#but i think ive just gotten too used to his style

[devilsrains]

led zeppelin, by neal preston

backstage at knebworth festival; august 4 1979

[puppyeared]

your artstyle looks like it would make really cute mlp fanart and its making me want to ask if youve ever drawn mlp characters so here i am

Now I have!

[seraphdreams]

DREAMIN' — underground racing miniseries.

“being a pretty flag girl is more than waving around banners and wearing cute skirts.”

WARNINGS. this series contains an ungodly amount of smut. reader discretion is advised. topics explored are: gangbanging, drugs, gang activities, semi-dark content, weapons, dub/noncon. each fic will be tagged with its own warnings. 18+ only.

NOTE. finally putting out this series that i’ve been thinking about for a while now. i hope you all enjoy it. each fic is inspired by a song so listen to them!

— STARTING LINE UP.

PART I — NO PHOTOS.

SHIBUYA CITY CHAMPION, BAJI KEISUKE GOES HEAD TO HEAD WITH KAZUTORA HANEMIYA.

PART II — BLINDING LIGHTS.

BRAHMAN’S PRINCESS RACES AGAINST BONTEN’S MASTERMIND, MANJIROU SANO.

PART III — P POWER.

DRAKEN V. HANMA SHUJI.

PART IV — TASTE.

IZANA KUROKAWA FLIES ALL THE WAY FROM MANILA TO RACE AGAINST BEST FRIEND, KAKUCHO HITTO!

PART V — TO BE ANNOUNCED.

Bonten had somewhat of a ritual. It wasn’t anything too crazy like pentagrams or summoning the dead relatives of their victims, but something that made them, them. It was the driving force of all their operations, the sole source that kept the organization afloat. When things went awry they knew they could always count on this one thing, something minor yet major.

Money.

Money granted them connections to criminal organizations around the world. Allies established, and enemies gained. The issue here was that Bonten was bored. All the money in the world couldn’t snatch them from their odd day to day realities of being glorified hitmen, they needed excitement. Something new.

“Any ideas?” All 8 of the men sat around the large lacquered oak table with a particular noble at the forefront. He wore a black suit with a white tie that complimented the strands atop his head. His gaze was empty, as if the light had died out ages ago. There’s two standing beside him, one with a blond skunk strip and slick back hair, the other with the same style except it was platinum all around and a short beard adorned the lower half of his face.

If you didn’t know them, you’d steer clear—They looked intimidating, terrifying almost. You knew Bonten too well though; under all that hardened criminalism were just regular salarymen.

You stood next to where Koko sat. A snarky young man with low patience. It’s hard for you to get under his skin like the others do, and though he’d never admit it, he did have a thing for his little assistant. “We already do so much, I doubt taking on other projects would benefit us financially.” Koko retorts to Mikey’s query. His hands are folded under his chin, propping his head up as if he was bored of the conversation that only lasted two minutes so far.

“Look at you only thinkin’ ‘bout a quick buck. Ya never change, do ya?” It was Sanzu who spoke. Eccentric as he is, when Mikey was in the room he was loyal like a dog. He was one of the many variables that contributed to Kokonoi’s premature graying. Never have they ever gotten along.

“It’s not always about profit. We could expand territory and utilize it for something bigger like weapon trade, or women.” The eldest Haitani spoke. You favored something about him, possibly the eyes or his charismatic nature. He was a caring soul as well, he put his brother above his own life whether Rindou liked it or not. “Bouncing off Ran’s idea, what about Okinawa?” Kakucho uttered.

Usually you tuned out business talk, it wasn’t important to your job. All you were paid to do was look pretty and occasionally pass out paperwork, but the topic at hand piqued your interest. Hitto continues, “We own land in Okinawa, we could build another headquarters there, a casino maybe?”

It seemed as though Manjiro finally took his children into consideration, nodding along with the conversation. “A casino is for idiots, let’s do underground racing.” Sanzu adds. There’s silence and judgmental stares before Mikey finally allows himself to speak once more. “I like it.”

“You can’t be serious, Boss?” Takeomi asks from his spot behind. “How can we even—”

It’s Hajime who interjects this time, the wheels seemingly turning in his head. “If we combine both Hitto and his idea, we could host bets and call in racers. I’m thinking motorcycles over cars. We can’t risk importing illegal vehicles overseas.”

That was just it. The very proposal that’ll put words to action. With a seance of agreeances, Mikey turns to Rindou for finalization. “Make it happen, Haitani.” Rin nods before taking a quick glance at you and back to his leader. “A flag girl’ll be nice too, preferably a hot bimbo.”

You were too fixated on checking your fresh manicure to feel the stares of all the men burning into your frame. The clearing of Kakucho’s throat pulls you from your focus and you finally make the realization. “Hm?”

Mikey tunes his attention back to Rindou, the one notorious for his connections with about any and everyone. “Call up your best racers and fly them to Okinawa. Set up a hotel and headquarters while you’re at it. Let’s take a little business trip.”

With the meeting adjourned, the plan sets in motion.

[loversj0y]

saving face

pairing: siren x gn!reader (villain wilbur soot from tommyinnits clinic for supervillains)

tws: okay so, im going to be REALLY thorough because there is some dark content throughout so kidnapping, chloroform use, drug use (power enhancers), reader gets called sweetheart at one point, violence, injuries, torture, major head injuries, alcohol, alcohol is poured on reader, mental manipulation (attempts at it), blood, broken nose, siren tells someone to claw their eye out, mentions of a fractured skull and concussion

notes: big major thank u to @medlarwrites for this idea!!!! ive been obsessing over siren since i read clinic and had to write something abt him. im not in love with the start of the fic bc i had a very different direction at first but!!! dont care i like how it ended up!! so :3

medlars original prompt: “anyways lemme leave you a siren!wilbur who finds our his bestfriend from college got kidnapped because they suspect she's associated with siren and so want to get information about his identity from them :)”

word count: 5.5k!

taglist: @l0veb0mb1ng / @core-queen / @zooone

When you were in college, you had a rather… peculiar best friend. Maybe you should’ve cared a bit more about the moral consequences of what he did, but honestly, it was college. Your best friend was one of the most well-known supervillains, Siren.

That wasn’t how you met him, though. You met him as Wilbur Soot, the guy who sat next to you in your Literature class, who often forgot his pens. You had a small crush on him, so you made a habit of always bringing an extra pen for him. You became quick friends after, bonding over mutual hatred for the professor’s teaching style, as well as sharing an onslaught of opinions.

You didn’t mean to find out about his identity, it was a complete accident. You and him had this mutual agreement that if something was going on (life troubles, finals stress, etc.), you have free permission to come over for some company. If the other person wasn’t there, you would just wait until they got home. It was a good system that kept both of you from getting too lonely, especially you. He lived at home, but you lived in a dodgy apartment by yourself. He would always make an effort to show up any time he had anything he wanted to talk about, mostly to keep you from feeling too alone. One night, the loneliness had gotten pretty rough, so you decided to go to Wilbur’s house. You two had given each other spare keys a long while back, and it wasn’t the first time you’d done this, so you were quick to unlock the door and head into his room to wait for him to come home. When the door did finally open, it wasn’t Wilbur who walked through.

You immediately jumped, backing up a bit as you saw Siren walk in. Once he’d processed that you were there, he cursed under his breath, trying to console you while quickly pulling off his blindfold. You watched as he went from Siren to Wilbur in a matter of seconds, your head swirling with confusion. You two had a very long conversation that night, while you helped him clean up a scratch along his arm.

After college, you didn’t see Wilbur as much anymore. You worked a lot, and he worked quite a bit too. You two still saw each other, just not as often.

You saw Siren much more often, though. Since Wilbur knew where your walk home from work was, he would always make an effort to be there and walk you home at night once a week if he could. Sometimes he would only watch you from the rooftops, other times when it was a bit darker and there were fewer people out, he would walk with you, chatting about anything he could think of. Over time, what once had been a small crush blossomed into genuine love for your best friend.

It was nice, a really good system. Kept you and him talking, even when your busy schedules tended to keep you from each other. However, for as good of a system as it is, it also had some apparent downsides.

Like your current situation.

You didn’t know exactly where you were.

The last thing you remembered was leaving work. You locked up the small bookstore you worked at and began your walk home when you felt a hand wrap around you, pressing a cloth against your mouth. Whoever it was ended up being too strong for you to fight against, and it was only a few minutes before the chloroform reached your brain, knocking you out quickly. In terms of kidnappings, it was fairly tame, at the very least.

It took a while to wake up, your consciousness floating in and out a few times, allowing you to get small glimpses of conversations.

“Try and get ‘em to talk. Just being friends with Siren doesn’t mean they’re strong. We can break them, even if it takes some… stepping in.”

A bit of a horrifying thing to hear post-kidnapping, but even if it wasn’t on purpose, it at least got your guard up a bit.

When you woke up, you spent a few minutes looking around and familiarising yourself with your surroundings. You were in some shitty warehouse. Which, honestly, cliche, and how many abandoned warehouses did this city have? Large, brown-stained windows lined the top of the walls, allowing for a bit of light to pour in. There were garage-type doors every few feet, but most of them had large padlocks, except for one the furthest away from you.

Your hands and feet were tied onto the chair, one hand behind handcuffed while the other hand and your legs were attached with zip ties.

Escape was not going to be easy, but you knew a bit of fighting, Wilbur having taught you how to protect yourself. You finally looked over to the middle of the room.

It took you a while to recognize the guy who’d kidnapped you. You did know him, though, only because of the things that Siren had told you. Schlatt, previously known as Gunmetal, an ex-hero. His power was the ability to strengthen his body to a metal-like level, making him incredibly hard to take down. The Syndicate considered approaching him for membership, but he was… unstable. He got discharged by the Hero Committee after his increased strength led to the destruction of an apartment building. There weren’t any villains around to pin it on, either, and there were too many witnesses. It had also been discovered that he’d been utilizing power enhancers, which were supposed to be outlawed, in order to extend his abilities and allow him to strengthen multiple parts of his body at once.

If what Wilbur had told you in his frustrated rants was true, Schlatt wanted to take over the Syndicate. He’d attacked them numerous times, always aiming to kill, and he’d taken a particular interest in finding out Siren’s identity.

You sat up a bit, preparing yourself for whatever bullshit he was about to spew at you.

Wilbur caught onto something being wrong a few hours after you’d been taken. He had gone on a minor heist with Techno, and things ran… suspiciously well. No hero intervention for the majority of the heist, until Flame showed up towards the end. Blade handled most of the fighting for him, while Siren took care of their escape. It was when they finally escaped that he noticed something odd. He and Techno passed by your apartment, and he knew your habits well enough to know that you would not be asleep this early. Despite that, the lights in your apartment were off. A bit of searching later, and he was quick to notice your disappearance. When he arrived back home, he was quick to enlist Tubbo to see if they could get a ping on your last known location. Your phone wasn’t anywhere to be found, so he hoped he could at least figure out where you had been. Normally, he would pace to try and distract himself, but when it came to you, there was no use. He immediately headed out, trying to find any sign of you and waiting for a response from Tubbo.

“Good mornin’ sweetheart,” Schlatt chuckled, standing in front of a table in front of your chair. He had two briefcases set out in front of him, “Don’t worry. I ain’t gonna hurt you.” There was an implied ‘yet’ at the end of that sentence. You got a good look at him. He wore a pressed suit, and an airsoft mask – equipped specially with two ram horns on the sides, his signature look. His knuckles were wrapped with red athletic tape, at least you’d hoped it was originally red.

“Then what the fuck do you want with me? It’s hard to believe you aren’t going to hurt me when you kidnapped me off the street.”

“I just need a bit of information, that’s all.”

You scoffed, “Really? So you just fucking kidnap me?”

“It’s effective, is it not?” He chuckled, leaning forward, “Do you have any powers?”

You rolled your eyes, “Cut the shitty small talk. Why am I here?”

“To answer my fucking questions.”

You looked down at your arm, noting a small cuff wrapped around it, “If I tell you, will you take the stupid power dampener off?”

He snorted, “Don’t act dumb.”

“Oh, good, then I’m not telling you.” You did have a power. It was part of why Wilbur felt comfortable being around you. You were also a mind manipulator, but you couldn’t get people to actually do things for you. You could just easily see through their words and arguments. Which meant that you could get them to believe you were telling the truth as well, which would be a bloody good thing to be able to utilize right about now.

“Fine, be like that.” He held up a photo, “So, if you won’t tell me your power, maybe you’ll tell me why Siren has had such a close eye on you?” You looked at the photo closer, being able to clearly make out Siren walking you home.

“He’s just a nice dude. Wants to walk me home sometimes,” you shrugged, trying to act nonchalantly, “I don’t know much about him if that’s what you’re wondering.”

He snorted, “Yeah, like I’d believe that.” He pulled out a folder, spreading out numerous photos of you and Siren, hanging out and eating together in your apartment.

“Have you been fucking stalking me, you absolute creep?”

“Not you, but Siren. You just happened to be there. And I wanna know why.”

“What? You’re mad that a citizen can show compassion to a villain?” You scoffed, “Boo-hoo, poor Schlatt, must be such a sad life you have.”

He growled, and you grinned at how easy it was to get under his skin, even without your power. “I couldn’t give less of a shit about that. I want to know why he’s trying to recruit new Syndicate members.”

You laughed, “God, you could not have worse of a grasp on the situation. He’s just a nice guy. Came to my bookstore once, offered to walk me home, and we became friends. Is it impossible for villains to have friends?”

“Supervillains don’t have friends. Not without an agenda.”

“What about their healer? He’s a friend, isn’t he?”

“He works for them. He doesn’t count.”

“Well, I clearly don’t work for them. So just leave me alone, why don’t you?”

“Okay, I will let you go. If you tell me one thing.”

Oh, here came the stupid request. “Oh? Let me guess? You want me to tell you Siren’s real name.”

“Obviously.”

“Do you really think he’s that stupid? To let a random civilian he met know his name?”

“No. But I know you’re not just a random civilian he met. Because these photos date back years.”

You tensed a bit, trying to hide any clear facial reaction, “And?”

“And, no one who doesn’t work with him would stick around that long, unless there was something keeping them there. So, you obviously know who he is.”

“Oh, obviously?” You tried to will down the blush on your cheeks. “Is it really that obvious? You don’t know anything about me, and you clearly don’t know anything about Siren.”

“So tell me what I don’t know.”

You rolled your eyes, “I’m not falling for that, dipshit. If you want information on Siren, you’ve got the wrong person.”

“Yeah, except that can’t be true. I know you have a power you’ve been hiding, and we know that Siren has spent a highly significant amount of time with you, longer than he ever did their healer. And, we have photos of you with him and other Syndicate members at your apartment. So we know you know his identity. But we can figure out other ways to make you talk.”

“Wow, so you’re adding misuse of power against a civilian to your list of crimes? That combined with the kidnapping, not to mention the murder and the numerous times you’ve hurt civilians and destroyed their homes, oh and getting discharged as a Hero?”

That got under his skin, “I have no problem adding torture onto that list.”

“So much for being a hero then.”

His fists curled up, and he slammed it down on the table, “ex-hero, for a reason.” He walked closer, crouching down to be eye-level with you. “So then, you’re really trying to tell me that the numerous dates you’ve gone on with Siren just don’t mean anything?”

