#No I Will Never Admit That I Am Possibly Projecting Something Or Other. I Simply Like The Dynamic. The More-Than-Slight Imbalance.

[mementoasts]

binge watching kaguya-sama has sucked the energy to write toxic masadai fic out of my body. i want to be in LOVE

[dsudis]

A Worthy Gift

Another Dreamling @domaystic story! Today's prompt was "Handmade Gift."

Especially since naming him a friend and accepting his invitation to visit more often, Dream was careful not to intrude upon Hob's dreams, including his daydreams. Still, it was impossible not to know when he personally was dreamed or daydreamed about--a rare occurrence, for few dreamers knew him so well, and none but Hob Gadling took such an interest in him.

Hob had been daydreaming about him particularly intensely for the last several days, and while Dream did not let himself be aware of the content of those daydreams, he recognized the pattern. This was the anxious circling and re-circling of some sort of intense dilemma.

Dream... could imagine what the dilemma might be, but it was altogether too likely that he was projecting his own wishes onto Hob. Probably it was something else altogether, something Dream had never thought of. Humans in general and Hob Gadling in particular had an infinite capacity to surprise, and Dream told himself again and again not to try to guess.

Still, when Hob descended into a very intense bout of this circling, repetitive daydreaming at a time when Dream could tell he was at home alone in his flat, Dream decided to put them both out of their misery. He stepped out of the Dreaming and into Hob's flat, just inside the front door.

It was morning, and there was no immediate sign of Hob.

Dream took another step inside and realized the shower was running.

He ought to have known; showers had become their own field of concentrated daydreaming during his absence from the Dreaming. He had had to create a whole brigade of dreams and nightmares to guide such activities more fruitfully than they were prone to be when dreamers were left to their own devices.

Dream took another step inside. He had to exert a particular effort not to sense the content of Hob's frantically spinning daydreams at such close range when they were so loud.

It was, he thought, not the shape of a sexual fantasy; it didn't have that rhythm.

It was something much more... material. Dream glanced around and realized that the threads of the daydreams of the last several day were echoing in the space around a particular object, one almost hidden from him by that intense daydream energy.

Dream walked over to it, irresistibly curious to know what item could have been inspiring such a flurry of daydreams from Hob, and discovered...

A black bag, with tufts of black tissue paper rising from it.

A gift.

There was no special occasion in the offing; they had never exchanged gifts before. Hob was punctilious in offering food and drink every time Dream called upon him now, and Dream generally accepted them in accordance with the ancient customs of hospitality. He almost never actually ate or drank what he was given beyond a token nibble or sip.

He had never thought of Hob wanting to offer him something beyond the customary. If he did...

There were simply too many possibilities to guess at, and Dream stood there, absorbed in his own daydreams, until he heard Hob say, "Oh, bugger."

Dream looked up to see Hob dressed only in boxer shorts, his hair still sleekly wet, looking rueful but not unhappy.

"Have I come at a bad time?" Dream asked.

Hob heaved a sigh and came toward him. "No, now's as good a time as any, and I suppose the 'pretend I never had this idea' option is off the table now."

"I am... quite intrigued," Dream admitted, looking toward the little black bag again.

"It was just... a thought I had. I was a bit drunk and... well, you'll see. If you hate it you can just bin it and we can pretend I never--"

Hob's nervous flow of words cut off as Dream tugged the tissue paper out of the bag and reached inside to draw out...

A mug.

It was a very pretty mug, as mugs went, glazed in a deep glittering black.

Dream turned the mug to see if there was some witty slogan on the other side--World's Okayest Friend, perhaps, to match the mug he had seen Hob use emblazoned with World's Okayest Professor--and instead nearly dropped the mug at the sight of his ruby, deep liquid-shining red and swimming with dreams.

He blinked a few times and realized that it was, of course, not his ruby at all, but a representation of it composed of layers of beautifully translucent red glaze. The dreams he could feel in it were Hob's.

Hob had painted this mug, while thinking of him. Wishing to give him a gift that would represent something important, something so powerful within him that it could not help being captured by this mere physical object.

Dream dragged his gaze from the mug to Hob, who had wrapped his arms around his middle and was biting his lip in obvious anxiety. "I... I was out with some friends at this ceramic-painting thing, and I wanted you to have a mug for when I make you tea. Not that I've found any you'll actually drink, but I... I want you to know that you belong here, that the tea's not just politeness. I just... want to give you something, and I was thinking of you and how to represent you and I know you don't even have that ruby anymore, but--"

There were limits even to Dream's powers, and he could not keep himself from knowing, while he held the mug in his hands, while Hob was right there radiating fantasies and fears, what dreams had been poured into this object.

Dream set it down with all the care it deserved, and took the two steps required to be face-to-face with Hob, who had to look up at him a bit at close range. He was barefoot, of course, and Dream had his boots on, his coat, a number of layers that felt absurd in this moment.

Hob looked up at him, saying nothing at all, his lips parted, hope just beginning to dawn in his eyes before Dream closed the last of the distance and kissed him.

Hob yielded sweetly to the kiss, his hands coming up to rest on Dream's arms, and when Dream pulled back Hob just looked up at him, as bright and beaming as the first night they'd met, but better. Hob knew who he was looking at now, and still he had that expression of wondering joy.

"Anything will taste sweet to me," Dream said, "when served in a vessel suffused with such dreams of love. And I am partial to white teas, so long as they are not scalded in the steeping."

"Right," Hob said. "Time to buy a fancy kettle right after I--" Hob pushed up onto his tiptoes to kiss Dream again, and neither of them said another word about tea for some time after that.

[This fic is also on Ao3!]

[claudemblems]

Oh, Was I Staring? | Alhaitham Drabble

Notes: This is just a drabble so it's nothing fancy but jhjksdakda Alhaitham is such a prick (affectionate) I can only imagine how unbearable his teasing flirting would be

You sensed Alhaitham’s eyes on you with your nose buried between the pages of a well-worn book. He studied you with a genuine curiosity, something rather out of place for the Akademiya’s scribe. Few things piqued his interest so, and yet, there he was, observing the gentle flutter of your eyelashes, your nimble fingers that carefully flipped to a new page, even the way you nonchalantly brushed the stray strands of hair away from your eyes as you continued your reading. You were nearly tempted to say something, to let Alhaitham know he’d been found out—although, it didn’t seem like he was really worried about being discreet in the first place. A part of you wondered if he was staring on purpose, as if he were daring you to break the silence, but what did he gain from that? Was there some kind of expression or reaction from you that would satisfy his intrigue? You couldn’t put the pieces together, and that’s exactly what drove you mad about him. Alhaitham never left a single opening for others to exploit. His every move was so meticulously calculated that it made it impossible to find his vulnerabilities or weaknesses. How could anyone possibly stand against a man of such caliber?

“[Name], are you all right? You’re staring.”

Alhaitham’s voice plucked you out of your thoughts, and it was to your abject horror that you realized you’d been staring at him this entire time.

And he’d simply let you.

Anyone else might have missed it, but you caught sight of his slightly upturned lips, a silent indication of his having caught you in the act. A mixture of anger and bashfulness flooded through you, turning your cheeks a deep red.

“At a loss for words now? You looked like you had so much to say.”

You bit back the witty remark on your tongue, not daring to give Alhaitham so much as a single inclination of just how flustered he’d made you. Instead, you unpursed your lips, directing your attention back to the book you were meant to be reading.

“As you already know, I’m busy,” you replied coolly, but inside you were fighting back the urge to meet his gaze again. Even if Alhaitham was…irritating, he was breathtaking. That was something you couldn’t dispute.

“Oh, am I disturbing you? My apologies. I suppose my…suggestions, can wait.”

Your eyes immediately flickered upwards to meet his, and it was then that you’d recognized your mistake. Alhaitham was smirking at you now, clearly pleased with himself that he was able to command your attention just by mere words. It was too late to hide the blush blooming on your face now. Alhaitham knew exactly how you felt about him, and he was making every effort to confirm his conclusion. But why repeat his experiments when he’d only get the same answer?

“I did wish to speak to you regarding a new project given to me by the sages. I’d hoped I’d be able to enlist your help, but…”

“...Give me five minutes and you will have my full attention.”

“Wonderful. I’ll be waiting for you at the Grand Bazaar. Don’t be late.”

As Alhaitham rose out of his seat and strode past you to the Akademiya’s entrance, you swore you felt the faint brush of his fingertips against yours. The gesture brought a new wave of heat searing through your skin. If Alhaitham saw how you looked now, you don’t think you’d ever hear the end of it.

Perhaps that was his goal all along: to get you to confess before he had to do so to you.

The nerve of that man. I’ll make him admit his own love for me. 

I swear it. 

[utilitycaster]

One of my least favorite types of post in fandom, particularly for actual play, is the "why isn't everyone dropping everything to focus on my blorbo's mental state," and I wanted to talk about why.

The most obvious surface reason, of course, is that unless you are watching something with a very clear single protagonist and that is the character you're talking about, and the story is explicitly about people helping them heal, this is simply not a thing that's likely to happen in most works. It doesn't mean you can't want it; but that want is best explored and expressed through transformative works rather than trying to get the "let's watch blorbo carefully work through every trauma they have" blood from of the narrative stone. (I'll admit my own interest in such works is very limited, but that shouldn't stop you.)

But even when that is the stated purpose, that's just not the sort of story I'm drawn to. It feels too artificial and dishonest to the human experience, and leaves a strange taste in my mouth. I think it derives from a set of intertwined fantasies this represents, and they are admittedly a very seductive pair of lies.

One is the idea that there will come a time, amid seemingly insurmountable external challenges, when everything can pause and during that magical lull all will be resolved. It's the "this weekend I'll get my life together" fallacy. The truth is that this stoppage almost never happens, and in the cases when it does it is rarely a gentle hold, but rather a screeching involuntary halt. The fix is often not enough to truly fix, but rather just enough to get one moving again before being thrust back into the unceasing world. It's magical thinking, of a magic that even fantasy worlds (perhaps especially heroic fantasy worlds, where all the stakes are impossibly heightened) cannot provide: that the world will stop turning long enough for a complete fix, and that a complete fix is even possible or attainable, and that it will not require any ongoing work to maintain once the world has started up again.

The second is the fantasy of being understood without effort: that this quiet period will come without you needing to speak up and say "stop". That your walls will be broken with no contribution from within; that someone else will do all the work and love you despite that. And why not? As anyone who has dealt with any sort of mental health issue knows, it is exhausting. Wouldn't it be nice if someone else just...knew exactly where to place the leverage to pop you out of that rut as you sat unmoving?

It would be! It's also not going to happen.

I am, despite what I say, not against projecting on characters. That's what characters are for. I'm just not particularly interested in seeing characters who get what I sometimes want and know pretty much no one can have. I want to watch characters experience what I might, and succeed, but I do need the struggle to be as real for them as it is for me. I want the character to be in the same hole and know how to get out because they've been here before, not turn to me and shrug and say "honestly, everything went great for me - you're on your own, pal" and levitate out.

There's much more to it too - I love character dynamics, and so the idea of everyone else fading to flat grayscale tools to help one character is uniquely unappetizing. I also find a lot of the discussions surrounding this sort of premise believe that this magical fixing also occurs without anyone ever saying anything even remotely challenging to the person being helped. It really is just essentially reduced to a flavorless hand waving a magic wand over the character in question, which makes for a very short and bad story.

There are other fantasies too, all tied up in this, and all both understandable to have and tedious to watch, most notably the ideas that suffering is purification and that the blorbo who needs help is eternally blameless and never complicit in either their own pain and their actions towards others; and that give and take (and on a meta level, focus within a story) are easily and meaningfully quantifiable and are required to be kept in some cosmic balance (usually one rather heavily tilted towards a fan's favorite character) for a story to be good.

The question ultimately needs to not be "when will everything stop and center and therapize and fix the character I most relate to" but rather "will this character's traumas and issues and past be explored in any meaningful way during the narrative, or, if they are not, will the fact that they are not explored carry its own weight." Ironically, the stop/fix/magic wand wave away fantasy does away with any possibility of meaningful exploration, and that's really why I can't fucking stand it.

[k0komis]

Reader who's an esteemed researcher in snezsnaya was helping dottore in the new project assigned by the tsaritsa.

The two have the same level of intelligence but so does their ego so they argue a lot, but this one particular day, it got so worse, both of them trying to prove themselves correct they ended up hate fucking on his office.

Not really a big fan of hate fucking so at the middle of it they realize they admire each other's intelligence and skill it's just that their ego is too big for them to admit it.

In the end they do actually like each other 🤭

❦ Tfw ego gets in your way ❦

A/N : Anon your genius! Sorry for the delay I had some practicals going on. Also since you mentioned them being on-par, I made them have quite the self control (i.e. no cockdrunk reader).

Warnings : MINORS BEGONE | Fem-Bodied Reader, Explicit sex, Rough sex, Blowjobs, Edging, Orgasm Denial, Anal and No lube because it's Dottore, There's no Dom/Sub, Y'all being mean to each other, Mentions of questionable research, Dialogue heavy, Swearing

What could possibly go wrong, you had asked yourself. Turns out everything. You had been working on a project that required the subject to be kept in very specific conditions. Well, they escaped due to the negligence of your assistants. Added to that was the arrogance if your research partner, Dottore.

You were renowned for being a hard working researcher, having many years of experience in the Fatui. But you always were in the shadow of your senior- and the harbinger- Il Dottore. It pissed you off in every way possible and you couldn't help but always be criticising his work.

And he returned your kindness. He'd mock you for not being upto his standards or not being able to be a harbinger yet.

And speaking of the man, you came face to face as you were striding down the hallways with a frown on his face. He was talking to a Pyroslinger, pointing a funny looking test tube in his hand. When Dottore noticed you, he dismissed the guy and kept the testtube back in his pocket.

"Ah, Doctor Y/N, successful with your experiment yet?" He asked.

You gave him the sweetest smile possible and replied, "They wanted to feel the snow of Snezhnaya I suppose, so my underlings let them out on a trip."

Dottore grinned, his shark teeth showing. Oh how you wished he bit his tongue off someday.

"Well, Doctor, I need your help. Care to join me?"

You didn't really enjoy him mockingly calling you Doctor. He came up with that joke ever since people started remarking how you had caught up to his genius.

But you obliged. You needed to get your mind off the mishap, otherwise your assistants might no longer see the next day. You couldn't really afford that, sometimes the Fatui was stingy with their research funds.

