#I also think she's very empathetic and would understand me not wanting to be alone during this time

[rosenotactuallyquartz]

"Pearl is Alfred if Alfred was in love with Batman. It’s very important to note that we’re talking about Batman here, NOT Bruce Wayne. She loves BATMAN." — rebecca sugar

what do you think about pearl loving only rose quartz and not pink diamond? I love pearlrose but I think their relationship kind of reinforced rose's self hatred. rose needed to accept pink diamond and her past to accept herself but her fantasy with pearl denied pink diamond's relation to rose.

which also makes me think that rose loved pearl *more* than pearl loved her because she always fully loved and accepted pearl. of course, that's not pearl's fault because she couldn't have a relationship with a diamond who owned her; separating the diamond and the quartz was what made her relationship with rose possible and far healthier than it could've been. so their situation is pretty tragic.

(i’m new to tumblr, so this will be the answer to my first ask, which is exciting. anyway.)

i’ve always seen that quote as being a more positive statement about pearl and rose’s relationship !

it clarifies that pearl never loved rose because of reasons that are related to the pearl-diamond dynamic in horrific homeworld. that’s a common misconception about pearl’s love for rose.

the fact that she fell in love with her when she became rose shows that her love was never mere admiration, devotion, following. it went against homeworld; her love was genuine and real. deep, nurturing, empathetic. she loved rose like one would love a person.

(i want to give a heads up because there are going to be some mentions of abuse & of course rose’s self hatred)

pink diamond hated being a diamond, and she was not like the others. she was in a lot of pain. she was naive, very much a kid compared to the other diamonds. pink was abused, in many different ways. pearl witnessed a lot of this, as she was living with her. she recalled certain times when pink was belittled; she was terrified when steven was left alone with white diamond for about five minutes; she often assumed white caused the harm anytime a gem from homeworld was injured.

pearl said that rose was never happy as pink diamond. they never got the opportunity to connect and get to know each other, and they were both very afraid. the homeworld environment made it impossible for pearl to really fall in love with pink. unless it wasn’t genuine, but i’m actually very grateful for this quote, because it shows that it was.

she never fell in love with pink, but she liked her and cared for her. if she hated pink and loved rose, then i’d understand if that made rose dislike herself more.

the first time she pictured rose, she simply pictured a version of pink who was disguised, yes, but still herself, just more happy and free.

pearl started to fall in love with that individual because this was the only time they could really connect: after escaping from the homeworld society that they both hated.

now we’re only falling apart, their first day on earth, was likely the very first time rose was able to hug her. pearl watched her be herself for the very first time. she watched her play with flowers and chase butterflies and she looked incredibly happy. instead of just looking at her the way that she would look at a diamond, she could actually look at her and perceive her as being endearing. she loved getting to know her as an individual, she loved seeing a soft and genuine side of her that only came out when she felt safe. and rose never felt safe in homeworld.

she also learned how much rose cared for all beings. not just other gems, but humans, too ! she was never one to follow the beliefs of homeworld.

then, they both agreed to escape. rose knew pearl cared for her and pink (especially with pearl crying when they faked the shattering), it’s just homeworld’s system that she hates.

but it was still a tragedy, i agree with that.

white diamond demonstrated how much she damaged rose in change your mind. when she thought she was speaking to pink, she said:

“Please stop helping them. You'll only make things worse. That's what you do. I make things better.”

“As for me, I'm certain I don't need you. After all, I'm every color of the light! But you're a part of me… the part I always have to repress.”

she was most likely spoken to like this for thousands of years, along with things like being locked in a dark room. sugar also said that she only got a colony because white wanted to prove that pink would fail. she controls gems, even blue & yellow, while she points out their flaws in front of everyone and laughs at them.

so this is how i think rose’s self hatred was reinforced: during the war, countless gems (many being her friends) were shattered and corrupted despite the fact that the rebellion happened because she wanted to protect life on earth. she was one of the only survivors, which gave her a lot of guilt. she never healed from the abuse trauma, especially because it was ongoing. she lived in fear that the diamonds would find her one day, but simultaneously, she lived in guilt because no one but pearl knew about this part of herself that she kept secret. eventually, it all became too much.

i think white’s words replayed in her head often. this is why we see her with the ear-covering gesture in change your mind; it makes sense because white evidently said things like, “you’re bad,” “don’t try to help, it will only cause more damage,” “no one needs you.” after trying to heal others, the war and guilt added to her trauma, with a final conclusion of, “i feel like a failure, white diamond is right, i only make things worse, they would be better off without me.”

pearl told rose that she was important, she lived with her while she was a diamond and then throughout her entire lifetime as rose. she saw warmth and comfort when she looked at her despite knowing about so many aspects that rose was ashamed of.

personally, i don’t think pearl ever contributed to rose’s self hatred. no one knew rose as well as pearl did. this means that, if anything, her self hatred was likely reinforced by the fact that so many of her close friends didn’t know her the way she knew them. which isn’t their fault at all, of course ! rose carried so much guilt, and pearl could protect her from the diamonds and the war but she could never protect her from herself.

she felt very cared for… but her self hatred was so terrible that she didn’t feel deserving of all that love. especially, as sugar said, she thought pearl and so many others were so much better than her.

& feeling so much pain all the time, rose was… isolated. she couldn’t tell anyone else about her terrible and destructive thoughts because they wouldn’t understand unless she told them a secret that she didn’t want to tell.

but pearl would be able to understand it/recognize it without rose saying anything, because she knew her so well.

as for your last paragraph, i don’t think rose loved pearl more than pearl loved her. but i also don’t think pearl loved rose more, either !

pearl fully loved pink/rose, it’s why she kept living with her and wanting to be with her despite knowing about nearly everything she was ashamed of, it’s why she defended her and protected her. she just happened to be in love with her when she could really be in love with her.

they were both extremely attached to each other. fans tend to focus on pearl’s attachment because of the steven universe timeline, which happens to fall right where her early (for gems) grief happens. their attachments both make sense.

pearl witnessed how she was treated by the other diamonds, feared that rose would be caught, feared that rose would die in the war, worried about rose’s constant pain following it. she was very protective of her but rose still died… without proper closure or understanding, without a human lifespan so now she’ll be on earth forever without her. of course she became fixated on it. and keeping such a big secret like that made it more difficult. no one could really understand why she was feeling that pain, and some unfortunately assumed it was because she’s a pearl. which is really really sad because their whole dynamic was about going against homeworld.

meanwhile, rose’s attachment came from the fact that pearl was very much… home to her, which was big for her—she never felt at home with the diamond authority, and her home on earth became home because she was living with pearl. their fusion was an extremely significant way for them to officially reject every possible mindset that homeworld could give them. a fusion of two different gems, a diamond and a pearl. pearl helped her build friendships with others, too, which i think is symbolized by the obsidian fusion. first she trusts pearl with her light, and then they both joined the others.

during homeworld & trauma, pink and rose were never in a place where love could grow properly. new, safer environments change so much.

that’s my interpretation of the relationship/sugar’s quote !!

thank you again for the ask 🩷🩷

[beanghostprincess]

i would care if you talked about luffy's issues please talk please tell me all your takes, genuinely (< anon who enjoys your takes)

I am so thankful you asked me this because Luffy is genuinely one of my favorite characters of all time, especially when it comes to shonen protagonists. I'm always saying I don't like shonens (says the one that watches a lot of shonens) but that's mainly because the main characters never feel... Well-written enough for me to like them. But, well, One Piece is different. With all characters, really. It's one of the first shonens I watch that I genuinely love and enjoy because of the characters (shout out to Mob Psycho 100 being one of my favorite animes of all time too because of that same reason).

Luffy is a very complex character and I think that's why he gets mischaracterized most of the time when it comes to the fandom. Some people make him too dumb. Others make him too childish. Others make him way darker and more depressed than he truly is. And I'd say that's weird, having in mind how much the show talks about Luffy and is focused on Luffy's POV, but I kind of understand because people aren't used to characters that are both optimistic and realistic at the same time. Most of the time people consider an optimistic character to be completely idealistic (a good example here is Uta. She is idealistic because she's been sheltered for so long and thinks something as complex as the corruption in the world can be solved with a few songs and love) and refuse to acknowledge the fact that somebody with hopes and dreams can also understand (first-hand, even) the suffering within the world. People like extremes. They like to make both Law and Zoro extremely edgy. They like to babify Sanji and Koby. They forget about Nami's character depth to make her only "the mean lesbian" of the group (that term makes me so fucking furious you don't even know). Etc. Etc. Etc. The thing is: Luffy has layers. His personality varies. He's optimistic. He's realistic. He's stupid. He's emotionally intelligent. He's impulsive. He cares about the safety of the people around him. He's careless. He feels guilt. He's confident. He's so damn insecure. He's playful. He's the most serious character too. Etc. Etc. Etc.

What I want to say with all of this is that Luffy, despite being always perceived as this childish, dumb, and careless character within the fandom, has so much depth and trauma he deals with every fucking day. I once saw somebody saying Luffy is "not smart enough to understand the feeling of sadness" and I started laughing because what the fuck does that even mean. And... Is that person watching the same thing as me? Because the guy has suffered the injustice of the world so many times and so many losses that I can't even count them.

Basically: People portray Luffy as if he hadn't gone through any type of trauma when OP has shown countless times that he has been through a lot. A fucking lot. Perhaps it's the fact that he's the one hiding it all the time in the show, always replacing sadness with the need to be stronger so he doesn't feel like that ever again (aka protecting everyone so he doesn't lose anybody again. And not even in a selfish way to not be alone, although we could say that he does feel like that to some extent. But because his loved ones do not deserve to disappear or die in those ways and he feels guilty whenever it happens because every time, he says it's because he wasn't strong enough to protect them) and that's why most people don't realize how much pain he has gone through. But that's not a very valid argument because we have a lot of arcs that prove it otherwise (Sabaody, Marineford, Film Red, Wano...). So, yeah, I guess people just don't know how to read.

Starting through chronological order, I want to talk about his abandonment issues and savior complex that always seem to go hand in hand.

Luffy doesn't like to be alone. He's a very empathetic and extroverted person. He doesn't like to be bored, always loving the company of somebody else. But, sadly, he has always been kind of alone? People come and go for him all the time, and you can't tell me that doesn't affect him psychologically. He's 7 when he meets Uta and Shanks and the kid has never been more excited! That's when his dream of being a pirate begins and it's the first time he has a friend. A real friend, not just random animals he manages to find or older people that sometimes take care of him. Luffy gets bored easily, so of course, Shanks and Uta, being something new, make his life brighter. With dreams and new experiences and hope for a newer, better life outside his village. And then Uta and Shanks have to go, of course, and he stays all alone again. From what we've seen, the only thing Luffy did when they weren't around was just... Waiting for them to come back to him. That's it. Luffy's joy basically comes from being with people, and especially when he's fixated on somebody in particular, he doesn't let them go. Then they come back... But Uta is not with them anymore. That's Luffy's first heartbreak, in my opinion. It's when he decides that he has to be stronger. He loved Uta so damn much. She meant the world to him. And suddenly she isn't there, giving him no time to say goodbye, and... He only has Shanks. But Shanks refuses to tell him the truth about what happened with her. So here you go! It's the first time Luffy loses somebody this dear to him and the first time Shanks betrays him enough for him to get angry at his hero. He ends up accepting it, of course, but not because he has moved on, but because both Uta and Shanks told him to be stronger. More mature. And he forces himself to grow up faster because he wants something. He wants to know where his friend is, and if Shanks refuses to tell him because he's just a kid, then he'll just have to grow up and become stronger. To become a pirate and to keep the promise he made with Uta. The movies aren't canon so I just keep thinking about Luffy wondering where Uta is, and it breaks my heart every time.

Then Ace and Sabo appear in his life and... They are literally everything to him. I like Garp. He did what he could do. Kind of. But he leaves Luffy on his own with Ace under the care of some bandits (Dadan we love you, queen). So he can't really blame Luffy for the way he turned out to be, honestly. The thing is: Ace and Sabo are, again, something new to Luffy. They are not just friends. They are his brothers, now. We don't talk enough about Luffy's maturity and respect for other people's dreams even when he's just a kid. Luffy literally was kidnapped and beaten up and he didn't dare to say a word about Ace and Sabo's treasure because he respected their dream. He's loyal and understands other people's feelings and hopes perfectly. His empathy and emotional intelligence are just perfect. Then, well, you all know the story, but these two become the most important thing in Luffy's life, not only because they are his brothers, but because they are the representation of their dreams and future. And then it crashes into a million fucking pieces because of Celestial Dragons and classism and rich people quite literally saying "We are burning down the poor because they don't deserve to live! Woohoo!". And it's Luffy's first time realizing that the world is unfair and fucked up and that there are people that believe to be superior to others, a thing that Luffy fights against all the time.

So, Luffy learns that the world is extremely fucked up at a very young age. He has first-hand contact with the abuse rich people inflict on others, in every way. He suffers from the torture that is fighting for your life in the world of pirating and thieves when he's not even a pirate yet. He's just a kid. What the fuck. And then he loses Sabo. His older brother literally is killed by a celestial dragon and he can't do anything about it. He can only cry, of course, he's just a kid. What is he going to do? So he decides to become stronger. Because he feels weak in the hands of what is the injustice of the world. He feels trapped by that injustice, in my opinion, and wanting to be stronger is just the path to freedom. Because freedom means being able to save the people he cares about.

And here's the thing: Luffy's need to become stronger always comes from the guilt he feels after losing somebody, blaming himself even though he literally could have done nothing at the time to save Uta or Sabo. He has a severe savior complex, not to feel better about himself (although you could say that it would certainly fix his fear of being weak) but to not lose anybody else. For some reason he always feels responsible for the faith of the people he loves, he's constantly putting others first and sacrificing himself and then feeling guilty and weak when he can't save them when it wasn't even in his hands to save them in the first place.

Kid Luffy goes through a ton of stuff in his early years and the fear of being alone... Of losing somebody he cares about... It haunts him. He sees Shanks and piracy as the meaning of freedom and strength. It's just that simple for him: If he becomes a pirate, he'll be strong. If he's strong, he'll be free. If he's free, he'll never lose anybody again.

And yet, even if he's confident he'll manage to do this... He's still a kid. He's still a little brother. Ace's little brother. He depends on Ace, too, because that's the one person he has left. Ace promises him he won't die because he's just as confident, and says this as if Luffy was stupid for thinking something could happen to him. Not to get too into Ace's character right now, but the fact that he's constantly wondering if he should be alive to then realize Luffy needs him to stay alive... Is so damn beautiful.

And then he literally dies in front of Luffy. Protecting Luffy. And Oh, boy if that doesn't kill him... But that comes after Sabaody! After losing literally all of his crew! God, stop hurting this guy already for fuck's sake-

Long story short, Luffy manages to get a family. Not a crew. A family. He's not alone anymore, and he proves constantly that he won't let any of them go or die on him the way it happened with Uta and Sabo.

Water 7 is... Rough for Luffy, to say the least. Because it's the first time he sees everything he has built crumbling down. Robin is taken by the Marines. Usopp wants to leave the crew because he doesn't feel like he fits in, even though Luffy knows he is perfect for the family (Usopp just can't believe him because, you know, insecurities suck). And he has to learn how to be a captain. A true captain. He has to make the harsh decision of fighting his best friend and letting him go (his worst fucking fear) at the age of 17 because he's the captain. He has to be mature. And strong. And he definitely doesn't feel like those now. Not when Robin is also on her way to be executed.

Usopp is leaving. Robin might die. And it's just like Uta and Sabo all over again.

So, basically, Luffy grows up too fast. He grows up too fast, with the fear of abandonment and being weak, and the weight of being the captain of a whole crew resting on his shoulders. Besides, he fights against the world government for Robin because he refuses to let her die thinking she doesn't deserve/want to live, and it reminds me a lot of Ace's story. Ace doesn't think he deserves to live but then stays because he realizes that Luffy loves him and needs him. Robin, thanks to Luffy, realizes that she wants to live and that she has a new family to fight for.

Nobody dies and Usopp comes back this time, so everything ends up turning out fine after all! Yay!

Then Sabaody happens and I swear my guy can't have a fucking break.

Who has suffered more, Jesus Christ or Monkey D. Luffy from Sabaody to Marineford? I think we already know the answer.

He loses all of his crew. All at once. His worst fucking fear. They vanish right in front of his eyes and he can't do anything. He feels weak. He's shattered. Completely broken. But he's optimistic, still, because he believes in his crew and he knows they'll find a way to be together again! They've ben through a lot together, and they can find each other in a few days in Sabaody again. It's fine. But he has to delay it, of course, because his other biggest fucking fear is happening right now: Ace might die. His older brother might die.

So if you mix the trauma that caused him to have abandonment issues and a savior complex with the fact that Ace is the only sibling he has left and he is completely alone because his crew isn't by his side anymore... You get the most heartbreaking arc of the show! Awesome.

He does everything he can to save Ace. Ace complains about it, begging him to stay away from danger. And he refuses because he's his brother. He has to fight for him. And he does. And Ace dies anyway. Ace dies protecting him, too, and the hope that was left within him dies completely at that moment. Everything is shattered. His whole world is crumbling down. And I think that Luffy dies too at that moment.

For Luffy, losing Ace is not like losing a limb. Losing Ace is losing his everything. Ace meant the world to him. He was the representation of their dreams and hopes and past and future. He was the only person who knew Sabo like the back of his hand, too. And now Luffy is the only one carrying their souls. All alone.

That's probably Luffy's rock bottom. He doesn't think he deserves to be a pirate (or alive, either, but I don't want to get too deep into his suicidal thoughts I definitely think are a real thing because then this becomes too dark. But yeah. I think he does think about that too). He doesn't think he's strong enough. And he's completely broken.

There's this line from Fleabag that I absolutely adore: "I don't know what to do with it." / "With what?" / "With all the love I have for her. I don't know where to put it now."

Because Ace is gone. He's completely gone. And all the love Luffy has for him turns into grief and he doesn't know what to do anymore if Ace's soul isn't in the world to look after him. He doesn't know what to do if all the love and feelings he has for his brother go to waste. And it's his fault. Because he wasn't strong enough to protect him. Because he wasn't able to protect himself, Ace having to sacrifice himself for him. (And we know he feels guilty about this because he tells Sabo the second they meet again. He apologizes for not protecting Ace. He feels guilty about what happened still. And Sabo is just glad Luffy is okay because he knows his brothers too well to know already what happened).

Then our beloved Jinbe comes along (I love you. Please adopt me) and, following that quote of Fleabag: "I'll take it. No, I'm serious. It sounds lovely. I'll have it. You have to give it to me." / "Okay." / "It's got to go somewhere."

Jinbe reminds Luffy that he still has his crew. That he still has people who need him alive. People that love him and care for him. That he can't be weak if he has helped so many people already. That they're willing to take both the love and pain Ace makes him feel. And it's such a great character development for Luffy... It makes me go insane. He remembers his crew one by one and realizes that he's not alone anymore. That he has to be stronger for them and for Ace. And for Uta. And Sabo. Jinbe is there with him when the others couldn't, and it has nothing to do with Luffy's issues but I just want to mention how much I love Jinbe for this.

But he still feels the need to be stronger and the fear of losing his crew and the people he loves still haunts him. He tells the straw hats to meet after 2 years (that's a long fucking time. Like. Longer than the time they've spent together. Imagine the loyalty, damn). And it's... It's so beautifully written. The 3D2Y scene is one of my favorites because it shows the loyalty and love they have for each other, and how Luffy is willing to become stronger for the people he loves and the ones he has lost along the way. I literally have the tattoo. I am obsessed with the whole concept.

As I said, Luffy's abandonment issues and the fact that he wants to become stronger to never lose anybody again (Savior complex much?) still remain even after his character development. Because that's not something you get rid of. That's just how he is. And I think that, as long as he is with the straw hats, it won't be a problem.

Also I wanted to mention his reunion with Sabo! The guilt he feels for losing Ace? The way he clings onto his older brother as if they were going to take Sabo away from him? They're extremely codependent and I am here for it, honestly. Sabo would die for Luffy and Luffy would kill him if he did that. Also, I don't know where the fuck Sabo is now because I'm only watching Wano but I swear to God if something happens to him I will murder somebody with my bare hands. :)

Oh! And then it comes my favorite arc of all the show: Whole Cake Island (to the surprise of literally no one!). Luffy, in the beginning, is extremely optimistic when it comes to rescuing Sanji. He's simple like that. "If he doesn't want to get married, we rescue him. If he wants to get married, he just brings his wife with us!". And if Sanji didn't want to come back to them (truly not wanting to) he would accept it. But Sanji wants to. Luffy knows Sanji wants to go back to the Sunny with them. He knows Sanji isn't being true to himself. And God, he's desperate. Because Sanji is stubborn and his self-sacrificing and deprecating thoughts are even stronger than Luffy's, and he won't give up until Luffy lets him go. But Luffy doesn't want to fight him, he just wants his cook back. Because he knows that, no matter how much harm he does to him, Sanji is only doing it to himself (one of my favorite quotes from OP). So, Luffy goes again through the desperation of not losing a crewmate, but losing one of his wings. Without Sanji, Luffy can't become the king of the pirates. He's willing to die from starvation for him. Are you- Are you all aware that he almost fucking dies from starvation? I don't think we talk about that enough because what the actual fuck. There's this thing they tell Luffy (I don't remember exactly when or the exact phrasing) about him wanting Sanji back out of selfishness and not because of Sanji's well-being and... I partially agree? Don't get me wrong, Luffy does everything here for Sanji because he knows Sanji is suffering and lying to himself. But Luffy is selfish, too. Luffy doesn't want Sanji to go away because he loves him. That's his cook. He doesn't want to lose anybody else, even less knowing that they're going to be unhappy. That's kind of for me the confirmation of Luffy's abandonment issues. Like- He does everything for his crew, of course, but he's so scared of losing them. Then Sanji comes back to them, of course, and they have their own Pride and Prejudice moment. Not even Jane Austen can write shit like this.

