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mischiefandlies · 20 days ago

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Bloody shopping trips...

Masterlist Not so much Loki x Reader as Loki and Thor are imbeciles.

Notes: My best friend is Jamacian and she said she couldn't always understand people with thick English accents, and it got me thinking... yh, anyways. Reader has periods, enjoy.

Warnings: none??? I think??

You had been feeling bloody awful recently, your cramps were bloody horrible, and being away from the tower and back home in London, you hadn't got anything in your flat. So, you had sent Loki on a very basic mission; to find you some pads. Thrilling endeavour. It was by sheer misfortune that Thor had decided to tag along, seeming to have misinterpreted your word mission as an actual mission and not a trip to the shops. And so, it was with a heavy heart and an insufferable fool by his side that Loki made his way to the shops.

"I do not like the automated doors brother." Thor says as they walk in. "How am I to know who is opening them?"

Lord above it's going to be a long day… "They're automated Thor. No one is opening them."

"Ah! I see. See, these electronics are ever so complicated brother. Why, t'was only the other day Stark was informing me of the complexities of el-ekt-ro-mig-na-tismsm, the human magic that keeps his suit together….." Loki's tuned out at this point. Blessed norns, Thor couldn't shut up if you sewed his lips together. It's the most irritating ailment to have while trying to get around the shops. He manages to shut up for long enough that Loki finds one of the employees.

"Excuse me miss-" He says, gently tapping the lady on the shoulder. Come on, you were at home waiting, and he couldn't bare to leave you home alone, not when he knew you were in pain.

The lady turned around- well, lady would be a stretch. The girl was barely out of her teens, with violently yellow badly bleached hair, and skin as orange as- what was his name? Some fool in a white house who Steve had been complaining about for his "anti-american-ness". Either way, she had much the same skin tone, with eyebrows that looked like a black slug had plonked itself above her eyes and left an imprint. Regardless, he just smiled politely and asked "you wouldn't happen to know where the female sanitary items are?"

Loki didn't think it would be possible for her to look any more disdainfully at the two brothers. She turns to face him, pulls out two white pieces of plastic from her ears- you told Loki that they were for people to listen to music on the go, which he found absurd, but then he could just tune things out with his magic -and addresses them. "Wot d’you want tho, coz I was literally just standin’ here."

Well, that's umm… something not covered by Allspeak. He glances back at Thor, who is currently halfway through a baguette, and going to be of absolutely no use when dealing with- wait. They haven't paid for that. He swipes it out of his brother's hands, leaving the blond completely confused. "Thor! You can't do that on Midgard. They require payment."

He just rolls his eyes, like the whole thing is obvious. "I know that brother, I was merely snacking- these french batons are an excellent food source, and Miss Pots told me many times one should never go shopping on an empty stomach."

"Miss Pots has access to Tony's credit card, and does not shop in 'Lidl', so please refrain from your munching." Loki snapped back.

"Na, it's fine innit."

Both brothers whip around to spot the speaker. It was the shop assistant from before. It's Thor who speaks to her this time though, perhaps he's have a better chance at a reasonable response. "I beg your pardon?"

She manages to pipe up again, in something recognisably English but also an absolute linguistic phenomena. “Oh my god yeah no bruv, one even cares if you nick it ‘cause like the security is well dodgy innit, and the cameras don’t even work, yeah, like literally I nick stuff all the time — like the other day I got a whole meal deal and a fake tan and no one even said nuffin’. An' I only got caught once cuz this well leng mans was chattin' wi me and 'e said if you go out back door it don't count cuz alla drivers go out there to have a fag an' smoke pot, so they don't check the camera.”

The two of them have to take a minute to recover from the astounding poetry that is the English language, but Loki shakes it off the first, and again tries to locate your necessary shopping. "Right. Well, I'm looking for something I'm actually intending to pay for. Would you happen to know where the feminine sanitary products are?"

It seems there's a language barrier. "A wot?"

"Feminine hygiene products?"

"A woT?"

"Umm… menstrual products?"

"A WOT?"

"Sweet norns…" Loki tries once more, now slowly reaching the end of his rope. "A pad, for a woman while she goes through menstruation. You know, bleeding from the vagina?"

"Ohhh, say less fam, say less." It seems they've gotten through to her. Finally…. "It’s over there, on the left, yeah but like you could’ve looked bruv."

"Thank you." Honestly, it's like pulling teeth… the two brothers find their way to the aisle for period products. Loki scours the shelves for the kind you normally have, while Thor trails behind, baguette in hand, happily munching. Unfortunately, he finishes the baguette before Loki has found the required packet, and manages to make himself a complete waste of air. "Brother… your lady love is… bleeding?"

"Yes Thor. Happens every mooncycle."

"… will she live?"

Exasperated doesn't cover it. "Of all Yggdrasil's root's Thor, and I have to be stuck with you and your-" the chaos God is cut off (rather abruptly) by the sight of his brother holding back tears. Uggghhhh… everything has to be so bloody complicated, doesn't it. "No, Thor, she will live. She is merely going through a human phase of menstruation. She is not present only because it causes abdominal cramps and mild suffering from unpredictable pain."

Thor, seems mildly pacified by this and probes again, wiping the tears from his eyes and taking a big sniff. "Brother, what is this mens-tutu-ation you speak of? I have heard no such thing."

Perhaps there's a better way to word in than the way Loki actually does, but nonetheless… "Tis merely a state female Midgardians are in once a month wherein their internal organs responsible for procreating disintegrate and must exit the body via the vaginal hole."

Thor (understandably, when faced with the words "organ" and "disintegrate") panics. "So she IS dying?!"

You'd've thought Jane might've educated him, but clearly they weren't together long enough… Loki hisses back, unwilling to make a scene in the middle of this 'Lidl'. The last thing he wants is the lady buying milk in her pyjamas to start judging him. "No, Thor! It's only because she's not pregnant. Her body has spent time preparing things for the baby that must now go to waste because she is not pregnant."

Thor appears, once again, to have found himself deserted of all brain cells. "Well why did you not get her pregnant?"

"What?"

"Why did you not get her pregnant?" He reiterates. "Loki, you should not let her body's preparations go to waste. If I were to hear my love we're aching every mooncycle for a child, he body becoming ready each time for a mans seed to take root, surely I would've given her one by now, else her body may decide not to bother when the time truly does come, and then you would be stuck…….."

Loki appears too floored by the weird, dystopian logic his brother presents, and to be honest, arguing with Thor is much the same as arguing with a toddler- a waste of fucking time. Tuning him out is much easier, and he has had years to practice the art. He finally finds the shelf with your pads and walks off, letting Thor prattle about the intricacies of pregnancy behind him. He walks up to the tills, ready to pay, when he realises he recognises the cashier. Shit. "Thor, turn around."

"Why?"

"Thor, just turn-"

Unfortunately, it was too late. "Yuol rai'?"

What in Odin's beard… "I'm sorry?"

"A sai' yuol raight?"

"We are most excellent, thank you Lady!" Thor's voice boomed out, as he smiles towards the (still violently orange) cashier. Blessed Norns, this was NOT ideal. "We are merely in need of assistance purchasing these anti-mestututtuaion products."

"…Right. Innit." She looks about as confused as Loki, who has to actively restrain himself from slamming the pads on the counter. She puts it all through the till and looks up at him expectantly.

