#and they are not overtly like a typical pair in love kinda thing

[ganondoodle]

so, inspired by the warm welcome the captain received with that rough doodle i posted, i made an updated design for Ki'ita as well (basic and with clothes)

i removed the piercings she had bc considering that they spend the majority of their time in arctic waters i think having metal directly in your skin is a bad idea, no matter how thick your blubber is; i also gave her typical white markings a green hue bc ... i liked how it looked and makes them stand out a little more

(i will not repeat what i wrote on the post about the captain but wanted to add a bit of more info about Ki'ita herself)

(i dont have ALL of their backstory done yet but) the captain and Ki'ita worked together in another organization, one in which the father of the captains child also worked at, before being betrayed and barely managing to escape, after which the both of them founded their pirate crew (possible name is the Solar Pirates bc of their solar powered boat stuff); since the captain had her daughter shortly afterwards Ki'ita managed most of the organisational matters at first, including the construction of their base on an abandoned island they had initially fled to

over the years they invented the solar powered ships that allowed them to gain control over a large part of an important trade route, leaving normal ships (mostly) alone but attacking those of hunters and similar, rescuing demons and mutants, even some humans from them, most of which also join the crew and it quickly lead to them becoming their own little community

Ki'ita does not like to spend alot of time among large groups of people, no matter how much she cares about them, and her originally being from norther lands gave her the idea to explore, and if viable, do underground missions in those norther areas to disrupt the infrastructure the hunters had built in recent years and overall keep the crew informed about things that may otherwise stay hidden; with each of their travels her time absent from the base increased but the patience of the captain is wearing thin so its likely a serious talk is underway on Ki'itas third solo mission she nearly died due to entanglement in abandoned nets made by hunters from an unknown material that she could not break, the massive scars on her tail especially come from that, only surviving bc the date they were supposed to return to the crew had passed and the captain grew to worried about her and made the entire crew rush into an emergency search, including the captain herself and her toddler, who were not suited for the cold climate just like the rest of crew, taking a huge risk that Ki'ita still feels ashamed of for causing; they stayed within the base for a whole year afterwards, not just to recover but also as a silent apology, taking time preparing herself to ensure theyd not get into a situation like that again

(before departing on their next mission the captain gifted her a sword with the blade made from the material of the net, a wooden handle, bc of the cold, and a blue wrap around it reminiscent of the captains striking blue teeth; a reminder of what had happened, a means to defend herself when their strength and teeth are not enough, and also a promise to always return again)

the oldest members of the crew know Ki'ita well and treat her like an old friend, among the newer members she has more of a .. cryptic status, the mysteriously absent vice-captain who only appears every few months or so out of thin air, throws a big party, sleeps for a few days and then vanishes again, the only hint to when they will return soon again being the captain getting noticably grumpier

(OC art, Ki'ita, she/they)

[youn9racha]

Don’t Test Me

Requested by: @crzy-devil

Pairing: Jinyoungxmasc!reader (with a vag tho)

Words: 3.1 k

Warning: dom!reader, sub!jinyoung, consent being explicitly discussed, implied masturbation, mentions of pornography, implied dacryphilia, weapon play (fake gun), pegging, mentions of butt plugs, jinyoung in a short skirt, dirty talk, overstimulation

Extra Notes: wheewww finally my first got7 request ʅ（◞‿◟）ʃ don’t get me wrong, i‘ve been enjoying writing skz chan and changbin smut but i’ve been meaning to write some got7 but i wouldn’t think anyone would read it :( but yay finally i got something. i pray i don’t fuck this up, and i hope this is okay everything you want 😔

photo edit is not mine

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This is no way representative of the way Got7 act. They’re nothing but references of character, and in no shape or form is this how they act. And I am in no way romanticizing or glamorizing any toxic behavior exhibited, they’re just stories that is meant to be read. Readers discretion is advised.

—————————————————————————

You and Jinyoung have an interesting relationship to say the least. Jinyoung is always thought to be that dominant guy who’s always protective of the people whom he cares about, especially towards his partner. While that is true that he is protective and caring, however no one knows who the real Jinyoung Park except you, or at least who he is in your bedroom.

It was no secret that you two are very open about your sexual needs to each other, and it may come to the surprise to anyone to know that a man like Jinyoung is more submissive than anyone would think. But you however didn’t think so.

Prior to meeting him, you may follow what everyone says about Jinyoung, but five months into your relationship with your boyfriend, you were shocked, yet pleased, to see him one day in adorning nothing but a skirt, a butt plug, and a leash, innocently yet seductively telling you to touch him. And ever since then, you’ve been the one Jinyoung looked up to and waiting for to ruin him.

Every sexual encounter with him were exciting and fun, but there was one incident that took the title of the most amazing sexual roleplay you both have took in and neither of you had any sense of regret. Even if you guys would have broken up—knocking on wood—, it’ll probably not top anything but that moment.

~~

”(y/n!)” Jinyoung exclaimed in a sing song-y way as he walked into the apartment door with something hidden behind his back. He spotted you laying onto the couch, legs lazily splayed open as you looked up to the ceiling with half eyes open. It was clear that you were tired and wanted to rest, but Jinyoung didn’t care, “I’ve got something to show you..”

You looked up at him with a furrowed eyebrows, “what is it Jiny—ah!”

You felt wide awake when you saw Jinyoung unexpectedly pulled a gun straight into your face and pretended to shoot by making certain movements and sounds.

“Jinyoung, what the fuck?!” You exclaimed with your eyes popping out your socket with fear, leaning far away from him, only for him to get closer to you. Jinyoung saw the fear in your eyes, which made him laugh at my state. “I’m being for real, put the gun down!” Your heart was rightfully pounding, fearing not only for your life but at Jinyoung’s sickening laugh.

”Oh, relax, big baby, its a fake gun,” Jinyoung said with an eye roll.

You looked at the man on top of you with a baffled expression, he flipped the gun around and shoved it to you, “see, carry it.”

You looked at the gun, then at the man, then back at the silver object with a gulp. You took the gun out of his hand, and to your relief it was indeed fake, with it being very lightweight and looking at it up close. Props to whoever made this gun look really realistic, at least at a distance.

Jinyoung laughed at your relieved expression, “did you really think I’d bring an actual gun?”

You shrugged at him, “I wouldn’t be surprised to be honest,” you jokingly replied to which Jinyoung opens his mouth agape. Now it was your turn to laugh, “I’m joking, baby,” you patted his cheeks and he pouted in response, “you’re fucked up, (y/n).” He says that as he laid on top of you.

There was a moment of silence until you began questioning why he had the toy gun. Jinyoung fidgeted with his fingers, sort of hesitating with the words he wants to say. “Baby?” Your calling for him sounded more dragging rather than a questioning call, as your hold on him got tighter. “I kinda wanted you to use it on me,” He blurted, not baring to look at you, while you looked at him with a confused expression.

He didn’t see you but he can sense your confusion, “I want you to use it on your dumb whore..” and thats where your eyes widened. You knew exactly what he wanted.

You would lie if you said you didn’t have the thought of the idea, but that does not mean that you’re feeling one hundred percent sure about all of this. You both are experimental people, and enjoy trying new things at least one, and pain on both ends goes right up your and Jinyoung’s alley. But you wouldn’t go as far as bringing weapon into this, albeit fake, but still.

You thought of how weak he would look over you though, how he tries so hard to fight back but it fails miserably and pathetically. You easily find yourself slowly warming up but then caught yourself as you uncertainty was still in habiting your consciousness.

Your ears met with his gentle voice with him saying, “baby, if you don’t want to do this, I understand,“ Jinyoung held onto your arm in comfort.

“It’s not that I don’t want to, it’s just what if I’m gonna hurt you with the gun?” You held Jinyoung, which endearingly smiled at you. He admires how no matter how hard you go on him, he still can see how you’re very loving and caring towards him. The last thing you wanted to do is to harm your baby Jinyoung.

”baby, you won’t hurt me, you’ve held the gun. It’s fake and it won’t do anything,” Jinyoung rubbed your arms, reassuringly, “besides, we have a safe word, and if you did anything uncomfortable, I’ll just say the word.” You looked back at his eyes. His eyes were entrancing to you, its a contrasting blend of assertiveness, plead and child-like. You have no idea how can one have the capability to withhold such power like this, but knowing Jinyoung, you can see how it works.

You smiled back at him with a gentle caress in the cheek, “I’ll think about it.”

~~

You’ve given yourself sometime to think about it. Jinyoung made it absolutely clear that he won’t do anything that would make you uncomfortable. For a typical submissive person, he still values your comfort, but that is regardless whether he is submissive or dominant, verbal and emotional consent holds a great value in your relationship.

You’ve scrolled through the internet and went on certain adult website to see what got Jinyoung that excited about all this. You did see the hype, but you were still unsure about it, so you just wanted to give sometime where the ice of uncertainty is melted.

While browsing, you saw a distinctive video. The thumbnail caught your eye, as it had a pretty boy in a pink skirt laid on the bed with his leg spread and what looks to be someone pegging him. The video was of the type you’ve looked it up but it was different because it seems to be more of a point of view type of video.

Your mouse hovered over the thumbnail, almost clicking it. You turned to check if Jinyoung was still in the house. It’s not that he cared about you watching porn, he knows that no amount of videos will match up with you taking him on the spot. But you didn’t want him to see you researching, as you wanted to surprise him in case you enjoyed it.

You’ve not seen his presence and you decided to text him, to make sure if everything’s clear and that he’s not close to your proximity whatsoever.

(y/n): hey babe !!

(y/n): where are you ??

Jinyoung immediately saw your message. The bubble and dots of his began showing up until his message was sent.

Baby boy <3: heyy !!

Baby boy <3: oh i’m hanging out with Jaebeom rn i’m also gonna spend the night at his place if thats not a problem with you :)

Baby boy <3: y ??? u need anything ??

you sighed with relief to not only see him respond back, but also that he won’t come back later. Never would you have thought to say this, considering that you’re overtly obsessed with the man.

(y/n): no !! i was just checking up on u !!

(y/n): its fine by me :)) have fun and tell jaebeom i said hi

Baby boy <3: will do ^_^ see you tomorrow baby

Baby boy <3: i’ll miss you <3333

(y/n): i miss you too darling xx

Once the coast was clear, you’ve turned off your phone, turned back to your computer screen and turned on the video.

The video startes off with the boy, who eerily reminded you so much of your boyfriend with his mannerisms and body type, calling out to the presumed viewer. He only wore a skirt, a choker, and what looks to be a jeweled butt plug. To say that the scenery wasn’t a turn on would an absolute lie. You almost moaned at the scenery as you‘ve suddenly started to see, instead of the actor‘s face, Jinyoung.

His pleading eyes were captivating you as you felt yourself getting wet at the way the man is looking at you. Suddenly a pink gun was put into the face of the boy and hearing him yelp in fear did something to you. You felt your organ began twitching at the way the boy looked up to the gun. Seeing how the gun was shoved into his mouth as he began making lewd movements and noises while getting his pretty dick stroked, it did all wonders for you.

You felt your hands going down your pants as you carried on watching the video. This may have awakened something in you, and you can’t wait to showcase to Jinyoung when he gets back.

~~

You sat back in your couch waiting for Jinyoung. It was the next day, and you didn't have much to plan, but you decided to keep the fake gun near you for the sake of your role. It was almost nighttime and the clock kept ticking as you anticpated your boyfriend's arrival.

Jinyoung didn't know about the whole ordeal, he probably thought that you were gonna be out running errands, hanging out with your friends, or even just sleep. But what he won't expect is you sitting on the couch, lust blown in your whole system and hiding the gun he brought in. He never would have thought to see you with it, up until this moment.