After reaching the lab, he closed the door behind you two. He had that strange practice, being used to people trying to escape his presence. You didn't care though. You could probably take him. ... In a fight, you've never tried the other one.

He showed you an automaton and remarked, "I've been trying to incorporate human consciousness into an inanimate being. Your speciality is Neurology, hence I need your help."

You toyed around with the mechanism, trying to understand how it functions. You immediately came up with some possible hypothesis , but refrained from telling him any.

"How much am I getting paid?" You asked

"Paid?" He laughed, "You should be honoured working with me."

"Then excuse me I'm leaving."

You were almost at the door, thinking yourself to be witty, when he retorted, "You are replaceable, Y/N, don't think so highly of yourself."

And something in you snapped.

You walked up to him, poking your face closer to his, "Watch your tongue, Doctor ."

"You're funny, what makes you think I should even try to respect you?"

You were getting furious. First of all, simply him existing annoyed you, and secondly, he was straight up insulting you. You grabbed a fistful of his shirt and snorted.

"What will make you respect me?"

Dottore 's smile made you shiver. It was calculated, he knew what he wanted to do and say. He grabbed your chin, lifting your head to meet his masked eyes.

"Beg me to respect you." He broke into maniacal laughter. "Maybe I'll tape it and display it to every Fatui. No matter how esteemed of a researcher you are, you would still succumb to ME!!"

There were ... Strange feelings inside you. The poison in his words were distant, you could only focus on his proud face. You noticed he was in a slightly compromised position, having been pushed against a table with your weight. And in that split second you took the decision.

You pulled him closer, shutting up his laughter by smashing your lips onto his. You felt hin stiffen, and you pulled away.

"Shut up." You murmured, wiping your mouth on the back of your hand. You saw his confidence falter, slowly registering what you had done. You saw him out the pieces together and he finally grinned, lips stretched ear to ear.

You were unsure what he was thinking, but his grasp on you got tighter, his hands now grabbing your hips.

"You're filthy." He said, before leaning into your ear and whispering, "Just how I like it."

"Don't get too ahead of yourself." Now you were improvising, having no idea where the impulse of kissing him came from. You fidgeted in his grasp for a moment, before concluding you had only wandered deeper into the spider's web.

You huffed when his hands started travelling up your spine, right up to your neck. He pressed into your throat, cutting of your air. You clenched your jaw, not willing to give into his shenanigans. In return, you grabbed a fistful of his hair, trying to pull it out of his scalp.

"Fuck." He moaned, "That's hot."

"You're messed up." You said, lightly amused.

He was stronger- which was proven when he overpowered you to slam you onto the table.

"What, do you say-" he pressed his body on top of you, notably his crotch on your ass- "we prove our worth to each other."

You rolled your eyes, quickly using his distraction as an advantage to flip your positions and pin him down.

"Why don't I show my talents in neurology to you huh? Gonna stimulate those nerve endings for you?" You chuckled, keeping eye contact as you unbuttoned his shirt.

Dottore made an 'oh' sound, and he allowed you to strip him. His own hands were tugging on your shirt, frown on his face because he couldn't figure out the workings of your dress. So he simply ripped it off.

His bare torso was laid out for you to ogle. His skin had a light shine from the sweat; clearly his body was feeling it despite the winter. You were top-naked too, though Dottore's hands provided some coverage. He groped your tits, a dark laugh leaving his lips.

"Whore."

"Then I suppose I should help with this." You palmed his crotch, feeling his dick strain against the fabric of his pants. A part of you wondered whether it was a living or mechanical being behind the skin but the rest of you was anticipating being dicked down.

"Please." He was almost begging. Pride bloomed in your heart, knowing that the Doctor was weak for you.

You got to work taking off his trousers, hurriedly freeing the poor organ. It sprung out and you almost comically flinched from it's size.

You looked up at his face, trying to understand what he was feeling. The mask was in your way. You tried to ask him about it, and he immediately replied,

"The mask stays on during sex."

You huffed and put your attention back to his dick. You stroked it gently, Dottore patiently waiting for you to give him his release. Quickly stealing a glance at him, you pressed your lips on it.

"FUCK." A moan tore out from the man's lips.

"Sensitive. Noted."

You gave little licks along the length, his fingers digging into your scalp. Your motions were teasing, trying to find every single spot that would stimulate him the most.

"Get to the main part you whore or I'll have to do it myself." Dottore said through gritted teeth.

You obliged, taking his full length into your mouth. Dottore gasped from the sensation, and couldn't help but admire how adorable you looked with his cock filling out your cheeks.

You bobbed your head up and down, feeling the veins harden with every contact. How long will he last, you wondered.

Within seconds his grip on your scalp had tightened, him now forcing your head up and down to set his own pace. You whined in protest, though being ignored by him. Your hands were resting on his thighs for support, and you thought it's be a funny idea to pinch him.

"Brat." He breathed out as he pulled out of your mouth to release his cum all over your chest. You sat there for a few seconds, registering what just happened.

"That was great, Y/N, but I approach my subjects more directly." He said, now lifting you up and slamming you back on the table. He got close to your ear and whispered, "I like them marked too."

Saying that he dug his teeth into your collarbone, with you screaming out his name. You felt warm blood trickle down your skin.

"Get it? I'm less kind. That's what makes me successful."

You own trousers were now off, your ass exposed to his administrations.

"I get it, Mr. Sadism, now will you fuck me or not?" You huffed out impatiently.

"So eager..." He sighed, smacking your ass hard. You yelped, grabbing the sides of the table for support.

You heard him spit on his dick, and you realised what was about to happen.

"Oh no, oh no, shouldn't have rushed you-"

And with that he plunged straight in. Your voice got stuck in your throat because your body was more concerned with trying to fit your walls around his length and size. He pulled out almost immediately, before plunging right back in.

He gave you no time to either complain or appreciate, he was set on a brutal pace probably meant to rearrange everything inside you. You were repeating something over and over, but your ears were ringing with so much pleasure that you could barely hear yourself.

And just like that it all stopped suddenly. You were feeling hot and stuffed, but Dottore had pulled out leaving you just at the tip of your release.

"I had said it once before. Beg me for it, y/n." He said, his voice oh-so-cocky.

You regretted not pulling the denial trick when you were sucking on his cock.

But this denial wasn't one sided. He was close to his release too and all he wanted was your sweet sweet voice to cry for him. Seeing you not respond to him, he thumbed your clit, drawing more moans out of you.

"Say. It. Whore."

You almost laughed. If you controlled yourself right now, you could cause him the most minor inconvenience in his life. But in the end, you couldn't.

"Dottore... make me cum, please."

He did. His thumb bullying your clit while he plunged right back to your depths pushed you over the edge. You came all over his fingers, and he leaned in to give you reassuring kissing on your spine. He too climaxed, hot seed spilling into your intestines.

The two of you were breathing heavily, and Dottore laid down beside you on the table.

"Do you think anyone heard us?"

You ignored him, your eyes fixed on his face. He filled you with so many feelings, hate, jealousy, annoyance, but somehow in the end you trusted him. You two have worked countless times together and everytime you recall those memories the first image that pops into your mind his his proud face examining his work.

Maybe... you liked him.

And he did too. Otherwise the Second Harbinger would have not spared a second thought at assassinating someone who annoyed him.

[yyh4ever]

Yu Yu Hakusho Live Action Series by Netflix

The main cast has been officially announced by Netflix:

Takumi Kitamura as Yusuke Urameshi

Jun Shison as Kurama

Kanata Hongo as Hiei

Shuhei Uesugi as Kazuma Kuwabara

Sho Tsukikawa was also unveiled as the director.

On July 16, Netflix has finally announced Takumi Kitamura as the main character Yusuke Urameshi. Takumi is the leader of the dance-rock band DISH, and recently starred in the live-action adaptation of Tokyo Revengers. His casting is not a big surprise, as some photos of him were leaked in 2021 during the shootings in Shimonoseki city.

A local merchant had taken the photos and posted on Twitter. Although she was asked to deleted them, they were already all over the internet.

Takumi left some comments to the press (source: cinematoday), in which he admits he couldn't believe it when he was cast as Yusuke. He initially thought it was a joke, because Yu Yu Hakusho is such a famous work:

Q: How did you feel when you were chosen to perform in this series?

The original work is such a masterpiece that I couldn't help but laugh at first, thinking it was a big joke. But, this time, I was really excited to be able to challenge myself again with Director Tsukikawa on Netflix.

Q: About the charm of "Yu Yu Hakusho", which has been loved for over 30 years

I believe that this work is so historic that it's no exaggeration to say that it is a reason why Japan is so proud of its strong manga and anime culture. It is a universal and unique masterpiece.

Q: About your role as Yusuke

I think there's definitely a darker atmosphere compared to the original work. I'm playing the role of Yusuke with both feelings of the bad boy who goes against the rules of school and society, and the kind-hearted boy who doesn't look away when something bad is happening right in front of him.

Q: About the shooting site

It is a friendly atmosphere. I think it's been a challenge for the entire cast and crew, so I always keep that in mind, while enjoying working there.

Q: A message to fans all over the world

I am happy to share the masterpiece of "Yu Yu Hakusho" with the world. I hope the Japanese entertainment industry will continue to expand, and that we can create a work that people everywhere will enjoy.

Sho Tsukikawa, who had previously worked with Takumi in the movie You Shine in the Moonlight (2019), has also been revealed on July 16 the director of the series.

He also wrote some comments:

Q: How did you feel when you heard about the live-action version of "Yu Yu Hakusho"?

When I first heard about Yu Yu Hakusho receiving a live-action adaptation, I honestly wondered if it would even be possible, but after being presented with the producer’s vision and possibilities with Netflix, my expectations grew and I found myself burning with passion to make this project come to life.

Q: About the charm of "Yu Yu Hakusho", which has been loved for over 30 years.

I think the charm of "Yu Yu Hakusho" is above all the charm of its characters. I'm still moved by the characters I was obsessed with as a kid. Even if you read it again as an adult, you can discover new charms. Also, the story encompasses themes that will never get old. For example, even though Yu Yu Hakusho is depicted in a fantastical setting of youkai and humans, there are also universal questions lying dormant, such as: "Can people of different races understand each other?".

Q: What were the challenges in making a live-action adaptation?

For the live-action adaptation, we aimed to create a video work that could be simply enjoyed as entertainment, while keeping those universal themes as its foundation. In the early stages of screenwriting, we focused on selecting themes that are relevant today, but the appeal of "Yu Yu Hakusho" lies in the relationships between the characters and the battles, after all. So, we also steered in that direction and included plenty of action. The VFX are quite challenging, but we are working to achieve the highest quality possible at the present time by investing in cutting-edge technology.

Q: About the lead actor, Takumi Kitamura

I asked one of the most trustworthy actors, Mr. Takumi Kitamura, to play the role of the main character, Yusuke. This is the fourth time we work together, but I feel that his acting skills have been refined even more. He embodies Yusuke Urameshi with his body and soul, from the delicate emotional expressions to the way he moves his body in action scenes of various sizes.

Q: A message to fans all over the world

From the very beginning of this project, we have been working with a strong awareness of "delivering it to a global audience". Just like when I first heard about the live-action adaptation, there may be many who feel that "it's an impossible undertaking", but no matter how many words I use, I believe the work will speak for itself and prove it's possible. We will put our hearts and souls into this work to the last, so that we can deliver the finest quality of entertainment, from Japan to the world.

On July 17th, Netflix announced that Jun Shison will play the role of Kurama. Here follows his comments to the press:

Q: How did you feel when you were chosen to perform in this series?

I watched and loved "Yu Yu Hakusho" when I was a student, so I never thought I would be offered the chance to work on it. Of course I was happy, but at the same time I felt the pressure to play the character Kurama in a work that has many fans all over the world. However, the director is Tsukikawa, who also directed the first film I played the leading role. I wanted to show how I have grown over the past 10 years, and I am very eager to help the work that Director Tsukikawa is helming, so I was grateful when I was asked to join it.

Q: About the charm of "Yu Yu Hakusho," which has been loved for over 30 years.

In every era and in any environment, everyone is fighting. For money, for status, for friends... However, in this work, they are fighting for something or someone, and even though they clash sometimes, they respect each other, each one with their different feelings. The times have changed, but I feel those are things that people can relate to, no matter what age they live in.

Q: About the shooting site

I have experienced so many things that I don't think I have ever been in a shooting environment like this before. We have spent about two to three years just on the visuals, exploring the smallest details through trial and error together. The enormity of the filming sets, the scale of the work that goes into each scene and each cut. It is all new to me, I've been having a personal experience that reminds me how immature I am. This shoot, where we are all exploring creativity with the theme "From Japan to the World", has been very fulfilling, and I don't want it to end.

Q: A message to fans all over the world

This work was first serialized more than 30 years ago. I am sure that many of you have many feelings for this work, and there are many different interpretations of it. That's why we are all working together with everything we got to create a work that can be expressed in this era, from Japan. I hope you will look forward to it.

On July 18, Netflix announced that Kanata Hongo will play the role of Hiei. Here follows his comments to the press:

Q: How did you feel when you were chosen to perform in this series?

I have known this work for a long time, so I was very happy when I got the role. It features flashy battle scenes with various characters, so I was really looking forward to shooting it, because I thought it would definitely be a big production.

Q: About the charm of "Yu Yu Hakusho," which has been loved for over 30 years.

The wide variety of characters and ingenious special techniques are of course interesting, but the way the main characters grow and confront difficult enemies, I think this work is an example of the basic principles of Shounen Jump: "Friendship, Effort and Victory". I think the heat from the readers who are constantly excited about this work, is the charm that has made it so loved.

Q: About the role of Hiei

I intended to construct the character with Hiei's nature in mind, so that people who like Hiei can be convinced of his fighting style, that makes the best use of speed, and his cool but actually "someone who cares about his friends" personality.

Q: About the shooting site

First of all, my honest impression was "The scale is just so big…!". I can't go into details, but there are a lot of flashy things going on. There are all sorts of battle scenes on a scale never before seen in Japanese video productions. The action team's spirit is tremendous, so this going to be a very powerful battle scene.

Q: A message to fans all over the world

"Yu Yu Hakusho" is one of Japan's most popular manga works. I believe that we will be able to create a powerful visual work using the latest modern technology, while cherishing the image of the popular original work. I am sure that the work will exceed expectations, so please look forward to it.

