#I choose it because it's an earthy color and way back when when I made him I wanted him to be a forest elf guy

[starrysharks]

alright, here it is: ZENO'S COLOR GUIDE 3.0 !

here, i'll have three "chapters" regarding color:

CH1: how i color in illustrations

CH2: color and character design (in zeno's case)

CH3: how zeno makes his colors cooler

CH1: HOW I COLOR IN ILLUSTRATIONS

it must be noted that, as of lately, i heavily use halftones in my art and the way i use them for gradients effects my color choices. of course you don't need to use halftones if you don't want to, as it's just my personal choice, but anything regarding halftones here could (probably) also apply to regular gradients!

when choosing colors in an illustration, i usually have three things in mind: mood, character, and contrast. we'll be using "gloomy bunny naptime" as an example here.

MOOD: what's the vibe of the piece? for example, here in "gloomy bunny naptime", wanted a mellow, sleepy vibe, so purples and pinks seemed like the best choice. these colors also have a dreamy effect due to being common in real-life early mornings/summer nights - basically, i tend to use associative colors in illustrations.

i usually only use a pallete of 3-7 colors, though of course more characters calls for more colors. for multi-character pieces, i would actually make a "rainbow" of colors based on the mood of the piece - essentially, a bank of colors to use for your colorful casts based on the actual rainbow. you can alter this based on the saturation levels you want! hope that makes sense. i'm not the best at this though, so i would heavily recommend looking for guides from artists who are more skilled in that department.

CHARACTER: velvet is the focus of the piece, and as a character her palette is made up of many purples and pinks. of course, it's easier because she and ribbon both have similar designs, but i would still recommend using colors based on/complementary to the focus character's pallete, though this is a rule that can and should be broken if needed. gradients can be used to provide a smooth transition from color-to-color and add depth to the piece, as well as showcase velvet's pallete. when making any gradient, you probably want to have a vibrant middle color. this is difficult to achieve in most art programs, so i'd do it like this:

you can use gradients in lots of cool ways to make stuff pop! (i think this collage shows i use too much purple and pink though.)

CONTRAST: the context of the piece also aids the color through contrast. (that's a lot of Cs!)- we see that velvet is just waking up, and the light from her switch is glowing brightly. i wanted to convey something like her switch suddenly turning on in the middle of the night, waking her up - so the console emits "light" in the form of illuminating the contrasting color of pink against the purples. it might seem specific to this piece, but what i'm trying to say is that contrasting colors can lead the eye to the focal point of the piece, that being velvet herself. because a great deal of the rest of the piece is dark, we look at the contrasting switch screen - the brightest thing in frame - and our eyes move around and up to take in the focal point character. at least that's how i wanted it to be ;w; i guess you could convey it as something like this?

CH2: COLOR AND CHARACTER DESIGN (IN ZENO'S CASE)

this is where i start to get annoying, so stand back! when deciding on colors for a cast of characters, there are many factors: time period, variety, personality, and more that i can't think of.

TIME PERIOD: this one is simple. for example, a futuristic time period (such as that in x-calibur) calls for colder colors, such as greens and blues. for characters involved in futuristic professions such as space exploration, this works incredibly well. for modern time periods, less focus can be on colors and more on the shapes of the clothes, but this is not a shapes tutorial! i don't have any ancient times oc stories, but i'd probably use earthy and warm tones.

VARIETY: this is also rather simple. i try to be aware of the palletes that i used, and the similarities they might have with other characters. i try to use similar colors for characters who belong to certain organisations or have a uniform, but of course, it's not like catholic school students adhere their entire look to their uniform, so this is a rule that can be broken yet again. art is all about learning things and breaking them, remember that!!!

color can also be used for symbolism. my absolute fav example for this is vivica and octavia - the amount of red in their designs is supposed to represent the amount of freedom/passion/anger/confidence they have or are allowed to express under their different circumstances. as vivica belongs to a strict organisation, she has far less red in her design, showing her emotions are stifled - meanwhile octavia has it as her main complementary color because of her freedom to express her emotions, though those emotions may be destructive because of her circumstances.

PERSONALITY: what colors are associated with your character's personality? i actually usually refer to magical girl groups to see what's commonly associated with different colors. here's the main trend:

red: hot-headed, passionate, firey

orange/yellow: bright, happy-go-lucky, sunshine personality

green: wise, mellow, kind

blue: serene, graceful, elegant

purple: magical, regal, fancy

pink: usually the main character (though this because magical girl anime tends to be marketed towards young girls), sweet, relatable, determined

of course these are only stereotypes from one genre of anime, and different colors have tons of different meanings. color theory is the best way to learn this! these colors can also express different moods, which ties into ch1. i myself constantly ignore these rules - v-con, a bombastic hyper DJ, is purple (though he does have yellow accents) for example. basically, i just take them as a general rule and try to have them in mind while drawing.

CH3: HOW ZENO MAKES HIS COLORS COOLER

this might be the most important part of this guide. once again, there are a few things to consider here: filters, hue, overlays, and more!

FILTERS: for ibispaint, you can use an adjustment layer on your whole piece to use a filter. i usually only use brightness/contrast here - upping the brightness (or darkening it based on the mood of the piece) and upping the contrast. this helps to better express values and intensify the colors if that's what you want. i often use it in all my pieces to some extent.

hue/saturation/lightness is also helpful in moderation. you can alter the hue - though it usually only helps if you bring it back or forward by just a few points, or the entire pallete will change. saturation is what it sounds like, and slightly over/desaturating the piece can help with atmosphere. lightness is what it sounds like - lightens the colors in the piece. i don't use it at all.

posterize and sharpen mask are some that i've used recently. posterize can add some crazy effects to your art, but i'd probably need to edit it slightly after using it because it can mess with certain colors.

HUE: it's a layer type that can change the overall hue of the piece. i usually use it at a low percentage for atmosphere. kind of like a gradient map but nothing like it? idk

and OVERLAYS: i just use a very saturated blue/purple color over the entire piece at a very low percentage, around 5-10%. it can wash out the piece at too high a percentage.

and that's basically it! sorry it kind of derailed at the end i spent like 2 hours on this and got super tired. goodnight i'm going to sleep please also look at other artists etc etc. bye.

[m00nt4r0t]

✮ what aesthetic would best describe you? ✮

pile one, two, or three?

topic suggested by laistulip! thank you!!! masterlist ⭑ personal readings ⭑ patreon

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ ❀ pile one

[the sun reversed, ace of cups reversed, ten of cups upright] heyyy to those of you who chose pile one. so i feel as though the aesthetic that would best describe you is an aesthetic that is very bright, but also very sad? like, an image with bright-colored hearts but with a bitter saying on it, if that makes any sense. you guys seem to have an optimistic view of life, but that does not take away from the sadness you've gone through and possibly still are going through at this current moment. you could've had a new connection and/or opportunity that made you really happy, but it didn't go the way you thought it would which could've left you feeling melancholy, but you still keep in mind that rejection is redirection and you're happy to see what's next for you! you guys may be the type the joke about what you've gone through to try to uplift your mood, or when people ask you how you feel, you are honest but not in a way that you want them to worry about you too much. i feel like those of you who are reading this learned how to get through tough times and keep your head above the water. like, instead of drowning, you choose to float and let the water take you where it may. you give me very much "crying in the club" type of vibes lol. click here to see the aesthetic that i have in mind for pile one!

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ ❀ pile two

[ace of wands reversed, the world upright, five of cups upright] hiii pile two. right off the bat i'm seeing that the aesthetic that would best fit those who chose pile two would be an aesthetic that consists of all the elements (earth, fire, water, air) and a seductress aesthetic, as well. like, you guys could be very in tune and loving of mother earth, but you guys are also very attractive and may not be shy when it comes to showing off your features and basking in your beauty. you guys could definitely resonate with siren energy, but also fairy energy?? i'm getting so many different things for this pile lol. i feel like you do not have just one aesthetic that could describe you; you have many different sides to your energy that could resonate with so many different things, pile two. but i'm for sure seeing nature as in trees, rivers, multicolored plants/flowers, wild animals and insects like lizards and snakes and even "fictional" creatures such as dragons and mermaids. you guys have very powerful energy and i wouldn't be surprised if your chart was pretty well-balanced with all the elements. click here to see the aesthetic that i have in mind for pile two!

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ ❀ pile three

[three of wands, five of wands, the emperor] what's up, pile three? so, the aesthetic that would best describe you is someone in charge who is also pretty laid back? lol i know that's not an aesthetic but i'm sure that some visuals could come from that. you are someone who is very fiery and structured when it comes to the things you take seriously, and you have a lot of passion what you truly care about. you could possibly be a perfectionist, too. the colors green and red could fit your energy very well since you are both structured but also fiery. i'm getting kind of an earthy vibe from this pile, but like, on fire. like a contained fire in the wilderness. you know how people go camping and they gather a bundle of sticks so they can make a campfire? yeah, that's more like what i'm getting from this pile. you guys try not to dwell in your emotions too much since there's literally no signs of water in these cards that i'm using. you guys could also be stoners??? lol. obviously not for all of you. anywho, click here to see the aesthetic that i have in mind for pile three!

thank you for reading and interacting! <3 i am most likely going to do another part to this topic soon because there are so many of you and so many aesthetics out there!

masterlist ⭑ personal readings ⭑ patreon

[valkblue]

For Altair: 73/82/95/110/129/134/135/168

Awww, and for Lito too! 🥰 Thank you!! 💕

73. Has your character been to/ ever explored any ruins?

He did! Thanks to Kass mostly, who actually made him look at them differently and now, he kinda likes them better than just old crumbled stones with history he didn't know about.

82. Describe your character’s handwriting.

Very neat, but not always. In his notebook, when he can sit at a table and lay his thoughts properly, then he'll scratch that paper with nicely shaped and regular letters but, on the road or in a rush? He won't even make the effort to use a pen and he'll choose a pencil to switfly scribble some notes and sketch this or that… and even he will have some trouble rereading himself afterwards! 😅

95. If given total rule over a country, would your character step aside to turn it into a democracy?

I think he would, yes. Because he'd be lazy about it… He knows how to rule and be a leader for armies and people because of his family military background and heritage but he isn't too much into doing that himself.

110. What color is associated with your character?

A combination of brown, beige and green. Very earthy tones. I think even his family heraldry has green on it.

129. Has your character ever had to compromise on what they thought was right in order to maintain peace?

Not yet...? 👀😅

134. Has your character ever been alone in a hostile environment and been forced to travel a long way to reach a safety that wasn’t for sure?

Ahahahahahhhhhheeeelllppppp hhiiiimmmm....... Yes? He had to. It's a very long story (one of the bests I played, thank you 💕) in which he woke up in the middle of nowhere, badly badly hurt and alone— not his dog, nor even his friends were anywhere to be seen!! Not even his recollection of the night before!! And he add to walk his way back to a town he barely remembered, almost dying ten times in the process, working his memory ruthlessly to piece things together and save his missing friends!! It was intense.

135. Would  your character be content to go back to a normal and quiet life after going on an adventure?

He would, honestly. He's not regretting his decision to join that band of 'mercenaries' because he discovers too much about the world and everything is much more inspiring than he could have hoped for, but it's also very hard on him. But he realises that it's even harder on the people they meet and help along the way, so he hardly ever complains about a thing…

168: Is your characters easily embarrassed?

Maybe a little, yes. When it's about himself, I mean. He's far more lenient about other people's behavior and attitude in general.

[acepalindrome]

I’ve spent much of 2021 thus far playing Stardew Valley in the hopes of distracting myself from the horrors of reality, and I keep meaning to make a list of mods I recommend! Because I am running a truly embarrassing number of mods and there are some really great ones that really improve the gameplay or add fun content or just make everything look really pretty! So without further ado, here are some of my favorite mods:

- Lookup Anything: This is probably my favorite mod. It basically eliminates the need to have to keep consulting the Stardew Valley wiki while you play. The title says it all: this mod lets you look up anything. Need to know what’s a good present for Shane? You can pull up a list of all his loved and liked gifts, with items you have on hand highlighted for ease, plus his birthday, how many hearts he has with you and how many points you need to get to the next heart. Need to know if you should hoard that pine sap or sell it? You can pull up all the uses for it, items that can be crafted with it, anyone who might like it, community center bundles it’s used for, and how much you make by selling. How many days until your melons are ready to harvest? What items can drop from that stone in the mines? What are all the items you can make with the furnace? It’s such a fantastically handy mod and I refuse to play without it!

- NPC Map Locations: One of the most frustrating things in the game is trying to remember everyone’s schedule and then not being able to find someone to give them a birthday present or turn in a quest item. This mod shows exactly where everyone is on your map and solves that problem for good!

- Automate: This mod automatically pulls items from nearby chests into machines, so you don’t have to keep running back and forth to your furnace to pick up the finished metal bars and toss more ore in there...it just spits the finished item back into the nearby chest, pulls in whatever available items you’ve got in the chest and starts running again without you having to do a thing! Just be careful of where you place your chests and machines or you might end up processing items you didn’t want to. Luckily, you can set individual chests to not have items pulled from them.

- Fishing Made Easy Suite: I suck at fishing. I almost never bother with fishing if I don’t have a mod to make it bearable. I like this one because it has different levels of easy-ness, so you can make fishing just 25% easier, or 50%, or 75%, or 99%! And there are some other fun perks too. You want to catch all fish regardless of weather or season? Want to catch legendary fish multiple times? Want to catch prismatic shards? Go nuts.

- Stardew Valley Expanded: This mod is absurdly huge and adds SO MUCH CONTENT. New areas! New characters! New events! I was a little hesitant to start it just because I knew there was so much to the mod and was a little concerned of how well it would mesh with the rest of the game, but the characters and story and style fit in perfectly with the vanilla content. I could almost forget Andy and Sophia weren’t there all along! The purpose of the mod was to make the game feel fresh and new for people who had already played the game and that’s exactly what it does. I love it.

- Artisan Valley/Project Populate JsonAssets/Starbrew Valley: I’m lumping these together but this is a collection of mods that add a TON of new items, crops, trees, flowers, machines and recipes to the game. You don’t have to download them all! You can pick and choose the ones you want, or download the PPJA content pack to get the bulk of these mods all in one go! I personally really love Artisan Valley because it lets me make floral candles and soaps. And an espresso machine so I can make fancy coffee. And Starbrew Valley so there’s actually a fun variety of alcohol in the game.

I’m putting the rest under a cut because this is getting too long.

- Chests Anywhere: Lets you access all of your chests from the menu! You can add some limitations, like only being able to access chests in the same location you’re in, but I’m dumb and constantly forget that I was supposed to bring a present for a villager with me today, or that I wanted to upgrade one of my tools but left all my metal bars at home. So instead of having to run all the way back to my farm, I can just open my menu and switch through the chests until I find the item I need! Labeling the chests also makes this a lot easier for organization.

- Seasonal Villager Outfits: Finally, the villagers have more than one set of clothes! This mod gives them different outfits in different seasons, different weather and special outfits for holidays! It’s cute and really improves the immersion to see the villagers wearing tshirts in the summer and bundling up in the winter, and dressing up for special events! Some characters will change their hairstyle too, which I love.

- Canon-Friendly Dialogue Expansion: Gives all characters more stuff to say so they won’t just repeat the same lines over and over! Also gives them varied dialogue for festivals starting in year 2, so they don’t say the same thing every year at the Egg Festival or Spirit’s Eve.

- Immersive Elliott: Add more dialogue! Lots more dialogue! I downloaded the Elliott version of this mod because that’s who I plan to marry but I recommend looking up dialogue mods for whoever your favorite characters are (I think there’s one for almost all the marriageable candidates.) You’ll probably be chatting a lot with whoever you’re trying to woo and it’s nice to get lots of new lines!

- Stardew Foliage Redone: There are tons of mods that change the colors and style of trees and buildings and stuff but this one is my favorite. It’s very soft and earthy and pretty without being overkill.

- The Love of Cooking: Actually makes cooking fun in Stardew Valley! It adds a cooking skill, an upgradable cooking tool that lets you cook with more ingredients (at the start you can only make one ingredient dishes), a cooking community center bundle, star levels to cooked items, an animation when you cook...cooking was very bland in the base game, and this mod really spruces the whole system up.

- Medieval Buildings/Medieval craftables: Again, there are so many mods that change up the look of your farm buildings and stuff but these are really pretty and cool and absolutely my style. There’s a mod to make all the town buildings have this style too, but I kind of like keeping the town normal and just living on my mysterious and beautiful farm apart from the rest of the world. My sprinklers are magic moss covered rocks now!

- Elle’s Dog/Cat/Horse/Barn/Coop/etc animals: Super cute animal skins. They look so huggable and soft. Also one of the dog options looks like my real life dog and that’s very important to me.

- Adopt ‘n’ Skin: Pairs well with the mods above, this mod lets you have multiple dogs/cats/horses and lets you use as many different skins as you like. I’ve got four cows and they’ve all got different patterns and colors. I love it. Also Marnie starts taking in stray animals and you can adopt them from her, which is a really cute way of letting you have more pets.

- Seasonal Garden Farmhouse: Its a pinch overkill especially in the early game, but I really like this farmhouse layout. It gives you a small kitchen from the start, a bathroom you can use to restore stamina, big open windows that change with the seasons and time of day...it’s a luxury house and it’s very nice to live in!

- Industrial Kitchen and Interior/Industrial Furniture/Rustic Country Town Interiors: These mods give the interiors and furniture a more rustic style, and the last one changes the town interiors to match. There are many furniture/interior mods, so if this style doesn’t do it for you, check out some of the others! There are lots of very pretty mods!

And I’m going to stop there but that’s only the tip of the iceberg and I highly recommend looking around NexusMods or ModDrop and seeing what kind of stuff is available!

[felswritingfire]

It was so hard to choose between God AU and Mafia AU. Im really interested to see how the others are in the Mafia AU. How about Riddle X Reader?? is the reader a baker? chef? since I know for vil, the reader ran a boutique. (low key want to ask about all the dorm leaders but do not want to overwhelm you)

👀👀👀👀

I'm just sayin'

(Also thank you for being so sweet??? You don't have to worry about overwhelming me btw, I literally take things at my own pace on here, lord knows my old time followers know that (love you all btw!) djdkd)

Also I hope you don't mind the weird scenario/HC hybrid, I just couldn't get a coherent thought put together because I got too excited jsdflkjs

***

“Trey,” Riddle suddenly said after he took a sip of the new tea that they had gotten: the mellow taste of apples, the sharp crack of cinnamon that followed soon after, and the sweetness of vanilla soothing the spice. Simple perfection. 

“Yes?” Trey glances at his Don, the man in the middle of cutting tarts for the both of them. 

“Where did you get this from?” He picks up his tea, staring down into the golden brew before taking another sip. 

Trey’s eyes crinkle at the edges as he smiles at him. “It’s good isn’t it? The person I got it from runs a very… special café.”

Riddle raises his eyebrow. “Special, how?”

A chuckle leaves the older man as he places the slice in front of him. “I’ll leave that up to your imagination, Don.”

Riddle pouted taking the plate. “That’s not an answer.”

Trey takes a sip of his tea, his gold eyes glinting with mischief. “I’m sending the newbies to go and pick some more up this afternoon if you’d like to accompany them?”

“Really?” Riddle’s eyes shine with excitement and curiosity. 

Trey nodded. 

When I say Ace and Deuce almost shit themselves upon hearing the Don Riddle Rosehearts was tagging along with them- they really did. Ace had to swallow down the scream of frustration because now he wasn’t going to be able to screw around at Prickle’s Café like he usually did. Deuce was already trying to gain composure and prove himself to the Don, psyching himself up to mentally battle with what was held inside the café.

Riddle was very confused with how they were acting as they made their way to the warm colored building: from him having to yell at them to slow down their walk and not rush to them both taking deep breaths a few times before opening the doors- it threw him for a loop (he was also rather surprised about just how close to their club you were; just a mere three blocks).

But when he stepped in, everything suddenly fell into place. 

It was a warm place, the interior a palette of warm browns, tans, and earthy greens; long, winding, clear tubes ran in between the tables and the floor, low enough that someone would trip on them and cages were built into the walls. All of them holding beady eyed Hedgehogs. 

He had to force down the squeal that threatened to escape him, his ears turning pink at the sheer effort of it (though Ace and Deuce were both busy fawning over the hedgehogs, who seemed to remember them, and scurried to meet them).

A bump at his boot startled Riddle and he looked down to see a little hedgehog attached to a set of wheels bumping around his feet. He couldn’t fight the smile that spread across his face at the little thing looking up at him with its nose wiggling at him. 

