#how she was made deliberately annoying so that her change to amazing was seen as character frowth and made people love her

[nymph1e]

Sabine being BARELY force sensitive is honestly amazing. I was going in pre-pissed because I fully expected them to hamfist Sabine being a jedi but they did it so well. She isn't force null bit from what I can tell, she wasn't as sensitive as a jedi would be. In a pre-o66 world, Sabine would NEVER have been trained as a Jedi.

Basically this fact - that Sabine isn't suddenly amazingly force sensitive - has changed this development from a mary sue waiting to happen, to a really really cool direction for her character to go in. It's now the story of someone working through a handicap. I mean how interesting is the idea of Sabine becoming a fully fledged jedi despite her lack of force sensitivity???? How creative will she have to get to get around her lack?

[youngestrunningleek]

The Tale of One Bad Rat

Content warning: this book covers familial sexual abuse, suicidal ideation, and homelessness. The review will get into that. I know the previous book also did, but I promise it won't be a pattern.

The Tale of One Bad Rat, by Bryan Talbot

This is a comic written in 1994. It begins in London and follows a homeless girl named Helen as she heals from abuse.

I am going to get into detail about the story. The actual plot doesn’t have many “spoilers”, but I’ll undress a lot of the emotional moments.

I saw the title at a library, and I took a closer look. Haha, I love rats, so funny… Then the back cover had these reviews about the importance of addressing child abuse, and I realized it was a serious book. I think the book handles Helen’s situation very well. It’s not an easy read, but it’s sympathetic and it shines light on something that people rarely want to talk about.

Something silly about me is that I often get annoyed by book titles with animals. Take Dinosaurs, by Lydia Millet. I get interested, only to read the back cover and see it’s not literally about dinosaurs.

This book was not like that. Helen has a pet rat, she admires them and shares facts about rats, and rats are generally a theme throughout the book. Surprise surprise, she’s the One Bad Rat the story is talking about. She’s unwanted by society and shunned.

I thought she was a boy at first, just based off the cover. I realize that’s intentional— she deliberately has short hair because she doesn’t want to be seen as a young woman alone in the world.

I think that also reflects the representation of homelessness. It was easier for me to imagine a solo homeless boy than a solo homeless girl.

I admire that the book shows Helen’s hair growing longer. I personally just appreciate when media shows characters change over time, but it’s also a good metaphor for her healing. When she’s safe, she is free to grow it out more.

The book used the medium of comics very well. At several points, Helen has intrusive thoughts, like jumping off a bridge. The panels don’t change or anything. You see her do it, then, there’s another panel and you realize she was just envisioning doing that. It felt very similar to my experience. You’re in that current without even realizing it’s happening, and then you jerk back to reality.

Something bittersweet about this book is the kindness Helen receives. She deserves it. She’s taken in by some older kids. I think it’s a little funny how she agrees to pretend she’s sleeping with a boy, so he won't get bullied by the others. It’s very utilitarian. They’re both getting what they need from the relationship. She later finds an older couple to live with, and who doesn’t love found family? It’s very, very sweet. But it's bittersweet because I know so many people don’t have that support.

The healing is really, really amazing. I wrote in my notes that reading this book felt like unclenching a painfully tight muscle. It hurts, but the release and healing is very powerful.

The afterword really made me appreciate this book. In my edition, Talbot talked about his process making the book, and the reception since it was first published. He originally wanted to write a story about the Lake District in the UK. He basically had the protagonist fleeing parental abuse as an excuse to tell the story. 

Then, after doing more research, he realized he had to fully address that. It became more central. He says it much better than I can, but the general point is that abuse is far more common than we think. People don’t want to talk about it, but talking about it is the only way we’re going to make things better.

I strongly encourage people to read the afterword here.

Note on language: I know there are many terms to use for unhoused people. I say “homeless” in this review because 1. It’s commonly understood and 2. Helen’s journey is just as much about finding an emotional home as it is finding a roof over her head.

My rating: 4.5

Overall rating: 4.5

[rogerslovesstark]

Hi there! A huge fan 💜💙 I was wondering if your requests are open?

If yes, could you please write an angsty fic where in reader is dating Bucky and for some reason he belittles her and breaks off their relationship. After which eventually everyone on the team stops talking to her. She's forced to leave off on her own and struggles a lot. Later Bucky realises his mistake and tries to contact her but the old her is gone. Like she finds her own happiness. Sorry if it's too detailed☹️

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 1.7k

WARNING: Angst

Your recruitment to the team was quick and very low-key. Almost no one knew that you had joined the Avengers because you requested Tony not to hold a press conference. You loved being an Avenger, the idea of helping people in need was so fulfilling.

However, the spotlight of being an Avenger was not pleasant. You did not know how Tony and Steve were able to handle it, the constant feeling of eyes on you, paparazzi almost always being on top of everything you do.

The few events you did go to, you stood with Bucky most of the time. He always kept you safe and comfortable while the party was booming. The two of you would walk around the venues Tony would rent out, looking at the architecture of the building, admiring the art that was around.

The conversation was kept minimal because there was already so much noise from the party. Both silently agreed that there was no need for extra noise.

It was the New Years Party two years ago where Bucky asked you if you wanted to slow dance. The Venue had multiple balconies and he chose the smallest one for the two of you to dance.

The two of you swayed to the soft music that could be heard from the party. Once the clock hit 12:00, Bucky leaned over and kissed you. You two began dating shortly after.

Every Sunday was a day for a date unless either of you had a mission. Every other week you planned a date for you and Bucky, walks in the park, restaurants, bars, everything you could think of.

You developed a dependency on Bucky. Always seeking his reassurance, seeking his comfort and touch. You felt as though you were not complete unless you were with Bucky. 

Your childhood was to blame, primarily your father. Physically, your dad was there but not emotionally. You never received emotional love from your father, the ‘I’m so proud of you’ or ‘you’re doing amazing’ Just a stiff nod.  

Being raised by your psychotic father was the reason you developed into the cold-hearted killer you were. From 16-19, you worked as a mercenary and killed for money.

You craved emotional validation from someone because you were so deprived of it when you were a child. You struggled to form relationships with others because of it too. That was one of the main reasons why you were not as close to the team.

Bucky would always smile at you, or kiss you when you were excited about something you would accomplish. On missions, he would always stay near you unless instructed otherwise by Steve. 

Bucky has been extremely off recently, always working with Steve, or working out with Sam, helping Wanda train her new abilities because it’s hard to kill a super-soldier than a normal human. 

He had missed five Sunday dates. Five of them. In those five weeks, you barely saw him and it was driving you crazy. You constantly would search for the time where the two of you could just be alone. You were so deprived of physical touch and emotional love, you began to fall into a depressive state. 

You walked towards the conference room, you asked Friday where Bucky was. She said he was in the conference room alone which is weird that she specified.

You opened the door and found Bucky just sitting on his phone. It was almost 10:30pm and he was just chilling in the conference room on his phone.

“Baby, I’ve been looking for you,” You said, walking over to him and running your hands along his broad and muscular shoulders. He was always so tense when he was sitting hunched over.

He shrugged you off his shoulders and turned to look at you. Not a soft, loving kind of look that a lover would typically give his lover; he gave a harsh glare as if you had done something to him. 

“God, you are so fucking annoying, you know that,” Bucky said. He grabbed that hand that was touching you and stood up from his chair. He let go of your hand rather quickly as soon as he stood from the chair. 

“I can’t fucking stand being around you Y/n, I don’t know why I ever asked you to be my fucking girlfriend,” He said, lowering his face closer to your face so the two of you were at eye level. 

Tears pooled in your eyes, every word he said was like a thin blade stabbing you in the stomach over and over again. You did not know what you did wrong, you had not even seen him in almost a week despite living with him.

“I’m sorry Bucky, I’ll be better, what can I do to be better, please,” You whispered, if your voice were any higher, you would being sobbing. 

Bucky just watched as you pathetically tried to hold your sobs in. You really were a weak woman and Bucky knew that. He knew that he held you in the palm of his hand and if he wanted to, he could break you.

He watched as your world crumbled around you because Bucky had decided to hurt you. Your hands were shaking and curled into fists. Your nose was turning red from holding back your tears.

“You are nothing without me, and I don’t want you anymore, so get the fuck out of my face and leave. No one on the team likes you, they would rather see you dead than ever have to see your horrific face ever again.” Bucky snarled, ready to see you burst into tears.

He knew that was the last straw.

You quickly turned around and left before you burst into tears. Bucky grabbed your arm and tried to turn you around, wanting to see you cry. You were forced to turn around, tears in your eyes pulling your hand back and smacking Bucky on his cheek. 

You left him dazed in the conference room. You ran to your shared room, collecting all your belongings. You had a small apartment in the heart of Montreal that no one knew about. You deliberately left off your information given to FRIDAY.

“FRIDAY, get rid of all information regarding Y/N L/N” You requested.

“Request denied, reasoning: unauthorized access to function,”

“Override denial, code Tony Stark has a fat ass” You rolled your eyes at the code Tony had told you to be used as a last resort code.

“Permission granted, removing all information regrading Y/N L/N,”

You grabbed a piece of paper on your desk, writing a short goodbye to Tony knowing he would wonder where you went. You quietly walk over to Tony’s office and placed it on the monitor he mainly used.

You left the compound shortly after, walking seven miles to the small car you planted in the forest. You prepared this as a last resort option. You never wanted to use this car but times were desperate and you had to get away from Bucky.

++++

You were struggling, barely able to figure out how to live on your own. The money you had saved from working for the Avengers was running low and the waitress job you did have has barely enough to pay the bills you had. 

Montreal was really expensive you ended up realizing, with such a horrible job, you sold your apartment and moved in with some college students in a small house. You shared a bedroom with one of the women in the house. 

Ashley, your roommate, actually found the job for you, she helped you changed your appearance and spotted your money whenever you were desperate for it.

You had no skill set for an actual job, the only skills you had were killing. And your skills had developed rapidly as an Avenger. You knew what you had to do to survive.

The first kill that you had was a child trafficker in Toronto. Ashley covered for you, saying you two would go to a spa for a girl's weekend. She stayed at the spa while you finished the job. You gave her 20% of the income made. 

You two had gotten close over the two years that you spent in the shared house. She was one of the only people that you trusted at this point. She suggested that you started therapy, which you decided to actually go to.

Your therapist wanted you to start realizing that you were more than who you surrounded yourself in. You deserved the love that you craved and you could only get it when you truly loved yourself.

++++

Bucky was laying in the bed the two of you shared. Two years had passed since he had driven you out of his life. He didn’t know why he did it, he was so upset because he saw you flirting with Tony. But Tony got engaged to Pepper only a few days later. 

After nine months of you being away, he started to crave your presence in his life. He asked FRIDAY where you were but she had no information on you. When FRIDAY said she had no information on you, he had one of the biggest meltdowns he ever experienced. 

You were officially gone from his life. Even with all the winter soldier experience of tracking people down, he couldn’t find you. Bucky knew that you were smart, you could hide in plain sight if you wanted to. 

It was in Toronto that he saw you again. Bucky’s whole world stopped after he saw you. You were so different now. Your hair was completely different from what he was used to, and you dressed differently too. 

It took him two months to finally get you to speak to him.

“What do you want Bucky?” The way you used to speak to him was so soft, now you were so cold towards him. Bucky’s stomach churned, almost nervous to respond to you.

“Y/n, please come back, I’m sorry for everything I have done to you, everything I said was a lie. I still love you” Bucky pleaded to you. 

“Bucky I’m not the same woman I used to be, you broke me, I was so broken and I was the only one who fixed me. You don’t get to come back after I learned how to not live with you.” You shouted at him.

Tears pooled in Bucky’s eye, he had lost the one person who had shown him, true love. The one person he wanted to protect for the rest of his life. He lost you, forever.

[evakuality]

Mia, episode eight

1.  I know I’m just a grumpy oldish person and all, but ugh.  This whole ‘walking into school and holding hands while everyone gapes as if it’s amazing’ thing seems so stupid.  I work in a school, and maybe it’s different in Germany but this sort of thing just doesn’t seem to happen.  People just turn up together and it’s part of life (and also they break up again in 5 minutes so Plus, I’m annoyed that I was right and that Kiki seems to be 100% entirely okay with Mia and Alex now.  Her entire story appeared to be that she felt like she wasn’t good enough for Alex and so the whole eating/exercise thing was tied into that.  But now a) she’s totally ok with this whole Mia and Alex thing and b) getting together with Carlos has fixed all of her issues? I’m not sure I like the message we’re getting here.

2.  Oh, skateboarding and Alex of course gets all hyper aggressive.  I mean, obviously this is from the og and so a lot of the fault lies there.  But honestly I cannot stand these types of guys who think they need to act like this.  I don’t get why he can’t just say ‘he’s bad in this way...’ rather than totally blowing up at Mia and effectively accusing her of being an asshole by association (I mean, after last episode I think she is kind of an asshole - but that’s by association with Alex not this Bjorn guy).  William blaming Noora for all the problems in Skam was an issue and it’s not better here.  What’s the reason for attacking the guy with the board?  We have no idea and he seems super unreasonable.  I know that’s the point, but it’s not a good plot line and I don’t see why we had to keep all the really shitty stuff from the og.  And tbh, while I usually like Alex’s acting, here I don’t find him convincing at all.  He actually doesn’t look worked up enough yo go after the guy, and afterwards there’s nothing, no hint that he might feel like he went too far.

3.  I do like this opening on the next clip with Mia clearly stewing in the things she saw and conflicted about it all.  It’s these little quiet moments that really make for a good interaction with our characters imo, and I’m always a little sad that we get so few of them with Mia.  It was one of the things that I found best with Hanna, Matteo and Amira - these moments sitting with them in quiet and solitude where you get to see them unguarded.  It almost feels unnecessary to have this little chat with Linn and Hans’s guy because we clearly see what’s going on with Mia even without the dialogue.

4.  Interesting.  The last thing we’re asked in the previous clip is ‘what about this guy now’ but here we are and Mia is only concerned with Alex?  I genuinely don’t care about him (partly because ugh this character is not one I like anyway and so I have very little sympathy for him when he harms someone else), and I would actually like to know how the guy he hit is.  Now, again, I know this is coming through from the og and I know Bjorn is therefore really shitty but at this point the characters don’t know that and so I’d expect to see a little more interest and concern for him.  I’m sure that on the day, this was probably very poignant for viewers.  It’s Valentine’s day after all.  But the lack of any resolution of Alex being violent means I don’t actually care here.  Mia would be better off without an asshole. violent boyfriend, and as shitty as it would be to be alone like this on Valentine’s, she’d still be better off.  Plus, she could easily go hang with her friends.  Speaking of which, this thing with Jonas and Hanna is weird.  As if he has any claim on her now that they broke up?????  I’m starting to revise my opinion of them getting back together - this isn’t healthy behaviour from him at all and I don’t like what he’s doing here.  

5.  Interesting choice to have Bjorn telling Mia about Alex’s sister (I only watched the og once but from memory it wasn’t his counterpart who told Noora?  I think?), but this ‘Alex has told you something different - that figures’ is such a weird take.  Because yeah we KNOW Alex has been keeping stuff from Mia.  We saw that last episode and we were made very aware of it in the ‘spin the bottle’ scene among others, so making this like a big reveal and making it as if Bjorn is being a manipulative dick here is odd.  Like, it’s the truth?  Alex has been keeping stuff from Mia.  This show has spent a lot of time trying to make some moments real ‘gotchas’ for Mia, when actually they’re just genuinely telling us the truth about the character.  Alex does have this side, he always had it and he hasn’t really changed at all.  

6.  The use of this really annoying buzzing, whining noise is good though.  It works really well to put us in a space where Mia is out of sorts and finding it all overwhelming.  Alongside the brightness of the light, we do get a sense of dissociation, and the harsh glare of the light even after the moment is over really shines on how harsh this news is for her.  For most of the last 2 episodes we’ve seen Mia is softer, muted lighting so this is new and different and it really does play up the change that’s happening here.  ‘I got to know a different Alex’ - yeah, except she didn’t really.  Or we never got to ‘meet’ him alongside her.  It was told in montage and it wasn’t enough for me.  And the bits we did see of him being vulnerable also came with clearly hidden parts, and so this idea that she knows ‘the real Alex’ falls flat because (like I said a thousand times last episode) pacing was so off and things happened so fast that I don’t believe any of it.  Because we never really got to see anything very ‘real’ from him.  

7.  I’m also not sure why she’s believing this guy that her boyfriend clearly told her is an asshole.  Okay so Alex isn’t very available rn, but there are surely other people she could talk to.  Even if he hasn’t been the greatest, Sam for example is at least someone she knows.  This Bjorn guy is a dick, but unlike in the og when Noora went to William’s place and sort of fell into the issue, here Mia has chosen to go see him.  She’s deliberately put herself in his way.  And also, she’s literally being told that Alex kept stuff from her and held stuff back to manipulate her.  Why on earth does she just take this guy’s stuff at face value?  I know it’s supposed to be a whole ‘woah - falling for the thing he’s warning her of while he warns her’ moment for the audience, but it doesn’t work for me.  This guy isn’t charming or believable enough for her to not even consider going deeper into this.  But it’s an interesting call back to Mia’s phone call with her parents and how rigid they were, so you can sort of see why this part resonates for her.  Even so, dismissing Alex’s attempt to see her because of this is a choice.  Make it make sense!  It made very little sense with Noora and even less with Mia.

8.  One thing I really dislike about this Niko/Bjorn character is how cartoonishly evil they are.  Where’s the motivation for this guy to say all this to Mia?  He saw her exactly twice, barely knows how she’s related to Alex, and yet he decides when she comes to visit him that he should manipulate her?  The biggest flaw in the William/Alex story imo is the way they can only make him seem ‘good’ in comparison to a literal villain who has no depth.  Or I mean I guess we have 2 episodes to give this guy more depth but somehow I doubt it’s going to happen.  Everyone I’ve read talking about this has said this guy is worse than Niko, so I expect him to remain this weird cartoon with no reasonable motivation for any of this.

[commentaryvorg]

Digimon Data Squad Dub Comparison Episode 6 - The Ultimate Team No More?

This is a companion to my commentary on the original Japanese Digimon Savers! Reading my commentary on the original version of this episode (which you can find here) is recommended before reading this dub comparison.

Original name ~ Dubbed name

Masaru Daimon ~ Marcus Damon

Yoshino Fujieda ~ Yoshino “Yoshi” Fujieda

Tohma H. Norstein ~ Thomas H. Norstein

Sayuri Daimon ~ Sarah Damon

Chika Daimon ~ Kristy Damon

Captain Rentarou Satsuma ~ Commander Richard Sampson

Katsumata ~ Boomer

[Since several characters share the same name between the original and the dub, quotes from the dub will always be in italics, while quotes from the original will not, in order to distinguish them.]

Yoshi: “But does he wait? Of course not! Not Mister Reckless!”

Yoshi has some added exasperation at Marcus in the dub and I approve.

Masaru:  “Aw, he’s annoyed at himself.”

Agumon:  “Yeah, he’s annoyed.”

~~~~~

Marcus: “What’s wrong, ya jealous?”

Agumon: “Sorry, but no autographs!”

how does Agumon know what an autograph is

Agumon:  “As if any Digimon could beat us when we’re fighting together!”

Masaru:  “Yeah! Because we’re the strongest combination ever!”

Agumon:  “Ever!”

~~~~~

Agumon: “We’ll just win again, of course! There’s no Digimon that can beat the ultimate team!”

Marcus: “Yeah! Agumon and I are the strongest team ever!”

Agumon: “Yeah!”

The original brought in Masaru and Agumon calling themselves the strongest combination ever kind of transparently for the purpose of this episode. However, because Marcus and Agumon have already called themselves “the ultimate team” before in the dub, this works better and doesn’t seem quite so obvious.

Dub-Agumon doesn’t have that quirk original-Agumon has of echoing the last word or so – or maybe a whole sentence as in the previous quote – of Masaru’s lines for emphasis. Not necessarily a bad thing, just that the dub Agumon has different quirks.

Lalamon:  “This is the worst…”

Yoshino:  “That’s my line.”

~~~~~

Lalamon: “Well, at least they don’t lack confidence.”

Yoshi: “No, they just lack common sense.”

Lalamon doesn’t get to steal Yoshi’s catchphrase, but instead she and Yoshi do some very warranted snarking.

Agumon: “Sarah, you’re a genius chef! Yum!”

Marcus: “Hey! How many times do I have to tell you not to call my mom by her first name!”

In the dub of the earlier episode where original-Agumon started doing this, dub-Agumon actually didn’t happen to use Sarah’s name, so this is the first time he’s done so onscreen. Still, I suppose Marcus’s line implies he’s done it multiple times before now, so this is the dub catching up by implying it’s been happening for a while even if we haven’t seen it.

Agumon:  “But Sayuri is Sayuri. Chika is Chika. And Aniki is Aniki.”

Masaru:  “That’s not what I mean!”

~~~~~

Agumon: “Kristy is Kristy, Sarah is Sarah, and Boss is Boss.”

Marcus: “‘Boss’ is not my name!”

Agumon: “Oh. Well, still.”

Instead of Masaru failing to articulate why it’s weird for his friend to call his mom by her first name, Marcus shifts to an entirely different argument which almost might be implying he doesn’t really want Agumon to call him Boss? That could be considered relevant to this episode, but it’s almost certainly not deliberate.

Masaru:  “It’s manners for the follower to hold back!”

Agumon:  “Look who’s talking! Giving things to the follower shows off an aniki’s generosity!”

~~~~~

Marcus: “Whatever happened to me being the boss here?”

Agumon: “Consider this an employee profit-sharing program.”

????? Agumon how on earth do you know what one of those is. I don’t even know what one of those is. Also, way to make this sound 1000% like a small business even though that never made any amount of sense.

This is basically making the same point as the original that Agumon feels Marcus ought to let him have the last fried egg as part of a boss’s generosity, but man does that get kinda lost in the ridiculous small-business joke.

Sayuri:  “Oh my, they really know what they’re talking about…”

Chika:  “That’s because they saw it on TV yesterday.”

Sayuri:  “Still, it’s amazing that they’re studying while watching TV.”

~~~~~

Sarah:  “Oh boy. Well, dinner just got a lot more interesting.”

Kristy: “Why do boys always have to act like boys?”

Sarah: “Oh, believe me, Kristy, one day you’ll be glad they do.”

The original exchange between Sayuri and Chika here was very strange – I think the subbers didn’t quite get what was meant to be going on there, because their take on it doesn’t really make sense – so the dub changing it to something else is quite reasonable. But Sarah being heteronormative at her daughter was really not what they needed to change this to.

(Is this implying that Sarah was/is into guys who are this kind of ridiculous idiot? Actually, uh, knowing about the kind of person Marcus’s dad is, that’d make… a good bit of sense. Oh dear.)

There’s some similar bickering about snoring here, but then also, still in the background:

Marcus: “That’s it! You’re fired!”

Agumon: “You don’t even pay me!”

Can we not with the small business jokes! It makes this whole thing so difficult to take seriously as a meaningful bond between fighting partners, which is kind of what this whole episode is meant to be focusing on. Also, as usual, how does Agumon even know that an “employee” is supposed to get paid; his entire experience with the word should be limited to what he is to Marcus. And Marcus saying “you’re fired” really should be taken as him officially breaking off their partnership, but this isn’t the part where that happens yet. (Though honestly I’m glad that when we do, we won’t be doing the small business jokes there.)

Agumon:  “Well, I’m not gonna bail you out any more, Aniki! If I wasn’t there for you today, you would’ve been screwed!”

Masaru:  “What?! Don’t be so damn egotistical! You can’t even evolve without my Digisoul!”

~~~~~

Agumon: “Fine, don’t count on me to bail you out any more! Face it, you’d be totally lost without me!”

Marcus: “What?! Gimme a break! Without me you couldn’t Digivolve! Without me, this team would be nothing!”

I’m quoting this whole thing even though it’s basically the same as in the original, because this exchange is very important to the entire episode and I’m really glad the dub kept it intact. Boy could they have ruined the whole episode if they messed up this part, but they didn’t.

(I shouldn’t have to bring this up like it’s remotely remarkable, but after the fire-punching fiasco in episode 3, apparently it is.)

Marcus’s “without me this team would be nothing” is a bit harsher and more jerkish than originally, though that’s probably partly because the dub had more lip-flap to fill. It’s making Marcus more of a jerk like usual, but at least in this instance, Masaru being something of a jerk originally was actually the point, so this doesn’t stick out as much as it does sometimes.

The noises Agumon initially makes in reaction to Marcus’s comment here are a lot angrier in the dub, whereas originally it was more like upset floundering at the realisation that that’s true, before he snapped.

Agumon:  “Damn it! I can’t do this any more! I’m done being your follower!”

Masaru:  “Oh yeah, well, I’m out too! We’re not Aniki and follower any more!”

