#helps with the accuracy if he's blinded and you're not

[mokeonn]

Anyways im just very peeved that my problems with honor mode so far haven't been the fights because I'm very good with cheesing them. It's been with the consequences of failing certain story events.

Like I haven't touched my game with Poetry, my adorable little pink tiefling bardlock, because despite almost being done with act 2, I foolishly decided to talk to Isobel because I thought I could handle the fight. I didn't need to talk to her! I didn't need Selune's blessing! I had the pixie's bell! Yet, for some reason, I decided to tempt fate anyway with an encounter that took me at least 8 tries to get right on my first playthrough. Now I'm too bummed to play the world's cutest bard because I ended up condemning tons of wonderful characters to their death with my hubris. It doesn't matter that I was technically already continuing the run with dishonor (the phase spider matriarch), no reloading allowed ever I suppose.

So I'm gonna probably make an even more wholesome run with a halfling, and I will simply not take any risks that happen to take out an entire village if you fail.

[cripplecharacters]

Hi! I'm writing a fantasy story set in a setting that focuses around 12-13 century BCE. My main character, who is not the POV character, has progressive blindness due to a genetic disorder and has lost most of his hearing in one ear due to an explosion in a battle. Given that magic exists very sparingly in this universe, and no one close to him has such powers, he uses only a cane and later, a guide animal for his blindness.

I just read through your blog and I realised it might seem a little disrespectful to not accommodate other avenues of aid, especially for his hearing loss. I wanted to ask if I should add anything else, and if so, what would be appropriate for the period?

P.S.: He is also a warrior, and he fights pretty often; is that unrealistic with the aids that are involved?

Thank you for maintaining the blogs, this has been greatly educational

Hi!

So, while we don't have a lot of commonly known resources about disability in this time period because of the in general more limited resources about it, we actually found a resource that might help you a lot!

This website is called Disability History and the Ancient World, and focuses on exactly what it says lol. To quote it: "Quite contrary to disability studies for other periods, research into this subject has just begun to develop and specialists are few." It has a huge bibliography of various research papers and articles, in various languages and about various topics. Not all of them have links, but they can be copy-pasted and then searched for and whatnot. More specifically, we found an article about deaf men in the 13th century BCE! Here's the article, and here it is in PDF form if that's easier.

For more general practical writing advice, you can play a little fast and loose with accuracy. You kind of already have, a bit, with the aids for blindness – but also with fantasy, and also because you kind of have to, in a setting we know relatively little about!

It is, however, pretty accurate that wherever people are deaf, they develop sign languages to communicate. It might not historically have been a standardized language in a widespread way, but people everywhere want to communicate. If you're being a bit anachronistic anyway, which again, is totally fine especially in a fantasy setting, you could also make it so that a braille-like language exists already; and/or a tactile sign language that's somewhat known. Those are aids that DeafBlind people use today that could translate pretty well to the setting.

As to the combat/warrior, I would say that a guide animal is much less realistic to have in combat than the cane. You also mention that his blindness is progressive, which means it might vary from battle to battle depending on how his blindness progresses and how often he has to fight.

Thank you for your question, by the way! I think we were all a bit fascinated because no one has asked us anything about this time period before.

– mod sparrow

P.S.: For historical context for anyone else other than the original asker, this time period is 1300-1101 BCE, and the numbers go 3-2-1 instead of 1-2-3 because they're counting down to 0. It's around this time that it's the Late Bronze Age and later the Late Bronze Age Collapse, the Shang Dynasty is in place in China, it's the 19th Dynasty of Egypt, and the mythological Trojan War has its symbolic dates (it might be based on a real conflict, or not, we don't know for sure).

[kitkatscabinet]

Oh baby

Osferth x fem reader

Summary: After finding out some life-changing news Osferth takes to his self assigned role as your protector with an increased vigour.

Word count: 1.1k

Warnings: discussions of sex

A/N: In the spirit of historical accuracy women wouldn't have realised they were pregnant on the basis of missing a period. Lifestyle and poor diet choices meant that while women still had regular periods they would not have had one every month. Frequent childbearing also worked to stymie menstruation so it could be very easy to miss. if we were really going for accuracy however, most women wouldn't realise they were pregnant until baby started to kick. Also in opposition to Saxon men, Vikings were in the delivery room.

The alehouse was alive with the revelry of its drunken patrons, your table in particular contributing largely to the volume. Finan and Sihtric had already been near blind drunk by the time you had slunk out of bed with Osferth. Though they had been very quick to try and rectify his soberness even if you had refused, stomach suddenly lurching with nausea at the prospect of a drink.

Your refusal had caused some shock and outrage, though it was quickly forgotten as the men delved deeper and deeper into their cups. All the while you were attempting to keep a smile on your face even if you wanted nothing more than to sink into the floor and die.

All your efforts not to upend your stomach onto the floor ended up being for nought as Sihtric drunkenly threw the contents of his mug over you. There was a split second of silence as the men looked on in horror, waiting for your inevitable rage. The silence quickly morphs into yells of disgust and worry as you simply turn to the side and throw up. The smell of ale so close to your nostrils finally does you in.

Osferth is up and at your side in an instant, pulling back your hair and rubbing your back as he tried to work out what was wrong.

"I'm ok" you mumbled, even though your stomach was still rioting. "Haven't been feeling good all morning, didn't want to worry you. I guess the smell just pushed me over. I feel a lot better now" you weakly tried to convince your hovering man.

"You know, I was thinking you looked a bit shit" Sihtric piped in ever so helpfully. Only to receive the full force of Osferth's glare.

Despite your many protests you end up being escorted back to your small house with Osferth on one arm and Finan on the other, both hovering incessantly. It takes what feels like an hour to convince your worried ex-monk that you weren't dying and that he didn't need to get a healer to check on you.

Unfortunately for you, the next morning heralds an even worse bout of sickness that has you heaving up the first bite of your breakfast just outside your front door. You had also been suddenly afflicted by fatigue that had you unable to leave your bed for long.

Osferth was beside himself with worry but with the added symptoms of incredibly tender breasts and memories of Gisela's own pregnancies you had your own suspicions.

You had your Lord get Osferth out of your hair, even with his many protests, and called upon Hild to help you confirm your thoughts.

When Osferth returns home, hands anxiously twisting like he expects to find you dead your good news is interrupted by yet another round of vomiting. Which inevitably sets Osferth off once more and it takes a groaned declaration interrupted by your eye watering gags to stop him from storming out the door for a healer.

"What?" he croaks out, voice tinged with hope.

"I'm with child. You're going to be a father. Congratulations" you miss his reaction as your face is still buried in the bucket but you are almost certain he nearly faints at the news. In his excitement he pulls you into his arms and plants a kiss on your hairline, ignoring the way you groan at the nausea-inducing movement.

"I'm going to be father! We're going to be a family" Hearing his voice crack at the declaration you look up only to witness the tears flooding his eyes, which of course in turn makes you cry as well.

Osferth holds you in his arms as the two of you cry tears of joy, bucket and nausea are forgotten for now as he pulls you up and out the door. It doesn't take him long to track down the men that had become his family (read: drinking like always) to share the news.

"Lord!" Osferth yells, smile splitting his face and catching the attention of not just his Lord but every patron in the building. "I'm going to be a father Lord!" A hush fell at the news before uproarious cheers filled the building. Finan was the first to pull you into a hug, his grip squeezing and Osferth was quick to bark at him for being too rough.

His minor freak out then should have been an indication to you of the times to come but you were so lost in the revelry that you hadn't thought much on it.

Now, four months since you'd been made aware of the happy news it took everything in you not to bite Osferth's head off. He had startled awake for the fifth time that night, demanding to know where you were going without him. And for the fifth time you hissed that you just needed to piss, and that it was really none of his business.

At first, his overprotectiveness had been adorable, and you still found it so most of the time. But there were only so many times you could explain you just needed to pee before you got pissed off.

On the plus side, Osferth gave and did anything you wanted without complaint. It was like his new job to be your personal servant, bending to your whims for odd food combinations and foot and back rubs like a wet rag.

His hands were constantly on you. On your hips, around your waist or gently rubbing at your now bulging belly as he glared at any that dared to wonder within a metre of your personal space.

He hardly let you do anything or go anywhere without him and while it was somewhat frustrating to be treated like glass you would endure if it gave him peace of mind. It also gave you the excuse to demand whatever you wanted during sex. An activity that your pregnant body could not seem to get enough of.

He stayed awake when you were having trouble, sacrificing his own comfort in order to try and help. He held you as you cried because your back hurt, your tits hurt and baby wouldn't stip kicking or let you sleep.

When your labours began he defied Saxon tradition to offer you his arm, helping you to walk in the early hours as your body prepared itself. Hild and even Finan were somewhat appalled when he refused to leave but Lord Uhtred and Sihtric had seemed appalled at the idea that he would leave.

Osferth remained loyally by your side even as you began cursing him out and he became queasy at the blood and your pain. By the end you are a heaving, exhausted mess, holding your child still covered in blood and gore. And Osferth is holding you, the both of you ignoring the complete mess you are to take in the little life you had created.

Taglist: @thelittleswanao3 @eudximoniakr

[ltash]

Kidnapped

You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope... I have loved none but you." — Jane Austen

"They took her, LT," was all Johnny could utter into his radio. His vision blurry. The gash on his head was bleeding. He was shot in the arm and lost a lot of blood. Darkness enveloping him as he saw Diego dragging me away.

"Johnny! How copy!" Ghost said in the comms.

"Johnny! You there? Atleast fucking say something." Ghost yelled in frustration but the radio went silent.

"Johnny! Johnny!" My blood-curdling screams pierced the air. He held my wrist tightly, not letting go, but a cartel member hit him on the head with the back of his gun. His hold loosened as he was continously being hit on his head by that bastard's rifle.

Johnny! I screamed as Diego started dragging me with my hairs.

My office building was burning before my eyes, my father's hard work being ruined right in front of me. Johnny lay unconscious at the gate as Diego dragged me across the ground towards the jeep. The people from my office running helter skelter. The dead bodies of my guards piled up near the gate.

I cried and screamed, being dragged on the ground with my hairs but it was to no avail.

I tried to grab Diego's wrists, my hairs were being pulled from my scalp.

"Leave me you son of a bitch." I screamed and kicked with my whole strength but he was a brute.

My clothes torn, my skin scratched, the gunshot wound on my thigh seeping blood. They threw me into the helicopter. I looked back helplessly as the helicopter ascended towards the Mexican border, my heart pounding in my chest with fear and desperation.

Two hours earlier,

Sitting in my office, I felt a wave of gratitude wash over me as I reflected on the blessings in my life. The news of the new life growing inside me filled me with unparalleled joy and excitement. It was a gift from Simon, one that filled me with immense happiness and anticipation.

With each passing moment, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with gratitude for the journey ahead. These nine months held the promise of new beginnings and cherished moments, and I eagerly awaited the day when Simon would return to share in the joy of parenthood.

Having recently returned from the base, where I had spent couple of days with Simon, I found solace in Soap's presence by my side. Simon had entrusted him with my care in his absence, and I was grateful for the support and companionship he provided during this time. Together, we awaited Simon's return, eagerly anticipating the next chapter of our lives as a family.

I was deeply lost in thoughts when Soap entered my office.

"Hey there! You look happy," he chuckled.

"Yeah, I am. Aren't you excited about being called Uncle Soap?" I asked.

"Of course, 100 percent," he replied.

"Want something to eat?" he offered.

"Yeah, sure. I'll head to the cafeteria in a moment," I said.

"I'll catch up with you there, lass," he said, opening the door. Then he turned back to me.

"Oh, by the way, find me a girl, will ya?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Why?" I asked.

"Cuz I want to settle down too and have a baby," he chuckled.

"Johnny, you're something else," I laughed.

"See ya there, lass," he said before closing the door.

Just five minutes passed when I heard gunshots.

My heart started racing a million miles.

My office was directly in front of the main gate, with the industrial area on the right wing.

I jumped up and opened the blinds.

The sight in front of me was enough to make my breath hitch.

The cartel had sent reinforcements to attack me, even a helicopter.

As Johnny bravely fought off the cartel members, I knew I had to do something to help. With trembling hands, I reached for the sniper case Ghost had given me. As I opened it, my heart raced with adrenaline-fueled determination.

Positioning the tripod on the nearest window, I steadied my aim, focusing on the chaos unfolding outside. Soap was outnumbered, and every shot counted. With each pull of the trigger, I prayed for accuracy, knowing that every missed shot could have dire consequences.

Despite my nerves, I managed to find my target, taking aim and firing with all the precision I could muster. My shots were erratic at first, but as I gained confidence, I began hitting my marks. Each impact sent a jolt of exhilaration through me, knowing that I was making a difference, however small.

