#full of energy and speed and instinct sure

[warmcoals]

i played with a brand new ultrababy kitten yesterday and my heart still hasnt recovered

[mrsvalentinefucker1]

Tight space

Sniper x f!reader

You and sniper were running at full speed looking for somewhere to hide as the opposing teams spy tailed you. Though there was practically nothing either of you could do considering you had no ammo and no one was around, you managed to find a small place to hide. It looked to be another spot sniper was familiar with, one he’s definitely been in while doing his job. You both bolted towards it, you tried to keep up with sniper as best as you could. When you two finally reached the door Sniper shouted for you to hurry as he held the door open waiting for you. Once you got in Sniper quickly jumped in and slammed the door. He slid his knife through the handle to make sure the Spy couldn’t pull it open.

Your breathing was uneven and heavy

Sniper motioned to you to quiet down as he head the footsteps around your hiding place.

You nodded and steadied your breathing.

You two were incredibly close with one another right now.. and you’d be lying if you said it didn’t kind of turn you on in a weird way.

You admired Snipers calm composure.. how he was so calm in this situation, you didn’t know.

A loud thud pulled you out of your imagination and you were slung into the man’s chest earning a grunt from him. One of his free hands instinctively grabbed you while his other held onto the small wall to hold himself up.

You looked up at him, your ear on his chest.. hearing his heartbeat was an indescribable feeling. You felt safe, even with everything going on outside of your shared hiding place.

“You okay?” He looked around and then down at you, locking eyes through his yellow tinted sunglasses.

You stood back up straight “yeah- sorry.”

“No worries.”

You looked the man up and down, stopping when you noticed a growing bulge in his pants.

You averted your eyes hoping he didn’t catch you staring

“Sorry about that- it kind of just happens yaknow?” Sniper whispered

You nodded as your face was heating up. The way he whispered sent chills down your spine. God the way he spoke.

You clenched your legs together.

“Can you see anything?”

“No, unfortunately not, Shiela” sniper looked down at your smaller form.

You unconsciously squirmed from his gaze

“You doing okay?”

You nodded “just- hot-“

“You sure?” Sniper smirked at you

“O- of course.. what else would it be?” You looked down at your feet

“I dunno, you weren’t acting all this weird before I caught you staring.”

You locked eyes with Sniper “I wasn’t staring” you rolled your eyes

Sniper chuckled. “We’re here all alone, no one can hear you but me” Sniper moves closer towards you and let his gloved hand tilt your face in his direction. “Come on bird.”

His hard cock poking your stomach as he nudged your face

Your face was burning “oh god.. you know I love when you say that.”

He hummed in response, dipping his lips down to leave small bites and hickeys down your neck and collarbone.

“Sniper..” you whimpered out

“Yeah, roo?”

You sighed “Please stop teasing me..” you whispered

“Sounds like someone’s more eager than I am.” He chuckled

His low chuckles always sent a jolt of energy through your body

“Alright then, be a good girl and turn around for me.”

You did what you were told. Sniper came up behind you, fiddling with your belt as he kissed and nipped at your neck more, leaving sharp, dark bites from his teeth.

His gloved hand made its way to your clothed pussy. Teasingly stroking your clit through your panties that seemed to get more wet through the second.

“Soaking through your panties already? Naughty girl, Y/n”

He slipped underneath your panties and started messing with your soaked, slick, sticky folds.

You moaned in response “please Mick.. just“ you attempted to grind against the man

“Oh y/n.. you know I can’t ever say no to ya’.” He undid his pants, peeled back the fabric of his boxers and allowed his cock to spring free against you.

He had to lift your smaller body up while he lined his cock up with your soaked hole.

He slipped the tip in and the used both of his hands to hold you just slightly off of the ground as you held onto the wall in front of you

He was literally using you as his own personal sex doll.

“Fuck, you’re so tight..” he muttered out as he began to fuck into you slowly. Gently kissing your shoulders and neck. His cock pressing deliciously against your cervix.

You bit your lip. Muffling your moans as he finally began to pick up the pace your legs shaking and dangling freely as he did so.

“No, don’t silence yourself. Be as loud as you want, baby.”

His cock pierced into you as you gripped onto the wall for dear life. Your orgasm was fast approaching and by the sounds of his uneven breathing and sharp, low moans, he was too.

You let out a loud moan as he continued to fuck into you. Your walls clenching around him “fuck! Harder! Please m-Mick. Harder! I’m so close oh god-“ you had a blissful fucked out dazed expression across your face as you felt his hard cock press against your tummy. A small bulge forming as he fucked harder into your tight cunt

“Good girl, this cunts mine, huh? Nobody else’s” his voice was low and oh god.. that accent could make a pornstar blush. You only mumbled at his words “fuck, oh good god, yes!-“

His orgasm crashed into him as he fucked into you, his hot cum leaving a heavy feeling inside of your lower tummy. It sent shocks down your spine as your own orgasm rushed over you. His grip tightened as you milked him for every last drop of his hot sticky cum. He groaned and held you there, pulling you back onto his cock harshly while you two worked through your orgasm. He loomed over you while the two of you stayed put. A loud bang fell onto the door. A bullet shot right past the two of you. You instinctively clenched around him as you gasped out of fear. Sniper hissing at the feeling

“I can hear you both. How disgusting, you filthy bushman. During battle of all times?”

[cool-fancier]

Unspoken Safety

Synopsis: You go against your bodyguard's advice, but she's always there to protect you, and a passionate kiss grows the connection between you.

The beginning of the night had been an exhilarating journey into the unknown, an opportunity to explore a new world away from the security of your daily routine. Anticipating a great time, you arrived at the party full of energy, ready to mix in with the drinkers and take in the energy of the place. However, you couldn't deny that Bada, your personal bodyguard, wasn't exactly happy that you went to the event.

You could sense the excitement in the air as you made your way through the lively crowd. People were mesmerised by the moment as they moved to the beat of the music that filled the arena. Smiles from others welcomed you, and you laughed and soaked up the party atmosphere as you joined in on their chats.

However, there was a faint discomfort in the background, knowing that you had ignored Bada's advise. She had brought up her concerns about your safety in a new place on several occasions, and she had cautioned you not to go to this event. She took her duty to safeguard you seriously. That was her job. Her only goal for the evening was to watch over you from the shadows, to make sure you stayed safe.

You had no idea that Bada was blending in with the crowd while her sharp eyes were fixed on you. She didn't like to stand out, and her amazing body let her fit in with the partygoers while keeping her instincts razor-sharp.

As the evening wore on, the contagious spirit of the party captivated you. You enjoyed the freedom of being free of your regular responsibilities and the spontaneity of the evening. You had become lost in the bustle and the excitement of the celebrations, unable to see Bada's messages.

Your phone vibrated with a new message all of a sudden. As you looked down, you saw Bada's curt text, "It's time to leave. I'm on my way. Stay put."

You realised that you had pushed the boundaries once more and ignored her caution. Now the party had gotten out of hand, much worse than you could have anticipated. You should've heeded her warning and stayed safe, but your impulsive side had won out.  Upon hearing her order, you responded with a straightforward "I'm fine."

But whether you wanted Bada to come or not, a feeling of shame tugged at your conscience, and you knew she was on her way. She never would have left you on your own, especially in strange and maybe dangerous settings, because she had vowed to protect you.

Shortly after, Bada's towering figure emerged from the crowd, her tenacity evident as her eyes locked onto you. You felt a wave of relief mixed with frustration. The guests couldn't help but look at her because of her obvious presence. The mood changed, as if a mysterious power had stepped into the space.

With steady purpose, Bada moved towards you, and you realised there was no use in resisting. With a firm but kind grip, she took hold of your arm and led you away from the crazy celebration.

Every stride you took with Bada was met with an abundance of emotions that overcame you. It was exhausting, but her protectiveness also showed how keen she was to keep you safe.

You were now following her, finding it difficult to match her quick speed. "Slow down! You begged, still feeling the affects of the earlier adrenaline rush. "I can't walk that fast."

Bada's pace didn't slow. Her need was steadfast and her grip stayed solid. As you were being brought away from the party's clamour, there was a noticeable tension in the air. Though Bada's annoyance was obvious, you could see concern lurking beneath her tough demeanour.

Bada let go of your arm when you arrived to a nearby car, but she still turned to face you. Her serious face was shadowed by the night, and her tattooed arms were crossed over her chest. "Did you enjoy acting like a wild animal?" she said,her voice laced with irritation.

You playfully but slyly hit her back out of defensiveness. "What are you so pissed off about? It was just a party."

Bada seemed to look right through you, her eyes narrowing as her attitude stayed unwavering. "It's not just about the party. It's about your safety. I can't let anything happen to you."

There was a pause as you understood how deeply concerned she was. Bada's constant devotion to your well-being was evidence of the special relationship you two had. It was more than just a work assignment; it was a verbal promise and an unwritten agreement.

That's when you made the decision to become closer to Bada. You took a step closer and gently met her lips with yours. A kiss that expressed the feelings that had left unsaid, a kiss full of a mixture of longing, impatience, and affection.

You two gave in to the passion that had always simmered under the surface, and the tension that had been building all night appeared to dissipate. The world around you vanished as Bada's arms wrapped around you and drew you closer.

Finally, your lips parted, bringing your foreheads together, and you said, "I get it, Bada. I'll take extra care. I swear."

Bada's thumb stroked your cheek, softening her expression. "Good. Because I can't bear the thought of anything happening to you."

Hand in hand, you and Bada left the party. You two had a relationship unlike any other, based on a special dedication and intense love. You couldn't help but think as you were leaving that, in spite of the difficulties, you would rather have no one else by your side to look out for and take care of you.

The evening served as a reminder that, on sometimes, you required protection against yourself—someone who loved enough to go above and beyond simple freedom. That someone was Bada, and her commitment demonstrated how strong your bond was.

[yanderederee]

MangaMayhem

MiniMemories

March14th, 2004

:before…› here! › next! › …

For the next four months, Baji Keisuke has found himself in many frustrating situations.

Chronologically; once Ryusei caught hook of Baji’s interest in you, he was over the moon. He thought it was hilarious.

The Baji Keisuke: The mad dog of Toman, 1st Division Attack fleet Captain…

… turning into a tame lapdog under your scowl.

Chifuyu enabled this, especially when you agreed to tutor him as well. You were encouraging, putting together the most detailed of study packets together. How you made flash cards with cute doodles on some of them for hints or reminders.

… had you not already been spoken for, he would have fell in love on day one.

However, Chifuyu, above anything else, was Baji’s right hand man. Chifuyu would never intentionally disrespect him like that.

—unless—

Your reputation took a bit of a dip anytime you were seen around school with them, so Baji became more strict of his friends’ boundaries. He couldn’t have your name getting out to a rival gang somewhere. He couldn’t risk you finding out his underground reputation.

That’s the part that always confused Baji.

Baji was confident in who he was. He would chew anyone out for daring to say any different.

Yet the thought of you seeing him in toman garb,

his fists red and angry,

the face of bloodlust taking his features to terrifying heights,

the things he prided himself in!

He felt scared.

Baji didn’t have the emotional maturity to really explain the reason for this reaction.

He just really wanted you to like him, even if it meant hiding who he really was, becoming soft, if only for a few minutes.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯✦

“Come on Baji, you can be honest with me!” Chifuyu mused loudly, still pulling manga out from the box he dragged up two floors of apartment stairs.

“You’re a dumbass.” Baji spat at the blonde, releasing Peke J from his hold once he was finally brushed through. Having an outdoor cat means taking care of their coat more often than usual.

Not like Sango, who was stuck being a indoor ball of energy. He was more surprised that his mom was so easy to convince after mentioning how he’d come across the injured cat.

No, Sango’s coat was fluffy and was inconvenient for his black wardrobe. But instead of blaming Sango, he simply bought a pack of lint rollers which were in every room of the apartment now.

“I don’t mean that honest,” Chifuyu snapped his fingers to get Baji’s attention back. “Just read the damn mangas!” He ordered with a confident grin. “Anything that’s confusing you, I’m sure you can find a solution among these babies!”

Finally looking at what brightly colored manga was being shoved in his hand, Baji instinctively threw the novel full speed into Chifuyu’s forehead.

“What the hell?!” Chifuyu screamed, covering his nose with whiny protest. “What the hell is right! Don’t give me that crap! You know I ain’t interested in that kinda stuff!” Baji scowled his friend, face red.

It took him a few minutes to calm down, but after some gourmet peiyan yakisoba, and a few bribes later, Baji finally agreed to read the first three manga volumes. Chifuyu could be very convincing, after all.

Shojo manga were never really his thing. The fighting was too mellow and no one had the balls to actually say what they meant.

He thought it was so Lame.

But Chifuyu knows what kind of person Keisuke Baji was. He was kind and protective, misleadingly rude at times, but gentle when it mattered. Chifuyu did his research, and picked a select few golden titles amongst his collection.

The perspective of the titles he so gingerly picked were from the male gaze, and their thought process when falling in love with the female lead.

So lame.

Baji wanted to be bored, if only to spite his over dramatic underclassman. But fate be damned, when he actually sat through it, he became invested.

He accidentally finished first volume in twenty minutes. How the hell could it leave off on a cliff hanger though? Keisuke wanted to chalk it up to shitty writing but when he reached for the second volume it kicked in.

“No way! You read that way too fast! Com’on!” Chifuyu roared, accusing his friend of not actually reading it.

Baji lazily read through it a second time, taking in the words and considering things that made him feel the same way. It was so lame to waste so much time trying to relate to a dumbass who can’t even talk to some chick.

Yet there he was, middle of a page when a pang echoed in his chest.

The plot Chifuyu had picked follows a Male Lead who was born with a scary face, making it so no one would get close to him; who then meets a girl from the neighboring school. She is kind, and only sees him for his kind heart, helping him learn what it means to feel romantic love.