I kind of want to talk about Wano but I haven't finished it yet (I'm like, on episode 1056) but I would like to mention how beautiful it is for Luffy to carry Ace's soul and promises like that. And also the responsibility he carries during the whole arc to save Wano? That's so- It's so fucked up. He's such a good leader and captain and everything I said in this post and all the things he does in Wano show that he will become the king of the pirates. I love him so damn much. I can't even write it down properly.

Anyway, summarizing everything: Luffy has a lot of abandonment issues and a savior complex that becomes unhealthy to the point of sacrificing himself and always carrying the burdens of everyone else. Because he fears he might lose his loved ones if he isn't strong enough. So. You know. It would be great if people stopped saying he's just childish and fun and that he doesn't have any character depth because he's probably the most complex shonen protagonist I've ever seen! He has suffered so damn much it hurts! Live Laugh Love Luffy! <3

[nahoney22]

Beyond the Fall***

Tech X F!Reader

word count: 6.8k

*gif is mine so please credit if used.*

warnings: Spoilers for TBB Episode 9. Enemies to Lovers NSFW. Explicit Sexual Content, sex pollen, dub-con in both parties but also somewhat pretty aware, solo masturbation (reader), begging, swearing, slight mention of breeding kink, several positions, p in v, rough sex, creampie but reader mentions that she is protected. accidental confessions of true feelings I suppose. comfort at the end. Arguing at the start. Not proofread ngl.

When you take a tumble down a deep hole, you did not think for a second that Tech would dive in straight after you. With tensions on the high anyway, what fares when you both experience a certain aphrodisiac within the water.

“Tell me, how exactly did you and Wrecker miss our ship being compromised?”

You watched in shocked awe as the Marauder, your home for going on the last eight months flying away without a crew member on board. Luckily, Wrecker answered Tech’s irritating question for you.

“Maybe if you hadn’t docked it out of view, we would have seen someone approaching.”

“Well, there was no other suitable landing zone, Wrecker.” Tech scolds.

“Yes there was,” you snapped at the goggled clone, eyes fuming with anger, “I suggested landing just on the ledge above and you said no.”

“The terrain was not suitable so I suggest you do not tell me where to dock my ship.”

You laughed mockingly at him, scoffing. “Your ship? How about next time you be the lookout then!”

“Perhaps I will.” He retorted, posture tense, “Although, the likelihood of getting the ship back is very slim.” His brown eyes are frowning at you from behind his helmet. His eyes always had that judging look when he looked your way which was enough to make your blood boil. 

But when you looked at Omega, your heart sank. The others may not have noticed but you didn’t miss the glistening of unshed tears in her eyes as the bunch of you argue. 

“Don’t worry Omega, it will be fine.” You reassure her softly, placing a hand to her shoulder.

Ever since Echo departed with Rex, the atmosphere had been tense. There was something about the man that had managed to keep the squad together, and with his departure, the cracks were starting to show. Nonetheless, this did not have a significant effect on your relationship with Tech, which had always been a bit unsteady.

“Other than the fact we have barely any food, shelter and mode of transportation, sure.” Tech interjects shortly before strutting off. You shot him an annoyed look before rolling your eyes. 

“Ignore him.” You tell her before the lot of you venture off to find any signs of life.

————

“What is your issue?”

With the Ipsium now gone, a rare and expensive mineral that you all came to this damned planet for, you find yourself trapped inside one of the vaults after the mineral exploded. So clearly, the mishap of the ship going missing was the start of the downfall.

His words were somewhat callous and lacked sympathy as he spoke down to Omega who was very frustrated and emotional, her young self looking to each and every one of you. Unfortunately, it was Tech who had to open his mouth.

You watched Omega leave, Hunter trying to get her to stay but after she insisted she wanted to be alone. As the team turned to Tech, you could sense their agitation and annoyance with his lack of empathy. You couldn't help but add your own thoughts to the mix, clapping slowly with a hint of sarcasm in your voice.

"Good job, Tech," you said, trying to make him understand the gravity of his words.

Tech, who had taken a seat on a boulder, was confused and looked over at you, frowning. "What did I say wrong?"

"You were stating the obvious," you voice with a grunt, grabbing your water canister and taking a gulp before saying, "but maybe you could've been a bit more empathetic."

“Would you rather me lie to her?” He counters, raising his brow as if to challenge you.

"It's not about lying, Tech. It's about understanding, especially in times like these." 

"I was simply using logic," Tech defended himself. "Telling her the truth is the best way to handle the situation."

You took a deep breath, trying to control your rising frustration. "It's not about just telling her the truth, Tech. It's about how you say it.” 

Although you did not particularly like Tech, nor did he seem to like you it seems, you felt a little bad that you had to discuss with him his lack of social skills and emotional response to certain situations. He had always been this way, down to his genetic programming but for someone so smart, he can’t see the bigger picture sometimes. “Can’t you see she is upset?”

“I am aware that Omega is frustrated at the present moment but that has nothing to do with me. Omega needs to be aware that these situations happen and one of us has to be the voice of reason and therefore, logical conversation is the best approach.” He holds his finger in the air, “I understand if this goes over your head.”

You gritted your teeth, trying to contain your anger but to no avail. "Will you stop being an arse to me? We're all in the same boat here, and I will not have you speak to me like that!" Your raised voice strained as you spoke. Never had you been so bitter towards someone in your life as of right now. Not only has he made matters worse with an already sensitive Omega, he blamed you for not seeing the ship being taken, he basically called you stupid to your face… you’re surprised steam was not coming out of your ears at this point.

You storm off for a few minutes to collect yourself and in the meantime, Hunter folds his arms and glares across at his brother. “Well that’s one way of telling her you like her.” 

Tech went to speak but no words came out, a little aghast at Hunter's insinuation. “I do not know what you’re talking about.” He mumbled a tad.

“Sure you don’t.” He unfolds his arms and begins to push away at some of the rocks. “Get back to work.”

Tech spots you from the corner of his eyes, your hands running over your face in presumed stress and just for a mere second, he is conflicting with his emotions.

———

The second you heard that Tech was off to find Omega, you don’t really know why Hunter and Wrecker suggested you go with him. Albeit, something in your gut was telling you to go along anyway, so you did.

Your heart was thumping with every step you took alongside him, the eeriness of the mine only adding to the palpable tension.

“Question, why do you think they wanted you to come with me?”

You’re surprised he’s making conversation but that wasn’t exactly unlikely of him. 

“I don’t know.” You grunt, not interested in talking to him at all at the moment. You also had a feeling it was so he didn’t upset Omega even more and to smooth things out but Hunter could sense how irate you got around Tech so this little mission together will be enlightening. 

When you nudged Tech and pointed towards Omega’s gear on the floor, you’re a little precarious to see her extracting the mineral that got them in this mess in the first place.

“Hey love, you doing alright?” You ask softly, peering through the small hole she had made to crawl through. When your heart landed on the large gaping hole beside her feet however you grew hot under your collar. 

“Fine.” She muttered, extracting the last bit from the section she was at. “What are you two doing here?”

"We came to see where you were, of course," you say softly, hoping to bring some comfort to her. That is until Tech decides to interject.

"And to find some Ipsium," he blurts out, causing you to shoot him a disapproving look. He quickly gets the message and coughs, trying to rectify the situation. "Which you are already cleverly extracting for us. Great job."

“No,” Omega mutters, pulling the drill away and finally looking up at you both, “why are you two here? Together? You hate one another.���

The pair of you froze. Even though it was clear that there was some kind of tension between the two of you, always bickering, hate was certainly a strong word. In fact, you knew what it was like to hate someone and you never felt it with Tech. You felt something, though you could not pinpoint what it was exactly.

Tech looks at you, gauging your reaction but he did not understand the look on your face. 

“Hate is not the word I would use.” You finally speak up, voice a little timid as Tech stood next to you. You didn’t want to add fuel to the already blazing fire between the pair of you, nor did you want to upset Omega any further. “We just have different thoughts about things.”

She blinks at you both before subtly rolling her eyes. “Whatever you say.”

You sighed, head slumped before moving out of the way to let Tech speak with her. 

Thankfully, Tech quickly changes the topic. “How much have you extracted?”

“Just this vial. Figured we could use it to blow ourselves out of here.” She holds it up to him, a little irritated that he didn’t take it from her grasp.

You stood back and watched the exchange and you can tell he is definitely trying to make it up to her. Although he is not apologising upfront nor discussing it, you figured his best approach is to forget it and move on.

When they both come up with an agreement, the tension slowly fading away between them, there’s one vial left but the extraction point looks just a little bit out of Omega’s reach.

“I’ll get that one if you want?” You suggest, not liking the way she was almost creeping over the edge of a large black hole.

Omega wants to finish the job herself but knows that you were probably better suited as you were taller. “Okay, I’m going to go back to the others then.” She wipes some sweat off her brow before swapping places with you.

Tech peers through the hole you just crawled in, tapping away at his datapad. “Are you aware of how this procedure goes?” He asks once Omega vacates the area. 

You reach down and grab the drill, looking to the final piece that was in a very precarious place. “Yep.” You reply shortly, trying not to get distracted.

“Do we really need this last one?” You mutter more to yourself but Tech had a keen ear.

“If we are to have extra, then not only can we escape this place but we will also be compensated for it.” He pushes his goggles up his nose. “So yes.”

“Great.”

It was no easy feat and several times you had to alter your position, crouching, leaning and every other position to make sure you’re safe but it didn't help at all when you had someone breathing down your neck.

“Are you nearly done?” You jump a little, turning around to see Tech staring at you with a bored expression. 

“I’m trying my best, Tech.” You sneer, turning back to the task at hand.

“You need to lean closer.” 

You groan in frustration and enthusiastically point to the gaping abyss. “Do you need your goggles cleaned or can you not see this hole? I’ll be done, when I’m done!” 

In a moment of weakness, you had reached across as prodded by Tech but just a tad overstepped, sending you over the edge.

“Tech!” You squeak, clawing onto the jagged rocks to hold yourself up, panic shooting through you as your feet scrambled to cling onto anything.

His eyes widen in horror and in a blink he is by your side, reaching across to you. “Take my hand.”

You take a breath and let go with one hand, reaching for him. But as your fingers brush against his, you’re not strong enough to hold on and fall into the abyss.

He screams your name, standing up and with no second thought, he jumps down after you. 

The water was tumultuous as you struggled to keep your head above the water. Your arms and legs are kicking, the energy you had slowly fading as you struggle against the current.

Then you heard your name.

“Tech!” You called out with a sob as the water thrashed over your face and partially down your throat.

He swam towards you as fast as he could, shouting your name as you cried out for help while your body crashed against the jagged rocks, your lungs filling with water.

But Tech soon caught up to you, wrapping his arms around you tightly as you both rode the current into the unknown. When you were suddenly confronted by a waterfall, you both cascaded over it, splashing into a peaceful pool.

You emerged from the water, gasping for air but began to panic when you didn't see your savior; Tech.

“Tech! Where are you?” You gasp, searching the water to see if he had been swept under 

but relief washes through you as he quickly emerged from the water moments later, gasping for breath and searching for you.

You both lock eyes, panting heavily before you start to swim for an embankment, crawling onto land. You’re coughing violently, some water pumping out of you as Tech collapsed onto his back, pulling his goggles back to wipe away the water droplets.

You lay staring at the rocky yet blue illuminated ceiling, catching back your breath as your wet clothes hung to your body. You sit up eventually, looking at the bright pool of blue you and Tech just got submerged in before glancing around. 

“It appears we have entered an underground aqueduct surrounded by plenty of Ipsium.” Tech acknowledges, sitting up and looking around too. “Not the best place for you to lure us into but not the worst.”

You processed his words and even now, he had the nerve to put the blame on you. “Are you saying this is my fault?” 

“Partly, yes.” He replies nonchalantly.

You scoff, standing up and moving away from him. “I can’t believe you. Are you really doing this? Now?”

He watches you move and stands too but remains where he was. “Simply stating facts.”

You look at him in disbelief, running a hand through your sopping wet hair. “Did I ask you to jump down with me?”

He shifts, suddenly feeling a little warm under the collar. “Well no but-.”

“And was I the one to initially upset Omega?”

“It can be argued we all had a part in that-.”

“Was it you who allowed me to get the last bit of Ipsium?” You bombard him with questions, all of it leading up to now. “Was it you who told me to lean in closer?”

His jaw clenched, fists tightening. “If you and Wrecker had not let our ship get stolen, we wouldn’t be here at all.”

“I told you to dock it somewhere else! In view!” You shout, voice booming around the small hidden cave. 

“And why would I rely on anything you have to say to me? You have not an ounce of my intelligence nor knowledge of planets. You do not know how to drive a ship, let alone instruct the pilot where it should land.” He rants, eyes trained on you, both of your breathing hard and heavy, tension so thick it felt like nothing could cut it. “Know your place in this squad.” 

His words hurt. A lot. No matter how much you bickered he had never said anything so belittling to you. Stress is evident on both of your faces given the situation but to hear how he supposedly felt about you was difficult to swallow. “I… you’re impossible.” You whisper but he still hears it. 

The second he heard you sniffle, he wanted to instantly narrow it down that you instantly got a cold from the water but as you aggressively wiped away a tear and stormed off, he knew he took it too far. Does he chase after you? No. He figured you wanted to be left alone just like he learnt with Omega. So in the meantime, he tried to contact the others.

You sat on the other side of the cave, your knees hugged to your chest as you just sat and hoped that Tech could summon a message to the others. In the meantime as you sat, you tried to ignore the odd pulse circulating under the skin of your palms. But, it started getting progressive and a wave of scorching heat flushed your body.

A whimper parts your lips and you begin to quickly strip the gear from your body and throw it around you carelessly. “Why’s it so fucking hot in here?” You gasp to yourself, tugging on the high collar of your body glove.

“I too am suddenly feeling quite feverish.” Tech’s voice sounded next to you making you jolt. As you look up at him, your eyes drank in his tall, slender figure. You swallow the saliva that started to pool in your throat, pushing the clouded thoughts to the back of your mind. 

“Did you get contact with the others?” You rasp, moving yourself onto your knees, staring down at the water as you try and steady your breathing that suddenly becomes ragged and scratched at your throat. 

Tech shakes his head and quietly sits beside you, unconsciously tugging at his now soaked clothes as he feels as though he’s been dipped in lava. “No, I can’t get a clear signal.” He says steadily, blinking quickly as sweat starts to seep into his goggles and blur his vision. 

You could almost moan in despair but the only whimper that parted through your lips was one of searing pleasure.

“T-Tech, do you feel… different?” You whisper, looking up at him through hooded eyes.

Tech looks back down at you, pulling his goggles up onto his head to swipe the dripping of sweat from his eyes and he almost gasps at the sight of you. 

Your lips looked full, parted and wanting. Your skin glowed with a distinctive hue that he couldn’t quite put his finger on but as he stands above you, seeing you on your knees a wave of pleasure shoots straight to his cock. He closes his eyes, tight. Mentally trying to snap him out of this precarious situation and then an idea popped into his head. 

His hands, now shaking and pulsing under his gloves reach to one of his many sections of his utility belt before pulling out a single vial, and swiping up the water the pair of you plummeted in. 

You chew on the inside of your cheek. Hard. So hard you think you think you could have drawn blood but it’s nothing compared to the bite at the center of your core as your heart races with nothing but desire. You needed to touch yourself. 

“Oh dear,” he finally says.

“What is it?”

Tech slumps against one of the boulders that surrounded the cave, a mixture of different emotions flushing through him. Confusion, worry and a whole lot of desire. “The water… it appears to be polluted which is why we are reacting to it.”

“You want to narrow that down?” You groan, falling onto your back as your fingers deep into the rough texture of sand beneath your body to refrain yourself from reaching down and begin to relieve this brewing sensation. 

Tech's eyes that were trying so hard to stare at the datapad in his hand only start to move to longing gaze at you, watching you physically writhe on the floor as a mixture of whines and moans erupt from your mouth. “It’s polluted with,” he gulps, trying to now ignore how physically aching it was to feel his length pressed against his pants, “aphrodisiacs.”

The word itself made you mewl and although you should feel panicked and alarmed, the burning feeling between your legs followed by the throbbing pulse all over your body was taking over instead. “W-what do we do?” 

Not knowing what he was doing, his hand lowers to his crotch and stars to slowly palm himself at the sight of you tugging and tearing at your bodysuit to rip it from your body. The moment of weakness stops and he quickly snaps out of what he’s doing and diverts his gaze and body away from you. “To erase the side effects you will need to masturbate in order to form the release. An o-orgasm,” he grunts, gripping onto the boulder as the word makes his cock twitch, “is the only way to stimulate. I will leave you alone to engage in this process.” 

The second Tech moves away to the other side of the cave to take care of himself, you have pulled yourself out of your body glove and began the impulse of pleasuring yourself.

Your hand flushed down your thigh and then to your bare sex, pressing two fingers harshly down against your clit that had you wailing out in ecstasy. “Oh f-f-fuck!” Your whole body arches in response to the touch to your bud, circling motions rapidly as you beg for the quick release that is brewing. 

Your moans and swears echo around the cave, deafening out the noise of the waterfall that poured down. But it’s not enough.

Frantically, your fingers move to your sopping  wet entrance, curling inside of you and rubbing back and forth as your opposite hand now rubs furiously at your clit. Although your body spasms, the burning that felt like your body was aflame with sexual desire would not fade. Moans become erratic, it isn’t long until you’re begging for your own release as you writhe pathetically on the ground. 

Then, you said his name. The one person who you knew could push you over the edge. “Teeeeeech,” you call his name. Wanting. Needing.

Within the space of maybe ten seconds, a shadow looms over your sweating and spasming body and as your eyes open, you melt to see Tech in the nude, pumping his cock that was glistening in precum.

“You look so wonderful like that,” he purrs, licking his lips as he stands over you and strokes his cock in frantic motions. “I knew it wouldn’t be long until you would be begging for me.”

“P-please Tech,” you grit, fingers going completely numb with the constant strumming against your clit, “it’s too much, I need you.”

The second your back arches, Tech falls to his knees beside you and slings an arm around your back. He’s swift in his movements and he’s uttering the most indiscreet filth he could before diving his fingers straight into your core without a second thought.

His fingers hook inside you, pulsing all the while expertly have his thumb rubbing at your bud. 

“Oh my stars! Tech, please don’t stop, please make this burning go away.” You beg him, writhing under his touch as his hand rocks against you, sending you into a flurry of loud groans. 

“That’s it darling, take my fingers. Maker, you’re sublime and a little begging mess for me. Glorious.” Tech grunts as his hand starts to spasm, his pace relentless and despite wanting you to cum all over his fingers so he could taste you, he didn’t expect for a second for your hand to come down and grab at his cock and balls.

Your hands look small in comparison to his length, his skin hot to the touch that felt like silk. With your touch alone, it has him bucking his hips as you both mutually pleasure one another. “You’ve got such a pretty cock, Tech,” you whimper, looking down at his member that twitched in your hands both somewhat aware and non aware of the lewd words that pour from your lips. 

“And you’ve got the most perfect little pussy that needs pleasuring. And am I doing that?” Tech locks eyes with you, dark and filled with an unspoken need. “Am I pleasuring you enough?”

“Yes! Fuck yes, you are. I think I’m going to cum soon.” You tremble and in your heart, you didn’t want him to stop the incessant rampage of his fingers against your cunt. 

As you pump along his throbbing cock, Tech feels himself start to edge closer and close to his release. He’s whimpering, a sound you never thought you’d be blessed of hearing but there’s something about him that makes you tingle. His eyes trail down from your face to your breast, mouth salivating at the thought of ramming his cock between the perfect mounds.

“Kiss them, please.” You had caught his leering and without a second thought he bends down and latches his lips to your stiff peaks, tongue licking aggressively against the sensitive skin. 

Your legs begin to shake, the touch of his hands agaisnt you, the feeling of his tongue licking feverishly against you followed by the gesture of you wanking caused your body to shoot, making you wail as you hit your climax. 

Tech follows soon after, his hot ribbon seeping over your fist as he his hips stutter.

You let out a longing gasp, elbows shaking as you prop yourself up to see Tech’s glistening fingers pull out of your body lewdly. 

The silence was ringing and for a moment, you didn’t dare look to Tech. Your heart race is the realisation of what just took place began to hit but not as quick as another jolt of pulsations straight to your clit once again.

“Tech,” you rasp out and consciously grip onto his wrist, shaking, “I’m sorry but-.”

“I’m aware.” Tech whispers and as you finally meet his gaze, you look down and see that his cock was already hard and twitching for your touch. 

“I didn’t mean for any of this to happen,” you manage out before the aphrodisiac overpowers you once again.

Tech nods quickly in understanding and in the faintest of touches, he cups your cheek, “I know.” 

