#anyways i need to finish a commission today but what if i kept writing about voyager. i need to study this crew like theyre bugs.

[tea-earl-grey]

listen Chakotay/Seven is bad for many reasons but it really doesn't bother me as much as it should because it's so poorly written that it just ends up feeling like both Chakotay and Seven were in love with Janeway and realized it would never work out so they just shrugged and starting dating each other. (i'm not even that much of a shipper either but like. the subtext is there for both JC and J7.) you cannot convince me that they didn't mutually break up before they even landed on Earth and then they never talked about it again.

and to add to the comedy, both Janeway and Seven know that if Voyager didn't get home then Seven and Chakotay would have gotten married and both died, etc etc while Chakotay, if i recall, just Never Learns This. Chakotay goes about the rest of his life thinking "oh yeah i went on a few dates with Seven but it never went anywhere" and then Seven and Janeway are just haunted by this alternate timeline. peak comedy tbh.

[ivy-loves-chocolate]

Texting them “I need you right now”

Note: hi everyone! So sorry for not posting in months, life wasn't easy on me. I managed to sort things out (hopefully they will stay organised this time, or else I'm starting a new life in Spain), and I plan to write more. I'm also taking commissions again (the financial situation it's not good, so every commission would help me a lot!). Anyway, I haven't written anything since January, so please be kind with me.

He won't see your text right away because he's a busy man. After he has some free time, he checks his phone and immediately opens the chat with you, ignoring everyone else.

"What is it, sweetheart?"

"I just don't feel okay. Can you come over?"

The text is demanding, and he knows something is wrong with you, so he tries to finish faster whatever he had planned for that day, which he fails because he is constantly thinking about you. So, he dropped everything and came to you. 

Wesker is a man of his word, so he arrives on time.

"Have you been crying, my love?" he asked as he saw that your eyes were all red and your face was swollen.

"Yeah...petty reason." 

"If it was petty, you wouldn't have called me."

You wasted no time and threw yourself in his arms, sinking into his embrace and burring your face into his chest.

Being busy all the time, you barely see him. Maybe once a month nowadays, and this long wait only contributed to your sadness. You yearned to talk with someone like him because he made you feel safe. You knew he was listening, and you knew he didn't judge. Also, he would comfort you with small kisses and gentle touches and would praise you for being strong.

He moved you to your sofa, made your favourite tea, and listened carefully as you talked about your worries and recent unfortunate events.

During that time, he received a lot of calls and texts, but he turned his phone on silent because his main priority was you.

He hugged you tight, telling you that he'd always be there for you, no matter what. One hand would gently massage your hair, and the other would massage your back. It hurt him so damn much to see you like this and hear you sob in his arms. He wanted to hurt everyone who caused you to end up like this, and he was very vocal about his intentions.

"You can't protect me from the world, Albert. All you can do is be here for me when I need it."

He didn't like your response or agree with your opinion, but for now, he kept you tight to his chest.

He usually stays until you feel better, and then he leaves to do his work. He will be worried all day because you're still on his mind, so he checks on you frequently, promising to take you on a small trip to calm your mind.

The government agent is always busy. He's either stuck in his office completing paperwork, training new recruits, or on a mission on the other side of the globe.

He wasn't away on the field, so when he saw your text, he immediately responded. Even if he was busy doing desk duty or fighting, he would try to respond asap (he will hide in a corner if he had to, if that means he'll get five minutes of peace to text you back because he knows how worried you can get). 

"What's wrong, doll?"

"I don't feel well. Can you come over?"

A pretty demanding text means an urgent need, so he left early, abandoning everything he had scheduled for today. That annoyed some of his superiors, but he got away without much trouble.

Leon tried his best to arrive on time. He was being pressured by time and worry; he drove like a maniac to your place on his motorcycle, but he stopped to buy your favorite sweets.

"I bought you something good," he said, smiling in the doorframe and opening the bag to show the inside. However, his smile dropped. 

"Have you been crying?" he asked, quickly cupping your face and caressing your cheeks with his thumbs. Your face was flushed and very warm to the touch, and your eyes were swollen and teary.

"Yeah...petty reason."

"You don't cry like that for a petty reason," he said as he placed a gentle kiss on your forehead. You quickly hugged him and burried your nose at the crook of his neck. He hugged you back tight, a trail of kisses caressing your skin, starting from your neck to your face.

He guided you to the bed, where he listened to you and held you tight. His fingers kept brushing over your face, and his lips would occasionally press tiny, affectionate kisses over your skin. His body was glued to yours, and the warmth from such an intimate embrace made you feel safe. You felt safe not only to express your emotions, but you also felt sheltered from the rest of the world.

"You are not alone," he whispered as his hand caressed your back in a gentle manner. "I told you, no matter how hard it gets, we'll find a way to get through it together." 

He usually stays until he makes sure you feel better. After that, he texts you the whole day, asking how you feel because he can't ease his own anxiety. He promised to take you on a vacation.

He noticed your text right away, but he's stuck with his research and can't reply instantly. He will text you back as soon as he can.

"What's wrong, mi bella princesa?"

"I just don't feel okay. Can you come over?"

With much difficulty and a lot of excuses, he manages to leave his laboratory and come to your place.

Upon seeing your red and watery eyes, he quickly came inside and cupped your face.

"Have you been crying?" he asked, worried, his fingers brushing over your warm, red cheeks.

"yeah...petty reasons." You tried your best to smile.

"Querida, you don't cry like that because of petty reasons." He gently kissed your forehead.

He pulled closer to him, and you quickly hugged him, buring your face into his chest. Luis kept kissing you and whispering kind words to help you feel better.

"Just talk to me, ok? There isn't anything in this world that we can't get through."

Despite the firm grip around your body, he managed to caress you with tenderness. His strokes were as delicate as a feather, and every soft kiss felt warm and loving. 

He was so kind and gentle, and his attitude only made you more vulnerable, so you started crying again.

"Please, my love, don't cry. It breaks my heart to see you like this." He whispered.

He guided you to the bed and cuddled with you. His arms were wrapped around your body, and his nose was buried in your hair.

"Is there anything I can do to make it all go away?" He said, hand stroking your back. 

"No, just hold me like this."

It breaks his heart to see you like that, so he kept thinking about making you feel better.

"How about you and I go for a walk?" He said this as his fingers ran through your smooth hair. "Or we can stay here and cuddle; watch that movie you like. I can make something to eat, and we can relax."

"It sounds good," you said, your smile making a shy return. "I'm sorry if I freaked you out."

"it's fine." He pressed a lingering kiss on your cheek. "You know I'm always here for you."

"I know, and I appreciate that." You caressed his face, your fingers exploring every inch, going through his fluffly hair over his beard and over his lips. You two were looking at each other with the same enamoured gaze as in the beginning.

"We can spend some time tomorrow if you want," he added, being enchanted by the shared intimate moment, feeling drawn in by your presence, and wanting to spend more time with you.

"What about work?" you asked.

"Don't worry, as much as I hate it, I will find the lab in the same place I left it today."

Your light chuckle made him feel a little better. Whenever you are sad, he feels his heart shatter into tiny pieces. You mean the world to him, and he'd do anything to protect you.

He was training the new recruits when his phone buzzed in his pocket. After a quick glance, he gave the men a five-minute break so he could respond to you. Jack blames himself for not giving you proper attention since he is always on the field, so when he can, he drops everything and focuses on you entirely.

"What's wrong, beautiful?"

"I don't feel well. Can you come over?"

His subordinates were thrilled to find out that they had the rest of the day off.

He is a punctual man, so he arrives on time and not a minute late, holding a bag with your favourite snacks.

He tried to hide his worry behind a comforting smile. He quickly noticed your puffy face and teary eyes.

"Have you been crying?" he asked in a low tone, coming closer to you. He cups your face and brings you closer to him, pressing small, gentle kisses all over your face. His tenderness was endearing, so much so that warm tears began to drip down your cheeks again.

"It's just...petty reasons." You said it with a trembling voice.

"Bullshit."

He pulled you closer to his chest and held you tight. His hands were stroking your back, his head pressed to yours. His much larger frame swallowed you whole, seeming as if you had disappeared completely.

You felt safe in his arms. It was so warm and comforting, and not only his embrace made you feel this way, but also his reassuring words that he'd whisper constantly.

He carried you to the bed, and as he was sitting close to you, he brushed his fingers over your check and listened closely to what you had to say. It broke his heart to see you like this, and he couldn’t stop asking himself if, if he were there more often for you, you would still end up like this. This type of question tormented him, and you could feel that.

“I’m sorry, maybe it’s a lot too dump on you.” You said this as you caressed his face, your fingers trailing over his scars.

“No, not at all, love.” He took your hand and placed a lingering kiss in your palm. “I just wish I was there for you more often.”

“Don’t put so much pressure on yourself. The important thing is that you’re here now, and that means a lot to me."

You felt his lips kissing you softly once your head was pressed against his chest. 

He still feels guilty, but it doesn't press over his shoulder as hard anymore. He promised to spend more time with you.

[exoticalmonde]

Eve has a new obsession and I cannot express enough how much I just LOVE Lukai Hwei from League of legends.

Hwei is the cutest little creature ever and I accept NO criticism. I claim him body and soul and he wouldn't even know it until it's too late and he's in my mouth.

I will personally sail into Ionia from my Witch's hut in the Noxian outskirts and find him just so I can adopt him into my household like one of those pet artists people kept back in the day, except I will swing by thrice a week in a pattern of Tue/Thur/Sat to bring him food, cook for him, do the washing and cleaning (not like we don't have maids for that) and we talk. Just in case he does feel lonely because living alone is comforting until the loneliness and feeling of loss and confusion take you apart and you realize way too late you need someone at the peak of not having anybody.

Anyways

"Hwei, honeycake, did you finish the commission of two men eating their faces off in the moonlight waist deep in a lake? My friend is an artist and she already drew her own scrimblos having a fight and reconciling and honestly I want to stick it to her because I'm writing this story about a Lunari and a vastayan arena boss enemies to lovers--AnYwHo."

And timidly, though at first, he responds "No, madam, I haven't yet. Inspiration is lacking this week and I feel inclined to work on other things. But you want to know what I did do?"

My enthusiasm will peak and I will heimerdiner's dog him into knowing the small grace of a smile on my face is all for him, all because I like him, because he is sweet and adorable and worthy of my praise and what he creates will please me to no end. So he will take me out in the garden or the forest and he will go ham showing me what he painted over and now the back yard is glowing and the willows are singing and I can hear both pain and happiness front back and center envelopping the world until his art is in my viens and I will go "Good boy" because that's my SEROTONIN shot for today.

Then Ill let him trauma dump and talk about all he wants he is THAT important to me. The stupid weirdo writer picked up the soggy depressed artist, golly what a curious circumstance.

"Thank you for your hard work, Madam." he'd see me off and I'll be on my tippy toes patting his head and brushing paint off his nose bidding him goodbye when the night is already deep and starry and I will return to my house content my money is put to good use.

Anyways, fantasies aside... I need to read his lore. I need to know him, I need to know more of ionia now, and I desperately love his voice

Fantastic work for the VA and the creative team. Wish my luck as I break my fingers into the keyboard trying to do combos.

[gludgenbell]

Tell us about your your day! Did anything interesting happen?(answer by the end of the day)

04 12 2023;

I missed the bus for school so my sister dropped me and my brother off

My classes are biology, graphic design tech 2, participation in democracy and algebra 2-

So I started the day with biology and learned about the systems in the body; in depth

But it was a short day today so class was not an 95 minutes and I spent 6 minutes getting to my second period because it's at the back of the school

And all biology classes are at the front

I made my shirt yesterday for the shop my class is doing this Friday, and today was a crunch day

We finished more pre-orders, did keychains, more shirts, and stickers especially

I did some promotional video editing on the side

By lunch I was very hungry, was the first one in the cafeteria as usual and went to the wrong meetup spot (where my friends hang out)

Got a bit insecure that I'm always the last person to find out specific things even though I try to ask everyday, but it's whatever and we talked about a guy who didn't like women taking birth control

Because she'll piss it out and it'll end up in the tap water and then everyone will be drinking birth control

And we came to the conclusion that he just wants to be a dad so badly ✊️

Anyways

3rd period was fun, we're writing our own constitution and my friends and I are my teacher's prized group because we always make the projects fun

And now we're collaborating on a for fun storyline about a night school for Knights (because we had to design a school and we came up with: Knight of Bell; the Night School for Knights [18:00-00:00])

Anyways there's this chill guy Kjell who's always in my group and I'm just mentioning him because he's nice

Was late to my 4th, as always, today because I had to piss

Class went surprisingly well, I drew as per usual and worked on requests for my table mates because I mention commissions and they tell me no so a sketched easy request it is

Took the bus home and talked with another friend (she lives in my community) about the night school for Knights and the rival character

My sister picked me up from the bus stop, the dogs in tow, and we went around getting gummies and catching pokemon

I did some more writing for my story spirits of eden and then discussed with my mom possible shirt designs for our upcoming fundraiser (I'm going to Utah for our next next game maybe and since I'm already doing shirt work my parents think it'd be nice to use my art)

(In general also, if I want a shirt design my dad said he'd help me get what I need together)

Then I got nervous because all my art is sketchbook art and no real digital ones at the moment and I'd like to show actual art like everyone wants and I don't have much at the moment...

I asked my younger sister to help me with Mt laundry, then started a sketch of rukkadehvata (hope I spelt it right) and scheduled it for sometime saturday I think?

Around 7ish I started fixing my room; just putting my clothes away

All my siblings and both my parents were home so we gathered and decided to play fnaf 1 (we don't do this extremely often; it's always a treat when we get these nights together) and it was my turn at night 3

I didn't realize Freddy would move and my strategy did not account for him until I kept hearing his music and peeked at the stage

Only to find it

Completely empty

But I lived!

Freaking foxy jumped from phase 1 to 2 in under a second where I flipped the camera twice because I didn't get a good look the first time 😒😒😒

In between that I was playing sky with my wives, and the night will end with me in my room, drawing Rukka again

I did not call with one of my wives as I usually do; but all is well! Another time another time

I'll sleep in an hour

[andrewmoocow]

Two Sides of the Same Gem chapter 1: Brand New Reality (originally published on January 30th, 2023)

AN: At long last, we're finally back! Been a long time coming too, because I've got quite a four-part special event to show you all. After so much build-up, we're finally crossing worlds and entering a whole new universe! When last we left off on Little Homeworld Life, Black Rutile had pilfered an ancient spellbook formerly owned by the descendant of Rasputin containing info on a mysterious artifact that could be the key to her latest plot to getting revenge on Steven and taking over the universe. What could this entail, you may ask? Well, that's for me to write and all of you to find out!

Cast:

Kimberly Brooks as Jasper

Lauren Ash as White Topaz

Noël Wells as Black Rutile

Della Saba as Aquamarine

Charlyne Yi as Eyeball

Christine Pedi as Holly Blue Agate

Casey Lee Williams as Cat's Eye

Estelle as Garnet

Michaela Dietz as Amethyst

Deedee Magno-Hall as Pearl

--

Almost an entire year had now passed since the fall of Black Rutile's empire, but ever since then, she had been quite busy the past few months. She had slowly begun rebuilding her army and enacting numerous schemes that ultimately amounted to petty Saturday morning cartoon villain plots, but that's what she wanted everyone to think. In secret, Black Rutile had worked hard on a machine thought long forgotten by Gem society.

Originally constructed as a joint effort between her, Serpentine, and Bloodstone, the Vortexxer was a dimensional portal commissioned by the Great Diamond Authority in a plot to expand their rule across the multiverse. Unfortunately, the project was scrapped due to numerous failed tests where the Pearls the trio used as guinea pigs didn't survive crossing over into other worlds. Nonetheless, Black Rutile theorized that maybe they didn't have the right power source to keep the portal stable, leading her to start looking for a way to acquire such a prize. But now, after months of work, her new plan would finally come to fruition.

"I love it when a plan comes together." Black Rutile grinned evilly as the main frame of the Vortexxer neared completion. "All we need now is the final piece to bring it all together, the Seer to the Void!"

"So where can we find this Seer, anyways?" Holly Blue asked while her master pulled Rasputina's spellbook from her gem and began perusing through its pages.

"An excellent question, my dear Agate." Black Rutile proclaimed and presented the page of the Seer to the Void to Holly Blue, unaware that Jasper and White Topaz were watching her.

"See, that's what I'm telling you about." White Topaz whispered to Jasper as they watched the Rutile Rebels from Black Rutile's window. "The other Gems say that Black Rutile is plotting something big with that machine, and we gotta stop her!"

"And you chose now to tell me instead of stopping her before she can start because?" Jasper wondered sardonically. "I mean, you had so many opportunities to expose her, so why now?"

"Because who knows what she could do to us if we found out!" White Topaz continued. "We're just gonna need to keep quiet until we can follow her." Just as she finished, the two looked back inside Black Rutile's house, where she presented a page on the artifact's location.

"Here it is, Mount Kilimanjaro!" Black Rutile declared. "Says here that an ancient society of magicians have kept the amulet hidden away in their sanctuary nestled deep within this mountain for centuries. When the Diamonds learned this in their initial discovery of Earth, they wanted the Seer all to themselves, but the sorcerers fought back till their dying breath to ensure no one else would ever find it. Until today."

"Then why reveal its location in this book?" Eyeball asked. "Not a great plan, if you ask me."

"Don't overthink. Focus on the mission here." Black Rutile answered. "Now then, shall we?" As the Rutile Rebels prepared to disembark on their journey, Jasper and White Topaz immediately hid from sight and watched the villains march toward the Warp Pad.

"Mount Kilimanjaro? That's where they chose to hide this Seer thing?" Jasper asked. "Well, at least we know where to follow them to."

"Okay, we just get in, stop them from getting the Seer, and return home as heroes." White Topaz proclaimed as the Warp Pad activated, sending the five rebels away. "You with me, honey?"

"Always." With her hands in her Topaz lover's, Jasper agreed and kissed her. "Let's move."

--

On the other side of the Warp Pad, the Rutile Rebels reached Mount Kilimanjaro and began the climb towards the secret temple where the Seer to the Void was theorized to be held. This was it; Black Rutile was on the edge of glory now. And all she needed to do was find that temple. "Keep moving, you fools. I can taste that Seer already!"

"So, I got a question for you guys." Eyeball asked as she and Aquamarine journeyed up the mountain by flight. "If you guys found an alternate dimension, what would it be? Aside from one where Steven never existed, of course."

"I'd like a world where everyone obeys the command of the first person who appears, like me." Aquamarine replied. "How about you, Holly?"

"That was my choice too." Holly Blue responded. "How about you, Cat?"

"I'd like a world where all of my heart's desires are answered." Cat said dreamily. "I could have literally anything and everything I could ever want with just a mere word, and they'll obey me! Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

"Okay, little miss material girl in your material world." Black Rutile grumbled. "My ideal alternate dimension would be pretty similar, one where I finally reign supreme over my enemies and rule the universe!"

As the Rutile Rebels continued climbing, they still were unaware that Jasper and White Topaz were hot on their tail and now scaling Kilimanjaro alongside them. "Where do you think they'll go with that Seer?" Jasper asked.

"That's for us to find out." White Topaz responded. "Really wish we could get the other Crystal Gems involved in this, but I've known Black Rutile longer, so I'm taking this as my fight alone."