"And a baguette." he adds, shooting Thor a dirty look.

"Ah, just gis the bag, I'll stow it. Anyfing for the well leng one." she says. Not entirely certain of what she plans on doing, Thor hands over the bag, which she promptly stashes in the gap between the tills, before looking up at Thor, biting her lip. It might be seductive if it wasn't nauseating. "Ain't you the one wot crashed inno a buildin' or summit on telly?"

Thor, having met fans of his before (usually screaming boys that wanted him to pick them up and fly- Loki was always loathe to be there when it happened) perks up at the recognition. "Ah! Yes, you would be correct, I did indeed crash into a building multiple times. Why do you ask?"

"An' mans got no fucking scratches or nuffing from scrapping innit. My guy…" she says, eyeing him. Ogling doesn't cover it, she was practically undressing him with her eyes. Loki could barely watch for gagging, though Thor (being Thor) was blissfully unaware so it seemed.

He picked up the bag and left them to it, the whole thing getting irritating, though he could hear something in the background about "hammers" and "Peng ting". He was going home, with or without them, to you, his love, who actually needed him and could probably explain whatever the fuck had just happened. He would be damned to see you alone and in pain any longer than strictly necessary. His beautiful mortal was alone bleeding and wounded by her own biology, and damn straight he was going to get back and help you. Knowing you you'd completely ignored his instructions to stay in bed. Maybe a hot water bottle and a bath for you… or he could make you a cuppa and you two could just curl up together… or perhaps, if you'd let him, he might try and magic your pain away, though the spells he'd been looking into were still rather complex…

Thor (unfortunately) caught up with him halfway back to yours.

#loki #loki x reader #loki x y/n #loki laufeyson #loki odinson #tom hiddelston loki #mcu loki #loki fic #loki fanfic #Chaos on rollerskates

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transgenderer · 2 months ago

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Here we must beware of superficiality and get to the bottom of the matter, resisting all sentimental weakness: life itself is essentially appropriation, injury, overpowering of what is alien and weaker; suppression, hardness, imposition of one's own forms, incorporation, and at least, at its mildest, exploitation—but why should one always use such words in which a slanderous intent has been imprinted for ages?

Even the body within which individuals treat each other as equals, as suggested before—and this happens in every healthy aristocracy—if it is a living and not a dying body, has to do to other bodies what the individuals within it refrain from doing to each other: it will have to be an incarnate will to power, it will strive to grow, spread, seize, become predominant—not from any morality or immorality but because it isliving and because simply is will to power. But there is not point on which the otherdinary consciousness of Europeans resists instruction as on this: everywhere people are now raving, even under scientific disguises, about coming conditions of society in which "the exploitative aspect" will be removed—which sounds to me as if they promised to invent a way of life that would dispense with all organic functions. "Exploitation" does not belong to a corrupt or imperfect and primitive society: it belongs to the essence of what lives, as a basic organic functions; it is a consequence of the will to power, which is after all the will to life.

If this should be an innovation as a theory—as a reality it is the primoridal fact of all history: people ought to be honest with themselves at least that far

From Beyond Good and Evil. I don't think this is true, but i worry sometimes about it. that to the extent one is capable of really living, thriving, it is by displacing, consuming. because, i mean...the obvious analogy, which for some reason he doesnt mention, is food. we have to eat other living things to live! and so it seems maybe the best we can hope for is a sort of..."vegetarianism"? one can imagine something like FALC as this. the thing is it's easy to imagine automating all physical labor but there's also all sorts of tedious mental labor that needs doing. maybe LLMs will get there, might be the labor-tofu sequel to robots. assuming theyre not suffering. which seems like a fair assumption

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republicsecurity · 29 days ago

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Dissidents Voice

I remember the first time they nailed me. Five‑digit alphanumeric code glowing in blue on the back of my collar—“K4J9Q,” I think—though memory’s a bit fuzzy after the third lecture on “public order and the uplifting benefits of neuro‐armored peacekeeping.” It was an environmental protest: we’d chained ourselves to the bulldozers at Lake Grünwald, chanting eco‑anarchist jingles, while the Enforcers in their jet‑black armor stood about like very large, very bored penguins. One of them—ID R7S2B, I later discovered—leaned over, visor gleaming, and said in perfectly modulated monotone, “Sir, you are in violation of Article 10(b) Subparagraph Delta: unauthorized leaf‑gathering.” I paused to check my clipboard: I was pretty sure gathering fallen leaves is legal. He sighed, tapped a gleaming gauntlet, and out popped the collar. It snapped closed with a satisfying click. I waved to my fellow protesters. “Remember,” I hollered, “every sprig of moss is worth ten megatons of bureaucracy!”

The transporter van took us to the Processing Center just outside the city. I spent the ride comparing notes with the other arrestees—a performance artist who had painted “Transparency Now!” on his chest, and a chap who’d been handing out pamphlets on resisting mind‑control. We swapped stories of surreal collar designs (“Mine vibrates when I think about tax law,” he claimed) and marveled at how each Enforcer’s collar was subtly different—a bespoke bit of hardware, etched with that unique five‑character badge which, I suspected, was the Uniform Department’s idea of personalization therapy.

At the center, the SOPS briefing was downright uplifting. They marched us through “Your Rights Under Compulsory Detainment,” complete with PowerPoint slides in soft green. Enforcer L3M8X, whose bulk suggested weekend weightlifting rather than any ideological fervor, delivered the presentation with all the enthusiasm of a man reading his own dental appointment reminder. “Please refrain from unauthorized protests of secrecy policies,” he droned, “or you will be invited to discuss civic harmony in a more… intimate setting.” I couldn’t help but whisper back, “Is that the one with the complimentary alpaca pajamas?” He stared—understandably confused—then shrugged and moved on.

My next collaring was for the mind‑control lecture. I’d set up near the Ministry of Cognitive Integrity with a banner that read, “Drop the Chips, Not the Mic.” Three Enforcers—A5V1R, D9P0T, and a third whose code I still can’t pronounce—rolled in, plastic boots crunching gravel. They didn’t even try to be subtle. I offered them pamphlets; one politely declined, then asked me to sign a waiver acknowledging I wouldn’t distribute any unauthorized literature. I scribbled my name and, thinking fast, added under “Signature”: “Will fight in court for the right to leaflet.” They vanished my collar with a little white flash and whisked me off again, leaving my banner drooping in the morning sun.

For my final (so far) outing—against the secrecy edicts—I chose the Great Glass Archive, where they keep all the state’s “Sensitive but Publicly Accessible” memos. The Enforcers arrived in force: six helmets, six pairs of black boots, one wayward pigeon that they shot for “aviation irregularities.” I was delivering my rousing “Sunlight Is the Best Disinfectant” oration when collar Z8W4N lit up. In mid‑sentence—“…and so we demand full disclosure of the budget for automated mood‑enhancement systems!”—I felt the gentle tug at my nape. A split second later, I was babbling about home‑freezing instructions (“which are definitely classified,” I protested) as they led me away.

You must think I hate these guys, but here’s the twist: they’re conscripts, mind‑conditioned to obey, as aware of the absurdity as I am. Once, during a lull at the jail, I asked Enforcer J1K7H why he didn’t just refuse the orders. He shrugged under that helmet. “If I stop obeying, I get re‑programmed,” he said. Then he paused. “Also,” he added sheepishly, “your jokes about administrative red tape keep me sane.”

