#and then he would not drop it- kept badgering me about it

[raeathnos]

.

[kaciebello]

Not even the addressee

Masterlist Badger express ★ Theodore Nott x Hufflepuff ! reader (fem) Summary: When Theodore's name gets misspelled he's not happy about it.  Warnings: no use of y/n, cigerets Authors note: Haiya! This is a sequel series to the whole delivery one. This one is gonna focus on the boys separately! hope you enjoy it! English is not my first language, so I apologize for any mistakes beforehand. Proofread by me and me only (Ｔ▽Ｔ) word count: 1.1k Song: Up to You - PRETTYMUCH, NCT Dream

Mr Theodore Nott was one of his kind. Or he liked to think so, when one of the Ravenclaw girls could not remember his name he was baffled. How dare she. She went through his whole friend group before she came to something resembling his name. He would understand if he was some kind of low-muggle-born. But he was part of what was essentially a royalty. Now, it did occur to him that she might have done it intentionally. He is not dumb, he very much knows all the mind tricks and hacks. And although it was supposed to get his yearning to make her remember his name, he was just mad. Mad is not enghou, he was pissed.

Sitting down and zoned out, he kept playing with the note in his hand. He did not even notice the Hufflepuff girl standing before him with a concerned look. He registered her only when she waved her hand in front of him. He jumped a bit and looked at her. Her yellow bow adorned her hair. Her usual uniform was covered in a long fluffy yellow sweater. Her arms were now retracted to her body.

It was not unusual to see her in the Slytherin common room. He wouldn't even bat an eye if he saw her in the boy's bathroom, or the chamber of secrets. To see her in his room was questionable. He may have asked a question, be it not his mood right now. He was just going to assume she was here to get something for Enzo.

“You okay?” She asked, still a bit startled by his quick movements. He just sighs and reaches over to his bedside table for a pack of cigarettes. He lights one up and offers the other one to her. The girl declines and waves her hand around to get the smoke away from her face. He shrugs and puts them into his pocket. He exhales the smoke and stares at the wall for a minute before speaking.

“You know my name right?” The girl looks at him even more puzzled. Of course, she knew his name, they had been friends for a few months now. Granted sometimes she calls him Theo and both he and Mattheo turn around, but that hardly seems like her fault. She was hesitant to answer.

“Have you changed it?” She asks. She does not mean to offend him if he perhaps decides to go by Denim or something like that. He just gives her a side eye before getting up to fetch the ashtray. She took a few tiny steps to get out of his way. When he passed her back, he gave her the note. She took a look at it. It was a love note alright, Theodore's name was misspelled in all the ways possible. Not even his last name was spelled right, missing one t at the end. The girl was starting to frown and Theodore could see she was getting mad. Finally, someone who understood him.

“Oh hell no!” She yelped. Theodores smiled in bliss, he knew he could count on the Hufflepuffs when it came to empathy. She took a few steps to him and grabbed his face so he could look at her. 

“Who gave you this and how dare they steal my business.” His smile instantly dropped. She was mad but not for the same reason. looking up at her caged in her arms. For a second he thought it didn't matter if she did not know his name. But then he remembered that the Ravenclaw girls pretended to not know and he was pissed again.

“Is that what you're mad about?”

“YES!? What else?

“LOOK AT MY NAME!” Her eyebrows scrunched together and she took another look at the note. She read his name over and over again. Deep down she knew it was supposed to be his name, but it looked like a poor attempt by a kindergartener. Her lips twitched to a smile and her eyes kept flying between him and the note. She was trying to keep her giggles down, he knew it, and she was doing a horrible job at it. He was starting to lighten up.

“Who the fuck is Thieodor.” She laughed out loud. He hung his head in defeat. Debating whether or not to change it. Whether or not to change his whole identity. He however snapped when the girl in front of him placed her hand on his shoulder and wheezed at the fact that his last name is not written as Nott, but as Noot. His hands reach to the base of her neck. He stands up now towering over her. 

She looked at him dazed, eyes full of tears from laughing, seemingly not releasing the position they were in. He's very close to her face, even closer than that one time she was forced to count his eyelashes as a dare. He leaned closer to her, only stopping by her ear. Her breaths were now quick and sharp.

“Theo?” She asked, her voice very weak and quiet. He liked it like that. He liked that she said his name, he liked that she knew his name. If she were to say it again, he swears his knees would bend and he would not be responsible for what was happening after that. He wanted to beg, he would never, but he wanted to. He didn’t answer her, rather he leaned in even closer. She could feel his breath on her neck.

“Say it again, please say my name again.” He whispered. He was so close. One little move and he would kiss her neck and take their friendship on a different boat. He just needed to hear the magic words. He should have known something was wrong when she giggled first before speaking.

“Noot.” She says softly and starts laughing. He shoots up to his full height looking at her in disbelief. He pushes her away with a grimace as she continues laughing.

“Go fuck yourself.” He murmurs and lights up another cigarette. She was now on the floor clutching her stomach. There was nothing he could do but watch her. He waited till she was done. It took her a good 10 minutes. When she was done, she got up, her legs a little bit wobbly. She could not look at his face without smiling excessively but Theodore decided that it was enough for him.

“Let's go, we need to find the others.”

“Okay, Noot Noot.”

“Stop.”

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[holllandtrash]

long live | daniel ricciardo

pairing: daniel ricciardo x driver!reader (epilogue to fragile line)

long live the walls we crashed through i had the time of my life with you long, long live the walls we crashed through how the kingdom lights shined just for me and you

time passes and feelings may fade, but the memories never will word count: 7.7k (im so sorry) warnings/tags: time jumps like always, angst and heartbreak but it's not all sad this time, or is it?

four years later

“Daniel Ricciardo, 2025 Formula 1 World Champion, The Honey Badger,” James Hinchcliffe put his arm around the fellow commentator, “Tell us what you know.”

“What I know, Hinch,” Daniel repeated, taking a dramatic look up towards the clear sky. “What do I know?”

They didn’t need to act like they were friends for the camera, James and Daniel had grown close in a short time, ever since Daniel put down the helmet and picked up a microphone, Replacing the racing overalls with a suit and tie. He had the personality to be a motorsports commentator. No one was surprised when he was announced as Sky Sports newest reporter following his Formula 1 retirement. 

And James, a fellow retired driver himself from the IndyCar side, a Canadian with the humour and the banter that could keep up with Daniel, they were truly one of the best duos when it came to motorsports broadcasting.

They weren't often together, though. Daniel stuck to Formula 1. James was a regular for IndyCar. There were only a handful of races where they came together and the Indianapolis 500 was one of them. 

They were a comedic duo last year at the 2026 running, it only made sense to bring Daniel back again this year.

“Who’s your money on?” James asked. The question was innocent enough, proposed to most people who didn’t have an association with any team.

Daniel had his answer. Before the race weekend started he had an answer. Before the season started he had an answer. 

But he hesitated. 

Or, maybe froze was a better word. Daniel froze when he dropped his gaze from the sky and looked further down the pit lane. They didn’t plan on standing a few slots away from the number 6 car of Arrow McLaren, but that's where they found themselves.

Daniel froze when he spotted the familiar face sitting on the bench in the pit wall, looking at the data on the screens and nodding along with the engineer as he spoke. Daniel froze, because even though he knew exactly who was driving that car, he still wasn’t prepared for what he would do when he saw the driver.

When he saw you. 

You guys had agreed, long ago, that there would be no more interactions. That your careers, your lives, would be better if the other stayed as far away as possible.

Daniel knew that even now, four years later, he had no right to talk to you, to talk about you. He knew that at this point, it was for the best that ties were still cut, that the conversations didn’t happen. It had been over a year since your last interaction, he was in no position to change that. 

And he tried, desperately, over the years to follow the rules you agreed on. You as well kept your distance, you had to. 

But you were only human. There had been a few slip ups over the years.

For the remainder of the season, after the Austin race, you both had stuck to your word. You stopped giving the world the moments they were waiting for. You refused to interact with each other, you forced yourself to stop caring. 

It grew easier with time. The 2024 season was challenging in itself, but with Max and Daniel fighting amongst each other in a league of their own, you knew you couldn’t fight them in a McLaren. All you could do was make the most of what you had. 

Lando and you had a strong opening those first few races. McLaren was third in the constructors for a short time until other teams started to catch up, filling in the holes of their designs. 

You quite literally didn’t have time to care about Daniel when you were so focused on the rest of the grid, your actual competition. Ferrari, Mercedes, Aston Martin even. Your upgrades were no match with theirs and by the end of the season, it was disappointing to look back without a podium to reminisce on. Lando scored two, one in Spa, the other in Singapore. You did well, but not well enough to bring home a trophy.

2025 was…different.

In many ways. Firstly, the McLarens showed consistency as the season continued. You and Lando were always top contenders for points.  

Secondly, Daniel was giving Max a run for his money. He had a bit the year prior, but this season was far more competitive. You, like everyone else, was dying to see who would pull through and score that first place trophy at the end of the day, but you had to hide your desires for it to be Daniel. 

You still hadn’t spoken. You had successfully veered away from any accidental interactions. His name stayed out of your mouth and at this point, everyone on the grid knew there was a disconnect. You both had gone out of your way, this year and in 2024, to assure there would be no media appearances together, no driver conferences, nothing that the online world could twist. 

But you couldn’t do anything about still being happy for him. That would never go away. You would always want Daniel to succeed. You just couldn’t be watching the screens when he podiumed. You couldn’t go out with him and the others to celebrate. You couldn’t wish him a congrats in passing like Lando could if you were walking down the paddock. 

Daniel felt the same. While the love was gone, there was nothing he could do about those proud moments. He wanted you to make a name in this sport, to make history. He wanted you to be someone and even though he once wanted to be at your side while you planted your roots, he couldn’t.

Except that one time when he physically was at your side. 

There was a mistake in the media pen scheduling on that Thursday in Miami. From what you knew, Daniel was supposed to be in the press conference and you’d be one of the ten unlucky few that had to stand under the Miami sun in the football field, talking about how you were looking forward to this race when in reality you personally thought this was the worst race on the calendar. 

But it was too hot to complain about anything other than the heat and how you needed to change shirts as soon as the media pen segment was over because the breathable material of your papaya polo was anything but breathable.

You had barely stepped into the roped off circle to join the other drivers when you heard your name being called. Glancing over your shoulder, it took a second to realise that the call was coming from a young girl running in your direction. Her paddock lanyard flailing over her shoulder as she sprinted, one hand held onto her McLaren hat so it wouldn’t fall off.

“She can’t be here-”

“Piss off, she’s fine,” you weren’t even sure who you interrupted, but you didn’t give the risk of a reprending a second thought as you stepped forward to meet the young fan.

She was small, and you weren’t a professional when it came to guessing the ages of kids but you would put her somewhere in the range of six and eight. Maybe?

You knelt down to be more at eye level, “Hi darling, what’s your name?”

“Cara,” she answered, slightly out of breath. There was a gap in her teeth from where she must have just lost one, but it didn’t affect her grin at all. 

“Hi Cara,” you smiled at her, only then noticing she wore a shirt with your last name on it. Glancing over your shoulder, you saw an older gentleman running towards her. “Is that your dad?”

Cara looked and then nodded, but she didn’t care that she had completely abandoned him and given him a heart attack. “I saw you last year here. You finished fifth, my dad took me to watch. He says you- he says that you’re the only girl driver.”

“I am the only girl driver,” you confirmed, pouting slightly. You brushed your hand over her shoulder to smooth out the material of the shirt, “That should change soon, don’t you think? All of these boys need to be put in their place and I can’t do it alone.”

“I can join,” Cara suggested. The carefree optimism was a rare sight at one of these race weekends, but you admired it in Cara. She was too young to know the difficulties of being a female in this field and hopefully by the time she grew up, there were less walls for her to climb over, just doors to open. 

“You can join,” you nodded at the idea, laughing slightly, mostly because her dad had caught up to her and he was more out of breath than she saw. You smiled at him but looked back at Cara, “Do you race?”

“Yes!”

“No,” her dad answered, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Not yet, at least. We’ve signed her up for karting this summer, we’ll see how it goes.”

“I can already tell you’ll be a natural,” you told Cara. Watching her face light up was probably the most rewarding feeling you’d get all weekend. 

“I want to be like you. I want to win races, I want to win a championship!”

“You know what Cara, I can’t break every record, being the first girl driver. So I’ll save the championship one for you, how about that? I want to see you become the first girl to win the championship.” You gave her arm a squeeze and then stood up, turning your focus to her dad. 

He wasn’t wearing a wedding ring and although you couldn’t make assumptions that he was single, the greying hair at a fairly young age and the bags under his eyes told you that he was mostly likely the main caretaker for Cara. 

“She’s got dreams,” you said.

He nodded, but smiled proudly, “That she does.”

You didn’t want to speak negatively about this industry in front of Cara, you didn’t want to crush her dreams, but you also didn't want her to grow up and be hopelessly disappointed either.

“It’s not easy for girls in this sport,” you told him. “But if she’s serious, if both of you are, look into working with Mary from Victory Speedway, located out in Tampa. She’s got contacts with F1 Academy as well. They’re goal is to make it easier.”

“Thank you,” he nodded, holding out his hand to shake. “And thank you for talking with Cara. Both of us are big fans, you truly are inspiring.”

You chatted for a bit longer, ignoring Oliver who was at your side reminding you that you had media duties. They could wait. A photo with the girl that seemed to be your biggest fan and maybe one day your predecessor, couldn’t wait.

No one really heard what you spoke about, the other drivers had their own obligations in the media pen. 

Daniel, though, he listened. 

He was standing right near the entrance when Cara had run up. He had watched you bend down to chat with her, making her a priority opposed to the reporters. He was less than two feet away as he overheard your conversation and when you turned around, ready to get the media day over with, you met his eyes.

For the first time in a long time, you didn’t look away.

Daniel wanted to tell you he admired that conversation, the hope you installed in the young fan. He wanted to tell you that you made a great role model, for not just girls but all aspiring drivers. He wanted to say a lot of things to you.

He settled on a question, “You’re not trying to win the championship?”

This was the first time you had spoken in months and it wasn’t even in private. It was quite literally in front of cameras, reporters, people with audio recording devices and microphones. You opened your mouth slightly only to lock up, giving him an apologetic look because you both knew better than to be having any sort of interaction. 

You turned to face the first reporter, ignoring Daniel’s question completely. He just nodded to himself and walked to his own spot, keeping you in the corner of his eye. 

This young reporter, though, was also curious, having overheard what Daniel asked. 

“You’re not vying for a championship? Does Zak Brown know this?” He asked with a soft chuckle.

You shrugged and gave him a smile, “I mean, every driver's dream is the championship, but it’s not my goal currently. Your goals can, and should, be different than your dreams. And yes, Zak knows this, don’t you worry.”

“Your goal then, what is it?”

You inhaled, thinking to yourself for a second, “I’ve got a few and I have a good team supporting me while I work towards them. First would be to make as much history as I can, set as many records while I have a spot in Formula 1 and then I want to help other female drivers break them.”

“You want your records to be broken?”

“If it means getting more females into Formula 1, then yes.”

Daniel, who was in the middle of trying to listen to the reporter in front of him, smiled as he heard that. It was a very you response. He leaned forward, gripping the railing a bit because he completely misheard his own question and needed him to repeat it.

“And your other goal?” The young reporter asked you. 

Your lips curved into more of a devious smile, deciding to keep that one close to your chest. “Do you have any questions about the race this weekend? Or are you trying to write a biography on my life?”

Daniel was dying to know what it was too. He spent the rest of that media session racking through the memories of you, there were a lot, trying to think if you ever had that conversation. You must have, right? So why couldn’t he remember?

When all of you made your way out and back to the paddock, Daniel ignored the voice in his head telling him to just let it go. He completely drowned it out as he jogged up to your side, refraining from reaching out and brushing his hand over your elbow to grab your attention. Instead he just said, 

“Hey.”

You glanced up, instinctively stepping to the side as you walked to put more space between your bodies. 

“Hi,” you breathed out, pulling your eyes off of him and on the Red Bull motorhome that was coming up. This conversation would be short, he’d have to go back inside. You’d be fine for ten seconds, right?

“So what-” he cleared his throat. This shouldn’t have been awkward but it was. After so long of not even glancing at each other, there were new lines painted between you. Daniel didn’t know how to navigate them, and honestly, neither did you.

“Triple Crown, Dan,” you answered, knowing that's where he was going when he opened his mouth. 

The Triple Crown. Monaco. Indy 500. 24 Hours of Le Mans. 

He took a second to process that goal, not having expected it in the slightest. When he nodded, you could see the hurt in his eyes, only there was less pain and more distance. He didn’t know you like he thought he did.

“I never knew you were aiming for the Triple Crown.”

“You never asked.”

He had trained you, helped you become the best athlete you could be. He had introduced you to the right people. He acted as a mentor, but the conversations you had about racing were limited. There was a lack of communication in that sense because why bring work home with you? 

But that was the wedge driven between you. Had you talked about racing, contracts, your futures, you would have never found yourself in that McLaren contract scandal that ultimately broke you two up. 

He nodded, because what else could he say to that? You gave him a soft smile and told yourself to keep walking, to move to the other side of the paddock as Daniel headed into the Red Bull motorhome. 

You don’t interact again until Monaco. Daniel now knew winning this race meant more to you than others. Winning this would be one third of the Triple Crown checked off and as much as he was gunning for the podium, thankful for his P2 starting position, he saw that you were starting fourth and took a breath of relief. You had a shot.

