#i am also experiencing shark week

[bottle-of-newts]

I would gut someone for an Oreo rn

[gothghostiie]

Heyyyyy Ghostiie my dear I am experiencing Shark Week in the middle of a vacation and I am Strugglinggggg

Can I pls get some soft Simon doting on his girl while she has her period (specifically these cramps are fucking murdering me)

i hope you got through it well bestie🥲🫶🏻

Simon is an absolute angel when he wants to be. especially when you're on your period, he'll do anything to make sure you feel better, you're not in pain, keeping you happy and comfy. whether it be bringing you tea and painkillers to driving 2 hours to that one store that carries the candy you're craving so much. he makes sure to always be stocked up on pain killers, always enough products for you to use. he's also very cuddly with you when you're on your period, always trying to cuddle you, touch you, massage you or God knows what. he's just trying to keep you happy honestly

[golden-headband]

ESAU Red Son x reader experiencing shark week.

ESAU belongs to @emelinstriker (also thank you for suggesting the shark week name.)

Red Son finished the last touch on Masters favorite treat, turning to them and watching how they finally revealed their face buried in the counter at the clink of the plate. A uneasy but genuine smile on their face. "Thank you. You're my hero." Came their tired voice. Much more cheery than before. Easing the Red Champion.

Red Son spotted Macaque peering into the kitchen. Wukongs head just above his. His blank but slightly worried expression contrasting Macaques near-to-tears look.

"Is Master okay?" The Purple champion asked.

"Im better." They sighed, somewhat more contently than before. A small smile on their face already easing the champions. They had asked Macaque to give them space while they let the painkillers kick in. But it was eating their comfort food that was helping the most. And they seemed a bit self conscious about how they ate during this time. Like they were worried any of it would get on the champions if they got too close. Did they think themselves a messy eater? Not that any of them would have minded.

"Have you tried putting something warm on where it hurts?" Came Wukongs calm voice. But those who have known him could trace the concern for their Master.

"Mm. I have my hand on it." Their Master responded. But Red Son could hear the nervous twitch of Macaques tail.

"Is Master going to be okay?" Turning, he saw MKs usual blank stare shifting to concern as he poked his head out from the left side of the door opposite to the two monkeys. Then came Nezhas’ hand reassuringly ruffling MKs hair as he walked by. "Master will be alright. They know themselves enough to tell us if they need anything." The Pink champion assured him. Red Son spotted the way Wukong turned and looked at Nezha before he approached their Master. "You took the pain medicine over an hour ago, and you still look like you have discomfort. How long does it usually take for them to take effect?"

"Mm. If I distract myself then... An hour or two?" Their Master mumbled, hiding themselves behind their hand as they tried cleaning up their face. Maybe they felt self conscious in front of them? "I really am feeling better, I just... Dont want to move right now."

"Would it helped if you lied down?" Red Son offered.

"That would just keep the blood from flowing down." Red Son winced. He still remembered that morning, how quickly Macaque went from talking teasing Nezha to turning his head in the direction of their Master before diving into a portal. Nezha quickly went to their master and before Red Son could do anything, MK tugged on his cape and asked what a star meant on their Masters calendar the previous month.

Whatever panic was in him then had immediately drained. Macaque and Nezha looked like their Master was in mortal Peril. The prior had an expression like he had smelled their Masters Blood. Now Red Son knew why.

Ever since then, Red Son had been baking up chocolate treats and anything that he noted their Master had praised as their comfort food. And their Master kept an eye on the clock for when to take pain killers. Their usual schedule had been as soon as they woke up, around noon. And right before bed.

The other Champiosn offered other tips their previous masters had tried during this time. (The ones who experienced this endurance at least) and while Master looked like they were considering some, they didnt look like they were ready to explore anything then. "Thank you but, I think I just need to relax."

No matter how many times they experienced this, they always felt absolutely helpless for their master in these moments.

It didn’t help that it had been so hot they didnt even want to cuddle anyone. And Red Son could clearly see the effects that was having on Macaque.

Master opened their eyes and saw the line of worried faces surrounding them. Macaque and MK peering over the counter, Red Son across from them, and Wukong and Nezha standing nearby. They let out a soft sigh before sitting up. "Really though. Thank you guys. I appreciate it. I really do." And they could feel you were telling the truth. "Hey. Macaque. Why dont you share one of your stories? I get lost in the way your shadows move. I think it might distract me." Macaques face immediately lit up. And he began making preparations.

~

They all eventually found themselves with the Master sitting in the middle, MK laying his head on their lap and earning pets while Wukong sat beside them, his cloak placed over them, watching Macaque while Red Son found himself laying his head next to MK. Evidently. Their master had memories of family members laying on their lap. This soothed them.

And Red Son knew this was close to where their pain was. He could tell just laying here, their Masters pain was subsiding. Red Son closed his eyes contently as Macaques shadows changed the scene in a beautiful way. Enjoying this closeness.

"Nezha.” Came their Masters voice, much softer this time, no pain or discomfort. “You know you can enjoy this with us right?" He heard Master call, knowing they were smiling to the Pink Champion they had been wanting to loosen up a little more. The red champion opened his eyes to see the Pink Champion hesitate in entering the room. But eventually did. And Red Son knew their master was holding his hand thankfully. And he very much knew Nezha was happy.

Each champion had a moment of feeling their Masters hand. Petting MK, petting Red Son, squeezing Wukongs hand, and holding Nezhas.

By the end of Macaques play, Master had praised him happily. And Red Son didn’t have much time to move when the Purple champion last and nuzzled into their Master, nearly crushing him in the process.

[call-sign-shark]

Following the heart-wrenching posts of @red-riding-wood, @kittenonpluto and @aurorag98 I feel like I have to write this. By no means I have experienced traumatizing interactions with @mrkdvidal1989 aka Killian Vidal but this whole situation and what he did to girls here make me enraged.

First of all, I want to reassure all the beloved mutuals who have been reaching out to me or who have been worried about my well-being because they saw me interacting a few times with Killian. I am perfectly fine and I'm not much here this week because I have been working a lot.

As for my relationship with Killian... Well, we were barely talking to each other actually. I know I am bad at replying to my DMs but this is not the reason why I ghosted him -- I purposefully did so because, like many of you, the guy gave me the biggest red flags. We talked a few times, and he called me hot when he saw the gym pics/selfies I posted. He quickly suggested we meet together to go to the gym and watch horror movies during my stay in the UK and to this I replied positively while knowing I would never ever do so. Right from the start I suspected him to be a liar and I felt he had built up everything about his life. Also, I come from a military family with many relatives working in special units of the French Navy, and let me tell you something: I screamed at the thought of a former soldier (from the SAS!! lmao) spending all of his time writing reader-insert fanfic for a female audience and discussing with Cillian fangirls. I don't say it's impossible, but it's VERY unlikely.

To me, Killian was just an attention-seeking catfish I'd never meet and who I found both boring and childish. In my opinion, I thought he just wanted to have a small court around him to strut around, nothing more. I tried to search for info about him to warn people, I mean I even doubted he was a man... However, I found nothing plus he seemed to be IRL friends with a few mutuals here who actually chatted with him via phone so I didn't want to take the risk of spreading hate about someone just because of a gut feeling. Never in a million years, I would have imagined he was toying with girls from the Peaky Blinders community, collecting nudes, gaslighting/harassing them, breaking them into pieces, promising marriage, and going as far as to promise a life-saving medical treatment to a dear friend of mine. I am devastated by what I have read this morning, and "devasted" is not even powerful enough. Learning from Red that he talked about fucking me when we meet while we never talk about sex, never flirted or anything (we just small-talked once in a while lmao) might be a bit creepy but it's nothing compared to what he has done to girls here.

I am deeply sorry to all the people who have been hurt by his horrible actions and are now facing long-term consequences because of him, some of them being my close mutuals. I send positive vibes, love, and healing to every one of you who had to deal with this psycho. I know a lot of people have already said that but my DMs are opened if you need a safe place. The Peaky Blinders / Cillian Murphy community is a nice place, maybe the most welcoming place I've ever seen on the Internet but we should all keep in mind that it is not safe from ill-intentioned users and predators. Please stay safe and, for the victims, don't blame yourself. You haven't been naive nor stupid or anything. The only one to blame is the person behind Killian Vidal's persona, and for the evil you've done, I hope you'll get fucked with a chainsaw. Or just fucking rot in hell.

Shark.

[aurasoulhikari]

Zexal Month Week 2 Day 5: C is for Chaos

@zexalmonth Did I use this day to make the Barian Lore we never got from the show? Yes. Am I sorry? Hell no!

"Yuma don't touch the water!"

"Huh? Why?" Nasch or Shark, depending who's asking, sighed at Yuma who stood near a lake on Barian World and asked himself how he got himself in this situation.

'Oh yeah because no doesn't belong in his vocabulary.' Shark thought with a deadpanned expression. After the battle against Don Thousand and establishing peace between Astral World and Barian World with Yuma’s and Astral's help along with stabilizing the planet with the Numeron Code courtesy of Astral, Yuma had begged Shark to let him see Barian World now that the planet was decently safe for its citizens and outsiders. Shark had been unsure in bringing Yuma to his planet due to things he experienced there but Yuma assured him that compared to the time he went to Astral World it had been a walk in the park. (Shark didn't believe him for a second though given he saw Yuma's memories thanks to the resonance of his Baria Lapis and Yuma's Emperor's Key) So after much persuasion here he was acting as Yuma's guide to Barian World. And of course Yuma was driving him crazy.

"The waters are dangerous for Barians. It burns us. Who knows how bad it'll be for humans." He stated.

"But you and Astral helped fix things up with the Numeron Code, right?" Yuma asked. "So I'm sure it's fine."

"You’re too optimistic and a hazard to your health." Shark snapped. But he stayed close to Yuma as he kneeled down next to the water. Yuma carefully reached just barely touching the water surface and moved back.

"Well?" Shark asked.

"No burning but it is warm." Yuma admitted. "Come on, give it a try!"

Shark looked at the water suspiciously for a moment but then sighed. He did worked with Astral to make this place more safe for his people. Might as well test things out now then later. He reached and carefully touched the water just as Yuma said there was no burning but a warm sensation. He cupped the water for some to fill in the palm of his hand before letting it pour down his hand.

"Warm right?" Yuma grinned, making Shark glance at him and huff amused.

"Guess it is." He relented, moving his hand back. He waved his hands over the water letting his Chaos flow making it glow much to Yuma's awe.

"That was your Chaos, right?" Yuma asked.

"Yeah, I just wanted to make sure there was nothing dangerous in the water." Shark stated. Yuma looked at his best friend and a thought occurred to him.

"How does it all work for you guys?" Yuma asked. "I mean I get you guys aren’t entirely made out of energy like Astral so..."

"Well it's true we're not entirely made of energy like Astral beings but that doesn’t mean we don't need it either." Shark huffed, standing to which Yuma followed. "Barians have a Baria Crystal inside them that acts as our hearts in a way it’s also our Soul as well and keeps us alive with Chaos."

