#and would die for someone to make an animation of them having a dinner fight aboit cucurucho lol

[eternallovers65]

It will never not be funny the fact that the people roier trusts the most are jaiden "cucurucho lover" animations and cell "president of the cucurucho hate club" bit

[temis-de-leon]

MC with a selfish best friend

MC mourning the loss of a long toxic friendship with the help of the brothers.

Characters: demon brothers and fem!MC (written as platonic, but could be read as romantic)

Masterlist , Part 2 (kind of)

CW: continued discussion about weight gain and weight loss, eating as a coping mechanism, obssesive and manipulative behaviour, emotional blackmail, a glimpse of animal neglect, a tiny nod at suicide, MC trying to hide her feelings, anxiety, TLC from the brothers

A/N: kind of self insert because I'm writing my own experience, so this isn't the most relatable MC. Still, I hope you enjoy it! Remember I'm not a native english speaker, so there might be some grammar mistakes.

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Back then, not that long ago, MC was completely sure she wouldn’t go any further in life. She was stuck in college, in her family and her friend group. There was a dynamic she could work through and, although it could be better, she wasn’t one to complain.

It was a flooded basement with filthy water, but at least it lacked rats.

She just needed some time to start working on herself. Go to therapy, lose some weight maybe? Start cooking again and stop wasting money on fast food. She did use to enjoy spending time in the kitchen and experimenting, after all, but the only things she cooked during her last months in the human realm were mugcakes and pasta. Not necessarily nutritious, but easy to make.

Thank god she had her best friend.

Her companion in the basement, the one with the flashlight.

MC wished she let her hold her hand too.

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“She’s overthinking again. Not good”

“Look who’s talking”

“Hey! It was just a joke!”

“Should we talk to her?”

“Maybe when she comes back, else we’ll give her a heart attack”

“Yeah, Lucifer would kill us”

“Oh, so now we’re doing this for Lucifer?”

“Don’t be selfish, Mammon”

“Who ya calling selfish?”

“Ugh”

MC listened carefully, softly smiling at Beel and Levi’s voices drowning Mammon’s in an almost silent screaming match.

She couldn’t see them from her position, her upper body completely sprawled over the armrest and her line of sight lost in the ashes of the chimney. The fire cracked, threatening to die in front of her, but it was difficult to get up when her body weighted so much. She was tired and hungry and nauseous and even the idea of sitting straight sent bile to her mouth.

Then someone walked into the common room, shushing harshly and getting the other brothers to cease their fighting. Whoever it was, probably Lucifer or Satan, must have thought she was asleep.

So MC closed her eyes, hiding her face in the crook of her arm and basking in the comfortable silence. She could hear them still; the shuffle of cards, a plastic wrapper, buttons and joysticks.

The newcomer got close to her, covering her body with a blanket and sitting at her feet before opening a book. There was enough space in the couch for at least two more people, but MC still curled up, trying to make more room for him. She stopped in her tracks when he grabbed her ankle in a gentle grip, a gesture that brought some warmth where her pants didn’t reach.

Would someone add another log for the fire? Everyone seemed too comfortable to move.

At least the blanket was thick. Pure hellish wool or something, because every animal in the Devildom was just a bigger scarier version of those in the human realm. It was also, however, softer than any type of textile she could’ve ever find back home, so the creature could spit fire for all she cared.

Suddenly, the brother caressing her ankle tightened his grip for a short moment, demanding her attention. When MC opened her eyes, she found Satan smiling at her with no one else in the room. She must’ve fallen asleep after all.

“Dinner is ready”

He let her stretch, unconsciously comparing her to a cat when she arched her back and cracked every possible bone in her body. Satan wondered if that ever hurt, but MC seemed to enjoy it very much whenever she had the occasion to do so, like when they came home from classes after a long day or when they bought groceries for the whole week and Beel. 

“Did you not sleep well last night?”

“Not for a while, no”

“Is that so? Something troubling you, MC? Anything I can help with?”

“I don’t know”

She sounded sincere, but Satan didn’t buy it. Only a month had passed since MC came back to the Devildom, looking a bit more tired than when she left at the end of the first year of the program, and she’d acted ecstatic when she learnt she would be living with them again.

He was sure the problem relied in her human phone, something she didn’t have last year and Diavolo had kindly allowed her to keep.

All of his brothers, even the eldest, were greatly impressed when MC showed them how she unlocked the device with her fingerprints, as well as the human versions of Devilgram, Deviltube and Akuzon. That was a fun day, but time passed and soon the phone became an inconvenience. Someone at the other side of the line was taking their beloved human’s time, leaving her exhausted in the aftermath of their conversations and, if Satan vision’s was correct, teary eyed.

That would not continue. Not on his watch.

“We’ll look into it in another moment. Right now, let’s go with the others. Aren’t you hungry?”

“God, yes!”

They both chuckled and he forced his thoughts away. They could wait for the time being.

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Beel didn’t judge her, but she didn’t feel as happy as she thought she would whenever they sneaked in the kitchen at the late hours of the night.

Opening the fridge door with slow movements, trying not to make noise while taking plates or bowls and eating in silence between giggles and short whispers brought a sort of familiarity. And Beel never judged MC. Why would he? He ate even more than her. He’d keep going long after she was finished, full enough to want to puke everything, and MC would feel a wicked satisfaction knowing that no matter how much she ate, there was someone that would eat much more.

Those nights she’d go to bed feeling sick and greasy, too regretful and high on sugar to be tired. Then, by morning, she’d force herself to eat breakfast and go on with her day just to get whatever sense of normality she could reach.

Although, lately, things had been slightly different.

They still got together at night and filled their mouths to the brim, but Beel was adamant about MC going to the gym with him when the morning came, before everyone was out of bed. Of course she’d said no since the beginning, but he kept insisting, saying she didn’t have to exercise if she didn’t want to.

MC still said no.

Then Asmodeus put his input.

“I’m not going to tell you what to do, hon’, but you aren’t getting your 8 hours of sleep and you’re adding calories during the night. That’s horrible for your skin!”

And had it been her mother saying that, MC would’ve lashed out, rejecting opinions she’d been hearing for years over and over and over again, but this was Asmo. The Avatar of Lust. The most beautiful demon in the entire Devildom. MC guessed she wasn’t being fair to her mother, who also loved her and hated seeing her so sick and tired all the time, when it was Asmo she couldn’t ignore.

“I get anxious when I go to bed” she finally confessed.

MC could feel Satan’s eyes on her, but he stayed silent.

“Spend the night with me” intervened Belphie with an honest smile, a muted worry in his eyes “I could make you so tired you wouldn’t want to get out of bed”

“No way!”

Everyone looked at Mammon and several sighs filled the room. The demon, although deeply blushing, kept talking with an overbearing smugness.

“If someone’s gonna sleep with her, it’s gonna be me! Don’t worry MC, the Great Mammon will chase the nightmares away!”

“I think sleeping with you would give her nightmares, actually”

Mammon turned to Levi, ready to swing at his brother, but MC talked before the fight started.

“It’s not nightmares, Mams, I just feel anxious. You know, like, I can’t stop thinking”

“About what?”

She looked at Satan, who was staring at her with a calculating glance, surely remembering what she told him days before when she fell asleep on the couch.

“I don’t know… Everything, I guess”

All of them stayed silent, ignoring what they were previously doing. It didn’t feel uncomfortable, but MC wished someone said anything.

Of course, Mammon spoke first.

“Well, that’s a lot”

“No shit, you moron”

Levi finally got smacked and the rest of them went back to do their own thing, letting MC’s lack of sleep behind. A part of her wanted to keep the conversation going, but she felt too embarrassed when she tried to open her mouth again, especially having Satan looking at her like a hawk.

You don't want me to stare at you? I want to. What's the problem?

She achieved to ignore him in the end.

That night she stayed in her room, pacing, chewing her sweatshirt’s aglet while humming that Phineas and Ferb’s song and turning her headphone’s volume to the maximum with a different music threatening to deteriorate her hearing.

Anything to distract herself and not go to the kitchen.

Finally, hours after bidding the brothers goodnight, MC threw herself on the bed. Her feet were aching, its footprints surely engraved in the carpet, and she forgot to take her headphones off, making the position uncomfortable, but the important thing was that she didn’t have the need to eat anymore.

However, Beel still knocked her door at dawn.

MC stared at him when she opened, bleary-eyed and mouth as dry as cotton, the hem of her pyjama pants so high they looked like pantaloons. He, on the other hand, was completely awake and seemed ready to conquer the day.

“Before you say anything, I’m not going to the gym today”

There was a heavy silence for a couple of seconds.

“Then why did you wake me up? We have classes tomorrow”

Beel stared at her with a worried expression.

“We don’t. It’s Saturday”

“Ah”

She could’ve sleep longer? MC wished she was mad at him, but his puppy stare was hypnotizing.

“I want to go for a walk today. And I want you to come with me”

He lowered his gaze for a moment, biting his cheek while waiting for an answer. MC turned around and looked at the window, still unable to decipher what time it was by looking at the sky.

There were a few things MC missed from the human realm. The sun was one of them.

“We could go to the park, feed some birds and then have breakfast somewhere else. I swear I won’t eat the seeds this time"

She chuckled, rolling her eyes when he smiled back. Then she looked down at the rolled pants and her bare legs.

“Is it cold?”

“I don’t think so, but you can borrow my jacket”

MC sighed and rubbed her eyes, waiting until the white spots disappeared before walking towards her closet. She wouldn’t be able to fall asleep again, she knew that.

“Let me change and then we’re going. But you owe me one, Beel!”

His smile was too wide for him to answer.

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Breakfast with Beel ended up lasting three whole hours, which was understandable, and they spent the whole time talking about nothing and almost everything, both of them clearly avoiding the subject of her sleeping habits.

MC really did want to talk about it, but then again, what did she want to talk about exactly? She had trouble falling asleep, yes, and she’d gone back to eating her feelings, but she couldn’t point out the reason. Her nights were filled with paranoia, making her revaluate every piece of interaction she’d had since she got back home from the Devildom months ago. Did she spoke correctly? Did people understand that she was just studying abroad and not begging for attention?

She hoped her best friend dropped those accusations. MC would never stoop so low. Just thinking about it brought tears to her eyes.

“Don’t you want anything else?”

MC looked at Beel and the stack of plates surrounding him at the table, mugs and cardboard boxes stained with chocolate, whipped cream and frosting. Her side of the booth was much cleaner, but when she lowered her gaze the only thing she could think of were mugcakes and pasta and the taste of bile in her mouth at the sight of her bloated stomach.

“No, I’m fine”

She knew he loved her. She knew she could talk to him and he would listen and maybe even hold her hand, but the small restaurant was already filled with demons and witches and whatnot and MC knew she’d only be able to sob the moment she’d open her mouth, so she stayed quiet.

Beel nodded, going back to his food with a strange calmness. Maybe he was close to being full?

But no, it wasn’t that.

MC gasped when she felt his foot weakly tapping hers before going under it to support its weight. A small comfort, like the prelude of a long awaited hug.

He didn’t know how much she appreciated it.

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Winter had already reached the Devildom the day MC opened her closet and stared at her clothes. No matter what she chose, everything was at least a size bigger.

She guessed finally going to the gym with Beel did have some payoff.

“Is something wrong, MC?”

Asmo turned the lights of her bathroom off, walking where she was silently standing while staring at the discarded clothes around her.

“You don’t feel like dressing up today? We can stay home and do some self-care if you want”

MC turned around to look at him with gratitude. She knew how much he wanted to go shopping, especially with her. Finals ended just the day before and everyone had been so occupied they’d barely seen each other outside classes and meal times.

“Don’t worry, it’s not that. It’s just that… everything feels wrong. I think I lost weight”

He chuckled at her revelation, hugging her waist and kissing her cheek between giggles.

“You’re taking care of yourself, silly! Whatever are you doing with Beel in the gym, I wonder…?”

She laughed and lightly hit his arm, showing no ill intent, and Asmo smiled in response, not bothering to hide his lewd expression.

“Don’t be nasty!”

 “Oh, I’m just joking! But you know what this means, right? We get to renew your whole closet!”

MC turned around again, perfectly knowing that she could either spent her monthly allowance on clothes or start thinking on how she could rock the oversize streetwear style.

She sighed, trying to hide her smile with no success before speaking again. Asmo’s eyes were stuck on her.

“Very well, then” she wasn’t finish talking yet when the demon clapped his hands and jumped in excitement “I’ll trust your criteria”

He gasped and hit her arm in return.

“As you should!”

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“So… how do I look?”

Mammon whistled, clapping and signalling her to turn around in response. Once she did a little twirl, he clapped even harder, not stopping even when she blushed in embarrassment and ran towards him to stop his overly excited appreciation.

“You look mighty fine, MC!”

“Stop!”

“Has anyone ever told you how hot you look?”

“Stop!!”

They were both laughing, her chasing him all around his room with burning cheeks and a gigantic smile.

The shopping bags waited patiently at the door, half of them already empty with a pile of clothes folded on the couch. Mammon had insisted on a private catwalk the moment he learnt she’d gone shopping with Asmo, his offense completely gone barely half an hour after starting the show in his room.

Every time she changed in his opened closet he’d cover his eyes with his hands and every time she came out with a new outfit he’d scream praises like a madman.

MC wasn’t used to this level of compliments and he sure was making it hard to stay calm.

“C’mon, go change again!”

“You’re acting insane right now, Mams”

She was smiling like crazy and her cheeks were hurting, but she didn’t want it to stop. When was the last time someone had been this hyped over her looking pretty? She couldn’t remember.

Then her phone rang.

MC stopped smiling when she saw the name on the screen.

She thought about answering and spoiling a nice evening because of a sour one-sided conversation. Was it worth it? Sure her friend could wait a couple more hours, right? She’d survived without MC the whole year she spent at the Devildom uncommunicated, after all.

“Is it The Unnameable?”

MC stared at her phone for one more second before turning around to look at Mammon, who was kneeling on the couch with his arms crossed over the backrest, eyes peeking with curiosity and another feeling she couldn’t identify.

“The Unname… Robdemor??”

He nodded, blushing and looking away.

“Yeah. You know, like, her name brings bad luck or some shit”

“She doesn’t bring bad luck”

MC didn’t sound as convincing as she wanted to and Mammon’s incredulity proved her point.

“Don’t be stupid, MC”

The pot calling the kettle back, she wanted to say, but no words came to her mouth. She was being stupid, wasn’t she? Everyone at the house already knew what to expect whenever her phone ringed or vibrated and they always did their best to distract her so she could leave the damn thing behind. She suspected Belphie even turned it off at one point.

Staring at her feet, trying to voice her feelings, MC talked again.  

“She just… needs me sometimes”

“Sometimes??”

Mammon got up, going around the couch to reach her. He looked flabbergasted, eyes opened wide and a myriad of words stuck in his throat.

The phone stopped ringing, but soon a flood of messages interrupted the silence to call for her attention instead. When she looked back at Mammon, he had frustration in his eyes.

She decided then she couldn’t bear to see him like this, so serious and reasonable. Was it too late to go back to chasing each other, laughing while trying new clothes? She’d been capable of keeping her feelings to herself since she could remember, but Mammon wouldn’t let her do that and she feared the moment the rest of the brothers decided enough was enough too.

God, she needed to talk, but not right now. Talking would make it real and she still wasn’t strong enough for the whole situation to be real.