~~~~~

Agumon: “That’s it! I can’t take this! I don’t want you to be my boss!”

Marcus: “That’s just fine by me! I don’t wanna be your boss, either!”

At least the dubbers had the sense to deliberately avoid using the word “employee” here and keep the small-business nonsense out of the part that really matters.

Tohma:  “You’re arguing over something so trivial.”

Masaru:  “It’s not my fault!”

~~~~~

Thomas: “You’re being immature, even for you.”

Marcus: “Y-Y-*You’re* immature!”

The joke of Marcus proving how immature he is means that instead he’s snapping at Thomas, somewhat shifting away from the issue with Agumon. Meanwhile, Masaru was more subtly and relevantly showing his immaturity by trying to insist that their argument is totally all Agumon’s fault and not even slightly his.

We also lose the interesting implications of Tohma thinking this whole argument is over something trivial.

Masaru:  “Fine! I’m more than enough for one or two Digimon!”

~~~~~

Marcus: “Hah. It’ll probably be *easier* without you, just you wait and see!”

Marcus’s extra jab about it being easier without Agumon shifts this more into an insistence that Agumon was somehow holding him back, rather than focusing on the more relevant point that he simply wants to feel like he can do this without help from anyone.

Agumon:  “We’ll see about that, Aniki!”

~~~~

Agumon: “Hmph. Good luck, ‘cause you’re gonna need it!”

By wishing Marcus good luck, even if he means it as an insult, dub-Agumon is implying somewhat more of a sentiment of at least not wanting Marcus to get himself hurt doing this, which original-Agumon didn’t realise until later.

(Dub-Agumon doesn’t happen to call him Boss in this line, but he did so in an earlier line, so he is still doing that in the dub, too.)

The point I made in the original post about how these two scenes feel like one connected scene that ends on the note of Masaru going off to prove himself rather than them falling out doesn’t quite apply as much in the dub. Partly it’s because the dub doesn’t have the opening here, which isn’t its fault, but it also uses different BGM in each scene.

Elecmon:  “So many toys to play with!” [evil chuckling]

I’m sure you can tell without me quoting the van driver’s line that this is not Elecmon echoing anything that any human said at all. Apparently it’s coming to the human world just because it genuinely personally likes messing with electronic devices. That is not how this is supposed to work, at all. Not even in the dub’s slightly different version of things!

Masaru:  “Now there’ll be peace once again in the Daimon family.”

~~~~~

Marcus: “Finally I have some peace now that Agumon’s not around.”

Marcus not mentioning his family makes this less about the petty eating and snoring concerns that the argument started off about. But this still does very much carry the tone of him trying to insist to himself that he’s totally happier this way when he very obviously isn’t.

Masaru:  “I’ll do it all by myself.”

~~~~~

Marcus: “Soon he’ll see! I don’t need *him* around!”

This, though, I don’t really like. The point was never specifically about Masaru proving anything to Agumon, and it wasn’t even specifically about the fact that he needs Agumon in particular. Masaru just wanted to prove, to himself, that he could do this (whatever “this” was) by himself.

Marcus’s intonation here is also quite overly-moody, making this come across a lot more like just a temporary tantrum rather than that this is connected to something that runs deep.

The dub decides to put a commercial break after this scene rather than after the Elecmon scene where the original opening went, even though this scene is short enough that they could probably have just as easily put it before it. I… think I like that choice? The Elecmon scene was always a bit unnecessary, so lingering more closely on the note of Marcus’s moodiness feels better. (Though it specifically lingers on that dub-changed line that I don’t like much, so, eh.)

That said, this next set of scenes cutting between Masaru out on his own stewing in his frustration and the DATS members trying to talk to Agumon in his Digivice does feel like it’s supposed to be one long connected thing in the original. So I dunno.

Megumi: “Look, it’s your favourite! A cheeseburger wrapped in another cheeseburger! With a cheeseburger for dessert!”

Um, that sure is a way to have a cheeseburger. Since she’s holding what looks like a perfectly normal burger, I can only assume she’s lying to try and make it sound more enticing to Agumon. (Also, haven’t you got the memo, Megumi? Agumon’s favourite is Sarah’s fried eggs, obviously.)

Yoshino:  “How will they ever make up?”

Tohma:  “It’s not something we should interfere with.”

~~~~~

Yoshi: “You think those guys will ever be partners again?”

Thomas:  “I have more important things to do than second guess those two.”

Originally the implication from Tohma was definitely that he imagined they would make up sooner or later and just felt it wasn’t any of his business to try and force it to happen. But Thomas sounds like he’s implying he wouldn’t care if they didn’t ever make up at all. That’d have been reasonable for him before he came to respect Marcus, but not now.

Satsuma:  “They must learn why they’re important to each other. If they don’t find that answer, this is as far as they go.”

~~~~~

Sampson: “They need each other. But if they can’t see that, there’s no place for them here.”

Sampson is spelling things out a lot more explicitly for us. And it also sounds like he’s only thinking about this in terms of their suitability as DATS agents. The sense I got from Satsuma was that he was thinking more broadly about their growth as individuals and is concerned about that, DATS agents or not.

Masaru:  (That little shithead. He was the one who first said he wanted to be my follower.)

~~~~~

Marcus:  (I can’t believe him! He was the one who said he wanted me to be his boss in the first place. Then he gets upset when I act like a boss.)

That last dub-added part misses the point a bit. This is supposed to be about Masaru still having room to feel like he doesn’t need anyone, because Agumon initiated their partnership and looked up to him. This isn’t about Marcus acting in any particular way while being in that “boss” role at all.

(Maybe this could be read as Marcus deflecting from the real point here – but that’s not even necessary, since the real point is him being able to tell himself he doesn’t need Agumon. Masaru was also essentially deflecting from that.)

Masaru:  “Damn it!”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “This day just keeps gettin’ better and better…”

Marcus has more to say as he almost falls over from his missed baseball swing and leaves. I’m not sure I like his comment here, like he’s just thinking about this as one of those Bad Days where everything goes wrong, as if he was playing baseball as a totally unrelated way to pass the time and then this mishap just added to the Bad Things pile. Really, Masaru’s playing baseball because of the initial problem, as a way to physically let off some steam, and then he probably messes up as a result of that frustration of his, which only serves to amplify it.

Maybe it’s just the tone I don’t like as much – Marcus simply sounds fed up and exasperated, rather than actively frustrated about something that isn’t really the baseball at all.

Lalamon:  “You always said you hated being in the Digivice because you were alone.”

~~~~~

Lalamon:  “You said you hated being in the Digivice because it’s cramped and lonely.”

Ayy, the dub is still consistently sticking with its added emphasis that Agumon doesn’t like cramped spaces. I’m so weirdly pleased at this one bit of extra nuance that they manage to be completely consistent and also not-too-unsubtle about – probably because they’re not usually nearly this good. It’s to the point that I’m starting to have a strong theory that someone on the dub writing team had claustrophobia themselves and was projecting this onto Agumon, making consistently writing it this way personal to them, because they otherwise do not usually care enough to think about and follow through with the implications of minor changes like this.

Agumon:  “You two wouldn’t understand.”

Gaomon:  “That’s for sure. But that’s why I’m interested.”

~~~~~

Agumon:  “Just drop it, you guys, you don’t understand!”

Gaomon:  “It’s disgraceful. A member of DATS should take pride in his partnership.”

Original-Gaomon was simply curious here, perhaps showing a side of him that’s similar to his master’s very scientific approach to things. Dub-Gaomon is also showing similarity to Thomas in his strong sense of duty (plus pride in his partnership because he’s a dog)… but he is also kind of being more of a dick in the process.

Gaomon:  “Fighting with your master…”

~~~~~

Gaomon:  “Arguing with your superior…”

Since dub-Gaomon doesn’t call Thomas “Master”, this had to be changed, and this is a perfectly reasonable change, but it does still give Gaomon more of a sense of being an army grunt rather than a loyal dog.

Gaomon:  “Interesting. And why do you argue so often, do you think?”

Gaomon’s tone at the end here is also kind of dickish, like he’s implying that it should be obvious why Lalamon and Yoshi argue a lot. Geez, dub-Gaomon, chill.

Lalamon:  “Yoshino’s always really lazy! She doesn’t clean up her room, she doesn’t fold her laundry, she has bad sleeping habits and—”

~~~~~

Lalamon:  “Yoshi’s great, but she’s bossy and messy! And you should see what she does with her toenail clippings—”

“Bossy” is a lot more in line with the Yoshi we already know (at least towards Marcus, who kind of deserves it), though the “messy” part is similar to the original in hinting at a side of her we don’t usually see. But overall – no thanks in large part to the toenail clippings joke – there’s much less of a sense in the dub that Yoshi’s an entirely different person at home and that she doesn’t work nearly as hard in her home life as she does at DATS.

Katsumata:  “Da… Daimon!”

Masaru:  “Katsumata? You’re still hanging ‘round here?” [he turns to walk away]

~~~~~

Boomer:  “Huh? Oh… Marcus!”

Marcus:  “Hey, Boomer. Uh, sorry I can’t really talk right now. I’ll see ya.” [he turns to walk away, muttering under his breath] “Doof.”

Masaru’s interaction with Katsumata is obviously somewhat unfriendly from the start, based on both their tones and Masaru’s implication of “I thought I drove you out of this turf”. But Marcus and Boomer are both being… polite to each other? I would have assumed they were friends based on this, until Marcus insulted him under his breath.

Which, since they’re evidently not friends – especially given what’s about to happen – just makes it come across as incredibly off that Marcus even pretended to be polite to him in the first place. Masaru would never do that; he never beats around the bush and would never hide it if he had a problem with someone. That straightforward sincerity he has is a really big part of his character and I am sad to see so much less of it there in Marcus.

Since Marcus was enough of a jerk to pretend to be nice and then insult them under his breath, it then also comes across like Boomer and his cronies surround Marcus for a beatdown mostly because of that, rather than that they’ve had a run-in with him before and want revenge.

Masaru:  “What bad luck.”

Katsumata: “Cursing your fate won’t do you any good.”

Masaru:  “I was talking about you. I’m extremely pissed off right now!”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “You *don’t* wanna start a fight with me today.”

Boomer:  “Just ‘cause it’s five against one? Hah. We’re callin’ the shots this time around.”

Marcus:  “Is that what you think? Back off, Boomer, before I teach you bullies a lesson!”

Boomer:  “Yeah, right. Get him, guys!”

On the other hand, Marcus’s “today” does imply that he might have had a fight with this dude sometime before. (Unless he just means “start a fight with me” in the very general sense that people often come to him looking for a fight and not necessarily this guy in particular).

That line is also the only part of this scene that gets across the important sense that Marcus is especially in the mood to give someone a beatdown right now because of everything that’s been going on.

The rest of it… really doesn’t. Bullies? I don’t know if this is trying to say that these guys are known bullies that Marcus has heard of or dealt with before (in which case, why would he bother being nice to them?), or just a comment on the fact that they’re surrounding him five-on-one (though Marcus isn’t entirely innocent in this, since he insulted them first). But either way, this is the dub trying to reassure us that, hey, really, it’s okay that our protagonist beats up these guys, because they’re bullies! They’re bad guys! Marcus is being the good guy here, see!

That is not supposed to be the point of this. Masaru wasn’t beating up unwilling bystanders – he would not do that – and only did this because these dudes were looking for a fight. But this is very much supposed to be Masaru doing something that is kind of not okay, as a result of his frustration with himself set off by his argument with Agumon. That’s the point! It’s good for this to not be a great thing for Masaru to do! Characters – even good characters – are allowed to do bad things. That’s what makes stories more interesting.

Marcus also at least tries to de-escalate the situation by warning Boomer to back off. That makes the resulting beatdown a lot more on Boomer for refusing to listen, and a lot less on Marcus, who is at this point mostly acting in self-defence. Apparently Marcus would have been perfectly happy to walk away from this if they’d had second thoughts and left him alone.

But Masaru never gave them that chance. Once they’d incited aggression first by surrounding him, Masaru took that as a free excuse to start letting loose on these dudes without giving them an opportunity to change their minds. He wanted an excuse to vent his frustration through violence and wasn’t going to back out of it once he’d been given one. Again, that’s the point.

Agumon:  (Aniki hurt my pride.)

~~~~~

Agumon:  (You really hurt my feelings, Boss…)

This is almost the same, but hurt feelings is a bit more of a general idea that hurt pride. Pride in particular is especially relevant here, since Agumon and Masaru both have a lot of it and that’s a big part of the reason why this is happening.

At least the musical cue as Marcus stands over the beaten dudes is appropriately sinister and painting Marcus as very much not a hero in this situation. The dub soundtrack people have the right idea, even if the dub writers don’t.

Marcus:  “See? I don’t need help from anyone.”

Marcus has an added silence-filling line as he walks away, pointing out things that were already implied in the original because who needs subtlety. Also, hey, look, it’s almost like he really did just beat up those guys for his own issuey reasons and not because he was being a good guy defeating the bullies, how about that!

Though I also think this is somewhat missing the point. Yes, a lot of this episode is about Masaru trying to insist he doesn’t need anyone’s help. But this particular part is also here to show that his usual pastime of street fights against other humans isn’t enough for him any more, that he needs something more that fighting Digimon can give him. That’s what’s supposed to be the main thing on his mind as he walks away from this too-easy victory, rather than the more general don’t-need-anyone issue.

This whole part is one of my favourite delightfully-subtle bits of this episode, and the dub watered it down so much.

Old man:  “Well, well, my angry young friend.”

Pfft. Not an inappropriate thing to be calling him right now.

Old man:  “The things you truly need appear even when you’re not looking for them. That’s because you understand why you need them.”

~~~~~

Old man:  “The things you truly need appear even when you’re not looking for them. So look for what’s new in your life and figure out why you might need it.”

Unlike last time the old man showed up to be vague and metaphorical, this time the dub actually translates his speech almost entirely word-for-word! Amazing. This is the one bit that’s slightly different – but if anything, the dub’s version makes more sense at a part where the original was a little bit “???”, so, hey, good job. This does also mean that the old man is somewhat more actively giving Marcus advice in the dub than in the original, but that doesn’t really make a difference anyway (because Marcus is still not listening).

Boomer:  “What luck. I can’t believe I lost to Marcus again.”

Okay, so the dub is definitely going with the fact that Boomer is someone Marcus laid a beatdown on before today. They really shouldn’t have thrown doubt on that to begin with by having them sound like they’re being polite to each other in that earlier scene.

Katsumata: “Damn it, the stupid light’s taking too long again! Come on, change!”

Elecmon:  “Lights, change!”

~~~~~

Boomer:  “Why won’t these stoplights change already?! C’mon, c’mon!”

Elecmon:  “More toys to play with!”

…So, yep, Elecmon coming here is totally unrelated to anything Boomer is saying or feeling. And therefore it’s nothing to do with Marcus that this is happening. (Which also makes it a hugely convenient coincidence that he happens to be nearby to this Digimon incident when he doesn’t have DATS to tell him where to find it.)

Agumon:  “I decided I wouldn’t come out until Aniki apologises.”

~~~~~

Agumon:  “I’m staying here until Boss apologises, so blame him if something goes wrong!”

Dub-Agumon is being more of an immature dick here. If something goes wrong that he could have helped with, it’s totally not his fault for choosing to put his personal issues above the importance of the case, sure.

Bystander:  “I still can’t believe that no-one was seriously injured!”

Yeah, sure, dub, you just fill a silence with this to reassure the kids. It’s a huge flaming car crash, but it’s fine! Nobody was even really hurt, let alone killed!

Masaru:  “It’s okay. You’re not hurt anywhere.”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “It’s okay, kid, you aren’t hurt. Thanks to me, of course!”

Marcus, unlike Masaru, feels the need to make things about himself here, somewhat putting the damper on his selfless moment of heroism. Not completely, but he comes across as slightly less genuinely selflessly good as a result.

(It could be read like that comment is a result of the I-can-do-everything-alone issues he’s having this episode, but it feels like now of all times is when he should stop acting that way at all. That was the idea behind this bit in the original. Marcus’s tone for that part is still quite soft, so it also doesn’t sound like it’s part of his overcompensating.)

Agumon:  “Aniki!”

~~~~~

Agumon:  “Oh no!”

Because “Aniki” is two lip-flaps, they can’t just replace a lone “Aniki!” with a lone “Boss!”, so instead Agumon says this, coincidentally sounding more worried than he did originally.

Yoshi:  “Marcus, where’ve you been? Why didn’t you contact us?”

Marcus:  “I’ve been busy doing my job!”

Yeah, sure, doing your job definitely includes playing baseball and beating up some random dudes. (Masaru did not try and make any such claim.)

Yoshino:  “You don’t have a partner, so just wait here.”

~~~~~

Yoshi:  “Without a partner, you’re useless, so just stay out of the way, Marcus.”

Yikes, Yoshi. Calling him outright useless like this is going to rile him up even more.

With the dub’s insistence on using its evolution music every single time someone evolves, at least these shorter evolution animations mean that the music doesn’t awkwardly loop exactly twice, and instead it plays smoothly through the two animations.

Masaru:  “Even if I am [being absurd], I’ll use it to cut through a new path! That’s what a man does!”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “An ultimate fighter never quits! Let’s go, you overgrown puppy!”

Even aside from removing the manliness part, they also removed the rest of what was fun about this line. Masaru has a delightful insistence about how he doesn’t care if he’s being absurd, that can be a good thing that’ll help him win! Marcus is just… never quitting, and then trash-talking his opponent. Which is fine, but… simple.

Agumon:  “Aniki!”

~~~~~

Agumon:  “Oh, Boss!”

More ways for the dub to get around the lip-flap issue with short exclamations like this.

Yoshi:  “Chasing something we may not be able to catch, to save someone who doesn’t want to be saved! Marcus must be terrified all alone.”

[cut to Marcus on Garurumon’s back]

Marcus:  “Yaaaaa-hooooo!”

Look, I get the joke they’re going for here, but doing so compromises two characters. Why would Yoshi even worry about Marcus being terrified, after she literally just complained that he won’t want to be saved? She knows him, geez.

And then Marcus having great fun riding the Garurumon would normally be perfectly fine – see Drimogemon last episode – but one of the interesting points about this part in the original is that Masaru wasn’t having nearly as much fun with this as he had with Drimogemon before, as a sign that he knows deep down how outmatched he is without Agumon.

Masaru:  “Hey, asshole, how far are you gonna go? Stop sometime! Damn, my arms are giving out! Are you trying to see which of us lasts longer?”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “Hey, you digital dimwit, give it up! You’re never gonna be able to shake me off you! …Except my arms are starting to get tired. Well, let’s see who gives out first!”

He’s also a lot more openly cocky about being able to hold on, generally, despite that he does admit his arms are getting tired. Masaru’s lines gave more of a subtle sense that he was hoping it would stop so he wouldn’t have to keep holding on, if still not directly admitting that.

Masaru:  “Hey. Don’t underestimate me!”

~~~~~

[Garurumon growls]

Marcus:  “Woof.” [he lets out a wordless battle cry]

As much as I am kind of amused by Marcus aggressively making fun of his enemy being a big dog, I am sad that this comes in place of that fun original line in which Masaru had decided Garurumon was totally underestimating him, which definitely wasn’t him projecting his own self-doubt onto it.

Masaru:  “Damn it, what do I do now?”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “Oh, that’s right! I’m on my own here!”

Somewhat less of a sense in the dub line that Marcus is starting to wonder how the hell he’s going to win this now.

Marcus:  “…Not fun.”

Marcus has this little comment about how it felt to be slammed into a wall, and I enjoy it.

Masaru:  “Am I not… strong enough to beat him…? Is it really only a Digimon that can stop a Digimon…?”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “Man, maybe I’m not strong enough to defeat this guy… Maybe it really *does* take a Digimon to defeat a Digimon…”

Despite his “maybe”s, Marcus generally sounds a lot more sure about this here, like he’s not actually having any real difficulty accepting this now, whereas Masaru was still struggling with it to the point of phrasing it as a question.

Marcus:  “But still, there’s no way I’m gonna give up even if this turns out to be my last stand…!”

The dub has some extra lip-flap here, so this is also added in. Which I’m not super sold on. In keeping with a dub difference in episode 1 (wow, consistency), Marcus is apparently openly willing to just throw his life away for no good reason. Plus, the fact that he’s explicitly accepting the possibility he might get killed here means he really has accepted that he can’t do this with a lot more willing certainty than Masaru did.

(At least the dub managed to phrase the concept of him dying in a way that sounds natural despite not directly mentioning death.)

Masaru:  (I was wrong… I need…)

~~~~~

Marcus:  (What was I thinking? I couldn’t have defeated that guy [Tortamon] by myself, and I can’t beat Garurumon either! I need Agumon, and now I’ll never get to tell him I’m sorry!)

These are both lines that take up the same amount of time, believe it or not. Marcus is way more internally-talkative and generally perfectly articulating the problem he was having and the Lesson He’s Learned. Meanwhile, Masaru was coming to this realisation a lot more slowly and gradually, barely able to articulate it to himself beyond the most simple and important part. The original’s writers were happy to leave some silent gaps in between his thoughts to do the rest of the work more subtly.

The dub’s also really doubling down on the idea that Marcus is very consciously aware that he’s probably about to be killed here. Him lamenting not being able to apologise to Agumon is cute, but I still don’t know if I like him having admitted the about-to-die part to himself in the first place.

Sadly, the dub does not have the extra layer of Marcus’s screams of exertion that are what’s physically coming out of his mouth during this part. Regardless, these are definitely internal thoughts, because they have an echoey sort of effect on them to imply that. (The original doesn’t use that effect for its inner monologue lines at all.)

Masaru:  (I need… I need Agumon! I want to fight together with Agumon!)

~~~~~

Marcus:  (I get it now. I need you, Agumon! What makes us strong isn’t you or me… it’s both of us working as a team!)

Them working together as a team being the reason they’re strong is a cute (and correct) sentiment, don’t get me wrong, but I still like it less how Marcus is able to perfectly articulate this to himself and has just very straightforwardly Learned His Lesson.

Also, the loss of specifically “I want to fight together with Agumon” loses the possibly-unintentional call-forward in that line, which makes me a little sad.

Marcus:  “Right. We’re the ultimate team!”

With the dub’s “ultimate team” being a whole Thing that’s in more than just this episode, it has a more impactful effect to bring it back here that the original can’t do. So that’s a plus for the dub, at least.

Marcus:  “Never surrender, GeoGreymon!”

The evolution theme, being an instrumental remix of the dub’s opening theme, happened to have the part of its melody which matches with the dub’s opening lyric of “Never surrender!” just a few seconds before this line. Heh. I wonder if that was deliberate.

Masaru:  “There’s no way you can lose to a Digimon like that!”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “Remember, you’ll never lose as long as we fight together!”

Marcus’s line here is more adorable than Masaru’s, putting the focus on their partnership rather than just implicitly insulting their opponent! (It could be read that Masaru was specifically referencing the fact that Garurumon doesn’t have a partner and that’s why GeoGreymon should win, but if so that’s not all that clear.) I approve.

Masaru:  “You did it, Agumon!”

Agumon:  “Aniki!”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “You did it, Agumon!”

Agumon:  “*We* did!”

The dub did indeed go for “you” with the translation of Masaru’s subject-ambiguous Japanese line – and then they had Agumon add in a “we”, for maximum adorableness!

Masaru:  “We can beat any Digimon if we’re fighting together!”

Agumon:  “Yeah! We’re the strongest combination ever!”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “As long as the two of us work together, no Digimon can stand against us!”

Agumon:  “Yeah, we’re still the ultimate team, Boss!”

The dub’s version of this is basically the same right here, but what it unfortunately doesn’t do that the original did is directly echo what the two of them said in the beginning of the episode, but with the speakers swapped. Here’s the earlier bits:

Agumon:  “As if any Digimon could beat us when we’re fighting together!”

Masaru:  “Yeah! Because we’re the strongest combination ever!”

~~~~~

Agumon: “There’s no Digimon that can beat the ultimate team!”

Marcus: “Yeah! Agumon and I are the strongest team ever!”

