1salemdraws1

[l0v3rg1ri]

Heya! Could a request a platonic!Levi Ackerman x cadet!reader? The reader used to live in the underground and kind of finds a sort of kinship with Levi, bonding over their shared trauma- if that makes sense

Ofc, no pressure to write this! But, if you do write it, I hope you have fun with it!!

Writer note:

Hello! Thank you for requesting <3! And ofc! I would love to write this fun idea! :3 He might be abit ooc, but hopefully not so much! I made a small snip it and a headcannon area since I didn't know which one you wanted! -----------------

Tw: Mention of child trafficking

Platonic!Levi Ackerman x Cadet!Reader who comes from the under-ground "Instead of seeking people who can stop the bleeding, we're attracted to those with similar wounds, who may not know how to find a way out of the darkness, but suffice, simply because they're in the same boat as us."

Headcannon:

his first reaction to hearing a cadet being from the underground was a bit mixed. For one, the undergrounds weren't an area a child would normally be unless they were from a poor or broken family. Even in dark cases, child trafficking. Another is, he doesn't like to get into people's personal life so he just shrugs it off. I imagine him being surprised but also not that interested to just ask you about it.

If you did decide to talk to him and figure out more about him he'll turn interested about how you got to the undergrounds. He will say a thing or two of his own experience in the start of you both talking.

Once you tell him how you got there he can react multiple way. For one if you were from a poor family he'd feel connected to that since he grew up dirty and without anything. The only money and resources coming from his mother who was a prostitute.

But if you were a child being trafficked he'd feel anger rise. His mother was a prostitute and was trafficked into that lifestyle because of lack of resources. Seeing her cry and wonder what she can do and even if she could continue whilst having Levi as a young child at home while she was gone for hours. That's one hell of an image stuck in his head ever since he was a child. He couldn't imagine a young child or teenager going through that made his world crumble. He always hated children getting hurt even if he had no interest in having his own or even being around children

The more and more you both continue to talk he felt like he met someone who could relate to him besides his old friends. He grew comfort in knowing someone could relate and he wasn't the only who had these feelings.

soon he started to see you like a sibling or his child you could say. Talking to you more and checking up on you, though he never gave special treatment during training since he wanted you to grow as your own person just like him, yet he also wanted you to defend yourself enough against titans.

he starts giving you small head pats and small learning lessons he's gotten from Erwin when he was first brought into the Survey Corps. Though he changed a couple of things to make it more understanding.

If you ever gained some sort of mental health disorder then he would try his best to help. In this period of time mental health disorders wouldn't be known as much, but Levi as far as he was concern he knew these were stress signs since he had gotten PTSD from his time of serving and even his underground times. So he would spend nights with you giving you tea and calming you down even if it was just sitting in silence.

------------------------

It was night time and Levi was awake since he couldn't fall asleep for some odd reason. Sitting in his office drinking tea and just writing papers and papers. Documents he had to fill days ago and he had fallen behind. Suddenly his peace of silence was broken by a light knock at his door. He sighed as he spoke up. "come in"

The door made a small creak as it was open before letting out a loud thud as it was shut. He raised an eyebrow at who entered but soon recognized the familiar face. "Couldn't sleep again?"

"no....I keep getting those weird pauses again" you shrugged as you took a seat on one of the chairs in front of his desk. "mh...you want me to make that tea for you again or?" Levi asked as he looked up at you from looking at his papers. You nodded your head as he stood up and went to a small area of his office. He had his personal area to make tea since he didn't want to walk all the way down to the kitchen to make his tea. Once he was finished he settled down the cup in front of you as he sat down drinking his own tea while the sounds of rain hit against the window. "Levi...does..it ever go away?"

The question surprised him before he just sighed putting down the papers he held in his hands. "no...some may say scars will heal, but they never do. Scars can't go away no matter what you do. You can bandage them, wash them, cover them, or just ignore them. Yet they will always be there because huge scars aren't always healed up. You need to come to terms that the scar is there and always will be and the only thing you can do is understand why the scar is there." "as much as it is shitty to feel like crap you can't heal a wound, but you can learn to live with it and understand why it's there. Learn to grow and understand the world." he sighed as he stared right at you. His grey eyes looking genuine and comforting. He looked back down and then noticed the time. "how about you go to bed now? you need your strength for tomorrows training" "I want to stay just for abit.."

"be my guest then, but if you wake up tired don't blame me and I'll make sure to kick your ass if you can't function tomorrow" "I know sir" "good.."

---------------------------- I hope you enjoyed this! It was a very fun prompt and I loved writing it! :3 Hope you liked it !!

[pomodoriyum]

Ok im really curious about your Goodsir/Des Voeux tag. I've never really considered this ship but now that you've mentionned it, i'm curious ! Take this ask as an opportunity to elaborate about them if you want, i want to read more :3

- @strogoff-era

Hi Earl! hope you're doing well!!

uhmmmmmm, well, you see, it's definitely a very nonsense ship. there is absolutely no reason for it, and it's not something I think about a lot...

HOWEVER. I do have some thoughts, especially around their few interactions on screen.

Le Visconte toe removal scene: des voeux seems kind of impressed that goodsir can have a bit of a spine/waspish tongue

They are both very close in rank as far as I can tell; with Goodsir maybe being slightly above des voeux in the hierarchy of rank

Des voeux consistently looks to goodsir to gauge his reaction and to gain his support in the few scenes they're in. Specifically, in Gore (1x02), right as they discover the overturned boat, Des voeux switches from leading the men down towards the boat to hanging back nervously, and then he looks to goodsir (somewhat incredulously) when Goodsir suggests they go down together to check the boat out. I read this as CDV not wanting too appear "more chicken" (lack of a better term) than Goodsir, while also checking in with him to see about how they should proceed (<- i think this is definitely overanalysis/stretching the interpretation, because more likely than anything he was just looking at the person who happened to be speaking at the time, so take with a fistful of salt). Next scene they're interacting in is in 1x05 (First shot a Winner), where des voeux interrupts goodsir as he's tending to someone's wounds and demands his attention (rather rudely-- but it *is* near the realms of an emergency). He's very visibly nervous re: Jacko-- I imagine he's gone to fetch Goodsir b/c Jacko is goodsir's responsibility/goodsir told the crew that he wants to be informed if her behavior alters significantly. In any case, des voeux bends to Goodsir's directions/instructions re:Jacko, and again seems to keep looking at him for cues on how to proceed (the "are we going to bash its head in yet" looks until Goodsir makes him lower the tool he snatched from one of the mates). Overall this scene really conveys (to me!) that CDV relies on goodsir's authority and expertise when he's panicking/out of his depth. theres some age dynamics at play here i think, too, since CDV was in his very early twenties and i dont think many of his crewmates would've given him an easy time, given he's essentially their middle manager and yet also much younger than them. Plus, he's middle class, so there's going to be tension there. essentially, this reads to me as a scene where des voeux sprints to his nearest trusted senior and says WTF HELPPPP HELPPP b/c he doesnt wanna deal with the problem himself and is probably more than a little out of his depth (nepotism baby is not prepared for the frightening monkey death. also, if i wanted to sound completely off my rocker, I'd say it was a tie-in to how he asks silna for help later and is denied any mercy b/c of his own cruelty and hatred.)

Goodsir seems to be relatively well respected (and well liked!) by the crew, though i do think they rib him to his face quite a bit. I do not think CDV was very well liked (even if peglar laughed at his jokes in 1x02), esp given his age and (relative) position of power.

There's something in the way of the absolute disgust and hidden fright in CDV's voice when he tells crozier how Goodsir committed suicide-- CDV was similar to hickey in that he'd do anything to survive, so goodsir taking his own life was probably both confusing and disturbing, because CDV was unlikely to be able to understand that action at all.

at the same time, i think that both goodsir and CDV tend to view other human beings as objects. Goodsir in the sense that he's a curious scientist, CDV in that he just doesn't care to extend humanity to other people for his own mental convenience.