Quicker than before, the wave of desire washed over you both and simultaneously you both lean in, lips slanting over one another as his tongue plunged straight into your mouth. Both of you fought against each other, thick muscles that spent so much time bickering at another now dancing in a fiery passion. 

He’s crawling on top of you now, his cock sliding against your thigh and stomach as you maintain this intense make out session but it was going on for too long. You just couldn’t bear another second without his cock inside of you.

 “Fuck me,” you plead, “I need you to fuck me so hard I can’t walk for a week. I want you to ram your cock so deep inside me, please.” You moan against his lips, words of filth that were almost unholy to hear that made Tech let out a guttural snarl as he pulled away from your lips and quickly positioned himself between your now spread legs.

His tip presses to his entrance but he’s not shy in letting his hands roam your body, tweaking your nipples before resting them on your hips. “Maker, you do look breedable.”

In one quick motion, he’s breached your entrance in a swift motion, buried inside you.

“STARS! TECH!” Your cries in delight boom around the cave, your body beautifully glowing from the pool of water beside you both as he almost bottoms out ontop of you. 

“K-Kriff,” he stutters, feeling your walls clench around him like a vice, the burning through his veins temporarily subsiding before absolutely rocking his cock in and out of you like a man desperate for air.

His hands clasp at your waist, fingers biting down into your flesh as your body shoves down against the ground with every resounding thrust he gives you. “Could fuck this little pussy all night if I have to,” he grunts through gritted teeth, eyes dark.

If you weren’t intoxicated by this sensation you would be in complete shock at his words, but instead you let his words carve into your mind as his hips rock back and forth all the while your gazes are locked on another. 

In a moment of weakness, his hand moved from your hip and over your breast, caressing the soft mound with his fingers as a devilish smirk plasters his face. “I’ve always imagined your breasts to be divine to touch. So wonderful to know I was correct.” He sings, admiring you from above.

“They’re all yours Tech,” you submit to him, eyes heavy, “you can have me whenever, wherever. Just please don’t stop.”

A noise emits from him and you gasp as he manages to flip you so you're now on your front, forced to your hands and knees before he starts to take you from behind, spanking your cheeks with his thighs with every hard thrust. “You shouldn’t have said that mesh’la, can you not understand that I have wanted to fuck you for so, so long? Having to, ugh fuck-.” He pauses his unfiltered words, in awe of how pretty you looked arched downwards as he seethes his aching cock into you, “having to watch you all day everyday and never being able to express my desires.”

Again, your mind is too boggled to completely comprehend the seriousness of his words. Your cries of pleasure strain in your throat and your eyes burn with desire as Tech’s hands grip to your lower back, pushing you down to the ground as he hits you with wanting thrusts. 

“You’re fucking me so good Tech. Why haven’t we done this sooner?” 

Tech’s low chuckle does something to you as your words did to him, “Next time instead of fighting, we should just fuck. Or maybe, if you want me to submit,” Tech breathes through each thrust, seeing himself pull his cock out that’s now glistening with your juices, “be a whore and suck my cock. You obviously like it, don’t you?”

“Y-yes! Yes I love your cock! It feels so good in my pussy. Bet it’s even better between my lips.” You entice, looking over your shoulder at him which sparked something wild in him.

He pulls out despite being spurred on, leaving you almost begging for him. But this time you’re being pulled into his lap, tongues already dancing against each other the moment your lips meet as you seethe onto his thick length. 

“You may think my cock would be better between your lips, but I have never felt anything better than it being inside you.” He whispers to your lips, almost a glimmer of reality snapping back to you both as his words weren’t exactly driven by the intoxins - rather something else.

You’re smirking against his mouth and that’s when the desperation of needing to be fucked hard again, boils. As you begin to move your hips, frantically back and forth and rocking against his cock, his eyes shoot wide open and he’s whimpering tirelessly in front of you.

“That’s it, that’s my girl! What an edacious creature you are. Riding my cock like a good slut. Can’t get enough, can you?” He is holding onto your waist, fingers biting against the flesh once more as you tilt your head back, rhythm changing from back and forth to up and down. Your tits are bouncing in his face that he wasted no time in burying his face into the mounds, kissing and sucking against your skin.

 He had lost his sense of self completely now and was driving in pure instinct alone that when his tongue slid over one of your nipples, you gasped in approval. With your hands coming up and wrapping around his neck, your breathing is ragged and exacerbated whilst he uses you.

“You like it when I ride your cock, Tech? Huh? You love my pussy don’t you? Maker, could sit on your cock all day and never get enough.” Words of filth ooze out your mouth ease, making Tech react to your words with wanton moans.

Tech’s lips glaze over your beasts, leaving marks of today's antics as a reminder all the while claiming you. “Don’t stop darling, don’t you dare stop until you have milked every last drop of my seed until it seeps out of your little hole.”

You’re wet, warm, and velvet soft around Tech’s cock, taking him to the base with greed. He picks up a rhythm, matching yours as rocking his hips up and into you steadily as the blue shine of the cave reflects on your naked and sweating bodies. 

Minutes that felt like both hours and seconds passed, Tech pounding you at such a rapid pace that you were confident your pussy was getting warmer. Skin prickling with tingles, you knew you were about to cum. 

“Tech! Oh fuck, Tech I think I’m close to cumming! Make me cum! Please make me yours with your cum.” As you finished your thoughts, you cried out with joy, your entire body feeling like it was lighter than air while simultaneously being filled with every possible positive sensation it could possibly handle. Your mind lost all semblance of where you were, what had happened to you and what had gotten you to this point, instead focusing solely on Tech beneath you, still diligently pounding himself into you like he was sex starved. 

As your mind slowly returns to reality and your breathing catches up with your body's senses, you’re aware of what was happening. Especially as you felt him still pounding into you. Tech was whining, grunting and groaning as he maintained smashing into you rapidly, and you could tell by the way he breathed and his determination that he must be close to climax. 

Suddenly, he groans out your name. Shouting it so loud that it wouldn’t surprise you if the others had heard his cries from above. You could feel him driving himself as deep as he could go. A gasp emits from your lips as the burning that once was scorching your body from the water was replaced with the warm feeling of him filling you up with more cum than before.

Your lips part, words strangled in your throat as you felt his warm cum stuffing you while you guiltily enjoy the sensation. In fact, you could have sworn he was filling you to the point that you thought you may have had a second, smaller orgasm as he began his. Tech grunts with exertion as he finally finishes, his head flopping forward to rest against your shoulder, tiredly.

“Tech,” you whisper after what seemed like forever, hand gently resting on his shoulder to bring his head back to meet his gaze.

As the pair of you locked eyes, it clicked instantly what just happened. How one second you were arguing and then the next… Similar to you, his lips parts but this time he is speechless. 

A wave of new emotions flooded over him, none of which he understood or could process. Though the more you looked into his eyes, the more you understood that jittering feeling in your stomach. But now was probably not the time to look into it.

Eventually, Tech carefully removed you from his lap and you had to hold your breath about how lewd it was feeling his now softening length pulling out of you. 

He is silent when he collects his gear, slipping the damp clothing back on his body meanwhile you do the same. 

He glances over his shoulder at you and a wave of worry hits him when he notices grazing over your back. 

“Did I hurt you?”

Pausing, you quietly turn to look at him and see him gesture to your back. Awkwardly you glance down and audibly wince at the markings. But, from what you were aware, he wasn’t the cause of it. “No. It would’ve been from when I fell.”

“I see. When we head back to the ship I will gather supplies to help you clean it up.” He is fumbling around with his belongings, trying everything in his power to ignore what just happened but a pressing matter infiltrated his mind. “Speaking of supplies, we will need to head into the nearest village to locate any means of contraceptive-.”

“I’m on the pill, Tech.” You sigh, running a hand through your damp hair as you finish getting dressed before plopping yourself back on the sand, pulling your knees to your chest. 

Tech looks down from over his datapad at you, unsure how to approach this. But after taking a deep breath, he silently sits beside you, both of you gazing into the water that did unspeakable things to you both.

“I am unsure what to say to set your mind at ease.” He starts, trepidation on his words. “Though I can imagine it is hard for you to also summarize how you’re feeling about his moment.”

You close your eyes, hoping that burning behind your eyes would subside because although he had seen you, all of you, you weren’t ready to let him see your tears. “You don’t have to say anything,”

Tech looks in your direction, eyes drinking in your features. “I… I am sorry.”

“What for? You did what you had to to help me.” 

“I’m aware, but I am not apologising for that.” Your eyes open and a flurry of confusion crosses your face. 

You turn your head to look at him, shocked a little to see him already looking back. “Then, what are you sorry for?”

A sigh parts his lips. “I am sorry for all the times I have been hard on you. I am also apologising for what I said previously about you having to know ‘your place in this squad’.” Your mind is reeling and all you can do is let him continue. “It has come to my attention, for a long time now, that you are a valuable asset. My behavior towards you is unwarranted.”

“But,” you lick your lower lip idly, not quite processing what he was saying, “I thought you hated me?”

“Hate is a strong word. And as we discussed with Omega before, I do not hate you. Differing ideologies is all.” He breathes out shakily, feeling a minimal weight leave his shoulders. 

“So why are you hard on me?”

He rubs the back of his neck, a little unsure on how to answer. So often he had been judged for his blunt responses and now, he was finding it difficult to be honest. But, if the two of you were to never make it out of here - he may as well lay it all on the line.

“There is no denying that I struggle with emotions and how I reciprocate certain feelings from others. Truthfully, there is something about you that I find both irritating yet fascinating.”

He sneaks a glance at you as he speaks and he expected you to appear annoyed but instead, you appeared quite intrigued. Subtly, you nod your head to continue. “What I am trying to say is that I have a rooted attraction to you and feel as though pushing you away would help. But, it does not seem to be working.”

As you try to let his words sink in, you couldn’t help the feeling of your heart seeming to somewhat flutter at his admittance. All this time… he liked you? Truthfully your mind was still a little hazy to take it all in but there was now a burning question in the back of your mind. “Did you mean anything you said?”

“Indicating to what?” Tech asked gently though he had an inkling as to what you were referring to.

“You know…” you say shyly, cheeks emitting a certain heat.

He chews on the inside of his cheek, fully aware of what filth had poured from his lips only minutes ago. “From what I gather from aphrodisiacs is that it sends even the most sane people wild. All in all, a lot of truths are or have been told when under the influence.”

With a shaken breath, you close your eyes. “So it’s true that you’ve always wanted to fuck me? That’s what you said.”

“Yes. Yes, that is true.” 

Oddly enough, you’re okay with this information. Although you can’t say you have felt the same but in the back of your mind, you still remember the sight of him above you and remembered word for word everything he said. 

“I hope you do not think I have taken advantage of you - that would never, ever be the case. If I could have thought of a different solution then of course, I would have. There could be many anecdotes but-.”

“Tech.” You cut him off softly, clearly your silence was playing on his mind. You tilt your head to hom and offer him the softest smile he had ever been blessed to receive from you. “Thank you for saving me.” 

A gasp echoes through the cave as you gently lace your fingers through his, a gentle squeeze that speaks a thousand words. 

You weren’t too sure what was going to happen from now on. Would the others ever find you? What was to become of yours and Tech’s relationship? All you know is that if you were to fall into a cave filled with water with dangerous toxins with anybody - you’re somewhat glad it was Tech. 

Masterlist

Tags and those who wanted to be tagged will be tagged in a sep post because tag limit and shite: @nunanuggets @andyoufollowyourheart t @kaitou2417 @eyecandyeoz @captxin-rex @cwarssimp @jesseeka @ashotofspotchka @oohyesplease @megafrost4 @theroguesully @equalityforcats @mustluvecho @misogirl828 @ladykatakuri @jambolska-grozdova @chxpsi @arctrooper69 @padawancat97 @rain-on-kamino @either-madness-or-brilliance @whore4rex @imperialclaw801 @staycalmandhugaclone @ko-neko-san @echos-girlfriend @fiveshelmet @dangraccoon @plushymiku-blog @tech-aficionado @grizabellasolo @therealnekomari @autumnleaves1991-blog @tech-depression-inventory @brynhildrmimi @greaser-wolf @tinyreadersmur @rintheemolion @seriowan @agenteliix @kaminocasey @the-good-shittt @photogirl894 @imalovernotahater @swiftiexstarwarssimp

[justminawrites]

None of you understand Amber Bennett: She's just a girl, your honour. A review of the show writers' least favourite love story from Invincible season 1.

Now let me just preface this by saying I have 2 points to make. Just two, very long, super rambly points that does have mild spoilers for Invincible season 2. Read at your own risk.

Point 1: Amber isn't "understanding" enough is utter bullshit.

There’s no indication that civilians outside of the ones associated with the GDA have any idea how brutal fights are for superheroes. Amber quite literally has no idea what the hell Mark is going through, even after the superhero reveal. The only thing she has a smidgeon of understanding of is his dad beating his ass on live TV. And even that is a heavy maybe because we don’t know how much of the fight the cameras could cover and how much was broadcast to the general public. 

Point 2: Amber’s dated Losers before.

This is stated explicitly in canon, she's “been down that road." Furthermore, she’s also the daughter of a single-parent household. She used to hang out a community centre as a kid because her mom did late hours. Daddy Issues anyone? She’s got a lot of her own problems that we never get to unpack or linger on because the writing decided she wasn’t going to end up with Mark. 

What if she’d already dated an absolute bastard before Mark? Someone who seemed sweet and genuine at first, but then he started slacking. He’d be late to dates, stop taking an interest in anything she did, and just never show up for her in any way that mattered. Amber would make up excuses with her friends and family, oh he’s busy, he’s studying; he cares, I swear, he just has a strange way of showing it. 

Her friends and family don’t believe her completely but they humor her because she really seems to like him. And the ex-boyfriend isn’t a douchebag the whole time.. he brings gifts to make up for being late, he plies and pacifies her with honeyed words and promises to be better.

But each time the lies get more and more difficult to believe. Traffic and science projects, traffic and science projects, even when he shows up smelling like weed and alcohol. Her friends and family give her tight-lipped smiles when her ex-boyfriend gives her sloppy kisses and proclaims over and over “She’s too good for me, this one.”

She tries to be empathetic, she tries to be understanding when they’re alone, he can tell her what it is that’s wrong. But every-time she brings up giving them some space, he takes it as an indication of her not believing him and he guilts her with one sob story or another— she knows him, he was so gentle and respectful before they started dating, does she really think he’d do this to her if he didn’t have a good reason? Just a masterclass in gaslighting. So she gives him a second chance, third chance, fourth even. 

But then he begins cheating on her. Whenever she confronts him about it, he plays victim and accuses her of being “crazy” even though the entire school knows otherwise. She catches him one fine day, and dumps him on the spot. For a short while, Amber’s very proud of this but as time passes she starts to feel extremely embarrassed that it took that long for her to catch on. 

No one blames her, of course, but they all say something along the lines of “We never liked him anyway” which makes Amber doubt the perception of him she had. She internalises their support as a failing on her part to be vigilant, she didn’t want to end up making the same mistakes as her mom, after all. 

Amber becomes guarded. She doesn’t entertain male attention (from Todd, for example) but then she finds out resident wimp Mark Grayson takes a beating for her and she feels bad. 

So she gives him a chance. Mark was a nonissue, a nobody with no track record of being amazing or awful, just an in-between, normal guy who was maybe a little soft spoken and needed to stand up for himself more. 

But every time they try to hang out, something comes in between them. The excuses are laughably obvious this time and Amber is caught between trying to understand if Mark Grayson is trying to let her down easy because he’s not interested or if he’s just another douchebag taking her for a ride. 

He leaves her alone during their study date for an hour to do something shady and/or potentially related to Eve (I know she overheard him yelling at Cecil in his bedroom); Mark tells her he’s been to Mount Everest, but can’t tell her How he got there, and leaves on a non-specific trip for two weeks, right after their first date, and can’t even tell her Where he’s going or what he did when he was there?

So she does what she’d wished she’d done in her first relationship, she sets her boundaries. Firmly. She gives Mark multiple chances to come clean when she tells him she’s not riding that wave again. It’s been brought up a few times that Amber has lingering relationship-trauma.

During their study date Amber tells him she’s been in relationships with violent potentially abusive guys (“Met plenty of guys who were willing to throw a punch for me.”); or when he stands her up for the Dinner with her mom she tells him that he needs to make a choice because she’s “Been down this road before, and once was enough.”

But he still keeps at it and she starts getting tired of defending him to her friends and her mom. He’s just busy, he’s just studying; he cares, I swear, he just has a strange way of showing it. And this time they shake their heads and lightly imply that she’s stuck in a pattern. Amber can feel them comparing Mark to her old boyfriend and it all becomes a bit too much. 

Either he’s a no good drug dealing prick or he’s just wasting her time, whatever it is, Amber’s had enough of being left in the dark. 

The soup kitchen is the final straw, but then she finds out that he gets run over by a bus. He actually gets hurt, this is the first time Amber’s seen him hurt, and she feels awful because if she hadn’t pushed him to show up for her again and again maybe he would’ve been more careful. 

He doesn’t let her visit him in the hospital. A hit and run on the wrong side of town was the story this time— he can’t even tell her this, the specifics of his accident! Eve was his first point of contact after his parents?! At this point Amber is convinced that he’s involved in something violent or something to do with Eve, or both and she’s not sure she wants to keep going with this. 

Amber is confused and hurt but she also feels responsible for Mark’s injuries. Maybe she Was too paranoid, maybe she Was projecting all her relationship-trauma on him and he would tell her what happened at his own pace. So she backtracks, gives him another chance.

College is really the best of all worlds, Mark makes her promises that this time will be different, and Amber tentatively agrees to college together. (She’s still stressed out about his injuries and on edge the whole time though and asks if he has a concussion). 

This is really important because Amber ends up at Upstate U later. She decided to go to college with him, basically because of Him. This wasn’t any specific plan she had before, this was her making room in her life for this boy and potentially everything their lives could be together. 

Then the Reanimen Incident happens. And she loses her shit. Mark Grayson is not the flakey but well-intentioned boyfriend she thought he was.. Mark Grayson is not even a good person! He LEFT her and William at the drop of a hat to save his own slimy skin, that bastard! Her intuition was right, she never should’ve given him a chance. 

Amber was no longer going to give Mark Grayson the time of day, much less share a bed with the self-serving jerk; she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of spinning another tall tale. Or seeing her cry. She closes the door to the shower rooms behind her, and overhears Rick leaving to get them all some beer. Dorm room walls are thin, after all.

Then she hears something else.

“You’re Invincible!” William’s voice carries over excitedly, “And you never told me?”

Here goes the "problematic" bit.

I think Amber was lying when she told Mark she knew he was Invincible weeks ago. Amber didn’t even know who Invincible was until a few minutes after the Reanimen attack. She isn’t acting for anyone around her, she’s genuinely confused when the superhero jets off because she’s never seen him in her life. 

I think she overheard William freaking out about it in the dorm room and she pieced together Mark’s absences with his vague excuses and why couldn’t visit him at the hospital. She takes a shower to cool off but sitting and stewing on all of it just makes her angrier and she decides to go to the frat party just to get away from Mark for a while. 

Now why wouldn’t she just tell him she overheard them talking? 

Amber is an assertive independent character with a lot of pride. And that’s not a bad thing. Amber has a lot to be proud of. She has a strong sense of justice, she doesn’t take crap from anyone and she has too much self-worth to put up with liars. 

You can clearly see this in the way she approaches Mark in the beginning. She asks William if he’s dating Eve, and then instead of calling him herself, she gets Todd to give Mark her number so he can call her if he’s interested, despite the fact that she already is. She has too much pride to chase him. It’s one of her fixed flaws, and it’s consistent to her character. 

So finding out that Mark is actually Invincible almost by accident, is kind of embarrassing for Amber. Not only because she yelled at him for disappearing but for all the times he misled her and lied to her only to actually have a good reason for doing it. There’s a lot of mixed emotions there, shame, guilt, concern. Guilt.

Admitting that she overheard he was Invincible would be like admitting she was a stupid, nagging girlfriend who had no right to be a part of his life (the way the fandom perceives her) so she doesn’t. She tries to distract herself with the party, flirts with someone she just met not ten minutes ago, and feels awful because he immediately drops the girlfriend bomb. 

Now she’s forced to confront the fact that she has a boyfriend, and her flakey, well-intentioned superhero boyfriend is sitting and moping in the dorm room because she doesn’t have the guts to tell him she knows. Because telling him she knows would remove the choice he’d need to make when deciding whether or not he was serious about their relationship.

Amber was serious, Amber was going to change her life and potentially open her future to college with him, but was Mark really sure about Them if he couldn’t even tell her of his own accord? 

Telling him would be like giving him another out. And Amber was done giving him an out. 

When he finally confesses he doesn’t see why she’s mad at him, because he doesn’t see her at all. He can’t even begin to imagine what this roller coaster of a weekend has been for her because she’s been serious about him all this time and it took them breaking up completely for Mark to choose her back in the first place and go all in. 

Now it’s true that Mark is entitled to his secrets but Amber is also entitled to being upset that he can’t tell her 1 solid thing about his life. Not one thing does he trust her enough to explain, and at that point why should they even be dating each other? Why should she change the course of her future for a guy who can’t tell her where he was last weekend?

Then Omni-man beats him up on live TV, and now that she knows that he’s Invincible, she finally gets a glimpse into the bloody, gruesome world that is Mark’s. His Dad isn’t a superhero, his Dad is a Monster, and Mark is discovering this the same time as the rest of the world.