While you wait for him to show up, you scrolled through your phone, mindlessly liking any posts that comes in your way. You didn't care on whatever is on your screen, all you wanted was Jinyoung bending over, ready for you. You smirked at the dirty thought, until you heard keys clashing against each other then one inserted into the locked door. In comes the prettiest boy you have ever laid your eyes on, he came in with a bag in his shoulder and adorned a baggy pink sweatshirt and skinny jeans. He smiled when he saw you on the couch, waiting for him.

Normally you would feel soft and warm over his appearance, however the sinister thoughts inhabiting you was clouding every other thought. Jinyoung extended his arm up to stretch after putting down his bag, as he came in and sat down next to you, eventually attacking with kisses as a greeting. Typically, you would laugh at his typically private yet adorable affections, but you could only look at him with semi blank stare.

He noticed the stare in your face, his face shifted into a worried frown, “whats wrong? you’ve been acting weird since yesterday.” You looked at Jinyoung with your hands in his face. You couldn’t help but smile at the clueless boy in front of you, “Jinyoung, have I ever mentioned you’re gorgeous?”

Jinyoung’s confusion starts to get even bigger as his eyebrows furrowed. Not knowing what to say, he just went along with, “yeah?” It was clear evident confusion and you weren’t dumb. You knew he‘d be confused, thats the point, you want him to be clueless and confused about the whole ordeal.

“What if I told you that you’re all I think about?” You whispered, as you began caressing his face. His face was still grimacing in confusion, however he would lie if he said that the thought of you thinking about him nonstop makes him feel good and excited. “I love you so much…”

“(y/n), cut the bullshit, whats goin—” Jinyoung has had enough with your suspicious act and decided to confront you, up until he felt something on his jaw, which he ended up cutting his words with a gasp. It felt something cold against his pulse, his eyes were dragged to the source only to see something he wasn’t expected to see, yet is pleased. It was the toy gun he handed to you. His mouth was open agape, and you said, “I thought much through about it, and I decided why not,” you had a loving and evil smirk on your face, and he simply just smiled back at you, “and besides,” you leaned closer to his ear.

”The thought of you begging for mercy does things to me, you do not understand your powers you have on me, Park Jinyoung,” Jinyoung shuddered at you whispering out his full name at him. He could already feel himself getting hard at your words, and the thought of the gun digging into his skin makes the process faster. You knew that he was getting aroused without you looking down at his crouch, so you opted to use your other hand and held his member, to which he let out a closed mouth moan.

“You know what to do..” you said after pulling your face out of his ear and staring straight into his face. He looked like a puppy with his eyes innocently sparkling at you. You slapped his thigh to get up to do what he’s doing, which you took him out of his trance, nodded at you and got up.

“I’ll give you five minutes,” you said loud enough where he can still hear as he walks, more like wobbling, into your shared bedroom, while you smirked at his adorable weak state. You looked at the gun and you knew were gonna have fun with your boy toy.

~~ Five minutes have passed, and you decided to walk into the bedroom where Jinyoung is at at a painfully slow pace. You felt like a lion going after a deer, ready to devour it on the spot, with Jinyoung being the deer in this situation. You dragged the gun against the wall as you got closer to your bedroom. You can already sense Jinyoung getting weaker and weaker without even looking at him. You hear heavy breathing coming from out of your bedroom, and you felt your lust is started to mix fury with it as you knew exactly what he was doing.

However you kept your composure and still have the smirk drawn into your face. You reached the door, and you opened the door to see a sight that both angered and aroused you. Jinyoung was dressed in a pink short skirt and a crop top along side with thigh highs, his whole cock was out as he was stroking himself as he was looking at himself in the mirror. Still in his lust world, he didn’t notice your presence up until you spoke.

“Who told you you can touch yourself?” You questioned with a crossed arm and a lean into the door sill. Jinyoung gasped his eyes wide open, his hand stopped stroking as he was looking at you with pleading eyes, “I-I’m sorry,” he gulped as you got closer to him, looking at him with a scowl. Despite him being slightly taller by a few centimeters, he still looks and feels smaller than you, especially at this moment.

“I couldn’t help it, I j-j—“ You cut his pathetic talk by putting the gun into his cheek. His mouth was wide shut as he fearfully looked at the gun then back at you. You glided the gun across the face as his breath hitches, you stopped the gun at his mouth. “Open your mouth,” you growled at him, which he didn’t respond at first as he was too aroused to function. You shoved the weapon not too harsh that it could hurt him, but not too light, to wake him up to, which he just moaned.

”I didn’t even touch you, and yet you’re already fucked up,” you commented as you tugged his bottom lip with the gun making him whimper. You tapped his face and commanded again, “open.”

This time he complied and he stuck his tongue out, you lightly inserted the weapon into his mouth as he wrapped his mouth around it.