Absolutely none of this really means anything, but I do like to marinate on it.

Main takeaway from the show: they do not like each other and have very different values, esp about what it means to survive versus what it means to live (moral arguments fun times).

pom's conclusion: they should have bad sex about it. (something something CDV looking for a reassurance he's not going to get versus goodsir's 'what the fuck is this weird little freak on about now. i want to dissect him and hes a bad person so i wont even feel bad about it')

I did write a fic about them here, though i was trying to figure out CDV's characterization at the time & now there's a lot about the fic that bothers me. ive left it up for posterity though. enjoy? warning: it's mostly porn.

thanks for the ask!

[trans-luis-serra-navarro]

ok, so!! there's also another little thing about luis and the merchant that i haven't seen anyone discuss. in luis' house in the village, you can see a few packages of food (like in the first picture in your post, near the doll; it looks like a tomato soup or something??). and in the merchant's spot near the lake you can see a box of similar packages (not the same though, as far as i remember, but still they're similar, in a sense that it's still some modern food and it looks out of place in this village. it's something we only see in luis's house) sorry i don't have any pictures tho :((

so what im trying to say is that i just love that through these tiny little details we actually get a glimpse of luis's everyday life in valdelobos. i mean, just imagine him taking a boat to go on a little grocery trip to the merchant 😭😭 and it also kind of implies that luis actually knew the merchant and interacted with him somewhat regularly. like, it's not even that big of a detail, but i just love thinking about it 😭

(also don't stress yourself over answering these asks quickly!! there's no rush. i hope you're doing well!!)

Quick TW for discussions of food, starvation and animal death under cut!

@silverhexrt Thank you SO much for being so patient with me for this!!!!!!!! BUT YES YES YES OH MY GOD YOU ARE SO ABSOLUTELY RIGHT I’ve seen people talk about the canisters of food lying around his old childhood home but not NEARLY enough about the fact that those same packets of food are found elsewhere in the game too!!!!! Unfortunately I don’t have a photo on-hand of the exact model you’re talking about near the Merchant, but I do have a photo of one of the packets of tomato soup you were talking about;

Alongside the tomato soup there’s also various spices and I THIIIIIIINK what’s supposed to be a packet of noodles????

Needless to say Luis most likely did NOT have a very good diet during the last of his time spent in Valdelobos HFNUEENEUNDIDMD

And again I don’t have photos of the exact model you’re talking about but!!! YEAH!!!!!!!! You’re absolutely right!!!!!!!!!!!! Luis might’ve hung around the Merchant or even waited by his little corner stand for him to come back with decent food or cigarettes!!!! I doubt Luis would’ve been able to go along with him wherever he went cuz A) I think he would’ve escaped Valdelobos MUCH sooner if that were the case HCNWHENEUSN and B) The Merchant is kind of an enigma. Where’s he getting his stock from?????? Who knows!!!!!!!!!! He’s a mystery man we’ll never get answers for!!!!!!!!

It also makes me wonder WHY he gravitated towards those foods instead of just killing the livestock that hung around the village or eating the fish you can find hanging up on the side of the house. Did he feel bad??? Did he just not know how to effectively kill livestock????? Was he trying to preserve it???????? Or did he have a childhood preference?????? Did his Grandfather or whoever looked after him make him those foods??????? Did HE as a child wander into nearby towns to get those foods??????????????? How did his supply of food get so low????? Was Los Illuminados feeding him and the other scientists he worked with or were they starving them to death and Luis was the only one with a source of food???????????

I also wanna mention a theory a friend of mine @hamartia-grander put together- I’ll link the original post if I can find it but the tl;dr of their idea was ‘Hey! Y’know those yellow bits of paint that are splattered on crates n stuff that indicate there’s items inside in both the main game and Seperate Ways?? What if that was Luis who made them and put the items in to help himself escape later down the line?????’ And I think that paired with your theory that Luis hung around the Merchant for a while makes for a REALLY interesting narrative!!!!!!!

And also I am FAR from the first person to point this out but again. Luis clearly does NOT have a good diet while in Valdelobos. It makes me wonder if that added to the urgency of him trying to get out (I mean obviously but still HD EHENEISN HOW hungry was this guy) and if he DID survive, how would he react to returning to an environment where food is easily accessible???? How would that trauma and instinct to hoard come into play??????? Would he gain any weight as a sign of healing???????? It’s a VERY interesting subject to delve into but obviously one you’ve gotta handle with care

TL;DR is that I think people gloss over WAY too much the just. Straight-up HORROR of Luis’ situation. Like take all the supernatural elements away- this is a man trying his best to not starve to death and succumb to the same infection everyone around him has. He’s got no other scientists (they’re all dead) no other family (MEGA dead) and to me it makes the fact that his first and most important goal is helping the others instead of helping HIMSELF first all the more just. Devastating BDNEJEMSJXJ

Anyways this went SO OFF THE POINT YOU WERE MAKIMG DHENEYENDIDK but OUGH the idea of Luis and the Merchant just hanging out together trying to survive The Horrors best they can is!! SUCH a heart wrenching idea!!!!!! Thank you SO SO SO much for this ask I went INSANE over it clearly HDBEHENEJXNS

[asbestos-11]

Hi I'm back again!!!!

I'm haply to know that I'm not alone in the "ship has to be sometimes realistic or I die" boat. Though it's not like I can't consume unrealistic stuff. I just have to be in the mood for it.

I assume the daughter that looks like Aventurine would be the oldest, right? And then later come the other two. I would love to hear about what you came up with!!! (I would also like to draw them, but I don't think I'll do your vision justice...)

In comparison, the fan kids I made aren't all that fleshed out, haha. It's not that I've never thought of them having kids, but my brain feels like it has to build the relationship first before jumping into it, if that makes sense. Like I first have to think about how a ship got together, how the relationship progresses, what struggles they face, whether they would get married, whether they want kids, etc. Whatever I create has to stem from those conclusions. That might be weird, idk. But having someone to bounce ideas off of certainly helps!!!!

Back to the kids, for me I would envision them to have two daughters. They both would have blonde hair, but then the youngest later on dyes it similar to Ratio's, just a bit lighter. The oldest would have Ratio's eyes, and the youngest would have Aventurine's. When they're raising them it's sometimes a jumpscare when Aventurine sees long blonde hair.

I like to think that the eldest daughter eventually gets the fashion sense of her papa (flashy, reference to an animal, excessive amounts of jewelry, etc). Though I'm mostly thinking of those sunglasses Aventurine sometimes wears. They take shopping trips together. Though she'd be the type that just likes what looks good on her, even if it's not designer or whatever.

In contrast, the youngest unfortunately gets one good look at Stelle and it shapes her little brain forever. She looks at Ratio and tells him "I wanna be like them when I grow up!!!!" and it's just a picture of them after they finished dumpster diving. There is no hope to be had. He tries to sit her down and tells her that looting for trash is frowned upon in society and can get her sick. She starts crying.

(Somewhere in the distant universe, Stelle feels a profound sadness in the air. March and Dan Heng tell them they're crazy.)

As for jobs, I like to think one of them becomes a pastry chef, and the other a teacher. But I haven't decided who gets what. Or, like what level of complexity the job would be.

Also thank you for the kind words!!!! We are giggling and kicking our feet together!!!!! I was thinking of making it worse, but then decided against it. I wasn't sure if it was going to be a bit too much if i did.