"Go to hell motherfuckers!" I cursed as I pulled the trigger.

With each round I fired, my focus sharpened, my movements becoming almost mechanical as I aimed for the heads of the cartel members. The sound of gunfire filled the air as I maintained a steady rhythm, each shot ringing out with precision.

Despite my best efforts, the cartel members seemed endless, pouring in from every direction. I gritted my teeth in frustration, my determination unwavering even as the odds stacked against us. Every shot counted, but it felt like we were fighting an uphill battle against an unrelenting tide of enemies.

Reloading my rifle with practiced efficiency, I braced myself for the next wave of attackers, knowing that every moment counted in this desperate struggle for survival.

With each pull of the trigger, I prayed for a miracle, hoping against hope that we would emerge from this ordeal unscathed.

My fingers trembled as I clutched the radio that Ghost had given to me. It was a lifeline in this moment of chaos, a direct line to the outside world amidst the turmoil engulfing us.

"Laswell! This is Nora. You hear me?" My voice quivered with urgency as I pressed the transmit button, sending my plea into the ether.

"Copy!" The response crackled through the radio, Laswell's voice a beacon of hope amidst the storm.

"We are under attack by the cartel. Send backup immediately," my words spilled out in a rush, desperation lacing every syllable as I relayed the dire situation we found ourselves in.

"Ok, they are on their way. Hold on," Laswell's assurance cut through the static, injecting a glimmer of hope into the darkness that threatened to consume us.

I let out a shaky breath, my heart pounding in my chest as I awaited further instructions. With Laswell's promise of reinforcements, I knew we had a fighting chance to repel the onslaught.

The deafening roar of gunfire echoed through the office, each shot sending shockwaves of terror rippling through my body. My heart pounded in my chest as the cacophony of screams and gunfire reached a fever pitch, mingling with the anguished cries of my employees.

I watched in horror as the cartel members advanced into the office building, their weapons spewing death and destruction with each merciless pull of the trigger. The once bustling office now lay shrouded in chaos and despair, the air thick with the stench of fear and desperation.

My instincts screamed at me to run, to hide, but I was rooted to the spot, paralyzed by the sheer magnitude of the violence unfolding before me. With each passing moment, the gunfire drew closer, the sound of death drawing inexorably nearer.

I clenched my fists, my mind racing as I searched for a way out of this nightmare. But in that moment of terror and uncertainty, all I could do was brace myself for the inevitable onslaught, praying for a miracle to save us from the jaws of death.

"Nora! How copy." I heard Ghost's voice in the static.

"Hold on, love. Right now, we are sending backup," he assured me, his words a lifeline in the midst of turmoil.

With trembling hands and shaky breaths, I clung to the sniper rifle, the weight of its purpose heavy in my grasp. Despite the fear that threatened to overwhelm me, I knew I couldn't falter, not when Simon's voice echoed in my ears, urging me to stand strong.

"I have killed many enemies with your sniper," I confessed, the weight of my words hanging heavy in the air. "And I won't stop until my last breath, Simon."

"What are you doing, Nora? Get out of there," Simon's voice commanded through the radio.

"Its an order," Simon said through comms.

"I don't take orders from you, Simon," I retorted, my fingers deftly loading my Glock as I prepared for the inevitable confrontation.

"Nora, don't do anything stupid, for God's sake," Simon pleaded, his desperation palpable even through the crackling static of the radio, oblivious to the fact that our conversation was being broadcast for all to hear.

"Don't worry. I won't. Or even if I did, either way, I am going to die," I replied, my voice steady despite the turmoil raging within me.

"Ghost, this is Soap. We need evac. We cannot fight them. They sent a whole goddamn army," Soap's voice echoed through the comms, thick with urgency.

"Reinforcements and evac are on their way," Ghost replied, his tone steady but tense.

"Nora, stay right there where you are. Don't come out," Johnny ordered over the radio.

But I had already made my way out of my office. My employees were hiding in the cubicles, fear etched on their faces. Clutching the rifle tightly, I was ready to shoot any enemies that came my way.

As I turned a corner, I came face to face with an enemy. A shot rang out from my rifle, killing him instantly. I bolted and reloaded, making my way down the stairs, eyes sharp for any signs of movement.

"What the hell is happening, Nora?" Ghost yelled through the comms.

"Nothing. I am shooting the enemies," I replied, trying to keep my voice steady.

"Contact RPG!" Soap shouted.

An RPG hit right where my office was, and an explosion shook the building. Flames engulfed the area, and people from my office began running downstairs, panic in their eyes.

"Hurry up! Get out!" I screamed, urging them to safety.

Hanging the rifle on my shoulder, I made my way down with my Glock in hand, ready to shoot.

"Making my way down and out," I said into the radio.

"Get to safety, please," Ghost pleaded.

"I'm trying to get to Johnny!" I yelled back.

My pregnancy hormones were kicking in, giving me a surge of strength I didn't know I had. I pushed through, making my way down toward the exit where my armed guards and Soap were holding the line. Soap was behind a wall, using it for cover.

"Nora, stay right there," he ordered me.

The guards were taking heavy fire, but the cartel was relentless. I watched as more gang members flooded through the gate. I shot at them, then ducked for cover. Putting my Glock into its holster, I grabbed my sniper rifle and reloaded it.

I shot at the same time as Soap, then ducked behind the wall. The situation was dire; all our guards were killed, leaving only me and Soap.

Soap stepped out from behind the wall and started shooting again. I provided cover fire, picking off enemies from behind.

"We can't hold them much longer!" Soap yelled, his voice strained.

I took aim and fired, each shot deliberate and precise. We were down to the wire, but we were determined to hold our ground.

A bullet hit Soap right in his arm. He fell suddenly.

I came out from behind the wall and shot the enemy. We were near the gate. I ran towards Johnny when a bullet hit me right in my left thigh. My scream pierced the sky as I fell near Soap.

"Soap, do you copy?" Ghost asked in the comms.

"We're shot," I said, crying in pain.

"Johnny, please take care of her," Ghost said in the comms.

Soap gritted his teeth, using his good arm to drag himself closer to me. "Aye, lass, stay with me. Help's on the way," he said, his voice strained but determined.

I clutched my thigh, the pain searing through me. "We have to hold on, Johnny," I said through gritted teeth.

Soap nodded, wincing as he tried to apply pressure to his wound. "We'll make it. Just keep breathin', Nora. Backup's comin'."

The cartel members barged in, all running towards us like hungry dogs.

"I'm sorry, Simon. I couldn't protect myself," I said into the radio for the last time.

"Nora! What happened?" he shouted.

A tall black man, his eyes filled with rage, came and stood near me. "Name's Diego," he said.

He took my arm and started dragging me. Johnny grabbed my wrist, refusing to let go.

I screamed as the radio fell from my hand. "Johnny! Johnny!"

Johnny's grip was strong on my wrist, but a cartel member hit him on the head with the back of his rifle.

"No!!!" I screamed.

Johnny wasn't letting me go, and that bastard kept hitting him until his grip loosened on my hand and I was separated from him.

"Nora!" Johnny's voice was barely a whisper.

I struggled against Diego's hold, my heart pounding with fear and rage. "Let me go!" I shouted, kicking and thrashing.

But Diego's grip was like iron. "You’re coming with us," he growled, dragging me towards the exit.

I glanced back, seeing Johnny lying motionless, bleeding from the gash on his head. "Johnny, no!" I screamed, but it was too late.

As Diego hauled me outside, the last thing I saw was the smoke and flames consuming my office, my world crumbling around me.

I was thrown into the helicopter, the remaining cartel members holding me still. I screamed in pain, my clothes torn, my jeans soaked with blood from my wound. My vision began to blur as weakness took over me. The sound of the helicopter faded into the darkness, and I closed my eyes.

Voices around me were muffled, indistinct, as I struggled to stay conscious. The pain in my thigh throbbed, each beat of my heart sending waves of agony through my body. I tried to move, but the strong hands of the cartel members held me in place.

"Stay still, puta," one of them snarled, tightening his grip on my arm.

I fought to keep my eyes open, but the edges of my vision grew darker. The faces around me became shadows, and the noise of the helicopter blades droned into a distant hum. My head felt heavy, and I could no longer keep my eyes open.

As the darkness closed in, the last thought that flickered through my mind was of Simon. His face, his voice, his love—it was all I could hold on to as I slipped into unconsciousness.

The reinforcements arrived, but all they found was Johnny lying unconscious and the office building engulfed in flames. The fire brigade was called to extinguish the fire, but the damage had already been done. Johnny was quickly taken to the hospital.

"Fucking hell!" Ghost yelled, his voice filled with rage. "Motherfuckers! They took her." He looked at Captain Price, his eyes dark with fury and worry.

"John, do you copy? I’m sending you the CCTV footage of the office," Laswell contacted Captain Price on the comms.

Captain Price opened the file, and the recording started playing on the screen. Ghost watched in utter shock and pain. The first footage was from outside, showing the guards and Soap trying to stop the cartel. Another one was of me, shooting from my office window.

Ghost's heart clenched as he saw the fierce determination in my eyes, the way I fought back despite the odds. The footage showed me moving through the building, taking out enemies with precision. Then came the moment when I and Soap were shot near the gate. Ghost's face hardened as he saw me scream in pain, my voice echoing through the comms.

The final footage was the most devastating. It showed Diego dragging me away, Johnny's desperate attempt to hold on to me, and the brutal hits he took before losing consciousness. Ghost watched helplessly as I was thrown into the helicopter, my body limp and bleeding.

Captain Price put a hand on Ghost's shoulder. "We’ll get her back, Simon. We won’t let them keep her."

Ghost nodded, his jaw clenched tight. "We need to move fast. Find out where they’re taking her and get a team ready. We’re bringing her home."

Laswell's voice came through the comms again. "I've got some intel on where they might be headed. We’re working on tracking the helicopter. Stay sharp, everyone."

Ghost took a deep breath, focusing on the mission ahead. He couldn't afford to let his emotions take over. "Let’s gear up and get ready to move out. We’re not letting them get away with this."

Captain Price and the rest of the team nodded, determination etched on their faces. They knew the stakes were high, and they were ready to do whatever it took to bring me back safely.

[blubberinganarchist]

Hey y'all!!! Look at this funny picture of a cat!! Isn't he cute and squimpy?

Are you looking at me now? Are you paying attention? Could this beloved white american not-so-kindly redirect your limited time and attention to something more important then looking at funny cats on tumblr?

Do you see the Palestinian people are being genocided? Yes its real and it is happening right now, and contrary to what you've been taught, its wrong actually. It's more then wrong, it's so unbelievably goddamn evil that no amount of words I put here can describe the horrors of that have taken place in Gaza.

YOU SHOULD BE ANGRY

This is goddamn important and I will act patronizing to your face and write in blinding colorful letters if it means getting your attention. You should be paying attention to the words of the Palestinians, who are starving and dying. But I know the algorithm despises accuracy and instead favors profiting off of yalls attention which is more likely to be captured if there is a white face involved and it's "entertaining".

This is blatant racism.

And you are perpetuating racism if you ignore dying, starving Palestine children and only listen to the whitey crackers when they talk about Palestine. Palestinians do NOT have to be "entertaining" to you to deserve solidarity.

In two months it will have been a whole year of genocide for the Palestinians. A WHOLE GODDAMN YEAR.

Don't stop being loud and annoying about Palestine. Don't stop ruining people's fun because you're talking about Palestine. Don't give into "compassion fatigue" because TENS OF THOUSANDS of people are STILL DYING.

You can help save people's lives by donating to Palestinian fundraisers!!!

I've been been getting asks from Palestinians for donations lately, and while I can't personally donate because of financial issues, I answer each one, and none of those posts get attention! These are Palestines asking for much needed help but it's not entertaining enough.

I'd like to end this post by 1: sharing the links to the fundraisers again and asking y'all to donate any small amount of money even if it's just five dollars. Any amount helps. I will repost the words that they said themselves because you NEED TO LISTEN. 2: I am very aware that this post is incredibly hypocritical of me to make. But that doesn't make it less important. Hopefully though posting this we both learn to pay more attention to Palestinian voices and NEVER SHUT UP ABOUT THE GENOCIDE!!!!!!

[basilone]

Fandom: Masters of the Air Written for: @blind-dates-fest as my 2024 entry! Introducing: Cressida Dorrance-Jones, with sidenote entries for Valerie Hodges and Evelyn Carter.

"That's not a sawmill up there, Buck." The blonde woman's voice is even. Matter of fact. Cuts through the haze of several men talking at once, long enough to make their whole table go quiet. The look on her face is too serene to be accusatory. "That was a goddamn meat grinder."

