.

"Dammit!" Lucifer lashed out at the nearest thing within reach — his beloved piano that now lay in ruins under his feet.

It was the same piano where Lucifer and the h/c haired man had shared their first kiss together. Y/n had sat beside Lucifer, listening as the dark-haired man sang to him. Their hands had intertwined on the keys, and in that moment, their eyes met one another. They couldn't resist sharing a passionate kiss. It was a scene etched into Lucifer's heart. The piano had once symbolized the love and bond they had.

Now, the piano lay shattered, its once seamless surface split in two, mirroring the fractured state of their relationship.

XXXXX XXXXX

Lucifer couldn’t sleep.

His mind raced, thinking about what had transpired today and his argument with Y/n. His hand instinctively reached over; Lucifer usually wrapped his arm around Y/n and pulled him closer, but there was no one to pull closer. He was alone. The bed felt considerably cold without Y/n.

The Devil got to his feet and walked over to the bar filled with alcoholic drinks. He sank onto a barstool and poured himself a drink, letting the alcohol flow down his trachea. It was going to be a long night.

In the past, when Lucifer sometimes felt hurt or confused, he'd find somebody to or both, he would find someone to have sex with as a means of relief. A thought came into his mind at that very second.

The dark-haired guy considered going to his club to find someone to have a good time with tonight, knowing that he easily attracts both men and women. However, he dismissed the thought from his mind as quickly as it came. He wouldn't cheat on Y/n because they were still together.

So, alcohol was his only companion now.

Lucifer downed one glass, then another, and then another. He sometimes mixed different alcohols or drank straight from the bottle, liquor burning down his throat.

As the night wore on, the sun had finally ascended, casting a warm glow through the window, but Lucifer paid it no mind. The Devil walked across the room and looked at himself in the nearby mirror.

And there it was:

The telltale signs of a drunk night.

His skin was pale and his eyes were bloodshot, with dark circles underneath that made him look like a zombie from a scary film. His hair was a mess, sticking up in all directions, and his stubble only added to his disreputable appearance, making him look like he had just rolled out of his bed after a week-long bender. He looked a mess, and it was Y/n's fault.

Glancing at the clock, Lucifer realized he was late for work. He put his suit jacket on and left the penthouse, unconcerned with his disheveled state. Upon arriving at the precinct, Lucifer's feet carried him to the board room, where he saw Chloe looking over the evidence on the board.

"Hello, Detective."

"It’s about time you showed up, Lucifer. You’re very late," Chloe's gaze traveled to the man in question, and she took in his disheveled state. "And you look like hell."

A mixture of a snicker and a chuckle left his lips. "I haven’t heard that one before."

The blonde squinted. "Are you drunk?"

"Only slightly drunk, unfortunately. This supernatural metabolism keeps getting in the way. Still doesn't stop me from trying, though." Lucifer reached into his jacket and retrieved his silver flask — he raised it to his mouth and a long swig.

"No, Lucifer!" Chloe took the flask from Lucifer, "No, drinking on the job. We have a case to solve, and Dan and Y/n should be here any second with information for us. I need you to be focused, not drunk."

Right at that very moment, Y/n and Dan walked into the boardroom, and, as if on cue, they both looked straight at Lucifer. Since Lucifer usually takes great care to seem well-groomed, except today, Y/n's eyes widened as he examined Lucifer as if he had never seen him in such a state.

Which, to be fair, he hasn't.

"Well, speak of the devil's boyfriend," he muttered under his breath, eyes fixed on Y/n. "Though I don't know if that title still applies after your little cheating scandal."

Y/n let out a sigh, e/c eyes meeting his. "Luci, can we talk about this in private?"

"There's nothing to talk about, Y/n. We have a case to solve, not to discuss the relationship problems you caused. So what information do you have for us?"

Chloe and Dan exchanged a little glance, feeling the tension in the room between the two men but staying quiet. Y/n rolled his eyes but recognized that this wasn't the time for that personal conversation.

Dan cleared his throat, bringing the focus back to the case. "Well, Y/n and I think we have a lead. Benjamin sat down with the sketch artist and identified the man he saw leaving the scene: Thomas Wilson, a criminal with history of running an illegal drug operation in Los Angeles. He had been convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole for drugs and being a child killer two years ago."

Y/n handed Chloe a file and she opened it, scanning the contents inside. Lucifer leaned over to get a look at the criminal. He was tall, with a buzz cut, brown eyes, and pale skin tone. A scar above his left eyebrow added a touch of menace to his features, complemented by a blue tattoo of a snake featured on his right forearm.

"That's one way to get a lifetime supply of free room and board," Lucifer quipped, his tone laced with sarcasm. "But what does his biography have to do with this?"

"The victim, Samuel Anderson, was the third juror to convict him," Y/n explained, "And there have been two similar cases like this weeks ago. The victims were a young female named Jane Smythe and an older man named Jackson Williams. They were the first two people to convict Thomas, with the numbers one and two carved into the back of their neck. Their blood was used to write on the wall too."

Chloe nodded, looking up from the file. "So, Thomas is seeking revenge on the ones who convicted him. That's a clear motive. But you said he was in jail, Dan."

Dan shook his head. "He was. According to the Beverly Hills Police Department, it was said that Thomas killed himself two days before the murders. Hung himself."

"How convenient," Lucifer said.

Y/n voiced his own theory. "Honestly, I believe he faked his death to avoid being a prime suspect. Dan and I are heading to the morgue to see if he's dead or not."

Chloe nodded in agreement. "Good idea. Lucifer, you're with me. We'll head to the prison and see if we can find any clues."

Lucifer raised an eyebrow. "Do you think that's necessary, Detective? I mean, if Y/n's theory is right, Thomas is long gone, and there won't be any clues left behind."

"We cannot rule out certain possibilities. Someone who works there could give us some insight into Thomas' state of mind or any allies he might've had. Now, let's go." The blonde female left out the door.

Lucifer's brown eyes narrowed, his gaze following Y/n and Dan as they prepared to leave. A sense of unease settled into his stomach at the thought of Y/n being alone with Daniel, especially since they needed to talk after their argument last night. Betrayal still lingered heavily and the alcohol did little to ease his worries. With a sigh, Lucifer followed Chloe out the door, feet dragging against the floor.

Under a sky where only a few fluffy clouds lazily drifted by, Dan and Y/n cruised down the open road, windows rolled down, the calming breeze hitting their faces. Dan cast a quick glance at Y/n, seated in the passenger seat, before returning his focus to the road ahead.

The silence between the two detectives was comfortable, but Dan decided to ask Y/n something that had been on his mind. "So, what’s going on with you and Lucifer, Y/n?" Dan broke the silence, his foot pressing the brake. The light's red.

Y/n's gaze drifted from the window. "Nothing. Lucifer’s just being dramatic."

"Dramatic? How so?"

"Okay, so you know how I like to playfully flirt with some friends? Well, Lucifer got upset last night because of some playful banter between me and Benny. He blew it out of proportion. Can you believe it?"

The brown-haired guy nodded slowly, his eyes back on the road as the light turned green. "I can believe it." Y/n looked up at him, surprised by his partner’s lack of agreement. Dan continued, "It is kind of disrespectful to flirt with others when you’re in a committed relationship."

Not understanding Dan's point of view, Y/n frowned. After all, the casual flirting was completely lighthearted and strictly platonic. Besides, he would never cheat on Lucifer, so why are people attempting to make it become something it's not?

"It’s harmless flirting. It’s not a big deal."

"It may not be a big deal to you, Y/n, but Lucifer sees it differently. As his partner, you need to consider his feelings. How would you feel if Lucifer started flirting with others right in front of your face?"

Y/n fell silent, considering Dan's words. In all honesty, if Lucifer were to flirt with people in front of him, he would not like it because he would only want Lucifer to have eyes for him. Furthermore, it would only make him think that he wasn’t good enough for Lucifer if he had to resort to flirting with someone who wasn't Y/n.

"I wouldn’t like it at all." He murmured.

"Exactly," Dan said, his voice gentle. "And that's how Lucifer feels. It's important to consider his feelings and make an effort to respect his boundaries, too. After all, relationships are about compromise and understanding. So, after we wrap up this case, you need to apologize to him and make an effort to stop that flirting, too."

Y/n nodded his head, feeling remorseful for his actions. Perhaps, Dan and Lucifer were right. He liked his playful side and had thought that it was an aspect of his personality that made Y/n... well...Y/n.

But Y/n was willing to change that part of himself to help save his relationship. And the first step in doing that was to apologize to Lucifer whenever he could.

"You’re right. I’ll fix it." He leaned back in his seat, grateful for Dan’s perspective. "Since when did you get philosophical?"

Dan shrugged as he pulled into the morgue parking lot. "Since Trixie makes me read philosophical books to her." He put the car in park and faced Y/n. "Now, are you ready to see if Michael Myers is really dead or if he's a walking zombie?"

"As ready as I'll ever be."

The two detectives exited the car and entered the morgue. Rachel Walker, a medical examiner, looked up from her paperwork as they walked in. "Hello, gentlemen. What can I do for you?"

The h/c haired guy detective flashed his badge, "I'm Detective L/n, and this is my partner, Detective Espinosa. We're here to examine the body of Thomas Wilson. We understand that he was brought here after his supposed suicide in prison, yes?"

Y/n ended his statement in an accusing manner and Rachel's eyebrows furrowed slightly, as if she sensed the skepticism in Y/n's tone. "Yes, his body was brought in a day after his death. The authorities suspected foul play, so they wanted an autopsy performed to determine if his cause of death was really suicide or not."

"And what were your findings, exactly?" Dan asked, his eyes scanning the room for any signs of the body in question.

"Follow me, and I'll show you," Rachel led the guys deeper into the morgue. They passed rows of stainless steel drawers, each one containing the remains of a person whose life had ended too soon.

Finally, they stopped in front of a drawer with a plate that read "Thomas Wilson." Rachel pulled the drawer open, revealing the man whose face matched Thomas Wilson. His skin was pale and waxy, his eyes closed, and his lips pulled back into a grimace, revealing yellowed teeth. A deep purple bruise encircled his neck, a testament to the method of his suicide.

Dan and Y/n carefully inspected the dead body before them. The face was without a doubt Thomas Wilson but as Dan looked over at his facial features, he noticed that there wasn’t a scar present above Thomas’ eyebrow. And Y/n noted that the snake tattoo wasn’t on his right arm like the file, but was on his left arm.

The two detectives shared a look with each other. It was clear that something wasn’t right here and they were going to find out what was wrong. Additionally, if Thomas was truly dead, then who was killing the jurors? And for what reason?

Suddenly, a thought came to Y/n's mind.

"Rachel," he turned to face the specialist. "we need your expertise. I have a theory that I'd like to run by you if that's okay."

"Oh, I love a good theory. Ask away."

"Well, I was thinking," Y/n began, "What if Thomas Wilson had an identical twin?"

Rachel's eyes widened. "A twin? That's certainly an interesting theory. Go on."

"We checked the file on Thomas Wilson, and there are some discrepancies," Dan explained. "The file we had describes a scar above his left eyebrow and a snake tattoo on his right arm. However, when we just examined the body, there was no scar, and the tattoo was on his left arm."

"Hmm, that is odd," Rachel pursed her lips in concentration. "Identical twins do tend to have minor physical differences, but a missing scar and a reversed tattoo are certainly significant discrepancies."

"So, could this body be Thomas Wilson's twin, and Thomas himself is still alive?"

"It's a plausible theory. Identical twins do share many physical characteristics, but their DNA isn't always exactly the same. Even identical twins can have variations."

"So, it's possible that if we ran a DNA test on the body, it could come back as a match for Thomas Wilson, even if it's actually his twin?" Dan asked. "And is it possible that a standard DNA test might not be able to distinguish between them?"