I love this little universe we're making too!! YAAYYYY !!!

ok ok so here's their designs (always subject to change). fitia is the oldest amongst the three and is a phd holder in archeology and anthropology. she's currently busy with research into her family legacy, more specifically she's interested in the avgin (both for her sake and bcs she grew up with aven talking abt his clan). fitia is a mild mannered person with a sunny disposition and a meticulous approach to her work, which means that she's not very good at taking care of herself. one can either find her nose deep in work or passed out on the floor with several mugs of coffee near her. fun fact, her nickname fi is a play on phi often being used in maths.

selene is the middle child. she's a pro racer and is just about the most reckless person you could meet. an adrenaline junkie at heart, she often makes her family worry. selene is a rebellious one, being very independent even as a kid. she's an avid lover of all things vehicle related and when she's not busy crashing them, she's seen tinkering with bits and bobbles. selene is a yapper, something she inherited from both her parents, and often annoys her two quieter sisters with her talking (they don't mind tho).

cassea is the youngest and quietest of the bunch. she's currently studying geology and is running a blog where she talks about gems. she's more of a listener than a talker, but her tongue is sharp whenever it needs to be. she is quite sweet, but she has taken after ratio's blunt nature. if she's not studying or indulging in her work, she's often seen walking along beaches combing for rocks and pretty shells. cassea has a habit of picking up trinkets and gifting them to her family (selene has a whole lot on her keychain). cassea's name is (might be inaccurate) the romani version of the name keziah.

nooo i love ur two girls they sound so lovely. i like the 2nd one dyeing her hair like her dad's, she's so real for that!!! who wouldn't want to look as good as he does?

oooh do you think that whenever they go on their shopping sprees, that they both legit take hours because they take so long choosing good pieces? i can just imagine her sitting in front of the changing room and waiting for him to come out so they can nitpick every single thing wrong with the article. i can already tell that their closets are full of stuff.

the youngest is a lost cause fashion wise, but god do i love her already. has stelle influenced her in other aspects of her life or just the dumpster diving fashion? huhu please tell me more about both of them, i desperately need to know more!!!!

sorry anon it took me so long to answer, but i've been in ddne land + i have been feeling really shitty lately, but whatever. haha it seems you have transferred the angst onto me :,D

[singular-yike]

JynX mentioned that Buddhism is important to the Devanagara Royal Family. What sort of assumptions would someone from Japan make about the Royal Family (the customs, operations, ect) based on that?

(I know you're not Japanese but you do know Japanese mythology stuff and religion is kinda close to that, right? Sorry in advance if this question is too tricky, I'm just really interested in what could potentially be some lost common sense assumptions.)

Buddhism and Devanagara Court Culture

This is quite the tricky question, and there's a lot of history to go through, ones that I'm not all too familiar with. So all I can promise is that I'll try to find what I can.

What We Have in Canon

On Buddhism's Relationship With the Devangaran Court

I assume you're drawing from this question in the 2021 interview with JynX (Q117), which, I should clarify actually states the reverse of what you've mentioned.

Q: How strong exactly is the dominance of Buddhism in Devanagara? Does it have a privileged position established in the law? Are other religions accepted by the capital's residents? A: Buddhism doesn't really hold anyone in a special position outside of the sovereign family (imperial family), although the Department of Divinities and such do exist. Other religions are accepted as well, rather similar to modern Japan.

It says that "Buddhism treats the Imperial family specially", rather than the other way around, that "the Imperial family treats Buddhism specially".

Still, it's absolutely not a stretch to say that it's likely for Buddhism to be intertwined with a lot of the court's proceeding either, especially considering the numerous references to Buddhism in Devanagara as a whole.

Buddhism and Devangara as a Whole

So, let's first take a quick look at what we already have regarding connections between the two, which are mainly twofold:

One, the Imperial family seems rather fond of using Sanskrit, which is largely tied to Buddhism in Japan, we have:

Devanagara (Unclear, possibly देवनगर): "Holy Capital", also found on the Fujiwara dynasty's crown

Rudhira (रुधिर): "Blood"

Dhanya Nakta (धन्यनक्त): "Fortunate/Blissful Night""

To be clear, we aren't sure if the Devanagarans actually named the Rudhira, though considering they named both their capital and state-run casino in Sanskrit, its safe to say that they're quite fond of the language.

Two, Buddhism and the architecture of Devangara are closely related.

For one, buildings of religious and historical significance are preserved despite the rapid modernisation, this no doubt includes the Buddhist buildings of Devanagara, most notable the Pagoda of the Heavenly Mirror.

And secondly, the capital's popular architectural style seems to be styled after the pagoda of Buddhist origins, said to imitate the building in which the Buddha's remains, called śarīra.

Below: The common Devanagaran skyscraper and the Hōryū Temple's five-story pagoda, the oldest one of its kind in the world.

What the Audience is Meant to Take Away

To close off the first section, let's take a look at what I think (and I do stress "think", I'm not Japanese after all) JynX intended for the audience to take away from all this.

Firstly, I think you can be at ease that there's not much the average audience is really intended to "get", outside of making the observation that Devangara is heavily inspired by Buddhism.

Buddhist practices are of course very well known and observed in Japan, though I don't think you could quite extend this to mean that they'd know the religion in a very in-depth sense.

In other words, everyone, Japanese or overseas, is gonna have to do (perhaps even copious) amounts of research to really get JynX's elaborate references, so no worries there, we're all in the same, very confusing boat.

Secondly though, as far as I can tell, Buddhism seems to inform the aesthetic undertones of the city and its culture, but it does not seem to inform the city's system of government.

Why is Buddhism Not a Clue?

So this is turning out to be rather sour, isn't it? I do apologise for that. Still, there is more to go, and we can start with how I came to this conclusion:

What we now know as "Japanese Buddhism" and "Shinto" used to be very closely intertwined, almost treated as one thing.

Buddhism was introduced during the late Kofun period (552 to 538), and by the Asuka period (592/593 to 710) it had already been widely accepted by both the people and the imperial court.

While the specific details may vary, the two belief systems came to linked together as one, this is referred to by scholars as shinbutsu-shuugo (神仏習合), the "syncretism of kami and buddhas".

This lasted from the Asuka period, all the way up to the Meiji period, during the Meiji restoration.

Specifically, the Meiji government issued the Kami and Buddhas Separation Order (神仏判然令) in 1868, leading to the shinbutsu-bunri (神仏分離), the "separation of kami and buddhas", ending almost 1300 years of the two religions being treated as one.

The point of this story, is to realise that we're trying to retroactively and anachronistically apply a modern category of "Japanese Buddhism" onto a court system clearly modelled after that of Asuka or Heian era Japan.

As Buddhism and Shinto freely mixed back then, practices are rarely able to be traced back to either one specifically, or rather, it is because of this very mix that Japan's many unique customs and observances emerged.

In other words, JynX is able to be really creative and selective with what he wants Devanagara to be like. He could apply what has nowadays been extracted out of the old syncretistic system as Japanese Buddhism and simply apply that onto Devanagara.

Alternatively, he could get creative and mix in other elements as well. We actually already have one such example of this, the writing of Sanskrit in Devanagari.

Japan never adopted the writing of Sanskrit in its native script(s) (various Brahmi scrips back then), but rather, they either transliterated Sanskrit terms into kanji characters or simply translated the terms based on meaning (more often than not by borrowing their Chinese counterparts).

Yet we see, on the Fujiwaran crown for example, that Devangara in fact uses modern day Devanagari to write Sanskrit. How widespread this is in Devanagara is of course unknown, but its certainly something that you wouldn't find with Japan.

Why Buddhism is a Clue

I know I just did a whole thing explaining why Buddhism doesn't really work as a clue for us to figure out more about Devangara, let alone its court, but that's not entirely true either.

The information we have in canon about Buddhism and Devangara indeed doesn't tell us much, but we can use Buddhism's major presence in Devanagara as a small piece of a much bigger puzzle, and through it figure out what Devangara's imperial court could be mirrored after.

Ending

However, I do think that this answers the original questions.

"What is the average Japanese audience supposed to glean about the imperial family from the Buddhism's heavy presence in Devanagara?"

Honestly, nothing special. It doesn't tell us much about the imperial family at all, perhaps other than that they likely hold Buddhist beliefs as well.

Rather, it could tell us, if only a small bit, about the general culture surrounding Buddhism in Devangara. It's the main religion of the city, informing much of the city's culture and aesthetics, and it's highly respected by even the ruling class.

I think I'll also make a companion post to this one, explaining what one might be able to glean about Devangara's government using its ties to Buddhism as a clue.