(“The Fragrant Flower Blooms with Dignity”!! Please read !!!!! )

… And in this particular scene, the female lead gently admits ‘that was actually really cool!’ when he had scared off the group of guys who tried to attack the girl.

Do girls think being scary is cool?

Baji glared at Chifuyu, who was excitedly waiting for his reactions. “This is bullshit,” he rolled his eyes.

“No way! The hell you saying that for?!” The blond retorted.

“I didn’t want to say it but honestly Baji…” Chifuyu shook his head. “…you’re the real dumbass.”

You are here… › next! › …

[whats-it-mean]

mikoto/john protecting reader from kotoko… like kotoko is beating reader down for being guilty and john absolutely BODIES her. i love protective boys

Not gonna let you get hurt ☆

Mikoto/John x reader

A/N - THIS IS SUCH A SILLY PROMPT. we love a protective boy SO MUCH <3333 its more john leaning than mikoto since in canon mikoto says he doesnt remember fighting kotoko off, which leads us to believe it was john who fought her, hope thats alright <3

C/W -  Descriptions of a violence/fighting, Being chased, cussing

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

It was cold and quiet, practically no noise other than the tap of your rushed footsteps on the metal flooring and your labored breathing. Everything felt rushed and messy with the way you almost ran directly into the wall trying to turn, practically tripping over yourself as you made a last-ditch effort to switch directions on the corner before you sent yourself sprinting down the next hall.

You tried as hard as you could to ignore the feeling in your legs that they might give out at any moment, spending all your energy without so much as a thought spared for the issues it might cause you later. All you could bring yourself to was run, in no particular direction, the fear in your body being the only thing powering your adrenaline.

“Fuck.” It was as if you froze in place, your legs unable to move until you collapsed into the corner of where the hallway ended, promising your doom. Would she kill you? Escaping was futile now, with how close you could hear Kotoko’s footsteps chasing after your own. “Shit, shit, shit…”

On instinct, you imagined all your options- you could try to fight back, but you knew full well that Kotoko had done this before, in and out of prison. By now, you were stuck at a dead end with nowhere to run, so escaping wasn’t a choice- and if Es hadn’t helped Fuuta and Mahiru, then calling for help sure as hell wouldn’t be much use to you in this situation.

Ah. Was this it? Was this how you would die?

On cue with your darkening thoughts, You glanced upwards to see Mikoto, just barely in your line of sight as he jumped around the corner, closely following Kotoko. Landing his leg against her back, he sent her thudding onto the ground with a grunt. You blinked, and within an instant he was right in front of you, glancing over you once to make sure you didn’t have any serious injuries before turning back to face Kotoko. 

By the way he held himself, you could tell it wasn’t quite Mikoto in front of you, but.. the other one, and his eyes narrowed at the girl now sprinting at full speed towards you, instinctively reaching an arm out in front of you. You could see the intensity burning in her eyes when she jumped out, gleaming silver bat held high above her head before Mikoto kicked her again, this time in the stomach, and she fell harshly to the ground with a yelp of surprise.

You could barely process all that was happening in front of you, your backed-up brain still trying to figure out what Mikoto was even doing here, let alone the fact that he was… protecting you?

Everything felt like a giant blur of things moving way too fast, a jumble of more Kotoko jumping at you again and again, only to be met with harsh kicks and hits from the man who still sat in front of you, keeping one arm outstretched in front of you the entire time.

By now, Kotoko was laying on the ground, breath heavy and face bruised as she glared at the two of you, huffing with annoyance. She coughed, slowly but surely picking herself up off the dirtied floor, wincing as she did so.

“Fuckers.”

She lifted a hand to her face to wipe the dirt off her cheek, but only ended up smearing it as she scowled at you before turning on her heel and leaving. The way her eyes gleamed with malice towards you before her departure promised she wasn’t done with this, but the moment she was gone you found yourself dragged into Mikoto’s embrace.

He didn’t say anything for a while, just holding you close to him as his breathing started to slow back to a normal pace. You could tell he was exhausted from the way he leaned onto you, huffing off the adrenaline from all the fighting before he finally opened his mouth to speak.

“I won’t let her hurt you.”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ─── End

[anime-grimmy-art]

pls I beg, tell us everything you have about bull!Alhaitham...

Oh boy, you sure wanna open to flood gates,huh.

Well, I think I did ramble on my initial Bullhaitham post about a lot of things, but basically, they're not all that different from their human selves. I took a book out of Tighnari's book and just hc them as having more enhanced senses but I do want this AU to have them inherit SOME animal characteristics, but not like, in an uncontrollable capacity.

As for Alhaitham, for example. I like to use his ears and tail as more honest/open conveyers of his emotions. We all know that Alhaitham is very good at controlling how he appears to people, and I do believe that extends to his animal features as well. But in a comfortable environment, I think he'd not be as guarded, so his ears and tail get to wiggle! You know, how cows/bulls often flick their tails or ears when sth tickles or bothers them (like flies)? Alhaitham does that too, and since his ears are rather sensitive, they do tend to flick a lot. His tail, on the other hand, Id see as his "excess energy outlet", aka if he has some form of restlessness, be that bcs of agitation or excitement, he shows it through tail movement.

Again, I see them more as human than animal, but I like to think they have times where the threshold for their instincts to kick in is lowered. Imagine the kinky "mating season" trope, but instead of horniness it's just them acting more on their instincts. This includes stuff like Kaveh being more prone to pounce or Alhaitham sometimes tackling people when they get to fidgety. (you know, how in bull fighting they wave the flag around and the movement makes them charge)

I just find the context funny of Alhaitham and Kaveh becoming so accustomed that sometimes their roomate WILL attack them. They also develop "safe proof" ways to calm the other again. Alhaitham just has to make sure not to bear his neck or leave his back exposed, or, if Kaveh does pounce, he just has to forcefully relax him with kneading his ears or chin scratches or sth. Kaveh got the shorter end of the stick cos, while it takes a lot to make Alhaitham charge, it does happen, and if it does, all Kaveh can do is run and dodge bcs that bull will not stop until you've been run over. And Alhaitham might be Kaveh's height, but the bulk coupled with his speed is sure to break a few ribs. Kaveh's tactic is usually to dodge until Alhaitham staggers, literally latch onto him in a full body hold, and frantically start scratchin at the base of his ears or the base of his horns. When he stops lowdly huffing and puffing, Kaveh knows Alhaitham is back to normal.

There's also some funny ideas I've had, like, as much as they hate it, they're like the perfect comforter for each other. Alhaitham likes to knead his hands through things as he reads, and Kaveh's ears are just the right texture between fluffy and tough, and ofc that makes Kaveh happy bcs, hey, free ear massage. In turn, that makes Kaveh purr and if he's sprawled over Alhaitham's lap he's literally a heated and massaging weight blanket, which makes Alhaitham enjoy his leisurely reading time more.

The other side of funny: Alhaitham definitely accidentally broke Kaveh's kneecaps before, bcs he touched Alhaitham's neck and he instinctively kicked out.

Well, that's all that comes from the top of my head, haha. Hope it was some fun food for thought!

[gingergofastboatsmojito]

The fix

"Motherfucker!"

Carmy looked up and the L passing by over his head seemed to give him a flash of energy that restarted every cell in his body. He put the phone back in his pocket and started jogging slowly at first, then he picked up the pace and just let his deafening heart guide his steps.

The night summer breeze of Chicago stroked his face in a way that on any other given occasion would have felt nice or comforting, but not right now. He was fixating on one thing and one thing only.

Before he knew it, Carmy was jog trotting at a speed that made passersby look at him with a frown. When he tried to cross the street a driver honked at him. He was running at full speed now. The sweat running down his back started to bother him, but he kept going.

In less than 10 minutes he was trying to catch his breath at the entrance of Syd's apartment building and making an effort to remember which floor she lived on. He was sure he had overheard a conversation she had had with Marcus but couldn't quite recall what she told him about her apartment. He was too busy trying to catch what Marcus told her. Obviously, he tried to text her to no avail, so he had to get creative because that piece of specific info was not in the group chat, only her partial address was.

He thought of pounding on the door till someone let him in but it was past midnight and he feared that some neighbor called 911 on him. So he did what any Michael Berzatto's baby brother and Richie Jerimovich's cousin, would have done: He used his Dankort Visa, which he still kept in his wallet as a memento.

Carmy's skilled right hand slid the long end of the credit card in between the doorframe and the locking side of the door, just above where the lock enters the frame, then angled the card downward and situated it behind the bolt of the lock, just like he had a seen Cousin doing it a couple of times, through his window, when Richie got himself locked out of the house and Mikey wasn't there to break them in because he was still partying elsewhere or getting lucky. He remembered Mikey's words: "You want to make sure that the card is perpendicular to the door, Bear, is as simple as that... just wiggle it back and forth quickly, like this, see?" He struggled just for a few more seconds and then he heard the sound of victory. The door was now unlocked!

He was in before the guy who was casually walking his dog on the sidewalk, with his eyes pinned to the screen of his phone, could realize that something fishy was going on in that stoop.

Then he started climbing the stairs still unsure of what door to knock, but he followed the music, instinctively.

He stopped in his tracks and couldn't believe his eyes when he saw Syd curled up on the floor, gasping for air and shaking. She also seemed to be crying and miserably failing at trying to collect herself. He knew that body language too well, she was either having a panic attack or just barely emerging from it. He could tell her shoulders would rise and fall due to her labored breathing and that her attempts to take deep, soothing breaths, were the reason why her eyes were closed. She was making fists with her hands and he could see them trembling, slightly. Syd was fighting back the turmoil inside that constricted her chest with an impending sense of doom. And she was winning.

Carmy was shocked. He never imagined seeing her like that.

"Syd".

She opened her eyes and looked like a deer in the headlights.

Nothing had to be said at that point. Words were futile.

He helped her up and wrapped his strong arms around her.

She was still crying silent tears.

The music kept trespassing the wooden door and the sound of Bruce Springsteen's voice singing:

"There's a war outside still raging

You say it ain't ours anymore to win

I want to sleep beneath peaceful skies

In my lover's bed

With a wide open country in my eyes

And these romantic dreams in my head"

seemed to be mocking them both.

Sydney clung to Carmy for dear life. She didn't know how much she needed that till she let herself hold him.

Her lungs finally gave her a break.

Her breathing slowly returned to normal. He kept her cadence without noticing his own breathing was now in sync with hers. Again, instinctively.

"It's over, Syd. You're gonna be OK. Just breathe. Breathe."

She closed her eyes again and did.

"I did this, right? I-I"

Sydney's words failed her. She could now breathe just fine, but the lump in her throat kept a tight grip on her, and be quiet was all she could manage to do.

"I'd say I'm sorry, but..."

"Don't. Don't say that. I'm sick of it."

Now it was Carmy's turn to be quiet. He was taking the blame. He wanted to say so many things but all of them felt completely out of place. He knew his words held no value and it was killing him.

"I know". He whispered. His acknowledgment was almost inaudible. He figured it was pointless, anyway.

It was.

Syd looked at him with pity.

He felt slapped.

"I don't wanna do this anymore, Carmy."

She let go.

He let go too.

They just stood there in the hallway, looking at each other. Carmy was confused. What exactly was that supposed to mean? She meant not do what anymore? The whole "I'm sorry" sequence? Or...

They both let the upbeat-flashy, synth-heavy melody on the other side of the door make that moment impossibly awkward.

The Weeknd was blinded by the lights and he couldn't sleep until he felt her touch, he was drowning in the night... Carmy was drowning too and for a fleeting moment, he thought that the lyrics hit too close to home.

"D'you wanna come in?" She gestured the door and he shook his head.

"I-I- no, I should go, this is just not-not the right time for what I wanted to say anyway, but... Syd...So d'you wanna quit? Is-is it over?"

After a long silence, she said "C'mere."

She took his hand and opened the door. They got in and everyone's eyes were on them. She tried to smile and crack a bad joke:

"Look what I found."

Carmy shyly waved to the group of people having a great time. They all waved back and seemed happy to see him there, except for Richie, who rolled his eyes.

When she let go of his hand he felt nervous. Upset even. Her hand belonged in his, he thought. It just felt right and now it felt like he was missing something important, something he was meant to hold and that had abandoned him. Her warmth. That was it! He realized that he was craving the warmth he only got to feel for a few moments. He needed more of that. He could finally think clearly. His priorities were now crystal clear:

Sydney's hand in his was number 1, not just literally speaking. He couldn't let her go in any sense. The star he had to get for her, was a close second, and last, but certainly not least, he had to make sure that Cicero didn't let go of his hand either. He was going to take it one step at a time. First things first.

His eyes followed her, but he stayed put there, near the door.

Syd was offered a drink of something he was sure was not water but looked like it and as she drank from the red plastic cup she stared back at him. None of them felt uncomfortable as they held each other gazes. Their eyes spoke volumes and none of them shied away at any point.

She put the cup down, made her way to the Bluetooth speaker one of the Faks brought in, and turned it off, just when Kill_mR_GJ's Summer radio got to its bridge. The music played on but from the computer instead at a much lower volume so Syd closed her laptop and with that couple of movements, she unceremoniously put an end to the impromptu party that had taken over her apartment.

The crowd grunted and booed but there was no use. They kept complaining for a while but Syd just couldn't care less. She excused herself and ask everyone to leave because she "wasn't feeling too well" and after playing along some lame jokes about her talent to hold her liquor being inversely proportional to her ass-stabbing skills, she showed everyone out. Everyone except Carmy. Not a soul at that party didn't notice that. They all knew he was staying behind and not even Cousin said a thing. It was an unspoken agreement that absolutely no one dared to question.

They were in the kitchen, which looked like total mayhem. She was making coffee and he was leaning against the refrigerator with his arms crossed over his chest. Studying her every move. Staring. Zeroing in.

"So you came here to show me that review?"