"Technically, yes," Rachel confirmed. "Especially if the twins are monozygotic, which means they develop from a single fertilized egg that splits into two. In that case, their DNA would be very similar and it could be very difficult to tell them apart genetically," She paused to inhale and exhale, "As for your second question detective, it is possible. Especially if the test is searching for a limited number of genetic markers. More advanced tests could detect the subtle differences, but those aren't typically used in a standard forensic analysis. If you two would like, I’d be happy to run any tests you need. This case is quite fascinating to me."

"That’d be great, thank you," Y/n reached into his jacket and gave her a small card with his contact information on it. He asked her to call him when she had the results before leaving the place with Dan.

When they arrived back at the car, Dan turned to his right to face Y/n. "Do you really think this Thomas guy has a twin?"

"I'm not that sure, but him having a twin makes a hell of a lot of sense. It’s either that or we have a copycat on our hands."

The sudden ringing of Y/n's phone reverberated across the car. Y/n took out his phone and noticed that Chloe was calling. He answered the call and put it on speaker so that Dan could hear.

"Hey, Chloe. Any updates from the police station?" Y/n's question came out fast.

"Not much new information," she replied, her voice carrying a note of frustration. "The warden said he was a problematic inmate, always causing disruptions and getting into fights. And one day, he was discovered hanging in his cell during a routine check — information we already knew." There was a slight pause on the other end of the line. "Did you and Dan find anything out about Thomas's body?"

"Well, there's a body in the morgue that's labeled as Thomas Wilson, and the face matches the description we have, but—"

"—you don't think it's him, do you?" Chloe finished the sentence for Y/n, hearing the way his tone of voice sounded.

Y/n shook his head, not that Chloe could see him through the phone. "No, I don't. I think we're dealing with twins. There are some physical discrepancies that don't match. I think that Thomas is still alive and is posing as his twin brother, while his twin brother's body is taking the fall."

"Hm, well, from a criminal's perspective, that'd be a genius plan," Chloe was silent for a moment and Y/n could hear sirens blaring in the background. "I hope you're right because we have another problem."

"What problem?"

"Another murder. Downtown. Her name is Elizabeth Taylor. The same MO as the other victims, with blood writing on the wall and a number carved right into her neck. This time, it was the number four."

Elizabeth Taylor. The name rang a bell, but Y/n couldn't quite place it. He turned to Dan. "Do we know an Elizabeth Taylor?"

Dan's eyebrows furrowed in concentration as he reached into the glove compartment, pulling out a piece of paper. Dan's eyes scanned the page, his finger sliding down the list of names. "We do. Elizabeth Taylor was one of the jurors in the Thomas Wilson case. She was the fourth person to convict him."

"Crap, who's the fifth person on that list?"

Dan's eyes continued to scan the page. "Ethan Miller," he pulled out his phone to do further research on their next victim. "He's the CEO of CYLO, a popular video game company. They're launching a new game tonight at seven before he heads off on a business trip to New York City."

"Thomas will definitely show up there," Y/n concluded. "We need to get there and stop him before he strikes again."

"Send me the address," the blonde said. "Lucifer and I will meet you guys there."

Chloe hung up the phone. Dan started up the car and pulled out of the parking lot, onto the proceeding road. This case just got very interesting very fast.

XXXXX XXXXX

The sun was a molten orange as it sank below the horizon, casting a warm glow over the building where the launch party was in full swing. Dan and Y/n were in their unmarked car, their eyes scanning the arriving guests with a critical eye.

Finally, Ethan Miller, the guest of honor, arrived in a sleek black limousine and he was flanked by security. He stepped out, his tall frame clad in a perfectly tailored black suit, his eyes hidden behind a pair of stylish sunglasses. Tons of fans were taking pictures and video recording him.

As people filtered into the building, Dan and Y/n maintained their vigilant watch. Then, Y/n's phone rang. He glanced at the screen and saw it was an unfamiliar number. He answered, asking who was calling and the female voice introduced herself as the medical examiner, Rachel, whom he had spoken to earlier. She said she had the results that Y/n requested.

"What are the results?"

"Your theory was correct, Detective L/n," Rachel said. "The body in the morgue is not that of Thomas Wilson. The genetic makeup is very similar, indicating that he does have an identical twin brother, and the one here in the morgue is that twin."

"Are you sure?" Y/n needed confirmation.

"Positive," she confirmed. "I compared the samples from the body to the DNA on file for Thomas Wilson, and while the fingerprints were similar, they were not an exact match. This misidentification occurred due to switched dental records."

"Thanks, Rachel. Your help is invaluable."

As Y/n hung up the phone, he turned to Dan, who was looking at him. "We were right. The dead body in the morgue isn't Wilson, which means he's still out there."

Dan nodded. "And that means he's here tonight. Let's go." Dan grabbed his gun and the two detectives left the car and entered the party, which was crowded.

Y/n and Dan made their way through the crowd and spotted Chloe and Lucifer near the food table, their eyes alert and watchful, and having a discussion. Y/n's gaze lingered on his boyfriend, who held a plate with a slice of devil's food cake.

An ironic choice.

The four detectives huddled together, sharing their findings and formulating a plan. They decided to split up, each pair taking one side of the room to quickly find Thomas and anyone who could be working with him. Dan and Y/n took the left side of the room, Lucifer and Chloe took the right side. Y/n thought that was a good idea. And after this case is over, he could focus on fixing his relationship. One step at a time, he reminded himself.

Y/n moved through the crowd, his eyes scanning the room for any signs of their suspect. Ethan Miller took the stage to give a speech and announce the release of his new game, "Metro Rush." As Ethan spoke, Y/n's attention drifted to a man in glasses and a Nike baseball cap. He did not look suspicious at first glance, but there was something about him that set off alarm bells in Y/n's head. Just wrong.

Y/n tapped his earpiece. "Dan, look to your right. There's a guy in glasses, Nike cap, black T-shirt. Keep your eye on him. Something about him doesn't feel right."

"Copy that," Dan replied, his gaze locking onto the man in question.

Y/n continued to observe the man As Ethan Miller concluded his speech and prepared to demonstrate his new game, the man with glasses pulled out a gun.

Then, the man raised his gun, pointing it in Miller's direction and pulled the trigger just as Dan tackled the assailant to the floor. Ethan had been hit in the shoulder, falling backward from the impact as screams rang throughout the crowd and people started running towards the exit.

Chloe and Lucifer came rushing over to the commotion, with Chloe's gun drawn. Chloe's gaze landed on the gunman and she immediately raised her gun at him.

"LAPD, put your hands in the air!"

Surprisingly, the man complied, and Dan quickly cuffed his hands. Meanwhile, up on the balcony, Thomas Wilson watched through his sniper scope as one of his men was apprehended. Thomas turned his sniper rifle onto the blonde female, his finger tightening on the trigger point.

But before he could pull the shot, he felt the cold press of a gun barrel against his temple. Y/n's voice was steady as he spoke. "Nice try, Wilson. But your games over. Put your hands behind your back. You are under arrest for the murders of Jackson Williams, Jane Smythe, Samuel Anderson, and Elizabeth Taylor as well."

Reluctantly, Wilson complied, placing his hands behind his back. Y/n cuffed him, taking him downstairs to join the others.

Lucifer watched as Y/n descended the stairs, Thomas in tow. Despite Lucifer’s feelings regarding Y/n, he could say in his mind that he was impressed with Y/n’s intelligent mindset and being able to get the culprit. Lucifer hoped that now, with the case resolved, they could focus on repairing their fractured relationship.

However, the unexpected happened.

Another gunshot rang out.

Lucifer felt his blood run cold as he saw Y/n stumble and fall, his body crumpling to the ground. A red stain spread across Y/n's shirt, and Lucifer's heart stopped as he realized his lover had been shot.

His beloved had been shot from behind, and the sight of Y/n's blood staining the floor was more than Lucifer could bear.

At that moment, all Lucifer saw was red.

The world around him faded to black. All he could see was red— the color of rage, of anger, of the deepest, darkest corners of Hell. Lucifer's eyes flared red, and for a fleeting moment, he allowed his true devil face to emerge. It was a terrifying sight, and the gunman who had shot Y/n cowered in fear, scrambling backward.

With a single punch, Lucifer knocked the gunman unconscious. The true Devil in him was unleashed at this very moment and nothing would stand in Lucifer's way.

He turned to see Dan handling the other perpetrators outside, as Chloe applied pressure to Y/n's wound. Lucifer rushed over, his heart pounding in his chest. He gently took Y/n into his arms, his voice shaking as he tried to reassure him and Chloe went to secure the unconscious.

Y/n whimpered, "L-Lucifer…"

"Shh, it's alright," Lucifer soothed softly as he attempted to remain calm for his sake. "You are going to be fine, Y/n. The ambulance should be here any second."

"I-I hope so..." Y/n's breath hitched, and their hand reached out weakly to grasp Lucifer's shirt. "I'm so tired, so sleepy..."

"Stay awake," Lucifer's tone was soft and firm at the same time. He was not going to lose Y/n yet, especially not like this. It wasn’t his time yet. His next words were a quiet whisper, blinking away a certain action that attempted to leave his eyes. "Don’t even think about leaving me, Y/n."

Y/n nodded, his eyelids growing heavy as he struggled to stay conscious. A dry cough escaped his lips as he started to fall in and out of consciousness. Lucifer noticed his lover's eyes flutter open and closed, and Lucifer felt a twinge of fear.

After some time, the ambulance arrived, and Y/n was carefully loaded inside the vehicle. Lucifer stayed right with him as the two paramedics tried their best to stop the bleeding and keep Y/n awake.

"You are going to be fine, Y/n. I promise."

For the universe’s sake, Y/n better be.

XXXXX XXXXX

Y/n woke up in the hospital, feeling very groggy and disoriented. The room was dimly lit, the soft glow of the overhead light providing just enough illumination for the e/c-eyed male to see. He blinked a few times, trying to clear the fuzziness from his vision, and slowly sat up in bed, wincing as pain shot through his chest. Y/n quickly became aware of the steady beeping of the heart monitor next to him and the IV lines hooked up to his arm.

His eyes landed on the figure sitting in the chair next to the bed. It was Lucifer, his eyes closed as he leaned back, his arms crossed over his chest. He looked like he was sleeping, but Y/n knew that he was awake and watching over him.

"Lucifer?" Y/n's voice was hoarse, and he cleared his throat, trying to moisten it.

Upon hearing the sound of Y/n's voice, Lucifer's eyes snapped open, and he sat up straighter, a look of concern crossing his face. "Y/n, you're awake. How're you feeling?" He stood up and moved closer to the bed, his dark eyes looking at Y/n's face for any signs of pain or discomfort.

Y/n’s throat was so dry and he licked his lips. "Like I got shot," he shot him a weak grin before the memory of the shooting came back to him fast. "What happened to Thomas? And what happened to me?"

"It's okay," Lucifer reassured, reaching out to take Y/n's hand in his, letting his thumb rub gently over the back of Y/n's hand. "We got him. Wilson is in custody, along with his accomplices. You were shot by one of them at the launch party. Thankfully, the bullet missed any vital organs, but you still lost a lot of blood. You've been unconscious for two days."

Two days? Y/n's been out for that long His eyes widened at hearing this. Guess he was out longer than he thought. Y/n nodded, his eyes closing as exhaustion washed over him. He felt Lucifer's hand squeeze his, and he re-opened his eyes since he wanted — no needed — to say something to his boyfriend. "Lucifer, I—"

"Shh," The dark-haired devil interrupted, placing a finger on Y/n's lips. "Now isn't the time for apologies or explanations."