Lastly, on July 19t, Netflix announced that Shuhei Uesugi will play the role of Kazuma Kuwabara. Here follows his comments to the press:

Q: How did you feel when you were chosen to perform in this series?

I never thought that I would be able to appear in a work that I was reading in elementary school. I was very happy to be able to play the coolest character, Kazuma Kuwabara, who is honest and rustic, full of love, and straightforward. At the same time, I felt a lot of pressure and worry about how I would face the live-action adaptation of this work, which has many fans around the world, and what role I would play in making it a work that would be loved by everyone. Also, I was very excited to be involved in a Netflix production, a format with a global market.

Q: About the charm of "Yu Yu Hakusho," which has been loved for over 30 years.

Each character has a distinct personality. I feel that these characters are the major charm of this work, as they are unforgettable at first sight. It was more than 20 years ago that I picked up this work at a friend's house to read, but even as a child, I felt the indescribable fear and eeriness of Elder Toguro, and the overwhelming strong man and charisma of Younger Toguro. Even now, as an adult, I remember those days with a strange feeling. Besides the fascinating charm of the enemies, all the allies and characters have their own unforgettable scenes and stories that stick in your mind. I believe that many of these factors are one of the charms that have made this work supported by many people.

Q: About the role of Kuwabara

I faced Kuwabara's kindness, who wants to become strong in order to protect someone important, while cherishing his straightforwardness. At the same time, I realized that trying to do so was a very difficult, solitary, and lonely thing. Kuwabara is not the type who is good at acting and hiding his emotions, so I played the character while discussing with the director and cast members how Kazuma Kuwabara would feel and act in each scene and each cut.

Q: About the shooting site

I was feeling euphoric on a daily basis as I headed to the movie set, because it was a magnificent scale and a shooting schedule that I had ever experienced before. Although it feels like a very luxurious site, with sets of a size I had never seen before, shooting methods for CG on a scale I had never experienced before, and filming on locations all over the country with a top-notch team, I was also spending every day excited to be a part of it. It was the best shooting site where not only the cast but also the whole team communicated with each other and everyone involved was seriously committed to making a great film.

Q: A message to fans all over the world

I am beside myself with joy that the live-action adaptation of "Yu Yu Hakusho", a work loved by people all over the world, will be available on Netflix to all over the world to watch. I can assure you that this is a work that can be enjoyed regardless of national borders. This live action is a work which not only those who love the original, but also those who have not read it, can enjoy the charm of "Yu Yu Hakusho" to the fullest. Please look forward to it.

According to an article published on cinematoday.jp, Ryo Sakaguchi, Academy Scientific and Technical Award Winner will be joining the live action series.

Sakaguchi, who has more than 20 years of experience in the Hollywood VFX industry, has worked on numerous Hollywood productions and is currently a VFX supervisor and CG director at Scanline VFX, a north american-based company. This is the first time he takes part in a japanese production.

"Yu Yu Hakusho" is a work he read and became familiar with when he was in junior high school. He mentions the difficulty level of the live action adaptation of "Yu Yu Hakusho" is high: there are various youkai, humans versus youkai, and transformations. From a VFX perspective, it is as difficult as the most difficult films in North America.

Project Details:

Director: Sho Tsukikawa

Screenplay: Tatsuro Mishima

VFX supervisor: Ryo Sakaguchi

Executive Producer: Kaata Sakamoto (Netflix) 

Producer: Akira Morii (ROBOT)

Production: ROBOT 

Produced by: Netflix

On July 25 2022, the Weekly Shounen Jump N°34 dedicated a page to the live action, summarizing the actors' comments.

Netflix's live-action adaptation of Yu Yu Hakusho is expected to premiere worldwide in December 2023.

[caliginouscreature]

If you may have a fictotype, how do you tell your “noemata” apart from strongly-held headcanons or projecting?

Psychological nonhumanity is a hot topic for all kinds of debates and discussions, and understandably so.  There’s tons of room for variation, and infinite possible reasons and presentations for it from copinglinking to fictherianthropy.  But with non/alterhumanity of any origin, lack of “memories” is a known struggle with those wondering whether or not they may “count” (and is something I intend to dedicate a separate post to talking about later).  This is where a new community term, “noema” (pronounced “no-ee-muh”), was introduced to possibly fill in an area of ambiguity left in the wake of such worries.  It’s a term left rather vague on purpose, making it useful for describing many kinds of feelings.

It is often described as feeling like “just knowing” something about your ’type, whether it’s something about their body, past, home, opinions... could be anything!  But, in some circumstances, how can you tell the difference between true noemata, and fan theories one has dwelled upon so long and hard that they just “feel right”?  Can you trick yourself into thinking you “just know” something by forgetting how long you’ve actually thought about it?  Is “feeling right” all it can take to count?

In this thinking-out-loud post, I’d like to point at the character of Snufkin from the Moomins franchise-- a character who seems like a great example to use due both to how I myself find him relatable, and how I’ve seen other Moomins fans receive and interpret him through fan content.

Isn’t he spiffy!

There is no other fandom I’ve yet been in where so many of the fans (at least in the english-speaking one, that I myself was in) had never actually interacted with the bulk of the source material.  Sure, some watched the ’90s anime on youtube, but large quantities of fans never touched the books or comics (even those that have official english versions, pirated or not), or sometimes even only got their material through fanart and fanfic.  A quantifiable amount of english-language Moomins fanworks from around 2019 are going off of nothing but what “feels right”.

Now, this isn’t just me looking for an excuse to whine about the shallowness of the Moomins fandom, or me trying to invalidate people who don’t really interact with the sources of their ’types.  But in my opinion, it’s a comparison I can’t help but make.  How far can you basically just go off of vibes?  How do you know what counts?

It’s like, fascinatingly easy to get your brain used to a certain headcanon.  Even some diehard Moomins fans-- ones who actually do go to the trouble of digging up and consuming obscure canon material-- could admit it’s easy to forget that Snufkin isn’t confirmed to be canonically transgender.  “Trans Snufkin” is an extremely popular headcanon in the english Moomins fandom, and most who hold it, myself sometimes included, would tell you it’s because it simply “feels right”.  It’s to the point that many consider it a vital part of how they write and read Snufkin!

Projecting onto a character you see a bit of yourself in is also pretty easy to do, by accident or otherwise.  Most Moomins fans I see doing this do it with Moomintroll, but it’s arguably even more obvious when it’s done with Snufkin.  I once saw a fic (which I won’t link, so as not to possibly get them teased), which the author admitted was written as a form of vent art, where Snufkin hated coffee... but if you read Comet in Moominland, where Snufkin is introduced, one of the very first things he ever says is asking for coffee, he likes it so much!  Something similar goes for fics that make Snufkin speak any swear words, a thing he is confirmed to dislike.  How much of this is active self-indulgence, and how much is due to it “feeling right” to the author?  I try and notice when I may be projecting on a character or not, because I find it to be useful in my work, but we can’t all be so self-aware (and who knows, I may be less self-aware than I think!).

Back to fictotypy... I am well aware that one’s ’type ID isn’t always going to be a 1:1 to how it is in canon.  To compare the phenomenon to fictives, I’ve met multiple manifestations of the same character across different systems, and none of them are identical (even if there are multiple fictives of the same character within one system!)!  If someone turns out to be a Snufkin, and they can’t force themself to like coffee, that doesn’t make them any less a Snufkin.  They may just be a Snufkin from an adaptation where his opinions on coffee are unclear, or a Snufkin from an AU!  ... or maybe they just hate coffee that much, hehe.

But how can a Snufkin-- or someone who may be of any character/species ID-- tell their possible noemata apart from some other similar non-noemata thing?  When I come to a “headcanon” or “interpretation” of something from fiction, it often feels like a process of going “Hey, it’d be cool or interesting if...” or “It could make sense that...” and then pondering and scanning canon material to possibly back it up so that it can sound legit enough to not ping as OOC to an onlooker (at least if I explain it, depending).  Ponder any of these long enough, and they can wind up “feeling right”, in a way, even if I took an active role in figuring out how they might work and know they may not be truly canon. Are my numerous theories and headcanons about the species that the Groke belongs to that have little-to-no canon backup the result of me being very autistic and having an immense passion for worldbuilding, or could their combination of how I relate to the Groke herself make them evidence of noemata for a possible ID?  When I get offended if Snufkin is written or treated a certain way in fanworks, is it just me being a stickler for canon compliance and feeling hurt when traits in him I relate to are demonized, or could it also be a sign I may be a Snufkin?  I’m already pleased that I look a bit like him in real life, but I’m not sure I feel if I am a Snufkin, as it’s not really as intense a desire as some of my other possible IDs... folks argue that such IDs need not be intense or constant and can be experienced casually, but how can I tell the difference?

When, as beings with human brains wired to delight in such pattern recognition and ascribing meanings to the like, can anyone tell the difference?  How do I tell my noemata apart from what may just be thoughts about my possible IDs that I like to have?  As someone who’s questioning several possible IDs and is uncertain about ’most all of them, it’s hard for me to know the differences that define this.

A fun little question to any artists with ’types from fiction, to close this post off with: When you write or draw fanart of the character or species you may ID with to post in public, do you base their interpretation off of what you feel are your noemata, or do you tend to lean more to what will be more definitely canon-compliant?  Why or why not?  If you do the latter, does it make you question your ““validity””?  Is making fanworks of your ID a pretty personal experience, or is it more of a separate thing you can do for fun?  Does it vary?

[impeerpressure]

Coming out again, because sometimes that’s important.

Hi. If you know me already, you can skip this first chunk. If you don’t, I’m Ben. I’m a teenage boy from the great midwest. I write, read, play DND and different video games. I like Splatoon and fried rice and fantasy and different futuristic aesthetics. I grew up on dystopian fiction and that’s part of the thing that’s made me so optimistic for a future for people like me. For the minorities, the marginalized, the attacked and abused. We’ve won before and we’ll win again, no matter how long the fight.

I’m a transgender, gay, and asexual boy. It took me a very long time to reach these labels, but now that I have I’m comfortable with them. They may change in the future, but for now, this is who I am.

I came out as bisexual at eight years old. I wasn’t ‘groomed’ into it- I was raised in a straight family with straight grandparents and straight aunts and uncles. None of my neighbors were openly queer and I almost solely consumed straight media. The only reason I was able to figure this out was because I had friends who were already figuring themselves out. The labels they used taught me that there were other options than straight and cis. I was curious and confused and a little hesitant, but that’s normal when you come across things that aren’t common to you. I learned and that was that. I sat down with my mom and told her I was bi and she said “me too.” That was my first realization that people like me were everywhere. We’ve always existed, just maybe not so openly.

I tried different labels and gender identities for years after that. Different pronouns, different names, but nothing quite stuck. Somethings felt better, but nothing felt good. I wrestled with attraction for a while. I’m autistic, and that can cause me to struggle a little with understanding my own feelings. The boys in the area I grew up in were downright cruel, too. I didn’t know any of them that I could possibly be actually attracted to. I was bi, pan, lesbian, aro/ace, pan again- it kept changing. There’s nothing wrong with that. I was testing out labels until I found what felt comfortable and that’s okay. Most self exploration isn’t linear.

And then I grew older and I started meeting boys who actually were decent. Around that time, I was starting to dip closer and closer to he/him pronouns. I was slowly learning that masculinity and boys aren’t inherently evil; the place I was raised in had a strong ‘boys will be boys’ culture. They were expected to be loud and rough and cruel. Then I found boys who wouldn’t make fun of you for your identity or your race or your mental or physical disabilities or simply just for being different. Masculinity isn’t inherently evil and I was allowed to be masculine.

So I let myself try he/him pronouns and a boy’s name and I let myself admit I’m attracted to boys and more masculine people. I still remember how it felt like a weight off my chest when people started using he/him pronouns for me. I started looking at gay ship art and reading gay fiction and once I’d had my fill of projecting myself onto one of those guys, I moved on to just generally queer media. I watched people like me thrive and create and exist exactly as they were.

We were always here, we always will be here. Coming out is one of the scariest queer experiences I can think of, even when it’s just coming out to yourself. But it is worth it, even if you’re the only one who knows. It’s okay to not come out to other people or to only come out to specific people. This is a beautiful, personal part of you and no-one is entitled to it. Never let anyone tell you your identity makes you less deserving of a gorgeous, beautiful, happy life.

[galacticlamps]

Tag 9 ppl you want to get to know better

tagged by @observethewalrus​

First ship: I genuinely don’t know? And now that I’m realizing I don’t know I’m actually a tiny bit sad about that. I’d started writing things that can only be described as fanfiction long before I was old enough to be online and before we evolved past dial-up in my house & being on the computer became simple enough to not feel like a hassle anyway - which is all just to say that when I did wind up interacting with fannish communities later on, fanfic specifically wasn’t something totally new to me so I never had vivid memories of my first experiences of it. As a kid fanfic was what you basically had to do when you reached the end of any media you’d even somewhat enjoyed and the author rather rudely neglected to go on telling the story infinitely - so I think it must’ve been a while before shipping became a major thing on my radar, and it probably happened gradually. I do distinctly remember finding it a little ironic in high school that so much online/tumblr specific fandom was about shipping, and I was in multiple fandoms and had several ships, but I didn’t have any big passionate (or even non-canon & in need of defending) ships for my main fandom, which was always Doctor Who - though at the time, just nuwho. There, the only things I could be said to ship were pretty straightforward pairings like the Ponds, Doctor/River, Jack/Ianto, etc. - and I’m guessing whatever things I had that counted as ships before I got into fandom were similar to those, just a kind of passing approval of/investment in ships that were already well-established elements of their source material.