"Well, aside from me, of course." Jasper said. "Listen, I get what you're going for here, but you can't just face Black Rutile alone. Seriously, if you go any further, you might become more self-sacrificial than Steven."

"Whoa, I would never go that far!" White Topaz said. "I've done so many horrible things alongside Black Rutile, and this is how I plan to make up for all of them." Just as she finished speaking, the two realized that the Rutile Rebels had finally reached the temple. "Oh no, we might be too late!"

"Well, what are we waiting for?!" Jasper roared as she grabbed her girlfriend by the hand and jumped up to the temple steps, not caring that their cover might've been blown.

"Wait, anyone else hear that?" Black Rutile asked as the two Gems revealed themselves to the Rutile Rebels. "Curses, we've been followed! And if they're here, the Crystal Gems aren't far behind."

"Actually, they sent me out to stop you." White Topaz replied as she reminisced on her initial discovery of Black Rutile's new plan.

--

"You may wonder why we summoned you here, White Topaz." Garnet told White Topaz not too long after the Crystal Gems returned from their adventure with Bane Jones. "We have contacted you in particular because Black Rutile has a dastardly new scheme she's been working on."

"It turns out that this whole time, Black Rutile has been hard at work restoring this portal device known as the Vortexxer that she conceived with a few allies of hers." Pearl explained for Garnet as her gem presented a hologram of Black Rutile making a deal with Francis von Bowling and The Sickle. "We learned this from our adventure with Bane Jones, whose enemies allied with Black Rutile to give her the keys to whatever she needs to power the machine."

"She says she wants to find an alternate universe where we agreed with her about wanting what's best for Gemkind and all that jazz," Amethyst added. "but whatever that universe is, I'm pretty sure she doesn't have anything good planned for it. So, let us ask you this. Are you a bad enough dude to save two universes in one adventure?"

"I'm always ready!" White Topaz accepted the offer without hesitation. "So, can you consider this my first Crystal Gem mission?"

"Not quite." Garnet answered, much to the Topaz's dismay. "We'll have to wait until Black Rutile starts making more progress on her machine. When the time is right, that's when you can strike."

"So let us ask again." Pearl said. "Are you ready?"

"Always." White Topaz proclaimed eagerly while summoning her brass knuckle gauntlet.

--

Back in the present day, the Rutile Rebels entered the ancient temple, which was naturally littered with ancient artifacts decorating the walls and what seemed to be the Seer to the Void at the very end of the hall just in front of them. Eager to get things over with, Black Rutile eagerly rubbed her hands together. "Not activating any potential booby traps! One, two, three, not it!"

"Not it!" Aquamarine readily added.

"Not it!" Eyeball proclaimed.

"Not it!" Cat's Eye meowed.

"Not it!" Holly Blue said last, making her realize that she had no choice but to go through the possible booby traps to clear the way for her teammates. "Oh, great." She groaned and smacked her hand against her face before stepping forward. "Now then, what traps could be in store for me?"

To answer Holly's question, she accidentally stepped on a floor tile that was colored a bright yellow making it stick out from the mossy floor, which triggered the opening of a fire pit she fell into. "YAAGGGHHH!" the Agate shrieked as she tripped and fell into the flames. Luckily, due to being a Gem, she was perfectly fine, but her pride was left in pieces as she climbed out.

"You know, you could've just had me fly everyone over to the Seer's resting place." Aquamarine suggested to Black Rutile. "Why did you choose this option instead?"

"Because I felt like entertaining myself." Black Rutile chuckled at Holly Blue's expense as the Agate continued suffering through spiked walls, swinging axes, boulders, quicksand, and many more death traps. "When expecting booby traps, always make sure it actually catches boobies first."

"Heh heh, boobies." Eyeball chuckled. "Hey Holly, you still alive there?!"

"You'd be surprised how impervious an Agate is!" a delirious Holly Blue exclaimed from afar as she struggled to get up from the many injuries she sustained from the various traps she was forced to endure. "Anyways, I think everything should be clear now!"

"Not if we have anything to say about it!" White Topaz exclaimed as she and Jasper burst into the temple. "Halt, villains!"

"Okay, first you say, "Not if we have anything to say about it", and then add "Halt, villains"?" Jasper asked. "Make up your mind already!"

"Not now, sweetie." White Topaz replied awkwardly.

"Ah, you're awfully persistent." Black Rutile declared. "But it's too late for all of you! The Seer to the Void shall be mine to take, and there's almost nothing you two can do to stop me!"

"What do you mean almost?" White Topaz asked curiously.

"I think she means if we manage to steal it ourselves!" Jasper answered before she ran off and snatched the Seer to the Void out of Holly Blue's hands as she returned with the artifact. "Gotcha!"

"Hey, I just risked my life for that!" Holly Blue whined as she tried to take the Seer back, but Jasper kept it out of reach no matter what.

"Stop her, and nobody break that thing too!" Black Rutile commanded her minions as the rebels chased Jasper out of the temple. "Give me that jewel, you fool!"

"Quick Jasp, pass me that thing!" White Topaz called to Jasper, who threw the Seer to the Void to her lover. "Hey, Black Rutile, you want this?" she yelled at Black Rutile. "Then come and get it!" White Topaz fell backward off the mountain and began tumbling down, hoping that the resulting fall would break the artifact. In response, Black Rutile let out a feral shriek and pounced on White Topaz, leading to them both tumbling down.

"Give it back, you disgusting traitor!" Black Rutile roared, trying to wrestle the stone out of her former bodyguard's hand. "Maybe whatever universe I find, I'll find another White Topaz that will obey my every command!"

"And maybe I'll find a Black Rutile who wants to be my friend!" White Topaz responded while fighting back as both Gems' respective allies followed them down the mountain. "Just accept you lost already! You have no army; White Diamond never took you seriously; why haven't you given up yet?!"

"Because as long as I hate Steven with every flake of my gem, I'll never surrender!" Black Rutile cackled as they neared the bottom of the mountain. "Now give it!" The struggle quickly devolved into a large dust cloud of conflict as soon as the duo returned to the surface, joined by Jasper and the Rutile Rebels. However, as the dust literally settled, Black Rutile emerged from the pile of Gems, triumphantly holding the Seer to the Void in the air. "The Seer to the Void, I finally found it! Now, who's gonna stop me?!"

"Quick, we have to stop her!" Jasper yelled as she tackled Black Rutile onto the Warp Pad, causing the two to disappear into light. No doubt Little Homeworld would be on the other side.

"Wait for me!" White Topaz exclaimed as she ran to the Warp Pad in pursuit of her lover and their nemesis. The remaining Rutile Rebels were the last to use the Pad to return, but not before Aquamarine got a little gloating in.

"What does it matter?" Aquamarine smirked. "They're already too late."

--

As soon as the Warp Pad brought Black Rutile and Jasper back to Little Homeworld, Black Rutile bolted back to her house to install the Seer to the Void into the Vortexxer, making sure to activate her security system to avoid any unwanted intruders. "The power of the multiverse in the palm of my hand. And now, it's finally mine to control."

After attaching the Seer to the machine's frame and pulling a lever, Black Rutile finally witnessed the machine roar to life. In a flash of red, green, yellow, pink, blue, black, and white, a large portal to worlds beyond the ones Black Rutile knew opened up, and she could not have been more excited. "Yes! After thousands of years in the making, the Vortexxer is open at last!" she cheered diabolically. "Now all I need is a test subject. Don't think I can find another Pearl at this hour, and I'm not sure what the other Rubies are up to now."

"My Rutile, we need to act quick!" Cat's Eye yowled as she barged into the house. "I'm not sure how long we have before the Crystal Gems find out, but we need to get the portal going no-oh wait, you already started it. Never mind!"

"Speak of the devil, and she shall appear." Black Rutile grinned while grabbing Cat's Eye by the scruff of her neck. "Cat, would you do me the honor of being my first subject to the portal? I need to check if it's safe to crossover or not."

"I'm sorry, what?!" Cat asked, but she barely had time to say anymore before Black Rutile tossed the lawyer through the portal and into the infinite beyond.

--

"EEEEEEAAAAAAGGGGHHHHHH!" Cat's Eye screamed as she sailed through the space between universes and got only a passing glance at a few parallel realities. In one universe, Steven and the Crystal Gems were fighting alongside a team of superheroes led by a man in a costume themed around the American flag. In another, a human-sized raccoon was racing along some rooftops before being picked up by a tan-skinned human girl and a woman with wild gray hair riding on a staff with a figurine of an owl at the tip.

"Is-is this the multiverse?" Cat took a break from her screaming to take in the jaw-dropping view of the vast multiverse. Another universe she discovered was one where four turtles in differently colored masks carrying ninja weapons were fighting against three demons and a wolf-like creature. "So amazing." And in another, a human girl, a pink frog, and a bumblebee that transformed into a humanoid robot were running from a giant bird monster. "I never realized just how infinite the possibilities were."

Unfortunately, Cat's Eye had little time to continue taking in her surroundings as she discovered that she was careening towards a new universe that seemed nearly identical to her own. "Oh, dear! UWAAAAA!"

--

Another portal opened up on the beach and spat Cat's Eye out, making her faceplant on the sand before the portal closed up. "Oh stars, where am I?" she groaned wearily before picking herself up and taking in her new surroundings. As far as she could tell, it was pretty much the universe she called home, only with a few slight differences. For one, the Obsidian statue that towered over the Crystal Gems' house looked like how it appeared before the Gems' final battle with Black Rutile. Perhaps if she ventured into town, Cat might get more answers.

"Hello there, stranger." A man greeted Cat's Eye. "You look a little lost. Need anything?"

"Yes, I'd like to know if this world has a Black Rutile existing." Cat's Eye stated. "Have you seen her?"

"Come again, miss?" the man asked, unsure what the cymophane had just said.

"Well, what about a White Topaz?" Cat's Eye continued asking.

"Nope, nothing." The man continued. "You feelin' okay?"

"Wait, what if this is a world where neither of them existed?" Cat realized as another portal opened behind her that Black Rutile was standing in. "My Rutile?"

"There you are, Cat!" Black Rutile exclaimed. "I've been looking across universes for you, and you would not believe what I've found! Like, one of these universes I found was home to a sport where human women engaged in combat sports using only their mammaries and buttocks. How ridiculous is that?!"

"My Rutile, you would not believe what I've found here!" Cat replied. "It seems that in this universe, we don't seem to exist at all; thus, there would be no one at all to stand up to Steven! What kind of dystopia is this?!"

"Doesn't matter; it really works!" Black Rutile declared excitedly. "Now come along; we must gather the rest for this momentous occasion!" She then grabbed Cat by the wrist and pulled her through the portal, which closed right before the man's eyes. Looking around, the man had only one thing to ask.

"Uh, what just happened?" he muttered to no one in particular.

--

When Cat was pulled back into her home universe with Black Rutile, the other Rutile Rebels were waiting for them, eager to hear what the lawyer had discovered. "Well, what did you see?" Eyeball asked. "Where did you go?"

"The world I discovered was one where neither Black Rutile nor White Topaz existed, as far as anyone knew." Cat's Eye explained. "And that statue outside the Crystal Gems' headquarters appeared as it did before the Steven monster incident. I'm not sure if I really did go to another dimension, or maybe I just went back in time."

"Doesn't matter now; it works!" Black Rutile declared eagerly. "Come, my minions, to the new world!"

As the other Rebels laughed while they marched towards the portal, Jasper and White Topaz burst into the room just in time to see them pass through. "I'll see you all around, fools!" Black Rutile peeked her head out to gloat. "Because when I come back, I'll bring you some souvenirs you certainly won't refuse!" With one last laugh, the psychotic Rutile darted back into the portal.

"So, this is the Vortexxer, eh?" Jasper said as she admired the portal machine. "Have to admit, Black Rutile sure put a lot of thought into this."

"Gonna have to agree with you on that one." White Topaz agreed before taking her orange girlfriend's hand. "Ready to head into the unknown?"

"No way." Jasper responded. "But let's do it." With that, the two stepped into the Vortexxer together, ready to face whatever world they may discover and hopefully stop Black Rutile's latest plan.

--

"WHOA, THE MULTIVERSE IS AWESOME!" White Topaz shrieked excitedly as she treated the voyage between realms like a water park ride, eagerly throwing her hands in the air while Jasper tried her hardest not to scream at the sudden speed at which they were going. Along the way, they caught glimpses of two kids hitching a ride with a pink-haired woman on her yellow scooter, a frog in a top hat dancing for a bald superhero, and a blonde girl in a game of tug-of-war with a young man with green-tipped black hair over a glowing orb. "Aren't you loving this, Jasp?!"

"How much longer before we find Black Rutile?!" Jasper exclaimed.

"I think she shouldn't be too far away; we just gotta follow her!" White Topaz replied while examining their surroundings, of note being the old man and the boy in a flying saucer and the English gentleman piloting a blue phonebooth through time. Just then, she saw what she believed to be Black Rutile going through a distant portal. "Thataway!"

"Wow, convenient." Jasper muttered. "Hang on!" The two Gems launched themselves towards the portal to where Black Rutile was headed, neither of them knowing what they could discover beyond that gateway.

--

Before Jasper and White Topaz knew it, the two were spit out of the portal into Beach City. Or at least, they assumed it was Beach City. It seemed more like a grim cyberpunk dystopia, albeit one colored in a garish pink and with the smiling face of what appeared to be an older Steven plastered everywhere. This didn't seem right to the duo. Just what was going on with this universe?

"What is this place?" Jasper asked as she and her girlfriend examined the new world around them. "Something doesn't seem right."

"Yeah, looks kind of like every YA dystopian novel." White Topaz added, prompting a confused look from Jasper. "What? I find it funny how they're all the same! Besides, you're one to talk with your secret love of Asian drama shows."

"Shshshsh, not in public!" Jasper blushed in embarrassment at her darkest secret nearly being revealed just as alarms began sounding, followed by what they assumed to be police drones resembling shattering Robonoids cornering them. "What the?"

"HALT, REBEL! RELEASE LORD STEVEN'S JASPER AT ONCE, OR FACE DIRE CONSEQUENCES!" one of the drones commanded while pointing a laser straight at White Topaz and Jasper's gems. "YOU HAVE FIFTEEN SECONDS TO COMPLY!"

"Rebel? No, you got it all wrong; she came with me!" White Topaz stood up for Jasper. "And who's Lord Steven? Wait, you don't think-"

"A LIKELY STORY, REBEL SCUM!" the drone continued barking as its partner counted down the seconds their prisoners had left until termination. Suddenly, the countdown was interrupted when a very familiar-looking sword struck down the drone from above. "WHAT THE?!"

"You've done enough counting, villains!" a strangely familiar voice exclaimed as an even more familiar silhouette dropped down from above to rescue White Topaz and Jasper.

"RED ALERT, RED ALERT! REQUESTING BACKUP!" the drone wailed in alarm. "IT'S B-"Before it could finish, that surviving drone was immediately cut to pieces by the figure's sword.

"No need to fear, citizens. Just your friendly neighborhood freedom fighter, doing what she can to fight for truth, justice, and a brighter tomorrow." The figure proclaimed as she turned to the two otherworlders, only to recognize White Topaz in front of her. "Wait, Topaz?! What are you doing here with a member of Universe's inner circle?"

"No, you got it all wrong!" White Topaz exclaimed. "We only just got here!"

"Wait a second, do we know you from somewhere?" Jasper asked suspiciously. "That voice seems awfully familiar."

"Oh, do pardon my manners." The figure apologized as she stepped into the light to properly introduce herself to the pair. "My name is Black Rutile, leader of the Lucent Gems resistance force against the forces of the Crystal Regime. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

--

Did you see that, did you see that?! Has Black Rutile gone good now? Not in a million years, because we've now stepped into a world where Steven rules the Earth and Black Rutile is leading the war against him! But that begs the question, where's the Black Rutile we all know and love to hate? Well, that is for the next chapter to answer. See you all again. And before anyone asks, I intended for Cat's Eye to discover the world of the regular Steven Universe series, just so we're clear.

[chubbology]

A Little Incentive

prompt: someone skinny grows chubby on their partner's good cooking and insistence they eat well

From the tempting smell of bacon and syrup that wafted into the room, I knew she’d outdone herself this morning.

“I made breakfast,” she stage-whispered to me. I grinned and turned over in bed, feigning sleepiness even though what I really wanted was to sit right up and take that plate from her hands.

Then my stomach growled and she laughed.

“The others are jealous,” she said. “But I told them they already had a habit of eating breakfast. You’re the one I need to hammer it into, by any means necessary.”

I took a deep breath and sat up in bed, pushing hair out of my face. “Consider me incentivized.” I took the heaping plate of breakfast food that she pushed at me, then the fork, and started into the chocolate chip pancakes, which were half soaked in syrup. Also on the plate lay bacon, eggs, hash browns, a muffin, and…

“French toast sticks, too?”

“As a reward for finishing all your exams! I know you like them.”

I thanked her. She poked my side and smiled fondly at me. “At the beginning of this semester, you would have said this was too much. I hope you know that it makes me the happiest girl in the world that you’re eating properly now.”

In response, I took a bite of extra crispy bacon and groaned in pleasure. As she got ready for the day, I considered her comment. Eating properly. She and I had different definitions of that, or used to at least.

My first two years of college were hard. Working part time, taking hard classes, dealing with an awful roommate. I barely took care of myself. I thought eating properly was eating at all. But then I met her and we hit it off, became friends and then more than friends, then moved in together with a couple more roommates just barely off campus. All the while, she made a point of showing me each day what eating properly meant to her: big meals cooked in the kitchenette or piled onto plates in the dining halls, snacks throughout the day, and never forgetting dessert. It kept her chubby, but she didn’t mind. I certainly didn’t.

“Bye!” I called out as she left for her last day of exams. She seemed confident about how hers had gone so far. Me? Not so much. I was never a good test taker.

I finished my plate down to the crumbs. I went and leisurely washed the dishes. I had pretty much nothing to do today. From the silence coming from the other bedrooms, I knew I had the apartment to myself, too. I could go outside, but it was too hot. And like hell I was going to go to the library again until I absolutely had to. There were always video games, but I stayed up late last night staring at screens, trying to forget my poor performance on my own last exam of the semester. I felt burnt out on everything.

I blinked in confusion when I realized I’d opened the fridge. I closed it. I literally just ate, so I don’t know why I’d…

The next three hours, I spent back in bed. Looking on my phone, resting my eyes, worrying about exam results, and tugging on my pajama pants. They were tight because I was so full. Eventually I decided to do something productive, starting with a shower. Maybe I could drive to a café or something, hang out there.

After showering and dressing (since I wasn’t exactly full anymore, I figured the tightness of my shorts was from bloating) I wandered into the kitchen for something to snack on. The fridge was always well stocked, and I eyed the rest of the batch of muffins in tupperware. I heard her voice in my mind: It makes me happy when you treat yourself.

What the hell. I took out the container, opened it, and took a bite out of the cinnamon raisin muffin. I closed my eyes. Big and sugary and so good. Better than the first one, maybe, because it had cooled off and I could better taste the flavor. I ate another one. And then I treated myself with a third before closing the lid again. There were still eight left.

I tried putting the container back in the fridge, but something stopped me. Go ahead, I heard her say. You don’t eat enough.

Slowly, I opened the container again and ate two more of the muffins. They were just so good. Then I put the container away, firmly slamming the fridge door and biting my lip. Truth was, she stopped telling me I don’t eat enough months ago.