"But I thought you used your Baria Lapis to use Chaos." Yuma said, confused.

"It acts as more of a medium for us especially when we're in places that don't have chaos in the environment like on Earth." Shark explained. "The Lapis helps us control and refine our Chaos in use instead of just letting out a blast of it."

"Oh that would be bad." Yuma sweatdropped. "So then what about your bodies in general? It's not made of well flesh like me or energy like Astral."

Shark hummed and held out his hand to Yuma. He was confused that much Shark knew yet Yuma took his hand and grew wide eyed by the rough sturdy feeling.

"We're not made from organic matter but made and as hard as stone on the outside even our attire is a part of us and if we're damaged we can use our Chaos energy to reform our bodies hence why we have to stock up on Chaos energy inside us." Shark explained to an awed Yuma. "We also have veins but we refer to them as Chaos vessels that are attached to the Baria Crystal heart inside us and connect within our entire body. That's what allows us to move and such."

"But... Then how do you feel pain and stuff?" Yuma asked.

"You can think of our Chaos as a sensor with our Baria Lapis along with the smaller gems on our bodies." Shark replied, pointing at the one on his forehead. "And when connecting with someone close we would press our gems together to share our emotions, our memories, our very beings to one another. It's... The most open we can be."

Yuma looked awed looking at Shark as if staring at him for the first time and Shark had to admit it made him twitch but then Yuma paled as if something came to him.

"What?" Shark questioned.

"Ah.... Th-Then if the crystal that’s your heart...." Yuma began, as if afraid to ask. "If the Baria Crystal inside you shatters then.... Does that mean you..."

"Yes we would die." Shark confirmed with a solemn nod, making Yuma choke shaking. "But that's all the more reason why our bodies are what they are so that they won’t shatter."

That seemed to relieve Yuma a bit, sighing softly in relief to which Shark huffed fondly by Yuma's worry for his well-being per usual. He then patted Yuma's back, making the human yelp in surprise.

"Come on, that's enough exploring we should head back to the palace." He replied. "You said you wanted to meet Iris, right?"

Instantly Yuma brightened at the mention of the little Barian girl who was practically his best friend's daughter.

"Yeah! Do you think she'll be ok though? I mean she hasn’t exactly seen a human ever since she got here and plus I'm sure she's shy with strangers like Haruto was and."

Shark allowed Yuma to ramble, chuckling to himself his people were already made aware of this bright, hyperactive, and brave human who was close to their king and were just as curious about him as he was to them. And truly Shark couldn’t wait to introduce Yuma to the people he cared about as much as him.

[misc-obeyme]

CC, have you ever heard of precognitive/premonition dreams before? Basically, these are dreams that seemingly predict the future. I've had those "dreams" regularly while growing up until now. I drram certain situations, and then later in the future, the exact scenario occurs in real life. I almost never remember the dream until the event happened, and if I do, it's usually not in very good detail. They're sort of like snapshots, and whenever the event happens in real life, I am hit hard by a sense of deja vu. Days, weeks, or often months later, I'll just be living normally, and suddenly, I'll recall that I've "dreamed" the exact moment in the past.

So what if MC is the same...? Dreaming of the future events and then later occurring in real life. What if MC is a prophetic dreamer? And perhaps with their power getting stronger, they'll one day be able to dream of the future in great detail? I would probably ask Belphegor and/or Barbatos for advice.

Why yes, anon, I have indeed heard of such dreams. I've never experienced one the way you're describing it, though. In fact, I personally have only ever had one premonition dream and it wasn't that I was seeing what would happen, but rather depicting a really wild and exaggerated version of what would happen. Basically, I had a dream that I was house sitting for my sister. In the dream, her house was a mansion and had a huge basement that got completely flooded. The water was like a whole ocean and there were actual sharks in it. And then I house sat for my sister (in her normal sized house) and her basement flooded.

I'll also never forget the premonition dream my mom told me she had. She was taking a nap in the middle of the day and had a dream where she saw her father digging his own grave. She was woken up by the phone and it was someone calling to tell her that he'd passed away.

Anyway, so back to MC lol!

I definitely think Barbatos could help with navigating knowing the future. But Belphie could probably help with the dreams themselves. I wonder if Belphie ever has prophetic dreams? I bet he has a few times. And even if not, I think he could help soothe MC if they find the dreams too disturbing.

For instance, if MC's magic is getting stronger, thus strengthening the power of their dreams and allowing them to see the future in a lot of detail, they might find that it's too much for them. It could disturb their sleep enough that they no longer sleep well at all and it's just tossing and turning. It could be that they're only seeing a possible future or that they're seeing the future of multiple timelines as we know this game has those shenanigans to deal with, too.

Barbatos could give MC advice on how not to let their visions of the future control their actions in the present. Especially if MC also experiences time as a soup, what they see may or may not be relevant. And I think Barbatos would be able to help them sort of navigate the actual content of the dreams.

But I think Belphie would be able to help MC not have those dreams at all, if they didn't want them. Or if they've had a bunch of them and they need one night where they can rest peacefully. I'm imagining Belphie just cuddling into bed with MC and his presence alone is enough to sort of quiet that dream magic. But if it sneaks up, he's going to feel it and fight it. He might even go into MC's dream space himself so that he can keep those prophetic dreams at bay.

Maybe Belphie and Barbatos team up to determine the best way to help MC with these stronger premonition dreams. I can see Barbatos asking Belphie about the dream magic, wanting details about how it works so they can figure out how to counteract it.

In the end, they'll do whatever MC is most comfortable with of course. But I really love the idea of both of them protecting MC in their own way - Belphie by sleeping with them so he can protect them from those dreams and help them sleep and Barbatos by helping MC deal with the inevitable stress of seeing future events.

[not-so-rosyyy]

I am going to the philippines for about a month is there any places you would recommend. For the first two weeks we'll be based in manilla and then we might visit some other places in the country.

hi! sorry for answering this late. I'd like to say that Metro Manila is certainly not on the list of places I would recommend for tourists 😅 I love this city, it’s my birthplace and hometown, but I personally think the Philippines is best experienced outside of the capital.

still, since you say you're staying here for two weeks, these are the places around the metro that you can visit:

If you’re into art and museums:

National Museum of Fine Arts / National Museum of Natural History - they're close by each other so it’s possible to visit in one day

Ayala Museum - love their exhibits and dioramas

Pinto Art Museum - best for contemporary art; 1-2hrs from Manila depending on traffic

If you’re into culture and history:

Binondo Chinatown - oldest Chinatown in the world. pretty cool melting pot of chinese, filipino and western cultures. cheap food.

Intramuros – if you want a taste of the country during our Spanish colony era (NOTE: try to look for tours of Binondo and Intramuros so you’ll get the full experience and context into our history)

If you're into the nightlife

Poblacion, Makati

BGC

If you’re into shopping

Glorietta

Greenbelt

Mall of Asia

SM Aura

Greenhills

outside of Metro Manila, there's a loooot (and I mean, A LOT) of places to visit because we literally have 7,000+ islands lol. these are, I would say, a few of the easier ones for tourists to go to and enjoy:

Palawan – crystal clear waters, hidden lagoons, seafood. the landscape views here are BREATHTAKING, I swear you won’t regret it. go to either Coron or El Nido if you do choose to visit.

Siargao – lovely, laidback island globally known for surfing. the people and vibe here are perfect for those who would like to take a step back from the daily grind.

Bohol – white beaches, adventurous activities, natural wonders. you can find the Chocolate Hills and the Tarsier (also known as the world’s second smallest primates) Sanctuary here

Cebu – this province is huge so there’s lots of things (diving, whale shark watching, canyoneering: you name it) and islands to go to.

Boracay - okay, so this is perhaps the most popular beach destination here, so it's definitely more expensive than other places. the upside is it's also more developed and tourist-friendly (the nightlife on the island is great!)

there are pristine beaches and magnificent views here almost everywhere you go, and all the places I listed above are ripe with those. the Philippines is beautiful, and I hope you're able to discover even a portion of that beauty during your stay. enjoy your trip here!

*all photos in this post are NOT mine, i just stole them from google lol. credits go to all their respective owners*

[diningwiththeasquiths]

6 selfies of 2023 📸✨️

Some really good stuff happened this year. I went on two absolutely wonderful holidays (to Ireland and Southern Germany) with cherished friends. Achieved my dream of seeing basking sharks in the wild. Embraced my inner Barbie. And am now a permanent employee at the job I started at last year, which is a great position to be in.

Of course life isn't all pink and dinosaurs. My Crohn's disease started acting up again, increasing my fatigue and decreasing my appetite (don't worry, I love food so I'm still getting enough calories). Which meant another MRI and maybe a change in medication (will know more next week). Also lost some more muscle mass, and experienced hair loss due to my meds, doing wonders for my self-esteem (not). At prolonged times throughout the year I found it difficult to engage in fandom and family/friendships, feeling pretty apathetic and low, unmotivated, negative, lonely, self-hating and a lot less joyful than I used to be.

Luckily my neighbourhood coach took my mental state seriously and applied me for the Social Support Act, so I can get coaching from an organisation that specialises in coaching people with autism. (A lot of my self-loathing stems from feeling different/abnormal/socially challenged, also I struggle with finding balance between alone time and socialising, especially with the added Crohn exhaustion.) I'll be starting this January, and have been trying really hard not to fall back into another downward spiral because I'm sick of feeling that low. It's a daily struggle, but better mental health is definitely worth fighting for!

(Every second counts, after all. 😉)

[feylived]

——— BASICS ! ♡

NICKNAME : shelley

PRONOUNS : she / her, but also accepting of she / they

ZODIAC SIGN : leo sun, who knows what else

TAKEN OR SINGLE : perpetually single and happy that way

——— THREE FACTS ! ♡

i have had numerous types of animals over my lifetime, and in my childhood i had quite a little zoo of my own! my pets consisted of a dog, often a street cat, a turtle, green parrots, parakeets, a cardinal and all sorts of fish (': not all at the same time, but a lot of crossover between them!

i had planned, after high school, to go into early childhood education as a career, and then i worked with kids for ten weeks over the summer + at eighteen and it quickly made me change my mind on that (':

i swam with wild whale sharks! to this day it was still the most incredible experience i've had to date. one day i hope to do it again, and swim with other sharks!

——— EXPERIENCE ! ♡

i am pretty sure i started rping back in 2009/2010, on forums and pages of the like. my first ever fandom was a childhood favorite that i've long since cut ties with because of the author of the source material, but it introduced me to a new way of writing that wasn't fanfiction! a few years after that, i moved on to tumblr and have been here since! i honestly don't see myself leaving this platform any time soon, it's where i've been most comfortable for the longest

——— MUSE PREFERENCE ! ♡

i am a big fan of women who are unapologetically themselves and are complex. a lot of my characters are ones who are wrong and right, and are fiercely protective of the people they love, which is one of my most favorite things ever. i like to think there's a fair amount of diversity in who i write, but truly sometimes i think that it's also just people i like to see some of myself as! that, and i tend to write a lot of people who are siblings; whether or not it's because i'm an only child myself and just really am drawn to those sibling dynamics i haven't experienced first hand or there's just that level of fierce protectiveness i love, who knows, but! that's definitely something i've noticed.