I do apologise for ending it on a sour note, that this line of thinking just goes nowhere, but that is the conclusion I came to, and I'd like to be honest about it.

On a brighter note though, I must thank you for the ask regardless! It is precisely during my research for this post that I realised that the capital's ties to Buddhism can be used to further learn about its basis as a whole!

I hope the follow up will kinda make up for this one being a downer.

I do admit that even then it won't bring us much about the day-to-day culture of the imperial family though, since so much of court culture was dependant on religion and influence from China, Devangara is rather hard to apply it all to.

But until then, I hope you enjoyed this one all the same~! :)

[eriexplosion]

1, 3, 5, 17 and 40 for viking babes :D

GOD I LOVE TO GO TO WORK IN THE RARE OT3 MINES, and you are always at fault for getting me into this <3 I love it.

1. Who most initiates PDA?

Probably Floki, he contains the least amount of social reservations and has not given a shit ever in his ENTIRE life about how he appears to others. The literal only thing that stops him would be safety of his partners, nothing else. Anything short of that, well, he's terrible at keeping secrets and also he doesn't want to.

3.��Hot and Steamy or Soft and Tender?

Always soft and tender with Athelstan, he is a gentle boy who requires gentle handling. Be nice to him, he is fragile and also still kind of things sexual pleasure is a sin so be ready to take several breaks for his minor emotional breakdowns.

Ragnar and Floki though, they really go for it and have never gone slow in their lives. Athelstan finds it rather alarming actually. Him overhearing them on the boat was actually a VERY MILD VERSION of their activities, because they are kind of surrounded by people and can't get properly noisy.

5. What is their love language?

Ragnar and Athelstan are both big on acts of service in different ways. Ragnar provides protection, when he loves someone he ensures that they're safe, no one is going to hurt them or if someone does, they'll regret it. Athelstan's service is more traditional, he likes to do chores and Tasks to make his loves' lives easier. Comes from being a monk partially, that he sees service to God and service to his Love as being somewhat similar.

The other part is that he's a huge huge sub.

Floki probably tends towards gifts and also acts of theft. Theft is not a classic love language but Floki is basically a raccoon and to HIM it is a huge act of love to take small reminders of someone and store it away in his house. He makes up for it by giving small gifts back, usually small carvings or food, or things he Yoinked on a raid somewhere.

17. Who fell in love first?

Floki and Ragnar was a slow burn, given that Ragnar had no idea what to make of him and Floki does everything at his own pace. Honestly I don't know if either of them specifically Fell in Love First or if they just grew together in a way that made sense for them. Floki certainly made the first move, because once he decides he's into someone he sees zero reason to hide it.

Meanwhile, Ragnar love at first sighted Athelstan like mad, Athelstan had him curious and also he's very pretty and so Ragnar lost his entire shit for that. Immediately decided he adores this boy.

Floki and Athelstan were another slow burn. For one, they're both highly devoted men to their own gods, and while Floki has few reservations about Christianity at first, that changes after episode eight when he sees Rollo baptized and he starts to see it as a Threat, while Athelstan of course is stuck on 'there is only one God' for a while. They had started getting along up to that point, especially since it came after the long winter in Floki's hut while Ragnar healed, but the whole Suddenly Very Aware that he distrusts Christianity thing Floki had going was a setback. Still, Floki probably decided he liked Athelstan first, he's a Curious Boy and he's wanted to know more about Athelstan since they picked him up, it was natural for him to become interested first.

40. Who makes the other smile with almost no effort at all?

Athelstan, and he doesn't even understand why. He just has to exist, be in their range, and he makes them smile. Especially Ragnar who just. Loves to be in Athelstan's presence and finds everything he does UNSPEAKABLY CHARMING. Athelstan is like a puppy all he has to do is BE THERE and the room is brighter.

[bongo-clash]

Okay this is a little bit of a weird one but hear me out here: Do you remember that bit at the beginning of 13 where Kitty gets stuck in the 'Unworld'??? I've seen some aus where Danny's like the GZ incarnate but what if he was the Unworld incarnate instead?? I just think it'd be really cool because it's this in-between/'other' dimension and embodying that could really come with some eldritch properties. Plus when he was caught in the portal he Was kind of stuck between the GZ and the living realm so it could make sense!!

[angel-anoetic]

(I'm gonna have to explain this in order for my ask to make sense, I kind of like to ramble sometimes, so sorry if this is long)

Ok so I have this headcanon (?) where Minecraft enderman are incredibly different, I.E. overworld enderman are kind of small for enderman being about 8-9 feet, they like to group with other mobs and their language is a mix of all overworld mob languages ( meaning they can sound kind of similar to the mobs their language is mixed with sometimes) except water based mobs of course. Nether enderman are really agressive with anything they deem a threat, including other enderman. Their language is mixed with piglin and ghast languages and they are typically around 11 feet. End enderman are more group oriented and tend to stick to very larger groups and are really sociable when it comes to enderman, they don't really get along with other mobs though. They are also incredibly tall being around 14 feet, end enderman's language hasn't mixed with any other mobs' language.

Anyways my ask is C!Ranboo meeting another enderman but they're either a nether or end enderman while C!Ranboo is an overworld enderman. They try to communicate because their both enderman, but they have trouble because they speak very different languages. If you choose end, could you do it where reader is kind of treating ranboo like he is a young child because they think he is based on his height(Ranboo and reader are the same age) and their kind of protective of him because end enderman are super protective of young enderman. Preferably either they/them or he/him pronouns for the reader.

Again sorry if this is kind of long and a bit confusing 😅

AHHH I AM SO SORRY THIS HAS TAKEN SO LONG!! This request has literally been sitting on my mind for like...two months??? I hope this suffices, and again, i am so sorry for the wait- Enjoy!!

Don't forget to like to save and reblog to share!

c!Ranboo & Reader - Distant Friend

genre: /plat, reader head canon, c!Ranboo

warnings: none! (let me know if i missed anything!)

masterlist <3

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The enderman examined the surrounding world as he was pulled along in the boat. The, assumed, younger enderman sitting in front of him could not be more than 50 years old! I mean, he was smaller than one might expect. And he was also quite...strange.

His skin was different, and it had initially confused the enderman, who was already much disoriented after accidental teleportation too far from home.

Home. He wasn't even sure where that was anymore. One moment he was running around, the next he was on a green landscape with a light blue sky staring back at him.

Now he was in a boat being pulled along land by a smaller enderman. He tried to speak, but every time the words left his mouth the younger one just cringed.

Instead, he seemed to be more content talking to the small purple pixels around them, that let out the occasional squeal or noise, to which he'd laugh and smile.

Then they came to a white plain, with smoke slowly rising out of a clan of houses.

The enderman pulling the boat got to work, creating a large hole in the space in front of the house before dropping the boat into a basement with a slight thud.

The boat broke, freeing the enderman. He quickly took in his surroundings. It was a bit disheveled, with chests sprawled around and- what were those?!

They looked...abnormal. They made a slight "hm" sound, some with farm hats, others with glasses. There was a sense of urgency as the smaller enderman made his way over to them, still mumbling to the purple pixels.

He let out a scream, rushed over to the smaller enderman, and quickly took to attempting to hit the alien things in the ground.

The smaller enderman looked scared, and a bit confused.

The taller one pulled him into a hug, still screeching at the enemy.

"H-hey, it's alright. They aren't a threat." The taller enderman couldn't understand a word the younger one said.

"We don't know what that is. It could hurt you. Where are your parents' young man?"

The enderboy just kind of chuckled. "Chat-I have no idea what is happening!" Chat? Was that the name of the pixels? How could he not understand him? He must've been younger than initially thought.

"Hm..oh! Do you think he's scared of the villagers? Maybe." He looked up at the taller enderman and took one step towards the librarian.

The taller one couldn't help but scream and pull him into a tight hug once again.

"Chat! You were right!"

What is wrong with this guy?