Alas, apparently the dubbers didn’t realise that was a deliberate callback and make sure the earlier lines were worded so they’d work with this.

Agumon:  “Nah, it’s fine. I’m sorry, too.”

~~~~~

Agumon:  “No. I should be apologising to *you*.”

The dub’s version of this contains the awkward implication that Agumon isn’t just giving his own apology but also feels like Marcus didn’t even need to apologise in the first place. Which isn’t right, since both of them were equally at fault here. I don’t know if the dub even meant to imply this, but that’s how Agumon’s phrasing reads.

Masaru:  “Crap, it’s Yoshino. Run, Agumon!”

~~~~~

Marcus:  “Oh man, I’d rather face another Digimon than Yoshi. Run!”

The original reads like Masaru is trying to run because Yoshino is going to force him to clean up his mess. In the dub, it reads like it’s not so much about the clean-up and more like he’s mostly running because Yoshi is scary when she’s mad, which has a vaguely uncomfortably sexist vibe to it.

(Also, why is he acting like facing another Digimon would be a bad thing? Of course he’d rather fight another Digimon than face Yoshi, regardless of her anger or the clean-up, because fighting Digimon is his favourite thing!)

Overall differences

Well, at least they didn’t ruin the overall point of the episode like they could have by changing the reason Marcus and Agumon fall out. I had wondered if the bizarre misconception I’ve seen of “this episode is bad because they fall out over fried eggs!!!” came from the dub, but no, it very much didn’t. That part is perfectly intact. That said, there’s a lot of other changes going on in this episode that I’m not too fond of, especially because a lot of them mess with the fun nuanced bits.

The ridiculous small-business jokes during their argument further highlight how nonsensical it always was to call Agumon Marcus’s “employee”, and they detract from the meaningful points being made there about their respective roles in the relationship.

Elecmon is entirely lucid and simply coming here because it wants to mess around with traffic lights, which is extremely not how things work, not even in the dub’s version of why these Digimon incidents are happening. It also means this incident isn’t indirectly Marcus’s fault, which was a thing I enjoyed in the original.

The scene where Marcus beats up the dudes is probably my least favourite of the changes. The dub completely fails to grasp that Masaru doing something kinda not okay is the whole point of that scene. Instead it scrambles to insist that their kids’ show protagonist is still a 100% squeaky clean good person actually, because look, he’s only beating up bullies! And yet despite that, Marcus also acts weirdly uncharacteristically polite to this person that he has every reason to openly dislike.

Just like in episode 3, Marcus is a lot more articulate and self-aware about admitting exactly what his problem is and the lesson he’s learned in this episode (though at least in this episode he actually learns it), which continues to be less interesting and nuanced than the way Masaru struggles a lot more to fully accept and understand his issues. There’s also a recurrence of the thing from dub episode 1 in which Marcus is fully, consciously aware of the possibility that he might die, which is not something Masaru ever quite lets himself acknowledge even when he’s inches away from being eaten.

At least a few of the lines in the scene where he and Agumon make up are changed to be a little bit more adorable in the dub than they were originally, so there’s that.

[marvels-writings]

When the World is Against Us (17)

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A/N: Sorry about the delay with this, google decided to delete the draft I had so i had to rewrite it. This isn’t the best part since I’m in a bit of a writer’s block but here you go, I hope you like it!

Nostalgia filled you as the jet landed in front of the compound. Hardly anything had changed since you were gone. Natasha and Steve headed out first as Sam helped Vision get out. The android limped, trying to assure everyone he was alright while doing so.

Once Wanda was sure Vision was alright, she followed you inside. Her hand slipping into yours as you walked towards the entrance to the compound. The sky was a bright blue, the sunlight warming your back as you walked. Resisting the temptation to see your room, you went to where your mom was leading you.

You rushed through the hallways into the main room where Steve was leading you. Many of the recruits side-eyed the avengers storming through the compound. All of you were wanted by the government. But who was about to try to arrest ex-avengers?

Blue holograms filled the room Rhodey stood in as he talked to them. The secretary of state stood in front of him as you walked into the room. A frown went across your face as memories rushed back to you. His nose had healed rather well, but his attitude made you want to break it again.

Wanda subtly pulled you back when she saw the look on your face. You nodded at her before facing forwards. A small smile made its way across your face when she squeezed your hand in support. She knew what you had done in the prison. Although the need for revenge was there, she didn’t want it.

“Mr. Secretary,” Steve stated, standing in the doorway of the room. His hands rested on his belt, he stood a level above the secretary.

“You’ve got some nerve,” He said, walking up to you. “I’ll give you that.”

You stepped forward to reply when your mom stepped in front of you, pushing you back lightly. You sighed and stepped back again, the secretary’s eyes following your movements. Natasha shot you a glare over her shoulder before responding to him.

“You could use some of that right now,” Natasha stated, a tiny smirk crossing her face quickly. His gaze shifted towards Steve.

Rhodey stood behind them, watching the interaction. Which was when you noticed his legs. This was the first time you’d seen him after the accident at the airport. You didn’t think he’d been hurt this badly. A wince covered your face as you watched the robotic legs shift. The blame was on Vision and Sam, but you still felt some of it on you.

“The world is on fire,” He began, his eyes shifting towards you as he continued. “And you think all is forgiven?"

You shifted on your feet, licking your lips as Steve moved in front of you. Threat underlined his every word. His actions angry and deliberate, more towards you than the rest of the team. Your mom threw you another glare over her shoulder, making sure you wouldn’t say anything.

Sarcasm was something that rubbed off from the rest of the team, especially Tony. Using it against the Secretary of State could only get you into a worse place. You already broke his nose, the last thing he wanted from you was sarcasm.

“I’m not looking for forgiveness,” He answered, jaw clenching slightly. “And I’m way past asking permission.”

You glanced at the TV in the corner of the room. It reported that Tony Stark was missing, along with two unidentified others. The spaceship they had come in was also gone. Your jaw clenched, worry-filled you as you didn’t know where he was. You hadn’t seen him in a few years, but you still missed him.

“Earth just lost its best defender, so we’re here to fight.” Steve stepped forwards, “And if you stand in our way, we’ll fight you too.”

The secretary looked up at him angrily, trying to see if he could do anything. There wasn’t much he could do, you were the Avengers after all. He was right, the world was burning. He wasn’t going to wage a war on the Avengers. There were lines even he wouldn’t cross . With a heavy sigh, he turned to Rhodey who looked at him with an expectant smirk. Instead of being annoying with the scene playing out in front of him, he was amused. The secretary glared at him, almost to try to get him to stop smiling.

“Arrest them.” He commanded, sounding more exasperated than authoritative. Rhodey raised an eyebrow and shrugged.

“All over it,” Rhodey answered, waving his hand and shutting down the hologram.

He stood in front of you with a smirk, looking at all of you with a smile. You fidgeted, unsure who was going to make the first move. Rhodey shrugged and dropped his arms by his side.

“That’s a court martial.” He shrugged.

Steve and Natasha chuckled while moving forwards. They greeted him with a familiar hug, glancing back at you when you stepped forwards. The guilt was written on your and Wanda’s face for his current state. Rhodey saw it but didn’t say anything.

“Well, you guys look like shit,” Rhodey commented, chuckling with one arm resting on the counter behind him. You laughed and made a half shrug, one hand squeezing Wanda’s.

“The hotels weren’t exactly five star,” Sam replied, causing you to chuckle. Vision leaned his weight on him, still limping from the wound in his stomach. He chuckled at Sam’s response, wincing almost immediately after.

“I think you guys look great.” A voice sounded from behind you. A voice you thought had left years ago.

Whipping your head around, you saw Bruce standing there, his shirt ripped from the sleeves as he fidgeted with them. The mud coating his sleeves standing out compared to the lightness of his clothes. Your mom stared at him for a few seconds, mouth wavering open for a few seconds.

“Hi, Bruce.” Natasha greeted, voice wavering unnaturally. You glanced towards her nervously, edging towards her till your shoulder touched hers. She startled, leaning backward slightly into your touch before moving back.

Natasha hadn’t told you much about her and Bruce. She had told you a little about how she had recruited him, a little more before Ultron. But after Sokovia, she didn’t tell you anything except for the fact that they kissed. She blamed herself almost as much as him for leaving.

“Nat.” Bruce nodded, his jaw clenching.

A tense silence surrounded the room, you heard Sam mutter something but you couldn’t make out what it was. Vision gave him a strange look. You cleared your throat and gave Bruce a curt smile before excusing yourself and Wanda from the room.

Hand intertwined in hers, you dragged her away from the room and into the elevator, pushing the button to take you onto your previous floor. Letting out a loud sigh, your hand slipped from hers as you leaned against the wall dramatically. Wanda chuckled and rested against the other wall.

“It’s not that bad.” Wanda consoled, but you simply raised an eyebrow. She laughed and a smirk crossed her face. Her smile infectious, a smile covering your face quickly as you waited for the inevitable sarcastic comment.

“It’s only your mom meeting her ex.” She commented.

You snorted loudly before bursting out into laughter. Wanda laughed at her joke, watching you cackle over the simple statement. Once you’d stopped laughing, you offered her your hand as the elevator doors opened.

“To be honest, I’m not even sure I’d count it as dating.” You muttered while heading towards your room. The hallway looked so familiar, if not a little cleaner than what you remembered.

Wanda shrugged next to you, her hand slipping into yours while heading into your room. The door slid open easily as you stepped inside.

Everything was cleaner than you remembered leaving it. The bed was made, the clothes that had been strewn about were put neatly in the closet. The door to the closet was open, revealing all of the clothes you’d forgotten to take with you.

You had thought your memory of this place, your home, could never fade. But it could, the clothes were in different spots, the room had a different lighting. You remembered it almost as some sort of haven, away from everything else. It’s amazing how much your memory eluded you.

All of the random perfumes and hairbrushes you owned were set up on the dressing table. You spotted a familiar shirt in the closet and went towards it as Wanda sat down on the bed. She played with the bedsheets before reaching out for a necklace placed on the dressing table.

“Remember this shirt?” You asked, lifting it in front of you. A lopsided grin covered your face as you remembered it.

It was the shirt you wore on your first date. It was a navy blue denim button-up, you’d worn a tank top underneath it even though you had the buttons done up all the way. But the park Wanda had taken you to was warmer than you had anticipated, you ended up walking around in a button-up open with the tank top showing.

Wanda had been staring at you when she had tripped over a rock and fallen face first. A small part on your shirt was ripped from where you’d fallen from laughing at her.

Your girlfriend glared at you playfully before trying to snatch the shirt away from you. You drew it away from her, laughing as you did so. Taking off your sweatshirt, you tugged the button up over the black t-shirt you were wearing. It still fit the same, the sleeve of the shirt was slightly ripped from where you had fallen.

“This brings back memories,” Wanda commented, laying down on your bed while facing the ceiling.

You moved to lay down beside her, the button up flaring and meeting her hand. Wanda chuckled as one of your hands tried to slide into hers. It was almost a custom at this point, for one of you to try to hold the other’s hand.

When you felt something metallic in her hand, you moved up to take a look at it. It was a necklace, the chain was a dulled silver and the pendant was a delicately woven butterfly with stones through the wings.

It was the necklace Wanda had gotten you for your six month anniversary. You’d worn it almost religiously after she had given it to you. But after the chain broke in a mission and you had to replace it, you preferred to keep it in your room instead. You chuckled as you remembered almost crying when it had happened.

“It definitely brings back memories.” You muttered, playing with the silver chain of the necklace. Wanda began to hand it back to you when you closed her fingers around it, winking at her playfully.

The witch smiled and began to try to put it on, but couldn’t do the clasp properly. She sat up, fingers still struggling with the tiny clasp. You chuckled and sat, up, gently moving her hair over her shoulder and out of your way. Wanda dropped the clasp in your fingers, waiting for you to close it.

You closed the clasp, patting her back when you were done. Wanda whispered a small thank you, her head bowing down as she played with the pendant in her fingers. A sigh left you as you rested your hands comfortably on her waist.

The mood saddened slightly as you began to remember what you had lost. You almost forgot how much you had missed the compound until you were here. You missed everything, from the way the string lights would make the room seem bathed in gold, the way it looked in the morning. It was almost nostalgic when you thought about what you had lost.

FRIDAY alerted you that your presence was required for a meeting in the kitchen.

You jumped, almost falling off the bed at the sudden alert. FRIDAY was something you had been used to. Now, hearing a voice randomly was a little startling. Wanda turned around and saw your eyes wide in surprise. She burst out into laughter.

You giggled at your reaction, watching her laugh at you. After a few seconds, you shook your head and lightly shoved her shoulder. She bit her lip to try to stop laughing, still finding it hard to do so as she got up.

You rolled your eyes and offered her your hand again. Wanda slid her hand into yours comfortably, leading you towards the kitchen. You had little to no interest in the meeting, only wanting to stay in bed and not bother with any of this. You just didn’t want to lose anything more.

Wanda put stroked your knuckles comfortably, consoling you silently. Both of you had lost something, it was almost poetic you found something new with each other.

| Part 18 |

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[sanchoyo]

danny phantom season 2, ep 12-16 thoughts! these episodes, in comparison to the first 10 or so, felt way more laid back and low-stakes, which I appreciate sometimes. I didn't appreciate how lazy jack's halfa design was in masters of time, it made me so annoyed I redesigned it. 👎🏻 u_u

see prev episode thoughts in this tag <3

-'picking a fight with me and my upgraded form!' 'you upgraded to a mullet?' DANNNNY. YOU CANT SAY THAT TO TECHNUS. YOUVE HAD A MULLET TWICE NOW ('fun' split danny, and evil future danny BOTH HAD THEM). I HAVE THE RECEIPTS.

-danny seeing technus hurting valerie and yelling I AM GOING TO BREAK YOU IN HALF. SAMEEEE <3

-axion labs is now a part of vladco. FUCK YOU VLAD. hes not even really IN this episode, but just thought I'd throw out a nice fuck you anyway.

-'capable of blasting a single person into space in (2) minutes!' tucker. that would kill someone. i mean yeah they might get to space, but theres NO WAY THEY WOULDNT CATCH FIRE, OR THEIR ORGANS WOULDNT LIQUIFY BECAUSE OF THE STRAIN. THEY'D PROBABLY PASS OUT BEFORE THEN, BUT. ...no, okay, I get why vlad bought this company. this is RIGHT up his alley.

-danny KNOWS VAL DIDNT DO THIS, THAT SOMEONE STOLE THE SUIT. AND SPENDING ALL NIGHT CHATTING WITH HER. <3 and val is a 9TH DEGREE BLACKBELT?? danny's mom is, too!! omg and she hunts ghosts, his parents would love her. and her fav fruit is kumquat bc its a funny word. im so with danny val is amazing. I love her and I Do Not Want To Hear It From Sam.

-I knew danny wanted to be an astronaut, but the bowling tidbit is like. yes give me more useless info abt these characters, I love tiny details that make them feel more human, and im glad hes got hobbies aside from ghost stuff, we dont really see a lot of that!!! (I mean, we knew 'fun' danny from when he split himself in half liked bowling, so obv it makes sense he LIKES it, but hes very GOOD at it. so proud of him, bowling king) val calling him neil armstrong and them teasing each other. LOVE THAT.

-technus you are my favorite grandpa for setting this up. SAM WHY ARE YOU BEING SO CREEPY BE HAPPY FOR YOUR FRIEND!!! STOP SPYING ON THEM!!! who actually cares if technus did 'set them up' together, theyre having fun and enjoy each others company!!! 'you think the universe wants you two to be together?' 'i dunno, but maybe /I/ do!' EXACTLY DANNY!!! SOO TRUE.

-and valerie being happy sam said she wants to try and be happy for them and make room at the lunch table for them. and hugging sam over it. VAL NEEDS MORE FRIENDS.

-VAL GOING AFTER TECHNUS IN HER SUIT WITH (1) MILK, AND (1) TREE BRANCH AND KEYS!!!. I LOVE YOUUUU BEST GIRL. her new suit kicks ass

-dannys like 'HEY IM AN ASTRONAUT :D' AW. ...HES IN SPACE... the fact he's actually intending to give her the ring. with SAMS NAME ON IT?? IM CRINGING DANNY NO. YOU CANT DO THAT...thank god he didnt. thank god valerie cut it off and said they can just stay friends for now. tbh, they both have a lot on their plates!! they obv both still like each other...it can be a future thing!! when she knows about phantom! youre 14 theres no need to rush. I just want her to have friends and be happy :(

-...danny struggles to do (1) pull up. SAME. but all the ghost fighting in phantom form REALLY doesnt carry over at ALL? that sucks

-sam being as fit as she is, is not just a goth. shes a goth jock.

-honey I Shrank Our Kid, One of his Enemies, and his Bully: the episode

-dash's crush on phantom is So Obvious. fitness buddies :) watching them interact always makes me laugh. also, phantom, with PANTS. 'how many costume changes you gonna go through, what is this, vegas??' DASSH DJKSFHASKDF

-MADDIE GOING AFTER THE MOUSE WITH A BROOM, WHAT THE FUCK. AAAH. JUST BUY SOME KIND OF MOUSE TRAP.

-danny likes lime and vinegar chips. which sound very good.

-'our boy finally has the physical prowess of a 60 year old president!' ...poor danny LMAO

-'what's wrong with beauty pageants' oh tucker you sweet naïve child. what ISNT wrong with them. who approved this for a high school?? (I mean, yes. unfortunately child pageants exist, but...) also danny and tucker once again treating the pretty girls like objects. I need to meet the grown man who wrote this, I just want to talk...

-prince aragon's dragon form reminds me of maleficent (color scheme wise) which is always a bonus. considering the episode is called beauty marked, I feel like the sleeping beauty references are deliberate

-sam with the fake fangs. once again her accessories never miss. hate the 'not like other girls, girls who get sucked into this kind of thing are all shallow and all want to be carbon copies' bs tho.

-sam trying to be the Worst Bride, being rude as shit. DORA IS GOING TO GET KILLED. DID YOU MISS THE PART WHERE SHE SAID THE PRINCE WILL HAVE HER HEAD IF YOU ARENT THE IDEAL BRIDE. YOU /KNOW/ DANNY WILL COME SAVE YOU. JUST ACT CHILL UNTIL THEN. even if you were doing fine to get him to take off the crown, consider maybe not letting his poor sister get punished also?? sure, she could also take off the crown and has dragon powers, but did you know that for sure?? dora didnt even really realize it until you guys talked!! (or at least, she was scared to stand up to him. you had no guarantee she would...) but. good for dora. ANOTHER friendly ghost to add to the List :)

-tucker is so under appreciated in his time. if he was doing a tech-based campaign today he'd have a better shot. people in 2004 had NO IDEA how much tech would be a part of our day-to-day lives...altho. tbh if you're going to be running for student council president, maybe you should..focus on things to actually improve the school? since he's going for a tech angle, he could say like, he would be running fundraisers for the schools computers to be upgraded, etc? we've already SEEN he can be good at money-making entrepreneur type stuff!!

-oh my god wait. this episode is JUST YUGIOH?????! A REBORN PHAROH USING A TEENAGER AS A VESSEL?? YESSSSSS

-tucker using his new minion to feed him grapes and carry him. AND LOCUSTS ONTO THE BULLIES. I love how when he's possessed, he gains winged eyeliner.

-this episode is giving me big 'plankton makes everyone in bikini bottom his slaves and build monuments of him from the spongebob movie' vibes. and the pharaoh has a traitor who works for him? VERY big yugioh vibes. aknadin confirmed

-I like that danny is still completely exhausted after using ghostly wail. (still patiently waiting on him to get duplication)

-LOVE the fenton's 80s outfits. I get hes 14 and embarrassed by everything they do because theyre his parents, but. cmon, this is one objectively cool thing theyve done. love 80s fashion.

-...was vlad just standing on that streetlight waiting for danny to come out? how'd he know they'd be coming out the back? how long has he been up there???

-oh, wait, his ecto-acne has flareups? that SUCKS. danny was...well I dont want to say he was LUCKY HE HALF-DIED, but he was lucky his was pretty instant (I'm assuming that had to do with the power/scale of the portals being different?) I remember in the ep we met him, vlad made a point of saying he was stuck in a hospital for a long time, so. that really actually sucks and I feel bad. not that it excuses anything he's done...but like. it does suck.

-vlad being so sure danny wouldnt help him he made it somehow contagious to his friends to make sure he'd get help? danny is a nice boy, he wouldve helped if it was anyone else. the only reason he wouldn't have is because of the shit vlad did to him, on purpose. vlad 100% dug his own grave by being the biggest asshole, so it is very hard to feel bad for him.

-clockwork is back!!! and making danny learn lessons The Hard Way. Uhhh, okay. I kind of get Danny’s logic, that time traveling this far back would prevent vlad from becoming a halfa also, ergo no arch nemesis or ectoacne to worry about. But the fact that was basically the first solution Danny came up with to solve this problem is actually so funny. It’s so extreme

-APPRICIATION FOR THESE 80S LESBIAN BG CHARACTERS.

-vlad telling maddie in the lab (in the 80s) he has something he's wanted to tell her 'for a long time'...how long have they known each other? I assumed they met in college, since jack always calls vlad his college buddy/roommate, so jack and vlad for sure met in college, but did vlad know maddie longer? thats surprising if so. Tho we don’t know what year of college they’re in so they could mean they met as freshmen and a few years have past…speaking of maddie shes crushing the 80s look.

-vlad blames jack, but. maybe dont stick your face 2 inches from the portal??! THIS FEELS LIKE LAB SAFETY BASICS. IF SOMETHING HAS POTENTIAL TO BE DANGEROUS, DONT GET NEAR IT. WITH YOUR FACE UNPROTECTED IN ANY WAY. (altho jack didnt really give a Big Warning besides screaming BONZAI. so. also that, but cmon.) also, they need gloves, goggles, and to pull all of their hair back tbh. but fuck lab safety, I guess!

-cryyyyinnng at how lazy they were with jack's ghost form design, its just plasmius' design on jack!!! you couldve given him his own design!!

-there. I did that in about 10 minutes and its somehow less lazy than what made it into the show. embarrassing! better yet, I think the episode would've been better if maddie would've gotten the ectoacne. or maybe its just me, wanting to see her design! anyway. I'm sure people have already done redesigns of them both as halfas. I have to go look after I finish this watch through. Also mildly frustrated jacks resentment and bitterness is basically also a copy paste of vlads backstory. They’re different characters, I really don’t think jack would stew in bitterness and jealousy the same way vlad would!! I also don’t think he’d give up after one time of trying to hunt ghosts and getting laughed at. Our canon timeline says different…I dunno, I get it was for laughs, but I’m annoyed because the POTENTIAL this plot has…

-did vlad really wear a stupid cheese hat to his wedding. ok actually that kinda rules. and the cheese door knocker. the dairy-only buffet table. vlad still got rich, just on being the New Dairy King. (Assuming that means he owns a lot of dairy businesses?) ok! this actually is great. hope maddie isn't lactose intolerant!

-'no matter how hard I tried, I could never get rid of my ghost half, the half I knew Maddie could never accept' ohh, ouch, what a horrible thing to say to her HALF GHOST SON. 'YOUR MOM WILL NEVER ACCEPT YOU' BASICALLY.

-maddie strapping danny to the table with a lazer pointed at him in a secret lab she keeps from vlad that she makes a point of saying is sound proof so he can scream all he wants...CHRIST. DANNYS POOR PYSCHE.

-also, not to feel bad for alternate vlad (because, he did lie to maddie saying jack blames her and never wants to see her again...) but. being married to a woman 20+ years and she immediately goes back to jack? if she didnt love vlad and feels like she had to hide shit from him, and says she wasted her best years with him, WHY MARRY HIM. it feels like leading him on!!! cannot believe im feeling bad for vlad, but. this alternate timeline vlad is significantly Less Horrible than Our Vlad. did she not think she'd get funding for her ghost stuff? (which, fair assumption since they're considered 'ghost fanatics/nuts in canon...but...) why did she think jack or vlad would be her ONLY OPTIONS? be like your sister. be single. Actually, this au could’ve been really interesting if after the accident, vlad lied to her and said jack never wanted to see her again, but she stays single. Imagine how much that would bug vlad… like, in her mind, it was never a competition it was jack or no one type situation…

-danny being like 'leave him ALONE' this jack is a HOMEWRECKER, DANNY. let them go to court and settle this at the least. ...or just throw vlad into the portal. (100% human, defenseless vlad) CHRIST, MADDIE THATS BRUTAL. THATS MURDER.

