#i hope the snow will melt soon because i want to go out more even if by myself

[mikrotyalm13]

everything about Gavriil feels suffocating.

how his presence alone can be almost overwhelming, how his massive body cages you everytime without a chance to escape. you wouldn't dare to try anyway, knowing that you don't even have a say against a creature of his caliber. he will find you. in your dreams, in your nightmares. in your room.

how he will be intense and vague about everything just for the sake of it; to confuse you further, to see the conflict of emotions in your eyes merge with arousal. eventually your hesitance turns into acceptance, a desperate need to feel his hands all over you. and he will be oh so grateful to fulfill that desire.

how his thick tongue pushes past your lips and into your mouth, reaching almost the back of your throat, relishing in the muffled little sounds you make. your drool mixed with his saliva drips down your chin, and your hazy eyes look up at him when he finally pulls away, giving you a second to breathe.

how his hips are slamming into you relentlessly, your wetness and lack of resistance allowing him to move almost effortlessly. forced to hold onto him for dear life instead of pushing away. all of your morals and principles are being tossed out of the window every single time he comes to you. he has you where he wants you, and will not stop until he feels like you can't take it anymore.

and how in the morning he vanishes away, leaving you guessing: was it just another wet dream? but the cold stickiness between your legs tells you more than you need to know.

[gay-dorito-dust]

Could you possibly write headcanons for a relationship with Mizu from The Blue Eyed Samurai? Hope all is well with you!

At first being in a relationship with Mizu was heavily strained for a multitude of reasons but the main one being that the people in Mizu’s life don’t tend to stay for the long run.

Which meant that Mizu was always putting a good deal of distance between the two of you as a way to prevent becoming overly attached to you, in the fear that you wouldn’t last as long either.

They acted like your second shadow with how close they stood near you, especially when in the company of unsavoury and shady individuals. A silent body guard that was about as still as a statue unless a move was made against you with ill intentions.

However thar never stopped Mizu from answering the call they had to protect you when needs be but by the time the threat was eliminated, it was back to pushing you away while keeping conversations you had to a minimum, all in hopes of deterring any and all hope you may have for a connection.

It’s not in a mean way but more so Mizu’s way of protecting you without integrating you into their mess, or be targeted by people who would love nothing more then to hit Mizu where it hurts.

It didn’t matter whether you were associated or not, you were still fair game for them to attempt other forms of capture.

Mizu wants the best for you and that isn’t sticking with them.

This often leads to arguments being had between the two of you because you felt as though Mizu was just trying to get out a relationship with you and doing things without your input on them, whilst Mizu believed you to be stubborn and not fully grasping the threat of being with them had on you and your well-being.

Anyway, enough of that angsty stuff.

Once Mizu gotten use to the fact that you weren’t going away anytime soon and rather serious in being by their side through thick and thin. They would slowly start to open up to you more by starting off small such as;

Shielding you from sight when someone becomes aggressive.

Making sure you don’t get injured and even if you did, no matter how large or small or maybe, Mizu would want to heal it themself and oversee your recovery process personally.

Sitting/ standing closer to you than before.

Or even Brushing off the snow from your clothes before it melts and soaks the clothing.

When Mizu gets even more comfortable within your relationship then they’ll start contemplating on how to enact physical contact but never knowing how. It had been a long while since they last allowed someone to hold their hand never less hold them but Mizu wasn’t quite sure you’d like that sort of affection.

So you’ll probably have to make the first step yourself by showing Mizu that you were more then okay with it by grabbing their hand, interlocking your pinkies together, holding on their arm or even straight up hugging the life out of them after a gruelling fight.

‘Thank god you’re okay.’ You cried into Mizu’s chest, breathing them in as much as you could as though the moment you let Mizu go, they’d disappear.

‘You know I’d always come back to you.’ Mizu told you as they reciprocated the hug despite how it pulled at their wounds but Mizu didn’t care, your health and well-being was something they hold in high regard.

‘I know that but I just can’t help my fear of the day I’ll loose you.’ You told them, pulling away from them a little bit and trying not to smile when Mizu instinctively tightened their grip on you. ‘But I also must remind myself that you’ve proven yourself capable enough to hold your own in a fight on multiple occasions.’ You pressed a tender kiss to Mizu’s cheek, chuckling when you saw their eyes widen at the innocent act.

For someone as powerful and amazing as Mizu, you pride yourself in how you were probably the only one that got to see this side of them. It was an honour to witness a moment that tasted as sweet as it looked.

Mizu meanwhile felt warm throughout their body, enjoying the feeling of you holding them as tightly as you were right now. Were they really this touch starved? Yes. Yes they were. Severely so.

They’d crumble internally during the more intimate moments where your both alone to your own devises. Run your fingertips gently across the scars on their shoulders or across their calloused hands and Mizu will be melting like butter. They felt safe within your hold, they felt as though the didn’t need to be on guard with you near and you felt protected and loved within Mizu’s hold, taking comfort in knowing that nothing could touch you with Mizu nearby.

You felt invincible either with Mizu and Mizu felt cherished. You both fill a void that neither of you thought could ever be filled.

Can and will punch Taigen for flirting with you. Mizu has done it before and isn’t afraid to do it again as extra.

[forgeofthenine]

Ohh, how about the Tieflings experiencing snow? And how do they make sure not to freeze off the tips of their ears and their tails? Also with how they are more fine with heat, I feel like Rolan is the type of bitch (affectionate) to already complain about it being freezing at 15°F

I have to admit Anon, I'm also the type of bitch that thinks 15°F is freezing. I'm used to a nice temperate climate (with awful weather) and the idea of being outside in almost -10°c horrifies me, I do hope you like the headcanons though :)

The bachelors experiencing the snow

Dammon

I feel like Dammon runs hotter than most tieflings, they all already run hot but Dammon even more so

It honestly probably helps in the forge

It also means that when he steps foot into the snow it tends to slowly melt under the thin soles of his boots

Dammon loves the snow and thinks it's beautiful, but it tends to leave him with wet socks if he doesn't wear the right footwear

You'll find it's still very easy to drag your lover out into the snow with you though for a bit of a winter romp

Just don't be surprised when this cheeky tiefling decides to try and ball up some snow as soon as your back is turned

As soon as the powdery snow breaks against your back you know all vets are off, the two of you desperately trying to one up the other

You'll need to find a space were you won't bother anyone because Dammon gets very into his snowball fights

He's a fierce opponent but eventually, when you're both feeling the chill, there will be a truce

Dammons also the type to always wear his scarf when it snows outside, but only so he can wrap it around you if yours is forgotten at home

Zevlor

This paladin loves the snow

He doesn't run particularly hot or cold so he's able to spend a fair amount of time out in the chill

He loves to bundle you both up in cold weather clothes and go for a stroll

Walking along the water, hand in hand, he likes to admire the way your breath freezes in the air as you speak to him

It's all very relaxed and domestic, perfect for a retired hellrider like Zevlor

When the two of you make it back inside he's quick to warm you both back up, wrapping you in a blanket and making hot chocolate on the stove

You spend the rest of the even cuddled up to his side on the couch, watching the snow fall as you drink steaming mugs of cocoa

Zevlor also strikes me as the type of guy to know about the pouring maple syrup into snow to make a maple lolliepop thing

He'd definitely do it to surprise you with a homemade sweet treat

Please give Zevlor a kiss, he spoils you so much

Rolan

Rolan hates the snow

He runs cold as far as tieflings are concerned and he strikes me as the type to have poor circulation that just mildly annoys him

If you want to get him out in the snow you'll have to recruit his siblings to come help

Don't worry though, Cal and Lia love to drag him out into the winter wonderland despite how much he tells them it's 'freezing'

Rolan is also very glad his ears are covered by his hair, or they might just get cold enough to fall off

It's not uncommon for you to be issued with a challenge to see who can make a better snowman, you and Rolan or Cal and Lia

And so the wizard reluctantly spends his afternoon playing in the snow with you and his siblings

As much as he loves his siblings, Rolan also wants to get his own back at them, so he uses his magic to beat them every single time

Just be glad they only dared to challenge him to a snowball fight once

[hedgehog-moss]

I felt sorry for the llamas in the past few days, watching them rummage around in the snow with their cold hopeful noses, trying to find a few blades of grass (I mean, they could do as Pirlouit does and stand under my window all day looking sad and waiting for hay, but they like to keep busy) so I promised them I would let them out to eat the brambles near my house as soon as the snow thawed a little. No one had left the pasture since the advent of the new fence and they deserved a little treat.

Then it snowed again last night and I thought oh no, another day of not keeping my promise, and I went out in the icy darkness in my pyjamas to share an apology clementine with them.

(I discovered that Pampe also thought Poldine deserved a little treat in this weather and was letting her nurse even though she’s been weaning her more and more firmly lately. Aw.)

But then this morning the temperature went up a bit and the snow melted rapidly. True to my word, I held the door open for a confused Pampérigouste and let her escape her pasture legally.

Yes! You’re also free to stay nearby and free to come back in a couple of hours. It’s scheduled freedom, you’ll love it.

Pirlouit had the hay net all to himself and Pampy looked a bit envious, before realising there were more interesting things to eat on her side.

It was cold and I went back inside and found Merricat like “finally, my favourite channel is back”

I sent this photo to a friend who said “you didn’t halter any of them?” No! Absolutely no need because I am an Olympic gold medallist in bringing llamas back to their pasture. I have developed so many strategies. Offering them treats in their own llama dish is often perceived as a perfidious gesture in this context, they’re like we’re not stupid you’re obviously trying to lure us back to our pasture—so I sat at the outdoor table like oh this is ideal weather to eat lunch outside, I sure hope no one bothers me while I eat my delicious lunch of pumpkin rinds and old apple cores and then I was surrounded by llamas and I was like nooo I guess I’ll go eat my lunch in the pasture where you won’t dare to follow me!!

All in all it was a very successful outing, everyone stayed very near the house feasting on brambles then went back to the pasture willingly enough and the cats were entertained! Next time I’ll leave the gate open and go hide somewhere to let Pampe feel the thrill of delinquency. (And if you’re wondering why Pirlouit wasn’t invited, it’s because I wanted to focus on the llamas and be able to tackle Pampe if she tried to run, but I often take Pirlouit on bramble-eating outings in the woods just the two of us, so this is not another instance of donkey discrimination.)

[poppadom0912]

Together (I)

Characters: Kelly Severide x Reader, Jay Halstead x Sibling!Reader, Will Halstead x Sibling!Reader

Warnings: Graphic descriptions of violence, stabbing, guns, arson, drugs etc.

Summary: What was supposed to be a quick trip cleaning your dad's belongings turns into something so much more.

A/N: Posting this before the summer holiday is over for me. This is a series that I've been planning for a while so I hope your buckled in for quite the ride. Enjoyyyyy!!

Series Masterlist / Next Chapter

"Where were you this morning?"

Kelly jumped, his head snapping over to find you peering over his shoulder and into his locker. "Gosh Y/N, you scared the crap outta me."

"That doesn't answer my question." You shook your head, crossing your arms over your chest as you watched your boyfriend expectantly. "I woke up in bed alone."

"What are you even doing here?" Kelly asked you, your question going over his head. "I thought you were going to Wisconsin to clean up the cabin."

"I'll answer your question when you answer mine." You shot back, not backing down. You were going to win the staredown you were currently having, even if it was against his incredible eyes that you adored with all your being.

"I'm getting the grill out today. Just made sure we had everything in case I needed to run to the store before shift." Kelly said truthfully, crossing his own arms in retaliation. "I told you this yesterday, did I not?"

You huffed, rolling your eyes when you realised that he did indeed tell you yesterday. "I came for my jacket and to give you my morning kiss which I would've given you like I usually do had you not left."

Kelly awed, his arms unfolding so he could grab your hips and bring you in for a kiss. No matter how much you wanted to hold a grudge against him, you couldn't help but melt and kiss him back.

Before you could wrap your arms around his shoulders, Kelly very reluctantly pulled back. "Be safe alright? Make sure to call me when you get there."

"You'll be the only thing on my mind." You smirked, pecking his lips before reaching into his locker, taking his CFD issued jacket. "Thank you very much."

"You minx." Kelly rose his brow in surprise, shutting his locker shut as soon as you got what you needed.

"Don't let my brothers hear you call me that." You warned him, shrugging his jacket on as you did so, well aware of Kelly's eyes looking you up and down as though he was going to eat you.

"When are they meeting you up there?" Kelly asked, aware that your brothers were still working and were getting off later than you. You mentioned the other night something about them not being able to get off at the same time as you but they'd be up with you soon after.

"Fingers crossed when the sun sets if there's no traffic." You said with finality, looking down at Kelly's watch and taking note of the time. "I gotta go now but stay safe alright? I don't wanna cut my trip off short because Boden's calling me saying you got hurt or into trouble."

"Yes ma'am." Kellys saluted you, pulling you back in for another kiss before escorting you out the firehouse. "The same goes for you. It's freezing out so the roads will be icy, probably going to start snowing today as well."

"That's why I got this." You pointed at the lieutenants jacket on your shoulders, proudly showing it off. "I promise its safe return."

"I'm holding you to that." Kelly pointed at you as you walked out the app floor.

"I'll call you in a few hours lieutenant." You winked, waving at your boyfriend as you approached your car.

"I'll be looking forward to it firefighter."

*****

You hated how Kelly was correct nearly all of the time.

By the time you reached the cabin that was now in Will's possession due to him being the oldest Halstead after your dad's death, the frost developed into snow and was slowly stacking up.

Kelly jacket was way too thin for the snow but once you got inside and you got the heating working, all would be well.

Fumbling with the keys, you locked your car and just about managed to get into the cabin, a gust of wind pushing you inside. With tons of effort despite your job, you found it difficult to push the door close against earth's natural forces.

With a sigh, you slumped against the door once it was finally closed. It took way too much effort than what was needed.

It'd been years since you last came to visit the Cabin. The last memory you had of this place was staying one summer when Will was in high school and your two brothers teamed together to drown you in the lake nearby. Of course, they didn't let you fully drown but it was funny anyways.