To say that the scenery was pornographic was an understatement. A man in his short skirt down on his knees sucking on a weapon as his superior is tugging on his hair, it was hot to look at, you and Jinyoung would agree. It was typical that Jinyoung is going dumb just for you, he’s willing to drop everything just to satisfy your needs. He loves you too much. And to see you enjoying his idea makes him feel really good.

~~~ ”Thats what you fucking get for being a dumb slut,” You thrusted your strap on onto your pretty boy’s hole as he grips into the sheets underneath him. His legs placed on your shoulder while your hips were moving in and out of him.

“I-I-I’m s-sorry! I’m not gonna do it again!” Jinyoung was a mess under you, he’s practically crying as he feels his hole getting stretched with pleasure. Tears rolling down his face as he feels his orgasm get closer. You can see that based on his face twist that he was getting closer so you stopped thrusting for the nth time, which caused him to whine and sob louder.

“Bad sluts like you don’t deserve to cum,” You leaned over, his leg still on your shoulder and squished his cheeks. His nose was tinted pink due to blissed out cry and the amount of times you’d edge him, and the fact you still resisted giving him what he want made him blush even more. You both love it, especially Jinyoung, who may love this more than you do. He loves getting edged and getting all this punishment. He was a walking masochist, and because he is what he is, you ended up loving it and use it for your advantage.

Despite his “apologies,” he always misbehaves just so he can get punished by his superior. He is a brat in disguise, and you love it. You love giving him the punishment that he ever so deserves, as much as you love degrading him and you absolutely love seeing him being at your mercy.

He simply looked up at you with teary eyes and says softly, “I’m a bad slut, but I’m your bad slut,” to which you smirked back at his claim.

Your Bad Slut. That’s exactly what he is.

[toonqueen]

Duckvember 2020

PART 1 OF 2

Part 2 is Here

Frenemy AND Paramour

This is my Negaverse Gladstone (Grimstone) and Nega Magica in my 87/Comics headcanon. SHELDRAKE is @cataradical 's and he’s a cool jerk. Wheee.

THERE IS CUSSING and dirty things said. It’s the Negaverse that's just what goes down there. PG-13ish?!

--------

Sheldrake was glad to have a very easy mission this time. It was planned to be the typical “act natural at a party, steal a thing, and then slip out” kind of job. And it was a solo mission; no coworkers to be annoyed with him (and vice versa). To top it off, he was actually invited to this shindig. Well, his paladin sect received the invite, but that meant he didn’t have to sneak in. With everything added up, it was practically a vacation!

What Shel expected to be a boring hunters’ gala was anything but. The leaders of different groups were trying to appeal to a modern, younger crowd. Instead of a stuffy meeting with the typical job fair flair, it was a real, honest to God party. A full bar! And dancers in cages! Sheldrake couldn't help but chuckle at how hard old fogey hunters were trying to get new blood. Crimey.

The paladin went to the bar and ordered a drink. He sat on a stool facing the crowd, keeping an eye out for his target. 

"Well, hello there," a sultry voice greeted him. A tall redheaded duck leaned up against the bar beside him. She motioned to the bartender to get his attention. "I'll have what he's having."

Sheldrake wasn't caught off guard by the attractive duck's flirting. Despite his cursed energy that often drove others away or made them immediately dislike him, people that were intentionally and professionally deceptive could overcome it in an attempt to get something they wanted. Lord, it was a test, though.

The lady’s tight red dress and orange wavy locks were clearly up to no good. She was a literal red herring if Shel ever saw one. However, he played it cool.

"First hunter's gala?" He sipped his drink and gave the mystery woman a smile.

"Oh, I've been to a few--none quite like this though. Luckily I dressed for the occasion," she paused like she was turning a knob to up the seduction. She moved around, but kept looking back at Shel. "It would be even more exciting if I had one of those VIP passes I've heard others whisper so much about."

Sheldrake smirked. He knew this overtly sexy duck was trying to weasel her way to being a plus one on a special invite. However, he was curious as to why. "Yeah, it would be great to have one of those. But what is it even for? To join an exclusive party with more go-go dancers in cages?"

The redhead let out a giggle. A high pitched one, as if Sheldrake were just the funniest, most charming guy in the room. "I heard it was for a special auction. A bunch of rare items retrieved and uncovered by different hunters,” she replied. “My, I couldn't afford any of them, but I would love to look. Be some nice arm candy for a kind gentleman."

Sheldrake just chuckled before taking a sip of his drink. The lady hadn't touched hers yet. She watched him, slowly drawing her finger around the rim of the glass with a bewitching glow in her eyes.

Finally, Sheldrake said bluntly, "I'd give your performance a 9 out of 10. It might work on those first year hunters over there.” He waved vaguely to a group of younger bachelor-types chatting and laughing on the dance floor. “However, not quite buyin’ what you’re sellin’.”

The redhead shot them a quick look before turning back to Shel. "But they're not my type," she pouted. She leaned in a bit toward the paladin, and placed her hand over his on the bar. "I’d rather have someone more seasoned who can answer any questions I may have about the artifacts."

"Oh, I see, I see; switching gears, okay, okay. Stroke my ego first, then go for my intellect? If sex doesn't sell, then try brains? Gettin’ any warmer?" Sheldrake downed the rest of his drink in one gulp. "Well, this has been very amusing, and I wish you all the luck. Unfortunately, my VIP pass is just for me and doesn't allow a buddy. Boo dang hoo. Maybe try one of those light paladins in the white capes over to the left. They're way more sociable and have to travel in pairs." He gave another general hand wave… everywhere.

The redhead narrowed her dusky eyes. It was the first time she had shown any annoyance with Shel--ah, there it was, back to normal. The paladin slid off his stool, but before he could stand, the lady pressed her entire body flush against his side, beak in his head feathers..

Sheldrake expected a final desperate plea. Something to the effect of “I really need to see this event for my research,” or “please help me, I lost my own pass and my sect will be furious.”

Instead he got a low, unexpected voice. A familiar one that could be likened to Antonio Birderas' role in “Debate with a Vampire”, except if he were a white peking duck raised in suburbia with a twinge of a farmboy accent.

"Shel, I need to get into that auction to obtain a crucial item," Grimstone's voice whispered clearly out of this petite, curvy redheaded lady’s bill, "you have to give me your pass."

The paladin did not outwardly act surprised. He had 100% picked up the fact this woman was hiding something--more than the obvious. He did not expect, however, that Grimestone would be involved.

Shel hummed shortly. With a coy smile, he slid a hand around the redhead’s waist, whispered, "I didn't know you were so proficient in glamour spells."

"I'm not," Grimstone said, his voice reverting back to that soft, playful feminine tone, "my wife is one of the gentlemen servers."

"Oh, how cute," Sheldrake teased, pulling away from the duck.

"She doesn't like to be… flashy," Grimstone explained, a little defensive, looking over his luscious figure and tight-fitting dress.

"I get it, I get it. Taking one for the team, hm?" the paladin smirked as he sized Grimstone’s disguise up, "give my compliments to the caster, though.” He blew a kiss from his fingertips, as if praising a delicious gourmet meal. “Great job. Succulent, divine, mouthwateringly juicy."

Grimstone scowled, crossing his arms. "Sheldrake, the pass."

"Sorry. I have business here, too," the paladin disagreed, "why don't you try those frat boys I recommended earlier?”

"I’ve already tried. You were my last resort. Trust me, this is for the greater good," Grimstone explained.

Sheldrake put his hand to his chin, pretending he was thinking deeply. Grimstone and him had an interesting work relationship; they’d helped each other on several occasions in the past, but also had been on opposite sides a few times, too. Finally, after much consideration, he said casually, "Yeah, no. I'm sure you'll find another way."

Grimstone’s tiny manicured fingers curled into tight fists. "Is there somewhere private we could discuss this more openly?" he pressed.

"Man, this is a borderline orgy sex party. I'm sure there’s a room we can get for a half an hour," Sheldrake replied, then gave an obnoxious wink. 

Grim rolled his eyes. “I don’t have time for this. People have been dipping out to the stairwell to smoke. We’ll talk there,” the disguised warlock suggested.

“Sure. Sure. I take it your high school prom wasn’t that exciting,” Sheldrake taunted. 

Grim sighed and nodded to a waiter nearby before taking Sheldrake’s arm in his. “Let’s walk, then. Hopefully no one’s there at the moment,” he said. Despite the voice coming from the redhead being so playful and demure, Sheldrake could tell Grimstone was using his “I'm taking charge of this operation” tone. 

Sheldrake would normally roll his eyes when Grim spoke to him so seriously, as if he were one of his many wild rugrats. However, he played along, swaying off side by side with this very attractive lady.

Once outside on the desolate stairwell, Grimstone exhaled heavily. "There is a magical person of interest I’m here to free, and it's of the utmost importance that I do.” He spoke in an unusual voice; neither his normal voice, or his disguise’s. Rather, a unique combination; feminine, but more husky. Kinda cute, actually.

"And you don't think what I'm doing here isn’t important, too?" Sheldrake replied, loosely crossing his arms.

"I really *do not* have time for this Shel. I’m handling a case where a school of children were transformed into inanimate objects, and I need to free this woman known as the Brunswick witch who specializes in these curses and can break it,," Grimstone explained. He glanced cautiously at the stairwell window.

"And I have an out of place artifact from a different universe I need to win--or steal, if I have to. I can't give you my pass," Sheldrake insisted. He was going to add a flirty comment, but quickly saw the short nod Grimstone gave in the window’s direction before looking back at him again. 

Sheldrake sighed. "You're really going to fight me in a building full of hunters?” He leaned close, booping his beak against Grimstone’s. “*Really*, my guy?”

"I need the pass, Shel. You leave me no choice," Grimstone lamented, rolling his hands up his arms as if drawing back sleeves. Sheldrake expected a punch, but was instead tackled around the waist like a damn linebacker instead. 

Sheldrake would’ve had the wind knocked out of him if he hit the ground like Grim intended. Instead, he wiggled his shoulder and pulled an arm free, grabbing his attacker. With expert ease, Sheldrake pinned Grim down on his back with one knee in a partial straddle. 

Brushing loose bangs from his eyes, he looked down to see if Grim had slipped out of his glamour in the brief scuffle. Rather, Grimstone’s disguise was shifting, brows becoming thicker, body filling out, patches of feathers turning black.

Grimstone was trying to copy and transform into Sheldrake. 

“Aw,” Sheldrake chortled at the struggling duck, “well, they do say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.”

Grimstone gave a distinctively annoyed “ugh” before ripping an arm free and grabbing Shel by the throat; however, he didn’t squeeze or attempt to choke him. "And I do often tell you to go fuck yourself."

"That… trying to be a badass line doesn't quite work in your position, buddy," Sheldrake added as he fought to keep Grimstone's hand down.

"I just have to,” Grimstone's voice dipped back down to his own before changing into one eerily similar to Sheldrake’s, "keep you talking."

"Hol-lee shit. Well, the glamour spell might’ve been the missus, but you're totally doing that all on your own. How quaint! I can't believe you've been holding out on me. I thought you told me *all* the tricks you could do," Sheldrake replied. Grimstone went to grab something, anything from Sheldrake’s pocket. “Oh, no, you don't! Don't get handsy with me."

"You didn’t have a problem with it before," Grimstone snarked at the comment. He continued flailing and clawing until Sheldrake eased back to elbow him in the beak. Just enough leverage for the warlock to free his second hand, grip Shel’s shoulder tight.

Grimstone snarled, twisting one of his leg's around Shel's until they switched positions, the paladin now pinned beneath the demonic duck.

"How is it that we're both expertly trained in hand to hand combat, but whenever we fight, it’s like we’re stupid little kids slapping each other on the playground during recess?" Grimstone grunted. He continued searching desperately for some personal item on Sheldrake while also trying to hold the speckled duck down. Shel managed to punch him in the jaw before Grim hooked his arm around Sheldrake's to pin it back above the paladin’s head.

"I just assume,” Sheldrake grunted, arm freed and throttling Grim, "I assume we don't really want to kill each other, so we do all this bullshit ass grabbing--"

The stairwell door abruptly and loudly opened. Both ducks stopped fighting, looking up with eyes comically bugging from their shocked faces.

A paladin recruit in their early twenties stared back at them, blinking. “Um…” he gaped.

Two almost identical dudes, possibly, maybe twins, with one wearing a sexy dress, wrestling on the stairwell. 

“Look,” the recruit grumbled, raising a hand, "I'm not judging whatever fetish is going on here, but please do it somewhere more, uh, private? Some of us need to vape.” With a grumble, he left, shutting the door behind him.

"Well, shit," Sheldrake snorted. Grimstone sighed. The two relaxed and unwound, sitting side by side.

"We need to solve this. Now," Grimstone said firmly. Sheldrake watched as he stood, offering his hand to help the paladin up. "I don’t want to fight you, but I need to save those children."

Shel blinked then finally conceded with a big, exaggerated sigh. "Okay, okay.” He took Grim’s hand. “... Actually... I think I have an idea."

-----