——— FLUFF / ANGST / SMUT ! ♡

FLUFF : love it! i'm honestly a big fan of fluff, especially as a pallet cleanser of sorts. i love muses being happy and domestic and relaxed, but not all the time, you know? but like everything, it has it's time and place.

ANGST : angst makes me cry lol but i'll endure it for the sake of plot! i don't like angst just for the sake of putting characters through pain, but if it's to further a plot and character growth and arcs? absolutely!

SMUT : totally a-okay with it. some of the media that my muses are from are definitely pretty heavy on the smut scale, but like angst and fluff, it's got a time and place, you know? but sometimes it's a fun thing to write and not to have to think too much about! and especially with certain muses, they are very comfortable in the sensuality and sexuality and i'm more than happy to explore it. muses like isabelle are very sex positive and it's a big part of her character i won't deny. i just like to make sure we have some non-smut things going and make sure there's chemistry.

PLOT / MEMES : absolutely both!! i hoard memes like a dragon, and i prefer to go in with a bare bones plot idea and grow from there as we write, but i think plotting is absolutely the foundation of any dynamic! definitely doesn't have to be anything intense, and i don't like having everything planned out with no wiggle room for the muses to take their own path, but that's when i find memes are perfect! also, a great way of breaking the ice and seeing what characters have chemistry!

tagged by: i stole it, hehe tagging: your turn!

[luke-r-gillespie]

May 23 - Osaka / Kaiyukan Aquarium (Freeday) + Media Reflection

Freewriting

Today was another (and our final) full free day! It was a little unideal to have our two free days in Kyoto on days two and four in Kyoto, but it is what it is. I of course took full advantage of this opportunity to sleep in until 10 (I know, crazy stuff!) After rousing from my slumber, I ate two croissants (purchased from family mart yesterday,) before getting ready to head to Osaka with Zachary, Griffin, and Noah. Leaving the hotel, no one was super eager to navigate to Osaka, so I offered (rookie mistake on all of our parts to be honest.) I lacked the insight to find the aquarium's official name (Kaiyukan Aquarium) and assumed that Osaka Aquarium would be sufficient (it was not.) After about two hours of train rides, while waiting for our bus to "Osaka Aquarium," Noah decided to double check our destination and it turns out that "Osaka Aquarium" is a pet store about an hour away (by train) from the actual aquarium (oops.)

So, after catching ANOTHER train we arrived on the correct island and grabbed food in a shopping mall (which was probably the coolest mall I have ever been in) before heading into the aquarium. The island itself was super cool and had way more to do than just the aquarium, but we kept our eyes on the prize.

We split up in the mall and Zachary and I went to a beef place while Noah and Griffin decided on Wendy's. The restaurant we ate at was called ビフテキ (Beef Teki) and it was delicious (I have attached an image to rub it in!)

After eating, we finally went to the aquarium (roughly three and a half hours after out initial departure from Kyoto.) The aquarium was amazing (best aquarium I have ever been to hands down.) The standouts for me were definitely the penguins and whale sharks, although the seals doing tricks were also pretty cool.

We spent about two full hours exploring the aquarium before catching a few trains back to Kyoto (the journey back took significantly less time, I was not the one navigating.)

After getting back to Stay SAKURA, I chilled out for twenty minutes before grabbing dinner at a little place around the corner with Griffin and Zachary. No picture this time as I was pretty hungry and inhaled my food. It is now 10 and I plan on watching some TV for a little before getting an early night, as our meeting tomorrow is at 8:10 (meaning I will be waking up at 7:10.) Overall another eventful and fun free day in Kyoto!

Independent Excursion: Media Reflection (Jujutsu Kaisen & Kaiyukan Aquarium)

Jujutsu Kaisen is an extremely popular Japanese manga series (with an equally popular anime adaptation) written and illustrated by Gege Akutami. The series has been serialized in the popular weekly manga magazine, Shonen Jump since March of 2018. As of May 26 of this year, the well received manga has 261 chapters and is currently ongoing. Since 2020, Jujutsu Kaisen has been in the top four of Shonen Jump's most popular serializations, only losing out to One Piece for the first place spot for the past two years (2022 & 2023.)

I am a huge fan of Jujutsu Kaisen and after seeing Kaiyukan Aquarium and its iconic whale sharks be beautifully depicted in chapter 70 of the manga (as well as Season 2 episode 3 of the anime,) I knew this was a location that I had to visit while I was in Japan.

The section of the "Hidden Inventory" story arc that depicts Osaka, follows the main cast as they travel to Osaka to rescue a kidnapped character. Despite Jujutsu Kaisen being a Shonen series and centering around a fictious power system called "cursed energy," the series depictions of locations in Japan (such as all of Shibuya and much of Osaka) are extremely accurate. Much of the Japanese culture depicted in the show (by the high school and older aged characters) is also authentic to what I have experienced in my time here. After spending two weeks in Tokyo and two weeks in Kyoto, it is clear to me that Gege Akutami inserts his fictional characters into nonfiction settings. Perhaps this is a part of why his series is so successful in Japan, as well as in other countries.

Within the Osaka and Kaiyukan Aquarium sections of the Jujutsu Kaisen story, Riko Amanai is enjoying her final day of life with her new friends before she is to be absorbed (which is most likely to lead to her death) for the good of Japan and the world (within the world of the series obviously.) While walking in the aquarium and gazing at the whale sharks, she has an epiphany about how large the world is and how little of it she has actually seen up to this point. This ultimately leads to her making the decision that she wants to keep on living and see more of what the world has to offer. Below is the two page spread of Amanai walking past the whale sharks tank.

While in Japan, I have had a similar realization. Japan has totally changed my world view and opened my eyes up to how people live in other parts of the world. Prior to this trip, I had only traveled within Europe and the United States and all of the countries that I had visited had similar ideals to the United States and were set up in a similar way. Japan is the first major departure from this that I have experienced myself and it makes me excited about what else the world has to offer. Having struggled with my own mental health in the past, I relate to Amani's epiphany in seeing the beauty of things that were before, unbeknownst to oneself.

While at Kaiyukan Aquarium, I searched for the exact location of the manga panel that I previously mentioned. While I could not recreate the exact shot, I am still happy with the level of accuracy Gege Akutami provided within his work.

The vibe and feeling of the aquarium were dead on, aside from Amani being the only one there in the manga, as it was quite busy when I went (however, this is not an issue in the anime.) I would certainly say that Jujutsu Kaisen provided a reasonable depiction of the real world location, with almost no slippage between the media and reality.

[airyairyaucontraire]

Ever get your period a day or two before a trip and wish you could just shove the vacuum cleaner up there and get it all out in one go and not have to deal with that nonsense away from home and your own washing machine and so forth?

Look, I have to say I am not unappreciative for my good fortune in assorted ways but 2023 needs to pull its fucking socks up. First we spent the first week of the new year with COVID-19 cutting a swath through the household. My dad tested positive on New Year’s Day, his actual birthday. Long-time tumblies will be aware that my dad is a man of multifarious shortcomings but I really don’t think he altogether deserved that. So we’ve spent the week in semi-isolation with the weird feature that as the only adult who didn’t seem to get it, it’s like I’ve been quarantined in my room. (Tested negative daily the entire time, a rare feat for my generally very basic immune system.) There is nowhere to sit except the bed so I’ve basically been bedridden, while ACTUALLY PERFECTLY HEALTHY but endeavouring to avoid my closest relatives’ plague, and I’ve managed to fuck up the traitor muscle on the left side of my shoulder/neck/back axis due to inactivity/odd positions. The best thing that’s happened the entire fucking week is Little Nephew and I went out with masks on to buy Red Niece a new raincoat (Green Niece fits and loves his old raincoat but there’s only one of it) and had ice-cream/a milkshake before we went home, that was the fucking highlight. (Green Niece’s raincoat has a pattern of sharks. Red Niece’s raincoat has a pattern of butterflies and that is exactly what they are like as people.)

(It’s so interesting yet also sad to consider how different Little Nephew’s stillborn twin Harrison would have been from him, had he lived. I sometimes imagine two copies of Little Nephew scampering around here, but Harrison being as different from him as Red is from Green. I wish I could have known him and seen his individual ways. However, I also think “Christ Almighty, two sets of them would break us,” so it’s a bit of a thing all in all and I don’t share that thought with him or my sister obviously.)

My Red Niece comes to see me every day to demand an extremely specific My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic picture be printed off to be stuck to cardboard and cut out for her to play with rather than my sister having to source and purchase MULTIPLE discontinued toys from an earlier generation, and quite frankly even the current generation is not easy to find in New Zealand stores! We have been carefully preparing her psychologically for the fact that there is no printer at the beach house we’re going to for five days next week and she will have to make do with the ponies she’s got. I probably need to put in more time on this but it makes me a bit sad that other than describing the pictures she wants, she doesn’t really discuss FiM with me and as you know, I’ve got thoughts. And a purple wig I’ve worn to cosplay Human Rarity. I wonder where that is, or if I got rid of it in a fit of “The world has changed and this is never going to be my life again”? Because it was a cute wig and we’d make a swell Rarity and Sweetie Bell.

I’m sorry, you know I love Rarity (sobbing) so much

Also, am experimenting on myself and discovered that, per the neurologist’s suggestion, alcohol does reduce my leg tremor problem! Of course it also renders me unfit to drive and possibly to work, but that’s interesting to know, isn’t it!

And the weather’s been verily shit, so rainy, and forecast for rain every bloody day but one in the location we’re going to. There’s always hope for it to be nicer than forecast, I’ve certainly experienced that at times, but still, 2023, get your fucking act together! This is not good enough! You are going to be the Year of the Rabbit soon! Is this good enough for Sailor Moon? No! It is not!

And Little Nephew is having some manner of pre-pubescent hormonal surge that is apparently pretty common in eight-year-old lads and is on an emotional roller coaster which at times renders him dia-bleeding-bolical, my God, the fucking DRAMA

And I’ve just started my period and we’re going away the day after tomorrow

And I would just very much like 2023 to get its fucking shit together because it’s not easy for anyone but WE ARE BLOODY WELL TRYING

[dragonsarecool]

Whumptober Day 16 - Paralytic Drugs

Sixteen: Paralytic Drugs

A/N: Set between 'The Calculus Affair' and 'The Red Sea Sharks'. The paralytic drug chosen for this one-shot did exist during Tintin's lifetime, although I have played with the dosage that was traditionally used. Also the new longest oneshot so far!

