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[a-vibing-potato]

Andnow, approximately 12 hours later, I FINALLY get to spend 2 to 2 1/2 hours doing whatever the heck I want, which includes: 1 episode of Supernatural, 1 episode of Demon Slayer, and finishing the episode of MrBallen's Medical Mysteries that I started this morning.

[reignpage]

Art Student!Choso

Fauvism: strong colours and fierce brushwork

Smau: first 3 are pre-relationship texts spanning across 3 months and other three are established relationship texts spanning across a year with modern au!Choso, each pic is a standalone snapshot Warnings:  18+ minors and ageless blogs do not interact, you will be blocked Pt 0, Pt 1, Pt 2, Pt 3, Pt 4, Pt 5

[fishnapple]

How will they protect the relationship

(lover/partner/future spouse) - Channelled message

This is a general reading meant for multiple people. Take only what resonates and leave out the rest.

Your feedback is much appreciated. If you find the reading resonated with you, leave a comment, I’d love to know 🎐

About me | Masterpost

Book a reading with me - KO-FI (→ personal reading)

GROUP 1

Sometimes, I fear that you will get used to our relationship to the point of boredom, that our relationship will become just a habit, a routine that you do everyday, mechanically, without enthusiasm or passion. That fear crept in my mind, taking roots, and there will be moments when I let it grow and poke its branches out. Imaginary scenarios swirl in my mind, threatening to spiral out of control.

But I will snap out of it in no time. I'm a master at bringing myself out of the dark, I'm a good runner, running in the night long enough, and you're bound to see the sun rise again. I will try to look at myself first, from an objective lens, to find where I can change, what baggage I need to get rid of. Then I will look at our relationship, I will find a way to lift it up, make it exciting again. Do you like puzzles? Do you like sculpting? Would you like to try a new recipe? Let's forget for a moment all our adult responsibilities and be free. To be excited teenagers again, falling in love for the first time again. I will write you love letters full of typos, sending you half-baked cakes and cringy T-shirts, you will laugh and you will join me.

I do notice that there are some people around us, people who shouldn't come that close, who shouldn't be there at all. They don't understand the concept of respecting other people's boundaries. They will try to turn a blind eye to our commitment, pretend that it doesn't exist. Blatantly coming in without knocking, thinking that they can just take you away from me and me from you. They think that their tactics are subtle enough, that in time, they can corrode our bond. Little touches here and there, the gaze, the "innocent" banters. I can see them all, I will try to put a distance between me and them, so I hope you will do that too, I also hope that you will patiently listen to me when I warn you of those people. Yes, sometimes you will have to call me a possessive person. I just want to shut out everyone dare to threaten us, to find a place where only us exist. But that's impossible, I know, so the best I can do is tell them off as clear as possible, trying to show that we're together, there's no space between us. Let them be jealous, we just need to focus on us and walk away, hand in hand.

GROUP 2

I know we have a lot of unspoken words stuck inside. The silence between can sometimes grow to such a suffocating weight, pushing us down, deeper and deeper into our own abyss.

We both will be so uncertain of our future together, where will we go, is there a place strong enough to shelter us, are we strong enough? We hope for the same things, we are so alike, even our fears are alike, and I don't know whether to be happy or sad about this.

Our bond will be tested numerous times. There will be a time when we've almost given up, but fate or whatever higher powers are at play here, will bring us back together, anew and ready to try again. I wasn't a spiritual person, but by being with you, being in this relationship, I began to believe in something intangible, in the unknown, it scared me, but all I can do is to move forward, with you, and that's where our fears begin. We move forward together, into the unknown future that holds no concrete promise.

Then I realised we've forgotten to remember where we've put our wishes in, what we've wished for. If we can just remember, then there's no point in worrying. I will give you a hint: it's a wish that spans from the past to the future. We felt like we've known each other for a long time when we first met, and I believe we will be in each other's lives for the far future to see. That belief alone is enough for me to feel brave. And I will sit down, take out my pens and notebook, and begin to scribble down the plan, the path for us, give voice to the stuck words inside, air them out. I will show you that plan and tell you to not worry about the future, instead just focus on this current life in front of us, we got this, believe in us.

GROUP 3

Sometimes, I think that we are two pieces of puzzles fit perfectly together. If not, then there's no way to explain how you have everything I lack, and I, in turn, have an abundance of things that you don't. We have our fair share of issues that alone, we seem to lack the strength to tackle them, but together, they seem so silly and easy. You can be the wind and I will be the pipes, you can be the water and I will be the pump. Now that sounds silly, but you get my gist. There will be times when you cry, I will be there, holding you close and being the cool headed one to make logical decisions. There will be times when I'm so down, you will be there, holding me close and being the soft pillow that raises my head up.

There will be problems, from inside and outside, but I believe we can weather them all. The problems will mainly come from the place of insecurities and misunderstanding. People's words can be cutting and unintentionally hurtful, sometimes intentionally. They sow the seeds of doubts inside our minds. But let's believe in the visions of ourselves and of each other. We see ourselves best. We will sit down, talk it all out, there's no barrier between us. I'm proud of our direct and open way of communicating. I can always count on us to be rational and discuss things until we can reach a solution. Yes, there might be tears and angry voices here and there, but they are the minority and will go away quickly. We're too sure of our commitment and ourselves to let those bother us for too long.

Whatever action needed to be taken, it would be taken swiftly. If it's required of me to be cutting something, somebody out of our life, I will do it, no hesitation. Because I trust in our judgement. And if it's required to move, I will move. I'm afraid distance will be our biggest hurdle. But we will find a way to be closer. Many things will need to be changed, our jobs, our homes. But we won't fear changes. Because changes will bring us to a better future.

GROUP 4

I want to prepare you beforehand, our relationship will be scrutinised by a lot of people. It's not like we are celebrities or anything. Why do they have to care so much? I honestly don't know and don't care either. Our bond just attracts a lot of jealousy and objections. The idea of us together will piss people off. They want something, a fixed future for us, they expect it, but then they have to watch a totally different outcome, surprises, surprises.

Particularly those who have authority over us, they're supposed to be the wise guidance, the benevolent power that can protect us, but they will turn their backs on us, worse, they will turn their sneering gaze and contemptuous words on us. That can't be helped, I guess, we're the rebels, we go against their rules and expectations. I know you will want our bond to be blessed by those around us, I want it too, but reality is something we will have to face. At first, we may even have to hide our love, it's frustrating.

Don't worry, I will be strong for us, you won't even have to fight anything, just let me take care of it. I have enough strength to do that. Don't picture the image of me making a foray against them like a bull thrusting its horn angrily. I have enough wit not to do that, just like how I've charmed you with my words, I can do it too, to other people, the people who are against us. If it doesn't work, then I will just be my best, showing them how much of a good life I'm having with you. In the end, I just don't really care. We have our love and that's enough. We can always move away, to a better place. You will be surprised just how much freedom we do have.

[ancientgoddessofegypt]

astro thoughts - short n sweet: all about mars

Mars in 1st house - These individuals have a strong presence to their aura. These people could be workaholics as far as being in the gym goes. They could have a lot of energy to get things done so they can seem pretty intimating around people who don't have strong martian energy. They can be scapegoated because their boldness tends to rub people off the wrong way.

Mars in the 2nd house - A passion for getting the things they want with little to no effort. Hard work pays off. They dont have time to waste on mundane things, they simply want to relax but it seems too much for them sometimes. I say for this group, give yourself that time to chillax for a bit... the world aint what it seems sometimes.

Mars in the 3rd house - Could have a lot of outbursts from time to time, they feel things just a little differently than others and could be pretty opinionated. They have a lot of use for people who can debates with them on topics. They need someone who can go toe to toe with them at times, or else they'll get bored. They are very fast learners. Could also have a thousand hobbies because none of them could keep them occupied enough, and thats okay.

Mars in the 4th house - Could be overstimulated with family issues as this placement can make them the scape goat/black sheep. They are not afraid to say whats on their mind. There could also have been volatile experiences growing up in the house, so their a little open to having gentle partners/friendships because the toxic environment could have left them strifled.

Mars in the 5th house - These people like to live life on the edge, they need something to get them out of their racing mind. There quick learners just like the 3rd house babes, and they need someone who can match their fly. Could be a sex maniac with this placement. Needs someone who they can be passionate with.

Mars in the 6th house - WORKAHOLICS... please. just get some rest. What I love about this placement is that they NEVER STOP UNTIL THEY GET WHAT THEY WANT. They are powerhouses for sure. Because they wont eat, sleep,relax until they get the results. Literally blood sweet and tears is their motto.. They gotta get it done one way or another.

Mars in the 7th house - Incredible sex drive. Just like their friends in the 5th house, they need someone who can bring them passionate energy. They can bring the house down with their fiery energy alone, but they need someone to match their flow or else they will run that individual to the ground. It be like that sometimes.The more mars energy the more this can be a problem.

Mars in the 8th house - Damn. Damn. Damn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is probably one of the best placements to have with mars because 1. its in its rightful house (it is a ruler of scorpio). They're sex appeal is powerful. It will have anyone dropping to their knees. They are psychologically aware of people and their intentions and they can use this to their advantage. Dark feminine energy is a strong aspect for this placement. I could go on, but decided to keep it cute for now lol.

Mars in the 9th house - May have a tendency to travel outside of their homeland at some point in their life. This is necessary for their growth as an individual. They need to be alone more than usually so they can see the world from a different point of view. They are very intelligent creatures and give their all to know more than what they've been given in their short time span on this earth. They have a gift at teaching people how to navigate life through their own lense. Its a difficult path to say the least, because they always have to be confident in the face of trouble. But they always come abck out with ease.

Mars in the 10th house - Strong presence. Very practical nature. Has issues with the public eye from time to time. Could master the art of thought and can handle any situation most would crumble in. The life they lead isn't for the weak. It seems like they have an arrow on their back from time to time, but to no avail they use the energy to their advantage at some point. Great leaders, could have jealous friends/associates around them so they must be cautious.

Mars in the 11th house - LIke their friends in the tenth house, they are also really good at leadership. In their friend groups they can be considered the 'alpha' or the person who tends to plan out things or just knows what to do in general. It reminds me of blossom in the power puff girls to say the least. Their capable of taking on goals and commitments most people probably couldn't take. Just be careful you don't wanna make them mad. They can have a lot of disputes with friends and associates for the wrong reasons.

Mars in the 12th house - Mind over matter. Thats their theme. They could have a lot of issues with people and this could seem out of no where. A lot of hidden enemies with this placement :( It seems like no one likes them but they have a raw special energy to them thats hard to ignore. A lot of people do want to be around them but for some reason they can sort of despise them and it could be something subconscious and this is where a lot of the hidden hate comes from. This group has to be more open to the heart than most because its easier to shut back down after always being around people who use them for their personal gain.

let me know what you think :)

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

book 7 chapter 13 part 1 thoughts!

***THIS POST CONTAINS MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR BOOK 7 PART 13 OF THE MAIN STORY!!*** This spans part 295 to part 327.

Part 2 of this update will be out on the 10th of this month.

Please note: this is NOT meant to be a summary or a translation; these are only my initial thoughts on the events that roughly unfold. There may be details overlooked or misunderstood in this post, so PLEASE do not use this as a translation.

WOW awful way to start this update off 💀 They’re falling from the sky and L*ONA TAKES chARGE AnD THELLS tHe otHER thURD yEARSTO TO NOT juDt FALL BUT FucKING DO SmTH… So him, Cater, and Trey use wind magic to cushion everyone’s fall.

We land on the sandy beaches of Ace’s dream. Ortho picked this spot because it has the lowest chance of encountering darkness. (zbxjsbkwdhks Cute scene of L*ona shaking sand off of himself…) Ortho worries because he still has not regained connection with Idia’s tablet.

Sebek yoinks Grim out of the sand and checks on Yuu but ignores Adeuce, who are right next to us www

Trey initiates the card soldier roll call, with Ace counting off as 1, Deuce as 2, himself as 3, and Cater as 4. They realize Riddle isn’t there and panic until Leona informs them he’s probably in that “third layer” of his dream, where he is confronted with his truest, darkest self. Omg… Leona calls that third layer “the abyss” because there was nothing else there, just “the darkness, quietly opening its maw.” SO THAT’S WHY THIS BOOK IS CALLED RULER OF TGE ABYSS, EH…

Trey begins to worry like a dad looking for his lost child (Leona’s description, not mine lol). Leona tells Trey Riddle’s strong enough to hold his own in the abyss (which I guess is his way of reassuring Trey 😂).

Ortho expresses frustration that he can’t do anything right now. If he dream hops again without Idia’s cloaking + other tech support, Malleus will surely notice them. The group decides to try and recover for now. They also reassure Ortho that he has done a lot for them.

LEONA FUCKED OFF TO NAP, BTW 💀 Bro cannot be bothered to deal with a crying kid…

Silver like. Grabs Ortho and tries to squeeze him to help release tension from his muscles. It’s something Lilia taught him. Silver shares that he understands how he feels. Ortho continues to worry that they may “lose” Idia and that he’ll break his promise to their parents (to stop them from “losing” another son). HE STARTS CRYING… Sebek shouts at Trey to do something, because him just standing there and pointing out that crying’s expected in situations like this isn’t helping. So Trey strokes Ortho’s head and provides comfort.

Everyone kinda falls asleep together on the beach?? And Ortho hears his mom’s voice. Mr. and Mrs. Shroud appear via holograms!

Shroud parents tell everyone that Malleus has invaded Idia’s dream. For now, he cannot quite barge in due to the technomantic shield in place, but Idia can only hold him off for so long. They worry about the discovery of the cheat tool Idia was working on to help them fight Malleus. Mrs. Shroud shows them a photo of recent transmission from Idia’s dream. However, the quality is pretty bad.

LOL WHYmS THAT lOOK LIKE A MISSING chILD IMGAGE…

The Heartslabyul students spot Riddle in the corner of Idia’s picture. Ortho is a little relieved that Riddle can support him, but then the others point out that Riddle and Idia have clashing personalities + cannot get along. Trey says we should put our trust in those two…

Idia wants Riddle to keep Malleus busy while he works on the cheat tool. He provides Riddle with magic coding books and tells him to read them in 3 minutes or so???? Riddle claims it’s impossible but Idia goads him saying Riddle can memorize the Queen’s 810 laws and all school rules but not this??? His big head’s ready too full, so he can’t hold more info? Okay then stick a pacifier in your mouth and let us game over :v Riddle gets annoyed but then swears he’ll memorize all the coding manuals in 2 minutes, not 3, since he owes Idia for all of his help so far.

Uhhh I think they use a coding program thing (not sure of terminology) called Spell Forge. Riddle uses a stylus called InQuill to fill out the gaps in the protection spell’s construction, since he prefers doing things by hand rather than typing (Idia uses a unique keyboard with weird shaped keys and very few of them).

New mini game thing…? Where we basically just punch in the letters displayed up top.

Malleus is made aware of Riddle’s presence and tries to meddle using frost and electricity magic. Riddle has one more book to read… he likens the coding to solving a crossword puzzle.

Malleus breaks the door off?! But Idia needs Riddle to entertain him for 3 more minutes so he can finish his cheat tool.

AgHHHhHhHHH SudDENLy…?! Ignihyde-themed main screen reboot?!

YOu’RE JOKING…

TWST iS IdIA’/s FRiGGin’ CHEAT TOOL???????? 😭

Oh my god, he had Malleus trapped on the home screen and he cannot move without “player input” 😭

Boss!!!Idia has a cool new jacket that helps him optimize his performance. If he gets a new SSR, it might feature this jacket.

We also see S.T.Y.X.'s headquarters! On the large screens in the back, you can spot some battle map plans.

UMMMMMMM Idia summons us all as SSRs via the Mirror Chamber… HE SAYS THE SAME THING THE MIRROR OF DARKNESS DOES… The exact same animations for pulling them from the gacha play. I show one example with Ortho below, but he does this for all of the cast, excluding Lilia and Malleus. (D-Does this canonize our gacha pulls...?????)

... By the way, Idia hacked himself infinity gems and 999 keys + rigged the rates to always pull SSR OTL We all wish this was us…

We’re brought to HQ to talk about our next steps. Idia moves Malleus to various isolated battle maps (with that dorm’s members there) to slowly whittle him down. Each OB boy is granted the ability to take on their OB form, which enhances their powers. LMAO they all start complaining about how lame Dream Form Change is but Idia mutes them 💀

Silver, Sebek, Yuu, and Grim are with Idia, everyone else is with their dorm members. Yuu and Grim ate going to grant support on the battle maps via the Twst app 💀 Heals, buffs, that kind of thing. They’re being very literal with us being the strategist here. Ortho meanwhile is going to go wake up the staff (bless, idk if I could have handled like 60 extra parts of waking them up too).

Silver asks about Lilia, who wasn’t summoned. Idia says he was not able to bring Lilia since he never handed him an invite.

Silver lets everyone know that Lilia is his father. (asdhbasa Cater and Kalim think he was talking about a teacher..._

Pomefiore is especially touched by Silver’s love for his father, so they volunteer to be the first to step up and fight Malleus.

OKAY OKAY SO

There’s like 6 battle maps, each of them involving the OB boy changing into their OB forms and then kicking Malleus but Malleus still manages to resist every time. Idia has to intervene to prevent him from turning us into charcoal and isolate him to the next map. There’s a lot of extra dialogue on each map, but the gist of it is we see the members of each dorm fighting alongside each other, along with some commentary interjected from members of other dorms (via projections/holograms). I’m pretty sure this is meant to show how far they’ve come in willingness to cooperate with each other, because previous battle maps did not have nearly THIS much dialogue. Before going to the next battle map, we always get a brief scene of the next dorm chatting about what happened in their dreams and then psyching themselves up for their turn to bash Malleus.

Mrs, Shroud gets in contact with her son!! She had trouble because Idia kept her account blocked. He’s embarrassed to face his mom after she’s been digging around in his computer.

Mr. Shroud also appears! He lets us know that they’re looking for a mystium in order to craft weapons that can take Malleus down, since his dragon scales are very tough. Baur (in the real world, not the dream) has joined the search as well.

Silver and Sebek realized that Lilia’s magearm contains mystium. However, it was wrapped up and shipped to the Land of Crimson Long to join Lilia in retirement. Mr. Shroud moves to contact the countries the magearm would have to pass through to get to its destination. They MUST intercept the package!

Heartslabyul is happy to reunite with Riddle. He apologizes for causing them trouble, but Ace scolds their dorm leader for thinking he can order Cater + Trey to stop him and Deuce from trying to pull him from the darkness and then going missing for a while. And now Riddle thinks he can resolve things with a simple “sorry”? There’s so much more to say!

UHHHHHH Ace starts bawling and the seniors comfort him 💦 Riddle praises Adeuce for getting their UMs. Cater says Ace must be jealous that Trey comforyed Ortho earlier??? AcE wHInES THAT THE SENIORS ShOULD LOvE hiM AnD DEUCE Ghe mOst 😭 Bro… you chose now to unleash all of your brat energy…

LOL Ace wishes Riddle learned how to comfort people instead of magic engineering… He gives Riddle’s apology 30 points.

Riddle confirms he is one month older than Ace. The seniors say Riddle is an underclassman too and start being all “aww you guys are so cute!”

