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bacchicly · 2 years

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BIG TROUBLE IN RIVER CITY: A GARVEZ CASE FIC (PART 4)

Paring: Penelope Garcia x Luke Alvez

Summary: Dinner with the team and developing the profile over dessert. This is a “happier (i.e. there is no talk of Luke and Pen breaking up) / stand alone version” of the case fic which suddenly appeared in the middle of my lovers to friends fic (Deep and Crisp and Even).

Words: 3500

Content This Chapter: Another case centric chapter - so no canoodling - but lots of found family stuff and definite hints of Luke and Penelope being a couple. This one includes Spencer’s report on what was discovered at the morgue. More mentions of fat hate and some musings about the psychological damage it can cause both fat and non-fat people. CM type violence.

Content Overall Story: CM type violence / themes; unsub; sex (but can be skipped to or away from as I will put it in stand alone chapters - like PART 2)

Big thanks to @reidsbookclub and @scargarcia-magshotchner for their help with researching possible terms for hickeys - apparently the internet mostly just wants to teach us how to give them or get rid of them quickly!

And so much love and thanks to @vangsdroide for her help with this one (and all my writing!) - she really is one of the best people on the planet and deserves the world. Te quiero mucho! Always. 🧡

Emily scans her team to get a sense of how they are holding up. Rossi, Tara and J.J. are clustered together - clearly having a serious tete-a-tete in one corner of the BAU’s Ballroom basecamp.

Luke and Spencer are pointing at a map that’s been tacked up and marked with circles, red dots indicating where the victims were found, and green dots indicating - she’s pretty sure - their residences.

Garcia is probably back with the techs and Matt is nowhere to be seen - so Prentiss checks her watch - and indeed it is 6:45 local which means that her family man Agent has been able to slip away for his “if at all possible call” to say goodnight to his four children. Prentiss knows there will be a second call later tonight (if at all possible) to connect with Kristy. The love and commitment between those two is palpable.

Emily honestly wonders sometimes how they make it all work...

…she has enough trouble taking care of herself with this job - which as her stomach is uncomfortably reminding her, she has not done a great job of today having wolfed down a tuna sandwich at lunch and nothing since… dinner had better be next - she wonders if they should order something in or go out… they need to talk as a team - Prentiss can practically feel the case clock ticking down to the next tragedy - and restaurants aren’t always terribly pleased to have folks show up and talk about murder..BUT a change of scenery could do them all good...

Just then Emily feels her pocket vibrate with an incoming text - she pulls her phone from her pocket and wakes the screen - it’s from Garcia…

HEY GAL BOSS EXTRAORDINAIRE! 😺 RESERVATION MADE FOR PRIVATE DINING ROOM AT ITALIAN PLACE DOWN THE STREET - THEY ARE EXPECTING US IN 30 MINS - 5 MIN WALK - TELL THE TROOPS THEY HAVE TIME TO CHANGE. OH AND I WILL TEXT MATT SINCE HE’S PROLLY TALKING TO HIS DARLINGS. OH AND BRING YOUR TABLETS - I’M JUST ABOUT TO SEND OVER THE FIRST SET OF COLLATED FINDINGS - WE CAN DISCUSS OVER CAPPUCCINO AND TIRAMISU. CIAO!

The next text is the address. Prentiss smiles down at her phone amazed as always at the perceptive powers of Penelope Garcia… the bureau just can’t pay her enough…

“Hey Everyone! Guess what Garcia has organized for us? Oh and she wants y’all to bring your tablets...”

✈ ✈ ✈

Everyone agrees that the dinner is delicious and for the most part they follow Penelope’s edict that no evil or murder be discussed over the main course. So instead they talk about what they did for the holidays as kids (Matt’s family went on extra long roadtrips), their most embarrassing holiday moments (Tara had accidentally sat on a juice glass one year and six stitches later found herself at Christmas dinner), and their wildest requests from Santa (Luke had asked for a life sized robot mountain lion when he was five - with hopes of riding it to school).

But finally, coffees and dessert have been served, waitstaff have been dismissed, and it’s time to get back to the case.

Penelope’s actually the first one with her tablet out looking expectantly at the team as they finish up the tail ends of their conversations - Agents falling silent one by one as each in turn notices the intense look of their beloved technical analyst. Luke who purposely sat at the far end of the table from her to avoid the temptation to smile too much at her - or sneak a touch or two - is actually the last to hush and his guffawing laugh, at some tasteless joke Tara had just laid down, bounces around the room and then falls away as he follows Tara gaze and sees the sea of serious faces turned towards the one person he has been fighting against staring at all through dinner.

Now though - like everyone one else - his eyes are glued to her… her eyes are wide under her glasses, her brow ever so slightly furrowed from the strain of the case, and she's biting her lip.

Luke's hand slides off the table and he grips his knee hard enough for it to hurt. Hard enough to hold himself back from rushing to her side… his arm is just starting to shake when Tara slips a friendly hand over his tight one - gives two reassuring squeezes and then, when she feels him relax, pulls her hand away but not without giving him a couple extra pats that seem to mean "It will be ok - we're all here for her…and you ..stay strong and at this end of the table…we're almost done."

Luke takes a deep breath and is so thankful for friends and colleagues like Tara.

Emily - who seems to have been having a silent conversation with Penelope over who will speak first, with neither of them particularly wedded to being the one to officially end the little bubble of safety the team had found - finally clears her throat and addresses her Agents:

"As much as I would rather hear more about exploding turkeys and model trains, the time has come to review what we've learned today. I think we will start with Reid and then Garcia can do a quick overview of any commonalities that have jumped out to the collating team. From there, I'll open it up to all of you - and we'll see where we're at. No pressure, but I committed to sharing at least a preliminary profile with the lead detective tomorrow morning at 7am…and frankly I'd like to follow that meeting with a full delivery of the profile to the local force."

Rossi's voice claps like sardonic thunder. "Ahh so no pressure at all then? Alright kid, you'd better hurry up and dazzle us. What was to be discovered at the morgue?"

Spencer who's been adding sugar to his coffee, takes a sip - grimaces - and rips and pours another pack starts in - most of his attention still on perfecting his coffee:

"Well, of course most of the victims had been cremated - so the ashes are being submitted to chemical analysis but the full results won't be in for days - maybe weeks - and even then, the M.E's office is not expecting much. Cremation furnaces don't generally leave much trace of poisoning as most toxins are incinerated as part of the process. However, and this could be due to the large Catholic population in St. Antonio, five of the twelve bodies were buried whole and I was able to attend three of the autopsies done today. So with the latest body not yet released there are six relatively complete autopsy reports."

Matt leans forward with his question "So anything unexpected?"

Spencer’s cocks his head like a young sparrow - his eyes serious but intense with a curiosity that seems less frequent and infinitely more precious to the team since he returned from prison. “Actually? Yes. They still haven’t been able to figure out what substance was used to kill them - although there are several drugs that could have been used: succinylcholine, for instance, a muscle relaxant which was used in 2006 to kill a Nevada Senator. The coroner located a puncture site on Cathy Barlow’s upper right thigh - so we can assume that whatever was used was injected. But most interesting? On three of the exhumed bodies - Cathy Barlow, Clayton Sooze, and Bobbi Jean Ramirez - the coroner thinks all had a similar marks on their lower bellies and was able to confirm with a reasonable degree of accuracy that the mark on the last victim is a mechanical purpura-”

Penelope gasps in disgust. “No?! Ick. I really really hate this guy.” Everyone looks from Spencer to Penelope’s pinched face and back again. Tara is the first to bite…

“And, good Doctor, are you going to tell the rest of the class what a mechanical purpura is when it’s at home.”

“A mechanical purpura is a hematoma caused by an external force. There are several subtypes and in this case the coroner felt that the additional marks confirmed that it was-"

"Spencer, you know I love you. But if you don't cut the crap and tell them that it is a trumped up quazi-medical term for a garden variety hickey, I swear on all that is purple that I am going to boot your genius butt into next week."

Luke sits up straight, "A hickey??? Just one? On their bellies?"

Spencer nods. "That's the theory. The coroner is checking the other three bodies now to see if there are similar marks. The one on the last victim had teeth marks… which may be interpreted as an escalation of violent intent although there is significant research that suggests that biting with teeth is a common part of much love play. Did you know that the Kama Sutra refers to a love bite as the coral and the jewel…the coral of course is the lips and the jewel the teeth? There are actually eight different types of love bites described in the Sanskrit text - in one variation the lover creates a delicate chain or necklace of interlocking bite marks. Although on our victim's the marks are-"

Matt's voice is dry as he interrupts - not being able to hold back the wry comment "-garden variety hickeys?"

Spencer nods and his hands which were gesturing along with his explanation drop to his lap. "-just so. A single round dark mark made presumably by our unsub sucking on the victim's lower belly peri-mortem."

Prentiss' eyes snap back to alertness - she had slipped into deep thought as soon as the purpura was mentioned - her profiler's brain chewing over the new piece to the puzzle. "DNA? Can the tooth marks be traced or matched?"

"Swabs were taken but Dr. Craven wasn't optimistic. We may be able to compare the bite marks if we ever have a suspect in custody - but they are not very deep or defined so their value as evidence may be limited."

J.J. speaks up now, her tone wondering, "A love bite on three victims - none the same age - one Black - one Hispanic - one Asian - two females and one male. This unsub does not have a type - which was reasonably consistent with a poisoning vigilante - but the hickey suggests a sexual motivation and the lack of a more specific type is uncommon."

Tara's hand unconsciously - protectively - cups her stomach - but her professional devil's advocate comes to the fore… "...but can we assume the marks were sexually motivated? Why the belly? Stomachs are intimate - but they are hardly the epitome of erogenous zones…"

"Says you." Penelope darkly mutters almost under her breath. Luke catches her words just at his threshold of hearing and bites his lip - not quite sure if he's biting back a smile or a grimace. He wants to weave his fingers with her so badly… offer comfort... he knows he left at least one mark on her belly just last night while worshiping…

He swallows hard as the memory drags his attention back to the case. This is important. Life or death.

"...could the marks indicate ownership? Or authorship - a literal signature - I was here - I killed them. Or could it be desecration - communicating disgust - condemnation of their weight?"

"But why a hickey not a cut or a burn or punch or shot? I agree with J.J. I think there has to be a sexual element. This guy is getting off on something about this but whether anger or arousal…his control is absolute. Imagine having the discipline to leave just one mark…"

Penelope scowls down at her tablet and speaks up louder this time. "Control or disgust? Look, I don't know if a lot of women have this experience but men who are attracted to me are not always happy about it. I've… um… dated… more than one guy who was all sweet nothings and hot to trot but then severely remorseful or y'know mean afterwards… like it was my fault for tricking him into… wanting… someone like me. Like I had suddenly become sinful or unclean or… poisonous…"

Luke's head jerks up but he's looking anywhere but at Penelope. The almost-epiphany that spiked through him is battling to transform jn something coherent cohesive useful while the rest of him is fired up by the murderous urges clamouring inside of his brain and body.

Sensing his turmoil, Tara again puts a hand on Luke's sleeve - looking worriedly enough at Penelope for both of them.

Emily covers Penelope's hand with her own - sharing a worried look with J.J.

J.J. pushes away from the table and starts to angrily pace the small private.dining room.

Matt is mulling over the new options - his jaw working…

Rossi is outwardly cool but inwardly squirming at the memories of the once or twice or twenty times when his younger self wasn't as kind as maybe he could have - should have - been.

Spencer's eyes are closed as he sips his over-sweet coffee and thinks about the probabilities and the different types of poisoners. Calculating and predicting.

"...poisonous… poison… Do you think that's it? A love turned to hate thing?"

Penelope's eyes are wide and earnest - her blond hair halo-ing her head - framing her expression. The question is said to the team at large but its tone is directed unthinkingly at her lover. Penelope is not just posing a question about the case, but about the workings of the universe. She is asking for light in the darkness.

Luke meets her eyes then - his face impassive - his tone steel derision - not directed at Penelope but at the picture of the world she and this case has opened up.

"It would explain unexpectedly attractive partners."

"How so?" Rossi leans into his question - his whole attention focused on Alvez - the timber of his voice betrays real curiosity.

Luke answers Rossi but speaks directly to Penelope.

"Imagine falling in love with someone completely amazing. Someone that your friends and family - maybe strangers - casually imply or even flat out tell you isn't good enough for you because the person you love happens to be fat... and you aren't. But you know… you know… something they don't… no matter how it looks to the outside world… you are the lucky one… you are the one isn't good enough… and yeah the person you love is beautiful on the inside - but to you they are also beautiful - desirable - on the outside… but… but… you can't help it.. part of you believes your friends… your family… believes the anti-fatness propaganda you've been fed and swallowed your whole damn life… and so part of you believes you're lowering your standards…you're doing your lover a favour by being with them… by deigning to love them and then… and then…"

Luke stumbles on the ugliness…so Emily completes the thought.

"...and then something happens and they reject you. Maybe you try to fix things - ask for another chance…"

J.J. stops pacing. She death-grips the fancy wood of the backrest of her empty chair then adds a theory into the pot…

"What if it's the couple's happiness that first captures the unsub's attention? Like some sort of real-life how-to video on happy relationships with fat people?"

Tara is nodding "...but then the switch flips and instead of admiration and love it's self-recrimination, self-disgust..."

Rossi is there with the topper, "But that's too painful and so the rage and hate is turned outward...and no one would - could - blame you..."

Penelope is a million miles away - a lifetime ago - but the words are here and now - they are not words she is saying but words that were said to her.

"You're gonna regret this. I am the best thing that will ever happen to you. Better than you deserve. Fat Bitch."