“Ah! Prickle! There you are!” Came a voice and he looked up to see you in a brown apron, a cute cartoon hedgehog peeking from the bottom of it. You’re quick to rush over and pick up the little guy and hold him, brushing through his quills with a toothbrush. “They run so fast, right? I barely looked away for a second when he bolted-” you look up from Prickle to look at the guest- “he must’ve heard you guys come in.”

Riddle’s mouth opens and closes like a fish out of water for a few moments before Ace slides in with a smug smile. “Yo, (Y/N).”

“We’re here for that order.” Deuce adds, a hedgehog in his hands, this one missing a front leg and an eye yet it's still crawling all over his large hands. 

“Oh! The apple cinnamon one, right? Let me go grab that for you.”

“I- ah- wh- what is this place?” Riddle wants to slap himself for stuttering but he can’t help the heat that flushes his cheeks a light pink as you turn back to him. 

“It’s a hedgehog café, boss.” Ace supplies, a smug smile on his face.

“A hedgehog sanctuary, honestly.” You add. “All these little guys are either from bad homes or just people who couldn’t take care of them any more. People can buy them and the supplies here if they get particularly attached to one. I just happen to sell teas and treats here too.”

He nods dumbly. So, this is what Trey meant by special.

You managed to get his name out of him after you got the order for them, and also convinced the three of them to try some of your baked goods as you had some new things you were trying out. 

Our boy Riddle was very excited to find out that you were an excellent baker.

He was even more excited to sit with the hedgehogs and play with them, becoming rather attached to a blind one as he milled about while they ate the sample of apple crumble you put in front of them. 

After you’re first meeting, Riddle would not shut the fuck up about your café or your hedgehogs. He would swing by there every time he had time, always in a disguise as to not bring attention to himself or your café. 

(Ace gives him shit for it all the time and is almost always on cleaning duty now because of it- he’s so fucking stupid I CAN’T-)

He ends up adopting the little blind one, naming him Tart, and he follows all of your instructions about taking care of Tart to the T. It’s low key ridiculous but you appreciate that he treats Tart so well (E X T R E M E L Y W E L L- that little guy is so pampered, he has his own room that’s been modified just for him in Riddle’s house). 

Riddle does keep you in the dark about what he does for a living, Ace and Deuce have been close to letting it slip, but Trey or Cater usually stop them before they do. 

Riddle has a tendency to buy a whole bunch of new toys and beds for the hedgehogs and he’s always willing to listen to you when you talk about them. 

Warning: will get so fucking pissed about some of the stories you tell him, he’s swore that he’ll protect all these hogs if it’s the last thing he does.

Riddle finds Prickle’s Café to be a soothing balm for the type of work he does. It’s precious, really. Absolute baby about it.

[a-supernatural-writer]

Doing Their Makeup

Poly Lost Boys, Michael and Star x Gender neutral reader

Basically came up with these while I was messaging @aliypop​ . Thank you for somehow getting me to a place where I wanted to write an imagine about the lost boys, Michael and Star’s partner wanting to do their makeup. XD This is everyone x reader. 

Also this is kind of my head-canon that Michael and Star became one happy family with David, Dwayne, Paul and Marko. But Max still died cause I don’t think anyone likes him. 

Warnings?: swearing? Cursing? 

Masterlist

The second you told your partners that you wanted to do their makeup, each and everyone one of them were down with the idea, but at all different degrees of being okay with it. 

Paul was the first one to practically bounce his way over to you. He already needed your help with doing his simple eyeliner on a daily basis so you paying attention to his face for more than a few minutes made him a very happy camper. 

Paul LOVES it. I mean it. Give him the whole glam rock look! Glitter? Yes! Winged eyeliner? Yes! Bitch, make him look like a disco ball and he will be very happy. He loves glitter more than any of them and will directly ask you to use as much as you wanted. 

When doing his makeup, he always smiles, loving that your attention was solely on him. Though you have to scold him not to smile because the crinkle in his eyes will totally mess up whatever eyeshadow or eyeliner look you're trying to accomplish. He complies… for about two minutes. 

This boy will have you straddling him as you work, his hands on your hips, rubbing little circles into your skin softly. He practically becomes putty in your hands as you gently touch his face. He finds it absolutely adorable that you're being so delicate with him. 

When you're done, he shows it off to everyone around the cave. His babe of a partner went all out and he will brag that his makeup is going to be better than everyone else's once you are done. 

Second would be Marko. Seeing how good you were with Paul, he was excited to see what kind of look you would give him. He wasn’t too much into glitter like his fellow blonde but he was okay if you wanted to use it. Makeup to him was an artistic form of expression so he became your canvas on which to paint on. 

Seeing you figure what colors you wanted to give him and what tools you wanted to use would make him smile with how serious you were taking this task. He would ask you as you worked what your ideas were and you thought looked best on him. 

Your bodies would be close, not sitting in his lap close, but your legs would be locked together as you sat on your makeshift bed. His hands fiddling with whatever piece of clothing he could get his hands on. It was very hard not to touch you and he wanted you to fulfill your wish for the night. 

By the end of it, Marko’s makeup look would have half of the amount of glitter that Paul had. It would be very colorful, almost reflecting the multiple colors of his jacket. Marko was a little easier compared to the others because of those colors, you had more options to work with. 

Marko reacted like Paul, showing it off to everyone. Soon him and Paul compared their looks and pointed out what they liked about them. 

Dwayne was third. He wasn’t overly into it, but he loves seeing you happy and if doing his makeup was going to put a smile on your face, then he was happy to do it. He did have a few things to say though, he was okay with a little glitter but nowhere near Paul's and heck, maybe even half of what you did to Marko. Also, no colors that were too bright. 

From that, you only choose a few warm hues, some reds, oranges and a tiny bit of yellow. Even some earthy tones to complement his tanned skin. In a way you connected it with the jaguar on his leather jacket. 

Dwayne would have his hands placed on your thighs as you worked, saying only a few words here and there, asking simple questions if he was curious about something. If anything he was the calmest one of the bunch, not really interrupting your process. 

In a way it was nice. While you worked, you didn’t really talk, too focused on the task at hand and he thought it was cute when you would bite your lip in concentration. The silence that sometimes hung between you two was sweet, like you both were in your own little world. Minus the fact that Paul and Marko were just outside your makeshift area in the cave making noise. 

When Dwayne was done, he placed a small kiss on your lips and walked out. He didn’t really show off to the others but he couldn’t help but smirk when Paul and Marko grew silent at his new look. 

David was the fourth and probably the one that wasn’t overly crazy about it. If he was going to have glitter, it was going to be tasteful and very little of it. Dark colors only, and if you want to stick on gems, guess what, they better be little and it's gotta be sexy. Make him a sexy princely creature of the night and you are good. 

For once, he let you have control, even with his requests orders on what you can and cannot do. You went to work, both of your knees touching and you had to constantly stop him from moving, trying to smoke his cigarette. In the end, you lost against him cause if he couldn’t smoke a cigarette to distract himself from your hands being so gentle with him, they were going somewhere else and you would get nothing done. 

In between his puffs of smoke, you poured everything into his look wanting it to be perfect because you definitely wanted to do it again in the future. The only way he would let you is if you did a bang up job. 

You made his facial features sharp and his icy blue eyes seemed to pierce through your soul even more with the dark eyeshadow on his eyelids. A little bit of glitter and a few small black gemstones later, he was beautiful. Definitely different from what you were used to, but with David, he could pull off anything and he’d still look good. 

With a smirk, he thanked you for your work, which surprised you, and walked back out to the others. You chuckled when you heard Paul exclaim “Holy shit!” when he saw David. Needless to say, you did make David look like a prince of the night with your talents. 

Second to last was Star. Your beautiful girlfriend of your group of male partners entered your part of the cave, bringing some of her own collection with her. Star was probably the easiest of the group to do makeup for. She already wore red lipstick on the daily and brown toned eyeshadow to compliment her skin but she never went farther than that. 

But tonight, she would let you take it a step further. Nothing too crazy, maybe even a little more toned down than David’s. 

Star practically cuddled up to you as you worked your magic. It was a little difficult but she stayed still nonetheless. You kept her signature red lipstick, and decided to focus more on her eyes and add some stick on gems that matched the colors of her skirt. 

You added a splash of color to her eyes that went well with her usual browns, picking some of her favorite makeup items and mixing them with your own.

Of course you couldn’t help but smile when Star would giggle as the makeup brushes lightly tickled her face. You wanted to scold her for it but it was too cute so you said nothing just having to work around it. 

Just as you were finishing, your last partner, Michael walked in, watching you with curiosity and a slight twinge of interest. When you did finish, Star looked to Michael to see what he thought and happily kissed him when he said he liked it. Which in turn having you redo her lipstick one last time before she left, leaving only you and Michael. 

Michael was probably the most hesitant of the bunch. It wasn’t that he didn’t dislike makeup, he just didn’t know what the process was and never really saw much interest until you expressed how much you love doing it. 

With a little bit of encouragement, Michael sat on your bed, having you sit on his lap. Michael reminded you a little bit of Paul. He was very affectionate but was much softer compared to the blonde. 

Michael asked you the most questions as you worked. Asking what tool was used for what purpose. What colors you were using and why. Glitter? Yeah, why not? Just use it however you see fit and what you thought looked good on him. 

Overall he was excited about this. New things always intrigued him and he was willing to try something new. 

When you told him you were going to give him a more softer look, he had no quarrels with your choice. Just a tiny bit of glitter, some light colors, a sharp eyeliner that could cut someone, accentuating his cheekbones a bit, and even giving him a little bit of gradient lips, made him look even more pretty than he already was. 

You were so proud of yourself that couldn’t help but hug the poor boy. You went all out for your partners and you had a lot of fun doing it. When you let him go after hugging him, he was met by a few compliments from the others who admired his own look that seemed very different from everyone else. Which made the poor boy even more flustered. 

When all was said and done, and after doing your own makeup to your own tastes with the help of Star since, well, mirrors can’t help any of you. You all went down to the boardwalk as one big group date, showing off your talents proudly, taking any compliments, and giving you credit where credit was due. 

If anything was said negatively, especially by a group of surf nazis, guess what? After your group dinner date at the local diner, those surf nazis would be your dessert for the night. 

If that did happen, you’d be a little upset that your work was now covered in blood but they all reassured you that you could give them makeovers whenever you wanted.

[introloves]

thank you to @starrydaisy for this delicious idea <3 (sorry if it isn’t that good ;-;)

— cw; sacrilege/sacrilegious acts + corruption + heavy mention of god + mentions of guilt

your whole life had revolved around scripture, faith, and god. it was a constant loop between those core elements, it hung over your head in every waking moment. parents, fellow church members, always reminding you that, ‘god almighty is always watching.’

you hoped he wasnt. you didnt want him to see you like this, being preyed on by everything that they had told you to stay away from.

in all honesty, you had tried so hard not to fall into temptation, you had just wanted to shoo the man presumably selling unsuspecting kids that filthy worldly poison, but it was difficult when tempation itself was towering over you, ruby red eyes- the same color represented in lust itself- sweeping your body.

“hm? and who are you?” he questioned, voice heavy and dark, he stepped forward and you shuffled back, hitting the back walls of the church.

he asked, but he already knew. you were just another sweet little church girl, he’d seen you devoutly attend church almost every day of the week, turned your nose up at him everytime you’d seen him. if only you knew just how many of the people you prayed next to came to him instead of dedicating their precious lives to god.

it was late, sun had long since set, everyone had gone home for the day and now it was just you and him.

“m-me? n-nobody.” you sputtered, heart spiking as he stepped even closer.

knees that had been sunken against the church floor in prayer now buckled with fear. the man took notice, smirking at the way he could see each tremble beneath your modest skirt.

your body pulsed, blood rushing from your heart to the tips of your fingers, a singular thought crossed your mind when he lifted an arm and trapped you agasint the wall that he was looking at you in a way no man ever did.

it was predatory, animalistic, textbook definition of the carnal sin you’d read about.

“i dont think thats true, bunny.” he responded, your eyes widened at the name.

it brought a sick feeling of guilt simmering in your stomach when you realized you were aroused, you closed your eyes when it hit you just how much you wanted him to call you that again.

“oh?” he made a noise of surprise, leaning in to watch your reaction. he could see your pulse in your neck, quick and scared.

“do you like that? bunny?”

it was confusing, you weren’t supposed to be enjoying this, when did the feeling of fear turn into arousal?

was it just because you had never been this close to a man?

was it because you had never felt the heat of a man like this and with an intention of lust that rolled off of him in waves, or the way you could feel him everywhere without even touching you?

he made you feel small, maybe that name was well deserved for a meek little thing like you.

he chuckled, reveling in the way he could hear your knees snap shut.

“oh how nice, i’ve gone and made a cute little christian girl soak her panties haven’t i?”

you had never heard words like that, not fully understanding what he meant, but you knew it was filthy and disgusting. you clamped your hands over your ears, heat prickling everywhere.

“ah- ah- ah, lets not go and act shy now.” you jumped at the way his hands grabbed yours, whimpering when he swooped down and pressed you back against the dirty wall.

the feeling of him touching you ignited the singular need to have even more- it was like you were seeing for the first time. you had become keenly away of the throb between your legs, like you had come alive, a second heart beat knocking heavily.

“lets see if i was right.” he murmured, choosing to drop your hands in favor of grabbing the front of your skirt with the biggest hands you have ever seen on anyone.

you let him, staying perfectly still while he bunched it higher and higher.

you could have said no, he had looked at you, giving you many outs- giving you opportunities to stop this, but you really were weak. anyone with more faith, more dedication to god would have stopped him, you thought, but you didnt. you wanted to feel more, wanted to see what he was offering.

just like the people he sold to, he had caught you in a trap of allure, wanting to see more, wanting to see what the man with ruby eyes and red hair had to give you.

you didn’t know what to say when he finally found your underwear, unfamiliar with the wetness there- embarrassed because for a moment you had thought you had wet yourself.

his finger slid easily against the slick, puffy lips spreading so easily for him.

oh he was going to enjoy this pussy.

“fuck.” he hissed. bringing the now soaking fingers right inbetween you and him. taking time to show you, show you what a filthy man like him was doing to you.

“w-what is- i-i’m sorry.” you all but cried, and god, the indirect declaration that you had never gotten wet sent tendou spiraling. head swimming, he was so hard.

he was just going to play with you a bit, scare you off and let him continue on his dealings, but he couldnt let you go now, it wasnt every day that a sweet girl like you walked right into his web.

instead of responding, he dove back in, fingers finding your clit with ease. wondering what reaction he was going to get from you because there was no way you’d ever touched yourself. it was all so exciting to him, dirtying up a clean slate.

“ah! o-oh! what a-are you doing.” it was all babbling, unable to come to grasp at the wonderful feeling.

you had begun rocking against him, tears freely falling down your face.

“i’m fingering you.” he simply responded his own voice heavy and raspy.

“please, please. god please.” you cried when he circled the hardened bud.

he stopped at that, and you whined.

“no.” he snapped, grabbing your hip, slipping that singular finger down to sink into your pussy.

“not god. tendou. say it. say my name.” he- tendou growled with clipped words.

you swallowed hard, there were no words to form the shame you felt, but it didn’t outweigh the need to chase... chase whatever high he was bringing you.

it was all too much, his one finger felt so foreign as it prodded your virgin walls but it felt like it belonged there and you wanted more.

“tendou, oh!” you panted unabashedly into the night, the rough walls of the church dug into your back, it hurt, but with rocking hips you bucked against his working hand.

you’d never thought you could make the noises you were making, never thought that a man could touch you like this. there was tightness curling in the pit of your stomach, clenching with every drag of his fingers against your pussy.

it made you heave, made your toes curl, and finally the searing pleasure he brought you reached its peak- and it snapped when he crooked that one long finger of his up, hitting something inside you that made you arch, thighs tremble with vigor while his name played like a sweet prayer against your mouth.

just like he thought, you were already cumming.

little virgin you clamped down on just one of his fingers, gripping him tight while the growing wetness trickled out in an oozing stream.

you’d figure this is why so many walked the path without god, while cumming, screaming out his name- uncaring with who would hear, eyes blown out, body shuddering, hips thrusting against his hold- you realized that the sin of just being from flesh and blood was all worth it.

a man was the one making you feel like this, tendou was the one who brought you to tears. he made you feel closer to any deity than the dutiful praying you had partaken in all your life.

he held you when your body finally relaxed, slumping against him, he- who smelled like weed and an earthy cologne was the one who held you as your body gave out.

he praised you, telling you how good you did while also inquiring your name, asking you were you lived so he could take you home, all the while licking his finger and hand clean of your cum.

without hesitation you told him, shaking while you gripped his shirt. hoping that he truly was real and that he wouldn’t leave you slumped against the old church wall.

and he didn’t, there was still so much more to show you. the thrill of taking this fallen from grace sweet innocent little thing under his wing was much too good.

he wasn’t going to let you go, he wanted to paint your cute face in his cum, wanted to split your virgin cunt open. you were his now.

he walked you home, laughing at you when you cried about the wetness between your legs, dripping down to your ankles.

tendou chatted with you like he didnt just defile you against the church walls, you thought about how wrong the depictions of the devil and temptations were in the bible.

you simply thought that sinning shouldn’t feel this good if it was bad for you.

you knew he looked at you like you belonged to him, looked at you like he wanted to devour you, the perfect mix of fear and excitement coursed through your body because you wanted him to.

you wanted to know just what he could make you feel. everything you had ever learned, all of the punishments you’d surely get either now or in the afterlife seemed bleak in comparison to the throbbing he brought your body.

[shift-shaping]

Solas/Surana Party Banter round whatever

hello. here it is again, but different this time! SIGNIFICANTLY. there's way more and it's a little bit ~angst-y~. anyway, here's the previous version, and here's a preface to this post.

-

In case you aren't aware of what my girl's Whole Deal is, she was in love with Alistair during the Blight and he sacrificed himself, which Sucked Balls for her. She wandered around in the mountains for most of the past ten years, and now she's in the Inquisition because she doesn't know what else to do with her life.

content warnings: brief mention of colorism

Lots of banter under the cut

Solas: Surana. Now that you have joined the Inquisition, what title do you prefer to use?

Surana: What title do you use?

Solas: None. But you have earned many.

Surana: 'Warden,' I guess. I don't really care.

Solas: Not 'Hero of Ferelden?'

Surana: No. Surana is fine.

.

Solas: You dislike your title?

Surana: It is inaccurate. Alistair was the real hero, and he died fighting the archdemon --I only ever did what I had to do.

Solas: Hm.

.

Solas: You do not think yourself a hero?

Eirwen: *sighs* If a man is ordered to save a child from a burning building or else be killed himself, is he really a hero? No, he is not.

Eirwen: Had I not been made a Warden, I would have been killed or made Tranquil. I did not choose to do the right thing. I was forced to.

.

Surana: Why do you keep asking me so many questions, Solas?

Solas: You are an historical anomaly. An elven mage elevated to the status of legendary hero.

(If the Inquisitor is an elf, a mage, or both:

Eirwen: Well apparently it’s not that anomalous.

Solas: Even still.)

Solas: I have seen echoes of your victories in the Fade alongside reflections of your losses. You have overcome a great deal. Do not be so quick to dismiss your own story.

Surana: Your dreams are lying to you. That legacy is not mine to claim.

Solas: I will not try to convince you otherwise, but know this: whatever bitterness you feel towards your legacy, you will gain far more accepting it than you ever would fighting its tide.

Surana: This isn't really about me, is it?

Solas: It never is.

.

[After All New, Faded for Her]

Eirwen: I’m sorry about Wisdom, Solas.

Solas: I appreciate that. Thank you.

Eirwen: It must have had a wealth of knowledge. It is a shame to lose so much for so little.

Solas: There is a difference between wisdom and knowledge.

Eirwen: Right, yes. I remember a joke about that. Would you like to hear it?

Solas: Not particularly.

Eirwen: *clears her throat* Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing it does not belong in a fruit salad.

Solas: ...

Eirwen: Too soon, I suppose. Sorry.

.

Solas: Thank you, Surana.

Eirwen: I told you, Dorian and I aren’t fond of that particular vintage. And we thought you’d appreciate the earthy tones.

Solas: Thank you for that as well, I think, but that is not what I as referring to.

Eirwen: Oh?

Solas: Your joke. You… it was unexpected. But not bad at all.

Eirwen: Oh. Well, that’s about the least dirty joke I know. Want to hear one a drunken dwarf told me in the Deep Roads?

Solas: Another time, perhaps.

Eirwen: Ah, you wouldn’t like it anyway.