"Yes, it is," Y/n insisted firmly. "I have to apologize to you for what happened. I'm really sorry for flirting with other people and making you feel like I was cheating on you. I should have taken your feelings into consideration — and I didn’t, and for that, I’m sorry. It will not happen again."

Lucifer's heart twisted at the sincerity in Y/n's eyes. "I appreciate that, Y/n. And I'm sorry, too. I should not have reacted that way to your playful banter with your friends. I know that it's just your nature, and I shouldn't have taken it personally."

"No, Lucifer," Y/n shook his head. "You have nothing to apologize for." Y/n may have felt tired and weak in this moment but he was going to make Lucifer see that he wasn’t at fault for the altercation they had. "I am completely in the wrong. I know that now, and I want you to know that I'll never act like that again, and to be more considerate of your feelings."

Lucifer nodded, feeling a weight lift from his shoulders. He was grateful that Y/n understood his perspective, but he was curious about what had prompted this change of heart. "You're forgiven, Y/n. But what made you realize all of this?"

"I had a conversation with Dan at the morgue. He helped me see things from another perspective — your perspective."

A ghost of a smile appeared on Lucifer's face. "Daniel, huh? I didn't think he had it in him to give such wise advice. Though even a broken clock is right twice a day. I’ll have to do something nice for him."

"Maybe you can start by not stealing his pudding at work." Y/n chuckled softly.

"Oh, I’m never going to stop doing that."

The two men shared a laugh as Lucifer’s thumb continued its gentle caress on Y/n's hand. So much has happened these past few days, but he was happy that he and Y/n were able to work things out for the sake of their relationship. And most importantly, he was happy that Y/n was still alive and on the road to recovery.

Lucifer leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on Y/n's forehead. "I love you, Y/n. More than ever. And I'm not letting you go anytime soon." He whispered gently.

The h/c haired male smiled brightly.

"Good, because I love you too."

XXXXX XXXXX

#lucifer morningstar #lucifer morningstar x reader #lucifer morningstar x male reader #lucifer morningstar imagine #lucifer morningstar fanfiction #lucifer x reader #lucifer x male reader #lucifer imagine #lucifer fanfiction #lucifer #x male reader #male reader #male reader insert #male reader imagine

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inkmonster21 · 3 days

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Sing for Me

5. Devoted to You

Cooper Howard x Fem!Reader / The Ghoul x Fem!Reader

She's a singer the nation adores. He's the actor everyone respects. What happens when these two get entangled in a heated affair? Passion, regret, rage, and even murder will commence. From before the bombs drop to the vast wasteland, these two souls live for one another.

Previous Chapter

Series Masterlist

Tagged: @fallout-girl219 @harmfulb1tch @themadhattersqueen

We pull up to the Howard residence. Each step of the entrance was familiar under my feet. The once relaxing walls now filled shoulder to shoulder with pricks. It’s lively, with music playing and guests exchanging conversation. I didn’t seem to recognize many people majority of them being Vault Tech employees. Louis grabs a couple of drinks before dragging Heather and her boyfriend away to meet people.

“This ain’t much of a party. Looks like a big business deal.” Johnny notes. I shake my head in disappointment. “This party sucks. Just wait until you come to the after-parties of the tour. They’re so fun.” Johnny smirks as he swipes two glasses of whisky. I hate whisky. Cooper would’ve never gotten me a glass of whiskey. He knows my favorite wine and would have it on tap waiting for me.

We made acquaintance with a few people on the camera crew. One happened to be an assistant on the set of a music video I made a while back. “I LOVED that song!” She sings it drunkenly causing me to laugh. I took pictures with several of the Vault Tech employees mimicking my famous Nuka Cola pose. Little by little the night eased with the whiskey. I was relaxed. Given it had something to do with the amount of drugs and alcohol in my system but I’ll take happiness as it comes.

Now outside in the large gazebo in the garden we loudly socialize. Johnny sits smoking away, Heather and her boyfriend are all cuddling up talking to some other couple, Louis is in the middle sweet-talking some businessman for all he’s worth, and here I am swaying drunkenly to a song in my head in the middle of the freshly cut grass.

I spot a familiar figure exiting the house. The skinny guy walking down our way. “My piano man! Henry!” I laugh with open arms beckoning him into a hug. His face is bright red as he pulls away. “(Y/n), it… it’s so good to see you. I didn’t think you would remember me.”

“Friends, this is Henry MacLean. He can play the piano like no other. On the spot too!” My group welcomes him in nicely, all of us too buzzed to give a damn. Johnny stands with a smile, “there’s a piano inside.” I look at him and scoff, “Ah, don’t make me sing.”

Henry shrugs, certainly not going to turn down the opportunity to play for me. “I can play by ear,”

“You should've heard her earlier in the shower. She was singing this beautiful song. I had never heard it before.” Heather says as she leans up. “That’s because it’s unreleased. I’m still working on it. It’s a new project.” Heather frowned, “it was so beautiful but sounded so sad.” I shrug, “All my songs can't be happy.” Especially when all I can compose is depressing ballads. The only emotion I can feel when I try to write a song is want, and an ache burns in my chest. I want Cooper. I dream of a life where we were together. I love him, and I forever will. I am bound to him as roots are to a tree. Never seen, hidden beneath the beautiful growth of nature.

Johnny tosses his arm over my shoulders. “Come on everyone, Miss America here is going to sing us a song.”

I walk down the steps leading to the pool, “Excuse me. Your wine.” I place my cigarette in the glass before passing the waitress and sitting in front of my friend, “Well, shit, Seabass. You might be the only one of my invites who actually showed up.” He nods with a small smile. “Not all true, (y/n) seems to be having a swell time.” I look in the direction of his gesture. She’s swaying in the grass barefoot, without a care. A pure beauty in the mixture of facade company. I would give anything to go over to her, sweep her off her feet, and drag her to the bedroom. Peppering her skin with kisses as I make up for the time I have lost with her.

I suck in a breath, returning to the conversation at hand. “Not our usual scene, I’ll give you that.” He hums with a flat smile, “I think our Hollywood actor friends don’t want to be seen celebrating with the pitchman for the end of the world.” I shake my head, “Oh, you don’t know the half of it. You hear I lost a movie over these ads?” He looks at me in all seriousness, “No.” “Yeah, showed up to set, the actors wouldn’t come out of their trailers. Bonnie Lewis said it was on moral grounds.”

He scoffs, “Bonnie Lewis? She’s done more ads than a fucking billboard.”

At that point, I couldn’t help but hear the annoying voice of (y/n)‘s friend. “Come on everyone, Miss America here is going to sing us a song.” They trail past us, his arm thrown over her shoulder so casually. He smiles at me as they pass. She avoided all eye contact. I may not be able to touch her, but I can still allow myself the pleasure of watching her perform, especially since I am the host. It would be rude of me to not attend.

We stand in the large living room, Johnny clinking his glass catching everyone's attention. "If I could have everyone's attention!" All eyes on us, Johnny holds me out at arm's distance. "Who wants to hear my girl sing?" The applause begins, as it always does. Henry sits at the piano I lean over humming the intro to him. I turn back to the crowd, and I see him. Clad in a black shirt his hair brushed and jelled to perfection. I intake a brethe. The corner of his lip twitches, threatening a smile.

"Well, this is a very special night. I'm so thankful to Vault Tech for looking toward the future and keeping us American citizens safe. As a token of gratitude, I would like to perform a song that I've been working on. I hope you enjoy." I end the speech looking into Cooper's eyes, this song was for him after all. The piano starts slow, I take a deep breath in begin to sing.

"Guess mine is not the first heartbroken

My eyes are not the first to cry

I'm not the first to know

There's just no getting over you"

Cooper watches intensely as I sing. I look towards him touching my chest.

"I know I'm just a fool who's willing

To sit around and wait for you

But baby, can't you see there's nothing else for me to do?

I'm hopelessly devoted to you"

I was devoted to him. Even if I were to date someone, hell even marry them. I wouldn't ever be able to let go of my feelings for him. I burned for him, I craved him, I couldn't live without him.

"But now there's nowhere to hide

Since you pushed my love aside

I'm out of my head

Hopelessly devoted to you"

He took a step forward, beckoning to my call, to my song, to my soul. I was indeed out of my head for him. I was trying to replace the missing touches and whispers with drugs and alcohol. He was my cure. Sadly, he was unreachable. So all I could do was fall deeper down into the hole, only dreaming of him.

"My head is sayin', "Fool, forget him"

My heart is sayin', "Don't let go

Hold on to the end", that's what I intend to do

I'm hopelessly devoted to you"

I would wait for him, in this world, or the next. Maybe we got the timing wrong, but one thing was true. Our souls were meant to love one another. Cooper stares at me as a starved man looks at his first meal. Moving closer to the stage he acts as a lion, priding through his field, coming to take what belongs to him.

"But now there's no way to hide

Since you pushed my love aside

I'm outta my head

Hopelessly devoted to you"

I lean down, reaching out, directing my attention to Cooper. Silently, begging him to grasp my hand, hold me tight, and tell me everything was okay. One more step would be all it takes for us to be in the vicinity. "Hopelessly devoted to you," Cooper nods, understanding my message. I would wait for him. Unhealthy, and toxic, but I would do it just for him.

Applause rings out loudly breaking my trance. I back away from Cooper, now feeling the tears in my eyes. I smile at everyone, waving as I exit the living room, dashing for the door. The overwhelming emotions threatened to tip over. I was spiraling, without him. My soul was starving without its flame.

I made it down the driveway until a hand caught my wrist. "Stop, honey. For me, please." I turn to see Cooper. His finger curled around my wrist softly. Tears flowing down my cheeks I attempted to tear my arm from his grasp. I was drowning in a sea of emotions. I didn’t know if I wanted to yell at him or throw myself into his arms. He keeps his grip firm, placing his other hand on my bicep. “(Y/n)”, he breathes out as if I’m a dream.

I feel myself filling with rage, tears still streaming down my face. “What? What the fuck could you possibly have to say to me?” He stays silent, eyes begging, but I continue to chastise him. “You used me. You disrespected me. You coaxed my feelings, hopes, and dreams out. You learned how I ticked, and you used me to your advantage. So, please tell me, Cooper,” his mouth slightly gaping, he draws in closer. “What the fuck do you have to say now?”

Cooper pushes me against the wall of the entrance gate, shielded by the trees. His hands attach to my waist with force. Our foreheads together, our lips begging to touch. He licks his lips, never looking away from my eyes. “I… I'm sorry. Honey, I’m so sorry.” He grapples onto my body, holding me close. Pressed firmly against him I shutter. I shake my head, my thoughts fighting against the moment. “Cooper, we, we can’t. Your wife-“

“I love you.”

Cooper stares at me with overflowing eyes. So much pent-up emotion and passion was threatening to release. He breathes me in, trailing his nose up my neck, “I love you, (y/n).” Our lips hover over each other. I hold every restraint I can. I sigh in disbelief, I want it to be true, I’ve dreamed of this. Hearing those words spoken from his mouth. “I love you.” He says it again, almost in realization. He stares into my soul, allowing his to reach in and cradle my lonely heart. He massages my waist, a choked breath leaving his body, “say something, darlin’.”

I bring my hands to his chest, clawing at his shirt. “Coop, you’re married.” He shakes his head, “I’ll leave.” I scoff, “you said that before.” He holds my cheek with one hand, his other wrapped securely around my waist. “I will, I promise. I… I can’t lose you. Fuck if I lose everything else, I won’t lose you.”

He leans in with force, sealing our lips together. this moment it feels like fate. His hands move from my waist to the sides of my face, cradling my cheeks with surprising gentleness. The kiss is passionate, tender, everything I wanted. Our hands roaming across each other, he pushes me deeper into the metal gate. I moan out, shaking for him.