✈️✈️✈️

Back at the hotel the team splits at the elevators - no one suggests a nightcap at the bar - they will be delivering the profile first thing and they need to retreat to their own corners and hopefully unwind, get some perspective, and maybe some sleep.

This time the groups are not divided along gender lines - Prentiss, Garcia, Rossi, and Alvez are in the second car and the rest are in the first. The ride up is companionably silent but when they disembark long enough after the second car that the corridor is empty of their colleagues - Alvez leading the way - Rossi last - Prentiss clears her throat and asks Garcia for "a word".

Luke and Pen share the quickest of looks - then with a smile and a cheerful "Anything for you mon cap-pi-taine!" Garcia allows herself to be ushered into her boss's hotel room - Rossi invites himself in too but gives Luke a pointed if regretful look as he closes the door on the younger Agent.

Luke seriously debates at least knocking - maybe insisting loudly that he be let in too - or just breaking down the damn door… but he ultimately pushes down the hurt and worry and decides to just go wait in his room and listen for Penelope's return and hopefully a knock at their adjoining door.

✈️✈️✈️

"Penelope, I have two things to ask you and you can say no to either of them or both. I will not order you but I do want you to make up your own mind."

"So that's why you guys locked out the Newbie? I mean, I get it, but aren't you two the ones always telling me to be nicer to him?"

Rossi watches his boss arch her eyebrows at their beloved technical analyst refusing to change the subject. When Penelope realizes she is not going to win this one she huffs and flounces over to the chair to make herself comfortable for the pitch, Rossi plunks down on the bed - eager to see if Prentiss is going to ask what he is expecting - and smiles as he is struck, not for the first time, how much he respects and loves these two women.

"Lay it on me, Boss, before I get nervous and grumpy and say 'no' in a fit of unthinking revenge. C'mon! Hurry hurry! It's been a long day and bed is calling!"

Prentiss' seriousness drops in the face of these antics and a glossy smile and deep chuckle bubbles out despite herself.

"Alright! Alright! First, I'd like you to help deliver the profile tomorrow. You've done it before on cases with digital considerations - so I know you know how we do it and how insightful you can be - but this would be a bit different since I am asking you to be there as an expert on your personal experience. Technically I shouldn't even ask, but I really think your participation could be invaluable."

"That makes sense. I'm in. Next?"

"The next one is the bigger ask…and it might not even be necessary. We'll have to talk about it as a team before anything is put in motion. Also you don't have to make up your mind right away - and even if you agree - you will have an opportunity to reconsider - but I will not even bring up the option for discussion with the team unless you give me permission first..."

Rossi starts nodding - but his smile has vanished and he's pretty sure he's guessed two for two.

"So here's what I am asking: while we of course will be pursuing the typical investigative channels - there is another option we could explore - but it would be dangerous and I am not convinced it is either worth the risk nor even remotely guaranteed to work. Essentially what I am thinking is that we could mount a sting. We could bait the unsub by posing you and another Agent as a happy couple. You'd need to wear padding since you don't quite fit the body type our unsub is targeting - but I think we could make it work. I mean-"

"Emily? I'm in. Bring the idea to the team."

"You're sure?"

"Yep. And now I am leaving - if that's all? This woman is T.I.R.E.D. Capiche?"

"Of course! Go! Get some sleep!"

Penelope heads for the door - she wasn't lying when she said bed was calling to her - but just before she disappears into the hall, she turns to her boss with a twinkle.

"Em? I'm not going to lie - it's the first ingenue role I've been considered not fat enough to play. It's a nice change. Night, Boss. Night, Monseigneur Rossi!"

✈️✈️✈️

To be continued…in part 5

Master List | List of One Shots & Happy Versions | Micro-Garvez

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the-blaze-empress · 8 months

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Gona put a Spoiler alert on this one for “Take My Arms That I Might Reach You”.

Hey so I’m back (the person who asked about the time measurement in “Take My Arms”) to say I absolutely loved the rest of the fic. I really enjoyed the character development both Techno and Phil went through throughout the fic and getting to see the way they both end up together terrorizing the bigots of the desert was wonderful. Was sobbing at the part where Phil died had me fighting back tears cause I was absolutely reading this at work. Just the visual you painted in my head of Techno putting Phil’s body in the bedroll was the breaking point. I was like 90% Phil was gona come back, but still it got to me. The world building you did in the Ebony plane was incredible! I love a good info dump and Kristin’s explanation of the magic and spirits tied everything together so well. And oooooo the Quackity/Techno flashbacks. Man Techno really did a number on him! But I like that they still became tentative friends after all was said and done. You asked what my thoughts were on Chapter 18 and I’ll be honest, I’m a bit confused on that but cause there’s a chapter 18 and then one labeled eighteenth, so I’m gona roll em together. I pretty much knew early on in the fic that Techno was also had wings. It was pretty obvious (at least to me) with the fact that he had a voice talking to him since Phil had the same thing, even if he ignores it. Still, the reveal was fantastic! And the way Techno used his own curse to get on Phil’s level and try to calm him down and let him know he was okay, he wasn’t going to hate him was so sweet. Ah! I could go on and on about all the little details I loved about the fic, but those are the major things I loved about it. Sorry it took so long to get back to this, life went and lived and my brain has been a bit fried lately so it been hard to put thoughts into words. But you’re a wonderful writer and I will definitely be coming back to reread this fic again in the future, as well as keeping an eye on your other fics (see you have a new one out, haven’t gotten to it yet again because life). Thank you so much for sharing your work!

AAAA THANK YOU!!

im soooo glad u loved the fic!! character development my beloved, that was one of my big things i wanted to achieve with this fic, having a distinct but still believable development of the characters, and to show how that development happened even when it wasnt going quite so great. patpat i am hugging u but also hell yeah i rlly wanted that moment to have a big emotional impact esp since it was planned from like. the very start lol.

im glad u didnt think my infodumping was too out of place! truth be told the worldbuilding developed a LOT as i was writing the fic, and some things never got the chance to get properly established rip.

backstory hell yeah! i wanted to show what techno was like when he was young and more in phils shoes and i also wanted to elaborate on quackitys cardistry, AND i wanted to show that the superstitions around the carrion cursed arent entirely unfounded. managed to roll that all into one chapter lolll.

oof yeah prolly shouldve clarified. by chapter 18 i mean the chapter titled eighteenth, the ao3 automatic chapter numbers are wrong bc the first 'chapter' is a prologue lol. and niceee ur one of few who actually made that connection, youd be surprised at how many people genuinely failed to see that chat was no different to kristin it was so funny.

PLEASE DO GO ON ABOUT THE LITTLE DETAILS!!! OH I WOULD LOVE YOU SO MUCH IF YOU DID!! (not to say i dont love u anyways that is) little details are my favourite things literally ever i know i wrote the fic but pleasee go on about the little things you noticed!!

thank you soso much for this, genuinely <333 you dont need to apologise for taking ages to read shit, god knows life can Be Like That. cant wait to hear what u think of my future and maybe even past stuff!!

#wisdom be uponeth ye #Anonymous #tmatimry #gremlin hoard <3

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sanmisui · 9 months

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Venting and rambling about writing:

Maybe my fanfic would be better off without all those smutty implications that I’m adding.

Seriously,,,,, the story would work either way. It’s just my stupid brain not understanding that it ain’t necessary for a fanfic to have these things. But also everything sort of sucks. My writing is painfully mid. The story is long and it’s been dragging me down and I have no idea what I’m doing anymore,,,, ughhh.

I have lotsa drafts,,,, but nothing fits into the current story. So I will make more stories once the current one is done,,,, but I know that the ending will suck. My brain is bad.

Nothing really matters, I’m just writing nonsense. I’m gonna take it out and just end the day and write something else n get back to the mid section later.

My writing isn’t linear. I start somewhere n add a break n go to the next section and then I go back to fill the blanks and connect the plots together.

Sometimes I need to shove things back or take them out entirely. That’s just how the creative progress works,,,, it is what it is,,,,

I wish somebody would give me clearer instructions on what to add and what to leave out. I mean,,,, who the fuck wants to read about washing the dishes? On multiple occasions?? It adds some minor detail and it makes the story longer… ooooooh the story is so goddamn long I think it’s almost at 100k words???? How did I even do that? It’s been 6 months. Is that good or bad? I don’t read that many stories. Or only short ones. But they get everything done and sorted easy peasy,,,,, my story is filled with convoluted garbage and it’s just a retelling of the goddamn anime for the most of it,,,, with a few extras and boiiiii is it boring? I’m bored. Not sure if that’s just me cuz I know what my brain is cooking up and boi did it add too much sugar to the alphabet soup,,,, who the fuck adds sugar to their soup anyways?????

I avoid conflict. But I need conflict. I gotta write about the goddamn conflict. How do I write? Hell, I haven’t got a clue as to what I’m even doing with this story. It’s an x Reader Story, there won’t be that many people craving for it’s conclusion… I think I hate the story cuz I put too much of myself into the personality of the mc. Yeahhh maybe that is it?

I also suck at writing the dude who we r romancing. Maybe it’s all just too much of a mess?

But I still need to finish it!!!! I can’t just drop it? It’s almost done! Just… uh… a few more chapters?

Maybe 2 or 3? I could end it rather quickly if I end it on a sour note. Would people hate me for that? Probably. It might be for the best. I am not really vibing with this story anymore. I already ruined it for myself. N I put too much pressure on my mushy brain. It’s gonna be over soon… hopefully. Maybe I’d be more hyped about it, if people gave me better feedback? There isn’t much of a reason for me to keep writing. But I would hate for it to end without a proper ending. So I’ll write an ending and get it done and then I will start with something new.

Maybe I’m merely sad cuz I didn’t get as much interaction as I would’ve liked? My confidence is frail. If people don’t give me input on how things are for them, I’ll assume that they hate everything that I came up with. But once it’s done and released, it’d be blasphemous to go back and rewrite it…

Heck the story doesn’t even have a proper title. It pops up when u search for the character… which is bad!! Cuz the story is rated M but there don’t seem to be any hindrances for accessing it??? It’s just up on Google and anyone can click on it??? If you search for it on quotev, u gotta turn on adult content to see it but what’s the point if Google smacks it right in your face???

It prolly doesn’t fall under mature content… I haven’t written a whole lot of heehoo stuff cuz I’m too much of a coward. Godddd I should’ve put it on ao3 instead… but it’s too late for that and also… I like quotev. U can add pictures lolol. It’s more befitting of a beginner such as myself. But I should’ve tagged it better? Honestly, I’ve never written a serious story before. No idea what to tag outside of the characters. Hell. I don’t even know where the story is going or what’s going to happen next, cuz I write as I think and I think as I go and I’m not doing a whole lot of planning ahead.

I’m rambling so goddamn much on this post here cuz I don’t have any friends or confidants. No way of asking for directions. It’s always just me talking to myself for hours and my mental health is shredded like discarded papers.

Ughhhhhhhhh. I hate being creative. I think I’ll get something to drink and then I’ll just lay here for a bit.

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bylightofdawn · 1 year

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I am finally home and lawd I am tired. D&D was enjoyable the second time around. I still want Holga to do unspeakable things to me. Xenk is still unbearably hot and I want him to do unspeakable things to Edgin.

Also one thing I really took away from the second viewing is how awesome the cinematography was. Sure, it definitely had a sorta edgy experimental film student gimmicks to it but it kinda works. And I kinda want to see more big Hollywood movies play around with camera angles and crazy shit.

Like how everyone lost their collective shit in Black Panther when Killmonger literally walks into the throne room after meeting T'challa off the waterfalls and the entire world flips upside down. I want more of that shit.

Take some chances and stop giving us cut to a million pieces herky jerky action pieces. Doric just flipping through the portal and into the wagon was such a badass shot. Give me more of that, plz.

Ugh it's 6:30 and prolly too late for me to try and take a nap but bruh I am sooooooo tired.

I'm going to TRY and get some writing done but I have no idea how that's going to go.

I do TECHNICALLY need to go address the fact I completely skipped over writing a scene with Jango and Obi-Wan in chapter 13.

And yanno not me putting off writing the next part because I know it's going to emotionally drain me.

Or I could go take another shower because my hair is so yucky from the amount of product in it. I'm definitely ready to wash my face.

Honestly, a shower sounds like a winner right now. And maybe that'll wake me up enough I can focus on writing.

NGL that fucking Cody and Slick idea I had yesterday HAS NOT LEFT MY HEAD. The brainrot is super real so maybe I'll just break my own rules and play around with that today. I'm just worried I'll lose focus and then motivation on Seeds. When I think I'm literally like 3/4's of the way there. I have one more major plot thing and then I'll be in the home stretch. Weh. Hopefully, the shower will help clear the cobwebs.

EDIT: The shower did not help, I’ve tried actually napping and I am in this weird place where I’m so tired but my brain just won’t turn off enough for me to sleep. It’s just slippery eels swirling around up there and I can’t quiet it enough to switch off. I’m just not gonna make WIP Sunday or so anything but lay here in bed staring at my phone willing it to turn 10 so I can feee Genji and the ferals and go to sleep.

And I will bet money I will get a third or forth wind at around s 9/10pm because my body hates me.

#D&D: HAT #fanfic related musing #fanfic writer woes

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crossroadsandloudmusic · 2 years

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Hey y’all!! Finished this request up for anon. Anon, if you are still out there I hope you enjoy the fic! I loved your idea and ran with it, I hope it is to your liking!!!!

Anyways, I’ll be writing some more later this week and if I’m being honest it is prolly just going to be Yandere/smut. I have a prompt list as long as my arm and I’ll be getting started on that here soon.