Daniel wasn’t sure what came over him when he saw you in the paddock after qualifying. Maybe it was because you not completely shutting him down in Miami gave him a strange surge of confidence to approach you again, or maybe it was because he was ignoring all the voices in his head to just keep walking. Whatever it was, Daniel saw you chatting with a member of Sky Sports and as he walked passed, patted your shoulder in a congratulatory manner.

You paused whatever it was you were saying and turned in his direction, just in time to see him give you a smile and a thumbs up as he continued on his way. You returned it, but that small interaction had you stumbling over your words for the next two hours. 

Not because you were smitten, you were past that. You didn’t look at Daniel anymore and lose your train of thought, you didn’t get lost in a daze and allow everything else to fade around you.

But he didn’t seem to let go of you completely yet, and you could work with that. You could be civil. You could be neutral during race weekends, as long as it didn’t go further than the friendly smiles and minimal chats.

It shouldn’t have been hard to keep the conversations short, you hadn’t actually had anything meaningful to say to each other in over a year. When you ran into him after the race on Sunday, after he claimed the title of Monaco Grand Prix race winner for a second time, you should have just said congratulations and kept walking.

But Daniel saw you as he was propped up against the side of the Red Bull motorhome and then he stood up straighter, almost inviting you to walk up to him. There were no cameras around anymore, the majority of the paddock had gone home so you felt safer, sort of. If the world hadn’t lost their minds at the clip of him patting your back yesterday, you could talk to him now.

The Red Bull engineer he was with said his goodbyes and smiled politely at you as you approached, stopping at a safe distance.

“Another Monaco win under your belt.”

“So it seems,” Daniel tried his best to not look too proud of himself. You could see his dimples poking through. You wanted him to not be holding back, you missed his grin but gone were the days when he didn’t have to refrain with you. 

“You deserve it,” you nodded, glancing over your shoulder out of habit. You were scared of any stragglers with iPhones, but no one around seemed to care that you and Daniel were talking. You were drivers, it shouldn’t have been a strange sight.

“You deserve it,” Daniel playfully shot back. “I mean, I couldn’t just hand it over this year though, despite your Triple Crown goal.”

“Oh but next year? You’ll let me have it then?” You asked, eyebrows raised. It was a joke, a small tease, but Daniel’s smile slipped and you caught it. You caught it and you stepped forward, hand flinching because it would be moments like this where you’d want to reach for him but you couldn’t do that anymore, could you?

Daniel tensed. Now it was his turn to look anxiously around, “I might not-” a sharp inhale passed through his lips, “Yeah I might not be here next year.”

You scoffed because that idea was preposterous, “Oh shut up.”

“No it’s true,” Daniel said, but his smile told you that he wasn’t sad about it. “You know how your goal is the Triple Crown?”

“Yes.”

“Mine’s the championship, sweets.”

You weren’t given an opportunity to react to the nickname because he continued on explaining without missing a beat. Either he didn’t see the way saying sweets affected you or he didn’t even notice he said it because even after all this time, it still came naturally to him. 

“There’s a clause in my contract,” he said. “If I win the championship this year, we can renegotiate. I can leave, I can- I can retire. The way I want to.”

You didn’t know how to process this. 

Daniel belonged in Formula 1. He fought so hard for his seat, he was a mess when he was left without one and now there was a chance he’d be gone? 

And even though you were only eight races in, already he was leading the driver standings over Max, not by much, but he was. There was a strong possibility Daniel could take the championship home at the end of the season.

You couldn’t say what was on your mind. You couldn’t say, selfishly, I hope you lose the championship. You couldn’t say that it was impossible to imagine the paddock without him because even those few months when he wasn’t racing, he was still there. 

“We’ve still got a few months to go,” Daniel’s voice broke you from your thoughts, trying to move to a brighter note because that’s just who he was. “But this could be good for you. You’ll have a real shot at winning Monaco next year. But I mean- you technically already won Monaco.”

“That was F2.”

“I think it still counts.”

“I think I’ll win it again, just to be safe.”

Daniel liked that response, he liked how confident you were that the win was coming. He nodded and he really would have liked to talk to you more about this, about his potential leave, about your success, but when he was called from across the paddock you didn’t hesitate before saying goodbye. The conversation was long enough.

Things seemed lighter between you after that. 

You didn’t stop yourself from being visibly happy when he was doing well. You laughed if you overheard the stupid shit he said in the paddock. You didn’t make a big deal about it when you two were signed up for the same press conference session. Granted, you still sat on complete opposite ends of the couch, but you sat there with a smile because you liked hearing Daniel talk about the lead he still carried in the standings.

Spa was the turning point for you two.

While you hadn’t taken any more steps beyond paddock conversations and friendly interactions, what was Daniel supposed to do when you both ended up on the podium together? Him on top, claiming first, you right next to him on the second step?

You both held back when you climbed out of the cars. He opted for a friendly pat on the back even though he wanted nothing more than to bring you in for an embrace. You had podiumed once already this season, but not with Daniel. You stood between the two Mercedes drivers back in Austria but now you were there, with Daniel at your side, both of you beaming. 

You were proud of yourselves. You were proud of each other. 

Both of you had dreamt of this moment, standing next to each other on the podium. You still remembered that conversation years ago, trying to imagine what it would be like to hear the cheers for both of you.

‘You’ll have to do a shoey.’

‘Only if you win. I’m not doing one if I win.’

You had shared this dream when you were in love and even though that wasn’t the case anymore, the dream was still very much alive. Because of that, it almost didn’t feel right. 

It felt sort of unfulfilling, despite you being handed a heavy trophy. 

But this was a moment that you would remember for the rest of your life. All of your accomplishments were held very close to your heart but this one meant more than you could put into words. 

Hands shaking, crowd going wild, you were on top of the world and you were standing next to the man you used to be in love with. You glanced to the side to watch him, not able to stop yourself from smiling wide and then wider still as he held his head high like a hero. 

Daniel was larger than life. 

He always would be. 

You tried not to let yourself think that this might be the only chance you’d get to stand here with him. This win only pushed him further ahead in the championship and you were, seemingly, the only one who knew this year would be his last if he ended up winning. 

You had to hold onto this moment. It wouldn’t come again. 

To everyone watching at home, this was the start of a new age with you and Daniel. Fans could see the way you two interacted, the sheer joy you had for each other, something they hadn’t seen since you still raced in F2. 

To you, this was the beginning of the end. 

Finally, you and Daniel were getting to a place where things could be good and in a few short months, he’d be gone.

You couldn’t think about it more, not when you felt champagne being sprayed in your direction. You were late to the game and popped yours after Daniel and Max had, but you still joined in with the celebration. 

You laughed when Daniel took his shoe off and poured some of the bubbly liquid into the sole. He laughed when you refused to drink it, both of you ignoring the fact that if you were still in love, if you were still together, you would have done the shoey with him. 

Daniel was content with the nod. He knew you were happy for him, the same way he was happy for you. But neither of you could show it the way you wanted to. 

The championship win was decided at the second last race of the season, Qatar.

You didn’t have a good weekend, and you knew this. You took responsibility for the poor qualifying, the bad performance, for all of it. But you were distracted, unable to keep yourself from thinking about Daniel because if he won this race, he won it all. 

And then he’d walk away.

You were conflicted. You wanted to see Daniel take home the win but selfishly, you wanted him in Formula 1. You always wanted him in Formula 1. 

So when he crossed that line, ahead of Max, ahead of the rest of the grid, when he did celebratory donuts and stood on the podium with his chin held high, you stood on the sidelines and ignored how you used to wish for a day like this, wished for a day where he would be crowned the Championship Winner.

Daniel Ricciardo. 2025 Formula 1 World Champion. 

It had a nice ring to it. 

That’s what you told him that night when you were out at dinner and saw him sitting with a few members from his team just a few feet away. You weren’t surprised to see him at the establishment, it was exclusive, it was way overpriced and it was where many drivers went prior to going out and partying. 

You avoided his eyes that evening, scared that if you’d meet them you’d be forced to accept the reality that he really was leaving. At least, you know, if you didn’t look at him, you could live in your own little world where he wasn’t gone just yet.

You were genuinely annoyed when you bumped into him after leaving the toilets. The hall was dim, narrow and there was quite literally nowhere for you to go when he turned the corner and stopped walking when he saw you. 

“Hi,” you swallowed, anxiously smoothing out the skirt you wore, even more anxiously trying to avoid his eyes.

“Hi,” Daniel slid his hands into his pockets. His Enchante shirt clung to his skin due to the heat, but you told yourself you weren’t allowed to look at the way his little curls stuck to his forehead. 

“You, um-” you held your hand out. “Congratulations, really. Daniel Ricciardo. 2025 Formula 1 World Champion. It’s got a nice ring to it.”

He laughed and nodded along, “Yeah, yeah, thank you.”

When he leaned against the wall, you realised you were stuck. There was no getting out of this conversation. No escaping this reality. 

It didn’t help that the rest of the dining room faded behind him. The people, the sounds, the light, it was just Daniel. 

Just Daniel and just you.

How it always should have been.

How it would never be again.

You opened your mouth, intent on saying something else about his win but all that came out was a shaky breath and a choked back sob that triggered the tears you didn’t even know were building. It was quiet, but it was desperate and it was painful and Daniel didn’t hesitate before stepping forward and wrapping his arms around you, pulling you into his chest. Your cries were muffled against his shirt and Daniel stroked your back and then your hair, holding you tight against him.

You were happy for him, really. If anyone deserved this win, it was him but god you were devastated because up until now, you didn’t realise you still held this much love for him. Up until now, you didn’t realise that even after everything, you still needed him.

You needed him.

“What am I going to do without you on the grid?” You asked, your voice was already quiet but it was even more so muffled as you spoke directly into his body.

Daniel chuckled, it vibrated through his chest. “What you’ve been doing this whole time, sweets. You’ll make history. You’ll put the rest of the guys in their places. You’ll be the driver I know you to be.”

It took a few seconds, maybe a few minutes actually, of just standing there and crying into his chest until you snapped out of it. You weren’t dating anymore, your conversations now didn’t last longer than five minutes, it was embarrassing to be losing it in front of him, because of him.

You stepped back and wiped your eyes, “Sorry, sorry, I didn’t- I just-”

“I’ll miss you too, Y/N,” he breathed out. 

You nodded, because if you tried to say anything else you would be crying again. Daniel held his finger up and walked into the toilets to grab some tissue for you. It took another minute for you to be able to trust your voice again.

“I can’t believe you’re really leaving,” you dabbed at your cheeks, knowing you’d have to go back to the hotel to fix your make up before going out again. 

“I’ve got things lined up,” Daniel shrugged.

“Care to share?”

He tried to hide his smile and failed miserably, “Just don’t be surprised if I show up at the track next year with a microphone instead of a helmet.”

That was about as much he would say as his deal with Sky Sports wasn’t yet official. 

But now you felt more like an idiot for crying about him leaving if he wasn’t even actually leaving. You’d still see him. He’d still be around. You could work with that.

Daniel could still be proud of your accomplishments, even if he was on the sidelines. 

He was, however, a little conflicted when you won the last race of the 2025 season.

You made history in Abu Dhabi. The first female driver to win a race. This was a wall you had spent years trying to crash through and now there you were. On top of the podium, on top of the world as confetti fell to the ground around you, champagne sprayed in all directions. 

This was your moment.

Your win, your first win and all you wanted was Daniel up on that podium with you. As happy as you were to celebrate with Max and George, you couldn’t deny something was missing. 

Because you really could never cut yourself off from Daniel completely, could you? You could try, you could attempt to distance yourself, you could stop the interactions and you could tell yourself you didn’t care but you were right that day you told Lando that Daniel was your missing piece.

So it made sense that you were at a bit of a loss for words when he showed up at your hotel room that next morning. 

You invited him in, despite being slightly hungover. He didn’t care that your clothes were spread all throughout the room, but he did smile at the sight of your trophy on proud display on the table before you had to give it to your engineer for safe travels.

“So this is it,” you sighed, sitting down on the far side of the couch. Daniel sat down as well, the opposite side, arm stretched along the back of it.

“This is it,” he agreed. 

“When does the news drop?”

He clicked his tongue, “Tomorrow.”

“Who’s replacing you?”

“Not sure,” he scratched the stubble along his jaw. “My guess is Lawson or possibly Palou.”

You sat in silence for a while, thankful that it wasn’t uncomfortable because it easily could have been. 

But you both grew this season.

You could both admit now, being in love and being drivers was an unattainable dream.

But you could be drivers and you could still have love for each other. 

You reached across the couch, a gentle smirk playing on your lips as you nudged his arm, “So what are you going to say about me?”

Daniel dipped his head back and laughed, “What do you mean?”

“You know,” you shrugged. “Like when you talk about us drivers on Sky Sports. What are you going to say about me?”

“I’m going to say that not only did you steal my seat, but you stole the glory of my last race by winning.”

You rolled your eyes, recognizing the sarcasm but you were thankful his words weren’t malicious anymore, “I thought we were past this. I didn’t steal your seat, Dan.”

“No, but I don’t think I can joke about it on air so this is my last chance.”

You reached behind you and grabbed one of the throw pillows, smacking it against his chest. You chose to look at this playfully, instead of it as the inevitable end. 

And Daniel needed a second to think about your question anyway, so the joke was just a way to stall. Honestly, he was a little surprised that he hadn’t already thought about it considering you were on his mind more than you should have been. 

He cleared his throat and adjusted himself on the couch cushion. You could see that he was struggling to come up with a good response and you didn’t mean for this. You didn’t want him to think he had to choose his words carefully. 

“Hey,” you whispered, shifting closer to him, “Promise me something.”

You met his eyes, his dark brown eyes that once had such a strong hold over you. You looked at him and remembered why you fell in love with him in the first place. In this moment, it was hard to remember why you ever wanted to stop loving him.

Had you stopped loving him? Did that day really come?

You could have love for someone and not be in love with him anymore, but you didn’t think you’d find yourself in a position where you had to differentiate between the two. You thought, you knew, you would always be in love with Daniel that to sit here and think that maybe, possibly, you didn’t anymore, felt like a betrayal. 

He was supposed to be the one that stood by you through it all. The good, the bad, the wins, the losses. It wasn’t supposed to end with you two sitting on the couch and admitting that this truly was over. 

It wasn’t supposed to end like this, but you always knew it would. 

Fate stepped in and whether you liked it or not, it was forcing you into a goodbye, into an acceptance that your lives would no longer be intertwined, that you couldn’t go back to the way things were. 

“Anything,” Daniel spoke softly. Maybe one day he would have said, I’d promise you the world, if you asked, but that seemed a little too forward for the moment.

“Be honest, Dan,” you told him, your hand finding his over the edge of the couch. Your thumb brushed against his fingers and both of you fought the urge to just connect them further. “Tell them my name, but tell them how I got to Formula 1. Tell them it was you, that you helped me pave the way, that you helped me make a name in this sport. Don’t just point to the pictures of me, point to the ones of us. Now that you’re done with racing, I don’t care about the assumptions, the rumours, any of it. Tell people how it really was you and I, how we were the team that should have been, that never was, please,  because even though I know-” 

You paused, taking a second to swallow the lump at the back of your throat. You glanced at your hand and maybe it was you or maybe it was him, but your fingers started to interlock. Your eyes stayed glued to the touch as your last admittance filled the air between you.

“I know I could have made it to Formula 1 without you, but I can’t put into words how thankful I am that I didn’t have to.”

Daniel nodded, because he agreed with you. He knew you could have gotten here without him but he too was grateful he was by your side for the start of it. He agreed that you two really were the team that never was but should have been. He nodded and agreed that he would say all of those things.

But you knew that he wouldn’t.

Those words were for him, not the rest of the world. 

He would tell people that you shined on top of the podium. He would say that the crowds went wild, louder for you than any other driver.

And he would never say that he had any part of shaping your career. Despite you knowing he did, despite the whole world knowing he played a detrimental part, Daniel didn’t hold onto those connections when you went on to race in 2026 and he stood in the commentators box. 

He stayed neutral, surprisingly. 

It helped that he didn’t interact with many drivers or if he did, it was never you. He did talk about you, but only about your performance on the track. His colleagues knew not to bring up your past, not when the only thing that mattered was how well you were doing in the present.

He had some thoughts when you announced you were making the switch to IndyCar at the end of this season, but mostly because you made that announcement before the Monaco Grand Prix, before you claimed the win you were chasing, before you could check off one third of the Triple Crown.

He wanted to pull you aside and question why you were making this choice but he couldn’t. He also couldn’t call you out publicly on air like other reporters had. 

All he could do was hold his breath after you qualified P2 in Monaco. He sat on the edge of his seat, struggling to do his job, struggling to commentate on the race because the second you made the move to overtake Max and it worked, Daniel had to leave the room. 

He had to leave because he knew that if you kept the lead, if you won, he couldn’t celebrate the way he wanted to with cameras on him. Instead, he watched from the privacy of a separate media suite. The broadcast was a few seconds delayed but at least he was able to cheer and be visibly proud of you and not have to hold back when you crossed the line ahead of Max.

You won the Monaco Grand Prix, in a McLaren of all cars, and now he knew what you were gunning for next.

The Indy 500. 

Signing that Arrow McLaren deal ended up being the right move after all.

“Who’s your money on?” James Hinchcliffe asked him as they stood on the pit lane where the teams were preparing for the greatest spectacle in racing. The question was innocent enough, proposed to most people who didn’t have an association with any team.