Mmm so after the battles, the participants are transported to a virtual infirmary space to recover.

chzjsvejdhoawjn Idia didn’t wake the teachers first because they’d just be annoying??? 😭 Not sure if I understood that part correctly.

Azul worries that they’re violating the other dreamers’ privacies by peering into their dreams via the STORY function of the app. He then decides he should peek anyway because the dreams may contain weaknesses and secrets he can take advantage of. Idia calls Octa away for their battle map before he can.

Oh, there’s a specialist mage known as a… Returner?? They can use long range transfer magic, even being able to transfer a large number of people across long distances. Sebek realizes that humans and fae can work together to minimize damage from Malleus’s magic.

They’re able to intercept the magearm!! Either Silver’s blessing, S.T.Y.X. begins to process it into weapons for Silver and Sebek to use.

Kalim casually asks Jamil how he’s doing 😭 (since his cheeks were swollen from Kalim punching him)… He mentions that he thinks Jamil and Azul are very similar (which Jamil is insulted by) and that he even though his dream!Jamil was fun, it wasn’t the real Jamil. “It was like looking into a mirror.” Kalim admits that even though some people cannot be friends (wow, character development for him??), it is those differences that make the world an interesting place. He prefers that kind of world.

Jamil agrees with Kalim. Jewels are called jewels and not stones because they’re hard to get. He’s sure that jewels are formed through hardship… a lot of heat and pressure.

LOL???? Kalim says it’s great they were able to make up. “Hah? When did we make up?” — Jamil, #1 Kalim Hater (Kalim also tries to plead with Malleus to stop this and make up, but of course that doesn’t work.)

Idia’s getting overwhelmed managing everything. Have no fear!! Ortho comes in with Ignihyde Mobs A, B, and C, who provide backup with their technical know-how!

LMxnhdsjafTahwj Leona’s chomping at the bit to beat up Malleus 😭 Later on, Ortho says he's so impressed with his group's teamwork, which Leona brushes off. sdhasbyofayil IDIA GETS MAD AT LEONA FOR BRUSHING OFF ORTHO'S HEARTFELT PRAISE

S.T.Y.X. finishes processing the mystium! They create the Sword of Truth and Shield of Virtue, as well as Harmonia Frame/Armor. When equipped, the armor will change into the shape that best suits its pilot.

The sword is given to Silver and the shield to Sebek. It’s the opposite of their stances in their Dorm Uniform cards—Silver is standing defensively but Sebek is standing offensively, yet the items they are granted are the reverse.

There’s a battery in the item(s???) that will allow them to fire off a powerful beam, but it is limited to 2 uses.

A dragon’s horns store magical energy and amplify power…? So you have to be careful with those. Apparently it is the horns that affect the weather, which is why Malleus’s mood alters it.

They think they can take Malleus out just by grazing the corner of his horns? So accuracy is important. Silver and Sebek will train in a virtual space to prepare.

Silver and Sebek say farewell to Yuu and Grim. Silver wants to be able to meet them again when he wakes up 😭 AWWWWW

Idia and Ortho go off to have their battle map with Malleus. WaH ORTHO 🥺 He says he and Idia were able to have an adventure at NRC… the same thing he promised when they were kids…

OH MY GOD WTF 💀

Idia uses his UM to open Tartarus and summon his own Phantom army to help him fight Malleus and his army of darkness. Phantom!Ortho rises up too??!!!?!! AND GE GOES BUMBBUMBUMB 😭 and compliments robo!Ortho’s new gear, calling it cute… 🥰

I can't believe all three Shroud brothers came together for this... INCLUDING THE DEAD ONE

Malleus keeps pushing his agenda and Idia counters by saying he hates having others impose their views on him. Does Malleus realize it yet? He’s a ruler of evil, not of good.

AHHHHHH crap OTL Malleus rescinds his blessing (because he finally realizes Idia and co. are only able to stand up to him because of dream hacking. But in the real world, they’re only a smidgen of his strength—so now he’s removing the thons and taking this fight into the real world.

THAT’S WHERE THIS UPDATE ENDS…

I did not think they would stretch the final fight out to be THIS long, but lo and behold, Twst proved me wrong 💀 Again, not a fan of this pacing but I understand what the thought process behind it probably was ("we need to show everyone working together, everyone needs their time to shine!"). I especially felt that Heartslabyul's segment was way too long, but perhaps that's a byproduct of how many members there are there??

asdilbyailbyraiyorqo3iyrt3768ot3aegoffwOI I THINK I SPEAK FOR ALL OF US WHEN I SAY MY MIND WAS BLOWN WHEN I SAW IDIA'S "CHEAT TOOL" WAS TWISTED WONDERLAND ITSELF 💀 To use the design of a mobile gacha game to contain the Big Bad, as well as to summon the heroes to save the day... That's so meta??? I just have no words for this other than that, I've been stunned into silence. How very fitting for the otaku to use THIS as his oh-so-clever solution 💦💦💦

Even though I want more than anything for book 7 to just END already, I will say that I liked how minor characters are being pulled into this fight as well. We have tons of support from the Shroud parents and S.T.Y.X. staff, Ortho going to fetch the NRC staff (I assume they will be appearing later?), other family members pitching in (Maleficia, Baur, OG!Ortho), and even RANDOM MOB STUDENTS. As a mob student appreciator, you cannot believe how much I love that for them. It feels like everyone genuinely plays an important role in this story, not just the main cast of NRC.

The highlight for me as definitely the Shroud brothers reunion. HJBDSBYIAFIS I KNOW IT'S JSUT A DREAM AND OG!ORTHO CAN'T ACTUALLY RISE FROM THE DEAD WHENEVER HE LIKES IRL BUT I LOVE THE IDEA OF WANTING TO STRIKE DOWN A MAN SO BAD YOU DEFY THE LAWS OF LIFE AND DEATH TO DO IT. He gets along so well with robo!Ortho and has a mischievously cute side to him 😭

This update makes mystium and its properties relevant again (it was mentioned like once in the beginning of book 7). It's so cool that what was Lilia's weapon of war back then is now reborn into a world-saving sword and shield for his disciples to use. It feels like a dad passing on his family heirloom to the next generation.

Speaking of Lilia???? Surely he'll rejoin us next time, right????? RIGHT??????? ?? ?? ??? ? Maybe with the staff??? And since the thorns have retreated... maybe we'll even get backup from RSA students and mages from other countries (since this is an international incident now)??????? ???? ? WILL ALL OF TWISTED WONDERLAND COME TOGETHER TO COLLECTIVELY KICK MALLEUS'S ASS...

UUUUUUUUUUGGHGHHHHHHHH H HHH H HHHHH HH H HH OTL *rakes hands over my face* My stomach's clenching in anticipation for the conclusion, but I'm not even sure if next time will even wrap everything up 💦 How will it go…? The 10th can’t come soon enough…

[astrobydalia]

Vietnamese astrology observations

Some observations on the Vietnamese astrology signs to celebrate the lunar new year. Disclaimer: these are based on observations and experiences from my pov as a dragon lmao As always credits to @novy2sirius for the inspo and knowledge of these things.

astrobydalia

🎋I've rarely seen Tigers getting married or having a relationship that lasted more than 1-2 years💀​💀 But the few ones that I've seen with stable marriages had spouses who were incredibly independent, someone who they admire and acts like they don't need/want the tiger person all that much. When tigers have these kinds of parters, they seem to be the most devoted and engaged in their relationships

​​💮​Tigers are highly attracted to danger (e.g. Mr Beast), sometimes to very concerning extents

​​💮​Tigers 🤝 having the attention span of an ipad kid. They like to command attention to themselves but don't like it when others demand their attention

​​💮​Which speaking of, Tigers ooze main character energy I’ve noticed. They are the star of the show and they know it. It's hard to not notice them in a room and honestly they really do have that 'it' factor, have this ‘unique’ energy to them (I think Lady Gaga is very representative of this vibe)

​​💮​My honest opinion on Tigers tho is that they’re annoying af, tend to be very abrupt and the kind of people who don’t know when it’s time to stop and stfu. Tiger men in particular I’ve noticed tend to say and do very inappropriate things often.... However I've seen older/more mature tigers that are pretty chill and simply have BDE

🎋Cats/Rabbits have beautiful smiles and a very youthful look to them. I’ve noticed however that they tend to smirk a lot, often appear cunning and mischievous cause they looooove messing with people, a lot of teasing and provoking. Very witty.

​​💮​Also, cats/rabbits are pretty horny and slutty. Even when they don't talk about sex at all their energy is very sensual, they come off as "easy" iykwim

​​💮​I’ve also noticed cats/rabbits have like some glow to them idk they look like this ✨🎀🪄 to me

🎋Horses are talented and really good at their job and crafts but they are also kinda bland and uninteresting tbh. On a surface level, they are cool cause they are rather playful, social and very engaging, they also have an approachable and warm aura. However they feel a lil vapid and superficial to me after some time. They don't look deeper into things and don't consider long-term consequences. They're also pretty aloof and inexpressive a lot of times

​​💮​Horses are very agile tho both mentally and physically. They are quick to respond to immediate or short-term situations/problems and I've also seen they are prone to be on the go 24/7

​​💮​I’ve also noticed horses tend to look strong, fit, muscular or in shape even when they don’t go to the gym

🎋I don't initially gravitate towards snakes but I always end up vibing with them incredibly well. Very profound, intelligent and insightful people. They have a lot of knowledge and wisdom about life. If you are looking to have philosophical convos they will totally deliver, both street smart+book smart

​​💮​It's extremely hard to get close to them on a personal level tho. They have sus energy and seem to hide a shit ton of things about themselves.

​​💮​Snakes are also very good at easing themselves into leading positions, they sneakily take charge of situations.

​​💮​Snakes have a wild side when underdeveloped tho. A lot of snakes I know are into conspiracy theories and/or are all about this idea of going against the system or the stablished rules but like in a very unhinged way. Tend to also make apparently mindless decisions that make ppl go "wtf are you doing?". In many cases they can become controversial af (e.g. Kanye, JK Rowling)

​​💮​Something I’ve noticed a lot with Snakes is that they tend to randomly ghost people. They’re the kind of people who you never really know where you stand with them unless y’all are super duper close. Tend be secretly very judgmental and have a very all-or-nothing mindset in their relationships (obsessive AF). They play A LOT of mind games with ppl all the time

🎋Both Tigers and snakes have difficult love lives and are prone to getting in abusive relationships. What I’ve seen with snakes in particular is that they tend to be the toxic and manipulative ones most of the times (e.g. Chris Brown). With tigers I've seen it go both ways but what stands out with them is that they tend to get in relationships where there is a MAYOR power imbalance in some way such as huge age gap or things like that (e.g. Amber Heard or Marylin Monroe). Tigers are attracted to forbidden people and that's also why they are the most prone to cheat

🎋RoostersI've noticed have very neat features, sharp jawlines, high cheekbones, nice lips, etc. They always look really snatched af and their bodies seem to have perfect proportions regardless of their body type.

​​💮​And yeah I've seen they are indeed the most arrogant out of all the signs here

🎋Both Snakes and Roosters are rather funny and sarcastic, but roosters pull it off more naturally. They guenienly have an unbothered and unserious vibe to them so humor comes to them effortlessly even when they don't try at all. With snakes it feels like they are intentionally trying to be punny so it doesn't land the same a lot of times

​​💮​A lot of roosters have memorable moments that become iconic memes😭:

​​💮​A lot of Roosters ik actually do not think of themselves as being funny or charming at all. They usually describe themselves as serious and hardworking

🎋Dragons have a very large and in charge personality, they often appear chill and normal at first glance but I’ve noticed they tend to be known for being unapologetic and highly expressive (Rihanna, Ryan Raynolds, Emma Stone, Adele, Kenue Reeves)

​​💮​When developed dragons quite literally and genuinely don’t give a fuck what people think, say or do to them. “Im just doing me” energy

​​💮​Dragons tend to enhance their own self-importance as a defense mechanism when they’re insecure tho. They might or might not be the most confident but they’d rather die than let others see that

​​💮​Dragons very often lack self-accountability or self awareness and tend to not handle conflict well. They are prone to having one-sided beef with people who aren't even thinking about them, I’ve seen this so much!!!!💀💀😭 It's giving:

​​💮​On that same line, Dragons tend to be advocates against mean or bad ppl I've noticed but this often manifests as them getting in personal vendettas about things that have absolutely nothing to do with them. So a lot of times all they're doing is causing a chaos nobody asked for

🎋Goats I wanna protect tf out of them. It's so hard to stay mad at them fr, they have the most endearing energy and they're very popular from what I've observed.

​​💮​When underdeveloped goats have the worst emotional intelligence and tend to be very emotionally volatile. Tend to take things personally very easily and make other people pay for their own issues

​​💮​Goats are the definition of a simp when in love or in a relationship. They LOVE romance and tend to be really good at it as well

​​💮​Goats are very soft spoken too!! I always find myself LOVING their voice or the way they speak, it's really soothing and hypnotic

🎋I honestly don’t like monkeys all that much, I can vibe with them cause we’re friend signs or whatever but they tend to be pretty childish, emotionally immature and self-centered imo. They can be very deep and intelligent but also fail to be responsible and take things seriously a lot of times

​​💮​The good side of them is that they are very creative and they are the type of person that never gets old to have around, they have many hidden talents

​​💮​Something else I like about Monkeys is they are really good with kids and are very family oriented. They truly love children and will prioritize the younger people in their life whether it’s their own kids, their siblings, etc

​​💮​I've also noticed Monkeys can be big big liars. They lie a lot and for no reason at all.

🎋Pigs aren't really all that ambitious, what they mainly want out of life is to live with as much comfort, ease and financial stability as possible and that's it. The good thing about this is that this can make them rather genuine people, not the type to have a hidden agenda or anything like that

​​💮​Pigs tend to be lazy but they can be hardworking at the same time. They drag their feet to do anything but when they finally bring themselves to put in the work they actually deliver great results. They are VERY financially smart too, you can count on them to get high-value and high-quality stuff

​​💮​Honestly pigs actually have a lot of potential, they can be very disciplined but their main thing is that they expect everything to be handed to them on a silver platter

​​💮​I’ve noticed pigs are very likable but also tend to be socially awkward at the same time. They're like that one introverted person everyone loves and wants in the group

🎋I don't vibe with oxes for some reason. They appear calm, unassuming and grounded but my god they are strategic, calculating and ruthless affff. Very self-righteous too, have a very unapproachable energy😭

​​💮​Oxes have a very harsh and cold “you gotta do what you gotta do” mindset and which can be really good but I think that's what I find the most unsettling about them. If you try to appeal to their more emotive side once they’ve set their mind on something they’ll look at you like this:

​​💮​Oxes are very disciplined and resilient tho. If people try to tear them down those people will fail miserably. Truly a force to be reconned with

​​💮​Oxes are super duper loyal too in EVERY aspect of their life, similar to dogs

​​💮​A lot of oxes that I've seen were surprisingly into occult as well or were into holistic forms of self-improvement. They can be very "zen" people

🎋Oxes and pigs are the most materialistic signs from what I've seen.

🎋Snakes and dragons are the biggest gatekeepers. Not just with material things but with anything that is valuable to them and gives them sense of power (think of the legends of dragons always guarding a treasure and the sneaky and secretive nature of snakes)

🎋Rats are usually very playful and energetic I’ve seen but in a more graceful and charming way. Very good entertainers and cool people to have around to be honest, another sign that tends to be popular.

​​💮​Rats seem to be all-rounders, very adaptable, fast learners and open-minded which is the main reason why I've seen they find success in the matrix.

​​💮​The main negative I’ve seen with rats tho is that they can be rather opportunistic and hypocritical but they hide this very well. They’re really good at sweet talking others and staying in people’s good graces. Very manipulative and deceitful, they can easily hide any ulterior motives and appear genuine to others

​​💮​A lot of Rats I know are interested in health and wellness in some way, having good hygiene, eating good food, working out, meditating, etc. Cooking in particular is a big thing with them I've noticed

🎋Dogs feel very mid to me….. I recognize they are MUCH more creative, intelligent and clever than horses imo but their go with the flow energy can make them very unoriginal or predictable.

​​💮​Dogs are also the definition of “same old story”. Strong tendency to stay stuck in the past, going back to their old ways and never really reinventing themselves

​​💮​The good thing about this tho is that its true dogs are loyal and consistent af tho, the kind of loyalty and devotion most people would only wish to find in someone and they are also peaceful, compromising and charming

​​💮​Dogs are very pretty too, they clean up nicely but I've noticed they tend to be super insecure about their image

​​💮​Dogs appear kind and trustworthy regardless of what kind of person they are deep down. Either they're genuinely very lawful and righteous people or very fake and phony, the type to smile to your face while planning to murder you in their heads

That's all folks!

astrobydalia

[egglain]

Letters to Santa

Rating: E (18+) - mdni Pairing: Nanami x GN! reader Content: dickcember day 4 - sexting, at work, desire

if there’s a prompt + character you want to see next, requests are open! send an ask :)

Nanami Kento was a hard worker.

He always clocked in on time, took his lunch at the same time, left his desk right as the clock hit 5.

Which is why this could not happen.

Mouth full of rice– part of the pretty bento you had packed him that morning– he had opened his phone for the first time this shift. 3 unopened message badges lit up his screen. This was always his favourite time of day; the moment he gets to hear your thoughts, to wish you a good lunch.

On his screen, at full brightness, he opened his text app.

hi <3

[1 image attached]

hope u like :) see u soon!

Nanami Kento was a hard worker.

As in– his cock had never been harder at work.

Fuck.

Thick, strong fingers typed a speedy response as white teeth worried the inside of his cheek.

Darling.

Fuck.

***

Taking a bite of your sandwich, you couldn’t help but grin at Nanami’s curt response.

Your handsome husband was perfect in every way– attentive, thoughtful, competent. The only downside? He was uptight. As fuck.

So to swear?

And at work, nonetheless?

You wish you could see him now– even if it was just as a fly on the wall.

yes, kento? <3

You finished your sandwich, calm as ever. You could witness him squirm all day without batting an eyelash– he was so easy to tease.

Five minutes passed; you put away your lunch, settling back in your rolling chair as you scrolled mindlessly on your phone.

Your lock screen lit up with a notification from Hubby <3.

[1 image attached]

Nanami Kento– your gorgeous, composed, responsible husband– was a nasty little freak.

The photo was taken from above, angled downwards in an industrial grey bathroom stall. A spotted tie was trapped between pearly teeth, chiselled jaw working the fabric. A brown leather belt hung open, khaki pressed chinos unzipped and pushed down blonde-dusted thighs.

Look what you did.

Nanami’s veiny left hand wrapped around the shaft of a pretty cock. Blonde dusted his abdomen, trimmed neatly to frame his pale, girthy base. 

Fix this.

Now.

Those eyes bore into yours through the screen. He wouldn’t take no for an answer; not when he was like this.

As much as you wanted relief yourself, you knew better than to scurry off to a bathroom stall. Nanami Kento was like a bloodhound; he always knew when you had satisfied yourself (in his words). He did not take kindly to the idea, much preferring to have you unravel on his fingers, tongue, or cock.

This was a test, of sorts– if you could stay strong, get through the day being good, your reward would be so much sweeter than any half-assed release you got from your left hand now.

so needy <3

As much as he played the role of a put-together, dominant husband, Nanami Kento flustered so beautifully under your subtle teasing.