"Alright, alright. Well, I want to show him that it's all right." The smaller enderman took the tallers hand, guiding him slowly over to the villager, placing it near him. When the alien in the ground didn't react, he relaxed.

"There you go. So, what's your name?"

He felt horrible. He knew the younger one was trying to speak to him, but he could not for the life of him understand.

"Quiet now...well, I'm Ranboo. Ran-boo or Ron-boo is fine, I don't mind either."

The taller one just stood awkwardly, trying his best to not be rude. "Man you're odd. My name is Y/n, and I don't know how I got here but I am not from here. Is there an adult I could speak to?"

The smaller enderman just stared at him, confused. This was pointless. They were unable to communicate with one another, and yet the taller one felt an immense need to protect the smaller one. He was only a child (in his eyes at least).

Ranboo heard a knock from the doors upstairs and quickly turned to get to the ladder and answer the door. The taller enderman was confused as to why he couldn't just teleport himself but didn't feel like talking to him as much anymore.

As the younger enderman opened the door, they both saw that no one appeared to be there. They walked outside.

Ranboo scratched the back of his head as he stepped out of the doorway to examine the snowy outside.

"Huh, that's weird."

The taller enderman wasn't convinced though. They could feel something watching the two of them. Then he saw it, ever so faint against the bright snow, a slight pink swirl rushing around then standing still.

Feeling his paternal instincts kick in, the taller enderman screeched and rushed the invisible anomaly.

"Ranboo! Grab your friend! Mate please!" The enderman stepped in between the invisible thing and the other enderman, placing his hands in front of himself to tell the other to calm down.

"It's alright, it's Phil. He's a friend." The older enderman stuttered, unsure yet somewhat understanding of what the smaller enderman said.

"God, he's a scary fella, aye?"

"Yeah, but I think we're gonna be good friends."

[obeymematches]

Hello! May I request for a matchup?

I am a bisexual, Demigirl ENFP-T personality type.

I'd say I'm somewhat independent but would love to have someone by my side to happily live with, I find trust as something that is very important and due to past reasons it can be difficult to earn my full trust. I try to always be a reasonable and mature person, but I can get irritated at a few things (like LGBTQ+ discrimination, racism or plain asshole stupidity) that can tick off a temper, but usually I'm a person of patience, though if I do get really angry then I'm gonna also end up having a mental breakdown later -. I'm fine with waiting and am usually very forgiving. Religiously I'm an atheist, technically ex-christian due to family reasons. I come from Estonia, so I'm bilingual with English and Estonian but am also learning Russian and German. (Thinking of learning Japanese one day too)

I'm a rather fidgety person, fingers always have to be doing something, I can also have rather terrible memory sometimes with things and can forget.

I have low self confidence and self worth, usually struggle to be optimistic and can be rather emotional, also often an absolute empath when it comes to fictional characters for example.

I can be a workaholic and can be terrible at taking care of myself, I easily lose track of time and can forget to eat at times, also have a fuzzy appetite so sometimes I might not want to eat anything at all. I care alot about other people's well being though, for me appearance doesn't matter, I care for the personality and think everyone is beautiful in their own way. I am a short chubby brunette with a boy haircut and brown eyes, my hair is often thick and poofy and sometimes hell to take care of, due to some health reasons I have an itchy scalp and have to often scratch my head. My fashion depends on just if the clothes are comfortable to wear in the moment, that's it. I wear glasses due to a bit of a negative in my sight.

I sometimes struggle to have a balanced sleep schedule and am often stressed.

I hold a strong love for animals and the nature around us. I especially love cats and reptiles and own a cat and a leopard gecko who I would die for.

Fiction is an important part of my life, the moment I get interested in in some show or franchise you can expect me to become an absolute nerd for it, (good example is Pokemon.) I am the type to analyze characters and really care about everything. Books, shows, movies, theatre, anything goes. I really also love music, 60% of the time you can find me listening to music somewhere, maybe even singing, I multitask alot too. My music taste depends on what connections I make to fictional media, especially that of my own, aka stories and characters I've created. My mind is always going like a 1000km/h with all types of thoughts, my own fictional universe only keeps expanding which I wish to share with the world. My dream is to become a writer one day, which I'm very passionate about, and another thing I really want to do one day is travel the world. I also do some art and animation, but intend to keep it as a hobby on the side.

I'm an ambivert, shy and hesitant around new people especially those of higher authority and importance, but incredibly outgoing with the people I'm familiar and comfortable with, never getting tired from them. Affection starved, expect lots of hugs, not that much into PDA tho. For me first impression matter, on my part, I am quick to think that people hate me or are annoyed with me.

Even with my fuzzy appetite I do like food, especially of strong flavour, I tend to seem to like asian or Italian food alot. I'd say I'm decent and cooking but not very good at baking.

Minimalistic, not very demanding when it comes to anything, it's basically like "Better than nothing." would be the type to live in a rather small house one day. Somewhat organized in my own way, sometimes I can act a little OCD though when something is out of place in a manner that it's just - no.

I can be rather talkative, when getting in a conversation with me expect to talk for hours about all types of things, wherever the conversation goes. Even better when it's over a cup of tea or a long walk somewhere outside.

I usually try to be as polite and kind as possible, though I sometimes struggle, I always try to have hope for the world, despite my incredibly pessimistic mindset.

For a partner, I look for someone I can geniuenly be happy and comfortable with, someone I can be open with and not worry about being lied to. I would be incredibly loyal to them and I'd hope them to be as well, of course, I don't get jealous or worked up if they're hanging out with friends. I want them to also be happy, someone I feel like I could spend the rest of my life with. Someone who'd be okay with traveling and seeing the world with, someone I can just have a moment to relax with, sometimes just talk and listen to eachother. Like stated before the appearance for me doesn't matter, it's the personality- what's inside that does. I shall note, the harmless teasing can get to me. Someone who's a geniuenly good person despite whatever flaws they might have.

I hope this is long enough ^^

Hi my dear patient anon! 

guess what time it is!✨

i put a read more because it’s one long post! 

OK so as I read through your request I had Levi, Belphie, Beel and Satan on my mind. Though Belphie is out of the picture fast since you have low self-esteem and if anyone then he probably would take advantage of that. Satan too I think. (I know in general he is viewed as an overall good boy but i feel like he might scare someone with low confidence levels when he is at his worst. also he can be manipulative too if there is a situation)

wait- damn- Simeon also exists (also Mammon? though with him and you it’d be a very rough start)

so after some elimination and comparison between dynamics including Simeon, Levi and Beel I decided to match you with Levi but I highly encourage befriending the other two!  ✨ Simeon because of the similar interests + excellent cooking and Beel because he is a mom-friend + you’d always have something to eat too if he is your friend! 

phew it wasn’t an easy decision but here it is! 

Okay so let’s see Levi

Okay first things first I think we need to change your level of confidence my friend. Which means starting off this relationship as friendship - honestly he is on the same page as you regarding this for similar reasons so you two can relate to the other. But once you gain a healthy amount of sense of self-worth + confidence I think this friendship could develop into a very loving and healthy relationship! 

Just because he is a demon I don’t think he would use you, lie to you, manipulate you or anything similar to that. I mean you have similar interests and in canon Levi shows just the bare minimum of interest to someone whose lifestyle + likes aren’t similar to his. Also you’re his only friend besides Henry so why would he treat you bad I mean come on!!! he’s not stupid!! 

Since your relationship is based on being friends trust will come in time, do not worry! Levi is also picky when it comes to ppl so again as you are in the same boat you understand the other deeply. 

I mean Levi can be serious when the situation calls for it but in general you being with him would give you a nice balance with your maturity. He’s not childish but he has different approaches! Meaning he could learn from you but you could also learn from him! 

Tbh i highly doubt he would ever tick you off either or purpose or not. He is mostly annoyed by stupid ppl (like Mammon) and normies but since you are also into anime you’re safe!  