.

Solas: Surana. You said before that a man ordered to save a child from a burning building under threat of death would not be a hero.

Solas: I disagree.

Surana: Oh?

Solas: The man threatened with death may not see himself as particularly noble, but the child will always see him as their savior. Regardless of his motivations, he will always be a hero to the child he saved.

Surana: So no matter who or what made him do it, he is still a good person because another thinks him such?

Solas: I did not say that. 'Heroic' and 'good' are not necessarily the same.

.

Surana: So what is your point, then? That I should make people call me 'Hero' at Skyhold?

Solas: My point is that you should not feel guilty if they believe you to be someone you are not. You cannot control them, and attempts to the contrary will only serve to make you miserable.

Surana: Why do you care so much? Why does it matter to you how I feel about being called 'the Hero of Ferelden'?

Solas: It --doesn't. You are right, of course. And I meant no offense.

Surana: That's not-- I'm not offended, I'm curious. I want to know why it matters to you, a random wandering apostate, whether I call myself a hero or a bastard or a drunkard or nothing at all.

Solas: It is as I said: elven mages are rarely given the level of respect and admiration that you are. It is a shame you see no benefit in that.

Surana: Benefit? Like what, seeing my ears cut off in statues? My staff turned into a sword? My skin lightened in paintings and my relationships reduced to spectacle or seduction?

Surana: Maybe I am offended. I would love to be an anonymous apostate. I was, for a while, but I couldn't stop trying to live up to a version of me that doesn't exist, never has, and never will. The real hero is dead, and you have me instead.

Solas: You must let that be enough, Surana.

Surana: It isn't.

.

Surana: Solas, you have dreamt in all sorts of places, right?

Solas: Yes.

Surana: Have you ever --well, did you ever see the Battle of Denerim, in your dreams?

Solas: Not as you would remember it.

Surana: Of course not. But... I mean-- did you--

Solas: It is done, Surana. You cannot linger there.

Surana: How do I do that? How do I stop seeing it?

Solas: You do not. But instead of letting it weigh you down, let that pain be what pushes you forward. Focus on where you must be, and what you must do. You are needed here, now, exactly as you are, not as the person you were in Denerim. Whoever others think you are, you must go forward as who you know you are. If you lose sight of that, you are lost.

.

Surana: Solas, thank you.

Solas: For what?

Surana: You know full well what.

Solas: I try to help, when I can. The pain you carry is... familiar.

Surana: Familiar?

Solas: You feel guilt simply for being alive, as though self-flagellation will make you worthy of existence.

Surana: Self-flagellation? *dryly* You have a way with words, you know.

Solas: *just as dryly* You flatter me.

[If neither Solas nor Surana are romanced]

Surana: You deserve the flattery.

Solas: Is that a compliment, from the Hero of Ferelden herself?

Surana: I take it back. You're an ass and I hate you.

Solas: *chuckles*

.

[After Here Lies the Abyss]

Surana: I didn’t know you disliked the Wardens so much, Solas.

Solas: It was not worth mentioning.

Surana: Not until it became acceptable to criticize us, you mean.

Solas: What have the Wardens actually accomplished in terms of understanding the Blight? Do you honestly feel you understand it any better than you did before you became one?

Surana: Is that a serious question? Do I understand it better after witnessing its ravages than I did when I’d merely read about them in a book?

Solas: What did the Wardens teach you? What did you learn from them, about the Blight?

Surana: More than I will ever tell you.

Solas: *bitterly* Ah. Of course.

.

Surana: You have always been an apostate, have you not?

Solas: By your Chantry’s definition, I suppose.

Surana: My chantry? Am I the Divine now, too? *scoffs* Anyway, you have never spent time in a Circle.

Solas: No.

Surana: Then one thing I will tell you about the Wardens is this: there is no other path to freedom for many mages than to join them. You were not dragged from your home in chains because of what you are. You were not barred from dreaming, nor threatened with Tranquility when you failed to perform a difficult spell.

Solas: You should not have had to make that choice, Surana.

Surana: Yet I did, because it was the only one I had. And the Wardens are all the world has to counter the Blight. You can disagree from your tower in Skyhold or your hut in the woods or whatever, but we are working with what is available to us. Come up with a real solution and I will listen. But I’m uninterested in ignorant complaints from someone who was not there.

.

Surana: It’s not my Chantry.

Solas: Poor wording, on my part.

Surana: I don’t even like the Chantry.

Solas: Abelas. I meant no offense.

Surana: Yes, you did. Or you just don't care.

Solas: What would you have me say, Warden?

Surana: Nothing. Just be quiet.

.

Solas: Where was home to you, Surana? Before the Circle?

Surana: *sighs* An orphanage in Denerim’s alienage.

Solas: Really? Huh. In that case, I would have expected you to sound more like Sera.

(Sera, if present: What? You think all city elves sound the same?

Solas: You are from the same section of the same city. Why would you not have the same accent?)

Surana: I don’t sound like Sera because I was beaten in the Circle until I spoke 'properly.’ No offense to Sera, of course.

(Sera, if present: More reasons to be glad I’m not like you two.)

.

Solas: I am sorry, Surana. Living in the Circle must have been difficult, and I imagine being a Warden during the Blight was no easier.

Surana: *sighs* It’s alright. You couldn’t have known.

Solas: I should have tried. I have done you a disservice, and I hope you can forgive me.

Surana: Maybe. Possibly. Did you bring any of that wine with you?

Solas: Unfortunately not.

Surana: *playfully* Then, no.

Surana: …But please, call me Eirwen.

Solas: Eirwen. Ma nuvenin.

.

[After Surana hears Cole and Solas banter for the first time]

Surana: Oh! I think I got that one, it's --oh, wait. No, that can't be it.

Cole: You were close, though.

Solas: Nearly had it.

.

[If Eirwen is romanced by an elven Inquisitor]

Solas: *playfully* For all your talk of wanting anonymity, Eirwen, you seem incapable of avoiding spectacle.

Surana: Is this about the drunken bear? I already apologized for that.

Solas: No. You and the Inquisitor. Two of the most powerful elves in Thedas, together?

Surana: Jealous?

Solas: Not for the reason you think.

Inquisitor: How could we resist?

Surana: We are both very pretty.

OR

Inquisitor: One day we will be free of all of this. Together.

Solas: For your sakes, I hope you are right.

.

[If Solas is romanced and Eirwen's personal quest is completed]

Solas: You no longer consider yourself a Grey Warden, Eirwen?

Surana: Did the Inquisitor tell you that?

Solas: Yes. You threw your badge into the Abyss.

Surana: Bit dramatic, I suppose. I was having a moment.

Solas: Evidently.

.

Surana: It almost felt traitorous, honestly.

Solas: Why? You were forced to join the Grey Wardens, were you not?

Surana: They still saved my life.

Solas: And condemned you to an early death. They bought you time, nothing more.

Surana: But time is all any of us have, isn't it?

Solas: No. You have a name, and experience, and the influence to pull the strings behind the world.

Surana: Careful. You'll make the Inquisitor jealous.

Solas: I am not attempting to flatter you. I am only telling you what you must already know: that you are more than a Warden, and always have been.

.

Surana: Where will the two of you go, once this is over?

Inquisitor: (Somewhere quiet) A place where we can be left alone.

OR (Somewhere fun) Someplace with good wine.

OR (Home) North. Where my people are.

Solas: An appealing prospect, vhenan.

Inquisitor: What about you, Eirwen?

Surana, based on the Inquisitor's answer to the previous question: (Somewhere quiet) Somewhere without so many damn demons.

OR (Somewhere fun) I was thinking Rivain. I've heard the food is excellent.

OR (Home) The Deep Roads. Where my people are.

.

[If neither Solas nor Eirwen are romanced]

Solas: Have you ever learned any elven, Eirwen?

Surana: Unfortunately not. A few words here and there, a long time ago. It wasn’t exactly taught in the Circle.

Solas: Would you like to?

Surana: I –oh. I hadn’t –um.

Solas: *chuckles* You do not have to learn.

Surana: No! I would love to. From you, I assume?

Solas: I cannot imagine you were going to learn it from Sera.

Sera, if present: I prefer real words, thanks.

.

Solas: What elven words do you recall, from your alienage?

Surana: Ah… okay. Hahren, that’s like… elder, or leader. The tree in the middle was called the vhenadahl. Lethallan is like friend, or ally, or maybe even sister?

Solas: Do you know what vhenadahl means?

Surana: It must be something about a tree.

Solas: And where is it, in the alienage?

Surana: A central place, somewhere everyone could see it.

Solas: And what is another word for the middle of something that lovers might call each other?

Surana: …Heart?

Solas: So what do you think 'vhena’ means, if 'dahl' is tree?

Surana: Uh... heart?

Solas: Yes. But also 'home.' The vhenadahl was both the home of your people, and the heart of the alienage.

Sera, if present: Just call it what it is --a big stupid tree.

.

Surana, in elven: *haltingly, mumbling* [Her early leaf’s a flower… but] –shoot.

Solas, in elven: [But only so…?]

Surana: M- it starts with an ’m’…

Solas: Take your time.

Surana: Meh- malath?

Solas: *laughs*

Surana: Is that wrong? Shit, that must be wrong.

Solas: Not wrong, per say, but perhaps premature.

Surana: What? What did I say?

Solas: Do not concern yourself with it, lethallan.

Surana: …was it dirty?

Solas: No.

Surana: …then what was it?

Solas: Patience, Eirwen.

.

Surana: I found out what ‘ma lath’ means.

Solas: I would expect nothing less from such a gifted student.

Surana: Mhm. It’s –well. I’m glad I said it, but you were right. It was premature.

Solas: I agree. Though...

Surana: Though?

Solas: *chuckles* I think this is neither the time nor place.

Surana: What is, then?

Solas: When I have you alone, Eirwen.

Surana: *laughs awkwardly* Maker's breath...

.

Sera + Surana

(If Solas has begun "teaching Eirwen elven")

Sera: So… you and Droopy ears.

Surana: Why do you call him that?

Sera: Cause he’s all –I don’t know, sad or wha'ever.

Sera: Anyway. Teaching you 'the ways of the elves,’ is he?

Surana: It’s just not a very good nickname, frankly.

Sera: Well I don’t want to know what you call him.

Surana: Certainly not droopy.

Solas, if present: *snorts*

Sera: *laughs* Ew! Keep it to yourselves, then!

.

Solas: Eirwen, I–

Solas: I am sorry we had to cut our lessons short.

Surana: It’s… I understand. We… no, you were right.

Solas: Please, Eirwen.

Surana: Perhaps, in another life, another time, we could have–

Solas: You are a bright light in a dark world. You will always be important to me, for whatever that is worth.

.

Surana: Can I ask you a question, Solas?

Solas: Of course.

Surana: It's not about me, is it?

Solas: I--

Surana: It's about trying to fight the tide.

Solas: Eirwen...

Solas: I am so, so sorry.

Surana: Telanadas, hahren.

Solas: Ma nuvenin, vhenan.

[lightvsdark18]

Facts about Cotton Candy

I wanted to add Sheep Mc to Milady's story for fun and this is what I made.

Cotton Candy is a hell creature called a Death Screamer. There are different types of Death Screamers with different abilities. It's hard to tell which type they are from appearance alone, they have to display their ability for an individual to know the type. They can shapeshift in an animal or person, but only into that one thing unless they're the shapeshifting type like Cotton Candy.

Their true form is a twisted and distorted pile of flesh, mouths and eyes. When they're about to attack they let out a scream that could wake the dead, reason for the name. Their height could be between 6-7 foot when fully grown. Coloration can be crimson, beige, earthy or rosey pink.

The adults are known to be violent and aggressive to anyone who unfortunately crosses their path. However, they're very loyal if they take a liking to someone and would do anything for that person. If you betray them, good luck.

Since Candy is the shapeshifting type, they can transform into anything but chooses to be a foot tall pink sheep.

The story is they were wondering around with no home or family, messing around and scaring people for fun. They found their way to the Devildom and explored this new place, seeing a blonde woman walking down the street and immediately wanted to be their friend. They turned into a pink sheep and followed after the woman, sneaking into the house and just standing next to them as they spoke with a demon. Belphie noticed the pink puff ball and pointed it out to her. Milady looked down at the sheep and them rubbed their fluffy face on her leg and called her "friend." (I think the sheep imprinted on her)

Death Screamers are not native to the Devildom, so seeing one in your house is "oh shit" moment. Lucifer could sense what they really are and informed Diavolo before cautiously interrogating the sheep to find out about what their intention was with Milady. "I want... friend!" is the response he got.

Lucifer didn't want the Death Screamer in his house or near Milady, but Barbatos warned that he may have to, to prevent the creature from harming his family because he refused them their "friend."

The brothers kept an eye on the creature and everything seemed fine until Milady had to go home. They weren't violent or tried to attack anyone, they were upset like a child getting abandoned by their parent. They stayed in her room and cried, making the brothers worried for the little one and thought up a way to cheer them up. They got their own phone so they could talk to her whenever.

Candy is a teenager (13-14) and don't know how to read, write, do math, socialize, etc. They also have trouble with their speech.

Their relationship with Milady is a parent and child.

Their relationship with the brothers is a child and their uncles, the brothers and Candy have playful competitions for Milady's affection. Their favorite brother is Levi and least favorite is Lucifer. (Doesn't dislike him, they would totally run at him and jump into his arms. He's the bottom of the list because of his rules and lectures).

Everyone slowly got use to the puff ball and started to like their company. (Diavolo has wore them like a hat once as a joke). However, everyone will have to take caution around them when they reach adulthood.

(Egg event) They were excited to have a little sibling and carried Sky on their back when Sky was still little. Candy was crushed when their sibling had to leave and decided to secretly visit them when no one was looking, got in trouble with Lucifer.

They are terrifying in their true form and could hold their own against a lower demon, but they're still a child and could easily get hurt or killed against a stronger demon or a group of lower demons.

Doesn't attend RAD just yet to not overwhelm them. Satan homeschools them.

Their form is always a sheep, but sometimes they walk around as a human.

Milady named them. Said it as a joke and they liked the name, so it stayed.

They wear a royal blue ribbon gifted by Milady.

They cannot leave the realm of the demons, ever. That being said, they stay with a friend of one of the brothers when the brothers visit Milady.

They like freaking everyone out with their shapeshifting ability, ever seen a sheep with human hands before?

They have a booster seat for the dining table because they refused to transform into a human.

Belphie uses them as a plushie when napping.

They do have their own room, but like sleeping with Milady at night.

Lucifer disciplines them by grounding them or taking away their phone, the normal discipline for a child.

Asmo likes dressing them up and taking them shopping, places them in his bag before they leave.

Milady and Luke were the only ones left in the dark on what Candy is.

They have swam with Levi and Henry in his fish tank.

They are a bit of a troublemaker and help Mammon by pickpocketing people while in a smaller form. No sweets for two weeks.

They sneak treats out of the kitchen for Beel.

Death Screamers are sexless and asexual. There are no documents on how the child comes out of the parent, but after the child is born the parent shortly dies.

[yandere-sins]

The Fox Wedding - Run away with Atsumu

Summary: You are to marry the fox spirit Kita Shinsuke after you accidentally agreed to become his wife by signing the deed to your new home. A contract is a contract, he says, but is there more to this marriage than you know? Will you be whisked away by one of the foxy twins instead, or have to marry Kita after all? Can you be with a creature that only seems tender on the surface, or will you try to run even if it might cost you your life? Choose your route carefully, you never know what these foxes are up to!

Characters: Kitsune!Miya Atsumu x afab!Reader

Rating: Explicit   Warnings for this chapter: Yandere, Kidnapping, Forced/Unhealthy Relationship, Rough Handling, Verbal Insults, Mention of blood, Manipulation, Narcissistic behavior, Idolization

With your head bumping against the wall every time you finally slipped into sleep, your night wasn’t a particularly restful one. You wished for a soft bed, a mattress even, but all you had was that one corner in the cell you deemed ‘safe’. At least, you couldn’t be seen from the window or reached through the bars. It would give you enough time to wake up and get ready when someone came around to bother you again. 

The short clips of dreams you experienced were both colorful depictions of a better life than you were currently in, and at the same time, nightmares of shadows and claws reaching for you. Neither truly made the reality any better, but you were glad to at least get some kind of rest after everything that had happened. 

For probably an hour after your late-night visit at the window, had you continued to pace the cell. Some part of you had expected that there would be someone coming to free you after all. But the sparks of anticipation never completely started a fire of hope inside of you, and after a while, you realized no one was going to rescue you, no matter how long you waited. It was the point where you could only sigh, hug yourself and cower into your corner, wishing for the morning to come faster than the sadness and hopelessness you felt.

Undeniable, the thing that you feared the most was the feeling of acceptance that slowly but surely crept through your night. The longer you had to sit around and do nothing, the more you felt the despair of the situation. So you really would have to marry this man you barely knew? Was your life really going to take such a strange and undesired curve? Could you become happy here, under the fox spirits? Live a more or less ‘normal’ life with them? Even if you didn’t want it, for the sake of not having to fear for your well-being every second of your life, would you be able to accept it?

Those all were the thoughts weighing heavily on your mind. Other people had years to make life decisions like this - marriage, joining a new family and culture. And you had… hours, at best. The life you had wanted and imagined before was now in crumbling ruins. In contrast, you hadn’t even started building the new one, and that was not only tearing at your nerves but also ignited anxiety beyond comparison to anything you ever did before, inside of you.

“Hey,” you heard a soft voice in your dreams. It sounded so close and familiar, you were tempted to listen to it longer. So far, the voices in your dreams hadn’t been good in any way, but this one was welcoming to you for unknown reasons. Just like it was the touch to your cheek, warm and gentle, a palm keeping your head from bumping into the wall any longer. 

“Wakey-wakey ~” the voice cooed, caressing your cheeks in its hands as you slowly tore yourself out of your dreams. That was a peculiar instruction for a dream. After all, the whole point of dreaming was being asleep! You squeezed your eyes together tightly, groaning lightly under your mind awakening. Instantly, the heaviness of the situation returned, reminding you of the future and the burdensome expectations on your shoulders. It wasn’t so much a gentle awakening than it was an exhausting pull back into reality.

No wonder that when you blinked your heavy eyelids a few times, focusing your gaze on your immediate proximity, the scare of the century overcame you, seeing a face only inches from you. Your body, immediately alert, began to struggle, but your throat acted up as you wanted to scream, and a hand covered your mouth before you could go through with it. Your heart was about to leap out of your chest from the surprise, and you instinctively clasped your hand around the arm, digging your nails in. 

“Whoa! It’s me! It’s me, calm down!”

Were you supposed to know this person? Yes, the voice sounded familiar, but in the darkness, it was hard to make out any features aside from strands of light blonde hair and an eerie shine coming from the person’s eyes. Blonde hair? Where had you seen that before?

“We met at the window, remember?” 

Slowly, cautiously, you began to nod. Yeah, you remembered now. With your mind waking up, you remembered the encounter you had with the twin-like fox spirits, who got ushered away by Kita. One of them, the one who promised to come and get you, had been blonde. Your eyes grew wide as you nodded more strongly, letting off his arm, and he too put down his hand from your mouth, now that you both were sure you wouldn’t scream and alert anyone. 

“You came back...” you whispered, unbelieving. With the reality dawning on you, you couldn’t quite believe what was happening. He really kept his word. He really came to get you. “You- You…”

Feeling the tears of relief well up in your eyes, you didn’t think twice before throwing yourself at him. No matter how inappropriate or out of place this action was, you were hit with unspeakable joy that someone would come for you. That there was at least one spirit with good intentions in all of this was as unbelievable as it suddenly was real, and you hugged him tightly with your arms slung around his neck. 

For a moment, you were hit with stunned silence until you realized what you were doing. You were just about to pull away when you felt his arms snake around you, pulling you in close. One hand rested against your lower back, the other on the back of your head. Completely enveloped in his arms, you could feel yourself relax a little, breathing in the earthy yet strangely sweet smell that came from him. Warmth spread all over your body, from head to toe, as he embraced you, and you felt safe and comforted in his arms, even if the situation was still far from it. 

But eventually, it was he who pulled away first, hand falling from your hair to your cheek shortly to caress it for a moment. The spirit kept you close, whispering into your ear to minimize the risk of someone else hearing you talk. “It sucks to stop now, but we have to go. I’ll hold you all you want later though!”

With a soft gasp, you pushed your hands into his chest, and you heard him chuckle while you felt yourself grow hot from embarrassment. When you moved, he let you go but kept his hand on your right elbow to pull you up into a stand. “Keep quiet and don’t let go,” he instructed, his hand falling to yours. Sparks of fear overcame you as you realized you’d have to hold his hand, simply because you expected that same sharpness of claws on his as on everyone else.

