#could have gotten my coal hotter

[scobbe]

Spent $50 on incense and supplies for burning it at the monastery (we burn their incense at our church) only to burn two (2) grains panicking the whole time about setting off the smoke alarm.

[philistiniphagottini]

Hey! Hope you’re doing well. I’ve never requested anything before so I’m sorry if this isn’t the right way to do it, but would you write more for Messmer from Elden Ring with a female reader??? I’d love to see a loss of virginity for either parties wink wonk

Thank you :)

Hello Anon! Thank you very much for indulging me in requesting for Elden Ring. And don't worry, you did good on your first request. I loved the idea and it took me a while to decide who's cherry was going to be popped but I decided Messmer ((let's admit it, he's severely touch starved)). I may have gotten a little carried away but I hope you enjoy it~

cw. smut, penetrative sex, first time, vanilla, size difference, female reader, 3.5k words, MDNI

The cool, silken bed sheets beneath your body felt heavenly against your searing, bare skin, taming the wildfire coiling inside you as your blood simmered hotly in your veins. A soft hum bubbled up your throat, kiss swollen lips parted around a soft purr before your tongue peaked through the plump skin. 

“My lord, pray tell, do you intend to stare at me all evening like a fish out of water?”

There was a teasing lilt to your voice that made the tips of Messmer's ears burn hotter than the coals of a furnace. His golden gaze flickered in your direction as you lay bare beneath him, your sumptuous body swimming in a sea of plush pillows and soft blankets. Every hair on the nape of your neck stood up in anticipation as your eyes roved over your lover's form, dipping and tracing every intimate detail that you wished to etch with your fingers. It made the tips of your fingers tingle with an insatiable itch as you raked your nails between the sweat soaked sheets. Messmer chose not to respond to your teasing remark, mind far too focused on other matters at the moment to entertain you. You could practically see the cogs in his head moving and you couldn't quite recall a time you had ever seen your lord act so…nervous. Well, it was his first time, after all. 

Your movements were slow as you shifted beneath him, the fine jewellery of silver and gold wrapped your ankle clinking softly as you raised your foot. You planted your foot against his stomach, feeling the muscles tense under your touch as you gave him a soft, playful shove. 

“Nervous around little ol’ me? Am I too much to handle?”

Your tone was still coy, but with an underlying sense of concern. Being vulnerable like this certainly wasn't as easy as shedding a few layers of clothes. Messmer had never indulged like this before. Never indulged in you, like this. Nervousness was only one part of the violent concoction already brewing in the pit of his stomach. He wanted this; he wanted you but wasn't sure where to begin. It must have been a rather comical sight having someone twice your size hunched over you as still as a rock and feeling just as dense as one. Yet your voice stirred something in him and he didn't feel as nervous when you talked to him like you always did, so soft and sincere. And maybe a little bit of cheek. The corners of Messmer's lips twitched into a ghost of a smile as you rubbed your foot along his skin, trying to ease the tension out of his body. The soft touches were searing against his skin and the burn it left lingering almost made him recoil from the sudden oversensitivity. His large hand wrapped around your dainty ankle, fingers gently curling into your skin as he coaxed it away from his stomach. 

“Thine chatter is rather distracting” Messmer said, his voice barely above a breathy whisper. 

You smiled up at him as you felt the cold caress of scales drag over your sensitive skin, tickling you as you felt the familiar coil of his snakes pressing intimately into your skin. 

“Is it helping?” you inquired. 

A soft chuckle breezed past his lips as he tilted his head in your direction, flaming locks of red curls fanning over his flushed cheeks. Your smaller frame was engulfed in his shadow as he leaned forward, the mattress creaking softly as you watched his movements with a keen eye. He was always cautious around you, his movements always pronounced and defined, always terrified that you would startle like a frightened rabbit. You spread your sticky thighs apart, giving him as much room as you could possibly handle and gently pushing away the heads of his serpents when they tried to investigate with the curious flicker of their forked tongue. A warm tingle wracked the notches of his spine when a pleasant scent tickled his nose, curling deep into the pit of his lungs as he pressed closer to you. He released your foot from his grasp as his hands came to rest on either side of your body, pressing into the cool sheets as you silently took over the next few steps. 

Your hands came to rest on Messmer’s chest, feeling the tension still wound taut in his muscles as the rhythmic pulse of his heart beat thundered beneath your fingertips. A warm noise stirred in the back of your throat as your fingers danced along his torso, dipping into the various scars and imperfections of his body. You clicked your tongue behind your teeth as you softly tutted.

“My lord Messmer, you are so tense. Have you ever experienced a day of relaxation in your life?”

A thoughtful noise rumbled in Messmer's chest as he continued to humour your antics, enjoying the way you fussed over him as you tried to ease the tense knots in his muscles. It was a shockingly pleasant experience whenever he decided to give in to your every whim or fancy. He had quite the soft spot for you and he was wrapped so tightly around your finger it could be seen as pathetic how easily you won the heart of a demigod such as himself. He was stirred from his thoughts as you rubbed your hands across his abdomen, your fingernails gently scratching over pale scars as you peered up at him beneath long lashes. 

“It's alright, Messmer” you murmured. “You're not going to hurt me.”

Your words set his heart aflutter and you could tell just by the way the snakes coiled around your plump waist affectionately squeezed you. You idly smoothed your hands over their scaly bodies as Messmer leaned in close, lips pressed into the shell of your ear as red curls spilled over your skin like the fine touch of silk. His breath was warm as it puffed against your skin, causing the heat trickling in the pit of your stomach to twist tighter as a pleasant shiver raced along your back. 

“Thou wilt stop me if I overwhelm…”

You hummed as you nodded along to his words, head turned in his direction as you trailed butterfly kisses along his sharp jaw.

“I shall” you mumbled in agreement. 

His shoulders dropped in content but it was such a subtle movement that it slipped your gaze. Your hands were much too eager as they slipped between your bodies, Messmer giving you silent consent to continue and guide him forward. A sharp hiss whistled through his teeth as you wrapped your hand around hardened warmth, his cock eagerly jumping into the warm touch of your hand as you loosely coiled your fingers around him. His fingers knotted in the bedsheets; sweaty forehead pressed between the comforting confines of a soft pillow as you swiped your thumb over the tip of his drooling cock. You cooed softly as you slowly pumped your hand along his cock, warmth tickling the base of your spine as his breathing came out in soft pants from your mere touch alone. 

“My lord, you're so big~”

A soft groan tumbled from Messmer's bruised lips as he fought to peel his tongue off the roof of his mouth. His blood was already boiling in his veins from your soft, prodding caresses as he swallowed the budding saliva on his tongue, throat bobbing as his face burned like an inferno. 

“Cease thine teasing” he gently warned. 

His words may have been intimidating if he didn't sound so breathless. You bit your tongue and ignored the itch burning at the back of your scalp. You knew when to not push your lover too far and provoke his ire. Instead, you focused on curling your wrist, fingers squeezing around the fat head of his cock as beads of pre-cum dribbled and webbed between your fingers. A shaky breath fanned over your skin as you stared at the side of Messmer’s face, witnessing the flames of red dust over his cheeks under the dim fire light of burning candles. Your tongue wet your dry lips as you swallowed thickly. 

“Does it feel good?” you asked. 

“Y-yes” Messmer stammered in response. 

Hearing how breathless he was made slick pool between your legs, pearls of arousal dripping down the soft insides of your thighs as you squirmed restlessly. You wedged your free hand between your plump thighs, slipping two fingers inside your dripping cunt to alleviate the dull throb building up in your core. Your soft, sweet moans filled the stuffy air of your shared bed chambers, echoing around the room as they drowned out the sinful, wet noises that were coming from between your trembling thighs. The coil in your belly twisted tighter as you rocked your hips down onto your fingers, pussy hungrily swallowing them as impatience gnawed at your skin like a swarm of insects. And by the way Messmer was sinking his sharp claws into the comforter and stuffing the plush material of a pillow between his sharp teeth, the feeling was mutual. With a breathy sigh you slipped your fingers out of your sopping core, pussy clenching around nothing and mourning the loss of warmth. You rubbed your slicked fingers along Messmer's swollen arousal, coating his skin with more, sticky wetness. His body shuddered in response, voice muffled into the soft cotton of the pillow as he struggled to reign in the twitches and convulsions in his muscles. You stroked your fingers through his wild, red mane of hair, wisps curling around your fingers as you tucked them behind the curve of his ear. 

“My lord, I will require some of your assistance.”

He hesitated but allowed you to tug his hand free from the tangles of the sheets, guiding his wrist as you encouraged him to lay his hand on the curve of your hip. His fingers pressed into your skin, nails digging into the plump flesh as he held you. He had never felt something as soft as you before. It was fascinating, how his fingers could press and squish into your skin with such little effort and no resistance. He didn't ponder the thought long, as most coherent thoughts suddenly evaporated the second he felt the tip of his cock brush against the wet seam of your cunt. His fingers tensed in your skin, nails threatening to carve their mark as a raspy moan crawled its way out of his parched throat. Long lashes fluttered over his cheeks as his cock continued to prod at you, catching on your fluttering hole as your arousal dripped from your core like a flowing river. 

“Ready?” you asked, though you weren't quite sure who the question was directed at anymore.

A murmur of approval and it was all you needed to hear. You took a deep breath, yet the attempt was futile in preparing you as your pulse thrummed in your ears and your heart was ready to leap up into your throat. You choked on a hiccup of pleasure as you guided Messmer forward, his cock piercing your centre as your creamy folds parted around his dizzying girth. It took every ounce of his sapping strength in him not to rip apart at the seams at the first contact of your warm pussy wrapping snug around him. Even when he was coaxed just a little bit deeper inside he thought a vessel in his head was about to pop. You threw your head back with a loud whine, the sound almost akin to a wail of pain as the stretch burned with a lingering, familiar heat. The various pieces of fine silver and gold adorned to your body rattled as your entire being trembled in a mixture of bliss and overstimulation. Messmer paused as you took a shuddering breath, soused lashes fluttering wildly over your cheeks as your chest heaved with exertion.

“Fuck” you groaned; all sense of decorum snatched away as your head was sent spinning in a drunken tizzy. “Fuck.”

Messmer's ears itched as another whimper crawled out of the back of your throat, his hot breath fanning over your perspiring skin as a look of concern flashed over his features. He opened his mouth to speak, but you were quick to cut him off with a shake of your head. 

“It's fine, I'm fine” you reassured. “Just don't move.”

You threw your arm over your head, tucking your face into the crook of your elbows to hide the way your nose scrunched up in discomfort. Stars above, you were the one with more experience yet you were starting to feel like a bashful virgin all over again. Your head was spinning as a constellation of tears clung to the edges of your lashes, breathing hard as you tried to soothe the erratic beat of your heart. You blinked away the tears pricking your eyes as your arm was gently removed from your face, your dazed stare peering up at your lover as your head continued to spin. He cradled your hand in his much larger one, thick fingers curled around your wrist as you felt his snakes squeeze tight around you once more. 

“Hush, little culver” Messmer soothed, pressing his lips to the back of your hand and dragging the kiss swollen skin over each, individual knuckle. “Speak to me.”

A soft noise rolled around your mouth as you swallowed around the lump in your throat, a short, puff of air blowing a few strands of hair out of your glassy eyes.

“My darling Messmer, I'm fine” you croaked. “Just…haven't been stretched like this before.”

His concern made the throbbing dull and the longer you lay still the more you think you get used to it. You weren't completely sure how long you lay there. It could have been a few minutes. Perhaps it encroached on the hour? You weren't quite sure when the burning ache ebbed and twisted into something more pleasant but you welcomed the feeling as you settled once more. A deep sigh breezed through your lips as your heart settled once more and your lungs weren't pinching inside your chest. Your fingers twisted around one of Messmer's digits as you tugged on his hand once more, adamant to guide him and spark back the friction in your core. The curious tilt of Messmer's head caught your attention and your voice filled the void of silence once more as you flashed him a reassuring smile. 

“I'm fine my lord” you said. “You're just…a lot to get used to. Gods I feel like I'm the one having mine cherry popped all over again.”

Your mannerisms were always a unique enigma for Messmer and he couldn't help the curiosity that itched at the base of his skull as he repeated the word.

“Cherry?”

A soft giggle bubbled up your throat at the soft pout in his lips as he pondered on the meaning, only to be distracted when you guided his hand to the pillowy softness of your chest. You lay your hand on top of his as you encouraged him to feel your chest, your heart beat pulsing against the palm of his hand as he idly cupped your breast. His face flushed and you could feel his cock pulsing between your thighs as he gave your chest a curious squeeze. 

“I shall divulge the matter later, when mine head isn't spinning.”

You let your head fall back onto the pillow, eyes drooping and threatening to slip close as the smouldering embers of bliss in the pit of your stomach were stoked back into a fierce flame. Your voice stung in your throat as you moaned softly, hips canting forward as Messmer's cock was nudged a little deeper into your swollen pussy. A short huff fell from his mouth at the warm feeling of your plush walls squeezing around him, the hand groping your tit pawing at your skin a little firmer as the puffy tip of your nipple was pinched between his fingers. 

“Come closer” you beckoned. 

“If that is thy wish.”

You hummed as he buried his face in your hair, lips pressed into the soft tresses as you slowly buck your hips. The roll of Messmer's hips was hesitant and unsteady, inexperience seeping into the rhythm as he tried to mimic the way you tilted forward and leaned into the touch. He was much too reluctant to press deeper, no matter how tempting it was as your pussy squeezed around him with each shallow thrust. A breathy moan tumbled from your part lips as the pressure in your stomach spiked, blood boiling with bliss as you reached a shaky hand between your sticky thighs to rub at the swollen nub sitting at the top of your pussy. Messmer grunted as he felt you tighten around him, your plush walls almost strangling him as drool gathered at the corners of his mouth. You could feel the droplets wet your skin as you rubbed at the slick pearl of your clit, the tightly packed bundle of nerves kicking weakly as you rubbed it in firm circles. Your debauched sounds only grew louder, echoing off the walls as the bedframe shook and you trembled along with it. Stars swirled in your vision as you felt Messmer's cock start to throb inside of you, his rough pants morphing into the feral snarls of a beast as the tension readied to snap. You mustered what little remaining strength you had left as you carded your fingers through his hair before gripping to the locks tightly. 

“Close, love?” you asked between sweet moans. 

You received a loud grunt of affirmation as he squeezed your chest, nails raking along your skin and leaving behind stinging welts that added fuel to the maelstrom brewing inside of you. Your spit-soaked lips parted around a keen of his name as you tugged on his hair. 

“Proud of mine good boy for lasting this long” you crooned. “So why don't you let go?”

Your words were the trigger to his undoing. As soon as your voice graced his ears like a chime from a shimmering bell, the coil inside of him unfurled. The pace of his hips grinds to a halt as he grew still, trembling voice scratching his throat as he groaned your name so close to the shell of your ear it sent pleasant chills rattling down your spine. He almost pulled away from the sweet temptation of your body, but in the heat of the moment he failed and ropes of his viscous seed spilled inside of you. You whined with sordid content, the heat warming your abdomen occupying your hazy mind as your nerves zapped through your system like crackling lightning. Spit webbed on your plump lips as they parted around hot pants, fingers working the aching nub of your clit until your vision blurred from the bliss. The coil inside of you shattered into a million pieces, veins flooded with white hot relief as your pussy clenched unbearably tight around your lover.

The warmth stuffing your centre slowly dripped out, spilling down the sides of Messmer’s cock and staining the bedsheets beneath your entangled bodies. His hard pants mixed with your own laboured breathing and you struggled to prevent your eyes from rolling into the back of the head from how mind numbingly good you felt. Your wavering pulse was beating so loudly in your ears that you almost didn’t hear Messmer when he spoke, large hands wrapped around your waist as he touched you like you were made out of porcelain.

“Mine apologies” he whispered to you softly.

You didn’t ask what he was apologising for. You knew exactly what he was referring to and the sight of your lord showing a hint of bashfulness made the corners of your lips twitch up into a smile. You snorted softly as you rubbed your hands in soothing motions along his arms, hand tangling in his hair once more as you gently teased out the knots. You tipped your head and gazed at him through lidded eyes, exhaustion setting into your bones despite your best efforts to stay awake. You shifted beneath him, falling into a more comfortable position as the weeping head of his softening cock continued to leave sticky threads in the creamy folds of your messy cunt. Your fingers curled around the baby hairs lining the nape of his neck, nails scratching at his skin as the snakes coiled around you tucked their heads into the crook of your neck.

“There’s no need for apologies, Lord Messmer” you reassured. “It pleases me.”

You lay still beneath him as his hands slowly wandered over your form, his touch a little more confident as he explored the dips and curves carved into your features. The curious touch of his hands dulled your mind with the repetitive motions and it was threatening to lull you in the sweet embrace of slumber the longer you remained idle. You couldn’t find the strength in you to move any longer, much too content to let Messmer poke and prod at your skin with mild fascination tingling on the tips of his fingers.

“Did I please you, my Lord?” you inquired, voice slurring as your eyes slipped close for a brief moment.

You heard Messmer’s soft hum of approval and you couldn’t recall much after that, only the way you were coddled in Messmer’s embrace and warmed during the cold night.

[mikimeiko]

Day 12 - Ostrava (Czechia)

It's definitely summer today in Ostrava. It's the first day in this entire trip where I felt the need to wear a tank top, and I honestly hope it's not gonna get hotter than this XD

The city center is very nice in the sun, filled with colorful buildings. There's still not so many people around, but the city is not empty.

Ostrava is an industrial city, and the main attraction that every guide tells you to visit is Dolní Vítkovice, and it's a good thing they do because it's kind of amazing.