You having an interest in languages is something he will find fun! if i recall in the devildom there’s only one language? (they speak human for you though) so finding out about human world lore like that through you is going to be fun! also pls learn Japanese with him! (pretty sure he already knows so he could help you practice)

Okay so he can also spiral down due to lack of self-worth + self-love but as his friend you’re not supposed to let that happen!! 

well he also tends to forget about himself but on a side note he is very caring about you and your health so he is faster at taking care of you than himself. That’s why you have to look after the other especially at first when both of your self-worth levels are so low. 

pls tell him he is beautiful he will be flustered for the rest of the day but it’s worth it trust me

he absolutely finds glasses cute af he just has to look at you and !!!  

He’s not big into fashion either, though he would love to cosplay with you so hopefully you are ok with wearing cosplay sometimes!

Also your workaholic tendencies might get to him sometimes? like i’m not saying he is lazy but for sure he could do better. Thanks to your influence he will do better! 

the two of you gushing over fictional characters is just so cute;; think about that!! 

ok he is your #1 supporter of becoming a writer!! pls let him be your beta reader aaaaa

well both of you are passionate so the emount of encouragement happening in this relationship is to die for

him being a shut-in means he’s not very big on traveling, but if he could go with you he’s quick to change his mind! 

he also has trouble balancing a healthy sleep schedule but that just means you two can spend more time together so it’s a win-win situation

pls leave your cat with Satan when you visit Levi’s room because of Henry :( your gecko is more than welcome though!!! 

okay he is also affection starved af but he would never initiate to save his life so here you being an ambivert is helpful!! also it leaves you space to tease him which is always fun! 

regarding food you have a nice balance going on, he is more of a baker and you are the opposite! though cooking/baking with the other is always fun!! when he notices your lack of eating he will make sure to order/bake delicious food from the human world for you! 

well he isn’t the messiest so hopefully your OCd wouldn’t kick in when you spend time in his room. I like to HC that he is actually very clean. If anything is out of place in his room it is because it was meant to be there. Or he was in a hurry. 

about long walks outside you’d probably have to nag him a bit but soon he will realize that it’s actually not so bad.

bby is one of the most loyal demons out there so no worries you’re safe!! however he can be jealous easily so it’s nice that you are also loyal! just make sure to clear boundaries before establishing a relationship! 

he’s not one to tease you but he is very into you teasing him, so that’s that

overall i don’t think this relationship would have huge conflicts - sure, you have to nag him about going out but he is not going to protest once he learns that it’s actually. fun. to go out sometimes. i’m more concerned about the two of you’s self-worth and confidence levels, but again it’s about what you do for growth and it’s not something that can’t be changed if you want to change it. besides these i think it’s a very healthy relationship and you both can be yourselves!  

[fasterthanmydemons]

How would Alive!Pietro react to losing Wanda in the Snap? I mean, I don't think the two of them would die simply because they're twins. The Snap wouldn't care, it would just tear families apart. And Clint, who is like a father figure to Pietro, would be too busy angsting over his own family in Japan to be there for him. Feel free to go on a long rant if you need to! Your blog does justice to Pietro.

{out of breath} So this is an interesting question, and I’ll warn you right off the bat that the answer is going to be very depressing. Trigger warnings ahead for mention of suicidal tendencies and self-destructive behavior.

If you’re the same person who already asked me about what would happen if Pietro lost Wanda after Ultron instead of the other way around, you can ignore what I’m gonna say next because you’ve already probably read all this, haha, but I’ll draw your attention to these three posts. Two of them are starters and one is an answer to an anon who asked me to elaborate on one of them. Pietro would have one of two reactions to losing Wanda in pretty much every scenario you can imagine, regardless of when it is in his timeline: 1) anger, 2) despair. The two starters deal with each of those overwhelming emotions. So even though it’s not the exact scenario you are asking about, you might find them interesting to read:

“Nothing Left” Starter

Ask Answer About “Nothing Left” Pietro

“Carrying On” Starter

With regard to what you asked about specifically... I feel like his reaction would be the same, but by that point, he’d probably have a lot more support than he would after Ultron, for example. He will have been with the Avengers for... what 2 years? 3 years? I see him staying close to Clint as well as making friends with Natasha. That doesn’t mean his reaction to Wanda dying is going to be any less intense, but it might mean that either Clint or Natasha (more likely Nat given how Clint reacted to his own family being snapped) might try to actively keep Pietro from hurting himself, whether in the literal suicide sense or just by getting into fights and reckless behavior.

Anytime Pietro loses Wanda, no matter the circumstances, he’s going to blame himself. He’s the big brother, he’s supposed to protect her. If she’s dead, then he failed her. That failure would be compounded even more by losing her in the snap, because like all the other Avengers, he’d feel like he failed the world, didn’t try hard enough, didn’t do enough, could have done more, etc. So... huge let down ego-wise and morale-wise, and he’s losing the most important person in his life. It’s all downhill from here.

Anger is a natural thing for Pietro to express at this time, because in a lot of ways it’s easier for him to be angry, explosive, and self-destructive than it is for him to cry and be sad. For someone who grew up with a somewhat antiquated notion of men, Pietro feels like there’s more strength in anger than sadness. So covering up his grief with explosive temper is a natural path for him to go down. Combine that with guilt and him feeling like he deserves to be punished for failing her, and you have a Pietro who is starting fights with everyone hoping to be hurt, doing dangerous parkour to burn off energy and oh, maybe he’ll fall and die. Just very reckless behavior in which he doesn’t care and almost would prefer if he got seriously injured. Because what’s the point? Wanda’s gone, and she was his life.

It’s a very sad outlook, but as I've said many times in the past on this blog, I have always headcanoned that Wanda is stronger than Pietro emotionally. He’s stronger physically... and he appears to be stronger emotionally, but we all know Wanda can survive without Pietro. I headcanon that there is a good chance Pietro would not survive losing Wanda. Suicide is a real thing he would consider, unfortunately, and it would take very persistent and patient intervention from someone he trusts (Clint, Nat, maybe Sam or Steve if he got close with them) to help him through his grief in a more constructive manner.

Let’s say he is helped by Nat or Steve or a similar friend in the Avengers. Fights will probably happen, both shouting matches and physical ones. They might have to kick his ass a few times or at least tire him out to get him to calm down and listen to them. It sounds cruel, but this actually isn’t a bad way to get Pietro to listen, as long as he isn’t seriously injured in the fights. It tires him out, expends a lot of that rage he’s using as a coping mechanism, and gets past it. He’s more likely to break down and cry once he’s tired/spent enough, but that’s actually a good thing because he’s not suppressing his sadness anymore. At that point, he’d be more conducive to listening to them. What would they say? It’s not his fault. That they’re all in the same boat, they all lost someone they cared about. Maybe that they’ll work to find a way to reverse it. That Wanda wouldn’t want him to hurt himself or to just self-destruct because of her. Things like that. It would take several times of getting him down to a more open and vulnerable state enough to learn that they’re not going to judge him, take advantage of him, or mock him in that condition. That’s when the healing begins.

But before we get too optimistic, I will say that even if Pietro is able to be saved from himself after losing Wanda, he will never be the same. Ever. A light, a happiness, a spark he had inside him will be gone forever, and even if Wanda is brought back to him after the events of Endgame, something will still be broken in him. He might be able to get back to 95% of who he was before, but the scarring and traumatic experience of losing his sister is something that will permanently effect him, even if he gets her back.

Now... there is one more way he could be saved from his rage benders and other destructive behaviors. Well, sort of. He does trust and respect Clint as a father figure by this time (I headcanon anyway, that their relationship would only deepen the longer Pietro is with the Avengers), so he might follow suit when Clint decides to go rogue and become Ronin. I could easily see them bonding over their grief by basically adopting a “screw everything” kind of attitude. Like, they’ve lost their families and there’s a feeling of well... we don’t care what happens to us, we may as well make various assholes pay. I can see Pietro jumping on that bandwagon real fast and helping Clint take down various mafia, Yakuza, crime syndicates. They’d become a duo, taking matters into their own hands and staying off the grid.