“We- They weren’t dates!” Your face flushed dark red, “We’re just friends!” You blatantly tried to ignore the fact that you’d been in love with him for years.

“Your face is telling a different story,” he smirked, “Is he hot under the mask? Or maybe you just like a man with power?”

You moved back from his hand, jaw tensing, as he tried to cup your jaw, “Hm, well, if you aren’t saying anything willingly, I can make you talk.”

He stood again, walking over to the second briefcase, opening it to where you couldn’t see the contents. You didn’t know if you wanted to. “Plus, this is all just a distraction.” He lifted your phone, turning it on, “They’ll be here soon enough. I won’t need you then, I can take down the Syndicate myself.”

A shiver went down your spine, and you prayed that Wilbur hadn’t noticed your absence.

Tubbo was able to find you pretty quickly. Just when he’d thought your phone was too far for a proper ping, he got one with an exact location that he quickly relayed to Siren. Siren was on it almost immediately, but he wasn’t going in alone. He didn’t know who took you, so he was going to be prepared. By enlisting most of the Syndicate to join him. He made it to the location first, but he knew better than to jump in early, especially since he was one of the least physical fighters. He did some surveying, though, spotting a few guards in suits. Suits were the tell of Schlatt, and he mentally cursed the team members for not getting there as fast as he’d wished. He knew Schlatt could be violent, unpredictable, and hot-headed.

The rest of the Syndicate arrived, and Nemesis and Thanatos made quick work of taking down the guards. Which meant it was time to take down Schlatt.

You’d lost track of time. Schlatt had some interesting methods for getting you to talk. Most of them involve hitting you, his ability making it easy to hurt you, if the broken nose and cut lip were anything to go by. But a lot of it was mental. Using taunting words to try and get under your skin.

“It’s going to be so funny when you’re little boyfriend comes here,” he snickered, grabbing your jaw to make you look up at him, “It’ll be even better to make you watch him die.”

He almost seemed drunk the more and more he continued, “Or, maybe, I could hurt him more. Make him watch me kill you slowly. Or,” he chuckled, but the laughter quickly turned maniacal, “I’ll let him kill you. I’ll make him use that shitty fucking voice of his to kill you.”

You snorted, and he raised an eyebrow, “Something about that funny to you?”

You looked up at him, spitting blood out of your mouth, “His voice is real nice, actually. Much better than yours.” You were playing with fire, but you needed to buy time to get him hopefully exhausted enough to give you a chance to escape.

He smacked you, a loud crack reverberating and echoing throughout the warehouse.

“You piece of shit,” he rolled his eyes, moving away from you. He grabbed a water bottle, downing half of it easily. You watched cautiously, becoming all too aware of how thirsty you were.

“What? You want some or something?” He chuckled, walking back over to you, “Be my fucking guest,” he poured the water over your head. You tilted your head back and drank some of it down. Once you’d gotten some of it in your mouth, though, you quickly realized that it was not, in fact, water but instead vodka. You coughed once you realized, spitting out as much as you could.

He laughed as you hissed in pain, the alcohol stinging the wounds he’d left. He went to throw another retort at you, but before he could, the door slammed open.

Just as Schlatt predicted, the entire Syndicate was there. You sat up, watching as Schlatt moved back to his briefcase and pull out a syringe.

“Siren, run!” You yelled, thrashing and trying to draw attention to yourself, “All of you! Run! It’s a trap-”

You weren’t able to finish your sentence as Schlatt stormed over, grabbing you by the hair. “Oh, Jesus, just shut up with your whining,” he rolled his eyes, hitting your temple harshly, sending the chair to the ground and you with it. The ground rushed up to meet you, and the darkness of unconsciousness was quick to follow.

Siren was pissed. Blade quickly began to advance on Schlatt, but Wilbur was faster. It was stupid, he knew he was being stupid to rush in like this, but he was angry. He watched as Schlatt quickly injected himself with something, some odd shimmering yellow liquid, and in seconds, his body started glowing the same yellow. Power enhancers, Wilbur’s mind supplied. He cursed, hanging back to allow Blade to hit first. Zephyrus flew overhead, getting behind Schlatt to prevent him from running. As much as Wilbur wanted to fight, he needed to make sure you were okay.

He rushed over, grabbing a knife from the table that he prayed hadn’t been used on you. The first thing he did when he approached you was check your pulse, thanking anything that would listen that your pulse was still coming through. He cut the ties easily, then he moved onto the power dampener, trying to pry the thing off. He had no clue where the key for it was, but he didn’t have time to waste looking for it. He started breaking it off when he was tugged back, Schlatt having grabbed the back of his collar. He slammed Siren against the wall, grinning at him.

“For a world-class supervillain, you’d think you’d be smarter,” he chuckled, leaning his knee against Siren’s back and pinning him there. He pushed all of his power into his knee, strengthening and solidifying the metal against Wilbur’s back. “You know how easy it was for me to track them down? You made them an easy target, Siren. You’re the reason they’re here,” he pushed his knee further into his back.

“Let me go,” Siren ordered but to no avail.

Schlatt started laughing louder, “What, you think I’m an idiot? You thought I wouldn’t prepare my mask for you?”

Fuck.

Siren didn’t have to fret much longer, though. Blade came up behind Schlatt, driving a sword through his shoulder. He’d put too much power into his knee, leaving the rest of him vulnerable.

The rest of the takedown was easy. They were planning on taking Schlatt in, hopefully, to use as a bargaining chip against the Hero Committee since he was wanted by them. Once Zephyrus had him subdued, Nemesis and Thanatos grabbed his things and started heading back. Siren lingered with Zephyrus, Jester, Blade, and Ender (who’d only shown up to help take anyone who needed healing to Apollo). Siren walked over, ripping Schlatt’s mask off.

Schlatt was still spilling curses and threats against them, but he’d quieted for a moment as Wilbur pulled his mask off, eyes adjusting to the light. Wilbur threw the mask behind him, and a sinister grin spread over his face.

“We need him alive, Siren,” Blade reminded him.

He groaned, huffing softly, “Fine.” He hummed, tilting his head.

“Claw your left eye out, then knock yourself out.”

Wilbur didn’t stay to watch the aftermath, but he heard the groans and screams of pain from Schlatt as he walked back over to you. Ender was waiting next to you, double-checking for any serious wounds.

Wilbur got the rest of the power dampener off, throwing it to the side. He carefully lifted you, making sure to be mindful of your head.

Ender gave him a concerned look, "It looks bad, but they should be okay."

“No, not should be.” Siren snapped his head towards Ender, shaking his head, “I need them to be okay. Bring us to Apollo.”

Ender nodded, placing a hand on Siren’s shoulder. In seconds, they disappeared in a flurry of purple particles, appearing now in Apollo’s clinic in the Syndicate building.

Tommy was sitting by the desk, playing on his DS. He perked up quickly when he heard Ender teleport in, looking up and seeing Siren cradling you. Siren moved forward, placing you down on the doctor’s mat in the center of the room.

Tommy quickly walked over, “Jesus, man, what the fuck happened?” He placed his hands near your head, warmth emitting over them as he began healing you.

“Schlatt happened. But he won’t be a problem anymore,” Wilbur huffed, tearing off his blindfold and coat, draping them over a chair. He paced around the room as Tommy worked on healing.

“You’re going to burn a hole in the floor,” Tommy huffed.

“I couldn’t care less, Toms. They weren’t supposed to be involved with any of this, I’ve fucked it up again, I-I put them in danger,” Wilbur ran a hand through his hair.

Tommy straightened, pulling his hands away as he finished healing, “Don’t start with your self-deprecating shit, man. They know you’re Siren. They’ve stuck around, and they always knew this could happen. You’re not to blame.”

“But I-”

“You weren’t the one who kidnapped them. It’s not your fault,” Tommy sighed, grabbing a glass of water.

Wilbur nodded, walking up to you, still unconscious, “They- they’ll be fine, right? They’ll be okay?”

Tommy took a sip of his water, nodding, “Yeah. Head injury was the worst of it, but it should be all healed up now. They might be a bit foggy when they wake up, though.”

“When will they wake up?”

Tommy shrugged, “Should be soon. Probably an hour or two. Can’t give you an exact time. You should get them somewhere more comfortable before they’re up, though.”

Wilbur nodded, carefully picking you back up, “Thanks, Tommy.”

“You don’t have to thank me, man, it’s my job.”

Wilbur rolled his eyes, “I want to thank you, dickhead. Now, go to sleep, child.”

“I am n-” Wilbur cut off Tommy’s response by closing the door to Tommy’s clinic behind him. He called Techno, and within a few minutes, Wilbur was being driven home with you still resting in his arms.

“They’re going to be fine, you know that.”

“I know they will be, but they never should’ve been there in the first place. They never asked for this.” Wilbur sighed.

“Oh, please.” Techno snorted, “You tried to scare them away way back when. You even used your ability to try and convince them to not want to be around you.”

“Yeah, but that’s not the same. They turned down the offer to join the Syndicate, which meant they never should’ve been involved with this stuff.”

“Maybe you should ask again,” Techno shrugged. “Even if they don’t want to fight, we could use someone to help out with questioning people. Their ability would work pretty well for that.”

“Techno, I just said they shouldn’t have been involved with this stuff.” Wilbur sighed.

“All I’m saying is if they do become a member, it would be a lot easier to keep them safe. Less loose ends that we can’t keep our eyes on.”

Wilbur bit his lip, nodding with realization, “True. I- yeah. I’ll ask them.”

“Plus, with how in love with them you are, it won’t be long before something like this happens again.”

“I- What?” Wilbur spluttered, eyes widening, “How-?”

“How do I know that? Wilbur, it’s insanely obvious,” Techno laughed, “I have no clue how they don’t know.”

“They won’t know. And you won’t tell them.” Wilbur hissed out.

“Mmhm, okay, sure. Pretty big wimp move for a supervillain.”

Wilbur groaned but didn’t respond past that.

The rest of the car ride was quiet, Wilbur gently playing with your hair gently. He routinely moved a hand to check your pulse, just as a reminder that you were fine and alive and here with him.

He carried you out of the car once Techno pulled up, heading straight to his room. He laid you down gently, placing your head on his lap.

The world seemed fuzzy when you came to. You were too comfortable to open your eyes at first, shifting slightly and letting out a soft groan. Your joints felt sore and stiff, but your face felt even weirder. Your face felt warm but like all of your muscles were new and had never been used before. You scrunched your nose, slowly opening your eyes and letting them get used to the environment around you.

You recognized the room instantly and relaxed as the memories started flooding back to you. The kidnapping, Schlatt, getting knocked out. You heard humming, looking up to see Wilbur leaning against the wall, humming with his eyes closed. He was fidgeting with his fingers and biting at his lip.

You slowly shifted to look up at him fully, “Hey.” Your voice was groggier than you’d expected.

He looked down quickly, “You’re up,” he smiled, “Hi.”

“Did everything go well? With Schlatt?”

He laughed, shaking his head, “God, you just woke up from getting knocked out and tortured, and the first thing you ask is if the fight went well?” He moved a hand to your hair gently, “Are you okay?”

“Well, yeah,” you shrugged, “I feel fine, just a bit tired, I guess. I feel like I’m supposed to feel worse.”

“Tommy healed you,” he supplied.

You sat up slowly, and he carefully placed a hand on your back, keeping it there until you’d gotten in a better position. “He didn’t have to do that. I would’ve been fine.”

“You would’ve had a concussion and a fracture in your skull.”

“That’s not the worst thing in the world.” You joked and gave him a lopsided grin, and he shook his head, chuckling.

He pulled you into a tight hug, “I’m so fucking glad you’re okay.”

You hugged him back, burying your face against him gently, “I would’ve been fine.”

You were lying. You were not fine, actually. As strong as you acted, you couldn’t deny the slight shake that lay in your hands as you thought about that warehouse and the overwhelming fear the image of that mask in your head put in you.

You could’ve used your ability to make Wilbur believe you. You didn’t honestly have the energy to do so.

“You don’t have to be fine,” he whispered, rubbing your back gently, “I know how terrifying it must’ve been. But it’s okay, you’re safe now.”

Your fists balled up the fabric of his sweater, and the tears started falling soon after. He rubbed your back as you cried, the waves of fear and stress finally coming out. You could only hold it together for so long, and Wilbur would always be there when you finally broke.

By the time you calmed down, you were left with soft gasps of breath and holding Wilbur like a lifeboat. He leaned over to his nightstand, handing you a glass of water. After a moment’s hesitation, he placed a gentle kiss on your forehead.

You drank slowly, not wanting to overwhelm yourself. Wilbur’s kiss didn’t exactly help, but physical affection wasn’t something new to either of you.

As if he knew exactly what you were thinking, he wrapped his arms around you gently, leaning his face against your shoulder. You leaned into his touch, letting your eyes close for a moment.

“He was stalking me. Well, he was stalking you, but he had photos from years ago of us. Of Siren walking me home. Of Blade at my apartment. Of Zephyrus in my living room.”

Wilbur tensed, keeping you a bit closer. “I’m so sorry.” He whispered, “I-I never should’ve let you get involved with the Syndicate stuff, I was so stupid to think something like this wouldn’t happen.”

“Wilbur, you never let me get involved. In fact, you were the one pushing me from getting involved. I chose this. I knew something like this could happen, and I chose to stick by you.”

“You’re not a member of the Syndicate, though. I know you can protect yourself, but I don’t want to be the reas-”

“Wilbur.” You hissed out. “If you even for a moment insist again that this is your fault, I will use my ability to make you believe that the best way to sleep is by falling out the window.” He bit his tongue from responding, nodding. “I didn’t turn down the Syndicate offer because I thought it would keep me safe.” You reached for his hand, taking it and squeezing it tightly. You didn’t know if it was your foggy mental state that made the idea of confessing your feelings so appealing or if it was just the residual fear in your system, but you didn’t care regardless.

“Why did you turn it down, then?” Wilbur asked softly.

“I turned down the Syndicate offer because I was worried about working with you.” You sighed, “It’s hard to focus around you, Wilbur.”

“Me? I don’t understand, we’ve been best friends for years, why would..?”

“That’s the problem. It’s hard to focus around you because I am constantly wishing that you would love me back.”

You held your breath once the words left your mouth. Wilbur pulled away from you, and you felt your heart drop.

“Do you mean that?” He asked softly, moving to sit in front of you.

You nodded, unable to respond further in fear of the tears resurfacing.

Wilbur reached a hand out, pausing and hesitating for a moment. He continued though, gently cupping your cheek.

“Can I kiss you?”

Your eyes widened. “Only if you mean it.”

He smiled softly, leaning forward and kissing you hard. You wrapped your arms around his neck, holding him close as you kissed him back, putting all the passion behind it that you’d wanted to for years.

When he pulled away, you rested your forehead against his, catching your breath slowly. He smiled, fingers lightly tracing your arms.

“So… about joining the Syndicate then,” you started.

He laughed, pulling away to grin at you, “You don’t have to decide anything tonight. But it would be really nice. You probably wouldn’t be on the front lines, but we’d love to have you. Plus, we’d be able to see each other a lot more.” He grinned.

You smiled, “Well, I’ll give you a formal answer in the morning. But as for an informal one, I’d fucking love it.”

