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thefallofruins · 3 months

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“𝑨𝑭𝑭𝑰𝑹𝑴”— [𝑹𝒀𝑶𝑴𝑬𝑵 𝑺𝑼𝑲𝑼𝑵𝑨]

Synopsis — being Sukuna’s favourite subjects you to relentless bullying. Sukuna reminds you of your place. As his Queen.

Minors DNI Requested by anon. Part of Sukuna x concubine! reader series

Tw: smut, mentions of multiple orgasms, belly bulging, passing out, violence and bloodshed (it’s Sukuna, duh)

Sukuna is a completely different man the day he sees your tears. Ordinarily, he would have laughed at the sight of a human crying, it seems to annoying pathetic when they do so— a sign of weakness, a sign of helplessness.

But not you, no, none of these rules apply to you. You are exempted from it, he doesn’t know why, but the sight of you crying fills him with rage. Maybe because you were his, his property, his precious concubine.

“T-They said that you’ll… discard me off someday.” You sob. The cruel and neglected concubines, though envious, had spoken the truth. He had done that to a lot of others. They held no meaning to him.

But you? You’ve grown too attached. But how could you not? How could you not when this absolute monster, this terrifying being had given you everything the world hadn’t? Affection, pleasure, love?

He had no value of lives that were of no use to him. If they served him no purpose, they would meet death. But how could he discard you? You, who belongs to him, and rightfully so?

“I hold no such intentions.” His voice is stern, he wants to rip those vile wenches apart for causing you this distress. “You…” he lifts your face, squishing your red hued cheeks “…Are mine. I don’t intend on discarding you for this eternity.”

His voice is a low growl as his grip tightens. “You are mine. For this life and the many more to come.”

He lifts you by your arm using his other hand, crouching down to your height. “Do you understand? Only you have the privilege of having me. Not those insects, and you say I’ll abandon you?”

His fingers play with the obi of your loosely held kimono, eliciting a gasp out of you. He buries his face into the crook of his neck, inhaling your scent. “To abandon you will be an act of utter foolishness, and I am no fool.”

He presses a soft kiss to your neck, followed by another on a lower spot. Your kimono slides off your shoulders and onto the ground below.

“Mine.” He growls into your ear, a hand moving to your breast, fitting perfectly into his hands and he kneads it. His other hand finds your cunt, pressing upon the sensitive nub and causing you to gasp softly.

“M-My lord..”

Your sweet voice only gives him a reason to proceed further, pads of his fingers prodding upon your entrance, your juices slowly flowing onto his fingers and he teases your entrance.

“I have made you the sole object of my pleasure and affection…” he says, hearing your sweet noises as he plays with your clit. “…and you dare insinuate that I will abandon you?”

Your wetness flows down his fingers. He knew exactly where to touch you, something he wouldn’t even try to do to the others.

“I’m sorry, m-my lord..” you speak between soft moans. His words filling you with such great pride. He had so excellently removed the doubts plaguing your mind. “I w-won’t assume such trivial things again—”

He chuckles, slowing down his movements to slow circles around your clit. “Mmh— my lord, p-please forgive me.”

A deep chuckle escapes him again, as he speaks, “that I will. Now lay down.”

Without a moment to waste, you do, skin shining under the pale moonlight as you lay on his bed, legs as he strips off his own clothes, his cock standing hard, drops of precum beaded at the tip. He teases your entrance with it, causing you to groan.

“P-Please, my lord…” you whimper, causing him to chuckle again. “Very well.” He answers your plea, slowly entering your tight cunt that welcomes the entire girth he slowly pushes into you. You gasp as you feel the tip nudge your cervix— he was too big, but you always took him so well.

“So tight.” He groans, slowly bringing himself to thrust in and out of your tight heat. “You’re made for me, aren’t you?”

“Y-Yes, my lord!” Your moan as he fastens in his pace, hands wrapping around his neck. He is merciless in pounding into your cunt, nudging your cervix till your eyes roll back and your nails dig into his skin.

“Look at you.” He chuckles darkly. “You’re truly mine. Taking me so damn well, aren’t you?” Any other would have crumbled under how relentless he is, but you take it so well.

Your moans echo in the chambers as you receive the treatment only his favourite deserves. And by the end of it, you are left in a mess. His cock and loads of cum stuffing your poor cunny full, your moans raspy and he releases load after load into you, his thumb playing with your sensitive nub occasionally, his other hands fondling your breasts and toying with your sore nipples.

You’ve lost count of how many orgasms he had pulled from you, and you don’t know how many more are to come. You simply take it, drool dripping down your cheek, nails dug into his skin, cunt pumped full, and brain numb from pure pleasure.

When he finally does stop, a stream of cum runs down your entrance, loosening the bulge in your tummy from the excess of it. He brushes strands of your hair back with surprising gentleness before he captures your lips with his and parts.

“You truly make a magnificent sight, my Queen.”

Queen. Your heart swarms with a warmth. Eyes pricking with tears. You have so much to say but you’re so incredibly worn out you can barely lift a finger.

“Shhh..” he mutters, sensing a towel between your thighs, cleaning the mess up. Then , covering your bare form with the warm blanket, he kisses your forehead. “Mine. My Queen. For all eternity.”

“Rest now, my Queen.” He leaves you be in the chambers, you want him to stay. To hold you and say it again. And again. To call you his Queen. But for now, he has something more important to attend to.

When he returns, you’ve already passed out from the tiredness. He chuckles softly, kissing your forehead. “My only one.”

Too bad you couldn’t see the sight of his bloodstained kimono or hear the screams of terror. But that was a small price to pay for hurting the Queen of Ryomen Sukuna.

#sukuna x you #ruins posts #sukuna x reader #sukuna x y/n #jujustsu kaisen x reader #jjk x reader

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joanquill · 10 months

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If you’re requests are open(feel free to ignore this if not) HEAR ME OUT, headcanons/imagine/whatever you wanna do really with the moriarty bros liking a childhood friend(separately or they can all like the. Friend that’s up to you) like maybe it was the kid that one duchess adopted(yknow the one that made Earl Moriarty feel like he had to adopt a kid) cause like the duchess was like an actual nice person who wanted to help the poor an all that so maybe she raised the orphan the same way?(im so heckin sorry if none of this makes sense my dude, I’m horrible at this rip)

Being Childhood Friends with the Moriarty Brothers

Albert, William, and Louis James Moriarty

A/N: It's okay my guy! It was clear and it was really fun writing this one :) I may have forgotten the romance part last minute asjkas so it's longer than normal :') Tag/s: Long (1.7k words)

Growing up in the orphanage since you were a baby, you have half given up on the idea of being adopted.

So the fact that a kind woman-- a duchess no less, adopted you was a surprise you never saw coming.

But you were grateful for your new life and the woman you now call your mother for this second chance.

Coming from rock bottom yourself, you and the duchess worked hard with foundations and charities for the poor and unfortunate, even if it meant scandals and rumors circling around you and your new family.

However, your new title didn't mean anything to other noble kids.

You were scrutinized and avoided like a plague by other noble families.

This didn't come as a surprise, but it was still uncomfortable attending balls and having everyone stay five feet away from you, spreading rumors about you being riddled with disease.

The duchess defended you, saying despite not being bound by blood, you were her child through and through and a noble.

Unfortunately, her words only fell on deaf ears.

Not that you mind, knowing firsthand how the rich treat the poor on the streets.

Worried about you feeling lonely, your mother tried to make friends with other fellow mothers and set up a playdate or tea parties, rich or poor.

Even when you tried to play nice with other nobles, as suggested by the duchess, the noble kids didn't give you a chance.

It also didn't help with their mothers calling your mother a hedge creeper, wagtail, or their husband's mistress.

To say you were banned from a couple of tea parties was an understatement.

However, hearing Lord Moriarty also adopted kids, the duchess wasted no time setting up a playdate for you.

Albert James Moriarty

You two have actually met before during a party.

Granted, scaring the kids who threw rocks at you to run into a thorny rose bush was not the best first impression, but it did make quite an impact on him.

He found you in the gardens, admiring the flowers, when a group of kids thought it would be funny to throw rocks at you.

He was about to tell off the kids until one threw a rock especially hard, making you fall on your face.

Snapping, you decided to play along with their accusations of you being diseased.

A limp in your step, hoarse voice, reaching out your arms to them as you chased them through the gardens and made them run through a thorny bush, making you smile in triumph.

Albert saw the whole thing, hiding a smile behind his hand as he watched you dust yourself off.

He was about to introduce himself to you until he saw your forehead bleeding and led you back inside to treat your wound.

It may not have been the best way, but hey! You made a friend!

Ever since that day, you would always look for Albert and follow him around for the rest of the gathering.

You knew his mother hated you, and his brother saw you as an insect. But you just completely ignore them and talk to Albert, making the two furious.

He taught you the etiquette needed to see in nobles and even the dances for different music.

If you two weren't outside avoiding the party, you two were talking and eating in the corner off in your own world.

Because of this, some noble kids started trying to get close to you to reach Albert or just hate your complete existence.

Despite all this, you kept hanging out with Albert unapologetically, seeing he was as lonely as you were in this rich man's world.

NOW while he only saw you as a good friend, Albert knew he wanted to stay by your side as long as he could.

Sneaking out of parties, knowing looks, and inside jokes the two of you only knew were some of his treasured memories.

However, he also knew the judging stares of other nobles, saying you weren't supposed to be here.

He tried to step away, hoping you would be safer if you had some distance, but he would always find you within arm's reach.

You kept smiling and being yourself despite everyone around you waiting for one mistake to drag you down.

You were the only one who was a genuine friend to him, wanting nothing in return but his company.

While you were rough around the edges as a noble, you were a gem as a person, always lending a helping hand to those in need.

You were also the only one who would accompany him during his trips to the orphanages or outreach programs.

He would even catch you volunteering, hosting charities, or helping others with your own pocket money.

So when he saw you jumping into traffic to save a child, tattering your outfit in the process but smiling in relief to see the child was safe, he knew he couldn't let you go.

William James Moriarty

The first time you heard about William was from Albert about how he met a genius orphan who knew how to read advanced books at a young age and even gave advice to adults despite being a child.

And now, here you were on a playdate with him and his younger brother.

You tried getting close to the two, seeing how Albert praised them and wanted to get to know them better.

But you couldn't help but notice an invisible wall around the two brothers. Especially William.

While William was friendly from the start, you noticed something lurking behind his smile.

This didn't stop you from trying to be friends with them, though.

Relying on Albert's stories (and Albert himself), you tried getting close to William through his intellect.

Reading books together, visiting museums and art galleries, going to the public library, even showing him your own textbooks from your school.

His teasing you for your wrong answers was not welcomed, though.

Whenever you would ask him something, no matter how absurd, he always entertained you and gave you an answer.

During your talks, you would always have tea and snacks ready, considering how some of them would last for hours.

Slowly, William started to make the first move and approach you.

Offering to teach you lessons you found difficult, offering a tea party, or suggesting somewhere new for you four to visit.

Despite noticing the distance between you two getting smaller, you could still feel the invisible wall between you.

However, this didn't stop you from befriending the boy and treating him like the kid he was.

When he first met you, he thought you were only interesting, seeing as you were the reason he and Louis got adopted in the first place.

When he would approach you, it was only to feed your curiosity, seeing as you had a lot of questions about different things.

He would always give you an answer, watching your expression change as you listen to him.

Slowly, he started enjoying talking to you, amused at how you would find interest in the most bizarre things, ranging from random trivia to high-level knowledge.

That was until he found out you were asking for advice on how to put on successful charities and programs to help people.

When you revealed to him your plans to make a hospital for the impaired, you were proud of yourself for surprising the boy.

Even more when you told him you'd make sure to give him the recognition he deserved.

Considering how his intellect was only used for simple things such as growing flowers or for schemes like robbing a bank, you were a refreshing change of pace.

Now whenever you would ask him something, he would try to guess what you had planned through your questions, sometimes even teasing you when he got it right (which was all the time).

It became a little game between you two, one which he would look forward to and catch himself smiling at the sight of you.

Louis James Moriarty

Louis was the hardest one to become friends with.

He never left William's side and would keep his eyes on you.

Whenever you tried to talk to Louis, he only gave you short answers.

However, this didn't faze you as you kept trying to find a middle ground.

Not surprisingly, he would liven up whenever you would mention or compliment William.

Much to the boy's dismay, who is usually no farther than three feet away from you both.

Considering he had heart surgery, you tried to be considerate and only hang out at the Moriarty manor to spend time with him.

This was how you found out how he was treated by the staff.

While the butler treated you better for being a guest, you didn't excuse his treatment of Louis.

Now, you always help Louis with his chores and glare at the butler whenever Louis mentions the things he made him do.

One day, you offhanded mentioned how strong Louis must have been, going through everything he had.

Surprised by the sudden compliment, he mutters how untrue it was and what a burden he was to his brother.

This made you shower him with praise, saying he should be more confident in himself.

After that, Louis started warming up to you. Even greeting you as soon as you arrive with a smile on his face.

You may have bragged to Albert about being the first one to befriend Louis out of you two.

At first, he was wary of you. Despite knowing you were also adopted, he didn't trust you.

But you would always make an effort to get to know Louis, even doing chores with him and defending him whenever you visit.

You never looked at him with pity and treated him just like another kid.

Whenever you and his brothers would play, you would always invite Louis and even pull him along, whether it was just hanging out in the manor or visiting some exotic spot in the city.

You would always listen and pay attention to him, making sure he was heard and seen by others whenever he spoke up.

And whenever he spoke ill of himself, you try to boost his confidence and point out his good points with clear eyes.

So when you called him strong and said how much he meant to you and his brothers, he knew you weren't lying.

Slowly, Louis started warming up to you and even clinging to you, which didn't go unnoticed by you three.

You may have cried tears of joy while William and Albert clapped for you.

Now, he considers you one of his trusted confidants and was always the first to greet you, even preparing your favorite tea and snacks in advance for your visits.

#yuukoku no moriarty x reader #moriarty the patriot x reader #albert moriarty x reader #albert james moriarty x reader #albert moriarty #albert james moriarty #william moriarty x reader #william james moriarty x reader #william moriarty #william james moriarty #louis james moriarty x reader #louis moriarty x reader #louis james moriarty #louis moriarty #headcanons

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yoga-onion · 5 months

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Buddha to his disciples, mini-series (20)

Samsara (Reincarnation)

“When something disappears, something is born. In Buddhism, life and death are the same thing.”