So she freaks out because she cares, and she’s so relieved to see him not beat to a bloody pulp like on TV that she kisses him. She likely had no intention of getting back together with him before that, but world-ending fiascos often come with heightened emotions, and they’re just kids at the end of the day. 

She’s not a manipulative, narcissistic villain, she’s just a proud girl, in love with a boy who can’t decided whether or not he loves her back. 

Now do I think Mark is a terrible jerk who doesn’t deserve Amber? No. I watched Invincible the same way it was intended, almost entirely through Mark’s eyes, and it’s hard to assign blame in this case because we see how horrifying and traumatic being a superhero actually is. But that’s the point, we only see one half of the story. 

We see Amber through Mark’s eyes and in his opinion she could afford to be more compassionate to his excuses the moment she finds out he’s a hero, the way Eve can, but that’s not true at all because Amber has no idea what being a hero is like. Eve does, and that’s the difference that Mark is wilfully blind to. 

But Mark also has no idea what Amber’s life is like and it’s easy to get lost in the sea of all the lives lost and villains fought, that he genuinely hasn’t spent any time with his girlfriend as a person beyond his Girlfriend. Amber isn’t a person to him, like William stopped being eventually; they became sort of tethers to Mark’s humanity, a way to distinguish himself from his Dad. A way to ground him. 

Seriously? When was the last time Mark even talked to William, his once Best Friend? They’re not his Mom, they’re concepts to him. They’re civilians, potential victims he could end up losing if he doesn’t police himself and his powers. Mark slowly becomes disillusioned to his own life as a human, the more the leans into the Viltrumite half of his parentage. 

It’s a little tragic but it’s the story we’re seeing. In season 2, when Mark and Amber break up and he gives up his dream for college, these two things are almost explicitly correlated. Mark is coming to terms with the fact that he’s going to outlive everyone he knows, even his new baby brother and that is just the most chaotic example of a slow-burn trauma if I’ve ever seen one. He’s giving up being human, but maybe not giving up his humanity. 

______________________________________________________________

TLDR: None of you understand Amber Bennett because the writers decided that Mark would outlive her before he ever had the chance to see things from her perspective and I am SALTY about it

[marias-wonderland]

Integra is often unfairly characterized as being icey. Which sure yeah, she always seems cool and in control but people forget that it’s a persona she has to use so nobody questions her authority and tries to undermine her, and that she’s actually a very empathetic and caring person who always has the best interests of her friends and employees (even struggling to kill her zombified guards.)

Anon I don't know who you are but, I want to give you the biggest hug!!

You hit the nail on the head with your observations!

It is really easy to stay on the facades the characters had created in the show, let alone integra, but we really need to understand where she's coming from

Imagine that you're 12 years old, your father is dead, your uncle tried to kill you, and a random bdsm apparittion in your basement saves your life.

Imagine your 12 y.o having to operate a whole paramilitary operation, with the help of a middle-aged butler and having to keep an eye on the bdsm bloke

(Also just look how cute she was)

She has to prove herself to men that would never take seriously an adult woman, let alone a child

(And let's be honest for a moment. Who would have trusted a child being in charge of one of the most crucial paramilitary organizations in England? sounds like a joke).

Therefore what does she need to do? To mask, to hide, to pretend she's someone else. She needs to adapt to her enviroment. As the Japanese say "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down", and Integra does not have the priviledge of short-comings and errors.

She adapts the suits instead of skirts, she smokes cigars and drinks manly liquids instead of "feminine" drinks like wine. Even her body language sometimes is giving of masculine elements (notice how she sits for example).

Even her opinions must be shaped in accordance to what her colleages believe. She can not appear "womanly" or "sensitive". She needs to appear determined, emotionless, cunning and pious.

Her true self must remain in the background, because it is not wise to show weakness in front of "monsters" (not neceserally Alucard, monsters take many shapes and forms)

Her whole relationship with Alucard proves she's something more than an ice queen. She allows him to cause wreak havoc uninterrupted, she allows him to keep Seras as his novice. Following Seras' introduction, Integra grows fond of her, and tries to help her acclimatise in her new life.

(Remember how she rushes and stops Seras from going into full vampire mode during the first manor attack? how she hugs her and tells her "that's enough"?)

Hell, even her whole banter/obvious innuendos with Alucard weren't that much innocent either.

You think her father would have allowed Alucard running around and calling him "count" or smth else that indicates they were equals? They always thought he was just some scrap off their shoes.

While Integra not only viewed him as an equal, she allowed him being a little more... mischievous than he should (that telephone scene did things to me)

And besides, a person who waits 30 years for your return, while worrying about if they are beautiful enough now, shows me a person who's the complete opposite of cold. (Perhaps they harbour even stronger feelings than the usual ;) )

[joonslfttiddie]

Home

Chapter 37: I Need You...

💜Fic Pairing: OT7 x OFC

💜AU/Genre: Reverse Harem/Polyfidelity/AMBW

💜Warnings: Adult content/Adult language

💜Rating: MA

💜Word Count: 3331

Hybe Lawncare and Landscaping…how may I help you?

His voice alone makes me so wet, I don’t respond immediately, a mixture of lust, love, and nervousness takes my voice.

Hello?

“H-hi, Namjoon? This is Tia.”

I can hear shuffling in the background, like fabric rubbing together, then him whispering ‘damn, bro’.

“HEY! Hey, Tia…my bad, I dropped the phone.”

I can’t help but snicker at his cuteness before saying, “Are you busy? I can call back at a better time.”

“No, no, it’s fine. I’m not busy at all.”

“Oh okay. What are you up to?”

The guys, satisfied that we are finally speaking, drift away from the kitchen to do their own thing, leaving me to speak in private.

“Nothing much, just took a shower, getting ready to wind down for the night. What are you up to?”

“I’m actually about to go shower myself. I’ve just been sitting around since my therapy session earlier.”

“Oh yeah, how did it go? How are you feeling?”

We speak about my session, I disclose what I’ve been struggling with, and I fill him in about the nut that was stalking me. He was surprised about my situation, yet very empathetic. Having a stalker and going through this nightmare is not something I would typically share after just meeting someone, but I feel he deserves to know what he’s getting into. And if I’m being honest, he is not like a regular ‘someone’ and speaking to him, hearing his voice dripping with a protective tone makes me feel comfortable to share. There’s something about these men, including Namjoon, that makes me want to bare my soul to them, hiding nothing. I find comfort in the concern in his voice and answer any questions he has regarding the situation. 

“But enough about that.  How was the rest of your day?”

“It was good. I was able to get all of my business cards passed out, you know, leaving some on doors or in mailboxes, conversed with some potential clients, and even lined up some jobs.”

“Nice! That is a good day, indeed. How long have you been a landscaper?”

“Uh, not too long, actually. I left my executive position at a prominent company earlier this year. It just wasn’t for me anymore, you know?”

“Yeah, that makes sense. I’m glad you created an opportunity to leave,” I encourage him and find a chance to dig a little deeper. “Does your significant other support your decision?”

“Ha, that was smooth. Ummm, no…no she didn’t. We broke up a couple of years prior. She prioritized status, reputation, and money over my happiness and mental wellness.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to…”

“No, don’t be sorry. I’m not. Things between her and I hadn’t been good for a very long time. I think even me toying with the idea of changing my career was just the last straw, you know?”

“Absolutely, I get it.”

“So, Tia…what do you do?”

We speak a bit longer, getting the basic ‘get to know you’ questions out of the way before I admit that I’m wanting to see him. 

“I’m really enjoying talking to you. I can’t wait to see you again.”

“I’m enjoying talking to you as well. So, you know that I’m single. What about you? The men that are at your house, ummm…”

“Honestly, I don’t know if I’m single. I don’t feel single, but I also don’t feel like I’m not allowed to see other people. I guess it’s like an open relationship, but none of us have made anything official. We’re just kinda going with the flow of things. They are here now, I love them, we have sex, and I want them to stay. We haven’t talked about what this is just yet but I don’t mind answering any questions you may have, though. I like you, Namjoon, and I want you to know everything upfront before we go any further… IF you even want to go further. I mean, feel drawn to you and would love to see where things go but we come as a package deal. As I said before, I love talking to you and would like to see you again soon, but I understand if you need time to think this over.”

I know that this is a bold statement to make, seeing as I’ve only known these men for a short duration of time, but I feel it, deep within my soul that this thing is real. This supernatural connection between us is strong and the pull to these men feels like destiny. I take a deep breath awaiting his response, the short pause has me on edge and I find that I’m no longer breathing until he speaks again.

“I can be there in 45?”

With a huge, yet silent sigh I reply, “REALLY?! Are you sure? I mean, this is all so strange, even for me. I would completely understand if you think this is too much.”

Of course, some things never change, as I’m trying to give him an ‘out’ even though he’s making it known that he wants to try.

“It does seem unconventional, but I don’t think I’ve been more sure of anything in my entire life. This pull to you has surpassed me wanting you, I need you. I need to see you.”

“Okay! See you soon?”

“See you soon.”

After hanging up, I scramble up the stairs, falling up the last two.

“He’s coming! He’s coming over!”

I’m yelling out to the others and run into the bedroom to find Jungkook getting ready for work. Taehyung is sitting in the chair, which seems to be his favorite seat, talking to Jungkook and Jimin while carelessly browsing through his phone. Jungkook smiles at me, then starts to laugh, scrunching his nose in the cutest way. 

Taehyung laughs a similar amused laugh and whispers, “Cute.”

Jimin, standing in the doorway of the bathroom, takes me into his arms, halting my stride.

“Are you that excited, beautiful?”

“Yes, I am,” I say, not denying it, bouncing from excitement.

“What time is he coming?”

“Now,” I turn to answer Jungkook, Jimin now hugging me from behind. “He’s on his way but he lives 45 minutes away so I’ll still have time to shower.”

When I turn to look back up to Jimin, he brushes a few strands of hair from my forehead before placing a kiss there. My features are soft and relaxed, my eyes close lazily as his hands move down my face to gently pinch my cheeks. I mimic Jungkook’s nose scrunch, causing him to laugh then place a kiss on my lips. He then lets me go, guiding me past him and through the threshold of the bathroom by my wrist.

“Go get ready,” he says after smacking a firm hand to my ass.

“Yes, sir,” seductively drips from my lips, almost instinctively. The effect that simple statement has on Jimin is evident, from the way he bites his bottom lip to his eyes rolling back before closing shut.

When I begin to undress, all eyes immediately fall on me, which doesn’t make me nervous at all, but the butterflies in my stomach take flight anyway. Jungkook grabs his watch from the side table, and begins putting it on without looking down. Taehyung has turned to rest his chin on the arm of the chair, his arms dangling over the side, his phone swinging between the fingertips of his index finger and thumb. Jimin is still leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed against his chest while eyeing me hungrily. I continue to bare myself before ending the show by stepping into the shower, and the men continue with what they are doing. Before Jimin can walk too far away, I pop my head out and call out to him, “You coming?”

There is a darkness behind his eyes, as his smile spreads across his face, that I’ve not seen before but I’m determined to figure out what I need to do to see it again. When he is undressed, I open the door to invite him, AND the monster reaching up to his belly button, inside as steam billows out. The way his eyes examine every inch of me has me dripping in anticipation. As soon as he closes the door behind him, I pull him into me, receiving his warmth to my front to combat the heat from the water on my back. My arms hang lazily around his neck and his wrap around my back while we look into each other’s eyes.

“Are you intentionally trying me? You staring into my eyes like this just does something to me.”

“Something like what?”

He doesn’t have to say anything as his dick jumps against my stomach, the feeling igniting the burn in my belly. Tilting his head slightly and closing his eyes, Jimin takes my lips, pulling me tighter against his body and I allow my body to fall into him. This kiss is electrifying, sending chills from the crown of my head to the soles of my feet.

NAMJOON’S POV

Excitedly, I get dressed in casual house clothes. I had just gotten out of the shower and was getting ready for bed when she called. Unsure of what I should bring with me, I only grab my phone, wallet, and keys before setting out on this cool, night drive. 

Zooming down the interstate, I let the windows down to allow the wind to dry my still damp hair. Comfort fills my heart as I drive, the feeling of going home after being away for too long.

What’s funny is, I knew she wasn’t alone, even before she told me the guys were still there. I can’t explain it, but I could feel them...their presence. Is it weird that I don’t find it weird… the arrangement they have? Different, sure, but I don’t mind it. Me potentially being the fourth man in her life doesn’t bother me in the slightest, and with the way the others welcomed me earlier, it felt more inviting than basic hospitality.

I’m trying to stay under the speed limit but I can’t wait to get to her, to have her in my arms, and feel my lips on hers. It’s like I already know how they feel, how they taste, but I’m wanting more of the warmth I’ve never had. I’m imagining what she likes, her favorites…from food to candy, to movies, to music, to art, to sexual positions. How would she feel under the weight of me? Does she like it fast or slow? Can she handle all of me?

“Fuck.”

I really need to cool it and concentrate on the road instead of the different ways I’d like to contort Tia’s body into.

Taehyung’s POV

“Hey, how are you feeling? Did you get enough sleep today?”

“Oh, yeah, I’m good but I’ll grab an energy drink on my way. I’m glad this is my last night shift for a little while, though. I hate having to leave you guys,” Jungkook answers.

We chat comfortably for a bit as Jungkook gathers his things to leave.

“What do you have planned for the rest of the night? Tryna jump in with Jimin?”

I chuckle for a second before responding, “Nah… not tonight unless that’s what they want. I might watch, but I think Tia spending time with Jimin is important. Plus, Namjoon is on his way, so I may just chill with Jimin when he gets here, you know? Let them get acquainted.”

“This is crazy, isn’t it?” He looks at me with the brightest smile. “This thing we have with Tia, with each other…I never want to leave…Never want it to end.”

I know where he’s coming from and I feel the same way. Now that he mentions it, I think this may be the right time to ask about last night.

“So, I know we are all trying to figure out what we want this to be, but last night…”

“Yeah, things got a little heated, huh?” 

As if the thought hit him like a ton of bricks, he says, “Oh my God, I’m so sorry! Did I overstep, bro? I wasn’t thinking and just got caught in the moment. I never meant to make you feel uncomfortable, I just…”

“Jungkook…”

He stops his rambling, my voice pulling him out of his panic.

“...no, no, no. I didn’t feel uncomfortable and you didn’t overstep. It was amazing. That’s what I wanted to talk to you about, actually. I feel a similar connection to you and Jimin as I do with Tia. Does this make us bisexual? Pansexual? I’ve never done anything like this before.”

I take in a full breath and hold it there as Jungkook stands to look into my eyes, inches away from my face.

“Why do we have to put a label on it? Can’t we just love each other and talk about what we’re down for? Where our boundaries are? Let’s just do what makes us happy, huh?”

Jungkook’s arm snakes around the small of my back, pulling me closer to place a kiss on my lips. Then he pulls away slightly to peer at me again, making sure I was okay with the sudden contact but also awaiting my response.

“Yeah, I like that idea. We should come up with a safe word, too.”

“That sounds like a plan. Let’s discuss it with the others… tomorrow?”

“Okay,” I reply as he’s slowly releasing me. He pecks my lips again, then disappears into the bathroom for a few minutes. When he returns, he’s cheesing like a cheshire cat which has already piqued my interest, but when he shakes his head and continues down the stairs. I HAVE to know what is going on in there so I take a seat in my favorite chair after adjusting the angle just right, so that I can sit and watch, just as they close the shower door behind them.

Jungkook’s POV

After we all leave Tia to speak to Namjoon on the phone, I unfortunately have to start getting ready for work. We all may as well be living here as we rarely leave, except for work, and our clothes and other items are slowly accumulating, Tia finding a specific place for our stuff to go. Several of my uniforms are hanging in one of the guest bedrooms down the hall from the main bedroom. I'm also noticing how Tia has begun speaking, using ‘ours’ and ‘we’ a lot more often. 

I love the idea of this, of us all being in one place, but none of our places are large enough to accommodate everyone. I’m thinking of having a conversation with Tia being that I don’t want to assume anything. I want to make sure I’m not doing too much by being around everyday or having my things here. Yes, she pulled out extra toothbrushes and necessities for us and doesn’t seem to mind, but I just want to make sure.

As I’m getting dressed, Taehyung and Jimin keep me company while giving Tia her privacy to converse with Namjoon downstairs. We chat comfortably, like we’ve known each other for years… decades, even. Seated on the edge of the bed, I’m buttoning my last button when Jimin steps over to turn down my collar. Mindlessly, I place a hand on his hip, looking up into his angelic face. He is beautiful and I must admit, I am kind of attracted to him. His tenderness and care for me warms me from the inside. He licks his pillowy soft lips as he’s adjusting the last bit before stepping back to lean on the doorframe of the bathroom. My heart skips a beat and I’m wondering what this feeling could be.  

I’m lost in my thoughts when we hear our clumsy love stumbling up the stairs. We know she’s not hurt when she hops up and rushes into the room. I can’t hide the amusement on my face, watching her, so excited and childlike. I’m also not surprised at the bruises that pop up on her skin, as she’s always falling or bumping into things. If I could put her in a bubble or carry her in my pocket at all times, I would.

I wonder how long it will take to get used to this feeling of calm. With me usually being the jealous type, it’s foreign to be able to watch the woman I love snuggle up in the arms of another man, with nothing but mellowness and adoration in my heart. In a perfect world, I would be able to stay home with them, but I have to go ‘protect and serve’. I’m curious as to how things will go between Tia and Namjoon but I’m sure the guys will fill me in. I watch Jimin disappear into the bathroom behind Tia before I gather my things for work. 

Taehyung stops me, mentioning what happened between us last night, and I can completely understand why. I felt comfortable enough with him and Tia to do things I’ve never done…never thought I’d do, and things were intoxicating. I’ve never had any sexual experiences with men, but it just felt right in the moment. Honestly, it feels like I’m in a relationship with all of them, not just Tia. There is definitely a conversation we need to have, but until then, I’ve decided that, instead of searching for a category or label to place on what we have, that I will go with the flow and float along in our happiness.

Kissing Taehyung has become almost second nature. While he is older than me, there is something about him that makes him appear small. Maybe it’s the feeling of his slim waist in my arms or the way his body molds onto mine. Is it the way he looks at me or the way he melts when our lips touch? I don’t know, but I love it. 

After tossing my backpack on, I go to say goodbye to Tia and Jimin. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to guess what those two are up to in the shower, I know they are having sex. But when I walk into the bathroom and see their movements in sync, their wet bodies caressing against each other, the way they hold onto each other as if their lives depended on how close they can get, portions of their figures hidden behind the steam that has formed on the glass shower… the vision is simply breathtaking. I wait for the moment they notice me there, not wanting to interrupt and not wanting them to stop.

“JK, is it time for you to go already?” Tia pulls away from Jimin, wiping the steam with the palm of her hand.

“Sadly, yes. I just wanted to tell you guys goodbye before I left. Sorry for interrupting.”

“No! You’re not interrupting. I would have been sad when we got out to find you’d gone without saying anything,” Jimin admits.

I step closer when Tia opens the door, letting clouds of steam, the scent of her vanilla body wash, and sex to escape. She steps out onto the bath mat, water traveling down her amber brown-colored, smooth skin to drip onto the floor. Fuck! If I wasn’t on duty, I would love to lick every droplet from her flesh. With my thumb, I brush a few beads of water from her now rosy cheek and kiss her there. Using the grip I have on her, I turn her head to the side, exposing her neck to me so that I can nibble and kiss my way from her lips to her chin, across her jaw, and down her throat. 

She moans and grasps the straps of my bag, and though I’m loving the way she’s squirming and pulling me closer as I suckle at her sensitive spots, I have to let her go after kissing her lips one more time. Jimin, now standing behind her, smiles the sweetest smile which causes me to want to give him the same treatment, but I refrain from doing so, for now. I reach out to cup his face instead, allowing him to rest into my palm, his eyes closing for a moment. With a gentle pinch to his cheek and just one more kiss for Tia, I say my goodbyes before leaving the room.

[deadmomjokes]

as a teacher, hearing about the way you communicate so clearly and thoroughly with your child is so inspiring. I wish more people had resources on how to communicate with kids like you do.

I'm very bad at taking compliments, so I'll just say "Thank you" and also qualify that she makes it pretty easy. She's very smart and has always, from day one basically, needed to know the reasons behind everything. In other circumstances, she would probably be called "stubborn" or "defiant." But the thing is, I remember my own "stubbornness" growing up, and it was almost always the result of me not understanding why things were the way they were. From a young age, I hated with a burning passion the "Because I said so" thing. So I determined that I didn't want to do that when/if I had kids of my own.

My daughter is very bright and curious and makes that easy for me. Her "why" phase was/is pretty specific, which is helpful in keeping ahead of the frustration-induced rage-meltdowns. (Not all of them, of course, because some concepts are really hard to grasp even as an adult, let alone when you're 4 years old and everything Feels Too Big.)

But I also made a conscious effort to start practicing early, before she could talk or push back on a lot of stuff. It felt so weird and silly at first, but I basically narrated everything I did with/around her, and put a reason for it. So a trip to the store sounded like this:

"We made it to the store to get our groceries, so we have yummy food to eat. Let's go inside and get a buggy--that's where we'll put all the things we get, because we can't carry them all in just our hands. I'm going to put you in the buggy, too, right here in this seat, that way you can see what's going on but I have both my hands to push the buggy and grab the things we need. Here, look, some bananas! Let's get some of those because you love to eat them. Oh, no, sorry baby, we can't eat them right now. This stuff isn't ours until we pay for it at the very end-- that's the part with the beep-beeper and the bags. When we get home we can have some of the bananas, because then they are our bananas." Etc, etc, on and on.