"No, I-I- had to tell you about the um... ultimatum. I wanted to talk to you, I- thought that-"

"The ultimatum?"

"Yes, Jimmy said that he'd no longer fund us, unless that review was perfect. And it wasn't."

"What are you talking about? It was pretty damn great."

"Not great enough."

She paused and chose her words carefully.

"Does that mean what I think it means?"

"Yes."

"So, it's over."

"It might be. But I won't let that happen, Syd. I won't. I owe you a star, and you're gonna get it."

"I don't give a fuck about that star, Carmy!"

Those words felt like bullets to him.

"We're about to lose the restaurant, Carm! All we worked for... I-I can't-"

"I'll talk to him tomorrow, well... in a few hours actually. And I'll try to get other investors, if necessary, I'll do whatever it takes, Syd."

She nodded and the worried look on her face pained him. He was her personal beacon of hurt, apparently. No matter what he did or failed to do, the result was always the same. Sydney got hurt and he was to blame. No matter how hard he tried, he never got it right.

He followed her to the living room where she placed the cups of coffee on a chair that was in front of the sofa and sat down.

Carmy joined her on the sofa and continued trying to reassure her:

"I will get us out of this, Syd. I promise. I have contacts in NY and Denmark, I-I will get us out of this shitstorm, I promise. I know my promises are worth shit at this point, I know, but I-"

"Stop talking."

It was as if a switch had been flipped off and he was now muted, mid-sentence, completely oblivious to the fact that his mouth was still open.

"I have something to tell you too."

"You scare me."

"I um...I was offered another job."

Carmy was so taken aback that needed a double take but couldn't say the words.

Syd went on:

"Shapiro, Ever's CD-"

"I know who he is."

Of course, he knew.

"Well...he's gonna open his own place and he wants me to be his CDC."

Carmy got up and went off:

"BUT YOU'RE MINE!"

Syd was not surprised nor amused by his reaction.

He realized he had to lower his voice and at least pretend he could keep it together.

"My CDC, I mean, Th-The Bear's, you-you know what I mean, Syd!"

"Are you finished?

"No. What did you say?"

"I haven't told him anything yet. I-I wanted to- I"

"You wanted to talk to me first."

"No, I wanted to think about it."

He felt stabbed in the middle of his chest. What was there to think about?! And then, the image of him feeling sorry for himself in the walk-in came to mind, and Carmy just felt defeated. Dead.

"You know what, Syd. You should go. I won't talk to Cicero tomorrow. I'll let him take it all. You go, I'm sure you-"

She started crying. Again.

Carmy stopped talking, mid-sentence. Again.

"Syd..."

"I don't wanna go. I wanna stay with you."

Her voice was a broken whisper and the tears running down her face couldn't be hidden from him, even when she covered her eyes and looked down.

He sat back down and tried to comfort her.

"Syd, c'mon. Don't do this. You're gonna be fine. Just-"

"Fuck you!"

"Syd! I just mean that you should follow your dreams- if that means-"

"Fuck you, Carmen! FUCK YOU! I'm not gonna be OK, whether I stay by your side or leave! Don't you understand?! If I go I will be just running away from you, not following my fucking dreams! If I stay you will continue stepping all over me and saying you're fucking sorry about it, only to do it again the next day, the next service, always. You turned into this monster that just barks all the time and the worse part is that I wanna fucking stay with you. It's all about you, whether I stay or leave IT'S ALL ABOUT YOU, CARMY!"

After seconds that felt like a twenty-year stretch for murder, he let his words fight back. He had some bullets with her name too.

"I didn't know that was how you felt, Sydney. I know I've been... a piece of shit. I know that. I could tell I was fucking it up. But I thought that out of all people you'd understand."

"Understand what?" She was still crying.

"That I'm doing this for you. For us. I'm sorry, I didn't wanna ruin it. But I did. I always do. That's why you should go, Syd. You're right."

They were both crying now.

After a while, he gently dried her tears with his thumbs and went to get some C-folds he had seen in the kitchen and a glass of water for her.

When he was looking for a clean glass he found a pack of cigarettes lying around. The brand he used to smoke. His craving for nicotine was off the charts, his last couple of gums couldn't be wasted this blatantly. He knew that they were gonna do no good to him. He was way past the point of popping gum and playing it cool.

His hand had a mind of his own, grabbed the Sapphires in a heartbeat and put them in his pocket.

When he got back to the living room Syd was feeling better apparently after having downed her cup of coffee and some of his. She drank the water too and took a deep breath. Then carefully put the glass on the chair and never taking her big brown eyes off it, she said:

"I will tell Shapiro I respectfully decline and you will tell Jimmy whatever you gotta tell him to make sure he doesn't pull the plug, on us." She emphasized that last word. Then looked up and found his piercing blue eyes looking back at her.

Syd didn't know what devotion looked like, but she was beginning to think that maybe, just maybe... it looked exactly like that.

She closed the distance between them, one inch at a time, impossibly doubtful, slowly but surely and kissed him.

This hunger took over and then everything was heady, quick, and intoxicating. In a split second, he was on top of her tracing a path of embers underneath her clothes, with his perfectly callus hands.

"Wait. Not here."

Carmy was panting and sweating, as she was, and when they both collected themselves enough for a moment, they went to the bedroom, never letting go of each other and removing every piece of clothes on the way there.

But they never made it to the bed.

Carmy followed her to the bathroom where she kept the condoms and when she turned around he made sure she couldn't cross that door. He closed it behind him, kissed her with all he had, and nailed her to it.

They sounded like beasts in heat. Biting and licking every patch of skin they could get a hold of.

They cried their respective names so many times they lost count, but all of that happened in under 10 minutes.

It was embarrassing. Well, for Carmy mostly. Syd was superbly content with the massive orgasm that left her legs shaking like leaves, although she was also a little mortified, due to the squirting and the fact that she could now see she had drawn blood from Carmy's shoulder. Best quickie she ever had.

Carmy still couldn't get enough of her. His kisses were as hungry after sex as they were during the brief foreplay they indulged in, Syd noticed.

They took a shower together, never giving their mouths a rest.

In the shower, he went down on her and this time it was her own blood she tasted when she bit her bottom lip as she came so hard that she almost slipped. He kept her in place with one hand as his fingers and tongue showed her what was like to fly and explode at the same time.

Then they moved it to the bed and collapsed in each other's arms, tangled up like branches in a flood.

There was no way they made it to work in time that morning.

They had no idea what time it was but could guess it was around noon because of the sunlight coming through her blinds.

Syd was flat on her stomach and Carmy was her weighted blanket.

No sheets, just two beautiful naked bodies, that fitted ideally together. Encompassing breaths. Caresses and hums. Kisses and moans. They needed nothing else.

After a long groan and a few more kisses that Carmy delicately planted on her upper back, he said:

"Do we have to go to work today?"

"It’s your restaurant."

"Our restaurant."

"I haven't signed the agreement, yet."

"Oh, you will..."

And he proceeded to fuck her brainless. Again.

Once they finished rocking each other's worlds he said: "I'd kill for a smoke. You're bad for my health."

"Oh shut the fuck up!" Syd laughed out loud and kissed him.

They made out for some time, getting comfortable with the fact there was no point in hurrying up because they were so late already that it would make no difference.

He suddenly got up and she whimpered as she saw his flawlessly toned and naked ass walking out of the room and into her living room.

"I'll be right back."

Carmy remembered that he had a pack of cigarettes in his pants and off he went to get his drug. The mantra looping on and on in his head all along was: "Fuck it!"

Then he ventured into the kitchen and lit the cig. When he got back to bed, he was grinning like a devil.

When Syd saw the cigarette in his mouth she smiled and couldn't help but praise the Lord:

"Thank fucking God!"

He joined her and they shared the cigarette.

"So I guess I need more of these now and less gum."

"If you chew one more piece of that fucking gum, Carmy, I swear to God!"

"Lung cancer it is then. Not a problem."

"Thanks!"

They sealed the deal with another kiss and much more...

His nicotine gum was later tossed in the trash, keeping the used condoms company.

As soon as they stepped into the restaurant everyone could sense the energy shift. It was instantaneous.

Richie was appalled.

"No, you didn't!!!" He said, sounding as dramatic as possible.

Nat was right there with Cousin but silently gushed instead. It was obvious. Something had happened between them, something big, and given the look and huge smiles on their faces, it had to be good. Better than good.

Sugar's phone buzzed and she saw another text from Uncle Jimmy complaining about Carmy not answering his phone.

She handed the phone to Carmy for him to read the text and he nonchalantly admitted to having turned his off.

"OK, great!"

"Where do I put this, Sug."

"What's that?"

Syd cut in "It's my share of this partnership."

"Oh, you signed it!!! Oh my God! Welcome to the family, Syd! I'm so glad!"

They hugged it out and then Nat continued making assumptions:

"So, that was it? Was that why you two came in so incredibly late today and didn't answer your phones? You two were going over the agreement?"

Syd and Carmy looked at each other and said "Yes!" in unison.

Richie was not buying it.

Later that day he went outside for a smoke and Carmy joined him in the back alley shortly after for the same reason.

Richie couldn't help himself and shot: "So, how does your GIRLFRIEND feel about you smoking again?

"She threw out the gum."

"Oh, I'm afraid that's love, man. She's a keeper."

"I know."

Three months later, the entire Bear family, including the two lovebirds, gathered around a double grave, one next to the other. It turns out that all of this relatively light-hearted phase they had been recently been going through, had to be balanced out by the universe somehow.

Neil and Theodore Fak were now together for eternity, resting in peace.

Theodore was 'fixing' a disco ball that wouldn't spin when he electrocuted himself and Neil, wanting to save his brother, followed him to the grave instead.

"He died like a hero," Ebra said.

There was someone in the distance, by a cypress, hiding her features behind dark shades and a black scarf. She was the ghost, not the dead bodies six feet under.

Dr. Dunlap didn't want to be seen or join the group of people saying their last goodbyes to the Fak brothers.

She just wanted to see the one who got away.

Dr. Dunlap still couldn't believe that Carmy Berzatto, the Bear she remembered, slipped through her fingers just like that and was now lovingly consoling that woman as she cried burying her head in his shoulder. The doctor would have given her right arm to be in her place.

Neil and Theodore had looped her in Carmy's new marital status pretty much immediately after Syd and Carmy made it official and she had been spiraling ever since.

When Dr. Dunlap thought this couldn't get any worse, she noticed that Carmy looked her way through his own dark glasses and whispered something in Sydney's ear. She turned around and looked at her too, as she protectively tightened her grip around Carmy.

'Apparently, Carmy's new partner is territorial,' the outcast physician thought. And that was her queue to leave. So just like she had done when Carmy told her that no amount of good times they ever had, was worth how terrible he felt, she wiped a tear and left. She just couldn't stand it.

Ironically enough, the ghost she was turning into, was the haunted one, haunted by the memories of his blue eyes and now by Sydney's arms around him too. All of a sudden this overwhelming feeling of having to get the hell away from there, and by there she didn't just mean the Cemantery but Chicago, became unbearable.

The new Italian investors, whom Carmy got to repay Cicero and continue to operate at the top level from which he was unwilling to downgrade, were happy to announce that they were not only completely satisfied with The Bear and its numbers, but that they had plans to franchise it by next year. The Hamptons was a market they were interested in exploring and the thriving and innovative option The Bear posed, was exactly what they were looking for.

Carmy and Syd were on board. The star she used to want so bad, was now just a memory for her. All she now wanted was to see the business grow and make sure that it kept going strong.

Carmy, on the other hand, was still fixated on her star but had made sure that it didn't cost him her. He was on a couple of meds and going to the AA meetings religiously as well, plus Syd and he had started going to couples therapy bi-weekly. Things were really looking up for him. To the point that Donna and him were no longer strangers. They still had a looooong way to go, but they could at least have a decent conversation now and then and get together without anyone ending up in the ER. He could appreciate the progress and he was glad, relieved even. Maybe this was what peace was really like, not what he had thought it was when his life was extremely unfulfilling and self-sabotage was his middle name. Carmy started contemplating and embracing that idea. Maybe this was it. Maybe he had finally found his peace.

He could keep this newfound peace during the most stressful days at the office, even when he was on the phone with vendors from around the world, fine-tuning the engines to smoke the competition, and by competition, he was only referring to one restaurant in the entire Chicago area: "Adam". He could keep it even when Richie got on his nerves, although that didn't happen as often anymore because they talked it out and buried the hatchet after a Sydney/Jess intervention. Carmy could even wear his peace hat when he ran into Shapiro at the farmers' market. He'd later blow the steam off at the gym and pop some painkillers when he overdid it with the punching bag, but other than that he was a peace enthusiast level 1, sometimes even 2. He expected to get to level 3 someday knowing that level 5 was totally unattainable for him, but he reckoned he could live with that.

Days passed by and the hectic atmosphere of the BOH started to resemble the one he once experienced in Copenhagen, at least half the time. Syd and he were the golden team behind that change that took almost a year to manifest but was now finally coming to fruition.

Sydney had come up with the most incredible family menu based on turkey and black mulberries, which even included a vegan and gluten-free alternative. He was positive it was going to be one of their biggest hits. As her menus always were.

Both the BOH and the FOH were working as smoothly as possible now, considering that Carmy and Richie were both in them but apparently their secret weapons: Sydney and Jess, respectively, were the keys to this. And Nat was finally in a place where she didn't have to consider herself a mother 3: her daughter, her brother, and her cousin. Life was grand and it went on like in some sort of rom-com.

Everyone was waiting for the other shoe to drop, not just Carmy but at one point they just accepted that they might have earned this truce by doing a deep dive into the seven circles of hells the years prior, so perhaps they actually had this coming and were only supposed to reap the benefits of it while it lasted.

But there was more, much more to come.