“Samsara” is a Pali & Sanskrit word that literally means "wandering through, flowing on", wherein the term connotes "cyclic change" or, less formally, "running around in circles." It is therefore also translated as 'reincarnation'.

Ancient Indians believed in reincarnation, or rather took it for granted. Therefore, the Buddha also thought it was natural and taught on the premise of reincarnation. And the purpose of the Buddha's teaching is for us to escape from this world of samsara (namely, liberation/enlightenment: Ref).

There are six realms of samsara as conceived by the ancient Indians. They are listed in order of increasing suffering as follows:

World of Hell (naraka), the world of the most suffering. Hell means 'underground prison'.

World of hungry ghosts (preta), a world suffering from hunger pangs. Becomes a demon with a swollen belly. A world where those who have committed the sin of greed are reborn.

World of animals (tiryagyoni), including birds, beasts, fish and insects. There are about 3.4 billion species.

World of warlike demigods (asura), Asura is a demonic species. A world where asuras live and fight all the time, causing constant suffering and anger.

World of human beings (manushya), in which human beings live. It is plagued by the fundamental sufferings, the four and eight afflictions, which are unavoidable in human life.

World of gods or celestial beings (deva), Heavenly beings can fly, and the world is full of pleasures, but here too there is the suffering of old age and death.

ブッダから弟子たちへ、ミニシリーズ (20)

輪廻〜 “何かが無くなれば、何かが生まれる。仏教では生と死は同じものである。”

“輪廻”はサンスクリット語で「サンサーラ」という。この語の本来の意味は「さまよう、流れる」を意味し、生あるものが無限の生死を繰り返すことを指す言葉だ。よって、”輪廻転生”とも訳される。

古代のインド人は、誰もが輪廻転生を信じていた、というよりは、それがあたりまえだと思っていたのだ。よって、釈迦もそれが当たり前だと思い、輪廻を前提にして教えを説いている。そして、釈迦の教えは、われわれがこの輪廻転生の世界から脱出すること（すなわち解脱：参照）が目的である。

古代インド人が考えた輪廻の世界は六つだ。以下、苦しみの多い順に��べる:

地獄界〜最も苦しみの多い世界。地獄とは「地下の牢獄」の意。

餓鬼界〜飢えの苦しみに悩む世界。腹が膨れた姿の鬼になる。慳貪の罪を犯した人が再生する世界。

畜生界〜畜生界は鳥・獣・魚・虫など畜生の世界。種類は約34億種。

修羅界〜修羅は阿修羅といい、魔類。阿修羅が住み、終始戦い争うために苦しみと怒りが絶えない世界。

人間界〜人間が住む世界。人間が生きている上で避けては通れない、根源的な苦、四苦八苦に悩まされる。

天上界〜天人は空を飛ぶことができ、快楽の多い世界だが、ここにも老・死の苦しみがある。

#samsara #reincarnation #wandering through #cyclic change #buddhism #liberation #art #nature #six paths

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5eraphim · 8 months

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NOT SURE IF ANYONE ELSE REQ THIS.... nsfw yandere emesis blue Medic please !! He was literally so caring and kind at the beginning and watching him delve into madness and being like.. that ...was so hot and so good for yandere material! thank u :D

ALRIGHTY! so this one's a little different than what I usually write, and honestly, Medic doesn't have much yandere-behavior until the final scene, but I hope you enjoy, thank you so much for the request!

(This is meant to take place during chapter 5, after he tries to revive Scout in the respawn machine, sees himself over Scout's Ma's body, gets burned by Pyro and is hiding out in a Chapel. And before he's found by Spy and Soldier.)

Title: Heaven Waits

Character: Emesis Blue! Medic 🕊️

Rating: X, MINORS DNI! GO PLAY OUTSIDE!

Content Warnings: Slight spoilers for Emesis Blue, Sad Medic, asphyxiation, sexual massage/hand bathing, gender neutral reader, yandere, oral (male receiving), angst/bad ending, religious themes, death

Word Count: 5.6k

MASTER LIST

TIP JAR

"I fell in love with the idea that the mysterious thing you look for your whole life will eventually eat you alive." Laurie Anderson explaining her Attraction to Moby Dick

"Is this a dream?" You wondered as you listened to your footsteps echoing in the hollow nothingness stretching endlessly around you. If all this was a dream, you wanted to wake up again. What felt like hours had passed since you woke up in the fetal position on the ground with no memory of how you got here and a full canteen of water strapped around your neck.

While you weren't hungry, thirsty, or tired, you were overwhelmed by a bewildering sense of loneliness, an anxiety in isolation that only intensified the longer you plodded along. You were almost sure this was a dream, given the surreal lack of life around you, no other humans, no buzzing insects, chirping birds, or scurrying of some mammal- just you and the sound of the wind. The world around you appeared hazy, shrouded by dark shadows, making you wonder if you were lost in civilization or the wilderness.

Every now and then, you could hear something in the distance, some nondescript moan or growling sound like nothing you couldn't imagine making you freeze up and feel all the more helpless. But just as you were beginning to wonder if you'd been walking in circles, you could see what appeared to be a little urban outskirt in the darkened horizon. And before you could even consider if you were about to run straight into danger, you found yourself racing in the direction of quasi-familiarity. Specifically, something called you toward a squat derelict chapel a distance from the rest of the buildings. Something deep down urged you forward- convinced you were meant to go inside. Like someone was in there waiting for you, someone who could cure you of the crushing loneliness.

The sight of something recognizable filled you with hope; not only was it an actual building, but you could swear you saw the outline of a person inside. You spotted a massive hole in the building beside the shoddily boarded-up door and windows just big enough to crawl through. The chapel appeared rickety by age; the outside was veined with cracks and spotted with gaping holes of missing walls, making the building appear even more fragile. You couldn't guess how long this place was abandoned, but the idea of no longer wandering the darkness lost and alone gave you all the incentive needed to investigate the inside.

Standing on the other side of the drafty chapel stood a tall man with a familiar silhouette, facing away from you, breaking the silence with a whisper hardly loud enough for you to hear. "Gott hilf mir."

"Medic, is that you?" While you were hopeful, the idea of finding a friendly face in the confusing nightmare you'd awoken in seemed too good to be true, and you were careful not to get too close to the figure before discovering precisely who it was. As you drew closer, inch by agonizing inch, you held your breath, biting down on your lower lip nervously. Too scared to get any closer, you watched with wide, terrified eyes as the figure turned to face you, revealing himself to be exactly who you hoped, though now that you could see his face, you were struck by just how different he looked.

"I am here." Was all he had to say as you paced across the uneven chapel floors in his direction. Not only did he look different, but his voice sounded horse, hardly like the man you knew.

Medic looked years older. The bags under his eyes seemed heavier in the low lighting, and the sweat coating his face emphasized his fine lines, somehow making his face appear more gaunt. You could tell by the way he was facing the light something was off about the half of his face concealed by shadows, but you couldn't quite see. More disturbingly, as you looked down, you realized blood drenched his bare forearms and hands, staining them bright red; his vest and shirt were so soaked with blood it formed little red rivulets trailing down his pants.

You couldn't imagine what he'd gone through before you found him. To your disappointment, he hardly reacted to your presence, watching you with dull eyes, arms slackened at his sides as he stared straight ahead through the window on the far wall.

Pausing a few paces away, you wrung your hands together nervously, fiddling with the canteen, listening to the water quietly sloshing inside. "Medic, what happened to you?" The question was so blunt you almost felt embarrassed saying it out loud. He sighed heavily, breaking away from the window, taking a seat at the nearby pew, which creaked as he sat, slumped forward, burying his head in his hands.

"It's Fritz."

"Huh?"Timidly you approached the bench as though waiting for permission before sitting down, though, to your disappointment, he continued to regard you with little more than melancholic disinterest. Still, he didn't pull away, which you took as an invitation to sit beside him.

He took his glasses off, leaving them on the side of the bench away from you. Fritz used his hand to rub the sweat from his tired eyes. "It's Fritz now. I have no right to call myself a Medic. Not anymore."

You were about to say something, but he spoke first, "I can't save anyone."

You couldn't believe what you were hearing; sitting beside him on the bench with the canteen on your lap, you whispered, "You don't really believe that do you?"

"I know so." He responded, pressing his lips together into a hard line as though trying to hold in tears. Clearly, he must be referring to what he'd been through before, whatever it was you hadn't witnessed, but thinking back a little further, you remembered how hard Medic took Scout getting laid off. But you were told it was a complication regarding the respawn machine, and you couldn't understand how Fritz blamed himself for this.

"But, Medi- sorry, Fritz, you don't really blame yourself for what happened to Scout, do you?"

He nodded once solemnly, "I do."

"It wasn't your fault, I don't… Fritz, I don't understand why everything's gone insane since the respawn machine went down, but none of this is your fault! I don't know what's going on around here, but let's try and find our way back home; if we work together, we could-"

He shook his head, furrowing his brow, groaning in frustration, "You don't understand! You haven't seen what I've seen. If you knew what I've done- what I did to that poor boy, you'd never want to see me again." Fritz's voice cracked with emotion, like even saying Scout's name hurt him.

There was no way he would tell you what he'd seen, but you refused to believe his words. "That can't be true."

"I made Jeremy go through respawn! I knew it was dangerous, but I forced him through anyway! I was reckless- I was stupid! I'm the one who turned him into a smear of blood on the floor!" His hands balled into fists, clutching the fabric of his pants as he shouted. You could feel your stomach drop imagining what happened to Scout in this awful place, but you also felt all the more compelled to get Fritz out of here.

Turning to lean closer to him, you reached out to touch his blood-splattered arm, pleading, "Fritz, please, don't talk like that. I don't know what you're going through, but I can't stand by and let you give up like this! Come back to base with me, I know we don't know how to fix this yet, but we can't do anything sticking around here! We need to move now!"

He looked up, eyes unfocused and haunted, speaking in a hoarse croak. "For God's sake, he was so young- He had his entire life ahead of him, and I took all that away. If his mother knew what I'd done-" His voice broke off into a choked sob, "Oh God, his mother-"

Fritz held his head in his hands as he began panting erratically, almost hyperventilating, his knuckles going white as he fisted his hair, his terror was impossible to understand, and you were almost too scared to get any closer for fear of intensifying his anxiety, but seeing him tormented hurt too much. Leaning close enough to feel his breath on your face, you placed your hands over his, gently pulling them from the sides of his face to your lap over the canteen. Fritz wouldn't meet your gaze, focusing squarely on the sight of your hands wrapped around his, trying to calm his trembling. A part of you wanted to know exactly what happened to Scout's mother, but you doubted Fritz was in the state to talk about it.

"Fritz, we need to get you out of here before-"

To your surprise, Fritz began to laugh wildly between his dog-like panting, the sound giving you goosebumps, "Before what? Before I'm killed again? Can't you see- there is no way out!"

Your mouth went dry. "Killed… again?"

He didn't answer, rocking back and forth as he laughed. You shouted desperately, squeezing his hands between yours, "Fritz, what's happened to you?"

He laughed maniacally for a moment until it quieted to a chuckle, "Maybe you're right… None of this is real. None of this makes sense, none of this means anything, and it's all a matter of time before I die for good. If I were you, I'd run. Save yourself from me while you can!" His grin terrified you, the expression so frightening it made him appear even less like himself. Only now, with your forced closeness, registered the scar of burnt tissue from his left ear, down the side of his face, almost extending down his neck. Once you noticed the blotch, it was impossible to look away.

Swallowing the lump in your throat, you forced yourself to speak. "I don't understand any of this more than you do, Fritz, but I won't leave without you. I would never leave you behind. I don't care what you've done here, for God's sake- you're a good man! You don't deserve to die alone here!" You could see his face visibly sour when you called him a 'good man.'

Drawing a deep breath, he slouched back a little, reclining against the pew but keeping his hands on your lap. "Do you believe there's another side? Will there be an afterlife when you die? Will there be any mercy for people like me? Or is this my eternity?"

Hearing him admit defeat like this was so unlike the Fritz you knew; it was almost insulting to hear. "Stop talking like that! You're not going to die, and you aren't dead yet; please, let me get you out of here!"

His eyes narrowed as he finally looked you in the eye. "Do you remember how you got here?"

You blinked, "What?"

He continued in a sharp tone, "Do you know how long you've been here?"

"Fritz, what do you-"

You could feel his fists tightening between your hands as he continued, "Tell me, how do you know you're not already dead?"

Your eyes widened hearing him say that. No matter how hopeful you tried to sound, you had no answer for him. Fritz was right. You had no idea how long you'd wandered the darkness trying to find another living person, how you got here, or why you were brought here. You genuinely had no idea how you came to wake up here, and you couldn't entirely deny the possibility you really were dead.

You felt so cold, while you could feel your heart beating, your hands felt numb, and you felt yourself swaying in your seat, unable to remain steady as Fritz continued to question you. But it couldn't be true. You refused to let yourself believe it was so!

There was no getting through to him like this, pushing the canteen off your lap onto the bench to stand up facing him. You closed the distance between the two of you until you were close enough to crawl onto his lap, legs straddling either side of his body. He looked slightly baffled but didn't make any effort to pull away. Cupping the sides of his face with the palms of your hands, you forced a small, compassionate smile. He pulled back slightly, pressing his back harder against the bench, though he made no effort to push you off. "Fritz, no matter what happens to us or what you do, I'll always wait for you. I will always try to find you."

"Why?" He muttered.

"I care about you; I always will. There is nothing you can do to change that." You had no idea if you were saying the right thing or not, but to further convince him, you pressed a loving, almost parental kiss to the top of his head, wrapping your arms around his shoulders, gently pressing yourself as tight up against him as possible, signing in with content and relief when you felt his arms numbly wrap around your waist. His body felt cold, and you suspected yours did too, but up against each other like this, at least it would be easier to warm up.

Fritz felt so small and vulnerable in your arms, more fragile than you'd ever seen him before. The feeling of his weak arms wrapped around your body was as sweet as it was heartbreaking. He squeezed you tighter as you pressed your forehead against the top of his head, rubbing tiny circles into his scalp with your fingertips as you hummed quietly.

Touching his cheek with a trembling hand, you inquired gently, "What happened to your face?"