In a matter of seconds her eyes were watering and she felt as if her throat had thorns stuck in her flesh, but before she could do anything about it there were arms wrapping around her. MC wasted no time hugging Mammon back, trying her hardest not to spoil any tears. The tags in the back of her new shirt poked her skin, making her squirm and get even closer to Mammon’s body.

He was rocking her side to side while petting her hair and there was no doubt he’d deny the whole ordeal happening afterwards, but she let herself enjoy the feeling anyways. It was nice being taken care of.

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It was the first time MC had gone to bed so early since before college. Her eyelids felt heavy and the bed was soft and comfortable, at least three blankets shielding her from the cold outside that froze her window and sunk her room in darkness.

But she couldn’t stop staring at her phone.

She’d turned the vibration off days ago, but that didn’t stop the notifications from showing up on the lock screen and, although she could also take care of that, MC still wanted to be able to read the messages without needing to open the app.

Her best friend talked about everything, good or bad. Mostly bad. How she thought her boyfriend was cheating on her, even when she was the one cheating on him, how much she was eating because there was no one to stop her, how tired she was to even clean her cat’s litter box. She’d say if MC were there everything would be so much better, she wouldn’t feel so lonely.

She didn’t ask about MC once.

“You’re thinking so hard it’s giving me a headache”

MC’s body violently jerked at Belphie’s voice.

He’d entered the room in silence, closing the door and approaching her bed without making any noise. Seeing her freaking out made him snicker, but he was too tired to fully laugh and simply laid down next to her.

“Jesus, Belphie”

“No, just me”

“Ha ha ha”

Her sarcasm didn’t affect him in the slightest. MC watched as he closed his eyes and offered his hand to held hers in a firm grasp, probably not wanting to let her go during the night.

“Turn that damn thing off” he growled against the pillow when a new message showed up.

“I’ve seen you sleep on the ground before; you can’t complain about some light”

“Watch me”

She thought he was just joking, challenging her like a small child would, but Belphie managed to surprise her when he rolled over her body, grabbed the phone and threw it to the other side of the room.

“Belphie!”

He shushed, sealing her lips under his hand before hugging her body with all four limbs, trapping her under the covers.

MC could’ve complained and hit him until he let her go to retrieve the phone, but that would’ve meant pissing him off and staring at the screen for another hour or until her friend decided it was time to show some interest in MC’s life.

…

Whoa.

…

So that’s what it was.

That simple, uh?

MC waited for something to happen at her epiphany. Nausea, panic, heavy breathing. Instead, she felt an overpowering sense of relief. Her heartbeat evened and the frown she didn’t know she had in her forehead disappeared.

No headache, no memories. For once, no nothing.

“You’re not dying, aren’t you?”

Belphie’s head rose, looking at her with suspicion, but her eyes were stuck in the ceiling.

“Why? Would you feel guilty?

He stood over her then, pouting and frowning, and MC had to stop herself from laughing.

“Okay, you know what? I already said I was sorry. You can’t hold that against me for the rest of your life”

“I will as long as I can get something out of it”

“You’re evil”

“Said the demon”

His head fell face first on the pillow with a thud and if she didn’t know him any better, she’d be worried about him suffocating to death during the night.

“Why did you ask that, tho?” MC finally talked.

“Your heart stopped for a second” he shrugged and mumbled, his hold on her hand stronger than before.

“Oh… Well… Don’t worry. I’m okay”

“Are you sure?”

No, not really, but she didn’t want to talk about it in that moment. Maybe another time, when her speech wasn’t slurred due to sleep and she could organize her thoughts with a clear mind.

She hummed as an answer before speaking one last time.

“Goodnight, Belphie”

“Sweet dreams, MC”

He’d make sure of that.

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MC had been quiet for a while. Not out of sadness nor ire, but something much more private. Something that left her pensive and still, staring into nothing with a serious expression. She laughed and talked with the brothers and, from what he heard, she enjoyed going to the gym with Beel, but Lucifer knew there was another factor escaping his reach.

Whatever it was, it changed MC for the better, so he was happy.

Even when the strangest ideas crossed her mind.

“I think I’m going to cut my hair”

He looked at her, clicking his tongue in disapproval when he saw her sitting sideways in one of the chairs with her feet resting in the other. She had a book resting in her lap. How long had she been looking at him and not reading?

“May I ask why?”

“I need a change”

Lucifer stared, taking his glasses off before crossing his arms over the document he was previously reading. MC got up and walked, zigzagging her way towards his desk as if she was drunk, but she looked as hopeful as ever.

“Did something happen?”

She nodded, ignoring his question right after.

“One of these days I’m just gonna… grab a glass of wine, go to the bathroom and bam! Haircut”

He raised an eyebrow, trying to hide a smile at her words. He hadn’t seen her so playful in months and the sudden change felt like a breath of fresh air.

“Do you even like wine, MC?”

“That’s not the point”

“And you shouldn’t use scissors while drunk, especially near your head” he ignored her “If it’s money you’re worried about, I can pay for a good hairdresser”

She laughed and shook her head, partially sitting on the desk. They stayed silent for a few seconds and Lucifer let himself observe her, how she bit her bottom lip deep in thought and how her fingers intertwined with a certain force. She was probably hurting herself at that point.

“I just really need a change”

He could tell there was more she wanted to say, but that seemed to be enough for the moment. The silence afterwards felt full with comfort.

“That’s fine”

MC nodded and sent him a small smile before going back to the chair, this time sitting with her knees stuck to her chest, but before he could put his glasses on to continue his work, she spoke again.

“Here’s what we’re going to do: I cut my hair in the bathroom and then you take me to the hairdresser to style it. Sounds good?”

“Are you going to drink while using the scissors?”

“I’m not a child, Lucifer”

“Might as well”

“Hey!”

“Just joking” he laughed, but MC could tell there was some seriousness behind his smile.

“I drink wine, I cut my hair and you check I don’t stab myself on accident, how about that?”

Lucifer pondered about it, envisioning himself behind her and watching over her reflection in the mirror, a bottle of wine in the countertop and another of Demonus waiting for them in the music room. She’d be the one to clean the aftermath, that bit was obvious, but something told him she wouldn’t really care about that.

The more he thought about it, the less strength he had to fight it. She could’ve asked Asmodeus or Mammon, but she asked him. MC wanted him to be with her during her progress, as stupid as the method was.

“Sounds like a plan to me, MC”

Her smile at his words was worth millions.

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It wasn’t until several hours had passed that MC wondered if Levi invited her to his room with a hidden motive in mind.

The anime came out less than a day ago and she’d never even seen an ad about it, but he’d thoroughly claimed it was made for her.

And she could see why he would say that, honestly.

Sure, no ancient dying star granted her any mystical powers that allowed her to soar the skies or wear an alarmingly short sparkly dress; and she didn’t have an animal sidekick or a romantic interest that only appeared at night for some reason. She didn’t have an arch nemesis either, but she did have the closest thing.

MC was the selfish one, apparently, because how could she? How could MC have the audacity to ignore her best friend’s messages in her desperate times of need? Her boyfriend broke up with her because he discovered the cheating and no one was there to remind her of feeding the cat, neither to monitor her diet nor to fix the consequences of her bad decisions. She was in the lowest point of her life and MC dared to lose weight and spend time with her new friends? Outrageous!

MC unlocked her phone and stared in silence at the new text and voice messages, as well as some missed calls.

You disappoint me, MC.

After all I did for you?

I’ll die and it’ll be your fault.

I’ll die and I’ll make sure you’re the one to discover my body.

You’ll never be able to forget about me then.

You’re disgusting.

MC stared at the screen, not knowing if she should laugh or cry about it. In the end she chuckled and forced down the sting in her throat.

The TV in front of her suddenly turned into a kaleidoscope and she squinted as the heroine jumped from platform to platform, blasting her wand and singing spells. If she understood correctly, the cheery character was fighting her way through the first big boss of the season, her friends close behind her.

She could feel Levi’s eyes on her, no doubt studying her reactions to see if she liked the anime as much as he did.

“Hey, Henry!”

MC turned to look at him and smiled brightly at his rosy cheeks. She expected him to explain some hidden lore or the meaning behind the soundtrack, but he surprised her with his next words.

“Yeah?”

“I haven’t told you yet, but your hair looks so cool!”

“Oh!” she widely opened her eyes in appreciation, showing her teeth in a beaming smile right after “Thanks, Levi!”

“You look… eh… upgraded. Well, no, not upgraded. Erm…” he avoided her gaze for the next few seconds before pausing the anime, letting the room go back to silence. MC kept quiet, trying not to laugh at his awkwardness so he wouldn’t misunderstand the situation.

“You look really pretty, MC. Even better than her”

Levi nodded at the TV and MC stared at the heroine, the pause conveniently showing her winning pose. Big sparkly eyes winking at her and a knowing smile occupying half of her face, as if she was approving Levi’s affirmation.

MC felt the need to cry right then and there, but she held it in.

Her phone lighted up one last time before she grabbed it and turned it off in anger. She had a couple of seconds before the screen permanently went back to black, letting her read the last message.

Who do you think you are? How could you do this to me?

MC seethed. She knew who she was, even if she was still learning. Her hands itched and she forced herself not to throw the phone on the ground with all her strength. She still needed it to talk to other friends and relatives, after all.

After an entire minute filled with tense silence, MC spoke, suddenly meek and shy.

 “Hey Lev…”

“MC?”

He was staring her with caring eyes, unsure of what to do or what to say.

Fortunately, for the first time in a long while, MC knew what she needed to do. For herself and no one else.

“Would you help me change my phone number?”

She could write down the numbers of those she cared about the most and send a message asking them not to share hers without her permission.

Take care of her arch nemesis without destroying the entire world. Accept the help of people who showed joy at her improvement. Buy new clothes, change her style, cut her hair.

God, walking without that heavy weight on her shoulders would be difficult and painful, but she’d rather die before letting her ex best friend destroy her will and power one last time.

She laughed with a choke and Levi gasped her name.

She was crying.

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@ourfinalisation

[swee7dream]

slowly but surely zhong chenle x f!reader

genres agere content, angst, fluff warnings internalized anti-agere, mention of a panic attack but not in depth. lmk if i missed any ! wc 2.3k dni if you sexualize age regression

summary it's the end of the year but you are finding it very difficult to be in celebratory mood.

dni: if you sexualize age regression and/or have an 18+ blog.

You’re going to quit your job.

You are, you’re making a promise to yourself about it and you have already decided to honor the promises you make to yourself this coming year. You are going to quit your job and nothing is going to stand in your way this time.

Only your boss would talk about an end-of-year party as a ‘compulsory team meeting’. You were supposed to have a nice simple evening with Chenle at home, making dinner together and then watching the fireworks until one of you falls asleep. A nice simple evening that did not have you hyperventilating in the bathroom out of fear you would be let go.

The plan was to stop by the store as soon as you finished your shift to ensure you got the freshest ingredients for the pesto pasta recipe you found on Pinterest and get more than the advised portions because you know for a fact half of it will end up on your kitchen floor when the play-fighting gets out of hand.

It was meant to be a night of relaxing and reflecting and not any of what you are feeling right now: stressed, angry, and murderous.

You take a sniff of your clothes as you walk from the bus stop back home, wondering if you can still wear this jacket out tomorrow or if you’ll smell like you bathed in alcohol fully dressed. Moisture seeps through your boot and into your sock from a puddle you didn’t notice on the sidewalk a couple of minutes back and you feel your entire body rejecting the sensation.

You mumble to yourself while doing quick work of inputting the PIN code to your front door lock, squeezing your eyes tight in an attempt to bring moisture back to your dried-out eyes.

‘Bath, color, cuddle, sleep. Bath, color, cuddle, sleep. Bath, color, cuddle, sleep!’

The plan for the night repeats like a broken record in your mind, mentally pushing yourself to go on just a little longer. You let out a sigh of relief when the lock finally sings its tune of entrance after three failed attempts.

“There’s my girl. I thought someone was trying to break in or something.”

The mental image of you talking with your dolls and stuffed animals shatters like a priceless vase, the shards amounting to the grains of sand in the sea.

“Hi.” You drop your bag on the floor the second you have a foot inside. You were so excited about tonight, how could you forget so quickly? Your boyfriend is so excited to see you and all you can think about is how you want everyone to die, that’s rich.

“Hey.” Chenle’s smile drops at your lack of enthusiasm. “You okay?”

“Okay… Just tired. ‘m gonna take a bath, ‘kay?” Your lips barely part as you speak and your feet don’t lift an inch from the floor, shuffling down the hallway instead. Tongue trapped between your teeth, you stop yourself from saying something you’ll regret on the way to the bathroom.

—

Your own gasp wakes you and you find that you’ve fallen asleep in the tub. How long have you been asleep? The water’s not exactly warm anymore and you see your fingertips have pruned up like raisins. You poke at them while leaning over the edge before sighing. Chenle’s out there waiting for you, you remind yourself, you can’t just stay pruned up like this forever.

Only for a little bit longer. You hug your knees to your chest and rest your cheek on one of them as you watch all the water from your bath swirl down the drain like a whirlpool. You can’t help but blow your lips together, mimicking the sounds you think pirates caught in a whirlpool would make.

A knock at the door.

“Everything alright in there?”

“Uh, yeah. Sorry. I’m getting dressed now. I’ll be right there.” The sound of your voice surprises you, feeling it’s much deeper than it should be for some reason.

The heat coming up from the vents is still too cold for you and although you know you should keep moving to feel warm, you find it much more comfortable to just stand in place on the rug.

Water drips off you and onto the rug and the towel wrapped tight around you where you shiver. Your hair is wet and heavy and if looks could kill, the shirt you planned to change into would be on fire at the moment. The feeling of heavy, damp hair wetting your new shirt makes you roll your eyes a bit, but the knowledge of your boyfriend on the other side of the door pushes you to endure it.

You’re in your own home but you sure don’t act like it, shuffling shyly out of the bathroom with uncertain steps.

“Le?”

“Oh.” He looks up from the shelf he was carefully inspecting before. “Hey baby. Good bath?”

“…yeah. What are you holding?”

“This?” He lifts his hand. “It’s one of your crayons. I found it lying on the floor and was just looking where to put it back.”

“It’s not mine,” You state firmly with a swift snatch. “It’s my nephew’s. He came over recently.”

“…your nephew colors with glitter crayons?” Chenle tries not to eye the grip you have that crayon in.

“Yeah. He does. Is that a problem?” You tuck the crayon into the pocket of your pajama pants quickly and make your way over to the kitchen.

“It’s not a problem, I just didn’t know he moved on so fast from his ‘arts and crafts is boring’ stage.”

“He’s coming around to it.” You move around the kitchen quickly, filling and turning on the kettle.

“Good for him.” Chenle stands slowly, when did his back start hurting like this? Is he getting old? Well, he is already balding. But that’s because of the hair dye, right? It’ll grow back. Probably.

“Yeah.” You toss a tea bag into a mug. “That’s just how kids are. Thank you for finding it.”

“Mhm.”

He takes notice of how you haven’t made eye contact with him since you snatched the crayon from him, how you still don’t. You try cracking your knuckles and wrists again and again, ignoring the fact that you already did before and nothing will pop for the next while or so.

You’re lying.

Why are you lying?

“Well, now I’m jealous.” Chenle leans on the counter with his forearms, teasing smile gently nudging you to at least look his way. “How come that little kid gets to color with my girlfriend when even I haven’t done that before?”