[0:14]

A voice note popped up on your screen. Fumbling for your earbuds and triple checking they connected, you hit play.

Through heavy breaths, soft grunts punctuated the rustling of what you presumed to be his arm– if the soft plaps were anything to go by.

aww,,, touching yourself, bby? 

at work? 

u just wanna get found

Somewhere across the city, a very red Nanami Kento fucked his fist harder.

[0:32]

This time, it was a video.

The breaths were louder. It was taken low, clearly filmed using his thighs to steady the camera. The dull, blushed head of his dick was slicked beautifully; clear precum welled up at his tip as that big hand fisted his cock. Long fingers spanned his length, stroking his many inches from base to tip. As he reached the head, strong digits squeezed, wringing out his precum and running the pad of a thumb through the mess. 

He looked utterly edible.

just like that, bby

keep goin for me

You grinned, taking a peek around your cubicle to ensure you were alone. Most of your coworkers were long gone for lunch, so there wasn’t much danger, though it was a very public space.

Still, you couldn’t help unbuttoning the top of your shirt, snapping a sneaky picture of your chest.

[sent: 1 image]

need u bby <3

waiting so good 4 u rn

You had no idea just how much you affected your composed husband.

Fuck

Dotn say that shit

A typo AND two swear words? Oh, he was fucked up.

Seconds later, it loaded.

[1 image attached]

A shaky photo, taken from above just like the first. His pretty cock stood angry against his abdomen, red from tip to base. Veins strained against his thin skin, dick so beautifully swollen. A sinful bead of his thick seed drooped heavy, mid-roll down his shaft. The ropes of his release sullied his hands, connecting those thick fingers with pearlescent strings.

You wanted to put your mouth on it.

need u so bad kento.

A beat.

Yeah? Wet at work, darling?

Naughty as fuck, sending me lewd pictures like that. What if Higuruma had seen?

I’m sure you’d like that, wouldn’t you, slut?

No touching yourself.

You’ll cum enough tonight.

banners by @strangergraphics!

[shoyododo]

short n' sweet.

+ s. hinata x reader, timeskip, suggestive, 1 year age gap

short and sweet.

those were the words that came to mind if someone asked you how you'd describe your underclassman, hinata shoyo.

although he was only a year younger than you when you met him, you always saw him as just a cute and cheery kid. he was always full of energy and enthusiasm, and always so sweet to you whenever you interacted.

the two of you met your second year of high school through nishinoya. upon his request, you tried your best to tutor him and help raise his grades. honestly, you did it out of pity after seeing his horrifyingly low scores. in return, he personally invited you to his practices and games, introducing you to his fellow teammates. it wasn't exactly a fair exchange, you thought, but you humored him nonetheless.

the first time you agreed to watch, you remember nishinoya excitedly introducing you to his favorite underclassman. you were surprised to be met with what you could only describe as a mini nishinoya, though he was slightly taller and more polite. since then, hinata would always greet you sweetly and well-manneredly, and you would return his greetings with compliments on his plays. mainly because you thought the way he stammered and flustered when you praised him was so cute. your compliments were genuine, nonetheless. he really was without a doubt, an impressive player.

for the rest of high school, you would keep running into him between classes and at games. you two went from acquaintances to friends and you remember him quite fondly.

so to say that you were in disbelief about three years later, when your previously short and sweet hinata has you pressed against the wall of your apartment, towering over your figure, gripping your hips and hungrily marking your neck, would be an understatement.

what.

what.

sure, you know a lot can change in the span of a few years but you had no idea it could change this much. once a scrawny and adorable kid is now built, muscular, and to your horror, very handsome. of course you had attended his first official match and noticed the change, but seeing him up close and personal has you weak. or maybe that was due to his firm, large hands sliding under the hem of your shirt and going higher and higher.

this was certainly not the outcome you expected when he invited you to hang out "for old time's sake", but you can't exactly bring yourself to complain. especially not when he brings himself up from your neck to kiss you breathless, leaving you to grasp at his shirt, his hair, anything to keep your knees from buckling over.

"fuck y/n… y-you have no idea how long- i've been waiting to do that" he tells you softly between kisses.

your mind is still trying to play catch-up, fuzzy from the way he's been feeling you up. despite the shock, your mind is screaming to you. don't stop. keep going. fuck, this feels so good.

when he pulls back to scan your face for any signs hesitance or rejection, you wrap your arms around his neck to pull him closer and whisper in his ear.

"show me then, shoyo".

when you move to kiss him on the cheek, you see him wide eyed and even redder than before. a second later, he's lifting you up by the thighs. you gasp at the sudden movement, as well as the fact that he's gotten so strong, lifting you with ease and carrying you to the bedroom without issue.

+ + +

when you wake up the next morning, sore and groggy, you notice he's already awake. the way he looks at you with such affection and softness was overwhelming. there is no awkwardness, only a fond, heartwarming feeling in your chest as he shyly confesses his feelings for you along with his intentions on taking you out on a date, spoiling you, and making you his. how can you refuse such an offer? you realize despite the drastic change in his appearance, he's still just as adorable as when you first met him.

you find it even more adorable when you go to use the bathroom and overhear him gushing to his friends on the phone about how he finally asked out his pretty upperclassman, the girl he's has a huge crush on since high school.

hinata shoyo is still your short n' sweet guy, and you wouldn't have it any other way.

did someone say shoyo carpenter!!!

[aethon-recs]

This Month (January) in Tomarrymort (1 – 31 January 2025)

So many wonderful fics and updates were posted in January! The Tomarrymort tag on AO3 is officially at 15,508 fics at the time of this posting — after hitting 15,000 only just in mid-December. That’s so many new fics in the last month and a half — congratulations to all the writers in our (no longer so) little ship on all their hard work! 

This post got a bit long and unwieldy since it’s been a few weeks, so I’ve split it up into two parts (Part 1 - completed fics + one shots; Part 2 - ongoing fics). Be sure to check the reblogs or click here for Part 2 (Ongoing fics). I’m going back to a biweekly update schedule after this, sorry to everyone for the delay 🤍

*

Tomarrymort Completed Fics

friend of the devil (a friend of mine) by @shyinsunlight (E, 28k, complete)

There’s something very unsettling about Tom Riddle. Whether it’s the way he moves, all long limbs and eerie fluidity, the dissecting gaze he follows them with, or the way he speaks, with an accent that doesn’t match his manners. Maybe it’s how he drinks in Harry’s presence like a religious zealot, or how his eyes wander over Harry’s body as if he’s seen the skin and flesh underneath before.

the horror and the wild by @boyneptunee (NR, 21k, complete)

Time travel AU where there's an antique shop that acts like a portal, a ghoul that behaves like a cat and an armchair that could possibly be a puppy. OR: Harry and Tom find themselves in the middle of a string of murders that threaten to pull them under. They must find the culprits before it's too late.

Lovely Bitter Water by @pagesinmylife (T, 30k, complete)

After stabbing the diary, Harry is haunted by the ghost of sixteen year old Tom Riddle. Unfortunately, he seems to be the only one who can see him. OR: Tom Riddle decides to haunt Harry Potter in order to fill his need for attention and validation. It goes about as well as you'd expect.

Time Stumbler by @wintumnly (T, 126k, complete)

When the enigma named Harry Potter stumbled into his world, Tom couldn't have been more unimpressed. That’s not about to stop Harry from adopting him and changing both of their lives. Harry's mission to stop a future Dark Lord’s murder spree and return to a better future and Tom’s pursuit to rule the world and achieve immortality inevitably clashes, and they’ll end up changing the world together. Hopefully, in Harry’s favor.

Touch of Death by @moontearpensfic (E, 9k, complete)

"I don't want to die," Tom informs Death. After a particularly harsh winter at Wool's, Tom Riddle wants to live forever. He calls to Death to bargain for immortality.

An Exquisite Tomarrymort Corpse 2024 by @exquisitetomarrymortcorpse (NR, 35k, complete)

A collection of 21 artists’ and writers' works spanning almost a year, seamlessly stitched together to create an exquisite Tomarrymort corpse. An Exquisite Corpse is a game in which each participant adds to a fanfiction in sequence by only being allowed to see the end of what the previous person contributed.

*

Tomarrymort One Shots

One Shot | strong-armed and dangerous by @duplicitywrites

One Shot | Eternal Hunt by @metalomagnetic

One Shot | pruning shears by @boyneptunee

One Shot | Kill his darlings by @sri-verse

One Shot | The Faculty of Sight by @duplicitywrites

One Shot | housewives' club by esotericmuse

One Shot | Tom Riddle And The Case Of The New Eye-Phone by anonymous

One Shot | say my name (and every color illuminates) by lilacscented

One Shot | 1 in 10 people you know may be an eldritch being by @izharmilgram

One Shot | 5 Reverse Tropes + 1 Trope (OR: The time Tom seduced Harry) by epi_tome

One Shot | tomorrow contains tom by @octoir

One Shot | Ravenous for the Ravishing by @bubbleversity

One Shot | all that is conquered (where we revel in our verities) by @inarticulateimbecile

One Shot | Sell the Sinner the Sins by @neurowriter14

One Shot | Stalker with Benefits by @unrealexistence

One Shot | The Pre-Flight Mile High Club by @moontearpensfic @duplicitywrites

One Shot | you chain me, i chain you by RajaMarika

One Shot | The Manor by @se7enriddles

One Shot | sulphur by @cealesti

One Shot | Beloved by @moontearpensfic

One Shot | How to lose your dignity in 4 steps: Tom Riddle edition by Hina_97

One Shot | I was born depraved (hungry) by lovelycatharsis

*

(These following fics updated December 20-31, but I wanted to include these here just in case anyone missed the updates!)

Chapters 66 and 67 of draw me after you (let us run) by @toast-ranger-to-a-stranger

Chapter 4 of Crush by @chiocchi

Chapter 2 of Of a Feather by @officialsporkintheroad

Chapter 2 of Reign by @syntheticsoulmates

Chapter 2 of Time Traveling Tomfoolery by @corpium

Chapters 42 through 53 of Terrible, But Great by @isalisewrites

Chapter 44 of Of Monsters, Of Men by @ca-xan-dra

Chapter 6 of Goodbye Evergreen by @v33r00

Chapter 21 of with eyes like these (who sees anybody else) by @cealesti

Chapter 1 of Anything You Like (Within Reason) by @ramabear

Chapter 65 of Holly & Yew by @lovely-lotus

Chapters 1 and 2 of Igual a morte by Limerencia_Obscura

*

[nats-w1fe]

Worse or Even Worse: 1

Natalie Scatorccio x Reader/Shauna Shipman x Reader

Summary: When your soccer team finally got into nationals, what you least expected was for your plane to crash. Not to mention having to deal with your girlfriend suddenly acting strangely.

Word count: 5.7k

Entire series warnings: Non-con, abuse, substance abuse, gore, violence, strong language, abusive relationship, sub-con, toxic relationships, love triangle sort of and more probably

Warnings: Plane crash, hints and mentions to cheating, alcohol, toxic relationship, drug use, oral sex, semi-public sex, gore, mentions of blood, vomit, probably bad writing

Characters included: Reader, Natalie Scatorccio, Lottie Mathews, Shauna Shipman, Jackie Taylor, Van Palmer, Taissa Turner and other Yellowjackets

A/n:  Originally this was going to be a one shot but then I decided to just make it a series that spans out to the whole of Yellowjackets. There will be like around 8 parts to the series so yeahh!

I’m still writing drabbles so please give requests!

You watched from the bench as Taissa passed the ball to your girlfriends feet, you cheered for her. “Go Nat!” you exclaimed, waving your arm about. You noticed the grin growing on her lips. You chuckled and watched her easily swerve past someone and then chip the ball into the air. It flew towards Jackie, who headed it right into the goal. The final whistle blew, causing everyone to erupt into cheers. Your team had won.

You ran onto the pitch to your friends, wrapping your arms around Jackie in a tight hug, “Shit we won!” she laughed, squeezing you tight. You grinned and pulled away but was then instantly pulled back into another hug by Shauna,

“You guys played really well!” you told them all collectively.

You would’ve been playing too if you hadn’t injured your ankle during training. Coach insisted you sit out to prevent further injury so that you could still play for nationals and of course you listened. You weren’t a major loss to the team anyway, you rarely got the ball passed to you and whenever it was you panicked and kicked it to a random direction. You were also the only sophomore. And while sure there was a freshman on the team too, so you weren’t the youngest, everyone saw you as the baby of the team. Probably because you were Jackie’s little sister.

You spotted Natalie, she had her arm around Lottie’s shoulder. You felt a slight tinge of jealousy hit you but you quickly covered it up as you made your way over. Nat looked at you with a wide smile, releasing Lottie from her hold and instead wrapping her arms around your waist. You went up on the tips of your toes and connected your lips with hers.

You had been dating Natalie for a few months now. It was at your 16th birthday that she asked you out and you instantly said yes. Though at first you did have some concerns. You had heard lots of rumours about Natalie cheating on girls, leading girls on and using girls for sex. She dated Lottie before you but they broke up for a reason you weren’t aware of. Lottie was the only girl Natalie didn’t cheat, use or lead on.

Jackie, being the ever most protective sister, warned you that Natalie was really just a player. She could be nasty at times too and was always either high or drunk. But you were happy with Nat, you didn’t care what people said about her. She was Nat, your Nat. Sure she did have a drinking and drug problem but that was just her way of coping with her home life. She never got high around you though, she told you she never wanted you to see her In that state or even have to smell it on her. You could never tell her that she actually smelt of weed all the time, it wasn’t strong, but it was subtle. Always there, you’d grown to actually like it a bit. It comforted you in some weird way.

---

You made your way to practice with your bag slung over your shoulder. You had your hair done up in a messy bun that day. It wasn’t a slick back bun. It was sort of loose and you had a few strands of her hanging out the front, framing your face nicely. Shauna walked next to you, talking about something random. Admittedly, you had zoned out quite early on in her ramble. Your brows knitted together when you saw Natalie, Taissa, Lottie and Van standing together and conferring in hushed tones. It seemed sort of intense. You walked over.

“...This is what we’ve been working for all season. You really want to take that chance?” Taissa asked, you only really caught the end of her sentence so you had no clue what they meant.

“Yeah. ‘Cause I’m not a fucking asshole” Van responded, her brows furrowed and hand clutching onto her bag,

“What are you guys talking about?” you finally asked, standing next to Natalie and taking her hand in yours. She kept a tight grip on your hand.

They all glanced towards Allie, who was flirting with some boys. Her hand touching their arms as she giggled at their jokes. You grimaced slightly at the sight,

“Allie” Lottie stated plainly,

“What about her?” Shauna then asked. You almost forgot she was there. You weren’t too close with Shauna as you were with the rest of the team but you had known her for ages seeing as she was Jackie’s best friend,

“Did you black out at States? She totally choked” Taissa said, almost chuckling as she said it.

It was true, Allie was worse than you and that was saying something. She quite literally ran away from the ball, numerous times.

“She’s a freshman, Tai” you told her, defending Allie.

“She’s a liability” Natalie finally spoke up. You furrowed your brows, slightly, she wasn’t defending Allie? You wondered if she spoke about you like this to the team. You let go of her hand. Shauna glanced back, you looked and saw Jackie was here too. You wondered when she just spawned in.

“What do you want to do about it?” Shauna suddenly asked.

Natalie gave Taissa a look that said go ahead, tell her. Taissa sighed,

“She can’t screw up if she doesn’t get the ball” she suddenly said, you furrowed your brows. Shauna then asked,

“You want to freeze her out?”

“We’d basically be a man down at nationals” you reasoned, surprised they were even considering something like this,

“At least we’d know what we’re working with” Natalie said, defending Taissa. You scoffed and looked at her, about to speak up till Lottie did instead,

“I don’t know. She kinda sucks, but... it doesn’t feel right”

It was like a switch had flipped inside Natalie,

“That’s because it’s bullshit” she said all of a sudden. Everyone looked confused, you looked at her, “You were literally just agreeing with her” you said to her, almost like it was a question. She simply shrugged. Taissa rolled her eyes, giving a ‘fuck you’ look to you and Nat,

“Oh yeah? What’s your plan, then?”

“I dunno, play like a fucking team and win? It’s worked so far” Shauna answered, suddenly getting defensive and stepping forward. She stood closer to you now.

“Everything works until it doesn’t” then; to Natalie, “And for the record, you smell like a wino. Get your shit together” she suddenly said, your eyes widened and you grabbed Nat’s hand once again, “What the fuck Tai?” you questioned her sudden outburst, usually the whole team got along together well.

Natalie took a step towards her, you fully thought she was about to swing. She paused,

“You know what?” she let go of your hand, “Fuck this” she quickly walked off. You sighed, “Thanks a lot Tai” you sighed, she gave you a bit of a sympathetic look but you missed it as you quickly walked after Nat.

---

You tied the laces on your soccer shoes then stood up. Coach Ben chucked a red sports bib at you, you grimaced and put it on. They always stank of sweat. You ran onto the pitch.

After doing various stretches and Laura Lee thanking Jesus or some shit, the match started. Shauna dribbled up field, easily manoeuvring around the defender. Allie raced open on her left -- but Shauna ignored her, opting for a trickier pass to Van. When– Natalie darted in and redirected the ball to Allie, who fumbled...then panicked as the defence closed in, sending a wild pass out of bounds. Coach Scott blew his whistle. You caught the grin Natalie threw to Taissa.

Shauna and Taissa, the best on the team, both took a series of shots. They worked together to keep Allie out of play, and of course Natalie took every chance she could to get in the way of that. You sighed at their messing about. Jackie shot you a look, mouthing,

“the fuck is going on?”

Taissa then suddenly gestured for a time out and jogged over to Coach Scott. You couldn’t hear their conference, but got the gist when Taissa stripped off her red pinny. As she handed it over another player, she was now playing against Allie. You muttered a curse under your breath.

“C’mon, Varsity. Your own defence wants to see you step it up. And frankly, that makes two of us” Coach Scott called out, “Let’s see some hustle!” He blew the whistle.

The second it kicked off Taissa was all over Allie, crowding her and talking shit. This was going too far, you thought. You ran over, planning to get Allie to pass to you so Taissa would back off. Allie passed the ball to you, you managed to dribble past Shauna. You were surprised by your own sudden show of skill and clearly was everyone else. You saw Allie was open so you passed to her.

Taissa didn’t waste a second before slide tackling Allie, hard. Allie hit the ground with a thud and groaned. The ball rolled out of bounds again. Coach Scott blew the whistle and held up a yellow card. Jackie jogged over to Taissa,

“What’s your problem?” she asked her, her brows furrowed. Tai held her hands up in defence, playing dumb,

“What?”

“Just, ease up”

Once Jackie walked off, you jogged over to Tai as all the players got ready for the throw in,

“C’mon, Ty. This isn’t helping” you told her, Taissa simply shrugged, “Y/n, If we can’t freeze her out, she’s gonna have to learn to play under pressure” before you could respond the whistle blew again. The match continued on and Taissa didn’t back down from being rough on Allie, you watched, feeling guilty. You even wondered if they’d do this to you.

Natalie passed the ball to Allie who grimaced in concentration, negotiating the ball around Taissa with a slick turn. She then shouldered Taissa, knocking her slightly. She sprinted to get it open, Taissa hot on her heels. Shauna fired a long-lofted pass, Allie and Taissa both vying for the ball as it arcs high in the air. And then…

Allie jumped for the header and Taissa instinctively jutted her foot out, catching allie’s ankle as she came back down.