Major Cleven – Buck – does not dissent. "Yeah." There's a barely-there sigh lurking in that one admission, as if he is only now releasing his breath. His crew seems to almost exhale at the same time he does. Following his lead even when on the ground, especially after he fixes each of them with a swift look. "Now we know."

"And I need to know everything about that meat grinder," interjects Cressida, unfolding the last part of the map out on the table. Sets her coffee cup on the part of the map that always seems to have a mind to curl back up and leave her hanging out to dry. "Rule of the table: you talk only when I address you. Rule of the table: you dig deep when I ask for clarification. Rule of the table: you paint the whole picture as you saw it up there. Understood?"

There's a scuffle under the table. A swift motion of feet that almost reaches her legs before aiming a little more to her right. The blonde woman is all but sinking down into her seat, tip of her tongue poking out of her mouth as she puts in just a bit more effort.

"Ow!" The blue-eyed lieutenant beside her jolts in his seat. Fixes the blonde with a glare. "Val, seriously?"

"Understood, ma'am," rasps Valerie Hodges, sitting up straight again now that her goal's seemingly been accomplished. Cressida makes a mental note of the fact that the woman doesn't object to the shortening of her name. "I have some notes, if they help?"

"You're the navigator?"

"Radio ops, sorry," comes the unapologetic grin, right before a small notepad is shoved her way. "I've marked the time Curt here"– a nod at the lieutenant she just kicked in the shins –"started to shout in my ears about flak. Hit that earlier than I'd thought, then had the fighters come in hot on the tails of that."

Cressida glances down at a sequence of numbers that would not have been amiss in an actual navigator's log. Notes the shakiness of the sevens and fives, followed by quick dashes and dots. Her eyebrow quirks up despite herself. It's not every day a log comes back with partial encoding on it that would slow the Germans down for all of a minute.

"Unorthodox," she remarks out loud, "but perhaps helpful." She'll allow it, if only because Val's well-aimed kick seems to have halted the lieutenant's previous staring in its tracks. "You were wheels up here," she continues, indicating their starting point on the map, "and headed to Bremen through the pre-marked blue path here"– a new map for every mission, no matter the complaints from supplies –"which would put the flak here."

"Earlier," says the Major, not even glancing up at her for confirmation the way other pilots do. "Right around there"– comes the mark of his finger that lingers just long enough for her to confirm it with a swift cross of her pencil –"which I know because we weren't the first to get the hit."

"Had enough time to confirm the fact that we were in some deep shit now," laughs the lieutenant, even when none of his bravado remotely reaches his eyes. "First to get hit was Bonny Lass. Luck of the Irish, and all."

"Bonny Lass was on our right wing at two o'clock, bearing east."

"Two fifteen."

Cressida narrows her eyes at the lack of accuracy. Her pencil hovers just between two and two fifteen on the east scale as the back-and-forth between lieutenant and one of the waist gunners does not seem to be dying down. They're not at raised voices yet like the table in the back clearly is – Rollins can never keep his table under control after mission for long – but letting them work it out between them is going to save her a spot of trouble once she actually does need to put her foot down. New tables are like this, sometimes. First time up, first time down. It’s never an easy deal, and she’s got enough sense to not make it harder than it needs to be.

"Two ten." The Major's voice is decisive. "Mark that. Miss Demeanor and the rest of that cluster was on our left flank when Bonny Lass was hit."

"Miss got her wing clipped about five minutes following that, is that right?" asks Cressida, making out a five and the Morse abbreviation for Miss Demeanor on Val's notes. Nods around the table have her marking out a half-moon clip on the map. "When did the fighters come in?"

"When the flak died."

"Yeah."

"There was a minute or two of nothing," allows the lieutenant, "and they swept in so damn fast from that bank of clouds."

"They were already wheels up?" Cressida arches her brow. "Unusual if so," she remarks, remembering the sit-downs with the fighter pilot crew that had scoped out the area prior to the bombing run. Charlotte Rivers, in particular, had been adamant about a ground base rise. "Where would you put them on the map, Lieutenant?"

"Curt, please," he repeats like he did when she was first introduced to him not ten minutes ago. "I'd put them here, ma'am."

"They came from the ground," corrects Evelyn Carter decisively, tapping a spot just beside Curt's indication. "Straight up from there, I saw them clear enough." Her finger stands out dark against Curt's paler hand, so much so that Cressida wonders how the young woman ever passed muster long enough to not be drafted into the Tuskegee side of the war. "They like to hide in the cloud banks, right? Damn bastards thought they could get high enough to be clear of me that way. Clipped one of them on the tail as they went past here, though."

"You got another on the wing."

"Nah, he was too steady on, think I missed him."

"One-Eye missing her prize? Never!"

"It's not a clean turkey shoot, asshole," laughs the young woman who was introduced to her as both Evelyn Carter and the moniker One-Eye. Both her dark eyes, despite her laughter, remain rather hollow as she looks around the table. "They were so much faster than I'd thought."

"A familiar comment," allows Cressida, now that the table's murmuring assent. It's not her habit to comfort anyone at this table, but sometimes it helps move matters along to let them know their experience is not a standalone. "We know they're fast. They work in teams that allow refuel. In comparison, our fortress is the fattest turkey they'll get to shoot at."

"Whole Thanksgiving dish," snorts Val beside her. "Hey, Major, when are we going up for seconds?"

"Eyes front," snaps Cressida, tapping the smaller woman's shoulder until she stops grinning up at Major Egan. Egan's just about the last one she needs to interrupt the table read. "Fighters came in there, who was at the helm?"

"Bunny?"

"Not Veal, at least?"

"Wasn't it Ferret?"

"Jesus Christ, what was your formation? Don't tell me you all lost your minds up there and broke it?" Cressida's voice rises above the din of confusion. She slaps the table for good measure. "Eyes on this map, navigator starts talking, radio ops can comment, the rest of you are mouth shut and watching for now. Got it?"

"Hell of an iron fist you’ve got there, Cressida."

"Stop talking, John," she says, not even bothering to glance up at him.

"We got it, Captain Dorrance-Jones," affirms Major Cleven, sending her the smallest of what appears to be an apologetic smile. She decides she likes him just a little bit more for not getting too friendly with her the way Egan so clearly wants to be. "We didn't lose our heads, ma'am. Formation was solid up there.” His next words ring out with a hint of warning. “Let's focus, guys."

Cressida leans forward over the map as their navigator finally breaks his silence and hauls out a sheet of notes she should have already had in her hands five minutes ago. Marks all the spaces the man indicates, aided swiftly by Val's insistent corrections and the Major's nods of allowance. A failed mission is still a mission. Sometimes even more so, or so she's stood and argued with John Egan in this room at least once before.

"Co-pilot, what was your bearing after mission aborted?" she asks, still feeling Egan's eyes on her back as she fixes the lieutenant beside her with the best of her beadiest stares. "Was there a system status check at some point in the interval of abort and recalculated bearing?"

"Not a full check. Engineer was putting out a small fire."

"Literal or figurative?"

"Figurative."

"Stop saying fire if it is figurative," sighs Cressida, making a small note in the margin of her own paper. "God knows we've had enough real ones on board."

John Egan's snort is a skosh louder than she'd like it to be. She's not sure if that derision is the thing that quietens her table again, or if it's finally sunken in that there could have been a lot of things on fire that somehow miraculously weren't. She grabs her coffee mug. Takes a rather large gulp of too-black, too-bitter coffee that she solely drinks to stay awake. Sets it down on the curling end of the map.

"Let's try again, shall we?" she asks nobody in particular as she grabs a red pen. Get the story out first. The facts straight. Done. Dusted. Now get the things that never make it into the official report. "This time, there'll be more questions about what you saw up there. If you have a thought, say it. If you have a hunch about anything, now's the time. Don't worry about sounding stupid, you hear? I'll decide how stupid it is after I hear it."

"She'll do the thinking part," says Egan, tapping the side of his head just as she shoots him another glare.

"That excuses you from the room, Major, wouldn't you say?" She jerks her head toward the door. "Co-pilot, radio ops, eyes front, don't make me tell you twice," she says to the restless lieutenants at either side of her. "You were wheels up at..."

[xmy-love-to-youx]

Nicotine: Chapter 2

Pairing: John Price x reader

Summary: John Price isn't a man who plays around especially when it comes to Nicotine. HIS Nicotine. A drug he can't let go of, a drug he doesn't want to let go of. She's his Nicotine. Love is a dangerous game that his willing to play.

Warning: Smut, female receiving, smoking, mention of alcohol, slight breeding kink, +18 content

The information that was given to Price was like hitting the jackpot in the military. The information will be used to take down a terrorist and his partners, it contained everything from the plans of attack to the connections and evidence of corruption of government officials.

Price and his team could rest assured that the world is a little safer. Soap has been recovering slowly from his injuries but that doesn't stop him from annoying his large Lieutenant. Gaz has been floating around, occasionally helping his Captain and practicing on his accuracy.

The Captain himself, since the mission ended, has been buried in work. His been locked in his office, cigar in one hand and a pen in the other. His eyes scanning the words on the page but none of them proceed into his mind. His mind occupied with the image of his sweet Y/N pressed against the wall. The way she feels in his hands, how she feels against him, how she feels around him. His mind wonders into a place he wishes he could stay in forever.

The tightening of his pants brings him out of his daydream and reminds him that he cant get what he wants. He sighs heavily and puts his head in his hands.

After a hour of trying to concentrate, he finally decided to go home. He hopped into his car and drove home. The drive seemed to calm him down. Once he pulled and parked his car in the driveway, he hurried to get inside his house.

He kicked his shoes off and shrugged his jacket off his shoulders before throwing his jacket on the couch. He immediately relaxed and walked towards the kitchen and turned on the light. For a moment he was blinded by the bright light that bounces around the room. He opened his fridge and grabbed beer then made his way to his couch and sit down. His fingers wrapped around the remote as he mindlessly flips through the channels.

Two arms wraps around his shoulders and before he could jump away, he was stopped by a sweet voice.

"Welcome home John"

Y/N.

He turns to face her and his heart skipped a beat. She wore his red and yellow Manchester shirt, her body swims in his shirt. It wasn't until she stood in front of him that he noticed that she wasn't wearing anything other than his shirt.

"I see you made yourself comfortable" he said.

His hands cups her soft and smooth skin, it's like his touching silk, the rough pads of his fingers massages their way up her legs until her hips then moves to cup the soft flesh of her ass.

Y/N places her legs on both sides of him and settles on his lap. Her fingers slowly run through his soft, short hair. Her touch calms him, calms his mind and makes him forget about all his stress, his worries. His hands moves out from under his shirt and rests on his hips.

Y/N slowly lowers her lips onto his in a slow and lazy kiss. The noise of the TV blurs out, time seemed to slow down and John embraces her into his arms. His beard scratches her skin and sends electricity through her body and it warms her core.

Her hands slowly runs down to his shoulders, her small hands massages his broad shoulders and it drives him crazy.

The rain gently taps on the windows and washes down the windows of his house. The air becomes cold but the burning passion between them, warms thier bodies. The kiss turns into a heated makeout session, his hands grips and pulls on the shirt you're wearing, your hands gently tugs onto his hair and that ignites something primal inside him.

John lays her down on the couch and traps her in between the soft cushion of his couch and the weight of his body. He pulls his shirt over his head and threw it over his shoulder, the light of the TV falls on his muscular form. Y/N's eyes traces every muscle and slowly trails down the happy trail that leads under his pants.

"Like what you see?" he smirks.

"Always" Y/N looks into his eyes, those eyes that looks at her with the most gentle look, the eyes that she drowns in all the time. The beautiful ocean blue eyes that consumes you.

Y/N slowly pulls the shirt off her body and reveals her naked body to him. His eyes drinks in her naked image, the air gets caught in his throat, his mind is blank, his hands moves to hold the soft skin of her tits. He squeezes and plays with her soft nipples until they are hard.

A soft moan left Y/N's lips, John moves down her body and spreads her legs to reveal her wet core. His eyes explodes with lust, the blue of his eyes nearly noticeable.

John settles down with his head in between her legs. His tongue circles her sensitive clit and licks around her wet and tight hole. She tasted sweet against his tongue. She's like a forbidden fruit, a sweet but forbidden fruit, he couldn't get enough of her.

A silent moan leaves her lips, John's eyes stays on her face, watching her reactions. John threw her legs over his shoulders and cups her breast with his hands. His tongue traces from her hole to her clit, he gently took her clit into his mouth and assaulted her clit with his tongue. Y/N's legs vibrated with pleasure and squeezed his head with her thighs. Her eyes rolls to the back of her head and her mouth hangs open, her eyebrows knit together with pleasure written all over her face. Her hand tugs in his hair, her body felt on fire. The sight of him in between her legs, making her feel good with just his tongue was enough to make her cum right then and there. His beard scratches against her and stimulates the best feeling ever, pleasure shoots through her body and triggers her orgasm. Her mind goes blank and all noise sounds so distant to her, she twitches while John licks up her essence and eventually removes himself from her.