He grinned, holding you close once more. You ran your hands up and down his back gently, and he hissed in pain when you reached the midpoint of his back. You pulled away.

“Will? You alright?”

He gave a thumbs up, and you smirked, “Say it out loud.”

He groaned, “I am alright. I am perfectly fine.” You could feel the pressure of his words in your head, and they almost sounded distorted. A clear lie.

“Let me see your back.” You smiled, and he groaned.

“You know how much I hate that I can’t lie to you?” He huffed, turning and pulling his sweater up.

“I know, I know,” you took a good look at his back, frowning at the dark bruise on his back, “Wilbur, you have a huge bruise. Are your ribs okay? It looks like some might be cracked.”

“They feel fine,” he shrugged. The pressure returned to your head, and this time you could feel a sensation of burning below your hands. A big lie, then.

“...I’m texting Tommy.”

“No, do not!”

You already had your phone out, texting Tommy to ask for him to come as soon as possible, both for Wilbur and so you could thank him for healing you.

“Too late,” you smiled, and Wilbur huffed, pulling his sweater back down.

He wrapped an arm around you again, kissing the top of your head, “You’re lucky I love you, Aletheia.”

“I am,” you smiled softly. There was no pressure or warm sensation. He did love you. He meant it. “Alethia? God of… truth, right?”

He nodded, “It’s Techno’s codename for you. He chose it out months ago.”

You smiled fondly, “Cool. Has a nice ring to it.”

He nodded, “I agree. And for what it’s worth, I’m lucky too.” He smiled, and you gave him a gentle kiss.

“We’re both lucky. Maybe our duo name could be Tyche.”

“Oh, god, I’m going to have to deal with so many more Greek mythology references with you in the Syndicate, aren’t I?”

“Oh, absolutely.”

[hearts4golbach]

hihihi i adore ur work and i was wondering if u could do a hippie!reader x johnnie fluff?? mayb like a record store date or something cutesy :3

We Don't Believe What's on TV.

"i don't care what's in your hair, i just wanna know what's on your mind. i used to say i wanna die before i'm old, but because of you, i might think twice."

pairing:

Johnnie Guilbert x Fem!Hippie!Reader.

a/n:

as requested, hippie reader!

proofread

warnings:

none!

word count:

1.0k

you sifted throughout the stacked records. your boyfriend, Johnnie, stood next to you, trying to find one of your favorite albums. there was a comfortable silence between the two of you.

he pulled out [album] and handed it to you with a sweet smile. "Look at what I found." he handed it to you and placed a soft kiss on the top of your head.

your jaw dropped as you looked at it in your hands. "you know ive been looking for this album forever! I can't believe you found it,"

"I was so fucking excited whenever I saw it, he responded, turning his attention back to the records.

you smiled, looking at him for a second more before you continued flipping through.

you and Johnnie had planned this date a month in advance. with his busy schedule, it was hard to find time to take you out on a real date. he made you feel loved nonetheless.

the whole afternoon, it'd just be the two of you. there was a picnic blanket in the car, along with a couple of canvases and paint.

Johnnie had been wanting to do the painting trend on tiktok; you switch canvases every 5 minutes or so, and now was finally the chance. excited energy radiated from the both of you. even though you and Johnnie had been dating for over a year now, the honeymoon stage never faded.

you made sure to wear Johnnies favorite outfit of yours. he adored everything you wore. he loved your style in general. he could watch you style outfits for hours, the colors you wore were always so mesmerizing. each time, his stares made you nervous.

you left the shop with two records in hand, which Johnnie had paid for despite your protests.

in the car, Johnnie turned on your shared playlist. it was always so bipolar with your contrasting music tastes, but it was enjoyable anyway. he sang the words to your favorite songs as you did his. you drove to a park right on the outskirts of town.

Johnnie jogged around the car to open the door for you. "thank you, kind sir." you giggled.

"you're welcome, sweetheart." he flashed you a toothy grin.

being 'cringe' with Johnnie was your guys' thing. he loved calling you all of those silly pet names, and you took pride in the fact that you two were the stereotypical 'love bird' couple.

the two of you collected all of the supplied and trudged out into the park.

"im so glad I'm here with you." Johnnie mentioned, holding your one free hand. "it feels like it's been forever since I've gotten to take you on a real date, something other than cuddling and watching a movie with takeout or some shit."

you sighed, taking a step closer to him. "I know. but, it's okay baby." you planted a kiss on his cheek, stumbling over your feet as you tried not to drop the things in your arm. "I love those dates, too."

you laid out the blanket and Johnnie piled all of the painting supplies on top.

Johnnie sat across from you, a love struck look in his eyes that never seemed to leave whenever you were around. he spoke to you about whatever was on his mind: his music, the new Star Wars game, how much he loved your smile. he always found it so easy to talk to you, and you felt the same.

as you squirmed some colors out onto the pallette, you quizzed him on his new music. you practically begged him to show you daily, but he always refused, claiming it'd 'ruin the surprise.' so, as your paintbrush moved gently over the canvas, you gathered whatever information you could about his album (which wasn't very much.) you groaned, making a joke about him cheating on you with his album. you changed the subject, filling him in on co-worker drama. you also asked about how getting his drivers license was going, which he seemed proud to talk about.

finally, the timer went off and you switched paintings. you had painted a night sky, and that was all you had. his beautiful blue eyes were the biggest distraction.

he had illustrated a large, lanky, dead tree. it resembled his shoulder tattoo. you began painting small fairies under the tree as he immediately got back to work, simultaneously talking more in depth about his license.

you updated him on how learning guitar, on his guitar, was going. he gushed about how proud he was, and how he couldn't wait for the two of you to be able to play together. the only reason you hadn't yet was because you wanted to get better before he heard. silence fell between the two of you once more. you listened intently as he hummed, his eyebrows furrowed with concentration. he looked like a painting himself.

you switched off paintings. in your night sky, he had painted a UFO. a goody smile formed on his face whenever he saw your fairies.

he brought up the idea of making a youtube video together. the internet knew you were together, but you kept your relationship private. you had filmed videos with the whol group before, but never just Johnnie. you immediately agreed. word vomit erupted as you told him how excited you were to have two new records for your collection.

you mutually agreed you were ready to go home, seeing as you both were pretty tired and ready to cuddle and watch a movie.

the final painting switch commenced. he had drawn houses in the tree for the fairies, along with where lights strung around it. you had added a cow wearing sunglasses and a tutu under the UFO. you planned to hang both of the paintings up as soon as they were dry.

Johnnie leaned in, placing a long, sensual kiss on your lips. "I love you," he muttered against them with a smile.

you couldn't wait to marry Johnnie someday.

[sunshineting]

⭐︎two sides of the same fucked up coin⭐︎     pt2  pt3

toxic!eren x toxic!reader, toxic!reader x Erwin smith

word count- 1418

summary- your boyfriend cheats on you so you decide to cheat back... with his boss ♡

lmk if anyone wants a part 2 with erens reaction hehe ive got some things in mind

minors DNI PLS 🤬

Your relationship with Eren Jaeger was… haphazard, at best. Arguments were a near daily occurrence; yelling, cussing, throwing shit at each other, name calling were all on the table in these bouts. The bad days were really bad. But the good days? Oh, they were amazing. Lavish dates, expensive gifts, treating each other like royalty. You two were so lovey dovey on good days. Everyone had whiplash from the back and forth and just wished you’d leave each other alone.

This time though, Eren took it too fucking far. The two of you had a fight the week prior; you’ve forgotten what it was even about at this point. But, at some point you told him, “If you want a bitch that’s gon bend over backwards for you at your every beck and call, go fuck that thirsty bitch Mikasa!”

And that rat bastard actually did. Oh, you were going to fucking kill him. And her, too, because the bitch knew y’all were together. He’d come back to your apartment in the middle of the night, begging for forgiveness. The guilt ate him up inside and he confessed before you found out because he knew you would. As he told you, your eye had twitched and your fists were balled, but you remained relatively calm. You didn’t stab him like you wanted to, so that was a good sign. All you said was to get out. After he’d left, you screamed, cried, and punched your pillows. You’d even blocked him on everything you could. You didn’t eat for a good two days after that because you were so sick to your stomach about it. But then, you’d gotten an idea. Why should you be agonizing over something he did? He deserves to feel the sickness that you feel. He hurt you. He deserves to hurt, too.

So, here you are. Being wined and dined by Eren’s boss, Erwin Smith. Erwin is a tall, broad man; towering over your short height. He wears a nice button down shirt and well fitting slacks with expensive looking dress shoes. His blond hair is thick and neatly styled; a business man through and through.

“...so, yes business is booming. Would you like more wine?” Erwin had been saying something about his company, but you’d tuned him out. You give him a charming smile and accept the drink. The rest of the night goes by according to plan, having good conversation and even better food and drink. If circumstances were different, you could see yourself actually dating this man. He’s attentive, chivalrous, and handsome as hell. Yeah, he’s about a decade older than you, but fuck it. When he drives you home, you invite him inside.

“I know my apartment is super tiny compared to your house, but I’d really like it if you keep me company for a while. I can make us some tea, if you’d like?” You say, batting your eyelashes up at him. He graciously accepts and steps inside. You make light conversation as you prepare the kettle. After the hot bev, you ask innocently, “Can I kiss you?”

Erwin takes this and runs with it. He rushes into you, bending down to crash his lips into yours. He’s ravenous, kissing you hungrily and running his hands all over your body. His hands are huge and gripping you in all the right places. Your hips, your ass, your tits. You push your tongue into his hungry mouth, attempting to take a little more control, but Erwin isn’t having it. He bites your bottom lip with a light growl.

“You’ve been seducing me all night, young lady. And here I was, thinking you were a good little girl.” His voice is low and heavy with lust. You swallow thickly. Running your hand down his chest, you find yourself at his belt. You bite your lip and gaze up at him into his oceanic eyes.

“Come to my room?” You ask, voice small. Leading him to your room, you can’t help but smile to yourself. If you’d known getting revenge would be this fun, you’d have done it sooner. You’re enjoying yourself with Erwin, but a pang of guilt does strike your heart. The only thing you didn’t like was bringing an innocent man into your issues with Eren. You push those thoughts away and straddle Erwin on your bed. You can feel his thick cock through his pants and you’re eager to get to it. He grinds himself up into you while gripping your hips tightly. A surprised moan escapes from your throat. Your bodycon dress is pulled up to your waist, exposing you from there down. You had worn the tiniest panties you owned, just for this. Erwin groans seeing you like this, exposed and dripping wet.

“You’re sure you want this?” The man questions.

“Yes, please.”

That was all he needed to pull your dress up further. He removes it entirely and marvels at the sight of you. Ruffled hair, pleading eyes, puffy lips. Not even mentioning your soft, curvaceous body. You lift yourself up from him for a moment to allow him to remove his own clothes. His cock is about average length, but it’s deliciously thick. You could tell he’d give you a good stretch.

“Do you have a condom?” You murmur in Erwin’s ear. Erwin pulls one from his discarded pants and slides it on. Sitting back down on his lap, you rub yourself along his length. It feels so good feeling him rub against your swollen clit. He aligns himself at your entrance and with one swift motion fills you. A mewl escapes you as you feel the sudden stretch.

“You feel so good wrapped around me,” Erwin groans. Your gushy walls surround him, sucking him in. Erwin is so broad, you’re bracing your hands on his chest to balance yourself. His blond hair is now disheveled and he has an animalistic look in his eyes. The put together business man of before has been abandoned. Something about it makes your pussy even wetter. You bounce on his cock repeatedly, each motion getting you closer to your bliss. Your legs start to tire, so Erwin grabs the back of your neck and pulls you to lay on his chest. He then grabs you by the hips and fucks up into you. His pace is short and quick; he’s eager to chase his orgasm. His cock hits your most sensitive spot over and over making you cream all over him.

“Don’t stop, I’m so close,” you whine. Erwin’s rhythm doesn’t falter, instead he gets rougher with each stroke. His arms have you caged in, pressed against him. The strength of him squeezing you sends you over the edge. You fall apart on him; pussy fluttering and gushing around his cock. After he feels your orgasm wash away, Erwin flips you over. Your knees are damn near touching your ears the way he’s got you bent up. He’s so deep he’s hitting your cervix. His balls are slapping your ass with every thrust. The room is filled with the lewd symphony of your pussy squelching, heavy breathing, and skin slapping skin.

“I’m about to cum,” Erwin grunts. His pace falters, his hips tremble, and you feel his cock twitch inside you. He lets out a groan with a shudder. He slides out of you slowly then removes the now full condom. You watch him tie the condom off and toss it into the trash.

“Let’s get you cleaned up and we can go to sleep, yeah?” Erwin suggests. He’s such a good guy. Yet another pang of guilt hits you. If things were different, Erwin could definitely be a good partner. Unfortunately, your heart belonged to Eren.

After getting cleaned up, the two of you get comfortable in your bed. Erwin falls asleep first, a light snore coming from him. You take this time to grab your phone and take a few pictures of Erwin’s sleeping form. You make sure to get a good picture so it’s evident who he is and that you’re with him.

In the morning, you bid Erwin farewell with a kiss on the cheek. You scroll through your contacts to find Eren ❤️‍🔥 Jaeger. Unblock. After unblocking Erens contact, a sea of messages flood your phone. You barely skim them; most of them apologies, some blame you for driving him to cheat. Eyeroll. He’s about to be sorry, all right.

To Eren ❤️‍🔥: Attachment: 2 images

‘We forgive you ❤️’

[acebytaemin]

[end of an era]: closing #analook

first of all, i want to say thank you times five billion to everyone who’s ever tagged me in a post. it goes without saying that i have enjoyed every single one of them and will treasure this entire experience and all the beautiful creations i’ve gotten to see (and discuss in great lengths in the tags of course 🤭). now, that’s partly the reason why i feel like i should wrap it up - you all create such wonderful things and they all deserve my full attention and all the yapping i can muster yet sadly just don’t have the time to type up. it’s silly how much it’s meant to me (i might be tearing up a little) and how much i’m going to miss it, but i really do think it’s for the best. of course, feel free to @ me or send me any post of yours in the future - you know i’ll respond with enthusiasm. though it won’t come close to a gif/edit/artwork, i’ve typed up little thank-you notes to the main contributors to #analook as a token of my gratitude under the cut. love & appreciate you all SO so so so much! 💖

@atlantis-area - my dearest alexa, the reason i even started a user tag and got to experience all this, thank you The most 💖 hopefully you already know how grateful i am for you, so i won’t make it too long. it’s been a pleasure (and will continue to be) to watch your giffing style evolve and to get to be a fan of taemin alongside you. love you! 🩵

@herewegobebe - oh my darling ru where do i start 🥹 i’m soooo so thankful for your wonderful presence and your gifs (as ive already told you numerous times). you’ve been a real highlight of my tag (it’s still a bit of a starstruck moment for me to be your mutual/get tagged in your gifs tbh!) and it’s going to make me really really sad to potentially miss some of your gifs now but best believe i’ll be checking ur blog whenever i can 🙂‍↕️💖

@minhosblr - MAJA my number one gorgeous wino gif source i literally can’t believe you even tagged me in them to begin with i feel like it’s all been such a successful fan moment 🥹🐰🫶🏻 thank you so so much & ofc expect me all up in your tags regardless 😽💓

@kimsuyeon - my lili the absolute master of gifs with gorgeous quality and beautiful coloring and stunning women like you can truly do no wrong in my books anytime i see a gif of yours i get giddy and feel like cracking my knuckles and going IN in the tags. thank you soooo much for gracing me (and everyone else) w your gorgeous gifs 💝

@pink-vacancy - the way im going to miss yuna & mina served on a beautiful platter cannot be overstated.. thank you so much for adding a beautiful touch of cherry red spice to my tag 🙂‍↕️🍒💋 (and kinda beside the point but also for always being SO incredibly sweet & nice to me)

@faunandfloraas - jess my third favorite australian 🤭💕 your creativity and collecting moments/pulling parallels + funny tags have brought me very many giggles, thank you saaaaur much 😽💕

@chanrizard - sa thank you soooo much for my chan gif fixes 💖 and SORRY for all the stuff you’ve had to read in your tags and still tagging me regardless lmfaojfkdjdk you best believe you’ll keep on reading them as i’ll be a frequent visitor of your blog from now on 🫡

@rainknow - your art has been one my favorite things to find in my tag, thank you so so so much for using it! most wonderful capturing of lino i’ve ever seen, no one does his eyes justice like you do 😽💖 (pls if you ever feel like it and i don’t see a post of ur art mention me or send it to me - it’d be highly appreciated!)