Three Ships: well Two/Jamie always (connected to the above tangent, I was involved in fandom for close to a decade before I came across them, but I’d never found cause to use the term otp before then), and at the moment the other ships taking up the next-most space in my brain are probably Ben/Polly and Geordi/Data

Last Song: Ruin by the Amazing Devil (I remember it playing as I drove home last night)

Last Movie: ah see I’m actually quite bad about watching movies/even remembering they exist. There’s a real possibility the most recent one was The Final Frontier, simply because I’ve been doing a long slow chronological trek through Star Trek, and I’m currently in the early 90s so I know I must have watched that one at some point in the last year or so, and more recently than any of the ones that came out before it

Currently Reading: Ok this I’m legitimately embarrassed about, because I’m not normally anywhere near this slow with books at all, and neither of these are bad, boring, or even slow-paced, it’s solely a matter of how horribly hectic & unpredictable my life’s been for the last few months - but I’ve been both near the end of Bare-Arsed Banditti and a couple hundred pages deep into The Two Towers since the end of August (I hate that fact so much but I need to admit it. It’s available information on my Storygraph account anyway it should not be so hard to say)

Currently Consuming: Twining’s Irish Breakfast tea, black. I am often consuming twining’s irish breakfast tea black

Currently Craving: a break - or maybe just routine in general? I’ve been doing a lot of overlapping freelance work lately: short-term projects that don’t last long enough to allow for anything like ‘time off’ & have all the busy-ness of full-time without any of the stability, which kinda feels like the worst of both worlds tbh. 2022 was a rough year for me for that in general, but it got especially bad in the fall & winter and I’m hoping to get a better handle on my own schedule in the next few weeks one way or another, but I’m sorry to anyone I’ve kinda ghosted in the interim

Tagging: @uighean​ @terryfphanatics​ @seismologically-silly​ and anybody else who wants to do it!

[mae-dwrites]

Rue - Chapter 4

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“Maybe you should get a roommate,” Rikuto said, though his voice was unsure. Wavering in his uncertainty.

“You’re right I should have called your sister for advice.” Damian deadpanned. This had been a waste of time, he had been trying to be “more carefree” and “willing to listen” as Rikuto’s younger sibling had phased it. Now they understood he couldn’t ever truly be carefree, but he was opening up as a list of people in his life had tried to have been. Most of those people are aware of his upbringing, and some just know his mother wasn’t traditional in a sense. Not that everyone needs to know of it, but regardless.

Again. He should have called Miriam.

“You asked for advice! Why not call your super guy? Actually don’t he would say the same thing probably. I still want to meet him!” Rikuto exclaimed not caring about their previous conversation. As meeting, the newer Superman was far more important than Damian getting a roommate, obviously.

“I am done with this conversation, you have provided no substance to my situation. I will speak to you at another time.” Damian ended the call as Rikuto yelled at him from his screen.

Damian had not wanted to bother Miriam, and Jody he was not very close with. Jody was with their fiance overseas, so calling them was out of the question anyway. Miriam had an important project underway and the fewer distractions the better for her. Damian sighed as he pressed dial.

“Damian this best be an emergency I have almost figured this out and you know how important this is for us!” Miriam stepped away from her computer and turned back to her clipboard. She paid no mind to Damian.

“I have come for advice,” Damian stated bluntly.

Miriam turned to the screen; she had softened at those words, it reminded him of Dick at times. The way her shoulders seemed to let everything brothering them fall. Whatever she was holding was no longer important, simply his thoughts and worries. Her eyes went from sharp to round, her stressed features faded little by little. And that always seemed to leave a pit to crave itself in him, whether it be Dick or Miriam it didn’t matter. Even his other siblings sometimes.

Miriam lowered her clipboard and slid a chair over, “What is bothering you Otōto?”

Her voice went deeper, reassuring, and her eyes looked at him by screen. Damian could never tell if her deepening her voice was by habit or with a purpose. Even years now away from the Leagaue he looked to decoded people, to find the double meanings in their actions. It was a habit if anything, one that refused to break. His life as one of the elite did not help as there was always people looking to you for something.

“Richard is insisting that I get a roommate.”

“And you’re considering this idea. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be seeking advice.” Miriam lifted her glasses to look at her monitor better.

Damian gave a grunt with a nod in response. He didn’t want to admit she was right, but she usually was and he wasn’t going to argue with her.

“Well, how much have you taken into consideration?”

“Only how stupid of an idea this would be. The person could be completely aware of who I am and try to use that to their advantage. I would have to sneak in and out, and if I were to get an injury I would have no choice but to return to the manor even if my apartment was more efficient.” Damian resided.

“While it sounds like you’ve made up your mind, you haven't. How come?” Miriam knew Damian didn’t like dancing around a topic. She appreciated he got to the point, unlike Rikuto.

Damian opened his mouth only to close it, like a fish as Jody would comment. He didn’t know why he was hesitating, it was ridiculous. His fingers ran along his notepad, listing possible reasons not to get one. He seemed so bent on not having a roommate that he hadn’t questioned why. He had identity reasons but not personal ones, or at least the identity had blurred to become the personal. He knew plenty of reasonable excuses for sneaking in and out, for being gone for long periods of time. It’s not like he couldn’t prepare accordingly.

“Damian I think you need to think about the positives for it. What about the times when you’ve had peers and friends as hall buddies or roommates? Think of this as acquiring a new peer. Also, you never know, you may get a new friend or associate as you love to call us,” Miriam teased Damian.

Damian rolled his eyes at her impish expression, but he couldn’t help the smile threatening to crack, “Your thoughts are appreciated and will be taken into consideration.”

“Now since you decided that your problems are so important to interrupt me; when is the next meet supposed to be? I need to plan accordingly.” Miriam asked nonchalantly. She really needed to know, she can by no means just up and leave whenever she wanted. Her work was too important, and it’s not like they would let people go without knowing in advance. Damian may be able to get away with that but he was a Wayne.

“I think we can much sooner than before. I plan to bring Jon along for the sake of him wanting to meet all of you. Also so your exasperating brother will stop pestering me with meeting him,” he drawled as if this conversation wasn’t of importance to him.

“It’s your fault really. You let him hang out with you that Summer.”

“I allowed no such thing!”

“If I know anything about you it’s that you could have killed my brother if you really wanted to. Everything you did at Cove Line proved that,” she gave him a pointed look. Damian grunted and looked away from the screen, she was right. Again.

“Garcia was supposed to go on a mission but her partner had other matters to attend to, so someone else got assigned to it. The Ladrón’s are free at the end of the month, at least that’s what Angelia emailed yesterday.” Damian recalled.

“They aren’t bringing their youngest brother, are they?”

“No, they are leaving Issac with their parents.”

Miriam sighed in relief.

“Issac does make the dinners unenjoyable,” Damian wrote down on his notepad as he said this. Making a new list, trying to be more “positive” as Miriam said to be. He did try to take everyone he trusted advice to heart; when he asked or they said something of value to him at least.

“I understand that their parents don’t exactly trust him because of everything we did then, but Issac isn’t the one having the magic adventures like we did.” Miriam paused for a moment. “Oh god, I hope not! We should check on those soon, it’s been almost two years since we checked.”

Miriam went on mumbling about Cove Line City and ensuring its safety. She could be seen working on her computer seeming to forget about her work and Damian’s little reluctant advice request. A small smile slid on Damian’s face as he watched the woman get lost in her head, that’s where the three siblings were most alike. When they got worked up they lost themselves in what they were doing. Miriam her sciences and family; Jojo their music, and those they held dear; Rikuto when he got worked about, well anything and everything.

“I will leave you to that, plan for myself and possibly Nicte to join us for that. Maybe extend that invitation to anyone else if you like it.” Miriam jolted up at Damian’s words, remembering she was on a call with him.

“Yes of course! I will! Call if you need anything else, at a reasonable time,” she gave a scolding look at Damian. It held no real threat but he smiled at her, “Of course, I wouldn’t dream of interrupting twice without notice.”

Miriam rolled her eyes they said goodbyes and ended the video call. Damian turned down to his new list. Perhaps this could be a good thing, he wouldn’t admit aloud that Dick was right of all people. But Mar’i could get practice and he could freshen up on how he splints and mixes the two personas, or at least the more Damian “Damian Wayne” vs the Media “Damian Wayne”.

He tosses the notepad on the desk before getting up from his seat. The Sun was still up but it would be heading down soon, perhaps he could start taking some day shifts. While his whole family had been finding better routines to take care of the day-acting Rouges during the years he was gone. He had still gone out at night for the most part unless necessary. He may not be as vital to the day shift or most of WE that didn’t mean could just take over.

Also the point was he was trying to reconnect with his family again, he had been in contact with them after he first came back, but it wasn’t very much. At least he had been repairing it since he first came back, even when he left again for Drukland City. His father had been the hardest, but what could any of them have expected. Neither Damian nor Bruce was exactly feely-feely, Damian may be direct but most of the time he refused to be “the bigger man” as he had learned some people would describe it, and Bruce struggled to express himself, especially when he believed he was right.

Maybe getting a roommate would help him find a way to navigate better with and to fully be connected with his family.

A knock on the door brought his attention away from his current train of thought.

“Master Damian, dinner will be served momentarily. I would advise you to start heading down, also a young woman arrived saying she knows you. She says her name is Nicte Ladrón.” Damian opened the door as soon as Alfred spoke the name. Alfred for a nanosecond looked startled but his features smoothed over in great fashion. He raised his eyebrow at Damian, “I take you know the name.”

“Yes, let her in. I didn’t know she was coming.” Damian said as he left his room. He and Alfred made their way down the hall.

“Should the family be notified?”

“She isn’t a threat, they don’t need to know.”

“Very well,” Alfred left Damian as he made his way to allow the woman in. Damian made his way to the entrance of the manor. He found Dick already there speaking to Nic.

“Nicte, I was not informed of you coming to Gotham. Why didn’t you tell me?” Damian couldn’t help the air of clear irritation that seeped into his voice. While Nicte wasn’t the worst to be around he certainly wasn’t so comfortable for her to arrive unannounced in Gotham of all places.

“Dames! This place is way swankier than the journalists describe! You could have given me more detail of how beautiful it is!” Nicte as perusal said in her borderline monotone voice.

“You didn’t answer my question.” Damian frowned at her. Over the years she had made a habit of not answering questions, or to dance around them.

“Only taught by the best,” she winked at him. “Don’t act as if you didn’t avoid our questions back at Cove.”

“Is that why she seems to dodge every question I direct at her,” Dick making his presence known again. Known to Nicte that is, Damian had been eyeing him while giving his full attention to Nicte simultaneously.

“It’s a skill taught to me by the Damian Wayne,” Nicte gave a lighthearted smile at Damian. “It’s been very beneficial to me on the field.”

“What?” Dick exclaimed, his brows came down in confusion and annoyance.

“I can imagine so. Is there a reason you have come unannounced,” the last word came out with a bit of aggression despite his best efforts to be formal.

“Can’t I visit a friend without it being death pending? Also, you don’t need to hide how you feel. I know how you don’t like the unexpected even with everything you do.” Nicte replied, following Damian in ignoring the older man.

“Then why have you arrived?” Damian repeated.

“I was in the area,” she shrugged. Damian sighed, knowing that if there was a reason she would probably talk about it some other time during her stay.

“Damian, can I talk to you for a moment?” Dick asked. After they moved a little away from Nicte Dick looked at his younger brother, “Care to explain?”

“I prefer this to be a need-to-know.”

“Okay well does she know about our activities or not?”

“Yes.”

“That’s not an answer Damian,” Dick said with a strained voice.

“Yes, it was. A very clear answer.”

“Will Miss Ladrón be joining us for dinner?” Alfred asked, coming from somewhere.

“No.”

“Yes!”

Damian glared at Nicte.

“I would love to,” she continued. “As long as I’m not intruding of course.”

“Intruding is one way to put it,” Damian grunted.

“You’re not intruding. I always make a little extra if anyone would wish to have more. Also the others come in whenever they feel like.” Alfred explained, giving a pointed look at Dick and Damian.

“Same thing happens at our parents' house. I'm pretty confident they're getting to the point they only like the youngest.” Nicte followed Alfred down the hall.

“Wouldn’t be surprised,” Damian said sarcastically. The statement regardless of how it came out wasn't exactly wrong. Issac was quite literally the baby, now he was in high school, he can only imagine the reputation that was left for him to push through that Anthony and Nicte had left.

“Me neither,” Nicte laughed with a just barely noticeable strained expression. She turned her head a bit towards Damian, “He’s starting his Junior year! He’s debating on joining the track team again. Mom and dad want him to do debate still but he doesn't want to. He’s doing double English classes this year and he finished his math credits this summer!”

As Nicte beamed about her youngest brother as they headed to the dining room. Dick couldn't help but fall into conversation with her, she seemed to easily tell a lot about herself. If Dick were a regular civilian he wouldn't have noticed how she danced around current details of herself.

“Wow, that's a long table,” Nicte laughed. Mar’i, who was already at the table, perked up at the unfamiliar voice. Mar’i got up and raised her eyebrows at her father and uncle.

“Mar’i this is Nicte Ladrón. She is an associate of-”

“Associate? Well excuse me, saving your unobservant behind multiple times obviously never bumped me up to friend to this day I see,” Nicte interrupted Damian. Mar’i and Dick’s eyes widen before Nicte continues, “I’m Nicte Ladrón, a friend of Damian’s from Cove Line City. Nice to meet you.” Nicte smiled at the young girl.

“Uh, Mary Grayson-Anders. Damian’s niece from Blüdhaven and I guess also here.” Mar’i gave a polite smile to the older woman.

Nicte opened her mouth to say something when the doors on the other side of the dining room opened. Damian fought the urge to groan as more of his family entered. That being his younger sister, father, and stepmother.

“Hello, we weren’t expecting any visitors.” Bruce smiled at Nicte in regular “Brucie” fashion while his eyes already started assessing her.

“Oh I was just stopping by to see Damian, I should have checked the time before coming over.”

Damian stepped up partially putting himself between Nicte and his father, “She is staying for dinner and then she will be leaving.”

Behind Bruce, Helena raised her eyebrows in a similar fashion as their father. But unlike Bruce, Helena’s features slid into a mischievous smirk, that was almost an exact replica of Selina’s.

“What did you say your name was again,” Helena made her way toward them. Her feet moving with purpose as she watched Nicte like she was her prey.

“I didn’t.” Nicte gave a polite smile. “I don’t recall you introducing yourself either.”

Helena glanced over at Damian and raised an eyebrow. An expression that read, “Where’d you get her?”

This was not how he had wanted to bring Nicte to officially meet his family. No Damian had wanted to introduce the Wonder Agent Ladrón as Spector. Ladrón was so far doing well under the Wonder Agent BC, she was even allowing her to take the lead on some missions if the reports were anything to trust. And usually, they were. He had it all planned out, he was going to move her to a Bat Agent if all went well. He didn’t want to go through the tiptoeing that was civilian interactions.

Out of all his friends, Nicte was who he had been meticulously planning so she would perfectly be allowed in his father’s good graces. So that they wouldn’t be looked into as harshly, as his family was at times a word beyond paranoid could fully explain. Damian had grown to be just as bad but he’d had a plan, and all of it could be thrown into the Gotham river if this goes south. With full confidence, Damian would say that it would, and faster than he’d like.