The third floor of the hotel was unsettlingly quiet. There was a low murmur of voices coming from the auction room, barely audible outside the door.

"Grim! Grim!" the blonde duck whispered harshly as she walked up to Sheldrake. The male server uniform Magica wore was baggy when she was out of glamour. She fixed the bun in her hair as she said, "You have to be careful. I overheard a few disturbing things about the auction… I'm worried some of the items could hurt you. Maybe… maybe I should go instead."

"It's fine, it's fine. I know what I'm doing. Besides, I'm the only one who could get his voice right,” Sheldrake--Grimstone--replied. He smirked, a slight leer on his beak. “But how about a kiss for good luck anyway?"

Magica glanced around the hallway; with the coast clear, she leaned in to peck the corner of Grimstone’s beak. "Please, please, please do be careful," she pleaded.

Magica turned to leave, then stopped; turned back around quickly. She took Grimstone’s face in her hands and pulled him into a deep kiss. He could feel her tongue shyly stroke his for a second, hands affectionately squeezing his cheeks, caressing the corners of his beak. 

The light witch broke the kiss when she heard a noise from down the hall. Luckily, they were still alone.

"I'm getting this foreboding feeling off you, Grim,” Magica said dubiously, “you sure you're full up on luck?" She let his face go and stepped back, slipping into the form of a masculine Borzoi waiter. 

The “paladin” restrained an amused grin. "Really, I'm fine,” he reassured. “You do your job, and I'll do mine.” He winked, then entered the ballroom.

Magica took the stairwell at the end of the hall to the lobby downstairs, only to be greeted by Grimstone a second later. She looked up, eyes wide; it was Grimstone’s voice, undeniably, but he was still disguised as Sheldrake.

"Love, there’s been a change in plans," Grim stated.

With a blink and *poof*, Magica changed back to her normal form. "Who... what...? I thought I just spoke to you a second… You were that paladin, but... How?" She squeezed Grimstone’s shoulders, scanning his eyes and face closely.

"I’m disguised as the paladin I told you about, yes. He’s agreed to help us; we need to wait by the fire escape in case he needs emergency back-up should anything go wrong," Grimstone explained.

Slowly, color drained from Magica’s beak.

“What is it?” Grimstone asked, concerned.

"N-Nothing!” Magic squawked. How could she have been so easily deceived-- “I'll explain later. Let's go help your friend." She quickly disguised both herself and Grimstone as canine servers. "We'll just… act like we’re taking a smoke break in the back."

"Good, I was thinking the same.” Grimstone frowned and looked away. “And he's not my friend…” he trailed off.

"But we can trust him to help us, right?" Magica asked in her own voice.

"Eh, we can trust him, but not *trust* him," Grimstone said vaguely, “if you get what I mean.”

Magica rubbed her temples. "We're leaving this mission to a paladin *you don't fully trust*?"

"Oh, I don't know. I seem to remember doing the same thing a long time ago, and that worked out just fine," Grim said with a half smile, squeezing Magica’s shoulder.

"That's different! I was a lightbearer. I--" Magica was interrupted by the opening of a stairwell door above them.

Grim took Magica by the arm. "Let's go take that smoke break," he said quietly, guiding her down the hall.

------

[creepypastashavecomittedtaxfraud]

Can we please have some Toby x Jeff or Nina x Jeff head canons? ♡´･ᴗ･`♡

YES YOU ABSOLUTELY CAN. you have EXCELLENT taste these 2 ships r some of my favorites

Ticci toby x Jeff the killer

While most of the major injury is handled by ej, or in extreme cases slenderman himself, tending to each other wounds is a sort of tender bonding thing for the both of them

gently cleaning and bandaging a cut or picking glass out of each other or doing some very small stitching for each other after a tough job is part of their typical routine now . they mostly do this while sitting together quietly, just as a de-stress thing. its actually very nice yknow. having someone you love take care of you . and after its taken care of, giving it a kiss to make it feel better…

jeff kind of gets on tobys case for no caring if he gets injured. i mean he cant feel it anyway so he doesn’t give a fuck, but jeff does . and toby calls him out for being a hypocrite, because he’s not exactly the most careful person either. they both get mad and kiss each other about it 

toby is usually known to be more…friendly? normal? than the others. more upbeat. but being with jeff brings out his bitchy cruel side . he’s still not as bad ! but he definitely has this sarcastic mean bite to him now. when they team up to get on someones case theyre pretty much insufferable LOL, but they love it . real teamwork .

they sit outside at night and talk to each other about whatever. from a distance it doesn’t even look that romantic. tobys probably carving a stick into a sharp point, jeffs smoking his lungs out, or sharpening one of his knives. theyre both sipping from the same bottle of stolen beer, but theres something very calm about them you don’t really see from either any other time. it feels toned down . no harsh words other than the occasional biting joke , always said with a smile followed by them both laughing of course, maybe one of them grabs the others shoulder for emphasis on something they said and it lingers there for a few seconds longer. 

They talk about work, sometimes jeff will pull up his sleeve and show off a new particularly gnarly scar to toby, and you can just see him soak up the attention . toby will do the same sometimes, but his never seem to get as messed up looking. he talks about masky and hoody and the things he sees out in the human world, as he’s sometimes sent out on day jobs, and jeff only ever steps out at night. about what it’s like up there during the day. 

theres a lot of moments of stretched out silence. it feels very nice. very calm and friendly and natural . then they both lay down in the grass and maybe….hold hands. or lean over and kiss a little …or a lot

theyre both pretty highly respected as guys who are good at their jobs in their own way . they go on jobs together Sometimes, but they tend to fight over who gets the actual final kill on a place . jeff is a lot more brutal and show-y with it, and tobys more of a ‘just get the job done’ guy. they both…admire each others work and technique. both are a little shy about admitting it though  

They both would die protecting the other for sure if they had to, so i guess its good they can both handle themselves pretty well. its nice to have someone ride or die for you like that though, when theyve both felt totally solo for most of their lives.

rough mean beat up boyfriends. theyre both rude bitches love each other and it really shows

Jeff the killer x Nina the killer

Jeff loves his baby so fucking much. he’s absolutely like, her guard dog basically lololol and she absolutely soaks up the protective bad boy boyfriend thing 100% even though she really doesn’t need it 

she’s very cutesy and sweet with him, and is always reeling him back and gently telling him to calm down , which he does…reluctantly, and she really doesn’t mind she just doesn’t want him all worked up all the time even if she does love and appreciate it and everything hehe :)

nina loves to go into demon city and party!!! and jeff goes with her as often as she wants him to, which is most of the time . she drags him around and makes him dance with her . and he keeps weirdos away from her, very forcefully and harshly might i add. every time he scares off some creepy loser she’s all over him being all “oh my sweet protective jeffy baby!!!” giving him kisses and praising him for keeping her safe and you know he loves that :’) 

Theres been a few times she’s gotta a little protective over him as well though . he pretty much shuts down anyone who approaches him with , bad or overtly romantic intentions, but a couple times shes had to pull him away and snap at someone getting a little too friendly. once they get out of there he laughs a bit and pets her head lovingly a little, reassuring her its fine and to not get stressed about it. but yknow, he doesn’t mind being on the receiving end of having a protective s/o once in a while. he kind of likes that his girlfriends got a backbone and a strong spirit like that. theyre both pretty mutually defensive and protective of each other, which happens to work out perfectly for each other!

he’s much more of a “DIY frat house” party guy than a nightclub or private party guy but …he doesn’t mind it that much, and really up for whatever nina wants. besides he loves playing body guard for her . he loves how much she dresses up to go to a party and how pretty she always looks. it makes him kinda blushy hehehehe. she also helps him get ready a lot :)! just wants her boyfriend to look good too, but to her he always looks good. she likes that they both have cut in smiles. its like a matching couple accessory in her eyes. sometimes she outlines hers in red and pink eye shadow and asks to do the same with his, which he msotly agrees to when she asks

theyre both high profile Killer Employees Of Slenderman so theyre always getting attention and special privileges wherever they go in the city they’re a very glamorous almost celebrity-couple type pair . nina loves it so much, it’s everything she’s ever wanted !!!! jeff can’t say he doesn’t like the attention and the constant ego boosting . theyre kind of made for this lifestyle . the scary evil underworld killer version of socialites if you want to think about it that way 

besides that though, theyre still very sweet and cutesy at home, though jeff gives her a little more space. but he definitely doesn’t have to since she follows him around all day at home mostly! shes a bit clingy, but he doesn’t mind at all. he loves having his sweet girl by his side as much as she wants. and she’s always all over him. she likes sitting next to him and holding onto his arm, or brushing his hair and putting little clips in it when she’s bored, or sitting on his lap, or laying on it, or making him sit on her lap, you get the picture

she asks to do his makeup sometimes, and he usually agrees though it’s not normally his thing. he has to admit, he does look pretty good whenever she does !

they both love each other very much and are a very cutesy loving pda couple. he’s so loving and protective with his sweet gentle pretty girlfriend and she absolutely adores her sweet loving and patient boyfriend so much!!

[syntaxeme]

Sugar is Sweet (and So Are You) ch.3

[First Chapter] [Next Chapter (coming soon!)] [Read on AO3] [Support me on Ko-fi] Rating: T Summary: Plagued by jealousy toward the men Angel sleeps with, Alastor comes up with a plan to keep Angel from having to work the streets. He wasn’t planning on becoming an actual client, but having Angel all to himself might prove too sweet to give up–for as long as he can afford it, that is.

— — —

Niffty was as apt and eager a sous chef as one could hope for, not only happy to follow directions to a T but intent on keeping their workspace neat at the same time. Concentrating on cooking had the desired effect of keeping Alastor too busy to fret over Angel’s absence (or anything else regarding him), and it wasn’t until around 7, as he was finishing up his cooking, that he was forcibly reminded of those concerns.

“Mm, it smells amazing in here,” Angel called as he entered the room, and Alastor had to force himself not to look back at him. Niffty had already gone off to set things up in the second floor ballroom, so they were alone in the kitchen. “Whatcha makin’?”

“Etouffee and rice. Blackened snapper filets. Maque choux.” He indicated each dish on the stove and counter respectively. “Though that has tasso in it, so someone who isn’t comfortable eating pork should probably avoid it.” It was still somewhat amusing that Angel eschewed pork products purely because he had a pet pig, while Alastor himself had never been squeamish about meat from any source. To each his own, he supposed.

“Shit, you musta been at it for hours, then.” The spider came over to lean against the counter at his side and leaned toward the pan of etouffee Alastor was stirring with a wooden spoon, opening his mouth expectantly. “Aah…”

The Radio Demon’s eyes narrowed, and instead of complying, he used his free hand to push Angel’s chin upward and close his mouth again. “You’ll be able to try it when everyone else does. Assuming you didn’t have dinner while you were out.”

“Aw, c’mon, I don’t get any special treatment? Are ya mad at me or somethin’?”

“Where have you been?” Alastor asked, ignoring the question, then added, “If you don’t mind my asking.”

“Ooh, you are mad. Ya gonna punish me?” Angel purred. When he saw that Alastor’s expression was utterly devoid of amusement, he sighed and shook his head. “Take a better look at me and see if ya can’t guess.” Posing against the edge of the counter, he ran one hand through his hair (which Alastor now noticed had been styled and formed into loose curls) and used the lower pair to smooth the magenta dress he was wearing (a daring halter number that covered his chest but bared his shoulders—not a familiar part of his existing wardrobe). His nails were painted to match, and the shoes looked new as well.

“You went…shopping?”

“Among other things. Just a little self-care day, a little pampering. Because I deserve it. Don’t I, Daddy?” he concluded with a playful smirk that said there was only one correct answer.

“I suppose.” Alastor wasn’t sure what it was about that new title Angel had given him that flustered him so. It wasn’t any sort of disconcerting Freudian paraphilia, he was sure. Maybe it was the way Angel said it, as an indication of familiarity and the role he’d been cast in this relationship. An admission of authority. It made him feel…powerful. Powerful in a way he wasn’t used to feeling.

“What’d you think, I was runnin’ off to meet some other guy?” Angel asked, hitting the nail exactly on the head. “Why should I when you already said you’re takin’ care of me? I wouldn’t’ve figured you were the kinda guy to get jealous that easily, but it’s sweet you wanna keep me to yourself.”

You have no idea. “And the woman you were with?” the Radio Demon prompted, finally deciding that his etouffee was ready to be served and taking it off the heat. As he was arranging the various dishes on a catering trolley to take them upstairs, he continued, “The one who pulled you out of your meeting with Charlie for all this?”