So next time you see an activist sporting a shiny new collar, don’t be too quick to boo. There’s a good chance both sides are just actors in a very grim farce—one man’s civic duty is another man’s Performance Improvement Protocol. Besides, I like their collars: they lend a certain je ne sais quoi to my wardrobe.

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harp-er · 24 days ago

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https://archiveofourown.org/works/65990611/chapters/170029696

Planting Seeds

Fandom: Citizen Sleeper

Rating: Teen & Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Lem/Sleeper

Characters: Sleeper (Citizen Sleeper), Lem (Citizen Sleeper), Mina (Citizen Sleeper)

Additional Tags: Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Mutual Pining, Minor Chronic Pain, HEAVY spoilers, you have been warned, Post-Canon, Warmth & Light Ending, Three-Body Problem Ending, maybe some emotional hurt/comfort but mostly happy, or at least bittersweet

Chapter: 1/3

Summary:

“Welcome to the Founder’s Gap Ferry. Please remain seated with a belt at all times, and refrain from engaging in any deliberately disruptive behaviors. In the event of an emergency, the ferry will…”

You tune out and wait for the automated voice to start talking about the time of arrival. Glancing over at Lem, you find he’s already looking at you- your eyes dart away just as quickly, face warm, but not before catching the small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. You click your seatbelt into the lock and grip the arms of your seat, waiting.

“We hope you enjoy your trip.”

______

Lem and Mina join Sleeper on one of their regular visits to the Greenway. They find comfort in company, and share a recent secret.

#citizen sleeper fanfic #lem citizen sleeper #citizen sleeper

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good-morning-dahlia · 6 months ago

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To the individual who put soap in Dahlia's Town Hall's fountain:

The Mayor laughed and the streets had to be blocked off while we cleaned up the mess (our fingers are crossed that the wet roads don't freeze overnight).

Please refrain from doing it again.

Sincerely,

Cordelia Roberts

@official-dahlia-secretary

Good morning dahlia !

This is an automated broadcast ,your dear reporter Mrs Rhodes has taken … leave .

These automated messages will continue till her return

We’re here to bring you this special message from our very own city secretary

And we please ask you to regard it highly as she works very hard

Onto your pre written daily report

Temperature: 65-70

Traffic : moderate

Community: livable

Ms Rhodes will be back shortly …we assume

Have an adequate day !

I can’t I can’t I can’t I can’t what’s wrong monster monster I’m a -

#redacted audio #redacted roleplay #redacted rp #redactedverse #redacted fandom #does april know something #redacted asmr #where is April

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louisupdates · 2 years ago

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Louis Tomlinson ‘Faith in the Future’ World Tour 2023

By: Steve Jennings (Photos and Text) | 11 AUG 2023

English singer-songwriter and former One Direction band member Louis Tomlinson is back out on the road in support of his second album, Faith in the Future. For his second world tour, he’s playing to an ever-growing audience—the crowd I witnessed could not get enough of him as evident from the adoring fans singing along to every word he sang. We spoke to Production Designer, Programmer, and Director Tom Taylor of TANCK about the tour.

Designer Tom Taylor started working on the current tour as the new album’s promo materials and aesthetics came to light. Taylor says it’s a more rugged and asymmetrical look than they’ve gone for before, meant to mirror a sort of dive bar aesthetic rather than a beautiful arena production. “This reflects the music off the latest album, which has a more grungy feel to it. There are touches in there such as the light boxes (loosely resembling the fluorescent lights of a nightclub toilet), and our custom camera housing (a hollowed out old VHS camcorder with a Marshall 4K camera inside) that bring it back to a more intimate venue feel than the true scale of the places we’re playing across the world.”

Taylor notes the show itself has definitely progressed and he would say feels more like a ‘show’ than a ‘gig‘ now; it has a start, middle, and end, with themes and segues to connect them throughout. “The video content is more to set a mood for the songs. We’re trying to stay away from anything too literal and obvious. This extends to the lighting programming as well where we largely refrain from hitting everything on the beat, fully ‘perfect’ timecoded hits throughout the rig. Hopefully the end result is that in those moments where we do go crazy with programming and rhythm, it’s much more interesting and stands out in the set.”

Since 2020, Taylor has worked with Francis Clegg on production design. They had worked together for about five years prior to that and have a complimentary skill set. “We’ve accelerated quite rapidly, taking on a design assistant in Jamie Lawrence and soon to have another member of the team joining,” Taylor says. “Whilst one of us is the company face to each artist or client, we work together 50/50 on every project behind the scenes. James Washer [Lighting Programmer] is often the first name on the team sheet when we pick up a show like this one… he just gets it; is a great programmer and time saving resource who knows how to interpret when I say something like ‘can the lights be a little more aggressive.’ Francis (Clegg) is also a fantastic programmer, so I was able to work alongside James in the rehearsals to finesse the previz programming.”

Although he’s on a MA Lighting grandMA3 surface, Taylor runs the show on MA2 software. The reason for that is because this tour goes everywhere in the world, and he knows he can get an MA2 anywhere without having to lug around small form consoles himself. Taylor much prefers to take a USB stick through an airport. “We are running a lot of things through the desk—lighting, video, camera switching, and automation. The MA makes this easier to deal with and the fixture cloning system is excellent, so I know I’m going to get a good replica of the show no matter what fixtures I get thrown wherever we go.”

The venue sizes this time around sort of called for a video element to be added, Taylor says. “The focus of the show is, of course, Louis, so plenty of close-up camera work to amplify his emotion. These are treated with overlays and masks created by [content creators] Two Suns and ourselves, with 3D animation work coming from Boxcat Studio. The whole system is run on a Resolume server. Camera switching is done from the MA console via Open Control, which sends OSC messages to the ATEM switcher, which ultimately sends it to the capture cards. This way we eliminate a touring video director (sorry!) and save a bunch of truck space on outboard equipment. The system works extremely well.”

Colour Sound Experiment out of London is the tour lighting, video, and rigging company. “We use them for a large portion of our shows. It’s very useful dealing with just one company who ‘do it all’ but also don’t cut any corners or scrimp to get the job done. The equipment is well maintained with a good selection of inventory to choose from.” Taylor says it probably took them about three iterations to get to the point they’re at now, keeping ideas from the previous versions until they got somewhere they were all happy with. “It was a bit of a process, but a great payoff. I should probably thank Louis and his Manager, Matt Vines, for their patience in putting it all together. There are a lot of (literally) moving parts to the stage with winches, light boxes, light bulbs, and our shuttering set piece at the back. Ultimately the show is dynamic and exciting, but all the elements sit nicely together as well.” Taylor was a bit unsure on using the GLP X4 Bars across the back because of the brightness difference to GLP’s FR10, for example, but they are exactly the right brightness for this gig without being overpowering, he says. “My absolute favorite moment of the show, where we have some crazy iridescent hyper color animation, is driven by the Ayrton Huracans… amazing lights, just don’t try to pick one up by yourself, they’re beasts!”