“(Y/n)?” I jump back at Louis’ voice. He’s walking down the driveway looking left and right. I move to leave, but Cooper pulls me back. Hands still on my cheek he nuzzled our noses together. “(Y/n), please, give me time.”

I smile, pulling him down once more, “I would wait 200 hundred years to love you, Cooper Howard.” His charming smile lights up the night. I slip away from him and catch up with Louis as he slips into the car. “Where did you run off to?” I watch the tree line near the gate, Cooper stands, hand sun his pants pockets as he watches me. “Just to get some air.”

#cooper howard #cooper howard x reader #fallout #fallout imagine #the ghoul #the ghoul x reader #cooper howard fallout #fallout ghoul #walton goggins

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sarahjtv · 12 hours

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My Hero Academia Chapter 425 Spoiler Talk

I'm enjoying writing about this stuff again, though I've got a headache going on, so I'll do the best I can for now. I might add in stuff later:

I'm very happy to see our Big 3 graduate finally! I was kinda worried Mirio wouldn't even graduate for a second, but I'm happy to see that he did and he gave a valedictorian-esque speech to everyone talking about rebuilding society so everyone can have a bright future like Sir Nighteye wanted. Ending his speech with a joke is such a Mirio Togata thing 😂. I'm going to miss that guy so much 🥹

Why are Deku and some other students just lying on the ground with their feet up like that btw? Did they run out of chairs or something? It's a weird, quirky little thing that's just there, I guess.

The narration mentions that it's June in the MHA universe now (Happy Pride, btw 🏳️‍🌈). So, if the War took place around April or May, then it's been at least 1 month since we last saw the kids at the hospital.

Our class 1-A is now officially Class 2-A! They're finally second years as they should have been. Everyone including Aizawa is alive, though saying they're well is debatable. Everyone is clearly still injured in some way, shape, or form. Most have several bandages and even Jiro looks like she has a prosthetic for her missing left earphone jack.

Quick note: I notice that Bakugo is actually wearing a tie with his uniform now. It's still not buttoned up, but you can tell that he's definitely softened a bit since the war. EDIT: Looking at it again, it might not be buttoned up because he has a cast holding his right arm, but it’s hard to tell from the scans.

Aoyama not wanting to return to UA is sad, but it makes sense. I'd argue that he earned his place there regardless of AFO's influence, but I can understand that he doesn't feel that way and wants to redeem himself and become a hero in his own way without being forced to betray his friends and teachers.

Replacing Aoyama will be Hitoshi Shinso! I think most of us predicted that Shinso would be joining Class 2-A, but I'm very happy to see that confirmed. It's going to be a bit of a weird start for him, but I think he'll get used to his new classmates quickly.

Another quick note: The second-year cloud girl, Fuwa Mitawa, is seen quite a bit in this chapter and her return is something Horikoshi promised many volumes ago, so I'm glad to see him keep that promise.

Those two first panels of Shouto make me so sad, y'all 😭... His hair is so messy and you can see bags under his eyes. It's hard to tell because of the leaks, but I don't know if there's even light left in his eyes. He looks so exhausted. What happened to Dabi, Endeavor, and the rest of his family? I have no doubt that he's been agonizing over them for god knows how long. I hate seeing him like this, honestly. He's my favorite character and deserves all the good in the world, especially after the harsh life he's been put through. I want to give Shouto all the hugs in the world 🩵.

I don't think Deku smiled at all this whole chapter btw. He tries to talk to Ochako at one point, but she interrupts him with a comment about his new haircut. He just looks sad this whole chapter. I bet he's still grieving and processing what happened. I need Izuku to open up to someone because he can't just bottle this up.

Then we have this mysterious man walking around a desolate town. We have absolutely no idea who this is, but apparently it isn't someone we know of. I want to say it's a grown-up Tenko Shimura somehow, but even that might be too farfetched.

Finally, there's Shouto and the Todorokis. Shouto reassures Deku that he's ok, but I bet my gatcha game currency that he's putting on a brave face because that final beautiful panel of him does not scream "I'm ok!" to me. If anything, I'm amazed Shouto doesn't look like he got any other permanent scars on his face at least.

It looks like Shouto is going to see his family at the hospital. Specifically Endeavor and what might be Dabi who's being kept alive in a big machine. It's hard to tell because the scans are so unclear, but I'm 90% sure that's Dabi in there. It's a miracle that man is alive given he was just a skeleton last we saw him. I'm 99% sure we're going to get a Hellish Todoroki Family Part 3 or something next chapter.

But, we won't see that until 3 weeks from now because we're officially on a 2-week break. There isn't a given reason why like Jujustu Kaisen got (Gege Akutami is sick, so he's taking 2-week break too), so I really hope Horikoshi is ok. It's either he's sick too or he needs time to think of the final chapters of MHA. Or both, that too. Regardless, any breaks given to Kohei Horikoshi to give him time to rest is ok with me. Just sucks for us as fans. Leaving us on THAT kind of a cliffhanger is just mean 😭

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psychopomparia · 5 months

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Confession: During Baizhu's first banner in May 2023, I whaled for Kaveh.

During my pulls, I received

Baizhu (guaranteed)

Keqing

Baizhu again (C1

and after approx 100 pulls....Kaveh.

total of $200 spent for obtaining a Kaveh.

My biggest sin of 2023. I needed to confess it here on tumblr. Thank you.

#genshin impact #kaveh #genshin kaveh #genshin #whaling #my friends are witness to this #they saw me struggle so hard #in the group it has become our inside joke #i can't leave 2023 without confessing this on tumblr #i honestly dont know how many pulls it took to get a kaveh #i do have c3 because i got another one from the baizhu banner a few days later. and some on standard #i got c6 candace before kaveh #i love him but he needed to have mercy on me #it's cause i used alhaitham to pull with...wasn't it #biggest sin in genshin is to whale for a four star and i committed sin

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airenyah · 8 months

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Sex scenes don't bother me as much as kiss scenes. When the characters are making out in a way that indicates it will lead to sex, I'd scream at the screen "Just take off your pants and start grinding under the covers already!" because I cannot watch them mash their mouths together for another second.

That being said, I'm not a huge fan of sex scenes because firstly—I can't take the movements seriously, and if there's sound effects, there's also a high chance of me laughing. Secondly, the squishiness of the human body is another thing I can't take seriously. When I first watched the Only Friends trailer, and I saw that scene where Sand thumbs Ray's tattoo, I thought it was a butt tattoo because of the way the skin bounced in slow-motion, but no, it's actually a hip tattoo; the human skin is just that springy on every part of the body. While everyone was going crazy because of the tattoo-touch, I'm laughing because the bounce was so pronounced.

Basically, kiss scenes ick me out while sex scenes are comedy.

omg that sounds like such a fun way to experience sex scenes tho!! i wish my reaction was more like that rather than convulsion. i'd much rather experience a comedy show tbh dfjkkdgj

also interesting point you bring up about the human body being so squishy. i never really thought about it but yeah. human bodies are just so weird?????? actually, only the other week i was talking with another friend (who's likely also ace-spec) about just how humans (and tbh even animals) will just have things dangling from them?? whether it be genitalia or boobs or whatever. like, those body parts are just... hanging there?? and technically even your arms but at least you can control those. meanwhile my boobs will just bounce depening on what movements i make and i can't control them and they're just hanging from my chest while i go about my life. like, why?? i want dog boobs where you mostly have just the nipples and they only really get big when i have an actual child to feed (i know human breasts also swell when they fill with milk during a pregnancy, but why do i have to have two balls of meat hanging from my chest even when i'm not pregnant?? who thought of this design??). coming back to your point of the human body being so squishy and actually yeah, i'm realizing now that i can't take it seriously when people talk about how hot boobs are precicely because boobs are so squishy and also so wobbly and just. how is this not funny to people? dkdfjdjfk

and lmao i remember everyone going crazy over the tattoo!!!!! i realized right away that it's on the hip but maybe that was bc i remembered the placement of it from the eclipse. which is also why that scene didn't make me laugh, i was actually too busy trying to read what it said bc in the eclipse we never got to see that tattoo up close enough in order to be able to read it. so while everyone was freaking out i was just sitting in my corner like "omg so the tattoo says 'beautiful'???" i'd been wondering about it for a year ever since the eclipse, so i was just excited to finally know what it says bc i'm a nosy ass bitch lmao

anyway, i love hearing about your experiences. it's so fascinating how varied the ace experience can be and how specific things affect everyone differently. and i think it's also cool to hear what things other ace people pick up/focus on while the allosexuals are busy drooling over whatever is happening on screen dkjkdkjg

the kissing... idk, i can't tell you why it doesn't actually bother me that much or why i might even enjoy it. although i do have to say, the act of kissing does look extremely weird. sometimes (usually during longer kiss/make-out scenes) i'll be sitting there and suddenly it'll hit me that "actually kissing looks SO strange, whose idea was it for kissing to be a thing??"

sometimes in my head the kissing just conjurs up the image of a fish opening and closing it's mouth, like so:

except, you know, kissing involves two people so in reality it's more like:

#i hope you don't mind that i'm publishing this on my blog again!#i'm just thinking it might be interesting for other people as well to read about our varied experiences #do let me know if you want me to go private (or just hop straight into my dms <3)#asks #actually a random memory popped into my head while i was writing this #remember how in my other reply i said kiss scenes sometimes bore me?#actually in the first and only relationship i've been in i actually would sometimes pretend to be asleep #(even though i struggle with sleeping and can fall asleep during the day ONLY when i'm sick or under a serious lack of sleep)#i pretended to be asleep to avoid my then-bf turning the cuddling session into a make-out session #bc making-out just bored me so much as an activity lmao #(it didn't necesserily bother me or gross me out but yeah i just thought it was insanely boring)#(i still went along with it the way you'd sit through your friend's fave movie even tho you personally find it super dull)#(bc i didn't have the heart to tell him i wasn't all that into it dkfjkdg)#(actually he once made a comment how ''the two of us couldn't go a day without kissing each other!!'' and out loud i agreed #but in my head i was like ''oh i EASILY could 🤭🤭🤭'')#(again i didn't say the truth bc he was a really sweet guy and i just didn't want him to feel upset at my lack of enthusiasm about him)#to this day i have no idea if the guy was the problem bc i didn't have strong enough feelings for it or if it was bc of my asexuality #i didn't know about asexuality back then but if i'd known i might have figured it out right then and there that i was ace lmao #(it took another 2 years until i got there)

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sluttyten · 9 months

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I still have 5 hours left in my shift 😭😭😭

#I just….#really wanna go home today #not having a good day. I started my period this morning and then I got to work and found out only me and one other opener were there but our #opening manager wasn’t here yet so she was late and we spent the next 20 minutes rushing to get everything set up before we opened #and then we immediately started getting customers and it’s just been busy and I’m tired and just don’t feel good bc of my period #and then so far I’ve had 2 of my least favorite customers come through the drive thru where I’m working #one is this dude who’s just fucking annoying another is the guy that asked for my number a few months ago who I haven’t seen since I turned #him down so I took his order and then made someone else deal with him at the window #and then it got busy with everyone ordering drinks like hot coffees which meant I had to walk from our drive thru out to the lobby bc my #coffees were out bc everyone wants coffee today but when I would do that I would still have to be taking orders #and then someone cleared a few specialty coffees off the barista screen without making them while the person was sitting in the drive thru #so I had to make those while doing other stuff too and people were asking me questions #and I was just getting very overstimulated and annoyed plus I’m hungry #and I just want to leave and go home and sleep but it’s my best friend’s birthday so she’s probably gonna want to do something later but I #just don’t feel up to it and I know she’s probably ready to hang out because she’s been off for 10 days with Covid so she’s well rested now #for her birthday but 😭😭😭 I just want to crash into my bed so hard and not wake up until noon tomorrow #also the coworker I work with every day and don’t like is here today unfortunately #and also all of the speakers we use to play music in the back are dead right now and I just want to play music #first world problems but I have so little patience today