-danny seeing his mom immediately accepting him and his dad being half ghosts in this universe, if I was him this would be a great sign that his universe's maddie would also.

-*maddie voice* "clockwork will help!" *2 seconds later, with clockwork* "I will Not Help." TOUGH LOVE KING. YES LET DANNY SEE THE SODA HIMSELF AND DEVOLP BETTER OBSERVATION SKILLS.

-when clockwork ""reset time to the way it was"" just before danny "meddled"" ...did he really erase a whole alternate timeline? ...damn. because maddie and danny both called it an alternate timeline by name, it splitting when the college incident went different, so it wouldnt have really mattered if he reset it, right. like because danny's timeline is on a different stream? why didnt clockwork just. show danny a replay and not Reset That Timeline. wh...I wonder how many people that Erased From Existence. Anyway! once again stating clockwork is casually terrifying!

[kirumod]

Could you do Chiaki, Kaede, Hina and Mukuro reacting to their cheerful GN!S/O having a tragic past? They are the SHSL Trickster, always joke around and wear a happy mask, but when they were 5 their house burned down, kiling their family and leaving their face scarred. They spend their life on the streets and achived their talent because they had to beg, lie and steal to survive. They act childish because they never had a real childhood and are secretly insecure about being a nuisance to others.

thank you for the request! i have written this in third person point of view. if this is not what you wanted, please feel free to re-send the request.

and most importantly, i hope you like it <3

chiaki nanami.

Chiaki, being the observant, curious person that she is, recognized that something is amiss about her signicant other's behavior since the very beginning. She noticed every small slip-up, every frown, every scar, every hesitant pause, and every hint of reluctance. In fear that prying would do more harm than good, all Chiaki did was give her partner words of encouragement and try to spend as much time with them as possible, playing video games and sharing pleasant memories.

Her silent analysis was proven when her darling Ultimate Trickster entrusted her with their most honest self. They spoke of their past, and when they finally reached the point of telling her about the fire, they removed their mask with shivering hands... and completely broke down. Tearing down their childlike demeanor and happy front, they cried to her in a moment of vulnerability and grief. Chiaki didn't quite know how to respond. She wished she could do something to help — perhaps change the past or fix all of S/O's problems, somehow — but nothing was that easy.

After they cried, she whispered words of comfort to them and encouraged them to be whoever they want to be, whether that be the cheerful, childish person they present themselves to be or someone else entirely. She told them that their past doesn't change how wonderful and amazing they are. She lists off things she loves about them: their talent, their laughter, their eyes — now that she's seen them — and how they never fail to make her smile. And finally, from that day onward, she reassures them that they are not annoying anyone whenever they seem to stutter upon themselves, reminding them that they are not a nuisance as they believe.

kaede akamatsu.

Kaede's optimism and upbeat personality complemented S/O's lively and playful one wonderfully, while still maintaining a balance through Kaede's overbearing kindness contrasting the Ultimate Trickster's, well, trickery. Kaede realized from the beginning that there was a lot she didn't know about S/O, but she was never one to doubt. She trusted them to tell her what they were hiding when they were ready — if they wanted to, anyway.

Kaede's good heart didn't mean she hesitate to point out her partner's flaws, though. Once she caught on to their rare moments of apprehension, she was not afraid to confront them about it, albeit she was sure to be considerate when doing so. She told them they were the most wonderful, amazing person she knew, and they had no reason to be insecure. She spouted enthusiastic words of encouragement, but it was all too much. Feeling as though they were lying to her, the words brought them to tears.

For the very first time, the Ultimate Trickster removed their mask to reveal a pair of crying eyes on a thoroughly scarred face. The shock from seeing their face painted in scars didn't do much to stop her impulsive nature, and she hastened to ask about the scars. After she fully realized the situation, she apologized for being abrupt, and instead offered to listen to whatever troubled her partner. It was finally time, they decided. And so, they told her their tale.

She listened attentively, her emotions fluctuating intensely with every passing word. Such an unspeakable horror, such a cruel fate... her partner had gone through all of this and lived to bear the terrible burden of trauma, while she was blissfully unaware. She was mad at herself for not asking sooner; because of her deliberate choice not to pry, her partner had to grief alone. That was a thing of the past, though, and what mattered now was comforting her partner. Her words were more heartfelt and tender now, spoken in a hushed tone as she held them close. She said her opinion of them didn't change, she still meant everything she had told them before — they are still the most wonderful, amazing person she knew. That will never change. The only difference is that now, there was a lot more of them to appreciate and love wholly — their eyes, for one. When they weakly smiled at her passionate words, she somehow fell in love with them even more.

aoi asahina.

Aoi isn't the brightest there is, and her airheaded nature often leaks into her understanding of people. She takes everything at face value, including the apparent personality of her significant other, the Ultimate Trickster. Needless to say, she was quite shocked to know that they are not what (or rather, who) they seem to be.

When she found S/O crying in despair and anguish, she hurried to cheer them up, consoling them until their sobs quieted. Of course, she was quite shocked to see the cheerful trickster with such agony sounding from their tears— the likes of which she has never witnessed before. That didn't at all make her think twice about comforting them, but she had to admit, she was puzzled and wished to know what would drive the jolly person they loved to tears.

And so, she asked them over a plate of donuts. S/O was reluctant to tell Hina of their past; not because they didn't trust her, but because they felt it would change how she saw them. After all, she fell in love with a lively mischief, not a listless misfortune— what if she hated the real them? In the end, they realized that she deserved to know the truth, so they pushed their fears aside, tore off their mask, and spilled everything out to her.

She hesitated in her reaction, taken aback by the sudden revelation that her partner had gone through unspeakable horrors. Her heart broke for them, and when they told her about their doubts of her falling out of love with them, she may've cried right then. That was the first thing she refuted. Without missing a beat, she reminded them of her undying love & affection, and said that no tragic past will ever change that. She told them she doesn't care if they aren't as joyous as they pretend to be; she didn't fall in love with them for their happiness. Hina promised to stay by their side until the end of the world and do everything she can to make them smile, and asked them to promise her to show her their face when they do smile.

mukuro ikusaba.

Mukuro's social ineptitude and emotionless personality made it difficult for her to form lasting bonds, especially romantic relationships. It was a miracle that the Ultimate Trickster was able to melt down her defenses with their contagious laughter and unmatched impartiality. Being out of touch with her emotions, Mukuro didn't know what her feelings towards S/O was, but she came to understand it as love.

The extent of all her knowledge and experience was in the battlefield, so to say that she did not grasp people was an understatement. S/O's overt and constant exhilaration did strike her as unnatural and absurd, and she wondered how one person could be so happy despite the awfulness of the world. She did think to ask them before, but due to her inexperience with boundaries, she was unsure if it was appropriate to do so and opted not to in fear of hurting them.

When she found her partner sobbing as they kneeled in front of a fireplace, she froze in her tracks, and all of her thoughts came to an immediate halt. Needless to say, she didn't have the slightest idea of what to do. Eventually, she approached S/O and sat near them, awkward and stiff yet still trying to help. She couldn't help but notice their unmasked face– perhaps the most beautiful sight she had never seen. She admired the scars and thought about showing hers to them, until they broke the silence and spoke. In a quiet voice, choking back tears, they asked her if she could hear them out. She didn't hesitate to listen, but what she heard shocked her to her core. It wasn't the gruesomeness of it all, rather, it was that this happened to her partner, and she was utterly unaware of it.

Her detached & unsociable nature considered, it was reasonable to assume that she had no experience comforting people, but that didn't stop her from trying. One trait that stood out in Mukuro was her intensity and protectiveness when it came to people she loved. So, doing what she knew best, she held her partner and promised them that no one would ever hurt them again, and they'd never have to go through loneliness and pain from that point onward. She promised to be by their side now and forever. If the fire was caused by someone, she would also promise that revenge would come soon, and she would be the one to see through to it. In the end, Mukuro held the Ultimate Trickster in her arms as she promised them the world. She learnt a lot about people — and her — on that day; particularly that love is peculiar, yet everlasting.

[hournites]

Say that we’ll stay with each other 

An aged-up Jealous!Rick hournite fic for @samarasketch 

~.~

They grab coffee at the diner to catch up every week. It’s not the only time they see each other, but missions require zero personal life talk for safety, as learned very quickly into their JSA run, and their texts just aren’t sufficient enough for the way they miss each other’s company.

Beth rearranges the cutlery, waiting for Rick as he picks out two desserts from beneath the glass window by the cash. It’s late and quiet, Rick had to work overtime to finish a deadline,  so she took a nap at her office until he swung by with his car to pick her up. 

The steaming coffee is in front of her, untouched. It’s been a long day and she’s second guessing whether or not caffeine is actually such a good idea after all. 

“Wow,” Rick greets her, sliding into the booth across from her. He’s no longer slicking his hair back with gel and the small change makes a massive difference in how he looks. His hair is thick, falling over the front of his face, long enough to frame his eyes. Those eyes are lit up now, bright hazel. They sweep over her, taking everything in like he needs the moment to process. 

The silent gesture pushes Beth to look down at herself, wondering if she spilled something or was showcasing a wardrobe malfunction of some kind. 

“You look amazing. I noticed before but your jacket was on.”

Beth relaxes, settling against the leather backing of her seat. He grins at her, which she returns easily. Rick is her best friend—has been for a very long time. Her lips curve around the rim of her ceramic mug. “Oh, thank you! I was on my date earlier over lunch. I didn’t want to show up in my lab coat.” 

“Right,” he replies. “Dr. Leho, was it?” ” Rick twirls his fork into the perfectly cut marble cake slice on the pretty small plate. “How’d that go?”

Beth suppresses the urge to roll her eyes. “Dr. Leon.”

“Oh, was that it?” As if he hadn’t deliberately botched the name of her date in the first place. Rick has met Denny before. Beth’s mom had invited him to her surprise birthday dinner that she organized with Courtney a few weeks ago. He was nice, bought her a book of easy recipes that he swore got him well fed through night shifts that he thought she’d enjoy. The gesture was thoughtful and was what made her agree to giving him her number. Rick was there for it all, one eyebrow arched high in what she was able to tell was silent judgement as he kept sharing a look with Yolanda. 

“—And it went fine.”

He raises that brow again now. “Just fine?”

Beth shrugs. She already knows how Rick feels about why she’s giving him a chance. He’s not exactly her first choice when it comes to dating—Rather, he wasn’t much of a choice at all, pestered into giving the youngest single doctor working at her mom’s floor the time of day. 

Her parents are getting concerned she’s throwing herself too deep into work without any support. It’s not precisely fair—Juggling a new position at Central City emergency with spontaneous secret crime-fighting against metahuman villainous egomaniacs does not give a woman much time to find someone new to love. Long shifts end in face-planting into bed until the next one and there’s nothing more she’d rather do than shove off her work shoes to do that. Only a handful of people have enough grip on Beth’s heart for her to sacrifice her evenings—Courtney and her family, Yolanda, Jade, Wally, her parents. And while she enjoys the pretty dress and matching pair of high heels for dinner, her energy to sustain a relationship would require an extension of self that she’s not sure she has to offer. 

She’s tried to explain this, cutting out the important JSA parts, which she self-admits would strengthen her argument.

“It was a nice lunch.” She’s already preferring dessert with Rick, though.

“Tell me about it.”

“There’s not much to tell.”

“What, he was that boring?”

Beth sighs. She finds herself describing her entire lunch break, from waiting for Denny to scrub his hands from surgical fluids to grabbing her hand to chatter about his day without a moment of pause for her to get something into the conversation until their food had arrived. It’s because he was excited to be on the date with her. Beth’s mom was talking her up to him, no doubt, clearly that was the case by any indication of how her mother kept talking about Denny to her over the phone too. So Denny was likely nervous, he kept letting out a barking type laugh after something he thought Beth should find funny. Beth couldn’t exactly be annoyed for his rambling to no end, she was the queen of that when she was younger. Her mom probably thought it was nice they had that in common. Except, it’s not. Beth’s excited verbal amusement park went away with age. Beth learned to keep her mouth shut when she needed to, she’s hoarded too many secrets. 

“There’s one thing though that bothered me a bit,” she admits finally, tapping her cut nails against the table. “He asked me what...pleased me... the most.” 

Rick frowns at her. “Huh?”

She flushes, eyes flitting away as she mumbles, “In bed. What I find pleasurable in bed.”

Rick bristles, his mouth dropping open. “Did you tell him?” 

“After what he told me first? I kind of had to. There was a family sitting within earshot of us, it was barely noon so I sort of said something vague, I don’t exactly remember, I think my brain is trying to block it out. It was embarrassing.” 

“God, that’s tacky.” 

She knew Rick would say that. “I think he was trying to assess our compatibility?”

“You make him sound like some socially inept robot.”

Beth lowers her mug, biting her tongue on calling herself a socially inept robot. She reaches over the table for the pot the waitress left for them after Rick’s second refill, instead. He lifts it for her when notices, pouring her a fresh cup and slides over the basket of sugar packets and creamers.

“Thanks,” she says, then returns to their conversation. “I think he was trying to be suave.”

“You hate that word! You’ve said so yourself!”

Had she? Beth wrinkles her nose. It’s crazy how much of their lives they’ve shared together. “In high school, maybe.”

“I vividly remember you telling me that talking about sexual preferences with acquaintances freaks you out.” That’s true. Whenever a horror story kinky sex accident patient shows up in Beth’s emergency room describing their incident in full detail, it takes all of her professionalism not to drop her clipboard and run out from second hand embarrassment. 

She shifts in her seat and explains, “He was my date, Rick.”

“So that’s what, half an hour of getting to know him? You’d think someone that went to med school would have the patience to keep it in their pants.”

“Rick!” She gapes at his bluntness because he’s just flinging it out there, dragging Dr. Leon’s entire personality with barely any effort at all, what’s worse is that he’s being unintentionally funny and now she’s trying not to laugh.

“What? This man is clearly not for you. He’s not your type.”

She raises an eyebrow, crossing her arms. “Then what is?”

Rick looks down at his plate, quieting. He hasn’t really eaten yet, just danced his fork all over that cake. She’s half tempted to ask him for it if Rick’s not hungry. She finished her lemon square in four bites.

 “Well...”

“Well?”

"Well... He’s not my type... for you. He’s not good enough for you. He sounds like a secret sleaze."

Beth stops trying to defend Denny after Rick says that. She’s not sure if he’s so adamant because he can tell the way she’s not really interested in him, but feels the need to make her mom happy and is trying to give her an out, or if he honestly thinks Denny is not a good person. She’s been a superhero for ten years now, Beth is pretty sure how to gauge a person’s character. There’s nothing wrong with Denny Leon the way Rick is painting him. It’s hard because she knows there’s no real spark, but she’s willing to try. Chemistry doesn’t develop like that over one day. 

Beth thinks about her mom again. She just wants Beth to have a fulfilling life. And she had found Beth’s father while also steadily making a career as a respected research clinician. What’s Beth’s excuse then, to say finding someone isn’t possible?

“I don’t have a type, I’ve barely dated at all. The man I’ve spent most of my time with is you.”

Rick takes a while to respond, but his eyes are on hers like he’s waiting for an afterthought to accompany her last sentence. It’s sincere and gentle, and for the second time since they’ve met here today, she finds her heartbeat picking up because of the way she’s being seen. 

“Why are you looking at me like that?” 

“It’s just—“

“What?”

He takes another moment before answering. “Why are you forcing something with someone you have no desire to connect to? Are you not...Happy?”

His question takes her by surprise. She stammers, feeling more heat rise to her face. “Why are you asking me this?”

Rick drags a hand over his face and leaves it there for a moment, like he’s just trying to breathe. Eventually, he sweeps his hair back up over his head, and he strikes a nostalgic resemblance to the angry boy Beth latched onto in tenth grade whose soul she watched soften over years of time. Her heart pangs at the memory of the way things were. When they spent all week side by side, and didn’t have to schedule coffee dates that inch towards midnight around saving each other in costumes with relics because of their hectic lives. 

“I care about you,” he finally says. “I just don’t want to see you exhaust yourself over someone that’s not worth your time. You should be with someone who makes you feel how I feel whenever I’m with you.”

She smiles at that. “I love you too, Rick.”

His own smile falters, something dims in his expression, she’d almost call it wistful, but that’s not exactly a feeling Rick has in his emotional repertoire. He lowers his gaze to his plate again. 

“Hey.” Beth places her hand over his. “Are you okay?”

In high school, Rick was on track to becoming a mechanic like Pat until the man turned him around by the shoulders and walked him through scholarship applications for college. To the surprise of practically everyone in Blue Valley except his inner circle of friends, he graduated with honours in both chemistry and physics, and is now an independent research scientist for a big pharma company. He says he likes his lab, but the regulations of being under a company contract means there’s only so much experimentation he can get by with on his own. Beth has been encouraging his recent talks of starting up his own research lab for JSA, but he seems stressed thinking of taking that beyond the realms of idealism.

His hand freezes beneath her palm. He glances up at her again without words, like he’s struggling with what to say. The creases between Beth’s brows deepen further with concern. “Rick?”

“I’m fine,” he lies. The smile is so fake it hurts that he thinks she could be fooled by it. 

“Come on, it’s just us. Something’s bothering you. Is it work? Did your uncle contact you for money again?”

“No, I’m fine. I promise.”

“Rick—“

“You don’t have a type. You just have a person. I know that because you’ve been my person since I was seventeen. You don’t need your mother’s fancy surgeon prodigy to sweep you off your feet, Beth. You have me.” 

“I—”

Her pulse rushes in her ears. She’s honestly speechless. Beth just sits there. Rick searches her face for some type of recognition she can’t give back because she’s just confused. She’s blinking back unexpected tears, the hand she has over his shaking, because there has to be something more to this, the gravity behind everything, but her mind keeps hitting against a blank wall. She understands what Rick is saying but not what he means. 

He sees her distress and slips out of his booth, sliding into her side. “Hey,” he says, wrapping an arm around her as she presses her wet face into his shoulder. “I didn’t mean to upset you. It’s okay.” 

Her stomach drops at the horrible way his voice sounds scratchy, thick with regret. That’s when it clicks, and the tears fall for real.

Rick is in love with her. 

She’s not crying because she’s upset. Blindly, she reaches up for his face to see him, those fond hazel eyes blinking back. They used to be so hardened and guarded, but it’s just openness now, with her. It’s late, the diner is almost empty, nothing but dim lights and the only waitress busy cleaning up behind the counter. It’s just them, in their special spot. And it’s just them, their solid partnership, that Beth needs in her life to carve out time and effort and feelings for. He’s been trying to articulate this over and over since the evening began. Hugging her tightly, lets out a long breath. The solace he finds in her, alone. The relief and love. How she feels it in equal measures, how it’s always been there.

“I didn’t know.”

“I never really told you.”

But he has, really. He’s shown her since they were kids. 

She touches his face, guiding him down so he could kiss her the way she suddenly desperately wants.

He does, kissing Beth deeply until her head goes dizzy and the light feeling is not something she ever wants to let go of. There is no extension of self when Beth is with Rick. No room to make. He already is in her future, can have all of her time. 

[tscaboverse]

Rules for this universe

Backstory: Will hid the fact that he was an omega, finding suppressant potions the minute he could when he came to the Institute, and starting them before he ever had a heat. But he used them in a way that they were never meant to be used, and because of that, and the length of time he did this, there was some long-term side effects, most of which were readily apparent and easily dealt with. Some weren’t as obvious and Jem and Tessa haven’t quite figured them out yet. After this fic they’re going to realize that there are side effects that they weren’t aware of, and that sometimes Will just needs to be broken down until he just lets them be completely in charge of everything. Because the bratting and mouthing off is Will’s version of a desperate cry for attention and help. Because for Will, he has to work at not being very submissive to other’s whims, and it’s exhausting for him. And normally, Jem and Tessa make it better because of their sex life, but when they haven’t been taking charge of him...this happens.

Warning ⚠️ It’s not nsfw, but it does contain spanking.

“I’m sorry Will, but we don’t have time for this right now. I know you know that. Why don’t you go work on that pile of paperwork you’ve been ignoring for the past few days?" Jem was saying distractedly. “I promise that after tonight we’ll have all the time you want, just not right now." He grabbed Will by the shoulders and spun him around. Then he gave him a light swat, to encourage Will to move forward. “Now go, you have paperwork to do.”

Will left. He was angry with Jem and Tessa. All he wanted them to do was pay attention to him. And let him help them to become less stressed. And if it meant that he got to have his mates taste on his tongue, or have them dripping from his hole, he was thrilled. He didn’t even care if he got to come anymore, even though he’d like to. They were so stressed over this stupid party that they had to throw to keep the Clave happy.

It’s not like it would be any different from other parties. It would be the same annoying officials, making the same pleasantries, and nothing would actually get done. He didn’t see why they needed to put so much effort into it. Well, no, he could understand why they needed to be diplomatic with some of the people who would be there, but it was mostly just going to be others congratulating each other on how important they are. They wouldn’t notice if small things weren’t quite right. And with Jem and Tessa putting all their focus onto making sure that the party would run smoothly they hadn’t had any time for him recently.

And nothing he had done over the past few days had worked either. Not kneeling right in front of them and looking up at them through his eyelashes, not sitting down on them and inviting them to touch him, not even trying to touch Jem in front of others had gotten him anything other than an admonishment and an order to go away. And when he deliberately said things that he knew would get him into trouble any other time, they just ignored him, too focused on other things. It’s not like he was asking for much, Will thought, pouting.

And they were so busy focusing on the party that they weren’t listening to him either. He had tried to do the paperwork, it was something that he was good at, and enjoyed doing, as it let him take care of the other residents of the Institute, and he could also help keep London and its shadowhunters safe. But he couldn’t focus long enough to do it. And he felt off, not like he was going into heat, but itchy almost, like he didn’t fit in his own skin. And he felt better when he was with his mates, but they wouldn’t let him be around them right now, because apparently, he thought sarcastically, in trying to get their attention he was being too distracting.

Which was the point. He just wanted them to actually pay attention to him, and to make him feel better, like they always did. And the more they ignored him, the worse he felt. Even his attempts at getting into trouble failed to gain their attention, he thought that if he was in trouble at least they would pay attention but that didn’t work either. Will whined aloud at that thought. He felt like he was going to burst out of his skin and his mates were just ignoring him, even when he tried to help them to calm down. He stalked into his sister’s room, looking for Gabriel, because at least Gabriel would listen, but he wasn’t there.

Will finally went back to his room and curled up in his nest, clutching Jem and Tessa’s pillows to his face, keening, trying to use their scents to soothe himself. He must have fallen asleep because he got shaken awake by Tessa, who looked annoyed with him. “Why aren’t you in your office like you’re supposed to be? Do you know how long it took to find you?” Tessa pulled him out of his nest, ignoring the whine he made in response to her anger.

“Guests will be arriving within the hour. Wash up and get dressed, no detours this time William. And later we will be dealing with your inability to listen.” He felt like crying, he wasn’t the one who wouldn’t listen. But he was also having trouble forming the words to tell Tessa that. He decided just to do as she said, it was easier.

He met her and Jem just as the carriages started to arrive, waiting with them near the entrance so that they could greet the guests together. Jem grabbed him by the back of his neck, causing Will to moan, and his knees to think about giving out. He just wanted to be on his knees for Jem and Tessa, because they looked amazing, and the way their scents seemed right now just had him growing wet and hard.

“I am aware that we haven’t had time to spend together Will, but that does not mean that you have an excuse to disobey an order.” Jem sounded angry, about as angry as Will felt at this whole situation. He moved his hand until he was holding Will around the waist, tightly. “We don’t have time to discuss this properly right now, but later, after everyone is gone, you are in for a world of trouble.” at the word discuss, Jem landed a sharp slap, right where Will would feel it when he sat.

The idea of Jem and Tessa finally paying attention to Will made him so happy that he didn’t care that it was only because he was in trouble. “You had best be on your best behavior for the rest of the night Will.” Jem smacked him again. “Or you won’t like the consequences. Am I understand?”

“Yes alpha.” Will mumbled weakly, too busy focusing on where Jem was holding him and the slight sting where his ass met his thighs. It felt good, and then Jem let go, making Will mourn the loss of the contact. He whined without meaning to.

“Enough, Will.” Tessa snapped at him. “The party is going to last for several hours and you are going to wait. Until then, you are going to smile, and be the perfect mate I know you can be. Clear?”

“Yes Tessa.” He said softly, moving so that he could greet the guests as he was told to, and to help direct them to the ballroom where the food would be laid out, even though they would already know the way.