That fateful day, when Carmy picked up the phone, he fully expected to hear Syd's voice on the other end of the line because he knew Tina and her were at the farmer's market and she usually called Nat to run some numbers by her if she wanted to go off budget or make any last-minute changes to it. He just happened to be using Sugar's desk that day because she was at a pediatrician's appointment, and his was a mess.

It wasn't Syd on the phone, though. It was fate.

The star was hers.

He could now die in peace.

When he gave her the news he could feel that warmth he had grown addicted to, emanating from her skin. It permeated through him and impregnated every bone in his body when he lifted her in his arms.

Her joy and tears filled his heart and soul and he felt more alive than ever before. He wanted to give her all the stars in the sky. He wanted to make a sport out of this.

She was worth it.

And Carmy was no longer the man he was when he decided that he wanted to share his lifelong dream with her. He was now a better man because of her. He was no longer broken, now he felt whole because he had finally, once and for all, kept the promise he made to her.

He was no longer a failure, but that didn't matter as much as knowing that she was happy and that he had something to do with that. It was no longer about him. It hadn't been about him since she walked into his life. Who was he kidding?

Syd was also happy for Carm. She knew that the hell he was putting himself through, was now over. It was time to just lay back and enjoy what they all had built together.

She valued that way more than the star and the JB award she had received a few weeks prior.

If someone had told her that the Michelin star she had always dreamed of was going to fade away next to everything else she had gained in the process of winning it, she wouldn't have believed them. She would have called absolute bullshit on that.

She couldn't have been more wrong in that case.

The Bear made the news, and the update about them getting a Michelin star went viral in a few hours.

And by the next day, no one in Chicago was unaware of their award.

That included Dr. Dunlap who was no longer in Chicago but found out anyway, via The Chicago Tribune pop notifications she kept receiving on her phone.

She was at the New York Presbyterian's cafeteria squeezing a miserable 20-minute lunch break that consisted of a salad in a plastic container and an apple when she read the headline popping up and hesitated before tapping on the news alert to read the whole article.

The picture of the smiling couple burned her retinas. Dr. Dunlap could feel the wave of acid reflux coming up her esophagus and burning her insides.

Carmy looked happy and healthy. Maybe even younger. Definitely more relaxed. He was a new man.

Her first instinct was correct. She shouldn't have tapped on it.

"The Bear receives its well-deserved first Michelin star"

Located in River North, The Bear of Chicago is home not only to the best menu in town, but it’s also home for future husband and wife Carmen Berzatto and Sydney Adamu. The couple got engaged last year at Christmas dinner after having worked together for almost two years...

She had to drop the phone as if it was red hot and had to stop reading on the spot. She had to die. That's what she wanted. Instead, she bitched and whined:

"A new man! You're a fucking new man who got engaged with his CDC only 5 minutes after we broke up. You fucking piece of shit! That's what you are, Bear. Thanks for nothing, fucker!"

She hadn't realized she was saying all of that out loud, practically yelling. But she was and everyone in the cafeteria was judging her.

Eventually, when she could calm down, Dr. Dunlap read the entire text:

"The Bear receives its well-deserved first Michelin star" Located in River North, The Bear of Chicago is home not only to the best menu in town, but it’s also home for future husband and wife Carmen Berzatto and Sydney Adamu. The couple got engaged last year at Christmas dinner after having worked together for almost two years to make their dream spot come true. The dream was a family-style restaurant, with two tops, booths, Danish design, window on the side for sandwiches to keep The Beef's legacy alive and a star. Their dream came true last year when they opened to a full house and kept that momentum going on a weekly basis till now when their hard work and excellent cuisine earned them the Michelin star they always dreamed of. Five universal criteria are taken into account to decide who makes the annual Michelin cut. First and foremost, the quality of the carefully curated ingredients, then the harmony of flavors and the mastery of techniques the chefs apply to combine them in a balanced and artistic way that entice the palates, but what truly makes the difference is the personality of the chefs as expressed through their cuisine and, just as importantly, consistency both across the entire menu and over time. The Bear seems to excel at all of it. At the restaurant, Sydney creates tasting menus that are acutely tuned to each season of the beloved Windy City she was born and raised in. "Carm", as she calls him, also a native Chicagoan who traveled the world perfecting his fine-dining craft, is in charge of sourcing the best ingredients they need to serve "heaven on a plate", as Chef Andrea Terry called their dishes once. "Natalie, my sister-in-law, is in charge of Operations and runs the numbers to make all of this possible, Carm and I couldn't be luckier, Natalie is our backbone." Carmy is quick to add "Syd is the heart" and Sydney accepts his compliment with a knowing smile and quips “Our areas are very different, but we’re each other’s silver linings,” she elaborates on their joint journey. “We’ve evolved, but we’ve evolved together. Who we’ve become as individuals and what we do individually is supported collectively. It’s so compatible. If anything, it’s strengthened our relationship. We are family and so much more than that too, and that's what we are here to share with all of those who wish to join us.”

A/N: I have no idea how to open a door with a credit card, I got that from here. And the news article is a true story's adaptation, Kyle and Katina Connaughton's story. Also, I got lots of intel from my favest guide → Michelin Guide. Last but not least: dividers and banners by @reveriesources and @cafekitsune, respectively. You can also find this fic on AO3.

Thanks for reading, chefs! 💋

*Special thanks to: @only-one-brain-cell for the inspo, love our super fun fic jam sessions.

XOXO

[disintegratedfingers]

Quirk: Unknown Warnings for this chapter: Small mention of blood, a student being trapped. Otherwise we're all good :) (Proofread ✅)

Chapter 1, Pt. 2 - Tryout

Each faux villian robot held a certain amount of points;

Easy Villians - 1 point

Medium Villians - 2 points

Hard Villians - 3 points

Arena Traps - 0 points

And if immobilized, points would be rewarded to the examinee who took it down. There were only 10 minutes for this practical.

You stood in the mob of examinees, hands clasped behind your back, forcing your posture to straighten. Energy flowed within the group, tickling your skin. Kids muttered to one another. Others boasted that they would earn enough points to pass at the top.

What would become of you? With such little control with your quirk...

"And... begin!" A shout was heard from somewhere up high, and everyone swiveled their heads to the sound. You looked up, confused.

"What's wrong? The test's started! Run! Run!!" Present Mic pumped his fists. "The die is cast!"

Immediately, the students fled and dispersed in a frenzy. You, frozen in the moment, stood on shaky legs. Sweat trickled down your neck, but a new confidence rose when you saw the skinny, green-haired boy trembling in his spot. You wouldn't be last, atleast.

A selfish mindset was appropriate for this exam, you thought.

Turning away with a huff, you sprinted into the mock-city streets. Explosions and clashes of metal could be heard. You wobbled slightly, but quickly popped in some earbuds to block out the sounds.

A girl with streaked, blue hair shot water from her hands at one of the faux villians, seemingly having some trouble when it shot fiery beams back. So, from behind, you snuck up on the robot and stared intently at it's back. Willing it to crumble, you watched as the iron and steel creased together and cracked.

It crashed to the ground with sparks flicking from torn wires. You smiled; the warmth of accomplishment filled your chest. "That's two points..." Even when the water quirk girl gave you a frustrated look, you gazed around for another opponent.

"DIE!!" You heard a muffled roar from above, seeing a huge explosion and a boy swinging his arm in midair. Instinctively you cowered as shards of metal and glass fell. Your arms were cut and bleeding, but your determination did not waver.

"Where..." a larger robot - a 3 pointer - appeared from around the block, glowering down at your smaller frame. It rotated its arm to face you with a laser. Sucking in some air, you just barely dodged the blast, recovering quickly and standing back up.

The bot aimed again, but this time you were ready. You glared daggers into its arm. "Break, break, break-" you clenched your fists, eyes squinted as you worked your mind.

SHEU-

The fire came and you hissed through gritted teeth, but apon opening your eyes, a long dart of fizzing light floated in front of your face. You jumped out of the way as it dissolved in mid air. Letting go of your breath, it fell to the ground, and so did the robot.

"Five points!" You recalled enthusiastically, although it surely wasn't much, nor nearly enough compared to others. Your head throbbed with the effort.

"Move it!" Someone shoved past you, scraping against your shoulder. Turning, you saw a boy with spiky, blonde hair stomping away, hands clenched. A rigid ardor radiated off him.

"Really...?" You growled under your breath at the gesture, forcing yourself to focus. Other students were battling robots around you... what could be done now?

'Maybe if I finish off a villian that somebody has already beaten up... it's whoever completes the job, right?' Plus, it was easier for you to control something of littler strength.

Your eyes darted around, entertained and mislead by all the action. Finally, you took notice to the guy with the glasses, watching as he ran full speed towards an opponent and delivered a powerful kick to the side. It crashed into the building you were leaning against, brick crumbling as dust sweeped in.

You skidded out into the open, eyes shining as you saw that the robot still had some potential, creaking as it tried to move. Before the other student could reach it, you came forward and slapped a hand onto the metal, closing your eyes and straining your mind.

Holding your breath... fingertips tingling... eventually you felt the metal split and grow hot as the electricity leaked out. It whirred and buzzed until it lay in motionless pieces. The villian was done.

"Surely that's cheating!" Your eyes snapped open to a strict voice beside you.

"The goal is to-" You started, annoyance surging through your veins. The examinee with the glasses was staring at you in dissapointment but also in thought.

"Well, I assume that whichever student completely immobilizes the faux villian gains the point," he sliced the air with his hand, eyebrows furrowed.

"Yeah I figured," you sigh shakily.

"I'll allow this advantage to you, but no more," he gave a swift bow and sprinted off towards another attacker. You shook your head. This was a slow and unpromising journey.

"4 minutes, two seconds remaining!" Present Mic's voice reverberated throughout the grounds, slightly muffled over your earbuds.

CRASH!

"Watch out!!" A whirl of bodies flew past you and spilled into the streets as a huge Arena Trap bot slammed its arm into the road. The gush of force ran up your legs and stabbed your body, making you falter. Charred brick met your shoulder, stabilizing you, atleast for the moment.

Through the dusty debris, the skinny, green-haired boy could be made out, just a few yards away. He ran forward and jumped with such force that he flew many paces upward. Pure determination reeked from his body as he sent a fist to the bot's dented exterior.

It slammed backward, bright explosions illuminating the ground below. The student began to fall...

"What...?" You grew concerned, but scoffed at the stupidity. "He jumps that high and can't land again?"

You also spotted a limp figure below the scene; a girl with her lower half crushed under rock. She seemed to notice the boy, too, squeezing her eyes shut as she pressed her fingers together

"Oh crud-" you could pick up faint pain, watching her cringe in a struggle to escape. This was a selfish game... but also a blood battle.

Pure fear swallowed you whole, forcing you to stand still. Who would die first?

The green-haired boy was still free falling, limbs waving limply at his sides. Your arms raised, prepared to shield your eyes. However... the boy suddenly stopped descending, mere inches from the ground. Silence sweeped over the space.

"And... release," the girl sperated her fingers and sighed, eyes drooping closed as she swallowed hard.

You rocketed forward, straight to her side.

"Don't move too much- you could rip a muscle or something," you frantically looked over her, searching for a way to pull her out. She groaned, eyes watering as sweat dripped down her face.

You swiftly hooked your arm across her torso, pushing off of your leg. Inch by inch she was tugged out. Eventually, you had her standing on shaky legs. She looked exhausted.

"Can you walk?" You took a step back, reaching a hand out when the girl wobbled slightly.

"I'm alright, thanks," she laughed nervously, looking over at the limp body of the student she saved... who saved her. If he hadn't defended her, the robot would have crushed her.

He groaned in agony, face buried in the dust as he gripped his bloody arm. You sighed, nerves agitated from the adrenaline.

"It's all over!!!" Present Mic's voice boomed throughout the field.

A small crowd gathered around the limp boy, as you wobbled away a bit. The thick emotion and exhaustion was worsening your state.

"Make way, make way!" A little, old lady hobbled through the huddle, waddling over to the curly-haired boy.

"Ah, well, son," she gruffed. "so your own beloved quirk did this to you? Almost looks as though your body's not used to it..." the crowd stood in small mumblings as they watched the lady approach him.

"...she's the backbone of U.A.," you picked up whispers. Sharply, her lips shot out and kissed the boy's head. Students' eye's widened in shock and realization, and so did yours.

"Thanks to her, such ferocious exams can be held at U.A...." You reflected under your breath, amazed at how the examinee's arm turned completely back to normal.

"This one'll be fine," she looked around. "Any other hurt kids?"

_______

First action packed scenes >:D

What's your quirk??? Why do you have so little control over it? Why does it hurt? Stick around :°

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[tokoyamisstuff]

drapetomania (n.) - an overwhelming urge to run away

Synopsis: After the painful transformation into Reaper, your comrade has a hard time containing his rage as a side-effect of his newfound strenght...and he had found just the way to let off some steam. Warnings: Consensual NSFW, Facial, Dom! Reaper, Cussing, Angst, Self-Loathing Words: ~1800

Death was always followed closely by darkness, at least that was the way which he prefered.

Whether it was the slightest inconvenience during a briefing, a mild annoyance while training or - for a change - a not so trivial cause for his anger, they all were the same for him.

Ever since the man once known as Gabriel Reyes had perished and Reaper rose on his stead, Moira's experiments had granted him tremendous power - yet that existence came with a heavy toll.

With his cells constantly decaying and regenerating at an enormous speed, this left him in constant suffering, through the sensation of dying countless times over and over again.

It was a state of pure, endless agony - and he needed to do something, anything to make it stop, if only for a brief moment.

The most effective method would be just giving in to those hostile instincts, channeling all of his bitterness and wrath into a murderous rampage like so many times before.

Taking a life to feel alive oneself again - sure an unconventional method, but considering he had become some sort of eldritch horror that fed itself on the life energy of others, it sure made sense that it could ease the burden of eternal life.