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munamania · 2 years

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i dont want to go to my stupid screenwriting class bc even though this prof Finally Actually gave me Some feedback. i dont like him. i dont think he likes any of us either he just likes talking about himself. anyway though she should be there today at least <3 and my other bestie and maybe i can get away with working on another assignment during class

#if he tries to make us share our scripts again. like i know that's the point but it doesnt feel like a good 'writers room' and im #scarred from when i volunteered and he was so shitty to me. i KNOW it was a bad intro to my script i didnt like it. was getting a feel for #it. but also at that point i was so crushed from his bullshit. i shouldnt have been but yk.#anyway did i tell u she apologized to me for missing class and i was like lol u dont have to apologize to me #and she was like ohh i just thought it might have been kinda sad not having a buddy. very roundabout Aw did u miss me #also i have another friend in that class. obv not the same dynamic but. yeah #film girl saga #for context for my first tag. like i was so in a haze i could barely get to writing. and i was so fed up with getting vague non feedback #from him so i was like im gonna throw myself into this and try to get actual feedback from the class #and some ppl did comment but it was the end of class so mostly crickets so i was mostly just trying to force him to actually #fucking say something and he goes. yah youve got something coming there. youve got words on a page #the way i wanted to go full katniss and claw his face in that moment.#i dont even think it was like that bad bc when i took it to my other prof he had stuff to say. but even without external validation EYE #believed in my story. i still like it and my characters and stuff. whatever

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sonicenvy · 15 days

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worst thing about legal weed in my state is that it smells like weed every-fucking-where here now. Like, tbh I don't really care what other people do, and if weed is your thing, go you! Have fun, get high! I just would rather not have to smell super skunky-ass fucking smelling weed when I'm on the train, at the park, or on the bus. Presumably there is somewhere the fuck else that you can go to smoke that is not on public transportation or in parks where there are CHILDREN, why do you not do that instead?????

Cigarette smokers have also similarly lost their damn minds since 2020. The cigs actually make me angrier bcs second hand cig smoke is practically as bad as smoking yourself when you're breathing in that shit. have these fools no consideration for:

literal fucking children who should not be exposed to that shit

everyone who is trying to quit that might be triggered by it

everyone who doesn't want to breath in smoke

literally anyone who isn't themselves

?????

god forbid y'all have to wait an extra twenty fucking minutes to light up somewhere else.

ok. rant over.

#margaret babbles #don't get me wrong i think legal weed is good and they should do that #but jesus christ did everyone here decide to lose all sense of fucking consideration of others vis a vie their smoking after legalization #some of us actually don't like the smell of weed and don't want to have to dry clean our coats to get that rank ass smell off #also sure would be nice to be able to go to a single fucking park without being assaulted by the the smell of weed or cigarette smoke #this post sponsored by those annoying teenagers who were smoking a nastyass smelling joint outside the front door of my library #which they made worse by fucking blowing smoke at everyone leaving the library doors. not be an adult on main but fuck those kids #also sponsored by that guy who was smoking cigarettes all the way into downtown on the train the last time I took the green line #fuck that guy actually he sucks #still thinking about how one of my best friends from college is asthmatic #becuase she spent half her childhood living with her chainsmoking grandma #and how another friend I know is straight up allergic to tobacco smoke #or that conversation I had with my mom's friend who used to be a pack a day smoker #until she quit like 10 years ago #wherein she was all like yeah i know myself enough to know that I cannot even smoke ONE cig or be around cig smoking for too long #without risking relapse

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romeoandromeo · 5 months

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#got that feeling again that all i do is piss my boyfriend off lol...#he wanted to use my xbox account to game share so he could use my ultimate to play online with his friend because his expired #he told me he was only playing one game and i could go back to my game #so i started watching tv #i guess he made a bet with his friend that if he lost he was doing to delete mlb off my console for a week #and came over and asked to delete it RIGHT NOW RIGHT NOW!!#and i was agitated because i had literally 3 minutes left in my episode and i kept asking if it could wait #no i have to do it now i have to do it now he says whatever #so i back out and do it for him but when i go back to my episode it just started it over #so i got aggravated and just went to play my game instead #but lo and behold without telling me he started another game using my account so I COULDN'T PLAY #so i was like you didn't tell me you were going to play another game????#and he gets all pissed off at me and says that we can never not have problems and it's been problems all day #which is not fucking true we've been fine all day except this morning when i pissed him off #because he woke me up i don't remember why #and i was trying to get back to sleep and then he turned on the Xbox which he KNOWS i literally can't sleep with the tv on #so I took my mask off and he gets all pissed telling me he was just going to play a game or watch tv or something so he can get back tosleep #i only slept for 3 hours last night .....#which he knows. because i was in some of the worst pain I've EVER been in #i was up practically all night i was doubled over in bed crying in pain #but i must have done something wrong because he just got all pissed and it turned into a 3 hour argument #which i kept trying to shut down and i tried to console him and make him feel better to no avail #I'm just fucking depressed #I'm tired. I'm so tired I'm so tired #i just want to cry right now #and he's always saying I'm hurting his feelings... for having feelings of my own? i have to walk on eggshells i fucking feel like #because God forbid i think he's doing anything that's hurtful to me it turns into an argument that i DON'T want to have #i just want to fucking cry right now

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aceparagon · 5 months

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tag dump part 3 ( dynamic and ship tags! )

･::･ﾟ☆ HANEKOMA: you took me under the gentle touch of your wings; you have always been my father. ☆ KAKYOIN NORIAKI 💎 meeting you was a fated encounter; you are my shining emerald; our radiance will envelop the galaxy itself. ♥☆💎 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･:*:･ﾟ☆ NORIAKI — the sunshine that illuminates your unbreakable emerald; you brighten my world & life. ☆ THE-COMPOSER ☆ you look after me like a guardian angel does; you are my first friend. with you I feel like I can do anything. ☆ KIRYU JOSHUA ☆ you waltzed into my life like an unknowing crescendo; yet our harmonies are melodic together. I will keep Shibuya safe. ☆ KISARAGI GENTARO ☆ my dearest friend — you and I are the stars that will light up the galaxy. with you at my side I have nothing to fear. ☆ G'RAHA TIA 💠 you inspire me to keep going despite the odds I face; with you at my side there is nothing to fear. ♥☆💠 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･::･ﾟ☆ G'RAHA — love that transcends time & space. when we’re together I feel like I’m home. ♥☆📷 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･::･ﾟ☆ TSUKASA — fate dictated that we are never to meet; and yet we are two halves of a whole. ☆ KADOYA TSUKASA 📷 destroyer of worlds & my other half — together we'll defy our destiny and forge our own path. ☆ JUGGLUS JUGGLER 🌙 with words laced with sweet venom to coil around a heart — yet you didn't need to cast illusions to win my heart. ♥☆🐍 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･::･ﾟ☆ JUGGLER — a heart of darkness cannot exist without a heart of light; let me be the guiding star on your path. ☆ DANTE SPARDA 🌹 the devil to my angel; on wings of rebellion does hope burn anew. ever stronger; ever higher. ♥☆🌹 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･::･ﾟ☆ DANTE — ''heaven or hell; let's rock!'' for you—I’d brave the flames of hell itself on wings of hope. ☆ TOKIWA SOUGO 🕛 oh valiant boy king — how brightly does your smile shine. may you never forget that brave heart as fate tests your will. ☆ MYTHCAELS ☆ heroes we are; standing side by side to protect what's important to us. as your mentor I vow to subvert your destiny. ☆ ONODERA YUSUKE 🪲 you who also protects everyone's smiles — because of your kind heart I've found another ally to always rely on. ☆ KAITO DAIKI 👑 although our ideals didn't always align — I know that I can depend on you. thank you for also keeping tsukasa safe. ☆ HIKARI NATSUMI 🍊 it's because of you that tsukasa is who he is today — you kept believing in him no matter what.

#･::･ﾟ☆ HANEKOMA: you took me under the gentle touch of your wings; you have always been my father.#☆ KAKYOIN NORIAKI 💎 meeting you was a fated encounter; you are my shining emerald; our radiance will envelop the galaxy itself.#♥☆💎 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･:*:･ﾟ☆ NORIAKI — the sunshine that illuminates your unbreakable emerald; you brighten my world & life.#☆ THE-COMPOSER ☆ you look after me like a guardian angel does; you are my first friend. with you I feel like I can do anything.#☆ KIRYU JOSHUA ☆ you waltzed into my life like an unknowing crescendo; yet our harmonies are melodic together. I will keep Shibuya safe.#☆ KISARAGI GENTARO ☆ my dearest friend — you and I are the stars that will light up the galaxy. with you at my side I have nothing to fear.#☆ G'RAHA TIA 💠 you inspire me to keep going despite the odds I face; with you at my side there is nothing to fear.#♥☆💠 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･::･ﾟ☆ G'RAHA — love that transcends time & space. when we’re together I feel like I’m home.#♥☆📷 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･::･ﾟ☆ TSUKASA — fate dictated that we are never to meet; and yet we are two halves of a whole.#☆ KADOYA TSUKASA 📷 destroyer of worlds & my other half — together we'll defy our destiny and forge our own path.#☆ JUGGLUS JUGGLER 🌙 with words laced with sweet venom to coil around a heart — yet you didn't need to cast illusions to win my heart.#♥☆🐍 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･::･ﾟ☆ JUGGLER — a heart of darkness cannot exist without a heart of light; let me be the guiding star on your path.#☆ TOKIWA SOUGO 🕛 oh valiant boy king — how brightly does your smile shine. may you never forget that brave heart as fate tests your will.#☆ MYTHCAELS ☆ heroes we are; standing side by side to protect what's important to us. as your mentor I vow to subvert your destiny.#☆ ONODERA YUSUKE 🪲 you who also protects everyone's smiles — because of your kind heart I've found another ally to always rely on.#☆ KAITO DAIKI 👑 although our ideals didn't always align — I know that I can depend on you. thank you for also keeping tsukasa safe.#☆ HIKARI NATSUMI 🍊 it's because of you that tsukasa is who he is today — you kept believing in him no matter what.#☆ DANTE SPARDA 🌹 the devil to my angel; on wings of rebellion does hope burn anew. ever stronger; ever higher.#♥☆🌹 HIKARU ｡･::･ﾟ★｡･::･ﾟ☆ DANTE — ''heaven or hell; let's rock!'' for you—I’d brave the flames of hell itself on wings of hope.

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caelum-in-the-avatarverse · 19 days

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Fandom can do a little gatekeeping. As a treat.

So I finally decided to archive-lock my fics on AO3 last night. I’ve been considering it since the AI scrape last year, but the tipping point was this whole lore.fm debacle, coupled with some thoughts I’ve been thinking regarding Fandom These Days in general and Fandom As A Community in particular. So I wanna explain why I waited so long, why I locked my stuff up now, and why I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m a-okay with making it harder for people to see my stories.

Lurkers really are great, tho

I’m a chronic lurker, and have been since I started hanging out on the internet as a teen in the 00s. These days it’s just cuz I don’t feel a need to socialize very often, but back then it was because I was shy and knew I was socially awkward. Even if I made an account, I’d spend months lurking on message boards or forums or Livejournals, watching other people interact and getting a feel for that particular community’s culture and etiquette before I finally started interacting myself. And y’know, that approach saved me a lot of embarrassment. Over the course of my lurking on any site, there was always some other person who’d clearly joined up five minutes after learning the place existed, barged in without a care for their behavior, and committed so many social faux pas that all the other users were immediately annoyed with them at best. I learned a lot observing those incidents. Lurk More is Rule 33 of the internet for very good reason.