I went back into the bathroom and took a good look at myself, which I’d avoided doing before. Truth was, my shorts were tight because, thanks to my partner’s cooking and our lingering stays at the dining halls and my new penchant for snacking, I had filled out more than a little. I’d put on my own chub. My shirt clung to my sides, which were soft and rounded (Is that why she poked me?), and upon closer inspection, I couldn’t deny my face looked tubbier, too.

I stood in quiet shock for a while, gently pressing my palm to the outward slump of my belly, its natural shape when I didn’t suck it in. (When did I start unconsciously sucking it in?) After a minute of dazedly contemplating my weight, I rummaged around for a dusty scale and stepped on it with bated breath.

My jaw fell open. My whole face, my neck, my ears flushed red, even though there was no one to see me there, finding out I was thirty seven pounds heavier than expected.

Forty pounds? Almost forty pounds? It was impossible. I didn’t look that much bigger.

But she had always said I was too skinny. So maybe twenty of those just filled me in? And then the rest was…extra? Forty pounds.

The surprise waned after a few more minutes of checking myself out in the mirror. I found I wasn’t as upset as society had led me to think I would be.

I did go to a café later that day. My newfound self-awareness didn’t kick back in until after I got a grande frappe and a scone. At my table, I thumbed the belly that now warmed a small part of my lap before eating and sipping my treats anyway.

My shorts felt so tight after a while, I just unbuttoned them and hoped no one would notice.

I spent a few hours there, reading and browsing my laptop and giving my soft belly secretive, intrigued touches before I started thinking about the six remaining muffins at the apartment. When I got back, I found I was in good company.

“I really did good on these,” she said, swallowing. “Want one?”

I took one, trying to hide my sheepishness. Did she guess it was me who ate the five that were missing? Or did she think it was our other roommates? Did she think…

“You want to get a late lunch?” “I think I need new clothes.”

We stared at each other. She chuckled, “Sorry, what?”

I flushed, tugging conspicuously on my shorts, not quite able to find the words. “Need to go shopping.” I’ve gained almost forty pounds. Forty pounds! My throat constricted.

“Oh.”

I looked up at her. “You’re a good cook,” I said, grinning. Still a little embarrassed.

But now she was a bit pink in the face, too. “Yeah, we should go shopping. Um. You aren’t mad. Are you? I just really like to cook and bake, and you really were too skinny and—”

“No, no! I’m not mad. I—”

Am I going to get fat? I wanted to ask her suddenly, and I felt very warm. I’m always eating these days. What if I outgrow the new clothes I buy? What then?

“I hope you know I think you look good,” she blurted. My thoughts ceased. “Really good.”

Suddenly, I was aware I’ve been sucking my belly in again. Would it be weird if I stopped? Just let it...swell out? I took in a deep breath, then let it all out, not sucking in this time. Her wide eyes fixated on my chubby lower belly.

“Thanks,” I said, trying not to be awkward. “To be honest, I only noticed recently that I look…different.”

Her eyes met mine and she looked very adoring. I’m sure my expression was identical. “Just a little. I was surprised how much your appetite grew.”

“Yeah. You still want to get lunch?” I asked. “Kinda feel like the dining hall.”

Kinda feel like going all out.

I won’t get fat.

Only a little, maybe. Not the end of the world.

“Okay,” she squeaked, as if hearing my thoughts. “Good idea. After all my stupid exams, it’s time to treat myself.”

I wholeheartedly agreed. So we went.

I loved how she looked shyly excited the whole time, as I overdid the second and third helpings. It seemed to make her overdo it some, too. Which spurred me to make it a competition, and there we sat together, overeating like a couple of chubby fiends.

“Still think you’re too skinny,” she taunted me, as we left, already discussing plans for dinner.

*

Thank you to the reader who commissioned this work!

I'd love to write more. Check me out <3 etsy.com/shop/Chubbology

[bisexual-bitch-blogs]

hi this is my first time sending a request like this, would it be ok to ask for a threesome with two mean doms zhongli and diluc, with maybe overstimulation, spanking, rough sex, choking, bondage, orgasm denial, degrading,,,, 👉👈 thank u so much for ur service 🙏

"Bullies"

Dom Diluc/Zhongli X Sub Fem Reader

That's a lot of kinks. But I'm not complaining. Um I did have not have any pics of Diluc and Zhongli together so I did a simple 5 sec editing and here ya go! Sorry this took so long. Thank you for reading!

POV You bought a new friend home. It's a harmless hydro slime and your boyfriends dont approve of it. You get pouty and they punish you

Includes: Overstimulation, Spanking, Rough sex, Choking, Bondage, Orgasm denial, degrading, Dacryphilia, dumbification

❤💛--------------------------------------💛❤

You were living every girl's dream. Dating Diluc, the stoic bartender and Zhongli, the walking history of Liyue book.

How did you attract them? Simple, you were a cute crybaby working as an adventurer. Not a surprise when their sadistic personas screamed to make you cry even harder.

Telling you right here and now. They're gentlemen in the streets but assholes in the sheets. You loved them with all your heart but they're so mean in bed. You can't even tell them to stop because they know you actually liked it.

Anyways, enough about them. After finishing your last commission, you bought a small blue slime home because it was so cute. Not only that. It was harmless seeing as it kept following you around like a dog. Carrying the bundle of joy in your arms, you entered Dawn Winery Manor, the workers stared in astonishment watching the hydro being nestled between your breast, purring.

Simultaneously, your lovers came out from wherever they were and greeted you.

"Welcome home, darling/dear-"

They were cut off, seeing the suppose hostile mob snoozing away in your embrace. You greeted them back.

"I'm home, Luc! Li!"

Zhongli's porcelain face scrunched up in disgust seeing the slimy creature. Why the hell did you bring it into their sleeping quarters? Is that thing just made a smug face at him?? Nah hes just delusional cuz of jealously and disgust or smth

Diluc doesn't hate slimes like the Geo Archon does but not does he like them either. Rather the crimson haired thought of them as nuisances to his business.

You asked.

"I found this slime following me and thought it was harmless. Why not take it home? Can we keep it please~?"

The males looked at each and nodded before turning back to look at you. They said.

"No."

You were taken back, baffled.

"What? Why??!"

The red haired male huffed, explaining.

"I probably would not mind, perhaps let you put it in a tank and take care of it however you know how Zhongli has a very strong hate for anything slimy."

You pouted.

"Then it doesn't need to be near Li and it'll be fine!"

You were determine to have this small slime be your companion during adventuring time. Forget seelies. Forget your boyfriends disapproval. Your going to keep it in the guest room and sleep with the squishy blue ball there.

Just as you were about to run away. Diluc grabbed you by the waist, carrying you over his shoulders like a sack of potatoes, making you drop your little companion. It bounces away, squeaking. You called out, hitting the red head's lower back, weakly with your fists.

"Hey! What was that for?!"

! SMACK !

Flinching, a swift slap was delivered to your bum and you didn't know who did it. Zhongli said.

"After we said no. You still take it in? Bad girl. I believe punishment must be ordered."

You blabbered in disbelief.

Suddenly, you were tossed onto the bed, sinking into the soft sheets of comfort, your clothes were ripped off by 2 pairs of greedy hands.

Perhaps you froze in shock when they toss away your scattered remains of clothing but they're already naked, their little friends exposed yet not awakened.

Zhongli hand gripped around your throat tightly, cutting off your air way. Meanwhile, your pyro lover ran his hot wet tongue over your folds, dampening your entrance. Tears gather at the corner of your eyes, feeling hazy at the lack of air yet hot. When Zhongli took away his coarse hand away from your throat, you desperately gasped for air. Without time to rest, the geo user pressed down on your hardened buds with his thumbs. You gave a breathy moan, stilling trying to catch the air you desperately needed in your lungs.

Diluc lapped at the slick you produced from your core, his nose rubbed against your clit making you shake every 5 seconds. Taking this as a distraction. The ravenette clipped your hard buds with some sort of unique silver nipple clamps.

It stung and Zhongli is not helping by tugging on them. You complained.

"I-It hurts!"

Nothing new. They whispered comforting words but you couldn't hear them cause of the erratic beating of your heart through your ears.

Something hot entered your entrance so you looked down and saw it was Diluc's digits thrusting in and out, occasionally rubbing a weird spot that made you moan out loud. Any attempts to close your legs, resulted in your smooth legs bended over your head and harsh spankings. Diluc reprimanded.

"Bad slut."

! SMACK !

! SMACK !

! SMACK !

Losing counts of how many time the pyro user landed a hit on each of your ass cheeks. Tears ran down your face like a waterfall, feeling the burn on your poor bottom. The nerve when Diluc rubbed them, hoping to soothe the pain. Well it ain't working. Bet it's all red now but it'll be bruised tomorrow.

Out of habit you bound your thighs together. However, your archon lover decided to tie your ankles and wrist to the corners of the bed.

Your head was turned to the side facing a big angry weeping member pressing against your lips.

"Open your mouth and take it all in like the pretty whore you are. You wanted us to punish you in the first place. That's why you disobeyed."

You gaped, screaming in your mind.

'ILLOGICAL! WE DID THIS JUST YESTERDAY."

Zhongli took the opportunity of your slightly opened mouth and slammed his member down your throat. You gagged, quickly trying to adjust to the large accompany in your mouth.

Man, they really manhandling you today. The ruby eyed male also plunges his length into your entrance, slowly pulling it out to the tip then pushing the rest in. You mewled in etascy. In sync, they fucked you at a rough pace. Just as you were about to release, they slowed down. You softly whine, tugging your hands, weakly at the restraints.

"Would you look at that. Our pretty whore wants to cum. Does she deserve it, mister Diluc?"

With a expression of annoyance, the red head rejected.

"No."

They continued the torture; fucking you at a relentless pace and when your about to reach your high, they slow down before repeating the process.

You cried, miserably. Their teasing was just endless. Letting them do whatever to your body, you felt your eyes roll up. The pyro user, chuckles.

"How cute. We fucked her brains out. She took her punishment so well. She deserves a reward, no?"

Zhongli takes off the toys pinching your swelling nipples, agreeing with the other male.

"Yes, even a bitch needs to cum at some point. Let her cum all she wants."

You didn't register the fact they pulled out their lengths, already taking off the restraints when they turn you over onto your stomach, doggy style. Their members slid back into you no problem. It was like your holes was made for them or they fucked you so much, your body's insides molded to their dick shape.

You moaned over and over again, cumming for who knows how many times. You were conscious however your mind was somewhere else.

Since they took away your walking privileges for the next 2 weeks, you get to keep the slime. Haha in your face geo daddy.

You named the small of hydro element, Puppy cause why not?

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

Again sorry for the wait! I'm trying to manage my schedule to scoot in a writing here and there since I also have Wattpad to deal with.

This one took a while but I am very excited for the next nsfw/crack request coming up and hope to achieve big brain for it.

[skiyoosmi]

to the stars above | z.

featuring. zhongli (genshin impact)

genre. fluff, angst, smut, ancient-liyue!au

word count. 5.4k

marga's notes. aAAAa look look, it's my first commission!! school has kept me really occupied for like the past month but after pulling a few all-nighters, i've finally finished my responsibilities along with this little baby! once again, from the bottom of my heart, thank you to my bubs @ramannnn for trusting me with this one <33

Nobody knows when the world began, how it came to be and why it continues to be. Even I, whose mind is filled with nothing but wonder for it, have no idea. One thing I am quite sure of... is how mine did.

It all started with him— a man of many titles, different identities yet at the end of the day, all these monikers are the same; it's all him. He adored Liyue more than anything else, knew it like the back of his hand. He went where the winds lead him, stayed where the moon shines upon him, stood where the golden sun kissed his skin. He found serenity in the walks he travels as he goes about his day, the sceneries his eyes take in and the calm sounds the nature resonates for him. And as if it was fate decided upon by the Celestia, it led him to me. Suddenly, my little world that used to be nothing became everything... quickly and all at once.

An exasperated sigh escapes from my lips, frustration and disappointment filling my whole being as I stare at the blank parchment paper I held in my hands. Another day was again wasted with no progress, I thought, mentally beating myself up for not being productive enough. Before I could further drown myself into such pessimistic ideas, I snap out of it and let my eyes cherish the view that lies ahead of me. Though I feel a little guilty for taking Vermeer's place, I can only whisper an apology with little to no sincerity. Because truly, nothing can beat the picturesque landscape of Luhua Pool— the crystal clear waters that would most probably reflect my face like a mirror if I were to ever look at it, the ruins that ignited the spark of curiosity within me, wondering about the pasts it holds and the stillness and feeling of peace it gives me as I sit in this cliff. Feeling somewhat a bit better, I place my things on top of the old bag I bring no matter where I go. There's always a better day for writing, I tell myself as a form of consolation, bringing my slim arms up to begin stretching. I've been sitting on this log for quite a long time now, after all.

"It seems like you are in a bit of a dilemma," a deep voice comments from behind me. Out of surprise, I lightly jump and turn my head towards the stranger. Right at that moment, it felt as if all the air circulating inside my body had been depleted. Captivating was an understatement as to how he appeared before me. With the sunlight striking his face and accenting his unique features further, he stood with his hands behind him, head tilted as he looked at me with interest, all while keeping his dignified posture.

"Oh, hello. I am afraid so, yes," I respond, or rather, mutter under my breath since I was not really used to having sudden encounters with other people, nor am I fond of it. I tend to keep to myself, finding it much more peaceful than having to tend to others' overbearing expectations and demands which is partly the reason why I chose to live in the outskirts, far from the center of Liyue that contrasts my comfortable abode, "I apologize. I failed to realize that somebody other than Vermeer liked to stay here," I told him, arching my eyebrows a little when he let out a breathy chuckle.

"Oh, you have no need for such formal apologies. I do not always go here, at least probably not as often as the man you call Vermeer. I was simply taking a walk and I think I got carried away by Liyue's view and eventually, my feet led me here," he explains, a hint of sheepishness present in his tone, "and I guess I'll have to thank my feet for that."

Because it led me to you, interesting one. For many years, it will remain unspoken, kept by the strange man to himself and unveiled once his heart gives up from the resistance he upholds.

For the following hours of lounging around Luhua Pool, I learned a lot about the stranger— he calls himself "Morax," and like the god of Liyue, he enjoyed history and is extremely knowledgeable about it, aspiring to know and understand everything of the world, he often brews tea, even going as far as inviting me once I am free from any form of work. Just as he shared facts about himself, I did too.

"So, Cheng, you said you have a bit of a dilemma?" he inquires, slightly angling his head towards the direction of the side I'm sitting on. I nod my head up and down, mouth forming into a small pout of disappointment as I remember that today has not been that progressive.

"Yes. I am trying to write a novel, you see. Something that will leave an impact on this world so that even if I may pass, I will still live on the memories of people," I tell him, an ambitious expression present on my face. He hums, eyes going over the terraces that make up the current view we have and the two huge statues standing by the ruins, "Why so?"

I pause for a moment to think of a reply, "I guess I just do not want to let someone alone in this cold world. Wouldn't that be too cruel and sad, to just leave them with nothing?"

If I'm able to write words that will provide comfort to my readers, then maybe... just maybe the world will be less lonely... even for just a little bit. At least, that's what I thought as silence consumed us, the sun setting as if to remind us that finally, another day is nearing its end. Now, what will tomorrow bring?

"Well then, I do hope I will be able to read at least some of your works at least once," he speaks as he stands up, lightly dusting away his clothes, "It certainly has been a pleasure to be your company, Cheng."

As he walks down the slope of the hill, his somewhat broad back facing me, I call out, "Will you be back?"

He stops and turns, a soft smile is plastered on his face as he responds, "Only time will tell."

But time was no friend of mine. At least that's what I have come to realize as many days passed without him returning to this place. Though maybe it's only because it almost felt as if time slowed down and I was only eager to see him again, something I have scolded myself to— what a fragile heart do I have to already seek a stranger's presence? That is what others call love at first sight, a devilish portion of my mind whispered cheekily within me and I gasped in disbelief, "Absolutely not," I lightly slap both of my cheeks, "I'm just too coped up in my own world. I probably need to go see more people."

That thought remains a simple yearning though because once again, I find myself lounging around the same spot in Luhua, a quiet hope ignited within me, fulfilled when I hear the familiar voice he adorns as he speaks, "You're here."

I release a sound that is between a giggle and a breathy chuckle, "And I see your feet had led you here once more?"

"They were curious, or should I say... I was," he explains as he takes a seat beside me, his posture remaining solid despite the uncomfortable position.

"Of what?" I ask.

"Of you," he simply replies, unaware of the sudden yet unsurprising effect it had on my heart that was already beating rapidly with just his mere presence. I try not to be so showy of it though, too embarrassed to even think of how fast I became fond of him.

But it was no wonder. After all, he himself was an interesting one; from the way he carries himself, the way he speaks, and the way he's just him... all and every action hold so much dignity that it just leaves me almost breathless and in awe every single time my eyes finds their way to his figure— and to think that this was just our second meeting? My mother would most probably let out the most shameless giggle as I tell her these thoughts, pushing me and teasing me like a normal person in their teens would. I shake my head to get out of these thoughts, listening to Morax as he tells another wonderful tale, almost making me think that he lived it himself with how he knew it, going over even with the smallest details.

"You know, Morax, you have such a good memory to remember all of those things despite simply hearing about it," I suddenly speak up in the midst of the silence that engulfed us while he tries to think of the next story to tell, "I hope I can stay in them too... in your memories, I mean. I know I am far from being the most interesting person but for some reason, I wish for that."

He pauses, eyes trailing slowly towards me, beyond my knowledge, before he lets out a somber smile. You already are, is another one of him that becomes an afterthought.

I heaved out a sigh before shaking my head again, "Ah! Why do I keep having such lonely thoughts? Forget about that. Please do not mind me, alright? I think I really need to stop being stuck in the mountains."

I pick up my small bag and shuffle inside it, letting out a quiet sound of 'aha!' as a sort of celebration when I successfully got a small book out, "Here."

He blinked his eyes in confusion, wondering what it was I handed to him so I spoke in delight, "You told me you wanted to read at least one of my works so, here. I am warning you though, it is not like the ones that sell best in the bookstores. It might bore you, or weird you out like what others say."

"What others say?"

"They say it's too unrealistic, too impossible... but I believe otherwise. We live in a world where gods and adepti watch over us. What makes my story impossible then?" I ponder, him still being confused.

"What is it about anyway?" He asks, having no idea of what the context my book had.

"It's about an archon who began living as a simple man in Liyue."

Our meetings became more frequent after that and eventually, we got comfortable with even just the presence of each other, having no need for long talks and such, but just peace. Today, like any other day, Morax was just reading the book I gave him, while I was thinking of what my next story would be about. Occasionally, he looks at me with an odd expression that is almost equivalent to astonishment, as if I have done something so great that it made him look at me that way.

"What made you think of this plot?" he asks all of a sudden, not forgetting to put a piece of paper that served as a bookmark on the page where he stopped just in case he accidentally closed it.

I hum, thinking about my answer to his question, "Hmm. Truth to be told, it was just a mere wonder for me. Archons and the adepti, although not entirely immortal, live so much longer than an average human does, watching over us as we go about our daily lives, waiting for sudden wars to break out and then fight the enemies that attack us. Growing up, those were the things that all the people around me told me. So I began to wonder, do they ever get tired? Is it not too taxing to keep on doing that? What if... they just lived with us, among the crowds? Because I think it is too lonely wherever they are. Would it not be better if they were with us, rather than above us, so they could at least have memories to live by?"