You don’t reply but his eyes follow how you swallow an invisible lump in your throat.

“It’s not like we have the ingredients to cook dinner tonight anyway, why don’t we just spend our home date tonight just coloring? You have more crayons, right?”

“No,” You reply immediately, turning away to get the kettle when it dings. “He just left this one. Why would I have any crayons? Do you think I’m a five-year-old?”

“I never said that.” He stands up, a frown of confusion painting his face.

“Right. Well, I don’t have any of those. And I don’t want to do a coloring date. I’m dating an adult, I would like to feel like I am.”

“Adults can color.”

“No they can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because they can’t.”

The kitchen is quiet, the single noise of the spoon mixing the tea and honey in your mug. With each second of silence, the control you have on your breathing weakens.

You do want to color. You want to doodle and draw and give Chenle all your stickman drawings. You want him to show you his pictures and you want to hear him praise the color you chose for the sun’s sunglasses. You want him to color with you and play with you until you’re all tired out. When you’re asleep you want him to cradle you and cuddle you, kiss you on the forehead, and hum you lullabies in an undertone.

But it’s also so unreasonable to demand that.

He has a life just as stressful if not more than yours, to throw all your burdens on him to bear, even if just for a few hours, is wrong. You would feel too guilty. Chenle’s dating an adult, not babysitting a child. Dating you should be an option, not a burden.

“They can’t?”

“They can’t.” You shake your head, voice breaking.

Chenle takes you into arms before you fully break, leaving all your tears to stain his t-shirt. His fingers dig into your hair and your whole body shivers when you feel his nails gently scratch against your scalp.

“I’m going to be honest with you, Princess, I don’t really know what happened today. Or if it’s something you’ve been dealing with for a long time… Either way, I’m sorry. If I’m the reason you’re crying right now, I’m sorry. And I’m also sorry for not knowing what I’ve done wrong. I’m kind of slow on the uptake at times. If I’m not the reason you’re crying, I’m sorry you went through that, or, are going through that. I don’t really know…

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. You looked like you were about to drop dead as soon as you walked in tonight so I wouldn’t blame you. I probably should have left earlier but I couldn’t help it. It’s the last day of the year and I really wanted to spend it with you. I’m kind of clingy like that, I guess. I was on my way here and… I was thinking how I would be ending this year and starting this next year with you and- and I wanted this to be how every year will be. Forever. Or, until you don’t it want to. Because I don’t feel like I will ever not want to be with you. I’m like… obsessed with you. But not to a point where I won’t leave if you tell me to leave. I definitely will leave if you ask me to leave. Do you want me to go? I can go. You look tired and I’m keeping you up-”

“No.” You interrupt, speaking into his chest. “Stay.”

“Okay. Yeah, I’ll stay.”

“But… I think I am gonna nap.”

“Yeah… Yeah, you should. I’ll just stay out here.”

“You’re an idiot.” You blurt. “A big dumb idiot. You’re dumb.”

“…yeah.”

“Want you to nap with me. Cuddle. Carry me.”

“Carry you…?” Chenle looks down at you, feeling whiplash at how quickly your moods change. He doesn’t question it though, melting at the sight of your big watery eyes. “Yeah, okay. Your wish is my command.”

You smile as you feel his arms wrap around you, his cologne entering your nose and giving you an incomparable high. His steps are slow and uncertain, careful to not hit your head on any doorframes. He begins lowering you onto the bed but your arms don’t loosen around his neck.

“Sorry too.” You whisper.

“For what?”

“Callin’ you dumb. You’re not dumb.”

“Thank you.” Chenle smiles, his eyes disappearing into thin little moons. “But, I am actually a little dumb.”

“No.” You frown as if the person offended was you. “Not dumb.”

“No?”

“No.” You insist. “’m the dummy.”

“What? No, Princess.” He sits on the side of the bed when his neck begins to hurt from the angle. “How could you think that?”

“’Cause,” Your eyes drop to his shirt, suddenly extremely interested in the wrinkles of his shirt. “Dunno. Thought you wouldn’t like me.”

“Wouldn’t like you? Baby, why would I not like you?”

“’Cause ‘m a dummy!” You whisper-yell at him as if he wasn’t listening. “Was bein’ mean earlier and takin’ stuff and… just wasn’t bein’ nice. And then I thought that you wouldn’t like me if I… I dunno.”

“If what?”

“If there was like… a side o’ me you didn’t really like. ‘n’ I scared you away… Don’t wanna be a bother, y’know?”

“You’re not a bother, Baby.” Chenle presses a kiss to your temple. “You’re my responsibility. I choose to do all these things. You’re never a bother. Never ever. Even if you get sick or get kicked out of your house or… I don’t know. No matter what, I choose to stay with you.”

“What if you choose to stop staying with me?”

“Did you kill someone?”

“No?”

“Then I think we can work through it.”

You giggle and lean back into him. He says such silly things with such confidence that he almost makes you believe it. Maybe one day you will.

“Oh shoot, your tea. I’ll be right back.”

The bed creaks under you as he gets up, the fireworks of overly-zealous celebrators with seemingly broken clocks lighting up his side profile pinks and purples through the window.

You stare at him and feel a warmth grow deep in your heart, an uncontrollable smile painted on your face. Chenle looks back at you with a confused smile, but you can see the same love in your heart in his eyes.

Yeah.

You also think that this is right. You don’t know if it’s for forever yet, but you sure hope it will be. That this year and the next and all the years until you’re both stars in the sky you two will be together. The fireworks will light up your faces when you’re both wrinkly and gray, wearing the same dorky grins you wear tonight.

You’re afraid, but you can feel that soon you’ll introduce a new side of yourself to Chenle. As he gets in the bed with you, looking out the window of your bedroom with his arm around your waist, the anxiety is the tiniest bit smaller than it was this morning. Slowly but surely, you know in your heart the day when you can show your heart bare to him will come and you’re not afraid

Maybe you’re afraid now but you know it’s only a matter of time before you free fall into his arms without a second thought. It's inevitable, you smile to yourself.

a/n: STRESSING to post this before the new year lolz. also, i hope y'all know that reader was toned down SO much over the drafts. when i get overstimulated i start wanting ppl to die and it's never that serious...... i rly had to get rid of that quality when writing for reader LOLOLOL OK ENJOY REBLOG GIVE KUDOS ALL THAT STUFF THAT TUMBLR LIKES LOVE U ALL HOPE U HAVE THE BESTEST 2024

[jessadamsdraws]

Chapter one: Changes 

This au is the Wild Kratts Guardianship au by @littlecrittereli

The idea is that their is a bigger age gap between Martin and Chris (About 9 or so years apart) and Martin as legal Guardianship after Chris at a young age after they parent passed away (Think Lilo and Nani) I hope you like the first Chapter

Chris remembers that day well, he couldn’t forget if he tried. He remembers the teacher writing on the board talking about fractions. He remembers how bored he was because he knew this all and could do this in his sleep if he wanted. He remembers the teacher’s phone suddenly ringing causing everyone around him to jumping in surprise. But the part he remembers the most is the expression on his teachers face when she turned to Chris in terror like someone had died…

And it turned out someone did die.

The rest is just moments of him and his older brother coming back from Uni early (he was supposed to be back that summer break to hang out) them crying and holding each other. The fighting and shouting matches between Martin and their other relatives over him. The sudden change of moving to a super small one bedroom apartment with his brother. The meals going from warm and comforting to salty and small. 

But the worst change was Martin and himself. He could remember when his brother would read to him the animal picture books and would show him how a pather would leap into the air to catch its prey. It was so much fun being the wild cat’s hunting down its prey and how he would tackle his bro in their little make believe game. 

Now Martin would come home exhausted only to head over to the only expensive thing they owned, the laptop and work on his online studies. Chris now walked to and from school all on his own, coming to an empty apartment instead of the big house that felt like home then here, sitting on the floor and starting his homework on the tiny coffee table next to the second hand couch they owned. When he finished doing the little chorus he had and eating his dinner (if Martin remembered to make it). 

Then there was Lauren. At first Chris didn’t know who she was but he did know she was always coming to the apartment and she asked a lot of the same questions over and over again. She was sickly sweet around him but very short with Martin. Maybe they were dating? He had seen shows where the girlfriends were always mad at their boyfriends for some reason he couldn’t understand. But when he overheard some of his classmates talking about a CSP and what that meant with a quick bit of research, he finally knew who Lauren really was.

And that now he really didn’t like Lauren.

This life became the new normal for Chris. When he reached the ripe old age of 12 was when the fights happened. Chris couldn’t understand why he was so angry. I mean he could but more specifically he didn’t know why he was mad at Martin. It was like the littlest corny joke that came out of the older blonde's mouth was like it was directed at him like it was his fault or something.

By the time he became 14 was when his life changed again when Martin got an email from someone with an opportunity that would change both of their lives forever.

===============================================

Aviva looked at the message over and over. Yes? Yes. Yes!! She did it! She got the grant for their research. She couldn’t believe it she couldn’t wait to tell Martin… oh, wait Martin. She felt her excitement turn cold in an instant.

Martin wouldn’t be able to go because of his younger brother. No, she couldn’t do this without him. It was their research, it was their project. If it wasn’t for him she wouldn’t have gotten the idea for doing this in the first place. 

It was her first day at uni. She was confident that she would excel in the classes. That wasn’t her problem, it was the fact that she didn’t think she would make any friends. After what happened in space camp she didn’t she ever would again. Zach had shattered her faith in people after the utter betrayal of stealing her technology for himself. Now he owned his own company selling the bots that she originally made. Though their ai was a little off before she could fit their code to learn how to interpret turn of phrase instead of taking them literally which made her happy a little. but , still she was at rock bottom again and needed a new angle and new hook to start inventing something that could help … someone, something? 

She hated this so much. She knew better than to put her eggs in one basket but she did anyway and look where it got her. In a classroom of over nine hundred students learning things she learned years ago. 

“Psst? Hey,”

She heard a voice coming from behind her. Turning to see a guy in a blue sweatshirt looking at her.

“Yes, can I help you?” She asked deadpan.

“I know this is gonna sound really cliche but I forgot my pen and was wondering…” Before he even finished his sentence she had produced a pen out of almost thin air handing it to him. 

“Oh my gosh you’re a lifesaver. Thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever.” She exasperated turning back around.

“I’m Martin” and a hand stretched out from the left of her face caused her to wip back around.

“huh? Aviva.” She said unsure of how to interact in this situation. She now gave the guy a better look at him. He was all smiles and started talking about something she wasn’t really paying attention. It was a bad habit she was trying to break. What she did catch was he wanted to be a Zoologist to travel around the world with his little brother when he grows a bit (if he wanted to cause he was only 8 right now). He talked about all the creatures that he liked (Mostly aquatic variety) It reminded her of a golden retriever which made her smile a bit, but then the next thing he said was what started this whole new road she would take not just by herself as she’d thought but with her new friends, no her new family.

“Imagine if you could have the abilities of these awesome creatures.”

Yeah…

What if?

[nightprompts]

&. 𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬.

(  an  assortment  of  dialogue  prompts  for  various  apocalypse  /  end  of  the  world  scenarios.  feel  free  to  change  as  you  seem  fit.  )

❛ stay alive. for me. ❜

❛ you won’t survive long out there. i can protect you. ❜

❛ how many bullets do you got left? ❜

❛ i’m gonna make sure this place is secure. ❜

❛ will things ever go back to the way they were? ❜

❛ i know the odds aren’t good, but we’ve got to try. ❜

❛ you should be dead by now. ❜

❛ this isn’t the world you remember. ❜

❛ it’s all gone. it’s really all gone. ❜

❛ shit. why did you hide this? ❜

❛ stay down. don’t let them see you. ❜

❛ you are making it very difficult to keep you alive. ❜

❛ how is it you’re not scared? ❜

❛ when i give the signal, we run. ❜

❛ holy shit, we hit the jackpot! look at all this stuff! ❜

❛ i’d say we make a pretty good team. ❜

❛ if you don’t fight, you die. ❜

❛ remind me to not get on your bad side. ❜

❛ been there. seen that. got the scars to prove it. ❜

❛ unfortunately, we can’t kiss in the rain. it’s acid. ❜

❛ just keep moving. don’t look back. ❜

❛ i’m scared of ending up alone. ❜

❛ still alive, are you? ❜

❛ i’m beyond saving at this point. ❜

❛ an animal that’s tasted human flesh isn’t safe. ❜

❛ there’s nothing you can do to save them. ❜

❛ do you have any idea how many people we lost today?! ❜

❛ thought you’d be lighter without all that blood. ❜

❛ just a few more stitches and you’ll be as good as new. ❜

❛ my job is to watch your back. ❜

❛ don’t enter the city, it belongs to the dead now. ❜

❛ it must be important, otherwise you wouldn’t have gone back for it. ❜

❛ there’s something about that robot that doesn’t seem right to me. ❜

❛ you still remember how to kill, right? ❜

❛ there should be an opening through the fence. watch your head. ❜

❛ our luck will run out sooner or later. ❜

❛ everything looks so beautiful from up here. ❜

❛ can’t say i’m surprised to find you in a dump like this. ❜

❛ we can sneak past them, even though i know that’s not your style. ❜

❛ i can’t imagine losing someone like that. i’m sorry. ❜

❛ if you were smart, you’d turn back now. ❜

❛ shut up. are you trying to get us killed? ❜

❛ breathe. we’re safe now. ❜

❛ you’re better off without me. i’ll only slow you down. ❜

❛ i brought dinner. it’s not much, but it’s edible. ❜

❛ for what it’s worth, i’ll do what i can to help you not get killed. ❜

❛ you’re gonna be real happy you didn’t kill me. ❜

❛ if it was the other way around, would you have come back for me? ❜

❛ why don’t we just stay here? live out the rest of our lives? ❜

❛ you really shouldn’t be out here by yourself. ❜

❛ rest. i’ll take the first watch. ❜

❛ i’ve got a weapon for every situation. hunting, profession, cold blooded murder, hot blooded murder... ❜

[misstycloud]

Owen headcanons

——————-

• A big boy, through and through. No matter how tall you are he is taller. Very broad too, his arm feels like a tree trunk and is ripped with muscle. Just looking at him you know you should definitely not fight him. You'll die, seriously.

• Is completely and utterly obsessed with you. He can’t live a day without you, he needs you to be close otherwise he won’t be able to focus if he can’t tell how you’re feeling and if you’re safe. Your safety means a lot to him too, he doesn’t know what he would do if anything happened.

• Owen is definitely a big puppy regarding his feelings for you. He follows you wherever you go and wants to be together at all times, even during events where people would rather be alone;like going to the bathroom… But if you say no firmly he’ll listen and let you do your business.

• Not really one for fixing his appearance. He’s satisfied worth his looks and doeasnt care about anyone’s opinion except yours. The only time when gel dress up is during special occasions as more formal dates.

• Hates when others take up your attention when it should solely be on him. Can’t you see how much he loves you? How your puppy boy is right there? He’ll do anything for you. But those wretched people you call friends steal you away from him constantly. ‘Sorry, I have to see my friends tonight.’ ‘I can’t stay, I promised to help a friend out with their project.’ How many times haven’t he heard that? And how many times hasn’t he told you that you don’t need any friends? He is the only one you need.

• If Owen wants to get rid of someone he’ll start pretty easy, by making some threats and have his enemy know what they’re getting into. When that doesn’t work he will go through with his promises and then they will be no more.