Let me know if y’all have suggestions as to what I should write!

As always request are always open!!

Tips/criticism welcome!!!!

Please enjoy!!

warnings: fluff, swords, blood, graphic descriptions of gore, death, (etc.)

The sunlight illuminated the light gray room; it was well into morning now. And although it made him sick to be in bed this late, Tanjiro was ordered to be on bed rest for the next couple of days. Laying on his back he stared at the ceiling wondering how the rest of the team were recovering. Inosuke laid to his right, still loudly snoring. He had only suffered minor fractures such as a few broken ribs. Zenitsu’s injuries on the other hand, remained to be unknown as he was asleep on arrival and still was sleeping now. But then a more troubling thought came to mind. What happened to (y/n)? The last thing he remembered was seeing you charge across the battlefield, the handle of your katana in one hand and the actual blade itself in the other. It had been broken by the demon you were all fighting; you had pinned the demon to the ground and held the blade horizontally. You intend to mash the blade into his neck with brute strength, in the process you cut the demon’s hands and fingers into ribbons. Most importantly you snapped your blade.

Slowly the memories came back to Tanjiro, as he remembered that immediately following this the demon fled trying to get away from you as fast as he could. He could see your reckless bloodlust and knew if he stuck around any longer he wouldn’t live to see another day. Tanjiro’s last memory was that of you covered in your own blood wielding the fractured sword, running after the demon. He remembered your deadly laughter as you pursued the demon.

Breaking the calm nature of the estate, a loud commotion could be heard down the hall. It sounded as if someone were yelling and knocking things out of their way.

“I DONT NEED ANYMORE MEDICINE! AND I DONT NEED ANYMORE PHYSICAL THERAPY! I HAVE THINGS I NEED TO DO AND I CANT GET THEM DONE HERE IF IM LAYING IN BED!” Yelled a voice from down the hall.

Immediately Tanjiro sat up, recognizing the voice as your own.

“You can’t take the boys with you, they haven’t fully recovered yet!” Wailed Sumi.

“They are too weak to leave! They’ll get hurt!” Cried Naho

“Let them stay here just until they gain back all of their strength!” Pleaded Kiyo.

All three pulled at your clothes and limbs, still you moved forward. Pulling the girls behind you.

Tanjiro could hear the young girl’s begs as they got closer and closer to his door. When suddenly he heard the footsteps stop, and all was quiet for a fraction of a second.

Suddenly the door slammed open, all three of the boys jumped in unison from the noise. Zenitsu and Inosuke now wide awake and on alert searching for the sound that pulled them out of such a sweet slumber. In the doorway you stood, hands on your hips. Your uniform in tatters, your face and hands covered in bandages. Tanjiro noticed that there still appeared to be a bit of dried blood in your (h/c) hair.

“Rise and shine boys! Time to get moving!” You announced as you looked at the young men’s confused faces.

“You’re alive?!” Asked Zenitsu still shocked by you standing in their room, seemingly in a great mood, all things considered.

“Of course I’m alive! I’m the (y/b/t) pillar! A hashira! Who do you think carried you all this way, hm?” You asked Zenitsu who now was even more baffled, you were at the brink of death and you carried the three of them to safety?

“Did you kill the demon?” Asked Inosuke sitting at the end of his bed.

“You bet I did, a broken sword can’t stop me!” You said as you smiled and winked at him.

————————————————————————-

After successfully kidnapping the injured boys, you five made your way back to your own estate. There the five of you had been staying as you were taking them under your wing and training them.

Your training was a bit unconventional, as instead of training them as if you were a wise master you trained from the heart. You fought from the heart, you let your undying hatred and insatiable bloodlust take control of your body. This resulted in you being known as reckless and erratic, many did not admire these qualities because they felt you lacked discipline and control. Which wasn’t far from the truth, but this was who you are and you weren’t going to change that because someone didn’t like the way you handled business.

Also with your rash fighting style came the problem of wielding your sword correctly. Instead of seeing it as a beautiful extension of your body, you saw it as a tool. A sharp tool that cuts and kills, and sometimes tools break. And when a tool breaks you get another one. That’s just how you saw it and the blacksmith never seemed to care much, besides you were giving him plenty of business were you not?

“So what happened after you broke your sword?” Questioned Tanjiro as you four sat inside your home.

“Well, I picked up the pieces, chased after that demon till I caught him and then I cut his head off as he begged for mercy.” You said in a matter-of-fact tone; taking a sip of your tea as if you were discussing the weather. Zenitsu shuddered at your coldness, you terrified him. Inosuke laughed and cheered at your response.

Tanjiro sat and thought quietly, it was intense how cold blooded you were. Still though you weren’t like this with everyone and every demon. He noticed how caring you could be to them and even though you were reluctant about Nezuko, you never said an ill word to or about her. Even when you first met you had always been welcoming, regardless if you were a little nervous about her.

Then a sickening thought came to his mind. Your sword. You had broken your sword. That means Hotaru Haganezuka would be bringing you another. He trembled at the thought.

“You…you...you broke your sword right? What are you going to do?” Tanjiro asked, clearly distressed.

You cocked your eyebrow as if to ask why he was acting so nervous.

“What do you mean? I’ll just get Hotaru to make me another one, duh.” You said blatantly.

“Wha...wha… What do you mean just get him to make you another? Have you ever met Hotaru?!” He almost yelled.

“Well of course I have! Why are you making such a big deal, the guy is a blacksmith, he makes swords. I broke mine so I’ll just get him to make me a new one. He’s done it before.” You said, still confused at Tanjiro’s sudden change in behavior.

“Besides, he’s coming over this afternoon to get the pieces of my old one so he can make the new one.” You said taking another sip of your tea.

“He’s coming here!? This afternoon?! Before?! How many swords have you broken?!” He questioned loudly.

“Eh, I don’t know. Five, maybe six, more or less.” You replied nonchalantly. Tanjiro almost collapsed, he had broken one and lost another. Hotaru intended to beat him to a pulp the first time, and the second time Tanjiro was sure he was going to kill him. But you. You had broken five of his swords. Five of his masterpieces. Hotaru would surely stop at nothing to exact his revenge. Five swords was no longer punishable by death, but instead cruel and unusual torture. Tanjiro would be terrified but he would protect you at all costs.

————————————————————————-

As the three you sat, and enjoyed what was a relaxing evening a knock came at the door. Tanjiro stiffened and stood up with you. You gave him another confused glance and approached the door. He waited with baited breath, he expected at any moment Hotaru would burst through that door with two large knives in hand.

When you reached the door, Tanjiro assumed a fighting stance. He would be ready for anything.

You opened the door and smiled.

“Haganezuka! It’s good to see you again! Please come in!”

————————————————————————-

This was terrifying, absolutely terrifying.

Hotaru stood quietly and awaited your return patiently. You went to retrieve the shards of your previous sword and asked to wait just a second while you got them, to which he immediately obliged and had since stood almost perfectly still.

Perhaps he was so angry he was calm? Maybe he was waiting till you came back before he attacked? Regardless of what trick he had up his sleeve Tanjiro stood ready for anything.

Yet nothing came, instead you came back and handed him the pieces in a small burlap sack.

“Here it is! Everything is in there, even the handle. I look forward to getting my new one!” You said with a smile as you handed him the sack.

Hotaru took the sack from your hands and held it closely, he bowed deeply and said

“Thank you, (L/n)san. I will begin my work right away. Your swords take priority.”

Thank you? Right away? Priority?

Tanjiro was dumbfounded, this was not the Hotaru he had met before. The Hotaru he met would have chased you for hours on end and if he caught you. You would have been unrecognizable. But this Hotaru waited patiently and was polite. What was even more disturbing was that this Hotaru almost seemed to adore you?

The way he waited, the way he gratefully accepted your broken sword, the way he spoke to you, the way he watched your every move. All of it was so peculiar, did Hotaru favor you in a way?

You walked Hotaru outside and on the engawa you shared some parting words.

“Have a safe trip back! It’s been so good seeing you again, Hotaru.” You said as you pulled Hotaru into a warm embrace.

This is what he had been craving. Your touch, your voice, your scent. He held you close to him until you pulled away, immediately he missed your touch. He knows it was only a friendly gesture but he couldn’t help but want it more, he wanted you close to him always. Forever and ever beside him. But until he had the guts to truly confess his love for you, he’d have to settle with making you a new sword every time you needed one. He’d make a thousand swords for you, if he could experience these small but sweet interactions.

“I will be back in several days. I will forge only the best for you, a sword that will be worthy for you to hold.” Hotaru spoke quietly as he bowed once more.

“You always do.” You said with a smile that never failed to melt his heart. He was grateful for his mask or else you’d surely see the blushing mess he was.

Hotaru took his leave and disappeared down the trail.

As you stepped back inside you whispered to yourself

“Such a sweet guy, why hasn’t someone snatched him up and made him a husband yet?”

————————————————————————-

“I don’t know what you were so worried about Tanjiro, Hotaru is always so polite.” You said as you walked through the door. Tanjiro now sat with his legs crossed, the most perplexed look on his face.

————————————————————————-

As soon as Hotaru made it back to his home, he threw himself into his work. He would work for hours on end, never once taking a break. This was for you, this would be for you. He’d pour his heart and soul into this sword, the sword you would carry into battle.

————————————————————————-

“AND HE HASN’T EVER CHASED YOU FOR HOURS?!” Tanjiro raged.

“Hm...No, not that I recall.” You absentmindedly answered while flipping through your book.

“HE NEVER THREATENED TO MURDER YOU?!”

“No, not once.”

Tanjiro’s reactions to your replies made you laugh internally. You knew that Hotaru had a reputation of overreacting to his swords being destroyed by the younger slayers. Still Tanjiro didn’t have to know that you knew.

“Tanjiro, I just don’t believe that Hotaru would do something like that. You saw how polite he was this afternoon.” You said still not looking from your book.

“I KNOW THATS MY POINT! HAD IT BEEN ME WHO BROKE MY SWORD HE WOULD HAVE CHASED ME UNTIL SUNSET!” Yelled Tanjiro.

“See that’s the thing I don’t understand. You were here this afternoon when he came by, and he didn’t chase or harass you then.” You said still wanting your little game to continue.

“He didn’t notice anyone else was here.” Said Zenitsu as he chewed on some ohagi.

After understanding what Zenitsu meant by his comment a slight blush ran across your face. The thought that Hotaru had only been focused on you made your heart jump. He has always been so kind to you, and he never once complained about consistently having to make you new swords. Maybe, Hotaru did have feelings for you. That was ridiculous, surely you would have noticed before now, right? Then again why had he always treated you so kindly?

The idea that Hotaru had taken a liking to you wasn’t a bad thought. In fact, you could feel your heart flutter at the thought of you two being a bit more friendly with one another. And he was quite attractive, at least from the bit that you saw of him. He was muscular and rather tall as well, underneath the spotted cloth on his head you could see strands of long black hair. Every time he came to deliver your new sword you hoped you would get a glance of his face.

Lost deep in thought you hadn’t realized how quiet the room had gotten. When you looked up from your book you saw Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Inosuke all staring with cheeky grins; giggling like schoolgirls. It was obvious they had seen you blush at the thought that Hotaru was interested in you.

“WHAT ARE ALL YOU LOOKING AT?!” You yelled as you jumped up out of your chair.

“I DONT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT HOTARU IS JUST NICE!” You said before running out of the house. The boys erupted in laughter.

————————————————————————-

“Did you see the way she was blushing?” Asked Tanjiro as he cleaned the floors; running back and forth in front of Zenitsu who was seated on a cushion.

“I guess she didn’t realize Hotaru had the hots for her.” Zenitsu said.

Suddenly Tanjiro stopped and smiled the biggest smile he could.

“Zenitsu! I have a wonderful idea! We should get them together!” He beamed feeling brilliant after coming up with such an idea.

“WHAT?! AND RISK FEELING THE WRATH OF (Y/N) AND HOTARU?! ARE YOU INSANE?!” Yelled Zenitsu angry Tanjiro would be putting him in such a dangerous situation. His vision of you in his mind was of you standing in a lawless battlefield surrounded by flames, sword in hand ready to cut down anyone who crossed you. He shivered at the thought.

“Just think about it Zenitsu! Imagine how happy they’d be together! Besides, Hotaru is always working on his swords and (y/n) is always on missions. Maybe they need something a little more...normal?” Said Tanjiro with a bit of sympathy in his voice. It was true, you were always on missions, in fact this was the first time you had been home in months; your house was covered in a thick layer of dust. There was no doubt that you loved exterminating demons, but the reason you were obsessed with killing them was a little more deeper than that. The day you became a slayer your promised yourself that you would stop at nothing to avenge the ones you loved, your family, your friends, the entire village. All of which had been destroyed; you stood in wreckage gathering all the bodies you could find. One by one you would bury your entire town. After everyone received a final resting place and a proper funeral you would then search for a way. A way to bring them comfort in the afterlife.

“Will you help me?”

“Fine, I’ll help you. BUT IF (Y/N) OR HOTARU GET ANGRY I'M TELLING THEM IT WAS YOUR IDEA!”

————————————————————————-

Together the three devised a plan that would be the envy of most any man. They would send a fake mission through your crow, saying that there was a demon on the prowl in the wisteria grove. After hearing this you would send a message to Hotaru asking him to put a rush on that sword and meet you there. Before this they will have adorned the trees with lanterns, strings of flowers, and beautiful vines. And when the two of you met in the middle, they’d ignite the lanterns to illuminate the scene. A place so romantic you both would have no choice but to confess your love for each other!