CRACK.

There was a sickening, audible snap as Allie’s leg seemingly collapsed – buckling and breaking in a compound fractyre that is, simply put, a total perversion of the human form. You gasped and everyone went silent and there was an eerie stillness as Allie collapsed on the field.

You then caught sight of her leg and you felt bile rise in your throat, her fucking bone was sticking out. Blood was practically everywhere. You hear Lottie scream at the sight and everyone looked horrified. You ran off to the side, throwing up. Someone came up behind you, holding your hair back for you.

“Hey hey…your okay, let it out” you recognised the comforting voice to belong to Shauna. You wiped your mouth and stood up. Natalie ran over to you, you could’ve sworn she shot a glare to Shauna, but you couldn’t care. Not right now

“Hey, you okay?” Nat asked you, rubbing your back gently. You nodded and hugged her, burying your face In her neck. She quietly shushed you, telling you Allie would be okay. You hated the sight of blood; you couldn’t handle it at all.

---

You all sat in the changing room in near silence as everyone got dressed. Everyone was clearly still a little shell shocked. Natalie pulled your shirt down over your head for you, even after insisting you were fine to do it yourself. You then noticed she had a death glare on her face, you followed her gaze to Taissa who sat by herself, avoiding everyone’s gaze.

Jackie looked around at her team. Taking a deep breath,

“I know we’re all worried about Allie. But I really think we need to focus on the positive right now. It might not be as bad as it looks” she said, trying to be positive. Natalie looked at her as she said,

“You could see her fucking bones, Jackie. I’m pretty sure it’s exactly as bad as it looks”

The image returned to your mind and you frowned, feeling that familiar sickness rise again,

“Oh god, I think I’m gonna puke again...” you said, Jackie glared at Natalie, unused to her authority being questioned. Trying to recover --

“I mean, we’re still a team. And we still have each other. And...” She looked to Shauna for backup. But Shauna looked away, Laura Lee then randomly spoke up and said,

“...And we have Jesus.”

“This wasn’t exactly a big win for the power of prayer, Tammy Faye.” Lottie returned, giving her a look of disgust. You sighed and ran your hand through your hair,

“The Lord works in mysterious wa—” Laura Lee was cut off from what she was saying when there was a loud bang. Everyone looked at Natalie

She slammed her locker shut, clearly not interested in a theological discussion. You quickly got up, grabbing your bag, just as you were about to leave you felt Shauna grab your hand. You looked at her in confusion, “You okay?” she asked you, seeming quite concerned. You smiled slightly and nodded,

“Yeah I’m fine, don’t worry” you let go of her hand and went bag to Nat who took your bag, giving Shauna particularly nasty look as she stormed out.

You held Nat’s hand as she leaned against the brick wall, letting out a heavy sigh. You stood in front of her, quite close.

“You okay?” you asked, she didn’t answer for a moment. Then suddenly she reached into her pocket and pulled out a joint, you furrowed your brows, “I will be” she said simply, grabbing her lighter too. You gently held her wrist, lowering it so the joint was away from her lips, “No Nat, there’re other ways to cope…” you told her, looking up at her with those pleading eyes you knew she loved. Something in her expression faltered though.

“Whats wrong?” you asked her. She only shook her head, standing up suddenly which forced you to stumble back a bit. “Nothing, I’ll see you at the party later” was all she said before walking off. You watched her go; confusion etched over your face.

--

At home, you got changed in Jackie’s room with her and Shauna. You watched as Shauna picked out an outfit, clearly being indecisive. “What about this one?” Jackie asked, picking up a yellow dress. Shauna grimaced and shook her head frantically. You giggled and as you did, Shauna looked at you with a smile. You stood up and walked over. “How about um…this” you picked out some clothes for her, she immediately nodded, “Yeah that’s perfect” she answered. Jackie scoffed and sat on her chair.

“So what’re you gonna wear Y/n?” Jackie asked you,

“Uh...good question” you walked towards the closet, rifling through all the different dresses that were hung up,

“You should totally wear that red dress I gave you. The boob dress.” She said, you chuckled and shook your head, “Nat hates that dress”

“Why do you care what Nat thinks?” Shauna asked all of a sudden. She sounded so defensive and you couldn’t figure out why. You looked at her, slightly confused,

“Cause she’s my girlfriend?” you questioned, tilting your head slightly. But as you thought about it, you should be able to wear what you want. You hummed and changed, you never really cared about changing in front of them. You had your bra and underwear on still, Jackie was literally your sister and it was just Shauna.

You seemed to miss the way Shauna’s perverted gaze lingered on your body as you changed though. Her eyes trailed down your curves, to the way your bra held your tits and the lacy black underwear you had on. You pulled the dress on and messaged Nat saying you’d be there soon, sending her a selfie of your dress with your tongue sticking out to make a funny face.

--

As the loud music blared across the party, you stood with Natalie and her friend Kevyn. Natalie has her arm around your waist, holding you close. It wasn’t that she disliked the dress, she loved it on you. She just hated the looks you got from different guys.

She took a sip from her red solo cup then offered you some. You took the cup and took a sip too, keeping eye contact with her as you licked your lips afterwards. Her smile grew into a smirk and she was about to say something but was cut off when her other friend ran over, out of breath,

“You guys. My cousin hooked us up” he told you all, aimed mostly at Kevyn and Nat. Speaking of, Natalie’s eyes lit up as she looked at him. Your brows furrowed in confusion,

“You got it?” she asked him.

He grinned, holding out his hand to reveal several tiny squares of paper printed with the anarchy symbol.

“I have six words, my friend. Lucy. In. The. Sky. With. Diamonds.” He told her, she grinned and handed you back the cup

“That is, like, literally the least efficient way to say that” Kevyn teased him,

“Wait who’s Lucy? Why’s she in the sky with diamonds?” you asked, very confused. They just laughed at you and didn’t respond.

Natalie snatched one out of his hand

“Dude. Don’t you leave for the Olympics or whatever tomorrow?” Kevyn asked as Natalie was about to take what you had now realised to be drugs

“Yeah. I do” She gave them a look, daring either of them to say anything else. Kevyn just shrugs; not like it’s his problem.

“Wait Natlie maybe don’t-“ but she didn’t wait to hear what you were about to say. She dropped it into her mouth and closed her eyes, letting it dissolve. You rolled your eyes and just stormed off. Natalie watched you go.

“Aren’t you gonna go after her?” Kevyn asked her, she just shook her head, trying to keep the hard demeanour. She watched you talk with Shauna and Kevyn instantly noticed the way her eyes softened,

“Don’t push her away Nat…you know she’s not like the other girls you’ve fucked around with; you said it yourself” he told her, she didn’t respond and only walked away.

--

It had been a couple of hours till you saw Nat again. As you spoke with Shauna, she randomly approached you,

“Hey, come with me” she said, gently grabbing your hand and guiding you away from Shauna. You reluctantly went with her but you grew more suspicious as she lead you further into the forest,

“Are you high now or something?” you asked her. she shook her head and looked at you, you couldn’t hear the music anymore,

“Just a little” she told you with a grin, putting her hands on your hips and backing you up until your back gently hit the tree.

She leaned in and her lips met yours, you could taste the alcohol in her breath but you were sure she could taste it in yours too. You match her rhythm in a sensual kiss, her hands slide down your body, feeling the fabric of your dress. One of her hands then suddenly slithers under your skirt and onto your thigh. A small gasp escape your lips and she takes advantage of this, sliding her tongue past your plump lips and into your mouth. Her tongue danced with yours, mixing your saliva’s.

She then slid her hand further up, trailing along the lining of your panties.

“Oh so you wore the ones I like?” she mumbled into the kiss with a teasing grin. Her finger dipped in past your pantie line, you eagerly nodded. Her lips moved from yours. She started kissing from the corner of your lips, downwards to your neck. Your breath hitched, she moved further down, kissing your shoulder. You bit your lip.

She then lowered to her knees; she grinned up at you before her head dipped under your skirt. “Fuck- Nat we can’t do this in the middle of the fucking forest” you told her, you knew she was still grinning as always. She ignored what you were saying and slid your lacy panties.

“Shit you’re so wet” she muttered, she then licked a long stripe up your cunt. You gasped and reached down, your hand automatically going to the back of her head.

Her tongue dipped inside you and a moan slipped from your lips, as she began to slowly eat you out your head fell back against the tree. You tried your best to keep your moans quiet but you couldn’t stop some as Nat’s nose rubbed against your clit. You didn’t know how deep her tongue was inside of you but it felt amazing.

Part of you worried someone would walk over and see you in such a compromising state. But the other part was too focussed on the skill of Natalie’s mouth. Your grip on her hair then suddenly tightened as you come undone on her mouth. You could hear her chuckle as she swallowed.

You looked down at Natalie as she stood back up, wiping her mouth. She leaned in and gave you a gentle kiss on the head, your cheeks had a faint glow of red on them as you smiled up at her.

“You okay?” she asked you and you nodded, you bit your lip slightly. there was something you wanted to say, but you didn’t know if it was too soon or not. You looked down at the ground for a moment, “hey, whats wrong?” she asked you, putting her arms back around your waist.

You looked at her, “I love you, Nat…I really do” she didn’t respond. Her eyes widened slightly and she looked at you in shock. Her mouth opened for a moment but then closed again as she thought of what to say,

“you’re drunk” is all she could think off. You heart stung, she reached down to help you pull your panties back up but you just shoved her away slightly, pulling them up yourself. You walked away from her and tears brimmed in your eyes. You didn’t know why you were so upset; she didn’t have to say it back, you knew it was a big commitment and that Nat had never truly been that great at committing. But she could’ve said something else other than immediately undermining your feelings.

You wiped your tears as you rejoined the party. You looked around for Shauna, you didn’t know why but that was who you wanted to be with at the time. You finally found her by the keg, talking to Tai.

“I admire your resilience, Tai. It can’t be easy knowing you fucking crippled someone today” Shauna said, your eyes widened, you didn’t get too close, not wanting to be entirely involved.

“Cool. Good talk” Tai scoffed and started to walk away, you felt a sense of relief. The team really couldn’t afford an argument this close to nationals,

“Just admit you did it on purpose”

“Excuse me?”

Ah great. Thank you Shauna

“You heard me.” Shauna folded her arms over her chest, stumbling slightly, she had clearly drank a lot already,

“You’re wasted” Taissa stated simply,

“And you’re a fucking sociopath” Shauna bit back. You muttered a curse and decided to step in, and apparently so did others on the team as they came over,

“Hey, Shauna, take it easy...” Van said calmly, placing her hand on Shauna’s shoulder in an attempt to lead her away, but Shauna just shrugged it off,

“Good news, you guys. We don’t have to worry about the Allie problem anymore. Taissa fixed it for us...” Shauna pointed to Tai with praising hands,

“What’s she talking about?” Laura lee asked, you then noticed Nat suddenly joining in,

“She’s talking about Taissa’s little plan” you looked at her and both made eye contact. You quickly looked away, “Please. Since when do you give a shit anyway? Don’t you have a bong to hit or a Y/n to finger, or something?” she scoffed, pointing to you. Your eyes widened, “What the fuck Tai?”

“Hey. Don’t talk to her that way” Shauna was quick to come to your defence, which only riled Natalie for some reason.

“Oh, fuck off, Shauna. She doesn’t need you to defend her. Last I checked, you were fine with the whole ‘freeze her out’ strategy...” she spat, you looked at her in confusion and was about to respond,

“Seriously, what are you guys talking about?” Laura Lee asked. Then practically in unison everyone went, “Shut the fuck up, Laura Lee”

Suddenly Jackie stormed over, thrusting herself into the situation. Everyone was yelling at the same time, you were yelling at Natalie. You couldn’t even tell what she was saying over the yelling of the other YellowJackets,

“THAT’S IT. ENOUGH!” Jackie yelled. Everyone stopped, going silent. You rolled your eyes and crossed your arms over your chest, similar to how a toddler would during a tantrum.

Jackie turned on her heels suddenly

“Yellowjackets, with me” The team watched stomped off into the woods beyond the bonfire. Clearly expecting you all to follow suit and shortly you all do. Once you were deep enough Jackie stopped then started pacing. She looked at the team, a few looked drunk. Everyone looked fucking miserable. Natalie, in particular just looked unsteady as the acid started to kick in even more.

“I don’t know what the fuck that was, but I do know that it’s over. We’re about to go to Nationals, you guys. Nationals. And based on what I’m looking at right now, we might as well not even bother getting on that plane.” She told you all. You sighed and decided to just sit on the floor, taking your heels off. It was stupid of you to wear heels at a forest party. Jackie paused for a second then suddenly tugged you up to your feet with a grunt, “Alright, everybody line up”

Everyone stood still, exchanging looks of confusion,

“I’m fucking serious. Line up !” almost as a reflex everyone stood in line together, a small smirk grew on Jackie’s lips at this, “I’m going to talk to you like adults. Is that okay with you? Coach is always telling us that you can’t win without three things. Talent. Trust. And respect. I mean, Coach also talks a lot of bullshit, but I’m pretty sure he’s right about that. So here’s what we’re gonna do. I want each of you to go down this line and say one nice - true - thing about every other girl on this team.” Everyone looked at each other, probably all thinking ‘is she fucking serious?’

“What is this, fucking Girl Scout camp?” Taissa asked, you chuckled slightly at that. Jackie simply ignored the snide remark,

“Who wants to go first?” nobody spoke for a beat, then finally,

“I’ll go, Jackie.” Laura Lee raised her hand. Solemnly she stepped out and walked to the end of the line, starting with Taissa, “Taissa, you are beautiful in the eyes of our lord” she then moved onto Van “Van, you are beautiful in the—” you burst out laughing,

“Oh my god” Lottie groaned.

Jackie then yelled, “Laura Lee, fall back! Fuck. Fine, I’ll go first” she walked over to Taissa and looked her directly in the eye,

“Taissa Turner. You have more fight in you than anyone I’ve ever known. I’m inspired by your determination” Tai seemed to take that to heart as a small smile grew on her lips. Jackie then moved onto Van “Vanessa Palmer, your smile makes me feel happy, every time I see it” which of course made Van smile.

“Laura Lee, I truly admire your faith. I’m sure Jesus does, too…Nat, I love that you don’t care

what anybody else thinks. You’re more completely yourself than anyone else I know… Lottie, your ambition inspires me. I have no doubt you’re gonna take over the world someday”

“She’s also deadly at beer pong.” Van said making everyone chuckle. Jackie smiled in realisation that her plan was actually working.

“Well, go ahead. Tell her. C’mon, guys. If we do this one at a time, we’ll be here all night...”

The team all started to turn to each other. You turned to see Van,

“Van you’re like, a wicked goalie” you told her and she laughed, “Y/n…I like how you genuinely care about other people” she told you, you smiled and pulled her into a hug.

You looked over at Natalie who was staring into the fire, you walked over to her.

“Hey…” you stood beside her, looking at the fire too, “Misty?” she randomly said, tilting her head slightly but she wasn’t looking at you. you furrowed your brows, Misty wasn’t here. You gently took her by the shoulders and turned her body to face you, “Nat…um, I’m sorry, for earlier…I don’t mean to rush you, I just wanted to tell you…and it wasn’t because I was drunk” Natalie seemed to be struggling to process your words. She squeezed her eyes shut then opened them again, “It’s okay…I love you too Mr porcupine” she leaned in and kissed you. you chuckled and gently pulled her away, “Come on, I’ll get Jackie to give you a lift home”

--

You walked over to the plane, your jaw dropped at the sight. It was Lottie’s dad’s private jet and it was huge. You grinned and looked at Lottie, “That’s insane…thanks for this Lot” you say, she smiles and puts her arm around you, “Its no problem, my dad insisted” she chuckled, you saw Nat. she had her headphones in. she’d been weird with you all morning, rarely speaking to you and only really speaking to Lottie. You wondered if it was because of last night.

Jackie pulled you to the side as everyone boarded the jet, “Right have you got your inhaler?” she asked, you rolled your eyes and pulled your inhaler out of your pocket, she smiled, “Your epi-pen?” you furrowed your brows, not remembering If you brought it or not, you just shrugged, “Yeah yeah totally”

She then pulled it out of her bag, you quickly grabbed it from her, “See! I’ve got it” you grinned, she chuckled and rolled her eyes, “Y/n you need to keep track of it, what if you accidentally eat something with nuts in? Then what?” she asked you, you groaned and nodded, “I know I know Jack, its fine, I’m fine” she took a beat then nodded, smiling.

You quickly got onto the jet, choosing the seat behind Jackie and Shauna. You then saw Natalie sat on her own but on the isle next to her was Lottie, they were talking a bit but Nat seemed uninterested. You called out her name, she turned to you, “Come here” you patted the seat next to you with a smile, indicating for her to sit there. “Oh uh I wanna talk to Lottie though” she said, pointing to Lottie. She then turned back to Lottie. You furrowed your brows. You wanted to sit with her and near Jackie because you had a fear of being on planes…you’re scared of quite a lot of things to be fair.

You sighed and ultimately decided to get up and join her. Shauna looked confused as you walked past her, Nat looked at you with a small smile and moved her bag off the seat next to her. you took the spot and looked out the window, fidgeting with your hands.

The plane ride was mostly quiet. Not much happened you just sat there in silence. Whenever you tried to strike up a conversation with Nat she gave dry responses. You had a feeling she didn’t want to talk. You closed your eyes and started to drift off asleep.

You suddenly felt someone shaking your body. You jolted awake, your breathing picking up a bit.

“Woah chill” Natalie’s voice came through, “You good?” she asked you. There was genuine concern in her voice,

“Yeah. Sorry, yeah I’m fine you just scared me” you told her, wiping your forehead where some swear glistened. She eased and nodded, “Listen um…when we get to the hotel, can we have a chat?” she asked you, seeming quite nervous.

“Um what about?”

“Me and you, well, us” when those words came out her mouth your heart instantly dropped. You swallowed but found your throat to be quite dry. All you could conjure as a response was a simple nod. She gave an awkward nod back and looked away, putting her headphones back on. You sighed and closed your eyes once again, hoping to fall back asleep.

You didn’t know how long you were asleep for but you were then soon awaken by your body being shaken again. your brows furrowed and you opened your eyes. Suddenly the sound of everyone’s panicked screaming and shouting filled your ears. Your heart rate picked up and you frantically looked around, the plane was shaking. You looked out the window, the fucking plane was going down, and quickly too. You looked at Natalie, her eyes were squeezed shut. You looked down at your hand, she was clutching it tightly. You looked around to see Jackie passed out, “Jackie!” you called out to her. Nat’s head suddenly spun to look at you. Tears streamed down your cheeks as she gently cupped your face, shushing you.

“Go back to sleep, okay? Do that for me…please” there were tears in her eyes too but you could tell she was trying to hold them back. You sniffled and shook your head,

“I can’t- I can’t!” you cried. She quickly shook her head too, “Yes you can, just close your eyes baby, come on” you did as she said, squeezing your eyes shut as tight as you could, you felt an oxygen mask go around your face.

After one hard jolt. Everyone went black.

[jupiitersreturn]

Vibrational Astrology Series Part One - The Vibrations

Have you ever wondered why you didn't identify with your placements?

Maybe you're an Aries Sun but don't quite fit the "strong-willed leader" stereotype.