The nostalgia hit you in waves as you walked around, rubbing your hands together to create some friction so you wouldn't freeze to death. It also happened that the last time you were here it was with your mother when she was alive and well.

Oh how you missed the simpler times in life.

For some reason, the motor was refusing to start up and before you could kick it, you heard the front door burst open, a gust of cold air following that you could feel going through the entire cabin.

Frowning, you glanced down at the time on your phone. Unless Jay and Will got off early without telling you, no one should be here.

With your guard fully up, you silently crept through the hallways, looking for anything to protect yourself but came up with nothing. You knew a few things about self defense from both Kelly and Jay and there was also no way you could scream to get attention because no one would hear you out here.

Gripping your fingers around your phone, you were seconds away from tapping Jay's contact when you were stopped by the barrel of a gun at the back of you head.

You immediately froze at the motion, not even trying to risk anything. There could be several things happening but before you could try to escape, you had to evaluate the situation first.

"Listen man, I don't want any trouble." You said warily, holding your hands up to show what you guessed was a man that you had nothing in your possession but your phone. "If you want money, it's in my car. If you want somewhere to hide out, stay here. If you need any help, I'm a firefighter so I'm sure we can figure something out."

"i've got exactly what I want." The man's voice sent chills down your spine, recognition flooding you despite not having seen his face. This was the voice of the man that haunted you for years now and no amount of therapy could erase the permanent scars in your mind and on your body. "And she's not going anywhere."

And before you could reply, you were struck on the back of your head and was met with nothing but darkness.

*****

Coming back to your senses, you were expecting to wake up in your bed with Kelly and everything that happened was nothing but another nightmare but upon not being able to move your arms or legs, reality struck.

This was all very real and you were about to experience something short from hell.

"Jackson Murray." Your throat was hoarse as you spoke, addressing the man that sat opposite you with the proudest smirk on his lips.

You were currently tied to the heater that you failed to turn on, your feet and hands bound but several pairs of zip ties to ensure you wouldn't escape.

"Y/N Halstead." Jackson said with mirth in his eyes. He looked exactly the same since you last saw him, that scar you inflicted still going across his face, going from his left eyebrow all the way down to his upper lip.

"I take it prison wasn't your scene." You tried shifting but only groaned, finding that you movement was very minimal and if you did try to move, it would only cause you pain.

"It was horrific." He groaned, dragging his hand down his face as he reminisced what was supposed to be life in jail. Currently, he was sitting on a dining room chair which gave him leverage against you, allowing him to look down on you. "In all fairness, it taught me a lot."

"Is that so?" You humored him, your eyes flickering around the room, looking for a way to escape or to make a distraction. Your head was absolutely killing you and if you guessed right, you had a wound at the back of your head and you most definitely had a concussion.

"Not too much science but I learnt so much from other inmates, it was fascinating!" Jackson gushed, his smile eerie as he went into story about all the violent and gruesome things he learnt, explaining that he would test some of them out on you.

You shivered, blocking out his voice as you only now realised your lack of clothing. Jackson must've changed you while you were out because you no longer wore Kelly's lieutenant jacket or your shirt. Instead, you only sported your bra and jeans.

You had no idea what he did with your clothes but no matter how much your appearance was a concern to you, you also had concern for the man that was approaching you with a knife in his hand.

Within seconds, he was crouching down so he could be eye level with you, the tip of the blade nicking your neck as he spoke to you in a whisper. "I've been waiting for this day for years. Dreaming of this exact moment every night since I was arrested."

Before you retort back or even spit in his face, you could hear a very faint door being slammed shut from outside. For a nanosecond you were confused as to who on earth would be out here but then you remembered.

Your already built up dread was now drowning you as you remembered that your brothers were coming up here later today but with no record of the time and from your period of unconsciousness, you totally forgot.

Internally, you were cursing out your brothers. From the corner of your eyes, you could see out the window that it was still bright out which meant they got off work earlier than planned.

Opening your mouth to shout out a warning, Jacksons hand clamped down on your lips, his knife still at your neck but digging into your skin further. You could feel the blood slowly dripping down the base of your neck and going down your chest, your groans muted by your captors palm.

"Y/N, you here?!" Will shouted as he entered the cabin but you could only hear his footsteps as he ventured in. "Your car isn't out front and Kelly said you definitely left this morning."

Will's voice got clearer and louder the closer he came to the living room. Panic was now flooding your bloodstream but you were completely immobile with no way of telling him to get out and run.

Turning the corner, Will wasn't expecting anything when he casually passed the living room but the sight he was welcomed with was anything but welcoming.

Before he could move, let alone react and say anything, Will was bashed on the back of his head by a baseball bat in the hands of a man you thought was dead.

You screamed in Jackson's hand, tugging on your restraints as you leaned as far forward as you could, wanting to go and help your now unconscious brother.

Blood was slowly seeping out from the back of Will's head, the crimson liquid mixing with his red curls that only he inherited from your mother.

You felt tears prick the corner of your eyes at your deadly still brothers body. If it wasn't for the occasional rise and fall of his chest, you for sure would've thought he was dead.

All of a sudden, Jackson was moving away from you, allowing you to gasp as you recollected yourself. Your breathing was erratic as you watched the two men converse in whispers. With a joint effort, Will was further subdued using several zip ties around his wrists and ankles just like they did to you but instead of being restrained by the heater pipes, he was put against the table leg.

"Y/N, you remember my brother, don't you?" Jackson innocently asked you, turning around to talk to you. He was acting as if his brother didn't just knock out your brother cold.

"Ezra." You whispered, too scared to talk any louder. Both mentally and physically you were in shock from everything that was happening but you could never forget the brother duo that ruined your life.

"You guys just want me, let Will go please." You said with desperation, eyeing your oldest brother to make sure he was okay. "He has nothing to do with any of this."

"Oh but that's where you're wrong." Jackson shook his head, coming towards you and crouching down to your slumped height, brushing your loose hair with his disgusting hands. "Your brothers have everything to do with this."

And then it was in this moment you remembered that Will hadn't come alone. He mentioned that him and Jay were going to drive here together.

With wide eyes, your heart dropped when you heard the front door open again but instead of hearing a voice greet you alike to how Will did, you were met with silence.

"Watch them." Jackson ordered his younger brother before disappearing into the hallway. Hopefully Jay could use his detectiveness and figure out that something was wrong.

Keeping your lips sealed, you felt yourself shivering even more than you already were. The cold was slowly starting to get to you and you hated it.

The tension was so strong that you felt it suffocating you, your lungs tightening as it got harder to breathe. You eyed the man that everyone thought to be dead, millions of questions flooding your mind.

The gunshot scared you, making you jump out of your bones but your restraints minimised you reaction, pulling you back as you winced at the bruising around your wrists and ankles.

You felt the biggest lump in your throat at the uncertainty. Who pulled the trigger? Did anyone get hurt? You wanted nothing more than these two brothers to be dead and gone from your life but fate was clearly having its fun.

Soon enough, some of your questions were answered when Jay was pushed into the living room by Jackson. Jay was now unarmed but he was also free of any injuries making you breathe a little easier knowing at least one of your brothers were unharmed.

You easily read Jay as his eyes landed on you and Will. The green eyes that you two shared widened in disbelief and concern; looking you up and down, inspecting your half naked body and Will's limp one, you could feel his fury from across the room.

Without argument, Jay allowed himself to be restrained and due to lack of space, he was restrained on the other side of the heater. He was so close to you yet so far. The brothers ran out of zip ties though, leaving Jay's legs free meaning if he stretched himself far enough, he could reach you.

For some reason, the two brothers found this to be the best time to leave the room, disappearing into the cabin somewhere leaving the Halstead siblings alone.

"Jay, did you shoot Jackson?" Was the first thing you asked your older brother, hoping with all your might that the disgusting man was hurt.

"It's just a graze but yeah I did." Jay answered nonchalantly, worry swimming in his eyes as he fully took in your appearance. "They didn't..."

"No, God no." You immediately shook your head, gagging at the mere thought of what Jay was suggesting. "Just a nick on my neck and something at the back of my head but otherwise, I'm all good."

You could see him relax but only ever so slightly, his eyes dragging over to Will's slumped figure. Following his line of sight, you filled him in before he could ask. "Ezra knocked him out with your old bat."

"Why the hell is Ezra alive and Jackson out of jail?" You asked Jay, desperately in need of answers but deep down, you knew Jay had no answers either.

Before Jay could say anything though, he was stopped by the brothers storming back into the living room, a mix of excitement and fury following them.

Without saying anything, they were both coming towards you.

"No, no, no." You repeated over and over, trying your hardest to get their hands off you. "Get off, get away from me!"

Jays shouts for you to be left alone fell on deaf ears, his attempts to kick either brother away failing the second a needle was plunged into the side of his neck. However, even while drugged up, Jay was relentless and tried his hardest to fight the men off you but soon enough, succumbed to whatever drug he was injected with.

You felt like crying as you couldn't do anything to help Jay. All you could do was helplessly watch and beg him to wake up but alas, nothing happened.

Using your distracted state, the brothers managed to remove you from the pipes and were now dragging you onto your feet.

Despite your weakening body, you tried as hard as you could to fight the brothers off. With their hands gripping your arms and your waist, you tried elbowing, headbutting, biting and spitting but the most damage you did was further annoy them.

Now agitated, you were shoved against Ezra's chest, his arms holding you down as Jackson did what he wanted since the day he met you all those years ago. Clenching your jaw, you screwed your eyes shut as you felt your body cry out at each blow.

You swallowed back your cries, not allowing them the pleasure to hear you in pain. That’s what got them off, hearing their victims cry and scream in agony but you wouldn’t allow that.

“Stop, stop.” You tried pushing them away but the punches kept rolling. “What do you want? I’ll give you anything, please.”

Jackson slowly pulled away, his knuckles bruised and bloodied from his attack. He had the proudest smile on his face, as if he’d just won gold in the Olympics

“I just want you to get what you deserve baby.”

[allyallyorange]

Yunho The Human

AT AU is back with another little story written by @nnnnnnnothingtoseehere

How Yunho ends up in Universe A

Master Post for AT AU

“You should spend more time with Jongho,” his mom says. “Take him somewhere on your day off, like you used to.”

Yunho almost snorted at that, but manages to hold it back. It was too early in the day for another fight with his parents, especially after the previous night.

It had started the same way it always did, with his dad making some off handed comment about what Yunho should be doing with his life but clearly wasn’t.

He hadn’t even tried to hold back the biting response then, and things quickly devolved.

It had made him want to scream because they acted like he should just get over himself and move on with his life, like that was something easy or possible to do.

Yunho didn’t know how to explain to them the way his chest ached all the time, or how hard it was to get out of bed every morning. He knows they would say he should be moving on, especially after so many years.

After all, Jongho was fine. Jongho, who lost his parents. Yunho should be fine; he only lost his best friend, after all. Jongho is more than fine; he seems to be the next Albert Einstein at the age of twelve. He’s bright and smart and good at studying; in other words, everything Yunho isn’t.

It hurts more than Yunho will admit to be surpassed in every single category by a twelve year-old.

“You guys used to be so close,” his mom continues. She is washing dishes at the sink, with her back to Yunho. “He’s been through a lot, you know. It would be a shame if the two of you grew apart now.”

Yunho resists the urge to inform her that he’s been through a lot too, and maybe doesn’t want to spend time with the tiny little prodigy who is better than him in every way, including dealing with grief.

When he doesn’t respond, his mother eventually turns around to look at him.

“Did you hear me, Yunho?”

“Yeah,” Yunho mumbles, dragging his spoon through his cereal. “I heard.”

It’s already going soggy, and Yunho almost feels sorry for the limp bits of cereal floating around. He feels like that most of the time these days.

“You really should take him somewhere,” his mom says in that vaguely hopeful tone that Yunho has come to dread. “Get hot chocolate with him or something. Something fun, to get you both out of the house.”

“Fine,” Yunho is answering before he even realizes what he’s saying. “I’ll ask him.”

The smile his mom gives him just makes him feel worse. She looks so hopeful, like this will actually be the thing that gets Yunho’s life back on track.

He doesn’t bother to correct her. He’ll disappoint her soon enough.

-

Of all places, Jongho wants to go to the library.

Yunho just gapes at his cousin, finally asking what on earth he wants to do at the library.

Jongho rattles off some answer that goes straight over Yunho’s head. The kid is probably researching advanced particle physics for fun, or something similarly nerdy and genius.

“Fine,” Yunho sighs. “Let’s go.”

You could have cut the tension in the car with a knife. Yunho finally turns the radio up, desperate to listen to something other than the constant parade of guilt and self-criticism that makes up his thoughts.

Jongho didn’t say anything, just fidgeting with his gloves in the passenger seat.

He practically bolts out of the car the second Yunho puts it in park, disappearing through the library doors before he can even get fully out of his seat.

Figures. Yunho wouldn’t want to hang out with himself either.

He trails after Jongho, making a vain attempt to stomp some of the melting snow off his shoes before stepping into the library.

Yunho hasn’t been here in ages, and he takes a deep breath on instinct. The smell of books is comforting, and he takes a moment to just soak it in.

Everything is smaller than he remembers, but he’s definitely had several growth spurts since he was last here. The kid sized reading tables look ridiculously small, and Yunho can’t believe he ever fit in the seats.

He would come here with Mingi, mostly during the summer when they were bored. They would sit for hours and read every comic book the library had, until the words spun off the page or they fell asleep.

Yunho shakes his head violently, trying to dislodge the memories. This is why he doesn’t leave the house; they would roam all over town. He can’t go anywhere without being reminded of him.

It takes him way too long to find Jongho. The kid is sitting at one of the tables in the reference section, almost invisible behind a stack of at least five hefty books. Yunho quickly gives up on reading the title of the one in Jongho’s hands when he doesn’t even know what the first word means.

He flops down across the table from Jongho, pulling his phone out of his pocket. He is just opening one of his mobile games when a pointed ‘ahem’ gets his attention.