However, those outbursts would leave too many casualities among his own comrades, so his superiors insisted on him finding a rather less destructive way.

That was where you came into play.

The little affair between you and the man that was feared even by his own comrades had begun the complete opposite of innocent, and still it had become an important role in Talon's attempts to control their strongest combatant.

Where others wouldn't even dare breathing in his presence, afraid to become the newest target of his fury, most would say you had been too careless around him from the very start.

To this day you wholeheartedly wanted to believe that behind this mask, there still lies a good man - and not the monster everyone made him out to be.

There was no reason for you to be frightened, after all, since Reaper had been the one who brought you to Talon in the first place - only after having harvested the souls of your tormenters, of course.

A man that had saved you from the brink of death, who had spared you a life full of abuse and sorrow could only be someone to admire, you thought.

And you would follow Reaper and his ambitions to the very end, whatever it takes.

Another day like so many before, Reaper's blood was once again boiling as he made his way towards your quarters, as if this useless shell of a body wanted to taunt him for his poor life decisions.

You on the other hand felt ice shoot through your veins as you heared his unmistakeably firm, heavy steps coming closer through the echoing corridor.

Reaper's mind was in a tunnel view, set on the one thing that might bring him satisfaction in this otherwise cruel world.

Having his ways with you however he pleased, knowing you'd gladly comply. Being in full control over another person that willingly gave in to him was even more rewarding than any revenge ever could.

The image of your last encounter was still vividly present in his mind, of your pretty little face looking up to him all innocently, perfectly tainted by his seed. How he'd press his claws to your cheek and shove every last drop of his cum into your mouth for you to swallow.

Such a good fucking girl.

Before you could even turn around to greet him, the lights went off and the whole room was tinted by darkness. You flinched as you heared the door slam shut, just for the key to turn in the lock shortly after.

Caged with the beast, or so they'd say.

Unable to see, you weren't sure how far those altered eyes of his could perceive - yet the feeling of menacingly red irises boring into you, in huge contrast to the otherwise pitch black environment send shivers down your spine.

"Hey, Reyes, I-" You were cut off as the man materialized right behind you, harshly slamming your cheek against the wall. "I told you to not call me that fucking name."

There was not an inch of space between the two of you now, being caged between his arms and the wall as he hindered you to turn around. "Okay, big guy. I'll behave, so calm down okay?"

"You should know better than to tell me what to do" he growled with a low voice even for his standarts, bending you over even more as you desperately tried to support yourself on the wallpaper. "Maybe it's been too long since I've teached you some manners."

Even when your eyes had adapted to the absence of light, you knew better than to enrage him even further. Instead you gave in to his touch, melting against his body as he began roughly kneading your flesh.

"Strip" he demanded and so you did, the feeling of his rock hard member tenting his combat pants making your lends prickle with anticipation.

As Reaper pressed himself even further against your behind a small whimper escaped your throat, and in the blink of an eye the impatient man had your remaining clothes torn away on the floor. He then drew his claws over your back, thoughtful enough with as little pressure as possible, leaving red streams that would've disappeared by the next morning.

Things would always be like this: Quick, rough, demanding.

An unmatched feeling of desire and passion only to be replaced with pure shame and longing as soon as he'd leave.

Who would've thought sex this good could be so unfulfilling at the same time?

Reaper's hand on your throat brought you down to earth again, his other hand on your hip as his cock slid between your already wettened legs until he found the spot he desired.

You yelped as the man pushed in without warning, the sensation of your insides being stretched so sudden making you feel both overwhelmed and so damn pleasantly full.

"Re-Reaper-ah!" you moaned even when his fingers dug into the flesh of your neck, your walls narrowing around his cock every time he cut off your air supply. Still, he'd continue relentlessly hammering into you at a pace that left you breathless itself.

"Disgusting..." Reaper gritted as he watched you writhe beneath him, all pliant and submissive like wax in his hands. Your heart narrowed at the statement, yet the lust you felt right now was stronger than the familiar sting in your chest.

Nonetheless, your lack of reaction only amplified his displeasure - though his words were directed rather at himself than they were for you. "To let an abomination like me do those kind of things to you...you're so pathetic."

"I-ah..." you interrupted yourself with breathy groans as his thrusts became more violent, hitting your weak spot he already knew blindly to find. "I-I'm not afra-id of you!"

"Big mistake."

Like this you could perceive the clacking noise of his mask falling to the floor, alltogether with the dull pain of his fist balling into your hair. Not even once he stopped pounding into you, hips slamming against yours as he violently teared back your head.

His breath was on your ear now, raising goosebumps on your skin as he whispered a hoarse "Look at me", instant regret washing over him as soon as the words left his lips.

The man effortlessly turned you around, your back now pressed against the stone wall as you were lifted by the legs with ease. Still, he wouldn't continue until you'd listen to his command - willing to leave and never come back shall you resent him after seeing what he really is.

You instinctively crossed your legs behind his waist, wrapped your arms around his neck in an attempt to stay close...

...and then you'd finally dare opening your eyes.

You couldn't suppress a slight gasp at the sight, for it was the first time Reaper had ever shown someone his face ever since the incident.

Admittedly, you always knew that Gabriel Reyes had been a handsome person back in the day. Now however...

Moira had already told you that while every kind of new damage would be healed instantly due to his abilities, all the old injuries would prevail - and his near-death experience sure had taken it's toll on the man.

A few silver-greyish strands of hair stood out as a witness of time passed before he stopped aging, scars from several battles covering his whole face. His eyes were gleaming in a crimson red in between black sclerae, and his left cheek had been completely ripped apart, leaving pointed teeth to shimmer through the broken skin.

Reaper's expression turned sombre as you took in his features with widened eyes, mistaking your fascination with aversion. He hissed, yet still gently let you down on the mattress close by.

"It's alright. I'll go" the man spat, his tone more disappointed than mad - in himself, for actually believing someone could feel affection towards this thing he had become.

"Wait!" you blurted out, pulling on his cloak in exasperation. "Do-don't leave. Please."

There was so much you wanted to say, a million things crossing your mind all at once - though you found yourself at loss for words as this literal beast watched you with such an incredible vulnerability in his eyes. "I don't need your pity, Y/N."

That man really is insufferable, you thought as you pulled him down to your height again, bringing his lips towards yours.

Reaper inhaled sharply, unbelieving as you tenderly covered his mouth with yours, hands on each side of his cheeks as you embraced him without any reluctance, not the slightest hint of repulsion.

You smiled against his lips, chuckling as his beard tickled your skin, the man being stock still in disbelief. Forcing yourself away in order to place even more pecks across every scar, every disfigurement of the face he resented so much.

"I think now it's your turn to strip" you teased, sheepishly adding "Who knows what else you're hiding I might like."

"You're even crazier than I thought" he stated the obvious, even while straddling your waist and doing as he was told. And right then, with his his aching skin against your silken one, he could've sworn this was his salvation - the only thing able to make him feel human again.

"Call me Gabriel."

[chargeddeck]

So, I’ve watched Episode 3. Brain dump time. No spoilers but as always my Ask/DMs etc are open if you want to discuss.

Needless to say, my focus will be on Remy and Rogue so brace yourselves.

That intro music will never not be a banger and I know it’s all over the Romy internet but that moment, THAT MOMENT, is my everything. I love them.

Disappointed in the speed at which they went through this particular storyline but will see how it pans out across the series.

I thought Scott’s behaviour was interesting because I can promise you, the moment your child is born is the moment nothing becomes more important to you than them. This didn’t come to the fore until the end of the episode and even then I…I’m not quite sure of how to explain it. Scott made it all about him? The whole thing felt off.

Mr. Sinister is always an fascinating villain to me because of his links to Remy.

I continue to dislike Morph and his personality. The jokes continue to be personal and cruel, which simply do not sit well with me. I’ll also confess that I haven’t read the Exiles comic so I can’t be certain but it’s weird that he seems to gain a power set when he transforms into someone, unlike Mystique. I wonder if this version of Morph has some elements of Mimic in him, or even Sync.

And hello Remy’s other worst enemies; self doubt and insecurity. Maybe I identify with him on more levels than I realise but the more I see of Rogueneto the more it hurts. I just have to trust in home and harbour and that Romy will still be the endgame.

“Gambit can never unsee dat.”

Interesting to see some of the other internal battles people were facing but none resonated quite like Remy’s.

Scott charging up Bishop was weird. The blast were (rightly) concussive force last week but they’re energy now? Sure, Sebastian Shaw I can see using Scott’s blasts to charge but Bishop seemed odd to me.

Jean Grey is not the mutant messiah.

God I’m being really negative so far! I don’t mean to be. I enjoyed this episode!

Positive time then. Loved seeing Rogue’s first thought be for Remy when she returned. And then seeing his whole body language and face light up was perfect.

Essex’s lair? Nothing says mad, immortal British scientist than a converted gothic Cathedral full of bubbling green vats. Superb.

I thought Logan was really good in this too. From him telling Morph to knock it off when teasing Gambit to being there for Jean as well. I hope we get to see him tear it up with Sabretooth at some point as well as showing his natural caring instincts.

Loved the Cathedral fight, thought it was great.

Lastly, 80’s Mohawk Storm is the best Storm.

[lunariamv]

i love edgelords <3 adachi tohru x fem reader (part 3) | [Part 1] [Part 2] im late but i finally did it >:D adachi gets clocked by girlboss; featuring: female rage

The formidable shadow burst into a million particles. A satisfied exhale escaped you as you lowered your smoking gun. The leftover rush from the fight was settling in your veins. That has to be the last one, right? Everything was leading up to the end, and you were determined to clear this dungeon. You were getting closer. The finale was drawing ever so near, and you could feel it in your bones.

Turning your head over your shoulder, your hair swayed in the faint breeze. Standing behind and beside you were the seven high schoolers (and bear) you were in charge of. “Are you guys alright?” 

Call it your maternal instincts kicking in, but you wanted to make sure the kids were prepared to keep going. Everyone needed to be at their best if you wanted to stand a chance at defeating Adachi. Losing wasn’t an option.

“Yeah, we’re good!” Chie replied. Honestly, she was pretty fired up. She could fight these shadows, and still be full of energy.

“Yes ma’am.” Kanji added politely. The others uttered similar notions.

Upon everyone’s confirmation, a smile formed on your lips. Glad to see you were all on the same page. “Okay, good. We’re almost to the end, aren’t we?”

Rise, the eyes and ears of the team, nodded. Since the way had been cleared up, her persona had an easier time detecting enemies. Adachi in particular. “Yeah. He should be down that way…!” She replied firmly. Teddy could sense it as well. All of you were almost to the final stage.

“Let’s go then.” You declared, and the leader of the investigation squad agreed. Stepping forward, Yu took charge and led the group.

Inside the winding nexus of concrete paths and caution tape, there was a singular path to the end. Just before your feet, there was a long stretch of path ahead. Taking a deep breath, you took off with the students.

This was it. You’d finally get the closure you had been waiting for.

As you kept up your brisk pace, Yukiko jogged alongside you. She turned her head to face you.

“Are you gonna be okay, Miss (Y/N)?” She held a look of concern. All of them knew that Adachi used to be an important person to you. To face him head on like this would be rough.

Upon hearing her worries, Rise, Chie, and Naoto slowed down to join in the conversation. It was horrible what Adachi did to you, betraying your trust like that. They couldn’t imagine what it was like for a person they liked to turn out to be a completely different person.

“...I’ll be fine.” You replied with a faint smile. To you, this was nothing.

Admittedly, it warmed your heart to see that the girls empathized with you. In fact, the days leading up to the dungeon were filled with talks from the girls. They were there for you in Adachi’s absence, and the reassurance was comforting. It was a reminder you weren’t alone in this endeavor. Your Ex’s reckless and twisted actions affected so many people. Soon to be many more. Whether you were prepared or not, you had to stop him at all costs. Everyone deserved justice.

A confident smirk formed on your lips. “I’m just ready to take him down already.” You joked.

The boys were in full agreement with that sentiment. Not only did they want to beat him up, but also for your honor and Nanako’s. “Hell yeah, we’ll kick his ass!” Kanji cheered, and Yosuke agreed.

The group was successfully hyped up now. The eight of you ran down the long narrow path littered with signs and caution tape. The red mist was vaguely hazy through your glasses. Off in the distance, you could see the end of the line. At the finish line was a figure standing there.

Upon spotting the edge, you picked up your speed. Closely behind, the others followed suit. Once you caught up to the figure, your movements skidded to a halt. All done in stilettos. It was impressive how well you moved in heels.

Adachi’s back was turned to your group. There was a brief pause, then he gradually turned around. As he did so, he offered your group a slow pity clap.

“Wow, I’m surprised you made it this far.” He observed. Though he said it to the group, it was mostly meant for you in particular. The drive you had to beat him was fascinating.

At the forefront of the investigation team, you crossed your arms. If he tried anything, you’d do your best to protect the kids. They took priority, as their personas were much stronger than yours. So you served as the support, and the first line of defense. 

“I’m surprised you can even see.” You retorted as you placed him under heavy scrutiny.

He raised a brow. “Huh? Of course I can see.” For a moment, his dark nature dropped due to his confusion. What kind of observation was that?

You tilted your head curiously. Raising your hand, you pinched the temple of your glasses and lowered them about an inch. Just to be sure. As you expected, the scenery before you was barely visible. A foggy, hazy mess. Without the lenses, it was hard to make him out. You skeptically narrowed your eyes and moved your specs back up. “Really…? Isn’t it foggy?”

The teenagers with you realized you had a point. Does Adachi not need glasses because he’s a shadow or something?

“Oh no, I can see you perfectly fine, (Y/N)...” Adachi shook his head with a chuckle. The fog was nothing to him. In fact, it was comforting more than anything. Smirking, a low rumble left his throat. “And man, you look as lovely as ever~”

Gross. Needless to say, his compliments had you grimacing in disgust. Any of his flirting attempts were like a mouthful of sand. Glaring, you held your hip. Everything he said got on your nerves now.