Tomlinson was really involved in the design of this one, and also much more open to trying new things and delivering a narrative through the show, adds Taylor. “Matt Vines should have a shout out for his contribution to the ‘ideas factory’ and being a great sounding board as we developed the show. PM Craig Sherwood has been incredible as always, never asking ‘why’ we want to make it look like a derelict bathroom, just making it happen. Finally, the tour’s secret weapon, technical maestro Sam Kenyon, who is quite literally irreplaceable, has been an excellent resource for actually delivering the show in the real world day after day.”

Production Team

Tour Manager: Tom Allen

Production Manager: Craig Sherwood

Production Design, Programmer & Director: Tom Taylor & Francis Clegg, TANCK

Lighting Programmer: James Washer

Lighting Crew Chief: James Box

Lighting Techs: Rick Carr, Amy Barnett

Stage Manager: Torin Arnold

Technical Manager: Sam Kenyon

Video Crew Chief: Dave Mallandain

Video Programmer: Jack Fone

Video Techs: Tim Curwen, Braden Pettigrew

Camera Operators: Mark Lawrence, Braden Pettigrew, Tim Curwen

Rigger: Mark Lawrence

Vendors

Lighting/Video/Rigging: Colour Sound Experiment/Acc. Rep. Haydn Cruishank

LED Trim: LED Creative

Custom Light Housings: OX Event House

Set Construction: Hangman UK

Video Content: Two Suns Creative, Boxcat Studio, TANCK

SFX: BPM SFX

Gear

Lighting

2 MA Lighting grandMA3 full-size

19 Ayrton Eurus Profile

6 Ayrton Huracan LT Profile

5 Claypaky Mini-B

12 Robe Spiider

72 GLP X4 Bar 20

16 GLP JDC Line 1000

10 GLP JDC1 Strobe

12 CHAUVET STRIKE Array 4

2 Chroma-Q Color Force II 12

16 Elumen8 COB PAR Endura

10 LEDJ Spectra Q15

3 Robe BMFL RoboSpot

Video

2 Resolume Server

23 Custom LED Trim

6 Video Screens, 2.5m x 2.5m

7 Marshall 503 Camera

3 Panasonic UE70 PTZ Camera

2 Blackmagic Design URSA G2 Camera

#fitfwt23: gear #fitfwt23: technicals #louis tomlinson #louis press #fitfwt23: crew #11.8.2023

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hoursofreading · 10 months ago

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We always pinged our supervisors when Ella’s messages came through. At first, our supervisors reacted with twisted excitement, for here was an opportunity for Brenda to flex her empathy — that was what Brenda did best! Ella continued to send vague and frightening reports. Our supervisors grew tired. “In some situations, it’s useful to sound like a bot,” one said. The last time Ella appeared in my inbox, I scrolled through her message history. Brenda’s automated messages had been completely disabled. In their place, I saw a litany of human operators repeating a refrain: >Soy un agente inmobiliario remoto. >Soy un agente inmobiliario remoto. >Soy un agente inmobiliario remoto. The story of Ella was an example of a chatbot working badly. It was also an example of a chatbot working wonderfully. Not once was a landlord’s silence disturbed by this woman and her problems. She was not even a person in the database, but a hysterical pronoun. And how apt, in the end, for her troubles to divert to us, a group of poets and novelists hired specifically for our feelings, who could feel for her endlessly but do nothing else, as we did not know the landlord’s name or how to reach him and lived very far away.

An Age of Hyperabundance | Issue 47 | n+1 | Laura Preston

#quote

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bloody-bee-tea · 2 years ago

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24 Days of Satosugu 2023 Day 18 - Uncertainty

This fic was inspired by this wonderful headcanon from @get0suguru

“Trust fall!” Satoru yells, hurling himself at Shoko only to stop floating at the exact place where she stands. Or well, stood, because she neatly side-stepped him and then watches uncaringly how he falls on his ass.

It doesn’t hurt because Infinity stops him from really hitting the ground, but his ego does take a bruise.

“Ow, Shoko, how can you be so mean to me?” he whines out, getting up and dusting himself off as if he needs it, but Shoko only regards him with slight annoyance.

“Do you do that with everyone?” she wants to know and Satoru honestly hadn’t thought about it.

It’s just—he was bored just a moment ago and Shoko walked past, and it had seemed like a good idea. He needs to use his new floating abilities for something, right?

And it might actually be fun to see how everyone else will react, though he hopes no one is as mean to him as Shoko just was.

“Yes,” Satoru confidently says even though he has yet to jump at anyone else like that and Shoko narrows her eyes at him.

“I am not going to heal you, should anything happen, so don’t even think about coming to me,” she informs him and Satoru doesn’t doubt that for a second.

He also doesn’t remind her that he doesn’t need her healing anymore.

“And the others?”

“If you hurt any of the others with these stupid shenanigans of yours I expect you to beg.” There’s a pleased look to her face and Satoru presses his lips together.

“Fine,” he still agrees because what else is he supposed to do and Shoko smiles at him like she knows it, too.

But not even the threat of having to beg her for some healing is going to stop him now that she planted the idea in his head and he gives her a blinding smile.

“I’ll get you one day, too, just you wait,” Satoru confidently tells her and Shoko crosses her arms in front of her chest.

“Dream on, oh honoured one.” It’s said in a mocking voice and sometimes Satoru wishes he would have never mentioned this to her and Suguru, because the teasing has been endless.

Shoko simply walks off after saying that, leaving Satoru behind and for a brief moment he thinks about trying it again, even though he knows his chances are about the same for her catching him.

No, he’ll have to catch her off guard one day, and he vows that he will do it, too.

~*~*~

Things with Nanami go about as well as expected. He regards him just like Shoko had when Satoru falls to his ass after yelling “Trust fall” and dropping himself in reach of Nanami.

It’s about what Satoru had expected, if he’s being honest.

Nanami is not his biggest fan, and he keeps reminding Satoru at every possible moment that his Infinity is keeping him safe from everything. It makes Satoru wonder, sometimes, if Nanami would simply assume the same during a fight and Satoru has to admit that it makes something uneasy curl in his stomach.

He might have automated Infinity, but it’s not fool proof yet and one of these days he’s going to get his ass handed to him. The only question is if Nanami would simply watch it happen or not.

Satoru shakes his head at those thoughts, because of course Nanami wouldn’t simply let it happen, not once he notices what’s going on, but the thought is still hard to shake.

It makes Satoru refrain from immediately trying Haibara next, because Nanami huffing out an amused laugh as Satoru crashed to the ground was certainly a blow to the ego.

Still, Haibara has to suffer through the same eventually, and Haibara—bless his heart—actually attempts to catch him.

He stumbles over his own feet in the end, and he isn’t quite strong enough to take the entirety of Satoru’s weight, but at least an attempt was made.

“Hey, you okay?” Haibara wants to know once Satoru’s feet are safely back on the ground and Satoru grins at him.

“Trust fall,” he belatedly tells him because he might have forgotten to mention that, and Haibara’s concern warms his heart.

“Oh. Well, I guess I failed, right? Didn’t quite catch you there,” Haibara says with an embarrassed laugh and Satoru grins at him.

“Actually, you get full marks, on behalf of the others failing,” he informs him brightly but Haibara frowns at him.

“Geto let you fall? That doesn’t sound right,” Haibara mutters and now it’s Satoru’s turn to let out an embarrassed laugh.

“Haha, yeah, no, I haven’t gotten to him yet. But Shoko and Nanami let me fall, which is all kinds of rude, if you ask me.”