*A few hours later*

The party had been going for a few hours and Will was practically vibrating with a need for his mates that he couldn’t stop. He knew that he should be able to get through the party, he had done it countless times before, but he was about at his limit right now. And it was only beginning to reach its peak, it would go on for even longer after this, taking hours to die down. Will almost groaned at the thought, before catching sight of Tessa, who hadn’t seen him quite yet.

She was standing close to the table, apart from Jem for a change. He would have been by them but was told to take a few minutes to cool off when they noticed him getting shorter with one of the Clave officials there. Tessa’s skirt was brushing the tablecloth, Will absently noted. And with how large the skirt was, it wasn’t as if anyone would see him...and if it worked then he could finally have one of his mates attention on him. And if it didn’t work, well, he would still have her attention, and maybe she would let him leave, and even go with him, Will thought excitedly. He made his decision.

Will looked around to make sure no one was looking before crouching down and crawling under the cloth, towards Tessa. When he reached her, he peeked his head out, peering around carefully, before starting to lift up the very bottom of Tessa’s skirt so that he could slip his head under it. He got caught before he could do more than that.

“How many times do you have to be told to behave tonight William?” Tessa hissed as she pulled him up by his hair. The sensation of her hands in his hair made him shiver, even as the grip hurt.

Jem appeared by her side, sensing trouble. “Is something the matter?” He asked, raising an eyebrow at their position. Tessa explained and his expression grew darker. “Clearly we can’t let you out of our sights, can we?” He asked rhetorically. “I was trying to be kind, giving you time to gather yourself, but obviously you can’t be trusted without supervision. You are going to stay within arms reach for the rest of the night.” Jem stated. “And Will,” he added, “if you step one more toe out of line then you will be getting punished wherever we are, even if I have to bend you over right here in the middle of this.” He patted Will on his arm. “And you wouldn’t want to disturb their fine night, would you?” Jem raised his eyebrow expectedly.

“No alpha.” Will was still focusing on the feeling of having been pulled up by Tessa. The contact had felt *so good* and he wanted it back, wanted Jem touching his arm back, any kind of contact at all would do, but they were hellbent on being proper and putting on a good show for the visiting members of the Clave, most of whom disapproved of them running the Institute, between all of their personal histories.

The party was still going, showing no signs of winding down. Will was standing with Jem and Tessa, listening to them talk with one of the visiting Clave elders. He knew that he should be paying attention to the conversation, and participating, but all he could think about was how he kept going on and on about how he was involved with such and such decision, that had been years ago and he was still congratulating himself on it. Any political pull he used to have was non-existent these days so Will couldn’t understand why his mates had let the conversation continue, especially when they could be doing better things.

Just when Will thought that the conversation was finally over and that he would have a chance to talk to his mates, and hopefully convince his alpha that if they wouldn’t touch him, to at least let him leave before he burst, which he felt like he was going to burst out of his skin if something didn’t happen, even if he didn’t know what that something was; the annoying elder started going on about something else that had happened 15 years ago.

Will tasted blood as he literally bit his tongue to keep from yelling, but he couldn’t resist anymore, knowing as he opened his mouth that there was no way that he wouldn’t be in trouble and that he was just long past the point of giving a damn, especially since there was no way that Jem and Tessa could ignore him now.

“I don’t know why you keep listening to this drivel, honestly. It’s old news, he tells the same damn stories at every event he’s at because he hasn’t been involved in anything since and is just trying to relive his moment of glory.” Jem was beginning to look angry, with a glint in his eye that spoke of danger.

“Will-“ He began to say before being cut off.

“And you want to know what has me very confused is why you’re listening to him and others like him when you could be doing far better things, such as focusing on me and how badly I want you to fu-“

Tessa covered his mouth with her hand as Jem stepped over to him, furious. “You’re in for it now baby boy. I hope you’re proud of your outburst because you are going to get exactly what you’ve been asking for all day. If you’re going to act like a brat, we’ll treat you like one too.”

Jem was almost fuming as he looked at Will. Will was almost regretting not just biting his tongue more, but he knew that no matter what Jem chose to do it would still result in his alpha’s hands on him, and that was all he wanted. He whimpered at the thought of Jem touching him. Jem and Tessa misinterpreted it as a sign that he was sorry for his outburst.

“It’s a little too late for you to be attempting to act sorry for yourself William.” Jem hissed. “You knew exactly what would happen if you didn’t keep yourself in check, and chose to ignore it. You’ve had an attitude problem all day and it would be remiss of me to not fix that." He looked at the Clave elder, who had been insulted by Will, who was beginning to realize exactly what was going to happen. “I’m incredibly sorry for my mate’s behavior and he’s about to be as well. If you’ll excuse us for a few minutes?”

Jem grabbed Will around his elbow and left without waiting for an answer, Tessa following them in Will’s other side. Jem walked until they were by the wall, which he propped his foot up against, before using his grip on Will to throw him over his leg. Will could hear people whispering and felt eyes on him as Tessa moved to hold him in place for Jem. “I don’t know what your problem has been today, but it ends now Will. You are going to take the punishment you’ve earned, and then apologize, first to Tessa and I for your poor behavior, and then to the man you just insulted. And later, we are going to have a very long talk about your attitude in general.” Then he landed a hit on Will, square in the middle of his ass.

Jem kept swinging, not playfully spanking him like he sometimes did. Hard this time. And he kept varying where he landed them too. Will didn’t think there would be a spot on his ass that hadn’t been spanked before the night was out. It was already past the point of stinging, and he felt like his ass was on fire when Jem moved him slightly and began focusing along the area near his thighs. Will whined after one particularly hard hit that would have pushed him off of Jem’s leg if Tessa hadn’t been holding him in place. That just made Jem do it again.

By the time Jem wound down and had decided that he had been punished enough, Will was crying and thought that there would be bruises with how sore he felt. He also felt like his clothes should have burnt away with how much heat was coming off of him. Despite all of it, no matter how sore he was, he felt better. More settled than earlier, and he didn’t feel like he was going to burst out of his skin. Tessa let go of him and Jem pulled him up.

“Do you have something to say or do I have to put you back over my knee?” Jem had been staring at Will, waiting for him to start talking, but Will hadn’t spoken yet. Jem’s voice snapped Will out of his head and back into reality though.

“I’m sorry alpha. I didn’t mean to embarrass you and Tessa.” Will sounded a little...off, even to his own ears, which explained the looks that Jem and Tessa shared.

“And?” Tessa asked, moving to get a better look at his face.

“I’m sorry for being rude.” Will was sniffling at this point, having stopped crying. He felt a little out of step with reality almost, like he was in his own little world. All he could really focus on was how his body reacted to his mates touch and his mates. He might have been sore, but the places where Jem and Tessa had touched his arms and back tingled.

He tried to take a step closer to Tessa, but wound up swaying a bit instead. She and Jem grabbed his arms, pulling him into their sides. He felt Jem smell him, likely checking to make sure that he was alright. He was a good alpha. He heard them talking but couldn’t really focus on the words when he finally had them holding him properly.

“-ill. Will.” Tessa was saying. He supposed he should see what she wanted.

“Yes?” Will asked softly, wanting to know what his beautiful mate desired.

“You’re going to apologize for insulting and being rude to-“ Tessa kept talking but Will didn’t hear her, not when the heat from her and his alpha’s bodies was pressed up on his sides, making him feel cocooned between them, safe. He didn’t pay any mind to how sore he was either, it wasn’t really registering right now, nothing was besides his alphas. He felt them walk, keeping him between them, to ensure he kept the same pace as them, and maybe so he didn’t fall over, which he appreciated since his limbs felt funny.

He distantly felt himself apologizing for his behavior without really being aware of much else, before he felt his alpha let go of him and push him into Tessa completely. Then he felt her start walking them somewhere else, away from the party he thought, as the noise grew quieter. “Alpha?” He questioned, wanting to know where Jem was.

Luckily his Tessa was smart as well as beautiful and knew what he meant. “He’s making our excuses Will. You’re in no state to be there, or to be left alone. We’re going back upstairs, alright? To your nest. Where you can rest.”

“Ok. That sounds nice. Thank you alpha.” Will was happy to let his mates tell him what to do. It was nice. He didn’t have to think, he just had to do what they told him to do. He was fine with that. And curling up in his nest with his mates sounded perfect.

The next morning though, staring at Jem as he came towards him with the collar that meant he was in trouble, which already had a leash on it, he largely regretted not being able to hold his tongue the night before, even if it had ended with him being held between his mates.

[mrobrotzly]

sometimes it feels like a blessing

for @geraskierhalloween

Magic + 5+1 + Knotting - 11k

Or 5 times Jaskier and Geralt could see the effect of magic on them and 1 time it took them a little to realize it.

One day, in the middle of spring, Geralt had a contract for some unknown creature and, obviously, failed to convince Jaskier to stay at the inn, it had been a decade since they met and Geralt was never good at getting the troubadour to obey any of his commands - even if they're to keep him out of harm's way.

Fortunately, the creature wasn't dangerous, a hybrid of several animals, but - 'cause it attacked him and almost hurt Jaskier (which was what most infuriated Geralt, if the creature hadn't come close to the bard, it would probably be alive now, but he would never say it out loud, obviously, it wasn't like he cared, was it?) - it's no longer breathing at the moment.

The problem was - and seriously, Geralt should have thought of it earlier - that hybrids don't just exist freely, they're created. And they're usually created by people who're mostly crazy and who're, even worse, mages.

"My poor Delilah!" the sorceress was in front of both of them, eyes shining with anger and unshed tears, she prepared to release her chaos, but Geralt drew his sword quickly, making her hesitate.

“You killed her! My own creation!" Geralt watched her carefully, she was clearly not someone with a sane mind "Do you know what it's like to love something, Witcher?” she spat out the last word, making a face of disgust "I don't think you know, shame!" she laughed a bitter and hysterical laugh "I would love to destroy everything you love."

Her growl made him clench his fist in the sword's hilt, unconsciously taking a step to the side, hiding the bard behind his body.

She raised her eyebrows, tilting her head to the side, watching him for a few seconds and smiling, a smile that made the Witcher felt an unpleasant feeling grow in his body.

"Pretty little thing you’ve there, uh?!" she purred and Geralt felt a growl rumbling in his chest “A bard? Would you play for me, dear?”

Jaskier stuttered, Geralt didn't need to look at him to know that his blue eyes were wide.

"Leave him out of this" he said firmly, his voice lower than usual.

She gave a cynical laugh.

"Why, Witcher?" and she tentatively took a step forward, Geralt clenched his teeth, his knuckles white for gripping the sword's hilt “Your pet for mine. It seems like a fair exchange…” she tried to move again, Geralt's body moved together to stop her “The things I would do to him…”

This time he snarled and the sorceress narrowed her eyes, anger returning to her face.

"Let's do it in the difficult way then."

And she raised her hands, sending a pulse of magic at the same time that Geralt casted Quen, protecting him and Jaskier, he could hear the bard's surprised gasp and the sorceress' disgruntled noise for not having succeeded in the spell.

He pushed Jaskier aside, behind the nearest tree, as he went towards the woman, she was good at dodging, but not attacking and her magic wasn’t powerful enough to hurt him badly - probably the power she has was only for breeding creatures and hybrids, not for battles.

She danced - and had no better word to describe what she was doing - around him and even without causing significant damage, he felt her chaos tiring him every time it came in contact with his skin, making him even more irritated 'cause it's delaying his movements.

She laughed, dodging a blow from the sword and snapping her fingers "In a moment the magic will fully affect you, Witcher, and you'll no longer be able to move."

"Not if I kill you first" he grunted and, honestly, he didn't want to have to kill anyone that day, he only accepted the contract 'cause it seemed easy, but of course Destiny would laugh at his face.

He dodged a spell, one of the weakest he has ever seen or feel and he would have laughed at it had it not been for the yelp he heard coming from behind him, the spell had chipped a piece of the wood.

"Jaskier!" he called, without taking his eyes off the enemy.

"I'm fine!" was the answer, but he didn't have time to feel relieved 'cause the sorceress moved her hands again, this time deliberately missing Geralt, trying to hit the tree protecting the bard.

"Your fight is with me!" Geralt grunted, sword passing very close to the woman's chest.

"I don’t think so" she laughed and moved quickly, now closer to where Jaskier was "Let's see if you'll like to feel what I'm feeling."

As she raised her arms he heard Jaskier choking, as if trying to breathe while someone tightened their hands around his neck and he felt his whole body go cold, memories of the moment when he saw the bard spitting blood, his purple and swollen throat and Geralt being unable to do anything to help him...

The only thing that kept him from being still and unable to react was the years of training on Kaer Morhen, the woman was focused on the spell, frowning and the Witcher realized it was a difficult spell for her, so it would be the perfect time for he to attack.

When she realized he was approaching it was too late, he already had half the blade of his sword buried in her stomach.

"You" she said, widening her eyes as he pushed the sword deeper, her arms falling limp beside his body "One day, Witcher, you'll lose everything" she whispered to him, laughing and looking at him hysterically “They're going to leave. And you'll be alone like you truly deserve” she tried to spat blood on his face before falling forward when he pulled the sword out of her body.

And on the ground, meters from where her creature was, the sorceress stayed.

"Are you alright?" a soft voice asked, Geralt turned, seeing Jaskier behind him, looking at him with concern.

"I should be the one asking you that" he said.

"I'm. Thanks to you” the bard smiled at him and something in Geralt's chest calmed down, he felt a wave of relief relaxing every part of his body as he looked at Jaskier.

That was until the bard widened his eyes and opened his mouth as if something was very wrong.

"What?" the grip on the sword's hilt tightened, he looked around.

"Geralt!" he exclaimed taking a step forward "Look at me."

The Witcher looked at the troubadour, frowning in confusion, the feeling getting worse when he saw a smile spread across Jaskier's face. Did some magic hit the bard and he's going crazy? Geralt frowned, feeling concern wash over him.

"Okay, this is amazing!" Jaskier laughed, delighted with something, his face lighting up in a way that made Geralt's chest warm and he didn't want to understand why.

"Bard" he said warningly.

"Oh, no, don't bard me" Jaskier pointed a finger at him, but was still smiling "This is fantastic, Geralt."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" he started to get annoyed, Jaskier not going straight to the point getting on his nerves.

"Okay, okay" he raised his arms in surrender "No need to be angry."

"I'm not" maybe a little.

"Yes, you're, it's on your face" he gestured with his hand "literally, Geralt, your eyes are red."

He blinked, staring at Jaskier to make sure it wasn't a prank, if that was true it meant that magic had affected him in other ways besides physical tiredness. Was this the only side effect? Or would there be others?

“They're turning orange now... Look, I learned a lot at Oxenfurt and I'm very wise in several subjects, but, unfortunately, not the meaning of colors, so you've to tell me: what are you feeling, Geralt?”

"I don’t-"

"Don't what? Have feelings?” the bard laughed wryly "Come on, Geralt, I've known you for a decade! I know very well that you feel and how much you feel, well Yennefer is a proof of that.”

The Witcher pressed his lips at the mention of the sorceress, refusing to look away from Jaskier, the bard raised his eyebrows.

"Black?" he brought his face close and Geralt held his breath. "It wasn't what I was expecting when I mentioned her."

He felt the irritation build up again.

"I'm not an experiment for your fun, bard" He practically spat, turning and starting to walk towards the camp, sword, still stained with blood, in his hands. Jaskier sighed.

"Okay, I admit, it wasn't fair" he followed Geralt and maybe, just maybe, the Witcher was walking more slowly so the troubadour could catch up "But you can't blame me for being curious, I'm a bard, Geralt!"

He didn't answer either that or the dozens of other things Jaskier said before they got to the camp.

And it was a little uncomfortable to sit on the forest floor and clean his swords while the bard stared at him like that.

"How long do you think the spell will last?" he asked.

"I don't know, she wasn't a very good witch."

Jaskier laughed and he felt the sound melting all his annoyance, he frowned at it while cleaning the iron blade with a cloth.

"Don't you want to see?" Jaskier asked "You know... your eyes."

“Why would I? I can feel the magic, I don't need to see it to know it's here.”

The bard shrugged.

"I dont know. I always wanted to know what I would look like if my eyes were a different color, maybe green or brown.”

Geralt stopped what he was doing, lifting his head and looking at Jaskier's face. The first thing he thought was "why?"

Why change such beautiful blue? Blue that he adores to look at, that seemed to shine every time the bard smiled or performed in places where his music was appreciated, blue like an ocean that want to pull him, drown him and he knew he wouldn't try to resist these waves. Eyes so beautiful that with one look the bard have him in the palm of his hands. Eyes that, for some reason, now stared at him with delight.

"That's a beautiful color..." Jaskier whispered so sincerely, smiling in such a way that Geralt had to bend his head and watch his dim reflection on the blade.

And he saw pink, a light and soft pink.

He swallowed, suddenly wanting to run away from there.

The truth was that he knew the meaning of colors, he'd read about it in one of the books he found in Vesemir's personal collection when he was a boy and, thanks to whatever made his memory flawless, he remembered it very well.

He stood up turning his face away, hiding it from Jaskier and looking towards the forest.

"I'm going to get us dinner."

And left without waiting for an answer. Ignoring not only the confused look the bard had on his face, but also the felling that growed up in his chest, this would be just one more thing he would bury and try to forget.

(Continue to read on AO3)

♡ if you enjoy my work, you can support me & buy me a coffee ☕️

[96harmony96]

Chapter one.

“We should head to a bar and celebrate.”

I wasn’t surprised by my roommate’s emphatic pronouncement. Cary Taylor found excuses to celebrate, no matter how small and inconsequential. I’d always considered it part of his charm. “I’m sure drinking the night before starting a new job is a bad idea.”

“Come on, camila.” Cary sat on our new living room floor amid a half-dozen moving boxes and flashed his winning smile. We’d been unpacking for days, yet he still looked amazing. Leanly built, dark-haired, and green-eyed, Cary was a man who rarely looked anything less than absolutely gorgeous on any day of his life. I might have resented that if he hadn’t been the dearest person on earth to me.

“I’m not talking about a bender,” he insisted. “Just a glass of wine or two. We can hit a happy hour and be in by eight.”

“I don’t know if I’ll make it back in time.” I gestured at my yoga pants and fitted workout tank. “After I time the walk to work, I’m going to hit the gym.”

“Walk fast, work out faster.” Cary’s perfectly executed arched brow made me laugh. I fully expected his million-dollar face to appear on billboards and fashion magazines all over the world one day. No matter his expression, he was a knockout.

“How about tomorrow after work?” I offered as a substitute. “If I make it through the day, that’ll be worth celebrating.”

“Deal. I’m breaking in the new kitchen for dinner.”

“Uh…” Cooking was one of Cary’s joys, but it wasn’t one of his talents. “Great.”

Blowing a wayward strand of hair off his face, he grinned at me. “We’ve got a kitchen most restaurants would kill for. There’s no way to screw up a meal in there.”

Dubious, I headed out with a wave, choosing to avoid a conversation about cooking. Taking the elevator down to the first floor, I smiled at the doorman when he let me out to the street with a flourish.

The moment I stepped outside, the smells and sounds of Manhattan embraced me and invited me to explore. I was not merely across the country from my former home in San Diego, but seemingly worlds away. Two major metropolises—one endlessly temperate and sensually lazy, the other teeming with life and frenetic energy. In my dreams, I’d imagining living in a walkup in Brooklyn, but being a dutiful daughter, I found myself on the Upper West Side instead. If not for Cary living with me, I would’ve been miserably lonely in the sprawling apartment that cost more per month than most people made in a year.

The doorman tipped his hat to me. “Good evening, Miss Cabello. Will you need a cab this evening?”

“No thanks, Paul.” I rocked onto the rounded heels of my fitness shoes. “I’ll be walking.”

He smiled. “It’s cooled down from this afternoon. Should be nice.”

“I’ve been told I should enjoy the June weather before it gets wicked hot.”

“Very good advice, Miss Cabello.”

Stepping out from under the modern glass entrance overhang that somehow meshed with the age of the building and its neighbors, I enjoyed the relative quiet of my tree-lined street before I reached the bustle and flow of traffic on Broadway. One day soon, I hoped to blend right in, but for now I still felt like a fraudulent New Yorker. I had the address and the job, but I was still wary of the subway and had trouble hailing cabs. I tried not to walk around wide-eyed and distracted, but it was hard. There was just so much to see and experience.

The sensory input was astonishing—the smell of vehicle exhaust mixed with food from vendor carts, the shouts of hawkers blended with music from street entertainers, the awe-inspiring range of

faces and styles and accents, the gorgeous architectural wonders…And the cars. Jesus Christ. The frenetic flow of tightly packed cars was unlike anything I’d ever seen anywhere.

There was always an ambulance, patrol car, or fire engine trying to part the flood of yellow taxis with the electronic wail of ear-splitting sirens. I was in awe of the lumbering garbage trucks that navigated tiny one-way streets and the package delivery drivers who braved the bumper-to-bumper traffic while facing rigid deadlines.

Real New Yorkers cruised right through it all, their love for the city as comfortable and familiar as a favorite pair of shoes. They didn’t view the steam billowing from potholes and vents in the sidewalks with romantic delight and they didn’t blink an eye when the ground vibrated beneath their feet as the subway roared by below, while I grinned like an idiot and flexed my toes. New York was a brand new love affair for me. I was starry-eyed and it showed.

So I had to really work at playing it cool as I made my way over to the building where I would be working. As far as my job went, at least, I’d gotten my way. I wanted to make a living based on my own merits and that meant an entry-level position. Starting the next morning, I would be the assistant to Mark Garrity at Waters Field & Leaman, one of the preeminent advertising agencies in the US. My stepfather, mega-financier Richard Stanton, had been annoyed when I took the job, pointing out that if I’d been less prideful I could’ve worked for a friend of his instead and reaped the benefits of that connection.

“You’re as stubborn as your father,” he’d said. “It’ll take him forever to pay off your student loans on a cop’s salary.”

That had been a major fight, with my dad unwilling to back down. “Hell if another man’s gonna pay for my daughter’s education,” Alejandro Cabello had said when Stanton made the offer. I respected that. I suspected Stanton did, too, although he would never admit it. I understood both men’s sides, because I’d fought to pay off the loans myself…and lost. It was a point of pride for my father.

My mother had refused to marry him, but he’d never wavered from his determination to be my dad in every way possible.

Knowing it was pointless to get riled up over old frustrations, I focused on getting to work as quickly as possible. I’d deliberately chosen to clock the short trip during a busy time on a Monday, so I was pleased when I reached the Crossfire Building, which housed Waters Field & Leaman, in less than thirty minutes.

I tipped my head back and followed the line of the building all the way up to the slender ribbon of sky. The Crossfire was seriously impressive, a sleek spire of gleaming sapphire that pierced the clouds. I knew from my previous interviews that the interior on the other side of the ornate copper-framed revolving doors was just as awe-inspiring, with golden-veined marble floors and walls, and brushed aluminum security desk and turnstiles.

I pulled my new ID card out of the inner pocket of my pants and held it up for the two guards in black business suits at the desk. They stopped me anyway, no doubt because I was majorly underdressed, but then they cleared me through. After I completed an elevator ride up to the twentieth floor, I’d have a general time frame for the whole route from door to door. Score.

I was walking toward the bank of elevators when a svelte, beautifully groomed brunette caught her purse on a turnstile and upended it, spilling a deluge of change. Coins rained onto the marble and rolled merrily away, and I watched people dodge the chaos and keep going as if they didn’t see it. I winced in sympathy and crouched to help the woman collect her money, as did one of the guards.

“Thank you,” she said, shooting me a quick harried smile.

I smiled back. “No problem. I’ve been there.”

I’d just squatted to reach a nickel lying near the entrance when I ran into a pair of luxurious black oxfords draped in tailored black slacks. I waited for a beat for the person to move out of my way and when they didn’t, I arched my neck back to allow my line of sight to rise. The custom three-piece suit hit more than a few of my hot buttons, but it was the tall, powerfully lean body inside it that made it sensational. Still, as hot as all that magnificent maleness was, it wasn’t until I reached the person's face that I went down for the count.

Wow. Just…wow. She sank into an elegant crouch directly in front of me. Hit with all that exquisite femininity at eye-level, I could only stare. Stunned.

Then something shifted in the air between us.

As she stared back, she altered…as if a shield slid away from her eyes, revealing a scorching force of will that sucked the air from my lungs. The intense magnetism she exuded grew in strength, becoming a near tangible impression of vibrant and unrelenting power.