Lurking isn’t bad or weird or creepy. It’s perfectly normal. I love lurking. It’s hard for me to not lurk - socializing takes a lot of energy out of me, even via text. (Heck it took 12 hours for me to write this post, I wish I was kidding--) Occasionally I’ll manage longer bouts of interaction - a few weeks posting here, almost a year chatting in a discord there - but I’m always gonna end up going radio silent for months at some point. I used to feel bad about it, but I’ve long since made peace with the fact that it’s just the way my brain works. I’m a chronic lurker, and in the long term nothing is going to change that.

The thing with being a chronic lurker is that you have to accept that you are not actually seen as part of the community you are lurking in. That’s not to say that lurkers are unimportant - lurkers actually are important, and they make up a large proportion of any online community - but it’s simple cause and effect. You may think of it as “your community”, but if you’ve never said a word, how is the community supposed to know you exist? If I lurked on someone’s LJ, and then that person suddenly friendslocked their blog, I knew that I had two choices: Either accept that I would never be able to read their posts again, or reach out to them and ask if I could be added to their friends list with the full understanding that I was a rando they might not decide to trust. I usually went with the first option, because my invisibility as a lurker was more important to me than talking to strangers on the internet.

Lurking is like sitting on a park bench, quietly people-watching and eavesdropping on the conversations other people are having around you. You’re in the park, but you’re not actively participating in anything happening there. You can see and hear things that you become very interested in! But if you don’t introduce yourself and become part of the conversation, you won’t be able to keep listening to it when those people walk away. When fandom migrated away from Livejournal, people moved to new platforms alongside their friends, but lurkers were often left behind. No one knew they existed, so they weren’t told where everyone else was going. To be seen as part of a fandom community, you need to submit to the mortifying ordeal of being known, etc. etc.

There’s nothing wrong with lurking. There can actually be benefits to lurking, both for the lurkers and the communities they lurk in. It’s just another way to be in a fandom. But if that is how you exist in fandom--and remember, I say this as someone who often does exist that way in fandom--you need to remember that you’re on the outside looking in, and the curtains can always close.

I’ve always been super sympathetic to lurkers, because I am one. I know there’s a lot of people like me who just don’t socialize often. I know there’s plenty of reasons why someone might not make an account on the internet - maybe they’re nervous, maybe they’re young and their parents don’t allow them to, maybe they’re in a bad situation where someone is monitoring their activity, maybe they can only access the internet from public computer terminals. Heck, I’ve never even logged into AO3 on my phone--if I’m away from my computer I just read what’s publicly available.

I know I have people lurking on my fics. I know my fics probably mean a lot to someone I don’t even know exists. I know this because there are plenty of fics I love whose writers don’t know I exist.

I love my commenters personally; I love my lurkers as an abstract concept. I know they’re there and I wish them well, and if they ever de-lurk I love them all the more.

So up until last year I never considered archive-locking my fic, because I get it. The AI scraping was upsetting, but I still hesitated because I was thinking of lurkers and guests and remembering what it felt like to be 15 and wondering if it’d be worth letting a stranger on the internet know I existed and asking to be added to their friends list just so I could reread a funny post they made once.

But the internet has changed a lot since the 00s, and fandom has changed with it. I’ve read some things and been doing some thinking about fandom-as-community over the last few years, and reading through the lore.fm drama made me decide that it’s time for me to set some boundaries.

I still love my lurkers, and I feel bad about leaving any guest commenters behind, especially if they’re in a situation where they can’t make an account for some reason. But from here on out, even my lurkers are going to have to do the bare minimum to read my fics--make an AO3 account.

Should we gatekeep fandom?

I’ve seen a few people ask this question, usually rhetorically, sometimes as a joke, always with a bit of seriousness. And I think…yeah, maybe we should. Except wait, no, not like that--

A decade ago, when people talked about fandom gatekeeping and why it was bad to do, it intersected with a lot of other things, mainly feminism and classism. The prevalent image of fandom gatekeeping was, like, a man learning that a woman likes Star Wars and haughtily demanding, “Oh, yeah? Well if you’re REALLY a fan, name ten EU novels” to belittle and dismiss her, expecting that a “real fan” would have the money and time to be familiar with the EU, and ignoring the fact that male movie-only fans were still considered fans. The thing being gatekept was the very definition of “being a fan” and people’s right to describe themselves as one.

That’s not what I mean when I say maybe fandom should gatekeep more. Anyone can call themselves a fan if they like something, that’s fine. But when it comes to the ability to enjoy the fanworks produced by the fandom community…that might be something worth gatekeeping.

See, back in the 00s, it was perfectly common for people to just…not go on the internet. Surfing the web was a thing, but it was just, like, a fun pastime. Not everyone did it. It wasn’t until the rise of social media that going online became a thing everyone and their grandmother did every day. Back then, going on the internet was just…a hobby.

So one of the first gates online fandom ever had was the simple fact that the entire world wasn’t here yet.

The entire world is here now. That gate has been demolished.

And it’s a lot easier to find us now. Even scattered across platforms, fandom is so centralized these days. It isn’t a network of dedicated webshrines and forums that you can only find via webrings anymore, it’s right there on all the big social media sites. AO3 didn’t set out to be the main fanfic website, but that’s definitely what it’s become. It’s easy for people to find us--and that includes people who don’t care about the community, and just want “content.”

Transformative fandom doesn’t like it when people see our fanworks as “content”. “Content” is a pretty broad term, but when fandom uses it we’re usually referring to creative works that are churned out by content creators to be consumed by an audience as quickly as possible as often as possible so that the content creator can generate revenue. This not-so-new normal has caused a massive shift in how people who are new to fandom view fanworks--instead of seeing fic or art as something a fellow fan made and shared with you, they see fanworks as products to be consumed.

Transformative fandom has, in general, always been a gift economy. We put time and effort into creating fanworks that we share with our fellow fans for free. We do this so we don’t get sued, but fandom as a whole actually gets a lot out of the gift economy. Offer your community a story, and in return you can get comments, build friendships, or inspire other people to write things that you might want to read. Readers are given the gift of free stories to read and enjoy, and while lurking is fine, they have the choice to engage with the writer and other readers by leaving comments or making reclists to help build the community.

And look, don’t get me wrong. People have never engaged with fanfic as much as fan writers wish they would. There has always been “no one comments anymore” wank. There have always been people who only comment to say “MORE!” or otherwise demand or guilt trip writers into posting the next chapter. But fandom has always agreed that those commenters are rude and annoying, and as those commenters navigate fandom they have the chance to learn proper community etiquette.

However, now it seems that a lot of the people who are consuming fanworks aren’t actually in the community.

I won’t say “they aren’t real fans” because that’s silly; there’s lots of ways to be a fan. But there seem to be a lot of fans now who have no interest in fandom as a community, or in adhering to community etiquette, or in respecting the gift economy. They consume our fics, but they don’t appreciate fan labor. They want our “content”, but they don’t respect our control over our creations.

And even worse--they see us as a resource. We share our work for free, as a gift, but all they see is an open-source content farm waiting to be tapped into. We shared it for free, so clearly they can do whatever they want with it. Why should we care if they feed our work into AI training datasets, or copy/paste our unfinished stories into ChatGPT to get an ending, or charge people for an unnecessary third-party AO3 app, or sell fanbindings on etsy for a profit without the author’s permission, or turn our stories into poor imitations of podfics to be posted on other platforms without giving us credit or asking our consent, while also using it to lure in people they can datascrape for their Forbes 30 Under 30 company?

And sure, people have been doing shady things with other people’s fanworks since forever. Art theft and reposting has always been a big problem. Fanfic is harder to flat-out repost, but I’ve heard of unauthorized fic translations getting posted without crediting the original author. Once in…I think the 2010s? I read a post by a woman who had gone to some sort of local bookselling event, only to find that the man selling “his” novel had actually self-published her fanfic. (Wish I could find that one again, I don’t even remember where I read it.)

But aside from that third example, the thing is…as awful as fanart/writing theft is, back in the day, the main thing a thief would gain from it was clout. Clout that should rightfully go to the creators who gifted their work in the first place, yeah, but still. Just clout. People will do a lot of hurtful things for clout, but fandom clout means nothing outside of fandom. Fandom clout is not enough to incentivize the sort of wide-scale pillaging we’re seeing from community outsiders today.

Money, on the other hand… Well, fandom’s just a giant, untapped content farm, isn’t it? Think of how much revenue all that content could generate.

Lurkers are a normal and even beneficial part of any online community. Maybe one day they’ll de-lurk and easily slide into place beside their fellow fans because they already know the etiquette. Maybe they’re active in another community, and they can spread information from the community they lurk in to the community they’re active in. At the very least, they silently observe, and even if they’re not active community members, they understand the community.

Fans who see fanworks as “content” don’t belong in the same category as lurkers. They’re tourists.

While reading through the initial Reddit thread on the lore.fm situation, I found this comment:

[ID: Reddit User Cabbitowo says: ... So in anime fandoms we have a word called tourist and essentially it means a fan of a few anime and doesn't care about anime tropes and actively criticizes them. This is kind of how fandoms on tiktok feel. They're touring fanfics and fanart and actively criticizes tropes that have been in the fandom since the 60s. They want to be in a fandom but they don't want to engage in fandom

OP totallymandy responds: Just entered back into Reddit after a long day to see this most recent reply. And as a fellow anime fan this making me laugh so much since it’s true! But it sorta hurts too when the reality sets in. Modern fandom is so entitled and bratty and you’d think it’s the minors only but that’s not even true, my age-mates and older seem to be like that. They want to eat their cake and complain all whilst bringing nothing to the potluck… :/ END ID]

“Tourist” is an apt name for this sort of fan. They don’t want to be part of our community, and they don’t have to be in order to come into our spaces and consume our work. Even if they don’t steal our work themselves, they feel so entitled to it that they’re fine with ignoring our wishes and letting other people take it to make AI “podfics” for them to listen to (there are a lot of comments on lore.fm’s shutdown announcement video from people telling them to just ignore the writers and do it anyway). They’ll use AI to generate an ending to an unfinished fic because they don’t care about seeing “the ending this writer would have given to the story they were telling”, they just want “an ending”. For these tourist fans, the ends justify the means, and their end goal is content for them to consume, with no care for the community that created it for them in the first place.

I don’t think this is confined to a specific age group. This isn’t “13-year-olds on Wattpad” or “Zoomers on TikTok” or whatever pointless generation war we’re in now. This is coming from people who are new to fandom, whose main experience with creative works on the internet is this new content culture and who don’t understand fandom as a community. That description can be true of someone from any age group.

It’s so easy to find fandom these days. It is, in fact, too easy. Newcomers face no hurdles or challenges that would encourage them to lurk and observe a bit before engaging, and it’s easy for people who would otherwise move on and leave us alone to start making trouble. From tourist fans to content entrepreneurs to random people who just want to gawk, it’s so easy for people who don’t care about the fandom community to reap all of its fruits.

So when I say maybe fandom should start gatekeeping a bit, I’m referring to the fact that we barely even have a gate anymore. Everyone is on the internet now; the entire world can find us, and they don’t need to bother learning community etiquette when they do. Before, we were protected by the fact that fandom was considered weird and most people didn’t look at it twice. Now, fandom is pretty mainstream. People who never would’ve bothered with it before are now comfortable strolling in like they own the place. They have no regard for the fandom community, they don’t understand it, and they don’t want to. They want to treat it just like the rest of the content they consume online.