“Geto won’t,” Haibara says, clearly completely convinced and Satoru gives him his best bright grin.

“Yeah, he probably won’t,” he agrees, even though he’s not quite sure about that.

“Anyway, was there anything you need, or was this all?” Haibara asks and Satoru pats his shoulder.

“That’s all, thanks for trying,” Satoru honestly says, and he is grateful that Haibara did try.

Didn’t quite succeed but the intent clearly was there, which can’t be said for Shoko and Nanami.

“You’re welcome,” Haibara calls out and jogs off, leaving Satoru to his own thoughts.

He’s not insecure, not quite, but there are certain things that make him uncertain. And one uncertainty is if Suguru really would catch him.

Satoru thinks he might—hopes so, really—but he can’t be sure about that unless he tries and that’s what’s stopping him from trying.

If Suguru lets him fall flat on his ass—even though Infinity will protect him from getting hurt—Satoru is not sure if he’ll ever make it back to his feet.

Well, there’s no rush in trying it out with Suguru, Satoru muses, and if he just ends up never doing it with him, who will be able to tell, right?

~*~*~

“I heard you’ve been doing a trust fall exorcise with the others,” Suguru off-handedly mentions one day and Satoru freezes.

“Now who would have possibly said something like that?” he eventually laughs out, but he knows that it took him too long because Suguru looks strangely at him.

“Haibara mentioned it the other day and Shoko and Nanami weren’t shy to share their stories then. How come you haven’t tried it with me?”

“Ah, Suguru, come on, is there really a reason to? We’re the strongest,” Satoru tries, slinging his arm around Suguru’s neck and hanging off his side.

“So? What does that have to do with anything?”

Satoru opens his mouth but no words actually come out and he almost loses his balance when Suguru suddenly stops walking.

“Satoru, you know I’d catch you, right?” he wants to know and he seems so serious that there really is nothing else for Satoru to do but nod.

“Of course I know,” he quietly gives back but the frown won’t vanish from Suguru’s face.

“No matter what, I’d always catch you, Satoru,” Suguru tells him and it sounds like the truth.

“We’ll see about that,” Satoru says with a cheeky grin, because it’s a big promise to make and now he’s actually even more afraid of trying it out because if Suguru doesn’t catch him then he will have lied to Satoru.

And that is not something Satoru is sure he could stand.

~*~*~

After that talk it becomes clear that Suguru is just waiting for Satoru to do the trust fall exorcise with him as well and he seems to worry more with every day that passes that Satoru doesn’t do it.

Satoru knows he’ll have to do it eventually, but he still needs to hype himself up for it, tries to convince himself that it doesn’t matter if Suguru lets him fall flat on his ass, because it’s not as if that can hurt Satoru.

Well, Satoru’s body can’t be hurt like that. His heart is an entirely different matter.

Still, eventually he has to do it, and so he does.

He’s floating high up in the air when he spots Suguru walking along the path under him, clearly ready to return to his room and Satoru thinks it’s now or never.

“Trust fall,” he shouts, causing Suguru to snap his head up to him and Suguru is running before Satoru even really stopped floating.

He’s plummeting from a pretty significant height, so Satoru breaks the fall down himself until he’s about an arm length above Suguru and then he simply lets himself fall.

And Suguru catches him easily.

He doesn’t stumble and he doesn’t belatedly drop him to the floor, either; his arms are safe and secure around Satoru and he’s holding him tightly to his chest.

“Told you so,” Suguru tells him with a grin, slightly out of breath from the sprint he had to do to get to Satoru in time and Satoru finds himself beaming back at Suguru.

“That you did,” he agrees and mourns the loss of contact when Suguru sets him down on the ground.

“You good?” Suguru asks, clearly worried for a second anyway but Satoru nods.

“I’m perfect.”

And he is, knowing that Suguru keeps his promise.

~*~*~

It’s addicting. It’s addicting in a way Satoru wasn’t prepared for and he fully blames Suguru for it, because he does keep his promise.

He keeps catching Satoru no matter what.

Satoru has taken to let himself fall into Suguru’s arms multiple times a day, simply because he can and simply because Suguru is always ready and never seems to mind and it makes something bright and warm unfurl in Satoru’s chest.

One time, Suguru had been giving a report to Yaga, stacks of paper in his hands and they had gone flying everywhere when Suguru spotted Satoru in the air.

Yaga is still yelling at them for it, and Satoru would feel bad for getting Suguru into trouble with something stupid like that, but Suguru never seems to mind and he always tells Yaga that it was more important to catch Satoru at that moment. The papers could be picked up later, anyways.

That statement made Satoru’s heart beat like crazy and he might have gotten even more obnoxious since then.

“Trust fall!” Satoru laughs out, floating in the air a little ahead of Suguru and the moment he says it, Suguru starts running.

And it’s only then that Satoru sees that Suguru was holding his favourite mug in one hand, which is now flying through the air before it crashes to the ground and breaks just as Suguru brings his arms up to catch Satoru.

Just like he always does.

“Got you,” Suguru mutters, briefly pressing Satoru to his chest before he lets go of him again and Satoru feels horrible.

“I am so sorry,” he whispers, his eyes fixed on Suguru’s chest. “I didn’t mean to make you drop that.”

“Huh?” Suguru says and turns around to look at the destroyed mug. “Oh, that. Doesn’t matter, I still caught you.”

“I wouldn’t have gotten hurt,” Satoru says and takes a step back. “You know that, right? There’s actually no real reason for you to always catch me.”

“What? Of course there is,” Suguru immediately gives back and flicks Satoru’s forehead. “I told you I would, so I’m doing it.”

“But—that was your favourite mug, which is now broken. I wouldn’t have broken if you had let me fall this one time,” Satoru mutters, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

“Wouldn’t you?” Suguru seriously asks and Satoru’s head snaps up to look at him. “I think something might have broken if I had let you fall, and I’m not about to take that chance. It’s just a mug, Satoru, you can buy me a new one.”

Suguru’s words make Satoru blush something fierce, because he might be right. If Suguru had let him fall, Satoru’s heart might have broken on impact.

Still.

“I won’t do it again. And I’ll pay for a new mug, of course,” he tells Suguru who flicks his forehead again. “Hey, ouch,” Satoru complaints and rubs the spot even as Suguru leans forward to better look at him.

“Satoru, don’t be stupid. You can do it as much as you want, I’ll always catch you, no matter what I have to drop to do so.”

He seems completely serious as he says it, as if it’s not even a question for him that he’ll continue to be right there whenever Satoru falls and it’s too much to take for the moment, so Satoru turns his attention to the mug again.

It was a stupid gag gift he got Suguru; the words I’m the sexiest mother around printed on the mug, which Satoru thought kind of fitting, because Suguru is somewhat the mother hen of their group. The fact that warm liquid turns the print into I’m the sexiest motherfucker around is even more fitting and had sent Satoru into a laughing fit before he immediately bought it for Suguru.

He is the sexiest person around, after all. Not that Satoru is ever going to tell him that.

“You’ll still have to pick a new mug,” Satoru mutters, not daring to address what Suguru just said and Suguru rolls his eyes.

“That was my favourite mug because you bought it for me,” he tells him with a sigh and Satoru gapes at him.

“That was a stupid gag gift!”