Have you ever looked at an abandoned factory and wished you could go wander inside the compound? Well in Dolní Vítkovice you can! It's a massive steel working+coal mine that was in operation until the 90s, and now you can visit, learn about the history and the technical aspects, or just vibe with the aesthetic XD

There are museums, a gallery and cafes inside and it's basically a cool neighborhood you can hang out in. 10/10 would visit again (also maybe don't come on Monday because many things are closed on Monday XD).

After seeing it many times on the menu, it's finally the right temperature to try an espresso tonic (a cold espresso with tonic water). And, no. I did not think it was the right combo for me and it wasn't. Damn my curiosity XD

Next stop: Landek park. There's a mining museum here, but it's very hot and the park looks so appealing with its trees and shade, and I don't really need to visit another mining museum (I visited one in Wales years ago with a very good tour guide), so instead I head into the wooden path.

I get a pomelo and grapefruit birell (which is a Czech non alcoholic beer - I wish I knew it was non alcoholic before because it's as inexpensive as beer and I would have gotten it many other times instead of spending all my money on water or sodas XD) and just enjoy the green and the breeze for a while.

The walk through the park is very nice, though sadly the path is very close to a highway and most of what you hear is traffic.

I was very lucky and not only is today the first day of Ostrava's folklore festival but the first event is basically next to the place I'm staying <3

It's mostly dance focused (I thought it was going to be musicians) and though most performers are Czech or from neighbouring countries there are also a couple of acts from farther away (China, Costa Rica). I love that it started in the afternoon!

[quaranmine]

Utah Resident here- I’ve lived p much my whole life in Utah, and nearly every summer here has had one bad fire or another. I have vivid memories of watching smoke billow over the tops of the mountains I lived next to, or driving past massive columns of the stuff while on the way to a trip in southern Utah (we lived in the north, but have a cabin in the south and visited frequently). The Brian Head fire was just over the mountain from our little cabin, and I remember having to leave a trip there a few days early for fear of our whole campground being overtaken by the fire. There were a lot of evacs that year, and a lot of the trees on the north side of the Brian Head Ski Resort are still charred black from where the fire hit the worst.

There was another time a few years later, back in Utah valley this time, where we had to evacuate for a night bc the mountain that was just behind our house caught fire. It was much smaller, and the evac wasn’t official, but it still scared me. The fire had gotten under control before it really took hold thankfully, but it really scared me at the time.

There were another two massive fires that happened at the south end of Utah Valley, near Nephi and on the west side of the lake. They happened on separate years but I have vivid memories of both- even a picture floating around somewhere of my little brother and I watching the west lake one burn from a healthy distance.

Not to mention all the days I’ve seen where the sky was completely clouded over with smoke from massive fires in California. It was terrifying to wake up to the smell of smoke and a gray fog that persisted for days, covering up the sun enough you could look directly at it without hurting your eyes.

I’ve seen…. So much fire, and I’m not even that old (early 20’s). I’m thankful most of these fires were put out within a couple of days/weeks, but I think these kinds of fires always gonna be part of living here tbh.

OUGH i'm so sorry you had these experience but also so many of these experiences. you need a break! that sounds so scary!

anyway i looked up the Brian Head Fire and HELLO??? I DID NOT KNOW THIS WAS A THING????

Unbeknownst to Lyman, the fire he started wasn’t just burning the pile of branches above the surface of the ground, it was also spreading underground, creeping through what’s known as duff, a thin layer of composting organic material just above the mineral soil. Lyman said he noticed the “weird looking” burn, which he described as “kind of a drippy burn, like oil or kerosene.”

(source) i've unlocked a new fear lol. no but seriously, despite doing sort of research on the subject for a few months now, I didn't know until I looked up the fire in your ask that fires could burn underground. Even when I googled it, I got a lot of articles about coal seams burning, which I did know about. But I found this article out of Canada that explains the phenomenon well. Basically: "When this happens, it's because there are just enough tiny spaces in the soil and between pieces of wood material to hold oxygen and keep the combustion going. These fires can smoulder metres below the surface."

Fascinating. Some fires can survive the winter like this and pop back up the next season and keep burning.

Anyway, I'm sorry you've had to experience so many fires. I think you are right, though, that fires are always going to be part of living there. Utah is geologically, geographically, and ecologically part of the region that experiences wildfire as a regular part of its natural life. There's a lot of dry montane forests, basin brushland/plains, etc. Now, humans certainly exacerbate this in more ways than one. Humans can cause out of control wildfires through negligence or arson, and humans can more indirectly impact wildfire prevalence through climate change. As the seasons get hotter and dryer, the more severe and common fires might be. But yeah, fires in general cannot (and should not) be eliminated completely. So fire management is a complex task in order to balance natural ecology with (unnatural/extensive) human impact.

in other news, big fan of your state's geography and nature by the way. utah is devastatingly beautiful and i haven't seen enough of it! i also headcanon utah to be basically the same environment as the badlands biome in minecraft, and therefore base my headcanons about Tumble Town in ESMP2 off of it.

[pokemonlunarregion]

Lunar forms of the second evolution stage of the starters in the region. However unlike other regions in this one the starters are offered by the main characters mom, who may or may not be more involved in someway in everything than one may think, then she gifts a pokedex claiming to have gotten it from a friend awhile ago but that the main character will probably have more use in it than she will.

The rival is the main character’s sister who gets the other starter with the mom keeping the last remaining starter.

The starters have hardly ever been seen as very few of it or even its evolutions are owned in this region, none that the main character will battle or find out has one.

Top is normal and bottom is shiny.

Basse starters:

First evolution starters:

How to evolve: All will evolve by being leveled up to level 36.

Region: A region of eternal night as scientists created plants that could grow in moonlight, though there is some places that try to create artificial lights for the plants that couldn’t grow in the moonlight. The moon still changing to different fullness percents with times there is no moon visible.

Region name: Lunar region.

Type: Meganium fire. Delphox water. Empoleon grass.

Ability: Meganium Flash Fire. Delphox Water Veil. Empoleon Leaf Guard.

Description: Meganium is a fire type pokemon that constantly has its fire blazing and if the blaze is low it usually an indication that something is wrong, such as being really sick. This pokemon like its previous evolution is able to walk across hot coals and in fact will even enjoy laying on hot coals for a bed if available. It is able to shoot powerful flames from it's mouth thus it learns Flamethrower when it evolves. It likes hot food the hotter the better and there has also been sightings of this pokemon lapping up lava from volcanos like a casual drink. It has not been sighted drinking any sort of water thus any trainers who own one only feed it very dry food. Some even live as far away from water as they can if they own this pokemon. It is loyal to its trainer if that trainer has become worthy in its eyes. It will pluck out fluff from around its neck to offer to its trainer if the trainer is cold, which does help warm someone quite nicely, however a Meganium only grows so much fluff and it can actually run out of it leaving it often cold and even become easier for it to become sick; Thus no one tries to harvest all of its fluff to keep the pokemon in good health. It makes sure to not burn one it likes with its flames, though if it truly dislikes you it will approach you and head butt you for affection purposefully burning you. If you see one coming towards you lowering its head to gently headbutt you then run because it is trying to burn you. It sometimes will knock things off of tables and other surfaces for attention if it really loves someone but isn't being given enough attention.

Delphox is a water type pokemon that is built for freezing water temperatures and can live in the deepest of waters. It has all the fluff in order to keep itself warm during ice cold swims without any issues. It will curl its tail around itself if cold however it is quite hard to make this pokemon cold. It’s ears are smaller than its previous evolution as they are still sensitive enough to hear across an entire lake. It has a transparent second eyelid that it can shift to cover its eyes to allow it to see underwater without issue. It swims using its front paws to paddle and it's back end moves up and down, its tail kept straight, to swim through the water at 400KM/H, the fastest on record is 480KM/H. It is known that for it and its other evolution stages anyone who owns one is very picky about anyone they breed one for to not make this pokemon just one to push to try to beat any sort of record. It stays close to its trainer if it feels a connection with that person, and will even ignore commands of a trainer it doesn't like, and it will even wrap its tail around it's preferred trainer to keep them warm liking to sleep next to them to do so at night. Its coral is pieces from it's previous evolution and is hardened now able to help it channel some water type moves, thus is not able to be eaten as it'd be like eating rocks. It can float for miles if it lets itself fluff out however it prefers to live at the bottom of a body of water, so some use this pokemon to grab things from freezing cold water depths. It can easily find plenty and even makes dens to sleep on the floor under the water. It will stand to face foes even if the danger will be too much for them to handle, refusing to back down if a threat is detected causing some to be beaten badly when protecting their trainer from a threat. Its stubbornness in refusing to back down has made some trainers who own it prefer a quieter life to not risk their beloved pokemon, those that do breed this pokemon like to live by lakes so the pokemon can make dens at the bottom of the lake.

Empoleon is a grass type pokemon who is known to make its own beds out of woven large leaves, the bigger the leaf the better, turning them basically into bird nests. It will try to bring a trainer it likes to sleep with it in its nest. Thus some trainers pretend to sleep in the nest so the pokemon will be able to rest, then leave when the pokemon is asleep. Though its nests tend to be said to be rather comfy so this isn't much of a problem. It will make a new nest if the one it made starts to wilt on this pokemon. It will fiercly defend other pokemon that it's beloved trainer owns. With one trainer who was breeding this pokemon had a dangerous wild pokemon attack the other pokemon which was a gift, a gift before the grandmother passed, so the breeder's Empoleon rushed in to defend the other pokemon and though it won the battle its injuries were too bad to heal so it died in the pokemon center; that breeder raised one of its offspring to continue the genes of the one that saved another beloved pokemon. It will wrap up a pokemon in tall grass if it is owned by its beloved trainer and is cold, however it will find special leaves from trees growing healing berries if the other pokemon is injured or even scrapes itself into an injury. It also does this for its trainer, though most know it as a defender of its trainers other pokemon more than for wrapping the other pokemon up. It does all of this as since it cares for its trainer so then anything else that the trainer owns or cares about is seen as important to this pokemon. It enjoys laying in simulated sunshine especially by a window that it can look outside of at any point without having to get up. It will lay flat on the ground on its back limps splayed out and tail drooped if it is hot, yet doesn't have a reason to leave. Though it will also just get up to move to a cooler spot if needed. It will play in sprinklers or allow itself to be sprayed with a hose if that is available. It needs plenty of water to help keep its leaves a bright green as the color will dull if the pokemon is dehydrated.

Lore: Meganium was discovered not too long after the stage it was in before it became its final form. It is still highly protected and very few owners of its base form will evolve it to any of the other two stages as it is more educational in its base form. It is treated as more of a threat in fights than its other forms, especially feared by those with grass pokemon or bug catchers for its flames that strike fear into any weak to fire. It has never been underestimated as it is known that this pokemon can pack a punch in its flamethrower. This pokemon is rarely seen even in battle competitions due to that people tend to focus more on other pokemon than this one, despite that its flamethrower packs a punch, with some believing that this pokemon has to have a specific strategy to be used properly. It is thought in the earlier days that this pokemon was pure lava inside and that it hung around volcanos to judge nearby towns for the wrongs its base form went through, that if they are deemed bad by this pokemon then the volcano will erupt. An entire town died when a small volcano that a Meganium lived at the base of erupted, and the citizens believed they could appease the Meganium to stop the eruption to fix their mistakes with the base form hunting... Only the Meganium survived. That town was offlimits until the Meganium died of old age, then finally others could enter the ruins of the town and where there is rumors of a special item for a chosen one lies in wait for the chosen one to arrive to claim. This pokemon was so feared that if one got it through evolution that person was in the past exiled as it was believed that trainer brought the wrath for the hunting of its base form. This stopped being a thing as more truthful knowledge on this pokemon became more widespread.

Delphox was almost never discovered until it evolved after protecting its trainer in a swim in a lake when an angry pokemon attacked. Even so the first one to evolve was hidden away allowed to stay at the bottom of the lake to hide it. It was only brought to light when the witch fears began to slow to a stop and be seen as silly fears. The way it uses its coral as a wand made some very curious about it. One scientist stole an egg from a breeder and raised it up to its final form to study this final form. All other studies had been turned away as it seemed like some lingering traces of the fear of witches, and angering witches, still existed in some. It is hardly ever really seen and those that own one tend to just leave bowls of food for it if they live by a body of water the pokemon made its den in. It will come out for its trainer if it likes that trainer though will remain hidden if it doesn't like a guest but knows that this guest is not a threat. It specializes in water moves and learns stronger water moves quickly after evolving. It's rarity makes it hard for trainers in the fighting scene to get ahold of one to use. Only few own one and those that own one of its previous evolutions tend to not evolve it into its final evolution. Though the previous witch fear does help in breeders protecting oaffspring from this pokemons evolutionary line, by making breeders picky about who gets one.

Empoleon was discovered when a scientists Prinplup evolved after defeating the pokemon of an assassin that tried to kill its owner for the presentation of the discovery; One meant to be kept secret though became well known now as the discovery of how to simulate sunlight as it was seen as if they were playing God doing that. It can be brash and quite aggressive. Simulated sunlight seemed to help mellow it out a bit. It likes forest settlings where it can hide and wait to gain an upper hand on a potential threat. It can stand still for hours hidden in the forest or wherever it decides to stand guard to ensure the area remains safe. People in the past thought of it as a moving plant that attacked and it made quite a few people grow a fear of forests. Believing that any plant there could be a hidden Empoleon ready to strike if one is seen as a threat. This fear faded and only older people are known to have this fear for that reason, the younger generations may only get the fear of forests if they are scared of the atmosphere of the forest instead of because of this pokemon. Though legends about plants that will snatch up children who wander off alone were created back then due to the fear many had. It still prefers to sleep in a nest though some trainers have woken up to their pokemon standing guard while they slept. It's nests are not taken from it as even its own trainers tend to fear what it might do if it found out what happened to its nest.

Design inspiration: Meganium: Ponyta and Charmander design, fire type pokemon that have fluff on them, and general fire type pokemon colors.

Delphox: Corsola, an idea of witches being able to use sticks to cast spells, and water type pokemon looks slash colors.

Empoleon: Tall blades of grass, big leaves, penguin looks, and fashion that have the collar of shirts up instead of folded down.

For all: Good shiny versions of pokemon like shiny pokemon with blue flames or even fan versions of Leafeon shiny version based on autumn colors.

Lunar region is a region that I have thought about making. I will be making more Pokémon and variants for this region.

[tharros-auris-black-asimi]

Lay All Your Love on Me (Chapter 4)

Pairing: Soft!Dark!Lee Bodecker x Female Reader

Summary: After moving to Knockemstiff, Ohio with your troubled parents, you find solace in the local Seven-Eleven. There, you bump into the Alpha sheriff, Lee Bodecker.

And then you keep bumping into him. There’s just something about that chubby Alpha that keeps drawing you in. Now there’s something going on with the new preacher of the church that you attend. Everything’s a mess.

But you’re an unbonded Omega. Life can turn to shit anyway.

Chapter Warnings: ABO dynamics, dysfunctional families, mentions of cheating, age gap (Reader is nineteen while Lee is in his late twenties/early thirties), religious themes, scenting, explicit language. There is a physical fight in this chapter, as well as some mild slut-shaming words being used.

As the months flew by and the springtime slowly turned warmer, hotter, your mother had been pondering. Looking. Sitting in the car in front of the police’s office, as she had been for the past few hours now. Since her husband had been off doing his gambling again. It was nighttime.

The sheriff’s light was still on. She could see it still lit from where she was in the car.

Sometimes, your mother wondered, how she had allowed it to come to this.

She always thought about leaving. About skipping town with you and never coming back.

It would’ve been so easy. She should've done it sooner.

But she didn’t.

She couldn’t.

Divorce would’ve been okay for her. Betas had so much leeway with the laws, that no one would've batted an eyelash with a pair of Betas divorcing.

But if a Beta couple had an unbonded Omega?

Forget it.

She knew after the Civil Rights movement that Omegas were slowly getting more and more rights now. Especially in the workplace. Just a bit. Not enough to change everyone’s view of Omegas working in the workplace, however. But it was a start.

The car door opened. She let out a sigh. Her chest heavy. She closed the door behind her as she made sure to lock it, slipping her car keys into her purse. Clutching her purse tightly to her chest, she made her way into the police station.

Lee had been working.

He had been working all night.

He wasn’t able to have a date with you tonight. You had gotten the cold and had stayed home. Your mother had been taking care of you for the past couple of days. Lee had felt so empty without seeing you sitting in the chair across from his desk, smiling at him. Sipping at your slushie as you watched him work. He never felt so lonely. It was almost like his mood had soured.

A knock on the door made him pause his work. The chair squeaked as he got up to walk out of his office, to the front entrance.

What he saw made him pause.

Your mother stood on the other side, looking at him with the same exact look she had given him the same day he was there at church. Looking at him up and down, as if she was studying him. Like he was something to be studied. It didn’t make him uneasy. He had faced hell and back. His Alpha was not scared of this Beta. But Lee could smell your mother’s citrus scent. She had notes that smelled like you. Your familiar smell of chocolate chip cookies. It was a slightly sweeter undertone that made him feel safe. Made him feel at home. Warmed him from head to toe. It reminded him of home.

“Evenin’ ma’am.” Lee greeted your mother. Your mother gave him a nod.

“Sheriff Bodecker. Are ya the only one on duty?” She asked. Nodding came from Lee as he escorted her inside. He might’ve been an Alpha, had a position of power that was above you and your mother, but Lee Bodecker was still a gentleman. When the two of them had walked back to Lee’s office, he told her to make herself comfortable before he sat down behind his desk and looked at the last bits of paperwork that he had. The things he did to be where he was now.

“I need ta ask ya, Sheriff. What are your intentions with my pup?”

Lee looked up at your mother. Completely and utterly caught by surprise for the first time in his life.

“Ma’am?”

She only leaned closer. Looked at him straight into the eyes, like she was trying to pick him apart. Or rip him limb by limb. Whichever seemed palatable at the moment.

“You heard me, sir. What are your intentions with my pup?” She said again.