Morax does not give a response, or rather, he finds it difficult to find one. Still, it does not stop the affection that spreads within him. He does not say it out loud, but for someone who prefers to be alone, Cheng was full of empathy. And somehow, that did wonders to Morax's heart.

"Now that I think about it, I kind of actually want to address my books to them now," I hum once more, "It would be like a message for them: Do not be too lonely even if we pass. Because of your help, through these stories, we can show you that we lived a good life."

I huff as soon as I finish my sentence, "Although one of those who read it said that was impossible, because according to them, why would archons give up their power to live a life where there is only simplicity?"

Morax let out a sound that made it look as if he got offended himself, "Archons can do that, can they not?"

"I know! That was what I was saying to them. Anyway, I am not forcing them to like what I wrote. It's just a story, after all. It can do no harm," I shrug, beginning to fix my belongings as the sun began to set, "I should go now, Morax. It is still quite a long walk to my home."

"I want to live a good life too," he suddenly tells me, making me halt and turn to him in confusion, "With you. The good life and memories you shall tell in your stories, can I be part of them too?"

The universe does not stop for anyone, nor does time— science will consistently proclaim this fact matter what timeline we shall live in. No matter how much someone begs to the Celestia to grant their wish of controlling, or stopping time, no one will be able to do such things. But somehow, it seems like when it comes to him, everything is possible as I feel my world stop at his words, just like the way it also began when I met him. And as if planets were colliding with each other, I suddenly felt my heart crash upon him and as if out of instinct, I let go of the truth.

"Of course. It would be the greatest thing to have you."

Life was strange in its own way. That is what I have come to realize in this simple life of mine.

Despite the fact that the "me" of the previous year has never even thought about putting my whole being on my sleeve, it is pleasingly odd how right now, I find myself in this kind of situation with the man who swept me right under my feet and claimed my heart as his.

“You're cold," I whisper amidst the silence of the night in my abode, my index tracing the ears of the man who had me sitting right on his lap, the shorter strands of his silky hair tucked behind them. So, so alluring.

He takes hold of my wrist, planting a soft kiss on its side, all while maintaining eye contact as he quietly drawls, "Then I suppose you can keep me warm tonight. Will you?"

As if in a trance, I nod my head, letting him take the lead as he laid me down, back against the soft mattress, him following on top with his arms supporting his build. With arising confidence, I circle my arms around him and pull him down, bringing our lips together, a sigh of relief escaping both of our mouths as if to say, "Finally."

I wonder if he thinks the same way as I do— that this was Celestia in its own way. I felt like I could do anything as long as it was with him. The kiss felt like the power we once suppressed from each other became a supernova that changed our world's course all of a sudden. But despite the tension and heat we both emitted at the moment, there is a warmth that engulfs me the same time he fully wraps his arms around me.

I am here. I will always be here.

No noise disturbs the peace we have created, only the quiet sound of crickets reach our ears but even that fails to distract him from what he's doing. He gently tugs on the sash that keeps my coat tied. Nimble fingers explore the remains of my clothing, loosening all until I am set free from them.

His eyes raked over my body, an expression of awe plastered on his face for so long that it made me somewhat conscious. Because as he unravels his to me, I am enlightened by the fact that my figure is nothing worth comparing to his — not even close. A hint of sweat glints from his skin due to the moonlight, making him look even more ethereal. But who was I to complain?

So instead, I look down, fiddling a little with my fingers as I feel my cheeks heat up. How is it that I only realize now what kind of situation we are currently in? Before I further drown in such shameless thoughts, he lifts my head up by the chin, an amused look on his usually-gentle face, "Are you feeling shy, beloved?"

I meekly nodded, to which he lets out a soft laugh and whispers, "Don't be. You are the epitome of beauty itself. If you don't believe me, allow me to show you nothing but truth tonight, I swear under the moon and all these stars."

He dips down and captures my lips in a kiss once again with more passion, if it was still even possible.

"You are made for me, as I'm made for you," he proclaims as he thrusts inside me after minutes of preparation, soft pants and groans following his statements. I can only whimper in response, pain evident in my tone at first with my hands lightly clawing at his back. I pray to the heavens above that they don't leave awful marks after this.

He halts and utters an apology, thumb caressing the bone of my cheeks while he waits for me to adjust. He scans my face after a few seconds, relief flashing in his eyes when I nod for him to continue.

"I... b..." I try to speak out but the pleasure overwrites any sensical thought that goes through my mind. He slows down a little, looking over my face and smiles, urging me to talk.

"Stay with me, beloved. We still have all night," he tells me, encouraging me to voice what has been on my mind.

"I... I belong to you, always have and always will..." I manage to croak out, voice quite hoarse due to the sounds that I let out previously. Perhaps pleased with what I have proclaimed, he begins going even deeper and at the same moment, I begin falling deeper.

"Yes, yes, you do," he repeats like a mantra, his voice sounding more and more desperate to reach his high. I cry out with him, creating a harmony that even the best bards shall be ashamed.

It was a long night— the longest yet most beautiful night I have ever had in this simple life of mine. And in that moment, as we reach the stars together, I knew right there and then that this man is someone who will be etched in my heart for as long as I live, deep into its roots— for him, it shall beat and it shall love.

You, who are reading this, most probably have had enough of these teeth-rotting praises I kept on writing. But what can I do except to apologize? These words are the only ones that can flow out of my mind and mouth to show how magnificent it was to be loved by him.

Well, nothing significant really changed. He was still the same gentleman I met, if anything, more gentle. Just like in the beginning, he made my heart flutter every chance he gets, no matter how many years have already passed.

We built a dynasty together.

But maybe I should have known that ours were also bound to crumble like the ones that have long existed even way before us.

Days, months and years went on, I realized that he was actually the opposite of me— unlike me who was clearly not parallel with time, he held it right on the palms of his hand. I was not blind, nor was I a fool, I can clearly see how he looks like he has not aged a day, all while I was here, maturing more and more each second that passed by, the amount of signs of me aging increasing significantly.

Morax. Knowledgeable of history as if he lived it himself. Time. All these thoughts eventually congest my mind as realization dawns upon me. He was not merely a man named after the god himself— Morax was him, he was Morax.

"How appalling," I mutter with a hint of sadness and dismay in my tone. I stood in front of the mirror, fingers hovering over my face, wrinkles appearing as I scrunch it. A pair of firm arms snake its way around my lean waist, chin resting on one of my shoulders as he hums his words, "What has got your beautiful mind occupied, my beloved?"

Taking hold of his arms, I turn my body around to face him, a somewhat melancholic smile etched on my face as I look up at his much taller frame, "You are a sight to behold, even to this day." He arches one eyebrow out of amusement and curiosity, wondering why I suddenly started pouring him compliments. After all, my shyness prevents me from consistently doing so. Nonetheless, I continue speaking, "I wish... I could be with you even when everything changes into a whole new world."

I lifted a hand up to cup his cheeks and began rubbing it lovingly, a lone tear finally dropping from my eye as soon as I closed it, "but I cannot, I do not have the ability to do so... I am but a mere mortal, after all."

His eyes widen as he finally discerns my actions and concerns, immediately opening his mouth in hopes of consoling me but I beat him into speaking, "It's alright, Morax. I have been putting the pieces together for a while now. I am in no way angry. I just..." I pause, gulping hard before my lips start to quiver, "... I cannot imagine how lonely it must have been. And now... I think about it and I... I do not want to leave you alone again."

My cries eventually start becoming louder, something that is very new to the both of us, seeing as I have always been composed. Love can change a person into a whole new being. I remember a book I have read once and at the moment, I can only agree. Maybe it was the way my heart clenches at the mere thought of him walking alone, or the way I can imagine us taking our last breaths together yet I know that will never happen— but either way, it was painful.

He whispers sweet nothings to my ears, placing light kisses on my temple as he leads us to the bedroom to rest once my tears have finally ceased and I have calmed down. His hold on me gets tighter every time I let out a small hiccup due to crying, almost as if he was telling me that he was feeling the same pain as I was.

Hours pass by as we lay in silence. My tears have long dried up but we remain coped up in each other's arms.

"Would it not be interesting if you bear the name Zhongli?" I ask him in a somewhat croaky voice.

He peers down and tilts his head, "Now where did that thought come from?"

I shrug, or at least try to, and look up at the ceiling as we shift our positions to lay on our back, hands finding one another and intertwining, "Hmm... nowhere. Just a name I wanted to give you in case that you are needing a new one."

"Oh? How come it would be interesting then?"

I look at him with a comforting yet sad smile.

"Because it means it's time to leave, to go somewhere far away... and unfortunately, I will have to leave soon."

He furrowed his eyebrows together, "Do not say that. Who knows? Maybe you will be able to live a hundred years by my side. Besides, I think it sounds lonely. I do not think I would want to get reminded of the fact that you are not here with me."

I hum, "But if you bear the name I gave you, wouldn't it feel like I never went away? That no matter where your feet take you, no matter how far you go, I am and will always be with you, just as I have vowed."

The wooden door leading to my writing room slowly slides open and Morax's head peers in, an adorable smile plastered on his face, "You have been quite busy these days, beloved. I do not wish to disturb you but I am starting to long for your presence."

I let out a shameless giggle, "Alright, alright. Just let me write down a few more words while I still have ideas to input."

He peeks on the parchment paper out of curiosity, taken aback when he finds his name on it, "You are writing about us?"

I nod proudly, "My last piece."

"... But why?"

I smile and approach him, taking his hand and placing my forehead against his after he lowers his head down to my level, "I told you, did I not? I do not wish to leave the person I love with nothing. So that you will not be lonely, my words will be with you. I will be with you, always..."

"... and to tell the gods... to tell you, that I loved every second of my life with you— that it was, indeed, a good life."

"Who are you, young man? Are you my son?" I speak with a very hoarse voice, squinting my eyes at the figure in front of me, as if my poor vision will allow me to do that.

I hear a melancholic yet gentle sigh come from him before he takes my rough hands and looks afar, "Don't mind me. I'm just someone who vowed to be with you for as long as time lets us."

"Oh.... really? That’s quite endearing," I hum, "Well, may I know your name?"

"This… I think I may just have an idea to whom this book is for," Paimon trails off, looking over at the traveler who was in the same trance as her, "Paimon thinks we should let the strange person we saw a while ago give this directly to Zhongli!"

Lumine nods, turning around and starting to run towards the direction they were at previously, recalling the person named Cheng who gave them the novel they just finished reading. They were unique, dressed in layers of robes and it was almost as if they lived in the old times of Liyue. Even the way they talked and moved screamed ancient.

Just as they turned the corner, a woman near the Liuli Pavilion called them over, "Traveler! Here!" As they approach, Lumine cranes her neck to look around the area but to no avail, the strange person was long gone.

"Are you two alright?" the woman asks, much to their confusion, "I saw you talking to literal air awhile ago and I was worried you have eaten something strange."

The pair looks at each other in surprise before Paimon replies, "You didn't see anyone? Like a person dressed in the strangest attire? They dressed really anciently!"

The door of the Liuli Pavilion opens and there goes Zhongli, a calm expression morphing to an awkward one when he realizes he barged into an ongoing conversation. He apologizes for the disturbance and despite the curiosity he had upon overhearing bits of Paimon's statements, he starts his walk back to Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. At least not until he hears Paimon call his name, "Zhongli! Wait! A person named Cheng. Do you know them?"

He abruptly stops and turns to the two, eyes wide for a second before it returns to his usual demeanor, "How... how do you know of them?"

"We met them," Paimon says, as if it was the simplest thing to do, "Well, honestly, we don't know because we were apparently speaking to nothing but air! It's so odd!"

He stays still, honestly having no idea of what response he should give them because he himself found it hard to believe.

"Well anyway, they asked us to give you this nov— wait, where is it? It was just in your hands a while ago, Traveler!"

In the midst of the loud chaos made by the two in the middle of Liyue, he thinks he knows what to do and where to go now.

It was the day of the Rite of Parting, an event where he's supposed to be taking part of, even just a part of the audience. But he finds himself hanging around the Wanwen Bookhouse, eyes scanning the shelves until it stops at a familiar name engraved on the cover of a book.

"Oh! Greetings, Mr. Zhongli! I see you took a liking to a very great and romantic novel," Jifang comments as she sees the book in his hands.

He looks at her, "Is it really great?"

She gasps in delight, "Yes, indeed! Almost all of the Liyue folks have enjoyed this story! You can say it is a classic, especially for readers! Cheng definitely outdid themselves with this one! Such a mysterious person yet equally amazing. Imagine? Being able to make such a beautiful love story with Morax? They don’t mention the present name they gave Morax though, such a shame. Maybe it was due to old age, they wrote it until the last moments of their life after all. Anyway, I have to get back to work but enjoy reading that masterpiece!"

He feels his heart swell in pride upon knowing his lover had his wish come true. His nimble fingers carefully open the pages of the book and hours later, as he sat inside the Funeral Parlor after taking the novel home, he finds himself absorbing each and every word Cheng have written, the loneliness sitting idly inside him subsiding little by little.

I found solace in the countless cups of tea you brew whenever I encounter distress with my works, the endless stories you tell with a smile so beautiful that not even the most heavenly scenery can vanquish, but most of them all, the feeling of your hand intertwining with mine, providing me with serenity no one else has ever done before. Under the moonlit night of Liyue, I remember your wistful amber eyes, staring deep into my soul as you proclaim your love and desire for me. How foolish was it of me to think that I could live this life without even experiencing such warmth and intimacy?

It is a banality, really — how I wish to become a well-known writer with unique tales and yet the story I am telling is something so common to folks that they have most probably heard similar ones before. But I guess this is what it means to love and to be loved. Everything is like a cycle that just keeps on being repeated, yet we never get tired of it, of the feelings it brings. So, thank you, Morax. Words will never be sufficient to show how grateful I am to you for showing me a whole new world but I suppose this is still a way for me to give back to you.

With this little book of mine, I hope my heart reaches yours regardless of how many eras may have passed before and after us. So, my beloved, do not be too lonely without me. Even if you find yourself longing for my presence, just open this and my heart shall be with you.

This belongs to you, it always will.

And I do, as well.

[steepgan]

someone dear (i) — d. ragnvindr x f!reader

PART I - PART II - PART III

bye i created this on a whim ive always wanted to write an mc who just likes money yet still carries the “happiness/freedom” ideals of mondstadt.. essentially its an mc whos like hell yeah i love money <3 and fun..!!! okay also i did not edit this at all i was just like <3 writing time baby..

Of course, working for the wealthiest gentleman in Mondstadt was no easy task. There were two places you could work: Dawn Winery or Angel’s Share. The winery, settled in the countryside, was a cozy job with friendly workers who saw rolling hills of green every day; however, the only available occupation within your skillset was being a maid. So you worked at Angel’s Share which was planted in the city, and there you were greeted with weary workers and angry people. It was plenty more fun, anyway.

Your boss was as impassive as a tree, giving you your pay and leaving you be. He kept a strange emotional distance. Which was fine. Totally fine. But whenever you wanted a raise, his aloof attitude warded you off and you’d tell yourself you’d try next time.

Growing up in a household where money was a prominent figure in your life, you had materialistic values and a great love for money. So during your employment at the tavern, you picked up more shifts than anyone else and seldom splurged. You were stuck giving your laments to your friends and returning customers who were kind enough to humor wails.

“One of these days, Lisa, I’m actually going to lose it,” you said to the librarian of the knights. You slumped your body on the bar, clearly in a professional fashion. “What do you want to drink?”

Lisa gave you a pitying look. “You could always become a knight or an adventurer. They receive plenty of pay through commissions.”

“No, thank you! I kind of want to live.”

“I don’t think I’ll have anything to drink,” Lisa said. She laughed at your sullen expression. “Today, at least. I have to explore these ruins later today. I really, really don’t want to, but Jean is making me.”

You slid a tin can labelled TIPS to Lisa. “Every time you don’t want to do something it’s five mora.”

“Since when did this become a thing?”

“It’s always been a thing. I was just giving you a family-friend discount up until now.”

Lisa dropped the coins into the can. You smiled at the sound of click-clank. Lisa rested her cheek on the palm of her hand and said, “have you ever thought about… not working for the tavern? I’m sure there are other places in the world that’ll appreciate your pleasant company.”

“Yeah, but Master Diluc pays the best in Mondstadt if you don’t have a decent education under your belt,” you said dryly. “I’d have to travel out of Mondstadt to find a better opportunity.”

“There’s always the cathedral,” Lisa offered. 

“Do you see me as a devout follower to any god other than money? [Name], Humble Follower of Barbatos Since The Beginning! Engrave that on my tombstone, would you?”

“I don’t really want to do that.”

You pushed the tin can toward the librarian.

Lo and behold, the man of the hour strutted in with his typical apathy. If he carried himself with a more open chest and with his chin up, you’d find him more agreeable, more approachable. He’d be knightly, even. But Diluc hated knights. He hated small talk, too. He hated a lot of things.

He was a man of good looks and good fortune, in addition to being Mondstradt’s most eligible brooding bachelor bastard, donning a nice black coat with golden trimmings and tassels. A coat that’d fetch a nice price if you were to pawn it off. Not that you were thinking about selling your boss’ clothes. He stood at a decent height with his vermillion messy hair tied back and narrow eyes framed with thick lashes. 

When Diluc walked through the doors, he didn’t spare you a glance before climbing up the stairs to deal with some other matters. As long as you did your job, he didn’t bother you.

Lisa whistled. “He’s so cold.”

“Pays well, though,” you murmured absentmindedly. Lisa looked as if she wanted to say something. Maybe it was something about how money didn’t exactly suffice for human relationships. Or something about her future job for the knights. Whatever was on the tip of her tongue, she chose not to say it, and dropped a few more mora coins into your little tin can.

Your relationship with Diluc was strange. You took enough shifts to be one of the most well-compensated workers under him, but you didn’t exactly know Diluc outside of his cool exterior. You didn’t know if you’d wanted to, either. Some nights, he’d come home right before the tavern’s opening, his clothes tattered and dirty and a grim feature coating his pretty features.

Typically you’d be working and cleaning, and you’d nod to him. Diluc would then take off to the second floor of the tavern. You never questioned it. You never would, either, unless you were paid to do so. 

One late night, it was just you cleaning up for the night and Diluc sitting at the bar, going through some papers. Diluc offered to take Charles’ shift for the day, to which the man was grateful for. As you were wiping down the bar, Diluc said, “I never knew we had a tip jar.”

“It’s an ongoing gag with Lisa,” you said. “Please don’t mind it.” It wasn’t a lie, exactly. It was a joke with Lisa! You simply kept it out on the counter for every customer to see all day and all night. If they happen to drop mora in there for your charming smile and excellent service, who were you to stop them?

Diluc said nothing. You hadn’t expected him to. He’d let it slide, you supposed. If the tavern had a best employee of the month award, you would have won it consecutively for the last few years you’d been employed under the pretty man. However, Diluc was no great lover of trivial awards that were actually poorly concealed incentives, and as long as you were paid accordingly, you didn’t care about awards, either.

“If you needed a raise then say it,” he said suddenly. And you were surprised.

“Thank you,” you said.