Daniel had his answer. Before the race weekend started he had an answer. Before the season started, he had an answer. Despite knowing you were still far from winning the Indy 500, his money would always be on you. 

You looked up from where you sat on the Arrow McLaren bench and you smiled at him.

You were having a pretty good season, for a rookie. With O’Ward and Rossi as your teammates, you knew you couldn’t compare, but they were good people to have on your team, in your corner. They helped you, guided you through the shift from Formula 1 to Indy and you could be proud that in a grid of 26 drivers, you were 11th in the standings. 

“Not betting on anyone, James,” Daniel answered, but his eyes were still locked on you and his smirk said otherwise. “It’ll be a good race.”

He could say your name, he wanted to. But Daniel stayed as far away from your life as he could because you decided on it a long time ago and nothing that happened since told him that you’d be going back on that decision, that you wanted him back in your life.

He might not have been a driver anymore, but you still were. So he was content with being civil, neutral. He was fine with the friendly smiles and if an old photo of the two of you circulated every now and again, well, he didn’t hate it. 

He sat with the rest of the Indy commentators during the race. He shared his honest opinions throughout and he, along with the other reporters, praised Alexander Rossi for taking home his second Indy 500 victory, eleven years after his first. 

But that was not the Arrow McLaren driver he wished was celebrating in Victory Lane.

Daniel waited until his job was done, but he knew he had to find you before the day ended. He wanted to congratulate you on finishing twelfth. That was something he was proud of and he hoped you were as well. 

It would only go up from there. The Indy 500 was still an achievable goal. 

He found you in the paddock. It wasn’t hard. You stood out, even in the crowd of people. He waited off to the side and watched you take photos with young girls, young fans that resembled that one girl in Miami, all of them looking up to you and thanking you for paving the way for them, for other females in motorsport.

It was by chance that you looked over your shoulder and saw Daniel standing there. He nodded, wordlessly assuring you that he could wait, to take your time with the fans. 

He ended up waiting almost fifteen minutes. 

Eventually, you started to approach him. Daniel stood up straighter, having been leaning against the Penske trailers until you were done. You still had your racing overalls on, but unzipped and hanging loosely on your hips. The black fireproofs under the papaya looked good on you, but Daniel hadn’t let himself appreciate your appearance for years, he couldn’t start now, even if he really wanted to.

“Hey,” you called out when you were only a few steps away.

“Hey yourself,” Daniel chuckled. When you finally stood in front of him, he was sort of expecting to see a sliver of defeat, but you were happy. You may not have won the 500, but you had a good run and there was always next year. Plus, you still had the rest of the season to finish. The season wasn’t over, you could still make history in this sport. 

You crossed your arms over your chest and glanced around, jaw clenched until you finally worked up the courage to meet his eyes. 

“So,” you inhaled a breath. “You’ve got some time on your hands now that you’re retired, right?”

Daniel wasn’t sure where this was going but he laughed and nodded, “Somewhat, yes, but I do still work race weekends.”

“But Monday through Wednesday?”

He pondered it for a second, just for dramatic effect. “I’m fairly open.”

You nodded, hoping for that answer. 

If you were being honest with yourself, this was a conversation you wanted to have with Daniel since he announced his retirement almost two years ago, you just never knew what the outcome would be.

You felt a bit safer now, knowing that he was based out of the UK and your races were only North American. If he hated where you were going with this, well, it was rare you’d be crossing paths so soon afterwards. 

You just had to blurt it out.

“Ever thought about being a trainer?” You asked. “Or a manager? Mentor even? You know- my last mentor walked out on me-”

Daniel cut you off with a booming laugh, “Walked out? Really? Is that what you tell people?”

Him playing along with your humour felt like a weight off your shoulders, “Only if they ask.”

Daniel, finally, didn’t have to refrain himself anymore. He felt confident enough to drape his arm over your shoulders and walk with you down the paddock. For once, he didn’t care if people looked or recorded and secretly, he hoped they did. 

All he wanted was to be at your side. All he wanted was for the world to know he was proud of you, that, if you asked, he’d be back in your corner.

And you were asking.

“So you need a mentor?” He repeated. “A trainer?”

Your hand slipped around his waist. It was natural, comforting, right.

“Well, I need to win the 500 eventually and then I need to get into Le Mans. I can’t do it alone.”

Daniel looked at you, wearing that stupid grin you missed so much even if you had memorised it the first day you met. You missed him, despite hearing his voice on the broadcasts and seeing him in the paddock. You missed him, he was your missing piece after all.

Daniel looked at you, and you knew, you weren’t alone.

__________________

the end ♡

taglist: @torossosebs@whatthefuckerr@jspitwall@oconso@tsarinablogs@landowecanbewc@somanyfandomsbruh@christianpulisic10@storminacloud@sunnytkm23@formula1mount@azxulaa@icarus-nex@spideyspeaches @moonvr @destourtereaux @baw-sixteen @cinderellawithashoe @love4lando @alesainz @blueanfield @itsmeempar @vellicora @simple-soul-searcher

for some reason im struggling to add people to the taglist, i deeply apologise

[lovelyyandereaddictionpoint]

The fire pillar from demon slayer meeting Exsotica as she heading to a lord house to entertain them but the run to a carrange probably and they both happen to meet

Meeting someone other worldly and kind would be something

Exotica | Meeting the Flame Hashira

Well first and foremost this would never happen cannon storyline

By the time you show up in this universe it's almost a year or two before Kyojuro is fated to die

But with the tidbit dropped in the Art headcannon it’d seem that Kagaya would eventually summon you to the estate

But that couldn’t be the case because you never can’t leave the Yukaku District

Daki and Gyutarou have been ordered to hold you there 

And of course, the Red light district suddenly becoming more famous for your existence would sooner send the art of you than sending you on your own

They’d risk losing you to bandits, obsessed fans, demons

It would just be too much for the Red District to lose their favorite cash cow

Not to mention if Kyojuro ever stepped foot near any of the houses

There’s no way that both sides would remain clueless

Kyojuro’s too adept for that Daki and Gyutarou would never let this fly on account of That Man’s orders 

The conditions for this meet would rely on the luck Exotica does not have, and it can’t be too far from the Yukaku District:

“HELLO THERE FAIR MAIDEN!”

You were by the river taking a rest from your travels and from the carriage that housed Warabihime. You didn’t mind spending extended hours in Daki’s disguise, in fact, you preferred it. Her clinginess was kept to a minimum and she’s in a much better mood; usually too distracted by you to badger her own staff. But you were able to excuse yourself heading into the sunlight to relieve yourself as well as get a look at the majestic scenery you could only read about in manga/only fawn over in anime. Either way, you sent a smile and greeted the demon slayer. 

You recognized him immediately—who wouldn’t, but you refrained from expressing any sorrow. Instead offering to give him food. You had plenty in abundance having done the Edo equivalent of a celebrities tour. And you happily sat with the Hashira as he munched on his provided meal.

“YUM! YUM! DELICIOUS!”

You let yourself giggle, drawing the fiery eyes of the Hashira as he tilted his head into confusion. 

“I don’t mean to sound like I’m making fun of you. I’m just curious as to why your so vocal while eating?”

The hashira finished his bite giving you his glowing smile. 

“I BELIEVE IT’S BEST TO VOICE EVERYTHING YOUR HEART! ESPECIALLY WHEN THAT CHANCE MIGHT BE TAKEN FROM YOU!”

“Wow, it sounds as though…your speaking from experience.”

He gave a hearty laugh before continuing to eat befor cleating his mouth once again. 

“ON THAT NOTE, I’D LIKE TO SAY YOU’RE ABSOULUTELY BEWITCHING! MARRY ME!” 

“Haha Rengoku-san, you’re very funny but I don’t think I can.”

“HAHA PERSISTENCE IS A VIRTUE TOO MANY LOSE HEART THAT WAY! MARRY ME!” 

He would repeat the same declaration all throughout your break before one of the young maidens called you on behalf of the oiran. When the time came you bowed to him, encouraging the hashira on his way. Before you depart he grabs your hand, and with a grim theme to his expression he gave you a promise.

“I WASN’T JESTING WHEN I PROPOSED THIS TO YOU. ONCE MY MISSION IS COMPLETE I WILL FIND YOU AND MARRY YOU. SAFE TRAVELS MY FLAME.”

Releasing you to begin his jovial trek to whatever mission he was on. Standing still in genuine stupor you were broken out by Warabihime’s calls. Returning to the carriage you urged the demon’s worried cries as well as your own. 

‘What was that and why did it feel so…true?’

[chaifootsteps]

College anon dropping in to say that the dubs aren't very good. Some, like the french one, sound like the text went through google translate (and the dubbing in general is terrible despite France having a good rep in the industry). The Italian version of Poison is low-key good tho

As for my reaction to Poison, imagine that gif of the happy yellow emoji looking traumatized/dead inside. I stared at the screen wondering what led me to watching this and how ANYONE would think this was a good scene. Vivziepop claiming that the leaks don't represent the full scene was right for once... It was so much worse. I could think of a more tasteful way to picture it in 5 seconds, it isn't that hard. She could have even kept most of the scene, just remove the graphic stuff to keep the suggestive dancing (a smart idea that should have remained subtle) and maybe keep the Val part à la Addict to show that, yeah, on top of "working" all night (because the graphic scenes made it obvious he stopped "enjoying" work early during the night), Val SA'd him and that shows the entirety of the hell he's going through. It explains why he breaks down and lashes out. Viv didn't need to keep most of the SA, the entire thing was implied.

Also episode 4 comes out of left field. Yes, it was foreshadowed since the beginning but why is Angel suddenly returning his calls? We SAW him ignore Val. He clearly HATES him. Since when is Husk calling him out and badgering him about being "fake"?? They've known each other for a WEEK. It's way too early for that. It's like we're missing 3-4 episodes of development in-between. Angel reconnecting with Val and showing hints that this is indeed a facade, Husk knowing a lot about everyone and giving a damn... This should be a mid-end of season arc for Angel. I'd personally make it end of season 1 so that he can show change during season 2, beginning as someone new, someone who slowly tries to show he cares and let down his bravado in small amounts, with clear hints of being a little scared of the reactions, until it naturally becomes his full-time persona. Maybe have Charlie notice at some point and subtly encourage him, DELIGHTED (in caps because that girl is extra) that Angel is getting better but having to keep her excitement in in fear of scaring him off (because Charlie should have SOME sort of emotional intelligence ffs).

Loser, Baby feels out of place. This is NOT the appropriate reaction to Angel's words. Did they rewrite the dialogue but not the song?? Here's how it sounds:

Angel: I feel like I've gotta be Val's perfect whore all the time so I'm trying to break myself enough he will be alone—

Husk: Well, it's okay to be a loser, baby! Look at me, I'm a failure too. You ain't special and it's okay!

....So Angel is a loser/failure/broken but Val is still into him??? Did they realize that this should send him the wrong message?! That Val will "love" him no matter what and that Angel cannot be free, that he's been making himself miserable for NOTHING?? First of all, Husk's greediness and addictions are NOTHING like Angel's situation. He signed with his real name. That alone implies that Val snatched him early on as he arrived. On top of that, he's being abused every way possible on the regular, for no fault of his own, and is self-destructing. He cannot kill himself and Val won't let him be killed. This is NOTHING like Husk losing a game for more power and being forced to be a bartender.

Here's how it should have gone for the song to work:

Angel: So?! The real me is a good for nothing loser who died in a ditch from some shitty coke! THIS is the famous, hotter than Hell pornstar that everyone wanna fuck! And I've— I've gotta be the part. 'Cause if I'm not... If I ain't then who am I?

Angel's fear should have been about being seen as who he was, as some loser that nobody loved. Let him feel like he beat his father, that now he's someone so suck it dad! You were wrong! Let Angel behave as if his life was a porn movie because that's all he knows now and what he thinks he should be like. Instead of trying to ruin himself so that Val discards him, have him try to be perfect... Because that'll stop the abuse, right? Val is happy when he acts like that. The perverts worship him. No one cares about Anthony.

That would make Loser, Baby work. It would achieve its goal of saying "it's okay to suck, we all do! Look at me, I'm a loser but my life isn't over!" and get Angel to accept that he's enough as he is. If you add in a few episodes beforehand to set it up, it could have worked better instead of being insensitive.

Personally I would have entirely changed the Angel/Val dynamic. Val can still be a whiny bitch but not in a drama queen way as is implied. He gets like that whenever he loses control of his favorite. Have one of the Vees groan and say something about Angel having done something as if it happened often. Make them used to Val throwing a fit because he didn't get what he wanted out of Angel or because he's having a jealousy fit. It already makes Val more controlling. It'll make the messages scene hit harder as, yeah, we can see why Angel left, the dude is unstable and obsessed. I'd be a little more fucked-up and have Angel kinda love him. Ofc in the Stockholm Syndrome way, he's been abused so much he's too attached to leave. That shift in dynamic would explain why he eventually goes back despite everything. Like in the show, he feels ignored in favor of the new resident and the way he's dismissed and talked about makes him feel like shit. He checks his phone again and ends up listening to Val's new voice messages... And this time, they're sickeningly sweet in a row. He's sorry, he's begging for him to come back. He loves him. And that's enough for Angel to go out or answer him. Put a few episodes in-between where Angel seems... Off? How weird, he's jumpy, more on his phone. He's out for parts of the episodes or clearly focused on something else. Then we get episode 4, where everyone culminates to show how bad the situation is for him. I'd personally not have Val hit him. He's smart enough to not leave bruises on his top whore. However, he's manipulative and threatening. There's no doubt that he COULD hit Angel whenever, especially with the way he cowers. Angel tries to diffuse the situation, so well that it's heartbreaking, and he gets bold. That line when he doesn't reply "Yes Val" is meant with silence as we wait for Val's reaction, waiting for him to blow up. A beat. He doesn't. He's not calm but he's not as angry. He's not going to hit him. He thanks Angel, touching him while the other flinches, a hint that he handles Angel roughly in this kind of situation, and just as Angel looks relieved, he announces that he'll have to work all night, distressing Angel again.

Ofc that would require extensive research and talk to specialists to do it well. Viv's audience can be stupid so it's more of a struggle to make it clear that none of this is Angel's fault and to not romantize this shit but it's more interesting than Val being so obviously abusive. IMHO he almost transformed into someone else in that episode and it could work but we didn't see enough of him to go "oh that's the old abuser trick! he's not as nice as he is with others when he's with his victim!". Idk how to put it sensibly but the impression he gave me was "whiny manchild who sadly was given enough power by Daddy Vox to abuse someone" instead of the intended "terrifying Overlord who is unstable and abusing his power to abuse whichever worker he fancies at the moment". I dunno Chai I just think it would work better if he were more manipulative and welding his power in other ways than by force. Like Angel isn't scared by his strength but by his influence. Also I would low-key find a way to make it so that Angel, mistakenly, thinks he can get away with some things to explain how he'd leave for the Hotel. Like having him not be a perfect victim. While he tries to cater to Val and keep him happy out of fear (and/or care because abuse fucks you up), he sometimes provokes him or tries to do his own thing. It'd show he's his own person and stuff. Sadly that would be lost on Viv's stans and it would absolutely spark some victim-shaming stuff or worse. But I think if she's gonna try to portray something like this, she could do with some nuance and not so... Cliché? Of course, it happens like this to too many people but it feels like she's applying a trope with no thought into it. The most cookie-cutter depiction she could do for quick satisfaction or to tick that case. A bit like how Stolitz is a mix of multiple tropes and is a terribly done version of that trope where a noble falls in love with someone whose class is lower with a sprinkle of badly done transactional relationship that sparks feelings. Thinking of HB, HH has better representation of abuse but not by much. I feel like if Stella was a man, she'd have written it this way? It felt like fetish fuel hiding underneath the surface whereas Stella was lazy writing.

I dunno man, I wanted to rant about Charlie and her design but episode 4 hit me like a wall of bricks

Thank you for all of this, College Anon. This was a great read, and you're right, the Italian version of Poison goes so much harder than the English.

Also Italian Val's voice is...yeah, 10/10 stars on that one. Mama mia.

[mediocre-daydreams]

james calms you down after an argument

(1.1k) // one suggestive comment

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

remus knew that there was only one way this would end, and it was not going to be a pretty one.

you were furious. “sirius onion black-”

“-it’s orion!”

“-i don’t give a damn about your middle name!” you snarled, stalking over to him as he tried to escape from the pitch into the men’s locker room. you were unphased, walking in right after him. “are you serious?”

sirius opened his mouth, sensing the perfect opening. unfortunately, you were all too familiar with his puns.

“and don’t give me your bloody pun, because i’m- i’m angry!” you declared. you had a bone to pick and were extra crabby; the gryffindor vs. hufflepuff match had gone on longer than expected—that’s what james got for underestimating the friendly badgers, you supposed.

sirius ruffled your hair affectionately, walking past you with his broom in one hand like your rage meant nothing to him. of course, that only fuelled you more.

“where are you going? come back, you absolute-”

“woah, little one,” james chuckled from behind you, scooping you up and tossing you over his shoulder effortlessly. he claimed the post-quidditch adrenaline made him stronger than usual, but you knew it was just an excuse to carry you around more. “what’s got you all riled up?”

“don’t patronize me!” you seethed, pounding your fists against james’ back. “ouch! merlin, when did your back get so hard?” 

remus, closing his book with a snap, grinned. “quidditch gear,” he explained.

you groaned. “godric, you’re all such pains.” remus trailed just behind james so he could make fun of your disdain, which you planned on getting him back for. james, who was holding his broom in one hand and his helmet under his other arm, was not providing you the smoothest ride.