But when you laid your palm in his, he gently clasped it around your hand, squeezing it without cutting or hurting you. You could hold his just as tenderly, and yet you weren’t afraid anymore, not even about him maybe letting go of you. 

Pulling you along, you made one step before you used your weight to stop the movement immediately. “Wait!” you called out, softening your voice. Having stepped into the moonlight coming in through the window, you could see his ears twitch as you thought, the young man turning around confused about what could be.

“What…” Suddenly you felt almost ashamed to ask, and you avoided looking at him. Perhaps you were seeing him in a totally new light now. From the feared fox spirits, he had turned into something more of a prince, rescuing you, the princess, from the evil sorcerer - or so. Still, you were caught off-guard by his expressive face and the cute, moving ears on his head, the light almost coating him in a warm shimmer. You hadn’t noticed before, but he really was… handsome - if that was a word that could be used on spirits.

You almost forgot all about what kind of spirit he was.

“What’s your name…?” you asked coyly, and his lips curled up into a grin almost immediately. “Call me Atsumu,” he told you carefreely, and you couldn’t help yourself from smiling too. 

“Then… Thank you, Atsumu-san.”

“Don’t thank me yet.”

Before you could question him, he turned around, pulling you towards the bars. Only now did you notice the gap he created, and you wondered if he could use the same kind of magic Kita used on them before. He helped you step outside, keeping you from bumping your head on them in the dark, and led you up the stairs where he waited. “Where are we going?” you asked, cowering next to him as he checked that no one was near. 

“The forest. So far away that they can’t follow.”

“Should we go back to my house first? If… If it’s a longer journey, maybe we’ll need to prepare.”

Carefully, he opened up the door. There was no audible sound coming from it, which calmed you down as you feared someone spying you immediately. “That’s the first place they’d look. Where we’re going--” Atsumu paused, his ears twitched as he tensed, suddenly in high alert. The next seconds seemed like a small eternity to you as you instantly feared getting caught already. No words could describe the relief you felt as he relaxed again, turning to you and smiling wildly. 

“You won’t need anything ’long as I am around!”

Somehow, his chipper nature was contagious. You felt immediately better, not as overcome with worries. As if you could put yourself into his care without thinking twice, and you smiled back at him, giving a single nod in understanding. 

“Let’s go,” he whispered, squeezing your hand encouragingly, and you followed him as quietly as you could.

You would have followed him anywhere at this point.

“A-Atsumu--!” 

You did your best. You really truly gave it your all. But how could he expect you to run for as long and fast as he did? Even if you put all your energy into it, you still couldn’t keep up, your only saving grace being his hand that pulled you along. “Can’t you go faster?” he asked, pulling you by the hand roughly, so you had to set out a step to jump forward.

“I- No! No, I can’t! I need a break!”

“Come on!” he moaned, and you saw the disappointment showing on his face, making you bite your lip. He wasn’t wrong. You really couldn’t complain. He was just trying to help, and you were currently risking you both by asking for a break. By now, the village could have already noticed you being gone and started to search. You didn’t want to think about what would happen to you two if they found you.

“Humans…” you heard him grumble in front of you, tearing you out of your thoughts. Though you strained yourself to listen to the end of the sentence, you couldn’t understand it, asking, “I’m sorry?”

“I said--” With a rough tug on your hand, he made you stumble to his side, a surprised squawk escaping you. Only briefly, while you still tried to comprehend the situation, did you feel his lips fall against your temple, your eyes widening as you repeated himself. 

“Humans are so pathetic.”

“W- What--” you tried to stutter, perplex by this statement, but Atsumu didn’t bother with waiting for you to comprehend what he said, quickly continuing to drag you along. However, other than you were used to from Kita by now, Atsumu had no intention of hiding his thoughts from you, speaking them out loudly without hesitations.

“You humans are so pathetic, you don’t stand a chance against us. You’re lucky that Kita liked you, and you’re pretty. Otherwise, I don’t think he’d ever considered marrying you. What good are you? Can’t run, can’t use magic, can’t fight or hunt or at least bite! Would’ve let yourself be married off without even a bit of hissing and clawing, huh?”

“That…” You felt yourself puff up in anger as his words worked through your mind. “That’s so mean!” you complained, wanting to shake your hand free, but his hold on you stayed. 

“Oh, it wasn’t meant to be nice,” he assured you boldly, not decorating the fact that he knew he was insulting you. 

“How dare you!” you croaked in horror. Up till now, you had found him to be so nice and caring. Where was this coming from all of a sudden, you wondered? Stemming your whole weight into the next step you did, you wanted to inconvenience him by slowing him down. Even so, Atsumu easily pulled you over the ground, your heel digging into the dirt from the polar influences of strength. 

A quick, patronizing sigh fell out of his mouth before he turned around, his everlasting smile on his face. “Now, now, don’t be upset. I was merely saying the truth, alright? Look…”

Atsumu closed in the arm-length between you, and you wanted to take a precautious step back but scrambled to keep your footing on the uneven ground. Without any hesitation, he wrapped an arm around you, keeping you steady and - for you - uncomfortably close. 

“I like you,” he revealed. The small peck he left on your lips was barely noticeable before it was over again. “I like you a lot even, I think.”

His free hand came up, his pointer finger landing down on the middle of your forehead. There was a creeping nervosity as you felt the fingertip slide down between your brows and to the tip of your nose while you were aware of the sharp end of each of his fingers. 

“Without me, where would you be? What would become of you? You needed my help, and now you need me too. What do you think will happen to such a pathetic, fragile, powerless human like you if they find you after you run away?”

You gulped. There was more than one reason for you to do so. For the first time, it dawned on you that this man was no prince at all, in fact, and you wished you had realized that earlier, he was just as much a fox as all the others. This situation for you was very much out of the frying pan and into the fire. Staying in the village and running away was both as terrible of a decision, despite the realization only now revealing itself to you as Atsumu uncovered how he truly felt about you.

“Stay here and let them find you so you can be killed and eaten, or come with me. The choice is yours,” Atsumu whispered, bringing his face closer to yours as if he was about to kiss you again. With his breath on your face, you felt yourself beginning to shake, overwhelmed with the situation and the choices he was giving you. You never felt so close to death than when you heard about what they’d do to you, but going with him also didn’t sound as appealing anymore as it did before.

“I--” you started, but a sudden jolt went through Atsumu and, therefore, also through you as he suddenly perked up, his ears moving to high alert before you could finish. For a moment, everything around you went quiet as you held your breath. Atsumu subtly moved his head around, trying to make out sounds while he listened for them. 

“Chill, ‘Tsumu,” a voice rang out from behind you, and you flinched all while Atsumu relaxed a little, looking more annoyed than happy about who was interrupting. 

“‘Samu, you bastard. Did you follow us all this time?”

Finally, you caught a glimpse over your shoulder, noticing the other twin you remembered from the window earlier that night. “Nah,” he yawned, massaging the back of his neck. “Just caught up with you because you decided to stand in the middle of the territory flirtin’.”

“Damn it,” Atsumu mumbled, not really to anyone, but his gaze lowered back down to you as he thought for a moment. “They started looking for us,” he explained, and you noticeably froze up. The fear must have shown on your face, but he seemed unmoved by it. “It’s time to make a choice, Princess,” he sighed, finally pulling his arm away and letting you go. 

Immediately, you spun on your heels, running back to the grey-haired fox spirit. “Please! You have to help--” 

Before you could even finish your plead, you noticed the sudden strange spark in his eyes as he raised an arm in front of his face. It was too late when you realized that he wasn’t as comfortable around you as his brother, claws lashing out for your face as you came too close for comfort to him, just like with a wild animal.

Your eyes closed the second you realized you’d be hit, but nothing happened. Instead, you felt a gust of wind, followed by a hand pulling you back. “Woah there, Osamu.”

When you opened your eyelids again, you were staring at Atsumu’s back, shielding you from his brother and having caught his hand just a second too late after getting some scratches on his cheek already from the impact. However, he merely wiped the blood away with his sleeve, flinching from the pain. “You’re my brother,” Atsumu noted nonchalantly.

“But if you lay even one hand on her, I won’t hesitate to tear off your arm.”

“I want to see that,” Osamu replied, shaking out his wrist from Atsumu’s grip. 

“Get back,” Atsumu hushed to you, pushing you back carefully by walking backwards, never letting go of your hand. You spared a glance over your savior’s shoulder, meeting his brother’s gaze head-on. 

“Just so you know, I ain’t helping you with this,” he said, clearly talking to you. Then he turned his gaze to Atsumu, brows furrowing more in distaste. “It’s your problem.”

“I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Atsumu purred before getting serious again for a moment. “You’re not coming with us then?”

“Not happenin’.”

“... Alright then.”

Turning his back to his brother, Atsumu finally focused on you again, a never before seen frown on his face. “So what will it be? You comin’ with me, or do you want that scrub to drag you back to the village? He might eat you along the way, though.”

You felt your heart race as you looked at Atsumu for some time before glancing back at his brother Osamu. The latter didn’t seem too interested in the deals his brother was making, only waiting for your decision also. “I--” you whispered, trying to make the decision of your life. You never wanted to go back to this village, become the clan head’s wife, or even worse: Dinner. But was going with Atsumu really a good idea? If you knew anything about him now, he was far worse when it came to moodiness than Kita, and his real intentions were hidden by his smile. 

But still.

Your hand reaching for his sleeve, and immediately he bloomed up, his face showing a broad grin from ear to ear as he quickly reached for your hand again. With a quick wave and glance over his shoulder, he yelled, “See ya, ‘Samu!” before dragging you off again. You gave the twin another glance too, and whatever moved you to it, bowed your head briefly before trying to follow after Atsumu. Osamu merely sighed, mumbling something about ‘always having to clean up the mess’ before turning and leaving in the opposite direction, not giving you any more seconds of his mind. 

It wasn’t a decision you liked making, but in the end, your life was still more important to you than… whatever it was that Atsumu was planning. He, at least, hummed happily after you chose him, his fast pace never ceasing even when you struggled. “Will he not tell them where we are?” you asked, glancing back over your shoulder nervously, not seeing any trace of life behind you any longer. 

“Why would he?” Atsumu replied, and you figured that was the end of the discussion, even though it still made you uncomfortable not knowing what was going on. 

“What am I going to do from now on…” you whispered to yourself, feeling an overwhelming dread rise in your heart. The anxiety of the unknown and fear that maybe even after all that happened, you’d still be found and captured again. And what was the deal with Atsumu anyway? It was so hard to trust him again, even though it was precisely what you needed to do at that moment. 

“Don’t worry!” he suddenly chimed from the front as if he read your mind, and only now did you realize his lingering gaze on you, paired with an ever-casual smile. “We’ll hide somewhere no one can find us.”

“For how long?” you asked cautiously, still hoping that it would be possible to go back into your normal life someday. 

“Hm? Who knows?” Atsumu replied, laughter falling from his lips right after he said that. That didn’t give you a good feeling, but he squeezed your hand tightly and simply kept moving forward as if nothing was wrong at all.

“At least--” he laughed, the forest suddenly clearing up and revealing the great, white moon above you, once again making Atsumu seem like the beautiful being he was. However, by now, you had your doubts about it. No matter how pretty his looks were, his personality seemed to lack in many places you had yet all to uncover. 

“We’ll have a lot of time to keep the promise of hugging it out, right?”

He winked at you, and as the morning began to dawn, you realized your life would never be the same.

➤  Be safe

➤   Go back to the prologue to change your fate

➤ ?

Read other routes first to unlock more fates  

[skellebonez]

Happy Birthday Kit!!!

It’s your birthday @kitkat1003​ heck yeah! And for your birthday Spirit is going to have a good day because I and many other people love them a lot! I hope you like this fic as much as I loved writing it!

It was possibly the oddest favor Spirit had done for anyone, ever. But, if they were being at least a tiny bit honest with themselves, it sounded like it could have been one of the more enjoyable ones. Well… technically Pigsy said it was “not a favor I’m just asking you to do this”. So. Potato potahtoe.

Specifically he asked if Spirit would “spend the day with him.” That was it. Simple, easy, long to be sure but not as long as many of the other favors that required a fetch quest at the very least. That was the original bare bones request, vague as it was. Just spend the entire with with Pigsy, 9 AM to 9 PM, and they would be right as rain.

And it wasn’t even like that would be hard! They already had work scheduled for the day, helping Pigsy open the shop and working the register. Why, they could even finish up the task while at work, two bird one stone and all that!

At least, that was what Spirit thought. Before Pigsy met them at the shop entrance and announced in a tired voice after chugging some very very clearly fresh and not sweetened coffee-

“Store’s closed for the day. We’re going shopping.”

Store closed.

For the day.

And going shopping.

Going.

Shopping.

Spirit pushed down their immediate shudder of “oh, that’s not what we had planned today and now today is different oh no I was not prepared for this oh dear oh jeepers” that ran up their spine.

“Uh- o-ok… where are we headed?”

“Food market, mostly,” Pigsy said with a shrug as he adjusted a few reusable baskets in his hands. He must have had a lot on the list for the day or he was buying a lot in advance. “Thinkin of hitting up another place or two in the area if we got time, but nothing too strenuous.”

A bit of Spirit’s tension eased from their shoulders and spine at this. They’d been to the market plenty of times before, so even though it was out of the blue it wasn’t exactly that unusual for them. The last time they went had been with Pigsy and Tang, and while their fighting over which carrots looked “good enough” wasn’t the most… fun conversation to be present for, it was nice.

Pigsy had even bought them a snack, insisting there were no strings attached. No favors. Just a snack from a friend to a friend. And that memory was nice… nice enough to help elevate any extra anxiety still lingering in the demon’s spine (that came from the news anyway, the regular anxiety was as there as always).

“Well, best to head as quickly as possible?” They offered, following Pigsy as he lead the way. “Want to get there fast to get the pick of the best vegetables, right?”

“You’re speakin my language!”

~

The market was surprisingly calm and quiet. Maybe it was because it wasn’t one of the usual busy days, or maybe it was because of how early they were in the day, but instead of the loud bustle and clutter and yells of vendors there was just a set of clearly dedicated loyal customers and relaxed vendors making small talk.

“Oh, I forgot to mention,” Pigsy said suddenly as they made their way down to where he would usually buy root vegetables. “They do this sort of thing a couple times a month where the market isn’t open to the public for a couple hours. It’s a little somethin to help out the local restaurants and other businesses who come here for their supplies.”

“Is that why that guy at the entrance looked at me like I was about to steal a child’s lunch money?”

That hadn’t been fun at all. Until Pigsy had stepped up beside him Spirit thought they were genuinely in some sort of trouble they didn’t know about.

Then again. That happened a lot. Thinking they were in trouble they didn’t know about. Pigsy was trying to make sure that didn’t happen as much. “If I could tell their brain to stop it wouldn’t happen at all” was what he said when Spirit overheard him talking to Tang about them.

It wasn’t good to snoop, Spirit knew that, but… it was. Nice. Oddly nice. He wasn’t going to be able to just tell Spirit’s brain to stop telling them things, and before Spirit would be confused and maybe a little horrified at the idea, but after spending so much time with the pig demon it felt. Nice.

Their conversation continued on for a moment, Pigsy explaining what the market on these special days was like and how the deals here were so helpful and every stall they stopped at Pigsy made it a point to keep the conversation going with the vendor himself. Just open enough for Spirit to insert themselves if they wanted, though they didn’t except at the vendor selling oddly colored flowers (which led into a short explanation about how they were made) and an explanation of how many of the dried ones on sale were imported from other countries and difficult to find outside their stall.

They didn’t know why Pigsy was buying flowers, though. At least, not the specific reason. Dried, fresh, some with stems and some with only the heads. Some bulbs as well. Maybe he was going to try some more floral broths or flower infused noodles? He’d done that in the past apparently! And Spirit had watched him made odder things, experimental dishes that didn’t really change much with the old recipes so much as they simply added more depth to them.

Spirit did notice, however, most of the flowers he had purchased were… purple. Or, in the case of one, blue. An odd one out to be sure.

“Alright, we’re done!” Pigsy announced, smiling widely at his haul. Which, all things considered… wasn’t actually as much as Spirit expected. Still, a good haul. “We’re going to put this all away at the shop, I have an appointment with Sandy later but we’re not expected at any specific time so there isn’t really a need to rush.”

“AH, hold on just one moment!” The flower stall vendor said as he came out from behind his stall. “Pigsy, I want you both to have these. For being a wonderful return customer and for the nice conversation.”

Spirit watched as he tucked a purple flower behind Pigsy’s ear, a daisy if Spirit was correct. And then he did the same to them, making them tense in surprise. If they said anything after that Spirit didn’t realize due to their shock, but the next thing they registered was Pigsy gently guiding them out of the entrance.

~

Sandy was more than ready for them when they arrived, urging Spirit inside and to his couch while Pigsy and he talked about… something.

Spirit wasn’t paying as much attention as they normally would when they were immediately swarmed with cats.

Cats on their lap, cats on their arms, cats on their shoulders. Cats. Cats everywhere. So many cats.

“Uh… S-Sandy…” Spirit started, an uncertain chuckle bubbling up as another cat plopped down on their head. “Do your cats… smell fear? Or do I smell delicious? They’re vibrating very violently. And… rubbing against me. A lot. I mean, I know they’re purring but this is weird.”

Sandy turned toward Spirit, covering his mouth to keep himself from laughing at the sight.

“No, no they don’t and you do not,” he said with a shake of his head, and he gave a look toward Pigsy. “You probably got some catnip on you somehow at the market. You’re just their favorite person right now.”

“… oh,” Spirit breathed out, reaching up to pat one of the cats on his lap carefully. The cat let out a trill, rolling onto their back as they pressed harder into Spirit’s side. Spirit couldn’t help it. They gave in to the temptation to quote a video Mei showed him long ago. “… I have been chosen.”

They didn’t even pay attention to Sandy and Pigsy until something on a trey was placed on the table between all of them, the clinking jolting some of the cats and making them roll off Spirit (who was grateful for the use of their arms back).

“So… I was hoping you might want to taste test something I wanted to add to the menu for special occasions that Sandy is teaching me to make,” Pigsy said with a smile, gesturing to the trey. “He actually made these in advance, they take a long while to dry properly, but they’re supposed to be worth it. But I, uh, can’t guarantee anything.”

It was very… purple and blue. A clear cup filled with what Spirit assumed was blue tea and a purple… stick of some kind that seemed to be flowers dipped in sugar? The only thing that seemed to stand out was the tiny cup of what smelled like lemon juice between them.

“The stick is candied lavender!” Sandy explained, gesturing to the hardened blossom. “You can use it to stir the tea and add sweetness or just eat it as is! But before you choose, pour that little cup into the tea.”

Spirit raised an eyebrow, almost wondering if this was some kind of prank. It didn’t feel like Pigsy and Sandy would pull a prank like this but. Well. Who knows… but they wanted to trust that they weren’t so they did as asked, slowly pouring the lemon juice into… the…

“It’s turning purple,” Spirit whisper shouted, eyes wide and awed as the blue tea slowly turned from the brilliant blue to a more brilliant purple from the bottom of the cup up. “What. Purple? It’s purple! The tea changes colors!”

Pigsy chuckled, nodding his head with a wide smile. “Yup.”

“It’s called Butterfly Pea Flower tea,’ Sandy explained, smile just as wide. "Lemon and lime juice made it do that! It’s not really a rare tea, but we added some extra stuff to the lavender that should make it taste even better when you mix it all in. Go on, give it a try!”

Spirit looked between the two of them and picked up the lavender stick and tea cup, mixing them together as they sat back and took a sip.

It was… amazing. Earthy and slightly bitter from the lemon juice. There must have been honey as well as sugar in the lavender stick, bringing a bright sweetness to the drink. There was a bit of spice to it, maybe cinnamon, as well. It was nothing like anything Spirit had ever drank before. It was warm without being too hot, and combined with the purring of the cats surrounding them…

They realized they felt. Good. Not perfect, not completely relaxed. They didn’t know if that was possible. But they felt good. Happy.

“I think… I think people will love this.”

[abbysfrenchbraid]

Beach Day Imagine

alright I give up on trying to find a header for this one, there are no nice pictures of Abby with short hair.

anonymous said:  I have a request for a beach day imagine? It could be after the end of the game, just a nice day on the beach heh :)!

This is set after the end of tlou2, Abby and Lev have arrived at the Firefly base on Catalina Island and the reader has gotten to know them over the last weeks. Today they’re taking the two newly healed outsiders to the beach. 