• Adores cuddles and physical closeness. He won’t be able to sleep if he doesn’t have you in his arms. Definitely sniffs your hair while you sleep. Often spoons you, but wouldn’t mind being the little spoon once in a while. It’d be so cute having your arms thrown around him, though you wouldn’t even be able to completely have them around his body. It would basically be like trying to hug a bear.

• Owen’s favourite food is apples. Though it is technically not a ‘food’ and is instead a fruit- he doesn’t care. Doesn’t matter what you say, it’s still dinner material; as long as you eat them in large quantities. Careful, or you’ll have to drive him to the hospital from malnutrition.

• What sort of animal would he be? Well, he would be…..you already know.

Literally him ⬆️

[moth--blood]

Obey Me HC list because! brainrot!

Lucifer -

give him a chance and he'll be the silliest mf known to man.

yeah he's a hardass but a lot of that is keeping up appearances, or keeping his siblings safe. really he's a fucking goober

he might be the only one left with feathers, but helping Asmo and Mammon take care of their new wings is really important to him. they would all help each other preen in the celestial realm, and he uses this as an excuse to give them back that lost sense of home.

words cannot express how much he loves his brothers dude. he would fall from grace a thousand times over if it meant keeping them safe.

Mammon -

while he's not above stealing shit for the sake of having pretty things, if he's getting a gift for his brothers/the MC, he'll bust his ass to pay for it properly.

he'll act like it wasn't any skin off his back if they ask, muttering some excuse about how it wasn't that much and he felt like being generous that day even though it's always something he's put a lot of thought into.

on that note, he is the BEST gift giver. doesn't matter the occasion, be it holidays or birthdays or just a random wednesday, he somehow always knows exactly what it was the victim of his affections were eyeing the past few weeks.

Levi -

swims in his room aquarium sometimes! he likes being able to pet Henry

has played Mystic Messenger, and he likes comparing his brothers to the characters. (yes he dubs himself Yoosung, yes he thinks it's a good thing)

binged all of Devil Is a Part Timer in one night and IMMEDIATELY started teasing Satan and Lucifer

sulks in his aquarium when someone yells at him. it is his safe space

Satan -

would rather die than admit it out loud but he would LOVE to visit a cat cafe

in Nightbringer specifically, when you tell him about cats and then cat cafes, his eyes light up IMMEDIATELY. that sounds lovely please take him, he wants to go now actually

sneaks kittens into the house on a daily. he'll hide them anywhere and everywhere to keep them from Lucifer kicking them out, including in Lucifers own room 😭 anywhere he can think of he will try. let him have a cat, Luci, he deserves it

Asmo -

when i say this man is emotionally repressed....

it takes a LOT for him to be as openly upset as he is in his maze lesson in Nightbringer. he hates being so distressed around his brothers, and a lot of that is keeping appearances. which sucks, because most of the time it's in his own home.

when he does talk though he talks for a while. especially if he's venting to Lucifer, he has a lot to say and a lot he thinks he needs to clarify even if Lucifer got the point the first go through.

on a happier note, he loves small animals. be it mice or insects, doesn't matter - he'll find something cute about everything he comes across.

he knits, and for birthday's he'll make his brother's favorite animals. if they try to do the same for him he will bawl, on the spot, he loves them so much

he'll keep any gift you or Solomon or his brothers give him no matter what it is. it's his way of having personalized reminders that they care, that even if he's not Angel pretty anymore he's still so loved

Beel -

lactose intolerant. does he care? no. it means nothing to him he'll chug a carton of milk for fun

very protective of his family. specifically Satan and Belphie—Belphie for seemingly obvious reasons.. and Satan because even if Wrath is considered the fourth sin and is ranked above Gluttony, that is Beel's baby brother. he would die for Satan.

will carry Belphie around like a ragdoll for fun or to get him down to breakfast/dinner or classes

has his family's favorite foods memorized and tries to make them, but he's..not the best chef </3

the acception to Belphie's sleepy violence

Belphie -

bites. that is how he fights. he bites and he bites HARD.

literally a fucking cat.

he'll sneak into any of his brother's rooms and nap on the floor or in their bed. or on them. he WILL get violent if they try to leave or move him off.

on the rare occasion Lucifer lets him use his room, the bed? officially Belphie's. it's basically impossible to wake him up so this is a rarity

his favorite place in Mammon's room is the couch, once again it is impossible to move him. really just likes it because Mammon actually tends to be quite while he's asleep, and it's his way of bonding with him specifically.

he likes Levi's room because it's always very warm, from all the electronics and the aquarium heaters. sometimes he'll end up using Levi's lap or tail as a pillow if the aquarium heater isn't doin it for him.

completely skips Satan's room and goes straight to the HoL library to bug his baby-yet-older brother directly. once again bro is an actual cat, and will sprawl himself out on Satan's lap with his head over the arm rest. yes it is uncomfortable for him to lay like that. no he will not move dont even ask

ADORES Asmo's bed. he's not allowed to use Asmo's bath anymore because the one time he did, he started schnoozing and almost drowned. pretends he doesn't know how often Asmo pampers him while he's asleep, but he's well aware. he likes how soft his hair and tail fur end up being after Asmo room naps, so trips to the fifths room are very frequent.

Beel is a special case since they share a room. he's not a fan of beel's bed, but he'll sleep on Beel himself, like with Satan. he's not picky with Beel, as long as he's within his twin's bubble he's satisfied.

[goodlucktai]

all that you ever wanted from me was sweet nothing

wild heart au

read on ao3

x

Sanji has known Sabo for much less than a month, but he’s already become one of the very last people on earth that Sanji could imagine crying. He’s too big for that, too tough—the kind of boy Sanji’s brothers would admire, probably, one who isn’t afraid to dig in with his heels and fight dirty and use his teeth to win. Nothing like the weak-willed, tender-hearted, soft-skinned failure of the Germas. 

But Sabo’s eyes are red and puffy, for the split second Sanji gets a glimpse of them, and it’s shocking. The older boy turns his back on the rest of them, crouching by the fire and prodding it viciously with a stick. Ace, who saw where Sanji’s gaze got stuck, folds his face into an impressive scowl. 

“Don’t ask,” he says, in a tone that implies it is not a suggestion. 

“I won’t,” Sanji says quickly, hands clutching on the strap of his bag anxiously. Ace clocks it with a flick of his dark eyes and scoffs, but before Sanji can decide how he feels about it one way or another, Luffy’s arm stretches past him to give Ace a solid shove.

“We can only have one sad brother at a time!” Luffy declares. It seems like he can’t decide if he should whisper or shout, but Sanji secretly doesn’t think Luffy would know how to keep his voice down if someone held a gun to his head, so the result is a normal talking voice in a weird pitch. “Don’t make Sanji feel bad, too, or I’ll hit you!”

“You wanna die?” Ace grumps back, bearing his teeth like one of the animals they hunt for dinner, but he capitulates surprisingly easily. Sabo’s mood seems to have knocked him off-kilter. That’s probably why he doesn’t argue the brother comment. 

Sanji is pretty sure the older boys don’t like him very much, but Luffy makes up for it. Luffy isn’t quiet or shy about the things he hates or the things he likes, and Sanji would have to be deaf and blind to miss how much Luffy likes him. 

It makes him willing to put up with Ace and Sabo’s bad attitudes—willing to spend his free time climbing a mountain, picking his way carefully to the edge of the dense, looming rainforest, and cook meals for a group that is two-thirds suspicious and ungrateful—because then he’ll get to see Luffy’s big, silly smile. 

Sanji is quickly learning that he would do almost anything to see that. 

“His family is stupid,” Luffy pipes up. “They have all these weird ideas that Sabo should be like them , even though he’s already like somebody—he’s like Sabo. And they do mean things when he doesn’t pretend the way they want him to—today they forgot his birthday on purpose.”

He’s not being quiet enough; Sanji can see Sabo hearing every word. But Ace doesn’t shut him up, and Sanji can guess why. The tension in Sabo’s shoulders is unwinding, until he doesn’t look so much like a creature curled up to defend itself against a kick. Suddenly he’s just Luffy’s smart-aleck big brother again, who’s sitting slouched by the fire because he’s a little tired, or a little sad. And he’s listening to the inane ramblings of a scrawny seven-year-old boy as if they mean something very important to him. 

Luffy lifts his hand to cup the side of his mouth, inviting Sanji in on a secret, because he still thinks he’s being sneaky. Sanji feels a burst of fondness in his chest that he can’t help, like his insides are nestled in a warm stove, and leans in agreeably. 

“I don’t know why anybody who was lucky enough to have a Sabo would want him to be anything but Sabo. Sabo’s the best! Don’t tell Ace, though.”

Ace’s hackles go up. He doesn’t actually have porcupine quills but he might as well since he bristles just like one and makes it painful for anybody who sticks their hand too close to him. But then Sabo makes a smothered sound, shoulders shaking with laughter that he’s trying to keep behind his hand, and it defangs Ace instantly. 

He still calls Luffy a brat and cuffs him on the head as he walks by. It’s gentle by their standards, and Luffy’s skull just bounces with the motion like a volleyball, but Sanji pats him gently in the same spot just to be sure. 

Luffy reaches up to cling to his hand and beams up at him, this little pocket-sized star. 

“What are you going to cook for us today?” he asks enthusiastically, and the mention of food has his brothers looking over, too. Sabo is still a little pale and quiet, but his icy blue eyes aren’t flinching away from the rest of them anymore. 

Sanji can’t help but think about it, though, when he’s lying awake in his bunk on The Orbit later that night. And he thinks about it when he gets up and makes his way down into the kitchen. There is usually still one or two people milling about even at this hour, and the baker gives him permission to use the oven as long as he promises to clean up after himself, and that’s how, at something like two o’clock in the morning, Sanji finds himself looking at a birthday cake that got away from him.

It’s three tiers, the sponge infused with pineapple, with a spread of filling between each layer that’s as thick and tart as a jam, and the whole of it is covered evenly in white buttercream frosting with a fluffy blue border piped around the top and bottom. He doesn’t add any extra embellishments, because he’s certain the boy it’s for won’t appreciate it, but he wants Sabo to know it’s for him and not something extra Sanji just took off a shelf. So he pipes that signature crossed-out S on the top and then boxes the whole thing up and sticks it in the fridge before he can second-guess himself anymore. 

The next morning, after a few fitful hours of sleep, he drops the cake off at the Party Bar, red-faced and embarrassed. The owner of the bar is a kind woman Luffy took Sanji to meet once in his chaotic, haphazard way that feels more like he’s just showing off his favorite things than introducing people. Makino seems to be the brothers’ point of contact for things like fresh milk and shoes without holes, and takes their rude comings and goings with the patience of a saint. 

She looks a little confused to have a big pastry box shoved into her hands by a relative stranger, but kindly promises to pass it along when Sanji is able to mumble out who it’s for, and at that point Sanji bolts out the door. 

He almost gets away with it. Maybe. He probably should have just stayed on the ship all day if he really wanted to hide, but his seniors on the staff are still adamant about keeping him away from the clientele for his own safety. 

So he’s crouched by the tidepools, watching colorful, spiny creatures living without a clue or a care how big the world is outside their tiny little place in it, when he’s tackled to the ground. 

Sanji gets a mouthful of sand and coughs and hacks and yells without looking, “Luffy!” Because there’s only one insane rubber boy who would rocket himself across the beach in an affectionate full-body slam for no other reason than to get to his hug faster. 

“You made Sabo a cake!” he shouts, like he’s trying to let the whole island know about it. “He won’t say it, but thank you, thank you! We ate the whole thing!” 

When Sanji is finally able to squint his eyes open, past the grit on his face and the sun pointing down on top of him, he’s able to make out Luffy’s blond brother standing over them. Sabo’s staring down at Sanji like he’s never seen anyone like him before. He doesn’t look unhappy or annoyed, he looks like he hasn’t decided how to look at him at all. 

Sanji shoves at Luffy until he gets the hint and lets him up. Only he gets the hint in his overly-enthusiastic Luffy way, and hauls Sanji to his feet with gusto, both his hands wrapped tight around one of Sanji’s arms. He’s very quick to grab onto people. Sanji isn’t sure he knows the first thing about how to let go. 

“Why?” Sabo demands. 

Because Sanji used to get birthday cake. He remembers being very little, lifted up into mama’s warm arms when she was still strong enough to lift him. He remembers the fragrant smell of her hair as she cuddled him close and carried him over to a beautiful little dessert.

“Make a wish,” she would tell him. “Keep it a secret so it comes true.”

Sanji is grown up now and knows those things are for children. And he knows that Sabo is so much stronger than Sanji is, and braver, and rebels against his family right to their faces in a way that Sanji would never, ever be brave enough to copy even if he lived for a million years. Sabo almost definitely doesn’t miss birthday cakes, of all things. 

But Sanji remembers how loved he felt when mama held him up to blow out the candles. The absence of that feeling carved a hole inside him that never went away. He isn’t anyone important to Sabo, but he’s someone who can give him a cake. 

He doesn’t know how to say any of that. All he says, more to the scars on his hands than to anyone else, is, “My family was mean, too.”

For a brief moment, neither of the brothers say anything. Then two skinny arms latch themselves around his waist—wrapping twice, then three times more than human arms are capable of. Luffy’s frowning up at him with that petulant expression he wears when he’s been wronged. 

But Sabo is the one who says, “Take me to them someday and I’ll beat them up.”

Sanji’s knee-jerk reaction is one of anxiety. “No, um, that’s okay. My brothers are really strong. And my dad is really scary.”

“I’ll be stronger and scarier,” Sabo announces unremarkably, folding his arms. “And I’ll have Ace,” he adds, like that’s his trump card. It’s not a bad trump card. Fighting Ace is like fighting a force of nature, or a rabid coyote. Most sensible people turn and run. 

“And me!” Luffy announces. 

“You aren’t going anywhere near my dad,” Sanji is quick to shoot him down, heart racing just thinking about Judge putting his hands on sunny, smiling Luffy. He would—he doesn’t know what he would do. But he would do something. He would go crazy. 

Luffy swells like an offended little toad, with probably plenty to say at being left out of this make-believe conflict that’s never actually going to happen in real life. 

Before he can burst with whatever silliness he’s got to say, Sanji cuts in with, “So you liked the pineapple filling in the cake?”

It cuts the wind right out of Luffy’s sails. Food always distracts him. He blinks a few times, absorbing the question, then says, “Yes! It was the best cake I’ve ever had! Ace said so, too!”

Sabo looks like he’s decided how he wants to look at Sanji now. It’s the way Luffy’s brothers both look at him. It’s the way people watch stupid puppies too clumsy for their big ideas tumble enthusiastically into trouble—funny for a few seconds, and then it’s your responsibility to pick them up and put them back on their feet, and they’re lucky they’re worth all the trouble. 

Sabo looks like he’s decided Sanji is worth the trouble.

[amberkoyuki]

Is this fate?

Warnings: describing what animals look like eating other animals/humans (dunno how else to say it), F!Reader,

Fantasy AU

Star of the show: 𝑮𝒊𝒚𝒖𝒖 𝑻𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒐𝒌𝒂

(image not owned by me)

Today was a time you were allowed off the territory to get food. You a rabbit were known to prey to most animals. Living in the enchanted Forest wasn't easy. Your kind tended to Get chased but predators such as humans that could shoot you with arrows, werewolves that could dig into you with their sharp claws, Coyotes that could tear into you with their mouth, Fox's that could trick you into becoming their dinner, dwarf hydras that could swallow you whole. You got distracted not sensing that you were entering werewolf territory. Picking berries from bushes. The berries had such a strong scent.. Like an over scented perfume/cologne. Werewolves were on of your worst enemies.

the rabbit heard footsteps.. There were several. The rabbit began running as fast as you could. They had spotted you and began chasing you. You saw arrows firing at the bunny and she merely dogged.