“Helena this is my friend,” Damian glared at Nicte for a moment who preened, “Nicte Ladrón. Ladrón this is my younger sister, Helena Wayne.”

Nicte’s eyes widened, “You’re older than I thought, I- wait, sorry! That was rude,” Nicte laughed. “Damian never really shares photos and when he did they’re usually old. You were the only one that he had more, uh recent photos of. I thought you were a bit younger honestly.”

Damian was very close to just dragging Nicte out of the manor, because now if all the eyes in the room hadn’t been glancing at him they certainly were now. And perhaps more pointedly.

Nicte straightened a bit. She kept her face with her polite smile, a practiced smile, one that his family could easily pick apart. She wasn’t stupid, Nicte was far from that. If Damian told you his father was Batman and he had been the fifth Robin, while also knowing and meeting him as Damian Wayne and didn’t put it together then you should never, by no means, join the hero community in any capacity.

Nicte kept her breaths calm and controlled, she couldn’t slip up. She knew that, not in front of the Batclan of all groups. She needed this to go well, she wouldn’t fail. She hadn’t trained herself for almost six years for nothing, just for a group of birds to pick her apart due to a faulty face. No, Damian had led her through a significant amount of that training, some of it being teachings specialized in the League of Assassins.

As if she would allow these people to read through her like a notecard, she may not have their years of experience but she had enough. And she wouldn’t let Damian’s efforts go to waste.

“I understand Damian isn’t the most expressive person,” Nicte waved her hand around, she almost glared at her arm for moving without her permission. “But he is anything if not caring. Even if he doesn’t vocalize it he makes up in action.”

This earned her some stares, she could practically hear Dick’s jaw drop behind her. Bruce had slowly lost his “Brucie” expressions as she had heard Damian refer to it as. Helena had initially had a face of meaningful surprise before smiling, a genuine one not the sly smirk she had when she first walked over. Mar’i gave her a quizzical look. Selina smiled softly at Nicte as she took a seat at the table; she nodded her, Nicte took it as a sign of some sort of approval. Even if she didn’t entirely understand it made Nicte straighten her back in pride rather than her defense from moments earlier.

Damian grunted before grabbing her arm and dragging her to take a seat. When she raised her eyebrows at him he simply responded loud enough for everyone to hear, “Alfred will be bringing in dinner soon. It would be best if we were already seated.”

Nicte nodded at him while the rest of his family took their seats and a very tired, very exhausted Tim came in muttering about coffee and emails. Not paying mind to the stranger at the table, not that Nicte minded, it just meant one less set of eyes analyzing her every move.

----

Japanese: Otōto = Little Brother

[boredmezzosoprano]

I took this quiz to see which Dead By Daylight killer I am and this is what I got -

Your Result:

The Pig

Something about taking a life instills excitement in you. You know that what you do is for the better for you are shaping the world around you. Ridding it of the scum that doesn’t deserve a chance at redemption or rehabilitation. If you can even call it that. The way you see it, many people are so ungrateful to be alive. You serve as a vessel to those who abuse it and carelessly waste it away. All shall know who you are for you are a symbol of death for those who depreciate life. Realistically though, you can’t deny the fact that there is a part of you that enjoys this. Perhaps more than you care to admit. Something about taking a life in general gives you satisfaction. It fascinates you, and you serve as the judge, jury, and executioner, and all will be tested. Most will fail as many do not meet the standards you set and really, it’s too much fun anyway. Meat is meat and it serves a purpose. That purpose is dying just as it deserves to. You’re convinced that people take for granted, don’t appreciate, and simply cast aside instead of testing themselves, pushing themselves, and trying to find the meaning of true purpose. True living. Some may view this philosophy as depraved, however, that is of no matter to you. They’re in the category with the rest of the meat and simply don’t understand what it truly means to be alive. In the end, they shall all be tested, and they will all be judged or more plainly, executed. You know that deep down many, if not all, will never meet your standards. They may pass your tests or analysis, but you know better. In the end, all shall reap the consequences because you know that realistically, they’ve all got sins to atone for. To you, it’s quite possible that none will ever be truly cleansed of the filth that are their transgressions. Whatever those may be. You are the judge. The vessel for something bigger after all. Besides, you can’t deny yourself the call to kill. To do so only spins you into self-catastrophe as you know there’s something much more powerful that stirs inside the pit of your stomach. It’s a dark hunger. A hunger to kill. To put a life to the test even though you know that they’ll fail because none are worthy. So, you must put them down. Redemption is a fool’s errand. You serve a greater purpose. Chances, passes, restitution… that era is long gone. Time to evolve into a more mature perspective. Time to kill. Not only is it more gratifying as it is the only way to purge the sickness that resides in every being, but it serves a greater purpose as well. You dawn a mask as it serves as the symbol for what you stand for. It defines you and what you do. Who you are. You want to leave your mark. You want to be known. And known you shall be. Small blades are best for execution as they are well hidden and are not noticed until it’s too late. Aside from easy carry they also do the job and do it nicely. That’s what counts and where it matters. However, one can’t overlook the usefulness of traps and other contraptions. They too have their place. You are a mastermind when it comes to traps, and they are what help ensure success. Plus, though you know that none are worthy, why not test them anyway? Additionally, if ever one of your subjects comes close to escape traps got you covered. You’re most likely to reside in an abandoned building as it is the perfect place for organizing your “tests” or orchestrating your kills. You’re able to store your tools, outfits, weapons, and other additional equipment effectively as well as being able to hide in the corners and crevasses of the map. You can have rooms dedicated to your kills, any projects you may revel yourself in, or just for storage. Cleanup is hit or miss with you. It’s unlikely you’ll bother unless absolutely necessary. Stealth is where you shine. You’re practically undetectable as you’re only seen after you make your move. You stick to the shadows, prowling like a beast in the night. What your victims think will help them actually helps you and puts them at a disadvantage. You may consider an apprentice to take on as you can tea

[alienorstyx]

A Night in Paris

Precedent chapters: 5, 6

Chapter 7 : Fury

Canada was watching America walking in circle in his room, his brother woke him up in the middle of the night to come and talk about something important, it could be anything and everything with America. « I am sure she had slept with him. » Cried America , shaking in all directions before adding; « It's been several days since I've wondered who might want to sleep with her, I've even , blah, blah, blah ... »

And there he goes again in his usual paranoia, spying on everyone, trying to master other countries by his ideology. And saying that he criticizes dad on it, they are really similar on this method, thought Canada, but he knew what would cost him to say his thoughts aloud, his brother would find a way to avenge or humiliate him in the months to come. For these reasons, Canada preferred to remain silent, and to play the game of America as long as possible until the latter was satisfied.- Who are you talking about? Asked while baying Canada, who had not understood at all, what his brother had been mumbling for twenty minutes.

" But France and this bastard of communist!" America replied angrily, who couldn't stand for someone not to pay attention to what he was saying.

" USSR?"

"Yes, him, who I don't know why dad is trying to deny that's it him."

" Maybe it's not him then?"

" No! I am sure that France sleep with him, after all she has always been in good term with these reds , and then in her population this party is still popular . It disgusts me that she did not clean up or that she simply banned it ,instead, she lets them express themselves,and be in her government ."

"You still resent the fact that she kicked you out of her country or that she managed to get up to the table of the winners or else it is ..."

"Shut the fuck up! Of course, I didn't like it when once I came to rescue her from the third Reich, saving Europe for the second time, and there she ...immediately after she became hostile to my installation, by demanding and imposing the withdrawal of my troops." America cried out while making big movement with these arms, before Canada, which was visibly tired of all this nonsense.

"She immediately noticed that you tried to destroy her."Tried to justify Canada , he did not like when his brother criticized his mother , she was certainly for America more like his mother-in-law but it was still her and Spain who helped him during his war of independence. "Stupid , I never wanted to destroy her." Bitching America , who couldn't stand his younger brother's accusations, about his actions or attempt. "Yet it was indeed the project of your President Roosevelt and his plan for Europe, wasn't he?" Canada risked.

"Yes, there was that. However, that was not my goal."

"America", said Canada in a weary tone while watched him sweat nervously, he knew that his brother had discussed it with Roosevelt on the question of Europe, that he was happy to be able to show his power over the European countries, some of which had snubbed him and criticized him .

" Admit America, you are trying to weaken the old colonial empires to increase your own power."Murmured timidly Canada, who immediately regretted making this comment, seeing his big brother take off his iconic sunglasses and his dark blue eyes then flashed lightning.

"And so what!" The latter replied, visibly angry.

" You cannot criticize Mom's actions." Dared shyly Canada by hardly supporting America's insistent gaze.

"And if she chose the camp of this communist. You would follow her like a good big boy to his mommy, eh."

" And so you try to intimidate me, for what? And then mom is still a powerful country whether you like it or not!" He bits his tongue, insulting himself internally for saying that.

"No, I ... , she ...she is no longer a great power, period. And then she has already started to make treaties with this coco."

"What are you talking about, Mom wouldn't do something like that."Canada really didn't like how things were going, he was hopeless that everything would stop, and that this nightmare would end so that he could finally rest. "Oh yes, well look,and open big your eyes, my dear brother. She did not wait until the end of the war to form an alliance with the USSR, they signed on December 10, 1944 in Moscow."

Canada remained speechless due to this revelation, how he could not have been made aware of it, it is perhaps a small treatise of nothing at all that will probably have no impact in the future, finally he hoped . However , what irritated him the most was not this treaty, but the air of complete satisfaction that America displayed. It was with an inordinate calm and in a frigid tone that Canada uttered his words that hurt America:

"You have changed far too much. You are no longer the brother I knew."

[dilucids]

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤCelebrity crush, Genshin boys idol! au

admitting you're their celebrity crush and their reaction to your reaction

includes: kaeya, diluc, zhongli and xiao

( can't stop thinking about idol! au genshin. any type of celebrity but it's hinted that you're a singer in xiao's. )

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 KAEYA ALBERICH ━━ FROSTWIND SWORDSMAN 〕

━━ this man is sooooo fucking slick with it.

━━ he'll slyly bring it up in an interview or a live with a smirk on his face and then act as if it never happened when someone questions him.

━━ his members just stares at him when he brings you up, knowing, that beneath that sly persona and nonchalant act, there was millions pounds worth of fan merchandise in his room.

━━ he would evade the subject and if it's an interview, the host would have to pry answers from his members instead as he sits there proudly with a smile on his face as his members tell his fan behaviour instead of him.

━━ in a live, he would somehow convince his fans they were hallucinating but someone would post the clip and everyone would just go ballistic, it'd be one of those "top ten things i can't believe kaeya managed to get away with: gaslighting his fans into believing they were crazy."

"Who's your favourite celebrity?" Kaeya reads out from the comments passing quickly through his Instagram live, he pretends to think. A smile forms on his face when he 'decides' on an answer, "probably [Name]."

He watches the comments speed through even quicker before changing the subject, dropping the matter as if it never happened. His fans are all freaking out though, wanting to get more details on his crush on the celebrity but Kaeya ignores all comments about the subject. They never die down though, only ending when Kaeya himself ends the live.

━━ you may have ended on the same show some time after him and the host brings it up ( 100% planned for views ).

━━ it makes you smile because you've already been informed about this topic by your fans and kaeya's.

━━ you'd end up thanking kaeya for the support and say that you've also been lowkey a fan of his group but you've never openly stated that to anyone.

━━ his fans and your fans immediately get to work and start tagging kaeya's insta/twitter, group and personal, under the clip of you shyly admitting you're a fan of his also and he goes mental.

━━ probably sits there watching the entire interview with a huge smile on his face, and it doesn't leave, not even after he finishes the interview ( bonus: diluc is very disturbed ).

━━ HUGE ego boost for the rest of the day. kaeya's normally very confident but he's extra confident, like starts strutting around like he's the shit and even had the balls to nod his head at diluc as if to say "what's up" with the largest shit eating grin on his face.

━━ diluc definitely thought he was picking a fight.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 DILUC RAGNVINDR ━━ DARKNIGHT HERO 〕

━━ more likely to come from one of his members than him.

━━ or he'd be very smooth with it, and brings it up rather subtly. it'd be a small "oh, i ingest their content and enjoy it" and he'd just continue about his day

━━ and his fans will still go insane because diluc actually enjoying something seems weird, especially another celebrity's work

━━ this would obviously reach you, who was an open fan of his group, and you'd freak out when you see it but wouldn't bring it up because he only said he enjoyed your work, not he was a fan.

━━ would definitely get questioned if he was being interviewed on a talk show, he wouldn't evade the question.

━━ he doesn't really see a point in lying, so he simply shrugs and tells the host that he is a fan and owns some merchandise.

"Diluc, a few fans are curious about your statement the other day," the host redirects the questions to Diluc, who raises an eyebrow. "Is it true that you're a fan of [Name]?"

The question makes his heart pick up a little, he leans back on his chair and clears his throat, composing himself before nodding. "I am a fan," the host seems happy by his response. The conversation continues to steer in this direction, asking Diluc if he had attended any fan meetings or merchandise, how he would feel if you two collaborated for a project and then finally ending once the host asks other members if they were fans of anyone.

━━ he thinks nothing of it, continuing with his day as usual but when he gets mentioned by your twitter? the man loses his shit.

━━ he sits there staring at his screen like he was hallucinating and literally tunes everything else out, staring at your little: "i'd love to work with you too!" message with a small smiley face at the end.

━━ he checks the account multiple times just in case it was one of his fans trolling him but clicking on the @ takes him back to your account so he gives in at some point

━━ he types out a normal, professional "thank you, i hope a time comes when we can collaborate" and "i look forward to more of your works" but he's still losing his shit.

━━ stays in his mind for at least a week.

━━ fans always bring up the fact that y'all never did end up collaborating.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 ZHONGLI ━━ VAGO MUNDO 〕

━━ the public is very aware.

━━ he's never made an attempt to hide how he is a fan, not even the massive poster in his room or the little keychain that he hangs on his bag nor the red eyeliner belonging to a makeup brand that you became a brand embassador for, also now one of his favourite brands.

━━ so no one is really surprised when he talks about you or your upcoming work, what is kinda surprising is when he straight up says that he says you're his ideal type.

━━ not because it's shocking that you'd be anyone's ideal type but because they didn't expect the out of the blue question from host and it's even more mind boggling when the man doesn't even stutter nor even think before just saying your name.