Jongho is glaring at him from across the table, face scrunched comically.

“What?” Yunho asks, earning a furious hiss from his cousin.

“We’re in the library,” Jongho whispers pointedly. “Talk quietly.”

“My bad,” Yunho mutters, glancing back down at his phone.

“This is a library,” Jongho repeats in a biting whisper. “Find a book to read.”

Yunho blinks at him for a long moment, weighing out the amount of energy it would take to actually fight him on this.

You’re supposed to be bonding with him, his mom's voice whispers in his head. Fighting would definitely not do that.

“Fine,” he grits out. “I’ll get a book.”

He stands up, pushing his chair away from the table with exaggerated care. Jongho watches him seriously, only looking back down at his book when Yunho actually begins to look at the nearby shelves.

Nothing in this section is remotely interesting, and Yunho wanders aimlessly in search of something decent. He almost doesn’t stop when he passes an end display of fairy tales, but something about the bright covers has his feet slowing almost on his own.

He knows he’s too old for fairy tales at this point. He knows better than most that happy endings are pure fiction; the real world is much worse.

The book at the top of the display looks different from the rest, and he picks it up on whim. Flipping it open, he expects bright pictures and ornate pages, all accompanying a predictably bland story about princes and princesses and happily ever afters.

It quickly becomes apparent that the book in his hands is anything but that. It doesn’t even look like it’s a fairy tale, really. It seems more like a guide to being a hero, and Yunho finds himself reading more and more while just standing there.

He knows it’s dumb, and that he should find some actually helpful book probably called something like “How To Fix Your Life For Dummies.” But deep down, he knows he just wants to think about something other than his shitty life. Some weird book that takes itself way too seriously may be a cheap bit of escapism, but Jongho clearly won’t let him burn a couple of hours on his phone.

Tucking the book under his arm, Yunho returns to where he left Jongho. The kid hasn’t moved, but has switched books. There’s no way he read it that fast, but Yunho honestly wouldn’t be surprised if he did.

Doing his best to ignore his cousin, Yunho sits back down and opens up the book again. It’s not a difficult book to read, and he is soon comfortably lost in a vaguely nonsensical chapter about how to kiss a princess.

The book is simple, but it’s just enough to keep him from thinking about anything else. It’s honestly nice to sit here and escape for a while, and before long he’s more than halfway through. He has to skip some sections that seem to be written in entirely different languages, as well as a few that are just covered in symbols and diagrams that don’t make any sense.

Yunho is just about to turn the page when he realizes the pages of the book look like they’re sparking, somehow. He pauses, watching as what look like little white sparks jump off the page, bouncing harmlessly off his clothes and the table.

He is just beginning to open his mouth to ask Jongho if he’s losing his mind when the sparks begin to pour off the book, increasing in brightness.

Yunho had been leaning the book against the edge of the table, and he quickly pushes it fully on the table. That doesn’t stop the sparks, and as he watches they begin to flow upwards until there’s a whole bunch of them floating a few inches over the book.

This is it, Yunho thinks distantly. It’s the mental break you were waiting for. He’s finally going crazy; it took years but he’s made it.

The sparks have solidified into a mass of light, hovering over the book. The light stretches as Yunho stares, widening and flattening until it’s as large as a decently sized tv. Some part of his brain wonders if anyone else is seeing this or if it’s just him.

The light has been white up until now, but the center of the mass begins to darken. The effect reminds Yunho of pouring water on ice, how it will make some parts of the ice transparent and more glass-like.

He leans forward, trying to get a better look. The darkness has now spread to cover most of the mass, leaving only a rim of light around the edges. It reminds Yunho of every portal he’s ever seen in superhero movies and comic books.

He almost falls out of his chair when he realizes there’s a person looking back at him from the other side. Their features aren’t clear, still obscured by the surface of the portal.

Yunho watches in horrified fascination as a hand reaches through the portal, the surface dragging for a moment before breaking around their fingers. The hand grabs the edge of the portal like it’s solid and Yunho stares because normal people don’t have blue skin.

He looks up just in time to see the person’s other hand pulling the surface aside enough for their head to poke through, dragging it out of the way.

The person looks to be a guy, around Yunho’s age. He looks pretty normal, with dark hair and sharp eyes that survey the library quickly.

You would almost think he’s human if it wasn’t for the bright blue skin and pointy ears clearly on display because of his haircut.

Yunho is tempted to look around to check if anyone else is seeing this alien portal with a real life alien reaching out of it, but he doesn't. He’s sure that if he as much as blinks this will all disappear.

“Have you seen a guy with white hair?” the alien asks, looking at Yunho. “He’s just a bit taller than me, and pretty skinny?”

Yunho gapes at him for a long moment, trying to remember how to speak.

“U-um, no,” he finally stammers.

The alien’s face tugs into a frown at that, and he lets out a slight sigh.

“Fair enough,” he admits, beginning to pull away from the portal. The second he does, it begins to close, the dark part fading first.

“Hey wait,” Yunho calls out, reaching for the portal without thinking about it.

He jolts the second he touches it, feeling like he was just shocked. He is opening his mouth to say ouch or yell or ask what on earth is going on but he quickly finds he can’t. The feeling of vertigo rushes up to catch him, and Yunho feels like he’s being yanked forward through the portal.

He lands hard on his ass, voice coming back in the middle of a yell. He quickly stops yelling, way too surprised for that.

The blue guy from before is standing in front of him, looking just as surprised and confused as Yunho feels. They seem to be in some kind of room, but everything from the walls to the floor are perfectly black. It’s unsettling, making him feel like he’s standing in an open void somehow.

“Where the hell are we?” Yunho asks. “What is going on? Who are you?”

The guy just stares at him, eyes wide as they dart around Yunho’s face quickly.

“Did you find what you were looking for?”

The sound of a third voice startles both of them, and Yunho scrambles to his feet as the blue guy whips around.

He almost falls again because there is what could only be described as a column of light in front of him. He squints at it, belatedly realizing that it’s not column-shaped at all. It has a head and arms, and clearly a voice.

Yunho could have sworn he didn’t have that much to drink last night. This has to be a dream, a hallucination, something. He’s been watching too many dumb superhero movies lately and his subconscious is finally deciding to take revenge.

“U-um, sort of?” the blue guy stammers. “I mean, I found him but that’s not what I was looking for.”

He sounds just as confused as Yunho knows he looks, but he’s thankful the weird light person isn’t talking to him. The blue guy is weird, but he at least has a face.

“That’s great,” the light person says easily. “I hope you succeed in your journey.”

They raise a hand, and Yunho feels that same sense of vertigo rising up to meet him. This time it feels like he’s falling backwards, the whole sensation churning his stomach violently.

At least he lands on his feet this time.

The room around him thankfully looks relatively normal after the freaky void place, worn wood under his feet and making up the walls.

He looks around slowly, trying to figure out what exactly happened.

He seems to be in a treehouse of some kind, various branches crisscrossing through the walls and floor. The whole place is fairly small, but it may just look that way because it’s absolutely full of stuff.

Yunho gapes at the eclectic assortment of weapons, tech, and unidentifiable objects scattered across the floor and various surfaces of the room. None of this makes any sense, and he only ends up with more questions when his gaze lands on the two other people in the room with him.

One of them is the alien guy from before, looking just as blue. He is staring at a normal looking guy, who is in turn staring at Yunho.

They stare at each other for a long moment before everyone starts talking at the same time.

“Is this him?” the normal guy asks, clearly talking to the blue alien dude.

“No, I have no idea who this is,” the blue guy responds.

It’s a little tricky to actually make out what he’s saying because Yunho is also talking.

“What the hell is going on?” he demands. “Who are you guys? What is this place?”

They all continue to talk over each other for several minutes before the normal looking guy holds up both hands.

“Stop,” he says loudly. “We can’t all talk at once.”

Yunho shuts his mouth reluctantly, knowing that he does make a good point.

The guy turns to face him more fully, giving Yunho a chance to get a better look at him. He certainly looks normal, with dark hair. He does have blond undersides, peaking through the upper half of his hair

He also has a plant growing out of the top of his head. It’s a perfectly normal plant, with leaves and everything. Yunho gapes at it, not quite able to believe his eyes.

“You ended up in our headquarters, so you’re going to answer our questions,” the guy continues briskly. “Sit down.”

“Um, where?” Yunho asks, glancing around the crammed treehouse.

The blue alien dude moves forward to shove a few weapons and piles of metal parts off a surface, eventually revealing a couch under all the stuff. He gestures to it, and Yunho obediently sinks down.

“Right,” the normal guy says, putting his hands on his hips. “Have you ever seen this guy?”

He bends down to pick up a rolled up piece of paper, unrolling it so Yunho can see.

The paper has a drawing of someone on it, but Yunho can’t make out anything actually identifiable. The drawing looks like it was done by a two year old, and not an artistically inclined two year old.

“...no,” Yunho says slowly. “No I haven't.”

“Are you sure?” the guy asks again. “He has white hair? Seems pretty powerful?”

“Nope,” Yunho repeats, shaking his head.

“Think he’s lying?” the guy asks, turning to look at the blue alien.

He just shrugs, looking as confused as Yunho feels.

“You know I can hear you,” Yunho points out, not particularly liking being talked about like he’s not in the room.

“Hush,” the guy tells him. “We’re the ones interrogating you.”

Yunho doesn’t point out that this is the most informal interrogation he’s ever seen. He’s sitting on their couch, for crying out loud. There’s nothing to keep him here, and Yunho really doubts either of them could actually restrain him if necessary. The blue guy is pretty muscular, but Yunho has at least four inches on him.

The other two continue to talk, at least having the decency to lower their voices so Yunho can’t hear them as easily.

“Ok fine,” the normal guy finally says. “If you’re sure.”

The blue alien nods, turning back to face Yunho.

“Hi,” he says with a smile that makes his eyes disappear. “We didn’t exactly start off on the right foot. My name is San.”

Yunho blinks at him, definitely not expecting a formal introduction.

“Hey,” he says after a moment. “I’m Yunho.”

“Nice to meet you, Yunho,” San tells him.

He pauses for a moment, clearly waiting for the other guy to say something. When he doesn’t, San elbows him in the side.

“Oh right,” he says quickly. “I’m Wooyoung.”

Yunho nods, murmuring some kind of acknowledgement.

“Where are we?” he asks, gesturing vaguely around the room.

Wooyoung and San look at each other for a long moment, clearly having some kind of nonverbal discussion.

“Probably better to just show him,” San says.

Wooyoung nods, making the plant on his head sway slightly.

“C’mon then,” he says, beckoning Yunho.

Yunho gets up off the couch, following a little ways behind as San and Wooyoung cross the cluttered floor, heading for what appears to be a trapdoor set in the floor.

Wooyoung tugs it open, revealing a ladder leading down to the ground.

Yunho doesn’t see how showing him the outside of their treehouse will answer his question at all, but he doesn’t point that out. He eyes the ladder nervously, but it seems to hold Wooyoung’s weight easily as he practically slides down the rungs.

He follows a bit slower, thankful that San waits until he’s almost at the bottom before stepping down too.

Wooyoung is waiting at the base of the ladder, and he meets Yunho’s eyes.

Instead of saying anything, he just gestures to the landscape around them.

Yunho is opening his mouth to ask a question, but finds that he can’t think of any. The tree the treehouse is in seems to be the only thing for miles, standing tall on the top of a slight hill. The land is gently rolling, fields of grass extending for what feels like forever.

A distant mountain range completes the feeling of stepping into a painting, smudges of snow decorating the peaks. Yunho gapes at the scene, awed to some extent by the natural beauty, but much more dumbfounded by the lack of anything modern.

There’s nothing; no telephone poles, no roads, no cars. There aren’t even any buildings that look remotely normal. Yunho is definitely excluding what might be a village off in the distance; he is very sure none of it will look like it’s supposed to.

This isn’t home, he thinks distantly. It can’t be; he’s very sure there isn’t anywhere on the planet this remote and untouched.

That’s not even considering Wooyoung, who has a plant growing out of his head, and San, who is blue.

“Where is this?” he asks slowly, turning to look at Wooyoung.

He grins proudly, puffing out his chest a bit.

“You’re in our world,” he says with a grin. “Pretty cool, isn’t it?”

[otomehoneyybearr]

Chevalier's Holiday Event Story!

Pictures and story provided by @candied-boys

A few hours ago, the light snow that began to fall, quickly covered the rose garden in white.

Emma: “It’s beautiful! Christmas with snow falling really feels special.”

Chevalier: “…”

While Chevalier chuckles at my excitement over the snowy scenery, he continues walking at the same pace.

Emma: “I’m happy that you suggested going for a walk.”

Chevalier: “It was written all over your face that you wanted to see the snow.”

Emma: “As expected, you saw right through me.”

Chevalier: “You made that expression the moment you saw the snowfall from the window. You’re still easy to read, simpleton.”

(To have the snowfall on Christmas day feels so romantic. My heart couldn’t help but leap with joy.)

Looking back along the path we just took; our footprints mark the snow that has piled up.

(Seeing our footprints side by side feels like proof that we’re spending Christmas together—I’m happy about that.)

(But surely, they’ll melt and disappear soon…)

(Even this special walk, just the two of us in the snow, I can’t help but feel a little sad thinking it’ll be over in no time.)

Chevalier: “Snow during this season isn’t that uncommon. I’ll accompany you again.”

Emma: “So you saw through that too…. Thank you.”

Emma: “When I think about talking a walk in the snow with you, I can’t help but hope for it to snow again.”

While we talked and admired the snowy landscape, the snowfall intensified, steadily stealing away by body heat.

Before it knew it, my fingertips were feeling numb.

(What a shame, I want to stay a bit longer and enjoy this, but my hands are freezing…)

Unable to bear it any longer, I brought both hands to my mouth to warm them when suddenly…

Chevalier firmly grasped my hand and started walking.

The stiffness in my fingers, numbed by the cold, gradually eased with the warmth he provided.

(…It’s so warm.)