It had been six months since Borduria, and nothing had happened.

No kidnappings, no assassination attempts, no Bordurian agents shooting down the front door; it had been surprisingly quiet.

He couldn't help it; he kept wondering when the next thing would happen. They'd become so used to having frequent adventures that living a normal, ordinary life seemed like a fever dream.

The young man found himself pondering this almost obsessively as he sat in the front living room, watching as the days passed by. Eventually autumn gave way and December came through, and he would sip his tea while counting the snowflakes that landed on the windowsill, unable to fully let go of his worries. Surely a criminal is going to burst through that window any time now…

Some would call it paranoia, others would say he was being hypervigilant; Tintin thought he was exerting the right amount of concern. The Captain would sometimes crack a joke at the young man's refusal to believe everything was okay. "You and your paranoia; you'd think you've got the FBI on your trail or something!"

Yet despite the jokes, the older man was deeply aware of how on-edge Tintin truly was. How could he not be, after all the things he'd experienced in his short lifetime? He still couldn't believe Tintin was willing to set foot outside his bedroom door at all, given how often he'd come close to being killed.

It came to Christmas Eve, and Tintin still found himself fussing over the lack of excitement. Upon enthusiastic advice from the Captain (which he would've described as harassment), he'd successfully applied for the first Christmas period off since he first joined the journalism industry. He quickly grew bored, his fingers dancing idly over his typewriter as he longed for a story to investigate.

But, like the Captain had continually reminded him, Christmas was a time for rejuvenation and relaxation. He'd even sent Nestor on holidays early, and instructed the man not to return until January 2nd.

Tintin just hoped it wouldn't mean he'd be stuck dealing with a blackout-drunk Captain for a week.

It had come as a surprise to the young man when Haddock announced in the late afternoon on Christmas Eve that he was going out. "I don't mean to the market or anything like that, lad," The Captain clarified, shoving his jacket on. "Just going for a stroll."

"But Captain," Tintin spoke, "you do realise it's only a few degrees outside?"

"And?"

Tintin blinked, trying to think of an appropriate response. "…Bit cold for a walk, isn't it?"

"Nonsense, lad! You forget that I once sailed on decks in this sort of weather!" Haddock adjusted his hat. "Well, I mean, it wasn't snowing in the ocean, but-"

"I think I understand, Captain," Tintin laughed, taking another sip of his tea. "Now go on and enjoy your fresh air."

Haddock snorted as he opened the front door. "Enjoy your window watching, my friend!"

Tintin laughed as he watched his friend depart, only to hide the fact that Haddock was unknowingly speaking the truth. So many threats had come through that front door over the years; it made sense to him that the best place to observe for danger was in the living room.

Perhaps I am being paranoid.

He continued to sit in the living room long after he'd finished his cup of tea. He hadn't realised how long he'd been standing guard until Snowy trotted into the room, sniffing his legs and whining. "Oh, of course! Must be dinner time for you, boy!"

With the faithful canine weaving in and out of his legs, Tintin made his way to the kitchen, shivering at the sudden drop in temperature as he entered the tile-coated room. He pulled the sleeves of his sweater over his hands as he sorted through the main pantry, looking for Snowy's favourite dry food. Makes me wonder how many layers Nestor has to wear when working in here.

Snowy gave a grateful bark as Tintin lowered the bowl of food to the floor, tucking in feverishly. The reporter smiled, returning the container to the pantry and brushing the crumbs from his palms. "De rien, mon garçon."

Upon returning to the living room, Tintin's eyes were immediately drawn to an open front door, and he felt his stomach drop. The Captain can't be home already…

He'd barely taken a single step before he felt a sharp prick in his deltoid. "Merde!" His hand instinctively flew to the area and began to massage it. Oh, no no no…Am I going to drop dead or what?!

"Such language, monsieur!" The mysterious man's voice carried a sharp French accent. Having already pocketed the needle and syringe, he firmly grabbed Tintin by the shoulders before the young man could think about running. "I hardly think it appropriate."

"Says the man who just broke in and jabbed me!" Tintin snapped, struggling in the man's grasp. His eyes widened with horror as he realised what his brain was trying to tell him. "…Why are my legs numb?!"

"I prefer no chloroform, monsieur. Makes the job unpleasant for both of us," The man commented, watching in delight as Tintin began to sag to the floor. "Instead, I give small dose of curare. Takes care of things very quickly."

I HATE criminals who prefer creative methods. Tintin could only watch in abject terror as his legs stopped responding to him, his anxiety beginning to peak as he felt the same sensation spreading to his arms and torso. "You're insane! You could kill someone with that stuff!"

"Same argument for chloroform, young man," The man hoisted Tintin underneath his arms and began to drag him across the living room. "But I have been in this business long time and know it very well. I assure you, I know what I do."

"You're a professional, then?" Tintin spat, wiggling his fingers in the vain hopes of stopping them from becoming paralysed. "What do you want with us?! There's not much of value here!"

"I assure, monsieur, there is plenty! You just do not see it," Grunting heavily, the intruder hoisted Tintin onto the couch, arranging his limbs as to prevent them from dangling over the edge. "You are heavier than first appear, monsieur."

"Et ton angles c'est merde." Tintin snapped, glaring at the man's features through his balaclava. He suddenly became aware of an uncomfortable pressure in his chest, and unconsciously found himself beginning to breathe faster. Please don't tell me this paralyses the diaphragm as well!

A coarse laugh escaped from the thief as he placed a cushion under Tintin's head. "Tu es un drôle d'homme. But please excuse me; I have work to do."

Tintin found himself staring into the man's piercing blue eyes, only to realise that it was because the muscles in his neck had stopped responding, and he was now being forced to gaze upright. "You won't get away with this! My housemate will return soon!"

He heard a scoff from the intruder. "I watch you closely for few days, monsieur. He will be gone some time."

The young man struggled to find an appropriate retort, partially because he could feel his jaw beginning to stiffen. He tried to hiss a final remark at the intruder, only for his mouth to fall closed as the paralysis took over. "Hmmgh!"

"No point grunting, monsieur. It paralyses vocals too," The intruder's voice had grown fainter, presumably due to beginning his treasure hunt through Marlinspike.

He stared dully at the ceiling as he waited for his assailant to finish his search, his frustration mounting at an alarming rate. I can't help but be genuinely curious as to what he finds so valuable that he has to break in.

Although it was a very rough guess, he estimated ten minutes had elapsed before he caught a glimpse of the man in his peripheral vision, carrying a full potato sack of stolen goods. "Not as much as I hoped, but still good profit."

Tintin instinctively tried to growl, only for nothing to escape his throat. You despicable bátard.

"I see your anger. But consider yourself lucky, my young friend," The intruder suddenly kneeled next to the young man, snarling so close to Tintin's ear that his breath sent a tickling sensation down his ear canal. "I purposely give small dose. I am a thief, not a killer. You'll be uncomfortable for a few hours, but you will not perish. None of my others have died."

Tintin could only widen his eyes as the severity of the situation sunk in. He felt himself grow cold all over. No no no no no! I can't be left like this! The Captain won't be back until dinner!

The intruder sniggered as he noticed Tintin's silent distress, and clutched his rucksack of stolen goods tighter. "Bonsoir, monsieur."

He heard the front door slam shut, and found himself blinking away a fresh flurry of tears. Oh, mon Dieu…

*****

If the paralysing agent didn't kill him, he was sure the boredom would.

He'd given up on counting the hours a long time ago. What was the point when you couldn't see the clock? Instead, he tried to rely on the hourly chime from the grandfather clock in the dining room, though it was ultimately useless due to the distance.

He'd been fretting with worry about Snowy until he heard the familiar screeching of the Captain's cat. Of course he's chasing the damn cat…probably hasn't even realised anything is wrong.

Tintin tried to sigh, only for it to come out as a slightly-louder exhale. When he said 'hours', did he mean two to three hours, or longer? I can't stay like this for a whole day!-

The front door was thrown open, revealing the most beautiful sound in the world. "Tintin! I'm home! And I hope you like English whiskey, for we're sharing a bottle of it tonight!"

Tintin blinked furiously, his heart leaping in his chest. Captaine! Help!

"Tintin? Where are you, lad?"

The young man's eyes snapped to the side as he futilely fought to look at the doorway. He desperately wanted to cry, to scream, to move even his eyebrows, yet none of his muscles would respond to his commands. I'm here! Captaine! I'm in here!

It took a few agonisingly-long minutes before the Captain had finally looked into the living room, for he heard the distinctive sounds of English swearing. "Blistering barnacles!" Haddock dropped his shopping and sprinted to the young man's side. "Is he alive? Tintin!"

Tintin found himself staring past the Captain's eyes, blinking furiously as he desperately tried to turn his head. I'm alive! Captain! Ugh, it's a shame he doesn't understand morse code!

Haddock was puzzled, but the message seemed to click quickly. "Can you speak?"

Two blinks. Obviously I can't!

"Okay, I'm going to take that as a no. Can you move at all?!" Haddock's voice pitched slightly.

Two blinks and an irritated exhale. What I wouldn't give to be a telepath right now…

The Captain placed a hand to the young man's cheek, turning him so that their eyes could meet. "Oh, lad, I'm so sorry…what the devil happened?!"

Tintin blinked. I'm just doing this for fun. What the hell do you think happened?!

"Right, of course. I'm going to have to work this out then. Was it…those Bordurian idiots who kidnapped Calculus?"

Two blinks.

"Allan Thomson and his gang of iconoclasts?"

Two blinks.

"Rastapopolos?"

All Tintin could respond with was a blink, and he felt as though his chest would burst with rage. This is going to get old very quickly.

******

Of course there was a once-in-a-century blizzard that had sealed Marlinspike off from the rest of civilisation, meaning the doctor couldn't come.

Of bloody course.

Had he been physically capable to do so, Tintin would've grumbled. Instead, all he could give the Captain was an irritated blink. Putain d'enfer…

At least the Captain had tried to summon some help for him; he was grateful for the effort. Despite being unable to come and treat Tintin in person, the doctor was at least smart enough to provide Haddock with advice on how to support him as the paralysis drug was metabolised from his system. "He said lots of words that I don't understand, lad, but I'm pretty sure it's not rocket science."

Tintin blinked. Mon Dieu, this better be over soon, or I will go insane…

He blinked again.

Hang on.

My hand feels different…

His curiosity building, Tintin tried to move the fingers on his left hand, a small ball of delight growing in his chest as he felt them collapse into a fist. Bien! It's starting to wear off! He flexed the digits a few more times, his confidence growing as he felt his muscles grow stronger.

He caught a glimpse of Haddock out of the corner of his eye, who was still occupied with cleaning up the fragments of the broken whiskey bottle from when he dropped his groceries. There's no way he'll look over and notice. Captaine! Focusing all of his energy into his hand, Tintin's eye lit up as he finally managed to snap his fingers.