━━ members are sat beside him literally losing their shit in both negative ( scandals and shit ) and positive ( it's fucking hilarious ) ways as he just blinks.

━━ he doesn't even look the slightest bit worried as he stares dead straight through the host's head.

━━ obviously scandals emerge, there are positive and negative reactions. some people suddenly realise how good you two would look together and others are mad you "stole" their man because we have delulus in all fandoms.

"So Zhongli," the host starts before clearing his throat, obviously a tad uncomfortable under the eldest member's sudden gaze, "who is your ideal type?" The members also seem curious, as they stop their interactions, staring over at their unusually emotionless member.

One member laughs, waving the question off as a joke and as a way to avoid any possible scandals, knowing that Zhongli wouldn't filter his words due to his lacking understanding of social cues. "C'mon, there's no way that he has an id━━"

"If I had to say, then [Name] suits my preferences." The member who tried to wave it off blinks, staring at Zhongli like he just murdered someone and other members laugh. The host seems pleasantly surprised, peering at the camera with a raised eyebrow and a certain look on his face. The entire studio never gets over it.

━━ it's brought to your attention on twitter because twitter is usually where shit goes down.

━━ you've always been aware that zhongli has been a fan but you've never been able to speak up about it due to your management.

━━ luckily for you, your contract with your previous strict company had ended just a while ago and under your new management, you were more free to do whatever you wanted.

━━ so obviously, you quote tweet the video, tag his account and say in a jokingly way that he should take you out on a date first.

━━ he doesn't publicly reply to your tweet because he already got in trouble with his management for answering such a risky question anyways and your tweet is a little too suggestive.

━━ but he also wants you to know he has seen the tweet. so his solution? to slip into your dms.

━━ and all of a sudden, the next time you're both seen together, you're besties? so people started connecting dots and shit, were they good at connecting them. moral of the story: never underestimate zhongli fans because collectively, they may be able to beat zhongli in an iq test.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤ〔 XIAO ━━ CONQUEROR OF DEMONS 〕

━━ best believe this man got death threated or held at gunpoint into admitting you're his celebrity crush.

━━ or he didn't do it at all and his members confessed for him just to tease him.

━━ happens on a group live, members are just vibing.

━━ xiao is sat in the back somewhere, scrolling through his phone with his earphones in so he doesn't notice his members shifting the camera to him or jumps onto him whilst holding the camera.

━━ when he does notice though, he takes out his earbud and your song just blARES through his earphone and it's fucking loud.

━━ he immediately turns it down but his fellow member already has this shit eating grin on his face and jumps onto xiao, successfully grabbing his phone and showing the live of 100k+ people.

━━ his homescreen is one of those "boyfriend/girlfriend/partner material" lockscreens of you and it shows that your song had been playing.

━━ xiao literally attacks his members and grabs his phone back, walking off to escape the embarrassment but can hear the echoing laughter as he walks down the hallway and slams his door closed.

Xiao lets out a sudden 'oompf' when his members glomps right ontop of him, grinning widely as they held up a camera to show off themselves and Xiao. Glancing at the camera, Xiao takes off an earbud, freezing when a loud upbeat tune echoes throughout the open area. Xiao ignores the feeling of his face heating up and turns down the song, ignoring the obvious gleeful stare of his member.

Almost on instinct, he moves his phone away but curse his parents for their genes because all it takes is a little stretching for his member to have his greasy fingers all over his phone, ripping it out of his hands and immediately running away to shield themselves from the wrath of all 5" and a bit of Xiao. When they deem it safe, they click on the home button of the screen, grinning amused at the homescreen.

"Look at fanboy Xiao!" And just like that, Xiao's cold demeanour had been shatteres infront of a plethora of people.

━━ you find it one of the most endearing things ever.

━━ literally how could you not? you find pride in yourself to have such a popular member of an idol group enjoy your work and it helps gain a little more confidence in yourself.

━━ it's brought up on a talk show kinda casually where the host is one of your friends so they are slightly teasing you for it all the whilst remaining on the professional side.

━━ and it's obvious to say that you're embarrassed by the way you chuckle and mess with your fingers and hair, but you hold yourself together anyways and manage a sweet "thank you for the support" to xiao when the host asks if you wanted to say something in case he was watching.

━━ and the very next day, on xiao's official instagram, he has a signed album and poster of yours, tagged and everything.

[stxrvel]

bittersweet feelings (1)

summary: you have to deal with the harsh truth after Bucky arrives from one of his missions.

pairing: bucky barnes x avenger!reader

warnings: nothing i think, just you know English is not my native language so sorry for any mistakes!

words: +2.5k

note: hi! I've been feeling physically unwell since I last posted and have been in bed, but today I was finally able to get a moment of calm and lucidity, so, enjoy and hope you like it!

also, i've been working on a series that I want to publish soon, but I don't know why I always find it difficult to do all that planning. anyway, I really hope I can bring it to you soon! thank u for all the support!

part 2

part 3

Admiring Bucky Barnes from afar has become too much of a challenge in recent days. Before, you were wrapped up in papers, essays, final exams and projects due, locking yourself in your room at a time or living in your university library, simply too busy to wander your eyes over the sprawling figure of Bucky strolling around the Complex. Ironically, he always spent more time there when you weren't there.

But now, completely free of academic responsibilities and banned from going on missions at Fury's whim, you had a lot more time to wander the halls of the Complex, especially in the gym where the man with the metal arm used to spend most of his time. Many times (if not all the time) you felt like a lousy attempt of a stalker, and you was almost 100% sure that he realised what you were doing but preferred not to say anything so as not to embarrass you. And that was much more embarrassing.

But did that stop you? Absolutely not.

He'd cut his hair a few days ago, and although you loved the way his hair looked on his shoulders and the way it blew in the wind every time he walked, as if he were a model on a bloody photo shoot, you shamelessly admitted that you had quickly grown to love his new style. Because, honestly, did something look bad on Bucky?

Your hands moved indiscreetly across the table, crumpling the paper between your fingers that you had previously been reading, as you watched the aforementioned man's shoulders shake after hearing Sam Wilson say something about Scott's card game. You moved your eyes scanning his entire face, trying to memorise the expression on his face as he smiled so openly, as he almost never did in public.

“Am I interrupting your crazy stalker moment?”

Tony's voice startled you, and you turned your head so sharply to look at something other than Bucky that a slight twinge of pain made its way from the back of your neck to your right shoulder. You grimaced and watched the millionaire sit down next to you on one of the black chairs that were spread out in the first floor cafeteria. Ahead of you, a large glass door separated you from one of the side exits of the Complex, where Bucky and Sam had stopped to talk and, surely at first, discuss the mission Bucky had just returned from.

“I'm not a crazy stalker,” you told him dismissively, but your nerves were eating you up inside. Even though you knew you weren't entirely discreet, you still weren't ready for someone to tell you that you were too obvious for him not to know anymore.

“Yeah, sure, whatever you say,” Tony commented sarcastically and you felt a quick pang of fear inside your chest, “I was just coming to tell you that Fury made the decision to send you to Milan with Steve the other week.”

Your gaze finally shifted away from Bucky's figure, closer and closer to where you stood, to Tony and you frowned at him in extreme confusion.

“What? So soon?”

“Isn't that what you wanted? To go back to the camp?”

“Well, yes, but I thought his tantrum was going to last much longer.”

Tony let out a laugh and proceeded to open the packet of peanuts in his pocket, “If he hears you say that, consider yourself fired, kiddo.”

“Then it's a relief that no one heard me say it,” you smiled innocently at Tony, who only gave you a tight-mouthed smile in return.

“It's just a recon mission. Steve thinks there's an empty HYDRA base you can investigate, and you're pretty nimble with that non-digitized document review stuff.”

“You mean I'm good at reading physical documents?”

“You know what I mean, eagle eyes. There's nothing you're missing.”

“Ow,” you croon with a smile, “Thanks for the compliment, Stark.”

“You're welcome. Now, don't go freaking out. Barnes is walking this way.”

He then stood up and planted himself in front of you, as your heart did a wild flip and you felt him pause for a second, before resuming his march at an unnatural pace. You didn't even know if it was possible for a heart to beat that fast. You felt sweat beading on your hands and started to breathe through your mouth as you felt the nervousness take over your whole body.

“What?” you exclaimed, staring at him, sitting uncomfortably in the chair across the table they had shared.

“I told you not to freak out, you're only going to make it worse.”

You narrowed your eyes at him with a frown. Next, you took about three deep breaths to try and calm your frantic heartbeat, before Sam's figure - and consequently Bucky's - appeared in your field of view to the side of Stark's body. The man gave you a look with an arched eyebrow, as if to ask you to behave yourself, which was an exaggeration.

That was an exaggeration. You spent a lot of time with Bucky! Even when you two were alone you didn't feel as nervous as you did at moments like this.

When your gazes met, you could barely return the smile he gave you before you turned your eyes to Sam, who had just spoken but you hadn't gotten to hear everything he'd said because your head was in the clouds.

“...and that you're going back to the camp with Steve. How long since you've been out? Almost four months? You must be anxious.”

You just nodded, looking at him through tight lips.

Tony rubbed his eyes in an exasperated gesture.

“I could ask Fury to let me tag along,” Bucky's voice reached your ears like a forbidden delicacy. It had been several days since you'd last heard it and it was like a gift from the gods, “Lest he bore you with his awkward silences.”

“We don't have awkward silences,” you grumbled quickly, not knowing exactly why you were getting defensive. Tony raised his eyebrows at you and you shrugged in place, “I mean, we talk about a lot of things.”

“Oh yeah?” Bucky's jocular tone didn't do much for your nerves and sanity, “Name a topic you've been talking about for more than three minutes.”

You pursed your lips and stared at his perfect face, uninjured by the mission, as you conjured up memories of your conversations with Steve. Your almost non-existent conversations.

Your cheeks flushed as you realised he was right, but you weren't going to let him win you over this time.

“One time, we talked all night about a movie.”

“If you're going to say you talked about Lord of the Rings, that doesn't count,” Sam spoke with a half smile on his face.

“Why not?” you grumbled quickly, watching the grimace in his face.

“He talks to everyone about those movies. It doesn't even feel like a conversation anymore, it's like a monologue.”

“Careful, Sam,” Tony spoke up after several seconds, “She likes those movies too.”

“Hey! They're good movies.”

“Good for a nap,” Sam let out a laugh.

You watched Bucky pursed his lips and looked down at the floor, holding back a chuckle.

“They're entertaining,” you muttered with a frown.

Sam pointed at you, his eyebrows arched and his corners raised in a playful grin.

“Well, that's it,” Bucky interrupted whatever Sam was going to say, “You know what they say, to each his own.”

“I'm with Barnes on this one,” Tony spoke up, resting one of his hands on Barnes' shoulder and giving it a little squeeze. Bucky watched his hand and then the millionaire's face with an arched eyebrow, but Tony quickly turned his attention away from Bucky to Sam, “Speaking of Steve, he asked me to tell you to look for him in the main room. He said something about a pending conversation.”

Tony put his arm around Sam's shoulders, leaning part of his body to lead him to walk with him out of the cafeteria. They promptly struck up a conversation on their way out of the cafeteria, and you felt your hands shake once you realized you were alone with Bucky after a couple of weeks of not being able to talk properly with him.

You turned your head away from where the two people who had accompanied you a few seconds before were leaving, hearing the creak of a chair being dragged in front of you. You watched Bucky move his body into a sitting position, settling his forearms on the table and his eyes fixed on yours. Settling into the chair, you gave him a tight-lipped, tense smile. Act normal.

“So the boss finally gave in,” the black-haired man said, his lips curling as he interlocked his hands.

You nodded your head slightly, “It was quicker than I thought. I thought he'd never let me back in the field.”

“And can you blame him? You sure scared the soul out of his body,” Bucky arched his eyebrows, and the mere memory of what happened gave you a feeling of irritability.

You grimaced, “Oh, it wasn't a big deal.”

“It wasn't a big deal? Honey, you threw yourself at those people all by yourself.”

You stared at him for a few seconds, like you did every time he called you names when you were alone. He never did it in public, and it was something you didn't try to think about very often.

“So what? This was all unnecessarily dramatic,” you tried to say in the most neutral tone of voice possible as you crossed your legs under the table.

“There were twenty men,” he said, as if that explained everything.

“Do you think me incapable, Barnes?” you arched an eyebrow, speaking with courage.

“No, of course not,” he quickly replied, his gaze softening, “But you disobeyed a direct order from Natasha and put your life at risk. You know how Fury is with you, he cares too much about you.”

You rolled your eyes, letting your back fall against the back of the chair, “But I'm not made of porcelain. I'm as good as Nat, she trained me herself!”

“But Fury didn't see her grow up.”

Well, he had a point and rightly so. You had grown up with the boss, who had practically adopted you, which was one of the reasons he used to be overprotective or refuse you to do some things because he thought it was for the best. And that fact had also helped you form fraternal bonds with all the Avengers until you were old enough and capable enough to be a part of them.

Well, you saw everyone as a nice family except Bucky. And that was a big problem.

You watched him through your eyelashes with an almost imperceptible pout.

Bucky gave you a beautiful smile, the kind that could light up an entire city, “Honey, I understand that it bothers you, but the position you put Fury in at the time, or everyone for that matter, made it hard for him not to make the decision he did. Maybe he overstepped, I'm not denying that, but he was scared.”

“There were other ways...” you started to renege again.

“And would you really have listened to him?” he inquired without wiping away his smile. It amazed you how lenient he could be with you, when with the rest of the world he was a hermit and sulky most of the time.

You sighed. Yep, you could be pretty stubborn when you put your mind to it.

“Well, the important thing is that he finally realised his mistake,” you blurted out with an amused grin. Bucky frowned and pointed the index finger of his metal arm at you.

“I think you missed the point of our little debate.”

“No, no... I understand, Bucky, I do. But Fury have to trust my skills a little more. I could against all of them! It was a spectacle.”

“But you're not always going to come out on top, sweetheart. At some point someone can catch you off guard, and that's what Fury's afraid of.”

“Well, it'll have to happen at some point. Unfortunately, I'm not invincible,” you agreed and admitted what he had said, because he was certainly right, with a tight-lipped smile.

You thought Bucky would be amused, or at least agree with you, but he merely bowed his head, frowned and tensed noticeably. You noticed that his expression suddenly hardened, and it frightened you that you had said something that would have angered him.

“What?” you asked fearfully.