Emma: “Thank you, King Chevalier.”

Chevalier: “…”

Feeling the warmth extend to my heart, I gently squeeze his hand back, but--

Chevalier, who was walking beside me, suddenly he changed direction.

Guided by his lead, we arrived at the gazebo where blankets, lanterns, and warm tea we’re neatly organized, perfect for warming us up.

As I sat down, Chevalier draped a blanket over my knees.

(He must have known from the beginning that it would turn out like this, and prepared everything just for me.)

(I really do love this kind of kindness from Chevalier.)

Emma: “I thought you would suggest going back to the room because I was getting cold.

Chevalier: “You’re reluctant to leave the snow behind, aren’t you?

(He understands how I feel and tries to warm me up instead of insisting otherwise.)

Emma: “Thanks to you, King Chevalier, it’s really warm.”

As I smiled, overflowing with joy, Chevalier, who stood beside me, gently lifted my chin and placed a tender kiss on my lips.

The breath that escapes between our lips melt into the snowy landscape.

After a long kiss that seemed to share our body heat, I locked eyes with Chevalier.

Emma: “Maybe the snow looks even more beautiful because I’m with you, King Chevalier.”

Chevalier: “…”

Chevalier: “For now, enjoy the snow as much as you like, Emma.”

Chevalier, with a human-like smile, gently held my hand, enveloping it.

(I’m sure that every time my body gets cold, he will try to warm me up like this.)

(Despite it being so cold, both my body and heart feel warm because Chevalier is with me.)

(There couldn’t be a better Christmas present than this.)

As I gazed at the continuous snowfall, I could feel the warmth of Chevalier’s love filling my body and heart.

▼・ᴥ・▼

[wayfayrr]

Hi, Moss!!

First of all, congratulations on 300 followers!!

I'd like to request some soft buttered rum with a yule log to eat in for the event!

I usually lurk in the shadows, but for this milestone, I thought I'll come forth from the darkness hehe <3

You're so awesome, I love all of your stuff, ESPECIALLY the self aware fics!!!!

I hope you have a great day/night <33

~Fi 🐝✨️

here's your order for you fi, it's very nice to see you in the light like this <3

Sorry that this one is shorter than the others so far </3 (there's a little context in the tags but I'm not gonna get into everything rn) soft twi is fun though, he's just a bit of a simp and a menace ain't he? just a soft boy with too many puppy vibes for his own good! even though this one is a little shorter I can promise there's more twi coming soon.

I'm glad you like the self-aware fics too!!! they're my pride and joy to write, seeing how many ways they can be taken and how fun every link could be in the situation. I've got wild on the back burner right now but he'll be one of the first to be up after I finish the event works

[Event masterlist]

“you like the snow Wolfie?” 

Twi's acting like a puppy right now, bounding around the field, occasionally stopping to shake off the snow. It’s nice to see him acting more carefree for once, seeing as he’s usually more stressed out about wild getting into trouble and such but for now he can just be more comfortable. 

It’s not for too long though as he shifts back after my question, by the look on his face probably because I’ve not been as active as he would like me to be right now. 

“Do you not darlin’?” 

Why does he look so smug. What is he planning to d- 

“LINK! Link that’s freezing come on.”

He’s not even listening, just snickering as he’s preparing another snowball. Well two can play at this game can’t they? 

I’ve just got to hit him more than he can hit me, simple enough right, should be fine not like he’s a hero who probably has much more everything than me. If I just - 

“You alright rancher? Got a little something on your face there.”

The way his nose scrunched up was downright adorable, even though only seconds later his own snowball was buried into my hair. The melted water running down onto my neck only fueled my desire to throw another. It was simply instinct for me to start making another…

Well start on it before he tackled me anyways.

“Whu- hey. What’s - what was that for?”

“Isn’t this more fun darlin’?”

“Twi come onnn.”

“I prefer this so much more [name]... unless you’d prefer that I go back to covering you with snow?”

“Oh so you’re playing like that then?”

If he wasn’t so stupidly strong I would so have flipped this on him already, but sadly he is stupidly strong even when he’s not putting any effort into it. Not that he’s really doing anything besides holding my wrists above my head and laughing lightly. 

“Are you planning on anything then?”

“Do you want me to do anything?”

“I - I mean… why wouldn’t I?”

Something shifted in his demeanour then, as he stopped laughing, his hands slipping to my waist as he stared into my eyes entranced. 

“You’d let me?”

“It’s you, twi of course I would.”

"... May I kiss you then?"

[arachnidamoon]

Ok may I shall make request,

It’s basically a fluffy hyperfixation I had that I wish to make true but I am no writer sooooooo-

Plz?

Request: Do you do muzan stuff I hope you do- ok ok listen, muzan finding a child (y/n) in the middle of the woods and some how fell in love with the sweetheart, like loves us so much he will literally have the upper moons be body guards for this little human child-

And when I mean fell in love I mean platonically- I hope this is good- you can change whatever you want, your the writer!

Yes, I love the idea! So cute! Also, I'm weak for anything related to Muzan or the Upper Moons.

I tried my best to fit everything into one story, but I hope you like it 🥺!

Adoption (Muzan + Upper Moons + Child! Gn! Reader)

"You will look after my child until I get back."

Muzan glared at the Upper Moons as he made his order clear. His gaze only softened when he glanced at (Name)’s sleepy form in his arms. Muzan brushed a strand of hair out of their face, admiring how adorable they were. He would never admit that out loud, though. At least not in front of his subordinates.

"Not even an ounce of harm should come to (Name), so make sure you attend them correctly."

Muzan had to leave to investigate a lead that could bring him to finally find what he had long been searching for: the Blue Spider Lily. That led to a problem: he had to find someone to take care of (Name). A frown appeared on his face because, in all honesty, he didn’t want to leave his child with the Upper Moons. (Name) was human. Fragile. His subordinates, some more than others, could be a menace to the safeness of the little one.

He had no other option, though. They were the only ones strong enough to protect (Name). Muzan rubbed his temples, trying to calm down. The memories of when he found (Name) were still engraved in his mind.

——————————————————————————

The demon lord was walking around the forest, trying to find some sort of information about the whereabouts of the Blue Spider Lily. It had been snowing since the morning, making walking around the area at night difficult. Even for him. Still, he wasn’t going to let any sort of valuable information go to waste without checking it first.

Like always, it was useless information. His face turned to one of pure anger as he hit the nearest tree, which made some fragments of snow fell on top of him. Muzan brushed it off his clothes, his red eyes narrowing. He only cared about one thing right now: his and his subordinates' constant failures to find the flower he desired so much. And that was the sole reason behind his anger.

He was about to leave when a mumbled crying noise got his attention. A child. A small one, too. Muzan got closer, trying to see what was going on. And he found (Name). The human child was covered in snow, sobbing, shaking, and trying to warm up. They were quite young—around four years old. As soon as their eyes met, they stopped crying.

"Dada!"

The child wrapped their tiny arms around his leg, their (e/c) eyes fully focused on the man in front of them. Muzan wasn’t the type to feel sympathy for anyone, but his cold heart slightly melted as the human child called him father. He decided to pick them up, wrapping his arms around (Name). Muzan tried to warm the child's body, his free hand cleaning the snow off their shoulders and hair. It wasn't long until he heard a grumble from the little one's stomach.

"Let’s get you something to eat."

——————————————————————————

Now, Muzan had fully adopted (Name) as his child. All the demons knew about it since he told them. They also remembered that meeting very well. His announcement included two things: a phrase about adopting (Name) and some threats. Just in case someone decided to hurt his child.

Muzan stopped recalling the past. He had things to do. So, he finally tucked (Name) in their bed, leaning in to kiss their forehead. After that, he sat on the edge of their bed, giving instructions to his subordinates. (Name) kept peacefully sleeping the whole time, unaware of what her father was still talking about with the Upper Moons.

"If (Name) has even the slightest complain about any of you, be sure you’ll never live to see another day."

After the threat, Muzan promised himself to go back home quickly. He would check if the information was authentic, and he would return. After all, he never fully trusted the Upper Moons. Muzan put his hat on, staring at the door of (Name)'s bedroom. His eyes met a drawing (Name) had made of them, making him smile for a mere second. Then he left.

——————————————————————————

The time (Name) was able to share with the Upper Moons went by without incident. All of them acted in different ways, but the demons grew to adore the little human child.

Kokushibo acted like a guardian, not allowing anyone to hurt (Name). The Upper One was once on a walk at night with the child. As soon as they kept walking, a group of kids slightly older than (Name) crashed into them, making the little one fall to the ground. The situation didn’t end well. At first, Kokushibo asked several times for them to apologize. When they didn't, he didn’t hesitate to unsheathe his katana. A warning look in his six eyes.

"I’ll not repeat myself anymore. Apologize to (Name)-sama or face the consequences."

The kids were quick to bow now, apologizing to (Name). Once they finished, they flew away with pale faces filled with cold sweat. (Name) turned to Kokushibo, thanking him. Their eyes glinted with admiration, and their adorable smile was back on their faces.

"Whoa, you are amazing! Dad has such a strong warrior by his side!"

Kokushibo couldn’t help but crack a slight smile as the child praised him, picking them up in his arms as they carried the child back to Muzan’s house.

Douma loved playing with (Name). He was the most outgoing and affectionate of them. The Upper Two liked to make sure the little one was happy and entertained. He bought (Name) toys, tickled them, read them stories before they went to bed, and even took them to the Eternal Paradise Faith. His followers whispered and looked at the child with confusion, unable to fathom where they came from. Still, they treated (Name) with the uttermost respect. After all, their Lord Founder's guests were their guests too.

"(Name)-sama, look! I made an ice sculpture of you! Isn’t it cute?" The Upper Moon placed a small sculpture on the child's hands, signaling them to look closely at it. An excited expression in the Upper Two features.

"It is! Is super cute!" (Name)'s bright smile as they admired their present was contagious, which made Douma smile back at them.

Much like Kokushibo, Akaza was like a guardian for the little one. He was always around the kid as much as he could, trying to avoid other demons from hurting (Name). Akaza always stayed by their side as they slept, alert to any sound. One of those nights, Douma tried to enter (Name)’s room to sleep by their side, wanting to give affection to the child.

"(Name)-sama is sleeping. Get lost." With that, Akaza closed the door in Douma’s face, not allowing the Upper Two to even speak before doing so.

Hantengu used his clones around (Name) since they were able to take better care of the child than him. Sekido was the scariest one for (Name). Not only because he acted like an authoritative figure but also because of how easily he got angry. Patience was not his strong suit, but luckily Aizetsu was always by their side to calm Sekido down. Meanwhile, Urogi and Karaku cracked jokes around (Name), wanting to make them laugh. Urogi also loved taking (Name) in his arms as he was flying, always making the kids' eyes widen in amazement. Their little hands held onto him as they giggled.

"More, please!" (Name) always begged when Urogi landed, wanting to experience that again.

Gyokko spent his time with (Name) doing more creative activities. He taught the child how to paint and draw, although only the basics. (Name) loved his explanations, admiring his work as he taught them. The child got closer to the vase he was painting, and when he was about to tell them to step back because of how easily it could break, (Name) said something.

"Your work is so pretty!" That was such an ego boost for Upper Five that he even allowed the child to paint one of his vases.

Daki was the most reluctant to bond with (Name) at first. She didn’t want to interact with the human that now had Muzan’s full attention, not understanding what was so special about them. Still, she was unable to avoid the kid when, one day, they grabbed her leg, giving her puppy eyes and the most adorable look she had ever seen. The Upper Six melted, hugging the child.

"I’ll be your older sister from now on!"

Since then, Daki started pampering (Name) a lot. She bought them cute, expensive clothes. She made sure (Name)'s outfits were always up-to-date with the latest trends. Daki would brush the child's hair, loving to see how shiny it got each time she brushed it. When Gyutaro was out too, they went out for walks or even to food stalls

All of this led the Upper Moons to want to spend more time with (Name), becoming both attached and protective of the little one.

But soon, Muzan came back. The demon lord was quick to snatch his child away from them.

"Your work here is done."

The Upper Moons were all devastated when Muzan told them that. Some showed it more than others. Daki was even about to whine, but then (Name) spoke.

"Dad, I want to see them more often. Please."

(Name) begged, not wanting to say goodbye to the Upper Moons. Muzan sighed, but he ended up agreeing. He would go to any lengths for (Name), after all.

[unikivrse]

my christmas spirit

୨˚̣̣̣͙୧ ⋆ 엔하이픈 ( 리키 ) + gnreader!oc (*≧∀≦*) content fluff established relationship slight angst foreign student reader minor kissing warning skinship dragged swearing & 2.1k bookshelf 𖥔 ࣪

🗒 to say i hate this would be an understatement but i hope im just being harsh on myself. anyway hope everyone has a merry ‎christmas :D tysm @nqvgue for helping me get the storyline straight ;-;

The softness of the late December snow was nothing but comfort to the procrastination filled Wednesday evening. Volunteering at the hospital as an apprentice was hectic in the winter. Whether it was because the wards you worked in were jam packed with festive injuries or maybe it was your crippling vitamin D deficiency that kept you from having the energy to work efficiently. All you could do was grasp the warm, hot chocolate mug as you melted into your uniformed legs that were hiked up on the break room sofa, gripping onto the last bits of consciousness you had, blinking profusely to try and stop yourself from passing out.

Lately you have been missing home. Missing that one thing that made you excited for the bitter days at the end of the year. Missing him. You hated getting soppy at work as you normally ended up crying in front of patients but there was something about the holidays that made you even more overwhelmed with appreciation. Riki had been working so hard, attending meeting after meeting, fan sign after video shoot and album signing after performances. You felt bad that YOU were so bothered by his work, by the state he visited you in. Falling into tidied sheets with an untidied attitude or drifting off to sleep whenever you were on call. You wanted to spend Christmas with him but it was like he wasn't there. The guilt of feeling jealous when he spent more time on weverse doing fan service than doing relationship service got too much to the point he snapped in front of you for constantly complaining about his exhausted state. You understood he was tired but you couldn’t help but to envy all the couples doing fun activities whilst you were stuck with dead legs by the weight of your passed out boyfriend's head.