@linoyes - thank you SO much for amping up the amount of linos in my tag, it’s been such a delight to see your giffing evolve and im excited to keep yapping in your tags in the future 🤭💞💞💞

@jonghyunluvr - your jjong/taemin posts are always so enjoyable, i love your insights and how you notice the same things as me sometimes hehe 🩵🩵 please do keep sending them to me by all means 😌

@shorelinnes - raf pleaseeee if you want to still send me or tag me in your art.. i’d be so sad to miss it and your gorgeous gifs too! im so very happy to have you around and i appreciate all the posts you’ve tagged me in so so much 💞

@strayklds - em i remember being nervoussss to ask you to tag me hdksjdk i think your gifs are so good and want to thank you Very much for tagging me in them! it’s really been a pleasure 🫶🏻

@briankang - TAY my minchan friend and my bangchan gifs supplier you best believe i’ll be checking your blog 🤭 thank you SO much for all you’ve tagged me in so far 💖 (still thinking abt your minchan ate teasers edits.. changed my life now idk if for the better or worse but. lives have been changed for sure)

@taeiltual - bex your gorgeous edits truly make me think that most of these companies truly need to do better, thank you so much for making everyone look more beautiful and tagging me along (hehe) for the ride! 💖

@ashmp3 @kissoflifes - thank you two SO much for using my tag as intended and for the highest purpose of all - in your gorgeous selfies! (& thank you zaynab for your beautiful gifs too ofc ofc) for sure still send them to me if i happen to miss them we Do Nottt want a tragedy like that to ever strike. love u my beautiful friends 💞💞

@28reas0ns - not directly related to my tag (though you did tag me in a couple of beautiful sets!) but just wanted to once again thank you for my header gif(s) i’ll really treasure them for a long time 💝

and a shoutout to everyone who’s tagged me in a few of their posts, thank you thank you thank you from the bottom of my heart! it’s really felt special every single time and i can’t thank you all enough for thinking of me and inviting me to yap in your tags like one would a vampire into their home. MWAH appreciate you all soooo so much 💖💖💖:

@reiiofsunn 💖 @drzephyr 💖 @hyunjinsource 💖 @minho-knows 💖 @speakofcompersion 💖@linolinoing 💖 @sunugf 💖

[thelovelylolly]

hey hey 🫶🫶

i saw ur requests were open so i thought eh why not 😚😚 can i plss get an eddie x like a hippie reader?? like crystals, stevie nicks, tarot cards the works yk??

tyyy 🩷🩷

Crystal Chick

Summary: Eddie, the metalhead and freak, has a crush on you, the resident hippie of Hawkins High. Warnings: fem!reader (she/her pronouns are used), reader is described as shorter than eddie, let me know if i missed any! Notes: ive recently gotten into crystals and tarot, so i love this request! im not like a full on hippie, but im definitely leaning towards it lol

"Wait, wait, wait, you like the crystal chick?"

Eddie grumbled and looked away to hide his blush. His friends, the Hellfire Club, just put two and two together and he knew they were gonna tease him. He noticed you on the first day of school, driving by him with Stevie Nicks blaring from your car. Since then, you've always caught his eye whether you knew it or not.

"She's not just a crystal chick, Mike," Eddie answered, glaring at Mike and the rest of the table. "She's a hippie, I think."

"That means she's a crystal chick."

"Does it matter? Eddie Munson likes a hippie!" Dustin added.

Eddie rolled his eyes and leaned back in his chair.

He remembered when you two first talked. You were in the theater room, where Hellfire is usually hosted, and you were doing a tarot reading. Eddie walked in and you looked up at him, a little upset that he messed with your reading.

"Can I help you?" You had asked him, already collecting the crystals and cards you had laid out.

"Oh, uh, my club meets here..." Eddie answered, trailing off as you stood up.

Your outfit was eclectic, but flowy. You had stacks of necklaces on, some with moons and suns, other with crystals. Your rings were the same, you had on bangles and your earrings dangled low. You put your things in your patched up bag and stood in front of him, breaking him from his thoughts.

"You a metalhead or something?" You asked, looking up at him with your hands on your hips.

"Are you a hippie or something?" He countered, a smile pulling at his lips.

You smirked before walking past him and calling back, "see ya around."

With that, you were gone and Eddie had a crush on you.

"Hey, look! Here she comes!" Dustin said a bit too loudly, breaking Eddie from his flashback.

You walked past the Hellfire table with your patched up bag slung over arm and your lunch bag in your hand. You had on beat-up bellbottom jeans with a flowy top that tied in the front, and you had on your usual eclectic accessories. You glanced at Eddie as you passed by then continued to your usual spot.

The other guys went crazy when they saw you look at Eddie, who was still watching you as you reached your spot in the corner of the cafeteria and sat down.

"You should go talk to her!" Dustin eagerly suggested, the others agreeing with him.

Eddie shook his head, picking at his food as a distraction. "No, I...I don't think she would like me. I'm not her type."

"How do you know that?" Gareth asked.

"Have you seen her? She's beautiful and her style is so cool, plus she's pretty smart to remember all those crystals and cards and stuff. I'm just, y'know, me."

"Boo! Enough self-doubt, just go try! You don't know what's gonna happen," Dustin replied.

Eddie thought about it for a moment, weighing the pros and cons. Pros: you'd actually like him back or at least want to be friends with him. Cons: he embarrasses himself and further cements his place as a freak. But he didn't really care. He sighed and got up, the rest of the guys cheering as they watched him walk over to you.

You were picking at your food and reading a book with crystals on the torn up cover. You heard Eddie's footsteps as he got closer and looked up. You closed your book and leaned forward when he sat across from you.

"Hi," he said.

"Hi," you replied, a small smile on his face. Since your first interaction with him, you found out that Eddie Munson was the school freak and the leader of the D&D club. You also found out that he was in fact a metal head and was in a band. You wanted to talk to him more, but you never found a good time.

"I, uh, I saw you walk over here and thought I'd join you," Eddie started, then quickly added, "but I can go if you want to be left alone. I don't want to intrude or anything."

You giggled at his awkwardness. "You can stay. I don't mind, Eddie."

"Okay, cool..."

You two were quiet for a few minutes, the rest of the chatter from the cafeteria keeping it from being too awkward. You noticed how he fidgeted with his rings, a habit you have yourself. You smiled and covered his hands with yours, stopping his fidgeting and causing him to look at you with blush on his cheeks.

"You have a question for me, don't you?" You asked.

"H-how'd you know?" He replied, not pulling his hands away from you.

"I had a feeling," you answered, "and maybe my cards told me."

Eddie laughed. "Well, uh, I was just wondering...would you wanna hang out with me sometime?"

"I would love to," you said, "I was gonna ask you the same thing but I never found the right time."

"Great, um, would you wanna meet after school? I know this spot where we can hang out and it's just by the football field. Maybe you could give me a tarot reading?"

You giggled. "Sounds like a plan."

[angelmichelangelo]

my initial thoughts of tales of the teenage mutant ninjas turtles below the cut, don’t read if you’ve not already watched the show cos SPOILERS!!

off the bat i think this show is really good fun and overall i think i can say i enjoyed it! the style is good, the writing is just as easy and as realistic as the movie. each of the turtles do shine here in their own individual way. but alas if do have my gripes i wanted to share.

not so sure if anything that actually happens in this series is… even canon? maybe im just dumb but with the whole “leo making a comic book” and “raph dramatising a story for a school project” thing it’s not so clear as to whether the events in the series with bishop and the east river 3 are even real ?? kinda disappointing if not cos that’s honestly just as lame as “and it was all a dream!!” kind of endings you find in like. middle school creative writing homework.

also. just gonna say this now. splinter. if they couldn’t have gotten jackie chan back or gotten someone that at least sounds like him, i kind of wish they’d removed him entirely from the plot because raph doing the voice over for him in the entire second half of the series was. OOF. it really pulled me from the immersion especially when there was some really strong character moments from him, but it’s… raph? speaking in a gruff voice ?? for some reason? not sure what happened with jackie chan and whether they wrote all his scenes BEFORE they maybe realised he wasn’t coming back to voice him but… yeah. could have just gotten another va and made a gag that he had a cold or something rather than… whatever that whole thing was. i didn’t like it, sorry. pulled me out of the stronger moments for that character which was a shame.

i really liked the whole separated storyline. tmnt rarely does that and it plays no favourites in getting each of the boys to shine individually within their own arcs and play out their own strengths and weaknesses and their brothers own strengths !! and then a little reunion at the factory, especially raph and leo’s hug. very precious :D

but then… the second half of the series is that.. again?? feels kind of a waste of time to redo what we JUST saw. turtles separated (this time with a mutanimal) and have to think like the others to get out of a tough spot and then boom huggy happy reunion time. which brings us to like 2 whole episodes out of 12 where the turtles actually are all on screen interacting with one another…

i had the same issue with mutant mayhem that, whilst they are good characters in a group and alone, there’s never any like. closer interactions. aside from like, the leo raph hug or when raph gives mikey a noogie affectionately in the first episode, there’s never like any one to one interactions that makes it feel all that more believable to me. don’t get me wrong, ive been asking for a mikey centric episode where he gets to shine for YEARS now and we finally got it!! but in the words of rise donnie… something they feel more like roommates rather than brothers just because their interactions are so sparse and far between. that’s just how i feel so take it with a pinch of salt.

i feel like they tempered the whole leo april thing which, for me, isn’t really a big deal. she’s more like an sister to the guys in my opinion but if you were hoping for more of what we got in the movie, then only expect like. one or two moments where it reminds you leo has a crush on her before they’re acting like just friends again.

bishop was really cool! i loved her design and backstory!! they’re bringing in the EPF which i LOVE!! this franchise seems to swing heavily towards the whole anti-mutant thing which is always fun for me. love seeing the boys chased off or shunned especially since they’re known to the public (even if i… don’t super love that plot but here we are) so even if the whole bishop thing.. wasn’t canon?? im hoping they bring her back somehow.

the whole “humans have mutations too” thing was actually really clever, with rod and his different coloured eyes, i wish they did more with that!! i think i would have rather had an entire 12 episode series about bishop and her robots rather than the random mutant pearl heist just cos the bishop storyline felt more important. that way we could have done the whole separated storyline AND have the boys actually fighting together again.

even if i complained about the second half it was still really written and a lot of fun! donnie’s episode with wingnut and leatherhead was so good, maybe my favourite episode out of the lot, as well as mikey trapped in the bodega. im not hating on the show, i did actually enjoy it i promise lol

i think going into the show, i had an inkling that as far as plot was concerned, it wasn’t going to push itself out too far. often times when you have a tv series bridging between one movie and the next, you’re saving all your serious stuff for the thing people are most likely to see, which is the sequel, rather than the 12 episode series. if they were to add casey or shredder or Krang or put leo through an actual window as per tradition, and casual fans hadn’t watched the series but sat down to watch the second movie, they’d be confused as hell and it wouldn’t do as good. marvel do it too, where it’s just to fill a gap for a time being without any serious plot or arc. so i kinda had that anticipation going forward into watching the show and i guess i was right. so if you’re expecting your big leo trauma moment, know they’re probably saving it for the movie instead where more people are likely to watch it.

i really love the animation, the style, the voice acting. (though im just gonna say this in like the kindest way possible. mikey’s va needs to work on the fact that he delivers some lines like he’s reading straight off the page. im not a professional but it stood out to me a few times and that’s just my humble opinion. i do think he suits the character so so well though and i wish him all the best going forward as our michelangelo!) whether we ever see brady noon as raphael again is a nother story lol

overall, as a tmnt fan, it delivered. it was fun and punchy and honestly worth the watch if you’re thinking about delving into another series. it’s not rise nor any of the previous iterations and i think sometimes you gotta just step back and view it with a fresh pair of eyes, because in all honestly i came off the back of watching all the rise episodes in like 2 days to then watching this, so i was making a few unfair comparisons throughout, none of which i think were obvious in my above points but. yeah. i didn’t hate it!! I thought it was funny and silly and well crafted by people that genuinely understands the characters in this.

now im just looking forward to the sequel :D

[likeadog]

i think i hauve a crush on you can you talk about ibara more

okay um teehee ill try to say something i havent just said a million times before o7

um but!!! one thing i think is interesting about her is ofc her hairstyle and the fact the crown of thorns very clearly had to have been styled herself (given we see her without it as well and just like, the nature of her hair) and in the sheet for her hero costume it says that "if she gets cold she can just wrap herself in her thorns". which is like, curious to me in that we know her thorns have some cutting and scraping power-- she expresses being worried about people getting scratched in the light novels, we see kirishima and kaminari covered in scrapes after getting wrapped up, etc. so this to me implies one of two things: either her skin is naturally just like, too tough to feel it, or shes gotten used to it

given like, what the crown of thorns represents and ibaras whole hardcore humble nature, personally i think that instead of being predisposed to thorn immunity, shes just gotten used to the prickles over the years. thats why i like drawing her with a lot of teeny tiny blemishes and scars on her face/neck/shoulders when i draw her!

(some of these are old as fuck fojeroijtgojogj sorry)

i would really. really like to see the vine sweater though like whatever "wrapping herself in thorns" means. please horikoshi i want to see it

i also think ibaras personality is full of some really fun and interesting contradictions and sillyisms like i know ive hammered on about how a lot of the times she just kinda does her own thing, but i think its cool to note that shes not like, obscenely arrogant or reckless or whatever. we see her express uncertainty a few times; she gets stage fright before class b's play, as well as in the ova when she tells jirou that she hasnt ever played baseball before. I think with ibara, it's not that she believes shes good at everything and always correct: i think ibara knows what shes good at, and so on THOSE things she doesnt really give a lot of wiggle room, but with other things, shes a lot more willing to let other people take the lead because shes like idkkkkk idkkkkkk girl

theres also times when she does lie! i know youre gasping. scandalized. but i think its also a really interesting little bit of insight

in the light novels, theres a chapter about the girls luring mineta into revealing himself while hes trying to peep in the training camp baths so they can kick his ass, and in that chapter, kendou, yui, and ibara act as the "decoys". they fake a conversation while they fill the room with smoke with a machine yaomomo made, and then all the girls hang out after and have a slumber party. ibaras well aware of what theyre doing and why, and she doesnt express any regret or uncertainty on the matter, even though shishida using her as a decoy in combat was something she was shocked and upset by. not to mention, she also mentions having stolen minetas headband in a "deceitful way" during the sports fest, and only mentions it possibly being a bad thing when their team wakes up after being brainwashed by shinsou and is like "was that karma for doing that"

like, there's very clearly this precedent of her explicitly and exclusively thinking of deception as 100% okay against mineta, which is hilarious, because we even see her apologize to gigantomachia.