He looked up from the table to look at you again, waking up. He gave you a smile, but a stiffer, harder and committed one. Your chest tightened, “It's not.... It's nothing. Just try to be careful next time, more cautious if necessary. You know, strategist.”

“Yeah, I know, I don't risk it if I don't think it's necessary.”

“That's my girl.”

You froze for a few seconds, just watching him, before your face heated up into an all too violent blush. He'd never said anything like that to you before... but you certainly didn't balk at the possibility that he might again.

“Thank you, Bucky,” you smiled shyly at him.

The sound of the cafeteria doors swinging open distracted the man in front of you, but you kept staring at his profile, gawking and surely with heart-shaped eyes. How was it possible that you liked him so much? Even though it had been a while since you last spoke, it seemed that your feelings for him had only grown three times his size.

Then, you heard it:

“Bucky!”

A woman's voice in the distance.

Confused, you turned your gaze in the direction of the voice, which came from the same place Bucky had been watching for several seconds. She was the one who had opened the doors so frantically, then. You frowned at her from a distance, unable to recognise her figure or features; it wasn't usually easy for you to forget the faces of people you knew, and you certainly didn't know this woman.

However, when you turned to ask Bucky, the half-smile on his face gave you the answer without words. Your chest tightened and you clenched your hands so as not to show the abrupt change of mood you had just gone through when he turned his face and fixed his eyes on yours. All without erasing that smile.

That smile he had on his face for her.

“I guess you'll have to go with Steve to schedule everything about the mission.”

You nodded, uncomfortably, not looking away.

“Fine. In the meantime, I'll go on my date,” he crooned, and the burning you felt intensified so much that it felt like you couldn't pass saliva without straining. But you smiled at him, your lips curving awkwardly and your face reluctant to show a feeling you didn't experience.

“Wow, I thought I'd never hear you say something like that.”

“Life is full of surprises, honey,” he said smiling as he stood up, “Do you want me to walk you to the living room?”

“No, don't worry. I'll be there in a minute,” you replied quickly. It was the first time since you had met him that you wanted him to leave you alone for once.

“All right. Good luck with the old man.”

“Thanks. Good luck with your- your- your date.”

You hated the way your voice betrayed you, but Bucky didn't seem to pay too much attention to it as he waved goodbye to you and started walking in the direction of the woman waiting for him outside the cafeteria doors. You felt your chest tighten as you sighed deeply and a couple of tears welled up in your eyes.

Damn it, at what point had all that happened?

[watchmegetobsessed]

Never Have I Ever - Harry Styles (part 5)

uh ohh, part 5 baby! im quite enjoying this story so far and i have some fun things planned for it, so i hope you’ll stay with me for them! in today’s part, our fav new celeb couple takes it all the way, though i chose not to include the actual sex part, however im still treating you all with some dirty stuff so enjoy!

pairing: Harry x actress!reader

word count: 4.6k

warning: NSFW content

SERIES MASTERPOST

masterlist

New couple alert?

Harry Styles and Y/N Y/L/N have been spotted having lunch and grabbing coffee several times in the course of the past few weeks. All the outings looked casual and friendly, they gladly stopped for fans that approached them and the word has it that they’ve been getting closer to each other, though neither of them confirmed anything.

Harry Styles has been known to be single for a while now, only faint rumors swirling up sometimes, but none of them were proven to be true, the young actress is the first woman he has been linked to in a long time. Y/N Y/L/N has been focusing on her blooming career and has been single since her split from long time exboyfriend and fellow actor, Levi Hudson. The pair dated all through 2018, splitting in the beginning of 2019. Hudson has admitted their hectic schedules made it impossible to maintain their relationship while Y/N did not confirm anything.

Styles is going on his world-wide tour soon, while Y/L/N is currently between two projects. The young celebs seem to be enjoying each other’s company and fans have been quick to jump into speculations about their alleged romance, however there is no evidence as of right now.

“Thank you so much for your time, it was a pleasure to talk to you,” the young interviewer smiles at you, holding her hand out and you shake it with a warm smile.

“Thank you for having me! And I really like your shoes, by the way,” you point down at her electric blue pumps that you’ve been eyeing since the start of the interview.

“Oh, thank you! Got them from a vintage store,” she beams, a slight blush playing on her cheeks clearly a little starstruck from your compliment.

“Love those little stores.”

“Me too,” she giggles collecting her papers and notes. “Someone will contact you and your team soon about the photoshoot and I’ll email you a draft of the interview in about a week.”

“That’s perfect, thank you so much,” you nod at her grabbing your purse from the side table next to you. Grabbing your phone from the depth of it you smile to yourself upon seeing the text from Harry.

“Call me when you’re done with the interview Xx.”

You say your goodbye to everyone before heading out of the building. Lawrence is at the front waiting for you in the car and he greets you with a warm smile when you sit into the backseat. As he starts the car and heads back to your home, you call Harry, who picks it up after the second ring.

“Hey! How was the interview?” he beams brightly, his voice immediately making you smile.

“Great! This young girl did it and she had some exciting questions.”

“Sounds lovely. Can’t wait to buy a Cosmopolitan with you on the cover soon,” he says and you can hear the grin through his voice.

“Will look good in your hands for sure,” you chuckle.

“Right. So I have a question for you.”

“Go for it.”

“I’m doing this very small show at Beacon Theater this weekend, kind of a practice before the real tour begins and I was wondering if you’d be up to come. Would love to have you there.”

“When is it exactly?”

“Saturday at nine. I know it’s a short notice and I get it if you have something else going on, just wanted to ask.”

“I think I can make it work,” you smile, thinking back at what your day looks like on Saturday. “Can I bring someone?”

“Of course! Just let me know how many people so I can have the tickets sent over to you.”

“Thank you. It’s sweet of you to think about me.”

“You know I always think about you,” he murmurs and his voice sends a shiver down your spine. Crazy to think how much he can affect you with just his words, he just has a special spell on you, it seems.

“Still such a flirt, I see,” you chuckle, feeling your cheeks heating up as you hear his soft laugh on the other end of the line.

“For you, always.”

“Alright. I’ll text you about the tickets and thank you again. Can’t wait to see you perform finally.”

“It’s been due for a while now, right? Kind of promised you some tickets on Ellen, if I remember correctly.”

“You did!” you laugh thinking back at the time you met him. How funny that just one short game on a talk show led the two of you here. You have to thank Ellen though.

“Now I’m finally keeping my promise. Talk to you later then, Love. Have a great day.”

“You too, Harry.”

 You manage to convince Sydney to join you for the concert, she sounds excited when you ask if she had anything to do on Saturday. Seeing Harry perform before his tour kicks off is a thrill for her she wouldn’t pass on for anything, so she is really grateful that you thought of her as your plus one.

Harry has your passes sent over to your place on Friday and it comes with a bouquet of flowers as well as a card.

“Can’t wait to see you tomorrow. What’s your favorite song? I’ll make sure to perform it just for you. –H”

He never fails to make you feel like the only woman on the planet and you can definitely see why so many fall for him even without meeting him. The man has all the power to charm anyone with just a smile.

You put the flowers into a vase and leave them on your dining table before grabbing your phone and sending him a quick text.

“It’s Only Angel,” you simply write, hoping he’ll get it why you just wrote that. Luckily, he does.

“Straight to the setlist. Dedicated to You.”

 Finishing up the last touches to your makeup you bop your head to the song blasting through the stereo. It’s Only Angel, of course. You’ve had it on repeat all afternoon and now you can’t wait to actually see Harry perform it live.

Just as you are about to get changed, Syd arrives so you let her in with a beaming smile and when she hears the music upon walking into your place she cheers in excitement.

“Yes! This is such a jam!” she smirks, doing a little dance as you lock the door behind her.

“You look fantastic, Syd,” you tell her. The black short dress looks amazing paired with the lilac oversized blazer. Her makeup matches the same color and you are obsessed with the fishnet tights. She will surely make men wish she was into them.

“Thank you! Spent two hours figuring out what to wear, so I hope I look fantastic,” she giggles.

She helps you put together your outfit as well. Wide legged flaming red pants that make your waist look snatched, a black sheer top tucked into it with just a black bralette underneath. You already know Harry will be a fan of the skin you’re showing, you can’t wait to see his face when he finally spots you.

You quickly pack your essentials into a black Chanel purse along with stuff you need for a possible sleepover if things might take a pleasant turn, and you finish with everything just when the doorman calls up through the intercom that Lawrence has arrived.

“So, what’s the deal with you and him, if I may ask?” Syd questions in the car, not in a nosy way, more like a curious, friendly way.

“We are… getting close,” you say, tasting the word on your tongue. You haven’t labeled whatever you have going on with Harry, nor do you really know what it should be called. You’ve been trying hard to make time for each other as much as possible, making small lunch and coffee dates a regular thing. He came over to your place one evening for a movie and that’s the only time you were able to be alone with him, though nothing sexual happened. Yet. The real deal is yet to happen and if you are being honest you are running short on patience. It’s getting harder to hold yourself back and keep your hands to yourself as well when you are out with him, but you agreed to keep it lowkey out in the public.

Tonight, however, you have a feeling what you’ve been waiting for so long might actually happen and you can only hope Harry is planning the same thing. You are absolutely ready to bluntly ask if he wants to spend the night at your place.

“But you’re heading… somewhere, right?”

“I hope so,” you smile shyly.

“That’s amazing. I think you two are a match,” Syd smirks at you.

By the time you arrive to the venue the gates have been opened so people are busy getting inside, giving you the chance to walk inside through the backdoors without any fuss.

“Miss, Harry requested me to usher you to his dressing room when you arrive,” the girl at the door smiles at you with a clipboard in her hands and a headset covering her ears.

“Oh, alright,” you nod, turning to Syd. “You go ahead and get us a good place,” you tell her and she nods walking away with a wave as she heads up to the second floor that’s fully reserved for friends and family.

Following the girl down the hallway you are led to a room that has Harry’s name on it. She gently knocks on the door and a few moments later it flies open, revealing Harry in a colorful suit and a simple white button-down shirt. He looks breathtaking, hair fixed perfectly and the wide grin stretching across his lips when he sees you standing there.

“You’re here!” he breathes out, grabbing your hand and pulling inside, snatching you away from the preying eyes. Once the door clicks closed behind you, he is quick to press his lips to yours in a sweet welcoming kiss. Ever since your first official date he hasn’t passed on any chance to kiss you whenever you had the luxury of privacy to yourselves, which hasn’t happened too much, leaving you both with a growing hunger for each other every time you meet.

“Mm of course I am,” you smile against his lips before pecking them one last time and leaning back. “Looking great, Mr. Styles,” you grin, taking your time to wander your eyes down on him.

“Yeah? Like the suit?”

“Absolutely.”

“Well, I love your outfit as well. M’gonna have a hard time not thinking about you on the stage.”

“Please think about me,” you breathe out with a coy smile.

“Don’t fucking say that to me, you are giving me a hard time,” he groans and you just chuckle at the tortured look on his face.

“Sorry,” you mumble, but your face doesn’t meet your words. He squeezes your waist gently, pecking your lips in a rush before he lets go of you.

“I need to go over a few things before we start, so just go ahead and join Syd. Meet me here after the show?”

“Yeah, perfect,” you nod smiling. “Good luck out there,” you wink and he grins at you with bright eyes. His hands grab onto yours before you head out, pulling you in for one last kiss before you leave.

You feel flustered and you take a few deep breaths on your way up to the gallery to find Syd who managed to get an amazing spot at the front on the left side.

They offer everyone up on the gallery some champagne before the show starts and looking around you see a few familiar faces, but no one you specifically know. You stick with Sydney who is over the moon about the show and you are kind of sharing her excitement.

When the lights go down and the music finally starts, you can’t help but join in with the screams that fill the theater.

You’ve seen videos of him performing, in One Direction and solo as well. You’ve seen pictures and you’ve heard the words about how amazing he is on stage, but none of those live up to the actual experience. The sensation that takes over you just by seeing him appear on the stage as the whole theater chants his name as one, it completely sweeps you off your feet and for a second you wonder how you could live a life without this experience.

When his voice starts to flow through the massive speakers you need to take a deep breath, a shiver runs down your spine and you chug down the rest of your champagne so you could get rid of the glass and hold onto the railing with both hands because you feel like you need to ground yourself before you shoot into the sky.

Song after song, he performs perfectly, bringing every single person in the audience to that euphoric state they’ve been probably seeking their whole life. The experience is surely one of a kind, something you’ll definitely be thinking about for a long time.

Time seems to stop, though it cruelly carries on even when you forget about it completely. The concert is nearing its end and Harry takes a breather as he places his guitar to the stand behind him. You watch his every move as he walks back to the microphone, his gaze moving up to the gallery, roaming through the people until they find you.

“This last song is dedicated… to my Only Angel,” he murmurs into the microphone as the audience erupts, blows up at once and your heart skips a beat when his eyes linger over you for a little longer before the music starts to play.

You faintly hear Syd screaming next to you, probably aware that the dedication was addressed to you, but you can’t tear your eyes off of the man on the stage.

He nails it perfectly, looking like an absolute rockstar that he truly is and for a moment you can’t believe you have his attention and interest. How can such a precious and unbelievably talented man be in your reach?

Because I deserve great things in life, you tell yourself, a little mantra you’ve gotten around to repeat every time you found yourself doubting your success and happiness.

The concert eventually ends and though no one in the room desires the end of it, Harry leaves and you are abruptly brought back to reality.

“That was… something else truly,” Syd breathes out as the two of you linger around a little longer, trying to come down from the high you just experienced.

“Yeah. He is so fucking talented it’s almost unfair,” you chuckle running a hand through your hair.

“This tour will kill thousands of people all around the world,” she muses and for a moment, reality sets in and you realize that Harry will leave for his worldwide tour very soon, leaving you behind.

You get rid of the thought, not wanting to stress over something that’s not relevant just yet and you don’t want to ruin the evening either. Fears and stress can wait a little longer.

The two of you make your way backstage, walking into a bit of a chaos as all close friends and family want to congratulate to Harry and the band as well. Standing at the side you let everyone have their time, barely even seeing Harry in the sea of people in the spacious green room. Syd keeps you company as you wait and about thirty minutes later it seems like the crowd is starting to loosen up.

Harry spots you and excuses himself immediately from his conversation with a couple, heading in your direction with the widest grin you’ve ever seen on his pretty face.

“Congrats, that was mind-blowing,” you smirk as he reaches you, a hand curling around your waist as he leans down and places a kiss to your cheek, keeping it as moderate as possible, though you both just want to jump at each other.