Quickly they got to work. Tanjiro ordered Inosuke to climb each tree and place a lantern on the lowest branches, after he was done each tree had two lanterns. Zenitsu was to collect as many willow vines as he could, then he would braid them making long thick vines that would hang from the trees and create almost a curtain. Tanjiro was on the hunt for the most beautiful smelling flowers, of course he grabbed some wisteria but he also collected tons of wild flowers he had seen in the area. He made bunches of glorious bouquets to hang in the trees, in the middle of the vine guarded circle he sprinkled hundreds of flower petals. The sight was delightful, the boys had put in so much work into this. Now their only hope was that neither of you two killed them after finding out their plan.

After putting the finishing touches on their creation they rushed back to your estate to enact the second part of their plan.

“Please, we need you to do this for us. What do you want? We will give you anything! How about birdseed? How about worms, we will get on our hands and knees and dig for all the grubs you want! Please just do us this little tiny favor.” Tanjiro pleaded with your crow who was pondering their request.

After much begging and negotiating, it was settled that Inosuke would dig for grubs and get as many as he could find, Zenitsu would give him an extra scope of birdseed while you weren’t looking.

Now all they had to do was wait. You had to go to a hashira meeting and would be back before too much longer, still the wait made them anxious. Tanjiro sat drumming his fingers waiting for you to arrive, Inosuke laid out flat on the floor snoozing, while Zenitsu trembled and paced the floor.

“Tanjiro, what if they find out.” He whimpered, tears flowing from his eyes.

“They will find out! We will tell them as soon as they confess to each other!” Tanjiro said happily even though he was slightly nervous.

“Tanjiro! You didn’t tell me that!” He cried.

On the other side of the door they could hear your light footsteps, quietly you slid the door open and stepped inside.

“How was the meeting?” Tanjiro chirped with an overall enthusiastic smile on his face.

“Depressing. It is hard hearing about all the young slayers that have been killed.” You said not meeting his eyes, opting to go sit down on your futon.

“I don’t want to do anything this evening except lay here, you boys cool with that?” You asked, pulling the cover over your head.

None of the boys replied. Zenitsu ran and gripped Tanjiro’s haori. Both looked at each other with worried expressions.

Perhaps, this was not the best time for such a ruse.

Before you could get properly settled in, the jarring sound of your crows' cries came from outside. Instantly you jumped from your bed and ran to your closet. First you grabbed your slayer uniform, then your belt. You ran down the hall and into your separate room to change. In a flash you were dressed, for one last final touch you slipped on your tabi boots; fastening them as you fled to the door. You crashed through the door and out into the yard, you searched the sky till you spotted your crow.

“Hey! What’s the big idea? I don’t have a sword yet!” You yelled to your crow who was making small circles in the sky.

“Southeast! Southeast! Head southeast!” The crow called as he refused to elaborate.

“Go to Hotaru Haganezuka! Tell him to put a rush on that sword and meet me there. Tanjiro, Zenitsu, Inosuke!”

All three boys ran out onto the engawa, dressed with swords at their hips.

“Follow me, we have a mission. Let’s go!”

————————————————————————-

Together you ran, the boys a couple lengths behind you. Tanjiro’s crow led the way and soon you’d all arrive to your destiny.

————————————————————————-

Your crow flew hard and fast, when you gave him orders he always intended to follow through to the best of his ability, even if he was bribed into misleading you.

After a long flight he arrived at Hotaru's home, outside he cawed hoping to alert the man inside.

Hotaru had been hard at work forging your new sword; he intended on making it absolutely perfect. Therefore it was nowhere near finished, even after the countless hours and days he pushed himself to work.

The sound of a Kasugai crow calling his name broke him out of trance. Already enraged that no doubt the crow was coming to report a slayer had broken one his swords, he stormed outside slamming his door behind him. But before he could voice his exasperation the crow spoke,

“The (y/b/t) pillar! (Y/n)! She needs her sword! She’s on her way to a mission! Meet her at the wisteria grove Southeast!” Your crow called.

Hotaru’s heart sank, you were going into battle now? And you had nothing but your bare hands to defend yourself with, he’d have to improvise. With all his speed he ran inside; he tore his forge apart. He couldn’t possibly expect you to wield a half made sword, it was still glowing hot and lacked a handle. He fumbled through everything till he found them; a pair of wakizashi swords he made as a prototype for a previous hashira. They were not your usual weapon of choice, but they had been forged by the same metal as his katanas; he knew you’d have no trouble wielding them.

Throwing them into a wooden case, he wrapped them in a soft cloth. Hurriedly he slammed the case closed and threw it over his shoulder as he bolted out the door.

————————————————————————-

He followed your crow with great determination, he wasn’t going to fail you. Even so the most dreadful thoughts came to his mind. What if he arrived too late? What if his last sight of you was the life leaving your body? This pushed him to go harder, he would not leave you empty handed.

He forced those terrible thoughts out of his mind, the only thing he thought about now was his breathing. In and out, in and out.

————————————————————————-

“I’ll be meeting Hotaru here, you boys search the area. Tanjiro and Zenitsu search the village, Inosuke search the woods.” You ordered.

“Yes!” All three said in unison. Due to how seriously you were taking this impromptu mission, the boys got a little caught up in it too. Tanjiro had become a lot more serious and concerned even though he had concocted the fake mission. He turned to look at Zenitsu who was staring at you trembling.

“But (y/n), you don’t have a sword, what are you going to do if the demon shows up?” He asked, tears flowing from his eyes.

“Don’t you know anything about me Zenitsu? I’ve always got a trick up my sleeve.” You said with a sly smirk. You pulled back your sleeve to reveal three insanely sharp throwing knives; each one had a purple tip. Little did Zenitsu know these knives were laced with wisteria; a small touch both you and Shinobu worked on.

“Come on hurry, Zenitsu. We have to go.” Tanjiro said while pulling him by the collar of his haori.

“But Tanjiro! What are we going to do if she gets hurt!” He cried.

Once out of earshot, Tanjiro pulled Zenitsu aside.

“We’ve got to stick to the original plan, remember? Hotaru will be here any minute and we’ve got to be ready!” Tanjiro said with a bright smile.

“First we will go patrol the village, then by the time we get back Hotaru will surely have made it.”

Together they took off towards the village.

————————————————————————-

The wait was long and uneventful, you sat at the edge of the grove making patterns in the soft dirt. This was weird, all of it was, why were you given a mission on such short notice. Wouldn’t Master Kagaya have said something during the meeting, besides he knew you didn’t have a sword. Something was not right and it made you nervous. You stood to the sound of your crow calling, they must be close you thought to yourself.

You watched the sky patiently, over the horizon your bird came into view. He flew straight till he met the middle of the wisteria grove, to which he swooped in and landed.

————————————————————————-

“Hotaru? Hotaru? Hotaru?” You called as you parted what seemed to be a curtain of vines. When you stepped inside your eyes searched in the darkness, you could barely make out a thing. Slowly you backed up, anticipating an attack from any direction.

Suddenly a twig snapped from behind you, pinpointing exactly where the sound originated, you dipped and swept your leg. First a loud thud hit the ground followed by a low groan.

————————————————————————

“Zenitsu, has (y/n) made it inside yet?” Tanjiro loudly whispered

“OH NO! IT SOUNDS LIKE SHE’S BEATING HIM UP!” Yelled Zenitsu after hearing your attack.

“INOSUKE! LIGHT THE LANTERNS!” Tanjiro ordered.

In a flash, Inosuke jumped from his perch high in an oak tree. On his way down he lit a match on the roof of his mouth, when he made his way to the ground he found the fuse that connected all the lanterns together.

As soon as the match touched the end of the fuse a bright spark appeared zoomed down the line causing everything in its wake to turn to ash. They lost sight of the spark as it quickly rounded the corner and into the bush; a bright light illuminated the otherside.

————————————————————————-

“Oh Hotaru! I'm som sorry! I had no idea it was you, here let me help you up!” You said apologetically as you helped Hotaru off of the ground.

“No, no, no I should have said something so as not to catch you so off guard.” He replied. The truth was that he had been so captivated by you. You left him speechless.

“How was the tri-oh.” You caught his eyes, this had been the first time you had seen him without his mask. He looked at you confused till he realized his mistake, he had been in such a rush he had forgotten his mask. He was handsome, very handsome at that. His long dark hair flowed to his shoulders, his dark eyebrows perfectly rested above his sharp eyes. After staring at him for what seemed like ages you snapped out of your trance.

“Oh! Oh no! I’m sorry! Again! Here I’ll cover my eyes!” You said as you turned your back to him covering your eyes.

“No it’s alright, I don’t mind if you see me!” He said he reached out for you. He pulled your hands away from your eyes and held them gently. He smiled when he met your gaze. How pretty you looked in the soft orange light, your (h/c) shimmering in the dance of the flames.

‘Such a beautiful sight’ he thought to himself as his thumb gently rubbed the top of your hand.

“Hotaru? You wouldn’t have my sword with you do you?” You asked, peering at the box that had been knocked out of his hands when he fell.

“Of course, (L/n)san! Please, excuse me.” He said sheepishly as he reached for the box.

“Well, they aren’t exactly your sword but I had these two, they are one of the first ones I made for Uzui Tengen. I’m sorry, (y/n). I wasn’t able to make your sword in time.” He said as he bowed, holding the swords up to you. You took them in your hands and swung them simultaneously.

“Flashy. I like em, Hotaru. Mind if I keep em.” You asked, admiring the weapons in your hands.

Hotaru looked up at you, in his eyes there wasn’t a more glorious scene. You held his creation with such pride and joy.

He didn’t care that you were reckless, and wild. In his eyes you were a symbol of beauty and strength, someone as perfect as you should not exist in the real world; only in books and folktales.

“These swords are just about as beautiful as how you’ve decorated the trees. You getting sweet on me, Hotaru?” You asked observing the vines and trees all decorated with flowers.

“The lanterns are a nice touch, it looks like you put a lot of hard work into all this. This is very nice.” You said as you continued to look around you.

“What’s the occasion?” You asked, turning to look at Hotaru who stood with his hands behind his back. He looked at you confused, you had thought he had put all this together? For you? Seeing you so pleased by this made him curse himself for not coming up with a similar gesture.

“I...I...I-” Hotaru stuttered before loud running could be heard tearing through the brush.

“(Y/n)! (Y/n)! (Y/n)!” Called Tanjiro from the otherside of the vines. Soon Zenitsu, Inosuke, and Tanjiro with Nezuko in tow, fell through the barrier.

“What’s going on? Did you find the demon?” You asked.

“No, the village and forest were all clear! What should we do now?” They asked. Their gaze then turned to Hotaru who was sheepishly standing behind you waiting for your attention once more. All three boys began to grin and giggle amongst themselves. You took in the situation and blushed slightly from their reaction.

“Are we interrupting something?” Asked Zenitsu with a sly grin. To which Inosuke began to laugh from seeing your reaction.

“Zenitsu! Inosuke! Come on, they are clearly having a romantic conversation that we should not interfere with! They would like to talk in private!” Tanjiro said confidently as he hoisted Zenitsu and Inosuke under his arms.

“Oooooo Hotaru! How romantic! Such a beautiful place to have a date!” Yelled Inosuke and Zenitsu as they were being carried away. Hotaru blushed at their comments and had you not been standing so close he would have chased them till they collapsed. But before the boys were out of sight they turned to look at Hotaru, they all three grinned widely and held up their thumbs. Tanjiro mouthed the words,

‘You got this!’ Before shoving both of his thumbs in the air.

They were...helping him? They had pulled this all together to help him? Surely not, especially after how many times he threatened to kill Tanjiro. This had to be deeper than that, why else would they go out of their way to make such a gesture? Unless...you felt the same way towards him? Quickly he pushed the idea out of his head, there was no way you felt so warmly towards him. He was just your swordsmith, the person behind the scenes. You were an achieved warrior, someone who others could look to in a time of need.

“Hotaru? Did you put this all together for me?” You asked, tearing him away from his thoughts.

“I-I did!” He stammered out quickly.

“What was the reason for such a gesture? Is there something you would like to tell me?” You asked Hotaru, turning to face him. Although you kept a cool exterior, inside your heart was doing flips. Was he about to confess to you? Was this what you had been looking for all along? Perhaps, revenge and justice wouldn’t fill the whole in you but maybe affection and acceptance would?

“(Y/n), I have something I have to tell you.” He spoke clearly now and stood tall. Now was his chance to lay everything out that had been on his heart.

“I’m tired of living like this. I’m tired of hiding behind my mask. I’m tired of only being near you when I bring you another sword. No, I’m done living like this.” He said before he approached you and pulled you to his chest by your arms; blades falling from your hands.

“Hotaru? What are you-” his lips cut off your words before another one could be uttered. He pulled you into such a passionate kiss, a one that conveyed years of pent up emotions. All came flowing out in an instant.

You melted in his embrace, his hands moved from your arms to your face. He cupped your head so gently. His touch was full of love and adoration. Never in your life had you felt such a feeling. This had been everything you had been looking for.

Slowly he pulled away, still holding your face. In the distance quiet cheers could be heard.

————————————————————————-

When you entered your home your eyes immediately looked for the boys. The three sat side by side grinning from ear to ear. You put your hands to your hips and donned a serious look.

“Is there something you boys would like to tell me?” You questioned.

You knew the boys were behind it all, and still you played along. Because in the end, you got everything you had ever dreamed of wanting. And it wasn’t revenge, justice, or vengeance, but a chance to live. To live not for those who passed but for yourself.