You felt a shiver go up your spine. This was a fight or flight situation. And you chose flight. You ran into the thick forest. You didn't make it far before something grabbed you by the neck and pinned you against a Hyperion tree. It was one of the largest tree's in the forest. The basket of food that you had spent the entire day picking was spilled over the floor. You quickly stared at the figure. He was a terrifying werewolf. His fangs already had blood on them. A body behind him. His eyes looking you up and down.. He moved his hand from your neck to your hands pinned above you.

"what's a sweet little bunny doing here on werewolf Territory." he spoke in a cold tone. "P—please.. I-I'll do anything.. I'll even become your mate..!" You spoke in a fearful tone. You had no other choice unless you wanted to die. .

“Mate!?” He exclaimed. It was almost like something came over him once he heard that.. something feral and wild and instinctual. His grip holding onto you got tighter, his gaze becoming intense and feral. After a while he turned velvet at the thought of having you. You baring his kids..

”Did you say.. mate..?”

"Y — yes.. I did"

“You would be my mate?~” His tail suddenly swayed slowly like a snake in the grass. His grip only getting tighter.

“You realize what that involves with a werewolf?”

"No..— nothing at all.."

An arrow shot at you both. Giyuu's eyes fell dark. He was annoyed at someone ruining such a moment for him. He let go of you and growled. Claws as sharp as a knife were poking out of his hands. Lunging at the human and ripping his insides out.. The human's guts were all around werewolf was eating the humans insides

The wolf turned back to the rabbit "do you want some" she looked at the dead body in disgust.. rabbits don't eat meat so she found it disgusting

——————————

The dark fur wolf finally finished eating. Most of the human's organs were gone.. It disgusted you to the core. How could any animal eat something like that..

"Let's head back to the rest of my pack." The werewolf grabbed rabbit's hand and they began walking towards his den.. She'd never seen a pack nor been near one.

"The forest is dangerous so be careful." He instinctively rubbed his thumb against her hand

"how old are you."

"20.."

Giyuu looked shocked. You look younger than you actually are. "wow.."

"I'm 21.."

It took you a few seconds to process what he meant by wow.." Why is that shocking?" her face hardens. " Do I really not look 20?" Now that you thought about it rabbits tend to look younger than they are.. It really never crossed your mind due to being around rabbits your entire life

Mist began creeping up on them. It was late now.. Your parents would be worrying about you. You loved them. Would you really leave them for a mate.

The rabbit felt so tired to where you completely stopped moving. Giyuu glanced at you in confusion. "Are you alright..?" he rubbed the back of your hair lifting you up. You were as light as a feather to him.

"you know.. I never got your name.." He kept walking but looking at you while moving.. You were too tired to answer him.. Your body felt too comfortable to even move an an inch. Sleep was crawling upon you and you could feel it..

"Y/N.." it came out so speedily that Giyuu could tell they shouldn't have any more conversation. He didn't want to disturb you. Kissing your forehead softly and letting you relax was all he could do for now.

Getting to the next would take a while due to the territory Being so big, big enough for all the wolves too stay together. Giyuu's feet softly padded across the overgrown path. He could hear the other animals hiding from him with nothing but soft whimpers. They were afraid he'd eat them.

It smelt like rain just hitting the surface of earth. It was a relaxing sense. He didn't know why but he relaxes to this scent. He kinds forgot you were there and started humming a soft tune.. Your eyes widened when he began humming. It was angelic, how could he hide such a perfect voice..

——————————

The cave shape was strange.. Inside of the mountain was normal but the sheer size was abnormal. It began as one tunnel which led to a center circle where others tunnels branch off from it. Giyuu was walking down a tunnel that led to a room.. Made of the softest material he could find for a bed.. Piled up in a circle. You'd never been in a wolves den

"sorry.. If it's a bit messy." He said it so gingerly.. Like he was embarrassed about the room being such a mess. She didn't mind honestly. Her room was more of a mess than this back at home.

He gently placed you on the pile of soft materials it took you a moment to realize it was made of animal hides. Humans and wolves killed animals and used them like this.. You could never imagine yourself eating another animal. It made your stomach turn..

You heard other's coming towards the room "Tomioka-san! Your finally home!" A boy with Burgundy hair began running towards giyuu. He had an unfaltering smile on his face. He looked to be a demon.. Was this a diverse pack? Because you'd seen a witch earlier

"Tomioka-san who's this..?"

[noodlesbatches]

How I see Prince and Paladin byler is kind of dark ngl-

let me share my idea.

This takes place in 1700s in my idea just so you know!

Mike is a poor orphan who is 17-18 and needs to find a job so he tried to get one at the castle to be a person paladin to the Prince. Prince is a sassy, snotty teen, most of his personal paladins have quit because of his snottiness. The Queen decides to hire someone more of his age to maybe help. (The Queen is not Joyce just so you know, and Will doesn’t have any siblings in my version of the au as well.) Prince Will just has him and the Queen until Sir Micael the Paladin shows up. He becomes a live-in-paladin.

The Prince isn’t all that nice to the paladin at first, but the paladin needs his job so he decides to suck it up. Until one day he finally decides to talk to the Prince since he’s going to have to stay w/ him until he can be “trusted”. The Prince agrees to this. They start hanging out in the grand garden of the palace. Mike would put frogs on Will’s shoulder and tame it to stay there (he was kind of a frog whisperer). Mike loved all animals, he would tell Will that it was his duty to love anything and everything. Mike would spend some of his time after dinner in the library in the castle as a way to get tired. Mike and Will spend days together talking in the garden and around the house. Until one day Mike decides maybe they should go out to his village and where he learned to be a paladin.

Mike takes Will to the village they have a ball. They even sword fight each other (in a playful all-fun-n-games way.). Mike and Will get back and the Queen isn’t home. Mike asks Will about his knack for painting and goes up to the art room to look at it. Later on after looking Mike gives into his urge of kissing the Prince.

Mike panics after word, but Will calms him down by kissing him back. They end up laying in bed together after a make out. Mike then feels a rush of pain/guilt.

“What if they catch us?”

“They won’t.”

“But, what if they 𝘥𝘰”

Will thinks Mike is silly for thinking that some servants would budge in on their business and watch them, but Mike wasn’t lying. He was terrified. He didn’t want Will to die.

“I would take the blame for you.”

“No, Mike, we are in this together.”

“Be honest Will! If they do find out, who will end up getting burnt?”

“I…”

“If a Queen ant and a regular worker ant do something wrong together, which ant will pay the sacrifices Will?”

“Maybe this was a mistake then…”

Mike leaves Wills room at the verge of tears. Choking up so much, he just hopes Will doesn’t see him.

“Yeah, maybe your right.”

The queen returns and Will and Mike have to go down to have dinner w/ her. They have to act as if nothing happened. They didn’t want to be… “disgusting”. After dinner like goes into his room and sobs. He couldn’t take the pain, he 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 Prince Will, but he couldn’t 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 Prince Will.

A day later the queen calls Mike down to talk to him. Mike had a feeling he knew what was going to happen. The Prince was clueless to this all, but its not like the Prince wasn’t in pain. He didn’t want to marry a girl…

“You disgusting swine! How dare you poison my son into that with your- with your 𝘞𝘐𝘛𝘊𝘏 𝘊𝘙𝘈𝘍𝘛! You are being sentenced to be hung, tonight.”

Mike expected this 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘘𝘶𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭. Will found out about the hanging and was asked to come, of course he didn’t go he 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 Mike so much. He sobbed when he found out, he sobbed and sobbed and sobbed. Sir Michael the Paladin was dead the next day Will woke up. Will could never move on- he hears a knock at his door.

“Prince I was cleaning out Sir Michael’s room, I think this is for you, Your Highness.”

Will opens it and reads it

“Dear, Will, I don’t want you to cry about my death. I need you to move on, but moving on doesn’t mean forgetting about thou. Remember everything, the library, the art room, the village, the pond, the frogs, the talks, and especially 𝘮𝘦. Please, for the sake of your legacy and family marry a Princess and have a good life, William. No matter where I am, I will always be looking out for you and protecting you, my dearest William. I don’t regret anything, I would do it all over again if I could. I love you. - Love, Michael the Paladin.”

———

I LOVE THSI AU AND HAVE BEEN THINKING ABOUT IT SO MUCH I HOPE YOU LIKE MY IDEA OF IT :D

[infriga]

AAAAAHHHHHHHH THE LIVE ACTION WAS SO GOOD AAAAAAAHHH

Luffy was so perfect, they all were, but as my favourite character he had a lot to live up to and he was AMAZING

My favourite aspects/moments:

- Luffy was so tactile and physically affectionate. I'm glad they weren't afraid of having him be touchy feely with his crew and friends. Plopping his head down on top of Nami's head when she's cracking the safe, literally draping himself overtop of Zoro and hugging him when he wakes up after the Mihawk fight, clinging to Usopp when their ship gets attacked by Garp as they leave Syrup village, hugging Coby when they say goodbye the second time, even just the small moments like when he puts his hands on Kaya's shoulders while giving her his speech about his dream and the Merry during the dinner, he is so affectionate with everyone and loves his friends so much I'm gonna cry.

- him walking on the table in Kaya's house during the dinner while giving his speech then handing his glass to Kuro gkdgkdhj that scene was so funny and was such a Luffy thing to do, and everyone's reactions plus Kuro's apoplectic rage in response had me dying

- Luffy's anxiety when he's worried about Zoro after the fight with Mihawk, like all his fidgeting and not wanting to eat and talking erratically, it really reminded me of his anxiety when Nami gets sick after Little Garden, as well as when he refuses to eat for a while after Marineford. It's just a nice touch because the one thing that can get him to lose his appetite is the thought of losing someone close to him, and one of the few things that can make him openly anxious is when he's not sure if one of his friends will be okay and there's nothing he can do to help. His anxiety in that scene is portrayed so well.

- Sanji trying to get him to eat and suggesting a bunch of different foods he can make because he's trying to help Luffy feel better was also so cute and such a Sanji thing to do 🥺🥺🥺

- Sanji and Zeff's dynamic was done soooooo well, the actors had so much chemistry and the dialogue was so good between them. Also I love how much of a spitfire baby Sanji was, and his and Zeff's first meeting was actually amazing with Sanji being like "I'D RATHER DIE THAN LET YOU SEASON MY FOOD" fhkxgjzgkxgj

- so much swearing, I loved it lol. In Japanese they swear a lot but a lot of subtitles don't really translate the extent of it, and the official manga translation definitely tones it down, as does the dub, at least compared to the original Japanese. Sanji even said "shitty restaurant"! He said the line!!

- idk if this an unpopular opinion or not, but I actually like the changes they made to the Syrup Village arc. That arc in the manga/anime is probably the narmiest, and as fond as I am of earlier arcs, that one would probably not translate well to the style and pacing the live action had going for it. They adjusted quite a few of the fights to fit a live action series as opposed to a serialized shounen. But One Piece has never really been about the fights, so as long as the essence is there I'm fine with it. And tbh, turning Kuro into a slasher villain stalking Kaya through the house actually worked surprisingly well. It made for a fun deviation from what fans would be used to, and played around with the genre without sacrificing the essential plot elements or character dynamics. Also using Kaya's house instead of a random beach actually made for a nice setting and environment that I think felt more fitting to the One Piece vibe, ngl.

- I like what they did with Koby's story. Having his character development lead up to him standing up to Garp rather than Alvida actually worked pretty well, and felt really natural as his story progressed in Parallel with Luffy's. And having his story involve him confronting his ideal of what a marine should be vs the reality of what marines are fit the story really well. I love the scene where he and Luffy tell each other to become a good marine and a good pirate.

- I was shocked that they revealed Garp's relationship with Luffy so soon, but honestly, it works better than I expected. I think they actually did a really good job integrating him into the earlier arcs, and it provided a good glimpse into some of the world building that will come into play later, like the relationship between the warlords and the marines/government, while also providing a more significant marine threat early on. I am a bit sad we don't get Luffy's canon reaction where as soon as he even hears his grandpa being mentioned he gets like ptsd flashbacks lmao. But I'll admit, the "talk" Nami gets Zoro to have with him after everyone finds out is hilarious. Zoro not giving a shit about who Luffy's grandpa is and being like "ughhhhhhh fine I'll talk to him" when Nami pressures him into it, then giving the barest minimum effort and Luffy is just like being Luffy and fiddling with his hat and answering the questions so non-chalantly, then Zoro is like "good talk" and bails, they were really on that shared idiot wavelength lmfaoooooo.

- Zoro's bickering with Sanji was great. I particularly like how prickly he gets about Sanji acting so familiar towards Nami and Luffy despite only just joining, because Zoro would totally be peeved by that, like excuse u simp waiter those were my friends first and I called dibs lmao

- Zoro's goofy moments like trying to sit down with the swords and when Luffy was manhandling him after his injury lmfao, I'm glad they didn't have him be serious all the time and let him be an idiot occasionally. He was so hardheaded and proud and cocky and sassy in all the right ways. Also loved when Nami was trying on clothes and Zoro is like "I'm gonna wear black so you can't wear black" like a diva LMAO

- uh, they did NOT have to go so fucking hard with Buggy, but they did and I am grateful for it. His actor is so fucking funny, and his lines are so good, they fit Buggy so well. And Luffy constantly getting his name wrong made me laugh every single time lmfao. Also when he gets mad at Luffy thinking he said "nose" and squishes his face, and Luffy's like "well now that you mention it wtf IS up with your nose?" LMAO did I mention yet how much I loved Luffy?

- having Buggy trap Luffy in a glass box filling with water worked so well for the circus aesthetic because it's really similar to those acts where people escape from a box filling with water. It also made sense for Buggy to use that against Luffy with the sea water. Also the effects for his fruit powers looked so good and creepy.

- they didn't shy away from gore! The manga is actually super violent, even relatively early on, but I got so used to the reduced version in the anime I actually was surprised at how graphic some parts were. They straight up had Zoro slice a guy in half and did not shy away from showing his sliced meaty bits. Also Zoro casually bringing Mr. 7's torso to the marines with the hair sticking out was badass ngl.

- the main cast were all sooooo good, I can't even pick one out as being better than any of the others, they were just all perfect. They really felt like the characters. Obviously Luffy stands out to me as my favourite character, but I loved them all so much. Sanji, Nami, Zoro, Usopp, they all were portrayed so well too. Absolutely perfect casting. Whoever was in charge of casting is the absolute GOAT

- Zoro and Nami bickering like siblings the whole time was great, especially how they were only unified in their exasperation over Luffy's antics lmfao.

- "Think he has brain damage?" "I think that every day" EGHSKSCHLACHSK

- the villains were all the perfect amount of hammy, hats off to their actors they all looked like they were having so much fun and they did so well as each character. And Arlong's actor managed to include Arlong's SHA HA HA HA laugh and actually make it sound pretty natural so fucking kudos dude that's awesome.

- when Sanji fishes Luffy out of the water at Baratie and they tell him Nami is gone, he looks so sad and pathetic just laying there wet on the dock I wanted to hug him so bad 🥺 he was already anxious about Zoro and then they lost Nami too and he was so worried about his friends.