This guy is trying to kill them. He is a "walking natural disaster". and shes still apologizing to him for outnumbering him. Which is hilarious. But she never once apologizes to Mineta. Given what that kind of thing means to Ibara, I think this makes her the character to express the most outright malice and hatred towards Mineta in the entire series. And she's right for that. (I don't know why so many people seem to ship them together also like what....anyways)

the biggest thing with ibara i think is that a lot of people will write her or write her off a certain way because of her initial gimmick and so they just kinda automatically assign a personality and traits based on the very western american concept of a devout christian. which is fair, i guess, like i get it, but ibara isn't in america (shes in a country where christianity is very heavily a minority) and i think most importantly, she's still a 16 year old girl. a very weird, very super powered 16 year old girl, but the appeal of the bnha students as characters is that even with all their funny habits and quirks, they're still VERY 16, and ibara is no different. the girl may talk about flayings and the body of the lord, but she still wears little pink sneakers to gym and gets nervous performing in a school play and has to worry about her math class.

and another one of her funny contradictions ive also spoken about but the way in which she speaks i think is another interesting facet. we know ibara is a very above-board, straightforward, honorable kid who hates lying or any type of deception. she has a moral panic over basic tactical maneuvers. but the way she talks is so esoteric that a lot of her peers dont seem to really understand her, and she seems almost completely oblivious to that fact? again, take an example from the light novels: iida asks what he just ate in the hot pot penalty game, and ibara says "the body of our lord..." to which he responds "A BODY?!" and its only when Yaomomo clears up that she's talking about bread does it get clarified at all. I can only think of one or two instances when Ibara clarifies what the fuck she's talking about at any time, and that's with a very direct set of questions. Another example is Shishida and his nickname:

It's very clear that he doesn't want to be called that, but they continue nonetheless.

And I don't think any of this is at odds with Ibara's very straightforward, guileless nature. I think it's just a "translation error"-- Ibara thinks what she's saying is exactly the same as what everyone else is saying, and doesn't get that most people don't have the context or background to decode how she speaks. They're "synonyms"-- but only to her, and nobody else. It's interesting! And I think it could provide a lot of interesting play with other characters who haven't had to adapt to it yet, or even with characters who by necessity would-- like Kaminari and Sero, who do work studies with her.

anyway eeeeek i have to get ready to go to work love you bye <3

[writingwhimsey]

Married to The Enemy- Shingen Ch. 31

Chapter 31

I woke up the next morning to the sound of my alarm on my phone. I let out a groan as I turned it off. I don’t think I had gotten much sleep at all. But now that I had a new day, that meant I could see my love soon.

I climbed out of bed and went into the bathroom. I splashed some water on my face to help wake up before heading into the kitchen. I dug through the cabinets, happy to find some coffee. I brewed the coffee and poured myself a cup. Just the smell was already starting to perk me up a bit.

“Oooh, coffee, how I have missed you.” I spoke to my cup before taking a drink, feeling that first sip in my soul. “When we get back to the Sengoku, I’m going to have to talk to Sasuke and see if we can find a way to get the importing process of coffee started earlier.”

I drank my coffee, finishing off the entire pot before finishing getting ready. I didn’t have the choice but to get back into my kimono. I grabbed the purse Sasuke and his professor had prepared for me and pulled out the prepaid bank card. There was a number on the back to call and check the balance.

I called the number and went through the automated prompts. My eyes were practically bulging out of my head when I heard the number. That was WAY too much. There was NO WAY I was spending all of that. I made the plan to just buy a few basic pieces for myself and Shingen. Who knew how long we would be here? Depending on how things went, perhaps I would find a small office job like I once had before. That way I wouldn’t have to rely on this money.

“Alright, time to go shopping.” I told myself once I had finished getting ready. I headed out on the town, hitting a few clothing stores and just buying myself the basics. Simple pieces that could be used to make multiple outfits so long as you mixed and matched. Also with it being summer I did pick up a couple of sundresses. I went ahead and picked up a few things for Shingen as well. Though I didn’t know how long we would have in the modern day…I had to admit I was looking forward to when he got out of the hospital and getting to dress him up in various modern styles.

Once I had finished my shopping I returned to the apartment to put away the clothes and change. I decided to put on one of the sundresses. It was a simple and cute dress with spaghetti straps and came down to just above my knee. White flowers patterned the dress and the skirt was so flowy and breezy.

I couldn’t help but to smile as I thought about Shingen seeing me in modern clothes for the first time. Since we’d arrived he’d only seen the doctors and nurses, so he hadn’t really seen the full array of clothing that was worn now. 

I grabbed my phone and looked up the nearest breakfast places and what they had to offer. “Hmm…donuts should be a good first sweet treat breakfast for Shingen to try.” I muttered to myself.

I left the apartment and headed to the restaurant and ordered the donuts to go. By the time I had finished, it was finally visiting hours at the hospital once again. I couldn’t wait to see Shingen again. I hope he was able to sleep well last night. I thought as I walked the sidewalks to the hospital. I was so happy Sasuke and his professor had been able to set me up in an apartment so close. I’ll have to do something really nice for them.

Once at the hospital, I made my way to the floor Shingen was on and to his room. The door was slightly ajar so I pushed it open further to peak my head in. Shingen was sitting up in his bed looking a bit groggy as a nurse was checking his vitals and making sure his IV was all set.

Shingen’s sleepy eyes turned to me as I came in and a smile spread across his face, making my heart melt. “There’s my angel.” He said.

The nurse looked up. “Ah, you must be Mrs. Takahashi.” She greeted me.

Takahashi…oh right Shingen’s alias here! I thought to myself. I smiled. “Yes, I am the lucky woman.” I replied.

The nurse smiled. “You must be very special. Even in his sleep after I gave him some medicine he wouldn’t stop talking about you.” She said. “I’ll leave you two alone for a bit. You’ll be having more tests done today.”

The nurse then left and I was making my way over to Shingen’s bedside. “How are you feeling?” I asked him.

“Better now that you’re here.” He answered, his arms reaching for me and pulling me into the bed with him before I even had a chance to sit down in the chair.

I giggled. “Careful or you’ll make me squish our breakfast treats.” I said, holding up the box of donuts, though I was happy to be in his arms.

“I thought you were my treat.” Shingen replied, kissing my forehead. “Especially when you’re looking so cute.”

I felt my cheeks heating up, but I couldn’t deny that I was happy right where I was…or how much I enjoyed Shingen’s flirting. “Well this is a bonus then, I guess.” 

“So, what is it?” Shingen asked.

I smiled as I flipped open the box. “They’re called donuts. A deep-fried sweet dough covered in other various and delectable sweets.”

Shingen’s eyes widened as he looked at the donuts…I honestly thought I might see some sparkles in those gray eyes. “They all look so good…”

I had picked up a variety of donuts so that Shingen would have some options to try. “You really can’t go wrong with any of these. However THIS is my personal favorite.” I said, reaching into the box and pulling out a chocolate eclair donut. “This icing on top is chocolate…my absolute favorite sweet and the inside has a delicious sweet filling.”

“I don’t want to take it if it’s your favorite.” Shingen replied.

“That is why I got two of every flavor in this box.” I informed him with a proud smile.

Shingen grinned. “My goddess is brilliant and beautiful.” 

I held the donut to his lips. “Come on now, try it. I know you’re gonna love it.”

Shingen parted his lips and then bit into the donut. His face…he was like a little kid who had just been introduced to sweets for the first time. “That is delicious.” He said after swallowing the bite before going in for another. He was then reaching into the box and grabbing out the other eclair donut for me and holding it to my lips.

I smiled before taking a bite. I must have had stars in my eyes too…it had been SOOO LONG since I’d had a donut. I forgot just how much I loved them. “Mmm…” I hummed as I closed my eyes, smiling in contentment.

“Should I be jealous of this donut?” Shingen asked, a teasing smile on his face.

My eyes popped open and instantly my cheeks reddened. “No…it’s just been so long since I’ve had a donut.”

Shingen smiled and hugged me closer. “It is a rather tasty treat.”

I smiled as I nestled into his embrace. “While we’re here I’ll have to bring you all kinds of sweet treats to try. We have waffles and pancakes…those are also breakfast foods. Then there’s ice cream, slushies, cookies, all kinds of cakes, and a HUGE array of candy.”

“And when we go back we don’t say a word to Yuki.” Shingen replied.

I giggled and nodded. “Agreed. We’d never hear the end of it.”

We continued to enjoy the donuts together. “How did you sleep last night, my love?” Shingen asked me as we continued to cuddle up even after finishing the donuts. 

“Okay…once I got to sleep.” I replied. “I missed you.” There was no point in trying to lie or hide it.

Shingen couldn’t hide his smile. “I’m glad to know the feeling is mutual.”

“I set my alarm early so I could get up in time to get here as soon as visiting hours started.” I confessed.

“You’re so cute.” Shingen told me.

I felt my cheeks redden. “I just wanted to see you as soon as possible.”

“That makes me happy to hear.” He said. “I’m also happy to see this…new kimono you are wearing.” His fingers were trailing over my bare arms and exposed legs.

I felt myself warming under his touch. “It’s called a sundress.” I replied. “And I had hoped you would like it.”

“Very much.” Shingen replied. “Is this…normal attire for this time?”

I nodded. “Very much so. Especially for the hot summers.”

“I like it.” Shingen replied, his hands still roaming over me.

“You know, being like this is going to be when the doctor or a nurse walks in.” I told him. “We should behave ourselves.”

“I am behaving.” Shingen replied. “If I weren’t my hands would have already wandered under this… dress.”

I laughed and shook my head. I reached for his hands, bidding them to stay still. “You are here to get better.” I reminded him. “I don’t want them kicking you out before they cure you.”

Shingen chuckled. “Alright, I’ll behave myself.” He said, settling his hands in more appropriate places. “But once I am cured and out of here, I don’t have to, right?”

“You’re shameless…but it’s one of the many things I love about you.”

“That wasn’t a no.”

I giggled again. “As long as the doctor releases you and says you have made a complete recovery, then no, you won’t have to.”

“Well, now I have even more motivation to listen to what the doctor says.”

It was then as if on cue, there was a knock on the door and the doctor was coming in. “Good morning, Mr. Takahashi….Mrs. Takahashi, I see you arrived as soon as visiting hours started.”

I felt my cheeks flushing. “Yes…”

The doctor gave us a smile. “It’s good to see Mr. Takahashi has such a loving and supportive wife. Patients always do better when they have a strong support.” He said.

“My angel is truly my greatest blessing.” Shingen said, causing me to turn redder.

“Well, today we will be running some more tests on you. I want to get a chest X-ray, a CT scan, and an MRI.” The doctor said. He then rattled off a few more tests that he would be conducting as well. “Mrs. Takahashi, if there are any errands you need to run, you might want to do that while we are conducting these tests.”

“I…I can’t just wait here?” I asked.

“You can, but it is going to be an all day thing.” The doctor said. “We have your contact information should we need to get a hold of you. Though we should be finished by dinner time.”

“I’ll be alright, Ava.” Shingen assured me. 

“I’ll be sending someone in to start the tests in about fifteen minutes.” The doctor said.

Shingen and I nodded as the doctor walked out the door. “Are you sure you’ll be okay?” I asked.

Shingen smiled. “Isn’t this the best place for me to be?” He asked.

“Okay, that’s fair.” I replied.

“Is there something you need to do?” Shingen asked.

I nodded. “Yeah. My Oba-san…I need to see her.”

“Then you should go.” Shingen told me. “I will be fine here.”

I nodded. “Alright, but I am staying here till they come get you for the tests.”

Shingen chuckled as he hugged me tighter. “I can accept that.” He said, pecking me lightly on the lips. “You were close with your grandmother?”

I nodded. “For a time after my father left, my mother and I lived with her.” I explained. “She can be a bit…eccentric, but she is a lovely woman.”

“What makes you say eccentric?” He asked.

I pursed my lips in thought. “It can be a bit hard to explain. But…for example when my mom disappeared, she said she knew she was okay and that she’d found some place she was happy.”

“How did she know this?” Shingen asked.

I shrugged. “Not sure. She claimed she could just feel it that my mom was fine.”

“And you didn’t agree?” Shingen asked.

“No.” I answered. “But I’ve come to realize that maybe it was just her way of coping with the loss of her daughter, especially in such an odd way.”

“I can understand that.” Shingen replied.

It was a few minutes later, a couple of orderlies were coming into take Shingen for his tests. We shared another hug and kiss before I was climbing out of the bed and they were wheeling him out the door. Hopefully soon we would find out what was going on with Shingen…and hopefully I would be able to have a good talk with my grandmother.

Taglist: @limonzu @zulablaise @oda-princess @kisara-16 @tele86 @lovely-bubb1es @lucyw260 @selenacosmic

[sebstanaddict]

Too Good To Be True

Sebastian Stan x Reader Story

Summary: A romantic comedy story where Sebastian Stan falls in love with reader but she is not who he thinks she is.

The stress of the whole situation she was facing affected her deeply that reader fell unconscious during the intense shooting of Pumping Black. Her condition triggered something in Sebastian. Something she didn't expect.

Pairings : Sebastian Stan x Female!Reader

Chapters : 21/28 (Might add more)

Chapter list >

Warning : none I think, let me know if you find anything

Word count : 6k words

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Chapter 21 - A Heart Torn in Two

Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, 8700 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, California - August 22nd 2023 - 5 pm

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Y/n’s consciousness returned slowly, like a dawn breaking after a long, dark night. The world around her was soft, muted—the steady beeping of a machine, the hum of air conditioning, the faint scent of antiseptic mingling with something warm and familiar. Her eyelids felt heavy as she tried to open them, her mind sluggishly piecing together where she was and how she had gotten there.

The first thing she registered was warmth—something solid and reassuring wrapped around her hand. It anchored her, pulling her out of the fog that had clouded her mind. As her eyes fluttered open, the blurry surroundings of a hospital room came into view. The sterile white walls, the clinical bed, the IV drip connected to her arm—it all felt surreal, like she was trapped in a dream she couldn’t escape.

Then she saw him.

Sebastian was sitting by her bedside, his hand gently holding hers, his thumb tracing soft circles on her skin. His usually vibrant blue eyes were dimmed with exhaustion, the dark circles under them telling the story of restless worry. His hair, normally styled to perfection, was tousled, strands falling into his face as if he had run his fingers through it too many times in frustration.

“Mi reina,” he whispered, his voice thick with relief as her eyes met his.