People looked at me like I was nuts. It felt a little nuts at times, especially before she could respond verbally. But it worked. It built a habit for me to give a reason for why I'm doing things, or making her do things. More importantly, I feel like, it made me stop and question when I didn't have a good reason for my answers or behaviors. Like if she comes up and asks to blow bubbles outside, and I go, "No baby, not right now," she can be like "why not?" And I have to look at myself and my reasoning. Is it because I'm actually busy or we're genuinely about to do something else that precludes the 5 minutes it'd take to do bubbles? Or is it because I just don't feel like it? It's not fair for "I don't feel like it" to supersede her desires for connection and entertainment all the time. (Sometimes you're just worn out and don't have the bandwidth for it, and that's valid. Parents are people too! But it can't be all the time, yk?) So if I don't have a good reason why not, I let her know that I thought about it more and changed my mind, and off we go to blow bubbles.

I also heard the advice, idk where or when, that you need to practice on your children what you want from them. So if I want my child to be kind, I have to be kind to her, in ways that she can see and appreciate. If I want her to know it's okay to change your mind, I have to point out when that happens for me, like in the above bubbles example. If I want her to be a decent human being who respects others, is empathetic, appreciates the efforts of others, speaks kindly, thinks about how her actions impact those around her, etc... You get the idea. It starts with me. And I try to consciously remind myself of that fact.

It's not always easy, because kids aren't always rational (but to be fair, neither are adults lol). And what is rational to a 4 year old is not always the same as what is rational to me, the adult with almost 3 decades of experience more than her. So sometimes it's like explaining to the wind why it ought to blow in a different direction. But the longer I get to know her, the more I'm able to pick up on the way she sees things, her personal defaults, the way she talks around concepts she's not sure about, etc. It's part of what's cool about getting to be her parent. I get such a close-up view of this little person becoming a little person, and it makes me stop and think about things I have taken for granted for a long time.

I'm rambling again, but I have developed a lot of Strong Feelings about the way kids are treated and looked at in general, and a lot of determination to do better for the kids I get the privilege of loving.

[k-martins]

Hello.... What do you think are Fushiguro and Itadori’s greatest personality strengths and weaknesses? Why? What do you love about their dynamic? Thanks if you want to answer....

Hello! Sorry for the delay in responding.

That's a good question, thanks for submitting it.

Well, I'll start with Yuji. I think his strong point (which was currently pointed out even by Sukuna) is his unshakable humanity. He is always willing to be a stronger version of himself, to evolve as a sorcerer and a person, to protect those he loves. No matter how many times Yuji falls, he will always get up and fight again to protect those he loves most. His willpower is impressive and one of the reasons why he hasn't lost control of his emotions yet, something Nanamin and Todo pointed out as being useless as a sorcerer (I felt like a proud mother seeing him fighting Sukuna so seriously, no. letting the memory of Nanami and Higuruma's "death" affect him, something that would have happened in his times in Shibuya.) I think this is what makes his character to the general public so good and easy to love.

Now, his weak point is certainly the great empathy he feels for people. Don't get me wrong, empathetic and kind characters are my favorites in any media, but Yuji takes it to a very high level. He feels guilty about things that are often not his fault directly (such as the large flow of curses that arose after he ate Sukuna's finger or the deaths caused in Shibuya). The empathy he feels for people makes him forget about saving his own skin (as happened in juvie, as Yuji sacrificed himself to save Megumi and Nobara and only managed to make things worse by, well, leaving sukuna free to kill him and cause harm to Megumi) and consequently puts her friends in danger. This is so real that even external characters have to state that he is not to blame, like Panda saying that Yaga died post-shibuya and Yuta hiding that Toge lost his arm when Sukuna expanded the domain, although it is pointless since Yuji is so trapped in the request from his grandfather who cannot bear to be responsible - directly and indirectly - for the deaths of innocent people.

In Megumi's case, I think his strong point is his wit and maturity. He is a very focused sorcerer who quickly analyzes situations and draws up logical plans to win. Even though she seems cold and distant, Megumi always thinks of others when he makes a plan and puts the safety of others above his own - something very similar to Yuji. His intelligence is what makes a character trustworthy, so much so that he was already going out on missions alone, he was praised by Nanami and Nobara and Yuji trust him a lot when it comes to having a plan. However, his weak point is, as Gojo said, his mentality. Megumi has serious self-esteem issues that end up affecting how he interacts with the other characters, remaining distant and stoic, and how he fights - always saving Mahoraga as a last resort because we know what happens when he summons him. He cannot see himself as powerful, so he does not fight much when facing a powerful enemy, using Mahoraga to secure a victory. He doesn't consider himself important to others, so much so that, despite thinking about Yuji when he's about to die in Shibuya, he doesn't regret his decision. This is Megumi's weakest point and it is for this reason that he still cannot suppress Sukuna like Yuji did. Megumi gave up everything when Tsumiki died (which is understandable) and is now just waiting for someone to kill Sukuna (I doubt he's waiting for salvation and I believe a "there's nothing left to be saved" moment could happen soon)

When it comes to dynamics, I love how Yuji and Megumi complement each other perfectly, which reflects in their fighting style. Megumi is a long-range fighter, while Yuji is a melee opponent. Yuji is muscular and Megumi is intelligent. And they're also a lot of fun to follow, both in battle and in their interactions. Going further, I really like how Yuji always claims that Megumi is someone who is smart, kind and trustworthy, valuing those little details that Megumi doesn't seem to notice (in fact, I really believe that Yuji is much more observant than most people he thinks, because that alone explains how he noticed Osawa's cute handwriting and the way she eats fish; my boy may be slow, but he's not a complete idiot). I also really like how Megumi always takes care of Yuji, whether it's making sure he's okay and thinking of ways so they don't have to kill in the slaughter game, and giving Yuji meaning to continue living ("so start by saving me, Itadori ", a real glue to repair the crack in Yuji's conviction and humanity).

Anyway, I think that's it. I'm a little tired because I woke up early lmao. Thanks again for submitting this question. It was fun and I love talking about my boys.

[angelmichelangelo]

so i just want to talk about the whole donnie and april thing from the 2012 series since i have a lot of thoughts on them both and need somewhere to just. get it out my system.

so off the bat im gonna say i’m pretty neutral about the april/donnie ship. i.. don’t really care for it but if it’s there it’s not gonna overly bother me. i’m pretty much on the fence for most things tmnt ship related (though, big exception for woodyangelo just cus. lol) that being said i do have some thoughts about how it was handled in the 2012 show.

as most people might agree, the writing for these two wasn’t great. i think, just in my humble opinion, that the writers kinda ping ponged back and forth depending on fandom criticism of the ship. one minute the relationship seemed to be slowly developing, a nice easy slow burn and then it’d take a sharp turn and it was back to a lot of uncomfortable pining and uncertainty as to where they would both end up. i think the writers wanted to appease both ends of the fandom here by making it somewhat ambiguous but it kinda blew up in their faces. big time.

so then you have the people who put all the blame on april for this. “she’s leading donnie on!” “she’s playing with both donnie and casey!” “she just wants the attention!” and, yeah. maybe. but here’s my defence: (bad writing aside for a moment, let’s pretend that all of this was done on purpose) april doesn’t know what she wants. when we meet april in the show it’s evident that she’s a little dorky and uncool and she doesn’t have ANY friends. she has irma but it seems to be one of those friendships built out of pure convenience. “oh you don’t have friends, i don’t have friends. cool. let’s hang out.” in every scene they have together it’s awkward and weird because they don’t really seem to click. april has like, as little social skills as the turtles. she doesn’t have friends let alone have TWO guys show her any appreciation and affection. how is she supposed to know how to deal with all that? she’s a teenage girl, feelings are complicated.

and some people might blame donnie. “he kept persisting even when she gave clear hints” “he was being a weirdo about it” “he made her uncomfortable” donnie is a teenage boy who happens to be a mutant. a mutant that lives underground and had never even MET a girl until they saved april. donnie’s only point of reference for romance is what he’s most likely seen on tv or in books. it’s that really cheesy affectionate stuff that might work in movies, but in real life is just strange. donnie has even less social skills that april. he’s only ever had his brothers and dad to talk to. he doesn’t know how to communicate his feelings properly because up until he met april, he probably never even knew what it was to have a crush on somebody

my headcanon for these two is that donnie is clearly autistic. he’s very overly empathetic towards april but can’t understand why his efforts aren’t paying off like he thinks they will. i think april being a young teenage girl with a lot on her plate, might not recognise why donnie is acting this way. ive seen a lot of people also headcanon that april is aromantic which i totally 100% love and agree with. i don’t think she recognises this in the way donnie recognises his own autism. it causes them to clash, and neither of them really understand why that is, and can’t quite communicate it to the other until they’ve figured themselves out.

a lot of people say that 2012 ruined the donnie and april friendship that was pretty strong throughout the franchise but honestly, even the 2003 show had pepperings of donnie’s slight crush on april, even back then. it’s not as obvious but it was definitely there. obviously it never got brought up, which imo is a little heartbreaking to think of poor don harbouring these secret feelings for his friend and then having to just. get over it when she marries casey but i think their friendship is still pretty special to them both that it eventually stops becoming an issue for him.

2012 donnie was a social wreck. he had no clue what he was doing and i think the writers could have done waaaay better in making that less of a fault and more of just. idk. just something that made people hate him a little less. it’s in the same vein as mikey’s adhd. i think the writing was a product of its time and that’s why mutant mayhem tackles those issues way way better than 2012 ever did.

it could also be said that donnie and april don’t even really have a lot in common, like some iterations. she’s smart but she’s not a scientist, and donnie’s crush is first of all born out of just physical looks, meaning that maybe donnie just happened to latch onto her because he felt a teeny glimpse of normality (“i could love a girl and she could love me back”) and kinda just held onto that. any of the other girls in the show, donnie doesn’t really draw himself towards but that’s because the other girls are mostly his brothers love interests and donnie is a firm believing in sticking to the bro code lmao (although maybe just from mikey’s perspective, but donnie does seem quite friendly with renet but that might have just been a 2003 callback perhaps, but they have more in common than her and mikey do)

all in all, the donnie/april thing could have been handled way better, especially with casey thrown into the mix. but is there one person solely responsible for the way their relationship played out? absolutely not. they both crossed some boundaries and both made some mistakes that backfired but like i said, they are far from perfect and looking back on their arc together, it’s a little heartbreaking to see how.. unsure they both are, of themselves and of each other. but that’s just my two cent on the whole thing.

i don’t think female characters were the 2012 writers strong point sadly and april suffered as a result but i genuinely think in her good moments, she shines. and donnie isn’t a creep, he’s just a good kid that wants to find his own happiness, even if he looks in the wrong places, both their intentions are good, i believe.

okay rant over sound off in the tags/replies what you think of the donnie/april dynamic in 2012 😎

[luveline]

small vent (please don’t read if it will stress you out or if you’re young — cw of past self harm and unhappiness but I am in no active danger and there’s nothing to worry about, but also just mentioning that in case someone were to open this and then get surprised by the content)

I feel so lonely lately and I don’t know what to do because i feel like I am making an effort to connect with people, maybe I’m not, but I feel as though I am and it’s just really frustrating to have that disconnect of what I feel like I’m doing and the actual result of it, I feel like no one really wants to talk to me, does that make sense? Like I can’t actually have a conversation with anyone, and I’m not blaming anyone for this, because I’m not a good conversationalist, this isn’t me trying to make bad people out of anybody at all but just I’m so frustrated and so lonely and it’s not getting any better. and of course as tends to happen I feel like, really down( and like time is slipping through my fingers, and I feel like I can’t do anything I want to do because I end up worrying or upset about something instead, I can’t stop thinking about stuff I’ve said or things I need to do or things other people have said and what I thought they’re thinking of me. I used to basically feel like this all the time a few years ago but it was going away, until recently when I feel very alone and like it’s worse than it was. I also feel super pathetic once again for putting this here instead of a diary but it’s hard sometimes to not want to know what you guys think, like —is this normal? I worry I’m too concerned with myself

I’ve also been thinking a lot for the last few weeks about hurting myself, because I used to in the past. I won’t do it of course and like if I were to do it it’s not as though I would want to mention that here because I know it’s catching and it hurts people because hurting yourself shouldn’t be presented as an option and it isn’t an option, so I won’t do it, but I do want to hurt myself because I just don’t feel well!! I actually did contact my doctor a few days ago to talk about how I am and my health but they haven’t gotten back to me yet. I know that it’s not how you should cope with bad feelings, but it’s also the only thing that’s ever worked for me

I think all in all I feel really alone, and I feel like I’m always embarrassing myself, like, I feel like the people around me are embarrassed of me. I don’t know why I feel so bad and if it’s normal or not. Like, should I more urgently go and see my doctor, or does everyone struggle feeling such low self esteem? I know life is hard for everybody, and for many much harder than I’ll ever experience, and so I’m caught feeling very ashamed of myself and alone, and like I’m doing things wrong but unaware of it. It’s a relief at least to not be suicidal because in the past I would get so anxious about things I would get tunnel vision and I’d need it to stop, whereas now I just feel quite depressed (sorry if that’s the wrong word) about it. I wish I could identify what it is that’s throwing me off kilter so badly. I hope it’s okay to talk about this here because I don’t think anyone will understand in my life how I’m feeling, I try to talk about it with my mam sometimes but she’s not the most empathetic person, or like she’s too empathetic maybe, and if I tell her I’m feeling depressed she’ll say me too and then guide the conversation about her life without really giving me a chance to speak to her about what’s really on my mind, or she might tell me (again) to go on ozempic (which I do not medically need). And I love my sisters but I can’t tell them either, so it’s just like desperately wanting to confide in someone, but everyone else is too busy

I think my life is just a black hole forever, you know, I don’t mean to be upset about it because things are better than they were, but it’s hard knowing that I’m not experiencing what other people are, and that I’m not connecting with people, and that I’m hard to like

[allykatsart]

pls i’m so feral about your deer boi oc tell me more i wanna know how the whole everyone notices he’s terrified of alastor thing goes

Who is Peccantum?

HO BOY YOU ASKED FOR IT-

Husk, of course, is the first to notice.

He's a gambler, bartender, and is far more attentive than other sinners give him credit for. Of course he notices Peccantum is treading on eggshells everywhere, and not just for comedic effect. The young buck is genuinely terrified of Alastor.

However, Husk isn't one to act on that information. Not only is it none of his business, Husk is also kind of in the same boat as Peccantum. Honestly, the bartender thinks Peccantum's fear is warranted. He does soften over time, but what can he do, really?

Angel Dust is the first to help.

It would be post episode 4, when Angel really starts to connect with others at the hotel. Angel just kinda always assumed Peccantum was a panicky, on edge weirdo. As they get to know each other a little more, Angel realizes that's not actually the case. Peccantum is usually a sarcastic, passionate, clever guy! So the way the bellhop acts around Alastor... It reminds Angel a touch too much of his situation with Val

(Not in romance or assault, but in the 'Im going to fuck with you for my own amusement' way)

So, Angel starts doing little things. He doesn't want to piss off the strawberry pimp, so no direct confrontation, but he can still help Peccantum not get jump scared. Angel greets Alastor out loud when Alastor enters a room quietly. He lingers in rooms where Peccantum would be alone otherwise. Small things that prepare Peccantum beforehand.

In return, Peccantum makes Angel warm drinks when Angel comes back from a long day. He learns recipes that Angel likes and cooks dinner. He gives Angel a book called "A hundred and one dirty jokes for the wickedly perverted." Small things.

They don't talk about it, and it's not a foolproof strategy, but it helps.

Sir Pentious, the best friend, takes it very seriously.

Sir Pentious doesn't pick up on it like Husk and Angel do, so it takes an actual conversation with Peccantum about it for him to realize it's serious. Pentious and Peccantum are Science Buddies™️ so it doesn't take long before Pentious starts coming up with inventions that might help! Magic seeking goggles, ocular augmentations, even a scanner to help identify Alastor before he appears! They have a little fun with it.

In the end, though, Pentious keeps it simple. He and Peccantum develop a secret hand signal for if Peccantum needs someone to distract Alastor. That way Peccantum can slip away and calm himself down if he's spiraling!

They also develop a secret handshake but that's beside the point.

Charlie....

Despite what everyone thinks, Charlie isn't stupid. She's observant and empathetic, and quickly picks up that Peccantum is nervous around Alastor. She can understand that, Hell, sometimes the Radio Demon makes her nervous! She's also a fixer, so would try to resolve the issue with diplomacy and setting boundaries. Sure, Alastor probably doesn't care about Peccantum, but Alastor does listen to her!

But she doesn't have the context.

I don't think Peccantum would tell her anything, and may actively try to keep his thoughts about Alastor private from her. I also think Alastor has made it clear that if Peccantum tries to hide behind Charlie, he's in for a lot worse than just some scares. Alastor defers to Charlie out of obligation and opportunity, but he refuses to have others use her to manipulate himself. Especially not a soul he owns.

Peccantum, of course, complies. He has to convincingly lie to Charlie, which makes his stomach squirm with guilt, but it's fine. He's overreacting anyways. It's fine. It's the price he chose to pay for power.

As long as he has magic, he shouldn't care what Alastor decides to do with him.

It's fine.

(No, it's not)

[hot-in-a-dress]

Peter Bishop, aka God's Multiversal Apology

Preface note: I've currently been watching/rewatching Fringe, and I have Thoughts, so expect this to be the first of many posts.

First of all, I just need to talk about how much I love Peter Bishop. Not necessarily as a character crush (although it's not not that), but just generally. For all of his background and all of his emotional issues going on, I would have expected him to be a lot more..toxic? I mean, when we first see him he's a bit of a bad boy type, and generally mean to both Walter and Olivia, but I'm glad that the writers knew where the line was. His actions at the beginning of the show are demonstrations of how he's been closed off and running from his past, currently living in a state of hyper independence where he feels like he can't really trust anyone. I think that if it continued for too long, those traits could easily have made him really dark really quickly, and they could have overpowered any grounded moments that he had. Instead, the writers cut/heavily dilluted that aspect of the character pretty early on. At the very least, by the midpoint of season one, he's already started to soften up a bit, and his mean streak becomes the more sardonic charm of Peter that audiences love. By the end of season one, he's downright affectionate.

Speaking of affectionate, I absolutely live for the way he treats Olivia after that mid-season change. I think it would have been pretty easy for the writers to make him a tough-love, "get a fucking grip", push-her-to-the-breaking-point type, similar to earlier Broyles, and instead Peter treats her with such....gentleness.

When she has a panic attack in "Bad Dreams", he goes to comfort her. He clearly makes moves to touch her, but the motions that he makes are really carefully placed in front of her where she can see him, and he backs up/moves his hands away so as not to seem restricting. He doesn't even make contact with her until he knows that she's in a grounded enough place to handle it. That level of respect for her space and emotions is something not often seen in media, and not necessarily expected to come from their (at this time) still vaguely antagonistic relationship. Not only does it show his respect for her, though, just his willingness alone is something that feels so personal. It was one of the first examples of Peter's really deep compassionate streak that he has (especially in terms of Olivia), and it stuck out to me that...at that time, he had no reason really to comfort her. He was still in a more professional setting, and they hadn't quite developed the same level of emotional understanding they have in later seasons. And yet he was so ready to go after her, and so ready to offer not only words, but actual, physical comfort. He held her so tightly, once he knew he could. As all of Olivia's backstory becomes more and more apparent to both audiences and herself, I appreciate these moments even more. She isn't used to gentle men in her life, so the fact that Peter comes along, and he respects her, and trusts her, and most importantly, is gentle with her when she needs him to be, showing her time and again what true love and affection can be, it's just..fucking precious to me. It's everything she deserves and more (though that's a different post entirely).

Anyways, it's also really charming to me that physical contact is a repeated pattern with Peter. From a character perspective, that's so fascinating. He has faced such traumas throughout his lifetime that he seems like a character that would be really hesitant to form connections, and rightfully so. Yet, not only is Peter empathetic, he is so overtly physical about it. Whenever someone else is in pain, Peter becomes a comforter and a protector. And every time he does, it feels like that "he healed something he didn't break" moment. It seems like Peter, who comes from such brokenness and secrecy, just wants to keep the people around him safe, because he's seen the absolute worst things that can happen. He had every right to be angry and cruel, but instead he chooses to be an anchoring point for the people around him, and absolutely loves them fiercely.

It's not that Peter is flawless. He's known to be a bit aggressive, and often dismissive of Walter, among many other instances of recklessness, plus a couple counts of fraud. Yet at the same time, to me, those flaws don't make his love and compassion any less merit worthy. It just makes him a complex character. It's the reason why he feels so stand-out from other characters of that genre of show, and other tropes of The Leading Bad Boy. Peter Bishop at his heart is just...written beautifully, and he's exactly the type of healthy masculinity that sci-fi tends to lack. He's God's Apology, across all the multiverse, and I am absolutely here for it.