“A stupid gag gift I happen to like because it came from you,” Suguru immediately shoots back and looks expectantly at Satoru. “So you’ll have to buy me a new one. But something with a more fitting text this time, maybe.”

“Oh yeah, and what would be more fitting than what was on that one?” Satoru asks, wondering what Suguru is on about and he knows he ran right into whatever trap Suguru set up when he smiles brightly at him.

“Maybe something along the lines of Best boyfriend,” he easily says and Satoru’s mouth drops open.

“I—” he doesn’t actually know what to say to that, doesn’t know how to deal with this at all and he wishes instead of floating he could phase right through the ground.

“Can’t be too hard to find something like that, right?” Suguru whispers, leaning close and brushing his lips against Satoru’s cheek.

“And what do I get?” Satoru finally manages to get out, his voice just a tad too high and his knees wobble dangerously when Suguru smiles at him.

“The same? I mean, you’d be my boyfriend then, too, right?”

“I sure would be,” Satoru mutters under his breath and makes a stupidly embarrassing noise when Suguru steals a kiss for himself.

“You sure are,” Suguru corrects him. “And as your boyfriend it’s my duty to always catch you, no matter what.”

“Well, as your boyfriend it’s my duty to not make you drop things you like,” Satoru shoots back and his feelings turn a little gooey when Suguru takes his hand in his.

“I haven’t dropped you,” he seriously says and Satoru fears the blush on his face might be permanent at this point.

“You—” he gets out before he thinks that kissing Suguru again might be the better route to take here.

“And I don’t intent to,” Suguru mutters against his lips when they part and really, there is nothing Satoru can do but to accept it.

“Fine. I’m counting on you, then,” he agrees, making Suguru smile again.

“Always,” he promises and Satoru is inclined to believe him.

It certainly doesn’t help that he now gets extra kisses every time Suguru catches him, though Satoru is careful to not make him drop his boyfriend mug. They have to match, after all.

#bt writes #jjk #satosugu #stsg #24 days of satosugu 2023 #trust #getting together #flirting #hurt/comfort

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harrydracompreg · 1 year ago

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2024 MPREG Fest—Submission Guidelines

Submission time is getting closer, and we've been thrilled to learn a few of you are wanting to submit like yesterday!

The due date for submissions this year is 21 April 2024 which is just under five weeks away.

We will check in with you all again about 10 days out from your due date to see how you're coming along. Our email and DM are always open if you need to chat with us.

POSTING YOUR WORK TO THE AO3 COLLECTION

Please avoid posting draft works to the collection. This can often lead to confusion when it's time to release them. Please preview your works on your personal AO3 prior to adding the Mod account as co-creator. Once the work has been submitted to the fest, no more changes are to be made without contacting the Mods to discuss.

Once you're happy that your work is displayed correctly, go ahead and add the Mod account and post the work to the collection. The collection link is here: 2024 Collection.

♥ All fics will be posted to AO3, regardless of length

♥ All artwork will be posted to AO3, unless the artist specifies otherwise.

♥ All podfic works will be posted to AO3, unless the recording artist specifies otherwise.

We do recommend that all participating creators get an AO3 Account. If you do not have, or cannot create an AO3 account, we will work something out. Talk to the Mods.

SO WHAT DO I DO?

Post to the Collection On or before 21 April 2024, go to the 2024 Collection and click Post to Collection.

AO3 has further directions on making a post to a collection (ignore the challenge references). Tick the Add co-authors? box, and add the Mod ID hdmpregmod as the co-author. This ensures we can proofread all entries, keep the end-notes uniform and actually post the works as part of the fest. Once the fest concludes, the co-creator status will be removed, but the works will remain within the Collection.

Use Archive Warnings If your work contains graphic depictions of violence, major character death, rape/non-con, and/or under-age content, you must include these warnings in the header content, and utilise the appropriate archive warnings on AO3.

Add Content Tags You may add relevant AO3 tags to describe the content of your work. Readers may follow tags to assist them to find new works. Please refrain from excessive use of free-form tags that do not describe the work or its content (e.g. "omg I cannot deal"). Once the fest is finished, you may add these. Unless it is a secret or critical plot point, it is recommended to tag the pregnant character(s). This has been a polarising point in previous years, and it's best that readers are informed where possible. The Mods will review the content tags, and may make minor adjustments if deemed necessary. Larger changes will be made in consultation with the creator.

Add Creator's Notes This is a great place to include your prompt details and a shout-out to your beta readers and/or cheer-leaders. Please be sure to use initials if naming them would reveal who you are; and remember to update it after the fest reveals.

The Mods will use the foot-notes to add some fest information.

Hit Submit! AO3 is sorted. No more changes are to be made to the work on AO3. The Mods will do their thing, once we know the work has arrived, so...

Create your Header Jump on into our Work Submission Form in AirTable for a glorious HTML-free header submission experience.

You will need the 5-digit submission code that we gave you on your prompt allocation email, and the email address that we sent it to. You'll find it right here:

We are offering a submission form for automated headers again this year. When it's time to submit your creation, you'll need this code [your code here 12345]. Make sure you don't lose it!

The form will ask you a few questions about the work, and most stuff you can copy and paste from AO3.

If you feel like kicking it old-school you can also email your HTML header details using the form(s) below to the Mods.

Wait, Anticipate, Enjoy Your submitted work(s) will be listed as Unrevealed Mystery Works in the Collection. Nobody but you and the Mods will be able to see the entry before its posting date in the fest. At posting time, the Mods will update the date of the work so that it receives maximum exposure. Please do not change it again. All creators will appear as Anonymous until the fest is revealed. While hype is definitely welcomed and encouraged; it is poor form to de-anon works before a fest is revealed. Do not cross-post, reply to AO3-comments, or otherwise claim ownership of an anonymous work until after 16 June 2024. It's only a few weeks, just be patient.

CLOSING NOTES

For more information or context please refer to the 2024 H/D MPREG Fest Rules and Information Post.

If you have questions or concerns that aren't addressed here please get in touch with the Mods. We're available on tumblr, discord, or via email.

Ready for another awesome season, sassy_cissa and timothysboxers H/D MPREG MODS

HEADER INFORMATION

Submissions, Header Information and artworks can be sent to [email protected] at any time on or before the submission date, 21 April 2024. Please include the word 'Submission', your AO3 username, and prompt number in the email's subject line. (e.g. Submission, timothysboxers, Prompt 102) Complete the header for reveals—the Mods will anonymise it.