Perhaps you're an Aquarius Mars, but you find yourself a bit more socially aware than people assume you to be.

Or,

Conceivably, you are a Virgo Moon, and that "thoughtful, organized, and precise" typecast fits just fine.

Sometimes, being or having a placement in a certain sign or at a particular degree is not enough for it to be present in your demeanor. Like people, Planets and Signs have energetic frequencies, and operating in alignment with those frequencies will aid in reaching the highest energetic possibility (North Node) of your chart.

Vibrational Astrology is the practice of using Harmonic Charts to magnify the relationships of the planets in the Natal Chart. It emphasizes the importance of planetary configurations above anything else.

It is a contemporary approach to astrology, developed by David Cochrane through his astrology consultations spanning from 1972 to 1981.

Rather than focusing on the sign of the planet, Vibrational Astrology starts with the energy or vibration of the planet and then relates it to the archetypes and characteristics of a specific sign.

The "vibrations" of Vibrational Astrology are what is known to us in Traditional Astrology as Aspects. There are an infinite number of Vibrations as they are derived from factorization, but for the sake of space and time, I will list the most common and important ones, to my simplified understanding.

A note: The higher the vibration, the more internalized the energy.

Prime Numbers:

1 V Conjunction - Similar to a Conjunction in Traditional Astrology where the planets and energies work together as one. 1V is also known as Informed Judgement as its said to reference yourself more than any outside source.

2 V Opposition - Polorization. Shared or Cpnflicting interactions with others.

3 V - Trine - Smooth flow of energy

5 V - Quintile - Maleable energy. Signifies creativity and childlike energy.

7 V - Septile - Introspective energy. It signifies the energy we express when we are by ourselves. 7 is associated with focus, precision, and introspection.

11 V - Undecile - The energy of discontent and restlessness. This energy will always feel incomplete due to its inability to feel satisfaction.

13 V - Potential. The energy that acknowledges the feeling of something special within us, and the desire to feel special, and aims to access and express it by any and all means necessary

17 V - Empathy. The energy that allows us to connect with others.

19 V - Analytic Ability. The energy that encourages us to analyze and apply theories to find a solution to a problem or to a system of being. It is a cerebral energy. It focuses on the what, how, and why.

23 V - Autonomy and Free Will. The energy within us that wants to find solutions to our own problems and experiences without having to rely on how to do things traditionally. Individualistic.

29 V - Exploration and Engliughtement. The energy within us that desires to experience a life different to the one we were raised in, not due to a desire to UNDERSTAND the lives of others but a desire to EXPERIENCE a different world view

31 V - Wonder. The energy that allows us to feel the passion of wonder and awe. The energy that causes us to question the deeper meaning of a situation, even when there might not be one. Skepticism.

37 V - Complexity. The energy within you that allows you to form assumptions and views about the world, determined not by anyone but yourself. This highly internalized energy instills a strong moral compass within the person.

41 V - Sense. The energy within you that instills the desire to connect separate concepts and theories to each other to understand the concept as a whole and be able to make sense of it.

43 V - Ego. The energy within you that makes you want to identify who you are at your soul, and connect to it.

47 V - Truth Untold. The energy within you that sees everything wrong with societal norms and aims to change them, digging deep into what is known and unknown, to reform societies knowledge of a situation.

53 V - Fork in the Road. The energy within us that allows us to be aware of the many actions we take and their affect on the paths we walk in the future, but not having fear of the flow of time.

59 V - Preservation. The energy in us that makes us devoted to the comfort of tradition, and therefore seeks to preserve it. With this energy, most of the actions can be identified as being connected to a tradition or subconscious belief.

Powers of 2: Action and Interaction.

4 V - Square (2 x 2) - Taking action, being motivated, determination.

8 V - Semisquare (2 x 2 x 2) - Action with the intention to make a change in society.

16 V - (2 x 2 x 2 x 2) - Internal action. Action with the intention to reach a goal that people arent aware of.

32 V - (2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2) - Internalized beliefs stimulate intense actions from a person that often seem subconscious.

Powers of 3: Smooth energy flow. Tendency to stay away from conflict and confrontation.

9 V - (3 x 3) - The energy within us that desires to be an active participant and member of a community with a need for communication, harmony, and connection. Attempts to avoid conflict but if not possible, will smooth it over.

27 V - (3 x 3 x 3) - The energy within us that has a strong desire for peace and calmness. A pacifist and will actively go out of their way to avoid conflict at all costs.

Miscellaneous: A note: When it says "Opposition in" it means that that energy is in opposition with a factor in this energy. It doesn't always have to be a bad thing. For example, Decile is 2 and 5. 5 is an Opposition energy, therefore it says "Opposition in 5V"

25 V - (5 x 5) - EXTREME creativity.

36 V - (6 x 6) or (2 x 2 x 3 x 3) - The energy within us that idealizes situations.

Factors: Combined core vibrations that create separate vibrations

6 V (Sextile) - Harmonious interactions with others

10 V - (5 x 2) - (Decile) (Opposition in 5V) - Creative interactions with others

12 V - (4 x 3) - (Semisextile and Quincunx) - Receptive interaction but smooth and flowing. These two aspects are conflicting, so the energy needs to be balanced for it to work.

14 V - (7 x 2) - (Opposition in 7V) - Learning with or being taught by others. Specifically with mastery of a talent. Being trained.

15 V - (5 x 3) - (Trine in 5V) - Free flowing creativity and playfulness.

18 V - (9 x 2) - (Opposition in 9V) - Desire to be included in a community, either in a compatible or incompatible sense.

20 V - (5 x 4) - (Square in 5V) - A desires to play, but has a need to take inspired action.

21 V - (7 x 3) - (Trine in 7V) - Gift of harmony, easy to master abilities due to the ability to focus.

22 V - (11 x 2) - (Opposition in 11V) - Desire to interact with others, but with a fear of being stifled or watered down by them.

24 V - (8 x 3) (Trine in 8V) and (6 x 4) (Square in 6V) - Has the strength of inspired action and completing goals by themselves, but has issues with collaborating with others.

26 V - (13 x 2) (Opposition in 13V) - Has a desire to be special

28 V - (7 x 4) (Square in 7V) - Has trouble mastering talents. They place too much pressure on themselves to reach said goals.

30 V - (5 x 3 x 2) - Interactions with others that flow smoothly

[joonsytip]

Only for Love || Mingyu - Part 2

Pairings: Mingyu x Fem!Reader

Genre: Angst, Fluff, Smut, Husband!Mingyu, Cold Wife!Reader, Arranged Marriage au, Contract Marriage au, Divorce au

Synopsis: When an accidental discovery has your perception of happy married life crumbling down, you do what you think is the best for everyone involved. Naturally, your opinion of the best doesn't cater to your husband's. So what happens when things spiral out due to unforeseen events?

Warnings: NSFW, virgin reader, cunnilingus, consensual and penetrative sex, couple uses protection (you do too), mentions of past accident, workplace politics allusions, mentions of getting stalked and periods.

Word Count: 6.1k

Minors DNI! Minors DNI! Minors DNI! Minors DNI!

[ SVT Masterlist ] [ SVT Flick - Fic Masterlist ]

Teaser | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Epilogue

It's been half an hour since your arrival to the party and the lack of interaction between you and Mingyu starts to raise some brows.

Mingyu stays rooted to the same place, his eyes fixated on you as he realises that it was wrong of him to totally wring you out and knowing your temperament he's not brave enough yet to place himself in the periphery of your vision.

"The marriage is really a sham, afterall."

Mingyu scoffs, not bothering to look at the source of the voice.

Kim Hanjun has been demoted under the obvious reason of underperforming and it's boiling his blood having to work under Mingyu because being a man with connections and boasting about it openly would have eventually come to bite him back given he's not even good at his job.

"Your wife isn't even interested in you it seems."

Fisting his hands, Mingyu decides to mute out his words.

"Oh so you're not gonna speak because you might accidentally spill something?"

But there's a limit to how much one can endure. Even though he has the patience of a saint, Mingyu just can't tolerate this obnoxious colleague of him.

Just as he opens his mouth to retort, he feels a hand circling his arm. It's you.

"You must be Kim Hanjun?", you say with a poker face, "You're quite the infamous one around here."

Both the men are caught off-guard by your presence.

"Now if you could excuse us.", your grip tightens on your husband, "I have some making up to do, as you can see husband's upset is at me for not spanning attention to him."

Hanjun is rendered speechless when you step forward and say in a dangerously low tone, "If I see you pestering my husband one more time, you might not find your company ID working while swiping."

The man is suddenly sweating and you cross over your arms with a smirk, "I usually don't interfere but sorry to break it to you, if we come down to this, I'd like you to always remember what position my uncle holds in the company. You're not the only one who can exert connections."

Mingyu looks at you in awe. He wants to record this on his phone so that he could watch this again and again. His wife is standing up for him and that's the absolute hottest you've looked.

Once Hanjun leaves, you also turn on your heels to do so but Mingyu doesn't let you.

"I'm tired.", you say turning to look at him, hand trying to scuffle out of his strong grip, "I'm leaving."

"We're leaving.", Mingyu says leading the way, hands still held together.

While it's a sight for others to finally see the couple, might be romantic to some as well by the way Mingyu is not letting go of you but you know the truth so does your husband.

The car ride back home is silent because halfway neither of you speak and for the rest of the path, you somehow fall asleep.

You wake up in Mingyu's arm as he carries you to the bedroom.

"Let me down.", you say tiredly.

But your husband only sets you down on the bed and once he does he starts spilling the apologies.

"I was mad at you and thought you won't come if I asked you.", he says lowering his gaze, "I'm sorry."

"It's okay.", you say not meeting his gaze either and fumbling your fingers, "You should tell me if any of my behaviour has hurt or is bothering you. I can't read minds, Mingyu."

There's a pang in his chest as guilt consumes him. His mind lingers back on how he had been ignoring you for the past few days. And now that he looks at you, he realises the chronic tiredness ghosting over your features.

"Now if you could please move so that I can get changed.", you say, hands gesturing the way out.

Mingyu swears he hasn't had a drop of alcohol present in his body at the moment so why is he all of a sudden, seeing and feeling things differently?

Why are you glowing in the poorly lit room? Since when did you have such deep beautiful pair of eyes? How are your lips looking so luscious?

Mingyu loosens the tie round his neck, clearing his throat. As he has been crouching, he stands up and sides himself so that you would get out of sight because somehow though it's chilly but by doing absolutely nothing you've managed to heat him up.

You walk upto the closet and after searching for a while you turn around to look at your husband.

"Can I wear something of yours?", you ask, leaning against the door, "I think all of my comfortable nightwears have ended up in the laundry."

The man chokes, he wonders if the stars are plotting against him tonight. He settles with a subtle nod, looking everywhere but at you.

You mumble a thanks and grab the first thing that looks comfortable, going into the bathroom to change.

Mingyu rushes out of the room grabbing a pair of clothes and proceeds to wash himself in the guest bathroom just to cool off. He watches his red tinted cheeks in the dazed vision in the mirror, notices his heavy breaths and eyes down to the semi grown tent in his pants.

Something's wrong with him. He can't comprehend his state. His mind lingers back to the moments when you were defending him against Hanjun. His heart beats erratically when he remembers the accidental view of your cleavage through the dress when he was carrying you inside. The slit of your dress wasn't helpful at all as he could see your trained thighs on display everytime you moved. And your long manicured nails, he's sure that they would look beautiful running through his nape and back.

Mingyu slaps himself twice on both the cheeks, he takes a cold shower.

But he's just a man afterall, so when sees you standing in front of the dressing table in his shirt and shorts he breath hitches and he gasps. Loud enough to catch your attention. As you look at him, he looks at your collarbones peaking out because his shirt is too loose on you.

And before you could say anything he's already laying on the bed hurriedly facing away, pulling over the covers to hide the re-emerging boner.

You follow his actions, laying beside him but facing his back. You wonder if you should sleep at the guestroom because your husband is still mad at you. And his actions are clearly saying so as the person who can't sleep without hugging is maintaining the distance, not bothering to even face you, like he has been doing for the past days.

With a heavy sigh, you tell him, "I'll sleep in the guestroom. We can talk when you feel like you can bear to look at me again."

Just as you turn on your back to get up, you're being held back and within a span of seconds your husband is hovering on top of you.

"I'm sorry, I can't control myself anymore."

And admitting that he crashes his lips onto yours. You gasp grabbing his arms before sighing into the kiss. Mingyu sucks onto your lips pacing them slower now. His hand roams up to rest on your neck, gently rubbing along the column, the sensation of his touch eliciting another gasp out of you.

His tongue enters your mouth and it's lewd in the way they slotting perfectly on each other. His mouth descends to press kisses on your chin and collarbones.

The one time he detaches his mouth off you to unbotton your (his) shirt, you're tapping on his forearm. His gaze follows your hands which are now covering your eyes.

There's a bit of silence. Mingyu wonders if he's forcing himself on you, without your consent and with the thought just as he prepares himself to get off, you say something that wracks his head.

"This will be my first time. I've never been touched before.", you say shakily, evidently embarassed enough to not uncover your eyes until Mingyu does so.

Though Mingyu has his mind too clouded to be pondering over anything but the first question he asks with those eyes now turned soft, after urging you to look at him is, "Do you want to do this? Is it okay for me to proceed? Tell me if you want me to stop."

"Please don't stop.", you breathe out immediately averting your gaze which causes you to miss the smile your husband directs at you before placing his hand under your head to raise it swiftly to kiss you.

"I'll make it worth, Y/N. I'll make you feel good.", he whispers in between the kisses.

You lay naked, all bared out under him as after spanning enough attention to your boobs, Mingyu shifts all his focus on your wet, leaking core.

"Gonna prep you first", he says in his husky voice, "and let me know if you want me to stop."

His tongue laps a long stripe against your cunt and you grip the sheet underneath desperately to hold onto. He keeps tonguing your cunt, holding your legs apart as they try to close off, his nose bumping against your clit making it impossible to hold your moans anymore.

You are squirming under the mercy of yoYir husband and his tongue. There's a knot tightening in the pit of your stomach and you could do nothing, not even speak out any coherent sentences.

"Cum for me, Y/N.", Mingyu urges you and that's the push you need before pouring out the juices all over his face. You're catching breathes when sensitivity hits you as your husband licks you clean off the juices.

You are biting down on your arm when Mingyu decides to prep you a bit further by scissoring his long fingers in your hole until it's oozing out for the second time.

Mingyu presses a soft kiss on your forehead before scurrying away for a few seconds and coming back holding a bunch of condoms in his hands.

"You had those?", you ask propping yourself on your elbows, genuinely amused.

Mingyu cocks his brow, "Not sure who it was but one of the guys has kept them in the drawer at one of the times they visited."

He climbs on the bed, straddling over you as he tears the wrapper with his teeth and rolls up a couple of condoms up his girth, "I didn't even know until all of them sent the same picture in the group chat."

You nod in silence, looking at his big veiny cock and it's red tip that's leaking precum, wondering if it's gonna even fit inside of you.

Mingyu hovers over you, pressing another soft kiss on your forehead.

"It's gonna hurt a bit at start but it's gonna feel good, okay?"

You nod again letting Mingyu hold your hands over your head, intertwining the fingers. He slowly pushes his length and sensing your ragged breathing he stills for sometime before continuing until he hilts all the way inside.

Tears roll down, as you try to adjust and your husband does nothing but kiss you softly trying to soothe you, divert your mind from the pain.

"Let me know when you want me to move."

He waits patiently and once you ask him to move, he thrusts ever so slowly, his lips never leaving yours.

"Gyu, faster please.", you say breaking the kiss.

And who is your husband to deny your wishes. He picks up his pace steadily thrusting in and out, as both of your moans fill the room.

Mingyu fiddles with your nipples by taking them into his mouth while his fingers rub your clit at a fast pace.

You're too dumbified by the way your body is reacting. Your legs are shaking, your stomach is pitting a knot again, your hands are gripping onto your husband for dear life and you swear you're seeing stars.

"Y/N?", Mingyu calls you out, seeing your dazed vision, "Are you okay?"

Your reply comes as another moan as your nails dig crescent shapes onto his back deeper, running through the back of his neck, grabbing onto the hair on the nape.

"Can you hold on for a bit more?", he coaxes you once he realises your gummy walls are clenching harder around his cock, "Let's cum together, can you do that for me right?"

Mingyu looks at the juncture where the bodies are meeting, where your cunt is swallowing him wholly. He groans at the sight of white foamy ring around his cock and kisses you hard making you squeak into his mouth.

"Let it go, Y/N.", he encourages you, his calloused fingers now rubbing your sides as his thrusts turn sloppy, "Cum for me."

Both of you are catching breathes. You lay eyes closed, not feeling your body at all. Mingyu lies looking at you, admiration laced in his eyes, his heart doing dibs thinking about how you trusted him enough to give your firsts to him. He realises that unlike him, you're not vocal so he has to focus on your body language to understand your needs. He also makes his mind to have a conversation with you like a descent person in the morning but before that--

"You need to pee.", he tells discarding the condom in the bin and while you groan he continues, "And we need to wash up. I'll run the bath, clean us up and change the sheets so please don't fall asleep till then."

You are incapable of registering his words so you just let him do whatever he wants to do with you.

Late in the morning, the conversation gets shelved until evening because Mingyu fucks you again because he is insatiable and so are you. Well, you both end up being each other's breakfast in bed.

It's the day, you dread the most. It was the same day sixteen years ago when you lost your family. It's your birthday.

If only you hadn't thrown a tantrum about not wanting to celebrate the day at home as it had been done for all the years. Birthdays had always been a great deal to you. You wanted the celebration to be a bit grander which led all to unanimously decide to go the soaring picnic spot, inviting all your friends as well. Uncle being your favourite person, the rest of the family drove the to venue as it was an hour drive away a little earlier to set up things while you and your uncle drove in a van along with all your friends.

But instead of the picnic spot, you ended up in the hospital with your uncle identifying the bodies. The collision of two vehicles were severe enough to claim the lives of all present in them.

Though your uncle had never expressed anything as such but you know you are to blame for everything. You wondered if seeing you was even bearable to him. The guilt and regret changed you whole as a person. After the incident you distanced yourself from everything, everyone.

Birthdays mean nothing to you now. Unlike for other workers, no one receives your birthday mail as you have requested to the officials. No one knows, no one asks, no one cares and that's perfect for you.

It's been a long day, with you driving successive review and checkpoint meetings. One of the rare days where you want nothing but to fall to the comfort of your bed.

Just as you enter the house, you see a string a shoes lined one after another. You enter the hallway and come across the faces of your in-laws, your husband, his friends and your uncle.

Gatherings on any other day is always welcomed but not today. You have this look of disapproval on your face and the entire flock of people freeze. Without a word, you disappear into your room and it's about half an hour when you don't come out, Mingyu assures everyone and goes into the room.

"What are they doing here?", you ask as soon as he enters.

"Why? Are they not allowed to visit us?"

You glare at him, "They are. But why today? And you always inform me beforehand if anyone is coming so why's there an exception today?"

Mingyu sighs but walks upto you, "Y/N, they're just here to spend sometime with us. But if you want then I'll tell them to leave and trust me they'll leave instantly."

"Tell them to leave then. I don't want to entertain anyone today.", you say stoicly.