“put me down, would you? i’m going to vomit all over your jersey.”

“nuh-uh,” james teased. “i know you’re going to kill padfoot the minute you get the chance and we really need him for the gryffindor vs. slytherin match.”

sirius poked his head out from behind a locker, scandalized. “i knew you only kept me around for my beater skills!”

you squirmed in james’ grip, only encouraging to tighten his hold on you. “i swear to godric, james fucking potter, i’m not going to kiss you for- for a week if you don’t let me go!” 

“wrong f word, lovie,” he laughed. he caved, sliding you gently to the floor. once your feet touch the floor, he bumped your shoulder. “we both know you couldn’t go a week without kissing me.”

“excuse me? you and your bloody ego—y’know what? lily was right about you, toerag!” you spun around and pointed to remus accusingly. “and you! you were complicit in james’ crimes! i should be mad at you too!”

you took a deep, calming breath. when you caught sight of sirius, still struggling into his normal clothing, all your relaxing progress was lost. “padf- no, black!” you tried to maintain your vengeful composure. “how dare you steal my scarf during the game! mcgonagall was right behind me; do you know how embarrassing that was? i could’ve fallen over the stands! i could’ve died!” you lamented. “and look!” you held up james’ gryffindor scarf, which he insisted you wear to every game for good luck. “you almost ripped my scarf!”

“technically, it’s my scarf,” james piped, his voice muffled from the showers. “and i say all is forgiven, pads.”

“well, i still could’ve died! and you dropped it! look, it’s muddy! i had to wear this muddy scarf the whole time because it’s ‘good luck’ and i wasn’t about to curse the team!”

james sighed, coming out from a row of lockers in his normal clothing and slung a heavy arm around you. you allowed yourself to nuzzle closer to his chest, breathing in the smell of his indulgent hazelnut body wash, before remembering you were supposed to be upset with him.

“lovie’s got a point, padfoot. varity was nearly going to score while you were off bothering m’girl. as much as i love bothering you,” james smiled down at you fondly, pressing a kiss to your forehead, “mckinnon had to hit two bludgers because of you. i’ll bet you’re in for a second scolding at dinner.”

“blah, blah, blah,” sirius grumbled. “moony, you’re on my side, right? i thought it was pretty funny. still do.”

remus nodded thoughtfully, looking into the air as if he were deep in contemplation. “yeah, it was pretty funny. sorry, sweets.” he looked at you apologetically, with no hint of remorse at all.

james scowled, grabbing your hand posessively. “don’t flirt with m’girl.”

you opened you mouth to tell james he was being ridiculous, but sirius got there first.

“i swear to merlin, you’re worse than usual after quidditch.” sirius shoved his equipment in his locker with a loud clang, before gesturing for the three of you to follow him up to the castle. “calm down, would ‘ya? nobody’s gonna steal your girlie from you.”

james sniffed, unconvinced. you wanted to comfort him and reassure him with sweet words. nobody’s as lovely as you, jamie. i would give you all my chocolate frog cards. i love you so much that i’d wear the muddy scarf for you without complaint, except i really felt like making a fuss today.

but you didn’t. you were supposed to be mad. “yeah, nobody’ll steal me away because you’re so damn sticky—like a tree frog! and your glasses are like the big, bulging eyes, and you’re all jumpy and energetic and cute…” you trailed off, lost in daydreams about the tree frogs you had seen last summer at a muggle zoo.

james smiled adoringly, squeezing your intertwined hands. at the sight of your doting partner, you melted, immediately dropping your act. “oh, c’mere, you big baby.”

james bent down to kiss you, humming contentedly as he pulled away. hovering in front of your face, he furrowed his eyebrows and examined you closely. then, he began his relentless attack. kisses landed on all areas of your face in an imitation of what you’d done to him this very morning.

“good godrick—hey, that’s my job!” you complained, pushing his chest gently but secretly revelling in his affection. “you’re stealing my ‘thing!’”

“really? i don’t see your name on it!” james cupped your cheeks and gently shook your head. a laugh escaped you, and james smirked. “there’s that pretty smile!”

even after the months you’d been together, james’ smirk still left your head reeling. he still managed to draw those butterflies out of you, which he and your friends loved to tease you about.

sirius looked at remus, motioning his head towards the two of you, who’d stopped halfway up the hill, distracted by each other, and pretended to gag. remus raised his eyebrows. “that’s not the only time you’ll be g-”

sirius fired a silencing spell on remus with incredible speed.

[pearl-blue-musings]

Drowning in danganronpa au thoughts 🤪

!!!!!!! YES YES YES YES ALWAYS DANGANRONPA AU DIWMSKAKSKDKR

This is the third time in this trial someone had accused you of murdering your friend. How could someone assume it was you? You’ve done nothing wrong the entirety of this messed up game, why or how could you do this? You know Kyoko is trying to get the truth of the mystery solved, but her accusations didn’t hurt any less.

“It wasn’t me, I swear!” You words are garbled as you cry in innocence. Did no one believe you? Was everyone going to get executed because the actual killer did such a good job at hiding the truth-

“You all can’t be this stupid. I expected this from Makoto and swim girl, but Kyoko? You really think she is capable of this kind of crime? Be reasonable.”

All eyes are on Byakuya as he speaks up in your defense. You eyes go wide as the others around you step back in awe. Byakuya has never stuck up for someone before so everyone was shocked. His calculating eyes avoid yours as you can’t help but stare openly at him.

“We’ve already deducted that whoever did this to Chihiro has to be the serial killer genocider syo, or at least a male. Is she a male? Sure, she was close to Chihiro but we’re missing someone else who was.”

After that confession, and his own of setting up the murder scene you were in stunned silence the whole time. You felt green eyes check in on you after your other close friend, Mondo, was found to be the culprit. Your heart lurched at the thought of losing two friends and you couldn’t help but cry at the conclusion of the trial.

As everyone left for their separate rooms, you were about to go to yours when someone taps on your shoulder. You’re shocked to see the heir in front of you as he motions for you to follow. You take his lead as he leads you to the library. He sits down in his usual spot and you sit across from him. Your eyes dart all around the room, noticing that someone may have followed the two of you. Suspicious…

“I hope you know,” he starts, “I didn’t do that in the name of justice.”

You look at him confused and you wait for him to keep talking. “The trial was not going the way I wanted, and everyone as being completely idiotic. Those buffoons wouldn’t have come to the right conclusion if they kept badgering you. I know you, for some reason, valued your friendship with the two boys. So if you need to talk about it, I’m here I guess.”

Your jaw drops slightly as you bring him into a surprise hug. Byakuya resists at first, but let’s you hug him. He tries to hide the growing butterflies in his stomach at the contact but his cheeks give him away. His heart is beating a mime a minute.

“Just,” he whispers in your ear, “don’t let Toko know. She has a weird obsession with me and I would hate to see her jealous because of you.”

Elle’s Wine Night!!

[imekitty]

Danny confronts Vlad about the graveyard of clones.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18, Part 19, Part 20, Part 21

-----

Vlad's vision was starting to get fuzzy. He grabbed a bottle of eye drops and squeezed a couple drops into each eye before continuing to type up his notes and calculations.

It had been a very long day. Calling on Valerie to catch and bring Danielle to him, delivering the twenty-sixth clone to Maddie and Jack via ghost portal, collecting Danielle's mid-morph DNA when she arrived, orchestrating a showdown with Danny and Valerie so they could stabilize Danielle's ecto-DNA and rescue her, allowing Valerie to see him transform into his Plasmius alter ego because Maddie wanted to see if she and Danny would form an alliance—he was simply exhausted.

He was in his main cloning lab now, in a remote location far outside Amity Park. He kept glancing at his ghost portal, wishing he could use it to get to his home mansion and turn in for the night.

But he had work to finish first. Maddie was counting on him to begin cloning Danielle as soon as possible.

So he stretched his back and then hunched over his desk again to type some more.

And then Danny Phantom phased in through the wall. Vlad jumped up in response, his heart pounding.

This wasn't planned. Maddie hadn't somehow sent Danny here without telling him, had she?

"Daniel!" Vlad glanced over at a few screens showing live security camera footage all around this particular property, but he couldn't remember seeing any movement. Had he been so engrossed in his work that he didn't even notice Danny was here? "I didn't see you—I guess I wasn't paying attention—"

Danny landed on the floor and remained in ghost form, his gloved fists clenching as he stared at Vlad, panting. He looked to be on the verge of tears.

"Daniel?" Vlad frowned and approached him. "Is everything all right, little badger?"

"No," said Danny. "Everything is not all right."

Vlad waited, studying Danny's every movement closely. Danny pulled in a deep, shaky breath and lifted his chin, puffing out his chest slightly, but Vlad could see just how much he was breaking up inside.

"What have you been doing?" demanded Danny, his voice not as strong as his stance. "Those bodies I found." He pointed off to the side. "They're clones, aren't they? Clones of me."

Vlad's stomach sank, because he knew exactly what was in that direction Danny was pointing to: the fenced-in plot where he was keeping the dead clones for further study according to Maddie's instructions. The graveyard, as he often called it, though Maddie preferred to call it the clone body farm.

"Why do you have so many dead clones out there?" Danny looked over Vlad's shoulder and marched up to one of the screens, pointing to one that displayed a shot of the graveyard with a night vision filter. "There! It's right there. You can't pretend it's not true."

Vlad sighed. "Daniel—"

"What have you been doing to them?" Danny turned back to Vlad. "To me?"

Vlad thought for a very long moment. Normally he would call up Maddie and ask for her input, but there was no time for that now. He had to decide on his own the most convincing lie to tell Danny.

"I suppose there's no use hiding it anymore," he said slowly, carefully. "I've been cloning you for…experimental purposes. I am a scientist, as you know. Ghost research has always been my passion."

"But me?" Danny's eyes edged with tears. "I thought you wanted to clone me to—to be your son, not so you could experiment on me and kill me."

"Daniel, please listen—"

"And what kind of experiment is this?" Danny pointed to the graveyard footage. "What are you doing with all these dead clones now?"

"I am studying how they decompose," said Vlad. "I have prepared them in different ways and left them in various environments to study the different phases of decay for each. Some have been embalmed, some have not. Some are frozen, others are in an indoor location protected from the elements, but most are out above ground in that fenced-in area you came across."

"Some? Most?" Danny's eyes flashed. "Exactly how many are there, Vlad?"

Vlad coughed, stalling for a quick second as he debated lying or not. "Twenty-five," he said eventually, deciding to be at least partly truthful. There were in fact twenty-five clone bodies here on his property.

"Twenty-five," Danny echoed. He crossed his arms and glared at Vlad. "Prove it. Prove that's all there is."

Vlad cocked a brow. "Prove it? And how do you want me to do that?"

Danny looked around. "Your computer." He marched over to Vlad's computer. "I know you keep notes about these things. Show me your notes for the clones."

Vlad's gut knotted. "Daniel, I don't think—"

"Now, Vlad," spat Danny. "Show me right now before I destroy this whole lab."

"Daniel, please, this equipment is very expensive."

"You're rich."

"Well, yes, but—"

"And you've been using it to torture and kill me twenty-five times. There is no way I'm letting you do it a twenty-sixth."

They stared each other down for a moment. Vlad considered transforming right then, knocking Danny out and returning him to Maddie to ask what was to be done with him now.

But Danny had gotten so strong over the past couple years, and Vlad knew he had no defense if Danny chose to unleash that ghastly wail of his.

And even if he could knock Danny out before he used his wail, Maddie would be furious if he harmed Danny without her permission, especially if he caused any significant or irreversible injuries.

With a big sigh, Vlad surrendered. Perhaps if he controlled what Danny saw in his notes, it would be fine. He just had to figure out some way to explain this to Danny, some way that Maddie would be pleased with.

Because if Maddie lost her access to the clones, Vlad didn't like to think about what she might do in retaliation.

He was already logged in to his account as he clicked to open the document containing details about the various clones. He typed in a password to open the protected file and kept a firm grip on the mouse as he scrolled through the information. Each clone description had a large red status indicator that read DECEASED.

"Clones 1 through 25," said Vlad. "See? That's all there is. And if you'd like, you can count the bodies on my property for yourself to make sure they're all here."

"Wait a minute." Danny seized the mouse with a quick jerk and scrolled to the end of the document, revealing the information for the twenty-sixth clone with a green status indicator that read ALIVE.

"Twenty-six," Danny murmured. "Where is he?" Danny pointed to the ALIVE status and glared at Vlad. "I knew you were lying. Where is clone 26?"

Vlad groaned and pressed two fingers to the bridge of his nose. Shit, shit, shit.

"Is he here?" Danny looked around wildly. "What have you been doing to him?"

"Daniel—"

"Tell me where he is right now."

"Daniel, he's not here."

"Liar. You're always lying. Tell me where he is or I will tear this place apart until I find him."

"Daniel, I'm not lying. The twenty-sixth clone is not here."

"Then where is he?" Danny rounded on him with hard eyes. "Don't try to tell me you don't know. I know you know."

"Yes," said Vlad quietly. "I do."

"Where?"

Vlad tapped the screen, pointing out the description written for clone 26. "He's been delivered, Daniel. I delivered him myself earlier this afternoon, before the whole ordeal with Danielle."

Danny gawked at the description for a moment. "Where? Where did you deliver him? And to who?"

Vlad did not respond.

"To the Guys in White?" Danny gritted his teeth. "Have you been selling clones of me to the Guys in White so they can experiment on me?"

"No," said Vlad. "Although I certainly could've charged them a fortune for clones of Danny Phantom. But she was very much against that idea."

"She?" Danny's voice rose in pitch. "Who are you talking about?"

Vlad pressed his lips into a very thin line, knowing that there was no lie he could make up to fix this now. Even if he invented a name, Danny would not rest until he found out exactly where clone 26 went, and he'd be looking for all subsequent clones from then on.

Vlad always knew that the truth couldn't be kept from Danny forever. He just hadn't expected to be the one to tell him, certainly not this soon.

"Vlad." Danny was now shaking, his eyes clouding with tears. "Who did you deliver clone 26 to?"

Vlad couldn't bring himself to speak just yet. Danny turned back to the screen and clicked around until he found a text box labeled Instructions for clone 25. Vlad watched all the muscles in Danny's body tense and shiver as he read the text: Vocal cords were surgically removed, take care when handling and store in buffered formalin solution. Further special requests from Maddie include—

Danny gasped and stepped back, his hand clawing at his throat. He turned to Vlad, eyes wide with speechless horror.

Vlad looked down at the floor and shook his head.

"Clone 26 has been delivered to your mother," said Vlad.

Danny didn't even breathe in the silence that followed, a silence that sounded strangled, deafeningly mute.

"Cloning you was never my idea," continued Vlad. "Your mother asked me to clone you."

"No." Danny staggered backward a couple steps. "No. You're lying. She wouldn't do that. Why are you lying about this? Tell me the truth, Vlad."

"That is the truth, my boy," said Vlad, keeping a very serious face. "This was all her plan, all her design. I just did whatever she asked of me."

"What are you talking about? What design?" demanded Danny, sounding desperately pathetic.

"Daniel." Vlad gestured toward the lab door. "Perhaps we should go out to my sitting room. I can make us some tea—"

"No." Danny shook his head. "I don't want tea. Tell me here, tell me right now."

"Daniel—"

"I'm not leaving."

Vlad sighed. "Then perhaps you should take a seat in my desk chair there. You really should be sitting down for this."

"Quit stalling," Danny hissed. He leaned over a lab table, gripping the edge. "I don't need to sit. Just tell me what is going on."

Vlad tried to make eye contact, but Danny kept his eyes on the table. He never raised them as Vlad told him everything, about his parents being fully aware that Vlad was also a ghost hybrid, his mother's subsequent desire to create her own half-ghost specimen, how his mother then rigged the portal to give Danny his own ghost powers, how she, Jack, and Vlad were all behind the scenes of every ghost fight, every injury, every sleepless night and skipped class and guilty excuse for every absence and forgotten chore.

Vlad ended by revealing his mother's desire to dissect Danny, how she paid Vlad to clone him over and over so she could conduct the most torturous experiments on him while never actually harming her real son. And now she wanted clones of Danielle for a whole new line of experimentation.

Danny never said a word, never even moved. But Vlad could see him shaking, his tremors getting more and more violent and erratic as the narrative continued. And by the end, Vlad could hear him hyperventilating.

"Daniel?" Vlad spoke very gently now, extending a hand in his direction to calm him down. "Daniel, are you all right?"

Danny stumbled away from the lab table he had been leaning on. He staggered a few steps, his glowing green eyes unfocused with some maddening vision only he could see.

Then he collapsed to the floor on his knees and started screaming.

The sound waves destroyed everything, picking up a ghostly frequency that tore through the machines and computers, an eerie dissonance that flipped over tables, shattered beakers and flasks.

Vlad was thrown into a wall, breaking right through the plasterboard and cracking his leg against a stud. He could feel the frequency piercing his eardrums as Danny's ghostly wail continued.

And for a moment, he was sure he was going to die.

He had felt Danny's ghostly wail before but never like this. Danny's deep agony was almost palpable in this blaring siren of betrayal and despair. The pain sank beneath Vlad's skin and etched into his bones.

And when Danny's wail at last stopped and dissolved into sobs, the lab was completely devastated, including the ghost portal which was sparking uselessly. Vlad weakly lifted his head to look around. Danny was now on his knees in human form, his hands covering his face as he continued crying.