“No need.”

When you left the tavern you squealed. Patton, the caller, awoke from his nap from a chair supposedly for customers. His legs had been propped on the accompanying table, which you had cleaned earlier so you didn’t have to deal with a certain customer who had too much to drink inside.

Patton rubbed his eyes groggily. “What’s up, [Name]?”

“I got a raise!” you exclaimed. “I’m so happy I could kiss you right now, Patton.”

“Please don’t,” he said. “What’s that in your hand?”

“Oh, leftovers.” You gave the small bag you were holding a good jostle. “It’s for the dog up there. I have a habit of feeding him every once in a while whenever there’s good scraps.”

Patton eyed you. “If you get bit and infected with rabies, maybe I’ll take your raise. Try and pet it for me, would you?”

“In your dreams, Patton.”

After a few taunts and banter, you left Patton alone. In a few hours, you’d come back to the tavern to work more. Before your mom had been hospitalized, you’d maybe put your extra money to treat yourself to Good Hunter or to buy new clothes. 

Of course, while money was one of your many goals, you had other aspirations as well. More than anything, you’d like to resume a humble life in Mondstadt. If you could afford it, then you’d travel to Liyue and sightsee. And then maybe a little further. But you’d always return to Mondstadt. It was just home to you, and you liked home.

You crouched and fed the dog. He pressed his snout into your palm, warm and comforting. You giggled and finished the leftovers from your little sack. As much as Patton wanted you to die of infection, the dog was very tame and kind toward you. He let you brush his fur and scratch behind his ears. If you had enough patience and enough time, you’d teach him to bite Patton.

The next day, you were working with Charles, as per usual. He’d been working here far longer than any of you. You’d been employed here for a while now, and you’d come to know the man quite well after rowdy nights and quiet days in the tavern. He despised a drunk customer as much as you, but whenever you were on shift with him, he always offered to take care of it.

If not you, then Charles would get the nonexistent employee of the year award.

“Just put up a work wanted poster,” Charles said, cleaning a glass. “Judging by our usuals, we won’t get an honest inquiry for it in a while.”

You, who’d been making an apple cider, said, “oh, for the boars?” While you did want to work at the winery for its pleasant view and people, there were boars who’d been uprooting vines and you did not want to tussle with a boar. 

“Say, [Name], you heard of the Darknight Hero?”

“Who hasn’t?” you asked. “My friends talk about him all the time. Everyone likes a good mystery around these parts. Have you seen the library? Oh, and the idea of him being handsome isn’t that bad… Do you think he’s rich, Charles?”

Charles snorted. “If he can afford to leave at night to protect Mondstadt, then he must be rich. He’s no worker like us, but he’s definitely noteworthy. He may as well just be an urban rumor, though, so don’t go around trying to seduce him only to get into his pockets.”

“I would never!”

“I saw you make eyes at a customer who was wearing very fine jewelry that could be pawned off for a high price.”

“I liked her eyes. They were kind. Reminded me of a princess from a fairytale.”

Diluc came from upstairs to the first floor. He was the same as he’d always been—closed off, calm, and collected. Fitting. He cast a quick glance at you and Charles before disappearing outside onto the streets of Mondstadt.

“That’s Master Diluc for you,” Charles said. “So elusive you could call him a ghost. A handsome, ghost, that is.”

“I barely know anything about him,” you said. “Elusive is correct, if not absolutely distant.”

“Really? You should talk to him more often.”

There was already a set difference between you and Charles. Firstly, it would be the years working at Angel’s Share. Charles knew Diluc more than you did. You wanted to point this out, but instead you slumped your shoulders. “He’s just so unapproachable, Charles. You wouldn’t understand. That mustache of yours makes you look amicable and agreeable.”

Charles self-consciously twirled the end of his mustache. He looked as if he wanted to say something. He turned back to his work, setting the clean glass down. “You and Master Diluc seem to complement each other, that’s all.”

You were very friendly and a good person underneath all your materialistic values. Had it not been for Diluc’s offstandish personality, maybe you and Diluc would be a little more than boss and employee. Maybe you and Diluc would be friends.

Of course, your main focus was your happiness and sanity. If you’d interacted with Diluc outside of work, you might’ve gone insane. Oh! And money. It was always money. You watched a customer drop a few mora into the tip jar.

PART I - PART II - PART III

[ziaxkawaii]

Worth more than some perceive (Victorian!Todoroki X F!Reader) Part 3!

Part 1 Here!         Part 2 Here!

~”You’ve got another one.” Your brother announced as he came into the back room, holding another white rose in his hands along with a card tied to it with the brown string.

~You stopped writing in your planner to first look at your brother and then at the rose. You got up.

~”I’ll go and put it in the vase, thank you.” You took the rose from him and carefully untied the string from the stem and threw it into a box on the table that had numerous pieces of the same type of string from the previous roses. It would be a waste of a perfectly good string if you threw them away.

~You went to put the rose into the vase, but then you realized that you should probably change the water in it as the other roses looked a bit whithered. You picked up the vase and brought it to the back to change the water.

~As you poured the water out, the old question resurfaced and you got curious. This has been going on for awhile, and at this point you’re not sure how you should be feeling about this anymore. Should you feel flattered or should you finally open your eyes and start to worry?

~You weren’t sure since you still don’t feel threatened or that you’re being watched, nor has William.

~”What do you make of this, William?” You questioned.

~”The roses? I’m honestly kind of vary of them, or at least the person leaving them.” He answered

~”I’m starting to doubt that these are not gifts of appreciation.”

~”Yeah, there must be a deeper meaning behind them.”

~You placed the roses in the freshly changed water and walked back out to put it back on the side table. Fixed the roses to look a bit nicer and then nodded in approval, ready to start yet another day.

~”But are you exactly worried?”

~”Not really since nothing else has happened yet, but I’m keeping my guard up. You can never be too careful.” You nodded at his response.

~”You’re right.” You agreed.

~Not long after you finished your sentence, a ding sounded through the air, signaling a customer has stepped into the boutique. You turned and immediately whatever worried thoughts you had previously washed away as you recognized the dual-hair-colored male. Seems like he has memorized the time you open the store, down to the minute.

~”Welcome back Todoroki!” You greeted Shoto.

~”How are you feeling this fine morning?” William joined your greeting. Then noticing he came alone this time. “Oh, roaming around alone today?”

~”I’m quite well, thank you. And yes. My butler has quite a lot of duties today, so I let him attend to them instead of coming here with me.” You both nodded in his direction. William nudged you on your arm.

~”Well, I’ll let you handle this one, I’ve got other work to do.” William called as he walked towards the backroom to finally start completing orders. You called him a quick goodbye and then turned to the other male in the room.

~”Well, how can I help you today? Last time you mentioned something about another commission?” You recalled his words from a week ago.

~”You are correct, so I’ll just get straight to the point.” You listened to what he had to say.

~”I would like for you to make a dress for my partner that will be attending the ball with me.” He said and your eyes widened from the request. Not only because he was ordering a dress without this partner of his, but also from the uncomfortable and unknown feeling growing in your chest.

~”I didn’t know you had a significant other.” You commented while trying to sound normal.

~”I don’t.” He said.

~”You don’t?” You lifted your eyebrow confused.

~”I’ll explain.” He breathed as though he was encouraging himself. “It might not seem like it at first glance, but the underlying purpose of this particular ball is for nobles to try and get their children to talk to other nobles' children, in hopes that the pair would get married.” He explained.

~”As the son of the steam train factory owner and founder, avoiding these balls are not an option. With the facts mentioned above, I’m bound to get many entitled women's attention if I come alone.” You started to understand where he was going with this.

~”To prevent this, I’m going to attend with a partner so I can avoid most of the excess attention.”

~You listened to him with interest but also you felt a bit bad for him, him having to go to such lengths to just be in peace. 

~As a child, you’ve always heard wonderful stories about extravagant balls and how they are for the rich to have fun, but as you got older you started to realize that those seemingly magical balls actually had more purposes to them than to just have fun.

~They were also the perfect place to snag yourself a husband or a wife if one was still unmarried, or a woman’s father would pick a husband for their daughter if he saw someone suitable.

~”I see. So I’m going to take a wild guess and bet that your partner doesn’t have a dress that would match your very attention-grabbing suit?” You’ve been in these situations more often than you could count, so you had a hunch why he came here.

~”It would be better if I and my acquaintance would wear similarly styled clothing.” You nodded along to his words. Agreeing that it would look kind of odd if his partner had a completely differently styled and colored dress than him.

~Of course it wasn’t uncommon for a pair to not match ‘at all’, but the ball Shoto described he was going to, indicated to you that the pairs should at least wear something matching, be it the pattern of the fabric, style of the clothing or accessories.

~”Of course, I’m sure I’ll be able to make a dress for your partner in a couple of weeks. Do you happen to know her favorite style of dress or her size? Then again It would be even better if they could come to the boutique and tell me themselves.” 

~You hated the feeling in your gut, the fact that you felt slight jealousy towards the unknown person who would have the pleasure to spend time with someone like Shoto Todoroki. Not because he was rich and handsome, but because he was genuinely polite and kind. He treated the noble and not-so-well off the same because he saw them all as people.

~You shouldn’t feel this way. It’s none of your business who he’s going to be dancing with. You’re just his tailor, nothing more.

~”Actually, I have not asked them yet.” He said pretty stoically but you could catch a hint of nervousness and embarrassment. You stood there for a moment, going over his words a few times until you found your voice again.

~”...You want me to make a dress for a woman,... who isn’t even aware that they’re going to a ball with you?...” You inquired, speaking every word clearly in case you’ve somehow heard him wrong and he would correct you. 

~Again, it’s not uncommon for people, most commonly men, to buy their partners dresses as a surprise. But those dresses were cheap summer dresses that were only slightly modified to the receiver’s liking, not perfectly fitted and sewn gowns that cost more than someone's whole month's rent!

~”Yes.” He confirmed. “You see, every time I attempt to build up the courage to ask them, I shy away like a small child behind their mother's dress.” He explained a bit bashfully. So that was the case, huh. “And the ball is only a short while away, so if we start the dressmaking process any later, it might be too much work on your end.” You silently appreciated his thoughtfulness.

~It was kind of hard to believe. Shoto, a very stoic man with power and good looks, felt nervous asking a woman to attend a ball with him. Then again, everyone had insecurities about literally anything one could imagine, he was no different you supposed so you had no right to judge.

~”I’m sure they would love to attend the ball with you. If they know you the same way as I do, I’m sure they’ll accept the invitation from someone as kind as you.” You reassured him, pushing down the feeling in your gut and focusing on helping, dare you say, your friend. He deserved it.

~He give you one of his rare smiles that made your heart melt for some unknown reason.

~”Thank you for the advice.” He bowed his head to you slightly. You shook your head.

~”No need to thank me.” You said with a smile. “Anyway, would you like to discuss more about this dress that you’re ordering?”

~”Yes.” He answered simply.

~”Alright, what kind of dress do you think she would like? Any references you can think of she might find appealing?” You asked, bringing out your trusty notebook.

~”I do not know what she would like.” He boldly said and you sweatdropped. This is going to be very hard…

~”Do you know her measurements?” You tried again but he just shook his head.

~”Not an exact number.” He said a little bashfully, it was improper for a gentleman to talk about a lady’s size.

~”Y-You must at least know something, I can’t do a dress with little to no information! I need references here!” You said half-panicky. This was already stressing you out and you have barely even begun. 

~How are you supposed to make a dress not knowing what the receiver wants? What if they don’t like the color or the style? Or what if the gown is too small, too big or the hem is too long? So many things can go so wrong here, it’s not even amusing!

~Just as your soul was about to leave your body, Shoto brought back your attention.

~”May I look at you for a moment?” He asked. You blushed slightly from the bold request.

~”S-Sure, but may I ask why?” You asked in return and he gestured for you to come from behind the counter. You walked to the front and stood in front of him and he started to eye you up and down. You felt slightly nervous under his gaze as he circled around you and compared your height to his, but you kept your unmoving stance. After a moment, he nodded.

~”Yes, your measurements are going to be perfect.” He announced and you took a double-take. Is this man serious?

~”Are you certain!? You want me to use my measurements for the dress?”

~”The measurements will do, you are the same height and size.” You almost wanted to tell him to reconsider so he wouldn’t be making a big mistake, but you figured he wouldn’t be changing his mind, so you relented.

~”If you say so. Then how about the style?” You inquired again, in hopes that he would now have something in mind, but you had a feeling he didn’t.

~”As I said, I know next to nothing about style.” He reminded you calmly and you thought for a second when you came up with a solution.

~”How about I show you different styled dresses and then you can see if one of them catches your eye?”

~”We can do that.” He agreed. 

~You asked if he was fine with coming to the backroom to look and he said he was fine with it. You said quick hi to your brother as you entered the room and brought Shoto to a clothing rack full of finished gowns that you have not yet mailed or given to the customers that ordered them. You skimmed through them and each time you explained to him what style it was and the price, which he didn’t seem to be too concerned about.

~”All of them are good in my opinion, I think I should just leave all the designing to you.” He spoke and you started to sweat again from anxiety. He can’t possibly be dumping this on you. 

~This wasn’t a discussion about his suit. Shoto had little references or wishes when he ordered his clothes, so it was fine for you to design them for him.

~Right now you are discussing about a dress that a woman was going to be wearing to a ball, and women tend to be very selective about what they wear even to the market. So you are basically screwed in this situation.

~”Todoroki, I understand that you are nervous about asking them, but I’m really about to faint from anxiety over this dress over here!”

~”You don’t need to take so much stress over it.” He hopelessly tried to help you.

~”Do you really think that’s going to help me calm down?...” 

~”What I mean is… No matter what kind of dress you sew, I know it’s going to be fantastic.”

~”Todoroki, many women are picky about their clothing. Even if one dress is pretty, they might still prefer a different one.” You explained. He seemed to be in thought for a minute. You turned back to the rack while you let him in his thoughts. ‘How am I going to resolve this?’

~”How about that dress?” You heard him ask. You turned around to look at him and saw him point at a draft of a dress that hung on the wall next to your desk, your eyes widened a smidge. You walked over to the draft and admired it.

~”I have never done this dress before.” You admitted as you traced your eyes over the simple but beautiful dress that you had drawn. “No customer has ordered it before.”

~”How come?” He asked again.

~”Well, they never come to the backroom for instance so they don’t see it.” You stated as you started to run your fingers over the worn parchment. Your dream dress. Your perfect dress to meet a kind prince in a flower garden at night, while the stars twinkle and bare witness to the two people falling in love, as they dance the night away under the moon light.

~”Do you plan on one day making it?” 

~”What for? It’s too expensive for me to make a dress for a chance that it would be one day bought. I never go anywhere where I would need to wear so formal clothing. It would only be a waste of perfectly good fabric.” You said solemnly as you looked at the drawing again. Which Shoto seemed to notice.

~It was pretty quiet for a moment, you went over your options in your mind briefly. Maybe you should just do one of your more popular styles and hope for the best. You were about to suggest your idea to Shoto, but he beat you to it, and boy were you speechless after that.

~”Would you be willing to make this dress if I ordered it?”

~Will this man ever stop surprising you? Probably not, but you’re pretty sure you’ll always react the same way as you do now, Staring him down and looking for any clues in his body language that he’s pulling your leg.

~”You want this design made?”

~”Yes, I think it’s a very beautiful gown and it would be a shame to just leave it as a draft.” He reasoned.

~”You’ll never cease to amaze me…” You breathed out, not sure if you, once again, should start to second guess his decision. “At this point I would be asking you to reconsider, but I have a feeling you wouldn’t be changing your mind.”

~”You would be correct.”

~”But why Todoroki? Why do you have so much trust in me?” You inquired.

~”Because you’re my friend,” He answered with no hesitation. “I would go as far as to say that I trust you more than some of my family members.” He admitted. Your eyebrows shot up in surprise. ‘Alright I was not expecting that.’

~”I literally have no words.” You said dumbfounded.

~”There’s no need for any, I’m simply trusting you because I see you’ve got a good taste, and it would be an insult if a customer didn’t trust their tailor.” He flashed you his million dollar smile, and you almost collapsed to the floor right then and there. Cheese… You swear you’re soon going to have a heart attack from how hard your heart was pounding.

~“R-right, then I’ll make this dress if that’s what you wish, Todoroki.” Damn you and your stuttering.

~”Please, call me Shoto.” You looked at his heterochromic eyes seeing nothing but certainty in them. Your cheeks grew slightly pink.