Reacting purely on instinct, I shifted backward. And sprawled flat on my ass.

My elbows throbbed from the violent contact with the marble floor, but I scarcely registered the pain. I was too preoccupied with staring, riveted by the woman in front of me. Inky black hair shoulder length framed a breathtaking face. Her bone structure would make a sculptor weep with joy, while a firmly etched mouth, a blade of a nose, and intensely Emerald green eyes made her savagely gorgeous. Those eyes narrowed slightly, her features otherwise schooled into impassivity.

Her dress shirt and suit were both black, but her tie perfectly matched those brilliant irises. Her eyes were shrewd and assessing, and they bored into me. My heartbeat quickened; my lips parted to accommodate faster breaths. she smelled sinfully good. Not cologne. Body wash, maybe. Or shampoo. Whatever it was, it was mouthwatering, as was she.

she held out a hand to me, exposing onyx cufflinks and a very expensive-looking watch.

With a shaky inhalation, I placed my hand in hers. My pulse leaped when her grip tightened. Her touch was electric, sending a shock up my arm that raised the hairs on my nape. she didn’t move for a moment, a frown line marrying the space between arrogantly slashed brows.

“Are you all right?”

Her voice was cultured and smooth, with a rasp that made my stomach flutter. It brought sex to mind. Extraordinary sex. I thought for a moment that she might be able to make me orgasm just by talking long enough.

My lips were dry, so I licked them before answering. “I’m fine.”

she stood with economical grace, pulling me up with her. We maintained eye contact because I was unable to look away. she was younger than I’d assumed at first. Younger than thirty would be my guess, but her eyes were much worldlier. Hard and sharply intelligent.

I felt drawn to her, as if a rope bound my waist and she was slowly, inexorably pulling it.

Blinking out of my semi-daze, I released her. she wasn’t just beautiful; she was…enthralling. she was the kind of woman that made a person want to rip her shirt open and watch the buttons scatter along with her inhibitions. I looked at her in her civilized, urbane, outrageously expensive suit and thought of raw, primal, sheet-clawing fucking.

she bent down and retrieved the ID card I hadn’t realized I’d dropped, freeing me from that provocative gaze. My brain stuttered back into gear.

I was irritated with myself for feeling so awkward while she was so completely self-possessed. And why? Because I was dazzled, damn it.

she glanced up at me and the pose—she's nearly kneeling before me—skewed my equilibrium again. she held my gaze as she rose. “Are you sure you’re alright? You should sit down for a minute.”

My face heated. How lovely to appear awkward and clumsy in front of the most self-assured and graceful woman I’d ever met. “I just lost my balance. I’m okay.”

Looking away, I caught sight of the woman who’d dumped the contents of her purse. She thanked the guard who’d helped her; then turned to approach me, apologizing profusely. I faced her and held out the handful of coins I’d collected, but her gaze snagged on the god in the suit and she promptly forgot me altogether. After a beat, I just reached over and dumped the change into the woman’s bag. Then I risked a glance at the woman again, finding her watching me even as the brunette gushed thank-yous. To her. Not to me, of course, the one who’d actually helped.

I talked over her. “May I have my badge, please?”

she offered it back to me. Although I made an effort to retrieve it without touching her, her fingers brushed mine, sending that charge of awareness into me all over again.

“Thank you,” I muttered before skirting her and pushing out to the street through the revolving door. I paused on the sidewalk, gulping in a breath of New York air redolent with a million different things, some good and some toxic.

There was a sleek black Bentley SUV in front of the building and I saw my reflection in the spotless limo tinted windows. I was flushed and my brown eyes were overly bright. I’d seen that look on my face before—in the bathroom mirror just before I went to bed with a man. It was my I’m-ready-to-fuck look and it had absolutely no business being on my face now.

Christ. Get a grip.

Five minutes with Miss. Dark and Dangerous, and I was filled with an edgy, restless energy. I could still feel the pull of her, the inexplicable urge to go back inside where she was. I could make the argument that I hadn’t finished what I’d come to the Crossfire to do, but I knew I’d kick myself for it later. How many times was I going to make an ass of myself in one day?

“Enough,” I scolded myself under my breath. “Moving on.”

Horns blared as one cab darted in front of another with only inches to spare and then slammed on the brakes as daring pedestrians stepped into the intersection seconds before the light changed. Shouting ensued, a barrage of expletives and hand gestures that didn’t carry real anger behind them. In seconds all the parties would forget the exchange, which was just one beat in the natural tempo of the city.

As I melded into the flow of foot traffic and set off toward the gym, a smile teased my mouth. Ah, New York, I thought, feeling settled again. You rock.

I’d planned on warming up on a treadmill, then capping off the hour with a few of the machines, but when I saw that a beginners’ kickboxing class was about to start, I followed the mass of waiting students into that instead. By the time it was over, I felt more like myself. My muscles quivered with the perfect amount of fatigue and I knew I’d sleep hard when I crashed later.

“You did really well.”

I wiped the sweat off my face with a towel and looked at the young man who spoke to me. Lanky and sleekly muscular, he had keen brown eyes and flawless café au lait skin. His lashes were enviably thick and long, while his head was shaved bald.

“Thank you.” My mouth twisted ruefully. “Pretty obvious it was my first time, huh?”

He grinned and held out his hand. “Parker Smith.”

“Camila Cabello.”

“You have a natural grace, camila. With a little training you could be a literal knockout. In a city like New York, knowing self-defense is imperative.” He gestured over to a corkboard hung on the wall. It was covered in thumbtacked business cards and fliers. Tearing off a flag from the bottom of a fluorescent sheet of paper, he held it out to me. “Ever heard of Krav Maga?”

“In a Jennifer Lopez movie.”

“I teach it, and I’d love to teach you. That’s my website and the number to the studio.”

I admired his approach. It was direct, like his gaze, and his smile was genuine. I’d wondered if he was angling toward a pickup, but he was cool enough about it that I couldn’t be sure.

Parker crossed his arms, which showed off cut biceps. He wore a black sleeveless shirt and long shorts. His Converse sneakers looked comfortably beat up and tribal tattoos peeked up from his collar. “My website has the hours. You should come by and watch, see if it’s for you.”

“I’ll definitely think about it.”

“Do that.” He extended his hand again, and his grip was solid and confident. “I hope to see you.”

The apartment smelled fabulous when I got back home and Adele was crooning soulfully through the surround sound speakers about chasing pavements. I looked across the open floor plan into the kitchen and saw Cary swaying to the music while stirring something on the range. There was an open bottle of wine on the counter and two goblets, one of which was half-filled with red wine.

“Hey,” I called out as I got closer. “Whatcha cooking? And do I have time for a shower first?”

He poured wine into the other goblet and slid it across the breakfast bar to me, his movements practiced and elegant. No one would know from looking at him that he’d spent his childhood bouncing between his drug-addicted mother and foster homes, followed by adolescence in juvenile detention facilities and state-run rehabs. “Pasta with meat sauce. And hold the shower, dinner’s ready. Have fun?”

“Once I got to the gym, yeah.” I pulled out one of the teakwood barstools and sat. I told him about the kickboxing class and Parker Smith. “Wanna go with me?”

“Krav Maga?” Cary shook his head. “That’s hardcore. I’d get all bruised up and that would cost me jobs. But I’ll go with you to check it out, just in case this guy’s a wack.”

I watched him dump the pasta into a waiting colander. “A wack, huh?”

My dad had taught me to read guys pretty well, which was how I’d known the god in the suit was trouble. Regular people offered token smiles when they helped someone, just to make a momentary connection that smoothed the way.

Then again, I hadn’t smiled at him either.

“Baby girl,” Cary said, pulling bowls out of the cupboard, “you’re a sexy, stunning woman. I question any man who doesn’t have the balls to ask you outright for a date.”

I wrinkled my nose at him.

He set a bowl in front of me. It contained tiny tubes of salad noodles covered in a skimpy tomato sauce with lumps of ground beef and peas. “You’ve got something on your mind. What is it?”

Hmm…I caught the handle of the spoon sticking out of the bowl and decided not to comment on the food. “I think I ran into the hottest person on the planet today. Maybe the hottest woman in the history of the world.”

“Oh? I thought that was me. Do tell me more.” Cary stayed on the other side of the counter, preferring to stand and eat.

I watched him take a couple bites of his own concoction before I felt brave enough to try it myself. “Not much to tell, really. I ended up sprawled on my ass in the lobby of the Crossfire and she gave me a hand up.”

“Tall or short? Blond or dark? Built or lean? Eye color?”

I washed down my second bite with some wine. “Tall. Dark. Lean and built. green eyes. Filthy rich, judging by her clothes and accessories. And she was insanely sexy. You know how it is—some hot people don’t make your hormones go crazy, while some unattractive people have massive sex appeal. This woman had it all.”

My belly fluttered as it had when Dark and Dangerous touched me. In my mind, I remembered her breathtaking face with crystal clarity. It should be illegal for a woman to be that mind-blowing. I was still recovering from the frying of my brain cells.

Cary set his elbow on the counter and leaned in, his long bangs covering one vibrant green eye. “So what happened after she helped you up?”

I shrugged. “Nothing.”

“Nothing?”

“I left.”

“What? You didn’t flirt with her?”

I took another bite. Really, the meal wasn’t bad. Or else I was just starving. “she wasn’t the kind of girl you flirt with, Cary.”

“There is no such thing as a girl you can’t flirt with. Even the happily married ones enjoy a little harmless flirtation now and then.”

“There was nothing harmless about this girl,” I said dryly.

“Ah, one of those.” Cary nodded sagely. “Bad boys and girls can be fun, if you don’t get too close.”

Of course he would know; men and women of all ages fell at his feet. Still, he somehow managed to pick the wrong partner every time. He’d dated stalkers, and cheaters, and lovers who threatened to kill themselves over him, and lovers with significant others they didn’t tell him about…Name it, he’d been through it.

“I can’t see this woman ever being fun,” I said. “she was way too intense. Still, I bet she'd be awesome in the sack with all that intensity.”

“Now you’re talking. Forget the real person. Just use ther face in your fantasies and make them perfect there.”

Preferring to get the girl out of my head altogether, I changed the subject. “You have any go-sees tomorrow?”

“Of course.” Cary launched into the details of his schedule, mentioning a jeans advertisement, self-tanner, underwear, and cologne.

I shoved everything else out of my mind and focused on him and his growing success. The demand for Cary Taylor was increasing by the day, and he was building a reputation with photographers and accounts for being both professional and prompt. I was thrilled for him and so proud. He’d come a long way and been through so much.

It wasn’t until after dinner that I noticed the two large gift boxes propped against the side of the sectional sofa.

“What are those?”

“Those,” Cary said, joining me in the living room, “are the ultimate.”

I knew immediately they were from Stanton and my mom. Money was something my mother needed to be happy and I was glad Stanton, husband #3, was not only able to fill that need for her but all her many others as well. I often wished that could be the end of it, but my mom had a difficult time accepting that I didn’t view money the same way she did. “What now?”

He threw his arm around my shoulders, easy enough for him to do because he was taller by five inches. “Don’t be ungrateful. He loves your mom. He loves spoiling your mom, and your mom loves spoiling you. As much as you don’t like it, he doesn’t do it for you. He does it for her.”

Sighing, I conceded his point. “What are they?”

“Glam threads for the advocacy center’s fundraiser dinner on Saturday. A bombshell dress for you and a Brioni tux for me, because buying gifts for me is what he does for you. You’re more tolerant if you have me around to listen to you bitch.”

“Damn straight. Thank God he knows that.”

“Of course he knows. Stanton wouldn’t be a bazillionaire if he didn’t know everything.” Cary caught my hand and tugged me over. “Come on. Take a look.”

I pushed through the revolving door of the Crossfire into the lobby ten minutes before nine the next morning. Wanting to make the best impression on my first day, I’d gone with a simple sheath dress paired with black pumps that I slid on in replacement of my walking shoes on the elevator ride up. My brown hair was twisted up in an artful chignon that resembled a figure eight, courtesy of Cary. I was hair-inept, but he could create styles that were glamorous masterpieces. I wore the small pearl studs my dad had given me as a graduation gift and the Rolex from Stanton and my mother.

I had begun to think I’d put too much care into my appearance, but as I stepped into the lobby I remembered being sprawled across the floor in my workout clothes and I was grateful I didn’t look anything like that graceless girl. The two security guards didn’t seem to put two and two together when I flashed them my ID card on the way to the turnstiles.

Twenty floors later, I was exiting into the vestibule of Waters Field & Leaman. Before me was a wall of bulletproof glass that framed the double-door entrance to the reception area. The receptionist at the crescent-shaped desk saw the badge I held up to the glass. She hit the button that unlocked the doors as I put my ID away.

“Hi, Megumi,” I greeted her when I stepped inside, admiring her cranberry-colored blouse. She was mixed race, a little bit Asian for sure, and very pretty. Her hair was dark and thick, and cut into a sleek bob that was shorter in the back and razor sharp in the front. Her sloe eyes were brown and warm, and her lips were full and naturally pink.

“camila, hi. Mark’s not in yet, but you know where you’re going, right?”

“Absolutely.” With a wave, I took the hallway to the left of the reception desk all the way to the end, where I made another left turn and ended up in a formerly open space now partitioned into cubicles. One was mine and I went straight to it.

I dropped my purse and the bag holding my walking flats into the bottom drawer of my utilitarian metal desk; then booted up my computer. I’d brought a couple of things to personalize my space and I pulled them out. One was a framed collage of three photos—me and Cary on Coronado beach, my mom and Stanton on his yacht in the French Riviera, and my dad on duty in his City of Oceanside, California, police cruiser. The other item was a colorful arrangement of glass flowers that Cary had given me just that morning as a “first day” gift. I tucked it beside the small grouping of photos, and sat back to take in the effect.

“Good morning, Camila.”

I pushed to my feet to face my boss. “Good morning, Mr. Garrity.”

“Call me Mark, please. Come on over to my office.”

I followed him across the strip of hallway, once again thinking that my new boss was very easy to look at with his gleaming dark skin, trim goatee, and laughing brown eyes. Mark had a square jaw and a charmingly crooked smile. He was trim and fit, and he carried himself with a confident poise that inspired trust and respect.

He gestured at one of the two seats in front of his glass and chrome desk, and waited until I sat to settle into his Aeron chair. Against the backdrop of sky and skyscrapers, Mark looked accomplished and powerful. He was, in fact, just a junior account manager and his office was a closet compared to the ones occupied by the directors and executives, but no one could fault the view.

He leaned back and smiled. “Did you get settled into your new apartment?”

I was surprised he remembered, but I appreciated it, too. I’d met him during my second interview and liked him right away.

“For the most part,” I answered. “Still a few stray boxes here and there.”

“You moved from San Diego, right? Nice city, but very different from New York. Do you miss the palm trees?”

“I miss the dry air. The humidity here is taking some getting used to.”

“Wait ’til summer hits.” He smiled. “So…it’s your first day and you’re my first assistant, so we’ll have to figure this out as we go. I’m not used to delegating, but I’m sure I’ll pick it up quick.”

I was instantly at ease. “I’m eager to be delegated to.”

“Having you around is a big step up for me, Camila. I’d like you to be happy working here. Do you drink coffee?”

“Coffee is one of my major food groups.”

“Ah, an assistant after my own heart.” His smile widened. “I’m not going to ask you to fetch coffee for me, but I wouldn’t mind if you helped me figure out how to use the new one-cup coffee brewers they just put in the break rooms.”

I grinned. “No problem.”

“How sad is it that I don’t have anything else for you?” He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Why don’t I show you the accounts I’m working on and we’ll go from there?”

The rest of the day passed in a blur. Mark touched bases with two clients and had a long meeting with the creative team working on concept ideas for a trade school. It was a fascinating process seeing firsthand how the various departments picked up the baton from each other to carry a campaign from proposition to fruition. I might’ve stayed late just to get a better feel of the layout of the offices, but my phone rang at ten minutes to five.

“Mark Garrity’s office. Camila Cabello speaking.”

“Get your ass home so we can go out for the drink you rain-checked on yesterday.”

Cary’s mock sternness made me smile. “All right, all right. I’m coming.”

Shutting down my computer, I cleared out. When I reached the bank of elevators, I pulled out my cell to text a quick “on my way” note to Cary. A ding alerted me to which car was stopping on my floor and I moved over to stand in front of it, briefly returning my attention to hitting the send button. When the doors opened, I took a step forward. I glanced up to watch where I was going and green eyes met mine. My breath caught.

The sex god was the lone occupant.

[ladyhallen]

Holding Secrets Like a Crystal Chapter 2

Read on AO3|FFN

Monica had thought that the rest of the actual Crownsguard would be like her trainers and the other trainees. But, aside from the double takes she’d received after she’d collapsed the training building with two strategically placed bombs, no one said anything about her being a woman.

If anything, the men admired her nerve. Not for what she thought.

“You actually like the Marshall, don’t you?” Dustin asked her. “He’s such a scary bastard though.”

Monica would probably share their opinion, but since she could in fact hear his thoughts and had known him since she was fifteen, she knew that Cor was a different. She couldn’t say why, but there was something about a man who took one look at a fifteen year old girl and knew that she was asking for help.

“He’s alright,” she replied, instead of saying all of that.

Dustin shook his head thinking, Wow she’s amazing. What he said was, “Kudos to you, Elshett. You have balls of steel.”

“Don’t have balls,” Monica said, just to hear him splutter.

Monica laughed at Dustin and after a moment, he laughed with her. She knew then that she’d found a friend.

.

.

Monica continued to work her way up.

She had good days and bad days, of course. Good days when the thoughts of people were manageable and could be tuned out. Bad days when she couldn’t even focus on work because of how fucking loud everything was.

She had medicine that she had prescribed herself after one doctor’s visit too many. It worked and she could function. Minimally.

The best days were when she could work with Cor.

From taking down criminals to doing paperwork, Cor’s mind was so quiet that Monica just. Relaxed. He was so incredibly soothing to work with.

Someone noticed and Monica found herself summoned to meet the king.

.

.

Monica had to work on keeping her face blank, no matter what she heard. Especially working in the Citadel, where everyone’s thoughts were incredibly confidential.

The king was older than her, older than Cor and there was white peppered in his hair. He face was also covered in laugh lines.

There she is! The king thought, his mind almost as quiet as Cor’s but not much. Nobody’s mind was as quiet as Cor’s.

“Your majesty,” she said, doing a deep bow.

She had seen the toll it took on him to keep the barrier up. She respected him immensely.

“Lieutenant Elshett,”the King greeted. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

Monica felt her eyebrows rise an inch involuntarily. Given what she knew about Cor, she doubted that. Still, she didn’t say that to the kings face.

“Sire?” she asked, affecting confusion.

“Cor says you’re a pleasure to work with. How would you like to be Cor’s assistant?” he asked eagerly.

Monica had too much self-respect to immediately say yes.

“Isn’t that just another word for secretary, sire?” she asked warily

The king shook his head. “A secretary doesn’t fight. You would hold the office for Cor when he’s deployed in his special missions.”

For a king, his explanations sucked. “You want me to be his second,” she said. She didn’t gape. She wanted to.

It would be great if you married him, the king thought which, WHAT. “Yes,” the king said. “It would be a promotion.”

First, Monica had to slap that thought away from the king immediately.

Monica allowed herself to sigh. “Your majesty, if I may be blunt?” she said. When he nodded, she continued, “Everyone in the Crownsguard already knows I’m gunning for his second. If you assign it to me without due merit, there will be accusations of me sleeping with someone for the position.”

The very idea of sleeping with Cor made ice go up and down her spine. It was a terrible thought. Monica cursed the king for even thinking of it.

“Then you need to go on more missions for you to be assigned to it this year,” the king decided. “Your mission statistics and success rates are good, but there needs to be more…oomph.”

Monica felt that old spite rise up. Hmm.

If the king wanted oomph, she would give him oomph.

.

.

Monica asked Cor for permission.

It was one thing to think about it and plan it, but she wouldn’t inflict herself on someone if they didn’t want it.

“Sir. Cor,” she said when she found him in his office. “I’m going to be your second.” She announced it bluntly. It was better to rip these things off like a bandage than to dither and worry about it.

Cor nodded. “I had hoped you would. Hemminks is a good second, but he’s not...” he trailed off, and his mind added, He’s so fucking annoying.

“I’m going to need to go on a mission,” she said. “The king asked for more oomph.”

Cor’s eyebrows were high on his forehead. “More oomph.” By Bahamut’s fucking asshole, Regis, what the fuck.

Monica felt herself smile viciously. “If he asks for more oomph, I will give it to him. With interest.”

Holy shit, this kid is exactly like me ten years ago. “There are several Niff bases in Duscae. One of which is a military supply depot. I’ll leave that to your discretion,” Cor sounded so dry and deadpan. Monica wanted to laugh.

“I’ll be back in a month or less,” she said. And by then, I will be your second, she thought giddily. “One last request, sir.”

He nodded.

“Can you sign whatever I requisition?”

Cor cracked a smile. “Do you even have to ask?”

Monica laughed on her way out.

.

.

As Crownsguard, she had access to a small bit of the kings magic. It manifested itself in different ways. Others had minor elemancy or the warping bullshit. Monica had an endless magical bag.

She loved it.

Monica stuffed it to the gills with bombs, more bombs and so many bombs. When that made the supplies department protest, she acquiesced and asked instead for the chemicals to make the bombs, which they had more of. Is she fucking insane was a recurring thought in their minds.

When she felt satisfied of that, she moved on to her favorite: knives. Five packs of throwing knives, two long knives, a sword and five different guns with a number of bullets.

Supplies looked just about ready to throw her out of the window when she declared she was done and Cor was just laughing as he signed off on her requisition.

Then he surprised her by handing the keys to his old motorcycle.

“I used to ride this all the time,” he explained. “But since I got old enough, I had responsibilities and passengers. This old bike is good for long distance missions.”

She hugged him in her jubilation and did a dance around the bike. When she’d controlled her giddiness over it, she saluted him and rode off.

.

Monica’s specialty, in her file, was demolitions. To her, it was just a fancy way for saying that she was very good with bombs.

If the king wanted oomph, she would give him so much oomph.

.

A month later, almost all of Niflheim’s bases in Lucis were on fire and rubble.

And Cor handed over her promotion with a longsuffering expression despite the glee echoing from his mind.

Dustin cornered her in her new office and asked, “Is it true that you told the king that you’d set fire to Niflheim if you could be Cor’s second?”

Was that what the rumors were saying?? Monica wondered where the hell that came from. But she didn’t question it.

“No,” she told Dustin, deliberately slowly. As though she was lying.

Dustin’s face was a picture.

.

.

Monica, despite all her efforts to appear underwhelming and ordinary, reached an overwhelming status all on her own as well.

She could hear all their thoughts whisper it and even if she wanted them all to stop, she couldn’t very well force them to stop thinking it. Monica, the guard who set fire to Niflheim bases in Lucis for Cor Leonis.

Still, working for Cor changed how they interacted, yet at the same time, not at all. Cor was still had quiet thoughts and was still the cause of most of her good days. And he still thought of her fondly even if they both interacted with each other professionally.

At the same time, it seemed that the king had waited for years for Cor to find a competent second. He started sending Cor out on more missions that kept him out of the Citadel for months. Once, it took a year.

Monica all but ran the Crownsguard in his absence then, even if she still had to turn to Clarus Amicita for some of the paperwork to be signed.

It made some of the guard bitter because she had only joined them in less than three years and had already risen so high. The bitter ones weren’t as many as she’d thought and maybe the king had a point.

Oomph really helped.

Ugh, she would never say it out loud, the king would hear and then he would be insufferably smug.

.

“Sir,” she greeted, very happy to see him alive. “Welcome back.”

Cor looked terrible, but she’d seen him worse states. She gestured and one guard ran for medical and another ran for the king. The others, she sent them to keep everyone away. It just wouldn’t do for the Marshall to be seen looking so bad; it would not look good for moral.

“Monica,” he sighed. His shoulders loosened minutely and Monica heard him think, Ah, she’s so grown up now. Which. What in the world?

“It’s good to be back,” he said quietly. “Anything interesting happen?”

“His highness has learned to warp to his favorite toy,” she informed him dryly. “It was in the roof. His majesty had kittens.”

Cor huffed a laugh. “I can imagine.” Regis, that was karma for being such a shit.

“One of the glaive has discovered the joy of elemancy,” Monica continued, noting that her nonsensical reports were actually doing wonders for calming him down. “She has then used it to cook a wild boar on a spit using lightning.”