The fic header is here:

Title: Author: (if applicable – all name info will be removed to protect your anonymity) Also please provide your AO3 and/or tumblr name (indicate which is which) Prompt: Please copy/paste the prompt here or you may summarize the prompt if it was long Word Count: (Remember that the minimum is 2,000 words!) Rating: (G to NC-17) Contains (Highlight to view): Warn for possible triggers and squicks. No need to warn for mpreg, sex or slash! Story spoilers may be included inside this code if you prefer. Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended. Who is pregnant?: Optional - but recommended Story spoilers may be included inside this code if you prefer. (If you prefer to not include this information, please let the mods know who is pregnant when you email your header) Notes: (You may put your beta’s name/initials here along with any other notes.) Summary: (from AO3)

***

The art header is here:

Title: Artist: (will be removed to protect your anonymity) Also please provide your AO3 and/or tumblr name (indicate which is which) Prompt: Please copy/paste the prompt here or feel free to summarize it if it was long Art Medium: Rating: (G to NC-17) Contains (Highlight to view): Warn for possible triggers and squicks. No need to warn for mpreg, sex or slash! Any spoilers may be included inside this code if you prefer. Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended. Who is pregnant?: Optional but recommended Story spoilers may be included inside this code if you prefer. (If you prefer to not include this information, please let the mods know who is pregnant when you email your header) Notes: (You may put your beta’s name/initials here along with any other notes.) Summary: (from AO3)

***

The podfic header is here:

Podfic: Author: Reader: Length: Rating: Summary: (from AO3) Contains (Highlight to view): Warn for possible triggers and squicks. No need to warn for mpreg, sex or slash! Any spoilers may be included inside this code if you prefer. Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended. Who is pregnant?: Optional but recommended Story spoilers may be included inside this code if you prefer. (If you prefer to not include this information, please let the mods know who is pregnant when you email your header) Notes: (You may put your beta’s name/initials here along with any other notes.) Link to Story: (AO3) Download Link to Podfic:

***

#mod post #sticky #fest:mod announcements #fest:submission info #2024 mpreg fest #drarry #drarry mpreg #hdmpreg #excited #fest:header info

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skateebrat · 5 months ago

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Blog Post Due 2/6

What effects do micro mistakes, like an incorrect start date, have on someone’s financial and emotional well being?

Small mistakes can be heavy burdens. Being cut off from your insurance when you are the most vulnerable can leave you feeling lost and helpless. Especially when it involves someone you love who is in a life altering position. The process of trying to navigate how to reinstate that insurance was so tedious for this couple. The anxiety and dread of receiving pink envelopes in the mail, having to start the process over calling the doctor, calling the insurance company, calling the collections agency- correcting the consequences of a seemingly small mistake of a misdate took over a year to recover. (Eubanks, 16).

When marginalized groups are framed as “undeserving”, how does that influence public opinion?

It can potentially influence the wrong people, wrong crowd. In this case, Republic Governor Paul LePage attacked families who were receiving miniscule benefits from Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, also known as TANF. LePage’s administration collected data from federal and state agencies to track over 3,000 transactions that were specifically from ATMs in smoke shops, liquor stores, and out of state. Governor LePage released that data and disclosed basically suggesting that TANF recipients were committing fraud by misusing these benefits to buy liquor, cigarettes, and lottery tickets. He then introduced a bill that would require these families to keep track of all cash receipts so they can do a proper audit. This misleading story can have people believe that TANF families are criminal and lazy, adding to potential negative beliefs they might already have. (Eubanks, 19).

What vulnerabilities do people face when exposed to facial recognition ?

Being wrongfully imprisoned is a major vulnerability with facial recognition. Nijeer Parks was falsely accused and arrested for shoplifting and trying to harm a police officer. Unfortunately, he was detained for 10 days and had to pay $5,000 out of pocket to defend himself before being released. There was a national study in 2019 that states, facial recognition does not apply well to Black and Asian faces. Nathan Wessler, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties believes that police enforcement should refrain from using facial recognition as it can cause major harm in the black community (Kashmir).

Can life go back to 'normal' after being wrongly accused of a crime?

I personally think it is possible, but it would be a challenge. It also depends on the severity of it as well. If someone was incarcerated for years for a crime they didn't commit, that's something that would potentially take a long period of time to heal from. It definitely effects families and friends as well, the trust in the system and life in general would be so difficult to go back to normal. Maybe normal would look a little different in that sense.

Cites:

Hill, K (2020, December 9). Wrongfully accused by an algorithm. The New York Times.

Eubanks, V (2018) Automating Inequality.

#TCL25

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terresdebrume · 1 year ago

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I am back home from work and reader, I have more reports bullshit to share

Context:

No deadline has been shared for the vetting of those reports until about 8 this morning, when we were told today was the last day to finish our vetting

Around 11, I finish what I believe to be my last round of vetting

The aforementioned bullshit with English Teacher 2 happened during my lunch break

Our work day finishes at 4:30

At about 2:55, I receive a gdocs notification from H (the asshole who backstabbed me for the timetables, who is now in France but somehow still in charge of editing all the report cards) which consists of a ping and the automated mention "Assigned to you". This is in the file for another class, and associated with the "Students' reflections" section

(Students reflections are an exercise in good PR where the kids have to explain how cool our school is, what virtues they embodied this year, and what their sins were) (I'm the one adding "sins" here, but virtues is the exact word used there btw)

I send a message in the secondary group chat asking why this is suddenly appearing since editing students' reflections is the job of their homeroom teacher (I certainly don't put any of my kids' words on the report without looking at them and letting them know what edits I made and why). Answer from H: we overlooked it and we're adding it now

I (heroically) refrain from pointing out his communication is as shitty and disrespectful as ever and, merely say that several things were changed in the vetting process at the last minute and without communication, and it would be nice to have something prepared that we stick to next time. However, anticipating bullshit (and also having noticed that some tasks that were initially assigned to me + another teacher were now under my name only) I print a pdf version of the document detailing the vetting process. At this point, it is 3:13.

Enter J, who sends a message in reply to mine in the group chat saying all of it was shared before with a link to the aforementioned vetting process detail, where a mention of the students' reflections has suddenly appeared. I'm so angry I get confused and initially apologize for my misreading, before double checking my pdf version

At this point it's about 3:27. I check the info from the file: Modified by H at 3:22.

I was so fucking angry I got this close to cry tears of rage in front of my students tbh

#Matt has a life #Shit from work #I think I have a good reserve of patience for people's incompetence and just fixing their mistake #but if you try to make ME look like a clown I get a lot fucking pettier #anyway #I went and told the vice principal about this #(after venting and swearing a bunch with friends)

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pocarinapyon · 1 year ago

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[🧸] Fireworks and Anxiety (Childe / Kaveh)

In which the reader has anxiety over fireworks and any explosive sounds. Now that everyone is welcoming the new calendar year, people started to get festive and set off fireworks as part of the ceremony.

But of course, your beloved won’t let you suffer from your dilemma.

Starring : Childe, Kaveh (Separate); Teucer (Minor / Mention)

Tags / Warnings : 🧸 [Comfort] Mentions of guns and explosives; Implications of anxiety and/or trauma related to the sounds of fireworks (trauma could be from gunshots / explosives / accident related to fireworks / etc); A bit of a grotesque imagery; Actually… It’s like an auditory anxiety; The Genshin hubbies comfort me you through various means❤️; These are short scenarios only though 🥺; No beta readers so I'm sorry for grammatical / spelling mistakes; Stray cuss words; Getting sleepy...; As per usual… Petnames (if it bothers you); Mentions of Childe's real name (Childe = Ajax)

Links : Pinned Post, Fireworks and Anxiety(Albedo/Alhaitham), Moral Support (Albedo)

Target audience is gender neutral

To whoever is reading, I hope you are doing well and please enjoy.

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

🐇 Childe

Staying in a house with kids for the holidays, you trained well to refrain yourself from blurting out any cuss words. After all, you didn't want your boyfriend's family to have a bad impression on you. The first few days were fine until the last day of the calendar year came and people started to set-off fireworks.