Mingyu nods, "All of them have brought something they've cooked for you. Hansol cooks occasionally and almost burnt his house but he came in so proud, bragging how he was able to cook something for you that's edible. And oh", he raises his finger plastered with a bandaid, "I've got a cut while chopping the vegetables. So are you gonna atleast eat them or should I tell them to take those back as well?"

There's a pang in your heart, it's constricts within your chest. Your eyes glistens with tears, the resolute within you starts to dissolve but you could never afford to do so. You don't deserve to be celebrated.

"It's the death anniversary of the people I love.", you say helplessly, "I don't remember them vividly, each year the memories of them are fading away. I can't bear to look at uncle without feeling guilty. He lost his son, his wife, his brother all because I wanted to celebrate a stupid birthday."

You are sobbing now and Mingyu holds you in his arms, letting his own tears fall. He hates that there's nothing he could provide to soothe you.

"There are so many words on the tip of my tongue but they're all meaningless.", he says and bites on his tongue to stop those tears from spilling, "I'm sorry but I won't let you wallow in sadness, I won't leave you all by yourself."

After staying quiet in his embrace, you tell him, "People are waiting for you, you should go. I'll be fine, I'm used to this."

Mingyu pulls away and holds your face gently, "Do you trust me?"

Your eyes say a lot, even if you hadn't given a nod, your husband would've known the answer.

"Then let's go and spend time with them.", Mingyu coaxes you, "They wouldn't do anything to make you uncomfortable, if they do, I'll send them back."

You ponder over for sometime. Past years have always been the same, you wanting the day to pass by anyhow. You've preferred to be alone but you think you'd make an exception for your husband and all those people who are waiting for you outside knowing they genuinely care for you.

When you both step out of the room, you could see the worried faces and it makes you feel bad.

"We're are really sorry for barging in.", Seokmin breaks the silence as he stands up and following his suite everyone does so well, "We'll get going."

And there's a lot of shuffling. Everyone is off their seats and packing the stuffs when you decide to interrupt.

"I'm hungry", you say everyone halt, "And I'm bored of eating his cooking.", you point at your husband who gasp in offence but smiles nonetheless.

And that's how the dinner table was set with everyone sitting together eating and chatting happily. No one wishes you birthday, none of them have bought you gifts and it does seem like another normal gathering except for the subtle wishes of wellbeing they launch softly at you.

"You are beautiful, Y/N, inside out.", Minhee says as she secures the seat beside you, "I hope to see you healthy and beautiful always."

Sometime later, when the topic of work is brought up, Soonyoung slickly tells, "Y/N is handling such a big project.", and looking at you he speaks with a mouthful, "I know it'll be a huge success. Hope we get to see you achieve many more milestones in your career."

And throughout the dinner you recieve such praises and wishes from every single one of them. You didn't want to send them off but you had to with a heavy heart. First time, in several years you feel like you have a family, you want to hold onto people, want to expect certain things and be a part of them.

First time in several years, your birthday didn't haunt you rather it gave you a reason to smile.

Lying the bed, tired after a long day when you feel an arm drape around your waist, you turn to face your husband, snuggling closer in the comfort of his embrace when he opens his arms for you.

His eyes droop in sleepiness but he strokes your hair saying, "I wish you to be happy.", smiling sheepishly he adds, "Thanks for trusting me."

And when you watch your husband drift off to sleep, stroking his hair with a hesitant hand, you whisper, "Thanks for tolerating me."

Your relationship with Mingyu progresses steady but it's beautiful in it's own way. To you, Mingyu hasn't only been a good husband, he has been a great companion. He takes care of you, knows your limits and shortcomings, never makes you feel weirded out and makes sure to sort things out to be on the same page.

Your calendar previously which had only meeting dates marked on them are now filled with many more events such as your anniversary, Mingyu's birthday, Minhee's birthday, your uncle's birthday, your in-laws' anniversary etc etc. A smile appears on your face when you reminisce how late you were to your second anniversary party and how pissed Mingyu was at you, avoiding you the whole night until after the party was over and you had stripped yourself naked in front of him which worked to dissolve his anger as you let him fuck you dumb till the dawn.

You have a best friend now and her name is Minhee. You've always liked her and over the years you two have grown closer. Mingyu's friends, well more of yours, are not scared of you anymore, they've dropped all the formalities to pit long ago.

Junhui shares every funny thing he sees on the internet, on appointment days he rants to you about patients and work. Soonyoung now shares table with you during lunch and eat your ears off. Seokmin calls you randomly during work and if you don't pick up, he just sends you a candid picture of your husband with a caption 'thought you'd be missing him, so here's your husband. Don't thank me, just name one of your gaming character after me.'

Hansol is the most random of all, he just pings you any fact he learned out of the blue without any context. Sometimes when on asking when you confirm that you're free he sends you a bunch of pics telling you to choose the best among the lot. Jeonghan is the quietest among all, he'd only talk to you during the gatherings.

You have started calling Mingyu's parents as what Mingyu calls them because you are comfortable to call them so. They've blended into your life making you feel as their own. These changes in your life have helped you bond better with your uncle as well.

It's been over two years and you think you're happy. You think your married life is perfect and you're in love with certain things.

You love the back hugs, love those forehead kisses, love the smell of coffee that hits the house in the morning, love the way his mouth opens and closes in sleep, love when the fangs graze his lips as he smiles wide, love when his hand sneaks to wrap around yours on a busy road.

You're in love.

In love with your husband because how could you not, he's so easy to love. Though you feel there's still a lot you both need to discover about each other, you hope he'd also love you one day. He's your first love after all.

You are in the middle of a meeting when your phone keeps vibrating continuously. Trying to ignore it, your brows knit in agitation but that soon turns into worry when you check the caller ID. It's Minhee. Excusing yourself, you call her back.

And now after a drive of an hour you find yourself in front of the park, near her apartment.

"It's okay, I'm here now.", you say patting on Minhee's back, "Once you feel better, tell me everything."

And after some moments Minhee does relay everything. There's a thug-like guy who has started visiting the café she regulars at because somehow Minhee has piqued his interest. Even though she didn't notice at first, it started to strike her that she has been seeing a face almost everywhere she visits.

He has been following her to and back from the school she teaches in. He's been bold enough to get in the way and ask her to sleep with him for a night, if she wants to stop getting bothered by him.

Minhee has had enough to slap him straight across his face, even threatening to report him to the police. And that seemed to work because he didn't appear before her for a whole week until today.

As she describes it terrified, he had an ominous gaze, when he had given her an ultimatum to be compliant or be ready for the worse.

"I was so shocked and scared. I could only think about calling you. If Gyu knows about this he'd kill that guy even before police knows about him and would never let me work here. I don't want that.", Minhee says, "I am planning to go to the police today."

"You're so brave", you tell her as your gaze sweeps across the surrounding, "Let's deal with that guy now. Is it that guy standing over there?"

And Minhee now ponders over if it would have been safer to call her brother because the stalker guy, all bruised from the beating he got from you is kneeling in front of you both with hands up in air.

You've called the police and as soon as they arrive, that guy is mumbling confessions of all the harassment he did and tried to perform on Minhee.

"Did I tell you, I'm trained in taekwondo?", you ask her frowning, "Uncle also made me take specialization classes on self defence.", you suddenly hiss because of the bruises inflicted on you during the hassle and look at her.

Minhee engulfs you in a hug, "Thank you so much. You're a lifesaver."

Your lips curl up and you say pulling away, "Let's go to the station and complete the formalities and then we'll have to inform Mingyu and mom & dad as well."

Minhee hesitates but she knows she'll eventually have to so.

"Let's do that.", she agrees, "I have something else to tell you."

Your brows quirk up questioning as you both head towards your car.

"I have developed a liking towards Soonyoung.", she smiles looking at your flabbergasted demeanor, "No ones knows except you and him."

You swear, your head spins at this.

And as if she could read your mind, she adds, "I don't know how he feels but he said he'd never date me because I'm his friend's sister and that's against bro code."

You scoff, how typical of Soonyoung.

When Mingyu stumbles upon his sister's apartment that night, he finds her sleeping peacefully in her room. And when he goes searching for you, he finds you in the bathroom clutching the slab. Your eyes are red, forehead glistening with sweat.

"Oh god, Y/N...", Mingyu rushes inside as the door was open and holds you up on your feet, "what happened?"

"Stop shouting, you'll wake her up.", you say groaning, "and why do you care anyways?"

Right, you both rarely fought but when you did it would go on for days, like now. It started with a simple matter but escalated real quick causing Mingyu to lash out on you and give you a silent treatment. You tried to talk to him twice, which was more than you think you have done but were met with radio silence. He went as far as being petty enough to not even wait for you at dinner table or sleep facing you. And that's how you decided to shut him out as well. It's been a week since you both talked.

As Mingyu holds your waist to support you, you cry out in pain. You tried to resist but when he glares at you, you give up. He unbottons your top and his eyes almost gauze out on seeing the cut on your waist.

"How did it happen?", he sits you on the counter and pulls out the first aid box.

You stay quiet.

"Y/N, I'm asking something.", he uses an authoritative tone, looking at you.

"I thought we are not talking.", you snark at him but gasp when he dabs the cotton with antiseptic gel on the cut. He does several other sorts of things which makes you think he's a trained nurse before pasting the adhesive.

"Y/N, please.", he gets up and holds your face, "I know I have been an asshole and I'll keep apologizing to you until you forgive me. But please tell me are you hurt anywhere else? Did that bastard do this to you?"

You sigh and peel his hands off your face, "Yes, he was swinging his knife at me so while tackling him, I got that wound. And I got some bruises but Minhee treated those, didn't want to worry her so hid this one. You should be worried about Minhee. I'm fine."

Mingyu looks at you with so much admiration. His heart swells within his chest when he thinks about how you saved his sister and handled the situation well while he was being a jerk to you.

"The first thing Minhee asked on calling me was how did I manage to marry someone as amazing as you. That I should have seen you, you were looking like a superhero fighting off the evil.", he smiles pinching the bridge of your nose.

You bite your lower lip, your brows crease and Mingyu instantly deflates noticing the obvious signs.

"Are you on your periods?", he asks concerned.

"The cramps are killing me."

"You should have told me sooner.", he immediately lifts you up and takes you to the guestroom and lays you on the bed, "I think I know what all things Minhee uses for her cramps and where they are kept. I'll be back."

"I was supposed to sleep with Minhee tonight.", you say frowning.

"No, you're sleeping with me", he smiles, crouching to peck your forehead, "Minhee rotates around the bed all night in sleep. Doesn't matter though, I won't be letting you out of my sight."

And while he spends the whole night making sure you get a good sleep, in the morning he makes you apply for sick leave. He scolds Minhee for not calling him sooner as it could have been dangerous for you both but in turn gets scolded by you.

He doesn't take his car, rather drives your car back home because you were scheming on sending him away first, not wanting to go with him. He sulks throughout the way back because when he leans in to you, in the guise of helping you putting on the seatbelt just to give a kiss, you slap a hand over his mouth. But that doesn't stop him from not letting you go to your office room the whole day and spend the time in taking rest.

It's an important day for you. It's a success party of the new game launch and playing the key role in leading back to back projects you're going to get felicitated at the party by the director herself.

You have informed Mingyu beforehand and he has promised to reach the venue before time, also squealing for days on about how he'd capture everything and show others, that how proud he is of his wife.

Your eyes boringly scan through the crowd, waiting for your husband.

"How am I looking?", Soonyoung's voice startles you.

As he takes a seat beside you, you tell him, "As usual. Are you supposed to not look like a human but something else?"

He scowls, "Wow, you're really doing this to me."

He brings over a glass of wine from the waiter who was passing and says, "I heard there have been some changes in the management and they'll be announcing it today."

You take a candy from the bowl kept on the table, "I'll be reporting to someone who has joined the company recently. My previous boss is gonna take over the strategy planning unit."

Soonyoung laughs, "There are rumours about him being eccentric."

"Let him be anything, I don't care as long as it doesn't hinder my work.", you tell him, eating the candy and checking your phone, "They're gonna start soon. Any idea when your dear friend is gonna arrive?"

"He was supposed to leave from work early", he tells you, "Don't worry he's punctual."

Mingyu curses when he checks the time. He's late.

"Min, I think you should leave as soon as possible.", Seokmin says as he helps him pack his bag, "You'll go home, get changed and then leave for the venue, right? You're running late by almost an hour already."

Mingyu is hot on his heels as he hurriedly takes his bag and rushes out of his cabin.

"Be careful!", Seokmin yells seeing Mingyu's fleeting demeanor, knowing how clumsy he can be and as he takes the keys to lock the cabin as requested by his friend his gaze falls on the USB drive which he knows Mingyu would need to work on some presentation.

Seokmin rushes to catch him so that he can give him the USB just in time. As he punches out his employee card, he sighs in relief as he recognises Mingyu standing still just outside the main door.

He pushes through the door and is just about to call him, something catches his eyes from the periphery of vision.

Just like Mingyu, Seokmin freezes on spot.

Because it is Sora who's standing in front of them.

Seokmin doesn't know what or if they had any conversation prior to his arrival but he grabs Mingyu's arm when he sees Sora open her car door and his friend heading in the se direction.

"Min, don't go.", he speaks the next part in louder tone, "your wife is waiting for you."

"I know what I'm doing, Min.", Mingyu frees his arm, "Trust me on this."

Seokmin watches helplessly as the car drives off to who knows where.

You are dejected. Even when recieving the award your eyes kept scanning the crowd just in hopes of seeing your husband's face. And still now doing so you keep on checking your phone, too upset to call or text him.

"I'll call him after they make the announcement.", Soonyoung says equally upset, "I'm sure something really urgent came up otherwise he'd have not missed it."

Everyone is asked to stand near the stage where they announce the key changes in management.

You are shocked when you hear a certain name being announced, see a certain figure taking the centre of the stage.

Xu Minghao is going to be your boss tomorrow onwards.

Minghao seems to have taken notice of you as his smile widens, his gaze locking on you.

Soonyoung has noticed the change in your demeanor, has followed the gaze of Minghao. He observes quietly before motioning you to come with him to a quieter place.

He then calls Mingyu putting his phone on speaker who doesn't pick up. There's an uneasy feeling settling at your chest and hope that your husband is fine wherever he is.

Soonyoung then calls Seokmin and regrets putting the phone on speaker because you hear what he says.

"Mingyu left with Sora and I can't reach him."

Your heart sinks because even though no one has ever talked to you about her, you know that name very well. Your husband's ex girlfriend whom he to marry.

"Trouble in paradise?"

Both you and Soonyoong turn to see Minghao standing, his gentle gaze bestowing upon you.

You decide to forget any other thoughts and wear a tight lipped smile, "Been a long time, Hao."

→ Do not copy, re-post, translate, or share any of my works on other platforms! All stories are copyrighted, joonsytip.

[borathae]

↳ Index [Snippet #53 - Adorable]

"When Jungkook is so cute by merely exisiting."

Genre: married life!AU, Slice of Life Fluff

Warnings: she thinks that he is the cutest, which he is <3, a cute sushi date with a beach walk afterwards, she bites his nose <3, he is also a lil shit because let's be honest he is, and we all love him so much for it <3, one (1) mention of suggestive themes

Wordcount: 1.1k

a/n: this is inspired by this gifset 🧡 i just love his lil pout and pretty eyes so much :( also, please bear with me. you besties are gonna get longer stories again. christmas time at work is just very stressful and time consuming and i rarely have energy to write :(

Jungkook is minding his own business. He is living his own life, enjoying the moment, existing. And you can’t take your eyes off of him. He isn’t even doing anything. He is merely and simply existing and you still think that he is the most adorable and handsome person that ever existed and ever will exist. 

He is wearing a white, oversized long arm shirt today, combining a black bucket hat with it. His bangs cover his forehead and his face carries no makeup. He is entirely comfortable with his look. It is simple, but you think that he is a work of art.  

You and he are currently on a fun and relaxing date to a costal restaurant. The theme of the restaurant is local fish and the chef specializes in sushi. She explains each serving in great detail and Jungkook is really enjoying his time here. You have never witnessed him listen so intently and with such attention for such a long time before. Now, don’t misunderstand, this isn’t supposed to be mean. You love him and you also love how easily his attention span can wander. Something as small and simple as a pretty bug by the side of the road can already pull his attention away. Sometimes, even something as simple as a random thought can completely beam him away. You never saw it as a negative trait, but you also have to admit that seeing him so deeply engrossed in sushi knowledge is surprising and wonderful to witness. He pouts his lips without noticing and his eyes are so big in wonder. You just love him so much.  His reactions to the food are almost better. You haven’t laughed that much during lunch in a long time. He is so cute. 

He would definitely whine if he knew that you are calling him cute. He doesn’t like to be called that way (a lie, he likes to tell you. He definitely likes it, you are sure of it). And the thing is? You can’t blame him.  

Jungkook is a strong and muscular man. He is pierced, tattooed and drives a huge Harley. He also knows how to knock someone out with just one punch and the multiple times he had you in his arms and on his cock at the same time are definitely haunting your mind from time to time. Jungkook is just such a Man and he shouldn’t be this cute in your eyes, but he is. He is so tender and beautiful and full of childlike wonder. When he talks to you, he talks in a soft voice and when he holds your hand, he always draws hearts on your skin. He greets and thanks the staff of whatever places you visit and whenever it is possible, he makes their jobs easier by helping out as best as possible.

He is just so warm. Yes, this is how he is. He is warm like a safe hug, warm like hot cocoa, warm like a blanket after a person laid under it for a long time.

And right now, you think that he is unbearably cute in his little outfit with his pretty eyes and pouty lips.

The sushi chef turns her back to you and him again, preparing the next course. Jungkook glances at you from the corner of his eyes. He has been feeling your eyes on him the entire time the chef explained her process. He is starting to get nervous. 

When you don’t seem to want to stop any time soon, he finally speaks up. 

“Is something the matter, my sweetheart?” he asks, turning his head to you and rubbing your back. You and he are sitting next to each other so it is easy to do. 

“I just think that you’re so cute.”

He furrows his brows and pouts, “don’t call me that.”

“I can’t help it. You’re just so…can I bite your nose?”

“No? Why would you wanna bite my nose?” he says genuinely confused and touches his own nose. 

“Because if I don’t get to munch on something soon, I will riot.” 

He pulls a grimace of judgement. 

“You’re a weirdo”, he says and turns his head away. 

“Please?”

“No. Not here”, he whines and then the chef returns with the new course.

The sushi date continues. Jungkook is mesmerised while you are mesmerised by him. How can such a masculine, strong man be so cute? And how will you survive not munching on him?

You and he take a walk by the pier after lunch, holding hands and enjoying the ocean breeze. You snap some pictures by the beach, some together and some of each other. Afterwards it is time for ice cream, which you enjoy sitting on a bench overlooking the ocean. 

“You are looking at me again”, Jungkook says.

“I can’t help it. You’re so cute today.” 

“You know that I could easily bench press you, don’t you?”

“I am aware. I still think that you’re cute. Gosh Kookie, this shirt fits you so well. You’re looking so snuggly.”

You cuddle into him, hugging his waist and resting your cheek on his shoulder. Jungkook drapes his arm around you, smiling shyly. 

“Can I really not bite your nose?” you mumble.

“Why do you wanna bite my nose?”

“Because.” You poke his nose. “No nose has ever nosed as hard as your nose does.”