Cor actually had to stop to laugh, his shoulders shaking. Unbidden, an image came to his mind and thus, she could see it as well. Of the king, younger, but using a fireball to cook a bird on a spit and the ensuing explosion of bird and charred wood.

Monica bit her tongue to hold back her own laughter. Gods, but she missed Cor.

“Was the glaive alright?” Cor asked after he’d calmed down. “Did she get hurt?”

Monica gave him a smirk. “She was fine. The boar was not.”

Cor laughed again.

His eyes, which had been dark with grief, finally lightened.

Monica watched him with hidden concern and did her best to keep him happy.

But his mind, which had been steadily growing louder for her, said one thing that made her worried. Prompto, I’m sorry.

Who…or what, was a Prompto?

[vinylhazza]

Timid Touching (E.D)

Summary: After a particularly rough day at work, y/n stumbles upon her bestfriend naked and tugging one out on the couch, he woos her into staying to enjoy the fun and maybe do something she never has before. 

Word Count: 6.2k

Warning: just dirty ass smut

Dedication: @dolandolll thank you for being you! love you bubs xoxo  

It was unexpected on such an annoying and brutal day of relentless complaining at work, spilling hot coffee all over her shirt, and getting stuck in endless traffic that she would walk in and she was she is seeing now. 

She was pulling up to the house in a cursing rage, so fed up with the blabbering dumbfucks at her work that she wanted nothing more than to take a bath, put on a facemask, watch a movie, and go to sleep to start the weekend off right. It was an added bonus that she recently moved in with her two bestfriends Ethan and Grayson - after months and months of begging from both twins and the promise of smiles and amazing avocado toast daily. 

It had been a dream so far, getting to wake up with relaxing vibes and getting to hang out with the men that made her the happiest (one already having her heart but she does her best to ignore that in fear of rejection). It’s your sappy teen movie, a bestfriend swooning over someone that she presumes sees her as only that: a friend. 

She shook the thoughts from her head when she slammed the door to her car, making sure she heard the beep indicating it was in fact locked before she began to stomp up to the front door with her bag slung across her front. She had parked right behind Ethan’s Jeep, noticing for a split second that Grayson’s car was nowhere to be found. It was odd for the time of evening that it was, the sun sinking below the horizon, leaving California in a cool windy evening that was about to get even more interesting, even if she wasn't aware. 

She wasn’t too concerned about Grayson being gone, simply a bit nervous that she would be left alone with Ethan for God knows how long, with his infectious beautiful smile and his sinfully sexy body that drove her insane. It was just a bad night for her to be both pissed off and horny and swooning over her bestfriend. 

She huffs out an irritated breath when the keypad clicks the lock open and she swings the door wide with her hand, stepping into the dark entryway of the house and setting her purse onto the hook at the right side of her head. Grayson had kindly installed it for her convenience, laughing every time she would have to set it on the “dirty” floor. Out of the kindness of his heart he caved and ended his fun by giving her a hook to make her life easier. She liked being able to just grab it on her way out the door, and he knew that. 

Y/n noticed Ethan’s shoes placed neatly on the mat, meaning he was relaxing somewhere and not planning on leaving. 

“E?” she called out through the house, not loud enough to be considered a yell, just louder than her normal speaking voice. But nothing came after. Only the reverberation of her voice against the walls. 

She nudged her shoes off her own feet, setting them next to her bestfriends, speaking once more in hopes he was actually close by and was just too distracted to answer, “work was absolute shit.” But still no answer followed. 

She had been too caught up in her thoughts to actually notice the flashing of the tv coming from down the hall and the peculiar noise bouncing from the walls and to her curious ears. Her eyebrows are furrowed down into a pout as she shuffles down the hallway to the living room, her plan to pester Ethan about ignoring her for the TV cut short when she enters the spacious room. 

You know what they say: curiosity killed the kitty. And she was pretty sure she was going to die of a heart attack when she entered the room - stopping dead in her tracks. 

She realizes quickly what the sounds were, widening her eyes at the TV on a stand that Grayson built, bright as can be in the dim living room, a clip of two girls touching each other flashing across the screen while they moaned loudly into each others mouths. She nearly faints at the sight, so shocked what she thought was an innocent movie was actually lesbian porn. 

“Y/n,” Ethan says casually, startling her just enough that her eyes are ripped from the TV to land right on his bare body on the couch, dick slapped hard against his stomach, leaking precum, “why so sad? work a little rough today?” 

His voice is light and silky, a couple octaves lower than normal, making it even more difficult for her to look him in the eye. 

Was he seriously trying to have a normal conversation right now?  Was he teasing her? Was he mocking her for catching him in such a...interesting situation? 

Her mouth is dry as sandpaper at this point, stuttering out a quick “yeah” sheepishly, not really sure where she should be looking, at Ethan? At the TV? The ground? So she settles for her bare feet, suddenly very interested in her purple nail polish covering them and the ankle bracelet that hangs around the ankle with a little turtle charm. She starts to wish she had stayed a little longer at work, not knowing in the slightest how to navigate this predicament she found herself in. 

She’s seen both of the twins naked before yeah, on accident with each one of them. She wasn’t used to having to knock, so there had been a few times where she found herself walking in on one of them changing - quickly squeaking out an apology and slamming the door closed. But she’d never seen them with a hard on or anything remotely close, not that she could tell at least. This was completely out of the blue for her. 

“Has anyone ever told you it’s rude to not look at someone when they’re talking to you bubs?” His teasing voice cuts through the thickening air. He says it like he wasn't just vigorously jerking off only moments ago, like he isn’t sitting butt ass naked in front of his bestfriend watching two girls eat each other’s pussies sloppily. 

She knows he’s challenging her to look. So look she does, shooting her head up from her feet to land right on his hazel eyes that stare back at her. She makes a mental note to not let her eyes wander anywhere else on his body, especially not down to where her eyes had been glued when she first walked into the room. That’s for sure a sight she won’t forget. 

She decides that instead of standing there with her blushing cheeks and twiddling thumbs embarrassing herself, she was going to politely exit the room and just pretend like this never happened. Even though she would never be able to get the image of his massive leaking cock out of her mind even if she tried to. He was fucking gorgeous and she couldn’t deny it. 

Yeah of course she wanted to fuck the shit out of him, she’s always wanted to, but now that she’s standing here totally off guard and caught watching him red handed she is embarrassed beyond belief. She always imagined that if they did take that step in their relationship it would be more...romantic and not dirty and sudden after a shitty day at work. 

“I think I’m just gonna go take a bath-” She turns her back to the room, fully prepared to sprint down the hall if she had to, not wanting to embarrass herself any longer. She wanted to sink into a hot bath, ease her stress and sleep this horrendous day off. And she hoped to God he didn't bring this up again. But before she can walk back down the hallway Ethan’ talking again in that fucking tone that has her insides stirring. 

“Sweet innocent little Y/n scared of a little porn huh?” he grins at her, quirking a dark defined eyebrow. Little shit knew he was getting to her. 

“Not scared,” she mutters, “I just don't watch it that’s all.” She’s embarrassed to even be having this conversation with him. She wishes for a moment that the floor would just open up beneath her and swallow her whole to save her from having to answer anymore of his questions. 

“Bullshit. Everyone does. How else do you get that little pussy of yours to cum the fastest?” he continues on, staring her down intensely. She couldn't believe how easily he was talking about her the way that he was and saying all of the things he was saying. He’d never been as open as he was being right now. Sure he flirted with her all the time, but he had never used that kind of language with her. I guess now was as good a time as ever to shoot his shot. 

“I don't Ethan,” it's not an answer he’s expecting obviously because his eyes widen and his mouth open some more in mock horror, a shocked little scoff escaping his lips. 

“No? You’re telling me you don't rub that little cunt in the middle of the night when you get all hot and bothered?” his presses on. 

“Yep pretty much what I’m saying,” she mumbles out. 

Please dear fuck Ethan let it go and let me take my damn bath, she pleaded to the heavens, her head falling back to stare at the ceiling with a sigh. She must be dreaming because there is no way in heaven or hell that Ethan Dolan, her best friend, was sitting her saying things to her right now. It seems the moans coming from the speakers only get louder to her ears. 

It’s almost as if the small flame she had in her stomach when she was with him was spreading because she started to feel heat shoot from her middle and down all the way to her toes. She played it off as being anxious but she noticed that her panties were starting to get a bit wet. Rubbing her thighs together is what she settled on until she could take her bath and forget that this night happened unless he brought it up again. 

“Look I’m just gonna go so you can finish whatever you need to,” she tries to dismiss herself once again, twisting on her heel to exit the room and let him get back to watching the two pretty brunettes on the screen scissor each other senseless. As she takes a step she’s stopped once again. 

“Wimpass,” Ethan mutters slyly, deliberately looking away when she turns to stare at him with a raised eyebrow. Did he just call her a wimp? For what reason? 

“E-excuse me?” she squeaks, not believing this is real life. She swears to God she must be asleep on her bed or something because Ethan would never be this bold in front of her. Or would he? 

“You’re a wimpass,” he says once again, more clear. A sneaky little smile makes its way to his face, eyebrow still raised as the girls switch positions, one on top one on bottom while one sucks on the others pussy and fingers her at the same time. Her heart is pounding at this point. 

“I’m not a wimp Ethan stop,” her cheeks are on fire because she knows he’s going to challenge her once more. 

“If you don’t stay you're a wimpass,” he reiterates. He knows she hates to be bullied into something, but at this point he’s so eager and hungry to see her finally get herself off next to him he’s sputtering out whatever dirty thing he can to get her to stay. 

He would always call her a wimp when she was scared of something, usually causing her to shoot him a glare and prove him wrong. He hopes this is the same. And with the scrunch of her eyebrows and firm line on her lips he can tell he got to her in the way he wanted. 

“We aren't 4 Ethan,” she huffs out a shaky breath, frustrated that she looks so flustered in front of him. She always wanted to look sort of confident and strong for him, thought he liked that. But she has no clue that her cluelessness is making him want to bust a load untouched on their couch. 

She stands still, fingers playing with the end of her shirt and tries hard to ignore the moans filling the room. 

“Oh I know that, we are actually adults,” he pauses, looking at her with that same smirk, “so if you don’t stay I guess that means you’re a 4 year old wimpass right?” 

He opens his arms in a challenging manner, daring her to take the bait and stay.

So with a heavy sigh and several scorching glares thrown in Ethan’s direction, she timidly makes her way over to the couch just a few steps away, her heart already thumping dangerously fast in her chest. She sits on the opposite side of him, trying not to look, keeping her eyes on the wall in front of her. She doesn’t know why she actually chose to stay because Ethan would never force her into something she didn’t want to do and they both know that. He might tease and mock her but it’s ultimately her decision. 

“I’m not a wimp. And I’m only staying for a bit, my bath is calling my name. And I’m not touching myself so get that out of your head right now,” she’s talking fast and stern, not wanting to be interrupted. She decided she was only going to stay for 5 minutes...that’s long enough right? It’s long enough to her and that’s all she cares about. 

Her cheeks are on fire when he starts to scooch his naked body across the couch and sit uncomfortably close to her considering all the empty space. Was there something wrong with his previous spot? No. Did he want her to see exactly what he was doing up close and personal? Yes. 

“Suit yourself,” he sing songs to her with a dazzling smile, pausing the porn on the screen with the TV remote in between their bodies. It looked so natural and easy with him, his relaxed body that looked so content and comfortable doing this in front of her. It had her mind racing and her eyes following his every move hoping he wouldn't notice, “here let’s change this to something that,” he glances to her stiff frame, “you might enjoy,” he ends with a smirk - dropping a wink. 

He flicks and scrolls through many titles, all ending in “XXX” , sending a shiver running down her spine. He finally lands on a video of a muscular man with many tattoos and a pretty brunette. The scene starts with the two in a bedroom, already naked and on the king sized bed, the mans lips trailing over her dewy skin. It started off slowly, just simple kissing and some whimpers here and there, nothing she hadn’t seen before. She wonders for a minute why he would pick something so vanilla, but she is mistaken when the scene speeds up. 

Ethan palming and stroking his own dick catches her attention from the corner of her curious eyes. His own are fixed on the two on the screen as the anticipation grows. Her eyes widen and her legs cross over themselves when the tattooed mans lips travel down to the woman’s pussy, smacking loudly against her skin. Her cheeks are flushing crimson at the sight of his tongue flicking to collect her juices. 

I’m not getting turned on, I’m not getting turned on, I’m not getting turned on she repeats to herself, trying to stop the already wet pooling that’s happening in her white lace panties. But it was so hard with Ethan’s fit body, knowing he’s sitting next to her stroking his massive dick, knowing he wanted her to stay, and the moans and actions from the two pornstars on the screen. This can’t be happening. She can’t get horny in front of her bestfriend. But that’s easier said than done when the mans lips finally latch onto the woman’s clit, swirling his tongue down to her entrance and back up, repeating the action over and over with labored breathing. She gulped hard, trying to keep herself in check. 

The man proceeds to full on tongue fuck the girl, his tongue flicking inside her cunt over and over again, mouth fully resting on her. Jaw slack and sloshing against her folds.  

She squeezes her legs together when she feels the warmth, thinking it was innocent enough that Ethan wouldn’t notice the small action. She hoped he was too focused on getting himself off to notice she was even there. She hoped. 

“I see that yeknow,” Ethan comments casually, hand wrapped snug around his dick but not moving. Fuck. She was caught. 

“See what...” her face is burning with embarrassment, hating this with everything she had in her. How does one get themselves in this kind of situation?

“I see you squeezing your thighs together, but I promise if you give up this little act and rub that pretty pussy of yours it’ll feel much better.” 

He begins to move his hand up and down again, slowly stroking his aching cock in front of her, rubbing his thumb over the tip and jerking a little at how good it feels. He really can’t believe his own luck that she walked in right as he was just starting to think of her face he wishes he could fuck. There she came, stumbling in on him with those rosy cheeks and fidgeting fingers, so pretty. 

But she’d never gotten herself off before, her posh mother always telling her it was shameful and taboo. So no matter how horny she got, she just wouldn’t let herself fix the situation. Of course she’d had sex before. Had it been great? No. Had it been what she’d expected? Nope. Was it only for the guys benefit and that’s it? Yep. It was the description of her sex life, her needs were tossed to the side and she was left hanging. She just figured that’s how things worked. That’s why she always excused herself when it came to sexual conversations with twins, she didn’t want to be awkward when they asked her questions and seem like she was an inexperienced snob. 

But Ethan was making it seem so...normal, to touch yourself and like it. She was actually naïve enough to think that it wasn’t something everyone did? Fuck he wanted nothing more than the ram himself into that hot body sitting next to him. With that thought alone he grips himself harder to tug and tug and tug, throwing his head back some and looking at her through his eyelashes discretely. 

She sees him watching her, but tries to keep her eyes on the TV, noticing how hard his breathing had become when he ran his fingers up and down his length repeatedly. She’s just staring at him jerking off now, eyes soft and curious. She’s immediately clenching around nothing, just wondering and daydreaming about what he would feel like up inside of her. His smirk grows when he eyes her watching his hand on himself, “like what you see mama?”

“No shut up,” she mumbles, shaking her head and looking away ashamed. She switches her attention back to the girl on the screen, moaning and writing against the bed at the mans touch. The man has now entered the girl, gripping her hips tightly. He’s ramming into her with an unbelievable force, face red and determined. Her mouth is in a large O shape, eyes squeezed shut, entire body jolting forward with every harsh thrust into her pussy. She couldn’t help but imagine Ethan doing the same to her, absolutely wrecking her with speed and uncontrollable moans and grunts. She couldn’t help but imagine his eyes looking at her like he hates her, but showing her much different. Shit she wanted it. Bad.

She nearly jumps off the dark grey couch when her legs are ripped apart and opened wide by none other than Ethan. He has stopped stroking himself completely to reach for her hand and place it right over the crotch of her pants, feeling how hot she was beneath and loving it. 

“Fucking rub already Y/n,” his tone his dominant and frustrated, clearly done with watching her suffer in her own head right next to him and doing nothing to help relieve the built up pressure in her stomach. She stares at him, shocked and frozen. She wasn't expecting that at all, more shocked at the electric flare she felt in her entire body when he had her hand in his own. She’s never been this worked up over anyone in her entire life and she almost blanks on what to do.

“You are obviously sexually frustrated. I can feel it so fucking much and it’s driving me crazy so rub.” His stare is near cold, wanting to fix your situation himself but waiting for the right moment. 

It’s in this moment that she gets a strange feeling to make him...proud? And prove to him she’s not a total inexperienced prude that’s useless. She wants to say something anything in return but he’s already looked away from her and continued to rub himself like nothing happened. It takes her about three seconds to obey his order and turn back to watch the screen and start to gently rub herself over her pants. This continues for a few moments, slowly increasing the pressure until it finally becomes too much and she starts to wiggle next to him, needing something more than a little touching over fabric. 

With a shaky breath she makes a bold move and slips her hand inside her pants, beginning to rub herself over her underwear, the lace causing extra friction. She lets out a quiet whimper at her movements, slipping the underwear aside to rub against her clit in slow motions, finally deciding to dip a finger inside. But that’s where she gets stuck, finger just resting inside of her and not moving. She’s never done this before so how was she supposed to know? She hears a chuckle next to her and turns her head to the side to see her best friend gazing at her with dark eyes, “stuck kitten?” amused and not even bothering to hide it. This is the hottest shit he’s ever seen. 

All of these pet names are driving her mad, slipping out so easily that she doesn't even question it. Kitten had really done her in, cheeks set ablaze while she mutters a soft “I don’t...” not even getting to finish her sentence when he lets out a sigh, yanking her onto his lap and tugging her pants and underwear off quickly. It was so fast she didn’t even have a chance to think or react to what he was doing, just resting against him with wide eyes and a hammering heart. She thinks about just getting up and walking out because she’s mortifyingly turned on and she knows he can feel it right now considering her soaked cunt is sitting right against his tattooed thigh. He smirks at the yelp she lets out when he places his warm palm right on her pussy, rubbing it up and down between her folds, agonizingly slow. His fingers are warm from being wrapped around himself for a good period of time, feeling like fire against her. 

“Relax baby I promise it will feel good,” he whispers huskily in her ear, sucking her lobe for a second only to kiss at her neck a second after. Baby. Fuck she’s gonna die. She wants him to call her that always. She’d gladly be his baby. 

“Keep those pretty eyes on the screen,” he urges, noticing with a rapid heartrate that she had been looking down at his hand that rubbed against her. He adds more pressure to her clit, circling it and pressing on it in figure eight motions to get her wiggling on him again. Feeling her sliding against his fingers is almost too much to handle. 

“Look at how he’s pumping in and out of her,” his voice sends waves of electric arousal crashing through her all at once, “think of all of that pressure...all that pleasure.” His touch is gentle and his voice is quiet, speaking right into her ear, eyes latched onto the side of her face to notice her every expression, notice every quiver of her lip and eyeroll. Loved that it was all because of him. 

She is overwhelmed, moaning and squirming on his lap. She could feel his dick pressed into her back and felt unholy at the thoughts that were racing through her head about the man she never thought she had a chance with. It’s all so mind boggling. Her eyes threaten to flutter shut, body falling back further to rest fully against his chest, but she keeps them open, keeps watching the man ram himself into the petite girl underneath him. She’s already come twice in the video and that alone has her walls clenching around nothing, seeing all of the pleasure and receiving pleasure all at once. And then she finally hears that beautiful moan from the beautiful man she secretly adores and it’s all because her legs are shaking and vibrating lightly from the fire threatening to rip through her. 

“You are unreal mama,” he rasps when his dick twitches again the smooth skin of her back, “you have no idea how sexy this is...touching you like this,” he pauses to kiss her neck once more and suck a love bite into the skin, “while we watch these strangers fuck each other senseless...looks fun doesn’t it baby? Does that look fun?” He pinches her clit lightly, rolling it between his fingers for a moment and grinning at the response she gives him. For someone so seemingly shy and innocent she is more responsive than he thought. He feels high on her, getting everything he can get until he can’t stand it anymore. He almost cums untouched when he sees her answer his question with a nod. 

When he pinches her clit again, her hand shoots down to rest against his own, sensitive and not expecting such a feeling just from him pinching her down there. With the previous boys there had never been any of this foreplay, but just using her as a hole and ditching her. 

“My sensitive girl,” he hums with a proud smile, smacking her hand away and moving his fingers down to circle at your entrance, dipping a finger in and then shortly adding another, moaning, “fuck you’re dripping,” he breathes out. She grabs his hand once more when he curls his fingers in her up to that spot that has her seeing stars. 

“That feels so good e,” she whines, finally becoming more vocal. It had him humming into her neck with a nod, he knows what he’s doing to her - but it’s still nice to hear from her. She has both hands down holding the top of his that fucks into her, adding that extra pressure herself. It gives her some sense of control and lets him know that she’s loving it and she wants him to keep going. 

“Can you play with those beautiful tits for me baby?” never stopping his movements with his fingers, he just wants her to feel as good as she possibly can, plus wants to see her pleasing herself, “just play with your nipples...wanna see you play with yourself,” he continues, fully expecting her to shrink into him with heated cheeks. But she merely raises her shirt above her head and un clips her bra to squeeze and massage her breasts together, following his order and squeezing on her own nipples, rolling and pinching them. She lets out the loudest moan yet when he rubs over the side of her leg lovingly, still fingering her to the heavens. It was such a...soft touch that had her turning to look at him, noticing how close she was to his lips and if she really wanted to she could lean in to kiss him. She’s simply observing the way his eyes watch her, dark and beautiful just skimming over her glorious body like he adores her...which he does. He wishes she knew. 

But then she decides to be bold, taking her hands away from her body to cup his scruffy cheeks, eyes flicking up to meet hers before she plants a kiss right upon his mouth. His breath hitches in his throat at the feeling he’s longed to feel for so long. Her hands are cradling his face, kissing him with a passionate force, sighing when he finally starts to kiss her back with the same urgency. Of course they are being intimate right now, but somehow this has a different meaning to both of them - they put all of their feelings and thoughts into this kiss, floating on clouds together. 

“I’d like to fuck you like that,” he breathes when they break apart to catch their breath. His fingers dip into her faster and harder than before, trying to convince her. Little does he know she doesn’t need convincing, “you want that mama? Wanna feel me all up in your guts? Fuck I’d ruin this little pussy..” She’s watching the man on the screen plunge his dick into the woman aggressively, the moans echoing around the living room. 

“Tell me what you want and I’ll give it to you, anything for you kitten,” and you can tell he means it, turning her head to plant another soft kiss on her lips. 

“E-ethan do something - I need more” breath being knocked from her chest as the pleasure increased. 

“What do you want?” he urges. When he doesn’t get any other answer other than a whiny “please” he rams his fingers into her harder than ever, making her cry out. “Fucking answer me Y/n or I’ll stop,” he threatens. 

“Fuck me please e,” she moans out, grinding into his hand, hips swiveling against him. 

“Beg for it,” he growls, just waiting for the word so he can flip her on her back to slam himself into her tight fuckhole, he just knows it’s worth the wait. 

“Please Ethan fuck me please I promise I’ll be good please just wanna be good for you please!” Oh my God he wasn’t expecting that. He wasn’t expecting it to have such an effect on her, but she’s totally gone, euphoria fueling her. 

That’s it. That’s all he needed to tug her off of his lap and slam her onto the couch, hovering over her, admiring the way her hair fans out like a halo...beautiful, breathtaking, ethereal, ravishing, lovely...fuck he’s really whipped. It’s like he’s seeing her in a new light, like he has refused to accept the feelings he’s always had and now that she’s here he wants to. It almost makes him panic that the way she’s grinning up at him right now is making his heart flip and flutter. But he merely takes a deep breath before leaning down and kissing her again slowly, nibbling on her bottom lip. 

“You’re about to feel so fucking good baby,” he is so damn cocky and it makes her even more soaked if that’s possible. He rubs his reddened tip between her slick folds before entering the tip into her, even with just the tip in he can feel how tight she really is. He can tell it's been a while, and that makes it feel all the more special. 

When he sinks further into her he leans down to rest his head against her chest, overwhelmed. 

“Thought you were an angel, turns out you're a dirty little slut,” he whispers when he takes one of her nipples between his lips. On the word “slut” he bottoms out, balls deep inside of his babygirl. He promises that after this things will change between them, he has to make her his officially. But right in this moment his top priority is getting her to cum the hardest she ever has (judging by the fact she’s only cum once before it shouldn’t be too hard but he doesn’t know that). 