His lips pressed into a hard line as he turned his face, pulling away slightly, "It's nothing... It doesn't hurt." You could tell he didn't want you to worry about him, but your eyes drifted down as you got a closer look at how roughed up he really was.

"Your hands are covered in blood- Is it… yours?"

He shook his head, "The Conaghers."

Blood splattered from his fingertips to elbows and caked the front of his vest and undershirt. Placing both hands on the top buttons of his vest, you began undoing the buttons.

"What are you doing?" He sounded dazed but didn't try to stop you, which you took as a sign to continue, trying not to get too grossed by the dry, crusted blood stains that stiffened the fabric.

"You're filthy. I'm going to clean you up." Hopping down from his lap, you worked to completely undo his vest; you helped him shrug it off, placing it beside him on the pew.

"What's the point? You'll just waste your water." He sounded pessimistic but compliant as you undid the buttons on his undershirt. As you suspected, the blood seeped entirely through the fabric, crusts of blood getting caught in his chest hair, staining his skin, and you couldn't help but worry for a moment you wouldn't have enough water to get the job done. While you'd seen him covered in blood countless times before, seeing him so beaten down and depressed while enveloped in gore made it hard to look at him.

Forcing half a smile, you replied, "C'mon, don't worry about that. Let me do what I can to help."

Without another thought, you stepped back a little, pulling off your shirt, pouring out most of the water in the canteen to drench the fabric, then pressing the wet cloth to his shoulder. "This will probably feel a little cold. Just try to relax, alright?"

You could swear you saw his eyes lingering on your exposed body for a moment before nodding, letting his eyes drift shut, and sighing softly as you began to work the cold cloth against his chest.

Trying to remove all the blood coating him was a tall order; Fritz was a big guy, and you only had so much water at your disposal, but you couldn't help but notice the tension slowly draining from his face as you continued to wipe away the blood. His breathing began to deepen and slow as your fingers crept from his chest lower down. It would be easy to try and get even lower, but you wanted to keep Fritz mellow and take as much time as possible. After you'd cleaned his upper chest, you drapped the cloth around his neck and began massaging the taunt muscles in his shoulders, trying to work some tension from his upper back.

Fritz's head lulled a bit further back as you pressed your fingers harder into his flesh. You could watch him like this forever, but you forced yourself to focus on where he was the dirtiest, his hands. You wrung out the rag and dowsed some more water on it before kneeling down. Creeping closer to plant yourself between his spread legs, taking his right arm with yours while you used the other arm to swab the carnage from his skin. Working with the utmost care, you tried your best to clean the filth from the creases of his hands, from under his nails, and out of the hair coating his arms, trying to ignore the putrid smell in the process.

Doing the same to the other arm, you were honestly amazed at how much blood you'd managed to scrub away, though without soap, you couldn't do anything to clean up the red residue plastered across his arms and chest. Staying put on your knees before him, you knew the right thing to do was re-dress him and look for a way out now that you'd gotten him as clean as possible. But the sight of Fritz, half undressed and finally relaxed, made you pause. "Would it really be so bad to stay just a while longer?" You wondered.

You didn't want to awaken him from the calm trance he'd fallen into, so you began to advance with feather-light movements, placing one hand on the top of his knee, the other on the bare skin just above his belt. You whispered, "Can I get these off too?"

Looking down at you through half-lid eyes, he hesitated momentarily before nodding, "Please."

His face was flushed, and you could tell he was already semi-aroused from the massage. Fritz watched as you undid his belt, unfastening his pants, shifting in his seat as you pulled them down to his ankles. Despite his encouragement, for a moment, you were too scared to touch him, as though all it would take was one wrong move to shatter the peaceful mood. All you wanted to do was make Fritz feel relaxed, content, and loved; now was your moment to do just that.

Leaning in closer, you kissed the skin on his belly when your hands just were, feeling Fritz stiffen above, inhaling between clenched teeth. "So far, so good." You assured yourself as you inched your hands up from his knees to his thighs, kissing lower and lower until your lips hit the waistband of his briefs. You were about to ask again if he was alright with this, but he moved first, shucking off his briefs just enough to pull his cock out.

The moment you saw it, you knew you were officially out of patience, and your need to please Fritz took over entirely. Closing your eyes, you connected both hands with the base of his shaft before kissing his head with parted lips. The impact made him throb against your mouth and grab a fist of your hair on impulse. You opened your mouth wider to take his head, parting your lips further, letting your tongue roll out to feel the vein along the length of his underside.

You had to force your mouth open even wider as he mindlessly bucked forward slightly into your open mouth, the movement taking you by surprise but exciting you even more. Running both hands along the sides of his hips, you could feel muscles tensing under your fingers, Fritz writhing in his seat as you continued to coat his length in saliva, the slick mixing with the few dribbles of precum he'd begun to release. You couldn't help but be surprised at how fast Fritz was coming undone; he must've been more pent-up than you thought. Not that you minded any.

Just as you were sure he was about to come, you felt Fritz tugging your hair, forcing you to disconnect. Confused, you looked up at him, momentarily worried you'd done something wrong. Fritz let go of your hair, pushing himself further upright on the bench. The sight of the man from below, fully erect, coated in his own sweat with his thighs spread wide, made your mouth water and your heartthrob.

After taking another second to compose himself, he rasped, "Please, let me feel all of you! God, I'm so close, but please! I need you!"

Needing no further invitation, you nodded eagerly. Bracing yourself on Fritz's bare legs as you got to your feet, trying to ignore the annoying ache in your knees after being forced against the stone floor for too long. Cynically you realized riding Fritz was the most purpose you'd felt since waking up in this terrible place, but you didn't care. You felt a throb of pleasure as you felt his eyes on you as you fully undressed, as he pushed his briefs all the way down, stepping out of them as he mindlessly spread his thighs a little wider in anticipation.

You could tell he was trying to restrain himself as you took your time sitting on his lap, spreading your legs over his; Fritz wrapped both arms around your back as you eased closer.

Pressing a chaste kiss to your cheek, he spoke, "If we get out of this, will you wait for me- you wouldn't leave me behind, would you!?" Fritz looked at you with wild eyes, his pupils blown out, face flushed bright red with a neediness that bordered on insanity. He was irresistible.

You couldn't help but grin, "Of course, I'll owe you after you waited so patiently for me."

Using the top of the pew's backrest, you gripped tight, grinding your sex against his cock; Fritz instinctively hugged you tighter with a strength great enough to squeeze the air from your lungs. The feeling was intense but not unpleasant. You felt a throb from below as he blindly attempted to guide you into place. His head pressed against the sensitive flesh between your legs, which felt heavenly. His body felt searing hot, all-encompassing, and desperate; you couldn't help but feel yourself locking up, blinded by the pleasure, your mind going blank as you listened to Fritz's choppy, heavy breathing as he too, felt pleasure overtaking his mind.

Fritz rolled his head back, eyes drifting shut; he reluctantly unwrapped one arm from around your waist, groping with his hand until he found the top of your hip. Watching him so high out of his mind with pleasure was amusing, as he tried to guide you. But you were too turned on to sit back and watch for too long, and the feeling of his dick coated in precum and spit against your entrance let you know he wouldn't last much longer anyway.

"J-just a little more-" Fritz looked pleadingly up at you, needing just one nod from you before thrusting up. He was painfully horny but still unsure how much you could handle. But you weren't about to let him down now. When you mounted him, he was fully aroused, and you knew taking him fully inside wouldn't be easy. It stung slightly, forcing yourself to stretch to accommodate him, though as you rocked against him, the easier it became.

Stealing a kiss as you wrapped both arms around his neck, you felt him pushing deeper inside, increasing the friction, forcing you to brace all your weight against him as he thrust up.

The feeling of Fritz's teeth biting down harshly on your neck made you wince and mindlessly clench down even harder against him, the sensation only incentivizing him to continue. His mouth biting against sensitive skin, his hips rolling against yours, feeling absolutely feral with lust caught up with you fast, and as you ground against his lap, you felt a dawning climax. You couldn't get enough, wanting to feel him deeper, feel every inch of his body against yours; even as you came, you continued to grind, wanting to ride out your high as long as possible. As Fritz felt you coming on his lap and saw your face awash with pleasure, he felt his heart throb, and as he watched you coming down from your high, he picked up the pace, watching your limp body moving in rhythm with his thrusts as he came deep inside.

Your head felt heavy and fuzzy; the world was still blurry as you felt yourself coming down; carefully, you separated from his dick, trying not to think about the mess you'd made after just cleaning him up. You were too spent to worry or do anything about it, and it didn't seem like Fritz was concerned either, allowing you to sit back down on his lap, securing both arms around your waist, and keeping you from going anywhere.

Even after the two of you managed to catch your breath, neither of you tried to separate; it felt too good to finally have a warm body to hold and feel wrapped around yourself after spending so much time lost and cold in the dark. Now, no amount of noise the unknown malicious creatures made bothered you. So long as you could feel Medic's body under your own, nothing could scare you. He held you tight, like a child holding a teddy bear after awakening from a nightmare, it wasn't painful, but you could tell he was still terrified.

Quietly you spoke, your head still resting against his neck, "Do you really think we're dead?"

Fritz sighed, "I wish I knew." He sounded frail and defenseless. Emotionally devastated but too exhausted to really care. "If this is hell, I know I deserve it."

You buried your head deeper into the crook of his neck, shaking your head, muttering "No, you don't." under your breath. Before now, you hadn't considered this place could be hell; even now, you stubbornly refused to believe it.

"Maybe it's not hell. All this loneliness and wandering in the dark, it feels more like purgatory than hell." You hated how bleak that sounded. Even as you were trying to inspire hope, there was no ignoring the morbid reality of the situation.

Fritz pulled away slightly to face you, his brows furrowed slightly with curiosity. "You think there's a way out?"

"In Paradiso, the souls in purgatory are forced to repent for their sin before entering heaven. Maybe that's how it really is… I guess wandering around, all the fear, could be some kind of penance. " You broke eye contact, looking down, feeling less and less confident with your words the longer you went on.

"So you think there's hope we can get out of here?" Fritz remained still as a statue; you could feel his eyes on you as he spoke.

"Well, yes- but it depends. I mean- people who were less sinful in life usually weren't stuck in purgatory as long as people with more or more severe sins, but I have no idea what to make of anything around here…" You trailed off, feeling awkward, not knowing what to say next, let alone something he wanted to hear.

He huffed, "If you're right, I'll be stuck here for ages. If I ever do, get out."

He finally slackened his arms, letting them fall to his sides, limp as you embraced him. As you remembered all you went through to try and lift his spirits, to give him hope to come home- you couldn't help but feel, despite your best efforts, you failed miserably. He opened his mouth to say something, but you interjected,

"Although, it's been said when the living prays for the souls in purgatory, they progress remarkably faster. No matter the sinner or their sins, there's hope so long as you're in purgatory."

"Redeem ourselves? All I've done is take advantage of you- You shouldn't try to save me; I'm never getting out!" Once again, you could see his eyes water with tears as he clenched them shut. You couldn't bear to watch him cry, rising to a kneeling position and straddling his legs. With one arm around the top of his head and the other around his neck, you gently pulled his head against your body, hugging him tightly into your chest as his shoulders shook with sobs.

It took all your resolve to keep from crying yourself; despite trying to affirm some hope for Fritz, you felt just as helpless. But you consoled yourself, knowing even though you had no idea where the two of you were or how long you would be here, you loved him. That much you knew would never change. With a heavy sigh, you separated from him, sliding down from the pew and kneeling beside him on the stone ground, resting your cheek against his bare legs as you looked up at him. "There's nothing you can do to make me hate you."

He looked forward, staring at nothing in particular, his face unreadable, "Have you ever heard of a soul in purgatory to send another to heaven?"

"I mean, it's possible." Was the best you could answer.

He buried his head in his hands, working his fingers through his hair, "Were you really searching for me the entire time you were awake out there?"

Without hesitating, you answered, "You were the first thing on my mind. I felt so lost and alone; I knew someone needed me. I didn't doubt for a second it would be you."

Fritz didn't appear convinced. "Why didn't you give up after you couldn't find me?"

"You were all I could think about." You answered honestly.

Forcing himself to look at you, Fritz spoke, leaning forward, propping his head up with one hand, pressing his chin against his fist, "If you're right, if we are in purgatory, if you do get to heaven before me- do you promise you'll wait for me?"

Picking your head up from his lap, you straightened, resting your hands on the pew, "For you, I'd wait forever."

He nodded, "For both our sakes, I hope you're right."

Before you could ask what he meant by this, Fritz was leaning over you, close enough to press a quick kiss to your forehead, and only a second to register what he was doing before grabbing your neck in both hands. He tightened his grip with all his strength, making you cough and choke on your saliva in shock as he forced his trembling hands to squeeze even tighter.

You tried to resist for a few pathetic moments as though you were any match for him physically, let alone while he had you like this. You could feel his hands slickening with the sweat which still coated the back of your neck from earlier, though this did nothing to weaken his grip. The pressure made your head pound, completely disorienting you. Despite your continued struggle, you knew you wouldn't have much longer.

You feared it would come to this; Fritz was too far gone to save; he'd abandoned hope before you got to him. There was no way you could've actually managed to bring him home. The best you could do was offer him a moment of pleasure before he forced himself to forge ahead. His hands wrapped around your throat, cutting off your air supply. It hurt like hell, and you couldn't help but instinctively try to claw at his hands and shift your weight back away from him- as though it would do anything to slow him down. Fritz winced, listening to the sound of your choking, though his grip didn't budge.

Fritz couldn't bear to hear the sound of the life leaving your body, the broken, pathetic wheezing and coughing filling the abandoned chapel. He cried, "You said you'd never hate me- you promised you'd always come back for me! I swear I'm only doing this because I love you! And you shouldn't be here! Not with people like me!" Fritz fought hard against his emotions, keeping his hands locked around your throat as tight as possible. His vision was blurred by his own tears. Watching you suffer was agony, but he knew killing you was the greatest mercy he could offer you. He'd do anything to get you out of this terrible place, even if he had to do this over and over again. Fritz swore to himself he would. He was a wretched man. He deserved to be alone with the guilt of what he'd done forever. Your eyes were red and puffy, and you were in too much agony to focus on anything, not even the man trying to end your life.

"Please, please- you'll forgive me for this, won't you?! Tell me you understand!"