Vlad's head fell back against the floor as he allowed himself to pass out. And when he woke again, Danny was gone.

Vlad moaned as he pushed himself up, crawling through the ruined remains of his lab as he tried to locate his phone. But when he found it, it was shattered and splintered beyond use.

Vlad chortled and tossed the phone aside, lying on his back and staring up at the ceiling. His entire body throbbed with pain.

"Maddie is going to kill me," he muttered before passing out again.

Part 23

[liiilyevans]

I'm being greedy and going off script here with this prompt:

"He'd get on his knees right now if she asked him to."

Can you tell I want more of that story you just dropped? 😍

How about a prequel? In which James Potter gets on his knees.

"Can you believe that kid?" James asked as he watched the fifth year slink off. "Actually thought we'd buy that bullshit about sleepwalking."

Lily rolled her eyes. "And you could have come up with a better excuse?"

"Of course," James said, tugging at his robes. "And a much more exciting one, too."

He thought she was fighting back a smile at that, but James could never be sure with her. Perhaps, that was what he liked - that she kept him on his toes.

"How's Remus?" she asked.

"Fine," he said, glancing sidesway at her. He had sneaking suspicion she knew about Moony's fury little problem, though she never asked about it outright. "That badger almost did permanent damage, though."

That was the newest story that the Marauders were circulating around school about why Remus was in the hospital wing. Sirius had gotten very colorful with it.

Lily hummed. "Shame that it only got Remus and not anyone else."

"I know. Poor lad has the worst luck."

They both grinned at each other then, and James was once again struck by how pretty Lily Evans was. Her hair was loose tonight and she'd left her top robe in her room, leaving her in only a skirt and a button up. If he squinted just so, he could make out a pink bra under shirt. But James wouldn't do that. His mother had taught him to be a gentleman after all.

James cleared his throat as he looked away from her. "Are you ready for our potions exam?"

Lily blew out a breath. "I suppose. I hate that Slughorn isn't going to tell us who are partners are til the day of."

"Afraid he'll pair you with Snape?" he asked. Lily and the grease bucket had a falling out in fifth year after he'd called her a slur. James could have sucker punched him for that. Until then, Lily and Snape had been Slughorn's star pupils, and he'd paired them together for every assignment.

"Nah," she said. "He knows we don't get on anymore. I'm not worried about that. I'm just stressed."

James nodded. N.E.W.T.s year was tough, and after this they'd be off to the Ministry to find jobs. The thought was terrifying. "Well, you're welcome to come down to the pitch with me and hit a couple of Bludgers any time you want to burn off some stress."

Lily scoffed. "I'd rather not." She glanced sideways at him. "Is that the only way you burn off stress? Because I'm open to other suggestions."

He shrugged as he thought about it. "For the most part yeah, just burn off a lot steam and fly around the pitch-"

"You don't burn off that steam with anyone?"

James' head snapped toward her, confusion clouding his eyes. "No? I mean, I train with the team, but when I'm stressed, I usually fly by myself."

"But you offered to let me fly with you?" she said. That was when James noticed that they'd stopped walking and were standing in the middle of a deserted corridor.

"Well, yeah, we're friends-"

She shoved him then. Right back into a wall. "James," she said evenly. "You're an idiot."

Then she kissed him. His eyes widened. Never in his life had he thought he'd be lucky enough to kiss Lily Evans in a deserted hallway. Yet here he was. The fates were so generous.

Quickly, James grabbed her hips and yanked her fully against him. She was warm and smelled of jasmine. This must a be a dream, he thought. One that felt so real it could mimic life because Lily Evans would not kiss him, not like this.

Her mouth was demanding against his own. He spun her then, pressing her back against the wall. That was when she moaned, and James felt his knees go weak. This couldn't be a dream; he couldn't have dreamed up such a sweet sound. It would be a cruel fate to wake up now.

"We should go back to my dorm," she panted, as James blazed a trail of kisses down her neck. He hummed and pressed his knee between her legs. "I'm not shagging you in the middle of the hallway, James."

James pulled away took at her then. "We're shagging?"

"Are you opposed?"

"Fuck, no."

They somehow managed to make it back to Lily's Head dorm without a teacher spotting them - a miracle really. By the time they were inside, James' tie had been loosened and two buttons on Lily's shirt had been undone.

"Your room," he muttered as he pressed her against the wall, lips against her pulse point.

She waved over his shoulder. "Over there."

James didn't bother to look where she was waving. Lily was much too intoxicating to look away from; he couldn't have even if Dumbledore had burst through the door and started singing 'God Rest Ye Merry Hippogriffs.' So, instead, he dropped to his knees and slid his hands up Lily's thighs.

Her green eyes were burning as she lifted her right foot. His hands grazed satin and tugged. Off came her underwear, over one foot and then the other. His right hand found the crock of her knee and he pressed a quick kiss to the inside of it.

"Lily, are you sure you want to do this?" he asked.

"Yes."

That all he needed to hear. James pressed another kiss to her thigh, this time higher up and firmer. Lily's hands found his hair, then, tugging sharply. In that moment, pain had never felt so good.

"Lily," he muttered, as her skirt became more of a belt.

"Stop fucking around and-" She gasped as he latched onto her clit. "Holy shit."

James wasn't going to lie. Her moaning did boost his ego to an unhealthy level.

Her hands tightened in his hair and she made the prettiest noises; he was sure he wouldn't last through this if she kept doing that. As he pressed the flat of his tongue against her, his hand found her entrance. She was soaked. James couldn't help but groan against her.

"Lily, you're so wet."

She just hummed and pressed her hips forward against his hand. James slid a finger inside her and swore. She was so warm and clenched around his finger so sweetly. It made him wonder how she'd feel clenched around other things.

He started slowly at first, dragging his finger softly over her sensitive flesh. When her moans got louder, he began to slowly speed up, though his tongue was a sharp contrast, slow and steady against her. He would never get enough of the taste of her. If she offered, he would gladly go down on her every night for the rest of his life.

"James," she gasped as she grasped his hair again. She clenched around his fingers - once, twice, three times - then she was sagging against the wall as he road her through her orgasm. His left hand came up to grasp her hip and steady her.

Slowly, he stood up, one hand on her hip and the other grasping her waist.

"You . . . taste so good," he muttered.

"And you have a wicked mouth, James Potter," she said. "Are you staying the night?"

"If you want me to."

"Good, because you're going to do that again," she said tugging him down to her. "After you've fucked me."

[genshinkiss]

→Imagine: You don't have a vision but insist on helping them

✦Some Imagines where reader is a normal civilian, but tags along with their favorite genshin character promising that they can be helpful in their own way! ✦Characters: Aether, Kaeya, Childe, and of course Y/N! ✦Lemme know if you want this with other characters and if so which ones? :^) ✦Will be posting a part two ;)

✦Aether

The relatively calm male couldn't help but feel a bit antsy as he watched you, sure you were just outside of Mondstadt's walls, but it wasn't uncommon for hillichurls to build camps across these vast hills. With a gleeful smile, you turned towards the blond and made your way back to him.

"God, it's great outside of the city. We should go on an adventure together Aether! How about to Watatsumi Island to get a Sango Pearl?" Your voice was shrill with excitement, the thought of going on a trip with your favorite face was enough to have you going octaves above your normal pitch.

Aether on the other hand was noticeably hesitant and his face struggled to hide it, he could already see you being chased by a group of Specters. While the sight would be amusing, he knew that you didn't have the ability to fight off something like that so easily. Before he responded with an excuse you shot him a dirty look, arms crossing over your chest in annoyance.

"I won't slow you down! It'll be fun!"

With a sigh, Aether hesitantly agreed, "Alright, [Y/N], fine. Let's hope it'll be fun."

And within a few weeks, the two of you were stepping off a boat onto the shores of Watatsumi Island. As Aether started to lead the way, silently offering you a hand which you gladly took, he kept a watchful eye out for any number of enemies that could be around.

Reaching into your back pocket, you pulled out a map of Watatsumi Island that you had paid more mora for than you would like to admit. Examining the page, your face couldn't help but to turn into a bit of confusion, "Aether, I'm sorry if I'm wrong, but aren't we going the wrong way?"

This question caused the traveler to stop in their tracks and turn to face you, realizing that you had a map and a sheepish expression showing up on their features for a moment. "Well, I'm used to using the teleport waypoints, so honestly I'm not that great at directions..," he trailed off for a moment as he tried to explain himself. "Plus, Paimon normally helps lead me the right way but she said she would let just us have this adventure."

You couldn't help but crack a small smile as you led him towards the correct path, after an excruciatingly long walk and getting splashed by some of the running water, you finally found what you came for. You knelt beside the beautiful white pearls, collecting one and then holding out one for the blond, a smile that caused his heart to race forming on your features.

"I guess I'm pretty useful to have around huh Mr.Traveler?"

With no hesitation, he replied while taking the pearl and praying that you didn't notice the blush on his cheeks, "You should join me more often."

Glancing back up at the male you tilted your head, almost in that confused puppy way before letting out a laugh and agreeing, "I'll follow you anywhere Aether."

✦Kaeya

It had been three months. Three long, annoying months that you had been relentlessly badgering Kaeya about letting you join him on a commission.

"Archons, Kaeya! Please, I promise I'm not useless, let me join you, I promise I won't let you down!" You had said this spiel about a thousand times and honestly, Kaeya had grown tired of hearing it. He wanted his sweet Y/N back, the one who didn't want to put her life in danger just to prove a point.

"Love, I've told you already it's not happening, until you can take me down yourself alone in battle, you're not coming," his words themselves weren't harsh, but you could tell by the temperature drop in the room that Kaeya didn't want to hear anymore of this conversation and that you weren't going to have you way. Kaeya never expected you to take him so literally.

For a split second, you thought about grabbing a butterknife and challenging him here, inside your beloved home, but you knew that you needed much more training before you could take the calvary caption with such a simple weapon. With a huff of frustration, you stood, "Fine!"

"Fine!" Kaeya quickly retorted back as you made your way out of the home, not caring that he still could spend about an hour with you before heading into headquarters for whatever work was deemed necessary for today. At a quick pace, you made your way through the city of freedom, grumbling about how your partner looked dumb with his eyepatch and other various complaints to blow off steam until you found who you were looking for.

"Amber," You called as you approached the outrider who seemed to be enjoying a meal at Good Hunter, "Your meals are on me for the whole month if you can do me a favor."

Truly this was all the convincing that it took.

It had been around three months, and since that day you hadn't asking Kaeya again about going on a commission with him, which had him thinking that he didn't have anymore worries but whenever you started leaving the house earlier and coming home later, he couldn't help but to fear that he had pissed you off enough to see another man!

One morning, as you went to climb out of bed, he grabbed your wrist softly, no malice intention just genuine concern and love. "My love, have I angered you? You seem to be avoiding me and I haven't been able to hold you in ages. Have you decided to replace me already?"

It was clear that he was trying to pass these words off as a joke, but his eyes showed that he was truly worried and the fact that he didn't let you go only furthered your belief. Sighing as you pulled your arm from your grasp, you ruffled his hair and pressed a cheek to his forehead before turning around and pulling clothes over your nude frame. "It isn't and would never be like that," pausing for a moment as you tied your hair back from within your face, "We are simply both busy, don't worry."

With that simple answer you stood and finished getting ready before leaving, causing Kaeya to stay sprawled on the bed wondering what his partner was busy with and why it kept them from him for so long.

As per every morning this past three months, you and Amber stood in Wolvendom, you held a bow in your hands that had caused calluses along your previously untainted fingertips. Originally, Amber had to stand behind you and support you with each draw of the string, but now she said that she was proud to call you her student. With each target that you hit, the pride in your chest swelled before you turned towards the knight, revealing your plan to your friend.

"Alright, I think I'm ready," you almost squealed, happily shaking a spare arrow in your hand as Amber show you an almost confused look. "Huh? I thought you said this was for self defense?"

Both of you began to pack of your training equipment, trying to make sure that you didn't leave any mess within the forest, "Well, yeah, that, and I wanna defeat Kaeya in a duel," your answer was as a matter of fact. A loud "Huh?" caused you to yelp, dropping what you had previously picked up, "You're trying to fight him? [Y/N] you're going to get yourself killed! I mean, he wouldn't kill you, but you won't win!"

Hearing your friend, your supporter say this caused you to do a double take, "Uh, yes I will. I'm going to challenge him whenever we get back. You said I did good!" Amber tried to give you a thumbs up, but it was clear by the awkward smile on her face that your 'friend' had little faith in you.

Before long, Amber realized there was no talking you out of this, so reluctantly she led you back to Mondstadt and you made your way towards the Knights of Favonius headquarters, bow in hand and determination in your eyes. As you entered the building, you felt a bit out of place, but made your way towards where you knew Kaeya's office was and took a breath to calm your nerves before knocking on the door with a white knuckled fist.

"Come In," the voice was muffled, but you recognized it immediatelt as your beloved and opened the door, and coughed to make him look up at you. His eyes widened for a moment, "Wha-" "Kaeya Alberich," you started with full resolve staring at him in the eyes, " I challenge you to a duel."

Standing, Kaeye tied back his blue hair, "I'm not gunna go easy on you," he mused as he walked towards you, "I don't want you to," You snapped back quickly only furthering his amusement at your resolve. You both made your way outside of the headquarters towards the sparring arena, where amber had already prepared a seat for herself and await eagerly.

"She's the one who trained you?" Kaeya practically hummed as he cracked his knuckles, "That explains a lot about these past months."

"It's your fault! You acted like I was useless to you and I wouldn't be able to help you on adventures, so I'll prove to you that I can," your face couldn't help but raise a bit in hidden frustration, you were fumbling with the bow and making sure that you had more than a needed supply of arrows. Now that it was finally time to prove yourself, you felt more nervous than you had ever imagined.

As the silence grew, you each took a few steps away from each other, seeming to not breath for a few moments until Kaeya gave you a steady nod, signaling that he was letting you attack first.

Quickly taking aim, you shot a few arrows at the one you loved, he was exactly avoiding them, not bothering to make advancements towards you nor to even grant you the satisfaction of breaking a sweat. He knew this bothered you, you could tell by the smirk on his lips, you could also tell that he was enjoying bothering you. You wanted to aim for his head, but if it actually hit the target you would regret that.

"Babe," he teased as he side stepped an arrow before quickly dashing towards you, his sword slashing towards where you had been standing a few seconds ago. "This is almost boring," he lamented before seemingly deciding to put an end to this duel. He started to attack continuously, his sword getting too close to you for comfort on multiple occasions.

Dodging and darting from each swipe was becoming tiring, but you just needed to tire him out a bit longer. As the male shot a blast of ice towards you, your cool skin wanted to refuse to move for a moment, but you were quick to keep your composure and narrowly avoid a swipe from his sword. "Too slow Alberich," you teased, purposefully pushing his buttons.

This spurred on quick burst of attacks and more icy burst get it? thrown your way, he had obviously miscalculated your efforts and was paying for that. Beads of sweat were dripping from his forehead, he took a moment with a staggered stance, taking your chance, you quickly shot an arrow towards the male, hitting your target.

"You missed, dummy," he said affectionately, relishing in the second to tease you, but what he didn't realize was that you had shot into his scarf, pinning it and a part of his clothes into the ground. "I didn't, dummy," you retorted as you sprinted towards the man with lightning speed, dropping, and kicking his feet from beneath him, leading him to fall, earning a groan from the male as his head hit the ground and was unable to pull himself up due to the arrow securing his clothes into the ground.

With precision, you took aim and shot into the baggy part of his clothes to pin him into the ground without actually piercing his skin. Your only spectator, Amber cheered loudly, "I trained her!" laughing erupting from her lips and you couldn't help but to smile down at the male who you had essentially pinned to the ground.

"Looks like I won," You gloated as you pulled the arrows from the ground, freeing your lover, "You owe me my prize."

Kaeya stood, brushing himself off quickly, secretly a bit upset at losing and at the new holes in his uniform but fair was fair. "Well, [Y/N], I can't reward you here, doll," his sultry voice was deep, running with suggestive undertones and you shot him a look and shook your head.

"No! Take me on a quest! An adventure! A commission!" You demanded, your glare strong enough to scare even the strongest gods that roamed Teyvat. It took swallowing his pride, but Kaeya nodded.

"You're right love, will you join me on my patrols tomorrow?' He asked in the sweetest voice he could muster after being defeated, his hands reaching for your waist and facing you head on.

You smirked, looking up at this handsome man and decided to return some of your boyfriend's medicine, "Yeah, it seems like you could really use my help. I know you're not that strong."

Before he could complain, you shut him up with a kiss, your lips meeting his for what seemed like the first time in ages. Though they were a little dry from his heavy breathing, you relished in this small moment before parting, but Kaeya was quick to put his hands on your cheeks and pulled you in for yet another.

✦Childe

Holding a broom in your hands, you swept the ground meticulously making sure that your home was spotless. While your home wasn't that much, you felt pride in the story that was being written for you and your love, while your marriage was still very young it was exciting to see what life had in store for the both of you. As you reflected on your life with a happy heart, a familiar smell drifted into the air and a small curse left your lips as your set the broom down before rushing into the kitchen.

Haphazardly, you pulled the sweet madame out of the oven and prayed that you hadn't burnt her into a crisp in your effort of multitasking. It seems luck was on your side because you could hardly tell it was in there for any longer than it should've been, so you knew that Childe would be none the wiser. As you checked the clock on the wall you sighed, anxiously awaiting for your husband to return home.