Her fingertips push against the curve of his back, pulling him closer to her. She can feel him pulsing inside of her, so so deep. With every thrust, every push and pull her boobs are bouncing against his chest. He raises himself on one steady arm, muscles bulging, looking like fucking work of art above her while he continues to speed up, slamming into her over and over again, one hand squeezing her hip. She knows she’s probably going to be sore after this but she doesn't mind. It will just be a reminder of this amazing moment that she hopes will happen again. 

“Faster yes yes yes just like that right there keep - fuuuuu” her voice is hoarse at this point, moaning loud and occasionally screaming out when he hits a spot so deep she thinks she might pass out. She can’t believe all of his length could actually fit inside of her. None of the men she’s ever been with have been this big. He has every right to have that cocky look he’s giving her. 

“So pretty kitten gonna make me cum,” he groans while looking down to where he disappears inside her, plunging deeper and deeper. Her legs are shaking once more, warm ball growing in her tummy, threatening to explode at any moment if he keeps thrusting so hard and fast. He’s panting, red in the face, light blanket of sweat covering his sun-kissed skin. 

“Wait wait I can’t- fuck it’s too - ohhhh” she’s threatening to let go, grinding her hips up to meet his thrusts, fucking herself up on him. Such a dirty girl in disguise. 

He gritted his teeth, feeling it coming like a freight train. 

“Cum for me e, come on give me that cum,” she whispers seductively in his ear, rubbing a manicured fingernail down the side of his neck, twirling a little piece of hair in the back. That did it for him. 

He lets go at the same time she does, screaming her name and stilling in her to spill all that he has into her pussy, grinding slowly to milk himself dry, spurts of warm thick cum seeping out of him and into her cunt that just keeps quivering around him. Wave after wave of pleasure washes through them both, the unexpected situation making everything even more arousing. She’s so warm he almost doesn’t want to move. He likes the feeling of being buried inside of her. She obviously feels the same way by the look on her face because she is reaching up and tugging him down, hugging him while he peppers sweet tender kisses into her neck, nails scratching over his back. His chest rises and falls at a steady pace now, so tired after their previous actions that sleep threatens to take over. 

He doesn’t think he’s every came that hard in his life, and he was happy about the fucked out look on Y/n’s face, and her limp body. He did his job well. 

His beautiful hazel eyes are fluttering closed, eyelashes tickling her neck. He loves this feeling and never wants to let it go. 

“Thank you,” she whispers to him shakily, legs entangled with his on the soft plush couch. 

She knows they should move to the bedroom in case Grayson comes home, but she is so unbelievably comfortable right now and the feeling of him loving on her feels so good she can’t bring it in herself to force him to move his exhausted body across the house. 

“For what sweetness?” he mumbles with a mumbled voice, making a dreamy smile appear on her face. 

“For helping me...” she’s shy and he can tell, but he’s never letting her go after this. He will make it his personal goal to make her feel as beautiful as he knows and sees that she is. She feels like something has changed between them, something has finally been unlocked, like it was just a matter of time before they ended up together. 

“Anything for my girl,” he assures her with another peck to her skin, meaning it with his entire person, “let’s get some sleep and maybe we can...take a shower yeah? If you don’t want to it’s okay I just think maybe the modesty thing between us is practically diminished but if you’re not comfo-” he blabbers on in his sleepy voice, anxiousness creeping in. 

“That sounds great e, quit your blubbering and go to sleep,” she assures him, kissing the top of his head and receiving a chuckle in response. Her nails still scratch at his scalp, lazily trailing through his hair. She’s still not fully convinced it’s real, but prays when she wakes up he’s still going to be smushing her with his heavy ass body. She knows she won’t be sleeping in her own bed, she’s already addicted to the feeling of being wrapped up in his arms. He wouldn’t have it any other way. 

They don’t realize it in this moment, but this is the start of an incredible journey that they both deserve, and to think all it took was a little bit of timid touching. 

[razorblade180]

Mother’s Day

[Twin Snowflakes]

It’s early in the morning. Weiss has just woken up to something a bit out of the ordinary. Someone had picked her outfit out already. It was an office dress; nothing too special. Except it was pure black with a glittery red belt and a slit in the dress on the left side. What made it strange though was Someone placed her black wig and red contacts next to it.

Needless to say, she was intrigued and was going to wear it. In a matter of minutes she was walking through her hallways in it.

Bleiss:Hello!? Yo, my little rugrats?.....Babe? I know one of you has to awa-

She turned the corner to see Jaune in a dashing white business suit and an over the top decorative bow on his head that was held in place by ribbon that went over his body; complete with a note.

Bleiss:Well hey there sexy. Looking a bit finer than usual.

Jaune:And you look every bit as gorgeous as the day I met you; better in fact.

Bleiss:*red* Are you going to read that note for me handsome?

Jaune:*clears throat* “Dear Mother Goose-

Bleiss:*snorts* (These kids...)

Jaune: “Happy Mother’s Day! We took deliberately or persuading dad to put on the suit you bought for him and waking up early enough to make breakfast downstairs. We’ll be out the house until dinner time. With love, you little rugrats.”

Bleiss:Should we be concerned our children basically know what we- what I like to do when we have alone time?

Jaune:You’re not exactly subtle when you’re like this.

Bleiss:I can’t help that you’re so irresistible. Though I don’t get what’s up with my suit.

Jaune:That wasn’t them. It was all me. I already said this but...

He saunters over to Bleiss who can’t help but smirk as his hand reaches for her waist and pulls her closer.

Jaune:You look really gorgeous today.

Bleiss:Isn’t breakfast waiting for us?

Jaune:That look in your eyes tell me you aren’t that hungry.

Bleiss:Not for food, no. So you gonna kiss me already or-mmph!?

Her words were cut off by a deep and loving kiss. What a good way to start the morning.

xxxx

Nora woke up and did her usual morning routine. Shower, stretching, and her workout clothes. Time to start the day. She walked over to her bed and kissed her sleeping husband on the cheek “Bye sweetie.” Nora said, before heading out of the room.

She almost made it out of her home when something caught her eye. A light from another room was coming from around the corner. The kitchen? Nora made her way towards the kitchen and hit with the glorious smell of pancakes. A hardy stack of them in heart shapes were on the counter while Valerie was washing the pan that they were made in. The girl grabbed two forks and an obscene amount of syrup.

Nora:Well whay do we have here!? Color me impressed.

Valerie:Happy Mother’s Day. How about we also make it a cheat day?

Nora:I say we are going to need a hundred more pancakes before it counts as a cheat day.

Ren:*walks in* Then I guess you need a master chef.

Nora:Oh you’re awake!

Ren:*kisses her cheek* Today is a special day.

Valerie:Let’s chow down!

Ren and Nora:Yeah!

xxxx

knock knock knock

Ruby:*opens door* Hello-

Summer:*holding a cookie jar* We know this might be a bit weird but....

Nick:*holding Roses* You’re basically like a mom to us too.

Summer and Nick:So Happy Mo-

Ruby pulls both of them into a giant hug and holds them close. The twins look a little stunned at first before hearing Ruby sniffle softly. They not wrap their arms around her in a loving embrace.

Ruby:Thank you....

xxxx

Veronica:Hey mom? Can you come here real quick and help me with some fabric?

Blake:I’m a little busy at the moment.

Veronica:*pouts* It would really be appreciated. If you could help. It would only take second.

Blake:*walking in* If it’s that easy than why- shut the fuck up!!!! Is this....!?

In that moment, Blake remembered what today was. She had been so busy with work that it crossed her mind. Even if she never forgotten, Blake would’ve been happy with a card. Instead she stood in front of an elegant kunoichi inspired outfit. The base was black win a purple haze design that went around it as if to give it a smokey look. Dark purple was also the color of the hems and sleeve cuffs with the black becoming accent on it. All topped off with a beautiful purple bow tied in the back. This alone was exceptional, but something made it better. It was....

Blake:Is this a replica of the main protagonist’s outfit from Ninjas of Love!?

Veronica:To. The. Last. Stitch.

Blake:*tearing up* Veronica this is outstanding! Wait, why are you reading-

Veronica:*red* I like the plot! Moving on... I hope you enjoy this and I don’t know if you’ll get the perfect opportunity to wear this but hey. I’m sure you’ll find an excuse.

Blake:You know I will. *hugs her* I love you.

Veronica:*purring* I know!

Yang:Hey have you seen- woah is that...?

Blake:Yeah it is!

Yang:Veronica knocked it out of the park this year.

Veronica:It’s you that’s the tricky one. *red* Your gift is a little more abstract. I know I’m usually busy and not the easiest person to deal with. I also know we don’t really spend time together that much anymore so-

Yang.*hugging her* Is someone trying to spend the entire day with me?

Veronica:If...that’s okay?

Yang:Silly kitty. It’s always going to be okay. I love you.

Veronica:I....I love you too.

xxxx

*door opens*

Nick:We’re back!

Summer:Please be decent!

Jaune:*making dinner* We’ve been decent for hours.

Summer:We never know with you two. (I’m surprised we don’t have another set of twins or something.)

Nick:Now then, did we come home to mother goose or mama duck? *smiling*

He got his answer answer in the form of long white hair coming from around the kitchen corner and rushing over to grab both him and his sister. All three falling over to the ground as they laughed and hugged each other.

Weiss:Hello my baby ducklings!

Summer and Nick:Happy Mother’s Day mom!

Weiss:It really is, isn’t it?

[Lasting Embers]

Raven:Hey, I’m going out Tai.

Tai:Before you go can you stop by Yang’s and drop off those sunflowers?

Raven:Her house is the complete opposite direction.

Tai:Just open a portal.

Raven:Fine. *opens portal* You know a present means more if-

Yang:SURPRISE!!!

Without warning, Yang comes jumping through from the other side. Tackling Raven right to the ground and hugging her. Raven’s face turns red as she notices balloons and a box with the Schnee logo; most likely some high quality dust blades.

Raven:Yang!? What are you-

Yang:Happy Mother’s Day you grouchy mama bird. *grinning*

Raven:....

Raven:*smiles* After all these years you’re as energetic as ever. Once a baby bird, always a baby bird. *hugs her*

Yang:!!?*red*

Raven:Tai where you in on this?

Tai:Duh. I’m also in on Yang’s gift.

Yang:My gift? I was just home and got a card.

Tai:*smiles* But now you’re here and not home. A lot can change in a matter of minutes.

That peeked Yang’s interest. Her and Raven stared at the portal that was still opened in curiosity before getting up and jumping through. Tai chuckled at their anticipation and went through as well.

He was rewarded with the sight of his daughter covering her mouth with amazement as she tried not to jump up and down like a kid. They were all outside, including Jaune who was smiling. As well as Yujin who was also covered in motor oiled while she posed arms crossed right next to motorcycle that looked liked Yang’s old one.

Yujin:Meet bumblebee 2.0! Built from the ground up by yours truly after months of hardwork. You have many people to think for this accomplishment since this was no blueprints for the original.

Yang:How the heck did you get so accurate! The leather even feels right!

Yujin:Someone remembers what it felt like when it ran full force into him.

Yang:No fricken way....

Yujin:Adam says you’ll personally have to fight him again if you launch this bike at anyone or off a cliff.

Yang:Damnit, no I have to thank him. That was probably his plan from the get go.

Jaune:Stop whinnying and take this thing for a spin. *tosses her a helmet*

Yang:Wanna come admire your handiwork with your dear old mom Yujin?

Yujin:Hell Yeah!

Yang:Let’s go visit Tenzen.

Yujin:*pulls out scroll* He’s a bit busy.

She flips the scroll around and plays a video from earlier today.

Tenzen:*grinning* Hey Yujin, I think my mom likes her present. What’s your opinion? *flips camera around*

Nora:*holding a sloth* This is the greatest moment that has ever happened in my entire life...! He’s so cute!!!

xxxx

(Night time)

Jacquelyn:*watering flowers*..... (Hmm, haven’t seen the kids all day. They must be planning something, or maybe they forgot. No...well, they have been busy lately.)

A frown crept up on her face. She was used to simple gifts since money was tight so that wasn’t a problem. She just wanted them to say. Jacquelyn continue to get wrapped up in her thoughts until something cool ran across the top of her forehead. She looked up to see an orbs of water in front of her. They were floating, all the water she was pouring upwards; her entire body was floating. “Huh?”

A shadow drifted over her during this clear moon lit night; shadows that had horns and cat ears. Jacquelyn looked up with big smile to see her daughters floating towards her with petals of numerous flowers following them. All of them a variety of colors that rivaled any sunset or rainbow. The two grabbed their mom and put her right in the center of it all as they held her close.

Sienna:Happy Mother’s Day to the women who brings color to our lives...

Jael:And sweeps us off our feet.

Jacquelyn:Awww you guys. This is gorgeous.

Sienna:It took us longer than we thought to find enough flowers. This is the desert after all.

Jael:Not to mention the annoying grimm, but we managed!

Jacquelyn:You could’ve just gotten me a card.

Sienna:We do that every year! This one had to be special!

Jael:Yeah, you’re the best! With your powers now your garden will be twice as big.

Jacquelyn:*tearing up* Thank you. (Heh, I almost forgot. With these two....)

Sienna and Jael:We love you!)

Jacquelyn:*crying* (I’ll never be forgotten)

The three remained floating up there enjoying the view. Not knowing a certain someone was watching from below.

Adam:*smiling*

[Premonition]

Blake:*writing*

Secretary:Uh, Mrs Belladonna? It’s time for lunch.

Blake:That’s fine, I’ll just work through it. I have to these documents done by tomorrow night.

Secretary: Ah yes, he thought you might say that. Or I guess he knew you would.

Blake:!? “Knew?”

The secretary walked in a placed a bento box on her desk before leaving. Blake put down her pen and opened it to find it filled with various sushi; cooked and uncooked. Along with heart shaped rice balls and a note. Blake smiles and read it immediately.

“Do your best to unite the world. Can’t do it on an empty stomach though. Happy Mother’s Day.”

Blake:.....

Lucas:*laying in a hammock* (I wonder...if she’ll like it? I followed dad’s instructions but that doesn’t mean she’ll like it.) Hmmm

Blake:Someone looks concerned.

Lucas:Mom!? *sits up* Shouldn’t you be working!?

Blake:It’s lunch break. I wanna spend it with my special little guy. You made way too much food for one person you know? *smiles* Almost like you wanted me to come home to share. Predict that too?

Lucas:*red* More like wishful thinking.

Blake smiled and sat next to him. She quickly learned in a kissed his cheek which made Lucas wanna curl up in embarrassment and Blake laugh.

Blake:Wish granted.

Lucas:Happy Mother’s Day mom.

Blake:Hehe, thank you.

[Rosebud]

Another day, another job well done. For the most part anyways. A couple of nevermore had taken the wind out of Ruby’s sails by launching a feather at her right ankle. Now she was walking home with a limp. Crescent rose on her back didn’t make it easier, or the fact she was going through sand. At least she had the brains to take off her heels before reaching she made it to the rough terrain. The sun was setting but no grimm scared her; at this point she did not care about making everyone of them stone. If she can get over the sand dune in front of her that is.

Ruby:(Stupid nevermore with their stupid sharp feathers. Since when do they curve through the air? That’s definitely new.) Ugh, I’m definitely taking the longest bath when I get home.

???:That sounds nice.

Ruby’s head perked up immediately. She was a bit more tired than she thought. On top of the dune was a person. Not just anybody though, herself? All she saw was a silhouette but she was definitely looking at her old clothes from Atlas. The figure stepped closer and out of the glaring sunbeam. It was Carmine, and she was looking a bit winded herself.

Ruby was thrown for a loop on why her daughter was wearing those old clothes or looked like she ran a marathon. She didn’t get a chance to ask before Carmine lifted her mother up and onto her back; carrying Ruby up the dune.

Ruby:Ummm thank you? What’s this all about.

Carmine:You’re hurt. Why wouldn’t I carry you?

Ruby:I was talking more about the outfit. You aren’t a fan of skirts or anything too fancy.

Carmine:*blushing* Yeah well, I know how much you think I look cute in them so I thought I’d pick the coolest looking one,

Ruby:Awww for me? How cute.

Carmine:This goes right back in the box after today!

Ruby:So is this my gift?

Carmine:You’re a third right. The other half you’ll see when we get to the top.

Ruby:Ooooo

A few minutes passed before Ruby got why her daughter was tired. As they reached the top Ruby saw nothing but what looked like an ocean of crimson that surrounded her house down in the distances. “Is that red sand?”

“Look closer..” Carmine said. Ruby squinted and on closer inspection Ruby realize that the red she was seeing was roses. Hundreds of roses that each shimmered faintly like raindrops being hit by sunlight. “Woah.....”

Carmine smiled confidently. “Now look at it as a whole.”

“A whole? What, is it a pic-my symbol!?” Ruby screamed in shock. The roses were postponed perfectly to recreate her symbol with the house right in the center of it all.

Ruby:How the- this is- Carmine this is amazing! I didn’t even think you could make this many roses!

Carmine:Not without dad’s help. He’s almost has burnt out as I am. I’m sure both of you though will find your second wind in time for bed though.

Ruby:*Blushing* Carmine!

Carmine:Don’t be mad because I’m right. I’ll be knocked out though so I doubt you’ll wake me or Garnet.

Ruby:What’s the third part of this present?

Carmine:He’s at home with dad making cookies.

Ruby:Fuck yeah! This day rules. Worth the injury. Thanks sweetheart. *holds on tighter* You’ve really grown up strong huh? I’m glad....

Carmine:Hehe, I... had good teachers. Happy Mother’s Day....

[written-on-the-trees]

Machine Gun Kelly Fanfic - All That Glitters Is Not Gold

The Trees’ October 2020 Writing Challenge Day 2/31

Prompt: Dragon

Word-count: 1450 words

Content Warnings: swearing, non-consensual but non-graphic drug use.

Summary: Colson is a dragon - all he wants is gold and some peace and quiet. So the fact he's been presented with a human sacrifice is really just annoying.

Of all the stupid fucking shit humans do…

      Colson stared down at the young woman in white bound to the stake the humans had stuck in front of the entrance to his cave, wondering if he was actually seeing what he thought he was seeing. Because he thought he was seeing a human sacrifice…but that would be fucking dumb.

      And yet…

      And yet there was a human sacrifice bound to a stake outside of his cave.

      Fucking brilliant.

      Snarling, Colson stalked out of the cave in his dragon form.

  It was such bullshit. Colson was a dragon - what the fuck did he want with some terrified human girl? He liked gold. Shiny, warm, glittering gold. There were times when he liked human women too, of course, when he wondered down to one of the local villages in human form to drink and smoke and fuck, but then he returned to the mountains and his cold and his peace and fucking quiet and - most importantly - his gold.

  Human women were terrifying - literally, they scared Colson more than anything. How creatures so small and soft and fragile could wrap other bigger and stronger sentient beings around their fingers, sometimes deliberately and sometimes completely without meaning to, was just beyond him, and that horrified him.

  But he couldn’t leave her tied to the stake outside the cave. He might be a beast, but he wasn’t a monster, and it got really cold out there after dark - not to mention all the wild animals that would happily take a chunk out of the vulnerable human woman if they wondered past. As scary as human women were, Colson wasn’t going to let an innocent woman die just because the idiots from her village thought they would accomplish something by tying her up outside his home.

  Not that the human was grateful.

      “Are you going to eat me?” she asked, surprisingly calm for a woman who thought she was about to be eaten alive.

  “Not much point. Your bones would probably get caught in my throat.”

  The woman nodded as if that made perfect sense: “That would be annoying. So are you going to burn me alive instead?”

      She still sounded way too calm - almost like she wasn’t quite understanding what she was actually asking him. Colson wondered if they had drugged her or something, because there was no way anyone should be that relaxed when they were asking about how they were going to die.

  He also wondered if next time they could leave some of that shit for him. Preferably instead of the human being.

      “No, I can’t breathe fire at the moment. I’ve got a cold.”

  “Dragons can get colds?”

  “Sure, why not.”

      Looking closely at the ropes binding her to the rough wooden stake, Colson rolled his eyes.

  She had absolutely been drugged; the knots in the rope were so badly tied she could’ve gotten free in an instant if she wasn’t so out of it. It literally took him a second to free her, slicing through the ropes with a claw and letting them fall to the ground at her feet…but she still didn’t run. She didn’t even twitch. She just stayed there, leaning against the stake and looking up at him blankly, making Colson wish they really had left him some of whatever they’d given her.

  Sighing internally, Colson changed into his human form. The woman’s eyes widened, but it she looked more like a hatchling seeing their first bit of treasure rather than someone who’d seen a dragon turn into a person. He swung her up into his arms, carrying her bridal style into the cave.

  He really wasn’t expecting her to bury her face in his shoulder, or wrap her arms around his neck, but he supposed it was better than her kicking him or screaming right in his ear. She didn’t smell bad, either, even to Colson’s sensitive nose - he'd certainly carried worse burdens. In fact, on the list of all the non-treasurey things he’d hauled into his home, she was definitely in the top five.

      “So, if you’re not going to eat me, and you’re not going to set me on fire…what are you going to do?”

  “It took you over five minutes to think of that question?”

  The woman frowned faintly - as if she knew something wasn’t right, but couldn’t quite work out what it was: “My head feels strange.”

  Colson felt his chest tighten a little. He knew how it felt to be out of it when you didn’t want to be, and he didn’t have to be human to empathise with her: “Yeah, I bet. I’m gonna take you somewhere to sleep it off, okay? You’ll feel better when you wake up.”

      Silence reigned from then on, even when he dropped to his knees on the edge of the pile of furs he called a bed so he could carefully lower the human onto the softest spot he could find. She hummed thankfully, already looking half-asleep…although she was awake enough to wrap her small hand around his wrist when he moved to stand back up. It wasn’t enough to actually stop him - her strength was nothing compared to his, even when she wasn’t half unconscious - but…Colson still found himself laying down next to her, pulling some of the furs over her before wrapping an arm around her and tucking her head under his chin.

  Once upon a time, he’d been out of his head, and all he’d wanted was for some to just give him a hug, but there’d been no-one there to hold him. It had been fucking awful. He wouldn’t leave someone else in that state.

      For fuck’s sake, is this how they do the whole wrapping people around their fingers thing? She’s not even fucking trying - she’s just being sad.

      Apparently, that was all it took. This human was sad in a way Colson could relate to, and suddenly he was comforting her while she was sleeping in his bed. Next he’d be giving her some of the shiny things from his hoard just to cheer her up…

      Although one of those golden crowns might look nice on top of that red hair…maybe the one with the diamonds on all the points…

      Colson sighed aloud this time.

  He was so fucking weak.

  But he didn’t let that stop him from holding the human close. Even if this was exactly why he feared human women; their ability to inspire sympathy out of nothing. He ran a hand gently up and down her back, waiting until the human woke up and he’d have to deal with getting her back to her village.

  Honestly, it took her a while to wake up. Colson was actually starting to worry she’d been dozed with a draught of living death or something, only for her to finally wake with a groan.

      “Am I dead?”

  “No.”

  “But my head hurts so much.” the human whined, burying her face against Colson’s shoulder like he wasn’t a dragon who could literally eat her.

  Colson smiled, not bothering to hide it when she couldn’t see his face: “Not  feeling strange anymore, though?”

  “I wish it did. Anything would be better than this.”

      Colson laughed.

  He actually liked this human. He liked her enough that he suddenly wasn’t sure that he wanted to send her back to the village…so he didn’t mention it to her. And she didn’t ask.

  Instead of talking about what was going to happen, Colson focused on finding her a breakfast she could eat. And then dinner. And then he showed her around the cave, holding her hand as he helped her navigate the tunnels, laughing when she passed right past the room full of gold and jewels and treasure in favour of a cavern where the roof had caved in, leaving it open to the sky and allowing the sunlight to nurture a cavern full of lush green plants.

  She was odd, by dragon standards (and probably human ones too, if her calmness around a dragon was any indication, even though Colson wasn’t actually in a place to judge that) but that didn’t stop Colson from liking her. Her personality glittered brighter than any of the gold in his hoard - even if her total lack of interest in treasure completely baffled Colson. As confusing as that was, he actually didn’t mind it. What did it matter if she liked gold or green more when she smelt like amber and smoke, she was soft and warm when she slept beside him, and she sparkled brighter than all the diamonds he owned?

  Besides, Colson later found out that he was right.

  She looked fucking amazing in gold.