“Enough.” Naoto noticed your mild discomfort. “Allow me to confirm the crimes you’ve committed thus far.”

“You had suspicions that this world was dangerous, yet you threw Mayumi Yamano into the TV. Knowing full well that Ms. Yamano died here, you did the same to Saki Konishi. Not only that, but you duped Namatame into taking over your murder attempts, while you watched like a spectator at a game. When the disappeared stopped dying, you sent a warning letter to ensure more victims.”

Adachi sighed with disinterest.

“Even when a copycat killer arose, you had the gall as a detective to eliminate a suspect under investigation.” Naoto’s glare burned. “Two people died in the last six months, and a young girl is now in critical condition… but that’s not all.”

“If at any turn something had gone wrong, many more would have succumbed… all for some foolish ‘excitement,’ like a criminal reveling in the chaos he creates!”

Naoto put it better than you ever could.

“You’re disgusting, Adachi. To think you’d go as low as to convince me to turn my back on everyone. These kids have a better grasp on reality than you do.” You spoke up.

Yosuke and the others were surprised by what you revealed. Adachi tried to trick you into joining him?!  This guy was more than messed up.

Admittedly, Adachi was a little hurt by your words. “Oh come on, (Y/N). All I did was put people in here.” He retorted. His tone was normal and flat, as if he was a disinterested child being lectured. “It’s the world that really kills them, isn’t it?”

His gaze wandered over to the red sky. “This world reflects people’s thoughts… which… oh dear… does that mean the real culprits are everyone on the outside, including you?”

What backwards logic. “That may be fundamentally true, but who are you to lead them to the slaughter?” You glared at him. 

It’s true, not everyone was strong enough to face themselves. That doesn’t mean they deserve to be taken advantage of and killed.

“Face it for what it is. If you didn’t do what you did, Mayumi and Saki would still be alive.” Your targeted gaze was narrow and filled with contempt. It was his actions that damned them to the afterlife. “Why don’t you be a man and own up to your crimes, instead of making up excuses?”

“Yeah, to hell with that!” Yosuke barked. Like you said, it was a shitty excuse. “You did that stuff knowing full well those people were gonna die! If that’s not a crime, then what is!?”

Adachi snickered in response. “Haha… you’re so self-righteous.” He retorted smugly.

Chie was appalled by his words. For an officer of the law, his attitude was so out of place. “How can you say that…!? Aren’t you a police officer!?” She questioned. 

He was a detective, the same as (Y/N). While you became an officer to help people, here was this messed up guy in the same field hurting people. He was a walking contradiction. “Out of everything you could have been, didn’t you specifically choose to join the police!?”

“Don’t make me laugh. Just because someone joins the police doesn’t make them some kinda ‘agent of justice.’” Adachi scoffed in a disparaging tone. The credulous precedent made his skin crawl.

Upon hearing that, your fists involuntarily clenched. That crossed the line for you. You couldn’t believe what you were hearing. “What are you saying? That’s the whole point… that’s your job…!” You exclaimed. 

It both horrified and frustrated you to think he didn’t take his job seriously. Bad actors like him were an insult to your integrity as a detective. All of your talks with him of busting culprits, and helping people… it was all a lie. To think you thought he was being sincere when you opened up to him. Helping people and being a detective was part of your identity… so it was personal.

Why would he even bother?!

His eyes met your hardened ones. “Do you really wanna know why I applied, (Y/N)? So I could legally carry a gun… that’s all.” He replied, shrugging nonchalantly. “You’d be surprised how many are like that.”

Brows furrowing, your expression twisted to one of shock. “...You’re joking.” The corners of your lips turned downward. Just to own a gun…? Seriously? He’d compromise the principles of the police, just for a simple weapon?

“You wanted a gun?” Face stuck in disbelief, you stared at him in horror. It quickly changed to one of frustration. The notion was so absurd you had to reaffirm it. With one hand over your chest, your other swung your arm to the side. Though you originally wanted to remain calm when confronting Adachi, it was impossible. Rage was boiling inside you thanks to his absurdity. Growing more heated in the argument, your voice raised in volume. “Then move to the States! Their firearm laws are much more relaxed there…!”

While you agreed it was nice to carry a firearm, you didn’t understand his odd desperation for one. Going so far as to force an occupation just to get one. It didn’t make any sense. “There was no need to incriminate yourself and ruin the integrity of the police! Where’s your sense of honor?!” You argued.

While everyone bore some resentment for Adachi, they could tell your back and forth was much more heated. None of them had ever seen you this angry before. It was very personal between you two.

“Honor?” He tilted his head at you. A short, pitiful laugh escaped his lips. As much as he liked you, preachy garbage like that got on his nerves. “When you’re like me, you don’t get that sort of privilege.”

“Everything and everyone around me was boring. I was surrounded by idiots. Then one little mistake bought me scrutiny, and a ticket to Nowheresville. Why bother with honor or integrity when life is just a sham?”

You bit your tongue. Before all of this, you did think that compared to yourself, he was a lost man. What you didn’t know was the true extent.

“I was bored shitless and wondering what to do next… when I discovered this power.”

Kanji for one, agreed with you regarding honor. A piece of shit like Adachi didn’t deserve powers like the rest of you if he couldn’t even have a single shred of dignity. “For crying out loud… why a bastard like you!?”

“A gift for having to put up with this lame job out in Nowheresville, I guess.” Adachi said simply. His expression was plain again, the one you used to like. “I did that stuff ‘cause I could. And it got interesting, so I watched.”

“That’s your reason!? You can’t be serious…!” Yukiko scoffed. She couldn’t believe how apathetic the man was. It was horrifying to know this was the type of person they were supposed to trust with their safety. “You really don’t care what happens to our world!?”

“Let’s be honest. There’s nothing great about the real world, is there? It’s just dull and annoying as hell.” Adachi held a scowl. “No one accepts that’s the way things are… they’re just stuck with it because they can’t deny it, either.”

“Those who actually succeed in life… they just happen to be born with the magic ticket called ‘talent.’ If you don’t have it, you can either accept or deny that fact until you die. That’s your only choice.”

He averted his gaze. “Once you realize that, all you have left in life is despair. The ultimate game over. Wouldn’t it be better if that kind of reality was wiped away?”

“You don’t actually believe that crap, do you?” You couldn’t help but ask that rhetorical question. Hearing his defeatist rantings made you feel an ounce of pity for him.

As you spoke, you held your hand over your chest. Your eyes flickered with conviction. “Life can be unfair, but what makes it boring or exciting is up to you. Instead of giving up, you work and adapt for the things you want.”

Adachi went silent for a moment. Perhaps processing your words. Then he scoffed quietly.

“You’re so naive, (Y/N)... it kind of pisses me off.” He grinned at you. It appeared the advice went through one ear and out the other. “You don’t get what it’s like to be me. You’re pretty and you have talent. You have it easy, and you can have it much easier if you wanted to.”

It was impressive to him that you were a good detective. However, he wouldn’t have been surprised if you got advantages due to other factors. And even then, you could always be a trophy wife if you ever got tired of working. It wasn’t the same thing for him. He didn’t get those advantages.

“Shut the hell up.” You uttered with wide eyes. 

Instead of screaming or yelling, you were eerily calm. Though you didn’t shout, your voice was laced with burning anger. It was enough to give anyone chills.

He doesn’t get to say that. You spent years of painstaking labor to get to where you were at. Even more for people to start taking you seriously. In truth, you had to spend years in a similar situation to Naoto. In a job you loved, but one where you were held back, shunned, or mocked just for being a woman in a male dominated profession.

Being pretty or ‘talented’ wasn’t strictly a blessing. It can be a curse. Drawing the ire of people just because of how you look. Talent can mean nothing when your mere existence decided your worth. Getting advantages or disadvantages because of how you are perceived. All you wanted was to work hard and be acknowledged for your skill rather than your looks. Even now, you were close but not entirely there.

He knew that, and he had the gall to say you had it easy.

Naoto herself understood how you felt, and she was just as disgusted by his speculation.

“Just where the hell do you get off saying any of this, Adachi?” You spoke up.

“You think you know true adversity because… you were given a slap on the wrist, and kicked out of the city? Your life got a little too boring, and you’re too lazy to spice things up?”

“Instead of turning anything around… you sit there and cry about it?” You scoffed. The rage was boiling over. “Poor Adachi. Wow, I feel so sorry for you. You pathetic piece of garbage.”

“I mean it when I said life is dictated by how you live it. Your life is boring because of your own choices. Holding a pity party whilst doing nothing to improve it isn’t going to change anything.”

“You’re coping when you say ‘that’s how reality is.’ It isn’t. I’m sorry your life is terrible, but not everyone aspires to live the same way you do.”

“So please, don’t patronize to me about your shitty life experience when you’re not even trying.”

“Hell yeah, (Y/N)! Tell it like it is!” Kanji cheered you on. Him and the others had been silent, but they were enjoying hearing you dress down Adachi like this. He needed someone at his level to knock him down a peg.

It was inspiring to hear you talk. It made them fired up for the incoming battle.

“That’s why… this entire farce is pathetic. It’s cowardly to destroy the world and ruin things for everyone else because you want to be cynical. It’s selfish, and childish.” It was hard to believe this was the same man you fell for. Should you even be calling him a man at this point?

His plan to turn everyone into shadows was ludicrous. You stared at him, your gaze shimmering with conviction. “You’re far too close-minded to decide how the world will run.”

Perhaps in another life, your words would have reached him. If your paths had crossed sooner, he could’ve turned it all around. But it was too late. The damage had already been done. He was too far gone now to be reached. The harsh truth was threatening to shatter his ego.

“Shut up…. shut up, (Y/N)...!!!”

Adachi glanced down. A faint blue glow began to overtake his body.

“Be careful! I dunno what’s happening!” Teddy warned the group. Whatever it was, it wasn’t good.

The blue light continued emanating off his body like smoke. His eyes were glowing yellow. It was the same phenomena that occurred when the others encountered their shadow forms. A haunting realization came to you. Here, there wasn’t a second Adachi to contrast the first. 

Meaning they were one and the same.

“You all saw Shadows as mere monsters, didn’t you!? These things move on pure instinct! They go wild because you defy them!” Adachi’s voice was now distorted. “If you don’t want to be with me, but those annoying little brats… then so be it! You won’t be welcomed in the new world!”

“What new world? La la land?” You asked. A faint grin of amusement tugged on your lips. He was delusional if he thought you’d let him destroy the world and rebuild it in his image.

Adachi was at a loss. He couldn’t believe you were betraying him. The only person who brought him comfort was now against him. He was trapped in a corner.

It was all one big migraine. “Stop… stop trying to act tough, (Y/N)!” He lashed out at you. His composure was gradually getting worse. He was hunched over, as if in pain.

He held his temples, his entire body shaking. “You have no idea what kinda shit I’ve been through!!” He shouted.

“Get over yourself.” You sighed, adjusting your suit blazer. At this point, you’ve had it with him. “I dealt with a lot of injustice and nonsense. You don’t see me crying and scorching the Earth over it.”

Honestly, you didn’t mind being ruthless. It appeared Adachi had made up his mind about how he wanted to live. Therefore, all of the generous empathy you had for him was spent. You can’t help someone who doesn’t want to change.

Adachi yelled out in rage. His body dispersed into particles of shadow. Everyone else got into their fighting positions.

“Here he comes!” Rise warned. “This will probably be our last battle… let’s hit him with everything we’ve got!”

“The world is about to change…” Adachi’s body materialized from the shadows. He whipped out his gun. “Your existence won’t belong there!”

“I thought I could just leave you be, but you’re like a plague… I’ll have to get rid of all of you!”

“So be it.” You exhaled sharply. As you spoke, your vindictive gaze never left him. It was hard to believe this was your reality now. A nightmare made real. The man standing before you, the person you had to fight was your former lover. However, instead of shying away from the truth, you’d embrace it head on. “Let’s go guys…! I’m not letting us lose to the likes of him!”

“Right! Let’s work together! There’s no way we can lose to this bastard!” Yosuke and the others agreed. It was finally time to kick his ass for all the things he’s done.

Looking at the others, you nodded. Whether or not you still held feelings, you’d take him down all the same.

It was an exciting set of circumstances too. Beating your ex, to save the world? A faint chuckle escaped you at how poetic it was. “I’m going to enjoy this.” You smirked. With a snap of your fingers, your card shattered into a million pieces. A shimmering blue flame sparked behind you, and your persona materialized in its place. “Let’s dance, Adachi!”

Adachi hated how cocky you were getting. You didn’t stand a chance against him. He had to crush that semblance of hope. “Shut up…! Get lost! Get the hell outta my sight!!”

“Nope.” You mused. “Let’s go, Isolde…!” Upon channeling your persona, you summoned a protective barrier around the group.

The first strike to him was your Maragidyne. Adachi was hit with a large blast of fire. Not only did you make the first move, it showed your blazing resolve. It cemented the fact that you were serious about fighting him. There was no holding back in this battle.

The adrenaline rush you got from battle flowed through your veins. It was the perfect outlet for all the frustration you had at Adachi’s betrayal. The anger you had over opening up and giving him your heart, of which he took for granted. Also hitting him was just pretty satisfying.

The fight was long and arduous. As much as you hated him, Adachi was a formidable opponent. In order to defeat him, you had to give it your all. Each attack you made was powerful, with  smooth and fluid movements. It truly was a dance for the fate of the world.

The others jumped in with their own attacks. Each move weakened Adachi slowly but surely. His strikes were painful to endure, but you and Yukiko had spells to keep everyone at peak performance. You could keep this up forever, but could he?

It wasn’t before long, Adachi’s figure was starting to wane. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, his strength was dwindling. He was losing. His change in demeanor didn’t go unnoticed by you. In fact, it gave you a burst of energy. It was confirmation for you to keep going so you could finally end this once and for all.