“She’s my manager. Or she was, I guess. I told her about this”—Angel gestured between the two of them—“earlier, and she wanted the details. Then I was already out, I had some cash to burn, and I figured I should show ya what you’re payin’ for here.” As Alastor was rolling his sleeves back down and readjusting his cuffs, Angel stepped in close to drape his arms over the Radio Demon’s shoulders. He also caught Alastor’s hands to pull them around his own waist, drawing their bodies close together and demanding his attention. “So, you like? Or should I be tryin’ harder?” If he tried much harder, Alastor’s poor heart was likely to give out from overexertion.

“You do look nice, cher,” he confessed, allowing his hands to rest tentatively on Angel’s back and forcibly withholding his full opinion on the subject—that he enjoyed the idea of Angel getting dolled up to impress him, that he loved knowing his support had bought the spider a few hours’ indulgence, that he was terribly tempted to blow off the dinner he was supposed to be serving and spend the time alone with Angel instead.

“Look all ya want, honey.” As he leaned in for a kiss, the tension in Alastor’s body only heightened, but he forced himself not to retreat (or maybe he was so deer-in-headlights frozen that he couldn’t have fled if he’d wanted to). As much as he wanted what Angel was offering, he was equally afraid of embarrassing himself with his inexperience.

“Alastor, do you need—oh!” Just as he’d gathered his courage and tilted his head upward to meet Angel’s lips, Niffty’s voice rang through the kitchen. He reflexively stepped back at the sound, breaking the spider’s hold on him and leaving about two feet’s distance between them.

“What was that, dear?” he asked, unsure whether the smile he flashed her was intended to intimidate or reassure. It made little difference, as she was pointedly avoiding looking at him, her cheeks flushed.

“Uh, everything’s ready upstairs. I came to see if you need any help taking stuff up.”

“No. Thank you. Go on ahead and we’ll be up shortly.” She wasn’t eager to argue and zipped out of the room as quickly as she’d appeared, leaving Alastor to clear his throat awkwardly as he swept his jacket back on.

“Why does it bother you if the others know?” Angel asked, strolling along behind Alastor as he pushed the trolley out of the kitchen and toward the elevator. He didn’t seem offended, just curious, likely because he himself had no issue about being open with his sexual dealings.

“I don’t know that it bothers me, per se. But whatever goes on between you and me is none of their affair.” Especially Charlie.

“Sure, I guess, but it still seems kinda shitty to hafta act different just because someone else is around.” When Alastor didn’t answer right away, Angel quickly went on, “I mean, at the end of the day, it’s whatever you want. Just knowin’ you, I woulda figured you wouldn’t care what anybody else thought of it.”

When they got to the ballroom, true to Charlie’s word, everyone was gathered already, hovering around the handful of tables scattered throughout the room and sipping cocktails (provided by Husk, who had set up a sort of half bar by the door). Luckily, Alastor’s cooking experience in life had given him plenty of experience with serving large groups, so this was nothing he couldn’t handle. “Sorry to keep everyone waiting; I’m sure you’re all starved by now!”

“Nope, you’re just in time.” Charlie sidled up to him as he was setting out the dishes along the banquet tables lining the far wall. “I can’t blame you if you got a little distracted.” She nodded heavily toward Angel, who had been crowded by a few of their female patrons all ooh-ing and aah-ing over his outfit.

“What, this old thing?” he purred, posing deliberately and beaming from the attention. His smile was one of the first things the Radio Demon had come to admire about him, and knowing he himself had caused it was even more satisfying. Angel was beautiful; there was no denying that. So why, Alastor wondered, should he even bother trying?

“Yes, maybe I was,” he agreed with Charlie’s statement as he finished up setting out the spread. He ignored her wide eyes and delighted grin as he swept the trolley to one side and gestured to the table with a flourish. “Well, here we are! There should be plenty for everyone, so don’t be shy.”

Dinner didn’t go exactly the way he’d expected. He and Angel shared a table with Charlie, Vaggie, Niffty, and Husk, and although the conversation was the sort typical of the group, he couldn’t help feeling Angel was paying him more attention than usual. Of course, ever since the hotel’s opening, the two had developed a certain chemistry, a sort of quick-fire volley of snarky comments and clever comebacks, but it felt softer on this particular evening. Different. And Alastor found he didn’t mind it.

He still hesitated and drew away when Angel got overtly affectionate—stroking lightly along his hand, leaning close to speak into his ear, playfully toying with his hair—but it was more for his own comfort than out of concern about what anyone else might think. Angel was right in saying that their opinions shouldn’t matter, and if it meant Alastor didn’t have to deliberately maintain his distance, he didn’t mind dealing with their curious glances and whispers.

When everyone had eaten their fill, the other patrons dispersed gradually until only the hotel’s staff was left in the ballroom, chatting long past dark. Husk was the first one to retire, followed soon by Vaggie gently leading a somewhat tipsy Charlie toward the doors as well.

“Wait, wait,” Charlie insisted, “shouldn’t we help clean up?”

“Nope!” Niffty answered cheerfully, waving her onward. “I’ll take care of it, don’t worry!” In fact, she was already up and starting to gather plates, apparently no less energetic after dinner and drinks—or at least not enough to keep her from happily working.

“I suppose we’ll leave you to it, then,” Alastor agreed, getting to his feet as well. Angel followed along without prompting.

“Y’know,” he started as they took the stairs to the third floor, where Alastor’s room was located, “you’re a pretty good cook, Al. But I think that meal was missin’ somethin’.”

“Oh? What’s that?” The notion was actually a bit insulting.

“Don’t get me wrong; you make a helluva dinner. But”—he caught Alastor’s hand as they reached the door labeled 313—“now I’m in the mood for somethin’ sweet. So what’s for dessert?”

In literal terms, Alastor had never cared much for overly sweet things. Somehow, he got the feeling Angel wasn’t talking about beignets. He froze up for a moment, having failed to consider this aspect of the evening. Of course, it was only logical that Angel’s newly affectionate attitude toward him would include an offer like this, based on his usual interactions with clients.

“I hadn’t thought about it,” he answered. “I’m typically not much for sweets.”

Angel hesitated, tilting his head to one side, then his expression changed. Pouting slightly, he ran a hand through his hair to loosen his curls a little more. “But you can make an exception for me, right? I’ll get so cold up in my room all by myself, Daddy,” he whined, batting his eyes, looking strangely smaller and more fragile than usual. Raising Alastor’s hand up to his cheek and nuzzling against it, he suggested, “Lemme sleep here with you instead.”

Alastor didn’t respond right away. Although he wanted to believe that Angel had a genuine desire to be near him, something about this proposition felt artificial, almost like a game, like he was putting on an act for Alastor’s benefit. And if that was the case, he had no interest in it. He wanted Angel’s genuine self, the confident, assertive, clever individual he’d come to know and enjoy, not whatever persona he put on to please his clients.

“If you want to be here, cher, then by all means, stay. If you’re offering purely for my benefit, however, you can go back to your own room,” he said plainly, and Angel frowned.

“I dunno what that means,” he sighed, crossing both pairs of arms. Even in his irritation, he seemed more like himself, which was an improvement. “D’you not get how this works? You’re takin’ care of me, so I’ll take care of you. I don’t like to welch on a deal, but you gotta tell me what ya want if I’m gonna do it.” The prospect of being ‘taken care of’ by Angel, even if not in the way he had in mind, was immensely appealing. But only if there was a good reason behind it.

“I just did. I’m paying for your time so that you can choose what to do with it. If you’d like to stay, that’s fine. In fact, I think I would like you to,” he confessed, his gaze lingering somewhere around Angel’s right shoulder so their eyes wouldn’t meet. “But if you see this as a professional obligation, if you’re only doing it because I’m paying you, let me say that you have no need to. I don’t want you to make it a chore to be around me.”

The sound Angel let out was sort of a laugh, sort of a scoff, sort of dismissive and uncomfortable at the same time. “C’mon, Al, we both know what this is; ya don’t hafta feel guilty about it. You paid already, so whatever ya want from me is yours fair and square. This is what I do. It ain’t a big deal.”

Yes, that’s what I was afraid of. Refusing to let his smile slip or otherwise betray how much the statement bothered him, Alastor instead answered, “Good night, Angel.”

The spider stood by in silence while Alastor turned to unlock the room and step inside, but when he tried to shut the door, Angel caught it with two hands to stop him. With a note of something almost like guilt in his voice, he conceded very quietly, “I wanna stay.”

Although it was difficult to believe given the sadness on his face, Alastor found himself a bit shaken by seeing Angel so uncomfortable. Continuing to argue just wasn’t worth upsetting him more. So he took a step back out of the doorway and motioned for Angel to come inside, gesturing absently at the lamp in the corner so it flickered to life and bathed the room in dim red light.

Angel shivered as he crossed the threshold, lending some credence to his excuse of being cold, and his gait was noticeably less self-assured than usual as he made his way across the room to Alastor’s bed. Another moment’s hesitation, and he gestured to the bed. “Can I…?”

“Of course.” Alastor concentrated on shrugging out of his coat and removing his shoes and tie as Angel sat on the bed and toed his own shoes off, then crawled onto the mattress on all fours, coming over to meet Alastor where he stood at the other side.

Sitting up on his knees, sliding the edge of his dress up slightly, he asked, “You wanna help me outta this?”

Oh. Somehow, Alastor had failed to realize that in allowing Angel to stay the night, he was agreeing to something more than just enjoying his company. But at this point, it seemed too late to change his mind.

It took a moment for him to compose himself enough to form a response. “If you like.” His hands came to rest on Angel’s hips, only shaking slightly, and slid slowly downward to the skirt’s hemline, where he froze up again. Angel must have noticed his hesitation, as he tried to smooth the process by leaning in for a kiss. It was quick and soft, as if inviting Alastor to take more if he wanted. And he did.

Since this was something he felt much more comfortable exploring, he focused all his attention on it, capturing Angel’s lips with his own more firmly this time. It felt surprisingly natural to slip his tongue into the spider’s mouth, and the breathless moan Angel let out only encouraged him further. He did have a taste, Alastor found, but it wasn’t actually sweet. Enjoyable nevertheless. Every aspect of this experience was so foreign and fascinating, from the softness of Angel’s chest pressed against his to the heat of his mouth to his hands grasping at Alastor’s shoulders. He tried to pull away at least two separate times before Alastor realized that he should let go. As Angel was catching his breath, the Radio Demon realized he’d been so absorbed in the kiss that he hadn’t noticed deft hands unbuttoning his shirt, and he hastened to close it up again.

“Are you gonna…get in bed with me or what?” Angel managed, collapsing to sit and still panting softly, open-mouthed. The position he was in, long legs folded against the bed, forced his skirt even higher up his thighs. Alastor was utterly beside himself, torn in a way he’d never been before.

He had no idea what he wanted out of this moment. No, that was wrong; the problem was that he had entirely too many ideas. Part of him wanted to pin Angel to the bed and keep his mouth thoroughly occupied for the next hour. Part of him wanted to tear that dress off him and explore every inch of bare skin with his eyes, his hands, his lips. Part of him wanted to pretend he had no anxiety about this matter and spend the rest of the night satisfying his many curiosities about how it might feel to share that kind of intimacy with Angel.

Yet another very loud part was insisting that all the other parts were insane, that allowing anyone that close was asking for trouble, and that the best recourse was simply to throw the spider out, lock the door, and pretend none of this had ever happened. His mind was giving so many imperative all at once that it was impossible to choose which to act on.

“Al?” When Angel’s hand found his arm, he was so high-strung that he immediately jerked away from the touch, reeling back a step or two and struggling to get a hold of himself before he said or did anything he’d regret. Worst of all, Angel looked confused, guilty, even worried about him. “You okay?”

“Yes. No. I—” He let out an entirely mirthless laugh, simply because he didn’t know what else to do with himself. “I’m sorry. You…maybe you should…go.” It was stupid of him to have expected that he could change his stripes, so to speak, that easily. He knew what he was. He knew it didn’t lend itself well to affection of any sort. No one should be forced to put up with that, especially not one of the few people Alastor genuinely cared for.

“Go? But I thought… I mean, did I do somethin’ wrong?” Angel asked, shifting to sit on the edge of the bed but mercifully not making any move to touch him. “I dunno what happened.”

“Nothing. It’s not you.” There he was, making an absolute fool of himself, just as he’d feared. But at the same time, it wasn’t right to make Angel feel as if he were in the wrong. It took all Alastor’s effort to force himself to keep smiling as he continued, “I’m sorry, cher. I’ve never…done this before.”

“What, paid for sex?” Angel laughed, and although it didn’t seem ridiculing, it didn’t help, either. When Alastor didn’t respond, he quickly sobered and realized: “Oh, y’mean you’ve never…at all? Uh, shit, I just figured—hey, it’s fine, though! I been with virgins before; it ain’t a big deal. We can take it slow if ya want.” Somehow, although they were probably meant to be reassuring, the words did nothing to ease Alastor’s anxiety.