“Thank you, Love,” he nods, a blush tinting his cheeks from your words. “Hello Sydney, so great to see you again,” he greets the girl next to you and they share a short hug.

“Hi! Loved the show so much!” she giggles in excitement.

“Thank you for coming.”

The three of you chat for a while before Sydney says she is gonna call herself an Uber, so after saying her goodbye she leaves you alone with Harry, as much as you can be alone with a bunch of other people around.

“I wanted to ask you something,” he clears his throat as his hand finds its way back to the small of your back.

“Go for it.”

“We are gonna grab a drink at some bar, but nothing over the top and I wanted to ask if you would want to join.”

“Sounds good,” you smile, feeling a little disappointed. This is not exactly what you wanted him to ask. Luckily, he is not done with his questions.

“Also… I-If it’s cool by you, I thought that… maybe you could come over?”

“Mmm, go over and do what?” you tease him, your smile stretching wider with each passing moment.

“I have plenty of ideas, Love,” he breathes out, making you laugh. “We could drop by your place if you need anything to stay over.”

“No need. Packed a bag,” you slyly grin at him, taking him by surprise clearly, but it’s surely a pleasant one.

“Always a step ahead of me, huh?” he smirks, pressing a kiss to your forehead.

It takes some time to actually leave the venue and head off to the bar with a close group of friends of him and the band. A secluded area was already reserved for you that has its own bar, so you could enjoy the evening without worrying about preying eyes of strangers or fans. You really weren’t in the mood to keep your distance from Harry, this way at least you were able to touch each other in a more intimate way without speculations swirling up immediately.

You get to know his band and some of his friends, they are all genuinely amazing people, but you weren’t expecting anything else. You figured he only surrounds himself with people like him. His hands often find your waist and he doesn’t shy away from kissing your cheek or giving your hips a gentle squeeze, just letting you know you have his attention and he appreciates that you’re there.

It’s nearing one am when the guests start leaving and soon enough you find yourself in the back of your car with Harry, heading to his place, while you try your best to keep your hands away from him. You wouldn’t put Lawrence through the trauma of having to see or hear something he shouldn’t.

But that doesn’t stop you from kissing, something you’ve been dying to do all night. Your hand rests on his thigh while he has an arm curled around your shoulders, keeping you tight by his side, delicately brushing his nose against your hair every time your lips are not connected.

“Thank you, Lawrence. I’ll call myself a taxi in the morning, have the day off,” you tell your driver who smiles in your way thankfully while Harry grabs your and his bags from the back of the car.

“Thank you, Miss. Enjoy your night,” he nods in your way as you shut the door closed.

You try to take your duffel bag from Harry, but he insists to carry it as the two of you walk inside his house.

“Want something to drink? Water, tea or something?” he asks, setting the bags down near his giant, comfortable looking couch. Your thoughts immediately wander to a dirty field, picturing him sitting on that very couch as you kneel in front of him, pleasuring him so good that his eyes roll back…

“Yeah, water please,” you say clearing your throat. Some hydration will come handy after the drinks you chugged down at the bar.

You follow him as he shuffles into the kitchen, grabbing a glass and a bottled water from the fridge for you, pouring some into the glass before handing it to you.

“Thank you. You have a nice place for yourself,” you tell him, looking around in his home.

“Thanks. Been working on it for a while,” he chuckles softly. “Feels a bit too big for just myself though.”

You finish the water and set your eyes at him, feeling your hunger for him grow with each passing moment. Placing the empty glass to the marble counter you take a step closer to him.

“You feel lonely often?” you question in a low voice. His eyes return to you and you are happy to see the same lust in them.

“Would say so, yes,” he nods, running his tongue over his pink lips before he reaches out and grabbing you by your hips, he draws you close to him. Leaning down his lips brush against the shell of your ear, a shiver runs down your spine when you hear his whisper in it. “Hope it’ll change soon.”

At a loss of patience, you grab his face and angle it perfectly so you can kiss him hard. And by hard, you mean real hard. He stumbles back from the force, but manages to keep his balance, returning the kiss just as vehemently as he receives it, a tug of war starting between the two of you.

His hands work fast on the sheer fabric of your shirt, pulling it out from the waistband of your pants, getting rid of it eagerly as his lips wander down on your neck, collarbones and chest. He easily turns the two of you around so you are pushed against the edge of the countertop, his hips pushed against you and it’s clearer that daylight just how excited he is to have you here tonight. Your eyes flicker over to the couch again and the desire to please him with your mouth just bursts, you can’t hold yourself back anymore.

So you push him away from you, grabbing his wrist and yanking him after you, heading towards the couch. You push him down and his lustful eyes follow every move of yours as you kneel in front of him and he realizes what you are about to do. He doesn’t stop you when you work to unbutton his pants, but his hand finds your chin and he pulls you up for a swift, but passionate kiss.

Once you successfully undid his pants he lifts his hips and you spare some time and energy, pulling them down along with his underwear, leaving him only in his vintage printed t-shirt as his cock springs free. You push your thighs together just at the sight of him, the way his eyes burn down on you, how his lips part when your gazes meet and the way he sucks on his breath when your fingers dig into his thighs near his crotch as you situate yourself closer.

“I believe I owe you an orgasm, don’t I?” you ask with a cheeky smirk before wrapping your left hand around the base of his shaft, giving it a gentle squeeze, just enough to get him even more excited. A whimpered moan slips from his lips and you lean closer, giving his cock a lick from bottom to top, wrapping your lips around the head as you swirl your tongue around it.

“Fuck hell!” he breathes out, clearly enjoying himself, hands fisting the cushion next to him, but you bet they’ll be buried in your hair soon.

You’re not an expert in the field of blowjobs, but it’s been your thing to come barging right through the door and jump the easy teasing whenever you were on your knees for a man. So with your hands fixed on his beautiful face, you sink down on him, his cock gliding into your mouth right until the tip reaches the back of your throat, earning the loudest moan you’ve heard from him. Shutting your eyes closed you keep him like that for a second until the urge to gag starts to set in, so you slide him out, your saliva dripping down his erection as your eyes meet his and you can tell you shocked him with your bold first move.

“Do that one more time and I won’t last for a minute,” he warns breathing heavily and you just smirk up at him before going into action again, this time only taking a smaller portion of him, pumping the base to make up for the lack of deep throating, but it appears that he enjoys just the simple part of it equally. As you keep bobbing your head, taking as much of him as you can without gagging, his right hand flies to your hair, taking a handful of it as he gently guides your head, keeping it in the rhythm that works the best for him and you happily let him do whatever makes him feel good.

When your free hand goes to gently massage his balls your name erupts from him in the most voluptuous way you’ve heard him call out for you. As if he just cried out for God himself.

“Y/N, fuck, I won’t last long,” he warns you, but that’s all you want. You need to see him come undone under your touch, you want to be the reason his breath hitches. Picking up your pace you see him whimper some more, head falling backwards to the back of the couch. It’s a heavenly view and you wish you could take a picture of his beauty as he enjoys himself on this intimate level. You’ve never wanted to please a man more than him and just seeing him in this blissful state makes you wet through your underwear.

When his breathing starts to get uneven, chest heaving wildly, you take all of him again, his head poking the back of your throat and you push your tongue against his length as you slide him out, picking up the same pace that you kept before, both hands working hard on him.

“Fuck! I-I’m gonna cum!” he warns again and just a few seconds later, you feel the evidence of his satisfaction spurt into the back of your throat, eyes falling on you as you give him one last lick before swallowing everything that’s in your mouth.

“Holy shit,” he breathes out pulling you up, eagerly kissing you without a second thought, his hands cupping your cheeks to keep you in place. “You surely know how to kill a man, yea?” he huffs making you chuckle.

“Think you can go for a second one?” you sheepishly ask, blinking up at him from under your long lashes.

“I’ll have enough time to recover while I eat you out like you’re my last meal,” he bluntly replies, and a moan almost slips from your lips.

“Show me what you got, Styles,” you challenge him and he doesn’t need more, he easily picks you up, wrapping your legs around his waist as he heads straight to the bedroom.

“As you wish, Angel,” he mumbles against your skin, peppering your neck and shoulder with featherlike kisses along his way until he throws you to his bed, ruthlessly tearing the remaining of your clothes off your body.

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[its-me-im-coraline]

Cry Baby // Ethan Torchio // Playist Fic

words // 1244

warnings // angst angst angst, mentions of struggling with mental illnesses but nothing graphic, but also fluffy caring Ethan

pairing // Ethan Torchio x GN!Reader

author's note // if you want to be on the tag list let me know. aghhhh this is the first fic on my little playlist thingy omg and i am excited although this is v angsty oops. If you don't know what this is supposed to be, i have a playlist tagged on my masterlist, you can send in a song from there or an entirely different one and I use that song, the lyrics and the feeling its music gives me to write a fic.

song is cry baby by the neighbourhood

also, maybe im projecting or maybe im affected by fallon carrington singing her wedding vows lol. also the photo of ethan here, sooooo cute

request // nope

summary // Reader has a hard time trusting people. When Ethan comes into their life it get’s worse. Reader is preparing for unavoided heartbreak but Ethan just might change their mind heart.

They were too stuck in their own thoughts for this relationship. Maybe it started at the wrong time or it was the perfect time but they had the wrong mind. They felt like a narcissist, making everything about them, while having a hard time hearing his side.

He was perfect, too perfect to ever be in this relationship, and maybe that thought scared them. Living around people who only cared about themselves, people who never cared how much they hurt Y/N, they were afraid to admit they might be doing the same to him.

They had not been together for long, only a few months, but the man acted as if he knew them forever. He did not care if they knew each other for a month or five, he was not willing to let them suffer alone. There were the two am panic attacks, calling Ethan at that time, waking him from his sleep, crying about the inability to calm their mind and sleep. He never complained. Or the days he spend at their house, Y/N having a hard time getting off bed, the depressive episodes hitting a little too hard; Ethan spend those days rubbing their back, making sure that they were alright.

Maybe that is what drove Y/N to be defensive, maybe their mind was alarmed by the man’s caring behavior -something so unfamiliar yet needed for them- that they felt defensive every time he was around. Maybe they spoke too much, and they thought the man would be scared away from them. “I’m not going away, Y/N, not for a long time, not at all if it’s on my hand,” he’d say after every fight, when Y/N would say yet another thing they did not mean. He was just too perfect.

“I really meant what I said that, Y/N,” he all but whispered to his lover. “I do love you.”

“Don’t say that, Ethan. How do you even know, it’s too soon!” Excuses, excuses, excuses and more excuses to plain and simple sabotage to themselves.

“You just know, when you know, amore, and I do.”

They could not look at his eyes anymore, afraid that with just one glance from the man their tears would fall, their guards would fall. And, if they let the guards fall even for a moment, it made them vulnerable to twice the heartbreak. So their eyes stayed glued to the floor, never leaving or daring to think about looking elsewhere. Every other place felt like a danger zone.

“You don’t have to say it back, amore, but you can not expect me not to.”

The fear never left, the fear that the young man was lying. He could not actually feel that way, could he?

Just as Y/N spiraled into yet another anxiety attack, there he was again with his soothing words and his soft touch on their face, his breath so close and so fresh hitting their face. “I’ve got you, it’s ok, follow my breath baby, come on, you are doing amazing, that’s it…” It did not take long for them to calm down a bit. Maybe it was the fact that a person finally respected their emotions rather than getting offended by them, but they felt safe even if only for a moment. “I’m here, I love you.”

It kept happening, over and over and over again. The man would profess his love but his love was not ready to believe him. It got him exhausted. He did not mind waiting for them to say the words back, he understood their past and their pain and how hard it is to vocalize something you feel. What he did mind was their active refusal to believe him, so it was the time to confront them.

“Hey, Y/N, do you have a moment?” If a single phrase could put their mind in a frenzy it was this one. The words could not form so they simply nodded their head, moving towards the sitting man.

“Look, Y/N, I-”

“If you are to break up with me just do it,” they said, the words leaving their mouth before even getting the chance to be filtered. They did not want to say that, hell they simply did not want Ethan to break up with them, but the fear was impossible to be hidden.

“What?! Amore, are you even listening to yourself?” He was exasperated. How could Y/N possibly think that, even now, after almost a year together. It hurt the man, it hurt him how much they refused to open up but it also hurt him that someone caused that fear to them before.

“I know what is happening, Ethan. I know I am hurting you with my inability to say those stupid words back. I’ve heard what you said to Victoria the other night -I did not mean to (!)-” “Hey, hey, let’s pause for a second there, amore. I’m not breaking up with you, that is not the problem. But, if you really heard what I said to Vic that night you would not be saying what you are,” he paused for a moment, taking a deep breath, holding his lover’s face between his palms, “I’ve told you countless times I love you, and I will never take that back. I know you do, too. You don’t say it but you show it, but my love, the issue is not the words. The issue is you don’t believe me.”

Y/N was left speechless, not knowing what to say to the man besides that he is right. They’ve been having a really hard time believing that they even slightly deserve this love, the love that the Italian drummer in question has given them more than enough of. He was so kind, so caring, so loving that the more the relationship progressed the harder they found it to believe in his words.

“You can’t possibly truly love me, Ethan,” Y/N said calmly, tears in their eyes, mostly from anger, anger targeted at their mind.

“Then why are you even with me, Y/N? Huh? If you don’t believe that why are we together for almost a year now?!” The high volume of his voice was a stark contrast to the soft and collected tone he usually had, but his emotions were starting to take over and it was utterly obvious at this point.

Y/N did not know what to do, being left speechless for the second time in less than two minutes. Their mind raced for an excuse, a reason as to why they kept being with him if they really did not believe him, until the answer came to them and it was like a lightbulb going off: “Because I know that I love you.”

It came out almost as a whisper, as if the words were trying to not be heard. It was a strain of their voice, a sudden sob accompanying the words that broke Ethan’s heart. His love, his sweet, sweet love, the person he could not stop yearning for no matter how close they were… they were hurt, afraid of being loved - or more so afraid of being lied to. Ethan pulled Y/N into his arms, hands rubbing comforting cycles, lips letting the sweetest of nothings to come out.

“It’s ok, it’s alright, I got you, I’m here, I’m holding you, I am not leaving, I love you.”

tag list: @bieberhoodforever @tabi-toast @ginny-lily @moriro-da-regina @the-killer-queenie @makapaka11