He scoffs, “okay? Whatever that may mean.”

“It means that I wanna bite your nose. Please?”

“But why? It’s my nose, I need it to breathe.”

“I’m not gonna do it hard. Just a little nibble. Once. Please?” 

“What’s in it for me?”

“A cute nose bite?”

“Yeah.” He laughs. “That’s not convincing.”

“You get to take two bites of my ice cream?”

He squints his eyes, letting out a long, “hmmmmmm.”

“Three bites?” 

“Okay fine, we have a deal.”

“Yes! Oh my god, I’m so happy”, you exclaim and cup his cheeks to turn his head to you. 

With a racing pulse, you lean closer so you could finally bite his nose. You have wanted to do this ever since this date started. He has such a pretty and biteable nose. You make sure to be as gentle as possible. All you need is for your teeth to feel his nose just once. You don’t want to hurt him. 

Jungkook grumbles in faux annoyance, giving you a pout afterwards.

“Happy?” 

“Very. This was the highlight of my day, seriously.”

He chuckles, “if you say so. Now give me ice cream.”

“There you go.” 

Jungkook practically sucks in your ice cream like a vacuum, leaving you with an empty ice cream cone and an agape mouth.

“Jungkook!” You exclaim, “what the hell?”

He chuckles with a full mouth, eyes sparkling mischievously.

“You’re so annoying”, you whine, nudging his chest.

“You said three bites. Never said how big they can- ow, ah, brain freeze.”

“Serves you right, you ice cream thieving egg.”

[vakarianshepard]

One of the many things that makes Garrus so interesting to me is how the society he was raised in shaped him. Turian society is so focused on law and order and justice; he grew up watching his dad putting away criminals on the news. He joined C-Sec because he wanted to help people. He wanted to make the world a safer place, like his dad did. He wanted to uphold the societal tenets he’d been raised with his entire life, and when he got to C-Sec he found out that it wasn’t that simple.

Garrus is driven by a desire to do good; if he can help someone, if he can stop someone from hurting people, why shouldn’t he? This is almost verbatim what he TELLS Shepard in one of his earliest conversations onboard the Normandy! 

I think it’s also important to recognize that he’s been in the turian military, then C-Sec since he was FIFTEEN. Turians have a pretty much the same age/maturity span as humans; Garrus is 25ish when he meets Shepard. He’s spent nearly half his life in an insular military society. It’s apparent where and how he got a militaristic “shoot first” attitude. However, he DOES have a very strong sense of right and wrong. What he “lacks” (and only in Mass Effect 1) is the depth of outside experience someone like Shepard, or even Wrex, has to give context to these decisions. He’s hot-headed and idealistic; Harkin tells Shepard that Garrus “still thinks he can change the world.” Executor Pallin tells Shepard he’s a very good officer, but he needs to be more patient. Garrus himself tells Shepard that’s why he wanted to leave C-Sec in the first place; to get a glimpse of how the galaxy works outside of the rigid structure of the turian military/C-Sec (a turian created and majority turian organization). He wants to learn and improve himself/his skills.

And he does! Depending on Shepard’s interactions with him, he realizes that his pride was getting in the way with Dr. Saleon and resolves to do better! After Omega, he recognizes that his vigilante work as Archangel did very little to improve conditions on Omega, and comments on that himself! Throughout ME2, Garrus wrestles with the realization that the “right” path may not be the easiest one, and that the idea of justice is itself subjective. After sparing Sidonis, he says, “It’s so much easier to see the world in black and white. I don’t know what to do with gray.” If Shepard tells him to trust his instincts, he admits that his instincts are what led to the situation with Sidonis. 

Garrus’ worldview grows and changes a lot throughout the trilogy. He easily befriends Tali and Wrex and apologizes to both of them. With a mostly paragon Shepard’s support (and even if Shepard is a renegade or ignores him completely!) he becomes a trusted leader in the turian government! He goes to his father, and uses the proper channels to get support and prepare for the Reapers. Obviously, he’s taken the lessons learned with Shepard, on Omega, etc, and uses that knowledge to benefit his people! He helps cure the genophage, he helps reclaim Rannoch, he admits that he was wrong! Often people bring up Garrus either: 1. Saying he would’ve considered the salarian deal and/or 2. Supporting Shepard if she chooses to sabotage the genophage as proof of his “wild racism.” These are both surface level and bad faith readings that are far less openly “racist” than views other characters, even Shepard herself, can support. 

In the case of the deal with the Dalatrass, he ONLY says that he would’ve considered it; hardly a ringing endorsement, especially when taking into consideration the massive scope and destruction of the Reaper war. Secondly, in the case of where Shepard chose to lie and sabotage the genophage cure, what’s done is already done. Garrus was not responsible for or privy to that decision, and I personally don’t see how choosing not to condemn a friend at one of her lowest points (after Thessia btw)  for something neither of you can change, is a show of support for real life racism. In fact, I would argue that it’s instead a show of compassion and loyalty to someone who’s been there for him at his darkest moments. 

Mass Effect is a series BUILT on grey morality. As Garrus himself says (paraphrased), when the fate of all life in the galaxy is at stake, you can’t always remain quiet and polite. It’s a game with rich and realistic worldbuilding that informs the context of the conflicts Shepard is involved in.  It is a game set in a very tumultuous time period for its universe. Refusing to acknowledge that is extremely shallow. You don’t have to like Garrus, you don’t have to like Shepard, you don’t even have to like Mass Effect. You also don’t have to play a game with a story/characters/themes that you don’t like. There’s definitely no reason to assign moral weight to VIDEO GAME DECISIONS and act like it’s a moral failing if someone makes a different decision than you. 

Tl;dr mass effect is a nuanced and interesting setting and garrus is a nuanced and interesting character kthx bye

[sanjisleggy]

the siren and the sun (portgas d. ace x reader) [pt2]

a/n: i have been very obsessed with Ace recently :0c anyways here’s part 2! 

contents: brief mentions of death, angst, fluff, hurt/comfort, pining!Ace, kidnapping (+ rescue), allusions to human trafficking

wc. 3.3k

wanna be on my taglist?

part 1 || part 3

i. 

you’d entered the forest hoping to die.

only a week had passed since your parents set sail on the open seas, claiming their yearning for adventure was far too strong to ignore any longer. “we’d bring you with us but you’re too young,” they said but even at the young age of eleven you knew they were more than happy to leave you behind.

the air was fresh–much fresher than the usual stink of the Grey Terminal–and dotted rays of sunlight shone through the thick canopy of leaves above. you could hear the faint running of water and feel the breeze brushing past your skin.

it was a pleasant experience but you still wished to die.

instead, you came face-to-face with a boy who had large round eyes and a straw hat atop his head.

you’re gently woken up from your sleep by the feeling of your mattress dipping and the sound of sheets rustling. the room is still dark, only barely illuminated by the moonlight shining through your window, and yet it doesn’t take much effort to recognise the culprit.

Ace crawls across the length of your mattress, tossing your blanket out of his way as he moves. his hair is tousled and his signature orange hat is nowhere to be found. once he’s close enough, he slumps forward and spreads his arms out–one of which plops right across your chest.

“y’know they’re just gonna drag you out again, right?” you mumble, shifting slightly to lay on your side to face the boy whose face is now planted downward on one of your pillows. Ace mutters something you can’t quite make out as he hooks his arm around you to pull you closer before his muscles visibly relax, preparing for sleep.

you learned the boy’s name was Luffy and that his caregiver had a habit of adopting stray children. upon sharing with your new friend your desire to no longer be alive, he’d simply called you silly and lent you his straw hat. you kept it on your head as he held your hand and led you deeper into the forest.

Luffy spoke the entire trip to Dadan’s house and had practically shared his entire life story by the time you reached the cabin. you didn’t share anything about yourself, content with simply listening.

Dadan yelled at Luffy for bringing home another random kid but stopped once she laid her eyes on you. though she maintained her scowl and crossed arms, you could tell she wasn’t truly as angry as she was pretending to be.

“whatever,” she said with a nonchalant wave of her hand, “stay if you want. you can’t possibly be as troublesome as Ace and Luffy are anyway.”

that night, without saying a word, she handed you a fresh set of clothes and a sleeping mat and pillow.

you listen as Ace’s breathing slows down and evens out. as usual, he’s out cold within the span of several seconds. you’d love to go back to sleep yourself but if the past week has taught you anything, you know someone else is about to show up in just a few more seconds.

right on cue, your bedroom door slams open and there stands a bleary-eyed Marco in his pajamas.

“how many times do we have to do this before you stop?” he groans as he shuffles over to the side of the bed where Ace is sleeping. the older man grabs Ace by the collar of his shirt–much like a mother cat would pick up their cub by the scruff of their neck–and yanks him off the bed.

“let go of me, you fuck!” Ace yells a split second after he’s startled awake. through half-lidded eyes, you watch him struggle to break out of Marco’s iron-grip as he’s pulled across your room like a sack of potatoes towards your open door.

“Ace can sleep with me, Marco, it’s alright,” you say, already missing the warmth, but all the first division commander does is shrug.

“Pops’ orders. ‘night, (Y/N),” Marco yawns before he shuts your door, completely unbothered by the young man wriggling in an almost feral manner. he swings his flaming fists around threateningly but makes no actual attempt to start a fight. 

you can’t help but drift off to sleep with a smile on your face and a funny tingling feeling deep in your chest at the thought of Ace’s desperation to sleep simply beside you.

Ace hated you the moment he laid his eyes on you. though he kept it to himself, not wanting to ruin Luffy’s fun of having a new friend, he despised your presence. no matter how he tried to look at the situation, he couldn’t help but feel as though you were trying to be Sabo’s replacement.

he hated how you tried to keep talking to him every day, gradually growing more bold over time despite his repeated rejection. 

he hated how Luffy loved swinging through the trees with you (he’d invited Ace before but the older boy called it childish and dumb). 

he hated how you actually listened to Dadan and helped out with household chores. 

he hated how you were so clumsy and awkward whenever Luffy invited you to explore the forest with them. 

he especially hated how you never cried even after falling down or spraining an ankle.

“let’s go fishing, Ace,” you chirped one day with a wide smile on your face. there was a bruise on your forehead from the day before when you tripped over a root. the boy merely scoffed and turned away, already feeling the burning in his chest that manifested everytime you tried to spend time with him.

“yea, let’s fish!” Luffy cheered, grabbing both your hands before taking off towards the nearest river. Ace didn’t fight it, telling himself he relented just because he didn’t want to disappoint Luffy. 

if his younger brother wanted so badly for you to join then so be it. Ace didn’t care.

it didn’t take much time before Ace realised he did kind of care–but only because for some reason you were so much better at fishing than he was and Luffy thought that was super cool. 

he gritted his teeth and stewed in his anger for a while longer, determined to keep his rising frustration under control but your laughter intermingling with Luffy’s just pissed him off. if looks could kill, you would’ve dropped dead from his glaring ages ago.

“you’re so fun, (Y/N)!” Luffy giggled and something inexplicable within Ace snapped. 

before he knew it, he’d snatched your fishing pole out of your hands and broke it in half before tossing it into the river. ignoring his younger brother’s pleas for him to calm down and be nice to you, Ace grabbed your shoulder and pushed you towards the cold running water. as you stumbled backwards, your ankle collided with something hard causing you to fall. you yelped from the shock and pain as you felt your clothes get soaked with freezing river water. 

Ace’s anger had mostly dissipated by then, only to be replaced swiftly by a deep sense of guilt. it felt like cold, frigid fingers were gripping his heart and squeezing with all their might. he could hear Luffy yelling at him but everything sounded muffled except for one thing: your crying.

ii.

there’s a bet amongst the commanders on how many attempts on Whitebeard’s life will it take for Ace to finally give up and join the crew.

it’s only been a little over a week since your reunion but most of the commanders have already lost since they made their bets assuming Ace was a sane person. the only three left in the game are Marco, Jozu and Vista–though, judging by the ruckus coming from inside Whitebeard’s room, you suspect Jozu might be out soon. 

the newly-replaced door flies straight off its hinges and into the ocean as Ace is once again thrown out of the room, his back slamming into the deck railing with a sickening thud. breathless, he lays on the ground for a few minutes, completely ignored by passers-by–at this point, it’s just another Thursday afternoon.

“hey,” you call out from where you sit on the deck floor with a book in your hands, just a few metres away. you can’t help but smile when you see how he perks up almost instantaneously. getting on his hands and knees, Ace shuffles over until he’s sitting right beside you, his thigh pressing against yours.

you were avoiding him and a part of him wished he didn’t know why. if he was in the dark, he could at least default to being angry but it was hard to ignore the guilt nagging at his brain whenever he saw the way you limped or the bruise that had blossomed on your shoulder.

Luffy had been mad at him, too, for the rest of the day for hurting his new friend. he’d only warmed back up to his older brother after nightfall when the two spoke in uncharacteristically hushed tones under the blanket. Ace wasn’t afraid to admit he’d done something wrong and that he felt bad about it, he just didn’t really know what to do next.

“how’s killing Pops’ going?” you ask, setting the book aside on the floor before you reach out to brush some stray strands of hair out of his face. he always looks so messy after trying to kill your captain, it’s endearing only because you know it’s probably the one thing he’ll never succeed in.

“not great, clearly,” he sighs as he leans against you while absentmindedly playing with the hem of your shorts. “i knew it wasn’t going to be easy but not this hard… why don’t we just leave together? we can find my old crew and you can be my second first mate.”

you chuckle at his offer. “i didn’t know it was possible for you to become even more stubborn than when you were a kid.” Ace’s pout grows deeper so you decide to appease him by combing your fingers through his hair–a habit you picked back up pretty quick after reuniting with him, much to his visible pleasure. “you already know i’m never leaving this crew. they’re my family.”

“i thought i was your family?” he replies, though he knows deep in his heart that’s not the most accurate word he’d use to describe your relationship–even back when you were children.

Makino was surprised to see a familiar face enter Partys Bar on a random Tuesday afternoon. thankfully, it was a slow day for business.

“how do i… say sorry to someone?” Ace asked, perched on one of the barstools with his eyes glued to his hands on his lap. Makino couldn’t help but smile at the innocence in his question.

“well, it depends,” she replied. “what did you do?”

“i hurt (Y/N). i got mad and pushed her and she fell.”

“did she do something to you?”

“... no.”

as much as she wanted to chide the boy for his actions, she could tell from the look on his face that he’d beat himself up over it more than enough already. besides, he came asking for help righting the wrong, who was she to deny such a request?

that night, Ace ran back to Dadan’s cabin with a handful of wildflowers clutched carefully in his hand. his heart pounded not only from the running but from the sheer nerves of what he was about to do. he rehearsed the words he practiced with Makino in his head over and over until he was certain he could recite them in his sleep. 

when he’d finally reached his destination, though, he was greeted by a panicked Dogra and Magra.

“(Y/N)’s been taken. Dadan and Luffy went looking for her!”

“of course you’re my family,” you tell Ace as you continue to scratch his scalp, chuckling when you see his eyes flutter close as he leans into your touch. “you know you’ll always be my best friend.” he ignores the sudden pang in his chest. “i just owe too much to Pops and the others. i know they won’t stop me if i try to leave but i’ve found my place here. this could be your place, too, y’know?”

Ace doesn’t reply but he doesn’t reject the idea entirely either like he would’ve done a week ago.

iii.

Ace is startled awake when he hears the sound of the door creaking open. setting his hand ablaze on instinct, he readies himself for a fight. ‘this is it,’ he thinks to himself, ‘the cards are off the table now. i knew the Whitebeard pirates were just putting up a front to get my guard down.’

“chill out, dude,” your voice floats across the room in a frantic whisper as you quietly close the door behind you. “it’s just me.” the flames engulfing his hand disappear instantly as he feels his initial apprehension melt into relief.

“what’re you doing here?” Ace asks in his own whispered tone, scooting over to make space for you on the small bed he’d been given as Whitebeard’s ‘prisoner’. “won’t your Pops get mad?” he feels his face heat up as he watches you make yourself comfortable, eventually settling down with your face just mere inches away from his as you both lay on your sides.

“Pops’ll never get mad at me, i’m his darling daughter,” you reply half heartedly as you snuggle your face into his pillow. the action causes your loose shirt collar to slip off your shoulder enough to reveal a scar Ace hasn’t thought about in a long time.

without a second thought, he reaches out to trace his finger across the marred skin. it’s a jagged line from the base of the side of your neck, perpendicular to your collarbone, ending just a few centimetres below it. it’s a weird place for a scar but he knows it’s real: he was there to witness the injury that caused it.

he’d found you trapped in the arms of an unfamiliar man as he held a knife to your neck. Ace could see the sheen of sweat covering your skin as you trembled, your fingernails dug into your captor’s forearm in a futile attempt to make him let go.

“drop the knife, asshole,” Ace warned, pipe at the ready.

“fuck off, kid! she’s mine! i’m gonna get off this fucking island and bring this bitch to Sabaody.” he laughed in an almost manical manner. “if her limp’s permanent, it might reduce her value but i know the Celestial Dragons love pretty girls.” 

you couldn’t help but let out a sob at the man’s crude words as well as the pain shooting through your re-twisted ankle. it was close to full recovering when you were snatched from the riverside where you sat earlier in the day, only to get hurt all over again in your struggle for freedom. 

the sound of your cries set something in Ace’s chest ablaze as he felt rage cloud every thought in his mind other than one: save you. with gritted teeth and boiling blood pumping through his veins, Ace charged at your kidnapper and swung his pipe.

“that was a crazy day, huh?” you mumble, feeling goosebumps ripple across your skin as he continues to trace his index finger over your scar.

“if i wasn’t so reckless, you wouldn’t have been hurt.” he bites down on the inside of his cheek as a familiar wave of guilt washing over him. you sigh and grab the hand that’s touching your skin, maneuvering it so that your palm presses against his. through the darkness of the room, you can see him smile a little as he curls his fingers, interlocking them with your own. as you expect, his skin feels warm.

“technically, your recklessness saved me from a lifetime of being a Celestial Dragon’s pet,” you point out. “i don’t think he was prepared to fight off a feral child.”

“how dare you call me feral,” he laughs.

“you were super feral! both you and Luffy. i was the only sane one, just ask Dadan.”

“sure,” Ace replies with a roll of his eyes, dragging out the word in a playful manner. 

“i really mean it, though. you saved my life that day, Ace.” you lower your interlocked hands to rest in between your faces on top of the pillow. “so you better stop getting all mopey whenever you see the scar.”

the man laid on the forest ground, beaten to a pulp. if it weren’t for the occasional rising of his chest, you would’ve thought he was dead. Ace heaved as he stood over the unconscious man, the pipe he used as a weapon now coated in blood and dented in several areas.

it had been a few minutes since the fight ended but the boy still breathed heavily and his hand still gripped the pipe in his hand so hard his knuckles were deathly pale.

“Ace?” you called out apprehensively from where you sat a few metres behind him, voice slightly hoarse from crying. you could see him tense up but he remained silent. “are you okay?”

the pipe fell to the ground with a muffled thud as he turned around, eyebrows still deeply furrowed. his eyes flickered to the hand you kept pressed against the junction between your shoulder and neck. without saying a word, he closed the gap between him and you before dropping to his knees.