"What the?!" Haddock jumped, dropping the broom handle in surprise. To Tintin's relief, he turned to face the source of the sound, his face lighting up as he saw the reporter's hand moving. Although his hand seemed to have returned to normal, his wrist was still half-paralysed and offered limited motion. "Blistering barnacles, Tintin!"

Satisfied with this first step in communication, Tintin concentrated as he tried to mime writing. Get me a notepad, Captain!

"You want to write something?" Haddock's voice was laced with confusion. "Lad, you can barely move that hand, let alone write with it! Just wait a bit longer and the doctor will be here-"

Tintin responded by clicking furiously and miming a pen. Get. Me. A. Notepad.

He heard the Captain sigh angrily as he darted from the room, returning a few minutes later with the requested utensils. He clumsily grasped the pen in his left hand, struggling to twist it around his fingers. 1 intruder. Was planned.

Haddock took a minute to interpret the scrawled handwriting. "At least it wasn't a gang of thugs this time, I suppose. Are you alright though?"

Ok. Will wear off. Curare.

"Really? Not chloroform this time? Why the hell did he give you that stuff?!" Haddock snapped angrily. Realising what his words implied, he quickly backtracked. "Not that I'm not glad you're awake, lad…it's just-"

Tintin attempted to grunt in his throat, and was pleased when a small sound managed to escape. I understand, Captain, and I'm just as surprised as you are.

He reached out as far as his paralysis would allow, clasping the Captain's hand in his own and giving it a reassuring squeeze. I'll be okay, Captain. It'll be okay. And I did have a genuine reason to be paranoid after all.

A/N: Bien = good

De rien, mon garçon = you're welcome, my boy

Merde = shit

Et ton angles c'est merde = and your English is shit

Tu es un drôle d'homme = you are a funny man

Bonsoir monsieur = good day sir

Putain d'enfer = bloody hell

[toughgirlchallenges]

Kalyani Lodhia - Visionary Explorer - A Freelance Photographer, Biologist, and Wildlife Filmmaker Uncovering Nature's Marvels.

In her own words:

“Hi! I'm Kalyani, a freelance photographer, biologist and wildlife filmmaker, born and raised in the city of Leicester, what felt like miles away from the countryside and the outdoors. 

With no role-models or influences in my life to steer me to the natural world, it's a mystery to my whole family how I ended up loving the outdoors and everything in it, but somehow I did. 

My love for nature fuelled me to pursue a BSc at the Royal Veterinary College where I studied a whole range of aspects of animal biology; from anatomy and physiology to behaviour and evolution. My research into kangaroo biomechanics and limb bone scaling was part of a paper published in the Royal Society Open Science in 2018. I then completed my MSc at Imperial College London, where I fell in love with science communication and story telling.

I first picked up a camera at 19 years old when my parents sent me to live in an ashram for 6 months (of course, as a teenager, I wasn't too thrilled at the prospect initially) and that's how I accidentally got into, and got hooked on, photography. I am self-taught and now specialise in travel and wildlife photography.

I love exploring the world, often travelling solo, and learning about different cultures beyond stereotypes. Having Indian heritage, I have a deep understanding of the need to look beyond imperialist and colonialist generalisations and I am able to truly connect with people around the world.

As a biologist, there's something so incredibly special about seeing the most breathtaking animals in their natural habitat and experiencing the sheer magnitude and magic of the world around us.

I have been fortunate enough to have been to the Kumbh Mela, the largest gathering of people on Earth, the forests of Finland to photograph brown bears and the depths of the South African ocean, surrounded by thousands of hammerhead sharks.

My photography work has been featured by UNICEF and the BBC and I have had the opportunity to have worked for Parmarth Niketan Ashram and Light for the World. I have also had footage featured on BBC AutumnWatch and one of my photographs was selected for the long list of the Natural History Museum's Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. I work full time as a freelancer on science and wildlife documentaries, where I am currently working as a researcher for the BBC's Natural History Unit on a landmark natural history series for National Geographic.”

***

New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday at 7am UK time - Hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. 

You can support the mission to increase the amount of female role models in the media. Visit www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast Thank you.

***

Show notes

Who is Kalyani

Her love for the outdoors and nature

Wanting to be a vet when she was younger

Being sent to India by her parents

Accidentally getting into photography

What did her daily life look like in the Ashram

The moment when it all came together for her and started to enjoy taking photos

Going back home and doing a 3-year science degree

Still unsure what she wanted to do

Getting her Master's at Imperial Science Media Production

Working in a restaurant

How did she get her first job in The Great British Bake Off

Starting out as a runner and what she does

Taking every opportunity that is given to her

How does she cope with the stress

Her trips to other countries and what was it like for her

Her main job as a wildlife filmmaker

Working on a big series for National Geographic

Interesting place in Africa called Mauritania

Doing a shoot for three and a half weeks with a small crew

Why she's less tired than many others and her exhaustion-coping advice

Biggest challenges she's faced and had to deal with

Kalyani's trip to Iceland and why it was one of the best wildlife moments for her

Taking a trip to Finland for her birthday

Diving in the South African ocean with the hammerhead sharks

Climate change and figuring out shoot dates

The reality of nature

Where to find more information about Kalyani

Top tips and advice

  Social Media

Website: www.kalyanilodhia.com

Instagram: @kalyanilodhia 

Twitter: @kalyanilodhia

  Check out this episode!

[whisperofsong]

Among The Stars

Chapter Fourteen

Pairing: Riff x Latina! Reader

Summary: Olivia’s presence at the rumble changes everything.

*Disclaimer: Thank you so much for your patience as I developed this chapter. Although I initially experienced some writer’s block, distancing myself from my writing proved to be fruitful as my vision for this chapter unfurled. This is the final chapter; however, I will be releasing an epilogue as well. The creation of this story has been a wonderful journey and resulted in incomparable joy. I hope you recognize how grateful I am for all of you for taking a chance on a girl with an affinity for WSS and, most of all, Mike Faist💛

____________________________________________

Olivia’s POV

I peer around the corner and behind towering mounds of salt, I spot the respective gangs. Riff and Bernardo are currently in a stand-off position and this is my cue if there ever was one.

Therefore, I step out from behind the partition and shout, “NO!”

Multiple guys snap their heads in my direction. While several men are shocked by my presence, one person’s shock stands out among the rest: Riff’s.

I briskly walk towards them and once I’m only a couple feet away from Riff and the others, I repeat, but in a meeker tone, “No.”

All eyes are fixated on me. Some are dumbfounded, some are bewildered, and others are amused. However, one pair of eyes is so intense that it’s almost as if they have X-ray vision: they can see right through me and recognize that my bold move is nothing but an act.

“Olivia…” Riff begins, gulping rather loudly. “What…what are you doing here?”

“Someone must a blabbed,” Ice guesses, glaring at the Jets. The others begin examining each other’s expressions, perhaps to determine whether anyone’s face may reveal the culprit.

“I told her,” Riff declares firmly, his eyes refusing to leave mine.

“What?!” A-Rab shouts. “Why the hell did ya do that?” he asks indignantly.

Hesitancy hangs in the air before Riff speaks again. “Because I wanted to be honest just like I want to be honest now.” Riff reluctantly tears his eyes away from mine and I wince, knowing what this honesty entails.

Riff slowly turns to face his Jets, his features pained and taut. “Olivia and I have been seeing each other…for almost two months.”

Waves of shock wash over the gang members’ faces, but all the Sharks are immune to such a reaction as they have been cognizant of this for a little while. Although they’ve had time to process the distressing news, they’re no more accepting of it.

Riff continues. “We’re in love. I know it’s crazy and neither of us saw it comin’, but it happened.”

“You’ve gotta be kiddin’, Boss. I mean…a Puerto Rican?” A-Rab is incredulous.

“You seriously in love?” questions Balkan. “Sure it’s not just…convenient or somethin’?”

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life,” Riff confirms.

Bernardo approaches Riff, merely inches away from his face, and stares into his eyes, searching for something. What it is he’s searching for…I can’t be sure of.

“What exactly are you trying to prove?” Bernardo’s low voice is ominous.

Riff’s eyes morph into slits. “That I’m serious about Olivia.”

Bernardo smirks before bowing his head in thought. “And what exactly have you done to show that? Allow your animalistic Jets to assault her? Tear her away from her family? Deface a point of pride in our community, the one she also belongs to?”

Before Riff can reply to Bernardo’s words, I intervene and press my palms to their chests. “Stop. I don’t want any of this.”

“You can’t always get what you want, Olivia. That’s part of growing up,” Bernardo states in a patronizing tone.

“Don’t speak to her like that,” Riff warns.

The Jets and Sharks alike are intently observing the interaction unfolding, enraptured by two dominant personalities fighting for position.

“Don’t act like you know her best. Weeks are nothing in comparison to years,” Bernardo practically growls.

“And yet…” Riff muses, standing up straighter, highlighting his lean figure. I look at him warily, apprehensive at the hint of smugness embedded within his voice. “I still know her better than you do. Ironic, huh?”

Bernardo sets his jaw. “You’re a distraction. A nuisance. Nothing more.”

Riff licks his lips and then proceeds to purse them. “Would a nuisance be in her bed, Bernardo?”

I gasp and step to the side just as Bernardo prepares to punch Riff. However, Riff maneuvers out of the way at just the right time before his fist collides with Bernardo’s chiseled jaw.

“Stop it!” I shriek, but when I attempt to advance towards them and put a stop to the madness, Diesel grabs me roughly, preventing me from intervening. I thrash in his arms, but I’m no match for his strength.

Hot tears spring to my eyes as Bernardo pounces on Riff, dragging him to the ground, his fist having no mercy on the man I love. However, Riff gains control and begins pounding Bernardo, the sheer force of it practically ricocheting off the walls of the salt shed.

Roars of encouragement and outrage are heard from the Jets and Sharks respectively as they witness their leaders engage in a heated brawl.

I’ve given up on trying to break free from Diesel’s grip and release a guttural cry that interrupts the frenzied fight, causing Riff’s fist to pause in midair. He turns around to look at me while breathing heavily and my tortured eyes communicate with his, instantly causing them to soften.

Riff’s gaze returns to Bernardo and he slowly brings his enclosed first down. He gradually rises from the ground and stands up, peering down at Bernardo’s now bloody complexion.

My sniffling seems to echo in the large space, but aside from this sound, it’s silent. Widened eyes, perplexed expressions, and leering looks are targeted at Riff.

Riff scans the faces surrounding him, a thin stream of blood trickling from his nose. “I…I can’t do this,” he says quietly. His words are almost inaudible.

“What?!” Ice shouts. “Riff, you’re gonna walk away from this? After everything we’ve been through?!”

Riff chuckles, but his laughter isn’t accompanied by a trace of humor. “Months ago, all I saw was red. I was angry and could only think of waging war against the Sharks. I had no direction, no where to really go, so I thought I might as well head into battle.” He exhales loudly, frustration apparent in his release of breath, frustration aimed at himself.