He blinked.

“Um…”

“Do you want her bite? Are you going to give her pups? A warm home? Are you going to take care of her and your pack?” she demanded him.

And she waited.

For a few seconds, she looked at him, her gaze seemingly burning into his soul like she was his Judge.

It was at that moment that Lee made up his mind.

Like it clicked.

The puzzle pieces going right into the place where they should be.

“Yes.”

Now it was just easy.

Flowing through him like drinking water on a cool day.

He knew exactly what he wanted.

His Alpha was in total agreement. For once, they were on the same page. Totally and completely.

No more fooling around.

He needed to get straight to the point and just do it.

“Yes, what?”

Your mother was just the slightest bit unconvinced. Because she needed to know. Right from the source. She needed to make sure that you would be okay. That you would be taken care of. That if she were to pass away suddenly, that you had a roof over your head, someone to support you, and a family that you would have with your future Alpha.

You needed to be secure.

“Yes. I want it. I want all of it. I want to be with her. I want my mark on her gland.”

And how badly he wanted it too.

He wanted to see it.

He wanted to see his mark on your gland. He wanted you to smell like him.

He wanted you to carry his pups.

Be his Omega.

His Bondmate.

His wife.

Everything and anything. All of it. The entire package.

“… I want her to have my pups too. My ring. My name. All of it.”

Your mother listened.

There might have been a part of her. A part of her that was preening because it had been exactly what she wanted to hear. Her hands put themselves on Lee’s desk. She continued to look at the dark-haired, much older Alpha and pondered.

“And you’re sure? You’re sure can take care of her, be the Bondmate, be the Alpha, be the father to her children, her pups? Be the one she needs?”

Lee leaned close. So close your mother could see the storminess in them.

“I’m not sure. I know I’m the one she needs. Are you going to doubt me anymore, ma’am? Any more questions?”

Your mother’s lips curled. Stretched into what looked to be the beginnings of a smile.

“No. No more questions, Sheriff Bodecker. Thank you. Have a good night. I’ll go and tell my daughter that you said hello.”

She stood up, beginning to head to the door.

“Wait.”

She was just about to turn the doorknob when the tone of his voice made her turn her head back.

“Tell her I love her too.”

Your mother smiled.

“I will.”

And then the door opened and closed.

A few weeks later… in Coal Creek, West Virginia…

It was sticky.

Hot.

Humid.

You felt like you could drink the air as if it were water.

Such weather you were not surprised with, nor not used to, due to living in Michigan before you had moved to Ohio.

So the sticky hot, humid air didn’t quite make you suffer as much.

Emma and your mother were out. They had gone into town to grab some supplies with Arvin.

There was going to be a new preacher that was going to fill in the position after the old one had retired. At least, that was what Lenora had told you. The two of you were back at the church graveyard. Visiting her mother, as she usually did. Or tried to. She had told you that she hadn’t grown up with her mother. That her dad was nonexistent. She had been a baby when her mother died, and when her father had basically vanished off of the face of the earth. But Lenora was convinced her dad was still out there. Somewhere.

You came for emotional support.

Because you didn’t know if you could be helpful for anything else, really.

Hand clutching, holding her Bible close to her chest, Lenora got up from her crouched position. She looked at her mother’s grave, a solemn look in her eyes.

“You know… I think he’s still out there. My daddy.”

You looked at her.

“That’s good, Lenora. Maybe… maybe one day you’ll find him. You’ll see him.” You assured her. Lenora didn’t smile though. She just gave you another solemn look and only gave you a short nod.

You hugged her. Gently rubbing your wrist against hers, softly enveloping her in your scent.

“It’s okay,” your whisper was gentle.

“It’s okay.”

“Did you get the stuff?” You asked Arvin later that day when the two of you finally had some alone time. The two of you were now outside, on the porch, while Arvin was standing up and you were sitting on the old rocking chair that Emma never truly wanted to donate, or give away. She loved that old thing. It held a special place in her heart. She had a point though, every morning you tried to get some sun, and you’d just come out there and sit on the chair. Just gazing out. Seeing the sun slowly rise.

Arvin looked at you.

“Yeah, we got the stuff. Some liver,” Arvin replied back to you. A thoughtful hum came from you.

“Liver, huh?”

He nodded.

“Yeah,” he said, “it was all we could really afford. We ain’t as rich as the other people who go ta church with us.”

That you understood. You could understand that.

“Your grandma’s a hell of a good cook though. Anything she makes, I’ll eat it.”

Arvin chuckled. You could smell the wafting smells of a bonfire. It made you feel warm and safe. Cozy.

But you could still feel her. Your Omega. She was slithering around, waiting on the sidelines.

Now. Your Omega didn’t mind Arvin.

Not at all.

But he wasn’t Lee. He did not smell like her Alpha. He did not smell like chocolate and bourbon. He smelled like a damn bonfire and it made her want to choke sometimes. It wasn’t that she hated him. She was very fond of the other Alpha. Arvin was only a year younger than you. Around your age. So it was okay.

“Even if it got burnt?” Arvin questioned you.

You let out a snort.

“Puh-lease. As if ya Auntie could burn anything. Hell, she could burn it and I would still eat it. Put enough salt n’ pepper on it, and I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.”

Arvin laughed again.

Later that week...

You were pulling at the sleeves of the dress that you were currently wearing.

Itchy.

Your skin was itchy.

And it was still hot. And humid.

You hated this.

Your Omega was looming in you. Being depressed, as usual.

She missed her Alpha. Dearly.

Because as people were crowding into the church, she loomed. Watched as people walked around you.

Preston Teagardin was standing in front of the room.

Watching.

His blue eyes looking around.

Watching all of these people as Emma put her dish down on the table, before walking back to where you, Arvin, Lenora, and your mother were.

And then he saw you.

Standing there. In your black dress, looking around like this place was the last place where you’d rather be. Your kitten heels on. Your hair was tied up, due to the hot and humid weather.

And you were looking back.

A chill creeping up your spine as you looked into those blue eyes.

Your Omega stirred.

She was up and alert now.

Narrowing her eyes at him from where she was seated in her cage.

This Alpha.

She did not trust this Alpha.

A few days later…

The worst day in your life happened in the afternoon.

Your father had come home early. Your mother was still at one of her friend’s houses from down the block. Doing as housewives did. Catching up. Gossiping. Discussing their book club. Stuff like that.

When he stepped through the front door, nothing had been out of the ordinary. There were no noises coming from the house and he suspected that maybe, just maybe, you weren’t home.

And you weren’t. You had secretly gone out to go and get some air, go to the local library to catch up on the latest book that you were reading, and then later after you came home and got some time by yourself, you were going to go to the Seven-Eleven and meet up with Lee as you usually did. Your usual schedule.

So when he walked into the hallway and peered into your room, because your bedroom door was open, he saw something strange.

A leather jacket had been nestled into your nest. Your room smelled like you. Chocolate chip cookies. Sweet. Making your father remember the happier moments in your childhood.

But there was something lurking on the surface. If your father had been drunk, he might’ve not noticed it.

However, he was not drunk now. Now, he was fully and completely sober. Having been off of the alcohol for a few days. Three, at the least. It was a well-known and memorized routine that you knew by heart. Your father would drink, wait three days, and then drink again. Not like Lee, who was kept off of the damn beverage.

The slight smell of bourbon and chocolate was filling the air. Almost like it was possessing the space. Like it was sinking its way in.

His footsteps carried him into your room as he opened your bedroom door with a small creaking noise.

He came closer to your nest. In your space.

When you and your family had fully moved in, you had told your parents up and down, side to side, that they were not welcome in your room unless you allowed them in. Your room was your space. It was the only room in the house that you could have all to yourself. Needless to say, you were a bit territorial with your room. And who could blame you?

The familiar thought went through your father’s mind as he walked into your room, towards your bed. As he got closer, he realized what he was looking at.

A leather jacket had been nestled into your nest. When your father took a whiff, it was nearly rubbed out completely of its scent.

Chocolate and bourbon came up to his nose.

There was only one person he knew that smelled like that. Had that particular scent.

Sheriff Lee Bodecker.

You were messing around with the sheriff.

His eyes were narrowing. His scent, his woodsy scent became more pronounced, changing, shifting to someone more woodsy. He could almost imagine himself in the woods.

Your father would wait. He was patient.

When you got home from the library, it was too late.

As soon as you had come through the door, made sure you had even locked it behind you, a hand came, gripping your hair so tight you were sure it was going to be pulled from your scalp. You let out a shout. It had happened so quickly that your brain hadn’t even registered it.

Pulled. You were getting pulled somewhere into the house. Deeper into your family home. You were beginning to shout now. Shout and scream in protest. If it weren’t for the overwhelming, overbearing smell of a tantalizing woody forest, you would’ve never figured it was your father dragging you by your hair. Your feet kicked from underneath you. Not good enough to trip your father by his own two feet. He had been a doctor after all. He had been trained in situations like these. He worked in the damn ER, for fuck’s sake.

From the familiar clicking of your kitten heels on the floor, you managed to look down.

The kitchen. You were being yanked into the kitchen. Then you were shoved headfirst towards the wooden cabinets. Being shoved so hard that you nearly broke your nose due to the hard impact. There was a loud thud noise when your face smacked up against it. You must’ve heard a cracking noise.

Your nose was broken. It had begun to bleed. You were gasping, frantically gripping the countertops of the sink to keep you steady. A sharp kick to your back made you cry out in pain. Not that you weren’t in pain already. You could feel your Omega within you, screeching. Having begun the starting points of throwing a fit. Screaming at the audacity of your Beta father for treating you this way.

Your head had begun to ring. A white noise buzzing.

You had been so focused on getting your wits back, and your Omega was far too busy throwing her fit that the two of you had blocked out your father’s yelling.

“… and then I see this! Have you decided on being a fucking harlot now?”

You turned your head.

Your eyes had gone wide.

In your father’s grip, in your father’s hand, was Lee’s leather jacket. The one he wore so often. The one he had given to you because you had gotten cold one day. It had been a slightly chilly night and he had given it to you. You had protested the entire way home, saying that you would be fine. Even though you were visibly shivering. But Lee had shrugged it off of him, his jacket pouring pure Alpha pheromones, and had put it on you.

You had been so certain. So sure that you had put it away from sight.

But then you had remembered that you had put it in your nest.

Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid. You were so fucking stupid. How could you have done that? Put Lee’s jacket in your nest like a fool? Those types of behaviors, those types of things were for bonded pairs! Like your parents. Not like people such as Lee and you. You didn’t have his mark. He didn’t have yours. What the hell were you thinking, entertaining this charade?

As your father continued to shout at you, his words were slowly sinking in.

He was right.

Why had you been entertaining this goddamn charade? Why?

How could you let this go on?

You couldn’t do it.

You couldn’t keep doing this.

“… I raised you in this house-”

No, you didn’t, your Omega thought snidely. You’ve been sleeping with other women. What’s your excuse?

Was your father hearing himself?

“… after all the damn hard work I did, raising you-”

Please, your Omega was butting in again. If anything, I saw my mother more than you. All you did was work. I barely saw your ass.

Stupid Beta.

When your father had opened his mouth to speak again, your Omega lashed out.

Your foot came from your front. Shooting out and kicking him as hard as she could. Your Omega had been aiming for his groin, but apparently, she had reached just a bit higher. Good on her. She saw your father shout something as she kicked him again, sending him back a bit.

Yanking the cabinet door open. Your hand grabbed the first thing it could find a grip on.

A handle.

This felt familiar.

Oh.

Oh.

It was a skillet. When you managed to pull it out and whack it in your father’s face, you then realized, you had grabbed a cast-iron skillet. The one that your mother had used yesterday to make dinner. It was a little rusty. But it would do. Scrambling to get to your feet, your Omega snarled.

She was done.

Finished.

Her temper had sky rocked out of the roof.

She was done with a capital D.O.N.E. and this Beta, this lousy excuse of a Beta who had given you his sperm was going to pay for the words that he had spoken against your Alpha.

Another whacking noise had sent him back. The further he crawled back, yelling at you, the more she stepped forward.

How dare he.

When she raised the skillet down and rained blow after blow down on his body, she might’ve heard something crack. Or snap. She was sure she had gotten his shoulder. Maybe cracked one of his ribs. She knew his face was bleeding. Blood coming down from his nose.

How dare he talk bad about her Alpha?

How dare he?

“How fucking dare you!”

Pissed.

Oh, she was so fucking pissed off.

And it was around that time that she began to hear sirens. Shouts were filling the house and your Omega screeched, screamed, and shouted as someone was trying to pull her off.

“Get off of me!” You were howling. Clawing at someone’s shirt.

This was not your Alpha. A young Alpha deputy was pulling you away as you howled in dismay. Your Omega being pushed back again, kicking and screaming.

Alpha.

She needed her Alpha.

Taglist: @greeneyedblondie44, @bxnnywriting

[abarbaricyalp]

('til i carry you home) Your Hand in My Hand

Prompt Fill #1 for the ask sitting in my box: Handholding 10/ happily doing everything with just one hand, if it means they don’t have to let go

Lordy help me, I went back to the fr@ au :/

AO3 link in the reblog!

Sam was a little bit sun drunk and a lot a bit beer drunk and he wasn’t sure which to blame on the way he was laying across Bucky’s bare, warm back while Bucky tried to grill burgers in the courtyard of the frat house. Sam said ‘tried’ because, well, he had taken Bucky’s hand hostage half an hour ago and hadn’t let go since. At first, Bucky had put up an admirable fight against the rest of the frat bros about who had to do the cooking at what point. How was he supposed to grill and hold Sam’s hand and hold his beer? He was occupied and didn’t want to put either thing down. Someone else could put the burgers on the pit and half watch them.

But then Sam had forgotten about Bucky’s out and finished off the beer in his hand and then grabbed them another one, ice cold from the box and soothing on his rapidly warming, sun-toasted skin. And, well, that was the end of Bucky’s beer hand.

“So I was tellin’ Frankie,” Bucky was saying to someone Sam didn’t recognize. After a month and a half together, Sam had gotten to know most of the guys who lived in the house but parties like this brought dozens and dozens of other people to the house and Sam just could not be forced to care about anyone’s friends except the people Bucky actually liked. “I was tellin’ Frankie… I was tellin’ him… Shit, Sam, what was I tellin’ Frank?” Bucky asked, turning to look over his shoulder at Sam.

“I didn’t know you’d seen Frank recently,” Sam said with a yawn, curling his fingers in Bucky’s hand for a second to let a little bit of air attempt to dry the sweat between them.

“He called the other night. Maybe you weren’t here. Anyway, it was something about--”

Sam closed his eyes against the excessive October warmth again, cheek rested on Bucky’s shoulder, feeling the low grumble of his voice more than listening to it. He could even almost ignore the jostling of people at his back like this, narrow his existence down to the two feet depth he and Bucky took up together in the patio courtyard.

Sam had almost drifted off when Bucky suddenly let go of his hand for only a split second, though it was enough to have Sam drunkenly whining, before he threw his arm over Sam’s shoulders and grabbed his hand again. It left Sam’s arm bent at the elbow and sweat immediately began to pool there, but at least Bucky was holding him again.

“And then, get this, the bastard jumped out of the dummy plane into the pool,” Bucky was saying as he leaned back against a stone bench. He took the drink from Sam’s hand and gestured with it as he continued his story. Or Frank’s story. Sam wasn’t sure where the segways were when Bucky got animated like this. “He’s fearless. It’s wild. He’s wild. Man, this is almost empty.” The last part was directed at Sam and was accompanied by Bucky shaking the beer bottle.

“Yeah,” Sam agreed. “It was colder than just standing around.”

Bucky laughed, full chested but still lacking. It was the way he laughed when people were watching him, when he wanted people to think he was fun and silly. Not quite the way he belly laughed with Sam, arms around his middle, curled to one side to hide his scrunched up face. Certainly not the ungainly way he snorted when Sam surprised him with a biting remark or mean observation.

The guy Bucky was talking to drifted to another conversation--something that involved him puking on a beach--and Bucky looked over at Sam, fake smile immediately falling into the one that Sam knew better.

“Hey,” he said with a nod.

Sam rolled his eyes but nodded back. “Hey. Come here often?”

“Well, I live here, so.” Bucky’s mouth quirked to the side and he leaned down to kiss the corner of Sam’s mouth before they could even finish the pantomime. “How ‘bout you?”

“Yeah, I keep getting dragged over here,” Sam said. “Got it bad for one of the guys who lives here.”

“Gross,” Bucky answered and kissed him again.

“Barnes, the burgers, come on!” someone shouted over at them.

Bucky flicked him off, though it wasn’t so intimidating with him trying ot hold onto the empty bottle at the same time. He tossed it towards a bin and Sam cringed at the crash of glass on glass.

“Wouldn’t this be easier with your flesh hand? Or both?” Sam asked as Bucky tried to fight with a flame that had suddenly roared up thanks to some excess fat dripping down to the coals. As if Sam wasn’t the one holding on. Then again, Bucky had freed himself and then reattached himself. So maybe it was his fault now.

“Maybe,” Bucky said, shoving a metal spatula under a patty from the side without a flame. “But then I’d have to let go of you. And if I do that, you might run off to someone cuter. Since, apparently, you have a thing for guys in this house.”

See, his fault.

Sam rolled his eyes again and his drunkenness washed over him suddenly, head going light at the sudden disorientation. Bucky’s arm tightened around his shoulder so Sam didn’t stumble.

“You’re the biggest lightweight I’ve ever met. You’ve got so much muscle hiding on those bones of yours and still can’t hold cheap beer.”

“Sorry I’m not used to bad alcohol,” Sam mumbled and dropped his face to Bucky’s neck.

“Fuck,” Bucky breathed. Just for Sam, like those laughs and that smile. “You can’t just do this to me.”

“‘M not doin’ anything,” Sam yawned, then let his lips drag over the sweaty skin of Bucky’s neck. Goosebumps followed after his mouth.