[itookyoudown]

Do you think Raylan is more like Arlo or Frances? Obviously we don't know much about Frances, but just from your personal ideas/headcannons about her, and what we know about Arlo, who do you think Raylan takes after more?

thank you for this ask justie! i need you to know i've been noodling it over and trying to gather up all my thoughts and feelings because i have A LOT and this is such a complicated idea. i've tried to be as coherent and thoughtful as possible, but this is mostly just me rambling and slowly piecing my thoughts together.

going to preface this by saying that because we know so little about Frances' character (canon can't even decide her death date jfc) most of my interpretation of who Frances was is fanon and heavily based on chatter with @sublightsleeper

anyways. he's more like Arlo than Frances.

yes i hate it too but it's true (to me) 😩

since the bulk of the story is told from Raylan's POV, we know who Arlo is from the get-go and understand he's a piece of shit despite Helen's excuses and attempts to get Raylan and Arlo to reconcile. but during Arlo's inclusion in the show, we do get a few hints here and there of what Arlo's like when his mask is on: he's a charmer.

i think in his younger years Arlo was a real looker and knew how to weaponize it. he can be friendly and even generous or kindly when/if it suits him but he's just a snake in the grass. i'd say Raylan gets his charm from Arlo as much as he gets that anger. he learned at Arlo's knee how to hide his real emotions in order to get what he wants. and how to use both flattery + intimidation to manipulate people into behaving in a way that benefits him best. Raylan, I feel, is truly Arlo's son even if he chose the lawmen side of the line rather than the outlaw side.

and i think Raylan inherently knows this and that fuels Raylan's anger all the more.

is Raylan a mirror image of Arlo? no, never. but at their cores, i think they're tragically similar even though Raylan consciously makes choices that ensure he's NOT acting like Arlo. mostly because Raylan's put himself into a situation where he avoided becoming exactly like Arlo. AKA he left Harlan. because i do genuinely believe that if Raylan had stayed in Harlan he would have ended up a mirror of Arlo. he would have ended up just as bitter and miserable and angry, there would be no leash on that anger and he'd have lashed out to those nearest and dearest to him.

i think he would have become what Arlo became: an abused person who abuses others.

as for Frances…

we know from canon that Frances was a good cook. she kept a garden. she taught Raylan how to shoot. that she openly shamed a bunch of thugs for having bad manners. we also know that she was disrespected and Arlo escalated things into violence, but she put aside pride and called for peace instead. that she made the arrangements to end the family feud.

i think she was very used to cleaning up Arlo's messes, both at home and in business, and got very good at being the designated peacemaker.

but i don't think Frances was charming. or charismatic. i don't even like to think she was attractive. but i do think she understood what soft power was and knew how to use it alongside old-fashioned gentility to influence the people around her. and tbh considering she was a poor woman in the rural south that might have realistically felt like her only weapon and defense in life. we know she knew how to shoot, but we never hear that she fought back against Arlo or tried to defend Raylan. in fact, we know she left Raylan alone with Arlo when the abuse got real bad. she might have left, but she always returned.

from her relationship with Arlo, i think we can infer that Frances was an exceptionally kind and gracious and empathetic woman…and that's what made her vulnerable, that's why she stayed with Arlo and how he even managed to charm her into marrying him in the first place.

i believe she had a soft core and that's why i don't think Raylan is most like her.

because while Raylan can be tender, he's not soft. he can choose kindness but it's not his first instinct. he'll take a peaceful route but he doesn't feel bad about going to war. he's only empathic when he sees himself in another person (you need to only compare how Raylan treats Loretta VS Roz to see how this plays out). and while he's susceptible to pretty women and wants to be their savior, he's not incapable of saying NO and cutting them off. look at how he emotionally shuts out Ava in the later seasons and early seasons we even see it in his interactions with Helen. Raylan is capable of establishing boundaries and even dividing people into a "good" or "bad" box. and i don't think that's something Frances would have ever done. too much heart to do it.

so, yeah, overall i think Raylan takes more after Arlo when you get right down to it. but i do think some of Frances rubbed off on Raylan.

and even more than that…hm this idea is very difficult to put into words. but i feel like Raylan got some of the worst of Arlo but also some of the best of Frances. and somehow it all evened out in the end.

it made Raylan into a man that will live to make the heroic choice rather than dying the hero's death.

[bismuthx]

Oliva Biscuit x male reader and his name is Nitsu

Secret Santa gift fic for @unstuckmusturd

Sorry if some things don't add up very well also because it's too late!

Tw: infidelity, ambiguous thoughts, anal sex, blowbjob and spelling errors

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"Get away from me!" You've deceived me, I don't know why I believed you.

"Listen to me, Nitsu, I was an idiot not to tell you anything, but I can make it clear..."

"Clarify what!?" That I'm the other? This was all a lie, you just called me so you can fix your problems with your girlfriend! "

"Maybe if you calm down..." Oliva tries to reassure him by grabbing him by the shoulder.

"Let go of me, dammit! You only brought misfortune into my life Nitsu" couldn't take it anymore and slapped him, Oliva didn't answer, he just bowed his head...

No one had imagined seeing Oliva's psychologist next to him having an argument... Who would have thought that the two of them would form an unbreakable bond?... We'd better start from the beginning.

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And there he was, Oliva Biscuit, dressed as elegantly as possible and holding in his hands a pretty bouquet of roses, like the good groom who had been waiting three minutes before outside the room of his lovely bride. "Ah, Maria, my beautiful Maria, she is the only one in my heart, so lovely, she is just what I always dreamed of. Damn, I'm the luckiest man on earth—no! What do I say, of the universe" those and more cloying thoughts were running through his mind during the short time he had planted.

"What the fuck are you doing standing out there and why don't you just get in!?" "Maria didn't have that much patience for this kind of thing, even though it had been more than 7 years. "Tks, you're always late, damn..."

As always, Oliva received his daily dose of insults as it was already typical of what he had become accustomed to.

"Relax, Oliva, you know how she is, you have to be empathetic and not get angry like she does, understand what Maria is going through, it's not easy..."

"Are you done yet?" It was the only thing he could say, anything offensive or not; it would be used against him.

Maria just looked at him, she didn't say anything. Tears began to flow from those eyes that Oliva loved to see. He just came up to her and said, "My beloved, you'll never change, I love the way you are, maybe you won't be affectionate with me, but, I only have eyes for you, oh..." My dear Mary, stop crying. Scope! I brought you a bouquet of roses-

"Ahggg! Don't you understand me, I'm tired of this monotony, always lying around, not doing a single thing, just occupying a miserable place here... Also, you give me this bouquet of roses every day! Can't you see that I'm tired of this?, I want to change the rhythm of my life... I just want to... She was so melancholy that she didn't even feel like talking to him anymore, but Oliva noticed his beloved's feelings and quickly imprisoned her in his chest, hugging her lovingly.

Amazingly, Mary had stopped crying and had received the hug in a good way.

"I love you..."

Those were the only words that came out of the blonde. Biscuit's cheeks turned a crimson red.

"Have I told you that you make me the luckiest man?"

The woman ignored his question to hug him more intensely.

"Listen, Oliva, I really love your company, but would you like to leave me alone for a few moments?"

"Okay, don't worry, my dear, I'll wait as long as necessary for you." Without further ado, Oliva left the room.

"Hmm... What are you thinking? Does it have a surprise for me? Is he planning something pretty? Or is he just on his days? No, I say, he must have something beautiful to say to me, but is that a big deal, so that he should be made to leave his room? Pfff, of course it is, in our relationship everything is important..., but what do you want to tell me? If it was a good thing I'd say it... It doesn't matter what I'm thinking, our love is more important than that, I love her, hash, she's the most perfect woman I could have ever seen."

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"Mr. Unchained, what's wrong with you?" Today it was a bit weird, it's going around in circles. "A high-ranking police officer noticed that Oliva was very different from any normal day.

 "Mmmh, nothing happened, you can retire..."

"Are you sure?"

"You know what? I've been feeling weird lately, I don't know why. Not only me, but Maria, lately our conversations are more banal, she is more different than before...

"I think that must be."

"What if it's my fault?" Jesus, I don't know what I would do if all this estrangement from her to me is my fault, Mary doesn't deserve me, she inspires admiration...

 "You're right! But if you'd let me talk-"

"I think I know what to do..." I know it sounds stupid, but I think I need a psychologist... Oliva began to whisper things that were incomprehensible to the policeman, until he grabbed the policeman's shoulder with a smile and said in an authoritarian way: "Stop looking at me like that!" I need you to call a psychologist now!

"Yes, sir! " The policeman immediately left the room.  Oliva was thinking about the action he had just done. Did he just send someone to call a psychologist? A psychologist?! For the devil's sake, why did he do that? Oliva has never liked to express his feelings that have nothing to do with Maria, he has always been a "reserved" man in that aspect, since from a very young age he had been taught that a man should not open up and less talk about how he feels, he should be the pillar of the house (in this case Maria) and show that as a pillar,  He is able to protect and manifest trust in all his loved ones.

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A few days after Maria had given herself some time to herself, she did not want Oliva to enter her room every day, so she strongly requested that he leave or spend less time with her. Oliva had claimed to himself that this estrangement between them was his fault, so, unfortunately, he urgently needed the arrival of that psychologist to fix himself.

When the policeman confirmed the arrival of the psychologist in a few hours, Oliva was impatient.

Hours later, Oliva had received the news that the psychologist was already inside the prison. This would be the first and only time he would go to a psychologist, he was so anxious for it to be over!

Knock knock. Oliva knocked on the door, he heard he could come in, opened the door politely and sat down quickly.

"Mmh, well, let's get this over with quickly, please."

"Hey! We haven't even started and you want to leave... First tell me your name "

"My name is Oliva Biscuit, I'm a 37-year-old adult, I'm Cuban, but all my life I've been in the United States and well, I think that's all I have to say... "

"Nice to meet you, Oliva. Let me introduce myself, my name is Nitsu, I'm 32 years old, I'm Japanese and from this moment on I'll be your psychologist. Well, tell me, why did you decide to call a psychologist?"

"I don't even know why I did it. With that said, Oliva took a cigarette out of his pocket to light it. "

"You must know, for some reason you did."

"Could we move on to the question?"

"Well, if you wish..." Nitsu and Oliva were like that for a long time, at least Oliva now answered the questions, but only in monosyllables, so Nitsu asked him the first question again.

"Well, Oliva, in the end you didn't answer the first question... Why did you decide to call a psychologist?" With all the answers you've made, I've come to deduce that you didn't want this session.

"No "

"So?" Did you force yourself to come? Oliva didn't answer anything, he just kept his head down.

"Why did you do it?" Is there anything that makes you uncomfortable? If you want, you can tell me who or what it is.

"I-" Oliva was going to answer, but he was dry, he didn't want to mention Maria, she wasn't his problem, it was him. Why mention her when she has nothing to do with his banalities and stupidities that he thinks?

Nitsu got up from his seat, approached Oliva to grab his shoulder and say: "I know it's hard to open up to people you don't know, it was for me too, let me help you, my purpose is not to change you, but for you to reflect for yourself and better of that." You know, I'm amazed how it is that a very polite man is in this prison, although hey, you live better than me, I was better prepared as a bodybuilder than to spend 5 years cracking my skull! 

"Well, then, to be a real man, you have to be polite, it doesn't matter if you are strong, weak, rich or poor, manners make a man and even more so if it is a question of being with a lady. �� Nitsu had an idea, at the time Oliva spoke about that topic of chivalry, his features had completely changed, now he was no longer anxious to finish speaking, but he was too euphoric, so Nitsu decided that from now on they would talk about that, chivalry and the ideology that Oliva had regarding that.

"Tell me, Oliva, what do you think about chivalry?"

"Ha! It's good for you to ask me, this is a serious topic... Well, as I told you, manners make a real man, the truth is that a real man knows how to deal with ladies, but unfortunately I don't know how to do that...

"Why do you say that?"

"Can we pass the question?"

Nitsu knew that this was an urgent issue to be addressed, but more important were Oliva's feelings, so he stopped asking and continued with the conversation.

After finishing the session Nitsu recommended that they now have 2 sessions for 2 months, which Oliva did not like very much, but what he did love was that he was able to talk a little about his chivalry. Every day the other prisoners and policemen only praised him for the strong muscles he showed and the fear he imposed, now you could say he got a new friend.

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The sessions between Nitsu and Oliva were becoming more entertaining for Biscuit, it seemed that every day he was opening up more, although there was something missing, only that Nitsu still couldn't find... Until now.

"Oliva you are so amazing, I love your way of thinking!" I never thought that a patient can also help their psychologist, well unfortunately this will be our last session I hope you were able to find yourself, it was a pleasure of mine to be your psychologist, I never met a man as elegant as you.

 "It was also a pleasure and thank you very much for the compliment. The two shook hands like friends

"You know? You are someone to be admired... I don't know how you do it, I've never been able to be like you

"Why do you say that?"

"It's a very long anecdote..." Exhalo "It all started when I was little, I was like a... five or seven years old? I don't remember very well. My father had thoughts just like you, only he was too extreme. Since there were only two men in my family, my father told me that as a man, I didn't have to show my feelings, because that makes me weaker, I broke my bones trying not to cry, because according to my father that made me more "effeminate", every time I was growing up, I always kept everything to myself, and that was what affected me as a person...

"Why?"

"It was because of the pressure to comply with certain gender roles or stereotypes, which have a significant impact on mental and emotional health. It took me a long time to get out of that thought, but when I fully understood it, it was that strength is not in repressing emotions, but in acknowledging and addressing them in a healthy way".. These words touched Oliva's heart. Nitsu was right. All these years, he has been repressing his true self, so much so as to warp it into someone so strong with a stone shell.

 "Do you know anything, Nitsu?" Now that I think about it, you and I are not as different as I used to think, we both live in a macho environment, where we were not allowed to be ourselves, I have always avoided being vulnerable to someone and even more so if it is a woman... Because, tell me, who in this world would love a weeping man? The truth is-

Oliva didn't finish speaking as Nitsu hugged him so tightly, he was so warm and comfortable that there were no words to express it... It was as beautiful as that feeling of feeling at home

The dark-haired man felt something inside him, something that, never experienced before, is akin to tranquility

Maybe it's...

Peace. 

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From that day on everything changed, Oliva went to visit him more often and vice versa with Nitsu, they were more than friends, maybe like brothers? I don't know, nor did they know this feeling, they just knew that they longed for each other more now.

Sessions became meetings, meetings became outings, and outings became appointments.

They had planned to meet one day outside the jail and Biscuit's luxurious home.

Maria noticed Oliva was very excited. Why? What bug bit you?

"Why are you so happy, huh?" Not that it was your birthday or mine...

"This is because of a thank you, Maria, for some reason I feel freer..."

"That's good, Oliva, I'm so glad for you that you're feeling excellent..." But tell me, where will you go?

"Oh! just to go with a friend to a restaurant, no need to worry! "

"I don't worry about you, I know you'll come in one piece and if you don't, obviously your pride as a man will crumble"

Oliva remained crestfallen at the latter. For some time I didn't feel the same way about Mary, but I still saw her as someone to be admired, she was like a sister.

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After Oliva got out of jail, he made his way to a bar, where Nitsu was eagerly waiting for him, it would be the first time the two of them would drink together and better get out of jail! Maybe it's a respite for Oliva, that's what Nitsu thought when he invited him

"Hello, Oliva..." Nitsu looked at the brunette full length, he looked so good in that suit "He looks so cute like that dressed, I wish he would wear that kind of clothes more often."

"Hello, Nitsu. They both shook hands, but something Nitsu didn't notice was the fact that Oliva kept looking at his lips.

"Well, it's time to get in. Nitsu opened the door for Oliva, as if she were his lady.

The bar they had entered was a little different from the others, it was like the ones in Las Vegas, instead of waiters, there were women in "suggestive" clothes and it had a great slot machine. You could tell that the bar also had a place for couples to have fun. Neither of the two men gave importance to this, they had only planned this friendly date to chat and have fun with friends, right?

"May I take your order, gentlemen?" A beautiful young lady had approached them, she was dressed in a seductive manner. She saw Nitsu, he seemed more attractive to her than Oliva, so she stroked his hand.

"I want a free Cuba and my partner wants sake. Oliva intervened the lady's touch so that Nitsu wouldn't forget who she was going with.

"Mmmh, okay, if you need anything else just give me a call." "The young lady had been intimidated by Oliva's appearance, so she just withdrew. This situation seemed somewhat curious to Nitsu.

"Oliva, how did you know I prefer sake?" I've never told you.

"It's easy, you're Japanese, you don't have that much resistance to alcohol, plus I know you like rice cake, I've seen you eat it many times and sake has rice too.

"Good argument. "

The meeting went on normally, the lady had poured them their drinks, she still looked at Nitsu as if she wanted to eat it with her eyes, he knew about this, but he ignored any compliments.

Later, it was almost midnight, and people were arriving. It was announced that there would be a table dance show, this announcement took the conversation off the two men's mind.

"You look like you want to see those girls dance you..." Nitsu joked, however, Oliva only blushed.

"No- no! I didn't come to see those girls..." Oliva turned his face away so that Nitsu wouldn't notice the blush he was making. "I only came for you. "

Oliva's heart was pounding. Why did he feel this? Why did he do it? What was it about Nitsu in particular? "Damn, Nitsu, if you only knew how I feel now" those were the only words that crossed his mind at that moment. Fuck, seeing Nitsu flushed like that from sake and with his shirt a little uncovered made him look so handsome. How come he never noticed such a stud in front of him? Why do you think that? At this very moment, he imagined Nitsu lunging at the table to kiss him possessively. Something worse appeared at this instant... a BIG little problem that I had to solve, now.

"Ahem, Nitsu, forgive me, but I need to go to the bathroom for a moment, I think the drink hurt me."

"Don't worry Oliva, I'll be waiting for you," Nitsu said and then caressed her cheek.

Oliva quickly abandoned Nitsu to end his suffering once and for all. The moment he entered the bathroom, he locked himself in and decided to pull down his pants to see the problem they had caused him... This would have been better if the person who caused the problem fixed it.

Oliva started by pulling down his boxers, his member was throbbing like never before, he wasn't a fan of jerking off, but he was too desperate.

At first he started going slow, I imagine Nitsu sucking his cock slowly, up and down. God, he made it feel so good. Would Nitsu like slow or fast? It doesn't matter now, it was better to fantasize about it.

Elsewhere, Nitsu sat waiting for Oliva eagerly. Why will it take so long? Is he fucking a girl he met? That made Nitsu insecure, he was afraid that he would be left standing up for a woman. "Maybe a woman satisfies him better sexually or romantically than I do... Wait, why am I thinking about that?" Nitsu blushed, she had never imagined him and a man together, but, Oliva, he changes everything.

"What's a handsome man like you doing, alone?" Did they leave you standing, my love? The young lady who had had her eye on him had now approached him.

"Ah?" No, not at all, I'm just waiting for a friend...

"Well, I don't think that little friend of yours will come, maybe he already has his girl riding him, mmhh, you need one too, don't you think?"

"Excuse me!? Please, I ask you to stay away from me

"Is it a shame that a good man like you can't get someone to fuck tonight?" You know what? You better come with me and take that little face off, be serious.

The girl grabbed his hand and ran him to a giant inflatable bed, which was not in a room, but a place for the public to enjoy.

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Oliva began to let his fantasies run wild as he moved his hips, he imagined Nitsu licking the entire length of his member, until he reached his heavy balls, where he would begin to play with them. Oliva began to go faster, so much so that he stopped standing and sat down on the toilet lid. She began to imagine Nitsu with his shirt unbuttoned, his cock throbbing as he rode his beloved Oliva.

Oliva pushed like a madman, biting his lip to silence his moans and moans. He didn't want to be caught doing something so explicit... Although, well, it was a bar, here everyone could at this time.

He tried to imagine Nitsu as a woman. Would he still be with Oliva? God, just imagining Nitsu riding him as her tits moved, that turned him on more... However, it doesn't matter if it's a man or a woman, he was always going to fantasize about it

"N-Nitsu! He came with a choked cry and a soft moan. His toes curled as his seed sprouted. He never so hard in his life... "

Sweat trickled down his forehead as he tried to catch his breath. Some of his cum was dripping down to the floor... God, he was going to clean up all his mess.

The moment he finished cleaning, he washed his face and also his hands, it was time to go out renewed in search of his beloved.

What Oliva didn't expect was the fact that, at the time of leaving, Nitsu was no longer there, he quickly intuited that the girl had taken him. The best thing to do was to investigate.

The surprise was to see that Nitsu was lying on a large giant inflatable bed, where there were many people surrounding the bed, Oliva decided to enter all that crowd, at the moment visualize better, the girl from before was making very suggestive movements to Nitsu, the girl was rubbing her buttocks along with Nitsu's crotch,  that upon noticing, Nitsu was hard. How dare that one?! A random woman was seducing what is hers. Oliva noticed that Nitsu looked away, he couldn't get out of that place because he was tied to the bed. People were screaming for him to fuck him, while others were asking to be in Nitsu's place.

What generated another big problem in Oliva is that he finally realized that Nitsu was with his shirt unbuttoned, his abdomen was marked. God, Oliva wanted to bite him, Nitsu's hair was messy, and she was blushing because of the sake.

"Let go, he's not yours!"  The girl's dancing stopped and the onlookers turned their gaze to Oliva, maybe Biscuit had a big problem underneath him, but rescuing Nitsu was his priority.

"Ahh, you're his little friend, huh?" Well, you'll see that we're a little busy now... But maybe you'll join us for a threesome. With that said, the girl glanced at Nitsu out of the corner of her eye and then looked at Oliva. "My dream was always for two stallions to break two of them.