This is the first thing I’ve written in a while so I apologize if I’m not fully back in my best form, feedback is very welcome!

Warnings: light swearing, pushing someone under water playfully, mention of injury by being crushed under something heavy (ask to tag!)

about 5.6k words of pure fluff :)

“Hey, look what I got!”

You looked up from the gas canister you were currently using to fill up a truck’s tank and felt a warm rush of happiness fill your chest. Lev had just entered the garage and was holding out a red backpack.

“The teacher gave it to me so I finally have my own. And it’s even my favorite color!”

You stopped pouring the gasoline and screwed the lid back on the canister. 

“Hey, you. So what are you bringing in your new backpack, then?”

The scrawny boy jumped on the back of the truck and crouched down, flipping the bag over and dumping its contents on the platform. With quick fingers, he arranged all the items to lie in a neat line, tapping them as he listed: “Water bottle, sandwich, apple, lighter, knife, towel, swimming trunks. Abby said not to take the bow because it’s a secure area.”

You nodded. “Good job, you’re fully equipped.” Catalina Island was a completely safe zone, the Fireflies had made sure of that. During the last few years, patrol teams had combed through the entire island killing infected and now anyone coming in from the mainland had to spend two days in quarantine to ensure their health. Carrying around a knife or gun at all times was just a habit none of the people who had ever fought infected or other groups would ever let go of. 

“Lev? You in here?” Lev had been concentrating on putting all his supplies back into the backpack and you both jerked up when you heard the familiar voice in the corridor. It had been weeks and she still had the same effect on you. The tall blonde stepped through the doorway and your breath caught in your throat. She was wearing green cargo pants and black combat boots as always, but you could see the blue fabric of a swimsuit peeking out at the neckline of her grey t-shirt.

“Oh hey, there you are. Are we ready to go?”

“Your hair!” you exclaimed, in awe at the beautiful freckled face that was looking at you with excitement. Abby smiled and instinctively rubbed the back of her head that was now cut short. When she and Lev had arrived three weeks ago, they had looked horrible, dehydrated and full of bruises and cuts, their faces marked by the sun and the pain they had had to endure. Abby hadn’t said a word about her obviously violently cut hair but Lev had told you that she had always worn it in a long braid before the rattlers captured them. You tried to imagine her with long hair but it just didn’t seem fitting for the woman standing before you. 

“I got it done today, Mario is a saint. Do you like it?”

Lev squinted at her for a moment, then he solemnly said: “It suits you very well.” 

She had apparently finally gotten around to visiting your colleague, another mechanic who also worked at a barber on the side. Most men and some women just pragmatically shaved their heads themselves, but there were always a few people who wanted something more complicated. When Mario had visited you at the medical station after your accident and gotten to know your two new roommates, he had immediately offered his services if they ever wanted a haircut. Lev had declined, explaining that he always shaved his head himself, but Abby had thanked him and promised to come around when she was allowed to leave medical. 

You smiled at her and before you could stop yourself you blurted out “You look hot.” 

The blonde laughed and even though you felt yourself blushing, you knew you had said the right thing. She really did look hot. Mario had shaved her sides short and fluffed up the top, letting a few strands fall into her face. You wanted to reach out and gently brush them back, but you stopped yourself and snapped out of your daydream. 

“Okay, my bag’s already in the front. You all set?”

Abby nodded and put her backpack on the back of the truck, positioning herself to jump on.

“Wait, can I sit in the back? I’ll be careful, I promise. I’d just really like to see what it feels like,” Lev pleaded. You looked at Abby who just rolled her eyes and grinned.

“Alright, kid. But no standing up, and if it gets bumpy you hold on tight!” 

She squeezed the boy’s shoulder and grabbed her bag, circling around the back of the car to get into the passenger seat. Lev gracefully jumped in the back and closed the hatch, looking at you with a glint in his eye you had never seen on him before. For the first time since the two had arrived here, he seemed genuinely happy and excited. 

You sat down in the driver’s seat and started the truck, maneuvering out of the parked cars around you and giving the porter a signal to open the garage door. Your hand still felt weak and fragile as you switched gears and drove through the two front gates or the base, absentmindedly clenching your fist and stretching out your fingers to get rid of the sensation.

In the corner of your eye, you could see Abby giving you a slightly worried look. 

“You okay there? I can drive, too, if you want me to.” 

You bit your lip in frustration and shook your head. 

“Thanks, Abby. I just need to get used to using this stupid hand again.”

The blonde rolled down her window and let in the salty breeze, leaning her head against the frame and closing her eyes as the sun kissed her face. 

“Alright. Just let me know.”

Turning onto the road down to the beach, you sighed and tried to let go of all of your anger and discontent with one long exhale. It would get you nowhere.

You had been lying underneath a car to fix some spots that had rusted through when your lifting jacks had made a weird noise. Even though you had been quick to try and slip out from under the car, you hadn’t been fast enough. The wheels had been taken off to change the tires and as the jacks collapsed, the side of the vehicle crushed your arm, your ribs and left you with internal bleeding. 

It had been no one's fault, just a terrible misfortune. After undergoing several surgeries and spending four weeks in a hospital bed, two battered strangers had been carried in and kept you company for the next few days. 

The WLF soldier also had a few broken ribs, several cuts and stab wounds. Other than a few bruises, dehydration and the extreme sunburn they had both suffered, the small Seraphite was surprisingly well off, and while you two older women had been laying around in your own misery, he had started trying to cheer you up, help your recovery and motivate you to look forward to the days to come.

Both of you had started carefully training your injured limbs again and encouraged each other on the tiresome, difficult journey back to health while Lev had explored the base, made some friends and working with a trainer to teach others how to shoot with a bow and arrow. Now that you were finally out of the medical wing and able to move without being in excruciating pain, you had decided to take the two out for a deserved day off. 

You rolled your window down and inhaled the fresh sea breeze, immediately smelling the salt and hot sand, the earthy aroma of the bushes lining the road and the sun warming up the air and promising you a wonderful day. Without thinking, you let out a scream of joy and laughed into the wind that pulled on your hair and invited you to play. You turned to beam at Abby, who looked amused and a little surprised. Before you could say anything, you heard an attempted wolf howl from the back of the truck and looked in the rearview mirror. Lev was kneeling in the middle of the platform, his head thrown back and his hands at his mouth to amplify his cries. He took a big breath and howled a second time, laughing afterward and stretching out his arms to the side.

A small noise drew your attention back to your passenger. Abby was looking out of the window and her torso was shaking slightly. For a split second, you thought she was crying, but then her little chuckle grew into loud laughter and she whooped, also stretching out her arm and making wave motions with her hand. 

“Jesus, Y/N, you’re amazing! This is amazing!”

She looked at you, eyes wide with excitement and a grin stretching across her entire face. You felt like your heart was going to explode. This really was amazing. You took another turn and there it was: the sea. Blue and wild, sparkling like millions of diamonds and dancing in the sun, calling out for you and inviting you to jump into the waves and join the celebration. 

You decided to just drive down all the way onto the sand; the truck was made for the terrain and there was no reason to walk if you could just drive up to the perfect spot. 

“Lev,” you yelled, “wanna choose a good spot?”

“Yes,” he screamed back, “over there by the palm tree?”

“Got it, boss!” You geared down and drove onto the sand, carefully testing the terrain. The car seemed to have no problem with the ground and you pressed down the gas, whirling up the sand behind you and making Lev scream with excitement. You came to a halt next to a sturdy palm tree and the boy had jumped off the back before you had stopped the engine. 

He had taken off his shoes and immediately started hopping to the patch of shade, cursing about the hot sand and letting himself fall onto the cool safe haven provided by the tree. Abby laughed and got out herself, opening her backpack and throwing him a big blanket. 

“Here, make yourself useful.”

Lev jumped up and started stretching out the fabric to make room for everyone, then he unpacked his towel and swimming trunks. You grabbed your bag and went over to the two of them, putting your towel down and stopping in your tracks when Abby suddenly pulled her shirt over her head, revealing a sporty blue bikini top. Her abs had practically exploded in only a week; the last time you had seen her stomach had been when she had gotten rid of the hospital gown and announced she was going back to training. Her skin was ivory, a ton of freckles spreading over her shoulders and arms. There were still a few bruises on her ribcage, already yellow and almost completely faded, and her upper arm was marked with a fresh, pink scar.

“What are you staring at? Don’t you wanna go swimming with us?” 

Abby laughed at you and hopped around as she tried to take off her tight pants without falling over. You shook your head to get your brain running again and side-eyed her, trying to hide a grin. 

“Sorry. You’ve already built so much muscle, it’s amazing.”

The blonde looked down and lightly slapped her stomach. 

“Thanks, must be the food here. I’m getting back on track.”

You had already slid out of your pants and quickly took off your shirt now, a little shy about your black bathing suit. But there was no need to worry, now it was Abby’s turn to stare. Her mouth was slightly ajar as she looked you up and down, her hand hovering about her abs as if she had frozen for a second. Finally, she snapped out of her admiration and raised an eyebrow.

“You don’t look too bad yourself, without the bandages and all.”

While you two had been busy drooling over each other, Lev had already changed into his swimming trunks and now seemed to be calculating how many steps it would take to get to the water and cool his burnt feet. 

Abby stepped closer to you. 

“You ready, Lev? Bet I can beat you both to the water.”

The boy didn’t hesitate one second. He started like lightning, his red pants blown up by the wind as he yelled “ouch, fuck, ow,” trying to lengthen his jumps. Abby winked at you, then she started sprinting after him. 

“Come on, Y/N!”

You quickly took off your socks and ran after them, loosening your ponytail and enjoying the feeling of the warm, soft hair dancing on your skin. Lev had beat Abby and was squealing as he jumped into the waves. The ex-WLF reached him a few seconds later, running into the sea and immediately diving under just to come up again with a scream of joy. She opened her arms as you came running towards her, cursing the hot sand and ready to tackle the blonde with full force. 

She turned to the side and dodged your blow at the last second, letting you crash into the waves and jumping on top of you, pushing you under the surface for a second before pulling you up and blowing a mouthful of water into your face. You gasped for air as the two laughed at you, already plotting your revenge. 

You slapped Abby’s shoulder but her rock-hard muscles easily took the hit. She raised her eyebrows at you and gave your shoulder a seemingly light push that made you topple back into the water. How was she so fucking strong?! You let yourself float on your back for a second, then you dove under and grabbed the surprised soldier by the ankles, digging your fingernails into her skin and pulling her feet out from under her. Pushing off the sand with your feet, you dragged her legs with you so she was pulled underwater. She managed to free herself and you both came up at the same time, laughing and coughing. 

“That’s what you get, shark,” you grinned at her. 

“Wait, are there sharks here?” A half-panicky, half-excited voice from further out told you that Lev had swum quite a bit and was now suddenly overcome by the realization that you three weren’t the only ones in the sea. 

“Yeah, big ones,” Abby yelled, “you better watch out.” 

She winked at you, then she took a deep breath and dove in Lev’s direction, who was facing the opposite direction and didn’t notice the big figure swimming towards him. As expected, he suddenly shrieked, started flailing his arms and fought with something that was pulling him under. When he realized what was going on, he couldn’t stop himself from laughing as he yelled Abby’s name over and over, trying to get her off. Her head broke the surface next to him and she shook her head, water spraying in all directions as her hair danced in the sun. 

She was roaring with laughter and held out an arm for Lev to hold on to while he caught his breath. 

“Believe me, kid, as much as you love them, you don’t wanna meet sharks face to face.”

He sighed and turned to look at the open water. 

“I know. Maybe we can drive out with a boat sometime and try to see them.”

Abby rubbed his shaved head. 

“You are unbelievably okay with danger, young man.” 

He smiled at her with so much love and admiration in his eyes it made your heart feel like it was going to explode. These two had found each other. You slowly swam towards them and turned on your back again to float, Lev immediately copying you and looking at Abby to do the same. 

“We shouldn’t be in the sun for too long, you two are still not fully healed.” 

Abby groaned and splashed some water in your direction. 

“Let me just have this for a moment, please.” 

You felt a twist in your stomach. She had just been having fun for the first time in forever and you had to ruin it by reminding her of what she had been through. Why couldn’t you just shut up and let her be? You turned to look at her and were surprised to see her smiling at you, nothing but warmth and appreciation in her face. 

“You’re right, Y/N, I know that. Thank you for taking us here and worrying about us.”

Lev had his eyes closed, but he nodded and mumbled something in approval. 

“Come on.” Abby lightly tapped your arm and nodded in the direction of the beach. 

“Let’s head back.” 

“Can I stay here a little longer?” Lev sounded far away, completely at peace as he soaked up the sun and the salty air. 

“Of course, but make sure you don’t swim further out, okay?”

The boy just hummed happily. Both of you didn’t say a word as you and Abby swam back, your mind spinning faster again as she took her last steps out of the water in front of you. Droplets were running down the back of her neck, the curves of her back muscles, butt, and thighs highlighted by the reflections of sunlight on the wet skin. 

She turned around and absentmindedly slicked her dripping hair back, showing off her biceps and abs as she stretched and waited for you to come out of the water. 

“You think the sand is gonna be less painful under wet feet?”

You stumbled out of the waves with little elegance but managed to stay standing up as a wave crashed around your calves. 

“I don’t know, I think we should make a run for it.” 

“Fair,” she nodded and held out her hand. “You ready?”

Ignoring the jump in your chest, you took her hand and she held yours tight, encasing it completely with her cool fingers. 

“Let’s go!” Both of you started running, squealing and laughing as the sand burned your soles once more. You almost fell several times but Abby’s steel grip caught and held you up every time. Slightly out of breath, both of you reached the shade of the palm tree and let yourselves fall on the towels. Abby still hadn’t let go of your hand and you tried to hold your fingers completely still so she wouldn’t notice and let go. 

You were both lying on your backs next to each other, panting and looking up at the green branches above you dancing gently in the sea breeze. Watching Abby out of the corner of your eye, you promised yourself you would always remember this moment. The heat of the sun peeking through the branches, the last drops of saltwater running down your torso, the stickiness of your skin as it dried and left behind tiny salt crystals, the rushing of the waves and the cries of the seagulls. The beautiful blonde next to you, her chest moving with every breath, the little specks of sunlight on her face and her mouth, slightly open as she looked at the sky, deep in thought. 

It felt like this was the first day of your life, like you had been somewhere else every day before, somewhere grey and bitter and hard with little joy and too many worries.  You never knew life could feel like this, like riding a wave, like soaring through the summer air, easy laughter, and warm touches. You were free. 

You suddenly noticed that Abby had turned her head to face you, her eyes burning into your skin like the salt that was prickling your cheek with tiny needles. Holding your breath, you slowly turned towards her and were immediately pulled in by her gaze. 

This woman had been by your side almost constantly for three weeks and you had known for a while. What you felt for her was deeper than any connection you had ever had with anyone. She understood you without words and she was never too much for you, as others often were. The blonde made your heart skip beats and your brain often stopped working when she was around, but you still wanted to be by her side every possible second. Through all the pain and trauma and all the terrible things that had happened, you two always found something to laugh about and a way to forget everything for a while, just enjoying each other’s company. 

As you finally released the air from your lungs, you could hear the shakiness in your breath and the rush of your own blood in your ears. It was so loud that you were sure Abby could hear it, too. Your fingers twitched slightly and she immediately tightened her fingers around yours. Slowly, her eyes wandered to your lips and now it was you that could hear her breath catch up in her throat. The distance between your faces was small, maybe a hand’s width, but it felt like miles. It was the feeling before doing a handstand or jumping off a high platform, a move you had seen others do countless times but felt impossible to you, like an invisible wall in your chest stopping your breath and movement at the same time. 

Abby softly ran her thumb over yours, her hazel-green eyes piercing yours. Your racing thoughts came to a halt. You could count every freckle on her face, every tiny salt crystal on her lashes, the faded scars from past battles. She was breathtakingly beautiful. 

Just as she lifted her head ever so slightly to move even closer, there were distant thumps on the sand and you could hear Lev crying out in a mix of joy and pain. You expected Abby to snap back and let go of your hand, but instead she just smiled, sat up and yelled: “Come here, quickly! You don’t want me to have roasted children’s feet for dinner, do you?”

Out of the corner of your eye, you could see Lev speeding up towards you.

“I’m not a child, Abby!”

He came to a halt in front of Abby, quickly glancing at your intertwined fingers before frowning at her. She patted the towel next to her. 

“Alright then, sir. Come sit with us, we’re currently being hypnotized by the palm branches.”

“What’s hypnotized?” he asked as he let himself flop on the towel. 

“Lay down and you’ll see,” Abby said as she lifted her free arm and rested her head on her hand, staring up at the sky again. 

“It’s the feeling of watching something - or someone - and completely getting lost in what you see. Your head gets all quiet and you’re willing to do anything the person hypnotizing you says.”

Her thumb was drawing circles on the back of your hand.

Lev let out a big breath as he solemnly folded his hands over his stomach and looked up at the leaves waving back and forth. 

You all lay there for a while, not speaking, just soaking in each other’s presence and the untainted beauty of the world in this very moment. Abby’s touch sent electrical waves through your arm right into your heart, filling your chest with liquid gold and having you fight down an ecstatic squeal of happiness. Did this mean she actually felt the same way? 

In the midst of all the joy you felt in that moment, there was a tiny voice in your head telling you that this was just an exceptional situation and things would go back to the way they were once you returned. Abby liked you, that much you were sure of, but was she really willing to go a step further and open up to you like that? Trust someone with that kind of vulnerability?

You swallowed hard, trying to fight down the tiny storm of panic brewing in your throat. There was absolutely no reason to ruin this moment for yourself. You let go of Abby’s hand to prop yourself up on your elbow, turning your body towards her. 

There was confusion in her eyes and a slightly worried look.

“Everything okay?” she whispered.

Looking up over her shoulder, you saw that Lev had fallen asleep. He looked like a little vampire, pale from the lack of sunlight on his newly recovered skin over the last weeks, lying stone still in a perfectly straight line with his hands still folded. 

You lay back down just a little bit closer to Abby than before, this time facing her completely. You could feel her breath on your lips and couldn’t stop yourself from raising a hand to push a strand of hair out of her face. She closed her eyes for a second at your touch, then she leaned into your hand. You cupped her cheek, drawing your thumb over her cheek and her bottom lip.

“More than okay,” you breathed as you ran your fingers through her hair and down the back of her neck, making her shiver despite the heat. 

Slowly this time, you sat up and whispered “Come with me.” 

Both of you stood up and now it was you that held out a hand. The Firefly took it and you both hurried towards the water again, trying not to be too loud and wake up the boy in your care. 

Finally on wet sand, you sat down and pulled Abby down with you as the water lapped at your ankles. 

You took a deep breath, glancing at the blonde’s questioning look and quickly looking down at your feet. 

“I’m so glad we finally got out of the base and came out here. You guys haven’t even seen all the beautiful places on Catalina. We could do this more often, I know my way around the Island.”

Abby drew circles in the sand, the tracks of her fingers immediately washed away by every new wave. Squinting against the sun, she softly said: “Yes, I’d like that. It really is beautiful here.”

Your heart was pounding again. What were you thinking, taking her away alone without even knowing what to say? She was obviously waiting for you to tell her something Lev shouldn’t hear. You wanted so badly just to tell her how you felt, but your head was just completely devoid of words. 

She had mercy with you. “Where else would you like to take me?” 

Her? Alone? You bit your lip, trying frantically to come up with something good. 

“There is a bay called Little Harbor, the water is bright turquoise and it’s on the west coast, so you get some amazing sunsets there. There’s a hunting cabin there, too, back from when we hadn’t fully secured the island yet. I could get a friend in admin to give us a check-up mission, let us check the electricity and stock up the hut. Only if you’d want to, of course.”

Abby nodded. “That sounds amazing. I’m cleared for missions starting next Monday, I need to start doing my part anyways. We could go whenever it fits your schedule.” 

You smiled at her. “Great. I’ll let my friend know.”

“Are we going to stay there overnight, then?” 

You could hear the amusement in her voice. She knew she was making you all flustered and nervous and was just teasing you now so you elbowed her, stifling a laugh.

“It could be arranged.”

She placed her hand on your knee, looking at you to catch your reaction. You couldn’t help but blush and pressed your lips together, trying to hold it together. 

“Y/N.” 

Her face was now directly next to yours, her breath warm on your cheek again. It took everything in your power to turn your head and look her directly in the eye. Well, you tried to, but her eyes were on your lips again, her tongue quickly running over her bottom lip only to disappear again. 