“Fuck,” Bucky breathed again, a hitch appearing at the end.

“Buck!” Clint called out, which was about the only voice in the crowd that could make Sam lift his head to look at what commotion was happening.

A bad one, actually. A very large beach ball was falling right over the open flame of the grill and all the very well formed patties that someone--fuck, Ben something?--had worked on for ages.

Bucky batted the ball away, sent it spinning over their heads towards the cactus, and then he pulled Sam along with him to jog a few steps to bat it back towards Clint and his friends up at the basketball court before it could become victim to agave spines. “How are you gonna try to cause an explosion when you’re not even the one cooking?” Bucky called up at him.

Clint raised both hands in an exaggerated shrug and went back to whatever dumb game they were playing. Bucky went back to tending the burgers one handed. Sam tried to subtly roll out his shoulder.

“How long are you gonna hold me hostage?” Sam asked with no heat in his voice.

“Until I can get you back into my bed. Or your bed.” His eyes flickered up to Sam’s balcony. “Quieter in your bed.”

“I don’t have AC right now,” Sam reminded him.

“Fuck your neighbors. And your leasing office.”

Sam had to agree. Spending several days at the frat house had never been his idea of fun and he was almost to his end with it all. “I like your bed,” he said instead of saying any of that. “It’s soft.”

“It’s the blanket. I’ll get you one for Christmas.”

Sam laughed and Bucky pulled him closer, kissing his hair and squeezing his hand. The idea that Bucky was already thinking about them together months in the future was enough to make heat, hotter than the air around them, bloom in his stomach. He held onto Bucky’s hand tighter and silently promised to never let go.

[sincerelystranger]

Author: Self-indulgent exploration of why WWX might have invented a spell that brought people back to life <3

----

“Ugh, life is really too annoying,” Wei Wuxian says, plopping down onto the floor of the cave, not even bothering to dry off.  

It’s one of the catch phrases Wei Wuxian has seemed to have grown fond of in his new life. Like most of his other catch phrases, it annoys the fuck out of Jiang Cheng.

“Shut up,” Jiang Cheng growls. He kicks around some dry grass and twigs on the cave floor and sets it on fire. “It’s your invention that brought you back – stop complaining about it.”

Wei Wuxian rolled closer to the fire, like the big annoying kid he was. “I didn’t know it would be used to bring me back,” he says petulantly, “I wouldn’t have invented it if I knew it would be used on me.”

For some reason, Wei Wuxian’s words irk Jiang Cheng. His words rake the coals of Jiang Cheng’s anger and make it burn fiercely in his stomach. “Keep talking shit and I’ll kill you myself,” Jiang Cheng growls, Zidian sparking dangerously on his hand.

Wei Wuxian glances up at him with one eye and promptly rolls back away from Jiang Cheng. “Mercy, great Sect leader. Mercy,” he begs monotonously.

Jiang Cheng lets out a deep sigh and closes his eyes. Patience, he chants to himself. Patience. If he kills Wei Wuxian in this cave, Hanguang-jun will be upset. Jiang Cheng hasn’t even gotten married yet – there will be no successor to the Yunmeng Jiang Sect if Hanguang-jun kills him.

Patience. He needs to have patience. He will not kill Wei Wuxian. The rain will probably let up soon…

“Who were you planning on bringing back, if not yourself?” Jiang Cheng asks after a few calming breaths.  

Wei Wuxian pushes up on his elbow and rests his head on his hand, looking like he doesn’t have a care in the world. Fucking annoying –

“Oh, I thought maybe I’d bring back Uncle,” he says easily. He slips a piece of dry grass between his lips and chews lazily, like he hasn’t just said something… horrible.

“Father?” Jiang Cheng asks faintly, “You invented this… for father?”

Jiang Cheng had thought that Wei Wuxian had invented that horrible array during his years in the Burial Mounds. Had thought that… well he wasn’t sure what he had thought but he had just assumed that the array had been a product of Wei Wuxian’s boredom in the cursed mountains. He hadn’t thought about why Wei Wuxian would create an array to bring back the dead – hadn’t thought about why Wei Wuxian would even think along those lines…

“Wouldn’t it have been kind of funny?” Wei Wuxian continues, thoughtlessly. Unaware of the affect his revelation is having on Jiang Cheng. “Imagine you having to call me father – well not me, I guess. My body. Wouldn’t that have been funny?”

Funny, he says, Jiang Cheng thinks faintly. He might really kill Wei Wuxian. Funny.

“Why would you want to bring back father?” Jiang Cheng asks, and he regrets it as soon as the question leaves his lips. He doesn’t want to know, actually. He doesn’t want to know how much Wei Wuxian was prepared to sacrifice for him. It’s better to live in ignorance, because if he doesn’t know, it can’t hurt him.

Wei Wuxian snorts as if Jiang Cheng just asked some funny. “Why wouldn’t I want to bring back uncle?” he asks. His face is turned to towards the fire and his eyes are closed. He looks so fucking peaceful – like he isn’t hurting Jiang Cheng with every word. But Wei Wuxian probably doesn’t know that he’s hurting Jiang Cheng – he’s never been good at knowing things like that.

“You were so young then,” Wei Wuxian says, a soft smile on his lips, “What business did you have rebuilding a sect.”

“So why didn’t you?” Jiang Cheng asks, his voice gruff with the tightness in his throat. “Why didn’t you bring father back?”

Wei Wuxian opens one eye to look at Jiang Cheng. Twirls the dry grass in his mouth nonchalantly. “Well,” he drawls, embarrassment finally appearing on his face, “at the time I thought that giving him my body might be more of a punishment than a gift.”

It’s maddening, to have such an idiotic brother, Jiang Cheng thinks desperately. How much more does he plan on hurting Jiang Cheng? How many more secrets will Jiang Cheng unknowingly walk into? 

(A punishment he says - a punishment. Because he had ripped out his golden core for Jiang Cheng. Because he had crawled out of the Burial Mounds, desperate and core-less and starving because he thought he could turn the tides on a hopeless war. He hadn’t killed himself because he thought his body was a curse and he had lived in it - oh god. He had lived in it for so long and Jiang Cheng hadn’t known anything and - )

“I’m sorry,” Wei Wuxian says softly, and it enrages Jiang Cheng. What right does Wei Wuxian have to apologize to him? What is he even apologizing for? “Thinking back on it now, I should have brought uncle back – it would have made everything better.”

Jiang Cheng slams his fist down onto the floor of the cave. He can’t stand this any longer. It’s too much. “Shut up,” he says – and he hopes he doesn’t sound as desperate as he feels, “shut up, shut up.”

Wei Wuxian sits up and takes the grass out of his mouth. He looks down at his hands like a kid getting scolded. It makes the anger inside Jiang Cheng burn hotter.

“You’re such an idiot,” Jiang Cheng says lowly, anger making his hands shake, “Why are you so convinced that your sacrifice will make anything better? Do you think of yourself so highly? That your life would change anything?” It’s mean and corrosive and everything he doesn’t want to say, but… it feels good, letting the anger out. Hurting someone who hurt him.

Wei Wuxian looks up at Jiang Cheng and smiles – and it’s something small and self-deprecating and it infuriates Jiang Cheng. “Don’t be so mean,” he says, obviously aiming for humor, “Or I’m going to tattle to Jin Ling – you know he hates it when you’re mean to me.”

Jiang Cheng stands then because he can’t bear to be in the same space as Wei Wuxian any longer. “Go ahead and tattle,” he barks, and it’s humiliating because it’s so childish. Being around Wei Wuxian always seems to take him back to the snot nosed kid he was 20 years ago. “I hope you die in this cave.”

He walks out of the cave and into the pouring rain. He’ll take his chances catching his death in the rain than having the spend one more minute in that cave with Wei Wuxian.

He barely makes it 20 steps before Wei Wuxian runs up behind him.

“Jiang Cheng!” Wei Wuxian says, and he’s laughing. “I’m sorry, Jiang Cheng. Let’s go back to the cave.”

Jiang Cheng shrugs Wei Wuxian’s arm off him, but Wei Wuxian just throws himself onto Jiang Cheng again.

“Come on,” Wei Wuxian pleas, but he’s still laughing, “I’m sorry, okay? I won’t act important ever again. Promise!”

He’s such an idiot! Jiang Cheng thinks helplessly. Wei Wuxian’s never been able to read when Jiang Cheng is hurt. Never been able to understand what Jiang Cheng is saying. He’s always apologizing for the wrong things and getting the wrong message....

… but he always runs after Jiang Cheng.

No matter what Jiang Cheng says, no matter what Jiang Cheng does. The one constant with Wei Wuxian is that Wei Wuxian will run after him.

Jiang Cheng doesn’t know what he needs to say so that Wei Wuxian will understand that Jiang Cheng will run after him too. That Jiang Cheng chased Wei Wuxian’s shadow for 16 years. That Wei Wuxian’s death never made anything better – would never make anything better.

He doesn’t know what to say, so he just turns back around.

“Fine,” he barks, “but if you annoy me one more time, I’m going to roast you over the fire.”

“Yes, yes,” Wei Wuxian laughs, and it’s still strange to Jiang Cheng how quickly Wei Wuxian can fall back into laughter. “I will not be annoying at all. The least annoying, actually! Wei Definitely Not Annoying Wuxian is my new name.”

“You’re already fucking it up.”

[why-this-kolaveri-machi]

whumptober day 9: take me instead

still here, still doing this! ‘twas nice to take a break for the last 6 months but i think i’m ready to come back.

summary: set after titans s2. jericho’s spent years as a mind without a body--enough to think he’s not in real danger from the villains the titans fight on a regular basis. it isn’t until dick puts himself on the line to save him that he realises how wrong he’s been.

warnings: SPOILERS for s2. serious body horror including gore and mutilation. a whole scene of this is inspired straight from a nightmare i had, so please be cautious as the descriptions are graphic. 

take me instead

Leave him alone! I can… I can give what you want, and more. I’ve seen and done things you couldn’t even imagine.

Take me instead.

It’s the last thing Jericho remembers for a while.

-

When Jericho is next aware, he’s sitting at a familiar workbench next to his father. Slade is taking apart and putting together guns of increasing complexity at a steady pace, not looking at Jericho once, but the silence is familiar and almost… comfortable. There’s none of the cloying dread or desperation that he felt while spending six years trapped in Slade’s head; the guns might as well be fishing rods or model airplanes to the curl of warmth in Jericho’s chest.

“I want you to be ready,” Slade says in the manner of someone already in the middle of a conversation, “for this next mission. I know that it’s on short notice, but there’s something in the next room that should help you.” He finally turns to look at Jericho, and he realises with a jolt that Slade’s actually smiling. For a long, dumbfounded moment, Jericho stares at his father, at the beaming smile, the crinkle of crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes.

“Go on, then,” Slade says, tilting his head at a door that Jericho didn’t notice before. A part of Jericho is pulsing with anxiety (remembers that endlessly white prison, dead-but-not) but it’s smothered by a haze of contentment and a ready, easy trust that has him get up, open the door, and step through.

There’s a long metal table with a body on it. The reason it’s a body and not a person is because it’s covered with a long white sheet and the shapes underneath the sheet are… unnatural. The angles too sharp, the girth too thin, everything too still to be anything that’s alive. Jericho’s not sure why Slade thinks a corpse would help him with anything, but he moves ahead as though compelled, again, and lifts the sheet away.

The body is on its back, naked, limbs splayed awkwardly. It’s emaciated to a degree that the skin is worn down to the bone in some places: the fingers are literally skeletal, and so are the jutting crescents of the hips. There are enormous festering wounds on one thigh and one arm, excavated through layers of skin, fat and muscle like craters filled with… slough, and pus, and other disgusting things, and still bleeding--

--still bleeding--

Jericho’s been avoiding looking at the face until now, and there is a slow, sad sort of resignation in his chest as he lifts his gaze to see skin cleaving to the skull, eyes huge and watering in nearly abyssal sockets. The body’s lipless mouth moves.

“Jericho,” Dick says.

There’s no moment where Jericho’s jolted back to reality; just a dawning horror. There are a thousand questions crowding in his throat but the one he asks is: “Did… did Slade do this to you?”

“No, he--Jer--” Dick coughs, and Jericho watches with sick fascination as his ribs glide underneath his skin. “You have to get away from here. Now.”

“Not without--” you, I can’t leave without you “--knowing what he did to you, how could this even--”

There’s a chill in the air, so sudden and fierce that it slices through his skin and numbs his lips. The room he’s in--that he’s hardly paid any attention to so far--warps and twists, the edges where the walls meet the ceiling blackening like it’s a photograph that someone’s taken a flame to. Dick twitches on the table, trying to move, and bloodied spittle sprays his chin as he says, “Leave! Now!”

“I don’t--”

I SEE YOU.

The voice, female, is both a whisper in his ear and a roar that echoes inside the collapsing room. Dick lets out a scream that frankly Jericho would’ve never guessed he had the strength for and an invisible force pushes Jericho to the door that he just came from. Jericho tries to fight back, twist and get back to Dick, but before he knows it, he’s stumbling through the door, falling to his hands and knees. He jumps to his feet, unaccountably angry at Slade, the world, and mostly Dick--who, despite having far less experience with this slippery, in-between world than Jericho, just tossed him aside like it was nothing at all.

Overachieving bastard.

He whirls around to confront his father, but Slade has disappeared, and so has his workroom, and any semblance of a place at all. Instead, Jericho stands in the middle of ever-extending blackness that might be a cavern, given the way his footsteps echo eerily and the weak light that filters in every few metres. Dust motes float lazily in those little beams, and their presence makes the whole place somehow creepier than the complete absence of light.

“Dick?” Jericho’s voice is small, uncertain, but the word echoes nonetheless, making him flinch. Once the echoes die, however, there is only silence.

He picks a direction and keeps walking, because, honestly, what else is he going to do? It doesn’t take long for a human shape to materialise in one of the pools of watery light, and Jericho isn’t entirely surprised to see that it’s Dick. This Dick looks… whole, though, strong and broad and dressed in his Nightwing suit sans mask. He’s got his escrima sticks out as though anticipating an attack, and he’s not really looking at Jericho.

Jericho’s about to call out to him when a shape swoops in from the darkness straight to Dick. It’s moving with incredible speed, claws extended and glinting in the light, but Dick is faster. He swings his sticks around and knocks it to the ground, only to bring them up again to block the next attack. 

Soon Dick is at the centre of a storm of black, punctuated by the rustle of cloth and the screams of the creatures dying as his sticks turn into swords. He’s barely finished skewering one creature before he’s lifting the sword--still dripping with gore--and plunging it into the heart of another creature. Jericho watches, open-mouthed, as Dick fights with a frightening combination of grace and force, his body twirling and leaping like he’s dancing but his thrusts sharp and brutal, driven by pure anger. Jericho can hardly countenance this… force of nature with the man who melted in his arms when he gave him an unexpected hug, or the one that came to seek absolution from his mother, half-wrecked by guilt and anguish. 

He could’ve kept watching forever (Dick could’ve kept fighting forever) when he feels a bony hand like icicles rest on his shoulder and hears I’VE FOUND YOU, LITTLE ONE

“No! Jericho!” Dick stops for the second it takes him to shout Jericho’s name, and Jericho realises why Dick had been such a storm of movement: it takes only a fraction of that second for the shadow-creatures to overcome his defences and… tear at him. Blood and gore spray in a messy arc as his arm is torn clean off his body but Dick’s still standing, staring at him, shouting--

Jericho’s knees shake and his stomach’s turned to water but he shakes off the hand on his shoulder and runs--away from whatever it was that spoke to him, away from Dick, whose shouts have died and been replaced by the sickening, wet sounds of ripping flesh. 

He runs, but there’s Dick again, younger now, crushed between two panes of glass like an insect in a display case--

YOU CAN’T RUN FOREVER.

--turns a corner, and Dick’s on a rack, an actual rack, and at each corner there’s somebody turning the pulley and stretching his limbs until his shoulders and knees pop out of their sockets, and, and, is Batman one of them? And one of the others, his face is half-shrouded in scar tissue--

ALTHOUGH, and now there’s a hint of amused menace, THAT MIGHT BE FUN, TOO.

Jericho sets off again, heart thundering in his chest and pulsing in his neck, panic scraping his breath through his throat and nose. It’s been so long since he’s had a body to call his own, but his mind can’t forget what it feels like to be truly afraid, to look at a threat and think: that’s going to really hurt, or i’m going to die, or both.

Along the way he feels little nudges from Dick, helping him pour on the speed. When these nudges stop, and he’s run out of corners to turn and reached one where he can only huddle, he turns.

There’s a woman standing there: tall, almost statuesque. Her skin is grey and her hair hangs limp past her shoulders. But her eyes are luminescent: pools of algae on water that reflects a coal-black night. There is naked hunger in the way she looks at him, in her smile full of mossy, pointed teeth.

HE’S RIGHT IN A WAY, she says. HE BURNS SO BRIGHT, AND HIS PAIN SO EXQUISITE. BUT HE IS ALREADY BURNING OUT. YOU… she steps closer, YOU WILL LAST FOREVER.

Jericho feels frozen as she reaches a bony hand towards him. HIS SACRIFICE WILL HAVE BEEN IN VAIN--HOW DELICIOUS.

He feels a familiar ice-cold pain along his throat, razor-thin, and a deeper, hotter pain that’s boring into his stomach. If he closes his eyes he can imagine that it’s Slade on the other end of a sword, eyes wide in horror and--and betrayal--

“No.” The pain in his stomach stops, and Jericho opens his eyes to see Dick’s back in front of him, the pointed end of an icicle emerging from his middle and dripping blood on Jericho’s feet. 

And Dick still--

“While I’m still here, in my head,” Dick growls, “you don’t get to touch him.”