It was impossible to respond with his hands around your neck; he knew that, even if you could answer and miraculously tell him precisely what he wanted to hear, it wouldn't alleviate his guilt. All you could do was muster up the last of your dying strength to nod once, doing your best to communicate an "I forgive you." before everything went black.

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ataraxiaspainting · 1 month

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Fly Me to the Moon.

Yan Jingliu x F Reader.

Synopsis: “You looked at me like I was made of stardust, and told me that even the moon above us could not compare to the brightness in my eyes.”

Warnings: Yandere themes, violence, and unhealthy relationships.

Word Count: 1k.

i’m so sorry if i’m wrong about xianzhou landscapes lol…

*~*~*~*

The Xianzhou Luofu’s eclipses are as rare as someone who can walk on water.

Moons come and go across the Flagships’ skies as they make their way throughout the galaxy, and so do the suns. They all change from pink to red to gray, and none of them stay for long. Unlike what the Abundance teaches its creations, life has its way of teaching that nothing lasts forever. Permanence is but a fantasy and only those who are blind fools seek out such a blasphemous dream.

But if it is a blind fool you must be to see her whole for the first time, you will gladly be one.

You met just a fragment of her oh so long ago, under the very covered sun that was oh so rare. You dared not to look away from her as she moved towards you like clockwork, her sword dragging across flowered ground. The moon was white, and so were the blossoms. So was her hair, which looked like a bundle of shooting stars. She didn’t smile, but she didn’t frown either. An expression as neutral as water.

She had a black blindfold over her eyes that had the sign of a crescent moon.

To you, she was brighter than the eclipse above.

You two moved together in a circle, a cautious waltz, but also an enticed one. Curiosity.

“You are a Cloud Knight, aren’t you?” She asked. The grip on her blade’s handle loosened just slightly. “I can tell by the spear you hold.”

You nodded, and a chuckle quieter than the gentlest wind escaped her lips.

You took a step backward as she took one forward. It was not out of fear but at the very least well-meant care—a dance crafted from years of training under daylight and starlight.

…

Now, hundreds of moons later, you take a step backward as she now takes three forward. Fear controls you like a puppet as you point your spear, which has by this point been remodeled and repaired from many battles with the Abominations of the Abundance. Daylight and starlight become one with the same snow-white eclipse in the sky.

She is smiling. Her sword no longer glides along sprouted soil, but a stone path painted with the blood of your fellow soldiers. Her blindfold is off, her eyes the very image of a hollow, depraved husk. Mara.

She does not chuckle when your hands shake, but rather she loudly laughs.

It is the farthest thing from gentle.

…

Jingliu has many presences, but none of them last for very long. Some stay for a week at most without issue, but those are rare and so far distanced from one another. She lets you leave, most days, to go buy tea from the market or to go sit down and feed the birds or to let you practice aiming your weapon at the training dummy she placed outside your living quarters.

When she first brought you here, she told you that you are free to duel her whenever you wish. Win, she said, and you can leave whenever you wish too.

The only thing is you can never manage to even touch her.

The uncharted areas around the cottage she acquired for both of you are dark, and the only places where there is light are the ones that have straight and narrow paths, paths to the few places Jingliu allows you to go unsupervised. Or is the definition of unsupervised in Jingliu’s world is to have you watched from a few kilometers back?

You cannot tell. Nor do you want to know the answer, because you know the truth will stomp on your hope like it was a lowly insect.

You also don’t walk alone at night for reasons like those. You cannot see anything, only hear and think.

You cannot see Jingliu if she is watching you from behind.

Even though she swears on her honor that she does not follow you closely.

You can hear Jingliu’s breathing though, how desperate she can sound, or how calm she can sound. It all depends on what moon shines through the brightest.

…

Meals with Jingliu are always the same.

No matter what her mood is at that particular moment, she always stares at you from across the table.

Sometimes her hair is well-kept, on days when she is happier and more active in her self-care. Sometimes she bats her eyes at you. Sometimes she seems to stare past you, to the unlit fireplace or the vase of flowers near the entrance door. Her stares can turn into glares in an instant, or her glares can turn into loving gazes. You wish most days that she wouldn’t be so distant, but you don’t want her to be suffocating with her affection either.

You just want the best of both worlds. An eclipse.

“How is it?”

Your attention is abruptly captured. Her gaze appears slightly less serene yet intensifies, while yours remains filled with doubt. Your hand ceases the motion of guiding the fork towards your mouth, descending listlessly onto the table.

“Is something the matter, [First]?” Genuine confusion on both of your parts.

“...N-No.” As you lower your gaze and gently shut your eyelids, your whole body quivers uncontrollably, leaving you powerless over its movements. “It’s good.”

“Are you sure?” Your gaze evades her as if being controlled by a small prey animal’s instinct. Your heart races, as if on the verge of a sudden collapse. “You can tell me if something is wrong with the food.”

Your fingers interlock with such force that you fear they might leave imprints on your skin.

“No, no… it’s good, really.”

She tilts her head. “You aren’t eating, though.” You hear the sound of a chair being dragged, a sure sign that she is standing up. “You can be truthful with me, dearest. I won’t be upset.”

Gazing out the window, you offer no response. The sound of her sigh reaches your ears, yet your focus lies elsewhere. A single leaf gracefully twirls upon the surface of the nearby pond, without a care in the world. You hope it will not drown.

#yandere #author aya #yandere x reader #yandere honkai star rail #yandere hsr x reader #yandere hsr #yandere honkai star rail x reader #yandere jingliu #yandere jingliu x reader #jingliu x reader #honkai star rail x reader #hsr x reader

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queeranarchism · 1 year

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The eating insects thing

A far-right anti-vax conspiracy theory that has existed for a few years now has recently increased in popularity and has been breaching containment, especially in vegan circles, so I guess we have to talk about it:

Keep an eye out for scary sounding posts about eating insects.

Some of the claims to expect are this:

Governments are secretly allowing more insects to be put into food. - It is true that more edible insects have been approved for the EU market lately, but this process is not secret at all.

Some people are allergic to Chitine, which is found in shellfish and hard-shelled insects - this is true.

Chitine is also dangerous to people who are not allergic to it and causes cancer - this is not true. It traces back to study that has been taken out-of-context about the impact of concentrated Chitine in cancer identification and treatment.

Eating large amounts of the insects being approved would damage your stomach lining or other intestines because of ‘toxic chitine’. - this is not true. It traces back to an old dietary advice on a Dutch website which only mentioned that insect consumption was safe up to 45 grams at a time. What this meant was: we didn’t find a study that researched higher doses. There are plenty of studies by now and it turns out it’s fine.

Insects are ‘bird food’ and humans did not evolve to digest the insects currently being approved for consumption. - this is not true. There are 1500 insect species that are regularly safely consumed by millions of people around the world. The insects that are currently being approved for the European market have been consumed by humans for as long as we can trace the human diet and many are consumed by our closest primate relatives.

Bill Gates and other insert-conspiracy-name-here billionaires are buying up farm land to deliberately cause food shortages and to force us to eat bugs - this is not true. Land is just a popular investment right now due to other economic pressures.

Governments are pushing for lower meat consumption to force us to eat bugs. - this is not true. Any minimal encouragement of reduced meat consumption by governments is in response to the impact of meat consumption on climate change.

If you buy in to some of these scare stories, the next claim is that forcing people to eat bugs serves some darker government purpose, either simple misery and humiliation (accompanies by the claim that we’ll be forced to eat weeds and drink sewage water), forced population control (the Great Reset bullshit) or preparing us for the rule of reptilian overlords (antisemitism crap).

Now, let me be clear: there are valid reasons why you might want to avoid eating insects. ‘I just don’t want to’ is a good enough reason. Being vegan is an excellent reason. We know very little about the inner lives of insects but observations suggest that they are intelligent and feel pain. We do not currently know what constitutes a high quality of life or a painless death, so we could not ‘humanely’ farm insects even if we wanted to.

However, most of the claims above are misleading, racist and dangerous. They pave the way into far-right anti-vax and antisemitic conspiracy theories. Recognize them and avoid them. If you see your vegan friends share these claims: let them know what they’re doing. Don’t give this shit space.

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userpedros · 1 year

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those three little words || joel miller

pairing: Joel Miller x female!reader

This story takes place in Jackson after the events of Salt Lake

Summary: It'd been a while since you, Joel and Ellie had gotten settled in Jackson. But those three words that were still unspoken were left to linger in the air.

Word Count: 3.5k+

Warnings: age gap - Joel is in his 50's, reader in her late 20's (because apparently, that's all I know how to write), slightly angsty, slighty sweet. it's like a fun lil sour patch kid but instead of sour, you get some angst. implied sexy time but nothing is mentioned.

A/N: This has not been beta read, I did go back over it once to proofread but that's it. Anyway, Soft!Joel is my favorite and you can all pry him out of my cold, dead hands! That's it!

"Ellie, get back here! Damnit!" Joel huffed as he chased the teen through the wild backyard. The smell of summer was thick and the cicadas were screaming with all the might their tiny little insect bodies had. The loud noise brought back some nostalgia for you. Nostalgia and longing for times before the cordyceps took over.

But today, with the beautiful weather, it felt like old times before the world had gone to shit. The family you'd gained along the way, the older man and the teen running around the yard seemed to call to better times for you. It felt better, things felt right. Most of all, you'd begun to feel at home, a feeling foreign to you for so many years. Now you had a home. You had a home in Jackson, and you had a home in Joel and Ellie. You were finally starting to feel at ease.

You smiled as you watched Joel and Ellie play with the worn soccer ball in the backyard. He'd never admit it, just like he’d never admit a lot of things, even though Joel was in his fifties, that man could still kick a soccer ball around like no one's business. Most importantly, he was totally letting Ellie win. Joel the soccer dad back at it again, everything was as it should be.

You sighed as you turned around, a smile still plastered to your face as you watched from the porch, taking a seat in the old rusted yellow patio chair. You whopped and hollered for Ellie as she tried her hardest to beat Joel, her brown hair falling out of her bun, trying to run circles around the man.

The afternoon dragged on as the two continued in the yard for several hours. Finally, as they both started to slow down, they began to head toward the house. Joel tugged Ellie under his arms as he ruffled her hair, earning a sigh and groan from her as she tried to slip out from under his grasp. He let her go as he took in the sight of you, watching them from the porch. Your face held nothing but the brightest smile, something that came quickly to you when you saw him.

You began to space out into thought as Joel and Ellie took seats across from you on the porch. They began to talk about the patrols she’d been warming up to, Tommy taking her far away from infected but letting her have a handle on his rifle with a scope. Joel smiled along with her as they talked about how good of a shot she was, better than many kids in Jackson at her age.

You watched as Joel watched you most of the time, taking time to pay attention to Ellie but mostly keeping his brown eyes trained on you. Joel was a protective man, something that just didn’t go away, even after the safety you three had now. The last twenty years had provided him with enough material for nightmares for the rest of his life. He was different now though. He was a man who changed. He was not the same Joel that lived in those shitty apartments FEDRA handed out. He wasn’t the same man taking those shitty jobs for rations that were more like ghosts, disappearing just as fast as they came.

A weight seemed to have been lifted off his shoulders as soon as you three settled in Jackson. He held your hand now in public and called you pet names in public. He did more for you than he’d ever done for Tess. Which of course, left some sadness that panged deep in your stomach when you thought of her and how things ended up; but hey, you couldn’t control how things ended up.

You and Joel had become inseparable, creating the little family you three knew you needed. You came back to Earth from your little space out, looking back at Joel, turning away from the smiling teen's face as she told one of her famous puns.

You both laughed in sync, looking over to Ellie as she stood up with the final line of her pun.

“There’s more where that came from, folks!” Her smile beamed even more prominent when she heard someone call for her from the front of the house. “Alright, guess that’s my cue to go. I’ll see you guys later!” Ellie stood up and waved as she walked into the house. You both watched as she disappeared from your lines of sight. You could hear her entering the kitchen to grab a snack before heading out to hang out with whoever was at the front door. You sighed and shook your head as you stood up.

“Maybe we should go get cleaned up, hmm?” Joel said as he stood up, holding his hand out for you to grab.

You grabbed his hand as you both made your way inside, Joel holding the door open like a complete gentleman. That was nothing new though, he was always like that with you. You two together was something new since you came to Jackson but it was something you two had both welcomed as soon as it happened.

“Hmmm… what should we do now that El’s gone?” You peered up at Joel as you both stopped in the entry way of the kitchen.

He grabbed both of your hands and intertwined them with his as he pulled you in closer. He released one hand as he held the back of your head, placing a small kiss on your crown.

“’M actually supposed to be meetin’ with Tommy ‘bout some new routes for Patrols. Sorry darlin’.” He pulled back as he looked down at you.

“You have some time before you head out?” You wiggled your eyebrows as you looked up at him, giving him the biggest puppy dog eyes that you could muster.

“What’d you have in mind?”

“I was thinking I could help you clean up a ‘lil before you left. Just a thought.” You giggled as his brown eyes went wide.

“Oh, I think that’s a great idea, could use all the help I can get. ‘Specially with one spot, ‘s real tricky to get just right by myself.” He winked as he whisked you up in a flash and carried you up the stairs. The mixture of your combined laughter filled the air as you two settled in for a shower, making sure to lock the bathroom door as the cleaning session began.

It was later at night when Ellie burst through the door, a smile heavy on her lips as she took you in. You were sitting in your reading chair in the corner of the living room, a small reading light clipped to your book as a blanket covered your lap.

You were so deep into whatever it was that you were reading you hadn’t even noticed the teen come through the door.

“Where’s Joel?” When she spoke out loud it startled you, causing you to drop your book on the floor and place a hand on your chest, trying to steady your breathing.

“Holy shit Ellie! Warning!” You looked up at her as you picked your book off of the floor and placed it on the chair you were sitting in as you stood up. “He’s out with Tommy, something about new routes.” You shrugged as you made your way over to her.

She took in the sight of what you were wearing. One of Joel’s button-downs and a pair of leggings. “Joel’s gonna lose his mind if he sees you’re in his clothes again.” She looked at you and down before she headed into the kitchen.

“Water?” She looked back at you as you grabbed the water and glass for her. It was something you didn’t mind doing, acting as her surrogate mother. You adored her, and the trek across the country you two had made with her only solidified how much you cared about her, even though you were in your later 20’s you still cared for her the way a mother should. After all, she needed that and you needed someone to care for just as much.