He immediately misses the warmth of her legs around his head, he looked down to her, the tightening of his pants made him groan. His never seen someone so beautiful after an intense orgasm. The fucked out expression on her face, the hair that clings to her forehead, a thin layer of sweat the covers her skin. His hands made quick work on removing his belt and shoving his pants down to his thick thighs.

He hovers over her and places a kiss to her lips, thier lips move in sync and Y/N moans at the taste of her on his tongue. His hands slides his boxers down and gripped the base of his cock. He gave himself a few pumps before inserting himself into her.

A moan leaves both of thier lips, the way his cock stretched her tight gummy walls was delicious, pleasure shoots through their bodies like electricity.

"Christ... It's been a while. You're still tight as ever" John moans in her ear as he rolls his hips into hers.

Y/N grips the back of his neck while the other, digs it's nails in the firm flesh of his ass. John steadily picks up the pace, trying to control himself, trying to control his urge to ruin her, to knock her up with his offspring. His cock twitches inside her at the thought of it, watching her grow with his baby, a moan leaves his lips. He slowly lost control and started ramming into her, the head of his cock hits against her sensitive cervix.

The air fills with the sound of skin slapping against each other and the praises that falls from John's lips. Once she started squeezing his cock, he couldn't handle it anymore. He was gonna cum and she was close too.

It didn't take long until the tightening in Y/N's stomach snapped and triggered a earth shattering orgasm, the kind that rips through your body like a tsunami, she gushed all over John's cock and his thighs. His eyes widens as he watched it happen and this triggers his orgasm. His hips came to a sudden stop as thick heavy warm ropes of white semen shot into her.

John took a while to recover, his had sex with her before but it's never been so intense, once he regained himself, he looked down at her once again.

Y/N's eyes were barely open, she looked exactly like he imagined. Exhausted from sex, her body shining from sweat, trying to stay awake after what happened. John gently lowers himself onto her, his head rested on her chest. He could hear how wild her heart was beating until it eventually calmed down and drummed a rhythmic soothing beat. He listened for a while until he drifted into a peaceful sleep.

[aptericia]

Octopath II gameplay tips!

I'd been thinking about this for a while, but since I have mutuals who are playing 8path2, here's a list of advice and things the game doesn't explain!

Incorrect/vague skill descriptions:

The Warrior skill "Enervating Slash": The description is flat-out wrong. This will remove all positive status effects from the USER, rather than the targeted enemy!

"Increased intensity spells" courtesy of the Scholar job: So wtf does this even mean? It gives you a counter that causes the next x number of AREA TARGET SPELLS to be "intensified". For instance, the Cleric's "Heal Wounds" skill can be intensified, but NOT the Apothecary's "Healing Touch" skill. For elemental-based spells, such as Fireball, this causes it to trigger twice (or three times if using Alephan's Wisdom).

Throné's EX skill "Disguise": When used on an ally, Throné takes on their job(s) and learned skills. Sadly, because she doesn't also take on their equipment stats (to my knowledge; I haven't actually verified this), it means she's usually not optimized for their fighting style.

Partitio's EX skill "Share SP": This also has a flat-out wrong description. He gives a percentage of his SP to EACH party member, not just one. For instance, without boosting, he will lose 25% of his max SP and every other party member will gain whatever that amount is. And yes, they'll get it even if it puts them above their normal max SP! Partito rocks!

The Apothecary job’s “Preventative Measures” support skill: Rather than nullifying status ailments for the first 3 turns of battle (as the description says), it nullifies the first three status effects to target the user. So if the user isn’t hit with a status effect until turn 4, it will still be nullified, but if they’re hit with 4 status effects within the first three turns, the 4th will still take effect.

Battle interface:

"Status ailments" include Poison (take damage each turn), Sleep (unable to act until hit), Unconsciousness (unable to act, period), Blindness (greatly reduced accuracy), Terror (unable to boost), Silence (unable to use skills) and Confusion (target a random ally until hit).

"Positive status effects" and "negative status effects" include buffs/penalties to stats, as well effects like temporary HP regen, Sidestep/Vengeful Blade charges, etc. Note that the Cleric skill "Sacred Shield" does NOT appear next to the character's name, and therefore does not count as a "positive status effect"

The order of enemy weaknesses is something you'll see mentioned in any guide/trivia about the game, and it's incredibly helpful. Weaknesses are always listed in the same order: Sword, Polearm, Dagger, Axe, Bow, Staff, Fire, Ice, Thunder, Wind, Light, and Dark (SPD ABS FIT WLD). So for instance, if I determine that an enemy is weak to daggers and the dagger icon is in the first square, I know that enemy CANNOT be weak to swords or polearms, because those would be listed first.

Traveler talents:

Don't forget that Osvald's Study Foe talent reveals more weaknesses each time he encounters the same enemy!

Remember to have Partitio in your party in order to take advantage of his Business Partners talent! For instance, if Parti's follower gives a discount when buying things, this applies not only to NPCs he Purchases from but also shops if he happens to be in the party. Similarly, you may want to pick up a follower that earns more from sales before you sell off a bunch of junk. And if his follower gives a refund at the inn, you can refill your whole party's meters for free as long as you keep Partitio in your party.

Dancer skills that will activate Agnea's Dance Session talent include: Lion Dance (Dance Session targets the ally), Peacock Strut (Dance Session targets the ally), Dagger Dance (Dance Session targets Agnea), and Bewildering Grace (Dance Session targets a random party member). Ruinous Kick, Stimulate, and Sweeping Gale will NOT trigger a Dance Session.

If you want to go into a dungeon you're just under-leveled for, try taking both Throné and Temenos and clearing it at night. Blessing of Darkness and Moonlight Judgement together can give a huge advantage, especially once you're higher-level.

Miscellaneous:

Caits and Octopuffs have absurdly high evasion and elemental defense, but give you massive rewards if defeated. They will often flee the battlefield if ANY enemy has taken damage by the time their turn comes around. Usually the best way to defeat them is to hammer them will all your strongest magic, as spells can't miss and have a minimum damage of 1. Use of Stimulate, Leghold Trap, and the A Step Ahead support skill can come in handy to push their turns back. As @limayde mentioned, Medium and Large Soulstones can also defeat most of them instantly!

Healing (via skills) is based on the caster’s elemental defense. Therefore, it’s a good idea to give your healers equipment with high Elem. Def!

[accirax]

Disventure Camp All Stars Power Ranking (Round 14)

With last episode's elimination weighing heavy upon us, I'm at a bit of a loss as to what will happen next. Still, I have to stick to it, and hope I'll be luckier with this week's upcoming ranking.

In case you haven't seen my previous power rankings, the Power Ranking Format is essentially a way of ranking how well each player is doing in the game. So, in essence, this is a long form way of predicting who I think will be eliminated from the competition in the next episode. There will be spoilers for last week's episode (obviously) and its power ranking, so make sure to read that first if you don't want to be spoiled on how I ranked our last boot. If you want more clarification on the rules, that first post will help you out as well. Furthermore, I'm going to be spoiling the preview for next episode, so if you want to go in TOTALLY blind, save this for later. Let's go!

Recap - Gabby's Elimination

Current Score: 61 acquired/90 total

(Points versus @venus-is-thinking: 12 acquired/17 total)

Oh boy.

Look, I already rambled about how weird it is that Gabby was eliminated in this manner in my initial thoughts, so I won't waste my time writing the whole thing out again. It is true that Gabby already had a pretty complete character arc (going from insecurely relying on Ellie 100% to being afraid of what would happen when she was alone to overcoming her intrusive thoughts), so I can understand why the writers thought it would be okay to get rid of her now. I-- and I think a lot of others-- aren't so much upset with Gabby being eliminated as with the fashion in which it was done. Certainly for these power rankings, throwing in an elimination without voting was not something that I'd accounted for.

Thankfully I did well enough on Yul's elimination that how poorly I did with Gabby kinda got canceled out. Although, it also means that I wasn't able to reap the benefits of getting a 9/9 last week, and am now back in the 70% accuracy zone, though. Sigh. I fear that it won't get any better from here.

Let's just hope that there's an ACTUAL VOTE THIS WEEK HAHAHAHAHAHA (/lh)

Trailer Analysis

Ally pulling herself up into this tree and then Grett seeing a leaf falling from above makes me think that Ally might hide in a tree to spy on people, and Grett might spot her doing it. Embrace that Spy Nest, Ally.

EMILY???? MAYBE?????? Idk, I just miss her so much and I want her to come back.

Idol hunting, maybe? Or trying to spook people into thinking there's an idol to be found?

I assume this is actually Derek trying to check up on Trevor/see if he's okay, he's just doing it in his own Derek way.

It even seems like Trevor and Derek might both be serving as challenge tester interns for this challenge, which would add to the reading that Derek wants to make amends with Trevor.

Friendship! :D Death flag? D:

I hope that this is Jake telling Connor to get his head in the game instead of just yelling at him for no reason. If you're angry at him for being mopey, you're being a bit of a hypocrite, Jake.

Okay yeah, more treevidence.

This is a pretty standard strength-based Survivor challenge. Although, much like the balls challenge, this was also one that was discontinued for injuring the real life contestants too much. It's interesting to note that, for some reason, Connor's light turns red instead of being blue at some point in the challenge. It could just be an indicator that he makes it farther into the challenge (he's shown with eight bags instead of four). However, it could also be some sort of penalty, including one that starts at the beginning of the challenge.

To quote Venus, "IT'S THE BREAK CONNOR'S LEGS CHALLENGE???"

"I'm starting to feel like myself again~!"

This is presumably about Grett returning to her more villainous ways. Ironic, considering that she's just left the villains alliance, or at the very least it's less powerful now than it's ever been. I guess Yul and Gabby were both keeping Grett in check, in their own ways. Still, I missed s1 Grett, so hopefully we can get a bit of that flavor back in this end stretch. Also, this is the only scene we see with sunset lighting. That means that this scene is definitely the last chronological scene to appear in the trailer, and probably from after the challenge is over.

Power Ranking

#1: Grett

Speaking of Grett, let's keep talking about her.

Although I think Grett is in a much less safe position than she was before Yul or Gabby's elimination, I would still be surprised if she was the next to go. Obviously, I said that about Gabby too, but Gabby's elimination also strengthens Grett's position. Would they really eliminate Yul and Gabby AND Grett back to back to back? I sincerely hope not.

There also seems to be a lot of foreshadowing that Grett will be in a position of power/decision making in this episode. Last time, she said that she wouldn't forget that Alec and Riya continued to stand by Yul, and this time, she's clearly getting up to some sort of scheming. Obviously, it's possible for a character's own meddling to wind up taking them out in the end. However, I don't think that's what they'd want to do with Grett right now. She doesn't need to have what power she's finally managed to accrue swept out from underneath her again.

Oh, and she just told Gabby that she'd kick ass in the competition for her. That's not something you say right before getting cancelled yourself. Grett really should be okay.

#2: Jake

And, sure, why don't we put my other best winner candidate in the #2 position as well? If I think these guys could make the finale (together, even), then surely they have to make it past this episode, right?

I am a little bit worried for Jake, as there is definitely potential for Ally to shoot some votes his way. I'm almost expecting him to get some votes this episode, I just don't think it'll be enough to have any effect on him. Given his growing relationships with Aiden and Connor, I don't think that either of them would really ever vote for Jake at this point. That means, that, assuming all three of them vote together, Jake would need literally every single person in the game-- Alec, Riya, Grett, and Ally-- to vote for him in order to have a majority. Like I said, I am a little worried that that could happen, but overall, I don't think it will.

Despite the level of focus Jake has gotten this season, I still feel like there's more to come with him. I think the writers might want to expand more on his relationship with Connor, with both of them feeling like screw-ups, and Aiden and Jake's newly friendly dynamic is super fun to watch. In either case, as is probably evident by the fact that we haven't seen Connor or Aiden on this list yet, I think that Jake is the least narratively expendable of the true heroes. If you removed him, Aiden and Connor don't have much tying them together. Jake is the lynchpin of that alliance from a storytelling standpoint, and I think they'll want to keep him around for that reason.

#3: Connor

Okay, potentially a bold choice, given how many death flags Connor was throwing up at the end of last episode. You can't just spill your entire backstory in a heartfelt conversation, dude, you're gonna die. And now he's in the #3 spot that's been cursed by Gabby?! Now I'm really second guessing myself...