Yours and Hotaru’s relationship blossomed from that day forth. Days after missions were spent together, oftentimes you stayed with him when you were home.

You’d sit and watch as he’d forge his blades with incredible passion. After the day was long over, and you convinced him he worked hard enough, the two of you would spend your evenings in each other's arms; always falling asleep entangled with one another.

You were his pride and joy. You sat so patiently, watching him work.

‘Such a pretty thing’ he thought to himself when he happened to steal a glance. Of course, he still made you a new sword whenever you needed one, but now he could impose a “punishment” he saw fit. Then again he never heard you complain.

“Hotaru! It’s me! I’m back! Hotaru?” You called as you entered his home, your last mission had been long and time consuming so once it was finished you immediately ran home.

As you walked in, Hotaru rounded the corner from his room with his hands behind his back.

“Close your eyes, my spiderlily. I have a surprise for you.” He came behind you and put his hand over your eyes. You jittered with excitement. His other hand moved in front of you.

“Now open them.” He said softly as he withdrew his hand from in front of your face.

In his hand was a beautiful bundle of wild flowers and wisteria blossoms, fresh from the spring weather.

You squealed and jumped with joy, you immediately wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling Hotaru in a smothering embrace. He buried his head into your neck and squeezed you back even harder.

“Oh Hotaru, they are just like the ones from the grove! They are beautiful! I love them so much!” You cried as you held them close and smelled them.

“I may have had some help.” Hotaru replied with a wide smile across his face.

“They are perfect!”

“You are perfect.”

#hotaru haganezuka #hashira x reader #demon slayer requests #demon slayer x reader #demon slayer #hotaru x reader #hotaru haganezuka x reader #demon slayer Hotaru #hashira headcannons

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catgirlforkaeya · 2 years

Note

hello! i hope you're doing well and as a kaeya lover myself i love your account sm it brings me sm comfort! idk if you're taking requests rn but i just need soms hurt/comfort and maybe fluff (?) if u have time ofc!! let's say that reader and kaeya just got into their first relationship and they had an arguement but since they're still new into the relationship can you write how they resolve it?

i expect kaeya to be the one who communicate first since reader is kinda ignorant? i'd say their personality is almost like albedo haha i probably didn't project reader into myself ANYWAY SORRY IF THIS IS TOO LONG OR CONFUSING TY <3 can i be anon 🐏?

first fight

kaeya x gn!reader

hurt/comfort + fluff at the end

warnings: all lowercase + not proofread + i haven’t written in almost 2 months so it’s prolly bad asf + alcohol mentions + past arguments + teeny tiny mention of scars bc im evil to you guys

a/n: I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG ANON 💔 AND YES U CAN ABSOLUTELY BE 🐏 ANON!! i also apologize if there’s errors i haven’t written in awhile i’m rusty eueueu

it had only been a few months since you and kaeya got into a relationship. you both were new to all of this, so when you two got into your first argument you were honestly clueless on how to resolve it.

you’ve known kaeya your whole life— you two grew up together in mondstadt. throughout all of those years you never fought, but within the first couple months in your relationship you had your first fight. it was a fairly serious fight. you’d gotten annoyed of how overprotective kaeya had been within the past few weeks, and that confrontation just caused a whole spiral of arguments. you said some vile comments, ones that you regret every night.

about a week or so ago you two decided to take a break after your argument. you didn’t break up or anything, just took some time off. that whole week was… interesting to say the least. you weren’t used to not talking to kaeya everyday. you were used to coming home and falling asleep next to him, waking up in his arms with your figures pressed tightly together. you missed hearing him whisper sweet nothings while you two were drifting off to sleep. as much as you missed everything you couldn’t bring yourself to go and apologize. deep down you knew you were wrong, but on the surface you acted otherwise. you knew you’d have to eventually say something if he didn’t.

you’ve done your best to avoid kaeya this week. you hated doing it but you knew it’d be way too awkward if you two ran into each other. avoiding the tavern, taking the less-busy sidewalks to places, doing your best to avoid the knights headquarters, etc etc. thankfully you hadn’t run into him.. yet.

it was already around midnight as you made your way into the knight’s headquarters. you should’ve turned these papers in to jean earlier, but you were still avoiding the headquarters the best you could during the day. right now was the perfect time for you since you knew kaeya would probably be at the tavern or back home. he rarely ever stayed overtime to work on paperwork nowadays, so you figured that you were in the clear.

your footsteps echoed throughout the hallway as you entered. everything was silent in the building, not a soul to be seen in the main part. all of the doors that were cracked had a dark room behind them. some were closed so you couldn’t tell if those had anybody in them, but you doubted. mostly everybody went home for the night around 9pm-10pm.

the light in jean’s office was off, so you had to aimlessly feel around on the wall until you found the switch. you were glad to see that jean had went home earlier than she usually does, you were just wishing she’d left the light on. you wanted to get in and out, fumbling around trying to find a light switch was just adding onto the time you spent in the building. finally your fingertips brushed across the switch.

you walked across the wooden floor, some of the boards creaking underneath your feet. jean’s desk was organized as usual. important paperwork and pens on the right side, stuff that wasn’t important was on the left, and new and untouched paperwork in the middle. your paperwork would be classified as the middle stack, so that’s where you placed it. you took a small glimpse at the paper on top. you recognized the handwriting— it was kaeya’s. only he would write his A’s and E’s in an abnormally curvy way.

just as you placed the paperwork on top of his, you heard a cough come from behind you.

your whole body tensed up for a second. you definitely were startled, simply because you figured that nobody else was in the building. apparently you were wrong though. slowly, you turned around to see who was behind you.

kaeya was standing in the doorway behind you, leaning up against the frame with his arms across his chest.

speak of the devil.

“we need to talk, [name],” kaeya spoke. for the first time you couldn’t quite place what tone he was speaking in right now. was it anger? was it sadness? was it just a normal tone? disappointment even? you had absolutely no clue.

“y-yeah, we do,” your words caught in your throat a little. he was right, you two did need to talk. if you wanted any chance of mending your relationship you couldn’t put it off any longer. you just weren’t prepared for confrontation right now. “can we do it somewhere else though?”

“my place?” he asked, almost as if he read your mind. it was the closest to the headquarters, so that would save you two a painfully long and awkward walk. you gave a small nod, following behind him out the doors. you shivered as the cold air hit you in the face, almost felt like icy needles against your skin.

you two moved throughout the city in silence. the only sounds that could be heard was your steps on the concrete and the small howl of the wind. any other time you wouldn’t really mind the silence between you two, but this time the silence allowed your mind to run wild with thoughts. the conversation that was bound to happen within a matter of minutes would determine whether you two moved forward in life together or break apart. you didn’t want the latter, you two had been friends since before you were teenagers. you didn’t want your foolish outrage where you spoke without thinking to be the downfall.

you couldn’t help but look over at kaeya and wonder if he was feeling the same way or not. you couldn’t read his face so you had no idea where this was going to go. guess you’ll find out soon.

—

as you stepped through the doors of kaeya’s house, you were greeted with a mostly dark house. you could see the glow of a light from his bedroom, but everything else was dark. the only thing illuminating the room was the moonlight shining on through the windows. shockingly the moon gave a good amount of light; you were able to see stuff clearly. not as clearly as if there were a lamp on, but clear enough.

you turned around to face him once you heard the door close. he was in the same position he was in when you saw him at the headquarters— one shoulder leaning up against the wall with his arms crossed. that’s one of the ways that he usually stands though, so it wasn’t too shocking.

you subconsciously mimicked his position too. you had your arms crossed as you stood, the only thing that was different was there was no wall to lean against. you had your calves pressed against the side of the couch. another difference was that your figure was a lot more tensed, while kaeya’s was more relaxed.

silence hung between you two once again. neither of you knew where to start. so many words that needed to be said were hanging on the tip of your tongues, but if you were to say them you were afraid of what would happen. deep down you knew this was going to get resolved, but the amount of anxiety and fear that this was the end drowned that out.

“we can’t avoid this forever,” kaeya was the one to break the silence. his voice echoed across the room to you, snapping you out of your thoughts.

“i know,” you answered. you tried to keep your voice at a medium tone but it kept sinking lower and lower. this response almost sounded like a whisper, so you weren’t even sure that he heard it.

“i really don’t want to lose you over this, [name],” he began, “we’ve known each other for over two decades, i don’t want our first argument to be what makes everything go down in flames.”

you stood there for a moment, rolling your head up to look at the ceiling for a second. almost as if you were begging whatever was up there to let this go the right way.

“i’m sorry about everything i said. i didn’t mean to call you obsessive or a stalker. i was a total asshole th-that night— i’d gotten drunk off my ass that night and wasn’t thinking before i spoke. i kn-“ your voice started to crack mid-sentence. you felt your eyes begin to sting, tears welling up fast. you bit the inside of your cheek as an attempt to stop yourself from crying, that did nothing but leave a sore. “-i know that you have good intentions and want to keep me safe and i do the same for you. i don’t want this to be the downfall either— i’ve been up all damn week trying to figure out how to approach this. i’m also sorry i didn’t come to you first i was just afraid i’d like— cause another argument. you didn’t deserve the way that i treated you and i’m so sorr-“

the next thing you knew you felt kaeya’s arms wrap around you, pulling you tight against his chest. you don’t even know how you two ended up like this— you’d gotten so lost in your panicked apology ramble that you didn’t pay any attention to what happened. you didn’t know if you’d gone to him, if he’d came to you, or if it was a mutual action.

“it’s okay,” you heard him whisper, his grip on you tightening. “i forgive you hun. i’m sorry about everything that i said too. i was an asshole too.”

“i forgive you too,” you said with a shaky breath, tears threatening the spill even harder now. “i missed you so much.”

with that you both broke down. you buried your heads in the crook of each other’s necks and just cried. you had no clue how long you two cried for. a few minutes? a whole hour? who knows.

—

within a few hours you found yourself right where you felt like you belonged. laying in bed with kaeya, curled up tight next to his side with your head resting on his bare chest, and his arm wrapped around you rubbing small circles against your skin.

it was about 3 in the morning now. you two were wide awake but neither of you cared. you both were just happy to be back into your regular routine.

you tilted your head up to look at kaeya. he was focused on a book he was reading, but you knew he was watching you out of the corner of his eye. you just laid there for a few minutes admiring him. you’ve seen his face almost everyday for twenty years but it’d never not be pretty. everything about him was perfect to you. all the things that he swore were flaws, even the darkest sides of him were perfect in your eyes. many other people would disagree with you on this, but they didn’t know kaeya like you did.

you always knew you had feelings for kaeya. it just started out as some silly crush that children get, but it stuck with you throughout the years. even when you had a s/o, it would never feel real. their love and your love just felt very fake. you did have feelings for whoever you were with, but your feelings for kaeya would always get in the way. all of those relationships never showed you what it was like to be loved. you never knew what truly being loved felt like until you and kaeya started dating. honestly looking back he made you feel loved since the day you met, but at the time you didn’t realize that. sandbox love never really dies, does it? you two were living proof of that.

after awhile of looking at him you had to return to your original position. the way you had your chin resting on his chest as you looked up put an uncomfortable strain on your neck.

once you were comfortable again you placed a hand on his torso, aimlessly running up and down it. your fingertips brushed over some burn scars that he had on his abdomen. you let them linger there for a couple of seconds. you felt his abdomen tense for a small second, but you knew he didn’t mind. this was one of the many ways you two would silently say “i love you”— tracing over each other’s scars.

another hour passed before you felt your eyelids begin to grow heavy. kaeya must have been getting tired too because he finally put the book down and flicked off the light switch. now you two were laying in the dark, trying your best to go to sleep.

“goodnight darling,” kaeya mumbled, you could tell he was on the brink of sleep just by his voice.

you shifted around some so that you could give him your goodnight kisses. first you placed some lazy kisses to his jawline, then some more kisses on his lips.

“goodnight bub,” you whispered against his lips between kisses. “i love you.”

“i love you more,” he said in response as you shifted back to the way you were laying before.

right before you let sleep consume you, you let out a small sigh of relief. you’d been stressing about your argument all week, and now it was all over. everything was okay now, you and kaeya were okay.

you and kaeya were okay.

#genshin #genshin impact #genshin x reader #genshin impact x reader #genshin x you #genshin impact x you #kaeya #kaeya alberich #kaeya x reader #kaeya x you #kaeya fluff #genshin fluff #catgirlforkaeya #genshin fanfic #genshin drabbles #kaeya x y/n #genshin kaeya #kaeya genshin #genshin x y/n

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redwinterroses · 3 years

Note

Had an idea for a fic I’m never going to write. So Empires SMP has a bad ending for the rulers, and Gem and Pearl decide to move on without their memories and end up in Hermitcraft. They’re at peace but weighed down by something they don’t know. And then Gem sees Fwip. Maximum angst potential of either her remembering everything right then or remembering nothing and Fwip trying to convince her they know each other. “Do I know you?”’s are always heartbreaking

You did this to me. XD

Disclaimers: I don't know how to write fWhip yet, so he's prolly at least a little OCC. Also, we're gonna pretend that timelines are ours to do as we please with, and say that Empires has ended several months prior to MCC17. Just. Because. Wibbly-wobbly.

Anyway here, have some Whizbang sibs content. :D

____________________

Sometimes it was little things. Sometimes the little things didn’t feel so… little.

Like when Gem held the Tegg in her hands, the void-dark shell rough and cold under her fingers, and was unsettled by how… lifeless it felt. It would hatch if put in the right circumstances, she knew, the egg wasn’t dead. But something in her heart quickened with undefined panic at the idea that it might not hatch, and something else… mourned? That she couldn’t feel the life inside?