“Joel will get over it. Here’s your water, sweet girl.” You smiled at her, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear.

“You’re right he will. He really cares about you, you know? Not like how he cares about me, but somethin’ really different.” She gulps down the water as she starts to head towards the cabinets to begin to raid them for a snack, even though the only things in there were expired things Joel had brought home for her on supply runs.

“I know, I care about him too.” You smiled at her as you stepped back into the living room. You grabbed your blanket from the chair and sat on the couch, waiting for Ellie to join you.

She made her way over to you, sinking into the old fabric, and settling into your side. There you two sat for a few moments, just taking in the silence and serenity of being safe while cuddling in the blanket together. She broke the silence by completely catching you off guard when she spoke.

“I know he loves you. He loves us both, he just won’t say it.” You didn’t bother to look down at her as you looked across the room and stared at the old painting that hung on the wall. You really studied the boat scene as you thought about what she’d just said.

You’d told Joel you loved him one night when you two had finally started to get settled in Jackson. He’d acted as if he hadn’t heard you, shutting the bathroom door, and ending the conversation between you two. You never brought it up again. You knew he cared about you, you wanted him to care about you the way you cared about him, but you knew after all that he’d seen and the incredibly high walls he’d built, it might take an incredibly long time before he ever felt feelings like that again.

“I know he loves you, Els. Anyone can see the way he cares about you.” You sighed as you squeezed her into your side.

She dropped the subject, knowing it wasn’t going to get anywhere. That was always the one thing that stayed quiet and closeted between you three. Those three little words. Joel and Ellie were so caged up they’d probably never say them. She sighed as she rested her head on your shoulder. “I’m happy you two got stuck with me as cargo. Feels nice, like I finally have a family.”

You kissed her forehead as you felt tears well in your eyes. “We are a family, sweet girl. You’ll always have us.”

You felt her breathe out as you two sat there longer in silence before the world went dark and you two were passed out on the couch, cuddled up in the blanket.

It was a lot later when you woke up to the sound of the front door closing. Ellie was still fast asleep against you when you turned your head up to look at whoever had walked in the door. You squeezed her into you tighter a surge of panic going through you. You took a deep breath when you saw that it was just Joel.

You realize then that you must’ve fallen asleep. You wonder what time is it as he walks over to where you two were seated on the couch. He spoke in a low tone, careful not to take Ellie.

“Should we just leave her on the couch? Don’t really wanna wake her up, she looks so peaceful.” He smiled down at her as you carefully got up, leaving the blanket wrapped around her form. You reached behind her and put a pillow under her head carefully, trying your hardest to keep her asleep. You nodded as you motioned toward the stairs. Joel followed behind you.

You could feel his eyes burning into you as you walked up the stairs as quietly as you could. You knew he was going to say something about you wearing one of his shirts again, but you didn’t care. He normally didn’t either, he usually just wanted to take it off as soon as he saw it on you. Things had been a little different ever since you said those three little words and he’d ignored you. Sure they normally felt alright during the day or whenever you two were intimate but at night when everything was still and quiet, things always felt different and weird. It felt like uncertainty hung in the air. Uncertainty of where things might end up or where you would end up if you brought it back up.

Joel shut the door quietly behind you as you walked to your side of the bed, crawling in without bothering to change. You were exhausted and you just wanted to sleep.

Joel had other plans though as he stood against the door, crossing his arms, his eyes continuing to burn into you just as they had on the stairs.

“You comin’ to bed, Joel?” You fluffed the pillows up behind you, sitting up as you waited for him to fall into bed next to you.

“You’re wearin’ my shirt again.” He stated as he stood against the door, he almost looked rooted there, as if he’d taken up station there for the night. His back was rigid as he watched your every move, his arms still crossed, his biceps bulging underneath the tan jacket he always wore.

“Sorry, just wanted to feel close to you, that’s all.” You sighed as your eyebrows rose as you continued to hold his gaze. “I can take it off if ya want.”

“No, it’s fine where it is, just makin’ an observation. Looks real good on you anyways.” He huffed out as he walked over to the chair that sat next to the window.

You watched as he shed his jacket. You closed your eyes to give him privacy as he changed into a pair of sweatpants, sans shirt. You sighed as you felt him crawl into bed next to you. You suddenly couldn’t swallow the words that seemed to bubble up in your throat. You felt constricted as the words that Ellie had spoken to you earlier came to mind. The words and thoughts were out of your mouth faster than you could register, making you wish you were flexible enough to shove your foot in your mouth.

“I think we need to talk Joel.” You cringed as you let the words fly out of your mouth. They hung in the air for a few seconds, waiting for a response

You waited for a response but none came, the bed suddenly groaning as he stood up, walking to the end of the bed. He turned around and stared down at you, waiting for you to say something. You took in his form, trying to keep your eyes on his face instead of his arms and chest. This was a serious conversation and you weren’t going to let your hormones take over.

“Well go on, what do we need to talk about?” His arms were crossed once again and he looked irritated. You were still half wishing you hadn’t spoken and taken the path you usually traveled, not talking to Joel about your feelings.

“Remember about a week after we finally got settled in Jackson, it was late and we were goin’ to bed-,” He cut you off, holding his hand up.

“I think I know where this is goin’.” He ran his hands down his face as he took in a deep sigh.

You watched as his chest heaved and the words came flying out of your mouth.

“I told you I loved you Joel and you didn’t say a word. You didn’t even look at me, you just got up and went to the bathroom. You waited in there ‘till I fell asleep.” The words were out now, nothing could shove them back in your mouth. You wanted to crawl into a hole, become an armadillo so he couldn’t see the red staining your cheeks. The embarrassment that you had to be the one to bring it up and you just didn’t wait for him to eventually say it, even though you both knew that was never going to happen.

“Why didn’t you say anything that night Joel?” You pulled the blanket up to your chest as you took a deep breath and continued. “You just let me say it that night. You just let me say it and you just walked away. Do you know how bad that hurt?”

He didn’t say anything as he turned out and looked out the window. He walked closer to it, resting his hands on the sill, and placing his forehead against the cool glass.

“I don’t have a good answer for that one, darlin.’”

You could feel the air thickening as tears welled up in your eyes. “What are you so scared of, Joel? Why can’t you just tell me how you feel? I’m sick of actin’ like everything is great but every night when we go to bed it’s as still and quiet as can be.”

“I can’t tell you because I can’t give you what you want sweetheart. I’m old. I feel myself gettin’ older every day. I can’t be what you need for long.” You could hear his voice getting deeper and huskier.

You stood up and made your way over to where he was placed in front of the window. You placed your hand on his shoulder, squeezing as you spoke.

“I have everything I could ever want. I have you and I have Ellie. No matter what happens tomorrow, I am happy.” You sighed as you moved your hand and placed your head on his shoulder. “I love you, Joel. Nothing is going to change that. I’ll love you ‘till the day something happens to one of us and I’ll love you after that.”

He didn’t say anything for a few minutes. You both continued to stare out the window, taking in the view of the Wyoming mountains in the distance.

“It’s so beautiful here, Joel. I never thought I’d end up somewhere like this. I never thought I could be happy like this again.” His head lifted as he looked over at you, watching you as you watched the mountains in the distance.

“I know what you mean. Never thought I’d end up here either. Never thought I’d have the chance to be happy again like this.” He turned, his southern accent thick and dripping with sadness for the past. He looked down at you, your head falling off of his shoulder to crane back to look into his eyes.

“I think you’ve known for a while that I care about you, darlin’. You know that I love you. It just seems like somethin’ so stupid to admit in a world like this. I haven’t said those words in 20 years.”

You nodded as you looked back out to the view, understanding what he meant by that. He probably hadn’t said that to anyone since he’d last said that to his daughter, Sarah. You knew that was probably as much as you were going to get out of him. You were just happy he finally said it and that he’d opened up a little bit. Sarah was such a sore topic, for good reason. A small smile broke out across your face as you stayed peering out at the mountains.

You two stood there for a while, just like that. You looked out at the view and he looked out at you. The silence finally broke when Joel coughed a bit, putting a free hand on your back. You turned and looked at him letting out a sigh as you started to head toward the queen-sized bed you both shared.

“Ready for bed, Miller?” You smiled up at him as you both went your separate ways to your sides of the bed.

“Ready for bed, sweet girl.” He smiled a weak smile at you as you both climbed into bed. He pulled you into his arms, your head leaning down to rest on his chest. Sleep started to overcome you fast as he pulled the duvet up onto your body.

The last thing you heard before you were engulfed in the sweetest and deepest sleep you’d had in a while was an omission from Joel. The sweetest words you’d think to ever roll off his lips.

“I love you, darlin’. Nothing is ever gonna change that.” With that, he kissed your forehead and you were off to sleep. Ready to take on whatever came the next day because you knew no matter what you’d have Joel and you’d have that sweet girl sleeping downstairs on the couch. Everything was falling into place.

And that's it! Remember to leave feedback folks! Us authors wanna hear what y'all have to say!! Also, likes are nice and always appreciated but reblogs are how others are able to see our stories!

As always, thanks for readin' if you made it this far! :-)

#Joel Miller x reader #joel miller fluff #joel miller x reader #joel miller x female reader #joel miller one shot #joel miller fanfiction #joel miller ruin my life challenge!#tlou fanfiction #tlou one shot

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tegu-the-tegu · 14 days

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Flavoured Artificer Concepts

Artificer is by FAR my favourite class in Dungeons and Dragons, primarily for how customisable they can be with regards to their flavour; because of the ability to cast through any tools you are proficient in, it gives a LOT of range to how your magic works. As such, I will put some ideas I have had to build unique Artificers.

An Artillerist that uses woodworking to carve totems; they are flavoured as a tribal shaman that summons the spirits of magical creatures to aid in battle. Their flamethrower turret conjures a dragon spirit to burn their foes, their protector turret calls the spirit of a unicorn to protect the virtuous, and their ballista invokes a manticore spirit to pepper distant foes with spikes. Their other spells can also be flavoured this way, such as Thunderwave being flavoured as an Aerosaur spirit emerging from a totem and flapping its wings to blow enemies away!

A Battlesmith that uses leatherworking to create a horrific stitched Frankenstein's monster for their steel defender. Every time they kill things, they skin the corpses to repair their hideous flesh monster. Or, if you prefer, you could stick with the shamanistic theme from the Artillerist entry, and use leatherworking to maintain the pelt of the first wolf you killed; its spirit inhabits that pelt, and defends you to this day!

An Alchemist that uses chef's tools to create supernaturally delicious food that cures illnesses and grants supernatural abilities. I have actually played this, he used brewers supplies to create caustic acidic drinks, had peppers so hot that it made your breath ignite to cast fire spells, and he would spray sticky toffee over the area for web. He would make food puns, and was named Guido Fiero.

An Armorer that uses jeweller's tools to create bling that imbues them with magical powers. A circlet that grants a force field, a ring that shoots lightning, a pair of bracelets that create thunderous shockwaves when brought together. Then, when you hit level 9, you can have distinct infusion tied to each one! A circlet or diadem or whatever for head armour, necklace for chest armour, anklets for boots, and bracelets or rings for the weapon! Perfect for a wealthy nobleman artificer who wants to broadcast their glamorous lifestyle.

There are loads of other things you can do with each tool proficiency, and it's a shame that the class is so easily pigeonholed into "The Tech Class". Not to say I don't like the gnomish tinker that creates fantastical and crazy gizmos to mimic magical effects. Hell, my character in the campaign I'm not DMing is exactly that, an autognome (Flavoured to look like a normal gnome in the face, so they appear normal when wearing their clothes) that woke up one day in a tinker's lab next to his deceased creator, and then left to try and find a purpose in the world. He has an insect motif, so all of his spells and things are flavoured as small clockwork insects he makes.

But the point is, while that's a staple of the Artificer class fantasy, there are loads of other ideas to flavour it! A calligrapher that writes arcane runes in the air, a potter with a terracotta soldier for a steel defender, a weaver that knits arcane circles, a painter whose drawings become magical effects, a glassblower whose glass figurines come to life, I can't think of one for cartographer's tools, but I bet there is a dope idea in there somewhere!

Even as I mentioned before with leatherworking, you can have the exact same class, the exact same subclass, and the exact same tool, and STILL have wildly different flavour! One is Doctor Frankenstein, the other is a mystical shaman with a spirit guide!

Anyway, that's today's rambling. I would also do a thing on subclasses the Artificer could have, given they only have four, but that's a whole other rant. Besides, this is already a thesis.

#dnd artificer #dungeons and dragons #dnd 5e #d&d #dnd #d&d 5e #I don't actually know what I'm meant to do for tags #I'm new here.#Still figuring it all out

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misterlemonztenth · 2 months

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03-15-24 | Today in 1879 Albert Einstein was born in Wurttemberg, Germany. He would be 145 today. He died in 1955 in Princeton, NJ.

Happy Birthday Albert.

Here are some insights from the one and only Albert Einstein. He is most known as a popular scientist who dramatically changed humanity’s engagement with the world. This post illuminates some of his equally amazing insights beyond the science and beyond the physical.

“I didn't arrive at my understanding of the fundamental laws of the universe through my rational mind.”

2. “Concerning matter, we have been all wrong. What we have called matter is energy, whose vibration has been so lowered as to be perceptible to the senses. Matter is spirit reduced to point of visibility. There is no matter.”

"Time and space are not conditions in which we live, but modes by which we think.

Physical concepts are free creations of the human mind, and are not, however it may seem, determined by the external world."

“Time does not exist – we invented it. Time is what the clock says. The distinction between the past, present and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.”

“I think 99 times and find nothing. I stop thinking, swim in silence, and the truth comes to me."

"The intellect has little to do on the road to discovery. There comes a leap in consciousness, call it intuition or what you will, the solution comes to you and you don’t know how or why.”

"A human being experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."

"Our separation from each other is an optical illusion."

“When something vibrates, the electrons of the entire universe resonate with it. Everything is connected. The greatest tragedy of human existence is the illusion of separateness.”

“Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.”

“We are souls dressed up in sacred biochemical garments and our bodies are the instruments through which our souls play their music.”

“When you examine the lives of the most influential people who have ever walked among us, you discover one thread that winds through them all. They have been aligned first with their spiritual nature and only then with their physical selves.”