“here,” Ace said, pulling out a handful of crumpled flowers. he held them up to you expectedly. “i’m sorry i hurt you the other day. i was mad at something else and took it out on you. please forgive me.”

dumbfounded, you found yourself staring at him for a few silent seconds. his lip was busted and his entire body was littered in little cuts and blossoming bruises. he’d nearly killed a man; and yet here he was.

Ace gulped when his apology went unacknowledged. he nearly even started to panic when he realised Makino hadn’t told him what to do if you chose to not forgive him. 

thankfully, you reached out and took the flowers as a smile stretched across your teary face.

his heart, which had been calming down after the intense fight, revved back up again as he felt something burst in his chest. a strange tingling feeling spread across his entire body and suddenly all the pain from his injuries melted away. Ace felt a warmth envelop his face and he nearly covered his cheeks with his hands–stopping himself only because he knew it would make it too obvious.

you’d fallen asleep with your hand still in his. your face was so close to his own he could feel your gentle breaths brush across his skin. although he himself feels the pull of sleep, he resists the urge for a little while more, needing time to gather his thoughts.

Ace thinks about his experience so far on the Moby Dick; how he’s been trying relentlessly to kill Whitebeard and yet everyone’s been treating him with such patience. hell, they’ve never threatened to slap sea prism stone cuffs on him even once. 

he realises he’s already familiarised himself with some of the commanders, namely Marco and Thatch; and how even though he’s been acting like such a brat, the two older men have still been nothing but kind. as much as he hates that Marco takes up so much of your time, Ace can’t deny how much chemistry you have with the whole crew and how much they seem to love you so sincerely and unconditionally.

could i have that, too, one day?

he recalls something you said during a conversation earlier in the day.

“i’ve found my place here. this could be your place, too, y’know?”

and suddenly the answer seems so simple. 

gen taglist: @irethepotato @i-reblog-fics-i-like @grierpilots @appalost @hyper-fic-ation @dressycobra7 @38lyra38 @chaseyui @paraparakiss

series taglist: @captainportgasdace @mitskisaveme @graveyardsweethearts @vaniiiavengeance @stuckinmymind22

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

book 7 chapter 11 part 1 thoughts!

***THIS POST CONTAINS MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR BOOK 7 PART 11 OF THE MAIN STORY!!*** This spans part 192 to part 211, covering Jack and Ruggie’s dreams. You can see my comments on Leona's dream here!

Please note: this is NOT meant to be a summary or a translation; these are only my initial thoughts on the events that roughly unfold. There may be details overlooked or misunderstood in this post, so PLEASE do not use this as a translation.

xbsbdkshwkw AZUL FAINTED WITH HIS EYES OPEN FROM THE FALL… This guy keeps taking the Ls early on in this update cuz he also got reminded that Idia recorded him in his own dream shouting “KRACKEN SHOT” which is very embarrassing.

Silver and Azul are able to change into their school uniforms without Idia’s incantation. Apparently Silver mastered the magic of changing clothes because he was so often oversleeping for class and had to prepare quickly for them. This shocks Sebek, who has yet to master this kind of magic. (Maybe it’s also a consequence of him being a first year?? 😂)

They briefly discuss how Silver looks like a prince when he’s riding his horse; Azul saw him in a Magicam cut of the Equestrian Club. Previously, we knew from Riddle’s Ceremonial Robes vignettes that the brown horse he rides is named Vorpal. Here we get confirmation of Silver and Sebek’s horses—Samson (a white horse, sharing the same name as Prince Phillip’s steed) and Tempest, respectively.

LMAO Idia complains about how athletes get so much attention, meanwhile nerds like him aren’t ever given that or fawned over or called princes. IDiA W3 gET IT… YOU COMPlAIN AbOUT CHADS 😭

They have landed in front of the gates of NRC and run into Jack there. He seems to be rushing to the colosseum…? Let’s follow him!!

OKAY

OKAY

OKAY

JACK HOWL YOu’RE oN MY ShiT LiST OTL YOU KNOW Ehat tHIS GUY DREAmed ABOUT???????!!!?!?!!?! It’s the year after their instaloss to Diasomnia in the interdorm tournament (don’t ask me why Malleus and Leona aren’t off at their internships at this point, dream logic I guess???). Dream!Leona has gathered all odds Savanaclaw in the colosseum to train so this year they can take Malleus and beat Diasomnia head-on, no tricks. HE EVEN GiVES A N OPTIMISTIC SpEECH AbOUT THE POWEr oF TEAMWORK TO RALLY EVERYONE… and declares he’ll be the next “king” 💀 Such overwhelming confidence… JSCK DRWAMED Of a DORM LEADER thAt PLAys BY THE RULES AnD IS 💯 ConFidENT IN THEMEKvES…

Grim is so grossed out seeing this version of Leona that he wants to wake Jack up right the fuck now 😭

AzUL YOU ASSHoLE???? He acts all fake surprised about “the incident” that happened at the intetdorm tournament and like bro had no part in instigating that stampede.

They start to formulate a plan to wake Jack up, but are worried about dream!Leona since Leona irl is a very strong mage, the darkness posing as Leona could be even stronger than usual. But at the same time we can’t risk casting a spell that’s too strong ourselves or it might call Malleus’s attention. They suggest to use Azul as a clincher since he would theoretically have access to all the magic he stole irl in the dream. Surely one of those could help?

Jack scores against the defense, Ruggie. While the Savanaclaw students are going over his play, Yuu and friends stroll up (including Idia vis a full body projection). Grim tells Savanaclaw they’re Team Ramshackle here to play them!

Ruggie says there’s no point; their team is made up of weaklings! But then Azul gives his OWN speech about how Octavinelle and Ignihyde are always dead last in magift tournaments and this time they really trained hard because they wanna be better 🥺 and besides, isn’g magift a game of wits and not brute magic/physical strength??? This catches the attention of dream!Leona who agrees to the play. He considers fellow dorm leaders worthy opponents, and also had a bone yo pick with Sebek and Silver. (Also??? Sounds like Ignihyde got their asses beat by the Pomefiore team in this year’s interdorm tournament.)

HEKP THIS mAn HE’S SuFFERINNNNG 💀 Azul is really out of it so he calls for a time out. Idia takes this opportunity to make fun of him again for being tired now when he was the captain of Golden Trident in his own dream. At least Sebek is nice and offers Azul some water.

Sebek messes up and the frisbee goes out of bounds?? WYat THE FuVk dream!Leona goes over and helps Sebek up after he’s fallen… “Oh, so Jack has made a senpai he can truly respect.” “Oh, the REAL Leona wouldn’t do something so noble like that.” GROSS GROSS GROSS GET IT OUTTA HERE ���

Oooh, interesting?? Ortho reasons that when you’re excited, you’re more likely to be influenced by emotions when making decisions; they’ll take advantage of the exercise high everyone on to break through to Jack. He and Jack end up flying out to space as they’re squaring off in magift; when Jack realizes how far he has flown up, he’s shocked. Don’t they need oxygen to breathe here?! It’s here that Ortho reveals this is all a dream to him.

Jack is so shocked by the news that he wakes—and then falls out of the sky?! Silver immediately runs to protect everyone. Idia uses the Dream Form Change to forcibly swap Ortho to his Cerberus Gear and Jack to his Dorm Uniform, which help to cushion the blow of their crash landing. Then dream!Leona comes over to check on Jack and decides to bench him.

The darkness tries to deceive Jack, but he actually punches back and refuses to be tricked. bcdbbsksks He cries a little and goes on about how he was so inspired by watching Leona play on TV he’d watch it over and over… only to be disappointed by reality. Jack goes a little overboard though, he starts attacking US too, thinking we’re fakes as well.

Jack quickly comes to see reason and stops trying to deck us. Sebek still seems salty at Savanaclaw for what they tried to pull in book 2 and again reminds Jack of those injustices, saying he won’t forgive them. To his surprise, Jack admits wrongdoing and says it’s only natural some people would still hold grudges and choose to not forgive them. Sebek is so shocked by the fact that honest people like Jack exist in Savanaclaw. Aw… baby’s having his prejudice challenged…

Mentioning this for the Jack lovers: Jack pets Grim on the head and praises him!

LMAo????? Jack grabs Silver’s arm to travel with them and is shocked by how it looks slender but actually you can tell he has trained a ton by feeling it!

They land in Sunrise City in Sunset Savanna. Everyone tells Jack about Dream Form Change, which he says is a spell that looks like it’s from an anime his kid sister watched before. Jack has a had time saying the spell because he finds it embarrassing, but he’s eventually goaded into it (especially by Sebek, who tells him to chat it with his whole damn chest).

Beastman lore!! Apparently beastmen are considered a genus and all beastmen come from Sunset Savanna; over time, they migrated to other parts of the world, especially to some colder locations northward. Jack’s family is included in this, as well as Sebek’s. His grandfather apparently used to live in the wetlands of Sunset Savanna. I guess it just goes to show that no matter how different their individual practices and beliefs… they have common roots.

While they’re admiring the statue of the lion prince in the center of Sunrise City, they notice no hyenas are among the gathered animals. They suggest that maybe the statue was made before the King of Beasts united all animals; the hyenas used to live in their own place called the Land of Shadows.

They review some Sunset Savanna lore, including how difficult it is to unite beastmen of different kinds and how there's a pushback against development due to many beastmen wanting to respect nature. Sometimes the disputes can become violent, and it's all over the news. SHOCKINGLY, Idia has a moment of clarity and realizes that this must be why Leona chose the internship he did at a mining and energy company 😭

Everyone begins to suspect the dream is Leona’s but right then Ruggie rushes by them, declaring that he’s late for school. Jack is surprised that Ruggie is in glasses because in Savanavlaw he would brag about having good eyes.

Ruggie cuts through the market to get to school on time; he seems friendly with the folks and many of them offer him free food. Jack remarks that Ruggie is seen as a hero in his hometown, so maybe this explains the NPCs’ behavior. Apparently he is also an honors student in this world.

Anyway, Ruggie arrives at Ivory Cliff! It seems this school doesn’t exist irl; it’s only in Ruggie’s dream. Most of it is beastment, and over half are hyenas.

Grim watches Ruggie and mobs A and B eating food and leaps in to get some!! (Azul apologizes and lies that Grim is his familiar, lol) Sebek chides Grim for doing this, but then his own stomach growls, giving his own hunger away. He of course denies his hunger—but Ruggie says it’s okay and invites them all to eat!! The local children come to their campus just to have food too. Ivorycliff Academy was built in honor of the three hyenas who served the King of Beasts. They used to be do starved that they could cry, so the school is dedicated to feeding the hungry in the spirit of solidarity.

BRUH 😭 YOu’RE KIDDING ME… In his dream, Ruggie’s dad never left him… He came back for his son with a fortune he made from working. Ruggie also bought a new car for his granny and never has to be hungry again. Jack wonders if it is really right to take away happiness like that, but ultimately he decides he doesn’t want to see his senpai living a false reality.

Ruggie shows them to a school donut stall with all-you-can-eat toppings. He dumps everything onto a single donut and calls it the "Ruggie Special". The owner drops the lore that in the universe of this dream, apparently LEONA built the school.

According to donut lady, Leona graduated last year and came back after graduating to strengthen his country. He has established several schools and even magift teams. Among young people in the Sunset Savanna, Leona is supposedly also more popular than the crown prince.

Ruggie runs off to class and we stay behind to eat. Donut lady turns to darkness and attacks us, so we beat it back.

Everyone thinks it will be hard to wake Ruggie since he has never met Leona in this reality and doesn’t have any memories of NRC, his club activities, etc. There isn’t much for him to emotionally react to.

WHAT THE HECK is this a Mufasa movie reference in Twst 😭 Ruggie and some mobs talk about a sequel (that’s a live action prequel, I think??) about two characters who are enemies but were actually friends in their youth. Or maybe they’re just talking about some other Lion King prequel I’m not aware of???

J kb bajabakan ahaGayatwHAT

Azul tosses coins of different values which attracts Ruggie’s attention. He has the unique ability to tell the value of a coin just from the sound of it, a skill which Azul learned about from observing Ruggie when he worked part-time at the Mostro Lounge.

Anyway, Ruggie tells mobs A and B to go home without him so he can hunt the coins in peace.

Azul carelessly tosses 500 madol (~5 USD) into the fountain. Ruggie wants it so badly he dives in and starts digging around wildly in the water for the coin. AND AZUL JUST KINDA STANDS THER E TAUNTING HIM LIKE, "OoOOoOoOoh you want that coin so badly, Ruggie, your body moved on instinct BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF, BE GREEDY, GET THAT COIN" (NOT AN ACTUAL TRANSLATION, but in the spirit of what Azul actually says).

I assume this is what the Ivorycliff Uniform Ruggie groovy depicts... Bro's tripping and having a cosmic experience all because he spotted A COUPLE DOLLARS.

Nooot sure how to feel about this as a narrative device. On one hand, it's funny and definitely demonstrates Ruggie's shamelessness. On the other hand, I can see why some may see it as distasteful or humiliating because Ruggie is already so destitute irl and yet here they are using him scrounging around for a few dollars as comedic bit.

Mobs A and B return to check on him. Ruggie starts obsessing to them about how you can buy extra or fancy food like the shrimp gratin set for 500 madol!! Which confuses the mobs because all the food at Ivorycliff is free.

On instinct, Ruggie starts reciting what I assume is true of NRC: basic buffet foods are free, but extra foods are an extra cost… uniforms are free but if you ruin the first set then you need to pay for extra ones… etc. Ruggie points out that Ivorcliff uniforms are sucky anyway, with a light color like this, even a little bit of dirt stands out! Night Raven College uniforms are black, so it’s so convenient! Wooow, what a callback to book 2 💀 Ruggie complained about the RSA uniforms being hard to clean back then too…

We beat the mobs up~

Ruggie falls ot his knees and has a good little cry 😭 but then he recovers and says he’d better be paid a good hourly wage for all this trouble cnbdjssbjsks He agrees to join us because “Well, I wake up Leona-san every day so this is literally no different than my usual routine” though he also admits his success rate is like 60-70%.

dnensjsbahsjajw RUGGUE’S On MY shIT LIST TOO. HOW daRE HE… Bro says he’s going to wake up OUR king now, that he doesn’t want to follow a false king.. ARE YOU FR 💀 JE’S TAlKING AbOUT zbsvsjabskshFd;,,,/;~~\4!’ansnjahVb,dDDGfgGJjkJSDgabakaojrr a kKNBD gbmmkojnkFSAAQWVNmkoggDFFHvjkkp OTL

PAUSE TO STARE AT RUGGIE'S CRYING FACE BECAUSE WHAT THE HELL I FEEL LIKE I'M STARING AT A KICKED PUPPY

And so…! They’re off!!

This update ends up Ruggie’s dream concluding. Next time (on the 29th), it’s time for us to wake up Leona!!

asdbkhlfbyofqeyg80eg8qegppf OKAY. I WAS NOT EXPECT THIS AMOUNT OF LEONA GLAZING IN THIS UPDATE 🤡 Like, GOOD LORD was there a lot of it... I sort of expected it in Jack's dream since he idolizes Leona, but I was not expecting it to come up in Ruggie's dream too. Even though it doesn't seem like Ruggie has met Leona in the universe of his own dream... the dream world still created lore about how Leona successfully graduated and made the decision to come back and better his country, especially for the destitute hyenas like himself 💀💀💀 WHICH JUST GOES TO SHOW THAT EVERYONE IN LEONA'S DORM RESPECTS HIM AND BELIEVES HE CAN LEAD THEM TO A BRIGHTER FUTURE IN THIS ESSAY I WILL--

ASDBKLHABIYOFAYFQEIBAF STFU ME, THIS UPDATE ISN'T ABOUT HIM.. .. . . . ....... . . . ... . .. . . . . . . LET'S TALK ABOUT JACK AND RUGGIE.

I think this update was one of the funnier ones by far. I'm on Grim's side, it was very unnerving to see a helpful, reliable Leona that plays by the rules and is a good sportsman... but at the same time, it's only to be expected of Jack. Since book 2, he's made it clear he looks up to his dorm leader and wants to be able to put his faith in him. It was nice to see everyone acknowledge how a Leona that doesn't hold back is a genuine threat and how this is the version of him that Jack wants to see realized. It's cute how Jack has this pure want to play with Leona and wants to see him as an idealized leader... Definitely puppy-coded behavior.

Something else I really appreciated about Jack's dream is the logic that went into waking him up. It was really a tag-team effort by Azul and Ortho and, unlike previous updates, I felt like the previous OB boy's presence was a Nothing addition to the cast and didn't contribute much. But Azul uses his smooth talking to convince dream!Leona to play against them, and then Ortho isolates Jack to knock some sense into him. I liked that Ortho, the robot, used cold, hard facts to reason his way to a situation where Jack was more likely to react with strong emotionality. Azul becomes useful again in Ruggie's dream, where he single-handedly wakes the guy up with some spare change he had on hand www

The exchange between Sebek and Jack was great, but I wish it had been extended... It feels like they added it to help with Sebek's character arc of overcoming prejuidice about non-fae, which is fine! But I think it should have been carried over into Ruggie's dream (in that section where they talk about different beastmen in the savanna). Like... it would tie together so well if Sebek had a moment of just "............." in indicate that he's thinking about what was just said, about how different beastmen, despite their differences, all originated in the same place. It would show us that he's slowly realizing, little by little, to accept non-fae.

I think Jack attacking us was an interesting beat to include, especially with all the theories swirling about how the Savanaclaw update will be the one to shake up the formula. Perhaps this is a preview of what's to come in Leona's section??? It proves Ortho's point that you're more likely to think and act with your emotions leading you rather than logic if you're already hyped about something. (In Jack's case, he was still coming off the caution and the high of beating back dream!Ruggie and Leona.)

I felt very similar to Jack in Ruggie's dream, doubting whether or not it was morally right to rip someone away from their happiness--especially considering all that Ruggie has gone through. Little guy was so devastated to find out the truth too... When I think about it, he's gone through so much tragedy in his life. His mom's dead, his dad left him, he grew up destitute and having to scrape by, he had to get LITERAL GARBAGE (depicted in the manga adaptation) to survive some days. It's no wonder why the people in his hometown call him their hero, it's a miracle that he lived this long and managed to get into a prestigious school. I think Ruggie's dream also highlights that he's not JUST greedy because he's greedy. Ruggie clearly cares about other people living well too (something alluded to early in book 4), because why else would Ivorycliffs casually offer free food to everyone and anyone? Why else would he spend tons of cash to buy his grandma stuff? He's thankful for what he has and wants to give back to the community that supported him. The supportive community is also generally reflected in his dream, specifically the market he passes on his way to school.

Ultimately, I do think it's for the best that Ruggie was roused awake because um... HEY, THE WORLD IS GOING TO END. Coming to that conclusion also speaks a lot about Jack's character: above all, he values honesty, even if the truth hurts. Excellent carry-over from book 2 (where he was the whistleblower), honestly.

One thing I wished they had expanded on was the relation of hyenas to other beastmen. It’s implied they are second class citizens, but it’s never clearly stated why that is other than “oh they live in a place that lions didn’t rule”. I would have liked more historical context for that discrimination; it would have helped to flesh out the world.

Overall, liked this update a lore more than the previous ones. I don’t know if I can still say this after the second part comes out (because I’ve usually had the most criticism for how the OB boys’ dreams ate handled), but so far I’m surprised by Jack and Ruggie (in a good way). Fingers crossed for the 29th! 🤞