“Sure, Shoto it is.”

~~~~~~

~You eyed the dress on the mannequin probably for the millionth time as you circled it, brushed off non-existent dust, or rearranged the hem of the dress to look better, even though it was already perfect.

~Saying you were nervous was an understatement of the century. You just couldn’t stop yourself from fidgeting and pacing around the back room. You have been walking around so much that you swore there is a clear path marked on the ground from where you have walked.

~”Just calm down will you? He asked you to make the dress from your drawing and you did just as he had asked.” William followed your pacing form with his eyes, and has been doing so for 10 minutes when the clicking of your short heels on the wooden floor became too distracting.

~”I’m not particularly worried about his opinion and you know it.”

~”I know dear sister, but why should you worry about a one woman’s opinion when you have not even met them?” William leaned on his desk and folded his hands over his chest.

~”They could complain to Shoto of the design or fit and then I would get a mouthful from him.” You imagined horrified as you pulled on your hair.

~”My gods..” He breathed out. “Now that is ridiculous. If his partner does not like the dress then it is not your battle, it’s Shotos and he can’t blame you for it.” He attempted to smack some sense into you. “And I doubt he would be that kind of person.”

~You finally stopped your mindless wandering. Breathing in deeply, and then exhaling. William eyed you. You turned to him.

~”I’m still nervous.” You admitted.

~”I’ll be alright.” He got up to rub your shoulders comfortingly. “Why don’t we calm your nerves with a cup of tea before he arrives-” He was cut off by the ding of the boutique bell. You tensed up.

~”I guess not then.” Your brother hummed. “Good luck!” He gave you a shove towards the doorway and immediately went over to his sewing machine to pick up from where he left off. You sighed and pushed your way to the main area.

~Shoto stood at the entrance, and he smiled as soon as you appeared in the room. You admitted, his smile did ease your nerves a bit, who wouldn’t feel comforted by that gentle smile?

“Welcome back Shoto.” You greeted your friend.

“Hello (Name). It’s relieving to be back, my father has been driving me mad.” He expressed as he hung up his jacket. You laughed lightly at his words.

~”I can imagine. Didn’t you mention he has been pestering you about some matter for some time?” You recalled the last time you spoke, which was a couple of days ago.

~”Yes, however this day has to be the most annoying of them all.” He walked over to the front counter where you stood.

~”How so, did something happen?”

~”You could say that, my father and I got into an argument over the most foolish thing. But I won’t ruin your day by complaining about it.” You felt bad for him that he must put up with his demanding father so much. Anyhow, it was not really your place to snoop into.

~”Are you sure you don’t want to talk about it?” You inquired.

~”Definite.”

~”Then I will not pry.” You announced, defeated. “The dress is ready, you want to have a look?”

~”I most certainly do.” He answered, with what you could’ve sworn to be excitement.

~”Then I’ll go get it, just a minute.” You disappeared into the backroom to go retrieve the gown. You took a moment to admire it for the last time. It was your dream dress. The dress you dreamed you would own once you grew up. The perfect fairytale dress for a magical ball.

~And now it was going to be someone else's dress for a ball.

~You tore your eyes off it. Not wanting to get too attached to it than you already were. You gathered up the hem of the dress and started pushing the movable mannequin to the main area.

~At least you actually got to make it in the first place.

~You rolled the mannequin over the threshold and over to the mirror. Spread out the skirt once it was in the perfect spot. And brushed out any odd creases. You stepped back and looked at Shoto’s reaction. He was speechless. Eyeing the gown with the most careful and amazed look you’ve ever seen. Even going over every ruffle and gem sewn on it with a delicate touch.

~”What do you think?...” Your question snapped the man from his daze as he turned to you, still a bit blown away.

~”It’s...It’s gorgeous, there’s nothing else I could possibly say.”

~”T-Thank you Shoto, I appreciated it.” Why were your cheeks getting warm, you get acknowledgement from customers all the time.

~”I like it very much, can you pack it for me, please?” He asked.

~”Of course I can.” You playfully answered and he rolled his eyes. You skillfully pulled the dress off the mannequin and carried it to the front counter to fold it neatly and pack into a big brown box.

~”Here’s the exact amount.” He handed you a check, and you took it just as you finished tying a dark-green ribbon around the box.

~”Here you go, feel free to stop by whenever.” You said your usual line as you expected to see him take the box and leave with his usual goodbye, but to your surprise, he doesn’t.

~You questionably tilted your head to the side, wondering what he was up to. Shoto then pushed the big box towards you and simply said:

~”Here, this is for you.”

~You blinked… Then twice… and after the third time you did and he did not move from his spot or do anything, you allowed yourself to once again question this man’s actions. This occurrence is starting to become a routine… It probably already is.

~”What is the meaning of this?” You inquired dumbfounded, thinking this was one big joke. Staring at the just tied up box on the counter like he wanted to return it.

~”It’s for you. For you to have as your very own.” But it was the opposite. He wanted to give it to you. For you to have as your own.

~”Wh- what are you..?” You stopped yourself before you started speaking total gibberish.

~”I understand this may come as a bit straight forward and unexpected, but would you like to accompany me to the ball this weekend?” He inquired while he looked at you with hope and nervousness in his heterochromatic eyes. Despite this, you still had to ask.

~”Are you tricking me?” Shoto flinched a bit when you didn’t answer immediately, then again, why did he think you would? He breathed to calm down his own nervousness.

~”I am not, I assure you, I’m most definitely serious.”

~”But why would you… ask me? What about the partner you’ve been talking about?” You fired question after question. Did his partner turn him down? Are they unable to attend? Are you his last available option?

~”I will gladly explain myself… if you let me.” Shoto said meekly while fiddling with the giant ribbon of the gift box. 

~You allowed him to begin explaining, curious and, should you say, eager to hear what he had to say. Part of you still believing that whatever he was going to say, was going to hurt you one way or another.

~”When I first came into this boutique or rather was forced in here by my father, I thought that this suit tailoring process was going to be just like the previous ones I’ve been to. So bland and emotionless. Most of the tailors I’ve worked with were always driven either by money or leverage, not really caring about what or how they were sewing as long as they made the most profit.” He wasn’t looking at you, but at the smooth green ribbon between his delicate fingers.

~”When I came here, and we started the designing process, I was kind of taken off guard how much you cared about what you were doing. Always asking me if I was alright with what you had planned, in such a gentle way.” He squeezed the ribbon a bit more tightly.

~”I didn’t think too much of it at the time. By the second time I visited, I really started to see the passion in your eyes and hear the fire of enthusiasm in your speech. It showed on the clothes you made, managing to make so much more of the measly fabrics that you use, proving that you don’t need the best of the best to make something brilliant.” He let go of the ribbon, letting it slip from his grasp.

~“This side of you caught my attention like a shooting star on a cloudless night. I became interested in your passion and wanted to observe it more.” You tried your hardest not to blush, but your body betrayed you as your cheeks felt a tad bit warmer.

~“Every visit I would learn more about you and I couldn’t help but be captivated. You are so different from me that so many things you talked to me about were things that I have never even thought about. It’s refreshing to hear such things when you live the life I do.” He admitted.

~”Then… what was going on when you set the order for this gown?” You clearly could see his cheeks turn a shade darker.

~”At the time, I couldn’t build up the courage to ask you. So I made up an explanation that I had not yet asked my partner to the ball and needed the dress made before it was too late. Actually, I wasn’t technically lying.”

~”So… I… Was the partner you were planning on asking, this whole time?” You had a hard time wrapping your head around it.

~”From the moment I asked you to make this dress.” He confirmed. 

~‘Oh how romantic.’ You thought with a slight laugh. These types of occurrences only seemed to happen in fairy tales, it was unbelievable. You noticed the white rose that poked out Shoto’s breast pocket. It was exactly the same looking as the ones you’ve received for weeks now.

~”That rose!” You suddenly exclaimed, startling both yourself and the male opposite of you. Your demeanor then immediately changed back to your meek demeanor when you realized that it could’ve just been a coincidence. a Really, really weird coincidence.

~”You finally noticed.” He commented. “What did you think of the roses that I left you? Were they a bit too much?” He nervously scratched the back of his neck. Why did he feel so nervous this whole time?

~”So it was you who kept leaving these in front of my front door and not some random guy who kept on mistaking the address.” You made quite a bold move and pulled the rose out of its previous sitting place and started to play with the petals of the flower. Gently feeling the velvety surface with the pads of your fingers. What a satisfying feeling.

~”That’s what you thought they were?”

~”Well I didn’t know what else to think. I didn’t really consider that they could’ve been from you though.” You looked at the delicate bloom in your hands. “But I’m glad they were from you, they really made me feel special.”

~”Do you know what will make you feel even more special?” He leaned closer to your face, so close where both of your breaths mixed, but you did not pull away.

~”What?” You inquired like an innocent maiden as you bravely peered into his miss-matched eyes, no-longer with shyness but calm anticipation.

~Boldly, Shoto closed the already small distance between you and gave you the most gentle and affection-filled kiss you’ve ever had in your life. Your knees would have buckled from under you, had you not taken a firm grip on Shoto’s shoulders, and Shoto taking a hold of your waist. Rose falling from your grasp, and onto the floor.

~He deepened the kiss even more and you gladly accepted it, embracing him with warm and welcoming arms. Soon, the need for air forced you to pull apart but you remained in each other’s hold.

~”Well, what do you say? Will you come to the ball with me?” He inquired again. You smiled again.

~”Of course I will.” He smiled and leaned in to give you another, shorter kiss.

~You suppose William will have to manage without you for a while.

[septicbro1005]

Paint Me How You See Me

A/N: Okay, you have no idea how excited I was to see that I had permission to write this. I literally am so happy I could scream. Will I? Not out loud. This actually made me so excited that I got up and started walking around my room and smiling holy shit. Alright. Enough of that. I was inspired to write this story by a comic made by the fantastic @venadorosas​ and I just am so damn excited to write this! I am not an art student myself, but I will do my best to replicate it with what I know. I hope I do the comic justice! Just a few more things before this thing starts: I'm gonna do myself and make this a Quirkless AU as well as make Yuuei a university instead of a high school. This is unedited, so if there are sentences or misspellings, that is why, and I apologize. Anyway, let's get rolling!

Kirishima's POV

One stroke after the other.

Small, swift.

One stroke makes a world of a difference.

So don't… mess… up.

I only have one canvas left after this one, but I'm saving it for something important. Something special. Just need to figure out what.

I mean, yeah, I have others on back order, and Mr. Miyoshi is usually pretty cool with giving me some, but I still need to think about what to do with the 106 cm by 106 cm canvas.

A canvas that big needs something worth being put on there.

"Psst, Kiri--" "Shhhhhhhhhhhhhut," I hissed out through clenched teeth.

"You nee--" "I said shut,"

"B--" "No. Shut. Lemme finish,"

The person who proceeded to pester me, even after I told him to be quiet, was none other than Hanta Sero.

He was an art student, along with myself and several others I know by name.

One of which was Katsuki Bakugou.

And damn, was he confusing.

He was this aloof dude who talked to maybe two people by his own volition.

Some random girl who I see him talk to ever now and again. I think we've spoken twice? All I remember is she told me to call her Tsu.

And then me.

Sure, he'd talk to the professors and people like that, but if he didn't have to speak, he wouldn't.

Yet, he spoke to me.

Not only did he barely talk to people, but he also is probably one of the best looking people on campus.

I kid you not, the first time I saw this dude, I was totally sure I'd met Adonis in human form.

His ash blond hair was styled into a fluffy undercut that I would pay money for to be able to run my hands through, even once. His gauges and helix piercings gave him a bit of an edge, but that's what made him more alluring. He came into class one day, wearing a wife beater, which put a tattoo on full display, resting on his right shoulder.

It isn't just his looks that are attractive either. The way he holds himself, presents himself, just his whole aura is indescribable, to keep it brief.

And he was the person I was painting this for.

This wasn't his first commission. Not by a long shot. And this one was fairly simple as well. Still, I poured my heart and soul into it, just like every piece.

But with his commissions, I feel the need to work that much harder. To push myself that much farther. To make it perfect, in a word.

Now, I know that perfection is impossible, but I still want to achieve it.

I mean, if Bakugou could, I could too, right?

"Kirishima, I've been talking to you for the past couple of seconds and you haven't shushed me. Don't zone out on me right now, man,"

Sero's voice managed to pull me out of this trance, but only a bit.

The ash blond with the scarlet glare was still in the back of my mind.

"What?"

"You need lunch, man," Sero said, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"Listen, I thank you for your concern, but I had a protein shake maybe six hours ago. I'm dandy," I mumbled, doing a few more soft strokes before standing up. "Plus, I'm not even hungry," 

"Dunno what kind of protein shake you're drinking, but you still need sustenance. C'mon," Sero attempted to persuade me as I walked to the sink to clean the small brush.

"I'm cool, dude. I have a granola bar or two in my bag. I'll eat when I'm hungry," I chuckled lightly, turning on the water and cleaning the brush.

Sero sighed in defeat, as this marked the second week in a row where I substituted breakfast with a protein drink and lunch with a granola bar.

"Alright, fine. Make sure you eat dinner tonight, or Mr. Miyoshi is gonna kick you out again," Sero said, beginning to walk to the door.

"I know, I know,"

"I'll be off, then,"

"Peace out, dude,"

I heard the door to the studio shut, and it was just me in here.

Just me and the paint.

"Hey, Siri,"

My phone lit up, hearing its name.

"Play Rex Orange County on Spotify,"

As I began to finish up some touches on the snow covered forests surrounding a bright red cardinal, the song Uno filled my ears.

The song had no real relevance, but I love that song so much. I dunno if its just because it sounds so simple and sweet, but I just think the song's pretty great.

I'd say after maybe forty-five minutes of doing seemingly pointless touch-ups, I stood back, admiring my work.

Not much needed to be done, but I needed this to be phenomenal.

"I'll just use a simple varnish once everything is dry, then I can move it into the back," I muttered to myself, as if someone was there and I had to be quiet. "Can I finish it today? I could tell him where it is, and wait for the money to come in, I guess,"

A few seconds pause later, and I continued.

"Wow, great job, Eijirou. You sound like a dickwad who just wants money,"

A short sigh, a granola bar and maybe a half an hour or so later, everything seemed dry.

"Let's varnish this motherfucker, and I'll text him when that's done," I mumbled, going into the cabinets, looking for the varnish.

No other assignments at the moment… okay! Cool! I can probably head back to my dorm, chill there, and text Bakugou when it's done!

When I finally found it, I got to work on the varnish.

***

"And sent," I whispered as I approached the dormitories.

I just sent Bakugou a short text, telling him where to find it, how to send me the money (although he probably knows the process by heart at this point) and all that jazz.

My dorm building was in sight when my phone buzzed once.

It was a different buzzing pattern than all the others.

"Oh, Bakugou responded this quickly?" I thought aloud.

Opening my phone, I checked the message.

Sent the ¥321.7K 

My eyes widened at the number.

"I sure as hell didn't tell him to send me that much, what the hell?"

                                                   What!? The commission was only ¥48.2K?!

His response was immediate.

Left a tip.

Get yourself something nice.

"Whoa," I murmured.

Now, I knew Bakugou was on the higher end of the economic spectrum, but hot damn! 

He did usually give me more money than I told him to, but that fact that he gave me that much more this time just seemed to solidify the thought of him being rich.

So manly.

Heading into my dorm building, I looked to the elevators, only to see an out of order sign on them both.

"Are you kidding me?" I whispered. "Fine, guess I'm just gonna take the damn stairs,"

I got a notification, seeing the ¥321.7K was successfully put into my account, and I knew this commission was over.

But at this point, I knew what to expect from Bakugou. Next time I see him, he's gonna ask me about another one.

Not that I mind, not one damn bit. I'm cool with any excuse to talk to him, and I'm happy to please him with my art.

I just gotta brace myself for the next time I see him.

Trudging up the stairs, I began pondering what he would want next.

He seems to really like requesting animals, mainly birds such as crows and cardinals, but will he do something different? Ooh, maybe a peacock! Or maybe he'd want some other winged creature… like maybe an insect? Or possibly he'll switch it up on me.

As I ended up on the next staircase, I heard someone else's footsteps approaching.

Looking up, my eyes were met with a familiar scarlet pair of eyes.

"Oh, hey, Bakugou!" I said with a wave.

"Hey," he replied with a simple nod.

Fuck, he was just as gorgeous as always.

A grey turtleneck hugged his torso, with a black and white pinstripe button up on over it. The shirt was tucked into a pair of black jeans, a wallet chain dangling on his right side. A pair of black converse and a dog tag finished his look, alongside my composure.

"Thanks again for the great work," he said, his husky voice hypnotizing me further.

"You haven't already picked it up, have you?" I asked, cocking my head to the side. "I don't think I saw you walk past me to get to the parking lot,"

"Nah, but I know it's gonna look good," his compliment was accompanied by a smirk.

Short-lived, yes. But a smirk nonetheless.

"Aw, thanks dude! Always happy to make something for my best customer!" I felt myself beam at him. 

"See you around, Red," he said, continuing down the stairs.

"Bye," I waved with a small smile on my face as he disappeared down the stairs.

I quickly hauled ass up to my floor, speed walked to my door and slammed the keys in.

Gay panic in private, dude.

Opening the door, I pulled my key out and shut the door.

"I'm back, Omi!" I shouted into the apartment to see if my roommate was here.

"Hey," my roommate responded from his bed.

"Is it cool if I hop in the shower real quick?" I asked, jerking a thumb toward the bathroom.

"Sure thing. Keep it brief," Omi said, making me roll my eyes.

"Okay, dad," I sighed, but I gave a smile to show it was all in jest.

After locking myself in the bathroom and stripping myself down to absolutely nothing, I got in the shower and had a gay crisis.

Because that's the only place you can have those, y'know?

But a good ol' Panic! In The Shower was enough to calm my nerves.

As I stepped out of the bathroom to grab clothing, I heard Omi laughing.

"What?"

"That Bakugou guy really messes you up, huh?" his laughter was thrown in between words, but I knew exactly what he was referencing.

"If I'm being too loud, just knock on the door, dude! Tell me to shut it, I don't care," I flushed, looking at the ground, my hand tightening around the towel that hung on my waist.

Omi just kept laughing at me as I grabbed my clothes; a simple crimson riot shirt, boxers, black shorts and my wave socks.

It isn't like I'm going anywhere tonight, right?

…

Is what I originally thought until I was dressed and realized I left my motherfucking cardigan at the studio.

"Ugh, fuck," I groaned, rubbing a towel on my head.

"Left your cardigan again?"

"Perhaps," 

"You might as well just wrap it around your waist," Omi suggested.

"And risk getting paint on it?" I looked at Omi like he was a motherfucking psychopath. "Hell no. The cardigan was my grandmother's, so I ain't doing shit to it,"

"Clearly, if you're leaving it in the studio again," Omi mumbled.

"Shush!" I whined, grabbing my keys and slipping on my red sneakers. "I'll be back,"

"Okay,"

Leaving my dorm, I began going down the stairs when I ran into someone.

It was Bakugou, again.

And just when I thought my gay panic was over for the day.

"Oh, hey," I said as casually as possible.

Which probably sounded forces as fuck, because it felt like my heart was just about ready to implode.

"Red," Bakugou was looking me up and down.

I don't think I've ever felt more self-conscious about my appearance in my life.

"I've got another request, if it isn't too much,"

"O-oh, okay!" 

Why did I stutter?! That was so unmanly!

"So, what is it?"

I looked into his gorgeous eyes, trying to see further into him, but I was only met with his right hand slamming into the wall next to my head.

Oh shit, oh fuck. I'm gonna die. I'm gonna collapse, right here. Right now. I can't handle this.

"Uh, dude? You--" "Paint me how you see me, Kirishima,"

Uh, what?

I was stuck between saying "Got it," and "What?" so my dumbass just responded with this:

"Gweh?"

We sat there, in silence, staring at each other.

My face was flushing bright red, and I wanted to look away, but I didn't. I couldn't. His eyes just drew me in.

He moved his arm to his side, and began to head up the stairs.

Quick, say something coherent!

"O-on it!"

I swear, I saw him smile a bit before he was completely gone.

What was I doing again?

***

It's been around three weeks.

It's been three weeks of planning, sketching, and small, swift strokes.