You and Riki never argued. If you did it was always about the most mundane of things like who's turn it was to wash up or what position you were going to sleep in. Never anything serious. Never anything that kept you up at night crying over the look he gave you. You two had been pretty distant for about a week and a half at this point. You never stopped checking in on each other of course, its not like you stopped loving him but there was no effort for a conversation. You thought if you just let him get on with it, his schedule would die down and you'd have the same devilish boyfriend again but nothing came of it. Distracting yourself was the only thing that kept you from panicking as the big day came closer and there was still no sign of improvement. Your friends told you to have some 'christmas spirit' as your mood appeared drained but to be honest it was like Riki was the only Christmas spirit you could focus on. Like a ghost haunting you in the background. Living by yourself in a foreign country at such a young age was pretty difficult especially when all your friends had people to go home to. Riki was all you had and your mind soon filled with the possibility of spending the cold Christmas eve night alone and waking up alone and baking alone. He was never the confrontational type so maybe he was just scared you'd say something and start to pick a fight again?!

"Y/N…” your breath hitched as your senior caught you off-guard. "Hmm?" you squeezed out, trying to locate your voice whilst making eye contact. "You can go home early today" the corners of her mouth slowly turned upwards "I know you've been having a rough time lately, Merry Christmas". Suddenly the heaviness in your eyes released, offering a smile back “Merry Christmas.” You gripped on to the arms of the sofa, slowly lifting yourself to your feet, gathering your belongings.

And just like that, you were rummaging thorough your bag trying to find your schools dorm keys, happy to end the day. Often, days would end with you and Riki curled up in your bed watching horror films or playing animal crossing together but without him, days just merged together and became faint memories. You shakingly opened your door, stumbling as you took off your coat and shoes, discarding your bag and making a run for the kitchen. You don't remember when your fainting spells became so debilitating but you definitely weren't doing well. The shadowed look of your apartment didn't help, resulting in you bumping into cabinets and letting out little ouches along the way. You needed something sugary. Or at least water else you were going to become a pathetic pile on the floor. "Where the fuck-". You were usually pretty good at navigating in the dark but to be honest you weren't doing so well today. You finally let your ego be broken and turned to the light switch in order to fulfill your lightheaded desires. Sighing, you stomped your way over to your sweets cupboard. “Please i will take anything..” you whined, fidgeting around in a spotted tin.

“Ehem.” A deep, raspy voice that didn’t belong to you pierced into your heart, making it drop. You whipped your head around to see your sly, concerned boyfriend staring at you as he leaned against the countertop. “Don’t look so scared” he scoffed, “you look like you’ve just seen a ghost. He approached smirking, but as he got further that smug face he wore dropped, “why do you look like you’ve just seen a ghost? You are so pale!” his hand slid around your waist as he towered over you with concern. “Probably because i was just on the verge of passing out only to be scared by my boyfriend who i haven’t seen in ages. I don’t know just a thought” you squeezed out, gripping onto his biceps as your tunneled vision turned into the outro of the century and your legs began to fold. “Oh my god.. have you been working-” and in that moment, you could no longer hold up the facade of JUST making it back to your dorm, as if the mere touch of him was more than homely to you, allowing you to finally pass out. Right there, in his arms. Obviously you hadn’t put any thought into that. How could you? But seeing you this vulnerable, this fragile broke Riki’s heart in ways he never experienced before.

A subtle mumbling of what seemed to be your television teased your consciousness and senses back into existence, as you soon felt the warmth of your boyfriend’s arms around your torso, hands intertwined in your limp fingers. “Hey, you alright?” he whispered after seeing your newly gained awakening. You couldn’t help but to chuckle a little, after days of not communicating with each other, pondering in the silence that surrounded your relationship, he still spoke to you and held you with the same softness.“I’m sorry”. That’s all you could say. After all the screaming and huffing you shared nights ago all you could do was apologise. He deserved it after all, he had been working hard because this was his dream and you couldn’t help but to be selfish about it. “Me too.” he pouted, leaning into your starstruck face as he did so. “I should’ve spent more time with you and i understand why you were so upset”. Your eyes must of twinkled with the way you were looking at him because before you could even come up with a response to protect his being, he pressed the most gently kiss you ever had on your newly swollen, rested lips. He took his time with it, not pulling back or moving but just enjoying being next to you again. As if it was instinct, your lips turned into a smile and your cheeks became cherry red, you needed to say something, anything, “I guess i just missed you, like a lot and i would have never wanted to make you feel bad about doing your job, especially after working so hard for it but i was just so jealous” you proclaimed after detaching your lips from his. Even the simplest look from his eyes made you feel weary again, as if you were going for round two of passing out. “I guess I missed you too which is why i broke into your apartment to surprise you” he scoffed “but you obviously had other ideas.” Surprise?! “What type of surprise?” you shuffled with excitement, now leaning mostly on him, eyes beaming with curiosity. “Well i was going to do loads of christmas activities with you-” you gasped making him smile, “BUT i thought i’d save that for christmas day and i’ve found something much more worth my time, plus i don’t want you overworking yourself considering the state you’ve gotten yourself into without me” he held your cheek, just staring at you as you repeatedly slapped his arm. Eyes widening you couldn’t help but to screech “TELL ME! TELL ME WHAT IT IS”. It had been a week without anything remotely good occurring and with your overwhelming amount of love for christmas that had been such a letdown, hearing him say that just threw you over the edge as if you were having a psychotic breakthrough. “Hmm i don’t know if i should show you now or laterrr.” he teased, comically scratching his chin whilst turning his attention to the top left corner of your bedroom ceiling. “PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE RIKI” it was so embarrassing how much you needed this right now but you couldn’t help the childish wonders that filled your head. Riki was such a creative gift giver so next thing you knew, you were thinking about him handing you a small teacup sized kitten or relaxing on a white sanded beach together or flipping through a photo album that help all your memories in. “OKAY fine!” he moaned sarcastically, sliding his hand down into his trouser pocket. “Close your eyes and don’t open them until i say you can, even when i start talking.” You nodded, just wanting to find out what it was already. Closing your eyes you heard him clear his throat.

“I don’t know whether you have been feeling the same way i have lately but seeing you so desperate to spend time with me messed me up Y/n. It made me imagine a future where you were tired of waiting up all night for me to wake up or get to yours, a future where you decided enough was enough. I genuinely want you to know i’m here for the long run. Yes, i know we are SO young but i'm not sure i would have gotten so far without you. Which is why i want to promise that i’m gonna stay, that i'm going to try my hardest to show you all the things i think about and tell you how much you mean to me.” You had never heard Riki be so vocal and hearing the desperation and honesty in his words would have made you tear up if your eyes weren’t closed right now. He sniffed. Was he crying? “You can open your eyes now” he whispered. Your eyes automatically searched for his which were now damp and red but you also saw what he was holding. A rose quarts gem mounted on a woven silver band, nestled in the navy velvet box with the words ‘time is only well spent with the promise of you’ engraved into it. To be more than honest, this is not what you were expecting at all. You had never shown any type of materialistic mannerisms to Riki but this was more than that. More then a ring. And with that, you were bawling your eyes out, grasping the very hands that held it. “This is my promise to you. A promise that no matter how far or for how long we are apart from each other, i won’t give up on us.” Lips quivering, you made eye contact with him only to fall into his arms, heart pounding and mouth wailing. You had never felt so hopeful, so grateful. Sure, there was a lot of things you needed to talk about but in this moment of utter emotion, his arms wrapped around you, you felt the warmth of humanity and the passion that came with it. Christmas would soon be even more special as you got to spend it with the most heartful person you could have ever imagined, you were just glad it was him you would be experiencing it with.

taglist OPEN @nqvgue

© unikivrse

[blingblong55]

gaaahh I love your platonic TF141 x reader!! I was wonder if we could get some more, but for a Gn!Reader?

for context I find it hard to swap pronouns when reading, but if not that's fine lol!

and if you want, have some writing prompts!

-Southern!Reader gets drunk, acting like a fool, they're accent the strongest it's ever been, and TF141 is just "wtf are they even saying?"

-general shenanigans with Gaz and Reader, pranking ghost >:]

-SNOW DAY! the boys have the day off, and it ends up with a snowball fight, soap, ghost, and reader VS. gaz, price, and könig (yes I added him I am a simp for this man)

-Reader gets hit on in public, and 141 acts like big brothers + father and beat the crap outa whoever was unfortunate enough to pick on Reader

-DAD PRICE. just. him teaching Reader things, giving pointers, and being protective off-field

anyways sorry for the long ask! hope your doing well :]

Sweet Creature -141+König

ofc! I always try to make my readers comfortable when reading so never shy away for asking this!

This is a collection of moments your boys have been through with you...(there is mentions of an American reader, but if you please it can only apply to the first one.)

GN! Reader, Plantonic! Relationship

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

(I had to look up southern sayings so if this part doesn't make sense I apologize. (feeling too brit today..sorry))

After a much needed out in the town 141 had been deployed to, r/n decided it would be great to compete against Soap in a drinking game. Drink after drink, your once good basic American accent left your lips and was soon replaced with your souther accent. Price at first found it funny, until he couldn't tell exactly what you were trying to say.

Gaz: that was until I dropped it all

R/n to Ghost: That's 'bout as useful as tits on a bull, wouldn't ya'say?

Price: *chuckles* what does that even mean kid?

R/n: o' bless ya heart sir (apparently it means idiot,,,so don't come for me) y'dumber than a mule

*a woman passes by their table and Gaz starts checking her out*

R/n: look at him price, he's grinnin' like a possum eatin' a sweet tater

Price: seriously what does that mean?

Ghost: think they mean he looks like a dumb arse

Gaz stands up to try and talk to that woman

R/n: soap tell em somethin'

Soap: go get her tiger

R/n: No, no,,,you hold your horses now...she ain't even turn to ya and yo're hotter than hell al'ready?

Price: right...let's get you home r/n

R/n: I can take 'nother one....

Ghost: not today *he picks you up and off to base you go*

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

After an uneventful evening Gaz and r/n decided to annoy Ghost, a ritual Price had gotten used to, after Ghost came in to complain every week. Price would always discard them because he loved having his children smile and be young and happy.

There was one time where you placed syrup on his tea. Another time, you kept calling his phone, pretending to be some religious group, this went on for 3 months. One time you made him believe the whole base left him, you stole his phone and clothes, best believe you never saw the devil until that day.

2 weeks ago, Ghost was tricked into eating some expired MRE, that man got sick so easily, Gaz was tricked into taking the blame. Meanwhile you enjoyed some banana with soap as Ghost chased Gaz for 30 minutes, until you tripped Gaz and ran to price.

R/n: dumb bitch!*you ran so fast, soap swore it was you being chased*

----

This happened at 2 am, Ghost's room.

You and gaz know how much ghost hates dirty bed sheets. So you did this:

Gaz: r/n pass me the chocolate

R/n: why are we doing this again?

Gaz: its fun

R/n: how will this even work?

Gaz: it'll melt under his body and make it look like he shat himself

R/n: this is so cool

Gaz: shh

you two walked into Ghost's room, he was dead asleep, when he shifted to his left side, Gaz placed the chocolate near his bum, you two successfully ran out and waited outside all morning.

Ghost opens his door, anger flowing through him

Ghost: where are these little twats

That's when you and Gaz ran away to Price's office, he eventually caught up and complained to Price. (I'm picturing that office scene when Dwight and Jim are complaining to Micheal. Yes, the American one. )

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

This time the team was deployed to Switzerland, for everyone it all felt like home, spring and summer was quite lovely, that's until Price was told this deployment would be longer that expected. Winter rolled in, everyone was prepared for a harsh winter, except you, who had never experienced snow. You had told soap how every year when you're away from home, snow has hit hard, and that you had never seen snow in real life.

This had become a perfect opportunity for him to show you how much you meant for the team. So once he had told price about the sad story of yours, they planned an entire day out.

Soap: c'mon r/n its time for your surprise.

He bought you gloves and a scarf,( he knows how easily it is to get cold.) Once outside, you ran around screaming in delight. "This is awesome!" you said as you tackled soap onto the snow.

Gaz was the one who started the snowball fight. Price took his side. Ghost and soap took yours. Poor König was stuck in the middle, deciding who to join, until price dragged him to his side and that's when the fight seriously started.

(Picture that SpongeBob snowball fight)

Soap tripped multiple times, your face was covered in snow because you couldn't stop laughing at him. Ghost did most of the dirty work, he seriously took this serious.

He pulled you both down, "right, so while I get price, r/n you get König, he'll feel bad for throwing things at a midget and quit, gaz will soon give up, so soap he is all yours.

"That was mean man" you said but all he did was push you to the floor, where you got stuck for 2 minutes. He eventually helped you up and continued the fight.

Even though he was a trained soldier, König never threw anything at any of you, he was too afraid of getting anybody injured. Best believe this man walked out and waited until things became friendly. He eventually built a snowman. The same one soap ran through. "awh, my snow friend" he sadly spoke. (please imagine this with his cute little Austrian accent and his giant figure just looking down and picking up the sticks and hat from his snowman..)

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

This time around you encouraged the team to go out once more. It was September in some other country. After years of working with your boys you never expected them to be your guard dogs. You went up to the bar to order your drinks, until two people walked up behind you and sat at the stools beside you. (I'll let ya decided on the gender ;) )

"What is a cute thing like you doing around this place" one spoke, while the other got too close for comfort.

" Look whatever it is..I'm not interested" you answered,

The guys know you're able to fend for yourself, after all they've seen you kill men with your bare hands, but you had become their little sibling. They all swore to protect you no matter how big or small your problems were.

"You're just here by yourself love?" the other said, while reaching for you.

Price tapped that persons shoulder, "leave them alone," as price spoke to them, soap took you and brought you to the other side. "You stay here, understood?" he cupped your face in his hand.