"Shit...!" from the sound of another firework, you squeaked as the image of a flying humanoid ruin machine firing missiles at you haunted your mind.

Just a few months ago, your innards and flesh nearly scattered everywhere from being hit by exploding projectiles of an unsuspecting machine. Had you known the supposed immobile flying automation was still active, you wouldn't have approached it out of curiosity. It was a good thing you were skilled enough to dodge the explosives that your boyfriend was able to find you alive before he shot down the pesky robot.

"That's a bad word!" Teucer scolded you while giggling at your naughty behavior.

"Teucer, you know big [brother / sister] doesn't like fireworks so they would sometimes accidentally say some bad words. You'll have to forgive them if they say some bad words," Ajax gently explained to Teucer in your defense.

"Ahahaha...sorry, Teucer. It won't happen again, I promise," trying to sound unbothered by the booming sounds of fireworks, your laugh came out dryly as you replied to your boyfriend's little brother. To this, Teucer pouted but gave an approving nod anyway.

Fear and stress were written in your face and from this, Teucer understood your predicament. Wanting to be helpful, he squeezed himself between you and your lover to give you a big warm embrace.

"Aw... Big [brother / sister], are you afraid of fireworks? Fireworks are loud but they're not scary. Big brother told me it's safe as long as you're far away from where people are setting them off! They are very colorful and pretty in the sky!" Teucer cheerfully explained in an attempt to give you an objective point of view.

"Yes, I'm sure. In Inazuma, we have a friend whose job is to make fireworks. She can make various designs and also pretty colors too," you replied, the tone of your voice soft from the panic still coursing through your veins.

The wholesome conversation with the young lad paired with his friendly hug helped ground you as it distracted you from the loud noises. Ajax smiled from seeing how you and Teucer acted kindly towards each other and from there, he knew you were calming down.

After a few hours, most of the people decided to hit the sack and that included Ajax's siblings. Even then there were one or two fireworks setting off every ten minutes and with Teucer soundly asleep in his bedroom, you were back to your skittish self.

"Hey... It's okay, sweetheart...," Ajax cooed as he snuggled with you on his king-size bed.

"Heh... Hehe... Darn it... I feel pathetic...," you sighed in defeat, laughing dryly as you lost control of your emotions and thoughts once again.

"No, you're not. Everybody is afraid of something. There's nothing to be ashamed of it," Ajax replied softly while caressing your hair.

"Yeah, but I wasn't like this, Ajax. I wasn't afraid of fireworks until that - that thing attacked...!" you whined as uncontrollable tears streamed down your face from the image of a ruin hunter preying on poor you.

"You're safe, my sweet. It's what matters," was all Ajax could answer.

You and your lover remained in a silent cuddle. No words were exchanged between you two yet your hearts shared the same rhythm as you found yourself at peace from his loving and secure arms.

"Hey... You said everybody's afraid of something but I don't think you're afraid of anything at all," you remarked, finding your boyfriend's courage to be admirable.

"I am afraid of something," Ajax replied with a chuckle.

"Really?" with big curious eyes, you asked.

"Yeah," Ajax answered as he brought his lips close to your ears. With every phrase, he peppered your face with kisses, "I'm scared... I'm scared of losing the ones I love and I'll do everything to protect my family."

In a tender touch, he tilted your head so your eyes met his blue ones.

------

"That includes you, [Your name]. You're my future family."

With that, Ajax gave you a tender goodnight kiss on the lips.

🐇 Kaveh

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

"You're shaking...," Kaveh remarked as he felt your body tremble from the fireworks that set off from afar.

"Am I...? It's... It's just cold...," you answered sheepishly, hoping your boyfriend would accept the silly excuse you just uttered.

The sky brightened once more with vibrant colors before another explosive sound echoed from the night sky. It would have been a romantic date for you and Kaveh if only you weren't afraid of the fireworks noises.

'No one's going to get hurt. No one's going to get hurt,' you kept telling yourself to hide your anxiety but by now, Kaveh already figured out what was going on with you.

"I'm sorry. I think we should return home now," concerned Kaveh suggested.

You could see your beloved getting anxious as well and you wish you could calm down at the snap of a finger so your boyfriend wouldn't fret over you. Sadly, you found yourself agitating over another set of fireworks that lit the dark sky.

"Is it the sound that's making you feel scared?" still concerned, Kaveh asked as he found you unable to respond to any of his previous statements from fear.

You bit your lips in distress. It wouldn't have mattered to you if you were the only one suffering from anxiety. But seeing your sweet Kaveh panic over your condition made you feel bad for being afraid of something aesthetically pleasing just because of a measly noise.

"Yeah... I don't like hearing fireworks...," you admitted meekly, feeling pathetic from having such a stupid fear. "Don't get me wrong! I - I love watching fireworks. It's just the noise that bothers me..."

From the way you spoke, Kaveh noticed the self-degrading thoughts flooding your mind and he opted to distract you from them.

"So, you think the fireworks are pretty?" Kaveh confirmed, hugging you in a warm embrace to help calm your nerves.

"Yeah, I do but - eep!"

Kaveh used your hands to cover your ears as he guided you back to the house. You couldn't help but feel disappointed in yourself for ruining a perfect date with your beloved Kaveh. If you didn't have that stupid fear of fireworks noises, you and Kaveh would be having a great time outside.

You sat on the sofa defeated. Despite Kaveh's kind words and insistence, you felt miserable for being such a killjoy. Staring blankly on the floor, you wondered if Kaveh would still want to date you after what happened tonight.

"Surprise~" Kaveh said as he placed something over your ears.

"Huh?" you squeaked, realizing how majority of the noises were muted out by the device. Your lips curl into a smile knowing the sounds of the fireworks won't bother you anymore.

"They're noise canceling earpieces similar to the ones Alhaitham uses. Oh wait, can you hear me?" Kaveh asked.

You couldn't clearly hear what Kaveh said but you could make them out from how his lips moved. In response, you shook your head a 'no' as you figured he was asking if you heard him.

"Really? That's good! That way, you would be able to enjoy the fireworks without worrying over the sound! Although I think it's not safe if you can't hear anything near your vicinity. You still need to be careful and alert always so muting everything isn't really a good idea," Kaveh blabbered.

You simply smiled at Kaveh, not hearing exactly what he was going on about but based on his expression, he seems to be warning you about the earpieces.

"Oops. I forgot you couldn't hear me. I love you," Kaveh said.

"I love you too," you replied.

"Huh?? Wait! I thought you couldn't hear me??" unbelieving, Kaveh asked curiously.

"I couldn't. But I felt you were telling me you loved me so I told you I loved you too," you answered the flabbergasted Kaveh with a chuckle.

"Ah. That makes sense," Kaveh replied before pecking your cheeks. "Now, why don't we enjoy the evening and watch the fireworks? We can grab some more grub while walking around the area. If you still feel like the noise is too much, we can just stay in bed and cuddle," Kaveh suggested.

"Anywhere is fine as long as I'm with you."

Kaveh smiled before wrapping you in a warm embrace followed by a loving kiss.

To whoever read this, thank you for your time. Here, have a pineapple 🍍.

Are there still people setting off fireworks where I live? Yes. Yes, there are.

#genshin impact #genshin imagines #genshin childe #genshin kaveh #childe comfort #kaveh comfort #RinaPyon Uploads

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