The way he looked at her, with so much love and concern, and how he still called her with the endearing nickname he gave her, made her heart ache. He had called her mi reina so many times before, he also had given her the same look numerous times before. They used to make her heart flutter but now it was different. Now, it felt like a knife twisting in her chest.

“Sebastian,” she croaked, her voice raspy and weak.

She tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness washed over her, forcing her to lie back down. Sebastian’s hand tightened around hers, his other hand coming up to gently push her back onto the pillow.

“Don’t try to move,” he said softly, his eyes scanning her face as if searching for any sign of pain. “You need to rest.”

“What happened?” she asked, her eyebrows furrowed as she tried to recall the events leading up to this moment.

She remembered the movie set, the intense scene where her character had been stabbed by Sebastian’s character, the way his eyes had flashed with something real, something raw. Then… nothing.

“You fainted,” Sebastian replied, his voice laced with worry. “Right after the scene. You just… didn't wake up after Maya called cut. Scared the hell out of me.”

She blinked, her mind racing to catch up. The memory of the stabbing scene resurfaced, the fake blood, the tension in the air, and then the overwhelming exhaustion that had hit her like a freight train. She remembered feeling lightheaded, her vision narrowing, and then… darkness.

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, her throat tight. “I didn’t mean to—”

“Don’t apologize,” Sebastian cut her off, his tone firm but gentle. “You have nothing to be sorry for. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

He paused, his expression softening as he brushed a stray lock of hair away from her face. “But you’re not, are you?”

Her breath hitched at his words. She tried to look away, but he wouldn’t let her. His gaze was intense, almost pleading, as if he could see right through her, see all the turmoil she was desperately trying to hide.

“I’m fine,” she lied, forcing a small smile. “Just tired, I guess.”

“Tired doesn’t make you faint on set,” he countered, his voice tinged with frustration. “Mi reina, what happened between us clearly still upsets you. And it's clear that you’re dealing with something else. You’re pale, you’re losing weight, and you’ve been pushing yourself too hard. You need to take care of yourself.”

She swallowed hard, her heart constricting with guilt. She knew he was right. She had been neglecting her health, running herself ragged with the stress of everything going on in her life—her mother’s illness, the looming marriage to Adam, the guilt of breaking up with Sebastian. It was all too much, and yet she had kept going, refusing to slow down, refusing to let herself feel.

“I know,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “I know, Sebastian. But I can’t stop. I can’t afford to.”

“You can’t afford not to,” he argued, his hand tightening around hers. “I can’t lose you, Aurora. Not like this.” His voice cracked, the raw emotion in his words cutting through her like a knife. “I need you to promise me you’ll take care of yourself. Please.”

Her eyes welled up with tears, her heart breaking at the desperation in his voice. She wanted to promise him, wanted to tell him she would take care of herself, that she would be okay. But she couldn’t. Not when she knew what was coming, not when she knew she had to marry Adam and walk away from Sebastian forever.

“I promise,” she lied, her voice trembling. She forced herself to meet his gaze, the weight of her deceit heavy on her chest. “I promise, Sebastian.”

He let out a shaky breath, relief washing over his features as he leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead.

“Thank you,” he whispered, his lips lingering on her skin. “Thank you, mi reina.”

She closed her eyes, savoring the warmth of his touch, the way his breath tickled her skin. She knew it wouldn’t last, knew she had to let him go, but for just a moment, she allowed herself to believe in the lie. She allowed herself to imagine a world where they could be together, where she didn’t have to sacrifice her happiness for the sake of others.

But reality came crashing back all too quickly.

As Sebastian pulled back, his hand still cradling her cheek, she forced herself to open her eyes and face the truth. She couldn’t stay in this moment forever. She needed to let him go. For her mother's sake, and dare she think about it, for Aurora's sake.

“Sebastian,” she began, her voice trembling.

“What is it?” he asked, his brows furrowing in concern. He could sense her hesitation, the conflict raging within her, but he didn’t push. He just waited, his thumb still tracing soothing circles on her cheek.

She took a deep breath, steeling herself. “I… I think you should probably leave,” she finally said, the words tasting bitter on her tongue.

Sebastian’s eyes widened in surprise, confusion flickering across his features. “What? Why would you say that?”

“You know why. I.. I can't be with you anymore,” she continued, her voice growing stronger despite the tears threatening to spill over.

“You’re… you’re amazing, Sebastian. You’re kind, and loving, and you deserve someone who can give you everything. Someone who isn’t… complicated.”

“You’re not complicated,” he said fiercely, his hand slipping from her cheek to take both of her hands in his.

“Aurora, you’re the most beautiful, thoughtful, incredible, selfless person I’ve ever met. You.. you know this. You are the best thing that ever happened to me. Can’t you see that?!”

Her heart soared as she listened to him but she immediately felt a pang in her heart as she knew that no matter what he said, she knew he would never fall in love with the real her.

“I’m.. I’m sorry, Sebastian,” her voice breaking.

“You’re also the best thing that ever happened to me. You have no idea.” She blurted out. It was the truth and she couldn’t hide it.

Sebastian’s grip tightened on her hands, his eyes blazing with determination. “Then let me fight for you,” he pleaded. “Let me try and convince your parents that I’m the right person for you!”

Her resolve wavered, her heart torn between the love she felt for him and the duty she felt to Aurora. She wanted so badly to believe him, to trust that he could convince Aurora’s parents, but she knew she couldn’t.

During the long hours at night when she couldn’t help thinking of Sebastian, she realized that being in Aurora’s body was like lying to him all the time. The fact that he also had told her that he didn’t have feelings for the real her but only feelings like that as a sibling made her realize their union was one based on lies and fakery.

Even if he fell in love with her after she and Aurora had switched, he already had feelings for Aurora before, and it was clear he adored her physical appearance. Even though he liked her real self’s personality, she knew he would never like her appearance. That meant he wasn’t in love with her. He was in love with someone else. Someone who was a combination of her and Aurora. Someone who was based on a lie. She couldn’t keep doing it to him.

Granted, she had tried telling him the truth, but he looked so confused when she mentioned magic that she was certain he would just think she was crazy. So with a heavy heart she had made her choice, and it wasn’t fair to him to keep stringing him along.

“I can’t,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “I can’t let you do that.”

“Why not?” he asked, his voice thick with frustration. “Why can’t you let me do that?”

“Because…” she hesitated, searching for the right words. How could she possibly explain the impossible situation she was in without revealing the truth? Without him thinking that she was crazy. How could she make him understand without breaking his heart?

“Because you deserve better,” she finally said, her voice trembling. “You deserve someone who can give you everything, Sebastian. And that’s not me.”

“Don’t say that,” he protested, his voice cracking with emotion. “You are everything to me, Aurora. You’re all I want, all I need. Please, mi reina, don’t push me away.”

Her heart shattered at the pain in his voice, at the desperation in his eyes. She wanted nothing more than to take him in her arms and tell him that everything would be okay, that they could be together and face whatever came their way. But she couldn’t. She had already made her choice, and there was no going back.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, her tears finally spilling over. “I’m so sorry, Sebastian.”

Before he could respond, the door to the hospital room creaked open and Rosa stepped inside. Her face was lined with concern, her dark eyes flicking between Y/n and Sebastian.

“Miss Watson,” Rosa said gently, using Aurora’s name as a reminder of who she was in everyone's eyes. “The doctor is here to see you.”

She nodded, quickly wiping her tears with her trembling hands. She forced herself to take a deep breath, trying to steady her racing heart. The moment with Sebastian had shaken her to her core, and now she had to put on a brave face, pretended to be the woman she was not.

Sebastian, sensing the shift in her demeanor, reluctantly released her hands. His eyes never left hers, searching for any sign that she would change her mind, that she would let him in. But she knew she couldn’t afford to give him hope—not when she knew she had to walk away from him.

Rosa stepped aside, allowing the doctor to enter the room. He was a middle-aged man with a kind face, his expression professional yet warm as he approached the bed.

“Miss Watson,” he greeted her, nodding slightly at Sebastian in acknowledgment. “I’m Dr. Michaels. How are you feeling?”

“Better, thank you,” she replied, her voice steadying as she slipped back into the role of Aurora. “Just a little tired.”

Dr. Michaels nodded, glancing down at the chart in his hands. “That’s understandable. It seems you were suffering from exhaustion and dehydration, which caused you to faint. I’ve had you on an IV to rehydrate you, but it’s crucial that you take better care of yourself moving forward.”

She nodded, her mind barely processing the doctor’s words. She was too aware of Sebastian’s presence, too conscious of the way he was watching her with a mixture of concern and desperation.

“I’ll prescribe some vitamins and a strict rest regimen for the next few days,” Dr. Michaels continued, oblivious to the tension in the room. “It’s important that you avoid any strenuous activity and ensure you’re getting enough sleep and proper nutrition.”

“Yes, of course,” she murmured, her gaze flicking to Sebastian, who was still holding on to every word, his worry palpable.

“Good,” Dr. Michaels said with a satisfied nod. “I’ll have the nurse come by with your discharge papers shortly. You’ll be free to go home, but please remember—rest is crucial.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” she replied, forcing a small smile. The doctor gave her a final nod before exiting the room, leaving her alone with Sebastian and Rosa once more.

The room was thick with silence, the air heavy with unspoken words. She could feel Sebastian’s gaze on her, but she couldn’t bring herself to meet his eyes. She knew that if she did, she might break down, and she couldn’t afford to do that—not now.

Rosa cleared her throat softly, breaking the silence. “I’ll go make sure everything is ready for your discharge, Miss Watson,” she said, her voice gentle. “Do you need anything else before I go?”

She shook her head, grateful for Rosa’s tact. “No, thank you, Rosa. That’ll be all.”

Rosa nodded and gave Sebastian a sympathetic glance before quietly leaving the room, closing the door behind her. She felt a pang of guilt—Rosa had been nothing but kind to her, and here she was, playing a part that wasn’t hers to play, lying to everyone around her.

But it wasn’t the guilt toward Rosa that weighed heaviest on her heart. It was the man standing by her bed, the man who had poured his heart out to her moments ago, who was still waiting for some sign that she would let him back in.

Sebastian stepped closer, his expression softening as he reached out to take her hand again. “Aurora,” he said slowly, his voice thick with emotion. “Please, don’t shut me out. Whatever it is you’re going through, we can face it together. You don’t have to do this alone.”

Her heart ached at his words, at the sincerity in his voice. She wanted to tell him everything, to pour out her heart and confess the truth, but she couldn’t. The promise she had made to Aurora, the fear that he would not understand and might think that she was crazy, held her back like chains around her heart.

“I wish it was that simple,” she whispered, her voice trembling as she looked up at him. “But it’s not, Sebastian. It’s not.”

“It can be,” he insisted, his grip on her hand tightening. “It can be if you let it. I love you, Aurora. I love you more than anything. Please… please don’t push me away.”

Her vision blurred with tears as she listened to his plea, her heart breaking all over again.

“Sebastian,” she began, her voice shaking as she tried to find the strength to say what needed to be said. “You deserve someone who can give you everything, who can be with you without… without all these complications.”

“Stop,” he interrupted, his voice fierce. “Stop saying that. You are everything to me. Don’t you get that? I don’t care about the complications. I don’t care about anything else but you.”

His words hit her like a tidal wave, overwhelming her with the depth of his love, his devotion. How could she possibly walk away from this? How could she possibly let him go?

But she had to. For her mother. For Aurora.

“I’m sorry,” she choked out, tears spilling down her cheeks. “I’m so sorry, Sebastian. But I can’t… I can’t do this anymore.”

Sebastian’s face fell, his expression crumpling as the weight of her words sank in. “No,” he whispered, shaking his head as if he could somehow will her words away. “No, please don’t say that.”

She forced herself to look away, unable to bear the pain in his eyes. “You’ll find someone else,” she said, her voice barely audible. “Someone who can love you the way you deserve to be loved. But it can’t be me. Not anymore.”

She could feel his grip on her hand loosen, his hope slipping away like sand through his fingers. The silence between them was deafening, a chasm that seemed impossible to bridge.

And then, just as she thought he might walk away, he spoke again, his voice low and broken. “I don’t want anyone else. I want you. The moment you fainted and laid limp in my arms, I knew I couldn't live without you. The pain and worry were too unbearable. I can't.. I can't live without you, Aurora.”

The rawness of his confession shattered her resolve, the walls she had built around her heart crumbling to dust. She wanted so badly to throw herself into his arms, to tell him that she wanted him too, that she loved him more than anything in this world. But she couldn’t. Not when she knew the truth.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered again, her voice cracking under the weight of her sorrow. “I’m so, so sorry.”

Sebastian’s hand slipped from hers, the loss of his touch leaving her feeling cold and empty. He stepped back, his expression a mix of heartbreak and resignation. “If that’s really what you want,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper, “then I’ll go.”

Her heart screamed at her to stop him, to tell him the truth, to beg him to stay. But she remained silent, her body frozen with the fear of what might happen if she gave in to the feelings raging inside her.

With one last, lingering look, Sebastian turned and walked toward the door. Each step he took felt like a knife twisting deeper into her chest, the pain of losing him more than she could bear. But she didn’t call out to him. She didn’t stop him.

And when the door closed behind him, she let out a strangled sob, her body trembling with the force of her grief. She buried her face in her hands, the tears coming in torrents now, as the reality of what she had just done crashed down on her like a tidal wave.

She had lost him. And this time it felt final.

—

The days following her emotional breakup with Sebastian passed in a blur, each one blending into the next as she tried to maintain the façade of being Aurora. The shooting schedule for her had been rearranged so she had the rest of the week to rest. It was doctor’s orders and Maya was thankfully quite understanding about it.

She spent the days cooped up in Aurora’s castle. Her hours were spent only on resting, sleeping and eating. Rosa made sure that she wasn’t doing anything too strenuous. However, mentally she wasn’t resting at all.

Aurora had been telling her that her mother’s condition following the latest vitamin C injection treatment had worsened. The doctors suspected her liver had been compromised so they did some diagnosis on her. Unfortunately their suspicions were confirmed, the cancer has spread to her liver, making it even harder for her to heal.

The doctors prescribed some more treatments, which cost more than the initial amount they and her parents had agreed on. She had no choice but to ask Aurora if she could borrow some more money from her. Aurora was quick to say no but eventually she agreed. However, she insisted that no matter what happened, she would keep her promise in marrying Adam and not come back to be with Sebastian. It seemed she was all too aware that there was a possibility that they could come back and be together, seeing how they still work together.

Aurora’s feelings about them seemed to be on point. Sebastian, despite the heartbreak she had inflicted upon him, refused to give up. His efforts to win her back were relentless, each gesture more thoughtful and extravagant than the last. He may have been absent in person—too busy with the demands of shooting Pumping Black—but his presence was felt in every corner of the castle, in every carefully selected gift that arrived at her door.

The first gift came early in the morning, the day after their second break up, delivered by a courier dressed in a sleek black uniform. Y/n, dressed in one of Aurora’s satin robes, hesitated before opening the door. She wasn’t sure what to expect, but the sight of a large, elegantly wrapped box in the courier’s hands made her heart skip a beat.

“Miss Watson?” the courier asked, his voice polite and formal.