All you did was nod. "good" he walked away and the four men took them out the back. "you don't touch them ever, or else I swear you'll go back home in a bag" Ghost towered over them,

"this is nonsense, they aren't even good looking!" one said.

(this is very...manners maketh man...vibes )

Price swung and hit ones jaw, "you fuck!" they said holding onto their face. "run you pricks" gaz threatened. "Soap hand me your gun"Price never took his eyes off of them. Ghost took out on of his pocket knives, he caressed it and looked at them. Gaz did too, man would he defend you.

But before soap handed his gun to his captain they had ran out.

Once inside, you sat there. Starring at them with those kind eyes of yours. They immediately went soft. "Got your favorite drink, kid?"

"yes, can I asked what happened out there?"

"nope...after this we can get some McDonalds, that's if you never ask about this again" man was he good at deals you thought.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

(For this one I'll put you as a 23yr old, who specializes in hand to hand combat, and demolitions, as well as a training sniper, mainly bc i feel you need a little background.)

Price never understood how his colleagues could afford love for their kids. He didn't get how one little human would change their ways of being. That's until you arrived at base. Fresh off boot camp.

The day he met you, he understood why his friends back home retired after having kids. It went from him sparring with you, just to test your limits to making sure you were getting sleep, (this man for sure tucked you in)

"Sir, you're telling me that if I boil that liquid it will actually turn into a quality beverage?"

"How do I change my tire?"

"wait..how do I check for my oil?"

"price? are you sure I can go home? I don't want to be alone."

" can you please kill it? I'm scared man."

After teaching you from the most basic things in life a father should teach to what a military dad would teach, he grew fond of you.

Around December he found you roaming base, all alone. The rest of the team (except him ofc) was sent back home, to spend time with family and friends. Once you explain how you had no family to go back home to, he made you pack your bags and head to his. Funny enough, Ghost was already heading to his, it had become a thing between them.

He told you about his wife, how she wasn't able to conceive and how excited she was to met you. Later that week, she called you her child. You and Ghost had found a forever home with him. "These are my children." she proudly said to anyone who asked about the two socially awkward people standing next to her.

A week before Christmas, he took you and ghost hunting, that day he let you have a puff off of his cigar. "be careful now, don't inhale too much." he pointed at you, like he was talking to a child.

After the holiday, you were allowed to call him dad, pops when you were at his place.

Out at bars, he would keep you close. And when someone would clearly flirt with you, it was in him to remind you "no person will ever be good enough for you, understand kid?"

He even cracked dad jokes with Ghost and you. He made sure to update his family portrait from him and his wife to one of the four of you.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Tags: @thatonesimpyknow

a/n: I know It really long..but I hope you did enjoy it!

REQUEST ARE OPEN!!

[nervoushottee]

Flaws and All CH. 2 (Joel Miller x Fem! Reader Series)

Warnings: None if I am not mistaken, menstruation products are mentioned

Note: HI HOTTEES I missed you guys and I missed this fic. Hope you all enjoy mwah!

Series Masterlist

_ _ _ _ _ _ _

Chapter 2

It had gotten even colder.

From the moment you woke up you could see your own breath. You had sleept in a hurdled baby postition in your sleeping bag to keep yourself warm. And you weren’t sure how the hell Joel stayed up any longer with how cold it got.

He was no where to be found in the office when you got up or in the station itself. The front door was open, with the old piece of wood lodged in between so the door wouldn’t close all the way. You zipped your jacket all the way up to your neck before going out.

Yesterday you could see the gravel road, the snow barely leaving any color melting as soon as it had fallen in certain area. But now when you walked outside. There was about an inch of snow covering the floor.

The dirt from your boot causes the soft snow to turn brown with every step you take. The wind causes your cheek to flush as you look around to find Joel.

“Joel?” You call out. You get no reply but the wind.

Did he leave you in the middle of the night while you slept? Maybe he thought it would soften the blow to make you think he was actually going to take you yesterday and then leave without a trace.

You turn to walk to the side of the station to see a makeshift fire. The fire was low, down to almost embers. But it was proof of life, proof that Joel could still be here. Or that he left not too long ago.

“Mornin’.” The sound of his voice causes you to turn at the sudden sound. Joel was wearing his green jacket, zipped all the way like you had. One of his hands holding a gas jug.

A wave of relief sets in your bones as you let out a huge breath. You nod at his obvious statement. “It snowed.” You say back to him.

Joel nods, turning back briefly to look at the trees that were dusted with white. “It started about an hour or so after you fell asleep. I’m surprised that its only this much.” He walks past you to the dead fire and kneeled down.

“I didn’t sleep long. Managed to siphon enough gas for about a day or two. Here’s hopin’ anyway.”

You walk closer to the fire. Despite it nearly being gone, you can feel the small warmth against your lower legs.

You were slowly noticing that Joel really wasn’t much of a sleeper. If he did, it wasn’t much. During those nights before you got to the station. More times than not Joel kept watch in the middle of the night.

At first you thought it was out of chivalry. Which you quickly decided against with how the world has become and how quickly you’ve seen a lot men become even more vile than before this all happened.

You also thought it could be because of your hand. It hurt like a bitch in the beginning. Couldn’t do much of anything with your dominant hand practically split open and bleeding.

But on the third night before you found this place. You told Joel that you wanted to take the first watch. Your plan was to take the first watch and then the rest of it and not wake him up at all. Give him a full night sleep as a “thank you for keeping watch every night and for literally saving my fucking life.” But not even one hour in and you could hear Joel grumble in his sleep and wake up with a low gasp. Like he had a nightmare of some sort.

He got up and told you that’d he’d take watch for the rest of the night. With how straight forward he was and from the tone of his voice. You knew it wasn’t up for discussion. And if this was before, before the clickers and the raiders and the infected that crawled through every crevice. You would’ve put up more of a fight. Demanded him to sleep or whatever stubborn sentence you would say.

But hell, it was a chance at more sleep and at least you tried . It was the thought that counted. And who were you to ask or check on him about it? You didn’t want to pry.

“Which car are we using?” You ask, crouching down closer to the dead fire, trying to get as much warmth as you could from its dying flames. “There’s a truck about a minute or two down the road. I didn’t wantna drive it up here just in case but it still works, just needs a wire start. When we’re done here, we’ll head down there.” He tells you.

You almost tell him that you want to go now, but you think it might be best to give the station another comb over just in case you missed anything.

“I’m going to go back inside and see if there’s anything useful that we missed getting yesterday.” With that, you stand up to head back inside to gather your things and do your final sweep.

“Wait.” You hear Joel say. Turning your head towards the man that was walking towards you.

“It’s not soup but it’s warm.” He says to you.

He hands you a cup filled with coffee. Hot coffee.

Your eyes light up, eyebrows nearly raise up to your hairline. Suprised he found this and even had the thought to give it to you. You look up from the steaming cup to Joel who looks hesitant in his actions. He gives you a small nod of your head. Almost as if he’s asking you to take it. Telling you it’s okay.

Maybe you’re digging into it too much. But you feel like it’s an olive branch to becoming travel partners. Remembering the small conversation, the only conversation, you had last night with him. And a warm coffee the next day. If you close your eyes, it almost feels like the two of you are going on a trip. Traveling cross country and stopped to refuel your gas tank and stock up on snacks and caffeine. Not that you’re traveling to survive. Traveling to find shelter away from death and destruction.

You take the cup gently into your hands. The styrofoam cup warms your fingertips and turns them pink. A big contrast from the cold temperature. “How did you even-”you start to ask

“Found a locked cupboard full of those cups and instant coffee packets. It’s not the best type but it’s coffee nonetheless.” He explains with a shrug and a very small smile as he stares at the cup.

It takes you a while before you say anything. Simply holding the warm cup in your hands. Staring at the steam swirl up in to the air and disappear into the wind. The strong aroma that you hadn’t smelled in a long time. Coffee not even being a thought in your mind. You look up to him, grateful.

“Thank you.”you say thoughtfully

Joel doesn’t make it much of a moment as you do, he simply nods his head and heads back over to the fire. Making sure it’s put out and no ember can cause any amount of smoke. You go into the station to gather your things and check it one more time before you trek.

——————-

Joel was right, it wasn’t the best coffee you ever had. But it sure was good. It was warm, and exactly what you needed. The nutty bitter taste of gas station coffee that brought you back to a simpler time.

Your bags were packed and so was Joel’s. Coffee in hand you made one last sweep of the gas station. You were able to find a couple bottles of water, toilet paper, granola bars, and a couple more of the Yahoo cans of milk.

You also hit the motherload on menstruation products. You had kicked down the dispenser in the women’s bathroom that was filled with the shitty pads and tampons that were never the best of quality. They were always just a last minute resort, if you’re period snuck up on you. Now, it was a blessing that it was even here. Oh how times have changed.

Joel closed the gas station door shut and the both of you walked down the road to the truck Joel found. A blue and white Chevy that was parallel parked on the side of the road between two beat up Sedans. A golden treasure hidden in plain sight. You were surprised no one had even tried to take it.

You walk over to the passenger seat and get inside. You throw your bag and the new items you got from the station in the backseat. Joel is outside, filling up the gas tank with a bit more gas before the two of you get on your way.

You look around the truck. You didn’t know much about vehicles, never was interested in the first place. But you hoped that the truck would be able to take you both to your destination. The front door opens and Joel sits in the front seat. He bends down the side to grab the wires and start the car. It takes a few tries before the engine sings. The familiar hum of a vehicle, the vibration against your feet makes your heart race.

You feel Joel’s eyes on you, making you look up at him. He looks at you in question, his eyebrows raised, silently asking if you were ready. You give him a nod and a small smile and with your gesture, he shifts into gear and starts driving.

__ __ __ __ __ __

HEY YALLL!! IT’S BEEN A LONG TIME!!

I have been working so much and just haven’t had any motivation to write. I’m hoping this year I can get back into it keep on writing these stories and sharing it with you all.

This is very short but I just wanted to post another chapter since it’s been a while and it felt like a good place to end the chapter.

Anyway, thank you for reading!! MWAH

Taglist: @hoemadegrace @ninjarose23 @mandeepandee1997 @sheepdogchick3

[vulture-writes-stuff]

i came running so fast as soon as i saw ur arven x reader content, it was so pleasing to read and arven is such a good guy 😭 i hope it's alright to request something! would u be willing to write grusha x nb reader? maybe something about where the reader is his assigned bodyguard who needs to escort him somewhere important, seeing as he's a gym leader and all! but in the end, pls write whatever u feel most comfy with :) have a nice day!

I did my best with this because I adore Grusha!! He's such a good boy I think hes very funny

I also like how people lost their minds upon finding out he's a man, comedy gold

Thank u for requesting flower Anon!! Enjoy the food 🌻

Grusha X NB Reader

Every gym leader gets a bodyguard, but why is Grusha's so... Protective of him? He knows they should remain professional, but it's hard to.

Reader is not the SV protagonist. Their origin and general story remains ambiguous, but they're explicitly mentioned to be a fairy-type specialist. Their full team is brought up - they have an Azumarill, a Dachsbun, a Tinkaton, a Mimikyu, a shiny Sylveon, and an Arcanine with fairy tera-type. They're mentioned to be strong enough to lift Grusha with relative ease.

~

It was so damn cold.

Grusha spent almost every day up here on the mountain, running his gym... It was often the last one challengers took on, not only because of the trip, but because he was quite tough when he wanted to be.

And yet, despite that, he was freezing cold right now. He was on his way down Glaseado mountain to get to Mesagoza, because he has to meet with Geeta (she called annual meetings with all the gym leaders to see how everything was going). Of course, this was the one day the Flying Taxis couldn't get all the way up the mountain.

Grusha stuffed his hands into his pockets, nestling his face further into his scarf. He was at least thankful that, despite the bitter frost that made his face numb, he wasn't alone. Recently, the gym leaders had been appointed bodyguards - quite a stark change from their usual solitude, but an incident with a rowdy pack of Maschiff meant they needed an extra hand.

His bodyguard walked by his side, wearing a heavy overcoat that looked surprisingly warm. They didn't seem all that bothered by the weather, keeping pace with him as he trudged through the snow. Their Arcanine, the largest one he'd ever seen, padded alongside them. Its every breath made the air turn to mist, and its paws left melted prints in the snow.

Grusha had realized quite recently that he had a crush on them. Unsurprising, all things considered. They were attractive, and genuinely cared about his needs... Even if their solutions tended to be a little extreme. He could still vividly recall when his old injury was acting up, right in the middle of a gym battle, and they swooped in to physically pick him up so he could continue fighting without straining his body.

It had been embarrassing in the moment, but they were warm. And nice.

Grusha didn't realize he'd zoned out until he felt a weight land on his shoulders, draped over him like a cape. They'd taken off their coat to give it to him, more concerned about his comfort than theirs.

"That's a bad idea," Grusha said, though he didn't return their jacket. "You're gonna freeze."

"I'll be fine, I've got Arcanine." They said, giving the Legendary Pokemon a pat on the side. The Arcanine let out a soft wuff, exhaling a small puff of smoke in the process. "You look like you're going to collapse, so you need it more than me."

"...Thanks." He hadn't realized how fatigued he was until now, grabbing the collar of the coat and pulling it a little closer around himself. Grusha's face twinged with a faint blush, savoring the extra warmth he got.

The pair continued to walk in silence, and Grusha was faintly aware of the other drawing closer to him. He could see the wary expression on their face, see them tense up momentarily... And then he saw what they saw. The menacing glint of eyes from the slopes above.

Grusha was swept off his feet as they grabbed him, lifting him with an alarming amount of ease. He heard the cry of a sneasel, and the sound of way too many footsteps rapidly approaching.

"Hang on to me," They said curtly, unclipping the premier balls from their belt and throwing them behind them. Grusha grabbed onto them as best he could, glancing over their shoulder - a pack of sneasel, the largest he'd ever seen, lead by a trio of mean-looking weavile. He'd only ever seen his bodyguard's Arcanine. The rest of their team was... Mildly surprising to him.