She shook her head and set the egg down with hands that only trembled a little.

She knew why these phantom feelings were chasing her heart, she just didn’t know what lay underneath that foggy surface of hidden memories.

And she didn’t want to.

They’d agreed.

So she hid the Tegg, and she laughed when it was found, and the idea that there ought to be anything more to a dragon’s egg slowly faded into the back of her mind, gathering dust on the shelves of other forgotten things.

Sometimes it was the big things. Things that shouldn’t have seemed so inconsequential.

Like when she fell while mining and died with her items scattered across the bottom of a ravine, and she woke with a gasp in her own bed.

And when it happened again, on a day when she missed seeing a creeper until too late. And again, falling from the top of her build. And death just… didn’t matter much. Or enough. Or at all. It felt like it should matter, somehow — she knew it didn’t, she knew respawn was waiting, she knew there were no real consequences in this world for death.

And yet on some level each respawn felt like a failure. Her bones ached with the sense that she’d missed something, some detail that would have saved them all—

But they didn’t need saving. The hermits were fine. It was fine. This wasn’t a defeat, or a loss, or a reason for an ally to potentially lose something as well, or for an enemy to claim victory over you. There were no enemies here. No allies, either, really. They were all friends.

It was fine.

And with each respawn, it hurt a little less, and felt a little bit more like freedom.

~*~

The MCC lobby was brilliantly-colored and smelled of junk food, hot concrete, and salty wind from the sea that swirled somewhere miles below them. fWhip took in a deep breath and his face split into a grin — a grin that had been a little… lacking, recently. He’d done a lot to distance himself from the darkness they’d fled, but…

Well. A day playing insane games with friends and strangers alike would be just the thing. A much-needed break.

He paced back and forth just inside the main gates, watching the other competitors bounce around and shout back and forth — insults, greetings, questions, challenges — it was a cacophony of noise and color, and its sandpaper-rough edges of chaos smoothed away another layer of the angry burrs in his mind.

He caught a glimpse of something bright green through the crowd, and stood on tiptoe to see — yes! Another one of his teammates, finally heading over to their agreed meeting point. He lost them in the crowd for a moment, but then saw the ginger hair (so much like his own) and a smiling face beneath small, dainty antlers.

Gem.

He didn’t expect the dagger of pain that went through him at the sight of her face, nor that the way her eyes lit up when she spotted him would sooth away some of that same pain.

“Gem!” he shouted. “Hey — over here!”

She waved, and dodged a gaggle of cyan- and red-clad players shoving each other goodnaturedly across the courtyard.

“Hey, fWhip!” she called as she neared him. She looked… happy, he thought. He didn’t see the shadows under her eyes that he’d expected, and she was freckled and tanned instead of the pale, cloaked figure he remembered.

“Hermitcraft’s been good to you,” he said, grabbing her in a one-armed shoulder hug.

To his surprise, she tensed a little — as if surprised — before returning the hug.

“Yeah, yeah,” she agreed. “The hermits are great.” Then, stepping back, she tilted her head at him. “So — long time, no see. What’ve you been up to?”

He shrugged, leaning back against the bright-red concrete wall. “Oh. You know. Lots of building, some exploring… been thinkin’ about checking out one of those new snapshots people are talking about.” He examined her. “You, ah… heard from any of the others lately?”

Something like a shadow chased across her face, but Gem gave him a slightly confused smile. “The others?”

“Scott, or Sausage, or Katherine…” There was no comprehension in her expression, and fWhip’s heart constricted. “I mean, you haven’t even messaged me in months.”

“I… I didn’t realize I should have…?” Gem crossed her arms over her chest, rubbing at her upper arm as if she’d gotten a chill. “I mean, we haven’t chatted much since XLife — I was glad to see a familiar face for my first MCC, but it’s not like we’re… ya know. Besties or anything — no offense, of course.”

If she’d tossed him off the edge of the lobby island into the void, it might have shocked him less.

“Gem, I—” he shook his head. “You were my… I was your brother? I know that’s not the same as ‘besties’ but… that kinda hurts, I won’t lie.”

Now she did go pale. And still.

“I…” she stopped, her voice dying away amidst the chaos. “fWhip, I don’t… know what you’re talking about.”

fWhip froze. “You what?” He stepped forward and gripped her by the shoulders. “Gem, are you okay? Did they — did the hermits do something to you?”

“What? No — don’t be ridiculous.” She tugged out of his grasp but didn’t move away. “The hermits are amazing and would never do anything to hurt me. Not like—” Gem’s eyes snapped up to lock on his, and she frowned, distressed. “fWhip… what’s going on?”

She’d forgotten. He didn’t know how — repressing the trauma? Magic? Knowing Gem, it was probably the latter… because of the former.

“We — Empires,” he said, fumbling for words. “You and I were allies. Siblings, even. And there was a demon, and the dragon egg—”

Gem grabbed his arm. “The egg!” she exclaimed. “I knew there was something—”

He could see the moment she remembered. And then the moment she chose not to.

“There’s something sad there,” she said, her voice nearly lost in the noise of the crowd. Her gaze flicked back and forth between his eyes, pleading. “Something… lost. And I don’t want to be lost, fWhip.”

He started to argue with her, and then paused.

What good did remembering do any of them? What good had it done him? What was the point of the sleepless nights, wondering what he could have done differently? The nightmares where he relived every mistake and had to watch their failures and defeat over and over again? The fact that he still shied away from shadows, and that the MCC world was the safest he’d felt in months?

“No,” he said slowly, even though it felt like he was letting a piece of himself slip away. He’d missed having a sister. But what were brothers for, if not for things like this? “No, you don’t need to be lost, Gem. If you ever want to come back, I’ll be here but… it’s okay if it’s not today. Or—” he swallowed, but pushed the words out anyway. “Or ever.”

A glint of something that could have been gratitude or could have been a tear glittered in her gaze for just a moment — and then there were other voices, and the boisterous greeting of Jimmy and Quig, and they stepped apart, each plastering a grin on their faces to welcome their teammates.

fWhip couldn’t help but glance at Gem as she greeted Jimmy, but there was no recognition of the Codfather on her face, and Jimmy, he knew, was content to let the past lie. It didn’t take away the sting of loss — or the slight bitterness that tanged in the back of his throat, that Gem could forget and move on, and he… he couldn’t. Not yet.

But she seemed happy. Wasn’t that enough?

It could be. For now. For today.

A voice over the PA system urged them to head into the starting area, and fWhip followed his team up the path, merging with the other players. He almost didn’t notice Gem slipping her hand into his, until she squeezed it gently.

He looked down at her, and she offered him a smile.

“We’ll talk later, maybe?” she said.

It was a start.

“Sure,” he said. “But first, we gotta win this thing. Grab you a win for your first MCC, right?”

Gem laughed. “Sure, wFhip,” she said. “Sure.”

#redwinterwrites #tbh i forgot jimmy was on lime until the last second or i might have given him a bit more screentime #but this was getting long enough as it is #mcc17 #fwhip #geminitay #empires smp

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stormfall1327 · 2 years

Text

It feels so damn good to write something again. It’s been WAY too long. Started a new CP2077 1.5 playthrough and took an unintentionally angsty screenshot of V/Vik, so here’s a hurt/comfort/angst drabble to go with it. Enjoy!

Also posted to AO3. Check it out! https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToABeautifulOblivion

Losing You

T: Explicit Language

Hurt/Comfort/Angst

Couldn’t save him.

Can’t save her….

Can’t… save… her.

FUCK.

It’s been three weeks. Three weeks since life saw fit to cold cock him in the fucking face. Losing Jack was a hard blow. He’s seen a lot of death over the years; some of them friends, some no more than strangers. But Jackie? That’s the kind of loss you never really get over. The kind that takes a piece of you with it and leaves a raw, gaping hole behind.

But that wasn’t enough. Fucking bastards had to take her, too. Not right away, of course, but in a slow, agonizing process that he had to sit by and watch without being able to do a goddamn thing about it.

They were just kids, for Christ’s sake! Had their whole goddamn lives ahead of ‘em. Night City legends, if they had anything to say about it. Prolly coulda done it, too. But now? Jack was rotting away in the ground and V was living out her last with a fucking parasite in her head, sucking out every last drop of what made her so goddamn special until there’d be nothing left. An empty shell. And that, he thinks, is worse than if she’d just died on his table, then and there.

He’d scoffed when she asked him to pull the chip, begging him to please help. “V, you’ll die. Immediately. No chance.” He often wonders if that would have been better. Would have been more merciful. Would have stopped this fucking ache in his heart every time he looks at her…

He pulls his glasses off with a heavy sigh and presses his palms to his eyes. He doesn’t remember the last time he’s felt so goddamn helpless. She’s tried to bring it up; many times, in fact. But every time she does, he dodges her questions like a fucking coward. He just… can’t. It’s too real, then. The… inevitability of it all, of her being snuffed out like a fucking candle one day, not even knowing who she is anymore… it’s too much. She means too much.

“Vik?”

Her voice cuts through the silence, raw and broken, the jagged edges of her pain swallowing his name as it leaves her lips. He turns his head to the sound and his chest tightens painfully. She’s standing behind the gate, shoulders slumped, dark circles under her red, puffy eyes. She’s been crying.

“V…? Hey, c’mon in.” He stands as the gate rattles open, the sound deafening in the quiet. She takes a few steps inside and hesitates, head down, hands shoved deep into her pockets. When she looks up at him, his heart breaks.

“Sorry to stop by so late… I couldn’t sleep and the light was on, so I figured….” Her voice cracks and trails off as a single tear slides down her cheek.

“Hey, hey. C’mere. It’s ok.” He opens his arms in silent invitation and she unapologetically crashes into his chest, arms wrapping tightly around him, clinging for dear life. He holds her just as tightly, nose pressed into the top of her head as he swallows around a sudden lump in his throat. She takes a shuddering breath to speak, but when she opens her mouth, all that leaves is a choked sob.

He takes an unsteady breath of his own and pulls her closer, thumbs rubbing soothing circles on her back. “Shhhh… it’s ok. I’m here,” he mumbles against her hair. “It’s gonna be ok.” And he lets her cry, closing his eyes to keep his own tears from falling.

For as long as she needs him, he’ll be there, even if it means watching her slowly fall apart.

#cyberpunk 2077 #viktor vector/v #viktor vektor #my writing #drabble #hurt/comfort #angst #viktor vektor/v #oc #sylvie collins #streetkid oc #otp: down for the count #viktor vector

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lovemeleo · 3 years

Note

I absolutely LOVE your Asher Pascal series, just makes me go🥺🥺 could you maybe do something along the lines of Asher receiving a pair of skates for his birthday and then them all going to the rink to try them out possibly? Just think it’d be so cute!

Your writings amazing, absolutely love reading it!!❤️❤️

Thank you so much, anon! I’m so glad you enjoy it.

Sorry it took me so long to write this but, you guys!!! Our baby is turning one! Yes, this is the very much requested fic of Asher’s first birthday. I hope you all enjoy it as much I enjoy writing it. The SW world belongs to the forever fantastic @lumosinlove!

If you haven’t caught up with the series yet, here is the masterlist!

365 days. 12 months. 1 year.

That’s how long their baby had been on this planet.

It was hard to believe that they were the parents of a one year old, but Asher was growing more and more every day.

Remus knew it was impossible because Asher wasn’t biologically either of theirs but oh my god did he look like a mini Sirius. Sometimes they would be sitting at the kitchen table and Remus would just watch as Sirius tried to convince Ash to eat his breakfast, and they’d both just get this stubborn set to their jaw. It was crazy. Sirius said the same about Asher and Remus though. He could see it in dimples in their cheeks when they smiled, the crinkles by their eyes. It didn’t matter if Asher didn’t have any of their genetics, he was their child through and through.

They first started planning Asher’s birthday two months ago, deciding to have everyone at the rink. With all of the family and friends that were coming, it would’ve been too hard to fit everyone at their house.

Remus and Sirius had put on the invitations that people didn’t need to bring gifts as Asher was already very spoiled. But here they were, watching as Asher opened what had to have been his 200th present. Luckily it looked to have been the last one. Well almost the last one. Unsurprisingly it was a giant book of dinosaurs.

Dinosaurs were Asher’s current favorite, so that was the theme of the party. It seemed like he received every dinosaur toy, figurine, and book on the planet.

“Alright, bub. One more from your daddy and I.” Remus said with a smile, setting it on the table in front of the one year old.

Asher’s eyes widened, as they had for every present, “For me?” He gasped, his hands on either side of his face. The small crowd of people watching him chuckled as Sirius rolled his eyes fondly.

“Yes, mon chou. It’s your birthday, so all the presents are going to be for you.” Sirius said, pressing a kiss to the messy curls that covered Asher’s head.

Wiggling happily in his chair, Asher began to tear off the wrapping paper. As soon as he could see the box, he quickly opened it and let out a happy squeal, “My skates!?”

After weeks of searching, they had finally been able to find a pair of ice skates for Asher. But not just any skates. They were dinosaur skates. Who knew it would be so hard to find a pair of kid skates that had dinosaurs on them? Not Sirius or Remus.

“There’s dinos!” Asher cheered, holding a dinosaur covered ice skate above his head. Everyone clapped, watching as he held it to his chest before moving to hug his dads. “Thank youuu!”

Remus smiled softly, pressing a kiss to the top of his head, “Anything for you, bub.” He said with a soft smile.

Looking around the room, Sirius clapped his hands together with a smile, “Well now that presents are done, why don’t we get out on the ice?” As soon as he finished, the entire room was moving to get ready.