A series of attacks followed your observation. Rise had pointed out Adachi’s state, and everyone in your group sent a fury of attacks. It was time to wrap this up.

It was only a few minutes longer into the fight that Adachi had grown weaker. Upon letting his guard down, there was a moment of weakness, and you took it. You sent the final blow. “Once more…!” A fire blast escaped your persona’s hands and hit the man.

That was it. He stumbled back before dropping to his knees. He was defeated. Adachi visibly grimaced, wincing as he held his shoulder.

“D-Damn… this is lame…” He grumbled as he grit his teeth. “Ngh… oh well…”

“Our world’s gonna disappear soon, no matter what… I didn’t have anywhere to go back to anyways… Everyone’s gonna become Shadows…” He chuckled before being met with a surge of pain.

To your dismay, beating Adachi didn’t completely solve everything. If only it had been that simple. It turned out he was a conduit for the true culprit behind the phenomena, Ameno-sagiri. It had been called upon due to the desire for mankind to live in ignorant bliss. Since they desired for the absence of truth, they would become shadows and live in the darkness of the fog.

You didn’t think you’d fight against a giant disco eyeball, but you did.

Upon its defeat, you opened Ameno-sagiri’s eye to the truth. You and the others showed the supernatural being the power of human potential. The fog was lifted over Inaba.

Once the being faded away, you approached Adachi, who was laying on the ground. You gently nudged the side of his arm with the tip of your stiletto. He’s still alive…

Adachi sighed as he stared at the sky. He was defeated. “So that’s it, huh…?” The world he wanted wasn’t going to happen.

“Fine… Live however you want…” He breathed out. It was clear he still had some lingering influence of Ameno-sagiri. His voice was rough and strained. “If you think… you have the power to change the future… then go right ahead…”

“I’m surprised you don’t know it’s very possible.” You raised a brow. Changing the future has been a believable concept since the dawn of time. Nothing is set in stone.

“Everyone has the power to do that.” Yosuke said in agreement.

Adachi let out a pained laugh. He wasn't sure why any of you were still around. Surely, you'd leave him to rot, right? “Get outta here… The Shadows will finish me off…”

“Just leave me be… you came to kill me in the first place… didn’t you…?” He stared at you and the group. He wouldn’t expect any less. He was a murderer who betrayed your trust.

“No, dumbass.” Kanji said to Adachi.

“You’re joking, right?” You held your hip as you glanced down at the man. Bending your knees, you crouched down next to him.

“You’re not getting off that easy.” From your pocket, you got out your handcuffs. With swift yet gentle movements, you took his arm and attached the restraint to his wrist. It was only fair Dojima got closure just as you did. Adachi needed to own up to his crimes as well. “I said I’d put you behind bars. Unlike you, I keep my promises.”

“Yeah, your stupid game’s over. We’re taking you back.” Yosuke said in agreement. “Live and face your punishment… that’s how it works in our world.”

“...Right…” Adachi didn’t move as you locked his hands up. There was a hint of humiliation he felt being put in restraints by you. It was the cherry on the bitter sundae of defeat. However, he couldn’t bring himself to resist anymore.

Naoto agreed with your wishes. “I’m sure that’s the outcome Dojima-san wishes for as well.”

As you kneeled close to the man, you glanced down at him. Amidst the momentary silence, he met your eyes. “We have the same power, but things turned out so differently for us…” Adachi muttered.

He wasn’t wrong. The two of you were in the same field, and granted the same ability, but that’s where your similarities ended. Like fire and water, you were complete opposites. While he succumbed to his loneliness and cynicism, you were optimistic and driven to your goals. Despite dealing with hardships, you managed to overcome and adapt. You had friends, family, and things to live for.

You were Adachi’s only gateway to a world of color. The exciting life he thought was long dead. He had a taste of it for a moment, and it felt nice… but then he ruined it. Foolishly, Adachi let his selfishness get in the way of his own happiness. He pushed the only person he cared about away. The woman of his dreams slipped out of his grasp, and he was the only one to blame.

Regret was seeping in through the cracks. “If only I had met you sooner… things wouldn’t have gone this way…” He whispered, his eyes softening.

Falling silent for a moment, you averted your gaze. “Maybe so…” You replied softly with a frown. Gently, you lowered his wrists about an inch. As much as you resented him for what he did, you did feel a small ounce of pity. It wasn’t an excuse, but you understood how he got here. “But I shouldn’t have to be the sole reason for you to change.”

You can’t magically fix someone’s problems overnight. Changing isn’t someone else’s responsibility, but your own. Change has to come from within. It wasn’t your job to save someone who can’t even help themselves.

“...Yeah, right…” Despite his begrudging acceptance, Adachi smiled weakly at you. His clarity arrived far too late. The damage was done, but his feelings persisted even now. In the fight he said he hated your resilience. In truth, it was one of the things he loved most about you.

After leaving the TV Realm, you were tasked with bringing him back to the station. You got into contact with Dojima and told him everything. Adachi was carefully taken into custody. As he was taken away by a stretcher at Dojima’s personal request, you didn’t speak any more words to each other.

The teenagers decided to go off and celebrate, but you hung back to go to the station.

Officers and civilians were coming and going through the Junes. As you walked out the glass doors, you were hit with a shining bright glare. What followed was a comfortable sentiment of warmth. Your eyes were shielded with your arm, and you slowly lowered it to glance up. 

The sun was out. The fog was no more. It was a peaceful, sunny day. One that filled your senses with a feeling of tranquility. The light breeze gingerly swayed your locks as you stood there, admiring the sight. How long has it been since you’ve seen a clear day like this? Too long… A small smile crept up your cheeks.

Thanks to Adachi, you were back at square one. A single detective, able to return to the city and resume her life of chasing thrills and avoiding lows. However… that wasn’t entirely true. You grew a lot from this experience. Not to mention all the bonds you formed here during your time in Inaba. It made you appreciate living, whether it be materialistic or minimalistic. Thrills were fun, but sometimes tranquility was better.

Brushing the stray locks away from your face, you continued your walk to the station. Perhaps… you’ll stay here a bit longer.

haha totally not gonna use this as a blueprint for a persona game for girls hahahahahahaha whaaa???

anyways stan p4 detective y/n best mentor character

lowkey i wanted to do another part thats like aftermath interrogation stuff or ultimax or something but omg ultimax is longggg and id rather make my own persona type story instead hhhhh oh well maybe

divider: cafekitsune

consider following if you like my works :D

♡ quotev ♡ wattpad ♡ archive ♡ caard ♡

[zentraex]

Chapter 1 - Bad Luck

-> Masterlist

"Isn't it obvious, that he is using you?"

The room falls suddenly eerily still, as I blurted out my remark. Huh? Didn't anybody see it, the way I did? Am I the only one with this opinion?

"What did you just say?" Megan asks, who is head over heels into her new boyfriend. "You are really thinking, I am so dumb and let somebody use me, Reader?"

Excuse me?

"I never claimed that!" I defend myself, as I can feel my body seething with dismay.

Then Jessica speaks up, who supports Megan, then Fiona and lastly, Julie. All of them are outvoting me together, and then the fight just really starts: one insult here and many evil glances there. The hangover I was looking forward, reveals itself as a disaster.

Slowly but surely, big fat water drops are blocking my view, as I get verbally beat up by my so called friends. But why exactly? I was always kind, supported them with all my might. Sure, it often looked, as if they were excluding me, but I tried so hard to be one of them! Were my efforts not enough?

"Out with you Reader! I never want to see your ugly face ever again! I tolerated you for so long, but I can't stand you anymore! GOD! I'm so sick of you!"

And then the first tear runs down my check and the next follows. My feet are moving myself out of the house ,as if on autopilot. The laugher in the house is loud and clearly to hear, even as I close the door behind me.

Why is it hurting so much!?

Why should I sit here, in front of their door, and cry in the dark? Should't I be glad? My efforts were for nothing anyway. It is finally over! Stop crying! Be strong! You are finding much better friends.

But it doesn't matter, how good these motivational words sound, that sting in my heart and that overwhelming feeling of sorrow is not stopping. Only when I hear voices of a group full of men, just a few blocks further away, everything in me halts.

My eyes widen, as I start realize how late, and how dangerous it is for me, to sit here all by myself. My heart starts to pound rapidly against my thorax, as the group of men comes into my view.

Shit!

Without a second thought: I speed walk.

Run, Reader! Run!

Mother always told me, that I shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but I can't be blamed when my morals are overshadowed by my instincts! These guys behind me, are no good. I can clearly tell that by their laugher.

"Sugar! What's the rush?"

"Look! A mini rock! She shouldn't wonder, when we loose control!"

Again, laugher. Again, a step faster. Again, the voices are getting louder.

Help!

As I turn around a corner, a person comes into my field of vision: black hoodie, black sweatpants, red shoes. Should I burden them with my problems?

Yes! I need help!

Usually, I wouldn't. But as I was about to change my mind, I find myself in front of the person already, my hand on their shoulder and my words, begging for help, pour out of my mouth.

"Please help me! They're some strangers after me, and I can't get rid of them."

In the corner of my eyes are big heavy water drops, which are treating to run down my face, as I heard those guys whistle again. The person remains still, as he leads his hand to his throat and starts scratching.

"Look how you can deal with your problems alone, and don't bother others. I have enough on my mind and I couldn't care less helping a slut like you," he answers, his voice hoarse with a annoyed undertone. Then he slaps my hand away and continues walking.

And then they roll - the tears, I tried to hold back. What have I done to deserve this today?

"Please! My day is already bad enough. I will pay you back somehow! I promise!"

Then those guys are appearing behind me.

"Are you bothering other people now, doll? Come here and we promise, it will be fast," says one of them and the others laugh. A lot of them are holding empty bottles.

"And you over there, you weirdo, didn't see anything, okay?"

Totally terrified, I give the group one last look, before I gather all my energy, and sprint past the hooded person.

...

...

...

So the plan, but the stranger holds my arm firmly. His grip is strong, even though he keeps one finger in the air. When I wanted to look at him confused, I stare in blood red eyes. He wears a lot of wrinkles around them, although the right eye is decorated by a scar. His lips are cracked and dry, and have a scar on the left side as well. There is light blue hair hanging out of his hood. If he wouldn't look at me so pissed, I would think that he is beautiful. Doesn't matter, if he has some problems with skin care.

"People in groups tend to have a big mouth. But on they own, they are nothing more than stray dogs, begging for attention. Should I demonstrate you, where you really stand?" he says, as he turns his head to the group of men. "Hmm? Sounds good, don't you think?"

Now he starts grinning wickedly to himself, while the other group is cackling and giggling.

What a weird guy...

"What wants a leek like you wanna do?" the one guy asks, while holding his stomach, but it doesn't take long and his laugh turns into screaming. His whole body turns into ash.

Then everything becomes silent and all I hear is my heart, which beats vigorous in me. I am rubbing my eyes to make sure, that the stranger killed the guy with one touch. I only blinked twice and the hooded person wasn't next to me anymore, but by the group.

"Hey! Calm down, buddy! You are not the person we wanted to fuck!" another person tries to safe their situation, but turns into dust just like the other.

"Next one?", the men with his deadly quirk asks. His smirk and bloodlust soaked gaze did't leave his face a second. The group of men isn't even answering anymore and runs away.

[princesscolumbia]

Code of Ethics - Chapter 17 - Hyperarousal

The last few days have been a bit more stressful than anticipated, which actually worked quite well to create the emotional payload for this chapter, but due to the distractions of preparing for my kiddo going into surgery (scheduled, we've known this was coming for over a year), I'm not entirely sure it's up to my usual quality. Hopefully, this lands well and I won't have to redo it later:

Diane finishes the task of driving off the slavers while her team rescues the slaves. The aftermath promises to be an emotional roller coaster of epic proportions.

Preview below the cut, and same warnings as last chapter, gore tag applies:

Diane felt like she’d chugged an entire vending machines worth of energy drinks.

Katrina had directed her to a four-way corridor junction that, sure enough, was where two main arteries of traffic converged. The halls were wide, which gave her plenty of room to maneuver even if they provided absolutely no cover.

Twenty bodies later, she’d barely been nicked by one lucky shot once the slavers got smart and began using cover. That was okay, though, because that gave her the chance to figure out an interesting feature of the rifles; they had a function that turned them into low-yield grenades.

Sure, it would normally have been a waste of a perfectly good rifle with a nearly full charge...but thanks to the moronic first charge of the security grunts she had twenty more rifles to play with.

A little bit of instruction from Katrina once she’d discovered the user’s manual in the slaver’s ship’s database and Diane had managed to trigger the safety release on the explosive feature and lobbed the weapon down one of the corridors and just past the corner the guards were hiding behind. She heard a gruff voice bark a swear word over the whine of the overcharging power cell just before it detonated, eliminating one group of guards and letting her focus on the second. She turned and sprinted in the opposite direction of the corner she’d just blown up and stooped on the run to grab up another rifle. Pulling the trigger a couple times to ensure it was working, the two bolts she’d fired splashed harmlessly against the deck paneling down the hallway where she’d aimed it. Ignoring the test shots, she increased her speed until she judged she was close enough to the junction of corridors and leapt into a baseball slide. It wasn’t a perfect slide, her coat was so matted with blood by this point it was more of a sticky glide that left a trail, but it still did the job of getting her close to the cluster of guards around the corner and opening fire, peppering them liberally with energy shot.

“You know, Kat,” she said as she picked herself up from the trail of gore she’d left behind, “If it weren’t so sticky, this would actually be kind of fun.”

“Gotta love what you do, boss. Careful, you’re going to run out of slavers before your team manages to get all the women and girls off the ship.”