A scowling Azumarill fought off a small horde on its own, knocking a few through the air with a swing of its heavy tail. A Dachsbun wearing a shell bell was providing support from the back, battling the sneasel that interrupted it. A Tinkaton and a Mimikyu were ferocioously fighting two of the weavile, easily holding their own, and a blue-furred Sylveon was backing up their Arcanine. Grusha hadn't taken them for a fairy type specialist, but he supposed it wasn't his place to judge.

They took off at a sprint, pursued by a few stragglers and the last of the weavile. Grusha saw the dangerous glint of claws tear at their shirt, but they were quick enough to evade the worst of the attack.

Heavy footfalls alerted Grusha to their Arcanine's return, the Pokemon grabbing its trainer by the scruff and dropping them onto its back. It sprinted down the mountain at full speed, and the sounds of battling slowly faded... Grusha could hear the telltale sound of Pokemon being returned, though.

Despite being supported by the Arcanine now, Grusha clung to them like a lifeline. He certainly didn't feel like he was in danger anymore - he was actually quite comfortable. They were warm, much warmer than the cold world around them, their arms wrapped comfortingly around him.

Their relationship should have been strictly professional, all things considered, but he found himself longing for more.

"Grusha." They said, like they'd read his thoughts. "Are you alright? Not hurt?"

"Of course I'm not. Are you hurt? It looked like that weavile nailed you pretty bad..." He sat up slightly.

"No, no, it only grazed me. Nothing I can't manage." They shrugged it off, adjusting their grip on him. "You fought well, Arcanine. Thank you for carrying us, I know you're not fond of chauffering."

The Arcanine huffed again, continuing its journey down the mountain. They sat in silence again, the only real sound being Arcanine's footsteps.

"So... You never told me about your team." Grusha was the first to speak.

"You never asked." They chuckled lightly, propping their chin on his shoulder without thinking. His heart skipped. "Arcanine was my first Pokemon. Caught him out in the wild out of sheer dumb luck, only found out about how he could terastallize later. The rest of my team I caught later, Sylveon was the last one I found. She was only a little Eevee at the time."

"Huh." He mused thoughtfully, leaning into them. "It's just rare to see someone specialize in fairy types."

"Not as rare as you might think. You just see a whole lot of fire, fighting and steel types."

"...That's probably true, actually." Grusha groaned. "I think I've seen more Skeledirge in my lifetime than any other living person."

They laughed, a lovely sound that made Grusha's heart race yet again. He couldn't take it any more! He tugged his scarf down with one hand, the other resting lightly on the back of their neck.

They had very little time to react as he pulled them down, their noses bumping awkwardly together as his lips met theirs. Adrenaline still pumped through his veins from the sneasel encounter, the roaring blizzard in his heart finally settling. The kiss lasted for what felt to be an eternity, unbroken even by the blistering wind.

The human need for oxygen forced them apart, and the glint in their eye spoke a thousand words.

"A reward," He started, snuggling into his scarf again. "For doing your job well. I don't know what I would've done if you weren't there."

"I'm... Flattered." They were the embarrassed one for once, unable to meet his eyes. "Grusha, are you... Sure you wanted to do that? I mean, I don't mind, it's just- well, the league might frown upon it, and-"

"To hell with the league." Grusha groaned. "You're adorable when you get all formal, you know. I don't care what Geeta or anyone else say, I really like you."

They were bright red to the very tips of their ears, a shade of scarlet that rivaled their Arcanine's fiery orange. They didn't say anything further, but Grusha noticed how they pulled him closer against him.

He let his head fall against their shoulder, the air finally warming as they reached the base of the mountain. The trip to Mesagoza would be long from here, but...

Well, with all that off his chest, Grusha knew he could make it.

~

This is so short and I am really sorry, I had a hard time writing this!!! It's not anything to do with the request, it's just my first time writing a dynamic like this 😭😭😭

It's getting late and I have work tomorrow so I'm going to post this as it is, hope you enjoy either way

[heavenstocharlee]

Winterbreak // m.lee

Characters: Mark Lee x gender neutral!reader Category: angst / fluff if you squint Word count: 500+ (first poetic blurb!) Song inspiration: Winterbreak by MUNA

Writer’s notes: I am coming out of retirement and posting this blurb I wrote solely because the song reignited my love for writing. It was exciting to write in a more poetic style than usual, and I hope you appreciate it! More life updates soon, but for now bon appetit!

Just as the snow on your windowsill slowly melts, you observe time fracture through bits of fleeting moments. The cold never struck you in such a way as it did. More so than ever before, you felt the winter breeze emanating from the drywalls of your apartment into the warm comfort of your epidermis. The break was not supposed to be this long, you thought. The tugging exchanges between you and Mark lasted for eons, and now numbness fills the spaces between each thread of tension.

You always knew you'd find your way back to him. "One more try." But the winter winds convince you otherwise. 

You and Mark were well aware of the reparations for parting ways. The consequences, however, outweighed the benefits. The break was transparent, and every day it was a struggle to stay still. You desperately depend on the ice beneath your feet to keep you afloat.

You haven't seen Mark since last winter break. A little over a year of hearts moving farther, albeit your love growing fonder. The last memory you shared with Mark consisted of you picking up clothes scattered across the floor and slowly making your way onto the freezing front porch. He wants to walk you home, but you refuse. Tears then started to trickle down his face, indicating that it was over this time. Despite all the bones in your body wanting to wipe all his tears away, you left his residence. His warmth. 

You broke Mark's heart. 

This love was just not fitting at the moment; the love the both of you won't get right. No matter how hard you try.

Habits were hard to break. Your soul respond to each other like the ebb and flow of glacier lakes. Turquoise in color—organic, bright, and untouchable. Ethereally calm in some days, raging in others. But every time his lips parted and his eyes were filled with painful aches, it was all just covering up what was lying underneath. Despite knowing every single thing, it was not going to fix anything. It was not going to repair the cracks or turn back the clock of what was once more. 

"One more try." You often muttered when even a hint of longingness prevailed on your mind. Constantly, until you were sick of it and had to truly just let go. From days to weeks, and now a year. The calendar has turned a new leaf, and all of the frost reminds you of the warmth you once had. 

Would it be different this time? 

You both know you won't get it right. 

Will the winter winds carry you into a change of mind? 

You both know that the trial season is over. 

Magnetic, isn't it? 

Like a force dragging you to greener pastures, as the thin ice resurfaces the underlying intentions.

One text message you send to Mark responds in tentative ellipses. To continue.  To hope. 

You make your way onto the bridge that you once held your memories on. As the vapor out of your mouth comes into existence on that coldest day of the year, you admire winter in its full glory. This time up close and personal, far from childish admiration.

With light and warm footsteps, you hear Mark making his way over to you.

Still, you both know.  This time, alas, it is right. 

[annabethy]

aurora // a 'tis the damn season au

Percy and Annabeth had something real. They fell in love somewhere between bookstore kittens and vintage novels with pages tinted yellow with time, and they were happy. It’s rare, finding the type of love they did. It’s even more rare making it last. Read on AO3. (Chapter 2/8)

Percy thinks that as much as he enjoys working in a bookstore, it can get pretty boring. 

The boredom winds up mainly because Annabeth seems to be absent today. She typically hangs around while he works, curled up on a beanbag by the window with a new novel in her hands. It’s a cute sight, and he recalls when he used to do the same thing when he was younger, minus the reading. When it was just him and his mom, she couldn’t always afford to stay home on days he was sick and couldn’t go to school, so he grew used to the corner beanbag and the feeling of sunlight filtering on his skin. He’s gotten used to Annabeth sitting in that same spot too, and though he’s reassured her before that she doesn’t always need to accompany him after school, she does it anyway. 

He keeps eyeing the front door, and the shop is so slow that he decides to sit on the counter stool, still staring miserably at the window. 

It’s the day after Christmas, so it makes sense that she’s probably busy, but also, she’d spent the entire previous day with him and he swears she told him that she would hang around for a bit. 

He tilts his head.

Maybe she got caught in the snow. From what he can see through the foggy windows, it’s snowing heavily. There’s at least six inches of snow stacked up along the sidewalk, more where it’s been plowed to the edges of the roads, so it’s possible. Still more likely that she ghosted him, though.

He spots movement in the corner of his eye, and when he turns his head, the cat is peering at him from behind the corner of the counter. She almost appears unthreatening, which she is for the most part to everyone except him, so he lets her slowly patter closer to him. When she makes her way onto the counter and transfers onto his lap, he’s slightly convinced this is a bookstore cat imposter, but he runs her tail through his hand anyway, scratching behind Maisie’s ears.

“You’re being nice,” he murmurs, so no one in the store thinks he’s lost it. “Must mean Annabeth is nearby. You’re never nice to me.”

His words are accompanied with a small nip at his fingers, but he doesn’t think she meant it to hurt, so he lets it slide. Like him, the cat stretches out to watch the door. It’s sweet, knowing the cat is waiting for Annabeth, and also slightly eerie knowing that the cat must also have some sense of time to know she should arrive soon. 

“Maybe she’s not coming,” Percy says to the cat. “She’s probably realized you have a double life and are secretly a wanted war criminal.” He hums. “You’ve scared her away. Hope you’re happy.”

Being alone in the bookstore is troubling his sanity, it seems. He’s speaking to a cat.

“It’s just you and me, babe.” He sighs and looks away from the door to gaze at the cat. He’s met with wide eyes back at him, blinking slowly. “And I don’t even like you.”

Of course that’s when the bells above the door chime as it’s pushed open.

“Finally befriending the cat?”

“I was telling her about how I planned to hunt her,” he replies without looking up. “She’s shaking in fear.”

“I’m sure,” she laughs, suddenly in front of him on the other side of the counter. He looks up at her then, and she looks like such a mess that he snickers right in her face. She frowns. “Shut up.”

“What happened?” Percy chokes, letting his right hand leave the cat’s back to smooth down her hair. Her curls are still dotted in thick snowflakes, though they’re rapidly melting, and her cheeks are rosy to the point he’s sure it hurts. “Did you just come back from war?”

“Have you stepped foot outside? I almost got blown away walking down the street.” She comes to the other side of the counter to steal the cat from his arms. She ignores him for a moment, shoving her face into the blonde cat before lifting up to look at him again. She does look overwhelmed, but it’s also adorable how flushed she is. “You should just be glad I came at all.”

“You may as well not have come at all,” he says, glancing at the clock mounted above the door. “I’m only on shift for another thirty minutes.”

“Perfect. We can talk after that.”

“Talk?” His brows furrow. “What about?”

“Your denial of love for Maisie,” she says. “It’s getting old. We both know you love her.”

There’s something…off.

Her voice is smooth in a way he knows she’s purposely making it. She doesn’t sound upset, but it’s not the way she normally speaks, and it makes him think maybe there’s a reason she had been late.

He wants to question it, but she doesn’t give him the chance to dwell on it before she continues on.

“Anyway, I’ll hang around the back if that’s alright,” she says. The cat jumps onto the counter from his lap to stare at Annabeth, even giving her what looked like a chastising meow. Annabeth has always been much fonder of the cat than he is, but he still adores the way she softly brushes Maisie’s back before bending to kiss between the kitten’s eyes.

“You could say hello to me first, you know,” Percy says blankly, watching her kiss Maisie again. 

“Well, I would, but I much prefer Maisie’s company.”

Despite that, she leans over the counter for a kiss. Who is he to deny her?

The rest of his shift is boring, and it seems to drag on for eternity knowing that Annabeth is somewhere behind him while he is forced to stay at the front. He does consider going to steal the cat who followed her to the back so that she returns to his side, but even that seems cruel. She’d probably take the cat back and put them in a loop of thievery.

By the time he’s able to leave, he’s practically bouncing in anticipation. He’s quick to take his name tag off and move to the back room in search of his girlfriend. All things considered, this bookstore would make an excellent location for hide and seek because he doesn’t immediately see her. The room is crowded, shelves of boxes filled with books he’d been too lazy to put out quite yet, and she could be hiding behind any one of them, but that would also be a little odd of her to do. 

He stares at the empty room, and then at the small staircase up to the roof where the door is propped open with a new copy of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. 

“I don’t mind if you want to sit on the roof, but is destroying my books really necessary?” he calls out, pushing the door open and finding Annabeth sitting against the cement railing.

“How else were you meant to know I was out here?”

“Like you don’t sit up here every other day,” he says. It’s a semi-true statement. They used to come up here a lot in the summer and just lay with their hands intertwined, looking up at the clouds and finding shapes in the nonsensical patterns. As it got colder, they stopped going as often. As far as he knows, Annabeth mainly finds her way up here when she needs a quiet place to run through her thoughts. 

Annabeth laughs as he steps out further onto the roof. It’s covered in a layer of snow, and he nearly fell over with the first step he took. She’s wrapped in her coat, and also a blanket that she’d stolen from the back, sitting on the ground in an area where she brushed away the snow. Beneath the blanket, he spots a small black nose and a singular eye peering back at him.

“You kidnapped the cat?” he asks, amused.

“She followed me,” Annabeth says. “It’s not my fault she can’t handle the cold.” 

Percy laughs, and Annabeth lets go of the cat anyway.

“Let Maisie back inside, will you?”

He holds the door open as Annabeth releases the cat from her arms, letting the cat pass through before removing the book and letting the door click shut.

She glances at him, amused. “Did you just lock us out?”

“That door doesn’t lock,” he says, coming closer to her. 

“That’s a pretty big threat. What if someone broke in and stole all your books?”

“Well, aside from my mother, you’re the only person that knows the door doesn’t lock. I’m looking right at my number one suspect.”

“An unlocked door to a bookshop is practically an invitation,” she defends. “Am I at least allowed to take them if I promise to return them?”

He hovers above her, giving her a lopsided grin. She smiles back before resuming looking out in the distance. As she’s looking at the quickly darkening sky, covered in low hanging dark clouds, shadows looming over the opposite buildings, he never stops looking at her. She pointedly tries to look anywhere else. 

“Are you okay?”