Sirius felt a tug on his shirt and looked down to see Asher, clutching his skates to his chest, “Me too?” He asked, puppy dog eyes in full effect.

Laughing to himself, Sirius lifted Asher onto the bench, “Of course you too, mon petit. We wouldn’t go without you.” He said as he began to help Asher get them on.

“Will you help me next, Cap?” Logan asked with a cheeky grin as he sat next to Asher with his own skates.

Asher shook his head as he watched Sirius tie up his skates, “No, you gotta ask your daddy.” He said, shaking his finger at Logan.

Logan grinned, “Alright, little man, you got it.” He said before turning to look around. “Dumo! Asher says you gotta help me tie my skates!”

Raising an eyebrow, Dumo looked up from where he was helping Katie with her skates, “Mon fils, if you can’t tie your own skates, we’ve got a problem.”

“C’mon, sweetheart, I’ll help you with your skates. I’m done with mine.” Leo said with a laugh, kneeling in front of Logan.

Wiggling his eyebrows, Logan smirked, “Oh, so you were the daddy Asher said I had to ask.” Before he could finish his sentence, he was cuffed on the back of the head. Glancing back, he was met with a glare from Remus.

“Children, Tremz. There are children here. My child is right next to you.”

Logan pouted, rubbing the back of his head, “Rude, Loops. And violent! You’re teaching Asher that violence is the answer.”

Happily oblivious to the entire conversation, Asher swung his feet after his dad had finished tying them on, “You like my skates, Le?” He asked.

“Very cool. I wish I had a pair of dinosaur skates.” Leo said with a smile, tying off Logan’s skates before sitting back on his heels.

If it was possible for Asher to smile any bigger, he would. “If you wanted, my daddies could prolly get you some too and then we could match!” He said as Remus lifted him down off the bench.

“I’m sure Leo would look very cool in some dino skates, bub,” Remus said, holding his hand as he wobbled his way to the ice. “You ready?”

Asher got a determined look on his face that reminded Remus so much of Sirius, he let out a laugh, “I got this. And Fish says it’s okay if I fall ‘cause if I get hurt, I’m still a pro.” Asher assured his dad before stepping onto the ice.

“Yeah but let’s not make that a goal, Ash.” Finn said as he came past.

Everyone started making their way onto the ice, some skate helpers in the middle just in case anyone needed them. Asher stayed in between his dads for awhile, getting used to the new skates as well as the big rink.

Kuny skated by him for a bit with Nado, chatting happily with the little boy, “You skate so good, already better than Nado.” He said with a teasing smile.

Shoving the other man (carefully so neither of them bumped Asher), Nado stuck his tongue out before turning his attention back to the small boy between them, “He’s right though, Ash. Already crushing it in those dino skates. What position do you wanna play?”

Asher hummed softly, his eyes on the ice as he tried to go a bit faster, “Dunno. If I can go really fast, I can be a wing like Daddy. Or Goalie like my Le.”

“I think you’d make a great goalie.” Leo said as he skated up, staying behind Asher as the three of them formed a kind of barrier around him. Asher grinned back at him, his eyes lighting up as he saw his favorite person.

The four of them chatted for a while before splitting off, everyone getting their chance to skate with the birthday boy. He even beat Pots in a very dramatic race around the rink, James sliding in seconds after him. Remus and Sirius kept an eye on him the whole time as they made their way around the rink.

After around an hour of skating, Sirius looked away from where he had been watching Remus to find Asher again. His eyebrows furrowed as he couldn’t see him skating and no one on the ice was holding him.

“Re? Where’d he go?” Sirius asked as he caught up with his fiance who was skating with Leo.

Leo laughed, “I’d check the bench, Cap.” He said as the two of them continued their way around the rink.

Eyebrows furrowed, Sirius skated across the rink to the benches and couldn’t help the ‘Aw’ that left his lips at the sight.

Sprawled across the home team bench was Asher, Logan and Kuny. Sirius remembered seeing him skating with the two boys, but Asher must’ve gotten tired at some point during their skate. It looked as though they had all sat just to take a quick break but ended up taking a nap instead. Logan was leaning against Kuny’s side, his head on the taller man’s shoulder and Asher’s legs in his lap. Kuny had a protective arm wrapped around Asher where he was sprawled over his lap.

After taking a few photos, Sirius skated off, letting the three sleep. He knew the boys would take care of Asher, just like they took care of him. He was so lucky to have this team, this family. Sirius wasn’t sure he would’ve gotten to this point in his life without the Lions. Now his son had the same supportive family behind him. Sirius may not have had the best support throughout his childhood, but he would make damn sure his son did.

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dracothedeatheatingcupcake-ao3 · 3 years

Text

Hi y’all!!! So, I know I prolly shouldn’t, since this idea of mine isn’t anywhere close to being done and the scene this drawing is in relation to isn’t even written yet, but I just really, really wanted to post this since I think it turned out super cute.

So, shock of all shocks, I had another idea for an IshiMondo story. And I’m not going to say it, since every single time I’ve had a idea for a story and told everyone all about it, I got stuck writing and stopped writing like... immediately after posting. So I’m not going to say anything about the story itself just to be safe.

However!!! There is a potential scene I thought up of Mondo and Taka taking care of Taka’s five month old cousin who is sick. Taka gets frazzled when the baby won’t stop crying, so Mondo (who is not dressed in his usual gear for Reasons Related To The Plot I Am Not Telling You) offers to hold him for a while instead to give Taka a break. They sit on the couch and their hands touch, letting them both Pine Ridiculously whilst looking after a tiny infant.

Honestly, having Mondo with tiny children and babies is everything I need in life. I love kids and I love it when characters are good with kids, and I decree that Mondo would be awesome with kids, even if he’d be super awkward about it. He would never, EVER yell at a kid, because Daiya taught him better than that. <3

Now, I do have some problems with this drawing, but overall I really like it. I’m not at all good at drawing people sitting down, but I did my best, ha. Also, hands are still evil. And everyone knows that babies grow their fifth finger when they reach a year old. ;-) But honestly I’m super happy with how the baby turned out. I’ve never drawn a baby before and he turned out a lot better than I had thought he would.

Oh! And Taka isn’t wearing his arm band because he’s “dressing down,” ha. I didn’t forget it or was too lazy to draw it, it was a Choice.

(Also, by the way, the baby’s name is Bobby, since his dad is American, and he has a three year old sister named Samantha who Likes to Talk, and REALLY likes Mondo.)

#My art #Danganronpa #Mondo Owada #Kiyotaka Ishimaru #Mondo and Taka babysitting a baby #What more do you need in life honestly???

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whats-rambled-rambled · 3 years

Text

Long Nights - part 2

Neil x Reader

Chapter 2: Praise you

(see chapter 1)

summary: you found tremendous joy in coming up with new ways to make the lockpicking sessions challenging. And entertaining.

...even if the last part was mostly a one-sided thing.

warnings: 18+, explicit language, teasing, implied smut I guess? oh, and of course - ✨hand content✨

author’s note: Took me a while, but it was fun to write! Didn’t expect it to get this long, but here we are - over 4,2k words of shameless hand content

The song for this chapter is Fatboy Slim - Praise you

Anyway, enjoy! All feedback is greatly appreciated, let me know what you think?

——————

Tag list: @vaneilla @gallifreyan-uprising @ergunbilge @invertedneil @wanderedaway @truly-insatiable (let me know if you want to be added or removed from the list)

-----

You cracked it.

It took you a good while, though. A whole sleepless night, even.

And half of the morning after that.

But maybe the absolute exhaustion was the key, pun intended.

At first, it boggled your mind so much that you were dangerously close to using brute force just to examine that lock. You tried every technique that you could think of - to no effect. It wasn’t like anything you’d seen before. The mechanism wasn’t responding as usual, it was more like a thing from goddamn Upside Down, or however the fuck that was called.

It became a matter of pride.

The sun had risen over an hour ago and the sunlight was pouring through the gaps in the blinds. Grasping at the last strands of sanity, you decided to take a break. You put on your headphones and danced around your apartment to the sounds of a song with that one bloody line that somehow seemed fitting for this madness.

Is it worth it? Let me work it, I put my thang down, flip it and reverse it

Because it felt exactly like that was what had happened to it. And no amount of cursing and switching tools would help in the face of glitched reality.

And when you sat down at your desk again, with your head so empty that your last brain cell was amusing itself by yodeling and listening to an echo, you bound the first pin. The sound was so distorted it almost startled you. The last thing you needed right then was to break the hook inside the keyway, so you leveled your breath and continued, even though your fingers cramped painfully. That wasn’t enough to stop you. Not as you finally got proof that the task was actually within your reach.

With every click like a backwards version of the sound you knew so well, the next pins got set quicker and smoother. And when you opened the lock, you couldn’t help the cheerful scream that escaped your mouth.

“Fuck yes!” You punched the air, the adrenaline rushing through your veins, the biggest grin lighting up your face.

That’s when you knew there was no way you were going to sleep anytime soon. Besides, you still didn’t know how you managed to convince that device to cooperate. You had to prove to yourself that it wasn’t dumb luck, and should you ever come upon a bloody nightmare like that, you’d be able to use the experience to crack it open. Because of that, you spent the next couple of hours reverse-picking it (which turned out to be another level of bonkers) to lock the damn thing, only to open it back again. And again. And then three times more. When you got comfortable with the process, your eyes were burning, your fingers stiff and trembling, but the immense satisfaction was worth every bit of it.

You were about to crash on the bed as your phone buzzed, and you glanced at the incoming message.

//did you pick it?

At first, you assumed you got it from Mahir, but as you were typing in a long rant, you realized that there was no history of the previous conversations on the screen, so you checked the sender again.

Neil.

Huh.

You’d exchanged the numbers the day before, but you didn’t expect to hear from him until they got everything ready to start the lessons. Oh well. You snapped the picture of the open lock and sent it back, adding a short message.

//that was fun, hope you have more of them

As you faceplanted on the bed, the phone buzzed with a reply.

//N: you bet

You couldn’t wait to get all the answers about how they managed to manufacture the most bizarre and mind-bending thing you’d ever seen, but there was no point in asking those questions over the phone. Plus, you really needed to get some rest.

//awesome! now excuse me, imma get some Zs - let me know when you guys are ready to start

After a second, you typed in another text.

//ps. how’s your nose?

//N: will do, sleep well!

//N: as for my nose...let’s say I’m glad it wasn’t the straightest one in the first place

That cheeky bastard.

//hey, don’t try to guilt-trip me, i’m trying to sleep

You almost drifted off, but you couldn’t resist checking that last notification.

//N: ...I wouldn’t dare

Snorting, you rolled to the side.

Then you fell asleep, dreaming of the impossible locks.

-------

It took them another day to prepare all the stuff, and after several further messages you got a date and location.

The building looked like a contemporary tenement house, definitely standing out from two older ones at its sides. You always assumed it belonged to one of those fancy start-ups, but apparently it was some sort of temporary headquarters of your new associates.

It didn’t surprise you that you weren’t given a tour of the place, you assumed you needed to have some sort of clearance to walk freely through the area. For now, you were restricted to the ground floor, or rather to the lobby and your classroom - a rather cozy space, but equipped with everything you needed to begin.

Neil turned out to be a fast learner, at least when it came to covering the theoretical side of lockpicking. You walked him through the basics, but you couldn’t help the itch in the back of your brain. After the encounter with the preposterous lock, your mind started to question everything that used to be unshakeable.

And of course you asked Neil about that bloody device as soon as you saw him, but he just smiled lightly and said that The Protagonist insisted on telling you all that himself when the time was right. So you had nothing left to do but to continue with the lessons, hoping that you the man himself would decide to grace you with his presence sooner than later.

You propped the chin on your hand and watched as Neil grabbed the tools. Your gaze wandered over his outrageously long fingers as he gave the lock a try, but apparently, the most idiotic grin on your face didn’t go unnoticed.

“Hey, eyes up here,” snorted Neil, and you looked at him just to meet his amused face. He caught you shamelessly staring, and there was no point in denying it.

Trying to salvage your mental coherence, you choked out, “Dude, your hands are--”

“What?” he asked, tilting his head.

“...huge,” you finished, the wide smile not leaving even for a second. You bit your lip and glanced back at Neil. “Don’t mind me, I’m just gonna stare for a bit longer.”

A hint of a blush crept upon his cheeks. My, oh my. Blinking rapidly, he cleared his throat and proceeded to bind the first pin, pressing his mouth into a thin line in an attempt to keep a composed demeanor. The sparkles in his gaze were quite telling, though.

The sight was utterly adorable, but more importantly, it planted a rather gut-busting idea into your head.

You stifled a giggle.

All in due time.

____

One of the perks of the location was a small cafe on the other side of the street.

Neil took you there on your second day during a break, walking in with a confidence of a true regular. He knew the staff by name and vice-versa, so it didn’t surprise you as he charmed his way through the conversation.

“I’ve got this,” he said, raising a hand to stop you before you could place your order. “One black coffee and one--...” he hesitated, still preventing you from chiming in. You crossed your arms and watched as his forehead creased, the confidence leaving him with every second passed. He narrowed his eyes, and you could almost hear the gears grinding in his head.

Whatever he was doing, or trying to do, it was time to put him out of his misery.

“Iced mocha for me, please,” you said, wondering which one of you had a more puzzled expression. “Cat got your tongue?”

Neil shook his head.

“No, it’s just…” - he let out a small sigh - “I can’t read you.”

“Good,” you snorted. “Why would you want to, anyway?”

The young barista smiled, putting the first coffee on the counter.

“Oh, your colleague here has a thing.”