As much as you loved him, you sure didn't love his job. Certainly, you were beyond grateful for your husband providing for you, but you just wish that he could've went a different path in life. While you promised to love him no matter what, you simply wish you could have given him an easier life and a safer job. It didn't help your worries knowing that you would be useless if he needed help, sure there were many that he could depend on him, but you wanted him to depend on you too.

In time to catch you from these darker thoughts, your husband entered the home, a smile on his face as soon as he saw you with a fresh meal on the table.

"My wife," he hums, quickly making his way to you and wrapping his arms around you and giving you a warm hug, your spirits instantly lifted"I'm homeee!" Forgetting whatever thoughts had plagued your mind before, you tilted your head up, closing your eyes, a silent request that Childe happily obliged. Pressing a soft kiss onto your lips, he took a moment to look over your soft features and rub a thumb on your cheek.

"Welcome home handsome," you mumbled softly before pulling away and grabbing two plates and silverware for you both and making a plate for you both to eat. "Was work okay for you today?"

Childe had sat at the table by the time you had asked the question, but it seemed you struck a nerve by asking and he hesitated a moment, "Ah, that reminds me baby, tomorrow I have important work to do so it might take longer than normal for me to come home. Please don't worry about making me dinner or staying up for me."

His words left a frown falling onto your features, something felt weird about what he was saying, but you just couldn't explain what was weird about it. "Ah, I see," your response was short, which immediately caused Childe to stop eating and look at you with a sad smile, "Don't miss me too much, I'll be back to love on you soon."

Once again, his words just left like he was trying to say something with a hidden meaning, but you didn't want to question him too much. "As long as you'll be okay and back to me," you responded softly reaching out for his hand and giving it a soft squeeze.

The rest of the night was uneventful, Childe helping you clean up after dinner and him trying to talk you into getting a puppy. Before long, your husband was yawning beside you on the couch, causing you to giggle a bit and lead him to bed, the two of you spending a loving night together with Childe demanding that you cuddle even though he was much too warm to be cuddling so close underneath the covers.

Your sleep was rudely awakened, just as the sun began to peak into the room, your eyes opened automatically and you felt the need to expel the contents of your stomach. Childe followed you, albeit a few minutes behind and groggily rubbing your back, "There, there.." he mumbled, his bed head looking worse than normal this morning, not that you could say much since you were throwing up and that definitely wasn't the normal.

"Was your chicken that bad love?" He teased after you had refreshed yourself and returned to the bedroom where he had went just a few moments before. You simply shook your head no as an answer, causing Childe to frown in concern, his arms wrapping around you from behind him and resting his chin on top of your head. "It's gunna be okay, love," he assured you, trying to make you feel better about being sick and about him leaving.

You couldn't help but wonder if your sickness was caused by anxiety over Childe leaving or if you simply had just ate something weird yesterday but didn't notice it. Either way, you happily pressed yourself into him for as long as you could, which wasn't that long due to him slowly peeling himself from you then making his way towards the closet and changing into his uniform.

Once you were both dressed, you sent him off at the door with a kiss and a small packed sack lunch. The day seemed to pass so slow, your stomach mildly aching the whole time. It was truly frustrating, how was it fair that you were left here to fear for your husband? It was obvious that something was off last night, but you knew better than to ask him, knowing that he wouldn't tell you in fear of worrying you or the fact that you would try to tag along (which you had definitely done in the past).

It was well into the night, your eyes were strained as you sipped some tea desperately awaiting on your husband to come home whenever you had a loud knock on your door. This was the type of knock to shake the walls of the house, you were quick to scramble of the couch and dust yourself off as you went to the door, opening it without a second thought as your eyes widened a bit whenever you looked upon who was in front of you.

"Uh, Good afternoon..?" you greeted with a bit of hesitation, in front of you was Sayu, the small ninja who was known for her amazing skill of sleeping but also being ridiculously sneaky.

"No time to talk! Gotta help Childe!" she was quick to grab your hand, desperately pulling you out of the house, your bare feet hitting the cold Liyue cobblestone with each step she forced you to take. While you followed her at a breakneck pace, you couldn't stop the questions. "Sayu, what's happening? What's wrong with Childe?! Is he hurt?" She didn't break the pace she had as she answered you, taking you from the city and into the dark forest and mountains of the nation.

"Trouble! Wanted to leave for your safety and to start a family! La Signora is punishing him for abandonment of his title!" Guilt wrecked your body immediately, almost to the point of you immediately becoming nauseous. He didn't have to do that for you, he knew the risks all to well. Taking a few rapid breaths to try to get coherent thoughts to your brain and refill your lungs you responded after a few moments of silent guilt.

"Where is he? Why were you even there? Don't tell me you're joining the Fatui." As you spoke, she took a sharp turn, almost causing you to lose your balance but you were doing amazing to even being able to keep place with the anemo vision holder.

"No, spying for Shuumatsuban. I can't help you because they'll know I was spying, so figure out what to do."

After what felt like too long, you and Sayu approach a dark looking cave and she pointed there before giving a small yawn, "There, down there they are," she directed you without any further help and after you thanked her for the help she did give and told her that she could leave since you weren't sure of the danger that lurked.

Taking you up on the offer, Sayu took off without much to say other than wishing you luck. As you glanced into the cave, your anxiety overcame you once again and you tied your hair back before jumping into the dark chasm.

As you felt along the dark, damp walls you could already hear the noises of struggling and the sound of skin being hit.

"Tsk, Childe, I know you know better than to do what you're doing now," said a degrading voice before there was another noise and then Childe's distinct cough. "There's no having a family in this business. You can't have your title back, but if you end things and dispose of the problem then maybe we'll accept you again into our ranks and you can start over."

You waited for a moment, your breath caught in your throat as you listened for his reply, Childe wasn't stupid and he knew better than to take such a dumb deal. While this harbinger did enjoy bloodshed he would never bring it upon his wife, "And I think you know better than to think I would choose the Fatui over my wife." His voice was strained and cracking with almost each word, but you could feel the resolve within it. His bindings were too tight and his delusion had been shattered and removed from his possession, leaving him with only his hydro vision and bound to be tortured and likely killed.

Childe hisses as his skin immediately feels the burn of frostbite on his exposed skin, but Signora pressed her hand harder into his skin causing him to let out a pained groan. Without much of a plan, you grabbed a rock and immediately ran from where you had been hiding, "Stop it! Get your hands off of him!" Your hand still grasped the rock, which in all honesty wasn't that big but was your only weapon at your disposal. You had never been trained with any weaponry but were desperate to defend the one who would've gladly done the same for you.

Childe immediately shot his head up, thinking that he must have died and passed on to be hearing your voice here of all places, but in front of him there you were. Hair tied back, bags underneath your eyes from stress or sleep deprivation, pajamas on, and no shoes. He was horrified, he knew that he would likely die, but his death was okay to him, but knowing you would likely die as well caused him to cry out. "Leave! [Y/N], do not come any closer! Go back home now!" he struggled against his restraints violently, his wrists, arms, and legs now bleeding from the severe rope burn that he was causing himself.

Signora let out a dark giggle, turning to face you, her frame easily towering over you and her glare cold enough to chill your bone. "How cute," she sneered, "You're trying to protect him? With a rock?" she covered her mouth as she looked you up and down, knowing that you were easily defeated. "Pretty girl, I'll kill your husband first then you, okay?" she assured you with a faux soothing tone before stepping towards Childe, for once his expression showing something close to near madness as he spat at her.

"Don't lay a fucking finger on [Y/N]! Get the fuck out of here now [Y/N]!" The blood from his rope burns were steadily dripping onto the caves ground, but it wasn't anywhere near getting him out of his restraints. Childe's words were ringing in your ears, he was still screaming at you as Signora lifted her spell book to cast an enchantment upon your beloved.

Taking aim, you threw the rock at her which literally did fuck all. It simply hit her with a 'thunk' and fell to the ground and she scoffed before starting to recite a spell. Desperation filling your bones, you run to her and grab her arm, trying to pull her away from him.

"Leave him alone!” You near growl through gritted teeth, trying to take the book from within her hands, causing her to send a sharp pulse of icy blast on you sending you flying against the cave wall. Childe's shouting something but your ears are ringing, you're not focused on him right now anyways. Your determination is only on making sure that you stop that tall bitch from taking your man.

As a white ice starts to form within her hands and Childe starts to brace for impact, you are in a momentary haze as you realize that you are hearing a voice in your head commending you for your actions and that this should help you. In a momentarily shock, you regain your senses and look down at your hands and.. it's an electro vision. 

Quickly realizing that you don't have much time, you immediately stand and call out, "Signora!" she once again doesn't spare you a passing glance but that was okay with you, you weren't sure how this worked anyways. Summoning all the strength in your body, you ran towards the woman, sparks and crackles emitting from your palms as you shoved her with all of your might.

"Don't fucking touch him again!" you couldn't help your rage as you screamed at the woman, sparks emitting from your skin and the vision glowing brightly from your pajama pants pocket. Sending a shock as hard as you could to the woman's head before she recovered, your attack hit its target and she seemed to go out cold immediately.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.." Your words were frantic as you ran to your husband, his wounds deep from the torture that they had inflicted on him before you were able to make it to him. "Childe, baby, we have to get you to a healer right now..," you muttered worriedly overlooking the deep gashes in his skin.

Childe didn't care much about his wounds though, he simply was shooting you a glare. As you unbound him, he immediately caressed your face, looking at the small cut on your cheek from when you had hit the wall and the blood that had came with it.

You wouldn't tell anyone if they asked, but there were tears, he was crying as he examined you from head to toe, making note of the splinters and scratches on your feet from running here barefoot. "How could you do that to me?' he muttered as he sniffled, obviously trying to contain his emotion, not wanting to look at anything else other than you right now. "I couldn't help you, I thought I would die and leave you defenseless against them. Don't ever do this to me again please."

He sounded almost broken, and for a second you forgot the urgency of his wounds and just held him, not caring that his blood seeped onto your skin. You both cried, the fear of losing each other too fresh in your minds for you to easily express your words for one another, so it was easier to just hold one another.

"Childe, what will we do? The Fatui know you wish to leave, you will be hunted for betrayal," you peppered kisses over his skin as this question lingered in the air for a few moments too long. The ginger looked up at you with a soft sigh, grabbing your hand to place a kiss on the skin.

"Well, you do have that nifty little thing now," he mumbled referring to the purple vision in your pocket, "we could be a pretty cool couple on the run you think? I trust you to protect me." For a second you were surprised to hear those words leave his lips, you never once thought that he relied on you like that. "Really?" you asked in almost a whisper.

"Love," he looked at you with red eyes that showed the signs of the tears that had fallen from them just moments ago, "You saved my life, if I couldn't trust you I'd be a blind man."

[lumifly]

→Imagine: You don't have a vision but insist on helping them

✦Some Imagines where reader is a normal civilian, but tags along with their favorite genshin character promising that they can be helpful in their own way! ✦Characters: Aether, Kaeya, Childe, and of course Y/N! ✦Lemme know if you want this with other characters and if so which ones? :^) ✦ Pt 2 will be linked here

✦Aether

The relatively calm male couldn't help but feel a bit antsy as he watched you, sure you were just outside of Mondstadt's walls, but it wasn't uncommon for hillichurls to build camps across these vast hills. With a gleeful smile, you turned towards the blond and made your way back to him.

"God, it's great outside of the city. We should go on an adventure together Aether! How about to Watatsumi Island to get a Sango Pearl?" Your voice was shrill with excitement, the thought of going on a trip with your favorite face was enough to have you going octaves above your normal pitch.

Aether on the other hand was noticeably hesitant and his face struggled to hide it, he could already see you being chased by a group of Specters. While the sight would be amusing, he knew that you didn't have the ability to fight off something like that so easily. Before he responded with an excuse you shot him a dirty look, arms crossing over your chest in annoyance.

"I won't slow you down! It'll be fun!"

With a sigh, Aether hesitantly agreed, "Alright, [Y/N], fine. Let's hope it'll be fun."

And within a few weeks, the two of you were stepping off a boat onto the shores of Watatsumi Island. As Aether started to lead the way, silently offering you a hand which you gladly took, he kept a watchful eye out for any number of enemies that could be around.

Reaching into your back pocket, you pulled out a map of Watatsumi Island that you had paid more mora for than you would like to admit. Examining the page, your face couldn't help but to turn into a bit of confusion, "Aether, I'm sorry if I'm wrong, but aren't we going the wrong way?"

This question caused the traveler to stop in their tracks and turn to face you, realizing that you had a map and a sheepish expression showing up on their features for a moment. "Well, I'm used to using the teleport waypoints, so honestly I'm not that great at directions..," he trailed off for a moment as he tried to explain himself. "Plus, Paimon normally helps lead me the right way but she said she would let just us have this adventure."

You couldn't help but crack a small smile as you led him towards the correct path, after an excruciatingly long walk and getting splashed by some of the running water, you finally found what you came for. You knelt beside the beautiful white pearls, collecting one and then holding out one for the blond, a smile that caused his heart to race forming on your features.

"I guess I'm pretty useful to have around huh Mr.Traveler?"

With no hesitation, he replied while taking the pearl and praying that you didn't notice the blush on his cheeks, "You should join me more often."

Glancing back up at the male you tilted your head, almost in that confused puppy way before letting out a laugh and agreeing, "I'll follow you anywhere Aether."

✦Kaeya

It had been three months. Three long, annoying months that you had been relentlessly badgering Kaeya about letting you join him on a commission.

"Archons, Kaeya! Please, I promise I'm not useless, let me join you, I promise I won't let you down!" You had said this spiel about a thousand times and honestly, Kaeya had grown tired of hearing it. He wanted his sweet Y/N back, the one who didn't want to put her life in danger just to prove a point.

"Love, I've told you already it's not happening, until you can take me down yourself alone in battle, you're not coming," his words themselves weren't harsh, but you could tell by the temperature drop in the room that Kaeya didn't want to hear anymore of this conversation and that you weren't going to have you way. Kaeya never expected you to take him so literally.

For a split second, you thought about grabbing a butterknife and challenging him here, inside your beloved home, but you knew that you needed much more training before you could take the calvary caption with such a simple weapon. With a huff of frustration, you stood, "Fine!"

"Fine!" Kaeya quickly retorted back as you made your way out of the home, not caring that he still could spend about an hour with you before heading into headquarters for whatever work was deemed necessary for today. At a quick pace, you made your way through the city of freedom, grumbling about how your partner looked dumb with his eyepatch and other various complaints to blow off steam until you found who you were looking for.

"Amber," You called as you approached the outrider who seemed to be enjoying a meal at Good Hunter, "Your meals are on me for the whole month if you can do me a favor."

Truly this was all the convincing that it took.

It had been around three months, and since that day you hadn't asking Kaeya again about going on a commission with him, which had him thinking that he didn't have anymore worries but whenever you started leaving the house earlier and coming home later, he couldn't help but to fear that he had pissed you off enough to see another man!

One morning, as you went to climb out of bed, he grabbed your wrist softly, no malice intention just genuine concern and love. "My love, have I angered you? You seem to be avoiding me and I haven't been able to hold you in ages. Have you decided to replace me already?"

It was clear that he was trying to pass these words off as a joke, but his eyes showed that he was truly worried and the fact that he didn't let you go only furthered your belief. Sighing as you pulled your arm from your grasp, you ruffled his hair and pressed a cheek to his forehead before turning around and pulling clothes over your nude frame. "It isn't and would never be like that," pausing for a moment as you tied your hair back from within your face, "We are simply both busy, don't worry."

With that simple answer you stood and finished getting ready before leaving, causing Kaeya to stay sprawled on the bed wondering what his partner was busy with and why it kept them from him for so long.

As per every morning this past three months, you and Amber stood in Wolvendom, you held a bow in your hands that had caused calluses along your previously untainted fingertips. Originally, Amber had to stand behind you and support you with each draw of the string, but now she said that she was proud to call you her student. With each target that you hit, the pride in your chest swelled before you turned towards the knight, revealing your plan to your friend.

"Alright, I think I'm ready," you almost squealed, happily shaking a spare arrow in your hand as Amber show you an almost confused look. "Huh? I thought you said this was for self defense?"

Both of you began to pack of your training equipment, trying to make sure that you didn't leave any mess within the forest, "Well, yeah, that, and I wanna defeat Kaeya in a duel," your answer was as a matter of fact. A loud "Huh?" caused you to yelp, dropping what you had previously picked up, "You're trying to fight him? [Y/N] you're going to get yourself killed! I mean, he wouldn't kill you, but you won't win!"

Hearing your friend, your supporter say this caused you to do a double take, "Uh, yes I will. I'm going to challenge him whenever we get back. You said I did good!" Amber tried to give you a thumbs up, but it was clear by the awkward smile on her face that your 'friend' had little faith in you.

Before long, Amber realized there was no talking you out of this, so reluctantly she led you back to Mondstadt and you made your way towards the Knights of Favonius headquarters, bow in hand and determination in your eyes. As you entered the building, you felt a bit out of place, but made your way towards where you knew Kaeya's office was and took a breath to calm your nerves before knocking on the door with a white knuckled fist.

"Come In," the voice was muffled, but you recognized it immediatelt as your beloved and opened the door, and coughed to make him look up at you. His eyes widened for a moment, "Wha-" "Kaeya Alberich," you started with full resolve staring at him in the eyes, " I challenge you to a duel."