- Sanji's simping was so funny. The scene were he's like "NAMI!" with his arms open as she comes out of the collapsing building in Arlong's Park and she runs right past him to hug Zoro and Usopp instead WGHOVSHOD it was so in character. dude is mega down bad fr and they portrayed it in such a funny way.

- I was kinda shocked at how well the outfits and costumes translated to live action. Like the show was extremely faithful when it came to character designs and outfits but it managed to make them feel very natural to the setting. It was honestly so cool. Like when Gin stumbled into the kitchen and you can instantly recognize him from his outfit, but it looks so natural like they made the outfits feel like something real people would wear. And the Strawhats had some absolute fucking DRIP yo, implementing a bunch of their colour spread outfits in the different episodes was fucking inspired, and they looked so goddamn good. Oda is a fucking fashion savant I swear like the clothes he designed look so damn good in real life.

- Luffy still had his asexual vibes in full force which I'm so happy about. Like when Nami is getting dressed for their dinner with Kaya, and asks how it looks while posing, and Luffy is like "... you look like Nami", that was SUCH a Luffy line lmao.

- when Usopp and Zoro were teasing Nami about Sanji's flirting (Zoro's rapid fire "madam"s lmfao) and everybody was joking around together while Luffy watches them with the most fond look on his face it was so cute ugh my heart

- Having Zeff help to treat Zoro using fish skin grafting was a really cool addition and a great way to show his expertise as a former pirate.

- omg when Luffy gets all defensive of Sanji after only knowing him for like a day (because he's Luffy), and he tells Zeff about Sanji feeding Gin thinking he'll be all mad but instead Zeff looks proud and says "what a good kid" OMG MY HEART that was so cute 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 Zeff's dad vibes we're off the fucking charts. And they kept the "li'l eggplant" nickname, Zeff was so good goddamn like he was honestly one of my favourite parts. How the fuck they managed to make his mustache work so well and look so natural I will never know but god damn I was so impressed.

- holy fucking shit, the Baratie looked so fucking good. It was like seeing the manga/anime come to life. I wanted to fucking go there so bad. The little mouth balcony thing, the floors, the roof mural which didn't get any attention but was just casually made to be incredibly detailed and beautiful?!?! The colours and the bg characters, holy shit the set was just fucking amazing.

- The ships looked so good. Luffy choosing Merry 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 I also liked how Usopp was introduced, it fit his character and the adjusted pacing pretty well imo

-I didn't know how to feel about Shanks in the preview images, but in motion he actually works really well. And Yasopp and Lucky Roo were so good. I love how they had Shanks mime cocking a gun and shooting it to signal to his crew to start going ham on the bandits so it looks for a moment like he shoots someone with his finger gun. Also Yasopp's trick shots were awesome, as well as Lucky Roo literally beating people with a chunk of meat lmfao.

- Mihawk was serving absolutely cunt. He was there to slay and slay he did. No notes, A+ performance.

- Zoro and Nami's actors really nailed their big emotional scenes. They captured the expressions and delivery perfectly, especially Nami screaming Arlong's name and stabbing her tattoo, she managed to match the intensity that the original voice actor had in the anime surprisingly well.

- Helmeppo's actor was so funny. His dickish goofy way of laughing worked so well for his character lmao, and having Zoro give him his signature haircut was 🤌🤌🤌 idk WHY they had him naked when he was playing with Wado Ichimonji but it was so funny.

- the scene where he convinces Koby to slack off and have a drink with him, Koby takes several shots, then blurts out that Garp is Luffy's grandfather was great lmfao.

-Zeff's interactions with Garp were great too. I love their talk about there being a new generation coming into its own now and it's getting to be the time where they should step back and let the new kids have their turn. It was a scene I could absolutely see happening in the manga.

- I like how at first Garp seems more reserved and serious than he is in canon, but as more time passes the more it's revealed how unhinged he is and how he absolutely is related to Luffy. Like when he screams after Luffy takes out their main sail, only to start laughing and act proud. Or when he gets pissed off at Mihawk refusing to capture Luffy and just has a tantrum in his office throwing shit around. Or when Zeff convinces him to stay for a meal by mentioning meat and he's like 👀👀👀. Koby saying he should have realised Garp and Luffy were related because of how much they both like meat had me laughing out loud.

- I like how Bogard got a slightly bigger role. He always had a really cool aesthetic, like an old time gangster with a samurai sword is actually really cool, so it was nice to see him a bit more than we get to in the manga/anime.

- They did a great job showing off how terrifyingly strong Garp is. When he's going after Luffy and just demolishing him as well as the environment. His hits felt like they hit hard. Also when he grabbed a canon ball and threw it at the Merry I was like YES!!! I was really hoping they'd show that if they were going to involve him in the live action series earlier than in canon.

- the show really managed to capture that fun swashbuckling vibe that comes with pirates. Also the ships and sets looked so good. And I like how they made reasonable changes to ship designs without going too far or making them too "realistic", they kept the fun aspects of the ship designs. Like Garp's ship looked damn good! Alvida's ship was still pink and covered in hearts!

I could gush for hours about everything I liked. There were like a few tiny nitpicks, some of the child actors weren't the greatest (Usopp and Kuina's being the worst ones), Usopp didn't get as many important scenes in Syrup village (though he did get a nice scene where he refuses to leave Kaya even after she slaps him and accuses him of lying about Klahador/Kuro, and they also kind of made up for not having more big scenes for him by giving Nami some extra development with Kaya in a way that fit with both their characters and storys. It was cute!), they left Hachi out of Arlong's Park which could impact his story later on (if they ever get that far 🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞🤞), which kinda sucks because I've always loved his redemption story. But aside from that honestly, I have very few criticisms. This felt like it was made by people who love One Piece and wanted to share it with both fans who have always wanted to see the world and characters they love in real life, as well a new audience that might otherwise have never gotten to see it. What few changes they made were ones that made sense for condensing the story, adjusting for the change in genre and medium, and they all still fit the world and didn't actually sacrifice the important aspects of canon. And they captured the heart and essence of the story, world, and characters so well it almost feels like a dream.

Like, we all got so used to live action adaptations falling short of that, of missing what makes the originals work. But the One Piece live action feels like it gets it, like above everything else the strawhats are a family, and Luffy is the embodyment of joy, and freedom, and the pursuit of dreams, and letting yourself just believe for once in something bigger than yourself even when you're a very small fish in a very big pond. The attention to detail, all the little references and foreshadowing and stuff in the backgrounds. The casting was mind bogglingly good, even minor characters like Sham and Buchi were so good and had so much character and life to them. Even with the characters they mostly had to leave out due to pacing and time constraints, just their designs alone were given so much attention. Like the Mayor of Orange town, or Patty, or Gin, who were only briefly shown in reduced roles, but were still so instantly recognisable. And the wacky designs of the manga were adapted to live action so well I was flabbergasted at how well they worked and how good they looked even though they barely toned down any of their weirdness or goofiness.

I was initially worried about the main characters saying or doing things that felt out of character, especially my boy Luffy, but there was never a moment where I felt like they weren't their characters. Sure, they weren't exact 1 to 1 copies since a lot of the Japanese dialogue would sound stilted in English without an adjustment, even the typical translated versions are more attuned to the sensibilities of people who are used to reading or hearing translated dialogue, so there were obvious adjustments that had to be made to the way some characters talked and the lines they said, but they made it work and feel right for this version of the story, and the characters still felt like themselves in all the ways that mattered.

Iñaki as Luffy was amazing, I am so happy with his performance. He really embodied the charm and cheer and charisma of Luffy perfectly. I got to fall in love with Luffy's character all over again with him and that is such a gift to get to experience that more than once 😭😭😭😭

God. I'm so emotional. I wanted this to be good so badly. I wanted this, of all series to escape the live action anime curse, because I knew if any could, it would be One Piece. And it was even better than I'd hoped. Was it perfect? Probably not, but I don't care. There wasn't a single moment where I wasn't enjoying myself and having fun, and that was all I wanted was to have fun while watching. It captured that feeling of the east blue arc, the nostalgia, so well.

If I gush any more this post will be way too fucking long. There are obviously more things I could talk about and comment on but I have to stop at some point or else I'll be writing this post forever lmao.

I will be reblogging stuff about the live action obviously, so reminder that my spoiler tag is gonna be "OPLA spoilers"

AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH

[inkysandwich]

Aw, guys. This chapter made me super happy. Chapters with all four of them together are my favorites, but actually it's always the ones with Qiu, too.

I love this man.

He's more of an agent of chaos in this story than She Li is (was 🫤) Not because Q is unpredictable or poses an immediate threat, but because him being near generally indicates that someone else has plans. I mean... It's not totally unbelievable that He Cheng forgot to feed Q and he really is just swinging by the market on the way home to his now emptier, dogless home.

But is he?

I doubt it.

Though I do not doubt that he's using his current goose-wrangling babysitting gig to get in on that certified home cooked MGS action. Again.

Qiu is cheeky and bold and unyeildingly bulldozes his way into where he needs to be. Which is why he's the perfect bridge for HC to have between himself and the idiots. Do you think HC would have gotten the same reaction, stumbling into them and bribing himself a seat at the dinner table to keep an eye on them?

Q is crass--even his boss--and that makes him approachable. He's just a dude with a job he thought would be better (like MGS) that he got because he has a level of loyalty to a powerful man that he can't fully explain or probably even justify (like HT) and is now responsible for the safety of a flighty idiot that can't seem to stop getting kidnapped (like ZZX). But he's strong and capable and protects the people he needs to protect (like JY wants to be, HT too). Q can reach them in ways that HC's position would never allow.

He's there when they need more hands in a fight, when the kids are being scammed, when they can't build a fire, when they can't get to school on time, when JY needs to be un-kidnapped, when HT gets to say goodbye to his dog. He gets them ice cream (and king crab!) and guitars and firewood. He gives them rides on his motorcycle and lets them roughhouse but punishes them when they take it too far. He teaches them how to be stronger and when to show restraint and oh my god Qiu is the only suitable father figure in this whole damn story.

It's just a bonus that I'm never going to be sad looking at any part of him.

But his presence is a harbinger.

Of impending mafia send-offs? Of looming threats of rivals? Of teenaged hijinks or mindless street thugs? Of malicious neighbors with cat lasers toys?

We won't know until they strike. (Although, I have my assumptions)

I was going to talk more about the chapter, but this kinda became a Q appreciation post. I couldn't help it. And neither could I help the onslaught of senseless head cannon from taking over.

Because I really really want to see Mom's reaction to Q. He's a gruff muscles-definitely-for-more-than-show dude, but she lives with a prickly "delinquent" that towers over most people, so she knows how to read between the lines.

But--and I WILL die on this hill--she knows how to read between the lines.

Do I think we'll ever get the Momma confrontation I've asked for so badly for years now? Probably not outside of my drafts. But I don't care. She knows, and I know she knows, and you know I know she knows👃

Because in the same breath that I wish for her to react to the mafia presence, I also just... I want this single dad (yes, single. You're going to make him do all the childrearing, send him off to clean up the messes, AND STILL NOT FEED HIM?!) to be treated kindly by the mother of all mothers. I want them to commiserate on keeping track of these animals. I want him to reassure her that her son isn't going to be held back any more. I want her to make him soup that tastes so good he asks for some to go and she gives it to him under the condition that he comes by any time he wants a home cooked meal.

And HT dies a little inside. And so does MGS the first time "A-Qiu" takes her up on her offer...

I'll stop now before I make any grievous mistakes, but I'm sure you can imagine that my draft list of questionable prompts is growing 😈

[wonderlandhour]

TWST Characters/OCs as Things I Quote Way Too Often But It's Soley Based on Vibes

Wow, automatic doors, how convenient! - Ash/Yuu

We shot him in the legs because his shield is the size of a dinner plate and hes an idiot - General Lilia

I have god and anime on my side! - Idia probably, if not Ortho

{calls wrong name} [calls a different wrong name again]- Tom Dick Harry! [usually correct name] - one of the teachers, probably Trein

the I Am Not a Person, I'm Three Possums in a Coat song - Chenya/Floyd

Bitch I Mightwing - i think this would be Ace

It's the Quenchiest! - Epel and Deuce are the only ones dumb enough to drink cactus juice. so one of them.

Shut the fuck your mouth you piece of shit! - Riddle if he swore (it's Jamil post blot otherwise, lol)

Barbeque Sauce on my Tiddies - Epel

The Time For Planning is over! It's Time to Bullshit! - Sora

CHOP CHOP MAN-BUN! - Alicia

Megan, nO! - Azul

Bada Bibble?! Pff! - Cheka/Ortho

Quint Brand Violin Egg Tarts Soda Marathon - Leona makeing fun of Malleus (who i refuse to believe doesn't have one of those long ass royal names)

No Beta We Die Like Men - Deuce going into Any Fight

I am very small. and have no money. so you can imagine the kind of stress that i am under. - Ortho

There you are darling. I've been looking all over for you. - Malleus

The Entire What's New Scooby Doo Theme Song - Sebek would go HARD on that. others too but mostly Sebek.

What do you have? -a KNIFE! - NO!! - Ash and Grim\

Nyan Cat Song - Once Again Chenya/Floyd.

It was the sword bitchen! - Lilia about his Magearm

Knucles, here's your bitch back - an unconscious silver being delivers back to diasomnia by someone

SaSa LeLe - Ruggie

Welcome To Hell, Bitch - honestly about half the cast . . . but mostly Ace

We Deserve a Soft Epilogue, My Love - Malleus

Pick a God and Pray - Idia playing literally any video game

There's no need to wonder where you god is! cause he's right here. and hes fresh out of mercy. - Lilia's response

a supercomputer. calculating for a thousand years, could not even approach the number of fucks i do not give. - Leona

Oh No He's Hot - Cater literally every day

NO CAPES! - Crewel

And They Were Roommates! - Kalim

Niga Te Boogiboo - Floyd post Stitch Event

- Warning, the More Dirty Ones under the cut -

I got a mortgage, how 'bout fuck bitches get money! - Ruggie

I happen to have a large dick, however i don't have it with me - Namja for sure

what's up sluts, guess who justs got out of prision! - Leona

Big Dick Energy Leads to Big Dick Injury, call 1-800-BIG-DICK - Ace

you haven't seen a pussy since you came out of your mother's vagina, shut the fuck up - Thalia

Hon Hon Hon, Titty Croissant - Epel badly mimicking Rook

[demona-andariel]

A Simple Act of Kindness - 18 / ??

Fandom: Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)

Pairing: Thomas Hewitt (Leatherface) x OFC

Summary: Elizabeth wakes up in a stranger's home. Her fate to become another victim of the Hewitt family is all but sealed till a simple act of kindness changes her life forever.

Warning: (Encompassing the whole story in no particular order) dead dove, rape/Noncon, violence, forced marriage, kidnapping, cannibalism, explicit sexual content, loss of virginity, angst

Author Note: Minors DNI!

Word Count: 4.158

Chapter 18 - Consequences

“Hey, Tommy.” Hoyt flashed Thomas one of his wide smiles as Thomas stormed into the kitchen. “Wanna-”

You made me fail her!

Thomas’s knuckles connected with his uncle’s cheek, sending the old man sprawling onto the kitchen floor. Hoyt’s sheriff’s hat flew off his head and landed on the ground.

“Tommy?” his mother cried out in surprise.

“What the hell, boy,” his uncle Monty shouted.