And plenty of panic, but that's irrelevant. There was a bit of disco, so it balances out anyway.

Mr. Miyoshi did end up setting a curfew on me, to make sure I didn't pass out at the studio, but it wasn't set until it had already happened.

But, since I wanted to work on it after the curfew, I brought it to the dorm, keeping it on newspaper and buying the paint I needed.

I had the picture in my mind, which I did my best to replicate without him genuinely modelling for me.

It was a ¾ shot of his shirtless back, with him looking over his right shoulder, giving a perfect view of his side profile. I also made sure I replicated his tattoo to the best of my abilities, and I think it came out okay.

But that isn't all!

Monarch butterflies lined his back, as a fiery looking echo was placed slightly to the left. 

Those warm colors contrasted like hell, compared to the blues and navy of the background.

Just to fuck around with more color, flecks of brighter colors adorned the background, giving it sort of galaxy look.

I thought it looked gorgeous.

And not just because it's Bakugou.

You know how when you make something, and you worked so damn hard on it, and when it's done, you're just filled with pride?

This is one of those works for me.

"Omi!" I yelled about before cringing.

It's 01:35.

"Yeah?" 

Why the fuck does he sound like he's been awake?

"First of all, have you been awake this whole time? Second of all, could you grab me my phone?" I said a little quieter.

"It's done?" Omi asked, coming over with my phone.

"I'm happy with it," I said with a huge grin.

"Looks fantastic," Omi pat my shoulder before walking off.

Using my nose, I unlocked my phone and took a picture before putting my phone down.

I just looked at the painting, with Bakugou's slight pout catching my eyes.

I have absolutely zero clue what came over me, but I lifted my forefinger to my mouth, and pressed a small peck to it.

My forefinger rested against the painting's lips, and I just felt warm.

And that was probably the best feeling ever.

I gotta give this to him in person. It's about time I told him.

***

What floor are you on again?

                                                                                    Number two. Room 204.

Okay, I'm coming over.

I let out a shuddery breath, looking at the canvas, which I covered with a blanket.

I need to tell him.

It's time.

I kept opening my phone, making sure I had the song ready to play at the click of a button.

He needs to know.

A loud knock landed on my door, and I jumped.

I walked over to the door, playing the song as I opened it.

"Hey, Bakugou! Come in!"

The ash blond entered, wearing a button up and jeans again, just no turtleneck this time.

"So, I wanted to give this one to you in person… because I…" I was stumbling over my words.

Calm down, Eijirou. You got this.

"Because this could very well be the last commission you want from me,"

This made Bakugou's usual deadpan change ever so slightly. His left brow rose up as his head tilted to the side.

"And why might that be?"

"I…"

Fucking say it.

Spit it out.

"I like you," I barely got out before throwing my gaze at the ground. "I like you a lot. You're just so cool and collected, and from what I know about you, I like it. And I want to know more. I'm sorry if this makes you uncomfortable, but I just had to get that out," 

Before I even looked at him, I walked over to the painting, still looking at the ground, and pulled the blanket off.

Everything was silent, except for the music in the background. But even the song was at a quieter part than the rest of it.

I felt Bakugou's eyes on me and not the painting, which terrified me to no end.

Should I have even said anything?

"You don't have to pay if you don't want to or if you don't like it. And…" I took in a shaky breath, looking at the ground, lazily gesturing to the painting and then myself. "If you don't want to be friends anymore, if you even thought of us as friends, then you can ignore me,"

His footsteps were soft, but I knew they were coming. So when his black converse appeared in my vision, I looked off to the side as my vision blurred with tears that threatened to spill. 

A finger went under my chin, turning my face to him.

His eyes met mine, and he was smiling.

"You really are oblivious, huh?"

"Gweh?"

Fucking, again?

Bakugou laughed before leaning in a bit, his head turning to the left.

"Can I kiss you as a tip?"

My whole brain has short-circuited, but I turned my head to the right and leaned in closer.

My eyes slowly closed, and when his lips met mine, I was immediately thrown into a state of euphoria.

Holy shit, this is happening.

This is actually happening!

I couldn't help the smile that bloomed on my face as I draped my arms over his shoulders, and I couldn't stop laughing either.

It was so fucking amazing.

Small blazes of tears made tracks down my cheeks, but I didn't care. Unless my nose starts running, I'm not gonna let some tears mess up this kiss.

But, all good things must come to an end, as Bakugou pulled back.

His eyes were on mine, and for once, they were soft. A small grin was pasted on his features, his hands on my face.

"Why are you crying?" he asked as his thumb rubbed at my dampened cheek.

I just felt myself giggle in response. 

"Well, I was originally gonna cry because I thought you wouldn't be cool with my confession, but these tears quickly turned sweet," I just couldn't stop laughing. "Shit, I'm so happy,"

We just stood there for a few moments of content silence before Bakugou spoke up.

"So, how the hell am I supposed to bring this painting to my dorm?" 

"I can help you bring it up there!" I offered.

"I get to bring two masterpieces to my dorm? Great!" Bakugou oozed confidence as he said that.

"Dear christ," I began giggling again, since that was unexpected.

We grabbed the painting, and I made sure Bakugou was careful with it, but was also holding it properly.

"Hey, Omi! Could you get the door?"

"Sure,"

"Your roommate was here?" Bakugou asked.

"Well, it's his dorm too." I pointed out as Omi got the door for me. "Plus, it isn't like I wasn't so obviously crushing on you,"

"It really wasn't," Omi said, patting my back carefully. "But congratulations to the both of you,"

"Thanks, Omi,"

Bakugou just gave a small murmur to thank Omi.

"Alright, Bakugou, you go through the door first, then we can keep walking," I said, turning us so Bakugou could walk out the door properly.

"Okay,"

After a quick minute of maneuvering, we managed to get the painting up the stairs without damaging it.

"So you're which dorm?"

"302," Bakugou said as we got to his door.

"Coolio!" I grinned.

"Dork," Bakugou snickered at me. "How d'you want this to be put down?"

"We can just rest it against the wall," I said, propping the painting up on the wall.

"Give me a quick sec," Bakugou mumbled, unlocking the door.

He swung the door open and made sure it stayed open. 

"Alright,"

"At this point, I'm gonna follow you. You know where you wanna put this?" I asked him.

"Uhm… I think Misumi wouldn't mind if I placed this on his side of the room until I know exactly where to hang it," Bakugou said as we walked into the room.

***

My paintings were all on the wall. The snow surrounded cardinal, the murder of crows, all of them.

Except one.

The other paintings sort of made a frame, with a 106 cm x 106 cm square in the middle.

"Hey, honey?" I called out.

"What's up, Rourou?" Katsuki asked from the other room.

"Could you grab me the step ladder?"

"Shorty," I heard Katsuki laugh.

"I heard that, Katsu! You aren't as quiet as you think!"

"Says you, of all people!" Katsuki chuckled, coming on with the step ladder.

"Thank you, baby," I said, pecking his cheek.

"Of course. Putting up the last one?" He asked.

"Yep!" I said, grabbing the painting I made all those years back.

The monarch butterflies dotting his spine, his scarlet glare, gorgeous fluffy hair, all of it brought together, and hung up on our wall.

I got off the step ladder, and looked at the paintings. Every single one of them.

A hand snaked around my waist and pulled me in close.

"I love you so much, baby," Katsuki whispered, kissing my forehead.

"I love you too,"

His hand rubbed against my waist, but I could feel one thing that was inconsistent with the feeling of the rest of his hand.

A golden band sat on his left ring finger, practically identical to the one that sat on my left ring finger.

A/N: And that's all! Honestly, I'm very pleased with this, and think this came out well! I hope that those of you who see this like it too! I want to thank @venadorosas for allowing me to write a story based off of their comic and for making such fantastic art. If you like my writing, I'm also on Wattpad, so check me out there, if you're up for it. Same username and profile picture. I do believe that this is it! I apologize for the ending, as it feels a little odd to me, I just don't have any idea how to end it properly. I sincerely hope that I did the comic justice. Love y'all! Stay safe and healthy! - Septic

[dragon-of-dreams]

Runner’s High

(quick drabble; meet-cute)

My Masterlist

Pairing: Henry Cavill x Reader (plus-size)

 Warnings: Very fluffy, but kinda stalkerish, a teeny-tiny bit, but like in a good way? Mentions of Quarantine and COVID, swearing, validation kink? hmu if I missed anything!

 Summary: You and Henry are neighbors and he watches you run

 Wordcount: 658

 Running was no fun! It SUUUUCKED, BUT you were stuck at home. Everyone was and if you didn’t want to find yourself climbing up your bookshelf and turn yourself into the neighborhood crazy lady you had to do something, and running was cheap and OUTSIDE. Since when had outside become a fucking novelty anyways?

At least you were stuck on the flipping countryside so your “racetrack” was pretty if also fucking desolate. You never met anyone except for your neighbor down the street who always came out to get his paper and who was the best view on your route! Those eyes alone were a crime, but the rest of him was just unfair!

But, he was what kept you running, even when it was raining, or you really didn’t want to. Because HE saw your improvements even though you weren’t losing weight (mostly because you didn’t try, at this point).

So each morning he would wave and yell some kind of encouragement and you would smile, wave back, and when you had a good running day you’d answer. He made your day. He was your only real human interaction.

If he were anyone else, especially a dude, you’d hate to have them comment on your running, but he seemed so flipping genuine and cute that you couldn’t help but like him.

What you didn’t know was that it wasn’t a coincidence that he always got his paper when you came down the street. He planned for it as thoroughly as humanly possible. In the beginning, Henry had seen you from his kitchen window a couple of times and noticed how you got better and better, and then he had noticed what running did to you. Which was when he started to meet you outside. He wanted to see up-close. Those tits, that ass, bouncing around like nobody’s business as you scrunched up your face in focus, only to smile when you reached him, lighting up the world around you.

You had no idea what you did to him. He had lost all control over himself. He couldn’t help himself. He needed to see you. He needed to see you running. So when you didn’t come one day he got worried. You hadn’t been looking to good the day before…

Henry made his way to your house and rang your doorbell. He stood there fidgeting and waited until you opened the door, in your pajamas. What the hell?

“Hi…” you said, smiling up at him, tilting your head like a confused puppy.

“Hi, I am so sorry to bother you, it’s just I’ve seen you run every day for weeks now and today I didn’t and I was just worried that something was wrong…” he looked down at his hands, going red. He felt like a fucking schoolboy, and it really didn’t help that he could see you weren’t wearing a bra.

“Oh, yeah, I know! I didn’t mean to worry you! I twisted my ankle yesterday, like two steps out the door and it really swelled up, so I am out of commission for a while!” You were giddy with excitement. He had come to check on YOU!

“I’m so sorry I worried you! I totally would have texted you but I don’t have your number!” You froze up. Did you really just say that????? “Oh my God, I am so sorry, I don’t ever do…”

But Henry looked up and smiled, and you couldn’t finish your thought because damn that man had a smile! “Well, how rude of me to not give it to you!” Never, ever, where you going to tell anybody about the sound you made at that. But he just chuckled and said: “Got a pen and piece of paper for me to write it down?”

“I do! Inside. Why don’t you come inside, and I’ll get you that pen and paper and maybe a coffee if you’d like?”

“I’d love a cup!”

[somethingwritey]

commision: “would you be so kind (as to fall in love)” - a tianca fic

💖 this unique piece was commissioned by @/sspacemann. it involves a dnd campaign they’re currently apart of with an atla-verse setting! they created the artwork below to pair with the one-shot! (check out their instagram for more information on their dnd campaign, artwork and commissions!)

💖  my commissions are open! message me to discuss your ideas! 

----

Bianca considered herself reasonably realistic.

She wasn’t the best metalworker in Ba Sing Se, but she wasn��t the worst, either. She wasn’t incredibly attractive or overly lucky. She felt… pretty average, mostly - the side character in everyone else's lives.

So when Till, of all people, showed up on her doorstep one warm afternoon, Bianca kept her hopes low. Contained.

It had been too long since Till had paid her a visit, especially alone. Usually, she came with other various members of her team, and rarely was it personal - supplies and Avatar duties taking precedence over camaraderie. 

Was it too much to ask Till to stop by just for her sometimes?  

“Uh -” Bianca said intelligently, once she’d gathered her thoughts. “Till, I wasn’t expecting you!”

Till spent a long moment studying her hand, opening and closing it. “Oh, yeah, I know.”

Bianca raised an eyebrow. “So…” she tried again, moving some of her tools out of the way to appear more put together. “Can I help you? My brother isn’t here right now, but -”

“No, uh, I’m not actually looking for Arlo, believe it or not.”

Silence again.

Bianca gritted her teeth. “Okay. Well, what are you looking for? Because chances are, I don’t have it. I literally just make -”

“Armor, yeah.” Till nodded. “I know. I need some.”

Now, Bianca was really confused. There was no way in hell the Avatar wanted armor from her shop. Not when the Upper Ring metalworkers were commissioned to suit up the Earth King himself. “Very funny.”

“No, it’s - it’s not a joke.” Till walked farther in the store, turning in a circle so Bianca could see all sides of her. “I need armor.”

“No, that I believe.” Despite her reservations, Bianca studied Till’s form, mentally sizing up just where the pieces would fit and how they’d hug her body. “I just don’t know why you’re coming to me.”

“Are you kidding?” To her credit, Till actually did look surprised. “You’re the best metalworker I know.”

“I’m the only metalworker you know.” Bianca leaned on the counter, still studying her. “I’m not even Upper Ring.”

“So?” Till gave her a smile, and Bianca’s heart skipped a beat. Till had that effect on her for some reason. “I think you’ll find, B, that those who claim to be the best aren’t always all that, yknow?”

Bianca suddenly found herself wordless, nodding. The nickname had caught her off guard. She quickly busied herself with getting her measuring sticks and strings.

“You know, my brother said you were pretty roughed up in the fight against those rogue Earth Kingdom officials last week,” she said when she found her voice again, approaching Till with her chord. “Uh, I’m gonna measure your waist, okay?”

Till gave a nod, standing up straight to allow Bianca a more accurate read. “It wasn’t that bad. Another day, another Avatar win. Whatever, you know?”

Bianca swallowed hard as she wrapped her arms around Till, trying hard to focus on the task at hand and not the other possibilities of such a position. “He didn’t say it was whatever. He said you nearly lost your other arm trying to take down three guys at once. And that you got hit in the rib with a rock the size of your head!”

At the reminder of her metal arm, Till looked over and closed the hand into a fist. “Well… that’s why Nia insisted I get new armor, I guess.”

“I see.” In a random rush of confidence, Bianca laid a gentle hand on Till’s ribs. “Which side did they bruise?”

Till flinched under her touch, and Bianca quickly moved away. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.”

But Till just shook her head. “Sorry, no, it’s okay. It’s, uh, just instinct.”

They held eye contact for just a moment too long, and Bianca’s face began to burn. She carefully moved back towards Till, moving her hands back to where they’d been.

“The right side,” Till explained. “It’s not too bad anymore.”

“I know some healers.” Bianca ran a delicate hand over the swelling. “Water benders in the city. They could take some of the inflammation away.”

Unsurprisingly, Till shook her head. Just like she always did whenever Bianca suggested she seek assistance for her injuries. Sometimes, it felt like Till only showed up to turn Bianca’s help down, to prove to herself that she still had that power.

“I’m fine, Bianca. I don’t need that.”

Well, Bianca, for one, was tired of seeing Till banged up. She knew risk came with the job description, but sometimes it felt like Till threw herself into danger to make a point or prove herself to some invisible authority.

“You always insist that you’re fine.” Bianca straightened up, letting some of her frustration seep into her voice. “But every time you come to see me, you’re bruised up. How many more body parts do I have to watch you lose before you start taking care of yourself? You’re the Avatar, not indestructible. There’s a difference!”

Till looked like someone had just struck her across the face.

Bianca immediately regretted her tone and tried to backtrack. “Till - I - that’s - that came out -”

Till wouldn’t meet her eyes. She just stood in stony silence, looking past Bianca into some hidden void.

Bianca’s heart began to pound. She was less worried about the business she’d surely lost and more about the friend that went with it. She never should’ve opened her mouth. It wasn’t her job to question the Avatar or her motivations.

“You think I don’t know all that?” Till’s voice sounded almost… defeated.

Bianca jerked her head up, staring at the other girl.

“I try so hard,” Till continued, shaking her head. Bianca had never seen her like this. “All the time. That’s all I do.” A strange flicker of something passed over the Avatar’s face. And then she shook it off, forcing a smile. “Thanks for your help. Nia will be thrilled about the armor.”

Bianca nodded, still trying to recover from the whiplash of Till’s attitude change. “Uh - yeah - I should be able to start working on your armor today. I’ll have Arlo come find you when it’s finished.”

“Or you could come find me.” Till said it so simply, like Bianca could up and leave her whole life to track down the person who made her heart flutter.  

For some reason, the corner of Bianca’s mouth twitched up into a soft smile anyway. “Okay,” she said at last. “I’ll come find you. Oh, and Till?”

Till paused, hair swishing as she glanced over her shoulder. “Yeah?”

“Until then… be careful. For me?” In a moment of pure adrenaline, she reached out to grab Till’s hand. She wanted to feel her, to ground herself in Till’s presence before the girl threw herself back into the path of a flying rock.

Till eyed their hands, and for a moment, Bianca thought she would pull away. But at last, she gave a small, almost undetectable squeeze back - nodding.

And that was enough for Bianca.

For now.

----

disclaimer: i don’t always write OC pieces, but i happened to be familiar with this particular dnd campaign. i received character profiles, recordings, and images to make sure i wrote this right!

💖 want me to write for you? commission me! my messages are open!

[1ddiscourseoftheday]

🎨 Sat 11 Jan 🎦

A Walls wall!

Louis' livestream happened! We got ready, we tuned in, we waited a long time past 8 for it to start and at last it opened to show...a wall. Which is fitting and all and Louis did tell us "when I say wall I just mean a wall mate" and it was a wall with a sketched out painting of Louis' face on it but still... just a wall. With nothing happening. Would you like me to hurry up and get to the point well TOO BAD I spent an hour watching primer get swabbed on a wall if I want to honor the spirit of Louis' Warhol-esque performance art stream in my writing I WILL! Anyway eventually the mysterious primer paint rolling figure who had emerged at the wall got out some spray paint and got down to business, beginning the process of filling in Louis' portrait with color and detail, but I would like you to know that the stream was already trending globally while it was seriously still just thousands of people watching paint dry (and making memes about Louis being like I bet I can make them watch a stream of paint drying). But over time the little excitements (delivery van conflict! Guy with no pants on! Identification of the artist!) gave way to the bigger thrills of the art really developing into something beautiful, the Walls track list being revealed as it was painted on one letter at a time (and simultaneously through single title location specific Snapchat filters but it ended up being pieced together from the livestream first) and Louis himself showing up! Anyway, to finally skip ahead a bit, the finished product is just, CHEF'S KISS, it's so gorgeous and I want a poster of it. Yep, it's just a big ol painting of Louis' gorgeous face with a huge ass rainbow splashed out as a backdrop and no other graphics to muddy it up. Clearly Louis had heard what everyone was saying about the rainbows in his pre-show video and on the WMI artwork and on his shirts and was like, as a very Heterosexual Straight Man I need to take control of this narrative and shut these misguided freaks up... heyyy wait. He didn't do that! Instead he commissioned an artist whose signature style is big swoopy rainbows and had them paint his face with no extra adornment other than a giant, yes I'm going to say that word yet again, rainbow. Interesting choice!

Anyway so yes, the track list! Everything is on there! The only song we were told would be on the album that isn't is the new version of Just Hold On, which was available briefly as a vinyl single but sold out quickly but will possibly be an extra track with some versions of the album, and there are five whole songs we haven't heard at all, OMG. Well 'we' excluding the lucky listening party people, and soon there will be a few more of those people- at least one more listening party is coming, in London next week.

Obviously topping the surreality of an artistically challenging six hour livestream experience like we had today is difficult to do but the mysterious quantity of driving Niall and Mully (they seem to have shed some companions) are doing through parts unknown does have a trippy kind of liminal vibe viewed from outside. Today they're somewhere cold, they drove hours and hours again it seems, they went on a nine mile hike, and Niall says they're going "all over the place."

Liam, not the type for artsy weirdness, was characteristically more straightforward today: he performed at the Brit awards nomination launch! He says his plans for this year are to take some time off then get started on LP2.