That would be a satisfying outlet for his anger, however, not a healthy outlet for his grief overall. Like Clint, he would be suppressing things like grief, sadness, and guilt in favor of anger, self-righteousness, and a misguided sense of vigilante justice. It might serve to keep Pietro from becoming completely suicidal, but it also will do next to nothing to help him process his grief and begin to move on in a healthy fashion.

Okay, so I think I’ve dished out most of my headcanons on this topic, but if there’s anything else you want to ask or if I raised more questions in your mind, please feel free to send in more. I love asks like this because they really help me to flesh him out if I don’t have headcanons on the subject, or to get them all written out “on paper” so to speak so that I don’t forget them. Thanks for sending this in! =) Also thank you do much for saying I do justice to Pietro! That’s the best compliment the mun of a canon character can get. <3

[alo-piss-trancy]

Maybe Yugi and/or Yami/Atem? They're my favorites (and Puzzleshipping

((Here you go! I’ve never written this fandom before but it was fun! Hopefully this plot suffices! ))

It wasn’t often he had the house to himself like this. Usually his friends were dragging him off somewhere, someone else was trying to cause trouble, or his Grandpa needed help. But for once, they all had errands to run or other plans, there were no massive disasters, and he had this calm, quiet day, all to himself. It was a welcome break from the chaos.