Annabeth shrugs, but her lips quirk up. “Aren’t you sick of the snow?”

“It gets annoying.” He nudges her knee gently with his foot. “Easier to handle when you’re not sitting in it.”

She doesn’t respond to that. Instead, she continues looking out over the building, tightening the blanket around herself. He stays standing above her for a few moments before deciding to settle down next to her. She opens up to him immediately, letting him into the warmth of the blanket and tucking her head against the right side of his chest.

Together, they look out in the distance. There’s not too much visible with the fog the clouds offer and the haze the falling snow creates, but he doesn’t say anything for a few minutes until he notices her shallow breathing like she’s trying not to cry and concern takes over.

“Are you sure you’re alright?”

“I’m great,” she says, her head still heavy against him.

Percy adjusts the blanket around her shoulders softly. “Then why are we sitting out here?”

“I don’t know why you’re sitting out here,” she says. “I’m sitting here because I wanted to be alone for a bit.”

“Did something happen?”

“Something always happens in that house,” she says bitterly.

And his heart aches. 

He’s held her in his arms at night listening to her sob enough times to know what surviving in that house is doing to her. He knows that her dad treats her as though nothing is never enough, and he knows that Annabeth always continues to try anyway. It never ends well, and he desperately wants her to not have to put up with it, but Annabeth is the most beautiful person he knows, in love with the idea of miracles and families finding their way back to each other like in novels written by people with the same dreams. Some part of her remains with the childlike hope that she’ll earn her father’s approval. 

She never does.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

He can see the thoughts running through her mind, a glimmer of something real, something hopeful. Despite herself, she smiles, like she’s imagining they’re somewhere else, and asks,  “Why don’t we leave?”

Percy laughs, confused. “What?”

“California.”

And he’s always dreamed of a life with her, but he’s never imagined that his fantasies would lead him away from his home. 

“Can you imagine it?” she breathes. “It wouldn’t get this cold, so we wouldn’t have to constantly run around in the snow. It’s so pretty there, and, oh, the beaches. You would love it there.”

“I’m sure it’s wonderful there,” he agrees hesitantly. “I like it here too.”

She nudges his arms. “Oh, come on. Be adventurous. We could take a road trip there when we move, and we could stop at different monuments. I know you always wanted to see the Grand Canyon. You could go to school with me too.”

Percy smiles softly, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “What’s going on? You’ve never mentioned wanting to leave before.”

She’s silent, biting her lower lip until it begins to bleed. There’s an uncomfortable feeling settling in his stomach because her theoretical words don’t seem too theoretical. Her words are real, and he knows something’s not right.

“My dad and I got in a fight,” she says. “Once I graduate, he wants me out. I have nothing left for me here, but I was thinking…we could leave. Both of us.”

Percy furrows his brows. “But…your dad won’t actually kick you out, will he?”

“I don’t know,” she admits. “I don’t want to stick around to find out.”

Percy grabs her hand, squeezing comfortingly. “Even if that were to happen, my mom loves you. She would never leave you without a place to stay. Don’t worry too much about it.”

That’s a life he can imagine. He can see them a year from now, living together, Annabeth spending her days writing while he works, creating their own home, even if it means living with the cat that he doesn’t like (except maybe he likes the cat just a little bit). He wants that life.

“You’re not listening to me.” Annabeth laughs incredulously, pressing the base of her palms against her eyes. “I want to leave.”

“Why?” He tries really hard to be gentle to not scare her. “This is our home.”

“This is your home.” She sits up now, turning in her position on the ground to face him. “I grew up here, but this isn’t my home. My dad doesn’t even want me, and he’s not going to stick around once I’m eighteen. There’s no point in me staying here.”

A stab of hurt runs through him. “I’m here.”

Annabeth takes a deep breath, and there’s a shift between them. The few feet that rest between them seems to span a mile.

“That internship I mentioned,” she says. “The one in California. I just heard back from them, and they’re offering me a position there. I wasn’t going to take it, but then with everything going on with my dad…I can’t be here anymore.”

Percy laughs because he’s not sure what else to do. He waits a moment for her to say something, to start laughing and tell him it’s all a joke, but she doesn’t. She only stares expectantly. 

“You’re serious?”

“I am.” She reaches out to rest her hand on his knee, pleading. “Come with me.”

“California, Annabeth. That’s the opposite side of the country.”

“We could figure it out,” she says. “We have time. We could plan to get an apartment, and we’d bring Maisie with us.”

Percy’s an impulsive person. He’s always been bad with blurting things out before he has time to think about the implications of what he’s really saying. It’s for that reason that he almost says yes. He almost agrees to move across the country without thinking of the consequences. He almost drops everything to chase down a daydream because this is his girlfriend and he loves her. It’s a type of love he thought he’d never find, and he’s not willing to let that go quite yet.

Then, he remembers his mother and how she spent her life supporting him on her own, never having the means to provide for him yet somehow doing it anyway. His mom found love again, had another baby less than a year ago, and she needs help now, and he’s actually old enough to provide that help, and he can’t leave. Not after everything his mother has done for him.

“Let’s not do this right now,” he says. “It’s December. You can try talking to your dad, or we can start looking for somewhere to live. Maybe in a few months, things will be different.”

Annabeth smiles sadly. “It won’t be different.”

No, no, please, no.

“I’m going to LA, Percy.”

“Annabeth, please.”

And then Annabeth’s crying because somehow, they both know how this ends. “Come with me. Please don’t make me go alone.”

He knows that’s her way of saying she’s going regardless of if he follows. 

Percy sees the end as it begins. He thinks he knows how these next few months are going to go. She’ll accompany him to work, reading words because it’s easier to drown out her own worries. They’ll pretend that she’s not going to leave if he decides not to follow, except she will leave and he won’t follow. There will come a point that she stops joining him at work and he stops picking her up outside her class. She’ll say goodbye to her friends and he’ll be left in the bookshop watching time move on as snow falls down, wondering if she’ll show up to say goodbye to him too. He’ll never find out because he’ll stop working nights. If she shows up, he won’t want to know because he will have watched her walk away to the opposite side of the country knowing that he can’t follow. 

As he looks in her eyes, he knows that’s how it will go.

Still, he tries. 

“I have my family here,” he says. “I grew up here, and my mom needs me. I have people here.”

There’s a flash of something unfamiliar in her eyes. It’s not anger, but something softer, like she knew it was going to end like this too, like she wasn’t ready for this moment to come. The only problem is that time is not fond of slowing down. Not for him, and not for anyone. 

He tries to silently plead for her not to go, to remind her that her father’s opinion should mean nothing, but Annabeth has always wanted to write words that mean something, and it’s hard to do that somewhere she feels she hardly means anything herself, and so even he knows there’s no avoiding what comes next. 

“Stay,” he begs.

“I don’t have anyone else, Percy.”

“You have me.”

Annabeth’s crying now, and she can’t look him in the eyes. All she can do is look in the distance from where they sit on the roof, where the sky remains gray, a color he used to find so comforting when looking into her eyes in the darkness of the night. The color seems awful and sad now, forcing him to be estranged from her.

“I can’t do it,” she says, wiping her nose. “I can’t stay here. I love you, and I’m not going to make you come with me, but I can’t—”

Those are thoughts that have been passing through her mind for months. Where Percy is spontaneous, Annabeth is not. She thinks things through, weighing them, and for her to reach the point that she feels suffocated here…he hadn’t known. He wishes he had. Maybe then things would be different.

“I can’t leave here,” Percy whispers.

Annabeth locks eyes with him. He takes it in, suddenly terrified of where they’re going to go. 

Correction: where she’s going to go, and where he knows he can’t follow.

“And I can’t stay.”

[kindheart525]

Snowcone sat next to her Nana and drew circles on the table with her hooves, her lips rolled in like she was trying to hide inside herself. She had no clue what to say. Was there something she was...supposed to say? She knew this was an important moment but what if she got it wrong? 

Finally she broke the silence, her words trailing off into a slight chuckle. 

"Did I make a good first impression Nana?"

Reuniting with her daughter and meeting her granddaughter was the highlight of Raz’s week...well, the highlight of the last several decades...so she didn’t even hesitate as she took Snowy’s face in her hooves and squished her cheeks affectionately.

“Oh dearie, you made a perfect first impression. I don’t want you thinking for a second that you didn’t!”

Snowy couldn’t keep that sour look on her face when her Nana held her, the squishing of her cheeks making her feel a level of warmth she couldn’t quite place her hoof on. 

She leaned into the holding but couldn’t quite bring herself to make eye contact. The good feeling faded away too quickly and was replaced by a sense of restlessness. She pulled away from Raz and stared. 

"So is this all you do all day? How do you stand it? I can barely keep my cool through a five-minute lecture from Mom."

Oh Gaia, could Raz relate. 

The filly’s restless demeanor reminded her so much of herself when she was young. Even now she couldn’t stand lectures from the ward staff, even though lectures weren’t the worst she had to deal with. But she understood. Snowy was just like her, that filly. A kindred spirit.

“Who says I do stand it?”

She chuckled, choosing to explain a horrible situation with humor.

“You know I’d rather be dead!”

She quickly lowered her voice mid-sentence once she realized what she just let slip, looking around to make sure none of the ward staff overheard her. Then she looked back to her granddaughter with a smirk.

“Your grandpa better be burning for this, I’ll tell you that!”

As something shifted in Raz, it shifted in Snow as well. She began to fidget in her seat, sitting up straight. She raised her brow in excitement. Any other grandkid would have been incredibly concerned but Snow…

Snowcone giggled. 

She too looked around before leaning in close, barely able to get out of her choke because she was snickering so hard. Snow wasn’t aware of the full story but she could put two and two together.

"G-grandpa’s grave is..SHCDHGSG...is a gender n-neutral bathroom!”

As soon as she got it out she melted into laughter, slamming her hoof on the table. 

Things weren’t going to be fun and games forever though. Raz had seen the path she had gone on and with Snowcone’s much more fiery personality things could go a lot lot worse for her.

“Hush hush! They’ll hear—“

But Raz was choking on her own laughter too, her grandbaby’s laughter was so contagious that she couldn’t help it. She loved having somepony who got her, somepony she could laugh with.

But as she composed herself, she became more serious.

“You’re a smart filly, alright? You better find a good pony, somepony who truly loves you and isn’t going to leave you. I hope my Fizzy treats you better than your old Nana’s folks did.”

She smiled warmly, feeling a new wave of emotion coming on but trying not to show it.

“‘Cause good golly, you deserve to be loved!”

Snowcone internally groaned as she realized what she had started. Oh, she thought her Nana was going to be different from other adults. She tried to keep the same demeanor on the outside though. She wasn't a complete jerk after all.

"No no!"

She straightened up as her mother was mentioned, waving her hooves to signal that Raz had gotten it all wrong.

"Mom is wonderful, so is Mother. They love me, they're just kinda bad at handling-"

Snow’s face went hot and flushed. She sank into her seat and averted eye contact at all costs, fidgeting as she spoke.

"-my issues."

Raz was quick to pick up on how uncomfortable Snowcone was and her heart sank, realizing that she was the one who triggered that reaction. She wanted so badly to make a good first impression too, so the fear that she wouldn’t put her in physical pain. 

So she sat next to her, wracking her brain for a better way to connect.

“Well nopony’s perfect, even the ones who love us won’t always get it right. Nopony really gets it except us, the ones who’ve been through it all.”

Then she decided to be honest.

“It’s been so long that I...I don’t know what things are like nowadays. I don’t know what kind of mother Fizzy is, what kind of mare she is, all she’s been through. I don’t know a lick of what you’ve gone through either. I can only imagine.”

Raz looked up at her granddaughter, scooching closer ever so slightly.

“I’m a clueless old prune. But I want to be there for you, I want to help you any way that I can. Just say the word and Nana will do whatever you want her to...

She trailed off, fearing she was getting too cocky.

“...if you want her to.”

Both mares were going from attracting to repelling magnets every few seconds, their emotions already weaving into a very complex relationship. 

But neither of them was going to let this end any way but positively, even if getting there was somewhat awkward. 

Snow had heard the “nopony’s perfect” shtick a thousand times before and it never made anything better. She was perfectly aware that everyone was gonna fail her and she had to suck it up. 

It wasn't doing Raz any favors until she chose to tell her the truth, immediately piquing Snowcone’s interest. 

Honesty begets honesty. 

"Lady, I've lived out here all my life and I don't even know what things are like!"

Snowy tried to be quiet about it but couldn't help but laugh as she said this, half because it was funny and half out of disbelief.

She opened her mouth again to speak but shut up rather quickly. 

When Raz was done she let out a deep sigh and leaned into her grandmare’s arms. Snow decided that the best plan of action was to show her that she was there.

And that Raz wasn't going anywhere either.

This was what Raz missed. Connection. She had made the odd friend during her years in the ward but this was different, this was her own flesh and blood. She had so much catching up to do, so much to learn and relearn about her family, both new and old. And this moment with her granddaughter was a great start.

She never wanted this moment to end. But she knew it would.

“When you go home you make sure to stay in touch, alright? I want to hear all about what it’s like out there even if it doesn’t make a bit of sense. Nana wants letters!”

“There will be no need for letters.”

Both grandmare and granddaughter looked up at the sound of the voice, noticing Tempest approaching them with a smile on her face.

“I should have done this long ago, Mom. You shouldn’t have to spend another day in here. You’re not going to spend another day in here. I’m not going to leave you again.”

Raz’s chest swelled up as her daughter spoke, was she hearing this right? She looked from her granddaughter to her daughter as it quickly sank in. 

Snowcone got it right away too as she buried her head in her hooves and started sobbing. They both knew just how much this meant, just how long it had been coming, and the news was overwhelming in the best way.

“O-oh my gosh Nana, this means...”

Tears sprung to Raz’s own eyes as she embraced her granddaughter comfortingly, looking over to her granddaughter.

“Is it true, Fizzy? Am I really...?”

Tempest nodded, emotion in her own voice as she spoke.

“Yes, Mom. You’re coming home.”

~~~~~~~~~~

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