“But then I met Olivia.” His eyes are now focused on me and Diesel, still holding me firmly within his grasp, looks down to study me.

“She had us all pegged from the very beginning, but she didn’t write me off like everyone else in this city. She actually wanted to learn about me and proved she gave a damn about what happened to me. I didn’t think I was worthy of a woman like her and I still feel that way sometimes, but…I know that if I do any more damage here tonight, there won’t be a question about whether I deserve her.” He quickly wipes the blood from his face and smears it against his jeans. “I won’t deserve her and that’ll kill me. It really will,” he affirms.

I’m in awe. This man just poured his heart out in front of the people with whom it’s most dangerous to be vulnerable. He did this for us. I shrug out of Diesel’s now loose grip and approach Riff, his head hanging low.

Cupping his face in my small hands, I urge Riff to meet my gaze and his eyes are desperate, morose, and wanting.

“Thank you,” I whisper, leaning my forehead against his. The faintest hint of a lethargic smile flashes across his face and I close my eyes, basking in his public revelation.

“So we’re nothing now?” Diesel voices.

“What happened to womb to tomb, Riff?” A-Rab questions.

“He’s done with us now, boys.” Ice is calm on the outside, but fuming on the inside. “It’s up to us to finish the job.”

Ice advances towards the Sharks, but Riff moves me to the side before thrusting an outstretched arm in front of his peer.

“Ice,” Riff firmly states. “Don’t.”

“Fuck you,” Ice spits.

Several of the Jets suck in a breath at this and even a couple Sharks exchange surprised glances.

“What’d you just say to me?” Riff asks.

“You heard me. As far as I’m concerned, you handed over your balls the day you got with her. Where I come from, brotherhood means somethin’ and isn’t compromised because of some chick.”

“She’s not just ‘some chick’ and you know it,” Riff spits. “I love her and I’m not turning my back on you or the rest of the Jets for that matter. But the fighting? I can’t do it anymore.”

“Then step aside and let us do what we came here to do,” Ice says in a foreboding tone.

“You really wanna risk your lives? For territory? Brotherhood does mean somethin’ to me and because of that, I’m not willing to face the possibility that you or one of the guys or even…” Riff hesitates and glances behind him, eyeing the Sharks, who are all frozen in place, stupefied. “Or even a Shark might die. I don’t want that on my hands.”

Bernardo steps forward now. “I’m not falling for your little act. If you think I’m going to revere you for-“

“It’s not an act, Bernardo,” Riff asserts. “I still think you’re an asshole and I know the feelin’s mutual, but…I ain’t gonna fight you.”

Bernardo recoils, Riff’s words packing more of a punch than his flying fists. “You propose we live in peace? After the hell you and your filthy Jets put us through?”

“I propose we come up with a new plan.”

“Riff, we can’t make a deal with the Spics!” shouts Balkan.

“You’ve lost ya damn mind!” A-Rab proclaims.

“What’s this new plan?” Bernardo asks, ignoring the Jets’ commentary.

“We establish new parameters. You’re free to roam our streets, but the basketball court is completely off limits. As for Doc’s…no hangin’ around there after 7 p.m. My guys and I agree to leave your community alone. No more tamperin’ with the businesses and your mural.”

Bernardo carefully contemplates Riff’s words. “How can I trust you?”

“I’m mainly doin’ this for Olivia and me and where she’s involved, there ain’t no going back on my word.”

Riff extends his hand and it remains suspended in the air. Bernardo exchanges looks with his fellow Sharks before returning his gaze to Riff. He firmly shakes Riff’s hand and both men stare at each other intensely. When they release each other’s hands, Bernardo summons his men.

However, the Sharks remain rooted in place, evidently reeling from the truce that occurred moments ago. “Nos vamos ahora!” Bernardo booms. (We’re leaving now!). Upon this gruff command, the Sharks mobilize themselves and head out of the salt shed, not one of them looking back at their adversaries.

Their footsteps become more distant until silence falls over the salt shed once more. I allow my head to fall onto Riff’s chest and take a deep breath in the aftermath of one of the most unsettling experiences of my life.

He plants a tender kiss on my temple and wraps an arm around my waist in a protective manner.

“This has to be some sort of joke,” Diesel remarks. “I mean…you and Olivia? Seriously?”

I swivel my head so that I’m now facing the Jets while continuing to lean against Riff.

“Serious as a heart attack,” Riff replies. He looks down at me and grins, causing my heart to leap. “She’s my girl.”

If it was possible to melt, I would have at this exact moment.

“What does this mean for us?” asks Baby John sheepishly, appearing lost and a little disheartened.

“It means things need ta change.” Riff pauses and peers down at me, a soft stoicism reflected on his face. “I’m still the leader and you don’t have to like it, but you need to respect my decision. We’re done messing with the Sharks.”

“They ain’t innocent!” A-Rab guffaws. “Have you forgotten that already? Has she turned ya brain to mush?” A-Rab’s inflection signals his disdain for me, causing me to slightly bristle. However, it’s not slight enough because Riff notices this.

“Hey.” Riff’s deep voice startles a couple of the Jets. “I never said the Sharks were innocent. They’ve done plenty a shit, too, but they probably wouldn’t have done a lot of it if it weren’t for us anatagonizin’ them. I’m not saying we’ll be buddies with them or neighborly by any means.”

“Then what are you sayin?” Ice’s voice is laced with curiosity.

“I’m saying we’ll be civil. Keep the peace. I can’t speak for all of you, but I want more outta life and fighting with the Sharks ain’t going to get me that.”

The others seem to contemplate Riff’s words and I can’t help but stare at Riff, developing a newfound reverence for him. It’s apparent he’s committed to changing and my heart swells with pride at the thought of this commitment stemming from his ardent love for me.

This morning, I believed Riff and I reached the end of our story and pondered how I could forge ahead with my love for him weighing me down. Now, only hours later, my confidence in our love has been restored and it’s in this moment I recognize that forever is inevitable for us.

“Are the Jets over?” Baby John asks and the remaining Jets swivel their heads in Riff’s direction, anticipating his response.

A small smile spreads across Riff’s face. “Of course not. Womb to tomb is forever,” he affirms. While a couple of the guys nod, others give skeptical looks, but no one utters another word.

“I’ll catch you guys later,” Riff says before wrapping his arm around my waist and tugging me forward with him.

“Olivia, wait.”

When I halt and turn around, I see Ice is the one who called my name. I’m puzzled as to why, but linger in my spot and Riff waits with me.

“About…what happened. What I did…” Ice hesitates and it’s evident he’s uncomfortable as he’s struggling to formulate a sentence. “I’m sorry,” he says, his eyes serious and his tone sincere.

Although his apology isn’t the most heartfelt one I’ve ever received, it’s something and truthfully, I didn’t expect I’d ever get one from him. I realize that if I wasn’t Riff’s girlfriend, Ice wouldn’t have even bothered, but I’m pleased Ice sees the error of his ways, regardless of the circumstances propelling him.

“Thank you,” I say. Riff nods beside me and I know this is his way of acknowledging what Ice has done.

Riff and I exit the salt shed, our shoulders lightened after discarding the burdens with which we entered. “Come on,” I say. “Let’s go back to my place and get you cleaned up.”

Wordlessly, he leans to brush his lips against my cheek and gently nuzzles my neck before pulling away and looking straight ahead as we head to my family’s home.

Our apartment is enveloped in darkness when we enter and I’m grateful that Papi is working the night shift as he would likely be awake if he were here. I pull Riff into my room and instruct him to wait on my bed while I retrieve the mini first aid kit we keep in the bathroom.

When I return and flick on the light, I wince as I take in Riff’s features. There’s a nasty gash on his cheek along with dried blood that gathered underneath his nose.

“Look at you,” I breathe and kneel down in front of him. I soak a cotton ball in disinfectant and press it firmly against his cheek. He sharply inhales, indicating it stings, and closes his eyes as I attend to his wounds.

“Ya know, I like you takin’ care of me,” he admits, shooting me a cheeky grin.

“I prefer to be taking care of you in other ways,” I sigh, dropping the now soiled cotton ball.

Riff opens his eyes and smirks.

I playfully shove his shoulder. “Not like that, Riff.” I remain kneeling in front of him and look down at my hands, wringing them and chewing on the inside of my cheek.

“I’m sorry, baby,” he says.

This pulls me from my thoughts and causes me to meet his eyes. “What?”

“I’m sorry,” he repeats. “For all the trouble and pain I’ve caused you. You were right about what you said this mornin’. All of it. I’m glad you said those words to me because I needed ta hear them…no matter how brutally honest they were. And I’m sorry about tonight-“

“Hold on.” He’s taken aback by my interruption, but I can’t allow him to continue.

“Look. I don’t rue what I said to you this morning and I appreciate your apology. But apologizing for tonight? That’s just crazy. You took a huge step tonight. I mean, risking your position for me? Choosing to potentially lose the Jets’ respect, which I know means everything to you? Professing your love for me in front of everyone? Riff…I’m touched.”

He bows his head bashfully and bites on his lip before slowly returning his face to mine. God, who gave him the right to look this good without even trying?

Riff gingerly reaches for my hands and draws me up and into his lap, circling his hands around my waist once I’m right where he wants me.

“I meant what I said tonight,” he states in a low voice. If I were to lose you, I’d never make it. You and me, Olivia? We’re forever, baby. You can laugh if you want because let’s face it, I don’t know much, but I do know that I’m in love with you and want to create a life with you. You said it yourself: I belong with you and you belong with me.” He briefly pauses before asking, “What does rue mean?”

I chuckle. “It means to regret.”

“Oh,” Riff replies in an embarrassed tone, his cheeks transforming into a light shade of pink.

I slide my hands over his face and move in to kiss him. Although I intend for it to be a brief and modest kiss, Riff has other ideas. His tongue swipes my bottom lip before gaining access to my mouth and lying me down on my bed.

He kisses with me such urgency, as if the world is only seconds away from ending and this is his final chance to demonstrate how much he loves me.

“Riff,” I pant and place my palms against his chest.

“Yes, baby?” He nibbles on my jaw and it takes everything in me not to dismiss what I’m about to say and let him have me.

“We can’t. Not with my mom in the other room.”

He groans and drops his head on my chest in a disgruntled state. With one final peck on my lips, he hoists himself up and brings me up with him.

“So listen,” he begins, scratching at the nape of his neck, which he only does when he’s nervous about something.

“Yes?”

“I wanna come by tomorrow mornin’ and talk to your parents. Formally. They need to be reintroduced to me and know that what we have isn’t a joke to me. I’m all in and they need to be aware of my intentions. Plus, they’re my future in-laws, so it would be really stupid to be on bad terms with them.”

My heart begins beating rapidly and I blink several times. “In-laws?” I repeat, a bit dazed.

“Olivia, I’m serious about forever. That means marrying you some day. Waiting for you at the end of the aisle. Sayin’ our vows in front of your family, Theresa, and my guys. Getting a place together. Makin’ babies. All of that is what I want with you.”