“The true value of a human being can be found in the degree to which he has attained liberation from the self.”

“The ancients knew something, which we seem to have forgotten.”

“The more I learn of physics, the more I am drawn to metaphysics.”

“One thing I have learned in a long life: that all our science, measured against reality, is primitive and childlike. We still do not know one thousandth of one percent of what nature has revealed to us. It is entirely possible that behind the perception of our senses, worlds are hidden of which we are unaware.”

“I’m not an atheist. The problem involved is too vast for our limited minds. We are in the position of a little child entering a huge library filled with books in many languages. The child knows someone must have written those books.”

"The common idea that I am an atheist is based on a big mistake. Anyone who interprets my scientific theories this way, did not understand them."

"Everything is determined, every beginning and ending, by forces over which we have no control. It is determined for the insect, as well as for the star. Human beings, vegetables, or cosmic dust, we all dance to a mysterious tune, intoned in the distance by an invisible piper."

“The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. It will transcend a personal God and avoid dogma and theology.”

“Energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only be changed from one form to another.”

“Everything is energy and that is all there is to it. Match the frequency of the reality you want and you can not help but get that reality. It can be no other way. This is not philosophy. This is physics.”

"I am happy because I want nothing from anyone. I do not care about money. Decorations, titles or distinctions mean nothing to me. I do not crave praise. I claim credit for nothing. A happy man is too satisfied with the present to dwell too much on the future." misterlemonztenth.tumblr.com/archive

#misterlemonztenth #original post #albert einstein #portrait #princeton

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cartoon-angerr · 6 months

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Loodvigg’s Day at Disneyland: prologue

The Starhenge rose up in the sky, mechanical island built by the Colossals, gigantic creatures as old as the Monster World. On this very island, monsters lived, older than the Monster World and the Colossals. And probably time itself, too… who knows? They were called Celestials, the first beings to ever exist, and considered Gods by every monster living on the islands below. Hence their name, the Celestials came from the sky… or more exactly, space. The Primordial Cosmic Hush was a time where absolutely nothing existed - just silence. A cosmic void. Then there was the Big Bang, sending sounds into the void, creating elements and twelve beings afterwards. The monster gods came to life, each having a constellation and an element assigned to them. But this was a long time ago, decades now separating the creation of the Celestials from the present.

One of them approached the circle that the monsters had formed and sat down with them. Her name was Galvana, she represented the element of Electricity. She turned her head to her right, where a metallic organ was resting. Her name was Vhamp, she represented the Mech element. Next to Vhamp sat a blue creature named Plixie, the Plasma elementalist. "Hey Scaratar!" he beckoned a brown bug-looking monster, the Poison element. "How is your hair shining like that? It’s lovely!" "Thank you! I put some hair shine spray over it," she responded. The Plant elementalist Blasoom, a green bird-shaped monster, approached Scaratar to take a closer look at her hair. "Alright," Galvana started. "As you know, we all gather here every first day of a new month. We are in February, which means Furnoss’ constellation is now shining above us!" Galvana turned to what seemed to be an oven with a dragon-like head and limbs. He looked at her, nodding. Up in the sky, Furnoss’ constellation was shining brightly, replacing the constellation of Hornacle, the Water element. This one playfully gave a nudge to the Fire elementalist, who returned it back. "Before we start, is everyone here?" Galvana asked. She looked at her friends, counting them mentally. Furnoss, Hornacle, Scaratar, Blasoom, Plixie and Vhamp were here, followed by Torrt, Glaishur, Attmoz and Syncopite, the Earth, Cold, Air and Crystal elementalists, respectively. And… "WHO THE FUCK TOOK MY HAIR SHINE SPRAY?!" a voice shouted from afar. …Loodvigg.

The Shadow elementalist, an elegant spidery monster with a bold hairstyle, approached the circle formed by the eleven Celestials reunited. An angry expression distorted their skull-like face. "Oopsies." Scaratar whispered. Attmoz sighed and rolled his eye. "Here we go again", he mumbled. "So?!" Loodvigg asked again, their eyes jumping from monster to monster. "Yeah… About that." Scaratar answered - Loodvigg’s angered look went straight to her. "It was me. I’m sorry, I probably should’ve asked you first." "UGH!" Loodvigg elegantly pushed their hair back with an offended rictus, then bended over Scaratar. "Damn right you should have. I’m turning your hair into my new personal bathroom carpet next time." Scaratar, surprised by the aggressiveness in Loodvigg’s tone, stepped back, seemingly upset and a little flabbergasted. Galvana quickly intervened, noticing the green bug monster’s discomfort. "Loodvigg, that’s enough. No need to overreact." "But I ain’t! This insect knows I’m not letting ANYONE borrowing MY stuff-" "ENOUGH!" Loodvigg sighed with annoyance. "Also, you’re late for our monthly meeting again. For the third time in a row. Why didn’t you come sooner?!" Galvana continued. "I forgot!" "We’ve been doing the new month and constellation celebration for decades! Literally! How in all the stars did you forget?!!" Loodvigg skittered from the electric monster to sit on the other side of the circle, between Furnoss and Hornacle. "Listen, I was busy doing much more entertaining activities than something we’ve been doing repeatedly for all these years. Can we start now? I want to get this stupid celebration over as soon as possible."

Although irritated, Galvana kept her thoughts for herself and continued speaking, almost as if nothing happened.

Even if the atmosphere remained tense between the monsters, the ending of the celebration went rather well, Loodvigg's presence not being as terrible as in the beginning. The Celestials all stared at the sky, Furnoss’ constellation still shining brightly. It was only after the meeting that Attmoz spoke to his cousin, Scaratar. Loodvigg was back to the old Observatory, a tall stone construction housing a gigantic telescope, and each Celestial’s designated room. "Hey. You alright?" Attmoz said, visible concern painted on the cyclop’s face. "Yeah! Yeah, I am," she responded. "They just scared me for a second," Scaratar whispered, motioning her head to the Observatory. "Sometimes I even wonder if any thought of basic kindness and empathy still circulate through that brain of theirs", Attmoz chuckled a bit. "I wonder what kept Loodvigg so "busy" to be that late to the monthly celebration… Bet they were trying a new haircut again." "That still doesn’t give them the right to change my hair into a bathroom carpet…" she pointed out, grumpy. "Nope, definitely not!" "They probably wouldn't have done that anyway, but I'm keeping an eye on them," Galvana said, now approaching the two monsters. "We never know with Loodvigg... their behavior is getting stranger with the passing days-" "And meaner," Scaratar added. "Like, way meaner. And for no reason at all, either." "I remember how kind they used to be," Attmoz said, yawning. "But that was such a long time ago... Still wondering what made them the way they are now. Not like we aren't used to their catastrophic behavior anyway... but it's still very annoying," the pink cyclop sighed. "And even worse when unjustitied... Which is... well! Most of the time." "Mmmhm." Galvana nodded, lost in thought. Attmoz yawned again, briefly swinging his head. "Ugh. Sleepy…" "Already?!" surprisingly asked the electric elementalist. "Is it that late?" "Oh, no, no," Scaratar reassured her. "That's just what Mozmoz gets when he stays awake late at night trying to find out if putting paint in water could make his clouds turn purple." "Shut up..." Attmoz grumbled, nudging at his cousin. "At least it worked."

The three said their goodnights, Galvana promising once again to keep an eye on Loodvigg. But for now, a good night rest was welcome for everyone.

A Theme For A Molting Russian Gentleman

#Loodvigg’s Day at Disneyland #LDaD AU #My Singing Monsters #MSM AU #Nero’s Day At Disneyland #Lauren Bousfield #OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I’M SO EXCITED I hope you guys enjoyed this!!#My English is not englishing but I tried my best #The colors below the title are totally not picked from Attention Shoppers nor from From Rotting Fantasylands nor from Avalon Vales-#-nor from Grievances and Dead Malls btw (lying)#I like Lauren’s music to a super normal amount 😊#ANYWAYS!! RAHH #Sorry for making Loodvigg a bitch </3

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andreafmn · 11 months

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I'm Not Afraid | Chapter 10

Word Count: 4.3K Story Description: (Y/N) Argent arrived at Beacon Hills to put to rest her father’s sister, Kate Argent. For the first time, her family has decided to settle down and sustain a life in this interesting small town. After 17 years, (Y/N) has the opportunity to establish interpersonal relationships but will she be ready to face the complications that come with relating to her cousin’s, Allison, friends; especially, the infamous Derek Hale. She will face the adventure of being associated with the Derek and McCall pack as well as being faced with the discovery of certain aspects of her life she never imagined. Chapter: 10/? A/N: cough cough sorry, dusting off this story after more than a year 😶 honestly, cannot believe it's taken me this long to update this story. So, if there are still any fans of it… Hey!!! I am so sorry for taking forever, but I will absolutely try to keep to my new writing schedule [if you wanna see it, it's on my Tumblr andreafmn]. Thank you to all the peeps that are reading. I hope you enjoy! My content will always be free, but if you’re feeling particularly generous, you can leave a tip on any of my posts to support me and my love of writing or buy me a coffee TikTok • Instagram • Business | MASTERLIST If you’d like to be tagged in this or any other story: click here Make sure you have my notifications on so you know every time I post!

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Chapter 10

(Y/N) could not help the feeling that took over her. It was a giddy excitement that filled her as she rode back home. She couldn’t quite place it, only knowing what it could be from books she had read and movies she had seen.

She liked him. She truly liked Derek Hale.

Derek Hale.

The name repeated inside her head like a grounding mantra.

Derek Hale, the werewolf.

Derek Hale, the alpha.

Derek Hale, the most wanted man in her family.

The girl wasn’t afraid of her feelings. Those she could guard, those she could shield from her world. Her emotions weren’t the ones she wanted to keep safe. She wanted to keep Derek safe — keep him safe. Her family had already caused him so much pain. Her own flesh had burned away his family like they were nothing more than insects. The same blood that rushed through her veins had been able to kill a group of innocent people leaving Derek on his own.

That was what she wanted to protect him from. (Y/N) wanted him shielded from all the horror her family would continue to enforce. When she turned eighteen, she would be able to escape and find a way out of the circle that had forgotten the code of a hunter and had decided that supernatural lives were worthless.

All they had to do was reach mid-December. Nine months, that’s all they needed. Nine months and they could dive head-first into whatever it was they were feeling. Whatever new adventure life wanted to throw their way.

“Well, someone seems chipper now,” Isaac teased as (Y/N) balanced her motorcycle on its stand. “I take it things between Derek and you have been fixed?”

“Something like that,” she chuckled. “We at least put some things on the table.”

“What does that even mean?”

Isaac followed her into the house, waiting for her answer. But she simply waltzed through the house, landing in the kitchen. She got a bottle of water and a slice of pizza out of the fridge, eating it without heating it up.

“(Y/N), just tell me what you meant,” Isaac chuckled as he followed her to the living room. “If this is you being happy, I don’t like it.”

“There’s not much to say, honestly,” she mumbled. “We just talked.”

“Give me something here, (Y/N),” Isaac exasperated as he plopped down on the couch next to her. “Judging by the way you’re acting you two did more than just talk.”

“Ew, Isaac,” (Y/N) gasped dramatically. “Need I remind you that I am a minor.”

“He’s not that much older than us and you’re only 17 for a couple more months.”

“9 months to be exact, but who’s counting?” The girl got up from the couch and headed back to the kitchen, dancing around all of her friend’s questions. “You know what this pizza needs? Ranch. It needs some ranch.”

“(Y/N), why are you avoiding me?”

“I’m not.”

“You’ve been skating around the topic since you got here. I just wanna know what’s going on between the two of you.”

“Truthfully, there’s nothing going on,” she shrugged. “There’s nothing that can go on just yet. Nothing for nine grueling months. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“What happened a couple of hours ago wasn’t nothing, (Y/N),” he added. “There’s only a few years of difference between you. Are you really telling me you wouldn’t risk it?”

“I could, Isaac, but not with him,” (Y/N) sighed. “I cannot give my family any ammunition against him. If they ever found out that we were together they would find a way to get the authorities involved and trap him afterward, even if he’s innocent. And that not only would put Derek in more danger, but it would set a target on you and everyone else. I simply cannot do that.”

“We can protect ourselves, (Y/N).” He rounded the kitchen island, stopping once he was right next to her, and placed a comforting hand on her arm. “You deserve to be happy. I mean, Allison and Scott are making it work. Why can’t you?”

“Are they making it work?” she questioned. “They sneak around all the time. They have to pretend they hate each other when they’re in school. They can’t admit they’re in love without putting the other in harm’s way. I don’t want that.”

“So, instead you’re gonna pretend that you feel nothing for him? How is that the better option? In the long run, you’re only hurting yourselves.”

“And what am I supposed to do, Isaac? What am I supposed to do if you guys get hurt because of a decision I made? How could I live with myself if my family got their hands on you because of me?” (Y/N) spoke through gritted teeth, holding back the tears that threatened to spill. “I can’t do it. I refuse.”

Isaac remained quiet for a beat, her words sinking into him as every second passed. He understood her need to protect them, the desperation to withhold her wants in order to keep everyone safe. “Is this about Josie?” he whispered, carefully choosing his next words. “Your job is not to protect everyone. At some point, you need to allow yourself to want things for yourself.”

“I can’t. There are too many lives at risk right now and I won’t let anything happen to any of you if I can help it,” she responded sternly. “I don’t care if it takes a lifetime. If it means that you will all be safe, then I will stay away from him.”

“You’re as stubborn as they come, (Y/N),” Isaac responded in defeat. He placed his hands on either side of her face, pressing his forehead to hers as he gifted her a smile. “But if you ever change your mind, just let me know. I’ve got your back, Argent.”

“Thank you, Isaac. I’ve got your back too.”

“You better,” he chuckled. “Now, let’s go to bed. We’ve got a couple of long days ahead of us.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice.”

***

School had been uneventful the next day, the only thing that could be felt was the anxious excitement of the students as talk of the secret rave kept spreading. Tickets were already scarce as it was and as more people knew of its existence the harder it would become to get them.

Thankfully, talk of the rave was strong enough to quiet any whispers of what had transpired in the library. The fact that it had been completely destroyed by supernatural creatures the student body had no idea of had been hidden under the rumor that it had simply been a teenage fight. It was baffling and incomprehensible, yet everyone accepted the answer at face value. At the end of the day, it was simply school property and nothing more interesting.