And then they’re surprised when those of us who understand fandom culture get upset. Fanworks have existed far longer than the algorithmic internet’s content. Fanworks existed long before the internet. We’ve lived like this for ages and we like it.

So if someone can’t be bothered to respect fandom as a community, I don’t see why I should give them easy access to my fics.

Think of it like a garden gate

When I interact with commenters on my fic, I have this sense of hospitality.

The comment section is my front porch. The fic is my garden. I created my garden because I really wanted to, and I’m proud of it, and I’m happy to share it with other people.

Lots of people enjoy looking at my garden. Many walk through without saying anything. Some stop to leave kudos. Some recommend my garden to their friends. And some people take the time to stop by my front porch and let me know what a beautiful garden it is and how much they’ve enjoyed it.

Any fic writer can tell you that getting comments is an incredible feeling. I always try to answer all my comments. I don’t always manage it, but my fics’ comment sections are the one place that I manage to consistently socialize in fandom. When I respond to a comment, it feels like I’m pouring out a glass of lemonade to share with this lovely commenter on my front porch, a thank you for their thank you. We take a moment to admire my garden together, and then I see them out. The next time they drop by, I recognize them and am happy to pour another glass of lemonade.

My garden has always been open and easy to access. No fences, no walls. You just have to know where to find it. Fandom in general was once protected by its own obscurity, an out-of-the-way town that showed up on maps but was usually ignored.

But now there’s a highway that makes it easy to get to, and we have all these out-of-towner tourists coming in to gawk and steal our lawn ornaments and wonder if they can use the place to make themselves some money.

I don’t care to have those types trampling over my garden and eating all my vegetables and digging up my flowers to repot and sell, so I’ve put up a wall. It has a gate that visitors can get through if they just take the time to open it.

Admittedly, it’s a small obstacle. But when I share my fics, I share them as a gift with my fellow fans, the ones who understand that fandom is a community, even if they’re lurkers. As for tourist fans and entrepreneurs who see fic as content, who have no qualms ignoring the writer’s wishes, who refuse to respect or understand the fandom community…well, they’re not the people I mean to share my fic with, so I have no issues locking them out. If they want access to my stories, they’ll have to do the bare minimum to become a community member and join the AO3 invite queue.

And y’know, I’ve said a lot about fandom and community here, and I just want to say, I hope it’s not intimidating. When I was younger, talk about The Fandom Community made me feel insecure, and I didn’t think I’d ever manage to be active enough in fandom spaces to be counted as A Member Of The Community. But you don’t have to be a social butterfly to participate in fandom. I’ll always and forever be a chronic lurker, I reblog more than I post, I rarely manage to comment on fic, and I go radio silent for months at a time--but I write and post fanfiction. That’s my contribution.

Do you write, draw, vid, gif, or otherwise create? Congrats, you're a community member.

Do you leave comments? Congrats, you're a community member.

Do you curate reclists? Congrats, you're a community member.

Do you maintain a fandom blog or fuckyeah blog? Congrats, you're a community member.

Do you provide a space for other fans to convene in? Congrats, you're a community member.

Do you regularly send asks (off anon so people know who you are)? Congrats, you're a community member.

Do you have fandom friends who you interact with? Congrats, you're a community member.

There’s lots of ways to be a fan. Just make sure to respect and appreciate your fellow fans and the work they put in for you to enjoy and the gift economy fandom culture that keeps this community going.

#ao3 #lore.fm #fanfiction #fandom history #gift economy #caelum rambles

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luveline · 9 months

Note

𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞 —send me a shy!reader request for any character (with a plot) and I'll write a >1k drabble

sirius/james introducing shy!reader to remus. and shes just like quiet and in awe, but remus loves it.

luveline's 40k party ☆ tysm for requesting! remus x shy fem!reader

James is used to your personality after months of being your lecture neighbour, unperturbed by your quiet. "It's going to be fun," he promises, handing you a cold glass of cranberry vodka. "They're nice, okay? I won't let anyone irritate you."

He's hosting a party and had the generosity to invite you round early. He's easing you in, so to speak. It took him two weeks of steady Hellos for you to work up the courage to say Hi back, another two weeks for small talk, a month before you felt comfortable speaking to him first. If you're that shy, a party is basically torture.

"It's not about irritating me," you say.

"I know, I'm messing." James lists his head to the left. A second later, there's a knock at the door. "Aha. Wait here, shortcake, there's someone I want you to meet."

"James," you say after him, wet from your glass leaking down to your sleeve, "what?"

"I asked him to come early and say hello! He's quiet and handsome and you'll love him, just don't stare at his nose."

What's wrong with his nose? you think, alarmed.

James opens the door. Two new voices emerge, one scratchy and a little high, the other smoother. "I need to pee so bad," the scratchy one declares, followed by bounding footsteps up the stairs.

"You alright?" the smoother asks.

You think there's patting, a hug, "I'm brilliant! You smell really nice, Remus, like a garden."

"Lovely."

"In a good way! Come and meet my Y/N, you remember I told you about her nice gel pens?"

James leads the smooth-voiced Remus into the living room. You hurriedly put down your drink and stand, wiping your wet hands in your shirt. You cringe at the darkening fabric but hide your grimace as they stop in front of you.

"Remus, Y/N. Y/N, Remus," James introduces you both.

Remus has a scar across his nose that seems cruelly cut. There's another beside it that starts in his upper lip, both of which end in his eyebrow. You know how self-conscious it feels to be looked at, so you manage to smile and offer your hand without too much of it. He's handsome with his scars, a nice nose with a ridge and brown eyes the colour of caramelised sugar.

"Hello," Remus says, shaking your hand. His is big enough to make yours feel small.

"I invited her early because she's more fun than the rest of our lot," James says, throwing himself down on the sofa and kicking his legs out on the coffee table.

Remus taps your elbow very gently as if to usher you to sit and sits down beside you, enough space to be casual but too little to stop the rampant nerves that blossom in your stomach.

Remus asks about your life. What you're studying, where you're from, if James is being nice to you. While James is touchy in the rough older brother way, scrunching your shoulder and shaking you when you're not expecting it. Remus is touchy in a different way, you find, almost as if he doesn't know he's doing it. His shoe bumps your shoe, his hand falls down between his outer thigh and your own, his knuckles touching your jeans very lightly. He spins in his seat to talk to you.

You don't notice other people arriving, nor the scratchy-voiced friends return. All you can do is look up at Remus with wide eyes. Your nerves meld to something warmer.

"And what do you do?" you ask him.

He smiles like you've wandered into a secret. "I'm trying to write a book."

"He's being a bit much," Sirius says to James, the two now loitering in the doorway with matching beers. You and Remus chatter on, unaware of their running commentary.

"It's a very strong reaction. I knew she'd like him, but I didn't think she'd like him like that." James takes a sip of his drink. Remus asks you a quiet question. You duck your head, playing with your sleeves, and Remus, the bastard, ducks his head to follow your gaze, smiling at you all the while.

James almost chokes, pointing his bottle toward you both as though Sirius isn't already looking. "He's eating it up. I forgot how flirty he is."

"She'll be nice to him, won't she?" Sirius asks, like it's a done deal. To be fair, Remus seems enthralled with you.

"Definitely. She's very nice. Oh, look, that's sick, she's gonna pass out." James winces as Remus takes your arm into his hand.

Remus wouldn't do anything cruel, but James wasn't joking when he told Remus that you were exceedingly, achingly shy. He's about to step in and rescue you, but you turn into Remus' touch and pull your leg up on the sofa to make yourself comfortable. Your voice is animated, if quieter than the average person's.

"Woah," James says, beaming.

Remus flirts almost as a defence, like he wants to get the rejection over and done with so he can move on. You've yet to reject; you're looking up at him in moderate awe, your lips quirked into an easy smile.

"Boo!" James calls, flicking his bottle cap at Remus, who brushes it away. "Took me three weeks to get a smile out of her," he mutters. "What a dick."

#remus lupin x reader #remus lupin x fem!reader #remus lupin fluff #remus lupin x you #remus lupin x y/n #marauders era #remus x reader #remus x you #marauders #remus lupin drabble #remus lupin blurb #marauders x reader #remus lupin imagine #remus lupin fanfic #remus lupin fanfiction #the marauders #luveline's 40k party

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aledmorningstar · 2 months

Text

╰┈➤Misunderstood

Summary: How the gang finds out about Sukuna's girlfriend in a misunderstanding.

Relationship: Ryomen Sukuna/Reader

Word count: 3.0k

Note: I'm a liar, I know I said this would go up yesterday, in my defense we set very optimistic goals. Please comment and feel free to send me anything to my inbox

-‘๑’-: No curses au, uni au, sfw, humor, fluff, bad english

The house of the twins Yuji and Ryomen seemed more lively than normal, as every weekend they had planned a movie afternoon, the meetings began early after leaving school, buying snacks, preparing comfortable clothes and choosing some games of table.

Yuji's face wrinkled into a displeased grimace at seeing his twin dressing casually to go out for a walk down the street, while he and his friends were already prepared wearing their comical pajamas, it wasn't fair. This time it was Yuji's turn to choose the movie so as not to let his brother get away with it.

“What are you doing?”

Sukuna turned to look for a second indifferently at his brother while he finished fastening the buttons of his dark shirt. How could he take seriously his brother who maintained an irritated pout while wearing those ridiculous tiger-themed full-body pajamas?

"I'm going out, tell mom I'll be late"

Yuji's moan of annoyance echoed throughout the house, drawing the attention of Nobara and Megumi who were stealthily trying to spy on the conversation by hiding behind a wall.

"You said you would watch Human Worm 4 with us today!"

The one with the caramel eyes began to complain about the injustice that was occurring, a perfect time for his faithful friends to take action.

“We already prepared everything, you can't leave us stranded for an afternoon of movies!”

Nobara grumbled as she tried to fix the sleeves of her raccoon pajamas.

"We made a pact, you must suffer with us"

Megumi was supposed to be the most mature of the group, perhaps Sukuna had overestimated him because he never imagined seeing him share the same neuron as his friends while also wearing ridiculous beige dog pajamas.

“It's a shame brats, it'll have to be another day.”

The older twin's hands didn't stop moving trying to find the car keys; he had somehow managed to look appropriately with a hint of elegance, but without losing that menacing aura, a pair of black pants held up by an expensive belt that he had stolen from his father, a dark gray shirt with the first few buttons open showing his collarbones and the sleeves perfectly arranged at his elbows showing his tattooed arms.

"You look like a criminal"

“Who said I'm not?”

Itadori's intentions to plant some blame on his brother for abandoning them on a seemingly important night were noticeable for miles.

"At least have the decency to tell me where the hell you're going."

Sukuna took a while to respond, his eyes straying suspiciously and the trio could see a slight nervousness on his face. Wait, nerves? Sukuna? Those words were naturally contrary, it even seemed strange to put them together in one sentence. Here was definitely another shoe that was taking a while to drop.

"Mind your own business, don't be nosy"

Itadori instantly stood between his brother and the front door, blocking his way, he would get to the bottom of this matter at any cost.

"Are you planning something bad? Mom will be angry if you get into trouble again"

"Yes, yes, yes. I plan to do many bad and illegal things, in fact in this mood I plan to strangle the first person in front of me"

Itadori, Nobara, and Megumi looked at each other before leaving the hallway clear, letting Sukuna walk.

"Behave badly, take good care of yourself and if they discover you, deny everything"

“See you”

Once the so-called evil twin left the house, the hallway was completely silent for a few seconds.

“Don't you feel...? Curiosity?"

An excited Nobara looked at her friends with bright, gossip-hungry eyes.

"No not really"

Megumi's voice was ignored as Itadori pushed the Fushiguro boy's face away with his hand.