I do think that Connor's clock might not have ticked its final tock yet, though. Despite the fact that I honestly think it's more likely that he's been impaired (probably by Riya) in this challenge than that they spoiled that he makes it to some sort of second round, I still think Connor might win. Sure, in the superhero challenge, he wanted super strength; it's not that he had it already. But, who else is supposed to win this challenge? Twink 1 or 2? The gamer girl, or the depressed bookworm? Riya's snappable-looking arms?

My money's on Grett if not Connor, but I think that Connor winning immunity this episode would be an appropriate level of win for him after the rough time he went through last episode. It would prove to him that he can be strong and have good things happen for him, even if the circumstances are actively stacked against him. Jake's supposed pep talk could also help get him in the proper mood, which could bring the two of them closer together.

It's also still true that I think that Aiden, Jake, and Connor is still the voting block that's most likely to work together in the upcoming vote, making it harder for the villains to get enough numbers to eliminate Connor. I could definitely see Riya and possibly Alec wanting to continue targeting him, and if Ally has become Riya's lackey, she could go along with it too. Grett, I don't really see, but... I can't deny it's a possibility.

Still, I find it unlikely enough that Connor will be immediately eliminated that he's at #3. Ugh, now I totally feel like I've jinxed it, and it will just be that Connor goes home again. C'est la vie, I guess. Use that old man strength to prosper, Connor!

#4: Aiden

Blah blah blah, Jake, Connor, and Aiden working together means that they're all less likely to be eliminated in this episode, you've heard it twice before immediately prior to this. I do think that Aiden is probably the most likely of the trio to be eliminated this episode, though, even if I can't exactly put my finger on why.

Part of it is probably that Aiden was a finalist before, which makes me less likely to think that he will be again. Aiden also already beat Riya via James in s2, so there isn't as much of a need to have him outlive/triumph over her again this time. Also, while we've debatably concluded Connor's character arc with that conversation at the end of last episode, it definitely feels like we're winding down on Aiden's content for the season. He's certainly made it far enough to appease James and Lake at this point, and that fist bump with Jake may be a signal that they are truly and undeniably friends at this point. If that's the case, why is Aiden still here?

To be honest, a big part of why I've put all of the heroes pretty high up this week is because of Grett's quote from the end of the trailer, the one about feeling like herself again. If Grett has started stirring up trouble, how is that supposed to result in Aiden going home? Or Jake or Connor, for that matter. Given that Ally has seemingly flipped over to the villains' side, Grett voting with them to take out a hero is, like, the default. What's so spicy about that? I mean, it's spicy that Ally is now voting with the villains, but that has nothing to do with Grett!

It is definitely possible that I'm overthinking things, and that continuing to work with the villains (but of her own volition instead of Yul's) is making Grett excited to be a bad guy again. If that's the case, I'll surely regret putting all of Jake, Connor, and Aiden in the upper echelons of the list. However, I feel like Grett is planning to scheme something beyond what's more obvious, and that it's more likely that she will turn on Alec and Riya to work with the hero boys instead. If that's true, then all of them really should be safe.

#5: Alec

Welcome back from the brink of death, Alec. Don't make me regret moving you back up.

Alec was taking an unprecedented number of Ls last episode, and I fear they may keep coming for him. But, if that's the case, it may actually make him less likely to go home. No longer having any power, Alec at least appears like much less of a threat. He is still a worry when it comes to physical challenges, but there's much more of an appearance, at least, that he could now be taken out whenever.

I also feel like taking him out right now would be a little random. Like, if you were gonna have him go out as a direct result of the kiss, it probably should have been last episode. The current timeline of events would be Alec kisses Riya, then the truth is revealed and there's a strain on their relationship, then Alec just waffles around for an episode or so before being eliminated. Why have that period of waffling around in? The same felt true of Ally, and then they picked her up for a new plotline and some continued relevance!

Everybody keeps reiterating to me in the comments that there desperately needs to be a true villain in the final three, and they'd never eliminate Alec before that point because they need him there to be a losing finalist. And, you know what? Fair. I don't know as much about how Total Drama works as I do about how Danganronpa works, so if that really is a rule that's written in stone, maybe I should start listening to the wise words of the more informed fans. I'm always a fan of messing with the rules to catch people off guard, and I personally would probably prefer a finale where I'm not already certain that one of the three finalists isn't going to win. (Like, let's be real, ONC knew to cut off the s2 finale part 1 at whether or not Aiden would be saved instead of whether James or Riya would win, because once James jumped off that cliff it was basically a foregone conclusion that he'd be the winner.) However, it's nice to have some villain representation in the finale as well, and maybe that still can be Alec.

#6: Riya

I don't have much specific to say about Riya, just, like... bad vibes.

I could completely see Grett's scheming be in an effort to get Riya out of the game. Currently, I think Riya reads as the biggest dog on campus, so if Grett is looking for her "game defining move" (to whatever extent that actually matters), it could totally make sense to target Riya. Now that Connor is moving towards moving on, all she has to do is say the word to Jake, Connor, and Aiden, and I'm sure they'd comply. The scheming would be to the extent that it's a blindside, and Riya doesn't realize that she lost hold on Grett to an extent that Grett would be looking to target her.

There's also the fact that Riya was a finalist before, and therefore may not be again. I maintain that if they're going to have a repeat finalist, it's more likely to be Riya than Aiden, but there's always the possibility that it's just neither of them and Aiden could be taken out later.

I really don't have much else to add. I think Riya could very easily be in danger this episode, and there isn't much depth to it. Leaving Alec to fend for himself could be an interesting turn of events as well, as he never competed in s1 without Fiore by his side, and his plan going into the season of focusing more on his social game would have totally backfired. I'm not fully convinced on Riya going home, but it seems like a likely enough outcome.

#7: Ally

Oh, how the mighty have fallen. To be clear, I'm talking about Ally's placement in the power rankings-- from first place to last place-- as opposed to the decline of her character. Even if she's choosing to act a bit more villainously, I haven't started to dislike her more, or particularly think that she's being written worse. I merely think that she's put herself in a pretty precarious position.

As I said earlier in this power ranking, I think that Grett is going to be a major player in this episode, and as such I think that those scenes depicting her and Ally in the tree will be Relevant. Basically, I wonder if Grett will stir up trouble by throwing Ally under the bus this episode. It won't be hard for Grett to convince Jake and Co. to take her out, and if she can convince Riya that Ally has been spying on her (while still pretending to be under Riya's wing), Riya and Alec might turn on her, too. The scheming, therefore, can be a plot to humiliate Riya by tricking her into voting out someone who genuinely wanted to work with her. And, with Grett now joining the heroes, Riya and Alec's days are totally numbered. It's a brilliant plan to pin all six votes on one person in a move that secretly swaps your major alliance and gives you lots of power... just like what I predicted Riya would do to Alec last episode. Mannnnn...

Anyways, if you're like me, you might be wondering what an Ally elimination would do in terms of Ally's character arc this episode. It is possible that there would be some issues with Ally's heart simply being broken by an elimination in ways the writers don't want. However, there are a few ways around it. The first is that Ally, already having learned that it's better to play as herself instead of who she thinks the audience will like, will be satisfied by her elimination as a result of her trying to play the game as she thought best. That's like, super unlikely to have happen, but it's not totally impossible.

The other is that Ally will be upset, freaking out over whether flipping to being a villain and then immediately being eliminated as one will have totally ruined her rapport with literally everyone. But, she'll be comforted either in this episode or in the eventual Loser's Motel episode. In the case of being comforted this episode, I could honestly see Grett being the one to do it. In season 1, Grett was eliminated after the villains turned on her, and then faced a lot of public backlash for her actions. It was tough, but she made it through. Ally should be proud of the game she's played, having made it this far, and not take it too harshly that she got outplayed.

The Loser's Motel option would probably include Hunter and/or Tess trying to cheer her up, with the added bonus that Ally could see what people really thought of her this season. If they actually thought that she was more funny/engaging/interesting this season, that could lift her spirits. It could also be a combination of both, where Grett gives her word of confidence now and social media finishes it out later.

The other point of conflict is Ally's relationship with Jake, which... uhhhh, I don't know. If Ally does go out here by Jake's hand, I don't think that their relationship will be at all salvaged. However, I also don't know if that's one of the goals of this season? They might just hate each other, and that's the end. I think the biggest issue with that is, if Jake wins, it might be a bit of a weird look to have your winner have a lot of animosity towards another fairly rootable character.

Should that convince me out of putting Ally down here? I don't know, maybe. But on these trajectories, how would Ally and Jake ever make up, even if they had the entire rest of the season to do it? Both of them being losing finalists? I don't know! So, Ally stays here for now.

Well, that's the power ranking for this week. Unlike either of the past two weeks-- despite how different their outcomes were-- I'm not confident at what I've put here at all. I'd put, like, everyone here other than Grett at like 5 or 6 if I could. Will that lack of confidence be unfounded in a brilliant result, or will I have swung for the fences and missed wildly again? Honestly, as long as there's a genuine vote out this episode, I'll be happy. I look forward to seeing what happens on Saturday.

[ishtadawnstar]

Daring or Deluded?

"What are you doing, Ishta?" Shadowheart suddenly asked, her voice tinged with curiosity and concern.

Astarion turned to see Ishta standing with her hand on the doors leading into the burning crypt. She threw them open, and he took an involuntary step back as the heat from the gouts of flame blasted out, hitting his face like a furnace.

Standing silhouetted against the blinding orange and yellow light, with her head tilted tilted to the side, she observed the interior. Swallowing down his initial fear, Astarion walked over and stood beside her, noting the intense scrutiny she was giving the room.

After watching in silence for a few minutes, he figured out that the initial explosion was part of a sequence of events happening continuously. Bolts of flame were being fired from somewhere behind a row of pillars on either side of the sarcophagus, crisscrossing above it.

Every tenth pass they would pause as vents in the floor of the room spouted pools of greasy liquid. The firebolts would then resume and sparks falling from them ignited the grease, resulting in a spectacular explosion.

Astarion glanced at Ishta and saw her lips moving silently, realizing with some alarm that she was counting out the timing of the chain of events. His alarm grew as he saw her tense up into a crouch, her muscles coiled like springs.

"You're not seriously thinking of running into that, are you?" he uttered in disbelief.

The only reply he got came in the form of a low chuckle, before Ishta suddenly bolted forward. Astarion watched in wide-eyed amazement as she sprinted into the crypt room, her movements timed perfectly with the pause in the firebolts.

Just as they were about to resume, she reached one of the pillars and slammed her hand down on a button he hadn't noticed until now. Astarion exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he was holding as the flames halted, leaving the room eerily silent.

For a moment, Astarion dared to hope that the danger had passed. Ishta wasted no time, however. She moved to the sarcophagus and, with a grunt of effort, pushed the heavy lid off. The sound of stone scraping against stone echoed through the chamber.

Without a second's hesitation, she leaped into the tomb just as the firebolts resumed their deadly dance above her.

Astarion's mind raced. He had seen acts of bravery before, but this was sheer madness. His fingers twitched at his sides, wanting to help somehow, but he knew he would only get in the way.

He could only watch, feeling utterly powerless as Ishta remained hidden in the sarcophagus, the flames roaring above her as the grease ignited again. The heat was intense even from where Astarion stood. He couldn't imagine what it was like inside that stone coffin.

Time seemed to stretch, each second an eternity.

He saw her head peek out from her hiding place, eyes fixed on the button she had just pressed. The next time the firebolts paused, she moved with lightning speed, drawing her bow and firing an arrow with pinpoint accuracy at the button.

The trap halted once more, and Ishta leapt from the sarcophagus, the motion almost graceful in its precision. She sprinted back across the room, clutching something gleaming in her hand. Astarion's astonishment grew as he realized she was holding a golden spear, its surface glinting in the firelight.

She reached him just as the firebolts resumed, breathing heavily but with a triumphant glint in her eyes.

"Rule number two: Where there's traps, there's treasure," she panted breathlessly with elation, holding out the spear.

Astarion stared at her, dumfounded, his mouth hanging open slightly. "You're completely insane, aren't you?" he said slowly, struggling to keep the awe out of his voice. His mind raced, trying to comprehend the sheer audacity of her actions.

Ishta chuckled, wiping a bead of sweat from her forehead and nodded. "Nutty as a fruitcake," she grinned wildly, her eyes gleaming with exhilaration and a touch of pride.

"I must say, that was an absolutely stunning display of bravery and foolhardiness," Gale remarked, his voice filled with a mix of admiration and disbelief.

"I agree, what exactly did you hope to achieve with that little stunt?" Shadowheart asked, her tone laced with annoyance.