But…he’d be lying if he said it wasn’t a little lonely.The last few hours had been relaxing, spent flipping through books, laying on the floor in front of the small television, or just staring out the window letting his mind wander, but he’d finally managed to get bored. When you were so used to having a pack of friends around all the time, it was surprising how quickly you missed them, even if they were a little loud and wild.I won’t see any of them until tomorrow though, and Grandpa said he wouldn’t be back until sunset.Sighing, he leaned back on his bed, staring up at the ceiling while he let his hands toy with his necklace. “It’s a shame you can’t stay with me…” he chuckled, only to sit up a moment later, staring down at the puzzle with his eyebrows furrowed. Or…can you?If they’d been able to swap body ownership for long enough to let Atem hang out with Tea for a few hours without any bad effects, then…wasn’t it at least possible that the puzzle could have stronger abilities than that? Abilities they just hadn’t thought to test?~~~It had taken the better portion of an hour, but eventually, he’d managed to rearrange the puzzle and shout out a few different variations of his request. When he finally landed on the right one, there was a flash of golden light and the familiar pull of the puzzle against his neck, warm energy buzzing throughout his body and making his hair whirl around with the force. Unlike usual though, there was no sense of merging, of voices colliding and his conscious thought slipping into the subconscious. Instead, his thoughts and desires were being split apart, that sudden burst of energy leaving his body until he just felt…normal. Like the Yugi before that fateful day…And there was Atem, standing tall above him, jacket draped behind him like a regal cape, blonde hair shining in the light of the room like gold. As usual, those exposed arms were crossed, and he tried not to let his eyes trace the muscles for too long before he glanced up to meet his friend’s gaze.“I was listening from inside while you worked, but I must say, I was skeptical. Your skills with the Millenium Puzzle continue to impress me, Yugi.” the man chuckled, striding around the room, occasionally letting his hand glide over a desk or the bed’s blanket. “It’s interesting, seeing this room for myself instead of simply through your eyes…So, what did you wish for us to do? Another day on the town?”“Actually, I figured we could just stay here today, if that’s okay? We’ve only got about four hours anyway.”“That’s fine with me. Just being able to move around on my own is enough to make this day memorable.” Atem grinned.“Okay then…how about a duel? We’ve never been able to play against each other before. That should be fun, right?”“I think that sounds like a great idea…if you’re prepared to lose to the King of Games!”“Hey, half of that crown’s mine! We’ll see who the true master is!”

~~~

“Yugi, I think…” Something’s wrong. He couldn’t bring himself to say it, his face heating at the thought. This foreign feeling, while uncomfortable, seemed…he wasn’t sure why, but it almost brought shame upon him. Like he wasn’t supposed to be discussing it.

“Atem? What were you about to say?” his friend prompted, large eyes looking as curious as ever.

“Er, never mind. I appear to have lost my train of thought.” he muttered returning his focus to his cards. “Please, continue your turn.”

Oh, as the turns passed though, how he wished he really could have forgotten that thought…That strange tingling kept distracting him, and it might only have been the extra attention he was paying it, but he could swear it was growing worse. A constant, nagging urge, sometimes even a more painful throb, like he’d been hit in the abdomen. Squeezing his thighs together where he sat seemed to ease the pain slightly, but he was feeling increasingly nervous, and it was beginning to affect his gameplay. Miscalculations when it came to the attack and defense points of Yugi’s monsters, forgetting about a trap that had been laid down…Once, he even forgot to summon a level seven monster on his turn when he had the card in his hand, leading to losing two of his own to Yugi’s weaklings the very next minute. Thank the gods they had been in defense mode.

It was at the possibility of losing Life Points that he knew he had to speak up again. He wasn’t giving Yugi the competitive game his friend deserved, and if he was honest, this pain was beginning to concern him. He’d been trying to wrack his older memories for experiences, but so far, all he could think of were deadly plagues or unfortunate illnesses he’d witnessed.  If this was a symptom, he needed to either return to the puzzle, or seek medical attention.

“Yugi, I believe there is something wrong with me.”

At this his friend had fumbled to set his cards down, giving him a much more attentive gaze than he wanted. “Wrong with you? Like what? Is it serious?”

“I…I’m not sure. This body…it feels strange.” As if strictly because he’d mentioned it, another wave of pain throbbed, and he couldn’t help wincing as he shifted again. “I was hoping the pain would leave on its own, but it’s…I believe it’s becoming worse…”

“Pain? Show me where it hurts!” Yugi had given up his seat entirely, crawling across the floor to crouch beside him. “How long has this been going on?”

“Since we started…” he admitted, squeezing his thighs together as he gestured towards his abdomen. “I didn’t believe I was in any danger staying out briefly, but perhaps there really can only be one of us out at a time. I’m sorry, but we must cut our game short so that I can attempt to-”

“Atem, wait!” Yugi’s sudden shout was startling enough to make him flinch, and he had to bite back a gasp as another sharp sting assaulted his body. Gods, no position was comfortable anymore… Holding his tongue, he let his friend speak. Yugi had been furrowing his brows to study the area of pain he was indicating, but suddenly he shifted his gaze towards the carpet, nibbling his lip. “Atem, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with you. I, um…I think you just have to pee…”

“What? Yugi, I don’t think-”

“Trust me. I know, because, um…I’m kind of in the same boat…” His friend’s voice was sheepish, his face flushing pink. “The puzzle usually just lets us take over the body entirely, and the other spirit waits inside, but we’re still linked mentally, right? But if it has to give both of us physical form, I think it has to link more than that to keep things stable. So instead of just our consciousness-”

“It has linked us physically as well.” he finished, unable to help interjecting now that he’d caught on. Now that Yugi had confirmed it wasn’t anything dire, his memory was starting to stir back to similar feelings when he’d once lived. Feeling even more embarrassed than earlier, his discomfort only grew. “That does make sense, but…” Grimacing, he shifted to cross his legs, not that it seemed to help much. “Why do we need it this badly? We haven’t drunk anything!”

“W-Well, actually, you haven’t. I kind of…” Coughing into his sleeve to clear the crack in his throat, Yugi continued. “I actually drank a lot, before I let you out…” the boy mumbled.

“Alright…but if you needed it this urgently, you could have gotten up!” He pointed out, his voice coming out a bit sharper than he meant it to. He wasn’t sure if he was snippy because Yugi’s hesitation had led to this awful feeling, or if he was simply concerned for the guy. Yes, he knew Yugi was a bit shy at times, but he’d thought after being bonded so deeply and going through so much, they had a level of understanding beyond most people…Didn’t he know that they could trust each other?Yugi, for his part, had started picking at the carpet threads, pressing his knees together. “I know, I know! I’m sorry…” he muttered.“Yugi, you know there’s no judgement between us, right?” he asked, shifting closer and placing a hand on the boy’s shoulder to force him to meet his eyes. “You can tell me anything.” Yes, the pain between his legs was pressing, but he had to ensure his host knew not to suffer in silence like this. If he was willing to brush aside things like this, how could he know there weren’t bigger issues Yugi chose to keep quiet about?“Atem, I know, okay? It wasn’t anything serious!” Yugi was getting flustered as he stammered to reassure him, but he was going to persevere.“If it wasn’t serious, then why did you choose to keep quiet instead of taking care of something basi-”“I just didn’t want to get up, alright!?!” There was an unusual snap to Yugi’s voice that time, enough to falter his own serious tone as he stared at the boy. His friend looked just as uncomfortable as he felt right now, but for a seemingly entirely different reason. After a moment of tense silence, Yugi sighed under his breath. “You said there’s no judgement between us?”“Right.”“So…if I tell you, will you stop pestering me?”“That depends on the reason.”“Okay, so…There’s, um, a game I kind of like to play…when I’m home alone…” Yugi mumbled. “I drink as much as I want, and then I kind of, uh, mill around…until the pressure gets so strong that I, um…wet myself…” The sentence was barely audible. “I hadn’t meant for this to happen, I swear! I just, I got so distracted solving the puzzle, and it wasn’t that bad before that, but…once we started playing, I, um, I kind of realized…but I thought I could still enjoy it anyway…That was before I figured out we were linked!” he hurried to add.“Ah. I see…” he mused, folding his hands together for a moment. “I believe the modern term for what I’m thinking is called a ‘kink’ now, right?”“Please don’t call it that!” The boy whined, burying his face in his palms.“But I’m right, aren’t I?” After several moments, he smirked. “I’ll take your silence as a yes.” That only earned another soft whine from Yugi. “So is it only gratifying when you’re the one involved? Or are you equally interested in watching others?”“Atemmmm…” Peeking out from between his fingers, he groaned again in exasperation. “Both…”

“So you’re saying…you find this attractive? Me sitting here, writhing around on the carpet…~”

“W-Well, I-I…” Swallowing, the boy seemed to shrink even smaller than he already was, face bright red. “K-Kind of, yeah…”

“Well then. After all you’ve done for me since you solved that puzzle, I would say it’s only fair I return the favour…” He held his smirk until the boy had worked up the nerve to look up at him. “Now that I know I’m not gravely ill, I don’t see any harm in this. I shall play your game, Yugi. You may set the rules, although I’m sure you’ll be the winner either way.~”

“Really? Are you sure? You can still go, I-I don’t wanna pressure y-”

“I’m positive! We can do whatever you’d like, just…choose quickly! I’m a bit out of practice with this…” He couldn’t help the throaty groan that slipped out, letting his hands creep towards his thighs. With the memory of the cause itself returned, he’d also unlocked all the other memories of the moments of desperation and release in years past, each one only making him even more tempted to open the floodgates.

“Okay then, um…h-hold it for me?” Cringing at the crack in his voice, Yugi breathed in and tried again, much more relaxed this time. “Hold it for me, no matter what, until I say you can let go.”

“Ahh, a challenge… Very well, I accept.”

Little did he know how hard the challenge was actually going to be. Yugi wasted no time entertaining this new duel, closing the distance to pull his head in for a kiss. The boy’s pleased moan hummed through his lips, and as their kisses became deeper, he found himself struggling to part them for breath. Every time Yugi leaned in, he was pressing their bodies together, wriggling a knee in to part his own clenched legs. The resulting pressure was immediate, his face blazing and a gasp falling from his lips as he writhed, every ounce in his bladder pulsing.

“You’re okay. You can hold it.” Gentle reassurances filled his ears as Yugi stroked his cheek, although soon enough another hand was reaching down to rest directly on his pants.

“Y-Yugi, what are you-”

“You can hold it…” the boy whispered, gently beginning to knead at his crotch. He found his breath catching with every brush of pressure, light as Yugi’s touch was, his teeth beginning to sink into his lip as he leaned his head back. Oh gods, he felt like he was going to explode, the ache intensifying until he swore he could feel the pent up urine running up and down his urethra, pressing against pinching muscles. On top of the ache, there was also another tingle starting to make itself known, forcing his face to heat up even further as he squirmed in place.

“Ahh…, Y-Yugi, I…”

Before he could find the focus to say anything, Yugi shifted to sit in his lap, wrapping both arms around his neck to pepper him in kisses. The boy was shifting constantly now, his writhing hips flush against his own, and at one point he caught a quick whimper that the boy hadn’t quite muffled.

“Is it…getting intense for you too?”

Yugi nodded, sheepishly reaching down to squeeze between his legs. “Every time I press against yours, i-it…it gets so much stronger…”“So, does that-ah!-mean, i-if one of us let go…”“We both will.” Yugi finished, his own voice shaking with the desperation running through him. “S-So I guess we’ll both lose…”“Actually, I think that means we both win~” he purred, letting his own hand wander to press against Yugi’s abdomen. Yugi was right, pressure added to one person did affect the other, and he felt the sudden jolt of urgency at the same time the boy gasped and squirmed against him, every ounce of control on the edge of being lost. Even if it was a very strange experience, he could begin to understand why Yugi found it entertaining. Such a strong urge for release was almost comparable to another he was far more experienced with, and… wasn’t any battle to test your strengths a thrill?He could only reflect on that thought for another moment before another spasm of pain wracked his muscles. This time it was accompanied by movement as his own organ fought and quivered on its own, and he had to bite his lip against the sudden surge of heat and throbbing. It was so intense, a need far worse than any his hazy memory could recollect, and before he could try and decide what action to take, wetness was hissing out to coat the inside of his tight leather pants. It was warm, warm and soaking, rushing around his crotch and spilling out to pool under his ass and run down his legs with the force of a flooding Nile. It was painful at first, but soon the relief was overpowering, bafflement turning into relaxation as he leaned forwards to hold Yugi close and shut his eyes, his heartbeat frantic enough that he was sure the boy could feel it.Over his own pants and groans though, he soon made out Yugi’s own quieter huffs and whines, a slim form trembling under his fingers as jeans became drenched, the river running down to rewet his own lap underneath. He could feel the heat coming off of both their faces as they stayed like that, the liquid slowly running off of them to soak into the carpet. It was soft, squishing under their subtle shifting.It seemed like ages until they had both finished, but then again, he hadn’t exactly had to do this in a while, so what good were his measurements? What mattered was that they were both at peace.The silence was finally broken as Yugi sat up and scooted off of him, his face still burning. “So, um…how was it?”“I think I’m starting to see the appeal.”“Really? You’re not just saying that?”“Yugi, our bond is about honesty and trust. I only speak the truth.”“Oh, um…good. That’s…glad you liked it. And, um…thank you…”“Believe me, it was my pleasure~” Reaching to stretch his arms behind his head, he watched those magenta eyes linger. “What’s the plan now though? I must say, I don’t think I want to go back into the puzzle like this.” he chuckled.“Oh, yeah, um, o-of course! We’ll need to get you cleaned up!” Bless his heart, the boy seemed more concerned with dealing with the mess than the implications behind that statement, already scrambling to stand up. Always putting others before himself…no wonder the boy had been drawn to such a way of indulging himself. It was the only time he could put his own needs first.“Yugi. I meant together.” he emphasized, slowly rising to stand as well. “Relax for a while. Show me how your modern conveniences have improved bathing.”Every time he felt that Yugi’s face couldn’t turn a darker shade, it found a way. Still, his friend was definitely enthused at the idea, giving a quick nod and slipping past him to start heading towards the bathroom. By the time he’d ambled his way there after him, having paused to admire different knick-knacks and hallway décor along the way, the porcelain room was already warm and inviting, the large white tub filled to the brim with steaming water and fragrances.

Yes, this was just what they needed…a different kind of warmth, nonetheless cleansing…A chance to relax, just the two of them, baring their souls in an entirely new way…