Standing, Kaeye tied back his blue hair, "I'm not gunna go easy on you," he mused as he walked towards you, "I don't want you to," You snapped back quickly only furthering his amusement at your resolve. You both made your way outside of the headquarters towards the sparring arena, where amber had already prepared a seat for herself and await eagerly.

"She's the one who trained you?" Kaeya practically hummed as he cracked his knuckles, "That explains a lot about these past months."

"It's your fault! You acted like I was useless to you and I wouldn't be able to help you on adventures, so I'll prove to you that I can," your face couldn't help but raise a bit in hidden frustration, you were fumbling with the bow and making sure that you had more than a needed supply of arrows. Now that it was finally time to prove yourself, you felt more nervous than you had ever imagined.

As the silence grew, you each took a few steps away from each other, seeming to not breath for a few moments until Kaeya gave you a steady nod, signaling that he was letting you attack first.

Quickly taking aim, you shot a few arrows at the one you loved, he was exactly avoiding them, not bothering to make advancements towards you nor to even grant you the satisfaction of breaking a sweat. He knew this bothered you, you could tell by the smirk on his lips, you could also tell that he was enjoying bothering you. You wanted to aim for his head, but if it actually hit the target you would regret that.

"Babe," he teased as he side stepped an arrow before quickly dashing towards you, his sword slashing towards where you had been standing a few seconds ago. "This is almost boring," he lamented before seemingly deciding to put an end to this duel. He started to attack continuously, his sword getting too close to you for comfort on multiple occasions.

Dodging and darting from each swipe was becoming tiring, but you just needed to tire him out a bit longer. As the male shot a blast of ice towards you, your cool skin wanted to refuse to move for a moment, but you were quick to keep your composure and narrowly avoid a swipe from his sword. "Too slow Alberich," you teased, purposefully pushing his buttons.

This spurred on quick burst of attacks and more icy burst get it? thrown your way, he had obviously miscalculated your efforts and was paying for that. Beads of sweat were dripping from his forehead, he took a moment with a staggered stance, taking your chance, you quickly shot an arrow towards the male, hitting your target.

"You missed, dummy," he said affectionately, relishing in the second to tease you, but what he didn't realize was that you had shot into his scarf, pinning it and a part of his clothes into the ground. "I didn't, dummy," you retorted as you sprinted towards the man with lightning speed, dropping, and kicking his feet from beneath him, leading him to fall, earning a groan from the male as his head hit the ground and was unable to pull himself up due to the arrow securing his clothes into the ground.

With precision, you took aim and shot into the baggy part of his clothes to pin him into the ground without actually piercing his skin. Your only spectator, Amber cheered loudly, "I trained her!" laughing erupting from her lips and you couldn't help but to smile down at the male who you had essentially pinned to the ground.

"Looks like I won," You gloated as you pulled the arrows from the ground, freeing your lover, "You owe me my prize."

Kaeya stood, brushing himself off quickly, secretly a bit upset at losing and at the new holes in his uniform but fair was fair. "Well, [Y/N], I can't reward you here, doll," his sultry voice was deep, running with suggestive undertones and you shot him a look and shook your head.

"No! Take me on a quest! An adventure! A commission!" You demanded, your glare strong enough to scare even the strongest gods that roamed Teyvat. It took swallowing his pride, but Kaeya nodded.

"You're right love, will you join me on my patrols tomorrow?' He asked in the sweetest voice he could muster after being defeated, his hands reaching for your waist and facing you head on.

You smirked, looking up at this handsome man and decided to return some of your boyfriend's medicine, "Yeah, it seems like you could really use my help. I know you're not that strong."

Before he could complain, you shut him up with a kiss, your lips meeting his for what seemed like the first time in ages. Though they were a little dry from his heavy breathing, you relished in this small moment before parting, but Kaeya was quick to put his hands on your cheeks and pulled you in for yet another.

✦Childe

Holding a broom in your hands, you swept the ground meticulously making sure that your home was spotless. While your home wasn't that much, you felt pride in the story that was being written for you and your love, while your marriage was still very young it was exciting to see what life had in store for the both of you. As you reflected on your life with a happy heart, a familiar smell drifted into the air and a small curse left your lips as your set the broom down before rushing into the kitchen.

Haphazardly, you pulled the sweet madame out of the oven and prayed that you hadn't burnt her into a crisp in your effort of multitasking. It seems luck was on your side because you could hardly tell it was in there for any longer than it should've been, so you knew that Childe would be none the wiser. As you checked the clock on the wall you sighed, anxiously awaiting for your husband to return home.

As much as you loved him, you sure didn't love his job. Certainly, you were beyond grateful for your husband providing for you, but you just wish that he could've went a different path in life. While you promised to love him no matter what, you simply wish you could have given him an easier life and a safer job. It didn't help your worries knowing that you would be useless if he needed help, sure there were many that he could depend on him, but you wanted him to depend on you too.

In time to catch you from these darker thoughts, your husband entered the home, a smile on his face as soon as he saw you with a fresh meal on the table.

"My wife," he hums, quickly making his way to you and wrapping his arms around you and giving you a warm hug, your spirits instantly lifted"I'm homeee!" Forgetting whatever thoughts had plagued your mind before, you tilted your head up, closing your eyes, a silent request that Childe happily obliged. Pressing a soft kiss onto your lips, he took a moment to look over your soft features and rub a thumb on your cheek.

"Welcome home handsome," you mumbled softly before pulling away and grabbing two plates and silverware for you both and making a plate for you both to eat. "Was work okay for you today?"

Childe had sat at the table by the time you had asked the question, but it seemed you struck a nerve by asking and he hesitated a moment, "Ah, that reminds me baby, tomorrow I have important work to do so it might take longer than normal for me to come home. Please don't worry about making me dinner or staying up for me."

His words left a frown falling onto your features, something felt weird about what he was saying, but you just couldn't explain what was weird about it. "Ah, I see," your response was short, which immediately caused Childe to stop eating and look at you with a sad smile, "Don't miss me too much, I'll be back to love on you soon."

Once again, his words just left like he was trying to say something with a hidden meaning, but you didn't want to question him too much. "As long as you'll be okay and back to me," you responded softly reaching out for his hand and giving it a soft squeeze.

The rest of the night was uneventful, Childe helping you clean up after dinner and him trying to talk you into getting a puppy. Before long, your husband was yawning beside you on the couch, causing you to giggle a bit and lead him to bed, the two of you spending a loving night together with Childe demanding that you cuddle even though he was much too warm to be cuddling so close underneath the covers.

Your sleep was rudely awakened, just as the sun began to peak into the room, your eyes opened automatically and you felt the need to expel the contents of your stomach. Childe followed you, albeit a few minutes behind and groggily rubbing your back, "There, there.." he mumbled, his bed head looking worse than normal this morning, not that you could say much since you were throwing up and that definitely wasn't the normal.

"Was your chicken that bad love?" He teased after you had refreshed yourself and returned to the bedroom where he had went just a few moments before. You simply shook your head no as an answer, causing Childe to frown in concern, his arms wrapping around you from behind him and resting his chin on top of your head. "It's gunna be okay, love," he assured you, trying to make you feel better about being sick and about him leaving.

You couldn't help but wonder if your sickness was caused by anxiety over Childe leaving or if you simply had just ate something weird yesterday but didn't notice it. Either way, you happily pressed yourself into him for as long as you could, which wasn't that long due to him slowly peeling himself from you then making his way towards the closet and changing into his uniform.

Once you were both dressed, you sent him off at the door with a kiss and a small packed sack lunch. The day seemed to pass so slow, your stomach mildly aching the whole time. It was truly frustrating, how was it fair that you were left here to fear for your husband? It was obvious that something was off last night, but you knew better than to ask him, knowing that he wouldn't tell you in fear of worrying you or the fact that you would try to tag along (which you had definitely done in the past).

It was well into the night, your eyes were strained as you sipped some tea desperately awaiting on your husband to come home whenever you had a loud knock on your door. This was the type of knock to shake the walls of the house, you were quick to scramble of the couch and dust yourself off as you went to the door, opening it without a second thought as your eyes widened a bit whenever you looked upon who was in front of you.

"Uh, Good afternoon..?" you greeted with a bit of hesitation, in front of you was Sayu, the small ninja who was known for her amazing skill of sleeping but also being ridiculously sneaky.

"No time to talk! Gotta help Childe!" she was quick to grab your hand, desperately pulling you out of the house, your bare feet hitting the cold Liyue cobblestone with each step she forced you to take. While you followed her at a breakneck pace, you couldn't stop the questions. "Sayu, what's happening? What's wrong with Childe?! Is he hurt?" She didn't break the pace she had as she answered you, taking you from the city and into the dark forest and mountains of the nation.

"Trouble! Wanted to leave for your safety and to start a family! La Signora is punishing him for abandonment of his title!" Guilt wrecked your body immediately, almost to the point of you immediately becoming nauseous. He didn't have to do that for you, he knew the risks all to well. Taking a few rapid breaths to try to get coherent thoughts to your brain and refill your lungs you responded after a few moments of silent guilt.

"Where is he? Why were you even there? Don't tell me you're joining the Fatui." As you spoke, she took a sharp turn, almost causing you to lose your balance but you were doing amazing to even being able to keep place with the anemo vision holder.

"No, spying for Shuumatsuban. I can't help you because they'll know I was spying, so figure out what to do."

After what felt like too long, you and Sayu approach a dark looking cave and she pointed there before giving a small yawn, "There, down there they are," she directed you without any further help and after you thanked her for the help she did give and told her that she could leave since you weren't sure of the danger that lurked.

Taking you up on the offer, Sayu took off without much to say other than wishing you luck. As you glanced into the cave, your anxiety overcame you once again and you tied your hair back before jumping into the dark chasm.

As you felt along the dark, damp walls you could already hear the noises of struggling and the sound of skin being hit.

"Tsk, Childe, I know you know better than to do what you're doing now," said a degrading voice before there was another noise and then Childe's distinct cough. "There's no having a family in this business. You can't have your title back, but if you end things and dispose of the problem then maybe we'll accept you again into our ranks and you can start over."

You waited for a moment, your breath caught in your throat as you listened for his reply, Childe wasn't stupid and he knew better than to take such a dumb deal. While this harbinger did enjoy bloodshed he would never bring it upon his wife, "And I think you know better than to think I would choose the Fatui over my wife." His voice was strained and cracking with almost each word, but you could feel the resolve within it. His bindings were too tight and his delusion had been shattered and removed from his possession, leaving him with only his hydro vision and bound to be tortured and likely killed.

Childe hisses as his skin immediately feels the burn of frostbite on his exposed skin, but Signora pressed her hand harder into his skin causing him to let out a pained groan. Without much of a plan, you grabbed a rock and immediately ran from where you had been hiding, "Stop it! Get your hands off of him!" Your hand still grasped the rock, which in all honesty wasn't that big but was your only weapon at your disposal. You had never been trained with any weaponry but were desperate to defend the one who would've gladly done the same for you.

Childe immediately shot his head up, thinking that he must have died and passed on to be hearing your voice here of all places, but in front of him there you were. Hair tied back, bags underneath your eyes from stress or sleep deprivation, pajamas on, and no shoes. He was horrified, he knew that he would likely die, but his death was okay to him, but knowing you would likely die as well caused him to cry out. "Leave! [Y/N], do not come any closer! Go back home now!" he struggled against his restraints violently, his wrists, arms, and legs now bleeding from the severe rope burn that he was causing himself.

Signora let out a dark giggle, turning to face you, her frame easily towering over you and her glare cold enough to chill your bone. "How cute," she sneered, "You're trying to protect him? With a rock?" she covered her mouth as she looked you up and down, knowing that you were easily defeated. "Pretty girl, I'll kill your husband first then you, okay?" she assured you with a faux soothing tone before stepping towards Childe, for once his expression showing something close to near madness as he spat at her.

"Don't lay a fucking finger on [Y/N]! Get the fuck out of here now [Y/N]!" The blood from his rope burns were steadily dripping onto the caves ground, but it wasn't anywhere near getting him out of his restraints. Childe's words were ringing in your ears, he was still screaming at you as Signora lifted her spell book to cast an enchantment upon your beloved.

Taking aim, you threw the rock at her which literally did fuck all. It simply hit her with a 'thunk' and fell to the ground and she scoffed before starting to recite a spell. Desperation filling your bones, you run to her and grab her arm, trying to pull her away from him.

"Leave him alone!” You near growl through gritted teeth, trying to take the book from within her hands, causing her to send a sharp pulse of icy blast on you sending you flying against the cave wall. Childe's shouting something but your ears are ringing, you're not focused on him right now anyways. Your determination is only on making sure that you stop that tall bitch from taking your man.

As a white ice starts to form within her hands and Childe starts to brace for impact, you are in a momentary haze as you realize that you are hearing a voice in your head commending you for your actions and that this should help you. In a momentarily shock, you regain your senses and look down at your hands and.. it's an electro vision. 

Quickly realizing that you don't have much time, you immediately stand and call out, "Signora!" she once again doesn't spare you a passing glance but that was okay with you, you weren't sure how this worked anyways. Summoning all the strength in your body, you ran towards the woman, sparks and crackles emitting from your palms as you shoved her with all of your might.

"Don't fucking touch him again!" you couldn't help your rage as you screamed at the woman, sparks emitting from your skin and the vision glowing brightly from your pajama pants pocket. Sending a shock as hard as you could to the woman's head before she recovered, your attack hit its target and she seemed to go out cold immediately.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.." Your words were frantic as you ran to your husband, his wounds deep from the torture that they had inflicted on him before you were able to make it to him. "Childe, baby, we have to get you to a healer right now..," you muttered worriedly overlooking the deep gashes in his skin.

Childe didn't care much about his wounds though, he simply was shooting you a glare. As you unbound him, he immediately caressed your face, looking at the small cut on your cheek from when you had hit the wall and the blood that had came with it.

You wouldn't tell anyone if they asked, but there were tears, he was crying as he examined you from head to toe, making note of the splinters and scratches on your feet from running here barefoot. "How could you do that to me?' he muttered as he sniffled, obviously trying to contain his emotion, not wanting to look at anything else other than you right now. "I couldn't help you, I thought I would die and leave you defenseless against them. Don't ever do this to me again please."

He sounded almost broken, and for a second you forgot the urgency of his wounds and just held him, not caring that his blood seeped onto your skin. You both cried, the fear of losing each other too fresh in your minds for you to easily express your words for one another, so it was easier to just hold one another.

"Childe, what will we do? The Fatui know you wish to leave, you will be hunted for betrayal," you peppered kisses over his skin as this question lingered in the air for a few moments too long. The ginger looked up at you with a soft sigh, grabbing your hand to place a kiss on the skin.

"Well, you do have that nifty little thing now," he mumbled referring to the purple vision in your pocket, "we could be a pretty cool couple on the run you think? I trust you to protect me." For a second you were surprised to hear those words leave his lips, you never once thought that he relied on you like that. "Really?" you asked in almost a whisper.

"Love," he looked at you with red eyes that showed the signs of the tears that had fallen from them just moments ago, "You saved my life, if I couldn't trust you I'd be a blind man."

[angelic-writer]

Whumpcember Day 7 - Fainting (Alt 7. Hunger)

CW: Starvation

"Are you sure you don't want any, Mark?" George asked.

"I'm sure. You guys need it more than me." Mark pushed the plate of food towards them.

"But you've barely eaten anything for the past week. You're losing weight." Fred said.

"I know, but I need to show them that what they're doing is wrong!"

"Mark, they're just gonna blame us. You know how this town is with us."

"I know!!" He sighed. "I know and it's disgusting and wrong! You guys shouldn't have to suffer because of what happened to Cesar..." He shivered. "Here. I made sure it doesn't have any allergens in them."

"Mark... You don't have to do this." Cathy muttered.

"Cathy, you're my family. I can't let you guys get hurt."

After a bit of deliberation, the triplets slowly began to eat. Satisfied, he left their room, gripping his stomach tightly. Everyone's treatment of the Flammias have gotten so much worse since Cesar almost died. He was almost killed by one of the spies, held captive in the hospital, comatose against his will and almost died again. Despite that, Santiago blamed it on the triplets, saying that he almost died because he wanted to protect them.

That didn't make any sense to him. Isn't it a hero's duty to protect the people you care about? If it were him that Cesar almost died to protect, wouldn't Santiago be praising him? He would be hailed as the hero they want him to be.

His vision began to grow dim and he fell to his knees. Deep breaths, Mark. Don't faint. Don't faint. Just get some fluids in you. You'll be fine.

It'll be worth it. You need to teach them a lesson...

-----

Everyone was gathered at the table, talking about what they're gonna do today. N kept badgering Stanley about him having Uno while Damien tried to steer the conversation back to the topic at hand. Mark couldn't focus. He wanted to, but he was so fucking hungry...

"Mark? You alright?" Cesar asked.

"Yeah. I-I'm alright..."

"You sure? You look a little pale."

"I'm sure. I'll get something later."

"Dude, you've been saying for the past few days. You look like you're about to drop dead at any moment. You really need to eat something."

"Cesar, I already told you, I need to-"

"Mark? Do you have anything to add?" David suddenly asked.

"Oh, uh... I think we... We need better security systems since people get through them too easily... I think something is up with the security team..." He stood up on shaky legs. "We need to investigate what's..." His vision grew spotty.

"Mark? Hey.." Cesar shook him by the shoulder.

"We...." Mark dropped like a stone. Cesar caught him and set him down as the room erupted into chaos.

"What the- What happened?!"

"Mark?!"

"Is he alright?!"