“That’s probably for the best.” It wasn’t that he didn’t want to try. Eventually. He was always interested in a new experience, and he did want to be close to Angel. But this evening had already made it quite clear that he had some mental blocks to work around before anything like that would be possible. “I don’t mean to make this difficult for you. I’m sure you were expecting—”

“Alastor.” Angel leaned his head down to catch the Radio Demon’s gaze (which was directed toward the floor), and although his smile was much softer than the wicked grin he usually wore, it still felt genuine. “It’s fine. You’re payin’ for my time and my company, but it’s up to you what you wanna do with it. If ya wanna fuck me, I’m up for it. If ya wanna kiss me again and then see where it goes, I’m fine with that too. If ya just want me to sleep here, I can.” After a moment’s hesitation and with somewhat dampened enthusiasm, he added, “Hell, if ya want me to leave ya alone and go to my own room—”

“I don’t,” Alastor answered quickly, “want that.”

Angel seemed pleased with the concession. “Point is, it’s up to you. Whatever you pick is fine by me. So don’t worry too much about what I ‘expect.’ I’d rather be here with you than off at some shithole motel with a john I can’t trust.”

Meaning he trusts me? That notion made Alastor feel a million times better about the night, all awkwardness and uncertainty included. At the same time, Angel’s assurance that he was in control of their interaction was an immense comfort in itself. Maybe these feelings—comfort, control, confidence—were what he was actually paying for.

Feeling at least somewhat steadier now, he seated himself on the bed next to Angel and leaned in to kiss his cheek, causing his slight smile to widen into something more playful. ‘Something sweet’ indeed. “I do want you to stay the night, ma sucrette. And I wouldn’t say no to more of those kisses.”

“Sucrette? What’s that?”

Tilting Angel’s chin upward and running a thumb lightly across his lips, Alastor replied, “Why, it’s you, sweetness.”

It may have been a trick of the light, but it certainly looked like Angel was blushing as they settled into bed.

Charming.

He moved close under the covers to put himself in Alastor’s arms, and after a moment of figuring out how their bodies fit together in an embrace, there was another kiss. And another. Knowing he wasn’t expected to go any further made it easier for Alastor to relax and enjoy their nearness for what it was. And there was no shortage of things to enjoy about it. He looked forward to discovering and further exploring each one in the days to come.

[curestardust]

if you want: slice-of-life / some really sweet romance without much drama / insight into manga creation and getting serialised / mostly realistic characters

Bakuman came out in 2011, around the time I actually started watching some anime on the internet and created my MAL. The premise itself was interesting to me even back then but the main reason I remember being excited about this is because it was created by the duo behind Death Note. Well, I sure am glad I only just watched this now.

Why? Because I’m almost completely sure that I would’ve expected something vaguely similiar to Death Note. Not the same, obviously, the premise was just too different but Bakuman has basically 0 similiarities to their first work besides the artstyle but even that is a bit different. 

Bakuman follows 2 high school boys, Takagi and Mashiro, as they try to make their dream of being mangakas a reality. They’re unique as they work as a duo, much like the creators themselves. This also creates an interesting situation where the viewer might wonder what is complete fiction and what is something that actually happened to the mangakas themselves.

The anime dives heavily into the subject, manga creation. Almost the entirety of the anime is taking up by the boys coming up with stories, drawing, submitting their work for critisism and then waiting on the result by the editing department. This is tricky, and even I worried that the anime was going to lose steam after the first 2 mangas were finished but it didn’t. The pair starts out almost completely from the bottom and we see them improve and achieve victories step by step, making every new creation feel somewhat fresh and unique. 

The first half of Bakuman mostly just has our main duo and their love interests. It’s very...shoujo-ey which I really wasn’t expecting. The romance is a bit cliché and overtly dramatic for my tastes but most slice-of-life fans enjoy that kinda stuff so I won’t say much more. To me, it was the latter half of the anime where it really picked up as we’re introduced to multiple rival mangakas who have the same dream as our main characters. All of the characters feel unique and their interactions and dynamics are refreshing to watch.

Bakuman does have some drawbacks. After their first manga, we don’t get much insight into the works Takagi and Mashiro make later on which I thought was a missed opportunity. The female characters all feel a bit weak compared to the male ones and could’ve been expanded upon much more. There’re many time jumps but we don’t really know about it just when the charcters drop info about how much time has passed in conversations which was a bit confusing. Later on they do start showing the dates on the screen but I wished they started doing that earlier. The music if fine but felt a bit too energetic and wild for the things we were seeing on screen.

Bakuman is a fine anime for slice-of-life lovers who’re interested in the world of mangakas. Don’t get discouraged by my score. As much as I had good time with Bakuman, SOL just really isn’t my genre so this is the best I can give. [7/10] (x)

Recommend: HELL Yeah! | Yes | Eh??? | Nope | This anime killed my parents

if you want: CGDCT (Cute Girls Doing Cute Things) / Slice-of-Life / raging lesbians (but they’re babies so it’s cute) / human obsessed with vampire dynamic 

"Ms. vampire who lives in my neighborhood.” is a very cute CGDCT SOL with a shitton of yuri “subtext”. 

Our set-up is that Akari wonders into a forest at night, in search of a haunted “dollhouse” her classmate told her about. There, she meets Sophie out on her daily stroll and she introduces herself as a vampire. Akari is fucking HYPED and immediately attaches herself to Sophie and then moves in with her. From then on we see the cast going about their mundane daily lives with the vampire aspect mixed in to make something interesting.

So, why did I put the subtext in quotiation marks? Well, our main cast consists of 2 vampires, Ellie and Sophie, and 2 humans, Akari and Hinata. Yuu and Sakuya, the 2 humans classmates and friends show up at times as well. And they’re all. lesbians. Harold!

Akari is completely smitten by Sophie and her doll-like complexion and is just absolutely in love with her. Hinata, Akari’s childhood friend, is in soft baby lesbian love with her best friend, constantly fantasizing about Akari’s attention towards her. Ellie, Sophie’s long time vampire friend, cannot stop talking about “young healthy looking maidens” and how much she wants to suck their blood. And when it comes to our 2 background characters, Sakuya is really in love with Yuu and keeps blushing around her when she says SoFt things. The only person who seemingly doesn’t care about all the lesbian nonesense going on is Sophie as she is just trying to be a Big Weeb in peace but even her has some soft moments.

So usually we’d be smacking a huge Shoujo Ai tag on this but alas it remains subtext as the recipients of the affection are oblivious to it and so there’s nothing to bring this from “girls love as fanservice” to “actual girls love”. Which is a shame imo but if you don’t go in expecting anything serious in that department you’ll be fine.

The art isn’t anything incredible but remains consistent and well-drawn throughout the whole thing. The music didn’t leave any lasting impression but it’s typical for this genre. If you like CGDCT and SOL and don’t mind some girls being smitten by other girls, you’ll enjoy this a lot! While I found the characters charming and loveable, again, SOL isn’t my genre so I had some trouble not falling asleep during episodes. But if you like this kind of stuff, I 100% recommend! [6/10] (x)

Recommend: HELL Yeah! | Yes | Eh??? | Nope | This anime killed my parents

[beefybuffybucky]

Star Struck

Pairing: Sebastian Stan x female!Reader

Request: Hi I just read “laps and naps” and I loved it so much!!!! Can I request a fic where the reader is also famous and Sebastian and the reader are on the same red carpet and she’s kinda fangirling like “oh my god is that Sebastian????” Kinda like Anne Hathaway and Mariah Carey vid and everyone thinks they are super cute and so they have a joint interview to promote their new movies and he is super cute and flirty and she’s shy and flustered? Thank you ily!!!! (-anon)

Warnings: none, really !!

Word Count: 1.1K

A/N: o hey there kiddos! this year, it’s basically my new year’s resolution to post a fic a week, so here’s number two! also, i basically screamed/cried every time i saw sebastian on screen during the golden globes (‘:

The loud rumbling and bright flashes of light spewing from photographers completely consume your senses as you slowly make your way down the velvety red path of carpet. The glitz and glam of the other famous stars around you were mind-blowing - you never thought you would catch such a big break in your entire career. You were used to not getting as much attention, but your latest movie was a huge hit in the box office, and landing the role has launched you into a world of endless, magical frenzy - you’ve accomplished things that you could barely even dream of achieving. As you make your way down the line, the long train of your entirely-black dress trailing behind you, your eyes suddenly capture movement out of nowhere. A man breezes on passed you, the scent of his cologne gently lingering in the air around you.

“Sebastian! Over here!” Shouts and hollers come from the paparazzi and interviewers as he continues his slow, confident stride down the red carpet. His brilliant eyes shone brighter than the North Star on the clearest of nights, and his smile was absolutely breathtaking.

“Y/N Y/L/N! You look absolutely dazzling tonight. Let’s talk about your latest movie,” a random interviewer appears in front of you, blocking your view of Sebastian and snapping you out of your odd daze simultaneously. She was also wearing all black, and overtly smelled like whatever cheap perfume a typical teenage girl would wear. A woman carrying a large camera on her shoulder was right on her heels, working to get the best angle she could get on you.

“So, I just saw it, and it was purely amazing! How did you -”

“Is that Sebastian Stan?” You point in his direction, peering over her shoulder. She blinks and looks behind her, smiling. “Oh my god!” You mouth to the camera, an exaggerated look of shock and surprise plastered on your face.

“Yeah, looks like it! Sebastian! Over here!”

“No, no, no!” You swat at the air near her arm. “Don’t call him over here, I didn’t mean to -” As soon as you made direct eye contact with him, it felt like the world had stopped spinning. Ever since Sebastian started his acting career, you were one of his biggest fans. You’ve always looked up to him for inspiration, and now that you’re so close to meeting him, you weren’t too sure what to do with yourself.

He flashes one of his famously contagious smiles at you and starts to stroll on over.

“Sebastian Stan! Thanks for joining us,” she grins as Sebastian stops to stand next to you, his shoulder brushing ever-so-slightly against yours. “Congratulations on I, Tonya! It looks absolutely amazing!”

“Thank you,” Sebastian flashes a wide grin, accompanied by a subtle chuckle. His voice was loud next to your ear, but even at that volume, it’s still hard to hear him over the roar of excitement rushing around you.

“Have you met Y/N before?” The giddy interviewer chirps over the noise.

“I don’t believe I have,” Sebastian purrs as he turns his face towards yours. “Hi, I’m Sebastian,” he goofily grins. “I’m a huge fan of your work. You look absolutely stunning in that dress.”

A deep blush slowly warms your cheeks, prompting you to clear your throat.

“T-Thank you,” you manage.

“So, Sebastian, what was it like working with Margot?” The interviewer cuts-in.

“She’s a fantastic actress, it was a really fun and interesting time to get to know her and work beside her. I’m sorry, but you smell really good,” Sebastian purrs as he turns his attention back to you, his playful gaze boring into you.

“I feel like I might be intruding on something,” the interviewer laughs.

“I’m sorry,” Sebastian chuckles lowly. “I get kinda nervous around beautiful women. Sometimes I just can’t stop things from slipping out.”

You laugh in response to distract them from the heat rising in your face.

“Y/N, what was it like for you getting to portray such a unique, perspective main-character for the first time?” She turns her attention to you, but all you can feel is Sebastian’s scanning gaze carefully raking up and down your figure.

“It was a real challenge at first, but once I got into the right type of head-space, everything almost came naturally, it was truly an amazing experience and I’m so incredibly thankful to be a part of such an amazingly talented cast and team.”

“You have a fantastic style of acting,” Sebastian chips-in. “The level of emotion and authenticity you brought to your character was absolutely mind-blowing, you’re such a masterful actress, I’m so impressed with your talent.”

“You’re not too bad yourself,” you counter with a smirk and a playful wink.

“Well, it was nice talking to both of you. Goodluck tonight,” the interviewer takes her leave with a practiced smile and a slight nod of her head. Sebastian takes her leave to make his move, taking a confident step closer to you.

“It would be an honor if I could walk the rest of the carpet with you,” Sebastian slowly smiles as he holds out his arm for you to take.

“How charming of you,” you smile cooly at him as you hook your arm around his. You walk in-step with him as you gracefully glide down the red carpet, stopping in front of a group of photographers.

“Sebastian! Y/N! Over here!”

“Are you two here together?”

“Give us a show!”

“You heard ‘em, doll,” Sebastian tilts his head towards you and smoothly coos in your ear. “We gotta give ‘em a show.” He turns his head back to the growing crowd of people, a wildly charming smile spreading across his face. Throwing all impulses aside, you slowly tilt your head and place a light, teasing kiss to the spot just below his ear on his neck. You could feel his jaw clench against the bridge of your nose as you pull away, giving the crowd a seductive smirk.