Ishta shrugged and handed her the spear. "Thought you might like a new weapon. It's enchanted, I think," she said, a hint of satisfaction in her voice. "Now, let's go see what delights await us in the next room."

https://www.wattpad.com/myworks/369105372-ishta-blood-huntress

https://archiveofourown.org/works/56114257

[bettercostume]

Mars, I need help. Thoughts on kunessi dynamics 🎤

Meb i thought about this on the train to work and the train home from work and iiiiii have so many thoughts.

Literally Kun is his second wife. Or first wife, actually, since I think he's know Leo since Leo was the quiet kid who barely spoke and sat at the same table with him at the under 19s training, and who from that moment forward was his best boy, his right hand, his soulmate, his---i'm drawing a blank at romantic couples of history here but you get the idea.

Basically Kun is the mouth. He's never uncomfortable, and even though i get the sense he takes everything in deeply, he can rally like an inflatable punching clown. He does the practical jokes. He's the HE ASKED FOR NO PICKLES, but delivered with a backslap and a blinding grin. You feel compelled to like the guy. He's a rascal. He's also astonishingly good at football, and it takes a guy like Messi to make him look like an also ran. He is leo's number one fan forever, amen. He is fuck it we ride, ready to fight, but also there to pick him up and take him to the airport at 2 am with the radio on low and hot water already in a thermos on the console. It's nothing, pa, you know I love speeding through toll roads at night.

I think Leo really gravitates towards people who are the opposite of his persona, and his seemingly internal focus and observational participation in social stuff as a kid. As a fully formed adult, both he and Kun have become both more of their caricatures and less at the same time, mellowing out into people who can reverse card each other with expectations, but have a rock-solid bond. I think it would take like, kun murdering leo's kids in front of him for them to have a fallout.

There's the apocryphal story (that kun loves to tell. he loves building the kunessi lore) where they're at that lunch table i mentioned and kun is like hey who are you anyway? and leo is like, leo. everyone else twigs to who he is, the wunderkid shipped back from barca, but kun is like oh word? but like what's your last name? and it takes like three more repetitions for kun to be like OHHHH, WORD??? Which sums up their dynamic pretty well, I think. But after this I think really Leo has the opportunity to hurt Kun more: he's less overtly affectionate, imho, and he doesn't verbalize the love he feels. Sorry to self plagiarize but in the fic i wrote i basically say that leo is like it should be obvious i love you even if i don't call or text, because why would i stop? and kun, who wants to be needed and coveted, is like, ok but i wouldn't mind the princess treatment SOME of the time. and leo is like your wish is my command, i moved your suite to mine and you're living with me now happy world cup btw we will have adjoining mansions in miami when we retire.

I think the fact that Kun isn't afraid to look like an idiot, turns the party, and also has kind of a bitchy edge that resonates with what i believe to be the nougaty, spoiled princess interior of leo--i think all these things endeared him to the other and that leo was like. ok. kun is my friend forever IMMEDIATELY. I also know with that trust and affection they practiced kissing each other and whipped it out to compare length, width, and accuracy. KNOW AND TRUST THEY HAVE EXPLORED EACH OTHERS BODIES. The love is real and long-term but I think also they would absolutely be bucknasty filthy, still. IMHO they have a kind of macho old boys club thing where they don't talk about the physical sex as much, its so obvious, but then also are like yeah you love that tight little hole you homo you sissy etc during and it makes them so insanely hot when they're with their wives that even if months intervene they still freak like it's 1999. That's one read, the other is that they make love with lots of eye contact and kun cries the entire time. POR QUE NO LOS DOS. Sorry I sounded like the weeknd in his bad tv show there for a moment but you get the vibe.

ANYWAY. I HOPE THIS IS WHAT U WANTED.

[iron--and--blood]

Bismarck (1940)

It's a Nazi era movie about Otto von Bismarck. Let's rip it to shreds.

TLDR: It's surprisingly accurate in many ways, though definitely propagandist in the way that they discuss the English.

2:57: Already throwing in a Fredrick II reference, obviously.

3:12: FOUR FRITZ REFERENCES HOLY SHIT

3:22: Bitching about Freddie III and his love of the English and Liberals.

3:44 Napoleon reference, I swear there needs to be a Bingo card for this

4:11: Our first look at Bismarck, surprisingly accurate (at least when it comes to looks). His eyes are so strange, but honestly that adds to the accuracy

5:06: HOLY FUCKING SHIT THEY WEREN'T PLAYING AROUND WITH THIS MOVIE. WILHELM I SAYS THE QUOTE ATTRIBUTED TO HIM BY BISMARCK IN HIS MEMOIRS. THEY DID ACTUAL RESEARCH. (the fact that I realized that off the top of my head is concerning)

9:02: "We'll be king and queen soon" Vicky no

10:20: 3 seconds after meeting Nap III he's already bringing up his uncle

15:32 "we don't want a new German Reich, but a free one" tough lucky buddy

18:03: They shortened Iron and Blood but that's probably fine, Bismarck was a wordy MFer

19:03: THEY DID IT AGAIN. THEY WENT WORD FOR WORD FROM THE MEMOIRS. THEY REALLY DID THE RESEARCH

23:24: YOU'RE JOKING THEY DID THE THING WHERE HE READ THE NEWSPAPER WHILE PEOPLE WERE MADE LIKE DAMN THEY DID THEIR RESEARCH

36: 33 The portrayal of Franz Joseph is way off, he was firmly against pan-Germanism and this is most likely a propagandistic way to legitimize the Anschluss. (Thanks to @/kaisern-erzsebet for the help!)

45:23 OKAY I WAS RIGHT They are really doing the whole King of Saxony debacle. That doesn't usually get talked about, another point for accuracy

46:51 HE TORE THE DOORKNOB OFF THE WALL. HOLY SHIT

55:59: Wilhelm is making a lot of sense, I'm glad they are showing the conflict between Bismarck and the king

1:11:23: Okay Bismarck's relationship with his kids and wife is way too good

1:19:49: Unless I'm mishearing, they are keeping Bismarck's health issues, which is quite surprising, not many people do (also again his wife is wayyyyyy too perfect)

1:20:14: Johanna's characterization is AWFUL. She would not be at the club and she would not be comforting Otto like that. I knew they would fuck her up but its like they aren't even paying attention to historical Johanna.

1:28:50: "Es stet in Gottes Hand" "In Gottes Hand? In Bismarck's Hand! Er ist den Teufel!" Okay at least they got Augusta's anti Bismarck feelings in there

1:30:00 He apparently had no blood on him or noticeable wounds after the assassination attempt in the movie. I know the bullets either bounced off or went right through but that seems highly unrealistic. And of course they had to mention that Cohan-Blind was an English Jew

1:40:03: Okay at least they are keeping Bismarck's sorry mental and physical state accurate.

1:42:34 Oh that scene with Benidetti is great, shows off Bismarck's utter hatred and rage at the French, and his slippery nature

1:44:23 HOLY SHIT THEY'RE DOING THE NIKOLSBURG TANTRUM! And having Fritz III help him out!!

It's really interesting that they barely talk about the Franco Prussian war and just skip to the Hall of Mirrors, I really wanted an Ems Dispatch scene.

(Though I appreciate that they kept the historical accuracy of calling him Kaiser Wilhelm because of the Kaiser debate)

[masterjedilenawrites]

Could I please get a SW clone blind date please if you’re still doing them?

I have red hair. I’m currently studying history and I absolutely love it. In my spare time I play video games, watch historical shows or documentaries, read tarot cards, baking, listening to music, read books, talk with friends, and watch YouTube and Netflix/Disney+. I could talk all day about historical inaccuracy and accuracy in tv shows and movies. I also love Marvel and DC comics, and I will also give long rants about that too. In general, I’m a huge nerd. I try to help my friends and family as much as I can. They usually come to me for advice or support. I can be outgoing and love telling jokes, but I’m also very introverted. I tend to like to stay home and do something. Particularly now because I have a lot of anxiety, it’s mainly surrounding my health because I had a major health episode (I now have PTSD). My health isn’t great either, I have a lot of headaches and general pain in my head. I do get pretty insecure about myself, as I’m on the bigger side. I just need someone who will keep me safe, who’s down to earth, reassure me, make me laugh, and be a consistent part of my life (I’ve had the rug pulled from beneath me a few too many times in the last 2 years). So sorry for the length.

I'm so sorry to hear about your health and heartbreaks. Don't worry, I will set you up with someone who is calm, caring, and consistent. Hopefully your date with him will show you there are good people in the galaxy and that you deserve to be loved by them!

Your date is...

✨Fox!✨

Fox doesn't really care for surprises, so the concept of a "blind" date kinda flew over his head. He would've insisted on getting your number ahead of time so he could ask you where you wanted to go, the best time to pick you up, what your favorite flowers are... He's very much a romantic and wants this first date to be special. So whether you chose a fancy restaurant or your favorite taco truck, Fox will find a way to make you feel like a prince/princess.

He will spend most of the date asking you questions and listening to whatever you have to say. He especially finds your knowledge on history and how it's not always portrayed accurately in movies very fascinating. He'll find himself weeks later repeating some of the details you gave him to his friends because they're still on his mind. He's also mindful of the parts of your life you're maybe not yet ready to talk about, and that's when he steps in to share some things about himself to put you at ease.

The end of the night comes far too quickly in his opinion. He wants to learn more about you and share more special moments, even if it's a low-key date at home. He'll kiss your hand and ask you to call him if you're interested in seeing him again. Though he'll likely follow up with a text himself the next day anyway, just to remind you what a nice time he had.

✨

Want to be set up on a blind date with a Star Wars character?

[casspurrjoybell-27]

Moving Forward - Chapter 48

*Warning Adult Content*

Kyle and Max

Behind him, Max could hear Kyle sputtering and growling but didn't stop until he was in a prime ambush spot, the blind spot on the stair landing.

Kyle definitely would have heard Max run up the stairs but Max had enough of a head start to be sure that Kyle hadn't seen him hide.

Max couldn't help himself sometimes.

If he'd been in jaguar form, his tail would have been twitching from excitement.

Thudding footsteps alerted Max to Kyle's approach well before Max saw him and just as Kyle was well situated on the landing, Max launched, catching Kyle in the middle of his torso, pulling them rolling to the floor with Max ending up on top in a prime position to steal another kiss.

When Max went to get up and run again, Kyle caught him, using Max's surprise to flip their positions and somehow in the struggle that ensued, Max wound up on his front.

"You're too damn quiet," Kyle snarled.

Max laughed breathily, testing Kyle's grip.

"You make it too easy."

"Thiago," Kyle's voice was barely above a growl.

It was a tone that Max recognised, the exact tone he'd been aiming for.

"Please," Max purred.

The world whirled as Kyle yanked him up, dragged him into their room and threw Max on the bed.

Without ceremony, Kyle tore at Max's pants and grabbed the lube from the bedside table.

In the seconds they were apart, Max rolled onto his front and raised his hips.

"Thiago," Kyle groaned.

Peering over his shoulder, Max grinned.

"Come on baby."

Kyle didn't take long to prepare Max, both of them too keyed up for foreplay.

Pressed up against Max's back, Kyle pushed into him, stretching his hole.

He went slow and Max could only whine as he felt Kyle's cock inside him.

"Alright?" Kyle asked, voice strained.

"Fuck yes," Max breathed.

Kyle chuckled but Max didn't have time to react, instead gasping as Kyle began pounding into him.

His hands slid in the sheets, the force of Kyle pushing him down until his hips met the bed.

The sensation of the fabric against his cock made Max writhe.

"Kyle..." he moaned.

Despite how rough Kyle was being with him, the tight grip on his hair, the bites on the back of his neck, Max still felt loved as their hands clasped together.

"This is gonna be quick," Kyle warned and Max didn't blame him in the slightest.

The heat was already building in his stomach and every thrust of Kyle's cock was hitting his prostate with an accuracy that pulled him apart, inside out.

"Kyle... I'm..." Max couldn't finish the sentence.

He cried out as the orgasm hit him, come spurting onto the duvet under him.

Kyle didn't stop.

If anything, he went harder, dragging pathetic mewling from the back of Max's throat as he became over sensitive.

Warmth flooded Max's channel, Kyle's voice stifled by Max's shoulder as he bit down hard.

There would be blood, Max knew but he couldn't bring himself to care as they lay on the bed, bathing in each other's body heat and sweating.

They'd already made a mess of the sheets and Max healed fast anyway.

"You made a mess," Max accused when he found his voice again.

He was rewarded with a pinch to his ticklish sides.

"Who's fault is that?" Kyle growled at him.

"I'm not the one who ambushed his own mate."

"It's called foreplay darling," Max said, tamping down a laugh.

"Plus, you should've seen your face."

"Goddamn jaguar shifter."