“Oh?” You arched a brow. “Do tell!”

“It’s nothing,” said Neil, cringing slightly, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the enthusiastic answer from spilling from the barista.

“He likes to guess the orders of his companions, but this is prolly the first time I ever saw him freeze like that. Can’t wait to tell Doris!”

Neil groaned, avoiding your amused stare. “Spare me, Max.”

“Aww, man, I’m honored to be your first!” you teased, nudging his arm lightly and snickering at the absolutely done face he gave you in return.

That cafe quickly became your place of choice during breaks, but sometimes, if the weather was nice enough, you ordered to-go, just to spend that bit of free time between lockpicking sessions sitting on a grassy hill overlooking a bank of the river. You chatted about everything and nothing in particular, or simply sat in silence, enjoying the ambiance, beverages, and each other’s company.

The last thing took you by surprise, in a way. You’d expected those brief moments of a break during the day to be your sacred moments of solitude, the usual necessity to avoid getting too cranky around people. As Neil joined you on that second day, you found out that his presence was not bothering you, or at least your social batteries weren’t being drained in their regular manner. Sure, it probably helped that he was incredibly easy on the eyes, but a real treat were those moments when you ventured onto a territory he felt strongly about. In a wink, he was ready to drop his typical composure just to go straight into bubbly rants, gesturing wildly, the blue irises lit by the fire that he most often kept under wraps.

There was nothing more boring than people who lacked passion.

Lucky for you, that was not the case with Neil.

Moreover, he made you laugh.

A dangerous combination.

Alluring, even.

Good thing that you were not one to become smitten that easily.

That didn’t mean you couldn’t have some fun, though.

--------

“You need to listen to what the lock has to say,” you prompted, pacing through the room and watching as Neil struggled with a new type of mechanism. “It’s all about feedback.”

He pulled out the tools and rubbed his face, trying to hide the first hints of frustration.

“What if we apply heavier tension to amplify it?” he said and glared at the lock as if it was taunting him from its place on the practice stand.

“Sure, “ - you leaned over the table to rest the chin on your laced fingers - “but can you think of any reasons not to do that, my dear Physics Boy?”

“The higher possibility of breaking tools?”

“Precisely,” you said as you snapped and pointed your fingers. ”Also, you risk binding the pins too tightly and you wouldn’t want that, either.”

Neil sighed and slumped his shoulders.

“So...patience, then?”

“Yes,” you beamed. “It really comes down to one thing - you have to feel it.”

A corner of his lips twitched. “I’ve heard it before,” he said, shifting in his seat.

You shrugged, eyeing him curiously.

“Maybe because that’s one universally useful advice?”

“Would help if I understood it, too.” He gave you a weak smile, but his expression told you he wasn’t convinced.

You hummed in acknowledgment.

“Listen, I can smarten it up for you, but let me just show you what I mean.” You grabbed the second pair of tools from the table and placed them inside the keyway, but as soon as you opened your mouth to provide some follow-up instructions, you got struck by a better idea. Your eyes flared up. “Okay, know what? I’m just gonna-- if you could scoot back a bit--...” you said, shuffling in his direction. Neil’s brows snapped together in consternation, but he moved back. Without further ado, you sat down in front of him, nestling yourself between his spread legs on the edge of the chair, and let out a content sigh. “Should be easier now. Put your hands on mine.“

Neil tensed, and you could swear you heard him swallowing hard behind your back. He followed your suggestion, wrapping his arms around you and placing his hands on top of yours.

“Now, lay your fingers on the tools just above mine,” you continued as you slid your digits back to make more room for him. “Great, try not to press them and focus. Close your eyes, if you want.” As you gently moved the tools, you couldn’t resist but to add, “You can breathe though, you know?”

“Blimey.”

You giggled at the sarcastic bit in his tone and drew a long breath, hoping that Neil would follow it, and focused back on the lock. Purposefully slowing down your movements to allow him to feel how the mechanism responded to your ministrations, you kept sliding the hook back and forth the keyway, setting pin after pin. Neil relaxed after a moment, his shallow breath ghosting over your shoulder got deeper and more steady. His palms rested heavier on your hands, and you marveled at their size again, nibbling on your bottom lip. With all your senses sharpened, you stole a brief moment of self-indulgence, closing your eyes and relishing in the warmth radiating from Neil, the way it enveloped you, carrying a scent of his cologne - airy citrus undertones mixed with hints of powdery musk, a fresh and unostentatious combination you found fitting him so well.

The final click, more pressure and voilà - the lock was open.

“Did you feel it?” you asked softly, weirdly unwilling to move, hoping to linger in the position for a little while longer.

“Yes,” said Neil, and his husky voice made you turn your head to look at him. As he pulled his hands back somewhat hesitantly, you noticed his dazed expression and slightly flushed cheeks.

“Good,” you chirped, grinning, then reached out over your shoulder and lightly booped his nose, enjoying probably a bit too much the way his eyes widened. “Your turn.”

-----

Days. Weeks. Or was it months, plural?

You lost track of how much time had passed since that morning in the Old Town district.

The progress was counted by the number of models you introduced to Neil, showing him all the tricks you’d learned over the years. You still waited for the meeting with The Protagonist, although, ever since your student spilled a little too much information during one of his enthusiastic rants at the breaks (seriously, how could a person that bad at keeping secrets survive so long in any sort of spying business was beyond you), your initial curiosity itch had been scratched, and you were now in that blessed moment before it got unbearable again and demanded taking further actions.

It also helped that you found tremendous joy in coming up with new ways to make the lockpicking sessions challenging. And entertaining. Even if the last part was mostly a one-sided thing.

Neil was clearly feeling confident that evening. He really started to get a hang of this, and you loved watching him like that - fully focused, blonde strands falling to the eyes, with the tip of the tongue poking out...

It would be a shame if someone was to test his level of concentration.

“You know, I spend so much time looking at your hands that they recently started making cameos in my dreams.”

The blue eyes darted at you from under raised brows.

“Is that so?" asked Neil, switching his attention to the lock again.

“Yep. Mind you, most of those dreams are rather uneventful.” You pouted, sliding from your place on the windowsill. “Still waiting for one that is not so boringly PG-13.”

He pressed his lips into a thin line and swallowed with effort.

...warmer...

Circling the table, you stopped behind Neil’s chair.

"I’m just saying,” - leaning over, you purred right into his ear - ”that such long fingers like yours can give a girl all sorts of ideas--"

Snap.

You bit back a satisfied smile and smacked your tongue. “Those were perfectly fine tools, you know.”

Neil turned in his seat and gaped at you.

“Why are you like this?” he complained, helpless and flustered.

You shrugged. “I thought it was a high time for a little stress test. Might come in handy later.” Snickering at his puzzled face, you added, “What? You’re not exactly in a stress-free line of work.”

He shook the head lightly and scoffed. “... yeah, I see your point,” he said, a corner of his mouth curling into a half-smile. “But I don’t think there’s a high risk of someone trying to seduce me in the field.”

“Do you think that’s what I’m doing?” you asked, arching a brow, your tone nothing but serious.

“I-...”

The panicked look on his face as he blinked rapidly was more than enough to break your deadpan façade.

“Oh man, I’m just pulling your leg. You should’ve seen your face though.” Giggling, you grabbed a fresh lock from a shelf and tossed it to Neil. He sighed and replaced the messed-up device. “Besides,” you continued, “if there is one thing that the espionage movies have taught me, it’s that the spy always has plenty of beautiful creatures willing to keep his bed warm.”

The playful sparks appeared in Neil’s eyes.

“Is this a very elaborate way of asking me if I’m seeing someone or are you volunteering?”

Well, well, well.

“What if it’s both?”

“Then the first answer is no. As for the second one--” he hesitated, tugging the bottom lip between the teeth. “...a follow-up question - is it a good idea?”

You tilted your head, sitting down on the edge of the table in front of him.

“Why?”

“What if it’s gonna make things… I don’t know, weird?”

You gestured vaguely. “Can’t get any weirder than all your timey-wimey, inverted entropy bullshit.”

“That’s not exactly--”

“I know what you meant,” you sighed and met his darkened gaze, a shade of smile tainting your lips. “And yet, you’re trying to appeal to my reason while looking at me like that.” You left your seat and grabbed your backpack. “It’s getting late. Finish with this one and get some rest.”

Then you left, not waiting for a reply.

It was one of the warm nights and you decided to take a walk. A promenade near the river was not as crowded as you expected, making your journey home way more enjoyable. With your favourite tunes seeping through the headphones, you took in the view, the city lights reflecting in the water only added to the ambiance.

The phone buzzed in your pocket.

//N: I can’t believe you left like that

You chuckled, texting him back.

//why, you had any plans?

The answer came almost instantly.

//N: maybe

He was adorable. But--

//have you finished with the lock?

//N: …no

//N: wait are you gonna use our conversation as some sort of motivational tool now

Even if you weren’t, after getting a message like that?

You just had to.

//maybe?

//N: jesus

//sex is but a great metaphorical carrot. besides - it’s all about that delayed gratification and whatnot

A moment of silence.

And then:

//N: you’re evil.

That spiteful period at the end got you snickering loudly, earning you some curious looks.

A huge grin lit up your face.

//gn <3

-----

You must admit, that game was quite exciting.

And Neil was getting better at it, and soon implying became no longer enough to make him lose his focus.

At first, it was relatively easy to prompt a blush or a slight tremble of a hand. But with every next attempt, he grew more and more resilient, and soon, the only indication that he heard you was the fire burning in his eyes.

Then you got really mean, throwing some ambitious tasks in front of him, tricky locks and complex mechanisms, as your teasing got more straightforward.

And descriptive.

It became hard to shake it off once you left the training room. The lingering looks. The accidental touches. The atmosphere, almost electric. In other words - the heat sink was ready to be popped, and it was no longer a matter of if, but more of when.

“4 minutes.”

Neil barely nodded, lips pressed together and brows knitted in concentration.

3 locks in 15 minutes. Difficult, but doable, considering his current level of skill. Too bad he’d slacked at the second one, not leaving too much time for the final push. Sure, you didn’t go easy on him along the way, but the real challenge was supposed to be a race against the clock, so now you just watched him with bated breath.

Click.

You checked the time.

“45 seconds”

“Goddamnit!” he uttered through gritted teeth, readjusting cramping fingers on the tools.

“Come on, you’ve got this,” you said, taking a step closer.

Another click.

He didn’t know that there was only one pin left to set. You did, that’s why you tried your best not to reveal it with your expression. Too early to celebrate, anyway.

“Nine... eight… seven… six… five…”

That’s when you heard a final click and you looked up from your phone, only to see the lock giving in and opening up.

“Yeah!” Neil cheered, banging a fist on the table and tossing the tools away.

You smiled, hiding the phone in the pocket. “Good job, I knew--” but before you could finish a sentence, Neil sprung up from his chair and closed the gap between you, then cupped your face with his palms and kissed you hungrily.

You froze for a second, but as your mind caught up, you kissed him back, tugging at the light blue shirt. He smiled against your lips and made you back away until you hit the wall, huffing at the sudden coldness of the surface. But he was bent on kissing you senseless until you both ended up gasping for air.

“You’re so paying for all that teasing,” he panted, running the tip of the tongue through his swollen lips. “Not to mention, you’ve given me a few fascinating ideas, and I’m very much willing to give them all a try.”

You grinned, fighting with your evidently short-circuiting brain for a grasp of coherence as his hands traveled down your body.

“My, my, all of them?”

“The night is young,” - his throaty chuckle sent a wave of heat through your body - “and I’m up for a challenge.”

“I’m counting on it,” you breathed, burying your fingers in his hair, and pulling him into a kiss again.

Actually, the challenge started right away, and that meant getting to Neil’s place, as the company conveniently rented him a room in a nearby hotel. Walking distance, but in your current quite heated state, every distance seemed way too long. Especially when you had to keep up appearances.

At least until the elevator’s door closed behind you.

The dark gaze fixed on you. Your breaths intertwining. His bottom lip between your teeth. The five o’clock shadow under your fingertips. Your hands sliding under his shirt. His knee parting your legs. The intoxicating smell of his cologne. Your quiet moan. His tongue slipping into your mouth--

A quiet sound announced you reached your floor, and you stumbled out into the corridor, giggling, unable to keep hands and lips off each other.

Your back hit the door, barely missing the knob. Without skipping a beat, Neil reached to the pocket of his pants, then into the other one. When he tried the third one, you broke the kiss, your expression nothing but innocent.

“Looking for this?” you asked, showing him a key card.

He furrowed his brows. “Yes, thank you, I don’t know how--...” he started, but when he tried to snatch his property, you hid your hand behind your back. His jaw went slack as it dawned on him and he stared at you in disbelief. “You can’t be serious.”

“Oh, but I am.”

He groaned.

“You’re unbelievable,” he uttered as he pulled out his wallet. “Credit card?”

“Only if you’re not overly attached to it.” The roguish lights danced in your gaze. “Especially when you’re in a hurry,” you hinted, palming over the bulge in his pants. Neil squeezed his eyes shut, biting back a moan, and you stifled a chuckle. “Try any membership card.”

He glared at you. “You’re so in for it, you have no idea.”

“Promises, promises,” you pouted, trying not to burst into laughter at his wounded expression. “Work it.”

“Gladly, just tell me what to do.”

So you walked him through the process.

Fortunately, Neil really was a fast learner, making the door give way in no time.

“Good boy,” you hummed, and the blue eyes flared up.

He crashed his lips on yours, closing the door behind you.

Then he gave you a taste of what was coming for you.

And then some more.

And then…

...he gave you all.

(next chapter ->)

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