I sink into his arms and securely wrap my arms around his waist. “I want all of that, too, Riff. More than you know.” I hold him a little longer before whispering, “I can’t wait to be your wife someday.”

Riff leans his head on top of mine and turns it so that he’s now facing my adorned bedroom wall. He releases a satisfied sigh and when I glance up, I notice a framed photo on the wall has captured his attention.

He steps away from me and moves closer to it, evidently intrigued.

“What is it?” I ask as I step closer myself.

“This quote of yours. I noticed it the first time I came here.” The quote to which he’s referring says: “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”

“The quote makes it seem like the moon is what someone should ultimately aim for and the stars are just a consolation prize for missin’. But with you, Olivia?” He shakes his head. “I don’t need the moon when I’ve got you. When I’m with you, I feel as if I’m already among the stars. Your light is exactly what my darkness needed and I’ll never get enough of that light.”

Tears well in my eyes and I don’t even attempt to conceal my glossy eyes from Riff. Instead, I fall into his arms effortlessly and he pulls me in, lifting me up in his arms while I wrap my legs around his waist.

“Never letting go,” I mumble against his chest.

“I’m holding you to that,” he whispers.

@inkandpen22 @riffheartsgraziella @loverisi @westsidelegendary @sondheim1fan @ilovey0us0 @grxceordxr @dellaspinstales @jillo0315 @drowninginaseaofbooks @theforgottenmcrmy @shitemylife @disguisedbassethound @mixed-theater-faisty-tings @b-bella9 @riffaist

[rcksmith]

Heaven — Five Hargreeves

Request: “Can I get 53, 31, 48 from fluff and 28 and 29 and 68 with heavy smut? Where Five is an emotionless Assassin from the commission and does his job without remorse or mercy until he meets the reader and he will do anything to make her his? And will kill anyone who gets in his way between him and the reader? If your okay with this!”

Fluff prompts:

31. “I wasn’t lying when I said that I loved you.”

48. “nothing else matters except for you.”

53. “There are no limits when it comes to you. I’ll do anything to keep you safe.”

Smut prompts:

28. “Such a needy little thing, aren’t you?”

29. “I didn’t know you were so sensitive.”

68. “Say my name over and over again and, once you think you’ve said it loud enough, scream it. I want the whole neighborhood to know who’s making you feel good.“

A/N: We not tolerate any pedophilia here !!

I write about Five with their 20s. I write the same about the characters of Harry Potter.

My God, I loved it so much!! Thank you so much for request, I loved writing it!💖💖 I hope you like!

Guys, I really understand who doesn’t feel comfortable reading or writing Five’s smut. But I always say that I only write with him (any genre: romance, fluff or angst) with the notion that Five is 20 years old here. All of my fanfics mention swearing or sex, even if it is a memory or something shallow, but as I am writing with Five as an adult, it is consistent that the fic has aspects of an adult life.//

English is not my first language, so I so sorry if have a mistake.

Requests are open. Love you ❤️

Couple: Five Hargreeves / Fem! Reader.

Warnings: SMUT, SMUT, bad words, blood, murder, mention of death (and sooo explicit heavy smut), fluff too.

— — — — —

He was not a saint.

The trail of blood, bodies and the smell of death he had left behind could terrify even the strongest mind. He could get the devil to run.

He has already broken many bones, but none of them were his own. Once, there was an army, he was alone, and he broke many bones.

He was not a saint.

If there was a note for death and danger, it would be his symphony of life. Echoing and constant whenever the viscous and metallic liquid stained him white shirt.

Five Hargreeves did not consider himself a good person. But he didn't think he was bad too. He was just minding his own business. Even if it meant killing the innocent people that the Commission was ordering.

It was ironic. Five had been raised by Reginald to be a hero, to save people, and what he was doing was just the opposite. Was Needed cold blood, a focused mind, an objective.

Five had a closed and serious countenance. And in his case, the book could very well be judged by the cover, because Five it was also closed and serious inside. He It had the typical soul of a storm and a rough sea, where the wind blew with fury and the rain punished, while the sea was brutal and with aggressive waves capable of swallowing up a city in its entirety.

Anyone could see the warning sign hanging from his chest: "GIVE UP ALL THE HOPE IF YOU ENTER HERE." He was advancing with heavy artillery. Five was heavy artillery. The Commission considered he best of the best.

Five Hargreeves could get the devil to run. Nobody couldn't fool him, hook him, he wasn't a trout. He was a shark, dangerous and big. With a sharp and cruelly intelligent mind. Working in an equally sharp and cruelly intelligent environment.

But none of that bothered him. Five did not fear the fury of the Commission or its representatives. Machiavelli said that: you can only insult the other if you are not afraid of his retaliation. And Five feared no one. When angry, he had the same caustic look that Lucifer threw around shortly after The Fall. And it was a surprise that that look did not leave a trail of rubble wherever it passed.

Five did not liked what he job did, but it did not affect that he was very good at it. He had been anesthetized for years. Submerged in an inertia of emotions that not even the largest number of victims could tremble. He was already convinced that his furthermore emotions were buried as deep as possible in his soul of the troubled sea, lost. Such as Atlantida. Perhaps, like Atlandida, his emotions were a myth.

And Five had already accepted that. Even he sets eyes on you.

It was another routine day of that profane work: finding the target, shooting down, not leaving witnesses and leaving. And that was exactly what would be done. If it was not you.

Five was seated at one of the tables at a local Irish bar, the glass filled with cold beer set in front of him. The rays of the sun, from a year that he did not even care to know more about, were entering inside the large windows that overlooked the busy streets. People's humorous conversations filled that place with bright, welcoming walls, but Five felt none of it. Anesthetized.

But for some reason, when the door bell rang when someone came in, he raised his face towards the door and... his breath was gone.

The moment you walked through that door, Five knew it was hopeless for him. Your beauty was blinding. Sublime. Impressive. He felt as if his whole life had been wandering in the desert and finally found his oasis. Lepid, fierce heat swept Five's body from the top of his head with night-black hair to the tip of his feet.

You wandered your eyes around the place, and you seemed to find what you wanted because your eyes softened and you went towards your goal.

But just as Five was oblivious to the world because of you, so were you oblivious to the world, but for something else. And it was like this, oblivious, that you hit your waist on the front end of Five's table, causing his glass to swing and fall on the table, pouring all the beer on the floor. Five stood up quickly to keep from getting wet, but a few splashes of the cold drink had hit his suit.

“Oh my God, I'm so sorry!”

You said promptly, trembling hands quickly lifting the glass from the table, your voice nervous and embarrassed. You righted his table while the waitress came to clean up the spilled liquid.

“I wet your suit, god, I'm so sorry.” And when Five noticed,your hands were drying the beer droplets with a napkin.

That was when the two of you looked at each other for the first time. The heat immediately gave way to a cold sweat.

Something inside him stirred and woke up, something that had been dormant for years. Sensations that had never before appeared now snaked through his body, waiting for the best time to hang him. Even with a layer of clothing and a napkin, Five felt the warmth of you touch, and he wondered if you had been forged in the sun.

Dangerous. The sensations you aroused in him were dangerous. And therefore, you were dangerous.

“It's all right.”

If it had been anyone else, Five would have burst. His moods were not one of the best and he felt that anything could set him on fire.

But apparently, not for you.

That afternoon, Five convinced you to join him, saying, whit charming, he would forget about the incident if you sat with him.

He tried to convince himself not to do that, that he should just give a mocking smile and leave. He had done this millions of times, and he knew it was one of the best ways to avoid headaches. Even so, the smile didn't come and he couldn't turn his back on you.

The sensations you stirred up in him were addictive, and Five was lost in a hurricane, trying to understand what was happening to him. But he couldn't let you go. Not without knowing his name.

But it took on proportions that he never considered. You were funny, witty, with an intelligent, warm gleam in your eyes. At that moment, while Five found himself really enjoying someone's company instead of just tolerating it, he felt out of his own body.

God, he was losing track of reality.

He had a job to do, a person to finish. The list was full but... but his body didn't order any muscles to move. It was like... while you were talking to him, with an extraordinary friendliness and ease of making friends, he felt alive for the first time.

Five had been alive for 25 years. But only now did he feel his own heart beat.

But when your time inevitably came, and you said goodbye and thanked you for the lunch that Five and you had — he didn't even remember how the situation got there. Since when did he have lunch with someone? — As soon as you left for that door, it took with you all the new feelings that were aroused within him.

Executing the target that day was weird, going to Motel's room was weird, and cleaning the blood was weird. There was something different, a shortness of breath, an itch in the palm of his hand, his body desperate for something he didn't know what it was.

Five Hargreeves stayed in that martyrdom for days, weeks. He was trying to understand his own body, his own mind. He felt he was losing his sanity and that the body, now that he experienced what it was like to be alive, repudiated the feeling of feeling dead.

He was trapped in some damn spell that you had cast on him. If Five looked in the mirror at the place of the chest you touched over his shirt, he could feel his skin tingle.

Fuck, he was losing his sanity!

The situation was stupid, he didn't need anyone, he didn't depend on anyone. But after the second week Five found himself returning to that bar again, feeling completely stupid to be looking for someone he barely knew.

What a stupid thing. He said to himself as soon as entered that place.

But that's when he saw you. With the bar uniform on, you hair tied up in a ponytail with a few strands dangling from your face, your chest slightly heaving, a pad of paper with a pen in hands. His heart skipped a beat, as if he found something he didn't even know was lost.

Five felt lost amidst a jumble of thoughts and reactions. But as soon as you saw him, with a smile was purely sincere and happy appearing on you lips and went towards him, the answers to all the questions that plagued him for weeks flashed in his mind like neon lights:

I want her.

He wanted you since the day he saw you. You were beautiful, with a maddening body, a sublime smile and the heat of a thousand suns. Now Five realized that had never wanted anything so desperately in his life.

Five thought he understood the desire: an attraction, a magnetic current between two people. He thought he knew what lust was: an intense hunger, a strong yearning. And he found out that he didn't understand anything.

For when you embraced him and greeted him with a kiss on the cheek, the desire was a hot, black whirlwind that ripped you from end to end, with dizzying speed, and dragged you towards perdition, below any intellect. Five thought he was going crazy when he felt your heart beat next to his, in the same frantic rhythm. The same compass needed.

But Five was not going crazy. He wasn’t crazy when he saw your cheeks flush when he looked at you more carefully, he wasn’t crazy when he noticed your hands trembling slightly with his presence.

Were you feeling the same things?

Yes. And he found that out when first kissed you. It had been a few weeks since he had used, for himself, the excuse that he was going to that bar just to drink something and not to see you again.

But that was not how you two met that day

Five had just finished a job that did not end soo much great. A fight had taken place, and a bullet had grazed his left shoulder, tearing through the flesh. His clothes were flooded with red, thick, metallic liquid. His muscles ached and the wound stung like hell.