The three of them had just gotten back from wherever they went for the day. Thomas hadn’t heard them leave in the morning. But then again, he and Elizabeth had stayed down in the dark, dank, messy basement for hours. He wanted her to be the one to make the move. To tell him that she wanted to go upstairs. Show her that she still had freedom. Choices. But she didn’t. She just waited. She wasn’t lying when she said she was done trying.

He finally gave in and indicated that he wanted her to go upstairs once he realized that she wasn’t going to move. They probably would have stayed there much longer, but he hated how she kept looking at the damned meat hooks. Was she wishing he’d just killed her?

Never you.

She didn’t fight or argue when he placed his hand on the small of her back and motioned toward the door. Those eyes.

Thomas was a butcher, had always been a butcher. Hell, he was born in the goddamn meat factory. The one and only place he worked at up until it shut down a couple years ago. He knew what death looked like for animals and humans. Humans were a bit more combative than the animals. Although, not all of them fought for their life till the end. Some gave up easily. But, they always gave up when they knew they were going to die. Those were the only times he saw the life leave someone’s eyes. Either when they died, or just before they died when they accepted their fate.

Yet, he’d never seen someone who was so alive look so hollow. He wanted to hold her close while also shake her. Make her recover faster. She had to understand she was going to be okay. He’d never let anything like that happen to her again.

But you couldn’t protect her then, why would she think you can protect her now?

Thomas grabbed a mug that was on the kitchen table and threw it hard at his uncle’s head, barely missing the man. The mug broke into multiple pieces the moment it hit the cabinet. It landed with a loud clatter onto the floor. Thomas’s nose flared as he took in deep, heavy breaths.

“Now, Thomas,” Hoyt said as he raised his hands in the air. “I know you’re pissed, boy. But listen to me.”

Listen to his lies? His excuses?

Thomas shook his head.

He had indulged his feelings of denial all day. By the time Elizabeth and him had gone back upstairs the sun was already up and the house was empty. A part of him was grateful that the family chose to leave them alone yet again. He wasn’t sure he could completely process the information with the three of them demanding his attention while his Elizabeth roamed like a zombie.

The silent house was both a blessing and a curse. It allowed him to think and try to understand the situation. While at the same time, it made him confront the truth. Or at least, it should have. But he had fought with his brain, pushing that to one side. Hoping that just maybe this was all some horrible nightmare.

He believed her. He just didn’t want to.

That was until he heard his uncle’s voice only moments ago when his family returned home. He’d been upstairs with Elizabeth, watching her get ready for dinner. Both had heard the car coming down the road. Hoyt’s jovial laughter boomed through the house right after he slammed the front door shut. That was when she finally showed some emotion, except it was turmoil that crossed her face as her whole body stiffened. And that’s what set Thomas off.

How could you?! To her? Thomas breathed heavily as he took a step toward his uncle who was on the floor.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t imagine Hoyt raping a woman. He knew from experience the old man could and had raped women in the past. Hell, Hoyt had even pushed and cheer Thomas into joining him on several occasions. It was how he lost his virginity after all. Not that he particularly enjoyed himself. He liked sex, he just didn’t like the things they call him. It would have been the one time, had Hoyt not egged him on to “enjoy them while they’re still breathing”. Their victims were going to die after all. And Hoyt was just… “getting you ready to please your future wife. Make all the mistakes with these ones.”

They always called him names. She never did that. She never attacked his looks. Even when he raped her in front of that Jason, she tried to get the man to stop calling him names. Her go to was to appeal to his humanity and kindness. The part of him that he reserved for only his family. Which was what made her so special to him.

Rage boiled inside of him as he clenched his fists.

Elizabeth wasn’t one of their victims. And, his uncle knew that. And Thomas thought he’d done everything to show his love and devotion toward his wife. Sure, they weren’t legally married but that was just on paper, and that was going to be fixed soon. As far as Thomas was concerned Elizabeth was his wife. She wasn’t on some rocky ground with Thomas thinking about just ending her life. Hell, even the attempted by Hoyt rape months ago pissed Thomas off. Not enough to hurt his uncle, but enough to throw a couple items when he pitched a small tantrum. He thought that had gotten the message across that Elizabeth was off-limits to Hoyt.

I trusted you with her! Thomas grabbed a chair that was in his way and flung it to one side. It hit the wall with a loud crash.

“Thomas, easy,” Hoyt said, keeping his hands raised in surrender. His mouth quirked into an uneasy smile. “Let’s talk about this.”

Talk? He should have talked to Thomas before raping her. Should have come to Thomas about his concerns. Let Thomas decide what he wanted to do, instead of destroying the best thing that had happened to him.

Thomas let out a roar of anger and picked up his uncle, slamming him against the kitchen cabinets. His fingers twisted the sheriff’s shirt as he pressed his body close to his uncle.

“She’s been lying to you, boy,” Hoyt snapped. He looked angry, but Thomas heard the fear and worry in his voice.

You betrayed me! You hurt her. Thomas punched him. Luda Mae let out a shriek while Uncle Monty shouted something. Hoyt looked stunned.

Elizabeth wasn’t wrong. Hoyt probably would have gotten away with what he did. No repercussions at all. Had this IUD thing been found out earlier. During the time Thomas’s sole focus was to get her pregnant. Because, he needed her pregnant. He needed her to have a reason to stay with him. Sure, he would have gotten angry with his uncle. But he would have let it slide in the end. After all, at the time, she wasn’t family yet. He knew she was going to be. Just needed to be pregnant with their kid to forever tie her to him. But, at the time she was still somewhat floating in the air. Almost close enough to pull into their circle, but not quite there yet. The thing was, she changed that when she didn’t run away at the first chance she got. She’d stayed and she wasn’t even pregnant.

He wasn’t sure how his family didn’t see it. Didn’t realize that she was one of them? How could they still saw her as a stranger? As one of their potential victims?

She’s my wife! She’s not one of them! She was never meant to be one of them!

Thomas roared and threw his uncle across the room. He embraced the rage and anger that flowed through him. For probably the first time in his life, Hoyt looked up at Thomas in fear.

Everyone knew Thomas was capable of violence. After all, it was Thomas who killed their victims. Thomas was the they sent to capture those who tried to escape. And he was good at chasing them down with his chainsaw and ending their lives. It was during those times that he allowed himself to go into that zone of hate and anger. The world had been cruel and unkind to him, so he let himself pay it in kind. He indulged the darkness and take out his frustrations on their victims.

But he’d never once turned his rage on his family. How could he? He loved them and they loved him. They were the only people who cared about him. Who took care of him. Who raised him. Protected him when they could. And they didn’t have to. They had no real obligations toward him. He wasn’t truly Luda Mae’s son. She’d found him at the meat factory. Thrown away by his very mother who apparently worked there.

“You’ll always be one of us, Tommy. Don’t matter whose blood flows in your veins.”

Thomas stormed toward his uncle and grabbed the man’s ankles, pulling him back.

“Thomas!” Luda Mae screamed. “Thomas, stop!”

He ignored his mother. Hoyt fought back. Or at least, he tried to. But, Thomas managed to grab his shirt and twist the fabric again, easily pulling the old man back to his feet. Hoyt’s name tag dug into his skin, causing a sharp pain, but he didn’t care.

He threw Hoyt up against the wall.

She was supposed to feel safe… be safe!

“Tom-” Hoyt’s words were cut off when Thomas punched him again.

I can’t even tell her that I didn’t know. That you did this without my permission. That I would have never given you permission to hurt her like that. To rape her!

Thomas let out a frustrated cry of anger again.

That was probably one of the worst things about the whole situation. He couldn’t talk. He couldn’t tell them how he felt. The betrayal of it all. The complete utter devastation and how broken she was now. He couldn’t tell her he had no knowledge. He couldn’t comfort her.

His lack of ability to really communicate had never been a problem before. Well, maybe in his early childhood. He had attended school, but it was one of the worst experiences of his life. His classmates teased and bullied him, while his teachers practically ignored him as if he weren’t there. He needed extra help with his work, and while his family were there for him, they didn’t see a real importance in getting an education.

Maybe he could have learned how to talk and communicate better, not perfectly, but something, had his family encouraged him. Had the kids at school not made fun of him. But, the bullying and neglect made him disinterested in talking all together. And his family respected his decision and didn’t push him. Talking wasn’t necessary for him in the end. There was no need. And he was content to listen to the family conversation and not join in.

Even when Elizabeth came into his life he figured it’d come to him just listening to her. That she wouldn’t want to get to know the man behind the mask. No one really did. But, it didn’t turn out that way. She actually tried to talk to him. Tried to have some sort of conversation with him to get to know him. She asked him questions about himself in ways that allowed him to answer. Hell, she had started to pick up on the meaning of certain noises that he made.

Oh how he yearned to be able to speak and form coherent words and not just make grunts and weird noises, just for her. Hell, even writing would be something. But he was illiterate as well. Knowing how to read and write wasn’t a problem when all he did for a living was butcher animals.

A book. The thought made him still for a moment. Yes. He needed to get her a book.

He’d heard that women like to read. Luda Mae always had some magazine on her. Thomas hadn’t been sure that Elizabeth even liked books. But, he gave her one that he still had lying around from one of their victims so she didn’t look so bored when she was recovering from her illness. It was clearly one of his better decisions. The way her eyes lit up with excitement had caused his heart to flutter and made him want to do that again. Get that reaction again.

Although, there had been a little bit of jealousy in him whenever he saw her reading a book. She seemed so fascinated and engrossed. He wanted to know what held her interest. Her eyes would sometimes light up and she’d get giddy at times. Why? He wanted to know. But, he couldn’t ask her. That would reveal he was illiterate. It would just be another mark on him. Another ding to show just how unworthy he was of her.

That won’t bring her back.

Thomas roared and his body shook with rage. He wasn’t worthy of her. He knew what he’d done was wrong. He knew forcing her to stay with him and live in his world wasn’t right. And he worked hard on making her life as simple and pleasant as could be. But that was all destroyed now.

You broke her!

“Tommy, stop!” Luda Mae called out, grabbing his arm in a vain attempt to stop him.

Thomas easily shrugged her off. No, he wasn’t going to stop. Not right now. His uncle was just lucky that he was family. Because it was the only thing that was keeping him from dragging the old man downstairs and introducing him to his chainsaw.

“Tommy, I did it for-” Hoyt’s words were stopped by another punch.

The sound of his uncle’s voice only infuriated him further. It was strange. He held his uncle in such high regard before, listening to him and sometimes even trying to emulate him. Any time his uncle praised him, he felt so proud. But right now, he just wanted the old man to shut up and keep quiet.

Thomas punched his uncle again. Only, the old man moved his head at the last second and Thomas’s fist went into the wall. He let out another sound of anger, mixed with pain. The name tag went a little bit deeper into his palm, forcing Thomas to let his uncle go. He took a step back to examine his hands.

Hoyt collapsed onto the ground without Thomas to hold him up.

Thomas stared at his bloody knuckles on his right hand, before turning to his left and opening his palm. He felt the pain flow through his arms. Pain… The pain didn’t matter. The pain… No wait… it did. It did matter. He deserved it. His uncle deserved it. Thomas felt both a sense of pride and need. He had to feel the pain. Had to punish himself as well as his uncle.

“God damnit, Tommy,” Hoyt wheezed. He slowly rose to his feet and spat out blood.

Luda Mae rushed toward her brother with a kitchen rag.

“What the hell has gotten into you?” Uncle Monty snapped. Thomas glared at his uncle who was in a wheelchair.

Elizabeth had very little interaction with him over the rest of the family. At first, Elizabeth was meant to be Uncle Monty’s little caregiver. The old man had no legs, thanks to one of their victims and Thomas. He’d been shot in the leg and instead of taking him to the hospital, Hoyt had ordered Thomas to saw his leg off. Then the other “For balance”. Rather extreme, but Thomas didn’t question it.

But, Monty had made several “innocent” touches even in front of Thomas. He didn’t think Monty could do much else, he was in a wheelchair after all, but he wasn’t going to subject her to such treatment. Especially since Monty was good at playing innocent and using his disability as an excuse. Little did he realize that the real threat was Hoyt. Even after the incident months ago, Thomas still thought he could trust Hoyt to never try and rape her again.

“That bitch’s pussy,” Hoyt grunted.

Thomas let out a roar and rushed to his uncle.

“Thomas, stop!” Luda Mae commanded. A loud slap caught all of them by surprise. “That’s enough, Hoyt.”

Hoyt pressed his hand against his cheek in shock. “Owe, mama,” he said. His face was already swelling up, but he looked far more shocked that Luda Mae had slapped him.

Luda Mae stood up and placed her hands on her hips. She looked at Hoyt then at Thomas.

“I know you’re upset, son, but-” Luda Mae started.

“She lied to you,” Hoyt interrupted, spitting out more blood. He let out a grunt as he struggled to straighten his shoulder. “She tell you that? Made herself seem like she wanted to be a mama. But she don’t wanna have your kids, Tommy. We all fucked up. Really shouldn’t have-”

Thomas grabbed another mug and threw it at the wall, interrupting his uncle. The three adults froze as they watched him. Taking off his leather mask, he opened his mouth. He needed them to see. To know that his effort was serious.

His throat moved as he tried to figure out how to say it. He ignored the pain and tension from his struggle.

“W…” He shook his head and cleared his throat. Pointing up toward his room he tried again. “Ww… wwi… wwwife,” he managed to force out the simple word as firmly as possible. It was well worth the pain and difficulty. Although, he regretted not trying to say one word to her first.

The three adults looked at him, startled by his word.

“Tommy,” Luda Mae said softly as she took a step toward him, reaching her hand out.

He stamped his foot again, keeping his finger pointed up toward his room as he shook his head at them in disappointment. His room… no. Their room. Him and Elizabeth. His wife.

Still shaking his head, Thomas put his leather mask back on and took a step back from the three. His shoulders dropped and he lowered his arm. Exhaustion quickly replaced the rage and anger that was inside of him.

He closed his eyes and let out a sigh, leaning his head back to look at the ceiling. Betrayed. They’d betrayed him by hurting her in such a way. Family? What kind of family were they?

“I’m sorry, son,” Hoyt said. “Had I known… but, Tommy. She was-”

Thomas narrowed his eyes as he glared at his uncle.

Do it. Push me over that edge again. I won’t hold back. It was a lie though and he knew it. They probably knew it as well. He didn’t have the strength inside of him to kill anyone in his family.

“You’re right, Thomas,” Luda Mae said softly as she stepped in front of Hoyt. “Hoyt should never have taken to punishing her without your permission. She’s your wife. I guess we forgot about that. It would be so much easier if she had your kid, ya know? Truly make her a part of the family. But, I know it takes time. Just, Hoyt was angry on your behalf. He shouldn’t have done it. But, you know your uncle. Always wanting to protect ya.”

A part of the family. Thomas looked up in the direction of his room. But, she was a part of the family. They didn’t get that.

Giving his family one last look of disappointment, he shook his head and headed back upstairs. The stairs creaked with each step that he took. He just wanted to lay down in bed and cuddle up with her. Get her to soothe him, but he couldn’t ask that of her. He needed to be strong for her. Let her be the one to make the move, even though he was feeling pretty lonely.

Opening his bedroom door, he froze. Elizabeth sat on the bed. Her hands neatly folded on her lap. There was no way she hadn’t heard the commotion downstairs. No emotions, just a simple acceptance.