This time, Max did laugh.

"Quit being moody," he lowered his voice.

"There's always a chance for round two in the shower."

Kyle heaved a sigh but he didn't sound annoyed.

Rather, he wrapped Max tighter in his arms.

"I love you."

Max smiled.

"I love you too."

They fell asleep before they could get around to showering and when they woke up all crusty and gross, they went back to bickering about who's fault it was.

[softtransbf]

First Second Meeting Redux

The alternate scenario for Barry and Lapin reuniting kept playing in my head, so I figured why not write it down.

I definitely skipped some turns of combat, compressing dnd bullet time into prose is never easy, and I chose pacing it the way I wanted to over technical accuracy lol

Again, not proofread, so forgive any errors

-----------------

Making myself look away from La- Chancellor Cadbury, I scanned the faces of the other Candians. The children were so young, but the pain and fury in their eyes made them look much older than they did at the tournament, not twenty-four hours prior.

I couldn't blame them- between the Pontifex orchestrating the assassination attempt and what she just pulled with the Book of Leaves, that'd age anyone a lifetime.

The younger of the princesses, no, the former princesses, noticed me watching them.

"You! You're a priest, you have to know this isn't right. Please, help us get out of here," she begged, and I felt something in my gut soften. "My father made a mistake, yes, but we don't deserve this- this- this perversion of justice for politics!"

Before I could respond, her sister charged the dais, and chaos erupted. I stood there, frozen, torn between the letter of my vows and the spirit of them. These actions weren't in line with the teachings of the Bulb I knew and loved.

But then a sweet stench filled the air, drawing my attention to Chancellor Cadbury and the spell he had just cast on the gummy bear knight. He's a warlock? Of the Sugar Plum Fairy? Pretending to be a miracle worker? Why? For how long?

My confusion was short-lived, as just seconds later, Sir Keradin Deeproot, with three sickening blows, dropped him to the ground, and time stopped.

I saw my first day at the seminary, meeting him, with his sharp wit and eyes full of mischief. I saw nights sitting closer than necessary and talking about the cosmos and the powers other than the Bulb. And I saw him get in a carriage and leave for Candia.

It is true that miracle workers are few and far between, but the Bulb saw the love I had for it and the people around me and saw fit to bless me with certain abilities. Not faith, not blind devotion. Love. Everything I could do was simply an outpouring of love.

So it was both surprising and completely natural when I called out Lapin's name and, without any conscious decision to do so, the strongest healing magic I had ever cast flew from my hand, bathing him in light and lifting him to his feet.

Sir Deeproot turned to me, his mace covered in chocolate. "He is a heretic! Worse than that- an apostate! Why are you using the Bulb's power to heal him?"

A calmness I'd never felt before washed over me, and I stood tall. "What has been done here today is not of the Bulb. It is nothing more than schemes and political machinations that defy everything the Bulb teaches us. The Pontifex is eloquent and powerful, but that does not make her infallible. It has made her proud and given her delusions of grandeur. I cannot stand by and watch the name of the Bulb I love so much get tainted like this. Especially not to Saint Citrina's family."

Sir Deeproot swung back his mace and stepped closer to me. Half a heartbeat later, I felt a familiar paw take my hand, and suddenly I was on the upper balcony with the rest of the Candians. I looked over at Lapin and noticed that the hand not still holding mine was slightly crackling with magic, and his eyes were locked on my face.

"You-" "I-" We both spoke at the same time.

"Please, you go first," he said, breaking eye contact.

"It can wait until we're out of here. Which, uh. What's the plan for, from up here?"

The words were barely out of my mouth when there was a massive crash and the stone in one of the windows crumbled.

Amethar looked at me from amidst the rubble, clearly sizing me up. "I dunno who you are, but you saved Lapin, and that's good enough for me for now. Let's GO, people!" In pairs, we leapt out of the cathedral and ran for our lives deeper into Comida.

Lapin's hand didn't leave mine for an instant until we were safely stowed away on the Colby and it set sail.

[pennylanewrites]

chapter 1 // i can’t breathe

pairing: levi ackerman x reader

genre: angst, smut

word count: a lot (4.3k)

cw + tags: aot s1 spoilers , canonverse, blood and injuries, mentions of death, canon character deaths, unprotected sex, fingering, handjob, lotus position, fluffy aftercare and pillowtalk, casual nudity, reader is described to have female anatomy and they/them pronouns are used, reader is in their early 20s and levi is in his early 30s

a/n: new series? yes. inspired by a song? yes. will said song make you cry? yes. stream first love/late spring by mitski.

chapter two(tba) // masterlist // aot masterlist

"oi, get up." shielding your eyes from the blinding sun, you looked up to find a green cape blocking your vision. "you're in trouble."

"are you dead too?" you gasped, getting up and standing infront of the man. he mumbled something under his breath before fixing his gear.

"did a titan suck all the brain out of your head, cadet? everyone else has left."

"huh. petra didn't wait for me, did she?" you looked around at the ruined forest, patches of green capes indicating the bodies that dropped dead that day.

"petra's dead."

"yeah." you nodded in agreement, starting to walk next to your captain as you searched for something in your pants. "this was hers." you handed him the survey corps patch that you had ripped from your friend's cape as you were struggling to keep your consciousness.

"did you-"

"there are the horses! come on, let's go." you limped all the way to the carriages, trying to find your horse among few others, but the only one you could recognise was levi's black horse.

"my horse..." you figured she had died too, brutally crashed by a titan's mouth, otherwise she would have come to find you already. that was, truly, your last straw.

your knees failed and you hid your face in your hands as you weeped for the many you lost that day. a hand on the top of your head scared you, making you look up with blurry sight.

"you'll ride with me. get up." levi demanded, snapping his fingers so his horse would come closer to him. "that's an order, cadet."

the mud and blood had cleaned off your face with your tears and levi could now see clearly the deep cuts on your cheeks. you didn't say a word as he helped you up his horse, this time you didn't even have a snarky remark when his gaze remained on you for a little longer than usual.

upon your return to Wall Rose, everyone headed for the showers and then to the dining hall. you were in the stables instead, odm gear thrown somewhere close, ready to take a horse and go into the forest to clear your head, shower and dinner be damned. yet for some reason, you were being dragged to levi ackerman's office, by levi ackerman himself.

"do you know how badly injured you are?" he shut the door behind you. levi's hair was still wet, his uniform new, clean and smelling fresh. you almost felt bad that he was touching your dirty clothes with his hands.

you looked at your arms and legs, shrugging. you had assumed all the blood on your uniform was from the people you watched die right in front of you. you didn't feel any pain at all, so what was your captain so mad for?

"i'm not injured."

"really? take your shirt off." you scoffed, ready to turn the knob and run from levi, but the stern look he gave you made your feet stick to the floor.

"i will not take-"

"take your shirt off, cadet." he hit his palm flat against the desk, a delicate porcelain cup clattering and drops of tea splattering under it.

as levi cleaned the mess with a rag, your trembling hands dropped your jacket to the floor, your once-white shirt next.

"see? i'm not..." you trailed off as you looked down at a bright pink wound running from one side of your stomach to the other, the accuracy of the cut almost surgical.

"your face isn't in better condition either." he commented, directing you to a mirror on his wall. you barely looked at the deep cuts on both your cheeks, before bursting in tears again. "are you in pain?"

"yeah." you mumbled, avoiding his eyes once again. what was up with him and just staring at you lately?

"you have to go to the infirmary. this wound-"

"not the infirmary. please." you whispered, hoping he would get the hint.

and he did. levi knew why you didn't want to go to the infirmary. it was more often than not that you and petra kept company to the nurses at nights, especially after missions that only returned dozens of injured soldiers. he remembered seeing you and her pick flowers to leave at every side table, how so many people came to thank you after they had recovered. he was almost annoyed at how nice you were, without even trying hard.

"you have to.”

“i’ll do it myself!”

“you will not stitch yourself up.” he excused himself and left to another room, you presumed his bedroom. you turned back to the mirror, only now noticing the small note taped on the top part of the glass.

happy birthday captain, petra, eld, oluo, gunther, __.

"you're getting soft, old man."

"on the floor." he ignored you and kneeled down where you lain, his supplies next to him as he dropped a cloth in a bucket of warm water. he cleaned up the dried blood around you as gently as he could, careful not to put pressure on the forming bruises.

you gasped at the sight of the needle before it even came in contact with your skin, making levi give you a strict stare.

"you're taking two weeks off."

"but commander smith gave us-"

"commander smith has been informed of your injuries. you are on medical leave."

"i can't. i have too many responsibilities. i was given tasks-"

"that the rest of your squad will take care of." levi spoke without thinking. you both stared at each other, wide-eyed, mouths agape as he stopped stitching your wound momentarily. clearing his throat, he averted his eyes from you and continued.

"the rest of my squad?" you chuckled dryly, swallowing the lump forming in your throat, "that's just you."

"that's correct," he muttered, giving one last stitch and tugging the thread to secure it. his action made you wince and grab on his wrist, shutting your eyes tight at the pain. "it's done. can you stand?" levi seemed to ignore your burning touch, helping you on your feet instead.

"sorry -i mean- thanks. i'll go now."

"come to the dining hall after you shower."

"yeah, yeah." you nodded, throwing your shirt back on and turning the knob to leave.

"that's an order."

"wouldn't kill you to actually ask nicely once, would it, old man?" you forced yourself to smile at him before running off to the showers.

levi wished you hadn't smiled at all. a half-assed smile from you hurt even more than seeing you frowning.

you had sprinted in and out of the room you used to share with petra, only taking what you needed, your eyes glued to the floor. you'd have to return her belongings back to her parents. eventually. but for now, you would take a quick shower, wrap a bandage around your waist to cover your stitches and wear your casual clothes. you were on medical leave, so you figured a sweater and cotton shorts wouldn't do any harm.

leaving the communal showers, you looked between the two staircases in front of you; one led down, to the kitchens and dining hall, while the other led to the commanders' and squad leaders' offices. it just so happened that the only safe way out was from the second window to the right, situated behind the desk in a long-unoccupied office. the sign on the door read 'hange zoe', but everyone knew the squad leader never left the research room.

after making sure the hallway was empty, you stepped into the office, freezing in your spot as the person across from you did the same.

“a-ha! __, captain levi was looking all over for you!” hange said loudly, making you put a finger over your lips to shush them.

“i need to use your window, hange-san.”

“ah, the infamous escape window. should i tell levi i saw you?”

“please don’t!”

“oh? i thought he was your boyfriend.” they muttered, sitting back down behind their desk as they motioned for you to use the window freely.

“my what?” you exclaimed, one foot dangling out of the window, the other still inside.

knock knock.

“hange, it’s me.” levi’s voice made your stomach tighten. you and hange shared a look, and with a wave you jumped down, landing on the roof of the kitchen, then climbed down the drain until your feet touched the green grass.

you could still hear levi’s voice faintly as you ran off in the empty field, you didn’t know however that he was standing in front of the window, his eyes never leaving your ridiculous limping jog.

reaching the edge of the small cliff where the headquarters were, you fell on your back and took in the silent landscape in front of you. it was almost creepy, how absolutely nothing could be heard or spotted moving nearby, except for the soft steps that came closer and closer and closer, until the voice you dreaded spoke.

“why aren’t you in uniform?”

“i’m on medical leave. i don’t have to wear the uniform.”

“i gave you an order before you left.”

“i’m on medical leave. i don’t have to take orders.” a small smile danced on your face as you tilted your head up to look at levi. he was looking down at you almost angrily, but it seemed his gray eyes had softened when they met yours. but no, it couldn’t be.

“that’s not true.” he muttered. your eyes grew wide as they followed his figure until he sat down next to you. “eat.” he shoved a bread roll in your mouth, making you sit up to not choke on it.

“stealing food could result in being relieved of your duties.” you reminded him, but he just gave you a scowl.

“this came out of my plate. be grateful."

"what would the cadets say if they knew you're picking favorites?" you chuckled, picking small bites from the still warm bread.

"you're not even close to being my favourite." he scoffed.

"yeah, i know." you smiled bitterly. you knew you weren't the best scout, probably not even in the top 20.

maybe it was just how you were. not talented enough. but it probably was the other thing. yeah. the whole dedicating your heart to the scouts. you found it absolutely stupid, you thought of erwin smith's speeches as hypocritical, and you just couldn't commit yourself to a dying cause.

and who would blame you for that? for being a little bit selfish? levi sure couldn't blame you, not when he found himself silently agreeing to your protests, or speeches about rebellion.

"hey, shorty, don't leave me just yet." you mumbled, staring up at the blue night sky, at four stars that created a small, imperfect circle. you traced them with your finger, levi looking up to see what you were doing. "petra, eld, oluo, gunther." you whispered. you could feel levi shifting next to you, until he was laying on his back, right by your side. "do you think we go up there when we die?"