“Yes,” She replied, her voice barely above a whisper. Somehow she still wasn’t used to being addressed by Aurora’s name.

“This is for you,” the courier said, handing her the box with a respectful nod.

“Thank you,” she murmured, taking the box from him. It was surprisingly light, yet the weight of the gesture behind it made her feel as though she was holding something far more substantial.

After the courier left, she carried the box into the living room, her fingers trembling slightly as she set it down on the glass coffee table. The wrapping paper was a deep, rich burgundy, tied with a silk ribbon in the same color. Her heart raced as she carefully untied the ribbon and lifted the lid of the box.

Inside, nestled in layers of tissue paper, was a luxurious cashmere shawl, its soft, ivory fabric shimmering in the light. It was exquisitely made, the kind of item that exuded elegance and warmth. But what caught her attention was the note tucked into the folds of the shawl. She picked it up, her breath catching as she recognized Sebastian’s handwriting.

For the cold nights when I can’t be there to hold you. – S

Tears welled up in her eyes as she read the note. She could almost feel Sebastian’s presence in the room, his arms wrapping around her, his breath warm against her skin. The thought of him thinking about her, worrying about her comfort even when he wasn’t around, made her chest ache with longing.

But she couldn’t afford to let her resolve crumble. No matter how much she wanted to give in, to call him and tell him that she couldn’t bear to be apart from him, she knew she had to stay strong. For her mother.

The gifts kept coming, each one more elaborate than the last. The next day, she was greeted by a stunning bouquet of roses, delivered in a crystal vase that sparkled in the sunlight. The roses were a deep, velvety red, their scent filling the room with a rich, intoxicating aroma. Another note accompanied the flowers, written in the same familiar hand.

I miss you more than words can say. Please let me make things right. – S

Her heart twisted in her chest as she read the note. She wanted to reach out to him, to tell him that she missed him too, that she couldn’t stop thinking about him. But the memory of their last conversation, of the pain in his eyes when she had pushed him away, kept her silent.

That afternoon, Rosa brought in another package—this one smaller, but no less significant. Inside was a delicate gold bracelet, its fine links adorned with tiny, shimmering diamonds. It was a piece of jewelry fit for royalty, the kind of thing Aurora would wear without a second thought. But to her, it was a symbol of everything she could never have.

For the queen of my heart. – S

The note was simple, yet the words cut deep. Sebastian had always called Aurora his queen, mi reina, a term of endearment that had once seemed like nothing more than a charming nickname. But now, in the context of their relationship, it held a different meaning. He was reminding her of the love they had shared, of the bond that had been forged between them—one that he wasn’t willing to let go of so easily.

As the days passed, the gifts continued to arrive. There were gourmet meals, carefully curated and delivered by the finest restaurants in Los Angeles. The dishes were as beautiful as they were delicious—succulent lobster tails, perfectly seared steaks, decadent chocolate desserts. Each meal came with a note, always signed with the same initial, always expressing the same longing.

I want to share this with you. – S

I hope this brings a smile to your face. – S

I love you. Please don’t forget that. – S

She tried to steel herself against the onslaught of emotions that each gift evoked. She kept reminding herself of the promise she had made to Aurora, of the sacrifices she had to make to help heal her mother. But with each passing day, her resolve weakened. She found herself lingering over the notes, tracing the letters with her fingertips as if she could somehow feel Sebastian’s touch through the paper.

The most unexpected gift arrived on the fourth day, just as the sun was beginning to set. She had been sitting outside by the pool, wrapped in the cashmere shawl Sebastian had sent her, trying to find some peace in the solitude. Rosa appeared at her side, holding a slim, rectangular package wrapped in plain brown paper.

“This just came for you, Miss Watson,” Rosa said, her voice soft as she handed the package to her.

“Thank you, Rosa,” She replied, taking the package with a small smile. She waited until Rosa had gone back inside before she began to unwrap it, her curiosity piqued by the unassuming packaging.

Inside was a leather-bound journal, its cover worn and soft to the touch. Her breath caught in her throat as she opened it, revealing pages filled with handwritten poems. The handwriting was unmistakably Sebastian’s, each line carefully crafted, each word chosen with the utmost care.

She began to read, her heart swelling with emotion as she absorbed the words. The poems were raw and beautiful, filled with the kind of love that transcended the physical, that reached into the very soul. They spoke of longing, of desire, of a love that could not be extinguished, no matter the distance or the obstacles that stood in its way.

I see you in every star that lights the night sky,

In every breath I take, you are there, a part of me.

I cannot forget you, nor do I wish to try,

For you are the dream that I hold in my heart, endlessly.

If I could turn back time, erase the pain and suffering that you are feeling,

I would do so without hesitation, without fear.

But all I have are these words, these fragile thoughts,

Hoping they will reach you, hoping you will hear.

The tears flowed freely as she read, each poem a testament to the depth of Sebastian’s love for her. She could feel his presence in every line, his voice in every word. It was as if he was speaking directly to her, pouring out his heart in the only way he could while they were apart.

But with each poem, the weight of her decision grew heavier. How could she continue to deny him, to deny herself, when his love for her was so clear, so undeniable? And yet, the promise she had made to Aurora, the obligation and worry she felt toward her mother, and her fear of him finding out the real truth, kept her from reaching out to him.

She closed the journal, clutching it to her chest as she stared out at the darkening sky. The gifts, the poems, they were all reminders of what she was giving up, of the love she was forsaking. But could she truly live with herself if she let him go? If she allowed herself to remain trapped in a life that wasn’t hers?

As the first stars began to twinkle in the sky, she made a decision. She didn’t know what the future held, but she knew that she couldn’t continue like this. She couldn’t keep pretending that she didn’t love him, that she didn’t want to be with him. She had to find a way to make things right, to reclaim the life and the love that were rightfully hers.

But how? How could she break free from the chains that bound her, from the obligations that weighed her down? How could she find a way back to Sebastian, to the love they had once shared?

And even if she could, if somehow she had the guts to tell him the truth, would he still stay? Knowing he was in love with someone who was unreal?

The answers eluded her, slipping through her fingers like sand. As much as she hated it, she felt powerless and lost.

She sighed as she looked up at the night sky, praying something will happen to make things right. But deep down she knew, it wasn't the time yet.

—

Sunday evening arrived with a heaviness in the air that mirrored the turmoil in her heart. The day had been a blur of tension, her thoughts scattered between the impending dinner with Aurora’s parents and Adam, and the relentless attempts by Sebastian to contact her. He had been texting her since morning, his messages filled with concern, love, and a desperation that she couldn’t ignore.

Please, mi reina, let me come over. We need to talk.

I can’t stop thinking about you. I need to see you.

Each message had been like a weight pressing down on her, making it harder to breathe. She wanted to see him, to lose herself in his arms and forget the world for just a little while. But the reality of the situation held her back. She couldn’t afford to let her emotions get the best of her—not when so much was at stake.

In the early afternoon, she had finally responded, her hands shaking as she typed out the words that she hoped would put some distance between them.

Sebastian, I’m meeting with my parents and Adam tonight. Please understand. We can’t keep doing this.

The reply came almost instantly.

I understand, but please let me see you first. Just for a moment. I’ll do anything, mi reina. Please.

She had stared at the message for what felt like hours, her heart aching at the thought of hurting him again. But she knew that seeing him, even for a moment, would only make things harder for both of them. She had to be strong, even if it was the last thing she wanted to do.

I’m sorry, Sebastian. I can’t.

She had expected him to relent, to accept her decision with the same quiet grace that he had always shown. But as the evening approached and the shadows began to lengthen, she couldn’t shake the feeling that this wasn’t the end of it. Something in his last message had unsettled her, a sense of finality that made her chest tighten with dread. And she was right.

She was sitting in front of the mirror of her dresser when she heard it—a soft knock on her bedroom door. Her heart skipped a beat, the familiar sound sending a rush of emotions through her. She knew it was him.

“Aurora, please,” Sebastian’s voice came through the door, soft yet insistent. “Let me in.”

Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at the door, her hands trembling slightly. She took a deep breath, steeling herself against the urge to give in. “Sebastian, you shouldn’t be here.”

“I had to come,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “I can’t just let this go. Please, just talk to me.”

She closed her eyes, the sound of his voice tugging at her heartstrings. She wanted to talk to him, to let him in and pour out everything she had been holding inside. But she knew that if she opened that door, if she let him in, she wouldn’t be able to go through with what she had to do. “I can’t, Sebastian. Please, just go.”

There was a pause, and she could almost feel the weight of his hesitation through the door. She held her breath, waiting for his response, hoping that he would understand and leave.

“Aurora, I’m begging you,” Sebastian said, his voice barely above a whisper. “Don’t do this. Don’t push me away.”

Tears welled up in her eyes as she pressed her hands against the door, wishing she could reach out and hold him. “I have to,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “I’m sorry, but I have to.”

Another silence followed, this one longer and heavier. She could hear her own heart pounding in her chest, each beat echoing in her ears like a drum. She half-expected Sebastian to push the door open, to refuse to leave until she let him in. But when he finally spoke again, his voice was resigned, filled with a quiet sadness that cut her to the core.

“If that’s what you really want,” he said softly, “then I’ll go.”

She bit her lip to keep from crying out, her heart breaking as she heard his footsteps retreating down the hall. She waited until she was sure he was gone before she allowed herself to collapse onto the bed, burying her face in her hands as the tears finally came. She had thought that sending him away would make things easier, that it would help her move on. But it only made everything hurt that much more.

As the minutes ticked by and the room grew darker, she forced herself to get up and prepare for dinner. She couldn’t afford to fall apart now—not when she had to face Aurora’s parents and Adam in just a short while. She stood in front of the mirror, trying to compose herself as she adjusted her dress, but her thoughts kept drifting back to Sebastian.

Just as she was about to leave the room, something caught her attention. A faint sound, almost like a soft scraping, coming from the direction of the balcony. At first, she ignored it, assuming it was just the wind or a tree branch brushing against the glass. But then the sound grew louder, more distinct, and her heart skipped a beat as she turned toward the window.

Her breath caught in her throat when she saw him—Sebastian—clinging to the edge of the balcony, struggling to pull himself up. For a moment, she thought she was imagining things, that the stress of the day had finally gotten to her. But as he fought to climb the rest of the way, his movements precarious and unsteady, she realized with a jolt of shock that he was really there.

“Sebastian, what the hell are you doing?” she gasped, rushing to the balcony door and throwing it open. The sight of him hanging onto the edge, so close to falling, sent a wave of fear through her. “You’re going to kill yourself!”

“Just… give me a second,” he panted, his muscles straining as he tried to hoist himself up. He almost lost his grip, his body teetering dangerously before he finally managed to pull himself up onto the balcony, collapsing onto the floor with a grunt.

She knelt beside him, her heart racing as she grabbed his arm to help him up. “Are you out of your mind?” she whispered, her voice trembling with a mix of anger and concern. “You could have fallen!”

“I didn’t have a choice,” Sebastian replied breathlessly, his face inches from hers as he caught his breath. “You wouldn’t let me in.”

“So you decided to scale the wall instead?” she snapped, trying to ignore the way her heart fluttered at their closeness. “You’re insane.”

“Insanely in love with you,” Sebastian said, his voice low and intense. He reached out, his hand gently cupping her cheek as he looked into her eyes. “I couldn’t leave without seeing you. I couldn’t just let you go.”

Her resolve wavered as she stared back at him, her emotions swirling in a chaotic storm. She had sent him away, had told herself it was for the best. But now, with him right in front of her, all of her carefully constructed walls began to crumble.

“Sebastian…” she started, but he cut her off, his thumb brushing away the tear that slipped down her cheek.

“Don’t say it,” he whispered, his voice pleading. “Don’t tell me to go. I can’t— I won’t leave you, Aurora. Not like this.”

She swallowed hard, her mind racing as she tried to figure out what to do. Everything in her screamed to pull him into her arms, to give in to the love that she knew they both felt. But the promises she had made, the responsibilities she had taken on, loomed over her like a dark cloud, reminding her of the reality they faced.

“I don’t know what to do,” she admitted, her voice breaking as she looked away, unable to bear the intensity of his gaze. “Everything is so messed up.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Sebastian said firmly, his hand sliding down to grasp hers. “We can make this work, Aurora. I’ll do whatever it takes. I’ll fight for you, for us.”

Her heart ached at the sincerity in his voice, at the depth of his love for her. She wanted to believe him, to let herself fall into the safety of his arms and trust that they could find a way. But the reality of the situation was overwhelming, and she wasn’t sure she was strong enough to face it.

“Sebastian, I…” Before she could finish, the sound of the doorbell ringing echoed through the house, followed by the distant murmur of voices downstairs. Her eyes widened in panic as she realized what was happening.

“Adam,” she whispered, her heart leaping into her throat. “He’s here.”

Sebastian’s jaw clenched, his grip on her hand tightening. “Don’t go with him,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “Stay with me, Aurora. We can figure this out together.”

She shook her head, her mind racing as the footsteps grew closer, signaling that Adam had entered the house. “You have to go,” she said urgently, pushing Sebastian toward the balcony. “Now, before he sees you.”

“No,” Sebastian said, his voice filled with determination. “Not until you promise me you won’t do this. That you’ll give us a chance.”

Her heart broke as she looked at him, torn between the love she felt for him and the weight of the decisions she had made. She knew that no matter what she said, things could never go back to the way they were.

“I can’t promise that,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “But I promise I’ll think about it.”

Sebastian hesitated, his eyes searching hers for a sign of hope. Finally, he nodded, his shoulders sagging in defeat. “That’s all I can ask,” he said softly.

Just as he turned to leave, there was a sound of commotion outside her door and just moments later the door to her room swung open. Adam stood by the door accompanied by Rosa who had a guilty look on her face.

Adam’s expression shifted from surprise to suspicion as he took in the scene before him.

“I’m sorry Miss Watson, he insisted on coming to your room.” Rosa said, fear in her eyes.

Her heart pounded in her chest as she looked from Sebastian to Adam, her mind reeling with the realization that her carefully balanced world was about to come crashing down.

Taglist

@dhoruwolfie @kandis-mom

[90shaladriel]

Writing Interview Tag Game

Thanks for tagging me @klynnvakarian !

About Me:

When did you start writing?

In my 30s I definitely made an attempt to write a "novel" and did some world building and a few pages of writing and it didn't go anywhere. Then Late 2022 after Rings of Power season 1 just joining the Haladriel fandom I read so much fic that I thought maybe I could do some as well. Got some encouragement from other haladriel writers (crucial for me)

Are there different genres or themes you enjoy reading other than the ones you write?

I love history and science non-fiction. I mostly am writing in the fantasy fan-fiction space, but I do like sci-fi as my first love.

Is there an author you want to emulate, or are compared to often?

I either consciously or unconsciously imagine I am writing in the voice that Frank Herbert used in the Dune series. Maybe mixed with some George RR Martin and a tinge of Tolkien.

Can you tell me a bit about your writing space?

Vast majority of my writing was on an iPad lying in my bed before sleep when no one needs my attention.

What’s your most effective way to muster up a muse?

I usually write a chapter per month so it's just random thoughts or reminders while reading other fics which inspire me to write a snippet here or there when I have the energy.