The woman screams--it’s a horrible sound, full of  rage that buries itself like needlepoints in his eardrums--but Jericho has no time to linger as he feels the hardest push he’s gotten from Dick yet, and a sensation like someone’s reached into him and pulled his stomach clear out of his body, and then--

then--

he’s out.

For a long, surreal second, he is just a mind floating without a body, threatening to vanish into the ether if he can’t ground himself in somebody else’s head. He casts frantically for the nearest person and enters--and to his relief, it’s Rose. She must know something of what’s going on, because she immediately steps back and lets Jericho take over her body.

They’re in the Titans Tower, and he can see Kory, Rachel and Gar crowded around something--well, somebody--on the floor. At his choked, “Dick,” they immediately part, and there’s Dick on the floor, curled around nothing, ashen, eyes open and unseeing. He’s shaking minutely, but besides that there’s nothing to indicate that right now, inside his head, he’s being torn apart over and over and over again--

“He won’t let me help him,” Rachel says, her voice trembling, tears streaming down her face. “She wants you. He says he won’t let that happen.”

Jericho crashes to his knees next to Dick. He gathers his head onto his lap--tries to ignore how cold he feels and banishes all memories of his wasted body on that cold table--and kisses his forehead. “Please,” he says, tears spilling to land on Dick’s face and slide down to his ears. “Just--please.”

He’s not sure what he’s asking for. But he thinks Dick will find a way to give it to him anyway.

[raleighcarrera]

holiday writing requests

wow feels weird to use the post title feature sdkjfdglfkgjfkjg

ANYWAY i’m opening up winter/holiday themed writing requests for choices & twc !! my goal is to do as many of these as i can before the end of the year but i’m going to try to space them out so please be patient and i’m sorry if i don’t get to yours or if it takes awhile

and thank you all for making my time here so far in 2020 so much fun and for being so nice to me since i made this blog in may ❤️ 

if you have a specific scenario or request in mind, just send me an ask, but otherwise a list of assorted prompts i’m accepting is under the cut !!

from here - winter/cold weather prompts:

1. first snowfall 2. hot chocolate 3. ice skating 4. blankets 5. fireplace 6. fuzzy socks 7. scarf 8. snowball 9. sweater 10. snuggling 11. snowed - in 12. mistletoe 13. candles 14. winter sunrise 15. eggnog

from here - winter/holiday writing prompts:

1. mistletoe kissing booth 2. makeout sesh in front of the fire, but someone is being a tad too respectful 3. snowball fight turns flirting, turns serious, then flirty again 4. snowed in and huddling for warmth 5. home for the holidays, but my parents won’t let us share a room so we sneak out to see each other

from here - winter/holiday sentence starters:

1. “it’s cold out here, can i borrow your jacket?” 2. “warm my hands up?” 3. “look! it’s snowing!” 4. “the car won’t start...” 5. “it’s supposed to snow tonight, you should just stay here...” 6. “i haven’t felt warmth in approximately twenty-three days.” 7. “that blanket looks big enough for two!” 8. “you’re cute when you’re cold.” 9. “it smells like i just walked into cinnamon hell.” 10. “can’t we stay in bed? it’s cold outside...” 11. “you’re not getting sick again, are you?” 12. “i’ll take care of you.” 13. “don’t slip!” 14. “i may or may not have gotten tangled up in the tinsel.” 15. “so... the tree is too big to fit through the door.” 16. “last minute gift shopping is an art, and you’re not ready for it.” 17. “all i want for christmas is you.” 18. “can i open just one? pleasseeee?” 19. “don’t be such a downer, mr scrooge.” 20. “i have michael bublé’s entire discography and an unopened bottle of wine.” 21. “i couldn’t find any gelt, but we do have raisins!” 22. “please don’t burn the house down.” 23. “normal people don’t own this many candles.” 24. “that’s the ugliest sweater i’ve ever seen.”

from here - winter/holiday prompts

1. “it’s almost midnight!” 2. “yeah, uh, alcohol doesn’t go in hot chocolate.” 3. “why does the house smell like a cinnamon roll threw up?” 4. “if you throw a snowball at my face so help me.” 5. “open your present!” 6. “wanna get shit faced instead?” 7. “why is there mistletoe everywhere?” 8. “i’m still sad you won’t be home for christmas.” 9. “aren’t you afraid of setting the house on fire with all the lights?” 10. “i hope you break your ass on that ice.” 11. “wait, no one got you anything?” 12. “so... we’re kind of snowed in.” 13. “it looks like the north pole threw up.” 14. “are you sure it’s illegal to kill carolers?” 15. “you didn’t think i’d let you spend christmas alone, did you?” 16. “i told you you were going to get sick if you stayed in the snow all day.” 17. “does that stocking have my name on it?” 18. “and now the power’s out.” 19. “you’ve never had a new year’s kiss?” 20. “you’re kind of cute when you look like rudolph.”-“the reindeer?”-“no, my dentist. yes, the reindeer.”

from here - december fanfic prompts

1. a snowball fight 2. overly bundled up for the weather 3, decorating the tree 4. ruining the holiday dinner 5. secret santa gift exchange 6. unwrapping presents 7. making cookies 8. new holiday traditions 9. work holiday party 10. eating candy canes 11. traveling for the holiday 12. a holiday proposal 13. drunk at new year’s party 14. a new year’s kiss

from here - christmas/winter starters

“sorry, it’s not me, it’s the eggnog.” “just so you know, i’m kind of stuck in the christmas lights.” “looks like you’re getting coal this year.” “i just took an online quiz and it said i was on the naughty list! if it was you i could see it, but not me!” “are you seriously crying over rudolph...?”   “i just called to tell you merry christmas.” “please stop singing christmas songs.” “if you ring those dumb jingle bells one more time, i will wring your neck.” “oh my god, is that  mistletoe...?” “what kind of christmas would it be if we didn’t play in the snow?”  

from here - holiday au prompts

1. we don’t like each other, but we’re at a mutual friend’s christmas party and we keep getting caught under the mistletoe together 2. we both work at the mall’s pictures with santa event. you shouldn’t be able to look that attractive in an elf’s costume and we should not be hooking up in santa’s cottage on our break 3. why can’t you turn your christmas lights off at a reasonable hour? they’re way too bright and some of us are trying to sleep. if you won’t turn them off, i’ll turn them off myself 4. my parents keep pestering me about a boy/girlfriend, so i lied and now i need you to be my fake boy/girlfriend for the holidays 5. if you sing one more christmas song, I’m breaking the radio and kicking you out of the car. i don’t care how cute you are, i can’t take one more rendition of santa baby or all i want for christmas is you 6. you didn’t have anywhere to go for the holidays, so i invited you to come home with me as friends but my parents now think we’re dating

from here - more christmas aus

1. “i know we hate each other but it’s christmas eve and your flight was cancelled, please come inside.” 2. “i got you for secret santa so i got you this really expensive but sentimental gift that you’ve always wanted, hoping you’ll never find out it’s from me - and that i’ve been in love with you 1234567 years.” 3. person a seducing person b into taking a few steps back/backing them against the wall (”oh look, how did that mistletoe get right there?”) 4. i knitted you a jumper/mittens/scarf 5. “we were playing in the snow and you suddenly tackled me to the ground and now... we’re just... staring... at each other...” 6. "our christmas party turned into a tropical theme because the radiator is broken and it’s hotter than hell in here - damn you look good without a shirt, i never noticed before asgdhfjgkhl” 7. “we’re co workers who hate each other but you had too much to drink at the staff christmas party and admitted your love for me i don’t know how to act around you now.” 8. TEACH ME HOW TO SKI (lol jk i know how you’re just so fucking cute) 9. PULLING YOU IN FOR A KISS WITH A SCARF 10. “i did that annoying thing where i put loads of smaller boxes inside one big box and you’re getting really mad but you don’t know that the ring is in the smallest box and i can’t wait to see your face”

from here - christmas/holiday starters

1. “woah, someone drank too much egg nog.” 2. “i can’t believe i’m all alone during the holidays.” 3. “i hate snow. and smiling children.” 4. “if i hear one more christmas song, someone is getting strangled with tinsel.” 5. “the limit was $20, people. why do I see an iPhone?” 6. “i know who got me this. there’s only one person who knows me this well. it’s you.” 7. “this is really corny... but you’re already a gift to me.” 8. “have i been naughty this year?” 9. “oh, i’d ride in your sleigh.” 10. “your eyes twinkle like tree lights.” 11. “great, now my flight is delayed…” 12. “how am i supposed to get home in this weather?” 13. "do these dreidel cake pops look pinterest-y enough?” 14. “it’s not a ‘made-up’ holiday. all holidays are made up.”

from here - new year’s starters

1. “will you kiss me at midnight?” 2. “here's hoping the new year is better than the last.” 3. “this is the perfect way to ring in the new year.” 4. “i don't feel well...” 5. “did you just kiss me?” 6. “the stars are prettier than the fireworks.” 7. “let's ring in the new year right.” 8. “are you drunk?” 9. “can we go home?” 10. “hold my hand.” 11. “i think i drank too much.” 12. “let's get a cab.” 13. “you look silly.”

from here - cold weather starters

1. “it’s hand holding season.” 2. “i got the biggest blanket for us to share.” 3. “your cheeks are so red; it’s so cute!”  4. “this scarf isn’t big enough for two people.” 5. “maybe if i kiss you, you’ll feel warmer.”  6. “hug me; i’m cold and love you.” 7. “are you cold? let’s cuddle, it’ll make you warmer.” 8. “what time is it? don’t answer, it’s christmas.” 9. “if it snows, wake me up.” 10. “christmas songs this early?” 11. “please stay warm; i don’t want you to get sick.” 12. “i refuse to let you go – i’m cold.” 13. “it’s icy outside – also, can you help me limp to the couch?” 14. “i don’t need mistletoe to kiss you.” 15. “i’m glad I get to spend this season with you.” 16. “are you shivering?” 17. “i ran you a bath since it’s freezing outside.” 18. “stay in bed with me, it’s warmer here.” 19. “i don’t understand how you love this kind of weather so much.” 20. “are you blushing or cold?” 21. “oh, darn, i seem to have forgotten my mittens – please warm my hands?” 22. “i don’t think cold weather is an excuse to drink ten times more coffee.” 23. “well, you can never have too much hot chocolate.” 24. “i’m gonna stay up and wait for it to snow.” 25. “being with you makes the season even better.” 26. “since it’s cold should i start calling you ‘snow angel’?” 27. “are you going to share this coat with me all night?”

[shinobirain24]

Hard to Get

By wolfstyle2074

It was the first year of Beacon Academy. Team VVKS have sat in the cafeteria for lunch. All in their uniforms after combat class with Professor Goodwitch. Team leader Valerie Rose, Tristan Vasilias, Kai Wukong and Sai Xiao Long. They were talking about an ongoing concert.

"Ever heard of a charity concert for Mantle going on in Amity Arena?" Sai asked. While Kai is munching on a banana, listening to the conversation next to Tristan. "Totally. Mom always says I have a voice of awesomeness when it comes to rock and roll. Kai and I have been practicing while we were at Sanctum Academy. We are the Shark Fangs!" Tristan then climbs to the top of the table alongside Kai.

"Shark Fangs!" Cheered Kai.

And they shook their heads around. While causing a scene when their classmates are watching. Much to Valerie's embarrassment. She have to pull the two boys back down to their seats. "Guys, sit down. You're making a scene here." She sighs.

"Oh, lighten up Val. This concert if going to rock. And you and me are taking home the crowd tonight!" Sai raises her fists. Her hair glowed as her eyes went from lime green to red. "Well, it's the weekend, guess a little fun wouldn't hurt." Valerie said. While continuing to read her book. Suddenly, a dark skinned girl caught Tristan's eyes. Dark curly hair and a black crop top and leather pants. And cat ear headphones.

"Whoa." Muttered Tristan. He then nudges at Kai. "Dude, is that who I think it is?" Kai then glances at the young woman who sat with her own team. "Isn't that Dana Coal?" Dana is actually a childhood friend of Tristan and Kai. They love making trouble together during her visit in Argus. When they were 7-years-old.

"I haven't seen her since she moved to Vale. And she has gotten hotter." Tristan adds.

"You know her, Tris?" Asked Sai. While checking her scroll for a great soundtrack to listen to. "Oh yeah, her dad owns a night club at Vale. Best of the best. The staff knows boundaries. Kai and I used to kick butt with her sometimes when she came to Argus." Said Tristan.

"Plus, she knows a lot of dance-fighting. Which makes her skills incredible to become a huntress." Kai adds. "Don't get us wrong. She's actually cool when you get to know her."

"Oh, that club. Sai used to come here sometimes. It was totally cool." Valerie says. Tristan then brushed his spikey white hair that was combed to the right and geared with goggles above his eyes. And went over to the table where Dana and her team are sitting on.

"He's not going to do it, isn't he?" Sai shook her head. Knowing he would flirt with every girl he met. Only for some to either reject him, or to accept his invitation for a date. Kai nods his head excitedly as he watched. "Oh yeah, he's going for it."

Tristan then stops in front to greet the female team. Known as Team DSCO (pronounced: disco). The second girl is a tanned skinned person with long pigtails and a light blue jumpsuit, Bianca Sync. The third girl has short pink hair, long sleeved midriff, and ripped jeans, Celica Moria. The fourth girl has visors, dusk hair and a silver top and golden skirt with matching go-to boots, Olivia Kane.

"Hey, ladies. I hope you don't mind if I can greet you for a bit. S'up, Dana? Haven't seen you since we were 7." He winked. As they took notice. "Hey, D, you know this cutie?" Asked Olivia.

Dana nodded to Olivia who was dazing at the white haired, dark blue eyed boy. "Nice seeing you again, Tris. Wow, have you grown." Dana smiled while. "How's your dad doing?" He asked.

"He is doing great. Never miss a beat in his entire life while fighting Grimm. He managed to win Gramps back his dust shop." Dana's grandfather originally owns a dust shop in Atlas, until it was shut down. But her father won it back. "Really? That's great. So I was thinking you and I could practice some tunes like we used to back at Sanctum." Asked Tristan as he placed his palm on the table while facing Dana.

She earned the awed looks from her team. But she politely declined. "Sorry, pretty boy. But I already have a band of my own. Cause Team DSCO are gonna rule the night on the weekend." She said. They all stood up and was about to leave to practice their songs. "I gotta go. Can't be late for practice. I'll see you and Kai around." She waved and left with her team. "Nice seeing you again too, Kai. Sorry but I gotta run." She glances at Kai, who waves back.

"See you around, cutie!" Olivia chirped and waved to Tristan and left with Team DSCO.

Kai then came from behind while still eating a banana. "Dude, you okay? Cause from what I am seeing, you're getting rejected." He asked.

"One thing I like about women is that sometimes they're hard to get. In Dana's case, she's hot, but also pretty fierce. So that's good right? You'll understand for when you get a date." Said Tristan as he stares at Dana. "Besides, it's like what Dad said. It's not the outside that counts, it's the inside that counts to get to know a girl better." Kai pats him in the shoulder in response.

[peaches-of-1]

Peachtober | Day 26: Cave

Human!Reader x Orc!Monster Woo

Warnings: Monster smex, size difference, choking

Citrus scale: Hand of Buddha

A/N: I swear the closer we get to Halloween, the more smut I’ve been writing, but like. Isn’t that what the Halloween Spirit is about? Monster fuckin’?

“Stay away from the cave.” They said. “A monster lives there.”

These words had been said to you year after year. The local kids and teenagers alike would dare one of their own, usually the one most full of fear in general, to go place something in front of the cave or to go inside for a certain amount of times. Parents would usually stop and scold them before they went too far. That didn’t stop them from trying. Some would claim to have gone in the dead of night, to have met the monster inside the cave.

Of course, no one would ever believe anyone to be brave enough or stupid enough to go near te rocky enterance. No one was allowed to roam at night. Sometimes, those who claimed to have gone to the beast’s home disappeared soon after. Missing? Taken? Sent away? Answers were rarely given to the youngers.

Even when they were given, there was no promise that they would be believed in the slightest.

“Come away from there. The monster will come get you if you misbehave!” Jessi said to her young cousin who had started to wander off.

Heechul called from his porch, “Ah, let her get taken. It’ll serve her right.”

You were returning home with your friends from school when you four stumbled upon this interaction, backpacks places firmly on backs and books clutched to chests.

She rolled her eyes and pointed at him, “I’ll bring you to the beast myself if you ever talk about my cousin like that again!” and held the small one’s hand to take her inside.

Jennie whispered, “My dad said that the Monster likes to choke the people who go into his cave and likes girls more than boys.”

Dahyun rolled up her sleeve, “If the monster ever got close to any of my friends, I’d make sure he’d no longer have hands to choke with.”

Rena laughed, “You’re so amazing, Dahyun! I would love to see you fight.”

“Maybe I can teach you so that you can do it yourself.” Said the silver haired girl with confidence.

The blonde girl with brown roots smiled shyly, “I...I don’t think it’d work well at all. I’m not very good at--”

You spoke up, “I’m sure you’d do great! You’re such a fast learner.”

“RENA! WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT LOLLYGAGGING AFTER SCHOOL?” A parent called with anger like hot coals. “Get over her right now!”

She bowed to us and quickly went to the steps, getting pulled in and berated with words that wouldn’t last too long. However, it would be followed with being completely ignored until the next time.

Dahyun kicked the ground, “I’d like to kick their butt with my fists.” she pouted.

Jennie put her hand on the back of her friend and soon enough it was time to get home. All of you had seen the ‘mysterious’ bruises and how jumpy she sometimes was. She liked to daydream and would do amazing things! Still, it seemed like she would be better off and be able to make those dreams become reality if she were not where she currently was.

So you did the only thing you could do, sneak away and go towards the cave with an offering. One thing that had been agreed upon among all the stories of this horrible monster is that he liked sweets, particularly carrot cake. It was mostly banned other than from when there was a festival where a rather large one was made and placed at the mouth of the cave to keep the monster from taking too many people.