"i don't think so."

"why not?"

"it seems too good to be true." he shrugged, turning to look at you. his eyes grew wide and he wished he could avert his gaze. your shoulders were shaking silently, tears spilling on your cheeks, wetting the grass beneath you.

he thought you looked painfully beautiful.

"i can't breathe." you coughed out, holding your weight on your elbows. levi pushed on your back for you to sit straight, his other hand pushing stray hairs behind your ear.

"hey, focus on me." he snapped his fingers, making you look at him as you sobbed uncontrolably.

"it hurts." you whispered and threw your arms around him. you were desperate for comfort after losing your squad and friends, and you'd most likely regret breaking your captain's boundaries later.

but for now, you let him pat your back at first, before his muscles loosened and his arms wrapped tighter around your waist, his raven hair tickling your neck.

"guess you're stuck with me now, old man." you chuckled as you pulled apart, hitting his shoulder playfully.

"i almost forgot. you're cleaning the hall tomorrow."

"but i'm on medical leave!"

"you're healthy enough to jump from the second floor, aren't you?"

heat rushed to your cheeks, both at his scolding, and the fact you were closer to him than a scout should be with their captain. you cleared your throat and leaned back, to maintain a less hectic atmosphere, but it was no use.

you had never seen levi look at you -or anyone- like that. his eyes were hopeful, eyebrows furrowed, mouth half-open and ready to speak.

he looked amazing.

"would you ever leave if you had the chance?"

"leave?"

"you know, the scouts. your duties. you're at the age when people get married and have children."

"i left my personal wills behind me when i joined the scouts."

"but would you leave?"

"i have no one to go to." he admitted. you wondered if he had parents waiting somewhere, siblings, cousins. but it obviously seemed like a sensitive topic, so you remained quiet. "would you leave?"

"i can't."

"i thought you hated this place."

"maybe. but i don't hate you." levi was speechless in front of you once again. in the end, he just gave you a scoff and looked away, making you smile.

"levi."

"it's captain to you."

"i've never called you captain."

"you've never called me by my name either." you rolled your eyes and ran a finger over his bruised knuckles, expecting him to swat your hand away, or get up and leave even.

"do you ever need someone to comfort you?"

"i'm not a baby." he scoffed.

"not that kind of comfort." you laughed awkwardly, avoiding his piercing gray eyes. "forget it- i don't know what got into me."

"wait." levi followed as you got up to leave, his hand on your shoulder making you stop.

"no, i was very inappropriate. please let's just..." you swallowed a lump in your throat, eyes burning with embarrassed tears before levi showed in front of you.

"are you staying in the scouts for me?"

you smiled. you didn't expect levi to be so upfront about matters of the heart, but then again, he was levi ackerman. he was a beautiful mystery in itself.

"i appreciate this, but please don't try to let me down slowly. i can take a rejection."

"you think i'm rejecting you?"

"yeah, aren't you a bit too old for me?" a smile danced across his face, but he made sure you wouldn't see him in the dark of the night. his hand touched yours hesitantly, thumb brushing over your knuckles like you did to him just seconds ago.

"funny."

"i try." you mumbled. you almost felt guilty. guilty that you were laughing, making jokes, guilty about the butterflies in your stomach every time levi's gray eyes came to your mind. no matter how much you had cried that day, it seemed that the tears wouldn't stop coming, and coming, and flowing down your face again, and it felt like you and levi both would drown in them.

"don't cry." levi whispered as he cupped your cheeks in his hand, tilting your head to look at him.

"can you make it better, captain?"

i can try, he thought as he extended his hand and you hesitantly took it,

for you, as you sneaked to his office without any of the soldiers spotting you,

i'll give it my best shot, as he locked the door behind him and turned to look at you, his cheeks now visibly pink as the moonlight gave his face a white glow.

for you.

you met him halfway in the office, hands on each other's cheeks in a hurry, your gaze darting from his eyes to his lips, watching him do the same to you. you initiated the kiss. you parted your chapped lips and brought his face closer to you.

his hands were trembling as he finally got a taste of what he dreamt of for years, of what he always stayed away from in fear of losing it. you rested your hands over his, smiling as he seemed to be calming down. you never thought a man so cold to everyone that approached him, a man serious and contained, insufferably so, would be losing himself in your touch.

you fidgeted with the buttons of his shirt, undoing them one by one as he slowly led you backwards to his bedroom. his white shirt got left behind, and he didn't even think of picking it up. you tugged at his bottom lip with your teeth, urging him to open his mouth, taste your tongue against his. he tasted like the dinner he just had, and spearmint and something bitter. alcohol. levi never drinks, you thought, but decided to ask him later.

his hands snaked under your sweater and every bit of his touch on your skin burned, having you needing more. you only pulled apart from him to take your sweater off, throwing it on a chair by the window as he looked at you like he was worshipping you.

"this hurts, doesn't it? maybe you shouldn't-" his hands grazed over the bandage wrapped around you, but you stopped him, grabbing his hands and leading him to the bed.

"if it ever hurts i'll tell you. i promise." you said between lazy kisses, letting him unclasp your bra as his hands explored your body, much differently than how he did earlier that day when he was stitching you up. he was hesitant to initiate more, and you could tell.

you could read levi like the back of your palm, and he was glad you did. so he let you take his hands and bring them to your tits, all the while you left sloppy kisses on his neck, his pretty colarbones, his scarred and bruised chest.

levi pulled you down on his lap after taking your shorts off, his pale hands spreading your legs apart. you wrapped them around his back, leaning down to kiss him again, softer, sweeter.

he hated that he liked how delicate you were with him.

neither of you wanted to feel.

maybe in another life, another setting, outside of walls and titans and death around every corner.

so he pulled your underwear to the side, heart fluttering at the way you gasped next to his ear. his index and middle finger spread your folds apart, collecting your slick and rubbing circles around your clit.

you unbuckled the belt on his pants eagerly, pulling the zipper down and palming his erection through his boxers, eyes searching his face for a reaction, which you got when you sneaked your fingers in his underwear, barely grazing them on the slit of his tip. his eyebrows furrowed, and he suddenly relaxed in your embrace, letting out a soft, quiet moan that you barely caught.

you grinned, sarcasm ready to slip from your tongue when levi pulled you closer, sneaking two of his fingers inside your hole. a whine of his name escaped past your lips, and levi thought he couldn't get enough of hearing his name in that tone, that manner, that situation, just from your lips.

"faster," you mumbled, now pumping his cock lazily, feeling him get bigger in your palm. he picked up the pace with which he fucked his fingers into you, curling them to hit that sweet spot he magically guessed. you arched your back, chest colliding with his.

levi's lips searched for yours in the dim-lit bedroom, soft kisses burning on your neck, your jaw, then the corners of your mouth until you slipped your tongue between his pink lips. you tasted him with so much fervor, your hand now pumping his leaking cock faster, until he stopped you.

"what's wrong old man? scared it won't get up again if you cum?" you giggled, despite how much pain, physical and mental, you felt that day.

you made it extremely difficult for levi ackerman not to fall for you.

"shut up." he mumbled against your lips, hands holding your hips tight as he lifted you up and pulled you against his chest. you reached down and aligned his cock with your cunt, tapping on his shoulder to let him know it was okay to move.

the slight burn of his tip stretching you subsided shortly after, and you relaxed in levi’s arms with every one of his pecks on your shoulder. you sunk down his cock until you felt his balls against your ass, gasping at the sensation of being filled to the brim.

“levi,” you whimpered, and he knew just by that what you needed. he wrapped his hand around your waist tighter for leverage and begun rolling his hips upwards, thrusting in and out of you slowly.

your gummy walls sucked him in every time he thrusted out, making his eyes roll to the back of his head. he rocked his hips against yours while sunken deep inside you, his tip hitting against your sweet spot repeatedly until you saw stars.

“i’m -fuck- i’m gonna cum!” you arched your back, making him sink further in your cunt, and your tits to rub against his sensitive nipples, eliciting a groan from him.

“already? what happened to your stamina, cadet? are you getting old?” he teased with rough, slower thrusts.

“shu-ut up!” you whined, rutting against him quickly, your clit rubbing against his pelvis to give you the right amount of stimulation.

cumming, cumming, cumming! you panted in his ear, walls clamping down around his cock, making it impossible for him to move as you rode out your high.

levi was close, pre-cum already painting your walls and his cock a translucent white. what tipped him off the edge, however, was your dopey smile as you bounced on his cock, your pants and moans against his neck, the way you rubbed your fingers on the back of his undercut, messing with his raven locks of hair.

“inside me, please, please, please!” you babbled, bringing him in for a kiss, living for the small grunts he let out against your lips the moment he shot a load of cum inside you.

“thank you, tha-fuck...” he smiled against your shoulder at your inconsistent muttering. you felt your body falling, your eyes opening wide only to realize he was laying you down on your side.

“i’ll run a bath. you’re filthy.” he said, almost lovingly.

“and who’s fault is that?” you managed a grin, your hand holding onto his until he pulled his boxers up and went to the bathroom. you turned to the wall, staring outside the window at the trees swaying, illuminated by the pale glow of the crescent moon. levi stood by the doorway to the bathroom, staring at you with his hands folded across his chest.

he wasn’t regretting what happened, but the guilt of succumbing to his emotions made his chest ache. he needed you, always had, and always will. but now that he finally had you, was he risking too much?

he made his way to you, and you only took notice of him when the bed sunk down from his weight. he rolled to your side, wrapping an arm around you, the other pulling your hair to the side to kiss the spot under your ear.

“i didn’t know you could act human.”

“ha.” he huffed, but still caved and became putty at the sound of your tired laugh.

“tell me something.” you said suddenly.

“something?”

“something i don’t know.”

“okay...” he trailed off, snuggling closer to you when he had an idea, “i have a house nearby.”

“what?” your eyes grew wide and you rolled around, now facing him. “i thought you lived here!”

“i haven’t been there in a while.”

“hmm, i bet it’s all filthy and dusty.”

“exactly. you’re coming with me for a few days to clean.”

you offered him your teasing smile, despite your heart jumping in and out of your chest still.

“are you trying to get me all alone, captain?”

“maybe.”

“and you’re abusing your place in the ranks for personal goals?”

“of course not. all you’re gonna do is clean, cadet.” he mumbled, rubbing his nose against yours affectionally. you melted in his touch once again, surprised by his delicate ways.

“among other things?”

“don’t get your hopes up.” he teased you.

“don’t worry, captain. i’ll get something else up.” you laughed and caressed his cheek when he turned red at your insinuation, dragging him to the bathroom with you before he could refuse.

you stepped into the warm bubble bath, opening your arms for him to lay between. you wrapped them around his torso, pulling him until his back was resting against your chest, though he was trying not to put any pressure against your bandages.

“was i good?” you whispered in his ear.

“what kind of question is that?” he rolled his eyes, bringing one of his hands back to rest in your hair and massage your scalp.

“a question that needs an answer.”

“you were perfect.”

heat rose to your cheeks at his sudden spurt of affection, and you rested the side of your face against his back in an attempt to calm down.

“you’re burning up.” he mumbled, running his hands up your hands, then your legs, realizing that you were extremely warm. you nodded against his back and let him wash your hair, clean you up and put you back in your clothes.

it was true that you were feeling a bit sick, normal for an injured person. but as you sat by the window and watched him change the sheets and put casual clothes on, you thought you couldn’t possibly be better.

“are you staying?” he asked bluntly, offering you his arm and no room to answer. he knew you would say yes anyway.

“i kick in my sleep.” you informed as you got comfortable under the covers.

“i’ll kick you back.”

“give me a kiss.” you looked up at him hopefully. he rolled his eyes and leaned in, pecking your forehead softly.

“what are you, my grandma? give me a kiss!” you giggled, leaning up and taking his cheeks between your palms, squeezing them until his lips formed an adorable pout.

“stop.” he mumbled, eyebrows furrowing together as he tried to swat your hands away. before he could, you brought your lips against his and kissed him softly. “goodnight, captain.” you wrapped an arm around his waist and brought him flush against your chest, cradling him like a baby.

levi didn’t remember the last time he got more than an hour of sleep. but your arms around him felt so protective, and your legs tangled with his made him feel a sense of intimacy and love that he only vividly remembered from his childhood.

his eyes soon started fluttering close, a small yawn hidden in the warmth of your chest, his arms relaxing around you.

“goodnight, cadet.”

.・゜゜・taglist・゜゜・.

@jeansmainhoe @ackermanslutsstuff @isabel2you @histarean @chaotic-nick @hanjis-stuff