And finally, after weeks of uncertainty, of pining and yearning and trying to get her out of your head, she grabbed the back of your neck and gently pulled you in. Her lips were incredibly soft, cushioning your movement as you pressed your mouth on hers, desperately trying to stay in this moment forever. She tasted like the sea, but her warm skin still smelled like the forest. It always did. 

You leaned into her, deepening the kiss as she put her arm around your shoulders and ran her hand over your thigh. Nothing had ever felt better than this. 

The blonde pulled away slightly, peeking at you through long eyelashes and licking her lips again. 

“I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time,” she confessed, never releasing your gaze.

“Me too,” was all you got out under your shaky breath before she kissed you again, sweet and smiling, placing tiny kisses on your cheeks and jawline before moving up to graze her lips over your nose and forehead. 

“I’m so lucky,” she mumbled against your temple. “After everything Lev and I have been through and of all the places in the world…”

She wasn’t the type to speak much about her feelings and this was probably the most you would get from her for now, but it was more than enough for you to understand. You rested your head on her shoulder as you both stared out to the open water. 

“I’m not going anywhere. I’ve never felt like this with anyone before.” It felt like a weight had been lifted off your chest. You knew this was a lot to reveal, but you trusted Abby to not get scared away easily. 

“You know, Lev is going to be so relieved.” Abby snorted and turned around to see if there was any movement in your little camp, but the little Seraphite seemed to still be enjoying his afternoon nap. 

Your brows almost hit your hairline. “You’re gonna tell him right away?” 

She laughed and slapped your thigh before tightening her grip around it.

“Sure, he’s been listening to me debating my next step for the last week. He was so excited for today because he thought you’d make a move.” You couldn’t believe what you were hearing. 

“He has zero faith in me, you know. He knows I easily face any kind of danger and I always win my fights, but he thought I didn’t have the guts to kiss you.”

You rolled your eyes. “Okay, Miss Warrior, you’re the toughest. I remember Lev telling me something about crane bridges?”

She acted shocked. “I trust him with all my secrets and he just goes and tells you about them? What a little brat.”

You both had to laugh; it was clear that no one loved Lev more than Abby and no one could ever really be angry with him. 

“No seriously, I tell him everything. He’s all I got left.” She looked down and smiled to herself, no bitterness or sadness in her voice but a deep appreciation and nothing but love for her partner through thick and thin. 

Her last sentence stung a little, but you knew it was going to be a while before Abby would know just how much she could count on you to be there for her. Trust had to be earned. 

-

You spent the rest of your day in the shade with Lev, eating the fruit you had brought, playing cards, reading, and stealing kisses while the boy went for another swim in the ocean. Lev was sad you couldn’t light a bonfire as it got dark, but you had to get back in time for dinner. 

Both you and Abby promised him another beach day with stick bread at the campfire as soon as you both found the time again. Meanwhile, he could try to find some friends to come along. 

As you packed up your things, the sun was setting behind the green hills of the island and painting the sky pink, orange and purple, delivering a spectacle almost as wonderful as the one going on inside you. 

Lev jumped on the back of the truck without asking this time and both of you got in the front. The drive was quiet, all of you deep in thought, reminiscing about the day you had had. 

“Thanks again for doing this,” Abby said, playing with a strand of your hair. The windows were rolled down and the cool evening air was dancing through the cabin, filling your lungs and clearing your mind. 

“You’re very welcome.”

“I can’t wait for our cabin trip. A sunset just for the two of us,” she remarked, looking at you from the side. 

Finally back on the main road, you placed your hand on her thigh. You had wanted this for so long and now you would do everything in your power to win Abby’s heart entirely. 

“When do I see you again?” you asked, scared to hear the answer. 

“Tomorrow morning? You could pick me up from the gym for breakfast if you want. I’d offer to train with you but I think your doctors would feed me to the sharks.”

You laughed at the thought; it had taken forever to convince the medical staff to let you go today. It was going to be a few more weeks of physiotherapy to get your body back on track. 

“Okay. I’m pretty sure they’re making pancakes tomorrow. A commander’s birthday, I think. Pick you up at 8?”

She placed her hand on top of yours and squeezed it. 

“I’ll be waiting.”

[vannahfanfics]

ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ NYOOMS IN hellooo i would really love to request a sokai fic with the lollipop prompt!! personal anecdote: lollipops were the first sweet i ever hand-made for valentine's day because i wanted them to last longer than chocolates, bahaha :D thank you so much for all your wonderful work!!! ♡

Hi, liesles! Thank you for waiting patiently for your request! I thought it would go really well with a prompt from @sokaiweek​, “Be Mine,” so I hope you enjoy what I’ve come up with!

Sweet on You

“Ahh, it feels like forever since I’ve been to Twilight Town!” Kairi cried jubilantly as she ran down the forest path, eager to escape the woods where they’d hidden the Gummi ship and reach the town proper. She stopped to spin on her heel in the dirt, flashing Sora a brilliant smile. “Of course, the last time I was here, I was hiding from the Organization,” she joked, twirling a lock of her short auburn hair around her finger. Sora snorted at her cheekiness, amazed at her ability to reconcile with what was probably a pretty harrowing experience. But, that boundless optimism was one of the many things he appreciated about Kairi. 

“Well, now we don’t have to worry about them,” he smiled back, leaves crunching under his feet as he followed after her. She waited for him to join her on the path, standing there with her hands clasped behind her back in that adorable way that never failed to make his heart flutter. He was glad to see that even after everything they’d been through, some things still hadn’t changed. 

“So? What do you want to do while we’re in town?” he asked when he reached her, sliding his hands in his pockets. Kairi walked along beside him, a spring in her step. 

“I want to visit Olette, Pence, and Hayner, of course! Oh— and Xion, Roxas, Isa, and Lea, too. I want to try those pretzels and sea salt they brag about so much!” she giggled. He loved her giggle, he realized dreamily. It was the sweetest of sounds, sweeter than even the bells of Scala ad Caelum ringing in the dawn blush light. “But you know,” she said suddenly, snapping him out of his daze, “I didn’t really get to enjoy the town much last time, since I was hiding away. Before we do that, can we explore a little bit, Sora?” 

“Absolutely! Anything you want, Kairi!” he agreed immediately. 

Ugh. He could hear Riku laughing now, calling him “whipped.” How was he supposed to refuse, though, when she was asking him so cutely with that excited shine in her eyes and that pretty smile on her lips? Saying no would be downright criminal!

Giggling with delight, she scampered down the path again towards the triangular gap in the brick wall that served as the entrance to the woods. Yeah, Sora reconciled with a soft smile as he watched her skirt swish around her thighs and her hair bounce around her shoulders. He was definitely whipped for Kairi. He’d always been, really. She was his light.

The sunlight enveloped them as they stepped out into the city, warm and welcoming. The tram was trundling by, rocking gently on the tracks with its metal gleaming in the sunset haze. Sora had always liked Twilight Town, not just because Roxas’ heart lay dormant inside of him. It reminded him a bit of Destiny Islands— the warm sun coating his skin, the breeze carrying the scent of trees, the atmosphere of peace and tranquility. He paused at the edge of the ledge to close his eyes and savor the sunbeams playing over his face. He cracked an eye open when he felt Kairi stand next to him. 

“I can see why they love this place so much,” she hummed, observing the honeyed skyline with lidded eyes. “It really is beautiful…” 

He could sense the “but” lingering on her tongue. 

“But… It’s not home?” he guessed, and she looked at him with a wan smirk. 

“Yeah. But it’s home to them, so I suppose that’s all that matters,” she shrugged, her look turning cheery, and he couldn’t help but grin. She always found the bright side of things— she always found the light. “But, you could definitely pick a worse home to have.” 

“Yeah, that’s true.”

Kairi took another moment to scan the horizon, watching the golden light play across the oranges and browns of the buildings. Then she cocked her head to the side with a girlish laugh. Her smile was nearly blinding as she declared, “All right, enough sightseeing! I wanna go shopping!” 

“Yes ma’am!” he said with a salute, and Kairi laughed again. Gosh, if he could only hear one sound for the rest of his life, it would be Kairi’s laugh, no question. Her giggles floated in the air as she hurried down the steps to the causeway. If Sora tried hard enough, he could see them floating around like bubbles, little iridescent, rainbow films of her beautiful laugh. He reached up to touch them, but they skipped just beyond the edges of his fingertips to float up, up, up into the honey-colored sky and red-tinged clouds. That was okay, though, because there were always more where that came from. 

“You know, I’m surprised to see so much green here,” Kairi commented as she looked at all the small planters and flower boxes adorning the city. They perched on windowsills, rested on tables, sat on porch steps, or were positioned along the sidewalk. Flowers, ferns, herbs— everything and more could be found in the myriad of little pots littering the city streets, and their bright green fronds and stalks almost glowed against the background of autumn colors. “It really does make everything a little bit homier,” she hummed in contentment. 

“Yeah, and gives Little Chef a lot of ingredients to gather!” he added with a bright grin. 

“Oh, right, of course. That’s very important!” she giggled, prompting Sora to raise an eyebrow challengingly. 

“What? Are you making fun of me?” 

“No, it’s just nice to see that your love for food hasn’t changed,” she chuckled. “You either think with your heart or your stomach!” 

Sora opened his mouth to object, then closed it because it was true. It still felt like he was being made fun of, but darn it, she just looked too cute with that teasing smirk and the tip of her tongue sticking out between her teeth! Oh, he was whipped all right, more than Little Chef’s best frosting. He looked out to the road, and a smile played over his lips as he considered just how much Kairi had him wrapped around her finger. 

It was then that he spied something resting beside the main shopping complex, and he started thinking with his stomach again.

“Speaking of love for food…” 

A cute little cart was parked beside the complex. Pink and white heart-shaped balloons that were tied to the handle bobbed in the breeze, their metallic surfaces gleaming. Red, white, and pink streamers adorned the white cart’s side, and inside, an assortment of candies rested on a soft bed of baby-pink faux grass. Sora’s mouth began to salivate immediately upon clapping eyes on it, and Kairi laughed at him. For the first time that day, he was too absorbed in the promise of sweets to fixate on how much he loved her laugh. 

“What’s this? This is new!” he exclaimed as he pranced up to it. The young woman chuckled at his excited approach, flicking her bangs out of her face and primly resting her hands against her chocolate-smeared apron. 

“Hi there! This is a special promotion that the local chocolatier is doing for Valentine’s Day.” 

“Valentine’s Day?” he echoed. Was it really February? Time sure flew when you were running around saving the world. 

“What’s the promotion?” Kairi asked, peering around his shoulder to admire the assortment of candied goods nestled in the plastic stringy faux grass. 

“We’re giving away free samples today!” the attendant chirped. “Please, pick whatever you like— for yourself, for someone special.” She gave Sora a playful wink, which made his cheeks turn as pink as the decorations on the cart. 

Thankfully, Kairi had become too engrossed in the heart-shaped cake pops to catch the candy seller’s jibe. After carefully studying one for a moment, she plucked it out of the display and promptly took a chomp out of it. She hummed exultantly as she chewed the red velvet and red icing, then opened her eyes to smile at the attendant. 

“This is delicious! Oh, we should bring everyone something, don’t you think, Sora?”

“Totally, as long as the attendant doesn’t mind. We don’t want to run off with all her stock.” 

“Please do!” she smiled pleasantly. “We want everyone to be able to enjoy these sweet treats. All I ask is that you check out the chocolatier sometime soon to look at our complete stock!” 

After promising to follow through, Kairi and Sora began picking out free samples to bring to their friends. They tried to choose a variety while still choosing things they thought they would each enjoy. While Kairi was debating between a mini strawberry shortcake and a chocolate eclair, Sora discreetly stowed a wrapped heart-shaped lollipop in his shorts pocket. 

Of course, it didn’t go unnoticed by the candy attendant. 

Someone special? She mouthed with a smirk playing over her lips. With a sidelong glance at Kairi that melted into a loving smile, he nodded. Someone special, indeed. 

After making their decisions, Sora and Kairi headed off to rendezvous with their friends. They were delighted to find the treats well-received (though comments of pretzels and sea salt ice cream were made… and comments turned into procuration, but Sora was never going to complain about more food!). They watched the sunset from the clock tower, all of them squashed together on the ledge so tightly that poor Pence almost fell off, but it worked out all right and they had a good laugh about it. 

Just as the last red rays of the setting sun were spearing across the sky in their last goodbye, they said their farewells and headed back to the Gummi ship. Kairi pranced along the path, cooing at the fireflies flitting through the trees and underbrush to fill the gloomy forest with an earthy green glow. It was a town of sunset and greenery, two things so at odds with each other yet complimented one another so well here. And at the center of all that beautiful color was Kairi. 

She danced in a circle, laughing jubilantly as she whirled her arms around to scatter the fireflies like a thousand leaves. Her hair flowed around her face like an autumn breeze, and her skirt swished around her legs like florets on the wind. The green flickering lights and puddles of moonlight illuminated her form, and in that moment, she looked like an angel descended to earth. 

“I love you,” he whispered in reverence. He found his throat closed up with emotion, but he kept going in his head. I love you. I love you so much it hurts. I can’t imagine life without you, because I love you, I love you, I love you, and I always have. He wasn’t sure when he started crying, but Kairi saw them gleaming in the moonlight, and that’s when she stopped dancing to look at him in concern. 

“Sora? Sora, what’s wrong?” she gasped and ran up to him. He just looked down at her while she raised her hands to his cheeks, sweeping away his tears with soft, gentle brushes of her thumbs. “Talk to me,” she whispered, oh-so-sweetly that his heart broke with happiness. 

“Kairi… There was something from the candy cart that I didn’t share with anyone else,” he whispered, his voice hoarse with emotion. She knitted her eyebrows together in confusion as he procured the lollipop from his pocket and held it out to her. She looked up at him, then down at the lollipop. She took it, turning it over to peer through the plastic film at the simple words etched in white icing on the front of the pink lollipop. 

BE MINE.

“Sora…” she murmured, looking up at him. He smiled sweetly even through the tears that still spilled from his eyes. She looked beautiful even in the way she kaleidoscoped in his watery vision. He reached up to cup her face in his hands, and he marveled at the way her cheeks nestled so perfectly against his palms, like they were made to be held by him and only him. Her eyelashes fluttered as she stared up at him in bewilderment, surprise, and hope.

“I love you,” he whispered again, but so she could hear this time. “I love you, Kairi. You are the light of my life, you know that?” 

“Yeah,” she said, her voice breaking as her own tears broke through the dam to flow down her face. They beaded against his palms, roughened by his years of wielding the Keyblade, but still soft enough for her to cuddle into his touch. “You’re the light of my life, too. I’m yours, Sora, I always have been.” 

He smiled at that, a broken smile because his mouth just simply couldn’t display the sheer amount of joy welling up inside of him. He petted her cheeks, wiping away her tears as she hiccuped sobby little giggles that just made her cheeks warm with embarrassment. He leaned forward to press his forehead to hers, unable to stop himself from whispering, “You’re so cute.” 

“Stop… You’re gonna embarrass me,” she complained, even though she laughed. 

“I can’t help myself. You are.” 

“Can… Can you just… Can you kiss me already, please?” she sniffed, her cheeks shining like pink opals in the moonlight. 

How could he ever refuse, especially whipped for her as he was? 

He immediately rushed in to do as she said, but he let his zeal get the best of him, because his nose collided with hers. Nervous apologies tumbled from his mouth but Kairi just giggled and guided his face back down, nosing his cheek to prompt him to try again. He took it slower this time, easing himself in to experimentally brush his lips over hers. Kairi waited for her to find his rhythm, but he could feel her excitement in the way her mouth trembled. After a few tentative pecks, he smoothed his lips over hers in a full, sweet, passionate kiss, and she melted against him. 

Forget the candy cart— Kairi’s lips were the sweetest thing he would ever taste, period. 

He kissed her again, and again, and again, until Kairi was fleeing his advances with giddy, bubbly laughter. His lips still fluttered over the places he could reach— her cheeks, her nose, her forehead, her jawline, even her eyelids. He was just drowning in love and he didn’t know how else to get it out besides showering her in affection. 

“Sora,” she insisted as she ran from his lips again, and this time, he just pouted at her. She placated him with a little peck to his pursed lips, which did make him feel a little better. “We have all the time in the world now,” she reminded him with a sweet smile. “I would like to go home at some point.” 

Right. Home— the home he shared with his friends, with his family, with Kairi. He pulled away to link his hand with hers, while she peeled the plastic off the lollipop to pop it into her mouth. The BE MINE flashed in the moonlight, making Sora’s heart swell with adoration. Kairi didn’t mean for it to be a question, but he answered it in his heart anyway. 

Always, Kairi. Always and forever. 

Enjoy this oneshot? Feel free to peruse my Table of Contents!

[charlieliqueur]

AHWM Yancy X Reader

Just One Date?

---

Yancy had made it clear time and time again.

"I'm waitin' for parole. I ain't takin' no shortcuts."

You were right there, in stealth clothes from the heist a few months ago, the key in your pocket, a hopeful look in your eyes, as always. Everytime you came back, everytime you broke in to visit him in person, he refused to sneak out for even a single night.

But this time would be different.

It was your 21st birthday. Yeah, so young to be out pulling heists and getting sent to prison and all, but you didn't care. The thing was, you could finally 'officially' buy a drink, and even if alcohol wasn't your biggest thing, you were gonna use this important birthday situation to guilt trip Yancy into sneaking out for just one night.

You wanted to see him in something other than his prison clothes (and maybe one day, nothing at all). You wanted to see him out and about, normal, happy, getting a taste of what the free world was like now. Maybe you just wanted to make sure he was serious about parole, by reminding him of what waited outside. He seemed determined, every third Sunday when you visited legally, he had a cleaner and cleaner report sheet. He hadn't gotten into a lick of trouble since you 'left'.

It was 11:40 p.m.

About an hour past 'lights out' at Happy Trails. You unlocked the gate, entered, locked it again, and headed for the right cell block. Then you unlocked an outer door, went down a few dark back hallways, through another doorway or two, another hall or three, waited for some guards to pass, silently crept past the other prisoners asleep in their cells, unlocked Yancy's cell, and finally shut the door behind you.

You snuck up, gently easing onto your knees at his bedside, he was fast asleep. You gently shook him, cooing his name. "Yancy... Yancy...?" You whispered, brushing his soft hair out of his face. It was a mess of curls when he didn't have it greased back.

"Hmmmmm?" He groaned, rolling over onto his side, his eyes opening slightly. He was so used to your late night visits he didn't even flinch. "Oh, its youse... happy birthday too..." he said softly, closing his eyes again. You smiled, your heart swelled at the fact that he remembered.

"Yeah, my 21st," you whispered.

"Mmm, 21st, ain't youse so young... gotten youself a couple'a shots yet?" He asked chuckling, tired. He'd probably only been asleep about half an hour.

You sighed, smiling. This man was half asleep in bed making sleepy conversation. "Um, not yet, I was hoping you'd tag along..." you whispered.

Please say yes, please say yes, please say-

"Come on y/n, youse know if I gets caught, it'll be solitary for weeks. And you may end up back in 'ere..." he said, rolling onto his back.

"What if we don't get caught? Hmm? Just one date?"

The last statement surprised him. You knew because he opened his eyes, and propped himself on his elbow, turning towards you. "Date? I ain't been on a date before..." he said surprised. "D-Did I say date? I-I mean, it doesn't- I just thought-" your face had flushed red.

He chuckled slightly, nodded a little, and sat up. "Alright, alright, we can head out for a few drinks. But then we come right back, okay?" He said, and you nodded, standing up happily. He pulled on a shirt and shoes. Not that it mattered, you had clothes in a dufflebag for him. He'd change once the two of you were outside.

He looked in a mirror a moment, before reaching for a small plastic tub. You stopped him and said "I like your hair loose... besides, you won't have to shower again before you get back."

"Youse smart, y'know?" He teased, before you both left.

He knew his ways out, you knew yours. Both were pretty fast, so you picked an option and went with it. Once outside, you passed him the dufflebag and told him to go change, which he hesitantly did so. Then, you were keeping watch outside the storage shed he changed in. Your eyes followed cars as they drove by on the far off road. Safety distance, since this was a prison.

You also kept your eyes out for the guards. When you knew it was safe for a few moments, you quickly changed in a different building. You were done much earlier than Yancy, most likely because he was used to tshirts and prison sweats.

Suddenly you heard a sound. You looked to see Yancy messing with his hair. Your eyes widened, and lips parted slightly in shock. Even if you had bought the clothes and knew exactly what they looked like, you didn't know what they looked like on him. Now Yancy was always handsome to you, but damn. Prison clothes weren't doing him justice.