The trick you just pulled prompts the crowd of cameras and interviewers to erupt, sending them into a storm of photographing, bright lights flashing, and people trying their best to talk over one another.

“That was a pretty daring trick, darlin’,” Sebastian dips his head, his lips brushing against the shell of your ear. “Maybe we can talk about this over dinner sometime?”

“I’m free tonight after the show,” you purr, pulling your head back slightly to look into his eyes. “Drinks?”

“Sounds like a date,” he smirks, then presses a gentle, warm kiss on your cheek. “Let’s finish this up, shall we?”

[renaroo]

Day 7 AU: All These Things About Destiny

Disclaimer: Batman, Superman, and associated characters are the creative property of DC Comics. Warnings: Canon-typical violence & language Pairings: Helena WaynexGalatea/Karen Starr Rating: T Synopsis: [Mixed Earths AU] Helena Wayne’s time as Robin has been marked by trials, but probably none more than meeting a clone of Kara Zor-El, former Supergirl, who needs some guidance of her own. Helena WaynexGalatea. Sapphic September: Alternate Universe.

A/N: I basically made an AU by going “I really want Helena Wayne in the main universe, but I also want to keep my Power Girl/Huntress ship. So then I created this monster and I kinda love the concept now. This is the new future of Gotham. Hope everyone likes it, because that’s just what it is ;P

Robin was not supposed to answer the signal without Batman. But that was only the first oddity of the night.

The commissioner raised an eyebrow at her but Robin stood her ground, hands solidly on her hips and gaze set forward. Appearances were important. And she needed the appearance of confidence and certainty so that she was not turned away out of principle.

“Where’s Batman?” was the expectant question he started with. “Or Nightwing?”

“Batwoman couldn’t make it either,” Robin informed him without hesitation. “But don’t worry, Commissioner, I’ll handle whatever it is you needed.”

She could tell by the way he looked at her, by the way his eyes shifted away from her and around the rooftop, expecting something, anything more than just her, that he was going to make their night unreasonably difficult. But Helena held her ground and her breath.

She was Robin. She had this.If only the world trusted her enough to let her.

“You know, it wasn’t that long ago that Batgirl was… different, too,” the Commissioner pointed out.

“Things change,” Robin answered, cocking her brow. “Justice stays the same.”

Internally she cringed the moment the words came out of her mouth. It reeked of trying too hard and she fully deserved the odd glance over it earned her. Damn it damn it damn it!

“Apologies, Commissioner,” a deep and familiar voice spoke from the shadows, immediately causing Robin to bristle. Nightwing, wearing his black and yellow uniform, hood over his head, stepped forward. “Enthusiasm is a trait that is desirable and unbecoming at the same time.” Her half-brother then gave a knowing glare over the Commissioner’s shoulder directed right at Robin. “She probably gets it from her mother.”

While the officer’s back was turned, Helena took the opportunity to drop her facade as Robin and petulantly stick out her tongue at Damian, giving herself bat ears in their unspoken tease over how the would-be Bat still hadn’t achieved what he probably saw as his ultimate achievement of the mantle itself.

Despite his obvious refrain, keeping a collected expression as he listened to the Commissioner, Nightwing’s fists were shaking at his sides, which was all the indication Robin needed that she was successfully getting to him.

“There has been a string of suspicious activity reported around the East End, mostly in the area that was damaged during the last flood,” the Commissioner explained. “Mostly in the areas where damage was bad, but not enough to condemn or evict tenants. Which has made some people fairly unhappy.”

“Lexcorp,” Nightwing determined. “They seemed fairly intent on purchasing all of the damaged areas from the recent disaster. Wayne Enterprises has been in a bidding war.” Nightwing looked steadily to the Commissioner, attention completely off of Robin. “Let me guess. Small fires. Electrical outages. Anything to ruffle feathers of insurance companies.”

“We don’t have solid evidence,” the Commissioner warned. “And it would have to be damn good evidence to tie Lexcorp into it at all. Which is why I’d prefer to have this handled close to the belt between us—“

Robin didn’t waste time, she knew where she was heading. And with the men’s attention elsewhere, she easily fled from the rooftop down into the back alley of the police department where a few leaps from window to window got her quickly to her cycle. Just like she wanted.

It was her time to shine, and driving as quickly as she could toward Crime Alley was the only way, for certain, that brothers and fathers wouldn’t have time to get in her way.

She was born for this work. Born to do it solo — not with Nightwing, not with Batman, not with the Batt or Batwoman or Batgirl or even the new Commissioner Grayson. She was born to show everyone that being the youngest child did not make her the least child.

Helena Wayne was the daughter of the original Batman and Catwoman. She had walked tight ropes since she was two. She had gotten a black belt when she was seven. And age thirteen? She was going to take down the world’s self-proclaimed criminal mastermind, Lex Luthor.

It was her destiny to be great. And the opportunity had just presented itself to prove herself accurate.

The compound had been all she had really known. She was self aware, a part of her could acknowledge that to other that statement might have seen overtly sad, but it wasn’t for her. It was just a fact, and it was a fact she hadn’t minded.

She was provided everything in the compound, and the only love she had required to that point had been from the father she had always had since the first moments of her cloning process — Doctor Hamilton.

He provided her with everything, pointed in a direction for her to go in, and she obeyed. She gladly did anything for him.

Perhaps that was why, then, the man behind their program had taken such offense, such that he would take Hamilton away from her and hold him over her head so that he would do her bidding.

“Did anyone see you?” Luthor asked the moment she flew into his penthouse from the balcony.

Luther was only a human, only a man. Galatea could destroy him with a wrong glance of her heat vision, freeze his heart with a cold breath. But then he had proved to her that he was the only man in all the world who could return her father to her. And for that alone, she kept him alive and kept his agenda.

“No,” she said simply. “I used heat vision to warm the circuits until they sparked. Like the others, the building will have a fire and the inspection will show that it was the building not being up to code. Another easy buyout fro Lex Corp.”

“My dear, when you say things like that, it makes them sound downright simple,” Luthor said, some amusement in his voice. He turned, a wine glass in hand. “To another successful endeavor.”

“Doctor Hamilton’s release?” she cut to the chase.

“Such a one-tracked mind,” Luthor said, displeasure read on his face like a map. He put one glass of wine on the desk behind him. “You have such loyalty to him. He merely handled the test tubes, you know. It was my research, my company, my funding that led to your creation.” He stopped and looked over her before sighing and walking away. “I should have stepped in sooner. I thought coming clean about your origins a year into your existence would be better than it had worked with Superboy. Obviously I miscalculated and should have come in even sooner.”

Galatea rolled her eyes and put her hand on her hip as she looked off. “So you’re not going to let me know where he is again? I’m getting tired of this game.”

“We both are, dear,” Luthor said. “One last building. I have it sent to your GPS already. You can take care of it tonight if you’re feeling bold. I would go for something more fast acting than the old wire trick. Both to resolve my impatience and to get your job done all the sooner. Then we will have the good doctor’s whereabouts all but revealed to you.”

Distrusting but eager to fulfill her last mission, Galatea pulled the GPS from her belt and looked at the new coordinates. With a small leap, she was hovering above the floor and ready to fly off. She gave Luthor one last look. “I expect answers, Luthor. You call yourself my creator, but you’ve not been my father. Don’t forget that. And don’t forget what I can do to you if you’ve hurt him.”

“My dear, I would never dream of going against my word,” Luthor assured her.

Unimpressed, Galatea began flying out through the same balcony she had come through. GPS in hand, she was ready to the last building on her list.

Closer to the neighborhood which she almost always had been sent to, she could hear the sirens of firetrucks, no doubt responding to the new fire caused by her actions. A frown worked itself onto her face despite herself and she looked forward, ignoring it the best she could. She flew lower, so as to avoid drawing attention, keeping to the shadows of buildings and alleys.

That seemed like the best way to not be seen in Gotham, but then again, she should have known that compared to the residents, she was very unskilled at the task.

With a yell, someone small but wearing very heavy cleated boots came flying from the shadow above Galatea, landing a stomping kick down on Galatea’s back.

It obviously was not enough to hurt the cloned Kryptonian itself, but the surprise and power behind it sent her flying off course, crashing down to the alley floor as her attacker backflipped off and landed on the edge of a dumpster.

The attacker was masked in shadows, only white eyes really standing out as they glared at Galatea. “I was responding to a fire alert,” the gravelly, trying too hard voice of the girl in shadows said. “Wasn’t expecting to see a culprit fleeing from the scene.”

Galatea growled and got back into the air, contorting herself to get a clean shot of her heat vision at the girl in shadows. “I don’t have time for your justice-for-all nonsense!”

The girl flipped out of the way, coming out into the light enough to show off her red-yellow-green colors. “No nonsense, just justice!” she shouted as she threw out a series of Batarangs which Galatea shot out of the air with her heat vision.

Only, the batarangs didn’t simply drop from their trajectory as Galatea hit them. They exploded, blasting her in the face with a thick, unusual dust that immediately began to clog up her nose, mouth, throat, and eyes. She coughed, choking on the substance and clinging to her throat just before the vigilante got a few more kicks in. Enough to knock Galatea back.

“Heat vision, flying, invulnerability it looks like — it’s like punching rocks. You’re definitely Kryptonian,” the girl spoke out loud before backing up, fists raised. “But no S. You’re not from the House of El… some prisoner freed from the Phantom Zone? A long lost fugitive? Time traveler?” She stopped and tilted her head. “Clone?”

Angrily, Galatea forced her eyes open despite the burning and shot another bolt of heat vision in the girl’s direction only to be dodged again.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” the annoyance said before landing behind Galatea and knocking her to the ground again. “Okay, clone, why are you in Gotham? What’s your connection to Luthor? Why are you destroying this neighborhood? Or are all of those answers to my own questions?” She said cockily. “Better answer. Or don’t. I’m a detective, I can find it all out even without your help. I’ll just get the Justice League to take you to prison while I work on it.”

Finally adapting to the particles, Galatea spat out what parts of it had been clogging her throat and mouth before she reached back and grabbed the girl by her kevlar covered neck, then she flipped her over onto her back with a hard THUD.

With the other girl down for the count, Galatea roughly rubbed at her eyes and nose, clearing them of the substance. She then, red eyed and sniffling, stood over the girl, looking at the R emblem on her chest. “You must be Robin, of Batman and—, interesting,” Galatea deduced while the vigilante caught her breath. “I could take my turn beating you up, but I think there’s a better solution here for both of us.”

“I prefer getting punched to being someone’s partner, but sure, we can try it your way,” Robin replied breathlessly.

“You’re a detective,” Galatea continued. “You can help me find where Luthor is hiding my father, and I’ll turn over all the evidence and testimony you need to tie Luthor to the string of arsons and building collapses the East End’s had in the past month.”

Robin tilted her head. “What, seriously?”

“Seriously,” Galatea answered, holding out her hand. “Galatea.”

For a moment, it seemed like Robin was going to stubbornly refuse the offered hand, but then she at last took it. “Robin. Of Batman and— but I’m solo tonight. Which is fine. Because I’m the only one you need.”

“Alright then,” Galatea agreed, a smile growing on her face. “Let’s find my dad.”

For the fifth time that night, Robin looked down to her wrist and say an urgent alert message. One for each sibling at that point. When she grew tired of seeing the flashing, she reached toward her gauntlet and began to block Red Hood’s signal the same as she had all the others. How they got Jason involved was beyond her, though.

Just before she could turn off the signal, the Kryptonian clone — Galatea — was flying alongside her R-cycle and giving her a confused look.

Looking back, Helena squinted at her. “What?”

“Are you ever going to answer those? They’ve been going off since the moment we decided to work together. It’s… distracting,” she relied simply.

“No,” Robin said, blocking Red Hood’s signal and concentrating on the road.

“Turn here,” Galatea ordered her. “The best way to get into Lex’s penthouse is to fly up there. Through the balcony.”

“Fine,” Robin replied, turning into the alley and beginning to reach into her utility belt for her grappling gun. “Which floor is it? I’ll adjust my trajectory and—“

It took everything within Helena to keep from yelping as the Kryptonian scooped her up, bridal position, and began flying her toward the balcony in question. She struggled, wriggling as much as possible to break free only for the Kryptonian to give her a curious look.