They all crowded around him as Cesar set Mark's head in his lap. Quick pulse check. Slow heartbeat. "Dave, go get Esther!"

The triplets were in the other room, watching the whole thing go down. They were starting to shake now. They're gonna blame it on them. Everything was their fault.

Mark blinked his eyes open as everything started to come back to him.

"Mark? Can you hear me?" Cesar patted his face.

"Ugh... What happened...?"

"You fainted. Don't worry. Esther's coming to get you."

"Wh... But the triplets..."

"Don't worry. We won't let anything happen to them."

------

Mark slowly opened his eyes to a blinding light shining above him. After blinking a bit, he noticed that he was in the infirmary. An IV was inserted into his arm.

"Oh good, you're awake." Esther looked up from her paperwork on the desk. "The IV's there to give you extra nutrients. You didn't look very good."

"Esther? Wh..."

"You fainted during the meeting. Cesar told me what happened." She held him down with her stare. "Mark, when was the last time you ate something?"

"Ummm...."

"What about fluids? Have you had any water?"

"I've been having some apple juice...."

"Okay, but have you gotten some actual food in you?"

He was silent.

"Mark, starving yourself shouldn't be taken lightly. It's unhealthy to deprive your body of important nutrients. Your body could be breaking down other cells to make up for the nutrients you're depriving them of."

"I-I wanted them to see that what they're doing is wrong..."

"Them?"

"Yeah. The reason why I haven't been eating is because Santiago has been limiting their food intake. I did it to get him to see that it was wrong. He somehow got the other parents to believe that it was because of Cesar. They were pretty badly beforehand, but this... This is too much."

"My goodness... Just how much food were they taking away from them?"

Mark was silent for a bit. "...They were getting by on granola bars."

Esther blinked in disbelief. "Just granola bars? But aren't they allergic to peanuts? I know some of them have peanut butter for a flavor."

"They avoided the peanut butter ones."

"You mean to tell me they were only being fed granola bars and nothing else?!"

"Well, that and food scraps, but that's barely enough."

"Of course it's barely enough. They need a lot more than that to get enough of the nutrients needed!"

"That's what I mean! They're starving them and I wanted to snap them out of it!"

Esther looked down at her clipboard. "It seems like there are a few adults there who don't believe the delusion of the week going on here."

"Yeah. They're the only ones who care about them."

"I see."

Mark nodded, then gripped his stomach in pain. It felt like his body was eating itself alive. Why did he think this was a good idea?

"You should really eat something."

"Please. I can't take it anymore."

[returnsandreturns]

sorting through the prequel i started writing for the bdsm romcom novel

“You didn’t drop out of law school because Stephen broke up with you, did you?” Stef asks, hands on her hips, her always surprising but welcome maternal mode kicking in. He can always tell by the arch of her eyebrows, like she’s about to make him cocoa before threatening his bully. “Did he tell you that you should?”

“I dropped out this morning,” Andy says, breathing very carefully, “and I went to him first, which was dumb."

Laurel rests her head on his shoulder, slides an arm around his waist. She’s so good at knowing when to touch people, filling in gaps in moments, smiling just right.

“What did he say?” Stef asks, glaring at him.

“. . .he said he wasn’t surprised,” Andy says, sighing. It would have hurt worse coming from somebody who actually loves him—and if Stephen loves him, he’s doing it wrong most of the time.

There’s a deadly silence and he turns slowly to see Laurel, streaked with pale blues and pinks and wearing a t-shirt covered in badgers, with a look of absolute white hot fury on her face.

“Hey, historically I pick guys who practically hate me,” he says, letting out a laugh that only trembles a little. “I shouldn’t be surprised.”

“We can’t kill him,” Stef says, directed at Laurel, “but we can threaten him.”

“Or we could kill someone else,” Laurel says, “and then frame him for the crime.”

“. . .well, at that point we could just kill him,” Stef says.

Andy’s got his knees practically pulled up to his chest but he’s smiling, smiling wider when they look over and give him worried looks, like he’s about to fully lose the plot and maybe need to go to a hospital for a brief holding period.

“I love you guys,” he says.

Laurel smiles back, murmurs, “Sweetheart,” and basically crawls into his lap.

Stef looks squirrely before she says, “You’re okay, I guess,” and grabs her coat, heading for the door.

“Are you going to buy a weapon?” he asks.

“Just keep your mouth shut!” she calls back, door slamming behind her.

“You’re too cool to be a lawyer,” Laurel says, when he turns to look at her, face very close to his. “I’ve always said that.”

“You’ve never said that,” Andy says, laughing.

“That’s because I thought it was your dream,” Laurel says, “and I actively try not to crush your dreams, you beautiful butterfly. But this was a bad dream and you’re making a very smart decision and I’m definitely gonna frame that guy for some kind of crime. Or blackmail, maybe—does he have any horrible secrets?”

“None that he told me,” Andy says, feeling kind of sick when he thinks about it. “We never really had conversations, actually. He would just talk and then tell me I talked too much when I tried to talk about myself.”

“You guys have been a thing for a year,” Laurel says, softly. “Andy, has it been like this the whole time?”

“There was a honeymoon period,” Andy says, sinking down further into the couch. “There was wooing—I really like being wooed.”

“Who doesn’t like a good wooing?” she murmurs, patiently waiting for him to continue.

“It was my first relationship that lasted more than a couple of months,” Andy says, eventually, staring at the ceiling instead of her endlessly sympathetic face. “I looked past a few things that hurt a little and then I kept looking past things and then I just felt like shit all the time.”

“You know, one time Stef told me that I was being too happy,” Laurel says, biting her lip when she smiles, “and she immediately died, was reborn, apologized for six hours straight and then went down on me for the next six hours. People say shitty stuff sometimes but they apologize after if they’re humans and not—swoopy haired shiny teethed monsters.”

“His teeth were so shiny,” Andy groans, covering his face with his hands.

“One might say too shiny,” Laurel offers. “Like, we get it, you can afford a dentist."

[apocalypticavolition]

Let's (re)Read The Eye of the World! Chapter 31: Play for Your Supper

What's this, a picture of Josha being used in my reread of a book told almost exclusively from the POV of the character he portrays? Bizarre! What else is bizarre is just how much I love spoiling the whole damn Wheel of Time series, so if you're not into that sort of thing it's time for you to get out of here. Begone!

This chapter opens with the icon of a heron-marked blade. It's a little odd since the sword doesn't come up too much in this chapter, whose "climax" revolves around the gleemen equipment. However, it is discussed, and Rand does have some complex thoughts about Tam. Still though, one of the odder choices.

A sudden gust swirled road dust up around him, obscuring everything. He blinked and adjusted the plain, dark scarf across his nose and mouth. None too clean now, it made his face itch, but it kept him from inhaling dust with every breath. A farmer had given it to him, a long-faced man with grooves in his cheeks from worry.

Yes folks, we're in that section of the story, where Rand does a bizarre flashback sequence that doubles around on itself so circuitously that many people assumed there was some kind of editing error. Frankly, I feel like Jordan's wife was a little distracted this section myself. The good news is, Jordan never does anything this confusing again. The bad news is, there's no counterbalancing bad news for me to use in a "good news/bad news" sequence.

One of them casually swung his eyes toward the hedge as he went by the opening, and Rand bared an inch of his sword. Mat snarled silently like a cornered badger, squinting above his scarf. His hand was under his coat; he always clutched the dagger from Shadar Logoth when there was danger. Rand was no longer sure if it was to protect himself or to protect the ruby-hilted dagger. Of late Mat seemed to forget he had a bow, sometimes.

I'm sure the best thing to do in this situation is to not worry about it, Rand. Absolutely nothing bad could be happening with your friend who is descending into paranoia before your very eyes. Of course, you've descended into paranoia too, so I guess the warning signs are hard to spot when you're busy assuming every dude on the road is trying to kill you.

Most traveled in the same direction that they did, eastward toward Caemlyn. Sometimes they got a ride in a farmer’s wagon for a little distance, a mile, or five, but more often they walked. Men on horseback they avoided; when they spotted even one rider in the distance they scrambled off the road and hid until he was past. None ever wore a black cloak, and Rand did not really think a Fade would let them see him coming, but there was no point in taking chances.

The good news about Logain's being captured and toured through Caemlyn is that the road is way too busy for any Fades to be wandering freely on it. Things had to play out this way or Rand would have been shanked on the roadside six miles out of Whitebridge.

Even if you go into one of those houses Tam won’t be there. If he was, could you look him in the face? You know, now, don’t you? Except for little things like where you come from and who you are.

Is it just being adopted that you know, Rand, or are you finding it harder to deny the other obvious truths?

Between them they had enough coins for a few meals at an inn, but a bed for the night would take too much. Things cost more outside the Two Rivers, more this side of the Arinelle than in Baerlon. What money they had left had to be saved for an emergency.

As someone who found that living on the outskirts of the civilized world made things cost more, not less, I'm curious as to if this checks out more in the economies of the Third Age.

They stood like that in the middle of the road until Mat suddenly gave an uncomfortable shrug, and dropped his eyes to the road. “Who would I sell it to, Rand? A farmer would have to pay in chickens; we couldn’t buy a carriage with chickens. And if I even showed it in any village we’ve been through, they’d probably think we stole it. The Light knows what would happen then.”

The dagger's quite lucky to have ended up with someone as clever as Mat, because while he's obviously being compelled not to part with the dagger, I think the specific arguments he makes are by and large his own.

“He’s up to something, I tell you,” Mat said. “See the way he wouldn’t meet my eye? Why are they so friendly to a couple of wanderers they never laid eyes on before? Tell me that.”

And here Mat is being paranoid but he's entirely correct: this farmer is deliberately choosing to screw them over by having them work and then kicking them out anyway.

It could have been worse, he thought. Three days earlier, while they were still working, they’d had the dogs set on them. The dogs, and the farmer, and his two sons waving cudgels chased them out to the Caemlyn Road and half a mile down it before giving up. They had barely had time to snatch up their belongings and run. The farmer had carried a bow with a broad-head arrow nocked. “Don’t come back, hear!” he had shouted after them. “I don’t know what you’re up to, but don’t let me see your shifty eyes again!”

And this is a different farmer who also fucked them over for some reason. What the hell kind of glowers was Mat giving them? Or did they finally notice the sword and freak?

Perrin would know how to handle this, he thought. He’d make some offhand comment, and pretty soon she’d be laughing at his jokes instead of mooning around where her father can see.

Rand, have you met Perrin?

He could never handle the instrument without a pang of sadness. Touching its gold-and-silver scrollwork was like touching Thom’s memory. He never handled the harp except to see that it was safe and dry—Thom had always said the harp was beyond a farmboy’s clumsy hands—but whenever a farmer allowed them to stay, he always played one tune on the flute after supper. It was just a little something extra to pay the farmer, and maybe a way of keeping Thom’s memory fresh.

It's a damn shame Moiraine didn't leave you some kind of sweet memento before she went to go live with the elves. Maybe you would have found a different outlet for your grief than what you picked. Also, the reference to the harp is a nice touch that will pay off next book when Thom is pissed that Rand ruined the strings.

“I think they should have a reward, father,” Mistress Grinwell said as she picked up her youngest boy, who had long since fallen asleep in front of the fire. “The barn is no fit place to sleep. They can sleep in Else’s room tonight, and she will sleep with me.” Else grimaced. She was careful to keep her head down, but Rand saw it. He thought her mother did, too. Master Grinwell nodded. “Yes, yes, much better than the barn. If you don’t mind sleeping two to a bed, that is.”

Mistress Grinwell is quite clever about handling her horny little daughter.

Rand and Mat are actually probably quite happy to avoid having a young lady drop into the barn in the night. They'd probably have panic attacks from the Trolloc memories alone.

Historically speaking, sleeping two a bed while traveling was quite common, so it's interesting that Grinwell thinks they might not like the concept. Sure it's probably just Jordan being a 20th century dude with 20th century norms, but I'll treat it as another subtle sign of the slow population drop that's been creeping up on society: much as the Emond's Field inn is far larger than it needs to be, all over the subcontinent is a surplus of furniture.

If there was more than one inn in a village, the innkeepers would bid for them once they heard Rand’s flute and saw Mat juggle. Together they still did not come close to a gleeman, but they were more than most villages saw in a year.

Okay, I was able to explain Whitebridge's gleeman enthusiasm, but this is too far. These people live on a well-traveled road between the capital city of Caemlyn and the major city of Whitebridge. They probably shouldn't be swarming with traveling entertainers, but they should do well enough. Where Emond's Field hiring a single performer for a holiday was a once-a-decade deal, these people should be pulling them frequently.

Ah well. Little details like this are some of the hardest worldbuilding to keep straight. Can't expect Jordan to be perfect if I'm not even going to read more than one chapter at a time - and we're at the end of this one. See ya next time for Four Kings!

[strawbebbynya]

A current list of recollections that happened while on oxycodine:

Thought I was ok enough to go on mic with friends. Quickly lost track of what they were saying in favor of looking at pretty comic

Someone mentioned p hacking and I got very confused about why they would hack pee. I asked several times about this at varying points

Forgot how to leave the call despite staring straight at the hang up button

As I was slowly fading, I thought it a great idea to message my teacher as to why my assignment couldn't be done and managed to get half of it written before it garbled into my brain doesn't work thanks

Struggling desperately to hit the queue button several times in a minute

Getting very belligerent when Hayley told me I should do something about my complaints of food even after agreeing with him about it

Stared at the screen slackjawed for an hour

Demanded milk n cookies through tumblr

Chewed very very slowly on said cookies and begged for milk

Couldn't properly say the word water when asking for it

Told Hayley I was great at video games and immediately that I was bad several times over bc I kept dropping things and doing stuff out of order in Hydroneer. They kept asking why I would lie about being good at games and iirc I couldn't decide if I was lying or not based on how I was playing

"I'm on Oxy." Hayley: "like the Gen?" Extremely long pause as I attempt to figure this out. Hayley: "Oxygen". "Who's she."

Upon losing posts, I decided I would ask my crush out through tumblr asks. Said crush and I have been dating for six months.

When I read this I demanded he marry me. He said not while I'm high.

Rediscovering discord, I badgered my boyfriend about marrying me and about rings

When my QPP said she was high too, I said fuck you only me

Pictures to come

[malcolm-reeds-pineapple]

Random lore drop bc I just thought of this

Alright so when I was in grade 12, I had 2 spare periods and a tutoring period every day, so 3/5 of my classes were largely just me fucking off. The two spare periods I was supposed to stay at school but I usually left to work on the business I was opening with my dad. I only had the spares for a university class I was taking twice a week anyway, so no one really cared where I was. However the tutoring period, I was forced to do and I’m a recalcitrant little shit and dyslexic, so I did everything in my power to avoid doing it.

For context, the tutoring period was for a grade 12 student to help in a grade 9 or grade 10 class. It was usually only offered to students who had a good record and attitude, however it was offered to me to shut me up. I met the minimum requirement of an 85% average so it was their last resort. I already had all the credits I needed to graduate, I was treated like an adult at home, I was opening a business and there was nothing else offered in that time slot that I hadn’t taken or was capable of taking. So, me being me, I pushed to have another spare but my school only gave spares for the kids doing university classes and they were not about to give me a third spare at the very end of the day when my first two were before lunch. Finally, after a WEEK of having nothing in that time slot, they said: “reading tutor, take it or leave it” and I was like no I’m dyslexic and then they were like okay “physics 12” and I was like but I never took physics 11. Anyway, I took the reading tutor deal when I found out the only teacher who wanted to take me was my grade 11 English teacher to whom I handed in a printed, laminated meme for a project and somehow managed to get 100% on it.

So for reading tutor I had to do a bunch of pre-work with a resource teacher, one of the three bald teachers at my school who all hung out together that I referred to as the Cue Ball Club. I hated every single member of the Cue Ball Club but this guy, Cue Ball #2, was like a mosquito that snuck into your room that buzzes in your ear as you sleep. Because of Cue Ball #2’s irritating nature, I made what was supposed to take 3 days take upwards of a month. I know the teacher I was helping didn’t give a shit, frankly he thought it was funny, so I just wasted all my time.

How did I waste that time? I wrote fanfic in Wingdings on the school computer. I wrote pages and pages of wingdings just to spite all the admin who put me in reading tutor and Cue Ball #2 who kept hounding me for the pre-work. It was like, mentally, I would just add a day to how long the assignment was gonna take me every time I was badgered about it. When everyone involved except the teacher I was supposed to be helping put their feet down, I got higher than god and wrote the assignment at home in an hour. It was completely illegible but I got a 60.

Eventually I told my brother about this a year or so later and he thought it was the funniest thing on the planet. Since then, we both refer to fan fics as wingdings. Specifically, around the time I told him, I was writing an egregious stargate self insert fic that my brother enjoyed listening to, so it was routine that, once per week, I would read it out loud to him while we had our bed time smoke and we called it The Wingding.

A few years later, in January of 2020, after The Wingding had faded into obscurity, my brother tried to yeet. I felt really bad and I decided to take the time to write a new Stargate Wingding just for him so we could read it together like in the old times. It took a bit, but it made him feel a lot better.

Nowadays, my brother and I live together again and I’m now writing the most egregious self insert Atlantis crack fic. He’s once again demanding that I update my Wingding and I read it out while we have bonfires. It’s great cuz it motivates me to write, it makes him happy and he feeds me ideas. Anyway, thank you Wingdings font for giving my brother and I a goofy way to refer to stupid self insert fics that make us both happy