The other big muse I've found in recent months was actually listening to or reading Tolkien books: "The Silmarillion", "Beren and Luthien" and "Fall of Gondolin" the beautiful prose and the rich lore just sparks new ideas I want to try to play off of or emulate in my own fics.

Are there any reoccurring themes in your writing? If so do they surprise you?

I always like stories of characters that are beaten down, up against the world, maybe a little unappreciated, but not giving up. Even if they cannot win they try their best and work hard. A lot of sadness too. I don't express much of that sadness IRL so that is a bit surprising.

Characters:

Would you please tell me about your current favorite character?

Tough call - probably the Lady of Light, Galadriel based on the ROP - characterization

Which of your characters would you be friends with in real life?

Hmm, I'm not sure if I would be best friends but I think I would get along with Ereddâz, my Orc OC from A Lord and his Builder.

I think Galadriel would ignore me and Sauron would send me to his dungeons to be a thrall.

Which characters would you dislike the most if you met them?

Melkor from my First Fire in the Void fic

Do you notice any reoccurring themes/traits in your characters?

I touched on it above, I think I like writing characters that believe they are doing the right thing. I do not like writing characters that are specifically and intentionally bad. Even my villains have plausible motivations or perspectives to justify their actions.

How do you picture your characters?

Most of my writing is currently around the Rings of Power cast and that style.

I am dabbling with non-ROP fics, like First Fire in the Void and there I pictured Mairon based on a lot of fanart that basically draws him like a pretty woman with long red hair lol.

My Writing:

What’s your reason for writing?

A creative outlet. For years and years I would day dream my own stories, going back to when I was a kid, I was also a pretty decent DnD DM making up my own campaigns. I've often had dreams of telling stories by creating video games (I am a software dev professionally) but I usually get stuck on the actual technology side of creating a game and can never get to the creative side. By writing fic, I was able to just get my ideas out there without being held back by the lack of skills in other areas (game dev, art, making a story interactive and still make sense)

Is there any specific comment or type of comment from readers that you find particularly motivating?

Ive gotten a few amazing comments that say this is their favorite fic and I can't believe it since I just write one of many thousands of fics so I feel honored, and for my WIPs a little pressured, to produce more at that level.

How do you want to be thought about by your readers?

I want to write stories other people like, I do think about how can I make a story original in a way no one else does? What's a premise no one else has or could be done differently?

But really I am mostly writing stories that I like?

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

I think putting my characters through emotionally charged or traumatic events where they have realistic responses or reactions that I or I think readers might relate to emotionally.

How do you feel about your own writing?

I read other writing and it feels so polished and natural. I often feel like I am "emulating good writing" rather than being a good writer myself. I like my stories and plots but I am not always impressed by the words on the page after writing them. Sometimes I just give up during editing and just post and people seem to like it enough.

When you write are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, do you write purely for yourself, or is it a mix of both?

AS I was saying I do think about the readers and I'm surely influenced by what I see in the community and what people respond to but every single idea is a kind of "wouldn't this be cool" idea I have myself first and then I judge how much I think other people would also find it to be cool or enjoyable. That part I sometimes guess at or things resonate with others that I didn't expect

No pressure tags!

@eowyn7023 @demonscantgothere @cliffdivingsblog @pursuitseternal @theriverwild

[moodr1ng]

(making my own post after being in someones replies again lol) i do think there was kind of a Moment on tumblr in i wanna say circa 2019-2021 where a lot of the accumulated biphobia that was present in the lgbt community at large and in particular on tumblr sort of blew up into a number of bi bloggers starting to talk a lot more on the subject and make a lot of posts explaining the material consequences of biphobia, the lack of support bisexuals have always gotten from the rest of the community, the specific biphobic opinions/takes that are popular both offline and in online communities, and also a lot of conversations about bisexuality, what its like to be bisexual, what it means to us, a ton of education on bisexual history, a lot of trans and nonbinary bisexuals talking about how bisexuality interacts w our genders, etc. at the time and being involved in all of this tangentially it felt a bit like a sort of tumblr bisexual renaissance where the pot finally boiled over and a ton of us started to be really loud and in your face about bisexuality and biphobia. i think this was a major reason for why a lot of takes that had previously been very widespread and either accepted or at least treated as debatable (thinking about butch/femme discourse for example) got rolled back and a lot of people who had been very casually biphobic all over the place suddenly changed their tune, switched their public opinions, and started sharing a lot more of support for bisexuals (though, tbh, i dont think i have seen literally one apology for past biphobia).

i do think there was some discourse that went a bit too far and ended up counterproductive (ive personally rolled back a lot of my past anger about the pansexuality vs bisexuality shit into a view that i think is a lot more charitable and community-oriented), but overall bisexuals on here did a lot of work to get heard, get understood, and get some much-needed support by the rest of the lgbt community, and there were also a lot of behind the scenes conversations where bi people created spaces like very active discord servers where bisexuality was explored in-depth among bisexuals, which tbh i largely credit for me being able to comfortably identify as bigender.

but, well, this Moment of bisexuals being loud and proud about bisexuality and refusing to continue to tolerate biphobia was met with, like, extremely caustic and vicious backlash which has led SO many bi bloggers who i followed, knew, was in servers and dms with, was/am friends with etc to either quit tumblr or move to new blogs where they only keep around vetted people and no longer widely engage w the topic of biphobia. my alter ran one of those blogs which i dont think could have really been qualified as popular, but which had a ton of constant interaction and some really big posts, all of which led to daily biphobic harassment as well as scrutiny of every other part of his identity and repeated cruelty about things that it was incredibly inappropriate for people to attack him on - some of you who followed him will recall the repeated attacks and accusations of ableism for his 'weird' typing style, despite a disclaimer on his blog that he types like this bc of autism+adhd+did, as well as a lot of vitriol and aggression which i think was at least partially racially motivated. like, im not even willing to disclose the url or his name here because im STILL paranoid about getting harassed years after he deactivated, which, like many others i know, he did because the constant biphobia was so bad for his mental health that the blog even just continuing to exist was not sustainable.

im not sure to what degree the conversations that were started on here during this time are continuing - im not seeing much of it anymore, but then again maybe im just not following the people having them - but it certainly feels like that Moment has died down now, though i certainly still feel the aftereffects in how a lot of people have changed their stances on bisexuality. it does feel like an acute loss still that so many bi people were effectively shut down and harassed off tumblr or into silence and reclusiveness by the backlash to bisexuals speaking out (and this especially imo affected bisexuals of color, especially black bisexuals, as per usual on tumblr). i miss the posts i would get to read daily as well as the very active discord servers and other conversations i got to be privy to at the time. i think this, as much as the discussions on biphobia themselves, rendered very explicit the degree of biphobia thats present within the lgbt community. as soon as a number of bisexuals got fed up with it and started to talk about it openly, the open and unashamed biphobia also ramped up.

ig the thing im stuck on is - were not talking about it as much, but all the people who dedicated themselves to harassing bisexuals into silence for years are still here. some stances have been changed and a lot of performative "we love bisexuals!" posts got shared but ultimately the work is still cut out for us going forward. however, i dont think i or my alter will be doing any of that work on tumblr in the future. the focus will have to be on real-life community to spare ourselves the backlash that comes from speaking about this on here.

idk, not sure how to end this whole tirade. i just happened to be thinking about all this earlier today and a mutual brought it up again just now so its on my mind. i do still miss that sense of heightened bisexual community that came from all of this. i personally not only was able to re-identify as bisexual after identifying as gay for a few years bc these conversations led me to reevaluate my sexuality in a more accepting light, but also i unlearned a ton of internalized biphobia which i had not only tolerated but often strongly believed myself, usually with a sort of self-flagellating notion of "i have to bow down to the rest of the community and accept that my opinion is inherently lesser because bisexuality is an inferior sexuality" which i only stopped believing after being in these bisexual communities. ig i just have to be content with the circle of bi friends ive built both online and offline and what benefits ive gained from these discussions.

[bornazombiefrommercury]

I said something similar on my blog but I feel I didn't word my thoughts better:

The newer phases' art styles feel too polished for me, from the lineart to the boring shading and saturated colors. (Especially with phase 6) I miss the messy feel of Phase 2, 3, and even 4 because it still kept the feeling of the older phases. Phase 5 I'm iffy on because imo it still looks fine with the colors but still has that modern Gorillaz art style I dislike but it still sorta felt experimental in a way?-. On it's own the art styles are...Alright, but for Gorillaz I just don't think it fits, I love the cartoony art style from the earlier and find it more charming and memorable. I don't think I'm saying this out of nostalgia (I joined the fandom during 2018, lmao) I think it's just because of my own preferences

I saw someone say that it's like Jamie is trying to make the characters more conventionally attractive and I couldn't agree more.

hmmm ..... ive heard many people say this but i have mixed thoughts on it.

the tone of gorillaz overall taking a turn towards being more brand-friendly is definitely a factor, but i dont think its the only one. i really do think jamie gets bored and its not just me speculating, apparently he said he was "fucking bored of drawing those characters" in 2008, yes, since BEFORE PHASE 3. i do still think he has a lot of enjoyment in drawing them (otherwise he'd probably quit) but you can really tell when he's drawn something just because he felt like he had to. that's why gorillaz promotional art seems to be increasingly lacking in personality, imo. something really changed around song machine era where stuff was just getting pushed out as fast as possible and predictably got rushed. because ive brought this up before, if youve seen his art in the gorillaz artbook it's an entirely different vibe than promotional artwork cause thats the stuff where he does whatever he wants and is free to experiment. but that level of experimentation that he wants to do is very non-commercial, and it would've been in any phase. (that semi-realistic murdoc rasputin picture freaked people out when it was released but thats the kind of thing he really wants to do!!)

it's not only got a lot more personality and life to it but it's retained that edge that earlier gorillaz art had, despite using brighter colors and overall more poppy visuals. there's a murdoc shrunken head ffs. i really like it. i hope we see more of that kind of stuff in phase 8.

here is the edgy 2d everyone's been asking to make a comeback, in the 2020's:

personally i dont mind the brighter colors and overall more clean and lighter vibe. it doesnt resonate with me quite as much, but i dont think its neccessarily a sign of becoming more commercial. it can look that way and have edge at the same time as seen in the artbook.

murdoc becoming neon green is an eyesore often times but i think it's made up for by the fact that it's really funny in an ironic meta way. some day he will just transcend the color spectrum visible to the human eye probably....

i dont see how the characters have gotten more conventionally attractive. for example noodle had her whole eyebrow shaved off on the meanwhile ep art. theyve always been ugly and to get rid of that youd have to change their designs and personalities to make them unrecognizable. plus i think murdoc's actually somehow managed to get uglier... his face looks more misshapen as he's aged.

one thing i dont like in newer gorillaz art that i havent seen anyone else point out is how much jamie's horniness leaks into it. maybe i have just noticed it more than everyone else. dont get me wrong i think its totally fine if he draws that stuff on his own time of his characters if he wants to but when it gets into official gorillaz stuff its just plain weird and unneccessary and makes me uncomfortable 😭 like wtf ....

[saba-ody]

i watched the first episode of OPLA! and i really enjoyed it!! this is gonna be a long post and there will be SPOILERS for just the first episode of netflix's one piece.

here's what i thought:

-really love the core cast. inaki is a GREAT luffy. he really captures how luffy is both childish and rude and he SELLS it.

-mackenyu is fantastic as Zoro. he has some of the best fight choreography from what ive seen so far.

-i am in love with emily rudd as nami. she is fucjing perfect and i love that they gave her some badass shit to do in the first episode

-koby was great!! i thought he was fun and likable and i sure as fuck hope this show goes on long enough for his return in post-enias lobby.

-fucking HELMEPPO stole the show. he was funny and entertaining to watch and he had some of the sillier bits of the episode. i like that they chose to make him have long hair that gets cut by zoro. also his whole booty cheeks were out while flexing in the mirror with zoro's swords and i thought that was funny.

-they managed to make axe-hand morgan fun! i think he's one of the less entertaining early OP villains but I thought they did a good job with him!!

-i really liked shanks' appearance in this episode. the scenes with him and young luffy hit exactly like they were supposed to!!

-alvida was really fun to watch too!! i'm excited to see how they adapt her later appearances.

-okok i gotta talk about the fight choreography again. this shit was GOOD. i mean actually good. i feel like in a lot of shows in the recent past, fight choreo has gotten.. lazy? what i mean is that in this show the hits FEEL like they're hitting. and that is a compliment of the highest regard. luffy's fighting style is well adapted (and i will GET to his devil fruit in a moment) zoro's 3 sword style was both well choreographed and utilized within the scenes it was needed. i love how they play with it a little bit, not having him use all three until the climax of the episode. NAMI has some fantastic shit with her staff and i'm genuinely so glad they dont have her basically sidelined until alabasta like they do in the manga. alvida and morgan both have their weapons have true weight that you can feel to them and i'm so glad. this was the thing i was the most concerned for and its safe to say i'm happy with it.

-luffy's gum gum fruit and the cgi used for it was surprisingly good!! going into live action with a main character made of rubber is one of the most difficult things CG artists have to deal with and i hope they know how fucking good rhey did. body stretching hasn't ever looked this good.

-i liked garps inclusion and i really hope they don't reveal that he's related to luffy until way later. i get the feeling they might since he's there and i think he's going to still be important throughout the season.

-i LOVE. and i mean LOVEEEEEEEEEE that they are already setting up for season 2 mentioning baroque works so much. that shit is fucking AWESOME and i couldn't be happier that they're going ahead and foreshadowing shit for later that is amazing and i'm so damn happy.

-the setwork and costume design are FANTASTIC. the atmosphere becomes amazing because of these two things in conjunction and its fucking great. you absolutely are pulled into the world and its amazingly believeable. everything feels real. the locals, the outfits, really theres some great shit in here so far and i am DAMN excited to see more. they truly went all out and it feels fantastic.

-this show is really funny. not exactly in the way that the anime is, but in a way that works a lot better for this medium. zoro, especially, i thought they really nailed on the head. he's funny!! and luffy is too!! so is nami!! they're all really funny and entertaining to watch and i just cant believe this show exists at all.

-buggy showed up and i'm so excited to see more of him. what a god of a man. he is. kinda bad asf too.

i have one or two critiques too!!

-i liked the original way of making it known that koby wasnt working with luffy and i think its a bit lame the rest of the marines aren't shown to be glad that morgan's gone.

-theres some camera work in this show that just seems,... off? theres these closeups with a shitton of gaussian blur and it just looks. unprofessional to say the least. luckily, its not completely like this (which is kinda what i thought the show would look like at first, which had a bit of apprehension in me.)

-i just realized they didnt show shanks' arm being cut off by the sea monster. i'm sure they will but they didnt here. i sure hope they do that shits an iconic scene.

-uh. that was pretty much it. netflix was being stupid as shit for me so i didnt really get hd quality but i was watching it on netflix party w my girlfriend and it was just so exciting that i didnt really care. but fuck netflix btw.

so, pretty much, you might get the jist that i'm enjoying this show, and i am!! its honestly hitting all the marks i was hoping it would and a lot more. i love that its a show that knows what its doing. it doesnt feel lost. it feels like its confident in itself and its production. i really hope its a hit, and i sure as fuck HOPE netflix doesnt drop it if it doesnf make a gazillion dollars. i'm not religious but i'll pray for that.