He was on his way back when the car popped loudly, the car stalled in place and smoke began to rise from the bikes.

“You gotta be fucking kidding me!” Five punched the steering wheel, cursed the Commission for making such a damn fuck thing available.

He had just gotten out of the car when a car passed by and stopped.

“Five?” This time, his body throbbed for something else instead of pain.

He saw you get out of the car, your eyes shocked, the livid concern on your face, your hands shaking.

“My god, are you okay?!”

Five hated to appear that he was not able to deal with anything, but there was no plausible and peaceful lie to what you were seeing. You didn't let him make any decisions at that moment, you just stuck him in you own car, and when the chance of taking Five to the hospital had been vehemently denied by him, you ran the car to you own apartment.

“Oh my god, oh my god.”

You whispered to yourself, now at in your bed, closing the cut on Five's shoulder after he took a shower.

“I can do this.” He repeated it for the ninth time, but you shook your head.

But, while for you the situation was only for first aid, for Five it was torture in a very different sense.

Your touch was addictive, hot and fiery. Five didn't want to want you, but he did. He wanted you to beg for it too, so that Five could pretend to be in control. He wanted you to burn for him, just as he always burned when he was near you.

Under a light gauze, you covered the bruise on his shoulder, letting out a loud sigh that went to another very specific spot on Five's body. You asked for an explanation and he said that he had been mugged and reacted, but that the bandits had received what they deserved. He had to lie. At least for now. At least while he wanted you so much to touch him.

Perhaps this madness would pass.

But it didn't pass, your hands were still on Five's warm skin and he felt his heart pounding in his chest.

He wanted you. Holy Mother of God, he wanted you so fuck much! The knuckles of his fingers were whitened, the strength with which he clenched his fists.

But you whispered his name under your breath, as if you too were trapped in that cloud of lust and passion. So it was the end. Five kissed you, hungry, desperate, as if he wasn't going to have a tomorrow. He pulled you around the waist so you could sit on his lap, his hands roaming your body, squeezing all the flesh he could touch.

“I was asking how much more time was take to you to kiss me.”

You whispered against his lips, with a mischievous smile on your face, your hands roaming through his hair as you held a sigh when he adjusted your hips under you. God only knows how long you've been dreaming about this guy.

“Such a needy little thing, aren't you?” Five barely recognized his own voice.

This time, you who kissed him, your body burning in suppressed passion and desire, burning under the intense touch of Five. You hardly saw it when your shirt left, nor when you skirt went up until it was exposed to him. You whimpered, your lips going down to his neck and hiding your face there, squirming when his hand went up from your thigh to its pulsating center.

“Your skin is so hot. You were wishing for that, weren't you?” Five whispered, his voice hoarse.

You heart was beating fast in chest, cheeks were flushed, and Five brought your face up to look at him, lust bubbling in her eyes. You frantically agreed, rummaging you hips in him when you gasped. He curled his mouth over your left breast, groaning against your skin as you tightened your fingers on the back of his neck.

“F-five!” The liquid dripped from inside you to your thighs, and Five let out a loud moan of satisfaction when he saw it.

He raised his mouth to you, and, without kissing you, he sighed maliciously on yours lips: “I didn’t know you were so sensitive.”

After that point, everything became more crude. Five's touch on your waist gained pressure, marking your skin with purple marks on his fingers, his mouth bit and sucked on your breast, like a hungry man, and you were being driven crazy.

That's when two of his fingers entered you, deep, strong, opening your walls.

"Five!" You moaned loudly, your body hot under his lap, at the mercy of lustful desires.

“Shit! You are so tight!” His moan transcended between painful and angry, as if you were pushing him to the limit. “How are you going to put up with my dick, doll? You almost can't take my fingers!”

Five jerked his fingers inside you and hit rock bottom. You screamed, tears welling up in your eyes, the walls throbbing on his dick.

“Answer me!” His free hand came down on your thigh, and you bit your lip to keep from moaning loudly again.

“II am going to put up with you-everything.” You whined.

“How much?!” Five pulled your chin up to look at him, the hunger overwhelming his eyes, he's holding on as much as possible so he doesn't deal too badly with you.

Not yet.

“An-Anything as you give it to me.” You purred like a kitten "Fuck me hard, Five."

Oh you didn't say that.

His hand came down on your left cheek, letting out a soft slap and pulled your chin back at him, he jaw clenched by the effort he made to keep from fucking and hitting you so hard.

“Do you want it hard?! I will leave you without walking for days!” Five got up with you on his lap, threw you on the bed and slapped your thigh.

“Turn around!” He ordered in a snarl, removing his own pants, and as soon as you positioned yourself with your hips up and your face on the mattress, a hard, brutal slap made you moan loudly, squeezing your hands on the pillow.

The right hand wrapped around your hair, pulling your face off the pillow as Five positioned itself behind you.

“What you want?” He growled.

“I whant You fuck me hard!” God, you were begging, you needed him so much, you wanted him so much.

“How much hard?”

“Much! I want you to fuck me until I can't stay…”

Five came inside you brutally, pushing your body onto the mattress, making you moan loudly. He didn't let you finish, it barely gave you time to moan. As soon as he started to move, his rhythm became relentless, coarse, rude, forcing himself deeper inside you with each thrust.

Tears stung your face, you pussy throbbed in excitement, so fucking good that you felt like you were in heaven.

“What is it, lillet slut?” He pushed deeper, his voice arrogant and condescending, “Am I too big for you? For that tight pussy?” A slap went down your ass again, the other hand never coming out of your hair.

“F-fi-five! Please, I need this so much!”

The desperation in your voice did things to him, further igniting Five's desire to fuck you until he broke you.

“You were so tight! So. fucking. tight!” And you moaned and pushed him hips at him like you couldn't live without what he gave you. “Fuck, this is what you wanted, isn't it? You wanted me to broke you!”

“Yes!” You screamed as he keeping fuck you deeper and deeper “Pl-please!”

Your voice was too much for him! Five's hunger snarled and roared like a beast, increasing the desire to get you so badly. He hit your ass hard, letting go of your hair and sticking both hands on your waist, pulling you violently to his dick.

“Say my name over and over again! And, once you think you’ve said it loud enough, scream it. I want the whole neighborhood to know who’s making you feel good! ” Five combined a deep thrust with the tug on his waist, making his dick reach your unimaginable corners.

“Five!”

“Higher!” A slap.

“Five!” One more slap.

“Higher!” Another slap.

“F-FIVE!”

His mouth went to your shoulder, his lips tightening there as he pushed himself deep inside you. You were very close, super stimulated, your legs were shaking, your heart was pounding.

Five was fucking you so hard that you could barely groan, giving you sensations that you never felt before. You came with a loud groan, trembling on his dick, losing your breath when Five sank to the bottom of the well and came there, filling you with his hot cum.

Five Hargreeves thought that after that he would be free of your effects, freed from that desperation that was always wanting to be with you.

But then again, he was deeply mistaken.

Everything only increased in unimaginable proportions. Jealousy came, the overwhelming sense of protection, the need to be with you. Now he not only fucked you hard, but he made a point of leaving you at work and picking you up at night.

And that's when you said you loved him. And his world has turned inside out once again. Five didn't respond right away, he was dumbfounded and bewildered, and you said he only had to speak when he was ready.

He love you? That question hung around his mind for days.

Five felt at peace with you company, relaxed with your touch, happy whenever he heard your voice. You were the only place he thought about going back after a hard job, after the day had gotten the best of him.

He love you?

That was when The Handler told him, in one day, that it was good that his new “pet” did not make him deviate from the Commission's objectives.

Five has never felt so furious in his life. He came as close to her as possible, making her look death in the eye, and said that if any hair disappeared from your pretty head, he would stop everything and kill everyone on that commission. And The Handler knew that Five was not bluffing.

That's when he found out that he loved you. That the idea of ​​seeing you hurt, even if it was a scratch, was unacceptable. And that's when Five realized that his world only revolved when you were with him.

“I love you.” He released that night, you were lying on his chest, watching some series on TV when Five cut off the characters' lines.

You looked at him in bewilderment, propping yourself up on your elbow to see him better.

“What?”

Five looked him in the eye, and in the most sincere and truthful way, he said: "nothing else matters except for you."

Your eyes filled with tears, and you kissed him as if Five were your whole world. In fact, he certainly were your world. But it was at that moment that he said he had to talk to you, and that's when he told you the whole truth.

Shocked would be an understatement to say what you felt at that moment.

It took a few days for you to digest the whole truth and several conversations with Five to understand what was really going on. You saw his powers, his briefcase, his life story. And Five knew, when the dust settled and you said that none of that mattered, that you really loved him.

“I just can't have anything with someone who hides things from me.” You said “ I understand the reasons why you didn't tell me before, but now I don't want any more lies between us.”

“None.” He smiled, and looked at you as if he finally understood that you loved him.

And it is logical that you noticed.

“ I wasn’t lying when I said that I loved you." You laughed.

And in that moment, in that fraction of a second, Five realized that he would never be able to live without you.

“I'm just afraid of your job. Whether you get hurt or they want to hurt you coming after me and…”

Five didn't let you finish. He held you in his hands, your cheeks in his palms, and whispered, “There are no limits when it comes to you. I'll do anything to keep you safe. ”

[fullmusicbardsquared]

[???]

🐟 Name: David- call me Dave!

🦈 Pronouns: he/him, shark/sharks

🐟 Regularly posted/reblogged by me: MY OCS! I generally post about my WIP story Vinyl Hell (a litttle more down there), and rarely the others. I cannot overstate how much I post about these guys. They are 98% of what I draw, so be warned. ~ Star Trek (mostly TNG & TOS) ~ Talking Heads & David Byrne's solo work ~ I am a JoJo's Bizarre Adventure fan. I don't make anything for it, but I still reblog it ~ whatever silly old movies I watched this week ~

🦈 Specific Tags: #talking in my head (tag used for my rambling and general communication), #my art (self explanatory), #vinyl hell tag (where i put my new wave music ocs who i love so so much. Here is a brief overview of the 2 main characters, here is a lore wip masterpost), #fish on (tag for marine biology/aquatic things), #ai tag (for computers, i don't use it much now however). If i'm liveblogging something, I usually have a tag, but i don't do this often (school -_-)

🐟 Misc: feel free to block any tags you dislike! ~ I'm not very smart or analytical, but I have a deep love for everything! especially if my friends make it!! ~ I'm trans, & aromantic (aroace, but I prefer the aro label). I draw myself as a blue shark ~ I am always love being critiqued on my writing or art! please do this! I also like tags/comments in general, but critiques are extra important cause they help me get better :]

🦈 DNI: people who think aromantic & asexual people are not queer. zionists and people who think Palestine isn't experiencing a genocide.

okay gifs & blinkies below the cut

THESE BLINKIES BY @/ILLFOLLOWYOUINTOTHEDARK!

im objectum also. have a nice day!