"Well, this isn't your day. Oliva pushed the girl away and untied Nitsu from the bed

"But why do they do this?" The girl looked at Nitsu confused.

"My dear, what you don't understand, is that this man is not going to give himself to you, because he is gay and I am his boyfriend" Those words left the girl stunned. For some reason Nitsu liked that...

Oliva quickly grabbed Nitsu's hand to make them run. Neither of them had realized that they were heading to one of these private rooms.

" Oliva, thank you very much... "

"Don't talk to me now, do you?"   Oliva wanted to forget what he had said, he was very embarrassed, it was inevitable to cover his blush, something that Nitsu had already noticed.

"I... Olive: What did you say at the time?... why?

"Ahh, I don't know, I just said it to leave you alone. This meeting is about us, not her.

"You... jealous?

"Isn't that obvious?"

The moment had become uncomfortable for Oliva, he didn't know what to do, he wanted to run away at that moment, but what he didn't expect was the following:

"Oliva, I don't know what to say, these feelings are so inexplicable..." Nitsu didn't finish speaking, because Oliva interrupted him

"Please don't say anything, this is all unexpected, look, we have to forget this. Oliva was so nervous that he started playing with his hands, as if he were a high school girl declaring to the boy she likes.

"It's not that, Oliva, it's just that, the feeling now, is..."

"It sucks... "

Oliva didn't finish speaking, as Nitsu kissed him, in a sweet way, as if he were saying "Idiot, I love you." The dark-haired man reciprocated the kiss, this act of love was going with more intensity, to the point of reaching the passion, so much so that the oxygen in both of them was going out. Oliva's heart was beating a thousand times an hour, when Nitsu stuck his tongue in it and Biscuit too, at that moment, the Japanese was already exhausted from lack of air, so he made a small moan, which had made Oliva hard, Nitsu felt it, he slowly lowered his hand to the brunette's crotch. She began to caress him and Oliva left the kiss to moan.

"Nitsu, enough is enough, or I won't be able to contain myself.

"Who said you should hold back?" — With that said, Nitsu bent down to where the opponent's crotch was, he began to unbutton Oliva's pants, she found his boxer shorts with a large erection that was begging for attention.

Oliva felt so shy that he covered his face with one hand, while the other stroked Nitsu's silky hair.

Nitsu massaged the still covered erection, he had always wondered... Is it true that chocolate men had a bigger one? He doesn't know yet, but he's trying to find out.

Nitsu began by pulling down Oliva's boxer shorts in seductive fashion. First, he grabbed the boxer shorts with his teeth, then he looked at Oliva, these two exchanged glances, which made Oliva more nervous, then Nitsu under the boxer shorts with his teeth and hands. Now Oliva was exposed.

"Olive... You're so beautiful, your cock is so beautiful..." Nitsu began to caress him breathlessly. and your balls are so heavy..." Nitsu squeezed Oliva's balls and then said, "I want you to give me everything of you and your cock..." Have you ever received a blowjob?

Oliva quickly shook his head.

"Well, now you're going to touch paradise itself. "

Nitsu was surprised to see Oliva's big hard member. God wanted so badly to suck him dry and him bathed in his seed. The first thing Nitsu did was unbutton his pants and pull down his boxer shorts to make the with one hand, while with the other he sucked Oliva.

First, Nitsu began to play with Oliva's cock in his hand and brush his balls against him. Oliva bit his lip so as not to let out any moaning, which Nitsu did not like, he wanted to hear the moans and gasps of his beloved, so he squeezed his wingspan tighter. Oliva understood what Nitsu wanted to do... Nitsu wanted to give Oliva an unforgettable night.

After some time he massaged Oliva with his hand. Nitsu got bored, so he lowered his hand and pulled the veiny, upright cock into his mouth.

"God, Nitsu... "

Nitsu began licking his glans, Oliva wanted to enjoy him more, so he began to move his hips to fake penetrations, so much so that at the second penetration Nitsu choked on the thick cock. This caused Nitsu to subconsciously cry. Oliva noticed this, so he was alarmed.

 "Are you okay?" Tell me if something happens to stop... Mmhh" Oliva's words were cut short as Nitsu shoved a large portion of his penis into his mouth and began sucking it in a delicious way for the brunette, causing Oliva to move his hips as if he was asking for more.

Nitsu shoved it all the way in, sucking and biting it with such euphoria as Oliva moved more and more. A few minutes had passed and Nitsu had an idea, first, he took the big and erect cock out of his mouth, Oliva had felt empty at the moment he stopped feeling Nitsu's lips.

"Maybe I'm not a woman, but I want to satisfy you with my whole body..." With that said, Nitsu took off his shirt, exposing his tiddies. Nitsu brought his pecs closer to the cock, so much so that they brushed, at that precise moment Nitsu was moving up and down, causing the cock to move as well. As Nitsu's tiddies were not as big as a woman's, with one hand he covered the cock making it tighter, his movements began to become more erratic and every time the member got closer to him, Nitsu eagerly licked the glans.

"I think I'm going to—" 

"Me too... That said, Oliva was the first to empty all the thick cum he had, this cum fell between Nitsu's tiddies and all over his face. While Nitsu emptied, staining Oliva's sagging pants.

Both were exhausted, Oliva fell to the ground, while Nitsu fell on top of him. They wanted to spend a night of passion, but they also wanted to make love to each other cloyingly. In the end, they both fell asleep for all the wild night they had.

The next morning, Nitsu was the first to wake up, he realized that they were both in bed and not on the floor.

"Good morning... "

"Oliva, Why are we in bed?"

"Oh, I carried you, you looked so tired. "

"I understand..."

 "Nitsu, I feel like we have to forget this, I don't want our relationship to change forever..." I do love you, but I don't want you to be prejudiced against me.

"Don't say that, Oliva, I'm feeling feelings for you too, I love you and I know I will until the end of my days." Oliva hadn't resisted kissing him tenderly.

"I love you, Nitsu, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you..." You are so perfect for me and as I am for you... Please be mine...  I've wanted to tell you this for a long time: Can we be a couple? "

"Yes, please!"

.

.

.

After that day, both men started dating in secret, neither of them didn't want to be judged just for the fact of being in a gay relationship.

Oliva gave him a steady job in prison as a psychologist and gave him a small room to live in. Now the two of them saw each other more often, Oliva booked many appointments for the psychologist, most of the time it was to talk about his day, but a few other times, they were to have sex, Oliva loved to fuck him with his psychologist coat, that made him look sexier. On the other hand, those numerous visits made some people think that he had problems with Maria or maybe he was tired of being the strongest, well, who knows?

The things on Oliva's part, is that now he was at a rock and a hard place, he loved his boyfriend, but he was also in a multi-year relationship with a strong woman, he didn't know how to tell Maria, he didn't want her to be sad, so he stopped spending a lot of time with her,  those everyday meetings, now they were just Inter daily. Maria was surprised by this, but she didn't think much of it, as she now felt a little more free.

" Patient 21018, forward."

The patient came in and quickly sat down. He and Nitsu had a normal conversation, but the patient came with a bigger question.

"A question... Why is Mr. Unchained always with you?" Does he have serious problems? A few times I've passed by I've heard some screams, I think they were from him.

 Nitsu was getting nervous, he didn't know what to say but the patient quickly answered his question.

"Don't worry! I know what's going on here, don't worry, I won't tell anyone

"Huh?" What do you mean? Nitsu was beyond scared.

"That Mr. Unchained has problems with his girlfriend... You know?" It's hard to be a good boyfriend in this prison, besides, the two of them have been together for years, probably the love is gone and they only put up with each other because of the love they both feel, isn't it? 

"What?" Nitsu was speechless. "Does he has a girlfriend? Why? "

"I don't understand what you mean, man, you're the psychologist, you literally have the background of all of us, you could have easily figured it out on your first day.

Nitsu didn't hear anything he said, he just heard his heart beating, he was angry, he felt used, he longed to hit him now. He quickly left the room and went to Mary's room

"Mary... Can I come in? — The aforementioned heard a slightly nervous voice coming from outside, it was Oliva. How long ago was he so nervous? Maria let him in and was even more surprised to see Oliva well dressed and with a bouquet of roses.

"Maria, I, I have something to tell you..." Honestly, I'm afraid you'll hate me for this, it's better late than never, isn't it? Look, what's happening now is that"  Oliva kept his head down "I don't anymore... "

The door opened loudly, it was Nitsu. He couldn't believe what he was seeing: her boyfriend along with a bouquet of roses that were meant for her.

"What does this mean? Why did you lie to me!? "

"Oliva, he's your psychologist, isn't he?" What are you doing here?

"That's what I wanted to tell you, Maria"

"What did you want to tell me?" Oliva was about to speak trying to calm Nitsu down, but he interrupted resentfully.

"He wanted to tell you that he is cheating on me and I was a very idiot, I didn't realize that I was messing with someone with an established relationship. He's a liar, he just wanted me as his plaything

"Oliva... Is that true?"

"No! I didn't use it at all, I love it... I... Forgive me"

"How could you do this to me?" We were together for 7 years, I trusted you Why are men liars? Maria was devastated, so much so that she began to cry, not because of the loss of her love, but because of the years she lost.

 "I don't want to be with you, Oliva, I don't know how I accepted you as my partner..." Nitsu wasn't crying, he wanted to hit him now, but he knew that none of his blows would hurt him, no matter how hard Nitsu was he wouldn't be able to scratch him, so he wanted to leave the room to a place where he could empty all his resentment,  However, Oliba didn't want him to leave, Nitsu was his world, that's why he grabbed his hand to stop him, but when he looked into Nitsu's eyes he only saw disappointment.

"Get away from me!" You've deceived me, I don't know why I believed you.

"Listen to me, Nitsu, I was an idiot not to tell you anything, but I can make it clear..."

"Clarify what!?" That I'm the other? This was all a lie, you just called me so you can fix your problems with your girlfriend!

"Maybe if you calm down..." Oliva tries to reassure him by grabbing him by the shoulder.

"Let go of me, dammit! You only brought misfortune into my life — Nitsu couldn't take it anymore and slapped him, Oliva didn't answer, he just bowed his head...

Now Nitsu didn't know where to go, so he involuntarily locked himself in the room along with Maria. Oliva knew that he had behaved like a son of a bitch, so he left the place, looking for someone who could make him think.

"Your name is Nitsu, isn't it?" He turned to see Maria sobbing along with a rag.

"Yes, my name is Nitsu and an apology for having invaded your relationship, if I had known before that Oliva had a beautiful girlfriend, I would never try to get into her relationship, sorry for what I have done, maybe a pardon or sorry is not much, but it is the least I can do now for you" That said,  Nitsu bowed.

"Don't worry, this isn't your mistake, it's that damn bastard's mistake... In addition... "

"What's more?"

"It's my fault, too!"  Maria began to cry worse, Nitsu felt great empathy for her so he hugged her.

"Excuse me... But I don't understand what you mean. "

.

.

.

Oliva was running to where? He didn't even know, he just knew he needed to talk about this with someone... With whom? Ah! With Inmate 21018! Maybe he could help you.

Oliva was so desperate that he smashed down the jail door in one fell swoop, to see inmate 21018 and 22067 talking.

"Mr. Unchained" Replied on 21018

"Guevaru," Oliva replied.

Inmate 22067 named Baki was so confused about what was going on. Now?

"Guevaru, I need to talk to you"

"Huh? Why is that?"

"That doesn't matter to you, just follow me," Oliva and Jun withdrew from the place, leaving Baki more confused.

Now that he was in a more comfortable place, Oliva was able to tell Jun about the big trouble he made...

"A question... Is Nitsu a man?"

"Yes"

"So you're gay?"

"Yes, I say No! Stop asking those things and I'm not interested in you being homophobic, I just want you to help me... "

 "Talk"

"I tried it and it didn't help!"

"You only did it when the bomb went off, didn't you?" Obviously you have to bide your time to speak, clearly you don't have to justify yourself, that would be the stupidest thing someone like you would do... Well, I think that would be my only advice.

"Can I ask you one more favor?"

"What?"

"Can I stay in your cell today?"

"Yes, but don't sleep with me!"

"Thank you very much, Guevaru! " Oliva couldn't hold back the joy that hugged Jun, he was going to wait until the next day to talk to the two of them.

"Let go of me, I don't want to become gay like you"

"I thought pirates were gay."

"Gay? Never Bisexual? Perhaps" With that said, they both withdrew, and Oliva was taken into the cell.

Meanwhile in Maria's room, she and Nitsu formed a quick bond of friendship and occasionally teased Oliva.

"You know, sometimes Oliva was too stupid with me, that bored me."

"He never went overboard with me, only sometimes he would come to visit me just to fuck.

"Ah... Speaking of which, how does it feel to fuck a man? Well, I've done it too, but maybe for you it was different

"I suppose it's normal?" I don't know, it's just that I've never fucked a woman

"Are you gay?"

"Not at all! I've had more girlfriends than boyfriends, unfortunately I've never been able to fuck one

 "It must be unfortunate that a man as polite as you should not have done it"

"Meh, I don't care that much"

.

.

.

The next morning Oliva said goodbye to Jun, Baki and the other inmates who lived in the jail, it was very uncomfortable to sleep among so many men.

Oliva knocked on the door of Maria's room, he was a little nervous about what will happen. Nitsu was the one who opened it, he looked at him, he was about to close the door until Oliva said "I want to speak please, if you want later you can make me, but first let me speak" These words moved Nitsu, maybe he hates Oliva, but to his misfortune he still loved him.

"Nitsu, who is it?" Maria said, turning to look.

"Mary, it's...

"Get out of here! Neither of us needs you," Maria replied violently.

"Maria, let me speak first, I have no justification for this, if I have something to say to you..." He sighs deeply.

"It's my fault, too..." Maria interrupted Oliva

"Oh? What do you mean, Maria? None of this is your fault!"

"Oliva, let Maria explain everything to you..."

"It's been a long time now, I've had internal problems with myself, when I asked you not to come to my room to visit me sometimes, I started to think about myself, I've reflected on my life and everything I've been through. On the other hand, you didn't get as close to me anymore, for some reason that made me feel more... Liberated, like I wasn't suffocated with love, you know I never put up with the cheesy and cloying, yet I loved you and endured you for almost 7 years. I've been reflecting a lot on ourselves and my own feelings, and I think it's only fair to share with you what I've been experiencing. It's not easy to admit, but I feel like there's been a shift in my emotions and I no longer feel the same way I did at the beginning of our relationship.

"How long have you felt this way, Maria?"

"Unfortunately it's been almost a year now, sorry for making you live in a lie, I know that if I had told you before you would be in deplorable situations, besides, I'm very sorry for having behaved like a jealous person, I only did it so that you wouldn't suspect anything about me. But now, I feel at ease, I know you're in good hands" Look at Nitsu "I don't have a place here anymore, so I've decided to leave"

"What, where are you going?!" Oliva was totally surprised.

"She told me that she is going to her native country, Canada, with an old friend of hers... If I remember, her name is Diane Neil, isn't she?

"Yes, she's older than me, but our friendship still prevails.

Oliva and Maria were on good terms, and he helped her pack her things. That same day, Maria left for Ottawa and obviously Oliva made a VIP reservation for her as a form of apology and thanks.

However, now he had to fix the problems with someone important...

"Nitsu…"

"Oliva, I don't know what to tell you, I want to forgive you..." But something tells me no.

"Nitsu, I just want to fix things with you, you're the most important thing to me," Oliva reached out to hug him, but Nitsu was still distant.

"Oliva, first, let me think about it, yes?"

"Okay, I'll wait anything for you

And so it was that hours, days and weeks passed and Nitsu did not speak to him, Oliva knew that he had to give him his time, he was patient, he would know that one day he would speak to him. Everything was normal until that day.

Oliva was calm changing, until only his boxer shorts remained, which had the texture of leopard, he began to pose in the mirror, he looked like a child with his favorite outfit. Everything was going well, until he heard someone knock on the door. Oliva only replied "Pass"

 "Oliva, I want to talk to you-" Nitsu couldn't finish, because he saw Oliva's half-naked body. God, he had already forgotten how handsome he was.

 "Yes?" Oliva knew very well that he was craving it, so he decided to be more of a son of a bitch and get closer to him so that his bare chest rubs against Nitsu

"This will be very short, but I have thought about everything and I want to leave the past behind, Maria already did it and I must do it too, I don't want to live resentful" Nitsu who was determined to apologize to her did not let herself be carried away by the seduction of her beloved. "I still fucking love you, I haven't been able to get you out of my mind during this time" With that, Nitsu hugged his beloved and Oliva pulled him closer to kiss him. This kiss was more intense, it was a combination of emotions, they were both desperate for love, they didn't want foreplay,

Oliva carried Nitsu, while he took off all his psychologist clothes

"Nitsu, don't take off your robe, I want to fuck you with that on" With that said, Oliva left him on the bed while he slowly pulled down his leopard-textured boxers. Nitsu licked his lips at the sight of the big cock standing upright.

Oliva was also more successful when he saw Nitsu's cock standing upright, it was his turn to return the favor.

Oliva threw himself on the bed as if he were a wolf that was going to eat its prey and began to eat the necessary cock. Nitsu started to let out moans, he didn't like to do that, but from the side Oliva looked like a hungry dog, such was the craving of both of them, that Nitsu cummed in Oliva's mouth. The brunette didn't want to waste any of the cum spilling, so he made sure to drink the entire delightful orgasm, being careful not to waste anything.

 "God, Oliva, where did you learn to eat me that way?"

 "I learned it the hard way" Oliva didn't notice, but a few drops of cum slid all over his chest that made Nitsu hard again. This time, Oliva would get straight to the point.

 That was so straightforward that Nitsu felt it hard, so he just wanted to obey her.

Nitsu got on all fours and Oliva had spanked him in the process.

  "Don't be so me, okay? Because if I don't- Ah, holy shit!" Nitsu didn't have a chance to speak, as Oliva had shoved it into him, it felt so painful, yet pleasurable at the same time. Oliva didn't make a move, just waiting for Nitsu to get used to his thickness. When Nitsu felt more comfortable, he gave him a signal for Oliva to move

  "You tell me if it hurts, okay? I don't want to hurt you." These were the last words Nitsu could clearly hear from Oliva. He began to move his hips in a romantic and slow way, putting it all in and then taking it out. it was so strong that Nitsu had to bite the pillow

 "God, Oliva, you're a dream, I love how you move if you keep going like this, I won't be able to contain myself"

"for me, Nitsu, for daddy" After a few more thrusts. Oliva was also about to inside her beloved. "I can't contain myself anymore, Oliva..."

"then" Oliva and Nitsu cummed at the same time, Nitsu's essence falling all over his abdomen and on a part of the bed, while Oliva cummed all over inside Nitsu, causing him to scream so much to the point of biting his lip.

After the moment of passion that they both had, Oliva got together with Nitsu, he was very exhausted, it had been a long time since he had sex and even less that they put it in, but now the only thing he can do is hug Oliva and give each other short kisses.

"I love you, Oliva"

 "And I love you, my little pookie"

"Hey! I'm not small, you only beat me by about four centimeters."

"Nitsu..."

"What?"

"Shut up and kiss me"

That said, Oliva stole a kiss from Nitsu and vice versa, they loved each other so much, they were perfect for each other…

[kingwu]

nasturtium:   describe your muse’s relationship with their birthplace, or homeland.

♛ || Botanical Headcanons

It took me a bit to answer this because I haven't watched atla in over 9 years and I'm rewatching now and am finally at the BSS episodes. i typed that a bit ago and now i just finished all of atla lol

Obviously, Wu is native to the Earth Kingdom as he's a part of the Earth Kingdom's Royal lineage with his family hailing from the capital city of Ba Sing Se.

He was slated to become the next Earth King after Hou-Ting as the only direct heir to the throne (given that Hou-Ting was his great aunt, his grandparent's sister — to which we can assume that his grandparent was one of Kuei's children along side Hou-Ting).

All his life, he's known Ba Sing Se's walls to be in tact: the Outer wall, the Inner wall that splits the city from the Agrarian zone, the wall between the Lower and Middle Rings, and the wall between the Middle and Upper Rings. Obviously, he was living in the lap of luxury in the Upper Ring due to his familial status and possible destiny to ascend to the throne once it was his time.

To be quite honest, even though I don't think it was ever a thought in Wu's mind, I'm sure Hou-Ting was trying to be Earth Queen as long as possible by herself (which can pair as another reason as to why she didn't have an heir herself), so I don't think that Wu actually grew up on the palace grounds, but definitely stayed in the Upper Ring most of his life. He was very ignorant of the state of the Lower Ring, let alone the whole 55 states of the Earth Kingdom itself.

Also, since I doubt he was thinking Hou-Ting was going to be kicking the bucket any time soon, he decided to move to Republic City while she was still alive to take classes at Republic City University. Unfortunately, she was assassinated while he was still in school. As Kuvira took the mantle of looking over the Earth Kingdom States (to eventually become the Earth Empire of course), Wu continued his studies in Republic City and eventually graduated and was very ready to resume living the privileged life as a proper royal once he was on the throne. One would think that after being in more of a melting pot of a culture like Republic City, he would be more worldly and concerned about issues, but alas lol. Of course that changed once Kuvira usurped him during his coronation.