“You’re too tense,” she said.

“You’re too— I could’ve gotten to the penthouse on my own!” Robin snapped back, glaring at Galatea as she tried to kick herself free. Again, it was like hitting rocks.

“If I drop you, you’ll be a pancake,” Galatea informed her.

“Cats always land on their feet,” Helena responded without hesitation.

“Robins are birds,” Galatea snickered to herself as she slowed down and began to land on the balcony in question.

“Shh!” Robin whispered to the super powered teenager before finally breaking free of Galatea’s hold and flipping out of her grasp. She landed perfectly and began looking around the darkened room. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously

“Is this what detective work looks like?” Galatea asked. “You seem to have those shadows really on the run.”

“Hush, you,” Robin hissed, carefully walking further into the room. “This is about stealth. We don’t want Lex or any of his cronies to know that we’re in here and that you’re going rogue.” She reached into a different pocket of her utility belt and pulled out a penlight. Twisting it on, she then looked around the large space, searching intently for a desk or any sort of tech she could get into.

Unable to help herself, Helena’s lip curled at the glassy furniture and white frosted decor. “Ugh. He’s renting from Cobblepot. Of course he’d rent with Cobblepot until he had his own buildings in Gotham. What a…”

“None of this has to do with my father,” Galatea noted almost angrily.

“It’s called rapport,” she replied. “Robins are supposed to do that when they’re working together with someone. Put them at ease with some quips.”

“Right, well, you’re terrible at it,” Galatea said firmly. “I can tell that and I’ve lived my whole life in an underground bunker.”

“Hnn,” Helena said, glancing back toward Galatea. “Believe it or not, you and I may just have that much in common. Though mine was more… batty and… cave than bunker. Also there was a giant dinosaur and an even more giant penny.”

“That… sounds amazing,” Galatea partially gasped.

“Yeah, it wears off, though. Especially when your br… Nightwings overrun the place with animals and next thing you know the robot dinosaur is getting used as a chew toy for the bat-dragon and you’re still not allowed to get a horse,” Helena muttered, mostly to herself.

“Your life sounds more colorful than my bunker with my dad,” Galatea sighed fondly. “But he was so good to me. He… he’s my father. He’s my world. Even when everyone else saw me as a weapon or an experiment, he saw me as… he saw me as Galatea. And that’s the best thing anyone has ever seen me as.”

Turning around entirely, Robin faced the clone, looked deeply into her sad blue eyes, and smiled. “Hey. I can’t wait to meet him when we save him. But just for the record, he’s not the only one who knows you’re Galatea anymore,” she offered.

Galatea’s face lit up in response, but the moment did not last too long, as there was a glint of metal behind Galatea’s head that caught Robin’s eye as well. A laptop!

“Score!” Robin grinned, racing over to the bed and pausing to curl her lip again at the polar bear comforter that Lex Luthor was probably sleeping under. “Oh, gross. I’m personally going to skin Luthor if I get the chance.” She reached over to the nightstand and grabbed the laptop.

“You’ll have to wait in line,” Galatea replied, punching one fist into the other hand.

“Right,” Robin replied, arching a brow before opening the laptop and sitting down on the floor with it. “I guess your father’s safety is more important than the preservation of endangered species, sure.”

Pulling a usb cord from her gauntlet, Robin then plugged into the computer and began allowing the ORACLE program to take affect. She was sure the actual Oracle was about to be incredibly pissed and discover that her system was being used without Robin so much as making a customary call-in, but such was life. Robin was solving her own case and getting her own pet Super on the side.

Tim Drake-Wayne, eat your heart out.

“How long will this take?” Galatea asked, hovering above Robin but likewise crossing her legs and sitting. “Every minute my dad is under Lex Luthor’s control is a minute he could be hurt or starved or tortured or—“

“It’ll take a few minutes, you have to give me time to figure out what I’m even looking for,” Robin responded. “Besides, it’s not like this is simple hacking. We’re talking about Lex Corp firewalls and technical protections. Not only am I trying to beat the clock, I’m trying to not disrupt more files than necessary so that they can’t see that we were here before we want them to.”

For a moment, it seemed that Galatea found the information disquieting. She then widened her eyes and hovered closer to Robin, being just over her shoulder. “Search for Project Nuvo-Gen,” she said with a sudden epiphany. “That’s the project for creating me. Anything related to me and Doctor Hamilton would be under that.”

“Alright, good,” Robin answered, immediately typing it in and being rewarded with a plethora of results from the Lex Corp server. “Gotta love Lex’s micromanaging, he’s got wide access across his entire company—“ She stopped, staring at the page in front of her. Her heart was pounding as she read over the name again and again. “This says Nuvo-Gen is being ran by Doctor Emil Hamilton,” she informed Galatea.

“Right, that’s my dad,” she insisted.

“But… that doesn’t make sense,” Robin muttered, head racing with all the files she had read through over the years of known Justice League adversaries. “He’s your dad? Emil Hamilton? Used to work for STAR Labs?” Before she could press further, though, a file change came up — something as recent as the last three days. Which was probably for the best since Galatea was getting visibly upset with the line of questioning. “Wait, it says here that you’re supposed to be field testing this month.”

“Yes, but my father didn’t want that for me,” Galatea explained. “He was going to get me out of the compound and we were going to try to live a normal life. We had all these plans—“

Robin’s eyes narrowed as she read the exact description on the file before her. “Live in a rural Kansas town on a farm, just the two of you?”

“Yes!” Galatea said, delighted. She then paused, realizing something was devastatingly wrong. “Wait. How did you know that?”

“Galatea,” Robin began, looking up to the clone. She was at a loss for words, not sure how she could even explain what the files were telling her.

Not that she had the time as she could hear the click of the door’s lock.

Thinking fast, Robin grabbed Galatea by the ankle and yanked her down to the floor. “Hide!” she hissed, sliding herself under the bed.

“What?” Galatea began before seeing the door knob turning. She then slid under the bed with Helena, crowding her.

“I meant your own place!” Helena hissed, pressing against Galatea to no avail.

They both went silent as the door opened, however, and two pairs of nicely dressed shoes entered and closed the door behind them.

“She takes too much time, though I appreciate how all of the buildings meet the perfect excuse of accidental substandard conditions, I doubt that it’s my preferences leading to the decisions being made by her,” Luthor’s voice said, walking around the room. “She’s doing it to make sure there are no casualties.”

“That’s what we would want from her, though, isn’t it?” a second voice answered. “Unlike the aliens we want her to value human life as much or more than her own.”

Helena’s stomach churned, feeling a cold, sinking sensation. She glanced toward Galatea in time to watch as her world fell apart.

“Daddy?” she whispered breathlessly.

“My life, Doctor. We want my life and my vision to be what she values above all else. And anything short of that would be disastrous to my plans for the future. Can you understand that?”

Doctor Hamilton sighed, sitting in a chair. “Of course I can. That’s what she was made to do. That’s why I earned her trust.”

Robin watched as the shock and tears faded from Galatea’s face and began to grow into something snarling, angry. A red glow was coming from them. “No,” she whispered. “Tea! Don’t—“

Before anything more could be said, Galatea flew straight up, flipping the bed over and hardly giving Robin time to move herself and the all-important laptop out of the way.

Both Luthor and Hamilton were shocked, but the only emotion that could be felt in the room was all from Galatea. Rage rippled out from her as strongly as the heat from her eyes.

“How dare you!” Galatea snarled. “Earn my trust? You created me! You gave me life! You were my father! Trust? You had my devotion! You had my love! And it was all a lie!? It was just a joke!?” she roared.

“Galatea! You’ve returned early,” Luthor said, cool as a cucumber. “I wouldn’t expect this sort of foresight and planning from you at this stage. But then again,” he looked over Robin’s way, his own lip curling in disgust. “I see the local pests have made their entrance as well.”

“That line might’ve worked if I was a bat or rat or anything, but who thinks of songbirds as pests, Luthor?” Robin quipped back. “Sounds like you need new material.”

“What he needs is a new face!” Galatea roared, zipping forward and surprising them all by grabbing Luthor and grabbing Hamilton by the collars of their shirts and flying out the balcony door.

That had been among the last things that Robin had expected and she had to recover from the momentary shock before making her way over to the balcony herself. “Galatea! Wait!”

She stopped right against the balcony railing, still five or so feet from Galatea and there she was dangling Hamilton and Luthor over the street.

“You want me to value human life less?” Galatea growled. “Good! I think I’m starting to see the appeal of it!”

“Galatea! You wouldn’t!” the ‘good’ doctor begged.

The clone’s head snapped in his direction, eyes aflame. “You don’t know me. You don’t know anything about me! You never did. Just like I never truly knew you. If you did, you’d know that I’m not exactly feeling like not dropping you at the moment.”

“Galatea!” Robin screamed as loud as she could, getting the super girl’s attention at last. “He doesn’t know you! There’s no way they can. And they don’t deserve to,” Robin said, thinking quickly. “But I’ve met you just for one night and I feel like I’m getting to know you already. You’re eager, and thoughtful. You’re loyal and you love — you’ve just had the wrong people in your life to love until now.”

“Now you know me!?” Galatea snarled.

“No,” Robin replied. “I just know that the girl I’ve met tonight would never forgive herself if she did what you’re about to do right now.” Hesitantly, she offered out her hand toward Galatea. “Please, don’t do this. Don’t be what they want you to be. Don’t be a weapon. Be…. Be Tea.”

Lips quivering, Galatea slowly turned around, both Luthor and Hamilton in tow, and slowly flew back toward the balcony, dropping her head as she lowered them both to the ground and all but slumping over into Robin’s waiting arms after she released the men.

Helena was stunned at first but she quickly overcame it, hugging Galatea tightly and brushing a hand through the girl’s hair. “It’s okay. It’s okay.”

“You’re the first person to ever call me Tea,” the blonde sniffed against Robin’s shoulder pad. “I really like it.”

“I’m glad,” Robin replied before glancing up and seeing Luthor trying to make a break for it. “Hold on just a second, Tea.” She quickly pulled out her bolas and with one hand swung them around before throwing, wrapping around Luthor’s legs and causing him to face plant. “See,” Robin offered, letting Galatea look up enough to see her handiwork. “You were right, he will need a new face even without falling fifty stories.”

Despite her tears and sobbing, Galatea smiled and snorted through her crying, wiping away tears that she could. “What-what do we do now?”

“Well, we did our part,” Robin assured her, looking down to her gauntlet and activating the blue Nightwing signal rather than the yellow. “I think it’s about time the cops did theirs.”

Galatea sat on the sidewalk with her head low, more aware than she had ever been that the resilient material that made her compound’s testing uniform was abnormal and something that caught the eyes of others when in public. It seemed like each time she looked up, she caught someone looking back at her.

But no eyes were worse than that of her so-called father’s as he was pushed into the police car by none other than the police commissioner himself.

Lex Luthor was ranting to the available presses about there being “NO COMMENT” as he was put in a car of his own.

Everything was terrible and Galatea’s world was gone — she had never missed the bunker of the compound more.

What she didn’t expect was for Robin to come up behind her and drape a shock blanket around her shoulders.

“I don’t really get cold,” Galatea informed her. “I was put through subarctic temperatures once and was unaffected.”

“It’s okay,” Robin said, dropping to sit on the sidewalk beside Galatea. “Sometimes the things we need most aren’t really what we literally need. You know?”

“No,” she answered honestly. “I don’t know anything anymore.”

Robin’s frown grew, but in a move that was truly exceptional, she reached around Galatea’s shoulders and pulled the clone closer to herself in a half hug. “Well, it’s a good time to start. And I’ll help you out any way I can.”

“Do you really mean that?” Galatea asked.

“Yeah, I do,” Robin answered.

“Thank you, Robin,” Galatea said leaning forward and kissing her on the lips. When she pulled back she found Robin to be ramrod straight, eyes wider than saucers and face noticeably growing red. “Oh, Robin. I’m sorry. I thought that was how movies end.”

“Uh. Yeah. They sure do. Uh. Wow. Okay,” Robin sputtered incoherently. “Um. Let’s start at the beginning of this movie, though. Start over. Get to know each other. Have a stupid misunderstanding we fix up. That sorta thing.”

Smiling softly, Galatea put a hand over Robin’s and felt warmth spread through her when the other girl did not pull back. “If it’s all the same to you, Robin, I’d like to stay on this ending a little while longer. Just that way I don’t have to worry about reality a little bit longer.”

Robin wavered before nodding. “Yeah, okay. We should do that. We can do that. Plus I got to close my very first solo case. Take that, Dad! I mean Batman.” She hesitated before rubbing a hand down her face. “Ugh. My rapport.”

“Is getting better,” Galatea assured her, leaning in to lay her head against Robin’s shoulder.

If it was how Galatea’s recent chapter ended, she was glad to have it also be where the new chapter of her life — one that was free and open to the whole world outside of the compound — could begin.