“Here you go,” Isaac said after math class was over, slipping (Y/N) a yellow and pink piece of paper. “One ticket for tomorrow night’s secret rave. Courtesy of one Derek Hale.”

“Is that what you left so early this morning for? I thought they were already sold out!”

“If there’s one thing I know about Derek it’s that he has connections. And that he’d stop at nothing to stop Jackson.”

“You mean save,” (Y/N) corrected as she walked by his side to her locker. “We are going to save Jackson.”

“Yeah, that.”

“Seriously, Isaac. He’s being controlled by someone else and has no idea of what he’s doing,” she added. Her words were filled with compassion and worry, concerned for a boy that, though despicable, was innocent in the whole ordeal. “Jackson Whittemore might be a whole lot of things, but I know he’s not a killer.”

“You sound like Scott,” Isaac chuckled. “I honestly don’t think I’ve ever heard more people rally behind that guy since he’s become a sort of murderer.”

“Everyone deserves a chance,” (Y/N) said. “If they didn’t, I would have cut you off the second you turned into a cocky ass.”

“Hey, I’ve always been nice to you. It’s other people I don’t like.”

“Who? Stiles and Scott?” she teased. “Is it because Derek doesn’t like them?”

“Contrary to popular belief, I can think for myself,” he scoffed lightly. “I don’t like them because they haven’t given me any reason to like them. That could change at any point, but it seems unlikely.”

“And have you ever even talked to them?”

“Not exactly,” he shrugged into his seat. “But I don’t really care to talk about that. Tonight, we’re gonna go see Scott’s boss, the vet. Apparently, he can help us catch Jackson tomorrow night. Wanna come with?”

“I suppose I could. There’s not much happening back home,” she sighed happily. “I think it’s cause my dad’s away.”

“Well then, we’ll have fun,” he smiled. “Just you, me, Scott, and Derek. What a fun group of people.”

“I get along fine with everyone,” she returned the smile. “It’s Derek and you that need to learn how to be able to deal with other people.”

“A couple of weeks ago you couldn’t even say more than five words to them. Now, you’re the biggest team player?”

“What can I say? I really flourish in a stable environment.”

“Between kanimas, werewolves, and hunters,” he laughed. “What a stable environment.”

“At least I’m not moving at the end of the year,” she grinned, slamming the locked door closed. “Now, let’s go eat before we meet the vet. I can’t think on an empty stomach.”

As the day transitioned into night, Isaac and (Y/N) left her house for Derek’s. It was in moments like those that the Argent girl forgot what her world had turned into. She wasn’t just going over to her crush’s house to admire him from afar as she spent time with her friend. No. She was on her way to pick up an alpha to figure out how to stop a reptilian-shapeshifting teenager.

(Y/N) had only ever wanted to have a normal life, and for most of it she thought her biggest obstacle was moving every year. In reality, it was the fact that her parents had been secretly training her to become a supernatural hunter. Everything she had been craving was farther from her reach than she could have ever thought.

Still, she could only deal with one problem at a time. Stopping Jackson was the most pressing matter and that’s what her mind had to focus on. Especially when half of the people she surrounded herself with wanted the boy dead. She couldn’t, and wouldn’t, stand for that.

She killed the engine of her motorcycle as Isaac hopped off the back. They were met with a scowling Derek, his arms crossed tightly across his chest. The sight alone had the girl biting back a laugh, finding the façade he wore when others were around to be the most hilarious acting he could do. She had already seen the side of him he so desperately hid from others, and she could not think of him otherwise.

“Oh, come on, Derek,” Isaac grinned. “There’s no need for jealousy. (Y/N) and I are just friends.”

“I’m not jealous. How could I be?” he devilishly smiled as he got into his car. “There’s no real competition.”

“Cool it, boys,” (Y/N) interjected, settling into the passenger seat. “It’s not like there’s much to choose from. We are terribly lacking in the casting department here in Beacon Hills.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Derek grumbled.

“It means that I have to pick from a really small pool of options,” she said mischievously, a playful grin on her face. “You’re definitely number one. But you’re a close second, Isaac.”

“Hear that, Derek?” Isaac laughed, peeking his head to the front. “You better play your cards right or I might have a chance.”

Instead of responding, Derek slammed on the brakes, making Isaac’s seatbelt lock as his body lurched forward, knocking the air out of his lungs. Quietly, he sat back onto his seat, his eyebrows furrowing and his arms crossing across his chest like a child after a tantrum. But all (Y/N) could stare at was the cocky grin that was plastered on Derek’s face.

“Alright, enough of this pissing competition,” (Y/N) laughed softly. “We have real business to tend to and I don’t wanna be late.”

“You heard the lady, Derek. Step on it.”

“Watch it, Isaac.”

“Guys,” she called their attention, scolding them with her gaze. “Let’s just go.”

The rest of the short car ride was quiet, filled with the soft hum of the radio and the air blowing out of the A/C. But there were stolen glances and smiles between the people in the front of the car. Their arms rested on the center console, their fingers itching to interlace as they stretched toward each other, neither really giving in.

One second, they were leaving Derek’s loft, and the next, they were parked in front of the Beacon Hills Animal Clinic. Before they could reach the door, Scott was already unlocking it, his face contorted in confusion as he stared at (Y/N) and Isaac.

“What’s he doing here?” Scott questioned.

“I need him.”

“I don’t trust him,” the boy added as he walked back inside.

“Yeah, well, he doesn’t trust you either,” Isaac said cockily, his mask quickly slipping on.

“You know what?” the older man said annoyed. “And Derek doesn’t really care.”

“What about you, (Y/N)?” Scott asked, his tone softening. “Why are you here?”

“Just along for the ride. But at the end of the day, I’m a good mediator for whatever tension is roaming here.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Derek quickly said. “Now where’s the vet? Is he gonna help us or what?”

“That depends,” the doctor answered, appearing seemingly out of nowhere. “Your friend, Jackson. Are we planning to kill him or save him?”

Derek answered, “Kill him,” at the same time Scott and (Y/N) responded, “Save him.”

Both of the teens stared at the alpha, not shocked at his answer but a tad disappointed. Scott had been clear when he agreed to work together, things would be done his way and that meant doing everything possible to rescue Jackson. And if Derek had any doubts, there were none left once Scott reiterated twice that Jackson would be saved.

Then, and only then, did Dr. Deaton allow the group back into the treatment room. They all stood behind the exam table, following the vet’s every move. He took hold of a tray with neatly arranged vials with symbols on the lids.

With childlike curiosity, Isaac reached for the glass containers. Only to have Derek snatch his hand away. “Watch what you touch,” he said, and (Y/N) couldn’t help but agree. She had learned rather quickly that when it came to that secret world it was better to air of the side of caution.

“So, what are you?” the blonde questioned, keeping his hands to himself but ignoring Derek’s reprimand. “Some kind of witch?”

“No, I’m a veterinarian,” Deaton responded to him before he shifted the conversation to what they were there for. “Unfortunately, I don’t see anything here that’s going to be an effective defense against a paralytic toxin.”

(Y/N) was intrigued by the man. Even if he claimed to be a mere human, she could tell there was something more to him. There was a powerful energy that emanated from him, but she couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was or what it could mean.

As the man questioned about the Kanima and the others answered, her mind was deadest of figuring out what the energy she was feeling meant. If he was truly just a human, she was afraid she was losing her mind.

“Essentially, you’re trying to capture two people,” she heard him say as her brain focused back on the situation at hand. The doctor turned for a second and pulled out a medallion. “A puppet… and a puppeteer,” he explained as he placed the disk on the table. “One killed the husband while the other killed the wife. Do we know why?”

“I don’t think Jackson could do it,” (Y/N) finally spoke. “His mother died pregnant too, and she was maybe murdered. I think he couldn’t let the same happen to someone else.”

“How do you know it’s not part of the rules?” Isaac questioned. “The Kanima kills murderers. If Jackson kills the wide, then the baby dies too.”

“Does that mean your father was a murderer?” Scott asked him.

“Wouldn’t surprise me if he was.”

Instinctively, (Y/N)’s hand flew to Isaac’s forearm and gave it a comforting squeeze. Even if the man was a horrible human being and had made the boy’s life a living hell, she knew how hard it still was for him to talk about the man.

“Hold on,” Deaton pondered. “The book says they’re bonded, right? What if the fear of water isn’t coming from Jackson, but from the person controlling him? What if…?” he continued as he grabbed a vial of something (Y/N) recognized as mountain ash and drew a circle around the silver medallion. “Something that controls the Kanima also affects its master?”

“Meaning what?”

“Meaning we can catch them,” she smiled at the blond. “Both of them. If this theory is right, that means we could get Jackson and whoever is controlling him in the same place.”

“In theory, it should work,” the doctor added. “But you should plan for all possibilities. Scott, you can come over tomorrow and pick up what supply I have of mountain ash. Hopefully, this plan works.”

“I hope so too,” the boy added. “So, we’ll meet up tomorrow before the rave to make sure we’re all on the same page. Right, Derek?”

“Right,” he grumbled. “We’ll see you tomorrow night then.”

Once everyone had agreed to the plan, Deaton and Scott walked the trio to the door, wishing them a good night and safe travels home. But keeping up their macho bravado and feeding their air of dominance, Isaac and Derek made a beeline for the car rather than return the sentiment. It was childish and petty, but it forced a smile out of (Y/N).

“I apologize for those two. It seems they have forgotten their manners,” (Y/N) said. “But thank you, Dr. Deaton, for all your help. And thank you, Scott, for everything you’re doing to make sure Jackson comes out of this alive. He may be a shitty guy, but he doesn’t deserve to die.”

“Thanks, (Y/N),” Scott smiled, placing a reassuring hand on her arm. “And although I cannot say I understand why you’re even in the same presence as Derek Hale, I’m glad you’re there to keep him in line.”

“Eh, he’s not that tough,” she chuckled. “Anyways, I’ll see you tomorrow. And thank you again, Deaton.”

“Please, call me Alan.”

“Then, thank you, Alan.”

“Get home safe, (Y/N),” Scott called out as she walked to the car.

“You too, Scott,” she smiled. “We’ll get them tomorrow. Even if it takes everything out of us.”

As soon as the girl had closed the door of the black Camaro, the car sped out of the parking lot. After such an influx of information and the slightest sliver of hope, silence befell them. The ride was silent, once again filled only with the soft sound of the radio and the blast from the A/C.

There wasn’t anything more to be said. They either trapped both the kanima and his master, or they would die trying. And it was that sense of dread that kept them mute until they reached the loft where Isaac excused himself to grab a change of clothes.

(Y/N) walked to Derek’s side, leaning against the car right beside him, enjoying the smoothness of his leather jacket against her. It took every ounce of self-control for them to not deepen the touch, to reach out to one another in seek of comfort.

“What do you think will happen tomorrow?” (Y/N) asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Honestly, I have no idea,” he sighed. “If it were up to me…”

“If it were up to you Jackson would be dead,” she finished sternly. “An innocent life would be taken.”

“Jackson is not innocent.”

“Someone is literally calling the shots for him, Derek. He doesn’t even remember what he’s done,” she retorted. “He shouldn’t be faulted for something he is not doing on his own.”

“I know,” he exasperated. “But he’s still done so many horrible things, even if he doesn’t know it. And he’ll continue to do them if he and whoever is controlling him isn’t stopped.”

“Just please, Derek.” (Y/N) turned to face him, her eyes desperately searching into the darkness of his. Her hands rested on his crossed arms, the only way she found she could convey the level of her worry. "Promise me you won’t kill him. Do whatever it takes to stop him but kill him.”

Derek could only sigh at her plea. He could see the desperation behind her eyes, the way they were looking for any sign of deception in his. But he knew he could not lie, at least not to her. “All I can promise is that he’ll remain alive as long as he stays away from you,” he said. “If he does anything to harm you, he is as good as dead.”

“Derek…”

“I’m serious, (Y/N). I’d be so much as digs a single claw into you, I will make sure I’m the one to rip his throat out.”

“Even if we know his venom won’t do anything to me?” (Y/N) blurted. Derek’s eyes grew wide, thinking she would never find out about his transgression. But she had told him that Scott had revealed everything to her, that was just part of the story. “Yes, Scott told me you tested me and Lydia. And at some point, I was everyone’s favorite suspect. What would you do if it had been me? Would you not hesitate to kill me as well?”

“I never doubted you,” he told her, softly cradling the side of her face. “It was never my intention to test you. You just so happened to shade that piece of candy with Lydia. I knew it could have never been you.”

“How could you be so sure? You didn't know me, Derek. You still barely know me,” her voice croaked. “So, I'm asking you. If I had been the kanima, would you be advocating this hard to kill me?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Then, you shouldn't want to kill Jackson either.”

“It's not even comparable to how I care for you,” he smiled. “But I promise you, and only you, that I will not kill him.”

“That's all I can ask for,” she said, returning the warm smile. “And I'm glad to hear you wouldn't have killed me. I think death wishes would really tamper with our chances.”

“I'm glad it wasn't you then,” he chuckled. “Although, I think we could have made it work. We just would have to make sure your scales were always hydrated.”

“A kanima and a werewolf,” she laughed. “What a match it would have been.”

As they laughed in unison, their gazes met under the light of the moon. His green eyes shone brightly as they studied every inch of her face, every so often falling to her lips. He noted the pinkness of the skin and the plumpness. He saw how they trembled slightly whenever his eyes landed on them. He spotted how they parted to allow a deep breath to slip through.

Oh, how he wanted to taste them. To crash his lips onto hers and savor every second of connection. All it would take was a single move. In less than a second, he could answer every question he had about her mouth.

So, he slowly leaned in.

And she did too.

They were millimeters away from breaking their resolve and throwing caution to the wind. A gust of air and their nine-month pact would be broken. At least, they would have given in to the feeling they most craved for.

“Welp, ready to go!” Isaac's voice startled them apart. His head was focused on his bag, making sure he had everything he needed, and had no idea he had ruined a moment for the pair. “You think we could stop for some food on the way back? I'm starving again.”

The duo could only stare at the tall blond, their faces growing red in embarrassment. “What?” Isaac muttered. “Is it too late for food?”

"It's fine, Isaac,” (Y/N) chuckled at his obliviousness. “We'll get something on the way back. Go start the bike. Let it warm up.”