You only had some banana nut muffins that you said were for Jennie. It was still light out, but it would be dusk soon. So you set the muffins at a secret entrance and called into it with a brave voice.

“Monster Woo! I call upon you! Um, I have a friend who needs your help to get away. I brought you some muffins. She is hurt more on the inside than the outside and if you could get her to someplace nicer, I’d be forever grateful.” You looked around to make sure you were still alone before taking off your bracelet. “Return my bracelet to me once she’s safe.”

And off you went back home.

Three days later, your bracelet was on your windowsill when you got home. Rena didn’t show up to school today either. Had he really done what you asked? You looked out the window and smiled, deciding to quickly “run out for flowers” when instead you wanted to go back to the cave.

“Monster Woo! I call on you! This isn’t a request or anything, but I wanted to thank you for taking care of my friend.” Then you began to turn away. “That’s all!”

A voice rumbled from deep within, “Do you want to go somewhere else too?”

You looked at the ground, rubbing your arm, “What makes you ask?”

“You came to me not for a game to play, but with good intention in your heart. I do not think you belong here, Y/N.” He said.

Your head shot up, “How do you know my name?”

He replied, “I know everyone in this town whether or not they want me to. I’ve been here before them, and I will be here long after they’re gone.”

“That means you’re not human then...What are you?”

“Why don’t you come see for yourself?” His voice held something alluring now, like you wanted to say yes right away. “I think you deserve a reward for being such a good girl.”

A shiver went down your spine, “I...I have home-homework I need to do.”

“Please? Let me give you a prize for doing so well.” A hand unfurled before you. It looked like a hand in this dark area under the trees.

“Y/N! Where are you? We have a project to do! Y/N!” Dahyun’s voice called.

You grabbed the hand, and it pulled you in without hesitation The next thing you noticed as that you were pressed up against the chest of a rather large being. There was the warmth of another human but also way hotter than any healthy human should ever feel. Letting yourself step back, you defied all the nerves in your body to look up at what everyone had called the Monster.

Monster Woo was a large man with green skin and teeth larger and sharper than any creature you had ever laid eyes upon. Somehow, you were supposed to be scared. Any one else would be and yet. You placed your hand on his arm.

“You’re hurt.”

“Aren’t you afraid?” He asked, confused.

You shook your head and swallowed, “No, I actually have a thing for height difference.” feeling your cheeks heat up at the confession.

An adorably bassy chuckle came from his throat, “Then this is going to be a reward I think you’ll enjoy.”

Before you could ask what he was talking about, he pulled you closer to him and ensured your eyes were on his before kissing you deeply. His tusks didn’t get in the way at all, but you could feel them rubbing your cheeks. You felt yourself getting light headed from lack of breath just as he pulled away.

You coughed and he apologized. Sometimes he forgot that you humans had smaller lungs than himself. Instinctively, you assured him it was ok. You liked the kiss and he blushed in reply and asked if you wanted...more than a kiss. An excited nod in reply, and so he took you deeper and ever deeper into the endless winding caverns of his home.

A noise scared you, and you found yourself clinging to his muscular and decorated arm.

“I didn’t know orcs got tattoos too.”

He smiled, “What else am I supposed to do alone in here? Anyways, here we are.” and stopped in his tracks. “Stay here, Little One.”

Your teeth sunk into your bottom lip to keep the moan from escaping your mouth. Just those words had gotten you so excited being said with that voice! That voice that sounded like a raging storm lulling you to sleep right after drinking hot cocoa while reading your favorite boo or drawing in a worn notebook.

“W-What’s your name?” You blurted out in your nervousness.

The giant looked back at you, puzzled by the question while in such a mood, “Youngwoo. I really do adore you, Little One. Pardon me if I’m being too forward, but I would like you to show your adoration by helping me with something.”

“Y...yea?”

He pulled down his pants to reveal the largest cock you had ever seen, and you had walked in on the soccer team having a dick measuring contest before. A few seconds of eye contact and a sheepish smile from Youngwoo, and your heart never felt so full. It wouldn’t fit by any measure into any orifice you had, but you were for sure you were going to try.

“Guess my homework will be a bit late.” You said before getting on your knees and using your minuscule tongue to lap at the dripping tip.

A low growl which sounded much like a purr came out of Youngwoo’s mouth, “Ah, yes, right there, Y/N.”

You liked the entire pole up and down like it were a lime flavored lollipop, sucking on the balls which reminded you of two heavy matcha flavored mochis. Grateful moans began falling from the...from Youngwoo’s mouth. He even covered his mouth when he felt as though he were being too noisy. Then you stopped working your tongue on his cock and pouted.

“I want to hear you, Youngwoo~ It makes me feel better when I know how good I’m making you feel.”

His eyes trained on your body which was pressing legs together in an attempt to hold back the last bit of dignity you had.

Youngwoo smiled, “Only if you do the same. Spread your legs.”

You did as told and he used two large fingers to graze across your front which was making puddles in your underwear. He kissed you again before ripping your clothes from your body and saying he was sorry. In your haze, you were able to mumble “It’s ok.” before straddling his balls that were so large that it was like sitting on a twin sized mattress and not uncomfortable for him. Kisses and licks on his length resumed as growls and bellows of joy and lust left his mouth.

“That feels so good, Little One.” he said and freely let curses fly.

Every inch of your body was becoming covered in his precum, making you glisten just as his cock was. The torch flames could not match the heat between your legs as you began to hump and rut against his giant balls, making the scene even wetter.

“Unggg, hold on tight, Little One.” Youngwoo grunted out.

You held onto him even tighter as the twitching of his cock made the world feel a bit like a roller coaster. Although, you had never before gotten this wet on any sort of amusement park ride. Your whole body was doused in his semen and completely marked by him and his scent. The experience made you reach your own orgasm, climaxing on a hard ridge of his length as you slid down onto the floor, your chest heaving.

Maybe you’d have to make your visits to the monster a regular thing.

[windfighter]

aslkgöhald I’m at 6840 words already:

Day 8

There are a lot of the green creatures around. I put torches on the roof, place the last pieces of wood and then jump back down to the ground. Landing is painful, but I don't have time for pain. I grit my teeth, go inside and put a crafting table and a big chest inside the house. There's not more I can do for it at this point. I make a door out of six planks and put it in the entrance. Now I can keep the creatures out. The room is pitch black and I put a couple of torches on the walls.

I make a furnace to put in the house as well, but I need to leave the house to get the materials for that. Two of the creatures spot me as I make my way back but I get inside before they get to me. I can hear them groaning outside my door and I don't know what to do now. Part of me thinks that maybe I should make an escape hatch from the house to the mine, but I ignore that idea. Instead I head outside, determined to figure out the creature. I have a shield in one hand and a sword in the other. It tries to bite me and I swing my sword wildly at it. Some of the swings hit and after a minute the zombie disappears with a poof.

Another zombie approaches, but the sun has come out now. The zombie burns, and I decide to help ease its suffering with my sword. I feel like I can take on the world right now!

I know it's just the adrenaline and I get back to work. Today is the day I'll get some animals to the base. As I head back down I feel something wet in my pocket. It stinks as I pull it out. Rotten flesh. I make another chest to store that so it won't rot the rest of my items.

I harvest some extra wheat and then I'm off. There seems to be less cows here now, but as I try to wrangle them up I spot something white moving on top of a hill. A sheep, and they seems to be attracted to the wheat as well. I manage to bring three sheep and two cows with me back. I feed them, and a calf and a lamb appears in the pen. This has been a good day.

The sun is in zenith and I spend the afternoon gathering fish from the river. I need to start preparing to head out of here, to look for a village or something. I hit the gravel by mistake and a piece of flint falls out of it. This could get in handy, I could make arrows with it, or use it to start fires if I hit it against a rock or... or iron. I run back into my mine to grab a piece of iron in order to make a firestarter.

I make a chestplate and some boots out of the remaining iron. I feel a bit safer now, maybe even ready to fight the hostile creatures I keep seeing around. But I need more iron before I head out, so I can make new tools as the old one breaks. I head further into the mine, stop by the lava cave I found earlier. It's not lava any longer, I turned it all into the hard black material, but I still think of it as the lava cave. I stare at the redstone dust spread out on the floor. Maybe that is flammable? I take out my flint and steel and try to set fire to it.

It doesn't work, but as I start and extinguishes fires around the room a purple light suddenly lights up in the rectangle I built earlier for the laughs. It makes a loud noise and I back away. Is it dangerous? I can't tell by looking at it. I sneak closer. It wooshes again. I take a step back, then walk up to it. Energy pulses through it and I decide that the time for cowardness is over and step into it.

Day 9

I don't know where I am. Everything is red here and it's a lot hotter than it was before. There is no life around me, only walls of the red material. I look up. Lava is falling from the ceiling and I run out of the way. It's everywhere around me, covering the portal that brought me here. I'm scared. I don't know what to do. I regret going in here but I need to stop the lava somehow, need to be able to head back.

I try to get higher, but there are sounds of creatures here. I don't know if they are friendly but if it's anything like the other side of the portal they are not. I head back down, try to block off the lava. I manage and head straight back home.

It's almost morning already. Some of my trees have grown during the night. I'm relieved to be back to safety but I'm curious about that other world. Someday when I'm more prepared I hope to explore that. I make another chest because my storage is getting crowded. I won't be able to bring all of the items I've found when I leave but I'll figure it out.

I head out, chop down the grown trees. Wood will probably be useful when it's time to start exploring this world more. I look towards the animals I captured and I wonder if maybe I could make some type of scissors to cut the sheep. I think I still have a little iron left, I hope it's enough.

The green creatures notices me while I shear the sheep. They come closer and I don't want them injuring my animals, but they are blocking the fence gate so I break the fence and run away. Some of the animals are escaping but the green creature is following me, it doesn't seem hostile against the animals. Maybe it feels my fear. I grab my shield, cover behind it as the creature starts hissing.

It explodes, but the shield mostly protect me from the blast. I hurry after the other, which also explodes, before I fetch some wheat to lure the animals back in to the pen. This has not been a good day so far.

I did get some wool though and it's soft in my hands. I could make a bed using this and I grab some planks to get to work. It doesn't take long until I have two beds made. I place one in the small house and the other I stove deep into my pockets. It'll be useful when I finally head out of here.

There's not much more for me to do with this little base. It has a house, some animals and a small patch with wheat and sugarcane growing. All I really need is iron for tools and I head down in the mine, decide that I'll finally get some more material.

I find some coal and some redstone dust before I break some stone and lava starts pouring out of the hole. I try to block it off, but I miss and the lava reaches me. I'm burning, and it hurts, it hurts so badly. I manage to block the lava off and run back, try to put the fire out by jumping up and down as I run. I feel weaker, but just when my body starts wobbling the fire dies out. I'm trembling, and to busy my hands I eat one of the fish I've cooked. I can feel my strenght returning as I eat it. This branch is done now, time to start another one. But first I head up to drop off the redstone dust I found and make some new torches.

It's still day but the sun is creeping lower towards the horizon. I head back down. There's so much I should do.

Day 10

I find some iron in the mine. I also find a lot of redstone dust and I try to find a way to store it better. By pressing a lot of it together I manage to form cubes which takes less place than the dust. I'm satisfied with this. The sun is up and I'm wondering if I'm ready to head out already. I've already decided to go towards the savannah, but I still don't know what to bring. I think today I will prepare my departure.

I gather up all the wood and redstone from my storage, shear the sheep and put the wool in my pockets. Fetch the iron from the furnace and craft myself a pair of pants. I still have 19 pieces left and I decide that 19 pieces will have to be enough. I make some fences which I can use to mark the way I walk. There's not much more to do. I harvest the sugarcane, shear the sheep again and decide to spend this last night in my house, finally using the bed I made.

The sun goes down and I lay down to sleep.

Day 11

A new day and a new adventure! I leave my house, close the door behind me. The animals have food, the grass grows quickly around here, and the fence will keep them safe from the hostile creatures. I wave goodbye and then I head north from here.

I don't have any specific place to go, but I spot a waterfall and decide to head towards that. It's better than nothing. I need to cross two rivers to get to the savannah, but once I'm there I quickly dry in the sun. It's hotter here than where my base was, the air is drier. I spot animals – pigs, cows and sheep – and decide to get some extra food. It's midday and I haven't gotten far from my base but I already can't see it in the distance. I have placed fences with torches on top every few meters so I can find my way back again should I ever want to. And if someone come there looking for me they can follow the lights to find me.

I don't think anyone's looking for me, I can't think of anyone who would. I can't think of anyone overall, I have no memories of people, I have no memories of the time before I woke up here. Was I just created there, on the shore? But I feel like I have existed longer than these 10 days. I shake my head and continue walking.

I'm almost at the waterfall when the sun starts setting. It's a small mountain and I'm not sure if I should head up it or follow the river below it. I place a bed on the ground and decide to sleep on it. The savannah is quiet around me and I fall asleep instantly.

Day 12

I wake up with the sun. I've decided to go up the mountain (although it's more like a hill). I cross the river, carve a path in the stone and build a staircase for easier access. It takes time and it's already midday when I make it up there. I'm surrounded by mountains taller than the hill I'm currently in. I can see a swamp to the east but swamps are wet and sticky and I don't want to get sticky water in my boots. One of the mountains is weirdly shaped, the top of it seems to float in the air. The savannah continues along the side of that mountain and I head in that direction.

I chop down a couple of trees as I go, to make it easier to spot the fences I place down. The savannah before me looks broken, shattered, and I wonder what tragedy has caused it. Maybe the creature in the forest I couldn't see had something to do with it. I take a deep breath. I'm not going to let a shadow scare me from continuing.

I make another stair leading down from the mountains. It takes the whole afternoon and I craft a new bed, make another camp. The hard work has left me exhausted and I promptly fall asleep. Tomorrow I have to cross another river to continue my path.

Day 13

I spy with my little eye, something beginning with.... l.

I cross the river. There's a rock in the middle of it and I put another road marker there. Once on the shore again I spot lava flowing down one of the mountains. This place is terrifying and mesmerizing. I continue walking, because that's all I have to do now. I find a lake under the floating mountain. I wonder what magic is keeping this place from falling apart. Towards the west there's an area that looks like a desert and towards north is mountains, more of the shattered savannah. I have to stop, even though I've barely made any ground today. Neither direction looks promising but I have to make a decision.

I decide on the desert. I build myself a boat and cross the lake. The sand is coarse and gets everywhere. Definately a desert. I almost fall into a cave but run back outside before anything in there can see me. Once I manage to make my way up the sandy hill I spy with my little eye even more lava. The sun is already starting to set, time passes in no time as I make my way through the world. I put down a crafting table, make a new bed and settle in for the night.

Day 14

There's a sandmountain close to the lavapool and I decide to climb it. I'm almost at the top when I hear something. I look around and see a pitch black figure with white eyes down on the ground. It disappears before my eyes and reappears on top of the mountain. It doesn't look like it's trying to harm me, but I feel wary of its presence. I keep moving up the mountain, careful not to look at it too much.

At the top I take a moment to look around. There's more savannah, some plains, more desert. And a building!

Buildings mean PEOPLE! I'm saved!

...it's not like I'm actually in trouble, but maybe someone there will know who I am, will be able to tell me where I came from and where I should go. I climb down and rush over there.

I reach the building, and it's buried, abandoned a long time ago. Something breaks inside of me and I decide to stay here for the moment, rethink my plans. I dig in the sand to find some way to enter it. I can't find the entrance but there is an opening in the ceiling and I drop myself down from there. I can explore the building now. It looks intact from the inside, a safe place to spend the night. I light it up, find several exits and then dig down.

There's a huge hole under the building, with four chests. There's items left in there by whoever lived here before. I hear zombies and I wonder if it's the people who lived here before the place got buried. I gather the stuff, put them in a chest in what appears to be the building's main room. They'll be easier for me to retrieve from there if I survive in this world.

It's night outside now. I place a bed and go to sleep.

Day 15

The desert is quiet when I wake up. I climb outside to look at my surroundings. There's one of the tall black creatures in the grass just a short distance from the building. There's also some cows but I have all the food I need for the moment. Some of the food is raw and I should probably cook it. Today I'm taking a break from exploring, I'll just cook up the food and open up this building a little.

I keep looking around in order to decide where to go when I continue. The plain continues on for a while, but I can see the savannah and a swamp on the other side of it. There's something very orange on the side of another mountain (wow, there's a lot of mountains around here) and I decide that I'm going to head that way tomorrow. For now I return into the building.

I run low on coal while cooking the food. I might have to stop somewhere later and burn some charcoal from my wood. It's not much of a problem, but I also don't have a lot of stone left at the moment.

I spend the rest of the day relaxing, exploring the area around the building and gathering sticks from the dead bushes nearby. The sun sets as I make more fences and I roll up in the bed to sleep.

[ceaderblocks]

The Devil’s in the Detail’s Ch. 5

Chapter One // Chapter Two // Chapter Three // Chapter Four //

On A03 here

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made alongside @thematrixmutual

Scar woke up.

He was no longer in the dark space that tore at his lungs and dismembered his thoughts. He was home, tangled in his sheets with Jellie sleeping at the foot of his bed.

Did any of that even happen? Scar thought to himself, sitting up slowly. His muscles were still tender, but if it was from filling in the Cherry hole or the Vex incident, he wasn’t sure.

“Hi, Jellie.” Scar murmured, and the cat stretched, chirping as she settled in his lap, purring loudly. “Yeah, it’s been a weird week. I hope it’s over.”

Scar’s communicator pinged, and he reached to the bedside table to look at it.

Grian: Cool build Scar! Looks awesome!!

Grian: Fits in nice with the aesthetic of the nether portal

“What?” Scar said, his stomach dropping. He hadn’t built anything lately, especially not on Black Sands Island. Jellie meowed at him, rubbing her cheek against his communicator.