Another spike of rage lit her insides as the assistant confirmed multiple children were being sold into slavery and her claws came out almost of their own accord. Just then a crew member rounded the corner, one carrying a significantly bigger gun than the previous guards had, and before he even realized she was there she’d slashed him belly-to-neck and made an extra effort to rip out his throat. He hadn’t even had a chance to cry out before she gutted him.

Once again she found herself absolutely feeling like the coolest person on the planet as she simply...grabbed the larger rifle out of the guards hands as he fell. She didn’t have time to do more than feel impressed with herself as two more guards followed behind. With one hand occupied she acted mostly on instinct and jammed her fingers into one guard’s neck with a knife strike and lunged forward and sank her fangs into the other’s neck.

It wasn’t the taste of blood or even the warm fluid in her mouth that snapped her out of her near berserker state, it was when some of the liquid splashed down her windpipe, forcing her to cough that shook her hard enough she more on accident shredded the man’s throat in her paroxysms. She leaned forward, one hand on a knee while she used the un-investigated long gun as an impromptu cane, jamming the butt against the floor as she hacked and sputtered.

“Why the FUCK did I do that?!” she exclaimed as soon as she was able to draw enough breath, spitting alien blood from her mouth.

“Maybe expectorate later, boss, you’ve got incoming, looks like they’re taking you seriously, too. 34...no, 38 goons on their way to take you down.”

Grumbling, she straightened and inspected the weapon she’d grabbed off the dead guard. It seemed to just be a bigger, more dangerous looking version of the rifles she’d been taking off their person and realized they’d been using carbines for their standard response team carry. That made more sense than this thing, which had a much longer barrel and a bigger battery...until she spotted a fairly heavy looking casing that she couldn’t immediately identify.

As she started moving, she asked, “Kat, any reason I shouldn’t ditch this in favor of the carbines?”

“Two phrases, two words each,” chirped Katrina through the comms panels nearby, “Dual rails and auto-aiming.”

Katrina’s pronouncement made her realize she wasn’t holding an energy rifle, she was holding a railgun. A double-barreled railgun at that. Auto-aiming would be nice, but if it had fully automatic capability... “Kat, find out how we can get more cartridges for this thing,” she said as she slung it over her shoulder to carry it on her back, “Idiot who was carrying it clearly didn’t realize you don’t bring a long gun to an urban combat setting.”

Read the rest on Scribblehub

[macawritesupdates]

Hi Maca I wrote another mini fic of your fic for you!

...

Sukuna woke to the sounds of muffled laughter and shouting drifting into his room. He'd slept in well past sunrise thanks to the twin black holes growing in his belly. By this point in the pregnancy it was obvious he was carrying twins no doctor or Ultrasound needed his girls made themselves known by kicking and stealing all his damn energy. Sukuna wondered if he should have been more worried about them eating him instead of each other. Getting up out of bed required some gymnastic maneuvering and he was glad the brat was outside for once because if anyone witnessed this he'd have no choice but to kill them. If he got even one ounce bigger he was going to force the brat to drop out of classes just so he could carry Sukuna around all day. Making his way to the kitchen Sukuna was almost willing to forgive his husband for putting him through this when he saw that Yuuji had left three different breakfast options out for him. Almost. A full plate of pancakes with bacon, steak and potatoes, and Chinese congee would at least buy the brat another day of life. After eating all three meals Sukuna went to find out what had his little family so excited. Yuuji and Daiki were out in the garden chasing each other all about. Sukuna smirked at the ridiculous show and settled down to watch the entertainment.

…

Daiki hid beneath the hydrangea bush, both hands over his mouth tightly to help hold his breath. Papi might find him if he made even a peep. Papi stalked through the garden searching moving slowly but surely like a wild predator. Eyes scanning his surroundings as he went. Daiki felt his heartbeat speeding up in his chest and desperately wished he could slow it down. Papi's hearing probably wasn't good enough to hear it but he couldn't be sure and the faster his heart beat the harder it got to keep holding his breath. Just a little longer though, he just needed to hold out just a little longer. The hydrangea bush was near the corner of the garden and if papi caught him he'd be trapped. Papi was faster than him, especially in short straight bursts; his only chance of winning was to wait for him to pass so Daiki could burst out behind him and flee. If he could get back to the center of the garden he could climb up the tree and he was a better climber than papi so he'd stand a chance. It was his only hope. Papi's shadow finally passed him by. Every second stretched out as Daiki finally let himself breath sucking on what felt like a whole house worth of air and throwing himself forward as he did. He ran pushing his feet deep into the soft warm earth keeping low and even using his hands to help maneuver himself as he heard his papi start to pursue. All the pretty flowers blurred past he was so close to safety when he felt papi's fingers just barely brush his back. Heart racing he threw himself into one last jump forward escaping papi and making it to the trees. Scrambling up up up he tried to zig zag through the branches. So long as he could keep at least one or two branches between himself and his papi he'd be fine. Papi couldn't move as fast through the trees; he was too big to follow Daiki directly through the branches without risking breaking them. Letting Himself catch his breath Daiki paused as he realized the terrible truth. He'd lost track of papi and the garden was quiet. The garden was never quiet; there were always birds chirping and bugs humming and wind rustling the branches. The garden was quiet and hunter's still and Daiki had lost track of his papi. Animal instinct warned him to move a second too late and papi burst down from above grabbing Daiki and pulling him tight against his chest as they both fell. Daiki’s papi twisted his body mid air and landed in a crouch holding Daiki against him so he didn't get hurt.

“Gotcha, mwahaha the tickle monster caught you! Prepare to be tickled to death.” Papi swung Daiki around as he spoke, keeping them chest to chest so he could get the best angle for tickling.

“Noooo Nooo!!” Cried Daiki thrashing in his papis's grip. “Noo tickling me tickle monster!”

Papi had no mercy and soon Daiki couldn't talk at all through all the laughter. Once he was all giggled out, Papi let himself fall back taking Daiki with him so they could rest together for a bit. Daiki liked the sound of his papi's heartbeat and lay there on his chest feeling the dappled sunlight and the gentle breeze that returned to the garden.

“Wanna play pirates next papi?” Daiki asked once he got bored of just laying there. “You can be my first mate if you want.”

Daiki’s papi smiled and kissed his head which Daiki took for a yes. He decided to use his red wagon as the ship. Kuna sat in one seat. He was a sea monster who snuck on board and ate up all the crew. Papi sat in the other calling out warnings to Daiki who pulled the ship around as its captain.

…

Hope you like it. I wanted to write a bit of family play time because I really like lessons and I'm excited for the family to grow. I figured that the Itadori-Ryomen family would probably get a bit intense with their games, so have Daiki treating a game of tickle monster like it's a life and death chase. Afterward, though, they play the most chill game of pirates, with Daiki just tugging everyone around in circles through the garden using his imagination to pretend they're at sea. It's chill until Daiki makes the mistake of talking about how pirates steal stuff which leads to Sukuna sharing stories of cool stuff he stole in the past. Then it becomes mildly terrifying.

AHHHH! I ALWAYS LOVE THESE LITTLE SNIPPETS SO MUCH! <3 So adorable and having Yuuji and Daiki interact like little fools...it makes my heart very warm and happy to see them running around all crazy!

And Sukuna is totes contemplating murder at this stage...he'll be much happier when the twins are out hehe! You always do a great job capturing all the personalities and it is such an honor and a delight to get these <3 <3

Got to escape tickle monster Papi!

[maruzzewrites]

first hunger.

Gale experiences his first arcane hunger.

The first time wakes him up in the middle of the night.

It is not because it arrives suddenly, it is not the point of view of the unassuming prey being jumped by the hungry wolf. It has been creeping up for hours into the day, malicious like any other type of deprivation one can feel, but Gale wanted to think it was nothing more than a collateral effect.

When he wakes up in his bed, after his body surging up with the same power and hunger as a complex spell being cast, Gale’s logic doesn’t rush to understand but to sate this famished ticking inside his chest. It moves in his body with the same rhythm and cadence of a clock waiting to hit the right time, like the sea caressing the shore waiting for the storm, like the first time a fireball at full speed rained from his fingers and the exhilarating feeling of having done it.

He truly has done it, now.

He isn’t sure what to do, what this beating, living, powerful thing wants from him. It almost makes him fall to his knees when he tries to stand up from the bed, as the arms of this running clock move in his flesh. It leaves a void with every inch it takes from him, and it feels like it is coming close to the end of its cycle.

A foot after the other, Gale moves his fingers into a quick somatic pattern, whispers the few words needed, and the smallest of flames takes hold of the candles by his bed. The minimal surge of magic that comes from this action makes the hunger ache, ache deep within his entire upper body.

It burns. And he feels like it has to come out, it has to end and take, take, take. The worst sensation, physically at least, he has ever felt and he has no idea how to deal with it properly.

What does it seek? Does he have it?

He looks around, before the inevitable arrives. His eyes dart around, into that same room that has seen him closed off for days and days. Ashamed. And this punishment, this ache inside of him, makes that shame even more prominent.

Here, where all his magical items are stored.

Powerful magical items, too.

He feels attracted to them, in this moment. His logical thinking would want him to linger on that odd sensation, but there is an irrational pull towards anything that is most instinctive to get out of this growing ache. At times, the most logical solution is following one’s primal instinct.

That’s how he became one of the best wizards in Waterdeep. Chosen by Mystra herself. Before everything that happened.

So he approaches one of the magical items. A little ring, not much to think about, but a gift from a young wizard who run up to him one day and gifted it to him, lauding him as a hero and an inspiration. Citing him as the reason they were starting to study magic and that, that small ring, was the first object they could enchant.

It does nothing much other than store some fire to then launch, but Gale holds it dear to him for the emotional connection. It reminds him who he is, what he can be, and even now he is fond of it.

He takes it into his fingers, observes it. Then, a sudden surge of energy.

The arms of the clock morph into hands, crawling up his body and all around him. He bends over himself, this energy too big for him to contain and the burning expands, engulfs. This hand overtakes his, wraps around him like a second body, takes hold of that so dear ring of his.

And then it’s gone. Everything is gone, and he is fine. Tired, but sated, and fine.

And the ring, no trace of magic left in it.

Gale thinks. He backs up until his knees touch the bed and he sits down, and he thinks as he observes this ring between his fingers. He thinks how it’s too small for him, how it’s not precious at all, and how now it’s just a normal ring with no magical power.

He will have to think more, when his brains isn’t sluggish. But he still can’t sleep.

So, he may as well think more.

And pray, somewhat.

“May you have mercy upon me, Mystra.”

[whipplefilter]

Indy 500 2024

The Indy 500 is an entirely different beast than any race I've ever been to. There are 300,000 in the audience; the bleachers all around the track and all the infield mounds are absolutely full to bursting.

I'm not usually a big crowds person, but I do actually really like being around a bunch of race fans, because amidst some people being racist/sexist, there is overall a strong shared love of something, and a lot of fanatical joy, and I love fanatical joy. But--and I'll preface this by saying that I'm admittedly not an Indycar fan, either, so I don't have the strongest leg to stand on here--there were a lot of Girlfriends indulging their partners at this race. Which is very polite of them, but they talked so much and it was all so insipid. And as much as I love participating in shared fanatical joy, I really don't like engaging in fannish activity if the people around me aren't equally interested. So these extremely chatty Girlfriends were a downer for me. That sounds gatekeepy, but I mean it in a way like, GURL, if you're going to do something for someone else, and you're not actually interested in it, you need to be genuinely open to the idea of being interested in it for a few hours!!! Be curious and thoughtful about a new experience!!!! Don't just say "they have to run 200 laps? Don't they get bored? I'd get bored."

Anyway, that aside, the big thing I noticed that is also going to sound self-evident and insipid is that they are going so fast. That video above will not do the live experience justice.

Like, if you watch a bunch of racing in a weekend, you can absolutely tell that there's a major speed difference between, say, ARCA, vs. trucks, vs. Xfinity/Cup. But even without direct basis for comparison, the Indy 500 is so fast. The difference between a 185ish NASCAR average and 220 is so fast. The difference between an Indycar's average speed on a road course and on an oval is so fast. I've been to a number of Indycar's road course races at IMS, and speed-wise, there's no comparison to Indy on the oval.

It's the point at which form and design become only blurs of color, and you know the car you're rooting for only through math (running order) and instinct. What you can see is only the impression of a car; it is sound and wind pressure and the ghost form of something moving toward and past you.

I will always be a stock car person, in terms of sound and shape, and they, too, feel like this when you're down at the bottom of the stands, by the catchfence, but it is very special to see these svelte arrows at a wider magnification, still just these impressionistic entities racing under the colors of the Brickyard. It's beautiful.

I was rooting for:

Kyle Larson (because I am me)

Roman Grosjean (for his wet cat energy)

Sting Ray Robb (because his name is Sting Ray Robb)

And for the win, was rooting for either Scott Dixon (because CGR) or Pato O'Ward (because of Arrow McLaren teammate solidarity). Which didn't come to pass--I am so sorry, Pato--but they certainly made Newgarden/Rossi work for it, and it was a great finish.

I'm really pleased with how well Kyle Larson did in his first Indy 500, and first Indy race. He mentioned before the race that he wasn't sure that he wanted to attack off the bat, because he'd never been through a start or restart in an Indycar, and he definitely got a lot of experience on that front in this race, LOL.

Starting 5th, he got dropped back to P14ish at the start, and spent some time there before working his way back into the T10 and ultimately back to P6, where he spent most of the race. A speeding penalty in the latter third of the race put him a lap down, though Will Power's caution allowed him the wave-around and he got a chance to lead laps of the Indy 500 for a while due to long-pitting, which I feel like was primarily for the fun and experience of it, and a little for the hope that maybe there'd be a lucky caution and he could pit under yellow and steal some of that track position. That wasn't to be, so the finish is more reflective of his one mistake than how he ran in the race overall. I think he did really well and I'd love to see him and Hendrick and Arrow-McLaren attempt the H1100 again, without the weather stress. <3