She licked her dry lips.

“Is it time to kill me now?” she asked.

He walked over to her and then rested his forehead against hers.

Never.

Taking in a deep breath, he slowly let it out. She smelled so good, as always. Pomegranate, she had said once. His mind brought up the memory of him giving her the shampoo. The way she popped the lid and took in a deep breath, smiling at him.

Straightening his stance, Thomas walked to the bathroom. He turned on the faucet and placed his hands under the cool water. There was something fascinating about watching the blood flow down his fingers, revealing his peeled skin better. His blood for once. Not someone else’s.

The cold water seeped into his skin, but he refused to lift his hands. He hadn’t done enough. He should have beaten his uncle some more. Broken a few teeth, maybe a limb or two. Really messed him up. But he held back. He knew he did, despite his rage. He gave him just enough of a beating to bring attention to his anger, but not nearly enough to truly get revenge for Elizabeth.

Once again, he’d failed her.

A warm hand on his wrist startled him. He gasped and jerked up as he looked at Elizabeth. Her eyes were on his hands for a moment, before she turned her attention to the mirror. His body remained still as he watched her open the mirror and pull out the first aid kit that was behind it. It was an item she’d requested. He didn’t think it was of any use, but apparently it was.

Placing the kit on the tank lid for the toilet, she opened it. She pulled the hand towel from its hook and then moved his right hand out of the water. Her fingers felt so soft and delicate on his skin. She was gentle, as if she were worried she’d hurt him some more. Taking the towel, she gently pat his hand dry.

He didn’t want to move, didn’t want to really breathe. Too afraid that one wrong move from his end would make her stop. She opened a bottle and dug her fingers into the jelly.

Thomas tensed, expecting some sort of sting or pain, but nothing happened as she gently coated his knuckles with a thin layer of the ointment. All too quickly, she was done and let that hand go. He wanted to reach out and kiss her, but her focus went to his other hand.

At first, he resisted, not wanting her to deal with that specific hand. It hurt a lot more than his other one did. But it was a pain he felt that he needed. But, he also didn’t want her to leave him just yet.

With a little sigh, he turned his hand and slowly opened his fingers. There were two clear cuts from the sharp edges of the name tag. He had ignored the pain as the plate dug into his skin, cutting into him while he held his uncle.

Elizabeth grabbed the plastic tube that had an ointment in it and squeezed some more out into his palm. Her fingers felt nice and she was gently but firm as she rubbed it into his cuts. Once she was done, she grabbed the only bandage that was in the kit and started to wrap it around his hand to cover the cuts.

Thomas felt a surge of panic. She was almost done and he didn’t want her to be. He wanted her to keep touching him.

She suddenly stopped, part of the bandage was still in her hand. He felt his heart pick up its beat. She probably remember now. She wasn’t supposed to care. Wasn’t supposed to try. Wasn’t supposed to feel.

Her own breathing deepened and a little tremble went through her body. He couldn’t help but marvel at how tiny her hands were compared to his, as her two hands held his one. Her eyes stayed focused on his palm. Slowly, her looked up at him.

“I don’t want to be here.” The words came out soft, her eyes pleading.

He stopped breathing for a moment. Then she snapped back into herself, pushing those emotions back. Clearing her throat, she looked back at his hand and finished wrapping it.

She hesitated for another moment, then let his hand go. Not another word came out of her mouth as she turned her back to him. Thomas swallowed back some saliva and watched her walk back into their room.

Yes, he thought as he nodded his head. I agree. I don’t want to be here either.

Chapter 19 - Hope

[arandomperson19]

The sword in her hear-Prologue

2

Pairing: Genma/OC

Summary: An orphan had no choice but to become a shinobi. Her strong addiction to sharp weapons worries more than one but who can judge her, she's a war veteran.

During a storm, a woman was running. Running away from her past and her destiny.The snow was freezing her physically and morally, but she didn’t care. She was escaping from her duties. She wasn’t ashamed of that. Why would she be ashamed? Their duties weren’t suitable for her. Why stay?

Regrets? She didn’t have any regrets.Freezing was better than supporting the glare from the people, the judgment from her friend, the disappointment in the eyes of her father. Their silence was horrible for her. They should have criticized her but they didn’t. They just looked and that says a lot.

Her only regret is about her father who will never know his granddaughter. But she didn’t have another choice, her honor was at risk for this family of two. Her and her daughter's new life.

Some years later…

In a orphanage…

There was a routine.

When you wake up you arrange your bed

Wash your face

Eat your breakfast

Do you chores

Eat lunch

Do the rest of your chores

Classes to learn how to read, count, cook and other things

Free time

Dinner

Bath time

Bedtime

Everyday, it’s the same thing. All the children above 3 years old adopted this routine. When you finished your day, you were exhausted.Nobody could complain since there was a war. The orphanages were poor and sometimes, food was inaccessible. Children didn’t notice the tense atmosphere around them. For them, Konoha will win. There wasn’t another choice. They dreamed of being shinobi to fight for Konoha, dreaming of being the new God of shinobi. All of them.

Jingū didn’t have a dream. She couldn’t dream since her future was already decided for her. She will  become a shinobi, a ninja. If she had a choice, she would have opened a weapon shop where sharp objects of all shapes and sizes will be stored. She loved sharp objects. A bad movement and you will cut yourself. She didn’t know where her obsession with this kind of object came from but she wasn't worried about it unlike her teacher and classmates.

The children of the orphanage already knew about that addiction so for them that wasn’t a big deal. At first, the kind guardian of the orphanage was worried but decided that each child developed differently.

Jingū was alone. Her classmates didn’t want to be associated with her. She was too “creepy” for their liking. Even the children from the orphanage avoided it. The only person who liked her was the nice lady, her gardien at the orphanage. She didn’t avoid  or insult her. She sometimes makes her favorite food and always asks how her day was. The lady's name was Sayana, she was a mother to her . Today wasn’t an exception.

-“ Sanaya-san!”

-“Jingū-chan! How was your day at the academy?”

-“That was mostly boring, but we finally began to throw shuriken! Even the teacher praised me!”

-“Ah! I’m so happy for you, Jingū-chan! Did you make any friends? I don’t want you to be alone.” Sanaya said it with a sad tone. She really didn’t want Jingū to be alone. The poor little sunshine was always alone.

-“Don’t worry about that Sanaya-san. I have a lot of time to go to the library. I already can heal animals and make little poison. I am pretty good at it.

-“ It’s good Jingū-chan but don’t overworked yourself, alright? I don’t want to find you in a hospital bed.”

-“Don’t worry about that Sanaya-san, I would be careful. I don't want you to be worried.” Jingū throws herself in the arms of her benefactor. She didn’t want her to be worried. She heard someone say that if you worry about a lot of things, you would get old faster. And if you’re old faster, you die faster too. She didn’t want Sanaya to die.

-“Alright, alright. I will stop worrying but don’t do anything reckless.” Sanaya gently removed her from her arms. Jingū looked at her with admiration. Sanaya-san was the best person alive, a woman to protect.“Can you help me make dinner?”

-“Of course! I’m the best person you can ask.”

• • •

The dinner was delicious as always. Jingū was happy that it was Sayana-san who did the food for everyone. The other gardiens weren’t that nice. It’s like they didn’t like her. Jingū knows it has something to do with how they find her. She heard them two years ago. Jingū was now eleven years old. She understood that they were avoiding her for no valuable reason, so she didn’t mind. The same case was present for the students. She just didn’t care.

Since she was part of the oldest child in the orphanage, she could wash herself alone. She had to do it fast because the other older children were waiting for her. She was always the first to wash herself and they didn’t like it. When she got out of the bathroom, the group of kids who usually ignored her were fixing her. She felt judged but she didn’t care.

-“You took all of your time there. Can’t you get out faster the next time you freak?” It was Yuki who was complaining. They knew each other since she could remember but the older girl dislikes her. She didn’t try to find why because she didn’t care.

-“…”

-“Are you really going to ignore me? I don’t know why Miss Sayana is so nice to you! You don’t even have friends with that attitude of yours.” Yuki was persistant. She must like to try breaking Jingū.

-“ Her hobby too, don’t forget her hobby” Takara liked to mock her a lot. The way she dressed herself and the fact that she don’t have any friends.

-“Maybe you guys should leave her alone.” That was Keiko. She didn’t say it out loud but the bullied girl heard it. She is the only kid who don’t ignore her.

-“You’re right! Who is so obsessed with weapons except her!” That wasn’t that weird okay?

Jingū just continued to walk to her room. Responding to them was a waste of her time. She walked for a few minutes and arrived at her bedroom. Her roommate wanted to change rooms because she didn’t want to stay with the orphanage freak . She didn’t mind since she could do her homework and work without anyone annoying her.

That homework was pretty easy. The history of Konoha was that long so yeah easy. When she finished, she readed the book she got from the library. She knows that controlling her chakra would be really important so she needed it to be perfect. She also read about the different jutsu and techniques. Even if she couldn’t do it, she needs as much information as she can remember. She finished her book and noting everything she learned, She finally lay down in her bed. Before falling asleep, she thought about everything people told her today. Their words didn’t hurt but she could feel a little pain in her heart. Tears start falling before she knew it. What were they thinking about her? She didn’t care…

• • •

In the morning, she didn’t have the energy to do her bed. She ran to the bathroom and started her morning routine. She went down and ate her breakfast with the other children. Compared to the younger kid, the older had to go to school so they didn’t have to do any chores before school. When Jingū  finished, she said bye to Sayana and ran for the academy. Some kids from the orphanage were also in the academy. She preferred to walk alone so she always left early.

On her way, she saw the village around her. She saw the shop around her and remembered her past dream, opening a shop. That was now an illusion. A fat illusion.

She didn’t realize it but she walked really fast without looking in front of herself. She bumped into something, someone? She fell on the ground and sighed in pain. She looked up and saw a guy with a senbon in his mouth. He had a Konoha headband. A genin? He looked at her and helped her get up.

-“I’m sorry about that, I wasn’t looking where I was going, are you okay?” She gave him a little bow.

-“It’s okay. I’m not the one who fell on the ground.” Was that guy mocking her? She must have had a weird expression since he added: “And you? Are you okay?”

-“Yes, don't worry about it. Sorry about that but I need to go.” She didn’t even let him respond and ran to the academy.

-“Well, that was nice to talk with you”

At the academy…

Jingū arrived at the academy without a problem. She was the first in the classroom so she sat in the back of the room and looked out. After a few minutes, the classroom started to be filled with students. All of them were divided into groups. Jingū listened to their conversation without knowing.

-'' From what I heard when I passed by the teachers office, Kuro-sensei has big news for us!”

-“For real?!? I am so excited!”

What could be that big news. Has it something to do with their classes? With the academy? The hokage? The war? Something tells Jingū that she wouldn’t like it…

-“Everyone sit down now!!!” That sudden voice shocked everyone. They sat without protesting. Kuro-sensei seemed serious today. Normally, he would be a really lazy man. But now, he was speaking with too much energy. His wife cheated on him or what? “The situation on the battlefield has worsened. Because of that, we need more people than before. This is why genin and final year students will go and fight for our village!”

An awkward silence fell  in the classroom. After 5 seconds, the students yelled from excitement. Were they stupid? Even Jingū knew that wasn't good news.

-“We will finally show the other village what we can do” You will show nothing dude, they would kill you before!

-“Our enemies don’t know what will happen to them.” They will destroy you before you do anything!

-“I hope we will meet Kakashi Hatake on the battlefield. I want to impress him” He will be impressed by how fast you died. Yuki was really stupid from Jingū's point of view. Why would you want to search for love when your life is in danger? This is stupid.

-“Alright, alright class.” The teacher calmed the class. “You will be part of the Genin corporation. All of you and another class will have one teacher. During one month, that teacher will teach you the things you absolutely need to know. This isn’t a game, so do your best!”

At the orphanage…

Jingū couldn’t believe what her sensei just told them. They will go to the battlefield at 11 years old. Was Konoha that much in danger? She couldn’t believe it. When she entered the kitchen, she saw Sayana's face. A face of worry and sadness.

-“ You don’t need to tell me. I already know. A genin gave us a letter. You will need to take your things and move to the Genin corporation camp. You guys have to go, now” Jingū could hear Sayana sobbing when her and the other older children in the academy went up. She put all of her things in a storage scroll except for the library books. She will need to give it to Sayana. When she finished cleaning her room, which is not her anymore, she went down. All of the children were saying bye to Yuki, Takara and Hikari.

Nobody came to see her. Like always. She could see the stare from Keiko. She wanted to talk to her but she would be the new freak if she did. It’s what Jingū explained to her when they were six years old but Keiko promised that when she would finally live alone, they would be friends. Sayana came close to Jingū and gave her something. The gentle gardien took the book from Jingū and gave her a hug.

-“ I wanted to give you this when you would have finish the academy. It seems that you finished it a bit earlier.” Her tears were soaking her neck. Jingū wanted to cry but she needed to stay strong. She couldn’t show her tears when she would fight for her life on the battlefield, she couldn’t. “When we found you, this object was attached in the basket where you were. That object is your heritage. Take it and come back to me sometime after this war. Alright?”

Jingū couldn’t believe it. She had a heritage? Her parents thought about her before abandoning her. She didn’t know if she was sad or happy but that object will definitely help her.

She finally had her own katana.

[montereypost]

Activity!

Hey y'all! Below we've got a couple of ask memes to inspire you to jump into the inboxes of other Monterey residents and get to know them a little better.

You can use these ones to get started or make up your own! The aim of the game is to think a little deeper about your own character and learn something new about somebody else's.

Have fun!

😬 Greatest fear? 🐉 What triggers their past experiences? Certain words? Objects? 💀 How would the muse prefer to die if they were given a choice? 👻 If your muse became a ghost, who would be their go-to haunt? 😈 How would the muse react if one of their loved ones were hurt? 📹 What’s their saddest memory? 🔫 If given the chance to kill their lifelong enemy, would they do it? 🎥 What’s their worst memory? 🎲 What is their perspective on life? Do they find it fulfilling or dreadful? 🎰 Does the muse like to gamble? Are they addicted to it? How far would they go for bets? 🌙 Are they afraid of the dark? 🔮If they were able to see their future, would they do it?

😬- If you bit someone, would it hurt? 🏨- Name a time you were badly injured. What happened and what caused it? 🏆- Do you consider yourself competitive at all? What will you do to win a game/fight? 🥘- Are you good at cooking? What is the best dish you have made. Alternatively, how bad are you at cooking? What’s the worst dish you’ve made? 🌴- Do you like going on vacation? Or does your boss force you to take a break? 👛- What are the contents of your purse/bag/pockets? 👘- Describe your formal attire. What would you wear to a wedding, fancy dance/date/dinner, funeral, or similar formal events? 🐩- What dog breed bests suits you? 🐆- What cat breed best suits you? 🐻- What wild animal best suits you? 🎀- Do you like cute things at all? What is the cutest thing you have or have met? 🎉- What is a typical birthday celebration like for you? How do you go about celebrating other people’s birthdays? 🗝- What is looped around your key ring? 🛁- What do you do to treat yourself? 💉- Do you dislike shots and injections? 🌅- Are there any scenic locations you would like to live out your retirement in? 🍸- Do you need to relax right now? What do you do when you take the day off? 🚏- How good are you with directions? Do you get lost easily? ⚽️- What games did you play with other kids when you were younger? 🍱- Are you hungry right now? Are you craving anything to eat?