“Alright,” he said, easily catching the keys she threw him. “I'll let you two lovebirds say goodbye.”

Once he was out of sight, the pair laughed quietly. They had once again been interrupted by one of Derek's teenage strays. And once more they had been that close to giving in to their urges.

“It seems like the universe wants us to wait,” she grinned. “For the record, I really want to kiss you.”

“For the record,” he whispered into her ear. “I really want to kiss you too.”

“I mean, there’s nothing really stopping us right now,” she said, biting her lower lip. “We could just... do it.”

“Not with Isaac right there,” he reminded her. “He might not hear us well, but he can definitely see us. And, not gonna lie, I don’t really wanna kiss you with an audience.”

“Neither do I,” she chuckled. “A year, huh?”

“Nine months,” he smiled. “But who’s counting?”

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catboybiologist · 10 months

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As noted in past kitten memes, the abyssal plain is the largest biome on earth. The abyssal plain is the true "bottom" of the ocean (beaten only by the hadal zone, the deep ocean trenches that cut beyond the depths of the plain), the areas where the water is so still, so dark, that erosion and shaping of sediment doesn't happen short term or long term. The plain is covered in a fine layer of silt, settling in an even, flat layer. The abyssal plain is also the most topologically flat and consistent surface on our planet.

Long ago, it was thought that the depths of the ocean beyond where light reached had sparse, incidental life. Islands exist- hydrothermal vents with chemotaxic bacteria, seamounts with deep reefs that collect particles from the rest of the ocean- but the abyssal plain, for the most part, lacks producers, anything that is able to make energy-containing biomolecules from non-biological components.

But surrounding them.... fine sediment. flat layers. A rain of detritus from the layers above. And most of all... blackness.

There are wanderers here. Animals scouring the sand and drifting through the deepest layers of the ocean, sifting through the rain of marine snow, never knowing the light.

They search, scouring the depths for something more than the usual scraps. Whether it is as small as one measly fish carcass, or as huge an event as whalefall, most dead animals that dies in the ocean will ultimately be lain out for these wanderers, providing the mass and energy that once composed them to the undercurrent of our planet.

The largest of these wanderers are the sleeper sharks, and similar sharks that occupy their same niche (such as sixgill sharks). Not only are they the largest wanderers of the abyssal plain (excluding some squid, depending on how you count their habitat and their size), they are among the largest sharks in the world. They rival great whites in size, and it is likely only a lack of sampling that means we haven't found a sleeper shark larger than the largest great whites. When death brings animals to the plains, the sharks greet them, and bring their bodies into this black, serene food web.

Scavengers, of course, are not unique. Vultures fight over carcasses, fungi grow on logs and carcasses, even starfish in shallower waters scour fish bones clean. Yet the abyssal plain stands out for several reasons. At first glance, it seems like a biome that is seemingly sustained by death occurring in other habitats, allowing the discarded dead matter of other ecosystems to creep back upwards through various organisms ever so slowly.

Yet that's not quite why the abyssal plain feels the way it does. Other instances of scavenging feel so... transient. Watching fungal fuzz grow and die, watching vultures circle and dissipate, watching a fruit decompose on the ground. And then that energy is immediately returned to the web it came from- vultures live and die quickly, insects scour the lichens and fuzzes, rotting flesh becomes soil and dead matter for all sorts of organisms.

The abyssal plain is often slower, and more permanent. Purely soft tissue scavenging of whalefalls can last over a year, tissue attached to the bone is scoured for up to several years after that, and the bones themselves are gradually digested over the course of decades after that. The sediments of the plain itself barely move, undisturbed by shallower currents or the comings and goings of fast moving fish. Geologic forces slowly consume the plain into trenches, and slowly form it at ridges, but this process operates on inconceivably long timescales.

The abyssal plain of today was the abyssal plain of yesterday, and will be the abyssal plain of tomorrow.

This same invariance is represented in the sleeper sharks themselves. Greenland sharks, one of the best studied sleeper sharks (although that isn't saying much) have been aged at at the very least 250 years old. Potentially, these individuals have actually been 500 years old. Genetically over generations, there is little incentive to change either- the invariance of the abyssal plain means that there is little evolutionary selection pressure. In fact, fossil species in the same genus as modern sleeper sharks have been found in rocks nearly 30 million years old, and many older species and individuals are likely undiscovered.

When mammoths walked the land, these sharks fed on their carcasses. When megalodon prowled the seas above them, they finished the scraps it left behind. And who knows? Maybe when mosasaurs patrolled the seas, they were there to recycle their bodies as well. And when our children live and die, when whatever creatures come next to patrol the seas, their bodies will be returned to the plain as well.

The seeming omnipresence and consistency of this slow rhythm makes this the undercurrent of life. The constant in our earth's ecosystems. More than anything else, this relation to death is what defines existence for so much of life on earth, when considered as a sum of earth's history.

I enjoy the ocean. A lot. I enjoy the open ocean- looking over the continental shelf, peering over the reef wall, pelagic diving (when I can), freediving beyond what's visible from the surface. For many people, thallasophobia is a major fear, and that's valid. For me, there's always been an odd comfort associated with the ocean. A comfort knowing that at the bottom of it all, there is a different world. A world that could use the matter that makes me to slowly integrate into their own web of life before scattering to wander the seafloor again.

And that world is ruled by the eldritch giants that are the sleeper sharks.

#oceanposting #deep thoughts #hehe get it #shark posting #shark

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thicctails · 1 year

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˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗A Gift From The Earth To The Stars˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗ A Platonic Dragonformers x Reader Fanfiction

Chapter 1 ~.~ Baby Mine

A cool breeze blew through the soft, new grass of the valley, the green shoots having recently flourished since the last remnants of snow had finally melted away. It carried the scent of new life, tinged with the dampness of a recent rainfall. There was no such rain tonight, the sky above clear and full of glistening, twinkling stars and a bright full moon. Insects chirped and warbled out of sight, frogs croaked melodiously from a nearby pond, and the young leaves on the trees fluttered softly. It was truly a beautiful night, and it was a shame so many were asleep, unable to appreciate its glory.

Ratchet was not one such creature, yet he was hardly out enjoying a calm night.

No, the stout white and red dragon was actually quite agitated, huffing as he got up for the umpteenth time that night, circling around the smooth stones that sat in the middle of his nest, before settling back down in a spot he hoped would be more comfortable. He nudged the rocks closer to him, gently turning them like he would a delicate egg.

Now, the wizened medic wasn't stupid; he knew damn well that these were not eggs and therefore would not hatch, but it seemed to be the only thing keeping him calm for the time being.

Because of course the planet they landed on would simulate the ideal nesting conditions for Cybertronians. Of course this would activate their long dormant brooding protocols, despite the lack of young that needed to be cared for. Of course almost his entire pride would be struck with the instinctive, maddening need to parent anything that even remotely resembled their offspring.

Of course this would be their luck.

Primus must be having a laugh at his creations' expense.

Shifting around, Ratchet laid his head down and sighed softly, exhaustion tugging at his eyelids. At least little Bumblebee seemed unbothered by the uptick in affection he'd been receiving, being the youngest pack member. Optimus especially had been spending extra time with the younger, the chipper yellow and black dragon having been practically adopted by the Prime. If only the fool would just get over his nerves and just say it...

He shifted again, blinking tiredly as he nudged the closest stone. It was cold against his muzzle, setting off unnecessary alarms in his processor.

'Egg is cold! Hatchling must be warmed! You're going to kill it! You're a horrible Sire!'

He growled in irritation as he got to his paws once more, circling the nest again and again and again.

This wasn't heathy. He needed a break.

Forcing the truth that these were rocks and not eggs into the forefront of his thoughts, Ratchet plodded out of his den and into the lively night. He made a beeline for the trees, fully intending on making use of his inability to sleep. A patrol would wear him out, and might help with the nagging fear of the unknown that came with acclimating to a new place.

They'd only been here for a few full lunar cycles, having crashed here when their damaged ship finally gave out, and for most of that time they'd been trapped in this valley by their own instincts. They'd been blindsided by it, so used to being in control of their bodies and minds. Cybertron had been completely unsuitable for nesting for a long time, and thus their once regular, moderate cycles had been disrupted, protocols and code shoved away in favor of battle tactics and more aggressive instincts.

Now though, on this strange, damp world with its warm star and no bloodshed so far, everything that had been suppressed had leapt back up with a vengeance. What had previously been manageable now rendered them nearly feral, far more animalistic than they usually ever were. Pits, none of them aside from Bumblebee had shifted out of their alt modes since they'd got here!

He growled and dug his claws into the moist dirt beneath his paws, hauling himself up onto a nearby ridge. The grass here was longer, brushing against his underbelly as he strode forward. This planet was teeming with organic life, so different from Cybertron it almost hurt.

'Still,' he admitted to himself, watching as a small, glowing bug flitted past his muzzle, 'It's not the worst place we could have landed.'

His processor finally started to quiet as he shifted into a light jog, his tail bobbing rhythmically up and down as he headed for the edge of their territory. The Decepticons had fled somewhere on this planet, and although no-one had seen any trace of them since they'd crashed, Ratchet was going to make damn sure that their borders were secure for the inevitable day Megatron decided to try and finish the war once more.

As he traveled, dirt became rough pebbles and small stones, the mountain range that encircled their valley home looming high above. The white dragon padded up one of the paths they'd begun to wear into the mountainside, rubbing his cheek along the stone every so often, scent marking the area. Faintly, he could smell Prowl's scent nearby, causing him to frown. Usually, the dedicated Autobot was on top of his patrol duties. For him to have neglected this area was a clear indicator of how much even the most professional among them were being effected by the nesting code.

The medic followed the path for as far as it went, before stepping out onto untrodden land. He purposefully let his claws drag across the stone, and he swung his head about as he tastes the air, his olfactory sensors taking in his new surroundings. There was something... different about this area. The faintest feeling of familiarity led him beyond his pride's territory, his optics darting about with caution. This was all new space to him, and he didn't want to risk getting caught unawares by anything that might also be out here.

He slowly made his way down a steep embankment, the sound of water reaching his audials. It was a river, likely the source of the fresh pools of water in the valley. It split in two a few feet from him, the larger part flowing somewhere out of sight, while the smaller stream fed into a nearby cave. Now that he was closer he realized what exactly had been familiar to him. It was a scent, one he had never expected to find here.

Energon.

The primarily white dragon rushed excitedly over to the mouth of the cave, ducking down and squeezing inside. Blue crystals immediately filled his vision, moonlight pouring down through various cracks and holes in the ceiling and reflecting through them, giving the cave an ethereal glow. He followed the stream in a state of awe, already wondering how much of the life-giving material was present on the planet and how much Energon he could take back with him immediately. Their supplies were still doing okay, but they had all been worried about what would happen when they inevitably ran out. This would take quite a bit of stress off of everyone.

"Aaaaaaaah! Waaaah!"

Ratchet froze midstep, audials flying forward as a strange sound reached him, loud enough to be heard over the sound of a nearby waterfall. What in the name of Primus was that?

"Waaaaaaah!"

There it was again! It sounded like a distressed creature, but there was something mixed into its cries that made him instinctively step forward. That sense of familiarity was back once again, as if something deep within him knew what he was hearing.

As the cries continued, Ratchet found that his pace kept increasing. Soon, he was in a dead sprint, ex-venting hard at the strenuous activity. It was not often that he moved at top speed.

Finally, he reached a ledge, and had to dig in his claws to stop himself from flying off the edge. His head jolted back in surprise, shocked that he'd reacted so strongly to an unknown sound. Primus, when was the last time he'd run for anything that wasn't his life or to save someone else's? Shaking his head, he peered down, just narrowly avoiding the spray of the waterfall right next to his head.

Below him was a pool of softly glowing water, the light refracting and casting a prismatic sheen over the room. At the edge of the pool, gently rocked by the motion caused by the waterfall, was a tiny, strange looking... pod?

The fur pelt of an animal was draped over its surface, and something squirmed around beneath it, fitfully crying out with its screeching wails. The sound gripped Ratchet at his very core, his optics going wide. His nesting coding, which had started to calm, flared to life immediately, and he wasted no time in leaping down from the ledge and lowering himself onto his belly.

His claws quivered as he reached out and hooked the tip of a digit onto the pod's edge, gently pulling it towards him. Once it was free of the water, he gripped the pelt covering with his teeth. The fur was soaked all the way through, and Ratchet had the suspicion that the nearby waterfall was to blame. He pulled it free, letting it flop onto the ground.

His next intake of air caught in his vents. His optics became impossibly wide as he brought his face closer to the little pod. Tiny, soft servos patted the tip of his muzzle, smacking the smooth metal with such little force that, if Ratchet hadn't been aware of the action already, he wouldn't have noticed.

It- it was a hatchling. A tiny, tiny hatchling. As small as a premature minicon. It had s/c protoarmor and barely open e/c optics. Tiny wisps of thin, fur-like wires adorned the top of its head. It sniffed and hiccupped, blinking up at Ratchet as fat tears rolled down its pudgy cheeks.

The old medic's body acted before his processor could, scooping up the pod and sitting back on his haunches. Oh. Oh Primus they were so new. How had they gotten here? Where was their Carrier? Their Sire? Surely such a small, fragile new life hadn't been so carelessly abandoned, not when it had been so long since Cybertron had gone dark. He nosed the hatchling, trying to catch the scent of their family unit, but found nothing aside from the smell of the Energon-infused water and the faintest hint of smoke and wet fur.

He bared his teeth as rage bubbled up in his tanks. Even an orphan would still carry the scent of their lost parent, but this young one bared no such indicator. They must have been cast out as soon as they came out of the gestation tank.

Ratchet let a rumbling purr come out of his throat, his glossa flicking out to gently groom the hatchling, washing away the cold water. He could already feel the desire to care for the hatchling take over his processor and spark. Well, this young one wouldn't be unwanted any longer. They would come under Autobot care.

Under his care.

"You're coming home with me, little star." he said softly, the prismatic light of the room bouncing off his armoured scales, "I'll call you... Y/N."

#Dragonformers #dragonformers x reader #Stars | Dragonformers #transformers #au #platonic x reader #x reader #transformers x reader #dragonformers ratchet #ratchet transformers #dragonformers optimus #dragonformers prowl #dragonformers bumblebee #y/n

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