You hadn't been sure what to get, so you went with a gray dress shirt and some black jeans. He still wore the white prison shirt under, leaving the dress shirt unbuttoned and he'd rolled the sleeves up. The boots you'd stolen from Mark fit Yancy rather well. He looked normal, like what a free man would. He deserved to be free, even if he didn't realize it.

Your eyes watched him as he looked at himself, saying "Not used to wearin' clothes like these. Youse sure about dis?" Then he looked up at you, stopping in his tracks. He only saw you in your stealth outfit, or whatever strange disguises you managed whenever you came on Visitation Day. But not in casual clothes, not going anywhere as yourself. He smiled slightly, and said "Y-Youse look nice." You smiled, looking down, a little embarassed.

"Thanks..." you gushed, before he walked up, and patted his hands on the sides of his legs, unsure of what to do. He hadn't been out in years. Many, many years. You looked at him, and then gestured for him to follow. "I already know a bar, someplace quiet, shouldn't be too busy."

"Alright, let's go then."

The bar was not quiet.

The bar was busy.

Dozens of people, eating, drinking, singing along to a classic jukebox which blared out of older speakers. Yancy looked around as people threw darts and each other around the place. You saw two people get up and start to leave, so you quickly grabbed Yancy's arm and guided him over to the seats. You both sat down, and he looked around curiously, fidgeting with the shirt collar.

"Youse sure about this? I didn't think this would be youses kind'a scene..." he said, and you shrugged. "It's not my favorite, but it's"-memories of the others getting drunk and rowdy filled your head-"...familiar."

"So what's it you want?" Asked the bartender, now standing infront of you two across the bar. "Um, not sure, didn't really plan it out..." you said nervously, looking down a little. The bartender seemed a little impatient, but Yancy casually said "Two doubles, scotch."

The bartender nodded and went off to his work. He returned, set down the glasses, and poured them. "Been a while since I've had one of these..." Yancy said, picking up the glass and watching it a moment. You grabbed yours. The shot glass was thick, and the scotch was a dark golden color. You weren't sure what to expect. Yancy held his out to you, and you smiled and tapped your glass on his, then against the bar, the downed it in one fell swoop.

He stared a moment, as you exhaled sharply. From what you tasted, it was an earthy sort of caramel flavor, with something a little more bitey. He chuckled, taking his a little slower, with less gusto than you had taken yours. He set his glass down on the bar, and out of nowhere a female voice said "Hey there... where are you from?"

Both Yancy and yourself looked to see a woman sitting down in the bar seat next to Yancy. She had a look in her eye, commonplace at bars. You had to admit, she was good looking. That worried you. Technically, Yancy and yourself weren't a thing... He wouldn't be interested, would he?

"Ohio," Yancy answered innocently. He wasn't naive, and knew exactly what she was up to... right?

"Really now?" She said with a smirk, and then introduced herself. "Yancy," he said. You began to worry. The Ohio answer was one thing, he didn't need to be getting swept up into conversation. You, however, were not up for confrontation at the moment. You waved down the bartender and ordered another shot while Yancy wasn't watching. Maybe enough alcohol would calm you down. You didn't want to get drunk, but you didn't wanna get possessive either.

It was a few more shots later, and a bit of conversation between Yancy and the woman later, that you felt this dread in your gut. A pit of worry and jealousy that wasn't quite familiar. You looked over, listening to them talk. Every time she replied to him, in that annoying 'trying to be flirty and sexy' tone, the pit worsened.

"Street boy? Hmm..."

Your body trembled a moment.

"Singing?

Your leg began to bounce anxiously.

"Dance? Now that's something. Didn't think you needed to be a muscle man for musical numbers," she said winking at him, caressing his bicep. That was the line she shouldn't have crossed. You stood suddenly, ready to fuck her up, but you were kinda drunk, and had stumbled into someone. A very large, very intimidating, very temperamental someone. He turned, glared, and grabbed you by the shoulder. "Watch it kid," he growled.

Suddenly he stumbled back, a red spot forming on his face, and beside you Yancy. The prison man stepped infront of you defensively, and glared harshly at the man, fists still clenched. His mood shifted so suddenly, and you worriedly asked "Yance?"

"Hush, doll," he said softly, as the other man stood back up. He tilted his neck to each side, and a series of cracks erupted from the joints. Then he said lowly "Bad move punk."

"Word of advice, walk away," said Yancy, not a whisper of fear. The man glared, and the bar patrons seemed to watch, either choosing a side or stepping away. You glanced back at the stool, and sighed. You started this, might as well make it interesting.

"Ready Yancy?" You asked. "Always," he replied, putting his fists up again. You immediately seized the stool, with a sudden clarity of sobriety, and threw it, knocking the man down.

So it began.

There was the clamber and chaos of a good ol' classic bar fight. Chairs being thrown, pool cues snapped, bottles shattered. People yelled, screamed, and fought. You had your back to Yancy, and his back was to you, as you both kept attackers off one another.

As a majority were either unconscious or had bolted, you both panted and stood a moment, before looking at one another. "Shows what I get for leavin' with youse for a night..." he teased, chuckling. You rolled your eyes and wearily rubbed blood off his broken lip with your thumb. He licked them, before glancing at your own.

He almost seemed to lean in a moment, before suddenly you could hear the police sirens. "Ah fuck," Yancy said in despair, looking towards the front door and windows, where red and blue lights seemed to be approaching. You immediately grabbed his arm, and you both rushed to a back door. You climbed over boxes and crates and anything, eager to escape.

Once you both made it out, you hurried back to Happy Trails. There was still a lot of commotion, so you waited until the heat died down a little before changing. Yancy made his way over the wall, but before you could, he stopped you and said "It's best youse lay low a while. Don't need you stuck waitin' for parole too. But, I'll see youse around, and, uh, thanks. Tonight was, well, interesting to say da least." He smiled, his eyes squinting up adorably as he chuckled. You nodded, and glanced down a moment, but a smile found your face anyways.

"Alright... but Visitation Day, you're stuck with me," you assured. He laughed and nodded. "Wouldn't want it any other way. Night y/n," he said, before pulling away from the gate. But you quickly reached forward, grabbing his shirt. Your face began to flush red, but you had a bit of courage in you. He looked confused, and you pulled him close again, and once he was close enough, you pull his face to yours before he can resist.

Your lips found his, and even if the kiss wasn't that comfortable, given the bars separating you two, it wasn't bad. Not bad at all. It was soft and warm and sudden. When you both pulled away, Yancy's cheeks had been tickled pink. He rubbed the back of his neck, smiling slightly. "W-Why'd youse do that now?" He gushed, unable to meet your eye a moment, his cheeks getting redder.

"Cause I think I'm in love with you," you said shyly, head still foggy from the alcohol, but you were sure of your answer.

"Oh, good, glad we're on the same page," he chuckled, before giving you a reassuring smile and backing away. This time, it was a little easier to let him go. You both glanced back once more at each other before going your separate ways.

Epilogue

You stood outside Happy Trails, nervously waiting. It was almost 6:30 in the evening. As the sun set on this late year day, you saw him. The classic black suit provided by the correction facility for recent releases looked pretty good on him. Walking beside him was Mr. MurderSlaughter, and he walked him all the way to the gate, and you could hear him talking.

"I'll be the first to say, we just might miss you around here Yancy. I'm also not afraid to say I was surprised to see I'd be letting you go today, or any day to be honest. I'm proud of you," said the man, and Yancy smiled.

"Well, I had something worth fightin' for on the outside waitin' for me," he said simply, looking to see you waiting, obviously excited. The gate was opened. Yancy stepped out.

For the first time as a free man in a very long time.

He set down the single suitcase he had, and tugged his suit jacket in place. You rushed up, which caught him by surprise, and you hugged him closely. After greetings and heartfelt words, you pulled away and smiled up at him. "Where to, doll?" He asks, his hands still at your waist. Your eyes speckled with tears of joy as you replied, "Home."

[corvus--rex]

Way back after I had just spent an entire weekend burning through the first 14k words of Dormiveglia, I decided that I wanted to do something of a foil to that, and this one came about. It's semi-abandoned rn, but I do want to come back to it. I inverted the boys' dynamics (Omega Keith and Alpha Lance), but - and no spoilers! - that's not the only part that's changed-but-not. Standing rule still applies - it's ok to skip the Omegaverses if they're not your thing! :)

~*~*~*~

Betas never could understand. Betas kept to their own dynamic. Keith supposed he envied them in a way. Never having to worry about Alphas making lewd comments, at the very least, on one end of the scale, or treating them like fine china on the other. And Omegas themselves were either just as submissive on one end, or more like Keith, not having any patience for typical Alpha behavior on the other. It’s what nearly got him kicked out of the Garrison. His propensity for getting in fights. If it wasn’t Griffin, it was another Alpha making obnoxious comments.

And then it’s what had gotten him stuck with the world’s most annoying co-pilot. In the interest of “diversity” and “balance”, his irritating co-pilot was an Alpha, and the other two crew members were an Alpha and Omega. Keith felt a sort of kinship with the other Omega. Pidge didn’t have time for anyone’s shit. He got it. He knew what it was like to be an Omega with a short fuse. It’s what made Keith like the tech genius when they first met.

He did have to, grudgingly, admit that, as annoying as his co-pilot was, as an Alpha, he was one of the better ones. Lance knew that Keith was the better pilot, and that’s why he’d started some imagined rivalry between them. Which didn’t help him, in Keith’s opinion. The other Alpha, flight engineer Hunk, was a cinnamon roll made of sunshine, and unlike any Alpha Keith had ever met. Even Shiro and Adam. Shiro saved him, in a way, and he and his boyfriend – fiancé, by then – basically adopted him. Shiro may have been missing, but Adam still loved him, despite the fight they had before Shiro left.

But none of this explained why he was on the roof of the Garrison barracks in the middle of the night with Pidge, Hunk, and, unfortunately, Lance. Pidge had been looking for his brother and father, lost on the same mission as Shiro. But something a little closer to home was messing with his computer. Either way, this whole night had been a shitshow. It started with Lance dragging Hunk along to sneak off campus. Something Keith could have told them how to do far more effectively if they’d asked. He didn’t need half his flight crew getting themselves in trouble, so he’d gone after them. And then they started following Pidge to see where he was going. And then they were all on the roof.

“Lately, all the alien chatter has been about something they're calling ‘Voltron’. But that’s been interrupted by whatever this is,” Pidge said, gesturing at his laptop screen.

Hunk crowded in beside him. “Oh, oh, wait. This looks like Fraunhofer lines. For elements, y’know? But this doesn’t look like any I've ever seen. Maybe we can reconfigure your scanner to pick up on it and we can trace where it’s coming from.”

“How long would that take?” Lance whined from where he was sprawled on the floor of the roof.

“Not long. Maybe half an hour.”

Keith just sighed and leaned back. At least he could see space from there.

Reconfiguring Pidge’s scanner took the half hour Hunk said it would. In the interest of not getting caught, Keith redirected them when trying to sneak out so they wouldn’t. Finding the source of the readings the scanner was picking up took a little longer than a half an hour. More like an hour and a half. But when they found the cave and its odd carvings it made things better. Then the carvings on the walls and floor lit up when Lance touched them and suddenly they found themselves falling down a waterfall and directly in front of a massive blue cat-robot-something.

Standing in front of it, they all saw the same thing, an even larger humanoid-shaped robot that looked like it was made of the blue cat in front of them and four others, all different colors. They all knew that it was Voltron, and that the cat in front of them was a piece of it. The vision dissipated quickly, leaving them all wondering if they really saw it. But they did, and then were wondering how to get past the force field the cat had around it.

Without warning, Lance walked up to the energy shield. “Maybe all you have to do is knock,” he said, doing just that.

The force field dropped, and the cat’s head lowered, allowing him in. Lance, being Lance, rushed in without hesitation. He found out quickly that it wasn’t a robot, it was a ship. He threw himself into the pilot’s seat and the controls came to life under his hands. Hunk, Pidge, and Keith made it on board seconds before the cat broke through the rock wall and out into the night.

Lying in his bed onboard the Castle, that night felt like a lifetime ago but also like it could have been yesterday. Keith stared at the ceiling, insomnia doing its best to ruin his sleep cycle. He kept thinking about what had happened that night – finding Blue, rescuing Shiro, and then Blue taking them through the wormhole. It wasn’t the thoughts themselves that kept him up, but he found that insomnia made his mind spin out of control. Well, if he couldn’t sleep, he might as well train. Then he wouldn’t have to deal with thinking about things he couldn’t change.

Finding out that he was half Galra solved one mystery about Keith’s past. But something still felt off. Something he couldn’t figure out. He had asked Allura and Coran if the Castle’s medical technology could determine DNA origins. He wanted to know if they could figure out his biology. But they both told him that it would take a trained medic to be able to properly accomplish that. So the rest of the mystery remained.

He heard sounds of drones and gladiator training robots as he approached the training deck. It was the middle of the night, who could possibly be up at this hour besides him? That question was answered before he got to the door and heard the distinct sound of laser fire. Lance was all about his precious beauty sleep, what the hell was he doing up – and training – at this hour? Keith walked into the training deck just as the last gladiator fell, a floor panel opening to drop the drone into the automated repair sub-floor.

“Pause training sequence,” Lance panted, sinking to one of the benches at the edge of the room.

“What are you doing here in the middle of the night?” Keith asked, walking over.

“I could ask you the same thing.”

“I couldn’t sleep, and insomnia fucks with my head. I figured training was better than letting it.”

Lance nodded. “Yeah, same.” He paused, collecting his thoughts. “I – I never meant to be such a dick back on Earth. Or out here. It wasn’t even anything to do with you being an Omega; you were just the better pilot and it made me feel like I had something to prove. Probably sounds as stupid as I think it does.”

“No?” Keith questioned, sitting beside the Alpha, “I don’t think it sounds stupid, but I don’t think like that, so I don’t really get it. I don’t think you have anything to prove. I just thought you were annoying.”

Lance snorted and leaned back against the wall. “Thanks,” he said, “Some people have a way with words, while Keith just decks them in the face.”

“I can be a little too blunt sometimes, huh?”

Lance rolled his head to face the Omega beside him. “Sometimes? Try, like, all the time. Dude, you nearly punched Iverson for some bullshit he said. I’m not denying it was bullshit, just saying that maybe punching him wasn’t the best choice. And the only reason he said what he did was because you have no filter.”

“Hey. I have a filter. I just choose to ignore it,” Keith defended himself.

Lance burst out laughing. “Ok, fair,” he said, laughter subsiding. “I don’t want to be rivals. I never really did. But we’re a team now. All of us. And we should act like it.”

“Yeah, we should,” Keith agreed, “I don’t mean for this to be the thing I lead with, but are you ok? I mean, I know we all miss Earth, home, but something’s been feeling off with you lately.”

The Alpha sighed heavily. “Yeah – I don’t know. Ever since we got out here, there’s been this weird nostalgic feeling. And I don’t know why or where it’s coming from. Like, sometimes I’ll see something here on the castle, or it will be something Allura or Coran says, or, like, the way they say it, and I get this weird feeling. Like it’s familiar somehow.”

“Well, we found out that I’m not all human. Maybe it’s possible that you’re not either. We have no idea how many races or species found Earth separately. Maybe there’s someone in your family who wasn’t human.”

Lance had never even considered that. But Keith had a point. Maybe somewhere in his family was someone who wasn’t from Earth. He didn’t think it was anyone recent, but then again, Keith was only three months younger than him, and he wasn’t fully human. Who knew, maybe one of his parents wasn’t as human as they claimed.

“Yeah, maybe there is,” Lance finally agreed.

Keith realized that he was actually tired. He didn’t want to stay up and train, he just wanted to go to bed. And it looked like Lance felt the same way. Was his insomnia cured? Probably not. But maybe late-night talks with friends could help with it.

“I think I'm gonna head to bed,” the Omega said.

“Yeah,” Lance yawned, “Me too.”

They walked back to their rooms together, brushing against one another occasionally, but that was just because it was late and they were tired. There was nothing more to that. There couldn’t be. They had only just agreed that butting heads all the time was a bad idea. Keith couldn’t bring himself to admit that there was something about Lance’s earthy, woodsy scent that called to him. There wasn’t. Was there? The Alpha’s scent had the musky note common to Alphas, but it wasn’t overbearing like so many were. It was soft, comforting. But that still didn’t mean that there was something else there. Lance just had a slightly unusual scent, that’s all.

Alphas usually only went into a rut when they were involved with an Omega, or mated to one. But being in such close quarters with three Omegas made it more likely to happen, relationship or not. But Keith wasn’t at all thinking about how Lance’s scent changed the one time said Alpha found himself in a rut when the last half of his own heat had coincided with the first half Allura’s. How it had become richer and deeper and how Keith had found himself instinctively attracted to it. Nope. Not going there.

Keith didn’t know that Lance was thinking the same thing. He didn’t want to keep going with some stupid, pointless rivalry that he’d made up. So he’d done something about it. But now that he had, Lance was trying not to think about the Omega walking beside him. The one with the herbal, incense-sweet scent. The scent that wasn’t anywhere near as sweet as other Omegas. Lance loved Pidge like a little sister, but she smelled like buttered toffee, and it only got worse when her heats hit. Keith’s scent intensified when he went into heat, but he didn’t smell like a candy shop.

So, no. Lance was not thinking about the boy beside him. Not at all. Or his scent. Or why he was suddenly thinking about how his scent changed during heats. Especially not that last one. Very especially not that last one. Not that it mattered. This was neither the time nor place for it. They had far more important things like winning a 10,000-year-old war to worry about. So Lance was just going to put that thought in the box of things to worry about later.

The two separated at their doors, going to bed alone. Neither would admit that the other’s scent permeated their dreams.

The next morning, Allura called a meeting after breakfast. When the paladins gathered on the bridge, they found the projected star map up, focused on an area of space they had never seen. It was a little farther out of the way, and, as Pidge noticed, not too far from Olkarion. But that didn’t answer the question of what the system was or why it was of interest to Voltron.

“I will admit,” Allura said, “The planet in this system is not one that requires Voltron. But it is one that may be of help to us.” She zoomed in on the map, showing the planet in question. “This is the planet Tas. They have an innate knowledge and understanding of biology. While they could be a great asset to the Coalition, this is more personal. A question about the capabilities of our medical technology here aboard the castle was raised recently. The Tasians may be able to help with the answer to that question better than we can here.”

“Getting better functionality from our medical equipment would be a huge help,” Pidge said.

Everyone agreed on that point, and that their next stop would be planet Tas. Everyone took their stations, Allura plotted the course, and opened a wormhole. A lush, green world came into view on the screen. The castle was very shortly hailed by the planet.

“Greetings and welcome to Tas. I am Ael, head of the planetary council. To what do we owe the pleasure of a visit from Voltron and the Castle of Lions?”

Ael appeared human, only the intensity of their bright emerald green eyes gave any indication that they were not. Their primary sex was difficult to discern, and no one wanted to assume, especially with an alien species. Likewise, their clothing didn’t appear gendered in any way. It was simple, with clean lines, and flowed for ease of movement.

“Greetings, Ael. I am Princess Allura of Altea and the Voltron Coalition. We have come here to Tas because of your people’s innate understanding of biology. We do not have the training or knowledge to make full use of our medical equipment and were hoping you and your people could assist us with that.”

Ael brightened. “Of course. We would be happy to assist the Voltron Coalition. Especially with something as vital as the care of those sick or injured. Please, you are welcome to land.” The gently smiling face of the Tasian disappeared from the screen.

Coran received the landing site coordinates, and Allura guided the Castle to the planet’s surface. The planet Tas was just as green on the surface as it was from space. Had they not seen it on the descent, team Voltron might never have known the city was there. While controlled, every building was dripping in plant life, whether from climbing vines, hanging planters, or window boxes. It felt as though the planet itself was alive.

The team quickly came to realize that primary sexes were of no social importance. The other Tasians were as androgynous as Ael, and everyone filled whatever role they were best suited to, regardless of primary or secondary sexes. Primary sex played a role to an extent even in Altean culture, and this was something unlike anything they’d seen.

“What is it about this place that feels so familiar?” Lance asked himself.

Keith was standing beside him, hearing his question. The Omega had had the same thought. “I don’t know, but something is definitely familiar about it.”