Harry absolutely does go in for artsy weirdness, of course, but sadly he kept that to himself today. His name came up though: he was nominated for two Brits! He's up for best male solo artist and album of the year. Neither are fan voted so the outcome is out of our hands, and somewhat less easily predicted.

Possibly this last item could have been predicted by some though: Zayn was photographed arm in arm with Gigi in New York tonight. Big zews to be sure but imo his quilted jacket kind of steals the show.

[pettrichore]

dunno if i’ll be able to finish this. but so like dabihawks au where like. dabi does his research aka when he was touya he was with his dad once during the whole takami thief thing and met keigo. flash forward he doesnt believe a thing about this hero hawks. sees him for the fabricated person he has become. and eventually hawks sees dabi for who he really is and was and like vigilante-ish dabihawks. bits about the au and the snippet i wrote under the cut.

cause this shit gets LONG af

hawks feels fake. doesnt rlly know who he has even become

the commission kinda forced a lotta habits out of him and completely molded him into who they want him to be

he barely even finds his name to be anything more than a stranger’s name at this point. 

anyway so dabi p much knows who he is. does his own digging. and kinda puts some pieces together and sees how fake hawks is

hawks barely even knows if he shows any genuine emotions at this point. he’s kinda at a breaking point where he cant recognize himself and separate keigo from hawks. feeling like hawks has just swallowed him whole

he does show genuine things though. sometimes says or does shit out of line but he tends to have obedience beat into him even if he sometimes has a bit of a mouth on him. it’s mild tho

at the start of dabi working w hawks, hawks was very careful

it kinda progressed into keigo coming out more around dabi even though it was in bits and pieces

anyway dabi puts two and two together and realizes him and hawks are pretty similar and instead of seeing him as a traitor (though he’s sure that he’s not 100% on their side) he sees him as someone who can fit in with the misfits and he can p much fully convince hawks to ditch the bs

so the confrontation happens (see ending snippet) and hawks is like wtf just happened

and p much eventually there’s some tender moments between dabi and hawks and hawks ends up explaining how used he’s felt

he has been molded into the perfect obedient soldier; maybe sorta kinda explains that the commission is having him do double agent duties and instead of reacting badly dabi is p receptive and doesnt just try to kill him. instead he can see how badly hawks wants to break out of his cage and fly free and he deeply feels for that and knows how that can feel and is like aight well fuck them

so hawks kinda double agents on the commission?? 

and he does end up meeting the LoV and like sees how human they are

but also he’s like damn son but okay i dont agree w everything

and dabi is like yeahhh same ??? idk they are a means to an ends for me but also not lmao 

and then there’s some dabi spilling his guts as they get closer and get more intimate and very much boyfriends

and hawks is so livid and he cant help but fuck around with endeavor the next time he sees him. and like he’s just so much more distant to him. he can’t begin to wrap his head around it. and he’s so broken that like.. the one person that he saw as his true hero. that “saved him” is a horrible person behind closed doors

the one person who he was inspired by and agreed to join the commission’s forces for is just horrible

there’s just a lotta solidarity between hawks and dabi and a lotta shared anger and hurt

and they’re boyfriends and it’s great but also like hawks isn’t a horrible person

neither is dabi ??? i mean listen they’ve both killed ppl. they probs will continue to kinda do it. but it’s always just horrible ppl

like listen killing ?? not great folks??? but also like idk man.. 

they also def leave kids outta this 10000% 

anyway p much they end up ditching the LoV too. try to get some of them outta that shit. like toga who has become like a sorta lil sister for dabi in a way

they both just feel so horrible and gross seeing kids get into that shit

also like the girl needs some HELP. some therapy and rehabilitation idk

idk i love the morality shit with the LoV but might not play with it too much here

anyway they end up doing their own thing and the commission is quick to denounce him and just ruin his image

and try to kill him lmao they made him a perfect hero which could be a perfect villain and if he isn’t working for them he’s working against them (i mean he is) and needs to be Stopped Permanently

anyway here’s the snippet. my single brain cell that helped write this has left my body:

At this point, Hawks wasn’t so sure he was even real. His existence felt fabricated. Each smile or joke carefully placed. Each movement was calculated. He didn’t act out of line. His interviews were carefully thought out months in advance if not lies that he himself began to believe after years of telling them. His penthouse had just enough “personal” touches that when he had a spare moment to invite someone over it actually seemed like it could be a home. Hawks’ original motivations were squashed and were pushed aside unless they created an interesting story. His natural mannerisms that came with his mutation quirk were learned to be suppressed. Hell his own name sounded like a stranger’s to his ears. That is if anyone even knew it. 

“Is there anything real about you, hero,” Dabi spoke. His back wasn’t fully to Hawks, left side presented to him as he set a framed graduation photo down and fully faced the winged hero. Dabi stuffed his hands in his pockets and tilted his head to the side some, waiting for an answer. Hawks snorted and gave him an unamused look.

“I’m as real as they get, hot stuff.” He kept a casual air about his words, hands spreading out in surrender. “Not sure what else you expect.”

Hawks was on edge, but he wouldn’t let the villain know it. They were supposed to be meeting soon, but once again the villain pulled something unexpected and had been waiting for Hawks in his own apartment. Hawks’ feathers twitched slightly, sharpened edges ready for the command if it came. Dabi leveled him with an unimpressed stare. There was a moment where their gazes met in an intense battle, though Dabi’s look softened as he broke out in a lazy grin.

“Y’know... You might be just as much of a mystery as I am, Pretty Bird.”

“I think I’m a pretty open book myself.”

“I think you like to let people think that.”

“And I think you’re just trying to fuck with me. Can we just get to what you came here for? I had a looong day and kinda wanna get some food and some sleep.” Hawks punctuated his words by stretching his arms up high before shedding off his coat, goggles, and headphones. He tossed the coat over the back of his couch and dropped the gear onto the end table. He hoped Dabi would just drop this whole line of thought, take this as some sort of submission, and be satisfied enough to leave. 

Wrong.

“Oh, we can get to that later… You, on the other hand, are much more interesting.” He moved closer, hands coming out of his pockets as he crossed the room to stand a few feet from Hawks. 

“I’d love to be a great host and entertain you, but unfortunately I wasn’t expecting any guests today.” Hawks crossed his arms and watched Dabi carefully, eyes narrowing some in challenge. 

“That’s too bad. You know, I’ve been doing some research on you. I don’t quite think you are who you say you are, Hawks.” The winged-hero tensed just ever so slightly before forcing his muscles to relax some. He didn’t like the way things were going. While Dabi’s fire was his ultimate weakness, he’s sure that he’s fast enough to put a sharpened feather to his throat and end this all here and now than Dabi would be if he wanted to put the spy to an end.

“And who do you think I am then, Dabi?” He raised an unruly eyebrow. His primaries ached to shoot out and end this, poised at the ready.

Dabi blinked slowly, bright turquoise eyes disappearing for a moment before shining under heavily lidded eyes. His grin stretched a bit wider, tugging on where healthy skin met the grafts. 

“I think you aren’t the hero you put out there… Or the person you say you are. You like to say a lotta nothin’ don’t you?” Dabi stepped closer and Hawks’ fingers twitched but his arms remained crossed.

“I think you like to pretend to be this airhead bird. Like to use that name. Like to look like you’re the perfect little hero... You’re good at it, too. You aren’t though, are you… Takami Keigo.” 

Hawks had a primary feather in each hand, on pressed to Dabi’s throat. It pressed in just enough to draw some blood from the marred skin grafts. He could feel the heat radiating from Dabi’s skin and particularly from the small flames in each of his palms, but the villain made no move to use it against him. He just continued to grin. 

“What’s the look of surprise there, Birdie?” Dabi purred. 

“How do you know that name?” He demanded, crowding further into Dabi’s space. 

“Like I said, I did my research. Now unless you want to end up on the crispy side of cooked, I’d ease the fuck up,” Dabi’s voice took on a slight bite towards the end and his grin lessened. “And here I was going to tell you that you can meet the boss finally. Thought you might be real League material.”

Hawks instincts and mind screamed to press the sharp feather further or at least hold his position, demand answers. His judgment told him to ease off and soften the feathers once more. Hawks didn’t move too far from Dabi, though the primary feathers in his hands softened and returned to his wings. The heat radiating off Dabi died down along with the flames in his hands. Steam left his skin as he killed the flames. 

“Much better… We don’t want any incidents like that when you get to meet the boss, right? You’re lucky I’m a lot more patient.” Hawks wasn’t sure what this was all about but didn’t argue with him on that point.

“Glad to see your fake little hero persona is starting to crack.”

[of-wrens-and-whirlwinds-blog]

Snippets In Time

Commission for the great @auspiciousagape! I hope I did your characters justice! Commission info is here!

~

The only sounds in the library were the rustle of book pages, the scratch of a pen on paper, and the faint hum of the heating vents.

Marcus, ruler of Antartets, was hiding from his master of ceremonies under the pretext of studying the books of diplomacy he hadn’t gotten to before being crowned. In reality, he was taking notes from a book on chemistry assigned by his tutor about a year ago. He was very aware that this was not something most rulers concerned themselves with. But he was determined to learn anyway.

His ears twitched upright, and he paused writing to listen closely, tail moving in slow, uneasy lashes. No, the footsteps outside the library continued on; not someone intent on disturbing him, then. He sighed quietly, relaxed a little, and got on with his work.

It was hard to work when he was so tense, and also just hated the subject material. But this was good practice, for if he ever had to talk to a chemist and know what the hell they were going on about, or take notes of things like military reports. There were currently no reports he couldn’t leave to his generals and spymaster, and then get the gist of later, but what if something really bad did come up?

He was worrying too much about different things. He had to focus.

If Rosaline were here, she could help him study…

No.

Marcus’s grip on his pen tightened so hard the stylus creaked, and he clenched his teeth. No. He would not think of her right now. Focus on molecules, Marcus.

But then he turned a page, and saw a piece of paper, flattened by the weight of the pages. He picked it up, frowning, and turned it over to read it.

Marcus!

I hope you haven’t given up taking proper notes in this dry tome. If you want some help, there’s a book in the section for when we were kids that has really good explanations; it helped me a lot, it might help you. If you’re doing fine with the note-taking, good! I’m so proud of you, Marcus! Love, Rose

The paper was very old. Probably several years.

Marcus stared at the paper, and considered ripping it to pieces and throwing it in the trash. But… this was the first note he’d found from her in about a year. They used to leave notes in books for each other all the time. Her cruel words rang in his head—had they been cruel? The more time passed, the more uncertain he became. But he’d cut contact already, there was no going back. And even if she hadn’t meant to hurt him, she still had. Surely that counted as something he had a right to be angry about.

His lip trembled, but he bit it, hard. No, it had been for the best. He shouldn’t worry about this right now. He was fine.

He stood up, his intention being to throw the note in the trash—but instead, he found himself walking to the section of children’s learning-books, and kneeling down to look at the ones on the bottom shelf. His ears flattened as he realized that Rosaline’s note was right; there was a children’s book on chemistry. He tucked the note in his jacket and opened the book.

Again, Rosaline was correct. This was much more accessible; a bit simple, but simple was good when he needed to rest his brain. He took the book back to the desk and read it, and took notes, and compared the information to the bigger, wordier, drier book. He carefully did not dwell on this piece of Rosaline that had survived so long, just to reach forward and help him gently.

Of course, he had to stop eventually, if only because his upper body ached from being hunched over writing. He  stretched carefully, yawning widely, and closed his books, setting aside his journal as he capped his pen. Time for more royal work. He grimaced, but there was really no help for it.

As he stood, the front of his jacket crinkled, reminding him that he still had Rosaline’s note. Should he throw it away? It was just making him feel guilty. But would destroying it be selfish?

Okay, yes. He missed her.

Marcus scrubbed his eyes on the back of his hand. Damn it. All this work to keep up his father’s legacy and he still had bouts of misery over an old friend. If only he could forget without resorting to highly illegal but highly effective magic.

“Marcus? You in here?”

He hastily plastered on a fake smile and turned to see his friend Jayson padding towards him, ears and tail alert. “Hello,” Marcus said with false cheer. “What brings you here?”

“Just checking on you,” Jayson replied blithely, but there was the faintest look of worry on his face. “Are you alright?”

Marcus really wished Jayson didn’t know him so well, or that he wasn’t so bad at hiding his feelings. “I’m fine, Jayson, truly. Just… tired from notes-taking.”

“Mm-hm,” Jayson replied skeptically, then came forward more to put his hand on Marcus’s arm. “Come on, the master of ceremonies was being dramatic about how he’ll die of apoplexy if you don’t show up and let him tell you his glorious plans for the next banquet.”

Marcus made a face and Jayson grinned. “I hate that fusspot,” Marcus muttered. “Can’t I just get on with ruling and someone else can do the socializing?”

“Socializing is part of ruling, you know that,” Jayson told him, and tucked his arm through Marcus’s elbow. As usual, Marcus had to swallow hard to force down the butterflies in his stomach. Jayson was very free with affectionate touch with Marcus, which usually made other people frown, but Marcus… well, he liked it. For some odd reason that he didn’t like looking too closely at.

Jayson led him out of the library, but when they reached the hall, they separated; reluctantly, Marcus thought. Then Jayson smiled and said, “Come on, let’s go make that fusspot quiet down. He’s driving everyone else up the wall too.”

“Fine,” Marcus sighed, and resigned himself to his fate as a captive of the master of ceremonies.

~

He only remembered the note when he was undressing for bed.

He had asked to do his own undressing—well, he’d ordered it. His footmen had been surprised, but left him to it. And therefore none of them saw the way his face crumpled and his body tensed and his ears flattened. He just… wanted to see Rosaline again. Say sorry. Ask for clarification.

But he also really didn’t want to, not just because of shame, but the lingering, burning anger that hissed in the back of his mind that he didn’t need her, he didn’t need that kind of casual insults to his own father, when said father was dead and unable to defend himself. It was wrong of her to say she was glad of his death.

Marcus wiped his eyes on his sleeve, set his chin stubbornly, and got ready for bed.

And then he tucked the note in the drawer of his nightstand, and turned on his side away from it, and pretended it wasn’t there.

~

Jayson was working the next day, but Marcus had a free few hours, so he slipped away from the palace and headed to the House of Healing where Jayson worked. He wouldn’t distract his friend—just watch. Jayson was a joy to watch, so calm with his patients, with that little frown when he was concentrating, his eyes gleaming just so in the sunlight that came from the multitude of windows… Marcus shook his head and kept jogging through the streets of the capital until he reached the House. Silly thoughts.

The House was quiet when he got there; many patients were sleeping, and the Healer at the desk greeted Marcus softly, with a genuine smile.

“Jayson is just finishing his rounds,” she told him. “I’ll let him know you’re here, though.”

Marcus nodded and said “Thank you!” and sat down in the waiting room. Houses of Healing were almost like hospitals, but much… softer. There was magic here, to calm patients, to soothe, to help medicines and Healing take better. And they certainly didn’t look like hospitals, or smell like them. Marcus very much preferred the gentle touch of a Healer and their noxious but effective teas, over a doctor or nurse and their injections. It wasn’t distrust of science, just preference for something that felt safer.

And he preferred Jayson’s touch and his teas over any other Healer.

Marcus kicked his feet a little and fingered the buttons of his jacket nervously. He’d come here to visit, but also to ask Jayson’s opinion. So he should probably stop lingering over memories of Jayson’s soft hands and start thinking of what to say.

It wasn’t long before Jayson ducked into the waiting room, looking around alertly; Marcus jumped up, and Jayson spotted him, and grinned. They met halfway across the space between them, and Jayson offered, “It’s a bit snoozy today, do you want to go out in the garden to talk?”

“Yeah!”

The garden was beautiful. A large expanse of wandering paths, many benches, spaces for wheelchair-users to sit in sun or shade as they preferred, and lots of beautiful flowers and trees. There were a few children racing each other and laughing; one had an oxygen mask and tank, and the others often slowed to make sure she was alright and keeping up. Marcus smiled at them, then remembered why he was here.

“Let’s sit in the shade,” Jayson suggested, his ears twitching. “I was dealing with a patient with a fever and we had to heat the room. I’m a bit over all this sunlight right now.”

“Fair enough,” Marcus replied, and they wandered to the first shady spot they could get.

Jayson sighed gratefully as he flopped down on a bench, stretching his arms along the back. Marcus sat just a little bit closer than custom dictated. There was no one to see, after all.

“I really hope that patient gets better soon,” Jayson commented, frowning worriedly. “He’s had a fever for three days, and nothing has been able to break it. We’ll have to use the more powerful magic, but he’s already delicate.”

“Why didn’t you use magic in the first place?” Marcus asked, surprised.

“Because it was in his papers that he wished for magic to be the last resort.” Jayson rubbed the side of his head, wincing. He probably had a killer headache. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it, though. He was getting better, that’s why it was safe to leave him. Maybe he’s not as delicate as we feared.” Then he shook his head and smiled at Marcus. “Sorry, I know you didn’t come here to hear me complain. Is everything alright?”

Marcus shrugged. “Yes, but… well, I would like your input with a small matter.”

The smile vanished, and Jayson sat up straighter. “Marcus, you’re only that formal when something’s wrong. Are you okay?”

Marcus felt a rush of warmth that Jayson was worried, and a tightening of shame in his gut. Wordlessly, he took out some of the book-notes he’d been collecting, and held them out to Jayson. The Healer took them and read them quickly, beginning to frown. Marcus just looked at him while he did.

Jayson was handsome. That was just a fact. Marcus had heard others their age saying that his fangs were too sharp, or that his ears were too horsey, or that you could never trust a cat with a face so sly. But that was, in Marcus’s opinion, bullshit. Even just his eyes, golden as honey and gleaming in the sun, were enough to make up for any of these so-called “cons”.

And sweet. Jayson was sweet, too. Kind and gentle and cheerful. Marcus could spend hours waxing rhapsodic about Jayson.

Which was a little frightening.

Finally, Jayson looked up. “Rose,” he said, “Rosaline?”

Marcus nodded.

“How old are these?”

“A few years,” Marcus answered quietly. “I just… don’t know how to feel about them.”

Jayson’s face softened, and he put his hand gently on Marcus’s forearm. Marcus only then realized that his fists were clenched tightly.

“It’s alright to be confused,” Jayson replied. “You were friends for a while, and now you’re not. It’s normal to not know how to feel about that.”

“I’m angry, Jayson,” Marcus whispered, staring at his fists. “I’m so angry, but… I miss her, too. She was my best friend. And I drove her away.”

Jayson let go of his arm, but only to wrap his own around Marcus and pull him closer, into a firm hug. Marcus let him, feeling… safe.

“I can see that,” Jayson murmured. “It’s not every day that kind of thing happens.” He hesitated, then asked gently, “Do you want to tell me about it?”

Marcus shook his head. He was too ashamed.

“Alright.”

They sat there silently for a few minutes, watching the breeze ruffle the small pond across from them. Marcus finally relaxed, his ear pressed to Jayson’s shoulder, listening to his heartbeat. It was soothing, as was the warm arm around him, telling him he was safe and it was going to be okay. The faint scent of herbs and sweat drifted off of Jayson.

Marcus never wanted this moment to end.

And that, of course, was what made his half-closed eyes fly wide open, and stiffen his entire body. Oh. Oh no. Oh no.

“Marcus? Are you alright?”

“Fine,” he replied automatically, beginning to tremble, his face turning red. “I’m fine.”

“Are you sure?” Jayson asked, “You’re shaking like a leaf.”

“I’m fine.”

Jayson shushed him softly and let go. “Alright. Okay. Do you want to go back? I can walk with you—”

“No, it’s fine.” Marcus snatched the papers and jumped to his feet, trying not to meet Jayson’s worried eyes. “I’ll walk back on my own, it’ll be okay, promise.”

Jayson stood too. “Alright. If you want to talk about it some more, I have noon free all week.”

“I’ll remember that,” Marcus replied, and scurried away.

By the time he was halfway to the palace, he’d calmed down, and decided that the best course of action was to stifle this… crush. It would go away. It had to. He’d spent too long on this friendship for a crush to add complications.

What if it was more than a crush? What if it was actually, really—

No. Marcus shook his head firmly. It was just a crush. And he would push it away.