Through surviving the siege of the Earth Kingdom and learning of the damage that was done to it under the Earth Empire as well as the attack on Republic City, he became more empathetic toward the Earth Kingdom's citizens. With his experience of Republic City's democracy in action, he wants that future for his Kingdom; he definitely harbors more of a sense of duty now than before he was first going to be coronated.

However, he's still learning of the concerns of its citizens, like the still present poverty and bandits in the smaller villages — as well as the tension that exists between the Lower and Middle Rings of Ba Sing Se now that the wall between them was brought down due to Ghazan after the assassination of the Earth King. He understands that democracy isn't the immediate need for all its citizens, but it's still his overall goal he wants to strive for. (Though, unfortunately he has doubts it'll happen during his lifetime :') )

[sleekervae]

Past Lives [1.7]

Masterlist

A/N: If I told you what podcast I was listening to while I was writing this, some of y'all would be giving me harsh 👀. Also, if context is a little skewed, go back and reread parts 13 up to here because I did make some edits and updates. Anyway, thanks again for reading, and don't forget to like, comment, and reblog!

Warnings: heavy smut, more bashing of The Idol, some angst and mostly misunderstandings.

--

There were so many things Austin and Jade had chosen not to say.

He was upset because Jade had gone on a date. Yes, it was ridiculous, and very selfish, be he couldn't help it.

She still feared Austin finding someone better — more understanding, unproblematic, empathetic.

He was elated that she wanted to hide in his bed and stay there, possibly forever, possibly with him.

She loved sleeping next to him.

As much as Jade love sleeping over, she found herself enjoying waking up at there that much more. Instead of the blare of her alarm clock or the incessant barking of the neighbour's dog, she woke up to the quiet sounds of a suburban neighbourhood and the soft snores leaving Austin's lips. Instead of the blistering sun pouring through her window, she felt the gentle breeze of a ceiling fan keeping her cool. Instead of feeling every ounce of the department store blue and white duvet she'd bough, she barely felt the weight of the cream coloured quilt that covered Austin's plush bed. Instead of feeling alone in the sea of pillows decorating her bed, she felt surrounded by cozy and warmth, with Austin's arms wrapped around her waist.

Jade had always been a morning person, even against her will. Weekends and days off, sleeping in was near impossible. Her body naturally forced her awake. She'd always used that time to catch up on news and messages she might’ve missed, scroll through social media with dull disinterest, force herself up to work out, or lay alone with her thoughts eating her up from the inside out.

Rarely enough though, Austin woke up before she did.

Mornings like this, the ones where he woke with a warmth blossoming in his chest and a smile on his lips, were a quiet favourite.

He was elated to find her still asleep beside him, face pressed into the pillow and her chest rising and falling. When he looked over, took in the sight of her buried beneath the covers with her eyes shut and her fingers curled around the edge of her pillow, he couldn’t help but smile. She looked so calm, so soft and gentle, without the weight of the world on her shoulders and he couldn’t help himself as he reached out to gently brush his fingers down her spine.

She stirred quietly, a noise of dissatisfaction leaving her lips at being woken up, he whispered an apology before he spoke, “How’re you feeling this morning?”

“Tired,” she grumble into the pillow, the events of last night rushed her like an eighteen-wheeler, her voice muffled by the fabric, “ticked off, but I'm okay,” she pried her eyes open, blinking sleep out to focus on him. He looked so soft in the mornings, "Thanks for letting me stay,"

Austin hummed his acknowledgement, nudging the sheet down just enough to catch sight of his robe wrapped around her, not tied anymore, “Think nothing of it, you're always welcome,” he whispered, shifting a little closer to brush his fingers over her cheek, “You want some coffee?”

She shook her head, pouting, “Don’t leave,” she whispered, shifting onto her side and placed Austin's arm over her waist, “Can we just stay for a little bit?”

Austin knew the type of mood she was in, knew how needy and clingy she could be. He shuffled closer, held her fast to him, “No problem,” he assured her, "Did you sleep well?"

“Mhm,” she hummed against his skin, her face buried in the crook of his neck, “You're really warm. But not uncomfortably, you're perfect. I like it,”

She could feel the vibrations of his laughter and it made her own lips quirk into a smile.

"Good," he shivered as her breath fanned over his neck, could feel her smile against his collarbone. He adjusted so he was level with her, kissed her sweetly. She came alive beneath him, her already warm skin electrified as she wrapped her arms around his neck. 

His kiss soon moved from her lips to her neck, and then back to her chest. His lust for her was always insatiable, always on the hunt for his next fix of her like she did of him.

Jade didn't say a word, satisfaction bubbling in her gut as she felt him against her hip. Her slim fingers slipped across the exposed skin, her nails skittered down his chest, smiling like the devil when she felt his stomach flex as her fingers neared his hipbone.

“You okay?” she hummed, trying to bite back her smugness as she pulled away and watched his face, her fingers slipped a little lower. She brushed his thigh, fingers a barely-there pressure against his skin, before she ghosted a finger over the head of his hardening cock.

"Yeah," Austin groaned, voice gravelly in his throat, he pulled his hand from her hip and guided it between her thighs. His fingers slipped between his robe and swiped through her folds, gathering the slick that had accumulated on his fingers, and he swallowed harshly as his thumb found her clit, "I'm just great. You wanna' play a little, rockstar?" he breathed into her ear, his thumb a barely-there pressure on her clit.

Jade nodded, shifting into him, quietly asking for more friction. Her hand slipped into his briefs, found his cock, stroked him slowly, steady, shuddering as he exhaled into her ear, lips pecking across her jaw.

Austin knew just how much she wanted him, he could feel it as his fingers brush through her and could see her expression overcome with bliss. He wanted to be inside her already, wanted to bury himself to the hilt and let her have what she wanted, but he didn't want to rush.

She had her own ideas, though. His eyes snapped open when he felt her push him over onto his back, her thin panties dampening as she sat in his lap. The robe fell open around her shoulders, she was disheveled and soft and so fucking sexy. His eyebrows quirked upward as her fingers tucked themselves beneath the waistband of his briefs, using her other hand to circle her palm over the slightly raised head between his thighs.

"What are you doing, naughty girl?" his voice came out in a heady whisper.

Her lip was caught between her teeth, eyes locked with his as she brought his cock out of his tight underwear, his stare faltering slightly when she swiped the pad of her thumb over his leaking slit.

"Showing gratitude,"

Bringing her thumb down to trace along the vein running down his cock, Jade smirked knowingly, she became excited as his breath hitched, chest rising and falling faster and faster the more she teased him. Whimpering, Austin watched her hand squeeze around his base, sliding up and down, her hold snug. His jaw fell open as she rubbed the velvet skin of his balls with her fingertips.

"Oh -- fuck, Jade,"

Austin huffed out a breath, head lolling to the side as he scrunched his eyes closed. Her hand worked quicker on him, urging him closer and closer to his release. She watched him open his mouth slightly, eyebrows furrowing as he let out a puff of air while trying to conceal his noises.

“Feel good?” she asked, tilting her head as she stayed in his lap. He licked his lips, eyes hooded as they slowly open before fluttering back closed as she pressed her thumb harder against his tip, “Come on, answer me,”

He groaned, biting his lower lip so hard it started to become sore. He could feel the throb quiver through his skin, he let out a soft whimper that was pure music to her ears. He knew she'd heard him judging by the smirk on her face as she worked her hand faster. He slightly bucked his hips up, gasping when she flicked her wrist and added a heavy pressure to his tip, turning him into putty in her hand.

“I asked you a question,” she leaned over, whispering in his ear as she spoke.

He gasps, “yes, fuck yes. feels so .. so good,” his voice became deeper, trailing away into nothing but deep moans. He looked so fucking pretty like that, too. His hair was becoming messy, sticking to his forehead as sweat covered him all over. He was glistening, beautiful under the soft morning glow peaking through the blinds.

She tilted her head, looking at his lips as he licked them, “You like my hand on your cock, right Austin?” he stuttered, swore he’d never felt so damn good before. He wasn’t used to her being so dominate but he was losing his mind, unable to stop the bucking of his hips as he basically fucked into her hand.

She cocked an eyebrow, “Wanna fuck my hand, hm? Come on, baby,” she kissed his neck, trailing more down to his collarbone, utilizing all restraint she had not to leave a mark, “Fuck my hand, fuck me like you’re fucking my pussy,”

He gasped, one hand tugged desperately at the sheets below him, the other gripped at her hip as she worked him, "Fuck! i’m so fucking close, Jade,” his voice became a thin whisper, nevertheless sending a spark to her abdomen and she clenched her thighs together. Austin was too focused on the intense pleasure to even notice.

She tightened her grip on his cock, “Come on, you can come, Austin. You can fuck me after you do,”

A long drawn out moan and the F-word left his lips as he released all over himself, his hips stuttering and slowing down. She gripped him tightly, watching as his cum flowed over her hand, too. She smiled to herself, seeing his head thrown back and his eyes clenched tightly. She leaned in for a kiss, he happily obliged her, one of his hands reached for the back of her neck and held her to him. His breathing settled, her giggles jingled in his ear, she loved seeing him like this.

"Are you okay?" she asked as he came down, reaching for the tissues on the nightstand.

His large hand wound up her shoulder, over her neck and to her nape, squeezing gently. It didn't matter whether he was lethargically fucked out, Austin wanted so much more to return the favour. Her soaking panties against his thigh only drove him further.

He nodded, "Get down," and she obliged him, rolling onto her back, her chest soaring. Everything about him was intoxicating as their lips crashed; she could smell his after shave, fresh detergent, it was all so refreshing and bright. The grasp on her waist became stronger, more needy, and she ran her hands along his slim figure in response. Curiously, he had curves of his own; though they were subtle, balanced artfully with soft muscle. It surprised Jade how naturally Austin responded to the slightest movements.

Though time seemed to have stopped altogether, she was growing steadily more aware of the wetness spreading between her legs. She tried to squeeze her thighs a little, her hips shifted as her clit tingled in anticipation… and of course the movement wasn’t missed. Austin's breath caught in his throat. He pecked her cheek, her neck, moving down to ravage her collarbone and chest. Holding her close, his second hard on was unmistakable as it pressed into her hip. His heartbeat skipped as her body responds lewdly to his growing erection.

“A-ah… Austin…” she pleaded as he found her nipples, giving both an equally soft, stimulating tongue lashing. His left hand ran under the hem of the robe, she could feel his fingers trail over her hip, slipping under the thin elastic of her panties.

Austin's mouth was at her ear, her skin prickled deliciously.

“You make me so crazy,” he whined, though she heard the amusement in his voice. She pressed her forehead to his, his hot breath tickling her nose as he exhaled.

Finally, achingly slowly, his fingers slipped under the lace and Jade felt him tug them down her thighs. It didn't take long for him to find her swollen nub, taking to it delicately, rolling it between two fingers. The difference in his touch made her squirm at the pressure, and though he was being gentle, the sensation was unusually strong. She peeked under heavy lids, exhilaration rushing through her at his carnal expression, he watched how he undid her. His dark eyes met her, unapologetic, a moan slipped out from her lips. She felt a slight pinch as he released her clit, his fingers sliding down…

Austin knew what touches could invoke her writhing, her little mewls and whimpers as he played with her pussy. He loved watching her come apart, like opening a delicate package lest he ruin the surprise. She met his gaze, almost challenging in her stare, pushed her hips into his fingers. He explored her, stroking and caressing her slit, soaking his fingers in her honey.

“So wet already… you’re incredible…”  he breathed. He paused at her entrance, pressing his fingertips over her for a brief second before slipping them into her with ease. They curled deep into her body, his long digits hooking her and pressing the spot that always seem to electrify whenever he touched her. Jade gasped, her eyes snapping shut as he mind zeroed in on the tingles, the repeated strokes of pleasure as his fingers bent and curled. Austin murmured something but the words didn’t register in the heat of the moment. She sighed as he stretched her walls, her lips were caught between her teeth.

His hand ran along her thigh and he lifted it up, gently pushing it back as he held her in place. Her fingernails dug into his back, her pussy angled perfectly against his waiting fingers. Again and again he thrusted them into her, quickly, hitting that same sweet spot. Goosebumps erupted across her skin as the pressure built, her moans becoming louder, bordering on desperation. But he never relented,  driving his fingers into her, skillfully, mercilessly. She couldn't locate the words to tell him how incredible it felt to be fucked like this, how she would beg him to never stop.

"Austin -- fuck! Please!" she noticed his mouth always parted, except for when she made a sound. Then he'd caught his lip between his teeth, determined to ruin her no matter what. It was too much. Her body felt hot white, all thought obliterated, words nonexistent as she stayed suspended in that limbo of extreme bliss. Austin's fingers curled inside her, pressing hard into her g-spot as her pussy contracted hard around him. The pleasure never subsided, her thighs suddenly felt cold and wet.

The realization hit her, then.

“Oh my God,” she gaped, mortified, realizing that Austin had witnessed the full brunt of what he could do to her. She was always curious to know what it was like, never having been able to squirt before, or else she could have warned him. He was a little taken aback at first, mouth agape, and Jade worried for a split second that he was disgusted. But his lips turned up into a huge toothy smile as she collapsed back against the bedspread, her body felt like it was on fire.

“Wow… that was incredible,” he said, a little pride in his voice. Jade was at a loss; on the one hand she had finally experienced a squirt, on the other... she was a little self conscious. She covered her face with her hands, though Austin took them away, kissing her knuckles, then leaning down to kiss the bridge of her nose, her eyelids and forehead and her body sunk in relief.

“I didn’t expect…I didn’t know…” she stuttered, feeling rather undone,“I've never done that before...”

"Never? That was your first time?" He seemed a little taken aback at her confession, surprised as he would've thought of all people, Jade of course would have experienced this. But she shook her head. He was the first.

His dimples reappeared, she noticed him swallow hard as his eyes traveled down her legs to the panties around her ankles. A curious grin played across his lips, and he continued to trace his fingers along her hipbone.

She reached between them, feeling his hard cock through his knock into her wrist as she traced around his V. The noise he let out was something between a moan and a choke, and she knew that he needed more. Purposefully, she slipped her fingers over his head, just rubbing softly, never letting on enough pressure even for a lick of relief.

“I won’t last long,” he warned.

“I know,” she replied. She had been the same, needing that fast relief -- and she knew Austin needed it too, “Anyway you want me,”

She tasted his gratitude on his lips, the kiss sloppy and heavy, but so erotic as he licked into her mouth. She loved to tease him, skimming her fingertips delicately, closer to where he needed her.

“Wait..” he muttered, drawing himself up, “... Turn around,” 

She obliged him happily, flattening her front to the warm bedspread. He peeled the robe off of her, finally having her open for him, glorious. Her entire backside was exposed, so was the sweat film, and she felt so vulnerably naked, nevertheless tingling with anticipation. He couldn't contain his excitement, running his hand up her leg and cupped his hand over her slick. She could feel her nipples growing hard against the sheets, enjoying the heat of his palm and the chill of the air on her back. She flinched when he leaned over her, covering her effectively to plant a kiss between her shoulder blades. She pushed her backside against him, and he guided himself into her with ease. 

Jade was still sensitive from her own orgasm and she moaned loudly as he filled her. Almost leisurely, Austin slid into her as he enjoyed the feeling of her cunt around him. Her insides quivered, and after a few long, slow movements, he grabbed firmly at her hips and started pounding into her. The snap of his hips against her ass were sharp and severe. Austin pulled out nearly the whole way before slamming back into her again, making Jade gasp from the sharp intensity. She could hear his breath grow shorter, almost whining, and he slammed into her hard. There was a pause, and a loud moan, and she knew he had reached his own high. He remained inside her for a few moments as he savoured her. Utterly satisfied, he swept her hair to the side to watch her, enamoured with her bliss.

He kept up his pace as long as he needed to, sending her toppling over the edge, her eyes rolling back in her head as he helped her ride out her high, soothing kisses dotted along your shoulder and up her neck.

“You feel so good, sweet girl,” 

Wearily, she murmured in agreement, feeling thoroughly fucked. As he pulled out of her slowly, he pressed his fingers against her entrance to stop his cum from leaking out. “I don’t wanna make a mess,” he whispered softly, reaching to grab the tissues off of the nightstand. Always with great care,  he cleaned her up, allowing her time to come down out of her headspace.

Austin wrapped the used tissues into fresh, balled them off to the side and let her turn over. He laughed as Jade clung to him, burying her face in the crook of his shoulder, twitching softly when his thigh bumped her pussy. He pressed a kiss to her temple.

They had stayed in bed for another hour. The time struck ten forty-five when Austin decided they had to get up and at least be a little productive. Jade conceded, still keeping his robe wrapped around her as he made them a pot of coffee in the kitchen. She kept staring at her phone, there were miscellaneous texts from Elsie, some from Florence, a plethora of texts and calls from Chris, and one message from Abel asking her to call him. Jade supposed he'd heard about the "date", and quite frankly she didn't want to deal with it right now, but then again she knew that pinch of anxiety in her gut would never go away until she did.

Austin stayed in the kitchen while she excused herself to another room. He could hear bits and parts of her conversation, her voice would raise when she was upset, trying to make her point without yelling. He was worried about her, he wanted her to yell and cuss and lose her mind on Abel; but then again he understood why she couldn't, lest she may give him more ammunition for his show.

He opted to make some fried eggs and toast, internally scolding himself for not having much in his fridge aside from the bare necessities. Jade had returned by the time he'd plated up breakfast, her expression gave way to how pissed off she was.

"So?" Austin sighed, bringing the plates to his table, "Do I dare ask how that went?"

Jade rolled her eyes, shuffling over to sit across from him. The eggs and toast smelled fantastic, and she was endeared to see he'd put out the peanut butter and jam on the table, that being said, she wasn't feeling very hungry.

"Abel agreed he wouldn't use any of the notes that Chris collected on me. He couldn't promise he'd do the same with the other girls in his book," she shook her head, "I told him 'you're playing with fire if you do this wrong' 'you're not an actor, you're not a screenwriter'. And he's just like 'no, no! trust me, it'll be great! we're gonna' be exposing the evil underbelly of Hollywood' and yada-fucking-yada,"

Austin smiled sympathetically, "I didn't realize you were a part of the evil underbelly of Hollywood," he mused, slicing into his eggs.

"End of the day, we all are. But that's not the point," Jade replied, "It's one thing to make a show exposing corporate bullshit, it's another to be exposing your friends' bullshit without documented consent. He's going to get himself in trouble if he's not careful,"

She started eating, but Austin was still curious, "What's this show even about?" he asked.

"A young and troubled pop star has a nervous breakdown and she starts fucking a cult leader who's posing as a music mogul and -- I don't even know," she said, "They got an old friend of yours -- Lily-Rose is on board,"

"Shit," he hummed, "If he did it right, it could be interesting," she grumbled back, "But obviously, you're not convinced,"

"I think he's still riding off of his Blinding Lights fame and he's going to crash and burn if he's not careful," she huffed back.

"Probably. You should be safe, though," he noted, "Because as far as I know, you're not fucking a cult leader,"

A smirk graced her lips, "No, but I am fucking Elvis," she mused, garnering a laugh out of him, "And my party trick is keeping that shit to myself,"

"You've done a good job, too," he simpered.

"We both have," she replied, "Less scandals we make, less headlines we create, the less panicked phone calls we get from our agents,"

"Was that a haiku?" he teased, to which she scoffed back, smiling, "You think... and if I can be serious for a moment -- you think we'll get tired of all this sneaking around one day?"

Jade glanced up with hooded eyes, pausing just before she could take a bite of her toast. A flicker of panic struck up in her chest, "... I mean -- maybe? Are you tired of it?" she asked tentatively.

"No," he shook his head quickly, trying to piece together his next words, "But -- obviously this can't be just for fun in the long run. I mean, you were on a date last night,"

Jade bit the inside of her lip, what little hunger she had subsiding as she sat back in her chair. He was making a fair point, her date was an attempt to distract her from the very thing they were doing now. Yes, they had talked about their boundaries and the limitations of their situationship; Jade had to be pragmatic that they couldn't keep this up forever. And if he was growing tired of sneaking around, or perhaps he had his eye on someone else, then who was she to stand in his way? She knew she couldn't have him, she wouldn't allow herself to even entertain the idea because she knew she was no good for him.

She tried to keep her emotions at bay, especially from her face as she spoke, "Yeah, but... you saw how that went. I mean -- whenever you're ready to stop this, we can. Just say the word,"

Austin nearly jumped out of his seat, "No, no, I don't wanna' -- I don't wanna' stop this. I'm not even thinking about that," he was being honest; Jade had become his favourite person, beyond her body and their sexcapades.

"Then, what's your point?" she asked, trying to keep her knee from shaking under the table.

Austin opened his mouth, silence all encompassing as he tried to force himself to say it, confess to her how he'd been feeling. He was coming from the perspective of if maybe, just maybe, she would give him a chance, they could try to be together as an actual couple. He wanted her so badly, he wanted to reach across this table and kiss her and keep her with him for all eternity. That being said, the signals she was giving him were telling him something else.

Instead, he put on a brave smile, "Maybe next time you go on a date, you'll stay away from the screenwriters?"

Jade exhaled slowly, anger bubbling up in her gut then, but she understood where he was coming from. Time and time again it seemed she had the worst choice in men; the only person who wasn't a total disaster choice was him. Even then, if she had pursued Austin, who was to say he wouldn't turn out the same as all the others?

"Yeah," she forced a chuckle, "Not a bad idea,"