~*~*~*~

Links to the rest of the series:

1 | 2 | 3* | 4 | 5* | 6* | 7 | 8 | 9* | 10 | 11 | 12* | 13 | 14 | 15* | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19*

[hargrove-mayfields]

Lover, Lover, Number 9

Second day of HWOL!! Today’s prompt was Love Potion!! Read here or on my ao3 @ej_writer

Word Count: 4,593

Rating: T

Warnings: Non-Consensual Touching (Pretty much blink and you miss it and very non-explicit. It happens while a person(s) is under the influence of a love potion.)

It’s all Max’s fault, honest.

For the week leading up to Valentine’s Day, Billy’s been trying to pick the best person to be his date. Not that Valentine’s was really that important to him, per se, but he’d made a bet.

His step sister, the little brat, had made a wager that if he didn’t have himself a date by the fourteenth of February, he’d be forced to drive her everywhere she wanted to go for a whole year.

There was no way he was about to fork over that much of his time to some snotty middle schoolers, but finding someone he’s willing to go out with, a condition of Max’s bet was that it couldn’t just be a hookup, ended up being a lot harder than he anticipated.

Before he knew it, there were only two days left before he either got a date, or subjected himself to the dweeb-orama gang.

He tried to ask Carol, since Tommy dumped her right before the big day and she seemed to be into him, or at least how his ass looked in his jeans, but she tells him she doesn’t want to deal with the drama. So he tries Tommy, but he wants commitment and feels like Billy’s just in it to best Max, which, yeah, he sort of is. Everyone else follows the same pattern, can’t keep up with his reputation, can’t trust him in a relationship, on and on and on.

It’s over breakfast one morning, as he groggily makes him and his sister both a bowl of cereal, that Max asks him, “Why don’t you just ask Steve?”

Billy acts unphased, doesn’t even bother to look at her. “Steve who?”

“C’mon stupid.” His sister rolls her eyes and drags a bowl over towards herself. “Everyone knows you like Steve Harrington.”

“Do not.” He shovels a mouthful of cereal in his mouth.

“Right. Lemme guess, you don’t eat like a pig either?”

“Very funny.” He fixes her with a glare. “I’m serious shitbird, just because I like him doesn’t mean I like him.”

She nods and agrees. “Sure.”

“And just because he's nice to me doesn’t mean I have to have the hots for him.”

“If you insist.” Her bottom lip juts out as she agrees with overemphasis.

“What is your problem?” He snaps.

“I’m just agreeing with you. You don’t like Steve Harrington.” There’s a mischievous smile darkening her sweet face as she tells him matter-of-factly, “But, if you’re really desperate, I know a way to get him to like you.”

And Billy already knows what she means, of course the little shit would suggest something like that. “Nuh-uh. No way, I am not using magic.”

“Why not? Clearly you need it.”

“Because I can do it on my own, brat. Just don’t want to.” He's too defensive for it to not be true and they both know it, so before he lets a thirteen year old do anymore damage to his ego, he adds, “Can't deal with your bull this early.”

Max looks at him all smug like, her eyebrows raised as she hides a knowing smile behind her cereal bowl, but she does let it go, if not just to watch her step brother stew in silent annoyance. She’d gotten under his skin so easy, and she thought it was funny.

Her step brother, on the other hand, does not, and narrows his eyes at her, practically snarling at the look on her face. “Shut up.”

“I wasn’t even saying anything!” She bites back.

Billy grumbles and dumps his bowl in the sink, and leaves to his room to avoid babysitting his sister.

He’s starting to realize that Max had set him up. The real reason she made the stupid bet wasn’t to torture him with driving her and her nerds around, but because she thought she could hook him up with Steve.

But that doesn’t matter, because he's not pining after Steve Harrington, no matter what his little sister says.

Sure, Steve had invited him over to his place a few times, but that was just a courtesy since they were friends from basketball. And it didn’t matter that he happened to be the prettiest boy Billy ever laid eyes on, with his soft hair the color of chestnut and his doe eyes just as dark, and his long nose and his pretty red lips and-

Okay, maybe he was a little into Harrington, but again, he wasn’t going out with his best friend just because his step sister dared him to.

He can’t just call the bet off, but he’s not willing to lose either. The clock was ticking, Valentine’s Day getting closer and closer, so he’d just have to settle on somebody soon.

Admittedly, it would make things a lot easier just to cheap out and use magic, after all, he’d been trying and failing to get a date for weeks, but that could be dangerous, and Billy’s been barred from using his powers for a few years now anyways.

His father was ashamed to have a freak for a son, so ever since Max and her mother came around, he wasn’t actually supposed to use any magic at all anymore, not even for the most insignificant of things. Hell, with how tight of a leash Neil kept on him, his step sister wasn’t even technically supposed to know he’d inherited the knack from his mother.

He doesn’t really listen to that rule, but there’s no way for Neil to keep tabs on that kind of thing, so he still puts a charm on his and his sisters bedroom doors every night to keep unwanted guests out, and he still uses spells for his convenience whenever he can get away with it.

In all honesty, he could do without that stuff. Incantations were boring, spells were too basic. His favorite, the one thing he misses having the liberty to do, that’s got to be potions.

Before his mother’d left him behind, ran off to live the uninhibited life of a free spirit every witch dreamed of having, she had been very proud that Billy had taken after her in his powers, and in his skill for potion making especially.

They would make them together a lot of the time, huddled up down in the basement when his dad wasn’t home so she could show him the ropes and teach him all the recipes she knew.

He’d caught on real quick, well enough that she didn’t need to hover after the first few attempts at one type. Sometimes he wishes he’d been less proficient for just a little longer, so she’d have had a reason to stay and keep helping him.

Among their most common to make though were potions of luck and protection, elixirs, anything positive really. His mother may have also, on occasion, made a more powerful potion, one to keep under the pillows, in a flask on her hip, to spike her husband's coffee with every morning, just so Neil couldn’t hurt her or her son, but Billy was sworn to secrecy on that one.

Under his bed he still had a trunk full to bursting with everything of his mothers’ he had been able to keep, including their already prepared potions. Rows and rows of intricate crystal bottles, some still full to the top while others had only a few drops left, depending on how useful they were, all neatly displayed along with the rest of the memories of his mother.

She absolutely never allowed him to make anything dangerous, the first thing she ever taught him was to always keep hate out of his magic, so she’d let him practice more complicated and powerful potions with something a little less destructive.

Something like love potions.

It becomes his sort of trademark, the earthy smell of rose hips and cinnamon clinging to his skin from hours bent over their big cauldron they kept stored away. Even now, without having brewed anything for almost a year since they’d moved houses, it still lingered, like an aura.

They made up for some of his best work, the hardest of the love potions coming easier to him than the easiest of the medicinal ones. The best he’d ever made was a platonic love potion that his mom let him use the teensiest drop of to stop a fight between his friends at school, and to this day he was still proud of that one.

His mom had always said it made sense that that would be where he excelled, loving with his whole heart was just in his nature, and his craft was the reflection of that. In the same sense, it comes as no surprise when he’d stopped being able to brew anything stronger than potpourri after she’d walked out on him and broke that big heart right in two.

He didn’t know if keeping every of the potions that he made was genuinely because of their potential usefulness, like he tried to convince himself, or if it was a way to hold onto a time when he was still good at what he did. A time when he was happy.

Were he going to use one of those potions he kept stashed away, as Max had not so subtly suggested, he knows exactly which one he would choose. Not number six, not number twenty-seven, he would need number nine.

Not that he would, because he refuses to use his magic for petty relationships. Yet another thing his mom had drilled into him from the start was to never use his gift to take advantage of other people.

But then another day passes, and Billy's got to at least consider it, if not only for the sake of him not having to provide chauffeuring services to his least favorite bratpack.

In all reality, it wouldn’t be so bad to date Steve, he was nice enough and cute enough, but he feels they were sort of of the same polarity. They could get along just fine now, but there was some force, some energy between the two that kept them apart.

For every step they take forward, say, Steve agreeing to keep his magical secret from the moment they met, they have to take one back.

That fact had been well established in his mind since the moment he noticed himself making heart eyes; he and Steve just weren’t going to work out. Not after months of oblivious pigtail pulling, not after pushing Steve out of his own social circle, and definitely not after their fist fight in November.

Billy thinks he takes rejection from Tommy and Carol and everyone else in stride, but Steve wasn’t like them. The relationship they already had teetered on the line between rivals and friends, always one argument away from going back to that place, and Billy’s unwilling to lose that constant.

Of course, he wouldn’t have to worry about rejection and ruining friendships if he used magic.

But that was wrong. Number 9 was the strongest of the strong. It was said that it was powerful enough to make oil and water mix, but even then its effects only lasted for exactly twenty minutes. The jig’d be up quick, and his pretty boy would be right back to hating him.

There was always the slightest chance too that it were brewed just right, and Steve would love him forever, the bond that would form between them the moment he drank from Billy’s magic maybe enough to last, despite their differences. It wasn’t guaranteed to turn out bad, so maybe, just maybe, he’d give it a shot.

Godammit, had Max gotten in his head.

~~~~~

Billy knows he’s an idiot, a complete and total dumbass for showing up to the party with a crystal vial in his pocket, but he can’t help it.

There’s no guarantee he’s even going to use it, it’s just in his pocket as a sort of security blanket. He doesn’t even catch a glimpse of Steve anywhere among the crowd, so he sees no harm in it.

Well, at least not until someone, he’d have to guess it was Tommy, slips a hand into the pocket of Billy’s jacket, apparently able to sense a bottle from a mile away, and steals it. Like it’s just his own secret stash of alcohol instead of the most powerful piece of magic he’d sure as hell ever owned, let alone to have ever been used in Hawkins, a traditionalist town known for its distinct lack of witchcraft.

Only he doesn’t notice that it’s been swiped, not until he catches a glimpse of the gentle pink glow that only he could see in someone else’s hand from across the room, hovering just inches above the punch bowl.

He’d like to think he’s pretty powerful in his craft, he'd been raised by a witch who’d in her time been strong enough to get kicked out of her coven for threatening the High Priest, but in that moment he just sort of freezes.

There’s an infinite number of spells he could’ve used; he knows how to stop time, how to recall objects, and about a thousand and one other handy little ways to stop the vial from being overturned into that bowl.

And yet, his brain freezes up, and before he can do anything about it, there’s a thick fog rolling off of the bowl, and the air smells sweet and sticky like ladies perfume, and the liquid is shining all bright pink.

Billy is officially screwed.

It’s one thing for a single person to drink a love potion, but mixing it with any other liquid? That shit turned into a weapon.

He knows he’s not gonna make it in time, but he’s at least gotta try to stop it, get people as far away from it as possible. He muscles his way across the room, pushing past the crowd of teenagers to try to get to it first. “Nobody fucking touch the punch.”

But his voice calling over the crowd draws their attention to him, and there’s at least fifty hollow gazes fixed right on him. Judging by the looks on their faces, the pinpoint pupils and the awe stricken smiles, he’s too late.

There’s one breathless moment where Billy realizes what's about to happen and tries to back away before all hell breaks loose, but all at once they all surge forward trying to get their hands on him.

Momma didn’t stick around long enough to teach him how to discharge a potion, and he wasn’t going to make it the whole twenty minutes in this herd. The front door is his only escape.

It’s so dark in the room, other than the light from the potion’s ambience, that he can’t make out who’s who, whose lips those are on his neck, whose hands are on his hips and tangled up in his hair, so he just trudges forward as best he can, trying to shake each person off, only to get another wrapped around him.

But, in the magic induced state, they’re strong, and they don’t want to let him go. Fingernails dig into his skin, arms wrap tight around his waist, any way they can hold onto him to try keep him from moving any closer to that door, they do.

It’s like walking in gelatin, so many people trying to stop him, and it takes him way longer than it should, but he makes it to the door.

Before he can open it, someone’s pushing his back up against it and reaching a hand up under his shirt. Another someone presses a kiss to the corner of his mouth.

He feels blindly for the door knob and gets it in his hand after a few attempts, the ordeal being all the harder when there were so many people who wanted those hands on them, and twists it.

The rush of cold air from outside and the lights from the streetlight on the sidewalk helps a little to dilute the strength of the potion, weakening just enough the grip of those under his influence that he can wriggle out and slam the door shut behind him.

He keeps his back pressed against it, his arms holding on to either side of the door frame as tight as he could so nobody else can get out. Checking his watch, there were still about seven more minutes until the potion would wear off.

He could see the faintest glow of pink light shining from under the door and behind the curtains on the front window, and he thought about what they were doing without him. Probably talking about how he was the coolest, the ones who’d gotten their hands on him bragging.

No one but him would remember what happened anyways.

To make his escape, wait out the rest of the potion's effects, and hightail it before anybody remembered he was even here, well, that would have just been too easy. Because this is Billy Hargrove, so of course, at that very moment, who would approach the house but Steve fucking Harrington.

“Hargrove?” He looks confusedly up at Billy, and climbs a few of the porch steps to ask him, “What’re you doin’ out here man?”

“Party’s a bummer. Thinking ‘bout ditching.” The nonchalance he’s able to portray in his voice is in direct contrast with the way his hair is frizzed out and his clothes are all messy from what happened inside.

Steve doesn’t seem to pay it any mind though, because he offers him a smile, and responds to Billy like this situation didn’t look weird at all, with him sprawled out over the door and in such bad shape. “Mind if I join you? Wasn’t really looking forward to all the people tonight anyways.”

“Uh, if you give me,” Billy turns his wrist, still not letting go of the door, and reads the time on his watch again, “three and a half minutes, then we can blow.”

Steve leans a little to try to see in the window. “Is somethin’ going on?”

“Nothin’, nothin’ just uh, told Tom I’d stay ‘til quarter after.” It’s a bullshit excuse, Steve already knows he and Tommy aren’t even that close, but Billy just focuses on counting down the seconds and doesn’t think too much about it. “And…. we’re good.”

“You are so weird, dude.” Steve remarks while he waits for Billy on the steps. He looks back over his shoulder when they’re walking away but visibly shrugs it off. “Did you drive?”

“You know I don’t park my baby on the street.” His prized Camaro had yet to make an appearance at one of these parties, for a platitude of reasons, but the main one being that he might have to break his mother’s golden rule and put a curse on someone if his beauty got so much as a scratch.

“Figures.” Steve remarked. He didn’t think the Camaro was all that, thought it was too loud and too fast.

His BMW isn’t too far off, showing up late meant he had to take a street spot instead of cramming into the driveway, but that only made it easier to get out.

While he starts it up, he asks Billy, “Where are we going? I picked last time.”

“Far away from here as possible.” He mutters in response.

Before he pulls away from the curb, Steve asks, “Did something happen, Bills? You’re acting all, weird.” There was genuine concern laced into his voice, none of that playfulness that they usually had.

But for Billy, anything would be better than having to own up to what had happened. He’d have to admit to the whole, desperate for love, he used a potion he made when he was seven to try to make Steve Harrington fall for him, and that was not ideal, to put it simply.

Only, he felt obligated to explain, because he knew what Steve was thinking had happened. He knew too much about the sorts of things Billy told not a single other soul.

His magic was one thing. Where nobody was really supposed to know Hawkins got a new spell caster for the first time in ages, Steve had some grandma or someone who was a witch and had recognized that shit in a heartbeat.

Observational skills like that, it was no surprise he’d figured out the truth about his father too. About where the bruises and the scars came from.

So he knows that’s what Steve’s thinking right now, that Billy’s acting off because of something his dad did, and it would feel wrong not to tell him the truth, to be pitied when nothing even happened this time. Still, he’s not exactly thrilled about having to confess about the potion.

“Someone brought a fucking Number 9 to the party.” Billy flips the sun visor down to see himself in the little mirror there. There’s kiss marks all over him that he tries to rub off with his sleeve, but the leather doesn’t do much but make the skin flush.

“Shit, not a number nine.” Steve says it like he’s confident in it, but his gaze keeps flickering over to Billy to gauge his reaction. It’s clear that he has no idea what he’s talking about. “What's- what’s number nine?”

Billy snorts and explains, “Only the strongest love potion out there. Went straight into the punch.”

He doesn’t have much of a grip on the magical world, but he knew enough to guess that was a problem. “What kind of a dipstick would bring that?”

Billy stopped wiping at his face and looked over at Steve with that ‘come on, stupid’ look on his face. “Oh, I don’t know, maybe the only dipstick who walked away from the place covered in fucking lipstick.”

“Really?” There’s a teasing tone in his voice, like a parent who found out there kid had a crush, and it makes Billy want to sock him. “And who does Billy Hargrove need a love potion for?”

“For you.” It takes all the courage he has, but he admits it. His eyes flicker nervously between Steve and everywhere else, waiting for his response.

And what he gets is, “Pfft. You know I don’t need magic to get the ladies.” Let it be known that no one ever accused Steve of being the brightest.

As if he hadn’t noticed that Steve was a skeezer. As if his heart hadn’t already been broken a thousand times over because of it. “Yeah, no shit.”

He furrows his eyebrows in confusion, but maybe a little bit in denial too. “Then why’d you bring me a love potion?”

“Steve.” It sounds like a plea, an exhausted attempt to get him to understand, but Steve isn’t in on it.

“What?” Billy just sort of raises his eyebrows in response, and something about it makes it click in Steve’s head.

His mouth forms an ‘o’ shape, and when he speaks again, his voice is all breathless, “You were going to use it on me?”

“Doesn’t take a genius.” And that’s the end of it.

They don’t talk about it. Steve drives them out to the quarry in silence, occasionally looking over at Billy like he wants to say something, but doesn’t.

As soon as they get there, before Steve’s even got the chance to put the bimmer in park, Billy’s out of the car and sitting on the edge of the rocky lookout.

He needs a smoke, needs the burning in his lungs to distract him from the weight of what he had just admitted to Steve. His hands are shaking as he fumbles with a match, trying and failing to light the cigarette on three different matches before he decides to give up.

Steve taps his shoulder and hands Billy his zippo before sitting down next to him. “You didn’t have to.”

Billy lights it up and takes a long drag, giving Steve back his light with a cigarette as thanks, filling his lungs with as much smoke as he can before he can respond. “Have to what?”

“Try to use magic on me.” Steve’s staring down at his hands, calculating every last word he says. “You could’ve just asked.”

“Yeah, I know Harrington. It was creepy. Just drop it.” There’s a sharpness in that tone that hasn’t been there for months, and it makes the both of them wince.

Steve explains himself, hurt by the coldness, “No, I think it’s sweet! I mean, that you would do that for me.”

“Get over yourself. Was just messin’ around, wanted to see if I could do it.” That’s what gives him away. Billy was too sure of his own prowess for that to be all of it, and so Steve decides to press him for the truth.

“Don’t you want to know what I would’ve said though, if you asked me?”

“Honestly? No.” He really, really does.

Steve pretends like he doesn’t hear that and tells him anyways. “I like you Billy.”

It hitches his breath to hear that, but Billy’s got to be rational. “Yeah? You like me or the cinnamon?”

Steve’s face scrunches up in confusion. “What?”

“It’s an ingredient in the potion, Steve. Do you mean it or did you get a whiff of that shit somehow?” He still doesn’t look at him, just stares down at the churning water, and it registers with Steve that he doesn’t want to see absent admiration, pinpoint pupils, any sign that this isn’t real.

So he assures him, his voice as soft as it can be, “I mean it. I really really like you, and if you’re not gonna believe me, then- then I guess I’ll just have to prove it.“

Who would’ve expected Steve to make the first move? Stumbling, bumbling Steve Harrington, the one to lean in first. But he is, it’s him who uses those long fingers to turn Billy’s face towards his and presses their lips together.

If, you know, there wasn’t a more pressing matter at hand, like the fact that the boy he’d just tried to use love magic on was kissing him without the assistance of said magic, Billy might’ve been a little disappointed in himself to not be the one to initiate it.

But they’d have time for that argument later, about who did what when, right now his mind was more focused on not just sitting there, on moving his lips against the other boys and

It feels like forever before Steve pulls away to put a hand on the back of Billy’s head so he can bring their foreheads together.

Steve’s breathless as he says, “Wanted to do that since the first time I saw you in the parking lot.”

“Good. Didn’t want to have to brew any more.” Billy says without a hint of seriousness.

Steve nudges him with his elbow. “I’m trying to be romantic, you ass.”

“No seriously, hibiscus is super hard to come by around here, couldn’t afford to waste any on you.”

Crossing his arms, Steve fixes Billy with a stern look that makes him laugh.

“M’only teasin’ ya pretty boy.” He crumples his cigarette into the asphalt and puts his hand on Steve’s knee. “Kiss me like that again, would ya?”

And he does. Every time Billy asks, Steve’ll kiss him just like that first time, soft and gentle and sweet in a way he’s never had, no magic required.

Needless to say, Billy definitely won that bet.