"I was hoping you'd ask, Nobara! In fact, my brother has been acting strange lately."

Itadori put on a thoughtful expression as he remembered his brother's unusual behavior in recent weeks.

"What do you mean he's been acting strange?"

At that moment Nobara had taken on a detective attitude, while the previously disinterested Megumi began to listen attentively to his friends.

“He's been coming home late, more than usual.”

“That doesn't seem strange for someone like him.”

An exalted Itadori raises his hands dramatically as he defends his argument.

“But when he is usually late it is always because he is causing problems in the streets and he is not at all careful with his arrival, now it is different!”

Sharing a room with Itadori, Sukuna didn't care how scandalous he could be when he showed up at home after curfew. He didn't pay attention to the fact that the noise of his shoes being thrown to any side of the room or that the sound of his swear words every time he tripped over something could disturb his brother's sleep.

Lately, however, the nights that Sukuna had spent late away from home had become more frequent, and Itadori couldn't help but notice even in the dead of night how messy his twin's clothes were every time he returned with silent footsteps and he also did not overlook the large number of marks that stood out on Sukuna's neck.

“Also, he has been trying hard in all his school subjects, he has turned in all his homework and sometimes he goes out to the library to study. Did you hear what I said? He goes to the library to study!”

“That's definitely not the Sukuna we know, something is happening to him.”

The three teenagers headed to the living room to sit down to discuss more calmly and solve that mystery.

“Do you think someone is bullying him?”

Itadori looked worried for a split second at Nobara's statement until Megumi gave him a strange, brief sarcastic smile.

“Are you serious right now? Do you think Sukuna, the most feared man on campus, could be bothered by someone? Jesus Christ even earned the nickname “The King of Curses”

They didn't need much time to agree with Megumi, it was impossible to imagine Sukuna being submissive to anyone.

“True, it would make more sense for him to be the one who bothered someone… It can't be possible”

“I told him clearly not to get into trouble, but he never listens to me!”

“Wait, Yuji, calm down. Don't you think that if that's the case, he's spending too much time on that person?”

Itadori seemed to think about it for a second and his face transformed into one of much more dramatic horror than before.

"So he really hates that person! Maybe he's planning a murder? Your brother isn't exactly known for being patient"

Nobara's words were the little push Itadori needed to panic.

"Sukuna definitely can't go to the correctional facility again!... Mom was very sad back then..."

Nobara and Megumi looked into each other's eyes, unable to abandon their friend in such a situation.

"Fine! Our mission today is to prevent your brother from becoming a criminal.”

"Are we allowed to use force? I still have to get revenge for the books I lent him."

The brown-haired girl, Kugisaki, was the first to stand up and was followed by Fushiguro. It seemed like a scene worthy of a movie, this was the motivational part because both friends extended their hands to the boy in tiger pajamas.

“Wait, wait, wait… What happened to your books?”

“I'll ask your brother when I see him.”

It had been approximately 30 minutes since the trio of friends had located and followed Sukuna, a difficult mission that had begun with the friends running after the older twin's car. The fatigue was overcome by surprise when seeing the target enter a flower shop.

“We're late, he's already planning the funeral!”

“Wait, give him the benefit of the doubt, maybe… Maybe he's going to visit a friend?”

“Impossible, my brother has no friends”

Nobara and Yuji's brief talk was interrupted when they saw Sukuna leaving that flower shop with a huge and pretty bouquet of yellow carnations.

"You see it? Maybe your brother is not as bad as he seems” Nobara's voice tried to be optimistic, and it also seemed strange to her that a man would buy flowers for no apparent reason.

“Now I'm quite confused” Itadori, for his part, narrowed his eyes, staring at Sukuna, trying to read his brother's mind.

Megumi spoke with a stiff voice drawing the attention of his friends.

"Don't be so surprised, in the language of flowers, carnations of that color mean contempt"

"Is he turning his assassination attempt into a performance? He's getting creative"

"Hey, he's leaving. Hurry up"

The gang quickly got into a taxi and like every chase scene, Itadori and Nobara yelled at the driver to follow the car in front of them, Megumi had to apologize to the driver at the end of the ride.

Sukuna drove his car until he reached the darkest and most dangerous neighborhood that anyone could imagine, clearly that place had an invisible sign indicating that it was better not to be there, there were few passers-by and the streets were cold with graffiti everywhere.

The older twin got out of his car after having entered the area a little, he walked as if that place was his territory, as if he felt at home, he adjusted the sleeves of his shirt, raising them to his elbows, with a bored look he observed the time on his watch and then leaned his back against the wall waiting patiently. Meanwhile, the trio had remained hidden behind a pile of boxes and seemingly useless objects, thinking about Ryomen's intentions.

"There isn't a soul in this place, what is he planning to do?"

Itadori's question was answered when Megumi held his jaw making him look to his right, his eyes widened as he saw a girl with a small frame, transmitting an aura of delicacy and fragility, she was the complete stereotype of a little princess wearing a pink dress and white sneakers, light makeup and a flower crown adorning her hair, she looked out of context walking with a smile and humming a song in that horrible alley.

"It can't be her... There's no way Sukuna..."

Nobara's words were cut off when the red-eyed man put out his cigarette and walked over to where the girl was with a proud smile on his face.

The fear that this small, fragile woman could be hurt by his violent brother made Itadori quickly get up from his hiding place and stand in front of his brother.

"Sukuna! Stop right there, don't do it!"

The sudden entrance of his nosy brother surprised Sukuna who maintained a displeased scowl at his twin's actions.

"What the fuck? Get out of the way brat, I'm on something important right now"

"Don't you dare take another step, don't do something you'll regret!"

Itadori's voice took a drastic change, sounding too threatening compared to his usual cheerful tone.

"What the hell are you talking about? Leave me alone, I don't have time for this."

Sukuna looked at the horrified girl who was just a few meters away from him, he pushed his brother away with one hand with the intention of walking towards where she was, however he was stopped and subdued on the ground by Megumi.

“Don't even try it, you disgusting scoundrel.”

“Leave me alone, you fucking bastards!”

While the three men argued and fought among themselves, Nobara also came out of her hiding place and walked towards the frightened woman, being careful not to exalt her even more, Kugisaki placed his hands on her shoulders trying to calm her down.

"Are you okay? “Did he do something to you?”

The girl's hands remained covering her mouth, completely surprised by the situation. She instantly left Nobara and ran quickly to where Sukuna was lying on the ground.

"What are you doing?! Get your hands off him!"

Megumi and Itadori's movements stopped, still holding Sukuna on the ground, they turned to look completely surprised at the owner of that little voice, their minds went blank as they watched her approach, she put her hands on Fushiguro's chest. making an attempt to push him away from the red-eyed twin.

"What are you doing to my boyfriend?! Leave him alone!"

Still bewildered, Itadori was the first to move away and placed a hand on his friend's shoulder for him to do the same, allowing Sukuna to stand up a little dazed.

"I don't know what 'Kuna did to you, but what you are doing is not right, it is not right to intimidate others, problems are solved by talking"

You stood in front of your boyfriend trying to be the one to defend him this time, you used to be a little shy when talking to strangers, but you weren't going to let your lover be the victim of such an unfair situation.

"Honey, calm down. They are—"

"No, love! They were very mean to you, no matter who they are!"

You knew that Sukuna had a special weakness for you that made him want to protect you from any danger, everyone told you that, obviously he would also want to take control of this situation in his hands. No, this time it was your turn to protect him, to be his knight in shining armor.

On the other hand, there were also the three idiots who had tried to play detective, watching the situation in astonishment.

"She... just called him love"

“Yes, she really did”

"I can't believe it"

Ryomen had tried to calm his girlfriend's little anger by taking her hands and caressing them, it worked for a few seconds until that trio spoke again.

Upon hearing the incredulous voices of those strangers, you let go of Sukuna's hands and walked a few steps close to those you thought were criminals.

"Listen, my parents are very important people, I will make sure you are punished appropriately"

Your acute and sweet angry voice was silenced by Sukuna's lips, one of his large hands finding a place on your waist while the other caressed your soft cheek.

"It's okay, princess"

"No, it's not okay-"

You tried to reply to his deep voice, you would be lying if you said it didn't make you shiver, his voice was only directed at you, only for you to hear, that made you calm down and also lowered the tone of your voice.

"Pretty, this is my stupid brother and his friends."

"...Impossible, it can't be…, they were subduing you"

"Don't worry, I'm sure they have a good explanation for doing all this, right?"

The affectionate look that Sukuna had given his supposed girlfriend had changed drastically when he turned to look at his friends, removed his touch from his beloved and walked towards the frightened trio, cracking the fingers of his fists.

"Last words?"

Approximately 10 minutes had passed after that disastrous encounter, Sukuna had considered himself generous that day so he decided to take his brother and his friends to the house where they should have stayed from the beginning, very kind, it had nothing to do with his girlfriend will look at those three idiots like abandoned puppies.

"How were we supposed to know you were visiting your girlfriend?"

"What kind of dates are you taking her on?"

"Yeah, you looked like you were about to commit a crime!"

Of course Itadori, Megumi and Nobara tested their patience throughout the car ride, complaining from the back seats and trying to alleviate the pain caused by the car owner's blows. Your curious little eyes turned to look at the trio with intrigue.

"Why do you say that?"

None of them knew how to answer your question, the answer was so obvious that they thought you were stupid or blind, of course none of them said that thought out loud, not when they felt Sukuna's psychopathic gaze in the rearview mirror. However, that didn't stop Yuji from continuing the conversation either.

"You were alone in that horrible and dangerous place, it is the perfect opportunity for a madman"

"Oh, that..."

Your calm reaction to that comment only confused them more, you were too sweet to be in those places and even worse to be there with Sukuna for no good reason.

"Her parents are renowned people and they do not agree with our relationship, that is why we must meet in the most discreet places possible"

"Sometimes dad hires people to watch me, so our meeting point for dates is that place."

The older twin's words left the dynamic trio thinking, especially Itadori and Nobara, Megumi didn't really care much, your complementation made them imagine a current version of Romeo and Juliet. The explanations of your strange relationship had clarified most of his doubts regarding the strange day.

"Wait, what about the flowers?"

Nobara's comment made all the attention focus on Ryomen who wrinkled his face in confusion until he remembered the detail that his friend was talking about at the same time that he stopped the car in front of his house.

"What flowers?"

"Oh right, I brought you something"

Sukuna got out of the car and went to the back taking something out of the trunk, a nice big bouquet of flowers appeared in front of you held by your handsome boyfriend.

"Oh, honey, you shouldn't have bothered."

"It's no bother when I can make you happy"

You received the beautiful flowers in your small hands, allowing yourself to smell them, such a fresh smell while you lovingly observed your loved one and he returned the same look, absorbed in that cloying atmosphere.

Of course that beautiful moment was not the most comfortable for everyone present, much less for Yuji Itadori imitating his twin with a shrill and annoying voice, since he had never seen his brother in that silly state.

"It's no bother when I can make you happy"

“I'm going to kick your ass”

Megumi couldn't stay silent for long either, because something kept echoing in her mind.

"But the meaning of flowers..."

"Excuse me?"

You looked at him with a smile so sweet and innocent that he hesitated for a second on his next words.

“Those flowers have a negative meaning…”

"It's funny you think my 'Kuna knows the meaning of flowers"

"We should have assumed that"

⋆·˚ ༘ *🔭 master list is here

#aledthinks #jjk x reader #jjk drabbles #jujustsu kaisen x reader #ryomen sukuna #drabble #sukuna x reader #sukuna x you #jjk sukuna #sukuna #jjk fluff #jjk x you #jujutsu kaisen #fluff #ryoumen sukuna

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