Panic raced through Scar’s mind. The Void version of himself, the time in the endless expanse, it was all real. What did he build? Throwing off the covers, Scar stumbled to his feet. He reached for his jacket, but it didn’t hang on the back of the door like usual.

“No,” Scar said staring at the empty hook before throwing open the door and fumbling with fireworks and his Elytra. “No, no no no! This can’t be happening. This- it- it can’t be.”

Finally managing to light the firework, Scar took off, clipping the side of the volcano in his rush. He saw the build as soon as he flew past the tip of the volcano. A pure black column, the size of a chunk, was rooted right beside Black Sand Island, the bottom extending and swallowing part of the island. The rest of the column went into the sky to build height, and Scar could only assume that it also went to bedrock. Grian was on the base, hopping from block to block and examining the base of the pillar. Scar landed on the sand beside it, his legs shaking.

“Scar!” Grian called out with a smile and a wave. “This is amazing! How in the world did you get bedrock into this build?”

Scar didn’t answer, instead covering his mouth in shock. The build was formed of various black blocks, like coal, concrete, concrete powder, obsidian and bedrock. It was imposing, looming over everything and making panic rise in Scar’s chest.

“Scar?” Grian asked, hopping off a block of bedrock to walk to his friend’s side. “Are you alright? You look pale.”

Scar just shook his head, unable to form a coherent thought. Panic buzzed in his veins and blurred his thoughts. Oscar had done this in a day. What else had he done? What were his plans? He felt weak. How had he gotten bedrock? What else could he do?

“Do you need to sit down?” Grian asked, already helping Scar onto the soft sand. “Do you want me to get Cub?”

“No,” Scar said, remembering Oscar’s threats. His fists clenched around the black sand. “I just… didn’t build this.”

“Wait, really?” Grian asked, looking surprised. “I thought I saw you working on it yesterday. Are you pulling a joke on me?”

Scar bit his lip. Did he tell Grian? He didn’t want anyone to get hurt. He opened his mouth to say something, but the whooshing of rockets interrupted him. Xisuma landed on the sand nearby, taking off his helmet and staring in awe at the pillar.

“Isn’t it stunning?” Grian asked with a wide smile and gestured to the pillar, oblivious to Scar’s panic. Xisuma frowned and looked at Scar.

“Did you build this?” Xisuma asked, looking at Scar, worry crossing his face. Scar shook his head and looked at the ground, nervous.

“Hey Grian?” Xisuma asked.

“Yeah?”

“I need to talk to Scar for a bit, if that’s okay?”

Grian smiled, looking more concerned. Taking the hint, he said: “Sure! I’m working on Sahara today anyways, so it’s time for me to go. See ya!”

Xisuma waited until Grian had flown far enough away, before sitting on the ground in front of Scar. Scar hugged himself tighter. Even if Xisuma was a Void Walker, both the Void and Oscar made it clear that he couldn’t tell anyone what was going on.

“Hey,” Xisuma said softly. “I wasn’t talking to you yesterday, was I?”

Scar hugged himself tighter, looking away from Xisuma’s soft gaze. He bit his lip, refusing to answer.

“The Void was different around them,” Xisuma continued. “It was colder than usual. You’re also not as rude.”

Scar snorted a little at that, but still said nothing. Oscar was very rude.

“Scar, I don’t know what’s going on with the Void or the other you, but I want to help-”

“I can’t tell you what they’re doing.” Scar said, tears slipping down his face despite his best efforts. “They said they’ll perma-kill whoever I told. I can’t have that happen to you. You can’t help me.”

Xisuma said nothing, simply moving closer and wrapping Scar in a big hug. Scar froze, then fell into Xisuma’s embrace, clutching onto the Void Walker with desperation.

“You don’t have to tell me anything,” Xisuma muttered, and Scar shoved his face deeper into Xisuma’s shoulder, touch starved. Xisuma hugged back, a solid foundation as Scar simply ignored everything that had happened that week and savoured the moment of support.

“Thank you,” Scar muttered after a few minutes and let go of the hug, sitting up on his own. He wiped a stray tear away and smiled. “Really.”

Xisuma smiled back. “Any time. Can I ask a favour of you?”

Scar frowned a little. “I can’t do much,” he admitted.

“That’s okay. I was hoping for company while working on some server issues,” Xisuma said, “Can I stay with you while you build?”

Can I stay and make sure you’re okay? Was what Xisuma was really trying to say, and Scar smiled.

“That would be great.” Scar said. “Can we go to Cherry? I need to rebuild shop.”

“Of course.” Xisuma said.

The bedrock in Scar’s inventory was heavy. His chest felt lighter, however, knowing he had a friend to help him if anything went wrong.

The grey mask in Cub’s hand was hot. It buzzed with magic and burnt against his skin. Vex whispered around him, swirling in his head in an unpleasant tickling manner.

Where is he? The Vex demanded.  He hasn’t answered our calls.

“I don’t know.” Cub responded, his own mask already on his face.

He needs to come. The Vex snarled. Blue lit up his vision, and Scar’s mask grew hotter in his hands, glowing with untapped magic. Cub’s mask was cool against his face.

“I know.”

Bring him to us. He is not answering our call. He needs us.

Cub sighed. The Vex were always so impatient. Scar had been avoiding the call all week and that was a dangerous game. If the Vex called, you had to answer. Cub didn’t know what would happen if they didn’t. He didn’t want to find out.

“He’s been avoiding me.” Cub admitted. The Vex hissed. Cub placed the mask on the table. It shook with untapped power.

“Me? Never.” A familiar voice said.

“Scar!” Cub said, and turned his own mask to the side, blinking the blue tint out of his vision. He smiled upon seeing his friend leaning against the doorway. Scar’s jacket was cloaked on his shoulders, and he tipped his hat in greeting.

The Vex screamed louder, seeming to be in outrage. Cub ignored this, overjoyed to see his friend.

“You changed your hair,” Cub said, and gave a little tug on the ponytail his friend now wore. Scar’s smile didn’t quite reach his blue eyes.

Blue eyes? Cub thought for a split moment. Must be leftover tint from Vex. Scar has green eyes.

“Needed a change of pace,” Scar said with a light laugh, and embraced his friend. “I thought my hair was a good place to start.”

“It looks good.” Cub smiled. He had missed his friend. “And you’re still my friend, pigtails or ponytails or no tails at all.”

Scar laughed again. “Glad to hear it. It would be so tragic if a ponytail ruined our friendship.”

“Maybe now you’re going for ponytails, I can start doing pigtails.” Cub gently split his beard into two sections, mimicking the pigtails Scar usually wore. “What do you think?”

“I think you better stick with a normal beard. Those pigtails might drive us apart.” Scar nudged Cub in a teasing manner. Cub rolled his eyes while smiling.

“Anyways,” Cub said, and held out Scar’s Vex mask. “I’m assuming this is what you came for?”

“You bet.” Scar said, a wicked smile overcoming his face. He looked at the mask greedily.

Cub frowned, suddenly uneasy. The Vex, instead of calming as they usually did when the two answered their calls, screamed louder as Scar grabbed the mask. Cub winced at the unintelligible noise, growing steadily the longer Scar held the mask. Scar didn’t seem bothered by the noise. It was almost if he couldn’t hear the Vex screaming at all.

“Is something the matter, Cub?” Scar asked, looking worried. His blue eyes met Cub’s brown.

Scar doesn’t have blue eyes. Cub thought. Scar doesn’t wear his hair in a ponytail.

“No,” Cub said.

“That’s good,” Scar said, and donned the Vex mask. “I wouldn’t want any problems.”

The mask slid easily over Scar’s face and for the first time in a very long time, Cub couldn’t hear the Vex at all.

---

Xisuma watched from the sidelines of the Cherry shop as Scar built. He had command screens open, but there really wasn’t anything to work on. He was there to keep an eye on Scar, and both of them knew it. Whatever Scar was building, it wasn’t Cherry.

The dopplegänger from yesterday had made quick work of their pillar, but Scar worked slow and thoughtfully. Even when forced to build something under ransom, Scar was the only person Xisuma knew that would still take his time in making it look good. He watched Scar hum and haw over placing a block of obsidian or bedrock.

“Maybe another block of coal?” Xisuma offered.

“Yeah, that’d look right.” Scar agreed and gazed into the distance for a moment before pulling coal from his inventory. “Thanks!”

Xisuma didn’t ask how Scar had bedrock or seemingly endless supplies of black materials. He knew the Void provided it to him, and if there wasn’t a need for conflict with the Void then Xisuma would rather avoid it. He wasn’t sure what It was up too. He had never known It to force players to build before, and certainly not to replace players.

A cold feeling crept into his chest, and Xisuma stood, startled. The Void was contacting him? Now? The Void never contacted him while he was with people. To speak to the Void was sacred, and It usually called out to him when he was alone.

“Hey Scar?” Xisuma called out, and Scar turned around. He was about 50 blocks into the air on his tower, the walls made but the middle hollow.

“Yeah?”

“I’m going to pass out for a couple of seconds, okay?” Xisuma’s breath was short, the cold overriding his lungs and spreading into his veins. He’d fall unconscious to speak with the Void, and he didn’t want to scare Scar.

Scar looked distressed. “What?”

“The Void. When it speaks, it usually knocks me unconscious.” Xisuma said, his head buzzing. His joints ached with cold, and he winced as he called out, the freezing burning his limbs. The Void didn’t wait. Despite his best efforts, Xisuma curled in on himself, the pain overriding his determination to seem fine. Gasping for air and trying to hold onto consciousness, he didn’t hear Scar land beside him.

“Xisuma? Xisuma?” Scar’s panicked voice reached his ears, but it was too late.

God, he hated this part of being a Void Walker. The pain that came with speaking to the Void was unbearable. He felt himself slump against Scar, and suddenly he was surrounded by darkness.

Floating in the emptiness, Xisuma took a deep breath, placing his head in his hands. He had probably scared Scar senseless. He didn’t know what the Void wanted, and Its recent actions towards Scar scared him.

I̡̩̼̻͉͇ ̰̥̪̻̜̙͕n̲̰̲̕e͜e̸̤̺̜̜ḓ̖͙̫͇͇̪͠ ̤̜̣̹̱̻̙y̡͇̰̬̬̥o͔u̘͉̪̜͞r͏͇̰̫ͅ ̦̟͕͍h̹̦̜e̵͔̥̞l̤͖̮̮̹̺p͎̭̳̠̣͚̺͠.̼̜

“What?” Xisuma asked, surprised, lifting his head. The Void neverasked for help. It simply told him what to do.

Y͉͍͉̺͙o̪̭̳͉̺͔̪̅̑̑ͫͣu̖̭̬̭̝͇̓̏r̓ͤ̈ ̖̙̰͂̏ͯ̌w̻ͤͨͭ̇̑ͯo͕͛̋̀͗ͮ͊ͅr̃ͧl̩̹͒d͈̤͎̟̳̙̙ i̜̓̉͂s͚͓ ͓ͥ̈i̳̗ͦ̿n̘̏̚ ̘̘̣͓̯̌̆ͬͤ͆̑t̖̘̭̲̹̔ͩͦ̈̿͆̅r̠̯͙̓ͨo̜̥̞̔u̳̯̯̞̤̺̞̎̅̃͌̀̓b͕͎͕̭̿̔l̮̞̝͋ê͉̠ͮ̾͑͐ͯ.͕̺̩ ͬ̈́S̤̞̯̜o̳̣̬̭̍̎̏̆̂͂ͥm͙̫͙̠̌ͪ̍e͓̞̲̦ͮ͛͐̄̏͐͌t͎̮̝̠̰̻̿ḥ̙̺ͬ̓î̳͙̭̲̝̦͌͆ͤͫ͛̎n̺͓ͅg͕͙͓̐ ̩̯̫̜͔̗ͥ̿ͪ͊̍̊ẖ̺̙͙̝̦̾̆͐̆ͭ̀̌a̞̠̪͇̩̥̗̒ͣ̆̇̌͗ͧs ͕ͅc̭̻̳̯͙͚̟͆̏h̤̼͊̿ͬ̍ͧ̽a͎͈̤͚̻͕͎n̈ͨg̘͙̺̯̯̒̎ͨ̿̄̚e̠̬d̝̝̭͔̜̞̜̈́ͦ͊,̪͓̘ ̤̙͓̰̫̒a͋̀̄̌ͧ̚n̮̣̬͇̜̟̱̐̈́͂ḍ͔̙̆͗̋̃̌̆ͤ ̭ͭ̄I̜̹̫ͧ͆̐ͅ ̬͓̟̥͚͇͋̃c̤̏̃̓͊ͮ͛ͮa̬͎͉͓ͫ̽͊́̀n̥̜̺̲̖͔͈ͥ̓̓̈́̒n͖͚̜̩̹̆ͥ̈́̍ͫ͐ọ͖̖̗̼ẗ͈̟͎͇̜͋͛ͣͤ̀ ͧf̱̯̤̹̤̘͛͐ͪ͌i̻̹̦̻͈͔ͬ̉ͧx̲̤̦̞ͬͣ̈́̆̐̔͋ ̥̘̮͖̝͇͆̋i̝͓̜̿ͧͦ̀t̙̖̐ͬͩͨ.̥̬̞͒ͤ͆́ͬ̒

“…You can’t?” Xisuma frowned. “Is this to do with your threats to Scar?”

T͉̮̩͉͙̀ͪͪḫ̭̌̔͋͑̋̈́o̥̗̥͍̟̺ͪ̐́̉̐ͅs̖̖̳̞̫͎̋ͯ͐̓ͫ̋̈́ͅe̥̫̓̈́ͨ ̘̳̟̊͂̑̊ͅa̪͚̟̣̾̓̌͛r̟̦͒ē̮̣͎͍̐̇ͭͮ̃ ͚̭̫̤͙̣͓̏ͦ̐̃̃̏ͧn̠̾͌͌̋͌̐͊ọ̪̻̻̣̫͍͂̏̅t̰̹̘̦͍̽͂ ̝̩͓͍̗͑ͮ̏m̹̮̩̼͙̈́ͣ̃̒̉̑̀y͇̻̻͍̣̯̋̽ ͨ̀̆ͦ͛ț̤̘͍̺͈̓̽ͥ̒h̫̪r̻̜̘͖ͭ̈́̍e̋͂̑̑ầ̰̩͇͂͊̈͐̚t͓̅s͕̱͙͌.͔͖̦͍͚͉̈ͪ͌̀̈̉ͪ ̮̮͊̋̅̓͆

The Void snarled, and Xisuma winced at the burning in his head that followed with it.

Ḿy p̛u͠ni̷sh͘me͢n̛t͟ ̴f͟o͢r ҉t̛he̕ Vęx t҉ram͜p͏l̀ing͝ ͘on͏ ́m̛y҉ ͘r͞e͘alm w͡as ̨to̵ r͠em̵ơv͢e҉ them f̸rom̧ ́the̛ir ̀Ho͏st ̸for ́à ̧w͘h̀i̷le̵.̀ The͡ Vex̷ ̀se͝paŕa҉ted̢ t̕hemsęlves͏ ̛an̷d̵ inf͞u͢s͡ed ̛t҉hem̵s̷el̀v͝es ͟w̡it̀h͡ ̢my ҉m͢a͡gi͘c̕. ҉That̡ ͏is̡ w͏ha͝t p̷l͢agués̶ you̢r͜ frie̵n͠d.͘

Xisuma’s head spun. “But… the towers…? The perma-death…?”

Th̴ę ̶f̛alse V̶o̢id ͟h҉as ͞i͘mm̧ęn͜se power̨s҉.҉ ̧Ţh̷ey͠ a͘re ͠t̛he͘ cḩi͝l̡d͡ ̷of pa͞i̕n̸ ànd̵ ḑesper̴atio̴n ̷and ͘the ̀spli͢t͜t̢ing of̡ the V̡ex ̛and̛ t̴h͢é ̀Ho͟st. ̸T͞hey ha̷ve t̴a̛k͜e̵n͜ ͏t̛he͝ir ow̸ǹ ac͜tio̡ns,͞ a̷n̡d ͞I ̵canno͠t́ stop ́the͘m.̸

“That would be like killing yourself.” Xisuma realized. Scar’s dopplegänger was the result of the Vex trying to control the Void and failing. The Void couldn’t destroy Itself.

The Void was silent.

“You need me to kill the other Scar.” Xisuma said softly. He had never killed someone before.

I n̴e͜e͢d y͜oư make the͏ ̕H̴os̀t̀ ͞ki̸ll t̴h͘e͏ ̢Vex C̀hild. To brin̶g ͠t́hemse͠lve҉s̸ b̵a̛ck͝ to̡ ͝one ͘b́e̵in͡g.̶ Or ̢the͡ V͞e͟x C̷h͘il͟d́ ̕w͘i̶l͘l͟ ͜destr̢oy ́th̛e̕ ̶un͘i̧verse҉ ̀ùnd͟e͞r ҉my ͏na͘m͡e̸,͝ ̷a͠n͘d̕ your ͢f͢rien̷d̕s w̵i͡l͘l̢ ̷d͜i͡e a̛long͘sid͡e̡ ͜i̷t.̸

“But how do we kill something that’s Vex and Void magic?” Xisuma asked.

Y̗̥͍̕ou̷̦̻͎̟̱ ̲̦͓͇m̫͓̤̻̬̕ụ͘ş̱̙͎̤t̷̥-̵--

A sudden burst of magic tore Xisuma from the Void, and he screamed the cold searing his limbs and burning his lungs and he was being torn to pieces atom by atom and he wouldn’t survive this he w o u l d n’ t-

Xisuma’s eyes flew open, and he saw Scar hovering over him, blue eyes filled with concern. Xisuma rolled onto his side, coughing and gasping for air as the phantom pains of being torn from the Void wracked his body. He clumsily tore his helmet off his head, tears leaking from his eyes as he pressed his forehead to the Endstone, trying to find some grounding.

“Oh my god,” Scar said, relief overcoming him. “Thank goodness you’re awake. I was so worried.”

Still wheezing, Xisuma winced at the sickly-sweet stench of Chorus fruit. He tried to focus on Scar and rolled back onto his back to face his friend.

“Scar,” Xisuma said, and Scar looked at him, concerned. “Scar, I know what to do.”

“And what’s that?”

“The Void doesn’t want you to build those pillars, it’s the dopplegänger. You have to kill him before he ruins the server.”

“Correct.” Scar said, impassively.

“…What?” Xisuma’s heart sank, his heart pounding in panic. Why was Scar so calm?

Xisuma sat up, leaning heavily on the Endstone beside him.

Endstone? Wait. That’s not right. He was just at Cherry and-

“Fuck,” Xisuma said, putting the pieces together. Oscar smiled, leaning over Xisuma, who was too exhausted to defend himself.

“I’m part of the Void, remember? I can sense when you’re speaking to it. I knocked Scar out, got Cub to move you here under the guise of a prank, and now you’re stuck.”

Xisuma didn’t answer, instead attempting to pull up his admin screens. Typing in the first command he thought of, Xisuma cursed when it didn’t go through.

[ COMMAND NOT RECONIZED. ]

“You didn’t really think I was that stupid, did you?” Oscar rolled his eyes, standing and pulling up his own admin screens.

“Oh! Look here! It seems the only admin on the server is…. BadTimesWithScar! Good news, Xisuma! No one can interfere now.” He snarled.

Xisuma’s heart sank.

“Wait, do you know what you’re doing? You’ll ruin everything, including your chance at living here. It’ll all be gone!”

“I know.” Oscar said. “I’ll see you in Hell when I get there.”

Xisuma scampered to his feet, reaching for Oscar, but he teleported himself outside the iron bars that surrounded Xisuma’s prison.

“Please, you can’t do this!” Xisuma called out, holding onto the iron bars. “We can work something out, just listen to me! Everything will be gone!”

Oscar looked up from his admin screens, uninterested. Instead of responding, he gave a mock salute and disappeared, teleporting to who knows where.

Xisuma was left in the End, abandoned.

[darklesmylove]

wicked games ch. 2 | jurdan

check it out on ao3 as well!

Cardan's P.O.V

Cardan could not have been more drunk, and he was dimly aware of that fact. His pupils were blown wide, laughter bubbling from his lips as he staggered into his room, leaning heavily against Locke and Nicasia.

"Cardan, walk straight."

He dimly registered the command, though he paid it no mind. In fact, he was entirely too occupied with thinking of Jude to do much of anything else. A heavy stumble landed him straight into a face full of the soft sheets of his bed. He let out an exhale of satisfaction, clutching the fabric into his chest as though it were the curve of her mortal body. "Jude," he murmured, a gentle hum of delight.

A haughty scoff made his heavy eyelids flutter open to see Nicasia glaring at him while Locke looked on in relative disinterest. "Why are you still obsessing over that stupid mortal?" she seethed, folding her arms tightly over her chest, "She killed your brother and is in exile for fuck's sake, get over her already!" Anger sparked in his chest, burning hotter with the addition of the alcohol running through his veins. "Get out, you're the stupid one," he snapped, his normally sharp tongue unable to come up with a better reply what with the wine weighing it down with sweet, cloying liquor. She visibly bristled, her piercing eyes glittering with something akin to hatred before she promptly swept out of his rooms in a twirl of sapphire blue silk.

Locke remained, his arms loosely folded over his chest as he regarded the High King in a contemptuous manner that most would consider to be borderline treason. "What is your fascination with her?" Locke finally questioned, the inquiry laced with a suspicious amount of curiosity. Cardan swiped his tongue over his lower lip, lapping up the last bit of gold staining it. A soft moan of content escaped his slightly parted mouth, his eyes fluttering closed as the room tilted around him. He hugged the soft press of sheets even closer. "Cardan?" Locke pressed, his steps nearing the side of the bed. In a haze of drunken stupor and delight, he let the words slip.

"I'm in love with her."

Locke's startled exhale was almost imperceptible, yet still surprising considering he didn't often get shocked.

He didn't say another word, merely walking out and leaving the High King alone in his chamber to continue to drunkenly whisper into the sheets so lovingly it was as if the fabric was actually Jude herself, the mortal women he had long ago realized he was hopelessly, irretrievably in love with.

***

Jude's P.O.V

"Jude I really think you need to start considering getting a job," Vivi spoke with a touch of concern, her words slightly distorted due to the mouthful of cereal she was chewing. I didn't bother to look up from my spot on the couch, watching the game show flashing on the television set with what one looking on would probably describe as a concerningly dazed look on my lips. "Hello?" Vivi repeated insistently, a tinge of irritation edging the word. I gradually shifted my attention, looking over at my older sister with the interest of someone pulled away from their last meal. "What, Vivi," I sighed, the ache in my chest thrumming back into existence at the sight of her cat eyes.

Any reminder of Faerie was almost excruciating, taking my breath away as if someone had slammed a fist straight into my gut.

"I really think you should get a job, it'll help you," Vivi reiterated with a slight pitying tilt of her head. I clenched my jaw, folding my arms over my chest with a clear air of defiance. "Help me what?"

"If you really want me to say then I will. You need help to get over what Cardan did to you. Come on Jude, you know I'm right."

Anger grew thick in my mouth. "Don't fucking say his name to me," I hissed in return, my fingers viciously digging into the leather cushions of the worn, weathered couch. Every emotion I had felt as I was dragged away by guards in front of a wickedly pleased audience whilst staring into his coal black eyes came flooding back in a staggering wave. The thought of his eyes sent a pang of infuriating longing throughout my body.

I thought I might have loved those eyes once.

Now I wanted nothing more than to pin him to the ground and gouge those eyes out for revenge.

"I'm perfectly content to live out the rest of my days on this couch," I clenched my teeth, returning my gaze to the television. With that, I ignored every subsequent word out of Vivi's mouth, stubbornly narrowing my eyes at the screen in front of me. I didn't move for what felt like an eternity, even after Vivi was long gone I didn't shift a single muscle until a full hour passed after the front door had closed.

Then the tears came.

Tears of anger, betrayal, heartbreak, it was all a tangled mess of emotions at this point that not even I myself could discern. I craved his touch, his voice, his snarky remarks and whispered vulnerabilities and drunken ramblings. I hated that I craved it, so much so that it was dizzying. The tears continued to spill from my eyes and stream down my cheeks as I threw my body off the couch, making for the kitchen with furious, wild steps.

"I'm going to destroy him," I sobbed to no one in particular in something like consolation, snatching a knife from its designated drawer and clenching the grooved handle tightly in my calloused palm. My feet moved into a battle stance as naturally as breathing, jerking the knife in repeated patterns of sword maneuvers just as I had done time and time again back in Faerie.

Except now, standing on the scuffed linoleum floor and wielding nothing but a dull steak knife, I was imagining the crystal clear image of the High King's face as I stabbed the air with increasing ferocity.

I would get my revenge, one way or another, it was only a matter of time.

***

Cardan's P.O.V

Cardan was in the depths of a council meeting when someone whispered the words in his ear, a rumor that had been skittering through the palace walls with increasing frequency.

His slender fingers tightened around the armrests of his throne, his heart stuttering, almost skipping a beat entirely.

Immediately, he knew who had to be behind it.

"Excuse me," he stiffly spoke as he stood up with his newfound air of authority that easily silenced the room, interrupting whoever had been in the middle of speaking.

Quite frankly he didn't care about whoever he had cut off, he was seeing too much red to even discern the individual anyways.

The room fell silent as they watched him stalk out, hands clenched and tail flicking back and forth in agitation.

A rare event when the High King lost his temper, making it that much more terrifying when it happened.

It didn't take long for him to find who he was looking for, one of the few people he had thought he could call a friend.

"Locke!" he snarled, making him turn, tawny eyes widening a split second before Cardan slammed him against the cold stone wall, pinning him there with a painfully placed elbow against his throat. The High King looked at him with the heat of murder, coal black eyes blazing with fire, his dazzlingly white teeth bared. "You dare speak of her," he spat, the overwhelming rush of anger drowning out any other rational thought.

The shock quickly dissipated from Locke's features, an exaggeratedly innocent look replacing it. "What is the matter my good friend? I was merely speculating on the reasoning behind her exile." Locke's surely satisfied tone was almost enough to destroy the last scrap of restraint Cardan had left. "Yes, rumoring that your High King impregnanted his former seneschal, what a harmless speculation," Cardan seethed, his sharp jawline even deadlier with clenched tension. Locke shrugged as much as he was able to under Cardan's suffocating grip, tilting his head slightly in provocation, "I must admit it was a ridiculous speculation considering you hate her, right? My High King?" A mocking agreeability stained his silky words, making Cardan jerk backwards in a movement dangerously close to a flinch.

An affirmation desperately tried to roll off his tongue, but as much as he tried, he couldn't get the word out. Instead, he settled for a curt nod.

There was a moment of stillness, the two Faerie men staring at each other in something like a silent challenge. Finally, Cardan stepped away from him, his eyes as black as blotches of spilled ink against parchment. "Keep your gossiping to a minimum in the future," he ordered in a dangerously soft tone, pausing for another long moment before turning on his heels and striding back down the hallway, chest aching with the revelation that maybe the person he had just walked away from was not anything close to his friend.

***

Cardan's P.O.V

He had set his room on fire again.

This time he was alone, he had tipped a precariously balanced candle over and watched in intoxicated fascination as his curtains quickly became swallowed by hot, flickering flames. He felt no fear as he watched them burn, the heat washing over his skin a welcome caress.

He felt nothing.

And yet, despite the numb, hollow feeling slowly carving out his chest, when the Bomb rushed in to find his room destroyed and up in flames, he still had managed to dissolve into sobs, his face pressed against the soft comfort of his pillow. A pillow that he had saved and held close, the one that Jude had slept on the night he had asked her to be his wife.

"Cardan, wh-what is going on?" the Bomb panicked, immediately rushing to the corner to stomp out the flames with the thick rubber sole of her boot. He didn't answer, he couldn't answer, not with the realization that he had sent away the only person that had ever cared for him. The only person that might have even loved him someday.

The Bomb put out the last of the flames with an accompanied scowl of something between anger and worry. "Jude is not here to babysit anymore, Cardan, seriously, what the hell was this, you could have gotten seriously hurt!" she snapped, instantly regretting her harsh language when he flinched in response. He still couldn't trust himself to speak, instead reaching for the liquor bottle at his side and pressing the cool rim to his lips. The burn was a welcome distraction, he tilted his head back, making his golden crown tip slightly askew. "Nothing could hurt as bad as this," he spoke in something dangerously close to a whimper. His eyes closed, long dark lashes and smudged black charcoal only accentuating the glistening trails of dried tears on his pale cheeks.

The Bomb found herself, quite simply, speechless.

"I miss her," Cardan continued softly, his throat constricting painfully around the words, "I miss her so much it hurts, and as we speak she's in exile most certainly coming up with the best way to string me up by my stupid guts. And the worst part of it all is that I'd let her do it. I'd let her do whatever she wanted to me."

Another long, lingering drink. It tasted as fresh as chilled water on his tongue, a sure sign that he now was completely and utterly wasted out of his mind.

His tail curled against his leg, twitching back and forth with dull agitation.

"Cardan, I'm sorry to say but you need to let go of her," the Bomb spoke gently, picking her words as cautiously as she could and carefully avoiding mention of Jude's name, "She's exiled, so unless you plan on lifting that decree you can't be with her. And you know as well as I that she probably wouldn't want to be with you regardless."

The words stung.

He absently twisted one of the heavy silver rings stacked on his long, elegant fingers, eyes glazing with thoughts far, far away from the room he was currently in. "Do you think she thinks about me?" he slurred slightly, the words thick and heavy on his tongue.

The Bomb visibly hesitated, uncertainty flashing in her eyes. "Maybe. I don't know."

Cardan let a bitter laugh spill from his slightly parted lips, a fresh tear unceremoniously working its way down his cheek.

Another drink.

"I really hope I don't remember this tomorrow," he suddenly determined a mere second before his eyes fluttered closed, body going limp as, promptly, he passed out.

tags: @highqueenofelfhame @daddycardan @barrowmare @lazyperfectionistteen @brittpetersen @greenbriaars @thequeenofeveything @sanktaleks @sleepingfancies @feysandmaraudersdramatic @thomasscresswell 

[zwei-the-penguin-with-a-pen]

‘Mr. Song’

Neon rolled out of bed and got to her morning routine, brushing her teeth and hair. She even brushed her tail, since it was warmer out and she'd started shedding. She could hardly wait for this awesome gig.

She and Flynt were performing at a formal dance later that night. Playing dress up was always fun, even if she would have to get her hair done. Neon had heard that those girls from Beacon had made their way to Atlas as well. They might even make the scene.

She would have so much to talk about with the Schnee girl and the blonde. They still hadn't gotten to hang out, what with the school being destroyed. She hoped those two and their teammates were doing alright.

Neon's Scroll buzzed. Probably Flynt reminding her to get extra cute for their gig. Or he might want to get one last practice in before the dance. Flynt almost never stopped practicing. Then again, he was a quartet by himself. Neon only played drums because Flynt needed a fifth person and Neon could actually keep up with his music.

Flynt was the most talented person Neon had ever met. She was proud to be his bandmate, teammate, and girlfriend. She liked girls more than guys, but they were both cute. Her last girlfriend had left school and moved to Menagerie. Neon wondered what the cute chameleon girl was up to these days. She still felt sorry about that incident, but the girl had broken the teeth of those who had made fun of her.

Neon had helped. It was a fun time.

Katt picked up her Scroll. Flynt had sent her a good morning text as well as a reminder to look especially stunning for the dance. The message ended with 'Not that I have to tell you to look incredible, love' and Neon blushed.

A knock came at the door. She answered to see her favorite couple, Saffron Dragonglass and Berry Blizzard.

"Alright, Kitty! Let's get you fine!" Berry cheered as she zoomed into the room, the small bear ears on her head wiggling excitedly. Saffron grabbed her girlfriend by the arm, wagging her fluffy fox tail.

"She's already fine, Berry. We're just getting her ready to serve nosebleeds..." Saffron was softspoken and unimaginably tall next to Neon. There was more than a foot of height difference between the fox girl with the flowing golden hair and her bear girlfriend with the short wine-colored spikes. That must have made their alone time interesting.

"Please try not to grope me that much, Berry. I know you want this body, but you can't have it!"

Berry scoffed. "Saff's got more than plenty of body for me!"

"Of course she does! Girl's got so much body she should be continued on the next girl!" Neon complimented. Saffron blushed brightly.'

The two girls got Neon dance ready in a matter of hours, and Neon made the scene early to catch a final practice session. Flynt killed it, as always, and Neon did well enough, she thought. Neon went to kiss Flynt, but he disappeared. Right, Blue Flynt was usually the real one. She'd leaned in for a kiss with Red Flynt. The striping on his hat changed colors for each of his copies.

There wasn't much of a way to tell when none of them were dressed, but that was fine with Neon. If they were all naked it was always a good time.

The original Flynt kissed her, all her worries melting away. She was always nervous before concerts, but her favorite boy's lips always calmed her nerves. "We're gonna kill it, Honeybee!"

"We ain't called the 'Killer Quartet' for nothing, Sweetie!" Neon grinned and kissed her man again. The crowds started pouring in, and Flynt and Neon readied themselves.

Neon saw the blonde bomb from Beacon. There was a dark-haired knockout with cat ears on Blondie's arm. She skimmed over the crowd looking for the Schnee girl, seeing her with the short-haired girl from their team. Aww, their teammates were their girlfriends. That was just adorable.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen, and everyone in between... Welcome to the Atlas Ball. My lovely girlfriend and I will bring the sultry sounds to your ears for this dance. We are Flynt Coal's Killer Quartet! This song is called 'Jupiter Jazz'!" That was Neon's cue. She tapped a cymbal in time and waited for Flynt's guitar.

The sound of his chords filled the room, and her drums came in behind him. Soon the whole spot was dancing, the slaying sounds of Flynt's jazz bouncing around the room. 'Jupiter Jazz' always got the crowds moving, but their next song would fire the place up even more.

"Now we're gonna do a Seatbelts cover! Any Cowboy Bebop fans out here?" A few cheers rang out, making Flynt grin. "Alright then, here's 'TANK!' for your listening pleasures!" This song got Neon especially fired up. It was an onslaught of horns and energy over a hot beat and some positively fire bass.

This one got the dancers hot. Speaking of hot, Blondie and her Kitty Cat were hotter than magma. It was hard for Katt not to stare. Not even their looks, although they looked breathtaking, the way they danced was remarkable. The catgirl's hips popped in time with the bass, and Blondie followed the beat with her steps. They dipped and twirled with the music as though they were one person.

A few songs later, Flynt announced that the band would be taking a quick ten. Music poured over a PA while Flynt and Neon had their break. Neon ran over to Blondie and chatted her up.

"I haven't seen you guys since the Vytal Festival! I'm glad you guys survived all that!" Neon sympathized.

"We've survived that and much more, Neon!" Yang told her.

"So I see you're still top heavy. Looks like your bottom's heavy, too!" Neon jabbed as she looked at Yang's partner.

"The name's Blake, and I'm usually a top. I only bottom for Yang," The cat girl with the black hair told her.

"Yeah, Yang's got the top energy. Say, who's the white-haired girl got on her arm? She's cute!"

"That would be my sister Ruby," Yang answered. Neon nodded, excusing herself to retake the stage.

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Day 24: Character We Haven’t Seen in a While

NEON KATT! ANd Flynt Coal.

I’ve seen some art and prompts of Neon making jokes at the Bees, so here we are.